Not a DIY Life

Divas Half Marathon Race Recap

noreply@blogger.com (Heather Underwood) — Mon, 21 May 2012 16:44:00 +0000

I am officially a half marathoner! It's almost surreal that I can say that. Although my body hurts enough to make it very real!

I woke up at 2 am on race day, not because that was when I needed to be up, but my bladder woke me up & my mind started racing so I couldn't go back to sleep. Then Ladybug (almost 5 years old) was up coughing from a lovely cold, so there was no chance that I could get any more sleep.

My pre-race anxiety was heightened by the fact that my phone decided to bite the dust on Saturday night. It wouldn't charge. I'm over-due for an upgrade, but I had decided to wait until after the race so I wouldn't have to fumble with a new phone. So I not only was without GPS to monitor my pace, but I couldn't text my family when I was done. It's amazing how dependent we can be on those little devices.

Wearing pink & purple, like a true diva!

A little bit after 4 am, I got up to start getting ready. I got dressed & made my pre-race smoothie to drink on the way to the race. I kept it simple since my tummy was doing flip-flops from the anxiety: coconut milk, Chia seeds, banana, spinach, & a spoonful of peanut butter.

I left a little after 5:00 to pick up my running-mom friend, Yvette. She blames me for getting her into to running, but she has long legs & is built for running. So I think she would have discovered running with or without me. It was nice to have someone to chat with during the 30 minute drive.

We arrived in North Myrtle Beach with plenty of time to spare, found a great parking space, wandered to the starting area, & had time to use the porta-potties. As we waited, we meet two other running mamas who had driven in from Atlanta & Charlotte. When it came time for us to line up with our pace groups, Yvette moved up & I stayed back with Tina & Val.

Not having my GPS turned out to be a blessing because I could just enjoy the race without worrying about pace. I was able to stay with new friends Tina & Val until I had to make a pit stop around 7.5 miles. Their company made the first seven miles fly by. When I stopped, I told them I would try to catch up but I never did. I hope they had a great race.

Around that time, I felt blisters forming on my right foot. It was more comfortable to jog than to walk, so my walk breaks turned into jog breaks. I still felt really good, we had plenty of shade, & I was keeping to my fuel/hydration plan.

Mile 9 was when we came out into full sun & things started to get rough. I just don't do well running in full sun. I would grab two cups of water at each station, drink part of one & dump the rest on me. My stomach started feeling yucky because of the heart too & I didn't have much to eat from this point.

Miles 9-11 were the toughest part of the course. Part of mile 10 was out on the highway, in the full sun with lots of traffic whizzing by. I started doing a lot more walking than I had planned. After turning off the highway, the course went thru a partially completed subdivision. One couple was outside their house to cheer us on, & the gentleman had his garden hose out to give us a quick cool off as we ran by. What a blessing!

In mile 11, a woman who had already finished was running the course backward, giving everyone high-fives & saying, "You are stronger than you think!" That gave me the oomph that I needed to keep going. I knew I wouldn't quit, but the heat was really taking it's toll on me.

In mile 12 we started to see more spectators as the course turned back onto Ocean Boulevard. I was walking as fast as I could, adding in short run intervals. At this point, the blisters were pretty bad & my piriformis started barking at me. I dumped more water on myself at the last water station & set my sights on finishing strong.

About four blocks from the finish, there was a station to pick up a tiara & pink feather boa. Once I got those on, I was determined to run as hard as I could. I knew my A goal of 3 hours was gone, but I wanted to finish strong. Right before the finish line, we turned from Ocean Boulevard onto Main Street. The crowd was awesome, & I started to get choked up. I had to really focus on my breathing so I wouldn't start hyper-ventilating. I did it! I finished a half-marathon!!! Official time: 3:24:18


Huge bling!

There were half-clothed fireman at the finish to give us our medals. We also got a red rose & a glass of champagne (and a bottle of water). Once I got my picture taken, I grabbed some food and started to wander toward my car. My friend Yvette was going home with her family who drove over to see her finish, so I was driving home alone. At this point, I really missed my phone. I wanted to text & tweet so I could share my accomplishment. I was ready to get home, so I quickly took of my running shoes to survey the blisters & don my flip-flops for the drive home. The blisters were bad but not as bad as I thought.

When I pulled onto our street, Hubby & Ladybug were waiting outside for me, clapping & cheering, & I got choked up again. LB immediately took ownership of my tiara & pink boa, as I knew she would. She is definitely a future diva. After I showered & stretched some more, we went out for a celebratory lunch.

Diva Heather (after a shower!)

Although I feel disappointed that I walked more than I had planned, I am very proud that I finished strong. I'll definitely do another half marathon, but I think I'll wait a little while. And kudos to the Run Like a Diva team - you put on a great race!

Thank you for your amazing support & encouragement throughout my training! I learned a lot about myself, I know that I am stronger than I thought I was, and I'm proud to call myself a diva!

Half Marathon Training: Week 11

noreply@blogger.com (Heather Underwood) — Mon, 14 May 2012 17:30:00 +0000

Eleven weeks of training are DONE! That means the race is less than a week away!!! I look back at my training and remember how intimidated I was to embark on this journey. I'm still intimidated by 13.1 miles with 4800 of my BFFs, but I've come a long way, Baby!

This past week was spot on with my training plan. I love my new medicine ball workout! I needed a way to shake up my routine and that has been a great way to do it! Also, I started to ease back on my mileage and started thinking through all of the logistics of race weekend.

Wardrobe: check! I have run in everything at least once to make sure nothing will rub or chafe or be uncomfortable.

Hydration: check! I'll take my 20 oz hand held bottle filled with Nuun, and use the course water stations to supplement and/or dump on myself to combat the heat.

Nutrition: check! I know what I can eat while running and how often I need fuel. I also bought a small Fuel Belt waist pack and have taken that for a run to make sure it would give me any problems.

I know what time I'll have to leave the house on race morning, and that I'll make myself a pre-race smoothie, and that I'll definitely have to visit the porta-potties once we get the car parked.

I'm sure I have forgotten a few details, and if they're important, I hope they'll come back to me during the week. If not, oh well! I've got the basics covered! Right?

Here are my workouts from last week (you can read more details on my dailymile.com page):


Lovin' my medicine ball workout!

Monday: 4 mile run
Tuesday: cardio/strength circuits with my workout buddy
Wednesday: 4 mile run
Thursday: strength circuits with my medicine ball
Friday: very short Pilates workout
Saturday: 8 mile run
Sunday: rest day

This week is officially taper week, which means I will run only two short runs, do my usual strength training, then take Friday AND Saturday as rest days. (Saturday will be crazy busy with Ladybug's dance recital so I don't know how much "rest" I'll get, but at least no official workout.)

Sunday morning, the starting gun is at 7:00 eastern time. So send me your prayers and positive thoughts, if you're awake!

Half Marathon Training: Week 10

noreply@blogger.com (Heather Underwood) — Mon, 07 May 2012 17:29:00 +0000

Week 10 started with some serious mental obstacles. But with the encouragement of friends, I switched my focus, changed my mental attitude, and had a fantabulous finish to the week! It hit me this week that as challenging as endurance running can be, the mental challenge of training for a half marathon is just as great. "If you think you can, you can! If you think you can't, you're right." I think I can! (In fact, I know I can!)

Okay, enough cheerleading. Back to my week in review (you can see more details for each workout on my dailymile page):

Monday: 5 mile run
Tuesday: cardio/strength circuits with my workout buddy
Wednesday: 5 mile run
Thursday: strength workout using my medicine ball - seriously intense AND fun!
Friday: 2.6 mile bike ride, I'm thinking beyond my race and maybe I'll do more biking this summer
Saturday: Longest run-to-date, first time in double digits! 10 mile run!
Sunday: rest day

Yes, I am already thinking of "what's next?" In order to keep myself from building up anxiety about the half marathon, I'm looking beyond it. I know I'll still keep some running workouts, but I think I'll add more yoga and cycling workouts too. I think my body will thank me for it.

Other than training, life is very busy. Ladybug will be 5 at the end of the month, plus she has her dance recital and preschool graduation. A busy schedule always challenges my organizational and planning skills. So if I'm not around social media circles much, I'll be buried under tutus, tap shoes, and party supplies.

Thanks so much, especially to my Mamavation sistas, for your continued encouragement as I train for my race. Less than two weeks to go!!

Half Marathon Training: Week 9

noreply@blogger.com (Heather Underwood) — Mon, 30 Apr 2012 18:08:00 +0000


Not my belly, just how I feel

I have decided that half marathon training is like being pregnant. Sometimes it's not a lot of fun. Sometimes it's a lot of hard work. And a lot of times, you just wish the big day would hurry up and get here already!! The anticipation is killing me! Only TWENTY more days.

Last week was a good week of training. I upped my calorie intake and had tons more energy. I felt a little more organized with meal planning and meal prep. And I feel like I made good choices (lots of Greek yogurt!) to keep my food choices healthy. It helps that I don't buy junk food any more, so I can't indulge if it's not in the house.

I think I over-did it a bit with my strength training session on Thursday however. I woke up Friday with a bad case of DOMS (Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness). I did the same thing the week before. So Friday, I took extra time to stretch and foam roll my legs to prep for Saturday's long run.

For Saturday, I was scheduled to run 9-10 miles. I don't know if it was the muscle soreness or something else, but after 8 miles, my hamstrings decided to cramp up, and I had to quit just short of my planned mileage. I was sort of okay with that, but was kicking myself later for not pushing the last 4/10ths of a mile to make it to 9.

I did take extra care with more stretching and more foam rolling on Saturday, and that helped my legs. But I still felt sort of deflated. Not a great way to end the week.

I am definitely feeling that I need to work on my mental toughness. I need to start preparing my mind for the challenge that 13.1 miles will throw at me. This week I am going to start some positive affirmations and visualizations to mentally prepare myself for pushing through on race day. I am strong and I know I can do it!

Here's a brief summary of my workouts last week (more details for each workout are available on my daily mile page):

Monday: 4.45 mile run (felt strong!)
Tuesday: 45 minutes cardio/strength circuits for cross training
Wednesday: 4.45 mile run (again, felt great!)
Thursday: 45 minutes cardio/strength circuits
Friday: yoga, stretching, foam rolling
Saturday: 8.6 mile run
Sunday: rest day

My plan for this week is the same, adding a bit more mileage, and pushing myself to 10 miles on Saturday's long run.

Thanks so much for your words of encouragement on last week's post. I appreciate your support so much!

Photo Credit: stock.xchng

Dream Big

noreply@blogger.com (Heather Underwood) — Fri, 27 Apr 2012 12:10:00 +0000

Ladybug (almost 5 years old) has been attending dance classes this year at a local dance studio. I've enjoyed watching her confidence & ability grow. Although she has never lacked self-confidence because I think she would try teaching the class if she had the opportunity! She is definitely not shy & she loves the spotlight.


Rainbow Fish

This week, her preschool had the opportunity to attend a performance at the local arts, science, & technology magnet high school. They did an adaptation of the popular children's story "Rainbow Fish." The production included large puppets & lots of dancing, and it was very well done. I was most impressed with the jelly fish & stingray dancers.

After the field trip, I asked LB what she liked best about the play. Of course, she loved Rainbow Fish. Since she has been taking dance, I wanted to instil in her the need to continue with dance class. I said, "If you keeping taking dance, you could do something like that some day."

Then yesterday as we were getting ready for dance pictures, I asked her if she wanted to take dance again next year. She responded with a resounding, "Yes!" Followed quickly with "I want to be Rainbow Fish!"

There's nothing like dreaming big, kiddo!

Half Marathon Training: Week 8

noreply@blogger.com (Heather Underwood) — Mon, 23 Apr 2012 17:26:00 +0000

Week 8! Week 8? Yes! Week 8! It was a really good week. I had several revelations this week that really helped me feel more confident in my training and my ability to complete a half marathon.

Revelation 1: I wasn't eating enough. I was still focusing on eating for weight loss. But, I'm at a point in my training (18+ miles last week), that I need to eat and give my body the fuel that it requires. Sure, I was hoping to lose a few more pounds during training, but if I don't I'll be okay with that. Food = fuel. And a well-fueled body performs well!

Revelation 2: It's getting more humid here in the South and my runs are longer, which means I am a salty, sweaty mess after a run. Salt means I need to replace more than just water. On my long runs, I've been taking only water (plus fuel). This week, I filled my hand-held bottle with Nuun, which is my electrolyte drink of choice (I can't have the artificial colors that are in most electrolyte drinks). It made a HUGE difference! Again, giving my body what it needs so it can do the job I'm asking of it.

Revelation 3: Also because of the heat and humidity, and the fact that my half marathon is 4 weeks closer to summer, I realized that I probably won't be able to keep the pace that I was planning. I have adjusted my pace goal for the race, and I'm okay with that. I know I won't run as fast in summer-like weather. Since this is my first half marathon, I don't have a previous time to beat. My primary goals are to finish upright and uninjured, and slowing down will help me achieve that.

Colorful veggies waiting to become a salad

Revelation 4: Because life doesn't stop just because I'm training for a half-marathon, I need to find ways to still get everything done in spite of the extra time hitting the pavement. So I have started more advanced meal prep, especially for our lunches. Hubby and I both like to eat salads for lunch, but I have to pack his. And there just isn't enough time in the morning to run, eat, shower, get Ladybug (almost 5 years old) ready for school, and pack lunches. So last night, I prepped all of our salad ingredients. All I had to do this morning for Hubby was assemble his salad in his to-go bowl, which took less than 30 seconds. Huge win for this disorganized gal!

Here's my training from last week (you can read details for each workout on my dailymile page):

Monday: 4 mile run
Tuesday: cross-training with cardio/strength circuits
Wednesday: 4 mile run
Thursday: cross-training with cardio/strength circuits
Friday: 2 mile power walk
Saturday: 8 mile run (longest run to date)
Sunday: rest day

This week will be similar, but adding a bit more mileage. Two more weeks of intense training before taper time! Call me crazy, but I'm looking forward to tapering my miles before my race. (We'll see if I enjoy it as much as I think I will!)

Half Marathon Training: Week 7

noreply@blogger.com (Heather Underwood) — Mon, 16 Apr 2012 17:27:00 +0000

Why is it when I follow the training of other running bloggers that their training seems to whiz by and going through my own training it feels like it's plodding along? I wish race day would hurry up and get here. Not because I feel ready. I'm far from it. But how is it still five more weeks until my first half marathon???

Week 7 was full of a wide range of emotions. Yay for getting my mileage back up after being sick in March! Boo for having to split up a long run on Saturday in the heat. Yay for being able to run a 5k for a charity that is near and dear to me! Boo to the walker who thought my spitting (away from her) was "disgusting" and felt the need to say so just loud enough for me to hear.

Yay for a brand new running store opening in our area! We didn't have one before, so for any running gear, I would have to order online or go to a big box sports store. I stopped in at the grand opening of the new locally-owned store on Saturday and picked up a foam roller. For any runners out there, you'll know how important these can be. I've been using a tennis ball for selfmyofascial release, but felt like I needed what a larger foam roller could give. Holy trigger points, Batman! My pretty pink foam roller and I will be getting very well acquainted during the remainder of this training cycle!

Also yay for a new pair of running shoes - thanks, Mom! I have absolutely loved my Saucony Kinvaras, but they now have over 300 miles on them. So I "graduated" to a pair of Saucony Kinvara 2s and will be breaking them in this week.

My Kinvaras with 300 miles & my brand spanking new Kinvara 2s

Here's my training from last week:

Monday: 3 mile run, with speed intervals
Tuesday: cardio/strength training circuits
Wednesday: 3 mile tempo run
Thursday: cardio/strength training circuits
Friday: took an extra rest day to rest a pulled latissimus dorsi & prep for Saturday's race
Saturday: 1.55 mile run warm up, Autism Clinic 5k, 1.5 mile post race run/walk
Sunday: rest day

On Saturday, my goal was 8 miles in total. Originally, I was only going to run the 5k and call it a day. But because of being sick last month, I feel like I'm behind in my training and that I needed to get more miles in. Because of the race, I broke up my mileage, and had planned to run 3-3.5 additional miles after the race. I couldn't do it. By the time the race was done, the sun was out in full force and park where I was running doesn't have much shade. I felt completely zapped. I only finished 6.15 miles for the day.

And unfortunately, I allowed that to affect me emotionally. I started having serious doubts as to whether I could really finish a half marathon, whether I would be ready. I know that the mental aspect of such a challenge is just as important as the being prepared physically. And I know that the mental battle can make or break a race.

Thankfully, some tough love (from myself in the form of "Suck it up, cupcake!" talk) and a good run this morning has snapped me out of that funk. I still question whether I am crazy or not for undertaking this challenge. But when I cross the finish line on May 20th, upright and with a smile on my face, all those questions will be answered.

2012 Autism Clinic 5k Race Recap

noreply@blogger.com (Heather Underwood) — Sun, 15 Apr 2012 17:09:00 +0000


Austim Clinic 5k 2012

Running a race that supports one of my favorite charities is a no-brainer. I get to do something fun (and challenging) knowing that part of my entry fee goes to provide programs for children with autism.

I committed to this race last fall before deciding to train for my first half marathon. Three miles may seem like no big deal in the midst of training for thirteen point one. But it is still a challenge for me.

I knew it wouldn't be as hot at race time this year as it was last year. But running after sunrise at Grand Park is always going to be scorching. There is not much shade, and by race time (9:00), the sun was beating down with intensity even though it was only 63 degrees.

Because I am in the midst of half marathon training, I knew that I needed more than 3.1 miles. So I decided to run a 20 minute warm up before the race, then finish up my miles for the day after the race. I've never done such a long pre-race warm up before. But in some of the reading I've done recently, a 20 minute warm up is highly recommended for a 5k race. Since I needed the mileage anyway, I decided to try it.

My warm up was good, although maybe a little fast. After my warm up, I hit the porta-potty one last time, and grabbed a few dates and some water. I had time to chat with another female runner before the race started. She wasn't sure of the race course, and we jokingly agreed to just follow the people in front of us because we wouldn't be leading the pack. She ended up finishing as first place female overall!

The first mile was good, and I found my pace easily once I got out of the crowd. As I passed the one mile mark, the clock read 12:40. Right on my target pace. Mile two started getting tough. I was out in the sun. I had decided to carry my own water because I knew the water station was at the end of mile two and that I would need hydration before that if I was going to last the morning. But the sun was beating down, so I decided to start run/walk intervals.

I got to the water station, drank a little bit of the cold water, and dumped the rest on me. At this point, the course did a little out-and-back. So as I made the turn, walkers were still coming up toward the two mile marker. When I run, especially during allergy season, I get phlemgy. So I spit. Sometimes a lot. One woman who was walking with her husband were coming toward me, and when she saw me spit, she muttered under her breath "that's disgusting." I turned as they passed me and said, "sometimes it has to be done." Yeah, I usually avoid confrontational situations and thankfully she didn't respond. But ya know, if you're going hang out with runners, sometimes runners do things that you might think are disgusting (like last year when I had to pee in a ditch during a race).

During mile three, I continued doing run/walk intervals, so I would pass the same people over and over in a leap frog fashion. We kept encouraging one another, which made that mile more bearable. As we came up on the three mile mark, we all turned up the energy and ran to the finish.

I'm not sure of my official finishing time, I think the clock said 41 minutes and change, which is better than my 42:13 finish last year. I wasn't expecting to PR because of the heat, so I'm happy with my overall pace for this event.

After getting some water and a banana, I had a chance to chat with a few folks I know, then I went back out for a few more miles to finish my half marathon training miles for the day. It made the race a bit anti-climactic but it's still a race day that I want to celebrate and remember. The only thing I would change would be the start time. Even though it's only April, an 8:00 start time would be better. But then again, it's April, so who knows what the weather will be like next year!

Happy Running!

Half Marathon Training: Week 6

noreply@blogger.com (Heather Underwood) — Mon, 09 Apr 2012 12:28:00 +0000

Week 6 of training for the Divas Hall Marathon was a good week. I still feel like I'm behind after dealing with a urinary infection in week 4, but I tried to focus on what I COULD DO instead of what I SHOULD DO.

My goal was to get all of my workouts in. However, I did miss my Tuesday workout because my Ladybug (almost 5 years old) was under the weather & needed extra mama time. Just part of being flexible & keeping priorities in check.

Monday: 2.5 mile run in the a.m., then a 30 minute power walk in the evening
Tuesday: missed workout
Wednesday: 2.3 mile run
Thursday: light strength workout
Friday: cardio/strength circuits
Saturday: 6.2 mile run
Sunday: rest day

I don't know if it was adding strength training back in or if I'm finally recovered, but by Saturday my energy was almost 100% again, which was a great feeling! I think I could have run farther on Saturday, but I didn't want to risk injury.

My goal for this week will be to get my mileage back up to where it should be. Originally this was scheduled as a step-back week, with a 5k race this Saturday. I'm still running the 5k, but I'll tack on a few extra miles afterward to get me close to 15 miles for the week.

Half Marathon Training: Weeks 3, 4 & 5

noreply@blogger.com (Heather Underwood) — Mon, 02 Apr 2012 17:09:00 +0000

I had a week 3 training update all ready to go, but I became very sick at the beginning of week 4 and it never got published. So I'm smashing everything into one post for time's sake.

Week 3 was a good week, although a felt slower than usual. I kept up with all of my workouts and was still feeling good about training for my first half marathon.

Then week 4 hit. I eventually went to the doctor and found out that I had a bad UTI (urinary tract infection). I had chills and fever, plus body aches and vomiting. It was not fun at all. I didn't eat much solid food, and I obviously didn't have the energy to work out. I was registered to run an 8k race at the end of week 4 and had to scrap those plans.

Into week 5 (last week), I started getting some energy back. So Thursday I went for a run with no expectations. I made it 2 miles and felt like I was going to keel over. My legs had no strength. I started to worry about how this was setting me back in my training, but I had to switch my focus from training to simple recovery.

Saturday, I was able to go for a 4 mile run. Again, reminding myself that I needed to still be in recovery mode. It's a hard place to be. Training for 13.1 miles is huge (H-U-G-E) and my training plan is aggressive (for me). But I was pretty sick, and my body still needed time. Still needs time.

So my goals for this week are continued recovery and to work on building my endurance back up. Even if I can't get all my miles in, I want to get all of my workouts in. Three days of running, two days of cross training and strength training, one day of yoga, and one day of rest.

This is the first time since making a commitment to healthy living that I've had a set back due to illness. Thankfully, I'm a healthy person, and I haven't been sick enough in over two years to miss more than one workout, let alone miss ten days. This has been a mental battle for me, to remember to listen to my body, and to be okay with doing less than what the plan calls for.

Do you have any tips to help me? Have you been through an illness or injury that set you back during training for a big event?

Healthy Snacks for St. Patrick's Day

noreply@blogger.com (Heather Underwood) — Fri, 16 Mar 2012 19:15:00 +0000

Preschool party + healthy isn't a typical equation. I was the "party mom" for my 4 year old's St. Patrick's Day party this week, and I was determined to find a way to make it work.

I wish I could remember where the inspiration came from, but I didn't bookmark it or pin it, so all I can say is this is not a totally original idea. But I took an idea that I saw on the interwebs and ran with it.

Healthy Leprechaun Sandwich

Here are my two issues with the typical party foods for the preschool set: 1) it's usually full of sugar and preservatives. I know most moms are busy, but making treats from scratch doesn't have to take a long time. And 2) typical party food is also full of artificial food dyes, to which some kids (including this big kid) are sensitive and even allergic.

I wanted to have fun party treats that were healthy, and not full of sugar or fake dyes. I think I succeeded!

The hat is a peanut butter and jelly sandwhich on whole wheat bread (I used natural peanut butter and reduced sugar [not no sugar] jelly.) The shamrock cookie is a butter spritz recipe using avocado as green coloring. Two grapes for the eyes. Mozzarella cheese for the smile. And shaved carrots for the beard.

Isn't he the cutest leprechaun you've ever seen? I was so pleased with how it turned out.

St Patrick's party table set up

I did all of the prep at home in less than ninety minutes, including packing all the food for transport. (Not including the cookies. I made those the day before.) That way they could be easily assembled in just a few minutes before the kids came back into the classroom. We also served green chips (French onion sun chips) and green juice (kiwi-strawberry).

If I had had more time to prep and possibly could have had time with the kids prior to the party, I would have liked to have a healthy green food tasting party. Four and five year olds LOVE to give their opinion, and it would be fun to have healthy green foods for them to try. Green grapes, broccoli, spinach, kiwi, and avocado are just a few that come to mind.

I think my Ladybug liked it. What do you think?


My girlie enjoying her leprechaun treats

Half Marathon Training: Week 2

noreply@blogger.com (Heather Underwood) — Mon, 12 Mar 2012 17:46:00 +0000

My second week of training for the Diva Half Marathon was fabulous! I got all of my workouts & miles done according to plan. I ate well, focusing on real food & minimal processed food. I'm even trying to get back into the habit of tracking my food intake. (Two years of constant food journaling is tough & I took a much needed break.) I was able to add core work to my strength workouts as well.

You can see all of my workout details on my daily mile page. Here are the highlights:

Monday: 3 mile run including speed intervals
Tuesday: 45 minutes cross-training with strength circuits
Wednesday: 3 mile tempo run
Thursday: 45 minutes cross-training with strength circuits
Friday: 40 minutes yoga
Saturday: 6.5 mile run
Sunday: rest day

An awesome highlight of the week was meeting Mamavation Mom graduate, Shannon. Her husband has been stationed in North Carolina, and they had been planning a quick trip to Myrtle Beach before they get moved later this month. It was so awesome to talk about our health and fitness journeys while we walked around one of the shopping/tourist attractions here. (Excuse my crazy hair - it was windy!) Yay for getting extra steps in!

My training for this week will be similar, although I'll add a couple miles to my running workouts. And I registered for an 8k race on March 24th! It will be my first race longer than a 5k, and I'm looking forward to getting more race experience under my belt.

Half Marathon Training: Week 1

noreply@blogger.com (Heather Underwood) — Mon, 05 Mar 2012 17:51:00 +0000

My first official week of training went well, with the exception of Saturday. But part of that was the weather & since I don't have any control over that, I'm not going to dwell on it. I have confidence in my training plan even if I don't have confidence in my body's ability right now. The main reason that confidence wavers is because of my weight.

Yes, I am hoping that I'll lose weight in the process of training for my first half marathon. But I'm also realistic in that I know my body & it likes to lose weight slowly. The question in my head is: will being 50 lbs overweight put me at higher risk for injury? So I am amending my goals for the training & running of my first half to include remaining injury-free.

My workouts for last week were:

Monday: 3 mile run with interval training
Tuesday: cardio/ strength training class
Wednesday: 3 mile tempo run
Thursday: power walk, full body strength training
Friday: yoga
Saturday: 5.8 mile run in the rain
Sunday: rest day

I want to incorporate more strength training, especially core work, so I'll be extending my Tues/Thurs workouts to at least 60 minutes. Also, my cardio/strength training class partner can now only meet on Tuesdays so I'll either do a video that includes strength training or do a Workout Trainer app workout on Thursdays. The rest of the schedule will remain the same as above.

13.1 miles seems very daunting right now. Do you ever set goals that scare the crap out of you?

Healthy Chicken Salad

noreply@blogger.com (Heather Underwood) — Fri, 02 Mar 2012 20:32:00 +0000

Healthy Chicken Salad on Whole Wheat Bread

I love food, I love to cook, and since being on this journey of healthy living, I love to make healthy food! I especially love taking favorite recipes and giving them a healthy makeover.

The typical chicken salad sandwich is over 500 calories. Yikes! Not including the bread, my recipe has around 130 calories per serving.

I was asked to make chicken salad sandwiches for a church luncheon this week and received the okay to provide this healthy version. I quadrupled this recipe & I think it was well received!

(Note: If making this for myself, I would serve with lettuce on homemade whole wheat bread. But since this was for the luncheon, I prepared them without lettuce on store-bought double fiber bread.)

Healthy Chicken Salad

1 1/2 cups chicken, cooked and shredded
4 oz nonfat plain Greek yogurt
1 medium apple, chopped
1/2 medium onion, chopped
1 medium stalk celery, chopped
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp black pepper
1/4 garlic powder

Add all ingredients in a medium bowl and mix until well combined. Use your favorite bread to make sandwiches or serve on cool, crisp lettuce for a low carb lunch.

Makes 4 servings

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Half Marathon, Here I Come!

noreply@blogger.com (Heather Underwood) — Mon, 27 Feb 2012 18:24:00 +0000

When I first started running almost two years ago, my goals were small. Actually, I only had goal: to run a 5k and not die in the process. If you had told me that I would fall in love with running and would someday train for anything longer than a 5k, I would have laughed.

But here I am. I officially start training for the Diva Half Marathon today. My first (of hopefully many) half marathon.

I've been gearing up for this over the last six weeks. I knew I needed to have a higher base of weekly miles. I have written out a training plan and it stays in the kitchen where I will see it often. I have planned at least one longer race (an 8k, and possibly a 10k) between now and May to give myself additional experience before the big day. Now it's time to begin!

My workout schedule will be similar to what I've been doing, with built in step-back weeks and emphasis on building endurance. Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday will be running days. Saturday will be for long runs, Wednesday a tempo run, and Monday a speed workout. Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday will be for cross training. Tuesday and Thursday, I have a cardio/strength training class, and Friday will be my mix-it-up day for whatever kind of workout I feel that I need. (Lately I've been doing yoga and I love it!)

My goals for my first half marathon are to finish upright, and hopefully do that in three hours or less. Unless my pace dramatically picks up, I think that is a realistic goal.

My husband thinks I'm crazy and sometimes I agree. I'll make my final decision on May 20th. I plan to blog about my weekly training as I go along. I hope you'll join me in this journey!

Chickpea Burgers

noreply@blogger.com (Heather Underwood) — Fri, 24 Feb 2012 15:05:00 +0000

I have been wanting to try more vegetarian recipes lately. However, my husband loves meat. So I have to tread lightly and not go overboard with an entirely meatless menu plan. I came across a recipe for Chickpea Burgers a while back, and finally had the chance to try it. They were a hit!

I made quite a few changes to the original recipe to suit our family's tastes. You can certainly change the spices up. We love onion and garlic, but cumin would make a nice addition too.

I was hoping that this would be both meat-loving husband approved as well as picky preschooler approved. The preschooler said she liked it but only ate two bites. So one out of two isn't bad.

Chickpea Burgers

2 cups soaked, cooked, and drained chickpeas
1 medium carrot
1/2 large onion
1 Tbsp minced garlic (about 2 cloves)
2 Tbsp chopped fresh parsley
1/2 cup bread or cracker crumbs
1/2-1 tsp salt
1/4-1/2 tsp black pepper
a dash of crushed red pepper flakes
a splash of lemon juice
1 egg

Combine all ingredients except egg in a large food processor. (Mine isn't big enough, so I did the vegetables first, then the chickpeas, crackers, and seasonings.) Empty into a large bowl. Add egg, and mix until well combined.

Heat a large skillet over medium heat. Add 1-2 Tbsp olive oil. Make small, flat patties of the chickpea mixture, and cook patties until golden brown on each side. (about 3-5 minutes)

Serve as you would a regular burger.

Makes 10 patties
Serving size: 2 patties

Giving Up (for Lent)

noreply@blogger.com (Heather Underwood) — Wed, 22 Feb 2012 15:24:00 +0000

I had this post all crafted in my head telling y'all about what I'm giving up for Lent. Until I went to Ash Wednesday service this morning. The sermon was on Matthew 6:1-4:

“Beware of practicing your righteousness before other people in order to be seen by them, for then you will have no reward from your Father who is in heaven.

²“Thus, when you give to the needy, sound no trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may be praised by others. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward. ³But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, ⁴so that your giving may be in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you.

This made me stop and re-evaluate what I was planning to write. I don't have as much time to share here as I would like, and I want what I write to meaningful, not just to me, but to others as well. But I had to ask myself WHY I wanted to share what my Lenten discipline would be. To receive pats on the back, and a few "you go, girl" comments?

If what I give up for Lent is for my own personal spiritual discipline, then why do I want to share it? Granted, it is health and weight loss related. And it might give someone else inspiration.

But my goal for my Lenten discipline is to draw on God's power to accomplish something that I can rarely do on my own. I need His strength to see it through.

And that is exactly what a Lenten discipline should be. We shouldn't "give something up" for Lent just because we always have, or because others do it, or to lose weight. Giving something up for Lent should center on deepening our relationship with God.

And that's what this needs to be for me. He alone is my audience, and I need to focus on receiving His praise and His praise alone. Not that anything I do could be worthy, but only through the sacrifice of His Son Jesus Christ can I hope to achieve His approval.

So I decided that I would not share here what I'll be giving up for Lent. If you are insanely curious, you can tell me in the comments and I might e-mail you to share (or I might not).

Seen On My Run

noreply@blogger.com (Heather Underwood) — Wed, 08 Feb 2012 15:16:00 +0000

Saturday, February 4, 2012

Overcoming Emotional Eating

noreply@blogger.com (Heather Underwood) — Mon, 06 Feb 2012 17:53:00 +0000

I had a huge victory this week. One of the biggest struggles in making healthy lifestyle changes has been taming the emotional eater within. I have made a lot of progress in two years. But there are times when the beast raises its ugly head.

On Thursday, I made my first attempt at passing the personal trainer certification exam. I didn't pass. To say I was disappointed is an understatement. I know that it is an extremely difficult exam to pass the first time. But I studied hard and was really hoping it would pay off.

When I walked out of the testing center with results in hand, my first thought was of my old comfort. Food. Especially sweet food. Cookie dough, ice cream, cookies. I managed to stop those thoughts by reminding myself how sick I would feel. An overabundance of sugar would not only give me a stomach ache, but would leave me feeling lethargic and potentially trigger a migraine.

I looked at the clock. 10:00am. I could still get a bacon, egg, and cheese biscuit. I somehow reigned in that thought too. I knew I had bagel thins at home, so I finally decided to just go home. I knew the idea of eating wouldn't leave me until I had a snack. I made one of my favorite healthy sandwiches. A farm fresh egg and spinach on a whole wheat bagel thin with a little bit of real butter (because we use real food in our house). It was delicious and satisfying, both physically and emotionally.

This was a huge accomplishment after a disappointing morning. A huge victory for this recovering emo eater.

I have had lots of victories in the past two years of choosing a healthier lifestyle. This is definitely one I want to savor.

Always Learning

noreply@blogger.com (Heather Underwood) — Mon, 23 Jan 2012 19:01:00 +0000

This healthy living journey is one of constant learning. You would think that after two years, I would know everything. (Please note the sarcasm.)

Absolutely not. I hope I will always have the attitude of a student of healthy living. There is so much to know, and new research is constantly being published. And I am always learning something about myself.

This week, I learned the value of rest. Not just taking a rest day every week, which I do. But also allowing my body some recovery time from the rigorous workouts that I put myself through. As I mentioned in my most recent update, I have learned to love exercise. I don't skip workouts because they are a part of my life, my daily schedule.

I do cardio six days a week, strength training two to three days a week. I base my workouts around running, because that is my favorite cardio/therapy. And last week, I put together a new training plan with the goal of running a half marathon in May.

In chatting with several running friends on Twitter, someone recommended building in "step back" weeks into my running plan. Weeks with less mileage and less strenuous workouts to allow some time for my body to recover. I know about step back weeks, but I've never put this concept into practice. Maybe because I'm too driven. Or I'm afraid of losing ground in my weight loss progress. I don't know.

As I wrote out my training plan, I decided this past week needed to be a step back week. I only did two strength workouts, and I ran three miles less than the week before. Mentally, this was tough. I wanted to work hard like I usually do. But I didn't.

And the pay off was an AMAZING run this morning! Faster and stronger than I have felt in a month. I am now a believer in the need for recovery weeks. I learned something new!

Always be a student. Even if you have reached a maintenance level of your healthy living journey, there is still plenty to learn!

The Negotiator

noreply@blogger.com (Heather Underwood) — Thu, 19 Jan 2012 14:53:00 +0000

Scene: the snack aisle of a big box store (not THAT big box store, but a big box none the less)

This week is our turn to provide snacks for Ladybug's preschool class. We have to bring in juice boxes and prepackaged individual snacks so the teachers can allow the kids to help themselves, encouring them to be more independent. If you've read this blog for any amount of time, you know that we try to limit processed foods.


My preferred snack

And this is reflected in my choices for the class snack. I would prefer to buy bananas, grapes, or dried fruit and nuts, but they require a little too much effort (refrigeration & washing the grapes, avoiding bruises on the bananas, possible nut allergies, etc). So I usually opt for individual boxes of raisins and some type of whole wheat cracker. (Versus a non whole wheat product that would have even less nutritional value.)

I do not believe that cookies, Cheetos, or other such snacks make an appropriate mid morning snack for children who need brain power to learn and energy to play. I definitely do not think that "fruit snacks" are healthy in way. However, my daughter, as a typical four year old, thinks they are awesome.

Photo credit: stock.xchng

So, we are in the snack aisle, and I am trying to remember how many snacks I need to buy and peruse what is available. LB sees the "fruit snacks." (I use quotation marks because there is precious little actual real fruit in them.) She is fixated and starts to ask if they can be the snack we bring to school.

Absolutely not. Over my dead body, I think to myself. But I say, no, they are not real food, and Mama wants to buy real food for your snack. LB counters with, but you don't have to eat them Mama. They are for my friends, and they like these. We go back and forth like this for a minute or two. Thankfully, the store wasn't busy and there were no other customers nearby to hear me explain (for the thousandth time) that Mama likes to provide snacks that are healthy and good for growing boys and girls.

My child is quite the negotiator. She came up with several good arguments why I should buy them. Finally, I found enough better quality prepackaged snacks and we were able to move on. But not before she tried to sneak a box into the cart. I have made certain decisions about what snacks I will and will not allow in my home. Fruit snacks are NOT acceptable.

Do we eat processed snacks? Yes, because I do not have the time or energy to make crackers every week. (Homemade crackers are awesome, but time consuming.) However, I opt for the best quality I can find. I read labels. If the ingredient list is short, it's on the good list. If the first ingredient is enriched flour, it's out. If there is HFCS, it's out. If there are artificial dyes, it's out.

I'm not trying to sound holier than thou and say that our food choices are better. What I am trying to say is that I have certain food priorities and I try my hardest to stick to them. Even if my four year old has learned some great debating skills.

Do you have food priorities?

Happy Mamavation Anniversary to Me!

noreply@blogger.com (Heather Underwood) — Mon, 09 Jan 2012 18:23:00 +0000

I can't believe I missed my 2 year anniversary with Mamavation! It was last week, and my Ladybug (4.5 years old) was still on break from preschool. I don't get much down time when she's home. Even now that she's back to school (mornings), my days are full to over-flowing. Studying for my certification as a personal trainer, church activities, family activities. Also I'm still trying to figure out blogging from my android tablet, and find a twitter app that I like. That makes for times when I seem a bit AWOL. It's not intentional. Mamavation gals, I miss connecting with y'all!

Here's a quick recap of what's been going on with my healthy living journey.

Fitness: I've stayed on track with my workouts during the last few weeks. I really do enjoy exercise! (I certainly couldn't say THAT two years ago!) I ran a Prediction 5k on New Year's Day. I got new dumbbells for Christmas. Oh boy, those are fun! My android tablet was also a Christmas present, and I found a fun workout app called Workout Trainer. When I'm at a loss of what workout to do, I look there for direction. All is well in the fitness department.

Nutrition: Now that the holidays are over, it's time to re-group and re-focus. Keeping processed food and added sugar out of my body are a priority, as are proper portions. I know in my head that proper nutrition is a huge part of the weight loss/healthy living equation. Now to work on my follow-through.

Days full of activities make menu planning a necessity. I found a fun magnet menu planning list that I keep on the fridge. That keeps my plan right in front of my eyes. And the bottom portion tears off as my grocery list. Hello, organization! I need all the help I can get!

The Scale: I sort of took time away from the scale during the holidays. I wanted to enjoy and not feel overly guilty. As I said, now is the time to re-focus. I weighed in last week (up 5 lbs since Thanksgiving, not great, but not bad), and re-measured myself. So that is the new starting pointing. I still celebrate that I've lost 35 lbs and numerous inches in the last two years.

I've written down my goals for 2012 to help keep me focused. My goals are not only about losing weight, but about being a healthy person, physically, mentally, emotionally, and spiritually. If you don't have any goals written down, I highly recommend that you do that TODAY!

Welcome to all the new members of the Mamavation Sistahood. Feel free to let me know that you are new and what your Twitter ID is so we can chat on Twitter.

Here's to a healthy 2012 for all of us!

Healthy Appetizer: Spinach-Cheese Balls

noreply@blogger.com (Heather Underwood) — Fri, 06 Jan 2012 20:14:00 +0000

When I'm invited to a party or get-together and I'm asked to bring food to share, I always like to make something healthy. However, I've had some ideas that I thought would be good and they were real bombs. Healthy food should taste good!

I finally found a winner of an appetizer. And even though it calls for biscuit mix, I made it a tad better by making my own with unbleached/unenriched flour. Even small little changes like that can improve the health factor of a recipe without losing any flavor.

A favorite appetizer around these parts is a sausage-cheese ball, and this is the same thing only with spinach. I don't have anything against sausage, I was just trying to offer a somewhat healthier appetizer option at the party. They were a hit! And you can easily double this recipe for a larger crowd.

Spinach-Cheese Balls

Spinach-Cheese Balls

1 box frozen spinach, thawed, squeezed to drain
1 cup biscuit mix (homemade or boxed)
2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
1 egg
2 teaspoons Italian seasoning
1 teaspoon garlic powder
a pinch of salt
tomato sauce for dipping (optional)

1. Heat oven to 400 degrees. Spray cookie sheet with cooking spray (or line with parchment paper). In a large bowl, mix all ingredients, except tomato sauce. Shape mixture into 1-inch balls; place on cookie sheet.

2. Bake 10-15 minutes or until golden brown. Immediately remove from pan. Serve with tomato sauce for dipping.

Makes about 30 balls.

Linking this post to Healthy Food Friday on Mamavation.com

Prediction Run 5k Recap

noreply@blogger.com (Heather Underwood) — Sun, 01 Jan 2012 21:31:00 +0000

The first day of a new year. What better day to have a race! Our local running club hosted the Prediction Run 5k, which is a very unique race. There is no race fee, but they ask that you bring canned goods which are donated to a local food pantry. Also, when you register for this race, you have to predict your finishing time. The winner is the one who finishes closest to their prediction.

I've been struggling with some chest congestion for the past week. I know the rule: if a cold is above the neck, you're good to go. But be extra careful when the symptoms are in the chest. I ran today being careful. I wanted to run, and I'm stubborn. I predicted a finishing time of 39:00, which would be faster than my most recent 5k finish. I really believe I could have come close to that if I had been 100% healthy.

The race was at 10:00am, plenty of time to get myself up and going. (I did stay up alter than usual last night, but not until midnight. I never make it to midnight!) Since we didn't have any music duties at church this morning, Hubby and Ladybug dropped me off at the race while they went to hear a friend preach at his church.

One of the catches with this kind of race is that no electronics and/or timing devices are allowed. It is on a certified course with timing chips, but runners have to just run and pace themselves. (There were walkers too.) I had plenty of time after I checked in to stow my gear and make a visit to the porta potty.

This is the third time I have run a race at this park, and I struggle every time. I finally figured out what the problem is: no shade. The temps were in the upper 40s at race time, but the sun was bright and felt hot. This made me appreciate my usual o'dark-thirty running time.

There were about 100 participants, and the course was 3 laps around the lake. I'm not fond of this kind of course because the faster runners lap me. But I had to get over than and focus on running my own race. I gave myself more walk breaks than I usually would and gaged my pace on how easily I could breathe.

My finishing time was 41:27, much slower than my prediction. But considering how I felt, I'm happy with this result.

My warm fuzzy moment of the day: there were lots of other folks out walking, biking, and running. There was an older couple walking their dog and were going in the opposite direction on my second lap. As I saw them on my third lap, the woman had started jogging and was out-pacing her husband. She gave me a big smile and said, "You inspire me!" I gave her two thumbs up and a "You go, girl!" As I was coming into the finish, she was there cheering for me. We gave each other a thumbs up, and I told her to stick with it.

You never know who you will inspire when you keep your eyes focused on your goals! What a great way to start a new year!

2012 Goals

noreply@blogger.com (Heather Underwood) — Fri, 30 Dec 2011 13:01:00 +0000

Photo Credit: stock.xchng

Last week I realized that I never wrote down my goals for 2011. I know I had them in my head, and I'm sure there was more than one. However, I can only think of one goal that I set out to accomplish this year. I'm not big on making New Year's resolutions, but there is a lot of value in setting (and writing down) goals, no matter what time of year it is.

Here are my goals for 2012:

1. Become a certified personal trainer (taking the exam in January!)

2. Continue to improve my running, clock a sub 12:00 mile

3. Train for and run a half marathon (13.1 miles)

4. Not freak out over my child going to kindergarten

5. Lose another 20 lbs (This has been my yearly average loss for the last two years. At this rate, I'll reach my goal weight in 2015.)

6. Daily Bible reading, an area where I always struggle for consistency
Edited to add: 7. Volunteer for one or more local races.

Now that I have these goals recorded for all the world to see, hopefully I'll remember to check back on them periodically so I can see progress.

By the way, my one goal for 2011 (that I can remember) was to improve my running pace to 12:00/mile. I have run a race and two training runs in the 12:45/mile range, so I'm very close. Well, much closer than I was a year ago when my average pace was 14:00+/mile.

What goals are you setting for 2012?