workout

I’m So Sore and I Love A Good Challenge

~ Tasty Trials and Travels ~ 13 Comments

Hi ya’ll!  How is your morning going?  I just got back from an early morning Body Pump class so I am starting my day off feeling great!  I’m sure I will crash by the time the afternoon rolls around as I was tossing and turning all night!  I hate that.  Oh well… probably means I am due for a good night of sleep tonight… let’s hope.  

I have been meaning to fill you guys in on a little challenge I am doing for the month of January.  My best friend Rachael and I decided to do Ashy Bines’ 28 Day Challenge for the month of January.  (PS. This post is not sponsored, just sharing my opinions freely.)  We were both lacking a little motivation and needed an extra push.  The challenge is all about women motivating each other to make nutrition and exercise a top priority to help us all feel a little better inside and out.  This is in no way a diet.  I have actually been eating more food than I usually do while eliminating alcohol and sugar.  The other big change is an increase in my water consumption.  It is quite amazing how much better you can feel when you are properly hydrated.  

I thought it would be fun to show you guys a few of the meals I have been enjoying regularly.  I always love seeing other peoples’ meals and getting new ideas.  

The other big thing this challenge is helping me with is meal prepping.  I had definitely gotten out of the habit and it was time for a change.  Life has been a lot less hectic around meal times this week having already prepared my food ahead of time.  

For example, these overnight oats were consumed this morning after the gym.  

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Yesterday, I had chia seed pudding for breakfast!

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A delicious quinoa and chickpea salad for lunch!  Yesterday I made a broccoli and tofu stirfry, but forgot to take a picture!  It was my favorite meal so far.

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Last night I had grilled swordfish with veggies for dinner.

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I am really loving the challenge so far especially because I tend to get in a food rut and make the same meals over and over again.  I am mostly sticking to the vegan meal plan, but incorporating some fish a couple times per week and that seems to be a good plan for me.  

But oh my goodness, you guys, I am so sore.  I am still doing some Body Pump classes and running each week while incorporating the set workout from the challenge each week.  Yesterday’s workout made my legs so sore… they were shaking in the lunge track during Body Pump this morning.  Ouch!  I am really trying to be proactive with my stretching during this challenge as I am doing incorporating more activity in my daily routine.  This is always a hard habit for me to stick to.  I will update you guys along the way during this challenge and share more meals if you want.  

I am off to get ready for the day!  I have some shopping to do!  Have an amazing Thursday friends! 

Questions:

  1. What did you eat for breakfast today?
  2. Favorite pre-workout or post-workout snack?
  3. How cold is it where you are?  It is in the 30s in Dallas.

Incline Treadmill Interval Workout

~ Tasty Trials and Travels ~ Leave a comment

Good morning!! I hope you all are doing well and your week started off on the right foot!  I am getting back into the swing of things and fighting those post vacation blues.  Thankfully I have a fun weekend to look forward to in a couple days!  

Today I thought I would take a break from my vacation recap (I have so many more pictures to show you guys) and switch gears a bit.  

If you are anything like me, the treadmill (hamster wheel) can get really boring pretty quickly.  Changing up the incline and speed can help fight boredom and create a more effective workout in the process.  I am guilty of getting into my groove (around 6.5) and running 3-5 miles at that pace, but lately I have been making an effort to change things up.  If we don’t challenge ourselves, we can’t expect change.  That is what I keep telling myself.  

I am not a sprinter.  If I had the choice to run 10 miles at my comfortable pace or 10 sprints all out, I would absolutely choose to run the 10 miles without question.  I like running comfortably.  But I do realize that it is important to step out of my comfort zone and pick it up a bit.  I have creating a lot of different treadmill interval workouts lately that include speeds from walking to all out sprinting and inclines from a flat road to a steep hill.  It has really been a good challenge physically, but also mentally.  Usually when I run on the treadmill, I turn on a show and zone out, but with quick intervals, I am forced to focus because a switch is coming every minute or so.  

Today I have a workout for you that I have done a couple times in the past few weeks.  It is a good one.  Please consult your doctor before starting a new workout routine.  Please note that these are the speeds I do, but please be cautious of where you are at and how much your body can handle.  If a 4.0 walking speed is too fast, bump it down to a 3.0 or 3.5 speed.  If 7.0 is too fast or too slow, adjust accordingly and increase each interval from your starting point.  The incline gets very steep for the last few sprints, so feel free to stop increasing the incline whenever you feel you are at your max.  Make sure to warm up and cool down before and after the workout.  If you include a warm up and cool down, the workout should be around 30 minutes.  It will leave you sweaty and feeling very accomplished!  I hope you will give it a try! 

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Let me know if you give this workout a try!  I will be back tomorrow with another vacation recap!  Have a wonderful Tuesday!

Questions:

  1. Do you prefer the treadmill or running outside?
  2. Would you rather do 10 sprints or run 10 miles?
  3. Do you have a favorite treadmill workout?