Strength Training and Running Question

Question for those of you that strength train and run.
My friend that is helping me with my strength training said that I should do about 5 minutes of cardio, do the strength exercises, and finish with the cardio I had planned for the day.

On the day that you do leg exercises, do you still run or do you do another form of cardio?
 

Yesterday I did a quarter mile warmup walk, my strength exercises (legs), and then ran intervals of 3min run, 3 min walk, 5 min run, 5 min walk to complete 2.5 miles. About half a mile in, my legs were already tired, but I continued and finished feeling pretty strong. But today my legs are soo heavy...and calves are a bit sore. But maybe this has nothing to do with the running, and everything to do with the fact that it was my first real strength training with legs. 

What do you do?

WI Day

Today is Weigh In Day!

Last week's weight- 207
This week's weight- 205.5
 Change: -1.5

WooHoo! I will take it!!

YAY Friday...My Week in Review!

Week in Review!

How was your food this week?
Food was great. Continued with my elimination of nuts. I was also very careful with my evening carbs. This week, the majority of my carbs came from Fruits and Veggies...very little starches.

How was exercise this week?
Awesome!
Saturday- Zumba
Sunday- 5k on treadmill using Week 3 Cto5k intervals.
Monday- 3mi Walk Away the Pounds with band
Tuesday- 2.25 miles using  Week 3 Cto5k intervals.
Wednesday-  2mi Walk Away the Pounds with band
Thursday-  2miles using  Week 3 Cto5k intervals. + Strength training with Bryan (friend from the gym).
Friday- REST DAY!! YAY!

 What is on tap for the weekend?
Tommorrow with my Zumba and Sunday will be Week 4 intervals. T and I will be doing a little half-day trip tomorrow. He has to pick up some things out of town, and I am hoping we can stop in a near by state park for a bit of fun :)

 Other new!
Next week is my first official 5k of the year. Hoping for nice weather!

A Good Workout After All...

Pounded out another treadmill 5k today. My intervals felt so loooooong. I wanted to quit after 2 miles, but kept going. Felt a little down while I cooled down, and then a lady walked up to me and told me how impressed she was with my workout. She asked how long it took me to build up my endurance and talked to me a bit about her workout. As we said our goodbyes, she turned and said,"You inspired me today." In an instant I was much happier with my workout.

A loss is a loss!

Today is Weigh In Day!

Last week's weight- 208
This week's weight- 207
Change: -1

Honestly, I was hoping for a bigger loss (aren't we always) after last week's unexpected 5lb gain, but losing one pound in a week is great for me, so I am going to take it and cheer!

It's Friday!

Week in Review!

How was your food this week?
Food was in check. I eliminated my pistachios and almonds this week because I was having trouble with portion control. My evening snack (between work/workout and dinner) was carrot and celery with 2% plain chobani greek yougurt and 2 teaspoons of dry ranch seasoning. YUM!!!

How was exercise this week?
Really good. Started week 2 of Cto5k and it was great. Thursday I completed a 5k on the treadmill using the intervals. I also did Leslie Sansone Walk Away the Pounds with the tension ribbon on Monday.

What is on tap for the weekend?
Tomorrow will be Zumba and Sunday will be a run at the gym, unless the weather allows for an outdoor run (fingers crossed). Food on the weekend can intimidate me because I am not in my regular routine and Tommy eats all meals with me. *During the week, we only eat dinner together. But I plan to jounal my food to help me stay on track.

Other new!
I signed up for my first official 5k of the year. I will be running  Feb 2. My goal is just to finish and improve through the year!

5 Pounds

Saturday morning I got up extra early so that I could get in a workout before we hit the road for Bowling Green. It was also my WI day. I was excited to see what the scales said because I had worked so hard during the week, committing to exercising everyday and being mindful with meals while on the road. Well I hopped on the scale, and I could believe my eyes. I stepped off and re-calibrated. I stepped back on...the result was the same as the first time I stepped on...A 5 POUND GAIN!! UGH! But I had worked so hard!!! I was angry as I got dressed for my workout. And I was angry as I started to workout. Why was I even doing this?? But as the intensity of the workout started increasing, I started feeling better. I know I put in the work last week, and I will put it in this week. And eventually the hard work will pay off!!

Friday 5

1. Even with two days on the road, I managed to accomplish my commitment to Shannon to exercise 30+ minutes everyday this week. Actually, the hotel workouts were two of my favorite workouts. Thursday I was exhausted (I think the trip/driving caught up with me) and the thought of going to the gym made me grumpy, but I came home and did a WATP DVD. Those are always a good alternative for me when I just can't get myself into the gym.

2. This morning at the gym, Katie, the manager, noticed my new shoes. This made me very happy for two reasons. A) Who doesn't like a shoe compliment. B) I thought it was kinda cool that I am at the gym so much that she notices when I change shoes :) LOL

3. I started Couch to 5k again this week. And a coworker started it, too. I have used the program several times and love it. This is her first time. We are doing two runs on our own and one together.

4. Tommy and I are heading to Kentucky this weekend for work and pleasure. We are going to visit Mammoth Cave on Sunday and I am stoked. We went in the spring for our anniversary and had a great time. We said then that we wanted to go back, and I am super excited about exploring the caves again! Fun workout!

5. I loved this! I thought I would share!

Girls Love Shoes

I have been needing shoes for months now...too many months now! And with this purchase, I wanted to get properly "fitted" again. I think it is very important to get your running/walking shoes fitted when you can. Unfortunately, I don't have a local running store that does shoe fitting, and haven't been fitted for shoes since 2010 when I first started running 5ks.
I am on an overnight business trip and decided to check in to running stores while I was in a bigger city. After a bit of web browsing, I discovered there was a running store a couple of miles from my hotel. After check-in, I headed over to see what brands they sold and what type of evaluations they did. I was so impressed with Montgomery Multisport! The awesome guy that helped me went above and beyond to make sure I was happy with my shoes. He started by asking questions about my current workouts and goals for the future. Then he measured my feet, did a digital foot analysis to measure my arches, and  watched me run on a treadmill (and gave me a few pointers on form). After all that the real fun started.  I got to try on a ton of shoes!  Seriously, he just kept pulling out shoes for me to try by walking around the store and jogging on the treadmill. I think I tried on at least 10 different pairs of shoes. It was a tough decision, but I chose......(drum roll please...)

The Mizuno Wave Enigma 2!! And I love them!
If you haven't been fitted for shoes, I encourage you to do it! So worth it!

Finding My Spark

I have always adored Shannon. Honestly, her blog is what motivated me to start my little blog several years ago (after stalking hers for many, many months). And when I finished my first 5k, she was my first person to msg. I was so excited, and I knew she was sharing my excitement all the way from Alabama to Utah.  And even though both of us have been away from "blogland" for awhile, we have kept in contact though Facebook.  I always love seeing little comments from her. Through thick and thin, she has been an inspiration to me!
Earlier this week, Shannon put out an all call to her friends and former blog buddies for us to make a comeback and be the community of supporters we once were. I wanted in on this! I do my best work when I have support from the blog community. But, when I would open my blogger window, it would sit blank. I didn't know what to say or what to share. (A secret, I feel this way quite often...I love reading blogs...and have never stopped reading what is going on with you guys for more than a week or so at a time...but often I feel what I have to share isn't very exciting or "read-worthy.") I sent Shannon a msg yesterday explaining to her that I was having trouble jump-starting my old blog. She was as encouraging as always. And shared this picture that had been shared with her. I love it!

So guys, I am here again!
I am up 7 pounds during the holidays, and a total of 15. My plan is to erase those 15 first, and then try to lose 30 more bringing me back to my  "happy early 20s weight." HAHA  Guess what? I will be 33 next month!

I also want to focus on running again. I only did two 5k events last year, and I want that number to increase again! Few things  feel as good as crossing that finish line feeling strong, and I want that feeling over and over again in 2013. Last year, I got really discouraged after the weekday evening Zumba classes at my gym got cancelled. I jumped from one activity to the next trying to find something I enjoyed as much. But now I am turning back to walking/running and Zumba will be my "dessert" on the weekends. There is a Zumba Studio that I will go to on Saturday mornings. It will be my reward for hard workouts during the week. The Zumba Studio has always been an option, and I have attended several classes there, but always felt guilty about spending the extra money on Zumba and having my gym membership. But I know there are other places I can cut back, and $5 a week for a Saturday morning Zumba class won't break me! Plus I know that I will love it and look forward to it!

Thank you guys for the support over the years. I appreciate it more than you know, and I am looking forward to feeling that support again!