>Aaaaand we’re off!
Back later for an injury update and pics from Halloween weekend! What’s your costume??
>Hey guys,
I have some unfortunate news to share. As you all know I’ve been working hard to train for my November 13th marathon in Richmond, VA. I’ve been doing so well and averaging a 7:54 pace during my long runs, a time that would re-qualify me for the Boston Marathon.
Recently however, I tripped while running and rolled my ankle pretty badly and now my hip flexor is KILLING me.
It’s been about a week now and it’s still too painful to run. I didn’t mention anything earlier because I hoped it would magically heal itself, but sadly it doesn’t look that’s happening. So for right now, the marathon is up in the air and I guess I’ll see how I feel within the next two weeks, but it’s not looking good 😦
So in the meantime I’ll be saying bye-bye to my favorite running routes:
And trying to stay in marathon shape by other workouts that don’t hurt my hip such as:
>TGIFFFFF is all I have to say 🙂 Tonight I’m working 3-11 then have Saturday and Sunday off – and I can’t tell you how excited I am. I genuinely love working at the hospital (transplant unit) but my poor feet are so tired and swollen.
>Hi everyone,
How have you been? Did you check out Stefanie’s letter for the Letters to Me campaign? It’s pretty amazing.
The last few days have been exhausting for me. I’ve worked 7am-7pm for the last 4 days. My legs and feet are sore. I swear I’d feel less tired if I ran 10 miles each day. Running around a hospital is hard stuff! But nonetheless, I am loving it. I am so glad I made the decision to follow my dream.
The upcoming seasons and holidays always remind me what I’m thankful for. Lately I’ve been thinking how amazing my sister is.
Besides being a gifted and beyond compassionate nurse, she is the best sister [and friend] I could ask for. She recently had a big job interview so I’m crossing my fingers for her! Kels, anyone would be lucky to have you work for them.
OK, it’s confession time – long hours at work has forced me to put my marathon training on hold – well at least until I can catch up on some sleep. I can’t fathom running after a 12 hour shift on my feet. By Thursday, I plan to be back in action.
I’ve had less glamorous breakfasts…
And more…..
And snacks on the go..
Buuuuut I’m not so sure I’m looking forward to this…
>Happy Sunday everyone! I hope you’re having a wonderful weekend. Today’s post is from Stefanie of The New Healthy as part of the Letters to Me Campaign.
>Sorry for the hiatus! I’ve been super busy the last few days with work and some other fun stuff. I can’t wait to tell you what I’ve been up to!
Soooo, a little rewind…
As you know, I was home visiting the fam in New Hampshire over the weekend:
Sunday morning I took a glorious Bikram yoga class to stretch out my legs after Saturday’s 17-miler.
Then I headed apple picking with my [soon-to-be] sister-in-law and niece 🙂
I wish I could have spent more time in Bah-ston but had to jet-set back to DC. Look at the cutest frequent flyer!
Dinner, wine, and dessert for the three roomies (me, sis, and Manfriend)!
Oh, and he painted the living room for us as a surprise!
>Well I made it safe to New Hampshire. The beauty of New England never ceases to amaze me. The foliage is gorgeous and the weather has been fantastic. I’m in heaven.
I made yesterday my rest day of the week because my body asked was begging for it. I slept a glorious 12 hours, made a fort in the living room and watched Shrek with my niece, then cooked my family a pretty tasty gluten-free meal. My [soon-to-be] sister-in-law is newly diagnosed with Celiac Disease so I was challenged when I wanted to make Italian considering 1) She has Celiac and 2) I’m allergic to parmesan and ricotta cheese.
I made a tomato sauce with ground turkey and veggies topped over gluten-free pasta and spaghetti squash. The appetizer was definitely the winner though! I made polenta for the first time!
This afternoon I thought it was a good time to try out some gluten-free Pho the nice people at Happy Pho sent me.
I didn’t use the seasoning and instead cooked the noodles in organic chicken broth with cilantro, carrots, mushrooms, tofu, dash lime juice and red chili peppers. It was heavenly! Note: The noodles cook fast so cook them separately after the veggies/tofu/broth are done then combine. It was a simple and very satisfying dish!
Feeling fueled and hydrated..
I ran 17-miles for my training long run. I set out to do 18 but just could not make it. I hadn’t fueled well the day before and I could definitely tell. For the next few long runs I need to remind myself to fuel as if I was running a race. But all in all, I feel GOOD 🙂
Well I’m off to bed. I’m taking an early morning (8am is very early for me hehe) Bikram yoga class then going apple and pumpkin picking with my sister-in-law and niece!
Have a great weekend,
Lauren
>I’m extra excited for today because I’m jet-setting to New Hampshire for the weekend. I’ll be spending quality time with the fam, getting in a 18 mile training run, eating my mama’s cooking then running the Tufts 10K for Women with my mom and sister!
If you’re in the Boston area on Monday, The Tufts 10K is an amazing race. 7,500 women of all ages come together for an extremely empowering event.
Little rewind…today was a busy day. I woke to a delicious bowl of oatmeal I prepared the night before (my favorite warm oats combo):
After running some boring (but necessary) errands, I hit the [Rock Creek] park for a 4-mile run..
There’s a section of Rock Creek Parkway where you can enter this area…
I ended my run conveniently at the gym so I could squeeze in a good weights sesh. This training season, I’ve been doing a lot more heavy lifting, especially lots of weighted squats and lunges. To read an article by my brother (he’s a former college athlete and is studying with some of the best strength and endurance coaches out there) on the importance of heavy lifting for girls, click here.
Some good points:
“There is a common misconception that women will “bulk up” if they lift heavy weights. I’ll say this only once…building muscle is an EXTREMELY hard thing to do. If your body had to choose between breaking down muscle and building it, you bet you would look like a bag of bones. Genetically you will not/cannot bulk up, unless you want to compete in competition and take some illegal injections if ya know what I mean.”
“Females want to get “toned”, right. I hate to burst your bubble but there is no such thing is toning or shaping a muscle. Muscles can only get bigger (hypertrophy) or smaller (Atrophy). Now to make those muscle look better you need to shed the fat around the muscle and make the muscle bigger. This can all be done by taking a leap of faith with me and changing what you have always done.”
“What if I told you by doing only endurance activity your only tapping into a portion of your muscle potential. Your body is made up of both type I (aerobic/endurance) muscle fibers and type II (anaerobic) muscle fibers. Type I fibers are used for endurance activities and do not have great potential for growth. Type II fibers are those used during sprint and heavy resistance training activities. (In my opinion, those activities are harder and better). Now type II fibers have a much better potential for growth and strength improvements when trained. That means train heavy and intense and see strength and muscle size shoot through the roof. (See ya lata flabby arms!)”
“With aerobic training or light weight, high-repetition lifting, our metabolism does not stay elevated very long after our training. There is a something called EPOC (Excess Post-Exercise Oxygen Consumption), which is a process done by your body to repay metabolic debt after anaerobic training. This includes repaying oxygen debt, cellular repair, refilling energy stores etc etc. This is a great thing because this elevates our metabolism for 12-24 hours and beyond. So, when you are done your heavy training, you continue to burn calories for hours on end.”
Interesting, eh?
Oh, and I sported a new running tank I picked up from Tar-jay. They have the best [affordable] workout gear!
After the weight sesh I was craving an omelet. I don’t know why I rarely make them. They’re so good!
And snacked on a recent yogurt obsession..
Feeling refueled I ran out the door to volunteer. I love Wellness Wednesdays! Unfortunately I was called into work and had to cancel on the DC food blogger event I was eagerly anticipating. Ah well, next time.
Whelp, it’s 10pm and I just sat down for dinner. My throat is hurting a bit so a refreshing smoothie was in order:
Choc protein powder, frozen banana, 1T Peanut Flour, 1T PB, almond milk, xanthan gum (to thicken), stevia, dash sea salt, ice, raw cacao nibs.
Alright I’m off to pack, watch the last episode of East Bound and Down, and cuddle this guy who has already made himself pretty comfy…
>I’m glad you enjoyed Tina’s letter as much as I did. To learn more about the campaign click here. If you want to submit a letter email me at Biochemista@gmail.com.
Yesterday I was feeling a bit under the weather. The Manfriend is battling a pretty bad cold and I definitely caught it.
Smoothie on left: H20 + SuperFoods
Lunch today was a quick and easy Spicy Black Bean burger (Morningstar). Well two quick and easy burgers 🙂
1. Spray whole grain wrap with cooking spray and grill 2-3 mins on each side. It tastes so much better.
2. Microwave to thaw then then toast the burgers (toasting is key).
3. Add unique toppings such as salsa or hummus.
Still hungry I munched on a honeycrisp apple (best apples ever, right?) and tomato-hummus sandwiches:
In exciting running news, I broke in a new pair of sneaks:
And wore pants running for the first time this season!
For dinner I guess I was still in a burger mood, so I grilled a turkey burger, sauteed some veggies and sandwiched it between a wheat bagel thin
And served along with a simple salad
Something to ponder: Let the stomach dominate the mind, and not vice versa.
Question: I’m considering changing my Blog’s name. I want to keep Biochemista in the name just want to add another word or two to also encompass fitness, health, etc. Any ideas???
>
*This is written to my college self. Thank God things have changed in the past 6+ years. And it is my goal to help others not have to feel that pain a moment longer than necessary. I hope anyone else out there experiencing these feelings knows they have the power to change it.
———–
To read more about the campaign, click here.
Biochemista 
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