The busy girl's guide to health and fitness

Wow, it has been quite a while since I have posted! My life has been crazy busy with so many changes that have taken place. I moved from Chicago to Austin in July and have since been getting myself in my brand new life of a new job, new friends and church community, and new training. Back in October, I started veering away from the massive amounts of cardio I has been doing and started to become interested in strength training. I has done some strength training back in Chicago, but nothing too heavy and most of it had been confined to whatever I had done in group fitness classes. I really had no idea what I was doing, but I also knew I needed to start somewhere. The first time I decided to tackle the squat rack, I was terrified. I had never used anything other than the smith machine, and I was scared I was going to look stupid and like a total newbie....and, I did. But I learned that it was ok. We all need to start somewhere! Thankfully the few other crazies that I see every mornin

I cannot believe it has already been a year since I last put myself through the perils of marathon training. I certainly have a love/hate relationship with training.....it is really fun to push your body and see exactly what you are capable of, but man, it is a LOT of running. Pretty much my entire summer revolves around training, including my eating habits, which can put a damper on summer fun sometimes. This blog post will talk about all things marathon....hopefully it will help some of you out! If this is your first marathon, I know how excited, overwhelmed, nervous, and all other emotions you are feeling right now. 26.2 miles is a LOT of miles! My biggest advice in this circumstance is to take one step at a time...literally. You are way more capable of doing this than you know. Before you even set out on a run, make sure you have the following: Marathon Training Plan There are so many to choose from, I know. Do your research! Pick one that goes along with the allotted time

The weather is FINALLY starting to get warmer which means a lot more runners will be headed outside to hit the pavement. There is nothing better than getting in a nice, long run on a beautiful spring/summer day in Chicago, however if you are a serious runner (or even semi serious) you should have been running outside in the cold weather too. While it is natural to want to retreat indoors and just run on the treadmill when it is cold out, constant treadmill running will really set you back from where you were running outdoors when it finally warms up. Last year when I was training for my Ragnar Relay, I did basically all of my training indoors on the treadmill. I went into my first leg super confident that I would CRUSH it since I had been training, but when I got out there, I struggled soooo hard. Here's why: Pacing It is great to have something that automatically paces you, however if you rely completely on that, when it comes time to run outside you are going to start goi

It doesn't take much time being at the gym to know that people suck. Nothing is more frustrating that getting into zone during your workout only to have some idiot do something to annoy you. Below is a list of some things to do at the gym so you do not become THAT person that everyone can't stand. 1. Wipe down your machine There is nothing worse than waiting to use a machine at the gym only to find that the person using it prior to you has left a trail of their disgusting sweat. You know those little wet wipes that are in practically every corner of the gym? Use them! 2. Machine "Reserving"  This is about as annoying as people using folding chairs to reserve their parking spot in the winter. We all want to get in to the gym, put in our work, and get out, but "reserving" multiple machines at a time is just not ok....this is not your private gym. The same goes for the space you use while working out. Don't spread your crap all over the place to t

"Is butter a carb?" For those of you have seen Mean Girls, you know what I'm talking about, but questions like this are all too common in the healthy food world. And with so many conflicting theories on what is healthy and what is not, it is very hard to wade through the immense amount of advice and information out there. So how does one maintain and healthy and clean diet? It is not as hard as you may think.... 1. If it came straight from nature, eat it.  Rule of thumb here: if you can pick it from a tree, pull it from the ground, etc, you SHOULD eat it. Whole foods are healthy foods, and the majority of your diet should consist of these in their natural state. An healthy is super good for you with load of vitamins, fiber, and natural sugar. However, when you douse it in caramel or chocolate, that now becomes unhealthy. I see this most commonly with salads. People have a salad packed full with healthy greens, veggies and protein which serves as a great meal......

Let's face it, sticking to your workouts and eating healthy while traveling is REALLY hard to do. You're not in your usual environment with your regular schedule and eating out for every meal. But while sticking to being healthy is hard, it is not impossible. It takes a little bit more of planning and preparation, but I can tell you from experience, you feel so much better when you do not all out forsake your typical healthy lifestyle. Before you pack for your trip, do your research! Does the hotel you're staying at have a fitness center? Obviously this option is ideal to be able to help stick to your workouts, but it is not a deal breaker; do not just decide to not workout based off no fitness center being accessible. If you are staying in an urban destination, search around and see if there is a gym nearby the hotel and call to see if they offer day passes to use their facilities. If that is not an option, there are still a number of exercises you can do right in you