Hibernating

I want to take a moment to thank anyone who has been reading this blog. (Anyone? Anyone?) Well if you're out there, whoever you are, I appreciate your interest in Iron Mom and I hope you will rejoin me on this journey in the spring.

Iron Mom is intended to be a training log detailing my journey to compete in the Iron Man. I plan to document my training workouts and nutrition as well as recap any races I compete in along the way. My training season typically runs from March through November and I usually compete in 4-7 races each each year between the months of May and October.

Right now, I am preparing to hibernate for the winter. I'm in what I call my "off season" or "post season," a time when I don't compete in any races and my fitness schedule is pretty routine:

Swimming: 2x/week

Cycling/spinning: 1-2x/week

Running: 3-4x/week

Lifting: 3-4x/week on non-consecutive days

Yoga: 1x/week

Walking: Daily (usually 1-2 miles)

Meanwhile, I will continue writing Triathlon Mom, a less technical blog that doesn't detail miles and ounces, but focuses more on the journey itself--on how fitness goals coincide with life and how I manage it while still raising my family. So please check out Triathlon Mom at:

http://triathmom.blogspot.com/

I hope you will join me here again in March when Iron Mom emerges from winter hibernation ready to rock and race!

Cardio Yoga

Today I pushed a little harder in yoga, putting in about 75 minutes of practice this morning, followed by 30 minutes of lifting.

Later in the afternoon, a two-mile walk with Luna completed the workout day.

Breakfast: Usual oatmeal

Snack: Green tea, pumpkin muffins

Lunch: Yogurt and granola

Snack: Pear and almonds

Dinner: Whole wheat pasta tossed with sauteed spinach and garlic in olive oil, topped with wild salmon and raw carrots on the side.

Dessert: Chips (Scoops), melted cheese, glass of red wine + small handful of dark chocolate covered almonds.

Swimming again

Back in the pool after two months off and it felt great!

I can't tell you how many yards I swam, but I can tell you that I worked hard for a full hour. Heart rate was firing. Loved getting such a great cardio workout without pounding on my joints.

Breakfast: power oatmeal (of course)

Lunch: leftover white pizza with spinach and mushrooms

Snack: chai tea and ginger-spiced pumpkin muffin

Dinner: Tofu white chili and spinach salad

Dessert: Chocolate frozen yogurt with homemade granola and raspberries

Trying to fit it all in

Here's what I wanted to do today:

Walk the dog one mile in my Vibrams. Run 1.5 miles in my Vibrams. Run 3 miles in my Kenvaras. Lift for 30 minutes.

Dream on, right? So with the time available to me today, this is what I actually did:

One mile Vibram walk. Two mile Vibram run. 30 minutes lifting.

Trying to get food back on track too. Reintroducing some veggies was a good start . . .

Usual breakfast--power oatmeal.

Post-workout lunch--finished off the rest of the mushroom risotto with almonds and olive oil. A handful of corn tortilla chips, a few dried apricots, four dark chocolate covered almonds to satisfy the sweet tooth.

Afternoon snack--green tea, small dish of almonds, dried cranberries and a few dark chocolate chips.

Dinner--Wild salmon, spinach fresh from the farm topped with broccoli, carrots, goat cheese, walnuts, hard-boiled egg, olive oil and lemon. Yum! Dessert--small handful of dark chocolate covered raisins and almonds. (Yes, I love my chocolate).

And the evening indulgence (and one of many reasons why I work out): Corn tortilla chips with melted cheese and a glass of red wine while watching really mindless television for an hour.

Tomorrow . . . it's back to the pool after almost three months off! Hope to swim and not sink!

Rest and ride

Yesterday I took the day off from all the usual suspects. We were so busy attending soccer games and end-of-season parties that "resting" was the only option.

So, while really a rest, I did take a break from working out, sleeping well, blogging, and eating healthy. I don't think I've ingested a veggie in two days and fruits have only made a few token appearances.

Saturday night, I traded running shoes for high heels and paid dearly for it today. Fortunately, I was able to postpone my run until tomorrow and go for a bike ride with my husband instead.

60 degrees and sunny, we covered 30 moderately hilly miles and enjoyed the beautiful fall colors and the mountains on the horizon. Pre-ride fuel was coffee (of course) and a whole wheat tortilla with almond butter and honey. 42 oz water during the ride.

Post-ride fare was a guilt-free feast of my mom's home cooking--grilled scallop and veggie kabob, homemade baked mac-n-cheese, cooked carrots, and dessert of peach pie a la mode.

Flying through the day

I'd hoped to run 4 or 5 miles today and lift for 30 minutes. I hadn't done either in three or four days and I'm trying to stick to an every other day routine. (Don't ask me why.)

But, as the day would have it, I was lucky to squeeze in a fast 3-mile run, which I managed to churn out in 26 minutes (thankfully, because the school bus got home at the same time I did) followed by 20 minutes in the gym--two sets of 12 reps for six strength exercises.

Food: The usual power oatmeal for breakfast and green tea. Lunch was leftover three mushroom risotto, heated with olive oil and almonds, and dried apricots and dark chocolate covered raisins for dessert. While grocery shopping, I treated myself to a tall soy chai which gave me a little boost for the run. Water and a handful of almonds afterward. Homemade white pizza for dinner with mushrooms and spinach.

We had a family outing to see a play tonight--Peter Pan. (Smart Pop at intermission. Frozen yogurt when I got home.) Peter Pan can fly, and so can I.

Still she rides!

Sunny, 58 degrees, light winds . . . and a great pit stop! What more could a cycle girl wish for in mid-November?

50 mile round trip bike ride today.

Power oatmeal breakfast.
Pre-ride fuel: Tall Starbucks soy latte and a chocolate chip Clif Bar.
During ride: 22 0z water, Montana Huckleberry (my favorite!) Hammer Gel
Pit Stop: Green tea, yogurt with granola and cranberry bread.
During ride: 20 oz sport drink (case of generic brand was way cheaper than Gatorade)
Post ride: handful of almonds and the 12 oz strawberry Hammer Recoverite that my quads were screaming for!

Snack: dried fruit, whole wheat pretzels, cheese

Dinner: Three mushroom risotto, mixed veggies, vino.

(Disclaimer: I'm no nutritionist, I just post what works for me.)

Now what I need is a good night's rest!