Monday, January 31, 2011

Getting ready for Day 1....

Here is my first of many shakes I will be having on The Clean Program which starts for us tomorrow!

From The Clean Program...


This is an amazing shake for your digestion and getting things “moving” through the intestines, and it’s delicious as well!

Ingredients: 
1 large aloe vera leaf, scrape the flesh out as close to the skin as possible OR 2 ounces aloe juice or gel (this can be found in any health food store in the supplement section)
1 cup coconut water OR 1 cup nut/rice/hemp milk
1 cup organic fruit of your choice, frozen (blueberries, raspberries, blackberries, mangoes, papaya, peaches)
1 lemon, juiced
2 handfuls of spinach, kale, chard, or any mix of organic greens
To taste: stevia, agave nectar, or a few dates

Directions:
Blend all ingredients except the aloe until smooth.  Then add the aloe in at the end and pulse for two seconds, and serve.  

The Clean Program!!


Picture from Google

You can learn more about this program by clicking on the link below!

my.cleanprogram.com/ 

Micah and I are starting this program tomorrow! 3 weeks of detoxification and cleansing not only our bodies but our home as well. Everything from laundry detergent, soaps we use and pans we cook with, everything is going CLEAN!!! We always used natural products before now but I allowed little things to slip like my face creams and so on not realizing what I am putting on my skin! SO many chemicals out there in so many things!

We are eliminating all dairy, eggs, wheat products, processed items of all kinds including things like ketchup! We are staying away from certain fruits and veggies along with all caffeine, all breads and certain meats.

So we are now about to embark on 3 weeks of drinking fresh juice or smoothies each morning, a clean, balance lunch with 51% raw foods and another smoothie or fresh made juice for dinner with a few small snacks in between to get my through my runs.

Wish us luck!!!! Our goal is to lose 8 pounds over the next 3 weeks!! Here we GO!! 

The Texas Half Marathon Race Report!!

I am proud to say that I set out to run another half marathon and finish injury free and I have done just that! The race was incredible and I am super proud that I stuck with the plan of making this a "B" race in preparation for my next big half marathon 8 weeks away.

The biggest thing I am surprised about is that I was able to run the entire 13.1 miles WITHOUT stopping to walk! Once the gun went off, I did not stop once, not even for water!! If I needed to refuel, I ran pass the station, drinking as I ran. I remember at mile 9 I poured gatorade straight up my nose! NOT FUN! Maybe it gave me extra energy or something! I am shocked at how I went from having to walk each mile back in December and now in a short time I was able to run the entire distance! I kept my pace SLOW, but it worked! I finished injury free, happy and healthy with another medal around my neck, for this I am so thankful.

I am proud to say that even though I held strong and did not push myself too hard I somehow managed to run faster than my Dallas White Rock Half time from last month. I think this is 100% due to weight loss. I have lost 16.8 lbs since that race and I have no doubt that it helped me go the distance faster with less effort. I was smiling, laughing, talking during the race and post race I felt amazing! Again, weight loss matters! It excites me to see where I will be at the end of this year after running 7 half marathons and one full in December!

The race was at White Rock Lake in Dallas. TX. There were a few hills in the residential areas that were challenging but manageable. The big hill came at the finish. The last 100 meters or so was all uphill which was quite difficult but I managed to sprint through! The only part of the course that I thought was not well planned was when we were running along the dam and at the end we all had to run down a staggered ramp back down back to street level. I had to take this VERY slow because of my knee and it was frustrating to break my stride. I zig zagged around quite a bit so I ended up running 13.31 miles but it was worth it to find a good placement on the course for my knee to run on. Several of the roads where curved and so I found myself running in the middle of the road and so on to keep my knees level. At mile 12 I felt a knife stabbing pain in one of my knees when going down a brief hill while at the same time making a sharp turn but other than that, my knees did really well.

Here are my splits. I wish they were faster but I am sitting here feeling great and my knee is awesome so I guess slow and steady worked for me!

Total time - 2:23.03, 10:45 mm pace. Chip time - 2:23.04

Mile 1 - 10:30
Mile 2 - 10:25
Mile 3 - 10:57
Mile 4 - 10:40
Mile 5 - 10:55
Mile 6 - 10:47
Mile 7 - 10:49
Mile 8 - 11:00
Mile 9 - 10:47
Mile 10 - 10:40
Mile 11 - 10:48
Mile 12 - 10:57...knee started to hurt a bit here after going down hill and a sharp turn.
Mile 13 - 10:59
.31 - 9:15....and uphill too! yea me!
More pics to come but they are all on Micah's camera. These were from the iphone....


Heading out for my HM early in the morning!


My HM reward drink! Kale, Swiss Chard, Lemon, Apple and Ginger juice at Whole Foods!

A brief moment of thanks........

Thank you God for giving me another chance to do my best with this life you have blessed me with!

Thank you to my precious husband for cheering me along the way and for being my number one supporter, coach and best friend for life! I could not do this without you.

Thanks to my parents, my family, my running friends on Spark, Daily Mile and FB who always inspire me! Sharon, Nancy, NATF, Mike, CC, Wendy, Megan, Magda, Bekka, Patty....all of you guys are SO amazing....thank you!


OK, 8 weeks until my next race!! The Susan G. Komen Half Marathon for the cure! March 27th!!! My goals are to loose 8 lbs by then and to run a 2:20...or less if possible! Let the training begin!! 

Thursday, January 27, 2011

12 by 12 challenge results, Day 27!!

Wellness totals for the year starting January 1st, 2011..... 

Weight loss - 8.2 lbs!!! 3.8 lbs to go!! SO VERY CLOSE!! 
Inches loss - 4.5 inches!! 
Miles - 70.39 

Daily results of 12 lbs by 12 months old challenge. Day 27... 

Took today off as my half marathon is Saturday. Will not be logging tomorrow as we will be visiting family before the race. 

Time - 0 
Calories burned - 0 
Calories consumed - 1,324 

Meal 1 - Egg white, turkey and veggie scramble. Detox tea and water with lemon 

Meal 2 - Detox tea with Almond milk. A HUGE amount of fresh blackberries and blueberries 

Meal 3 - Bean and veggie salad over raw spinach with vinegar. Water with lemon and detox tea 

Meal 4 - Homemade Dino Kale, Swiss chard, Lemon, Ginger, Mint, Apple, Carrot and Watercress juice. 

Meal 5 - Cranberry juice with aloe vera juice

Wednesday, January 26, 2011

12 by 12 challenge results, Day 26!!

Wellness totals for the year starting January 1st, 2011..... 

Weight loss - 7.4 lbs!!! 4.6 lbs to go!! SO CLOSE!! 
Inches loss - 4.5 inches!! 
Miles - 70.39 

Daily results of 12 lbs by 12 months old challenge. Day 26... 

My splits - 
Mile 1 - warmup, knee hurt - 11:31 mm 
Mile 2 - feeling better - 10:27mm 
Mile 3 - feeling AMAZING - 9:08 mm 

First run in my CW-X compression tights....no brace. My 6 miler turned into a 3 miler as I was worried about over doing it with my half marathon only 3 days away. I will do an easy 3 miler tomorrow to make up the difference in the mileage. The first mile my knee felt as if it was going to fall off, but after warming up I hit my stride but it was not until the 3rd mile. 

Time - 31 
Calories burned - 402 
Calories consumed - 1,433 

Meal 1 - 1/2 Larabar and a TON of water with lemon 

Meal 2 - Grilled chicken with veggie salad on side and brown rice chicken soup 

Meal 3 - Greek yogurt with fresh blueberries, blackberries, chia seeds, raw organic trial mix and flaxseeds. 

Meal 4 - Homemade Dino Kale, Swiss chard, Lemon, Ginger, Mint, Apple, Carrot and Watercress juice. 

Meal 5 - Metabolic reset shake with Chia seeds and Almond milk 

Meal 6 - Detox tea and water with lemon.

I am beyond excited!!

I just weighed and I have lost MORE weight!!! I have now lost 7.4 lbs since January 1st!! I have only 4.6 lbs to go until I reach my goal...4.6 pounds!!!!!!!

Just think. I have now lost 16 lbs since my last half marathon which was December 5th!! Think about how that weight has affected my knee. Think about running holding a 16 lb DB!! That is what I was running with! When I think about this I understand so well just how important it is for me to focus on weight loss this year so that I can come back in 2012 and race my triathlons again, but this time LEANER and FASTER!!!


This is my motivation photo we took while in Bali. I am wanting to get back to where I was in 2008 and now I have only 4.6 lbs to go!!! 


I am getting ready to do an easy 6 miles today as it is my last run before my half marathon on Saturday. I really feel on top of the world!

Tuesday, January 25, 2011

One week from today I start my Clean Program!!



I am both excited and nervous. In one week I am starting the Clean Program based on the book by Dr. Alejandro Junger. I believe in the program with all my heart. The basis is detoxification and cleansing for 21 days through eating specific foods and eliminating toxins not only from the foods we eat but the environmental factors that surround our culture.  

I have signed up online for my own personal clean program page where I will be blogging and documenting my 21 days. I am going to be training for my upcoming half marathon during the cleanse so it will be exciting to see how many pounds I can drop during this time. My goal is still to loose another 5.4 by April 4th, my daughters first birthday but if the cleanse goes well I may be able to loose the 5 lbs in the month of February!! My weight loss has already gone so well since cleaning up my diet even more than it was before. Since November 1st, the day I started my anniversary challenge, I have lost 19 lbs!!!! WOW!! 

I of course will be blogging my foods here as well so you can see what it is that I am eating. I think great things will come from this but it is always a bit scary starting something new and announcing it to the world! LOL! I do this because it increases my accountability and it has worked for me time and time again! 

So look out for my Clean Program, 21 day detox starting February 1st!!! I know I can do this! 

12 by 12 challenge results, Day 25!!

Wellness totals for the year starting January 1st, 2011..... 

Weight loss - 6.6 lbs!!! 5.4 lbs to go!! More than half way there already!! SO CLOSE!! 
Inches loss - 4.5 inches!! 
Miles - 67.39 

Daily results of 12 lbs by 12 months old challenge. Day 25... 

Took today off, just to be safe. Worried about my knee, hoping it is ok for Saturday for my HM. Will try to run tomorrow and see how it feels. 

Time - 0 
Calories burned - 0 
Calories consumed - 1,201 

Meal 1 - Kale, Ginger, Watercress juice. Metabolic reset shake with chia seeds.

Meal 2 - Joseph's pita with organic turkey, spinach and onion. Water 

Meal 3 - Homemade Fennel, Kale, Swiss chard, Romaine lettuce, Lemon, Ginger, Apple, Pear, Tangerine and Watercress juice. Black bean and kale salad. 

Meal 4 - Evening detox drink. 2 small pieces of 100% Belcolade dark pure chocolate. 

Meal 5 - Detox tea and water with lemon

Monday, January 24, 2011

12 by 12 challenge results, Day 24!!

Wellness totals for the year starting January 1st, 2011..... 

Weight loss - 5.6 lbs!!! 6.4 lbs to go!! Almost half way there! 
Inches loss - 4.5 inches!! 
Miles - 67.39 

Daily results of 12 lbs by 12 months old challenge. Day 24... 

Day off from running so for today it was easy yoga and stretching! Looking forward to trying out my KT tape and my new CW-X compression tights on my run tomorrow!! Only 5 more days until my next HM! 

Time - 60 
Calories burned - 123 
Calories consumed - 1,234 

Meal 1 - Steel cut oats, flaxseeds, chia seeds, blueberries. Morning detox tea 

Meal 2 - Raw veggie and bean salad and water. Homemade Kale, Ginger, Swiss chard juice 

Meal 3 - Turkish red lentils. Homemade Fennel, Kale, Swiss chard, Romaine lettuce, Lemon, Ginger, Apple, Pear, Tangerine and Watercress juice 

Meal 4 - Evening detox drink. 

Meal 5 - Detox tea and water with lemon

Sunday, January 23, 2011

12 by 12 challenge results, Day 23!!

Wellness totals for the year starting January 1st, 2011.....

Weight loss - 5.6 lbs!!! 6.4 lbs to go!! Almost half way there!
Inches loss - 4.5 inches!!
Miles - 67.39

Daily results of 12 lbs by 12 months old challenge. Day 23...

Time - 87 min run plus 25 min cool down - Kept my run easy and slow. Still managed to pull a good time and my knee felt great. Looks like slow is the way to go for me right now as my knee improves and I loose more weight.
Run 8 miles - Splits...
11:33
11:28
11:32
11:08
10:56
10:39
10:26
10:12

Calories burned - 1300
Calories consumed - 1,529

Meal 1 - Steel cut oats, flaxseeds, chia seeds, blueberries and apple

Meal 2 - Tilapia Ceviche salad. A small about of Tortilla soup, no cheese or chips. Water

Meal 3 - Raw nut burger from Whole foods, Homemade Kale, Dandelion, Lemon, Apple, Carrot, Bok Choy, Spinach and Parsley juice. Goat yogurt.

Meal 4 - 1/2 Raw Vegan Cheesecake from Whole foods.

Meal 5 - Detox tea and water with lemon 

Friday, January 21, 2011

12 by 12 challenge results, Day 21 and this years race schedule....

Logging all my meals early today. Today is my off day as I am gearing up for my 8 miler tomorrow! Only one more week before my next HM! This one is a B race so I will be taking it SUPER easy and will be running/walking it so that I do not mess my knee up for my A races later on this spring! 


I am VERY pleased with my weight loss so far this year! I am now down 4.4 lbs since January 1st and down 13 lbs since December!!! I am so close to meeting my goal by Kayla's first birthday. It feels so good to be under my pre-pregnancy weight and now I am hoping to be leaner than my lowest weight in Tyumen. After I reach my first goal, I may aim for another 5 or 6 lbs for the year. We will wait for that, for now I am staying focused on loosing my last 7.6 lbs before April. I feel strongly I am on the right track! 


My running is still going well. My knee has on and off days but for the most part I am pleased with how well it is doing. I just need to stay focused and continue my PT exercises and DO NOT push myself on my B races and therefore hurting my chances for a good PR on my A races! 


Here are my races for this year through Fall. There are a few more but I am waiting to post a blog about them as they are very important to me and I want to be able to tell my parents about them first in person. All will be explained later, I promise! 


For now, here are my races for 2011.....


"A" Races - Those which I will be training to run a PR....


Rock and Roll Dallas Half Marathon for the Cure - March 
Rock and Roll Seattle Half Marathon - June 
Rock and Roll Denver Half Marathon - October 


"B" Races - Those which I will be running as a training, long run in preparation for my A races. These I will need to take slow and treat as LSD runs keeping my pace slower than my race pace. 


Texas Half Marathon - January 
Big D Half Marathon - April 
Dallas Running Club Centennial Half Marathon - May 
Dallas Running Club White Rock Half Marathon - November 


I cannot wait to see how my running improves this year! I am currently reading Racing Weight which is a book all about how much weight can impact your performance. I am working hard to really lean out this year in hopes of improving not only my times but my knee as well. You will notice there are no triathlons on this years schedule. They are by far my favorite race to do but for 2011 I am focusing on my distance races in hopes of leaning out for my triathlons in 2012!!! I am still cross training with biking and my times have been amazing but for now, running is key for me in 2011. 


Onto my totals for this year and todays results.....


Wellness totals for the year starting January 1st, 2011 -
Weight loss - 4.4 lbs!!! 7.6 lbs to go!!
Inches loss - 4.5 inches!!
Miles - 57.89

Daily results of 12 lbs by 12 months old challenge. Day 21...

Time - 0 mins - Rest day
Calories burned - 0
Calories consumed - 1,213

What was on my plate today....

Meal 1 - Metabolic reset shake with Almond milk. Water with lemon and detox drink a long with a few cups of green and black tea.

Meal 2 - Egg whites, spinach, tomatoes and mushrooms scramble. Water and hot tea.

Meal 3 - Homemade Kale, Dandelion, Mint, Ginger, Lemon, Carrot, Apple and Swiss Chard juice. 


Meal 4 - Quinoa, bean, and raw veggie salad



Meal 5 - Greek yogurt with fresh blueberries, apple, chia seeds and ground flaxseeds. 

What I am currently reading. It is a long list!

From time to time on spark or via email I have people ask me questions about what it is I am reading, eating or what program I am using for my training and weight loss.

I thought I would give you a list of my current favorites!



- The Raw Food Detox Diet, Natalia Rose
- Racing Weight, Matt Fitzgerald
- Clean, Dr. Alejandro Junger
- Power Foods Cookbook, From  the creators of Whole Living Magazine 
- Rawfully Good, Diana Von Cranach
- 150 Healthiest Foods, Jonny Bowden
- The Cancer Fighting Kitchen, Rebecca Katz
- In Defense of Food, Michael Pollen

Tuesday, January 18, 2011

12 by 12 challenge results, Day 18! Early blog today...

I am posting early today as I have SO much to do before the family arrives on Thursday and I am not feeling 100%. Hoping I do not get sick. I have pre-logged all my meals for the day. I am keeping my calories low today as it is another day I am not able to run and therefore do not need as much. 

Wellness totals for the year starting January 1st, 2011..... 

Weight loss - 3 lbs!!! 9 lbs to go!! 
Inches loss - 4.5 inches!! 
Miles - 57.89 

Daily results of 12 lbs by 12 months old challenge. Day 17... 

Time - 0 mins - Rest day 
Calories burned - 0 
Calories consumed - 1,232 

Several of you asked about my 11 super foods chili recipe! Here it is! You of course can change it depending on your taste but it was SO good! 

1 bag of Dry Black beans 
4 cups of Fresh Kale 
4 cups of Fresh Spinach 
2 cups of Grape Tomatoes 
Chipolte peppers in sauce 
8 Garlic cloves 
1 to 2 large Onions 
1 tbsp Grapeseed oil 
1 cup of Shiitake Mushrooms 
1 large Red bell pepper 
1/2 cup Greek Yogurt 
Red peppers - like a Thai chili or whatever chili you want to use 
A large amount of Cilantro but add to taste 
Cumin - add to taste 
Paprika - add to taste 
Sea Salt - add to taste 

Cook the black beans as you normally would. In a pan saute the kale, spinach and other veggies together except for the tomatoes. Drain the Black beans and add to veggie mix along with peppers and greek yogurt. Take about 1 cup of juice from the beans you cooked and add in to the mixture. Top with fresh tomatoes and small slices of Ezekiel sprouted grain corn tortillas, just a small amount! Top with more cilantro if you want. In terms of spice you can add more pepper or salt as you go but I would just add crush red pepper to keep the salt content down. 

When you add the greek yogurt and chipolte peppers in their sauce ( or in a abodo sauce) be sure and mix together really well. It will make a creamy mix. I added 1/2 cup of greek yogurt but you can add more if you want but I like mine HOT! 

What was on my plate today.... 

Meal 1 - Yogurt with Ezekiel granola, fresh blackberries, apple and fresh blueberries. Yogi Detox tea along with cranberry, lemon and ACV detox drink with a TON of water 

Meal 2 - Egg Whites, mushrooms, spinach scramble with a ton of water to drink along with detox tea. 

Meal 3 - Homemade Ginger, Lemon , Swiss chard drink 

Meal 4 - Metabolic reset shake with almond milk 

Meal 5 - 11 superfood veggie chili with 1/2 apple and detox tea.

Monday, January 17, 2011

12 by 12 challenge results, Day 17!

Wellness totals for the year starting January 1st, 2011..... 

Weight loss - 3 lbs!!! 9 lbs to go!! 
Inches loss - 4.5 inches!! 
Miles - 57.89 

Daily results of 12 lbs by 12 months old challenge. Day 17... 

Time - 0 mins - Rest day 
Calories burned - 0 
Calories consumed - 1,285 

What was on my plate today.... 

Meal 1 - Homemade Swiss chard, cucumber, ginger, mint, lemon, apple, papaya and grapefruit juice. Yogurt with Whole foods harvest granola, banana and fresh blueberries. 1/2 serving of Chia seeds. 

Meal 2 - Whole Foods natural turkey breast meat, black beans, spinach and mushrooms. Ezekiel sprouted gain corn tortilla. 

Meal 3 - 1 Joseph's pita with raw almond butter along with a BUNCH of water! 

Meal 4 - 1 serving of my 11 super foods vegetarian chili. 

Sunday, January 16, 2011

Jen is Running 13.1 for the cure!!!!

Here is the link to my personal Susan G. Koman Fundraising Page....


http://www.info-komen.org/site/TR/MarathonfortheCure/MarathonFortheCure?px=8982528&pg=personal&fr_id=2052



New totals so far this year....

My weigh in and measurement day is tomorrow so these may change but here are the new totals as of this weekend....


Weight loss - 2.2 lbs!!! 9.8 lbs to go!! 
Inches loss - 4.5 inches!! 
Miles - 57.89

Thursday, January 13, 2011

12 by 12 challenge results, Day 13!


Wellness totals for the year starting January 1st, 2011..... 

Weight loss - 2.2 lbs!!! 9.8 lbs to go!! 
Inches loss - 4.5 inches!! 
Miles - 48.98 

Daily results of 12 lbs by 12 months old challenge. Day 13... 

Cross Training today plus a quick 2 mile run on the tread. I first got on the Spin Tech bike and worked HARD! Then ran over to the tread for my run. I guess you could say this was my first brick workout since having Kayla! I am not doing any tris this season as I am focusing on my HM's but it was nice to feel the BURN again!! 

10 mile ride - good resistance, steady pace - 21:31 mins, 27.8 mph! SO happy about my time!! 
2 mile run on the tread - 20:28, Mile 1 - 11:03 Mile 2 - 9:25 

Time - 41 mins 
Calories burned - 790 
Calories consumed - 1,273 

What was on my plate today.... 

Meal 1 - Morning detox along with Metabolic reset shake chocolate with FF milk. Yoga Detox tea. 

Meal 2 - Raw Almond butter. Homemade Ginger Kale juice. 

Meal 3 - 1/2 Joesph's Lavash with Turkey breast and 1 wedge of laughing cow cheese. 

Meal 4 - Sockeyed Salmon with soy ginger sauce and mango pico de gallo. Cucumber, onion and tomato salad and 1 sweet potato. 

Meal 5 - Raw Papaya. 

A very simple question for this morning....

 What will your legacy be?

Wednesday, January 12, 2011

12 by 12 challenge results, Day 12!

Wellness totals for the year starting January 1st, 2011..... 

Weight loss - 1.4 lbs!!! 10.6 lbs to go!! 
Inches loss - 4.5 inches!! 
Miles - 36.89 

Daily results of 12 lbs by 12 months old challenge. Day 12... 

Good run today. I was super tired as I had to run later on in the day but nevertheless, I did well. My knee held up well despite the cold. I was pretty sluggish my first few miles but then hit my stride, right as the run was over! LOL! 

Time - 5 mile run - 53:51 mins plus cool down of .50 miles - All negative splits!! SLOWLY getting faster! Hoping my knee will continue to improve! Here are my splits...... 
Mile 1 - 11:32 
Mile 2 - 11:05 
Mile 3 - 10:48 
Mile 4 - 10:18 
Mile 5 - 10:08 
Calories burned - 806 
Calories consumed - 1,355 

What was on my plate today....Here are some pictures of my homemade juice! Recipe below under Meal 3.......It was YUMMY!! 

 

 

Meal 1 - Oats, flaxseeds, Bobs Red Mill High Fiber Cereal, Apple and FF milk. Water with lemon. 

Meal 2 - Lunch with my husband at our favorite Turkish restaurant!! Chicken kabobs, red lentil soup, eggplant, garlic and onion mix with a small about of bread ( about 4 bites). Water with lemon. 

Meal 3 - Cioppino with Tilapia. Homemade Juice mix - Swiss Chard, Lemon, Ginger, Beets, Watercress, Apple, Carrot, Mint. 

Meal 4 - Yogi Detox tea. 

Tuesday, January 11, 2011

12 by 12 challenge results, Day 11...

Blogging my dinner early today so I can get done everything I need to before Michaela wakes from her nap!

Wellness totals for the year starting January 1st, 2011.....
Weight loss - 1.4 lbs!!! 10.6 lbs to go!!
Inches loss - 4.5 inches!!
Miles - 31.39

Daily results of 12 lbs by 12 months old challenge. Day 11...

Rest Day! Wonderful day with my princess! We had fun....

Time - 0 rest day
Calories burned - 0 rest day
Calories consumed - 1,267

What was on my plate today....for fun, here is a quick pic of my lunch!



Meal 1 -  Greek yogurt, flaxseeds, apple with Ezekiel granola. Earl grey tea along with Morning detox drink and a TON of water!

Meal 2 - Grilled chicken salad, guacamole, tomatoes, peppadew peppers, red onion, tomato, cilantro, lemon and mint. White basalmic vinegar along with strawberry basalmic vinegar.

Meal 3 - 1/2 Joesph's lavash bread with natural organic PB and polamer all fruit spread. 1/2 cup of organic FF milk along with afternoon detox drink.

Meal 4 - Homemade Ginger, Kale, lemon and mint drink along with 6 egg whites and shiitake mushrooms along with evening detox drink

Meal 5 - Decaf nespresso with Stevia

111 Things to be grateful for on this day, 1/11/11....


We have so many things to be grateful for in this beautiful life and so here are 111 things I am most thankful for. Take a moment today and think about what is most important to you. 

Jen's 1/11/11 list of what I most grateful for..... 

1. My faith and relationship with my Heavenly Father. I could not live without my Jesus. 
2. The most precious, faithful, loving man. My husband of 11 years and best friend, Micah. 
3. Our little blessing, my daughter Michaela! She is the love of my life. So thankful she is healthy and strong! 
4. My family. Always there to support me. 
5. My health. I may have weight to loose but I have been blessed true health, so priceless. 
6. Along with being grateful for my health, I am thankful to be living another day! What can do today to make a difference? 
7. I am thankful for my home. It is a blessing, truly, a roof over your head is something to be thankful for. 
8. I am thankful for all the luxuries in life and may not be necessary but are a true gift. So many others are in need and it is so important to take time to realize just how blessed we all are. 
9. I am thankful for my legs which are strong and carry me forward to reach my goals 
10. I am thankful God has kept me and my family safe 
11. I am thankful for the type of marriage I have. 
12. I am thankful my husband is my best friend. 
13. I am thankful that my little girl is so precious! 
14. I am thankful for my good friends 
15. I am thankful to have such a great relationship with my parents 
16. I am thankful to have such a great relationship with my in laws 
17. I am blessed to have my Aunt Susie who is a true inspiration to me in every way. 
18. I am blessed to have a Grandmother now 84 years old who has more energy than all of us put together and who truly lives every moment for Christ. 
19. I am blessed to have my MaMa who taught us all the most important thing in life, to love the Lord with all our heart. 
20. I am thankful for my father who has been the best teacher and role model to me. 
21. I am blessed to have a Mom who I look up to in so many ways and she is my best friend 
22. I am thankful to have the gift of sight to see the beautiful world God has given us 
23. I am blessed to have the gift of hearing so that I can take in the music of my father playing the piano, a priceless gift. 
24. I am blessed to have the ability to speak so that I may bless others each day. 
25. I am blessed to have a heart that is strong and healthy. 
26. I am blessed to have a sound mind. 
27. I am thankful that I have all my hair, seriously, so many people get sick and loose their hair. It is a blessing. I could be in the middle of chemo right now but I am blessed to be healthy. It makes you thankful for so many things. 
28. I am thankful for my skin. That it is not severely burned or deformed. 
29. I am thankful I have not been in a serious accident 
30. I am thankful that I am not in a wheelchair 
31. I am thankful to have 2 hands. 
32. I am thankful to have 2 feet. 
33. I am thankful to have 2 ears. 
34. I am thankful to have LIFE. 
35. I am thankful to have a happy spirit and can see the brighter side of things. 
36. I am blessed to be a Mom. 
37. I am blessed to be a wife. 
38 I am blessed to be a Christian. 
39. I am thankful that I live in this great country! 
40 I am thankful that I was able to live overseas to learn more about other countries. 
41. I am thankful that I have been able to travel and visit almost 30 different countries!! 
42. I am thankful for lessons learned in life 
43. I am thankful to have been brought out of the fire in life and therefore have lived to tell the story of God's faithfulness. 
44. I am thankful for Gods grace 
45. I am thankful for the gift of peace God gives us in times of trouble 
46. I am thankful for the strength God gives me to live another day and to do my best 
47. I am thankful for the possibility that is tomorrow!!! 
48. I am thankful for the promises of the Lord. 
49. I am thankful for the gift of laughter 
50. I am thankful that I am a passionate person. 
51. I am thankful that I have determination 
52. Iam thankful that I have a very outgoing personality. 
53. I am thankful to have the gift of joy in my heart 
54. I am thankful that after 11 years of marriage my husband still takes my breath away 
55. Iam thankful my husband makes me laugh! 
56. I am thankful my husband knows how to cook! LOL! 
57. I am thankful my husband is so very handsome! Just being honest! :) 
58. I am thankful the spark is stronger than every in our marriage! 
59. I am thankful my husband listens to me and knows my every need. 
60. I am thankful my husband loves spending time with me more than anyone else in the world. 
61. I am thankful I am married to a tender hearted man 
62. I am thankful for my husbands humble spirit 
63. I am thankful for my husbands job and the success he has seen in life. 
64. I am thankful for my job....a stay at home Mom! The best job in the world!!! 
65. I am thankful for the example my parents have set for my husband and I. 
66. I am thankful for my husbands family, a true blessing to me. 
67. I am thankful for the health of all my family members 
68. I am thankful for the safety of my family 
69. I am thankful for protection God gives my husband has he travels around the world with his work. 
70. I am thankful for Gods protection over my little girl each and every day. 
71. I am thankful for my dog Piper 
72. I am thankful for Sparkpeople!! 
73. I am thankful for all my friends on sparkpeople and the support they give me! 
74. I am thankful to have lost 70 lbs!!! 
75. I am thankful to have ran a half marathon and completed several triathlons without injury. 
76. I am thankful to be training for more races 
77. I am thankful my health is better than it has been in years!! 
78. I am thankful to be strong! 
79. I am thankful for 2011 and the chance to become better! 
80. I am thankful for the gift of knowledge, learning more every day to be the best we can be! 


Now onto a few little light hearted things I am thankful for!! Really! We should be thankful for the smaller things in life too! 

81. I am thankful for all the wonderful food God gives us! 
82. I am thankful for 100% pure dark chocolate. What a treat that is good for you! 
83. I am thankful for goat and feta cheese! :) LOL! 
84. I am thankful for espresso....decaf of course! 
85. Along with number 84, I am thankful for my nespresso machine! I love this thing! 
86. I am thankful for soft sheets, a must in my opinion 
87. I am thankful for a new pair of running shoes, you know that first run after getting them, oh I love it! 
88. I am thankful for my Garmin, I could not run without it! 
89. I am thankful for Whole Foods Market! My favorite place!!! 
90. I am thankful for the gift that is pure, clean water which so many people do not have in this world. 
91. I am thankful to never have to wonder when my next meal will be. 
92. I am blessed to have the ability to buy good Organic produce, that is a true blessing. 
93. I am thankful for this day of beautiful, crisp , cool weather 
94. I am thankful I was able to see another sunrise 
95. I am thankful to see this amazing blue sky above me 
96. I am thankful to see the birds of the air, to feel the wind on my face and to take in LIFE around me. 
97. I am thankful for my car. 
98. I am thankful for my gym membership and treadmill in my house to enable me to reach my goals 
99. I am thankful for our pastor and his family 
100. I am thankful for having good neighbors 
101. I am thankful we live in a good area with such beauty 
102. I am thankful to be close to my family 
103. I am thankful to have the opportunity to show my daughter the world through our travels and living overseas again someday. 
104. I am thankful for my Moms Oatbran pumpkin muffins! LOL...really they are the BEST! 
105. I am thankful my Mom and Dad taught me to have a caring spirit towards others 
106. I am thankful for the memories with Micah throughout the years 
107. I am thankful for the 3 years we lived in Russia 
108. I am thankful that my husband and I talk so many times a day, I love sharing our day together 
109. I am thankful that my husband is the best father in the world! 
110. I am thankful my husband loves to shop! LOL! 
111. I am thankful for my husbands incredible devotion to me and Michaela. 

I urge you to take time out of your day or week to reflect on your blessings. Life moves so fast, take a moment to say thanks for this glorious day! Remember.....MAKE IT COUNT!!!!

Monday, January 10, 2011

Your thoughts...


Has anyone read this book or are reading it now? I have ordered it and I am curious as to your opinion. 

Thanks!

12 by 12 challenge results, Day 10!




Wellness totals for the year starting January 1st, 2011..... 
Weight loss - 1.4 lbs!!! 10.6 lbs to go!! 
Inches loss - 4.5 inches!! 
Miles - 31.39 

Daily results of 12 lbs by 12 months old challenge. Day 10... 

Easy 3.54 miler today with Kayla in the BOB. My knee was VERY stiff but I pushed through it! This little slow run was harder for me than my 8 miles on Saturday. Not sure if it was the cold weather or what but it was terrible! 

Time - 3 miles walk/run - 35 mins plus cool down of .54 miles 
Calories burned - 476 
Calories consumed - 1,243 

What was on my plate today.... 

Meal 1 - Egg beaters, broccolini, red onion, tomato and red bell pepper. Earl grey tea with skim milk and 1 kiwi along Morning detox blend 

Meal 2 - Red seedless grapes and water along with mid day detox drink 

Meal 3 - Oatbran pumpkin muffins with greek yogurt and polamer strawberry jam. 

Meal 4 - Wild Alaskan Cod grilled. Red cabbage salad with tomato and basalmic vinegar. Ginger, kale and mint detox juice made with juicer. 

Meal 5 - Decaf nespresso with Stevia

Three Reasons to Eat Turmeric - Dr. Weil

Interesting read. Enjoy....

Three Reasons to Eat Turmeric - Dr. Weil

Detox drink....


Here are the ingredients to my detox drink.

1 lemon
4 oz of R.W. Knudsen Just Cranberry juice
1 tbsp of Braggs Apple Cider Vinegar
1 serving of Garden of Life Detoxifiber
1 serving of Garden of Life Perfect Food Raw


So many people have been writing me from Sparkpeople as well as this site in regards to my detox drink. I thought I would write about what it is and why I am doing it.

It is simple, I wake each morning and drink 1 glass of water with 1 lemon followed by 4 oz of just cranberry juice with 1 tbsp of apple cider vinegar, Garden of life Detoxifiber and Garden of Life Raw Perfect food.

A variation of this was made popular by the company My Fit Foods. It is part of their 21 day challenge. Here is the link....MY FIT FOODS


I am not doing the program My FIt Foods program, but have found the cleansing drink to work well for me but I add 2 Garden of Life products that are not apart of the original cleanse. I am a HUGE Garden of Life fan and love their products. I find starting my day with the detoxifiber and perfect food raw to be something that has worked well for me. Here is a link...GARDEN OF LIFE.

I have seen improvements in my overall health but mostly it helps me curb my appetite. If I have had one serving of food and I am still hungry, I drink a HUGE glass of water with apple cider vinegar and 10 times out of 10 I will NOT want anymore food.

Some people say that this detox drink aids in weight loss by boosting the metabolism. I am not sure of that but I do know that it aids the body in detoxification of the liver and the kidneys. Along with this Cranberry juice as many benefits to the immune system, cardiovascular system and so much more.

I guess another name for this drink could be a wellness cocktail! You cannot go wrong! Trust me it taste HORRIBLE but the benefits outweigh the taste for me.

Just remember that you can drink this everyday and if you are eating too many calories and sitting on the couch all day, NOTHING will work for your goals. You MUST move more and eat less to loose weight. There is NO pill or drink that will do the hard work for you!

12 by 12 challenge results, Day 7-9 along with totals for the first week....

Totals for the year - Starting January 1st, 2011.....
Weight loss - 1.4 lbs!!! 10.6 lbs to go!!

Inches lost - 4.5 inches!!!
Waist - 1.5 inches
Thigh - 1 inch
Arm - 0 inches
Hips - 2 inches

Fitness Totals for this year -
Miles - 27.85
Pushups - 140
Crunches - 200
Squats - 210

Daily results of 12 lbs by 12 months old challenge. Day 7-9...

January 7th -
Calories burned - 0 rest day
Calories consumed - 1,380
Miles - 0

January 8th -
Calories burned - 1,106
Calories consumed - 1,483
Miles - 8

Mile 1 walk warm-up - 14:52
Mile 2 - 11:26
Mile 3 - 11:22
Mile 4 - 11:13
Mile 5 - 10:49
Mile 6 - 10:51
Mile 7 - 10:09....yea!!!!!

Ran easy miles 2-7 without walk breaks!!! Knee felt good today! My running plan from training peaks had me running slow averaging a 12:20 pace but I somehow managed to pull a 11:23 avg with walking the entire first mile!

January 9th -
Calories burned - 0 rest day
Calories consumed - 995
Miles - 0

Saturday, January 08, 2011

What You Can Eat to Defeat Cancer

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Friday, January 07, 2011

Your thoughts on Microwaves and Splenda...

I am currently reading a couple of health books and I am finding myself questioning different things around the house, microwaves and artificial sweeteners being two of them. I have no views either way as of yet. I love to heat something up fast in the microwave and I love splenda but that does not mean that they are good for me. I am searching for answers.

Do you have an opinion or experience finding sound, concrete documentation as to why either of these would be hindering my health. Before I go out and buy a years worth of Truvia (which I like by the way) and stop using the microwave, I would like to know what you think and if you have any websites or links you can give that would be great too!

Here's to our health!!!

Thursday, January 06, 2011

12 by 12 challenge results, Day 6!

Total weight loss so far this year - 1.4 lbs! 10.6 lbs to go!!

Weekly Totals - Starting 1/1/2011....
Miles - 19.85
Pushups - 140
Crunches - 200
Squats - 210

Daily results of 12 lbs by 12 months old challenge. Day 6....

Totals for the day -
Time - 58 mins
Calories burned - 846
Calories consumed - 1,234
Miles - 9.10
ST - Yes

Fantastic workout today, short and sweet but a GREAT burn!

2.1 mile run/walk on the tread - 23 mins
12 min EFX
Bike - 6 mile ride,13:30 mins, spinning / intervals training between low and high resistance - 26.6 avg mph
20 Closegrip pushups
20 military incline pushups
Cross body DB boxing with 5 lb DBs for 2 mins straight
Runner curls with 5 lb DBs straight for 2.5 mins

What was on my plate for today....

Meal 1 - Metabolic reset shake with mixed berries and FF milk. Water along with morning ACV, cranberry, lemon detox drink

Meal 2 - Afternoon detox drink with 1 serving of homemade raw veggie taboule with broccoli, red onion, lemon, mushrooms, zucchini and peppadew peppers. Joesph's lavash bread with turkey breast, wholly gucac, onion.

Meal 3- Red Mango yogurt and water

Meal 4 - Evening detox drink with Chipolte Salmon and Chicken tortilla soup(no chips or cheese, just broth, olive oil, peppers and chicken)

Meal 5 - Decaf nespresso capsule.

Wednesday, January 05, 2011

12 by 12 challenge results, Day 5!

Total weight loss so far this year - 1.4 lbs! 10.6 lbs to go!!

Weekly Totals - Starting 1/1/2011....
Miles - 10.75
Pushups - 100
Crunches - 200
Squats - 210

Daily results of 12 lbs by 12 months old challenge. Day 3....

Totals for the day -
Time - 65mins
Calories burned - 790
Calories consumed - 1,325
Miles - 5.50
ST - none

My run this morning was good though I still have to take walk breaks. I am longing for the day when I am better conditioned and my knee is doing well and I no longer have to walk!!! I am really hoping that my half marathon in April will be one in which I do not need walk breaks. This last half I walked for a short bit each mile and I would like to cut that down significantly if my knee allows. Today the first two miles were hard. My knee felt as if it was giving out twice but for the remainder of my run it held up really well. Tomorrow is cross training at the gym and then Friday I have off before my 7 miler on Saturday.

Here are my splits from todays run/walk.......

5 miles - 54:29 followed by a slow .50 mile cool down.
Splits - M1 - 11:15, M2 - 11:27, M3 - 10:37, M4 - 10:46, M5 - 10:26

What was on my plate for today....

Meal 1 - 1 apple with 1 tsp of peanut butter along with 1 Oat fit packet mixed with Bob's high fiber blend and ground flaxseeds. Water along with morning ACV, cranberry, lemon detox drink

Meal 2 - Afternoon detox drink with 1 serving of homemade raw veggie taboule with broccoli, red onion, lemon, mushrooms, zucchini and peppadew peppers. Black tea.

Meal 3 - Evening detox drink with 1 serving of homemade brown rice and split pea soup with spinach,carrots and mushrooms. Metabolic reset shake with FF milk and frozen berries.

Meal 4 - Decaf nespresso capsule. Yogurt, Bobs high fiber cereal, apple and Ezekiel granola.

Tuesday, January 04, 2011

12 by 12 challenge results, Day 4!

Total weight loss so far this year - 1.4 lbs! 10.6 lbs to go!!

Weekly Totals - Starting 1/1/2011....
Miles - 5.25
Pushups - 100
Crunches - 200
Squats - 210

Daily results of 12 lbs by 12 months old challenge. Day 3....

Totals for the day -
Time - 10 mins
Calories burned - 116
Calories consumed - 1,095
Miles - 0 day off
ST - 40 pushups
Crunches - 100
Squats - 0

Workout for today was light. It was my day off so I just did a quick core workout along with some pushups....

Crunches - 100 reps
Plank hold to failure - 5 reps
Superman hold to failure - 5 reps
Close grip pushups - 20 reps
Standard military pushups - 20 reps

What was on my plate for today....

Meal 1 - Egg beaters with turkey breast, broccoli, tomatoes and spinach. Water along with morning ACV, cranberry, lemon detox drink

Meal 2 - 1 Oatbran pumpkin muffin with light and fit yogurt and sugar free strawberry preserves along with afternoon detox drink blend with Perfect food raw powder.

Meal 3 - 1/2 Joesphs flax pita with 1 laughing cow cheese wedge with turkey breast. 1/2 serving of Red Mango yogurt. Water

Meal 4 - Lettuce with Peppadew peppers, turkey breast, apple and balsamic vinegar. 1 cup of Moms brown rice chicken gumbo. English breakfast black tea with FF milk followed by Evening detox ACV and cranberry drink.

Meal 5 - Decaf nespresso capsule with splenda and FF milk

Monday, January 03, 2011

12 by 12 challenge results, Day 3!

Total weight loss so far this year - .8 lbs! 11.2 lbs to go!!

Weekly Totals - Starting 1/1/2011....
Miles - 5.25
Pushups - 60
Crunches - 100
Squats - 210

Daily results of 12 lbs by 12 months old challenge. Day 3....

Totals for the day -
Time - 48 mins
Calories burned - 553
Calories consumed - 1,334
Miles - 2.25
ST - 30 pushups
Crunches - 50
Squats - 210

ST with Cathe HIIT DVD Pyramid set with weights. Warm up from the DVD was 6 mins using 5 lbs DBs ( this was SOOO hard!) ST followed by an easy 2.25 mile run/walk

DB curls with squat - 100 reps with 5 lb DBs
Medicine ball chops with squats - 50 reps with a 10 lb medicine ball
Closegrip pushups - 30 reps
Crunches - 50 reps
Bicep curls with squat - 100 reps with 5 lb DBs
Squat with DB full moons - 50 reps
Shoulder press with squats - 50 reps with 5 lb DBs
Maroon p90x bands- bicep curls - 50 reps
Squat - 10 reps

What was on my plate for today....

Meal 1 - Egg beaters with turkey breast and spinach. 1 oat fit packet with ground flaxseeds. Morning detox drink blend

Meal 2 - 2 Oatbran pumpkin muffins with light and fit yogurt and simply fruit jam along with afternoon detox drink blend.

Meal 3 - 1/2 apple with .5 tbsp natural organic peanut butter, and lots of water

Meal 4 - Chipolte Salmon with Moms brown rice chicken gumbo. Evening detox drink blend

Meal 5 - Metabolic reset shake with mixed berries and FF milk

As of this morning.....

This morning I weighed and I have now lost 13.2 lbs since November 1st!! WOW! I am so excited!!!

Off to run a quick 2 miler and get some MUCH needed ST in for the day!

12 by 12 challenge results, Day 2!

Total weight loss so far this year - .8 lbs! 11.2 lbs to go!!

Weekly Totals - Starting 1/1/2011....
Miles - 3
Pushups - 30
Crunches - 50
Squats - 0

Daily results of 12 lbs by 12 months old challenge. Day 2....

Totals for the day -
Time - 0 mins
Calories burned - 0
Calories consumed - 1,112
Miles - 0
ST - 20 pushups
Crunches - 50

Meal 1 - Egg beaters with broccoli, green pepper, spinach and tomato. Morning detox blend

Meal 2 - Grilled chicken, zucchini, apple, red peppers over broccoli slaw with balsamic vinegar. Garden of Life Raw Perfect food blend.

Meal 3 - Metabolic reset shake. Mid day detox blend

Meal 4 - Egg beaters with Turkey breast. Evening detox blend

Sunday, January 02, 2011

12 by 12 challenge Day 1 results along with Week 1 plan of half marathon training

Weekly Totals - Starting 1/1/2011....
Miles - 3
Pushups - 10
Crunches - 0
Squats - 0

I did very well yesterday. I kept my walk light but still felt amazing, knowing that I did something to better myself. I have my half marathon in 28 days! WOW! I have been not running after my half in December to take care of my knee and keep things light and now another race is upon me. I am taking this race VERY differently as I have another half April 10th that I am trying to train for hard, so this upcoming half will serve as a long training run or a weight loss race as I call it! You know something you sign up for not to reach a PR but just for the joy of doing it and hopefully drop a few pounds along the way.

My April race is now 14 weeks away and I have signed up through Runners World to have my training through Training Peaks. I am hoping it will be a good plan for me!

Here is week one of my half training....

Monday - Easy 2 miler, ST at gym or Cathe/P90X
Tuesday - Rest with light walk
Wednesday - 5 miler, Tempo
Thursday - Easy 2 miler, ST at gym or Cathe/P90X
Friday - Rest with light walk
Saturday - 7 miles walk/run easy
Sunday - Rest

Daily results of 12 lbs by 12 months old challenge. Day 1....

Totals for the day -
Time - 48 mins
Calories burned - 282
Calories consumed - 1,222
Miles - 3
ST - 10 pushups

Meal 1 - Oatfit packet with 1/2 apple and ground flaxseeds. Water and lemon. Morning detox, RWK Just cranberry juice and apple cider vinegar.

Meal 2 - Grilled chicken, spinach, onion, red bell pepper, sun dried tomato pesto sandwich with cup of tortilla soup - no cheese or tortillas, just broth and chicken. Afternoon detox same as morning but with Garden of Life Raw perfect food.

Meal 3 - Red mango yogurt no topping.

Meal 4 - Tortilla crusted tilapia, spinach, bell pepper and broccoli along with evening detox drink ( see above)

Saturday, January 01, 2011

Lets do this!!!

As some of you know I am apart of a website called Sparkpeople. This site has truly changed my life!! I am posting my workouts, logging my foods etc..on the site and continue to see amazing results!

Here is a link to my sparkpage......JENSFITJOURNEY

I am going to blog on here as well as I love the extra accountability it gives me. Forgive me for not responding to emails, comments and such more but I am busy these days with little Kayla and the hours pass quickly each day.

I am SOOOO excited about this upcoming year! I will post a blog later with my goals etc. I ended 2010 with a BANG! I lost 8.6 lbs in the month of December alone and since starting my anniversary challenge November 1st, I lost 12.4 lbs in 2 months! SOOO happy with these results!

Happy New Year All!!