Sweet tooth

I have a sweet tooth. For those of you who know me well, this is an understatement. Red velvet cake with decadent cream cheese frosting, creamy chocolate and peanut butter cheesecake, warm snickerdoodle cookies... YUM! I just can't pass it up. And this weekend was my birthday so bring on the desserts! Here's a glimpse of what is sitting in my kitchen:

Looks delicious right? We have pumpkin cupcakes, (Which i definitely need to get the recipe for because these ROCK! Special shout out to my bestie, Amanda, for bringing these over!) a red velvet cupcake, funfetti cake with orange colored frosting, (Kudos, Mom!) and some chocolate/peanut butter cheesecake that I made as a treat for work. I need help eating all of this!

In the mean time, I have been working my butt off so I can enjoy these. :) Monday I completed a nice, slow, long run a few miles out in the counry, and this morning I cranked out 3 miles before finishing an ab workout. I really need to get a whole list of my daily workouts on this site, but here's a breakdown of what I did this morning:

- 3 mile run: I finished this a little under 30 minutes. I'm going to start cranking up my Tuesday 3 mile runs as I am planning on a Turkey Trot for Thanksgiving.
- 20 minute ab workout: I have a love/hate relationship with ab workouts. It hurts, but I feel great after I'm done!

Tomorrow I'm looking to get in a 5 mile interval run before work. Wish me luck! Now to enjoy a sweet treat before bed... :)

Sunrise workouts

Ok - I've officially decided that I need to let everyone know what happens in my world while the rest of you are still snuggled under the covers in the morning. This is a run-through of what happens on a typical Tuesday through Friday morning for me. I will let the pictures do the talking...

My routine actually starts the night before. I try to get my outfit together before I go to bed so it's one less thing to think about at 5AM. (P.S. I would be lost without the watch. It keeps me moving to make sure I get my entire workout in!)

Alright, this step might be the most important. It involves my favorite morning drink... COFFEE! (Cory lovingly calls this my "go juice" as I don't really get moving in the morning till I've had my cup of joe.) I usually set the timer on the coffee pot to start brewing about 15 minutes before I get up. It sounds silly, but the smell of coffee when my alarm goes off really does help me roll out of bed and shuffle toward the kitchen. Added bonus: The coffee is done by the time I get there!

Once I'm dressed and ready to go, I try to take a few minutes to drink my coffee and search the web. It gives me a second to collect my thoughts and get ready for the day ahead. My advice is to only take about 5 to 10 minutes. Any longer and it's possible to get distracted and talk yourself out of a workout.

My second suggestion is to drink plenty of water! I continue to chug water on the drive into town and while I am running on the treadmill.

Once I get home from the workout, it's time to quickly get ready for work and then... breakfast! This morning I chose to make my own. I microwaved some oatmeal (Bob's Red Mill, Whole Grain Oatmeal with Flax Seed to be exact) then added a little milk, a teaspoon of honey, a tablespoon of slivered almonds, and a sprinkle of cinnamon. Delicious! I also had a glass of milk for added dairy and protein. My favorite part is that this meal really kept me full until lunch time!

After breakfast, I'm ready to start the day, but not without my extra mug of coffee of course! In all seriousness though, the morning workouts give me so much more energy and it's refreshing to know that my entire workout is done for the day! Can't wait to see what tomorrow morning's workout has in store for me. :) Speaking of, it is past time for bed. More later!

I'm back!

Wow, it's been a while again. My apoligies to all of my avid followers. :)

While most everything in small-town USA has remained the same, I have made one major change - I now workout in the morning! That's right, while most people are snuggled in their beds welcoming another hour of sleep, I'm pounding the pavement (or treadmill as the case may be).

I have to say, this has been a huge challenge. A few weeks ago, I read a Runner's World article called "Rise and Run." It gave some wonderful tips on how to get the best out of an AM workout. My number one suggestion: COFFEE!

I can say that I've tried running in the morning before... here and there. I can count two times this summer when the weather was outrageously hot post-work, and a few times in my college life (usually after the first of the year when I wanted to "get healthy"). But I always felt sluggish and out of energy about halfway through my run. I was just completely conviced that I never got as much from my workout at 5AM as opposed to 5PM.

Lucky for me, the magazine article gave several tips on how to get prepared for the morning run and inspired me to get moving. And I am LOVING working out in the morning! I never realized how much time I have after work until I moved my gym time! I definitely suggest everyone give it at least one real try! And not a college try like I did. :)