MY FAMILY 💕
TRAINING:
Hello everyone! Welcome to WEEK 7! This was definitely not my week. I never felt right, never had much of an appetite to enjoy my meal, ate out of necessity, still dealing with my quad issue, and honestly, I managed to psych myself out Friday night before my long run. I don't know why I was so out of it all week. I don't know why this week felt so hard. Let's get into it....
The week started great with my Tuesday 2 Mile shakeout was great! I felt great running my usual 2 miles to daycare. My legs felt great, my heart rate was perfectly elevated, but I was never out of breath. I chose to use this run as a medium tempo run instead of a shakeout because of how strong I felt. With no work this week, I was even able to get in a stretch and bands session later on that day.
My second weekly run, another 2 miler to daycare turned into a tempo run by way of traffic lights. Thank you, Chicago traffic! So basically, I sprinted from light to light, then jogged through crosswalks and yellow lights. Not the easiest thing with a
running stroller! It's a good thing I got this speed run in because I had no time for a gym treadmill run or a bike run, so here's to hoping these 2 runs were enough for the week.
My other workouts this week consist of band workouts, a lot of stretching (especially my quads), intense superset dumbbell workouts, a ton of core work and almost 33 miles of walking all week.
12 MILER DAY!!
Alright, here it is, Friday morning, barely being able to take down my quinoa/egg breakfast, the dreaded fear began. I just couldn't get on board with this run. I just had a bad feeling, not like last week when it was the double-digit doom. This week I felt like I was not going to finish this marathon, so I didn't want to waste any more time. Lunch time came, thought I'd be able to get past the fear. Nope, I told Vik I wanted to quit training. I told him I just didn't have it in me, and I was already tired. Anyways, I prepped for my run and went on my way at 5:45 am, with an alarm set for 4:30am. Why so early, well, takes me an hour to eat, caffeinate. hydrate, poop, fill my electrolyte pouch, fill my camelback, stretch, roll my arches and finally the real reason, it was already 70 DEGREES at 5AM! I had to get the brunt of my miles in before that sun came beating down on me. Sunrise was at 6:07 am, I wanted to get 2 miles in before then. Turns out, my plan was on point, it was so hot by the time I got to the lake, 4 miles in. I noticed that my pace wasn’t picking up like last week, at least not the first 5 miles. Miles 6 & 7 were my best, but that heat was coming down hard on my body. I actually really needed my family at that point for 3 reasons: Norah - my cheerleader, Vik- my pacer and DJ, and finally...any distraction from this crap run! I met up with them with 2.5 miles left to go, Norah sharing a bite of her cheddar bageI. I had to make stops, stretch, almost called it at 10 miles, it was baaaaaad! Nonetheless,
I hit 12 and took a stroll in the lake and hugged my daughter as she said, 'Good Job, Mommy!" All I could think about was that SUCKED SO BAD. What am I going to do next week???!!
NUTRITION:
While the food I made this week looked great, I don't think I enjoyed most of my meals this week. I don't know why I didn't have an appetite. I did notice that I didn't have enough protein/carb balance and made some adjustments towards the end of the week, replacing my Thursday night protein and veg with pasta. “Quinoa of the Week”, this week, was a Greek inspired Quinoa. This week, in general, the theme was Italian/Mediterranean themed. Learning from last week, I made time for breakfast and focused on making sure I was eating on time. My nutrition plan was NOT ON POINT this week, I need to revisit and revise a new process next week!
Meals of the week included and pictured are:
(PLEASE NOTE: All meals are home made by Vik or me unless otherwise noted in the description (i.e. restaurant website link, or source (parents, family, friends))
1. Quinoa of the Week – Greek Inspired (Garbanzo Beans, Lamb, Fresh Herbs,
Tomatoes, Red Onion, Feta) (Lunch on Wed with Baby Spinach, Breakfast on Friday with Scrambled Eggs)
2. OTHER BREAKFASTS THIS WEEK:
Cream Cheese, Tomatoes, Coddled Egg & Chives on Toasted English Muffin
Peanut Butter, Apples and Cinnamon on Oat Bread
Refried Black Beans, Avocado Egg Salad, Lemon Dill Pickled Red Onion
Avocado Egg Salad, Pepperoni, Tomatoes & Cheddar Cheese
3. LUNCHES THIS WEEK:
Leftover Zucchini & Italian Sausage Involtini with Ricotta & Marinara
Baked Sweet Potato with Garbanzo Beans, Fresh Veggies & Herbs, Greek Yogurt
Turkey Sandwich & Summer Polenta from Lula Cafe (www.lulacafe.com)
Spicy Tuna Melt from Tribecca's (https://www.tribeccas.com/) (Not pictured)
4. DINNERS THIS WEEK:
Zucchini & Italian Sausage Involtini with Ricotta & Marinara
Smoked Chicken Tostadas with Refried Black Beans, Avocado Pico De Gallo, Sour Cream & Salsa
Homemade Sausage, Mushroom, Red Onion & Mushroom Pizza on CauliPOWER crust with fresh basil
Loaf Pan Lasagna with Italian Sausage, Baby Spinach, Mushrooms & Ricotta
5. PRE-RUN DINNER THIS WEEK:
Coconut Chicken Curry, Veggie Rice, Dal Makhani, Smoked Tomato & Cucumber Raita, Fresh
Heirloom Tomatoes
In addition to meals, I drank my healing tea of black masala chai brewed with fresh turmeric & ginger and chocolate milk post strength training workouts I didn't really snack much otherwise this week, I just wasn't very hungry for much.
OVERALL:
Week #7 was a great reminder of how things change in a week. While I made some good changes by eating more breakfasts, I also made a bad change by messing with my meals at the end of the week. I need to reevaluate what I am eating, when I am eating it and how much of it. I realize that I am sourcing a meal plan based on 4 years ago that hasn't taken into account how diverse my physical demands are now being a mom.
Physically, I am feeling the usual soreness that comes with 12-mile runs. My quad needs consistent stretching and so does my IT Band (UGH!) I'll get through it with some Aleve, Theragun, foam roller and the miracle of BIOFreeze!
Mentally, I’m pretty beat up from this past week. I hated that long run. I am mad at myself for not paying more attention to my meal plan. I thought I made changes for the better, which some were, but ultimately, I felt depleted during my run compared to last week. I never felt satiated, only full. I missed my usual tempo bike and definitely regretted that during my run. I just am down on myself for just not doing the things I normally do to prep for a long run, and the worst thing is that I don't know why I did that. My breakdown on Friday didn't help and the 12-mile run was over before it ever began, in the worst way. Not the best headspace.
Emotionally, I'm a wreck, but I had to get here to hopefully motivate myself to figure out what I am doing going forward. Not wanting to sound like a broken record, I’ll just leave it at that.
Marathon training in all consuming. I miss out on Saturday morning wake-ups with Norah because I'm already running to beat the heat. I miss out on my own social life because I have a long run. I feel like I sometimes can't give Norah all my time because I am either too tired or too sore to bend and play with her.
Marathon training is also very isolating. I recently had a conversation with someone who is pregnant and compared it to pregnancy. Not everyone can do it. You can't completely understand it unless you've experienced it. You find yourself alone at times with your own thoughts. The light at the end of both is something you will love and cherish for the rest of your life.
I am running the Chicago Marathon 2024 for the same charity as in previous years, The Chicago Diabetes Project - Cellmates on the Run Foundation! Click on the link below for more information, race updates and donations! Every dollar counts, help us find a cure!
See you all next week!
~Giz
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