Week 1 in Review

 Week 1: Marathon Training

What an amazing week! Not only was it my first week of Marathon Training but also my first week of the Flex and Flow Challenge, Push Up Challenge and running with my 10k clinic!

My week started with my Monday night run, doing 6 km.  This was such a great run! I started a new way of doing things. I now run to my running room clinic location and then run with the group and then run home! Mondays are always pretty draining so its such a nice feeling to clear my mind and get prepared for the week ahead. Also great to get in the extra 3 or so km's.

Tuesday marked my first day with my personal trainer! We did my fitness test to see where I am at and what my strengths/weaknesses are.  Strength is definitely a weakness for me... My pride may have taken a bit of a hit their but I did alright.  This week I get my weight training plan together so I am very excited for that.

Wednesday I did my long run for the week with 8.8 miles.  This run was slightly impromptu as I was planning on doing hills.  I did my 4 x 400m hills and then continued to run.  Personally running is my outlet to clear my head and this week I had a lot of stuff happen personally. It was a much needed early long run.

My week continued with a break on Thursday and then Yoga on Friday. I wasn't feeling great Sunday so my run got cut short, plus it was minus 24 with a wind chill warning so running outside wasn't really that ideal.

Another thing I have taken on this past week is #flexandflow through my #sweatpink community! I have been doing one pose a day on top of a sun salutation! Yoga is a huge challenge for me so this is helping me push through!

The last challenge I took on this past week is the 30 Push up Challenge.  I have very little upper body strength so this is helping in that area! I am up to 19 push ups a day! On the days I run with my group we also double it! I can already tell the difference!

So there is my week in a whole! Week one of marathon training is complete and I cannot wait for week two starting off with 6 km pace run!

Have an amazing week!!
   

30 Day Push Up Challenge

Push it Real Good! 

 I don't know about you but I struggle with push ups and really all upper body strength.  My running group and I have decided to take on a 30 day push up challenge to kick off 2016!  Not only are we building up to do 40 push ups but we are also working on good form! No Cheating!

I found this great article in Women's Health Website about the proper form that really helped me.  As our group has both men and women in it this helped direct us in the proper form adding some modifications that you can work into as you build up strength! I am starting with the modified version but am hoping to be able to do the basic push up for all 40 by the end!

Here is our challenge schedule!

I am starting Day 2! If you are struggling like me with push ups I encourage you to give this a shot!

A few push ups never hurt anyone! :)

Setting 2016 Goals!

Be Honest With Yourself!

When setting goals it is great to reach for the stars but on the other hand you should always be realistic in your goals. You have to dig deep and think about the things that you can realistically work on improving. I have put a lot of thought into my goals this year and really looked at my faults from last years training.

Here are the top things I think I was lacking on while training last year.

• Inconsistency! 
• In my long runs.
• Yes I would run regularly but when it comes to your long runs its really easy to justify running less.  When it came down to half marathon training I only ended up doing two 17 km runs... Realistically I really should have been doing more long runs.
• No one likes hills but really you should do them.  
• I was lucky that my half marathon was flat because I was easily discouraged when it came to hill running. I would set low goals and not push myself.  Weekly hill runs is essential to training.
• Cross training should be a regular thing!
•  Yes I would do yoga or spin but I was not consistent. This would help me avoid injury and build strength in other areas.
• Eating OK but not ideal
• I was really good at having smoothies for the most part but my diet was still not ideal.  For the amount of exercise I was doing I really needed to step up my eating plan.  My nutritionist will really help with that over this next training season. 
• Stretch!
• I can not emphasize how important it is to stretch! Through my run I had mini pains in my hip and tightness in my legs.  This could have all been avoided with proper stretching.  The tightness really slowed me down and would be the main thing i would notice that would start the "I cant's" in my head during long runs and races. Those are hard to get through as it is so no need to add avoidable barriers. Stretch before and after your runs.  

I think it is also important for everyone to be proud of the things that they were successful at as well.  A little bragging never hurt anyone!

Here is what I am most proud of myself for in

•  Building up mental strength
• My greatest accomplishment in 2015 in my opinion was building up my mental strength! It is so easy to be negative when unfortunate things happen in your life and I really focused on being strong and taking care of me.  I honestly believe one of the main reasons I was successful in 2015 was due to my mental strength.  Meditating and listening to my body really helped me stay true to myself.  It also helped me going when times were tough not only in races but in everyday life.  

Based on my 2015 times and accomplishments here are my 2016 goals! I really think if I work on my forthcoming's and keep up with my strengths these goals will all be attainable.

1. 3:25 Marathon PR
1. Qualify for Boston 2017 (under 3:35 minute Marathon before September 19th 2016)
2. 1:35 Half Marathon PR (Currently 1:49 Race PR)
3. 40 Minute 10 km  PR (Currently 46:16 Race PR)
4. 19 Minute 5 km PR (Currently 21:18 Race PR)
5. Touch My Toes 
1. This one seems a little silly but I haven't been able to do this for years so hopefully I can get to that point this year.
6. Properly be able to do the Downward Dog yoga pose.  
1. This pose has been my nemesis for years so 2016 is going to be my year to break that!

So there you have it folks! My 2016 goals are not only going to push me but in my opinion they are quite realistic! It won't be an easy year but in the end I think it will be worth it!

Have a great Wednesday! 

Let the Marathon Training Begin!

Today Officially is the start of my Marathon training! I have 111 days until the BMO Vancouver Marathon and 139 until the Scotiabank Calgary Marathon.  I may be crazy scheduling two marathons in one month but I guess we will see how it all goes. The whole marathon thing is new to me so I have a great team of people helping me prepare, I even got a personal trainer to help. I have a really great group of people from Life and Balance Wellness Center including my Natural path, Physiotherapist and Massage Therapist keeping me strong and injury free over the process. I have an amazing dietitian that assisted me with meal plans and overall diet. I also have Tessa my trainer meeting with me once a month to keep me on track along with putting together my training plan.  Now its all about the act of keeping up with it all! I figured I would share my training plan (as of now) for those of you who need some guidance in your training schedule.

My running schedule is pretty straight forward and similar to my half marathon schedule with some extra miles of course. I am also training six people for a 10 k race in March through the Running Room so I am basing a lot of my runs off them.  If you are in Calgary and want to join us on a run we would love to have you! We run starting at the West Hills Running Room Mondays and Wednesdays at 6:30pm and Sundays at 8:30am! I am running four days a week. Keep in mind this may change a tad once Tessa does my overall fitness test tonight.
Mondays I will be doing a Tempo run, this run will be focused on building speed.  I will incorporate fartleks into this run as well! Starting with 3 miles tonight!
Wednesdays I will be doing Hills! Focusing on a good warm up and building that leg strength! Starting with 4X 400 meter (ish) hills this week!
Thursday I will be doing an easy run as a part of my weight workout. Starting with 4 miles this week!
Sunday will be my long run day.  This run will  be focused on a comfortable pace and banking some miles! This week I am going to start with 8 miles!

My cross training will be on Tuesdays! I am going to rotate between swimming, barre, yoga and spin this evening! This week I am meeting with my trainer Tessa and she is going to do a fitness level test on me to ensure my training plan fits exactly what I need. To be honest I am a tad nervous about this one. I like to think I am in amazing physical health but getting pushed to your limit even for the highly competitive person I am is a tad intimidating! Once I get this health test done I will post my official training schedule as well.

2016 is going to be a great year I can already feel it and I am going to use all the things I learned about myself last year to exceed my goals this year! For these marathons my goal is to qualify for Boston... I would really like to get down to a 3:25 minute Marathon! I hope I can do it! But will keep you all updated along the way! And any running tips along the way would be greatly appreciated!

I also would like to remind all you runners and bikers to use the app Charity Miles! This app adds an extra perk to your run! When you run with Charity Miles you donate money to the charity of your choice(out of their list).  I love this app because not only do I feel like I am doing something great for myself every time I run but now I get to help a cause that means something to me. I encourage you all to get this app and use it.  Its really amazing!

Overall I am so excited about what 2016 has to bring! Wish me luck in my first week!

Marathon Training here I come! 

Now for a great quote coming to you from my amazing mother to start off your week! Be kind, be patient, be smart but most of all be wise!

Have a great week!

Sweat Pink!

#SweatPink

 

What an amazing way to kick off the year! Last week I received an email letting me know I was accepted as an ambassador for Sweat Pink! This is such an amazing community and I can feel the love already! It is so important to surround yourself with amazing people that share your journey with! This is such an honor and I cannot wait to meet new friends and inspirations through this program.  For those of you who do not know what Sweat Pink is here is their mission statement.

 

Firstly, Who doesn't love pink! If you have seen my running attire you would probably agree this Fit Fam screams Jocelyn! Also, I thrive to push myself and be the best I can be everyday! I think their mission is an amazing overview of really how everyone should live and cannot even put into words how exciting it is to be part of such a great community!

 

 

Another cool aspect of Sweat Pink is the regular challenges! Right now they have a yoga challenge which I am really excited to be a part of! I am a little behind but starting tonight I am going to get on the #flexandflow challenge.  This challenge gives you daily yoga poses to complete! Today's pose is a Reverse Plank! This exercise release tension in your shoulders! What an amazing stretch to start off your week!! I encoursage everyone to follow @fitapproach and keep up with your daily yoga poses! You can keep us all on the loop by sharing your photos on instagram #flexandflow! 

 

Keep up to date with their challenges and whats going on in #sweatpink world on social media or their website!

 

 All in all I want to share my excitement with you all and hopefully see your #flexandflow positions! I can't wait! 

I hope you all have an amazing Monday!

Top 5 for 2015!

 My Top 5 for 2015

For those of you who kept up with me over the past year you know that my year was full of challenges however I did get through them all and finished the year with a smile on my face.  It's so important to remember the good so I figured it would be a great start to 2016 to highlight some of my positives!


1) My Europe Solo Trip!  In February I got the opportunity to go to Nice, France for a work conference. From there I traveled to Italy stopping in Verona, Venice and Rome.  This was such an amazing chance to get to know myself better and really learn to love myself! I was so excited to see the beautiful architecture, eat amazing food and breathtaking scenery!

2) Some great PR's! In 2015 I was racing like crazy with seven 5km races and five 10km races! My 5 km PR went down to 21:46 and my 10 km PR went down to 46:16! Such an amazing accomplishment!

3) My First Half Marathon! Not only was this a huge accomplishment but I even beat my 2:00 time goal with a PR of 1:49:16!

4) Meeting my Boyfirend.  As corny as this one is it was really a great part of my year! Not only is he supportive to my goals but is the best cheerleader a girl could ask for!

5) Becoming a running coach for the running room was truly a great honor! This year I got the opportunity to coach 11 amazing women to successfully complete their first 5km or beat their time goals.

What more could a girl ask for!  Although 2015 had a lot of ups and downs looking at this list truly makes me see how lucky I am!

I would love to hear everyone's positives for the year as well! I encourage you all to do so! #positive2015

So excited to see what 2016 will bring!

Jocelyn :)