Getting My (Healthy) Groove Back: Running

Over the next few weeks, I'll be doing a series of posts detailing how I'm getting myself back on track health and fitness wise.  Between having a baby, moving, school starting, and an injury, I've really fallen off the healthy wagon.  I finally feel like I'm back in the groove, so I wanted to share what I've done to get myself to that point.

Today we're going to talk about getting my (healthy) groove back in the area of.... running!

Truthfully, I'm not fully back in the running groove.  In fact, my last run was a short 2 mile run on August 3rd!

Why haven't I been running?  Well, the big thing hindering me from running lately was falling and spraining my foot back at the beginning of August.

Honestly, I've wanted to run, but it was painful just to walk from my house to the car to get to work.  It was painful to stand and teach.  It was painful to walk in my classroom.  Shoot, it was painful walking the 30 steps into the baby's room to get her when she'd wake up at night!  So, as much as I wanted to run, I knew I needed to take it easy once I got home.

And take it easy I have.  For about a month after my injury, I didn't do much on my feet other than getting around.  Around the beginning of September, I was finally able to walk a little more with no pain.  I started walking Tequila as far as I could until my foot started hurting.  Then, I started walking a little bit further as my foot got better.  Two weekends ago, I was able to walk about 2 miles with no pain at all!

Now, just under 2 months since my injury, I'm finally feeling back to normal enough to attempt a run this week.  I'm going to strive for 2 miles, running the first mile then using run/walk intervals during the second.  I don't want to re-injure it, so I will be listening to my body to see what I'll be able to do!  Slow and steady will certainly win the race here.

Over the last two months, I've learned a pretty valuable lesson.  The quickest way to get back into your running groove after an injury is to rest!  If I hadn't taken it easy then slowly worked in more activity, I doubt my foot would feel healed at this point.

So, what's next?
Well, I'm hoping that a run this week will go well enough to sign up for a 5K at the end of October.  I also need to begin training for the runDisney Princess Half Marathon weekend 2016, where I will be running the Glass Slipper Challenge (10K on Saturday, half marathon on Sunday)!  Having these goals, as well as my desire to get back out there pounding the pavement, should help keep me on track with scheduled runs!

(I'm linking up today with Erika, April, and Patty for Tuesdays on the Run!)

Question for you: How do you get back in your running groove after an injury?

Stay tuned for the next installment of Getting My (Healthy) Groove Back series...Healthy Eating!

Meal Plan Monday + Training Log 9/28

Hey, guys!  Long time, no talk!

It seems that any time I try to get a post ready, I never wind up actually publishing it for one reason or another.  This girl may have a little bit of something to do with that!

I'm hoping to do a better job of that from here on out.  I'll do a catching up post later this week, but for now, let's get in to my normal Monday post: my meal and workout plan for the week!

Meal/Workout Plan 9/28-10/4
Monday-Blackened Tilapia-I found a recipe on the back of the bag of frozen tilapia filets for blackening the fish.  This is my favorite way to order fish at a restaurant, so I want to try it out on my own!  We'll have fresh field peas (from a local farmer!) on the side.
Tuesday-Crock Pot Apple Chicken and Sweet Potatoes-I keep putting this on the meal plan then never making it.  It is happening this week, for sure!  I'll probably serve steamed broccoli with it.
Wednesday-out for Mexican food
Thursday-Cheeseburger Casserole-I actually made this for dinner on Sunday night, but the recipe makes enough for us to make two meals out of it!
Friday-Sunday-meals in Virginia!-we are heading up to my grandparents' houses this weekend for some family time (and a Virginia Tech game), so I look forward to spending time with them!
Workouts-I'm doing the Piyo program, so I'll be following their plan for the workouts.  These low-impact workouts seem easy but really are no joke!

Training Log 9/21-9/27
I started following the Piyo program last week.  My foot is still recovering from the sprain, so a low-impact workout program is perfect for me!  Also, these DVDs are about 25-35 minutes long, so I can easily fit them in during Baby Fish's afternoon nap.  Let's see how I did with the plan vs. what I actually did:
Monday-Piyo Define: Lower Body
Tuesday-Piyo Define: Upper Body
Wednesday-Piyo Sweat

Thursday-planned rest day
Friday-Piyo Define: Lower Body unplanned rest day
Saturday-Piyo Define: Upper Body lazy day
Sunday-Piyo Sweat
Not perfect, but hey, 4 workouts in a week is a drastic improvement from what I've been doing.  And I'm striving for progress, not perfection!

Question for you: What's on your meal plan?  What did your workouts look like last week?\
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Baby Fish: 4 Month Update

Being behind on blogging means I'm behind on Baby Fish updates!  She actually turned 5 months old on Monday, but I've had her 4-month post ready for a while.  For my sake, I'm going to publish it today.  I want to be able to read these back someday, and missing a month would just be a shame!

So, without further ado, let's look at how Baby Fish handled her 4th month of life!

Baby Fish's 4th month of life was another jam-packed month.  We started on vacation with my family,

to enjoying our last few days with me as a stay-at-home mom,

to starting day care,

and adjusting to me going back to work.

She is such a happy, go-with-the-flow, outgoing baby that we are so so blessed with!!

Measurements:
Height: 25.75 inches (90th percentile)
Weight: 15.2 pounds (75th percentile)

Eat
Eating is still going well for Baby Fish!  She is still being breast fed, but also drinks bottles of breast milk while at day care.

I was so nervous about her eating at day care, since we hadn't gotten her to take more than 2 ounces from a bottle before taking her.  I knew that she would eventually drink out of one when she was hungry enough, and now she sucks them down!

We also do rice cereal once every three days and have gotten the go-ahead for stage 1 baby food at her 4-month appointment!

She takes the rice cereal much better than before.  She actually sucks on the spoon rather than having to dump it in her mouth, so hopefully the same will happen soon with the baby food.

Sleep
She is still a pro-sleeper!  She sleeps through the night, and we actually have to wake her up to get her ready for day care during the week!

She does not take very long naps at day care, which means that she takes about an hour nap in the early evening and is ready for bed early.

It makes me sad that we don't get to hang out with her as long, but it has led to her falling asleep on me more, which I love!

Play
She finally enjoys tummy time!

She is able to roll to her tummy now, and I think this independent little girl likes that much better than being turned on her tummy!  

She is starting to reach for toys, and she has so much fun while on the play mat.  She's also started grabbing her feet like the "happy baby" yoga pose!

She's still such a fun little girl, and we have a great time playing with her!

Baby Fish Likes:
-Putting her hands/everything in her mouth
-Tummy time
-Day care
-Snuggling after day care
-Watching TV with daddy
-Napping in bed with us
-Screaming/squealing/babbling
-Trying to do things herself

-Looking around

Baby Fish Doesn't Like:
-Having a dirty diaper while on her tummy
-Being held in one way for too long
-Being "forced" to do something

-Being tired

-Eating a bottle while I'm around 

Baby girl, you are so much fun and have made me going back to work both really hard and really easy.  I miss hanging out with you all day every day, but you having an easy time adjusting has made it easier for me, too.  Daddy and I love you more and more each day, as if we ever thought that was possible!

Previous updates:
3 Months

2 Months

1 Month

I'll be sharing her 5 month update next week on the blog!  Thanks for letting me share this with you.  If you can't tell, I love this little girl and love to talk about her :)

Meal Plan Monday + Training Log 9/7

Hey, y'all!  Remember me (and Baby Fish)?

I used to blog around here every now and then.  I know I mentioned this before, but with all the transitions I've been going through with getting back to work, many things have taken a back seat.

I'm finally feeling on top of things and in my groove both at home and at work, so I'm going to make more of an effort to come around here more frequently!  I don't want to promise a regular posting schedule, since my family and work are going to take precedence.  But, I will say that I'm going to come around here more often than once every three weeks :)

So, since this is my first post of the week, let's just jump right in to what I normally post on Mondays--Meal Plan Monday and my Training Log!

I have been doing a much better job of meal planning and food prep, and it's made things so much easier around the house.  Knowing exactly what we're having for dinner and ensuring that have the ingredients on hand and ready is one less thing I have to worry about!

Breakfasts will be oatmeal with a spoonful of peanut butter and a Shakeology shake.

Lunches will be a quinoa bowl with black beans, salsa, peppers, tomatoes, cheese, and half an avocado.

Here's what dinners will look like:
Monday-Lemon Pepper Chicken-a quick and easy meal, with a side of steamed broccoli!
Tuesday-Crock Pot Jambalaya-This is one of our favorite meals, and the crock pot makes it easy to get to the fitness group I like to go on Tuesday evenings.
Wednesday-out for Mexican-There are great specials at our favorite Mexican place on Wednesdays, so that's our normal Wednesday meal!
Thursday-Grilled Fish Tostadas-We made these about a month ago, and they're so good.  Easy to make, easy clean-up, and they're healthy.
Friday-Wedding in Philly!-I'm heading to Philadelphia for a wedding, so Friday's dinner will be there celebrating Brynn and Lionel's wedding with a bunch of my friends :)

Training Log 8/31-9/6
I've still been taking it easy following my foot/ankle sprain from 3 weeks ago.  I did, however, get in a few light workouts and am feeling good about it!
Monday-rest day
Tuesday-Mommy Fitness Group-walked a mile + arm workout

Wednesday-rest day
Thursday-0.75 mile walk
Friday-rest day
Saturday-rest day
Sunday-1 mile walk

I'm hoping that this week, I can start using nap time as a workout time.  I have some low-impact at-home workout DVDs that I want to take advantage of while my foot continues to heal.  I'm also hoping to get back to running soon, though I still have some recovery ahead of me.

Question for you: Did you miss me?  What's on your meal plan?