Vegan Bodybuilding & Fitness

Completed my 1st triathlon of season yesterday!!!! Reasonably pleased and I'm already planning my areas for improvement!

500M swim: 11:41 (surprised here because it was a crowded swim heat!! It was difficult to get my swim stroke on!!)

T1: 2:56 (shooting for 2 min & under.... Had a long hike/run thru transition)

Bike 9 miles: 34:15 (hooray!!)

T2: 1:24 (hooray!)

Run 2.4 miles: 27:22 (11.24 min/ mile pace.....fast pace for me! Huge improvement since I'm not a fan of running! I actually relaxed during my run part, chatted with others and enjoyed the moment. I just couldn't make my legs go faster especially since last mile was an uphill challenge!! I have room for improvement here!)

Overall time: 1:17:46. Again, I'm happy- goal was less than 1:20!!
I placed first for my age 30-39 yr olds & 1st for my division for my company!!

I'm getting my plan for relaxation & training together for August's triathlon!

Been a busy week as I'm preparing for a family vacation starting tomorrow! We are off to PA to see my in-laws then on to NYC for a few days then finish out week in DC!!! We are all super excited-my girls have been "packed" for 2 weeks now! This week, my workouts have been laid back and I changed it up slightly. For my trip, I'm packing my running shoes hoping to get a few runs in....... Do plan to stretch and do my body weight/core exercises in mornings before heading out each day! Lots of walking is on tap too!

Monday: felt really good.... No workout-I made myself rest!!!

Tuesday: still felt really good physically and mentally- I was on such a completion triathlon high!!
Elliptical-30 mins level 5; core, legs & stretching

Wednesday: swim 700M in pool..... Goal is to swim longer distances so my sprint distance of 500 M will be easy, quick & second nature!

Thursday: home gym..... Elliptical 20 mins, treadmill 25 mins which included 5 min fast run, core & upper body exercises.

Friday: run day! Plan to run 2-3 miles here in a hour- still cool outside!

Friday: 3 mile run.....easy 12 min pace-good stretch afterwards.

Saturday: travel day that started at 0300 for a 0600 flight-had to rise early to rally kiddos!!! Great day with safe travel thankfully!!

Sunday: run-3 min walk warmup, 25 min run w/ sprints mixed in, 7 min walk cool down- I ran in my in-laws neighborhood on a fine gravel path- awesome!!! Beats concrete anyday!! Body squats & lunges with stretching afterwards.

Late yesterday afternoon, we arrived in NYC- such a neat, bustling city!! It was cool to drive in from NJ and see the skyline..... We all liked the Lincoln tunnel!! My hubby did a nice job in NYC traffic!!

For dinner last night, he surprised us- Cafe Blossom near Central Park!! So tasty- organic vegan with many GF options!! I had Veggie Lasagna- I tried his veggie-lentil burger.....delicious!!! We all finished our meal with soy shakes - mine= butterfinger!!!! YUM!! I loved this place.....kids ate paste- had a shake- both were surprised and ate well!!! My youngest even tried and liked raw zucchini & yellow bell peppers!!

Wonder what today holds for us?!?

Made it back to in-laws Wednesday afternoon..... Pleasantly exhausted! Decided to forego exercise and just relax- we ordered out pizza from a local joint- I had a GF, veggie delight that was tasty!

Thursday: up early for a 25 min walk/jog!! Limited workout as I had to rally the kiddos!!! I made it through at a nice, easy pace. I included some stretching at the end too!
Bags are repacked for an overnight family trip to DC!! We've got a few must sees on the list from the kids! Super excited!! Food selection could be tricky today as my sister n law and her boyfriend will show us they're fav DC spots to eat!! I'm at a no stress point now.... SO far so good on NO tummy issues!

Home from vacation on Sunday 7/1..... Been crazy trying to get back into my routine- long days at work both Monday & Tuesday.....I survived!! Im allowing myself the freedom to ease back into my training this week before I hit it HARD next week! My next scheduled triathlon - sprint distance is 8/5!!
Monday: elliptical & light exercises upper body
Tuesday: 2.5 mile run (11 min/mile) before work
Wednesday: 11 mile bike ride before the triple digits hit!! Nice to be back on my bike- sore neck today!
Thursday: 700 yd swim at pool.... 50 warm up, 250 x 1, 200 x 1, 100x2.... All freestyle except 50 of breaststroke (this is my rescue stroke when crowded in the first part of swim!)

Nutrition: getting back on track too- I survived vaca with no GI upset- now that I'm exercising - I'm starving!! Must increase the veggies!!

What a crazy week- again..... Thankful that I've got job security while it's unfortunate that my patients are sick requiring major surgical intervention..... Just the way it goes sometimes! I've been managing my workouts around the heat and late work days.
Here's a recap of week workouts-
Monday: swim 700 yds
Tuesday: rest day
Wednesday: bike 10 miles (37 mins)
Thursday: early morning run before work-nice 72 degrees at 0515! 2.5 miles.
Friday: rest from training; I did paint/ primer a 400 sq ft room!! Sore upper body after that project!
Saturday: 13 mile bike.... Pushed my pace and felt great! I got my ride in before 9:30- nice at 85 degrees!
Sunday: I woke today with a SORE left knee.... It feels like my hamstring is tight. Today was a run day but I'm going to pass on the pounding and do the elliptical and STRETCH!!
Nutrition: been going well; I'm eating a large salad at lunch which helps with energy! I've also added a Vega shake once a day which helps keep me full and prevents crashing in energy! In fact, I'm down 1.5# in 2 weeks! ( I'd pretty much quit focusing on weight loss and focused on how I feel!).
Here's to another week! Yeah!

Not so sure where the days are going...... My next sprint tri is in 2 weeks! I'm thinking I'll be fit enough to complete though I'm not sure if I'll improve my times. I've not focused on training harder & quicker like I'd hope! My week this week was spent caring for both fur- kids! My 15 yr old Schnauzer contracted a stomach bug of some sort that landed us in vets office Wednesday for treatment..... I only wanted symptoms treated before jumping into diagnostic tests. He's pulled through today- on the road to being his adorable old cranky slow deaf self!! Mid-week, RJ, our schnoodle had a quick 36 hour episode of Dukes illness..... I jumped on his treatment mimicking Dukes plan and he pulled through much quicker-I suspect because he's young-6 yrs old today! So I squeezed in cardio when possible on Tuesday.....
Wednesday: bike/run brick totally 45 mins..... The HOT 100+ degrees temps are killing my afternoon training plans!
Thursday & Friday: no workouts
Saturday: 2.5 mile slow jog then later 700 M swim pool felt good.....
Tomorrow: planning on bike ride 12-15 miles before heat hits!
Tonight..... Resting!

Sunday 7/22: bike 10.5 miles/40 mins
Walk/jog with my kiddos 15 mins

Quick black beans burgers for dinner recipe courtesy of HH!

Monday: extremely stiff & sore neck (more painting Sunday!)-stuck to 20 min elliptical with stretching; had to take a muscle relaxer for stiffness at 1730....in bed early!

Tuesday: rest day because call shift/long day

Wednesday: 10 miles bike/38 min early morning; 500M casual swim around noon
Exhausted..... Think I needed more nutrition that day in hindsight!

Thursday: 2.7 mile run.... Slow 12 min/mile avg

Friday: before call shift.....10 min elliptical followed by upper body weights & all over stretching. Fingers crossed for great, safe work day!

Saturday: early morning 3.2 mile run - avg 12 min/mile .... Includes 3 mins of walking throughout.
Leg extensions #5 ankle wt 20 reps per leg, 30 crunches on ball, ended with 15 mins stretching.

One week from tomorrow is next sprint triathlon.... I'm hoping to go check out course in morning- its approx 45 mins from here. I'll see.....

Sunday: drOve 50 miles north of KC to Smithville Lake-a beautiful area! I rode the 10 mile tri route (38.20 mins) then walk/jogged the 3 mile route.... Nice area for upcoming tri in one week!!

Monday:rest day/call shift- thankful for a slow night!
Tuesday: post call day off.... AM bike 9 miles/34 mins; PM open water swim w/ my friend, 500M nonstop/10:20, 10 min rest/chat; 250M. Walk-jog 24 mins! It was great to have company-we kept each other going & time flew by!!
Our last scheduled triathlon is 9/8. We are considering increasing our mileage/training to do the KC 1/2 Marathon in October! Both of us need a goal and would have fun running together!

Food: I've not been that hungry..... Mainly due to heat (running errands).... I'm behind in cals!
Will try harder tomorrow!

Wednesday: 30 min elliptical - 15 body wt/wt exercises, upper body & core

Dinner: scrambled tofu on baked potatoes- yum!

Thursday: 500M/10:20 open water swim followed by 6.5 miles/24:20 (hilly park course that I loathe!)

Tired during workout tonight-thinking after Sunday, I'll start journaling my food. I think I'm not consuming enough quality calories. My final triathlon is 9/8 and I want it to be my best for this season!

Friday: 2.3 mile/ 26 min run- humid 90 degrees but felt great!! Last run before Sundays race!!

Packet pick up for race- really excited because it's a memorial race for Matt Mason, a fallen Navy Seal from MO who died in 2011 in a helicopter crash in Afghanistan-he loved triathlons! race has 316 participants- pretty awesome for its 1st year! Also, weather is forecasted to be cooler-66 Sunday morning with a high of 87! Wahoo!

Lots to do tomorrow in preparation......