Coach Jen B

A short week can seriously mess you up!   Actually, I don't think I ever recovered from the past weekend.   Saturday was packed full of cleaning and decorating for Izzy's birthday party.  No run.  But I was dead tired!    at least I had my Tokala's from Altra !  happy feet for sure We had Tuesday off due to a nor'easter that brought us a ton of sleet. I did take advantage of the day off and got in 8 miles yesterday in my pain cave.  My workout called for hill intervals.  Given the icy and dangerous conditions outside, I felt the treadmill would be the best place to get in my workout.   And I was right!  I did have to wear my Embrace the Hill tank for motivation to get me through an intense workout.   It matches my Spandits perfectly!  It was so messy, we had a 2 hour delay this morning.   I am thankful for the call being made, it was for everyone's safety.  The roads were still quite di...

This post is sponsored by Matrix Fitness . All opinions are my own. Runners are often known for their toughness.  Rain, snow, sleet, freezing rain - they are outside in the elements getting their run in.   Some days those runs make you feel incredibly strong; other days, not so much.     I admire those runners who still get out there in the elements and bust out a workout.  I do!   However, for me, I’d much rather get in a quality workout at home in much better conditions.    I used to gasp at thinking about running longer than 5 miles on the treadmill.  It just seemed so boring.     However, overtime and with lots and lots of practice, I have found some great tips that get me through any kind of run on the treadmill.    And fitness companies, like Matrix Fitness are making treadmill running much more enjoyable!    WEATHER WOES First of all, instead of dreading your run ...

The day is almost here.... the day I've been training for the past couple of months.   Tomorrow after school I'll be heading off to Mount Washington for a small little race.  You know, no big deal.... just 7.6 miles ALL UPHILL....  for the Mount Washington Road Race.      How does one prepare for a 100% incline race?   I've been putting in a ton of time on the treadmill on 100% incline runs.  Lots of and lots of those.  My favorite workout was run @ 10-12% incline for 0.3miles, power walk at @14-15% for 0.2 miles.... and repeat.  I've been doing lots of leg strengthening as well.  Because they are going to be working so HARD on Saturday!   Because let's be honest, there are some super steep parts where power walking is going to be much more efficient.  I found that out last year when I ran it for the first time!  I've set a goal of sub 1:50.  Last year I s...

2015 is the time to get your rear in gear!  Let's get started with some necessities to get you heading in the right direction! Unique Fitness Concepts  is a one stop shopping experience that has tons of great workout products to choose from! These 3 items are sure to get you heading in the right direction with your fitness goals for 2015. Garmin 15 I've been eyeing this Garmin up for a few months now.  I do LOVE my Garmin 10, simple and easy to use.  But the Garmin 15 is just one step above that adding in the HR monitor!  Great feedback for the athlete/runner - to know and monitor how hard your heart is working! 2Toms Stink Free After you sweat, your shoes are going to stink.  They might now stink right away, but trust me.  They will stink.  And you don't want to smell that.   2Toms has tons of great products like this one and others that are available on Unique Fit. Swiftwick Socks  Next to shoes, socks are importan...

First I'm going to start out with a little random picture….. Yesterday I felt like wearing my wool peacoat to school.  Apparently I haven't worn it for 3 years, because I found these items in the pocket.  Darn no money!  BUT, I know it's been at least 3 years because we made Izzy give up the pacifier at age 2 and she'll be 5 next month!!!  And that bracelet?  I'm so happy I found it!  My aunt gave it to me after mom passed away from cancer.  I thought it was gone forever.   I have been spending a bit on treadmills lately mostly because of my schedule and Ward's schedules.  The kids have been spending a lot of time in gyms/my classroom as well.  Thankfully they are easily entertained.  Sunday I gave them my phone and let them hang out in my classroom while I ran on the treadmill in the fitness center down the hall.  When I came back, I saw this video they made and that they had already sent to Ward!   ...

First and foremost, I need to tell you that my kids freaking rock.  They understand that I love running and that fitness is important to me.  Now that it's getting colder and darker earlier, it's not as easy to bring the kids along with me when I run.  Tucker's not a huge fan of riding his bike in the snow and slush and Izzy really dislikes hanging out in the jogger getting pelted by ice balls in the eyes or having layers and layers of blankets on her at an attempt to keep her warm from the brutal winds.  Ward's schedule just plain old stinks right now.  So if I want to run, I can roll out of bed at 4:30 am and fall asleep at 6:30 pm…. or I can head to the gym, bring the kids along with me, and get some treadmill miles in.    these kids spend a lot of time at the gym….. she'll be running on this in no time! So back to why my kids rock.  They have spent the last few days hanging out at either the gym or in my classroom while I ran in t...

I didn't go anywhere.  I wish.  But I've had a fever since Friday and my last run was Friday morning.  I was scheduled to run 7 easy miles and I was only able to manage 5 painful, dizzy, miles.   I felt off for the rest of the day, I thought perhaps I was feeling off maybe due to the excitement of getting into those awesome races.  But Friday night it finally dawned on me that I felt flush and had been feeling rather flush all day.  So I took my temperature and that darned thermometer read 102F!  Grrrrr..... Because I am getting better at listening to my body, I heard it loud and clear with a temp, so I didn't run on Saturday or Sunday.  I rested, took care of myself, hydrated, ate, took medicine, but yet my temp stayed between 101 and 102.  I stayed home from school yesterday, and still didn't feel better. Today, Maine got hit by a snow storm which meant a bonus day off for me and the rest of the state.  But by 10 am, I was feeling ...

The other day I ran down to the school's fitness room, just 4 doors from my classroom, to get in a quick run afterschool.   Minutes into my run, I get a text from my best friend, Stacy, who was running on the treadmill at her school - less then 30 miles away. So, of course, I had to send her a picture of me running.   I think it's definitely normal.  Don't you?  

I am loving Tina Reale's Best Body Bootcamp .  The first two weeks have flown by and I'm definitely feeling stronger.   Here's my week recap:   Monday: 5 miles - treadmill Tuesday: Workout A + Circuit Interval  Wednesday: 7 miles - progression run, treadmill Thursday: 8 miles, treadmill + Workout A + Interval Workout B Friday : Workout C + Circuit Interval Saturday :   4.5 miles, treadmill Sunday : 12.3 miles, outside Total Mileage - 37 miles (for #TeamEscapades #ChillyChallenge) I'm finding lately I am heading for the treadmill for running.  I'm not about to run outside in the dark.  No way.  I'm a chicken.  And when it comes down to it, it's incredibly convenient for me to walk down 4 days at school and hop onto a treadmill at school.  On a good day, I can crank out 7 miles before having to head home to be there for the boys to get off the bus.  Yes, I'm missing my outside running, but I'm r...

Why do holiday breaks go by so fast?  I cannot believe it's Thursday already.    1.  On Monday, I got a great package in the mail.  Inside that package were two Handfuls!  1 purple Handful bra and 1 purple Handful tank.  The more I wear Handful , the more I am in love with the company and their product.   I now need to buy more tanks - one in each color.  I am addicted.  The feel of the tank is amazingly silky smooth.  I was cuddling with Izzy Monday night and she couldn't get enough of the smoothness and kept rubbing the bottom part of the tank.   2.  Today we had another snow storm.   I know I posted the other day about running in the snow, but I'm also not afraid to admit sometimes it's not the greatest idea to run in the snow.  Today was one of those days.  The wind was absolutely brutal.  I started out the day thinking I was going to tough it out and run outside, but in the f...

The temps are dropping like crazy and we're getting all sorts of lovely Maine winter weather. In only two days, our weather changed from frigid and windy to snowy then to freezing rain.  Lovely. Yesterday morning, I went out for a run with the husband and brother-in-law.  I also need to mention that it was 16F.  Brrr. We ran 5 miles and it was a lot of fun.  Finally I'm able to at least keep up with those fast and speedy BQers for their slow pace with a comfortable middle pace for me.  They were both definitely hoping for me to be slower because they kept telling me to slow down. Then last night, I thought I'd look ahead to this morning's weather. Ugh.  We already had a light snowy coat outside...then add freezing rain on top of it = ice rink.  Not fun.  I quickly started tweeting Maine Mom on the Run about the weather.  I finally convinced her to be a wimp with me and run at the gym on the treadmills with me.  Then I...

When it comes to running, I definitely prefer to run outside.  There is something about the fresh air and running to a destination that is much more pleasing to me.  Last year, I somehow managed to run outside for almost every run.  I believe I only "came inside" 1 or 2 times and I had to borrow my day care provider's treadmill. This year is FAR different.  I now work at a local gym, which = access to a treadmill basically anytime I want AND I work at my local high school that has a fantastic fitness room - just a few doors down from my classroom!  I went to having access to zero treadmills to TWO!  Anytime I want.   As you know, fitting in longer runs can be a challenge for me when it comes to my work schedule, Ward's work schedule and taking care of/being around for the kids.  For some reason, Ward worked from home on Wednesday and Thursday which to me = GO RUN JEN!  So I did.   On Wednesday I took on 10 miles afterschool o...