Run Ty Run!

This Friday I am participating in my first 5K since ninth grade. I don't know what I was thinking trying to train for it while working on a show, but who can resist vampires, free rides at 6 Flags, food, drinks, and a concert!

Looking back at my old cross country times I noticed that I will probably not do as well as I did at the state meet back in 2007. My time for that race was 22:39. Not bad for someone of that age running against seniors and juniors in high school. But, there is no way I will beat that time or come close. My goal is to do this 5K in 25 minutes and not become a vampire in the process.

Today I will continue my week of running and breaking in my new shoes with a 3 mile run after work. Oh, word to wise, if you get new running shoes, make sure you break them well in advance before a race. Having bought these shoes on Saturday, my feet are still killing me more than usual. I'm hoping to keep up at 10 minute mile pace and not be too tired. I don't want to hurt myself so close to race.

So, I've given a lot of thought to how I want to handle running in the future after this race. As I explained in a previous post, I lost a lot of weight during the run of the show and I am now trying to gain it back. Eating as much as I do on a daily basis is hard enough as it is without the added calories from running. Taking a five day workout routine, I have decided to do a mile for three of those days and then two miles on the other two. This will keep my cardio intact and also allow me to focus more time on strength training and stretching. As I get closer to another race, I have yet to pick one, I will increase the mileage slowly to get me ready for whatever race I plan to participate in. This plan doesn't burn a crazy amount of calories, which is what I need right now.

"You better cut the pizza in four pieces because I'm not hungry enough to eat six."

~Yogi Berra~

One step forward, Two steps back

If you have been following my blog you have seen me gain about 4 lbs over a 3 month period. This included regulating what I eat, running, working out, and staying active. My goal was to gain weight in a healthy way without going the "dirty packing" route. For those that don't know, dirty packing was told to me as the process of eating as many carbs as possible. Fatty food and food that are just high in calorie content with no regards to what you are putting into your body. When I posted a status on FB about my problem of slow gain and super fast weight loss, a few people messaged me saying I need to go this route and just eat 8000 calories a day. Granted, going that way would help me gain a lot of weight, but at what cost to my body?

Now, this blog was dedicated to living a healthy lifestyle without being chained down to how you eat. Making habits out of eating right and working out regularly. It is still my mission to do so. Even though I have over the past three weeks lost a total of 11.5 lbs from unknown reasons, I still plan on keep my promise to eat healthy and not let my new weight stop me from reaching my goal of 150 lbs.

Recap for those just now reading my blog...

Height: 5'9"
Age: 20
Weight: 130.5 lbs.
Calorie consumption goal everyday: 2970 (given to me by My Fitness Pal to gain a pound a week)

Side Note: Did kickboxing for the first time yesterday. Boy did that kick my ass! Since it was cardio based, I had too eat another meal just to make up for the loss of calories I burned. Great news is that if you are looking for a routine to help increase your stamina I really recommend kickboxing!

Been A Long Day

Well, it has been some time since I've written last. Lets just say that these past few weeks have been crazy. The show i'm in is up and running which is why I am able to take more time to focus on writing again. Today I bring you a recipe for beer cooked chicken in a beer sauce. Sounds good, right? The great thing about this recipe is the fact that is also just 450 (approx) calories per serving if you divide into three servings. I will note that the sauce is a little thin, but adding some cheese can probably help that.

Beer Chicken Pasta

Ingredients

1 Cup of Tomato Sauce
1/2 Cup of diced Tomatoes
2 Diced Chicken Thighs
1/2 Diced Large Onion (I like onion, so feel free to add less)
1 Cup of Beer (of your choice)
2 Garlic Cloves, chopped
1 Tbl of Butter
Half a box of Whole Grain Noodles
Basil/Oregano/Salt/Pepper

1. Heat pan to medium heat and bring water to a boil for pasta
2. Once pan is heated place butter and garlic in pan and brown the garlic just a tad.
3. Add chicken, onions, basil, oregano, salt, pepper, and 1/2 cup of beer.
4. Cook until the chicken is fully cooked.
5. During this time make sure you have cooked your pasta and are keeping an eye on it till it is done.
6. Once chicken is done cooking, add tomato sauce, diced tomatoes, and remaining beer and bring to a simmer
7. Once it is heated, add to noodles, top with cheese, and enjoy!