boo

WHISTLE GIVEAWAY!!!!!! and new goals.

~ loveandlunge ~ 2 Comments

I had to take a break from blogging for a little bit for a whole host of reasons.  Mainly because I was so busy prepping for a big test while simultaneously taking a Financial Accounting course online and dealing with an onslaught of extra work from my day job.  So, after crossing most of that off of my list, I’m back y’all.

These last couple of months have been tough stuff.  I have been traveling like a mad woman and working towards this huge personal goal I have of going to business school and it has taken all kinds of tolls on me.  I am very excited to be back in a good mindset and ready to take on new challenges.  I have a half marathon coming up in January that I’m running with one of my dearest college friends and while I’m having a great time training for it, the half marathon distance is becoming more and more attainable…which is both an awesome and scary thing.

It’s awesome because yay, fitness!  Look at me go crushing double digit mile runs repeatedly!  But also GAH!  That means to challenge myself next I’ve got to set my sights on the big ole marathon.  So, I’ve semi-decided that in my 26th year I’m going to run 26 miles.  Or at least attempt to pending no injuries.  This is still a maybe goal since I haven’t really decided if I’m up for the challenge of running for 3+ hours straight but we’ll see.

At least I’ve got the most epic training buddy in the world to get me through it.  I always say that if I didn’t have Boo, I wouldn’t move nearly as much.  This pup keeps me on my toes and keeps me active all day everyday whether I like it or not.  If you’ve been reading for awhile, you know that I am obsessed with tracking metrics.  I have a Polar watch, a Garmin, a Jawbone Up, a MyZone, and seemingly every other type of tracker in between, so when WhistleLabs reached out to me to get Boo in the game, I was all for it.

The Whistle is this genius little device that clips on to your dogs collar and uses GPS and an accelerometer to track minutes of activity and where your pup is in the world.  It’s seriously Genius.  I had always wondered how much activity Boo had been getting compared to her other peer dogs, and was really happy to see she was consistently above the norm.

The tracker syncs up with an app on your phone and provides you with a unique community to talk to and share all the puppy pictures your heart desires.  It’s awesome.  Plus, you get a notification on your phone when your dog goes out of a pre-set range you determine.  This thing is perfect for escape artists, I’m telling you now.

GIVEAWAY TIME:

I’m giving away 1 Whistle and 3 months of service to a reader!

You can enter in the following ways.  Do one of the below and comment what you’ve done and you’re entered!:

  • Instagram about the giveaway, using the tag #WhistleFit
  • Tweet about the giveaway, tagging #WhistleFit
  • Follow LoveandLunges & Whistle on Insta, Twitter, or Facebook

Restrictions: 

  • U.S. only
  • 1 prize per person

You can use the code WHISTLEFIT for $30 off!  This is such a great holiday gift and highlyyyyy recommended.  I know Boo loves it.

 

-sj

 

 

 

my workout secret weapons and Boo’s side-eye game

~ loveandlunge ~ Leave a comment

Happy Wednesday y’all!  This week isn’t going as fast as the last, but the weekend is in sight, so I’m not complaining.  It’s been a pretty good week thus far full of lots of training and lots of enjoying this beautiful weather.  I’m definitely loving it after a weekend spent inside not feeling well.  Perfect change of pace.

An even better change of pace has been getting back into my half marathon training full force after being sidelined on Saturday.  It’s only Wednesday and I’ve accrued 22 miles since Friday, so my legs have been feeling it.  My half marathon training has been a little haphazard.  Haphazard as in I am not really following a plan, more listening to my body and getting in one long tempo-ish run, one speed workout, and two easier runs in per week.  What day I do it on hasn’t really remained all that consistent due to my travel schedule, but I’m still logging those miles.

Take Monday for example.  I went in to the run aiming for a light 5 just to start off the week with a solid base.  Well that 5 very quickly and smoothly turned into 10 and next thing I knew I was a sweaty mess of exhaustion, but I felt amazing.

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By the time I got home from the gym though, my little legs were burning.  So I turned to a couple of my favorite post-workout recovery methods to ease the pain.

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Enter my trifecta of running/workout goodness.  I don’t use all three of these things every single day, but when I have a particularly difficult workout or run coming up, you best believe these bad boys are involved.

  • Good Day Chocolate: I wish I loved coffee, I really and truly do, I just don’t.  There are some mornings that I need an extra push in the energy department, so I was so stoked when I stumbled upon these bad boys at Whole Foods.  Essentially, they’re little energy chocolates and they are a) delicious b) effective.  There is a notable change in my energy levels (and speed workouts) when I take these before my runs.  Also, caffeine has been shown to be extremely effective during endurance workouts, so count me in.  Chocolate + energy + better athletic performance=100% yep these are great
  • Sport Legs: Ah, Sport Legs.  I first heard about these bad boys on one of my favorite blogs Hungry Runner Girl.  I only use these when I’m doing a particularly long run (long for me anyway) aka anything considerably over an hour.  Unsure if it’s the placebo effect or if these actually are the thing of gods, but I feel like my legs stay fresher for longer when I take them.  I got them off of Amazon, they’re competition legal (NCAA, IOC, WADA, USADA, and UCI approved) and they came highly recommended, so they’re in the rotation.
  • Compression Socks:  My loving boyfriend got these for me for my birthday and to say they have changed my recovery game is an understatement.  What they do is basically stimulate blood flow in your legs helping you to recover more quickly.  There’s a lot more science that goes into it, but a quick google search will give you all you need.  I honestly notice a huge difference in my legs ability to recover for a solid workout the next day if I wear these after a long run.

Of course these three things are not the only things I consider my secret weapons, but they definitely help.  I also love to foam roll, ice my legs, and stretch, stretch, stretch in the evenings after a particularly hard day.  Shout outs to Yoga with Adriene and doyogawithme.com for giving me something to put on during the Real Housewives that forces me to stretch.  You’re the real MVP.

And finally for a little Boo action.  This nugget was giving me all kinds of side-eye when we went on a walk through the preserve the other day.  So immeasurably happy that the weather is picking up so we can do this again!

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  • Are there any “secret weapons” you swear by?
  • What’s your favorite way to recover after a tough workout?  I think mine is eat everything, but that’s just me

-sj