Fitness Friday–May 17

Today’s Fitness Friday and lack of running is brought to you by my knee – my right knee to be exact. After discussing my situation a few weeks ago with my orthopedic massage therapist and evaluating the knee on my own, I think I’ve discovered my problem – Quadriceps Tendonitis (or Irritation/Inflammation). Whatever it is, I’m pretty sure that my quadriceps tendon hates me.

I ran 2 miles on Monday (boy did it feel good to run again), but towards the end of the run, my knee began bothering me. The pain began at the top of my kneecap and stayed that way for a while, then it slowly moved to my ITBand. I foam rolled and iced once I got home and everything was fine after that.

Let me clarify when I say pain – it’s not excruciating pain like I had with my left ITBand during the Houston Half Marathon. This pain was more of an ache that let me know something wasn’t right. Ok, carry on.

On Wednesday, I attempted another 2 mile run. The pain didn’t seem as bad, but my overactive wishful thinking imagination might have taken over at that point. Who knows. I did notice something different after this run, however. The top of my knee was and still is tender to touch. Hmmm…

I began a little research and that’s how I made my determination on quadriceps tendonitis/irritation/inflammation. I’ve been icing my knee and foam rolling, doing PT exercises (various forms of squats/lunges, etc), and…boo…resting my knee.

At the moment, I’ve decided to give my knee a few weeks and see where I end up! Dumbo Double Dare will be here before I know it,  I gotta take care of this so I can heal up!

A recap of my week:

Saturday – No long workout – spent the weekend in New Orleans with friends
Sunday – No workout – again, we spent the weekend in New Orleans with friends
Monday – 2 mile run and Jillian Michaels Ripped in 30 Week 1
Tuesday – PT exercises and Jillian Michaels Ripped in 30 Week 1
Wednesday – 2 mile run and PT exercises
Thursday – Rest Day
Friday – I have a date with my backyard today! I’m going to begin staining our wood deck and possibly a little bit of landscaping.

I discovered something new this week! Wholly Guacamole!! Oh my goodness it’s SO good! I tried the Classic Guacamole which was packaged into little 100 calorie packs! SO cute!

I’ve continued on my smoothie-for-breakfast kick! This one was almond butter, banana, unsweetened cocoa, and honey! SO good! I’ll share a few of my recipes soon!

This week has been SO busy at work! It’s Relay for Life week and tonight is our big event!

Our team is selling bottled water and mustache straws as a fundraiser! I have to admit, I’m a little nervous! This event draws around 2,500 people – and I have to speak at opening ceremonies. Eeeekk! I know it will go well, I’m just a little nervous.

A few additional things happened this week – for one, the administrator of our hospital showed my mud run video recap to the ENTIRE leadership team. He wants more people involved with our hospital team next year and he wants the leaders to get their employees excited about the race. I  have to admit – when I found out, I was kind of embarrassed but flattered at the same time!

Also, we shot a commercial for our hospital today and guess who was asked to be in it?! Me! I’m in a group shot that will probably only last 2 seconds of the commercial, but I cannot wait to see it! We had so much fun today!

I hope you have a wonderful weekend! The weather has been gorgeous here lately! I’m hoping it carries over into the weekend!

What did you do for fitness this week?

Dumbo Double Dare Plans

Who’s in with me?

This Fall, I’m running Dumbo Double Dare, which also happens to be my first Coast to Coast, and I am SO excited!!

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If you are a runDisney enthusiast, I’m sure you’ve heard the buzz about this race - but if not, let me enlighten you. Dumbo Double Dare is a 10K on Saturday followed by a Half Marathon on Sunday and will take place at the Disneyland Resort in California this Fall. It’s a 2 day experience, similar to Goofy’s Challenge (minus the insane distances). Not only is the Double Dare an inaugural race, so is the 10k that will be held on Saturday! So many people were excited about this race, it sold out within 2 hours of being open to the masses! Crazy!!

I completed our travel plans for Dumbo last night and I couldn’t be more excited! (I get excited a lot if you didn’t notice – it doesn’t take much, especially when Disney is involved!)

First off, we decided to travel to California the week before the race. Walking for days prior to a race might not sound like a good idea to you, but I’m not terribly worried. At home, I can’t sit still – in my head, this translates to the fact that I would be walking every day anyway, out of town or not. Makes sense, right? (I say I’m not worried now – hope I still feel that way in August!)

Here’s our plans:

Fly into San Diego and (possibly) rent a car.

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Our San Diego resort: Paradise Point – we will be here for 3 nights. The pictures of this resort reminded me SO much of Hawaii, I couldn’t resist!

To visit while in San Diego:

• San Diego Zoo
• Sea World
• Old Town

If anyone has anything to add or must-do places to eat, PLEASE let me know!! We’d love to see/do as much in 3 days as possible! Sadly, the Padres will be on the road during this time. :0(

Once our time in San Diego is complete, we will drive the car to Anaheim for drop off at Downtown Disney. We decided not to keep the car while in Disney, we really don’t need it since everything is in walking distance. (I’m hoping to score a rental deal through Alamo – again, if you know of anything, please let me know!)

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Our Disneyland Resort: The Grand Californian – we will be here for four nights.

To visit while in Disneyland:

• Disneyland Park
• Paradise Pier
• Downtown Disney
• runDisney Expo
• Dumbo Double Dare, of course!

Since we’ve already spent an entire week at Disneyland with a tour of LA/Hollywood, we decided to focus most of our “travel/touristy” time in San Diego.

Last but not least - to end this trip, we will fly out of LAX to home.

San Diego is completely new territory to me which makes me a bit nervous, so I’m asking for your help!

Have you ever been to San Diego? Any tips/advice? Anything exciting we just HAVE to see? Any great places to eat?

A Weekend In New Orleans

My husband and I spent the weekend in New Orleans with plenty of fun times to share! I even made a vlog because yes, we had THAT much fun!! Don’t believe me? Watch and see!!

For starters, we had tickets to see Wicked and it did NOT disappoint! We loved every single moment of it! Unfortunately, our usual 3 1/2 hour trip to New Orleans took almost 5 hours – which means we were SUPER rushed for Wicked! As soon as we arrived at our hotel, we RAN to our room to change, then RAN back to our car – we sat down in our seats in the theatre with only moments to spare. We were so scared we wouldn’t make it but thankfully, we did!! Whew! 

Since we saw Wicked on Broadway in NYC, we weren’t sure what to expect. I can honestly tell you that Wicked off Broadway is VERY very good!! I definitely noticed the difference in caliber (which…hello…comparing on and off Broadway is like comparing apples and oranges), but it was still amazing and definitely worth the time if you have the chance to go!

On Saturday, we met up with friends and visited one of our favorite places ever (and a Mandeville tradition), the original Broken Egg Café! SO yum!



This is how the “boys” spent the remainder of their weekend…



They didn’t even move to take a potty break. Not joking (I wish I was)!



Heather and I spent our weekend talking and catching up since we haven’t seen each other since Goofy’s Challenge! It was great to see our friends again! We really have a great time when we are together – lots of laughter and of course, lots yummy treats!

Speaking of yummy treats, I made Liberty Tree Tavern’s version of an Ooey Gooey Toffee Cake! (It just so happens to be Heather's favorite Disney dessert!) Served with Homemade Vanilla Blue Bell ice cream…delicious!



After leaving New Orleans on Sunday morning, we visited with Jason’s family and mine for Mother’s Day!

All in all, we had a FABULOUS weekend and really enjoyed every moment! It was nice to sit, relax, talk, and not have to worry about doing a million things at one time. A much needed break, for sure!

How did you spend your weekend?

Mother’s Day

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If you are a mother, I hope you had a fabulous Mother’s Day yesterday!

We made it back in town just in time to spend a few hours with Jason’s mom and with my mom!

I love my mom…she’s wise, loving, and devoted. She helps me feel better when I am sad or upset.

We both love Disney and enjoy being silly together while there!

Jason and I love hanging out with my parents because they are fun to be around and we really enjoy the time we get to spend together. I wouldn’t change anything about our relationship!

My mom has always been there for me no matter what – thanks for the hugs, the laughs, and the goofy times we have together. Thanks for always being there, even if it’s just a phone call to say hi! I love you! :0)

How did you celebrate Mother’s Day yesterday? If you are a mom of any kind (even a fur-mom), I hope you had a great day!!

I’ll be back tomorrow with a complete recap of our fun New Orleans weekend, complete with video so stay tuned!

Fitness Friday–May 10

Happy Friday, friends! I’m especially happy today, as my grandfather was released from the hospital yesterday afternoon! THANK YOU ALL so much for the prayers! He appreciates them and so does my family. Over the past few weeks, I told him several times how many friends were praying for him and he was so grateful, he asked me to thank you guys! He’s now in a Skilled Nursing facility (we found one that is not connected to a nursing home…which seemed to satisfy him) while he regains his strength. The adjustment will be hard for him as he could be in this facility up to a few months. He’s not thrilled about it and was having a hard time yesterday afternoon, but I know he will make the adjustment in time.

A recap of my week:

Saturday – 6.5 mile bike ride with a few running friends – they ran, I biked. Still taking it easy on my ITBand
Sunday – Rest Day – Saturday night, I woke up at 11 p.m. with the stomach bug. It was awful. I was awakened again at 2 a.m. with severe nausea and dry heaving. YUCK. Needless to say, I stayed home from church and attempted to rest all day.
Monday – Rest Day, recuperating from the bug! Ugh.
Tuesday – No Workout, still didn’t feel 100%.
Wednesday – Jillian Michaels Shred it with Weights – Kettlebell Level 2
Thursday – No Workout
Friday – Biggest Loser Power X-Train and Ab Blast x 35 minutes before work

This past week, I changed up my breakfast routine a bit. Instead of my usual egg whites and turkey bacon, I decided to drink green smoothies instead!

Yesterday, my smoothie consisted of pineapple, mango, banana, almond milk, and spinach. I also had a strawberry, blueberry, almond, almond milk, and spinach smoothie earlier in the week. Smoothies are definitely a favorite of mine, especially as the temperature outside is heating up for summer! I see a lot of green smoothies in my future!

Last night, I met up with my running pals for sushi night! It was long overdue and we had a great time catching up!

On Tuesday, I enjoyed a little frozen yogurt from Orange Leaf…for free! They were so nice and gave nurses a free 8 oz cup of froyo! Yum!

I’m SO excited for a fun weekend ahead! We have tickets to see Wicked in New Orleans on Friday night. Jason surprised me with Wicked tickets for our anniversary and I cannot wait! We also get to hang out with these guys for the weekend! I see lots of laughter, yummy food, and fun stories ahead!

What do you have planned for the weekend? Hope you have a great one!

FitBox Review

I realize I’ve been doing a lot of reviews on nutritional boxes here recently, but bear with me – I’ve found another good one!

Per their website:

FitBox is a new concept in sports nutrition discovery, designed for passionate athletes such as triathletes, cyclists, runners, swimmers and more. FitBox helps these athletes discover better sports nutrition products by delivering a package of sample sized products each month. Inside each FitBox package is a variety of brands and product categories, which changes each month.

The idea for FitBox began when our company founder was searching for the best race-day nutrition for his personal tastes and needs. The variety of sports nutrition products on the market was overwhelming, and he wasted a lot of time choosing the best products based on trial and error. Our founder wished there was a way to sample the huge variety of products on market, and so FitBox was born!

When April’s FitBox arrived at my front door, I was so excited to open it, I hardly contained myself! The box was so jam packed with goodies, the top did not want to stay closed!

When I say jam packed, I mean it!

Inside were several items I’ve been interested in trying – Honey Stingers gel, Nuun, and Propel to name a few!

PowerBar

PowerBar Chocolate Energy Gel - Each Gel is designed with 27-28 grams of PowerBar’s C2MAX dual source energy blend, which can help deliver 20 to 50 percent* more energy to your muscles. Not only that, PowerGel® Energy Gels have the most sodium** of any leading gel on the market.

PowerBar Triple Threat Energy Smores Bar - Triple Threat® bars can help build lean muscle and provide sustained energy. PowerBar® Triple Threat® bars contain high-quality protein, and they’re a good choice for use after high-intensity exercise. Made with natural flavors, they also provide a source of calcium, iron, and vitamin B6.

PowerBar Chocolate Peanut Butter Protein Plus Bar - Build lean muscle as you train with the help of PowerBar’s ProteinPlus Bar 22g. A great way to sustain your energy and help limit your sugar intake.

Honey Stinger

Honey Stinger Peanut Butter and Honey Bar - Our best selling flavor, Peanut Butter ‘n Honey will not disappoint. The perfect combination of peanut butter and honey makes this an extremely tasty bar. 

Honey Stinger Energy Gel - Gold is the core of the Honey Stinger gel line. If you need a natural boost, Gold will pick you up.

Performance Energy

Cytomax - CYTOMAX contains electrolytes — including sodium, potassium, magnesium and calcium for optimal hydration during fitness activities.

Ultima Replinisher - We call our Orange "Orangey Orange" because it tastes so Orangey.  Along with the standard electrolyte balance led by potassium, Orange contains a citrus fruit blend full of nutrients such as quercetin, rutin and hesperedin. Those specs of deep orange you can see in the powder? Those are tiny pieces of orange peel that make Ultima Orange the Orangiest Orange drink you ever had. (I’m going to drink this in the morning along with my breakfast!)

Nuun - Nuun is hydration, without the sugar – a refreshing alternative to many of the options in the beverage market today. On average, Americans consume 130 pounds of sugar per person, per year. Sugar has been directly related to heart disease, metabolic syndrome and diabetes. Beverages containing large amounts of sugar can accelerate the dehydration process. Sugar requires water from the body in order to be digested, leaving less water to properly fuel muscle and brain function. With zero sugars and only 8 calories in each 16oz. bottle, Nuun is a smart choice for hydration.

Propel Zero - Propel Zero gives you vitamins C, E & B and anitioxidants. So you can replenish, energize, and protect with zero calories and no added color.

Snacks

Oskri Fig Bar - Oskri is a manufacturer of food products located in Lake Mills, Wisconsin. Some of the products we offer are; snack bars, crunches, dried fruit, preserves, spices and much more. (This bar was delicious – really reminded me of a Fig Newton bar!)

I still have several products to test but overall, I LOVED this box and the items inside!

FitBox has several different ordering options:
1 month subscription – $19.95
3 month subscription – $44.99
6 month subscription – $84.00
12 month subscription – $167.00

As you can see, purchasing several months at a time saves in cost. I felt as if this FitBox was well worth the mentioned $19.95 and I would definitely consider a subscription to FitBox in the future!

Currently, FitBox does not have a runner referral program.

Disclaimer: All product descriptions were taken directly from each product’s website. The reviews and opinions expressed here are completely my own. I was provided free product by FitBox for review.

What’s the best surprise item you’ve ever received in a monthly box?

Happy Nurses Week

A very Happy Nurses Week to all of my nurse friends!

My parents sent flowers to me at work yesterday. I opened the attached card and had to giggle – it said “Happy MOTHER’S Day! We are very proud of you!” Whoops!

My husband also brought flowers home to me last night! He said my parents beat him to it, but that’s ok…both arrangements are beautiful!

I’m often asked why I became a nurse, especially one in the field of Oncology. To be honest, I’m not really sure why I became an nurse. For years, my answer to the question “what do you want to be when you grow up” was always “A Teacher”. I grew up around the hospital system. My mom is a Clinical Laboratory Scientist and my dad is an accountant that works in healthcare. As a Junior in high school, I volunteered in a local hospital’s Cardiology unit. I will never forget the first time I saw a heart cath. I was in awe. The fact that I could see a heart on the screen in front of me, with dye flowing through it absolutely amazed me. I knew from that moment on, I wanted to be a nurse.

Nursing school was hard, I am not going to lie. There were times I didn’t think I’d make it through. With a lot of prayers, hard work, (and a little bribing on my parents end), I graduated.

As a senior graduate student, I knew deep down in my heart that pediatrics was my calling. I loved loved loved working with kids. However, God had a different plan. I was accepted into a program for brand new graduates that took me from a surgical unit for six weeks to the cardiac unit for 4 weeks to the oncology unit for 4 weeks and finally to the ER/ICU for 2 weeks each. It was during this program that I discovered my love for Oncology nursing. My grandfather passed away from Lung Cancer my senior year in high school….so oncology held a deeper, more personal meaning for me.

After a few years of working on the Oncology floor, I switched to Radiation Oncology and that’s where I am today!

I absolutely LOVE what I do. People ask all the time, “How do you work with oncology patients? Aren’t you sad all the time?” Me? No. I look at it this way – we might have failures, but there are always successes. It’s rejoicing with those who have been given a clear report…cured…that keeps me going. Yes, being an oncology nurse is hard, but I absolutely love it.

I’ve found other ways to give back, too. I’m currently our area American Cancer Society Leadership Council President and I serve on various councils throughout ACS. It’s a satisfying feeling knowing what I do on a daily basis has purpose – fighting back against a terrible disease that has claimed so many of our loved ones.

Ok I might have gotten off on a tangent there – my main reason for this was to say HAPPY NURSES WEEK to you!! Thanks for EVERYTHING you do! :0)

P.S. – Please continue to pray for my grandfather. He now has fluid on his heart/lungs and is having a very difficult time breathing. It breaks my heart to see him like this. :0(  We appreciate your prayers!!