Posts Tagged ‘Running’
Posted by JennieG on 8th October 2011
My husband loves ab work. He can crunch, plank and damage the hell of of his mid-section and not bat an eye. I, well, let’s just say that I whine about it a lot. (Understatement of year, my friends.)
In fact, I would go so far as to say that I would pretty much rather do any other type of exercise than involve myself in core work. As runners go, I realize that I’m not exactly the brightest crayon in the box. Because core work and running go hand in hand.
I know, I know… I was skeptical of the correlation between the two as well. Which is why I asked Kip Jawish, owner of IN-FIT Studio to give me/us some insight on the subject. (BTW – I hestitate to call Kip “my trainer” because that would make our relationship too real and quite frankly, trainers scare the bejeezus out of me. So we’ll just call him Kip-the-great-guy-who-knows-a-thing-or-two-about-fitness. See how less scary that sounds?)
Kip Jawish. See? Told you trainers scare the bejeezus out of me.
CORE STRENGTH AND RUNNING:
Core Strength is a hot topic in fitness these days. But what does it mean and how can it help your running?
Core training involves strengthening the muscles surrounding your mid-section in all planes of motion. These muscles run from the top of your hips to your rib cage, including your tummy muscles (rectus abdominis, transverse abdominis), your love handles (external and internal oblique’s) and your low to mid-back muscles (erector spinae and multifidus).
By strengthening these muscles you will improve posture which improves breathing, balance,running efficiency as well as improving your energy transfer from the upper body to the lower body. After just a few weeks, you will be running taller and feel that you have more control over your entire body. Some core strengthening exercises are the traditional crunch, plank, side plank, glute bridges, seated oblique twist, just to name a few. As you get stronger you can challenge yourself more by performing the exercises on more and more unstable surfaces. Always perform the exercises slowly, deliberately and with focus and purpose. Start your core training today and you’ll be thankful you did after your next race!
(Fine. He wins. I’m off to do more crunches now. Grumble, grumble, grumble…)
Tags:
core work,
In-Fit Studio,
Kip Jawish,
Running
Posted by JennieG on 19th September 2011
The boys and I participated in a one mile charity run together this weekend to benefit a local elementary school. It was the first race we’ve ever done as a family.
I’ll be honest, I had the inside scoop on this race and it was the reason why I pushed them to go with me. I was told (by a super secret source, naturally) that the race directors would be giving away real finishing medals to the kids who participated. My boys are suckers for medals. (Just like their momma!) I was secretly hoping that it would get them jazzed about running and they would want to try another one.
I needn’t have worried. The minute they hit the field their competitive spirit surfaced.
In fact, my own son looked his mother up and down and brazenly declared, “No offense mom, but I’m probably gonna have to leave you behind.”
And you know what? Both boys smoked me.
I couldn’t be prouder.
Tags:
one mile run,
Running,
youth fitness
Posted by JennieG on 28th August 2011
I’m so excited! Big changes were just announced to the marathon course this year.
Guess what?
We’re running through the Maryland zoo!
Who thinks it is fun to run alongside penguins and polar bears? ME!
Plus another cool location just announced on the course is the campus of Under Armour’s corporate world headquarters in Tide Point. I’m totally stoked about that as well. (After all, I buy a ton of Under Armour for my family so I’m geeky like that.) If you are a running this year’s marathon or just plain curious, feel free to take a gander at the 2011 Baltimore Marathon course map.
Fun fact – 25,000 total runners are expected to participate in this year’s festival. Wow!
So this week the gang had to split up for the long run because I had a soccer tournament. (Yes, we were attending a soccer tournament the same day that Hurricane Irene hit the area. Soccer people are nuts. And by people I mean the crazies running it.) So I ended up running the 10 miles alone on a treadmill in my basement the next day. It wasn’t as bad as I anticipated, probably because I watched Julie & Julia at the same time. (One of my most favorite movies in the world.)
Oh! Completely forgot to update you on the chia experiment! I’ve been using chia for the past week and a half and I’ve noticed a few things:
- I’m fuller longer.
- I have more energy.
- On a run, my water is lasting longer and I am not as parched.
You may want to give it a try yourself. See how it works for you.
And finally, to prove to people that I am not the only crazy runner in the world, I give you this:
Still think *I* am the crazy one?
Tags:
baltimore marathon 2011,
Chia seeds,
hurricane irene,
marathon training,
Running
Posted by JennieG on 5th June 2011
On Friday afternoon I got a pretty exciting opportunity… to chat with Heidi Klum.
Yeah, that Heidi Klum.
(The above pic is me on a conference call with her. Heh.)
The supermodel has teamed up with AOL to launch HeidiKlum.aol.com, a new lifestyle site offering a wide range of coverage targeted at women - news, opinions about fashion, beauty, parenting, fitness, nutrition, relationships, lifestyle trends, entertaining, etc.
She won’t be doing it alone, however. She is bringing in her real life team of experts. Said Heidi, “People can hear it from the horses mouths and from the people who have been helping me for the past 10 years.”
Smart gal. (Hey, she never claimed to have all of the answers herself.)
As I listened to her talk, I realized that she is, indeed, a wonderful example for modern women, working hard at balancing motherhood and her career while making time to nurture her own self. (Not to mention maintaining a great sense of humor.)
Personally, I liked hearing her talk about how she juggles her busy lifestyle. Take heart working moms out there – she is in the same boat as the rest of us, getting up early in the morning to work before the family is awake. She is no stranger to rising before the sun.
As for her family? She makes it a priority to spend every day with them and pays particular attention to one-on-one time with each of her children.
FASHION – HEIDI STYLE
I admit to being a little intimidated (okay, A LOT INTIMIDATED) by the whole high fashion scene, not to mention the empire this supermodel has built for herself in that industry. (Project Runway, anyone?) But fashionistas will be delighted that a staple on the new site features Heidi in a unique “look of the day.” (Plus info on what she has paired together to create it.)
Surprisingly, she has a much more rational fashion outlook than I expected, “It is my real life. Sometimes I wear jeans from Gap and sometimes from a high-end designer. That is what the modern woman of today is. She is eclectic and shows that style doesn’t necessarily have to be how expensive something is, instead it is what looks good on you.”
HEIDI TALKS RUNNING
And lo and behold, the conversation even turned to running. (Go figure, right?) Ironically, beginning June 20th she will launch an eight week running campaign encouraging site visitors to run with her EVERY. SINGLE. DAY.
(Every day, I thought? I’ve never done that. Truth be told, I’ve never even contemplated that. Now, of course, my brain is hatching a plan… Could I? Should I? Every SINGLE day? Hmmm…. I might be joining her.)
Her campaign got me thinking, is a marathon perhaps in her foreseeable future?
“Probably not. No. That seems AWFULLY long. Not any time soon. I’ll just accumulate all of the miles.. ONE day at a time.”
Maybe one day I’ll convince her to run the New York Marathon with me. For now though, I’ll settle for her virtually offering me a lesson or two in style…
Tags:
aol,
Blog,
fashion tips,
Heidi Klum,
lifestyle website,
project runway,
Running
Posted by JennieG on 3rd June 2011
I don’t know about you but I have the most ridiculous conversation with myself in the early morning.
I need to get up and workout.
But I am so TIRED.
Maybe I can sleep just a little longer? Or workout when I get home? Or maybe I will walk with a friend. Or maybe I don’t NEED to work out today. I’ll just workout tomorrow. After all, I am really, really TIRED. No. No. I’ll get up and workout… in five minutes.
And on and on and on…. by the time I go through my litany of excuses I have wasted a good 20 minutes and not done a damn thing.
I’m sure you have no idea what I am talking about. Right?
THIS morning I only haggled with myself for five minutes because I remembered this Nike ad that I found on Kelly Olexa’s site the other day.
Can’t argue with THAT, can you?
So I got up and hit the treadmill and, of course, I’m glad that I did. Suddenly the warm bed seems less inviting than the smaller pant size. Heh.
My running partners (Lori & Katie) and I are getting ready to embark on our Fall marathon training program. In case I haven’t mentioned it yet, we’ll be running the Baltimore Marathon on October 15th. It will be Lori’s first (holla!) marathon, my fourth and Katie’s fifth (over achiever!). I’m resolved to be a heck of a lot stronger this year. My goal? To finish with a humongous smile on my face.
And because I love a challenge I am going to attempt to do something ridiculous in the next week: to complete 26.2 miles over the course of 7 days. I blame Running On Awesome for the idea. (I don’t even know him and I am blaming him. Ha!) Quite frankly, it is a crazy idea that IN NO WAY FITS INTO MY SCHEDULE but we will see how it goes. It just seems fitting to kick off marathon training with marathon week.
Yes, I am a little loopy… but I have some spanking new Saucony’s that need to be broken in.
(BTW – If you want to track my progress, it can be found here.)
Tags:
baltimore marathon 2011,
marathon training,
marathon week,
Running
