Nike Free Run + 2 review (v. Reebok RealFlex)

So, yes, I am late to the party but I am really into this minimalist trend lately.  I had been running in my Reebok RealFlex for quite a while and loved the flexibility and lightness of the shoe.  But, I have pretty much worn out the Reeboks.  I have been told I have a neutral pronation.  I also have a very high arch - so high that I have a bone that sticks out on the top of both my feet making wearing certain shoes very difficult.  With typical shoes that cover the top of my foot, I can usually only wear them an hour or two before they start killing my feet.  I love the RealFlex because the upper is barely there and never bothers my foot and has a super flexible sole.  So switching to a new type of shoe is a very difficult and lengthy process for me.
I started looking into getting more minimalist and ran across the Nike Frees and Nike Free Runs.  It was hard to compare where the RealFlex fit in to the Nike system as far as minimalism, but after trying on a Nike Free Run 3.0 v. 5.0 and Nike Free Run 3.0 v. 4.0, I think it is closer to a Nike Free Run 3.0 v. 3.0 (which I could never find in a store) or a Nike Free 3.0 (which I could never find either).  I ended up buying a Nike Free Run + 2.0.  If you don't know anything about the systems, the lower the number the more minimalist and the Nike Free is more minimalist than the Nike Free Run.  The "+", if you don't know, is for the data tracker that slips into the inside sole of the shoe, which I don't have but don't really have a need for at this point.
So here are my thoughts:

There is more arch support in the Nike, which I am not a big fan of.
There is less heal support in the Nike which I am a fan of.  I could definitely tell on my first run that I was sitting back more while running instead of leaning forward.  I had never noticed this before I switched shoes.  I thought my calves and shins would be horrendously sore after my first run in the Nikes (3.5 miles), and though they felt more fatigued than normal, I was not sore the next morning.
I think it will take me some time to get used to the upper because it seems like so much material after running in the RealFlex, but I do like the glove like fit.
As for the sole, I can definitely "feel" the road/terrain more in the Nike than in the RealFlex.
And, of course, the Nikes have made me slow down my time per mile in attempting to get use to a new stride.  I have really been working on reducing my time so this is a big deal for me.  But, its a sacrifice I am willing to make to be a little more natural in my run.  I will just have to keep working at the time aspect.  I don't know that I like the Nikes much more than the Reeboks.  I will have to try the Reeboks again in a week or so and then really see the difference.

P90X2 Hybrid and questions about Running Shoes

So, I decided Insanity by itself just wasn't doing it for me as far as strength this time around.  Instead, I am now doing a hybrid of P90X2 and running/Insanity.  I have really kicked it up on the running.  Just two weeks ago I was running a mile in about 11 minutes and 15 seconds (5.5 miles).  My latest run was 4.4 miles at 9 minutes 47 seconds per mile (on the same type of terrain)!  Obviously I wasn't pushing myself with my running but thanks to some colleagues who run all the time and my husband who has really gotten into running lately, I am working on it.  I think my biggest hurdle at first was my stride.  I am 5'2" and everyone I run with is 6'2" and taller, so their stride is almost twice mine.  We calculated it one time and on a 5.25 mile run, I was taking 2500 more steps than my running partners!  That is crazy!

So here is my hybrid -

Monday - Crazy run up the hill of Hell. 5.25 miles.
Tuesday - X2 Core
Wednesday - X2 Yoga or Recovery/Mobility - unless I am feeling sluggish and yucky then its Total Body.
Thursday - Insanity meets XFit at the Y for 45 minutes (its a class) and then 4 mile run on relatively flat terrain.  This day is tough!!!!!
Friday - Rest if necessary (see Thursday's work out) or if I am feeling pretty good Total Body (if I didn't do it Wednesay or Balance and Power if I did).
Saturday - Another run on somewhat hilly terrain.  Usually around 4 miles.
Sunday - Yoga or rest (uh, the hill of hell is tomorrow).

After a few weeks, I'll switch out the X2 workouts to the second phase ones.  I love hybrids because I don't feel like I am locked into one particular routine!

Now onto the shoes!  I need a new pair.  I have put several hundred miles on my current pair and I need a back up pair for the Warrior Dashes we plan on doing.  I have been looking at the Nike Free Run 3.0.  They have differing levels of support  (starting at v. 5.0 and going down to v. 3.0) depending on how minimalist you want to get.  I currently have Reebok's RealFlex.  I think they are pretty close to the Free Run 3.0 v. 4.0 or v. 3.0 as far as minimalism.  I cannot find the v. 3.0 anywhere in the stores to try them on.  Anybody use the Free Runs?  What do you think?

Warrior Dash - Jackson MS

So a friend at work sent me a link to the Warrior Dash (www.warriordash.com).  I had never heard of it before and decided it sounded AWESOME!  So me and my husband (www.coachcrystalspadawan.wordpress.com) signed up for the April 21 race in Jackson MS along with one of our friends.  We tried convincing a few others but they chickened out!
Anyway, I figured I had the running part down, no problem.  I run 5.5 miles regularly.  Plus, I have done Insanity numerous times and P90X numerous times and just finished P90X2.  I was worried about the obstacles, climbing walls in particular.
Well, it was freaking freezing cold that Saturday morning!  We were running on crazy adrenaline.  I drank a 5 hour energy (yep, I use them all the time), and the boys were chugging Monster energy drinks.  We opted to run in the first wave at 8 a.m.  Best decision ever!
So we start the race to Eye of the Tiger - what a brilliant way to get everyone hyped up.  Mud, mud and more mud.   Mud everywhere.  I remember standing in the gate waiting to start and seeing that people had duck taped their shoes on - I thought that was totally odd and unnecessary.  Well, after the first mud pit, I ended up running past a girl who was wearing one shoe - maybe duck tape was necessary after all!
Anyway, running ended up being the hardest part, especially the last .9 miles.  I started out at a faster pace than I normally run because I was running with the boys.  They are 6 foot 2 inches or taller and I am 5 foot 2 inches - for every one step they took I took 1.5 to 2.  But I refused to let them start out ahead of me.  (Yes, that's me jumping over fire - one of the last 4 obstacles)

Anyway, so the key ended up being well-hydrated.  When the boys stopped for water along the way, I kept going.  I always try to drink a ton of water (at least 32 oz but hopefully 64) before I run.  In my first Dash, I ended up in the top 15% overall and top 4% for women my age (why the heck do I have to have an age group????!!!!).  At the end we were all drunk on adrenaline and ready to run again!  Of course, we didn't do it.  It was freezing cold and overcast.  We went and got a beer instead!

So the boys are signed up to do another Dash in GA while I am out of town.  Then we are all signed up to do the one in AL in October.  I am pumped.  I think I am going to IN for the one in August and have convinced my sister and her girlfriend (and they have convinced some of their friends) to do it too.  I am totally addicted!  It's a good cause too - St. Jude.  You can choose to be a St. Jude Warrior and commit to raise a minimal amount of money for St. Jude, which I did.  Cannot wait to do it again!

Goals and Self Defeating Behavior - Kick your subconscious in the butt!

So I have been doing pretty good working out and eating better and losing weight and toning up, etc.   And then . . . I reach a goal and think "So I am here.  I wonder if I do this, how much I will gain back . . . " and so then begins the downward spiral.  I mean, I reached my mini-goal and now I am back up 6 pounds!!!!  I am ticked!!!  But we've all been there right?  NOT ANYMORE!

I heard someone say the other day that we are comfortable in our "box" and if we strive for something different and we get there, we subconsciously start to undo what we did to get to the goal so we could get back to our "box."  He used the example of all the multi-million dollar lottery winners that go bankrupt.  I always think, "Well, they are just stupid!  I would be so much smarter with that money."  I like to think I would but would I subsconsciously start to self destruct so I could get back to my box?

So subconscious - here is your kick in the butt.  When we reach a goal, we are going to create a new "box" into which we fit and we are going to set up the beginnings of another box for our next goal so we can see it and then we are going to burn all the boxes behind us.  Got it???  There is no going back.  I refuse.

Running and Shakeology . . . is it worth it? Does it work?

So today I ran a little over 5 miles.  Trying to cut my time down somewhere between 10 and 11 mph.  Right now I am right above 11mph.  Anyway, good run.  This giant boxer scared the ever loving crap out of my at one point though.  He usually minds his own business and gives me a cursory glance but today, after I had passed him, he came running up behind me and barked.  I nearly jumped out of my skin because I was trying to pay attention to the dog that was in the yard coming up.  Anyway, he then proceeded to run along side and sniff me and jump up and down.  I think he just wanted to play but it took me a little while to calm back down.  We have covenants in our neighborhood that require dogs to be fenced in, but apparently some people think those covenants are optional. 

So onto the second topic of my blog . . . Is Shakeology worth it and does it really work?

In a word . . . YES!  I talk about this on my website some (http://www.coachcrystalfitness.com/) but thought I would bring it up here too.  I am one of the most skeptical people on the planet (thank you law school) and always think I can do something cheaper than what someone else is offering.  So it obviously took me a long time to give in and try Shakeology.  Seriously, I had been doing Beachbody programs for two years before I tried it.  I love it!  I don't ever eat as many vegetables as I should and I hate taking supplements because they upset my stomach.  And my husband eats like a two year old (you know, really picky).  Well, actually my two year old eats better than my husband.  So we thought we would finally give it a try since we really wanted to eat healthier.  We love Strawberry (we get that every month) and I like the chocolate too.  Greenberry is good if you add some fruit but is third among the three choices.  The taste is great - trust me, my husband would not drink it if it wasn't.  It's so nutritious and tastes great too!  I mean, how can you lose?  I have a shake for breakfast every morning.  And there are so many recipes, you won't ever get bored.
So now to what really made me hold out so long - the price.  Yeah, I know, you look at it and say "OUCH!"  But if you really think about it, it's $4 per shake (and we sometimes only use 1/2 a serving so that makes it $2 per shake).  You probably spend more than that on your lunch and your lunch is nowhere near as nutritious (I don't care what you are eating for lunch, it's not).   And the health benefits are real.  It has helped both of us with digestive issues, it helped me break a fitness plateau and I have a ton more energy than I used to.  I used to come home after work and just want to flop on the couch and put a show on for the kids after working all day.  Now we are outside playing in the yard, playing basketball or any number of other things in the afternoon after work.  I just cannot say enough about the difference it has made in my energy levels. 
We also factor it in as part of our grocery budget so we are not having to come up with the extra money to buy it, we are just buying less at the grocery store (which really means we are buying less junk - which is good).  You really should give it a try.  You really have nothing to lose - Beachbody gives you a moneyback guarantee! 

I vow to stay busy . . . . and blog more often!

So weekends are the hardest time for me as far as eating well.  I eat when I am bored and/or stressed and weekends present both those situations for me more often than not. 

This weekend, I vow to stay busy cleaning out closets, getting my hair done, grocery shopping, playing with the kids outside . . . anything to keep busy!  :o)

This morning, I just couldn't stomach Yoga another day this week so I threw in Insanity Cardio Recovery.  My heart rate monitor went crazy and quit working in the middle of the workout so I am not sure how much I burned but who cares! 
Mommy guilt reared its ugly head today too.  I volunteered to drop off the kids this a.m. (my husband usually drops them off and I pick them up) and my 5 year old daughter did not want me to leave.  She gave me the sad eyes with the stuck out lip and glued herself to me while I tried to leave.  It just breaks my heart sometimes that they spend all day in the care of other people and then I see them for a few hours before bedtime.  I think most moms have the mommy guilt.  I know that being with other kids allows them to learn socialization skills and my daughter is learning a ton in her K4 class and it also gives me an opportunity to work and flex my brain.  But sometimes . . .

So tomorrow's work out will likely be a run in the a.m.  I haven't decided yet whether I am going to do another week of Phase III or do a recovery week next week.  I really don't think I have given Phase III a fair shot so I may go one more week.  Anyway, I have to be in tip top shape by May 1.  The big family get together begins May 19 and I wanna look my best!

Oh and I vow to blog more often than once a week.  Work has just been so busy that I am working all day and then working when the kids go to bed until I am literally falling asleep at my computer at home.  Maybe it will slow down soon . . .

Weekend running in the country

I love going to my in-laws.  They are some of the best people I know.  They live in the middle of nowhere in a very beautiful part of the world.  And they love my kids like crazy!  Anyway, every time I am here, I must run!  There's just nothing like running on a hilly dirt road with the only company being a few dogs, the birds, the rising sun and my music. 
So yesterday I ran about 6.5 miles total.  First, I ran about 4.5 on my own.  I came back to the house to get my husband who said he wanted to go walk with me after I finished running and he finished his Insanity work out for the day.  Well, we ended up going up the street to help grandma move a giant tractor tire instead.  So sitting aroung grandma's, my husband asked if I wanted to run down to the stop sign (about 1/2 mile one way).  I said sure!  He is trying to get ready for the Warrior Dash we are doing later this month in Jackson, MS, so I always go if he asks.  So we start running and get close to the stop sign and decide to keep running for another 1/2 mile. We turn around to come back and are getting close to grandma's and decide that we should sprint to the driveway.  Well, my calves were on fire when we stopped!  My legs are still pretty sore but I think I am still going to have to get out and run this morning before church.  I just cannot pass up the opportunity!
Going to do at least one more week of Phase III of X2 but am thinking of then doing  a rest week and starting Insanity.  We will see.  Happy running everyone!