It’s Caught Up To Me & Some Thoughts

I am Pooped.

Today was a wildly crazy day at work, probably the craziest since I started last August.  Having that follow my race and traveling has pretty much knocked it out of this girl.

Time to Unwind — in my new gear

Hello Stress Relief Yoga to the rescue.  Less than 45 minutes later (3 parts) — I left like the weight from the day had been melted from my shoulders.   Leaving me in a great state of mind, ready for a hot date with my foam roller, and heating pad.   All about resting and rebuilding this little body of mine.

Dinner is simple and easy once again.

And I am winding down with a some more embarrassingly bad TV.  I’m kind of excited for Zach to get home, get my life back together, lol. No more trashy TV until 2014, I swear.

I think there are some cookies I stole from work that may or may not make it into my evening plans as well. . . I’m never too tired for cookies.

Thoughts

I’ve had a lot of ideas and thoughts running through my head for my little blog.  Where I want to take it. What I can to do. Branding it, etc.  I am so passionate about it and really want it to reflect that in a way that I can be proud of.  My first step currently is probably branding, primarily starting with the header and design of my page.  Any information, tips, resources you can offer me in your own experience with this (specifically with wordpress) would be GREATLY appreciated :).   Both in the comment section OR email chocolatemedals@gmail.com <—.

Thank you so much!  Have a great, and relaxing night ❤

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DOMS

Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness.

From WebMD (because we can all be doctors now):

“Delayed onset muscle soreness (DOMS) is a common result of physical activity that stresses the muscle tissue beyond what it is accustomed to,” says David O. Draper, professor and director of the graduate program in sports medicine/athletic training at Brigham Young University in Provo, Utah.

Yup. Sounds about right.

The mild muscle strain injury creates microscopic damage to the muscle fibers. Scientists believe this damage, coupled with the inflammation that accompanies these tears, causes the pain.

Okay.

“Anyone can get cramps or DOMS, from weekend warriors to elite athletes,” says Torgan. “The muscle discomfort is simply a symptom of using your muscles and placing stresses on them that are leading to adaptations to make them stronger and better able to perform the task the next time.”

Crap.  Yup — I’ll definitely be diagnosing myself with this one.

Unfortunately, as the web doctor explained — DOMS is a result of strenuous physical activity — and I guess my half marathon Sunday constitutes such an activity.

I was fooled by this during the Steamboat half as well.  My body felt OK the day post race, but then Tuesday, when I returned to reality and work, the soreness crept up.  And that is exactly what is happening for me today.  Nothing TOO severe, no injury or concern, just SORE and achy.  I’m not going anywhere fast today guys.

Fortunately – our online doctor friends don’t just leave us hanging with “yup, you’re going to be sore after THAT crap.”  Thankfully, they offer some relief.

several remedies such as ice, rest, anti-inflammatory medication, massage, heat, and stretch have been reported as helpful in the process of recovery.”

So, the term many of us runners are very familiar with, RICE.  Rest, ice, compress and elevate.   Plus a few asprin and maybe a request to the husband for a nice massage, you know, because the doc said so.

But — if you want to be smart and not worry so much about DOMS — online doc also explained how to PREVENT DOMS from occurring:

“Probably the most important thing is to have a cool-down phase after your workout,” says Draper. Right before finishing, include 10 or so minutes of “easy aerobic work such as jogging or walking followed by stretching.”

For a long time, I was really good about doing this post runs.  I would finish my  mileage, and then just walk it out until I hit the next 10 minute point, and you know what…I don’t remember being sore all that often.  I’ll have to keep this one in mind. Proactive not reactive Ashley…duh.

And that my friends, is my informational post for the week ;).  All thanks to some majorly sore and tired leg and back muscles.  Now if you’ll excuse me, I have to finish up work and get to my hot date with my heating pad AND foam roller tonight.  This lady’s getting wild.

Question of the afternoon:  How bout you?  Have you ever had DOMS?  Feel fine directly after a tough work out, but feel the soreness creep up later?

Fire Alarm

We were woken up this morning at about 430ish by our buildings lovely Fire Alarm.

 

This happens periodically in our building (we were even warned about it by neighbors when we moved in) but this is the first time one has gone off without Zach being there.

I grabbed Gusman, we shut the bedroom door (it’s where our apartments alarm is) and went upstairs into the loft where the noise is a little more tolerable.   Thankfully, it only went off for about 20 minutes, and the animals and I were able to fall back in and our of sleep until my 6 AM alarm.

Nothing like a fire alarm to knock you out of bed real quick! I have a feeling I’m going to be a little off all day. . . but what’s new 😉

let’s back track

 

I actually made a delicious little one bowl meal last night.

I baked a small head of brocolli and about a third of a white onion with about 5 ounces of chicken all covered in peanut sauce for 35 minutes. I added that to a bowl of aboutt 2 cups of dressed greens (lemon juice, sriracha, and a bit of the peanut dressing), and a 1/2 cup of a quinoa I got from Vitamin Cottage.

All together it mixed into a delicious little dish that I will likely be having again soon this week :).  YUM.

 

My dinner was followed by an even more delicious lemon bar that I also picked up from Vitamin Cottage for dessert.  Talk about YUM!  This delicious food fueled me through a lot of bad MTV television.  I’m almost ashamed to admit that. . .

Workout of the Day

And to complete this totally sporadic post, my work out of the morning

Workout of the Morning: 10 miles stationary bike, 15 minutes easy strength

I started the work out with 20 lunges, 10 push ups, 10 bridges and 10 crunches before jumping on the bike.  This was a great way to warm up my muscles and get moving.

Once I finished the bike, I picked up light weights (5 lbs) and did some easy strength training to get the blood pumping.  I hope I don’t regret that later ;).

And now — back to work and reality!

Question of the Morning:  When was the last time you were woken up by a fire alarm?  Or just HAD a fire drill?