Pedal to the Metal

Monday! Okay more like muuuuuundayyyyy. Merp. If I was in charge of the world, every Monday would be a holiday. Vote for me.

This weekend…

• I went out with my friend Camille for one last rendezvous. It was her final weekend here before returning home to Paris. Sad face.

• I was recognized by a blog reader/Trader Joe’s employee (hi Cassidy!). I was in the neighborhood, so I stopped in to pick up another box of GF waffles. I munched my way through the first box in record time (I got a box of Van’s GF waffles and they are not nearly as soft and pillowy. Plus, they’re $1 more and only contain 6 waffles in a box instead of 8 like TJ’s).

• I spent some quality time with Lo the Bro and the ‘rents.

Peter’s English is pretty good considering it’s his 3rd language. Sometimes, though, he leaves off the last syllable of words. For example, when we went to Dick’s Sporting Goods over the weekend…

This is a big Dick!

Yes, yes it is indeed a big one.

And an expensive one! Tempo shorts for $36?! No way, I pay $6 thankyouverymuch.

I fit in a couple HIIT workouts this past weekend, too. For the most part, I’m not very good about doing HIIT workouts. I read about the benefits of HIIT (High Intensity Interval Training) workouts and speed intervals everywhere. I know it’s good for my muscles and overall fitness, yet I still tend to gravitate towards long, steady state cardio. What can I say? I like to zone out while exercising.

I try to throw in high intensity intervals while ellipticalling, but it’s awkward. I feel like a monkey. I’ve been trying to throw in speed intervals while running outside, but I always zone out too much and forget. In the perfect world, I’d be able to do HIIT workouts on the Stairmaster a couple times a week. It doesn’t take any mental effort—just crank up the speed and climb ’til you drop. Unfortunately, we do not have one of those at our community gym.

Anyways, after 2 long runs last week, I decided it was time to put the pedal to the metal.

Friday

I ran 6 miles outside with a sprinkle of some sprint intervals (7:00-ish min/mi for ~45 sec at a time). My legs felt heavy and the wind was fierce, so I knew a long steady run wasn’t in the cards.

The run left me gasping for air!

That night, Lo the Bro was over and it was one of those let’s-eat-chocolate-and-cookies-all-night-long-while-chatting nights.

All that carboloading fueled me up for an endurance Duke Basketball game workout on Saturday.

I broke my cardinal rule of not running on back-to-back days.

I had to use the treadmill so I could listen/watch the game and it’s just physically impossible for me to watch a Duke Basketball game at the gym and not be running.

What started as I’ll just jog slowly at an incline (hills?) turned into I’ll just run like 2 sprint intervals to a full on run. VA Tech and Duke were neck and neck for most of the game, I had to get my nervous energy out.

My legs felt great (no pain or soreness). I’m pretty sure my legs are strong enough now to handle 2 consecutive days of running once in awhile. Though, I’m taking two consecutive days off from running just to be safe.

In the end, my workout looked like this (running/walking all jumbled up):

• 45 min. run 6.6-8.0 mph, incline 1.5 (~5 miles)
• 40 min. incline walk 4.0-5.5 mph, incline 6.0-10.0 (~2.5 miles)

Much longer than anticipated because the game went overtime. Boy was I glad I brought this Vega Sport Endurance Bar with me to eat during halftime.

A few weeks ago, the people at Vega sent me a sampler of their new Vega Sport Performance System—100% plant-based and free of dairy, gluten, soy and contains no artificial flavors, colors or sweeteners.

The 3 stage system was formulated by professional Ironman triathlete Brendan Brazier to help manage inflammation and reduce recovery time between workouts by replenishing glycogen stores.

As you can see, I’ve made my way through most of the box. I am a big dork when it comes to the science behind fueling for workouts—before, during and after. I love learning about how the human body utilizes energy.

I was pleasantly surprised to find that not only are these products made with quality ingredients, they taste phenomenal. It was hard for me to ONLY consume them before/after workouts because I wanted to eat the bars for dessert!

When I say “quality ingredients,” I mean things like:

• sprouted whole grain brown rice protein
• pea protein
• alfafa protein
• pumpkin seed butter
• saviseed (sacha inchi seeds)
• sorghum crisps
• white chia seeds

Sounds funky, right? You’d think these products would taste funky, but I really mean it when I say they were delicious.

These recovery protein bars tasted like candy bars. This past weekend, I learned that Lo the Bro LOVES these bars and buys them by the box. So yes, we had a long conversation about Vega when he was here.

This is hands down the best protein powder I have ever tried. No funky/chalky flavor whatsoever. I will definitely be shelling out the $$ to buy a tub of this after I get through my current supply. For me, good quality protein powder that tastes good is worth the money.

I’m saving the gels for a future long run when I’ll need quality fuel to keep me going.

I can’t say for certain how they affected my performance since there are so many other factors to consider (previous workouts, diet, rest, stress, etc.). I felt good knowing I was getting quality protein and carbs in my body though. It’s hard to find clean energy bars and protein powders on the market.

Although I was sent this sampler by Vega, I was in no way obligated to write a review. I really do think these products are awesome and products I would/will spend money on in the near future.

Alrighty, it’s time for me to get my muuuuunday started. At least there’s The Bachelor to look forward to tonight! Have a good one.

Tell me…the highlight of your weekend.