HAPPY 4th of JULY!!!  A day celebrating our nations independence!  As I sit here typing, my husband is celebrating by playing wii on his day off, homemade home fries are baking in the oven, and the sound of rambunctious children with their parents are playing outside our window while they grill out by the pool...what a great day to be alive!
If you hadn't already guessed it, I have acclimated quite well to my new environment here in San Francisco, CA and absolutely love it! (except for the sticker shock!...it is now the MOST expensive place to live, surpassing NY in this last year...YIKES!)
Only this morning, I ran my first ever orienteering race (and came in 3rd in the women's division!), ate at an Irish pub, wandered the farmers markets and people watched (also scoring almost 5lbs of salad greens for $3! #ilovesffarmersmarkets), only to come home and hang out before going to watch the fireworks!  - ps, I will be competing in more orienteering races in the future- what a blast!!  This truly is an amazing city with tons to do and awesome people to meet around every corner!  
Just last weekend, we were here for the Pride parade which was bigger than ever thanks to the Supreme Courts ruling just that Friday before...

Needless to say, if you have ever thought about a vacation out west, question no more!  And look me up when you get here! 

Welp, better go check on those homefries!  - And you can check out facebook or strava to see the orienteering route- I've never had so much fun in a single race!

So this is me, signing off...Stay independent, USA!

Peace, Love, & Strength,
Jayme

Ever wanted to try a Tri?  Would you do a Du??  You should!  There’s nothing more fulfilling than the feeling of accomplishment after just rocking your race (except maybe after you just kicked butt by placing top 10 female in your first Spartan beast!)

So you’ve taken the first steps and signed up for one…or maybe you’re considering it, you just are wondering exactly what you would be signing up for……well, I’m here to tell you!

I would definitely say start small.  You may look at the distances on the sprints and think I can do this in my sleep!  While yes, separately they don’t look tough, until you’ve actually put them all together, you have no idea!  I always dream big and like to bite off more than I can chew, but I will say the best advice I got was start small.

Once you have your race picked out, as with any race, it’s time to start training.  When I start to think about training for a du or tri, my first thoughts are:














1.       Realize your distance

I’m sure everyone thinks this is a no brainer and for the most part it is, but you have to think total distance too.  Especially in a duathlon where your run then bike and then run again.  Never underestimate the course/distance and overestimate yourself!

2.       Understand your transitions

This is probably the most important part of the race.  This may sound odd, but your transitions set the tone for the entire leg of the race.  It also can shave or add unneeded time to your finish time.  If you can’t efficiently transition or if you don’t practice your bricks, you’ll have a rude awakening on race day.

Have you ever tried to run after cycling even just 15-20mi?  It’s the oddest feeling ever!  You feel like a penguin trying to run.  The best advice I can give you here is practice, practice, practice!- I can’t emphasize this enough! 

It’s also important to think about the transition space and how you will set your space up.  Everyone gets a section, but you are basically all on top of one another, side by side.  It’s important to practice this as if you were doing it on race day so you know exactly how you transition best—do you put shoes on first?  Do you need to dry your feet so you won’t get blisters or are your shoes equipped for that?  Can you have one shoe clipped in and strap it as you ride, or are you like me and super clumsy, so need to have both shoes on before mounting the bike?  Don’t forget to put your helmet where it’s easily accessible and won’t get tangled- you MUST have this on before you can mount.

A few other tips and tricks I’ve learned along the way--

When you practice swimming, it’s important to practice pulling and swimming with your arms- you need to save those legs for the rest of the race!  There is a certain art to swimming in the motion you make as you “coast”.

This is another leg that requires a lot of practice.  Swimming is an anaerobic/aerobic mix and therefore, if your body is used to running and cycling, your anaerobic muscle fibers may not be as strong…high intensity sprints and rowing can help with swimming performance as well.  It’s also important that you learn your rhythm and learn how to establish it as soon as possible.  You have to be super comfortable in the water as well because if you do an open swim, it is CRAZY!  Feet and arms everywhere, so just be prepared.  If it’s an ocean swim, you will also have a tide to consider, so do some homework before the race because you can tend to use the tide in your favor.

Cross training?  Why do I need to do that?  I’m just a runner…..how is cycling or swimming going to help improve my time??  I don’t want to bulk up with weights- I want to stay thin and light.

If this sounds like things you have thought, maybe you should clue into this post:

Cross training has many benefits.  It was developed to improve and enhance an athlete’s performance by engaging all muscle groups of the body, not just those typically used in one’s major sport (ie: running or cycling).  This allows for an athlete to become stronger and increase their stamina and overall performance by decreasing fatigue and weakness in those muscle groups that would not be otherwise engaged.  It is also beneficial in times of injury, allowing athletes to continue to train and not only engaging and strengthening accessory muscles surrounding that site of injury, but also allowing one to keep up their stamina and endurance.

The body is made up of several muscle groups, all of which are made up of various muscle fibers.  The two main muscle fibers we tend to think about when discussing cross training are Types 1 and 2a.  Type 1 muscle fibers correlate with aerobic activity, while Type 2a correlates with anaerobic activity.  So what’s the difference?

Anaerobic activity encompasses activities that are done at a high intensity, making it difficult for the body to obtain enough oxygen to supply to the muscles during the process.  They are usually short bursts and do not last for very long.  Examples are sprinting, heavy lifting, or long distance swimming. 

Aerobic activities on the other hand are activities that call for endurance and stamina.  These activities are typically longer, low intensity workouts, allowing the muscles oxygen to continue the process.  Examples include long distance running, cycling or swimming short distances.

This is important because when choosing a training regimen, these are things we need to consider.  Which exercises or activities will provide me with an all-encompassing regimen that aims to target each of these muscle groups?  By knowing what each activity does for you, it allows you to take the benefits of each activity and combine them so that you can strengthen each area of the body in a weekly routine

Below, you can find some typical activities seen in a fitness routine.  I have outlined whether they are anaerobic or aerobic in nature as well as the area of the body the exercise typically targets.

Cycling/Spinning
Aerobic- Long distance
Anaerobic- Sprinting
Core & lower extremities

Running
Aerobic- Long distance
Anaerobic- Sprinting
Core& lower extremities

Swimming
Aerobic- Short distance Anaerobic- Long distance
Total body

Elliptical
Aerobic
Upper & lower extremities

Rowing
Aerobic/Anaerobic
Core, back, & upper extremities

High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT)
Aerobic
Combines aerobic endurance with  strength training

Weight Lifting
Aerobic (low weight, high rep)
Anaerobic (heavy weight, low rep)
Total body

Depending on the length of your weekly regimen (ie: 6 days/wk vs 5 days/week, etc) you should incorporate a ratio of endurance to strength training of 2:1, while including at least one day of flexibility and stretching.  You may also combine flexibility and strength training into one activity such as Pilates.

On the days of your endurance training, you want to ensure to include some form of sprint work to ensure that you have engaged both muscle fibers.  Strength training is important to incorporate in one’s routine in efforts to increase strength and contractility of the muscle groups, making them more efficient in future activities.  Finally, don’t forget to incorporate at least one day of stretching, foam rolling, and flexibility.  I feel like this is the one activity that is often overlooked or ignored, and I myself am guilty of this; however, my body never ceases to remind myself just how important this day is!  It keeps those angry muscles and joints happy and healthy, running like a well-oiled machine- and your body will thank you for it!  If you have any questions about this topic, check out my previous post about stretching or feel free to contact me directly via facebook, Instagram, or twitter. 

All of this running and hiking in the mountains has left me so sore that I may be taking a couple lazy days off of exercising- this brought up this next post:

Let’s face it, if you’re like me, stretching is one of those things you know you should do, but it doesn’t always happen. In fact, it takes a back seat…all of the time. The only problem is, is that stretching is a very important!

Stretching allows increased range of motion, flexibility, muscle coordination, reduced risk of injury, and quicker muscular recovery due to a greater sensitivity to glycogen replacement. When you exercise, the glycogen stored in your muscles are what fuels them to move and work hard.  It takes only about 30 minutes of work for your muscles to use up all of its glycogen stores.  Once all used up, your body needs to refuel and does so once you eat.  This is part of the rationale behind 1. Fasted cardio and 2. Eating you’re most sugar filled meal of the day post work out.

While there are pre-exercise warm up stretches, it is important to stretch after you work out when your muscles are warmest. Some believe that stretching too much pre workout (but post warm up) can hinder the warm up and increase the risk of injury or issues because your joints are not fully lubricated, nor your muscles fully warm.

Below you will find some stretches I recommend to help keep you light and agile.

Pre-Workout/Post-Warmup:

1.       Leg swings:  Stand on one leg and swing the other leg back and forth 20x; then forward and back 20x. Switch legs.

2.       Hip rotations: Standing straight up with feet shoulder width apart, begin to carefully rotate your hips in a circle, as if you’re hula hooping.  Continue to rotate for 6-10 rotations, feeling your hips loosening up.  Repeat the rotation in the other direction.

3.       Forward fold: Bend forward, folding forward at the waist. Carefully and slowly pull yourself toward your legs.

4.       Walking lunges:  Step forward with one foot, bending both knees to form a right angle, parallel to the ground. Fluidly take continuous steps (x20) lunging with each step.


Post-Workout:

1.       Standing quads: Standing on one leg, bend the other up behind you and grab your foot, pulling it toward your butt, keeping your torso straight. You should feel a pull in your hip. Switch legs.

2.       Standing calf: Face a wall, placing the ball of your foot against the wall, heel on the floor and lean into the wall. Keep your leg straight. You should feel this in your calf.

3.       Hip flexor: Step forward with the right foot and kneel down, placing the opposite (left) knee on the floor. While keeping the left leg on the floor, knee in line with foot/ankle, lean forward into the right hip.  You should feel this in your right hip.  Switch legs.













4.    Hip fold: Sitting on the floor with your knees bent, lay one leg over the other knee forming a “4” with your legs.  Push forward into your legs.  For a deeper stretch, lay on your back and pull the knee with the leg laying over it into you.

5.       Lower back: Laying on your back, fold one leg over your body and face/lean to the other side.  Should feel this in you hip and lower back.









6.       Seated twist: Sitting on the floor, pull one knee up and step over the other straightened leg.  Pull your elbow to the outside of your knee, facing the opposite direction.

While foam rollers are very useful, be warned that they “hurt so good”.  Foam rolling works by activating trigger points and releasing them.  This allows you to relax and loosen those particular problem areas. Below you will find a variety of foam rolling techniques and options for sore, problem areas.  

If you have any questions or need help finding a foam roller or a technique that targets that special area, please let me know!  I would be happy to help!

Happy Stretching (and rolling)!!!

Peace, Love, & Strength,

Jayme

One of my most favorite things about being in San Francisco is the large number of quality farmers markets they have around here!  One of my most favorite being the embarcadero market on Saturdays.  I am not sure why, but no matter how many times I go, I always find myself yearning to return by the time the next Saturday rolls around; I love it!

So why am I going on and on about the farmers markets?  Did I mention they were awesome?...okay, okay, let’s get to it then, shall we?  I love to experiment with food and this past Saturday, I finally decided to experiment with rabbit!

The reason I am writing about it, instead of just listing it as a recipe (which I will also do) is because it is one of the leanest and best sources of protein you can eat!

Not only is it lean with a lower fat content, equivalent if not lower than chicken, but the fat it does have are all conjugated-linoleic acids, omega-3, and omega-6; aka: the healthy or good fats.  

It also has a very high protein content, making this an optimal source of protein!  I was shocked as to why we don’t eat more of this. Apparently, there is a thing called rabbit-starvation.  Also known as protein poisoning, it occurs when you consume extreme amounts of lean meat resulting in an excess amount of protein with very little fat to the point your body can not properly metabolize it.  So, just enjoy in moderation??


















So what does it taste like?  Very similar to chicken and when properly cooked, leaves no “gamey” taste behind.  I’d say I definitely found a new staple in my diet, whether my fiance’e likes it or not ;)

So now you want to try your own rabbit….but what do you do?

The rabbit we bought was a headless, skinned, whole rabbit, so unless you can find just the meat or you or someone you know doesn’t mind chopping up some rabbit and breaking some bones, this may not be for you.  While I was off purchasing the ingredients for our dish, Brian (my fiance’e) was given the task to cut up the rabbit. For this, we simply found a youtube video on how to take the little bunny apart. We were also told to save the liver and kidneys because those are pretty tasty too. I am still trying to find recipes for those, but I think I may be the only brave one to try them, as Brian is not too keen on trying those, but I’ll keep you posted on how those go!  Once I arrived home with the ingredients, the cooking began!

Olive oil/Cooking spray
Medium onion finely chopped
Chicken broth (300mL)
Dry white wine (200 mL)
Rosemary
Course ground mustard
Nonfat plain greek yogurt (1 small container- I used Fage)

Peace, Love, & Strength,
Jayme

Shoes, where do I begin?  You may be thinking, “What do you mean? There can’t be that much to choosing shoes, right? Just pick the pretty ones” Sad thing is, you couldn’t be more WRONG!  It took me over a year to figure this out and hopefully I can share that information with you quickly here.  I’ve been wanting to write this for a while, but being a full time professional student with a part time job and trying to stay in shape tends to take up the majority of your time…so I apologize for the late and sporadic posts, but hopefully I can find more time in the near future.  I am currently here working in San Francisco with my fiancée for the month.

Where to begin… the first thing you must realize about shoes is that they are all designed for a specific foot type, trek type, and activity. One of my favorite shoe stores is roadrunnersports.com.  They tend to have the best prices and have an easy labeling system.

How to choose your shoe

This is how I typically go about choosing a new shoe now:

1.       What am I using the shoe for?

There are several different styles designed for each activity:

                Running, Trail running, Crossfit, Tri/Duathlon, Crosstraining, Walking, etc

2.       What type of stride or trek do I have?

This part is EXTREMELY important!  Depending on how you run and how your feet land and move, determines your stride and your trek. 

There are Overpronators, Underpronators, and those with Normal stride


Pronation is the movement your foot makes as it hits the ground.  Typically a person’s heal strikes first as the foot follows through. If your foot rotates inwards and you push off mostly with your big toe, you are an overpronator; if your foot rotates outward putting the majority of stress on the outside of your foot, you are an underpronator or supinator.  People with flat feet tend to overpronate and those with high arches underpronate.  Those lucky individuals with normal arches tend to have a normal pronation.

If you are curious as to how you pronate, you can visit certain shoe stores that watch you run and can tell you how you run and the type of shoe you need.

So I first want to say, I apologize for my absence as of late--- I was preparing a presentation on citalopram (a drug) and it's role in Alzheimers' dementia related agitation in addition to working two jobs and trying to catch a few ZZZ's in the midst of my daily routine...fascinating stuff by the way and I can pass it on if interested, but I assumed the audience here really wouldn't be all that interested.
 
Secondly, I am in SF for a conference and can honestly not wait to move here next year!  I also hope to post more about this illuminating city prior to my departure Sunday (until December, anyways :))

Finally,  I want to preface my next statement  with "Guilty pleasure confession":  I love Taylor Swift-- (and might I add how wonderfully her new album 1989 fits as background music as you roam the streets of this amazing city!).  So, take it or leave it, but I hope it doesn’t affect your opinion of me- I just think she’s awesome, talented, and her music feeds the female soul—but that’s beside the point.  The reason I bring this up is because I was inspired by her song 22.  This blog derives its name from both a literal and metaphorical phrase that basically means if you work hard 2day, you’ll reap the benefits 2morrow, or at least the figurative tomorrow, because we all know “Rome wasn’t built in a day” and neither are awesome biceps or killer abs! 

This blog post won't be about physical well being, but it trends toward a more emotional and spiritual well being which I think is important to have for total health and wellness.  I think everything happens for a reason and we will never be given more than we can handle, although it may feel that way at times.  God has given us the strength and resilience as a stubborn human race to overcome our everyday obstacles and become even stronger for the next obstacle.   It’s important to remember that we are never going through this a lone!  We have our friends, family, and of course should always turn to him—what an amazing support structure!  Why couldn’t we face anything life has to throw our way?!

I think our responsibilities and everyday life blocks our perspective in that we shouldn’t be looking at life just to get from A to B, or living for the weekend, or just trying to get through our current situation--- I think Taylor had it right, we need to have the perspective we did about life when we were 22; when we had little to no cares, were enjoying college, had our entire lives in front of us and could accomplish anything we wanted if we put our minds to us—the world was our oyster and we were enjoying every moment!  I’m not saying drop your responsibilities and go crazy, I’m just saying remember that outlook, that feeling of invincibility, that love of life and wanting to live every moment and be present in it.  We have been given this precious gift and we should treat it as such. 

The reason I write this is because I struggle with this often.  I have a bad experience or I’m just ready to move to the next rotation, ready to fast forward life to the next rotation, to the next time I get to see my fiancée (we’re long distance currently), or even to our wedding.  But I have to reel myself back in and remember I will never be at this time, at this place, in this moment ever again.  Have I made the most of it?

So I leave you with this challenge:  LIVE LIFE 22.  Make the most of every moment of every day—even if it’s something you do everyday, try to enjoy that time and be grateful for it and those around, because you may never be there again. 

Peace, Love, & Strength

Jayme

As an avid foodie and one who loves to get her calories and macros from “real food”, I used to think protein bars were a useless scam.  I used to think, those poor suckers, so easily fooled by the media and big companies who made people think they were making such a healthy choice!  While in some cases I still believe this to be true of some companies and their marketing schemes, I am now one of those poor suckers.  There are several types of protein bars to choose from and this is what makes me annoyed about protein bars- because not all of them are good and a good number are for people who are actually expending a good number of calories and can use extra carbohydrates and sugars without storing it away for a later date—like endurance athletes, ie: marathon runners, triathletes, etc.  Most of the protein bars I have seen in stores have an exponential amount of carbohydrates in the form of sugar or sugar alcohol and some don’t even list where the rest of their carbs come from.

For example, I give you the label below.  This is from a Quest Protein Bar (one of the bars I approve of- for whatever that’s worth ;)).  If you look at the Carbohydrates, you will see there are 21g of carbs.  Underneath that, you will find 17g of Dietary fiber.  Fiber is a form of carbohydrate that your body does not absorb.  This means that if you subtract 21-17= you get 4g of net carbs.  If you have ever done carb counting or some form of Atkins diet, you are most likely already familiar with this.  So what does this ultimately mean?  It means that there is less sugar and sugar alcohols left for your body to turn into fat if not utilized.  Here we see 4g left, but the label reads 2g of Sugars, which most likely means the remaining 2g are sugar alcohols.

We all know that typically when you ingest too many carbohydrates or sugars (ie: kCal in > kCal out), we deposit those carbs in a “storage form”, aka adipose or fat stores.  So why are you going to reach for a protein bar when you want a healthy choice if it’s full of unwanted and unneeded sugar or carbohydrates?! 

Here are some tips for the next time you go looking to stock up on those protein bars or you want to grab something quick while in line somewhere. You want to look and see what is the #1 ingredient and is it a real food and NOT sugar.  They shouldn’t contain more than 5-7g of sugar per bar.  I would avoid soy protein isolate and instead try to look for whey protein.

Finally, remember- you should ALWAYS try to use REAL food to supply your macro needs and really shouldn’t use these bars as meal replacements. 

I also recommend a free app called fooducate.  This app is pretty awesome- you can search for any food and it will rate it. Most bars are not going to be greater than a B+ because, let’s be real, it’s not real food, so I try to stick to those that have that B+ rating—check out my “Jayme’s Picks” page for protein supplements I like to stick with.

And last but not least—I thought I would include a little icing on the cake so to speak.  On long days, which happen all too often, I like to supplement my protein bar with a little caffeine and if you follow me on Instagram or twitter, I’m sure you know what’s coming…that’s right, a blendacano! When you go to Starbucks, simply ask for a Venti blended Americano with sugar free syrup (which ever flavor you choose). They may try to add milk, but I always tell them no milk and I also add a scoop of protein powder. Then, I add some Splenda and cinnamon, and voila! A delicious blendacano!

Peace, Love, & Strength,
Jayme

So I have a lot of topic ideas and have been chomping at the bit to sit down and write about them, but it wouldn’t do me any good if I didn’t start at square one.  I am a strong believer in the IIFYM (if it fits your macros) diet, because let’s face it- your body doesn’t judge the types of carbs, fats, and proteins you eat…a carb is a carb—this is true, but at the same time it’s not – but we’ll discuss that in a minute.  I will say, however, that this diet is not for everyone.  It takes someone with a basic understanding of nutrition to be able to use this diet because you need to make sure that you are still getting other things like vitamins and minerals (which are varied depending on the person) and a variety of types of carbohydrates (ie: fiber). 

So let’s talk glycemic index.  What is this?  It’s basically the amount your blood sugar spikes due to the types of food you eat and the insulin response that results.  When you eat high glycemic index or foods with high sugars, this spikes your blood sugar causing a spike in insulin.  You may think, what’s the big deal?  Well, I’ll tell you- it’s the age old saying, what goes up, must come down!  That’s right- just like a kid with a pixie stick, your insulin spike causes that blood sugar to come crashing down and leaves you hungry within the next hour or two…so what do you do?  Eat some more!  And as we know, the more we eat, the more calories we’re ingesting and when calories in > calories out, you begin to gain weight.

When you eat low glycemic foods, this helps to level out your blood sugar allowing for a level insulin rise as well, leaving you satisfied for longer.  These foods typically have more protein or fat in them because that is what helps to slow the digestion, allowing for that slower, more controlled rise. 

















The biggest thing I see in the medical profession is that patients come in all of the time thinking that they are eating healthy and well because the media and gimmicks make them think they are making those right choices.  Then we talk for a moment and they are choosing all of the foods in the red, high glycemic index column.

So how do you find out whether what you’re eating is high vs low?  You can usually google it by typing the name of the food and “glycemic index” in the search bar.  Below are the values for each and hopefully these can help you to make better decisions.
Low = 0-54 
Moderate 55-69
High 70 +

So what should my C/F/P ratio be?  Well, that also depends on your goals.  A good rule of thumb for maintenance is the zone’s 40/30/30.  Weight loss usually increases the protein and lowers the carbs for a 30/25/45.  So how do you calculate this?  First you calculate your basal metabolic rate and multiply that by your activity level coefficient (these are standard values).  From here you choose what your percentage ratio will be and determine the allotment of calories per macronutrient.  Once you know the number of calories, you convert to grams: (Carbs 4cal/g; Fat 9cal/g; Pro 4cal/g) and voila!

Finally, why it’s important to know a bit about nutrition to properly utilize this diet.  While it’s great to have the freedom to eat what you want with mild restriction, you must remember to try to get a balanced diet.  Our bodies are well oiled machines and the better you feed it, the better it runs.  God tells us that our bodies are temples and we should treat them as just that, so being conscious of what we are putting into our bodies and making sure that we are getting the proper nutrients in addition to our macros is still very important!

If you have any questions or are curious as to how to calculate your daily macros, feel free to shoot me an email or leave me a comment!  Hope this helps!

Until next time,

Peace, Love, and Strength,

Jayme