3 Day Refresh

I tried this program, the 3-Day Refresh about a year ago when it first came out and didn't do so great. The program was fine, nothing I would change with it. The problem was I needed to change ME! I was not as disciplined as I am now about eating (thank you Ultimate Reset). I now know how amazing this Refresh is and how I can properly manage my food intake. Here are the benefits. I start on October 12th (want to join me?) so stay tuned!!!

👙want to lose 5-7+ lbs
👗clothes to fit looser
👓see a difference
💪have more energy
All in just 3 days!!!

Recovery week is almost over

I'm sad to say my rest and recovery week is coming to end. I think I have enjoyed this week little bit too much. Hey, every good athlete needs a rest. 

Totally not on the subject of rest but...I love the race shirts that they give out! I love them even more when they are a good fit and are flattering. I always wondered why race organizers spend the money on a shirt if it doesn't fit right?

My recover week went like this...paint my kitchen cabinets, ice my feet/legs, walk little, eat too many apple cider donuts (seriously why did I buy them) and REPEAT and REPEAT. Isn't it funny we know we are supposed to do but actually doing it sometimes doesn't get done?

I  know next week I need to get back into my game and plan ahead for my next races. So time to devise the next training schedule and get back into the grind. 

1/2 Marathon Race Day Tips

If you set your mind to anything you can do it! I am so proud of myself for completing my first 1/2 marathon. And if you asked me yesterday afterwards I would have said it was my last one!!

Here are my top tips to help you have a successful first race:

• PREPARE~lay out everything you need for before the race, know where your going and double check your gear.
• Attach your bib to your shirt and try out your whole outfit the night before (a lot of people even do a dry run in their clothes, even undies, to make sure everything fits good and nothing moves or bothers you while running
• Arrive early and wear clothes that you can discard (this is a great chance to go through your closet and get rid of a sweater or pants that would be headed to Goodwill). Discard at the starting line. 
• Plan to have a low key prior day! Avoid alcohol and get plenty of water to go into the race hydrated.
• Get a great night sleep and set your alarm for the next day (easier said than done so I relay on Simply Sleep or Tylenol pm to help me rest on a big night/day).
• Eat a light meal (I never eat before a race but since this was a long distance I had some toast with peanut butter which was the perfect pre-race meal for me).
• Enjoy yourself during the race! Remind yourself what all your hard work was for. I liked to use positive thinking and it really helped. I reminded myself that I trained and I was feeling strong and great (and I truly was so that helped)
• Smile for the cameras on the course. They are taking your picture using your bib. You will want some great memories to commiserate your achievement.
• Those last two miles are the hardest. Push, push, push!!! Make sure your playlist is timed so your favorite songs are last. I had to grab my phone out of my flip belt and change the song. Next time I will have it timed better.
• Smile when you cross the finish line and listen for them to call your name. They randomly call out names and mine was called. It was amazing for that second.
• Look for the friends and family who came to cheer you on!!
• They hand out mylar blankets (looks like a giant piece of foil). Your body suddenly feels like it is going into shock so wrap that blanket around you and get your medal. Don't forget to congratulate yourself!!!
• As you walk through the exit tent make sure to pick up some food. You will not want it the minute you are done but you will be sorry if you don't get any. I didn't think I wanted anything but I wasn't able to go back in so my hubby had to sneak in and "steal" me some when hunger kicked in.
• Head to the massage tent and put your name in for a massage. Favorite part! It wasn't enough though so next time I am scheduling a massage for the day of and then a few days later. I am sitting here suffering and wishing I could be at a massage now.

Here is my recommendation for gear to have with you for the race:

• bag you can check (nothing expensive in case it get's lost or stolen)
• Flip Belt or similar "fanny pack" I loved having my hands free and storing my phone in the flip belt for the whole race
• sunglasses!
• Phone/music player and headphones
• lip balm

Lastly, I recommend seeing if your race does "pre-course" runs. This was a huge advantage because the course looked familiar when running it. It felt amazing knowing that I was close to the end and when to really PUSH it!

I hope your first 1/2 marathon is as race-tastic as mine was!!!

Diary of a 1/2 Marathon Mommy! I DID IT!!

 The evening before the race I was a nervous wreck! My stomach hurt so bad due to a nice case of nerves. This is my go to friend when I know I won't be able to sleep and ridden with anxiety. All I need is two pills of Tylenol PM. at 9:00 pm and I was out like a light! I don't know about you but when I need to wake up early for something important like a race or an airplane flight I would have a hard time sleeping so the Tylenol PM helps me get through the night. 

I like to have everything for a big day set up ahead of time so I made sure my bib, shoes and all the gear I was bringing was set up and ready to go. One less thing to stress about!

I woke up before my alarm at 5:00 am. I am happy to say I was able to take care of bathroom business (come on runners you know that this is a critical part of having a successful run). I don't normally eat before I run but I knew I would need fuel so I had a peanut butter toast sandwich (and of course I was stuck with the two ends of the bread because my kids had most of the loaf yesterday). It did the trick in helping any nervous acid in my stomach. I also knew I would need to finish waking up and would be a little groggy so I took a nice morning soak in the tub. 

Today was really important to me so I am not embarrassed to say I put a few curls in my bed head fine hair ponytail and put on some (okay my normal make up routine). Yes, I don't put on my make up during the week some days, but yes I decided to put on make up to go sweat. It may not make sense to you but for me it made me feel good. And on a 13.1 day whatever makes you feel good is key.

I am happy I had my husband and a running friend buddy with me today. We got to the race in plenty of time (it helps when it is a local race and so close to the house). After a quick double gear check I was debating too sunglass or not? I am so glad I brought them with and had them because it was a beautiful 55 degree sunny morning. 

The Fox Valley 1/2 Marathon has a picturesque course winding around the Fox River, through the woods, and through St. Charles, Geneva and Batavia. I am glad I did some practice runs with the group because the course was oddly familiar and I felt very comfortable.



My buddy and I had planned on having a few warm up miles of 10 minutes each. To our surprise our splits were much faster than we anticipated. 

The funny thing was we felt like we were running slow so it really was a fine warm up pace. It's ironic when you try to go slow you go fast and when you want to fast (like at the end of the race when I had nothing left) you go slower than you want. We were around the 9 minute 30 second mile group but we ended up going much faster. 

I am amazed at how wonderful I felt (especially because of the chest cold, ear infections, myself included that we suffered two weeks before). I felt strong, healthy and appreciative of life. 

One thing that really got me through was my amazing playlist I put together. It was just the right mix of new and older songs. There are a few I will delete for my next race (gulp) because they just didn't give me the oomph I needed when I needed it. 

Another thing that got me through was being confident in the training I had done over the last four months. I knew I did everything I could do to prepare myself for this moment. It was so important to me that I kept thinking in my head that I really wanted to crush this and this was the time to give it my all.

My group did amazing on their race. Check out my results below. I couldn't be happy with finishing under 2 hours.

Stay tuned for my post 1/2 marathon recovery plan and my training tips.

Aches & Pains Oh My!

I woke up today wondering how I would feel. Let's first talk about how good I slept. All that running yesterday agreed with me! I am as sore as to be expected. A few more aches and pains than normal (knees, quads and calves). It is not bad enough that I can't resume normal life so back to painting my kitchen cabinets, taking kids to story time at the library and getting more Halloween books. Maybe I can squeeze in a massage later??

Weekend of the the 1/2 Marathon

I started training for my first 1/2 marathon about 4 months ago. I feel strong. I feel determined. Do I feel ready to run 13.1 miles yet? Nope!! 

About month ago, a friend and I ran 8 miles and it was tough. I don't know about adding another 5 miles onto those 8 miles. I don't know if it made a difference but we ran in the pouring rain. I love running in the rain but I am sure it contributed to the nasty chest cold I got a few weeks later.

My back was really killing afterwards after the 8 mile run. Since it was my birthday my hubby surprised me with a 90 minute massage. I realized that this was the missing piece in my training. I have never felt better after that massage. The next day I ran a super fast 3 miles and felt as light as air. I most definitely have more appointments scheduled to help keep my body loose in the last month before the race.

The last month I did as many different Beachbody workouts and ran as consistently as I could. It is not always easy with 4 kids and a busy life. And to make matters worse we entered ear infection season. Yes, we have a name for this nasty bacteria in our house of kids and a Mom with oddly shaped ear channels that breed bacteria. You would think ear infections are contagious with the number of ear infections we have had in the last month. Not 1. Not 2. Not 3. Not 4. BUT 5 people, including me (seriously a Mom getting an ear infection? That is just absurd!). I had a weird chest cold which left me feeling great and unable to breathe. I am sure the kids were miserable too but this is my feeling sorry for myself rant. That was a lot of time spent getting Doctor appointments, going to Doctor appointments and getting prescriptions. 

The most mileage I ran pre-race was 10 miles. And.it.was.tough! There are not words to describe how I felt at the end except I just laid down on my sidewalk outside my house (I know, I know your not supposed to sit or lay after running) but I felt fatigued. My daughter asked my husband, "Is Mommy dead?" And I am sure I looked like that just laying there but it felt so wonderful! I think the tough feeling was the cold I had. 

So here I am the Friday before the race. I get to do the fun things like pick up the race packet (and try not to buy any extra not needed but always wanted sweatshirts, shirts, etc), get my clothes ready (check), chiropractor adjustment (check, thanks Dr. Curt) and just eat healthy for the rest of the weekend. 

If I'm not ready now I won't ever be ready. So wish me luck as I cross off my first item on my before turning 40 bucket list (I'm 37 so I have a few years that I can think of some really good bucket list wishes). 

Good luck to all my fellow 1/2 and full marathon crazy runners!

Morning snack ideas

Now that the kids (and you busy working mom's) are back in school I thought I would share our favorite morning snacks for quick and easy packing:

• Stonyfield yogurt & organic granola (the containers were a fabulous freebie given away at a Dirty Girl race)
• carrots & ranch
• apple slices
• organic fruit strips (Costco is now carrying them)
• Annie's granola bars
• cut up peach (or for the matter any kind of fruit washed and ready to eat...the possibilities are endless...grapes, watermelon, cantaloupe)

The things that I stay away from as they are processed and don't have nutritional value:

• crackers (think Goldfish and cheese-its)
• anything sweet (kids and Mom's should have treats in moderation and having a "treat" as a morning snack is not away to start your day

No matter what you pick, think of feeding your brain and fueling your body! Make the healthiest snack you can pack!

Are you a hamburger or apple?

I wish scientists would figure out the correlation between eating healthy and fighting disease. There is so much research that surrounds this but it is not publicly known. How many times have you heard of someone diagnosed with cancer and they adopt an all organic diet? If we just could change the ingredients in our restaurants, meals and diets to just "be healthy" than couldn't we eliminate some of these diseases that are killing our loved ones?

Fitness Sampler Group

FREE!

Are up stuck in a fitness rut? Sick of the same workouts? Want to try some top selling Beachbody programs without committing to a 60 or 90 day program?

Well, if you answered YES to any of these questions, you should join my FREE Fitness Sampler Group!!

What's included for the 7 days.......
* Hundreds of of popular workouts anytime, anywhere!
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Start Date: Monday, September 7th

Contact me at kristinanovak@me.com

*Not intended for coaches or current customers.

Even kids love Shakeology!

One of the top questions I get asked as a Beachbody Coach is can my kids drink Shakeology? YES, they can!

I started drinking Shakeology when my son was 1 years old. I was looking for a way to help lose the extra baby weight I couldn't shake. In my pursuit of healthiness, I discovered that I was not the only one who loved it! The minute my kids would hear the blender they would all gather at the table and eagerly wait for their turn to get a shake. Even the 1 year old!!! He recognized my Shakeology cup and would try to get it. I was not comfortable giving them something without more research so my first stop was to my Pedatrician. My Pedatrician said 1/2 scoop was the perfect amount for their little growing bodies. In fact, to my surprise, she was giving it to her children as well. I found something that I loved giving them because it is HEALTHY!

****Added bonus, my 3rd daughter would border on anemia when she was 4. We were instructed to give her iron pills. Instead I upped her green veggies in her diet (at the time she was still considered a picky eater) and started giving her Shakeology once a day. When we went for her repeat blood work test her levels were normal. Proper nutrition is key but I am convinced Shakeology helped her.