The most important gear you need for running is your shoes. If you are a woman, add a sports bra for you. If you struggle with finding a sports bra for running, I am here to help share a few tips.
For me, I have embraced measurements and tracking. I am not a numbers person by nature, but I have become very goal-oriented. As a marathoner, I learned a valuable lesson and embraced the belief that “What isn’t measured cannot be changed or evaluated.” To change your lifestyle, it’s essential to look at habits. Habits are the cumulation of repetitive patterns, so we must substitute or break them to form new ones. Changing To A New You With The Right Tools Tracking and measuring your habits is easier when you have the right tools. Whether you plan a new year’s resolution or make an immediate life change, here are three easy tips to help you change into a new year with the right tools. Tracking Your Full Measurements Most people have a love-and-hate relationship with the scale, but if you want to change and improve your health, you must be aware of your weight and overall body composition. Looking back year-over-year, I weigh just about the same, but my body composure is very different due to the impact of the pandemic and my training. The Garmin index scale allows other areas of your physical composure to be tracked and adjusted, such as muscle mass and bone structure. Additionally, it syncs seamlessly within the Garmin Connect App. Simplify Your Habit Tracker When tracking and making new habits, it’s crucial to keep things simple. You can be overwhelmed with writing something in a journal or have too many apps to update your daily log. This is why I love the Garmin Connect App, which keeps everything within one app. Everything is within one app, from the scale to my Forerunner 945, which has unique connectIQ apps that help me keep track when away from my phone. The Connect App also directly connects with other apps like Strava, Tacx Trainers, and Apple Health, so whether I am cycling, logging my water, or weighing myself, having one app to save everything allows me to focus on being more mindful. Train to Your Beat There has been an increase in heart rate training from classes like Orangetheory to training plans focusing on heart rate zones and lactate thresholds. While the running pace stays the same, heart rate data will adjust and change based on my training and condition, making tracking a helpful metric. The HRM-Pro™ heart rate monitor transmits real-time heart rate data, whether swimming or on other fitness equipment. It’s neither bulky nor interfered with a sports bra or other clothing. Additionally, the HRM-Pro™ includes running dynamics that can help you improve your form. I like to think of this as a digital coach that adjusts and knows my every move. It also helps to track and monitor all the data for training metrics and overall physical and mental health.
If you have a custom workout or are following a plan that requires various changes and instructions in a workout, you often have to write them down, remember them, or use an app that tells you what to do. One thing I love and use regularly is the workout section in the Garmin Connect. Often my running coach gives me a workout such as the following Warm up 1-1.5 miles Run: 800 meters at 11 min pace 400 meter at recovery pace Break for 30 seconds Do this (steps 2-4) 4 times Cool down for 1 mile or 15 minutes After doing this one time, I honestly have forgotten what I am doing. But that’s where the workout section of the Garmin connect is perfect. I can add this entire workout with the repeats, cool down and warm-up, etc. and to connect, and then it will sync to my Garmin. Once I am ready, I select the workout, and it will keep track and also tell me what to do so I don’t have to think about it. It’s my coach but virtual. In this latest video, I am teaching you how I do this quickly and what it looks like. Below are the step-by-step instructions for reference. Directions on App or Web for Adding a Workout to Garmin Sign into Garmin Connect from a personal computer Select Training in the expanded navigation bar on the left Select Workout Select a workout type… and choose the activity type Select Create a Workout Create and your workout based on your needs Select Save Workout From the Workouts page, the newly created workout will be listed. Click two diagonal arrows to sync the workout to your device. Note: A Send to Device pop up window will appear listing compatible devices the workout can be sent to. Select the device to send the workout to OR use the Garmin app to sync with your Garmin View this post on Instagram A post shared by Alexandria Williams (@alexandriawill) on Jan 7, 2020 at 12:00pm PST To Do the Workout on your Garmin or to review it Once you add the workout and sync it with your watch you want to do the following. From the watch face, select START. Select the activity (Running for this since we made a running workout). Hold Menu symbol (middle button) Select Training > My Workouts. Select a workout. NOTE: Only workouts that are compatible with the selected activity appear in the list. Select Do Workout. Select START to start the timer. That’s it!
I thought about having a webinar or going live to discuss how I lost weight but you know what, I just hit the video and recorded it for you. Instead of editing down this video, I thought it was important you got an idea of my journey and who I am. I am honest and hardly did any edits because in all things I want to continue to be authentic about who I am and what I am doing. #nocookiecutter Don’t worry. I am making shorter videos on everything I listed so those will go into details. Consider this your intro and pep talk about health and wellness first before going into the details and action of everything. Losing 30 Pounds in 2 Months & Running 3 Times a Week Before starting, I highly recommend doing a spring cleaning. I got rid of everything in my house. From food, the pantry, clothes, to underwear and old sheets, everything must go in order to make room for the newness. This wasn’t pretty but it forced me to see how much clutter I had physically that was reflected emotionally and mentally too. Importance of Tracking and Finding Habits for Weight Loss When I saw the scale hit 200lbs on February 13th at the doctor’s office, I was filled a lot of emotions and also sick for the umpteenth time. However, I left out of the office more concerned about my weight than ever. I was the heaviest I had ever been in my life and the main issue I had was – how did I get there. I was not only the heaviest but sick, high blood pressure and just a mess. My life was falling apart both physically, emotionally and mentally and I couldn’t keep it together anymore. After a few weeks, I finally got myself together and made a plan. The problem was that I didn’t know how to tackle weight loss and stop yo-yo dieting for good. One day, I heard the quote “we are all just creatures of habits” and it occurred to me that I needed to figure out what I was doing in order to lose the weight for good. So I tracked everything! I tracked everything to make myself accountable for results and know what’s going on. AKA what are my habits. So below are the things I tracked. Weight Blood Pressure – Doctor’s orders Sleep Food & Water Everything Else (Stress, Exercise etc) By seeing what I was doing on a daily basis I had a better idea of how I could make a plan and then adjust. I was able to see what was working, big time failures and how to create new habits. It wasn’t pretty but it kept me accountable to see what was happening every single day and to get raw and honest about what was going on with myself. Focusing on the Big 3: Stress, Sleep & Sugar. After reviewing my habits, I didn’t change everything. Instead, I focused on breaking and forming new habits of the following three items: Stress, Sleep, and Sugar. Pretty much I did the following Sugar: Sugar is literally in everything! I also have a big sweet tooth so this was probably the hardest for me. I cut out sugar in all things from food to fruit. At first, it was hard and no it wasn’t perfect. I skimmed through a few books that discussed the impact of sugar but it’s basically a drug. I kept tracking everything I consumed and would make adjustment each day and week. It’s now easier and I don’t think about it. I have some form of sugar in things such as post-workout drink or a cookie here and there but it’s super rare. I do have stevia often in my tea. Indirectly this made me cut out most bread, pasta, and al the other stuff too but that’s another video for another day. Sleep: I re-read my book so I could have a healthy foundation but the biggest things that stood out was my discussion of sleep in the book. I forgot all about the importance. Did you know that lack of sleep or keeping someone up is used as a form of torture in war or capturing an enemy? Yep! When tracking everything via my Garmin, I saw how little sleep I was getting. I thought I was having a night of at least 7 hours of sleep but in reality, it was more like 4 hours of sleep. I made it a priority to make sure that I had a lot more sleep. I started going to bed earlier and sleeping about 9-10 hours a night. It seems like a lot but I was making my body find a natural sleep pattern at first. Eventually, I even out and have a good cycle. Some days I do need more sleep and I am mindful of it. Stress: I monitored this via my watch but also just taking time out to each day to workout, write, meditate and such. This is a big issue and there isn’t much advice I can say about watching stress levels. Most of it is mental so my advice is to get some therapy and also adjust what you are consuming into your ears/eyes/mind on a daily basis. During this time, I unfollowed a lot of random accounts and people on social media that didn’t align with where I wanted to go. Additionally, this happened in real life as I begin to be aware of what was stressing me out or making me sad. This can be a job, person, car, meal prepping, etc. What I realized was that I didn’t have a lot of time and it was stressing me out so I begin to invest in things that would aid in decreasing stress such as trying meal prep companies and delivery services. In short, I substituted unhealthy stress for a healthier option such as traveling and working out/running.
Struggling with finding the right shorts for working out? Do your tights and shorts move when you are running? Can’t find the right shorts that are long and cover your thick thighs or large butt? Don’t look further, this article helps offers some great choices for workout and running shorts while also not breaking the bank. Running & Workouts Shorts for Big Butts and Large Thighs Since this article has been such a hit for the last few years, I made sure to update it with new shorts for the summer that are great for large and thick thighs. I personally tested these recommendations for the las few months in various weathers and love them! Here are my recommendations. 2020’s TOP 7 WORKOUT SHORTS FOR THICK THIGHS AND BIG BUTTS Links for Shorts https://kit.co/alexandria/favorite-running-shorts Brooks Running : Greenlight 9″ Short Tight – My favorites for 2020. I run 90% In these and the pockets don’t fall with my Iphone 11 in them Brooks Running : Greenlight 7” Short Tight – Love the pockets and great for moderate length on shorts. I will update with new link. Brooks Running : Venture Bermuda Short Great for loser fitting but will update with new link. MPG: Women’s Shorts Biker – There are 3 options and hold up for years Nike: One Short – Love the colors and the size range as it goes up to 3x Target:High Waist Shorts – Love the colors and easy access but last a few months) In this series, I break down how to pick the best running shorts especially for women who have thick thighs are a big butt. Tips for Picking Out Running Shorts Before you run out to the store, let’s chat a bit about what to look for when picking out the right shorts. The top 3 things to look for when picking out shorts are length, pockets, and material. There are not a lot of options for running shorts but I am helping you know what to look for before heading into the store. This will save you time and a headache! Trust me!! Top 5 Running Shorts For Fall 2018 Want to see what running shorts I have picked out and tested for months. Here is a list of my top 5 running shorts that are all affordable and in a variety of sizes.
The most important gear you need for running is your shoes. If you are a woman, add a sports bra…
For me, I have embraced measurements and tracking. I am not a numbers person by nature, but I have become…
If you have a custom workout or are following a plan that requires various changes and instructions in a workout,…
I thought about having a webinar or going live to discuss how I lost weight but you know what, I…
Struggling with finding the right shorts for working out? Do your tights and shorts move when you are running? Can’t…