Happy Halloween!

Happy Halloween! What a wonderful and crazy time of the year. It's 84 degrees one day then snowing 4 days later. I love the fall. I love the leaves changing colors and the crispness in air, except when people are burning leaves. There's so much happening this time of the year from football games, road races, haunted houses, bonfires (no leaves please), apple cider, and so much more. I took Momma to see the Halloween jack O'lantern spectacular last night at Iroquois Park in Louisville. It was such a neat sight to see. There was over 5,000 carved and lit pumpkins lining a quarter mile trail complete with sound effects and props like a castle and an old western town. We had a great time once the initial crowd thinned out. Here's just a few shots from last night. 

Dad entered a pumpkin in a contest out at work this week...he won "most creative"! He's so proud of his "Carriage" that he worked on. We know Momma had a hand in it, but Dad worked on it too and got the wheels on it and lit properly. They swiped my old Barbie horse to add to the design and that's a little mouse in the doorway. Way to go Dad!!

Since we don't have any kiddos to dress up I resorted to torturing my kitties. I wonder what they were saying to each other. As adorable as they look they strongly dislike clothes. Baxter even fit into the sweater this year! He wasn't thrilled much either.

 Since I'm getting back on track with eating healthy and all the Halloween candy sitting around everywhere,  I thought I'd share these recipes for Shakeology. I've had several people ask me about this in the last 3 weeks. It's not a protein shake (it does have protein in it) it's dense nutrition. I drink it for breakfast usually, but I will have it as a snack sometimes when training volumes increase. I've don't crave sweets and junk food like I used to because my body is getting the nutrition it wants and needs. It's crazy how much whole foods you would have to eat to get the same nutrition in one glass. The biggest difference I notice is I don't get sick like I used to anymore. If you're interested in learning more about this visit my Beachbody page at www.teambeachbody.com/topgunjen. I may host a "Shakeology bar" at my house sometime so people can come and sample it and try it different ways. I didn't like it at first, but once I figured out how to mix it I LOVE IT! Salted Caramel is my new favorite flavor and it isn't listed below so here's the recipe for that one.

1 scoop chocolate Shakeology
1 c unsweetened almond milk (or whatever base you like)
1 tsp caramel extract
7-8 cubes ice (whatever you like)
few cranks sea salt then blend.

Speaking of blending what do you use to make smoothies? I have a Magic Bullet and it works pretty well, but I have ice cubes from an ice tray and it has a hard time chewing those up. It's also VERY LOUD!! I guess the sound is amplified since I'm in the back bathroom with the door shut blending at 5:30 am trying to be quiet so Nathan can sleep. Any better suggestions?

Have a fun and safe Halloween!!

Badass is Beautiful

Hello! I'm sorry for the disappearance lately. To sum up what's been happening it's been a busy month. I needed time to myself to refocus and get back on track. I sometimes feel like I'm on a ride and I want off but I can't find the stop button. Ever have that feeling?

Today I decided to go for a run outside even though it was a rain and snow mix. I wanted to be outside to clear my mind. I squeezed into my CWX compression running tights and was pleasantly surprised that it wasn't as difficult to put these on this year. I'd say putting on and taking off a wetsuit  and losing weight on the 21 Day Fix made a difference. Nathan didn't have to get the crowbar or call the fire department! I didn't even lay on the bed and scream. For those of you that don't know, CWX is just really tight tights with built in compression and crazy color panels that support joints and muscles.

As I mentioned above about losing weight I lost 6 lbs and 10.5" doing one round of the 21 day fix. I took a break from it (planned only 1 week- ended up being 3 weeks) but I'm back on track again. I took the break because I was tired of planning and prepping so much. I have since found a FB support group with tons of ideas and makes it so much easier to follow the plan now. I want to get back to eating healthy because I felt so much better. I still have some extra pounds to shed to prep for the upcoming race season so here's to starting over again!

One of the thoughts that crossed my mind today was applying to be a "Betty". One of my favorite designers was taking applications to join their team for 2015. I'm sure thousands applied and my chances are slim but I did it anyways. Today was the last day to submit an application, and while running I thought to myself "why not me". This year didn't turn out like I planned at all due to so many injuries, but I pushed through and continued on. That's badass. I worry too much about my size and what I look like in tri shorts...we all look like compressed sausages in casings (unless your a few of the lucky ones that does tris for a living)! The fact we put on spandex and get our arses out there and move is amazing and deserves credit. I love the saying "Be brave when you're scared, be strong when you're weak, be badass everyday" because it's true and that's what we do! Badass is beautiful!!  You probably can't see it on the top of my helmet, but there is a phoenix painted on it. That is a perfect representation of me. I was broken and burned this season and now i'm building myself back up from the ashes to a better and stronger me. I'm so thankful to have such awesome friends and family that understand (mostly) and even if they think i'm insane still love and support me.

I really hope I do get selected to represent Betty Designs, that would be awesome! You can check out their website at www.bettydesigns.com if you're interested in some great gear.

Here's to being badass everyday and living to tell about it!