Motivational Desktop 1600x1200

Click on the picture to get a bigger view and save. :)

Found this quote and I thought it was perfect! I might always use the Checkered Background unless anyone wants to submit something that they find motivational that's not so busy a quote can be added with it. :)

Rowing Day & Copycat Frozen Goat

Okay so let's talk about how this was the most un-motivating day since ever and yet it all turned around and it was so wonderful I'm about exploding with happiness! I will refrain from talking about work though I had a great day there today. When I got home I felt drained, so completely sleepy, I was beyond ready for lights out. Instead of sleeping like I thought about doing I made my favorite imitation of Planet Smoothie's Frozen Goat. In case you're interested I put the recipe below.

Making the Frozen Goat is so easy and it packs a punch as far as energy is concerned. It gives you immediate energy and sustainable energy so you don't completely crash.

Take 1 cup Cold Coffee (You can use instant to avoid refrigeration once percolated), 2 tablespoons low-fat creamer (best to go with one that doesn't have a crazy flavor in it), 2 tablespoons chocolate syrup (you can substitute with low-fat hot cocoa mix) 1 large frozen banana sliced, and about 6 ice cubes. You can add soy or whey as well it should not affect the taste. The coffee and the chocolate give you the boost to get going and the banana gives you staying power. I know it's hard to find frozen bananas but its really easy to flash freeze them on your own. Just sliced them to about 1/4 inch thickness and place on a tray in the freezer for an hour and then put it a ziploc bag and keep in freezer for future use. See? Easy. :)

In any case, after I felt extremely full I picked up around the apartment a bit and went to check the mail adn my replacement FitBit arrived and I am soooo happy! If you're a Facebook friend you should be able to find me pretty easily or if you're not on Facebook you can find me by me email. Comment below if you would like to friend me on either social platform ;) So of course I immediately went back to the apartment to get it charged and synced up to take with my when I go to the gym. I can't believe how relieved I was. I just haven't been able to stay on top of my fitness food wise without it telling me "how much I'm allowed to eat."

So I get to the Gym and I have to wait a few minutes for the Rowing Machine to open up (bear in mind my LA Fitness only has TWO! what an oversight.)There's a guy warming up beside the other machine while I get started to go and we're keeping pretty good pace at the same time. Over the intercom they are starting to say 5 minutes until the Gym closes which was perfect because that's about how much time I had left on my half hour timer. :) I make it to the end and the guy beside me goes to a stop and asks if I cross-train in rowing or if I row professionally. I tell him I've only rowed twice in my life and have the blisters to prove it and as it turns out this man was the coach for a local team! He suggested a tryout if I'm just beginning and my stats are that good, enough to keep pace with the coach! By the way my stats are below:

Time: 30 Minutes

Distance: 5360 meters or 3.33 miles

Average Pace: 35 strokes/minute

I'm not really sure I can make the time or monetary commitment and I don't want to get caught up in two athletic hobbies. I want to lose weight but I don't want to completely disappear, lol. That being said I will start to track my progress on this as well since it might turn out to be a nice hobby later on when money is better, I'm stronger, and I've proven my dedication to fitness is more than a passing fancy.

Run Day & Unusual Quandry

Okay so today I did my 30 minute maintenance run. My average pace over 1.95 miles was 15'24" which saved off roughly 40 seconds from my run on Saturday. I am hoping that when I do my run on Thursday during my 30 minutes I make it to 2.25 miles - probably just wishful thinking again. I really tried to pace myself better and I didn't start having real trouble until about a quarter into the mile. When my timer told me I only had 4 minutes to go I pushed the envelope through the pain as much as possible. Like Saturday my body gave up before my will to keep going did. The simple truth might just be that my legs are not strong enough for this yet. That being said I can't crosstrain with emphasis on the legs to build strength. I might just continue with the overall toning of rowing. Will update this post again a little later. I'm just glad I finished strong this time and not just walking all of the last bit.

Rowing & Blisters

Okay so first things first, I super enjoyed rowing today. I rowed for a half hour and burned 253 calories and rowed 5000 meters which translates to 3.10686 miles! Talk about a work out that packs one heck of a punch. I was rowing 25 strokes per minute! One Livestrong article says a person who rows an hour every day can lose a pound each week! It's a wonderful cardio workout that increases endurance when performed at low resistance over a long period such as a half hour like I did today. One of the unique things about a rowing machine is that is uses all the muscles in the body a single workout allowing for even muscle toning. When I say it works everything I mean everything! You work your legs by doing the initial drive, the arms get worked out as pull the bar from beginning to your abdomen, the entire drive involves your back and abs. If you want a breakdown on the exact muscle groups used can check out this Concept2 Article and click on the graphics on the middle of the page. As a note the Concept2 is the rowing machine I used today at my Gym which I totally love! That page also compare the exercise level with other workout machines which shows that an indoor rower is the most practical workout machine.

Active.com suggests the following routines for runners hoping to increase endurance through rowing:  4 500 meter repeats resting for 2 minutes between each 500 meters, Interval sprinting which 8 45 seconds of hard rowing followed by 15 seconds of recovery rowing between each of the 45 seconds, 10 minutes nonstop increasing intensity as you go up, 4 5 minute sessions where each 1 minute segment is broken down by number of strokes per minute - the first minute should be 18 strokes per minute, the second minute 22 strokes per minute, the third 26 strokes per minute, the fourth 22 strokes per minute, and the fifth 26 strokes per minute - this should be done continuously with no breaks. The website also breaks down proper form so check it out and the Concept2 article to get an idea of how you should be doing this to get the maximum benefit.

I will say though, WEAR workout gloves. I have 2 blisters on each hand from the machine but I have to admit it was totally worth it. You can can get a pair of cheap ones to start with for $8.77 from Walmart. I imagine the ones from Sports Authority are better but they encroach on $30 a pair so save that for if you get really into it or use multiple machines where the grip might blister your hands (like weights!)

All this being said, I left the gym soaked in my own sweat and completely satisfied and content. Some days I really love my  workout. I think I will replace Water Aerobics with Rowing. :)

Run Day, Screaming Thighs, and Progress Report

Okay so today is the first day I attempted the 2 mile run as Saturdays's according to Disney Run's Training Program should be about distance and adding distance every week rather than time. I will say I started the first mile off pretty strong with an average pace of 14'44"/mile. It was so humid and the sun was so bright, but I did manage to break through my mental barrier and keep going until about a quarter into the second mile where my thighs thought they were going to die. I could breathe, I wasn't tired, but my body was giving up on me. I kept going anyway determined to at least finish the two miles even if I had to walk the rest of it which I sadly had to do. My second mile had an average pace of  17'25"/mile which was a decrease of 19% in performance. You can see how I completely choked the in the pace graph below.

I ran these numbers through Runswift Pace Calculator on my Windows 8 Phone and it predicted that it would take me just 56 seconds shy of 3 hours to complete 10 miles. I took a screenshot so you can see the whole breakdown. Hopefully these numbers will decrease every week. :) That being said this is probably the only truly useful running app on the Windows 8 operating system what with it's limited store selection but for something simple like this is has proved a valuable tool in guessing how I'm going to finish up.

Below is my progress report for the last week. Nike+ also uses a trophy system, I won my first trophy this week for running 3 times in a week. On my dashboard it displays tips that are appropriate for your data, for instance after syncing this last run my advice was to Pace Myself - You're starting fast and losing steam. You can see my average pace for this week has gone down with each run and that I've already run on a road and that I have done a run at each point in the day this week. For argument's sake let's look at those times. The  first run I did this week I did on Tuesday at 5PM and I ran the mile in 14'46" with an average pace of 14'. The second run I did this week I did on Wednesday at 9:45PM and I ran the mile in 15'48" with an average pace of 14'33". The last run I did today Saturday at 9:30AM and I ran the mile in 14'42" with an average pace of 14'44" and the second mile I ran in 18'26" with an average pace of 17'25". So my pace most suffers with additional mileage and I seem to run my best run after work hours but before it's dark out.

The Training Goal Report: Last but not least let's check out where I am in my training goals I am in week 2 of my training plan. According to my predicted splits it at this juncture it will take me 1 hr, 7 min, and 37 sec to complete 4 miles, I'm putting these all into the same unit for calculation simplicity which comes to 67.62 minutes, when divided out by 4 comes out to 16.905 minutes. My goal by end of Week 4 is to 4 miles with an average pace of 14 minutes per mile. So at this point I'm short by nearly 3 minutes per mile so my Weekly goal next week is shave a minute and a half per mile off my time. I had hoped to lose half an inch off my waistline by Week 4 - my measurements won't be too good this week as I didn't measure myself until Wednesday but for the sake of consistency I will measure anyway :) My waistline is 27 inches same as Wednesday.

My Improvement Plan - This week I did not follow my schedule and I cheated a few times here or there too so next week I will be active for at least 1 hour every day in some form and I will limit my intake of sugared beverages and junk food. That's right I confess I ate pizza for dinner Thursday night and Friday I ate a hamburger! 

Making Running a Game

 Okay so as you can see I did a little better yesterday than I did today. Some things that may have influenced my pace time tonight is that I have been awake since 6:00AM and my leg muscles are still a little sore from yesterday. I totally understand now why they say don't run two days in a row for beginners (not sure if that's true for experienced runners or not, anybody want to weigh in on that?) my legs just aren't used to the abuse anymore and needless to say I'm going to be walking stiff tomorrow if at all, LESSON LEARNED. Some things that worked in my favor was the temperature and running at night - simulating the conditions of the race which is great for practicing. I also used a specifically designed playlist with a little game in mind. Since I don't have a way to actively watch my pace at this juncture I decided to use music as my way of determining when to jog and when to walk fast. I would walk fast through all the verses and run/jog through every chorus. Looking at my graph below you can see that I started off with slow songs to warm up or rather songs with non repeating choruses and saved the hard sells for the middle. I hit a bit of a wall towards the end there because my legs were just throbbing but I tried my best to continue to walk/jog according to the game I set for myself.

I ran using mostly high intensity country songs, in case you're interested this was the playlist I ran with today. Days Go By is a great song for the above mentioned game because the chorus just keeps freaking repeating I thought it would NEVER end. I might change my last song it took too long to get to the meat of the song while fast begins a little slow. Just as a personal critique.

1. Kerosene - Miranda Lambert
2. Sin Wagon - Dixie Chicks
3. Be My Baby Tonight - John Michael Montgomery
4. Days Go By - Keith Urban
5. Sold - John Michael Montgomery

Running Day & Motivating Playlist

Howdy folks, I broke with the schedule, yeah I know I may as well not have one since I cannot stick to it exactly. I do everything just not always when I intend to do it lol. Yesterday it rained all evening so I ran today skipping Water Aerobics. Looking at the stats you can see I did much better this afternoon than I did on Sunday. I think it has to do with the fact that it had JUST finished raining when I ran which gave me a nice edge. I had intended to do a whole 30 minutes but My legs were just too sore. I think what I'm going to need to do for a little while is do a daily mile until my legs are built enough to handle the sustained stress. That being said I didn't have as much difficulty breathing this time around. I believe using a pumped up playlist helped as well. Below is the graph of my pace.

I am little more comfortable with the Nike+ Website now and there are some pretty cool features but I will with-hold a review until the end of the week so there are more stats to work with.


This was the "Eclectic" playlist I used today:

1. Original (feature Katharine McPhee) - SMASH Cast - SMASH Soundtrack Season 2
2. I Do - Colbie Caillat - All of You
3. Down in Mississippi - Sugarland - Twice the Speed of Life
4. Double Heart - The Band Perry - Self Titled Album
5. Love Letter - Leona Lewis - Echo
6. A Night Like This - Caro Emerald - Deleted Scenes from the Cutting Room Floor
7. Good Time (feature Carly Rae Jepsen) - Owl City - Good Time Single
8. Diva - Beyonce - I Am...Sasha Fierce
9. Move Ya Body - Nina Sky - Now! That's What I Call Music 16

I have a handful of playlists, I might post one with each run or maybe just once a week? Comment below with song suggestions or frequency of posting. :)

Running Day and Vera Bradley Travel Belt

I ultimately decided I'd rather use the fitness Nike + App on my iPod  it is still accurate and I don't have to keep checking my phone to see how much distance I've traveled. As you can see I have't adjusted for Daylights Savings yet on this device lol and I didn't do nearly as well this time around and that is probably because I slacked off Thursday-Saturday trying to get the house in order to move. Sucky timing.

"Don't wait until you're ready. Start now. The circumstances will not be perfect and you won't get it perfect. Start now, however, and you will get it done...Do you want to waste your time and energy on elaborate excuses or would you rather invest yourself in achievement? Get started now and get the achievement well under way" - Ralph Marston, The Daily Motivator

I found this nugget on Mindbloom.com which is a way to get yourself psyched for life balancing your life with things you want to do and "rewarding" you for completing tasks to better yourself. After finding this quote on there I went to his blog The Daily Motivator and is is a great tool to inspire you each day. In fact I like this blog so well I think I've just decided on the first relevant blog to put into my blogroll. :)

Anyway, back to my terrible workout. I'm going to break down what worked today from what didn't. First things first the weather was not on my side today, nor do I expect it to be until October which is thankfully when the race takes place and also thankfully at night. :) The humidity was at 55% and it was 90 degrees. I prepared as best as I could, I wore a tech shirt and tech capris, my hair was up, I was well hydrated but the sun still gave me a massive headache and sapped my energy. I imagine it's a matter of just getting used to it at this point. You can see how my energy started flagging in the last quarter.I will run a separate review of the Nike+ Website later since I've only just started using it I'm not really familiar with all its capabilities yet.

I also chose to run around my apartment complex to save the gas from driving all the way over to the trail in the next town. The end result of this was less motivation. I know it's petty but I do enjoy passing people and because no one else uses my complex as a circuit (though really its perfect) there's just not as much motivation to push myself. I did find a pace timer app on my phone but I'm hesitant to use it since it's unlikely I will hear it over my iPod and as previously mentioned I don't want to have to keep pulling my phone out to check since it'd done in increments of seconds. I don't really have a quick fix for this other than maybe to wear a cheap wrist watch with a stopwatch feature so I can peak at it without stopping. Actually that seems like a really good idea! Go me!

Timex Women's 1440 Sports Watch, Blue Resin Strap @ Wal-Mart for
$14.88. It has a whole list of pretty much pointless features (at least for me) which include Indiglo night light, Stop Watch (the only feature I intend to use), 24 hour countdown timer, 24 hour chronograph, daily alarm, 2 time zones, calendar, day and night display, water resistant to 165'. I will probably wait to get this until next since this week I blew the extra grocery money on a used Vera Bradley Travel Belt that I found at Plato's Closet for $16.

 I decided on this particular "fanny pack" "runners belt" "hip bag" "travel belt" (yes there are that many ways to refer to the same item) because it can be washed, cheaper than specifically designed runners belts, more organized than fanny packs, and was skinny like a travel belt that even when bulging remains mostly flush against your body. I choose to wear mine on my back rather than on my tummy because my vanity can't reconcile wearing a bag on my waist lol. It might look bulgy in the picture but I assure you it's just my butt ;P

 I fill this bag up like I would POST work out so I don't forget to take everything with me and carry it into the house so I don't have to play the where did I leave it game. In the front little zip pocket I have put my iPod Nano and my ear buds which fit very nicely there.

 This is a snap shot of the inside. I have 3 card slots and an ID slot which work out nicely so I can carry my ID, debit card, credit card, and insurance card in case I have an accident or emergency. I also have room for my inhaler. I'm know exceptionally known for asthma attacks brought on by physical distress but it has happened on occasion - which it did today - really glad I had it with me. I also have room for my keys and I mean ALL my keys. My car key and apartment keys are massive.

This picture is a little bit of an elaboration on the last because you can't really see it in the last one. In a flat pocket that is about the size of the whole bag which is probably meant for passport and money holds my Nokia Lumia 920 (Windows Phone) very nicely which is a suprise since it's one the largest and heaviest phones out there excepting the new Note ;) I also have my Belkin iPod ArmBand in there and they both fit with room to spare so if I need to carry something else this baby can handle it all. :)

One of the things I like most about this bag is that it is 100% adjustable so if I lose the inches off the waistline that I hope to it will still work nicely for me and if you place the belt right at your hip, literally right over your hip bones it stays stable and does not move or jiggle all over the place at all which would've been my biggest pet peeve with any other bag. I guess what I mean to say its large and small at the same time - like so many Vera Bradley bags. :)

Review on the FitBit One

I got The One as a holiday gift this last year by some wonderful friends so I have had it for about 5 months now. The One is a wireless activity and sleep tracker. its about half the length of your pinky finger and fairly inconspicuous when you wear it. It comes in two colors black and burgundy. 

You have the option to have a silent alarm - what this means is that when you're wearing the wrist-let with a pouch for the tracker (so it doesn't get lost in the bed) it will vibrate your wrist and wake you up silently which is great if you share a bed so they are not jolted awake by you're alarm. I was skeptical about this feature at first because I'm a pretty heavy sleeper but it works phenomenally well it has never failed to wake me up. 

It's very accurate as a pedometer and it shows you how many calories you've burned and your activity level for the day displayed as tiny leaves - the more leaves the more average of activity you've had that day.It a visual reminder to get up and move around like none other. I had made it a personal challenge for 2/3 of the bar to be shown by the end of the day as well as 10k steps. It also displays the number of stairs climbed as they have a different calorie burning ratio.

The device has one design flaw in that you slide the tracker into a rubberized holder and with consistent use this can lead to it escaping from you. You can replace the holder for $8 online and if you lose the tracker they ship you one back within 7-10 business days. That being said this design flaw was corrected in the new full time bracelet version which is more conspicuous but if you want the peace of mind the newer model might be worth it for you.

You ask how is it wireless? It comes with a USB dongle that serves as your charger and another USB piece you leave in the computer so that it can wirelessly sync the data from your tracker when your close to your computer. Set up is super easy and user friendly for even the tech illiterate.

The best feature about this is the website (which is free - you don't need a FitBit to use this) Your dashboard shows your activity level - number of steps, calories eaten, and the number of steps climbed.  It calculates the total distance you've traveled and your number of very active minutes as opposed to regular walking throughout the day, and the sleep tracker shows how many times you've woken up in the middle of the night - yes even if your're not aware of it. Its odd that for me my average is something like 12 times a night! By changing the way I ate, exercise, and doing a bedtime ritual this number has gone down to 6 and I sleep much better. But probably the best feature is that it tailors you expected caloric intake by your activity level so that's right lady you exercise to earn the right to eat that serving of ice cream after dinner which is so motivating!

You ask how can I use this without having a FitBit one? You won't get the pedometer part obviously but you can enter in your activities for the day and it will generate a calorie budget for you and you can enter in your foods which is very easy.

The food tracker even breaks down your calories, fat, fiber, carbs, sodium, protein,and water which is a great tool for helping you to avoid certain foods as you see how it affects your body.

There's an optional heart rate, blood pressure, and glucose trackers if you have a way to get your numbers so you can use it long term track your numbers which is great. I use the heart rate and blood pressure checker every week when I go to Wal-Mart to check my numbers since it's free.That being said I carry alcohol wipes to wipe it down and then my arm afterwards since I've become a little crazy about germs.

You can choose to get premium which is $50 a year to get special content which includes benchmarks which measures your % to goal and you can compare yourself to friends beyond steps.For food it projects your expected weight change with your eating habits, macronutrient balance - IE what vitamins you're missing out on, distribution of calories by meal. For the activity part it gives you a customized training plan which is not available in any form on the free version and it changes as you progress towards your fitness goal.The last premium feature is the ability to export your data into excel. For me these features we're worth it to me so I haven't sampled them. There is a free trial which I'm saving for about a month before the race. The trial lasts a week. If you've used this feature please leave comments if you liked it.

Apart from the tiny design flaw - which is easily corrected - it is a wonderful device and a great tool to keep track of your physical health.

Missed Training but Caught Vampire Diaries Finale

I'm embarrassed to admit that I missed Water Aerobics yesterday but I did get a few important household moving tasks finished. My Wannabe Hubby and I are closing on our house early next month and we had two closets full of unorganized random computer stuff. We decided that while we were in there looking for keyboards and mice to go with the iMacs we're selling we organize this and throw out anything that we didn't need or didn't work. This project took us three hours and ultimately everything fit in less than half the coat closet which is such a HUGE accomplishment. I am so proud of us - proud of him for taking the initiative to get it done without me begging (which would've happened by this time next week) and of me for being able to lift all those heavy boxes out to the dump. So in a roundabout way I did do some cross-training today just not what I originally set out to do. :)

That being said, we finished with 15 minutes to spare before the Season 4 Finale of The Vampire Diaries came on. I am very sad to see the season end but at least they are continuing with season f in the fall and will start a spin off series The Originals which I am greatly looing forward to, curious if it will be like Buffy and Angel where they sometimes crossed over. Since I REALLY want to write about the show I will put it in the same color as the background and you can highlight the text to read it in case you don't want it spoiled for you :) See I can be thoughtful sometimes. Ignore the video posted after, contains spoilers.

OMFG! SHE FINALLY CHOSE DAMON! It feels like it took forever to get to this moment. I have NEVER been more happy for a TV show to break with the book before. Sooo Soooo Sooooooo happy! How on Earth am I going to make it through the fall knowing there's going to be so much Delena Goodness without the Sire Bond! SWOON! Damon is so shmexy.

30 Minute Track Day - 5 Rookie Mistakes

Okay so today was my first legitimate day of training, the training according to the Run Disney schedule doesn't begin until June 4, but some of us (*cough* me) are starting behind the curve. I walk/jogged a mile in 14.5 minutes with the average pace of 13 minutes and 32 seconds. While this was under my goal of 15 minutes I'm not sure I could have sustained this momentum for very long as by the end my pace was about 15.5 minutes. I should have taken their advice and walked the first half mile and worked up to a jog so that was Rookie mistake #1. So the first thing I have learned is NEVER assume you know more about something than you do, be smart and take advice when it's not your area of expertise - the world will not end if you're not the authority on everything.

I've also come to the conclusion that certain kinds of stretches should happen first to warm up the calf muscles because mine were unhappy with me and definitely using the same stretch following the jog would probably eliminate that rush of tight pain in my legs. Rookie mistake #2 Stretching is important it can prevent you from seriously injuring yourself. I found an article with a detailed walk through on Cool Running's site - Stay Loose: Stretches for Runners by Josh Clark which has proved to be enlightening. For post work out an Article from Active.com suggests a Leg Targeted Yoga Routine to loosen up those tight muscles - it worked wonders for me. So the second thing I learned it don't skimp on my time - spare the 10 minutes before and after to truly get in the zone, it's not like I don't have the time scheduled so why not use it?

Rookie mistake #3 is not knowing how to breathe while jogging. My lungs were burning and it actually HURT to exhale when I was finished due to the excessive shallow breathing. I actually whipped out my inhaler the moment I got to my car (see Rookie mistake #5 lol) I found a great article from Active.com that offers Breathing Tips for New Runners. So the third thing I learned is to breathe deeply and perhaps incorporate deep breathing into my warm ups to help get me into the zone.

On a practical note I have 2 more mistakes. Rookie mistake # 4 tight tank tops are not your friend if you're trying to be modest - these may have been fine in the gym with the low impact workouts but it just kept riding up and baring half my stomach . Looks like the t-shirts in my drawer are finally going to see the light again and maybe some scissors to cute the backs out. :) So the fourth thing I learned is that absolutely no one and I mean NO ONE cares what you look like as you're warming up and preparing to run and while you run but it doesn't mean they won't see it so save the tank tops for yoga.

Rookie mistake #5 was not having a way to carry the things I wanted to have with me. I wanted to carry my car keys, my phone to be able to see my pace, distance, and time, my water bottle, and my iPod. My keys and iPod weren't a big deal. I have a very small zip pocket on the back of my favorite tech pants and an armband for the iPod but I was left wanting to carry my phone in one hand and my water bottle in another - which just didn't work out for me. I will need to find a way to make or buy a hip fanny pack for my phone so I feel like it's secure against my body. I could get something like the Nathan 5k Running Belt from Sports Authority but it looks clunky and uncomfortable. A few years ago Vera Bradley sold a small relatively flat - great for phone and inhaler - travel belt. They don't have the design in any new colors but I might find out at the local outlet store or on ebay - if I'm super lucky craigslist :)

The Goals and Preparations

Okay so let me be clear in that this is my first long distance race that I am training for and this blog will serve as my record of my trials and tribulations as I work through my physical and potentially emotional barriers. I intend to run on the Twilight Zone Tower of Terror 10 Miler at Walt Disney World and you must keep a pace time of at least 16 minutes per mile. Bearing in mind that I'm still new to running my only goal it 15 minutes per mile and to finish this race with my sanity (mostly) intact and bonus if I happen to lose 10 pounds in the process. I have printed off and transcribed into my calendar the suggested training right from the Run Disney website.

They suggest training with running alone 3 days - Tuesday, Thursday, and long runs on Saturday. I have other light fitness classes that I enjoy so mine will be slightly altered to accommodate those at my local LA Fitness. The guide clearly states that you won't get much benefit from cross-training but my other classes give me enjoyment and peace so if I am not to sore or worn down I intend to keep to that schedule. My fitness schedule will look something like this most days.

Monday - Running Training - 30 minutes
Tuesday - Water Aerobics - 1 hour
Wednesday - Running Training - 30 minutes
Thursday - Water Aerobics - 1 hour
Friday - Belly dancing - 1 hour
Saturday - Long Running Training up to 3 hours & Water Aerobics 1 hour
Sunday - Yoga - 1 hour

I am most fortunate that I have access to a runner's trail that is relatively well lit and well mile marked so I can keep track of my progress.

There are a few items I will need to invest it in to make this a viable hobby

1. Additional sports bras -  I have 2 that I really love from Old Navy already but if I'm going to be running this often I might need to get a few more or look into the Adidas or Nike ones that are sold at Marshalls.
2. Additional tech shirts - I have one already from our schools running club which is super cute that says You Got Schooled on the back but in practice I will probably need at least two more so I have enough for the whole week for running days.
3. Running Socks - I don't own anything but circulation and trouser socks!

Diet Changes?

Thankfully I won't need to make many if any at all diet changes since I already relatively eat a runners diet courtesy of my heart patient diet :) The only change I might make is on long run days and the race day itself adjust my carbs just fractionally higher to make sure I'm not all the way depleted.

Other Resources

I have a Windows Phone right now so my source of applications to log my running are few and imperfect and my poor pedometer from Christmas bit the dust - a very sad day indeed. I am going to be using MapMyRUN to log the location, time, and distance as this is pretty much the only app of this kind currently available on a Windows Phone.