The Family That Runs Together...

... has fun together! Dorky, I know, but so true. I had such a great time with my family on Saturday, I wish we could do it more often. In fact, we will probably have to find a few more runs to do together before it gets cold... thank goodness it's just beginning.


Anyways, Saturday was a big day for all 4 of us. I was going to run my longest race to date. Brian was going to do his first "run", and both of the boys were doing their first tot trot.

The fun thing is, each of us had our own special time to run, so we were able to take the time to cheer each other on!

Here's how it went down:

I started the 10K Race at 8:00. I have to say that for the first time before a race, I got great sleep and was totally ready to go. The cannon shot, and I had my great friend and coach Sherri to run with. Now, I need to say I am scared to run with others. I always have this concern that I am keeping others from reaching their full potential, so when she offered to run with me, I was determined not to hold her up... so I ran. She's fast!

I held my own until we hit the 5K point, and I was ready to keel over. At that point I decided the point of the race was not to finish with Sherri, but to finish strong. So I let her go, and tapered off a little. Slightly discouraged, I trudged on to the 4 mile mark, where a gentleman was calling out times, "38:40" what? Did he just say I'd finished 4 miles in under 40 minutes? Not possible. That's not my pace...

So feeling better, I continued on to the 5 mile mark where I pulled out my cell phone to check the time, 8:48! Holy crap, I had 12 minutes to finish in under an hour... now please understand, I expected this race to take me an hour and ten minutes, so to take ten minutes off of my time was amazing to me. I proceeded to call (and freak out) my family (they thought I was injured) to tell them I would be coming in earlier than expected so they could watch for me. And at exactly 9:00:26, I finished my first 10K race! What a great experience.

We had about 40 minutes to kill before Brian's run, so we took some time to rejoice, take potty breaks, and change into another set of running clothes- I sweat people!

At 9:40 Brian took off for his 2 mile run. I wish I could tell you all of his thoughts, but this is what I know. He ran strong, and I am so proud of him... and leave it to a guy for all the details, he has no idea what his finish time was. We think it was about 22 minutes. It doesn't matter, he has many more to come where he can time himself :)

While Brian was running in the 2 mile run, Cole, Carter, and I did the 2 mile walk, AKA: The-2-mile-jog/chase-Cole-while-dragging-Carter-behind-in-the-wagon.

Immediately, and I mean immediately after finishing the 2-mile, both boys ran their first Tot Trot. After a little coaching (run like hell) from mommy and daddy, they took off in their separate heats, and did great.

Congrats Family, I am so proud of you!

The Winner!

So the winner for the FREE 10 Day Challenge is......

Heather Leggett! Congrats Heather!!!!!
(So I'm feeling really lazy this minute, but please trust that I used Random Number Generator, and the #3 came up... promise.)

There is still time to sign up for the 10 Day Challenge. I think it's going to be a great time had by all, and there will be pounds shed to boot! If you are hesitant, let me know why, maybe I can ease your fears.

Spend a little time taking care of yourself. Summer is just around the corner. You deserve this!

Mock Garlic Mashed Potatoes

DON'T FORGET IF YOU WANT TO WIN A CHANCE FOR A FREE 10-DAY CHALLENGE, YOU NEED TO LET ME KNOW BY TODAY IF YOU WANT TO PARTICIPATE! The sign up for those participating will close on Monday, May 10th.

Here's what Tina had to say about the Cleanse that I am offering with it: "Tried the 2-day cleanse- was mucho better than I anticipated. Filled me up (surprisingly), tasted great, not gritty or chalky. Mixed with skim milk, and a little ice in the blender. Lost 6 lbs. Will try to keep it off! Highly recommended!"

ARE YOU GOING TO LOSE A FEW BEFORE SUMMER WITH US?????
**Just click on this link and add yourself in the comments section **

Ok, here's a new recipe:

For some time I have been hearing that cauliflower can be replaced for potatoes in recipes, and can even serve as mashed potatoes, so the other night while daddies were away, some of us girls decided to give it a shot (note: it's best to try a controversial recipe like this while hubby is away so you don't have to hear "told you so" if they don't turn out) AND THEY WERE GREAT!

Aside from the little bit of aftertaste that comes from cauliflower there was no major difference. Everyone at the table loved them, and my three year old was eating scoops full saying, "These are delicious mashed potatoes"... had he only known he was eating heaping helpings of cauliflower!

So here's the recipe:
Three bags of frozen cauliflower (I think each bag was like 12 oz., but don't quote me)
1 tbsp Fat Free Cream Cheese
1/4 c Grated Parmesan Cheese
1/2 tsp Minced Garlic
1/2 tsp Salt
1/8 tsp Ground Pepper
1/2 tsp Chives
3 tbsp Butter

They are very simple to make. Just boil the cauliflower for 6 minutes or until it's well done, drain the water off, and throw in the cream cheese, Parmesan cheese, garlic, salt, and pepper. Use a food processor or blender to mix fairly smooth (I used a hand beater, and it was too choppy- I don't recommend it.) It takes a lot of blending to get them smooth. I also added small dashes of milk until the consistency was what I wanted. At the end throw on the butter, and garnish with chives. Enjoy!

So, is it worth it? I've done a comparison of the identical recipes with potatoes and cauliflower. Here is the results

**grrr, I've reformatted this 3 times, it just won't stay, sorry. You get the point.**
Mock Potatoes Real Potatoes (assuming you use the peels)
Calories 88 148
Carbs 7g 21g
Protein 3.6g 3.9g
Fat 5.8g 5.8g
Cholesterol 15.6mg 15.6mg
Sodium 268mg 238mg
Fiber 3.2g 3.2g
Sugar 3.1g 1.6g
Vit A 183IU 177IU
Vit C 59mg 26mg
Calcium 66mg 50mg
Iron .6mg .7mg
Potassium 394mg 550mg

So that makes the cauliflower a winner in my book! Give it a try.

Win it for FREE!

I decided after my last post, that ONE person who signs up by May the 5th will win their challenge for FREE! I will use a random number producer after midnight on May 5th to choose one person that will get to participate for free.

** 10 Day Fast will not be included, but can be purchased to add on. **

10 Day Challenge

First off, sorry for the drop in posts last week... I'm human. That being said, I ended my last post saying that I was going to offer some opportunities, and I am ready! These things have been in the works for awhile, and I am excited to start to present them to each of you. My goal is to start to offer one day each month where we can go as blog friends, enjoy a healthy meal, and learn a little more to make our journey successful!

The first opportunity is the 10-Day Challenge! I am SO excited for this challenge. Basically the 10-Day Challenge is going to be a summer kickoff event to encourage or promote your weight loss.

Here is how it will work:

The challenge will start on May 16th. We will meet at a chosen place to begin the challenge.

For $25 dollars, you will receive a packet on Day 0 of the challenge. This packet will include a diet plan, a workout plan, and a BeachBody workout video. We will take the time to weigh you in on that day, and talk about the 10 Day Plan. Over the course of the next 10 days, we will work individually and as a group to meet weight loss goals.

During the course of the 10-Days we will meet to workout together at different times (this will generally be in the evening due to my work schedule, but I will try and schedule some AM workouts also... I may even run my first Turbokick class!)

I will check in with you individually during the 10 days to answer questions, and to give you any support that you may need with the program.

At the end of the 10 days, we will meet again, and re-weigh ourselves... I will not ever GUARANTEE weight loss, but I assure you that I expect for girls to lose between 5 and 7 pounds (or more) during the course of the 10-Day challenge!

** Anyone who is interested for $10 extra dollars, I will offer a 2-Day Fast formulated drink that will add to your weight loss. It will help cleanse you before the challenge starts, and will promote added weight loss. I will have to know in advance if you want to add this onto your challenge so I can order it.

So are you interested? Want to lose 5-10 pounds before summer? Join me and others in the 10-Day Challenge!

**I will close this offer on May 12th to prepare each of your packets for your individual needs before the challenge starts, so don't delay, sign up today! (Leave me a note in the comment section if you are interested!)