Monday Musings, day 1

Today's completed gym workout:

3 miles on the treadmill

20 minutes on the elliptical

2 more miles on the treadmill

Alternating (repeat 3 times):

-          1 minute plank

-          1 minute wall sit

-          10 leg lifts

-          10 shoulder presses

-          5 lunges on each side

-          5 squats

-          1 ab rotation (5 different machines)

I went to bed super early last night because I started my new routine today of going to the gym in the morning before work.  I woke up at 5:30 - I really, really didn't want to be awake...but was at the gym by 6:15.  

As I had made my lunch and packed my gym bag the night before, I got ready and made my smoothie before heading out the door.  Oops – reverse.  It was 35 degrees on Sunday (yes, heat wave for mid-westerners) so I didn’t expect the cold and only had a sweatshirt on when I left.  Yup, had to reverse and go back inside to get a real coat.  Shocking I know, January in Wisconsin and I left without a coat. 

So I finished my smoothie in the car, parked at my work and walked a block to the gym.  I was pretty awake by then from the cold air and so I got in a pretty good workout for a Monday new-routine morning. 

  

I finished my workout with 10 minutes on the massage bed…which is basically like a soft mat with a roller that goes up and down your whole body – it feels awesome after a workout.

So yes, I am sore now.  I pushed myself pretty hard today and I’m happy that I set a plan and stuck to it.  I have a crazy 2014 race schedule so now that I’m over my cold, I’m going to focus on staying healthy and getting some good workouts in. 

After a nice long day at work, I made some homemade lasagna with sauce from scratch and whole grain pasta.  

First pan of lasagna

My uncle had surgery so I’m taking a couple pans of this lasagna, salad and garlic bread to my aunt.  You can substitute chicken for the italian sausage for less of a salt based meat, and I do prefer to use fresh chopped tomatoes over the canned as instructed.  Throw in a little extra garlic and fresh basil as well, and you're good to go.  I love taking my favorite recipes and revamping them so they have a healthy kick to them.  I also started reading ‘What Alice Forgot’ which is apparently all the rage right now…I’m only five pages in since I realized that I hadn’t blogged yet today.

Do you have any fabulously healthy recipes you’d like to share?

What do you do to prepare for an early morning workout?