She Runs By Faith

Hey there! So I'm a bit late to join up with Jill and the  #fitfam crew this week but, as the saying goes, better late than never. The little ones and I went out this morning to enjoy the fresh snow brought in by today's winter storm warning. I guess 4-6" of snow is on the way. As long as our power stays on, bring on the snow! Today we're talking Instagram . Even earlier in 2015, I will admit I was skeptical of Instagram. Who needs a never-ending stream of pictures when you have Facebook? I'm not a huge social media junkie because, well, I have a "dumb phone" (read: not a smartphone). GASP! People still have those weird flip phone things? Yes, I do. It has been a blessing but possibly a curse for my husband. I borrow his smartphone when I share photos on Instagram. Anywhooo. Instagram has grown on me and I will say it is easily my favorite form of social media. Social media can be annoying and distracting but it has been a great tool for gr...

2015, where have you gone?! This wild, exciting year is coming to an end.... and that means it's time to set some goals for the new year! Our Christmas tree and the Christmas music on the radio are my reminders that, yes, it is in fact December. Yet the weather outside is far from frightful and our Christmas is definitely not white. Even in the northern parts of the States, we have hardly any snow. Today it's a bright and sunny 40°F! It's crazy. We have had very few days in the single digit temps! I'm not complaining one bit. My S.M.A.R.T. Goals for 2016 So, goals. I like goals! The key to setting yourself up for goal-reaching success is to make them " SMART" :   Specific - Measurable - Achievable - Results-focused - Time-bound. I don't think all of our goals need to be SMART goals necessarily, but following the SMART guideline is helpful in making my goals better defined and more focused. Here are my focus points for this new year: 1. A...

I love my mornings. When my alarm goes off, I fly out of bed regardless of how much baby boy was up that night. Grab my coffee, open up my Bible and spend some time with God. Lately the toddler has been up at 6:00 am to join me for my quiet time. Which means my quiet time is no longer quiet! I have mixed feelings on that. So mornings are my favorite. But after lunch, my body realizes how tired it really is. This week I'm joining up with  the Fit Dish crew 's [optional] topic to share our favorite afternoon energy boost . I really enjoy my morning coffee but it's not an option later in the day. Unless I want this little honey to be up more than he already is at night... Eating sweet treats after lunch is a temptation, especially when you're running low on sleep. Problem is, the sugar high will eventually crash and leave you worse off than you were before! My favorite afternoon energy boost is to GET MOVING. If I didn't workout early that morn...

When I was a kid, I got my kicks from cutting apart my Great Grandma's old JC Penney catalogs to make clothes for my paper dolls. Nerdy? I prefer the word "meticulous" :) This week on Jessica and Jill 's link-up,  the Fit Dish , we're doing something that brought back those flat paper doll memories ... except we're talking workout clothes, sharing photos of our own wardrobe and I'm not a JC Penney's model from the 90's. This post contains affiliate links. The night before a morning run or race, I lay out my clothes to save a little time after my morning alarm goes off. Finding the right workout clothes is much harder in the morning (before drinking my coffee) and in the dark! That extra fumbling around increases my chances of waking up baby and/or toddler. This was my "flat self" all ready to go for Saturday's 90-minute long run: TANK: adidas Performance Women's Ultimate Tank Top SHORTS: Under Armour Running ...

Now that camping season is in full swing, I am sharing a few ways to "healthify" your family camping trip with Jessica , Jill and the rest of the crew on the Fit Dish link-up . We leaving for our first camping trip as a family of 4 in a few days and I am using these tactics to keep myself from eating only s'mores for the entire weekend! This post contains affiliate links. 6 Ways to Healthify Your Camping Trip Dress for the Weather Pack outfits that encourage being active - whatever the weather brings. Don't let the weather keep you inside! Bring waterproof jackets in case of rain and long-sleeve shirts or layers for the cold. To protect yourself and your family from the rays, include hats, sunglasses and sunscreen along with your regular activewear. Bring the Child-Carrying Devices To get the whole family moving, load up the baby carrier and the single or double jogging stroller. Our Boba Baby Carrier is perfect for carrying our newborn on all-terr...

Today on  the Fit Dish link-up , co-hosts Jessica and Jill and everyone from the #fitfam are being interviewed to celebrate what it means to be an active woman.  This is a great opportunity to meet the #fitfam women! Let's jump right into this interview: WHAT IS YOUR PROUDEST ACHIEVEMENT TO DATE? Hands down, my proudest "achievement" is being mom to our two handsome little boys . It feels weird calling them achievements... Let's say they are my husband's and my proudest blessings! My proudest fitness-related achievement would be running my first marathon in 2009 . Running 26.2 miles is a bold move for someone who had never ran on a cross country or track team (or ran a half marathon) before. That race started my love for long distance running and was one of my best decisions ever! WHAT KEEPS YOU PASSIONATE? My passion for life comes from the Lord ! God is the "fuel" to my fire as everything good comes from Him. Pushing myself to be my ...

Two weeks down and I'm really loving our "new normal" of being a family of four! Today I'm joining up with Jessica and Jill at  the Fit Dish link-up but first let me briefly introduce  My Postpartum Fitness Plan . My littlest man is two weeks old! But it's only been two weeks!? Why have a fitness plan so soon? I have a plan this time to MAKE MYSELF take it easy. Yes, forced easy-ness and recovery time. After our first son was born, I started walk-run intervals just after 2 weeks postpartum and ran 5 miles on the 3-week mark. My body recovered quickly after a smooth delivery and everything worked out fine. I ran a marathon 7 months postpartum and finished in 3:37:37. That was a good finish time for me and I even placed in the top 10! BUT... I was exhausted. Longer training runs were more burdensome than enjoyable. In the peak mileage of training, I came down with a nasty sinus infection, missed a week of running and told myself "never again...

It's time for another Fit Dish Tuesday ! Today's [optional] topic is: My latest baking adventure has been chocolate chip banana bread muffins with a healthy twist. They are my "healthier pregnancy craving alternative" (somewhat healthier than eating straight-up chocolate chip cookies) and are also perfect to freeze for after baby's arrival. To healthify this dessert or snack, I cut the amount of sugar in half and added Greek Yogurt to one of my favorite banana bread recipes. Of course I couldn't leave out those chocolate chips. Bananas and chocolate chips are made for each other. Choco-Banana Muffins with Greek Yogurt 1 cup Chobani Vanilla Greek Yogurt 1/2 cup water 2 teaspoons baking soda 1/2 cup white sugar 1/2 cup butter, melted 3 eggs 4 bananas, mashed 2 cups flour 2 cups quick oats optional: 1 cup chocolate chips Preheat oven to 350°. Pour yogurt and water into mixing bowl and mix until smooth consistency. Add baking soda, suga...

Today we're dishing out our favorite podcasts on the Fit Dish link-up! During the day, I don't listen to podcasts as much as I used to. Mainly because my full-time job involves a lot of random toddler-created noises, and I can't fully focus on the broadcast anyways. By the time the broadcast is over, I can't remember a single thing I learned! (Toddler-approved music is the way to go - Lecrae and For King and Country are our favorites lately!) Now when I'm training for a full or half marathon, that's a different story. The long run is my podcast time. My Favorite Long Run Podcasts Long runs can get a bit monotonous and mentally boring, especially if you run solo. Listening to upbeat music or an interesting podcast helps to distract me from my legs whining about how tired they are or my mind attempting to convince me to cut the run short and go back to bed. When I have a training run of an hour or longer, these are my top three go-to podcasts: ...

Heyo, it's time for another the Fit Dish Tuesday link-up! This week the [optional] topic is: This has been a challenging topic to write on because there are so many women in my life who inspire me. Instead of making a mega-list for you, I thought it would be best to look into what qualities these women have that inspire me - what they have in common. ..... The Proverbs 31 woman is the epitome of the perfect godly woman and she is a great example to learn from. But it's not her perfection that inspires me. The "perfect woman/wife/mom" status is unattainable in this life. What inspires me is seeing women who are living examples of what it looks like to be a Proverbs 31 woman in today's world. These women aren't mirror images of the woman described in Proverbs 31:10-31 . They don't live their lives totally stressed out by trying to be perfect. An inspiring woman is  real . She has daily struggles. She has bad days. She messes up. But s...

Sunshine brings an instant smile to my face. Maybe, just maybe the bitter cold of winter is leaving us! This week has been beyond gorgeous and it looks like there is more to come: To celebrate the sunshine and above zero temps, my "running group" and I headed out a few miles. (a.k.a. our dog and little man in the stroller) 3.4 miles down and, who knows, maybe I got a little sunburn :) The dog trails behind us after the first mile as he's a bit out-of-shape after this winter. E passed out at about .5 mile. Even at 2 years old, he is still my stroller-napper! On to #dishthefit! Today's [optional] topic for the Fit Dish is: The 20-miler is the most daunting workout for me personally when training for a full marathon. Why? Well... usually I end up doing them solo and that means I spend 3 early morning hours stuck with my own thoughts. That can be scary! Some 20-milers have been awesome times of prayer and time alone with God. Other 20-milers h...

How do conversations go with people who have different passions than you? Do they get your passion or does it totally baffle them? Running has grown to be my passion over the past 5 years. It doesn't define me as a person, but it is a regular part of my day (like brushing my teeth) and God has used it to change my life in ways I never expected. I feel right at home with fitness-minded people but some of the conversations I have had with non-fitness enthusiasts are interesting... and awkward at times. I can see where they are coming from. Actually enjoying exercise is a strange concept for some people. For me, exercise is something I feel passionate about because it has been a lifelong habit but habits do take time to form. Each person has their own "thing" and that's what makes life fun. Wouldn't life be boring if we were all carbon copies of each other? Sometimes I have wondered why I'm such a running weirdo and why God made me with this specific person...

It's Tuesday and that means we have our ultrasound for Baby #2 this afternoon! And it's time to #dishthefit with Jill and Jessica at the Fit Dish link-up. The topic for this week is to share your five all-time best health and fitness decisions. Here are my all-time best health/fitness-related decisions that I've ever made. Make sure to stop by the link-up to check out the other posts. This will be fun because everyone's list will be a little different! My 5 All-Time Best Health & Fitness Decisions 1. Waking Up! The 5:30 a.m. time slot is the best time for me to fit in time to read my Bible and run a few miles before the toddler tornado wakes up. It doesn't always feel good to wake up but I never regret starting my morning with God and a good run! 2. Just Signing Up. Having a goal race in mind keeps me focused and motivated to exercise on the days that I just don't feel like it. My love for running all started with signing up for a 5k ...