LiveInPrana and #1MillionMinutes/Fitness Update

The #1MillionMinutes Challenge on FitApproach is still going along just fine. I'm up to 3315 minutes. Can I make it to 4000? I seriously don't know how the minutes are adding up so fast. I am almost wondering if I accidentally typed 300 rather than 30 one day? Crazy.

Today I bring you another MadLib! If I complete this MadLib, I'll be entered into a chance to win a prize from prAna! I have a few items from prAna and I really love them, so I'm all about this contest!

This week we're partnering up with prAna to help us get closer to our goal of #1MillionMinutes! 

prAna has just launched their new Fall collection and we could not be more excited. So many cute pieces to choose from. What’s on your wish list for fall?

I'm so excited to rack up more minutes towards our _whopping_ [adj] goal of reaching 1 million minutes this summer!  While most of my sweat has come from _walking and running with Harvey the Vizsla_ [type of activity], I have also done quite a bit of _Yoga and mountain biking_ [type of activity].

To motivate myself to get from _working on the farm_ [workout / activity] to _my daily run or yoga session_ [workout / activity] and through my day, I always have to be armed with lots of water and positive attitude__ [noun]. I find that the more _grateful_ [adj] that I am, the more successful [adj] I am at achieving my goals.

Since staying on track requires so much _determination [adj] _flexibility_[noun], I think it’s important that I treat myself! If I were going to reward myself with something from prAna this week, it would most definitely be _Asha Shorts_ [item(s) from prAnam] because _I have had my eye on them all summer!_.

I tag _whoever wants a chance to win sweet gear from prAna, [person], _any yoga enthusiats_ [person], and  runners [person] to join me for this week of #1millionminutes for a chance to win some fantastic goodies from prAna!

What else is going on in my fitness world lately?

Well, just this morning I finally registered for the MSU-Northern Maroon and Gold Fun Run.  I signed up for the 10K distance. I waited so long to sign up because I wasn't totally sure if I could get my act together for a 10K or if I'd have to stick with a 5K. I've had some really great training runs over the past week or so and I feel like a 10K is definitely achievable. SO PUMPED! 10K is definitely becoming my favorite distance to race and train for.

I've also been doing more yoga lately, thanks to Grokker! I signed up for a (free) 14-Day Yoga Challenge, instructed by Steffy White, through Grokker. I have done two days worth of classes so far and I am really loving it! Steffy does a great job teaching the poses, and keeping it casual yet challenging and fun. Plus, she has an adorable Scottish accent so even when you're thinking, "No way, Steffy! This pose is impossible!" it's actually impossible not to also be thinking, "Can this video last just a wee bit longer because I can't get enough of your accent?!" Or maybe it's just me. Either way, I'm loving the series and my body is loving all the yoga.

Image source: www.steffyoga.com
Maybe someday I'll be able to do poses like that?! ha. 

And don't forget about 5K On The Farm! We're up to about 17 actual registrations, and around 30 people who have RSVPd on Facebook or verbally to me. I'm really hoping to get 50 people total, at least, so we do have a ways to go to get there. If you haven't signed up yet, please do so! We have 1-Mile, 5K, and Virtual Run. Thanks! SIGNUP VIA RUNSIGNUP by clicking this link!

What are you doing to stay active these days?! 

I'll also have a special announcement later this week about something fitness-related that I am SUPER, SUPER excited about! Even as excited as I am about 5K On The Farm! Stay tuned... :)

Thank You, Readers AND a Fitness Update

I haven't written about anything running or fitness-related in a while, so I'll do that a bit in this post.

But first, I want to say THANK YOU to all my blog readers! This past July I had the highest number of page-views EVER in the four years I've been doing this blog! I'm not about making money on the blog, but just about sharing what goes on here on the farm, in my running world, and what life is like in rural America. It means a lot to me that those of you who do read my blog keep coming back for more, and that slowly my traffic is increasing over time! It's an affirmation that the content here is good, and that hopefully people are learning more about what life is like up here on the Northern-Montana prairie. :) Kudos to all of you!

So, what's happening in running and fitness for me lately? Well, kind of a lot! Read on!! :)

I'm still participating in the #1MillionMinutes challenge through FitApproach. I pledged that I'd do 2000 minutes, and I passed that a while ago. As of today, I'm at 2520 minutes. Once I realized I'd easily surpass 2000, I increased my goal to 3000, and I am starting to think I'll hit that pretty easily, too, with only about 3 weeks left in the challenge. It's easy to rack up minutes when you're working hard on the farm. I gave myself credit for lots of activity minutes of building fence earlier this week, for example. Mostly, I get my minutes through taking Harvey for walks, running, and yoga.

Harvey the Vizsla! 

I did discover a cool yoga and workout video website through the #1MillionMinutes challenge called Grokker.com. They have free membership or paid memberships, and I signed up for the free one to give it a try. I really, really like it for their yoga videos. I've done a few now and they have been really good. They have videos on every type of yoga you can think of, or any skill you'd like to work on. They have a ton of other workout videos, too, but I haven't tried any of them yet. No yoga studios near where I live, so online yoga is a great option for me, and Grokker is definitely where it's at on that front!

In case you aren't on Instagram...
I've been working a ton on better planks lately. 

Also pertaining to the #1MillionMinutes challenge, a few weeks ago I did a silly MadLib during the Puritan's Pride week and for doing so, I won a prize. You can read that post by CLICKING HERE. Well, this prize came in the mail a few days ago, and it was not what I expected...

What do I do with these?!

I should say that I really didn't know what to expect the prize to be, and they never said, but I definitely wasn't expecting three tubs of powders! There's a meal replacer protein and vitamin powder in vanilla, a pure whey protein powder in chocolate and some sort of fancy pre-workout enhancer powder in fruit punch flavor. I'm definitely not a protein powder or supplement kind of girl, but I'll try most anything once.  Yesterday I mixed some of the vanilla powder into a fruit smoothie at lunch to try it out. Serving suggestion said two scoops per 16 ounces of liquid, which is close to what I had. The powder doesn't really taste that great, but I was full from just the smoothie until about 3 in the afternoon, when I had a snack. So there's that. I don't see myself altering my diet to eat only smoothies for breakfast or lunch, but now and then it might be fine. Or it will sit on my counter for a while and I'll eventually throw it out. We'll see. If anyone has any great smoothie or protein-powder recipes, please share! haha :)  The only requirement is that it shouldn't taste like feet.

In my running and racing world, well, not a ton has been happening. I'm just running about every other day or every third day. Mixing in lots of yoga and strength exercises, specifically focusing on keeping my core strong. No races in July. After three races, three Saturdays in a row in June, I needed a break and July is too hot to race a ton anyway. I am planning on a race on August 22 in Havre, however! It's called the Get Run'N Maroon and Gold Fun Run. Check out the race flier on this website: 1st Annual Maroon and Gold Fun Run. They're offering 1 Mile, 5K, and 10K. It's the first time they'll be doing this race and proceeds will benefit the new MSU-Northern Cross Country Teams in their VERY FIRST YEAR! Believe me, I am ALL ABOUT supporting Track and Field and Cross Country teams, and I'm definitely all about running and racing! There's actually a 2015 graduate from North Star who is going to compete on the new Northern Cross Country team, so I'm really excited that my race fee will be supporting her! Now, just to decide on 5K or 10K distance... :)


Also, let's not forget about 5k On The Farm, which is the race that Jeff and I are directing and hosting right here on our farm!!! We're offering 1-Mile, 5K, and Virtual Run options. Right now, we have 14 people signed up, with 9 of those as Virtual Run participants! The run is still six weeks away and I expect quite a few more registrations to come in as it gets closer. It has always been a dream of mine to run my own 5K and now I'm doing it! Still can't believe it. :) Proceeds from our run will be going to Montana Farmers Union Foundation, specifically earmarked to education, programming and leadership training for women in agriculture/rural women. Pretty good cause, if you ask me! If you're reading this, and you'd like to sign up for the race or the Virtual Run, just CLICK HERE to go to RunSignUp and sign up online. :)

So, that's what's going on in my fitness world! What's going on in yours? 

• Have you ever tried protein powders? If so, how do you like them?
• What races/fitness activities do you have coming up?
• Have you signed up for 5k On The Farm yet?!?!