Two Two-a-Days

As previously stated, I have two practices on Mondays and Thursdays. This is going to be two posts in one, because I have pictures from Thursday of last week (March 29) and today! Thursday's food first:

Breakfast:

-Smoothie: Banana, protein powder, mango, frozen blueberries/strawberries/raspberries, milk, vanilla greek yogurt and spinach.
-Pancakes: Eggs, protein powder, almond flour, cottage cheese, and flax seeds. I topped them with almond butter, strawberries and blueberries.

I never make pancakes for breakfast on practice days, because they A)take a while and B)make me feel heavy. For some reason I decided it was a good idea Thursday, and surprise, I felt heavy and kinda sick at practice! Good one, Kara. Practice actually went really well, though, so whatever. A little extra mass isn't always a bad thing. :)

Snack?:

-Powerade while lifting. I tried to make my own hydration drink last week (6 Tablespoons of sugar and 2 teaspoons of salt in 2 quarts of water), but it was gross. I really look forward to a sports drink in the weight room.

Lunch:

-Salad: Mashed sweet potatoes with corn, steamed veggies, tuna salad, bell pepper, red beans, pineapple, sunflower seeds, spring mix lettuce, and balsamic vinegar and olive oil.

I find that the more ingredients I add to a salad, the better it tastes! Sometimes it seems like it's going to be a weird mix, but the vast majority of the time it's just delicious.

Snack:

-Banana.
-Macaroni n' cheese; always a must at the training center.
-Chicken breast.
-Chocolate milk with mostly nonfat milk.

I guess I could call this dinner, because it was the most substantial meal I had that night, but I tend to consider the food I eat right after lifting to be a snack. How much I eat immediately after the weight room depends largely on what is available in the dining hall at the training center, as you'll see when I get to today's food! I eat as soon as possible after I'm done with practice or lifting, and the same goes for lunch time. Timing of meals for recovery is just as important as the actual food choices you make (about a 3:1 ratio of carbohydrates to proteins is ideal for post-workout).

-3 Trader Joe's Chocolate Peanut Butter Cups (a serving) when I got home.

That's a koala magnet I got in Australia! Isn't he cute?

Dinner:

-Salad: Spinach, alfalfa sprouts, grilled chicken, goat cheese, and balsamic vinaigrette.

I was full for a long time after my "snack," so this salad was just because I knew I needed a little more green (and protein) in my evening.

That does it for Thursday! When I say I have two practices on Mondays and Thursdays, I mean that this is my schedule:

9:30am: Leave home for the center.
9:45am: Prehabilitation in the weight room.
10:15am: Warm-up at the track.
11:15am: Throw.
12:00pm: Sprint.
12:20pm: Lift.
1:15pm: Eat lunch.
1:30-3:30pm: Rest! I usually lay around in the athlete lounge (officially the AT&T Athlete Connections Center) at the training center, but if I'm feeling particularly energetic or people are occupying all of my favorite lounge spaces, I'll either drive home or go somewhere else, like I did today.
3:30pm: Warm-up at the track.
3:45pm: Javelin footwork/resistance training (sled pulls, medicine ball throws, etc.).
4:30pm: Lift.
5:20pm: Cool down (foam roll, stretch, specific mobility exercises).
5:30pm: Snack/maybe dinner.
5:50pm: Go home! I love home. :)

Here's what I ate today!

Breakfast:

-Smoothie: Banana, almond milk, mocha powder, and protein powder. I stayed up a little too late finishing Mockingjay for the second time last night, and needed a boost.
-Poorly fried egg with sea salt and black pepper.
-Cottage cheese, vanilla greek yogurt, flax seeds, pecan chips, and strawberries.

Snack?:

-Powerade while lifting.

Lunch:

-Soda water, cranberry juice, and grape juice blend.
-Salad: Spinach, steamed veggies, grilled salmon, tomatoes, chickpeas, cottage cheese, sunflower seeds, balsamic vinegar and olive oil.

Pre-Practice Snack?:

-A grande dirty chai, recommended by Annie! I hung out at Starbucks in between practices today.

Post-Practice Snack:

-Cantaloupe, honeydew and pineapple with cottage cheese. None of the meat choices looked good to me. I ate a lot of cottage cheese today...
-Chocolate milk with mostly nonfat milk.

Dinner:

-The last of the Mexican Ground Beef Quinoa Skillet! I added pepperjack cheese and plain greek yogurt. I'll say it again; try this recipe!