Maybe a Runner

It's been a while!

2009-09-17T12:59:00.002-05:00

I know I pretty much just abandoned this blog overnight, and I'm dearly sorry for no warning, but it had to be done. Keeping this blog daily was costing me 1-2 hours a day with all the digital photos, editting, uploading, blogging, etc.

Well, I'm back to my old tricks with a new blog completely devoted to what I'm eating. This time will be easier and quicker for me as I'll just take the photos with my iPhone and directly upload to Blogger.

There won't be as much commentary, I'm trying to keep it simple, but the photos will be there of everything I nom on.

If you're so inclined please check it out!

Sandvich makes me strong!

"Up Early" Thursday

2009-06-04T19:35:00.003-05:00

Someone look out the window! Are pigs flying? They must be because I managed to get myself up early today to exercise!

After many attempts to get up early to exercise I finally managed to do it. I got up at 5:45 and did Jillian Michael's 30 Day Shred. It was great! I enjoyed the workout and it was just nice not getting up just to get ready for work. I'll be trying again tomorrow morning. We'll see how it goes.

Once at work I was really hungry. I made my oats with raisins, banana, and flax.

It held me over well and around noon I was ready for lunch. I had a bed of dark salad greens topped with turkey taco meat from last night and 1/3 cup of my pea guacamole. It was even better today! I'm really impressed with that Hungry Girl recipe.

Later it was snacky snack time on some cucumbers.

This evening was a bit out of sorts. Our original plans were to have dinner with a friend but something came up and that got cancelled. I figured Jesse and I would go run and then maybe get some fajitas for dinner.

Well, that plan got dashed too. Jesse had been sleeping poorly all day and wanted to try to get some more rest. So I decided to do some yoga (wow I'm really enjoying Yogamazing) and make a grilled sandwich for my dinner.

Sandwich fixins' including some sauteed onions.

Man I love grilled sandwiches! I had 1/2 a cup of edamame along with my sandwich and made a special fizzy drink. Ok it was just some orange juice mixed with diet 7up, but it was great!

One day I'll give up diet soda. One day...

It's still relatively early in the evening. I'm going to watch the NBA finals game 1 and work on some Silverlight studying.

You guys have a great evening!

Yummy Italian - Wednesday

2009-06-03T20:53:00.003-05:00

Hola!

It's thundering outside and I love it. I hope it doesn't stop and ends up raining. I love when it rains IF I'm at home. Hate getting caught out in it.

Today was a pretty good day. I've started listening to yet another podcast (I listen to a few that are about my field of work already). I've started listening to the Fat to Fit Radio podcast. I like it so far. I've listened to two episodes and they are pretty good. You guys should check it out.

This morning started pretty typically. I had oats for breakfast with flax seed meal, almonds, raisins, and a banana mixed in. Mmm!

Some coffee was a nice addition as well.

Today being Wednesday I had lunch out with my friends from work. Italian was the choice and I was determined to eat healthier than I did last time we were there.

I didn't even touch this bread although it looked delicious!

There was pre-meal salad which I did have a little of minus the croutons.

A couple of photos were snapped while we waited for our meal.

Me and Tammy:

Alaina and Christa.

My lunch was from the "lite" menu. It was grilled salmon covered with sauteed tomatoes, spinach, capers, garlic and three plump shrimp. It was very good.

Trust me, there was salmon under there!

Later in the afternoon I had some honey Oikos with almonds, raisins, and the last of my fresh raspberries.

After work I had an appointment to get my hair trimmed. I really like my stylist and am happy with my hair which is unusual. lol I think next time I go I'm going to venture into the world of hair color. We'll see how that goes.

There was a quick stop on the way home to grab peas, a bell pepper, and a avocado for dinner.

I wanted to try the recipe for Holy Mole Guacamole that's in Hungry Girl's new book that Tammy gave me.

The recipe calls for peas which made me skeptical. There aren't many foods that I don't like, but peas happens to be one! I was willing to try, though.

My mashed up peas. I definitely wasn't feeling it at this point.

There really isn't much to show. After mashing the peas I added one mashed avocado, spices, and some chopped onion and cherry tomatoes.

It looks good, but how does it taste?

It was pretty good! Not exactly like guacamole, but pretty darn close. And I didn't really taste the peas (thankfully). I was pleased.

We were having turkey tacos for dinner so I had ground turkey meat cooking along with onions and peppers.

When it was all done I had two drool-worthy tacos filled with turkey, peppers, onions, a heaping spoonful of pea-guac, and a sprinkle of cheese. Yummo!

I was impressed. It was a delicious dinner.

This evening I'm avoiding the usual chai/coffee. I'm a light sleeper and while I don't think caffeine really affects me much I'm going to try laying off of it in the afternoon/evenings to see if I can sleep a little deeper. We'll see.

Until tomorrow!

"Getting my yoga on" Tuesday

2009-06-02T21:57:00.003-05:00

Good late evening!

Well, I just spent way too much time on my previous post about playing videocasts via the XBox on your TV, so this daily update is coming later than usual. I'm not falling asleep like last night at least!

I was a hungry and unmindful blogger this morning because I scarfed up my breakfast and forgot a picture! It was simple and a repeat of raisin bran cereal, milk, flax seed meal, and some fresh raspberries. Good stuff.

This is the season for berries so they are showing up cheaper at the grocery store. Scoop up these great berries to add to your diet before they go back up to $4 a pint!

Lunch came and I had leftover bulgur salad again. This will be my last time to eat this even though there is still a bit left. It's not bad, but three days in a row is enough!

Today I added extra cherry tomatoes and left out the turkey hot dogs. A banana joined me for lunch again today.

My friend Tammy is always so thoughtful. She bought the new Hungry Girl book and got an extra for me! Thank you so much, Tammy!

I can't wait to try some of these recipes out!

Snack time arrived and I went with some Oikos. Honey flavored, my favorite, was joined by some raisins and almond slivers. The almonds add a nice crunch!

My friend Becca recently tried the honey Oikos and agreed that it's quite tasty! Maybe she'll be so kind to give us a guest review here at MAR or make a post at her blog: Getting Dramatical.

Dinner tonight was at our favorite stir-fry restaurant: Genghis Grill.

I really like this place because you go through a buffet style line and fill your bowl with exactly what you want in your stir-fry. I chose chicken breast, shrimp, a couple sausage pieces, green and red bell peppers, snow peas, onions, mushrooms, zucchini, and summer squash. I seasoned with garlic powder and a salt/pepper blend. The sauce I chose was honey soy which clocks in at a reasonable 143 calories per ladle. I had two ladles. A little brown rice on the bottom completes the bowl.

Soooo good!

Once home I relaxed for a bit and then decided to do a Yogamazing videocast. Jesse helped me figure out how to play it on our big TV (see previous post) so I have a wonderful big view of the videocast and plenty of room in the living room.

Afterwards it was bloggin' time! And of course coffee/chai time. Can you tell which it is tonight?

My day has been great! I hope yours has been too. Have a great evening, everyone!

How to use your XBox to play video podcasts on the TV

2009-06-02T21:17:00.003-05:00

I've been wanting to try out the Yogamazing video podcast lately. I used to practice yoga regularly at a class but have been out of practice for a couple years now. I mentioned to my husband that I was planning to play the videocast on my laptop and try out Yogamazing to get back into yoga.

Jesse suggested I watch the videocast on our big TV. I gave him a blank stare and he said, "With the XBox!"

Oh yeah! Great idea!

Of course since he's super-hubby he also helped me figure out how to do this. Thanks, sweetie!

We did a lot of Googling and ran into a lot of dead-ends before discovering how easy this actually is. Here is a quick guide to hopefully save someone else the time we spent figuring it out.

First you'll need to have the videocast you want to watch downloaded. I use iTunes.

Next, transfer the videocast files to a thumb drive (zip drive, flash drive, whatever you want to call it). *****

If you use iTunes you'll need to figure out where iTunes saves these files. Mine are saved in the default iTunes location: \MyDocuments\MyMusic\iTunes\iTunesMusic\Podcasts.

Now you're ready to play them on the xBox. (Click any of the following pictures to see a larger image).

Connect your thumb drive to the xBox. There is a spot on the right side of the xBox where you push the panel back and see two USB ports. Here you can see my thumb drive connected:

Turn your XBox on. You'll want to use the XBox controller to go through the menus.

In the "My XBox" menu click over to one of the libraries. I always choose the video library just because I'm in video watching mode.

When you click the library you'll see a new menu with an option to pick "Portable Device". That is your thumb drive so you'll want to select it.

When you select the device you'll see the files and folders that are on your thumb drive. Here you can see my various folders including one I created for my Yogamazing videocasts. I select this folder.

Inside my folder I see the Yogamazing files I've saved to my thumb drive. At this point just select the file you want to play and voila! It will start up on your TV. Easy as that.

Now I'm ready to watch my yoga videocast!

Enjoy watching your videocasts on your big TV via the XBox!

(NOTE: We tried plugging my iPod directly into the XBox. This works great for playing my music files, but the XBox will not play the video files. It actually doesn't even show the video files for you to select. We could not get this to work and found no solution. If you know how to play videocasts directly off the iPod plugged into the XBox please let me know! That would save a step.)

Happy June Monday

2009-06-02T08:15:00.002-05:00

Sorry I'm late on my Monday post. Typically I do my daily post in the evenings after dinner, but last night I conked out on the couch. I woke up when Jesse left for work and promptly went to bed. Zzzzz.

So here's yesterday...

Breakfast was oats with almond slivers, raisins, and flax seed meal.

For lunch I brought left over bulgur salad with left over hot dog pieces. I'm still not sure what I think of the salad. I like it enough but am not sure if I'll make it again. I added a banana on the side.

The afternoon really went by. Before I knew it the time was 4pm and I needed a snack. I went with a simple granola bar.

Dinner was really easy and really good. I made grilled sandwiches on Ezekiel bread and we had corn on the cob that was left from yesterday. Man today was a lot of leftovers but they were still great.

There was a ripe tomato in my garden so I picked it and added tomato slices to my sandwich. Delicious!

Some strawberries for dessert rounded out the meal.

And that's it! Due to falling asleep I didn't have my usual tea or coffee.

Sorry for the short post, but gotta get working! Have a great day!

Sleepy Sunday

2009-05-31T21:49:00.002-05:00

Well, it wasn't really a sleepy day, but I'm definitely sleep now. I also think I have a touch of the Sunday blues. I love my job and really like the people I work with/for, so it's not really a work issue, just that I wish I had more time. Sunday evening often comes and I often feel like I didn't accomplish everything I wanted to on the weekend.

Ah well, enough moping!

I woke up this morning feeling great. I slept in till about 9ish which was great. I started my day off with a brand new bag of oats.

I added some flax seed meal, truvia, and almond slivers to my oats. Delicious.

Some strawberries on the side made the feeling of summertime sink in. Really lovely.

Because of my late breakfast I wasn't really hungry for lunch. Around noon I got in a snack, though, because I was about to leave to go see my parents and get the grocery shopping done. I knew I wouldn't be home until almost dinner time.

I tried a new Larabar: Jocalat Chocolate Hazelnut. It was ok, but I think I prefer the non-chocolate fruit bars more. I also had some honey Oikos. Mmmm....

I didn't return home until about 4pm and I was ready to eat something, but not ready to make dinner. I decided on a banana with a tbsp of peanut butter.

The latest issue of Cooking Light had a recipe that looked interesting: Bulgur Salad with Edamame and Cherry Tomatoes I decided to try it out.

I've never had or cooked bulgur before, but it was very easy. Just add equal part hot water and let sit for an hour.

Shhhhh. Bulgur sleeping!

The recipe calls for a lot of fresh herbs: flat leaf parsley, mint and dill.

Honestly, it called for a lot of ingredients. This picture doesn't show the edamame or cherry tomatoes I also added.

When it was done it did look very nice. I tried it out and it wasn't bad. The recipe calls for it to sit an hour so I left it alone and focused on the main dinner.

After an hour the salad was tastier. The flavors were starting to mesh together. I think I could do without the mint next time and Jesse said he'd prefer less lemon juice. All in all, it definitely isn't bad! A little tweaking with salt and garlic powder made it more to our tastes.

Our main dinner tonight: turkey hot dogs on the grill, corn on the cob, bulgur salad, and tator tots. We've had the bag of tots in the freezer forever so I was glad to cook them up and be done with them. I had a good few of them with my dinner. Who can resist tots?

Dinner was really good and simple (well minus the bulgur salad). It was a bit too much, though. Jesse and I were both pretty full but I had made parfaits!

Oh my these were good! Strawberries, raspberries and vanilla Oikos.

We feasted! We were both stuffed by time dinner was over.

Now I'm just finishing up the night. About to head to bed and get in a good snooze to start the week off right.

Have a great evening, all!

Surprising Saturday

2009-05-30T21:42:00.002-05:00

Good Saturday evening, all!

Today has been an interesting day. I've enjoyed it for the most part but did get some surprising news I wasn't expecting. However, it led me to have dinner with some friends which was nice. We should start with breakfast, though!

Jesse and I had our typical pre-run snack/breakfast: Toasted whole grain Ezekiel with organic peanut butter. I added a glass of water to hydrate some before the run.

We had a great run! Jesse ran 25 minutes straight which was a new high for him. It totalled about 2.15 miles. Very nice and enjoyable. Looks like we'll be doing 2-3 miles straight pretty regularly soon.

After showering and cleaning up we hit up an old favorite place to eat: Flaming Wok. They have delicious food including spring rolls. I also got the Mongolian chicken dish but after the tasty spring rolls I only ate a little of it. Good leftovers, though!

As I said, I had dinner with some friends tonight. We met at a Mexican restaurant called Chuy's. They have a great chicken enchilada plate called the Chicka Chicka Boom Boom. Boom boom is what they call their special sauce.

It was a pleasant evening. After dinner I stopped by the Whole Foods that was nearby and picked up a few staples. I'll be trying a new recipe for a salad tomorrow. Stay tuned for that.

Going to finish up the evening by watching the Magic win their series against the Cavaliers. With chai, of course.

TGIF!

2009-05-29T19:52:00.003-05:00

Happy Friday, everyone!

Don't you just love Fridays? I enjoy my job a lot, but there's just something about the freedom of the weekend that is great.

This morning I wanted milk soaked cereal and I got it. I went with a cup of organic skim milk in my raisin bran along with organic flax seed meal and a banana.

After a quick run to the bank I was ready for lunch. I just went with left over chicken from last night's dinner. It was definitely very good still! In hindsight I wish that I had brought along some salad greens and had the chicken on a bed of greens, but it was still good.

I also had a few melba toast and a Larabar with lunch. The Larabar pictured was the cocoa mole flavor. I did not like it at all! I guess I didn't realize what it would be because I was surprised by the spice and to find out it had chili flavor in it. I ended up dumping the cocoa mole and having the lemon bar instead.

No snack today. I just didn't get hungry and my afternoon went by quicker than I expected. I'm not really sure why, nothing major happened. Ah well. :)

Dinner tonight was at Buffalo Wild Wings. Yep the same location where this disaster happened.

Thankfully I was in better control today. I do admit to having a few chips with queso first, but with this chicken salad for dinner I felt much more in control than with the burger I had the time before.

It was a pretty good salad: chicken, greens, pico, and some cheese. The chicken had a bbq sauce drizzle and they gave me some ranch on the side that I fork dipped.

Now it's just time to relax. What better way to relax on a Friday night than to have a cup of coffee and study up on Silverlight! :)

And just because....

Enjoy your weekend, everyone.

Yard Work Thursday

2009-05-28T20:59:00.003-05:00

Helloooo!

So this morning started off pretty good. I actually woke up and felt awake! Unusual for me as I am not a morning person.

Once at work I was ready to dive into my cereal for breakfast.

I added some organic ground flax seed meal and a banana.

It was very yum! Although I think I need to add more milk. The cereal tends to get mushy with all the milk absorbed into the cereal. I've been having 1/2 a cup but may bump it up to 3/4 cup.

Around 9am I was ready for my morning coffee.

I really wasn't interested in a big or heavy lunch today. Instead of a "normal" lunch meal I decided to get a smoothie from Smoothie King. The Pineapple Pleasure it very nice and when you make it skinny only 270 calories for 32 oz!

Some sliced cucumbers with salt/pepper were nice on the side.

Yesterday I received the new cap for my Sigg bottle. I haven't used it in quite a while because the old lid had some sort of smell issue. Don't ask.

My boss is a member of a "Wine of the Month" club. Today he received his package of two bottles of wine to try. He so kindly gave me one of them. Apparently he doesn't care for Shiraz and that's what this bottle was. Hey I'll try it!

I had an impromptu afternoon meeting that lasted longer than I thought it would. By time the meeting was over I was ready for a snack.

Blueberry Oikos and some raisins hit the spot!

As the title says, today was yard work day. Yard work is fun to me! I like cutting the grass and doing the edging. I feel like I'm really giving the yard a nice manicure. It was a nice day too. Warm and sunny (although hot is really the more appropriate term these days).

Once finished with the yard and cleaned up with a shower, it was time to cook up dinner.

The garden in my backyard has produced two tomatoes so far. One isn't ready to be picked, but the other was so I picked it for my dinner salad. I was anxious to try it because it's the first veggie from my garden that's ready to be eaten.

Last weekend I picked up a couple wine tools to help me out with new bottles. A foil cutter and new corkscrew made my life much easier when it came time to open the bottle of wine my boss gave me.

Dinner was chicken, a sweet potato and a salad with feta and my home grown tomato. The tomato was delicious!

The dinner was great. The day has just been great! Time to relax with my cup of coffee (don't worry the chai will return).

I hope your Thursday has been as nice as mine. Enjoy Friday!

Quick Update Wednesday

2009-05-27T13:22:00.001-05:00

Hey guys!

Just a quick update to let you all know there won't be a main post today. I will be back in full swing tomorrow, though!

Have a great day!

Bad Blogger Tuesday

2009-05-26T20:43:00.004-05:00

I've been a bad blogger, guys!

So this morning I was all excited because I had a box of Cascadian Farms Raisin Bran that I was going to have for breakfast this week. I was thinking about what, if anything, I would add to it and just excited for breakfast. So I made my bowl, added some sliced almonds and a banana and.... CHOMPED IT DOWN!

As I was walking to the office kitchen later at lunchtime I realized: Crap! I forgot to take a picture of my breakfast!

Tsk, tsk, tsk I thought as I warmed up my lunch.

I sat down at my desk and proceeded to CHOMP DOWN MY LUNCH without taking a picture! Gah! lol

Well, I did snap this when I finally pulled my camera out. An empty bowl that did have peppers, onions, and beef/chicken from last night's kabobs. I also had a few melba toast. The Devonsheer melba toast was very good! And organic!

We had dinner at a local tex-mex restaurant. I got chicken fajita tacos. I really like the fajita meat at this restaurant because they use very little oil on the skillet. The chicken is excellent! Some lettuce, cilantro, tomatoes, and a bit of cheese make these tacos superb.

In other news: I bought a weight set! I've decided I want to try to move my gym workouts to home. Since I mostly only use the free weights at the gym anymore I figured I could easily setup a home gym and save the expense of my gym membership.

I haven't cancelled at the gym yet, but this evening Jesse and I converted our guest bedroom into a half workout room. We'll probably add more workout equipment as we go and figure out what all we need. I'm excited!

It's been a great day! Hope you all are having a great one too!

Memorial Day Monday!

2009-05-25T21:01:00.004-05:00

Good evening, all! I hope everyone has enjoyed their Memorial Day. I certainly have.

The morning started off by sleeping in until 8am. I love sleeping and honestly could sleep 9-10 hours a night. I'm trying to change that, but if you've been reading this blog for a while you'll know that getting up early is not my forte!

I snagged a breakfast "snack" before our run. Another PB toast on Ezekiel whole grain bread. Man I love that bread. So dense and delicious.

After our run I decided to give Cooper a bath outside. He's too big to get bathed inside so now that the weather is warm enough, he was due! Plus he was very hot from our run so the cool water from the hose was welcome.

After Cooper's bath and a shower for myself, I was starved! Jesse and I decided to hit up McAlister's.

I wanted the same salad I had a few days ago, but it wasn't on the menu! What the?

Ugh. I just couldn't figure out what I wanted after that surprise so I went with an old standby of a French Dip with fruit. It was yummy as usual.

Unfortunately when we got home, Cooper got up to greet us with a limp. He seems to have an injury. Last Saturday after our run Jesse said he limped some after taking a nap. We thought maybe he slept wrong, but today's limp confirms it must be the running.

So our 4-legged running buddy won't be joining us any time soon. I think the distance is getting to be too much for him. Jesse and I also knew that the heat would soon be too much for him as well. Poor guy, he loves going with us but we'll have to only take him for long walks again once he's healed up.

I ran a bunch of errands today and even made an exciting purchase which I'll talk more about tomorrow. Once home I was starving again! It was about 5pm and close to dinner time, but I needed something to hold me over.

Some sliced cucumber and a new hummus were my snack of choice. Holy crap! This hummus is AWESOME! Ok, so it's only the second hummus I've tried, but it's far superior to the first hummus.

It's called Athenos Hummus. I got the Greek Style flavor and it was very good, very fluffy texture.

For dinner I was very excited. I planned to try making kabobs! I've never made these before but I figured how hard can it be? I grabbed some peppers and onions along with chicken and steak for my kabobs.

All assembled and ready for the grill. Just need to douse in some seasoning.

Me make fire!

They didn't take long and soon we're cooked to almost perfection (a few pieces got a little too charred.

I don't think it really fit the meal, but I decided to have a side salad with my favorite dressing and some feta cheese.

A couple corn tortillas warmed on the grill were a nice addition as well.

It was delicious! I think marinating the meat would be better next time, but the seasoned grilled beef and chicken was excellent still.

As usual these days, after dinner I'm now watching the NBA playoffs and having some cha..... HOLD UP! That's not chai in my cup! Is that..... coffee?

Yes.

Hehe.

Tomorrow is back to work! No case of the Mondays this week. ;)

Goodnight!

Sunday Break

2009-05-24T20:59:00.001-05:00

I took a bit of a break from blog photos today (well sorta a break and sorta forgot my camera).

I will admit to having not one, but two cups of this..

May even have a third!

Hope you all are having a great Memorial Day weekend!

Random thought: How to keep things fresh week long?

2009-05-24T16:34:00.002-05:00

I just had a random thought: I should stop at the grocery store at least 2-3 times a week for fresh produce.

The thought came because I'm sitting down to make my weekly shopping list. The problem is the end of the week and weekend are usually devoid of fresh produce because we eat it at the beginning of the week or it goes bad.

Now it's not some great revelation to go get more mid-week, but I just never really thought about PLANNING that.

How do you guys do it? Multiple shopping trips a week?

Hmmmm. I think I'm going to plan a mid-week shopping trip and see how it goes. Frozen pizza shouldn't have to be the only option on the weekend!

Babies Galore Saturday!

2009-05-24T09:27:00.004-05:00

Saturday was full of baby news! First, my boss' wife had their baby late Friday night. Welcome to the madhouse Madison!

Also, I had a baby shower to attend to on Saturday. First, though, I needed to get in a quick bite to eat and a run in with Jesse and Cooper.

Pre-run snack: Ezekiel whole grain bread with organic PB. One for me and one for Jesse.

Then off to the park! We snapped a couple pictures of us with our 4-legged running buddy.

Today wasn't the most nutritious day but it wasn't terrible either. I never felt that I over ate which is my biggest battle.

Jesse and I went to Kelley's restaurant for a late breakfast/early lunch before the baby shower. I ordered a dish that came with eggs, bacon, and two pancakes. The thing about Kelley's, though, is that their portions are HUGE! Between my meal and Jesse's we could have fed a family of four.

Here's my main breakfast plate. Jesse shared some of his hash browns with me. I gave him two of my pieces of bacon in exchange.

Look at Jesse's chicken fried steak! Good god that is huge.

My pancakes. They were exactly what I wanted but I only managed to eat about 1/2 of them.

I was stuffed! Good thing, though, as I was able to resist the many temptations that were at the baby shower.

For dinner last night we just had a frozen pizza. This was a extra thin, crispy crust cheese pizza by Red Baron. Not too bad.

That was pretty much my day. Again, not very nutritious, but I felt that I didn't overeat which is a good thing for me.

Today we're planning to catch a movie. Either Angels and Demons or the new Star Trek. Choices, choices. Have a great day, all!

TGIF!

2009-05-22T19:44:00.003-05:00

Not only is today Friday but it's also the beginning of a long Memorial Day weekend! Woohoo!

Jesse will be on a daytime schedule this weekend so we will get to spend more time together which I love. I'll also be going to a baby shower tomorrow and seeing my mom who recently had skin cancer removed from her scalp.

Today was a good day. Work was quiet as a lot of people weren't there (typical before a holiday weekend).

I started off with my oats and coffee. Mix-ins were organic flax seed meal, organic raisins, and sliced almonds.

We had teased our intern yesterday about not doing his interny duties and bringing us coffee. Well, today he showed up with Starbucks! I so rarely have Starbucks that this was quite a treat.

Mmm mocha latte. Thanks, Josh!

For whatever reason I just wasn't real hungry at lunchtime. Maybe it was all the coffee! I decided to just have yogurt with raisins again. I forgot my pic though!

I left the office early and Jesse and I hit up our favorite stir fry restaurant. The place is called Genghis Grill and is wonderful! You pick exactly what you want in your stir fry and they cook it to order.

My bowl was full of chicken breast, a few sausage slices, red peppers, green peppers, onions, mushrooms, yellow squash, zucchini, and some egg. A simple soy sauce was stirred in with a little brown rice on the bottom. It is delicious!

It's a quiet evening at home tonight. I'm watching the Astros as well as the Orlando/Cleveland NBA playoff game. Ahhhh love these evenings especially with a cup of chai and a couple frozen Hershey kisses!

Have a wonderful evening all!

Refreshing Thursday

2009-05-21T20:12:00.003-05:00

Today was much better than yesterday! I put my poor choices behind me and successfully enjoyed my healthier food today. My body certainly is thanking me for it.

I did wake up really, really thirsty which is unusual for me. I'm guessing it was the salty foods from last night.

Ahh refreshing.

The morning started off as usual with oats. I had coffee again too. I love coffee and even though I've thought about giving it up I don't think my 1-2 cups is really an issue.

My oats had organic raisins, organic flax seed meal, banana, and sliced almonds. I didn't include the Truvia today and found the oats were plenty sweet without.

I forgot to take a picture of my lunch today. We had a celebration lunch for my boss because he/his wife is about to have a new baby. My team all went to Chili's and I ordered the guiltless buffalo chicken sandwich. It was very good! Grilled chicken topped with veggies, a tad of light ranch, and a buffalo sauce that tasted a lot like Frank's.

Here's a picture from the net - just imagine with some buffalo sauce on there. There was also a side of steamed broccoli. Very good!

This afternoon my co-worker/friend Alaina hooked me up with a cover for my Blackberry! I had been using a bulky clip style holder and was ready to be rid of it. She had an extra cover and gave it to me. So nice. Thank, Alaina!

My snack was honey Oikos. The honey version is definitely my favorite. I added a box of organic raisins on top. Mmmm. I had another cup of coffee which I probably shouldn't of had, but I couldn't resist a nice afternoon cup!

I was determined to have a fresh, healthy dinner. I knew I'd be cooking chicken but I decided I wanted a big salad instead of the usual fare with rice.

A quick stop at Kroger grocery and I also had peppercorn feta cheese to top my salad with.

Veggies ready to go!

Chicken ready to go!

I topped my veggies with my favorite low cal dressing: Newman's Organic Lighten Up Balsamic.

Sliced up chicken and feta on top and I was rockin' and rollin'. The salad turned out bigger than I expected but that was fine by me.

While at the grocery store I also picked up a new bottle of wine to try.

This meal just looked beautiful. Thankfully it was also delicious! The freshness of the salad really hit the spot after the heavier foods I've had.

I'm happy to say the wine was very good too! I'm still getting used to wine, but this Merlot was much easier to drink than the previous wine I tried. It had less bite and I enjoyed a nice half glass of it.

You'll have to forgive me for not posting up a picture of some chai. I'm about to make a cup and enjoy the rest of my evening watching the NBA playoffs.

Have a great night!

Weight gain Wednesday

2009-05-20T21:24:00.004-05:00

Yep, I said weight gain.

Today was not a good day. However, I said I was photo logging everything: good, bad, and ugly, so here we are.

The day started off good with breakfast. I was really hungry this morning and almost forgot to take my picture! So here are half eaten oats with organic raisins, organic flax seed meal, Truvia, and a banana. I also had coffee this morning.

On Wednesdays I always have lunch out with some of my co-workers. We have a book club going with the four of us and on Wednesdays we have lunch and discuss the book.

Since I always bring my lunch to work Wednesday is usually a day I try to be good at lunch but do cut myself a little slack.

Today, I could have chosen a healthier option at lunch, but I wanted pasta! I ordered linguine sauteed in olive oil with olives, tomatoes, and mushrooms. It was very good. Thankfully I listened to my body and stopped once full. I ate about 2/3 of the portion. Not too bad.

Of course there was salad and bread as well. I had a plate of salad and a couple pieces of bread. Should have passed on the bread, but ah well.

The best part is I get to have lunch with my friends from work. Unfortunately Tammy couldn't be with us today but here are Alaina and Christa!

This afternoon I had a banana bread Larabar for my snack. I completely forgot the picture though. Doh!

Once home Jesse and I went running. We are doing 10 minute runs with a 3 minute walk break between. It's tougher for Jesse but he's sticking with it! I know he'll adjust to it and soon this new interval will be a breeze for him.

After our run, well, things started getting bad. That terrible, tiny thought started creeping into my head as I showered...

Micheeelllllleeee. You don't really want to coooooooook. Noooooooo. You want to go oooouuuuuutttt.

Crap.

No, I should cook us dinner here at home. We just went out last night! Plus, I can tell my guard is down. I can tell it would be unhealthy choices.

But Micheeeelllllllleeeee. You don't want to coooookkkk!

Yeah, I don't. I could just make a frozen pizza for us. That would be better than going out!

I asked Jesse what he wanted to do for dinner. We ended up at Buffalo Wild Wings.

What you are about to see is not pretty, my friends. I'm ashamed and I have the gas to prove it.

Why do I continue to eat this garbage? It makes me feel TERRIBLE. Not just physically but emotionally too. My body doesn't deserve to have that crap put into it.

*sigh*

What to do? Continue on. I've changed my lifestyle so much in the past year. I know I'll be able to change this too, it just takes time. The majority of the time I feel very good about what I eat and I certainly couldn't have said that a year ago. I just didn't expect to have another episode like this so soon after last Saturday's fiasco.

Ok. I've fessed up, time to move on. Tomorrow is another day!

Tasty Tuesday?

2009-05-19T21:52:00.003-05:00

Today was definitely an interesting food day!

The morning started off normal enough with my bowl of oats at work. I added in flax seed meal, organic raisins, a tablespoon of PB, and a banana. Mmmmm...

Well, I already abandoned the cauliflower soup. I just couldn't do it again! So I joined up with some co-workers who were going to Quiznos. I decided to try one of their new torpedo subs. I got the turkey pesto. Sounded yummy!

Unfortunately it was rather flavorless. The pesto had hardly any flavor! I ate half the torpedo and put the other half in the frig for tomorrow. Maybe I can bring something from home to help flavor it up some.

A crispy pear was a nice addition!

Around 3pm I was ready for my snack. Vanilla Oikos with PB, almonds, and raisins was just right.

As I said yesterday, tonight we were having dinner with our friends Gin and Bran. We went to a Vietnamese restaurant that Jesse and I used to eat at a lot a few years ago. It was still delicious!

I HAD to start with their spring rolls.

Omg I love these spring rolls! I tried to take it easy on the peanut sauce, but it wasn't easy. I am happy to report I at least didn't eat all the sauce.

Dinner arrived at the table and every one's dish looked so good.

I had chicken with broccoli and vegetables:

Jesse had to go with the sweet and sour chicken, of course - his fav! Sauce was separate:

Gin got sesame chicken:

Doesn't that look good?

I'm not sure what Bran's dish was called, but it looked very good as well:

One cool thing I had forgotten about this restaurant is that they serve you orange slices after dinner:

Of course I had to...

Gin joined...

Ahhh dinner with good friends! =D

It was a wonderful dinner. So now I'm just wrapping up the lovely evening blogging and watching the NBA playoffs. Of course I have my chai for the evening.

Monday's Edibles

2009-05-18T20:58:00.003-05:00

Today was a great day both food-wise and just in general.

Once at work I cooked up my oats. Today I added flaxseed meal, organic raisens, a banana, and almonds.

Although I usually eat the same thing for every breakfast (oats) I just love it! Plus I change it up when I want to depending on what I mix in.

Lunch was the cauliflower soup that I made yesterday. I'm sorry to say that it just wasn't too good. I ate about 3/4 of it and was done. The thought of having it again tomorrow is really turning me off! Not sure what I'll do about lunch this week now.

I added an apple and some organic peanut butter to help my lunch out.

Once I got home I decided to put in a workout DVD. I don't do DVD workouts too often but I've been bored lately at the gym. REALLY bored. I figured this might change things up.

I pulled out an old beginner's workout by Jillian Michaels. It was a lot of fun but didn't push me as hard as I need now. I did work up a sweat, though, and my HR monitor said I burned about 175 calories in the 40 minute workout. Not too bad!

Once done with my workout and shower I was ready for dinner!

Mmmm tilapia on the menu! I've gotten better at cooking tilapia and got our fillets just the perfect amount of done. I make a lemony sauce to top it with. A side salad of leafy, dark romaine lettuce and strawberries rounded out my meal. Delicious!

So good!

Tomorrow we are dining out with our friends Gin and Bran. We've decided on Vietnamese food and I'm really looking forward to it! It will be a test for sure, though. Hopefully I will keep control and eat reasonably.

Good night!

Weekly Lunch: Cauliflower Soup

2009-05-17T19:40:00.003-05:00

This week's lunch is Cauliflower soup from Cooking Light November 2008

This recipe calls for hazelnut oil but unfortunately I couldn't find any today at the store. Other than that I've made the recipe accordingly.

After last week's disappointing black bean soup I'm hopeful this soup will turn things around because this recipe sounds really good! Cooking Light claims it is only 87 calories per cup!! Holy cow that's low. It's almost hard to believe.

I started off by chopping and roasting the cauliflower and garlic.

Next up was to saute the sliced onion. While that was cooking I squeezed out the roasted garlic.

Once the onions are cooked you add milk and chicken broth to the pot. Let this simmer for about 10 minutes then add the garlic and cauliflower.

Next up is to simply blend the soup in your blender. Easy!

Frothy!

Of course I had to make a small taste to try out! It was ok. I'm thinking this will be much better than last week's black bean soup and hopefully it'll thicken up overnight in the frig.

Ready for the week!

Late lunch or early dinner?

2009-05-17T19:27:00.003-05:00

Jesse and I are Rockets fans and today was game 7 of their series against the Lakers. Since my breakfast was pretty late I decided to do a late lunch/early dinner so that Jesse and I could eat while the Rockets were playing (around 3:30pm).

The plan was for pasta with turkey meat and veggies. Some Ezekiel whole grain bread was turned into garlic toast as well.

Unfortunately my mushrooms turned out to have gone bad so only the zucchini and onion made it to the skillet.

Lots of cookin' on the stovetop!

Added a small glass of wine and dinner was ready! It was delicious!

Sadly, the Rockets lost the series today. They had a great playoff run, though, and we can't wait until next season!

A snack during the blog marathon!

2009-05-17T15:28:00.002-05:00

So of course I needed a snack while I caught up my blog. What goes good with this blogging scene?

Why, chai of course! Fat free organic skim milk for my cream today. I also had a box of raisens. Sunkist now makes boxes of organic raisens. Very cool!

Sunday morning breakfast

2009-05-17T15:08:00.002-05:00

After running W6D3 of C25K with Jesse this morning I decided to make my usual breakfast: oats with various mixins. I used to love eating instant oatmeal for breakfast, but recently have switched over to whole, organic oats and adding my own flavor. I tried steel cut oats first, but they just take too long to cook and I often eat breakfast at work.

This morning I added 1 tbsp of flax meal, 1 tbsp of organic peanut butter, a packet of Truvia, some sliced almonds and half a cup of hemp milk.

Are there oats under there?

Yep! Not too colorful. I should have added some fruit! Either way, it was good! The hemp milk was much better in my oats than it was in my tea Saturday.

It was a nice morning to eat in the backyard. The weather was cooler today plus there was a bucking bronco out there!

Who can resist this face?

Cute pup, good food, and nice weather. Who could ask for more?

Saturday night dinner

2009-05-17T14:55:00.003-05:00

After the gluttony of lunch I just wanted something light for dinner. We would have made dinner at home but needed to run to Fry's which is a good ways from our house. So we stopped in at McAlister's Deli for dinner. Jesse and I both love McAlister's and it's definitely a healthier restaurant option.

I did have to look at this cookie eater when we first sat down, but I resisted taking a bite.

I chose something different from the menu and got the Fiesta Chicken salad. It looked delicious (and was)! I only ate a couple of the chips and left the sour cream scoop behind. The fork dip method helped me eat only about a tablespoon of dressing.

Mmmm!

Of course I had some tea too.

So much better than the crud I had for lunch!

Living Harvest Hemp Milk

2009-05-17T14:35:00.002-05:00

I've been wanting to try some different types of milk lately. It's not that I have a problem with cow milk (I just make sure it's organic), but more out of curiosity and finding the best fit for me.

I picked up Living Harvest Unsweetened Vanilla Hemp milk. I was interested because of all the healthy poly-unsaturated fats in hemp seed. The nutrition info looks great:

Once home I made a cup of tea and poured half a cup of hemp milk out to use as my creamer. First I took a small sip from a glass just to see what it tasted like. It wasn't bad. A bit bland, but I expected that since I got the unsweetened version. I also quickly learned to shake the milk first. It separates quite easily.

When I poured the hemp milk in my tea something not so good happened. The milk separated and stayed that way. It wasn't pretty for sure.

It was grainy looking, but I was still willing to try. Unfortunately the taste was really lacking when it came to my chai. There wasn't any creaminess and I just didn't care for the taste it added to my tea.

I was still willing to keep trying the hemp milk, though, and decided to try it in my oats this morning. More on that soon!

Healthy Shopping: May 16th, 2009

2009-05-17T14:18:00.002-05:00

Today's trip to Whole Foods was really nice. I decided to start going to the WF on Bellaire instead of the one on Kirby. The Kirby store is nice but it's always packed and there's a lot of construction around it. The Bellaire store doesn't seem as crowded and while it has some construction around it, it's not too bad.

I grabbed some typical staples like fruit, veggies, almond slices, oikos, and bread. I also decided to try hemp milk this week. I've heard that Living Harvest makes excellent hemp protein products so I snagged a box of milk. I'll be posting up a review of that in a few minutes.

I really love Whole Foods. There's such a variety of healthy foods that you can't find at most grocery stores.

The misery of bad food choices.

2009-05-17T13:53:00.004-05:00

Time to confess: I still struggle a lot with making on-the-fly food choices. When I plan out my week things go very well and generally the work week is pretty easy.

However, when the weekend comes I often fall apart and make poor choices. Usually my poor choices aren't that big of a deal (there are MUCH worse things out there to eat).

I want a healthy balanced life, but that doesn't mean that I'm never going to have pizza or a burger or ice cream again. I'm a big believer in moderation.

Moderation is not what happened yesterday.

Long story short: Jesse and I hit up Bayou City Wings for lunch yesterday. This is what I ate -

Half a large order of chili cheese fries
A buffalo chicken sandwich with the works: ranch dressing, buffalo sauce, mayo, bread, etc.
Waffle fries (because the chili cheese fries apparently weren't enough)
Probably a cup of ketchup

I don't know why, but I lost all sense of moderation, stopping when full, and making at least some attempt at having a healthier version of the meal.

When we left I felt miserable. I was still miserable when we got home. I was still miserable after taking a 2 hour nap! OMG!

It was terrible. My body just can't handle that kind of onslaught of unhealthy foods.

With that said, I'm just moving on. I definitely don't want to re-live that experience. However, I do want to become more accountable for my food choices, though.

I've decided to attempt to document most of what I eat. The good, the bad, and the ugly. (Let's hope there's not too much ugly!)

Hopefully I won't bore you guys or drive you away with all the food talk, but I'd like to give this a try. I have to admit I'm inspired by Kath at KERF and Tina at Carrots and Cake. I really enjoy their food blogs so hopefully MAR won't be boring but somewhat helpful to others who struggle like I do. I'm definitely not an expert and this is simply my attempt at changing my life and becoming healthier in many aspects.

Of course I'll still be reporting on my running and Jesse's running. I still hope that maybe I'm a runner!

So I've babbled on long enough. Prepare for the food onslaught!

C25K Update!

2009-05-17T13:39:00.002-05:00

We need an update on Jesse's C25K!

Jesse is doing awesome, guys. I can't believe how he's taken to the running so (to me) easily. I'm sure he would say it's not easy, but he is running strong.

So far we have not had to repeat any weeks and we have actually skipped a few day 3's to continue on to the next week.

Today we ran W6D3 which is running for 5, 8, and 5 mins with 3 min walk between. On the 8 minute portion he actually said, "Let's do 10." We did!

We're now at a big leap for him. Next week jumps to just a 25 minute straight run. We'll see how that goes!

I can't say how proud I am of Jesse. He is just doing so awesome!

Sorry for the lack of updates lately!

2009-05-17T09:54:00.001-05:00

Man things have been busy! I have a lot of updating to do, though, and plan on catching up today. So much to say, pictures to post!

More to come!

Weekly Challenge Update: Foam Roller

2009-05-15T08:33:00.003-05:00

Just a quick update (for myself really heh).

I've used my foam roller for 15 minutes every night so far this week, Sunday - Thursday.

Going good so far and my legs are happy about it!

Wine Beginnings

2009-05-13T19:56:00.003-05:00

I've always wanted to get "into" wine, but never have. I'm not much of a drinker. The only thing I really crave alcoholic-wise is Bailey's.

Mmmmm Bailey's....

Um, er, sorry. So, yeah, I'd like to have some wine with dinner some nights but I just don't know what is good to start with or anything. Basically what I'm trying to say is I don't know squat about wine.

My boss is really into wine. He gave me a suggestion of a red wine to try (all my previous experiences with white wines has been bad, so staying away from whites to begin with).

Today I decided to pick up some wine on the way home. Unfortunately I didn't see the wine my boss suggested, so I picked a wine that I saw recommended for beginners.

Louis Jadot Beaujolais Villages

When I was ready to have my wine with dinner I couldn't uncork it! Oh geez. Thankfully Jesse uncorked it for me. My boss sent me a video of how you're supposed to use the "waiter's corkscrew" but we had already muscled the cork out by then. I felt a bit silly knowing we could have uncorked the bottle with much less effort. Ah well, live and learn.

The first sip was ok. Again, I'm not much of an alcohol drinker so that "tang" hit me quickly. However, it wasn't bad. In fact the more I drank the better it tasted. I guess I adjusted to the taste some.

After having 4oz. with my dinner I decided to have another 4oz. The second glass tasted even better! Sitting here now having finished the second glass I'd really like more, but I think 8oz is more than enough for one night.

Thankfully 8oz of red wine is only 160 calories so I could have a glass with dinner now and then without too much worry.

I'm looking forward to trying more wine!

Personal Challenge: Foam Roll for 15 mins each day

2009-05-13T12:53:00.003-05:00

I'm a little late posting this up, but this is my personal challenge for the week: use my foam roller for 15 minutes each day this week.

Foam rollers really seem to help my legs a lot. I used to use them at the gym a lot, but now I typically only go to the gym twice a week for my weight workout. So, I bought my own (glad I did, the gym rollers tend to get very....used).

Well, after buying the roller it sat in my closet for a couple weeks! What the hell good is that?

In comes my weekly challenge.

So here's a quick update:

Sunday - 15 mins complete!
Monday - 15 mins complete!
Tuesday - 15 mins complete!

Doing great so far! My legs are thanking me too.

Next up!

2009-05-12T10:53:00.001-05:00

The Dad's Day 5K!

Jesse and I will be running the Dad's Day 5k on June 20th!

Weekly Lunch: Black Bean Soup

2009-05-11T11:34:00.002-05:00

I was in a hurry last night to get this soup cooking so I didn't get any preparation pics. Sorry!

This week I made the black bean soup recipe from Cooking Light. The prep is very easy - throw together black beans, broth, onion, and a few spices and let it cook in the slow cooker for 10 hours. Easy!

Funny story...

I woke up in the middle of the night last night and thought to myself, "Ugh WHAT is that smell? Is that Cooper? He must be burping or farting or something. Ugh."

It was so bad I covered my nose with the sheets to try to get back to sleep. It wasn't working. "Maybe Cooper got sick on the bed. God that smells."

Finally I got up to go to the rest room. I guess I woke up more because it finally dawned on me that the smell was the black bean soup cooking downstairs! Wups!

Not a good sign. hehe

Anyway, once up for the day I came downstairs and it smelled better there. It looked ... ok. I can't say I'm super excited about this soup, but I'm hoping it will surprise me today at lunch and be good.

Delightful Dinners: Turkey Tacos

2009-05-09T20:55:00.002-05:00

So, I need to get back on track. This week my eating has not been as good as I'd like. We went out to eat way too many times and restaurants are my bane. I have yet to overcome my mental issues with eating out. I do a lot better than I used to, but I still make poor choices too often.

This evening I wanted to return to healthier eating for the week. I decided on turkey tacos loaded with veggies!

I use ground turkey breast and season it with garlic and onion powder along with, of course, taco seasoning.

These Mission low carb, whole wheat tortillas looked pretty good at the store and were by far the healthiest selection. Some refried beans for Jesse and black beans for me were also on order.

Mmmmm veggies....

Once the turkey was done it was dinner time!

I stuffed my tacos with the sauteed veggies, fresh avocado, fresh tomato, and turkey. They were delicious!

It's so nice to eat food that tastes great and you know is good for you!

Here's to a health filled week!

Pearland Pear Run Results

2009-05-09T15:24:00.002-05:00

The Pear Run was great today! Unfortunately I don't have any pictures because Jesse ran this one as well. It was his first 5k and he did awesome!

The race was well organized. The course took you around the park loop and then out through the neighborhood outside the park. There were a few residents outside cheering us on which was nice, especially at such an early hour (race start was 7am).

I think I ran well. I tried not to go out too fast and kept a steady pace. Of course I turned on the sprint (well, sprint to me haha) on the last stretch before the finish mat.

According to my Garmin I PR'ed by 7 seconds but I haven't seen the official chip times yet.

Jesse did awesome!! After finishing I walked for a couple mins to bring down the HR, grabbed some water and started heading back to see where he was at. Before I expected I saw him! He was probably only about 5 minutes behind me. He finished strong and I was so happy for him!

Tammy and Mike were also there. Mike was WAY ahead of us as usual. lol I saw him walking back just as I was re-entering the park. He hooked up with Tammy and she finished strong!

The race had quite the spread. Fruit, bagels, other breads, pizza, and many drinks. I couldn't resist grabbing another water and onion bagel. Mmmm.

Afterwards Jesse and I hit up some breakfast then home for a nap.

The only downside is that my right knee is bothering me a bit. It started to act up during the run but was bearable. I iced it when we got home so hopefully that'll help, but it is hurting me some now. Bummer. Oh well just have to deal with it and let it heal up.

I was hoping to run into Vince ("slugline" on RW) but I didn't see him before or after the race. He was running the 10k and it would have been nice to meetup. Hopefully next time!

All in all I give the Pear Run a thumbs up and will probably do it again next year!

Is this the coolest race shirt or what???

2009-05-08T21:05:00.002-05:00

It has a running pear on it! A running pear WITH SWEATBANDS!!!

Awesome. Just awesome.

Looking forward to the run tomorrow. :)

Buffalo chicken my way

2009-05-07T20:01:00.002-05:00

During my less than stellar days of eating, I just loved some good hot wings! Now that I'm trying to have a more balanced diet and striving to be healthier as much as possible, hot wings just don't calculate in very often.

However, I discovered what many of you already know: Frank's hot sauce is the SHIZ!

This stuff tastes just like hot wing sauce! Wow it's great! So now I pan cook chicken breast chunks in a little Pam olive oil spray and then dip in some Frank's for a healthy hot wing sensation. Mmmm!

Tonight I added half a sweet potato and some steamed cabbage. A plate of goodness.

(I forgot to add on my Frank's before the picture! Trust me there was much Frank's goodness going on with that chicken.)

After dinner I decided to treat myself to half a cup of ice cream with some Cinnamon sprinkled on. A cup of chai makes it a yummy dessert.

Chai tea, oh how I love thee!

2009-05-06T21:59:00.004-05:00

I like hot tea, all kinds of hot tea, but nothing comes close to my new found love of chai tea!

I've decided, I must try as many chai's as I can. So far I've tried three different brands and they've all been good, but the perfect chai has yet to be found...

The chai I'm drinking tonight is Bigelow Vanilla Chai.

When taking a Bigelow tea bag out of its packet, it smells divine! Oh my it smells very, very good. That smell definitely translated into taste. This chai is delicious. I add some Truvia and milk to my chai and sip in the deliciousness.

While the Bigelow is the best tasting chai I've found so far, it also has the most undesirable qualities. On the front of the box it says "Natural & Artificially Flavored". Ugh. I don't want artificial! What exactly are artificial flavors?

Either way, I have six more teabags to enjoy and then I'll move on. This is good tasting tea, though!

It's almost here!

2009-05-06T08:24:00.002-05:00

My second 5k is just around the corner! On Saturday I will be running the Pearland Pear Run 5k along with Jesse, Tammy, and Mike. I'm excited!

Food Review: LaraBar (Banana Bread)

2009-05-04T09:58:00.004-05:00

Oh. My. God.

I tried a banana bread LaraBar this weekend and OMG it was DELICIOUS!

Banana bread is one of my favorite treats to have and I don't have it very often. Actually I think it's been a couple years since I've had banana bread. When I opened this LaraBar it was a very dense bar, kinda like if you took a piece of banana bread and smooshed it all together in a dense ball.

The first bite... Mmmmm! Banana bread goodness!

Not only is this bar delicious but it's exactly what I'm looking for in my food: healthy, few ingredients, and worthy of its calories.

Check out the ingredient list for this bar:
almonds
dates
unsweetened bananas

That's it. THAT'S IT!! Love it!

Here's another tid bit from the wrapper:
No sugar added - Unprocessed - Raw - Non GMO - Gluten Free - Dairy Free - Soy Free - Vegan - Kosher

Ok, this is the best bar I've found to date. At 220 calories for banana bread I'm a happy camper.

I have applie pie and cherry pie bars still to try but I imagine I will like them as well. I'm so excited to have found Larabars!

Sorry for the pic of just the wrapper. I tore into that thing in the car on the way home. Yum!

Food Review: Naked Strawberry Banana Smoothie

2009-05-02T21:12:00.002-05:00

After my run today I hit up Whole Foods for some goodies. I snagged a few things for breakfast and snacks during the work week.

I also decided to grab a quick lunch. A Larabar and a Naked smoothie were on tap.

I'll review the Larabar shortly, but here are my impressions of the Naked: Strawberry Banana smoothie: SWEET!

Holy god it was sweet. Too sweet for me really. I was surprised that I thought it was too sweet because, well, too sweet just doesn't hit me often.

As I drank the smoothie my mouth started feeling a bit coated and I wish that I had water to wash things down.

The smoothie didn't taste bad, it just wasn't really for me.

I was happy with the calories, the whole bottle was only 240. And the ingredients just listed the fruit that was in the smoothie. I suppose there was just so much fruit puree that the smoothie was very sweet!

I wish that the smoothie was organic, but it simply says "all natural". What the heck does that mean anyway?

So not bad. I wouldn't mind trying some of the other Naked smoothies, but I think next time I will pass on the strawberry banana.

Running Recap: May 2nd, 2009

2009-05-02T19:38:00.005-05:00

Got in a nice 2 mile run today. I went to Independence Park in Pearland which is where my 5k is at next weekend. I'm excited! This will be my second 5k and Jesse's first. My friends Tammy and Mike will be participating too.

Back to my run. I got in a lovely 2 miles (thankfully I put on some OFF spray because there were plenty of mosquitoes due to all the rain we've had lately).

Can't wait for the 5k!

Distance: 2 miles

Time: 22:17

Damn mosquitoes!

Delightful Dinners: Panko Pork Chops

2009-04-29T21:57:00.003-05:00

Tonight I decided to make a new favorite of ours: Panko pork chops. There's not much special about the recipe and obviously it's pork chops coated with Panko, but it's mmmmm, mmmmm good!

I like to buy the "breakfast" pork chops. They are thinner than standard chops so they cook faster as well as they are a smaller portion. The chop on the far right didn't look so good so he got retired to the trash.

Along with our chops I steamed some broccoli.

Prepping the chops is pretty easy but does require a few dishes.

First you dredge the chops in a cumin/onion powder/flour mixture. Keep the coating thin and shake off any excess. Then dredge in a mixture of egg white and soy sauce (we like the less sodium type). Finally dredge in Panko.

After all the dredging simply pan cook them for about a minute on each side. I put a couple spritzes of Pam Olive Oil in the pan.

After the pan cooking put them in the oven for about 5 minutes and you're done! Throw a sweet potato on there with the broccoli and it's yummy dinner time!

It was good, my friends, very good.

Weekly Lunch: Chicken Thighs with Olives in Tomato Sauce

2009-04-27T20:10:00.003-05:00

Lunch is a tough meal for me during the week. I get tired very quickly of the typical lunch fare: sandwiches, soups, salads. While I like those things I currently have no desire for them at lunchtime!

Cooking Light is my favorite cooking magazine. I LOVE CL!! However, I often see very delicious looking recipes in there that I never try because there are ingredients included that I know Jesse doesn't like.

Well, I've decided a great way to spice up my lunch routine AND get to try recipes Jesse might not like is by making the recipe on the weekend and portioning it out for lunch! This way every weekend I can try a new recipe and have a week's worth of yummy lunch. The change each week will keep things interesting.

So this is the first week of my new plan (we'll see how long it lasts) and I picked CL's Chicken Thighs with Olives in Tomato Sauce (from March 2009 issue).

You can get the details of the recipe at the link above. Below is a pictorial guide to this fantastic recipe!

First, I had to de-skin 8 chicken thighs. I don't normally buy chicken thighs but I gave them a try since the recipe called for it. After dealing with them for this recipe I believe I will just use boneless-skinless chicken breast next time. The thighs are good, but a pain to deal with and added a bit more fat.

Browning the thighs before they go in the slow cooker:

The next step calls for making the wine reduction. I didn't have fresh garlic so I simply added garlic powder to the slow cooker but still cooked the wine. This step was SO fast that I didn't get a picture. Here is the wine I used, though.

Other ingredients needed:

The crushed red pepper adds great spice to this recipe! If you like it hotter go for 3 tsp. More mild, toss in 1 tsp. I'm an in between type of girl when it comes to spiciness so I put in 2 tsp.

A little tomato paste and then the diced tomatoes:

Then just let those thighs cook for 4 hours! That's the bulk of the recipe. How easy is that? Just a few minor steps left.

After close to 4 hours of slow cooking on high I prepped the olives and parsley:

Four hours is up! Into the cooker they go:

I grabbed my bowls to get ready and separate out my lunch portions. The parsley and olives cooked in for a few minutes.

As I began making my portions I noticed that the meat was soooo tender that I could easily pull out the thigh bones. Great! I really didn't want to mess with bones at the office.

I was left with just the tender meat and all the tomatoey, olivey goodness. I couldn't resist, I made myself a little bite to try!

Mmmm! Good! Spicier than I expected, but great! I really wanted to eat a bowl of it right then and there but knew I shouldn't.

I finished up my lunch portions and was done. Such an easy recipe! I couldn't wait to try it at lunch.

I'm happy to report that this recipe was awesome for lunch today! It reheated well and contained all the flavor. The spiciness was still there although a bit tamer after being in the frig overnight.

I can't wait for lunch tomorrow. This recipe is definitely a keeper!

The benefits of flax seed

2009-04-26T16:38:00.002-05:00

Flax seed seems to currently be quite popular among many health conscious foodie bloggers that I read. I decided to investigate the benefits of all this flax seed!

A little Googling always does the trick. Check out these fantastic benefits of adding flax seed to your diet!

High in omega-3 fatty acids
- By now most of us realize how important omega-3's are to our diet. They are essential in heart health, lowering cholesterol, stabilizing blood sugar, lowering our risk for certain cancers and much more.
Full of fiber
- Helps lower cholesterol, helps stabilize blood sugar, lowers risk of colon and breast cancer, plus helps in many digestive issues (I'll leave that for you to Google).
Aids in eye health, macular degeneration is an example from WebMD.

Flax seed grows both as a golden color as well as a reddish brown. The color does not affect the nutritional value and both pack a healthy punch.

Flax seed is really easy to incorporate into your diet. I bought some ground flax seed meal and plan to add it to oatmeal, my turkey meatball recipe, and possibly some baking!

To learn more about the benefits of flax seed check out my source: WebMD: The Benefits of Flax Seed

Quick run report

2009-04-26T15:49:00.002-05:00

Got in a nice 3 miles today!

Finished in: 34:22

I did the first mile right at about 12:00 so I must have picked it up in mile 2 and 3. I need to mess with the Garmin more to view all my laps times.

Feeling good!

Ahhhh the smell of new shoes!

2009-04-25T14:39:00.002-05:00

Well, not my new shoes, but Jesse's!

Today, after completing week 3 of C25K Jesse and I went to On The Run and had him fitted for new running shoes! They evaluated his gait and fitted him with a great pair of Brooks running shoes. Jesse said they felt very comfortable. Hopefully they will make running even more enjoyable for him. I know my running shoes were a huge boost for me!

Believe the hype! Getting fitted for proper running shoes is worth it!

Here he is with his new Brooks. Can't wait to head out for the next run!

Homemade Maple Cinnemon Almond Butter

2009-04-24T08:24:00.004-05:00

So The Hungry Yogini is always talking about adding her homemade maple Cinnamon almond butter to food she eats. It sounds delicious!

I've never had almond butter before, but I thought what the heck? I'll try to make my own from her recipe.

I picked up the ingredients on my last grocery trip so I was ready to go.

First you need to coat the almonds with the Cinnamon and maple syrup and prepare them for roasting.

As they roast the whole house smells great! After taking them out of the oven I just wanted to start snacking on the roasted almonds, but I resisted.

One thing I noticed after the roasting is immediately after taking them out of the oven I could move the almonds around. They were in sticky maple syrup goo, but they were movable. After letting them cool 5 minutes some of them were practically cemented onto the pan! I had to pop them off with a butter knife.

Next it's into the food processor for grinding. For some reason I didn't take any pictures of this step at all. Next time I'll have to remember.

I think I was distracted by the noise of the food processor. I haven't used it much so I wasn't expecting the loudness of the grinding. I had to put in ear plugs!

Safety first! lol

Finally the almond butter was complete. Mmmm! Looks good!

For my first time making this, it wasn't bad! I added a little too much salt and I could have let the almonds grind a bit longer as the AB is a bit gritty still, but it's good. After leaving it in the frig overnight it tasted even better the next day!

Thanks to The Hungry Yogini for a great recipe!

Food Review: ESSN Pomegranate Limeflower Energy Drink

2009-04-21T22:31:00.003-05:00

So this morning in walks our intern, Josh. He plops down a can of ESSN Energy Drink on mine and my officemate's desk.

He laughs, "Just try it! Just try it!"

We're suspicious. I mean, as our intern it is his duty to bring us gifts. But, this?

"150 calories??!!!?? I'm not drinking this!" I demand.

"Oh suck it up and just try it."

I refused, but I did promise to try it with Jesse at home and give it a review.

This one's for you, Josh.

So first of all, I'm not really an energy drink kinda gal. I could go into the reasons, but let's just say I'm not.

Also, at 150 calories and 37 g of sugar it's not something I'm likely to consume often if at all. But I'm game. I'll at least try it.

The can was pretty, at least on the front.

Sorry, I just don't like drinking so many calories!

Jesse was first up to give it a try. He checks it out first.

I think it made him drunk!!

Bottoms up!

It was....ummm....tasty?

lol

Sorry, Josh, but that stuff was terrible! In all honestly I've yet to try an energy drink that I thought tasted good. However, I think Dusty (my officemate) was spot on when he said it smelled, and possibly tasted, like nail polish remover. I also thought it tasted like cough syrup. Yech!

Now fetch me my coffee, intern boy!

Personal Challenge Update

2009-04-21T09:02:00.002-05:00

Here are the results for Monday and Tuesday of my personal challenge to get up 1/2 an hour earlier:

Oh dear. It's not going well! lol

Delightful Dinners: Pasta with marinara, zucchini, mushrooms, and onions

2009-04-19T13:47:00.003-05:00

Jess over at See Jess Run always inspires me with her great "Food for Fuel" posts. Recently she had a post about her pasta dinner and it looked delicious! She had added zucchini and mushrooms to her pasta and I thought, "I love those veggies. Why don't I add those to mine?"

So I decided to. At my recent trip to Whole Foods I picked up an organic zucchini and some Texas mushrooms as well as an organic onion to add to my pasta dish. Usually I just eat my pasta with the jar sauce. How boring! I was really looking forward to my healthy additions.

Veggies chopped and ready to get cooked:

Into the pan!

And finally, the dish is complete with pasta and marinara sauce. Mmmmm...

It was sooo good! I can't imagine not doing this to my pasta from here on out.

Thanks, Jess, for the inspiration!

Healthy Shopping: Getting back to it

2009-04-19T13:35:00.003-05:00

A couple of years ago I wanted to start eating more organics and just "healthier" in general. I began going to Whole Foods every weekend to pick up a few organics to include with our meals during the week.

Well, naturally, we put our house for sale, started building a new house, lived in an apartment between, yada, yada, yada. Short story: the habit of buying organics faded before it even began.

Now, since losing weight and becoming more focused on health issues in general, I want to return to buying organics and trying to slowing switch over to mostly organics over conventional foods.

I know everyone has their views on organics and whether they're "worth it" or not. Personally, the less unneeded chemicals I put into my body the better (imho).

Switching to 100% organics would be hard. VERY hard. So right now I'm just trying to move in that general direction. Most of our foods are still conventional and we still eat a lot more processed stuff than I'd like, but one step at a time, eh?

So yesterday I decided to head back to Whole Foods (Trader Joe's PLEASE come to Houston!!) and pick up a few items. I thought it might be neat to chronicle my "healthy" shopping trips, so here we go!

I picked up:

Organic raw whole almonds
Organic peanut butter
Organic maple syrup (from the WF bulk selection)
Texas grown mushrooms (conventional)
Organic zucchini
Organic onion
Organic black olives
Organic dried cranberries
Soy crispets (for hubby - he's a crisp lover!)
Bob's Red Mill Organic Flaxseed meal
Bob's Red Mill Organic whole oats
Ezekiel Organic whole grain bread

That's it! I have plans for all of this (in fact some already eaten!) and will be sharing that soon!

New Challenge!

2009-04-18T15:42:00.003-05:00

Starting Monday I am putting myself up to another personal challenge: Wake up (that means OUT of bed) by 6:00 am each morning!

I'm am a snoozer. I major snoozer. I'll hit that button 3-4 times before I actually get up! I've tried a few different methods to get my lazy arse out of bed, but as of yet have not found a way to keep myself getting up earlier.

Honestly, I'd like to get up early to exercise/run before going to work. I've made so many failed attempts at that, that now I'm just shooting to be up by 6:00 for breakfast. I have to start getting ready for work no later than 6:30 so if I can accomplish 1/2 an hour early for breakfast then hopefully I can expand on that.

We'll see how it goes!

Don't Believe the Health Hype

2009-04-18T15:39:00.003-05:00

A good article debunking 6 common health myths. I agree with all of these and found the article to actually be honestly good info.

Don't Believe the Health Hype

A Good Run

2009-04-16T20:17:00.002-05:00

Well, after the recent tendon scare (which apparently I overreacted to) I was pleasantly surprised today to have a great run!

Yesterday I ran C25K W2D3 with hubby Jesse and the leg felt really good. Today I decided to try a bit more mileage and shoot for at least running a mile straight. My training plan calls for 2 mile runs every Thursday so if feeling good I would stop at 2.

I did feel good! About 3/4 a mile in I hit my stride and just felt great. The leg/tendon didn't hurt and I had a nice pace going.

When I hit the 2 mile mark I slowed to a walk with a big smile on my face. Ahhhh the pleasure of a run!

This weekend I'll have another easy run and then hopefully if all goes well I'll start up my training plan on Tuesday (which I wanted to start last Tuesday).

Mmmm tilapia!

2009-04-15T21:50:00.003-05:00

Ok so I did a wups. I forgot to buy a couple key ingredients for the recipe I was going to make!

Oh well. I went forth with the tilapia and pan seared it. It turned out good! Just a little salt, pepper, and light dusting of flour and yum!

I added steamed green beans for me and Jesse and Jesse also had left over rice.

Next time I'll remember my sauce ingredients, but tonight was still a fine meal.

I snuck some avocado onto my tilapia!

For dessert: Sliced apple with peanut butter

Not a bad meal at all. I'd like to try some organic peanut butter next time since I'm trying to move towards organics and less processed foods. But one step at a time.

Have a great night, all!

Coming soon!

2009-04-15T12:55:00.003-05:00

Can I make tilapia that looks as good as this?!!?!??

I'll be attempting this recipe tonight and hopefully it'll turn out as good as that picture looks! The only fish I've ever cooked before is salmon so this is new territory.

Results pics to come!

Things seem a bit better. Hmmmm....

2009-04-15T12:44:00.003-05:00

So my leg/tendon is feeling better today. Yesterday, I called off my intended run and iced the tendon after work. I then iced it again before bed.

It's still just barely sore feeling. The swelling, what I thought was a lump, has gone down a lot too, but not completely gone.

I think things will be ok, but I'm going to take it easy again this week and just run C25K with Jesse as long as I don't have pain.

I have one of the straps pictured below and may try using it if needed. I'd rather just heal up, though!

We'll see how things go!

I think I have a touch of patellar tendonitis

2009-04-14T12:17:00.002-05:00

Ugh.

I'm having some discomfort, I wouldn't call it minor but I wouldn't call it major either, between my knee and my shin. There is also a swollen lump there.

Google has me 95% convinced it's patellar tendonitis.

My guess is that my weight training session from Sunday brought this about. I did a pretty intense session which included legs. Then yesterday I ran C25K W2D2 with Jesse and had some discomfort. Today it's worse and I noticed the lump.

I took last week really easy and only ran C25K week 1 with Jesse. This week I was planning to get back to my training and preparing for May's 5k. I really think I need to rest more now. Ugh.

I'm just torn between wanting to get out there and do more running and not wanting to further any knee issue by over-doing it.

This sucks.

Sensational Snack: Avocados

2009-04-13T22:25:00.004-05:00

If you ask around you'll be hard pressed to find many people that don't like avocados in some way, shape, or form. From a fresh slice in your salad to guacamole for dipping, avocados add fantastic taste to many dishes!

As one of my favorite fruits I have to be careful with eating avocados since they are higher in calories and fat. However, those calories and fat pack a major healthy punch.

Check out some of the great health benefits of avocados:

Avocados are full of mono and poly-unsaturated fats. These fats help lower your LDL (bad cholesterol), especially mono-unsaturated fat.
Avocados contribute nearly 20 vitamins, minerals and phytonutrients, including 4% of the recommended Daily Value (DV) for vitamin E, 4% vitamin C, 8% folate, 4% fiber, 2% iron, 4% potassium, with 81 micrograms of lutein and 19 micrograms of beta-carotene.
Avocados contain 81 micrograms of the carotenoid lutein, which some studies suggest may help maintain healthy eyes.
Avocados are a good source of potassium, a mineral that helps regulate blood pressure.

For more info check out my sources!

World's Healthiest Foods: Avocados
www.Avocado.org
Great Web MD article on avocados

Trying something new

2009-04-11T18:51:00.002-05:00

So, lately my eating habits and food choices have been horrid. I KNOW I should be eating better and I KNOW that what I was eating was terrible for me. The results of my poor choices have certainly shown up on the scale.

I need to get back on track, and I will because I'm ready to and done with all the junk food, but I have one problem: I'm bored. Basically I've been eating a lot of the same stuff for quite a while. Same breakfast meals, same lunches, same snacks, same dinners.

Solution? Well, it's pretty easy - try some new stuff!

I've heard all the rave about hummus but have never tried it. I'd like to make my own (I'm really starting to want to get away from pre-packaged stuff) but figured I'd try something from the store first to see if I even like it.

At the store today I picked up some garlic and chive flavored hummus. Mmmmm already sounds good! I decided to try it with some sort of cracker.

I ran into a bit of a cracker dilemma at the store. I wanted something organic, that looked good, and didn't cost a fortune. Even though our Kroger and HEB are the super stores with an organics section, I still couldn't find anything I wanted to try cracker-wise. I finally just snatched some melba toast and figured I'd try to find something better at Whole Foods another day.

Once home I dove in and tried it out. It was good!! A little different from what I expected but tasted good. So hummus and melba toast will be a new snack for me this week.

It's so easy to get into a rut with food. I'm determined to keep things interesting and of course healthy. :)

While at the store I decided to simplify my life even more by adding two more shakers to my countertop collection for garlic powder and seasoned salt. My hubby will be happy about this!

Making healthy choices easier is always good.

The Beast

2009-04-10T17:37:00.001-05:00

My Garmin is so f'in awesome!! I haven't even scratched the surface of what all it can do but I'm already impressed. It has been nicknamed "The Beast" because it's so huge. Plus, I think it has a demanding side to it. The Beast needs run data.

C25K Newbie!

2009-04-10T17:24:00.002-05:00

That's right everyone! There's another C25K newbie joining the ranks of that awesome program: my hubby!

I'm so excited! Jesse decided to do the C25K program so that he can participate in some 5Ks with me. How awesome is that? VERY AWESOME! =P

He actually started a little over a week ago and today was the first day of W2D1. I've been running the program with him and really enjoying our time running together.

So far he's enjoyed the program! Week 2 is definitely a bit more challenging for him but he'll get stronger as he goes. Week 1 was a little easy for him.

I'm really stoked! He is even signing up for the Pearland Pear Run (5K) in May!

Now I need to get him one of these shirts! He deserves it!

My new toy: Garmin Forerunner 305!

2009-04-09T08:41:00.002-05:00

Woohoo! I got a new toy!

Yesterday my Garmin Forerunner 305 arrived in the mail. I've been using a Polar heart rate monitor for about a year and I like it a lot. However, now that more of my focus is on running I'm needing more data. Thus I decided to get a Garmin.

The 405 was a bit pricey for me and the 205 was lacking the HR monitor which I still wanted, so the 305 was the best option. I picked it up on Amazon for $169.00.

I haven't been able to play with it yet because you have to charge it for a few hours first. So last night it was on the charger. After work today I'll finally get to start checking it out!

More updates to come!

The official results are in!

2009-04-08T16:23:00.002-05:00

My chip time for Muddy Trails 5k was 32:38.

My average pace was 10:32 min/mile.

I placed 28th out of 53 women in my age group.

I finished 194 out of about 300 entries.

The race was a blast and I'm quite pleased with the results!

Race Photos!

2009-04-06T17:39:00.002-05:00

Here are some photos my sweet hubby took while at the Muddy Trails 5k!

Me before the start. I need to learn how to put my number on straight!

And we're off!

Almost there!

Yay the finish line! That was fast. lol

Phew! Done!

Me and Mike walking in with Tammy!

The race was so much fun! I can't wait till my next one!

Completed my first race!

2009-04-05T12:54:00.002-05:00

Yesterday was the Muddy Trails 5k. This is the first ever race I've entered.

I was a bit nervous about how everything worked, how I would do, and just nervous in general at doing something new. Turns out all the nerves weren't necessary (are they ever?).

We got to the park just in time. I picked up my chip and saw my friends Tammy and Mike. About 5 minutes after that we were lining up to start the 5k!

Jesse came with me to cheer me on and take pictures and he so nicely held my stuff for me. Then we were off!

The first and last part of the run were on the road, but I'd say 90% of the run was on a trail through the woods. It was really nice! All the shade kept things cool and the path was soft. Actually too soft in some spots! A few areas had been filled with sand which is not too easy to run in. Also you had to watch out for tree roots, ruts in the path, and other things that might trip you up!

I had intended to keep a slow pace at first but of course when the first mile marker showed up I was truckin' along at a 10:30 mile pace! Whoa! I tried to slow up but just felt good so I kept going.

At first I was passed by a good bit of people but about 1/2 a mile in and onward I was doing most of the passing. I think other people started off too fast and then had to walk. I was able to maintain my running most of the way.

There were two water stations and I walked at both to have a drink. The water really refreshed and I had more energy once I started running again.

In the last mile there was a long, steady incline area that was tough, but I ran it out and kept going. Just a little after that you had to run down a steep incline into a ditch type area and then back up the other side. Holy smokes! I walked the down part because at this point, about 2.5 miles in, I was getting tired and the steepness of the decline was a bit intimidating. I didn't want to trip up and tumble down it.

After that I got back to the running and soon hit the pavement of the final stretch! I could see the finish line!! I started sprinting the last 1/4 mile. My goal was to finish in under 35 minutes. To my surprise I finished in 33:10!!! Woot! Crazier than that is when I checked my actual chip time it was 32:38, iirc. I want to double check once it's posted on the internet, but the times aren't up yet.

Either way, I am happy. The race was really well organized and a lot of fun! I beat my time goal by a lot and just felt good when it was over. I was concerned about my knee bothering me during the run but it never acted up at all. This morning it's not bothering me either. That is a major win!

Tammy and Mike did great too! I believe they both beat their times from the previous year. Woohoo!

So thanks to Tammy for suggesting Muddy Trails 5k to me. I'll definitely be doing this race again next year!

Once I get my pictures uploaded I will post them!

Hittin' the Weights

2009-04-02T20:11:00.002-05:00

As much as I'd like to just run and nothing else, I have to admit that lifting weights has really helped shape my body up some. The main benefit, imo, is the afterburn affect of lifting weights. I love the thought of having a way to improve my body's efficiency at burning calories while at rest!

Today was a lifting day so I hit the gym after work. I don't mind doing weight training, and once I'm into my workout I actually enjoy it quite a bit. There is one aspect of weight training at the gym that I don't like....

Yes! The over-the-top gym guys!

Now, it's not that I mind someone who's into abnormally large muscles. That's fine if it's your thing. What I don't like are the looks I get from *some* of those guys when I'm trying to use the free weights. It's like I'm in the "Boys Only" area of the gym. Perhaps this is all just me being self concious but I honestly feel like some of them wish the pansy girl would get out of the way.

Hey, I pay my dues just the same. I need this bench! lol

Anyway, I admit to a few rolls of the eyes when they have a group of onlooking boys around them and are grunting out some weight lift. Whatever floats your boat, dude.

Besides that, I enjoy the weight lifting. The benefits are great too! Increased strength, better calorie burn. Plus I'm really trying to help my legs out by building up my knee joints and overall muscles to help make my running smoother.

Just two more days till the race! Tomorrow I'll be resting and then Saturday afternoon is fun time at the 5k!

My first race packet!

2009-04-01T08:38:00.004-05:00

Woohoo! I'm super excited because my first ever race is this Saturday. I'm running the Muddy Trails 5K in The Woodlands, TX!

Thanks to my friends/co-workers Tammy and Mike for picking my packet up when they were out that way the other day.

Not much swag, but a very cool shirt! I was surprised it was a wicking shirt and not just cotton. Nice!

Mmmmm!

2009-03-30T20:28:00.002-05:00

This was my breakfast the other day. Yogurt and cantaloupe. Delicious!

I'm wanting to try Greek yogurt but haven't yet. I hear it's healthier for you. Hmmm. Doesn't seem common place because all I see at my HEB are the typical Yoplaits and stuff. I like the store brand low fat vanilla.

This beats the old "Healthy food doesn't taste good" argument! Oh how I love vanilla yogurt with fruit! *drool*

Weigh-in Results for Monday 3/30/09

2009-03-30T14:34:00.005-05:00

-5.0

Whoa!! The challenge really DID do me good! I can't believe I lost 5 lbs in one week! Wow.

I have a suspicion that I had some water weight I was holding because I just can't believe I lost 5 lbs of fat in a week. Either way, though, I'm happy!

This puts me at 169.4. I'm in the 160's!!

Final Weekly Challenge Update

2009-03-30T14:32:00.002-05:00

*** ROUNDS ***
Round 1 (Monday): 1323 WIN!
Round 2 (Tuesday): 1545 Just barely over!
Round 3 (Wednesday): Ummm, yeah, I got knocked out. Tomorrow is a new day, though!
Round 4 (Thursday): 1450 WIN! Woohoo! Did great on my calories today!
Round 5 (Friday): 1455 WIN!
Round 6 (Saturday): ?? But I'm considering it a win!
Round 7 (Sunday): 1488 WIN!

Overall, I won the weekly challenge! Woohoo!!

It was great to have a goal in mind and accomplish it. Hopefully this calorie trend will continue!

Sensational Snack: Cantaloupe

2009-03-29T10:02:00.004-05:00

When I was a kid my mom used to buy cantaloupe for us all the time. I loved the stuff! Still do. This melon really ranks up there on the tasty fruit list!

Here are some of the benefits of cantaloupe:

Low calories
Tons of vitamin C (water-soluble antioxidant)
Tons of beta-carotene, vitamin A (fat-soluble antioxidants)
Vitamin A helps promote lung health
Good for eye health

To read more about the benefits of cantaloupe check out my source! World's Healthiest Foods: Cantaloupe

A run and a ride

2009-03-29T09:53:00.003-05:00

So Saturday morning was beautiful! The sun was out and a cold front had passed through leaving the temps lower than they had been all week. I was pleasantly surprised that Jesse decided to come with me to the park! He was going to walk Cooper while I ran my 3 miles.

It was just gorgeous out there. I started up my run and was feeling great. I wasn't checking my HR monitor much and when I got to 2 miles I realized I was running at a 11:00 min/mile pace! Whoa! That is faster than I usually run, but I was feeling fine.

Unfortunately it wasn't to last. *Queue dooming music here.*

At about 2.25 miles my right knee started to give me some pain. Generally I just run through discomfort but pretty quickly the pain was to the point where my gait was about to be affected. I stopped, stretched, and tried again. It kept acting up.

I decided to call it and not push my knee. I think that was the best decision and today I'm glad I pulled up before the 3 miles. I'm not sure if it was the extra cold or what. Next Saturday is the Muddy Trails 5k and I hope I don't have this problem again.

Today the knee is feeling ok and I'm not having pain. That's a good sign. It worries me more when the pain holds over to later in the day or the next day.

The ride? Oh that was a car ride from Houston to San Antonio! After getting back from the park Jesse got a message that a piece of music equipment he was wanting to buy was available in SA. So off we went for a quick road trip!

It threw off my eating plans, but I was able to make smart, healthy choices while on the road. Woohoo! Yesterday was certainly one of those days when I felt in control of my food. Very powerful feeling!

Lots of chores to catch up on today so I better get moving!

Weekly Challenge Update

2009-03-29T09:47:00.002-05:00

*** ROUNDS ***

Round 1 (Monday): 1323 WIN!
Round 2 (Tuesday): 1545 Just barely over!
Round 3 (Wednesday): Ummm, yeah, I got knocked out. Tomorrow is a new day, though!
Round 4 (Thursday): 1450 WIN! Woohoo! Did great on my calories today!
Round 5 (Friday): 1455 WIN!
Round 6 (Saturday): ?? But I'm considering it a win!

I'm not sure of my exact calorie count yesterday, but I'm pretty sure it was within range. I'll explain more in my next post but the day started great with a light breakfast with Jesse and then some healthy snacking. We ended up going out of town unexpectedly but I had a dinner of 2 chicken fajitas loaded with onions and tomatoes. I did have a few chips and cheese but it was all very controlled.

This morning my weight showed that I had done well and the scale was actually down! Woohoo!

One more day to go (today) and then we'll see what my weigh-in is like on Monday.

Have a great Sunday!

I can still run!

2009-03-26T21:11:00.005-05:00

Well, I didn't post about the dismal run I had on Tuesday. It was disheartening to me, as disheartening as when I found out Firefly was cancelled. Man, that was a great show!

Tuesday's plan had been to run 2.5 miles. I was indoors for this run at the gym, on the dreadmill, because there were heavy, heavy clouds out and the forecast was for rain. Terrible rain. Torrents of rain headed our way!!

It didn't rain.

Anyway, so there I am getting started on the treadmill. My day had not been great up to that point and I was tired that day. So as I ran I became agitated and my legs began feeling like lead before even 1/2 a mile in. At 3/4 of a mile I seriously wondered if I could even continue.

What is this??!!?? I ran 3 miles fairly easily just 2 days ago! I can't even get to 1 mile? Oh my was I frustrated. I finally resigned myself to just running 1 mile and calling it a day. It didn't help that as I started running I was hit with the urge to visit the restroom for an extended stay (if you know what I mean).

Disappointed and frustrated I left the gym. I wondered if the people there noticed I was only there for about 15 minutes.

On Wednesday I was feeling better and wanted to try to redeem myself by heading out for a run. Thankfully I actually used my head for once and waited until today, Thursday, for my next run.

Good call, Michelle! I felt GREAT today! Yeah, I had to run on the treadmill again today (it actually was raining this time) but it didn't matter. I was zoned in and had a wonderfully comfortable run. I felt like I could run even farther! I pulled up at 2.5ish miles, though, so my longer run could be this coming weekend.

Ahhhh, it was great to have that tingling, happy, running sensation again! I know it's silly but Tuesday was the first really bad run I've had. I knew I'd have bad runs eventually, but I couldn't help the down feeling I got afterwards and the self doubt of "Maybe I can't do this."

I know, I know. What a goofy attitude. Snap out of it woman! Thankfully the run today reconfirmed that I can do this and maybe I am a runner!

The icing on the cake for the day was that I stayed on my calories. 1450 was my total. Yay!

Now, to resist the temptations of Friday - Sunday.

I think I can. I think I can. I think I can. =)

Round 4 Results

2009-03-26T21:09:00.002-05:00

Round 3 Results

2009-03-25T22:01:00.001-05:00

*** ROUNDS ***
Round 1 (Monday): 1323 WIN!
Round 2 (Tuesday): 1545 Just barely over!
Round 3 (Wednesday): Ummm, yeah, I got knocked out. Tomorrow is a new day, though!

Sensational Snack: Oranges

2009-03-25T17:56:00.007-05:00

The orange is one of my favorite fruits. Not only does it taste delicious but it's great for your body with many health benefits!

Check out some of the great things about oranges:

Lowers high blood pressure
Lowers cholesterol
Vitamin C out the wazoo! (Antioxidant - fight cancers!)
Boosts immune system
And more!

So go on and enjoy your oranges!

For more information on the benefits of oranges check out my source for the info above: World's Healthiest Foods: Oranges

Round 2 Results

2009-03-25T13:34:00.003-05:00

*** ROUNDS ***
Round 1 (Monday): 1323 WIN!
Round 2 (Tuesday): 1545 Just barely over!

I gotta tell ya'll, round 3 is not looking good. Doh!

It's time for....

2009-03-24T13:01:00.003-05:00

THE WEEKLY CHALLENGE!!!

"In this corner we have the ominous, the dreadful.....SURPLUS CALORIES!!!!"

*Crowd booos!*

"In that corner we have the challenger, the calorie controller, maybe a runner MICHELLE!"

*Doing my Saturday Night Fever Dance*

"Now we're pretty straightforward here. Challenger, you must keep calories between 1300-1500 all week to avoid surplus calories' blows! Keep this clean! Go!"

*** ROUNDS ***
Round 1 (Monday): 1323 WIN!

Hauntingly motivational

2009-03-23T13:09:00.001-05:00

A change of pace.

2009-03-22T15:35:00.002-05:00

Today was a running day and I needed to get in 3 miles. Ooof. 3 miles is about my top out point although I have managed to do 3.5 on a treadmill a couple weeks back.

I didn't change my running pace today, though, but I did change up where I ran. We have a great park right by our neighborhood called Gene Green park (or the Double G as myself, my husband, and the Coopster refer to it). GG has a 2 mile path which is great for running, but I needed new scenery.

Thus I headed to Friendswood which is about 30 minutes from my house. I snagged my mom on the way (who lives in Friendswood) and hit up Stevenson park.

It turned out to be a great idea! Even though the path was only 1/2 a mile the change in scenery was great. There was a lot of shade too which was welcome on this warmer spring day in Houston. As a new runner I'm dreading the heat of summer. Just thought I'd throw that out there!

After my 6 laps were done I walked back and met up with my mom. We walked another lap and talked. It was nice. I love my mommy.

I did have my first, err... casualty? of running. Injury maybe? Hmm not really. Whatever you want to call it I got a rub spot under my left arm! Ouch! It's not too bad but if I had continuned running for a while I imagine it would have been bloody raw. I guess the hem of my sleeve started rubbing and wouldn't stop.

Anyway, it stings a bit now but should be fine in a day or so. This is the first time it's happened and I'm not really sure how to prevent it. Bodyglide maybe? I'm too much of a newb to need that already! Right? Well, if it's a consistant problem I guess I'll have to join the hordes of BG/Vaseline slatherers.

It's a rest day... or is it?

2009-03-20T12:51:00.000-05:00

Fridays are rest days for me. So today being Friday I don't have any official running or working out planned. (Legs: "Thank god!")

However, today I did take off work to paint my dining room. As I began painting this morning I started thinking about calories. Those calories are little punks! Always trying to form huge gangs of like 3000 and get stored away in my belly! Jerks.

We know what we have to do, eh? Burn them! BURN THEM ALIVE!!!

That's right, the good ol calorie burn. Of course our body burns calories consistantly throughout the day just to perform normal functions that keep us alive. However, our bodies don't need to burn that many calories to keep us sitting on our asses watching re-run episodes of Good Eats!

No, my friends, we must do more to burn more of those pesky calories. So in steps exercise. Exercise is the stud of the calorie burning world. Exercise is hawt!!

My post, though, is not about exercise but about remembering that we burn calories doing all sorts of stuff! Like.... painting a dining room! As I sat there painting along the trim of my dining room (no not sitting watching Good Eats - although I do love that show!) I was smiling knowing that I was burning some extra punkass calories.

So if you have a room to paint, a yard to mow, housework to do... Don't despair over the lameness of the chore, but rejoice in the extra calorie burn you're getting by doing something you have to do anyways. Yay!

Zoooom!

2009-03-19T21:35:00.001-05:00

Ok, maybe zoom is a bit of an exaggeration, but I ran my fastest mile yet tonight!

So I hit up the park after work. My usual stomping grounds. The place is packed which is typical. People playing tennis, playing basketball, skating at the skate park, riding bikes, walking, running, and ...eating KFC. Hehe I guess that's people watching with a bucket of fried chicken.

I do my warmup walking with some high steps and such (no, small sweaty person, I am not in a marching band!) and then start off for my 2 miles.

Now, I must explain, dear as-of-yet-non-existent reader, that I'm not exactly what you would call.... oh.... fast. I'm new to running and basically plod along around a 11:30 pace on my runs. Of course running makes me feel like an Olympian! I trot around the park path with my trusty HR monitor and Ipod, secretly giving the stink eye to the walking gangs that hog up the whole path.

But, yeah, I'm just slowly cruising along at a slow pace. And I'm good with that.

Today though. Today! I get about 3/4 into my run and realize I'm breathing heavier than usual. "Wow what's up with this breathing?" I wonder. A quick glance at my HR monitor shows that I'm way ahead of my usual time at this distance! Wow! Since I'm so close to the mile mark I push on at the pace I have and finish the mile in 10:35. Woohoo! That is a mile PR for me!

I was excited but had to slow it down for the 2nd mile. I finished that one up in 11:20, still faster than my usual.

So it was a good running day. I didn't intend to run faster than usual, I just didn't look at my monitor as much as usual to realize I was holding a quicker pace after my start.

What does it all mean? All this faster than usual running? Are my legs going bionic? Was I possessed by Pheidippides? Or am I actually, you know, getting better?

Hahaha! Why now that's just silly. It must be the bionics.

Ahoy maties!

2009-03-19T15:47:00.000-05:00

So, I've decided to take another stab at blogging. Dun, dun, duuunnnn!!!!

For the past year a good portion of my life has revolved around health, fitness, weight loss, and the various aspects that come along with those topics. Anything from 'How many calories is a pound?' to 'Why does my pee smell like a bat guano slushie after I eat asparagus?'

I've pondered these deep thoughts to myself and now, dear readers...reader...crickets?

Anyway, like the gazillion of bloggers before me I've decided to display my thoughts in this wonderful blog fashion.

I hope that anyone who may read this will enjoy it. If nothing else it'll be a nice journal.

With that said, welcome to Maybe a Runner!