Back on Track Monday

Today is a back on track day, which means I worked out and ate well.

I had pilates today and then I went swimming. I swam 40 laps of the 25 meter pool in about 35 minutes. There were many kids for some reason. They were jumping off the diving board. One girl jumped and then kept flailing around. I couldn't tell if she was joking or not. Her friends were yelling at her to swim, swim. Finally the lifeguard blew his whistle and went to save her. All the other lifeguards came running. It was crazy. I hadn't ever seen that before. She seemed pretty shook up after that and they all had to fill out forms. A little freaky.

I worried the whole time about accidentally peeing and microscopic fish swimming up my urethra. Thanks Billy. That was a creepy story. Luckily I managed to control myself. I do need swimming pool flip flops. The locker room is just plain gross. I usually have my running shoes on in there, but today didn't plan my footwear very appropriately. Yuck.

Tonight is leftover night and then we will shop later tonight. I think it may be burger week!!!

Sibling Trip

Back from California. It was fun!

This is all of us in front of the helicopter at the Nixon Library. I am still a bit grumpy about the whole thing, because the Watergate exhibit was closed for renovations. I don't know about most people, but that's the part I was interested in seeing.

I think Mary most enjoyed the docent explaining all of the gowns on display!

After a quick happy-hour stop at a local pub, El Torrito, we went to eat pizza with the California cousins. That was fun!! We played baseball with Daniel and got to catch up with our aunt and see the little ones.On Saturday we swam and bought snacks and two buck chuck at Trader Joe's and then sat on the patio and ate and drank and talked to our parents.

Then we ate sushi! And tried to teach Mary to use chopsticks.

Later we went to a bar.



Then on Sunday we went for a yummy breakfast. Mary and I didn't know better, but luckily Billy ordered off the "lite" menu. Before our plane we had time to sample some authentic California shops. We bought stuff at the Gap, Lucky, and Ann Taylor.

Hopefully we can do these sibling trips often. It was very fun and pretty relaxed. I am hoping Billy can come to Kansas City for the October 20th Half Marathon.

Thursday

Today was a busy day getting ready for my trip with the siblings! I ran a million errands, pilate'd, pump'd and ran. I only ran two miles and then walked one. But, the two miles were super fast. Two miles in 20:20. YEAH!!!

Tomorrow is the big trip!! I am meeting Mary at 7:30 and then we meet Billy at 10:30. And then!!! We get to go to the Nixon library!!! FUN!

I am looking forward to eating Tarragon Turkey Burgers, oven fries and asparagus in front of the Democratic debate tonight!!

I'll be back next week after the trip!!

Knitting

So, I have mentioned on here that my friend taught me to knit. But I didn't go back and elaborate. I love knitting!

I went yesterday with my friend to this very cool shop called String. I picked out some oatmeal colored wool yarn and started to make my scarf. I loved sitting in the shop with other women knitting on a cold, snowy afternoon.

This morning I was trying to read blogs, but my Internet crapped out, so I worked on the scarf.

It was looking really good...

You can tell that I was knitting three purling three and so on. I was so proud of it that I left it out to show Tim when he got home from work. Bad idea.

WANTED: KNITTING WRECKER and YARN EATER

Spring Storm

Monday night it rained all night. Which is VERY unusual. Then on Tuesday morning it turned to snow around here, but was still rain until the evening at my parents. I have about five inches of snow. It is the really wet spring-type snow and will be great for the grass. I do need to shovel, though.

Tuesday morning I went to tai chi, pilates and pump. Then I met my friend at the yarn store, so I never made it to cardio.

Today is pilates and crosstraining. I think I will add a little run also, since I didn't get to yesterday.

Recovery Workout

Mary said to take my workout pretty easy today. So I did. I always listen to Mary.

I went to pilates and I elliptical'd for 30 minutes. Burned 195 calories and my HR average was 135. Nice and easy. Then I stretched for a long time.

I wanted to give you all a very easy chicken recipe. We had it last night and it was SO yummy.

Citrus Chicken (serves 4, very good leftover on a sammich)
In a gallon size plastic bag place 1 pound of chicken breasts.
Into the baggie pour 3 tablespoons lite/low sodium soy sauce, 4 teaspoons olive oil, 2 teaspoons dried basil, the zest and juice of one lemon, one lime and one orange, 1 shallots sliced, 4 garlic cloves minced, salt and pepper.
Marinate for several hours, turning the baggie over once.
Grill until your meat thermometer reads 180 degrees.

We had it with red potato packets and broccoli, a nice bottle of Nora white wine, and the Sopranos.

Tonight is burger night. I love burger night. One week in May we are going to haveBurger Week. One night beef burgers, then salmon burgers, then pork burgers, then turkey burgers, and then three more ideas.....we haven't gotten that far. We are a burger loving family.

I am off to shower prior to book club. The ladies would prefer it that way, I think.

6 Miles!!!

Guess what crapped out again?? I'll give you a hint....it wasn't me. Darn Garmin. I was running along doing very well, if I do say so myself. I had gone to where the Garmin said 2.96 miles and I turned around. It was about 34 minutes in, so I was pretty sure it was very close to 3 miles. I then ran back toward home. When I came up a hill it said I was getting close to 5 miles, which is the 8k distance that I want to do in under 54 minutes. It said 4.8 miles 55 minutes, so I was so excited. I have about 6 weeks to get a little faster!!

But then....it made this weird beep and I looked and it said 4.0 miles so I was all bummed, then about few seconds later it beeped again and the little pop-up guy said it had lost satellite connection. So boo.

Luckily I had my HRM on, so I know that I ran 1 hour, 10 minutes and 55 seconds. I also know that I burned 527 calories. Yeah! Then I grabbed Maddie and we drove the course and it was 6 miles afterall. YEAH!!!

So I ran 6 miles in 71:55. I think that is AWESOME. And the better part is that I wasn't dead. I could have kept going. My legs were tired and my knees were a bit sore, but all in all I felt very good.

I wonder if the airport has anything to do with the Garmin troubles?? I was no where near tress and there aren't any clouds today... I did run right up next to the runway, though, so maybe that messed with it? It was so cool though, two little planes took off over me and they were so close!!

Anyway, for the weekend record: Pump & Pilate's Saturday; 6 mile run Sunday.
California in 5 days!!!

Four Days in a Row!

I pilate'd at 7:30, spun at 9:30 and am done! I like the get it over early Friday plan. I am now doing laundry and will clean some too. I really like having a plan. I stick to it much better!

Tomorrow is a pre-meeting for one of the Couples Golf Leagues we are joining, so I am looking forward to that. Also we would like to hike somewhere.

Sunday Tim and my Dad are playing in a member/guest tournament with my Dad's Men's Club. Hopefully they play well and it is a nice day. Sunday I am running 6 miles!

Happy ANNiversary!!!

Do you have certain words that you just love? That when you hear them or say them or read them, they just make you smile? I do! I love the words: Anniversary, Annotation, Announcement. I even have a state that I love: Maryland. Why?? Because its capitol, Annapolis, is a great word. (Also I like the Mary and Ann part.)

So today makes me happy. It is my double ANNiversary!!!

Two years ago today, April 19, 2005, I was fat. I was unhappy. I had just told my husband that I wanted a divorce. I was deeply in love with Tim, who was married to someone else. I was traveling constantly for a job that I loathed, working for people I loathed. I dreaded going to work. I had a house I didn't want. I was stuck. So I did what I normally did....had a giant lunch, sat on my butt all day at work, wished for something better. And then! I sent Mary an email and I told her I was going to Weight Watchers that night.

I was so nervous that night going in the door. I didn't really know what to expect. I knew that Mary and my Mom had both had great success with Weight Watchers, and I knew I was desperate to get in control of my life. The meeting was awesome. Right away I told the receptionist I was nervous and she said she had been too, but that I was in the right place. I really was.

So, today, on my two year Weight Watchers ANNiversary I am 50 pounds lighter and I ran over 4 miles today and I LOVED IT!

One year ago today, April 19, 2006, I was sad. I had just lost my job. Granted it was a job that I more than detested, but leaving it hadn't been on my terms. I was deeply and dangerously falling into depression. I was trying to work out at the gym, but honestly I was just so sad and miserable that it was hard to go regularly. I was worried about money, and what to do with my life, and I just wanted to sit in my pajamas on the couch and cry. And then! After a few weeks of knowing I needed to do something new and just for me, I signed up for pilates and started my lessons.

I was so nervous going in that door, but everyone was so nice and friendly. I didn't know much about pilates, but I had been wanting to try it out. The first lesson was a bit scary, but I could feel that it would work if I stuck it out. I felt like it was just right for me.

So today, on my one year Pilates ANNiversary I am stronger and leaner than I have ever been in my life. I have muscles everywhere. I am longer (1/2 inch!) and thinner and I even have better posture.

So, even though I didn't run as fast as I wanted today, and even though I'll never be the best pilates student, I am SO proud of myself and happy with me. I haven't ever felt that before. I still don't know what I want to be when I grow up, but I am darn sure happy with my life and where I am at now.

Third Day.

My Garmin had some issues at the beginning of my run today, but I went anyway. I ran 48.46 minutes. I think I ran 4.61 miles. Which is a 10.51 minutes a mile. I thought I totally did faster, but I guess not. Which means I have a LONG way to go to get ready for the 8k that I wanted to finish in under 50 minutes. Basically when I uploaded everything I got three different answers on distance depending on where the Garmin starting working. I know I ran farther today than I have before so at least that is good.

I also pilate'd and pump'd and am now going to hit golf balls.

I wish I hadn't figured this all out, I was so happy thinking I had gone very fast....but now I am bummed.

Second Day Down!!!

Whoohooo! I made it two days in a row. This writing out my plan for the world (or Mary, Lisa and Tim) to see has made a big difference. Now I HAVE to exercise. I can't let you all down.

I went to the gym and did the elliptical for 35 minutes this morning. And then went to pilates.

I was done by lunchtime and happy! It is sunny and 70 degrees!! We are going to the driving range after Tim gets home, so yeah!!

The grass is getting greener and Maddie has stopped licking it, so perhaps Spring is really here?!?

First training day - check!

I did it. I stuck to my plan. I pilate'd, pump'd and then ran 4.04 miles in 46.20 minutes. Yeah!
I am pretty tired, but happy.

Then I made Weight Watcher lasagna for Tim and my Mom.

Before pilates tomorrow I will either take a spin class or elliptical. Depending on whether Tim can fix the iPOD or not. I don't like the thought of elliptical-ling without music. It has these weird times when it doesn't work and then a little jiggle in the right direction by him and presto. Frustrating. Oh! He just fixed it. A little wiggle and it worked. Why doesn't it work when I wiggle? Oh well.

Busy Monday!

Today I only had time to go to pilates. I am doing too much other stuff. I have a PFLAG Art Auction Committee meeting and a PEO meeting. I am leaving in 4 minutes for those.

Tomorrow is the first day of my real cardio training! I am committed ---

Mondays: Pilates, Cardio Crosstraining (Spin or Elliptical)
Tuesdays: Pilates, Weightlifting, 45 minute Run
Wednesday: Pilates, Cardio Crosstraining (Spin or Elliptical)
Thursdays: Pilates, Weightlifting, 45 minute Run
Fridays: Pilates, Cardio Crosstraining (Spin or Elliptical)
Saturdays: Pilates, Weightlifting
Sundays: Long Run

Grumble Bear

This wind has got to stop. I made it a whole mile on my five mile run. I was so grumpy and mad and down that I just came home. Please tell me that this weather will get better and I will be able to run consistently outside. Now that I made the transition to running outside, I don't want to go back to the treadmill.

On another note. I have to commit to a workout plan for my non-running, cardio cross training days. I need to take two spin classes and have one elliptical day each week. Monday, Wednesday, Friday. I have to or I will never be ready for my races. One is less than a month away!! Tomorrow is already a problem though, with scheduling. Boo. I have to work that out. How can someone who has nothing to do, always be in a time crunch?

3 Beagle Run

Today is finally a nice day! I got up and went to pump and pilates. We had the hard sub for pilates, and I am very pleased that she didn't scare me this time. The first time she subbed I was terrified. She is super strong, so I was pleased at how far I have come in the muscles department!

After the morning workout Tim and I made Salmon Burgers and oven fries for brunch. We were supposed to make them last night, but large beers were calling.

Then after that I went for a run while Tim worked on the yard. I wanted to see how long three miles would take. I was hoping for 31:30, and finished in 31:42. So I was very pleased. 4 seconds a mile over what I wanted!! I love the Garmin.

After the run I helped with fertilizing the yard. I bought organic fertilizer because I didn't want Maddie eating anything bad for her. She was back there when I was spreading it and she freaking LOVED it! She was rolling in it and licking it. I had to put her inside and now she is whining to go back out. Silly puppy. Loves that chicken poop!

Tomorrow is a 5 mile day. Tim has to run up to Brighton to let his daughter's dogs out, so I will have plenty of time. I am a bit nervous, as this will be the longest of the long runs yet.

I can believe that 6 months and one week from today we will be running over 13 miles. Whoohooo. Fun!!!! Sure seems soon though.

The Cheese Stands Alone

Damn cheese.

I have been so good since the "weekend of eating" has passed. (also known as the weekend my whole family was in town) I haven't cheated, or eaten too much, or eaten non-core foods. But just now I ate 5 points of cheese in about 90 seconds. That's a lot of cheese. I love that stuff. Luckily my Flex Points reset today!

Anyway, now I need to get cleaning and laundry-ing. It is still snowing, and has been all day, but it is just a touch too warm to stick, so it is just cold and wet. We are supposed to grill Salmon Burgers tonight, but it might be too cold. Someday I hope we have a covered deck.

No pilates today, I cancelled because I thought we were really going to get some snow, but we didn't. Just cardio.

Family resemblance??

Mary Billy Ann

Maddie is back in her sweater...

Well, it is officially snowing. Already. We might get 6 inches tonight and another foot tomorrow. Maddie wanted her sweater on as soon as I got back from pilates.

I figured Mary would really let me have it if I didn't get cardio in again today, so I got up early. For me. And went running. I wanted to know two things. First, how far it was to where the trail is marked - 0.75 miles. YEAH! Secondly, where do I turn around for a 5k - at the Cottonwood bridge. So I did that and froze all my stuff. And it was awful. SO cold. I came home and took the longest shower to try and warm up. I guess if one were to run in that often, one would need more clothing.

Then I went to pilates and pump. Then I came home and ate. A lot! I was so hungry. Actually I went to Wal-Mart on the way home. I hate Wal-Mart, but it is the only close store, so I ran in for more milk and whipped cream. If we are getting snowed in, we need the essentials. Which in my book means we have to make the special Chocolate/Peanut Butter 1 point yummies. FF Chocolate Pudding layered with FF cool whip Peanut Butter fluff. So yummy.

I am trying to upload the map of my run.... But obviously it isn't working. Boo. I will keep trying. I think a visit to the Garmin website is in order.

In other news, when Mary and I went running I was all excited because the Garmin said we burned 541 calories in 40 minutes of running. She said that was way high and we didn't burn close to that many. So today, I wore the Garmin and my HRM. The HRM said I burned 231 calories and the Garmin said 467. So YIKES. That is quite different. I believe the HRM.

Lastly, I went to pilates a bit early today because my Mom was having a private, and I wanted to watch. I was SO proud of her. She is doing really well. She was able to table-top her legs on the roller AND she can lift one leg up while in a bridge on the ball. That's so awesome. She loves it too, which is the best part. Her next class she is going to start trying to leg work because she is doing so well stabilizing with her core!! Yeah Mom!!

Everyone (LISA) better start updating. If I am snowed in I will need lots of blogs to read, so don't let me down.

Still windy, More grumpy

OMG! Seriously. This wind has to stop. Now! I just want this storm to come through and be done. The threat of accumulating snow doesn't even bother me. At least then it won't be sunny. The sun is like a big tease. You could be outside, but you'll blow to Kansas.... Over IT!

Today I did pilates. We learned a new move called stomach massage. You have to push the carriage out using your stomach and then resist the pull back home with your stomach. It is hard. I am not quite sure I got it right, but I felt like I was really using my abs.

Then I shopped. If we get snowed in, we will be eating very well. Technically we will be eating very well anyway. Tonight is Tarragon Turkey Burgers, Red Potato Packets and Asparagus. Tomorrow is Shrimp Diavolo with Whole Wheat Spaghetti. Friday is Salmon Burgers with Oven Fries and Broccoli. Saturday is Fennel and Onion Smothered Steak with Baked Sweet Potatoes and Green Beans. Sunday is Tilapia with Black Beans and Couscous. Monday is Lasagna!

In an unrelated note, but interesting to me....I found this funny running blog entry today about a girl who, much like me, loves cheese. She really wanted this last piece of cheese for lunch, so she ate it. Then after work she went running and had to finish her run with much derriere squeezing. Heehee. I love the Internet.

I am off to shower and then a friend from PEO and book club is going to teach me to knit!

This wind is driving me crazy

Ugh. I just want Spring. This 40 degrees and blustery cold gusty wind is TOO much. I can't run outside. I don't even want to drive to the gym to run inside because it is too cold and blustery. When I left pump and pilates I could barely open my car door because of the wind. JUST STOP.

So today I am just catching up on things. Bills, shopping lists, dinner ideas, cleaning bathrooms, vacuuming, snuggling with Maddie, etc... I also need to clean out the fridge. And figure out the garmin.

I hope that everyone else gets in a good aerobic workout. My pump and pilates will have to be enough.

Running with Mary

Today Mary and I ran outside in the open space over the dam to Homestead Elementary and then back. We took the Garmin, but we can't get in onto the computer today because I left the base at my house.

I learned a few valuable lessons.
1. Don't eat 6 chocolate easter eggs prior to running.
2. If you even sort of have to poop, do it BEFORE running.
3. Don't start out too fast.

All-in-all it was a good run for me. I know it was slow for Mary, but it was nice of her to come with me and not run circles around me laughing.

Easter Weekend

So far this has been a very nice three-day weekend!! Although the weather has been crappy, so no golf. Friday we ran lots of errands, Saturday we baked two bundt cakes and had dinner with the whole family. Today was going to be running day with Mary and my Dad, but it snowed. With ice underneath. So we will eat. Ham, deviled eggs, scalloped potatoes, chocolate. And WINE!!! We gave up alcohol for Lent, so today we can drink!! We also gave up fast food and meat on Fridays, but those were easy. The drinking was a touch harder.

Tomorrow it is back to training for the 8k.

50 POUNDS!!!

Today I went to my Weight Watchers meeting early, since Mary was getting here this afternoon and I finally LOST 50 POUNDS!!! I got the magnet and everything.

I am SO excited and proud. It took 23 months and 2 weeks. But I finally got there. Now I really need to decide on a goal weight. I was thinking it was going to be 12.4 more pounds, but I don't know. Maybe 7.4 more??? I don't know. I think it might depend on what the running does to my body. Once I am consistently running three times a week, I think I will know better.

YEAH!!! 50 POUNDS!!! YEAH!!!

Spring Cleaning!

Today was all about the Spring Cleaning. I washed all the windows on the first floor - inside and out. I cleaned the baseboard and chair rail. I dusted everything possible including the wood blinds. I vacuumed every inch of the couch. I washed all the laundry. I scrubbed and polished and windexed. I was awesome!!

I also went to Pilate's for an hour.

Tomorrow my sister comes to town and I am very excited. I have a lot to do before she gets here, though....WW, run, Pilate's, Pump, shower, lunch...Lots.

Busy Week!

Yesterday was a great day! I finally finished the thatching of the yard and I have the blisters to prove it. I am very proud of myself. Last year Tim helped, but this year I wanted to get all the exercise myself! It is now ready for fertilizer and mowing. It will be green in no time.

After yard work, I had Pilate's and then pump. The leader said I should go lower on my squats, so I tried that and YOWSER, that worked. Then I had packed myself a little lunch to eat while I drove to the store. I had to do big shopping for the week. Now that we are eating so much better it requires more shopping time! I wish Denver had better produce.

I came home and put everything away, marinated dinner and then went for a run!!! I LOVED it! On Tuesdays and Thursday for the 8K training, I have to run for 30 - 45 minutes. I decided to run on the trail those days and save the neighborhood for distance runs on Saturdays. I was so excited when I got to the county line, because the marked the distance!!! I just need to figure out how far it is to the county line. Any ideas for that???

So I ran to the one mile marker and back home. I am thinking it was well over three miles, but don't know for sure. I do know that I ran from the one mile mark to the zero mile mark in 10 minutes and 24 seconds....WHICH IS AWESOME!!!!

Then I came home, stretched, took a shower, and then Tim and I went to the driving range to hit some balls. After that we made a yummy dinner of marinated steak, cous cous with peas, sauteed mushrooms and onions, and corn. We finished with a tiny bit of ice cream while we watched The Big Break. I am SO glad that Kelly went home. I am sure he is a nice guy and all, but he came across as very condescending to women. I still want to know what he thinks women hit a 6 iron. LOL!

All in all, I had a very active day:
1 Hour Yard Work
1 Hour Pilate's
1 Hour Pump
39 min 20 sec Run
1 Hour Driving Range

My HRM said in the 39 minute run that my average was 149 and I burned 322 calories.
But the % always said 77 - 84% max HR. So is that good??? Or too low???

A Fishy Incident: the red snapper cake caper

In September, Tim thought it would be fun to try out some new recipes. We spent the weekend with cookbooks, magazines, and recipe cards spread out across the living room. We selected 20 recipes to make over the month of October. We headed out to Super Target with a giant shopping list. We had to store stuff in the basement we bought so many groceries. The next month was a BLAST! We had so much fun trying new meals and making them together. We had so many leftovers that our freezer was full and our lunches were awesome. We cooked so much in October that we didn't really need to cook new meals in November or December. In January we started again and found a bunch of new recipes to try. Cooking became our new hobby.

When I decided to go back to Weight Watchers and try the Core plan, we bought a new cookbook and have been making very yummy Core meals for the last three weeks. We have had steak, tilapia, tuna puttanesca, black beans, cous cous, and our new favorite meal -- Salmon Burgers. We are eating so well and thank goodness Spring is here because we are grilling almost every night.

Today was supposed to be the nicest day of the week, so after my Pilate's class I figured I needed to finish thatching the yard. That three months of snow on the grass has really done a number on the lawn. I worked for several hours last week on the front and finally was able to move to the back today. Today was my cross training day, so I thought I would wear my HRM to see if the thatching was good enough for a workout. Oh my gosh, I can't believe how hard it is! I thought that since I did it last week I wouldn't be as tired, but I was. I worked for 4 hours and finished about 3/4 of the backyard. I burned over 700 calories and my heart rate was about 60 - 65% the whole time. I counted that as my workout.

Because I was in a zone, I never made it to the store to pick up dinner. I called and asked Tim to get the ingredients on his way home from work. Because we have enjoyed the salmon burgers so much, we wanted to try the Red Snapper Cakes. I thought they would be more like burgers, just with an added egg and some corn meal. In all of our cooking attempts we have really never had a problem. We accidentally added too much red pepper to some Shrimp Scampi once; we over boiled some asparagus once; and we heated some yeast to a very high temperature once -- but really everything else since October has been good. Yumm-o even.

Until tonight. We couldn't even eat the cakes (which were nothing like burgers.) We didn't even let Maddie eat them. Oh well, one flopper every few months isn't bad.

Golfing Sunday

Today we golfed at a course we hadn't been to before. As is generally the case, we had a little trouble just because of unfamiliarity. Also, it was Tim's first full 18 this season. We both have a few kinks to work out. This week we have plans to hit the practice range at least two evenings and then golf on Friday since Tim has the day off.

I did out-drive the other guy we were playing with on the first hole and he didn't seem to like that too much. He let me know that "most women can't hit their drivers like that." Hehe. I can. Sometimes.

I am enjoying the challenge of playing from the white tees instead of the reds. But geesh, some of those par 4's are so long from the whites. I have to get a good drive, or my 4 iron just isn't enough. I wish I could hit my hybrid more consistently.

Yesterday really was a perfect day. After our hike, which was AWESOME, we had dinner and then were looking for a movie to watch on On Demand. We stumbled upon one of my favorites -- The Seduction of Joe Tynan. I have been wanting to watch this with Tim for years, but Netflix doesn't have it. I was so excited. He really liked it also and Maddie had a big bone so she wasn't interrupting.

Tomorrow I start training for the Women's Only 8k on June 10th. I need to get my butt in gear running-wise. We did have a very active weekend. So hopefully switching to running mode won't be too hard.