TGIMT (Thank God It’s My Thursday)

The best kind of workweeks are three-day workweeks. Today was my Thursday because on REAL Thursday I’m leaving for my cousin’s wedding in Iowa/my stalking mission of Bachelor Chris Soules. I’m looking around at my living room right now and realizing I need to do ALL THE THINGS before I go because a friend is coming over to house-sit and dog-sit and I don’t want her to think we live in squalor. I also just bought a dress for this event about an hour ago when hubby and I went on a binge wedding-clothes shopping mission. 

Does anyone else think that work really gets in the way of life? Because I could have had all this stuff done DAYS ago if I didn’t spend 8-10 hours a day being an employed adult. Just kidding (mostly), I VERY much appreciate being employed and earning a living. 

I missed Track Tuesday while I was out shopping tonight, which was sad, but I’m going to try and hit the gym at 4:30 tomorrow morning (I tend not to sleep when I’m stressed or before I travel). Saturday I forced myself out the door to meet my group for 8 miles at 8 am, even though my partners in crime were both booked elsewhere. I managed to find people to talk to for about 6 of the 8 miles, so while 8 miles didn’t really fly by, they were definitely not as painful as they could have been.  My average pace want as great as I would have liked, but I was able to converse the whole time, so I’m guessing I could have gone a little faster if I wanted to. Mostly I wanted to make it through. I’m supposed to do 9 this weekend (and I have a 15k next weekend), but thanks to Map My Run, I realized that 9 miles in a smal town in Iowa is REALLY hard to do. So I’m going to try and do a few laps around town, and squeeze some walks in. Not ideal, but better than nothing. 

So excited to see these people this weekend! I’ve got a recipe headed your way, hopefully tomorrow, that my hubby calls “the best thing I’ve ever made,” which is pretty high praise so get excited. 

Your turn: Any fun weekend plans?

How do you squeeze workouts in on vacation/when you’re with family/when you’re confined to a hotel gym and sharing a room with your parents?

All That Mid-Week Jazz

You guys, my bracket be busted. The ‘Zags failed me. I knew I shouldn’t have kept it in the Northwest. We are the epitome of disappointment during critical sports moments (see the last minute of this year’s Super Bowl, for example). On the plus side, I’m no longer glued to that stupid ESPN Tournament Challenge app.

Allergy season is in full force with this early spring we’ve had, so if I forget to take one of the OTC allergy pills we load up on at Kaiser, I walk around feeling like someone is grinding my face into a pile of pollen. That being said, I slept in this weekend and missed my long run with the group. My alarm sounded, I turned it off, and fell asleep for another four hours. Want to know what’s NOT as fun as running 7 miles with a group of great ladies? Running 7 miles by yourself around a high school track on a hot afternoon. I opted for the track because sometimes, planning distance from my house is just a hassle. I ended up alternating running and walking laps until the boys (aka husband and dog) showed up with another water bottle to walk me home. My times weren’t so hot, but I got the distance in, which I’m happy with considering that I didn’t run much the two weeks prior.    I was also breaking in my new Brooks! No more Nikes for this girl.   Then, last night was hill training at our weekly track workout. We ran to the park close to the track and did four hill repeats and I was reminded of why I used to hate running. EVERY PART OF MY BODY HATES HILLS. I sucked it up, ran up that (*@($ four times, and walked down to give myself a little bit of recovery. When I got home, I rewarded myself with a big ol’ spoonful of cookies & creme cookie butter. YUM. That stuff is insane. Then this morning, when my quads and glutes were screaming, my treat was half an apple fritter. You gotta treat yo’self or you’ll go insane. I’m trying to drop a few pounds, so I’m keeping my meals super balanced and healthy, limiting mindless snacking, and letting myself have a treat every now and then.

Today is officially 17 days until my 15k, and 31 days until my first half of the year. I’m trying to stay on my A-game, because I’m pretty sure this half will be mostly harder core runners and I don’t want to look like a schlub. I’m even going to try and get in a long run next week when I’m in Iowa for a family wedding. #goals

And that’s all. I’m just rising, grinding, and working on a few new recipes for the blog that I hope to have posted soon. The time of convenience meals is over, my friends, as I try and get a better handle on my nutrition again. Tonight, instead of risotto, I modified a recipe I found for “quinoa risotto.” Quinoa has a lot of natural protein and a delicious nutty flavor, so it was truly a hearty, one pot meal with endless possible modifications. It’s definitely joining the permanent rotation of “meals that are easy and flexible and I don’t have to think about it.”

Your turn:

Did you pull any April Fool’s Jokes today? Have any pulled on you? I generally dislike April Fools, not because I’m a Scrooge, but because some people don’t have a sense of humor. They either get super offended over something that was meant to be an innocent joke, or they pull a legitimately insensitive joke.

What’s the best thing you’ve cooked lately?

How do you get up a beastly hill?

Luckython 10k – Mud, Medals, and Fully Loaded Potatoes

My first 10k is in the books! I may have a few half marathons under my belt but I’ve never done a proper 10k until this drizzly, breezy Oregon morning. This is the first race hubby and I have done together in years!



Luckython, organized by Uberthons, was a 5/10/15k held at the Reserve Golf Course. St. Patrick’s themed, of course. We ran along the golf cart paths, which were riddled with mud puddles. Mile 1 was slow going, since they started all three distances at the same time, but miles 2-6 felt decent. I managed to PR my 5k and 10k times! 



I stuck to my goal of not walking (except through aide stations…I was already soaked, I didn’t need to waste my opportunities hydration so I preferred actually drinking the cups of water to tossing them in the general direction of my mouth). I have never EVER run 6 miles without taking walking breaks before. Never. And I kept all my miles under 12 minutes! I’m steadily getting faster. Today was a personal victory for me (note smiling face in the photo below).



After the race, there was a baked potato bar. I didn’t complain. 



On a final note, the boyband mix on Rock My Run has proved to be a complete game changer. If you were a teen in the 2000s, you will NOT be disappointed. It has really upped the ante my last few runs, because something about Aaron Carter just keeps me motivated (and BSB, and Hanson, and BBMak). 

Your turn: What are you up to this weekend?

Favorite boy band throwback song?

Random Rainy 5k

Sometimes your friends invite you to a random, free, early morning 5k fun run and you whine about it for hours and stay up late the night before and then just HAPPEN to wake up on time to go. So you go, hang out with some great people, and get a good run in that makes you feel great about your running goals for the year, because your mile splits were decent considering this was your second run since September.

This morning was one of those times.

The Roadrunner in NW Portland was celebrating their one year store-iversary this morning, and held a free 5k group run with goodies and giveaways and all that jazz. When I wrenched myself out of bed and out the door in time to pick up my friend Angie, there was a nice, cold, steady drizzle happening. I was wearing fleece, because I’m a total n00b when it comes to cold/wet weather running. But I sucked it up and used the thought of a scalding hot shower to motivate me. Running through NW when it was early and quiet was delightful even with the rain; this is one of my favorite neighborhoods and we ran some back streets so I found some new bars and coffee shops.

We got back to Roadrunner, drenched but feeling good. Some friendly chaps saw us taking selfies and offered to take a picture for us “because we HAD to get one under the Roadrunner sign.” Then we went inside for free mimosas and beer and bagels and fruit and infused water and waffles shaped like Nikes with the signature swoosh, because Oregon = Nike. We refrained from the waffles because we had run past Stepping Stone Cafe earlier and decided we earned us a REAL breakfast.

This is said real breakfast. And DAMN it was good. Angie had huevos rancheros, I had a veggie scramble, and we split a “mancake,” which was probably the best pancake I ever had. I had never been to Stepping Stone but I will for sure be returning soon because I wanted to devour their entire breakfast menu. Plus their motto was “You eat here because we let you,” and I like my breakfast to come with a little side of attitude. The cafe itself was tiny and cozy and I LOVED it because it wasn’t pretentious, like some breakfast places can be around here. It was just delicious food and good coffee on a rainy little corner of NW Portland. I’m excited to eat my leftovers tomorrow morning.

My scalding hot shower was worth the wait, by the way. Plus Husband had already showered so I got to hoard the hot water. Now I’m lounging in my bathrobe, cheering on my Seahawks (it’s a big week for northwest sports, with the college national championship game) and waiting impatiently for the beef curry I made to finish cooking low and slow in the oven. Perfect Saturday? Pretty close anyways. I’m still riding high on endorphins.

One of *THOSE* days…

This morning, I did not go running. I woke up with The Cramps of Death and laid in bed on the couch, where we’ve been sleeping because our bedroom is ungodly hot, for a few extra minutes. “I’ll go tonight,” I told myself.

So here I am, with a glass of red wine, in my comfies, not running. It’s still hot, and I still have The Cramps of Death, and frankly, I would rather scavenge my pantry for chocolate chips than go put in my four miles today.

And that’s ok. It is. It may not feel ok to me right now, but I’m proud of what I’ve accomplished in the last week. If my body wants to rest mid-week, I’m going to let it. Nike+ Running informed me yesterday that I’ve run 19 miles since I started my training last Tuesday, and that’s an accomplishment for me! I’m a lifelong running hater. So I’m choosing to celebrate my personal victory rather than lament about how lame I feel right now.

This may not be a fast pace to you, but for me, this was thrilling. It was my best average mile time all week, even though it certainly didn’t feel like it when I was out there. Endurance has always been my biggest struggle when it comes to exercise, so I’m really focused on finding a sustainable pace to get me through this race. I want to minimize my speed variations and maximize my consistency.

In your training, how do you balance working on distance endurance and working on increasing speed? Does one come naturally from the other? Let me know what you think!

Back to my wine…cheers to tomorrow being Thursday (and rec softball playoffs)!

Confession

So, I have a confession to make: I haven’t been healthy, or particularly happy as of late. This blog was supposed to help me be accountable with my healthy, cross-fitting lifestyle, and I’ve totally let it slip away from me over the last 3/4 of a year. It started when I had to quit the box due to my “lack of funding.” I told myself I would go to LA Fitness, which I did, but irregularly, because let’s be honest, I HATE big-gym atmospheres. I should love it, because I can be anonymous, but I find them lonely, and there’s no one to hold me accountable for anything. I went to water aerobics for a while with my friends, which was fun (and a great workout) and put in some wogs (walk/jogs) at the park over my lunch break, but not with any consistency. We didn’t get a Portland to Coast team this year, so I didn’t have that to train for.

Then, we went to Montana. And I remembered how I love hiking. And hubby and I wondered to ourselves, “Why the hell aren’t we doing this more?”

We’ve spent all the time since we’ve gotten back trying to gather our motivation to get healthy again. We’ve created a bribe reward system for ourselves for losing poundage (I’m getting close to my pedicure and makeup shopping spree). We’ve been taking Ramsay on long walks and running like crazy with him in the backyard. We’ve been avoiding fried foods, my nemesis. We’ve been gently reminding each other that we probably don’t need that second (or third) helping. And, we cut out beer (save for the occasional pint at certain social gatherings and baseball games). And I think it’s starting to work. Hubby really wants me to sign back up for CrossFit (and I’m going to when I finally decide which box I want to go to). I’m nervous about going at it alone, because I have gym co-dependency issues, but I’m willing to try. Please cross your fingers that we get it together. Neither of us is obese, but neither of us is healthy at the moment either.

This was the hike that really inspired me in Montana (Glacier National Park, to be specific):

The Highline Trail was 11 miles of pure amazing. Actually, the first 8 miles were amazing, and the last 3 were just hot. We followed the cliff you see behind me for a long, LONG time, but I surprisingly wasn’t terrified. The path was wide enough to feel OK, even when we were fording glacial waterfalls. We saw tons of marmots, and some bighorn sheep (from a distance). No moose. Seeing a moose is a DREAM of mine, and has been since my last trip to Glacier in 2002. Gives me an excuse to go again at least.

This hike, which we did with two of my cousins, my aunt, my dad, and my uncle, took us about 8 hours, including a lunch break at the Granite Park Chalet, and LOTS of stops for water. It was hot as Hades the entire time we were there. Apparently Montanans need AC for 10 days of the year, and we somehow managed to catch all of them.  Up to the chalet, it’s all picturesque alpine meadows and cliffsides. After the chalet, it’s a burnout from a forest fire, no shade, and a lot of donkey poo.

When we finally finished, we couldn’t WAIT to go wade in the glacial waters of Lake McDonald. So the “youngins” hopped the shuttle down the Going-to-the-Sun Road and told the adults we would meet them lakeside. We bought a six-pack of beer, headed to the rocky beach, and walked right into the 40 degree water for a lake beer. It was awesome. Plus we all slept like babies that night (though the beer shotgunning contest we had may have contributed as well).

After our trip, we really were ready to refocus. I want to refocus on less laziness, more productivity. I want to blog more, clean more, and do things other than watch Chopped marathons on Food Network. I want to be my best self at work, and at home, and that means being healthy, active, and happy. I’m back at it, blog world. Can’t wait to be Happy and Healthy in PDX once more.

Feeling Productive

This last week went by in an absolute blur. Lots of work projects going on which kept me up to my eyeballs in Excel spreadsheets at work. A restless dog who managed to tear up a 1099 we got in the mail, then spread it across the living room. He also ate a bandaid, AND attempted to eat a plastic spoon from Wendy’s.

This frantic week also meant cobbled together meals and a lack of trips to the gym. It meant chicken strips at the bar on trivia night (one habit I don’t think I can EVER break). We redeemed ourselves this weekend, at least from the food perspective. And we still are going strong on our month of sobriety…thankfully we only have to make it through one more weekend and I will be able to have beer during the Super Bowl.

I finally finally FINALLY got to the gym at lunch today for a little cardio sesh with my work BFF. It showed me how freakishly out of shape one can get in a few months. We wanted to ease back into things after dropping off the face of the crossfit planet a few months ago, so we did 25 minutes of intervals on the treadmill, which left us enough time to shower after, pick up lunch at the local organic grocery store, and get back to work and still have jobs.

I remembered that the treadmill is effing boring today. I would NEVER get bored during a 25 minute AMRAP but shoot, pounding the conveyer belt next to a bunch of other sweaty people was NOT fun. I’m going to force myself to learn to tolerate it. I decided I need to put together a good, efficient routine of machines/weights and treadmill, something I can tackle quickly, that will get me back into shape and rebuild some muscle. My goal is to get in there three times this week! 2013 Marge is going to kick some ass.

(Almost) Halfway through Our Month of Sobriety

I confess, I told MAYBE one friend that I was working on a blog, until I posted my book list post to Facebook. I wanted to wait until I felt “established,” and had some positive feedback (in the form of comments, likes, and followers) before I risked throwing myself out there in front of people I actually know. So HI FRIENDS WHO DECIDED TO READ THIS!

Anyways, Shayne and I are almost halfway through our Sober January, and are definitely feeling a difference. I’ve noticed that I have a lot more energy, I’m happier, and have generally just felt better since I’ve been completely detoxed and given my liver a break. And it’s getting easier to be in the presence of alcohol without feeling tempted. Last week we were at a birthday party and I was practically salivating at the sight of pitchers and pints. This Wednesday, I went to trivia night with my friends and downed about eight glasses of water without batting an eye. As long as I really concentrate on my water, I’m fine. I even cooked with wine this week without taking some swigs at the same time. I’ve also felt MUCH more efficient at work, which is great, and makes the days go by a lot faster.

Now I’m just hoping that I can slowly return to alcohol come February without going binge-crazy. Because if we keep up our trivia winning streak, we are going to have a lot of money at Coach’s to blow on beer and fried goods.

As for healthy eating, I’ve been doing so-so. I started the week off good, with a Whole Foods salad/soup lunch. But then I had chicken strips twice. A big ol’ dinner of delicious handmade stir-fry noodles last night. Lots of Starbucks stops to try and stave the migraine I’ve been fighting for three days. BUT, since Shayne was inspired by the results of his Dr. Oz 48-hr Weekend Detox (we now worship The Great and Powerful Oz in this house), we’ve been doing a lot of smoothies in the blender, and that’s been a delicious and filling snack. We’re trying to stay balanced. As I type this, I am ignoring my husband who is packing the remains of our Papa Murphey’s pizza dinner into the fridge…we were watching football, what can I say?

One last thing: GO SEAHAWKS

I’m brainstorming some more exciting things, things that involve pictures, I promise.