twenty-six for a twenty-something

Valentine's Day Crabbiness

2012-02-14T16:25:00.001-05:00

Even when I am in a relationship, I'm not a big fan of Valentine's Day. I think it is an overly commercial holiday. Affection should not be forced by Hallmark. But this year I am especially not in the mood for Valentine's Day. I won't get into the details because I've already wasted enough time and energy feeling bad about it. So rather than fight it, I decided to just go with it and give myself permission to be crabby all day. I started to have some fun actually with the idea of a crabby day, and decided it was meant to be when fresh Maine crab meat was on sale at the grocery store for only $1.99 (it's usually like $10!).

So for lunch I made a delicious citrus avocado crab salad. I ripped this recipe for pan seared scallops with citrus avocado salsa out of Fitness this month and decided to adapt it slightly into an awesome salad.

First step was to dice a grapefruit, an orange, and an avocado.

Then I made a dressing with equal parts of oil, white vinegar, mango puree, and lime juice and zest.

Then toss the dressing with the fruit and avocado mixture, some sort of greens (I used romaine and kale), and fresh crabmeat.

And then because I don't have a Valentine to give me chocolate, I made myself some cookies for an afternoon snack. I used a recipe from one of my favorite bloggers, Tina of Carrots N' Cake. Salted Oatmeal and Chocolate Chip Cookies.

Since I have plenty of crab meat left, I'll probably make a crab meat quesadilla for dinner to complete my crabby day.

The only thing I'm not crabby about today is how I feel after the 26.2 With Donna half marathon Sunday. I feel amazing! Maybe Jeff Galloway can be my Valentine, because thanks to his run walk method, I have no soreness or fatigue from the race. This was the first half that I've used the run walk method for, and I can't believe the difference. Yesterday morning I went to kickboxing and expected to have to take it easy. But my legs had plenty of pop and I was on fire! Good thing, because I went to yoga last night to give myself a good stretch, but it turned out to be a killer class. Then this morning I headed to the Y for 30 minutes on the elliptical and 40 minutes in the pool.

26.2 with Donna: National Marathon to End Breast Cancer

2012-02-12T12:49:00.000-05:00

I am totally on a post race high after a great race and race weekend. Yesterday I hit up the race expo to pick up my race number and check out the vendors. The race schwag was awesome: we got super cute tie-dye bags and a long sleeve technical t-shirt. Best of all, everything was pink. Yeah!

Even the KT tape was pink. I love this stuff. It makes a huge difference. I have a couple rolls at home, but it's just not the same when I do it myself. So I was excited to see they were offering free expert taping. I had my right IT band taped since it's been bothering me lately.

After I had thoroughly exhausted the expo, both my feet and my wallet I headed to my hotel- the Springhill Suites. I used my points from work travel so it was free. Can't get better than free. I sorted out all my stuff from the expo, and then got all my stuff ready for the morning. At 4 am, having everything ready to go makes a huge difference.

Then it was back to the convention center for the pasta dinner. I waffled on whether or not I wanted to go, since I'm flying solo this trip, but I'm so glad I did. I should now by now that I can sit down at any table of stranger, and still have a blast if they're runners. I sat with these 2 sisters who were in their late sixties. One has been running for years, and she convinced her sister run this as her first half marathon. Another woman at the table just turned 70 and has done 24 marathons in the past 3 years. Talk about inspirational!

The panel at the dinner was also fantastic, all my running idols: Jeff Galloway, Bart Yasso, Bill Rodgers, Joan Benoit, and Donna Deegan. I didn't know much about Donna before the race

Other than that the race is named after her. Her story ispretty inspirational, she has had cancer 3 times but has managed to live anormal life and enjoy every minute of it. That was the over-all theme that camefrom all the speakers. Seize the day, enjoy life. We are incredibly lucky to behealthy enough to run for recreation. After being a bit of a running funklately, this was just the message I needed.

I woke up early, early this morning to freezing cold. It was28! At home I’d be good with that, but this is Florida! I am glad I packed my capritights and not just shorts. And I went with the long sleeve race shirt insteadof my tank top. Even with that it was freezing waiting for the shuttle bus inthe cold and dark. The Floridians were dying!

But once the race started, the cold was forgotten. What anawesome race. We ran up the bridge and over the inland waterway just as the sunwas rising. Then we got to run down on the hard pack sand on the beach for a couple miles. The time flew by than any race I've ever done.

I didn’t want to go too fast since my focus is still ontraining for Rome so I stuck with the 2:10 pace group. I felt fantastic. Atmile 10 I just couldn’t help myself and forged ahead. The last mile was prettytough, as we had to go back up and over the bridge. It was a good incline andthere was a wicked headwind. But the crowd got me up and over and soon I wascoasting into the finish in 2:04.

And then I thoroughly enjoyed the after party. I got a freemassage, some hot soup to warm up my hands, and then hit up the pink champagne boothtwice. I don’t think I’ve ever had champagne at 8:30 am before, but hey whynot? I LOVED this race and can’t wait to sign up for next year.

And I am so cheesy I can't resist taking pictures of myself in the mirror back at the hotel.

Down South

2012-02-10T17:41:00.001-05:00

I am in Florida for the weekend, visiting family and running the 26.2 with Donna. I am staying with family in Palatka, and was anxious to go for a run this morning after a long day of flying yesterday. Even though, I travel to California frequently for work, there is just something so wonderful about heading out on a run wearing shorts and tank-top in February. A far cry from my runs at home. I had planned to run in Ravine Gardens, a state park, but when I got there I found there is now a $2 admission, and I had no money on me. So, I headed down by the river instead, which was equally nice. There was a nice boardwalk that ran along the waterfront for quite awhile. I alternated looking at the water and at the cool old river houses across the street. It amazes me how fresh water just has such a different personality than the ocean.

When I got back I was determined to go swimming. That enthusiasm quickly faded. Even for a Maine girl, that water was COLD. So I made it up to my waist and then walked around for awhile to cool down my legs. I was so excited to pick a fresh grapefruit off the tree for breakfast. But when I went to do it, I realized I had no idea how to tell if they were ripe! Were they yellow grapefruit that were ripe, or pink ones that weren't ripe? The one I got was pretty good, but a little on the tart side. Then I put on my bathing suit and drank my coffee by the pool while I read a book. It was not very warm at all, and the Floridians thought I was crazy. But it's Florida darn it, I am going to get a little sun and sit by the pool!

This afternoon we went out to a great little seafood place on the water Corky Bell's. It was so cheesy it was fantastic. We sat out on the patio, over-looking the river.

When I looked at the menu, I got so excited. We used to come down South at least a few times a year to see my step-grandparents, and so I harbor a secret love for Southern Food. Hushpuppies most of all.

I mean it's like a donut, that you get to eat for lunch a dinner! So I indulged my desire for a few hushpuppies, but also was mindful of the fact that I have to run a race this weekend and don't want to be weighed down with tons of fried food, so I balanced them out with some boiled shrimp. My attempt to go healthy with a side of broccoli was a fair, the dish had more cheese and cream sauce than broccoli!

Despite the awesome lunch, I'm already looking forward to some BBQ for dinner!

Time Changes and Night Shifts

2012-02-08T12:00:00.003-05:00

One of the biggest changes, and challenges, I've faced in the last year with my new job is the disruption of my very regular schedule. My life used to run like clock-work, up at 6, running at 6:15, in the shower at 7:30, eating my pre-prepared breakfast at 8..... you get the idea. But with my new job, that's impossible. First of all, there is a 3 hour time difference between Maine and in California. Add in super early morning flights, flight delays that mean I don't arrive until late at night, and the need to occasionally work the night shift, and I am totally out of wack. At first my poor body was a wreck, I was exhausted and sick all the time. But I've developed some strategies that seem to be working.

-For short trips, stay on your home time. I am usually only in CA Monday to Thursday, so I try to stay on Eastern Time. I am up by 4:30 or 5 in the morning California time, and try to be in bed by 8:30 at the latest. It is good because I can get in a long (albeit dark) workout and still be at work early. It isn't so good for the social life though, I'm usually the loser falling asleep at the dinner table.

-If you have to adjust to a new time zone, do it slowly over several days. I do this if I know I'm going to have to work the night shift. I try to stay up later by an hour or 2 and then sleep an hour or 2 later in the morning each night for several nights.

-Get in a workout. This is seriously the best way for me to reset my clock. My body is used to working out in the morning. So if I sleep and then immediately hit the gym it reprograms my body into thinking it is morning. And it is an instant energy boost.

-Eat cleanly. I, like most people, have the tendency to start craving salty, fatty, junky foods when I'm really tired, especially when it's the middle of the night. But while the quick hit of caffeine and sugar helps for a little bit, you ultimately and crash and feel worse. Monday night for example I was working 10 pm to 7 am, and had no time to turn my sleep schedule around, so I was dragging. When I got to work, there were mint chocolate covered espresso beans. So I downed a few handfuls, washed down by coffee. I was super jittery for a couple hours, and then I just felt sick to my stomach and exhausted. I find that high protein, low carb helps me last longer and feel more alert.

-Take a sleeping pill if you have to. This may be controversial, but sometimes I just need to sleep. I try to use a straight sleeping pill, such as unisom, and not anything with unnecessary other ingredients, such as tylenol pm. I try not to do this more than once a week, and never mix with alcohol.

Any other road warriors or night shifters out there have any suggestions?

Healthier Airport Treats

2012-02-06T13:07:00.000-05:00

When I was little we flew once or twice a year and it wasusually for vacation so my parents would buy us all kinds of treats in theairport that we wouldn’t usually get to eat. So I associate airports with treats. This is fine if you only fly a fewtimes a year, but problematic for me since I fly almost every week. I have afew weaknesses in particular: the mix of cheddar and caramel pecan popcorn inChicago (the perfect combination of salty and sweet); Crumb’s Cupcakes in Newark (giant frostingfilled and covered cupcakes in a million amazing flavors); and Cinnabon (Itotally blame my Mom for this since she used to get me one for breakfastwhenever we flew). All are complete calorie bombs. My pants start to feel snugmighty quick when I have these once or twice a week. So I’ve tried come up withsome healthier airport options for those times (ie. every time I fly) when youjust need a treat to help you handle the hassles of flying.

Sweet

Frozen Yogurt: A 4 oz serving of the chocolate yogurt onlyhas 110 calories! Add chocolate jimmies for only 63.9calories. Just stay away from the extra large sizes and the caloricmix-ins. The shivers, which are a mix of yogurt and candy have 530 – 1850 calories!

Smoothies: Jamba Juice and Smoothie King both have lightsmoothies that are less than 200 calories. I like the Mango Mantra at JambaJuice. Only 160 for a 16oz. When gettinga smoothie try to aim for one that is only fruit, vegetables and yogurt. Many smoothies contain juice, extra sugars,and even ice cream which can really jack the calorie count up. The Peanut Butter Moo’d at Jamba Juice forexample has 770 calories.

McDonalds: Apple dippers with caramel sauce. These only have 100calories and you get in a serving of fruit.

Starbucks: A fat free cappuccino with sugar free hazelnut syrup, orsome other light drink, The mix of caffeine, sugar, and a little dairy is a great pick me up.

Savory

Pretzels: A salted pretzel always satisfies my craving forsomething hot and salty. A plain pretzel is 280 calories, but I usually upgradeto the salt and butter version for 310 calories.Watch out for high cal dippingsauces, the cream cheese dipper has 200 calories just for the sauce.

Hummus: In the San Francisco airport there is a Greek placein the United terminal that has great home-made hummus and baked pita chips.This is obviously ideal, but premade hummus and pretzels thins or pita chipsfrom the little markets also aren’t bad.

Baked Fries: U-Food Grill (I know they are in Boston and Dallas) has baked fries that, likepretzels, really hit the spot when I want something hot and salty. I like toask for a side of honey mustard for dipping. 230 calories for the fries.

What are your favorite, and healthy, airport snacks?

Rice Crispy Treat Sushi

2012-02-03T13:51:00.000-05:00

I am in a great mood today. I started my day with a step class. I know it's old school, but I seriously love this class. The choreography is so complicated that I have to really concentrate so the hour just flies by. And it's fun to be doing something where you can add a little extra flair. I also did some upper body weights before heading home.

I made an onion, spinach, and feta omelet for lunch, and it actually turned out as a perfect omelet today, instead of just being scrambled eggs. I polished off my left-over roasted sweet potatoes on the side.

Then I fired up Pandora and did a little cooking project. Tomorrow I am invited to a birthday brunch for my best friend Breezy. Sushi has always been our thing. In high school we used to have a total blast, and make a huge mess, making our own sushi. However, I know that the rest of her family and friends are huge fans of the whole raw fish thing, plus this is more of a brunch, so I made rice crispy treat "sushi." I'd seen this on-line and been wanting to try it. It was so easy and came out super cute.

Ingredients:
Swedish Fish or other gummy candy
Fruit Roll-ups
Rice Crispy Treats (Rice Crispies, Marshmellow, and Margarine)

I made the rice crispy treats before lunch and then let them cool while I made and ate lunch. Then it was assembly time. I made 2 styles.

For the roll, or "maki" type I used a rolling pin to roll out a strip of rice crispy treats so they were a little thinner. I then placed a line of Swedish fish along one edge and rolled. The final step was to wrap a fruit roll-out around the outside.

And then slice into bite sized pieces.

For the "Nigiri" type sushi, I cut the rice crispy treats into small rectangles and I cut the fruit roll-up into long thin strips. I then placed a Swedish fish in the middle of each rectangle and secured it with a strip of fruit roll-up wrapped all the way around.

A pretty and delicious looking plate!

Finally some fun

2012-02-02T15:21:00.000-05:00

After a solid 10 days of work and travel, I needed some fun in my life. And yesterday and today, I finally got it!

Yesterday morning I got in a good long work-out at the Y. I went to a boot-camp class run by a former marine. It didn't feel like a super hard class, but my abs hurt so much today! And then I swam for 40 minutes. There is something so nice about getting in a nice warm pool in the middle of the cold winter. And something even nicer about getting in a good work-out that doesn't pound my legs to bits.

Then at night, I met my friend at the grand opening of the Thirsty Pig.

It was a pretty crazy Wednesday night! $3 Shipyard Smashed Blueberry (which is 9% alcohol), a punk rock band, meat shots, and drag queens. It reminds me why I love Portland, it's such an interesting mix of people and interests, and yet everyone gets along!

The fun night made 7am spinning not so fun this morning, but I got through. After some work I met my friends at the Seadog Brewery for Breezy's Birthday Lunch. Although I love their blueberry beer too, I decided to pass since I was still feeling last night's beer, (and I need to work this afternoon!). But I did have a fantastic salad. I got the Mediterranean Chicken & Artichoke Salad. Grilled skewered chicken and artichoke over chopped romaine, topped with tomato wedges, Bermuda onion, cucumber, feta cheese, Greek dressing and grilled pita. Yumm-o! Even better than my salad was the chance to see 3 of my best and oldest friends in the middle of a work day. Breezy is the first of us to turn 28 and we spent a lot of time talking about how far we've all come since we first met in 6th grade. We've all grown up and done very different things with our lives, and yet we still have as much fun together as we did then.

A Winter Night: Caramelized Tomatoes with chicken and Roasted Sweet Potatoes

2012-02-01T12:54:00.003-05:00

After the craziness of the last 5 days, I was hoping for a relaxing day yesterday to get caught up. I wanted to sleep in, go for a run, do some laundry, go grocery shopping, go to the bank, and then go to yoga. I did the sleeping in and run part (in a nice surprise little snow storm), but then when I checked my work e-mail I found I'd been scheduled for conference calls for the rest of the day. No errand running for me.

Being stuck at home turned out to be not so bad. I got my laundry done between calls and I put my phone on speaker and did some yoga while on my calls. Best of all, I built a roaring fire so the house was nice and cozy.

After not eating a real meal for days, I was in the mood for a good homemade hearty dinner. So using what I had in the house, I whipped up a pretty good feast.

I had a contained of cherry tomatoes that I bought before I left and never used. They were starting to get a little soft and wrinkly to eat raw, so I decided to roast them. I tossed them with 1/8 cup of olive oil, 1 tsp of sugar, and 1 tsp of salt, and roasted for 1 hr at 350. I had a piece of chicken in the freezer that I defrosted and put in with the chicken half way through the cook time. It basically poached in the liquid from the tomatoes and olive oil so it stayed really moist!

Since I had the oven on anyway, I also made some roasted sweet potatoes. I just sliced them, sprayed them with some olive oil from the Misto and sprinkled some rosemary on top. Then then went in the oven with the tomatoes. I will never get tired of these.

Whirlwind

2012-01-30T14:47:00.000-05:00

I ran into my coworker this morning at the airport. I called her nameseveral times before she finally turned to me confused. "Sorry," shesaid " I feel like I've been inside a tornado for the past few days."It was the perfect way to describe how I feel as well.

Thursday morning I got up at 3:45 and hit up my elliptical for a workoutbefore heading to the airport. For the next 20 hours I got to deal with all thepleasures of travel, an overly packed plane, delayed flights, and nasty airportfood. I finally got to Arcata only to go to the wrong Best Western 2 times,before finally finding my hotel!

Friday, Saturday, and Sunday I was up at 4 to hit up the hotel gym, whichhad nothing but a crappy treadmill. So the treadmill it was. Then a quickshower, a stop in the lobby where I stuffed my laptop case with stuff from thecontinental breakfast and I was in the car for the 45 minute drive to the hospital.I am sure it was a nice drive in the daylight- through the mountains andredwoods on highway 101. But it was always dark when I was driving it. Then thenext 13-14 hours were at the Redwood Memorial Hospital ED supporting thedoctors and nurses as they went LIVE with Computerized Provider Order Entry(CPOE). There wasn't much at the hospital or in town in terms of food, butluckily there was a Starbucks! Then it was 45 minutes back to the hotel, whereI'd fall in bed exhausted. I am very tired of oatmeal, yogurt, cheerios, andfruit since that's all I ate the whole time. Well, and a lot of chocolate fromthe candy I brought to bribe the staff into liking me and CPOE.

As exhausting as it all was, it was all pretty rewarding. It was reallyinteresting to be in the ED and see all the cases that came in. It was prettysad as well. It's a poor, rural area so we saw a lot of people who came insimply because they had no place to go. It was also rewarding to see the staffdo so well with the new electronic system. I spend so much time in a basement,or at my house, building the system, but totally removed from the patient careaspect.

And now it's time for my second flight of the day. Cross your fingers thatthe rest of the trip home is a smooth one, because I think I'm too tired tohandle any disruption with grace today.

Disapointed with P90X

2012-01-28T16:55:00.003-05:00

I borrowed P90X from my sister on a whim when I was visiting at Christmas and it's been sitting used in my suitcase ever since. But due to the extremely crappy gym at my hotel this week, and the fact that I don't feel safe running in the dark in Eureka (which is pretty sketchy) at 3:30 am, I finally tried it out this morning. I did the Cardio X. And honestly, I didn't feel like it was very hard. It started with yoga and then moved on to some boxing and core. I barely broke a sweat. I was pretty disappointed because I bothered to get up 3:30 to get in a workout before I headed to the hospital for a 13 hour shift where I sit all day. I am surprised because I've heard from so many people how much they love P90X. I'd love to hear what your experiences with it are.

Brownie Waffles: Darn you Rachael Ray

2012-01-25T14:08:00.003-05:00

When I'm working at home I like to have daytime TV on in the background to fill the silence. This is turning into a problem because I keep seeing delicious, and not so healthy, recipes I want to try. Last fall on Rachael Ray I was introduced to the wonder of stuffing waffles, which I thought was the best waffle creation ever. And then yesterday she topped it- brownie waffles. They looked so good I thought about them all day, until I finally caved tried making them. Holy yum. They are so good, crispy on both sides with that wonderful brownie softness in the middle. They are horribly dangerous because they only take about 5 minutes from start to finish!

Rachael Ray's Brownie Waffles

I knew I didn't want to make a whole batch, because then I'd eat a whole batch. So I invented a single serve recipe. I apologize in advance for sharing because I know you will want these every day!

Kier's Slightly Healthier Single Serve Brownie Waffle

1/4 cup flour (I used half whole wheat)
1/4 cup sugar
2 tablespoons cocoa powder
1tablespoon vegetable oil
1 tablespoon applesauce
2 tablespoons water or milk
1/4 teaspoon vanilla
pinch of salt

mix and pour into a well greased pre-heated waffle iron

Yoga is like data collection

2012-01-24T10:52:00.003-05:00

Last night's little lesson at yoga was not the most poetic but it was amazingly effective for me. As we did some deep breathing to let go of the day and get ready for yoga the teacher said, "Tonight we are going to think of yoga as data collection. Notice what your body is telling you. Note it in your mind, and then move on."

I think this lesson struck a chord with me because it fits in perfectly with my resolution to be more mindful. To notice what is happening right now. It also targets one of my weaknesses, which is to over analyze. As soon as I notice something I can't help but try to figure out why it is happening and what I am going to do about it.

Instead, last night I found the power in simple observation. I felt my body moving through the poses and let it be what it was without judgement. Wow. As I lay in shavasana at the end of class I did an inventory of my body. Taking in a deep breath, I could feel this incredible energy pulsating in each body part as I focused on it, and then a physical relaxation as I exhaled. I walked into yoga feeling tired and creaky from my long run and left feeling loose and relaxed.

Namaste

The run that almost wasn't (and the flight that really wan't)

2012-01-22T13:41:00.000-05:00

So after I spent all that time coming up with a modified training plan last week, I totally almost blew it by not doing a long run this weekend.

I liked to do my long runs on Friday when possible because then I have more time on the weekend to spend with friends and family. But we got a lovely 8 inches of perfect snow on Thursday night into Friday. This meant that I just HAD to go downhill skiing on Friday. I have been waiting and waiting and waiting for snow this winter and I couldn't waste it. I absolutely didn't. I was on the first chair up and got fresh tracks in the powder. It was perfect- light, fluffy, and dry. There was no one there so I went non-stop all day. Heaven.

Then Saturday I woke up to find it snowing again. So when my Mom called and asked if I wanted to meet her at Pinehill to cross country, I, of course, said yes. It was also delightful. Last weekend was icy and fast, but yesterday was a day to slow down and enjoy the soft powder and lovely woods. We skied for 4 hours and it felt like no time at all (except that my hands were completely numb because it was like 12 degrees). Then we headed into the cute little cafe for some overdue lunch. We shared a hot steaming bowl of minestrone (with Maine beans, potatoes, and veggies!) and a bacon (from their own farm), avocado, and tomato sandwich.

On the way home I stopped at LL Bean. I've been stalking the outlet waiting for snowshoes to go on sale. I already have enough outdoor equipment to open my own store, but I still want snowshoes. There are some trails right by my house, but they get a lot of dog walkers which makes them not so good for skiing. But they will be perfect for snowshoes. And aren't they pretty?

So today Sunday was my last chance. I was planning to leave for the airport so I knew I'd have to run early if I was going to get it in. So I got up at 6:30, turned on the coffee maker, and looked at the thermometer. 3 degrees. Wah. I don't know when I turned into such a wimp, but I was so unexcited. The only thing that got me out the door was my new running jacket (which I also got at Bean's yesterday). Well and the fact that I knew I'd feel horribly guilty and regret it forever if I didn't do the planned run. It was cold, but sunny, and slippery from all the snow the past 2 days, but I had on my yak trax, and I got it done.

And then came home to find the cancelled my flight, and there is no other way to get to CA today. So I could have slept in and run when it was warmer. Oh well.

How to Modify my Marathon Training?

2012-01-19T15:57:00.002-05:00

I am following the Jeff Galloway Time Goal Training Program for Rome. It calls for a 23 miler on 1/28 and a 26 miler on 2/19

I know for sure I can't do 28 miles on 1/28. I am supporting a go-LIVE in Northern California for week, and I'm working 12 hour shifts everyday from Monday the 23rd through Sunday the 29th, and then have an 18 hour trip home to Maine on Monday. The other complication is that I am running the half marathon in the 26.2 with Donna on February 12, just a week before my 26 miler.

What to do?

Here's what I'm thinking, do a 13-15 miler this weekend (the 21st) to get in something longish which gives me 2 weekends of recovery before the half. Then push back the 26 miler to February 26. This gives me 2 weeks to recover from racing the half, but still 3 weeks to taper before the marathon.

What do you think? Will this work?

Baked Fish with Artichoke Pesto and Farro Salad

2012-01-18T16:15:00.002-05:00

I have been in a cooking rut lately, so last night I decided to try one of the recipes I'd marked in last month's Fitness Magazine. The recipe Grilled Sirloin with Artichoke Pesto and Farro Salad was supposed to provide an energy boost. As soon as I saw pesto, I was sold. I don't eat beef so I switched the steak for some baked haddock. I just dipped the fillets in egg and then dipped them in panko, italian seasoning, and some lemon rind.

Don't be scared- the recipe has a lot of components, but you can do all of it while the farro and fish cooks.

This was a FANTASTIC dinner, which is good because I have tons left over, so I'll be eating it for the rest of the week! It reminds me how much I like whole grains like farro, and how easy they are to use.

DIY

2012-01-17T11:55:00.001-05:00

So as I've said, I am turning into a real wimp when it comes to the weather. I did make myself run outside this morning in the snow, which would have been fine if it hadn't been for all the cars flying by me and showering me in freezing slush. But for the most part, I've been spending quite a bit of time in the house. Luckily, in my new house I'm finding all kinds of fun projects to keep me busy.

First up was the bedroom. When I shared a house with room-matesmy bedroom was jam packed with all the mementos of my life, but now I have a whole house to fill and so my bedroom was a little sparse. I decided to zen it out a little, adding decoration but not noise or clutter. It forces me slow down and relax when I'm in the room- perfect!

Next up was the bathroom and I went in a totally different direction. I was in such a rush before I moved in that I had most of the house just painted white, and I was ready for some fun. So I sponge painted the back wall of the bathroom to give it some kick. It is great, I get a kick of energy every time I go into the room, especially in the morning.

I had a ton of paint left so I decided to do my laundry area too. I hate doing laundry, so I figured that a bright, cheerful laundry room could only help. Voila! (The blue is just tape, because it wasn't dry yet, it's not permanent.)

Cold and some gymnastics too

2012-01-16T13:47:00.000-05:00

I am officially turning into a wimp. I used to not even look at the thermometer in the morning. I didn't want to know because it didn't matter, I just threw on my running clothes and went. But yesterday when I saw it was 2 in the morning, without the wind chill, I decided to go to the gym. Why does an hour on the treadmill feel like an eternity? But I did come up with a fun new workout that has a little bit of everything- slower longer intervals and shorter faster intervals. Here is my workout:
5 min warm up @ 6mph
4 x .25 mile repeats @7mph with .25 recovery @ 6 mph
4 x 1 min @6, 1 min @ 7, 1 min @8, 1 min @7, 1 min @6
4 x 1 min @ 9mph with 1:30 min recovery @6 mph
5 min cool down @ 6mph

I was a nice sweaty mess by the end, so I had to hustle home to take and shower and get dressed because my friend Breezy was picking me up at 11 to head to the UNH vs Penn State Gymnastics meet. I used to go every years because I went to gymnastics camp at UNH for years when I was younger, but my Dad is a huge Penn State fan, so either way, my team wins.

It was so wonderful to see live gymnastics. I wanted so badly to run out on the floor and do a tumbling pass. Gymnastics is really unique because it is not a life long sport. I devoted so much of my young life to it, and then poof, I was too old and it was gone. Unless you end up becoming a coach, you're pretty much done by the time you're 20. And really, there is nothing else that can replace that feel of flying.

The first rotation was close, with UNH on vault and Penn State on bars. But then UNH fell apart on bars and Penn State took the lead. Beam and floor were close, but UNH couldn't make up their deficit, and Penn State got the win.

Even typing about it gets me all fired up. Time to do some cartwheels in the living room.

Making nice with snow

2012-01-14T16:04:00.001-05:00

I have forgiven snow for wreaking havoc on my trip home Thursday. We're friends again. All because I got to go for a wonderful cross country ski this morning. It was my first trip out on my xc skis this year because we just haven't had any snow!

I met my Mom at Pineland in New Gloucester this morning and spent a lovely two hours meandering our way through the rolling trails in the woods, and then I did another 2 hours of faster stuff by myself. It was pretty icy because of the freezing rain we got yesterday, but they had done a nice job grooming. There was only one steep downhill where it was super icy and I was way out of control. The snow cover was too thin for them to track the trails for classic skiing, so I was skate skiing. It was a good push to skate, because last year I did mostly classic. And I am sorry to say it running, but skate skiing is absolutely the best workout in the world. I skied for 4 hours and at the end I was as tired as if I'd run 20 miles, but I didn't feel like I'd been pounded into the ground. My lungs were tired, my arms were tired, my legs were tired, but it was a gentle exhaustion instead of the ache that I have at the end of a long run.

Mother's Market and a Horrible Day

2012-01-13T12:00:00.001-05:00

I have made it pretty clear that Southern California is notmy favorite place in the world. Concrete and traffic and heat and I just don’tplay nice. But even I must admit, it does have some redeeming qualities, andone of them is Mother’s Market.

It’s like a whole foods, but even better! Theyhave an awesome deli, burrito bar, pizza station, and hot and cold bar where Ican always find healthy and fast food when I’m travelling. I was mightilytempted by the soy chicken with mushrooms on the hot bar last night, but Ireally was craving a giant salad (since I’m back on track with my New Year’sResolutions). I got 2 prepared saladsfrom the deli: a kale salad with cherry tomatoes, craisins and almonds in alight citrus vinaigrette, and a spicy snap-pea salad. I mixed these with somespinach, corn, carrots, bean sprouts and tuna from the salad bar and topped itoff with an awesome ginger soy dressing. My salad was absolutely massive. Thewhole thing cost me about $10, which is not the cheapest take out option outthere, but it sure is the healthiest. I am learning to balance my inner thriftinesswith my desire to eat healthy, whole foods. I am hoping my willpower will notbe tested too much today. I’m flying home and there is supposed to be a bigsnow storm that will affect both Chicago (where I have a connection) andPortland. So there’s a good chance I may get stuck in an airport for a loooongtime.

What grocery storesor restaurants do you rely on to help you eat better??

**update** I wrote this early yesterday morning, but never got a chance to post. Because yes, the snow did wreak havoc on my trip home. I got to Chicago to find that all flights to Portland for the day were cancelled. They wanted to send me to Newark and then to Portland. But I had a feeling that flight would be cancelled too. So, I did a sprint through the airport (thanking my lucky stars for all my marathon training, but remind me never to race with a briefcase and suitcase) and talked my way onto a flight from Boston. So glad I did because I heard after we left that we were the last flight allowed out of Chicago. And then I had a car pick me up in Boston to drive me home. It took almost 4 hours instead of the usual 2 because of the snow and a tractor trailer roll-over. I managed not to resort to junk food, but did allow myself a small hot chocolate at 8 pm when we stopped for gas. So loooooon day yesterday, but at least I made it home to sleep in my own bed, unlike a lot of people.

New Year's Resolution Check In

2012-01-11T11:31:00.002-05:00

We're almost half way through January already (where does the time go) and I've got to admit, I'm already failing mightily on my New Year's Resolutions.

1. Be more mindful- I have totally regressed to my old habits of watching TV while eating. It's just too quiet and lonely in my house or hotel room. And work this week has been super busy, so I have wolfed down most of my meals at my desk while working. I have at least, done a better job being mindful in meetings and when talking to people.

2. Get back to my feel great weight- I have been eating like the world is ending. Once you get on the sugar and fat train it's hard to break the cycle. Sunday I was totally thrown for a loop when I heard about my friend's mother passing, as so I turned to ice cream in the airport for comfort. Twice. One in each airport. And then Monday night I left the office late and ran into the grocery store- first thing I saw was a GIANT cupcake on the bakery clearance rack. So I had that, and some brussels sprouts, for dinner.

But I am not giving up, because you can always start again. There is nothing magical about January 1. You can change your life starting any day, at any hour, it is never too late. Yesterday, I ate cleanly (although I ate breakfast and lunch at my desk while working), but managed to savor my dinner. Today, I went to a great Crossfit workout and rather than zoning out to music, I made myself stay in the moment and feel what my body was doing.

Carpe Diem

2012-01-08T16:16:00.001-05:00

It’s been a sobering week. Early inthe week my Mom told me that Marge Winslow had died. It wasn’t a huge surprisebecause she was a 103, but I had also somehow expected her to live forever. Shewas so vivacious and spirited, and in many ways seemed like the heart of theisland. In the past few years nearly all of the “old people,” I remember fromgrowing up have died. They are the people who lived on Southport their wholelives and fought to make a living there. They cared about the community. And asthey’ve passed, they’ve been replaced by more summer people, who tear down thecute cottages and put up mansions and come for 4 months a year and thendisappear. The times they are a- changing.

Yesterday I went to the funeral formy friend and former co-worker. It’s always sad when someone so young dies, butit was particularly sad in this case because after a tough life he was finallyat a point in his life where he’d found some happiness. And as horrible asfunerals are, I was so happy I went. It was like going home to my own familyand I felt so wrapped in their love and comforted. I worked on the boat and onCabbage Island with these people from when I was 14 until I was 22, and so thatplace and those people left an indelible mark on who I am. You can dress me upand put me in a fancy place, but in my soul I will always be wearing an oldCabbage Island t-shirt, tattered shorts, and flip-flops and be lounging on thedeck of the Argo before the passengers come aboard.

And then today when I landed inNewark for my connection, I had a message from one of my best friends from highschool that her mother passed away last night. This is the first friend my agewho has lost a mother and it’s shaken me to the core. First, I feel so helplessbecause I am so far away. And secondly, it makes me think about how importantmy own mother is to me. She’s my best friend, my source of comfort and wisdom,and pretty darn important to me.

So remember life is short. Keepyour friends and family close, and appreciate them, because they are what makesyour time here worth living.

Stronger

2012-01-06T16:15:00.000-05:00

I had to squeeze in my 20 milerThursday morning and I really did not enjoy it. I started dreading it early inthe week and continued to lack enthusiasm as I ran. It has warmed up slightlyfrom the high of 13 on Tuesday, but it still wasn’t above freezing and the skywas grey and leaden. But, I stuck a few gels in my fuel belt, strapped on myi-pod and headed out. And I ran, and I ran, and I ran. At one point a truckpulled over beside me and a guy stuck his head out the window. “How far are yourunning girl? I’ve seen you 3 times this morning!” That is how the run felt-endless. I was cold, bored, and uninspired the whole run. I thought aboutcutting it short, until I looked down at my watch and realized that I only had3 miles left. And then I realized that I actually felt pretty good. I was goingto finish this thing, and feel pretty good. I felt even better when I woke upthe next morning and realized that I still felt good. Better than good, my legsfelt great! I hit the gym for step class and even stayed for body pump. It wasa good reminder that, while it isn’t always a ton of fun, I am gettingstronger. When I was training for my first marathon, I was fried for days aftera 20 miler. Now, I’m doing double sessions at the gym. Not bad.

Projects Galore

2012-01-06T11:57:00.005-05:00

I've been working at home for the past few weeks which means I've had a lot more free time since I'm not wasting nearly 30 hours a week traveling. Luckily for me I had a few projects around the house that I've been putting off. The first was organizing all the sports equipment in my garage. With the help of my mom's boyfriend, I hung my kayak and bikes, and made a rack for my skis.

Now, I can actually put my car in garage! Imagine!

And then, thanks to a lot of time wasted on Pinterest, I also had some crafts and cooking I wanted to try. I pained my house before I moved in, but all the light-switch and outlet covers were still an ugly beige. So, I decided to decoupage them to make them look nicer. It was so easy, and they came out great! Here are the instructions. I can't wait to do more.

Another thing I saw on pinterest that immediately caught my eye, was homemade butterfingers. Butterfingers are probably my favorite candy ever, and I was so interested to see if I could make them. I did, and they were great. So great I ate them all that night. Ooops, sorry New Year's Resolution. The recipe is found here

And finally, I made a great macaroni and cheese inspired my a recipe I saw in cooking light, that uses pureed butternut squash as a base. It was a last minute idea, so I had to improvise with what I had at home. I used 1 cup of pasta and once this was cooked I mixed it with a small butternut squash mashed and mixed with 1/4 cup low fat cream cheese. I put this in a small casserole dish and topped it with some panko and shredded cheddar cheese. So creamy and delicious! Once again I ate the whole thing- but I was expecting that, so I made a very small version!

New Years Resolutions (and thanks Coach Jenny)

2012-01-04T14:23:00.004-05:00

1. Be more mindful. I am always going in a thousand directions and always trying to multitask and I feel like this is coming at cost. By not focusing my attention on what I am doing right here, right now, I am missing out on some of the full experience. So this year I am going to try to quiet my mind, tune out the distractions, and focus.

2. Get back to my feel great weight. I know I'll never be super skinny again and I am happier for it, but I would like to get back to the weight where I am proud of my body and feel strong. For the most part I eat pretty well and I certainly exercise, but I know that I have 2 big weaknesses- eating in front of the TV at night, and getting unhealthy snacks in the airport.

3. Improve my swim time and comfort in the water in the triathalon. Last year I did my first 2 tris and LOVED them, except the swim where I felt like I was going to die. I want to sign up for some open water clinics and coaching so that this year I can rock the swim.

Of course the hardest part of New Year's Resolutions is following through and actually doing them. So, I'm asking for your help. Please keep checking in with to see if I am keeping myself accountable.

Also, I want to say a huge thank you to Coach Jenny. I participated in her Holiday Challenge and it was great. One of the prizes in the challenge was a Personal Savers wrist band pepper spray thing. Since being attacked while running last year, I've been meaning to get something like this, and was a little bummed that I didn't win. But when I went to get my mail yesterday, there was a personal saver from Coach Jenny! Although I wasn't the official winner, she still sent me one after hearing my story. I was so touched by her thoughtfulness, and will feel so much safer running in the dark in the early morning in California next week.

1028.15 miles in 2011!

2012-01-03T10:08:00.001-05:00

After a cold, windy run that felt like an awful lot of work, I needed some encouragement this weekend so I just added up my running log from last year. 1028.15 total! Holy Moly!

Welcome to 2012

2012-01-01T18:18:00.003-05:00

Hi Friends! Happy New Year! Hopefully, your New Year's Eves and first day of 2012 were as wonderful as mine was!

My friend Breezy and I decided to avoid the crowds and costs of eating out and cook at home last night. But, we still ate in style: lobster, roasted Brussels sprouts with garlic, and French baguette. We started off with my new favorite cocktail- Pinacle cake vodka, mandarin orange seltzer, and mango juice and nibbled on some crackers and goat cheese. Then it was lobster time. Seriously, I don't know why I do eat lobster more often. It's not that expensive (if you're lucky enough to live in Maine) and it's a quick, easy 1 pot meal! And I think winter lobster is the best, the hard shells are packed with sweet, dense meat. After gorging ourselves, we made ourselves pretty and then headed to the Old Port to Gritty's. We had a few drinks there and headed up to Empire Dine and Dance. And then the rest of the night passed in a wonderful blur of music, dancing, and more cocktails!

I woke this morning to a glorious morning. The sun was shining and it was in the forties. It was the perfect day for the first day of the year, symbolic of a fresh start and a rebirth. I enjoyed the luxury of lingering in bed for awhile dozing and then headed out for a run to shake out the cobwebs from a night of fun. After a few hours of house chores (taking down the Christmas decorations and tree always makes me so sad!) I decided it was just too nice to be inside, so I headed to Kettle Cove. Everyone had the same idea- there were so many people there. The lobstermen were taking advantage of the warm day to pull out some traps. There were couples with picnics and champagne. There were dogs of all sizes and colors, and kids of just as many colors and sizes. That's what I love about Mainers, people truly love to be outside and appreciate the natural beauty and fun of our state.

I just had an early dinner of cheesy polenta with shrimp and spinach and am settling down to a quite evening pondering my resolutions and doing some reading.

Ending the Year with a (freezing) Splash!

2011-12-31T13:55:00.001-05:00

I like to do events to make occasions, so I was excited when I heard about the Polar Bear 5k and Polar Plunge to benefit the Natural Resources Council of Maine. And then I saw the weather forecast "freezing rain with a chance of sleet." Great.

When I woke up and left for the gym this morning it wasn't bad. But, by the time I was leaving the gym the freezing rain was pouring down. I was so tempted to go home and stay home. I mean I'd already gone to kickboxing. Didn't I deserve to spend the rest of the morning on the couch with a blanket and hot coffee?

But then I got a phone call from a friend telling me that a friend I'd worked with for more than 10 years passed away last night. He was in his early forties and no one expected it. So I decided that I would run the race for him because I could. Life is short and I want to live it to the fullest.

So I tossed on my rain coat and headed down to the back bay parking lot. I stood in the rain to register and then got back in my car to wait for the start. At this point I almost bailed again- I was freezing and wet already! But when I saw the crowd gathering I got excited again and hopped over to the start trying to regain some feeling in my feet. It was definitely not a day for a PR. Most of the race was on the trail around back bay and it was completely iced over. I ran on the frozen, uneven grass on the side of the trail and my main goal was not to fall on my face!

This was one race I was not happy to see end, because it meant it was time for the plunge! The water temp was a balmy 42 degrees. The race organizers wanted everyone to go in at once, so I had just enough time to get really cold between the run and plunge. It was pretty fun though to see all the people in costumes- polar bear costumes, grass skirts and leis, tutus. I waited until the last minute to strip down to my tights and tank top and then I was in (and out again pretty fast). Luckily, my wonderful, wonderful Breezy came to meet me at the end with a hot peppermint mocha, a towel, and most importantly a ride back to my car where I'd parked it at the start of the race.

Happy New Year!

The Best of 2011- Part 3

2011-12-29T13:38:00.000-05:00

September- I bought a house!!
Probably the scariest thing I've ever done because it's a huge commitment. But, I absolutely love being back in Maine and having my own house.

October- Reach the Beach and New Orleans
I just couldn't pick one, because both were a blast! My company meeting in New Orleans the first weekend in October was surprisingly fun. New Orleans just has so much spirit that it is impossible to have a bad time there. I really enjoyed getting to know all my coworkers and felt so lucky to be part of such a great company. And then, my Reach the Beach team was super fun this year and I kicked some butt on all my legs.

November- The giant Redwoods in Northern California
I went up to Eureka for work and was totally stunned by the natural beauty. The rugged coast and the towering redwoods totally captured my heart.

December- Connecting with Old Friends

One of the best parts of moving back to Maine is connecting with old friends. I don't know if anyone will ever know you as well as your friends from junior high and high school. We spent pretty much all of our waking hours together and it's been so much fun to see how everyone has changed (or not) over the past 10 years.

Let's hope that 2012 is just as fulfilling and exciting!

The Best of 2011- Part 2

2011-12-28T12:38:00.000-05:00

May- I got my Master's in Public Health
After 3 years of working full time and going to school, I finally finished my Master's. The best part of this program was my practicum in Ghana. It was no easy to convince my job to give me the time off, but it was so worthwhile. I learned so fun, and made some amazing friends, including the 6 am running crew seen here.

June- I finished my first 2 sprint Triathalons
I have been wanting to do a tri for a few years and this year I finally sucked it up an signed up. The first swim, in a pool, was fine, but the second swim in the lake nearly killed me. Still, I loved the races- the quick changes between portions is such a nice change from the monotony of the marathon. My goal for 2012 is to improve in the swim.

July- The Peak's Island Race
I missed the race last year and so was excited to do it this year. It's a blast because we make a whole day of it. We take the ferry out early the morning, and I run the race while my Mom and her friend Cat work a water station. Then we spend the rest of the day biking around the island, hanging out at the beach, and eating lobster rolls and drinking beer. Perfect summer day!

August- I became an unofficial goat tender
There is a lighthouse right outside the harbor at my Mom's house. The coast guard was going to tear it down, and so a group of people from the island formed an organization to buy, restore, and maintain the lighthouse. (Cuckhold's Light). This summer we put a pair of goats out there to eat down some of the over-grown vegetation and keep away the sea gulls. They were spoiled farm goats though, and so someone had to paddle out there frequently to give them their special food. It was a lot of fun to kayak out- they'd see you coming and wait at the shore and then about capsize the boat trying to get to you as you landed.

2011 in Review: Part 1

2011-12-27T15:57:00.001-05:00

When people tell me I lead an exciting life, I don't quite get it. Most of the time I feel like my life is pretty darn boring. But then when I start to look back at all the things I did last year, I realize that, wow, it actually was a pretty incredible year. Here's a highlight from each month of the year.

January- Skiing in Colorado
Over MLK weekend last January I met a friend to ski in Colorado instead of flying home for the weekend. It was a whirlwind trip- we hit up Keystone, Vail, Breckenridge, and A-Basin. The deep, deep powder and glade skiing was a totally new experience for me. It took me awhile to get into it, but once I did I was hooked. I can't wait to go back!

February- Running the Antarctica Marathon
I do not think of myself as a hard core runner, so finishing (and even winning my division) one of the hardest Marathons in the world was a major accomplishment. One of the best parts of the race was the support from the other runners. We'd been together for more than a week before the race, so I knew every face I passed and never failed to get encouragement.

March- Seeing the Antarctica Peninsula
With the pressure of the race lifted, we got to spend the whole first week in March cruising the Antarctica peninsula. The incredible beauty of this place, coupled with the remoteness and solitude, makes it difficult to even describe. I am so glad I got to share the once in a lifetime experience with my Mom.

April- Seattle
When my friend Cheri invited me to come meet her in Seattle for the weekend, I jumped at the chance. We had a great weekend wandering the city and eating a lot! Cups and cups and cups of great coffee, crab omelets, and pastries. Luckily, Seattle also had a lot of running paths so I got in plenty of running too! I totally loved this city and can't wait to go back.

I've got you, but you've got yourself

2011-12-21T12:27:00.000-05:00

I'm I admit the truth to myself I have to concede that running marathons is not good for my body. I was not built to run long distances. I am short and muscular, perfect for a gymnast, but not so much for the marathon. But, I have the mind of a distance runner, I am stubborn and determined.

I've realized that if I'm going to complete my 7 continent goal I have to take care of body, so I'm trying to fit lots of yoga and stretching into my schedule. Getting myself to yoga is such a struggle, but it's always so worth it. Being in the studio with an instructor forces me to forget about everything else, and it seems like I always leave with a new pearl of wisdom.

Yesterday the instructor was assisting me in a pose, helping me to go deeper. As she pushed my body a littler further she said "I've got you, but you've also got yourself." I repeated the phrase to myself the rest of class.

I like to polarize things, so I tend to think that I either need to be totally independent or I need to relent and let people do things for me. But it doesn't have to be an either or. I can maintain my sense of self that I value so much while also letting other people in.

Majorly Dissapointed with CW-X

2011-12-20T13:25:00.002-05:00

Last year for Christmas I got a pair of CW-X tights. I'd wanted a pair for a long time, but couldn't bring myself to pay more than $100 for tights for myself. But I figured with the Antarctica Marathon last year, they'd be a good gift idea. I got a pair of the Women's Insultor Stabilyx Tights, and I love them. They were perfect for Antarctica because they're super warm. In fact, they're so warm that I only wear them when it's pretty chilly out, so I don't wear them all that often. I'd say that I've only worn them a total of 20 times. This morning when I went to put them on, I noticed that they already ripping on the inner thighs. I'm talking some pretty major holes. I am so disappointed and pretty mad too. These cost a lot of money and they didn't even last a year. Has anyone else had this experience with C-WX tights or apparel?

Healthier Holiday Treats: Bailey's Irish Cream and Peppermint Whoopie Pies

2011-12-19T13:34:00.001-05:00

The part of marathon training that I find the hardest is recovery. I am SO bad at taking days off. But yesterday I made myself do it. To keep myself busy, I decided to whip up some holiday treats for my friends and neighbors. I like to give out tasty treats, but am also conscious of calories. I like to think I'm giving my friends 2 treats in one- something yummy and something that won't leave them starting the new year weighing 10 extra pounds!

For my friends I made home-made Bailey's Irish Cream. It was really easy to lighten up, and still amazingly good.

1 C fat free half and half
14 oz reduced fat sweetened condensed milk
1 2/3 C Irish whiskey
1 t instant coffee
2 T Hershey's chocolate syrup
1 t vanilla
1 t almond extract (I used Torani hazelnut instead)

Combine all ingredients in a blender and set on high speed for 30 seconds.
Bottle in a tightly sealed container and refrigerate. Shake before using.
Will keep for up to 2 months

Since most of my neighbors are over 65, I decided to skip the booze for them and make some peppermint whoopie pies.

Pies
3/4 cup sugar
2/3 cup mashed banana
2 eggs
1 cup skim milk
2 teaspoons vanilla
1 cup cocoa
1 cup all purpose flour
1 cup whole wheat flour
1 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar
1/2 teaspoon salt

Filling
1 cup powdered sugar (I ended up using way more because my frosting was not thick enough)
1/2 cup Neufchatel cream cheese
1/4 cup non-fat plain Greek yogurt

Instructions
1. Preheat oven to 350° F. Spray nonstick spray on cookie sheets.
2. In a large bowl cream together sugar and banana. Add eggs, milk and vanilla.In a small bowl combine the cocoa, flour, baking soda, cream of tartar andsalt.
3. Add the dry ingredients to the liquids beating together until smooth.
4. Drop batter (about 2 tablespoons at a time) on to the cookie sheets to make18 cookies.
5. Bake 15 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean.
6. To make the filling, cream together the cheese and sugar add yogurt andcontinue to mix until well blended.
7. Assemble sandwiches by spreading the filling on the flat side of one cookieand topping with another pressing down to distribute filling evenly. Repeatwith remaining cookies and filling.
8. Wrap whoopie pies individually in plastic wrap or place them in a singlelayer on a platter as they will stick if stacked on top of each other.

These were my first 2- they don't look that pretty. My technique improved as I went!

It's begining to feel a lot like Christmas

2011-12-18T13:11:00.002-05:00

Being in California for the last 2 weeks, I was having a hard time getting in the holiday spirit. It just doesn't feel like Christmas to me when I'm standing in front of a palm tree wearing a t-shirt! But after yesterday back at home, I'm totally in the mood.

I woke up to a surprise snow storm. I would have preferred it wasn't during my scheduled 17 miler, but I am anxious for a white Christmas so I didn't mind. With the snow and wind I could barely see during the first half of my run and I was quickly getting soaked through. But running on the greenbelt I passed other intrepid runners and we exchanged smiles, and then I got out to Bug Light and the snow on the water was so pretty, that it kept my mood up. The second half of the run was harder, I was on a less scenic portion of the trail, I was alone, and I was tired. But, I stuck it out and finished the 17.

After food, a shower, and some stretching, I headed into Portland to meet Breezy at Dobra Tea. It was freezing outside, and I was tired from my run, so it was the perfect afternoon to settle inside and drink some tea. We got one of the tables sunk into the floor and plopped down into the pillow chairs. The tea menu was pretty overwhelming- almost 100 pages! We ended up with a Jasmine green tea and a lychee black tea. And then we waited..... The couple next to us ordered at the same time and had theirs within 20 minutes. So by the time the tea came we had to basically gulp it down. But I definitely want to go back on a day when I have more time- the atmosphere is great and I can see myself lingering all afternoon with a pot of tea.

The reason we had to hurry is that we had tickets to ride one of the Casco Bay Ferry Boats in the Boat Parade. The boat was all decorated.

It was freezing out on the water, reminded me of being in Antarctica. But we stuck it out on the bow for the whole hour. All the boats gathered outside of the harbor and then we came in in a line and made a circle. Then there were amazing fireworks. I love watching the fireworks over the ocean because they reflect off the surface of the water so it's like they are doubled. It was hard to get pictures of the boats in the dark- they were way prettier than they look in the pictures.

After the parade we needed some food and a place to warm up, so we headed to the Merry Table Creperie because I had a living social deal I wanted to use. It was perfect. It is on a back cobblestone alley in the Old Port, so it feels like Paris. Inside it is small and cozy, with French prints on the wall. We tucked ourselves in a little booth in a back. The service was excellent, and we quickly had our appetizer- sliced baguette with goat cheese and mushrooms. The mushrooms were obviously reconstituted dry mushrooms because the texture was a little off, but the bread and cheese were great. We then shared the
Poulet crepe, which had Grilled Chicken, Oven Roasted Tomato, Caramelized Onion, Tarragon, and Bechamel. The crepe itself was perfect, but the bechamel had a slightly off taste and too much pepper. For dessert we went with the classic banana and nutella crepe. Classic chocolate gooey goodness. All in all, it wasn't the best food I've ever had, but it was good and a great place for a chilly night if you're looking for something a little different.

My new pal the Cardiac Monitor

2011-12-16T19:25:00.002-05:00

The first day home after being gone for 2 weeks is always crazy. In addition to all the usual stuff (laundry, groceries, bank), today I also had to go the cardiologist. Since I passed out a month or so ago, I've had frequent dizzy spells, so I was glad to finally be going to the doctor. My vitals and EKG were normal, the next step was an echocardiogram. It was actually really neat because I was able to watch the screen and see my heart in 3-D, as well as hear the blood moving in and out of the chambers of my heart. The human body is totally amazing. And technology that lets us watch the inside of our bodies is pretty cool too.

Since my dizziness is intermittent, I also have to wear a cardiac monitor for 2 weeks to try and capture what's happening. It's not that big or heavy, but it's annoying.

I keep catching the wires on things. It's definitely coming off for my 17 miler tomorrow, and my date Sunday!

After traveling for 2 weeks and eating out all the time, all I wanted was a home cooked meal tonight. I wanted something warm and hearty that I could make multiple meals out of, so I roasted a chicken on top of diced sweet potatoes, carrots, and eggplant. I also make my favorite port cranberry sauce. I'll eat the chicken for a couple days, and then use the left overs to make chicken and dumpling soup.

Apple Valley California

2011-12-14T11:03:00.001-05:00

Yesterday was a LONG day. I was asked to go to an all day meeting in Apple Valley, which is about an hour and half from my hotel. And there were many warnings about the drive being terrible because of snow, so I wanted to hit the road by 6 am. That meant I needed to be up at 4:20 to hit the gym. Whenever I have to get up extra early for something, I'm paranoid that I'm not going to wake up so I don't sleep well. Yesterday I started waking up every 15 minutes starting at about 2 am. I finally gave in a got up at 4. I hit the hotel gym for a cardio session. 30 minutes on the elliptical which consisted of 3 sets of 5 minutes at a hard resistance and then 5 minutes of Tobata; followed by 30 minutes on the treadmill. 5 minute warm-up then 4 sets of 1 min at 6.5, 1 min at 7, 1 min at 8, 1 min at 7, and 1 min at 6 with a 5 min cool down at the end.

The drive was not bad at all. I should learn never to trust Californians when it comes to weather, they ALWAYS over react. It actually really pretty, up highway 15 through the Cajon pass. The variety of terrain in California always amazes me. We went from super flat sandy beaches to rugged mountains in less than an hour.

Apple Valley was a really interesting little town. It has remnants of a funky little frontier town (the original route 66 ran through town), but also has clearly been hit by very hard times as many of the buildings are vacant and crumbling. Yet there are also signs of new growth, like new housing developments. The people at the hospital were great- friendly, down to earth, and hard working. I always find that I like the people better in remote little towns.

We got to spend the morning out in the floors observing the life cycle of a physician order. I always love to get away the computer and out into the patient care environment. Then we look a break for lunch. They took us to a great Mexican place- Pedros. I was starving and wolfed down every bite of my grilled shrimp, beans, guacamole, and home made tortillas. Real Mexican food is just so good.

We spent the afternoon mapping out the processes we saw in the morning. I didn't get start heading back until 4:30, but luckily I was going against traffic. After the super early morning I was beat, but it is one of my coworkers last week on the project, so I felt obligated to go to dinner. We tried the Lazy Dog in Anaheim. It was just what I wanted, solid comfort food. We split sweet potato hash browns (holy yum) and salted season edamame for appetizers, and then I got a flat bread with shredded veggies and goat cheese. I was expecting a pizza, but it was more like a salad on flat bread with globs of goat cheese. I polished off the whole thing, and then collapsed as soon as I got back to the hotel.

Is Cross Fit enough?

2011-12-12T13:39:00.002-05:00

I've been going to cross fit 2-3 times a week when I'm in California for work. However, I'm still mentally struggling to accept that cross fit is enough to count as my sole workout for the day. I am an admitted cardio and sweat junkie. I like to get in a good solid hour of cardio a day and be dripping with sweat at the end. So after a cross fit workout that is primarily strength, I sometimes feel like it isn't enough. In the hour workout, I feel like I'm only working really hard for 10-20 minutes. While I have always enjoyed being active, my primary reason for working out is to burn calories. So I am left asking myself is cross fit enough? No doubt it is helping my all around fitness by encouraging more dynamic movement and strength, but does it burn the same number of calories or am I better off sticking with running or a spin class?

Balboa Island California

2011-12-10T10:00:00.000-05:00

As much as I love my new house and want to spend as much time as possible there, I've decided to stay some weekends in California to save some wear and tear on myself. Flying is just so unpleasant and exhausting. So yesterday after going to the gym and doing some work in the morning, I went to see a friend in Newport Beach. She took me to Balboa Island, a super ritzy community. It was a nice sunny day and we basked in the sunshine after spending the week working in the dark basement. We spent almost 2 hours walking around admiring the amazing houses and Christmas decorations.

I could never in a million years afford to buy a house here, but it was fun to look! We worked up an appetite walking, so we went over to the main street for lunch at Ciao, a cute Italian cafe. We split a salad with fresh raspberries and goat cheese, and a pizza with mushrooms and sun dried tomatoes. The salad was amazing! Instead of driving the long way back we decided to take the little ferry. It's a super deal- only $2 for the car and passenger, and $1 for each extra adult. Granted the trip is only like 5 minutes, but I'll take any boat ride I can get.

correrò a Roma!

2011-12-09T13:01:00.001-05:00

It's official- I am signed up for the Rome Marathon! I have been toying with this idea for awhile. I'm anxious to get another continent checked off for my 7 continent quest, and since I spent all my money on buying a house, it had to be somewhere where I could pay for the whole trip with miles. But I didn't want to run just any marathon in Europe, I wanted it to be somewhere special. Italy definitely qualifies since I spent my junior year of college there. The hardest part was convincing someone to come with me. Really friends and family? Why aren't you jumping at the chance for a free trip to Rome?? I am taking my little cousin (and by little I just mean younger, since she's now in college and about 10 inches taller than me). I think it will be really fun to show her all my favorite places and things in Italy. Hopefully having this on the calender for sure will help me have more motivation for my long runs. Gelato here I come.Other random observation of the day. I think it's interesting how fitness terms have their own dialects in different parts of the country. I went to a step class in Anaheim, CA today, and I put myself way in the back. Since I couldn't really see the instructor, I had to rely on her cues. The terminology she used was completely different than what I am used to at home. And yes, I still do step. I love step. I am always sweating buckets by the end and the choreography keeps me so mentally engaged that the time just flies by.

One year later

2011-12-07T11:15:00.001-05:00

It was a little more than a year ago that I was attacked while running on a trail by myself. It was such a shock to me both because I tend to be trusting person, and because it was during the day in a nice suburban neighborhood. I struggled after the attack because my job forces me to workout in the early morning (so it's usually dark) in places I don't know that well. For awhile I confined myself to the treadmill, but that wasn't practical because I didn't always have access to a treadmill, and it was boring me to death and making me hate running. I've been back outside running now for about a year and I can't decide if I am triumphing over adversity, or just being stupid. I like to look at it as I am refusing to let some stupid guy keep me from doing what I love. On the other hand, I think everything happens for a reason. Maybe being attacked, but escaping unharmed, was a warning. Am I ignoring that warning and putting myself in serious danger by running alone and unarmed at 5 am in Anaheim (which isn't the safest place) when I'm traveling?

All in my Head

2011-12-04T11:36:00.001-05:00

It always amazes me how much of running is mental. Yesterday I did a 14.5 miler and I was really struggling the first half. After slogging through my marathon training alone last winter, I was desperate for a training partner this year. I didn’t have many options, so I settled on running with a guy who is super nice, but faster than me. Yesterday I felt like I was totally dragging him down. The first half of the run my legs just felt like lead. I was struggling. It could have been the head wind, or the fact that I really, really had to pee (note to self, don’t drink 2 cups of coffee before a long run), or that he was leading and I didn’t know what to expect. Then, after the turn around point I suddenly felt great. I went from barely being able to hang on to the 10 min/mile pace to doing 8:30s. Granted, I did finally find a bathroom, and the wind was now behind us, but I think it was all in my head. I always spend the first half of a long run dreading how much I have left to do. It’s only when I start to see the end that I allow myself to feel decent and relax into the run. Bad strategy, I know, but what can I do?

Healthy Cold Weather Dinners

2011-12-02T13:54:00.001-05:00

It's getting cold here in Maine, so I am craving comfort food. Luckily, I'm working at home this week, so I've been able to whip up lots of healthy meals that also satisfy. Tuesday morning I woke up early and set up my bread machine. While I ran, the bread machine whipped up this awesome Honey Whole Wheat Bread. 1 1/8 cups warm water (110 degrees F/45 degrees C) 3 tablespoons honey 1/3 teaspoon salt 1 1/2 cups whole wheat flour 1 1/2 cups bread flour 2 tablespoons vegetable oil 1 1/2 teaspoons active dry yeastAdd ingredients according to the manufacturer's directions to your bread machine. Use the wheat bread cycle and light color setting.

I'll admit, I ate half the loaf on Tuesday!
Scallops and SquashWednesday I went grocery shopping and scallops were on sale. I also had some lovely butternut squash my Mom gave me from her garden. I peeled the squash, cubed it (microwave it for a few minutes and it's WAY easier to cut), and then roasted it at 350. While the squash was roasting, I sauteed onion and garlic in olive oil until they were soft. I then added white wine, a little butter, and the scallops. When the squash was done, I tossed it with the scallops. Easy and SOOOO good. No pictures because I ate it too fast!
Pasta, Bacon, and Arugula.Thursday I was watching the Chew, and they made a pasta bacon and cabbage dish that left me craving both pasta and bacon. When I was at the store getting the bacon, I saw organic arugula on clearance, so I grabbed that as well. In a skillet I cooked the bacon, while I boiled water for the pasta. When the bacon was done, I drained most of the grease (saving just a little for flavor). I then browned some garlic in the bacon grease. When the pasta was done, I added it to the skillet with the garlic, tossed in the arugula, crumbled the bacon on top, and mixed.

Coach Jenny's Holiday Challenge
To keep myself motivated during the Holiday's I'm participating in Coach Jenny's Holiday Challenge. All you have to do is post your weekly goal and mileage workouts and you can win great prizes!
This week's prize is Agloves. Boy do I need these!! I start my run on a moderately busy road, go to a very busy road, then go onto a bike path. All this means that I have to constantly adjust the volume on i-pod. Not soo easy in the winter when I'm wearing gloves. I would totally love to be able to change the volume without having to take off my gloves and freeze my hands!K

Old friends (and major score on gym clothes at Old Navy)

2011-12-01T10:37:00.001-05:00

Thanks to Facebook, I've gotten in touch with some of my friends from junior high and high school since moving back to Maine. Yesterday, 5 of us met for lunch. It was strange, but wonderful. I hadn't seen two of the women in more than 10 years! We're all more grown-up, but basically, pretty much the same and fell into easy conversation. It makes sense given our history. It's hard as an adult to achieve that same level of closeness you had with your friends as a teenager, when you spend all day together at school, talked on the phone all night, and had sleepovers on the weekend. And yet there was a little weirdness because even though we are all the same age, we're all at such different places in our lives. 3 of the 4 are married and have kids. None of them went to college and they're all stayed in Maine. Among my friends in Boston, I was typical. I'd gone to college and grad school, traveled a lot, tried a few jobs, lived with room-mates, and been mostly single. But here, I'm the odd one out. And it's not that one path is better than another. I'm jealous of what they have- their sweet children, loving husbands, stability and security. And they're jealous of what I have- excitement, freedom, and possibilities. It was a lunch that left me thinking. On the way home I stopped at Old Navy because I had a groupon. I intended to get Christmas presents, but there was great workout clothes on clearance, so it spent it all on myself! Look at this haul- capri tights, 2 tank tops, and a jacket for $30, which thanks to my Groupon only cost me $15!

What do you think about Old Navy's performance clothing? I find it works just as well as the more expensive brands. My stuff gets used soooo much, that it wears out quickly no matter what brand it is.

A weeks worth of workouts at home

2011-11-30T11:13:00.001-05:00

Before Thanksgiving I shared what a typical week of workouts looks like when I'm on the road. This week I'm lucky enough to be working for home. Here's what a week at home in the fall/winter looks like:
MondayAM 45 minute kickboxing class. 45 minute strength class.
TuesdayAM: A 60 minute run, usually an interval or tempo workout. Yesterday I cranked out a 7:30 magic mile. Go me!PM: If my work schedule allows, I hit up the noon yoga class at . If not, I do a DVD at home at night.
WednesdayAM: 30 minutes on the elliptical and then a 45 minute absolute kick butt boot camp classPM: Fit club. We do something different every week, but usually 25-30 minutes of a cardio turbo fire and then some strength
ThursdayAM: A 60 minute run with some hill repeats thrown inPM: Pilates or yoga
Friday:AM: A 60 minute step class, and then either a 45 minute class that is a combo of zumba and strength, or just weight on my own
Saturday:AM: 60 minute kickboxing class if I am home. But I try to ski or do some seasonal day long activity.
Sunday:AM: Long run

Christmas in the New House

2011-11-29T10:53:00.001-05:00

I am so excited to get to decorate my new house for Christmas! My Dad and I went to get our trees the day after Thanksgiving at a great farm by his house. It is always fun to tromp through the snow and find the perfect tree. It's not so fun to lie down in the snow to cut down the tree, but it's part of the experience I guess. My Dad just had surgery so I got to drag both trees back through the snow to the car. Talk about a workout! My Dad picked such a fat tree that it took 4 of us to stuff it through the baler to wrap it up!When I got home Saturday night I was so excited to see how my tree would look in the house, that I decided to set it up by myself. Big Mistake!! I couldn't hold it straight and screw it into the stand at the same time. And there was a branch on the bottom that kept it from going all the way into the stand. Of course I don't have a saw, so I hacked away with a kitchen knife. But eventually I got it! I let it rest for a night and then decorated yesterday.

Sunday I thought I'd quickly put up some lights outside. There was nothing quick about it. First I realized there is no outlet outside, so I had to string a couple extension chords together. Then, after stringing the first string around the tree it occurred to me that I should make sure they worked. They didn't, so down they come. Most of my neighbors are older, so they all came out to watch me climb up and down on the tree. By the time the lights were up, I had the little red berries from the tree all over myself!

And then just a few finishing touches. My coastal wreath that I got at Early Bird.

Some pine garland and decorations on the mantel.

And my little Norwegian village set up on the buffet.

Thanksgiving

2011-11-24T14:34:00.001-05:00

Thanksgiving was a little up in the air this year. For awhile I stressed out about it and started to get mad that things weren't going to be exactly how I wanted them to be. But then I just took a deep breath and let go. In the end I have so much to be grateful for, that it doesn't matter if the details of the day aren't perfect. I am healthy. I am still having dizzy spells, but for the most part I am healthy and strong. I went to 2 great, intense, fun classes at the gym this morning- spinning and kickboxing. I was just letting it all out. My family is healthy. We are lucky to live in a place where we have access to great healthcare. SO my Dad was diagnosed early, got treatment, and is home with us for the holiday.I have a great job that constantly challenges me and lets me travel the country. I have an awesome house that is MINE!And finally snow!! We got a storm yesterday, and while it was a dud at my house, it left nearly 8 inches at my Dad's in NH. I just took one of the dogs for a long walk. I love walking in the quiet woods hearing the snow fall off the trees around me.

So from me (and Luna the puppy) I wish you all a healthy and happy Thanksgiving.

Bed Racing

2011-11-22T12:44:00.001-05:00

Long before Black Friday became a national event, Boothbay Harbor has been having an early bird sale. It's a chance for the stores to clean out their inventory before the stores shut for the winter, and an excuse for the locals to dress up in silly pajamas and get out and see each other before the worst of winter sets in. It's a tradition that I love, the shopping part is secondary. We all gather at my Mom's house the night before and stay up too late playing music and eating and drinking. The house is always overflowing, so I usually volunteer to sleep in the boathouse with my Mom and cousin. We snuggle down under many quilts because the boathouse is not heated or insulated and listen to the wind and the waves. Morning always come way too soon, but we drag ourselves out of our warm beds and up the hill to the house. And then before the sun is up, we're on our way to town. All the stores have free coffee and snacks, so we eat, drink, and shop our way through town, stopping often to visit with friends and neighbors. And then we all gather at McSeagull's for mimosas and lobster omelets. And then go home for a nap. This year though, there was something new- a bed race. I of course, was the first to volunteer. Running and pajamas- I was totally there. I was racing for the Boothbay Region Greenhouse team. Our theme was fairy houses, and our bed was beautiful! It was decorated with pine boughs and berries. We all wore wings and our fairy rider through rose petals from the bed.

We looked totally awesome at the start and went out with a roar.

Unfortunately we soon discovered that our bed did not go in a straight line. We kept drifting off to the left and into the crowd. By the time we got to the turn around, we were far behind. And then we got even further behind, because when we tried to pick up the bed to turn around, we found it weight a TON! On the way back we were laughing so hard we could barely push. We lost by a lot, but had a blast and worked up an appetite for brunch!

Fitness on the Road: In the Hotel

2011-11-17T10:47:00.001-05:00

This morning I had to leave my hotel by 5 to catch my flight so the hotel gym it was. Granted, I am now still sitting in Orange County because we boarded and then had to get right back off because of a ground hold at my destination, but that’s another story.
Most hotels have some sort of gym, usually a treadmill, bike, and sometimes an elliptical. They aren’t usually great, but you can get in a decent workout and not get too bored.

20:20:20- Twenty minutes on each machine- elliptical, treadmill, bike. It keeps you from getting bored on one machine, and inspires me to work harder on each segment because I think of it as only a 20 minute workout.

Tobada and Strength Elliptical Workout- Warm up for 5-10 minutes. Then do 5 minutes of tobada (20 seconds all out, 10 seconds of recovery), then 5 minutes of increasing resistance (start at a level that is slightly challenging and up it every minute, by the last minute it should be very hard), then 5 minutes at a moderate effort to recover. That is one set. Repeat 3-4 times.

Treadmill Interval Workout- Warm up 5-10 minutes at easy pace, I usually use speed 6.0 which is a 10 minute mile. Now time for intervals- 1 minute at 6, 1 minute at 7, 1 minute at 8, 1 minute at 7, and 1 minute at 6. That is one set. Repeat to reach desired time. If I am doing a long workout (40+ minutes) I usually throw in a couple ½ or 1 mile repeats at 7 in to break things up and build some longer speed endurance.

No equipment workout- Sometime the hotel doesn’t have a gym, or it’s too crowded. No excuse to skip a workout. You can do this in your room with no equipment at all. I always carry a jump rope and resistance band because they don’t take up much room, but you can do with just your body weight. For an hour I alternate 2 minutes of cardio (jump rope, jumping jacks, high knees, skips, mountain climbs, etc) with 1 minute of strength. For the strength, I do a mix of upper body (push-ups, rows with band, biceps with band, tricep dips, handstand pushups, etc), core (planks, crunches, leg lifts, swims, oblique crunches, side planks, etc), and lower body (lunges, squats, side leg lifts, etc). 1 hour and you’ve done a total body workout!

Keep your fingers crossed that I get home at some point today!

Fitness on the Road: Gyms

2011-11-16T11:08:00.001-05:00

This morning's workout was a spinning class at the Bally's next to my hotel. I like to check out local gyms when I'm traveling because it gives me a chance to try new equipment and classes. I've gotten to try some really cool classes like Kangoo where we bounced around on these sweet bouncy shoes, and pitch dark yoga which really challenged my balance and helped me completely let loose because no one could see me. I have also definitely been to some pretty terrible classes, like a body toning class where all the equipment was broken the instructor rushed us through with terrible form. But you win some, you lose some. It helps to do some research before you go, checking out reviews of the local gyms. And you can also check out the class schedules in advance so you know what you want to try and when!Using a gym away from home can be pretty cheap, and often free! I don't mind paying a day pass fee once in awhile, but when you are on the road as much as I am, it could add up quickly. Here are my strategies for getting in free:
1) Check with your hotel. Many hotels have an agreement with a fitness facility that allows guests to use the facility free of charge. When I was working in Santa Rosa for months, I picked up hotel mostly because it allowed me to use a state of the art fitness facility for free.
2) See if your home gym allows you to use other gyms in the network for free. At home I am a member of the YMCA, so I can use most Y's around the country for free. Most chains like Bally's or Gold's let you do this too.
3) Check out the gym's website. Many of them have free day or week passes you can print and use.
4) Ask and flatter. I find I am pretty successful if I just chat up the front desk person and explain that I'm traveling for work, and I heard this was a great gym and I'd like to give it a try.

Fitness on the Road- Running

2011-11-15T11:33:00.001-05:00

This morning I went for a run by my hotel. Running is great while traveling because you don't need a lot of gear, technically just sneakers and clothes (but I include my i-pod and garmin in my must have category as well). The treadmill bores me to tears, so I always try to find a way to run outside. It's worth it to spend a little time researching your destination before you go, so that you don't end up running somewhere unsafe, or get stuck running laps around the hotel parking lot. Here are a few strategies I use.
-Look for a running club at your destination. They might have group runs you can join, have route maps on their website, or if you e-mail them, be willing to provide some advice. I've yet to get a negative response when trying to hook up with a running club where I'll be traveling. Running in the USA has a great list of running clubs around the country.
-Check out a Running Route Website. There are quite a few website where people can post routes they like to run. US Track and Field; Map my Run;Walk Jog Run, and Runner's World
-As a last resort, use Google Maps. I always look around my hotel for residential areas and parks as I like to get away from the traffic.

Any other advice out there for road warrior runners?

And as an update to yesterday's Crossfit workout- I am in agony today. I am SOO sore. I dropped my hairbrush this morning and could barely pick it up.

Fitness on the Road- Crossfit

2011-11-14T12:42:00.001-05:00

A lot of people ask me how I manage to stay so consistent with my work-outs when I travel so much. It's not easy, but I have developed a lot of strategies, so this week I'm going to share with you what a typical week on the road looks like work-out wise. Today I went to Crossfit. Crossfit is hugely popular these days, so you can find a gym most places you go. They also usually have early morning and late evening classes, which helps to fit it in around a long work day. Crossfit also gives a lot of bang for your buck. You are working HARD when you are there. And because most cross fit gyms use the same WOD (work-out of the day) you'll make sure the get the full benefit of the program and work your whole body over the course of the week, no matter which gym you go to. I have been going to Anaheim West Cross Fit. They are wonderful. They have been so welcoming and friendly. The coach spends a lot of time with me, making sure I understand the moves and have good form. It's a balls to walls group for sure, but they are always there cheering for you when you are struggling. They have a huge amount of cool equipment, and it makes me feel super hard core to be lifting huge weights, flipping tires, and doing pull-ups.

I get by with a little help from my friends

2011-11-13T16:29:00.001-05:00

I have a tendency to be a control freak, to be solitary, and to be creature of habit. For the most part this is good, because I get things done quickly and efficiently. But sometimes I get stuck. And when that happens I am left floundering. I dig myself in deeper and deeper because I don't ask for help. This was one of those weeks where I fell down into a pit and was stuck sitting down there. Then Saturday morning I made the decision to go to yopa. I love, love, love the yoga studio in Boothbay by my Mom's house. But I hardly ever go because the class is at 8:30 am and I have this compulsive need to do an hour of cardio first thing in the morning. But this week I just wasn't feeling great, and I really wanted to do something with my mom, so I skipped the run and went. During the class, the instructor Romee comes along and helps you into the poses. I was doing a half hearted bow pose when she came and sat on my feet and helped lift my shoulders. At first I tensed, and I then I let her help me, rising high into the pose. With her help I was better and it was easier. And the light bulb went off. If I let people help me, I can get so much further. So I finally called my friend and invited her to coffee and just unloaded everything that has been bothering me. And just having someone listen made me feel a million pounds lighter. And now my flight is being called, off I go!

By the Sea

2011-11-09T17:00:00.000-05:00

I am grateful that I now live in a place where I can see the ocean daily. There is something about the ocean that calms my restless soul. There is something in the regular rhythm of the waves and tides that reminds me to breath deeply and slows my heart rate. After the snow storm 2 weeks ago, we're now having a wonderful stretch of 60 degree weather. This morning I rode my bike to the Portland Y for a Body Pump class in shorts and a light long sleeve shirt! And I was hot by the time I got to the top of the hill on High Street. I'm warming to the instructor. When I went to his boot camp last week, I was pretty turned off by his personality. He is an ex marine and very brash. At Kristen's bootcamp in MA, I felt like she expected a lot and was tough, but ultimately was on our side. This guy seems to mostly think we're idiots. But I think I won his respect a little today when I mentioned the Antarctica Marathon. I've been taking advantage of the weather and being at home this week to explore the amazing parks during my lunch break. Monday I went to Fort Williams Park. This is the home of Portland Head Light, which is the oldest (and most photographed) lighthouse in Maine. I spent a wonderful hour meandering along the cliff path, walking around the lighthouse, and looking at the remains of Fort Williams.

Today I went to Two Lights Park. It was a stunning day. The bright sun made the surface of the water look like it was covered in diamonds. There is a nice variety of trails, from pine needle covered trails through the woods, to crushed gravel paths along the cliffs overlooking the water, to rocky coast itself. I spend half and hour walking and then tucked myself into a little nook in the rocks that was sheltered by the breeze, but in the full sun. The rocks were smooth and were warm from soaking up the sun all morning. I spent a blissful half hour reading. At one point I looked down at the water and a few little seals were playing in the surf.

How lucky and I to see this everyday??

Cider Madness and first official long run

2011-11-08T14:39:00.001-05:00

Apparently the hurricane punch I made for my housewarming was so good that no one wanted apple cider. So I had more than a gallon of cider I need to use up. Luckily I'd saved several recipes earlier this fall that all featured cider. Apple Cider Pulled Chicken Sandwiches with Apple Slaw 1 Tbsp butter1/2 medium onion, finely chopped1 cup apple cider, divided3/4 cup apple cider vinegar, divided1/2 cup ketchup2 Tbsp Dijon mustard2 Tbsp brown sugar1/2 tsp cajun seasoning3 boneless skinless chicken breasts1/3 cup Greek yogurt1 Tbsp sugarsalt1 apple, cut into matchsticks1 lb cabbage, finely shredded4 hamburger or bulkie rollsMelt butter in a large saucepan; add onions and cook until translucent. Add 1/2 cup apple cider, 1/2 cup cider vinegar, ketchup, mustard, brown sugar, cajun seasoning, and salt to taste, and bring to a boil over high heat. Add chicken breasts and enough apple cider to cover. Cover pan, reduce to a simmer, and cook for about 15 minutes or until chicken is cooked through.While chicken is cooking, whisk together Greek yogurt, 1/4 cup apple cider vinegar, sugar, and salt to taste. In a large bowl, combine apple matchsticks, shredded cabbage, and yogurt mix, and toss to coat. Set aside.When chicken is cooked through, remove from pan, shred with two forks, and return to sauce. Serve chicken on toasted rolls with a good-sized spoonful of slaw on top.Review: I didn't make the slaw portion, just the chicken. I used bone in breasts because they were on sale. After the chicken was done, the sauce was still pretty "soupy" so I took out the chicken and let the sauce reduce. HOLY GOODNESS. The chicken was tender and the sauce was tangy, sweet, and just a little spicy.CIDER-GLAZED ROOT VEGETABLESServing: 8Preparation time: 15 minutes; total time: 1 hour2 cups apple cider4 large carrots, peeled, cut into 1-by--inch sticks3 large parsnips, peeled, cut into 1-by--inch sticks2 medium onions, peeled, quartered, then cut each quarter in half across the center1 tablespoon olive oil2 tablespoons butter, cut into piecesSea salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste1 tablespoon fresh thyme leavesPreheat oven to 425 degrees.Place the cider in a saucepan and bring to a boil. Boil for 15 minutes or until reduced by about half.Meanwhile, prepare all the vegetables and place them in a single layer on a large rimmed baking sheet. Drizzle with the oil and toss to coat. Drizzle cider over vegetables. Scatter butter pieces over the top and sprinkle with salt and pepper.Cover tightly with foil and bake until vegetables are almost crisp-tender, about 25 minutes. Remove foil and stir vegetables to coat with the pan juices. Bake uncovered about 15 minutes or until vegetables brown and some of the juices evaporate. Transfer mixture to a serving bowl along with accumulated juices. Sprinkle with thyme leaves. Season to taste.Adapted from www.epicurious.com.Review: I used these great purple carrots we grew at my Mom's house, which gave the whole dish a fun purple tint. I also used squash, onions, and regular orange carrots. I didn't let the cider reduce quite enough, because the glaze was too runny. However, it still tasted good. Finally I made cranberry sauce, using port and cider as the liquid in which I cooked the cranberries. YUM-O. Then this morning, I did my first "official" long run. I'm pretty sure I'm going to do the Rome Marathon next March, so last night I got out my Galloway training plan and started counting back from race day to see when I should start my training. 3 weeks ago, apparently! Oops! Luckily, I have been doing long runs of 10-13 miles once a month so I'm okay. Today called for 10.5 miles, which I thought would be a breeze since I did 12.5 3 weeks ago. But it was surprisingly hard. I think there were a few factors: my hamstrings were really sore from the 1 leg deadlifts we did at the gym yesterday, I used a ratio of 5 minutes running and 30 seconds walking (where as I usually use a 4-1), and finally whatever my ongoing dizziness issue is. I was more winded than usual and just felt like I was working a lot harder. I was actually really scared when I got home because when I looked down in the shower parts of my hands were purplish. Freaky.

Gratefulness

2011-11-07T15:55:00.000-05:00

Tina, over at Carrots and Cake, is doing a "Be Thankful Challenge." It's such a good idea, and I have so much to be thankful for, so I am going to do the same. So here is my list so far this month.1st: I am thankful to have gotten home on time and with no major hassles. As much as I complain about travel, it's pretty amazing that I get all the way across the country so often safely and quickly.2nd: I am thankful to be home. I love, love, love my house.3rd: I am thankful for the new opportunities that constantly present themselves. I'm not quite ready to share this one yet because I'm not sure where it's going. 4th: I am thankful to be able to cook, and even more thankful to be cooking for people I love. I am prepping all the food for my housewarming party and having a blast. On the menu: caramelized onion tart, spanikopita dip,, rosemary pecorino cheese and crackers, and then the chocolate fountain with marshmellows, graham crackers, apples, and pretzels for dipping. 5th: I am thankful for my amazing friends and family. I didn't have a huge turn-out for the house warming party, but the people that mattered most all came. I couldn't help but think how different it was from my last house warming 4 years ago. Then we were all in our early/mid twenties and we stayed up till 3 am playing beer pong. This house warming party we ranged in age from 6 weeks to 60, and spent a lot of time jiggling babies, and playing red light green light. The party was wrapped up at 8:30 pm. 6th: I am thankful to have gotten to run with a good friend on a beautiful fall day. My friend Jen from Wheaton stayed over after the party and we went for a great run in the morning and then had brunch. It totally brought me back to my college days when I never ran alone. I miss that. 7th: I am thankful to have high quality, affordable medical care available to me. Since fainting 2 weeks ago, I've continued to have dizzy spells so I finally went to the doctor today. It was quick, efficient, and my new doctor is great. Hopefully she'll figure out what's up with me.What are you grateful for?

And Ode to an old pair of shoes

2011-11-03T14:54:00.000-04:00

I decided today it was officially time to retire this pair of running shoes. Because I'm cheap I try to make a pair last as long as possible, but these are just done it. First of all, they reek. Seriously. A few times at the gym lately I've done some sort of jump and then wondering what the awful smell was. It was the stink of my sneakers wafting up. I am not sure why this pair is so stinky, maybe because at least twice a week I work-out and then immediately stick them in my suitcase where they usually have a good 12-18 hours to fester. Also, they are just worn out. Running the trails in Eureka last week I could feel every rock I stepped on. Normal if you are wearing, Vibram 5 fingers, not normal in cushioned running shoes.

There is always something sad about retiring a pair of shoes. This pair in particular has been through a lot with me. I did my last runs in Santa Rosa before I was reassigned to Orange, and then did my first runs in Orange. I wore them for my first 2 sprint triathalons. I wore them for the Peak's Island Road Race. I did my last runs in Framingham before I moved, and then explored the new routes around my new house in Maine. Actually I also wore them as I moved too. I ran my fourth and favorite Reach the Beach relay in them. I wore them to volunteer in New Orleans (red paint spots as evidence) I wore them as I explored Humboldt County and the giant redwoods. Good-bye blue running shoes, and hello new pink ones. May we have many good times together.

Avenue of the Giants

2011-11-01T18:23:00.000-04:00

Okay last post about giant Redwoods for awhile, I promise. It’s just that each place I’ve gone to has had bigger trees and been even more unspoiled. Yesterday I decided to sacrifice sleep and spend my last day in Humbolt County driving the Avenue of the Giants, a 31 mile road through the largest and oldest groves of virgin redwood. We got off highway 101 and immediately were surrounded by redwoods. The towering trees made a massive canopy over the road. It was cool, dark, and so quiet. A few miles into our drive we got out for the first time at an area that had a lot of upturned trees. It was fun to crawl through the tunnels and caves made by the giant root systems. Even on their sides the trees are huge, 2-3 times wide as I am tall. The area also had a lot of ferns and moss. It was like stepping back in time, I kept waiting for the dinosaurs to show up.

Next stop was a gift shop built in a cavern under a tree. We stopped again to walk the Founder’s Grove trail, an easy 2/3 of a mile. It is a grove dedicated to the people who had the foresight to recognize the giant redwoods as a natural treasure and save it. Thank you! The redwoods are just so majestic and awe inspiring that everyone should get to experience them. What was interesting was that the trees in each place we stopped were slightly different. Some trees were more red and some were more brown, some were gnarled with uneven bark, and others were straight with smooth bark.

Last stop was to drive through a tree! I was glad Vanessa’s rental car was little, because we barely fit. She stopped in the middle to take pictures, and then she tried to get out of the car to let me in for a picture. It was a tight squeeze. Totally cheesy, but fun! Right next to the drive through tree was a little vineyard that had wine tasting. Why not? The wine was pretty rugged, since the area doesn’t get a lot of sun. My favorite was the sasquatch red, but that’s probably just because I loved the bottle. The label had a giant sasquatch lumbering through the woods.

Last stop of the day was at Lost Coast Brewery in Eureka for dinner. We were starved. I was still feeling my wine, so I skipped the beer, although I was very temped by the Apricot Wheat. Lots of people were dressed up for Halloween and they had lots of crazy decorations on the walls, so it was a fun atmosphere. Like everywhere in Humboldt County they had a lot of veggie options- I went for a portabella and spinach quesadilla. It was hot, cheesy, and yummy. Not too greasy, and the tortilla was super fresh. And since it was Halloween, and I’d yet to have a single piece of candy, I decided to spring for the apple crisp for dessert.

Offically a Vampire (and how to survive on only the Hampton Inn Continental Breakfast)

2011-10-30T22:34:00.000-04:00

How appropriate that just in time for Halloween I've turned into a Vampire. I'm fully adjusted to the night shift, so I'm up all night and sleep all day. In some ways it stinks- it's creepy in the command center at night, I miss the sun, and it's hard to sleep during the day because the hotel is so loud. On the other hand, it's nice because when I wake up at 3 pm before my shift, it is light and I run outside. Yesterday I checked out the Hammond TrailI parked on the Arcata end because it was closest to my hotel. It took me a while to get into my run. The first mile or so is on a really rough road, it's hilly, and you are surrounded by smelly cows on both sides. There was also a roaring headwind. But then the trails turns into a lovely paved bike/pedestrian p[ath through the woods and then by the ocean. Once you get to the long ocean the path splits, a dirt trail runs right along the water, while a paved trail goes more inland. I ran 30 minutes out and then turned around. Next time, I'd park in McKinleyville to avoid the first mile of rough road.

Today I was completely exhausted so I decided to just work out at the hotel so I could sleep an extra 30 minutes. To break it up mentally, and because my ankle has been a little funky, I did 20 minutes each on the elliptical, treadmill, and bike. The hour just flew by!The other funny thing about the night shift, is that it has forced me to eat only food from the hotel continental breakfast. Nothing is open when I'm driving home from work early in the morning, and I want to maximize my sleeping and working-out time in the afternoon before I head in, so I don't want to take the time to stop anywhere. So here is what I've been eating the last 4 days.at 6 am when I get back to the hotel from work and the breakfast is open: a belgium waffle. I add chopped banana and almonds to the batter to make it more interesting and nutritious.

at 5 pm after I work-out and before I head to work: oatmeal which I took from the breakfast and refrigerated. I add almonds, banana, and a hazlenut creamer to make it more interesting. 9 pm snack in the command center: yogurt I stole from breakfastmidnight: mini cinnamon raisin bagel with peanut butter and honey and an apple. 3 am snack: apple or bananaIt totally reminds me of when I was studying abroad in college. We had no money, so when we were traveling we would stuff our pockets at the hotel breakfast . Especially if they had the little packets of Nutella. But tonight is my last night as a vampire and I am very much looking forward to getting back to a normal sleeping and eating schedule.

Humboldt County California

2011-10-28T22:27:00.003-04:00

So I should have been sleeping during the day yesterday and today to switch acclimate my body to working the night shift, but I was too used to getting up at 4 am! And there was just too much amazing stuff to see here!I started off with a run at the Arcata Marsh and Wildlife Refuge. It was stunning and my run just flew by! There were little pools completely grown over with bright green algae, little inlets filled birds, and then the giant sweep of Humbolt bay. There was that great earthy,salty smell that you only get where the land meets the sea. And there were so many birds- from hundreds of little pipers to giant pelicans.

Despite the fact that it was a clear, cool morning I finished drenched with sweat. I think I must still have a fever, because I looked like I had done speed work on a hot summer day instead of an easy 60 minute run on a cool fall day. So I made a quick stop back at the hotel for a shower and change before heading up highway 101 north. I am not usually one for scenic drives, I prefer to be outside walking or biking, but because I wasn't feeling great, and because it was just so darn majestic, I really loved this drive. First stop was Trinidad, a tiny little town nestled in the cliffs. I got out and admired the lighthouse, and then hoofed it the down the hundreds of steps to the water. I loved the cool shapes of the giant rocks sticking out of the water. And I even saw a little seal swimming around.

After Trindad, I kept heading north. Highway 101 had great views of the Big Lagoon and Stone Lagoon alternating with redwood forest sections. I stopped to take a few pictures.

After passing a few "Elk Crossing" warning signs, I went through the town of Orick, which was little more than a few little buildings before turning off 101 to head up to Lady Bird Johnson Redwood Grove. The redwoods never fail to amaze me. One thing that struck me in particular this time is how many of them had scars and burn marks from forest fires. It reminded me that we all go through things that hurt and scar us, but we can rise above these things, and continue to grow tall and strong.

I enjoyed the same scenery on my way back to the hotel, stopping just long enough to change my shoes before heading to downtown Eureka for dinner. It's an interesting town. A lot of it is pretty ugly and rundown, but you can tell they are making an effort to revive the downtown. There is a nice path that runs along the river and by the marina.

And Ramone's Bakery and Cafe was great! They recently started staying open for dinner and have a great selection of small plates. I had gnocchi with pesto, and each batch is made to order. They were so light and fluffy. And after salivating over the amazing dessert case for nearly 20 minutes trying to make up my mind, I finally decided on a pasty filled with almond paste, covered in roasted almonds and dipped in chocolate. Perfect ending to a perfect day!

Arcata California

2011-10-26T12:39:00.001-04:00

I am in the Eureka/Arcata area of Northern California this week for work. It is stunningly beautiful for sure. I took a little plane in from San Francisco and we were just feet above the rugged mountains. And then we landed at the tiny airport (and I mean tiny- no gates, you just land on the runway and walk across the tarmac and out a gate) and I was hit with a blast of cool wind. The ocean here is wild, dark blue and constantly whipped up and white-capped. The people are definitely free spirited. Walking around Arcata I saw a lot of dreadlocks, tie-dye, hula-hopping, and crazy things. I thought I had a hippie spirit, but this town makes me feel pretty straight laced.

The center square in Arcta.And after feeling better on Sunday, I am back to feeling not good. So the strange atmosphere added to my dizziness makes me feel like I am in a strange alternate universe. The fact that I am never outside during daylight hours does not help. I’ve gotten up at 4 the last 3 days to work-out and then worked 12 hour shifts in the command center. But I rallied tonight to go out to dinner with a group of people from work, and I'm so glad I did. The food was AMAZING!We went to Folie Douce. The restaurant is tiny, but cozy with bright blue and yellow walls and ceilings. The kitchen is exposed and the wait staff are extremely knowledgeable about the food. Nearly everything is organic and locally sourced. I abstained from the wine because of my cold, but everyone else had a blended California red that they said was amazing. We were offered tastes of any of the wines we were interested in. The bread they served had a great texture, in the middle and crunchy on the outside. I couldn't decide between the many yummy sounding pizzas, so they nicely offered to do half and half. I had half with chanterelle mushrooms, carmelized onions, fontina, garlic, thyme & a drizzle of white truffle aioli and half with pancetta, blue cheese, figs, and arugula. The mushroom was definitely my favorite. The blue cheese was too strong for my linking on the other half, but the figs we nice and sweet and juicy in contrast to the salty pancetta. We were told we had to try to flour-less mocha fudge cake for dessert, and I am so glad we got one to split. I was just going to have one bite, but once I started I couldn't stop. I have had a lot of chocolate cakes in my life, but this was one of the best. It was mousse like in consistency and so flavorful. The creme fresh with violets and mint on the side was a good contrast. I could barely take a picture we were gobbling it down so fast!

After dinner we stayed and talked for nearly 2 hours. This is one of the things I love about my job, I get to meet and interact with such interesting people.

Where to run in Portland, Maine

2011-10-23T16:08:00.001-04:00

I am so in love with the running near my new house. Today I was determined to shake off the pain in my head and general laziness so I made myself go out and go for a run this morning. Being out on the Greenbelt by the water looking over at the city skyline made me so happy. I decided to share the wealth and contribute to Runner's World's new travel running wiki. I always appreciate being able to look up potential routes when I am traveling, so it's only fair that share some of the best runs in Portland. Here is a link And the text of the article....Portland has some great running!The Back Cove trail in Portland is one the most popular trails. The 3.5 mile dirt and crushed stone loop is mostly flat and goes around a lovely cove. There is plenty of parking at the Preble Street Extension (across from the Hannaford store on Forest Ave) and on the north side of Baxter Boulevard at Payson Park.The back bay trail connects to the Eastern Prom Trail which leads to the Old Port area. This is a lovely rolling paved path that runs along the water. If you are really motivated, you can branch off the path and run the stairs or steep roads that lead up to the Eastern Prom for sweeping views of Casco Bay.Another option is to run (or drive) over the Casco Bay Bridge and into South Portland where you can pick up the South Portland Greenbelt. This is a paved bicycle and pedestrian path that runs from the Wainwright Recreation Complex to Bug Light Park and the Spring Point Shoreway. Parking is available at Bug Light Park, in the Mill Creek shopping center, and the Wainwright Recreation Complex, which can be reached via the Gary Maietta Parkway off Highland Avenue.For a map of available trails and maps visit http://www.trails.org/map_files/existingtrails.html

Out Cold

2011-10-22T16:48:00.000-04:00

One of the best things about having my own house is that I can have lots of visitors without feeling like I am imposing on my room-mates. My cousin Lindsay came down from College of Atlantic for the weekend, which was a great chance to scope out the vegan food in Portland. In advance of her arrival I got great sourdough Maine grain bread at The Standard Baking Company (and a chocolate croissant for myself for breakfast) and dark chocolate sorbetto at Maples (and caramel and sea salt gelato for me for later!). Then Friday we spent the day wandering through the city. We had a great lunch at the Public Market House - wild mushroom and barley soup with 7 grain bread from Big Sky Bread Company and then a sweet potato quesadilla. For dessert Lindsay struck out at Bam Bam Bakery- they have a lot of dairy free and gluten free options, but nothing was totally vegan because they use honey. But I got an AMAZING Peanut Butter Delight Bar - shortbread crust topped with layer of chocolate then fluff then peanut butter with a light crunch and topped off with just a wee bit more chocolate. Too bad for her!In the late afternoon my Mom, my aunt, and my Mom's friend Cat joined us and we headed out to Brownfield to the Stone Mountain Arts Center for dinner and a Dar William Arts Center. It was a lovely drive out through the country. The sun was shining on the bright red, yellow, and orange leaves all up the sides of the mountains and along the edges of the ponds. The venue was just as beautiful. It's an old restored barn, with towering ceilings and natural wood beams. The wall behind the stage is painted a dark green with a design meant to mimic birch trees which twinkle with white lights. Tall long windows further the illusion that you are outside. And the

The dinner menu was great. We got a huge salad with pecans, pears, cranberries, and goat cheese; pizza with lots of red sauce and onions; veggie lasagna with mushrooms and spinach; and big hunks of cornbread. It was all awesome. Then, Dar came on stage. I've been a fan for a long time, but never seen her live. She sounds even better in person than on CD. Her guitar and voice are just so clear. And her lyrics are so clever and insightful. Unfortunately, half way through the first half of the show I started feeling not so good. I was hot, dizzy, and nauseous. I got up to use the bathroom and held a cold cloth to my head, hoping I'd feel better if I cooled down. I did, but only temporarily. Back at the table, I started feeling worse and worse, and then next thing I knew I was on the floor! I had passed out and the very tall bar chair I was sitting on had fallen over backward. So not only did I smack my head on the wood floor, I also made a lot of noise. I was so embarrassed when I came to. Luckily I was right by the door to the side porch. I woozily made my way out there and then laid down on the cool floor. The staff brought me a bag of ice to put on my neck. Lying on the floor in a much cooler room, I felt much better although my heart continued to feel like it was racing. Since my whole family passes out pretty easily my mom, aunt, and cousin were pretty non-plussed. I spent the second half of the show lying on the floor listening with one of them sitting with me, while the rest went back to our table. This morning I tried (of course) to go to kickboxing. Bad choice. I felt like my brain was bouncing around in my head. So, I'm trying to be smart and listen my body today. I've stayed home reading and napping, but my head is still aching. Bummer.

Handyman Kier

2011-10-18T16:32:00.002-04:00

Owning a house is definitely pushing me to expand my handyman skills. I don't know a lot, but I am always willing to try. My Dad had been saving my great-grandmother's dining room set for me. It is a beautiful old dark wood in an Italian style. However, it's old, it has been moved around quite a bit, and it's been in storage for quite awhile. It needed some serious work. I got the right screws for the table and the right stuff to clean the wood last week, but the chairs were this week's project. They desperately needed to be reupholstered. So, after a great run and a yummy pumpkin apple waffle, I learned how to upholster!Yesterday I took the chairs apart and took off the old fabric. I was really careful to pay attention to how the chairs came apart and keep all the parts together!

Then today I ventured to Jo-Ann fabrics were I was for WAAAAY too long trying to decide. I decided to go with a simple small print that would be pretty neutral. Both because I didn't want to have to line up a complicated pattern or stripes when doing the project, and because I wanted them to go with any future redecorating I might. I got a really pretty light turquoise with a cream diamond pattern. When I got home I cut the fabric to the right size (and really hoped I'd done the math right and gotten enough fabric!)

Once the fabric was cut, I attached it to each cushion with a staple gun. I loved the noise the staple gun made! Then I went to reattach the cushions to the chairs. I had to make a quick trip to the hardware store because one screw was MIA, and while I was there I got a flat head attachment for my power drill. Power tools made everything better. And then I was done! It looks so good. The furniture has a totally new look. Go me! And now

Greek Yogurt Madness

2011-10-17T19:44:00.002-04:00

So after my great run yesterday, I have been striking out majorly on the fitness front. My Mom came down yesterday afternoon and I tried to take us to a yoga class. The class was called relaxation yoga, which sounded nice. However it turned out to be basically lying on the floor for an hour. Which is great for some people, but not my cup of tea. I know I should work more on being able to quiet my mind and be still, but I don't do well with still. The only way I can quiet my mind and stop the constant barrage of thoughts is through movement. Strike one. Then this morning, I tried the kickboxing and strength classes at my gym. Kickboxing was okay, but the instructor just didn't seem that into it. It's hard to have fun and get excited when the instructor seems bored. Unfortunately she taught the strength class and was even less inspired in that. It was so slowly paced and we never did enough reps for me to feel it. Strike 2. Strike 3 for the day was not fitness related. It was the DMV. Enough said. To get myself back into a better mood I decided to do some cooking when I got home. I had been to BJ's, which always means buying things in a larger quantity than I will ever need. This is a problem with things that expire, like greek yogurt. Luckily, I had my hand greek yogurt recipe booklet that the Stonyfield Yogurt people were handing out at the Life is Good Festival. Cooking with yogurt is a great way to lower the fat and increase the protein in your food.The first thing I made was this:Fall Vegetable CasseroleThis is a great way to use up any extra fall veggies you may have lying around. I used brussels sprouts, carrots, eggplant, and onions. I used way too many veggies so it wasn't quite cheesy enough for my liking. But what sauce there was, was rich and garlicky. YUM-O. And for dessert:Spiced Apple Cakehttp://www.stonyfield.com/recipes/spiced-apple-cakeSOOOOOO Good! I've eaten half of it already by myself (in my defense I halved the recipe). I made it even healthier by switching half the oil for apple butter. The apple butter also made it a great dark color.

Happy 1 Week Anniversary House!

2011-10-16T13:37:00.001-04:00

I can't believe I have already been in my house for a week. Last Sunday I remember waking up feeling slightly disoriented. I wasn't used to the sounds of my new neighborhood or the way the light came in my windows. Today though, I woke up feeling right at home. In just a week, I have settled back in.Yesterday morning I went to the kickboxing class at my new gym, Lifestyle fitness in Scarborough. It was hardcore- so obviously I loved it. I had planned on staying for the Zumba toning class afterward, but I just wasn't feeling it. The sun was calling me. Just because I could, I headed down to Pine Point beach and went for a wonderful, but windy, walk on the beach. The wind was really whipping- the surf was huge and the sand was flying all over the place. But the sun felt great on my face, and there were plenty of other intrepid Mainers out there with me. I LOVE being able to see the ocean multiple times every day. After lunch I headed over to Breezy's to watch the world championships. What a treat to watch gymnastics with someone who knows as much as I do about it. And who also sits in a split while watching! Then for dinner, I caught up with one of my friends from my Ghana trip at a cute little cafe, Verbena, right down the road from my house! I had a great salad with butternut squash, cranberries, amd sunflower seeds.I am trying to do a long run of at least 12-13 miles once a month to keep myself in shape just in case a race comes up. It is so much easier to stay in shape than to get back in shape. I was thinking about where to run as I fell asleep last night and a great route came to me. I ran over the Casco Bay bridge which is pretty exciting because you are so high up and have a great view of the city skyline and Casco Bay while the wind howls around you. Then I ran down Commercial street which is right on the waterfront. You can see all the ferries gearing up for the day, and today there was a HUGE cruise ship docked as well. Then I hopped onto the Harbor Walk trail, the East End Trail, and ended up running around the Bay Back trail before heading back home. How amazing to have so many trails that run right along the water. It was another windy, windy day but I hardly noticed because I was too busy looking at the views. 12 miles absolutely flew by!Now I am settling in with pumpkin pecan pancakes and some coffee to watch some more gymnastics. Happy weekend!

TurboFire, and Punk Rope, and Yoga... Oh my!

2011-10-13T15:12:00.000-04:00

Now that my house is looking more like a house and less like a disaster zone, I'm making an effort to get out, explore the community, and make new friends. This is the first time I've ever lived alone, and given my hermit tendencies, I could quickly become a recluse. Last night I joined the Southern Maine Fit Club for some turbo fire. We had a big room with a giant screen and followed along with a turbo fire DVD. It wasn't the hardest workout ever, but it was fun and got me off the couch (where I had been enjoying too much biscoff spread all afternoon). Even better was that afterward I invited everyone to join Breezy and I at Jimmy the Greek's for $5 martinis and free manicures! Unfortunately we got there too late for free manicures, but I enjoyed my Gossip martini and conversation with new friends!This morning I ventured out in the rain for Punk Rope at the Portland Y. Punk Rope is a jump rope based interval class. They used to have it at the Y in Framingham, and I love it! I was a little frustrated at the class today because every time we got up to a hard work level, we stopped. I like to get my butt kicked, and I didn't get that. Oh well! Since I still had plenty of energy, I used a groupon I had gotten to go to a yoga class at Breathing Room Yoga. The studio is less than a mile from my new house, and super cute. They have a little sitting area with tea and comfy chairs, and then the open area in the back for the practice. It is an old building, with a great pounded tin ceiling with a star design. It was fun to look during class. It wasn't the most challenging class I've ever been to, but it was a warm, relaxing way to spend an hour on a dreary day and helped to get out the remaining kinks from moving.And fitting with the theme of wonderful things for rainy days, I will share this recipe for Pumpkin Oatmeal from the New York Times that I have been totally loving this week.Spiced Pumpkin OatmealAdapted from Olives NYTOTAL TIME 50 minutes Ingredients * 1/4 teaspoon ground allspice * 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg * 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon * 1/8 teaspoon ground ginger * 1/4 cup packed brown sugar * 1 cup canned pumpkin puree * 4 1/2 cups low-fat milk or water * 1 1/2 cups steel-cut oats * 3/4 teaspoon salt * Warm apple sauce, optional * Chopped fresh apple, optional * Apple cider syrup, optionalPreparation1. In a large saucepan over low heat, toast allspice, nutmeg, cinnamon and ginger, stirring occasionally until fragrant, about 2 minutes. Stir in brown sugar, then add pumpkin and stir to combine. Add milk or water, raise heat and bring mixture to a simmer. Stir in oats, and simmer over medium heat until tender but not mushy, about 25 to 30 minutes. Stir in salt.2. Serve with applesauce, apple and syrup if desired.

Officially a Maniac again

2011-10-12T16:37:00.000-04:00

Hello, I am finally emerging from a very long weekend of moving. I took the red eye home last Wednesday night, packed like a maniac Thursday and Friday, loaded the truck in Framingham Saturday morning (with only the help of my Dad and Brother, since none of my other helpers showed), unloaded in Portland Saturday afternoon and then have been unpacking ever since. Well not exactly non-stop, I did take some time out to enjoy the amazing Indian summer we were having. Sunday I did a bike ride out to Portland Head Light, Two Lights State Park, and Crescent Beach. Getting used to the Maine hills again is going to be a challenge! Monday I did a wonderful run along the Maine Greenbelt out to Bug Light and then met my friend Breezy for a sunset walk at Kettle Cove. I just LOVE how accessible everything is- the beach, the city, my old friends. I really feel at home!

Holy Waffle Yumminess

2011-10-04T15:56:00.001-04:00

I go a little stir crazy sitting in the office all day, so I like to get out for lunch. Today, I organized an outing to Bruxie, a waffle sandwich shop a co-worker recommended. It is down by Orange Circle, which is a cute, old fashioned downtown area in Orange. The restaurant is an adorable little hut with outdoor seating (luckily the rain had stopped by the time we got there.) The staff was super helpful and friendly, and we had our food in no time! I had the wild mushroom, goat cheese, arugula, and sun dried tomatoes. It was great. The waffle was thin and crispy with a light cornmeal texture. The goat cheese melted into the squares of the waffle, tangy and sour against the sweet waffle. I gobbled it up in about 3 minutes. Most of my co-workers went with the Bruxie special- the Buttermilk Fried Chicken & Waffle.

And I of course, could not pass up the sweet waffles. We got one Nutella,sweet cream, and bananas waffle and then one Liege Waffle with Caramelized Pearl Sugar and belgium chocolate dipping sauce. Both were heaven on a waffle.

Next time I want to try the grilled cheese with tomato and avacado and then the S'more waffle for dessert.

New Orleans Day 3

2011-10-02T16:00:00.000-04:00

Sunday I was looking forward to sleeping in, since I was out waaay past my normal bed time Saturday night. But when 7:30 am rolled around I was wide awake. I laid in bed for awhile, just because I could, but that didn’t last long because I was super thirsty. After downing a good liter of water, I headed out on a run. I’d spent some time with the map the day before and scoped out a good route. I decided to basically run the square perimeter of the French quarter. Each of the 4 streets had a very different character. Canal street had a big city feel with high rise offices and hotel. North Rampart was leaning towards seedy and run down. Esplanade was residential with gorgeous houses and a canopy of moss covered oak trees. Then N. Peters was people clogged and touristy. The sun was bright, the wind was cool, and it felt so good to run off the excess of the night before. My garmin had trouble finding a signal, and I was too impatient to wait, so I ran just by time, which made it even more relaxing. On my run I passed a Lousiana State Museum, the Presbytere, that had an exhibition on Katrina that I really wanted to see. So after a quick shower, I headed straight there to make sure I had time to see it. Holy moly. What a powerful exhibit. I was in tears a few times. They had a lot of personal stories, either on video, or narrated by the real people, so it really came alive. They had a room with huge movie screens and powerful fans showing footage of the storm. It made you feel like you were right there in the wildness of the worst of the storm. But then they also had the stories of all the regular people who acted so heroically to save their friends and neighbors, and how the city worked so hard to rebuild itself so quickly. It was truly a story of hope and resilience. I could have stayed forever, but I was absolutely starving, and the airport shuttle was picking me up in an hour. So, I made a quick stop for the one thing left on my list- a po’ boy. I got a huge oyster and shrimp po’ boy with sweet potato fries and an ice coffee. Heavenly.

And now I’m at the airport, trying to resist one last order of bignets because the whole terminal smells like fried yummyness.

New Orleans Day 2

2011-10-02T10:41:00.000-04:00

Saturday morning I woke up feeling much more rested than the day before and headed outside for a run. I had seen a path along the river while at dinner the night before that looked promising. It was a great spot for running- there was a strong breeze, the sun was incredible rising over the river, and there were lots of other runners. The only draw backs were that it was only 1.5 miles long and it was brick. I had to go back and forth quite a few times and the bricks were unforgiving on the body. But, getting outside was totally worth it. I started the day in a great mood. During the morning meetings, our practice finished early. So we decided the absinthe bar would be a good activity for 11 am.

Oof. I like the process of pouring it, but I did not like the taste. They light a sugar cube on fire over the absinthe and then drop water in over the burned sugar, which makes the absinthe foam and get cloudy.

After eating a good lunch to soak up my absinthe,I headed out for a walk through the French quarter. I went into the voodoo museum and just enjoyed wandering aimlessly and admiring the architecture. New Orleans is a city where you truly feel like you are in a different place. Then, I got to meet up with my friend Kyle and Molly and their new baby. The just moved to Lousiana from Maine and have been too busy unpacking and taking care of the new baby to explore the city at all, so we had a great time walking around. There were musicians and artists listing the streets and a festive spirit in the air. After an hour of walking we stopped at café Bignet, because no visit is complete without bignets and café au late. Nothing hot and crispy and covered in sugar can ever be bad. Good thing we split an order, because I would have too easily polished off the whole basket.

After they left I glammed myself up for cocktails and dinner. We had cocktail hour in an atrium in the middle of the hotel. All the noise and debauchery of Bourbon street was completely gone and it was like being in the French country side. After the formal dinner (so, so good), we all changed into comfier clothes and then hit up Bourbon street. I was determined not to be a lame bum 2 nights in a row. At night, the street is just insanity. It’s loud and bright and smelly. People are shouting all around you and different music blasts from every door way. The people watching is fantastic. We went to a bar with a flaming fountain in the middle, where I drank a giant and huge hurricane (I had to try at least one!). The night got pretty hazy from that point out, but it involved a mechanical bull, a dance club, and pizza at some point. I can say I gave Bourbon street all I had.