Domestic Weekend

Drank FAR too much on Friday night, went to bed at 4am, woke up at 7:30am to take Vivian for her 50k service and got back home by 8:15 unable to sleep. So, I spent the next three hours cleaning the apartment while Sebastian slept - tidied our wedding stuff, cleaned the kitchen and bathroom, dusted, vacuumed, started organizing my new recipes. You know, the usual Saturday morning. After all the cleaning, Sebastian woke up and we made "breakfast" somewhere around noon. Ah, the sweet glory of a little bit of grease and a little bit of coffee:


Cooked up a 3 egg white omelet with sauteed onions and fresh rosemary. Add to that wo pieces of bacon and a cappucino and I was set.

Continued my domesticity on Sunday. After being out late drinking again (I know, insanity!), woke up around 11am and went for one of the best runs I've had in a long time. 7.5 miles at a 8:50 pace, give or take. I would have kept going, but I was on a treadmill and figured I shouldn't burn myself out. Had some oatmeal when I got home and then an apple and some cheese before braving the terrors of a supermarket on a Sunday afternoon. It was rather horrifying, but, aside from realizing after I'd gotten home that my checkout girl had neglected to include all of my purchases in my cart (really? is that too much to ask? this has happened BOTH times I've shopped at that grocery store), it was a pretty successful trip. As the Steelers battled the Chargers, with no help from the officials, and Ted and Sebastian screamed at the TV, I spent some quality time in the kitchen. Over the next 5 hours, I made the following:

Turkey Chili (1 batch from Cook's Illustrated):


I realize the photo doesn't make it look very exciting, but I forgot to photograph it while it was in the Le Crueset dutch oven. This will be eaten over Thanksgiving weekend when our family is here.

Next up, candied orange peels, recipe from Whole Foods. I made 1/2 a batch b/c I didn't have enough sugar for a full batch. Used three large oranges:



Close up:



Then I made fudge with chopped walnuts from a recipe in my Recipe Keeper from Mom (This was 1 recipe batch):



THEN, I made banana walnut muffins (2 boxes of Betty Crocker boxed muffin mix):



That made 2 dozen muffins and I added the walnuts on top on a whim.

Last, but not least, I began the process of making sugared cranberries. They are currently sitting in their cinnamon/clove syrup in the fridge and will come out tomorrow for their sugaring. This was 1 batch and I used 1 full bag of cranberries from a recipe at Whole Foods:



One more:



Both the cranberries and orange peels produce flavored simple syrups and I can't wait to use those in some holiday cocktails!!

And a couple of cool shots:





Next up will be corn kernel cornbread and some lemon poppyseed muffins, to be made Monday and Tuesday night of next week. Then I think I'll be all set except for the main event: Thanksgiving dinner. I have the menu planned so I'll do my shopping on Monday of next week and then the prep work will happen on Tuesday and I can set the table Wednesday to be ready for Thursday. Fingers crossed!

This week - a montage

Had a great run on Monday and Tuesday. Went for a run with AG (can't believe it actually happened!) on Wednesday and as I've told my friends, took it for what it was. It was a run with a friend. We didn't make grand promises to run together every day forever and ever and I didn't allow myself to get sucked into the "we should totally do another long race together!" excitement b/c what it boils down to she needs a running buddy now that her boyfriend has a lamed up IT band. Which I get. Whatever. But in the past, I would have gone along with it, gotten caught up in the fun of picking out a new race and setting up a training plan and then been disappointed when her boyfriend swooped in and wanted to run with us etc. It did leave me a little sad that I knew we wouldn't get around to running a race like she was suggesting, but I'm not going to dwell on it and I'll see her again when I see her.

Had a pretty crappy run today, but that's probably b/c I did 30 minutes on the elliptical last night, ran 6 miles and then took a crazy hard pilates class. Hmm...actually typing all of that makes it SO much clearer. The question now is whether or not I'll still want to run tomorrow morning. A guy I used to run with in TNT wants to get together for 5-7 but we're going to Maine in the morning and I dont want to have to wake up at the crack of dawn. I suppose I should email him either way - maybe he wont want to run super early?

Fighting off the temptation to have frozen yogurt right now. I've actually been feeling really good lately - no dairy, trying to stick with the food combining method and it's done pretty well by me so far. I think not having dairy has really really helped.

Every Smile is a Direct Achievement

I rediscovered my love for running this weekend. Finally. Crawled out of bed early on Saturday (okay by like 8:30 so not that early) and drove down to the river to do a 10 miler. Broke out the fuel belt for it's first run of the season. Set my watch and just started running. Ah, glorious solitary running. In fact, it wasn't completely solitary, which might have been the best part. I ran the first few miles with my headphones in, chugging along at a good clip. Just past the Mass Ave bridge, CO came up behind me and we enjoyed a very nice chat for a mile or two. Turns out her boyfriend, C, is back from his US tour and had a wonderful time, she's still enjoying her job (though had a pretty lousy day on Thursday)and has spent the summer running, visiting family in NH and relaxing as much as possible. CO and I ran until the BU Bridge and then parted ways. I trotted along all the way down to the Elliot Bridge, pushing myself when I had the energy and backing off when I felt tired. I really think this is key, and one of the biggest reasons why I hate the treadmill now.

I know treadmill runs are good - they force you to keep a certain pace, even when you get tired and you build endurance. But I find so often that I'll get a fit of energy and not want to increase the speed on the stupid machine and I end up losing the energy and then feeling tired and psyching myself out. The natural ebbs and flows of my energy during a run just cannot be utilized on a machine.

So on I went, rediscovering my love/hate relationships with Gu (Chocolate Outrage this time) and sipping on my water, appreciating the pockets of shade and pushing through the sections of hot sun. Just when I was starting to feel like mailing in the last mile or so, I ran into TNT Chris just before the bend down to the Longfellow Bridge. He didnt even notice me at first so I tapped him on the shoulder and he reversed his course and we jogged along all the way back to, and passed, my car. One last reverse and we ended up back at Vivian, catching up on what we've been up to for the past 9 months or so since we talked. Crazy to think how much has happened, and yet running generally has stayed the same.

Took Sunday off to rest (and nurse I touch of a hangover from too much Reisling the night before) and had another good run on Monday. Might try to run tonight before pilates, but we'll see. Also, may or may not be running with AG tomorrow night - have exchanged a few emails over the last week or so and she suggested a running date. I'm trying not to get my hopes up, but we'll see.

Also want to remind myself of something I read in RW yesterday - to take care of my body. This include everything from stretching to what I eat to taking days off and remembering to moisturize. I find that I can get too wrapped up in things and my increased stress/anxiety level leads me to rush through things without appreciating the time or act. I want to take a minute before I do almost anything now and just breathe and clear my head. As a yoga teacher once said in class, focus on your intention, have purpose.

I think this ties in nicely to the quote on my Yogi tea bag today - every smile is a direct achievement. Be purposeful and take care of yourself!!!

Training Day 4

Have set myself up with a pretty ridiculous training schedule for the BAA Half on October 12, but I have high hopes. Granted, so far I havent actually been able to run my goal pace for more than 5 or 6 minutes, but Ive got time! Ive actually tacked on an extra two weeks to my training to get a better sense of what a realistic time goal should be. I ran the Pittsburgh "Just a Short Run" Half in 1:52:53, which I was pretty proud of - breaks down to about an 8:20 mile. I'd like to shoot for a 1:45:00 time for BAA, but that means shaving 20 seconds off a time that I cant even run right now. However, I really believe part of it is that Im stuck on a treadmill. While I realize treadmills are good for tracking pace, etc, it really just SUCKS to run indoors. If only I had a 1/4 mile track I could run around! I might go in search of one in the coming weeks, if only for a run here or there. We'll see! Did an easy run today (40 minutes) and banged out about 4.2 miles, just wasn't really feeling it. But Ive got a nice lazy long run tomorrow morning with K so hopefully thatll be fun, even if it's not fast!

Trying to eat more consciously - have rekindled my love affair with Fiber One bars and try to remind myself at each meal that Im fueling my body to run. Yes, I should still enjoy the food, but I didn't want to pump myself full of sodium today so I didnt get a soup bowl at Wagamama and opted for a chili shrimp dish over noodles instead. Got some veggies, got some protein (enhanced by the cup of edamame pods - YUM) and enjoyed the noodles and spice quite a bit. And didnt even end up eating all of it b/c I was quite satisfied with just half. All in all, an excellent lunch.

Now to scheme up a good dinner....

The Big 2-7!

Thought I'd start my hottest year off on the right foot (haha) this morning with a run. Knew I'd have a bit of a time crunch b/c I had to get to work early today, but still got in a good 3.5-4 miles and it was gorgeous outside! Perfect birthday weather. Spent a lot of time listening to my body - pushing myself and then backing off, just kind of playing with my pace. Don't actually know exactly how fast or slow I was running, but realized it doesn't matter! Got back from my run and popped a few cherries in my mouth while waiting for S to get out of the shower and chugged some water. Felt a little woozy in the shower, but this is also my first day off the Pill - which I imagine is to blame!

Am now sitting at work in a cute little skirt, enjoying a big breakfast of hot vanilla cereal and a large banana - should keep me going for quite a while!!

Making mental note to drink more water this afternoon. Finally feeling more relaxed since my meeting with my boss went well - just hope I can do everything I've promised to do in the next 12 months! In celebration of being done with the meeting, wanting salt, and continuing to appreciate my new-found skill in making pizza, I am currently enjoying two more slices of my veggie pizza from last night!



Have also been thoroughly enjoying some organic Rainier cherries - on sale for the same price as regular reds! Thought I fear I may have indulged a bit too much....time for a walk!!

Enjoyed a lovely hour out in the sun and gluttenously purchased a fabu new running/exercise outfit. I'm mucho excited for my run with T this weekend and can't wait to try it all out!! Came back and decided to have the rest of my cherries for a refreshing treat:

And for a bit of energy before pilates I've enjoyed one of my latest obsessions:

Have decided to start taking photos of my meals both to learn to appreciate them more and to keep a record, but hopefully only in a good way. If I find a meal that really keeps me satisfied, I'd like to remember it! So....breakfast! I went from feeling satisfied from my late night food to being starving in the course of my shower. Kept telling myself I should have the grapefruit in my fridge, but in honor of listening to my body, I opted for the banana I was craving and the rest of my cherries, along with a spoonful of peanut butter:

Must have nourishment! It's 11:3oam and my stomach is growling. Again, in the interest of listening to my body, I've decided to feed it and opted for my latest obsession: PB&J, but upgraded with Jean Louis Provence Kitchen Lavender Jelly. Pure decadence! I'm also having a coffee to pep me up a little bit and added some half & half to keep me full a little longer:

And of course, time for a little afternoon indulgence:

And apparently since the ice cream only holds me over for about 3 hours, repeat open-faced PB&J, but no coffee this time:

I think a cup of green tea might hold me over until I head home now. Have opted for about 1/2 of a large Granny Smith apple and may now have my tea....

Went to WF after work and picked up some Ranier cherries and pizza fixings. Decided that I wanted some chocolate so got a bag at CVS as well. Got home, was very glad to see S and made a big veggie pizza:

I felt pretty satisfied after the first slice but knew I'd be hungry again soon if I didn't have the second so I enjoyed it. Had another handful or two of cherries and then some Hershey's Dark Miniatures. I think I had 5, which I'm kind of OK with, they were tasty!



Time for a good night's sleep and to wake up as a 27 year old!!!

Back to basics

Decided to scrap the vegetarian thing. Realized it was just another attempt to find enough rules that I would be forced to lose weight by restricting what I eat. Had chicken last night for the first time in over two weeks though. It was really wonderful - S made a thai basil dish with jasmine rice and diced chicken. Yummy. Have chosen to go back to the basics and re-read the Intuitive Eating book that I picked up some months ago. This means no more weighing myself on the scale. No more counting calories. No more allowing myself to feel guilty for eating something and no rewarding myself for restricting. It means eating what I want, when I want it, and stopping when I'm satisfied. Right now, my goal is to listen to my body and learn to stop when I'm no longer hungry. Listened well yesterday, but woke up feeling anxious today. Knew S was heading to NYC today and I think the anxiety from that carried over. Decided to do a run outside, rather than at the gym because I wanted to just run until I felt like stopping, rather than setting a distance or time goal. Felt really good, actually, and chose to do a couple of 1/2 mile repeats with some sprints added in for variety. I felt tired, but happy when I was finished and headed home for some breakfast (had a plum and some pine nuts before my run - which was key!!). Had a banana with PB and a cappucino, did some knitting in front of the TV and took my time getting ready. Lasted until around 11:30 before I got hungry again - partially because everyone around me was talking about being hungry, I think. And the meeting I've been worried about for the past week got moved AGAIN, which threw off my schedule.

(Speaking of schedules, when did I become so dependent on a routine? I find an undeniable link between breaks in my routine and my lapses in judgement with food. Even if it's something small, like S going to NY, which doesn't cause me much stress, I think, it threw off my morning a little and as soon as I got out of bed, I was feeling the pull of the kitchen. I don't get it!)

(Side note 2: I had a moment in the elevator last night on my way home from a run with Al that I don't want to forget. It seems like a lot of my friends are in a bad way right now, KM, AR, KW, etc. And I wish I could bear the weight of their problems for them for a while. But I also realized, just before I walked into my apartment and unloaded all of their problems on S, that my priority is him now. For one of the first times ever, I walked in, said 'hello', gave him a kiss and asked how he was doing, rather than talking about everyone else's issues. I did talk to him later in the night about AR, but the fact is that he can't really do anything so no reason to burden him with it.)

Looking forward to Pilates tonight, hoping to enjoy some sushi afterwards and watching some of the All Star game (maybe I'll see S on TV) while I do some knitting. I know, crazy life I lead!!