Vacation is OVER!

I just got back from vacation, and I already feel BUSY!!! I guess that's what happens all the time though! Vacation was very nice! I loved Napa, and I ate some really awesome food! I did not weigh myself and don't plan to for another week or so. I'm going to let my body get back to normal. No need to torture myself! I did get in one long run of 14 miles while I was gone. I also did a short run and lots of walking around Napa and San Francisco. Overall, it wasn't too bad in terms of eating and exercise. Today I got in a 3 mile run to get myself back into the swing of things. I averaged a 9:27 pace, I think, which is faster than normal for me! Woo hoo! I have to get back into long runs this weekend. Only 7 weeks till the race! OMG!!!

Vegetarianism is also going well. I only had one slip on vacation, and it was actually me being polite. I know, I know... excuses. We were at a winery though, and the chef made us a little snack (specifically for us). It was a quail salad on a little crispy baguette. When a chef hands you quail, you eat it! Other than that, being veg is EASY in California!

Time to make some dinner! I got myself a head of cabbage and I plan to saute it with garlic and onions (and little veggie broth). I'm going to eat it with some whole wheat pasta with it as well. Should be yummy!

Have a healthy night!

2 Down, 1 To Go

I made it through 2 of 3 running workouts this week unscathed! Yesterday, I did the slow 2 miler and I threw in some free weights afterwards. I had more energy than a quick 20 minute workout. I did bicep curls, tricep extensions, chest press with a crunch, bent over row, and shoulder fly. I also did some extra abs at the end and some random leg stuff like kicks, etc. All in all, it was a fun workout! Today I did my interval run which include 3 x 1 mile segments at less than 9 min mile pace. It is a bit icy in the burgh today, so I had to improvise slightly. I did 9 fast minutes followed by 6 slow and repeated a total of 3 times. Felt great, although I could have gone a little further! It burned 918 calories though, so I can't complain!

Veg is still going well! For lunch yesterday I made myself a black bean burrito. Yum! It was a whole wheat tortilla, 1/2 cup black beans, 2 T sour cream, 0.75 ounce slice of cheddar, and 2 T salsa. I think that ended up being between 300 and 350 calories. I have a ton of beans and canned tomatoes right now, so I think my meals will consist of those for a little while. Here's a recipe I plan to try though:

http://www.fitnessmagazine.com/recipes/quick-recipes/dinner/30-minute-heart-healthy-meals/?page=2

After I try it, I'll let you know how it tastes! I'm excited there's turmeric in it. I bought some because I read about it being so anti-inflammatory and I haven't figured out how to use it yet. Of course, I haven't really tried either!

Have a healthy day!

Plan for the Week

It's finals week, and life is busy! We have quarters at my school, so this is my last week of class and I'll have two finals plus various assignments due in the next 10 days. I had been thinking today would be a mess, but I got mostly done with an assignment already (by getting up early and starting to work immediately). That means I get in a bonus yoga workout before class! Mixed in with my walk to and from school, and I should have a nice low key workout day. That is much needed after a run yesterday!

Last week was a slow down week on my marathon training, but this week I am back up to full force. My first run is a slow 2 miler, and I plan to do that tomorrow morning before class. I might throw in some abs and other strength exercises too since that's such a short workout. On Wednesday, I have a tempo run that includes 3 x 1600m at 8:51 per mile with 800m jogs in the middle. It'll also include a warm up and cool down, which for me is the walk over to the track and back. My final run of the week is 14 miles. Woot! Should be fun! In the midst of all that, I'll have to throw in some strength and yoga to keep me balanced.

As for food, veg continues to go well. I now have a ton of beans, canned tomatoes, fresh produce, herbs, couscous, etc. Let's see where that all takes me! Today I'm thinking I'll eat something like this:

Breakfast = English muffin with 1 T peanut butter and 1 T jam, coffee with cream

Lunch = eggplant rollatini's from Wegman's with tomato sauce

Dinner = greens and beans leftovers, plus some couscous

I'm going to have to fill in the blanks with some snack... most likely carrots and hummus or some yogurt and fruit.

Have an excellent Monday!

The snow is melting!

Yes, that's right, the snow is melting! And people are actually clearing their sidewalks! I went for a run and managed to get in 4.5 miles without any major issues. It felt awesome! I'm definitely getting stronger, even with the snow derailment. Actually, the snow has been a killer workout. The week of the big storm I wore my HRM everywhere (almost) that I went, and I burned 6226 calories that week. Now that is INSANE. This week has been a dial back week for my running, so I've only have to run 5 miles a day for a few days. My final run will be this weekend, and it'll be a slow 5 miler. Today I did a choose your own adventure workout... that means I did whatever I felt like in front of my TV! I did a warm up similar to what Shaun T does in INSANITY, then I rotated weight exercises for 35-ish minutes. I finished with a stretch and managed to burn 523 calories. Excellent!

Veg is going well too! I switched my normal turkey sandwich for lunch to a hummus sandwich. For dinner, I had pasta and veggies one night (Barilla Plus pasta, so higher protein than normal). Last night I had a bread salad and spinach and white beans. Here are the recipes in case you're curious. I had some leftover Italian bread from Valentine's Day, so that's why I made the bread salad. I generally don't eat white flour, but I also don't like to waste food. Next time I make, I'll use a whole grain bread instead. Overall, the meal was awesome!

Bread Salad

Greens and Beans

Calorie count is in check, and I'm even losing weight. At this rate, I'll be back to my "fighting weight" in no time! :)

Have a healthy weekend!

Going veg!

Okay so that might sound a bit nutty given that I'm training for a marathon. I have in fact decided to go veg for Lent! I am Catholic although I don't really go to church very often, but this year I decided I was going to actually do something for Lent. I gave up meat a few times before for Lent, so I'm going for it again. I haven't decided exactly what that will mean to me yet, but I have a couple things that are going to be important for me to feel like this was a success.

1. I will not eat pasta and tomato sauce everyday. Boring!
2. I will not survive on peanut butter alone.
3. I will not eat veggie burgers and soy patties on a regular basis.
4. I will not eat beans and rice everyday either. Variety is key!

I bought a cookbook last night (it's already shipped... yay Amazon!), and I'm going to try recipes from there. It's called "The Conscious Cook" and it's by Tal Ronnen. It had great reviews and a friend actually recommended it. The recipes are vegan, and I'm not going straight vegan but this will help me with variety and creativity.

A couple disclaimers to go along with this adventure:

1. I am not going vegan. I will eat dairy products. I'm still not sure about eggs.
2. I may eat fish. Again, still not sure... I am going to focus as much as I can on not eating fish even when I'm at home, but there may be time when it happens (restaurants, etc.).
3. I am not doing this permanently, unless I love it.
4. I am not doing this because I think meat is bad for you, etc. This is a challenge I'm giving myself for Lent.

So, I do want to also mention that when I do eat meat, I do my best to eat meat that is raised humanely and sustainably. After reading about the health problems associated with eating animals force fed corn to make them fat, I started that transition. Then, Food Inc. was really all I needed to push myself over the edge. On a student budget, it is challenging, but it's worth it!

On the running front, it is still SNOWING! I am supposed to run a slow 5 miles today, so I'll be fitting that in after class. I also have to hit the grocery store to get some food. I've got plenty of produce, but I need some more grains and legumes. Let the veg begin!