Friday love

Workout: 3.0-mile run

Remember last week … last week, when I wore shorts on my run?

Yeah. So do I.

I just wish Mother Nature did.

This morning, it was full-on winter gear with early-morning temps in the lower 20s – tights, long-sleeve shirt, jacket, vest, hat and gloves. Though, truth be told, I could have done without the vest and hat. I was hot by the half-way point.

Regardless, it didn’t make me happy.

 

But seeing as my other option was “power walking,” as Mark so kindly reminded me, I sucked it up and went on my way. Or our way since Denali was my companion.

And, in case you were wondering, yes. Yes it is possible for me to take an even more unattractive photo than the one above. I promise.

Anywho … time for Friday love!

Food. Mark has discovered the joys of a daily dose of caffeine in the morning and has made a small pot of coffee every morning this week. He takes a cup in a travel mug to school and leaves the rest for me. No baby worries - it’s half-caff, so it’s cool. Let me tell you this: I am loving the fact that it’s one less thing I have to do for myself. Yay morning laziness!

Fitness. Yesterday, I finally picked up my weights after a near two-week hiatus. I did circuits, I think. I did an exercise that focuses on a specific muscle for one minute and then switched to another exercise, focusing on a different muscle, for a minute. I did four muscle groups – so 4 minutes – and then took a 1-minute break (repeat 3 times). The muscles were biceps, shoulders, triceps and back. Let me tell you that those 12 minutes of work translated into some serious soreness this morning. Yay for muscles!

Life. After my manic excitement about the house last week, Mark and I were taken down a notch (or three) after the inspection. There are some definite issues that we had to take to the sellers but they are getting estimates – and that’s good our Realtor says. So how is this love worthy? I’m not sure but I am glad that the home inspector caught the things he did; I am glad that we have an A+ Realtor to guide us through the process; and I’m glad that I’m not losing hope. So keep your fingers crossed, say a prayer or just have hope that this works out. Baby boy needs a room!

So what’s going on this weekend? We’re going to a luau (of all things in this miserable weather) and I’m taking Coconut Cornbread Bread Pudding!

Three Things Thursday

“Workout”: 15-minute upper body set

1. Three pairs of sneakers. Three pairs of sneakers all out of miles and all with holes in the toe boxes. The shoes were scattered around the house, one in the bathroom closet and another under the armoire. One pair was by the door, having been worn to take out Denali. With my most recent purchase of a pair of Mizuno Wave Nexus, those three pairs were destined for the trash can.

But I couldn’t quite put them there.

 

The shoes – a pair of Nike Air Pegasus, a pair of Mizuno Wave Riders and a pair of Nike Triax – aren’t just shoes. They are memories. The Pegasus took me across the finish line of my first half-marathon, the Wave Riders at the first time I attempted the distance solo. The Triax … oh, the Triax took me to a half-marathon PR and a personal distance record at the W.O.O.F. How could I throw them away?

I tried to get creative, thinking of ways to save part of the shoes and frame the scraps or put them in a scrapbook. After a while, the efforts just seemed silly. Who saves stinky, worn out shoes? I mean besides me. So I tossed them this morning. A bit sad but I was so tired I hardly noticed. I also threw away a pair of black ballet flats that suffered from stinkyitis.

2. Two weeks ago … three weeks ago … I promised to up the strength training, to get my body ready to care for a baby. Yeah, about that. Not so much. I did no strength training last week and today was the first time this week. Not good. I need to start budgeting my time better in the morning – less GMA and more exercise.

3. And speaking of budgeting time in the morning, I spent a good chunk watching last night’s “Top Chef: All Stars.” Anyone watch it? I was struck by the challenge: The chefs had to cook a last meal for some famous chefs. Wolfgang Puck wanted goulash, spaetzle and strudel. Morimoto wanted Japanese food his mom made. The other lady wanted fried chicken and biscuits and gravy. As I watched, I couldn’t help but wonder what I would want my last meal to be. Most of the dinners from my childhood were quick and cheap (think Hamburger Helper), and the dinner table memories aren’t all that pleasant. The only time we were happy at the table was on Saturday morning at breakfast, probably because we were all too tired to fight. My mom would make eggs, sausage links, biscuits and gravy. To this day, I compare all biscuits and gravy to hers. So I’d want that. And, another food from my childhood, goetta – in the form of a goetta and cheese omelet. Goetta is a Cincinnati-specific food that was popular among German immigrants. It’s awesome. To me.

What would your last meal be?

S.O.S.

Workout: 3.12-mile run

I need help. In more ways than one.

This morning, I couldn’t decide whether I wanted to run. I was feeling a bit lazy and tired, though I know that (more than likely) I will be tired for the next 18 years. So I asked Denali for help.

Only problem: He really wasn’t that helpful. Usually he’ll jump up and run to the door but this morning he decided to make an @ss out of himself. I probably need help if I’m going to a dog for advice.

Either way, I went for a run. Within the first quarter mile, I had to pee and by the time we got to the park at 1.5 miles, I had no choice. I had no shame about attempting to take Denali into the ladies room but it was locked. So I headed for the port-o-pottie. It was a handicap-accessible toilet, leaving me no option but to take Denali in with me. (In the past, I’ve been able to close the door on the leash and leave him outside.) It was a rainbow of smells for him, I'm sure, and he kept himself occupied, nose to the ground, while I emptied my bladder. For even thinking that this was an option, I am sure I need help. Of the mental kind. Or, at least a diaper if I can’t run 20 minutes without a pee break.

I ran sans iPod because I just finished "Water for Elephants" on audiobook, leaving me to listen to crap radio or my limited iTunes selections until I find a new audiobook. One problem? I am so not tapped into what’s good and have no idea what to look for. Help! Have you read anything or listened to anything of note lately?

Queen of the hill

Workout: 2.52 miles on the treadmill and 1-mile walk with Denali

We were somewhere between Warsaw (Indiana - not Poland) and Chicago on Saturday when a workout in the most recent issue of Fitness magazine grabbed my attention. A walking workout. Of course, I had already been in the car with my in-laws for more than an hour so a workout walking a hamster would have caught my eye.

But anyway ...

I decided in my tired stupor this morning to give it a go and took the trusty magazine to the gym this morning so I could get my sweat on. Or at least turn my cheeks bright pink.

You start out with a 5-minute warm-up between 3.0 and 3.5 speed and a 1.0-2.0 incline. After 5 minutes, you alternate 2 minutes of "race walking" and a 1-minute recovery (at warm-up pace). The race walking settings take the speed between 3.6 and 4.2 and the incline gradually increases from 5.0 (I think) to 10.0. At some point, you get a 4-minute recovery before alternating 1 minute of race walking with 1 minute of recovery pace. There's more to it than that but I don't remember and the magazine is at my house, probably being shredded by Denali. I saw him eying the cover model ;)

He thinks he's such a ladies man.

I kept my recovery speed between 3.0 and 3.3 and my race walking speed between 3.6 and 3.8. I had a sweat but didn't feel exhausted, and the constant changes kept me from being bored, as did "Water for Elephants" on my iPod.

And since this post isn't really exciting and is lacking in details, I'll leave you with this - a sighting at the hotel gym on Sunday.

I was casually running on the treadmill when an older gent, and I say older because he had a head full of gray hair, hopped onto the treadmill next to me. He immediately bumped up the speed to 6.5 and continued to finagle with it from there. At first, I was paying attention because I was jealous and then it was because his increased speed was shaking my treadmill, making it difficult for me to keep pace. I was annoyed. I went to give him a "look" when I noticed the oddest thing. He was wearing a cotton tee, cotton shorts, white tube socks and loafers. LOAFERS, I say. They reminded me of the Eastland shoes I coveted in my Catholic elementary school days. My feet just hurt looking at him.

Have you ever seen such a thing? Got a story to top this one?

Tickled pink

Exercise: 2.1-mile walk with Denali

Weeks. It was definitely over the course of a couple weeks that Mark had been requesting that we ditch the winter’s flannel sheets for some crisper, cooler, good ole fashioned sheets. And now that it’s spring – officially – I gave in.

We stripped the bed of the blue warm goodness, tossed them in the laundry and pulled out a white set (that will be bleached soon enough) from the cedar chest. Mark gave met he task of putting the clean cover back on the duvet as he shook out the sheets.

One shake.

Two shakes.

Three shakes.

And then I saw something pink fly.

“Were you looking for this?” Mark asked, holding up a fuchsia Recovery Sock.

I jumped. I squealed. I clapped. I jumped. I squealed. I clapped. I jumped. I squealed. I clapped.

You would have thought that Mark had shook out a Tiffany necklace or a kate spade bag or a pair of Jimmy Choos the way I was acting. But no, it was my Recovery Sock – a $15 sock - that I haven’t seen since November and I only know this because I wore them for the W.O.O.F.

Its mate, sad and lonely, has sat in the drawer all that time, hoping I would find it come moving day when we would move the bed (or the day I e-mailed the manufacturer asking for a single sock). Who knew we had folded it up in some sheets?! Thank goodness Mark nagged me to death suggested that we change to a spring bed.

They are now reunited - the socks, that is – waiting for my next long run. Or the day when the doctor gives me a recommendation to wear some sassy compression hose to help with swelling. Heck, maybe I’ll wear ‘em for fun since I missed the one so much.

Where the wind blows

Workout: 3.1-mile run, 1.5-mile walk to breakfast and a planned walk with Denali

This weekend, Mark and I found ourselves in one of my favorite cities on the planet: Chicago.

We headed to the Windy City to celebrate my sister-in-law’s 30th birthday. It was a complete surprise – her flight from Colorado to Chicago and our drive in from Indiana, all courtesy of her lovely husband.

We spent the day eating and shopping and eating some more. And then they made the pregnant lady go to the bar and watch everyone drink wine and fancy cocktails.

 

I’ll tell you one thing, though: I probably felt a million times better than everyone else this morning. In fact, I felt good enough to hit up the hotel gym for a 5K on the treadmill.

It was a janky treadmill but I did appreciate the mints that the hotel staff had left for equipment users.

For my efforts, I was rewarded with the best breakfast in Chicago: Yolk. Seriously, if you are ever in the city, you MUST go here.

I had a veggie egg white omelet with fruit and blueberry crunch pancakes. I tore through that omelet and about half the pancakes. The fruit was saved for the car ride home. Did you expect me to sit in the car for more than 1.5 hours and not snack? Ha!

Now we’re home and getting back to business – picking up Denali from the kennel and making dinner. Oh, and sending out prizes. My little “good” give way winner is …

It is hard to pee in a cup … and it’s even harder to pee in a cup and not knock it over. Not that I would know anything about that. Nothin’ at all. So e-mail me at hlthystrides at gmail dot com.

What did y’all do this weekend?