Weigh in Thursday: I’ll take it

I didn’t have high hopes when I stepped on the scale at Weight Watchers this morning. Last week’s mediocre loss (0.4) and no loss the week before had shaken my confidence in my efforts and the program.

But there it was. 135.8 – a lost of 2.6. The loss puts me at 9.4 down since having Miles and 13 pounds from my pre-pregnancy weight (although I think I’d be happy with anything in the 120s).

Say it with me: Huzzah!

What’s working

I spent a lot more time on my feet this week. I walked or ran with Denali all but one day and then there was some epic mileage with Saturday’s Fort-4-Fitness. I walked to and from the car, ran the 4-mile race, walked to the half-marathon course and ran a few intervals with L. By the way, L had an epic PR for the half. Just had to put that out there.

Food-wise, I made White Chicken Chili in the slow cooker, giving me something healthful to take to work every day.

What’s not working

This hole motherhood thing. Kidding. Sort of. I feel like I can either walk/run with the dog or do weights – I can’t do both, even if I do one in the a.m. and the other in the p.m. I really want to make time to do Jillian Michaels’ “Ripped in 30” at least twice a week. Or even once.

Goals for the week

We’ll be on the road this weekend for my brother’s weekend – a weekend that will be full of family, food and fun. I am taking my sneakers in the hopes that I will run but more than anything I want to make the best choice in each situation.

What’s working for you this week – it doesn’t have to be healthy related – and what’s not?

Just what the world needs ...

Another crazy burger concoction.

Meet the Steak 'n' Shake Fritos Chili Cheese Steakburger. It features their slow-simmered signature chili,  pepper jack and Cheddar cheeses, onions, jalapenos and Fritos corn chips on a double steakburger. Oh, and an impressive 1,060 calories, 77 grams of fat, 1,670 miligrams of sodium and 49 grams of carbohydrates.

Pair it with a small order of french fries and Mark's favorite shake (the Mint Cookies 'n' Cream) for a near 2,000-calorie meal. Just don't expect to eat for the rest of the day :)

Would you ever order such an "extreme" burger? What's your favorite fast food indulgence?

What I Ate Wednesday: Nice and slow

Move that body: I managed about 2 minutes of the “Ripped in 30” warm up and then someone woke up. I plan to finish it tonight and ::maybe:: get in a walk as well.

I was 20, and my mom had taken me shopping at Kmart so that I could pick up a few things for my first apartment at college. I got a shower curtain, a box grater and one of the most important things anyone could own – second only to a KitchenAid mixer – the slow cooker.

I use my slow cooker at least once a week to make things like barbecue pulled pork/chicken, my mother-in-law’s famous marinara sauce and the bestest French onion soup ever. Now that free time is at a premium, I’m relying on my slow cooker more than ever. Actually, my slow cookers. I have a medium-sized traditional one and a bigger six-quart digital Hamilton Beach model. I have been using the small one to make steel cut oats, which I prep Sunday night and then have breakfast for the week. The bigger one is great for soups and entrees.

As it turns out, my post for What I Ate Wednesday features all of those – oats, soup and an entree.

Do you like to use your slow cooker? Have a recipe to share?

My (three) breakfasts

 

 

Zone Perfect Dark Chocolate Cookies ‘n’ Cream bar (pre-run), banana (post-run) and Slow Cooker Pumpkin Steel Cut Oats. My oats were kind of meh but I made these apple oats last week and, with a drizzle of real maple syrup, were the shiznit.

Lunch

Slow Cooker White Chicken Chili (this recipe – subbing cream style corn for regular corn and adding a can of green chiles), Boulder Canyon Rice and Bean Snack Chips (scored these post-race on Saturday) and a Weight Watchers mini bar.

Oh, and some mixed vegetables from the hospital.

Snacks

Peach, string cheese and carrots

Dinner

Slow Cooker Chicken Caesar sandwiches (YUM), sweet potato fries and broccoli

Dessert

Smart Ones Turtle Sundae. I’m not sure if you have ever tried these portioned desserts but they never end up being worth the calories/points – I’m not even sure why I bought it. It’s so much easier to come up with a less-processed treat for fewer calories.

Fort-4-Fitness 4-miler: The recap

Move that body: 2.75-mile run

I’ve spent far more time than I’d care to admit working on my recap of Saturday’s race only to come up with this:

My Fort-4-Fitness race ended the same way it began – with a peanut butter and jelly sandwich. I didn’t intend for such a thing to happen but I guess that’s what happens when you give it your all.

And my all I did give it.

Pulitzer Prize-winning stuff, eh?

I am a bit frustrated that I cannot come up with a thoughtful post and not some rambling, too long recap that you won’t want to read. I blame Mommy Brain. (Yes, it’s a real condition. Look it up.) So instead, I’ll give you the highlights … and the lowlights.

View Full Album

 

Highlights

*The pre-race buzz. It was so nice to be a part of the running community again and feed off their excitement.

*For the most part, the miles felt “short” – I reached mile markers far before than I thought I should.

*This race was the first time I chatted with my fellow runners along the course. It was nice to make new friends and support new racers.

*Discovering that no, no I had not lost my finishing kick.

*Seeing an average pace that I haven’t seen in a LONG time.

*Getting to see my boys waiting for me after I finished and learning that one of them was a good guy and slept nearly the whole time.

*Finishing in time to spectate the half-marathoners, who ran just down the street from our house. Mark, Miles, Denali and I were able to cheer on a few of our friends, a guy at the expo and a bunch of brave folks tackling the distance.

Lowlights

*I had been assigned to corral P because I had signed up with the stroller. It was the last corral. Even though I’m not as fast as I once was, I knew I needed to move up. I selected “I” under the premise that I should be in the middle of the pack. Well, I ended up in the middle of a pack of people dressed in denim and windbreakers with no desire to run. I’m glad they were participating but I just wish they hadn’t been in my way.

*I’m still not good at running hills and the neighborhood sections of the course featured some rolling inclines that killed my pace.

*Learning that my finishing kick (a respectable 7:37 pace and a pace that I once ran a mile at) caused me to hurl shortly after crossing the finish line.

*Discovering that the gentleman, a very nice guy from the running store, who won the 4-mile race in 22-something went on to run the half-marathon in 1:17. And I bet he didn’t have puke on his hands.

What are your day’s highlights and lowlights?

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Move that body: 2.8-mile run

Nearly every day, I am thankful I found running. Truly. It has allowed me to be someone I always wanted to become but never allowed myself to be. It has taught me discipline and the ability to push my limits. It has introduced me to a community of people, many of whom I am blessed to call my friends.

Even during the most craptastic of runs, I am grateful. Because with every tight or painful or slow step, my mind focuses not on what is weighing me down emotionally but the physicality of my body. To be physically present is a gift.

A gift I was especially thankful for today.

Last night, I found out the reason my grandma had not picked up any of my six phone calls was because she was in the hospital with chest pains. I know she will be fine - she did not have a heart attack and it is expected that she will go home tomorrow - but my grandma is my person. She has been there when my family was in upheaval, through the deaths of both my parents. Always a rock when I feared I would fall apart.

I can't dare to think of life without her so to hear that she wasn't well ... well, it took a toll on me. I was overwhelmed and distant and full of fear. I tried to shake it off the worry as best I could but it wasn't until my feet hit the pavement, taking me somewhere new, that I was able to escape my thoughts. For 33 minutes, it was me, my feet, the stroller, the dog and the rain.

And for that, I am glad.

Medal of honor

Fort-4-Fitness 4-mile race – 38:48 (average pace, 9:24)

I might have puked at the finish but I did it, my first post-Miles race. More details to come.