The weekend before

Posting about my weekend which included spectating at the Boston Marathon seems lame..  I really can’t think about much else the last few days, and I’m just hoping they catch the soul-less bastard. 

Lets start with some eats shall we?

I’ve eaten the same exact breakfast practically every day..  (Except this morning in particular there was crumbled paleo chocolate chunk cookie in there- that only happened once I swear)

 (Banana, Fage 2% plain yogurt, almond butter, chia seeds, homemade salty coconut chips)

 I am obsessed with Lamb.. I know I said that like 5 times in the last couple of weeks.. but it’s true.

 Friday night I had plans to go to a girly wine night- but before I went, James and I spent a couple of hours together and decided to go to Carrabbas for a little appetizer and a glass of wine

 Considering it’s a chain restaurant- this was a nice, fresh tasting appetizer. And really who wouldn’t love a big ball of cheese and fresh basil? 

Sunday I got up and ran 4 miles, then came straight home for a quick shower before heading out for a 5 mile hike with James and the boys. We came across this super old cemetery in the middle of nowhere.. 

 Factoid- I HATE cemeteries.. they scare the bejesus out of me, so I never actually set foot inside of it and just kept my distance while James and the pups looked around. 

By the time we were getting close to the end of our hike, we were both starved and my legs felt like lead. So we went off the paths and just made our own way in an attempt to get back faster.. This way included bushwhacking and huge hills.. I was not impressed. 

We walked through the door with one thing on our minds.. FOOD. I don’t actually remember what else we ate besides these chicken legs (which James made an amazing honey mustard glaze for)

Later in the evening we watched a movie (The Life of Pi) and decided that we were going to take the commuter train up to Boston and check out the marathon since James had the day off..

4/11/13

This week kicked off with some rest, at least for the first half of my Monday. I pushed my Best Body Bootcamp workout to Tuesday so my legs could recover a bit. 

I was surprised to find that my legs felt fine after the 8 miler Sunday- with the exception of my knees which were super achy. 

So instead of working out, I hung out with Paula for a bit and did a little grocery shopping. I made a monster salad when I got home

 I went to the studio to teach class (and had only one student.. lame!) but came home to another awesome dinner

 James seasoned this chicken with orange zest and juice, along with some red pepper flakes and chili pepper.. Sweet and spicy!

Tuesday, I did the first workout of the week for BBB.. and pushed myself to up the weight in all of the exercises.. and also ran a very rough 3 miles.. My knees were not ready for another run- but they felt a little better afterward.  I went to work at the restaurant, but the weather was beautiful, so James scooped my up for a little ride before I met with my PT client. 

Look closely in the mirror to see my goofy face ;)

Wednesday- I’m in the middle of planning our summer road trip. All of the tour books came in the mail from AAA

 I’m getting more and more excited! 

Speaking of excited- I made salty, roasted coconut chips for the first time.. and they are even better than I could have imagined.. 

 Obviously, you know I have a coconut obsession- so I made some coconut butter too

 mmmmm, coconut….

I balanced out all the coconut with some salad- topped with leftover roasted chicken

  This was all after I did the second BBB workout (and dragged my friend Paula through it too!) and took Tuna Moose on his first on-leash run! It was absolutely perfect weather and with the exception of running after a couple squirrels- Tuna did great through all 3 miles

I had an interview in the afternoon for a new restaurant (which I should be starting next week!) 

Dinner

 Dessert

 Candy apple lollipops for the win! 

The weekend+ Longest Run +Ice Baths+ a lucky girl

As soon as I hit publish on Thursday- plans got changed again! 

My tattoo consult got moved until the afternoon which kind of seemed good at first because James was going to take the drive with me (The shop is over an hour away so having company sounded awesome) But then James was at a job at URI- University of RI- and there was a gun threat (which turned out to be a bunch of 20 year olds playing Zombie vs. Humans- seriously.. imaginary games about zombies in college?! So much for higher education)

 So instead James was stuck in the parking lot for the next 3 hours. 

The boys hung out with me while I waited to leave for my appointment 

Daddy?

While driving to the appointment- I was 2 cars behind a 3 car accident. Talk about scary! Thankfully everyone seemed ok and I continued on my journey. 

My appointment went well. We spent the first half catching up and chatting about why I was planning on getting the tattoo and looking at the tattoo on my other foot- which he has decided we are also touching up/adding more colors when I get the outline of my new tattoo- because having both feet tattooed at the same time really seems like fun. NOT! 

Haha.. foot tattoos are supposedly one of the most painful you can get (hands and head are in the same pain category with ribs and hips coming in second) Basically the less meat under the skin then more it hurts. I’ve had my right foot tattooed twice.. so while it does hurt, it’s not enough to stop me from doing the other one ;)

I only took one picture the whole time I was there 

(this is not the tattoo I’m getting)

I left with some homework (final decisions about colors and the font I plan to use for Hydro’s name) and an appointment for the outline (May 16th!)

On the way home, I missed my exit and had to drive through city traffic but still managed to make it to my PT client. 

I came home to a beautiful dinner (James really is the best) 

 This included my very first time eating an actual steak in over 15 years. It was super fancy, pinkies up grass-fed

I’m not going to lie.. I didn’t really dig it. I really tried to like it, especially because James was so excited about it.. but it really just didn’t do it for me. I managed to eat 1/2 of it. 

Friday I did the last workout of the week for BBB- which I loved.. It was a circuit style workout with lots of balancing moves- good fun! I also ran a couple of miles. I refueled with simple stuff

Nice and clean.. Except when I got to work I got a hold of the whipped cream (we make it from just cream and powdered sugar.. and I’m a total sucker for it and eat way too much of it.. oops)

I was extra bad and put caramel on it too.. YUM

After work, James and I headed out on the motorcycle- it was a beautiful day and so awesome to be on the bike again! I even bought a leather jacket- which means I’m totally a biker now ;) Ha.. Yeah right! After jacket shopping we hit up Andrea’s for some awesome greek food

 James was a little hungry and ordered SO.MUCH.FOOD. I shared a salad and that appetizer plate up there with him- he also had soup and this entree

I choose a lamb burger- because obviously I’m obsessed. 

Sunday- I had an 8 miler scheduled. I knew it was going to be in the 50’s and sunny so I headed to Providence to run through the city. I was pretty nervous about this run. It was not only the longest run I’ve done ever- but it was the longest I’ve ever run on the actual road (Previously the longest run was 7 miles on a treadmill- which is totally not the same!)

Thankfully, I had the BEST time on this run!

 I think for one of the first times since starting the half marathon training, I realized that I actually am becoming a runner.. like I kind of love it. That might change when I have another crappy run- but as of this run.. and right now- I love it! And I also feel like I will not only finish the half marathon- but I will come in under two hours. (I’ve been told that my only goal for my first half should be to finish.. but I still want to finish under 2 hours- because that’s how I roll) 

Anyway.. about 2.5 miles in I attempted to run up this hill

The picture does not do this thing justice.. I did my best, but I had to walk up some of it..

I also practiced a little fueling with Honey stingers.. 

 

I ate the whole package between mile 4 and 5. They taste awesome and the texture reminds me of fruit snacks that I used to eat all the time as a kid.. But my stomach didn’t really love it- I got a little crampy. The package says 5-10 chews as a serving and I just went for the 10 right off the bat. I think I would have been fine with just 5.. so next long run I will give that a try and see how it goes.

The worst part of the whole thing?

I HATE being cold.. and I hate icing.. so this was pretty much torture! I cried. REAL tears trying to get in there.. James had to talk me through it- I was being a complete baby.. but this is just cruel. Before I hopped in I foam rolled, stretched and made coffee. 

Thankfully the 20 minutes went by fast.. and soon I was on the couch with all of my boy trying to warm me up

I’m such a lucky girl ;)

How was your weekend?

Any long runs, or good workouts?

Have you ever ice bathed? 

Making space + Best Body Bootcamp

April 

 Where is the time going? I’m having trouble keeping track of what day it is at this point.

BUT

Monday marked the first day of Best Body Bootcamp!

I am pretty excited about the next 8 weeks- I have been really slack-a-lackin with my strength WOs since I’ve been running more- and when I do get around to hitting the weight room, I’m kind of stuck in a rut with the same old exercises- and after making workouts for others, I start to lose my inspiration for keeping things exciting for myself.. Going by rave reviews of previous participants BBB is exactly the perfect fit! 

Since I didn’t have a chance to get the fit test done this past weekend, I started my workout with it Monday at home- and then headed out to the gym to complete the first workout. Honestly Tina’s workout was sneaky.. While I was completing it, it didn’t seem all that tough- I was wrong. Later Monday night I also taught class- and I knew then that I was going to be in trouble Tuesday morning because I was already sore! (And Hungry)

Luckily, I have the best husband- and he had dinner ready and waiting for me

New to us method of cooking Cod fish- Broiled with lemon zest/juice and walnuts with some spices. Seriously fantastic! (Loosely adapted from Practical Paleo) Along with Roasted asparagus and potato. 

We closed the night with a little Redbox movie. Chasing Mavericks- based on a true story and was a really good movie. You should check it out! 

Tuesday I woke up, had some coffee and a little breakie

Fage 2%, banana, chia seeds, walnuts and coconut flakes. 

While eating breakfast I snapped a picture of the boys

 Tuna has a very expressive face- it kills me. 

As it turns out, I was right about being sore.. my legs were like lead, but thankfully even though my training plan has me increasing to 4 runs a week instead of 3 (This week- and for the remainder) , I only had 2 miles scheduled for this day. It was super sunny out, and had been really mild the day before so I thought it would be a perfect time to get used to running outside. 

Ok.. it was a bit colder than I had anticipated! But I was done in 18 minutes, so it really didn’t matter much. 

I headed out to work at the restaurant- and put in my two weeks notice toward the end of the day. I’ve done the whole “Stay at a job you hate because you need money and its the responsible thing to do- and then hate your life each time you have to work” thing… I did it at Denny’s for years.. and I just can’t do it to myself again- life is just too short.. so this was the right thing to do. 

I felt so much better :)

Sometimes, you have to make space in your life for positive things by getting rid of things that are not serving you.. or letting go of things or people that have a hold on you. 

I’m open for new opportunities! 

Photos of awesomeness (from the last couple days)

Hey Friday! 

I thought I’d keep this short and sweet tonight with a few snapshots of the last couple of days.. you know.. all the awesome stuff I can be grateful for or just think is pretty cool. 

I’m getting a whole lot better at this whole gel-eyeliner-girly-winged-kindofthing

 I dig it :)

I found the perfect frame to showcase my little Hydro-face’s paw print at T.J.Maxx that also happens to go perfectly on the very in-progress wall collage 

 It was only $6 and was supposed to just be a table-top frame, but I finagled it to hang on the wall.

(P.S.- I made a consult appointment with my tattoo artist for next week to chat about my Hydro tattoo and I’m super PUMPED about it!) 

There was awesome coffee hangout time with Paula at Felicia’s coffee (that cookie must weigh in a pound at least.. High fiber chocolate chip cookies for the win! I didn’t have any of it.. but it looked so yum!)

Tuna is super serious- and I whipped out the flippy-floppys for real.. Hello Spring!

While hanging out with Paula we went to Target.. I found two tanks for under $3 each and a pair of pants for $7- Score! This tank is my favorite.. because it’s covered in hott pink stars.. DUH

Even though my hip hurt like a Mofo, I still managed to get my training run pounded out

I convinced myself that it would all be worth it because it was massage day! This session was supposed to be Thai massage, but Jess forgot to wear yoga clothes, and you can’t do Thai massage in jeans.. but it all worked out for the best because she kicked my ass with an hour and 45 minutes of super intense, deep tissue work- which I so desperately needed. 

I woke up this morning feeling completely (muscle) pain free- there are definitely a couple of sore spots where she really dug in- but my hip hasn’t felt this good in weeks! I felt so great when I woke up this morning I texted her.. JUST to thank her.. I don’t know how I got so lucky to find someone to barter massages.. but I’m and so grateful.. And I’m sure my body is too! 

I taught a very unstructured yoga class later in the evening.. It was one of those classes where you just can’t focus the students (or yourself- I’m probably the worst teacher in the world- lol).. or wrangle them even a little to get some good yoga work in.. so instead to ended early and went to share some sangria.. 

I love my students.. 

After a decent nights sleep (which was awesome because I slept about 2 hours broken sleep the night before) I made an awesome paleo breakfast

 With a honking big cup of coffee of course.. 

I followed it up with some attempted yoga.. Tuna still doesn’t get the concept of mom working out.. 

 So yoga quickly turned into photo-session

 These dogs are too much! 

I think I managed about 15 minutes of Tuna-interupted yoga before hitting the shower and taking the pup for a training walk.. playing Red Light.. Green light.. Good news is he still remembered the game (even though it had been close to a week since last we played) We managed 2-3 blocks around the neighborhood! 

Afterwards I took Tuna along for a ride to Wholefoods- (Sammy kind of hates the car so he only really goes in it when we are taking him to the woods for a hike) it is the only store around here that I can buy grass fed cows milk.. and I NEED it for my coffee.. I also bought some more Fage yogurt too :) 

I used some of the yogurt, a big spoonful of almond butter and some cinnamon to make a dip for my work lunch

Lunch was awesome.. Work was not.. The oven caught fire- and shit got real.. I realized I would be a terrible person in an emergency.. I freaked out a bit. Thankfully no one got hurt and it was more shocking than serious.. but I left early (which is always awesome in my eyes) and walked with $14 in my pocket.. Tomorrow’s workday is sure to be interesting! 

The Highlights+ a WO

Hey kids- what’s crack-a-lackin? 

I’ve had a very productive Monday! How about you all?

First lets get some photos from the tail end of last week in here

Dinner Friday night 

 Shrimp Nime Chow.. I’m determined to convince myself that I like shrimp.. The peanut sauce helps ;) I never eat peanut butter anymore- so this was a double treat- because Nime Chow is seriously one of my favorite appetizers ever.. These were super yummy and had fresh Cilantro in place of the basil- which was brilliant! 

We shared a couple of sushi rolls and some seared (unpictured) Tuna steak

Saturday

I got up early to get my training run in before work- I’ve decided I need to make my long run days on Saturday so that I can have a whole day off from teaching/work/ working out.. I’ve said it before.. and I’m going to say it again.. I don’t know how you guys run 20-60 miles a week.. I’m running a fraction of that and my body isn’t happy about it! Maybe someday….

Anyway

My bosses are totally NUTS.. like really.. (It is a mother and son that own the restaurant and she is somewhere close to 80 years old and one hot shit..)

She made this model of herself to keep a close eye on the cooks in the kitchen

James went to visit a friend in Boston for the night- so I got together with my friend Paula for a classy night of "Wine and Cheese” which was really crappy cheap Yago Sangria and Smartfood popcorn.. 

I followed that up with a night of “sleep” on the couch with both of the dogs crammed next to me- I’m pretty sure they slept great.. Me not so much ;)

Sunday morning I taught a demo at a new to me studio for potential job.. Funny- I was under the impression that I actually already HAD the job.. hence teaching a demo for students to see what they were going to get when they came to my class.. 

It wasn’t until AFTER I taught the free class that the chick who owns the place told me she would “get back to me” after someone else did a demo. 

Sometimes people in this business are flakes- and I’m totally included in that- but I will tell you that I would have chosen a different day to teach a free class than the middle of my Sunday! 

I decided to blow off steam at T.J. Maxx- James and I needed a couple new bath towels- all of our old ones are from 8 years ago when we got our first place! (While they are in pretty decent shape considering.. we have donated them to the dogs) 

I found 2 awesome Ralph Lauren towels- for $7 a piece.. along with the perfect frame for Hydro’s foot print- which I immediately put on the wall 

(eventually this wall will be a frame collage as I find or make the right frames and photos- I want to keep with the black and white theme)

And then I got some new workout pants in Periwinkle! 

(Pictures will come soon)

And though I decided not to get this I am obsessed- how cute is this single serve espresso pot?!

James and I use a 9 cup espresso pot just like this for our everyday coffee- and LOVE it.. so much better than drip coffee. Too bad this little guy was $16.99.. 

James got home around 3- and I was super excited to hang out with him.. I felt like I hadn’t seen him all weekend! Before we headed out I reserved a couple of movies at Redbox (this is the first time we have used this whole reservation thing.. and it was awesome- definitely will be doing this again!) We grabbed a coffee, hit up Target and Savers before going to pick up our movies. As soon as we got home we got to work on dinner

Whole roasted chicken with a St. Patty’s Day veggie boil (which included green cabbage, carrots, onion and potatoes- to flavor the boiling water I added some bacon fat, salt, crushed red pepper and parsley) 

We watched both movies- The Help and That’s My Boy.. Both were awesome- and it was the perfect end to the weekend. 

So back to today!

Paula is getting back on board with me a couple days a week at the gym.. We met at 7AM today and went through some super sets that were inspired by a workout I saw in the last Oxygen Magazine I got.

It looked like this

Set #1- 3x thru

15 Plie squat (used 50lbs)

12 Romanian deadlifts (20lb DBs)

12 (each leg) Lunge (20lb DBs)

Set #2- 2x thru

12 (each arm) Push up Row (20lb DBs)

12 Bent over Row 

Set #3- 2x thru

12 Overhead press (20lb DBs)

12 Bent over lateral raise (10 lbs DBs)

Set #4- 3x thru

12 Biceps curl (15lb DBs)

12 Triceps kickback (10lb DBs)

Set #5-3x thru

20 Decline weighted crunch

I got home and enjoyed a little homebrew (Cranberry apple kefir soda- which is awesome BTW) in a wine glass because I’m super classy

 Followed by coffee #2 and a leftover bowl

In the bowl: bacon, chicken, mushroom, spinach and an egg topped with hot sauce- duh!

Fueled, I tackled all of the house cleaning, the bank, library, Redbox return, food prep, class prep, teaching and tax stuff- Phew.. Glad I was so productive!