Ready to go??

I am all packed, but I'm afraid my bag is too heavy. It's hard to get an exact weight because it won't stand on the scale. I've been through everything I have packed again and again, and I just can't think of anything else I can possibly take out! So, I decided to take break and make some healthy snacks for the trip.

First though, I needed some lunch. I was starving from a morning at the gym and packing. I decided to challenge myself to use up the few things I had in the fridge, thus was born "Kier's clean-out your fridge frittata."

 Ingredients:
-Eggs (however many ya got)
-Milk (or almond milk in my case)
-Cheese, shredded (again whatever you have, I had cheddar and parmesan)
-Veggies, chopped into bite-sized pieces (I used spinach, kale, onion, and tomatoes)

1. Preheat the oven to 400. 
2. In an oven-safe skillet, cook your veggies in a small amount of olive oil until they are soft. I did my onions first, then added the kale, then the spinach and tomatoes at the very end. 
3. In a bowl wisk together eggs, milk, and cheese
4. Spread veggie mixture evenly on bottom of skillet. Pour egg mixture over spinach mixture. Use a spatula to lift up the spinach mixture along the sides of the pan to let egg mixture flow underneath.
5. When the mixture is about half set, put the whole pan in the oven. Bake for 13-15 minutes, until frittata is puffy and golden.

Hunger satisified, I moved on the snacks. I have a feeling fruit may be scarce down at the bottom of the world, and I had a bunch of apples so I decided to make apple chips.
-Apples
-Cinnamon
-Sugar

1. Turn the oven to its lowest setting
2. Slice the apples into very thin slices (I used the food processor)
3. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and place the apple slices on the sheet.
4. Sprinkle with cinnamon and sugar.
5. Push it into the oven for 1.5-2 hours, until the apple slices are crisp 

And finally, I decided to make a batch of granola, because it's another great way to use up odds and ends.
- 2 cups Oats
-Wheat germ or oat bran (if you have them) -1/4 cup Molasses
-1/4 cup Honey
-1/4 cup Maple Syrup
-1 tsp cinnamon
-1 tsp vanilla

Optional Add-ins
-Nuts (I used pecans and almonds)
-Dried fruit (I used craisins)

1. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. Line a baking sheets with parchment or aluminum foil.
2. Combine the oats, wheat germ, oat bran, and nuts. Stir together the brown sugar, maple syrup, honey, cinnamon, and vanilla in a saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium heat, then pour over the dry ingredients, and stir to coat. Spread the mixture out evenly on the baking sheets.
3. Bake in the preheated oven until crispy and toasted, about 20 minutes. Stir once halfway through.

Packing

This mess haunted me all night (the few hours of it, I got to sleep that is.)

Thanks to a combination of torrential downpours, strong winds, and a visit from President Obama, my flight home Thursday left almost four hours late. So, I didn't get home until about 2 am. I can't go to bed without unpacking my suitcase (probably a good thing since my running clothes from the week have been festering in there for too long already). So as I unpacked I threw the things I'll need for Antarctica on the bag I had started packing last weekend.


When I got this bag 3 weeks ago, I thought it was un-necessarily large. But it was the most durable option, so I got it anyway. Now, it isn't seeming so large. In fact, it's pretty much stuffed. I am normally a pretty good packer (I certainly get enough practice, since I do it every week), but this trip is a challenge. I'm packing for 3 distinct climates, more than 2 weeks, need all my marathon gear plus heavy-duty warm clothing, and we won't have a chance to do laundry!! I keep trying to think of the things I can take out of the bag, but I'm not having any luck. I just keep thinking of other things I should add.

The biggest limitation is that we are limited to 1 bag of 30lbs on the flight from Buenos Aires to Ushuaia because the planes are so small. We've already been warned that the over-weight fees are very high (they like to take advantage of Americans, who like most things, travel heavy). At this point, I'm thinking I have to pull a Joey and wear 10 layers on that flight to make my bag lighter.

One that will not be taken out is this cute little iceberg that Kristen knit me for good luck.

Dead Butt Syndrome

Found an interesting article in the NY Times.
http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/12/21/when-the-diagnosis-is-dead-butt-syndrome/

Maybe this is what is causing the pain in my hip? Do I have a dead butt?

You are going to need that body later

I went to the free yoga class at Lululemon yesterday, which is something I love but rarely do. My early morning cardio/strength work-outs are non-negotiable, but I tend to see yoga as an indulgence. Too often, if I don't take the early flight out,  I leave the gym after cycle interval intending to run home, grab a shower and snack, and then head to yoga. But then I think about all the other things I need to do before I fly-out, or, I'm totally starving and want a real meal, or I stay in the shower too long.... so many excuses.

But yesterday I went, and I was feeling pretty tired and achy. I did a 13 miler Friday followed by an hour of pilates, Saturday I did an hour of intense boot camp followed by an hour and half of step interval, and then cross-country skiing in the afternoon, and Sunday morning I did an hour of spin interval and then an hour of turbo kick. So it took me a few minutes to get into the yoga mind-set. What got me there was the teacher saying "Be kind to your body. Do what feels good. You will need this body tomorrow." That resonated with me. I came off my competitive high horse and slowed down to just breathe.

It puts the whole race in perspective. It is one race on one day. I will need my body for the rest of the trip and the rest of life. Marathons aren't  quite like yoga, you can't just do what feels good. It will hurt. But, I can make an conscious effort to enjoy the race . There will be other races where I can try for a PR. In this one, I just need to come out of it with a body that can get out and enjoy the rest of the trip.

13 mile tempo and I feel good

My salad dumped in my briefcase at the airport yesterday, which meant that for dinner I was stuck with the Jet Blue free snacks. I was hungry and bored, which meant that I went a little overboard. I started out virtuously with the air popped chips and 100 calorie animal crackers. Then I got up to go to the bathroom and on the way back to my seat the basket of chocolate chip cookies was calling my name. Ditto an hour later, but this time it was the Doritos snack mix. And then when I finally got home, there was a bucket of chocolate chip cookies on the table. I made my way through a few while I sorted through the week's news.

So I though I might feel a little sluggish on the 13 mile tempo run I had on my schedule this morning. But, I actually felt great. It was cold, only 19 when I started, but bright and sunny. For a change, we didn't get a foot of snow this week, and there were some days above freezing, so the roads are pretty clear (as long as you don't mind running in the traffic). I did a route with rolling hills, and still kept my pace up. I had enough in the tank to push it up the steep hill at mile 12 and then keep cruising until I hit mile 13. I just pray that I'll have that same wonderful feeling in 2 (eek!) weeks at the end of the race.

Up and over

I was considering getting up super early to do my 13 miler that I have planned for this weekend today while I'm still in California. It would be nice to do it on clear roads and not contend with traffic. BUT I just couldn't drag myself out of bed at 4am. I'm also starting to get a little nervous about the timing of my long runs. Is doing my last long run a month before the race too early? Not to question the great Jeff Galloway, but......... So I decided it would be better to hold off and do the run over the weekend, so it is exactly 2 weeks before the race.

I decided to do a hill workout instead. There is a mini mountain behind my hotel. I thought I had been running all the way up it, until I went for a walk one afternoon and found that actually I was only going 3/4 of the way up. Amazing how much more you can see when the sun is out. So today I went all the way up, which about 20 minutes of climbing, some parts pretty steep and others pretty gradual. I came back down in half the time, and then spent the next 30 minutes doing loops of shorter rolling hills. I was feeling pretty good about myself until I looked at my garmin and realized how slow I was going. A 10 minute mile pace felt like a sprint by the end of the run. The more marathons I do, the slower I get!

Revenge

I forgot to knock on wood after I wrote that last entry. Yesterday I woke up and we "only" had 5-6 inches of snow, so I decided to run anyway. It was snowing so hard that the snow accumulated on my eyelashes and they froze together! It also piled up on my eyebrows, in my hair, and even down my back. Then I fell on a patch of ice hidden beneath the snow. After the fall I decided to give in and go home. Too bad the fastest was home was 1.5 miles back on the main road, where I was forced to contend with traffic. Unhappy drivers on slippery roads who seemed intent on spraying me as much as possible with freezing slush.

Today I did the elliptical, but still got to battle with the snow as I attempted to get the solid 2 inches of ice off my car. Once that was done, my car was still stuck in a massive icy snow pile. Fun.