A leisurely Saturday

I got home from the gym this morning (we had a sub at bootcamp and she absolutely KILLED us), took a shower, started making some eggs and then realized that I had nothing planned for the day. I'd had some tentative plans with a few people, but none of them worked out, so I had a whole day free and to myself. Wowsers, when is the last time that happened??

I decided to go check out the Deering Oaks Farmer's Market. It is the biggest farmer's market in the Portland area and I have been wanting to go for the past 2 years. But you know, it's all the way on the other side of the bridge, a whole whopping 10 minutes away.

It was awesome! There was tons and tons of fresh produce, but also cheeses, meats, potted plants, and prepared food. I went a little crazy. My first purchase was a couple healthy, hefty potted tomato plants to replace the dying one on my patio. After I stowed those in the car, I also loaded up on swiss chard, kale, cherry tomatoes, and garlic scapes. I have been wanting to try garlic scapes forever- they are just so cool looking!

My last impulse purchase was 3 quarts of jamming strawberries, they were just such a bargain that I couldn't resist. SO, that meant that when I got home it was jam time. I'd never actually made jam on my own before, but it couldn't be that hard right??

It really wasn't that hard. And squishing all the berries with my fingers was a lot fun. Less than an hour later, I had jam!

 While the kitchen was already a mess, I decided to whip up some pesto with my garlic scapes. They had a sample of garlic scape pesto at the stand where I bought the scapes and it was so good that I decided to whip some up myself. Into the food processor went the scapes, a bunch of basil, some olive oil, pine nuts, and some pecorino romano. I heart my food processor, it is like magic.

 

While I was busy in the kitchen the fog finally burned off, so when I finished my pesto I grabbed the dog and headed out to Bug Light Park. We walked around, watched the boats and people flying kites, waded in the water, frolicked in the grass and then settled down to read (me) and sleep (Dixie).

By the time we got home, I was starving even though it was only 4:30! So I whipped up a batch of homemade pasta to have with my pesto. With the food processor and my pasta maker it is so easy to make fresh pasta. I don't know why I don't do it more often!

It was really nice to have a day where I could do exactly what I wanted when I wanted to do it. I should plan these more often!

Fabulous Fitness Survey

I will not lie, I have been feeling a little uninspired lately in both my workouts and my blogging. I feel like it's the same old thing and I am physically and mentally tired of it. So, instead of boring you with the details of my boring run and boring food, I am going to take this fun little survey that has been going around the blogisphere. 

Fabulous Fitness Survey

1. What did you eat for breakfast?

I scarfed down half an english muffin with peanut butter after my run and before the dentist. 

2. How much water do you drink a day?

I don't measure, but its quite a bit. I usually fill up my Sigg bottle at least 3-4 times, plus have a bottle at the gym.

3. What is your current favorite workout?

My Saturday morning bootcamp. There is great energy in the room, it is always different, and it kicks my butt!

4. How many calories do you eat a day?

No idea! I have 3 meals, plus a snack or two.

5. What are your favorite healthy snacks?

Anything with almond butter! My favorite "treat" snack is some funfetti cake mix mixed into plain Greek yogurt!

6. What do you usually eat for lunch?

This time of year, it is usually some sort of salad. There are endless variations so it never gets old. Yesterday I made a great one with arugula, watermelon, and goat cheese!

7. What is your favorite body part to strength train?

My arms!

8. What is your least favorite body part to strength train?

My butt and hips. They have always been weak and it always hurts!

9. What are your “bad” food cravings?

Frosting and ice cream.

10. Do you take vitamins or supplements?

Yep. A daily multivitamin and a probiotic.

11. How often do you eat out?

A lot more since I started living with the BF! I would say it is usually one lunch and 2 dinners a week on average. 

12. Do you eat fast food?

I don't eat Burger King or McDonalds, but I do like Chipolte and Subway!

13. Who is your biggest supporter?

I think it's a tie between the BF and my parents. 

The BF sprinted through a not so nice part of the city to get me water and take my pic!

14. Do you have a gym membership?

Yep- Lifestyle Fitness!

15. How many hours of sleep do you get a night?

I heart sleep. I could easily sleep 10 hours a night, but I usually average 8.

16. Do you have a “cheat”day?

I like to have a treat

17. Do you drink alcohol?

Um yes! Usually only on the weekends, especially when we go out!

18. Do you have a workout buddy?

No and I desperately want one! I am so tired of running alone!

19. What is the best thing that has changed about your life since committing to a healthy lifestyle?

I have gotten to go on some amazing adventures thanks to running. Running lead me to my 7 continent marathon goal which has brought me to Antarctica, Italy, and Chile so far!

20. What was the last healthy thing you did?

I guess it was going to the dentist this morning. It was not at all fun, but I know that nipping dental problems in the bud will keep me healthier in the long run.

You win some, you lose some

First the good news, I did my second ocean swim of the season yesterday, and it felt infinitely better than the first. It was REALLY hot here yesterday, so I headed to Crescent Beach with a friend after work. I grabbed my bag with my wetsuit and googles just in case. It was so hot that I swam (just in my bathing suit) as soon as I got there and again after we walked the beach. So, I figured if I was there and used to the water I might as well get in a practice session. Note to self- put on your wetsuit BEFORE you get all wet.

The swim felt good. The water was really calm and didn't feel as frigid as last week. It was nice not to be in a  pack of people and have calm water. I only freaked out when I swam over a bunch of grass that looked like eels, but the rest of the time I felt calm and comfortable. Winner, winner chicken dinner.

See that little black speck behind the first boat? That's my head.

And now for the not so good news. I did not do so well with my eating goal for the week to limit myself to one small serving of dessert. I had quite a few nights at home alone on the couch and not only did I have a bigger serving of ice cream than last week, but I also got up for seconds a couple times. Saturday night was an extra big fail. The BF and I made yummy shrimp tacos and then each had a small bowl of fro-yo. As we were finishing our fro-yo out on the patio, our new neighbor came over and invited us to their house-warming party. I ended up standing in front of the dessert table for a good hour and helped myself to 2 cookies and a cupcake. THEN, they send me home with a  a brownie, a whoopie pie, and a piece of cake. All of which I proceeded to eat while watching a movie. Ooops. 

It is so embarrassing to admit that. But I suppose that is the point of sharing my goals and progress on the blog. Public accountability.  I am still making progress. Instead of allowing that to morph into a week of crappy eating, I got myself back on track the next day. So onward and upwards. 

What are your triumphs or failures this week?

The challenges of working at home

I have been working soley at home now since September. After years of travelling nearly every week, it was a welcome change at first. I actually got to spend time in the house I bought! No more wasting 20-30 hours in airports and airplanes. No more living out of a suitcase. But now, the novelty is starting to wear off and it is actually starting to cause some problems.

sometimes it feels like a prison

First of all, I am really stressed out by work, which I think it because I never really disconnect with work. I used to be really good about not checking work e-mail or working before I got to the office in the morning and after I left at night. But now, my laptop is always sitting there, so I keep just "checking in." In the morning I check my e-mail before I run, so my head is filled work stuff while I run. At night, I keep checking my e-mail because my customers are in California and I am in Maine. If I stop working at a reasonable hour for me, I feel like I am neglecting them.

It is also starting to cause some friction between me the BF. Because I am in the house all day all week, when I am not working, I want to get out. I used to be so happy to stay home on weekends, but now I try to pack every day with activities away from home. The BF, on the other hand, works long shifts at a really stressful job, so he just wants to veg out at home when he isn't working. I feel like I am dragging him out against his will, but I feel so stir crazy when I am at home.

Finally, it has not lead to the healthier eating I imagined. When I travelling, it was a challenge to eat well since I was forced to eat out ALL THE TIME. I have been really good about making healthy meals at home, and it is so nice to have access to the kitchen for all my meals. BUT, this access to the kitchen is a double edged sword. A lot of times, I keep going in and getting snacks just because I feel munchy. When a craving for fresh baked chocolate chip cookies hit at at the office, I was out of luck. But at home, I can actually make them. Plus there isn't the public shame factor to keep me from going back for my third bowl of special K chocolate.

Does anyone else work from home? What struggles do you face?

Dang that's Cold!

When I signed up for a swim clinic on June 19th way back in February, I figured the water would have had time to get nice and warm. I mean by mid June last year the water was already 60 something and I had gotten in multiple open ocean swims. This year, not so much. We have had a cold spring and as a result the ocean is still COLD. Like mid 50's. So I have not been able to convince myself to get in on my own.

It looks so pretty. But it is SO DARN COLD.

 All day yesterday I was dreading the swim clinic. But I suppose that is one of the reasons for the clinic? To force you to get in the water? I got to Spring Point around 5:30, checked in and spent some time getting ready and talking to the other ladies there. What I noticed was that EVERY other woman there had on a full wetsuit with legs and sleeves. And then there was me in my little shortie. The organizers had sent out an e-mail the night before warning us about the cold and offering recommendation for the cold: wear non-cotton socks and double or triple up on bathing caps. So, I sported some nice smart wool running socks with my wet suit and tripled up on bathing caps. I looked pretty silly.

Before the swim we had a chat session where the race director and a swim coach spent about 30 minutes going over the logistics of the swim, the swim to run transition, the format of the swim waves, and some swim tips. Even though I heard it all last year, it was good to hear it again.

And then it was time to get in the water. We all waded in to get our wet-suits wet and then came back out on the shore to do the mass start. There were a lot of new swimmers who all wanted to be near the back, so I was pretty near the front. 

And go. I ran right in, but I just couldn't make myself put my face right in the water so I breast-stroked for a minute before taking the plunge. It was putting my face in that was really miserable. My body wasn't that cold, but my face just ached. I couldn't keep it in the water for more than 2 strokes. And I forgot how gross salt water in your mouth tastes.

I also couldn't find a clear space. I kept bumping into other swimmers and getting kicked and hit. It felt like an eternity out to the first buoy. I developed a little rythm to keep myself moving. One, two breathe; one, two breathe. I'd do the crawl for 4-6 breaths and the let myself do the breast-stroke for 4 strokes. It wasn't the fastest, but it was forward motion. I made the first turn and the second buoy seemed so far away. (It was! They were worried about the cold so they moved the first buoy in and the second buoy wider to keep us closer to shore). I could hardly see it, but I figured if I stayed with the pack, I'd be okay. 

What felt like hours later, but was actually only 8 minutes, I finally reached the shore and stumbled up. Done.

Does anyone look good in a swim cap??

The clinic did not give me a lot of confidence. The swim felt really hard and uncomfortable. I know the only way to overcome this is to get back in the water, but it was so unpleasant that I just don't want to. Why did I sign up for this?? 

And finally my shameless plug for the day. Not only do I need to work on my swim, I also need to work on my fundraising for the race. If you'd like to pledge me, please visit my fundraising page.

Do you ever wonder why you signed up for an event? Any swim tips for me?

Was last Tuesday the day I changed my life?

So last Tuesday I wrote a post called "Today IS the day to change your life". I decided that as I went into my 29th year, I wanted to finally change the one major thing in my life that brings me a lot of unhappiness. This is the year I will finally try to make peace with my weight and food.

My goal for last week was to limit myself to one serving of treats. That is one of my major downfalls, especially at night. After eating well all day, I dish up a small treat. I enjoy it. Then I take a second serving, and then a third, and sometimes a fourth and fifth too. I know that I don't really enjoy those third, fourth, and fifth servings as much as the fifth and I go to bed feeling sick and guilty.

chocolate cake with caramel sea salt frosting. Amazeballs.

So how did I do? Pretty well! Except for my birthday, I did stop at one serving of dessert at night. On my birthday, I allowed myself a second piece of cake. Hey, it WAS my birthday and I do love frosting more than most things on earth. Yesterday afternoon I had a little slip-up. I let myself have one of the little Ghiradelli dark chocolate sea salt with almond squares I got for my birthday after lunch. But, then I ended up going back for 4 more. BUT, I did stop myself before I ate the whole bag, and got back on track the rest of the day.

I won't lie, this was not easy for me. So, I have decided to leave this as my goal for another week until it becomes a habit. Then, I will work on changing something else.

Do you have any changes you are trying to make in your life right now? How are you doing?

Birthday Catch Up

I had such a fabulous birthday weekend filled with the people I love most. Friday night I went out to Hibachi at Fugi with the BF and his sister. Neither of them had ever been and loved it. Saturday I started my morning with my favorite bootcamp class and headed to the beach. It was the perfect beach day, just the right temperature.

We went to Pine Point, which I love because it is clean and quiet. BUT, you can easily walk to Old Orchard,  if you want a little more action, which we decided we did. We walked the mile and half to Pirate's Patio, where we sat with our feet in the sand, listening to music and drinking margaritas.

We had so much fun that we stayed a little longer than we intended. When we got back on the beach we realized that the tide had come up a LOT. Naturally we had left our bags (which had my car keys) back at Pine Point. We booked in back, hoping they hadn't washed away. The water was about 2 inches from my towel. 10 minutes later and our stuff would have been gone!

At night, we got dressed up and headed in Portland for a cocktail and appetizer crawl.

Sunday morning I ran off my post cocktail fuzziness before the BF and I headed up the coast to my Mom's. We spent Sunday and Monday playing tennis, eating good food, playing some music, and kayaking. We also got the boat ready to put in the water. I got the lovely job of putting on the bottom paint. Crawling under the trailer, lying on the ground, and then slapping on nasty bottom paint is not my favorite job. I did a great job of bottom painting myself too!

After a wonderful weekend I start my last year as a twenty-something refreshing and happy.