Monthly Archives: April 2010

Hello! I am so glad it is Wednesday and not Tuesday any more! I had a HORRIBLE day yesterday. I sat down late last night to blog about it and then, just to add to my already rotten day, my computer would not transfer my pictures from my camera. I shut the computer down and decided to call it a day, before anything else terrible happened. If you know me in real life you know that I am a pretty easy going person. Not a lot of things bother me. I also like to have control over situations. I maintain this control by being super organized and planning ahead. Yesterday I messed up something HUGE and it all went downhill from there. But let me back up and start at the beginning  because my day actually started out pretty good!

I woke up at 5:10am and was at the gym by 5:30am to start my workout. I had on my training plan a strength training session and a 30 minute swim planned. This week I transitioned from the base phase of triathlon training to the build phase which means my strength training program changed. This one was A LOT harder than the previous phase. Today I am so SORE! Ouch! My 30 minute swim rocked too!

By the time I got home I was STARVING. I knew just the breakfast I was going to have. After hearing about it in the blog world for months I just had to try OATS IN A JAR. Here’s my take on OIAJ. Ever wonder what to do with those empty nut butter jars? I mean there’s still some nut butter left in them right? Why should the dog get lick out all of that tasty goodness?

So, you make your oats just like you normally would. Yesterday my oats consisted of:

• 1/2 C Vanilla Rice Mile
• 1/2 C Water
• 1/2 C Old Fashioned oats
• 1 banana
• cinnamon
• 2 egg whites whisked in at the end (I needed the protein1!)

I cooked the banana along with the oats and it made the oatmeal SO delicious! Especially when I put the oats back into the jar and got to soak up the rest of that delicious almond butter!

So good! You must try this!

Then I went to work. I don’t usually write about work on the blog so I’ll spare you the details. But, I messed up something BIG that I am totally in charge of. When I discovered my mistake I literally felt my blood pressure rising and got that sick feeling in my stomach. It was terrible. The worst part about it was I was the only one putting on the pressure on myself. I told my co-worker what happened and she assured me that everything would be okay. She said we don’t get paid to make sure everything is perfect. We get paid to think on our feet and make things happen even in sticky situations. I put some things in motions that will hopefully help remedy this mistake.

When work was done I was so looking forward to teaching Zumba. I just knew that dancing would take my mind off things. When I got to the Y, I got all set up, plugged my MP3 player into the sound system and it didn’t work! Again, my blood pressure began to rise and panic set in. I had NO music. I had about 20 minutes until class started. I raced out the door, hopped on my bike (because why would I drive?) and peddled like crazy. To the surprise of my husband I came bursting through the door and ran through the house to the office area. I hooked up the MP3 player hoping to  fix my problem, I grabbed my cases full of CD’s just in case and raced back out the door (I drove back this time). I made it back to the Y with 5 minutes to spare and my MP3 player now worked. It was nuts! For someone who doesn’t like chaos my whole world seemed to be crumbling down! Zumba went really well and I did feel better afterwards.

My dear husband cooked dinner and washed all the dishes to help ease my day. I even took a nice bath to soak the craziness away. It was just one of those days. I don’t have them very often but they sure do stink!

I did manage to complete another kitchen experiment last night but I’ll save that for a different day! I’m glad it’s a new day and I feel ready to take it on!

Hope life is good where you are!

Hello! Happy Monday to you! Hope you’re getting through your Monday in fine form!

For the first time in a looooong time I actually had nothing scheduled on my day off. Pretty amazing! I was VERY productive. I got to work right away on transferring my winter clothes into storage bins and washing up my summer clothes which have been stashed away for the better half of the year. My closet was a disaster!

Before

After!!

So much better! For some odd reason there were about half a dozen empty shoe boxes on the floor of our closet! I got rid of those. I also decided it’s not practical to keep my jeans in that upper portion of the closet. I always have to climb up there to put them away or get them down so I always ended up just throwing them up there in a pile. They are now on floor on the right side of the closet, not sure if that’s where they’ll stay. I also got rid of a bunch of clothes. I bit the bullet and tossed all the shirts that said medium. I just know they won’t fit me right and I’ll feel uncomfortable in them. I’m not going to lie I felt a little down about it. But, I have be happy at the size I am and realize that I am not working to be a size small or a size 8 but a size healthy! Some of those clothes were pretty cheap and very worn. There are two more closets in this house I want to clean out. One is in our guest bedroom (two words BRIDESMAID DRESSES!) and the other is our front closet. I don’t think either of them has had a good cleaning in about 4 years! Yikes! I’ll save that for another day. In addition to cleaning out the closet I also did my regular cleaning chores which include cleaning the bathroom, cleaning the floors, vacuuming, and dusting.

Don’t you worry though! I got out for a lovely bike ride! I decided rather than drive to County B and park at the trail head I would just ride my bike out on a HWY 16 (a very major highway) and jump on B. This was clearly a mistake. The traffic is ridiculous and the sidewalk is full bumps, holes, and debris. I think I’ll be starting on County B from now on. Once I got out there it was beautiful. I tackled a few hills. This one use to give me such trouble I can even remember walking up it!

Not today! I also saw a lot of other bikers out. Kind of strange since it was the middle of the day. Then again, I was out there. Such a beautiful ride.

When I got home I did a quick transition and then did a 10 minute run. I was actually surprised how good my legs felt. They didn’t feel like bricks at all! I even ran under a 9 minute mile averaging a 8:49 mile! I was really booking it!

Not sure what the plans are for the evening but that’s all I’ve got for now. Hope you can get out and enjoy this beautiful weather!

Hey there! Hope your weekend had been swell! Today has been super busy! I’ve still been having  lots fun taking pictures with my camera.

That’s a blossom on the tree outside my office window. I started the day by heading to church/work at 8:30am. I had to give a presentation and then prep and implement a picnic for some of our students. The presentation went well and the picnic was fun. PERFECT weather!

  Here I am with some of my students. We had a nice picnic lunch with make your own subs, carrots, apples, chips and cookies.

I didn’t get home until after 2pm. I tackled a project I’ve been meaning to do for a loooooong time. We have these two cabinets in our back porch filled with “stuff.” Useful stuff like supplies/treats for our dog, large pieces of Tupperware we don’t use often, water bottles, and travel mugs. Every time I do go into one of the cabinets random “stuff” comes flying out at me or I can’t close the door. Every time this happens I say, “I need to clean these out!” So today I finally did!

Before

  After

  Much better! I threw away a whole bunch of puppy stuff our big doggie doesn’t use any more plus some ancient cookware I’ll be donating to Goodwill. I also got four loads of laundry done and worked on cooking experiment number 1 Mediterranean Pasta with Greens. It was another recipe from Clean Food. It was super easy! Some of the ingredients included, pasta, tomatoes, chickpeas, and kale. It also called for something called mirin. When I found this at the Co-Op it was $10 a bottle! Needless to say I left it out. Here’s the finished product.

It was pretty tasty! It made A LOT! I’ll be eating this for a few days that’s for sure.

Now I’m chilling with the hubby. Plans for tomorrow include getting my summer clothes out of storage, cleaning out my closet, and a nice long bike ride!

I’m considering changing up my training plan next week so I can take part in the La Crosse Fitness Festival. I knew I would be out of town Sunday so there is no way I could do the half marathon but they do have some events on Saturday. They only have a 5K race and my training has me running longer distances that week. I don’t want to give up the running miles but they also have a couple bike tours on Saturday. I’ve never participated in a bike tour and the 30mile one sounds just right. I think it’s going to be a lot of fun! Only problem is I also teach cycling twice that same week. Which means I’ll be cutting one swim session in order to get my runs in. I’m okay with this though. Swimming is my strong event and biking is probably one of my weakest so I feel it’s a good trade. I just really want to take part in this local event.

Hope you have a great night and an even better Monday!

Hello! What a beautiful Saturday! I hope where ever you are you’re having a good day! Mine has been glorious!

First off, guess what came in the mail yesterday?

If you guessed my new camera you’re right! It came later in the day so I didn’t really have time to play with it until this morning. This blossom is on a little bush outside our house. Doesn’t it take AMAZING pictures? I’m loving it already!

I had a 40 minute run planned for this morning. After my crumby run the other day I learned my lesson. I got up early enough to enjoy “first breakfast.” An Arnold’s Thin whole wheat bun toasted with almond butter and a banana plus some green tea.

My run went really well! It felt great, much better than yesterday. I think I averaged a 9:12 min/mile. It was a little cool but sunny pretty much perfect running weather. When I came home I enjoyed “second breakfast.” A Green Monster with vanilla almond milk (SO good in smoothies!), spinach, ground flax seed (that’s the powdery stuff), and frozen pineapple chunks. I also had an unpictured egg. I needed to energize for  my Zumba class!

Zumba was AWESOME! There was a large group of people taking a day long course to become fitness instructors (same course I took). As part of the course they had to come to my Zumba class. There were a couple of guys who really let lose and shook their booties! The group had a lot of energy and I got a lot of compliments on my class. It was so much fun.

I then hit up the Co-Op and bought a bunch of fun ingredients to use in a few experiments I want to try. You’ll just have to stay tuned for that!

When I got home I showered and ate lunch, I was STARVING! Then the hubby and I ran some fun errands. We went to Barnes and Noble, the liquor store (we NEEDED wine!), Farm and Fleet (for the hubby). Then m\we made a stop at Caribou Coffee, I got a Cinnamon Roobios Tea Latte, SO GOOD! Then we got a special treat, an ice cream cake from Dairy Queen! I pointed out that I didn’t really have a birthday cake. About once a year we get the urge for an ice cream cake. We buy one and eat it all week long. In small amounts the ice cream cake isn’t that bad for you. They are made with light ice cream. Still an indulgence but definitely worth it!

Well, I’m going to go play with my camera some more before I have to go to work. Tomorrow I have to work ALLLLLLLLL morning and into the afternoon, not sure what else I’ll be doing! Have a good one!

Happy almost Friday to you! I hope life is treating you well this fine day!

So, this morning I decided I would go for my first morning run in a long time! It’s finally getting light out early enough for me to get in a few miles before work. It was even warm enough to wear shorts and a t-shirt. I love getting workouts done first thing in the morning but I was taking advantage of the beautiful weather and longer days and doing them in between work events (sometimes a little stressful!). Izzy warmed up with me while I gave her her 20 minute walk around the neighborhood. Then I dropped her back off at home and hit the pavement. I only had to run for 30 minutes and let me tell you it felt so hard! I even had to stop and walk for a minute to collect my thoughts and get back into it. I still managed to average 9:30 min. mile but it didnot feel good. I can only attribute this to two things.

1. I did not fuel up or hydrate. I use to be the girl who rolled out of bed and hit the pavement, pool, or bike without eating. I claimed it upset my stomach. When I know I have a run planned for the afternoon I make sure to eat a good, energy filled lunch. Usually a complex carb and some protein. If I start to feel a little hungry in the afternoon I’ll make sure to have a light snack at least and hour before I get off work. I usually drink about 24-40oz of water throughout the day. This morning I went back to my regular routine running on an empty stomach and a dehydrated body. Not good! I’m definitely going to have to factor this in before my next morning run and get up early enough to digest something simple. It really does make a difference!

2. Allergies. My allergies have been terrible lately. At some points during my run it did feel hard to breathe. Not sure how to fix this. I already take and OTC allergy med before I go to bed at night.

I sure was glad when that run was over! I gave the Bondiband the ultimate test today during my run. I have extremely thick, heavy hair. I’ve also been growing my hair out so there are a lot of short stubby pieces. I also recently got bangs so I usually have to clip those back. For someone with heavy hair I had to use A LOT of hair clips to get it out of my face. Sometimes I wear a bandana or a hat but that makes me pretty warm. The Bondibands seems to do the trick! I LOVE them! I’ve worn them lifting weights, to yoga, cycling, AND today running. The best part is they did not slip off my head like other headbands have in the past. Plus they are so fun!

Can you see what it says? “Will RUN for WINE” Cute huh? And here it is still in place after my run!

It didn’t move an inch! They make ones for guys too! You should really check them out!

I guess that’s all for now. I can’t wait to start shooting good pictures again. My camera is coming tomorrow! Even though I didn’t like shelling out the money for a new camera I love getting fun things in the mail! See you tomorrow!

Hello! This going to be short and sweet as I only have a few moments. Wednesdays are often my 12 hour days at work and I’m in between events right now. Just thought I’d pop in to the blog world and say hi!

Nothing too new and exciting to report. I went to yoga today over my lunch hour. I am so impressed with how I’ve improved. I’m not going to lie. When the instructor made us do chaturungas I would often skip then and go right to cobra. Lately I’ve been trying to do them. They are so tough! Today though I just breathed into the pose and it didn’t seem that bad! I felt like a rock start! I love yoga!

I also bought my new camera! Can’t wait for it to come so I can experiment with it and show you the beautiful pictures I just know it’s going to take! Entering in my credit card number was kind of painful! Oh well!

Finally I took a nice little walk around campus today as I ran an errand. It’s over 80 degrees today! So fun! The kids were out studying in the sun!

Well, I’m off! Hope you’re having a good Wednesday!

Hi there! How’s Tuesday going? Good I hope! I hope you enjoyed the little peak into my past that I gave you yesterday.

I came to work thinking that there was a TON of stuff I had to do this week. It’s true that there is  lots to get ready for but it’s not like it’s due tomorrow. Everything is spread out nice and evenly. I already got more than I thought I would accomplished. I even managed to do this after taking a 2 hour lunch! Please if those of you who read this know where I work don’t get up in arms. Things are pretty casual around here. Hours are not set in stone and many times I end up working at night and ALWAYS work on the weekends so taking a 2 hour lunch isn’t affecting my work. Just as long as everything that needs to get done gets done we’re good to go.

About twice a year I get a call from my good friend Carolyn. I call Carolyn my “other mom.” She’s a few years older than my mom and is actually one of my best friend’s moms. When we were growing up Carolyn was the Girl Scout Leader for her daughter’s troop and my mom was our leader. We often did things together since there weren’t that many active older troops in town (umm yeah, I was the only one my troop). The other girls in Carolyn’s troop have become my life long friends. They were the bridesmaids in my wedding and I in theres. Here are my girls modeling the bridesmaid dresses for my wedding! Carolyn’s daughter is on the far left.

Carolyn calls usually to ask a simple favor which I am more than willing to do. She then decides she needs to treat me to lunch. And treat me she does! I get to pick the place, usually downtown. Today we went to  Grounded Specialty Coffee which is a fabulous little coffee shop that serves delicious wraps, sandwiches AND Gelato! Oh how I wished my camera was working! Ever since I started taking pictures of food I notice how beautiful or photogenic my meals can be! We ordered hot tea to start. We each got to pick from about 3 dozen different types of loose leaf tea which they brewed in your own little pot. Then you got to pick out your own antique tea cup and saucer. Mine was so pretty! To eat I had a curried chicken wrap with tons of veggies. So good! Then for dessert I had cinnamon coffee AND carrot and cream cheese gelato. Both were FABULOUS! The food was amazing but the best part about this little gem of a coffee shop are the owners. I actually know them personally. When I first started doing triathlons they were my swim coaches! I still picture Todd on the side of the pool yelling, “You’re LONG and STRONG!” The values they bring to our community through their business are true and honest. I love supporting them and their work. If you live in my area and have never tried Grounded for lunch or at all you must check it out!

Oh how I wish I could share some photos with you! Like I said the camera is not working. BUT I talked with Kodak and they gave me two options. One was a standard $150 fee for repair (plus shipping and handling). Or 15% off a new camera (they call it their upgrade program). Well, I scoped it out and of course picked out this model. I know a lot of bloggers use SLR cameras but I checked with my dad, the camera expert (he worked in a camera shop from high school through college) and he says this is about as good as an SLR without the options to change lenses but who needs to with 26X optical zoom! I just need to approve it with the husband and I’m back in business. Honestly I don’t want to spend this kind of money (even with the 15% off). I’ve bee buying A LOT of stuff lately. But, even if I wasn’t blogging we LOVE to take pictures and can’t live without a camera.

That’s all the news I have for you today. After work I’m getting my hair trimmed, nothing drastic but I love getting it shaped up! Then hanging with the hubby! Have a good one!

Hello! Hope your Monday is going well, I know how tough getting back into the swing of things can be! I have been having a busy day “off” as well. I taught cycling at 6am and then rocked out on the treadmill doing a speedy 10 minute run. I went home and cleaned the casa including cleaning out the fridge! I have to take the doggie to the vet, then meet with my spiritual director, then grocery shop with the husband. Good times!

So, now that I’ve had a few days to get use to the fact that I am now officially in my 30′s I’ve been reflecting on my past a lot. I’ve actually been thinking a lot about what life was like for me 10 years ago when I turned 20.

When I turned 20 I was a sophomore in college attending a small Catholic college in my home town. I lived on campus in an apartment with 2 seniors who were also in the same program as I and another friend of mine who was also a sophomore. I worked part time at a call center taking phone orders for expensive bedding.  I had been doing Weight Watchers for the 2nd time, had already lost some weight, AND was training for my first triathlon. I can remember my mom bringing a birthday balloon into a cycling class she new I was attending on my birthday (see, I’m still working out on my birthday). I feel like 20 was where my journey to health and fitness really took off. I had never run, and barely knew how to bike. I never dreamed I’d be able to do a triathlon let alone continue to be addicted to them 10 years later.

Yet, so much still hadn’t happened to me yet. I hadn’t fallen in love, I didn’t even know my husband, I hadn’t worked in “the real world”, I had never lived away from my home town. I never even considered running a half marathon. I didn’t have a clue how to cook. I definitely didn’t know what blogging was (did blogging exist 10 years ago?). There were so many wonderful people who are now a part of my life that I had never even met.

I don’t remember being a particularly confident young women. I knew I didn’t have all the answers. But my world was very narrow. The concerns and troubles I had that consumed me now seem like drops in a pond. I never even thought about what being in my 30′s would look like.

Now that I’m here and have the gift of hindsight I am looking to the future with such hope. I am confident in who I am. I know that this next decade will be filled with new experiences, and new people. I know life will throw challenges my way but I know I have what it takes to make it through. I want to make an effort to celebrate life and the gifts it offers. The gift of my health and well being and the ability to share that with others. The 30′s are going to be great!

Here are some pictures I found from when I was in my 20′s. I actually had to scan them in!

I am so proud of this picture! I am also so glad that my friend Darick (pictured center) had some one take the picture. This was my FIRST EVER 5K race. I had only been running for about 4 months. I have no idea what my time was but I know my goal was to run the entire way and I DID IT! The gal on the right is my roommate Reagan. I still wear that windbreaker when I run!

  This is me towards the end of my sophomore year. I remember I was taking Actuane (a potent acne drug) that made my eyes dry out so much I couldn’t wart contacts (hence the glasses). I obviously got a hair cut and some highlights.

This is me the summer I did my first triathlon. A group of women at the YMCA who helped each other (including me) train for the triathlon held a big party with a DJ. We’ve been talking about doing this again since it’s the 10th anniversary that we formed the WAC-Y (Women’s Athletic Club at the Y). I was feeling pretty confident with my new body, even wearing a halter top to show of my arm muscles! Note I am wearing the same necklace here as in the photo above. Funny!

Happy Sunday to you folks! Boy I wish you could see me now! Oh wait! You can!

I am currently sitting outside, in shorts and a tank top, drinking a Green Monster , soaking in the sun AND blogging! Too fun! The rest of my birthday was pretty great. Our dinner at Kate’s on State was AMAZING! I totally would have brought you along, the food was definitely picture worthy but my good camera hasn’t been working so I left it at home. I was SO exhausted last night. I’m not if it was from my brick workout yesterday or what. We went to bed SUPER early, I guess that’s what happens when you turn 30! I woke up today still feeling really tired despite getting a good night’s sleep. I think it’s just allergy related but I hope I’m not getting sick. We met up with my good friend Marianne and her husband who had just flown back from a cruise. We went out to breakfast at another great local place Fayze’s. Then I had to head to work for a little while. I had full intentions of returning home and hanging out on the couch or maybe even taking a nap. Instead I thought maybe a power packed green smoothie for lunch plus a soak in the sun would help to energize me! I’m feeling better already. I plan to hit up my favorite yoga class later and then we’re heading over to my parent’s house to celebrate my birthday. Excuse me but I have to move my lounge chair so I get more sun! Have a great day!

Happy birthday to me! Happy birthday to me! Hey folks! Happy Saturday! So, this is what 30 looks like.

That’s me ready to go on my first really long brick workout of my training. I had scheduled a 55 minute bike ride followed by a 10 minute run. My plan was to drive out to a little parking area at the head of a state trail but bike on the county highways doing the sprint distance course. I wore my new jersey but it was a little too cold to just wear that so I had to wear a wind breaker too.

Meet Rosie! My bike! I don’t really call my bike that out loud just occasionally in my head.

I really love my bike! I bought it about 9 years ago and it has served me well!

Here I am all ready to go!

I really like this route because there are some pretty major hills. I only stopped at the top of one to show you picture. Fortunately after a long slow incline there is a really nice downhill.

Trust me these pictures don’t do it justice.

It wasn’t really foggy out, I think my lens got sweaty.  I was making pretty good time so I thought I would extend my ride and not turn where I was suppose. I continued onward because I wanted to see where Russian Coulee Rd was. This is where the longer distance triathlon bike course continues onward. I was pretty much biking out in farm country. Here’s Russian Coulee Rd and the surrounding area.

Wow! I didn’t realize how foggy the lens was. I was using a cheapo sport camera. I also didn’t realize that the reason I was making such good time was because the wind was at my back. When I turned around to head back I was faced with a terrible head wind! I was going so slow and my legs were burning! There was also the ominous black cloud that kept hovering around me.   It did rain a little but not too bad! Because of the wind and the extra distance I decided to add on I actually biked for 72 minutes. Then I did a little run down the bike trail. Of course the minute I was finished the sun came out. It was a tough workout, I was glad when it was over but I felt pretty good!

According to my Garmin I burned over 1000 calories! Wow! After my work out I went to pick up the running shoes I ordered. Look what just happened to be on the way to shoe store…

I treated myself to a Cinnamon Roobios Tea Latte! When I got home I refueled with some lunch and the husband suggested we take a little road trip down the river. Our friend who is a river pilot who usually runs tow boats on the Southern part of the Mississippi was passing through out section of the river (very rare) . We took the doggie and headed down the river to check it out.

Don’t we live in a pretty part of the world? Well, I’m pretty beat! I’m going to take a little rest, shower, head to work for a little bit and then we’re going out for my birthday dinner! So far 30 is going pretty well!

p.s. Sorry for the poor picture quality. We are having issues with the other camera and I wouldn’t have brought it a long on the bike trip any way!