Race Reflections

It’s been one week and I thought about my 5K race  a lot today.  Ironically, the weather this morning was as crappy as it was last Saturday, so I think that brought up some of my thoughts!  I was replaying the race in my mind again and trying to figure out what I could do to be better next time.  Yes, I think I just said…next time!  Oh no!  But, the more I think about it the more I see that I have to try it again.  I can’t got down like that with my first race – LOL! 

Seriously though, it’s not about competing with others.  I’m not a competitive person at all.  I would classify myself more like “everybody’s cheerleader”!  It’s more about how to be better for myself.  There are lots of things that went wrong and thinking it over, I realize that the main thing is that I did not train as hard as I should have.  I kinda took the attitude that if I ran 3.1 miles once, I can do it over again, no problem.  And yes, that is true mentally, but physically, I think my body needed much more practice than I was giving it.  I primarily backed off due to my hip.  I was concerned that training may damage it so that I would have to bag out of the race altogether.  So I backed off, but that ended up hurting me in the end because I realize that my legs weren’t ready.

Another thing I need to learn is how to manage the racing jitters.  I was so nervous when the start gun went off  and that threw my whole breathing pattern out of whack.  I was unable to focus at all.  Even my music did not help.  And my head was so filled with nerves and doubts that emotions took over causing me to really lose it!  I’m not quite sure what to do to help with the jitters, but I did do some research on training for a 5K.  I found some good articles on Runnersworld and Cool Running, so I think I’m going to try out the program and see if I can get myself to run stronger and faster!  I would love any additional tips from my runner blog friends, so please feel free to leave a comment or email me!

Well, that being said, I took the day off from exercise today –LOL!  So much for training, right?!  Seriously, I am planning on starting tomorrow!  I’m a bit apprehensive due to my bouts of dizziness, but my plan is ,as long as it’s not acting up, I’ll get in a run.  Today, I was still experiencing a little dizziness, so I just puttered around the house which was kinda nice!

I wasn’t especially hungry for breakfast and couldn’t figure out what I wanted.  I finally decided a smoothie sounded right.  Not any smoothie…a BLUE MONSTER!  Green monsters have been all the rage, but I’m going blue…

• 1/2 cup Silk Heart Health Vanilla Soymilk
• 1 cup frozen blueberries
• 1/2 ripe banana
• big handful of baby spinach
• 1/2 packet NuNaturals NuStevia

Loved it!

For lunch I made a ginormous salad…

• lots of romaine
• diced ham
• 1 lite string cheese, chopped
• 1 hard boiled egg white
• 1/2 cup pinto beans
• 1 hummus filled egg white (filled with Trader Joe’s Chipotle Pepper Hummus)
• Kraft Light Three Cheese Ranch Dressing

and some tuscan crackers topped with asiago spread (from our Anniversary basket)…

I tried another Zevia this afternoon…

I didn’t like this flavor, so I tried another…

It was definitely better.  So far, I’ve only liked 2 of the flavors.  I think my affinity for diet soda has really diminished though. 

I felt like munching this afternoon, so I pulled out the Cheez-its!  I made sure to “control” myself…slightly, by putting them in a bowl instead of having my face in the bag :)  My cup overfloweth…

Dinner was random.  We were all in relax mode, so I just reheated some turkey meatballs for sandwiches and sliced up sweet potatoes for fries.  I went bunless but layered on the cheeeeese…

And ended the flop- around day with chocolate…

Running is definitely on the agenda tomorrow ;)

ONE GOOD THING:  While I was relaxing, I went through some magazines and pulled out some great new recipes to try this week.

Have a great day!!

A Crock Of…

It was a rushed morning, mainly caused by me trying to fit in some things before leaving the house.  Gotta cross stuff off the list!!!  No time for a proper breakfast, but I wasn’t that hungry anyway and knew I wanted to run, so I didn’t want a whole lot in my stomach.  I grabbed a Chobani and bagged up an apple for later…

I got to the gym and went right to the treadmill.  I ran at a decent clip for 2 miles, then walked the rest at an incline.  I forgot to take some Advil beforehand and my hip acted up a little toward the end of the run, but seemed okay for the walk.  I’m trying not to focus on it too much because I think my fear that it will hurt and keep me from finishing the race is weighing on my mind and it’s almost like I’m making it hurt more!  It’s that psychological game.

After the gym, I ate my bagged up breakfast in the car and headed to the supermarket.  I picked up something new to try for lunch- Gardenburger Portabella Veggie Burger…

I thought it would taste great with some of this topping…

And it did!  I served it on an Ezekiel Sesame Seed Hamburger Bun (love) with some Trader Joe’s Sea Salt and Pepper Rice Chips and 3 darling clementines…

The afternoon was a blur of picking up and dropping off and waiting and driving.  Yay for afterschool activities :(  I made sure to bring my “car snack” so I wouldn’t be screaming come dinner!  I found one of these Kashi TLC Pumpkin Pie bars in the pantry (a little past date-okay, a lot past, but I’m still alive!) and thought it would be just right for EWD (eating while driving) <---  that was very “Rachel Ray” wasn’t it? …

I also needed a little pick me up.  I chose a little bubbly.  No, not that kind.  This kind…

I grabbed another Zevia before I left.  This flavor was black cherry and not my favorite, although I find anything black cherry flavored to be too medicinal tasting in general!

We finally made it home at dinner time.  I had planned ahead, so dinner was waiting in the crockpot.  Or as I like to call it “The Crocker”.  I have a love/hate relationship with The Crocker.  I want to love it;  I really do.  I feel it would be an excellent time saving/ meal prepping tool.  HOWEVER, nothing and I mean nothing, I make in The Crocker ever comes out very well.  It’s overdone, overdry or has a  weird texture.  When I take The Crocker out and put it on the counter, the husband and daughters run.  They know nothing good can come of The Crocker.  But, my middle name is perseverance and I keep trying!  This dinner disaster came in the form of Balsamic Apricot Pork Tenderloin.  It had the potential for greatness.  I used a 1 lb. pork tenderloin and put it in The Crocker with 1/4 c. balsamic vinegar, 1/4 c. apricot preserves, garlic, thyme, s + p.  I put it on low for about 4 hours.  Dry and tough.  Yes, it broke apart leading me to believe it would be succulent pieces of deliciousness, but it had a dry texture to it.  Unappealing.  You can imagine the response from the peanut gallery ;P  The saving grace was the roasted diced sweet potatoes (I pre-roasted earlier in the day and reheated at dinner) and green salad with evoo and balsamic…

This lackluster dinner left me wanting dessert.  I was in the mood for coffee, too, so I decided to mix the two!  I made up another version of a Mock Mocha Frappuccino, this time using some Silk Heart Health Vanilla Soymilk…

I was sent a few coupons a while back to try this out.  We are already Silk soymilk fans;  little daughter has been drinking  the plain Silk since being diagnosed with a milk protein allergy at 8 months old.  Thankfully, she has outgrown that allergy and some others, but continues to drink the plain Silk because she likes soymilk better!

To make  my Mock Mocha Frappuccino, I used 1/2 c. Silk Heart Health Vanilla Soymilk, 1/2 c. Breyers Fat Free Double Churn French Chocolate Ice Cream (for some reason, I have 3 containers in my freezer!), 1 tsp. instant espresso powder and blended it up with about 5 ice cubes.  It was awesome!  I topped it with a tiny squirt of light whip…

This tasted just like the real thing!  And for about the same calories – mine came to 145 calories with whip!  This might be a daily thing now, just warning ya!

Since I like to share, I have 4 more Silk Heart Health coupons for a free half gallon in my possession, so I’ll be glad to give them to 4 lucky winners!  Just leave a comment here and you’ll be entered.  If you don’t have a blog, make sure to leave your email address with your comment so that I can contact you.  I’ll announce the winner on Friday morning, October 16th.

Have a great day!

ONE GOOD THING:  I made sure to have my snacks with me so that I wouldn’t be tempted to overeat at other meals:)

Question(s) of the Day:  Do you use a crock pot?  What the heck do you make in that thing that comes out good??!!

Running Scared

It was the most gorgeous day! It started off a little rainy, but the skies changed pretty quickly and the sun came out for a beautiful fall day.  Since it was raining to start, I decided to go to the gym for a run instead of outdoors.  I can’t believe my first 5K race is in 8 days!  Holy crapola!  I felt a little scared thinking about it.  I haven’t run in a week.  I’m trying to keep my hip damage to a minimum before the race, but at the same time, I’m not really training like I should be.  I know it’s just 5K, but I started feeling uncertain about it;  a million doubts about my ability were flooding my mind…

I fueled up with a little protein before heading to the gym – a spoonful of PB & Co. Cinnamon Raisin Swirl Peanut Butter…

The best stuff ever…

and I snagged half of little daughter’s toast spread with some of it on the way out the door!

I don’t know why I felt nervous about running on the treadmill today.  I didn’t quite feel up to it and my confidence was shaky.  But, I ended up kicking those nerves to the curb after I got started!  I chatted with my friend, Coleen who moved to the next treadmill to keep my company and keep my mind off the time.  I wanted to try to shave some time off my last run which was 50 minutes.  She left when I had a 1.25 miles to go, so I plugged in my tunes and cranked out the rest of the run.  I pumped up my pace toward the end and , surprisingly, felt pretty strong.  I ended up taking 4 minutes off my time!  I like 46 minutes way better than 50!  Hopefully, next week it will be even less, but as long as I finish, I’ll be thrilled!

I treated myself on the way home to a small Caramel Latte Lite at Dunkin Donuts.  Only 99 cents this week!  I’m treading on dangerous ground by slipping in the coffee here and there, but so far, my stomach and throat seem to be up for it…

I was ready to chow come lunch time.  I found some leftover Eggplant Parmesan Pizza in the freezer, heated that up and paired it with some crunch…

I made sure to have a serious snack so that I wouldn’t dig and munch on too much.  I went with a strawberry Chobani yogurt topped with these cuties…

All the bunnies in…

I also tried another flavor of Zevia.  This was the Cola flavor…

I dug it!  It’s a great Diet Coke substitute.  I like mine on ice…

I bumped Pizza Night and decided to make some comfort food:  roasted chicken, mashed potatoes topped with bacon and green onion and sauteed spinach.  I served it all family style…

My plate…

I’m off to pack.  The husband and I decided on an impromptu overnight to celebrate our anniversary which isn’t for a couple weeks, but this weekend worked out best!  I won’t be posting so that I can spend QT with the hubs, but I’ll be taking lots of pics and will catch up with you all on Monday morning :)

Have a great weekend!!!!

ONE GOOD THING:  I had an awesome run on the treadmill and feel confident that I can make it through the 5K next Saturday!

Question of the Day:  What’s one good thing that happened for you today?

Not So Corny

Thanks for all your fun and funny comments on treats that tempt you!  I could include many of your items on my “don’ts” list, too!  Thankfully, it was a better day with respect to “the corn”.  Even though the last bits in the bowl tried to beckon me a few times, I was able to resist.  Get lost, corn!

Needless to say, when gobs of candy corn sit in your stomach like the Rock of Gibraltar, hunger comes late to the party.  I was not feeling much like eating breakfast, but experience has told me that if I don’t eat a decent breakfast, it will come back to haunt me in the afternoon.  After much debate, I decided on a Chobani yogurt and a Cranbran Vitatop…

I skipped the gym and decided to tackle some household chores instead.  I knew my time at home was limited today, so I tried to be as efficient as possible in getting stuff done.  I’m easily distracted these days (the result of candy corn induced brain rot –uh huh!) and I’m trying to change that to maximize my “doing stuff” potential!

I finished up the last of my mini list and get ready to meet up with my sisters-in-law and mother-in-law for lunch.  They wanted to try Cosi, which was great for me;  I love it there!  I stayed true to what I always order when I go there – Fire Roasted Veggie Flatbread Sandwich.  It is filled with roasted veggies, shredded lettuce and a tasty creamy feta spread.  I broke out of the mold today and got the Duo – half sandwich and cup of Moroccan Lentil Soup.  Both items did not disappoint…

After lunch, I raced home to pick up the daughters and had a fun package waiting for me – Zevia Natural Diet Soda!  I won this in a giveaway on Missy’s blog and have been excited to try it!

I gave up diet soda quite a few months ago due to stomach troubles coupled with the fact that I wanted to rid myself of artificial sweeteners.  I was a huge Splenda fan.  I didn’t use a ton of it or at least I thought I didn’t.  But, when I started taking a look at the foods that I was buying that contained it (ice creams, baked goods) along with the diet soda and the addition of it in my coffee or tea, I realized it was too much.  I slowly weaned myself.  Out went the diet soda, then the processed stuff and finally…sadly…the coffee and tea, which I had to give up, too since my reflux was flaring up.  So, I was excited to try this O calorie soda that is sweetened with stevia, a natural sweetener.  I will admit, I have tried stevia before and have not been a fan, but I was hearing good things about this soda, so I was more than willing to give it a whirl.  I grabbed the Orange flavor to try first, while running out the door to take little daughter to dance class…

It was good!  I didn’t detect any weird aftertaste.  It tasted very similar to Diet Orange Crush which I used to really like.  Both daughters tasted and liked it.  Actually, big daughter finished it off!  Great, gotta hide my stash!  I’m looking forward to trying the other flavors.  And here’s me sporting the tshirt they sent – size xs!  They have high hopes for me, I guess.  Wasn’t sure the whole shirt would even  fit over half my body;  it stretches…we were cracking up as I struggled to get into it…hence the blurry pic…

 

Okay, enough embarrassing myself.

While little daughter was at dance, I was able to run to the gym for a quick 30 minutes on the elliptical.  Afternoon workouts are harder for me, but I like to trick my body that way sometimes!

Dinner was a heat and eat.  I broke out a container of Big Batch Bulgur Chili and made some cornbread  to go along with it.  Super filling…

And I ended the night, with no candy corn!!!  Whew!

Hope you have a great day!

ONE GOOD THING:  You know what I’m gonna say…NO candy corn!!!

Question of the Day:  Do you use artificial sweeteners, natural, straight up sugar or none?