Monday, February 28, 2011

Weekly weigh-in, February goals review, and a couple more recipes

First off, I weighed 113 this morning, which is proof that you can eat Chinese food (and cookies) every now and then, as long as you account for them and work (run) them off!  I also accomplished my February goal of only eating Chinese food twice during the month :)

Speaking of February goals, I came up a tad short on mileage. My goal was 60 miles and I only did 52. Boo! I blame some of that on the recent weather, but I will concede that most of the blame belongs right here, on me. I'm going to set March's goal at 65 miles.  I also had a great big FAIL on my water intake. I don't know why, but I just can't drink the stuff! Sure, after a long run I will down a 20 oz bottle, but that's really about it. I drink coffee- hot, cold, lukewarm- coffee IS my water.

Last night I made my Mexican Meatloaf and some fresh salsa. Super easy and so yummy!

Mexican Meatloaf:
- 16oz ground turkey (or chicken) breast
- 1 cup reduced fat shredded mexican cheese (divided)
- 1/2 cup fat-free sour cream
- 8oz salsa
- 3oz bag of Quaker Guacamole Tortillaz (smashed)
- 2tsp taco seasoning mix

In a large bowl combine all ingredients (except for about 1/4 cup of the cheese). Dump into a PAM-greased loaf pan and bake at about 375 for 25 minutes. Sprinkle the rest of the cheese on top and then broil for about 5 minutes. Done. Makes 5 servings.


Note that there are all kinds of things you can modify with this recipe. I usually add a bunch of fresh cilantro, and I use my own salsa instead of the store-bought. Same goes with taco seasoning- I make my own (it's really nothing more than garlic, cumin, chili powder, and cayenne pepper). I also sometimes throw an egg into it to help hold it together.

Super Salsa:
- 4 medium red ripe tomatoes
- 1 large red onion
- 1 bunch cilantro
- 1 lime (juice)
- 1 large jalapeno
- Optional seasoning (cumin, garlic, cayenne, etc)

The easiest way to make this is with one of those little food chopper "Salsa Machine" thingies that has the 3 spinning blades at the bottom. Mine is a Black & Decker and I think it was only $9.99.  It can all be chopped up by hand but it never comes out the right consistency that way. Anyways, the number of servings this makes will vary greatly depending on how much of it you use at a time. I use 1-cup (heaping) servings so it only makes about 4 servings for me.



And in other news, I am on Twitter now, although I don't really know how to use it. I'm assuming it's just like a giant chat program? Anyways, my name is akaWonderWife so feel free to follow me. Just be warned that I have absolutely no idea where I'm going ;)

Sunday, February 27, 2011

LSD Sunday

No, I'm not talking about drugs! Today was my long run (LSD = Long Slow Distance) and I got in just over 8.5 miles! It was also the 2nd day in a row that I got to run OUTSIDE! Yay! Other than a few spots still covered in ice/snow, my run was good, but it was definitely slow. As much as I don't like running on the treadmill it really is the best way to work on speed. Anyways, I was still smiling after 8 miles...



The first thing I thought of when I got back in the house was FOOD! I was seriously considering Chinese food, especially since I burned almost 800 calories, but then I thought of WI tomorrow and also about some of the things I've been reading on Allan's blog.  So I had a serving of my Italian Casserole (see a couple posts ago) and put on a pot of coffee.  I also set one of my February goals as having Chinese food no more than 2 times, and last Wednesday was the 2nd time...

As an aside, I just LOVE this weekly calendar! It's big enough to write just about anything on, and it's magnetic so I can keep it on the fridge. As you can (sorta) see, I write down my weight, everything I eat and my running mileage. And yes I know I drink too much coffee! Then on Sunday I rip it off and compare it with my actual food tracker to make sure I didn't miss anything. I think you can see it full size if you click on it?

Alrighty then, off to shower, make dinner, and color my hair! Wheee!

Saturday, February 26, 2011

Whee! Finally (and I mean FINALLY!!!) got to run outside!

I love working at Weight Watchers on Saturday mornings. It really helps to keep me on track for the weekends. Of course, having Monday as my "official" Weigh-in day helps also ;) As a lifetime member at goal weight (and having been maintaining for 2 years now!) I only have to weigh-in once a month, but I'm one of those scale-junkies who weighs at home EVERY day, and I weigh at WW every Monday, just to keep myself accountable. 

Anywho, I came home and had a late breakfast (cereal w/an apple and skim milk), read some blogs, and then once I gave my food enough time to digest I geared up and went for yesterday's run (yeah, a day late- story of my life)... OUTSIDE! I finally got to use the Garmin I got from hubby (in November!). It was a smoldering 40 degrees (LOL!) and sunny, and just about all the ice/snow is off my running path...

I ♥ living on a golf course!
I did 5.1 miles in 54 minutes which included a 4-minute warm-up and a 4-minute cool-down. My running was quite a bit slower than usual, but it was worth it to be off that f%$#'n treadmill back outside! I am really looking forward to my 8-mile run tomorrow!

Friday, February 25, 2011

Food Makin' Friday

Just got done shopping and cooking everything up for the week, and thought I'd share one of my favorite recipes. I just wish I would have taken a picture of it before I divided it all into containers. This is just one example of how you can makeover almost any recipe into something (at least a little more) healthy.

Zesty Italian Casserole (the original recipe by Pillsbury):

  • 16 oz ground beef
  • 1/4c chopped onion
  • 1c pasta sauce
  • 8oz package of crescent rolls
  • 1/2c sour cream
  • 1.5c mozzarella cheese
  • 2Tbsp butter
  • 1/3c parmesan cheese
Nutrition Information: 1 Serving (1/6 of Recipe); Calories 510, Total Fat 32g (Saturated Fat 15g), Cholesterol 85mg; Sodium 980mg; Total Carbohydrate 28g (Dietary Fiber 1g, Sugars 10g), Protein 28g.
(WW P+ 14)

Zesty Italian Casserole (my Madeover version):
  • 16oz ground turkey breast
  • 1 whole onion, chopped
  • 1 Tbsp EVOO
  • 1 Tbsp minced garlic
  • 1 cup pasta sauce
  • 1 cup reduced fat mozzarella cheese
  • 1/2 cup fat-free sour cream
  • 2 Tbsp light butter
  • 1/2 of an 8oz package of reduced fat crescent rolls
  • 1/3 cup parmesan cheese (some things are better left alone ;))
Nutrition Information: 1 serving (1/6 of recipe); Calories 300, Total Fat 13g (Saturated Fat 5g),  Cholesterol 59g, Sodium 730g, Total Carbs 17g (Fiber 2g, Sugar 4g), Protein 28g
(WW P+ 8)

Sound good?  Click here for the Pillsbury site. There's a mouth-watering picture along with the cooking directions.

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And because it's Friday, here's a little bonus :) Cut up an apple, a banana, and a cup of grapes. Put in a bowl. Take a 6oz container of non-fat plain Greek yogurt and add 1 tsp of Jell-O sugar-free, fat-free instant Cheesecake pudding mix. Mix well. Combine with the fruit. Enjoy!
(WW P+ 2)

Tuesday, February 22, 2011

Friend Makin' Monday (the Tuesday edition ;)) The Lottery

While I was blog-hopping today I came across this at All The Weigh. As usual, I'm a day late (and more than a dollar short!), but I thought this was a great idea and wanted to add my 2 cents!



What's the first thing you would do for yourself if you won 100 million dollars? Note: this question is specifically for you...  
what would you do for fun after the family and the bills and the obvious stuff was taken care of.

Immediately after I quit my job(s) and took care of my family and friends, I would buy a HUGE chunk of land (probably in Virginia) and build a combination dream home/fitness resort/animal sanctuary. But the very FIRST thing I would do is hire a chauffeur. I hate driving. 

Sunday, February 20, 2011

7-mile Sunday, Nike review, and some WW rambling...

My hamstring felt much better this morning so I decided to go ahead with my long run today.  I put on my new Nikes and headed out (to the treadmill in the garage) :)  I was kinda worried about tummy issues as I totally scarfed out like a piggy last night. But everything went ok.  7 miles done! My longest run to date!

The Nike Review: As those (2) of you who read this blog know, I got a pair of Nike+ Free 7s the other day. I probably shouldn't have run all 7 miles in a new pair of shoes, but oh well...

By the end of the first mile I was seriously considering returning them. I was having some issues with my right forefoot and my toes kept going numb. The 2nd mile was a little better but my right foot was still messing with me. I figured I'd try one more mile and then change into my Ghosts. But, as with every other run so far, once I got into the 3rd mile, I entered my zone. My foot issues disappeared completely and to be honest, I didn't ever think about the shoes again. And, just like every other run, once I got to the 7th mile I didn't want to stop. I felt great and could have just kept on going!

So basically, the shoes are keepers. They are very comfortable and don't feel like minimalist shoes to me, other than they are very lightweight. My only complaint about them is how difficult they are to get into. While they look like regular shoes, the tongue part doesn't really open up, so you basically have to wiggle your foot into the front and then use your thumb to pull the heel part up. Overall though, definitely happy with them. 

My hamstring, however, is not happy again :(

In other news, I managed to track all my food this week on WW.  I haven't used e-tools to track my food since way before I even made it to goal/lifetime (May/June 2009). I lost most all my weight by following the Core plan and because of that I prefer the tracker at Sparkpeople.com much better. But since I've been working at WW, I get all kinds of questions regarding the new plan, and I felt like I needed to be able to answer some of the questions.

My main concern was that I wasn't going to be able to eat 29 P+ in one day. Ha! Definitely nothing to worry about with that one! Other than Monday, I ended up using several weeklies every day, and then took the rest of them for last nights bad-food-blowout. I do still have 1 P+ left today that I most likely won't use, but only because there's no more chocolate left in the house ;)

So will I continue to track like this? My first thought is to say no, but you know what? It is really easy to use, and I am still paying for it, so maybe I will. I do know that I'm going back to tracking on SP as well, because I truly believe that I eat better when I see the actual nutrients and my daily recommendations for them. 



Saturday, February 19, 2011

Damn you, clearance racks!

I worked at WW this morning and then my husband wanted to go to Sports Authority to use up his gift card. I figured I would be okay since I don't really NEED anything right now. I do need some new earbuds but I took care of that yesterday, and ordered them on Amazon, along with a couple new running books, but anyways...  Hubby was over in the golf section looking for new gloves. I was browsing through the (don't be shocked now) running stuff, mostly gaping at some of the prices. I just don't understand how a shirt or a pair of running pants can be over $100. SMH. Seriously. A little farther back were the clearance racks. Jackpot! I thought to myself, "Self, you are broke so take it easy. 50 bucks, no more!"  Actually, I didn't go over by that much, and this pair of Adidas pants that I'm sitting here in while I type this, are super comfy! I think I'll be wearing them for my long run tomorrow. Along with the matching visor. And the sports bra/tank combo. And the Nike earbuds that I just couldn't pass up. Ugh. Next on my list of goals- no more shopping! Well, as soon as I get the replacement battery for my Polar, and a smaller chest strap. It's really annoying when as soon as I start to sweat, the strap falls down to my hips :(  On the other hand, it might be warm enough to run outside tomorrow, and in that case I can finally use the Garmin I got for Xmas! Yippee!

Oh, and after procrastinating for a week, I got my 10-miler registration form/check all sealed up and in a stamped envelope. I will be dropping it in the mailbox on my way to work tonight! This will be my longest run to date! The 21st annual Kutztown Fools Run on April 2nd.  Hmm, what to wear?   LOL!

Tuesday, February 15, 2011

Miles, Muscles, and Aardvarks

4.5 mile run today (w7d2 of HM training) with a pulled hamstring = not so much fun :(  The first mile was almost excrutiating (11:30). The 2nd mile was a little better (9:30), and by the 3rd mile I was feeling pretty good (8:45). I finished the 4.5 in 43:40 and then walked it out for a total of 5 miles. When I got back in, I changed clothes and then headed to one of the local running stores- Aardvark Sports. I only wanted to get one of those roller things for my muscle, but I'm like a kid in a candy store in those places. I finally got dragged out by my husband, $150 later! I figured I might as well get a new pair of Ghosts (Brooks Ghost 3) since I just hit 300 miles on mine, but instead I ended up with a pair of Nike Free.

 
Please ignore the Elmo PJs ;)

They feel really good on my feet but I don't know if I'll miss the pillowyness of my Ghosts so I'll probably still get another pair of those too. I also got another pair of Thorlos, which are the most amazing socks in the world (they should be for $15/pair!) and a Brooks beanie cap (just cuz it was cute and on sale).

And that's about it for today.

Wednesday, February 9, 2011

Just a quickie!

Not too much going on. Today was one of my 2 long days of the week. I left the house at 6 this morning and got back home at 8pm tonight. Round 2 tomorrow! On a positive note, I stopped on my way in to work this morning and joined Retro Fitness. I didn't have enough time to actually work out this morning but another girl at work belongs there so we are going tomorrow at lunch. I figure this way I can finally get some ST going. God knows I've been talking about doing it for long enough now! Then again, I didn't get to run today so I may just do that tomorrow instead ;)  One of these days I will get a normal routine back. Hopefully before spring!

Oh, and here's my new favorite Nike slogan. So true. At least it WAS true. Not anymore! Now I'm really doing it!

Thursday, February 3, 2011

I did it! I registered for the Philadelphia ING Rock-n-Roll Half-Marathon!


And, my new shirt came today!  I ♥ OneMoreMile!  They wrap everything so nicely, and include a magnet and a personal note :)



I'm so EXCITED!!


Tuesday, February 1, 2011

January Summary (53.2 miles) and February Goals



February Goals:

  1. I would like to run at least 60 miles in February. Since I feel as though I was really slacking in January, this shouldn't be too difficult. I just wish I could get the treadmill from the garage into the house. I know that most of my procrastination comes from it being about 5 degrees in the garage :(
  2. Start doing Yoga. I found a 45-minute "Strength and Stretch" Yoga routine on YouTube that I'm going to check out.
  3. H2O: I'm sorry but 8 glasses of water is WAY too much. I will compromise and drink at least 4 glasses of water, along with my 4+ cups of coffee. Coffee is made of water and therefore it counts. That's all I have to say about that.
  4. Tracking all food. Limit Chinese food to 2x per month. Nothing fried.
  5. CT: bike at least 2x per week, 10 miles per ride.
I have a few more things I'd like to add onto that but first I have to go run. BBL.