Subzero Temps

Today I participated in the first "Winter Wild" event at Wachusett Mountain in Princeton, MA. The race started at 7am SHARP which meant a wake-up alarm at 4:30am... yikes. As I stepped out to my car, the absolutely frigid wind against my face and -12 degree weather should have deterred me but, as my friend Ashley told me (in an obviously loving-friend way), I'm crazy. :)

The race was so much fun - there were at least a hundred people there and I was so impressed to see at least 6 kids at the start excited to run a mile straight up the mountain. The hills were brutal. Every hill accomplished only led sight to the next one to tackle. See the map below:

The way down, however, was much more bearable. Not only was I able to actually start running, but the view for miles was absolutely stunning.

When I reached the finish, my eyes were nearly shut from the icicles that formed on my eyelashes... and it took a full 51 minutes to accomplish up-and-down the Wachusett mountain.

Food:
After the race, I had a creamy dutch chocolate Isagenix shake - a perfect post-workout refuel with 24g of protein and 240 calories

Lunch was a delicious oven-roasted turkey wrap with arugula and spicy dijon mustard wrap

Dinner was the same (boring, I know) but with sweet potatoes and eggplant on the side.


Fundraising has leveled out for the weekend but I am planning a 5K Run/Walk Benefit to happen hopefully in Southie (possibly in Quincy, otherwise) on March 22nd at 9am! Invite all of your friends and family!

New year, New goals!

Hey all! It's been a LONG time since I last posted - but I'm back to share my newest challenge I've taken on... running the Boston Marathon!

I'm sure that everyone remembers the horrible tragedy that struck Boston last April, but this year is all about renewal and positivity. Even before last year's events, Boston is one of the top marathons for fan support: throughout all 26.2 miles, you're bound to have people filling the sidewalks cheering you on.* However, this year is going to be even MORE jam-packed with supporters! Just to show the world that we can come back stronger and more prominent than ever.

So I will be running with the Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC) team on April 21, 2014** and I've pledged to raise $7,500 by May 31st (I know that's a lot of money!). But I'm confident that with the help of my colleagues, peers, social media, friends and family, that I can do it! 

Fundraising Update: As of today, I've already raised $1,030 with 25 individual donations!!!! Thanks to everyone who has supported me!

Workout Today:

• Shoveling the snow that Winter Storm Hercules dumped on my car
• WFHW (Work-from-home workout):

5 rounds

15 burpees

30 lunges

1 min plank

30 squats

10 tricep tips

The best part about this workout is you don't need ANY equipment to do it - which is why it's a great "at-home" workout! Do the workout for time and then try it again next weekend to compare your times :)

Alright, that's all for today - hope everyone has a good snow day!

*As a side note, you don't always get this! My first marathon, the Disney World marathon last January, had 5 miles between each theme park, which correlated to 5 miles of empty road before getting to the next theme park where you'd finally get some cheers. This also happened to be my slowest pace - having pepole cheering you on makes all the difference.

** April 21, 2014 = 04/21/2014 .. the month and day have the same numbers used in the year! #mathnerd

Tuesday's post

Spin class was a killer this morning – Carlos, from BHAC,  really pushed us with sprints and hills. That being said, his music choice is awesome: modern songs make it more bearable. When spinning, 45 minutes feels like it's neverending, but when I’m asleep or watching TV, 45 minutes passes by so quickly. In order to not ease up on the workout, I tried to focus and be in the moment, telling myself to "keep going, it'll be over soon!" at each song, and before I knew it, it was 7am! Perfect timing for my drive to work.

TIRED!

BTW: an interesting exercise story: http://www.nytimes.com/2012/04/22/magazine/how-exercise-could-lead-to-a-better-brain.html?_r=1

Post workout I had a banana in the car and then after getting to work, I tasted the banana maple oatmeal they have in the café.

If I make oatmeal at home, I’ll usually put fruit in it, but its frozen. Frozen fruit is not only cheaper and stays fresher longer, but some studies show it’s better for you because the fruit is frozen at its ripest, so it keeps in the antioxidants and health benefits. (http://www.fitnessmagazine.com/recipes/healthy-eating/tips/is-frozen-fruit-as-healthy-as-fresh-fruit/; http://pubs.acs.org/doi/abs/10.1021/jf990266t) Just make sure there’s no sugar added (it’ll say on the front) cause that’d be an unnecessary caloric additive. If you need to make the oatmeal sweeter, either buy the prepackaged Instant Oatmeal that’s flavored (I like Maple Brown Sugar or Cinnamon Swirl) or toss in some Splenda!

Want to save money on groceries? http://fabulesslyfrugal.com/budget2012?utm_source=feedblitz&utm_medium=FeedBlitzEmail&utm_content=451231&utm_campaign=Nightly_2012-04-23%2021%3a30 I get daily emails from this site which tells me of local stores having deals. While daily emails can be overwhelming ,and sometimes I just delete them right away, it's nice to skim through and check for any household items I know I need -- and why not save a few $$? :)

For lunch, got a free ham and cheese wrap since my work offered a "Lunch and Learn" with Professor Eric Ledet from RPI on "New Technology for Orthopaedic Smart Implants" -- very interesting!

Happy Wednesday!

Wait, it's the end of April already?!

It’s days like today, where I listen to the loud, thunderous rain slamming the rooftop of my office building that I don’t mind in the slightest having to be at work all day! For people like Greg however, who arrived just a little bit later than I did, I'm not sure he feels the same way...

To start off the work day, I gave out some of Ashley’s banana bread mini muffins at work, and huge compliments to her from my coworkers!! FYI: She apparently gets some of her tips from http://cupcakesandcashmere.com/ :) 

Pre-workout food consisted of a banana, and then I did the Fitness "Tighten and Tone" workout in the May 2012 issue: The workout only took 30 minutes, and I could feel the burn as I was walking around the office for the rest of the day.

    

Also helping me through this miserable Monday (weather-wise... the rest of the day was ok!) was my instant coffee with sugar free vanilla syrup that I put in each cup, adding the perfect amount of flavor. You can buy a whole bottle for only $4 at Walmart and it's the perfect addition to coffee with 0 calories! Breakfast, which is perfectly filling, is the classic plain Greek yogurt with Fiber One Honey Sunshine cereal. After how successful my run went yesterday (which, by the way, I put up my medal and bib at work!) I'm thinking of signing up for the Hyannis (May 27), Providence (end of August) or Chicago half (September) – which should I do? any thoughts?

For lunch, my boss took me and my coworkers out to lunch at El Mariachi in Taunton center and I had the Cozumel Ensalada Camarones (Grilled shrimp salad with avocados and tomatoes)

I snacked on an apple and a lot of fat free cottage cheese before class, and then had dinner at work since I watched my class from here - so glad the semester will be ending next week! Hope you all had a wonderful Monday!!

Spring has Sprung... and Rain is here :(

Time to start blogging again! It's been unbelievably long since I last wrote, and consequently, a lot has changed. But I've missed writing; and I want to get back to my healthy eating and more regular workouts, AND share all of it with my friends. It was really nice having a few close friends, who I didn't even know read my blog, tell me they missed my posts and wished I would write again soon.

Over the past two months, my eating habits completely changed from one bad end of the cycle to the other. In doing so, I realized balance and moderation is essential because in neither extreme situations was I satisfied. Now, I'm determined to get back to eating well: include proper portions of protein, fats and carbohydrates at every meal, and still allowing myself to indulge when I feel like it. In the meantime, I'm hoping my detailed trek to healthier, balanced eating, will coincide with spending less on food so I can save more!

Starting with this weekend, I went up to Ashley's house in Nashua for the night to celebrate her birthday with Alex Mary, Adanta, Katherine, and Dana. Ashley decorated with beautiful yellow homemade balloon balls (so Martha Stewart) and cute table settings from posts she found on Pinterest. 

All the toppings you'd want on a normal taco, but SHRUNK to mouse sized!

We had taco mini bites as an appetizer, sweet potato gnocchi with a Gouda cheese sauce as the main course (note: dangerously filling and apparently a lot more cooking than Ash was hoping for), grilled vegetable kabobs on the side, and fruit with Nutella fondue as dessert. Making the night even sweeter, Ashley concocted a delicious drink of St. Germain, white wine, ginger ale, and grenadine... yum!

Sunday began with a hot bowl of cinnamon swirl instant oatmeal with raw almonds mixed in for the fiber and fat to start my day. Normally, I eat plain greek yogurts, but on mornings that I run, I eat oatmeal to keep me fueled throughout the race. Today, I did the BHAC 4th Annual 6k in Brockton! And, with a time of 30.00 (8.02 min/miles), I placed 1st in my age group, 3rd woman finisher overall, and 23rd finisher out of 155 :)

Lunch was a oven-roasted turkey wrap with spinach on a Flatout Wrap bread (http://www.flatoutbread.com/) with some carrots and Cedar's hummus on the side. Since I had to get a lot of work tone on campus today, snack was only a banana but then I treated myself to leftovers of Ashley's Friday night cooking for dinner - still JUST as delicious!

That's all for now - tomorrow I'm hoping to do a circuit of workout sets at the gym, perfect day for it too since the weather is supposed to remain rainy and cold :(

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Friday:

Workout: 5.5 mile run (in the rain)

Two nights ago, the family ventured over to Nordstrom… no, not for shopping, to grab a yummy dinner! Their Café Bistro has great menu items, ranging from their salads to pizzas (my sister’s favorite) and sandwiches. I’ve never had their desserts, but I’m sure they’re equally as well-made. 

Nordstrom Cafe Bistro's "Chicken Artichoke and Goat Cheese Salad"

I got the grilled chicken and roasted artichoke with warm goat cheese salad, drizzled with light oil and vinegar dressing. Following dinner, we all went and saw MI4 – INCREDIBLE! Highly recommend it as Tom Cruise does an awesome job.

Saturday:

Workout: Attempted a work-out before dinner, but only managed to do some interval training (thank you Shaun for the circuit exercise ideas!) and was too tired to do my planned cardio on the elliptical. Oh well, days of rest are sometimes necessary.

Yesterday, I saw the most beautiful rainbow – had to take a picture, but it was by far one of the clearest rainbows I’ve ever seen – and in December? So strange!

Caught a beautiful rainbow

Lucy and I met with my Dad for brunch at a local café called “Grand Day Café.” I found it on Yelp, as it had many positive reviews, and was pleasantly surprised with the kindness of the servers and bottomless coffee. I only got a fruit bowl because I had already eaten my staple yogurt-blueberries-cereal breakfast, but my sister opted for chocolate chip pancakes, which were HUGE (she almost finished them!), and my dad got the breakfast burrito, which he said was great.

Fruit bowl out to brunch with my Dad

 Rang in 2012 with my mom and sister – celebrating alcohol free, but enjoying ourselves nonetheless! We rent out “Our Idiot Brother,” got into our pj’s, and ate a delicious stir fry dinner followed by a sweet cereal dessert J

Mom's stir fry: my favorite

Dressed up as if we were going out, my sister and I had a mini-photoshoot to bring in some spirit for the end of 2011, and the beginning to a new, happy, and healthy year.

Me and Lucy!

While I don’t exactly have a resolution, my goals for 2012 include saving money, paying off a good portion of my student loans, and continuing to be happy and healthy. Do you have any resolutions?? J Now I’m off to run my first race of 2012: “runcbus 5k New Year’s Day run” – I’m hoping that people are too hungover from last night’s festivities to get out of bed and run outside, but I guess we’ll find out. I’ll report back how it goes!

Holiday break = time to update blog!

Winter decorations at my grandparents community home: so beautiful

 I got home the Thursday before Christmas (thanks to a cancelled flight on Wednesday night) and will be here in Ohio until January 3rd! It's such a treat to come home for a long period of time where I can get some work I need to finish completed as well as spend quality time with my sibs. 

Happy holidays!

We had a wonderful Christmas, and Santa was very generous with his stocking stuffing:

Merry Christmas!

My stocking!

I got a bluetooth headset (for driving), J. Crew slippers, workout clothes, a Pandora snowman charm, and some essential winter clothes. Everyone else loved their gifts too, and we had a great Christmas meal: roast tenderloin drizzled with Bernaise sauce, red potatoes, lots of green beans, and my brother made a cream cheese spice cake for dessert.

Speaking of dessert, Lucy and I made delicious Ghiradelli chocolate espresso cookies and homemade peanut butter banana fudge:

Nom.

We gave a couple to my Dad for Christmas and he loved them! Baking is fun, clean-up? Not so much... We also got our nails done on Friday and mine are red with a candy cane design on the ring finger:

Festive nails!

I've been running SO much since being home. Its nice having so much free time and the unusually warm weather for winter has made outdoor treks much more bearable. Theres a nice 5 mile loop that my mom and i did together 3 times this week. I also signed up for a New Year's Day 5k run with Lucy and Mom (hoping people will be too hungover to run and weíll win the prizes!). Lastly, in terms of fitness, I got a free 7 day trial at the Snap Fitness gym a walk-s away from my house so Iíve been going there every day this week while Lucy's at swim practice. One benefit I'm looking forward to is making use of the free 30 minute personal training session, and I'm meeting with Craig, who used to be an executive chef in New York, to get a handle on some good recipes and food to eat when endurance training.

And since I needed a new fitness goal to start training for in the spring semester, I signed up for the Hyannis half marathon at the end of February. I found out that both my aunt and uncle will be running the half too! 

Food-wise, I went to the doctor to make sure my weight is within a healthy range and just for an annual check up. My BMI is 18.3 so I'm healthy but need to continue eating enough so I don't get a fracture while running. What I've been doing is just eating when I'm hungry, granted I eat mainly lean meats, veggies, lots of fruits, and whole grains, but once I'm back in Boston I'm going to meet with a nutritionist to devise an eating list and make sure that I'm getting the calories I need for the amount I'm working out.

As a final conclusion to this long blog post, I've got some pictures of the meals I've been making since being home, which have all been delicious, healthy and easy to make!

Baked salmon with steamed broccoli and green beans

Standard lunch: Dietz & Watson Cajun turkey with spinach and mustard on a 100% whole wheat Arnold's Sandwich Thin with a pickle, sliced McIntosh apple and Cinnmon Apple Spice tea

Breaded tilapia with steamed green beans

Leftover tilapia with a side salad drizzled with black beans and Mom's black bean soup

Made Lucy an egg & American cheese sandwich on a whole wheat english muffin - made a perfect brunch :)

Blended French Silk frappuchino with chocolate chips

Hope everyone is having a healthy and happy holiday break and I'm looking forward to posting more frequently now!