Tuesday, February 26, 2013

High Roller

 Power breakfast!  Two egg white fritattas, half of a whole wheat English muffin with avocado, OJ, and coffee in my Trooper mug! 

Most things that happen in our house are followed with, "You better not blog about this!"  But when someone's new bowling shoes arrived, he wanted the world to see.  Rumor has it all of the dudes are buying their own bowling balls.  And did you know they have their own personal Facebook wall? 

I survived 15 miles on Saturday!  I'm alive!  Now it's on to 17 miles this Saturday. 

And if you're looking for a yummy recipe, I recommend Rachael Ray's Dijon Chicken.  I served it with a wild rice/ barley combo.  I also replaced the creme fraiche with Greek yogurt.  (Greek yogurt does congeal at a high temperature, but it still tasted yummy.)  My dairy free friends could probably even omit the cream all together and still have a tasty meal. 

Friday, February 22, 2013

Carbs!

I call this picture, "Contemplating Cats." 

Maybe I'm getting old, but it's just lovely to come home from work on Friday (usually my break night from working out), drink a glass of wine, and eat dinner with my two favorite gentlemen.  Tonight I am making this delightful vodka sauce (thanks, Judy!) and pasta to get ready for tomorrow morning's 15 mile run.  I had a bit of a tickle in my throat today but there is no time for a day off from the long runs when you work all week.  Luckily my training partner is there for me and told me we'd just take it as slow as we need to if I don't feel great in the morning.  There's no vacation from being awesome.

Tuesday, February 19, 2013

Lean Proteins

I've been trying to up the lean proteins in my life.  On Sunday evening, I made Giada's White Bean and Chicken Chili to have in the fridge for last night.  I really enjoyed the flavors and Swiss Chard.  I served it with garlic bread and we're enjoying our new fave banana bread for a treat.  It's sooooo yummy.  And it's healthy, right?  Dark chocolate is so good for my heart. 
Last night I also prepped mini egg white fritatas for breakfasts.  I bought a small carton of egg whites and mixed in spinach, mushrooms, and cheese, then cooked them in muffin tins at 375 for ten minutes.  I've done similar ones (with yolks and chicken sausage) for Book Club, and they were a hit there. I ate two this morning with a small piece of toast with avocado.  And I'm sure I'll be ready for my banana/ peanut butter granola bar by 9am.  What are you gonna do?
Speaking of Book Club, I have not started this month's book, but I am still working through Jon Krakauer's book about Pat Tillman and Afghanistan, Where Men Win Glory.   I've also read Into the Wild, and really enjoy his journalistic style of writing.  I had no idea who Pat Tillman was and even if you did, you were probably wrong. 
No running tonight!  Cross training with yoga.  Last night my dear running buddy was sick, so I ran on the treadmill.  I'm glad she took the night off since she wasn't feeling well, but don't love running 5 miles on the treadmill.  All part of the territory though. 
And if you need to talk to the Legal Beagle, he is running at full speed and it appears that he will be doing that until May 19th.  He's a nut!

Sunday, February 17, 2013

This is Gonna Get Real

I just wrapped up Week 8 (of 18) of training.  It was a down week, so we only had to run 8 miles yesterday.  Thankfully.  Tomorrow: Week 9, which will end with a 15 mile run on Saturday morning.  Yep, this is getting real.

Did you know that my lovely husband graduates in exactly three months?  Wondering our plans?  Well, as soon as we figure them fully out I will post about them.  Until then, if you know us, you probably have a general idea.  If you don't, give me a call and I'll fill you in!

Monday, February 11, 2013

Feed Me

I am literally always hungry.  My mornings are spent just making it to lunch.  (With two to three snacks.)  I eat a banana, a granola bar, an apple, and maybe some almonds during the course of my work day, and I am still starving by the time I get home to eat lunch or dinner.  I spend time googling things like, "healthy snacks" to try to fill me up.  And marathon training is only making me hungrier.  How do you fill yourself up without taking in weird preservatives, chemicals, and sugars?  Yesterday I baked these spiced chickpeas and they were a really tasty little snack.  And for dinner tonight I made these really tasty chicken pitas.  I baked the chicken yesterday and feel like I should have also made the salsa and/ or ranch dressing ahead of time to shave some more minutes.  I also added avocado and it was a really filling meal.  (I am also not sure why RR calls them "tacos.")  But I will still probably be hungry when I wake up in the morning. 

Sunday, February 10, 2013

Reduction in the Wolf Pack

When you are a part of an awesome wolf pack and the pack is reduced by 33%, you miss that missing wolf.  Come back, Wolf! 
The Legal Beagle has been gone since last Wednesday and Trooper and I have been left to fend for ourselves.  A few weeks ago, we decided to take Trooper off of his medicine because he's been doing so well lately.  And then the itching started again.  BIG TIME.  We gave him a Benadryl to help, and that night he had one of his head tremors.  Benadryl was the only medicine he had in his system, and after some googling (medical diagnosis via the Internet is always reliable), I read that in some dogs, the active ingredient in Benadryl can cause toxicity, which can lead to head tremors.  Then we started him back on the Cyclosporine.  What a handful!  (But he's worth it, of course.)
Did I mention that I ran 13 miles yesterday?  We did it!  Luckily the weather was great and the run went really well.  I had to hobble out of bed this morning and wasn't sure if my feet were properly connected to my legs, but I did it!  And there are only four more long runs left in training!  

Sunday, February 3, 2013

Anti-Football Sunday

Now, I know a lot of my friends and blog readers watch and love football.  And if that's your thing, great.  I, on the other hand, am missing the sports gene.  And I'm okay with that.  I also think that football needs some major changes as a sport, but that's a chat for another day.  Maybe it's anti-social, but I'm okay with skipping the game and making green chili, granola bars, taking my dog to the dog park, and doing a yoga video.  Sorry, peeps. 
All of you in the Windy City will be blessed with my husband's presence next weekend.  Lucky dogs!  I, on the other hand, will be running 13 miles (week 7: half marathon!!), eating waffles, and going to the KLCC Microbrew Festival.  (A gal can't just sit at home and pine away, can she?!)