5 For Friday - April 10

It's been a very, very long time since I've done a 5 for Friday type post. I've been feeling unmotivated and uninspired lately when it comes to blogging, but I've got a few exciting things going on that I wanted to share.

1. We are headed to the Grand Canyon this weekend. Neither of us has been before, so we're pretty excited. We're making a mini-weekend of it. We'll drive out Saturday morning and drive back Sunday afternoon/evening. I'm not sure why I decided it was important to go in April! Maybe it will be less crowded...?

Note: Deciding if it should have been "neither of us has been" or "neither of us have been" resulted in a long grammatical discussion before deciding that has been is correct. It still sounds weird, but according to Purdue Online Writing Lab, neither is singular and should use a singular verb - even if it sounds wrong. lol. So, there's your grammar lesson for the day. You're welcome. :-)

We're staying the night at the Yavapai Lodge - just one mile from the South Rim. I can't wait to, of course, see the beauty of the Grand Canyon, but also to do some trail running/walking/hiking. And maybe some outdoor yoga. It's going to be chilly, but I still can't wait!

2. I went shopping. To prepare for our chilly weekend at the Grand Canyon, and Ragnar Trail Zion in 2 weeks, and for a little retail therapy, I bought 3 pairs of running leggings at Walmart yesterday afternoon. Plus a few warmer tops. I needed a little color and a little fun for the cooler temps that I don't usually have to deal with here in Vegas.

3. I tried beets. I got 2 beets in our Bountiful Basket last week, and I kind of freaked out. Thank goodness for Pinterest! I ended up roasting them in a little olive oil/S&P to use in smoothies, of all things. The smoothies were delicious! Tangy, sweet, and probably very nutritious. Right? Right?



Waste not, want not. Instead of tossing out the stems and greens, I used them to make these delicious quesadillas.



The pesto was perfect. So savory! And combined with the squash and beet stems. SO GOOD! Of course, Jeff thought it was one of the most disgusting things he'd ever put in his mouth. MORE FOR ME!!

4. I started a new routine. Back on March 30th, I started a new morning routine to get me moving in the morning and to ensure I get at least some exercise every day.

I started with 10 and have been adding 1 rep every day. I'm now at 21. I'm going to keep increasing until I hit 25, and then I'll stay there for a couple weeks (probably through the end of April).

In addition, I've also been doing sun salutations every morning. I started with 1, worked up to 10, and will stick to 10 for a couple weeks now. Or until May 1st.

To keep me on track, I've also started using DailyMile again. If you're on there, we should totally be friends. :)

5. I joined the Tone It Up Bikini Series challenge.

It starts this coming Monday, and I'm kinda excited about it. Or at least hopeful for some good results. It's an 8 week program and sounds like it will be a really good one! I know I'll get out of it what I put into it, so I'm hoping I'll be able to give it my all. For real. I've been feeling very self-conscious and unhappy with my midsection lately, so here's to getting bikini ready!!

Well, that's all I have for now. Hope you all have a fabulous weekend! I promise it won't be another 17 days before my next post. :)

Have you ever been to the Grand Canyon?
Anyone else doing the Bikini Series?
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Recipe: Easy Breakfast Lettuce Wraps

Hello, Fit Fam!

You may or may not realize that I used to have a recipe blog with one of my sisters. It kind of fizzled out, as life got in the way.

So, when Jill posted that the topic for this week's Fit Dish link-up was healthy recipes, I knew it was a great time excuse to resurrect one of the recipes I'd posted over there.

As I was surfing through my archives, this breakfast recipe looked so good!

Easy Breakfast Lettuce Wraps

Prep time: 5 minutes
Cook time: 5 minutes
Total time: 10 minutes

Yield: 1 serving

Ingredients

• 2 leaves butter lettuce (or any other leaf lettuce)
• 2 slices tomatoes
• 2 eggs
• salt and pepper, to taste
• shredded cheese
• Frank's Red Hot (optional)

Directions

1. Rinse and dry lettuce leaves. Chop tomato slices.
2. Scramble eggs over medium heat, season with salt and pepper.
3. Divide scrambled eggs evenly over lettuce leaves. Top with shredded cheese and chopped tomatoes. Shake on Frank's Red Hot, if desired.

I can't wait to get some butter lettuce to eat this again! And it would be super easy to dress this up a little by adding more veggies - onions, peppers, etc. Sky's kinda the limit. :)

Now, it's time to #dishthefit and check out all the other delicious AND healthy recipes that other bloggers are sharing today. Check out our hosts Jill Conyers at JillConyers.com or Jessica Joy at TheFitSwitch.org.
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Workout Recap + Mar 22 Meal Plan

I'm really loving this month's challenge - Muscle Up March with Tera at Girl Gone Healthy. I think might even inspire me to craft a challenge for April. I'm thinking of something with yoga, lower body, and a few days of upper body. It's all just in my head right now, but would any of you be interested in joining me for a month long challenge?

I've got a 10 more days of this one! And I know I'm going to finish this one STRONG!

Workout Recap

Sunday: 3 sets of 12 reps: Dumbbell Extensions, Dumbbell Triceps Extensions, Dumbbell Bench Press + 40 squats

Monday: 3 mile run (negative splits. whoo hoo.)

Tuesday: REST

Wednesday: 3 sets of 12 reps: Alternating Dumbbell Curls, Bent Over Rows, Overhead Shoulder Press + 50 squats + Strong Stride (1/2 of Program 1)

Thursday: 3.6 mile run (with a few hill repeats) + 3 sets of 12 reps: Triceps Kickback, Shoulder Fly, Weighted Arm Raise

Friday: REST

Saturday: 3 sets of 12 reps: Dumbbell Extensions, Dumbbell Triceps Extensions, Dumbbell Bench Press + Strong Stride (1/2 of Program 1)

What's for Dinner?

Nothing too crazy this week - falling back on a few tried-and-true recipes + one new recipe to use the daikon radish that we got in our bountiful basket this week. Hopefully it turns to good.

Sunday: Leftovers

Monday: Chicken Asparagus Stir Fry

Tuesday: Leftovers

Wednesday: Chicken Broccoli Bacon Daikon Casserole



Thursday: Leftovers

Friday: Chicken tacos

Saturday: Leftovers

Breakfast:
Overnight oats (for real!)

Lunches:
Salads
Leftovers

Snacks/Dessert:
Bell peppers with ranch dressing
Celery with peanut butter
Fruit slices

Sunday Prep:
Prep salads for this week's lunches
Slice veggies and fruit for snacking
Overnight oats

What are you cooking up this week?
How were your workouts last week?
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Be sure to stop by Laura @ Mommy Run Fast and Jill Conyers to check out what everyone else is cooking up this week.

Do You Live in the Moment?

Welcome, #fitfam! It's time for the weekly #dishthefit link-up.

This week's {optional} topic is...

Hmmm... Do I live in the moment?

I think the answer is both Yes and No.

I'm a planner, you see. Like that time, 3 years ago, we planned a major travel adventure that could have ended with us living in Belize. We sold most of our possessions, bought a van, planned our route. We had a plan.

Part of the plan included a stop in Las Vegas for a reunion with some of my college girlfriends.

And that is where our travel adventure stopped.

NOW, that is living in the moment. :-)

After our pit stop in Vegas, we reassessed our adventure plans and made the decision to settle in Vegas instead.

And this is not an isolated event. We make plans all. the. time. But we're also cool with changing those plans.

How does this relate to fitness?

I like to think I apply this same make-a-plan, change-the-plan mentality to my workouts.

For example, when I'm training for a marathon, I always start with a training plan, but I don't beat myself up if when I stray from that plan. And, I attempt to enjoy all of the training runs as well. And the actual event, of course.

My blog is called Enjoying the Course, after all, and I do try to remember that in all that I do.

Even right now when I'm trying to focus on speed.

So, maybe the true answer to Do I live in the Moment is more YES than No. I think I'm pretty happy about that. :-)

Do you live in the moment?
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Catch the Leprechaun 5k Recap

This past weekend I ran the Catch the Leprechaun 5k just outside of Vegas.

Pre-race. All smiles. :-)

Wow! What a completely different race experience than my previous 5k.

The before and after race were fun, but the actual race itself was TOUGH!

Dirt trails, rather than paved, will always result in a slightly slower pace. It's physics. ;-)

And most of this race was on a well groomed dirt path. Not really a trail per se, but enough to slow me down slightly.

But I can't really blame the terrain. No, my body just wasn't feeling this one. Everything felt TIRED - my legs, my feet, my mind. There were many times throughout the race that I just wanted to stop.

But my C Goal - no walking - kept me going. If I hadn't made that one of my goals for this race, I know I would have stopped to walk. Probably more than once.

Around mile 2, I got a pretty nasty side stitch that simply wouldn't go away. Still, I pressed on. I kept trying to push myself to go faster, but it just wasn't in the cards.

Around 2.75 miles, the course had to cut back over to the paved trail through the park. This part of the course wasn't nearly as well groomed. Larger rocks in the gravel. Traversing across some grass.

And a twisted ankle. :-(

Nothing too serious, though. When I hit back on the paved section to head to the finish, I was finally able to give it my all all I had left.

Official time: 28:04
Splits: 8:39, 9:07, 9:38, 0:40

Nowhere near a PR for me, but I'm still happy with my time. I did make my B Goal (sub-30), after all.

After the race, we stuck around for the awards - something we normally never do - but we're so glad we did this time! You see, my friend, George, won first in his division and walked away with this neat award/vase.

And everyone who ran got this really cool medal.

And this really cool medal also got us a free Mimosa (or champagne) at Rachel's Kitchen, so naturally, we had to go out for breakfast after the race.

I wasn't very hungry, and I mistakenly thought that pancakes would be a bit lighter. I was wrong. They were delicious, but SO FILLING! :-)

It was a pretty good start to the weekend, even if the actual race wasn't my favorite.

Did you race this weekend?
Ever have an off-race, where nothing was clicking?
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Workout Recap + Mar 15 Meal Plan

It's been absolutely perfect weather here the last few days, and I'm really hoping that Spring is here to stay. :-)

Workout Recap

Sunday: 3 easy miles + 3 sets of 12 reps: Triceps Kickback, Shoulder Fly, Weighted Arm Raise

Monday: 3 sets of 12 reps: Dumbbell Extensions, Dumbbell Triceps Extensions, Dumbbell Bench Press

Tuesday: 2.6 mile run (w/ 1 mile of 30-20-10 speed work) + 30 squats

Wednesday: 3 sets of 12 reps: Alternating Dumbbell Curls, Bent Over Rows, Overhead Shoulder Press

Thursday: 3.6 mile run

Friday: 3 sets of 12 reps: Triceps Kickback, Shoulder Fly, Weighted Arm Raise

Saturday: Catch the Leprechaun 5k (recap coming tomorrow)

What's for Dinner?

I guess we're feeling a little adventurous this week, and we're trying 2 dinners without a recipe. Hopefully all turns out deliciously.

Sunday: Hummus-Crusted Chicken. This has been on my menu for weeks now, but I actually already made the hummus this morning, so I'm pretty confident that it will happen tonight!



Monday: Leftovers

Tuesday: Jeff's concoction. Something with tortilla crumbs and re-fried beans. It's pretty rare that he wants to play in the kitchen, so I always try to let him when he gets the urge. :)

Wednesday: Leftovers

Thursday: My turn to experiment. Something with red potatoes and the slow cooker. Hopefully I'll document it, so I can share the recipe with you all (if it turns out well).

Friday: Leftovers

Saturday: TBD. Depends on what we get in our Bountiful Basket Saturday morning.

Breakfast:
Cranberry Vanilla Yogurt Parfait
Overnight Oats

Lunches:
Salads
Leftovers

Snacks/Dessert:
Cucumber slices and baby bell peppers with hummus
Fruit slices

Sunday Prep:
Prep salads for this week's lunches
Make hummus (done!)
Slice veggies and fruit for snacking
Overnight oats

What are you cooking up this week?
How were your workouts last week?
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Be sure to stop by Laura @ Mommy Run Fast and Jill Conyers to check out what everyone else is cooking up this week.

Catch the Leprechaun 5k Goals

Happy Friday!

Before I forget, THANK YOU to everyone who entered my giveaway for Manitoba Harvest Hemp Hearts. And...The winner is Yuen Chik! Congratulations!!

A couple days ago, I signed up for a last minute 5k this weekend.

Even though it wasn't really planned, I figured I should set a couple goals for the race.

A GOAL: Sub-26:30
B GOAL: Sub-30
C GOAL: No walking

My A Goal  would be an ever so slight of a PR. After blowing my goals out of the water during my last 5k, I decided I should probably have my A Goal be at least a PR - even if a tiny one.

That said, I'm not really hopeful of a PR, since this course isn't going to be as flat and smooth as the Big Game 5k.

Course Description:

The course heads along a short asphalt path next to the lakes until reaching the dirt trails of the park. This is a flat, scenic trail that meanders along beautiful desert landscape and gorgeous views of the majestic Sheep Mountains. Everyone will see lots of ducks, peacocks and birds.

Since it's a mix of trail and asphalt, and trails usually slow me down, I'm thinking that my B Goal is much more realistic. :-)

And, of course, I've got to put in a pretty easy goal, so no matter what, I feel pretty good about myself at the finish. LOL.

My last several runs have included a little walking, so I'm hoping that I can push through for an actual race - thus my C Goal.

Tuesday's run a few days ago was slow. My legs felt super heavy and uncooperative, but yesterday's run was slightly better. Yesterday's average pace was 9:35 - including some walking, hills, and traffic lights - which made me feel much more confident about this race.

I haven't done much speed work or strength training since the Big Game 5k, and with the course description, I'll be very surprised if I get a PR.

Stay tuned throughout the weekend for updates on Instagram and Twitter!

I'm sure I'll at least be wearing something cute and green. ;-)

Anyone else racing this weekend?
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Let's Run FASTER!

Don't miss out on my giveaway for Manitoba Harvest Hemp Hearts!

Welcome, #Fitfam!

I'm going a little off topic for today's Fit Dish. Mostly because I somehow missed the topic until this morning. :-/

I wanted to just pop in this morning to talk about speed work.

As you may (or may not) know, one my goals for 2015 (and 2014 and 2013) is to get a sub-25:00 5k. By some miracle, I ran a 26:33 5k back on Feb 1st during the Big Game 5k.

That crazy race made my goal somehow more realistic. I mean, I didn't even feel like I was trying that hard, and had the most difficult time accepting my time after I'd finished.

Even though it seems actually do-able now, I know I've got a lot of work to do to shave off another 1:30+ from my best time.

There are a lot of things that go into running faster - speed work (obvs), but also stretching, strength training, and I love this!

So, I combed through lots of articles that I'd already pinned and created a new board strictly about running faster.

Follow Clarinda's board Run FASTER on Pinterest.

Now, I've just pinned these articles. The next step is to actually READ them. :-)

And then, of course, APPLY them. ;-)

But I feel like this first step was important, so stay tuned for more on which workouts and tips I end up trying and which work and don't seem to work for me.

Now, since today's actual topic isn't too crazy, let me just finish with 5 peeps I'd love to run with one day! AKA my 5 favorite bloggers/runners.

Laura from Mommy, Run Fast
Jill (our Fit Dish host)
Katie from From Ice Cream to Marathon I've actually run with her before! An entire marathon.
Tracy from Instagram
Lea from Running with Ollie

What are you favorite ways to increase your speed? Any advice for me or articles I should pin/read?
If you could run with anyone, who would you choose?
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Workout Recap + Mar 8 Meal Plan

Don't miss out on my giveaway for Manitoba Harvest Hemp Hearts!

Last Monday, I woke up and decided, It's a new week and a new month, so NO MORE FUNK! I forced myself to start working out. I knew I needed to take control, and I'm certainly glad that I did. :)

Workout Recap

Sunday: REST

Monday: 10 squats (#GGHMuscleMarch) + Strong Stride DVD (Program 1)

Tuesday: 2.27 mile run (easy) + 2 sets of 15 reps: Dumbbell Extensions, Dumbbell Triceps Extensions, Dumbbell Bench Press

Wednesday: REST

Thursday: 3.15 mile run + 3 sets of 12 reps: Alternating Dumbbell Curls, Bent Over Rows, Overhead Shoulder Press

Friday: 20 squats (#GGHMuscleMarch) + Strong Stride DVD (Program 1)

Saturday: REST

What's for Dinner?

We ordered a couple new toys for the kitchen, and I can't wait to play with them this week.

OXO Good Grips V-Blade Mandoline Slicer - I've never actually owned a mandoline slicer before. I've already done a little slicing with it, and I'm super excited about how quickly it's going to make dinner and salad prep! Whoo hoo!!

Aroma Digital Rice Cooker and Food Steamer - I don't know why it took us so long to buy a rice cooker. I've been cooking it on the stove, and it always boils over and make a stinky mess. This one also steams veggies and other things. I'll be using it this week for making stir fry.

Sunday: A variation of Summer Vegetable Tian. I've never tried this before, but it looks so good!



Monday: Slow Cooker Lasagna. Jeff's special request. He loves this stuff! :)

Tuesday: Leftovers

Wednesday: Chicken and Asparagus Stir Fry. I made this last time we got asparagus in our Bountiful Baskets, and it was the best stir fry I'd ever made, so it will definitely be a staple whenever we get asparagus.



Thursday: Baked Chimichangas

Friday: Leftovers

Saturday: Hummus Crusted Chicken

Breakfast:
Overnight Spiced Vanilla-Pear Oatmeal
Cheddar Apple Muffins

Lunches:
Salads
Leftovers

Snacks/Dessert:
Chips & Salsa
Fruit

Sunday Prep:
Slice veggies for tonight's tian
Prep sauce for tomorrow's lasagna
Prep salads for this week's lunches
Slow cook chicken for salads and chimichangas

What are you cooking up this week?
How were your workouts last week?
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Be sure to stop by Laura @ Mommy Run Fast and Jill Conyers to check out what everyone else is cooking up this week.

Review: Hemp Hearts

I recently received a complimentary bag of Manitoba Harvest Hemp Hearts to try out.

Being a Sweat Pink Ambassador has its perks. ;-)

These tiny little hemp hearts are delicious and add a little nutty flavor/texture to whatever you wish to sprinkle them on. They're perfect for after a tough workout or just whenever you need a little energy boost.

I used some to make a delicious blueberry, kiwi smoothie.

I sprinkled some onto a tasty wrap sandwich.

And onto a bowl of potato soup.

I even tried out one of the recipes on their site - Hemp Hearts & Coconut Bar

And O.M.G. These were GOOD!! Seriously, so DELICIOUS!! I only had about 1/4 cup left in my sample bag, so, regrettably, I had to make a pretty small batch. :-(

Sadly, all it made was these 4 little bars. I tried my best to savor them, but it was REALLY difficult to not scarf them all down in one sitting.

My sample might be all gone, but the awesome folks at Manitoba Harvest offered to send a free bag of Hemp Hearts to one lucky reader, so you can try this recipe yourself!

Or use them any other way you'd like.

Just enter using the Rafflecopter below.

a Rafflecopter giveaway Have you ever tried Hemp Hearts?
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{It's a Date} Wildlife Habitat at The Flamingo

WAY back at the end of December, Jeff and I had a little date night afternoon at the Wildlife Habitat at The Flamingo. I never ended up blogging about it, so... better late than never, right? :)

The Wildlife Habitat is a fun little nugget on the Las Vegas Strip for when you need a break from all gambling, shopping, and partying that most people come to Vegas to do.

I never knew there were so many varieties of ducks!

We arrived just in time for the Pelican Feeding, which was actually a feeding for all the other waterfowl as well.

It was a little chilly the day we went, but it was super fun to watch the pelican feeding and also to just walk around and watch all the other waterfowl swimming in the ponds.

There were also a lot of fish swimming around. :-)

Unfortunately, the flamingos weren't outside. Their little section of the habitat was under construction, so they were inside - somewhere warmer, I hope.

The best thing about the Wildlife Habitat? It's FREE! I love finding incredibly fun things to do for free in Vegas, and this is definitely at the top of the list now!

I'm definitely going to go back when the flamingos are out, because I think they would be incredible to see.

What's a fun, free date night you've had recently?
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February Recap + March Goals

Happy March!! I, for one, am super excited for a new month. A fresh start.
Why does it seem that February, the shortest month of the year, always seems so long!?!

Actually, the entire month wasn't so bad; it's just got clouded with kind of a pretty rotten ending. I guess that's why these recaps are so important. To keep me a little grounded and help remember the good times.

February started out with the best thing ever - a fantastically surprising PR at the Big Game 5k.

Here are a few more highlights from the month:

I convinced a co-worker to Runch with me one afternoon. We were going to make it a more regular thing, but so far, we've only gone the one time.

I tried out a fun Toning Ballet class at Pole Fitness Studio using my ClassPass.

I read more in February than I have in a very long time!

I fell into a funk the past week or so. :(

February Goal Recap

• Bike commute at least 4 times - Only made it 2 1/2 times, which I'm still happy about - considering it had been MONTHS since I'd last biked in.
• Run at least 35 miles - So close! I think I made it 29+ miles, but then this funk hit me like a ton of bricks, and running took a backseat.
• Take 3 yoga classes - Total failure with this one. Not even a single yoga class was taken. Not even a yoga video at home.
• Complete the Flab Free February challenge with Tera at Girl Gone Healthy -  I did really well with this for the first 19 days of the month, and then, well, that stupid funk. :(
• Gain 50 Pinterest followers - Only gained 23, but I didn't really take the time to actually focus on this like I wanted to.
• Read at least 2 books - Winner, winner, chicken dinner!!! I actually read 3 books in February - 2 on my own and 1 with Jeff. :-)

Goals with Jeff Recap

• Monthly date night - Didn't happen in February. I know, I know. The month with Valentine's Day AND Jeff's birthday, and we didn't manage to get out of the house together. Unless you count the crazy walk to RedBox on Saturday.
• Read 12 books - Finished book #2. Whoo hoo! We didn't think we were going to, but then we surprised ourselves by finishing a few days early. We even got a jump start on book #3.
• Buy a house - It's with a little bit of sadness that we've decided to remove this as one of our 2015 goals. Sometimes life has other ideas, and plans have to change. So instead of buying a house, we signed a new 13-month lease at our current apartment. 

Yeah. It's going to be a bit of a Do Over month.

What was your best highlight from February?
What are your March goals?
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Workout Recap + Mar 1 Meal Plan

In case you missed my crazy experience yesterday, check this out!

Jeff and I walked to Redbox yesterday afternoon to rent a couple movies. When we were almost there, we heard a screech of tires and then a loud crash! I looked around and couldn't comprehend what happened at first. And then I saw the downed street light.

It was pretty windy, but not that windy. Unbelievable! And pretty perfect timing, considering how busy the street was, that no one was hurt and no cars were damaged.

Of course, we didn't have our phones with us, so once we got back to our apartment, I grabbed my phone and we took off back down the street to snap a picture. :-D

By time we got back to the scene, the Fire Department had arrived to help keep pedestrians away and to control traffic.

So, that was our exciting Saturday afternoon.

Workout Recap

In case you missed my post on Tuesday, I've been in kind of a funk this past week, which resulted in pretty much taking the entire week off of working out.

Let's call it a RESET week. :-)

I think the only activity I even attempted last week was biking to work on Thursday. It wiped me out so much, that I called Jeff to come and pick me up after work.

Ugh! Here's to a new month and climbing out of this funk!!

What's for Dinner?

Here's what I think I'll be cooking up this week.

Sunday: Burritos

Monday: Salads

Tuesday: Hummus Crusted Chicken

Wednesday: Penne with red sauce and garlic bread

Thursday: Soup & Grilled Cheese

Friday: Baked Potatoes and Chili

Saturday: TBD

Breakfast:
Overnight oats - 3rd week's a charm??
Orange Yogurt Cake

Lunches:
Salads

Snacks/Dessert:
Chips & Salsa
Jicama with honey lime dipping sauce
Hemp Hearts & Coconut Bars
Pineapple

Sunday Prep:
Prep overnight oats
Make hummus, guacamole, and honey lime dipping sauce
Hemp Hearts & Coconut Bars
Cut pineapple

What are you cooking up this week?
How were your workouts last week?
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Be sure to stop by Laura @ Mommy Run Fast and Jill Conyers to check out what everyone else is cooking up this week.

Book Review: Two Love Stories

It's the last day of February, which means it's time to link up with the SaraOhm.com Blogger Book Club 2015.

The theme for February was A Love Story.

I was actually able to finish TWO books this month for this theme. Crazy, I know!

Both of the books I ended up reading were about a woman who discovered that her husband (in one) and fiance (in the other) had cheated on her and how she coped with the discovery and then moved on to find true love. Both books were fun, easy reads, and I enjoyed them both - though I did enjoy the 2nd one a little more.

They both contained love (obviously) and humor. Both are filled with lots of interesting secondary characters and fun situations.

My 1st book was Confetti Confidential: They Do, I Don't by Susan Murphy.

I thought there was a bit too much men-bashing in the first half of the book, and there wasn't enough romance throughout. It's easy to relate to Viv, and she did find herself in some crazy predicaments, but I thought the love/romance could have been a bit more developed.

My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I received a free copy of this book from Net Galley. Genevieve "Viv" is a wedding celebrant whose marriage of 19 years crumbles when she discovers he's had an affair and a gambling problem. She immediately kicks him to the curb, and clings to her best friend, Tom, and her 3 sisters. She becomes disillusioned about love and marriage, but decides to follow-through on the 10 weddings that were already on her schedule.

This book was filled with lots of interesting characters! And Viv gets into a lot of uncomfortably, funny situations. I loved the interaction of Viv and her sisters, and meeting the brides/grooms of the weddings she was officiating added a lot of fun to the book.

Each of her sisters supported in her their own unique ways. These five women have to support each other through more than just Viv's break-up, and they do it with lots of laughter and support. Makes you wish you were a part of such a close sisterhood.

Peter, Viv's husband, tries desperately to get back together with her. He makes some changes in his life and is a pretty regular character in the book. And then there is Tom, her very best friend. He leaves for London, shortly after the break-up, which Viv doesn't take too well. She misses her best friend quite a bit - especially when he doesn't reply to her emails and phone calls.

Fearing that she's lost him, too, she also meets/dates a couple of other men in book. With everything else going on, she suddenly has several men wooing her, including Tom, who has professed his love to her via email.

I'm not sure which of the men I wanted her to end up with, if any, but I was a little disappointed in the ending.

I found that this was a light, fun read, but the thing I liked best about it was that the author is from South Australia. As an American, there were a few phrases that I had to get from context, which I found endearing and made me enjoy the book even more. :)

My 2nd book was Lucky Charm by Marie Astor.

I actually bought this book a couple of years ago, but never ended up reading it until now. Even though, the protagonist in this book also got her heart broken, the focus was much more on her finding love than bashing men. It was brimming with romance, especially the chapters that found her in Paris.

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Annabelle is happily planning her wedding to Jeremy, but feels like they may have fallen into a rut. She makes a couple of attempts to spice things up, but her worst fears come true when she stumbles upon Jeremy kissing his agent. She immediately kicks him out of the small studio they share in New York City.

She clings her to her best friend, Lilly. Meanwhile, Lilly has fallen in love with a Parisian. She still finds time to comfort Annabelle and encourage her to get her life back after the devastation of getting her heart broken.

Lilly is a fashion designer who has an upcoming fashion contest in Paris. She somehow convinces Annabelle to join her for a few weeks in Paris, but first, they happened upon a fortune teller one evening a month or so prior to their Paris trip. The fortune teller got a lot of things spot on about both Lilly and Annabelle and gave Annabelle a beautiful necklace with a heart charm on it. Said it was a lucky charm and would bring her love.

Annabelle had been very skeptical of the fortune teller, but quickly embraced the talisman and immediately started wearing all the time. Love was a little rocky at first with the charm, but it lived up to its lucky nature once she arrived in Paris.

She fell for Etienne hard after their first date! And he for her. It was fun to follow along on their adventures in the most romantic city in the world. Of course, he was handsome, muscled, and very wealthy (drives a Porsche)!

Their romance was fast and all-encompassing. And the love scenes were very well-written without being graphic. Just enough to make you really feel the love that was blossoming between the two of them.

This books isn't entirely all about the love and romance. There are plenty of other interesting plot twists and turns and characters.

In her professional life, Annabelle works in a boutique advertising agency writing ad copy. She finds it unfulfilling and longs to devote more time to her writing - something that she'd put on hold while her finance, Jeremy, had worked on his first book. It was fun to meet a couple of her clients at the agency as well as her boss and the other women in her office.

This was definitely a fun, quick read with a perfect ending!

Do you have a favorite love story?
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I can't wait to check out these other love stories that were read in February.

An InLinkz Link-up

In a funk...

I'm linking up for The Fit Dish with Jill Conyers and Jessica Joy today!

This week's topic:

I tried and TRIED to think of fitness-inspiring movies, and all I could come up with was Rocky. Which I don't think I've actually ever seen all the way through.

So, yeah, I'm going to go off topic today.

Hello. I'm Clarinda, and I'm in a funk.

It really hit me on Sunday. Saturday was kind of a busy day, so I decided to push my weekend run to Sunday.

And then I woke up on Sunday, and the weather had turned crappy. It was cold (for Vegas!) and cloudy and dreary with a forecast of rain and continued dreariness.

Plus, I felt like I was coming down with something. My head hurt, and I felt all achy.

So, I skipped my run on Sunday, too. And I skipped my run this morning - to bitch and moan on my blog. :-)

I've also fallen off the #FlabFreeGGH challenge I'd been doing in February. I made it 19 good days, and then I think I got sick of squats. :(

Anyway, I know it's only been a few days for the fitness portion of this slump, BUT I don't want it to get carried away. I don't know about you, but it's SO easy for me to let a few days turn into a few weeks.

This little funk of mine has lasted much longer than just the past few days, actually.

I hate to complain about work (or do I?), but it's been stressful lately and super busy. I'm hoping that today will be much better! There's also some craziness going on at home, but I don't think I want to go into that right now. Maybe other cheery post in the future? lol.

With so much going on, it's just difficult for me to find the motivation I need to MOVE MY BODY! All I want to do is curl up and read or sleep. Some days, it's a real struggle for me to just get to work. Ugh.

OK. Enough wallowing!

Maybe just writing this will help me to get me out of this funk - or at least not let it last too long.

How do you get out of a funk?
What's your favorite fitness-inspiring movie scene?
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Workout Recap + Feb 22 Meal Plan

Holy cow! Where did this week go?! Work was crazy, as is the usual, it seems lately.

I was able to get in one more class with my ClassPass before my complimentary month ended. Sadly, I was only able to fit in 2 classes with my free pass. #lame

I wish I'd made it a little more of a priority. *sigh*

Toning Ballet at Pole Fitness Studio sounded like fun! And definitely out of my comfortable zone. I'm not very graceful and definitely not a very good dancer, so I thought it would be good for me to try something new. Ooph! This was TOUGH! Many times throughout the class I thought: It's because I'm a runner that I can't bend my leg like that. OR Damn! I need to do more yoga!! Running is keeping me so tight!

I think it might have been just my way of justifying my inflexibility and making me feel better about myself. LOL.

You can read my full review of the studio and this class over on Yelp.

Workout Recap

Sunday: 4.35 mile run + Day 13 of #FlabFreeGGH (20 donkey kicks, 20 bridges, 24 squats) + Day 15 of #FlabFreeGGH (25 scissor kicks, 30 squats, 1 min plank)

Monday: Arms & Core Hand Weight Workout (3x) + Day 16 of #FlabFreeGGH (25 scissor kicks, 30 squats, 1 min plank)

Tuesday: 2.3 mile run (Speed work 30-20-10) + Day 17 of #FlabFreeGGH (30 lunge kicks, 35 squats, 1:10 plank)

Wednesday: Toning Ballet at Pole Fitness Studio + Day 18 of #FlabFreeGGH (30 lunge kicks, 35 squats, 1:10 plank)

Thursday: 3 mile easy run

Friday: Bike commuted to work + Day 20 of #FlabFreeGGH (30 donkey kicks, 30 bridges, 40 squats)

Saturday: REST

What's for Dinner?

I'm super excited about my meal plan this week! Lots of good stuff, so I hope that I can stick to it this week.

Sunday: Leftover Baked Chimichangas from last night.

Monday: Loaded Baked Potato Soup

Tuesday: Leftovers

Wednesday: Spiralized Yellow Squash (me) and Penne (Jeff) with red sauce

Thursday: Leftovers

Friday: Leftovers

Saturday: Hummus Crusted Chicken

Breakfast:
Overnight oats - no specific recipe; never ended up experimenting with this last week, so it's ON this week.

Lunches:
Wraps
Salads
Leftovers

Snacks/Dessert:
Chips & Salsa
Fruit - apples, blood oranges

Sunday Prep:
Cut potatoes for soup
Slice jicama for salads/wraps
Prep overnight oats
Make yogurt and hummus

What are you cooking up this week?
How were your workouts last week?
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Be sure to stop by Laura @ Mommy Run Fast and Jill Conyers to check out what everyone else is cooking up this week.

Workout Recap + Feb 15 Meal Plan

I feel like my workouts start out really strong at the beginning of the week, but then really peter off by the end of the week. :( Work has been pretty stressful the past couple weeks, which I wish prompted me to alleviate with exercise. But truth be told, it resulted in a couple dinners from McDonald's this past week.

This week will be better, right?!

A couple of exciting exercise things did happen this past week, though.

1) I rode my bike to work for the first time in ... let's just say ... way. too. long. It was exhilarating! And awesome. And I really wish I would have done it more than just once last week.

2) I went for a Runch (run+lunch) with a co-working on Thursday. Yep, we took to the Vegas streets in the afternoon and managed to kick out a 5k. Woot woot!! Plus a couple other co-workers said they wanted to join us next week, so Thursday runches might become a thing.

Workout Recap

Sunday: 5 mile run + Yoga For Runners on my patio + Day 8 of #FlabFreeGGH (15 scissor kicks, 15 squats, 30 sec plank)

Monday: REST

Tuesday: 3 mile run (Speed work 30-20-10) + Day 10 of #FlabFreeGGH (20 lunge kicks, 20 squats, 1 min plank) + bike commuted to work

Wednesday: Arms & Core Hand Weight Workout (3x) + Day 11 of #FlabFreeGGH (20 scissor kicks, 20 squats, 1 min plank)

Thursday: 3.15 mile tempo run + Day 12 of #FlabFreeGGH (20 donkey kicks, 20 bridges, 24 squats)

Friday: REST

Saturday: REST

What's for Dinner?

With the couple of nights of McDonald's + a night a Chinese delivery, there will be a bit of roll-over from last week. Here's to better eating choices this week!

Sunday: Black Bean & Butternut Squash Casserole

Monday: Leftovers

Tuesday: Chicken & Asparagus Stir Fry

Wednesday: Leftovers

Thursday: Honey Mustard Chicken with Zucchini

Friday: Leftovers

Saturday: TBD

Breakfast:
Overnight oats - no specific recipe; going to play around with this a little this week
Smoothies

Lunches:
Roasted Jalapeno Soup
Leftovers

Snacks/Dessert:
Bell Peppers & Hummus
Chips & Salsa

Sunday Prep:
Hummus
Cut peppers
Overnight oats

What are you cooking up this week?
How were your workouts last week?
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Be sure to stop by Laura @ Mommy Run Fast and Jill Conyers to check out what everyone else is cooking up this week.

Review: Tommie Copper & a Giveaway

I recently received a pair of Performance Compression Capris from Tommie Copper in exchange for an honest review.

After the Big Game 5K

And by recently, I mean back in August.
But then I went on that unplanned blogging hiatus and never ended up writing a review. Oops!

Imagine my surprise when they unexpectedly sent me a 2nd pair a couple weeks ago! Guess I really owe them a review now. :)

And I owe it to all of you as well, because if you haven't heard of, or tried, Tommie Copper yet, you've been missing out!

From their About Us page:

Tommie Copper combines sport science and skin health benefits for improved mobility, performance and relief. All Tommie Copper products feature 100% CopperZnergy™copper and zinc-infused fabric. CopperZnergy eliminates odors caused by microbes and offers UPF 50+ protection from the suns harmful UV rays and Cool Copper technology keeps you dry for skin health benefits.

I've ran a half marathon, a full marathon, and a 5K in these capris (plus lots of everyday running), so I can honestly say that I really, really like these!

It must be the copper. :)

I love that these are low-rise. Most of the other compression shorts I've tried come up well above my waist, which is nice when you need a little compression for your low back as well, but I loved that these sit squarely on my hips. Such high-rise shorts can be a little uncomfortable (to me).

I love that these are super comfortable. The material is soft, but sturdy, and flexible. I could lounge around in these all day. Or run. For a reasonable amount of time. Maybe not all day, but that's more because I'm just not ready for an all day run. Someday, perhaps. And then Tommie Copper will be there for me, I'm sure.

Perfect for jumping pictures after a surprising PR!

I do think that I might have needed to go with a smaller size. For compression capris, these seemed to go on very easily for me, and didn't feel particularly tight. Better than too tight, I suppose, but there were times that they felt like they were falling down while running. They weren't really, but I think a smaller size might have been better for me.

I love that Care for these is easy-peasy. Machine-washable. Tumble dry low. Yay! No dryer sheets or fabric softener, but that's pretty typical of athletic/running-specific clothing. I always hang mine to dry, but I hang most of my running clothes, so it's no big thing. Mostly I just love that they aren't hand wash, because, well, I'm terrible about that.

I love the variety of products available. There are lots more fun products than capris. From Tops to Elbow Sleeves to this really cool Recovery Compression Core Band that I really want to try!

It's easy to look for items by Men or Women, Performance or Recovery. BUT I love that you can also search by Pain Point. Experiencing discomfort in your legs or back? They've got you covered with great suggestions on what might help to alleviate it.

Since I love my capris so much, I'm super excited that the folks at Tommie Copper agreed to let me host a giveaway! One lucky reader will win a $50 coupon code! Whoo hoo!! Enter using the Rafflecopter below. Giveaway will be open through Feb 23. Good luck!

a Rafflecopter giveaway Do you use compression?
Have you ever tried Tommie Coppper?
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