Back at It

I did not want to run today and I have been putting it off using the sickness excuse for too many days!   I knew tho, I needed to get back at it.
Did the usual psycological trick and told myself, just get down there and go a mile.  So plugged in my ipod and started running....feeling pretty good so said just don't look up till you finish the entire playlist and when I looked up I was at 2.68 miles so I said, what the heck, just keep it up till 3.0!  Did it.

I'm back........I hope!

Sick, sick, Sick

It hit me like a ton of bricks on Wednesday about noon and I am still recovering.  Felt really bad just the one day but now I have the congestion which makes it hard to breathe and the last thing I want to do if I can't breathe is exercise.

I'm hoping to be back at it tomorrow......I hope!

Shoveling Out and Soup

Cardio and strength training were busted out today by shoveling the driveway - which is pretty big by the way and the front sidewalks.  The Son (snow day) and I tag-teamed at first but after a while I figured out it would go faster with just me.....I know, I know, he's not learning much but he did get exposed to it!  Thankfully the snow was pretty powdery so it went pretty quickly but still a workout!!  It was cold and windy but I was toasty warm except my ears......new on the to-do list.......knit a cap with ear flaps!  And then there is the dreaded runny nose!!  Can't seem to help that......I remember that from when I was running outside in the cold a few months ago!

The cold weather makes me want soup and I had the ingredients for a wonderful soup recipe I found on the Internet.  Found it on one of the blogs I love to read and unfortunately I didn't write it down like I usually do.

Tortellini Soup

                                                              Here's my ingredients.

Tortellini Soup

3 T. Butter
2 Stalks of Celery
1 sm onion - chopped
1 carrot - peeled and chopped
2 cloves of garlic minced
8 C Chicken Broth
4 C water
20 oz. cheese filled tortellini
1/2 t pepper
1/2 t nutmeg
 Parmigiano - grated

1. Into a large dutch oven, melt the butter over med-low heat.  When melted, add celery, onion, carrot and garlic.  Cover and reduce heat, cook on low till veggies soften.
2.  Add broth, water and increase heat to med-high and bring to a boil.  When boils, add pepper and nutmeg. Reduce to low and add tortellini and cook till al dente.
3.  Garnish with Parmigiano when serving.

I didn't have celery so left that out and made a half batch.  I used the dried tortellini in the spinach/cheese flavor but you could use the fresh or the frozen too.
It was delicious!!!   I would highly recommend this soup!!



I want to be Lazy

Today was another one of those days I just didn't want to get my butt off my cozy, soft chair and workout!  "Just one more look at facebook, just one more deal of solitaire"!!  Finally, I just got up and did it.  Saying I would just do one fast (for me, turtle for most!) mile.  Got on the treadmill and one became 2 without much effort.  Then Level 2 with Jillian and Co and I'm wiped out but feeling good I did it!  I am seeing results so I just have to keep going!!

Didn't exercise yesterday so really needed it today!  Food was okay this weekend but I did eat a little too much a couple times - and boy did I feel crappy!  I like it so much more when I eat the 'right' portions because I don't have that full and bloated feeling!  And then I am actually hungry when it's time for my next meal.
Breakfast:
     Usual - oatmeal with fixings
Lunch:
     My usual lately.....Sabra humus on tortilla with romaine lettuce.
     Fat Free yogurt with granola

A couple of the blogs I pay attention to (actually 'addicted to') talked about this show on MTV.

I watched one episode this morning and it actually was calling to me that I should get up and workout!  The one I watched was about a HS Senior who wanted to lose over 100 lbs in 6 months.  That meant she had to lose over 6 lbs a week.  Not sure that is the recommended about to be safe but I'm not a professional by any means!  When trying to lose weight we all have 'obsticles' to overcome and she had a mother that was a major one!  The mother was thin but she kept snacks 'for the younger kids' in the house that were tempting for Gabrielle and the mother was insistent she continue to keep them in the house and even admitted that she had put them out on the counter 'just to see' if she would eat them.  The mother said she wanted her to lose weight but that didn't sound like she was being very supportive.  There were a few other incidents regarding her being non-supportive but the bottom line it Gabrielle ended up being able to listen to 'herself' and ignore what her mom was telling her and do the right thing.  She didn't lose the entire 100 lbs but she looked GREAT!  There was another episode on after that but I 'needed to go workout' after watching that and couldn't delay any longer! LOL  But this next girl wanted to lose 90 lbs in 3 months (if I remember that correctly)  That's outrageous!  I tried to DVR it but we have a new DVR and I obviously don't have a clue on it......I recorded just a few minutes then shut off. I will be checking it out again!
Do you think these shows are a good influence or bad?

Pumpkin Butter - in the sticks

I LOVE this Pumpkin Butter from Trader Joe's!

But unfortunately I live in the sticks now and it's an hour and a half away.  So only when I am in 'the big city' can I go by and get it.  It's pretty cheap as far as I'm concerned so I usually buy 3-4 jars but I go thru it pretty quickly because I really enjoy it mixed into my morning oatmeal!  Gives it just the right amount of sweetness.  I have been meaning to try a recipe I found on this site for a while and finally found the time today.

Pumpkin Butter

3 1/2 cups pumpkin puree or 1 29 oz can

2 t vanilla extract

3/4 c apple cider or juice

1 c packed brown sugar

2-3 cinnamon sticks

1-2 t pumpkin pie spice



Combine all ingredients into a large sauce pan.

Stir well.  Bring to a boil then reduce heat to simmer 30-40 minutes.

It is done once you run your spoon thru the center and it does not collapse on itself.

Cool then put in containers to store.  Refridgerate.



Can't wait to try it with my oatmeal in the morning.

Talking food:

Breakfast:

     2 farm fresh eggs - scrambled (I was making fun of the sticks but this is one plus, we get them from a guy at hubbie's work)  Was feeling like protein this morning.

     Earth Grains 100 calorie multi grain sandwich round with a little bit of butter.

Lunch:

     PB&J on Earth Grains Multi Grain sandwich round.

     handful of baked tostitos

     small square of dark chocolate

Dinner Picture!

I finally remembered to take a picture of my meal!

Broccoli Slaw, Sabra Hummus Wrap with romaine lettuce.  And my favorite drink, Diet Coke!!

Bad picture.......will have to work on that!

One Foot in Front of the Other

I just finished my workout today and it was pretty good if I do say so myself!  Went to visit Mom and Dad today so didn't get home till almost 4pm.  REALLY didn't want to workout but told myself to just DO IT!  Decided I would run a mile at a faster than normal pace......set it at 10:20 which I usually run about 11:15 so that's quite a bit faster.  Put my tunes in my ears and took off.  Told myself not to look down till I had listened to at least 4 songs....well, when I looked down I was past a mile!!  Feeling pretty good I thought, what the heck, just go on to 2 miles.  And I did it!!  

Just goes to show the power of just putting one foot in front of the other and just getting started.  SOOOO many times I really don't want to workout but I force myself to just go get started, usually telling myself, just go for a while, do the best you can then you can stop.  I always end up going farther than if I said "You are going to run for a hour on the treadmill whether you like it or not!!"  Obviously a mental thing for me.  I can do so much more than I ever think I can!!!

After the 2 miles I did Level 2 of Jillian's 30 Day Shred.  It was a kick butt workout after doing 2 miles already.  I can tell some differences already so I will definitely keep it up!

Let's talk food:

Dinner last nite:
      1 cup Broccoli Asian Slaw
      1 container LowFat vanilla yogurt with a little granola

Breakfast:
      Usual - Oatmeal
Lunch:
      Cracker Barrell with Mom and Dad
      Veggie plate.....green beans, pinto beans, mashed potatoes, no gravy
      Corn muffin, no butter
      Coffee with cream

I'm feeling much more in control with the food!!!