It's "Cardio Saturday"! I really like using my Saturday mornings for long and/or hard cardio workouts. I have the time and it makes me feel refreshed so I can enjoy the rest of my weekend! Often, like this morning, I am so tired on Saturday morning, but a quick breakfast and cup of coffee can usually get me going. So, today, I dragged myself out of bed at 7:30, warmed up some leftover baked oatmeal, made a cup of pumpkin coffee, and hung out with my lonely cat for a little while. Then, I headed to the gym!
It's about a 1/2 mile walk to the gym (I consider this my warm up) and I stopped in my office in attempt to find my arm band for my Zune. No such luck! It may be gone forever! Then, jetted over to the gym and hopped on the treadmill. It's nice to be able to walk to the gym as then I don't have to spend my time warming up on the treadmill. I started by pounding out 3 miles in 42 minutes on the treadmill (including a one-mile run to start and inclines the rest of the time) and I finished my cardio morning with another 5 miles on the bike (20 minutes). Then, the walk home to cool off and 10 minutes of stretching out my achy muscles. I feel so good, endorphins rock!
So I mentioned that I ran. I was feeling really good this morning and really missing running so I decided to see what I could do. I only ran a mile so as to not aggravate my knees and hip any more than necessary. BUT, that mile was run in under 11 minutes! 10:30 to be exact! Heck yeah! I have never run a sub-12 minute mile. I know 10:30 is probably still pretty slow, but I'm super happy with that! I will say that my knees and hip are a little achy now but I am icing them so that they hopefully don't hurt too much later today and tomorrow.
I am really loving the stationary bike as well. I have never, ever been a cyclist (or casual biker) and have one heck of a time getting up hills. I was hoping to start road biking this summer and went on a few rides but I just couldn't get into it. Too many hills! So, I am dedicating my winter to using the stationary bike and building up my cycling muscles! Hopefully next spring I can put the rubber on the road and give cycling another try!
Have a happy Saturday!
Saturday, September 10, 2011
Friday, September 9, 2011
Autumn CSA
Back in May, I started thinking about joining a CSA (community supported agriculture). I've wanted to do this for a couple of years but I never stay in one city all summer so I hadn't done it yet. This year, I found a CSA that offered Autumn only share, which is perfect because it starts today and runs through the end of October. Originally, I was going to sign up for a small box every other week but it was kind of pricey. So, I conned a friend into going into buying a full share with me, so we will each get a small box every other week but will save ~$11/week. Cool!
Today, I finished work a little early and walked downtown to the shop where I was to pick up my box. Now, first of all, it is mean that they make me go to my favorite health food market to pick up my box! I never make it out of there without baked lentil chips and lemon garlic hummus. Today was no exception!
Second, I went down into the basement of the store and was shocked by how many people in my tiny town are part of this CSA! Very proud of my fellow residents. Thirdly, I really did not realize that I would have that much to haul home. That was one long walk!
If you are a veggie lover, opening your CSA box feels a little like your birthday. Yes, I got an e-mail this week telling me what I can expect in my box, but until you open the box, it isn't all that exciting. I was super excited to see the selection and traded in a cucumber and a large kohlrabi for an extra head of broccoli and a tomato. Totally worth it! So, here's what I got this week for a SMALL box:
Today, I finished work a little early and walked downtown to the shop where I was to pick up my box. Now, first of all, it is mean that they make me go to my favorite health food market to pick up my box! I never make it out of there without baked lentil chips and lemon garlic hummus. Today was no exception!
If you are a veggie lover, opening your CSA box feels a little like your birthday. Yes, I got an e-mail this week telling me what I can expect in my box, but until you open the box, it isn't all that exciting. I was super excited to see the selection and traded in a cucumber and a large kohlrabi for an extra head of broccoli and a tomato. Totally worth it! So, here's what I got this week for a SMALL box:
2 small heads of garlic
2 giant leeks
huge pack of green onions
6 small to medium carrots
4 heads of broccoli
head of Boston lettuce
3 red bell peppers
pack of yellow cherry tomatoes
5 regular tomatoes
small kohlrabi
Wow. I have a lot of eating to do! Some things should keep for a little longer and I'll leave those to eat later next week while I polish off the more perishable items. I will say that I was unprepared to store these veggies. I'm not quite sure what I was thinking! My cat was kind of wondering what was up and hung out on the bar stool watching me unpack the veggies (and falling asleep apparently).
If you haven't joined a CSA or have never heard of CSA's before, please check them out next spring! My CSA in particular provides all organic produce. And, it's locally grown (as in 9.5 miles away). This is so great for our environment and our bodies! I'm super excited!
Wednesday, September 7, 2011
Veggies for Breakfast
The last thing I want to eat for breakfast is veggies! However, I have been overloading on fruit and need to replace some of the fruit I eat with something. I usually can't stomach meat in the morning and am getting tired of oatmeal and eggs, so that leaves veggies! I have been told by a number of health nuts that eating veggies for breakfast is great for your body, so what do I have to lose right? Except...veggies first thing in the morning? No thanks. Now, I doubt I'll ever be able to handle steamed broccoli or sauteed kale in the morning like the health nuts assure me that I will. However, I can attempt to work veggies in creatively.
Yesterday I posted the juice concoction of carrot and apple juice mixed together. This is delicious and a good way to get extra vitamin A in the morning. I have a juicer but it's at my parent's house so I haven't been juicing my own carrots, instead I buy a bottle of carrot juice at the store.
I also have been eating a lot of pumpkin yogurt in the morning, though I think pumpkin is technically a fruit.
I have also been making a lot of "green monster" smoothies. These are also sometimes referred to as green machine smoothies (but are not the same thing as Naked Juice's Green Machine). There are some great recipes out there, try these sites:
http://greenmonstermovement.com/?page_id=39
http://annies-eats.net/2011/05/02/green-monster-smoothies/
http://thechiclife.com/2011/07/green-monster-smoothies-101-basic-recipe.html
In the morning, as I am always running late, I like to keep it simple. So, a simple green smoothie is perfect. So, here's what you do. Fill a blender with 1/2-3/4 full of kale, spinach, or a combo of both. This is a lot of greens here! More than most recipes call for but it works, trust me! I add a 1/2 cup of soy milk, a 1/2 cup of my dad's homemade apple cider (apple juice would probably be fine), a handful of blueberries, and a 1/2 of a banana.
Give it a whirl! Sometimes (like this morning) I won't have enough liquid to properly puree the mixture, so I just add in some water to get it going. I think it depends on how much liquid is in your other ingredients. When your mixture is completely smooth, pour away and drink!
Yes, it looks gross, I know! The blueberries and greens combo gives it a weird color. It is so good though! And a great way to add some veggies into your morning routine.
Yesterday I posted the juice concoction of carrot and apple juice mixed together. This is delicious and a good way to get extra vitamin A in the morning. I have a juicer but it's at my parent's house so I haven't been juicing my own carrots, instead I buy a bottle of carrot juice at the store.
I also have been eating a lot of pumpkin yogurt in the morning, though I think pumpkin is technically a fruit.
I have also been making a lot of "green monster" smoothies. These are also sometimes referred to as green machine smoothies (but are not the same thing as Naked Juice's Green Machine). There are some great recipes out there, try these sites:
http://greenmonstermovement.com/?page_id=39
http://annies-eats.net/2011/05/02/green-monster-smoothies/
http://thechiclife.com/2011/07/green-monster-smoothies-101-basic-recipe.html
In the morning, as I am always running late, I like to keep it simple. So, a simple green smoothie is perfect. So, here's what you do. Fill a blender with 1/2-3/4 full of kale, spinach, or a combo of both. This is a lot of greens here! More than most recipes call for but it works, trust me! I add a 1/2 cup of soy milk, a 1/2 cup of my dad's homemade apple cider (apple juice would probably be fine), a handful of blueberries, and a 1/2 of a banana.
Tuesday, September 6, 2011
Fresh Start
Fall is in the air, as evidenced by where my cat has been hanging out for the past few days:
There are a lot of great things about my job as a college lecturer, but I would say my absolute favorite thing is that I get a fresh start every few months. Have a bad semester? No problem, there's a new one coming! Never fails.
The fall semester is just beginning this week and I am hoping to kick a few problems that I've had in the past. I also had a bit of a health scare (well, it was scary to me!) this past week. Everything is going to be okay but I have to keep a close eye on my health. So, I have a number of goals for this fall semester. It's always best to write this stuff down as it feels more official and it adds motivation when other people know about it. Here we go!
1. Make more GOOD food! I've gotten into the habit of cooking very healthy food and processed foods are really losing their appeal for me. This is a good thing, but it also means spending a lot more time shopping and cooking. A few recent concoctions:
Currently, since I JUST went shopping, my fridge looks like this:
My fridge is packed! This means I had better get cooking! I also am starting an autumn CSA this fall and the roster of veggies I will be getting for the week looks great! I need to keep up with this. Since Wisconsin will soon be entering what I call Root Veggie Season, I am taking advantage of getting varied produce at decent prices while I still can! I am also becoming a huge fan of green smoothies. Check out recipes here: http://greenmonstermovement.com/. I know they look gross, but you cannot taste the spinach or kale and they are so healthy and delicious!
2. Keep up with my workouts. I joined the gym at work a couple of weeks ago and have scheduled my workouts into my day, which means walking home at the end of the day, taking a quick nap, having a quick snack, and walking back to the gym. I plan to workout at the gym at least 4 work week days a week and at least one weekend day for a total of 5-6 days a week. This will depend, of course, on what else is going on in my life but seems fairly doable. My workout shoes and weights at my house need to see the light of day more often than they have recently!
4. Computer is off by 7:30pm, TV is off by 9pm. And, I say this, but it's 9:45pm and I'm blogging with the TV on for noise. I will be working on this though! I need to get away from these activities a little bit. I, for some reason, feel the need to check my work e-mail before going to bed. While this is somewhat a casualty of the job and I know my students appreciate it, I need to respect my personal time a bit more. This leads to #5.
5. Work during work time and play during play time. I seriously have a problem setting work boundaries and, as a result, have worked 7 days a week every semester for the past 2 years. Now that I'm entering my third year of this job, I am much, much more comfortable with what I teach, how my schedule runs, what I need to do for prep, and how often I need to contact my students. No more work e-mail on Sundays! No working Saturdays or Sundays unless it's midterms/finals, extreme circumstances, or working with the Circle K club on campus (my new service activity for the year!).
6. Make more time for hobbies! Since cool/cold/frigid/tundra-like weather is coming, I need to pick up my crocheting again. I started this afghan a long time ago with my grandmother and is the first serious crocheting item that I havestuck with worked on occasionally for the last 10 years.
7. Finally (but probably not finally because I'm sure I'll find more stuff that I can improve on), reduce caffeine intake asap! I love coffee. Love, love, love. I also love tea. A great deal of my precious counter space looks like this on a good day (and much more messy/cluttered on a bad day):
This does not account for the shelves in my pantry that are filled with coffee and tea. I have a problem! I've managed to wean myself down to one cup of coffee a day. I plan to start replacing coffee with tea at least three days a week. I'll work my way down from there. I don't know that I'll ever be able to enter my classroom to teach without coffee in my system but I can try!
So, there you have it! The 7 things that I need to work on this year! It's going to be a battle but I think anything I can do to make a healthier choice is worthwhile.
There are a lot of great things about my job as a college lecturer, but I would say my absolute favorite thing is that I get a fresh start every few months. Have a bad semester? No problem, there's a new one coming! Never fails.
The fall semester is just beginning this week and I am hoping to kick a few problems that I've had in the past. I also had a bit of a health scare (well, it was scary to me!) this past week. Everything is going to be okay but I have to keep a close eye on my health. So, I have a number of goals for this fall semester. It's always best to write this stuff down as it feels more official and it adds motivation when other people know about it. Here we go!
1. Make more GOOD food! I've gotten into the habit of cooking very healthy food and processed foods are really losing their appeal for me. This is a good thing, but it also means spending a lot more time shopping and cooking. A few recent concoctions:
 |
| Touch crooked - sorry! Combo of carrot juice and dad's apple cider. |
 |
| Quinoa, tomatoes, white beans, and steamed kale. |
Currently, since I JUST went shopping, my fridge looks like this:
 |
| In my defense of the crazy bottom shelf, I cannot put anything in the back 6-8" of my fridge or it will freeze and I will have wasted money on spinach and whatever else is back there! |
2. Keep up with my workouts. I joined the gym at work a couple of weeks ago and have scheduled my workouts into my day, which means walking home at the end of the day, taking a quick nap, having a quick snack, and walking back to the gym. I plan to workout at the gym at least 4 work week days a week and at least one weekend day for a total of 5-6 days a week. This will depend, of course, on what else is going on in my life but seems fairly doable. My workout shoes and weights at my house need to see the light of day more often than they have recently!
I also plan to keep a set of workout clothes in my office so that if works runs late, I can just go hit the gym instead of using the excuse that I can't go because I don't have my workout stuff. I already keep a set of shoes and my pass there since I hate carrying them to and from campus.
3. Read more often! It is not unheard of for me to start a book at the beginning of the fall semester and not finish until May because I am so busy and too tired at night to read longer than 5 minutes. I have this stack of books that I am going to get through before June!
5. Work during work time and play during play time. I seriously have a problem setting work boundaries and, as a result, have worked 7 days a week every semester for the past 2 years. Now that I'm entering my third year of this job, I am much, much more comfortable with what I teach, how my schedule runs, what I need to do for prep, and how often I need to contact my students. No more work e-mail on Sundays! No working Saturdays or Sundays unless it's midterms/finals, extreme circumstances, or working with the Circle K club on campus (my new service activity for the year!).
6. Make more time for hobbies! Since cool/cold/frigid/tundra-like weather is coming, I need to pick up my crocheting again. I started this afghan a long time ago with my grandmother and is the first serious crocheting item that I have
6. Get ready for work the night before! This means packing workout clothes if I am not coming home after work, pack my lunch and 2 snacks in my new giant thermal bag (below), ironing my clothes if I'm not going to be outside romping with my students, and packing up my work bag. I hate doing this stuff but it's necessary to do it the night before because it takes up so much time in the morning.
This does not account for the shelves in my pantry that are filled with coffee and tea. I have a problem! I've managed to wean myself down to one cup of coffee a day. I plan to start replacing coffee with tea at least three days a week. I'll work my way down from there. I don't know that I'll ever be able to enter my classroom to teach without coffee in my system but I can try!
So, there you have it! The 7 things that I need to work on this year! It's going to be a battle but I think anything I can do to make a healthier choice is worthwhile.
Monday, September 5, 2011
Labor Day Weekend is for Hiking!
Usually for me, Labor Day weekend is very boring and mundane because most years, the semester is in full swing and I have way too much to do. This year, the fall semester doesn't start until after Labor Day (tomorrow...yikes!) so I was able to go out and play a little! My mom came down to visit and we decided that yesterday would be a great day for hiking! The weather has finally cooled off enough that you can go hiking without finding yourself in a pool of sweat or being completely enclosed by mosquitos. For some reason, I carried my camera in my backpack the entire hike but did not take any pictures! This is bizarre to me as I usually take too many pictures! I'm not sure what happened! To keep this post from being way too boring, I'll add some pictures from previous hikes. The photo of me to the right (my profile) is from coring trees at Devil's Lake last spring.
Mom and I started the day a little late. We noshed on coffee, eggs, pumpkin yogurt (plain Greek yogurt, pumpkin, spices, agave syrup; original recipe is here, my new favorite blog to follow!), and a banana to fuel up for our big hike. Then, we packed up my hiking backpack, loaded up the car, and were off! We headed to Devil's Lake State Park, which was expectantly packed as the weather was cool and it's Labor Day weekend. If you are heading into the South entrance of Devil's Lake, you see the SkiHi apple orchard, which was open for the season! Fresh caramel apples and cheese curds were the star for us before our hike!
If you've been to Devil's Lake, you know the trek up East Bluff is a good workout but we both climbed up the bluff with no issues. I go on a field trip to Devil's Lake with my students every semester and the first time I went, I had such a hard time getting up the bluff! This time, no problem! I guess this working out stuff is paying off.
After completing the East Bluff Trail, we sat down for a snack of grapes, carrots, & peanut butter on the North Shore. Then, rambled our way along Tumbled Rocks Trail to get back to our car. Of course, about 1/4 mile from our car, it started pouring, go figure!
After some Subway salads and Culver's ice cream, we decided to end our day by running the stairs at the M in Platteville. If you do not know anything about the area, here's a little background. The Platte Mound is an area of resistant cap rock, part of the Niagara Escarpment, that has not eroded away yet, so it looks like a big, random hill in the middle of no where. There is a giant "M" formed in white painted rocks on the hillside with a tall staircase on the right side where you can climb to the top of the mound. The "M" stands for the School of Mine, which was the big deal in Platteville, WI back in the day and, as far as I know, is the largest "M" on a hillside in the US. That area of the mound is owned by the local university so anyone can climb whenever they want for free.
My mom was hilarious there! We pulled up and she immediately said, "oh! That's it?" Like all those stairs were nothing! It looks benign, but I guarantee your heart will be racing by the time you reach the top! We ran the stairs twice in hopes of working off the ice cream and caramel apples and let's just say that after climbing East Bluff at Devil's Lake and running the M twice, our legs were jelly! It felt so good to workout outside though. The weather was beautiful and my sinus infection is just starting to clear up. It was a great day and a nice way to get back into working out after 2 full days off.
It took me a few minutes to work out the stiffness in my joints and muscles this morning but now I'm ready for a little Ripped in 30(gym is closed today!) before I start cooking meals for the week. The semester starts tomorrow so I'll be starting weekly meal planning and cooking today! Getting ready for the craziness! I hope to post on my meal plans from here on out, as well as my ongoing saga on attempting to eat some sort of veggies with breakfast every morning.
Mom and I started the day a little late. We noshed on coffee, eggs, pumpkin yogurt (plain Greek yogurt, pumpkin, spices, agave syrup; original recipe is here, my new favorite blog to follow!), and a banana to fuel up for our big hike. Then, we packed up my hiking backpack, loaded up the car, and were off! We headed to Devil's Lake State Park, which was expectantly packed as the weather was cool and it's Labor Day weekend. If you are heading into the South entrance of Devil's Lake, you see the SkiHi apple orchard, which was open for the season! Fresh caramel apples and cheese curds were the star for us before our hike!
If you've been to Devil's Lake, you know the trek up East Bluff is a good workout but we both climbed up the bluff with no issues. I go on a field trip to Devil's Lake with my students every semester and the first time I went, I had such a hard time getting up the bluff! This time, no problem! I guess this working out stuff is paying off.
 |
| View of South Shore from the top of West Bluff. This is where I typically start hiking. |
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| View of East Bluff from the top of West Bluff. This is what we climbed yesterday. |
After completing the East Bluff Trail, we sat down for a snack of grapes, carrots, & peanut butter on the North Shore. Then, rambled our way along Tumbled Rocks Trail to get back to our car. Of course, about 1/4 mile from our car, it started pouring, go figure!
After some Subway salads and Culver's ice cream, we decided to end our day by running the stairs at the M in Platteville. If you do not know anything about the area, here's a little background. The Platte Mound is an area of resistant cap rock, part of the Niagara Escarpment, that has not eroded away yet, so it looks like a big, random hill in the middle of no where. There is a giant "M" formed in white painted rocks on the hillside with a tall staircase on the right side where you can climb to the top of the mound. The "M" stands for the School of Mine, which was the big deal in Platteville, WI back in the day and, as far as I know, is the largest "M" on a hillside in the US. That area of the mound is owned by the local university so anyone can climb whenever they want for free.
 |
| Platteville M. Stairs to get to the top are on the right of the M. |
 |
| View of Platteville, WI (distant area) from the top of the Platte Mound. |
It took me a few minutes to work out the stiffness in my joints and muscles this morning but now I'm ready for a little Ripped in 30(gym is closed today!) before I start cooking meals for the week. The semester starts tomorrow so I'll be starting weekly meal planning and cooking today! Getting ready for the craziness! I hope to post on my meal plans from here on out, as well as my ongoing saga on attempting to eat some sort of veggies with breakfast every morning.
Thursday, September 1, 2011
Sweating it out
I'm currently battling a cold/sinus infection/thing, which got me thinking. Is it better to workout when you're sick (sweat it out) or just to lay low. I always battle with myself over this. I mean, I may be sick, but am I so sick that I need to go lay in bed all day? Today that answer was no. I have been lucky this time around because I've had time to sleep and rest, work (though not super productively), and workout.
My theory is this: If whatever illness I happen to have does not involve my lungs, stomach (flu), or a fever, I usually will try to workout, even if it's just for a 1/2 hour and isn't very intense. Activity during a cold or sinus infection (though it can be a huge issue to breathe through) seems to lessen the symptoms, even if only for a few hours. I've also read that working out can boost your immune system, so it's a double whammy!
Whenever I accidently ingest something gluten-containing and I get symptoms, exercise is really the only thing that will help me feel better for a little while. Trust me, if you know what it's like to have Celiac-like issues, you know that working out is the last thing you want to do! But, if I can get my butt off the couch and go for a walk longer than 30 minutes (no matter how slow), it really seems to help.
So with cold and flu season on the horizon, I have been considering carrying a can of Lysol (or rather Method Antibac spray) with me where ever I go. If this is a cold, I think I got it from the gym I recently joined. If it's a sinus issue, then I blame the season. Soon, however, I will be in close contact with 170 undergraduates. If I don't get sick again, it will be a miracle!
On a different note, I had a kid (estimated age of 16) congratulate me for working out today at the gym. When she asked when I started coming to the gym, I told her I joined last week. She then proceeded to look all smug and say that she's been coming to the gym since she's been 12 and that some people just make a habit out of it. I, of course, kept my mouth shut, as per my personaility, but I couldn't help but think that I've been a regular exerciser for longer than she's been alive! Aparently since I hadn't joined that gym years ago, I have never worked out in my life, according to her mind. Oh to be so naive again!
Oh well, I'll go on with my life knowing that even if I had just joined a gym and started working out for the first time in my life, you have to start somewhere and whenever you make the decision to make your life healthier in any form, it's a good thing.
Stay healthy!
My theory is this: If whatever illness I happen to have does not involve my lungs, stomach (flu), or a fever, I usually will try to workout, even if it's just for a 1/2 hour and isn't very intense. Activity during a cold or sinus infection (though it can be a huge issue to breathe through) seems to lessen the symptoms, even if only for a few hours. I've also read that working out can boost your immune system, so it's a double whammy!
Whenever I accidently ingest something gluten-containing and I get symptoms, exercise is really the only thing that will help me feel better for a little while. Trust me, if you know what it's like to have Celiac-like issues, you know that working out is the last thing you want to do! But, if I can get my butt off the couch and go for a walk longer than 30 minutes (no matter how slow), it really seems to help.
So with cold and flu season on the horizon, I have been considering carrying a can of Lysol (or rather Method Antibac spray) with me where ever I go. If this is a cold, I think I got it from the gym I recently joined. If it's a sinus issue, then I blame the season. Soon, however, I will be in close contact with 170 undergraduates. If I don't get sick again, it will be a miracle!
On a different note, I had a kid (estimated age of 16) congratulate me for working out today at the gym. When she asked when I started coming to the gym, I told her I joined last week. She then proceeded to look all smug and say that she's been coming to the gym since she's been 12 and that some people just make a habit out of it. I, of course, kept my mouth shut, as per my personaility, but I couldn't help but think that I've been a regular exerciser for longer than she's been alive! Aparently since I hadn't joined that gym years ago, I have never worked out in my life, according to her mind. Oh to be so naive again!
Oh well, I'll go on with my life knowing that even if I had just joined a gym and started working out for the first time in my life, you have to start somewhere and whenever you make the decision to make your life healthier in any form, it's a good thing.
Stay healthy!
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