Zucchini Pizza and a New Camera

Good evening folks!  Two really great things happened today:  1. my new camera arrived; and 2. I made zucchini pizzas.  But first:

I thought I had killed my orchid, but it is looking like it might produce flowers again!  Maybe I don't have as brown of a thumb as I thought!

Back to the real purpose of this post.  After having issues for about a year and a half with my old Canon Rebel, I decided to splurge for my 30th bday and buy a new DSLR.  After all the issues I have had with my old Canon and looking at the prices on Nikons, I decided to listen to all the recommendations that my friends and coworkers have been giving me and I bought a Sony a35.  I decided that since I tend to be hard on my cameras, I didn't want to go the high end route and went with an entry-level camera to avoid the complete devastation that tends to come with getting sand in the electronics or dropping it in a river.

The box came tonight and I ripped it open immediately to get the battery on the charger!  I was super impatient though and decided to try out my new camera before the battery was fully charged.  This camera is amazing.  Of course, this is based on about an hour of use, but I am very, very impressed with this little guy.  He is so lightweight and small and is very easy to use.  I can finally take photos again!  This is a very good thing because I have another 3-week field course coming up at the end of May!

With a long workout after work and the excitement of my new camera, I didn't end up making supper until about 8pm.  I needed something simple and decided to make mushroom pizzas...except that I didn't have any whole mushrooms.  I did have a large zucchini though so I though I would try to make a zucchini pizza.  I think I liked these better than mushroom pizzas!  Very quick and very good (oh, and healthy too!).

Zucchini Pizza
Serves one
Ingredients:
1 medium zucchini
1/4 cups marinara sauce
1/4 cup reduced fat cheese (I only had sharp cheddar and parm, but I am an equal opportunity cheese eater so I was cool with that combo)

Step one:  cut zucchini on an angle and hollow out the centers of each piece.  Spray lightly with olive oil and season with salt and pepper.  Bake for 10 minutes at 350.

Step 2:  fill in the hollow areas with the sauce and then add the cheese.  Bake for another 5-10 minutes to melt the cheese.

Step 3:  Eat!  (Note - I cooked these on foil as it was getting late - I do realize the issues associated with eating on foil - and I didn't want to fool around with dishes.  I also did not care about presentation...it's late.)

Time for bed!

Healthy by 30?

It's the big post that you may or may not have been waiting for!  I have finally hit my 30's today.  So, first things first.  Here's how I feel about turning 30:

I feel like my 30's is going to be my decade!  :)

That being said, I thought this might be a great time to do a few things:
1. Take a look at progress in photo form
2. Take a look at progress in number form
3. Discuss if I think I made the progress I had hoped for
4. Discuss the health-oriented goals I have for my 30's
5. Rename the blog!

Let's start with #1: Progress in photo form!  Now, I will admit that looking through old photos of myself was painful.  And I mean, very painful.  It is hard to look at yourself when you know when you are not at your best.  I never saw myself as big, even though I obviously was.  The good news is that looking at these photos is very motivating as I never want to be that unhealthy again.

One thing to keep in mind with these photos:  I have always avoided cameras like the plague so I don't have that many great photos of myself at my biggest.  My more recent photos are ones that I've taken of myself (to prove to myself that I really am losing the weight and I'm not going crazy as I don't see it when I look in the mirror every day) or by my parents so I had a couple of very recent photos to post today!

All that being said, if you are interested in seeing what has been going on over the last 2ish years, click the link under the header called Progress Photos (or click here).  I will continue to update this page as I make progress!


Alrighty, let's move on to #2: Progress in number form.  Numbers don't mean that much to me but I like to see them add up over time as I often look in the mirror and don't see a change.  I will forever be a chubby girl in my brain, apparently!

As of March 17th, 2012:
Total weight lost:  91.2 pounds
Total inches lost in waist:  14
Total drop in BMI:  14.8


And... #3: Discussion of progress.  I have been saying for the last two years that my main goal was to enter my 30's healthier than I entered my 20's (I swear I wrote this on the blog somewhere along the way but for the life of me, I cannot figure out where!).  While I am NOT at my goal weight, I am very happy with where I am.  I am wearing rings that I could not wear throughout my teens and 20's.  Over Christmas, I happened upon a dress I wore for my senior pictures and it fit!  Okay, it fit over a t-shirt, tank top, sweater, and fleece pants.  I am at a weight that I have not seen since I was, oh, 14?  Most importantly, I eat very healthfully on a daily basis and I workout regularly.  These are not optional to me anymore, they are my life and I love it!

And, now for #4: Health-oriented goals for my 30's. 

1. My main goal is to continue on the same road I've been on for the last 2 years.  Slow and steady wins the race!
2. Walk a half marathon
3. Achieve and stay within a healthy weight range
4. Eat mostly whole foods and fuel my body for the long haul
5. Stay active and continue to build endurance and strength
6. Keep my Celiac and Fibromyalgia under control (sans medication for Fibro if at all possible)
7. Work on my mental vision of myself.  As mentioned earlier, I still see myself as though I haven't lost any weight.  I don't feel like I have changed.  This is something I need work on daily and probably for quite some time, if not the rest of my life.

Finally, #5: Rename the blog!  I have had a lot of really great feedback on this blog, even though I post fairly sporadically (sorry!) and I'm not listed in search engines.  There have been numerous people who have said, e-mailed, commented, or messaged me that they find this blog inspiring.  This inspires ME and I am happy that my ramblings have helped other people.  Therefore, I want to keep the blog going!  Since the name "Healthy by 30" no longer applies (being that I'm now 30!), I am seeking ideas for a new name for the blog!  Comment away below or shoot me an e-mail!  :)

Thank you to everyone who have helped me along the way over the last 2 years.  I could have never gotten this far without the support and love of everyone around me!

Coming soon:  I promised a friend that I would do a 30 during 30 list with her.  I just have to write it!

What would you do?

What would you do if you had a severe asthma attack around mile 8.5 of an 11-mile training run or walk on a country road with no houses around? 

If you answers, "lay on the road and cry" you are in good company. 

This is exactly what happened to me today.  I haven't been feeling the best, my allergies are getting the best of me with this very warm winter and spring.  And although the last few weeks have been super fantastic, they have also been stressful and I haven't been getting enough sleep.  Those two factors plus record high temperatures that we Wisconsinites (or at least me) are not used to all led to this episode. 

I do not have asthma (as far as I know), however that is the closest I can come to describe what happened.  I could not breathe.  At all.  I was wheezing and my lungs actually hurt.  I was flat on the blacktop for at least a half hour before I was finally able to breathe, stopped wheezing, and was calm enough to stand up (FYI - watching bugs on the road is quite calming).  It was very scary and I will definitely be finding a way to carry my phone with me on long walks from now on!

My first 6 miles of this training walk were amazing and I made great time.  When I turned the corner for mile 7, I started walking into the wind for the rest of the walk and I think this is what started my downhill spiral (too much pollen coming in!).  That being said, I ended up finishing my 11 miles in 2 hours, 26.5 mins (1/2 hour of attack taken out).  For how much I wasn't feeling good through miles 7-8.5 and for how slow I had to walk for the last 2.5 miles, I am fine with this pace for today.

Tomorrow, I'm thinking a nice relaxing walk and extra strength training is on the menu.  It might take me a while to not be freaked out to go that long again when I'm not feeling up to par.  For now, even though it's only 9:30pm on a Saturday night (and St. Patrick's Day no less), I am heading to bed.  Today took a lot out of me!

Have a safe and happy St. Patty's Day!