Happy 4th of July!

I'm having a fantastic start to the 4th! Since I last posted, I've mainly survived on leftovers (and one trip to Chipotle, don't judge..), save for this yummy recipe:

Chocolate Cherry Espresso Smoothie (minus the espresso- whoops!)

1 very ripe banana = 90 calories
1/2 cup frozen cherries = 55 calories
1 cup unsweetened chocolate Almond Breeze almondmilk = 45 calories

Calorie Total = 190 calories

This was SO GOOD. As you can see, I nearly got down to the bottom of it before I remembered to take a picture! I'm really digging frozen cherries in smoothies lately.

I did two NTC workouts yesterday plus yoga with weights, but it was only because I was a day behind (and I still had to skip a workout) in my half marathon training. (I'm still trying to decide if I'm going to do the half at the end of September - in any case, I'm "technically" training for the 10K at the end of August, I'll just be doing really high mileage.)

This morning, I decided to get up and at 'em and tackle 4 miles, so I could have two real rest days.

I feel like I started out slow, but was surprised to hear my pace - also I think I might have been going downhill? I know the start of Mile 3 was a HUGE uphill (which explains the slowness) but I didn't think that the second mile was almost 30 seconds slower. I also used the Auto Pause feature during this run - and was pleasantly surprised that it seemed like the response time was a little bit faster.

It was SUCH a beautiful day - I love it when the 4th of July is bright and inviting!! The air was crisp and it wasn't too hot or too cold at any point in my run. Perfect!! My weather app says there will be clouds for the rest of the day, but hopefully it's wrong??

After running, I went to a yoga class, which actually wasn't as terrible as I thought it might be, and later JW and went to Red Robin and got burgers and shakes :D. I also got all the laundry done!! Now we're going to go to Home Depot and look at some flooring options, and then enjoy the rest of the holiday.

What did you do on the 4th?

We're Homeowners!!

It's been quite a whirlwind, the last couple of days!

Summer Shape Up meals continued on Tuesday and I devoured it as soon as it was cool enough to eat:

Flour Free Protein Pancake (makes 1 pancake)

2 eggs, whisked = 140 calories
1 medium very ripe banana, mashed = 90 calories
1 Tbsp. ground flaxseed = 30 calories
1 tsp. of vanilla extract = 12 calories
Few shakes of cinnamon
1/2 cup of strawberries = 25 calories

Calorie Total = 297 calories

These were really fluffy and good - though they were a bit egg-y. Also, on the website it says to keep it on the skillet on medium heat (on one side) for about 10 minutes, and my recommendation would be to keep it on for about 4-5 minutes, check it, and then if it's done, flip it. Or reduce the heat even more. Mine were a little burnt, unfortunately! Oh well. Live and learn!

The rest of Tuesday was spent basically went back and forth with the seller of the townhouse we are going to buy, and we're just now finalizing the deal. While we waited, we talked about lenders, interest rates, decorating, money matters, and everything else under the sun when it comes to owning a home. Phew!

We decided to treat ourselves to some California Pizza Kitchen to celebrate our accomplishment. We mayyyy have gone a little overboard, since we ordered a bottle of wine and then got some cheesecake at Safeway afterwards... but oh well.

Asparagus & Arugula Salad with Spicy Fennel Sausage & Poblano Flatbread

We finished this easy. 

I was definitely too full after this meal (almost 950 calories for one meal!) and the cheesecake (380 calories!) and was pretty uncomfortable the rest of the night.. but it's all about balance, right?? So I tried not to beat myself up about going a little overboard for a special occasion.

So, naturally, my run today wasn't the best. I had everything going against me- it was hot, I had just gone to yoga a few hours earlier, I hadn't slept that well, and my fuel was atrocious. I ate a scone and had some coffee and then about an hour later I was out the door. I'm pretty sure I'm still digesting cheesecake.

Way too fast the first mile - I have no idea how I let that happen. I think I really need to hone in on that first mile and making it slow. The whole time I kept thinking "junk miles, these are junk miles.." but junk miles are better than no miles at all. I just thought it was funny how yesterday I was all, "yay negative splits!" and how today was allllll positive splits. So so so bad. I had to stop several times to catch my breath during this run as well. 

However, after looking at my last 5 mile run - I see I completed these 5 miles 47 seconds faster than the last. Improvement, people!!

After my run, I was pretty excited to make a new smoothie:

Hidden Veggie Cherry Lemon Smoothie (makes 1 smoothie)

1 5.3oz container Yoplait Lemon Greek yogurt = 100 calories
1/2 cup frozen cherries = 55 calories
1 very large handful baby spinach = 10 calories
3/4 cup skim milk = 67 calories

Calorie Total = 232 calories

It was SO GOOD. I sucked it down in like, 2 and a half minutes. No joke. It was so delicious, and as usual I couldn't even tell there was spinach in there! I was really surprised by how much I liked cherry and lemon together... so creamy and delicious.

Now back to signing documents until my hands fall off!

The Mental Game

Summer Shape Up Meals

Strawberry Scones (makes 10 scones)

3 cups whole wheat flour = 1200 calories
3 tablespoons raw sugar = 135 calories
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
6 tablespoons cold coconut oil = 720 calories
1 cup chopped fresh strawberries = 50 calories
1 cup + 2 tablespoons Almond Breeze almond coconut milk = 45 + 6 = 51 calories
1 tsp vanilla extract = 12 calories

Calorie Total: 2,168 (for 10 servings~ 217 per scone)

I couldn't really calculate this exactly, since I had to use more flour for spreading out the dough, and while mixing I wasn't paying attention and a whole bunch of flour kept coming out of the mixing bowl. So, I have no idea how much these are (plus it's hard to cut something into 10 equal servings!) - but 217 is a good estimation. These were SO GOOD- so spongy and filling.

Scrambled Eggs (found the recipe online, can't find the link right now)
some sprinkles of red onion
2 eggs, beaten = 140 calories
a handful of chopped tomatoes
a small scoop of feta cheese
salt & pepper

Calorie Total: Let's just ballpark and say 160. There were so little of the other ingredients in there, I'd be surprised if it made any difference whatsoever.

Sunday's breakfast was delicious!

Sweet Potato Black Bean Enchiladas (makes 10 enchiladas)
Outside
1 corn tortilla = 90 calories

Stuff
1 can low sodium black beans = 385 calories
2 can enchilada sauce (if making 10 enchiladas) = 225
Medium sweet potato 400g (ish- didn't weigh) ~ 360 calories
1/2 cup mozzarella cheese (if using 10 enchiladas) = 140 calories
1/2 green pepper = 33/2= 16.5 calories
1 cup mushrooms = 15 calories

"Stuff" calorie total: 1141.5 / 10 enchiladas = 114 calories of “stuff”, plus 1 scoop (about a tbsp.) of salsa = 5 calories = 119 calories of "stuff".

For 1 enchilada using 1 corn tortilla, and guestimating on the "stuff", it came out to about 209 calories per enchilada.

Calorie Total: 209 calories

I had two enchiladas and it smelled so good that JW asked to try a bite, and then he ate a whole one! I was so proud of him, haha! He said that he wouldn't normally like all of those ingredients together (mushrooms, sweet potato, a corn tortilla..) but when put altogether and submerged in sauce, I guess he changed his mind! I had the remaining 2 yesterday afternoon, and added 1/4 of an avocado on top. YUM.

Running

I had a voice lesson on Monday, and got there a little early, so I just ran around my teacher's neighborhood to kill time. I pushed my speed as much as I could without completely winding myself (which I figured would be bad right before a voice lesson) and was pretty pleased with the results.

 8'30" pace is awesome!!

Then, after my voice lesson, I went to the same park (with hills!) but this time I went a slightly different route. Also, it was really sunny and nice.

SO impressed with negative splits!! I seriously didn't expect that to happen. I was really pushing it up those hills. So I guess I kind of did the opposite of a tempo run...? I'm just happy my pace is more around 9 min/mile than 9'30" or 10" like it used to be. To run fast, it's simple... run fast. :)

I'm really happy that I'm running so much lately, but every time I start running, the thought "This is so hard" inevitably goes through my mind. I guess I really need to work on my mental game, huh? I've read that your mind quits so much sooner than your body does - so I really need to keep that in check, and come up with some mantras to repeat whenever I feel like it's getting too hard. Any suggestions? 

We think we've decided on a house...! Now to pack, maybe??

Harry Potter and The Fish Run

Sometimes, I get really sick of my running playlist. I know exactly why - I never change it up, and I don't really think the shuffle feature is that intuitive. Even though I haven't really touched my playlist since I started training for my first half marathon in 2011 (almost 3 years ago!!), there is still one song shuffle has never played. Weird, right??

I've been experimenting with listening to podcasts while I run, but I haven't really found one that speaks to me. I tried out Wait Wait... Don't Tell Me!, Pop Culture Happy Hour, and How Did You Get Into That?, but some days I really just wasn't feeling it. I'd rather listen to those when I'm driving than running. So, I switched back to listening to audiobooks - and my fallback, of course, is listening to Harry Potter.

Why yes, I am a nerd! :P

On Thursday, I planned to run 5 miles. I got out my iPhone and realized I needed to put an audiobook in my library. I hooked it up and waited for it to update, and then selected the book I wanted (Goblet of Fire, one I haven't listened to in a while) and waited for it to load again. This took an hour. What?! And then it didn't even work. Ummm. So much time had passed that I could have run 5 miles twice. Plus, by the time I had decided to just put another book on there, it was 2pm- My yoga sculpt class was at 4:30pm, and there just wasn't enough time for me to both recover from running and to have a successful yoga class. So I skipped it.

My Summer Shape Up meals for the past few days:

Perfect Microwave Banana Oatmeal

1/2 ripe banana, mashed = 45 calories
1/4 cup rolled oats = 95 calories
1/4 cup skim milk = 23 calories
1/2 tsp cinnamon = 10 calories
1/4 cup blueberries = 26 calories
5.25 g slivered almonds = 32 calories

Calorie Total = 231 calories

Yeah this is the ugliest picture of food ever - I know. I tried to take it from like 3 different angles and each time it just looked more and more like vomit. However... the taste was okay. I'm realizing I like very little cinnamon (a 1/2 tsp is still a lot to me), and slivered almonds in oatmeal is something I won't be trying again.

Banana & Spinach Smoothie

Half a ripe banana = 45 calories
1 cup skim milk = 90 calories
30g of power greens = 25 calories (I did measure this time!)

Calorie Total = 160 calories

This was pretty good, but either my blender wasn't doing as it should or the banana wasn't ripe enough - I kept finding chunks of banana in my straw. But, I really couldn't taste any of the greens - just banana and milk. Go figure.

Salmon and Quinoa Salad (my own "recipe")

4.5 oz salmon (it was a lot of salmon, but it was the last of it, so I figured what the hell?) = 180 calories
30g power greens = 25 calories
1/2 cup quinoa = 140 calories

Calorie Total: 345 calories

I mean, there's really not much more to this than just heating up all the ingredients and throwing them into the bowl. I didn't even cut the salmon - just kind of mushed it around the other ingredients with a fork. It really was the easiest dinner ever. And with me, the easier it is, the more likely I'll eat that and not our Face M&M's. 

Somebody (hint: starts with in, ends in laws) sent us 12 tins of our Face M&M's. 4 of them have mysteriously disappeared..

This morning, I decided to try and do the thing I used to do.. which is run in the mornings. It was hard. I was still pretty full from the night before (I ate like I was running 5 miles yesterday.. but didn't), so I didn't eat anything before my run. It worked okay - I felt my brain raging, Why did you not eat??!?! but then realized that I wasn't actually hungry, and my brain shut up.

The worst part about my run was that I tried a different route (keep it interesting, y'all) and ended up on the tiniest stretch of non-sidewalk, and ended up running into a bed of thorns, practically. What resulted:

Ow.

Dannng. This happened at like, not even the halfway point. So my leg was burning like, all through the rest of the run. :( 

It's a fish! With a big head and a little fin! About to chomp on the word "Bellevue" - do you see it?? (I'm a child.)

I'm really glad that despite running with scratched legs, the last mile was the fastest. I really need to get back into this habit! It ends the run on a good note and leaves me feeling accomplished.

Hope you have a good weekend!

Unlimited Bread, Salad, and Running

Even though I'm not technically through with experimenting with all of Week 1's Summer Shape Up Meals,  on Sunday I checked out Week 2 and saw that the first breakfast was an easy bake "bar". I realized I could have that ready to go in the fridge and grab it every morning if I made it beforehand, so I went ahead and threw together the ingredients. So, so easy!!

Almond Butter Banana Breakfast Bars (makes 10 bars)

Dry:
1 cup whole wheat flour = 400 calories
1 cup old fashioned rolled oats = 380 calories
1/2 cup flaxseed = 240 calories
1 tsp. cinnamon = 7 calories
1 tsp. baking powder = 0
1 tsp. baking soda = 0
1/4 tsp. sea salt = 0

Wet:
1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce = 50 calories
1/3 cup raw agave (I took a chance with using this ingredient, instead of maple syrup- turned out great!) = 320 calories
1/4 cup smooth almond butter = 380 calories
2 very ripe bananas, mashed = 180 calories

Calorie Total: 1,957 calories, making it 195 calories per bar!

Extra close-up, but it was so good!

The consistency of these is really more like banana bread, more than a bar. I'd call it "Almond Butter Banana Bread", but that's just me. :) Now I have bread for days!

I ate one Monday morning and had leftovers for the rest of the day. I had a dance audition that night, and I think it went well, but it was only an hour so who can tell?? So I came home and whipped up this recipe for "dinner":

Kale Chickpea Feta Greek Salad

2 cups kale greens (washed & trimmed into bite size pieces) = 20 calories
1/4 cup chickpeas (drained & rinsed) = 60 calories
7g  feta cheese = 18 calories
1 tbsp Diced Tomatoes = 3 calories
1/3 of a cucumber, chopped = 15 calories
1/3 of a green pepper, chopped = 11 calories
The last of my lemon juice
1 tsp. olive oil = 40 calories
a few shakes of Salt & pepper
2 oz chicken = 55 calories

Calorie Total: 222 calories

Salads are my go-to! This was so light and refreshing. I wanted to make it small because I wasn't that hungry (I ate every 3 hours!), but even though it was small, I still felt pretty full afterwards. Oh well, it's better than being full from ice cream, right??

Today, Tuesday, I had two slices of Almond Butter Banana Bread to fuel me for my 4 mile run after my voice lesson. My voice lesson is in Tacoma, so instead of driving back to Bellevue to run around downtown, I figured I needed a change of scenery. So, I scouted out a park in Federal Way and ran there.

It was SO hilly-- I'm not sure I'll run on it again! Well, I mean, maybe... I guess it's a good workout... but man, those hills!

The first half of the run was clearly downhill, and the last half of it was uphill. Oh well! Gotta build those muscles somehow.

Feeling good on these last few days of June-uary! Ready for constant summer!

How is your summer running going??

Summer Shape Up, Days 3 and 4

I ran 3 miles on Thursday before I continued with meals from the Summer Shape Up!

It was 68 degrees! Much hotter than I'm used to!

Summer Shape Up Day 3 

Lunch: 
Tuna Salad with a Healthy Twist

2 oz chunk light tuna packed in water = 50 calories
1/8 cup Fage 0% Greek yogurt = 16 calories
1 celery stalk = probably like 0 calories, but let's say 5
1/2 cup Broccoli slaw = 13 calories
a few sprinkles of Feta cheese ~ 20 calories
two handlfuls of Power Greens ~ 25 calories (didn't measure)
1 whole wheat Jasmine's pita = 150 calories

It was really messy, but really good!

Cinnamon Applesauce

2oz unsweetened applesauce (leftover from the Simple Baked Oatmeal) = 25 calories
a few sprinkles of cinnamon = 10 calories

Calorie Total = 279 for the Pita + 35 for the applesauce = 314 calories

Dinner:
Salmon Quinoa Salad (my own creation!)

3 oz. salmon = 120 calories
1/2 cup quinoa/rice blend (Near East) = 140 calories
a handful of Power Greens ~ 25 calories

Calorie Total = 285 calories

The salmon was left over from earlier this week, and I heated it up separately from the leftover quinoa. I threw it all together on a bed of Power Greens and mixed it all up! This was quickly scarfed down after my yoga class and was small but filling.

Summer Shape Up Day 4

In the morning, I completed the NTC Beginner Get Toned Shape + Sculpt for 45 minutes after a breakfast of Scrambled Egg Muffins.

Lunch:
Tuna Caesar Salad (my own creation)

2 handfuls of Power Greens ~ 25 calories (didn't measure)
1.5 oz tuna = 38 calories
Detoxinista's Quick Garlic Parmesan Dressing (makes 1/3 cup)

• 2 tbsp olive oil = 240 calories
• 1/3 cup Parmesan = 134 calories
• 1 tsp minced garlic = 5 calories

The dressing alone came to a total of 379 calories. I used 2 tsp.

Calorie Total: 47 dressing + 63 salad = 110 calories

The rest of the day, I ate more leftovers. They were still good as new!

I hope everyone is having a good first day of summer!

Summer Shape Up Day 2: Meals, Running, and an NTC Workout!

Breakfast:
Scrambled Egg Muffins (makes 12 muffins)

9 eggs = 630 calories
2 handfuls of spinach ~ 15 calories (didn't measure)
1/3 cup skim milk = 30 calories
1/3 cup whole wheat flour = 133 calories
1/4 cup Lucerne Mild shredded Cheddar Cheese = 120 calories
a few shakes of basil
2 scoops of diced tomatoes from a can ~ 25 calories (didn't measure)
1/2 tsp. sea salt
1/2 tsp. cracked black pepper

Calorie Total for 12 muffins = 953 calories. Divided by 12, that's about 80 calories per muffin! Not bad, not bad at all!

Lunch:
Creamy Tomato Basil Soup (makes 2.5 cups of soup)

1 clove minced garlic = 3 calories
1 Tbsp olive oil = 120 calories
a few spoonfuls of diced tomatoes from a can ~ 50 calories (didn't measure)
a few shakes of basil
a few shakes of pepper
2 cups low sodium vegetable broth = 40 calories
1/2 cup Fage 0% Greek Yogurt = 65 calories

Avocado Toast

1/3 Avocado ~ 83 calories (didn't measure)
1 slice Whole Wheat Chia Bread = 100 calories

Calorie Total = 278 for the soup + 183 for the toast= 461 calories. I made myself a 3/4 cup serving of soup, making it 84 + 183 = 267 calories. 

I admit, this wasn't my favorite meal - soup in the summer is a little too warm for me - but it was a nice blend of flavors and as always, fun to try something new.

Exercise:
3 mile run - not my favorite! For some reason, I felt so sluggish and off. I was happy to get it out of the way.

Dinner:
Mexican Lasagna

I felt so hungry after running, I had to eat! I couldn't resist!! I happily scarfed down another fourth of the Mexican Lasagna I made yesterday after reheating it in the microwave. Mmmm it was so good!

Snack:
My Homemade Trail Mix

I had this on the way home from my voice lesson! (First one since January!)

Snack #2:
Almond Butter + Toast

2 Tbsp unsalted almond butter = 190 calories
1 slice Whole Wheat Chia Bread = 100 calories

Calorie Total = 290 calories

Exercise, Round 2:
Nike+ Training Club

After my snack, I completed the NTC workout called Beginner Get Strong Pump Station. What a name! It was 45 minutes, made me sweat, and I was happy when it was over. Now I'm all caught up on half marathon training!

Smoothie:
Tropical Island Smoothie

3/4 cup Almond Breeze Almond Coconut Milk = 33.75 calories
1 cup frozen strawberries = 50 calories
1 single serving (5.3 oz) blueberry Fage Greek Yogurt (Fruyo) = 140 calories

Calorie Total = 224 calories

Alright, alright. I admit that I jumped the gun on tomorrow's breakfast. But I just couldn't not eat anything - running gave me some more calories to work with for the day, so I went ahead and felt 0 guilt while using them all up in this smoothie! It was SO refreshing after my workout - this might be my new go-to post-workout smoothie! It's that good!

Whew! What a day!