The Sweet Spot

I've finally found the sweet spot in my workouts, the three days on and one day off is working perfectly. My legs feel fantastic and last week I was able to push out 6 quick miles (for me) on my 3rd day. My lats and biceps were pretty sore today from yesterdays workout but because of the way this week lays out I had to get a gym workout in today. Here are the details:

Cardio: Run on treadmill for 15 minutes @ 1.5% incline with varying speeds. Average speed was probably right around 7.4mph. 5 minute cooldown

DB Chest press on stability ball: 3x10 @ 22.5 (I wanted 27.5's but they were in use as were the 25's. I can do 30's but it's hard to get them up on the ball without a friend).

DB shoulder fly: 3x10 @ 10lb dbs (still getting my right shoulder back in shape, at least the pain is gone).

Tricep kickback with pronation: 3x10 @ 12.5lb db

Cardio: HIIT sprints for 6 minutes (alternating 1 minute @ 6.0, :30 @ 10.0). 3 minute cooldown

Tricep dips 3x10 bodyweight
Vogue press 3x10 @ 15lb db
Pushups: 3x10

Cardio: Elliptical for 15 minutes. Varying ramp and resistence (between 7-11).

Tonight for dinner I made the delicious Pulled chicken in the crockpot. I just eat mine out of a bowl since I'd rather have baked sweet potato fries than a bun. I also sauteed some squash, zucchini, and mushrooms in a little olive oil and then drizzled some balsamic vinegar over them. So ono!

I have a late morning run planned for tomorrow morning, not sure how far I'm going to go. I'm thinking 4-5 miles since Wednesday is an off day again.

Productive Sunday

I admit I didn't sleep much last night, maybe six hours total. This is not adequate for my body so I was hurting today. DH and I left early this morning and stopped by Starbucks, we went down to Husky stadium again today for picture day. Admittedly we didn't stay for player pix....we just went to upgrade our seats finally. They are pretty great, I don't know how these two seats were still available. We did some grocery shopping on the way home and then I forced myself to the gym (I took yesterday off and it was much needed as my legs were SOOOOOOOO sore). They felt great today though and I was not mad at my decision to get to the gym (despite how tired I was). Here is my workout

Cardio: HIIT 24 minutes.
0:00 - 5:00 7.0mph
5:00-6:00 8.0
6:00 - 7:00 6.0
7:00 - 8:00 8.0
8:00 - 9:00 6.0
9:00 - 10:00 8.0
10:00 - 11:00 6.0
11:00 - 11:45 9.0
11:45 - 12:45 6.0
12:45 - 13:30 9.0
13:30 - 14:30 6.0
14:30 - 15:15 9.0
15:15 - 16:15 6.0
16:15 - 17:00 9.0
17:00 - 18:00 6.0
18:00 - 18:30 10
18:30 - 19:30 6.0
19:30 - 20:00 10
20:00 - 21:00 6.0
21:00 - 21:30 10
21:30 - 22:30 6.0
22:30 - 23:00 10
23:00 - 24:00 8.0
5 minute cooldown

Pull ups: 1x10 @ 30lbs assist. 2x10 @ 50lbs assist for negatives.
DB curls: 3x10 @ 15lbs very slowly/concentrated
DB pullovers: 3x10 @ 20lb db
Y's T's and I's: 3x10 @ 5lb dbs
Cable curls w/ rope attachment: 3x10 @ 50lbs

Tonight for dinner I made the chicken and spinach cheesy stuffed shells again, they were excellent. DH and I had them with a side of steamed broccoli and cauliflower.

Slacker!!!

I've been slacking big time the past few days. Not really super busy, just not into blogging I guess.

Wednesday's run:

Yesterday's workout:

Cardio: 10 minutes + 3 minute cooldown (roughly a 8:20 mile)

DB front squat 3x10 @ 17.5lb dbs
Romanian deadlift 3x10 @ 25lb dbs
Plie Squat with calf raise 3x10 w/ 30lb db:

Cardio: 10 minutes of hills @ 8:30 mile pace. 3 minute cooldown

Sumo squat and leg raise 3x10 with 30lb barbell
Toe touch 3x15
Ball twist (3x15

Cardio: 18 minutes on the elliptical plus 5 minutes cooldown.

5 minutes of stretching

I thought when I went out for my run this morning that I would keep it slow, my quads were tired like crazy. I kept glancing at my Garmin and making myself back off. I'm happy about these splits but I wish I could have gone slower (I couldn't make myself). I will probably pay the price tomorrow but fortunately it is an off-day. I think this 3 on, 1 off schedule is perfect for me.
I'm really looking forward to sushi tonight with DH! I haven't had sushi in far too long. I wanted to go see The Time Traveler's Wife but he suggested we go next weekend instead since we have a busy day planned tomorrow. We are going to the early Husky football practice at 8:45. Get some errands done and then we are going to the Taste of Edmonds in the evening with some friends (DH's bff from KINDERGARTEN and his wife...they've been friends for 31 years)

Another day at the gym

My eye is still all gross but it seems to be healing a little bit more. I feel like I've been so busy lately but I honestly don't know what I'm so busy with. Does that make sense? I ate most of the usual suspects today. Dinner was a new recipe for chicken enchiladas (I've been burnt out on the one I used to use). I found this simple recipe on Jenna's blog and ran with it. The only change I made is that I used 2 4oz cans of green chiles (one inside the enchiladas and one on top). What can I say, I love green chiles! I also used 9 whole wheat soft taco sized tortillas. I love the Safeway Select enchilada sauce, it is so good and was the perfect amount.

Here is my workout for the day:

Cardio warmup: 8 minutes run (avg pace 7.0mph)

Dumbbell skull crusher (on incline bench) 3x10 @ 12.5lb dbs
Push press 3x10 @ 15lb dbs
Push ups 3x10

Cardio burst: 8 minutes (avg pace 7.5 mph)

Cable crossover 3x10 @ 12.5lbs each side of the machine
Dumbbell frontal raise 3x10 @ 15lb dbs

Cardio: 22 minute run varying speeds between 7.0mph and 8.5. Average pace ended up being 7.8mph. 5 minute cooldown

Crunches 3x20
Stetched out for 10 minutes or so afterwards.

I'm going to go finish up Season 2 of Entourage and read a little more of my book. Nite!

Behind schedule!

So this morning I got up at 7 and was going to be off and running to get in a gym session before meeting my friend Debra for some shopping at the outlet mall. I went to put in my contacts and found this...I've never had this so it freaked me the F out. Excuse the extremely attractive pic LOL. It's bloody all the way up. I waited until 8 and called my eye doctor and found out that I shouldn't be freaked and it should heal on its own in a few days. Whew. I don't mess around with my eyes.


So I got out the door an hour early but still got in a full workout! Here is what I did:

Cardio: 5 minutes warmup on treadmill (roughly .8 miles with my cooldown).

Pullups 3x10 @40lbs assist
21s 3x10 @ 30lb barbell

Cardio: 5 minutes on treadmill (roughly .9 miles with my cooldown)

Superman: 3x for 1 minute count
(Superset) Dumbbell hammer curls 3x10 @ 15lb dbs
Crunches on stability ball 3x25

Cardio: 5 minutes on treadmill (roughly .9 miles with my cooldown)

Bentover DB row 3x10 (each arm) @ 25lb db
(Superset) Flat bench crunches 3x15

Cardio: 15 minutes on the elliptical

I came back home to shower and have a Green Monster and headed off to meet Debra. I didn't end up buying much, I got some new running shoes at the Nike Outlet since they had the shoes I'd been looking for in my size. The only size 9! All the others were either 12's or like 5/6. I also got DH some dri fit socks, hopefully those will help his feet along with his new Skechers steel toe work shoes. His feet have been killing him for awhile now. They had so many pairs of Nike Tempo shorts in so many colors, they had my purple ones but only in Large or X-Large. BOOO I would have bought some. I was hoping to find a rain jacket for running and a warmer pullover but I didn't like the colors they had. I am going to buy those online since the Clearance prices online are very comparable to the outlet store. We wandered around a bit and then headed to Bob's Burgers and Brew for a late lunch. I had a cajun chicken wrap and fries (and a lot of water) which really hit the spot. I was STARVING, all I had after my GM was an americano lol.

So I'm just relaxing now, see my super sexy sweats lol (the bottoms are actually the VS Pink Huskies capris from last year, I don't like the latest ones. :().

I am so excited for football season...I am watching a 'classic' game on Fox Sports right now (Oregon State/Washington from 2000, which I was at of course). I also watched the first press conference of the season online yesterday. What can I say, I'm a glutton for punishment?

Leg day!

Today was leg day at the gym, here is my workout:

Cardio: 15 minutes on treadmill avg pace 7.5mph. 5 minute cooldown.

Double Leg Lift 3x15
Calf raise with stability ball 3x15
Reverse lunge with dumbbells 3x10 @ 15lb dbs
Booty blaster on stability ball (can't find my link to it grr) 3x15
Stability ball pass 3x10 my abs were still sore from Tuesday so these were killer.

Cardio: 15 minutes on treadmill avg pace 7.5mph. 5 minute cooldown.

All the typical food for today, for dinner I didn't feel like doing much since I was only cooking for me. I sliced up a zucchini that I desperately needed to use, also about five jumbo mushrooms. I sauteed those in some olive oil and seasoned with black pepper and cayenne pepper. I then cooked up a box of Annie's shells and cheese and threw a can of tuna fish in. I ate about half the mac n cheese and tuna with a healthy portion of hot sauce (gotta have hot sauce on mac n cheese).

I finished Janet Evanovich's latest Stephanie Plum novel last night, Finger Lickin' Fifteen. It was very funny, almost back to her usual. I have to admit, I'd like to see her mix it up and have Stephanie finally pick a love interest. Lula was hilarious as usual, there could have been more Grandma Mazur too. But overall plenty of laugh out loud moments.

I'm going to watch another chick flick tonight, this time Confessions of a Shopaholic. I've already seen it but had put it into my Netflix queue anyways for fun. I really enjoyed the Shopaholic series of books (even though Bex is an idiot). So I already know that it is light, humorous, and something to veg out to.

I did like Bride Wars last night, again just something light to veg too...totally unrealistic but you can just drone out the real world and use it as escapism.

I've got a lot on my mind right now so it's nice to escape in a dvd or a book. I'm also starting a new book tonight, I can't wait to curl up in bed with it. I hope Cooper joins me (Jada won't sit still she just wants to rub on the book and stand on me). The book is A Summer Affair by Elin Hilderbrand, this is my first book by her so I'm curious if I will like her writing. Has anyone read any of her stuff? I love to chat about books. :)

Happy Birthday to Me

So today is my 31st birthday...I don't feel any older, and quite frankly feel younger than I did when I was 21. I'm in a lot better shape, y'all I wish I had my old pics somewhere. I think around 2001 I gave up on dropping the weight and trashed all my old pictures. I'm glad I didn't give up, I don't know when it hit but in May of 2006 was when I had my weight loss epiphany. I never thought I could control my portion sizes...one day I said 'f' it and started going to 5-6 smaller meals a day. That did the trick for me, I stopped feeling hungry and overindulging. At the peak I know that I weighed 178lbs, this was in 2000. I could have weighed more but that is the highest I ever knew of. In 2001 I got down to 155lbs with exercise alone. But I couldn't ever break the plateau. Between 2001 and 2006 I hovered between 155 and 165lbs. On May 14, 2006 I weighed 165lbs. By late Summer 2006 I was down to 145lbs. PORTION CONTROL was my friend. In the Fall I got engaged to the hubs but I was feeling a plateau, I had lifted weights a lot in high school so I started adding weight training back into my routine.

By the time we were married I'd gotten down to 135lbs and felt great. I don't really consider myself to be in a 'maintenance' mode. I honestly don't want to necessarily lose weight. I want to get stronger. I want my muscles stronger for lifting and running. I want my mind stronger for learning. I try hard to keep my nutrition in line because I straight up feel better when I eat better. I know that the number hasn't really changed on the scale over the last 2.5 years but I see the differences, I feel the differences in my performance.

So yeah, that was one big useless tangent. LOL. I guess it was just a recap of where I am today...

For breakfast this morning I had a big Green Monster. Same ingredients as yesterday. I have a small sample of PB2, how should I use it? I was thinking in a Green Monster, or maybe mixed with some greek yogurt and puffins? Any ideas?

For my snack I had greek yogurt, pb puffins, kashi heart to heart, and strawberries.

For my lunch I am going to eat leftovers of the delicious cheesy chicken shells from last night.

I have an amazing workout planned for after work, I wrote it all out even! Here it is, obvi weights could change.

Cardio: 5 minute warm up on tread (varied speeds)

Dip assist machine 3x10 @ 30lbs
DB Shoulder press 3x10 @ 25lb dbs

Cardio: 5 minutes gradually increasing incline @ 7.0mph

Leaning lateral raises 3x10 @ 10lb db
Supine chest press 3x10 @ 25lb dbs

Cardio: 5 minutes of speed intervals (7.0 for 40 seconds/9.0 for 20 seconds repeat)

Frog crunches 3x15
Bicycle crunches 3x25

Cardio: 15 or 20 minutes of moderate running (7.0mph or so). Depending on how much time I have and how I feel.

I almost forgot! I have a couple of new songs on my little iPod Shuffle too, I love when a new song comes on. Here are my new faves:

• El Gitano Del Amor by Latin Soul Syndicate
• Love, Sex, and Magic by Ciara (feat. Justin Timberlake - yum)
• Whatcha Think About That by The Pussycat Dolls (feat. Missy Elliott)
  

Okay I'm going to go make my lunch in a few! Have a good afternoon all!

Quick Sunday post!

Last night was really fun, DH and I went out to dinner and to the theatre. We saw Catch Me if You Can, I've never seen the movie or read the book so it was all new viewing for me. Overall we both really liked it.

Dinner was amazing, we went to Palisade. I hadn't been there in YEARS. It was just as good as I remembered (if not better). I forgot my camera, which bummed me out because the restaurant is beautiful. We started with drinks, a lilikoi mojito for me and a mai tai for DH. Then we split a calamari appetizer, unlike a lot of restaurants they use big strips of calamari. They soak it in buttermilk and then do a very light breading. I loved the wasabi aioli they served for dipping, even DH liked it (and he isn't a fan of wasabi). After that we made the fatal mistake and went for the seafood chowder. It was delicious but soooo rich. For entrees DH had a big NY strip steak with mushrooms, mashed Yukon Gold potatoes, and asparagas. I had crab and mac nut stuffed prawns. They served it over summer veggies (delicious) and mashed potatoes (I had like 3 bites). The prawns were so much bigger than I thought they would be, I think there were six and I was able to eat 4.5 (and all of my veggies). This is so rare for me to feel full like that, I'm normally the bottomless pit. I think the richness of the food just did me in, I don't normally eat really rich foods. Sooo delicious though!

After dinner we had time before we had to head downtown to go for a walk around the marina, I think this really helped me digest so I didn't fall asleep during the show!

This morning I got up for a good workout. It was already hot and I didn't want to deal with it so I did a treadmill workout.

I did a variation of this workout from Fitness magazine.

Minutes	Pace
0:00–10:00	Warm-up jog; worked my way up from 3.5mph to 6.5mph gradually.
10:00–10:20	Sprint at 9.5 mph
10:20–11:20	Jog at 6.5 mph
11:20–14:00	Repeat minutes 10:00–11:20 twice
14:00–17:00	Jog at 6.5 mph
17:00–27:00	Run at 7.5 mph
27:00–31:00	Jog at 6.5 mph
31:00–35:00	Run at 7.5 mph
35:00–39:00	Jog at 6.5 mph
39:00–55:00	Repeat minutes 31:00–39:00 twice
55:00–60:00	Gradually slow pace to cool down at jog/walk

This ended up burning 700 calories for me with the cooldown, I varied incline between 1.0% and 2.5%.

After that I had to go to Costco to get more spinach. YUM!

Happy Friday!

This Friday is extra happy, our temperatures have finally cooled off. Yesterday was a busy day for me at work and then I met my mom after work to see Jewel at Zoo Tunes. Zoo Tunes was a lot of fun, plus it benefits the Zoo...what is not to love? I would definitely go again, even if it wasn't someone I was super interested in seeing. It's a small venue, all general admission lawn seating. I was afraid that we weren't going to get any shade so it would be super hot (it was 93 when we got out of the car). Fortunately the entire West side of the lawn area has trees so we weren't in the sun for long (maybe 5 minutes).

Here is a picture of Cooper trying to stay cool! So he really only stayed like this for a few minutes before he got up. One thing I found about him is that he doesn't mind water (or maybe he was so hot he didn't care?). I would wring a towel out on him and wet him down. He also liked me putting a frozen bottle of water (wrapped in a towel) in his little cat house with him.


I'm currently enjoying a delicious Green Monster.


I have to work super late tonight for our quarterly server updates so I'm going to hit the gym for a long lunch (and take a long dinner break LOL).

Here is the workout I have planned (weights are all estimates):

Cardio: 10 minutes on treadmill
Bicep curl 3x10 @ 20lb dbs
Lat pulldown 3x10 @ 75lbs
Cable hammer curl with rope attachment 3x10 @ 40lbs
Two arm dumbbell row 3x10 @ 15 or 20lbs
Stability ball back extension
Cardio: Run on treadmill probably 2.5 miles (20 minutes) plus 5 minute cool down.

Okay, time to get to work!!!

More Hotness

I've been a bad blogger, actually I've just been straight up lazy. It is so hot outside and Seattle just isn't equipped for this shiz. Today was the hottest day EVER in Seattle. We did eventually hit 103 at my house...in the shade. I really wasn't wanting to workout at all today, the 'skid' and I got our portable AC (usually lives in our bedroom) downstairs to try to keep the living room cool. Fortunately the temp stayed steady down here all day, so it worked. However my work laptop has a steaming pile of ish for a wireless network card so I kept getting dumped offline all day and got next to nothing accomplished. I finally found a solution around 1:30pm and got an old USB wireless card I had working on it and just disabled my crappy POS internal card. Whew.

I was frustrated with it all so I went to the gym at lunch. I was trying to be super quick so my workout was much abbreviated (I figured something is better than nothing). Here are my stats:

Cardio: 20 minute run (2.61 miles). Plus five minute cooldown.

Box Step Ups with dumbbells 3x10 @ 17.5lb dbs


Calf raises on the step with dbs 3x15 @ 17.5lb dbs (superset)


Seated Oblique Twists w/ medicine ball 3x15 @ 10lb ball


Wall squat with stability ball 3x15


Stability ball crunches 3x25


Hamstring curls 3x10 @ 60lbs

I had a Green Monster for lunch as my appetite was finally a little off from the hotness. It also turns out that Cooper doesn't mind water, he let me wet him down to cool off. I even placed a frozen towel over him and he didn't mind. My sweet boy.

The 'skid' and I went to Starbucks when I finished work just to enjoy some AC (and iced drinks). I had a venti iced americano with caramel and the 'skid' had the strawberry banana smoothie. He said it was really good, and the nutritionals weren't horrible (although I'm sure there is added sugar in the strawberry puree they add).

For dinner we all went to a new Mongolian Grill tonight. It was so delicious! They had a great selection of veggies, I went with mushrooms, spinach, zucchini, broccoli, onions, celery, tofu, chicken, and brown rice with their mongolian sauce. I had tons leftover (I did the one bowl option while the 'skid' and DH did the all you can eat option). So I got to bring my leftovers home. :) They also gave us a sample of their tart frozen yogurt...I loved it but DH wasn't a fan (I ate both of ours lol).

Hopefully the pic I posted works...I'm using a different computer than usual (and IE 6) and it's not showing up in my Compose screen...I added it via HTML code so hopefully it will work. Note: yeah it didn't work and I don't have the patience to deal with it...so I'll post it tomorrow from my other computer.

We're Jammin'

I can't think of a better way to start a sunny Summer day than a little Bob Marley, so that's what I listened to on my way home from the gym this morning. It's going to be mucho hot here all week so early morning workouts are in my cards for the week. I find that I entirely lack motivation by about 2pm on days when it is HOT in my house, so even a gym workout is going to be in the morning.

I got up at 5am with the hubs, ate a slice of Faux-zekial cinnamon raisin toast with some blackberry preserves and headed out to the gym.

Here is my workout:

Cardio warmup: Treadmill, 7 minutes - .9 miles.

Dumbbell lateral raise 3x10 @ 15lbs
Standing Dumbbell Triceps extension 3x10 @ 20lb db

Cardio burst: 5 minutes (1 minute @ 6.0mph, 30 seconds at 10mph for 5 minutes alternating) 2 min cooldown

Dumbbell chest fly 3x10 @ 15lb dbs
Dumbbell upright row 3x10 @ 15lb dbs

Cardio burst: 5 minutes + 2minute cooldown
0:00 - 1:00 6.5mph
1:00 - 2:00 7.0mph
2:00 - 3:00 7.5mph
3:00 - 4:00 8.0mph
4:00 - 5:00 8.5mph

Dumbbell bench press 3x10 @ 30lb dbs
Pushups 3x10
Crunches 3x25

Cardio: 10 minutes on the treadmill average 7:50 pace I think. 5 minutes cooldown.

I came home and made a big bowl of yum, 1/2c Fage, 1/2c Kashi Heart 2 Heart, 1/2c Kashi Go Lean crunch, and a bunch of sliced strawberries. Sooo good.

Megan @ MegaNerdRuns is having a sweet Chobani giveaway! Check it out now. :)

Happy Saturday!

So my morning was super busy and I didn't have time to blog, hopefully I can remember my workout.

Last night I went to Happy Hour with two of my oldest friends (from Middle School) and a couple of newer friends. :) What I thought was going to be a fairly early evening ended up being 6 hours of happy hour. No complaints, and I kept myself in check by only having 3 Corona Lights. But even that was enough to make me retain water all day long, alcohol has that effect on me. I knew at the gym this morning before I stepped on the scale that the number would be up. My engagement ring is pretty loose most of the time and it took a few pulls to get it off. So when I hopped on the scale and the number was UP 4lbs this week, no biggie. No way did I consume enough calories this week to actually gain 4lbs LOL.

Here's my workout from today:

8 minute treadmill warmup (avg 8:45 mile).

DB bicep curls 3x10 @ 17.5lbs
DB pullover on stability ball 3x10 @ 15lbs
Hammer curl with rope attachment 3x10 @ 40lbs
Triceps pushdown with rope attachment 3x10 @ 50lbs
Lying dumbbell triceps extensions 3x10 @ 12.5lb dbs

HIIT cardio session 23 minutes.
5 minute warmup (6.5mph)
3 sets (1:00 @ 8.0 mph/1:00 @ 6.0mph)
4 sets (:45s @ 9.0mph/ 1:00 @ 6.0mph)
4 sets (:30s @ 10.0mph/ 1:00 @ 6.0mph)
5 minute cooldown

I then rushed home for a green monster and shower.

Then off to meet the BFF for an early matinee. We saw The Ugly Truth which I actually really enjoyed, I laughed out loud a lot and was entertained. I was naughty and snuck in a big bottle of water and some of the peanut buttery bars I made the other night for us to share. I also bought a small popcorn because quite frankly I have a hard time watching a movie without it in the theater. I could probably eat a whole large size by myself (and then feel like warmed over ass after the movie, I lack the filter that tells me I am full).

I went into mall because I wanted to get some new running socks, all of mine are losing their elasticity. With the Nordstorm Anniversary Sale going on I thought they might have some socks on sale and they did! I got 2 packs of new socks to try.

Nike no-show Shox cushioned socks Normally $16 for 2 pair, on sale for $10.00
Nike Drifit no-show sports socks Normally $15 for 2 pair, on sale for $9.

I'm thinking I'll try out the cushioned socks tomorrow since I'm planning a 6.5 mile run when I get up.

I also may have stopped for froyo on the way home. I stopped at Coldstone first but they only have some berry froyo and I'm a plain girl. So I got back in the car and went to my usual place. Mmmmmm.....plain froyo with coconut. I sat outside and caught up on some blog reading while I ate. :)

Okay, my Netflix of Entourage season 1 arrived today so I'm vegging out to that tonight and cooking dinner at home (quinoa, veggies, marinara).

Colossal Meltdown

Okay, I admit it. I had a freaking meltdown this afternoon. I don't know if it's the heat (and lack of AC in my office) getting to me, or the fact that I've been doing email support for work for like a week straight now due to vacations...or some PMS. I think it's likely a combination of all three. To be honest, I don't know what I want to do with my life. I wish I did. I like to think something to do with fitness and nutrition would fit me, but maybe I'd get sick of that too. In an ideal world I'd of course be independently wealthy, travel a lot, and of course sit by a pool with handsome pool boys to fan me with huge leaves. But we all know it isn't an ideal world. So I sucked it up and finished my work just in time to sign off and head to the gym.

I did the following workout (variation of Gina's Summer Shape up)

Warmup: 10 minutes on the treadmill plus 5 minute cooldown (worked out to about 1.7 miles).

-Leg extension machine 1x10 @ 100lbs, 2x10 @ 80lbs
-Calf raises on a step 3x10
-Squat jumps (as many as you can for 1 minute total)
-Lunges (twisting with medicine ball) 3x10 @ 10lb ball
-Jumping jacks (as many as you can for 1 minute)
-Stability ball hamstring curl 3x10
-Wall squats (Hold for 30 seconds with 30 seconds rest in between; 3 times)
-Dolphin plank (hold 30 seconds) then do a side plank for 30 seconds, other side 30 seconds, then back to dolphin plank for 30 seconds) - I did 3 of these.

Cardio: 10 minutes on the treadmill plus 5 minute cooldown (worked out to about 1.7 miles).

After that I went to Costco because I needed spinach (fortunately Costco is right around the corner from the gym).

So I made a new recipe for dinner tonight. It was VERY easy and VERY delicious. I was nervous, I admit....but it was delicious. I made the following recipe (from recipezaar.com) for pulled chicken sandwiches in the Crock Pot.

http://www.recipezaar.com/Pulled-Chicken-Sandwiches-Crock-Pot-242547

Ingredients

• 1 medium onion, thinly sliced or 1/2 large onion, thinly sliced
  Note: When I make this again I will likely use 2 onions, they were the star of the dish.
  
  
• 3 boneless skinless chicken breasts

Sauce

• 1 cup ketchup
• 2 tablespoons cider vinegar
• 2 tablespoons molasses
• 1 tablespoon yellow mustard
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
• 1 teaspoon onion powder
  Note: I didn't have any on hand so I omitted this and it was fine.
  
• 1/4 teaspoon cumin
• 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1/2 teaspoon Tabasco sauce
• 1 pinch salt

Directions

1. Cut the onion in half and slice into thin half rings. Line the bottom of the crock pot with the onions.

2. Trim the chicken breasts and place on top of the bed of onions.

3. Mix all of the sauce ingredients together and pour on top of the chicken covering completely.
   

4. Cook for 6 hours on low setting. The sauce thickens and turns into a dark rich brown during cooking. At the same time the onions dissolve into the sauce.

5. When the chicken is falling apart tender, take two forks and shred the chicken.

I actually had mine in a bowl since I didn't feel like a sandwich roll.

I also had a sweet potato (wanted fries but didn't want to turn on oven) and some sauteed zucchini, summer squash, and 'shrooms.

Jada has been busy tonight sleeping in her saucer bed. We call it the Little Grey Bed. For a little grey cat, obviously!
Cooper is lounging on the couch with me.

Make sure to get in your last minute votes for Danica!!!!!! Danica's Nectarine Raspberry Sorbet

Manic Monday!

Okay not really. But the weekend was pretty busy. My eating choices weren't always the best but I did manage to abstain from alcohol, which is something that is a huge trigger point for poor eating decisions for me. It's like a double whammy, not only do you get all the added calories from the alcohol (plus the water retention) but then Taco Bell sounds gourmet and you want to eat about 10 dang quesadillas. Who else is with me on this?

Work is busy today, I have a co-worker out on vacay for a few weeks. But I like being busy. I took a little extra time and did my workout at lunch today, tomorrow is super busy so I have to have a run EARLY in the morning.

Today's workout:

Cardio warmup: 7 minutes (.92 miles I think). Plus 3 minutes cooldown.

Lat pulldowns: 3x10 @ 75lbs
DB Chest press: 3x10 @ 35lb dbs (my arms were shaking)
DB Shoulder press: 3x8 @ 20lb dbs (my arms were too tired to go for 10 reps)

Cardio: 7 minutes (.95 miles) Plus 3 minutes cooldown

Standing barbell Upright Row: 3x10 @ 40lb
Cross body shoulder raises: 3x10 @ 8lb dbs (I can't actually find a pic of this, it's like a snatch motion with a lateral raise). I'll keep looking and update if I find one. LOL

Cardio: 17 minutes (2.2 miles approx). 5 minutes cooldown

I slept a lot last night, I only got 6 hours of crappy sleep on Saturday night. Last night I seriously was dosing off between 7:30 - 9:00 and finally fell asleep at 9 for good. Woke up at 6:00 feeling great.

Eats:

2 cups of coffee

Oatmeal (1/2c oats, 3/4 c water, 1/2 mashed banana, 1/2TB natural PB, and a couple of melted chocolate chips + 2TB ff cow's milk).

Mid morning snack was a PB cup Green Monster.

Lunch was a leftover Black Bean burger from last week (with a little pepperjack cheese melted on top to hold it together) with guac, spinach, and tomato on a Orowheat whole wheat sandwich thin. A bunch of grapes and a handful of pistachios.

This post officially sucks because there is no picture...so I shall pick something random out of the My Pictures folder to entertain all 7.75 readers.

First two images are of course courtesy of LOLCats.



I have NO idea where I got the pic of Mark Mangino and Obie (the Syracuse Orange mascot). Maybe here?

Taking it Easy yo!

Last night the husband and I cooked up a delicious dinner! He manned the grill, we had 3 small steaks we needed to use up (two little pieces of filet mignon and one small top sirloin). I sauteed up some shrimp in a little olive oil and canola margarine with some garlic and cajun seasoning. I also sauteed some zucchini and mushrooms in olive oil and cayenne pepper for some zip. Dinner was delicious. We also went for froyo after dinner, I had my usual a plain yogurt with coconut on top. Sooo good, I just love the texture.

This morning the hubs had to go into work for awhile, I more or less woke up with him at 5:45. I got a solid 8 hours of sleep last night and felt great this morning. I laid in bed and petted Cooper and Jada. I got up and fed them (and myself). I had a slice of spelt flour cinnamon raisin toast with a touch of almond butter and headed out to the gym.

I knew I needed to take it easy on the legs so I started with 12 minutes on the elliptical at a moderate pace.

I then did bits and pieces of Gina's Summer Shape up.
Dumbbell hammer curl 3x10 @ 20lb dbs
reverse plank (hold 30-45 seconds) 3 x held for 45 seconds each

I then did a cardio burst on the tread. I did 4 x of 1:00 @ 6.5mph and 1:00 @ 9.0mph. Then did a 4 minute gradual cooldown.

Triceps dip assist 3x8 @ 24lbs assist.
Straight bar cable bicep curl 3x10 @ 50lbs
standing triceps extension 3x10 @ 20lbs
long arm crunch 3x20

I skipped the rest of the cardio to rest my legs, came home and made a huge Green Monster.

There are a few sweet giveaways going on!

Erica is giving away some Mix1!
Ruby is giving away a copy of Jillian Michaels' book Making The Cut.

I'm about to shower and head out to get my hairs did. Enjoy your Saturday everyone. :)

Over the Hump

I'm really looking forward to this weekend, I'm getting my hair done Saturday morning and hopefully meeting the lovely Debra for lunch after. :)

I was a busy bee again this afternoon, I like being busy at work though it keeps me out of trouble. Tomorrow will be super busy so I will probably only do an evening post. I have support duties again tomorrow, and have to drive into the office for a meeting in the middle of the day (in Renton, at least it is after the morning rush hour(s) and before the afternoon rush). I'm going to try to wake up early to get in a run BEFORE work hours. LOL. Famous last words (although I'm usually very good about it when I know that is the only time I have during the day).

I had a pre-workout snack before I headed out to the gym (a Kashi TLC trail mix bar and a couple of dried apricots). I'm trying to decide if I should buy a foot pod for my Garmin so that I can use it at the gym on the treadmill, the husband rolled his eyes at me when I suggested it (okay so we were on the phone, but I KNOW he was rolling them). What do y'all think?

My workout was A-MAZING (like I predicted HA).

It was based off of Gina's Summer Shape up Leg day, but I didn't like some of the exercises so I mixed and matched.

Warmup:
10 minutes on the tread (2.25 miles) plus 3 minute gradual cooldown.

Stability ball back extension - 3x15
reverse lunge 3x10 @ 15lb db
captain's chair leg raise 3x15

Treadmill hill run: 9 minutes alternating incline between 1.0 and 6.0 @ 7.0mph. 3 minute gradual cooldown.

booty booster (slide 5) 3x15
dumbbell squat 2x12 @ 22.5lb dbs
dumbbell front squat 2x12 @ 15lb dbs
Stability ball Ab crunch 3x15 done very slow with a pause on both passes (abs were on FIRE)

Cardio: 17 minutes on elliptical, varying incline, resistence between 7 and 12.

I came home and fed Cooper & Jada, took a quick shower, and made dinner. I was so hungry I forgot to take a pic. I cut up 1 whole Walla Walla sweet onion (love), 1.5 red pepper, 1 zucchini, and a bunch of big mushrooms (stuffing size), and 1 chicken boobie. Sauteed in a little extra virgin olive oil (1 turn of the pan). Added 1 cup of marinara and simmered while I cooked up 1/2c quinoa. This was two HUGE servings (and I was HANGRY).

Gonna kick back and rot my brain with some Bejeweled Blitz.

Oh, I almost forgot. Danica @ Danica's Daily has an AMAZING Annie's giveaway, you'd be CRAZY not to enter.

Sleep!

Yeah last night I slept like crap, I took a long nap yesterday afternoon so I know that factored in. There was also a cop that pulled someone over right in front of our house flashing his lights in the window. I went to bed at like 9:30 and finally feel asleep around midnight I'd guess, got up a few times and used the computer to try to make my eyes tired. This rarely happens to me anymore, and it is usually when DH is gone (which he wasn't last night). As a kid I had a lot of sleep issues, horrible insomnia all the way through high school. College wasn't an issue because I rarely went to bed before 3am, and was always exhausted when my head hit the pillow. Usually I don't have an issue with sleep now but when I do I get so frustrated, and it only makes it worse because I want to sleep so badly. Sometimes I think that I might try melatonin but I don't know if it is worth it since it's usually only when DH is gone.

So I got up this morning and thought I had a doctor's appointment in Seattle with my cardiologist. I had a couple of cups of coffee and a most delicious GM. It was ugly looking!

1 cup of nonfat cow's milk
1 scoop ON vanilla whey
4 cups of spinach
1TB almond butter
4 strawberries
1/4 cup of frozen blueberries
1/4 cup of frozen raspberries
1/2 frozen banana
1.5c of crushed ice

This one was a total winner!

My appointment ended up getting rescheduled because my cardiologist had an emergency patient. I already had the time scheduled off so I decided to just take the afternoon off. :)

Ate a slice of Rainier Organic Bakery cinnamon raisin toast with some almond butter for a pre-workout snack. This toast is tasty, mostly the same as Ezekial but was a lot cheaper at TJ's and is also a local bakery! SCORE!

I had an insane workout today and I freaking loved it. I used Gina's Summer Shape up Week 9.

Warmup: 2 miles @ 15:34. 5 minute cooldown

Assisted pull up 1x10 @ 30lbs assist. 1x10 @ 35lbs assist. 1x10 @ 54lbs assist focusing on negatives to really build my back.
Unilateral shoulder press 3x10 each side w/ 15lb db. Love these, and my shoulders feel so much better this week after a full week on the new mattress. Next week I'm going to bump back up to what I was lifting before.
Walk out push up 3x10 (I hate these...really, HATE...)
Cardio blast- mountain climbers (1 minute)
double-arm dumbbell raise 3x10 @ 20lb db
incline fly press-out combo (can do on the floor instead) 3x10 @ 15lb dbs on an incline bench
medicine ball pullover 3x10 w/ 15 lb medicine ball.

3x25 stability ball crunches

Cardio: 20 minutes on treadmill. Roughly 2.6 miles. 5 minute cooldown.

I threw some lunch together when I got home (was famished). Spinach salad with hummus, cucumber, and tomato. And a crack wrap (flat out, hummus, a little jalepeno cheese).

I LOVE LOVE LOVE these new Nike dri fit tanks I picked up, I hate wearing shirts with sleeves when I work out. These are cut perfect, are nice and long in length (helps a lot when doing pushups and such). Sports Authority near me had them on sale for $15.99 through 7/18 (normally $20.99). I might have to go pick up a few more in some other colors.

I'm looking forward to dinner tonight. Both Danica and Megan have made black bean burgers lately, so I'm going to make some tonight! Yum!

Whit is a fan of giving, so make sure to go enter her birthday giveaway. So much good stuff!

TGIF!

Ahhh happy Friday all! I was looking out my office window this morning and saw the following:

Very low, I hope everything was okay with it though there is a park on the other side of the trees so maybe they were just putting it down there. We see a lot of balloons here in the summer, they are so pretty. :)

I had one of my most delicious Green Monsters this morning. I think it was the fresh spinach I bought last night...it was my regular PB cup but it just tasted perfect.

I had a boring snack a few hours later, oats sounded good. I made a bowl that consisted of: 1/2c of quick oats, 1/2 mashed banana, drizzle of unsweetened vanilla almond breeze. It was tasty, though boring looking. :)

After that I hit the gym for an early lunch. I did day 6 of Gina's Summer shape up. I had to make it fast so I did very little rest between sets.

Warmup: 1 mile @ 7:53. 3 minutes of gradual cooldown.

rope pressdown - 3x10 @ 50lbs
Cross chest dumbbell curl - 3x10 @ 17.5lb dumbbells (each arm)
Prestretch triceps extension - 3x10 @ 10lb dbs

Cardio blast: 8 minutes on treadmill variety hill program @ 7.0 mph. 3 minute cooldown.

Tricep pushups - 3x10 full push ups, not on the knees like in the vid.
Dumbbell hammer curl - 3x10 @ 15lb dbs.

Cardio: 13 minutes at around an 8 minute mile. 5 minute cooldown.

I was super hungry when I got home....I made another quesadilla with the crappy fake chicken (it smells really bad cooking, can you tell I am not a fan?)

And a delicious spinach salad with mushrooms, cucumber, tomatoes, and hummus.

And a unpictured bowl of red grapes that I'm eating right now.

I can't wait for the weekend! Though I have to get up early tomorrow morning to do mile repeats (ugh).

Wednesday

I'd like to say I was too busy to post today, but really just too lazy. I more or less eat the same stuff every day until dinner time, I'd like to say I mix it up but really I find stuff I like and eat it until I get tired of it. Fortunately since I started blogging I noticed that a lot of people are the same way. I think it is the convenience factor. Anyways...I started my day off with two cups of coffee and then made a sludge monster.

• 1 scoop of ON vanilla whey protein powder
• 1 cup of vanilla unsweetened Almond Breeze
• 4 sliced strawberries
• 4 cups of spinach (the spinach I bought at Costco is going bad FAST this week)
• 1/2c of frozen blueberries
• 1 TB almond butter
• 1/2 frozen banana
• 1.5c crushed ice

My morning snack was 1/2c 0% Fage, 6 sliced strawberries.

LUNCH, I was really craving sweet potato fries but we are out of sweet potatoes (cry). Fortunately I had bought a bag of organic red potatoes for DH so I sliced one of those up and baked it with some cayenne pepper. Pretty good, but still not a sweet potato. I also made a wrap today: 1 morningstar burger, hummus, spinach (gotta use it fast), 1/4 'cado, 1/4 tomato. I even grilled it today. Fancy pants!

Hopefully you all have noticed that the quality of my pictures is improving, I started to use my digital camera instead of my craptastic cell camera. Of course this also contributes to the laziness of my posts, see my desktop computer that I use most of the day has no reader for the memory card...so I'm posting now with my laptop since it has the little reader built in. Yeah, I'm lazy.

I grazed a bit for my afternoon snack, I had 6 cubes of fresh pineapple, a few TJ's chocolatey cats (whatever was left in the tub, like 6). Right as I left for the gym I had a Kashi trail mix bar (no pic).

Here is my workout today. I did Gina's summer shape up day 2.

Warmup: 1 mile @ 8:02 + 3 minutes cooldown.

split squats 1x10 @ 20lb dumbbells. 2x10 @ 15lb dbs.
Pilates side leg lift 1x30 each side
Pike up with the ball 3x10 - these are HARD
Seated calf raise 3x12 @ 100lbs

Cardio: Hill intervals
0-1:00 7.0mph 0.0 incline
1:00-2:00 7mph 3.0 incline
2:00 - 3:00 7.0mph 0.0 incline
3:00 - 4:00 7mph 4.0 incline
4:00 - 5:00 7.0mph 0.0 incline
5:00 - 6:00 6.5mph 6.0 incline
6:00 - 7:00 7.0mph 0.0 incline
7:00 - 8:00 7.0mph 6.0 incline
3 minute cooldown

leg extension 3x10 @ 75lbs (legs were TIIIRED after hills)
stability ball hamstring curl 3x12 (I love doing these, I hold for a few seconds at the top)
Weighted plie with calf raise 3x12 with a 30lb db

Cardio: 14 minutes on the elliptical at varying resistence (7-13) and varying crossramp (between 6-13). 5 minute cooldown and stretch.

After that I made dinner. I was totally wanting a big ol taco salad. I poached a few chix breasts early in the day so that all I had to do was shred and cook in seasonings at dinner time.


In my salad: 1 shredded chix breast, 2 cups of mixed greens, 1/2 tomato, handful of corn, a lot of salsa, a little plain yogurt, a little shredded pepper jack cheese, and 1/2 c of black beans...oh and a handful of riceworks sweet chili chips for a little crunch.

And with this I leave you with some random pics that I found on my camera!

Jada!

Cooper! This picture was actually on the local news, they have a morning "pet walk" forecast, and I submitted this picture for Apple Cup petwalk last year. I still have the clip saved on our DVR, such a proud kitty mommy.

And a pic from our last trip to Maui (February 2009), this is at the Ho'okipa Lookout on the North shore of Maui. This is a big windsurfing spot, though none where there the day we stopped in.

Aloha!

Happy Monday

Since our new mattress is being delivered this afternoon I got up with the hubby at 4:45 and went to the gym. I had to pry myself out of bed, but once I was done with my workout I was glad that I did. I had 1/2 a banana with a little bit of almond butter in between (like a sandwich).

Workout:

Warm up: 1 mile @ 7:59, 4 minute "cooldown"

Stability ball chest press 3x10 @ 30lb dumbbells
DB Deltoid lateral raises 3x10 @ 12.5lb dbs (keeping the weight down since I have shoulder pain)
High Row 3x10 @ 60lbs (I do mine with both arms)

Cardio blast: Intervals.
1 minute @ 6.5mph
1 minute @ 9.0 mph
multiply times 4
3 minute "cooldown"

Stability ball push up 3x10
Front DB raises 3x10 @ 12.5 (again keeping weight down grr)

Cardio:
2.25 miles @ 17 minutes

I came home and took a shower and immediately made a Sludge/poop/green monster.

I'm going to get through the rest of my Google reader and get some work done. Here is a cute pic of Cooper trying to keep cool over the weekend. I love to rub that tummy. :)