Definitely an Asics Gal

I know after yesterday’s post lots of folks are curious about my new running shoes so I thought I’d mention them.  I’ve been wearing the popular Asics GT series for about 4 years now.  I loved the first pair I had but the second pair I never cared for.  They were comfy but somewhere along the way the design got bulkier and being a gal with size 10 feet I don’t need help with making my feet clunky.

When I went in to check out the newest version of the GT I was pleased to see that it does seem a little lighter and less bulky this time around.  I was not, however, stoked to see the $180 price tag and wouldn’t even try them on.  Instead  I put the sales guy to work explaining other shoes and lower priced options.

I tried three other brands, some were running shoes, some training shoes and a couple of them were the newer ‘barefoot’ technology.  But in the end I didn’t love any of them and ended up going with the very first pair I tried on…another pair of Asics.

This time I have opted for the lightweight Gel Neo-33…a new member of the Asics line with natural support and good stability.  The biggest difference for me is that these are neutral, as opposed to being designed to help with pronation.  Because I don’t run long distances and really don’t run outside I felt like these were the best alternative to my usual GTs.  The fact that they were $40 cheaper helped too.

I’ve worn them running on the treadmill twice, the ARC trainer once and so far so good.  I want one more test run before I fully commit but at this point I’m quite happy.  As long as my joints and feet agree, we’re all good.

A fun thing about them is that they actually came in a cool colour!  When he first showed me a black shoe I was a bit turned off but once I had them on I think they are super cute!  :)  And my feet don’t look like big white sleds!

Cardio: Treadmill Torch

It’s no secret I’m not a big fan of running.  But I know the benefits of it so I work hard to find running workouts that work for me.  I prefer interval training for many reasons, and after following many plans created by other bloggers I have finally formulated a plan that works for me. 

This treadmill session only takes 20 minutes, burns about 150+ calories, and leaves me sweaty and breathing hard.  Twenty Minute Treadmill Torch!

Minutes	Exercise	Incline	My Speed
0-3 mins	warm-up	5%	2.7-3.5 mph
3-4 mins	jog	2%	4.7 mph
4-5 mins	walk	6%	3.5 mph
5-6 mins	run	2%	5.2 mph
6-7 mins	walk	6%	3.5 mph
7-8 mins	run	2%	5.2 mph
8-9 mins	walk	6%	3.5 mph
9-10 mins	run	2%	5.2 mph
10-12 mins	walk	8%	3.5 mph
12-12:45 mins	sprint	2%	6.0 mph
12:45-14 mins	walk	2%	3.7 mph
14-14:45 mins	sprint	2%	6.0 mph
14:45-16 mins	walk	2%	3.7 mph
16-17 mins	balls out!	2%	7.0 mph
17-20 mins	cool down	4% – 0%	3.7-2.5 mph

I add this to the end of strength training sessions or combine it with 30 minutes of other cardio such as the recumbent bike or my new favourite, the ARC trainer.  Hello cardio endorphins!  My goal is to get my speed up over time but I’ve always been a slowpoke runner!

Do you wish you liked running more?  Are you an interval fan?

Let me know if you give this a go!

{Y’all know this already, but I’m just a blogger not a fitness professional so please make sure to consult your trainer or your doctor before following any new fitness regime.  Safety first!}

Deeeeelicious Dinner

Dinner tonight was sooooo good that I actually dragged my exhausted self off the sofa to come upstairs and write up this blog just for you all.  My creation could not wait until tomorrow.  :)

It can, however, wait til the end of this post. bwahahaha.

Before dinner there was the rest of my day…so y’all have to suffer through that first. Breakfast was a Liberte yogurt cup with sliced banana and the orange/flax granola that came with the cup…

Tasty, but man it doesn’t hold me over.  I was hungry less than two hours later.  Since breakfast was late and I didn’t want to jump right into lunch, I drank a litre of water and another cup of coffee to hold myself over.

Lunch was quick and easy.  Leftover pizza and sliced baby cucumbers. 

I love English cucumber.  It’s hands down one of my favourite veggies (which is odd because my Mom and I have very similar tastes and she HATES cucumber), and these baby ones are perfectly sweet, juicy and crunchy.  nom!!

Afternoon pick-me-up…no-bake crack cookies.  I can’t believe I haven’t just sat down and demolished the whole container.  Oh wait, it’s still early!

I didn’t get my outdoor walk today…which is sad because it is Earth Day after all…but it was either that OR go to the gym.  So I chose to go to the gym because I was really feeling in the groove to get a sweat on.

I had a good treadmill run.  12 minutes in a row, which doesn’t happen for me very often.  24 minutes in total.  I was aiming for 3km but came up a bit short before the treadmill turned itself off.  Oh well, time for some strength training anyway…

• lunges, with weight bar, 3 x 12 (per side)
• plie squats, 3 x 12
• dead lifts, 25lbs, 3 x 12
• 21s, 25lbs, 3 x 12
• hamstring curls on the ball, 3 x 12
• crunches, feet on the ball, 3 x 12
• bicycle crunches, 3 x 12 (per side)
• side planks, 30 seconds each side

Sweaty mess achieved!

As soon as I got home I started putting dinner together, so I could shower while it baked.  I’ve had a craving for Mexican food and yesterday I made sure to get all the ingredients for my Chicken Enchiladas.  Earlier today, Arron mentioned he had his own dinner plans so I decided to make tonight’s enchiladas a little healthier and more “my own”.

Sweet Potato, Spinach and Chicken Enchiladas

Followed the basic recipe but added steamed & mashed sweet potato and steamed fresh spinach to the mix.

I grilled up a couple of chicken breasts on The Griddler, seasoned lightly with s&p.

Decided to just use one…shredded it and mixed with about 1 cup of rinsed navy beans.  Seasoned with a heavy dose of my homemade Mexican seasoning.

Steamed half of a large sweet potato (approx 1 cup) with the skin on and cut into cubes.

Added three large handfuls of fresh spinach to the steamer with about 1 minute left.  Cooked until very wilted.

Mixed it all together with 1/4 cup of Trader Joe’s Habanero and Lime Salsa, a drizzle of enchilada sauce, and about 2/3 oz of light cheddar.

Rolled the filling up inside six small whole wheat tortillas and then topped the whole works with the rest of the enchilada sauce, the other 1/3 oz of cheese, and a snipped green onion.  Baked for 15 minutes at 375 until bubbly and hot.

Drizzled light sour cream on mine…

Then went back for seconds.

OMG.  Deeeeeeelish.  The addition of the sweet potato and spinach gave it such an excellent taste!!  Sweet and savoury all rolled together.  And an extra veggie serving or two in there!!  Definitely the only way to go in the future. 

Now there is some sort of dessert (crack cookie anyone?) that shall be consumed.  *giggles*

Back to It

Shortly after we last met I laced up my shoes and headed outside for a quick jog.  I was pressed for time so decided to make the most of my time by…um…running a hill.  Ouch.  There is a shortish paved path that connects my street with the street above…I ran up and down it five times.  Only took about 11 minutes…I walked twice…and thought my lungs were going to burn out of my chest.  Sure doesn’t take much to drive my heart rate through the roof!

When I got back to the house I popped in my Booty Camp DVD and did the Booty Booster routine.  Owwwwwwieeeee!  I would have thought all of the yoga I have been doing lately would have helped maintain my stamina with these workouts, but apparently I’ve been neglecting my buns! 

Snacked on the above pictured Wasa with PB & banana to hold me over until dinner.

For dinner I wanted to BBQ a tiny little feast for my houseguest, so I grilled up a couple of extra lean herbed turkey sausages…

I had intended to grill the potatoes in a foil pack on the BBQ but realized I was out of tin foil!  So instead I steamed the bite sized yellow potato pieces, then dried them in a kitchen towel.  Tossed with a drizzle of EVOO, paprika, salt & pepper, minced garlic and a small chopped onion…then roasted in a 450 degree oven for about 15 minutes (tossing part way through).

 

Crispy and deeeelish.  Probably better than if I’d done the foil pack!

With a side of spinach salad…including baby cukes, Roma tomatoes, carrots, and yellow peppers…

Served at the actual dinner table!

Dessert was a serving of Nanaimo Bar Fro-Yo jazzed up with a couple of smashed up Eggies.  I figured if I got in a planned dessert I’d be less likely to want to drag a bowl of those Eggies to bed with me tonight.  :)

Fun moment of the day:  Waving at Lex from my deck while she and Dave had their new house inspected.  They are buying the house directly behind mine!  Sadly, I’ll be gone by the time they move in…but it was still cool to see them there!!  :)

PS:  I want Cheetos. 

Tweet Buddy

It’s like a gym buddy, but on Twitter.  Someone to give you that motivation and push you need to get through a run.  That was Jess for me this morning.  I promised her 3 miles (5km for you us Canadians…lol) and although I totally ran out of time to complete those 3 miles I thought of her pushing me for the 2 miles I did complete!  Thanks Jess.  mwah.

Ya, so this morning we were up extra super duper early to drop FH off and then take some friends to the airport.  In the car we snacked on homemade granola bars…

I’m so glad I remembered a pre-gym snack.  I needed it to power me through Intro to Iron Day Two and that run I mentioned.  Day two is legs…probably not the best day to try for a make-up run…lol…but I did it.  One mile before the strength session and the other mile after.

Just so you know:  I’m slow. 13 minute mile.  ha!  (and that is with an increase to 5mph from the 4.6mph I had been running for a few months).

When I got back to the house I went straight to the fridge for the breakfast cookie I had put together last night.  I love it when I remember to plan ahead.

Crazy cookie: 1/3 cup whole oats, 2 tsp flax meal, 1 tsp coconut, 1 tsp mini choco chips…

While mixing with a big splash of UCAB (chocolate instead of UVAB) I also decided to add 1 tsp cocoa powder and 1 tbsp protein powder.  Our bananas are all green or I would have added 1/2 of that too.

Topped with vanilla yogurt and hemp seeds…

With coffee…

I felt hungry again about an hour later but I knew that was just my body digesting and continuing to cool down so I kept sipping my coffee and water and waited it out.  But as soon as the clock struck noon…look out!  Straight to the fridge to see what I could chow down.

Leftover Broccoli Soup.  It’s 10 days old…hmmmm…well if I don’t post later you know it was past due.  haha.

With Kashi Honey Sesame…

And now it’s 2pm and I’m eyeing up some sort of fruity snack.  And I’m already thinking about that last piece of leftover pizza in the fridge…

…and wishing it was three pieces.

Morning Chill

FYI: 14 minutes of Booty Booster combined with a 3 hour conference call (sitting on butt) and 2 hour movie (sitting on butt) makes for stiff hamstrings and calves the next day. Just sayin’.

I thought things might loosen up at the gym, but no such luck because I pretty much raced through my workout and totally had to cut the cardio portion right off.  Today was day three (week two) of Intro to Iron which is mostly upper body with a bit of other body love thrown in.

Normally I’d tackle 20-30 minutes cardio afterwards but today I had to run my car to the shop for it’s annual provincial inspection so I decided to use the shop near our house and jog home.

Turns out it’s barely 2km…but it’s pretty much all uphill…and covered in a whole lotta ice!  So my run was more of a jog/walk combo.  Better than nothing, but not what I had hoped for.  I do have to walk the 2km back to get my car later though so that’s good.

aaaand I got to wear my coolio lululemon running gloves that Amy got for me!  Slightly disappointing in that they didn’t keep my fingers any warmer than my regular gloves (my fingers FREEZE easily and quickly).

…but I did like the softness of the exterior when I rubbed my snotty nose face.  :)

When I got home I went straight for the blender.  Gotta get a couple of servings of fruit and veg in my system!

In the KA:  ice, 1/2 banana, 1 tbsp honey PB, 2 tsp flax meal, 2 cups baby spinach, 8 oz unsweetened chocolate Almond Breeze…

Not toooo shabby!  (I totally went to order my Amazing Meal today but my wallet is in my car…I didn’t want to run with my purse!)

Followed closely by coffeeeeeeee and a cranberry-bran Vitamuffin…

Yum!! 

For lunch I needed some protein, so I opened up a can of tuna.  Added to it: plain yogurt, grainy dijon mustard, chopped pickles, green onions and lots of ground pepper…

Rolled up in two small ancient grains tortillas with mixed greens…

Cukes on the side.

After which I got the call that my car needs it’s rear brakes done.  Boooo!  I just barely paid off Christmas and now this. Lame-o!  I sorta figured this was coming…but was hoping I could squeak another six months (or year!) outta them.  Damn safety!  Geeeeze.  ;)

This might call for a cookie this afternoon.

Happy Feet!

…and knees…and hips…and lower back!

What’s the answer to achy joints and chronic creeks and groans?

New shoes!!  (OK, it’s one answer not THE answer…but still…yay!)

Lucky me received Running Room gift cards from my Mom and my Grandpa for my birthday way back in November.  I had originally intended on putting them towards a heart rate monitor, but then FH got me that so instead I was able to get new shoes.  I finally got in there last week to get them, but of course they had to order in my size…but just a week later I have happy feet!

Asics GT-2150s.  (random fact: Amy and I wear the same shoes)

I had always worn Nike or New Balance in the past but was NEVER happy or truly comfortable.  Having said that, it’s not like I ever did much in the way of running or sports before either.  I didn’t really focus on needing good footwear until we moved to Halifax two years ago and I decided to join a gym and try running, etc.  The sports I had tried before (yoga, rowing and kickboxing) didn’t require athletic shoes.

I tried on pair after pair at regular shoe stores and just could not find any that I was really comfortable in.  Arch supports always in the wrong place, or my heels would slip, or toes would pinch.  I wear a relatively large shoe for a woman (10) so finding my size was an issue too.  Finally, I sucked it up and went to RR.  The guy there worked with me for a solid half hour trying on several styles and brands of shoes…in the end I walked out with the first pair he recommended.  Asics 2130s.  Heaven I tell you! 

Admittedly I’ve been milking those shoes for two years which is a HUGE no-no.  No wonder my body aches.  Especially because the majority of my running is on the treadmill.  Those shoes may still look pretty much new, but trust me my friends they are NOT.  So, I didn’t even look for other brands this time…I just went in and asked for the new version of my shoes, et voila!  Made.for.me. I swear!

This morning I took them for their inaugural run at the gym.  Supah bright white! ha!  Especially because I also got new supah bright white socks!  But the feeling is night and day.  I’m sure within the week, my body will be thanking me profusely.  :)

Do you have a preferred running/training shoe?  What?  Why?

Gym time:

• Cruddy 20 minute treadmill run.  Just over 2km, but it was sucky.  I don’t know where my energy was, but certainly not with me.  Booo.  But better than a kick in the arse I suppose.
• Core work.  If I don’t cardio it up, I beat it up.  Beat up my abs.  3 sets of 12: hamstring curls on the ball, crunches, reverse crunches, side to sides with 2kg ball.  3 x 30 second plank.

On the way to the gym I munched on half of a Peanut Butter Cookie Larabar.

Once home I chowed down on some toast made with my favorite bread.  Sunflower Flax.  Yum!

One with peanut butter & banana…

And one with peanut butter & raspberry jam…

With, what else? Coffee!

Broke into another pack from my birthday loot box…Italian Roast.  Not as dark and rich as I expected, but yummy nonetheless.

Mucho work and such to get done.  FH and I are off to the Symphony with Lynn and her hubby tonight thanks to another wicked Twitter win.  :)  Time is crunched!

It’s a Blizzard!

…and not the good, ice-creamy kind!

The snowy, 100km windy kind!

When I looked outside at 5pm it wasn’t snowing.  When we walked out the door at 5:45 there was snow accumulating on the roads already!  Lucky me getting to drive in rush hour highway traffic to get to the chiropractor.  Blech.  FH did the return drive to the movie theatre where we saw the free screening of Invictus (thanks to The Coast for free tickets!).  Good movie!!

We didn’t have dinner before the movie so we were both famished afterwards.  FH wanted pizza but instead of coming home, ordering and waiting we decided to just stop at Boston Pizza instead.  Since we were already out in the blizzard and all!

I ate the equivalent of a block of cheese!!

Shared the cheese toast starter…it should be called crack toast. 

I could have opted for salad.  I almost always order the spinach salad at BP.  But it was blowing icy snow outside so salad wasn’t going to cut it. 

Individual Cajun Shrimp Pizza…

I know many of you might not think this is possible…but there was too.much.cheese.  I’d ask for no cheddar next time…and half the mozza.  I totally loved the tomatoes on top though!

I ate half and brought the rest home to add to the rest of the leftovers in our fridge. 

<< Rewinding to the rest of the day…

Breakfast smoothie: Amazing Grass Chocolate Superfood, 1/2 banana, spinach, flax meal, unsweetened vanilla Almond Breeze

Half-caf & nog…

Toast with The Bee’s Knees and banana…

Quick trip to the gym.  I RAN 20 MINUTES STRAIGHT YOU GUYS!!!  I was pressed for time so told myself I just had to run as long as I could so I could get out of there…and I made it all the way to the end of my time slot.  :)  Including warm-up and cooldown = 2.85km, 25 mins, 230 cals.  Added 3 sets of a variety of crunches to this for a full workout.

After which I had a speedy, hot shower and an even speedier lunch.  My weekly conference call was pending.

Small bowl of Farm Girl jambalaya…

Juicy pear with multigrain Wheat Thins and light Babybel…

After the 2 hour call I decided I should probably have a snack before the movie.  There were a lot of smashed pieces in the bag of Trader Joe’s peanut butter pretzels so I’ve been saving them in a container.  Today I got the GENIUS idea to stir some into my vanilla yogurt.

Deeeeeelish.  I am so smart!  haha.

Oh, and I packed a couple of mini candy canes in my purse for the movie.

I also packed water but forgot it in the car…so now I’m super thirsty!!

OK, that catches you up.  It’s been quite a day. 

The wind is shaking the house!!