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Sunday, January 2, 2011

Gee, that felt great!

Finally got my sorry butt off the couch and out the door, and I'm happy I did.

5.86km, 45:54.09, 7:50/km, 482 calories burned, 11 PP activity points earned. I ran the entire way, only stopping for the red lights (I obey all traffic signals), and for the most part felt really good. The lungs didn't want to play at first, but a quick shot of Ventolin and they opened right up. It was a perfect day for a run, sitting at -1C (about 30F) with little or no wind. I also tried to think positive about all the idiots out there that don't bother to shovel their walkways (that includes the City, by the way...um, bridge decks are sidewalks too!), as I appreciated the extra workout my buttocks were getting! It's just like running in the sand, for those in land of no snow. Good thing I invested in a pair of trail runners, as they really helped grip in the slipperier sections.

Going to dry off (yes, despite the negative temps, no hat or gloves and only one layer, I still manage to sweat like I just came out of a steam room!), have a quick bite to eat and then off to feed some cats.

Later,

2011 Goals

I don't call them resolutions...instead they will be goals, something to shoot for. I do better when I have a target in sight, such as a race to train for. So here goes...

1. I will enjoy each day for what it is. I cannot change yesterday, and I have no idea if tomorrow will even happen...so each day, I open my eyes and appreciate that.

2. I will be at goal weight (174 - there, it's in black and white) at the end of the year. That doesn't mean I have a whole year to get there...I will be there by that time. I "found" quite a few pounds over the last year and they need to go!!

3. To achieve #2, I will do boot camp (already registered...it's starts on Tuesday!) and put my whole self into the new WW Plan. I will!!! And running resumes this week. Clinic officially starts January 25th, but I need to be back in form before then.

4. I will get my house in order. I know on my death bed, I won't say "gee...I wish I kept a tidier house", but I still need to get rid of some crap and organize! I think that's what held me up in the kitchen, as it was so disorganized, it was easier to take something out of the box than to make it from scratch. That changes this year. And looking around, I have piles everywhere. I need to get out from under this!

5. Pay off one credit card. Seems small, but it'll be huge for me...I am a self-confessed credit junkie, and I want out from under this monkey! What I really want is to buy my own home and I can't do that if I'm stupid with debt.

6. Run at least two, possibly three marathons in 2011. I will register - correct that - just registered for Calgary in May and I'd love to run Toronto in October again, as it was an awesome course and I PB'd there. Good news is that while Goodlife has moved to May, Scotiabank has moved to October, so we'll see what the cash flow looks like for the year. See #5, after all. I'll also look for something in July or August, so that I don't slack off from training. I have just over two years to meet my Boston target of a 4-hour finish, so I must train, train, train. I'll also do a few Halfs in the year too...already registered for the Hypothermic in February, I'll register for the Policeman's in April, probably the Big Run in May and most definitely Melissa's in September. I see a lot of running in my future.

7. Do more things. I need to go hiking more, sign up for a class, do something different. Try something new...

Think that's it. Going to go change and go for a run in the sunshine.

Later,

Good Intentions

Another year...they really do start going by very quickly, the older you get. Take note of that, you youngens out there!!

After enjoying my New Year's Eve feast and Criminal Minds marathon, I was just about to head to bed when I remembered that I forgot (is that right?!) to go feed a friend's cats during the day! Oops!! So I got dressed, and headed out into the night. Weaving through traffic (seriously...construction closers at 1:30am on New Year's Eve?!) and drunk people (who think standing in the middle of the road to hail a taxi is a good thing!), I fed the cats and returned for home. That took almost an hour! Unfortunately my timing is perfect, as I re-entered the downtown core just in time with the police locking it down to investigate Calgary's first murder of the year!!!! ARGH!!!! Finally, after some serious bobbing and weaving, I made it home and in bed by 2:30am.

Got up yesterday, feeling like dirt. You'd think I'd been drinking all night, but I think it was the lack of sleep. After a couple cups of coffee, I made a "brunch" of some of the leftover potatoes and panchetta hash browns, a couple slices of the olive bread (OMG!) and two perfectly dippy eggs. Dippy eggs LOVE olive bread!


I made Caesar salad and Cherry-O-Cream Cheese pie for dinner at Mom's later. My Caesar is a recipe I've been following for eons...mix olive oil, Dijon mustard, Worchestershire sauce, S&P, garlic (lots!) and lemon juice. Let sit, then blend in one egg yolk before tossing with romaine and croutons (I tossed cubes of the olive bread with evoo, garlic, S&P) and loads of Parmesan cheese. The pie is also a family tradition...we had it every year for New Year's day dinner.

Into a bowl mix 1 block softened cream cheese, 1 can condensed milk (NOT evaporated!), 1/3 c lemon juice and some vanilla. Blend till smooth and pour into a prepared graham wafer crust. Let sit in the fridge till it firms up and then top with cherry pie filling. Simple and oh, so freaking good!!!

My brother, using the ham bone from Christmas, made an amazing pot of ham-bone soup. He, like my father before, threw everything into the pot...potatoes, carrots, barley, split peas, white beans, celery and apparently tapioca. Said he grabbed it in error once (thought it was barley) and found it was a great way to thicken the soup, so now he uses it all the time. Couldn't tell it was in there. So we enjoyed a good, hot bowl of soup, toasty croissants for dipping, salad and then pie for dessert. A nice way to start the year. Swung by and fed the cats (no police blockades this time!) and I was home and in bed at 10, as I had full intentions of getting up and going down to run club this morning.

The alarm went off at 7am, and after getting up to feed the cats, I took a look in the mirror, shut the alarm off and went back to bed. I looked (and sort of felt) like I had one hell of a bender last night! What was that?! Slept a little longer, and woke up with a sneezing attack. I do hope this doesn't mean a cold is pending. I'll take some vitamins and orange juice and stop this in it's tracks!

After some more coffee, I made myself a giant pancake. My mix is buttermilk and whole wheat, and I skipped the egg addition (said it was optional and I didn't even miss it) to make it even less points. While the pancake cooked, I mixed up a banana, maple syrup and a touch of cinnamon. Topped the whole mess with some pom buds. Easy to do...cut a pomegranate in half and spank with the back of a wooden spoon over a bowl...warning...do not wear white while doing this! It is messy.



So now I sit here, pondering about 2011, my goals for the year and a run today. Mr. Garmin is cleaned out and ready for a new year, and I updated my Running Room trainer for 2010. I ran 1,766.12 km last year, or 1,097 miles! I plan on doing that and much more in 2011.

Later,

Friday, December 31, 2010

Last day of 2010

I'm not much for pondering my past, nor do I usually set resolutions. But I am hopeful that 2011 goes a whole hell of a lot smoother than 2010 did. I am kind of glad it's behind me now. Okay, it will be very shortly! Happy New Year's, where ever you are.

After I got home from Cochrane (ended up running 6.37km with Martin), I changed out of my wet running clothes (it amazes me that I can sweat like a mother bear when it's negative double digits out there!) and changed into dry running clothes. After all, I had the Resolution 5km Run at Eau Claire at 6pm. I had a quick bite to eat, as I also came to the conclusion that I didn't take in a lot of food this morning (a bowl of oatmeal and a glass of milk), and that could be why I didn't do the full intended 10k this afternoon. I whipped up a very fast Lemon Carbanara (cook yolk less egg noodles, drain, toss with one egg beaten with lemon juice, S&P, chili flakes, return to pot and stir till smooth and creamy and "cooked". Top with a little Parm.) and then headed down to Eau Claire.

The swag for this year's run was another winter running jacket like last year, but this year it's orange. Bright "we'll-be-safe-hunting" orange! And to come into a room and see a sea of orange...well, it was a sight! The race was sold out, as always, but this year I really think most people showed up to run it. Usually the temps drop to mind-numbing by the time of the race, and most people just claim the jacket and never show up to run. This year was the exception, as it got warmer, rather than colder. Because of all the construction, the route was a little different, as was to be a 5km, but Mr. Garmin says I did 4.85km. That's okay...I ran the whole thing, I passed people and I felt great at the finish line. So, just over 11km on the final day of the year for me. Yay.

Came home and changed again, after a visit with other running peeps, and sat down to some much deserved appies. Herb Brie cheese, stuffed Queen olives, a type of goat cheese I can't pronounce, and that has a very unusual but tasty flavour, and my absolute favourite, pickled herring. I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE anything pickled, and I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE seafood, so mix the two?!?! HEAVEN!!! I picked up a few treats while picking up my New Year's feast from Sunterra Market.
After appies, I had a Shrimp and Fennel Slaw salad. Very light and refreshing.
After that, it was time for a bowl of soup. Tomato Gin Bisque, to be exact. Double Yum!
Entree consisted of roasted baby potatoes (which I dipped into the garlic aioli provided for the salad...happy, happy taste buds!), roasted medley of vegetables (yellow zucchini, carrots, red bell peppers, snap peas - very colourful) and beef tenderloin. Melt in your mouth tender and TASTY!!! Finished pretty full, so I decided to sit back and watch a bit of the Criminal Minds marathon on A&E (mmmmm...Thomas Gibson floats my boat...that's all I'm sayin!).
Once I felt I had room again, I indulged in the dessert...chocolate cheesecake with berries and raspberry coulis. I may need a cigarette after this...good thing it was small!
And good thing I ordered the Roast Chicken version of this, so I have soup, salad, veggies and chicken for Sunday now, along with chocolate cheesecake!! Tomorrow night will be spent at Mom's with my brother and SIL, eating ham-bone soup (made from the Christmas ham) and salad and Cherry-O-Cream Cheese pie (a no-bake cheesecake)...and a blast from my past. We always had this pie on New Year's day for as long as I can remember.
So, all the best to you and yours in 2011. Work hard enough and your dreams will come true.
Cheers!

#250

250 marathons in 365 days...5 runs a week...10,550 km or 6,555 miles. In one year!

Today was the final marathon of the 2010 Marathon Quest, and I wanted to be a part of it. Now, I haven't been running all the much lately, so 42.2 changed to 21.1 which changed to 10 which changed to "I'll just go and do what I can and enjoy the day for what it is". Resume regular running is #1 for 2011, by the way.

My running buddy D., part of the Eau Claire Running Room. Knew a few people out today, but a lot of our regular group weren't able to make it. Sad for them.


The man of the hour...wait, scratch that...YEAR!

Gorgeous day, but COLD. Actually, I lucked out, starting later in the day (1:30pm), as it was -22C with a -29C windchill at 9 am when Martin and some real die-hards started out. The course was a 2km out & back along the river, in Cochrane, AB., just west of Calgary. By the time I got out there, I think the temp had risen to -12C and the wind had shifted, coming in the from the West, meaning a Chinook! In fact, it's 10 degrees warmer now (11:38pm) then it was this afternoon in the sunshine.
This is early...I still look like I'm having fun!


The group just kept growing and growing...so many people came out to see this final run and it was awesome to see how many were kids.


Yes, that is a rainbow...no, it did not rain, nor was it snowing. Very cool!
The final steps to the finish line! He was like the Pied Piper, always surrounded by kids. Which is fitting...he was doing this for them, after all!


I am THRILLED that I managed to get one photo with him after the run was done. So inspiring, and yet the most gracious person, right to the end.
Wonder how he's planning on spending his day tomorrow, since for the first time in 365 days, he doesn't have to get up early to run!
And at last count, we heard he broke the $200,000 mark, but his goal is still $250,000 by February 4th. I'm certain he'll make it...Calgary is pretty well known for helping charities.
Later,

Wednesday, December 29, 2010

BORED!

Okay...there are times I regret my "put your head down and just do your work till it's done" attitude. Because I was so freaking efficient last week, I am sitting here today with literally NOTHING TO DO! I am waiting on other departments, like dominoes, to put their respective heads down and to do their jobs. I have very high expectations, apparently. Now my boss did say I could go home, but as some sort of weird freak, I prefer to be at work...WORKING. Grrrr...

Had the rest of the borscht and a small cabbage roll, ham that literally equaled two bites and some green salad. Am I weird in the fact that I eat romaine lettuce the same way others eat carrots or celery? Straight out of the bowl (I was "girly" and used a fork today), no dressing, oil or nothun. It's fabulous that way, but my coworkers tend to send me those sideways "does she know there's no gobs of Ranch on that" looks. Breakfast was some more of the pumpkin oatmeal, which was very good the next day. Of course, I did punch it up a bit with Epicure Maple popcorn seasoning. Yes, POPCORN seasoning. Basically it's maple sugar, so just enough sweetness to cut the bland butternut squash.

I am happy that I registered for Boot Camp last night, as there are no more excuses. I did not like the puffiness of the face that stared back at me this morning while getting ready for work. And not puffy due to lack of sleep...rather, lack of control!

Although, if I keep eating mandarins like I am, I'm likely to dispel all of my Christmas choices the good old-fashioned way!! But they're sooooo good!

All right...I'm off to actually hover over people's desks to see if they've managed to do their job yet, so that I may continue forward with mine. Or I may just go home! It's currently snowing and blowing here in Calgary. After our Christmas Chinook and temps of +5C, today's -15C is a bit of a shock to the system. Not sure if I'll make it out to running clinic tonight...or if anyone is for that matter, as quite a few were traveling to other locations to see family.

Later,

Tuesday, December 28, 2010

Last day

Can't believe that the 4-day Christmas weekend is done already. At least I was a bit more productive today than I was yesterday...spent the day sleeping, eating, napping, eating more.

Today I managed to make Slow-Cooker Pumpkin Oatmeal (from the WW Weekly last week)...into slow cooker put 6 c water (I halved the recipe and switched up half the water for milk), 3 c raw pumpkin diced (use pie or sugar pumpkins or butternut squash), 1 1/2 c steel-cut oats, 1/2 c honey, 1 tsp cinnamon, 1/2 tsp salt and 1/4 tsp ground nutmeg. Stir till mixed and cook overnight on low. Now, here's what I'll do differently next time...I'll still stick the milk/water combo - made it creamier, but I'll watch how long I cook it for. Some stuck to the side of my slow-cooker and got a little too brown. I'll also roast the squash first, so it gets good and caramelly before it goes into the pot. I find the big chunks of plain squash kind of blah. Definitely more cinnamon, and I'll sprinkle with course brown sugar before eating, for that extra crunch and sweet hit. Only 5 points per serving, and I have 4 1-cup containers waiting in the fridge for breakfasts this week.

Did a load of laundry, so I'd have clean clothes for work tomorrow. Oh well, it's only two days, then I'm off till Tuesday again.

Washed a butt-load...okay, sink load, of dirty dishes. Sadly, made supper and now I have more. I so have to find a new dishwasher in the new year!

Went and fed my friend's cats...and realized I forgot her Christmas present on the back seat of my car AGAIN. Seriously!! I'm there every day...you'd think I'd remember to take the blinking thing up with me. I have till Sunday to remember...want to place odds on that happening?!?!

Changed the litter, hauled some trash, squeezed in a short nap, watched the Home Buyers marathon on HGTV. Made me really want to get my own home. Growing weary of renting. I'll have to work on that goal for 2011.

I did buy dinner, because I was bored with turkey and such. I ended up with a really tasty, chunky Borscht, that worked out to 2 pts per cup. Add a little light sour cream, and a cabbage roll in tomato sauce, and I had a very filling meal. And lunch for tomorrow is ready to go!

Registered for Boot Camp (starts Jan 4th!), and ordered a RoadID. Will be plotting out my month, so that I can figure out boot camp, marathon training (most likely for Calgary in May) and other days to keep me moving every day.

With that, I'm going to go to bed at a decent hour, as 5:30am will come early.

Later,