I forgot to plan something to bring for lunch today. Luckily, I had a free coupon in the car for a Jalapeno Cheddar Sausage from Quik Trip! I walked there and on my way back decided to stop in at Dollar Tree for a bag of chips. The bargainer in me snagged up the Salsitas bag because it was bigger than the Doritos (and I happen to like them).
I have a problem with bagged chips. If I portion them out on a plate and put the bag away, I'm fine. If I'm eating them directly out of the bag, I'll eat the whole damn bag. It doesn't matter if it's a 20 serving bag (or in today's experience, a 5 serving bag), I will continue that hand-to-mouth routine until it's empty.
How was lunch though? It was great! It felt like middle school field trip lunch. I don't know if this was common for most people, but my school (a private Catholic school) would take field trips during the day to various outdoor places. When we did, we were to bring a sack lunch. I remember sitting on grass under the bright sun with a warm breeze, munching away at my bologna sandwich & chips. I also remember getting soda but I don't know if that was packed in my lunch or provided by the school. For me, it was a treat because we rarely got soda when I was a kid. Today, I was walking but the feeling of eating processed meat in the bright sun with a warm breeze was the same as I remembered it.
Wednesday, March 28, 2012
Saturday, March 24, 2012
Oh Sun, How I've Missed You!
I had a very satisfying run this morning. I ran 1.73 miles in 20 minutes. The weather is BEAUTIFUL!
When I got home, Sweetie was up and outside. I got my sugars back up real quick with an orange and some water, then she made eggs & bacon which I ate with black beans. It's really not a picture-worthy meal but my taste buds were VERY satisfied!
We decided to make use of the gorgeous day and went outside to clean out the shed and prep the strawberry patch before it started blooming. I should have taken pictures of this process because our shed was a disaster! I pulled everything out onto the patio and took stock of what we could throw away, donate, and keep. I swept out all the leaves and knocked down the cobwebs (steered clear of the mud dauber nests though!) Then we marveled at how big the shed was without all that crap. Some of that stuff had been there when we bought the house and we just never got around to doing anything with it. Most of it was trash but some treasures we uncovered included a sprinkler and some rebar. There's still some gardening things that could be trashed or given away but I didn't want to deal with it. Some part of me truly believes that I will eventually get all the supplies necessary to get plants started indoors and so I keep the flimsy plastic containers that I get when I purchase every year. I also have these PVC creations for starter plants which don't care to be transplanted (like peas and corn).
They weren't a flop but they didn't seem worth the effort so they've sat unused for the last two years.
Among the stuff that's been accumulating were 3 hoses with splits and holes throughout. We had used them to mark the lines of our landscaping plan last year and I held on to them with the intention of creating a segmented soaker hose. So while they were splayed out on the patio, I went ahead and cut the good sections out of them and put them in a tote, then got the soaker hose and cut it up into segments. All I need now are connectors and I've got individual plant soakers instead of unnecessary watering in non-planted areas! In the meantime, they are stored nicely rather than knotted up on the shed floor.
The shed still looks so much bigger, even after moving everything back in. We were very happy with the results!
Sweetie moved on to the strawberry patch to dig out the dandelions that had taken over. I went to work with a hacksaw and lowered the poles that hold netting over the strawberries. I had initially had them tall enough to protect the tomatoes and peppers but we're letting strawberries take over that whole area now and it looks strange for the netting to be that high. The strawberry patch now has fencing (to protect from dog and squirrels) and netting to protect from birds.
We might just get to EAT some of our strawberries this year!
When I got home, Sweetie was up and outside. I got my sugars back up real quick with an orange and some water, then she made eggs & bacon which I ate with black beans. It's really not a picture-worthy meal but my taste buds were VERY satisfied!
We decided to make use of the gorgeous day and went outside to clean out the shed and prep the strawberry patch before it started blooming. I should have taken pictures of this process because our shed was a disaster! I pulled everything out onto the patio and took stock of what we could throw away, donate, and keep. I swept out all the leaves and knocked down the cobwebs (steered clear of the mud dauber nests though!) Then we marveled at how big the shed was without all that crap. Some of that stuff had been there when we bought the house and we just never got around to doing anything with it. Most of it was trash but some treasures we uncovered included a sprinkler and some rebar. There's still some gardening things that could be trashed or given away but I didn't want to deal with it. Some part of me truly believes that I will eventually get all the supplies necessary to get plants started indoors and so I keep the flimsy plastic containers that I get when I purchase every year. I also have these PVC creations for starter plants which don't care to be transplanted (like peas and corn).
They weren't a flop but they didn't seem worth the effort so they've sat unused for the last two years.
Among the stuff that's been accumulating were 3 hoses with splits and holes throughout. We had used them to mark the lines of our landscaping plan last year and I held on to them with the intention of creating a segmented soaker hose. So while they were splayed out on the patio, I went ahead and cut the good sections out of them and put them in a tote, then got the soaker hose and cut it up into segments. All I need now are connectors and I've got individual plant soakers instead of unnecessary watering in non-planted areas! In the meantime, they are stored nicely rather than knotted up on the shed floor.
The shed still looks so much bigger, even after moving everything back in. We were very happy with the results!
 |
| Everything but the grill! |
Sweetie moved on to the strawberry patch to dig out the dandelions that had taken over. I went to work with a hacksaw and lowered the poles that hold netting over the strawberries. I had initially had them tall enough to protect the tomatoes and peppers but we're letting strawberries take over that whole area now and it looks strange for the netting to be that high. The strawberry patch now has fencing (to protect from dog and squirrels) and netting to protect from birds.
We might just get to EAT some of our strawberries this year!
Friday, March 23, 2012
First Time On A Foam Roller
I had pushed myself so far on Tuesday that on Thursday my calves were still screaming. I really should have done a proper cool-down and stretch after that stuff but I was just so jiggly in all areas that I wanted to lay down. Now I'm paying for it!
I asked my friend to bring her foam roller to work so I could try to work the soreness out over my lunch break. She showed me how to use it and I set out for a private place.
What I didn't realize until she showed me, was that when you get to a spot that hurts, you just hold still for 10-15 seconds. I was always of the assumption that you just continuously rolled back and forth - like a massage, I guess. But no, apparently maximum pain is the object of the game here.
My wrists started hurting from holding myself up before I got all the way through both legs because every time I'd inch up from the 10-second hold, it would hurt again. I'm not exaggerating when I say that every inch between my ankle and knee-pit was tight and sore. I decided to give my wrists a break and just went with leg weight pressure instead of body weight pressure for the rest of my lunch break while I read.
I never realized how much these things hurt! I can only assume that it helped me some but I'm still very tight and sore in my calves. I still feel a stretch just from pointing my toes toward my knees.
I'm going to keep stretching throughout the day at my desk because I've got another 20-minute run scheduled for tonight. If it's raining, that means another round of jumping jacks or something similar. I WILL stretch afterward this time!
I asked my friend to bring her foam roller to work so I could try to work the soreness out over my lunch break. She showed me how to use it and I set out for a private place.
What I didn't realize until she showed me, was that when you get to a spot that hurts, you just hold still for 10-15 seconds. I was always of the assumption that you just continuously rolled back and forth - like a massage, I guess. But no, apparently maximum pain is the object of the game here.
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| Te gusta mis calcetines? |
My wrists started hurting from holding myself up before I got all the way through both legs because every time I'd inch up from the 10-second hold, it would hurt again. I'm not exaggerating when I say that every inch between my ankle and knee-pit was tight and sore. I decided to give my wrists a break and just went with leg weight pressure instead of body weight pressure for the rest of my lunch break while I read.
I never realized how much these things hurt! I can only assume that it helped me some but I'm still very tight and sore in my calves. I still feel a stretch just from pointing my toes toward my knees.
I'm going to keep stretching throughout the day at my desk because I've got another 20-minute run scheduled for tonight. If it's raining, that means another round of jumping jacks or something similar. I WILL stretch afterward this time!
Thursday, March 22, 2012
Pushing & Pizza
This week has been tough. The weather has been gloomy and rainy. We can't go for our nightly walks and there's no sunshine pouring through the windows. It really takes its toll on me and by the time I get home, the last thing I want to do is exercise.
Monday I skipped the workout all together. I did not want to run in place after having been able to stretch my legs outside for a full week. I also couldn't be bothered to decide on an alternative exercise that would suffice for replacing the run. By the time I was heading to bed, I felt like a complete slug. I was like that character with a black cloud hovering over their head. Or Eeyore.
Tuesday I knew better than to let myself skip again. I went downstairs and decided to do jumping jacks for 20 minutes to make up for the run I didn't do on Monday. Instead, I did jumping jacks until I couldn't stand it anymore and then lightly jogged in place (sometimes just walked in place) until the burning in my calves went away, then jumping jacks again. I felt like it was a satisfactory replacement since I was just as winded and sweaty and jello-y as I am when I finish a good run.
Then I did something strange. I decided I'd go ahead with that night's scheduled workout as well! It was Shoulder, Arms, & Abs so I figured my jiggly legs wouldn't be to bothered by it anyway. I was right, the workout was completely do-able and I finished it feeling great. I felt so great, that I went ahead and did the "Strength Rounds" that usually follow the run (which I had skipped because my legs were so wiggly). I only got 6 rounds out before I felt like my legs were going to give out under me during the squats.
Wednesday morning I woke up feeling a strangely familiar soreness. My entire body ached. I could feel each an every muscle that had been worked the night before - especially my calves. I hadn't felt that sore since I did the Insanity program.
That night when I got home, Sweetie had a headache and didn't want to make dinner. I offered to make pizza and she took me up on it. The caveat? She was ready to eat. So I skipped the Deck of Cards workout scheduled and made dinner, then ate dinner, then sunk my overstuffed belly into the couch and read Rules of Civility until bedtime. I didn't feel bad at all about skipping, and my attitude didn't cave either. I'm chalking it up to the pizza ;-)
Monday I skipped the workout all together. I did not want to run in place after having been able to stretch my legs outside for a full week. I also couldn't be bothered to decide on an alternative exercise that would suffice for replacing the run. By the time I was heading to bed, I felt like a complete slug. I was like that character with a black cloud hovering over their head. Or Eeyore.
Tuesday I knew better than to let myself skip again. I went downstairs and decided to do jumping jacks for 20 minutes to make up for the run I didn't do on Monday. Instead, I did jumping jacks until I couldn't stand it anymore and then lightly jogged in place (sometimes just walked in place) until the burning in my calves went away, then jumping jacks again. I felt like it was a satisfactory replacement since I was just as winded and sweaty and jello-y as I am when I finish a good run.
Then I did something strange. I decided I'd go ahead with that night's scheduled workout as well! It was Shoulder, Arms, & Abs so I figured my jiggly legs wouldn't be to bothered by it anyway. I was right, the workout was completely do-able and I finished it feeling great. I felt so great, that I went ahead and did the "Strength Rounds" that usually follow the run (which I had skipped because my legs were so wiggly). I only got 6 rounds out before I felt like my legs were going to give out under me during the squats.
Wednesday morning I woke up feeling a strangely familiar soreness. My entire body ached. I could feel each an every muscle that had been worked the night before - especially my calves. I hadn't felt that sore since I did the Insanity program.
That night when I got home, Sweetie had a headache and didn't want to make dinner. I offered to make pizza and she took me up on it. The caveat? She was ready to eat. So I skipped the Deck of Cards workout scheduled and made dinner, then ate dinner, then sunk my overstuffed belly into the couch and read Rules of Civility until bedtime. I didn't feel bad at all about skipping, and my attitude didn't cave either. I'm chalking it up to the pizza ;-)
Monday, March 12, 2012
LOVING Warmer Temps!
Today we had temperatures in the mid 70's! It's so great to be able to take walks/runs outside again. I've been planting some in the garden. So far I've got two plots of Snow Peas and 3 rows of Snapdragons in the ground. It's so hard not to put more out there. We've got the temps of early May so I want to get everything going. Patience.
Tonight I did a combo run/walk. I ran as much as I could for 20 minutes, then walked with Max & Sweetie for 10 minutes. I entered it all into RunKeeper and came up with a distance of 2.61 miles with an 11:30 min/mile pace. Not bad!
Tonight I did a combo run/walk. I ran as much as I could for 20 minutes, then walked with Max & Sweetie for 10 minutes. I entered it all into RunKeeper and came up with a distance of 2.61 miles with an 11:30 min/mile pace. Not bad!
Monday, March 5, 2012
Yay for 60's!
Today's temps were in the mid to high 60's. We had clear skies, a bright sun, and a pretty good breeze going. Absolutely beautiful!
Sweetie and I took our dog Max on a walk as soon as I got home. Tonight was my 20-minute walk/jog so I decided I'd just keep going. Runkeeper tracked me doing 1.32 miles at a pace of 15 minutes/mile. Not nearly as fast as I was when I was running with the C25K music but it was enjoyable and that's what really matters!
When I got home, I did the Strength rounds and was consistent with the 11 rounds in 10 minutes. I still had 45 seconds left on the timer but called it quits instead of getting halfway through a 12th round. I don't need to beat my record every time, LOL! I think I must be getting faster on my push-ups because that's the only part of those sets that I wasn't already moving pretty fast on.
Tomorrow's supposed to break the 70's! We're going to enjoy it while we can!
Sweetie and I took our dog Max on a walk as soon as I got home. Tonight was my 20-minute walk/jog so I decided I'd just keep going. Runkeeper tracked me doing 1.32 miles at a pace of 15 minutes/mile. Not nearly as fast as I was when I was running with the C25K music but it was enjoyable and that's what really matters!
When I got home, I did the Strength rounds and was consistent with the 11 rounds in 10 minutes. I still had 45 seconds left on the timer but called it quits instead of getting halfway through a 12th round. I don't need to beat my record every time, LOL! I think I must be getting faster on my push-ups because that's the only part of those sets that I wasn't already moving pretty fast on.
Tomorrow's supposed to break the 70's! We're going to enjoy it while we can!
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