Thank goodness it’s finally here! My week has been a little boring, but I still have some random thoughts brewing in my brain, so why not blog about’em??

The most exciting things I’ve done this week include:

Riding the bike while watching “Friday”… (my favorite part is when Smokey gets set up on a blind date with that girl’s friend that supposedly looks like “Janet Jackson”)

..And giving my stinky dog a bath. Does washing a 55 lb. dog count as exercise? No? Well it should. It’s been 2 months since her last bath (I know! I know! I feel terrible..no hate mail please Sometimes things like that just get pushed to the side, but now she is clean and happy)

I think she was ready for one too, she practically jumped into the tub…and she even gave me a few kisses on the face while I was washing her

The worst, most cumbersome part? Grooming her afterwards!

“Rawwwrrrrrrrrrr”

That’s the Hair Monster. He comes around all the time, hiding in sneaky places like under the couch and in corners of the kitchen. And he stays for days. Especially after Trixie-bear has just had a bath. I have to brush and brush and brush her to get all of the fur off! She’s a golden retriever/chow mix…does that give you an idea of the amount of fuzz we have around here??

That’s pretty much all of I’ve done this week except for Chemistry, my internship and working out. I update my Activity Log on a regular basis, be sure to check there if you’re wondering what my workouts have been like!

Exciting things that haven’t happened yet:

• Today is my iced coffee day! I allow myself to get one iced coffee a week, and today is the day! I think I may even add a shot of pumpkin to it
• This afternoon I get to hang out with my preggo friend (she’s due next week!). We are going to the bookstore to look at trashy celebrity gossip magazines!
• Tomorrow (at 7 a.m.) I get to run a 5k with my old Girls on the Run team Can’t wait to see them again!
• I have 2 product reviews coming up for the blog, and one involves a “How-To” tutorial
• My first Vlog is coming soon! You guys will get to hear my sweet southern accent along with my terrible grammar, haha

The other day when I was working the fitness floor at my internship, I had a random thought pop into my head:

What makes a person a runner, and not a jogger? Is there a difference in the two? Is a runner a person that runs at a faster speed on every run? Do you think any person that gets out there and runs is a runner? Should there be a difference in the two?

I’m wondering this because the other day I was on a run (or jog?) and someone asked me “How did your jogging go?” Ummm…my what? I’m a runner, darn it! Just because I run 10:30 minute miles, am I now classified as a jogger? Do “joggers” run two half-marathons in one year? What’s your input?

Anywho, I better get off of here and get to cleaning my house. I have to get ready for school in a little bit…..though, I kind of wish that I was on a boat. With my swim-trunks and my flippie-floppies.

“This boat is REAL!” “F*@# oak trees, I climb buoys motherf***er” Bwhahahahahaha Now that should start your Friday off right!

Thanks for the compliments on my new glasses! I love them! No more squinting to read blogs or traffic signs! Woo hoo, now myself and other drivers are safe, haha. Let’s take a moment for a modeling session can we??

Hmmmm

"Te he, omygah you're like SO funny!"

"OoooH I'm so surprised!"

*Meanwhile, in the backseat, Trixie is wondering when and if  we are ever going to start actually driving somewhere*

Anywho! This morning I woke up with a terrible migraine (probably because I went to sleep with one) that really put me in a sour mood. Boo. But you know what? I chose to get outta that mood and move on with my day. It was an internship day for me but seeing as how no-one signed up for my cooking class that was supposed to happen this morning, I decided to do a little internship work away from the Y.

Right now we are planning a 5k and my job is to get the massage therapy students from my school to have a booth set up after the race for the runners. Who doesn’t want a massage after running a race, right?? So I drove to school and met with the woman behind the massage therapy and we will see what happens! I also posted flyers of our 5k around campus Just to promote it a ‘lil more

Then I came back home, ate some lunch and cleaned up a bit. As I was cleaning, I noticed that an unusual amount of self-confidence was washing over me. Where it came from I do not know. I just knew that I wanted to accomplish a few more things in my day…so I kept chugging right on along.

By the time I finished cleaning I was so pumped I wanted to stand on my roof and shout “I am Stacey and I can do ANYTHINGGGGGGGGGG!”

But at the risk of sounding like a crazy person, I kept my adrenaline inside of the house I sat at my computer and did what I’ve been wanting to do for the past month:

BAM!

Start a running club in Cramerton!

Gastonia has a running club, as does the neighboring city of  Belmont. Why not Cramerton? Though I live in the city of Gastonia, my heart lies in Cramerton. It’s where I grew up and the hills…oh the hills….they train me so well

With 7 copies of my flyer in hand, Trixie and I set out on a walk through the town of Cramerton to find places to post them.

2 at the parks and rec center:

1 on a trash can outside of the grocery store (probably not my brightest idea):

…and the others were dispersed at my favorite deli and asian eatery Here’s to hoping people are interested!

Moving on……….

Self-confidence is something I am working on, which is why it is such a shock that I had an overwhelming feeling of it today…Sometimes when I do something or am about to do something, I stop and ask myself  “Can I really do this??”. This happens a little too often.

I’ve always been the quiet, shy type. You will find no social butterfly in this girl.

I keep to myself and sometimes it’s misinterpreted as me being a snob or bitchy (if I may) and I hate coming off like that. I bet it’s probably made me look a little boring to be around too. But here’s the thing: I don’t feel like people want to hear what I have to say or what I have done. And so I keep quiet.

I feel like people don’t really care what I have to say or any input I have on a situation, so I keep quiet. It’s something I’m working on and blogging really helps. On here, I can be myself.

I can type (and then laugh at) my own jokes like the dork that I am.

I can complain about insomnia or bad food experiences.

I can take off my shoes, sit at my computer with my cat on my lap and pour my soul onto this screen. And I love that.

And you guys don’t judge me I love that too. Though I have very few readers, I feel really lucky to have the one’s that I do. Seriously.

So where am I going with all of this? I just want to clear some things up, for my own sake. I’ve been hush hush about where I live because I’ve been ashamed. And I feel terrible for even writing that.  I’ve been ashamed of where I live.

Today I’m going to lay it all out on the table…because when I really think about it, I have no reason to be ashamed. I am very lucky to be in the situation that I am in.

I don’t live in a house with marble countertops or shiny wooden floors. I don’t live in a house made of brick or stone.

I live in a trailer near a junk yard. I have crazy neighbors that sometimes drive me insane – one in particular that likes to come outside in her underwear- . I live off of a highway that never sleeps. And I’m thankful for it.

I know the stereotypes that go along with living in a trailer.

(source)

A la Joy from My Name is Earl.  Do we have characters like that around here? Mmmmmmyyeesssssss…we do. Do I associate with them? Not by free will

Back when I was a nanny I had enough money to afford a rental house in Cramerton. It wasn’t the nicest thing, but it was pretty great to me. I could walk anywhere in Cramerton. I could go outside of my door and run a 4 mile route through the town and end up right back on my porch when it was over. I had decent neighbors and room for all of my belongings.

 Then school happened. I had to cut back my hours so that I could work on finishing school and the rent for the house no longer fit into my new, tight budget. Jason asked me to move in with him. So I did.

Jason’s grandfather is letting us stay in one of his trailers rent-free so that we can finish school. The deal is that as long as we make good grades, we can stay put.

The trailer has wood-panelling and it is ever-so-ugly but we work around it. It also is made of metal. When acorns fall from our tree onto our roof, it sounds like a gun shot and scares the death out of our poor dog. We also live about 200 feet away from a major highway. The cars and trucks are the last thing I hear before I go to bed, and the first thing I hear when I wake up. It. Sucks.

(source)

Despite all of those things… I secretly love our little love-nest I love that we don’t spend a fortune heating and cooling it in the winter. I love that we work together to keep it looking as nice as we can. I love that we are able to save money to buy our own house one day. And finally, I love that I have a roof over my head and that I share this home with the one’s (including my fur children) that I love

So here you go, a tour…from me to you. Because I’m not going to be ashamed anymore.

Let’s start outside, shall we?

Inside we go! Starting with my favorite room in the house: the kitchen!!

andddd..off of the kitchen is a bar where we sit and eat our meals together…

Moving on into the living room…

(the cat likes to climb onto the coffee table, and we don’t eat there so it’s okay with us)

Hanging in the living room are some family portraits that have been passed down to me by my grandmother and mother. I cherish them with my whooollle heart

Visitors really get a sense of who we are when they go into the office! Let’s take a look:

*Beware of snoring dog*

In the office you will find that we are students,

(his)

(hers)

(the degree will be attained in December!!!!)

runners,

technology geeks,

fans of good music,

and one of us keeps his dresser a little messy…..

Tsk. Tsk. Time to go across the house and into the bedroom! On the way there, we pass the laundry area:

This is Jason’s area. We have an agreement: I don’t do laundry (hate it with a passion) and he doesn’t do dishes (because he hates them with passion). It’s worked out well so far! Plus, I’m a kitchen nerd and don’t mind doing any activity that is involved in there

Time for bed!

 I mean, time for the bedroom! Hehe  

Most of the walls in here are bare, and it drives me crazy but it’s a decorating project that is still in process

Ugh. Humphrey is riding the bike again. He never gets off of the thing!

I think an intervention needs to take place…

On top my dresser you will find more pictures and two books my sister let me borrow..I keep them in plain view so that I’ll remember to give them back!

*The largest picture is a painting of the gazebo at the Waterfront Park in Charleston, SC. Jason and I went there last spring and thought it was the most beautiful place…this painting reminds us of our trip *

And then comes the “master bath” (bwhahaha..I crack myself up typing that!)

One thing I love, love, love about this house is that I get a garden tub! The “master bath” – chuckle chuckle – is a decorating project in process too!

It’s my mean, green, relaxin’ machine

Side note: I think the people who lived here before us took the phrase “garden tub” too seriously. The guy used to use this tub to grow and nurture his pot plants. Lovely, right??

So that’s my house We do have another bathroom and a few closets that weren’t shown, but they are pretty basic. It’s just a closet and a bathroom..nothing special.

I’m glad I could finally get over my shame and invite you guys in

I think what I’m trying to learn is that your home does not make you the kind of person that you are. Neither do your clothes, cars or other materialistic items. It’s what’s inside that makes you who you are — cliche, I know, but it is also true. If someone doesn’t want to associate with you because of the things that you do or don’t own, or because of where you live…then they aren’t the kind of people you need to waste your time with. Shallow people suck. We all come from different parts of life and one should not be judged by how much money they have in their pocket, or by the designer clothes that they aren’t wearing.

Where and how I live has nothing to do with the kind of person I am or want to be.

With that said: Jason and I met on Myspace! I think I told some of you that we met at school but I was afraid of being judged so that’s why I lied. Sorry! But now you know

Thanks for coming in! See ya next time

In the 2008 Beijing Olympics, Kerry Walsh was seen wearing a mysterious, bright-colored tape on her shoulders while competing in the volleyball division.

What is that tape? It’s KT Tape! And its wonderful

This weekend I had a chat with my friend (whom is a personal trainer and in school working on her Masters in Clinical Exercise Physiology <–in other words: She has credibility!) about my knee injury and how down I was about not being able to run more than 3 miles at a time. When I was finished complaining,  she mentioned that she had the same injury and that she used KT Tape on it and Poof! It was gone! No pain, no swelling..she could run again, just like that!

Ohmygah. Get me some KT tape and get it to me NOW! Right after “work” I went into Sports Authority and found it in the middle of an aisle. Oh the colors! Pinks, greens, blacks, browns, reds, blues…I chose pink, of course

Now, I’m a bit skeptical when it comes to “miracle cures” and what-not. But since my friend is a marathoner (3 times over, I think?), runs avidly and is in school for the stuff, then I chose to give it a try. Coming from anyone else, I probably wouldn’t have run off and bought it an hour after hearing about it

But what does it do, you ask. How does it work?

According to the website:

• KT Tape is a revolutionary sports medicine solution for treating and preventing common sports injuries such as ITBS, shin splints, plantar fasciitis, knee pain and more. Ultra-light, elastic, and strong, KT Tape is highly effective at providing pain relief, stability & support, & faster recovery for injured or sore muscles and joints-without sacrificing comfort or freedom of movement.

How does it work?

• KT Tape is applied along muscles, ligaments, and tendons (soft tissue) to provide a lightweight, strong, external support that helps to prevent injury and speed recovery. KT Tape works differently for different injuries. KT Tape can lift and support the knee cap, holding it in place for Runner’s Knee. KT Tape can support sagging muscles along the arch of the foot, relieving the connective tissues for Plantar’s Fasciitis. And KT Tape can lift the stress off of shin splints to allow pain release and give the body a better opportunity to recover. Depending on how it is applied, KT Tape supports, enables, or restricts soft tissue and its movement. By stretching and recoiling like a rubber band, KT Tape augments tissue function and distributes loads away from inflamed or damaged muscles and tendons, thereby protecting tissues from further injury.

• By applying KT Tape over affected tissue, athletes experience an external support which helps to prevent further injury and allows the body’s damaged tissue to rest and heal naturally despite continued activity. KT Tape also reduces inflammation and increases circulation which prevents muscle cramping and lactic acid buildup.

• Kinesiology tape, treatments, and application techniques have been used by healthcare professionals such as orthopedics, chiropractors, physical therapists, and athletic trainers for over thirty years. KT Tape is the first brand of kinesiology tape ever to be offered to consumers through local sporting goods retailers, and to be widely adopted by healthcare professionals and teams. The development of KT Tape was a highly collaborative effort that included Healthcare Professionals, our Medical Advisory Board, elite and everyday athletes, and our product design engineers. Together they developed the most advanced sports tape ever offered.

Um, SOLD! 

I at least had to give it a try. These 3 mile runs aren’t cutting it for me anymore. I want to train. I want to race.  The website provides instructional videos on how to place the KT tape on your leg (or wherever your injury may be). I lay on the floor of our office and patched myself up

Fashionable? I think so! I could not wait to try it out!

There is a 4 mile route in Cramerton I used to do that is packed with hills, so I thought it would be best to try it out there.

You guys…I felt no pain the entire run. No comfort issues. It felt totally normal, like it used to! There was no knee pain at all!!!! I was so happy I wanted to cry. You know what this means: races, look out, because here I come!!! I’m slowly going to start increasing my speed and endurance, and maybe…just maybe shoot for a marathon in December A little crazy? Yes! A lot of fun? YES!

I was so excited about my run that I came home and did ninja moves in our front yard:

Hiiii-yahhhh! Take that knee pain Oh, and I also made up a song too *sung to the tune of “I’m a Believer” by Smashmouth*

“Oh KT Tape/I’m a believer/Not a doubt of pain/ In my kne-ee/I’m in love/I’m a believer/I couldn’t run without you if I tried/”

Hehe Okay! Enough about my love affair with KT Tape! Let’s talk about the rest of my weekend, shall we?

Apple Festival 2010

My mom, Jason and I went to the apple festival in Lincoln County this Saturday! It was our first time going and we were amazed at all of the vendors that were there! And the people! (They estimated 4-5,000!)

We started the festival off by sharing a caramel covered apple with nuts!

Actually, Jason hogged it all. I only got about 2 bites and it was gone! What a meanie!

Gosh I look so attractive when I’m eating things that are bigger than my face.

After the apple, it was time for some veggies!

Yay for local produce! We picked out a few items and then headed over to the crafts section of the festival. I was a little disappointed to see that most of the crafts were quilts and woodwork Not that those things are great, it’s just not what I was looking for. Oh well, maybe next time. We did, however, come home with a painting of the waterfront Park in Charleston It reminded us of our trip!

Around 2 o’clock we started to get a little hungry so we headed over to a diner that was in the vicinity of the festival. The Capital Grille offered a few vegetarian items, and I chose the unhealthiest one -I’m sure you are finding out that this day was definitely a foodie splurge day! It doesn’t happen often but when it does, it’s oh-so-sweet -

The veggie pita consisted of sautéed onions, peppers and mushrooms under a bed of shredded lettuce and tomato. This pita was dripping butter and oil all over the place! It was really tasty, but when paired with the fried onion rings, caused a terrible stomach-ache later in the day It was very tasty at the time though!

There was only an hour left in the festival after we finished with lunch, so we all headed to the other streets that we hadn’t been down before. There were a lot more antiques on the last two streets, and that was pleasing I love looking at antique things! Too bad there was no money left in the budget after buying the painting!

My stomach was so full I felt like I needed to be wheeled around in a wheelchair…ugh. But then I saw a chocolate dipped frozen banana stand..and just had to have one. Hey, it’s fruit, right?!  My mom offered to get me one even though there was no room in my tummy for it anywhere!!

*Hard time keeping a straight face while taking this picture!*

I ate every bite. The buttons on my pants were threatening to pop off and take someone’s eye if I didn’t stop eating, so I obeyed and finally stopped eating for a while

The festival came to an end. Stuffed with food and satisfied with our finds, we found our way back to the car and headed home. Well, once I got home I realized I had a ton of energy. Perhaps it was the onion rings, the bites of caramel apple, or the entire chocolate-covered banana that I just ate..but I was wanting to burn some energy! I hopped on the bike and did 40 minutes of my own spin session :D

Switching the levels back and forth between hard and medium every 5 minutes. (Tomato face!)

It felt so good to sweat. My stomach ache went away for a little bit too. The bike ride + the 3 hours of walking we did really tired me out. When dinnertime came around, Jason and I realised that we weren’t that hungry. I was craving vegetables like a madwoman and he wanted something light, so we both decided on making Mediterranean Couscous with Grilled Vegetables.

And we used our produce from the festival!

This recipe is really easy to make. Jason and I usually grill the vegetables, but we didn’t feel like fiddling around with the grill, so I sautéed them in a little olive oil, salt and pepper. Here is what you need:

• 1 zucchini, 1 squash
• 1 green pepper, diced
• 1 red pepper, diced
• 3/4 lb. grape tomatoes halved (or in this case, 1 medium tomato, chopped)
• 1 small onion chopped
• 1 cup water
• 3/4 cup couscous
• 1/2 tsp. hot pepper sauce
• 1/4 tsp. salt, pepper
• 1/4 tsp. cumin
• dash of cinnamon
• 3 Tbs. lemon juice
• 1 Tbs. olive oil
• 1 can chickpeas
• 1/4 cup crumbled feta cheese (we used goat cheese!)

Saute veggies in a pan. Meanwhile, bring water to a boil in different pot. Add couscous and next 5 ingredients (through cinnamon). Cover and remove from heat, let sit for about 5-8 minutes. Stir in veggies and remaining ingredients.

That’s it! This whole meal probably takes 20 minutes to cook, and then it’s done!

My serving, along with a side of ‘book’ By the way, the veggies that we got from the festival tasted amazing. Not at all like what you would get at a grocery store, the flavors and colors were wonderful! Oh, and I’m really liking “Ape House” as well! “Water for Elephants” is one of my favorite books, so I was pretty sure I would like this one too.

*Sigh* There is more to discuss, but I should go for now! Jason will be here any minute to commandeer the computer for homework!  Two things before I go:

• Is it too early to have my sights set on a marathon in December?
• I’d Rather Be Running is going to have some changes this week! Anything you want to see on the website?

Okay loves, I’m outtie. See ya later in the week!

I’ve missed you these past few days! My to-do list seems to keep getting bigger and bigger but I am determined to take a little time for myself every day.

How was your long weekend? Here is how I spent mine:

• Rolling in the grass with my dog (and becoming very itchy afterwards!)
• Playing with my nephew and niece at the park
• Eating at an outside cafe with Jason (<–and having eggplant for the first time! Wowza )
• Running 4 miles
• Trying out a new mexican recipe
• Watching “Man on Wire” on instant Netflix (BTW, if you haven’t seen it…go see it NOW. Philippe Petit is such an inspiring, lively man.)
• Oh, and buying carpet for our house. <–Fun stuff, I tell ya.
• OH, and I also indulged myself in a serving (medium, being a serving) of french fries from a fast food place

So what did you do? Tell me! Tell me!

Today has been a long day and I feel like posting, but not about food or anything like that. Today, I want to post about my most memorable exercise moments. Nope, not just running, but exercise in general (though a lot of it will be running related  ). There will not be photos for some of the moments-obviously!-but I’ll do my best to create the picture for you

Let’s get started! BTW–I’m all about bullets today for some reason, so I’m going to be boring and use them again

My Most Memorable Exercise Moments

•  Eating a huge bowl of bean chili and tortilla chips the night before my first (ever) 5k. Jason and I spent the first 30 minutes before the race  in the Port-A-Jons that were lined up along starting line. Definitely not my best race. Lesson learned: Bean chili is not the best pre-race meal!

• The first time I was able to do 30 consecutive push-ups, and the feeling of strength and accomplishment that washed over me afterwards! (This was actually only a few weeks ago!)
•  When I was coaching a Girls on the Run team last spring, we were running our first race. Some of the girls were having a hard time, so I stopped to walk with them or help encourage them. As we rounded a corner that led to the finish line, there was a boy (probably about 10 years old) out on his lawn with an electric guitar playing “More Than a Feelin” by Boston! He had these huge speakers set up next to him! The music made us want to finish strong, plus, he was extremely talented. Wish you guys could’ve seen him playing! It looked sort of like this:

Except the kid wasn’t that skinny, and he also had a little more color to him as well

• The first time I tried out Jillian Michael’s 30-Day Shred–I quit. My muscles were aching, every part of my body was screaming and it just wasn’t what I had expected! But, the week after that episode, I popped the DVD back in and decided to just do it. Change is never comfortable…just get it over with! (I was sore for 3 days after doing Level 1) I can now do Level 3 without crying or cussing out Jillian under my breath

• During my first half-marathon, I ran beside a woman who had been diagnosed with brain cancer a few weeks earlier. She is in her 30′s and a mother of two. Her friends formed a team that would run the race, in order to raise money to help with her medical bills. And I ask you: How freaking awesome is that? It almost brings tears to my eyes! She was such a nice lady. She chit-chatted with Jason and I for a few miles before speeding up to find her friends, but I think I’ll be forever touched by her story. To have brain cancer and be running a half-marathon is just amazing. You go girl.

I also admired her for wearing pink and white tube socks to the race Not only is she a strong woman, but she is fashion-forward too!

•  My second half-marathon (oh where to being with this one!) was a trail race. We were basically put in the woods and told to look for pink and black flags, or “markers”-as they called them- that would tell us if we were going the right way. Yep, I wasn’t going the right way. In fact, I ended up running 16 miles instead of 13.1 because I got lost about 5 dozen times. I ran out of fuel (food), but luckily, I did not run out of water. It was the most confusing race of my life. I managed to win 3rd place in my age group, but I’m thinking that’s because there weren’t a lot of people in my age group to being with! Oh well, I’m not complainin’

• Also, in said race, around mile 3..a girl was running behind me and she stopped for a second. Naturally, I turn around to make sure she’s okay. She says “Yeah, I think I just need to stop for a sec.” And then she proceeds to puke everywhere. Lovely. Hopefully it wasn’t because she ate a bowl of chili for breakfast that morning!  I felt so bad for the girl, but her friend was coming up behind her, so I kept on going. (Yeah, I’m thinking a pic is not needed for this memory–>moving on)
• I also remember how muddy I got during that race too! My shoes, legs and arms were covered in dirt. My running shoes were also soaking wet There was a part of the race that required us to jump over a pond, and of course, instead of jumping over it, I ended up jumping into it. Booo. Stupid water. Running the rest of race with wet socks and shoes totally sucked–and the blisters that came afterward weren’t that great either!

• Jason is big into cycling so in 2009 he decided to buy me a bike so that he could share his passion with me

Our first ride was a hilly 20 miles through Kings Mountain State Park. When we got home, I crashed on the couch, next to the space heater, and slept for 3 hours straight

• I finished my first 10k trail race winning second place in my age group! It was definitely a surprise when they called out my name because I hadn’t been trying to place at all! I also won a watch in one of their raffles

(Again with the tomato-face!) The part that I would like to forget happened when I was about to cross the finish line! I was about 30 feet away and this guy that comes running up from behind me accidentally spits on my leg!!!!!! EWWWWWWWW. I had to finish the race with it making its way down my leg. It was disgusting!  Once I crossed the finish line, I found a bathroom so that I could wash it off. Major yuck-o

• Not all of my memories come from running.  A lot of them come from hikes that I have been on. Specifically, the 7 mile hike that Jason and I went on when we were camping last month! The scenery was so beautiful! The air was crisp and fresh, like only mountain air can be

Ahhh, I love it.

• Experiencing FitBloggin! ‘Nuf said
• Being able to hold side Crow’s Pose for about 5 seconds last week! Woo hoo! That’s five seconds longer than usual, haha. I’m still working on it!

Now I want to know your most memorable exercise moments   Time to get cookin’ in the kitchen. Have a wonderful week you guys!

Actually, that’s a bit more cheerful than I am at the moment. Let’s try it again: Mornin’. <—She says with a grumph.

Sleep has not been kind to me, but I shall not let it ruin my day, or this post for that matter! I still had a majorly exhausting fun day yesterday and I’m gonna tell ya all about it.

Yesterday morning after having some breakfast and two cups of coffee, I decided that even though I only slept for about 3 hours, it would just be great to get outside and breathe some fresh air and get my body moving. I also figured it was the perfect time to try out the toning shoes that New Balance sent me a few weeks ago!

After putting these babies on, I went to the Cramerton baseball fields, behind the rec center, for a little walking.

Ever imagined a camel in high heels?? Well, that’s sort of what it was like to wear these shoes (at least for the first lap). And trust me, it’s not the shoes..it’s clumsy ol’ me. For the record, let me add that I only fell over once They were surprisingly comfortable and pretty stylish too! 

Once there, I did about 3 warm up laps around the field and then decided to do my 30-20-10 push up/bench dip sets on the picnic tables…

It was a bit more challenging than usual, I started to feel my muscles wearing down more quickly and I had to pause several times during the push-ups, but they got done! To cool down, I walked a slow lap around the fields and that’s when I saw these:

Um, hello challenge. You know that I love you and could never pass you up

Well, then I thought of my injury and I told myself “If it starts to hurt, just stop.” I looked back up to the top, sat my water on the bottom step, took a deep breath and then started to climb, or run, up those stairs. Once at the top, my lungs felt alive. I felt alive. The beauty of the day was just seeping through me. The wind was perfect, not a cloud in the sunny sky, no pain in my leg…I wanted to keep going. I ran them up and down 10 times before I had my fill On my last descent down, I counted the stairs and came up with 55!

I probably could not have done it without my ‘stair-climbing’ playlist that I concocted just before going up

• “Shiver”-Coldplay
• “Love Me Two Times’-The Doors
• “Hangin Around”-Counting Crows
• “Daylight”-Matt and Kim
• “Rebel Yell”-Billy Idol
• “Bootylicious”-Destinys Child
• “Everlong”-Foo Fighters
• “Semi-Charmed Life”-Third Eye Blind
• “Basketcase”-Green Day
• “Bookends”-Simon and Garfunkel

HEY! Who put “Bootylicious” on there?! Um, I have no idea how that got on my playlist…must be some glitch on my IPOD

Needless to say, I was totally pooped after this workout. My body was starting to feel the effects of the sleepless night before, and my muscles were getting sore. Time to go home and rest!

And that’s exactly what I did I went home, read some of my book and fell asleep for 2 hours.

Jason came in there and shook me awake around 3:30 saying that it was time to get ready for the Charlotte Criterium! Woo hoo!

I hopped out of bed and started prettying myself up for the night to come Jason and I have gone to the criterium for the past 3 years, so I guess it’s sort of becoming a tradition in its own sort of way

First, we needed to eat dinner. He wanted Big Daddy’s Burger Bar, and that was fine with me.

I ordered a Bud Light to start, and then a black bean burger with cheese, avocado, pepper relish and pickle…along with sweet tater fries (my favorite thing EVER).

I ate all of the sandwich, but hardly made a dent in those fries! There were so many, and I was soooo stuffed. No matter how many I ate, the bowl still seemed to stay full of fries, haha I left them there, no use in leaving them in a hot car for 2-3 hours.

Then it was time to go uptown for the race! We parked about 3 blocks away and took a couple of pics before walking the distance to the start/finish line.

I told Jason that he squints way too much (p.s. doesn’t he look like he’s in some sort of pain?! Hehe)…so this is the next picture I got:

Ha What a smart-a**. Oh well, that’s better than the last one!

Charlotte Criterium is sort of like our Tour De France. Except that it only lasts 2 hours and not 2 weeks. Cyclists come from all over the world to compete in it. Some coming from as far as Norway! To me, that’s amazing. Here they are at the starting line:

…anddddddd they’re off!

Just so ya know, these guys are finishing a mile in about 2 minutes flat. That’s fast. They rock. And I’m pretty sure Jason idolizes them to no extent (he’s a cyclist too!).

To be honest, I wasn’t all there during this race. I was feeling super tired and my body was just plain sore. I kept moving away from the gate and sitting down on the benches, and I felt kind of bad because Jason would come sit with me, and it wasn’t that great of a view from the benches. So I stood back up and watched with him I didn’t want to be a party pooper

My favorite part is the end. That’s when the cyclist give all they’ve got. They’ll whisk by you at top speed and you can see the pain on their faces..and the sweat dripping down their necks..and I’m screaming “Go, go GO! You’re almost there, GO!” I’d like to think it helps them

After the race, we came home…I read a few pages of my book and then it was light’s out.

This morning I woke up with sore leg muscles…so I’m thinking that the shoes work. Actually, after my third lap yesterday, I could feel my calf and my thigh muscles tightening a little bit. Those are now my new walking shoes A big thanks to New Balance for sending them! I love them!

Peanut butter pancakes were the first thing on my mind (after coffee of course)…so I whipped up some batter…

..and when paired with strawberry jam, bananas and syrup…it makes the perfect, yummy and very filling breakfast Why jam and syrup?

Because sometimes having jam with syrup is what life is all about

See ya next time!

It’s been one of those days!

The cat decided he wanted to use the bathroom on our new bedspread this morning (perhaps he isn’t fond of down comforters?? ). My morning was spent washing-and then re-washing-our blanket. I also managed to stomp around  the house and  mutter “Stupid cat” under my breath every few minutes. He spent the rest of his morning hiding under the couch like the shameful kitty he is.

All of this commotion made me late for a study date  at the library with a friend from class. Luckily, she was late too. That gave me tons of  time to browse books…and tons of time to get tons of books, hehe

In case you can’t tell from that stack-I’m pretty obsessed with cooking lately.

After our study session, I decided to go for a short, flat run on the greenway. Mother nature has not been very kind this week. It was 12:30 and the tempurature was already up to 95!! Yikes.

I started out fine, but then my right leg started to to bother me. Ever since I did my last half-marathon, it has not been the same. It burns down the side of it and it continues to shoot pain every time I walk anywhere for the rest of the day

I think I shall have to give running a rest for a while…until this ol’ leg of mine gets better.

Meet my bike:

I love her. She will be my fill-in for the next few weeks/months(??) <–I hope not! I gave her a go last Thursday night after work and it was only then how much I realized how much I had missed her.

She’s been stuck in the shed for the past few months. We brought her in, dusted her off, put some air in those tires and she was ready to go! It’s kind of nice to be able to have a workout inside, away from the near-100 degrees. Plus, I get to watch Weeds while I ride

This afternoon, I ventured out to do the grocery shopping and now our house is full of healthy (and some not-so-healthy) items! Lunch literally consisted of an old dark chocolate granola bar that I found in “The Yuckiness”- a.k.a.  the bottom of my purse. And a naner that I had just bought from the produce section.

..and maybe a few handfuls of Kashi crackers while putting the goodies away.

Once the groceries were put away, I put on my cleaning gloves and set out to sanitize the kitchen. Those that have been reading for a while know that I am a freak about always having a clean kitchen.

I was set to spray the first counter when: ‘Knock knock knock’.

Ughhhhhhhhhhhh. <—said in my head as I walk towards the door with reluctance.

It was Jason’s aunt. She wanted to know if I could take her to the drug store. Mkay! The sanitizing will have to be put off. (As will the vacuuming, laundry and toilet scrubbing). ‘Twas a quick trip and I was back in no time.

Only when I got back, my body was taken over by a baking demon. What can I say? I was possessed. It made me cook Banana Chocolate Chip Oatmeal cookies and they were scrumptious…I hope he comes back to visit me soon Maybe next time he’ll have me cooking Julia Child’s Le Succes- Meringue Layer Cake with Butter-cream Frosting and Filling. Yes, yes. That would be nice

(We keep our cookies in tupperware…cos we’re fancy like that)

Needless to say, I didn’t get a lot of housework done. But oh well! I’ll take oatmeal cookies and cookbook reading  over scrubbing toilets any day. I’m off to begin dinner! On tonight’s menu: Butter Bean burgers with chipotle sauce, along with roasted  parmasean asparagus and cajun red potatoes. YUM YUM.

Have a lovely week bloggies! See ya soon!

P.S. New Balance sent me some pretty awesome shoes to review, so be on the lookout for that! Also coming up: An Ode to Cooking G’night ya’ll!

I hope your week is going well It’s Friday Eve, yay!

Now that it’s “crunch time” at school (and for those of you that are doing “Whittle My Middle” ) I’m really starting to get piled up with a list of things to do before this semester ends. I need to make sure I have all my chicks in a row, know what I mean?

Life this week has been good. Stressful, but good. I haven’t ran since Monday (too scared to) and I couldn’t make a doctor’s appointment until December 1st. So that means about 2 weeks without running! How will I survive?! It’s so weird trying to come up with other cardio choices to do when all you’ve done for cardio in the past year is run! This morning I thought to myself: Maybe I’ll just go for a 40 minutes speed-walk around the neighborhood? But I know once I get out there, I will want to run…no matter what shoes I’m wearing or where I’m at! So, I’m going to stay away from that. My solution is the bike. Jason and I have a bike trainer for our road bikes <—really comes in handy during times like these!

So you can bet there will be some of this going on this weekend:

And a little of this:

And maybe a little of this:

I’m thinkin that I like that last one better

OH and before I forget, here are my workouts so far this week:

Monday: 4 mile run (and a heart attack, lol) Tuesday: (strength training) 100 bicycle crunches, 3×15 bicep curls, 3×20 shoulder press, 50 right/left leg crunches, 3×15 overhead tricep extensions, 3×10 butterfly chest press Wednesday: off Thursday: Level 2 of 30 Day Shred, 50 crunches and 20 pushups added at the end Friday: riding the bike trainer for 50 minutes Saturday/Sunday: one of those days is strenght training, we’ll just hafta see how it goes!

I have to admit, when I’m not running, I don’t really feel like I’m doing anything. Like riding the bike isn’t that great! I know I shouldn’t feel this way..because doing I any form of exercise is great, I guess I just like running the best (and none of the other workouts compare, haha). I’m really anxious to see what the doctor has to say about my little episode Monday! Hopefully it won’t be too bad <–the optimist in me!

Here lately, all of my eats have been pretty dang boring if I do say so myself. Jason and I seem to be stuck in a “recipe rut”. We need new ones! So this weekend I have promised to make two new dishes that are different from the other ones, and of course I’ll be blogging about it

Hope you all have a great Friday! I shall be back this weekend! Later taters

How do you get out of a “recipe rut”?? Any meal suggestions? I’d be very thankful!

Update: Oh Lordy. Seems the boyfriend has become obsessed with football! He has just called to let me know that we are now going to the Panthers vs. Dolphins game tonight at 8:20!! Should be fun It’s weird going on a Thursday, but hey…who says the weekend has to start on a Friday night?!