2012, maybe?

hot off the presses!

let dj ctk's latest beat carry your dancing running feet into the new year and enjoy this year's "year in review".

[dedicated to b.o.b, as this was her favorite hit of 2012]

now it's the end of the year

somebody get me a beer

i have no reason to cheer

my mileage is so low

i tried elimination

m&m's, my temptation

it was a big frustration

lost all my cardio

your posts were crowin'

long runs, pr's growin'

meanwhile i'm plateauin'

so i tried eating paleo

hey, i don't know you

and this is crazy,

but here's my number,

so track me, maybe?

i ran some 5k's

as an "ali"

and as a diva

brought home a trophy

hey, i went a year,

and it was crazy,

without m&m's,

i survived, maybe?

and all the other boys,

try to chase me,

in my bikini,

some sunscreen, maybe?

i went on meds for my skin

went for a ride on my schwinn

dyed wedding dress in a tin

made my own pizza dough

running may have felt betrayed

when i drank all the kool-aid

i didn't know i'd be swayed

by other cardio

your posts were crowin'

long runs, pr's growin'

meanwhile i'm plateauin'

so i tried eating paleo

hey, now i crossfit

and this is crazy,

i'll double under

please no more burpees

still hard to run fast,

like a grand prix

but i do pullups

in a big tree

here's to the new year,

and lots of running,

a fall marathon

new pr, maybe?

and all my other goals,

i'll chase after,

achieve a muscle up,

and six-pack, maybe?

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blog superlatives 2012

[continuing what i started in 2011 because it's not like i've done any running of note this year. thanks, skin]

most popular (/viewed) post: paging dr. house

class clown: reader request: running in bikin

most likely to lead to my new career at blue sky studios: boom

biggest imposter: ali asname

bestest blog friends (most referrals): angry runner and maurlene on the run (they flip flopped spots from last year). third place goes to sun safety barbie.

most studious countries (most # of readers):

• united states
• canada
• united kingdom
• spain
• india

most involved (us states by # of readers):

• south carolina
• california
• virginia
• new york
• massachusetts

most likely to succeed (top common searches):

• chasing the kenyans
• gu chomps review
• dr house/dr. house (um?)
• thanksgiving funnies (how do these result in a success?)

most clueless (randomest search hits):

• 40's vegetable people
• how to draw a giraffe
• belly suck in eat
• boobs popping buttons
• long ugly toes
• my boobs grew
• my boobs shrank
• activewear for older women
• alligator eating cereal
• can people see in between the gaps of the bathroom stalls
• men who need sports bra
• m&m a good pre workout snack (duh)
• sports bras that work your arms as you run
• how to pop a squat on the side of the road
• fat girl trying to eat cookie off shoulder

(did i really talk about boobs that much in 2012?)

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a tale of two marathons

new york marathon
no, not for me - josh made it in the nyc marathon via the lottery. when the nyrr said the race would go on, we kept our travel arrangements. friday late afternoon we were at the expo and overheard a girl say "oh my gosh they just cancelled the race". josh returned the $140 jacket he had just purchased (who wants apparel from a race you didn't run) and we hightailed it out of there.

don't get me wrong, i agree with the decision to cancel the race. however, what was up with the numerous people on facebook, twitter, etc calling the runners "selfish" for being disappointed in the handling of the decision-making or later for wanting a refund? and those same people saying that runners should "do something useful with their time" and go volunteer/buy things for sandy victims? i'm curious how much time and money the people making these comments donated to the hurricane relief...

the french (i assume) new york marathon on saturday

my first time "banditing" a race
on sunday morning we ventured over to central park to get a run in and found ourselves in the midst of the "run anyway marathon". there were tons of runners (mostly foreign and charity runners it seemed) and spectators - it was great to see the community come together and not let their spirits be crushed by all the negative people. some spectators were even handing out bottled water, gatorade and candy. it was a very upbeat atmosphere and josh and i ran an easy 7.5 miles. note: we did not take refreshments from anyone.

my first (and second) box visits
while in nyc i took advantage of visiting other crossfit boxes for workouts. if you are a member at another crossfit affiliate you can drop-in for a class at another box without having to undergo the "elements" (fundamentals) again. i went to crossfit nyc: the black box ($25) and reebok crossfit 5th ave ($40). i was intimidated walking in to each workout but left feeling great (it helped seeing i could hold my own with nyc crossfitters!).

charlotte thunder road marathon
unlike some people (*cough*), josh actually trained for his marathon with the pre-requisite long runs and wanted to cash in on all those saturday morning runs. when we returned from nyc he took advantage of the "displaced runner discount" offered by the charlotte thunder road marathon and we headed up for the race. i was tempted to sign up for the half-marathon at the expo (you know, since i did that one 12-mile run...) but since "i didn't pack running clothes for racing", and the fact registration was $105, i decided not to. i also briefly contemplated banditing the race.

it was chilly and windy race morning and josh forgot a long sleeve shirt. i offered to meet him around mile 10 to get his running jacket from him (due to the course i did not think i would see him before mile 10). i saw him off at the start and walked back to the car while re-consulting the course map. i decided if i hustled i could surprise him at mile 3.5-ish so he could ditch his jacket sooner.

my second time "banditing" a race
i tried to hustle, but arrived at mile 3.5 too late - just before the 4:15 pace group. i assumed he was running ahead of them, so i hopped in the race. i knew he was aiming for a 9:00/mile pace (sub-4:00 marathon) and when i got to the 4-mile split clock i saw i had some serious catching up to do, i was 4 minutes off a 9:00/pace. ouch.

i chased down red shirt after red shirt for the next 6+ miles (while avoiding the water stops of course). i was impressed by the splits my garmin flashed at me (7:30's), and at some point between miles 3.5 and 10 i managed to sprint right past josh. i caught up to the 3:45 pace group and hoped he was not running that fast because i was quite tired from the 7 mile sprint. i pulled over at mile 10 to wait, much to the confusion of the runners i'd just passed. sure enough, he came running up 1-2 minutes later and i hopped back in to run with him for a bit. eventually i peeled off and headed back to the car to try and find food/water. i hadn't fueled before or during my 11-mile run and i was hungry.

my attempts to find food failed but i did see josh at mile 18, still hanging on to the sub-4:00 pace. i anxiously waited for him near the finish as the clock ticked through the 3:50's. i yelled 'inspirationally' to him "only a quarter-mile to go, go get it!". he looked mad at me but later claimed he wasn't. he cruised in at 3:56 and i was relieved i wouldn't have to hear him complain about not running a sub-4:00. later in the afternoon he started to analyze if he would have run faster in nyc because it's less hilly and he wouldn't have had an awkward extended taper; sign of a true runner.

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october 2012

miles run: 94.15 (again with the "10%" increase)

this month's diagnosis of the glute pain is related to the "deep six". prescribed treatment is massaging it with a lacrosse ball.

other workouts: bootcamp/crossfit (21x); hiking (once)

days off: 3

netflix/tv obsession(s): oh so closely following the all-star season of dancing with the stars.

artistic/creative outlet/new thing i tried: painting, vaguely, and practicing handstands.

new food i tried: i've fallen off the healthy-eating wagon. this includes eating a half-gallon of ice cream in two days.

book(s) read: thirteen reasons why by jay asher

some of the reviews of this book complained that the main character's reasons for suicide weren't substantial enough, but i don't think that's a fair judgement of the book or of those who commit suicide. you never know how something affects someone else just because it would affect you differently. moral of the story to me: "be kind, for everyone you meet is fighting a hard battle" (john watson).

number of blog visitors: 698

number of doctor visits: 4 (+ chiro visits)

number of postcards received: 5! edinburgh, wisconsin (x2), chicago and salt lake city. maurlene was kind enough to include a 'gift' with her postcard.

favorite wod: 50-40-30-20-10 x (wallball, box jumps, kb swings)

highlight of the month: 12 mile run, sub-9:00/mile pace

my garmin must be broken. 12 miles at a sub-9 pace? i was pretty ecstatic when i finished. i've only been running 15-22 miles per week for the past month so it wasn't exactly a) smart to run 12 miles or b) expected that my legs would make it all the way home, but we all know i'm hard headed. the sub-9 miles were a surprise too but my hr was staying low so i ran with it (har har).

lowlight of the month:

rest in peace ck

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sucking wind

i ran a 5k on saturday night. my sister ran/walked the race too (6 months prego!) and won the 0-under age division. it was a "benchmark" race for me, since i've taken so much time off and only been running easy (10 min miles) these past few months. i was also curious to see what influence the high-intensity crossfit workouts would have.

since i've only been running easy, i didn't know what kind of pace to expect to run and i didn't want to go out too fast and fade. i started out in the very back and had the pleasure of consistently passing people the entire race.

i ran a semi-comfortable first mile in about 7:38. then i told myself to settle down and run a consistent second mile, 7:28. close enough? i eyed runners in front of me and slowly picked them off. with a little over a half mile to go, i told myself i only had an 800m cashout (give-it-your-all) run and started to pick it up. third mile, 6:53. i passed another 3-4 women which (i think) landed me in 7th overall for women. two spots away from taking a cash prize! if only those kenyans hadn't shown up...

i thought i felt relatively good throughout the race but my race photo seems to say otherwise --

skeleton face sucking wind / awkward photo

i finished in 22:45-ish (7:19), good enough for first place in my age group. the comeback bar has been set and now to only improve from here!

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september 2012

miles run: 69.45. because 4.5 miles in august + 10% rule = 69 miles, right?

my back is better but i'm still having that glute pain. i roll it/sit on a lacrosse ball occasionally. it only hurts when i lift my leg certain ways (like to get into the car, or during hanging leg raises) and has more of a sharp, nerve type pain (i think?). so basically i don't know what to do.

other workouts: bootcamp/crossfit (18x); yoga (once)

days off: 2 (holy crap! did i really do this?)

netflix obsession(s): gossip girl (new episodes). why yes i have the tv taste of a 14 year old.

artistic/creative outlet/new thing i tried: 'competiting' in crossfit. not sure if you can call my remedial level competing though.

new food i tried: organic m&m's? (does that count?)

book(s) read: uh, more training for work as we prepare for an audit? hooray.

number of blog visitors: 1,164 (international m&m day must have driven up traffic)

number of doctor visits: just chiro visits :)

number of postcards received: sadly 0, but i've gotten a lot this year so far and am grateful for each one!

favorite wod (workout of the day): 20 wallball, 400m run - 6 rounds for time

though many of my runs are short (3-ish miles) or part of crossfit wod's, i got in a few great runs this month. on my birthday / international m&m day i squeezed a 4.4 mile run in between eating m&m's and bootcamp. that was the closest i've come to puking in awhile. i've also been getting in a "long" run of 5-8 miles on the weekend.

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fight gone bad

i competed in my first crossfit "competition"* last weekend and it's taken me this long to recover enough to type out an update. kidding, of course, but it was quite the beating. let's just say you won't be seeing me in the crossfit games anytime soon. these people are crazy!

the competition was really a fundraiser for a sick baby and sooo much fun. my soon-to-be-official crossfit coach had shirts made for us and it was cool to be part of a team again (even though crossfit isn't a team sport).

fight gone bad is one of crossfit's benchmark workouts. it's 17 minutes of work, and it's hard.

3 rounds of 1-min each:

• wall balls
• box jumps
• push press (45lbs women/75lbs men)
• sumo deadlift high pulls (55lbs women/75lbs men)
• row

rest 1-min between rounds; every rep is a point except the row is for calories. bad form will get you no-repped, which is the worst. the clock doesn't stop as you move from one apparatus to the next so you must keep moving.

still don't follow? luckily i have prepared some visual aides:

wall ball: squat, stand up, hurl medball 10 feet in the air

box jumps: self explanatory. try to be graceful.

push press: push bar overhead and try not to drop on yourself.

sumo deadlift high pull: don't throw your back out. 

rower: it's completely degrading how slow the calories tick.

how you might feel after round 1

after round 2

round 3

we did a trial run of the workout earlier in the week, i scored 241. on game day i tallied up 222. the women who won scored over 300... out of my league!

fellow upstate bloggers - my gym officially becomes crossfit-affiliated in october and i would love to have you come as a guest to a workout!

*while i am totally loving my crossfit workouts, running is still my true love. i definitely think the cf'ing has helped with my running (yes, i am running i just never have time to blog about it). the day after fight gone bad (sunday) i went out for a run and didn't come back for 8 miles! i can't complain about the beastly chin ups i can do now either.

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keep your chin up

do not fear my friends, i have not died of m&m overdosing.

the ceremonial ribbon cutting

a dorky video of me eating my 1st m&m

i was so nervous to break the streak

it's been one week of being back on crack (m&m's) and man, it's a little hard to stop!

i "only" ate the 19oz bag of plain m&m's (and shared some too) over the weekend. at work earlier this week i ate the rest of the 56oz bag that has been sitting in my desk drawer since last september when i stopped eating them (there weren't that many left). one year old m&m's still taste alright, for the record.

i've made a deal with myself that i can only eat m&m's when i'm traveling on a trip (further than an hour away), when someone else buys them as a legit gift (not a shady under the table deal just to get a fix) or if it's truly a life or death situation (like if i'm lost in the woods and all i can find are m&m's to hold me over until i'm rescued). i hope this will keep me from falling back into my bad habits of eating a 12oz bag daily...

in other news -- (because there is more to life than m&m's lindsay)

i did my first real chin-up! no weight assistance, no stretchy band - just me and the bar. i actually did about 2.5. i feel so accomplished.

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international m&m day

while march 1st is national m&m day, today is international m&m day. that's right, you canadians can join in on this one.

m&m face says mm(m) for m&m's

as most holidays are created to celebrate the joyous victory over trials and hardships, international m&m day is no different. i have made it 365.242 days without eating a single m&m which basically equates to the suffering of the great depression.

today we must make our forefathers & foremothers proud and indulge in that 56oz bag of m&m's.

care package from my old running partner to ensure the day is properly celebrated

if mars, inc. was publicly traded, yesterday would have been a good time to buy shares.

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no more suffering

i went for my first 'real' run in awhile (since june) and jesus came with me. typically, top 40 hits will pop in my head during a run, such as b.o.b's favorite call me maybe, but during this run it was the chorus of arise my love by newsong.

arise, my love.
arise, my love.
the grave no longer has a hold on you
no more death sting
no more suffering
arise...arise...my love.

if you've been reading my blog for any period of time you would know that i don't push the bible on anyone (i'm far from perfect myself), but i had to post about this run. if i lose a follower so be it. i felt great throughout the run (no, i am not saying a song made me feel great) and had goosebumps as the chorus played in my head and i charged up the last hill of my route. it was a cool moment.

i choose to believe that i will have no more suffering (and running setbacks) from my skin problems. a little hokey? sure, maybe. but it's a positive way to think about it and this song popped into my head from nowhere (i haven't heard it in years vs. hearing 'call me maybe' every other hour).

anyway, i had a great time and enjoyed being able to run more than 2 miles. the first week of september was a success all-around (...and then i tried to run sunday with a 100.7° fever, i still haven't found the key to being un-hard-headed).

miles run: 15.25
bootcamp workouts: 6
burpees burped: 307

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keeping it weird

i am happy to report that september is off to a good start - i've wheezed my way through (modified) bootcamp classes and gone on a few (short) runs. i'm already ahead of august's mileage! (not that the bar was set high, ha). there is plenty of room for getting up early to run instead of snoozing until the last possible minute for work, but at least i can pretend it's getting cooler and less humid outside for evening runs.

over labor day weekend i drove up to asheville, nc to visit with the lovely amanda of runninghood (aka marathon mommy) and mr. runninghood who were visiting on a mini-vacation. the lexington ave arts and fun festival was going on, bringing out a unique mix of... characters. asheville hadn't gotten to them too much yet as amanda was still wearing a bra and shirt.

i would love to hear your thoughts as to what's going on here;

amanda spun a tale of suffering and oppression.

after browsing the festival tents we headed over to the laughing seed on wall street for a late lunch (yum) before eventually parting ways so that the 'hoods could get in their romantic sightseeing plans. (and house browsing, that's kind of romantic right?).

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august 2012

miles run: 4.5. oh yeah, you're impressed.

re-strained back and spent too many days benched or on the stationary bike. it is amazing how much you can't do when trying to heal back muscles. also i am still having an odd glute pain (not constant). time to self-diagnose (i can't believe i haven't gone to see dr. google yet for it).

[source]

other workouts: airdyne (stationary bike) too many times; bootcamp (baby workouts); walking

days off: 8

netflix obsession(s): white collar (season 3) and pretty little liars

artistic/creative outlet/new thing i tried: still haven't even hung the water colors

new food i tried: sweet potato brownies and coconut flour pizza dough (with sauce and cheese, not plain dough, i'm not that weird). i thought i was missing cheese during the past month of clean eating but having full fat mozzarella on my pizza just wasn't satisfying. it is good to know i'm not addicted to cheese anymore.

my dough-making skills leave something to be desired.

book(s) read: does a book for work count? "global oem principles to save time and make money" - a training requirement for work. zzz.

number of blog visitors: 719 (you guys are always rockin')

number of doctor visits: 2, i think (+numerous chiro visits); the count is going down! and hopefully staying down.

number of postcards received: 1 from jess of cuban running crisis; thanks jess!

though august was consumed by rehabbing my geriatric back, i've been able to do more intense workouts (...than stationary biking or walking) the past few days. i'm trying hard to stay smart, lose some stubbornness, and get back into a regular workout routine without setting myself back, again.

i did a good wod friday morning that i really liked -- 10 martian makers (light weight due to back), 75 wall balls, 75 (modified) burpees, and 10 martian makers. the fact that i'm still sore from it today makes me like it all the more. it appears that "martian makers" may be a made-up term because i can't find a video to demonstrate them, but they're basically a hang clean-squat-thruster. i don't do as deep of squats because of the back/glute and i step out/in for burpees instead of jumping legs out/in. i was going to try to run a couple miles today but i may just spend the day rolling my sore muscles instead.

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this ish is bananas

hello world! i'm popping in because i haven't in awhile and i just know you all missed me dearly.

i'm still nursing this back strain which (i think) is re-healed after i brilliantly thought it'd be ok to do 65lb deadlifts and set myself back a few more weeks. i can sneeze without pain again but a weird, sometimes sharp, pain pops up in my right glute depending on how i move. i'm rolling, massaging and stretching my lower back, glute and hamstrings in an attempt to get back out on the streets and cross fitting asap. yep, another month of no-running, this is not fun.

i went to a super sweet j.crew warehouse/sample sale. it was crazy and required camping out on the sidewalk at 3am, but i got a lot of new clothes for way less than advertised.

there are no dressing rooms so you try stuff on over your spandex. but everyone's doing it, it's totally normal.

my car broke, but josh saved the day. some cable came loose and the shifter thingy wouldn't change  (clearly i moonlight as an automechanic). josh figured it out and luckily it was an easy fix. i also got to use my emergency car kit for the first time ever (well the screwdriver, not the flares).

and now for something entertaining since you've endured the above drivel.

i found this banana slicer on pinterest. somehow it got review bombed and they're hilarious; please enjoy your friday workday reading the reviews.

oh, and i'm still eating clean too.

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totes amazeballs

i'm only 14 years late to using that super cool vocabulary, but these brownies were awesomesauce.

yes, brownies. and yes they qualify for this primal/paleo eating (although josh says they defeat the purpose of this 'diet').

sweet potato brownies

from paleomg. aka my soon to be new best friend.

ingredients:

1 sweet potato (i only used half)

3 eggs, whisked (that means mix it up good after you dump in other ingredients, right?)

1/4 cup coconut oil, melted (i used evoo)

1/3 cup raw honey

1/2 cup enjoy life chocolate chips (plus a handful to snack on)

3 tbsp coconut flour

2 tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder

1/4 tsp baking powder

1/4 tsp vanilla

1/4 tsp cinnamon

pinch of salt

note: cocoa powder is not delicious by itself. do not bother to lick the measuring spoon. you may end up like glozell.

1. bake microwave the sweet potato as you would normally. peel skin and mash it up. i neglected to mash mine up well so there are "surprise" chunks of sweet potato throughout the brownies.
2. add wet ingredients and then add dry ingredients.
3. stir it up. pour into an 8x8 pan. bake 30-35 minutes at 350°.
4. do everything possible to not eat the entire pan in one sitting.

and i swear i am not turning into a foodie. c'mon i was too lazy to fully follow the recipe. besides, wouldn't you rather discover a delicious healthy brownie recipe instead of hear about my whopping 1-mile run? exactly.

i did run a mile on tuesday though; it took forever. i also did 50 assisted (with a band) pull-ups.

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clean on the road

this weekend josh and i drove (yes drove) to binghamton, ny for a wedding. what should have been an 11-hour drive turned into a 13-hour drive thanks to "road construction" in pennsylvania. we split the drive on the way up and stayed in harrisonburg, va so that wasn't bad, but the 13-hour drive home sunday was just boring.

binghamton on the other hand must be the other armpit of america. granted i only saw the "downtown" area - deserted and full of sketchy folk. they were hit pretty bad with a flood last fall so i guess i'll cut them some slack.

not my photo (from facebook)

anyway, as the title of this post suggests it was a bit of a challenge to eat within my self-set dietary constraints. there aren't exactly paleo/primal/real foods fast food restaurants on the interstate ya know? i brought some baby carrots and peaches, and picked up pumpkin seeds, sweet potato chips and grapes on the road. friday's breakfast was complements of the hampton inn 'buffet' - scrambled eggs and mixed fruit. i also took a couple bananas for later. both rehearsal and wedding dinners were salmon with salad or veggies (i skipped on the potatoes both nights).

careful, don't fill up on the 4 grapes and 1/2 apple

my back is feeling better again (good enough to workout somewhat normally) but i'm still taking it easier until it fully heals. i did a little workout saturday before the wedding - running a whole half-mile on the hotel treadmill while oscar pistorius ran his opening heat in the 400 and qualified for the semi finals. i followed that up with a cross fit style workout: 21-15-9 man-makers (20lb weights), squats, and push-press jumping jacks (21 of each, 15 of each, 9 of each). the man-makers wore me out.

i didn't get to watch as much of the olympics as i wanted due to being busy with wedding festivities, and streaming them over my phone on the drive home didn't go over as well as i had hoped. not the clearest picture but as josh pointed out - i was watching a live event taking place many miles away while driving down the interstate.

women's 400m hurdles (heat) i believe. what you can't see them?

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july 2012

miles run: 15.30. it's hard to run when you strain your lower back! (but it's improving)

other workouts: bootcamp (x12)

days off: 13

netflix (/tv) obsession(s)/fail: pawn stars and of course the olympics!

artistic/creative outlet/new thing i tried: finally finished (my first ever) water color attempts to hang in the living room. i've hinted at these in the past; i'm finally content with how they turned out.

actually hanging them on the other hand may take 2-6 months

new food i tried: actually cooking for a change - egg cupcakes and coconut flour pancakes.

book(s) read: none. slack.

number of blog visitors: 671 (you guys are always rockin')

number of doctor visits: 5 (+numerous chiro visits)

number of postcards received: 11! thank you andrea, ginny, diana and non-blogging friends!

unlike june, july wasn't as kind to me what with straining my back and then trying to do too much too soon. i still got in a few good workouts and august will surely be better! it certainly can't be any worse than august 2011.

i think i've had my share of hurdles over the past year but i will continue to fight to get back up. i still have 40 more states to run and a sub-3 to achieve!

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coconut pancakes

today i am here to show you that you can eat "breads" while eating primal-ish/paleo-ish/whole foods/whatever you want to call it.

don't worry, this won't turn into a foodie blog. c'mon now. you know i can't cook.

last night for dinner i made coconut pancakes (from paleospirit). they turned out pretty good, though i think they would have been better with some honey or pure maple syrup on top (i didn't have any so i ate them plain).

4 3 eggs (i only had 3)
1 cup coconut milk
2 tsp vanilla extract
1 tbsp coconut nectar (coconut sap) agave
1/2 cup coconut flour
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp sea salt
1/4 tsp cinnamon
+ 1/4 tsp nutmeg (i found this in the pantry while digging out the cinnamon and threw it in)
coconut oil for frying too lazy. and they weren't sticking to the pan.

makes 6-8 pancakes

they were hard to flip neatly though

they look dark but i don't think they were burnt (tasted fine). i had the heat on "4" out of 9 and didn't leave 'em on long.

nutritional info:
serving size = 2 cakes
calories - 200
fat - 9g
carbs - 19g
protein - 11g

[i used the sparkpeople recipe calculator to determine nutritional information]

the bag of coconut flour has directions for cookies on the side... i probably need to experiment and see how those turn out right?

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paging dr. house

i haven't logged a medical update since mid-april when i attempted an elimination diet (and failed when i fell off the wagon). i thought i ought to on the off-chance a fellow runner/eczema sufferer out there is looking for answers. unfortunately i don't have any, so hopefully you're just looking for someone to commiserate with. not a lot has changed, i'm still on the cyclosporine, and i got slack at chasing down doctors to figure out what's wrong these past few months. [note: a month of cyclo at walmart was $255 with my insurance "benefit". after a few emails with gracie, i found a local pharmacy that has it for $55/month. sold.]

on friday i had a follow-up at the dermatologist. re-raised the question of "why don't i sweat like i used to". originally he thought the sweat canals (i'm sure that's the legit term) were clogged or inflamed from the eczema and that maybe the cyclo would help bring those back to normal. unfortunately i still haven't sweat normally while on the cyclo, and i think it's safe to say it's hot enough to where i should be sweating! he said he'd do some researching.

i'm starting to wean off the cyclo. i'm coming up on six-months and "they" say you shouldn't be on it too long because you could cause long-term damage to your kidneys. the doc is leaning towards going on a different immunosuppressant (one that causes long-term damage to your liver, you know, to give the kidneys a break) and i asked him why can't we do some exploring to find out what is causing the problem. i don't want to continue to treat the symptom; i need to figure out the root of the problem.

now if i could just find a doctor someone willing to go all dr. house on me...

ps: if you make the egg cupcakes, be sure to use cupcake liners. or an entire can of crisco. i soaked the pan for 5 days and still had to scrub and scrape to get the egg remnants off.

pps: though i haven't been doing my normal level of running for a year, i'm still just as hard-headed as ever. i strained my back on the 4th and have been easing back into running/bootcamp since. monday's workout involved deadlifts, 65lbs, and i forgot i shouldn't be doing that just yet. setback another week, boo.

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then and now

after reading your comments, thinking about my meals and talking with my friend, i figured i should correct myself on my previous post. we are not eating all-out paleo; we're doing primal. the difference between the two (to me) is that i'm not buying 100% organic (though i'm trying to as much as possible) and we are allowing a splash of cream in coffee or the option to have rice, quinoa or even a hamburger bun (of course we're trying to go without 'cheating' with a bun!).

our trainer admitted he sometimes allows himself to have pizza on the weekend or a hamburger on a big, buttery bun (his words) because he knows it's more realistic for him to have those "splurges" than to cut them out all together (hence the "80/20" split of primal -- 80% stick to it, 20% occasional "cheats"). i've learned you get less criticism if you just tell people you're eating whole foods, ha.

my friends considers this a "low carb" diet (as it turns out some of you do too), but i personally do not. half of my calories come from carbs which falls right into the recommended range from the usda.

regardless, i'm still eating clean-er than before. i decided to do a comparison of a typical day's food for me then (before this primal-ish challenge) and now (while eating "primal"/whole foods):

typical day's food "before" (from 22jun12):

breakfast
- coffee with cream and agave or honey
- cereal - almost always rice chex or honey bunches of oats, sometimes kashi heart to heart. at least two "servings" (because who eats just 3/4 cups of cereal??)

lunch
- salad (mixed greens) - maybe some carrots or cucumbers on top; shredded cheese; balsamic dressing
- pretzel crisps - 1 serving (i was always good about counting out the # of pretzels; counting out potato chips on the other hand...)
- animal crackers - addictive

snacks
- banana
- more animal crackers or potato chips (must be honest and admit it wasn't usually 1 serving)

dinner
- potato wedges
- zucchini pizza - zucc slices with tomato sauce and mozzarella cheese

(ignore the date, i logged the food into mfp for easy comparison)

as you can see, my former carby self was not eating balanced,

and i can guarantee those fats weren't good fats.

a day of primal/paleo-ish eating (19jul12):

breakfast
- boiled egg
- green smoothie
- 1 scoop whey protein powder

lunch
- spinach salad - bell pepper, carrots, 1 boiled egg white

snacks
- banana
- watermelon - about 3 cups
- pickles
- boiled egg

dinner
- flounder - cooked in oven with evoo, lemon juice, garlic, onion
- french green beans - boiled; then add a little evoo, garlic, salt/pepper

i was short on calories this day but i ate whenever i was hungry. 3 cups of watermelon fills you up! my carbs were low too, but i'm still adjusting and tweaking my foods as i realize what i'm too high/too low on.

anyway, all this to say:

1. if you don't think you should/don't want to eat primal/paleo -- that's totally fine. i'm not judging you because you choose to eat grains or dairy. i love bread and cheese myself. this was just a friendly challenge we conjured up to see if we could do it, and we both knew we needed to/wanted to eat better.
2. i am still getting plenty of nutrients. in fact i believe i'm eating more balanced and getting more nutrients than before.
3. the hardest part of eating clean (to me) is getting un-lazy. you have to prepare snacks and meals instead of grabbing a convenient bag of chips or picking up a pizza on the way home from work. i try to prep a few things on sunday (such as hard boiled eggs and the egg cupcakes) and pre-chopping salad toppings like cucumbers or peppers.

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i want a pizza

my friend and i started 30-day paleo eating challenge*. our cross fit trainer planted the seed and this blog post was humorous enough to motivate us to give it a try. we eat fruits, veggies, meat (well, i only do fish and eggs) and the occasional sweet potato.

proof i am getting balanced nutrients

we're using the "myfitnesspal" app to track eating and exercise. it has a social aspect to it where you can link up with your friends and track their progress too (accountability!). don't worry, it doesn't broadcast your weight or anything. [this app is free to download - i am not being compensated in any manner to mention it]

so far we're 5 days in and going strong. it's been easier than expected to stick with it knowing i have someone holding me accountable. if either of us cheats we both have to do 100 burpees. we also threw in a clause for water - 100 situps if you don't drink the recommended amount (~9 cups per the mayo clinic). we had to do burpees (4x14) in friday's workout which was quick reminder to not cheat because burpees are hard.

workouts last week have been tough and i've felt weak at times, but i'm chalking that up to my body adjusting from burning the crap-food i used to eat to burning actual fat instead. admittedly i was surprised to see i could eat so much food (never feeling hungry) and yet only net 1200-ish calories for the day. certainly can't do that on potato chips and m&m's!

breakfast this week: egg cupcakes
(from everday paleo)
- 10-12 eggs whisked well
- onion (1/2 cup)
- zucchini (2 cups)
- spinach (2 cups)
- pepper (i used red; 1/4 cup)

you're supposed to finely chop it all up in a food processor or blender. i was too lazy for this. i just chopped it up and dumped it in the eggs. worked well enough for me. made 16 cupcakes which i calculate at 70 cals each. this was also the first time i teared up while cutting an onion. eyes burning.

*though it may turn into primal, who knows. from what our trainer tells us - primal is 80/20 where as paleo is 100% strict.

edited to add:
i included the screen shot of my food log in an attempt to ward off low carb comments but it seems many of you think that paleo = low carb. the usda recommends 45-65% of your calories comes from carbs and as you can see i fall into that range on my pie chart. i think a lot of people forget that carbs are in foods other than breads/grains. technically this clean eating is lower-carb than i typically eat (and i'm sure most of the us population), but ultimately better (in my opinion) because i'm eating better carbs instead of cereals and breads.

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to do or not to do

i've been feeling the marathon-itch the past few weeks, even though i'm not even in shape to fill out a registration form, let alone 'run' one. i found two of interest in mid-november, laid out a very basic training plan, and realized i'd have to start training this week. as in, with my 80-year-old's back. i'm thinking it's probably not that smart to start a training plan while you're already crippled.

i never fully defined any goals for 2012 but one that i did write down (informally) was to chill out and not run any marathons this year. in dealing with my skin issues i wanted to give my body a rest. if i 'succeed' at not running one, i will break my little streak of running at least one marathon a year since 2006. i had essentially talked myself into taking the year off, and then i talked to my dad about it...

my dad knows that i am sometimes too hard on myself. he knows i used to get stressed out if i missed a workout and he thinks that unnecessary stress could have contributed to the decline of my health (skin). i figured if i talked to him about my marathon temptation he'd talk me into taking it easy this year. wrong. he basically gave me the green light, provided i don't get so obsessed with it again.

oh the dilemma!

[for the record, at time of writing i am pro- attempting a marathon this year. maybe i'll see how training goes, how my body/health holds up, and register closer to race day. or maybe i'll change my mind. again.]

look at my excitement

thanks for all the well-wishes for my geriatric back. it's been feeling a little better each day and i've continued to get adjustments at the chiropractor. at one visit i was having some additional lower-back cramps (unrelated to the injury), got adjusted, and very shortly after had an urgent call from mother nature. the cramps immediately subsided; i'm thinking the adjustment opened things up so to speak. the workings of the body are all connected (no part operates alone) and chiropractic care is not just for back pain!

i went to boot camp monday and did a personalized, very remedial workout. i felt pretty dumb doing it, but at least i was moving and not laying in bed eating potato chips. while everyone else did wall balls, burpees, etc, i did step ups (8") and sat down on a bench/stood back up. i don't think my heart rate got above 60. my back handled the workout just fine and i'm cleared to do a 'medium' workout today. i need to take a few more days off from running since there's all that repetitive pounding involved, but i think i'll be ready to go next week.

be the turtle

[obviously the photos are unrelated, but you can't have a blog post without pictures because those are boring. thankfully my mom recently scanned a bunch of childhood gems and gave me her snapfish password. note: i am the younger, cuter (obviously) one in the pictures.]

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blasted bootcamp

i'm laid up with a back strain and i'm blaming bootcamp!

how it happened
my form in monday's workout probably could have been better, especially once i started getting tired, as i felt the occasional twinge in my back while doing one-handed squats. i think the awkwardness of them (/me) caused my torso to twist some.

at wednesday's workout we did forward jumps as part of the warm up. on one of the first landings, a jarring pain shot through my lower back area. i finished the workout (not smart) with continued pain. box jumps were part of the workout and a few of us were doing them onto a big tractor tire (higher off the ground than the boxes). i fell backwards off the tire twice due to intense pain when landing on top, almost busting my butt in the middle of the gym for all to see!

these two workouts are the only things i can think of that could have possibly caused such an injury. i've been wearing my vibrams to bootcamp and i don't think they paired well with the hard landings of the forward jumps or box jumps.

the road to recovery
i went to the chiropractor after the workout and definitely needed an adjustment. it brought some relief, but the sitting/couch laying i did for the rest of the day did not help. i also iced (for hours since i fell asleep with it on). a middle-of-the-night sneeze caused severe pain and now i brace my back against something before a sneeze.

things felt slightly better thursday morning but after sitting in the car for my whopping 15-minute commute my back locked up on me. i struggled to get out of the car; it hurt to even reach forward to turn off the ignition.

sitting at my desk for two hours made things a lot worse. i tried to stand up but the pain was too intense, radiating down into my legs. i seriously thought i would need to call someone over to pick me up out of my chair. eventually i got half-way up, bent over grasping the desk for dear life, and grimacing. a co-worker (much older than me) walked by and said "been sitting too long?". my mom later laughed hard when i told her this and said i need to get a life alert.

i went to the chiropractor again during lunch and he said he could feel the muscles spasming throughout my lower back on both sides of my spine. i was adjusted (it helped again) and made sure to get up about every 30 minutes for the rest of the afternoon to walk around a little. now i'm on forced rest (but not on the couch as it's not supportive), an icing regime, and limited sitting. i can lay in bed though, whew.


mourning my inability to workout for a few days, i came home and made cookies. because if you can't burn fat you must eat it? as the last tray was finishing up in the oven the power went out and i ended up having to eat cookies for dinner, a shame. obviously i'm hoping and praying this will clear up quickly so i can get back to running, bootcamping and re-losing this weight!

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june 2012

miles run: 73.45 (up 10 from may)

other workouts: bootcamp (x10), bike rides (x3, 34+ miles)

days off: 5 (!!! this is a big improvement for me as i have struggled with missing half a month's worth of workouts for like two years)

netflix obsession(s)/fail: say yes to the dress - atlanta. that show is so much better with southern divas and large african american families!

artistic/creative outlet/new thing i tried: horseback riding (another groupon) in the rain (therefore no action photos)

this was my horse for the day, max

to whom i think i am allergic because i sneezed for the next week

new food i tried: zucchini bread (josh's garden is thriving with monster zucchini)

one of the monster zucchinis - as long as my thigh from hip to knee

book(s) read:
all the pretty horses (cormac mccarthy) - well, i tried to read this one. i read maybe 10 pages and gave up. didn't grab me.

the pillars of the earth (ken follett) - long book (973 pages) but i read it in 2 days (mostly on the beach). takes place in the 1100s and i certainly never thought i'd be into a medieval-times book. the foundation of the book was based on the author's interest in the european cathedrals, and it is pretty cool to think about how the gorgeous buildings were built way back when, with no technology or machinery, and still stand strong today. don't worry, the book is fiction. i doubt i could have read almost 1,000 pages of architecture drivel (even though i once aspired to be an architect).

run like a girl: how strong women make happy lives (mina samuels) - another good read that leaves you feeling full of girl power! well, maybe not if you're a male. run like a girl contains mini-stories of real-life women, their involvement in sports and the impact of those experiences on the rest of their lives. definitely a worthy read for every woman!

second wind (cami ostman) - such a good read! cami is one of few women who have ran marathons on all seven continents. i was inspired by her - overcoming the ups and downs in her life and always striving to succeed. the chapter about her panama marathon was just nuts. i don't know if i would have had the gumption and grace that she had!

disclaimer: i received a free copy of both run like a girl and second wind in exchange for doing a blog review of the books. they were both easy and interesting reads and while i enjoyed them both, second wind was more my "style". run like a girl motivated me to put on my big girl pants and embrace girl power. second wind reminded me to stick to my dreams and to look for lessons and experiences in everything.

number of blog visitors: 686 (a significant drop, but i assume that's because i went mia for two weeks)

number of doctor visits: 2

number of pounds lost: 4

number of pounds re-gained while on vacation: 4

number of postcards received: 0 (though i already got a few in for july's tally!)

sunset at south beach

june running was very kind to me. last week was vacation and i diligently logged 22.10 miles! being on vacation also enabled me to "miss out" on the streak of 100° temps, darn. previously i've been logging a big 15-ish miles (if i wasn't busy slacking off). i tracked my hr, aiming to keep it in the 150's, my easy zone. i've since forgotten the fancy terms for heart rate monitor training so i'll just say my "easy zone". i was pleased to see i held a sub-10:00 pace while still keeping my hr down; i know it's progress!

dead horseshoe crab washed ashore

a ghost crab

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