Last week's foods

I didn't do THAT great this week.. while most of my eating is clean, sometimes I'm just hoarding food and eating way too much. I felt overall like I had no control almost like I was experiencing that great feeling of p-m-sing when you just have to eat this and that and are hungry all the time (at least for me). Ugh. Abby and I ran yesterday - the humidity was high and it was hard to breathe. But for sure, it was nice to meet up for a run and catch up! I'm still just sitting here struggling with the start to school on Tuesday. Ugh... again.

Some recipes/foods from last week, most adapted from eat-clean except for the first one.

Granola bars

I didn't follow the recipe exactly as posted above,
but anytime I make granola bars they turn into granola.



This happened here too - it is good with yogurt!
I'm sticking with my tempo bars!

EAT CLEAN PIZZA
Bill said this was the best pizza dough I've made yet. Wooo! I agreed.
It was a great consistency, relatively easy to make, and yummy!
Recipe adapted from eat-clean cookbook

2 c whole wheat flour
1 package rapid rise yeast
1 tsp salt
1 tbs rosemary
1 tbs parsley
1/2 tsp agave nectar
3/4 c warm water
1 tbs olive oil

Put flour in the food processor and process. Change the blade the kneading blade. In a measuring cup combine hot water, oil, yeast and agave. Let stand for 5 min or till foamy. Add this to the food processor while it is running. After a few minutes, it should turn into a soft looking ball. If it seems crumbly add more water. If it appears sticky, take it out, cover hands with flour and knead it until smooth. With lightly oiled hands, remove the ball from the food processor and place it in a bowl covered with cooking oil. Place a wet kitchen towel over the dough and let it rise for an hour.

Roll out the dough on a floured surface to your desired thickness. Add toppings and Bake at 450 for 15 minutes

Stir Fry w/ Tofu

Recipe for Cottage Cheese Pancakes adapted from the eat-clean diet - awesome for post long run!
1 1/4 c whole wheat flour and or spelt flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp to 1 tbs cinnamon
1/4 tsp salt
1 tbsp flaxseed
1 tsp pure vanilla
8 egg whites, room temp if possible
2 tsp agave nectar
1 cup fat free cottage cheese

1 cup fat free yogurt or skim milk

Combine dry ingredients in a medium bowl. Make a well in the center.
Combine the wet ingredients in a small bowl. Pour into the well. Cook away!
Makes 12 pancakes of approximately 85 calories per cake and 7 g protein.

Then some not clean eating. I made a birthday cake for my sister. It was supposed to be a checkerboard and was 3 layers. It was a big flop. I must have overcooked it. It didn't stay together. That sucked because I spent a whole lot of time making it. I want to try it again, because it looks really cool on the box. Don't know what I did wrong!

What really matters?

Nick swimming !

I'm a deep thinker and always thinking about SOMEthing. If I have something questionable on my mind, it always sits heavy and I find it hard to concentrate on other things. Working has always been a great distraction from anything that is going on in my life because it is so fulfilling, I don't have a chance to think while teaching. At home Nick distracts me.

Every time that I have questioned my decision to stay home, I have thought about what really matters in my life. I try to do the 10 year rule. In 10 years what will I have wished that I did? (The 10 year rule gets me out of a lot of workouts too, consequently). In 10 years, what is going to matter: that I worked because I wanted to work and not miss out on my current status and students, or that I stayed home and watched Nick grow and taught him things (since I have the opportunity to do so)? It always turns out the latter when I do the 1o year rule. And I remind myself that in 10 years I'll be teaching and not have the option to take a year off. I have to constantly remind myself of these things.

What makes it hard for me is that I know the kids NOW. The class that are going to be seniors were my first class at the school that I teach at - they were freshmen. When I return, they will be gone. I've missed their senior year. Also when I return, it might be time for #2 and I'll be out again. So by making the decision to stay out this upcoming year, I don't see it as just a year. I see it as a few years of being in and out of school to take time off to stay home with babies. I won't have the same relationships. Staff will change. It will all be different. It is a huge adjustment, since teaching is part of who I am. And now as the year starts off, there will be no back to school mode. It is just kind of weird. I know that I've beaten this issue into the ground, but it sits heavily with me. Part-time teaching would be ideal, but I didn't find anything.

Do you ever think about what you are doing with your life and your relationships and evaluate them? Are you living the life that you imagined? Are there parts that you want to change? Relationships that you want to mend? What do you have to do to make that happen?

What type of person do I want to be?

What kind of mom do I want to be? Wife? Daughter? Sister? Friend? I try to evaluate this and make sure I am headed in the right direction and taking care of the things that really matter. I definitely have some work to do, and some shaping and figuring out where to go from here. As I reached my late 20s and really got into teaching and loved my job, I figured I wouldn't stay home with my kid(s) - only for 6 to 8 weeks. I'm at the point where I'm re-evaluating and working towards putting the pieces of the puzzle in the right place.

Here are some of my puzzle pieces:

MOM: Now that Nick is here, I know that I want to be the one to raise him, teach him things, feed him healthy foods, shape his mind, be a good role model.. everything. For me, when the day comes, (if it does), it will be hard for me to drop him in daycare.

WIFE: I'm a little gaga over the baby and haven't made as much time as I should for my marriage. They always say that you have to plan date nights (we do and then cancel them), and make sure the marriage is the strong backbone. It is strong but I need to work on it more for sure. A baby throws a loop into the house and changes everything! At least that is how it is for me. I think if I was working, it would be totally different, and maybe better for our marriage, since nothing would have drastically changed. Me staying home with Nick has changed some dynamics in our house.

FRIEND: I think that I am a good friend to the friends that I care the most about.

DAUGHTER/SISTER: My relationship with my parents needs work. I'm too hard on them. I'm a good sister now but I was mean to my brother growing up, which sucks because I didn't know what I was doing. I wish that I was more loving as a small child, but instead I tried to trip my brother when he was learning to walk, and pinched him when no one was looking. I was nice to my sister. Now we have decent relationships, but I'm demanding and sometimes want more out of my siblings and a closer bond.

We can always better ourselves. What things do you constantly work on, or want to work on?

How's the eating been going?

The eat-clean diet. I think I'm eating 80% clean. For some reason I can't get into my hard core all or nothing state. Maybe that is a good thing.. but I will keep ping ponging between being diehard let's lose weight and oh well, let's just let it work itself out. Yah.

This week I made a berry cobbler that I saw on Danica's Daily using TJ's Vanilla cake mix which you mix with 12 oz of sparking water. Interesting! It is a nice fruity dish! I've made the cake a bunch of times for my students and LOVE it. This was the first time I was checking out the ingredients - the first one is sugar. So.. I don't know if I 'll buy that again!




Tomato chickpea soup I made and had with Dave's Killer croutons...
This was inspired by Lidia's porcini chickpea soup. It had 1/2 can peeled tomatoes, olive oil, and a cup or so chickpeas or white beans, with rosemary, parsley and oregano, salt and pepper. Simmer on the stove then blend away to make it smooth! I didn't measure too much but it ended up really tasty!



Cottage cheese pancakes from the eat-clean cookbook. It had cottage cheese, egg whites, flour... I added some flaxseed. I'll have to post the recipe when I find it. They were moist and decent!



This week for master's swimming it is outside since the indoor pool is being cleaned. It is pretty cool, I like swimming outside. It reminds me of easy living summer swimming days (age 6-18). Running is going ok. If I can run outside, it is great. I ran outside with Nick on Tuesday, and inside the rest of the days so far. I'm excited for Abby is back from her adventures and we hope to do a mini long run this weekend.

Some tempo bars are coming your way

Laurel ... #7

Dave's Killer Bread

Dave's Killer Bread sent me some bread that I had the opportunity to eat and review. The name says it - This stuff is KILLER! It is great bread.

A little bit about the company and Dave's story:
The company is out to make the most nutritious and delicious bread (and cookies and rolls) out there. They use quality ingredients and don't sacrifice taste. The bread is organic!

The story is pretty inspirational. Dave's father was a baker, and as he grew up he went down the wrong path and turned against his family. Dave starting doing meth, became a drug dealer and spent 15 years in prison for various felonies. After getting some help, reuniting with family, and getting out of jail, Dave cleaned up his act and created his killer bread. The bakery is located in Portland, OR for all of you Portland people out there! The loaves sell for upwards of $5 a loaf at the bakery or around $10 a loaf mail order.

The Bread
The breads are made with all natural seeds and grains. Click here for the ingredient list. Nothing processed, no sugars. Instead of sugar, Dave uses natural fruit juices! Only the finest healthiest ingredients out there!

The Experience
I received 2 loaves in the mail: Killer Good Seed Bread - the bestseller and Killer Powerseed Bread. First of all, I love multigrain bread so this was heavenly for me. Both breads were packed with seeds and grains, very moist and delicious! I ate them plain, I used them for toast, I made sandwiches with them, and I made croutons. I love these breads! They are packed with Omega 3s. have average 5g of protein and around 130 calories a slice. 130 may sound high if you are counting calories, but they are big, dense slices. I don't eat that much bread, but if I am going to eat bread, I want it to be delicious - Dave's breads fit the bill. They are healthy and scrumptious!


The Review

Definitely the best nutritious all natural clean eating bread that I have had.

+ I really enjoyed this bread. It has tons of nutritious ingredients, Omega 3 (which is great for vegetarians and athletes), and protein. It packs a boost and is great for a sandwich, to dip in soup, toast, or my all time favorite: croutons. The best thing is that it tastes great by itself!

- Boy, do I wish I could find this locally! You are lucky if you live in Oregon. Out here in PA, I'm not sure that I'd spend $10 a mail order loaf even though the bread is really AWESOME. I think I'd have to plan a trip out to the bakery and stock up. If you are even close to Portland, I would definitely check out the bakery or the local farmer's markets. You won't regret it!

Some tomato-bean soup with homemade Dave's croutons

The croutons - cut up a slice and drizzle w/ olive oil.
Bake at 400 in the toaster oven till crispy. YUM!

WRIGHT SOCK CHALLENGE

I am participating in the WrightSock Challenge hosted by Runner's Lounge. All month, I have been wearing only WrightSocks when I run. Here are the socks that I've tried and my thoughts. If you don't have wrightsocks yet - and especially if you have blisters or get blisters when you run, what are you waiting for? I am running Blister Free thanks to WrightSocks!

Running II - double layer standard running sock, midweight, snug fit

SLX - lightweight and stabilizing. A great sock.

SLT - insanely lightweight - you won't even know it is there. If you've wanted to try out running barefoot, this is probably the closest you can get to it!

Cushioned DLX - these are double layer cushioned socks. I love wearing these around the house! And they are great to run in!

Cool Mesh - lightest most breathable double layer. It's very light!


I love all of these socks. I think my favorite is the SLX. It is lightweight but feels cushioned and is snug on my feet. I have wide feet and would always get blisters, but not with any of these socks!

Check out their website for locations or to purchase.

Greens Plus Chia

I had been wanting to try Chia but hadn't gotten around to it. I was able to get a sample from Greens Plus - a whole can of it! Chia seems to be a great RUNNER's food!

From the Greens Plus Chia label:
*Chia promotes endurance - the Ancient Aztecs ate chia in bread just before battle and drank it in water before running long distances!

*it increases hydration

*only unprocessed whole food source of pure Omega

*helps eliminate waste

*is great in smoothies, baked goods, oats, soups, salads...






It has a subtle taste (well, it isn't as noticable as flaxseed) and great benefits! I've added it to my smoothie, TEMPO granola bars and oats so far. I feel like I am just throwing in something that is good for me ! Extra bonus :) I'm going to try it in some water before my next long run and see if I feel a difference.

One container is $19.95. Check out the website or remember you can email Diane (diane@greensplus.com) to try it out!

Share your CHIA recipes/successes! How do you use Chia?

In other news, I made it through 9 treadmill miles yesterday. I don't think I can do a solo long run, my head isn't in the game for it.

TOP qualities
What are the TOP qualities that you look for in others? Lately I have been thinking about this after some disappointing experiences with various people. I am too hard on people, for sure. I used to have a list when I was in high school or college or things I wanted in a husband. I totally wish I had that list now to see how if I've changed much!

RELIABLE
GOOD LISTENER
THOUGHTFUL

I think those are my top 3! What are your desired qualities?
I'm going to pick a response at random on Wednesday and send out a couple of tempo bars.
So tell me what qualities you look for in the people that you surround yourself with!

P.S. If you have a word verification for comments, consider not having them embedded, it is tedious! Or consider removing it!

Quinoa/Tempo Bars

This morning, I started off the day with quinoa and multigrain cereal (oats, barley...some other grains). The quinoa/oat combo was in the eat-clean cookbook. I had to soak the quinoa for 2 hours, so before I went swimming this morning, I soaked it and it was perfect for when I came home. I mixed 1/4 c of the soaked quinoa with 1/4 c of my normal oat/multigrain cereal and it was a great change from my routine! It was tasty! I added in my almond butter, cinnamon and a little agave nectar. Delicious!

Note on almond butter: I bought raw almonds last time, these are NOT so good for almond butter. It took alot of work out of the food processor and was very chunky/thick like cookie dough. I had to let it sit for a day and then processed it this morning to make it spreadable consistency.

It was my first day back swimming masters in almost a month - I felt pretty good. I feel like I could go faster and push harder. And why do all of the masters teams that I find have 40 and 50 year olds. Where are all of the 20 and 30 year olds, and why are the older people kicking my butt?

I am up to 18 miles this week, and hope to get back up to 30, which I haven't hit in the past 2 weeks. I've been taking it easy. The weather has been horrible so I've been running inside. I can't wait for fall weather!

THE TEMPO BAR
my newest creation

I took the peanut butter flax granola bars that I made before (granola like bars) and added in a bunch of healthy awesome things to add protein and omega 3s and healthy fats. This is a runner's bar for sure! I have to do the nutrition facts, but these bars are made with kashi go lean, oatmeal, hemp protein powder, chia seeds, flaxseed, almonds, dried berries, Aria Protein Powder, hemp seeds, coconut, almond and peanut butter, brown rice syrup and pure vanilla. They are a great snack pre or post run...most especially after a tempo run!!

What other ingredients would you want in a running power bar?

My fundraising deadline was extended until October, and I have only $196.80 to raise. Is that insane? I am so close to $5000!!! I am selling these awesome Tempo Bars to US residents to try to reach my goal. Totally customizable. No perishable ingredients. One dozen bars is $15. Contact me through email if you are interested.

Thanks for your support!
Have a great weekend.

greens plus, eat-clean

Diane at Greens Plus sent me a thing of Chia seeds to try. If you are interested in trying something out, email her to let her know (diane@greensplus.com). Check out the site - Greens Plus.
Let me know what you do with your chia seeds! I tried them in my oatmeal this morning. You can't really tell that they are there. I'll tell you more about them as I try them out in different things. This morning I made almond milk. I followed a recipe in super baby food, but I didn't blanch them first. On the left is all of the shells just kind of mushy after I strained it. On the right is the milk. It only made around 3/4 cup from 1/3 cup of almonds. It is tasty!

The eat-clean diet I have been talking about is what I am trying to do. I feel a bit better, and I have been trying to lift. I got off track from being at the shore but plan to get back into lifting 2 days a week. I struggle between getting up at 5am before the day begins to workout or just doing it midday. I do better early in the morning and then it is done, but it would be nice to sleep in. Nick doesn't do well if we are out and about for too long, his nap gets messed up. Looks like I'll need a personal home gym. More on the eat-clean diet: they have great recipes, I bought a couple of the books and the recipes have things that I have on hand all the time in them - wheat germ, flax, oats. I like it. Basically, it is NO PROCESSED FOODS, Eat EVERY 2-3 HOURS, and eat a LEAN PROTEIN with complex carbs at every meal. I'll post more about it as I go along too. Last night's dinner was a broccoli cheese frittata. I changed the recipe but it was inspired by this one. Cheese really isn't in this diet except yogurt cheese (which I'll attempt to make soon) and cottage cheese, so this wasn't really eating clean, but that's ok. Moderation.



4 egg whites and 2 eggs
2 cups cooked broccoli
1/2 cup moz cheese
1/2 cup cottage cheese
Put all this in the food processor then cook on stovetop 8 min then broil until browned (but not burnt like above - had to add extra cheese on top to cover that up)

Almond butter for babies - how old was your baby when you gave him/her almond butter?

Shore running

Whew, this past weekend at the shore was beautiful. I was able to get some good running in. I only hit 26.5 miles this week, but I feel now maybe this week I'll build back up after two recovery/rest weeks. Bill ran with me Friday morning - it was hot but nice! Later that night I went out at 8pm after Nick was asleep with my brother's girlfriend and she was running at a good clip! It felt good. We ran about 2 miles and came home and had dinner waiting. How nice is it to be away and not have to make dinner? That was probably the best thing. Saturday I ran after Nick was asleep again - the weather was PERFECT and this time of night became my favorite time to run real fast!! Sunday morning I was up early and ran a little more than 6 miles. Friday and Saturday I ran pretty fast and was sore on Sunday! I'm getting back into it.

Jillian Michaels isn't on Youtube anymore, bummer!!

My eating has been SUPER good, even on vacation. I'm eating "clean" via the eat-clean diet. If anyone knows more about this diet and has any advice, pass it along. I feel pretty good about it! I plan to get back into swimming and lifting this week. I suspect the next 2 weeks will be a little difficult for me with school starting up for teachers next week. I'm trying to stay distracted. I'm sure it sounds a little nuts.

Banana softserve w/ chunky peanut butter and a raw cookie, no chips

Odds and Ends

pic of a girl running on the beach

I have been kind of all over the place and haven't had much to say! Here are some odds and ends of what has been going on:
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Congratulations Jess on your new baby girl!
Good luck Mama Simmons on your race this weekend and time away from Moana!
Congratulations Angela K for your win last weekend!
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Tabs - I haven't had a chance to get back and play around with this. I think if I were working maybe I would have more time for myself!?!? I feel a little deprived of that lately.

Baby seat cover for shopping carts - does anyone have one? Should I get one? your thoughts...

Baby food: Frustrating experience with that, but found I can use the coffee grinder (Bill's idea!) to get the grains to powder. When can I start giving yogurt? Nut butters/tofu at 7 months? The book super baby food is great, but intense. I feel like I know what all of the things are (millet, barley, tofu, nut butters - and have them in my house, but if you don't have this stuff in your house, you will probably think this book is nuts).

Running: Haven't gotten my groove back yet, but working on it. I'm running slow and only ran 26 or 27 miles last week, but do want to keep up a good mileage for the 1/2 in a month and I did sign up for the Philly marathon in November (with possible Steamtown in October looking unlikely)

Lifting: I've been trying to lift 2 days a week, no progress seen yet.

Eating: If I don't count calories I think I eat too much. Yesterday I counted after the day was over becasue I still felt hungry. I had eaten 2500 calories and 300 + carbs, which makes me think maybe I should be eating more, but I am afraid to eat more when I am trying to lose. I'm afraid I'll gain more weight. Carbs - whoa... I am not even eating THAT many carb rich foods. I always have oats in the morning and go lean cereal as a snack and that is huge, and the fruits, veggies and milk add up. Yesterday I had bulgar with dinner but no bread with veggie burgers or sandwiches...I don't feel like cutting out my grains. Annoying. How about fat? I add almost 90g of fat yesterday! Mostly nuts/nut butter but obv other sources too! That is high, yes? What do you aim for in terms of fat?

Nut Butters: I forget if I posted on this, but you do NOT need to add oil to nut butters if you process it long enough. I made some divine almond butter this morning, I like it kind of runny, so I just processed away. Key is also to buy roasted nuts, not unroasted.


As a double bonus, if you like the banana soft serve - add some almond butter. Oh man!! Awesome dessert!

Role Models

What kind of nutritional role models were your parents? Where did you learn healthy eating? When?

I shared this story before but I will share it again since it was a while ago and I have some new readers. Growing up, I was very active and athletic. Besides when I seemed to hit puberty around 4th grade and put on weight, I was mainly a fit kid growing up. I didn't really think about food and exercise or know what healthy choices were out there. I didn't think about it. Fast forward to freshmen year of college, when I really started drinking and partying - add on 20 pounds. I was still hitting the gym, but not really aware, and was definitely self-conscious of my body for the first time, especially after looking around me. Going into sophomore year after a summer of drinking more, I was around 150 pounds, which was a lot for my 5"4 frame. I decided to go out for the crew team, and upon finding out above 130 was heavyweight/under 130 lightweight, I made it my goal to lose the weight for the spring season. I did so by cutting calories to 1100 everyday and making sure that I burned more calories than I ate everyday- so in addition to crew practice, I'd run, swim, do kickboxing, lift.. any type of exercise. The calories that I was eating were made of stir fry from the dining hall, veggie burgers, balance bars... that is probably all - my calories were severely low! I managed to lose more than 25 pounds in 6 months, which was gradual. From that point on, I developed a real awareness for what was going into my body and what I needed to do to maintain my weight. I also took a class on nutrition and was very interested.

The next few years my weight stayed in the 120s but I felt like my life was based on maintaining my weight and what I was going to eat next. This took a toll on my fun characteristics and happiness! That was about 10 years ago and I went through those years being fit most of the time but always conscious and always eating well, with some sweets in moderation of course. Although it is not as bad now as it was then, anytime I am not feeling good about my body, it is a big downer - sometimes I do feel like it plays too much of a role in my life and would like to not worry about it. I get there when I am in a good place w/ my body - but am still working on losing baby weight and it isn't fun. I'm trying to just eat well and keep up some kind of activity.

Back to role models - I want to be a good role model for my family. The Super Baby Food book is awesome, and I can't wait to use it. I feel like I am a great eater and am looking forward to serving my family healthy meals. I don't want to be a crazo and have my kids not know what something like OREOS are, but I don't want someone to look in my cabinets and see crap food.

Here I am down the shore at my grandparents house, and I get irritated when I open the cabinets. They are filled with foods from various aunts and uncles leaving things here: Doritos, Tastycakes, Poptarts, Sugary cereals. Nothing that I would eat unless I was on an island / starving and had nothing to eat. I don't know whose house doesn't have things like this in the cabinet - (well, mine doesn't), but I'm also not sure how to change things. I wish coming to the shore wasn't a deluge of junk food. I dream of going home to my parents' and relatives houses and finding the cabinets full of dried cranberries, kashi, nuts, protein powder, oatmeal, fresh fruit & veggies, quinoa? millet? wheat germ? ... alas.. I never see this happening. How to change things?


In running news, I barely made it over the 20 mile mark this week - and I could use a few days off, so I'm just running when I feel like it, and plan to swim by midweek!

Here's Nick at the beach - we're here for a long weekend:

Baby food...HELP mamas

So... I have the book Super Baby Food. And prior to that I was attempting to follow directions for making it. But, the problem that I am having is getting the food to be like the jars like they sell. Mine is so chunky. I am using a food processor and adding water or b.milk to get it to be smoother... what are you using and what can I do to make it more soup like? : )

6 months !!

I can't believe Nick is 6 months old. Really - where did the time go? Seeing this, I feel like he is going to be going to college in the blink of an eye. Yes, I'm being a little dramatic!
This is scary though, how fast time goes! I want to spend every single minute with the little guy!

So - I kind of slacked off and stopped counting calories. I just don't have the time or don't want to make it. I'm reading all of these food blogs and thinking, they seem to be eating tons of healthy food and doing fine, so I'll just make sure I eat well. Heather let me know about this eat-clean diet which is really a lifestyle change, and mainly just eating good with other details like eating a lean protein and every 3 hours...I have to check into it more but the recipes on the site look great and it looks like something I can do. This calorie counting business is not for me right now. I used to be able to be psycho and drill sargeant-ish, but there are more important things - like Nick... so I'll deal with the weight by trying to eat as best as I can!

I rented the book Super Baby Foods from the library - this goes hand in hand with the Eat-Clean diet. Nick can eat clean too! Best foods for Nick and he can eat what we eat! I'm excited. I have to say, the book is huge and a little overwhelming! Nick has had avocado, banana, apples, pears, prunes, sweet potatoes. Today I bought peaches, nectarines and mango. And I bought millet. We had it for dinner - I plan to make some super porridge for Nick! What are your favorite foods to make, moms?

I seriously just can't get into running right now. I don't know how I will get in my long run this weekend, I'm already not motivated for it, as I am going to be at the shore. I'm heading to the shore the next 2 weekends. Normally I would do my long run before I go down but running on the treadmill isn't happening. In fact, I'm boycotting it for a while. I think my mileage is going to go way down... but I kind of need some time off. Maybe the shore atmosphere will get me into running long - but I doubt it. Anyone going to be down in Ocean City (NJ) and wants to go for a long run? I'm excited for fall weather and running. Sorry for my Debbie Downer running attitude!

WRIGHTSOCKS - have you tried them yet? I'm participating in a Runners Lounge challenge and seriously these socks are awesome. I can't say enough about them. I ALWAYS get blisters running down the shore but not with the WrightSocks - double blister technology. Definitely check them out if you are in the market for socks :)

Lifting/Running Partner

I reunited with an old running partner...my little guy! Nick and I went for a run yesterday before it was super humid out. I forgot how fun it was to run and just watch him looking around : ) Soon he can go in the regular stroller w/o his carseat (when did you start putting your baby in the regular part?) - but for now as long as possible I like how he is facing me and I can see what he is doing. He'll be 6 months tomorrow!

Do you see the sun coming in - it is like a halo for the little angel : )
Tired lil guy


I've been trying to switch it up a bit! I had fun with my run yesterday, biked, ran, and did elliptical on Monday, and lifted this morning and biked and ellipticalled. I just did random things for lifting here and there for 30 minutes. I think I will try to lift 2 to 3 times a week and pick new things to do each time. I like classes or videos for lifting, because I find that I get bored figuring out what to do next. I'm going to check out on demand for that, and I think maybe the 3rd time in the week I can do Jillian for circuit training with lifting. Here's me doing some lifting of my 15+ pound weight below :)

Strength Training and Genetics

THOUGHTS - thank you!
Ok - thanks so much for all of the tips on what to do! Strength training - definitely. And eating more - maybe? I feel like it all comes down to genetics? Body type? I'm reading all of these blogs and wondering how people eat SO much and stay fit. It is all healthy stuff - I'm wondering about the genetics involved. My parents are both overweight, but this is due to years of not working out and eating whatever, whenever. I feel like I have a bad metabolism going for me nonetheless.

CALORIES
I've always stayed on the lower end of the calories, even after seeing the nutritionist last year (she told me to eat 2700 when pregnant and nursing). I was around 1800-2000 when pregnant and gained in the lower end of the suggested weight gain and felt great! I lost weight in college by eating 1100 (problem!) and was down to 121 lbs but was not eating enough - not healthy! Maybe my metabolism is all slow now from that still (7 years ago?) I feel like I have been eating whenever hungry and still around 2200- 2500 and gaining weight. So I think that I need to cut them? Saturday and Sunday were throw in the towel days - did not count. Today I had alot of carbs!

WEIGHT TRAINING
Tell me more - what do you do? Is there an online workout that you follow? I used to have books and a routine but I get bored sooo quickly! I had been doing Jillian 3 times a week - stopped last week after wrist surgery - hopefully resume next week. But - that is really circuit training. What do you suggest??

THANK YOU for all of your help!

watching carbs/calorie counting

UPDATE
So far - I've done pretty well this week. I'm watching carbs and calories but not restricting anything. If I'm hungry, I'm not denying myself! I've been able to stay around 1800 calories (besides yesterday - ate everything in site and didn't track anything = long run). I haven't seen much change in my body, so I'm wondering if I should eat more, maybe my metabolism is slowed and I need more calories than I was eating before. I don't know!

RUN
I went for a long run w/ Abby and Ali yesterday, and I am insanely sore today. My back, quads, shoulders, hamstrings - everything hurts! Add that to the lack of putting on BodyGlide and I have chafage on my back, chest and armpits! Aghhh! I think that I learned the treadmill isn't cutting it. And I have to decide if I want to run Steamtown (oct 10) and Philly (late nov) or just philly for this fall for marathons. I've never done 2 in one season, and Philly is just going to be for fun anyway. After that long run (kind of short) - 14 miles, I feel like I'm not in shape and maybe should bag the first marathon. And I don't like being a bottomless pit all day long.

I won't be able to swim for another week(wrist surgery). IT should be good getting back in the pool! All of the bikers on the trail yesterday made me want to go get a bike and start riding! The stationary bike doesn't really do the trick!

FOODS
Some foods I'd like to try but haven't bought into the hoopla yet: let me know your thoughts!

CHIA SEEDS
PB2

I've been making my smoothies w/ my protein powders. I've thought about buying amazing grass, bc it was good, and had so much good stuff in there, but it is expensive!!

Philly marathoners - there's a facebook group of us!!

Everyone - does anyone know about athlinks?? I never get feedback on it but love this site!!