Category Archives: Sonic

Thursday Running Thoughts

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After staying up waay too late last night watching the debate and the follow-up analysis, some Arrested Development, and then spending like an hour picking the next book I’m going to read (I decided on Bossypants if you’re curious), waking up at 5 am to run this morning wasn’t my smartest decision sleep-wise. It’s leaving me feeling a lot like this.

So because my brain is mush and I can’t seem to put together a coherent post, here are some articles that are worth reading:

9 Marathon Strategies. Some of these are pretty obvious to a seasoned runner but as many of you are running Chicago this weekend, it never hurts to refresh!

Will I run Faster if I Lose Weight. This is a great article because while it admits most runners will be faster if they lose a few pounds it concedes that if you’re already very lean losing weight will only hinder your speed. Similarly, most runners are not elites and have more important things to worry about than race weight.

10 Best Running Cities in the U.S. Chicago is on this list!

5 Intense Cycling Workouts You Should Tr. I’ve already bookmarked this page and plan to use some of these during my tri training next summer. The article claims you need a power meter but I’m sure there’s a way to adapt the workouts to a normal bike ride.

Not-So-Obvious Gear That Every Runner Needs. I don’t know that every runner needs these things but some of them are pretty cool!

Do you have any not-so-obvious running gear that you find important? Honestly, I don’t think I do. Maybe my Garmin- that’s not necessary to run- but I definitely don’t own a gel-bot or anything like that :P

Monday Things {07-09-2012}

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1. On Friday Ian and I saw Ted. I thought it was just okay but he really enjoyed it. Go figure. It didn’t help that I had a teddy bear named Teddy when I was growing up…

2. I used my new spicy peanut butter to make a peanut sauce. It’s not perfect so I’m not going to post the recipe but I added almond milk, water (ran out of almond milk), honey, and cinnamon to the peanut butter. I tossed bok choy, zucchini, and white beans in the sauce. Delicious.

3. I’m still working myself through these dry egg-free, dairy-free, gluten-free brownies. I learned my lesson. There is no need to bake 12 for two people one person.

4. Sonic has a girl friend. Her name is Zoey. We received a picture of her in the bottom of his food bag and he seemed to show some interest. We decided to hang it on the fridge (at his level) so he can look at her when he likes. Puppy kitty love <3.

5. Despite the warm temps this weekend, I ate a lot of warm oats. On Saturday I cooked 1/2 cup oats with 1 1/2 cup water and 1 tsp chia seeds. I whipped in half a banana and added maple sugar and a chopped peach. It tasted [kind of] like peach crumble.

I had the same thing on Sunday except in a jar and with chopped raw figs instead of peaches.

6. On Saturday I did a reverse brick. When I woke up it was already in the 80′s and I was nervous that it would be too hot outside to run after a long ride. I ended up going out for three miles and then following my run with a 17 mile ride out and back to Hyde Park (my favorite route). The reverse brick was the right call. It was warm running but muuuch more comfortable on the bike.

7. On Saturday I made a trip to Kramer’s Health Foods. I was hoping to buy a juice but the cafe is closed on Saturday’s. Bummer. I ended up picking up some new-to-me gluten-free vegan granola bars. I’ll have to wait until I can have soy to enjoy the Heart Thrive but I couldn’t not buy it. I used to buy Heart Thrive’s all the time at a co-op in Ann Arbor and haven’t had one in a few years!

8. “Quesadilla”s made with nooch and hummus (& brown rice tortillas) have been one of my favorite easy lunches of late. The hummus and nutritional yeast almooost has the consistency of creamy cheese.

9. I had the privilege to meet up with three other bloggers this weekend. Katie, Elyssa, Molly, and I met at Forever Yogurt to enjoy a late afternoon snack on Saturday.

It was great to chat with these ladies about food, running, and everything in-between. Speaking of meet-ups, Chicago bloggers, check out the Chicago Healthy Living Bloggers facebook page and join up. We’re hoping to have a bunch of small get togethers this summer!

I had key lime and mango sorbets with berries. It was great that Forever Yogurt posted allergens on all of their flavors. It was very easy for me to find vegan and gluten-free options.

10. Sunday morning I ran my first double-digit run since training for the Boston Marathon last winter/spring. It felt awesome… except for the whole not bringing water thing. I’m loving triathlon training but am starting to get excited for the fall running season. Training for a January marathon means I’ll be running a lot of miles during the best running season of the year! I’m psyched :-D .

11. I made a quick trip to Sports Authority this weekend to pick up a handful of things. I walked out with a sports bra (I finally found the under armor one in my size!), a nylon swim cap that won’t pull my hair (so annoying), and new goggles (much-needed).

I wanted to buy water bottles for my fuel belt (I threw my old ones away) and a tri top but I couldn’t find either. I guess I’ll be making a trip to Fleet Feet soon!

12. The lunch hour struck while Ian and I were out running errands on Sunday and I managed to convince him to have Chipotle with me :P . I ordered a burrito bowl with brown rice, lettuce (the one they use for the salad, you get the best of both worlds this way), black beans, fajita veggies, pico, and guac (shared half w/ Ian). It was absolutely delicious, especially topped with Tabasco Chipotle sauce!

13. We were out near the Anti-Cruelty Society and dropped in to visit with the animals. I’m usually all about the kitties and Ian the dogs but yesterday I saw this little female chihuahua pit bull mix named Cookie. I thought she was cute and sweet and then she went and flared her ears out…

I fell in love. I need a dog with bat ears soooo badly! Aren’t they awesome?? Ian asked me if I wanted to take her for a walk but I’ve learned my lesson (similar situation occurred when we adopted Sonic) and forced myself to leave the shelter. I’m half tempted to check back in a few weeks… if she’s still there I can’t make any promises!

14. Ian and I made a major dent in the fifth season of Mad Men this weekend. I think we watched 5 episodes and only have the finale left! When does season 6 start?

How was your weekend? What was the highlight?

Weekend Update

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Hey guys! I hope you all had a wonderful weekend :) . I decided to unplug myself for a few days and while I had a nice break from the computer, I missed blogging and interacting with all of you guys. So, here’s how I spent my time this weekend!

On Saturday morning I woke up way too early to squeeze in an abbreviated brick workout. I took my mom’s bike out for an 8 mile ride and then ran a mile in 7:07. Thankfully the weather cooperated and it wasn’t uncomfortably hot at 7 a.m. when I was running. I love cloud cover :) .

When I got back to my mom’s I was greeted by this little face. She’s so precious when she’s not biting (currently teething) or having accidents in the house.

I was pretty hungry so I made a bowl of oatmeal using 1/2 cup oats, 1.25 cups water, 1 tsp chia seeds, and some cinnamon. I topped it with almond butter.

It did the trick.

After breakfast my mom and I did some me-specific grocery shopping (I brought a few things from home but obviously couldn’t bring a lot of refrigerated goods). We picked up a lot of fruit. I love summer berries and stone fruit!

Once Ian woke up, we ran some errands and ended up stopping at the food court at the local mall for some lunch.

I had a huuuuge salad with broccoli, cucumbers, tomatoes, mushrooms, onion, and chickpeas. I only could eat about half of this and even with Ian helping out we couldn’t finish it. When I got home I also had a banana and almond butter with a little cereal. The salad filled my belly but definitely didn’t have any calories or staying power to last me very long.

We relaxed for a little while and I took a much needed nap. You can thank Ian for this picture.

Saturday night was spent with my dad for an early Father’s Day dinner. We went to Beverly Hills Grill and I had a grilled vegetable salad with salmon. It was awesome and I’m sorry I forgot to snap a picture!

When I got home I had a pineapple smoothie for dessert (pineapple + rice milk + ice).

I also drove Ian to Sonic so he could have a lime creamslush. What can I say, I’m a good girlfriend :P .

On Sunday morning I woke up really early again to go for a run. I completed 6 miles at an average pace of 7:41 min/mile. My legs felt great but my body was tired. I really need to sleep! It was also super humid out and the air was really thick which made running difficult.

When I got home I made another pot of oatmeal this time whipping in banana and adding strawberries. Delicious!

After breakfast I read on the couch for a bit and ended up falling back asleep. Obviously I had a nice, lazy weekend.

A few hours later, we were in for a treat. Ian and I brought Sonic along to see how he would do with my mom’s new puppy. Well, there wasn’t any fighting or hissing but Sonic was most definitely a little scared of Dharma; however, he was also incredibly curious.

Dharma could have cared less and was obviously just looking for a playmate while Sonic could not figure out what kind of creature was now living at my mom’s house.

It was pretty amusing and even though Sonic was not 100% comfortable with Dharma, he did a lot better than I expected. It will probably just take some time.

Lunch was a piece of brown rice bread with hummus and lettuce and some sugar snap peas.

I also had a peach and a small piece of bread with almond butter.

Sorry for the blurry pictures. I think the setting on my camera must have changed without me realizing it.

The afternoon was spent making a trip out to the park where my tri is on Wednesday (wanted to make sure we knew where to go) and then shopping around for a special purpose (more on that later).

Ian had to leave around 4:30 with our furball, so I packed up Sonic and said goodbye to my boys. I’ll miss them but I think that they’re due for a little bonding time.

After snacking on a ton cherries and snap peas, my mom and I finally decided that an early dinner was in order.

We had steamed artichokes and I had a millet salad that I made by mixing cooked millet, sauteed vegetables (summer squash, snap peas, mushrooms), and a red wine vinegar + oil dressing (again sorry for the pic). It was very good.

Dessert was my protein shake and a banana microwaved with some almond butter. I was craving something “creamy” and it worked.

I spent the night parked on the couch watching t.v. and relaxing while this little devil ran around the house.

This morning I woke up and debated heading out for a run. I don’t want to overdo it and Monday’s are usually my rest days but I also know that I have to take it easy tomorrow. I decided to head out for a run later on in the day when its hot (I only want to do a few miles) to see how my body does. It’s supposed to be 94 on Wednesday and the race is in the evening so immitating race conditions might not be a bad idea.

Instead of working out, I dug into some overnight oats.

1/2 cup oats, 1/3 cup water, 1/3 cup rice milk, 1 tsp chia seeds, cherries (halved and pitted), and some salted nuts on top.

I have a few things I want to get done today, including potentially making a big purchase. Any ideas what I might buy?

Have a great day!

Mother’s Day Weekend Recap

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Happy Monday guys! Did you all have a good weekend? I sure did but it went by so fast (as all trips to Michigan do). Anyway, here’s a recap of the rest of my weekend, you can find the first half here.

Saturday night, Ian, my mom and I all went out to Coyote Grill, a tex mex place that my mom and I used to go to all the time when I was younger. We hadn’t been in awhile so we weren’t sure what to expect.Thankfully, not much had changed!

They still brought us chips and super fresh cilantro salsa to start.

I’m honestly not a big chips and salsa eater but these are totally worth it. They taste so light and fresh!

One thing that has changed is what I ordered. I used to always get the fajita salad in a deep fried taco shell. However, neither chicken nor a deep fried bowl appeal to me anymore so I opted for shrimp fajitas instead.

Served with all of the appropriate toppings of course.

I only managed to eat two fajitas but I definitely finished off the veggies and shrimp. No wasting here!

Everyone else really enjoyed their meals as well. My mom had chicken enchiladas and Ian had steak tacos. We were all pretty happy and full afterwards :)

But of course, no Saturday night can be complete with dessert so on our way home from dinner we stopped at a small custard stand to pick up a little something sweet.

I had a small vanilla custard cone with rainbow sprinkles. The sprinkles are absolutely necessary ;)

We spent the rest of the night relaxing and ended up staying up waay too late to watch Iron Chef. The secret ingredient was peaches– we just haad to see what they could do!

On Sunday morning I got up, munched on some cereal, changed into running clothes, and headed out for a 6 mile run. My legs felt extremely heavy and tired, most likely from travelling and cycling on Saturday, but I pushed through it and ended up finishing in just under 46 minutes for a 7:37 min/mile. Granted, the area where my mom lives is flatter than Chicago but it still felt great to have a speedier run!

I snacked on more cereal post-run and then my mom and I headed out to run some errands and look at doggies. Our family dog passed away last fall and my mom has been waiting to get a new one and just recently started looking. Unfortunately we didn’t see any candidates yesterday but hopefully she’ll find one next weekend (she’s looking for a lab/golden puppy) :) .

I picked up some new tri gear. After my ride on Saturday I knew that I needed to invest both in bike gloves and shorts (I ended up buying tri shorts) and I also bought a new bathing suit since mine is falling apart.

Another great weekend find was whipped cottage cheese. I spotted it at a small, local market in the area and purchased one to take back with me to Chicago. I obviously need to find a spot the sells it in the area but I’m so excited to try it :)

After we completed our errands, my mom and I went out to a Mother’s Day lunch at Crispelli’s a new Italian eatery that opened relatively close to my mom’s house. Per her suggestion, we split a Crispelli salad and a White Pie.

The salad dressing was amazing. We both kept dipping pizza crust into it!

The pizza had roasted garlic and artichoke hearts on it. Yum! I enjoyed two slices before calling it quits.

After lunch, I had to drop some cards off at my dad’s house and then my mom and I went to TCBY to take advantage of their free small cone/cup for moms on Mother’s Day. My mom had a small twist in a cup and I enjoyed a cone with chocolate malt frozen yogurt and more sprinkles. What can I say? I love my cones and sprinkles!

While we were looking at dogs, I had picked up a small harness and leash for Sonic so we could try to take him outside. When we got home, we tried everything on and went out for a test walk.

Doesn’t he look handsome in his harness, it looks like a little vest!

He was quite a natural outside on the leash, it’s too bad I’m not comfortable taking him out in Chicago. Maybe if we move farther north he’ll be able to go out but until then the vest is exclusively for use in Michigan.

Around 3, Ian and I hit the road to head back to Chicago. We made great time, stopping once for gas and then another time to get some water and to let Sonic use his litter. When we got back to the city, we dropped Sonic and our stuff off at the apartment and then headed out to do our grocery shopping for the week. About 45 minutes later we were back at the apartment and eating dinner (we’re fast shoppers!).

I had a salad with mushrooms, carrots, and tempeh crumbles with homemade mustard vinaigrette.

This salad was just what I needed after a heavy lunch.

Dessert was a mini pistachio cannoli that my mom picked up from Crispelli’s and sent home with us.

They’re so tiny! The perfect size for a non-Mike’s cannoli :P . I also had some almond milk with protein powder on the side.

All in all I had a great weekend. I love going home and seeing family and old friends and hopefully, I can make the trip more often now that I don’t have to worry about school!

How was your weekend? Did you do anything special?
Do you like sprinkles?

Couscous Cottage Cheese Oatmeal & a 3 Miler

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Exactly one week ago I was outside ready to start my second week of post-heel injury training when my hamstring started to act up. In fact, it hurt so badly that I couldn’t run a block without thigh locking up. It was painful and terrifying, especially since I hadn’t felt anything prior to trying to run. I decided to give it a week to heal and then attempt running again.

Well this morning was the morning to go back out there and give running a try and I was so nervous! I woke up, lazily put on my warm running clothes (it was 36 degrees!), and headed outside. I walked a few blocks to loosen my legs and did some stretching (thanks Henry!) and then I was off.

I ran a big 3.2 mile loop around my building and held a painfully slow but steady pace. I figured it was more important to see that I could run the distance pain-free than to keep a fast pace. The run was a success (wanted so badly to keep going) and I have no pain or tightness so far!

When I got home I put on my new compression sleeves, I’m planning on being extra cautious until Boston.

And then it was time for breakfast and Couscous Cottage Cheese Oatmeal (adapted from Kath’s Strawberry Cheesecake Oats) was on the menu!

Couscous Cottage Cheese Oatmeal
1/4 cup couscous, cooked
1/4 cup oatmeal
1 cup water
1/3 scoop vanilla protein powder, optional
1/2 banana, smushed
2 large strawberries
1/3 cup cottage cheese
1 tsp maple syrup (optional)

Add couscous, oatmeal, water, and protein powder (if using) to a pot and cook over medium heat. Once the oatmeal started to thicken, whisk in banana until you can no longer see banana pieces. Cook for about 5 more minutes or until oatmeal reaches your desired consistency and then stir in strawberries and cottage cheese. Add maple syrup or other sweetener as necessary and then pull off of stove and serve.

I topped mine with a spoonful of White Chocolate Wonderful but it’s also good with Cookie Butter (what isn’t?) and I’m sure would taste just fine with other nut butters :)

Also, I completely understand if you’re wary of putting couscous in oatmeal but I encourage you to step outside of your comfort zone and give it a shot. The couscous is chewy and breaks up the texture of the oatmeal in a really good way.

Yesterday I even tried it in overnight oats and the texture was amazing. Just sub in an equal amount of couscous for oats and you’ll be good!

I’m going to leave you with this picture of Sonic sleeping on my biostatistics notes last night (sooo cute). He’s obviously not a statistician.

Have a great Tuesday!