Icy Obstacles

Monday:  4 miles treadmill
Tuesday:  5 miles treadmill
Wednesday:  10 miles treadmill
Friday:  7 miles treadmill

Total:  26 miles treadmill

The ice really stayed thick last week and forced me to stay inside and use the treadmill.  Besides the ice, it was just a tremendously busy week with family things:  Abby performed in the 8th grade play and Gina had High School swimming sectionals on Saturday.  My parents visited which was great!  There was much to do and no time to navigate the treacherous ice or crunchy snow.

This week's training schedule called for a 15 mile run so I was elated to see the weather forecast for 50s and 60s later in the week, but I HAD to do my long run on Wednesday to work around Jerry's training schedule, my work days and another busy weekend.  I was a little disappointed that the morning temp on Wednesday was still a windchill of 18 but much of the ice had melted away.  I trudged through three laps of a 5-mile out and back from our house.  I was just happy to be outside regardless of the ridiculously slow pace caused by three large residual icy patches.

One of the highlights from my run was the thumbs up from the mail man as I finished up the last lap.  That made me smile!  I also enjoyed the fact that there was little or no wind.  The real highlight though was the little green sprout of hyacinth that I noticed in our landscaping as I returned home.  Woo Hoo!  Nothing says spring is around the corner like the first sign of greenery popping up through the ground.

Gina had a great 100 backstroke swim in the University of Akron pool where sectionals were held.  She was super nervous. I was very sorry that I could not go but Jerry went and I attended the third performance of the 8th grade play.  Anyways, Gina hoped to go under 1:12 and did that and more by posting a new PR of 1:10.83.  She was much relieved.

On Sunday, Abby joined me for her first official run outdoors since the Turkey Trot in November!  We did 4-miles on the bike path at a nice and easy pace.  Oh youth - how nice it would be to not run for 3 months and then just easily cruise through 4 straight miles!  Track will start next month so I am hoping for a few more nice runs with her before she starts leaving me in the dust!

Today we are venturing over to Baldwin-Wallace college to see Rent.  It will be great to see a live performance of this great show.  Last time I watched the DVD was while running 8 miles or so on the treadmill.  This will be much better!

Sweet Potato & Black Bean Chili

Monday:  4 mile run, 20 minutes yoga
Tuesdsay:  8 mile treadmill
Wednesday:  4.7 mile treadmill
Friday:  13 miles treadmill
Saturday:  2 miles treadmill

Total Miles:  31.7

Yes that was me running a half marathon on the treadmill in the basement last Friday.  It actually was not that bad - Gina was home convalescing from a terrible food day and I didn't mind being in the basement in case she needed something.  The two hours actually passed by fairly quickly.  What did I do?  Well, I listened to my ipod and broke up the run into sections.  Seven miles, bathroom break, three more miles, boredom break, and then a final three miles.   By the time I was finished I was devoid of deep thoughts and that, my friends, was lovely. 

There is not much more to report on the fitness front.   I failed miserably at yoga last week when I attempted a different instructional you tube video.  I shall not name names, but my back did not appreciate the morning stretch that this instructor beckoned me to do.  I hobbled to the cabinet and took a naproxen and hoped for the best.  It has now been a week and things feel normal again.  Whew.

Anyways, I wanted to share this great vegetarian chili recipe I found in the Vegetarian Family Cookbook by Nava Atlas.  It was wonderful and easy! 



Black Bean and Sweet Potato Chili   (vegan and serves 6)

2 medium-large sweet potatoes
2 TBSP extra virgin olive oil
1 cup chopped onion
2 or 3 garlic cloves, chopped
1 red bell pepper, diced
One 32-ounce can black beans (drained and rinsed)
One 28-ounce can diced tomatoes
One 4-ounce can chopped mild green chiles
2 tsp ground cumin
1/2 tsp oregano
salt

1.  Bake or microwave the sweet potatoes until just firm.  When cool, peel and cut into 1/2 inch dice.  Set aside.
 2.  Heat oil in large soup pot.  Add the onion and garlic and saute over medium heat until golden.  Add the red pepper, beans, tomatoes, chiles, cumin, and oregano.  Bring to simmer.  Cover and simmer gently for 15 minutes.  Add the sweet potatoes and continue to simmer until vegetables are tender.

3.  Season lightly with salt.  Garnish with cilantro if desired.


For more on Nava check out the website:   www.vegkitchen.com 

Well, done.

Sunday:  4 mile run
Monday:  50 minutes yoga
Tuesday:  6 mile run
Wednesday:  4 mile run
Saturday:  7 mile run

Sunday:  4 mile run
Monday:  4 mile run, 30 minutes yoga
Tuesday:  6.4 mile run
Wednesday:  15 minutes yoga
Thursday:  25 minutes yoga
Friday:  12 mile run
Saturday:  4 mile run

Two week total:  51.4 miles  (All outside!!)

I am super happy to have been able to run outside for the past two weeks.  YES the temps were near zero.  YES it was cold.  NO it did not bother me.  I grew up in Western New York.  My lungs probably turned to iron by the time I was in second grade.  It seriously does not bother me to breathe in the cold air.   I just slow down my pace a bit and pay very close attention to my footing.  Most of my runs lately can be divided into two categories:  Well done and Well, done.

Friday's 12 miler was well done and I was happy to not have to do that one on the treadmill.  I just finished up today's 4 miles and entered the house and mumbled to the dog, "Well, that's done."   A different day, a different run.  Sometimes they feel good, sometimes they don't.  That's just the way life is.

But back to that cold weather!  This time of year really makes me thankful for my snowy childhood south of Buffalo.  Our days were filled frolicking in the snow during extra long winters.  We had snowmobiles, snowshoes, skis and sleds.  I can not remember ever being told that it was too cold to go out and play or that I had to come in before some body part froze off.  

I rarely let temperature alone stop me from running outside.  Icy and/or windy conditions are the things that will make me head to the basement and get on the treadmill.  Unfortunately, both of those lovely weather items are in the forecast for the week.  I am supposed to run 13 miles this weekend!  I hope there will be a small opportunity for me to get out.  Otherwise, I may have to rearrange the training schedule a little bit!

Earth Day Challenge!

I've had this race on my radar for a couple of years and I am finally going to go for it!  The date is April 17 in Gambier, Ohio.  It's a small race:  120 in the marathon and twice that in the half marathon.  The start and finish are at the Kenyon College Athletic complex and before you say anything - this is NOT a college visit!  This is going to be a chance for me to have a nice long run in central Ohio on hopefully a beautiful spring day.  No pressure, no big goals, just breathing in some fresh air and stretching out these middle aged momma legs.   With any luck, I will come home with a nice shirt, a hand-crafted mug or medal, and a pine seedling!

Sunday:  4 miles
Monday:  4.3 miles treadmill, 20 minutes yoga
Tuesday:  30 minutes yoga
Wednesday 4.8 miles treadmill
Friday:  9 miles treadmill
Saturday:  2.5 miles treadmill

Is it me or is January flying by?  I am grabbing at any chance I can to get outside and run on the bike path.  Friday's 9 miles on the treadmill left me feeling a bit like a hamster on a wheel.  I broke it into two 45-minute sessions and passed the time watching way too much TLC.  Next time I am stuck on the treadmill for over an hour I will put in a movie!  "I Didn't Know I Was Pregnant"  just has no purpose being a TV show.  I mean, really?  You didn't know?  Come on.........

One Eleven Eleven

Our day started with the realization that today's date is one of those fun ones.  That always gets things off to a good start.

Speaking of numbers and getting off to a good start, I managed to get some nice running in last week to start the new year.

Sunday:  6 miles
Monday:  5 miles
Tuesday:  30 minutes yoga
Wednesday:  10 mile run
Thursday:  3 miles treadmill, 20 minutes yoga
Friday:  6 miles treadmill

I also finally tallied up the numbers from 2010.  I ran a total of 1, 253 miles.  That was 80 miles less than 2009 but still satisfying.  I think I ran one 5K, one 10K, two half marathons and one full marathon.  Since I don't consider myself a "racer", those numbers are okay with me.  My t-shirt drawer is stuffed full of race shirts and a 5K can pretty much kill a Saturday morning, so I tend to stay home unless it's a race I want Gina and/or Abby to run for the experience. 

Since I usually run about 9 minutes/mile, that would mean I ran for about eight full days in 2010!

I also added up my documented time doing yoga.  Unfortunately I only came up with about 30 hours.  I was hoping for more!  I was very inconsistent and went months at a time without so much as one sun salutation or downward dog.  I will try to do better this year.  The older I get, the more I really NEED the things that yoga provides. 

My yoga practice has consisted solely of the free weekly class on Yoga Today .  Sometimes I think the one hour class is just too much for me to commit to so I end up talking myself out of it.  However, recently I discovered many yoga today videos on You Tube that are much shorter and easier to tackle.  Abby and I did three of them last night!  We finished up with the video below and felt great.  She commented about being able to breathe so much easier and I felt totally relaxed.  Try it out! 

Six Mile Swim

Gina, now officially 15.5 years old, swam a 10K at her high school swim practice on Tuesday morning. This is apparently a winter break tradition:  the 100x100s workout.   That's 6.2 miles.  In a pool.  Before lunch.  I won't tell you what I was doing when I was 15, but I was certainly not swimming a 10K.  Heck I didn't even run one until I was 35 or so.  Another pretty awesome achievement for her to be proud of.  In addition, she lettered in 100 Free and 100 Back at the meets last week!

Our holidays were awesome.  The girls were off school for 14 days and Jerry was off from work for 12 days.  I was also able to take a break from my client and did minimal cooking and other household tasks.  We planned some good family dates and ended up in lots of fun places and restaurants.  The list includes Fine Points Knit Shop in Cleveland followed by a late lunch at Tommy's in Coventry.  A few days later we went to Don Drumm Studios in Akron followed by lunch at The Vegiterranean Restaurant.  To top it all off we saw The King's Speech at the Cedar Lee theater and then had dinner at Lemongrass.  Great vegetarain food at all of the above places.  Oh yeah, we celebrated the end of the first school semester at Organic Energy in Solon!  In between those activities we traveled to Dayton and western NY to celebrate Christmas and New Years with our families. 

With the New Year comes planning out events for 2011.  We've had some good discussions going and Jerry's registration for the Laurel Highlands 77-mile ultra is on its way to PA. It's undetermined if this will be a family event or if he will fly solo.   I had a good 10-mile run yesterday and feel fairly confident I can pull off training for a spring marathon.  Details coming soon!

Happy New Year to all!  I hope this is a year of good health and fitness for everyone!

Ruby Slippers

Gina tore through the door on Friday after swim team practice and ripped open her backpack.  She then presented us with - and I quote - "her greatest academic achievement so far!"   She had the Ruby Slippers sticker from her 10th grade Honors Language Arts teacher.  Apparently, very few students hold this distinction.   It was awarded to her for her final research essay on Huckleberry Finn.  I did not read the essay before she turned it in.  I have now, and I have to say that it was really, really good.  She is super proud, and so am I.  That was a lot of hard work.

Abby has been going nuts with her knitting!  I have been doing a lot of reading on gifted kids, and I now understand the importance of her down time.  Academically school is easy for her, but socially it is draining.  This photo is how she has been chilling lately, and I just love it!  We have plans to visit a fancy schmancy knitting shop in Cleveland this week for yarn and cool project ideas.  I'm starting to think this could be an expensive habit, but lately we are getting blessed up one side and down the other so yarn shop here we come!