Food for Thought: Managing Expectations

I feel like I haven't put any real "thoughts" down on this blog in quite some time, so here goes nothing...

I never recapped this past weekend, but I had a great few days in NJ visiting Tom's family. There was lots of this cutie pie:

Tom and I packed our workout clothes intent on doing something over the weekend, and I'm actually still really surprised that we did! On Sunday, we woke up early (aka...8:30) and went over to the woods for a short run. The first mile was okay. It always take my body some time to get warmed up in the morning. After the first mile we hit a ginormous hill, so I took it down to a walk. Once at the top, I ended up running down the hill (over rocks, sticks and bumps!) the rest of the way. I even managed a serious sprint to the car for the last 30 seconds or so. I was feeling so giddy and happy at the end of this run. I had so much fun running through the trails and because I was enjoying it, I never felt tired or out of breath. I felt like I could have done the whole thing over again.

Now let's speed up to last night. It was beautiful out, so Tom and I decided to go for a run over by the beach. I didn't get home until nearly 7, so I was really hungry and scarfed down some snacks right before going out to run. After just a few minutes I got a CRAZY cramp on my side. It hurt so much that I was holding back tears. I made myself eek out a mile then stopped and had to stretch. We ended up walking the rest of the way home and I felt extremely defeated. Thinking with a clear mind now, it really wasn't a bad day exercise-wise. I walked to and from work as well so overall I walked 7 miles and ran 1 yesterday.

Anyway, when I had to stop after the cramping I got a really really bad attitude. My poor boyfriend had to listen to me bitch and whine about it the whole way home (thanks TKO <3). We talked a lot about comparisons (something I've touched on more than a few times on this blog) and the fact that I need to stop holding myself to such high expectations (in more ways than just fitness goals).

Running has never been my high point. Even when I was younger and was a crazy athlete, running distances never came easily. I could sprint 100 meters with the best of the best on Long Island, but I couldn't get myself to finish the mile warm up. So maybe running is just not for me? When I think back to half marathon training, every step I ran further was an accomplishment because it was something new, and something I never imagined I could do. Now that I know I can complete a half marathon around a 10 minute-mile pace, anything less feels like a failure. But it's not fair to compare myself to the July of March 2011. That was 2 and a half years ago and my life, body and motivations are completely different. And yet I can't stop expecting myself to measure up. Every disappointing run feels like a step backwards both physically and mentally. I just couldn't believe that after working out almost every day for the last two months I was still struggling through just 1 mile of running.

Tom and I did some thinking last night about other types of activity I could focus on. Partially why I am enjoying 30 Day Shred so much is because every day I get up and do it is a success. Even on the days when I can barely complete the exercises, it's still an achievement because it's something I've never done before. There's no Expert 30DS Julie who exists in the past. I think one of the reasons I've been thinking so much about crossfit for the past few months is because it would be something completely new. I can set goals from scratch, so every workout and step forward would be a huge accomplishment. Unfortunately crossfit in Boston is far too expensive for me to fit into my life at this point, but there are other things I could do. Here's some ideas I've come up with:

- Run shorter distances: do some old track workouts (4, 2, 1s or straight up sprints)
- Pick another DVD with a goal in mind to complete after 30DS (Insanity, P90X, Jillian Michael's Shredded etc.
- Try crossfit and figure out a way to make the $$ work out for a short period of time
- Personal training
- Pick a new gym class to try (bodypump, barre, spinning, kickboxing)

In lieu of crossfit, I've been thinking of switching gyms again. I haven't gone to the gym near my apartment in quite some time, and honestly, besides the convenience I really don't like it. It's not a place I want to spend time in, so why would I go (even if it's right next door)? There is a beautiful gym right next to my office that I'm thinking of joining once my year is up. I'll give more details on this gym as I find them out.

So that's it. I just want to keep the negative, self deprecating thoughts as far from my brain as possible. If that means giving up my dreams of being a sub 10 minute mile runner for now, then so be it.

Level 3!

Hello there! It's been a busy few days for me. Whenever we have national meetings at work I feel like I fall off the face of the earth (that's where I've been the past few days). I did get some AMAZING news at work though. I will be heading to Philadelphia at the end of September and then to San Francisco a few weeks later. I can't wait!!!!!!!

Okay now, let's wind back a bit..

Tom and I did the Great Urban Race on Saturday! As expected it was so awesome. On Friday night we made matching t-shirts...

And were up early to get over to North Station for the race! The race was headquartered at the North Star. There were tons of people signed up for the race and before we started we had to sign a waiver.

In case you can't read that pink box, it says, "I understand that this event is an extreme test of my physical and mental limits." Not sure if that's entirely true, but it's definitely a tough day!

I only have a few photos from the day (most are on Tom's camera), but here are a few:

After completing a crazy bootcamp workout

My pants ripped into a HUGE hole. I had to keep it together with safety pins. Too too funny.

At the finish line!

We finished in 3 hours and 17 minutes and qualified for the national championship again! Go us!! Maybe we'll be off to Puerto Rico in a few months?

I spent Sunday hanging out at the beach with the roomies. It was so beautiful and the clouds looked awesome:

When I got home I went food shopping and whipped up a delish dinner for me and Tom. I made caprese salad pasta with chicken, inspired by the crazy amounts of basil we have to use up!

In 30 Day Shred news I took the plunge and moved on to level 3 on Monday! I was so nervous, but figured it was about time to move on after completing 16 days of level 2. Level 3 is not as horrifying as I expected, and I'm actually able to complete most of it!

The toughest part of level 3 is that basically half of it is done while in a plank position. My abs are so sore today! Here's some of the moves from level 3:

- Walking plank (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pF19C4Xq_Rs)
- Mountain climbers
- V-ups
- Walking pushups
- Jumping lunges
- Sit ups
- Squat jumps
- Cross punches, butt kicks and jumping jacks with weights

I've only done two days of it but I'm actually really enjoying this level so far. It's really tough but in a different way than level 2. Still can't believe how long I've been sticking to this. Yay!

Friday

Woooo it's Friday!

I am so tired today. Cannot stop yawning and wanting to put my head down on my desk. At least my work is over in T-1 hour.

Last night after finishing 30DS I caved into the extreme sushi craving I've had since Tuesday. One of my coworkers was eating it during a staff meeting and it's been stuck in my head since. I had a seaweed salad, spicy tuna roll and a few pieces of salmon sashimi.

I don't have much else to say today except that tomorrow Tom and I are doing the Great Urban Race again! I loved re-reading my recap from last year. When I got to the part where the huge bug flew in my eye I snorted so loud at work! So embarrassing.

Anyway I can't wait and we are making matching t-shirts tonight because we are the biggest nerds ever. You'll have to wait to find out what our team name is. I'm sure the suspense will be too much to handle...

Garden Update & Creamy Cucumber Salad

I'm feeling really awesome today! It really goes to show what some extra exercise can do for your mind and overall well being.

As I mentioned yesterday I walked to work and then I also walked home, that's an extra 4 miles of walking for the day! On the way home I stopped at the garden to do some MUCH needed weeding. My hamstrings are sore today from all the leaning over to weed. When I got to the garden it looked like a crazy jungle. There were Jumanji-style vines all over the place and weeds almost up to my waist! Our tomato plants are growing like crazy. We are literally going to have 100 tomatoes. YAY!

Jungle

Jungle eating Tom

A tiny cucumber is growing!!

And an even tinier watermelon!!!

Lots of carrot tops!

I almost was locked out of my apartment and while sitting on the stoop felt relieved that I'd be able to skip 30DS. Alas, I found my keys hiding in my lunch box and went upstairs and did it! I walked in and immediately changed so I wouldn't even have the opportunity to sit down. And guess what? This was my best level 2 yet! I'm planning on finishing up the week at level 2 and then moving on to level 3 on Sunday or Monday.

I stopped for a second during the workout to take a picture of the sky out the window. It looked so pretty!

When I finished working out I hopped in the shower then basically ran to Tom's because I was starving. We ate more of the baked ziti I prepared on Sunday and Tom made this awesome little side salad based off of this recipe.

Ingredients:
2 cucumbers
2 bell peppers (yellow & red)
1/2 shallot

Low fat sour cream

Poppy seed dressing

Salt & pepper

Slice and salt the cucumbers and put in the fridge for 1 hour
Dice the shallot and soak in water for 20 min
Dice peppers

Combine vegetables in large bowl
Add 3 heaping spoons of sour cream
Add poppy seed dressing to taste (Tom did about a 3:1 ratio with the sour cream)
Add some fresh ground pepper

Stir, enjoy!

A Mood Boosting Walk

Hey there, happy Wednesday!

I was feeling a little off yesterday for a variety of reasons and decided when I went to bed last night that today would be better. I woke up a tiny bit earlier so that I could walk to work instead of taking the bus. Spending some time in the sun really did a lot of good because I feel great so far!

But before I get ahead of myself, back to Monday and Tuesday. On Monday I had planned on going home, doing 30DS then cooking up the salmon I got from Whole Foods. Instead, my roommate got some free tickets for the Red Sox game (right behind home plate!!) and there was no way I was passing that up. To keep the day on the healthy side I passed on beer and got a small burrito from Boloco (brown rice, black beans, guacamole and salsa) to have for dinner. It sure was hard passing up those chicken fingers...

Crazy clouds moved in!

Like I said, yesterday I was just feeling a little off, mostly due to some stuff at work. I couldn't wait to leave come 5:30 and hightailed it home to get 30DS done. This was actually a good workout -- I felt strong and finished pretty much all of the moves.

After 30DS Tom and I made the salmon we bought on Sunday. We splurged and got the Chinook king (it was on sale) so we had to cook it before it went bad. I decided to use some of the basil that's been growing like crazy and make a simple pesto in the food processor with garlic powder and olive oil.

Once Tom cut and de-boned (!!) the salmon I topped it with the pesto then cooked it for 20 minutes in the oven.

How good does that salmon look?? I wanted to eat it raw.

I cooked up some orzo and served the salmon over it. This was a really good dinner but it definitely needs some tweaking in terms of seasoning.

After dinner we went to trivia and got third again, walking away with another $25 gift certificate. Go Chicken Nuggets! We are getting so good :)

So back to today. In order to put myself in a better mood I decided to walk to work. Not a bad view, eh?

The walk was a great start to the day, but I couldn't fit my flats on my feet when I got to work because my feet swelled so much in the heat! Too funny.

And just because these pictures are on my phone, here's what else I've been eating on the daily:

Lots of fruit

Catch ya later!

Food Filled Weekend

I had some friends from NY visit this weekend and it was a blast! They arrived late Thursday night and then we all met up after I got home from work on Friday.

I had made us dinner reservations at Sportello, one of Barbara Lynch's restaurants in the Fort Point area. I have loved every Barbara Lynch restaurant I've tried so I was super excited about this one!

Sportello is very cool looking -- it's pretty small and is made up of two large wrap-around counters, a few tables and a corner area for a bakery.

Not my photo

We started off with a few appetizers: a cheese plate, Crispy Chicken Livers with ricotta gnudi, and beef carpaccio with parmesan, olive salad and steak tartare.

For entrees we ordered:

Tagliatelle bolognese with fried basil -- my dinner...AMAZING.

Orecchiette with sausage, fennel, radicchio.

Potato Gnocchi with mushroom ragu, peas, cream -- best gnocchi I've EVER tasted. It melted in your mouth immediately.

Roasted duck with an espresso sauce, plums and polenta.

Everything was seriously incredible and all of the pasta was handmade in-house. I know I will definitely be going back to Sportello soon.

After dinner

On Saturday we woke up and went to brunch at Lincoln with some of friends, then headed over to the North End for oyster shucking lessons! Tom and I had been once before, and it's definitely a great place to bring friends who love oysters. Best part, it's BYOB!

You pay for the oysters you shuck -- at $1.75 a pop you better be careful you're not going to overboard!!

We spent the rest of the afternoon walking around Boston, eating ice cream and drinking some brews. Since it was a beautiful day we made sure to stop in the Boston Common to do some relaxing.

Tom "choking" the swan. So cute.

Eventually we went home to get ready for dinner. I hadn't made any specific dinner plans, but the afternoon oysters made my friends want seafood, so I knew just where to take them.

We went to Island Creek Oyster Bar, which is one of my favorite places to bring visitors. The restaurant is just so cool and trendy. And the food's not bad either! After a LONG wait (which was spent playing Taboo in a bar across the street), we finally sat down for some seafood!

We started with the salmon tartare and mussels with Isreali cous cous, and of course a couple of oysters. Since we had been waiting so long I didn't take out my camera and we just dug in!

For my entree I ordered the lobster roe noodles with braised short rib, grilled lobster, oyster mushrooms and pecorino. I've ordered this before and loved it so I knew I'd be getting it again.

The next morning I woke up to some cinnabuns in the oven! I haven't had those in so long, but they definitely remind me of home.

My friends left pretty early in hopes of a quick drive back to NY, so as soon as they left I suited up and did 30 Day Shred. After a two day break filled with heavy food I wasn't really feeling it. This workout was tough (mentally and physically), probably the worst I've had since I started. I'm happy to report I have nothing on my calendar this week so I'll be doing 30DS every day. It will only get easier!

Later in the day Tom and I drove out to the suburbs because I was dying to check out the new Whole Foods in South Weymouth. It was really nice, but not as megastore-ish as I was hoping! Of course I picked up the biggest watermelon I could find and put Tom to work...

And I made some baked ziti to eat during the week:

Yum! All in all a great weekend, but I am tiiiired.