I got a great idea for a post while reading my new issue of Runner’s World magazine on Sunday. This lovely lady was on the cover.

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That’s Kara Goucher by the way. Her cover story was incredibly inspiring. In a nutshell, the article was about Kara’s mental side of running. One of her main problems in training is having confidence in herself. I guess even elites have to overcome the mental side of running, too.

I really liked the article, mostly because it focused on the mental aspect of running instead of the physical. Sure, we all need to do tempos runs, some track work and log in the long miles to prepare for a race or just stay in peak shape. However, working out our minds is something that needs to be done, too. And this aspect is sometimes overlooked.

For me, as with Kara, my confidence in my abilities and myself as a runner has been a huge drawback to my performances. I will sometimes give up before I reach the starting line. I’ve worked my way up from being a back-of-the-packer to a middle-of-the-packer and now to a upper/middle-packer. I’m not sure I will ever be up in front (unless I’m in a small local 5k), but know I have really improved over the years I’ve been running (age 15-22). However, sometimes my mind gets the best of me and I forget that I have achieved so much and gotten so much faster. I will still think of myself as the chubby girl who would usually place last. It’s a similar anomaly that occurs with people who have lost a lot of weight. They will still think of themselves as fat sometimes, even though they are at their healthy, goal weight. Bottom line: our minds like to play tricks on us. Learning how to overcome them is the hard part.

Two of the ideas the article proposed for overcoming the confidence barrier were:

1) Look to your training to give yourself confidence. If you’ve put in the work, there is no reason to doubt yourself.

2) Remember how pleasurable the feeling of running is. Lock into that zone, where your body feels in sync and the feeling of movement uplifts you.

These two tips really resonated with me. The first tip is just common sense. If you’ve done training at your race pace, done the volume of miles you needed, etc. then there is no reason to not have confidence that you can complete your race or set a PR, or whatever your goal may be. The second tip though is one I forget sometimes. To me, running is fun, and feeling the body in motion, the breathing, one foot in front of the other, torso twisting, arms pumping, heart beating is one of the best feelings in the world. The article said, that if you focus in on this feeling then your body will loosen up and let our physical abilities shine through.

I used the second tip consciously during a hard track workout on Monday.

Warmup: 2 miles and a 400m at workout pace plus 2×200m strides

Workout: 4×1200m with a lap rest in between. My times: 5:02, 5:02, 5:01, 4:58

Cooldown: 2 miles                       Total workout: 8miles

This workout was tough. Once my coach told us the workout, I shut my mind off. I wasn’t into it. I didn’t feel ready to hit the paces he set for me, I just didn’t feel like working that hard. However, during the warm-up, I told myself that I am doing the workout, so I better get in the mindset or else it won’t be any fun at all.

So I did. After the first 1200m repeat, I hit a time faster than the one set for me. Sweet! Once the workout progressed, it was harder to keep that pace, but I focused in on the feeling of running around the track, one foot in front of the other, going around the turns, striding out that last 100. It felt good, it felt right and I began to feel confident. It was a pretty darn great workout.

Running is just as much, or more, mental as it is physical. Our minds are really like the gateways to our bodies. For me, lack of confidence was that closed gate and by opening it up, I have made great achievements in my running. Sure, I still have off days and off races, we all do and will. However, trying to tap into our mental focus when it really matters is one of the keys to running success. Good luck out there! And have:

So, I’m just gonna jump right in and announce my 100th post giveaway winner:

Congrats Marissa! It sounded like you needed them, too! Just e-mail me your info and shoe size and I will send a new pair of Drymax socks your way.

So, yesterday was my birthday. Yay for 22! I went to my parents house for a very lovely dinner.

I’m assuming some of you have seen Julie & Julia. Well, my dad made one of the star dishes of the movie. I had none other than beef bourguignon for my birthday dinner.

The whole meal:

This was one of the most soul warming dinners I have had. I’d liken beef bourguignon to a fancy beef stew….extremely amazing fancy beef stew. I also loved the sides. At first glance, it looked  just a small potato. Yet when ripped open with a fork, the potato turned into the perfect vessel for one of those perfect bites. And of course, you can’t go wrong with green beans. They’re like french fries I swear!

Of course, there was some wine involved. Who would I be if I didn’t accompany a good class of wine with a meal like this?

I picked up this bottle about a month ago and wanted to save it for a special occasion. And I couldn’t have picked a better occasion. I have to say, I think this is my favorite red wine at the moment. It is one of the most drinkable red wines I have found, like sipping real grape juice but with a kick. Soooo good.

And next, there was the yearly chocolate cake. Every year since I can remember, I have had my Dad’s chocolate cake for my birthday.

Pillows of chocolate heaven covered in fudge. Yeeees please!

Truly, this has been one of the best birthday’s I ever had. I was surrounded by my family and friends and felt so blessed.

On one final note, I wanted to recap my track workout today. It was 200m repeats but with a twist. Maybe I’ll call it Continuous 200s.

Warmup: 2 miles, 400m pick up and 2×200 strides

Workout: 10×200m with a 200m running rest at easy run pace between each repeat. Run each 200 repeat (not the easy 200) progressively faster as you progress through the workout. The first should be the slowest, the last should be fastest. Total, you will run 10 laps around the track equaling 2.5 miles. What I did: Started at 48 sec and worked down 41 sec.

Cooldown: 2 miles        Total miles for workout: 7

What I really liked about this workout was the fact you had to run it continuously. Firstly, you had to endure fast repeats without stopping. It was shocking how quickly the easy pace 200m rests became almost difficult. Mentally, I felt like the workout taught me how to deal with surges during a race, yet keep enough endurance to finish strong. I felt super accomplished after this workout. It gave me the itch to get on the track and race!

Well, the bedroom is calling my name. I sure can use the sleep.

G’night!

Okay, enough with the sap.

I decided to do a humble yet fun giveaway to celebrate my 10oth post. It’s nothing big, just a small gift that one of my lucky readers will have a chance of winning (and since there aren’t to many of you, the odds are good )

So what am I giving away??1 pair of Drymax socks!

These socks are my fave for running and doing just about everything else. They wick moisture (goodbye blisters!), are fitted through the arch to prevent slippage, have a wider variety of sizes for a more specific fit and are just freakin cool! I know many of you guys are into running or exercise of some sort, and even if you aren’t, they are a great, comfortable sock for everyday use.

So, here’s how to enter:

1) Leave a comment ab0ut anything really. (If you are a regular reader, I would appreciate a comment about what you would like to see more of on the blog.)

2) For a second chance to win, link back to my blog on yours (if you have one) and leave a second comment telling me you did. (Hey, gotta spread the TIE love, man!)

And one final legalish note: I have not been compensated or given the socks by the Drymax company. I have paid for the socks with my own money for this giveaway.

I will pick the winner on Monday….so ready….set….comment!! ……after you finish reading the rest of my post of course

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Okay, now with that business out of the way, I wanted to share a foodie discovery that blew my mind!!

The other night, the roomies and I made breakfast for dinner. My contribution to dinner was whole wheat waffles topped with yogurt sauce and blueberries. I ripped into it and almost forgot to take a picture, but I thought the half eaten pic was a good testament to how freaking delish this was!

So, the big thing about this waffle is the fact that it tasted just like cake. This tasted sorta like a white cake with vanilla frosting and blueberries. A cake-waffle!!! Soooo good.

Here’s how to recreate this amazing masterpiece:

1) Make your fave waffle recipe or use a good quality frozen waffle

2) Mix vanilla yogurt with a tablespoon of honey and a couple drops of vanilla and a sprinkle of cinnamon.

3) Top the waffle with the yogurt and a generous handful of blueberries. Enjoy!

Seriously you guys, A-M-A-Z-I-N-G!

So tonight is a pretty big night for me. After I get off work today, I’m celebrating my 22nd birthday!!!! My actual b-day is tomorrow, but I’m gonna rage it up tonight with a bunch of friends. I’m soooooo excited! And then tomorrow my rents are cooking me a special dinner. I love birthdays! I have good feelings for my 22nd year of life. Yay!

Have a good Saturday everyone! I’ll definitely recap the night tonight and my special birthday dinner (most likely on Monday).

Now…enter my giveaway! Adios!

Anywho, I have two pretty fun things to blog about today!

First up, is the absolutely amazing dinner I shared with Jacob for our 5 year anniversary.

We got all dolled up…

Sorry, but I have no idea how to turn the picture, so y’all have to tilt your head to the left to see how super amazing we looked.

After our prom-esque photo shoot, we headed out to my favorite restaurant of all time…Villa Creek.

Warning: The lighting at the restaurant was sooo low, so my food shots are pretty bad, but I will share nonetheless.

First course: Cheese plate.

There was a blue cheese, aged cheddar and goat cheese accompanied with almonds, pecans, walnuts, dried cranberries, sliced apples and shortbread. Too die for. We paired a Rhone White wine with this.

Second course: Spring mix salad topped with walnut encrusted goat cheese and tossed in a cilantro vinaigrette. I totally forgot to snap a pic though…the salad was inhaled before I knew it!

Entree: Oaxacan short ribs with creamy polenta and steamed kale leaves.

The meat was cooked to perfection. The meat fell right off the bone and it was pure heaven taking a bite of short rib covered in the polenta. I don’t use this word often, but this entree was seriously foodgasmic! The wine I paired with it was a Grenache. Really good!

We decided to skip dessert and get a cocktail at a local bar down the street. I sipped on my new fave cocktail, a Vodka Press. Very refreshing!

(source)

It was a wonderful meal and a wonderful night shared with one of my favorite people in the world.

Okay, so the second fun thing to mention is that I have a juicerand I made my first juice today!! Sooooo exciting, no?

So, I went to a family Christmas gathering a few weekends ago and my aunt had a juicer she didn’t want anymore and just gave it to me! I felt like the luckiest girl in the world!

However, it took me forever to use it! Well, two weeks later, I made juice. This morning blend was ginger, lemon, celery, carrot, beet, pear, orange juice. I kinda went wild!

So, I think it’s safe to say I’m obsessed with juicing now. Sadly, it is expensive to make only 2 cups of juice, so I will have to save juicing for occasionally, maybe once or twice a week.

I drank my yummy juice with 2 scrambled eggs, salsa and 1/4 of an avocado.

Well there ya have it folks! I promise I will try not to have such a long hiatus like that for a while.

Catch ya later, track practice awaits me!

So, first off, I saw I got tagged by the lovely Jen from Eat Move Love for a “10 Things that Make Me Smile” thing. Thanks!! And it’s actually really convenient, because I was already thinking of doing a “Things I’m Loving Right Now” kinda post….soooo it worked out perfectly! Now let’s get to it….

1) I’m completely and utterly in love with the french press my absolutely amazing boyfriend got me for Christmas.

I wake up every morning now craving the robust flavor of my french pressed coffee with a little half and half with cinnamon. Heaven!!

2) Roasted brussel sprouts!!!!

I have never been a big brussel sprouts gal. I actually never have eaten them much at all. But oooooh lordie! These roasted brussel sprouts rocked my world! The salmon and quinoa that accompanied them was good, but those little mini cabbages were sooo the star of the show. What is it about roasting food tossed in olive oil and spices that makes it taste so good?? It must be magic.

3) Running always makes me smile . I just started track practice again this week and I have to say, it feels so good to be back with my teammates and have that energy that accompanies it again.

4) Averie’s Creamy “Cesar” Tahini dressing. Seriously guys, this stuff is good. Today, I was on the elliptical at the gym right before dinner time and I was just dreaming about a huge salad tossed with this dressing. So, what did I do? Ate a huge salad tossed in the tahini dressing…of course! And, just gotta say, I didn’t eat all that…I shared it with my roomies. Which brings me to number 5…

5) Roommates who can cook (and are nice enough to share)!

My roommate Justin made pizza tonight. The crust was perfect, nice and crispy on the outside and doughy on the inside. He topped his crust with tomato sauce, mozzarella, chicken, olives, onions and artichoke hearts. Oh, and he stuffed the crust with cheese. Can you say amazing? Well I can…A-M-A-Z-I-N-G! With this amazing pizza and my yummy salad, tonight’s dinner pretty much completely rocked.

6) Wine always makes me smile!

Especially when it’s wine as good as this one! I wine tasted with my friend Kailee today and we went to this winery called Lone Madrone. The whites were eh, but OMG, the reds were amazing. So amazing I had to buy my fave one I tried, which was their ‘o7 Barbera (and I don’t usually buy pricier wine). TO DIE FOR. Now, Dad…I’m sure you’re reading this, so I gotta say, you must go to Lone Madrone and taste this. You will love it! Promise! It’s right next to Hunt Cellars.

Well, even though I was supposed to say 10 things that make me smile, I’m just going to stop at 6, because these are the best 6 things that have recently made me smile.

It’s about that time now for me to hit the sack. I have a gnarly hill workout with the team tomorrow morning. My coach sure is working us hard to the first week back. It’s a love/hate thing…I love the accomplishment of a hard workout but gosh darn I hate it at the same time. I am looking forward to it nonetheless.

Adios amigos! Halfway there to the end of the first week of 2010! Crazy!

Before I get going on my topic for this post, I wanted to take a moment to remember some of the cool stuff that has happened this year.

• Moved into an awesome new house with awesome roommates
• Got accepted to Humboldt State University (this is actually very recent. I just got accepted last week!)
• Had an amazing and injury free cross country season
• Turned 21 last January!!
• Started this blog in August
• Deepened my relationships with my family, boyfriend and friends
• Got 4.0s two semesters in a row!
• ….and there is more, but these are a few of the nice things that happened.

Of course, there were some down moments this year, but all in all, 2009 was good to me.

And 2010 is shaping up to be an interesting year. It will be full of change, that I know. Humboldt State is about 10 hours away from my home (CA is a biggggg state!). I will be starting a new school, making new friends, living in a new place and getting a new job. Scary…but exciting. I know it will be a huge stepping stone towards my future aspirations and goals. Yay!

Now, I only have one resolution this year, and that is to stay level headed and calm through all the changes that await me. Let’s hope I can achieve that!

Okay, so now that all the end of year stuff is out of the way, let’s get onto the topic of the day: Functional Weight Lifting.

Functional fitness is all about training your body as a whole, instead of doing isolation exercises, such as bicep curls or tricep kickbacks. I am a huge fan of these types of exercises, especially after reading this and this book. The New Rules of Lifting is a book that I highly recommend. It’s a great resource, check it out!

There are a few reasons why I think functional fitness is the best way to weight train.

1. It trains your body for real-life movements, thus making your strength more than just looking good, but being good at things too!
2. It’s more effective because your training muscles the way they’re meant to be used.
3. Functional fitness trainslarger muscle groups together, giving you more power with each movement and recruiting the smaller muscles to assist and grow, too.
4. It’s more efficientin the gym time-wise because you are integrating more muscles into each exercise as opposed to doing multiple exercises for many isolated muscles, which takes a lot of time.
5. It’s fun!

I’ve noticed through the months I’ve been doing functional strength exercises that all my muscles are noticeably bigger (in a good way!), I’m stronger and I am better at doing everyday tasks, like lifting a heavy box or carrying something heavy up stairs, etc. There is definitely something to it!

As noted in The New Rules of Lifting, there are 7 main movementsour bodies are meant to perform: Squatting, deadlifting, lunging, pushing, pulling, twisting and walking/running. I completely agree. I do all these movements multiple times a day. So wouldn’t it make sense to strengthen the body to perform these tasks and make them easier? I think so!

Here are some examples of exercises I do to within each category:

1. Squatting: squats on the bosu ball (standing on the black platform) w/ dumbells, squats on the rack, standing squats with dumbells, squat with heels raised, front squat
2. Deadlift:a classic deadlift with olympic bar, back extensions, good mornings
3. Lunging:static lunges w/dumbells, dynamic lunges holding a medicine ball with a twist, split squats, step-ups
4. Pushing: pushups, bench press, benchpress on a pilates ball w/ dumbells, dips, shoulder press
5. Pulling:bent-over rows, seated rows on the cable machine, lat pulldowns, pull-ups (I do assisted pullups)
6. Twisting(aka, Ab work): russian twists, prone jack knifes, crunches on pilates ball, planks (aren’t a twist but are still good), wood chops with cable
7. And I think walking and runningis pretty self explanatory

These are just some examples of exercises, and I’m sure there are more. I say, the rule of thumb is, when you’re doing an exersice, ask yourself how this correlates into a real life movement. If it doesn’t, then it probably isn’t the best exercise to do.

And here is a sample workout. This is what I did today:

• 10 minute warm-up on the elliptical
• 3 set of 10 reps deadlift with 1 minute rest in between
• alternating sets: 3sets x 10 reps each leg dynamic lunges with medicine ball and a twist and3×10 pushups
• alternating sets: 3 sets of 10 reps of lat pulldowns and  3×10 wood chops
• 3sets of 20 reps prone jack knife
• 20 minutes (1000m) swimming

I try to always work quickly between each exercise, giving my self just enough rest to not die , to keep my heart rate up and get a good sweat going. It was a killer workout today!

And, if you are really intrigued by the whole functional fitness thing, I seriously recommend checking out those books. They go way more in depth than what I’ve just written. This was kinda like Functional Fitness 101.

I hope y’all enjoyed reading about what I do to keep my muscles pumped! And, sorry for the lack of pictures recently. I’ll leave you with my yummylicious breakfast I had this morning. I should actually call this my crack-meal of the week, because I have been obsessed with this combo.

Sweet potatoes baked at 425 degrees, tossed with cumin, salt and pepper. Coated with olive oil after baking.

2 eggs, scrambled, with green onions and spinach, salt/pepper and salsa verde.

Have a fun and safe New Year’s Eve tonight. Seriously guys, make sure you have a DD! See you in the new year!!

***Disclaimer: I am not a personal trainer, nor do I have a degree in Exercise Science. The about commentary on Functional Fitness in solely based on my own research and opinion.***

I’ve been pondering these messages flashed on the television, and today during a 5-mile run, I thought about how stressful it can be to try to, and stay healthy. And those advertisements don’t help! Now this is where you look perplexed and say…”Being healthy stressful?? I thought being healthy was supposed to calm stress.” It does seem that exercise and eating right are supposed to help stress. There are numerous articles on the internet, magazines and newspapers all discussing some study that proved that exercise may reduce stress, etc. These studies are probably right, especially in concern to exercise. I’ve found that getting in a good run, or banging out a serious weights sesh always make me feel better than I did before. However, there is a darker side to living healthy that I don’t feel gets discussed enough and needs to be.

Being healthy can be stressful, especially for people just embarking on their journey. I’ve learned this from personal experience. I’m not going to discuss the diets I’ve been on or the obsessive food restricting or overeating that I dealt with before I had the “epiphany.” I feel that the stress accompanied by diets was more induced by my own unrealistic expectations, the strictness of tradtional diets and the bad feelings of negative self talk usually accompanied by diets and obsessive exercise. No, the stress I’m refering to is the stress of living in a world (or more likely just a country) where fat is in and being healthy, sadly is not. I’ve been stressed going to a family’s house for dinner and worrying about them commenting on my food choices, or stressing about having to bring my food everywhere, or not having enough time to workout, or squeezing that workout in and then rushing around to make up for lost time. What about stressing out over missing that workout, or eating that piece of cake that you planned you would not have but ate anyways then felt kinda guilty about it? I’ve felt these stresses before, on numerous occasions.

So, what have I learned about this stress? Well, for one, I realized how obsessive I was being. For example, to get all worked up due to a missed workout will not do any good. Also, I’ve learned to go with the flow. Sometimes, I’m not going to have control over what is served to me, and I’m just going to have to eat it with a smile and make sure the next meal I eat (hopefully prepared by me) is more of my liking. Finally, trying to not be as structured eases my stress. If I leave the day kinda open about my workout or not make a super rigid meal plan for the day then there is no missed workout to stress about or food I should have eaten to stress about. To sum it all up into a nice, neat sentence: Distancing myself mentally from the whole “healthy living” thing sometimes is less stressful. And believe me, being healthy is just as much mental as it is physical!

Living healthy is a lifestyle, one that takes time and can be constantly improved and changed. Day to day I learn new things about health and exercise, I eat many different types of food and I do a variety of exercises. Adapting to the constant changes of a healthy lifestyle is important, because the more rigid it gets, the more of a “diet” it becomes.

So, to any folks out there regreting their food decisions this holiday, don’t worry about it! Go make yourself a green monster and take it from there.

**Disclaimer: The above post reflects my own personal opinions. I mean no offense to people recovering from an eating disorder, or to anyone who may find this post offensive. I am simply discussing an aspect of my life that I have dealt with, learned from and am sharing to maybe offer helpful advice to someone else, too.**

First off…the sandwich I had at New Frontiers after Bikram last Friday.This was a turkey sandwich with cuke, spinach, red onion, artichoke hearts, provolone, red pepper aioli all sandwiched between rosemary focaccia bread. I am not lying when I say this was heaven in a sandwich. And, I had some fresh veggie/fruit juice called the Perfect Blend.Next up is the glorious and truly epic hike Jacob and I did on Tuesday. We ventured to my favorite place on earth, aka Montana de Oro, and hiked 9 miles. This hike took up across ocean bluffs, riparian forests, brush, up a huge mountain and down through meadows. It was a challenge, but oh so worth it. Here is the hike in pictures:

After the epic hike, I was quite famished. I brought a homemade Larabar, and apple, carrot and some chicken to munch on during the hike, but that food energy was long gone by the time I got home. Lucky me, one of my roommates made homemade chili. It was her first time making chili and it turned out absolutely fabulous. I assisted my making some whole-wheat corn muffins to go along. Yum!

Wednesday night, all us roomies plus Justin’s girlfriend got together for a roomie Christmas night. All of us were parting ways on actual Christmas so we celebrated early.I made hawaiian pizza for the entree and one of the roomies made a fabulous salad for the side dish. A fabulous way to start the Christmas-y evening.And I finally got the lighting right for the tree!! It looked so cute with all our little gifts underneath. We did a secret Santa gift exchange. I got one of the boys, who is a real gadget-y guy, so I bought him a mini maglite flashlight. He really really liked it! I received a bottle of Pinot Grigio wine by Robert Hall (I think?) winery. It was a roommate Christmas success!

Christmas Eve was spend doing last minute errands and a bit of relaxing. I also wrapped presents and make Christmas cookies for Jacob’s family. No interesting eats were eaten that day as it was an “eat up the leftovers” kinda day.

And now, to the main event…..DUN DUN DUN DUNNNNN….CHRISTMAS!!!!

Jacob and I began the day opening presents. I got him a new pair of running shoes (Pearl Izumi Synchropace III’s, to be exact). Jacob got me a FRENCH PRESS….plus coffee, a coffee grinder and some Bailey’s! It was a really thoughtful gift, as I have been wanting a French press for a while now. I will share pic of the new French press soon!

Next on the agenda for Christmas morning was a quick sweat sesh. My legs still weren’t completely recovered from the hike, so I opted for a bike ride around town. I biked about 11 miles in 1 hour. It wasn’t the most intense workout ever, but it was something.

After shower and such it was breakfast time!

I made sticky buns, completely from scratch thank you very much, along with bacon and eggs. And you can’t forget the coffee!! I was so excited to make some french pressed coffee!Starbucks Christmas Blend with Bailey’s Irish Cream. A heavenly concoction!

All together now…After breakfast, it was rush rush out the door to enjoy some quality time with Jacob’s family.

A little hunting was had, squirrel hunting to be exact.

After hunting it was back to Jacob’s sister’s house for more quality time. It was so wonderful. I love his family and am so happy to be a part of it!

Off to my parent’s house we went, to what is most defenilty the best meal I have had all year.A nitrate-free ham without any “liquid” enhancement (sodium or sugar water solution companies inject into most turkey, chicken and hams).

Gravy made with ham juices, mushrooms and Madeira wine.

Organic green beans steamed and topped with buttered almonds.

Red potatoes sauteed in olive oil and butter and tossed with fresh parsley.

My dad sure knows how to cook, and this meal did not disappoint.

Some vino was enjoyed throughout the night: 1 glass Bianchi Pinot Grigio, 2 glasses Bianchi Trevino and 1 small glass Bianchi Late Harvest Sauvingo Blanc with dessert. What was dessert you ask? Apple tart topped with fresh whipped cream. Ah-mazing!

I left this dinner thoroughly stuffed and super satisfied. Thanks Mom and Dad for the amazing dinner and a wonderful Christmas evening!

So, Christmas is now over and it is back to reality. However, yesterday was an amazing day that I will remember forever. I spent time with the people I love and enjoyed their presence throughly. I feel so blessed to have these people in my life!

I hope all of you, my few,yet dear blog readers enjoyed your Christmas (if you celebrate) also.

Much love!

-Liz

So, on the food front…I’ve been trying to make new recipes and use new foods to expand my eats. I get stuck in food ruts a lot, and make the same few dishes all the time. So, after my positive venture into making a curry, I made  a few new dishes this week.

I did make curry again last Sunday. It’s just so gosh darn fast, easy and delicious to make. I used chick peas this time, which worked great with the sauce. I also had edamame and a Kona brew.

Monday night I decided to try out one of Matt’s recent recipes…Sweet Potato Gnocchi. I began my new cooking excursion with a glass of my favorite wine ever….Bianchi Pinot Grigio. Quick sidenote: I’d been saving the bottle for a special occasion for about a month, and I figured cooking a fun new recipe with a glass of wine was special enough.

So, I have never made homemade pasta before, so this recipe seemed pretty daunting. But, it actually wasn’t that bad. The gnocchi didn’t turn out super pretty or professional looking, but they tasted great and that’s what matters.

I made a quick tomato sauce to go with it: 2 cans tomato sauce, spinach, cannellini beans, broccoli, garlic, basil, thyme, s & p. Topped with some parm of course .

Great recipe Matt! I loved this gnocchi and will for sure be making this again!

I made an apple crisp on Monday also. I was supposed to make it last week for Jacob’s birthday, but that never happened. So tonight was the night, and it turned out utterly delectable. Monday night’s dinner was soooo great and tasted pretty gourmet if I do say so myself.

Random comment…This was the view for a few moments outside my work on Monday. Beeea-utiful That is one of the only nice things about rain…rainbows.

The next new meal on the block was a breakfast creation. I was not craving my usually sweetish carbs in the morning and wanted something more savory. So, I toasted a slice of ezekiel with a smidgen on cheddar cheese, fried an egg in butter and topped all that with 1/4 of a smashed avocado and salsa. This was a light, yet filling and delicious breakfast. I will for sure be adding this to my usual breakfast rotation.Wednesday night I made a tribute to Hanukkah dinner….latkes. For anyone who doesn’t know what latkes are, they are potato pancakes.

Latkes are super easy to make. I didn’t use a recipe and kinda winged it, but here’s what I did.

Holiday Latkes

• 5 small russet potatoes
• 1 large zucchini (or a few baby ones)
• 1/2 a yellow onion
• 2 eggs
• 1/4 c. all-purpose flour
• salt and pepper
• unsweetened applesauce (for dipping)

Directions: Wash potatoes and zucchini. Grate the potato and zucchini and place in a large bowl. Finely chop onion and add to bowl of potatoes. Stir in eggs, flour and seasoning until well combined. To cook the mixture, heat a pan with about a 1/2 inch of oil in the bottom. Use a medium to medium high heat. I used a 1/4c. measuring cup to portion the pancakes into the pan. Cook for about 3 minutes on each side and serve with applesauce. (Recipe by Liz @ Thereforeieat.com)

We turned dinner into a breakfast-for-dinner of sorts and made scrambled eggs with spinach and sausage. I had the last of my Kona Fire Rock Pale Ale with dinner, too. Latkes aren’t exactly the healthiest meal in the world, but they sure are delicious.

Last night night I tried something else I have never made before…stuffed bell peppers.

These were so good!! And, I just have to share the recipe with you.

Stuffed Bell Peppers

• 1c. cooked quinoa
• 1 can kidney beans
• 1 small can sliced olives
• 2 eggs
• 1 can diced tomatoes
• basil
• thyme
• 1 clove minced garlic
• 1/2 chopped onion
• bread crumbs (I used panko)
• about 1/4c. cheddar cheese
• 2 bell peppers (any color you want)

Directions:

1. Prepare the peppers: Cut the tops off. Chop and reserve the tops for the filling. De-seed and then steam the peppers for about 10 minutes.
2. Pre heat the oven to 375 degrees.
3. In a large pan, saute the onion, reserved pepper tops and kidney beans in a little olive oil over med-high heat.
4. Once onions and pepper are tender, add in the quinoa, tomatoes, eggs, olives, spices and garlic. Stir for about 5 minutes.
5. Combine bread crumbs and cheese.
6. Spoon the filling mixture into the peppers until the peppers are full. Top with the breadcrumb cheese mixture.
7. Place the peppers in a small pan (I used a bread loaf pan) bake the peppers for 25 minutes. Enjoy! (recipe by Liz @ Thereforeieat.com; adapted from The Joy of Cooking)

Jacob and I both loved this dish. With our first bites we both looked at each other and had that “Wow” look on our faces. So, ya, you guys should really try this!

Finally, I tried a recipe I have been dying to make for a while, but just havn’t had all the ingredients to make it.

Averie’s chocolate chip balls! Boy oh boy are these amazing!!! I may have single handily almost finished a whole plate of these. You rock Averie, and I’m for sure going to be making your other balls, too.

There is just one final new food I have tried this week, and it was my breakfast this morning.Those may look like regular pancakes, but they are actually Almond Banana Pancakes made with 4 simple ingredients: banana, almond butter, egg and cinnamon. I found the recipe at Mark’s Daily Apple. I actually think I liked them better than regular pancakes. I put 3 twists on the pancakes. First, the cinnamon was my idea. Next, I used a little agave instead of maple for the topping and finally, I cooked them in the pan with coconut oil instead of butter. YUM!! Try these out, you won’t be disappointed.

So, on my final note, I want to share with you the absolutely adorable Christmas tree Jacob bought this week.I couldn’t get the lighting right, but this was the best pic I got. Those are our roommate’s stockings in the background. They also used a few of their ornaments, too. The tree is just sooo cute!

Tonight I’m doing Bikram with Jacob.  I think we’re gonna make a stop into New Frontiers for some green juice afterwards, too. I can’t wait!

Adios!

So, I’m not one to usually do inspirational posts and stuff, but sometimes I get a thought that I really want to share. Actually, Matt inadvertently inspired my thought when I read his post yesterday (or was it Friday?). He was mentioning that he didn’t really want to run that day, but he knew he wanted to deep down. He said, sometimes it’s getting out the door that’s the hardest part. Because, once you’re out there running, or any activity really, you usually never regret it. Well, Matt’s comments really struck a cord with me yesterday, because I had planned to do a swim workout yesterday, but it was cold, raining and I would have to do it after work. I really wanted to go straight home, lie in be with some tea and watch the brain sucking machine (aka TV). However, I used all my willpower and after work, I went to the gym and busted out an amazing 3000m pyramid workout in the pool. I felt great afterwards and knew I made the right decision, it was just a matter of getting out the door and doing it.

I know we’ve all been there. Some days you are just more motivated to workout than others. 95% if the time I love to get out there and break a sweat and feel the rush of endorphins. However, there is that 5% where I just want to sit on my butt and be lazy. So, to try and inspire y’all in a similar 5% situation, I have come up with a list of a few tricks I have learned along the way of how to get my (and your) butt out the door:

1. Listen to music. There have been days in the past when I have just dreaded running. I usually never listen to music when I run, but on those 5% days when I just don’t want to go out there and pound the pavement, I will listen to my Ipod. The music distracts me and lifts me up. Also, watching TV at the gym can be a similar motivator.
2. Reward yourself. Last night, I rewarded myself with a nice dip in the hot tub right after my swim. The hot tub gave me something to look forward to the whole time I was swimming and it felt so great to hop in to the warm water after pushing myself. It just wouldn’t have felt nearly as good if I had quit.
3. Call up a friend. Sometimes this isn’t possible, but on days you know you don’t want to work out, try to call up a friend or bug your spouse/bf to workout with you. Jacob is really nice and sometimes he’ll go running with me on days I don’t want to. The company really helps the workout go by faster, and it’s nice to have someone to talk to.
4. In the event of inclement weather hindering your want to workout, think about how BAMF (love this term Karyn!) you’ll feel after being done. I’ve ran in really crazy conditions, like rain, wind, trees being uprooted weather. This was before I had the nice, dry gym to run on the treadmill instead. At first, I really didn’t want to go out there, but I did anyways and I felt soooo badass during and after my run. You can brag and bit and say. “Ya, I totally ran out in that storm” and people will think you’re so crazy and badass. Love it!!
5. Working out is really a small part of your day. This one gets me almost every time. I’m usually awake for 16 hours. If I work out for 1 hour, there are still 15 hours of my day left of doing other things than working out. Putting a workout into perspective like that can really help get your foot out the door.
6. Finally, this is my number 1 motivator for working out when I don’t want to. Think about how crappy you will feel if you don’t work out. Working out makes me feel great. After a run or any exercise, I feel energized, happy, healthy and light. Endorphins make you happy, and boy do I feel happy after working out. If I do skip a workout, I usually feel guilty and sad. Exercise sets a tone for the day, and without it I don’t think I’d be nearly as happy a person as I am.

So there you have it folks. My top 6 reasons to get your butt out the door and workout! I do need to mention that sometimes it’s okay to skip a workout. If it’s due to injury, illness, a scheduled and necessary rest day, etc. it’s okay to say “No, today’s not the day.” This list is for those days that you know that you should be working out and just need a little motivation to do it. I hope this list helps you guys!

Okay, so onto some FOOOOD!I made this oldie but goodie last night. I wasn’t really in to mood to cook some amazing masterpiece, so I threw together one of my fave quick and easy meals: Supernatural Platter (inspired from the Natural Cafe). Just some homemade whole wheat cornbread, topped with steamed veggies, pinto beans and cheddar cheese. YUM!

I tried a new beer last night, too.Sorry, but I couldn’t figure out how to turn this right side up. However, if you tilt your head to the right, you will see that this beer is Fire Rock Pale Ale by Kona Brewing Co. This was pretty good. It’s not as good as my favorite (Great White by Lost Coast Brew) but it was up there. This beer was smooth, with a slightly bitter finish. The taste changed as you drank it, too. It was pretty yummy, and I will definitely buy it again.

Last night I watched the Notebook on TV. I haven’t seen it in years, and I completely forgot what a freakin sob-fest it is!!! I cried like 5 million times and Jacob just sat there and laughed at me for being so sensitive. However, he said at the end he was holding back tears. I mean, they die together for goodness sakes!! *insert awwww here*

Anywho, this morning I woke up, slipped on my Vibrams and was out the door. I changed into shorts and a t-shirt also, just to be clear . Today was one of those 95% days where I was super happy to be out there running. I ran 6 miles in 52 minutes. The weather was really nice. We had a little break in the torrential rain this morning, so the skies were mostly clear, the air was moist an clean and the roads were mostly car free. It was really peaceful.

Breakfast this morning was an exact repeat from last Sunday.Well, not exactly. I smeared some almond butter on my waffles, so that was different. These waffles are actually from the same batter as last Sunday, too. Whenever I make pancakes or waffles or muffins, I wrap the leftovers in plastic wrap and freeze them, so I can have a weekend breakfast any day of the week. Oh wait today is a weekend day, but I had to rush off to work, so these frozen waffles came in handy .

Only 2.5 more hours till I’m off work. Yippee. I told Jacob to think of something fun for us to do when I get off work. We need some fun couple togetherness time badly. So hopefully, he is brainstorming as I type.

Have a great afternoon and be careful out there braving the Christmas shopping crowds!