You get what you give

So the month of May draws to a close today.

Thank freakin’ Gord (whoever he may be).

It has been just about the CRAZIEST month in the LONGEST time, with me having a slew of events and deadlines at work (some still to come – yuck), three races, a quick trip to the east coast, some softball and maybe there was a date or two thrown in there for fun.

But you know I never kiss and tell on here (mostly because my ability to keep a man is somewhat like my ability to drive a car – I just can’t do it).

Meh.

Needless to say it all caught up with me in the end and I was sick with a cold last week (that was also just about the hottest week on record around these parts), which made for a HORRIBLE race on the weekend.

Yeah…I did back-to-back half marathons. I’m super stupid, eh?

And although I’d LOVE to pin my horrible race time on the cold itself, I’ve realized that I put zero effort into training for the two half marathons I ran this month. I did one long run a week before Bluenose and that’s it. So I deserved the personal worst that I got and then some. Sure, I can complete a race, but what’s so great about giving up on yourself, walking parts of it out of complete fatigue and not listening to your body when you really should quit. Training is such an important piece of getting to that distance. Yes, I had spent umpteen weeks before running my tail off, but not to get to 21.1km. I should have known better.

But something I apparently did deserve was another cookie.

Sam brought me this AWESOME Flourless, Butterless, Chocolate Walnut Cookie from Queen B Pastry that she picked up at Dark Horse Espresso, one of neat independent coffee houses here in TO.

Such a treat was warranted not only because mice like cookies, but because lovely mice pick up race kits for friends so that they don’t have to go out of their way.

The cookie was AMAZING. So moist and YUMMY. DEFINITELY try it out if you can get your hands on one.

So in all of the giving and receiving, the lack of training and poor running, the sickness and craziness, you may have noticed a lack of scale pics this month, eh? Well, they’re back. And I don’t deserve this AT ALL, but with goalaversary and the end to the x-weighted challenge only about a month away, I have to get my butt in gear, and this sight has me feeling at ease after a month of complete chaos.

So  2.9 and 11.9. One month and six weeks.

Give’r.

If you give a mouse a cookie…

teehee – that’s totally my go to book for baby showers. Just ask Angie :)

But that’s not what this about. Well, it is and it isn’t. I was totally hooked by a cookie that I SO DID NOT NEED yesterday morning but I bought anyway because it was there and because it was awesome and because it was the size of my frickin’ head.

Ok. So maybe it wasn’t the size of my head. Yes, I know I’m prone to exaggerate a little a lot, but it was definitely the size of the palm of my hand. That right there should have told me that I should NOT have picked it up when I was buying my morning coffee. That and the fact that it was a freakin’ cookie. But not just any cookie, my pets – it was a Skor Shortbread cookie. Who the flippity flop comes up with these things?!?!?!??!

But really. Look at it --->

Can you blame me?

My stomach did. We were not friends for the rest of the day.

And speaking of my stomach, it not only pains me, but now it’s kicking me in the box to look at. Well, really I’m talking about my abdomen more than my actual digestive system.

Yes, I know I’m hard on myself, but who isn’t?

The race pics are up from this weekend’s crazy arse race and, as always, I take craptastic race photos. Well, one isn’t bad and I’m considering purchasing it as I haven’t had a decent race photo since 2007, but the rest make me so incredibly self-conscious about my body, something that I thought I was slowly making progress on and feeling so much better about.

I give you exhibits A and Blah.

Please note the awesome copyrights splashed all over the photos as I am being cheap at the moment :)

OOOH! Look at me all gazelle like! So focused and determined! Almost like a runner!	Could my thighs me ANY BIGGER?! Could I look any less enthused? Could gravity be pulling my chub any closer to the ground? I SEE YOU, STUPID FLAP! SERIOUSLY?!

BLEH. But who is to blame for all of this? MOI! Have I really been eating well in the last two weeks? Not so much! Did I really care about what I ate this weekend? Hell no! I distinctly remember making jokes about being a success story once upon a time and then stuffing a french fry in my mouth… Oh, the good ol’ days…

What happened to them?

But we all know I’m a better runner, I feel better in my skin, I have positive body image and great self-esteem when I EAT WELL and exercise.

Not that I’m going to cure the bouncing apron or anything, but it will at least make me feel better…

So what’s the deal?

 

Yeah. That’s what I thought.

 

Oh look! Is that a band wagon?

I think I’ll go over there and find out.

 

But after lunch…which I have to buy…because I’m so lazy…

I Heart Hali

 

Thanks to Tara, Jaime, Jen, Jen, Cat, Lynn, Angie and Tash for all of the fun and hospitality.

And it was lovely to have met Lex, Les and Katie. Sorry to anyone I may have missed ♥

 

Can’t see the video above? View it on my YouTube channel. Can’t see YouTube videos? Sucks to be you.

Today, Tomorrow & the Next Day…

Tonight, I’m going to finish packing this…
And tomorrow I’m getting on one these…

(photo from caribb on flickr)


And I’m flying here…

(photo from archer10 on flickr) 

To hang out with a bunch of awesome chicks.

Then on Sunday, I’m going to run this…

Calm down – the half and NOT the full!

I have been told to pack these…

Which is never a good thing.

Surrounding a mouse that can’t swim with water probably isn’t a good idea, eh?

Safety first!

But the weather forecast looks amazing…

Looks like I have the recipe for an amazing weekend.

But enough about me.

What are you getting up to this long weekend?

Soy what?

I was at Metro a couple of weeks ago to buy a ridiculous amount of veggies and noticed the check out clerk toss something in my bag before she handed it to me.

I didn’t really think much of it because I had enough to balance all the way home with my giant purse, gym bag and then bags of groceries, but when I got home I finally saw what she had put in there.

It was a sample of Soy Butter, something I had seen at another location that I had visited last month after the CN Tower climb with some of the GDT ladies (something I totally forgot to write about – whoopsie!).

I have to admit that I was kind of annoyed to receive these samples.

The package touts itself as a school safe alternative to peanut butter, but is it really? There are lots of people out there with soy allergies so severe that they too can go into anaphylactic shock.

Now, although I don’t fall into that severe category, I still have a soy sensitivity and would never want/need/desire to try anything like this. So why would you feel the need to chuck two of these ugly creatures into my shopping bag?

We live in an age where everyone has to walk around on egg shells. Kids can’t bring PB&J sandwiches to school anymore because so many youngins have allergies that are so severe and I *do* get that we want to promote safe alternatives, but is this REALLY? And shouldn’t we give people the CHOICE to try these things out and not force them to take samples without knowing if they too are allergic to the so-called “safe” alternative you’re flogging today?

Plus, I hear it tastes like ass. Not that I know what ass tastes like, mind you. It’s just the rumour going around.

Uh, yeah.

*looks around innocently*

I just want a choice in the matter and for you to realize that just MAYBE you’re not as safe as you claim to be. Might want to check your claims first, eh?

But I truly found this odd. I’ve never received any unsolicited food items  at a grocery store before. In a running swag bag, sure. But it seemed wrong here. Is it weird that I have my panties in a bunch? Would you? Is their claim inaccurate? Do you think it’s a good thing? Gimme your thoughts.

 

And the fallout from the cake, cookie and fancy schmancy food bonanza has left me at 158.1lbs. Not great but not horrible either. I can TOTALLY deal with that gain.

This post has been brought to you by sugar

So this is pretty much what the past 48 hours have looked like for me.

Three Costco cakes, hundreds of cookies, 100 bucks worth of Hershey Kisses, trays of brownies, two fancy dinners, a luncheon, tons of hors d'oeuvres, wine, cheese (!!!), and litres and litres of punch.

I’ve  got tired arms from shaking hands, sore cheeks from smiling broadly, taken a bazillion photos, and celebrated some amazing people.

I’m tired, my feet hurt and my pants feel tight.

But I wouldn’t trade it all for the world.

As stressed as this all makes me, these types of things are exactly what I wanted to get into…although not on this scale, maybe not in this industry and this location wasn’t in my original plan, but it all fits into the master plan.

But sleep should be in that plan too, which I’m severely lacking.

Someone please pass the coffee.

And maybe a carrot.

Oy.

When Life Crushes Your Broccoli

…first you cry and tweet about it.

Then you apparently make soup.

My regular Saturday routine is to get up, go to the gym, and then go grocery shopping. But since I’ve felt like a giant bag o’arse lately and have had the strangest calf cramps, I’ve laid off of running for awhile (and then a lovely headache kept me from a long run yesterday. Life sure does rock, eh? wheeeeee!).

So first, because I have priorities, I had to check out the newest Red Rocket Coffee location near my apartment because I love me my americanos in the morning and I’m all about the independent TO coffee shops.

So with my giant caffeinated beverage in hand, I went off to NoFrills to procure my veggies and meat to keep me going this week. After paying for my loot, and packing all my stuff away in my reusable bags, I put one of them down on the ground to try so that I could start the balancing act for the trek home.

And it happened.

The lady next to me had a small buggy to carry her groceries home. It toppled over onto my bag, snapping my freshly purchased stalk of broccoli into two (and ripping a green pepper in half as well). She seemed horrified and extremely apologetic. I played it off like it was no big thing but inside I was crushed like the poor green vegetable.

I wrote about my plight and the common reaction was to make soup out of it.

And so I did. 

I cut up the broccoli, added a sweet potato, a zucchini and some baby carrots. I added enough water to cover them and three cloves of garlic.

I boiled the crap out of them and then added some milk and let it boil some more, adding salt, pepper and spices to make it a bit tastier.

Then I took out the ol’ hand mixer and pureed the bad boy to make it look more like a cream soup and because I had no clue what the heck I was doing, honestly.

All in all, it turned out pretty well. It tastes more like sweet potato than anything else, though. 

But even if it was bad, I’ll have to eat it for the week as it made a heck of a lot of soup!

And from soup, we go to NUTS!

I went to weigh myself this morning, knowing full well I’d be up after shovelling copious amounts of crap into my mouth last night at a Mother’s Day dinner with Jainey, Mom & Daddy-o at Red Lobster (and then paying for it with a crazy amounts of stomach issues).

So with a great heaviness and a huge sigh, I stepped on the scale this morning and accepted my fate, only to see  “Lo.”

No, it’s not telling me that I’m getting so tiny that it can’t possibly weigh me any more, it’s telling me that it’s such a crappy scale that it eats through batteries faster than I can eat through a brick of cheese.

Seriously. If you ever find yourself contemplating a Weight Watchers Conair scale, run in the other direction. Please. For the love of all things cheesy!

So it looks like I’ve been given a reprieve for this week, although I’m not going to really be able to take advantage of it. I have a couple of fancy pants dinners to attend this week, receptions and lunches and general running my ass off in fancy outfits, smiling politely and being my sunny self.

I just can’t wait for this week to be over as next week I’m off to Halifax! WHEEEEEEEEE!

The Little Things…

So kind of like the 1000 awesome things that is ever so popular right now, these are the 10 little things that have saved my sanity this week.

I’m going through a pretty rough patch right now. Work is super busy, my body apparently hates me and I don’t know which way is up, but taking the time to appreciate little bits and pieces of life really helps.

You should too.

1. Little hands – It’s amazing how ten tiny fingers can bring you so much joy. I saw my nephew the other day and I totally wasn’t expecting to. My brother just happened to be out for a walk with him and we were out in the school yard with the Scouts. Next thing you know, little D is in my arms and I am melting. All you have to do is pretend to eat his teeny, tiny mitt and the cutest little giggle spreads across his face. That’s enough to make you forget about every little trouble in the world.
2. Threadless tees -  I am obsessed with graphic tees and these shirts are just about the cutest things. The one at right is my latest purchase. Yes, I know I’m a nerd for wearing books in jackets, but I thought it was freakin HILARIOUS. I also tend to purchase anything involving mice. They make me giggle and we all know how I like acting like I’m 12. I think it’s important to act as young as you want. Stay as youthful as you can…
3. Hockey – I <3 the habs. I think that’s self-explanatory.
4. Messages to Old Friends – I’ve had few falling outs with friends over the years, have lost touch with others and some who just fell off of the radar for whatever reason. In the last week, one had a very special event and another had strange turn of events that saw them put in a position that I am all too familiar with. Simply sending them a note to say hello, wish them well and show them I care made me feel good. Maybe that’s selfish, but I hope it made them feel good and transferred a bit of positivity too.
5. Fresh Ground Coffee – I’ve been fortunate to have breakfast & morning coffee provided at my place of employment. Sadly, that service stops during the summer months so I’m on my own until September. Recently, I sucked it up and bought myself a grinder, as coffee  beans easily come my way as I may know one or two ‘bucks employees. Sweet baby Jeebus – the difference is remarkable and really makes my day.
6. Uncontrollable Giggles – Maybe it’s the lack of sleep, maybe it’s the over-caffeination or even the lack of oxygen we sometimes experience in our shared office, but my coworker M and I will spell a word wrong, find a story on the ‘net, run into the corner of the desk, speak in fake accents – SOMETHING – that will send us into fits of giggles that almost turn into tears. Yes, we’re nuts but it gets us through the day.
7. Snail Mail – In an age where everyone is all about electronic communication, it’s so frackin kickASS to get a REAL letter every now again. Beesie sent me a lovely note with super cute stickers she picked up in the ‘Peg. How awesome is that?!?!?
8. Walks in the sunshine – mental health breaks are where it’s at. I’m lucky to work in a very picturesque area surrounded by stunning neo-gothic architecture, beautiful trees and plant life and close to a ton of shops and a bit of culture. Tiny walks save my sanity. Seriously. I could do without the wacky students, though.
9. Chip truck fries – Sometimes you need greasy food to make you feel better. Just once. It also made me feel vile, I will admit. But for $2.50, it was a valuable lesson, a small piece of nostalgia and got me through a very LONG day.
10. Lenny – M & I  watch this video every Friday, and so should you.
    
    
    

So, what are your little things??

Rice is Nice…but not for Mice

So I started bringing some things back into my diet this week after what I thought was a successful two weeks pseudo-paleo.

While at Whole Foods the other day, I spied a replacement for my morning oats that was rice based and thought I would give it a whirl. Arrowhead Mills Rice & Shine Hot  Cereal is a gluten free, brown rice cereal. Given that I like hot cereal in the morning, I thought this would be perrrrrrrrrrrrrfect!

So we gave ‘er a try Monday & Tuesday of this week.

The whole she-bang was pretty straightforward; cereal, water, salt (I did not add because I just didn’t want it) and microwave.

Because I’m all about putting in protein, I added a tablespoon of Almond Butter.

And the verdict…

Well, the consistency was kind of…different. Definitely like eating brown rice with that slightly crunchy texture but smaller like couscous or a small grain. I really didn’t mind it. The taste wasn’t bad but it wasn’t spectacular either, but neither is oatmeal, right?

But the how did my stomach vote?

A big thumbs down.

Both days the terrible tummy troubles returned. Today we’re back to only meat and veggies and the box of Rice & Shine is perched on the infamous(e) cereal shelf in my office.

So more almond flour pancakes and eggs for brekkie for me :(

And maybe a trip to the doctor.

There’s a Reason EVERYONE Gets a Medal

So yesterday was the Sporting Life 10km.
This should be where Jainey’s jackassery post should be. But he’s a giant slacker/technostupid (love you!) that he didn’t write it because adding pictures in blogger makes him want to tear out his hair and I haven’t taught him how to use Windows Live Writer.
Plus he’s so pretty. Just look at him on his banana phone.  
Precious!
So after 10 weeks of training, the clinic that Sam & I coached ran their goal race yesterday morning and boy did those folks do us proud.
It’s amazing to watch people progress over a period of weeks, watch them through highs and lows, and then see them smiling and proud, with medals around their necks and crowing about their times as they finished their very first 10km race…or first race at all.
And some of us may have had a personal best yesterday, despite humidity and threats of thunderstorms, not to name any names (NOT me) ;)
And me? Well, I was just happy to meet my X-weighted fitness goal. The last year and half has seen my race finish times steadily climb as the numbers on the scale have increased. With life stresses, declining self-esteem and just a general funk setting in, running just wasn’t something I was enjoying.
At. All.
I professed my distaste for running on here even.
And I admit, I still don’t LOVE it like some people claim to (in fact, I think those people are nutters), but I do it for my own crazy ass reasons. But yesterday morning I didn’t hate it. I ran that 10km with all of the people I love in my mind, happy thoughts of clinic kids running their races, people I’ll be running future races with and having crazy adventures with very soon making appearances and making me giggle, and passing thoughts about what hijinx jainey and his fellow friends were up to at the front of the pack.
I just let me feet do the work and my mind wander. Happy.
Because that’s where I AM right now.
And I got in just under an hour, which was my goal.
Granted, I could have been WELL under my goal but I caused myself a little neck pain and slowed down, but this isn’t the place for excuses or sob stories. I did what I had to do to be comfortable and finish, never giving up on myself.
And that’s what I saw from each person I know who raced.
And that’s why they all get a medal. Whether they were 500th or 12,000th. They accepted a challenge, went out there, and met it. Some even exceeding their own expectations.
So congratulations – everyone!