Martha's So-Called Life

farewell june!

Today was long run day.  It was ok.  It turned into a sort of tempo run out and a slow torturous jog back. 

You'll notice there was a lot less running and a lot more walking after mile 4.  I kind of thought I was going to die...but I did not.  

Our average pace while we were actually moving (and not waiting for the dogs to pee) was 12:30ish.

Kiva was exhausted when we got home.  She didn't even flinch when I peanut buttered my toast.  

Despite the fact that I took a whole week off this month, I ran more in June than I did in May.  I ran/walked 63.1 miles in 14 hours (in May I ran/walked 43.4 miles in 8 hours and 41 minutes).  It did not take me 5 hours and 20 minutes to run 20 more miles this month.  I spent more time walking, which accounts for the large increase in hours.  

After running, I came home and finished sewing the border on the quilt project I've been working on forever.

Then I started a new project.  Then I got a random muscle spasm in my back, made myself dinner (zucchini, yam, and leftover chicken), and am now laying in bed attempting to find a position that doesn't make my back hurt.  

Hopefully tomorrow I'll feel as good as new!

breakfast all day

Today I accomplished something that I have never done before.  I ate breakfast for all three meals today. 

Breakfast for breakfast was a small bowl of cereal and iced coffee.

Breakfast for lunch was a piece of toast with peanut butter and greek yogurt with strawberries and almonds.

Breakfast for dinner was scrambled eggs and a smoothie.  

I also stayed in bed until 11, never put on real pants, lounged around and read, and took a nap.

(Kiva was mad that I wouldn't let her sit on top of me nor would I pet her constantly, so she was sulking at the end of the hall...)

all noodley

Yesterday when I came home from my track workout, I told John I felt "all noodley."  That's a good thing though, it means I worked hard!  

8 x 200m (@ ~8:00/mi), 2 x 600m loop on the trail (no idea what my pace was, but I was 6 min slower on the second one), 2 x 200m (@ ~8:00/mi).  

After an exciting (and not really in a good way - it seemed like we were running the Psych ward with a side of delivering babies) weekend at work I spent our two days doing a lot of relaxing (John's weekend was less exciting, but he did just as much relaxing with me, it's important to have good company when relaxing).  I finished a book, finished the top of a quilt, and started a new book.  At one point, Kiva decided that she needed to get in on the relaxing and wedged herself between John and me on the couch. 

Monday evening we drove up to Arctic Valley so John could drop off some stuff for the espresso shack (go check it out...coffee and snacks at the top of Arctic Valley Rd. Fri-Sun noon-8pm!), it was quite cloudy and spooky up there.

Tuesday morning before my track workout we had blueberry pancakes for breakfast and then went to Costco.  Kiva decided that she was unimpressed by her breakfast and decided to spill it all over the place.

Tuesday evening we took Kiva to obedience, where she proceeded to pay very close attention to John and igored all of the other things that were supposed to be distracting her so we could practice "leave it."  He had cheese.  She will do anything for cheese.  The instructor even told us she could do obedience competition if she continued to pay such good attention. If only she knew what she was like when there was not cheese involved...

It rained pretty hard most of the day on Tuesday, then it got sunny, rained some more, the got sunnier, windier, and stopped raining.  I love Alaska weather!

Now it's off to work today and tomorrow, then the weekend off!

what we're eating 6/25 - 7/1

I was terribly uninspired to plan a menu this week.  It's not very exciting...but it will do. John will be in Whittier Wednesday, Friday, Saturday, and in Seward on Sunday so I'm pretty much on my own for dinner most of the week.  

Monday: Sweet Potato Burgers (we didn't eat these last week)

Tuesday: Fruit and Grain Summer Salad 

Wednesday: Broccoli Saute 

Thursday: Sweet Potato and Kale Chicken Patties

Friday - Sunday: ???

it's hot

While I was out and about this afternoon, the thermometer on my car said 79 degrees!  Too hot Alaska, too hot!

Good thing I went running this morning when it was only 65!  Today was the first day I have run in almost a week.  My shin is really no better and no worse, so I figured I'd just deal with it...as long as it doesn't get worse.  I plan on running a little less the next couple of weeks to see how it goes and continue with my icing, stretching, foam rolling, and advil routine.

I was pretty consistent on pace today, probably becasue my legs were fresh from a week of rest!

Also, there were not a lot of hills on my route...so that helped.  

This afternoon (after I was a good co-worker and went and helped out at work for a couple of hours) I sat in the sun, drank coffee, and caught up with a friend.  I may have gotten a slight sunburn...but it was totally worth it.  

road rage

It's no secret that I suffer from mild road rage.  My dad is an aggressive driver and I mostly learned how to drive from him.  I also spent many years "commuting" to and from school with him and thus picked up many of his driving habits.  

I'm not a slow driver and I don't think you should be either.  If the pavement is dry (or even wet, but not icy), there is pretty much no reason why you shouldn't drive the speed limit.  People who drive ridiculously slow (like 30) when the speed limit is 45 or 50 (as it is for most of my drive to work), make me want to scream.  Help keep traffic flowing and drive the speed limit (unless road conditions make it unsafe)!

I dislike it when people fail to use their turn signals.  Sometimes John doesn't use his when he is in a turn only lane because he figures people know he's turning.  I have repeatedly pointed out that it doesn't matter.  Your turn signal is to signal your intent.  If you intend to turn, you should use it.  Oh yeah, and it's the law.  

The other thing that really irks me when driving is when there are two right turn lanes and people in the outer lane pull up really far so the person in the inner lane can't see around them.  Did you know that it's actually illegal to make a right turn on a red light from the outer lane?  Therefore there is no reason to pull up so the (legal) person in the inner lane making a free right turn on a red light can't see.  

Kiva feels the same way...she even helped me write this post...

And then she fell asleep...

My guess is she got tired of waiting for me to give her cheese (we've been using cheese for treats at obedience...which actually gives the false impression that she knows how to follow directions...she will do pretty much anything for a piece of cheese).  

chasing the sun

I find these lyrics by The Wanted very appropriate for both summer and winter in Alaska.  

The photo is one I took on the morning we went through the Panama Canal.  

powered by nuun

Let me start by saying that I did not receive any compensation for writing this post.  This is a product that I use regularly and love and have decided to share of my own free will.

Meet Nuun

It's like Gatorade (or Powerade, or whatever other neon colored "ades" are out there) ...only much much better.  It's a little fizzy and has no sugar and is quite tasty (Lemon Lime is my favorite flavor so far).  There's Nuun Active Hydration and Nuun All Day.  The active hydration variety has tons of electrolytes and is made for drinking during or after activities where you sweat a lot.  Nuun All Day has vitamins and minerals and is made for making the water you drink all day taste better. 

Although I don't drink it while I'm running, but I sure do think about how good it's going to taste when I have some at home!  The only time I have ever craved Gatorade in the same fashion I crave Nuun is when I was running Lost Lake last year and I kept thinking how good a cup of Gatorade was going to taste when I got to the water station at the top...too bad they didn't have any...just water.  Bummer!

The ingredient list is pretty short and unoffensive...and there's only 7 calories in each serving.  I highly recommend trying this stuff out if you are looking for a tasty post-exercise drink that won't blow your entire calorie allotment for the day.  I've also read that it's great for camping and hiking if you are treating your water, it's a subtle way to cover up the taste of chemically treated water.  

what we're eating 6/18 - 6/24

Monday:  Dinner out with the girls (John will be in Whittier)

Tuesday: Farmer's Market Skillet 

Wednesday: Shrimp Tacos

Thursday: Sausage and Balsamic Tomatoes (I plan on using pork sausages)

Friday: Sweet Potato Burgers

Saturday: Leftovers (John will be in Whittier and I'm working)

Sunday: Caesar Chicken Sandwiches

curried apple chicken salad

This chicken salad is my new favorite meal.  I made it for lunch last week with some leftover chicken from Costco, then I got another chicken this week specifically for the purpose of making it again.

I changed the original recipe a bit, but mostly by leaving things out.

Curried Apple Chicken Salad (adapted from Multiply Delicious)

1/2 cup plain greek yogurt

1 teaspoon curry powder

1/2 teaspoon onion powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

black pepper to taste

juice from 1/2 a lime (or several tablespoons lime juice)

1 apple, diced

1 lb cooked chicken 

balsamic vinegar

In a small bowl, combine greek yogurt, curry powder, onion powder, salt, and pepper.

In another bowl, combine diced apple and lime juice.

Shred or dice chicken and add to the bowl with the apples.  Add curried mayo and mix well.  

Serve on top of a sald, wrapped in lettuce or a tortilla, on a sandwich, or straight out of the bowl.  Drizzle with a little balsamic vinegar and enjoy!

I also made some rice (sprouted wild rice and quinoa mix from Costco) and mixed my leftover spinach pesto into it.  What a tasty dinner!

Today was long run day.  I was skeptical of how it was going to go because my shin hurt all day long on Friday (yes, I need to take some time off from running...I'm working on it).  It was an alirght run.  I was slow, even though we ran on a relatively flat trail.  Then after I was slow, I was slower, and tired.  But I surived, and then I iced the lower half of my body and took a nap.  Now my shin doesn't hurt. 

I'm considering taking tomorrow off from exercising since I discovered that if I run one more mile this month, I will have run more miles in June than I did in May...and we are only halfway through the month.

I'm thinking that's why my shin hurts and my legs are always tired.

Now I am in bed watching movies and waiting for John to come home (rough life...I am aware).  The dogs are trying to behave, which is going better than usual because Kiva is apparently exhausted.

Yes, she is sleeping in my dirty clothes (the clothes in the basket are clean...thus the dirty clothes are on the floor...I'm messy...deal with it) and yes, she is snoring. I am going to attribute it to the fact that Annie dog is visiting, because she isn't ever this tired from just a long run.  Thanks Annie dog!