Great day - 5 mile race, beer, and Bachelorette

OMG I was not ready for that 5-miler today. A - I have not been running much, let alone training for this thing. B - I've put on a few lbs (purposely) from doing more weight-training and of course, not running nearly as much. (to be honest, I look way better than I did before...was a little too skinny). C - I had a couple late nights leading up to the race, so THAT never helps!

This course was hilly, and described as "challenging" on the website. I handled the hills fine actually, it was just by mile 4 that I had some lactate build up and it didn't go away until well after I finished the race. Bottom line, I was not in optimal shape for this, and my legs told me so. They are still feeling like bricks right now. Which is crazy since I've run 1/2 Marathons and had way less of an effect.

Needless to say, I managed 3rd in my age group?! (20-29) I ran so much slower than normal. I typically can run a 40 minute 8K, today was 44:30. Yeah. SO MUCH SLOWER. If only I could have grabbed that first place trophy instead of the third place one, ahhhh well! :-) Seriously, though, I was surprised and super happy about it! What a great treat! Afterwards I hung around for a burger and free beer, shot the breeze with some fellow runners, mozied back to my car and actually stopped in at work to sign someone up for some new personal training. All in all, what a great day! Now, gathering with friends to watch the finale of Bachelorette. Get any better? Nah.

Two favorite things - food and babies - at the homestead

How have we gotten this far into the summer? Wow. Here are some pics that have been hiding on my tablet...or maybe I've just been too lazy to post them.

Just a bit of breakfast - eggs/cheese/peppers on a flat bagel, with some zesty sauce, woohoo!

Nicki and me - post bath. What a blondie.

Tomato and kale salsa, over basil leaves, topped with avocado.

Quinoa with yellow and red peppers, and spinach.

Cozy living at the homestead

My little 14-month-old reader.

I just hopped on Bloglovin to find more cool blogs! You can also follow me on there, as well :-)

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Edibles outside my door, and into my kitchen!

So, it turns out, most things in my garden...which basically consist of anything outside my front door...are doing phenomenally. My basil is out of control (in a good way), my nasturtiums (ya know, those cute and colorful and EDIBLE flowers) are gorgeous, and I'm starting to get some tomatoes! In the basket is also some kale and peas. 

My diet these days consists of most things paleo (check out last post), although I'm not going total freak out mode on it. In other words, I'm not allowing it to be a fad, rather, I'm slowly but surely incorporating it into my life. It's a fantastic thing. I feel better, look better, and have a sense of control. Think about the things that we all put into our bodies, really sit and think about it. In the words of Michael Pollan, if you don't know where it came from and what it's made of, don't eat it. It's a simple concept, but most people can't manage to grasp it. I think it has mostly to do with emotional issues that we all harbor, that weren't present in years past. But that's a subject for another day...SO back to Michael Pollan. He is one of my favorite authors on the "food dilemma" we face these days. Please do check him out. One of his books, Food Rules, lays the groundwork for exactly that, the rules of food and how and what to eat. Clear, concise, and to the point. 

Eating healthfully is actually easy, it just requires some thought and planning. If you can't be bothered with thinking about what you are about to put into your body, then, well...that is quite possibly the epitome of laziness (which all of America has seemed to adopt).

Til next time, 

~here's to learning more about paleo eating and exercise!~

Take control of your health; your life! The Primal Blueprint.

At work, many of the people I see are grossly overweight, injured (or injury-prone), stressed out, and unhappy in their little worlds. They claim they want to lose weight, or just feel better in general. They want to work on making an overall lifestyle change and then maintaining it...but then they walk right out my office door and forget all about these "goals" they speak of.

What has become of our population? I don't quite understand how people can be so uneducated about what they should be putting in their bodies, and how they should be moving, to stay in optimal health. Obviously, it is mostly due to the fad diets and conventional wisdom surrounding what a "healthy lifestyle" is. People don't know how to get what they want, and most importantly, don't care about how to actually do it. They want someone else to do it for them (personal trainers, nutritionists, doctors i.e. weight-loss surgeries/plastic surgeries, pills, fads, etc.).

In my spare time (ha! did I really just type that?), I've been reading Mark Sisson's The Primal Blueprint. I'm not reading this because I am interested in the latest fads of weight-loss/health, and actually, his book is completely anti-dieting. The fact that there should be no such thing as dieting is old news to me, and hopefully to you as well. I'm enjoying reading what he has to say, because he expounds upon how you can live the life you want. It's quite simple, actually. His book tells you how to take control of your life, your meals, your body. I recommend that everyone reads this, no matter what your qualms are. Even if you think you have your health down to a science, please, read the book. Also check out his blog, there is tons of information, and hundreds of comments made by people like you. 

Here's to being more like GROK!

Source: modernparentsmessykids.com via Kelley on Pinterest

Is it possible to organize your WHOLE life? I actually read the blog post that went along with this photo...and well...you should read it too so that we're on the same page.

For moms/parents with even just 1 kid, it seems impossible to be totally organized to where nothing ever gets out of place! I mean, I have no dishwasher, and I'm sorry, but there is no way that my dishes are done every night. More often than not, they are piled high in the sink. And the laundry is overflowing, or still wet in the washer (any one else have that happen?), and the toys are all over the place and, like tonight, no one really feels like picking them up (do they really need to be picked up each and every day? It's SUMMER, people!), and there are cheerios on the kitchen floor...and...you get the gist. Some days I would love to purge the things I have no need for, have everything labeled, everything in the right drawers, etc., but that takes time that I don't have!

So, as nice as it would be to be totally organized in all aspects of life, I think it's entirely impossible. At least at this juncture of my life, pure organization is not about to happen. Hell, it will probably never happen. But nice to dream about right? We aren't all Martha Stewart, after all. And I hear she's kinda crazy anyway. Not that I'm not...

Beautiful babies! (my baby, duh) and what's goin' on in my garden

Hold on a sec - would you look at this FACE?! Couldn't be cuter. He is my food-hoover; you put it in front of him and he will eat it. What a good boy :-)

Recent pickings from the garden - radishes and oak leaf lettuce. Some people don't like radishes because of the fiery taste, but that's what I love about them! I just chop them up, throw them in a bowl with olive oil, salt and pepper, and then rip up the lettuce and throw it on in...voila! I'm easy to please. I'll keep you updated on what's going on in my garden. Currently, what's growing is: lettuce, carrots, beets, radishes, peas, onions, beans, tomatoes, peppers, kale, cucumbers, strawberries, chives and kale. I'll post more pics of what I pick next!


What did you do today to better your body/mind/health? I worked (fitness assessments/consults), read a great book, and am planning on making a delicious meal for one (no kids tonight). Possibly some yoga before bedtime.

Rotini and Chicken Caprese Salad (with black beans)

1/2 a tomato

3 large basil leaves, torn into a few pieces per leaf

a few slices of fresh mozarella

1/4 cup black beans

1/2 a chicken breast

1 serving rotini pasta

~ cook the chicken in a pan over medium heat, in olive oil, seasoned with lemon pepper, cut into smaller pieces while cooking

~ cook rotini as instructed

~ slice half the tomato and set aside on a plate

~ put a slice of mozarella on each tomato slice, and top with torn basil leaves

~ place rotini on a plate (or shallow bowl), add the chicken, and then place the tomato/moz/basil slices on top of it all

~ I like to sprinkle on some black beans just for fun, but you don't need to do this.

~ drizzle with a light dressing, preferably a balsamic vinaigrette, and some more olive oil if desired. black pepper as well.

I FINALLY got my bike fixed. I haven't actually been on it in almost 2 yrs...the summer in between Logan and Nick being born...and last summer after Nick was born there was no WAY I was getting on that thing! Plus, I don't know how I would have found the time. So this summer, it's up and running and looking pretty spiffy. I now just need to get some regular biking and swimming in so that I can manage to do a sprint tri this summer/fall. I'm way out of that kind of shape...not having been on a bike in so long will probably wake up some seriously dormant muscles. Well...I've been spinning a lot...so maybe not. We'll see! It will be tough getting rides in, since it's just me and the kids. I'll have to wait til times when they are with their dad. So that means I will really have to streamline my workouts. I'm not obsessive about my workouts, and I know if I get quality rides in then I will be just fine.

Can't talk much tonight, really must get in BED. Need to catch up on sleep that was lost this wknd!

Coming back to life...

So, the reason I have been MIA, is because I just went through a pretty ridiculous divorce. In fact, it was JUST finalized about 2 weeks ago...and there are still many problems that will likely take years to iron out.

There's no need to go into great detail, plus I don't feel like talking much about it since that has been all I've been talking about for a long time now. Long story short, I left someone that was emotionally, verbally, and sexually abusive. I'm not embarassed to admit these things, because I'm proud of myself for finally putting myself first and removing myself from a poisonous environment. It was also the best thing I could do for my two beautiful boys. Yes, they still see their father, but at least I will be able to parent them the way I know I can. No more being berated and degraded on a daily basis. No more control. I am crawling out of the huge hole of depression that I had fallen into.

I'm closing that chapter of my life and starting a new one where I can make my own decisions, do what I love, and raise my boys happily.

~~~~~~~

Speaking of doing what I love, here are some pics from the last 5k I did! Also, Logan (my almost 3 year old), did his first race the same day! (The Tot Trot)

It seems that I haven't been on here in quite some time. A lot has happened. I will let you all in on it at some point in the near future. But don't worry, all is okay. There is no way the next chapter of my life can be anything but BETTER than the last.