i'm baaaaaaaack!

oh, hello. i'm back! actually i was back last week but i needed some time to recover and get over the idea that i wasn't on vacation anymore and probably wouldn't be for a long time and had to go to work and every day it was raining like crazy. what's up, summer?

my vacation was A-M-A-Z-I-N-G! i had the best time ever and did not want to leave. i could have stayed another week, easily! i will post more about it another day.

now i'm back and since i gained a little weight on vacation (obviously ... buffet style eating and pounding back sangrias) i'm counting points for a little while until my clothes fit the way they used to. if you can believe it i actually did not weigh myself when i got home. what's the point? i'm already sad because my vaycay is over and it rains every day and i have to go back to work at 7:30 am on monday (yes, i am working this week), i don't want to feel any worse! anyway i didn't weigh myself before my vacation so i wouldn't know how much i gained anyway!

my new theory is that if you have a substantial amount of weight to lose, the scale is a good tool for you. but if you are working to maintain your weight, you can go by how your clothes fit and how you feel. what do you think of this theory? my clothes still fit, but my jeans are a little tighter than normal.

and now, a running update! guess how many times i ran on vacation? if you guessed ZERO you would be correct. why? 1) bum pain 2) so hot outside - not gonna happen! 3) could have used the resort gym but i am NOT staying inside when i could be enjoying myself outside. that being said, every morning on vacation i did two sets of the following exercises:

20 lunges (10 on each side)
15 squats
15 plie squats
10 pushups
20 regular sit ups
20 bicycle sit ups
20 reverse sit ups
20 ab twists
and repeat.

so that's better than nothing. i did some swimming too of course but only recreationally. last weekend on saturday after i got back i planned on doing a 3-mile run but had to go home after 2 miles due to bum pain. i think traveling stresses my body out and makes the pain worse. this is just my experience from this year and last summer. maybe it's something to do with plane sitting and air pressure? i am not bill nye so i'll never know what's what.

i am a bit worried about my 1/2 marathon training. i decided this week that i have to wait until my bum is totally healed before i begin training again, otherwise my chances of completing this race aren't very good. last saturday i was supposed to run 7 miles and this week is 4. maybe if i'm better i can crank out six or so. here is my week so far:

monday: 35 minutes swimming
tuesday: 30 minute elliptical, one set of the routine above
wednesday: 35 minutes swimming
thursday: today ...

today i am feeling pretty normal bum-wise, so i am going to attempt a 45-minute treadmill workout. i have a plan i downloaded a few years ago and it varies the speeds and inclines for 45 minutes. i remember doing this and really enjoying the variety. not getting bored is important on the treadmill. i am not going outside yet because i always run on concrete and it's pretty demanding on the body.

tomorrow i have the day off (yippee!) so i am going to go for a swim in the morning and then finally tackle my closet. it's overflowing with clothes that i never wear. and i have a walk-in closet. i have a problem giving up clothes because a) i bought them and b) what if i want to wear them someday? well no more! i need to cut out the clutter! if i have not worn you in one year you are going in a bag and being donated somewhere!

toronto, running, swimming, i found money

wow i'm losing followers. i felt a little pang of sadness but it's over now.

another quick list:

1) my potato salad recipe for the potluck turned out pretty well. everyone enjoyed it thoroughly! it was more work than i thought because i had to boil eggs and potatoes first and cool them before even starting. it's fun to separate the yolk from the white in cooled hard boiled eggs. the yolks look so funny. like little shiny orange fun balls. there was so much yummy food at the potluck ... it can all be yours in the fall for the low low price of ... um ... i don't know yet!

2) this morning i woke up super early (5:20 am) and ran four miles. i have to be at work at 8 am and i commute so i have to leave at 7:20 am and i have to shower after a run (obviously ... don't want to stink) and realistically i need 20 minutes or so after waking up to get dressed and ready to run. it was hard to wake up and i really thought about going back to sleep but once i got moving it was fine AND the city was cool and empty! AND i found a loonie and a tcc token (toronto transit $2.75) my lucky day. i went to bed last night at 10 pm to prepare for this big event.

3) last night i went swimming. at first i didn't want to, even when i got into the pool. but then i thought to myself - remember when you loved swimming? where did the love go? and i realized my problem was (and is) that i'm always trying to squish a workout in, instead of enjoying myself. so i said NO RUSH, slowed it down, and really had a great swim. i hate feeling like i have to do this, got to do it right now, right now before my next pressing activity! i need to calm down. after my swim i showered and had a steam in the change room - very luxurious. i am pretty luck to have a pool and a steam room in my building!

4) tonight is date night. we are watching canada's next top model and make me a supermodel which i taped last night. i am also lucky my "main squeeze" likes watching model shows with me.

5) good places to shop in toronto:

number one: queen street west (if you start at yonge and queen - the bay at eaton centre) go west past bay and it's awesome store heaven. and you'll get to see city tv/muchmusic building which could be cool if you've never seen it. speaker's corner is also there. good shopping goes a bit past spadina road - there is an urban outfitters and american apparel and then it dies out before bathurst street.

number two: yorkville (yonge and bloor) go up yonge to bloor and walk west on bloor - the shopping here is amazing! there is holt renfrew which carries top designers, on bloor street there is a tiffanys, a louie vuitton, a chanel... etc. obviously i don't shop there but it's nice to look. go all the way to avenue (where the royal ontario museum is) and turn north because one block up on your right is ... whole foods market! yippee! there is an awesome cheap but nice restaurant called hemingways here.

number three: kensington market, this place is a world in it's own. i love it.

pre-scheduled post

i love pre-scheduled posts. this week has turned from sour to sweeeeeeet! i think it was my crazy woman hormones making me looney tunes. it's tough being a woman - men just don't understand.

work is busy - on wednesday (and until today) i was sent to help with a food photo shoot for an upcoming cookbook. (if you didn't know i work in publishing). food styling and food photography is SUCH an interesting process, and i feel SO LUCKY that i get to experience it. there is a photographer, her assistants, graphic designers and a food stylist, who does all of the cooking and prepping. there are so many decisions to make - how to make the food look appealing, what bowl or plate to use, utensils, linens, tabletops, background glasses, etc. so much goes into making the shot PERFECT. so interesting. and being around food all day is awesome as well. unfortunately most of the time you can't eat the finished product - because it's been touched and prodded and moved around. but sometimes you can (or so i've heard).

anyway. weight is stable, down a little. my happy weight is about 3-5 pounds lighter. feeling happy and relaxed though. sun is shining (at least that is the forecast!) and today is friday WAHOO! no big plans for the weekend except a party at my bf's on saturday. i bought him new patio lights - rope lights like this to wind around the fence on his deck:

they look like they can withstand weather, right? oh boy. i am planning on a morning swim today (friday) and a saturday 5k run. sunday hopefully another swim? i have book club and we read the cellist of sarajevo. it was okay but i probably wouldn't recommend it because i found the plot to be a little repetitive. i kind of feel like a jerk because the subject matter of the book is quite intense. sorry - that's my opinion and i'm sticking to it.

have a great weekend :)

thursday, back at work - and book reviews

hello. it's thursday and i'm back at work. i don't technically *have* to come in, but i want to. why? because my heart rate monitor is here! i have it in my hands - finally! it's been so long. now i have to read the thousand page instruction booklet it came with. and i wanted to come in because a) i don't have any more work at home to do and b) yesterday i didn't leave my building once and that's depressing. i am a person that can easily become a hermit.

first things first - here is my haircut. it actually looks cute in these pictures. i think i look a little like a shakespearean boy who is playing a female in a play, but that's probably ridiculous. it sounds ridiculous! anyway, now i'm more cool with the length... it flips under my chin if i don't straighten it which i hate so i'll just have to straighten it... every day. and my bangs are too short but they will grow so fast.




and now for some book reviews:
1) Making the Cut: The 30-Day Diet and Fitness Plan for the Strongest, Sexiest You by Jillian Michaels.

my review: this book is interesting. it's for people who really want to shape up and lose that last 0-20 pounds and get a really defined, toned, strong body. the idea is good, except it's too rigid. you have to follow a specific exercise program and meal plan, right down to the recipe. and it's mostly about strength training, not cardio. i like strength training but i really like cardio. so all in all, i think this book is good for advice, and i'm going to copy some fitness moves and recipes, but there is no way in hell i would follow a plan like this for 30 days. maybe if i lived alone on top of a mountain and had a personal chef and didn't have to interact with any other humans... then and only then would this plan work for me. and there is no booze allowed. :o(

2) How Not to Look Fat by Danica Lo

my review: this book is supercute. personally, i think the title is eye-catching and hilarious but i think some people may be turned off by it. i showed this book to my sister and she looked at me in disgust and said, "you do not look fat, why are you reading that?" but then, after she flipped through the book, she was really into it. i didn't pick this book up because i think i look fat. i don't. this book is a funny guidebook for women. it wants you to accept and embrace the shape you have and then accentuate your best assets by wearing things that flatter you the best. it talks about underwear, suits, shoes, bathing suits, jeans, shirts... everything. for example, did you know that a three-quarter length sleeve is the most flattering for all women? it's true. even my boyfriend liked the idea of this book (i left it in the bathroom). he said the illustrations were really cute. and they are. a worthwhile read and nice classic style guide in my opinion.

this morning i ran 5 miles bringing me to 10/15 for the summer challenge (this week). i still need a vegetable. today on the menu is:

all bran bar (2)
astro yogurt (1)
shreddied shoved in my mouth (1)
(4)

apple cinnamon oatmeal (2)
added flax and pumpkin (1)
added shreddies (2)
2 clementines (1)
(10)

pc blue menu lasagna (6)
carrots and hummus (1)
(17)

apple (1)
source yogurt (1)
(19)

peas (1)
veggie burger on pita (3)
(23)

a lot to do

well, i'm back at work. hooray! am feigning sarcasm or what? maybe. i'm actually happy to be back at this work because at least here i get to sit in a nice chair instead of being a skilled labourer (painter) all the live long day. i am almost done painting, so no pictures yet. i want it to look somewhat decent before i take any shots. i have one more coat of green to do in the bedroom, and touch ups of course. and i made the mistake of painting part of the kitchen yellow, which really should be grey like the living and dining room. i changed colours at a corner, and it looks really tacky, and it's going to bother me until i fix it, so i'll finish everything tonight.

i have so much to do at work it's crazy. my immediate boss is away on business for more than a week, so i have to pick up that slack as well as get caught up on the stuff i missed during my three days off. all i really want to do is leisurely go through my emails and catch up on blogs, haha. hopefully i can read some at lunchtime today.

yesterday i went for a five-mile run. i am really digging these five-mile runs outside. it's great because even if you want to stop, you are still so far away from home that you might as well keep going haha. i got caught in the rain halfway through. i sort of didn't like it but it sort of made me feel super hardcore - like "so what nature! take that!" haha. anyway...

this morning i woke up early and did four miles (walking) on the treadmill and four miles on the stationary bike. i much prefer working out in the mornings.

today i'm eating:

lemon source yogurt, the dessert kind (1)

regular instant oatmeal with added flax and all bran (3)
1 cup frozen berries (0.5)
(4.5)

pc blue menu microwave dinner - shrimp whole wheat pasta something or other (5)
raw carrots and baby tomatoes with hummus (1)
(10.5)

another source yogurt (1)
3 little almond biscotti (2)
(13.5)

dinner:
green beans (0)
veggie burger (4)
salad (3)
(20.5)

maybe something else too. :)