drowning in a sea

a sea of business.

sorry for lack of updates. well, who can blame me? sunday was father's day so i went to the burbs to visit my daddio. it was good - we shared this amazing cake (birthday and father's day). i went back to the city on a time schedule because i had to pick up a prescription (now that i have benefits). i thought the drug mart closed at 8 pm but it closed at 6 pm - dammit! the shoppers drug mart by my house is the WORST. only open 8 until 8 and 6 on sundays. some are 24 hours or at least open until midnight. gee whiz.

monday was the photo shoot. LONG DAY. i left my house at 7 am to be there by 8. outside all day, doing manual labor in the hot sun. it was fun though and of course a valuable learning experience. it was still going when i left at 6:30 pm, but i had to make sure that i'd be back in the city by 8 pm - when the drug store closed!

i realized on the weekend that i forgot to renew my license plates. man, it's one thing after another, isn't it? i would have just mailed in the form when it came, but every two years you have to get your emissions tested before you can renew, and it was my time. so i did that tuesday at lunch, and today i'm going to actually renew the plates. yabba dabba!

yesterday was my first day of half-marathon training. it should have been monday but i was too exhausted after being outside all day to go running. it's supposed to look like this this week:

monday: running 30 minutes
tuesday: 30 minutes another activity
wednesday: rest
thursday: running 30 minutes
friday: 30 minutes another activity
saturday: 2-mile run
sunday: rest

i think the training is beneath my level at the moment so i'm going to stick to my current length and then increase my distance on the schedule later.

my week will look like this:

monday: rest
tuesday: 5-mile (50ish minutes) running
wednesday: 30 minutes swimming
thursday: 5-miles running
friday: 30 minutes swimming
saturday: 5-miles running
sunday: rest

am i going to screw myself up? yesterday i ran right after work and it was HOT. dayum. i wore my fuel belt so it was ok.
that's that. my birthday party on the weekend was a smashtacular success but i'll post about that tomorrow.

and my other special bf gift which i have not revealed yet. i will say, however, that it's already motivating me not to mindlessly snack at nighttime. yippee skippy!

no monster today

i had to take a break from the monster. why? WHY? i'll tell you why:

1) i had to leave my house this morning at 6:30am to take my car in to the dealership for repairs. i got an oil change and a water belt something something maintenance thingymabob and when i was backing out of parking spots and turning i could hear a grinding in my engine, so i wanted to get that looked at. they call me at 10:00 am and kindly let me know that the grinding noise means i need new break pads. that's okay because it's not that expensive. i was hoping it would be relatively cheap and it was sort of, if you consider an all-inclusive vacation cheap. anyway. they also informed me that i have a crack in my exhaust, need all new tires and an alignment. yikes. i am doing it all because i don't want to meet my untimely death driving home from work in an unsafe vehicle. yikes. not cheap. i guess it's better to be poor than dead, right?

my point is i didn't have time this morning to be blending.

2) even though my smoothies contained fiber from the spinach, they weren't ... how should i say ... regulating my system quite like my regular oatmeal breakfast. by the end of the day yesterday i was feeling really bloated and gross. my lower stomach was really protruding! yes, i said it - protruding!!!

3) my boyfriend really likes when i make salads with dinner. he thinks my salads are so special because i add carrot shreds, tomatoes and the key - red onion for a kick. i know it's pretty standard but i'm keeping that to myself. anyway, i think i'm ODing on greens since the thought of having a salad last night really made me nauseated. we had hot dogs and soup. not bad but no veggies - what's going on here?

4) i love oatmeal and missed it dearly.

i needed a break from the monster. instead i had a multibran vitatop in my car on the way to the dealership, and later at work a nice bowl of oatmeal which included an instant pc multigrain oats pack, 1/4 cup all bran, 1/2 banana, 2 tablespoons chopped walnuts and 3 chopped pitted dates. YUM. so hot and delicious and filling.

anyway, that's that. for those who asked, my green monster was very large. i took that picture after i drank some. it went to the top of the bottle. and yes, i drank it all even with the gross coffee in it. i added a bit of splenda. i wasn't going to not eat anything! heaven forbid. and here is my lunch:


hahaha it's backwards - do you love it?

oops

i didn't get a chance to do yoga last night, but i did go for another 40-minute swim this morning. that's four days in a row! amazing! i'm going to make it five tomorrow.

my chicken enchiladas turned out great! i thought they were the best, and my boyfriend thought they were good too. the zatarain's rice tasted pretty good but left us both feeling a little burpy. i think i will stick to rice-a-roni for flavoured rice in the future. or, create my own. haha, yeah right.

here is the exact recipe i followed:

ingredients:
1 yellow onion, chopped
1 red pepper, chopped
green onions, chopped
1 boneless skinless thawed chicken breast, chopped into bite sized pieces (mine was pretty big)
2 flat out flour wraps (if i didn't have these, i would use 4 small tortilla wraps instead)
dried basil flakes
tomato sauce from a jar (i used pc blue menu tomato and basil)
marble cheese, grated
pam cooking spray

directions: preheat oven to 375°F. spray a skillet pan with cooking spray and cook onions over medium heat until they are soft. add the red pepper and when it begins to get soft, add the chicken and a few shakes of dried basil. cut each flat out wrap in two (they are long and oval shaped) so you have four wraps. spread about a cup of tomato sauce into the bottom of a glass square baking pan. i used a round cake pan because that's all i had, and i used a little less (3/4 cup) sauce. you want the bottom of the pan to be coated, but if you use too much sauce it will make your tortillas soggy. soggy tortilla = gross. i sprayed my pan with a little pam cooking spray as well. when the chicken is cooked, it's time to assemble the wraps. spoon 1/4 of the mixture on each wrap, down the middle. add a spoonful of sauce, a few green onions and a sprinkle of cheese to each. fold the wraps over (left and right side) to make a "roll" - surprisingly they will stay in this shape and not open up. magical. place each roll in the tomato sauce baking dish. they should be touching and 1/2 covered in the sauce. cover the whole dish with tin foil and bake for 30 minutes. DING! when that's done, remove the foil, add a small spoonful of sauce to the top of each roll and sprinkle with more cheese. you can be as liberal as you want with the cheese. more cheese = yummier but also more cheese = fattier. keep that in mind. a little goes a lot way. bake for additional ten minutes with no foil and then you have delicious chicken enchiladas. top with green onions and low-fat sour cream if you so desire. p.s. those aren't my enchiladas in the photo.

today my car (and me) had a little accident. OOPS. it was in the underground parking lot in my building. OOPS. i turned a corner and hit a pole. OOPS. my car has a bit of hideous damage but i'm 99% sure it won't affect the inner workings of the car. not the best thing that could happen. i'm trying just to not think about it.

a monday list

1) first of all, check out this awesome shout out i got on friday from shirls. you rock too and together, we will grab all the bulls balls.

2) this morning, i did a 20 minute yoga podcast: intermediate yoga for runners. this one is tough. i can already feel the muscles in my bum asking me why i did this to them. the podcast is actually 26 minutes. the poses are difficult, especially the half moon pose. my hamstrings are so tight and my legs are a lot longer than my arms, and i can't touch the ground with my legs straight. i'm working on it! it was good to try something more difficult - lately i've just been doing the gentle hatha which is very gentle and restorative.

3) i might need a new car. can i afford a new car? of course not but i wouldn't buy a new new car, just a newer old car. and i could pay it in monthly installments. my old car is feeling more and more beat down every day. what do you think of the yaris? isn't it cute?

4) check out this amazing link. it's got side-by-side comparison photos of fast food products - how they look in advertisements (yummy) and how they actually look when you buy them in the restaurant (yucky). definite food for thought.

home today

i am at home today. since i am at home today, i am going to do my entry "food blog style."

i woke up at 8:30am and made a coffee, and small bowl of cherries and cheerios. ch ch ch champion foods. :) i was reading in bed, eating them, when i fell back asleep and didn't wake up until 11:30am. am i lazy or what?



now it's noon! i have some stuff i want to do today (on the computer), so hopefully i can get it all done. if i do, i'm going to reward myself with a trip to whole foods. (i have to drive there... bleh!) i was hoping to get outside for a run, but it's pouring rain... it might stop by 2pm or so for a couple of hours, so i'm going to postpone my workout until then and make something more substantial to eat.

for brunch or lunch i made my favourite... oatmeal:


1/4 cup steel cut oats
1/2 cup water
1/2 cup unsweetened almond breeze
1/2 small banana
1/4 cup wheatberries
1 T flax
1 t splenda
1/2 t vanilla
some thawed frozen berries on top. :)

i went for a long run... 6 miles. it was easy and my heart rate stayed about 140 the whole time. i think my monitor is working fine now... phewf. i was running for over an hour and burned 430 calories or so.

when i got home i thought about what to have for dinner. i looked in my vegetable drawer and saw a sweet potato that was almost ready to bite the dust, so i made a big batch of mashed potatoes.

i used:
1 giant sweet potato
4 cloves garlic, chopped (2 were really mini)
3/4 head of cauliflower
splash of unsweetened almond breeze

i steamed everything and then used my blender on a stick (what is that called?) to puree everything. yum yum. i love mixing cauliflower into mashed potatoes because it really increases the volume and not the calories.

i ate a small bowl right away:


i had a bath/shower afterwards and then made dinner. i had a sun-dried tomato gardenburger on an ezekiel english muffin, with some greens and mustard, leftover steamed veggies and some mashed potatoes. now i am very very full.


i have never tried ezekiel english muffins before ($4.99 for 6!) and i have to say, they are really delicious. way better than any other english muffin i've tried. i still have some work to do on the computer so i better get cracking. i am not going anywhere tonight because it's still raining and i just can't be bothered. that's how much i hate driving. why do i even have a car?

i hope you enjoyed looking at my food today. =D tomorrow will be back to regular posting (no pics), although i do have to say, posting my food for the day really inspired me to make the most of my food (variety, somewhat nice presentation) and really curbed the mindless snacking and little bites of things i would usually take but wasn't hungry for. interesting...

freitag (that's german for friday)

i have a lot to talk about today, so i'm going to do it in a list format.

1) friday weigh-in day: gained 1.6 and now am 120 pounds. note to self: stop mindless snacking immediately.

2) yesterday i bought this online. it is a starfrit electronic digital kitchen scale. it was only $19.99 with free shipping, and it has a tare function. my current kitchen scale is not electronic, not digital, has no tare function, and is so tiny. so can't go wrong.


3) last night i had an excellent run: 5 minutes walking, 35 running at a 6.2 mph pace, then 5 minutes walking cool down. and then i went to tap class for an hour.

4) after tap last night, i hit up shoppers drug mart and the grocery store. i noticed that the dominion has lean cuisine paninis now, but i didn't buy any because my freezer is full. i did buy diet chocolate cherry dr. pepper though. i don't drink pop on a regular basis, just when mixing drinks and stuff.

5) at shoppers drug mart, i bought this clearance oil of olay in-shower body lotion. you put it on in the shower and rinse it off. i've only used it once (this morning) but seriously people it's wonderful.


6) this morning i did A LOT. i woke up at 6:13 am, walked on the treadmill with interval inclines for 80 (yes 80!) minutes, made a giant pot of homemade soup, made oatmeal (the kind that takes 15 minutes), showered, got ready for work, and here i am.

7) i made a modified version of a hungry girl 0-point soup. i made this soup to have with meals, in a hope that it will deter me from stuffing my face unnecessarily.

ingredients:
1 onion, chopped
1 can plum tomatoes, diced
1 can sliced carrots
3-4 cups cabbage (i used bagged)
leftover adzuki beans
4 cups (i used 900mL) fat free vegetable broth
salt
pepper
mrs. dash original
many shakes of frank's chili lime red hot sauce

directions:
in a large pot sprayed with non-stick spray, cook onion for 2-3 minutes, chop the tomatoes from the can, add everything including tomato juice. cook for 2-3 minutes on medium. add carrots, cabbage, beans, broth. bring to a boil, season accordingly, reduce heat and cover for 5 minutes, and voila! the original recipe made five 0 point one cup servings. mine made a lot more than that and probably 1 point per cup, or something because i added the carrots and a few beans... maybe. does it matter? no, it does not. the hot sauce made it really good.

8) tonight i am going to see 27 dresses with my main gal pal. am looking forward to it!

9) my mom wants me to take her car (instead of mine) to niagara falls this weekend. hers has automatic doors and windows, an automatic starter (from a remote), and heated seats. mine has none of these things and makes funny sounds.

10) what does everyone think about these?

11) today's menu:
1/2 cup oats with milk and pumpkin
orange
homemade soup
turkey and swiss sandwich on rye
caramel yogurt
more soup
grapes
popcorn
something chocolately

monday monday can't trust that day

ah, monday again. i had a great weekend. on saturday i went for a jog and then hung up a picture and made the other bedside table. we went to a fun party outside of the city - it was a house party and so cute... there were little bowls of candy everywhere, and in the basement a jam room so we rocked it out. i played the drums (not very well). smash boom bang!

yesterday i visited my parent's in the burbs. on the way i stopped off at planet organic in port credit. everyone on the blogs has been talking about it and i wanted to see what was up. i bought a can of adzuki beans, some maple nut oatmeal, annie's whole wheat mac and cheese, and a container of that creamy tomato soup. mmmmm. i got the beans because every time i watch you are what you eat, the host goes on and on about how great and good for you these beans are. i plan on throwing some in a salad tonight. at first i got some dry adzuki beans from the bulk section, then i found them ready in a can. i put the bag (of bulk) on the shelf and just as i was doing it an employee says, "SO! (loudly) are you finding everything you are looking for?" uh oh... caught in the act! i felt like a jerk for the rest of my shopping trip but i'm over it now.

after that i went to pier one and bought the chair of my dreams. it was on sale and here it is, although i got it in black:

these chairs are so rad. they look so retro, and i can fit my entire body in it, which is great for cozy reading time. and in the summer i can drag it out on my balcony and read there... can't wait. i have ALWAYS wanted a chair like this and now all my dreams are coming true.

THEN i had some tire air pressure problems and my dad made me go (right away! and with him) to the gas station to put more air in. during the superbowl! yes, that's right - my dad left the football to help me with my tire woes. personally i don't care about football but he does. i thought that the superbowl just happened in november but apparently that was the grey cup. shows what i know!

anyway that's about it for now. i am not exercising as hard this week. tonight i am meeting up with a friend for a drink with a capital D. looking forward to it!

my menu today:
breakfast:
oatmeal pumpkin pancake (2)
clementine (0.5)
coffee and tea
2.5/19

snack:
oatmeal (3)
5.5/19

lunch:
turkey sandwich with mozzarella on whole wheat (6)
apple (1)
12.5/19

snack:
yogurt (1)
grapes (1)
granola bar (2)
16.5/19

dinner:
salad with adzuki beans and chicken or veggie burger (5)
21.5/19

post:
drink with capital D (2)
23.5/19