Five for Friday

1. If you haven’t heard, March Madness is officially ON! I have three brackets going in the company pool and I’m not doing so well. I’m gonna have to blame Woody though; before he left for his latest trip to Atlanta he helped me make my picks for two of them and those are the ones that are doing the worst! Oh well. All that really matters is that MSU wins. We play tonight at 9:20pm. Hope you’ll be watching!
2. I’m seeing a nutritionist this morning. My sports doctor recommended it and I’ve wanted to meet with one anyway. Hopefully she’ll be able to help me reach my goals: drop the weight I’ve gained through multiple injuries, follow a diet that will support and strengthen my bones and also in line with my activity levels. I feel like I eat well, but I know I can do better and this is what I need. I’m really looking forward to this and wonder how it’ll change our visit to Trader Joe’s tomorrow!
3. It was 73 degrees here on Tuesday. As amazing as that was, it’s weird. It’s still March. I didn’t have to wear a jacket to the gym the other morning at 5:30 because it was so warm. Perfect running weather. Running…something I haven’t done since I tried a few weeks ago. I want to get out there again this weekend, even though it still won’t be for much of a distance. I am definitely feeling stronger with each workout so my extended recovery seems to be going well! However, I won’t be running any long distances for a while.
4. Speaking of which, this Sunday is the NYC Half Marathon. The route is a little different this year as the runners don’t have to do 1.5 loops of Central Park anymore and instead of finishing on the West Side Highway near Battery Park, it’s ending on the Eastside just south of South Street Seaport! It’s coming right near our apartment! Too bad we can’t watch it from our window, but I’ll be out there cheering. I’m so excited for everyone running. It’ll be a gorgeous day and I hope they have fun in our neighborhood!
5. This week I’ve been reminded that just by stepping a little outside the box can remind you of great things. Recently I started taking a different route to work and walking a bit out of the way. Instead of taking some crowded, dirty and loud streets I’ve been taking Park Ave. Then the other night I got to visit with Grace and walked to Times Square before getting on the subway. Even though I’m not usually a fan of Times Square, it, along with Park Ave and Grand Central is a whole different world; one that reminds me how much I love the romantic New York that dreams are made of.

• Are you cheering for any particular team in the NCAA tourney?
• What are you looking forward to this weekend?

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Today’s workout -

• None. I needed sleep so I took today as a rest day.

Another Season

I meant to post yesterday but the weekend got away from me. The last few days have been a roller coaster of sorts. Work was crazy busy last week, I’ve spent nearly 7 hours trying to get the email on my phone to sync again (it’s still not working) and Woody left early this morning for his 3rd business trip to Atlanta in four weeks. I just heard on the news that a plane went off the runway at the Atlanta airport (no passengers on board) and there are going to be delays. I hope Woody’s plane doesn’t get diverted since they’re in the air already! Thankfully he’s coming home Thursday this week instead of Friday like the two other times. I have to say, getting a pedicure at my favorite nail salon really helped relieve some stress Saturday evening. What woman doesn’t love cute pink toe nails? Right?

My new favorite polish color – Boat House

While watching the MSU basketball games this weekend was a little stressful too, it was worth it. We’re pretty excited in our apartment (yes, all two of us) because the Spartans won the Big 10 Tournament Sunday afternoon and got a #1 seed in the NCAA tournament! It’s pretty awesome, but sometimes the Spartans do better when people aren’t expecting much from them, so this will be interesting. I have faith though; Izzo knows how to coach teams through tournaments and the guys are determined. Speaking of which, my Mom sent me an article that included this quote from team captain, Draymond Green, speaking to the team’s turnaround after losing the last two games of the regular season. I think we can all take something from this. You don’t need to be a basketball player to find the value in this sentiment, in all sorts of ways:

“We didn't end the first season on a win, and that's never a good thing. But, we were able to put that behind us and start another season, and we went 3-0. Now we've got to put this behind us and start another season."  Draymond Green

Don’t get me wrong, while I’ve been pretty stressed out about this whole phone thing, it’s really because I’ve wasted so much time dealing with it when I could be doing much more productive things and enjoying life. I know that my email not syncing on my phone really isn’t a big deal, especially compared to things other people are going through. Stress is relative and if I had my own way, no one would have to deal with stress. Ever. It’s not good for us. But it happens, and we all need some way to relax and to be able to look to the next season and start over with a fresh slate.

• What are your favorite ways to relax?
• What new “season” are you looking forward to starting in your life?

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Today’s workout -

• 37min elliptical
• 2x15 cable push-down
• 2x15 lateral arm raise
• 2x15 lat pull down
• 2x15 (ea. side) cable-pull twists
• 1x60sec plank
• 100 ab exercises
• stretching

A Recipe You Really Should Try

I tried this recipe almost a month ago now and have been meaning to share it with you. It’s pretty healthy, pretty easy to make, and super delicious. Three things that make for a perfect recipe! I highly recommend you give it a try as soon as possible! I wish I had a batch right now, it would be perfect for the crazy warm weather we’re having today!

This is from FitSugar and while it’s under the ‘raw’ and ‘vegan’ categories, my version isn’t raw (dry roasted almonds) or vegan (honey instead of agave nectar). Neither Woody nor I follow a raw or vegan diet, so this didn’t bother me, but it can be made to fit either category if that’s something you want.

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Fudge ‘Brownies’

Base Layer Ingredients:

1. 1cup mixed raw nuts (almonds & walnuts)
2. 1cup pitted medjool dates
3. 1/4cup cocoa
4. 1tbs ground flax seed (I added this)
5. (optional and untested) 1tbs water

Top Layer Ingredients:

1. 2 ripe bananas
2. 4tbs almond butter
3. 4tbs honey
4. 1/2cup cocoa

Step 1: Combine base layer ingredients in mixer until fully blended.

Step 2: Press mixture evenly into a square glass baking dish.

Step 3: Mix top layer ingredients in the mixer and blend till the texture is smooth (this won’t take long).

Step 4: Pour mixture over base layer and spread evenly. Cover with foil and put in freezer for at least 1 hour to set.

Step 5: Enjoy!!! Since this isn’t baked it does get a little gooey and it’s not idea for transporting. Enjoy quickly after cutting and serving. But really, how could you wait long to dig into this?!

Notes: We found the base layer to be very crumbly, so I think by moistening this with a little bit of water will help keep it together. I haven’t tried this yet though, so I don’t know how it’ll turn out! The banana flavor was a little over powering in the top layer, but I didn’t quite use the full amount of honey recommended in the recipe, which may have played a part in that, and probably adding a smidgen more cocoa would probably do the trick as well.

Go HERE for the original recipe.

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I made this the Sunday before Valentine’s Day and we actually had it as our dessert on Valentine’s Day after our trip to Top of the Rock! It does keep well for a few days in the freezer, but it’s so good it’ll probably be gone quickly anyway! Both Woody and I really liked this and I’ll definitely make it again. I mean, it’s chocolatey, nutty and healthy. How can we not love it?!

• Do you have a favorite raw treat?
• How’s your week going?

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Today’s workout -

• 35min elliptical
• 10min bike
• 2x15 seated row
• 2x10 wood chops (ea. side)
• 100 ab exercises
• 1x55sec plank
• stretching