What I Ate Wednesday: Beat the Heat

Hey Guys!
It's time for WIAW(What I ate Wednesday) again!  Thanks Jenn, over at Peas and Crayons for hosting!




I love the theme for this months WIAW because July really is all about fun, fitness, and food.  I even made a summer bucket list to make sure I can squeeze in as much fun fitness and food as possible!

I named this WIAW "Beat the Heat" because it's been so hot, and it really changes how I cook and eat.  I know some people say they have no appetite in the hot weather, but I definitely do not feel that way.  I have an appetite year round!  All food here was consumed on Tuesday, July 17th.

7:30 am Oatmeal with Peanut Butter (forgot to snap a pic so here's a nice picture of clouds!)

9 am 1 medium iced coffee from Dunkin'.
Today I finally caved and got an iced coffee.  I've been getting a hot coffee everyday! What is wrong with me?  Since today was 95 degrees, I decided that an iced coffee would be more enjoyable.  And it was definitly the right choice.
Side note:  Does anyone else say "Ice" coffee or "Ice" tea instead of Iced?  I usually say "Ice," but some people have corrected me. 

10:30 Morning Snack: Banana

12:00 Lunch- I usually like to pack my lunch, but I've been super lazy due to the heat.
I got a Southwest Tuna Wrap at Au Bon Pain, and it was delicious!  Only $6.  Tracy and I ate outside in the sweltering heat by the food court. 

2:15pm Chobani Yogurt with Cinnamon and Blueberries (not pictured)  This might be my favorite afternoon snack of all time.

Work Out:
I've been following a half marathon training plan, and today's scheduled run was 3 miles.  I braved the heat and got out there.  I was going to go to the gym to do my run, but lately I just don't like the treadmill.  I ran at about 5pm, when it was 94 degrees.  I was a sweaty mess by the time I got back, but it was so worth it.  I felt pretty proud of myself for not wimping out.

This week I have a 4 mile run on Thursday, a 2 mile run on Friday and an 8 mile run on Sunday.

6pm Dinner:  Pulled BBQ Chicken with summer squash. CJ had the day off so he set up the crockpot and made some BBQ pulled chicken.  It was so yummy, and pretty easy to make.  Just set it and forget it! 
We also sauteed some summer squash for our veggie on the side. :)  It was a nice easy meal that didn't require too much time in the kitchen.

8pm Dessert:
We made smoothies  Nothing like a nice, refreshing smoothie to end the day! 

Hope you all have a great Wednesday!


P.S. Tonight I'm going to a Boston Food Blogger's Dinner at Maggiano's in the North End.  I'm really excited because this will be my first time meeting the members of Boston Food Bloggers.  If you are a food blogger in the area, there are still some tickets available!  I can't wait to tell you guys all about it.

The Pea's Knees: Summer Bucket List

Hey Everyone!

I always thought Fall was my favorite season, but I'm really loving all things summer right now.  I created this bucket list to make the most of the warm weather before summer gets washed away!

 
1.  I made a pact with myself that from now til the end of summer I will stop at every Lemonade stand that I see and buy a glass of lemonade.  I've seen so many so far this summer, and it really surprised me that kid's still do that!  It's so adorable, and I love seeing little entrepreneurs in the making...  Except when they get fined... 

source

2. Run (or leap) down the beach.  I really want to combine my love of running with my love of beach before the summer is over.  I'd love to take a dip in the sea after a hot and sweaty run.

3.  Go Deep Sea fishing.  I used to go every year with my family, but we haven't been in a very long time.  This summer I really want to go and catch some dinner!

source

 4.  Try to get CJ to take me out for ice cream as many times as possible. He's always trying to limit my ice cream intake.  I think he's jealous of my one true love.

5.  Go Horseback Riding.  I haven't been in forever! I used to go a lot more often with my Dad when I was younger, and now I like to go once a year or so, but I can't even remember the last time I went.  Time to get back in the saddle.

6.  Get to the beach AMAP (as much as possible).  I think AMAP should be a word, like ASAP.  I'm gonna start that...

What's on your summer bucket list? Do tell!

Ocean Kayaking, Sushi, & Oysters

Hello!
Today I went ocean kayaking at Lynch Park with my good friend Meaghan.  I haven't been ocean kayaking in a very long time, so I was really excited to go.  Even though it was overcast, it was still really hot out, and the breeze from the ocean plus the water splashing on us from the paddles kept us nice and cool.

I planned to take my camera, but the rental guy strongly recommended leaving it behind since it isn't waterproof.  He asked "do you really need to take it?"  And I was like ""YES! I need it!"  I'm a blogger! Why don't people understand?  You can't take a camera away from a blogger.

I realized he was right, and I probably would ruin it, so I left it with him.  I did manage to get a picture of the paddles before our excursion.

We got a double kayak for an hour and a half.  When we asked how we were supposed to know when our time was up (we had no phones or watches) the rental guy told us to ask someone on the beach. We didn't end up doing that, and just went back in when we thought we had been out long enough, and we ended up coming in a half hour early! Oh well! 

Kayaking is really good exercise.  It was a great arm workout for me.  I decided to look up how many calories are burned in one hour of kayaking.

"According to the American Council on Exercise, a 125-lb. person burns 283 calories per hour of kayaking while a 150-lb. person burns 340, a 175-lb. person burns 397 calories and a 200-lb. person burns 454 calories. Higher body weight requires increased energy expenditure for activity." Source

I also learned that kayaking burns less calories than running at 5.5 mph for one hour (obvious), burns more calories than cycling at 5.5 mph for 1 hour, and burns the same amount of calories as playing softball for 1 hour.  Interesting...

When we came back ashore, we walked around Lynch park. I had never been there before, so I had no idea how pretty it is.   Meaghan showed me the Rose Garden, where she said lots of people take pictures for proms and weddings there.  It was stunning! My pictures don't do it justice at all.

After burning all those calories kayaking, we decided to replace them with a nice lunch.  We went to Hale St Tavern, Oyster, and Sushi Bar. I was intrigued by this strange combination.  Do Oysters go with Sushi?

 Meg is brave and ordered 5 oysters.  I'm too much of a chicken to try them. I can barely eat mussels without getting freaked out, so I'm definitely not ready for oysters.  They do look really fun to eat though!  Maybe I'll add trying an oyster to my summer bucket list (that doesn't exist yet...).

 We shared an order of edamame.  Yum!  You can never go wrong with edamame  It's so tasty.

I also ordered the Hawaii Sushi roll.  It was unreal.  I'm a weirdo and only like cooked sushi, so this one was right up my alley.  It had coconut shrimp, avocado, cucumber, and topped with pineapple salsa.  It was really good.  It was one of those dishes that you don't want to end.  

A lovely day with a lovely friend.  :)

Have a wonderful night everyone!

Half Marathon Training Plan

I had a minor freak-out on Monday:

My Half Marathon is in 10 weeks!

How did that happen?

In April I printed out a training plan that would lead me up to September for the Half marathon, but I haven't really been following it, and I started to get nervous.

On June 18th, having not run more than 6.5 miles since March, I went out and ran 10 miles.
I think I just wanted to prove to myself that I could still do it, and I could do it, but it wasn't pleasant and I ended up being sore for 3 days. 

My knees were killing me, and I knew it was time for new shoes.  I headed to Marathon Sports and got fitted. I also got a new sports bra so I can run with one instead of three. You can read about that experience here.

Now that I got the right shoes, the right bra, and the right attitude, I'm ready to take my training more seriously!

I use Smart Coach for all my race training.  I logged on and entered my recent 5k time (so they could gauge my pace), how many miles I want to run a week, and what day I would want my long run to be. 

Here is  what it said my training should look like for the next 5 weeks:

I like this plan because it only has one long run a week on Sundays and the rest of the weekday runs are on the short/totally manageable end.  I know that will work for me since I have to do my runs after work, and I know I wouldn't want to run 8 or 9 miles after working all day.

At the end of the 5 weeks, I plan to update you guys on how my training is going, and to share the training plan for the last 5 weeks of training.  I'm feeling pretty confident right now, but that could change if I get discouraged and fall off the motivation train. 

I really really really want to finish the race in 2 hours, which would mean running at a 9:09 min/mile pace, according to this calculator.  I don't like to get my hopes up too much, because I know If I don't make my goal, I'll be beating myself up about it.  In the past, I have cried after races when I didn't make my goal.  I need to learn to appreciate my body and it's ability to run this distance, and not just focus on the time.  My main goal should be to get to the finish line.  I'd like to do it without stopping to walk, and without crying/getting frustrated.  If I can do that, I think I'll be a happy girl.

:)




Have you ever cried or felt disappointed after a race?  I'd love to know I'm not the only one!

WIAW: Back to Reality Eats

Hello! It's that time again, today is What I Ate Wednesday!
This is my third round of the weekly food journal party that Jen hosts over at Peas and Crayons.  Thanks again for hosting, Jen!  P.S read her proposal story, pretty cute and funny.

This WIAW is called "Back to Reality eats" because all last week I was on staycation, which makes eating healthy a lot easier.  Eating healthy during the work week involves more planning and prepping, which is difficult when you're short on time.  That's why I've gotten into a weekday breakfast and lunch routine of oatmeal+peanut butter and then a sandwich or salad with protein for lunch.  It's a little boring, but at least I know it's going to keep me satisfied until my next meal.  Staying full/satisfied is very important to me since I have a semi-irrational fear of being hungry.  My worst nightmare is not bringing enough food to last me through the day.  I spend most days rationing out my snacks all day so I can make it to my commute home with energy.  There's nothing worse (for me) than starving on the train ride home. 

All food here was from Tuesday, July 10th, aka Don't Step on a Bee Day (Important one for me since I'm allergic to bee stings), Teddy Bear Picnic day, and Pina Colada Day!  Bet you didn't know about any of those holidays!  I'm just a wealth of information.




Breakfast:
Oatmeal with a scoop of Wild Harvest Organic Peanut Butter, Blueberries, Blackberries + Coffee

Snack:
1 Clementine and some of Tracy's walnuts and raisins (she's good at sharing)

Lunch:
Turkey+Provolone on Multi-Grain Bread with Honey Dijon Mustard

1 BabyBel Cheese
another small handful of Walnuts

Snack:
1 handful Animal Crackers + 2 tbsp peanut butter (no pic, felt awkward taking one in front of my coworkers...)


Workout:
I ran a short 2 miles after work.  I ran at a 9:46 pace and finished in 19 minutes and 39 seconds.  Not impressive by any means, but I was still sore from Monday's Crossfit Trial (more on that later) that I couldn't go any faster and I didn't want to push myself.  A short and slow run is better than no run!

Dinner:
1 Glass of Sweet Tea
Wacky Mac with sauteed mushrooms, zucchini, and marinara sauce, topped with Parmesan,  very similar to last Tuesday's dinner.  I guess I'm a creature of habit.  I did try to jazz it up by using Wacky Mac instead of regular pasta.  It was fun, I like to eat shapes, especially wheels.

Nothing like a big ole glass of sweet tea in a mason jar with a handle! These are my favorite glasses.

I ended my day with a little bedtime snack.  A bowl of Wild Harvest Cherry Almond Granola topped with the last of the blueberries.

Hope you have a wonderful Wednesday!

Walnut Pesto with Fried Eggplant and Linguini

Tonight was one of those nights were we just threw together some ingredients for dinner and hoped for the best.
I got a bundle of basil from my CSA last week and I knew I wanted to make pesto with it.  I didn't have pine nuts, so I made the pesto with walnuts instead, it was inspired from this recipe.
It was a little tricky to blend the pesto in a blender instead of a food processor but it we got it to work.  :)

I was really excited we finally had a reason to use the mortar and pestle!  Usually it just sits on our counter looking sad and neglected.

Once the pesto was ready, we put it in the fridge while we prepared the rest of the dinner.  We chopped up an eggplant, and then breaded it.  I boiled some water for the Linguini, while CJ prepared the eggplant by frying it in olive oil.

One the eggplant was ready, and the pasta was al dente, we mixed in the pesto, topped it with mozzarella, and baked it for about 10 minutes.

 While it baked, CJ whipped up a little appetizer using the pesto, and some cheese and crackers.

And the dinner turned out great!  This impromptu dinner was a hit.

 Delicious!