My Not-So-Athletic Dogs

Today's Workout:  I planned to take today off.  I woke up with lower back pain and figured it would be best.  I ended up taking my dogs for a SLOW 2 mile jog/walk.  We averaged just under 14 min miles and burned about 250 calories.

They were so hot and tired.  I basically had to drag them back to the house.

They are so pitiful and out of shape.  Kind of like me 2 years ago I guess! :)

One thing I don't get is WHY they are so out of shape.

I mean, don't these looks like super active & athletic dogs to you?!?!?!?

 

The life of luxury.

Must be nice!

Spaghetti Squash

Today's workout:  BodyPump

(1 hour, around 500 calories burned)

It's been nice eating healthy the last couple of days.

I've had very healthy and fresh lunches.

I told you yesterday I was going to try out spaghetti squash for dinner.

I wanted to try something different but decided it would be best to stick to a traditional meat sauce in order to even get my husband to try it.

When I served it, he said "Oh, huh....those aren't noodles.  Is this suppose to be like your cauliflower mashed potatoes?".

The verdict:  This is a keeper!

I cooked the spaghetti squash whole at 400 degrees for about 35 minutes (poke holes in it so it doesn't explode).  Then you cut in half lengthwise, scoop out the seeds, get a fork and tear out the squash.  The "noodles" were a little on the crunchy side.  I think another 5-10 minutes in the oven would have been better.

 

Jason said he'd eat it again.  He just said "it's different".  They really didn't taste much.  It was much more filling than I expected it to be as well. 

We will most definitely be having spaghetti squash again!  We will probably still eat whole wheat pasta on occassion...but I'll substitute this often for sure!

Fewer calories and WAY fewer carbs....go ahead, give it a try!

SERVING SIZE: 1 cup (cooked)

TRADITIONAL PASTA
Calories 300
Sodium 183 mg Total Fat 1 g Potassium 0 mg Total Carbs 43 g
Dietary Fiber 3 g Sugars 1 g Protein 8 g Cholesterol 0 mg

WHEAT PASTA
Calories 174
Sodium 4 mg Total Fat 1 g Potassium 62 mg Total Carbs 37 g
Dietary Fiber 6 g Sugars 1 g Protein 7 g Cholesterol 0 mg

SPAGHETTI SQUASH
Calories 42
Sodium 28 mg Total Fat 0 g Potassium 181 mg Total Carbs 10 g Dietary Fiber 2 g Sugars 4 g Protein 1 g Cholesterol 0 mg



Longest Run Yet

Today's Workout:  7.1 treadmill miles

When I turned off my watch after stretching, 1018 calories burned.

Averaged 11 min. miles which is slower than I like, but I know that when I run longer, I have to run slower.  It just makes sense.

I struggled.

I hadn't ran in 1 week (other than 2 miles on the beach), so I was having a tough time in my mind. I hate it when I can't zone out and constantly check my watch or the screen.  It makes for a pretty miserable run.  My goal was 6.5 miles but by the end, I got another burst of energy, FINALLY got in a zone and just kept going.

I love meeting new personal goals!

Now....here's to hoping my legs function properly tomorrow and shin splints stay away!

Food Co-Ops

I recently learned of a local food co-op from a girl at church.  She posted her steals on facebook and I knew I needed in on it!  This was my first week to do it, and I'm so excited about it.  Pickups are on Saturdays, and since we were out of town, she picked mine up for me.  I stopped by her house on our way home from the beach yesterday and I'm so happy I signed up to do it!

All of this....for $15!

($25 if you wanted all organic)



The baskets are approximately 1/2 veggies & 1/2 fruit.  You don't know what you are going to get until you get there, but from the pictures I've seen from prior baskets, it's pretty normal stuff.  It seems like there are always one or two "odd" things, which I'm excited about because it will make me try things I wouldn't ordinarily purchase!

 

This weeks basket included:  potatoes (which I never cook, but guess we will soon), a small watermelon, 2 spaghetti squash (SO excited to try this), plums, apricots, mushrooms, grapes, lettuce & a pineapple.

There are add-ons you can do each week, but since it was my first week, I just went with the plain basket.  I might do more this next week.  Ashley gifted me a loaf of bread that is pretty tasty!

Have you ever participated in a co-op?  Love it?  Not for you?

I'm going to give it a try for at least a few weeks and see how it goes.  It's going to force me to eat more fresh foods, which is good for us all!

Seriously....one shouldn't be this excited about fruits/veggies, but I can't wait to see what is in store for next week's basket!

So Long Vacation & Sweets

I've been at the beach since last Tuesday.  Vacations are great, but for a homebody like me, it's always nice to be back in the comfort of my own home! 

Vacation & Food

We went with my husband's family and stayed at a beach house, which means we were able to avoid eating out the entire time.   When it comes to meals, I really didn't eat that bad.  I at a lot of almond butter sandwiches for breakfast and lunches, even when others were eating cinnamon rolls and sausage and pulled pork sandwiches.

What I learned during this trip is that my mindset regarding food really has changed.  I don't even want that stuff anymore....not every day anyway.  Don't get me wrong...I don't eat 100% healthy 100% of the time (I will always devour Mexican food and have occassional treats), but the thought of cinammon rolls for breakfast isn't appealing AT ALL. Two years ago I wouldn't have thought twice about it....and two days ago, I didn't even think about it at all.  I didn't even have an internal battle about "eat it or don't eat it".  I just didn't even want it.  It was that way with a lot of meals.  I just naturally opted for something healthier without thinking about it.

One place where I wasn't strong at all was desserts....brownies, cookies, ice cream...it was all there, and I ate it pretty much after every meal.  I'm pretty sure sugar has a very close relation to crack.  Once you get a taste, it's so hard to give it up.  I'm so beyond ready to cleanse myself of that sweet addiction this week!  By Friday, my stomach really began to hurt constantly.  My body doesn't like that much junk food anymore.  And I'm SO happy about that.  It gives me more hope that I've made a permanent change for the better.

Vacation & Exercise

We got there Tuesday evening, so I knew I wouldn't want to get up and run Wednesday.  My plan was to run Thursday and Saturday.  I did get up and run on the beach Thursday.  My 2 miles felt like 4...great for the legs!  Then I did lunges, squats & pushups.  My plans for Saturday fell thru.  It rained nearly all day, and by the time it cleared, we decided to take my daughter down to the beach.  I did get a lot of upper body work building sandcastles while we were there.  Does that count at all as a workout?!?!?!

I avoided the scale today.  I'm going to give my body a few days to adjust before I get too depressed. :)

I plan to go to the gym and run this afternoon.  We're having spaghetti for dinner with spaghetti squash as our "noodles".  I'm so excited to try it (and I am not a fan of spaghetti)! 

Have you ever used spaghetti squash as a noodle replacement? 

I hear it's pretty good!  I'll let you know how it goes!

Nutella - a health food?

I *heart* nut butters.

I pretty much eat almond butter or peanut butter on a daily basis.  A lot of days, I have both, but there is one phenomenon I will never understand....and maybe you know something I don't, and if so, please share!

NUTELLA.

I have only had it one time (at a hotel breakfast) and knew instantly it would be too addictive to ever purchase and keep in my home. 

Shortly after consuming it a couple of years ago, I found it on the grocery store shelf and decided to take a look at the label.  Just maybe I could take it home with me!  Afterall, it's pretty much advertised as a health food, right?

After reading this label, I returned the jar to the shelf and have never picked up another one.

Click to enlarge

thanks random internet picture as I don't own a jar to take my own pic!

Here are my thoughts....my non-expert opinion:

200 cals per serving - ok, that's equivalent to peanut butter

18% saturated fat is kind of high (my almond butter only has 5% and PB 12%)

Protein - little low but I can get protein other places

Sugars:  21g.  WHAT?  My rule of thumb is to avoid anything with more than 7-8g of sugar per serving..usually less (unless I'm just outright eating a cookie or cake or something).

Ok, then I moved on to the ingredient list.

The #1 ingredient in this "nut butter" is NOT nuts.  It's SUGAR!  The first ingredient is sugar folks (which means it's the main ingredient.  Just in case you are new to label reading, the ingredients are listed in order from what is used the most to least....you don't want to see sugar as #1 unless you are eating a lollipop or a sugar cube).

#2 ingredient:  Modified palm oil.  I'm not positive here, but I don't think we're suppose to eat much "modified" anything....much less modified oil.  That just sounds weird.

#3 ingredient - finally, the nut appears.

Just to give you a comparrison:  the almond butter I eat has ONE ingredient:  Almonds.

The peanut butter I eat has TWO ingredients:  Peanuts.  Less than 1% salt.

It honestly baffles me how they can portray Nutella as a health food.

Don't get me wrong, the stuff tastes good!  But no wonder...it's chocolate sugar!

If you must eat it, then I think this should be an indulgence....something to have on special occassions, but not something that should be part of a regular diet.  I actually had someone tell me one day how they have tricked their kids at into having nutella sandwiches for breakfast and how they don't know that they're having something healthy.   I smiled and kept my mouth shut.  It wasn't someone I was very close to, so I'm not going to bust their bubble.....but man, I wish people would educate themselves a little more!

I purchased chocolate almond butter HOPING it would taste like Nutella.  It didn't.  Of course, I think it only had 9g of sugar that came from evaporated cane juice, but hey, it wasn't bad.  My daughter liked it, but I'm not likely to purchase again.

So.......if you know something I don't, feel free to dispute any of this!  I'd love to hear it....cause I WANT to eat this stuff....I just can't bring myself to do it!

Dreadful Shins....still...

Today's Workout:
2 miles on the treadmill (20 min) and BodyPump (1 hour)

So...I told you I bought new shoes about a week ago because my shins had suddenly started hurting.  Well, my shins aren't really any better.  Maybe I just need to adjust to the new shoes?  Or maybe it's natural since I'm running slightly more than normal?

Lately, as I've been running, I've been focusing on form....making sure I'm not heel striking and that my hips are in alignment and all that jazz.  Maybe my form was better before I actually started trying to have good form?!?! 

Really, I'm just at a loss.

I guess the good thing is that after about mile 1-2, my shins get better, but I'll probably regret fighting thru it when they are super sore tomorrow :(

Any ideas?  Anyone?!