The Good Kind of Sore

Last week's workouts:
Sunday: Rest (I might sneak in some easy yoga, shhh!)
Monday: Power Yoga class
Tuesday: Run 2 miles
Wednesday: Rest or easy yoga
Thursday: Run 2 miles
Friday: Jay Johnson Boot Camp: Cardio and Legs Ran 3 miles
Saturday: Run 3 miles Power Yoga: Total Body (Rodney Yee DVD)

It was another week of falling back on Plan B's, but luckily I got all my runs in. I didn't have the energy I was hoping I would have at the beginning of the week but thankfully by the end of the week I felt so much better. My mouth is healing right on schedule and on Thursday at my follow-up appointment, they told me I didn't need to wear the plastic stent anymore and that I could graduate to real food! What a difference real food makes in your energy level!

Since I was all energized on Friday, I decided to go ahead and get my "long" run out of the way so that Saturday I could go to Cardio Muscle on Saturday if I felt up to it. Saturday morning I decided that what my legs really needed was some good stretching. I have had this Rodney Yee DVD (Power Yoga: Total Body) for EVER and it is still one of my favorite workouts. Today my legs are sore from it, but definitely in a good way!

Buster likes to do yoga with me.



Feel free to ignore the jumble of shoes and reusable bags by the door.

*Knock on wood* Work has calmed down a bit and I didn't end up staying late at all last week. I hope the trend continues this week!

This week's plan:

Sunday: Rest
Monday: Power Yoga class
Tuesday: Run 2 miles
Wednesday: Cardio/strength DVD (probably either Total Body Sculpt or Boot Camp, I'll see what I feel like)
Thursday: Run 2 miles
Friday: Easy yoga
Saturday: 4 mile run

A week of Plan B's

Last week's actual workouts:

Sunday: Bike ride or 2 mile run (if I get up early enough and depending on how I feel) Had another bad headache.
Monday: Power Yoga class Ran 2 miles
Tuesday: Run 2 miles Took my rest day, went out to Irving to eat with my grandad.
Wednesday: rest or easy yoga Jay Johnson Boot Camp Cardio
Thursday: Run 2 miles

It was one of those weeks! It felt like everything was working against me to get my workouts in. I always try to have a Plan B in mind and this week I definitely fell back on those. Friday I had oral surgery (yuck) and they gave me strict orders not to work out for 3 days. Today is Sunday and I am really getting restless!

I hope this next week will be better! Surgery went as well as it could have. I still have stitches in my mouth and have to wear a palatal stent which makes it really hard to eat. This definitely affects my energy level! Here is the upcoming week's plans:

Sunday: Rest (I might sneak in some easy yoga, shhh!)
Monday: Power Yoga class
Tuesday: Run 2 miles
Wednesday: Rest or easy yoga
Thursday: Run 2 miles
Friday: Jay Johnson Boot Camp: Cardio and Legs
Saturday: Run 3 miles

Cheese coma

Michael specifically requested macaroni and cheese for dinner this week. He doesn't ask for much, so I obliged.

It's been a while since I've made macaroni and cheese so I had to search for a recipe. I came across this one and decided on it for two reasons: 1) it has a short ingredient list and 2) it includes Gruyere, one of Michael's favorite cheeses.

And a cheese coma ensued.

This was so good and really rich. But I think that you just need to go for it with macaroni and cheese, lowfat is just not the same.

The only thing I would do differently is that I would leave out the additional salt. Gruyere has a salty flavor (even after I cut off the rind) so I don't think it was necessary to add more salt. I also broiled it for a few minutes past the cooking time to make a nice cheesey crust on top.

Yield: Makes 6 to 8 servings


Ingredients
1 pound elbow macaroni
5 tablespoons unsalted butter, plus more for the dish
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
6 cups whole or low-fat milk
1 1/2 cups (6 ounces) grated Cheddar
2 cups (8 ounces) grated Gruyère
1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon cayenne (optional)
Preparation
Heat oven to 350° F.

Cook the macaroni according to the package directions.

Melt the butter in a saucepan over medium heat. Sprinkle the flour over the top. Cook, stirring constantly, for 2 minutes. Still stirring, slowly add the milk. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the sauce has thickened, about 7 minutes. Add the Cheddar, Gruyère, salt, and cayenne (if using) and heat until the cheeses melt.

Drain and rinse the macaroni. Add it to the sauce and toss. Transfer to a buttered casserole. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes.

In Advance: Assemble the macaroni and cheese but do not bake it. Cover and refrigerate for up to 24 hours. Bake as directed, adding 15 to 20 minutes to the cooking time.

Nutritional Information
Calories:581 (42% from fat)
Fat:27g (sat 17g)
Protein:27g
Carbohydrate:57g
Fiber:2g
Cholesterol:86mg
Sodium:651mg

This week's actual workouts:

Sunday: Jay Johnson Boot Camp: Cardio, Legs
Monday: Power yoga class
Tuesday: Run 2 miles
Wednesday: rest
Thursday: Run 2 miles
Friday: easy yoga Nothing
Saturday: Run 2 miles Jay Johnson Boot Camp: Cardio, Legs

Friday night we ended up going to the in-laws for after-work drinks. I have been fighting some sinus congestion all week and Friday afternoon it really hit hard. So Saturday I decided to let myself sleep in a little and once I was up and had some coffee in me I felt well enough to do Jay Johnson OnDemand.

I have always wanted to do some of his real-life boot camps but they are really expensive! I like the workouts I have found OnDemand, though. He has some funny catch phrases. Some of my favorites:
"Hold on to your hat!"
"If you're not living on the edge, you're taking up too much room."
"Treat your body as something other than a clothes hanger."

This week's plan:

Sunday: Bike ride or 2 mile run (if I get up early enough and depending on how I feel)
Monday: Power Yoga class
Tuesday: Run 2 miles
Wednesday: rest or easy yoga
Thursday: Run 2 miles
Friday: Nothing, I'm having oral surgery, yuck.
Saturday: Depends on how I feel after Friday! I really want to go to my favorite Cardio Muscle class but I will have to play it by ear.

Back on the wagon

You know how sometimes things sneak up on you?

After I ran a half marathon in May and it didn't kill me, I decided that I would run another one in December. It felt like I had plenty of time so I have barely run at all this summer. I've been staying active with yoga and Cardio Muscle classes at the Y. But I've also been doing bicep curls with this:



Mmmm...nothing better than a cold beer on a hot summer day!

So last night (while drinking a beer, heh) I started thinking about the December race and thought I'd check to see when I needed to start training. If I want to do the usual 16-week training, I'd need to start....next week?!

It's been up to 105 here in Dallas, so running has been the last thing on my mind. I think I will be sticking to the treadmill for the early part of training, until the weather cools off.

I want to stick to training better this time than I did the last time. While I was proud of my time for my first half, I want to feel stronger for this one. So I'm going to do a check-in weekly to keep myself accountable. I also want to keep up some strength training so I don't lose the benefits I've gained from that.

Here is this week's workout plan:

Sunday: Jay Johnson Boot Camp: Cardio, Legs
Monday: Power yoga class
Tuesday: Run 2 miles
Wednesday: rest
Thursday: Run 2 miles
Friday: easy yoga
Saturday: Run 2 miles

Here we go!