Sprint 2 the Table

Appetites and Adventures

A Spoonful of Sugarland + Truffles in Alba, Italy

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Being in Alba for the Truffle Festival is a real treat.

Understatement of the year.

Our last day in Alba happened the be the first day of the Truffle Festival (have I mentioned how lucky we were on this trip?!).

 

The city was filled with the smell of truffles, cheese, and chocolate.  See why I nearly pitched a fit whimpered when it was time to go?

I wonder how much $$$ in truffles was in the city that day?  Thousands?  Hundreds of thousands?

We saw the parade, which included flag throwers (like the guy  in Under the Tuscan Sun!).  They were great… but I really loved it when they almost dropped the flag and had to do diving catches:

It’s like something out of a movie… next time I come back I’ll time it better to be there for more of the festival!

I keep saying it, but it’s incredible how much Italy really does look like a postcard or a movie scene.

I wrote previously that I am really struggling to get back into the swing of things workout-wise.  My muscles feel incredibly tight and I’m out of the habit.  A massage is in order!

I am making an effort.  The intensity level isn’t where I’d like it and I’m struggling to run and am in some pain from my knee injury and a foot problem (scary given next week’s race then the Thanksgiving Half)… but half the battle is getting out the door.  That, I have done.

On the injury front, I did do to a therapist who assured me that everything in my knee is intact.  He began Soft Tissue Therapy last week and wants to get another session in before next weekend’s race.  Apparently I have a lot of scar tissue build up due to old injuries (my right knee always seems to be the one I abuse).

Thank god I have a high pain tolerance… he used something like the Graston Technique which HURTS.  He uses a hard little bar to rub hard against the grain of the scar tissue.  This re-introduces trauma, which causes inflammation, which increases the blood flow in the area.  This supposedly helps re-initiate the healing process of the affected soft tissues.

I needed a spoonful of sugar after that doctor visit… so I hit a concert!

Sugarland‘s show Saturday night was amazing, as usual.

Their stage presence and energy are unparalleled.  While I do miss seeing them in small venues with my elbows on the stage, pit seats at Phillips Area are nothing to turn your nose up at!

In other news, I ended the cleanse.  This coming weekend I am relaying 7 miles of the Georgia Marathon and I need more complex carbs.  And if I’m brutally honest… I wanted to go out this weekend.

Therefore, this Standard Process-esque 21-day cleanse became a 14-day cleanse.  I’m happy with that.  I feel more energetic and refreshed after the 2 week meat and wine binge in Italy, which is exactly what I wanted to accomplish.

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I start my leadership development program this morning – so excited!

What are you looking forward to this week?

Have you ever heard of the Graston Technique?

5Ks, Forks, and Knives

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What’s the best way to get back into running?

Register for a 5K.

I was registered before I left for Italy and was nervous about racing one week after returning.  Rightfully so – this was a HARD 3.14 miles.  I haven’t been running because my knee is iffy and the top of my foot has started hurting.  I’m also just out of the habit.

Sunday at noon I laced up and headed to the park for the AIDS Walk and 5K.  It was a 1p start, but they were having some sort of issues and we didn’t start  until after 1:15p.  Did I mention that it hit 80 degrees yesterday?

We started uphill in the heat.  I was sunburned from the long wait (sunscreen is smart, even if it is October).  Official times aren’t posted yet but I didn’t PR.  I crossed the line at 24:39… so I’m thinking my official time is around 24:30.

That’s not a terrible time.  What is terrible is how hard it was for me to get that time… and the fact that I’m supposed to run 7 miles of a Marathon relay in 2 weeks, followed by a Half on Thanksgiving.  Time to end vacation mode and get  little more disciplined about running!

Post-run I participated in the AIDS Walk portion of the event.  It was really neat to see so many people come together for a great cause.

Adjusting to the cleanse this time has been much easier this time!  When I did it last year, I was tired and had a headache for the first few days.  This year I’m not missing meat at all and am enjoying the challenge of eating vegan on the cleanse.  The hardest part was not being about to enjoy a beer in the sunshine this weekend! 🙂

Saturday night, over-whelmed by disappointing football outcomes, I watched Forks Over Knives.  It definitely has me thinking.  The health benefits of a plant-based diet are undeniable.

While I’m not sure I could go the rest of my life without any animal products, I am going to make more of an effort to limit my intake.  On day 11 of the cleanse I’m supposed to add a serving of chicken or fish each day; however, I have decided to add tofu and tempeh instead.

Eating clean does make a difference.  I feel much better today than I did the last day in Italy after our shared 2 kilos of beef (not to mention the gelato, wine, etc.)!

Don’t get me wrong – I don’t regret it (that steak was incredible).  The trip was amazing and I love delicious food.  That isn’t something I can sustain.

Over the past 10 days my plant-based diet I have been able to keep my energy up while working an insane number of hours, traveling all week, and not getting as much sleep as I should have.  Cheers to plants.

Like I said, I am really struggling to get back into the swing of things workout-wise.  My muscles feel incredibly tight and I’m out of the habit.  A massage is in order!  I need to get back to writing out my weekly workout plan.  Having it in writing makes a big difference for me.

I am making an effort.  The intensity level isn’t where I’d like it and I’m struggling to run… but half the battle is getting out the door.  That, I have done.

Workout Recap (10/10-10/16)

  • Monday – 100 push-ups
  • Tuesday – P90X Ab Ripper X
  • Wednesday – Bike-Elliptical-Treadmill 30 min intervals, Legs, 100 push-ups
  • Thursday – Tris/Chest, 6 min plank sequence
  • Friday – 30 mins elliptical, 10 mins Bike, 100 push-ups
  • Saturday – P90X Kempo, Ab Ripper X, 100 push-ups
  • Sunday – 5K AIDS Run, 5K AIDS Walk, Yoga for Runners

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Italy recap again tomorrow!  And a recipe – I made some tastiness this weekend. 🙂

Have you seen Forks over Knives?  What did you think?

What was the best part about your weekend?

Fall Workout Must Haves

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Important announcement: I’m moving to Italy.

Maybe not… but I can dream!  We are on a plane back to the U.S. right now.  It’s been a crazy, amazingly fun trip and I cannot wait to share it with you all!

Source: blog.delta.com

Heather @ Girly Ever After is today’s special guest.  The Atlanta bloggers have really come through for me!  She is a recent addition to our “blogger get-together” crew.  Very cool fact: she is training to be an Esthetician!  I have especially appreciated all of her helpful skin care tips (my “back-acne” = cured!) as I’ve gotten to know her/read her blog.

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Hey! I’m Heather from Girly Ever After.

When Laura asked me to do a guest post for her while she’s in Italy I was more than excited!  I read her blog daily so I can’t wait to hear all about her trip.  I plan on living vicariously through her while holding down the fort in Atlanta.

The beginning of Fall tends to be slightly awkward when trying to figure out what to wear when you’re thinking of working out.  A lot of people skip the treadmill for great outdoor runs in the crisp Autumn air, but what do you wear with the unpredictable weather?  It’s chilly when you start out but will get warm the longer you run.  It may be a bit windy and overcast is usually a big issue too.

With so many factors to think about I thought I’d give a few of my “Fall workout must haves” to help you transition your workout gear for the season.

 

Wind Jacket
Lightweight jackets with very little lining are perfect for those days that are too chilly for just a t- shirt and keep you warm. A wind jacket is great water protection too for those rainy days. A wind jacket is better than a cotton long sleeve shirt because of the breathable material that will keep you from getting hot during your workout.


Reflective Gear

This is great to have year round in general, but especially in the months where days are getting shorter. Though we haven’t officially hit the time change it seems that Fall brings darker mornings, overcast days, and lots of black workout gear. If you’re like me the majority of your cool weather gear is black or a dark color. Running in the dark with dark clothes is a disaster waiting to happen so it’s best to wear some sort of reflective gear. I know the first thing that comes to mind is a cross guard vest, but that’s not what I’m talking about. There are tons of great and lightweight items you can wear that don’t have to be clothing. Removable arm bands, reflective straps, headlamps, etc. Each one is great for an early morning and even just to be safe during the day.

 

Warm Socks

A lot of times socks are an after thought when they’re actually really important. They can make or break a great workout since they are the only things between you and your shoes. If your socks aren’t comfortable, the right size, or the wrong fabric it can cause distractions and be really uncomfortable which leads to an unproductive run. The best socks to get in the cooler temps are those with synthetic fabrics. These help to wick away moisture keeping your feet warmer. Cotton socks keep your feet cold if they get wet from sweat or rainy weather and can create blistering.

 

All workout attire is, of course, based on preference of the person, but when you’re comfortable it makes for a more enjoyable time.

 

Happy outdoor exercising!

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 I love that Heather wrote about this – I am NOT an expert. 🙂

Do you have any cooler-weather workout tips to share?

What is your favorite “workout” season?

 

Remembering Your Passion

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I can’t believe we are on our last leg!  Today we are in the Tuscan region and are headed to a wine tour in Montepulciano.  Vino Nobile is this area’s best known wine.  The guide is the same on we had yesterday for a Brunello di Montacino tour.  If the tour is anything like that one, it should be an amazing day.  We ended up “kidnapping” the girlfriend of one of the winemakers and everyone shared a magnum bottle of some amazing vino.  Only in Siena…
You Twlight fans may recognize this town… it was used as the setting for Volterra in New Moon.  (Yes, I had to Google that.)
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I am lucky to have Carol @ Lucky Zucca as my guest.  Carols is one of the newer (to me) Atlanta bloggers and I have loved getting to know her through our last couple of meet ups and email exchanges.  We ever had the opportunity to run a race together already!  Carol has the best outlook on life of anyone I know.  Just reading her posts will put you in a better mood!
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Hey there, Sprint 2 the Table Readers!  I am too excited to have the chance to guest post for Laura while she is in Italy.  I’m so jealous!  I spent a year living there while I obtained my M.A. degree, and I haven’t had the chance to go back yet (it has been 2 & 1/2 years!).

Editor's note: I am eating LOTS of this for you all.

Anyways, us being super jealous of Laura unfortunately isn’t going to get us stowed away in her luggage, so moving on.
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My name is Carol and I blog over at Lucky Zucca.  My blog started out as a happiness journal and concentrated on all the things that made me happy each day.  Anything from a delicious breakfast to a good workout to chats with friends to more serious topics like how to overcome bad attitudes can show up over there.  The main theme is simply to be happy and thankful for what we’ve got, even when things seem all wrong.  In my opinion, finding little things to be joyful about is such a better way to live your life than concentrating on the bad.
I hope that anyone that visits my blog is inspired to find those things in their life that make them happy, even when times seem grim.  I’ve grown and matured with my blog, and it actually is what helped me get through a difficult time in my life.  I was struggling with who I was as a person, and through blogging, I reconnected with the things that make me who I am.  I started reading again, began crafting more, started cooking and baking more often, hosting dinner parties for my friends, and exercising more consistently.  Many things I had somehow lost touch with quickly came back to me when I started thinking about what made me happiest.
So, how can you do that?  How can you get back in touch with your passions?  I think the first step is to take a few moments, either at the beginning or the end of each day and think on the things that recently made you happy.  Things you found joy in.  Did you love that walk you took with your friend outside?  Did you enjoy relaxing and reading a new book?  Maybe group sports are your thing, maybe it is a favorite TV show.  Do you find cooking therapeutic or daunting?  Are you really interested in different types of beers?  (Editor’s note: she knows me too well already…)
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Figure out what makes you happy, relaxed, and stress-free, and concentrate on those things.  Look for things you’ve enjoyed for all your life (or, if it’s the beer thing, all of your adult life :D).  Make time for those things and be sure to live in the moment and enjoy them while you’re doing them.
I was struggling with making time for everyone else and not making time for myself.  When I did have time to myself, I abused it by lazing around, watching mindless television I didn’t enjoy, and essentially wasting my life away.  I thought I was fulfilled because of the people that surrounded me, instead I was void because I was ignoring my own passions.  Making time for ourselves is one of the best ways we can invest our time.

Love yourself!

Though I still post about those things that make me the happiest, I also sometimes post about how we can find happiness in our lives.  My blog has become a project of self-actualization, and a journey that I hope you all will join me on!  As I’ve become more self-actualized myself, I’ve realized that sharing how I got from where I was (bored, un-invested, and not passionate about most things) to where I am now (excited again, re-invested, and passionate about many things) could potentially help someone else.  So, I try to share my thought processes, things I do to get over the speed bumps we all encounter, and spread a positive attitude.
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My passions are being outdoors, adventure (hiking, biking, skydiving, bungee jumping, roller coasters, etc.), exercise, cooking and baking, reading, crafts, dinner parties with my friends, travel, animals and pushing myself to succeed.  I’ve connected so well with Laura because she is passionate about many of the same things – namely food, exercise, and pushing herself for success.  I believe if you look at the happiest people in the world, you will find that they respect themselves, respect their bodies, and engage in their passions.  Reading Laura’s blog has reinforced to me the theme that we can do anything we put our minds to.  Her exercise success, cooking successes, and overall positive attitude are inspiring and I admire these things about her the most!
Lucky Zucca is a little different from Sprint2theTable, (mainly that Laura is much better at exercise than I and much more experienced in the kitchen! 😉 – Editor’s note: I think you rock, Carol!) but we embrace the same ideals: a positive outlook and pushing yourself to become successful.  Dedicating your life to your loves and passions.
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Over at Lucky Zucca, I love to do book reviews, crafting how-to’s, share recipes, document great workouts, and talk about fun activities my friends and I engage in.  If any of that interests you, I’d love for you to stop by and leave a comment so we can discuss the things that make you happy!

It's a real party over there!

Thanks for taking the time to read my guest post, and I hope to see you around the blog world soon! And a special thanks to Laura for such an amazing opportunity!
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I wish Carol would call me every morning for a dose of happiness.
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Your turn – what makes you happy?  
(My answer is far to obvious tight now… cheers!)

A Few of My Favorite Things

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Morning everyone!  Today we are still in the Piedmont region.  Have you ever seen a pomegranate tree before?  This is right outside our Bed & Breakfast.  Oddly, they appear to use them more to decor than for eating.
Lee from In My Tummy is today’s guest-poster.  She’s another Atlanta blogger, and one of the first blogs I started reading.  The Atlanta crew is pretty good about meeting up, and Lee is always game for running a race!
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If you haven’t already, check out her blog.  She tells some hilarious stories and her journey into photography has been awesome to watch!
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Hey Sprint 2 the Table Readers.  My name is Lee and I blog at inmytummy.com.  Like Laura, I live Atlanta and have had the pleasure of meeting her about five or six times.  We’ve run two races together and are participating in a marathon relay in October.  So, with running in mind, I thought I’d give you a list of my favorite running gear.

 

I wasn’t always a runner.I started 6 years ago when I randomly decided to train for a half-marathon with my father.  Fast forward to 2011 where I’m currently training for my 9th half.  In the past six years, I’ve definitely found certain things that I cannot imagine running without and I thought I’d share them with you.
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First up, we have the RoadID shoe pouch. Not only does this have the phone numbers of my husband, mom and dad in case something should happen to me while I’m running, but it also has a handy-dandy pouch that is great for carrying keys, money or even a credit card.  A lot of people ask me if this gets in the way and the answer is no. I can tie my shoes just fine with it and I actually never take it off until I get new shoes.

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Next we have the Spibelt.  This is great if you want to carry something that won’t fit in the shoe pouch, like a phone.  I don’t always run with my phone, but when I’m running alone, especially if I’m not near my house, I do.  The Spibelt looks small but it can fit a phone (I have an iphone) just fine.  It’s great because it doesn’t bounce or ride up.  I’ve usually forget that I’m even wearing it.  (I tend to wear it under my shirt since fanny packs aren’t exactly in fashion right now.  I guess that could change though.)

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You have to drink water when you run long distances and I prefer to drink mine out of myNathan Hand-held water bottle.  It can be a bit awkward to run with a water bottle but this one is really comfortable and has an adjustable strap that you can tighten.  It also has a pocket.  Apparently, I really like to store things when I run.  I’ve heard that running with a water bottle in just one hand makes you run off-kilter, but it doesn’t seem to bother me.  At least not right now..

If I’m running more than 7 miles, I will fuel halfway during the run.  7 miles is just sort of an arbitrary number that I picked once, but it seems to work.  Gu is my fuel of choice. I really only eat the chocolate one.  It tastes like cake frosting.  Honest. I’ve tried some of the fruit flavors before and hated them.  Chocolate Outrage is where it’s at.  What I like best about Gu is that you don’t have to chew it.  I tend to choke when I’m trying to eat some sort of chew while I run.  It’s not pretty.

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And my final tool is how I figure out my runs.  I know that a lot of people use mapmyrun.com which is great, but I actually use gmap-pedometer.com.  It’s pretty bare-bones, letting you plot your routes using google maps, but I like the simplicity and it works for me.

 

So those are some of my favorite things.  Come visit me at inmytummy.com!

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Lee is a much smarter runner than I am – I defintiely needed these tips!
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What are some of your running “must-haves?”
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What’s your favorite long run fuel?  I usually bring a date… as in the fruit…
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Reformed Cardio Junkie

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Today I am in Alba in the Piedmont region.  This region produces my second and third favorite wines – Barbaresco and Nebbiolo.  Oh, and did I mention it’s truffle season here?!

Claire is so sweet to say she gets recipe inspiration from me… I get so much from HER!  She has a knack for coming up with dishes that are healthy while still feeling/tasting decadent.  Check out her Plum Apple Crisp, for instance.  I can’t wait to make it!

She is also recently got married and was a stunning bride! 🙂

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Hello Sprint 2 the Table readers!

My name is Claire and I blog over at Live and Love to Eat.  I’m a full time dietitian, but you might not know that with how much I love to bake and dine at different restaurants!  Laura’s blog is my go-to site for good recipes and workout motivation – who wouldn’t want her biceps?  I’m honored to be guest posting while she is enjoying herself overseas.

 

I used to be a cardio junkie, but I want to share my story about how I learned to love changing up my work out routine.

 

I was never a “runner” – at least not the type of runner who loved the treadmill, lived for a good 10-mile jog, or looked forward to lacing up their sneakers.  I started running on the treadmill during college purely for the calorie burn – I knew I was eating too much unhealthy food as part of my new life style, and wanted to avoid that “freshman 15.”  I never struggled with my weight but knew I could be a few pounds lighter and running in my dorm’s gym seemed to be the easiest way to burn calories.

Once I started running a few times a week, I noticed that it also helped to manage my stress.  I finally experienced the “runners high” that I’d heard my more fit friends talk about, even though I never did more than 2 miles at a time.  When I would come home for the summer I didn’t run very often, and later  found that the elliptical was an “easier” workout, so I did that the majority of the time my junior year.  I took a one credit personal fitness class that taught me a basic strength training routine using the Nautilus equipment, and I fell into a workout rut that didn’t challenge me very much.

 

By the time I was a senior, I was dating a guy who was really in to running – he started it for stress relief as well, but got addicted really quickly. We signed up for the Pittsburgh Great Race – a fantastic 5/10K combination course.  My first 5K was a great experience – I loved the atmosphere, the adrenaline, and the challenge of beating a time that you set in your head (again, not impressive enough to share) – and it made me want to do more races.  I started training for the Pittsburgh Half Marathon, but got a stress fracture from upping my distance too quickly and fell off the running wagon again.

During graduate school and my dietetic internship, I joined a local gym for the first time since I was no longer living on campus.  I fell in love with spin classes, which easily took the place of running as my favorite calorie burning option.  As time passed, my younger brother also started to run regularly – and long distances – so I signed us up for a 5K the day before his birthday in April.  The race was on a chilly morning, and I don’t think I spent enough time warming up – and I got injured (after getting my 5K PR – the back of the photo with the gloves on).

 

Long story short, I tore my perioneal tendon (graphic photos, sorry), had to wear a boot for 3 months, and my physical therapist told me that any distance running in the future would cause a flare up of tendonitis or possible re-injury.  I was months away from my wedding and petrified that I wouldn’t be able to exercise at all – which I needed to maintain my weight to feel comfortable in my wedding dress and to manage the incredible stress that planning a wedding can bring.

I owned Jillian Michaels’ 30 day Shred, which I used for quick strength training and toning at home, but wasn’t even able to do that in the walking boot.  For weeks, all I could do was upper body and ab exercises – on demand workouts and exercisetv.tv became great resources! After the boot came off I was still in a lot of pain, and started looking in to other options.  Spin class was too painful (lots of pressure on the ankle joint) and running was out of the question.  I’d read other blogs where people raved over Bikram / Hot Yoga, so I tried hot yoga and really loved it (even though I was nervous to try it at first).  I also experimented with Pilates with kettle bells, as well as at home strength training with hand weights.

 

I had a strapless wedding dress, so I really concentrated on toning my arms – and loved the way I looked and felt!  It’s great to know that I have a healthier body composition (in terms of muscle to fat ratio) even if the weight on the scale doesn’t change much.  I love feeling powerful and strong, and even appreciate the soreness of a great workout the next day.  And I felt beautiful in my wedding dress.

 

I’m still nowhere close to Laura’s figure ( 😉 ) and not able to run (I tried to make it a block while walking my dog and it was too painful right off the bat), but the injury was a blessing in disguise – I now enjoy strength training several times a week, have tried many new work outs, classes, and DVDs, and feel like my fitness routine is much more well rounded as a whole.  I’m not running marathons or triathlons, but I can appreciate working out for more than the calorie burn, and feel healthier overall.

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As much as I love a good run, weights are my favorite!

Do you make an effort to balance cardio with strength training?

What move have you found to deliver the best results?

 

Getting Started with Strength Training

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Good Morning!  Today I am in the Friuli region of Italy – near the Austrian and  Solvenian border.  It’s most famous for its white wines, such as Pinot Grigio.

Tina from Faith Fitness Fun is my second guest blogger.  Tina is very special to me… she was the first person (other than family/friends) to comment on my blog!  I was so excited I think I squealed.

Tina’s blog is one of my favorites because she is one of the genuine bloggers out there.  Whether she’s sharing a dish or product or the rockstar way she shed baby weight (seriously – this woman could run circles around me), you can believe she’s showing her true self.

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Hello there, Sprint 2 The Table readers! My name is Tina and I’m the gal typing up all sorts of randomness – from super personal topics (binge eating struggles) to silly stories (stuffing my bra) – over at the blog Faith Fitness Fun.

 

Eight years ago I fell in love with fitness – strength training playing a vital role in that love. Eight years ago I picked up my first weight and immediately felt empowered. I started to see changes in my body that amazed me. I increased my physical capabilities. I could turn to weights as an outlet when dealing with my past struggles of depression and binge eating.

Eight years ago I started strength training and I haven’t stopped since. Instead, I have competed in a fitness competition and frequented the gym floor even while 9 months pregnant. Despite a newfound passion for running, I remain determined in my strength workouts as I make progress in my Body After Baby goals. Now, I hope you’ll join me as I share my personal journey into strength training, including ways you can get started too. Thanks for reading!

I Found A Comfortable Place to Get Acquainted with Weights
Although I feel comfortable now at my gym, I used to not have such confidence. In fact, I likely would have never started with strength training if not for beginning in the comfort of my own home. Thanks to the old FitTV programs, I had the chance to try out a few workouts such as The Firm and Cathe Friedrich. Cathe’s workouts quickly became my favorites and I began building a library of her workout DVDs. Side note: You can imagine my excitement to meet her at Fitbloggin’ after years of training “with” her.

 

Over the course of a year, I learned various weight training moves from her workouts and built up a base in my strength training. Eventually, when I joined a gym, I continued to get more comfortable with strength workouts by attending group classes, such as Body Pump.Group classes and workout DVDs can be a great starting point to gain confidence with weights at your own pace. I also highly suggest utilizing the free introductory personal training offer at most gyms to receive a quick run through on the use of equipment and workout safety.

I Did Some Research
When I get into something, I go full out! The more I learned about weight training, the more I wanted to keep learning. It started with figuring out moves in my DVDs, then grew to subscribing to Oxygen magazine, ordering the e-book Burn The Fat Feed The Muscle, and pouring myself into resources such as The New Rules of Lifting For Women. I began feeling excited to branch out from the group classes and try some of the ideas in these resources for my own.

 

Following a pre-set program, like you can find in The New Rules of Lifting For Women, provided a great way to break in to doing my own thing at the gym. From there I continued to research and learn ways to set up my own strength training plans, turning to things like the Women’s Health Big Book of Exercises for ideas.

I Started Basic
So many varieties of exercises exist. Before breaking out the Bosu balls, sliding discs, and other fitness tools – I stuck with the basics. Pretty much every body part is trained with a few standard motions. For back exercises, there are rows and pulling motions. For chest exercises, there are pressing motions and fly motions. For biceps, curls. For shoulders, raises. You get the idea. I learned the standard moves for each body part and perfected those before mixing up my workouts and adding a new challenge.

 

I also began using machines for most exercises until I learned the movement. It helped guide my motion as I gained strength. Then, I progressed to barbells and dumbbells. I would also always start light and slowly add more weight once I knew I could handle each move safely. I didn’t want to end up with an injury!

I Began Adding More Variety and Gained Ideas From Others
Finally, after taking gradual steps into strength training, I hoped to continue making progress and push my training to higher levels. I wanted more challenges and started implementing new training techniques. I will search out new things to try – like TRX bands and kettle bells. Now, I look to others for inspiration and have a solid enough foundation in strength moves that I feel capable implementing them in my training.

In short, strength training provides so many benefits. Don’t let fear hold you back from reaping those rewards. It takes time, but we all have to start somewhere. Find a way to go for it. Then keep learning and you will only get stronger.

I promise you can do it! Feel free to stop by my blog for workout ideas or just another virtual fitness friend.

Tortilla Pizza

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Where do people come up with this stuff?

The search terms that lead my blog crack me up!  *Not that I’m not happy to have new visitors!  I’m just baffled occasionally.*

My Recent Favorites:

  • Rotating deodorants (I do… my body gets immune!)
  • “Love my stylist” short hair cut (go see Karen at Lava)
  • My black coffee and breakfast to go
  • Things that make me go mmm (click here for those)
  • Sweet bikini bellies
  • Pumpkin dumbbells images
  • Herbs that go well with cottage cheese (they all do)
  • PMS salty sweet (I hear you, sister… make these)
  • Schweddy balls (tee hee)

You guys know I’m on an airplane right about now (thank you, wi-fi).  Since the trip has begun, I can officially declare victory over my quest to only use what I have this week.

I haven’t dined out since Sunday – this is no small feat for me!  I’ve probably saved $200 (which I promptly spent on trip stuff).

My fridge is a wasteland of crumbs and stuff that never expires.

Some of the odd creative concoctions I haven’t shared yet:

Use-everything-in-my-fridge pizza(s):

Customize pizzas as you like!  The one above is chronicled at the bottom of this post with instructions.

Tortilla pizzas sound like such a silly thing to eat before getting the “real” thing in Italy.

Working lunch 

Pizza #2 (above) consisted of pressed tofu, sheep’s milk cheese, artichokes, marinara sauce, garlic, thyme, and red pepper flakes.

There was a dinner saute:

Pressed tofu, edamame, jalapeno, garlic, shallot, salsa, and liquid smoke.  Side of sauteed zucchini I’ve been eyeing here on Rufus’ Food and Spirits Blog… it has a twist of something you’d never guess: Peach Schnapps.  I followed the recipe, except I used olive oil instead of butter.  It was awesome.

And my favorite – Overnight Oats in a Jar.  Yep, I even used all the peanut butter.

PB jar with the “dregs” on the bottom, oats, sunflower seed milk (so glad to see this gone!), cinnamon, Biscoff granola, vanilla, and a shake of salt.

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Since I’m gone, the weekly recap is early!  Slacker, I am not.  At least not while in the U.S.

Workout Recap (9/19-9/24)

  • Monday – Biceps/Back, 6 min plank sequence, 100 push-ups
  • Tuesday – 7 miles run, P90X Ab Ripper X, 100 push-ups
  • Wednesday – Kickboxing, 3 mile run, Shoulders
  • Thursday – Tris/Chest (click link for the workout!), Ab Ripper X, 100 push-ups
  • Friday – 5 mile run, 6 min plank sequence, 100 push-ups
  • Saturday – Rest/Travel
  • Sunday – I’ll be biking through Verona 🙂

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Tortilla Pizza

  • 1 tortilla (I used Ezekial)
  • 1/4 C tomato sauce
  • 1 handful fresh spinach
  • 1 T fresh thyme
  • 1 chicken sausage (I’m loving Bilinski’s from Whole Foods!)
  • 1/4 C artichoke hearts
  • 2 T nutritional yeast
  • Red pepper flakes (optional)

Preheat oven to high broil.

Lay tortilla on baking sheet or pizza stone.  Layer ingredients on top of tortilla.

Place in the oven, watching very closely (broil is no joke!).  Cook until just beginning to brown, ~7-8 mins.

***

The next two weeks will be filled with an all-star line up of guest posts!  Please stop by, say hello, and discover some new bloggers.  I’ll also be inserting a little commentary about what Italian region the Wandering Wine-os  are terrorizing touring… and will try to write a few full-length posts as time/wi-fi allows.

What is your favorite pizza base?

Would you have added the schnapps to the zucchini?  I’m glad I did!

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