Thankful Thursday: Gear & Goodies!

1. Having this week off. It couldn't have come at a better time. I'm LOVING waking up sans-alarm and enjoying my morning tea while watching the Today show.  And being able to run in the daylight.  Amazing.

2.  New running socks. 

Thanks, Secret Santa!

3. No Pudge Fudge Brownies. 2 Tbsp brownie mix with 1 Tbsp yogurt (I prefer Stonyfield Fat-Free French Vanilla), microwave for 1 min. DONE! Single serve, fat-free 120 calorie chocolate heaven.

4. Woolies. They keep my noggin warm, cover my messy hair & come in the cutest styles! While I like most any winter hat, I have an obsession with Curly Hair Conspiracy, made with love by my dear friend Lauren.  :)

5. My Moving Comfort sports bra.  A bad bra will very quickly ruin any run, so this quality sports bra is a staple for me.  It holds everything in, has adjustable straps & is super comfortable.  It's a little pricier than some sports bras, but trust me-it's totally worth every penny!

I'm also thankful for you readers, and encourage you to take a minute and think about what you're thankful for today! Cheers!

Goals for 2012

With only 3 days left in 2011, I'm starting to focus on what's coming up in 2012.  2011 has been an incredible year for me, and despite some craziness, I am truly happy in my life and excited about all that is to come.  So I'm setting myself up for another year of happiness & health with these goals to keep me on track:


1. Set a new 5K PR.  Aiming for under 28:30.
2. Run my first half marathon.  (This should be accomplished on March 24, 2012!)
3. FINALLY take a spinning class. Or a bunch of them really...
4. Complete another FUN run! (RunAmuck, ToughMudder, Great Urban Race, etc).
5. Run a race for charity.  Because of my love for MJF, I'm leaning toward TeamFox, but there are SO many deserving teams out there!

And my one very important, non-fitness-related goal:

1. Graduate from my internship & GET A JOB! :)

Let's do this, 2012! 

A Healthy, Happy Holiday!

Here's hoping you all had a healthy & happy holiday weekend!  I know I sure did! 

Dad and I started our weekend off right with a nice 5-mile run along the Rail Trail in Poughkeepsie on Christmas Eve.  Dad ran in these super fun Christmas socks!

An elf...? Or just Dad?

This was followed by an entire day of eating. And the Giants/Jets game, of course.  We went out to both breakfast and dinner on Christmas Eve.  I did my best to make healthy choices with an egg white omelette, fruit & a corn muffin at breakfast.  Dinner was tough at an Italian restaurant, but I'll consider my giant pasta dish carb-loading for the Christmas day run! :)

Christmas Day started out with another run...about 4 miles this time!  Then it was time for more food & a few gifts!  Although Rocky probably deserved coal this year, Santa left him some nice toys in his stocking!

Although we "cancel" Christmas, we do still draw one name for a Secret Santa gift! Thanks to my Not-So-Secret Santa, I now have some awesome new running socks, gloves & hats! Couldn't ask for anything better than that! :)

My SIL went a little overboard with the amount of food, but it was all absolutely delicious.  I think I am still full from the veggie lasagna, mashed potatoes, pierogies, vegetable casserole, shrimp, beef tenderloin & ham.  Well, no meat with feet for me, but it sure looked good!


Linzer tarts? Don't mind if I do!

And it wouldn't be Christmas without COOKIES! Linzer tarts, gingerbread men, rum balls...oh my!  I think my party-tummy is just resolving itself now!

Overall, my holiday weekend was filled with all of the best things: family, a little running and a lot of FOOD!!!

Thankful Thursday: Food & Free Stuff!

 Happy Thursday! Here are the things I'm thankful for this week:

1. Running in SHORTS in December. Again. While I'm certain the ridiculously warm weather can't be good in the long-term, I'm thankful for being able to still run comfortably!

Shorts. Thumbholes. Thumbs Up!

2. Cookies. Especially these super easy chocolate peanut butter oatmeal drop cookies!  Good for fueling my run...right? No? Whatever..still yummy.



super unhealthy. and super delicious.



3. My incredibly lazy, yet always entertaining dog.  Bulldogs have a ton of personality & health issues that are a big ole pain in the butt.  The most frustrating thing being their stubbornness.  However, he cracks me up on a daily basis.  I can't handle how he falls asleep standing up.  Or sleeps in completely random (and undoubtedly uncomfortable) positions.  He runs into things all the time and gets visibly embarrassed. I'm so thankful for his ridiculousness!



Can't possssssibly keep his eyes open...

  

4. Justin's Nut Butter. Specifically, the Maple Almond Butter. Hands down the best nut butter I've ever had. 

5. Free Stuff.  And fabulous friends who like sharing free stuff with me. One fabulous friend shared her free tickets to the Radio City Christmas Spectacular last weekend.  I've never been, so I was thrilled! As VIP attendees, we enjoyed a little pre-show party, got our picture taken with the fat man, and received NYC Rockette Christmas ornaments!

Thanks, Rose! <3

The show was incredible!  Not only did it put me in the Christmas spirit, but it really tempted me to dig out me tap & pointe shoes too! Ha...I could totally be a Rockette...

On a serious note, I highly recommend seeing this show if you get the opportunity! I think I smiled like a fool the entire time. Especially during the 3D "tour" of Manhattan on Santa's sleigh! :)



<3 the thumbs up Mr. Claus!





On that note...I wish you all a very Happy & Healthy Holiday!

 Cheers!





Thankful Thursday: A-holes & Creeps!

1. A**holes.  Some people just plain suck.  For example, the desperate a**holes who broke into my parents house and robbed them.  They remind me what type of person I do NOT want to be.  And I am reminded that things are just things.  People are all that matter, and my people are okay.  Also, I don't believe in much, but I do believe in karma. So thanks a lot, a**holes. Enjoy your new TV.

2. Giggling.  You know, that uncontrollable childish laughter?  The kind you absolutely can't stop, no matter how "serious" the sitation?  I love that. 

3. Decent December weather!  It hasn't snowed, the temperatures aren't "booger-freezing" cold, and I'm happily running outdoors without bundling up too much. 

4.  Cat-callers.  Man, are you guys creepy...What exactly goes through your mind as you whistle or holla as I run by all sweaty & looking like I'm in pain?  Maybe if you whistle at me, I'll stop my run, realizing you're the man of my dreams, and come running into your arms?  Not likely.  But thanks for the boost of confidence, however small.  And thanks for encouraging me to pick up my pace, if only to get further the heck away from you!

5. My new Road-ID.  It came in the mail today, and it will definitely make me feel better about running in the dark.  Since I watch a  lot of crime shows, I can never feel too safe!  With the road-ID on my shoe, I can now be easily identified.  Ya know, in case my pepper-spray fails me or I have some freak accident and I'm found unconscious!  (Not that I worry about these things...a lot...)  If you don't know about Road-ID, or don't have one, check them out their website.


Tonight, I'm off to dance the night away at a Christmas party! And tomorrow starts the weekend!

Happy Thursday y'all! :)

23 1/2 hours a day

Can YOU limit your sitting & sleeping to just twenty-three and a half hours a day?!

Seems like a ridiculous question, but it makes a fantastic point.

This is a very quick & cool lecture by Dr. Mike Evans which breaks down the research behind the health benefits of just 30 minutes of physical activity a day.  We can all certainly do that, no matter how busy we may be!

Check it out, and pass it along:

NYRR Jingle Jog 2011 Recap

This Saturday, my SIL and I got decked out in fuzzy Christmas socks, reindeer antlers and jingle bells to run the NYRR Jingle Jog in Prospect Park. The course was originally supposed to be 4 miles, but due to some weird construction, it ended up being a 6K (3.7 miles).  Since we planned to just have a nice fun run, this didn't bother us one bit! 



Dancer & Prancer!

 The weather was absolutely perfect for a nice morning run!  It was in the low 40's and pretty windy, causing the SIL to lose her antlers about 500 yards past the start line!  I didn't time myself or even look at my watch ONCE, which felt absolutely fantastic! We just ran at a comfortable easy pace and ended up with an official time of 35:57 (9:39 pace).  Nothing to brag about, but it was just nice to take part in a fun run with my new sister! :)

With the socks!

As usual, NYRR put together an extremely well organized and fun event.  Each mile was marked and there were more water stations than I think are necessary for a race shorter than 4 miles.  Oh and there were red & green bagels waiting for us at the end! Yum!

Mmm RED & GREEN carbs!

My brother brought the dogs along, so we were greeted at the end by some pooches begging for our bagels! Someone was a sucker and gave in!

The pups wanted in on the red bagel action!

As soon as they're available, I'll post the official Brightroom pics, which I'm sure will be just fabulous of us! Happy Holidays & Happy Running! :)

Thankful Thursday: Presents for Pretty Girls

Good morning.  It's Thursday. It's 9:00 a.m. and I'm on the couch watching Live with Kelly! AKA I'm not interning today.  So you can bet I'm thankful today! 

1.  I'm so very thankful for a 4-day weekend.  I'm not interning today, or tomorrow. WOOHOO!

2. A nice healthy start to my day.  Hot tea, vanilla Chobani with blackberries & granola, and an orange.

yum.

3.  Presents for Pretty Girls.  Yesterday, I received some fantastic gifts in my mailbox.  I guess I can break this into 2 parts:

     a.  The first was several grocery store gift cards from my dear brother & sister-in-law.They must know how I'm struggling to get my fruit & veggie fix on my limited budget.  So I'm thankful for them and they're ridiculously generous gift.

     b.  The second package came from my father...the Adele Live at The Royal Albert Hall album.  This woman is so incredibly talented, absolutely beautiful and even funny.  This is a must-see/have. Love her. And Pops for getting it for me! :)



Thanks, Dad!

4. Rain. What's that saying? Something about if it never rained, you'd never appreciate the sun...?  Well I agree whole-heartedly.  Rain stinks, but it does make you value the good weather days!  And I kind of love running in the rain.  I seem to always feel great when I run on rainy days.  There are less people around, it cools me down, and I generally feel like a badass. 

5. Cancelling Christmas.  As you might have noticed from #2, my family is incredibly giving.  But a few years back, we decided to "cancel Christmas".  My poor mother gets upset everytime I say that, but in truth I think it's the best thing we've ever done.  We no longer have to stress out over money or figuring out what to buy each other, especially since we are lucky enough not to NEED anything.  This is not to say we don't still buy gifts at Christmas time.  It's just now we spend our money on a family who truly needs it.  We "adopt" a family and each choose one person in that family to purchase for.  This year, I have a 7-year old girl and am psyched to get shopping for that kid! Bring on the Barbies and board games!

Now I'm off for a quick run, followed by shopping til I drop! Happy Thankful Thursday! :)

Thankful Thursday-All things Holiday!

1. Having one day left of my food service rotation. Goodbye 4:30 a.m. alarm!

2. My health! My hip still aches when it's cold and/or rainy, but I'm so thankful to be able to run (mostly) pain free!!!

3. Holiday happiness.  We put up our tree last night!  I know some people have been in the Christmas swing for weeks already, but I refuse to start celebrating until now!  It's December 1st-bring on the snow, hot chocolate, candy canes & tinsel!

Our newly decorated tree!

And our decorating helper...

4. My new bed.  (Did I use that one already? Whatever. I'm extra thankful! No back pain all week!)

5. Pears! My favorite fruit is now in season and I'm loving all types-Anjou, Bosc, Bartlett...yum yum! They're low calorie and high in fiber, potassium, vitamin C and vitamin K.  And delish!



What are you thankful for today...?