A Case of the Runs

If all goes according to plan, I will be running 21 miles tomorrow. And if you're anything like me, the first thing that comes to mind on the eve(s) of a (very) long run is.... This Nature's Own Whole Grain bread has a surprisingly good flavor and texture.  I don't know about you, but when it comes to the types of breads that come from most grocery stores, they leave much to be desired both in taste and texture.  This one wasn't too grainy and was soft.  To be honest, I don't eat bread too often anymore, and I don't usually go for normal supermarket shelf ones.  However, for a bread of this genre, it's surprisingly good. Speaking of surprises, "The Ukrainian" decided to celebrate our recent month-i-versary with this single rose that some lady was selling at a recent event we attended.  I always think those things are rip-offs, but admittedly, it was nice and such a plump flower! Anyway... back to bread.  Recently, we had a can of this...

If you've fallen [as I did during this race ... and maybe this one ] Get back up; If you've been disrespected Tell them to shove it Move on [it's their problem; not yours]; If you feel a little ache Keep going [but not too much ]; Caring too much does not heal wounds. But maybe singing will: That {classical} guitar above is mine!  I took that photo before I ever strummed a single note on her.  Yes, her .  I'm calling her Maria (accent on the "i") for now, short for Via Maria [accents on the "i"s] Tocando la Guitarra.  Surely it's normal to name your objects -- I've done that to most of my major possessions, except my car.  I don't make this stuff up, people. Originally, I was planning on buying a guitar on Craigslist .  After some weeks, I finally drove to someone's place to do the exchange, he was a no-show with a turned-off phone.  After over an hour of waiting in decent, but foreign, territory, I got angr...

I am one of those people who would rather check out a book than buy it, at least while I'm reviewing it.  I've been following my budget (a New Years' Resolution  that is finally coming to fruition!), and miscellaneous books just don't fit in it. I was never fond of libraries as a kid.  I think I was traumatized by one once because I had to make copies of the encylopedia for a project, and I didn't have enough money.  I guess times haven't changed much. My library has lots of interesting, more modern books in it -- certainly moreso than when I was a kid.  Vegan cookbooks and even running books are there, and if they aren't, I can easily go online and request them.  Sweet! For example, I recently saw this LL Cool J's Platinum Workout on the shelf.  The first reactions I had were: 1) LL Cool J wrote a book?! 2) LL Cool J is that ripped?! So... I checked it out -- err, the book, that is.  Combining my interests of working out and rapp...

I love pot pie.  But they all have meat and are not very good for you.  But I love it so much that I try to make quick versions that don't work out perfectly.  I even buy boxed ones . This dish is very similar to pot pie, and requires no baking!  This chicken/chickpeas and dumplings recipe came from the Peas and Thank You blog . It comes together fairly easily, too! Aromatics (carrots/celery/onion).  Ignore that arrowroot powder in the background! Other ingredients... that bag of chips in the back was my cooking fuel... =) Unlike last time, I managed to mix the cornstarch OUTSIDE of the pot, which meant no clumping occurred.  Score! While the soup bubbled away, I made the dough/dumplings... sorry about the blurry pic here.  I was definitely in a hurry . All you have to do is drop the dough by spoonfuls, and after 17 minutes (NO opening the pot!), you get this!  (there are those chips again!) This was very flavorful, com...

If you check out my Reviews section, I've written a lot about Larabars , which are primarily made of ground-up nuts and fruit. Well, the newest addition to the wholesome treat is: Chocolate Chip Cherry! I have no idea if I won a contest or just had a sampler sent to me for no reason, but it was a pleasant surprise.  Although Pikachu likes ketchup, he helped me display all these goodies. source And now, onto the bar itself.  I've tried the regular cherry one and find it pretty good, though maybe sour for those who don't like cherry. This, on the other hand, is sweet, and those chocolate chip bits are really great to bite into!  Definitely one of my new favorites and will be yours, too, if you like black forest anything!

  If you're following along, here is the ELEVENTH week of training according to the 4 Months to a 4-Hour Marathon book.  The paces below are specifically for the 4-hour goal .  If anyone would like the paces for 4:15, 4:30, 4:45, or 5:00, I can start posting them alongside my plan if you let me know. I am also posting on DailyMile , but everything (and more!) will be posted here as well.  This "Marathon Training" series  is an experiment for me both in fitness and in blogging, as I am going to go into more detail than in previous training cycles, documented on my Training page. ------ Last Week in Review: Here is the original schedule from last week and my comments/modifications. If I were to be hard on myself, I'd declare that I totally sucked this week .  Monday-Wednesday, I was feeling extremely fatigued for some strange reason, which I don't think had to do with last week's easy (or as "easy" as it can get) 19-miler , sleep, or foo...

This is my bed (look up!). I've been sleeping in it for about six years now.  I bought the bed frame from my old roommate in college, where we shared a small one-bedroom apartment in Westwood, CA among three girls.  It was a solution back then, a way that I could actually fit into a small space. And now, it's a pain in the neck (literally, especially lately). Most people go into their beds for things besides sleeping.  Reading, surfing the net, taking naps, and so forth have no place in this Ikea "bed"/loft of mine, so I truly only use it for sleeping and don't know what it's like anymore to have a "real bed."  Apparently, I'm not important enough to have decent living space that would accommodate a "real bed" (and while I'm at it, I was told the same holds true for my diploma). (Like my sticky glow-in-the-dark stars?  Leftover from childhood.) So I only crawl in there to sleep , as my mom says, like an animal.  My ...

Have you ever used pain patches?  Do they seem to work? When it comes to running-related pain, I try to be careful distinguishing "normal" pain from "potentially long-lasting" pain.  For example, if I'm sore, I never use anything... it's that "good" kind of hurt that takes a while to set apart from "bad" hurt.  "Bad" hurts, for me, include any pain that is sharp and any pain that feels like a tender painful bruise to the touch. The area you see in the picture below is of the latter category. I prefer using patches over creams, mostly because they are less messy.  I find both effective if the pain is going to be receptive things besides rest. I like these SalonPas Pain Relief patches because after a few minutes, the area under the patch feels slightly warm and cooled, at the same time.  Somehow!  These feel soooo good that I wish I could put a bunch all over my body, but I don't think that is safe.  The patches the...

For my sister's baby shower, I basically started my own "cheesecake factory." Now, I don't want to sound arrogant, but I'm just going to state a fact.  Each time I go to a potluck/party and bring these, everyone raves and/or asks me for the recipe.  And I think I've made this cheesecake 10+ times by now and decided to share the recipe with everyone...... now my only social charm is gone, I suppose. I based this off a Kraft recipe and have tweaked it over the years: For ONE cheesecake (bar), 13 x 9" pan 6 tablespoons butter, melted 2 cups graham cracker crumbs <-- I use Russian tea biscuits 2 (8 ounce) packages cream cheese, softened  <-- I use 1 package of neufchatel (1/3 fat) and 1 regular 3/4 cup sugar 2 large eggs 1 teaspoon vanilla 1 (8 ounce) jar blueberry jam (or preserves) <-- I try to go with blackberry if I can 1 cup blueberries <-- Usually use frozen Adapted from: HERE So for this endeavor, I used to crush these m...

 A pain in my @$$.  Heartbreak Ridge Half-Marathon , 9/10/2011  If you're following along, here is the TENTH week of training according to the 4 Months to a 4-Hour Marathon book.  The paces below are specifically for the 4-hour goal .  If anyone would like the paces for 4:15, 4:30, 4:45, or 5:00, I can start posting them alongside my plan if you let me know. I am also posting on DailyMile , but everything (and more!) will be posted here as well.  This "Marathon Training" series  is an experiment for me both in fitness and in blogging, as I am going to go into more detail than in previous training cycles, documented on my Training page. ------ Last Week in Review: Here is the original schedule from last week and my comments/modifications. With 9 weeks completed, I keep trying to remember that I only have TWO killer runs left (21 and 23 miles).  And I believe this also means that I have a month before I start "tapering." I managed to do p...

Bonus post! I have a 19-miler tomorrow, and at times, I feel like all this running business is ruining things I used to enjoy in life -- weekends, sleeping in, going out late, high heels, etc.  When I get daunted by distances, I often wonder why I still "do this to myself." Phil, a fitness enthusiast and writer at Daybreak , volunteered to guest post a few things to remind me why I keep heading out that door each weekend and why I should continue to do so. ------ 5 Ways Running Can Improve Your Life --By Philip J Reed, on behalf of Daybreak and Northern Nevada Medical Center Cardiovascular exercise is an important part of maintaining your health, and running is one way to accomplish that objective. Aside from providing a great opportunity to enjoy the outdoors, here are a few reasons running is beneficial. Blood Pressure, Heart, and Lungs Running helps people control their blood pressure. Because the arteries expand and contract more than normal when a pe...

For a while, I had a fling with French Toast. I'm pretty picky about my French Toast.  It must be crispy on the edges, a little moist in the center, and I must be able to taste egg over the milk. Due to the milk that's in these things, I feel guilty about ordering this dish, and due to its bread base, it's not really a great one to partake in that often. Here is my solution to this "problem": With a little overhead costs, I procured ingredients that would yield me many, many servings of "French Toast" at a fraction of the price and less-than-healthy ingredients (bread, cow's milk, etc.). This version tastes pretty similar to the "real thing" and can be made in a microwave. Ingredients (serves 1): 1/2 cup old-fashioned oats 1/2 Tbsp flax seeds (optional) 1/2 cup of unsweetened almond milk (or 1/4 cup almond milk + 1/4 cup water for a less creamy version) 1/8 tsp maple extract (can use real maple syrup for better flavor, bu...

I was given the opportunity to read Gym-Free and Ripped by Nathan Jendrick.  After this post at The Fitness Dish  about gym ettiquite, I'm glad that I read it! The author, a trainer named Nathan Jendrick, is married to an Olympic swimming champ Megan Jendrick .  I totally know what it's like having a significant other root for me and try to train me, so I find the relationship cute.  The premise of the book is that you don't need to go to a gym to get "ripped" and that exercise and genetics really contribute only 10-20% to what you ultimately look like .  Food is the other 80%.  (Does that mean I look like a muffin , then?) Therefore, the book mostly focuses on strength training, stretching, and a little cardio.  Given that I am training for a marathon , I could not fully adhere to this sort of proportion, but I could see the point behind it. The book is broken up into an explanation of why and how to eat healthfully , the moves , training pla...

This is a review of something I'm really glad I finally bought! I used to mix protein powder in cheap water containers with a sport/pop top that I'd get from expos or job fairs.  The protein would clump and plug up the opening, so I'd have to drink the stuff by unscrewing the lid.  I'd have so much trouble getting the protein IN the bottles that I almost gave up. I could blend protein powder in smoothies, but I go to the gym on the way to work, so that's not really a practical solution.  Yes, I drink my protein straight. ;) But then, I got this Blender Bottle from yes... GNC .  There was a promo on it, so "The Ukrainian" also ended up with (a larger) one. Pros: - Small size (10 oz) is perfect for my needs... I fill it up about halfway with water after the protein powder. - The blender ball... I don't get any clumping in my protein - The flip-top lid is perfect for drinking! - No leaking (make sure you snap eve...

It is a bit of an inside joke for Asian-Americans to order things like "fly lice" instead of "fried rice." Some people take offense to this little play on Asian-to-English accents.  As someone who has been stopped by people to tell me that I speak perfect English, I don't mean the use of the word "fly" for "fried" to be offensive at all. You see, I have been put down by other Asians who think that I am not "Asian enough" because I don't have any accent.  And it definitely stings, because deep down, I want to be connected to my culture but have reached a point at which it's kind of awkward now and associated with things I'd rather not remember.  My culture will always be a part of me, but still, no accent. Anyway , I love accents (I guess by definition, we all have one, by you know what I mean!).  I once accidentally gave up a seat in class that I was saving for my friend because a guy with a hypnotic British accent...