A Case of the Runs

The winner of my 5th blog-i-versary giveaway is #7...  Elie !  Please send me your info at nobel4lit2 (my g-mail address). ------ Just a brief Halloween post... (click HERE for past Halloweens documented on this blog). Item #1 - This is the one of the more complex pumpkin designs I've attempted.  The template steered me wrong with the eyes, so I took the liberty of filling in the weirdness with... pieces of pretzels. Item #2 - Very embarrassing.

 If you're following along, here is the SIXTEENTH week of training according to the 4 Months to a 4-Hour Marathon book.  The paces bealow 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. This week was a bit bumpy, as "life" was getting in the way.  However, I'm supposed to be tapering, anyway, so I guess it's not that bad.  Excuses! =P One thing that has changed this week are cooler mornings.  As a result, my Saturday long run went better than an

Following suit with the "I am the 99%" Wall Street business (parodied here ), I decided throw my mockery into the fray. Of course, this is putting all thoughts on "marathoners" and "politics" aside.  I guess tapering has reduced me to this sort of thing. P.S. Does anyone know if the 1% figure is still accurate?

(My bar giveaway is ending pretty soon... last reminder to ENTER !) Although I might complain about work, I must say, the environment is right. I took these snapshots one day while waiting for "The Ukrainian" to take me on a lunchtime picnic (on his day off). But most of the time, I'm indoors, and I could very well throw myself into the category of people who probably sits for waaaaayyyy too long during the day.  Although I've gotten better and take walks on most days during lunch, having this guy around is also helpful: This is a treadmill workstation, which we're allowed to use for 30 minutes at a time.  After checking it out, I will say that this takes some getting used to, some decent shoes, a good split attention, and a speed no more than 2 mph.  Some handrails would have been nice, too, but a bit restricting I guess. It sure beats sitting, although for simplicity, it'd be better if they set up our desks so we can pedal while we sit.  It migh

On a recent "work from off-site" day, I bought this yogurt for breakfast, particularly for dipping my bread. If you've never tried to dip bread or bagels into yogurt, I'd say you're missing out.  Really. Anyway, this coconut yogurt seemed like a pretty good idea, way better than goat milk yogurt .  And I was right.  Although this is nowhere as creamy as regular yogurt, it was palatable at the very least.  Not too sweet.  And it can definitely be used as a substitute in yogurt in smoothies and recipes, probably better than just straight up. These are popping up at big stores everywhere, so feel free to give it a shot!

I wasn't sure if I should try this, but I saw some blogs raving about this "Mmm Sauce" from the Peas and Thank You blog . However, I already had a lot of the ingredients lying around, so I figured I'd give it a go. Any excuse to use the food processor is very welcome! By the time this finishing whorling around, I couldn't help but dip a lentil chip in there for some sampling.  It was very tasty, though a little on the tangy side since I didn't have lemon juice and instead used lime. When "The Ukrainian" ate it in the dinner pictured below, the first thing he said was, "Mmm."  I guess this validates the sauce's name! On the same plate are some microwaved mixed veggies (so classy), red quinoa, and roasted tofu (at 425 degrees for about 35 min) that I marinated briefly in Frank's Red Hot (even classier).  Those tofu nuggets were actually VERY good with the sauce, not too spicy at all. And yes, that's a huge block of

 If you're following along, here is the FIFTEENTH week of training according to the 4 Months to a 4-Hour Marathon book.  The paces bealow 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. This week's long run... was pretty much a death march.  After the first 14.5 miles, I needed to take a break.  It was sort of downhill at that point, and the heat came in and pretty much wiped me out after 19 miles.  No matter how "The Ukrainian" tried to pace me, I wa

Today, I am 26 .5. What...... you don't celebrate your half-birthday??? ;) On behalf of today, I'd like to share with you some things that may have put a dent in my 26.5 years or perhaps in my years to come. (!!!"Healthy living bloggers" beware... sugar and raw meat ahead!!!) First, we'll start with this.  These gummies are similar to THESE that I mentioned last year , both found at World Market .  I scored this jar for less than $2, but it lasted me a couple of months .  That's amazing for me, because I have one of the worst sweet tooths I know, and gummies are my favorite. I'm sad that I can't find them in the store anymore, which I discovered when I went back for a refill.  These gummies come in unique flavors like coke and currant and are very... gummy/waxy, so they take a long time to eat, are relatively low in sugar, and can withstand being stored in the car during summer. Unlike these (some gummies from the mall that melted into thi

I am on a little getaway to an undisclosed location.  This is my last chance to sneak out on a (short) mid-week getaway until Christmas time, and the first time I have been off of work without making up the hours missed since May -- and it's mid-October.  Given that I have been hauling booty at work and  malfunctioning in other arenas lately, I felt that I really needed a break at whatever the cost.  My poor "Ukrainian" has been either in class or teaching four (soemtimes five!) days a week, on top of his full-time job.  Therefore, our time together is rushed/truncated/often not existing.  I think we both need this. In the meantime, I thought I'd talk about this new flavor of Clif bars.  I've reviewed other flavors HERE , but this one I think I will pass on in the future.  To be fair, I have a strange relationship with coconut, borderline food aversion, but I have learned to enjoy it more as I got older.  The coconut flavor in this is too much for me, with m

(Don't forget to enter my giveaway here .) This past weekend, "The Ukrainian" and I decided to dine in.  Dining in is something we would do more often if we weren't living apart.... gives us something to look forward to, I guess. We both like to cook.  Okay, well, HE likes to cook, and I like to cook when I feel like it.  It saves us money, it keeps me from worrying about what's in my food, and I also don't need to dress any particular way! Except during the supermarket trip. I have started eating salad dressings that are NOT shelf-stable, which are sold near the produce in most supermarkets.  I find that they taste a whole lot fresher and are really not that expensive if you watch for sales.  I used to be the type of person who would eat their salads "dry"... without dressing.  Eck!  Now that I'm older and move averse to greens lately, I need a little flavor to help. Marzetti's "Simply Dressed" dressings come in a cute b

A long, long time ago, in a galaxy far away... ...just kidding. But today marks five years since I started this blog in a small student government office at UCLA . This is what I looked like five years ago.... My blog pre-dates many things, including: finishing and graduating from college the death of my high school track coach , who is one of my inspirations all but two of my races my first marathon starting graduate school finishing graduate school meeting/dating my boyfriend ("The Ukrainian") my first trip to Las Vegas most of my jobs driving my car (I've had a license for 8 years but have only *really* driven for 4) I'm sure there is a lot more I can say about how things have changed over these past five years, for better or worse.  I have come out a much more knowledgable person, surrounded by those who did not judge me into oblivion.  Your true friends, folks, are those who are still with you after the journey. Not to say that this journ

 If you're following along, here is the FOURTEENTH 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. This week went pretty well... 28 miles total.  I was struggling a bit during the long run... probably normal, though I got really sleep-deprived toward the end of the week, taking a toll. The 8-mile tempo run was tough, as expected, but I can definitely see why these tempo runs a

I normally don't post on Fridays, but once in a while, I make exceptions. Especially when I get tagged on a post (e.g., Seven Links ). Thanks, Wymberly ! The way this works is that I'm supposed to 1) Thank the person who gave you the award and link back to their post 2) Share seven things about yourself 3) Pass this award to 5 recently discovered blogs Now it's time to list 7 things about myself, I guess.  1) I took salsa classes 1-2 times a week for the better part of last year, until I found it too warm to dance with elder men and think I aggravated my hamstring doing these classes after running and work or even long runs.  2) I have mentioned my lactose troubles many times on this blog (it's mostly under control now, maybe a topic for a different post)  I first noticed I was intolerant when I was drinking milk during dinners with my best bud in college, after he showed concern that I was doubling over in pain every night even before the dinner was ov

(Picture-heavy post ahead.) Now that it's (approximately) mid-October, I thought I'd finally share what I did after my half-marathon last month . I'll preface by saying I am NOT a good example... people should observe their energy levels before going out after running.  But I am known to stay out til midnight after a marathon and run races the day before other races .  Buuuttttttttttt..... you might get some fun Fall ideas, so read on and prepare to get hungry! ------ I was staying with one of my good buddies, who didn't seem to mind that we rolled our way back post-race at around 11 AM, sweaty, and about to contaminate their bathtub. They were even nice enough to let "The Ukrainian" and I split a biscuit that came all the way from Seattle... no pic because we were ravenous (had no food at the race, and we are not pre-race eaters). Once cleaned up, my bud and her beau took us on a mini road trip.  At the time this picture was taken, "The Ukr