They Can’t All Be Good

Last night, we made one of Dana’s favorite meals: Fish Tacos. I enjoy them as well, but they don’t rank as high as to me as they do for him.

Dana got to work on cooking the tilapia in a pan on the stove top with lemon juice, salt and pepper, while I got busy chopping the veggies. I chopped up the leftover iceberg lettuce, making some of it into shreds, and some of it into cups to use as my taco shell. I do use regular tortilla shells sometimes too, just didn’t feel like it today.

For our tacos, I chopped lettuce as mentioned, as well as tomato, cilantro, and avocado. I layered all of the veggies into my lettuce cup, placed my perfectly cooked tilapia next, and lastly topped it all with roasted tomatillo medium salsa which really gets my nose running.

Forgive my flash versus non-flash photos. I couldn’t decide which lighting was better as neither was really helping me out much.

With flash:

Without flash:

Dana’s fish tacos were way prettier than mine so I made sure we snapped a photo. See, you can accommodate everyone in your household….carb or no carb.

I tend to feel a lot better when I go lighter on my carb intake, which is why you’ll notice I tend to skimp on them and go bunless with burgers, shell-less with tacos, choose salad versus sandwich, etc.

I have a minor gluten intolerance so it’s not to say I don’t eat breads, tortillas, etc. because I do, I just pick my battles. Some days I can eat a bagel and have no repercussions whatsoever in the stomach ache department, and the next day I will eat a bagel and feel like there is a blown up balloon in my belly. I continue to learn about my body and what makes it happy and unhappy every single day. I do love fresh bread though. Mmm…

The rest of the night was spent doing more laundry, packing, and relaxing with the guys.

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My morning today started out with a pre-run breakfast/snack. Half of a banana with peanut butter, and half of a cup of coffee. I would have loved more coffee but know it’s not a good idea considering I will be running outside sans bathrooms.

I suited up in my asics and headed out the door for a 5.21 mile run.

I will start off by saying that the weather was perfect this morning. Blue skies, birds chirping, and a cool breeze, so at least that part of the run was beautiful. There are good workout days and bad workout days, and this morning I definitely had a bad workout day.

During my first mile, it’s standard for me to struggle a bit but I know that my body is warming up and after the first mile I will usually feel better. Today though, I felt that struggle throughout the entire run. I was getting side aches on each side and tried breathing through them to work them out, but didn’t have much luck. My ears felt like I was on an airplane and they were full of pressure and aches. I felt dehydrated and out of breath with no stamina at all. It was a hard run.

I kept comparing this run to my Saturday run and I couldn’t believe how different I felt. I know this is normal but you always hope each run is going to be a good run. You can’t always get what you waaaannnntt.

I ran and walked 5.21 miles in 55 minutes. Not my fastest by any means but hey, I finished it. Hopefully my next run will be more enjoyable.

I am off to drink the second half of my morning coffee and head out for the day. I hope you have an excellent Tuesday.

Question of the Day: How do you fight through a “bad” workout day?

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Asparagus Appetizer and Asics

Last night, we went to a St. Patrick’s Day bonfire at our friend’s place. I wanted to bring a green appetizer to go with the theme, and decided on an appetizer that my friend/co-worker had made for us at our St. Pat’s Day themed meeting at work last Wednesday.

She made asparagus wrapped in ham and cream cheese. I whipped them up for the party last night and I left the party with an empty platter in hand. They were a hit. They are healthy, easy and very tasty.

1. First, bring a pot of water to a boil.

2. Next, rinse the asparagus. Then, snap off the bottoms that are hard and great to eat. Tip: place one hand at the middle of the stalk, the other hand at the bottom and bend until the end snaps off. Discard the end piece and keep the top. Where it snaps off naturally is generally a good indicator of the good versus the bad.

3. Place the asparagus in the boiling water and boil for 3 minutes. Remove from hot water and place immediately into an ice bath to shock the asparagus and stop the cooking process.

4. Combine 1 room temperature 8-ounce block of reduced fat cream cheese, 1 teaspoon mustard, and 1/2 teaspoon of Worcestershire in a bowl. Use a hand mixer to combine until creamy.

5.  Place thinly sliced deli ham on cutting board and cut to appropriate size (about 4×4 inches). Smear cream cheese mixture on ham. Place asparagus on top, and roll. The cream cheese makes the wrap stick together so no tooth picks are necessary to hold it together.

Pretty right?

 We had such a great time last night at our friend’s place. We played yard games, ate some awesome corned-beef hash and sat around the bonfire. It was the perfect way to end St. Patty’s Day.

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This morning started off with a big cup of coffee, coupon cutting with the hubby (out Sunday morning routine), and a bowl of nasty looking  satisfying oat-less oatmeal. In the mix today was egg whites, almond milk, ground flaxseed, chocolate protein powder, cinnamon, and banana. I topped it off with some peanut butter and called it a breakfast.

After breakfast we were off and running to get errands crossed off our list. We first headed to Target and Costco to stock up on groceries, then headed to Marathon Sports which is a store that specializes in running and walking. Dana and I both needed new running shoes and have heard really great things about this place, so we decided to check it out ourselves.

The staff was incredibly helpful and efficient. The store was bonkers today but staff kept everyone happy including both of us who both walked out with new shoes!

I decided to stick with the same Asics I was wearing before, but bought the newest version; Asics Gel-Kayano 18 (my last ones were 17). I was really happy with my last pair so I figure why mess with a good thing. I put them on my feet and they fit like they were made for me; comfortable and supportive. Sold.

I can see why they are voted one of the best running stores in America. I would highly recommend them to anyone. Plus, they were founded in 1985, which was a pretty special year. 🙂

Lunch today was very random. It started with sugar snap peas which I dove into on the car-ride home.

Then a cara-cara orange which OMG was so perfectly sweet and juicy. MMMMmm…I could probably eat 4 of them.

Next, I moved onto a small bowl of Special K Blueberry cereal.

Lastly, a small bowl of  Multi-Grain Peanut Butter Cheerios. Heavenly. Have you tried these yet? You really should.

Amidst our errand running we also stopped at two different Menards. We needed to get tiles for our bathroom in the basement which will begin construction very soon! Considering I made it through not one, but two Menards trips, I figured I deserved a Caramel Light Frappuccino from Starbuck’s. Perfectly sweet and expensive, as always.

I have a healthy dinner planned for dinner tonight. I will get you the details tomorrow! Hope you are having a productive yet relaxing Sunday.

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