tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21661757214277732292024-02-19T11:25:14.258-05:00Paleo PA StudentOne violinist's journey to change careers and become a physician assistant, while eating a paleo/primal diet and loving CrossFit!Internal Peacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09158669200874811632noreply@blogger.comBlogger177125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2166175721427773229.post-82495517608472400202013-03-04T13:09:00.001-05:002013-03-04T13:09:55.742-05:00Paleo Thai Chicken Soup<br />
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I made <a href="http://meatified.com/thai-chicken-soup/#.UTTh1xnpYio" target="_blank">this delicious soup</a> from the Meatified blog yesterday. I left out the coconut sugar and subbed in mushrooms for the snap peas to make it Whole30 compliant. I used a homemade chicken bone broth, used roasted shredded chicken, and added a bit more salt and coconut aminos, but otherwise kept everything pretty much as described in the recipe. It is so tasty and nourishing! So many wonderful nutrients and such a wonderful relief in the winter! I plan to make another batch really soon.<br />
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Oh man, CrossFit is great, but I have to remind myself that I won't see immediate progress every day. I feel like I'm at a bit of a plateau (progress-wise) but I'm doing all the things I should be doing: sleeping adequately, following a paleo diet with enough total food, managing stress, and giving 100% to my workouts. I guess it just takes time to see strength gains.<br />
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Bring it on.Internal Peacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09158669200874811632noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2166175721427773229.post-60924401420840945022013-03-03T11:22:00.001-05:002013-03-03T11:38:25.487-05:00CrossFit + Paleo ChallengeFirst thing: I started CrossFit on September 7th, 2012 and it changed my life! I also know it is still actively changing my life! I cannot even imagine not doing CrossFit at this point! I know that my experience with it is not unique, but it has become such an important part of my daily routine! I go five mornings each week and take the weekends off. In just under six months of CrossFit, my body has become so much stronger and capable of things that I thought I couldn't do! I can do kipping handstand pushups as prescribed (even like 50 of them in a workout!), I have my bar muscle ups (working SO hard on my ring ones!), Fran RX'd (although be it very slowly), and deadlifted 215 pounds last month!<br />
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Although I'm thrilled with my progress, I also have so many more goals! I want to lift heavier and get faster. I want to push 100% at the box each day. I love that CrossFit is always challenging and there's always something to improve on! I also love the community that cheers me on when I'm the last to finish a workout, or that celebrates with each other when someone gets a PR!<br />
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My gym is also wrapping up a two month long paleo challenge. This was a great experience for me, as I'm already mostly paleo anyway. However, my biggest challenges were no dairy (outside of the challenge I drink non-homogenized full fat milk and occasionally kefir or yogurt and goat cheese or cheese from grass fed cows) and no paleo baked goods! I LOVE baking paleo friendly treats and plan to post more of my adventures on here when the challenge is over. Additionally, I was trying not to eat as many nuts as I usually do, due to their higher omega-6 content and less fruit because of the sugar in it.<br />
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I love the way I feel with no sugar, and after the challenge, I am looking forward
to experimenting with sugar free chocolate (using stevia or erythritol)
or very low sugar chocolate with a bit of local honey. I also want to
bake more with coconut flour instead of almond flour, although I am not
giving up my almond flour chocolate chip cookies! :)<br />
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Here's a typical breakfast for me, which I've been enjoying while
typing this. Two scrambled organic eggs, 2 slices nitrate free turkey
bacon, sauteed broccoli in lots of coconut oil, 1/4 avocado. Also,
coffee with coconut oil mixed in! (Sounds weird, but is so delicious and
healthy!) Obviously, the paleo diet is about nourishing your body correctly and not some horrible weight loss fad that fights your physiology.<!------><br />
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Lastly, I was also enjoying my new BCAA's that I ordered this week. They are from <a href="http://www.sdcnutrition.com/products-page/" target="_blank">SDC Nutrition</a> which is a local Pittsburgh company. I purchased them on a friend's recommendation with the hope that they would help me be less sore and recover faster from CrossFit workouts. They definitely seem to be helping (for which I am grateful!), but I've only been supplementing with them for a week. They honestly don't taste great, but that's not really why I'm taking them. It's kind of like medicine for my muscles. Haha! I do like that it is sugar free, although I'm not crazy about it being sweetened with sucralose. I feel like it has to be possible to make one using stevia or erythritol, but obviously I'm not a food scientist. Anyway, not to be negative; I am really grateful that it seems to be speeding up my recovery time. My body was really hurting for several weeks, despite doing everything I could with nutrition (including post WOD) and trying to sleep at least 7.5 hours a night!<br />
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So, to sum up my post: CrossFit and Paleo eating ROCK MY WORLD. :)<br />
<br />Internal Peacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09158669200874811632noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2166175721427773229.post-63903238402254880272012-09-04T14:41:00.001-04:002012-09-04T14:41:36.144-04:00Beautiful Oregon!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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I just got home yesterday from the most wonderful trip to Oregon! I went there to visit some friends and it was just such an overwhelmingly enjoyable and happy experience! Highlights were the hiking trails at Crater Lake.<br /><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXNILmqRqrp6t5jMVt_Q-e1JIZKIoLK_hRgPvze5ds7DfWm9R2gbwc7zVVSsfFpeOVnWWNPdsShvBXymhrpvAL2qXlhIKK5bwcaYqobqiDPm-nsIGLkL418_tjtobqKl9uc7x3E8qVpx0/s1600/2012-08-31+17.25.17.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXNILmqRqrp6t5jMVt_Q-e1JIZKIoLK_hRgPvze5ds7DfWm9R2gbwc7zVVSsfFpeOVnWWNPdsShvBXymhrpvAL2qXlhIKK5bwcaYqobqiDPm-nsIGLkL418_tjtobqKl9uc7x3E8qVpx0/s320/2012-08-31+17.25.17.jpg" width="239" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Pinnacles</td></tr>
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These pinnacles are awesome rock formations! And such a long ways down - don't fall! <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibQOLWXmNZB8oy7LOoWaW4FJtJOuA-SQDgmdLou_s-f2JgpIVGTGF2_iJkTgLHe4tYgLm_s4yA0U4ocqNIea4cWxMXluQgEK4wAZEEB55DvxQb3GsGW0pf6o2-la-B7gCVdrsz5yieKfc/s1600/2012-08-31+18.31.08.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibQOLWXmNZB8oy7LOoWaW4FJtJOuA-SQDgmdLou_s-f2JgpIVGTGF2_iJkTgLHe4tYgLm_s4yA0U4ocqNIea4cWxMXluQgEK4wAZEEB55DvxQb3GsGW0pf6o2-la-B7gCVdrsz5yieKfc/s320/2012-08-31+18.31.08.jpg" width="239" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Plaikni Falls</td></tr>
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This waterfall was definitely worth the two mile hike! So lovely! <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHgkPLHcMkhLFdId_yDB7TDqZtbvxcaB9jn-8vYn5hfaqcBp7-QI7JcIJKBG1UZYPqfGIaoVVals_PyYFWMn9fEki53BwmXgnMsbRkiMQHRARFYBn3fvvDznq72TdulMnCn7VDpNMZ0hY/s1600/2012-08-31+18.54.52.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHgkPLHcMkhLFdId_yDB7TDqZtbvxcaB9jn-8vYn5hfaqcBp7-QI7JcIJKBG1UZYPqfGIaoVVals_PyYFWMn9fEki53BwmXgnMsbRkiMQHRARFYBn3fvvDznq72TdulMnCn7VDpNMZ0hY/s320/2012-08-31+18.54.52.jpg" width="239" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Phantom Ship</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihPUSj_oU4IGiuXOh8P827MXrbDm1bhbi4ZnghRufOIfWNtdFlOdDQVnlKqd4EGwMauz6apwIXpqeUSzNVPcy8AjP92pOX6A0Pa8MQTf_iV16wDK7-9jYIzwKWq-sVPxXwEfz6P_A1gNA/s1600/2012-09-01+14.02.22.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="239" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihPUSj_oU4IGiuXOh8P827MXrbDm1bhbi4ZnghRufOIfWNtdFlOdDQVnlKqd4EGwMauz6apwIXpqeUSzNVPcy8AjP92pOX6A0Pa8MQTf_iV16wDK7-9jYIzwKWq-sVPxXwEfz6P_A1gNA/s320/2012-09-01+14.02.22.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">So, so beautiful!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDehh8Hy-tv6pTSWNXovCLS0T8HwSCU4fJZ3Ps6T-Y5QOnaacriqZ02fzdDeW0I86FTjMi8v-aEoOQt7ib65haeIUmyvAA-yC4LmSi71YEheDVpyzTUgLg3Sn6R_3jyeaiSpu8kSfE1Zk/s1600/2012-09-01+14.55.32.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="239" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDehh8Hy-tv6pTSWNXovCLS0T8HwSCU4fJZ3Ps6T-Y5QOnaacriqZ02fzdDeW0I86FTjMi8v-aEoOQt7ib65haeIUmyvAA-yC4LmSi71YEheDVpyzTUgLg3Sn6R_3jyeaiSpu8kSfE1Zk/s320/2012-09-01+14.55.32.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Such blue water!</td></tr>
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I'm glad we hiked down Cleetwood Cove, to the water edge, where we stuck our feet in and just enjoyed an amazing day with sun and a breeze! <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBr4aacVphyphenhyphenSu7b85tKg2HlE0xEB8q19PDMZ9qQ2czrgSflmRXaHbopp4W4EQqo7oDuDTWqJw0r7GptO1ROxTu6zEo9ExA8SBoLOfDvmS-Gy2-rp4Od1ZG9t64kYAYkSXAggXzZp69ghI/s1600/2012-09-01+15.31.21.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="239" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBr4aacVphyphenhyphenSu7b85tKg2HlE0xEB8q19PDMZ9qQ2czrgSflmRXaHbopp4W4EQqo7oDuDTWqJw0r7GptO1ROxTu6zEo9ExA8SBoLOfDvmS-Gy2-rp4Od1ZG9t64kYAYkSXAggXzZp69ghI/s320/2012-09-01+15.31.21.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Ooh, water access at the bottom of the Cleetwood Cove trail!</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Yaquina Head Lighthouse</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhptkXj6ZHDJd5Wio5O42nuPGUGK8IOeitbmPS0CLzT7M-wBSiuA10FOYYppTzHlxliP3UtYIOSiLP3di5sg9x5X-MSV9IRDfUeuNJOND7h_XvGIsxlVLHywzDWPPLzm4XcH7sKolo9-6A/s1600/IMG_6415.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhptkXj6ZHDJd5Wio5O42nuPGUGK8IOeitbmPS0CLzT7M-wBSiuA10FOYYppTzHlxliP3UtYIOSiLP3di5sg9x5X-MSV9IRDfUeuNJOND7h_XvGIsxlVLHywzDWPPLzm4XcH7sKolo9-6A/s320/IMG_6415.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Tide pools! So many fun creatures!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjth8JwK8nMvsCH5BpLMe4OTwViefqcnBoFurfVbHkg4FxjEUUYaIFSelULNRwAqlhAZ9rs0yRbkbkSM8gKx_JQU74IpYoKsHVy67i9U8A-wDl7U4wU7l1c21SOCqWcDJB9w-wpU1xaWRg/s1600/IMG_6418.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjth8JwK8nMvsCH5BpLMe4OTwViefqcnBoFurfVbHkg4FxjEUUYaIFSelULNRwAqlhAZ9rs0yRbkbkSM8gKx_JQU74IpYoKsHVy67i9U8A-wDl7U4wU7l1c21SOCqWcDJB9w-wpU1xaWRg/s320/IMG_6418.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Yaquina Bay Bridge</td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td></tr>
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Driving through Oregon is so amazing, because the scenery, even along the interstate is so gorgeous! Other highlights included going to the <a href="http://rogue.com/" target="_blank">Rogue Brewery in Newport</a>, seeing little towns of Roseburg, Corvallis, Eugene, and Newport; the Oregonian coast especially the Yaquina Head Lighthouse and the tide pools there, and just hanging out with my friend is such a relaxing environment!<br />
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I'm back home now, but I already miss Oregon so much!<br />
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I hope everyone had at least close to as amazing of a weekend as I had! :)Internal Peacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09158669200874811632noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2166175721427773229.post-77936129503318799482012-08-27T13:45:00.000-04:002012-08-27T13:45:03.427-04:00An Open Letter<br /><div class="MsoNormal">
An Open Letter to Everyone Who Has Ever Said, “I Just Want
to Do Something I Love With My Life”</div>
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<b>I used to be just like you.</b></div>
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I did all the right things. I went to college, declared a
violin performance major, practiced up to seven hours solo per day, not including
all the ensembles, chamber rehearsals, coachings and lessons I participated in.
Then I graduated and moved across the country (for my art!) and spent thousands
of more hours on a masters degree.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I am now self-employed “doing what I love”, and let me tell
you a secret: the first time you are diagnosed with a potentially dangerous
medical condition and cannot afford necessary blood work and/or follow up care,
your “love”, your art, your life, and your passion will get a whole lot less
fun, REALLY QUICKLY. Yes, I know you think it will never happen to you. I
didn’t either. I am extremely healthy, I never get sick (in the sense of “catch
a cold”), I run and do gymnastics and work out regularly and eat very healthy
nutrient dense whole foods. But I was diagnosed with <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Raynaud%27s_phenomenon" target="_blank">Raynaud's Phenomenon</a>, which is where the capillaries in my toes randomly spasmed for no reason, leaving them purple for the coldest four months of each year. I was advised to have extensive blood work done, as Raynaud's can be indicative of an underlying rheumatoid condition, but there was no way I could afford it. So I'm hoping for the best. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
So why am I writing this? If you are in high school,
thinking about your college major, or if you know any high schoolers, I am
pleading with you to tell them how critically important it is to <b>choose an
employable major over a fun major.</b> Use me for an example if you want. But
please choose a major with a potential for getting a job, with health benefits.
Your life might very well depend on it in the future.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
If you are young and not currently married, DO NOT assume
that you will just get married to someone who will provide you benefits. You
may never get married. And if you do get married, your spouse’s job might not
have benefits either. Or they could lose their job. And they could decide to
divorce you and leave you just as alone as before you were married. <b>So counting
on marriage to provide benefits is unreliable at best.</b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
And even if you never ever get sick or injured, which is
highly unlikely, if you ever want to be a mom, just having a baby (with a
perfect delivery and no complications whatsoever) will run you about $10,000.
That is a pretty large bill to foot on a job that probably doesn’t even give
you paid time off.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Some of you may be saying “But even if I choose a
traditionally employable job, I may still not land a job with benefits.” That
is true, so you need to be smart and prepare yourself as well as you can. If
you are still in school, keep your grades up. Do extra credit. Volunteer.
Shadow. Study abroad. Take every opportunity that comes your way, because they
will all boost your odds of getting a decent job. Yes, that means it will be a
lot of hard work. But I promise it will not be as hard as trying to get out of
medical debt in the future while working retail.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
Sincerely,<br />
<br />
A Concerned Self-Employed Citizen With Crappy Health Insurance Internal Peacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09158669200874811632noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2166175721427773229.post-36068322174425464362012-08-26T13:32:00.002-04:002012-08-26T13:35:12.606-04:00First steps into paleo<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
Recently I've been experimenting with a <a href="http://thepaleodiet.com/" target="_blank">paleo</a>/primal style of eating. It's primal because I do consume dairy products, but mainly just unhomogenized milk. I feel pretty strongly about UNhomogenized milk, because homogenization apparently blasts the fat particles into such small pieces that they can be absorbed differently than how humans have digested fat for thousands of years. I'm not a scientist or a dietician, but to me it just seems like we should probably consume food in the form that it's been in for thousands of years. In those forms, it also kept humans healthy and diabetes, heart problems, obesity and many other modern health problems were basically unheard of. So to me, it seems like there's a pretty good chance that part of our modern health crisis stems from artificial foods and ways of making/raising/preparing food. I.e. feeding animals GMO corn and soy, weird chemical fertilizers, etc. So I've been making a big effort to avoid these things.<br />
<br />
The biggest reason I adopted a <a href="http://thepaleodiet.com/" target="_blank">paleo diet</a> about six weeks ago was because I was desperately trying to get rid of my hypoglycemia. Ever since my eating disorder, and even after recovery, I had major problems with low blood sugar, almost no matter what I ate. So eventually, even though I had been eating grains all along with what I thought was no reaction to them, I decided to cut them out and just give it a try.<br />
<br />
The results were AMAZING!!<br />
<br />
I lost eight pounds almost immediately without trying at all! I also stopped having low blood sugar spells, which improved my mood drastically. I also had more energy, and wasn't hungry ALL.THE.TIME. And I gained several new skills in gymnastics that I am convinced were due to losing a big of weight and gaining strength and energy!<br />
<br />
Needless to say, I'm planning to be in this for the long haul. And honestly, I don't crave bread/pastries/etc that much because I know how crappy I'll feel. I definitely make some yummy chocolate desserts that I enjoy, but they don't send me into a hypoglycemic spell and I enjoy them so much more. The BIGGEST addition to my daily diet is <a href="http://www.tropicaltraditions.com/" target="_blank">COCONUT OIL!!!</a> I LOVE it so much!! It makes me feel warm and happy and healthy. I literally use it for everything, from baking to sauteeing veggies in to cooking meat with. I've gone through four jars in the past couple of months! It's simply amazing! :) <br />
<br />
I'll leave you with two amazing paleo meals I've enjoyed recently:<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfVa9DwzRjnAsejI8llHYstXIhuLi7HArXvrpOQkVryG3YG1pdubSH2K-XXrJ7uZ4jYv4roPfiSqIBgkzM_Y1SCdPrddgvhDpyjBDDPMARG7aYXhIwmQRukrLYFbbM49cFHD6A9qOpPFs/s1600/2012-08-07+22.58.54.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="239" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfVa9DwzRjnAsejI8llHYstXIhuLi7HArXvrpOQkVryG3YG1pdubSH2K-XXrJ7uZ4jYv4roPfiSqIBgkzM_Y1SCdPrddgvhDpyjBDDPMARG7aYXhIwmQRukrLYFbbM49cFHD6A9qOpPFs/s320/2012-08-07+22.58.54.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Shrimp, sauteed veggies with avocado, and strawberries!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRymiXajkN8pjuC9LY1Hx5YYe2KaK_zA6EIolU1-K8M4Fs7Q38hUbPqcfUgbvU2m9iMimTFkC0255hOWkxlBpEHV78UdK9hZxlaeJq8D3sQFFiFiY_471KD-pQWZpzc0DvJ0cP5EVceAA/s1600/2012-08-06+12.29.39.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRymiXajkN8pjuC9LY1Hx5YYe2KaK_zA6EIolU1-K8M4Fs7Q38hUbPqcfUgbvU2m9iMimTFkC0255hOWkxlBpEHV78UdK9hZxlaeJq8D3sQFFiFiY_471KD-pQWZpzc0DvJ0cP5EVceAA/s320/2012-08-06+12.29.39.jpg" width="239" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Pesto chicken from Trader Joes with sauteed veggies. Of course in coconut oil! :)</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
I can't wait to see how much stronger I can get from my <a href="http://thepaleodiet.com/" target="_blank">paleo diet</a> and how many more gymnastics skills I learn!Internal Peacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09158669200874811632noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2166175721427773229.post-82512529147942759262012-08-22T17:46:00.001-04:002012-08-22T17:46:44.173-04:00Ten Reasons Not to Date Me <style><!--
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<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
An Open Letter to Guys, or 10 Reasons Why You Don’t Want to
Date Me.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Dear Boys,</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Recently more guys have expressed interest in me and/or
asked me out. I’m writing this open letter to you regarding the matter.
Consider this your warning.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .5in; text-indent: -.25in;">
1)<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span>I talk too much and too loudly.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .5in; text-indent: -.25in;">
2)<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span>I love food, and I will always eat to keep myself healthy and
happy. When my 25 year old metabolism slows down, I make no promises that I
won’t end up 50 pounds overweight when I’m in my 30s and 40s. You don’t want a
fat girlfriend.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .5in; text-indent: -.25in;">
3)<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span>I am a Christian with fairly strong moral convictions. This
means that you might think I’m a religious weirdo.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .5in; text-indent: -.25in;">
4)<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span>I am more specifically a feminist, liberal, egalitarian
Christian. Which means that if you’re also a Christian, we probably won’t get
along, theologically speaking.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .5in; text-indent: -.25in;">
5)<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span>I am supremely selfish with my time. No, I don’t particularly
want to spend a lot of time trying to enjoy your hobbies; I have my own. And
no, I don’t want to plan my day around yours. That’s never going to happen.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .5in; text-indent: -.25in;">
6)<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I am extremely unpredictable
in what I say, think, feel and do. I’m a human being. I refuse to apologize for
this, but it would probably (rightfully) infuriate you.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .5in; text-indent: -.25in;">
7)<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span>I am cranky a vast majority of the time, whether it’s hunger,
stress, fatigue, cold, or any combination therein. No really, you don’t want to
date me. Got it?</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .5in; text-indent: -.25in;">
8)<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span>I don’t wear cute enough clothes. And I am sure as heck not
going to dress in what you like me to wear in order to have you find me
attractive. I wear what I like, and it’s not usually what guys find attractive.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .5in; text-indent: -.25in;">
9) I am a people pleaser to a fault. Oh, and I also hate conflict. </div>
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10)<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span>I don’t –ever- want to get married. So why even bother to date
me in the first place?</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .5in; text-indent: -.25in;">
Respectfully,</div>
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</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .5in; text-indent: -.25in;">
Yours Truly</div>
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<br /></div>
Internal Peacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09158669200874811632noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2166175721427773229.post-90904126750839925532012-05-27T14:35:00.002-04:002012-05-27T15:03:06.451-04:00It's been a long time!I'm back!<br />
<br />
But this blog is changing directions. It's no longer going to be a food blog, although I will probably still blog about food since I love it so much! But rather, it's going to document my life, thoughts, career change, school, and other things I want to talk about.<br />
<br />
The biggest NEW announcement is that I'm actually going back to school to become a physician assistant! This change came about for many reasons. The biggest reason is that I shadowed clinical dieticians at a local hospital last year, and even though I LOVE the field of nutrition, I realized I wanted to be doing more hands-on medical procedures, and I wanted to work more closely with patients. I then also shadowed a nurse, but nursing is not my calling (although it is a wonderful field that helps so many people!) But then, I shadowed an orthopedic surgeon's PA for about 4 months and I LOVED IT! The PA and the surgeon were incredibly gracious to me and I am so thankful for that opportunity! I spent several weeks researching the PA field, talking with other medical professionals and students and learning about physician assistants. And I realized that I wanted to pursue that! So I am still taking science prerequisites, and I am about ready to apply to schools! I am currently taking Microbiology and Human Lifespan Psychology. I've finished up my year of Anatomy and Physiology, Bio 1, Chem 1, Nutrition, Algebra, and of course all of my undergraduate and master's degree classes (from the first master's degree.) The second, also huge, reason I want to become a PA is that <b>there is no way I can continue being a violinist while there are so many people suffering all over the world from lack of medical care.</b> Some of them are literally dying of easily preventable causes: lack of clean water, lack of antibiotics, lack of sanitation, and lack of vaccinations. Others are dying from things that might be tougher to treat, but we still wouldn't think too much of in America. (Need for surgeries, delivery of babies, and chronic conditions that can be cured or alleviated with proper medical care.) Can I do everything to heal them? No. But I need to do SOMETHING and this is my something.<br />
<br />
My upcoming classes include Chem 2 (this will be my biggest challenge!), Statistics, Bio 2, Medical Terminology and Organic Chemistry. That's ALL! I know that PA schools are extremely hard to get into <b><i>(one school said they had 1600 applicants for 80 spots and this seems to be about the normal for most schools!)</i></b> But I am confident that I will get in somewhere this year, or if not, I will try again next year. I have an excellent GPA, a very unique history, I am a non-traditional applicant, I have strong letters of recommendation, and I am extremely proud of my personal narrative. Beyong doing my part to excel in every way that I can, the rest is up to God and the admissions committees. But I will definitely be writing more about it on this blog!<br />
<br />
Well, I am going to go study Micro and am going to church tonight!<br />
<br />
<br />Internal Peacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09158669200874811632noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2166175721427773229.post-9458599439209220332011-08-09T22:51:00.003-04:002011-08-09T23:09:14.383-04:00Eating with friendsI have gotten to share two lovely meals with friends in the past two days! Yesterday I went to Thai food and ordered the Red Curry with Chicken. It came with bamboo shoots, baby corn and basil leaves and was served with white rice. I enjoyed it, but I should have stuck to their Green Curry that is absolutely phenomenal! (Sorry-no picture. We were talking about some pretty serious things and spent a good four hours talking!)
<br />
<br />Today though, I enjoyed the "Psychedelic Burger" from a local restaurant called Fuel and Fuddle.
<br />
<br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRha_Yx1uEzH88KR3U_nec7Nxhwm3sedaqB_Tuf6B_pbktvRm8jSj9c4Vn0oBjiAPvZXiULIUNjmCNTstMz7gObD3LEhKzJPFEmEDp44bs_5GiP5Qth886JzXpUlicTewWug9gdbGwWFs/s1600/F%2526F.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 243px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRha_Yx1uEzH88KR3U_nec7Nxhwm3sedaqB_Tuf6B_pbktvRm8jSj9c4Vn0oBjiAPvZXiULIUNjmCNTstMz7gObD3LEhKzJPFEmEDp44bs_5GiP5Qth886JzXpUlicTewWug9gdbGwWFs/s320/F%2526F.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5639056665778126818" border="0" /></a><a href="http://www.barsmart.com/bar_detail.cfm?id=344">(Image source)</a>
<br /></div>
<br />The burger is a grilled portabella mushroom and cheese burger, where you can taste the delicious chargrilled-ness of the burger. :) It was served with lettuce and tomatoes, and a mix of sweet potato and regular potato fries. Although for an additional 50 cents I could get all sweet potato fries, which is what I opted for, of course. There's just something spectacular about sweet potatoes in French fry form! And here it is in all its glory (I promise the burger is in there!):
<br />
<br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhURb85-P0AiWXKTVj4v2K93xWseczawDnHaq4XYXN6TspPVBbYExX9q8JRG2UTYLYcBqqs7gNwF_FuzVHjgEfE_l5qzqj_vvL1nCpxj47oCSfy1kuAbSThComYj7wwi8Kfpq2mL3bdcZU/s1600/Mushroom.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 198px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhURb85-P0AiWXKTVj4v2K93xWseczawDnHaq4XYXN6TspPVBbYExX9q8JRG2UTYLYcBqqs7gNwF_FuzVHjgEfE_l5qzqj_vvL1nCpxj47oCSfy1kuAbSThComYj7wwi8Kfpq2mL3bdcZU/s320/Mushroom.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5639056673016678338" border="0" /></a><a href="http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/lifestyles/fooddrink/s_696464.html">(Image source)</a>
<br />
<br /><div style="text-align: left;">Anyway, it is so delightful for me to have meals with friends. I feel like this is exactly what I was talking about in my previous post which is that food is SO MUCH more enjoyable in the company of good friends, rather than alone which is how I spent much of the past 7 years preferring to eat.<span style="font-weight: bold;"> I feel that nothing strengthens friendships more than eating together. And I hope to share many MANY more meals with people I love.</span>
<br />
<br />Where's the last place you went out to eat at? What's your favorite thing on your favorite restaurant's menu?
<br /></div></div>Internal Peacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09158669200874811632noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2166175721427773229.post-61137548367838731512011-07-25T20:25:00.003-04:002011-07-26T10:06:00.861-04:00A strange, wonderful phenomenonSo something I've noticed in my eating habits lately. I don't obsess over food <span style="font-style: italic;">as much</span> as I used to. Let me clarify that statement, and explain why I think that's a good thing. You see, I've already talked about my anorexia and my disordered eating that followed for many years after that. Even after recovery, I was still self-destructing in that I was limiting amount of fat or calories or whatever. And recently, even though I've been securely recovered, I've still been working out a lot (including training for and completing a marathon) and so food has been of great importance to me. Now, I'm definitely not saying that it's no longer important, because it is, obviously and I still love many kinds of (real) food.<br /><br />BUT...<br /><br />The nice thing is that recently I have noticed that food is...<span style="font-weight: bold;">just food.</span> And by that I mean that I've still enjoyed food <span style="font-style: italic;">(especially when eating with friends, which is in stark contrast to how it was with my ED)</span> but it's no longer something that I obsess about. I mean, I still like to cook (mainly to have good food around) and obviously I still appreciate nutrient-dense food for what it does for my body and energy levels, but there are many other things in life that bring me more joy than eating does (and it <span style="font-weight: bold;">never</span> used to be that way.) This is not to say that I don't still get a little panicked when I'm really hungry (I do, and I think that's my body's response to the anorexia of a long time ago) or that I would try to eat less on purpose for any reason (because I absolutely would not do that.)<br /><br />But my hunger signals have been more normal than ever. My hypoglycemia is better controlled than it has ever been. I have started eating more meat (from free range and organic farms) and I have noticed that this really makes me feel so much better. And between adding meat back to my diet, and the fairly high fat level that has been a mainstay in my diet for the past several years, I'm doing great! It is so refreshing to finish a meal and be DONE, rather than trying not to go pick at other food throughout the day. (I still eat way more than just three meals a day, but am more satisfied after each one.)<br /><br />I think this is all to say that this seems like the end of the last ED-related symptom (for which I'm incredibly grateful!) and it's been eight years since I was first diagnosed. So if there is anyone reading this with an ED, I encourage you to hold on and keep fighting for <span style="font-weight: bold;">true health!</span> You don't have to be utterly obsessed with food for the rest of your life, as long as you are willing to honor your body and truly give it what it needs (including fat and protein and enough calories) and accept that your set point might be higher than you want it to be. The mental and emotional freedom that comes with not being obsessed with food 24/7 is so incredibly worth it!!Internal Peacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09158669200874811632noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2166175721427773229.post-52930673156668837172011-06-04T22:32:00.005-04:002011-06-04T22:48:23.240-04:00KLUTZ!!<span style="font-weight: bold;">In an extreme demonstration of grace and sure-<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">footedness</span>, I totally face planted while running yesterday!</span> I have NO IDEA how it happened. I think I may have misjudged a curb. But come on...I just ran a FULL marathon! And while out on a 4 mile jog around the neighborhood, I end up falling and cracking my knee open in the process!! Granted, it was dusk, but it was still utterly humiliating, as I was running across a street so there were a bunch of cars stopped at the red light. And --PLOP-- just like that, I was down! Remember, I used to be a gymnast!! I DON'T FALL. I can't remember the last time I fell, save for some black ice two winters ago. And my knee was bleeding enough that a RANDOM STRANGER in a car pulled over and asked if I was OK because he and his friends saw the blood. (I had to walk about 1.5 miles back to my car!) And then, when I thought things couldn't get any more embarrassing, I somehow mistook the stranger in the car for a close friend (he looked freaking identical!) and was pretty confused for a few moments. They probably thought I was some drunk slob, when really I was just out for a run! <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">Geez</span>.<br /><br />Wanna see it?<br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />WARNING: blood and general <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">yuckiness</span>. Skip the rest of this post if you're queasy.<br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />LAST WARNING.<br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />OK, here it is in all its glory:<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYnuNsWIJvYTm_sTSAkRUrBeHvXwy-buTTHMWsGwueKkuEoXV3NomgFOQSekRww1Iopdw8d53bnjOdJhUroQMBbV9ywq53jJNxMG0NPhy53BjO5ZHPjXFKRaQ4pafjC1-m1Zdisa5rCcI/s1600/SDC16417.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYnuNsWIJvYTm_sTSAkRUrBeHvXwy-buTTHMWsGwueKkuEoXV3NomgFOQSekRww1Iopdw8d53bnjOdJhUroQMBbV9ywq53jJNxMG0NPhy53BjO5ZHPjXFKRaQ4pafjC1-m1Zdisa5rCcI/s320/SDC16417.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5614560078601010466" border="0" /></a>Yeah, nice right?! (Notice the <a href="http://www.newbalance.com/">New Balance</a> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">Minimus</span> shoes! I ran the entire marathon in these! Excellent!)<br /><br />And this is what I finally got it cleaned up to, after picking out the gravel and washing it:<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5PTAk8WjtRDKyIfIAsxliU9LCAXPq2_L0f1iMv1aQsEOKGZOx5neh5hQtlyxGxT1g4F4gu29ljNjk8QIC26LuLUOcoxNicajT1Zcn-FZSv4DzsVVH81IWuIIpvPz7pGy_MGDUxWAhi8k/s1600/SDC16434.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5PTAk8WjtRDKyIfIAsxliU9LCAXPq2_L0f1iMv1aQsEOKGZOx5neh5hQtlyxGxT1g4F4gu29ljNjk8QIC26LuLUOcoxNicajT1Zcn-FZSv4DzsVVH81IWuIIpvPz7pGy_MGDUxWAhi8k/s320/SDC16434.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5614560079931818050" border="0" /></a><br />Kind of swollen, and still oozing some sort of clear liquid (what is it?!?!) but it will heal soon enough. My pride however?! That will take a lot longer to heal.<br /><br />By the way, you totally have permission to laugh at me; I am too! :D<br /><br />Be well. Don't face plant. (<--- New slogan?! <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">Lol</span>!)<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(51, 204, 0);">Please share your clumsiest moment! Any funny running stories? Other funny klutz stories?! My knee awaits company! :)</span><br /><br /><a href="http://www.mylivesignature.com/" target="_blank"><img src="http://signatures.mylivesignature.com/54487/153/E09D8766553D57ADB998057AED244B24.png" style="border: 0pt none ! important; background: none repeat scroll 0% 0% transparent;" /></a>Internal Peacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09158669200874811632noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2166175721427773229.post-47202382166022929442011-05-23T20:14:00.002-04:002011-05-23T20:31:02.526-04:00Marathon sponsors?<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">Sooo</span>, I have a tiny problem on my hands. I officially ADORED the <a href="http://www.pittsburghmarathon.com">Pittsburgh Marathon</a> and I am itching to sign up for another FULL marathon...SOON!<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">But they are so dang freaking expensive!!</span><br /><br />Even the "cheap" ones are around $75, running up to $100 or more. Just for the entry fee! Not including the gas to drive there (not that big of a deal) and the motel room! I realized today that I'd have to pay for two nights at a hotel because well, I'd be somewhere around mile 19 when check out time rolled around!<br /><br />Crap.<br /><br />So this is my official announcement that hopefully falls into awesome hands via the power of the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">interwebz</span>. I need a marathon sponsor. Badly. Hey, I could take pictures of and review the course and the four people who read my blog could learn ALL about it! What's not to love?! Seriously, we could be a dream match! Email me at: dietsbite@gmail.com. That's my real address.<br /><br />Or, more realistically, I could just start saving money and pay for the damn thing myself.<br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(102, 0, 204); font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Have you run any marathons or half marathons? Which ones do you love? Which ones have you heard good things about?<br /><br /></span><span style="color: rgb(102, 0, 204);"><span style="color: rgb(51, 51, 51);">Thanks. I'm going to go back to drooling over <a href="http://www.columbusmarathon.com/">Columbus Marathon,</a> <a href="http://www.marinemarathon.com/">Marine Corps Marathon </a>(sold out! the nerve of it!), <a href="http://grandrapidsmarathon.com/">Grand Rapids Marathon</a> (<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">helloooo</span>, visit to my sister as well as having moral support on course), <a href="http://www.akronmarathon.org/">Akron Marathon</a>, <a href="http://www.usafmarathon.com/">Air Force Marathon</a>, and <a href="http://www.philadelphiamarathon.com/">Philadelphia Marathon.</a><br /><br /></span></span><span style="color: rgb(102, 0, 204); font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;"> </span><span style="font-size:78%;"><span style="color: rgb(102, 0, 204);"><span style="color: rgb(51, 51, 51);">And maybe cry in the corner a little bit in jealousy of all who are running in them.</span></span></span><span style="color: rgb(102, 0, 204); font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;"><br /></span>Internal Peacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09158669200874811632noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2166175721427773229.post-49015713822349114822011-05-18T13:27:00.003-04:002011-05-18T13:36:55.356-04:00I DID IT!!<div style="text-align: center; font-style: italic; color: rgb(51, 0, 153);"><span style="font-size:180%;">I ran the Pittsburgh Marathon in 5 hours, 14 minutes, and about 30 seconds!! I AM THRILLED!! I almost started crying as I crossed the finish line! It was truly an exhilaration like nothing I've ever experienced!<br /></span></div><br />It is so strange to think that something I worked so hard for is over! These past 5 months were hard. I was juggling working, taking an Intermediate Algebra class (that was study-intensive!) and still making the time to train for the marathon. I turned down many social hangouts in order to run or study or sleep. <span style="font-weight: bold;">And it was all worth it!!</span> I can't help but compare the marathon to real life: <span style="font-weight: bold;">sometimes like around mile 18 it just seems so hard and hopeless, but you just have to keep going. </span>You can't give up just because you don't feel like doing anymore. And for me specifically, I am hoping my career change will bring the same sense of satisfaction. I am NOT giving up on it, even though it's hard and may appear foolish to many people. (I am "wasting" so much time and money on classes!)<br /><br />I am almost <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">unsore</span> and I am ITCHING to sign up for another marathon! Right now running seems like the small beacon of hope in my currently semi-depressing life. Not to be all Debbie-downer, but I am extremely discontented with my life. Of course, that's why I'm working to change that, but it will be several years before I've even completed the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">pre</span>-requisites. And I'm hoping that running marathons and half marathons will provide me things to look forward to and to break up the monotony of every day life. This is another reason I run.<br /><br />Have a great Wednesday! And tell me:<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">What's the hardest thing you've accomplished in your life? And what thing are you the most proud of?</span>Internal Peacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09158669200874811632noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2166175721427773229.post-1895152837513594362011-05-09T13:59:00.003-04:002011-05-09T14:39:24.975-04:00Why I Run<span style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;">Why do I run?</span><br /><br />It's a question I think about a lot. Almost every day, really. I run because it's hard for me. Every single mile I complete is a challenge both physically and mentally. Without fail, I'm usually ready to stop running after about 1/2 mile. <span style="font-weight: bold;">But there is a kind and determined voice inside of me that says "Keep trying. You can do it. Don't give up."</span> And this is extremely significant because for the first 23 years of my life, that same voice was a malicious, self-loathing one that only told me multiple times each day how ugly, fat, stupid and worthless I was. Where the change happened, I'm not exactly sure. Yes, it was definitely after the several year struggle with anorexia, then bulimia, along with chewing and spitting, binge eating, and restriction for <span style="font-style: italic;">years. </span>But after I was recovered from harmful eating habits, I was still plagued by just-as-harmful thoughts toward myself and others. I <span style="font-weight: bold;">hated myself and my body </span>this time not because of what I weighed, but because of the fact that I "couldn't" run. I directed my self-hate to getting better at running. Although I did improve at running, my mentality was still extremely punishing and I only drove myself to shin splints and a stress fracture. It looked good on the surface <span style="font-style: italic;">("Running is healthy!")</span> but I was still tearing myself apart emotionally.<br /><br />To be quite honest, I don't know exactly the moment where the change happened. But I suspect it happened after I realized I was running myself into the ground, not based on 100 mile weeks, but on my attitude. It likely happened when I realized I literally drove my boyfriend away from me due to this new, slightly more creative form of disordered eating/mentality. It definitely happened when I renewed my promise to be kind to myself, in part due to the wonderful fitness blogs out there. (<a href="http://wwwhealthytippingpoint.com">healthytippingpoint.com</a>, <a href="http://www.operationbeautiful.com">operationbeautiful.com</a>, <a href="http://www.ohsheglows.com">ohsheglows.com</a>, among others.) And it happened when I realized that harming myself and making running an idol is a sin. And it happened in so many little things. It happened when I accomplished my goal of running a 5K without any walking breaks. And when I was forced to take last summer off because standing, much less running hurt so much due to the stress fracture. Ironically it happened when I had some "WTF are you doing?" moments <span style="font-style: italic;">while running.</span> And it happened when I heard "I Run for Life" by Melissa Etheridge.<br /><iframe src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/LgiwrvEX8wY" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="349" width="425"></iframe><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">In other words, I now run because it makes my soul happy.</span> Running keeps me healthy, physically and more importantly, mentally. Running forces me to be kind to myself, especially if I am to complete my goal of the Pittsburgh Marathon this Sunday! Running gives me an outlet for stress relief and provides me something that I can be proud of in my life. Every single time I complete one more mile, I am thankful for who running has helped me become. I consider it a blessing that it was and still is hard for me, because I never take it for granted. I want to inspire others to be kind to themselves, whether it is through running, or nutritious eating, or learning to voice their opinions, or learning that it's OK to say no, or that it's not selfish to get all nine hours of sleep that your body may require. I run because I can and I want to.<br /><br />And that's why I'm running 26.2 this Sunday!<br /><br />Be kind to yourselves!<br /><br /><a href="http://www.mylivesignature.com" target="_blank"><img src="http://signatures.mylivesignature.com/54487/153/E09D8766553D57ADB998057AED244B24.png" style="border: 0pt none ! important; background: none repeat scroll 0% 0% transparent;" /></a>Internal Peacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09158669200874811632noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2166175721427773229.post-45369029444576822632011-04-26T09:27:00.005-04:002011-04-26T09:59:21.378-04:00The perfect egg sandwich<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">Yay</span>, time for food pictures! I've been on an egg and cheese sandwich for...months now! Seriously, the combinations are endless as too what kind of cheese to use, on what type of bread, spinach or arugula, and spices to put on the eggs! Which of course has given me the oh-so-perfect excuse to try a bunch of different cheeses from Whole Foods and my local grocery store (they actually have a good selection!) Here are a few I've tried:<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizJH7NbImiU1p9dJfxHXQ5Cvv9kk6OCAXU0g7iMG8v_7nU4ulyGLgaJ3bHkQn1oJ6EKrm9jxs3vlx-VdR7nPgj_R-3jgmCVbAeQca4libYyJAbdWGDfvcHVdw5ZXuGMC0e1ffC46N3CFE/s1600/SDC16306.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizJH7NbImiU1p9dJfxHXQ5Cvv9kk6OCAXU0g7iMG8v_7nU4ulyGLgaJ3bHkQn1oJ6EKrm9jxs3vlx-VdR7nPgj_R-3jgmCVbAeQca4libYyJAbdWGDfvcHVdw5ZXuGMC0e1ffC46N3CFE/s320/SDC16306.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5599884328171691810" border="0" /></a>(Ignore the price per pound! I actually didn't know it was that much! Oh well; it's delicious! It has a coffee crust --brilliant!-- and lavender in it! Talk about gourmet...best thing about buying food for only one person is that I doesn't get that expensive overall. And by the way, this cheese is <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">SOOOO</span> flavorful! Almost too spicy/sharp but in a good way. I don't know how to describe it better than that!)<br /><br />And another kind:<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgB022xf1JO5W5aj2dscy3UsGmMkTmXbh047N6qTlR3YRwhCeZfYbGpaU670pDGw8j5SADGMrgCLsFbM7-5IVYU64j64C5uHSkvZAvR7ruizuQTySPHaDjtHwrhr6sT78JFTx1lPuw3bo/s1600/SDC16273.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgB022xf1JO5W5aj2dscy3UsGmMkTmXbh047N6qTlR3YRwhCeZfYbGpaU670pDGw8j5SADGMrgCLsFbM7-5IVYU64j64C5uHSkvZAvR7ruizuQTySPHaDjtHwrhr6sT78JFTx1lPuw3bo/s320/SDC16273.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5599888146420487042" border="0" /></a><br />Also very tasty!<br /><br />So the perfect egg sandwich "recipe" is:<br /><br />1) Cook an egg <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">stove top</span> with whatever spices you want. I'm partial to garlic pepper, cumin, curry powder, and/or dried basil.<br /><br />2) Put ketchup (organic obviously) on the bread/<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">english</span> muffin/whatever, along with your vegetable of choice. I use spinach and/or arugula and AVOCADO when I have it!!, but sliced tomato would probably be good as would sauteed kale/collard greens/chard.<br /><br />3) Flip the egg over, add cheese of choice, turn heat down and let it finish cooking + let the cheese melt.<br /><br />4) Transfer the egg to the sandwich and enjoy!<br /><br />This is what the finished product looks like:<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYPAsUpXnfjXS1PM9jDtyxQVLbK51-gmx186RShdA72ygWkiFHrABegGQ80Vypwp18_F8BeUX7dzhpRxKQP-xHrXtIJFVZPlQAGjVrCSGwdpULipLGjsVkeXnHlkEMfBvrHLqUILm98Lw/s1600/SDC16297.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYPAsUpXnfjXS1PM9jDtyxQVLbK51-gmx186RShdA72ygWkiFHrABegGQ80Vypwp18_F8BeUX7dzhpRxKQP-xHrXtIJFVZPlQAGjVrCSGwdpULipLGjsVkeXnHlkEMfBvrHLqUILm98Lw/s320/SDC16297.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5599884345105551938" border="0" /></a><br />Or this:<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJZkUGZq_tAi9c_NajCuo3zLpgyl_nFdGlQNDdSQijJ8hft3CP3Vc6jSIT2QXpRaRvD_Drv2FnkIPIlEruZNr2NMZo2MJA-nVN2-zNTpn3kzE9KjYe_A9myzA9LMIkGMu8Fs6ozI-tSxk/s1600/SDC16308.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJZkUGZq_tAi9c_NajCuo3zLpgyl_nFdGlQNDdSQijJ8hft3CP3Vc6jSIT2QXpRaRvD_Drv2FnkIPIlEruZNr2NMZo2MJA-nVN2-zNTpn3kzE9KjYe_A9myzA9LMIkGMu8Fs6ozI-tSxk/s320/SDC16308.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5599884322943981682" border="0" /></a><br />Yeah, they're that good. (That's the coffee crusted cheese above!)<br /><br />Other eats included two turkey burgers (on different days!). I got the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">pre</span>-made ones from Whole Foods and this one included sun dried tomatoes and <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">gorgonzola</span> cheese. Somehow I trust meat from Whole Foods way more than I do from any other store. And honestly, I'm trying to get myself to eat -a little- more meat (health/nutrition reasons-I honestly believe we are omnivores and meat is a good source of so many nutrients!), so this was a good way to do it.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDCJYl2RH1YHqrY7-CuVGA1rVv1mTRiW_olPWwsZ6Y5F4pgmCh4LDukQeTKL-oMY2fWtO6BlS4MKfeb7iieQ4qNcirho2VP8bkiB8MFaXwqVUcQuSIgf5FhWw8O76-sjX7k8pZq_JqI9E/s1600/SDC16284.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDCJYl2RH1YHqrY7-CuVGA1rVv1mTRiW_olPWwsZ6Y5F4pgmCh4LDukQeTKL-oMY2fWtO6BlS4MKfeb7iieQ4qNcirho2VP8bkiB8MFaXwqVUcQuSIgf5FhWw8O76-sjX7k8pZq_JqI9E/s320/SDC16284.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5599888142694862082" border="0" /></a><br />My trusty arugula again, and sweet potato fries on the side! YUM. This was my immediate post-22 miler run food!<br /><br />Followed by these:<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEziaJ4s2vpayfc6AMnAFc3P-MtPnADcdIOmLq365WjZLOIFiFHZOo98BV_GlVTA-jJjXFzVCwhrJaFLivggJBHQ4bkaS5zGMAx1ya6dvcpWxNgQGrngNeUfqArX5nGQpNQv-OLIF7Jcc/s1600/SDC16286.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEziaJ4s2vpayfc6AMnAFc3P-MtPnADcdIOmLq365WjZLOIFiFHZOo98BV_GlVTA-jJjXFzVCwhrJaFLivggJBHQ4bkaS5zGMAx1ya6dvcpWxNgQGrngNeUfqArX5nGQpNQv-OLIF7Jcc/s320/SDC16286.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5599886780908097458" border="0" /></a>And this mixed into a bottle of water:<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgybnDv2AfLZ2zmY7vhiIBo9AQFvMJFKJFnfrDUSvCOO_lA8YdQepgKLYTzz0BAxySuGClYkPaX0XWM4ICaJx-iqvZKHOfyUz5diVzpQmkW9LzLAx0nO_3FmyaVwmYRkH-rWXMZuL6X24g/s1600/SDC16287.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgybnDv2AfLZ2zmY7vhiIBo9AQFvMJFKJFnfrDUSvCOO_lA8YdQepgKLYTzz0BAxySuGClYkPaX0XWM4ICaJx-iqvZKHOfyUz5diVzpQmkW9LzLAx0nO_3FmyaVwmYRkH-rWXMZuL6X24g/s320/SDC16287.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5599886774548054770" border="0" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgk6AvFroON0ZHUanDi8ltBTQ-J5G0kAtimDAq6BbaIrrd4xt-juBeAs47cJtCVGWwCtIIXTMVuaERCHyTXDYFH3EzpEi8WeXl9LK7Sv3brGWvHx2wRcHf9KsbNJtNP1Bggip9WU_am5SM/s1600/SDC16290.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgk6AvFroON0ZHUanDi8ltBTQ-J5G0kAtimDAq6BbaIrrd4xt-juBeAs47cJtCVGWwCtIIXTMVuaERCHyTXDYFH3EzpEi8WeXl9LK7Sv3brGWvHx2wRcHf9KsbNJtNP1Bggip9WU_am5SM/s320/SDC16290.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5599886771938301586" border="0" /></a>Later I ate a package of my favorite frozen veggies:<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgo7Ay7Hj2-pA0GKzjXaz-_hHfFcDqh4QYC0ONYZqdELWB6luaRLzfrCtxWuF3K3tp-BqVmiEAVmjgRpqDa38xBNtrRU6ELTAhD0ca27uRiibqKvx1hqAGAo4mpC_CgWWWE-inT1Gm5UKU/s1600/SDC16292.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgo7Ay7Hj2-pA0GKzjXaz-_hHfFcDqh4QYC0ONYZqdELWB6luaRLzfrCtxWuF3K3tp-BqVmiEAVmjgRpqDa38xBNtrRU6ELTAhD0ca27uRiibqKvx1hqAGAo4mpC_CgWWWE-inT1Gm5UKU/s320/SDC16292.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5599886768398437826" border="0" /></a><br />And most recently, I've been enjoying hugely decadent bowls of oat bran!<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEik_IMgy8DpuZMzrws7m03FQlhHFMEV9TJ2flVhETgFRoJ0jZ6c9x6P2MEHR-i4RCMJfPXAedepWOc3-EDDely394zOHoYL_ytQPKgpVhiIrHPYkngmCOeaqCymASFT-MUIs7UlRJ1y9wE/s1600/SDC16294.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEik_IMgy8DpuZMzrws7m03FQlhHFMEV9TJ2flVhETgFRoJ0jZ6c9x6P2MEHR-i4RCMJfPXAedepWOc3-EDDely394zOHoYL_ytQPKgpVhiIrHPYkngmCOeaqCymASFT-MUIs7UlRJ1y9wE/s320/SDC16294.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5599886761844445090" border="0" /></a>This was also after running 22 miles--I can eat whatever I want! :) And it's actually pretty healthy! This is strawberries with P B and hazelnut butter and a few raisins and chocolate chips. Totally nutritious...but there may or may not have been moaning while eating this! :)<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRY2SpeoHA5QTG8Cr7oB675QahShtRat9k6oxJ9Oqti3M3s5IJQh9UtM-21n6o7BYIpn1Z2u0waGVmi_ZGbZ-vSOyOVQqhOpaEovrXEDgFjcCk7XHKqgsRNL-HDXBHqpegBY02OeffBSs/s1600/SDC16302.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRY2SpeoHA5QTG8Cr7oB675QahShtRat9k6oxJ9Oqti3M3s5IJQh9UtM-21n6o7BYIpn1Z2u0waGVmi_ZGbZ-vSOyOVQqhOpaEovrXEDgFjcCk7XHKqgsRNL-HDXBHqpegBY02OeffBSs/s320/SDC16302.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5599884330264258802" border="0" /></a>And this bowl is toned down a bit, but still delicious! Same two kinds of nut butter, and SO DELICIOUS coconut milk ice cream! I'm going to patent that idea or adding it to oat bran. But in the mean time, you're welcome to steal my idea!<br /><br />Well, off to teach! While I'm gone, let me know<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">What meals/creations are you currently loving?</span><br /><br /><a href="http://www.mylivesignature.com" target="_blank"><img src="http://signatures.mylivesignature.com/54487/153/E09D8766553D57ADB998057AED244B24.png" style="border: 0pt none ! important; background: none repeat scroll 0% 0% transparent;" /></a>Internal Peacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09158669200874811632noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2166175721427773229.post-80992192545440307412011-04-24T12:40:00.002-04:002011-04-24T12:42:44.878-04:00Long run: doneI completed that 22 mile last long run this past Thursday! I'm not going to lie...it hurt and I'm pretty nervous about the full marathon. Oh, and I run SLOWLY...and take lots of walking breaks. But I did it and I'm confident that I can at least complete the marathon, which is my only goal!<br /><br />Anyway, time to study. More food pictures to come!<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size:130%;"><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(204, 102, 204);">Blessed and Happy Easter to All!</span><br /></span></div><br /><a href="http://www.mylivesignature.com" target="_blank"><img src="http://signatures.mylivesignature.com/54487/153/E09D8766553D57ADB998057AED244B24.png" style="border: 0pt none ! important; background: none repeat scroll 0% 0% transparent;" /></a>Internal Peacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09158669200874811632noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2166175721427773229.post-81004488263646266212011-04-18T13:03:00.003-04:002011-04-18T13:18:45.267-04:00This is what a bad run looks like<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicSMTvvaY0PDxGt3o1Od0k4VyWsUFswj9dVFf98HjVhF0LbgKAFGa3yjTD1_78nJ81L2oHn4KuqX2hnPIzAhdbdIoV3zdhnwJCIof-PQF6zNGg6gmtMvtHn32H6RvVxMsOT7DYv3ftUm0/s1600/PGHmarathonlogo.gif"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 172px; height: 160px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicSMTvvaY0PDxGt3o1Od0k4VyWsUFswj9dVFf98HjVhF0LbgKAFGa3yjTD1_78nJ81L2oHn4KuqX2hnPIzAhdbdIoV3zdhnwJCIof-PQF6zNGg6gmtMvtHn32H6RvVxMsOT7DYv3ftUm0/s320/PGHmarathonlogo.gif" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5596971412919426418" border="0" /></a><br />So, I'm still training for the Pittsburgh marathon. The whole thing! As in 26.2 miles.<br /><br />I'm not sure why I thought it was a good idea when I signed up, but the Runner's World Quote of the Day today was something to the effect of <span style="font-weight: bold;">"Running a marathon gives average runners the chance to be more than average."</span> And I liked it! It's certainly <span style="font-weight: bold;">true!</span> I am a <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">sllllow</span> runner, I never ran in high school or growing up, I take lots of walking breaks and it's still hard for me, but dammit <span style="font-style: italic;">I'm out there and doing it.</span><br /><br />Anyway, I am planning to do my last long training run off 22 miles this Thursday. <span style="font-style: italic;">Holy crap...22 miles?!? </span>But, I've completed one 18 mile training run, and also a half marathon. (2:25:xx in absolutely wretched conditions...4 hours of sleep, legs were sore from gymnastics, and it was 20 degrees outside. Oh, and I got lost on the way back to my car and ended up walking another 3 to 4 miles to find the darn thing.) Anyway, after that, unfortunately I had to take the past two weeks off due to some strange but intense pain in the bottom of my foot. It feels better now (*knock on wood*) and I've done 2 short runs in the past week.<br /><br />Today, I ran four miles and am taking tomorrow and Wednesday off. (For me, running every day or even every other day isn't really an option...just not how my body works.) Anyway, the point of this post is to list all the ways in which today's run sucked and how I can learn from it to help other runs <span style="font-style: italic;">(<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">coughThursday</span>22<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">milercough</span>)</span> be better. Or you could also consider this your list of things NOT to do before a run:<br /><br />1) Sleep only 6-7 hours a night for the week before. Especially when you know your body requires 9-10.<br /><br />2) Unintentionally eat way too little food the day before. (Stupid work-related busyness.)<br /><br />3) Wear clothing that you realized was too warm for conditions, thus allowing major dehydration by the end of said 4 miles. Hello swollen fingers. Not good.<br /><br />4) This is totally <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">TMI</span> but I really needed to poop by the end. <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">Uhh</span>, yeah.<br /><br />OK, got it. I'm going to REALLY try to sleep a lot this week! And obviously keep eating like I normally do (read: a lot). Yesterday really was just an off day but I was surprised by how much it affected me today.<br /><br />And now, back to studying Algebra. If you're the praying type, please pray for me on Thursday. I'm honestly a little scared of the distance but I want to do this so badly.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.mylivesignature.com" target="_blank"><img src="http://signatures.mylivesignature.com/54487/153/E09D8766553D57ADB998057AED244B24.png" style="border: 0pt none ! important; background: none repeat scroll 0% 0% transparent;" /></a>Internal Peacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09158669200874811632noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2166175721427773229.post-55519146000413524272011-04-16T15:58:00.005-04:002011-04-16T16:11:49.719-04:00Classes, rain, life, blahblahblahIt's a rainy, gloomy day here. I'm trying to study, but too tired to be very productive. And I'm playing a symphony concert tonight. It's the last one I'll be playing for a long time most likely, as I'm stepping down from it in order to concentrate on teaching (which pays way better!) and my classes!! I am now registered for Sociology 101 for the first summer session. (I can't believe I never took that in undergrad! I did about a bazillion other General Ed classes, but somehow that slipped through the cracks.) And for the second summer session I'm taking Biology 1. (The real one, for science majors as opposed to the wussy Biology class I took as a music major!) It's going to be like 8-3pm Mondays and Wednesdays, <span style="font-weight: bold;">but then it will be done.</span> I'm grateful for community colleges that allow me to do all the pre-reqs I'm going to need! But unfortunately, I was looking at said pre-reqs list and I will be taking classes for a long time. I am determined to keep working for it though. No one said it would be easy, but I have a really strong feeling that it will be worth it.<br /><br />In other news, I've been trying to cook more. I mean like actually cook, not just keep throwing together random (albeit delicious) bachelorette style meals for one. So I tried making Indian butter chicken and it turned out great! I eat very little meat, but I think my body actually prefers it, so I bought some organic chicken breasts (about a pound) and used a spice packet, butter and water to cook. If I can do it, anyone can!<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4t248trIT2nZ2o4lBCoXGOMc_sgjQg8swv_vd66oONsiHY0WJDuCd6WGK09HhW2Vd6ZiDZkUufNff-cHI9xV3eIOFasw6IvhThfs-42-_HxrEgorG8R9FDXk_w0DSRAo3Ru1swGyb0Lo/s1600/SDC16248.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4t248trIT2nZ2o4lBCoXGOMc_sgjQg8swv_vd66oONsiHY0WJDuCd6WGK09HhW2Vd6ZiDZkUufNff-cHI9xV3eIOFasw6IvhThfs-42-_HxrEgorG8R9FDXk_w0DSRAo3Ru1swGyb0Lo/s320/SDC16248.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5596275024542651266" border="0" /></a><br />Served over quinoa (by far my favorite grain or pseudo-grain!) with sauteed greens. And Magic Hat beer, obviously.<br /><br />I should study for the next hour. Darn it.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.mylivesignature.com" target="_blank"><img src="http://signatures.mylivesignature.com/54487/153/E09D8766553D57ADB998057AED244B24.png" style="border: 0pt none ! important; background: none repeat scroll 0% 0% transparent;" /></a>Internal Peacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09158669200874811632noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2166175721427773229.post-88014288596836920712011-02-08T19:22:00.004-05:002011-02-08T19:41:49.025-05:00UpdateI haven't updated my blog in forever, but I'm continuing to follow the healthy living blog world and I actually do want to be a part of it, despite my failure to maintain this. Anyway, an update is in order. Life has gotten marginally better since my last post. En route to becoming a registered dietician, I've taken Introduction to Computers, Pre-Algebra, and Intro to Nutrition, and am currently taking Intermediate Algebra. Math is so not my strong suite. But this is the last math class I'll have to take, hopefully ever! I'm looking over my schedule on-line and trying not to get discouraged over how long it will take me to even complete the one year post-baccalaureate program, in addition to the 2 year masters. But I want this for me. And I want this for those that I will be able to help in the future. It's frustrating to be paying out of picket for all my classes, but I'm trying to take it slow and steady.<br /><br />Anyway, this was a quick update as I'm so sick. Yesterday I had a fever that topped out at 102.2 and although thankfully it's down to about 99.2, I still don't feel good. No energy and my head still really hurts. The worst part of all is that I can't taste anything!! :( This is terrible for a foodie, like myself! I've been trying to get LOTS of fluids in me and also to eat somewhere close to enough calories. I made this for myself and finished the box between yesterday and today:<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjC2L7uYbawILrgfBhaw-Al9NZmO_PJtUmLzGg28-DfPV5gYDcweFY7X8-zylrmqgTQV85zXLxFAmBQZG-1om-5-Ew0VvAOFQFBYGPHfM4y0lgMFW_Ryxyw6RN7FaR8-RHofRLTxiIUFh4/s1600/Annies_Homegrown_Macaroni__Cheese_Whole_Wheat_Shells_and_Cheddar.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 166px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjC2L7uYbawILrgfBhaw-Al9NZmO_PJtUmLzGg28-DfPV5gYDcweFY7X8-zylrmqgTQV85zXLxFAmBQZG-1om-5-Ew0VvAOFQFBYGPHfM4y0lgMFW_Ryxyw6RN7FaR8-RHofRLTxiIUFh4/s320/Annies_Homegrown_Macaroni__Cheese_Whole_Wheat_Shells_and_Cheddar.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5571481818236071122" border="0" /></a>Thank goodness for Annie's Mac and Cheese! Other than that, I've had a few bowls of oatmeal with PB and berries, a pumelo grapefruit, an orange, and a slice of toast with PB. IN TWO DAYS. Obviously this is nowhere near enough calories, but I'm trying. Every bite hurts. :( Fluids have included a crap ton of water, 2 glasses of greens powder with water and about 6 big mugs of fruit tea.<br /><br />I had to cancel all my work for today. Gosh, I hope I'm better tomorrow!Internal Peacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09158669200874811632noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2166175721427773229.post-59085668883204611712010-10-21T09:53:00.003-04:002010-10-21T10:13:24.538-04:00Remaining positive<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEip8SrsNXjFfeKSbdBSMrJ3r4LOPCHejmd8o4q3Soy0HL_lpWhRJVHC5SvSheAwjCobqDGAHP9OZpuKBF7nrZOAdZpui8HHBlHYU2vDH0ZGqp0Eila_kBc8Rafg7ENyWBJ6k0k7rmIxImw/s1600/Ghost3.jpg"><br /></a>The last couple weeks have been tough. Not gonna lie, they've been two of the hardest weeks I've been through recently. I found out that an ex-boyfriend is dating someone else, and I realized I definitely never got over him. I feel so silly for even typing that out...it seems like such a junior high thing to be sad over. But I've been working on truly moving on, not just saying I have moved on, in my mind and <span style="font-weight: bold;">I'm ready to let it go.</span><br /><br />Another reason this week sucked is that I had won Brooks running shoes and shorts via <a href="http://www.nomeatathlete.com/">No Meat Athlete</a>'s giveaway but then I put the award certificate postcard in my outgoing mailbox and it got ruined by rain/wind/storms!! :( Talk about an <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">epic</span> fail!! I contacted Matt (the author of No Meat Athlete) and I hope desperately that I'll be able to get a replacement. But I understand if I can't. Lesson learned: put the damn thing in a REAL mailbox or better yet send it freaking certified mail. Right. Got it...1 pair of running shoes and cute shorts too late! :(<br /><br />Anyway, because my heart had been set on a new pair of Brooks, I decided to just suck it up and buy the pair that I had wanted. In having won them, I went to a local running store to try on the different models and see what might work the best. I am VERY hesitant to wear any running shoes other than <a href="http://www.vibramfivefingers.com/products/products_kso_m.cfm"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">Vibram</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">FiveFingers</span></a>, as my pair of <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">Mizuno</span> Wave Riders gave me a horrible shin splint/most definitely stress fracture that required me to stop running for over 4 months this summer! <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">Annnyway</span>, it turns out that those motion control shoes weren't the right kind for my feet. GREAT. Just my luck...the owner of the running store <span style="font-style: italic;">who had fitted me with them</span> was confused as to why he had suggested those and 3 employees said these would be a better fit; my feet weren't rolling either way as I came off the ground in these. So, I bought them, after realizing the chances of getting the free shoes and shorts (<a href="http://www.brooksrunning.com/Epiphany-Stretch-Short-II/220265971.035,default,pd.html?start=7&cgid=womens-apparel-shorts">which were cute-I would have selected these</a>!) were essentially gone.<br /><br />Here they are in all their glory. They're the <a href="http://www.brooksrunning.com/Brooks-Ghost-3-Womens-Running-Shoe/120071,default,pd.html">Brooks Ghost 3 model.</a> <br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEip8SrsNXjFfeKSbdBSMrJ3r4LOPCHejmd8o4q3Soy0HL_lpWhRJVHC5SvSheAwjCobqDGAHP9OZpuKBF7nrZOAdZpui8HHBlHYU2vDH0ZGqp0Eila_kBc8Rafg7ENyWBJ6k0k7rmIxImw/s1600/Ghost3.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEip8SrsNXjFfeKSbdBSMrJ3r4LOPCHejmd8o4q3Soy0HL_lpWhRJVHC5SvSheAwjCobqDGAHP9OZpuKBF7nrZOAdZpui8HHBlHYU2vDH0ZGqp0Eila_kBc8Rafg7ENyWBJ6k0k7rmIxImw/s400/Ghost3.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5530500232399969874" border="0" /></a>And now it is time for me to take them out on a test run. And also try to get some happy endorphins from said test run!<br /><br /><a href="http://www.mylivesignature.com" target="_blank"><img src="http://signatures.mylivesignature.com/54487/153/E09D8766553D57ADB998057AED244B24.png" style="border: 0 !important; background: transparent;" /></a>Internal Peacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09158669200874811632noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2166175721427773229.post-88271739016940527022010-10-16T11:34:00.006-04:002010-10-16T12:03:15.538-04:00Sitting in traffic on a Saturday morningWell, it's Saturday morning and I canceled two students after sitting in traffic for an hour due to a freeway closure. Oh joy...don't you wish you lived such an exciting life as mine? You were probably doing something like sleeping in and then eating homemade pancakes, or running, or shopping, or well...I guess it wouldn't have been hard to have a better Saturday morning than mine.<br /><br />But, on the plus side...now I have time to blog! :)<br /><br />I am the most excited about the same breakfast that I've been eating every morning for a few weeks now! It's an egg sandwich with melted cheese (your choice--I've been eating a lot of cheddar but also mixing it up!), avocado (super important!), spinach and ketchup.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZe5aUNHKKeqMosJbt6vb0EDqL4hCxSO-o3HigTg3xdAtvHXxx4X98VVpOAfnk_AnU3TfF7BzBgCav2hzU0m5DGiXWXxANmjNdTjsQSpGN1lKOr4QdXW9klIK3A6K-oAl8IvQeLJgGMr8/s1600/SDC16032.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZe5aUNHKKeqMosJbt6vb0EDqL4hCxSO-o3HigTg3xdAtvHXxx4X98VVpOAfnk_AnU3TfF7BzBgCav2hzU0m5DGiXWXxANmjNdTjsQSpGN1lKOr4QdXW9klIK3A6K-oAl8IvQeLJgGMr8/s320/SDC16032.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5528671653381754178" border="0" /></a>I've been trying lots of cheeses for fun. I love them all! If you really want to send me cheese, I won't turn it down. :)<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgTpDmNdGKOS0zao595wF7Gs-GhrS3R2JNLstDk-kF7byNIdLeJZNxFCDV0E6LyD3HrwmdadWJ31EkQzLxRfGY9192_gbm88Cauvz9JMuJliOKm_cpx4cy8FQ__kQl6wHgU5L_lFe3LiM/s1600/SDC16029.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgTpDmNdGKOS0zao595wF7Gs-GhrS3R2JNLstDk-kF7byNIdLeJZNxFCDV0E6LyD3HrwmdadWJ31EkQzLxRfGY9192_gbm88Cauvz9JMuJliOKm_cpx4cy8FQ__kQl6wHgU5L_lFe3LiM/s320/SDC16029.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5528671645714655698" border="0" /></a><br />And with coffee, of course. Yeah, I totally took a bit before I took the picture. Oops. And yes, that is a monster coffee cup! Kind of perfect for me. :)<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRsFUyQaL-Nqar8-qf95x860WF-QP3EuKgiL-Z3Mz1drisIa3-0BJv6Gvlw04vl3XFiDyYhp8tXopxnC0oohflG7IVJZ8MjjF2CfLjFmcfFvgNtgL-qKaQbCw5LNkr8meUdnc9D2coRYI/s1600/SDC16035.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRsFUyQaL-Nqar8-qf95x860WF-QP3EuKgiL-Z3Mz1drisIa3-0BJv6Gvlw04vl3XFiDyYhp8tXopxnC0oohflG7IVJZ8MjjF2CfLjFmcfFvgNtgL-qKaQbCw5LNkr8meUdnc9D2coRYI/s320/SDC16035.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5528671439431064530" border="0" /></a><br />As Fall <strike>approaches</strike> is here and it's getting to be ridiculously cold for this California girl, I've been eating lots of soup. This is Amy's lentil, and it's basically the least photogenic food there it. Sorry.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirD3xiEdZMhNF9VLyJ_jFgWt3DBXJxdVOJiqvrOiACCSGxOJBriSay32MaQoQmE9HxJQ8dPh45YCK61ERbpHlzx8q0lDhnbvodbM6CA2PFGcDq82abYXma0heAMXfsbNTot6QIX6e4CRI/s1600/SDC16036.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirD3xiEdZMhNF9VLyJ_jFgWt3DBXJxdVOJiqvrOiACCSGxOJBriSay32MaQoQmE9HxJQ8dPh45YCK61ERbpHlzx8q0lDhnbvodbM6CA2PFGcDq82abYXma0heAMXfsbNTot6QIX6e4CRI/s320/SDC16036.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5528671666473279154" border="0" /></a>There's an amazing cupcake shop in town that just came out with their new Fall flavors menu. So when I saw Pumpkin Maple, <strike>it took a lot of begging and pleading from them to get me to try one</strike> I just had to try one.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEsClBhFZBs5iKB6eFeJlpwTDS7as2leQROf8Rz6_psFgsAY1OZp7P1zwbgTvB6apvQ5A6FiiNaXcq95wPCqzhLdPayFfYcc6VP3D12zXxn-x4eVnLSxptOShiqkT8umROMKBeb8d1VIg/s1600/SDC16039.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEsClBhFZBs5iKB6eFeJlpwTDS7as2leQROf8Rz6_psFgsAY1OZp7P1zwbgTvB6apvQ5A6FiiNaXcq95wPCqzhLdPayFfYcc6VP3D12zXxn-x4eVnLSxptOShiqkT8umROMKBeb8d1VIg/s320/SDC16039.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5528673935423535410" border="0" /></a><br />It didn't disappoint. The frosting is all buttery and rich and delicious.<br /><br />Lastly, I have a visitor who lives under my house!<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-izJ5y0SlX5hU6noHDsZ6aOe5aOrOL3Jbl2wKemQcBIafLxT8j54NOOk1fQJADB2hXqzIOic-w42Bp0MKp_kFAFDhw1-N8TOLBM_rUxq88YkiVmJ8OA6drnJiTLz07MEqDjfGhcOLmR8/s1600/SDC16027.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-izJ5y0SlX5hU6noHDsZ6aOe5aOrOL3Jbl2wKemQcBIafLxT8j54NOOk1fQJADB2hXqzIOic-w42Bp0MKp_kFAFDhw1-N8TOLBM_rUxq88YkiVmJ8OA6drnJiTLz07MEqDjfGhcOLmR8/s320/SDC16027.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5528673925640416802" border="0" /></a>OK, well I'm off to study Algebra and Nutrition and make some banana bread and some lemonade. But not the kind you can drink. I hope you're having a lovelier Saturday than me!<br /><br /><a href="http://www.mylivesignature.com" target="_blank"><img src="http://signatures.mylivesignature.com/54487/153/E09D8766553D57ADB998057AED244B24.png" style="border: 0 !important; background: transparent;" /></a>Internal Peacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09158669200874811632noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2166175721427773229.post-42467108687093396812010-10-01T13:40:00.003-04:002010-10-01T14:22:58.256-04:00Of only two things I'm sureI hate the confusing times in my life. I am being hit HARD by the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quarter-life_crisis"><span style="text-decoration: underline;">quarter life crisis</span></a> which I wanted to believe that I avoided so delicately, by being focused on my goals from the time I was little girl. I have (had?) always wanted to be a violinist. I practiced hard in high school. I practiced through rough family times. I played the violin through the worst years of my anorexia. I went to college for violin performance. And grad school, too. At the age of 21, I received my masters degree in violin performance. By that time, having worked through grad school, I had enough students and gigs to support myself with the violin.<br /><br />I should have lived happily ever after.<br /><br />Except that I didn't.<br /><br />For about 4 years now, since about the 2<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">nd</span> semester of grad school, I have been BURNT OUT. Big time. Ever since graduation, I've kept hoping that that would go away eventually. That I would start to love the violin again. That I would look forward to practicing. And that hasn't happened. To clarify: I still LOVE certain aspects of playing the violin. I love teaching students who care and who practice, but that's about 4 out of roughly 30 students I see weekly. In many of the other lessons I teach, we mainly just sight read because they haven't practiced, yet again. I also still enjoy playing with the rock band I play with. Their shows are exciting and deeply fulfilling to see so many people truly enjoying themselves. Lastly, I enjoy certain weddings. I d really love being able to provide music for a glowing bride and to make the musical aspect of her wedding easier on the bride and groom.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">BUT, that's it. There are so many aspects that I no longer enjoy. I don't enjoy working 7 days a week and still barely being able to pay the bills. I don't enjoy having almost totally useless, yet still luxuriously expensive private health insurance and having no prospects of ever having better health insurance for the rest of my life. Similarly, I don't really look forward to continuing to have 0 days of paid time off, for both sick and personal days combined. And a retirement account? That's a joke. I don't feel like I'm really helping anyone at all. I don't even feel a sense of personal fulfillment most of the days that I work, AND I don't really make very much money to do it. Certainly not enough money to support a family, which I would like to be able to do someday.</span><br /><span style="font-size:130%;"><br /></span><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: rgb(102, 0, 204);font-size:130%;" ><span style="font-weight: bold;">And therefore, I am announcing that I am returning to school to get my master's degree in nutrition and then to study and become a Registered <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">Dietician</span>!!!</span></span><br /><br /><div style="text-align: left;">I have already started classes, which means that I am currently taking Algebra and Introduction to Nutrition, while still working full-time in music, subbing at a school and baby-sitting. Yes, it's busy and stressful. <span style="font-weight: bold;">But, I want to do this, for me.</span> This WAS NOT a rash, impulsive decision. I have thought about returning to school for several years and finally signed up for a summer course this past summer. I am currently paying for classes privately, which of course if expensive and sometimes I wonder if it's worth it. But <span style="font-weight: bold;">I believe in the depths of my heart that it is.</span><br /><br />Ultimately, my DREAM and my PASSION is to become an RD in order to work with people suffering from eating disorders. The years of my life that I suffered from anorexia, then bulimia, then ED-NOS were truly the worst years of it. <span style="font-weight: bold;">Every day was a living hell.</span> I was in physical pain ALL THE TIME, everything from migraines and bloating to charlie horses that were so bad that I would wake up in the middle of the night in tears. My hair fell out, especially during recovery. I was cold during the 100 degree days of summer. Additionally, I was tormented by thoughts of food and calories and weight. I assumed people were always looking at everything I ate, and that bothered me. I was mentally and emotionally SICK. I was extremely mean to myself, constantly putting myself down. I was also not a fun person to be around, as I would snap over every little thing, partially due to the fact that I was starving. Literally.<br /><br />Through God's grace, He saved me both physically, and several years later, mentally as well. He sustained me through some dark times and now I can truly say that I've been living for several years! My decision to become an RD has nothing to do with my former obsession with food, and everything to do with wanting to help people. Men, women, young and old. Anyone whose life has ever been affected by an eating disorder. It will be a LONG ROAD, as I have virtually no science background, but it is one that I am excited to take. And I will be blogging about it. I'm not sure exactly what the future will look like; in fact, that brings me to explaining the title of this post. With all of the confusion I feel in my life, I am only sure of these two things:<br /><br />1) God has been faithful to me, and will continue to lead me where I should go.<br /><br />2) Nutrition, exercise and healthy living have become VERY big passions of mine, and I want to turn them into my career!<br /><br />Other than that, I'm just going to have to have faith and hold on. I hope you'll come along with me for the ride. But in the meantime, I want to leave you with one of my favorite quotes, which is a line from a song by the band <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">Kutless</span>:<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: rgb(102, 0, 204);font-size:130%;" >"It doesn't matter what you've heard. Impossible is not a word. It's just a reason for someone not to try."</span><br /></div></div></div><br /><a href="http://www.mylivesignature.com" target="_blank"><img src="http://signatures.mylivesignature.com/54487/153/E09D8766553D57ADB998057AED244B24.png" style="border: 0 !important; background: transparent;" /></a>Internal Peacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09158669200874811632noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2166175721427773229.post-29191045358910574402010-08-03T10:20:00.001-04:002010-08-03T10:21:34.956-04:00In case I have any readers leftI signed up for the 2011 Pittsburgh Marathon!<br /><br />The FULL one.<br /><br />What was I thinking?!Internal Peacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09158669200874811632noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2166175721427773229.post-51955259392677747852010-06-20T10:06:00.004-04:002010-06-20T22:34:09.503-04:00Happy Father's Day to all dads!What did you do with and/or for your dad today? Mine is across the country, so I'll probably just send an e-card and call home.<br /><br />Here's my delicious smoothie breakfast, which I've been having almost every day first thing in the morning!<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyNII8ZuEgI9u9LtDhKoX0Q1J5JUxvgji9nWIB31nNnghcJdcxMSdE9lSBUXDvEcXvrVQhnUTcuRKfNMFjZJPlkLh3Ai7q5f-PbzsK25s_umbZ7JX3WRbpWyemU7b51zjh4LYfOFYMx_Y/s1600/SDC15933.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyNII8ZuEgI9u9LtDhKoX0Q1J5JUxvgji9nWIB31nNnghcJdcxMSdE9lSBUXDvEcXvrVQhnUTcuRKfNMFjZJPlkLh3Ai7q5f-PbzsK25s_umbZ7JX3WRbpWyemU7b51zjh4LYfOFYMx_Y/s320/SDC15933.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5484858182119575298" border="0" /></a>This one is:<br /><br />-milk<br />-<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">yogurt</span><br />-spinach<br />-hemp protein powder<br />-fresh strawberries<br />-fresh grapes<br />-frozen blueberries<br />-Peanut butter<br /><br />And on Friday, I went on a bike ride that accidentally turned into 3 hours! Whoops! I definitely wasn't prepared with enough food and water (two dates and 1/2 a bottle of water doesn't cut it!)<br /><br />But I came home and devoured the most beautiful sight ever:<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhk7rcF5UqnFagUAjYrSwEFvI9c7ZH5XwHA_bj4T9KWxFEUnIGXMZamz3yhkneEMdpb6_Xlm5b03F4JGDw314ejvsx-Z_91rPrZvf_NmkCsjkha2_4TrmvVI4kYrbQEggh6vvUBbU-B00Q/s1600/SDC15925.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhk7rcF5UqnFagUAjYrSwEFvI9c7ZH5XwHA_bj4T9KWxFEUnIGXMZamz3yhkneEMdpb6_Xlm5b03F4JGDw314ejvsx-Z_91rPrZvf_NmkCsjkha2_4TrmvVI4kYrbQEggh6vvUBbU-B00Q/s320/SDC15925.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5484858202055626194" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgv1V_POmzUDiywMS8nrLAtVUjRAtHlmnXMM5zaXc_5nvhp3TVwBww4s-Bs1fNfZMQ-ijrjkzcs6qT-sOo7OOluH5e0DhIIIbfC_EyRWqRfCp0QLtUhzgbfqArMlWEcaSWmkHCd5o_yNVk/s1600/SDC15926.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgv1V_POmzUDiywMS8nrLAtVUjRAtHlmnXMM5zaXc_5nvhp3TVwBww4s-Bs1fNfZMQ-ijrjkzcs6qT-sOo7OOluH5e0DhIIIbfC_EyRWqRfCp0QLtUhzgbfqArMlWEcaSWmkHCd5o_yNVk/s320/SDC15926.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5484858204153228786" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiN0paY1QAucxYMqBKxJlu4vbtnHEuK0DI7zsHbTuvTb_Jl0kTrlQqixXx0MVyJATWKvgpdSehkrOq0YozYFZbhxg4NJoM1W8uXXsMBf-pBcxlLYVOvvfH4ZaLAuV8NA6yOijlLEhACQXw/s1600/SDC15928.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiN0paY1QAucxYMqBKxJlu4vbtnHEuK0DI7zsHbTuvTb_Jl0kTrlQqixXx0MVyJATWKvgpdSehkrOq0YozYFZbhxg4NJoM1W8uXXsMBf-pBcxlLYVOvvfH4ZaLAuV8NA6yOijlLEhACQXw/s320/SDC15928.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5484858213300061586" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgI0nabEW8xQZloYtJHNvEO8ZSTPPr96E1_BnCRaZEtghazoOTwpbslmDEFAs-V12kZuTOXKGAhPb_OqRzcvjTy0GlnDGI6zILAz9_ecGkRNqDRum2F3Tg75QwHlheWFqDxmYqvOCG7bDQ/s1600/SDC15922.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgI0nabEW8xQZloYtJHNvEO8ZSTPPr96E1_BnCRaZEtghazoOTwpbslmDEFAs-V12kZuTOXKGAhPb_OqRzcvjTy0GlnDGI6zILAz9_ecGkRNqDRum2F3Tg75QwHlheWFqDxmYqvOCG7bDQ/s320/SDC15922.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5484858194680944114" border="0" /></a>I had three quarters of it and the remaining quartet was consumed a few hours later. Gone, just like that! But I will CERTAINLY be buying it again, because it was one of the most delicious things I've eaten recently. I only wish it had a whole grain crust and that it didn't cost so much $$$. But Amy's, you are looked upon fondly and I look forward to trying your other pizzas and really, all of your other products.<br /><br />I haven't run on my leg for 3 1/2 weeks now, and it still hurts quite a bit, some of the time. (For example, I feel it heavily if I take even 3 steps to run across a street!) Does anyone with experience of a stress fracture know how long I should take off? (I can't really see a doctor because my health insurance is crappier-than-crappy but I'm assuming it's a stress fracture at this point. I know my body pretty well.)<br /><br />Well, I'm going to crawl into bed and read. It's only 10:30pm, but I'm ready to call it a night.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.mylivesignature.com/" target="_blank"><img src="http://signatures.mylivesignature.com/54487/153/E09D8766553D57ADB998057AED244B24.png" style="border: 0pt none ! important; background: transparent none repeat scroll 0% 0%; -moz-background-clip: border; -moz-background-origin: padding; -moz-background-inline-policy: continuous;" /></a>Internal Peacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09158669200874811632noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2166175721427773229.post-75526833726230265512010-06-09T08:27:00.007-04:002010-06-09T09:24:11.359-04:00Tempermental camera<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">Hah</span>! So my camera decided to give me back all my pictures today! Very funny, camera, OK? But hey, at least I have good pictures now!<br /><br />So let's jump right in to some of my food over the last few days, that I wanted to show you before. A few nights ago, I made a dinner that felt fancy to me:<br /><br />Sole fillet-<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzmiKAdeCRs-GKQf-cpf6xO_qsLozTSByBbKIurjfr_pb2jN3FSdxpXiTL-8j2Bez8MT-stIwIvy17pWCC1J53UtTOutn3eIGx5LdwykmOw3nX9qaus-7JphR7YAjYu5vWI-ump8YuOMs/s1600/SDC15808.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzmiKAdeCRs-GKQf-cpf6xO_qsLozTSByBbKIurjfr_pb2jN3FSdxpXiTL-8j2Bez8MT-stIwIvy17pWCC1J53UtTOutn3eIGx5LdwykmOw3nX9qaus-7JphR7YAjYu5vWI-ump8YuOMs/s320/SDC15808.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5480753559045115490" border="0" /></a><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">brussel</span> sprouts with hummus,<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg27hjNRT0Qs2YtgR23uxgFtLND7s4PKOzxhQNLr9zm521ILaSsuwW4XPwkwBO-WK_i9MF7eXWGXmCnKuvmquD_ZrgJqOc_zCjCVeSgyNKEp1MxCu70DbMr76izjovgGvNXQXjYyNa6jOw/s1600/SDC15829.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg27hjNRT0Qs2YtgR23uxgFtLND7s4PKOzxhQNLr9zm521ILaSsuwW4XPwkwBO-WK_i9MF7eXWGXmCnKuvmquD_ZrgJqOc_zCjCVeSgyNKEp1MxCu70DbMr76izjovgGvNXQXjYyNa6jOw/s320/SDC15829.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5480754817469822194" border="0" /></a><br />chips and salsa and of course, I rocked this white wine.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8Vtispo8bkSGyTIcLlxcaEjEgfuP7A1isEkRf272p9mpY2-6TKyU3lPto2gWCf9MUfSwsf1fr09T1ivWaoModHxKyhUSfucElELT5rAj6LLU0owd_wNU7Ky8Uc0ZjMXgTPDdO-M1SPA0/s1600/SDC15818.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8Vtispo8bkSGyTIcLlxcaEjEgfuP7A1isEkRf272p9mpY2-6TKyU3lPto2gWCf9MUfSwsf1fr09T1ivWaoModHxKyhUSfucElELT5rAj6LLU0owd_wNU7Ky8Uc0ZjMXgTPDdO-M1SPA0/s320/SDC15818.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5480754808600461858" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgTrhxNytcxhcOpjIUZ4cbE9qes-phl5MYgHqJxDhqvfH23KPUVFkWvY1NnR8sij7NCLuoQmr_VT7S7Sv23Jm7Y9f8spetgyIPnyfmv6H5Vck5zVlSJ_ZLSKmJW9dVE03eiw0ETcBd05o/s1600/SDC15827.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgTrhxNytcxhcOpjIUZ4cbE9qes-phl5MYgHqJxDhqvfH23KPUVFkWvY1NnR8sij7NCLuoQmr_VT7S7Sv23Jm7Y9f8spetgyIPnyfmv6H5Vck5zVlSJ_ZLSKmJW9dVE03eiw0ETcBd05o/s320/SDC15827.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5480757129361776514" border="0" /></a>(Don't mind the coffee pot in the upper left corner--my counter tops are small!)<br /><br />I mixed salsa with Greek yogurt (it's REALLY good, especially for cutting the heat from more spicy salsas) and dipped <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">multigrain</span> Food Should Taste Good chips into it.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxPYPfEC-DMNvHQpzIdB2AiZcQE8UnQTeqdCi6ngdwEDcWyw0aoPvR7PvKmledZfJf00GRC3Ugm65wudbtMpzLUBsHvc-8AJpHDHFSazVt3JeJRVQdurRIlpsV9AYpKD2IuD0bz94VWo8/s1600/SDC15812.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxPYPfEC-DMNvHQpzIdB2AiZcQE8UnQTeqdCi6ngdwEDcWyw0aoPvR7PvKmledZfJf00GRC3Ugm65wudbtMpzLUBsHvc-8AJpHDHFSazVt3JeJRVQdurRIlpsV9AYpKD2IuD0bz94VWo8/s320/SDC15812.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5480753768184113234" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhiAjTMtwW_1vT3p64fO3usnvHzXN3gXoOTEYMIphfsNLglKNpTdm-YKrXyQekuWMGsWrfk9VW154fXZEF1ZjQZD_QYfZeixb5y3IxET0Qix-EA1Odr_Qaux3DCEmWfLW4QxXGdrbSYasM/s1600/SDC15813.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhiAjTMtwW_1vT3p64fO3usnvHzXN3gXoOTEYMIphfsNLglKNpTdm-YKrXyQekuWMGsWrfk9VW154fXZEF1ZjQZD_QYfZeixb5y3IxET0Qix-EA1Odr_Qaux3DCEmWfLW4QxXGdrbSYasM/s320/SDC15813.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5480753776045205282" border="0" /></a>And my other extremely successful dinner of this week was Indian food! (Or at least, the easy but healthy and delicious kind!)<br /><br />I prepped a whole pan of zucchini and mushrooms and sauteed them a bit in <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">EVOO</span> and garlic:<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_bvOwLcXgRO5BBHkLuoUqZ1-fbDlSg_ynaLFV7FXh07lVFlQoWm1D5AhC72VTIYOXcQabhIsGbEAmwFC2Z8iKFRpvXB8suScavBc69b4yUugUUKyQqDfJ7zS7OUXPngDkVkeH4mEwK_Y/s1600/SDC15836.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_bvOwLcXgRO5BBHkLuoUqZ1-fbDlSg_ynaLFV7FXh07lVFlQoWm1D5AhC72VTIYOXcQabhIsGbEAmwFC2Z8iKFRpvXB8suScavBc69b4yUugUUKyQqDfJ7zS7OUXPngDkVkeH4mEwK_Y/s320/SDC15836.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5480757156464183314" border="0" /></a>Then I dumped this Kook's <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">Vindaloo</span> sauce over top of them and let it simmer for a long time (~20 minutes?)<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEheJGaKaQHquAjIguYnh90MyvFa2HaJ9xP62MeMvNzv1rGi6kuINNT2SCFga_iX7-24bGSyYFLU-JajXZGrHU1UcYfVCULv75I-MAyaM6hgML6SSxLDhtWUej9FJ4aCogG7gTDofN6MHZ8/s1600/SDC15838.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEheJGaKaQHquAjIguYnh90MyvFa2HaJ9xP62MeMvNzv1rGi6kuINNT2SCFga_iX7-24bGSyYFLU-JajXZGrHU1UcYfVCULv75I-MAyaM6hgML6SSxLDhtWUej9FJ4aCogG7gTDofN6MHZ8/s320/SDC15838.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5480757165287277906" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhS5aHt4wCPkPYxKfcW4s3S2inMk-hff_8vwizpeNr1fl3MH9bHzEWz_oV91Fab75NM3fecpZvCuyS3YcZ7wACpcmIy_1v8571KLVrCnWAfn1PFnNkPYwd2p6BjVOoGTKaSf3zPRMcmdw0/s1600/SDC15842.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhS5aHt4wCPkPYxKfcW4s3S2inMk-hff_8vwizpeNr1fl3MH9bHzEWz_oV91Fab75NM3fecpZvCuyS3YcZ7wACpcmIy_1v8571KLVrCnWAfn1PFnNkPYwd2p6BjVOoGTKaSf3zPRMcmdw0/s320/SDC15842.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5480758638648663986" border="0" /></a><br />The sauce is quite spicy, but lucky for me, I like spicy! :) <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic; color: rgb(204, 0, 0);">What's your opinion of spicy food?</span><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg656S3tslvepp9KvuqggeOb4gyxxtmZ4BpHROUDNc6sO6zdy5-o9tKr5IeWbSx5UOkn-dFKOCVLv3UnG44eqdh1wMrfdj9BxsM9jWw6zi7pFRRoePSV3dNbcOzJN_lxdw83-4F3_IGtx8/s1600/SDC15845.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg656S3tslvepp9KvuqggeOb4gyxxtmZ4BpHROUDNc6sO6zdy5-o9tKr5IeWbSx5UOkn-dFKOCVLv3UnG44eqdh1wMrfdj9BxsM9jWw6zi7pFRRoePSV3dNbcOzJN_lxdw83-4F3_IGtx8/s320/SDC15845.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5480758648621591266" border="0" /></a>Isn't it beautiful?!<br /><br />Over top of brown rice I made that was a sample in my Pittsburgh Half Marathon goody bag. It came in the most adorable little single person, 4 oz bag.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRkTc8Ab1NND8iO45BLIYIUjdXSgjwL9Nfl19V2r6n-DGYLQJG-q1FblJQYv87fF8kCb3SOe33LWxkgWFIAPoh959R8hEGYH5VcZE7G1k8_3vL_UVckEbkNZUoPOhzU5Z_CwtuEU9iaZQ/s1600/SDC15816.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRkTc8Ab1NND8iO45BLIYIUjdXSgjwL9Nfl19V2r6n-DGYLQJG-q1FblJQYv87fF8kCb3SOe33LWxkgWFIAPoh959R8hEGYH5VcZE7G1k8_3vL_UVckEbkNZUoPOhzU5Z_CwtuEU9iaZQ/s320/SDC15816.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5480754780813982146" border="0" /></a>I think I had 2 or three (small) platefuls of this:<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHOCVipu9DA6gw69UB4U_Rvzr_hREpXOvuKkG_q-9ZWwpcp7NjKr9I5CLcBCqDEKgSMJXaF5oYdI7UjZcx5q9tvIoiB9ghVHf5RcKYQJuJ_ErvNzRGeaToH0OdYdysFTk2xrq0z7DIKhQ/s1600/SDC15847.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHOCVipu9DA6gw69UB4U_Rvzr_hREpXOvuKkG_q-9ZWwpcp7NjKr9I5CLcBCqDEKgSMJXaF5oYdI7UjZcx5q9tvIoiB9ghVHf5RcKYQJuJ_ErvNzRGeaToH0OdYdysFTk2xrq0z7DIKhQ/s320/SDC15847.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5480758654553321842" border="0" /></a>'Twas delicious!!<br /><br />And most of my breakfasts lately have included smoothies, as I discovered the appeal of the Green Monster. (I'm only like 3 years late, I know...!)<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGOCCmSGL2FQQMAwvbZOgjUtY7Z7hZi9ekrfx68t0s4xTesUY9rTbMTiS6iP4MyoRYgYvvP2V-gRNPh0EeUNihb7HqYal4ui7xs3PAnX5s4FTLZ_pu-_L2CjFbxKrsJMkvbkiV6gdwRAY/s1600/SDC15832.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGOCCmSGL2FQQMAwvbZOgjUtY7Z7hZi9ekrfx68t0s4xTesUY9rTbMTiS6iP4MyoRYgYvvP2V-gRNPh0EeUNihb7HqYal4ui7xs3PAnX5s4FTLZ_pu-_L2CjFbxKrsJMkvbkiV6gdwRAY/s320/SDC15832.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5480757146828167618" border="0" /></a>Full fat cheddar (I don't buy <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">lowfat</span> cheese any more!) on whole wheat, with a blueberry green monster and coffee! Most of my breakfasts have looked exactly like that, except for sometimes I put Peanut butter on the toast if that sounds better on any given morning.<br /><br />And one slightly different breakfast (on Monday before my 40 mile bike ride) was:<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHLWJe9u780x7RTp7uC9IZdg02pXI-WVUP7r7yH3Eavh4XvqH5irtidJGZBxXxdretPMt9gZl4i8JPPCXw-rduqdGoCNg50BmMZa5xGzdwn0PjD7FmxwkAu6RsbjVBVFa-TRKSFIegNcI/s1600/SDC15850.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHLWJe9u780x7RTp7uC9IZdg02pXI-WVUP7r7yH3Eavh4XvqH5irtidJGZBxXxdretPMt9gZl4i8JPPCXw-rduqdGoCNg50BmMZa5xGzdwn0PjD7FmxwkAu6RsbjVBVFa-TRKSFIegNcI/s320/SDC15850.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5480758666149911538" border="0" /></a>Slathered in ketchup<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdy5RT-bTKVc6sbCCtLDpWq0sslCwNFdegGP8rsV5exAISPeqMhohGXeqWK4jNQ5JWN4UFPdP1sFg6tYd5n_kcI2FxXA5WRwyXBmtxHA8tyAiZz988pQwuFx-x7-yVqHbasaJK3zsDiO0/s1600/SDC15851.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdy5RT-bTKVc6sbCCtLDpWq0sslCwNFdegGP8rsV5exAISPeqMhohGXeqWK4jNQ5JWN4UFPdP1sFg6tYd5n_kcI2FxXA5WRwyXBmtxHA8tyAiZz988pQwuFx-x7-yVqHbasaJK3zsDiO0/s320/SDC15851.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5480758677799962738" border="0" /></a>OK, I'm off to shower and then go teach. Tomorrow I'm taking my car in to get the brake pads replaced! They are <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_6">SOOO</span> worn down and desperately need to be replaced!! Here's to hoping that I get to both teaching studios safely today! Luckily, I really don't have to drive all that far (probably a totally of 15 miles today) so I should be OK. UGH though--not fun having your car shudder as you try to stop!!<br /><br />Have a lovely day!<br /><br /><a href="http://www.mylivesignature.com" target="_blank"><img src="http://signatures.mylivesignature.com/54487/153/E09D8766553D57ADB998057AED244B24.png" style="border: 0 !important; background: transparent;" /></a>Internal Peacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09158669200874811632noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2166175721427773229.post-22279470621054672422010-06-08T00:04:00.005-04:002010-06-08T00:31:48.052-04:00Dying cameraUgh, my camera is either at or near the end of its life! :( Not cool camera, not cool. I swear, I've been taking great pictures of amazing food, and it just deletes them for no reason! <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">Grrr</span>!!<br /><br />I will try to resolve its issue soon (or just buy a new camera!) so that I can show you some delicious food! I mean, today I went on a 4 hour and 11 minute bike ride, so I obviously had to eat some good fuel. On the actual bike ride I just had a <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">Nugo</span> bar (a locally made protein bar that's delicious!) and 2 dates.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiH8cpqR0SnnzQ0q6R5titlg3Q1vTh2E0XJj28WbtOwSmnuGL6xnYAyo-BJQoDO0rVk8YG9QSGrARKcguo3_UhpO1Rxzp9IVpHZ2poiygPTpFFur3JuOhuiDCKRR9VmKzvLEYtH9qVEVjA/s1600/Nugo+dark.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 114px; height: 114px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiH8cpqR0SnnzQ0q6R5titlg3Q1vTh2E0XJj28WbtOwSmnuGL6xnYAyo-BJQoDO0rVk8YG9QSGrARKcguo3_UhpO1Rxzp9IVpHZ2poiygPTpFFur3JuOhuiDCKRR9VmKzvLEYtH9qVEVjA/s400/Nugo+dark.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5480250139182514146" border="0" /></a>(sorry it's so small; it's courtesy of Google Images, and they are all small)<br /><br />But for breakfast I had a lovely egg/veggie/cheese scramble, a slice of toast with white chocolate dreams PB.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUblqYjgFksGEMMKtfd5bWcA9GZvLhFlH5hR4uydQBaPHiywDRm92Je7-M_pNUCpEjHPNaaK-LlOqDjqHIOBCtFZPRQPoZJc7aCyky51quGe2FIWNsFEYdAZAa_yhKfqSFg4ewevaWIGg/s1600/white_chocolate_PB_vegan_store_shop_vivagranola.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 200px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUblqYjgFksGEMMKtfd5bWcA9GZvLhFlH5hR4uydQBaPHiywDRm92Je7-M_pNUCpEjHPNaaK-LlOqDjqHIOBCtFZPRQPoZJc7aCyky51quGe2FIWNsFEYdAZAa_yhKfqSFg4ewevaWIGg/s200/white_chocolate_PB_vegan_store_shop_vivagranola.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5480250476324576386" border="0" /></a>Magic, right there. :)<br /><br />When I came home I inhaled a leftover <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">tupperware</span> of brown rice with sauteed zucchini and Indian sauce of some sort (forget what it was called). Plus a bowl of puffed <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">kamut</span> and Optimum blueberry with skim milk and a big blob of peanut butter. Plus some more strawberries and a banana with PB. What can I say, I was hungry, and I had to immediately start teaching violin for 3 hours, so I wanted to stay nourished through it.<br /><br />After teaching, I had dinner with my friend: 3 (smallish) slices of bread with <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">EVOO</span> and spices for dipping, a bit of fish, whole wheat pasta, corn and a small side salad. Finished off with a small bowl of frozen yogurt.<br /><br />It was delicious and I feel GREAT! (It's amazing how many calories biking requires, while being much easier on my body than running!)<br /><br />OK, while I'm lame and have a dying camera, you should check out <a href="http://blueskyworld.wordpress.com/2010/06/06/tanabar-giveaway/">this giveaway for <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">Tanabars</span>.</a><br />And this one, for <a href="http://blueskyworld.wordpress.com/2010/06/05/inperspire/">cute workout towels.</a><br /><br />And hopefully I'll be less lame soon!<br /><br />For now, I'm one tired girl, so it's bed time. Good night!<br /><br /><a href="http://www.mylivesignature.com/" target="_blank"><img src="http://signatures.mylivesignature.com/54487/153/E09D8766553D57ADB998057AED244B24.png" style="border: 0pt none ! important; background: transparent none repeat scroll 0% 0%; -moz-background-clip: border; -moz-background-origin: padding; -moz-background-inline-policy: continuous;" /></a>Internal Peacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09158669200874811632noreply@blogger.com2