First Run In My New Shoes

Today after another Monday, I headed to the gym to run on the treadmill since it was so gross out today.  I started out with 15 minutes of ab work since my arms and legs are a bit sore from my weights workout yesterday.  Then I was ready to run in my new Brooks Adrenaline running shoes!! I completed this interval workout and finished 3.5 miles.

At the end of the first section I was right around 3 miles so I completed the last .5 miles increasing the incline by 1 each 0.1 mile.  This kicked my booty but my shoes rocked!!! I love them, it's official.  I'm hoping to get a run in outside tomorrow. It's supposed to be around 60 but windy.  Even though I hate running in the wind, it might be the only chance until the weekend to get a good run in.

Dinner:

Chicken fajitas: Chicken, peppers, and onions cooked in fajita seasoning topped with cheese, guacamole, black beans and later added spinach.  YUM. 

Matt is taking the reins with dinner tomorrow night and grilling up some steaks.  Matt loves him some steak so I humor him and cook it sometimes.  I don't know what it is but I never crave steak anymore. I don't crave steak or burgers and I haven't since college. I'll probably have a little steak but mainly stick to the sides.  I'm planning on making a variation of this southwest black bean salad from skinnytaste and some healthified mac and cheese to go with our meal. 

Time to go hang with my guys:

Sleepy little man.

PS my mom just gave me four over ripe bananas.  Anyone out there know any good recipes I could make with them? Right now I'm thinking of making whole wheat pumpkin banana bread. 



Pampering

Today I took off from work to prepare for the big bridal shower tomorrow.  For some reason I was up at the crack of dawn this morning...and I mean literally. I was wide awake at 6am.  Maybe it's because I was looking forward to my breakfast so much.  I made the batter for Carrot N Cake's pumpkin protein pancakes and couldn't wait to throw them in the pan and cook them up.

I put some greek yorgurt in the middle of my pancakes and some peanut butter and banana slices on top. Yum! After a quick trip to the grocery store I showered up and headed over to my parent's house to meet my mom and MOH for some errands.  We went out to the mall to pick up some flowers from cosco.  Stef and I grabbed lunch at Saladworks before going to get our nails done! I think the last time I got my nails done was .... 3 years ago, and it was only b/c I had a gift card.  I am usually not one to pamper myself, but I thought hey, why not.

I went with the brightest color I could possibly find.  It's actually more of a coral than it shows in the picture.  When I got home Matt and I took Champ to the park for a hike.

Yes I am rocking a scarf while hiking, don't judge.

The trail we followed actually followed a frizbee golf course.  We hiked all 18 holes and finished 2.3 miles.  We ran home, dropped off Champ and went out for date night.  Matt told me I could pick so I chose one of my favorites, Home Grown.

I got the falafell platter and it was delicious! I chowed the entire thing.  Right now we are just sitting down to watch Talladega Nights with a peice of dark chocolate with some peanut butter on top. Perfect end to the day.

I'll be waking up nice and early tomorrow to sneak in a run before my bridal shower! Can't wait!



Hikes and Crafting

When Matt and I woke up this morning we were both pretty sore from our workouts this week. We decided to take it easy and take Champ to a local park for a hike. 

On our way!!

When all was said and done we hiked 3.5 miles in just over an hour!  I was beat when we got home, but I had some wedding stuff on the agenda for today.  First off I finished my candy buffet sign by stringing it all together and doing a test hang in our kitchen.

Then I moved on to signs for the back of our chairs during the reception.

These took me a few hours.  After I was done I was definitely in need of a break.  Matt and I met our friend for a quick game of mini golf.  I didn't take many pictures, only one...

My hole in one!! I'm purple, obviously. Mini golf can be a dangerous sport for those around me.  I have come close to taking out a competitor or two with a rogue ball.  I am well known for being super competative and mini golf is no different. When Matt and I were on spring break my sophomore year of college we went to play mini golf with some friends.  I was winning for the first half of the game and then I started losing and I was not happy. I may have taken an aggessive swing at the ball and it may have almost hit my friend in the head...oops. We finished the game today with no injuries, thank you very much.

And the food highlight of my day was lunch: black bean, spinach and cheese quesadilla with lots of hummus for dipping.

Matt and I are just sitting down for some wine and a movie. We have a busy day ahead of us tomorrow!



Missing Champers and Night "Out"

Today around 4:30 we dropped off Champ at the farm where he'll stay while we are in Pittsburgh for the weekend.  He has lots of room to run around and a lot of doggy friends to play with, but I still miss him tons. This is the first time we've had to take him somewhere to be watched while we are out of town. The thing I miss the most:

Champ's perch. This is one of Champs favorite places in the house. He loves perching up and looking out the window. Except....about 75% of the time he goes to his perch HE FARTS!! haha.  He's such a little weirdo, but it crackes me up. 

Oops he looks mad at me for catching him farting at his perch.

After we dropped off Champ we drove to UD for a run around campus. I finished 4.15 miles in about 37 minutes.  Then we went to dinner on main street to refuel!

Bathroom pictures are the coolest.

We went to this place called Cheeburger Cheeburger...I know what you are thinking. Where are the S's?? I have no idea. The best part about this place is you can customize everything your way for free. All toppings are free including on salads

Invent your own salad, yes please!

Grilled chicken salad with tomatoes, craisins, almonds, cucumbers, carrots, pineapple and guac with balsalmic dressing. AMAZING.  I love giant salads. There was obviously no way I finished this thing, but I made a pretty good dent.

Now Matt and I are packing and getting ready for our trip tomorrow. We'll be up bright and early to get on the road! Have a good weekend!



Running With The Dog...Work In Progress

Today after work I headed to the grocery store, aka my least favorite time of the week.  Luckily I had a handful of coupons with me when I walked in, and they had some great sales this week including 10 Chobani for $10!! This should keep me stocked for a while ten days.  When I got home I took Champ out for a run.  This is my second attempt at running with him. My first idea was to do the 5k loop in our neighborhood.  Champ started out strong pulling me the whole way for the first 10 minutes. He definitely went out too strong because he started to crash. I was dragging him most of the way after this. When we hit 25 minutes of walking/running I decided to head home because he was panting like woo.  I haven't run with animals much so I'm not sure what I should take as him being actually tired or just a little tired.  Either way we got 2 miles in and we definitel bonded lol.

When I got home I fed Champ and then finished off my workout with one round of these workouts. Do each for 1 minute with 15 seconds rest in between.

I originally found this workout at Gothextramile.

All in all with the walk/run and weights workout I got about 40 minutes in. Then it was time for dinner:

Leftover buffalo chicken from last night on a big salad with roasted sweet potatoes and veggies.

One more work day until our trip to Pittsburgh! Can't wait!!