Cardio Blitz - day 2 - 48 min

The stairmaster was open when I arrived at the gym this AM so I took advantage. I did 25 min of cardio with a 5 min cool down. I then jumped on the bike and did 15 min with a 3 min cool down. Those last 6 min of the bike were a struggle, but I got it done.

Cardio Blitz - day 1 - 43 min

So this morning, as apart of cardio blitz, I did 43 minutes of cardio. I did 25 minutes on the elliptical and 15 minutes on the stairmaster with a 3 minute cool-down on the stairmaster.

My favorite machine, at the gym, is the stairmaster. I would have preferred to do most of the time on there, but there was a lady on it when I arrived. There are actually 2 stairmaster machines, but one is really old and awkward to use. It used to be that when I arrived at the gym, somewhere around 5 am, no one was on the stairmaster. Over the last few months a lady has been on there when I get there at 5, she must get there when the gym opens or shortly thereafter because she gets off somewhere between 5:05 and 5:10. Depending on my timing, I sometimes appear at the machines when she's exiting. Sweet. Other times, I don't. In those instances, I adjust. Like today.

Cardio Blitz

To combat holiday weight gain last year I did strictly cardio during the month of December. At the start of 2010, I hadn't gained any weight due to holiday eating, drinking, & gallivanting. I hoping for the same this year.

Starting today and concluding with the last week in December, my aim is 4 days of at least 40 minutes of cardio. I'll do a combination of the bike, elliptical, stairmaster, and arc trainer. I'm also going to include running as I'm going to do a 10K come February. So 2-3 days per week, I'll get out on the road to run 30-40 minutes at a time.

I'm also going to attempt to blog regularly (as I noticed I hadn't been in this space since late October!) over the next few weeks noting my progress. I probably should have stepped on the scale this morning, but I forgot. I'll try to do so tomorrow morning.

Stomach Shrinking

I feel like I'm channeling Yum Yucky with this title, but I think she's right when she speaks of stomach shrinking! Over the past 2 days, my dinners have consisted of appetizer portions at restaurants and they have totally caused me to feel extremely full. I don't think they were extremely large appetizer portions, but more than enough for me. Amazing. Change happens with healthy habits.

On track

Despite, changing my routine, I'm still on track to reach my goal of 40 miles for October. As you can see, from the image above, I'm 16 miles from 40 and I still have 2 weeks to go. My running goal is up to 12 miles during the weeks. So, I got this!

Changing it up

This past week I decided to change up my workout routine. Over the past few months, I've been going hard with workouts 5-6 days per week with double workouts 2-3 of those days. Generally, my schedule looked like this:

Sunday - 4 mile run/walk
Monday - gym (weights)
Tuesday - gym (cardio & weights); run/walk in the evening
Wednesday - gym (all cardio)
Thursday - gym (cardio & weights); run/walk in the evening
Friday - gym or rest day
Saturday - 4 mile run/walk

That was a lot and I could feel that I needed a change. So I did. Here's my new routine:

Sunday - 4 mile run/walk
Monday - gym (10 min cardio & weights)
Tuesday - 3-4 mile run/walk
Wednesday - gym (20 min cardio & weights)
Thursday - 3-4 mile run/walk
Friday - gym (10 min cardio & weights)
Saturday - rest

Thoughts after doing that routine this week: pretty good. It did feel funny not heading out for a run this AM, but I was determined to let my body rest. I'll follow this routine at least until the end of the year.

Victory! 45 miles!

With 4 days to spare I logged 45 miles in 4 weeks! Yay!

Eggplant Casserole Redux

This past Friday night I made my first ever Eggplant Casserole. It turned out okay, but could have been better. I gave it another go on Sunday and it came out much better. In fact, this is how I'll make it with meat from now on:

2 eggplants
1 lb ground meat (I use the extra lean)
onions
green onions
garlic
bellpepper
seasoning (I use Tony Chachere's)
plain breadcrumbs

Bring large pot of water to boil. Cut eggplant in half, then in slices. Peel eggplant. Place in boiling water for 10-15 min or until tender when pierced with a fork. Remove from water reserving 1 cup of the liquid.

Brown ground meat in a skillet with onions, green onions, bellpepper, and seasoning. Drain.

Combine eggplant, ground meat, and bread crumbs in a 9 x 13 pan until you reach your desired consistency. You may need to add more seasoning to taste. Add some of the liquid from the boiling of eggplant as needed to add some moisture to the dish. Top with a thin layer of breadcrumbs.

Bake at 350 degrees for 30-45 minutes or until you feel it is set.

Enjoy!

At some point, I'm going to add some mushrooms to this dish. I think I'll cook the mushrooms with the meat when I do.

No Comparison

The walking/running I do is a means of staying healthy for me. Personally, I'm not trying to win a 5K, 10K, or any other race. Therefore, I don't compare myself to what others do. I'm not interested in competing with what others are doing. Leading a healthy lifestyle is my aim.

I only make one comparison, to an earlier, unhealthier me.

I think about what I couldn't do in 2002:

• walk a mile
• run a mile
• walk up 5 flights of stairs without stopping
• complete a 5K
• complete a 10K
• spend 40 min on the stairmaster
• zero push-ups

To what I can do in 2010:

• walk a mile
• run a mile
• walk up 5+ flights of stairs without stopping
• 5K done
  
• 10K done
• 40+ min on the stairmaster
• 10 push-ups (though I don't like doing them!)
• and many other things....

Overall, I'm really happy with what I have accomplished and what I continue to do regarding leading a healthy lifestyle. Therefore, I don't need to compare myself to others. I know what I did and I'm doing is working. That is all that matters.

Eggplant Casserole

Over the last few years, I've been obsessed with all things eggplant.

Fried eggplant.
Eggplant parmigiana.
Baked eggplant.
Eggplant chips.

You name it! If I'm at a restaurant and eggplant is on the menu, that's what I'm having. Over a year ago one of my colleagues brought an eggplant dish to work, eggplant casserole. Yum! I had to know how to make it. Her mom sent me her recipe, and I'm just now trying it out. I was always intimidated by the sheer idea of picking out an eggplant. From what I've been told, you just pick one up. There's no rhyme or reason to selecting one. So that's what I did. Here's the recipe as I prepared it tonight:

Ingredients
Eggplant
1 lb ground meat
breadcrumbs

Cut eggplant in half, then cube. Peel.



Bring a pot of water to boil. Place eggplant cubes in water. Boil until tender, about 10 min.



Brown ground meat with onions, green onions, & garlic. Season meat to taste. Drain.

Drain eggplant in colander.



Combine eggplant, ground meat, & breadcrumbs in a casserole dish. Add more seasoning to taste.



Top with a thin layer of breadcrumbs.



Bake 30-45 minutes or until top and sides have browned.



Here's the recipe without images:

Eggplant Casserole
1 eggplant
1 lb ground meat (I use extra lean)
breadcrumbs

Boil a pot of water.
Cut eggplant in half, then into slices. Peel and cube.
Place cubes of eggplant in boiling water.
Boil until tender when pierced with a fork. Approximately 10 minutes. Drain.

Brown ground meat. Season with onions, green onions, garlic, and seasoning (I use Tony Chachere's). Drain.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Combine eggplant, ground meat, and bread crumbs in a casserole dish. Add additional seasoning to taste. Top with thin layer of breadcrumbs.

Bake for 30-45 min or until top & sides are done.

Changes I will make next time:

• use 2 eggplants for 1 lb of ground meat, I wanted more eggplant in it
• add more seasoning (onion, garlic, green onion, and bellpepper)

I wonder how good this would be with mushroom instead of ground meat. I think I'll try it with 1/2 pound of meat and add mushrooms to fill it out. Just a thought...

15 more minutes

My clock chimes at 4:30 am. Yesterday morning I turned it off and went right back to sleep. I awakened again at 4:45. I emerged from the bed, dressed, and headed to the gym. I got in a good workout, and felt fine the remainder of the day.

Clearly, I needed those 15 additional minutes. Sometimes you just have to listen to your body.

I listened to my body again this morning and decided it needed a rest from the gym. Yes, I was packed for the gym and ready to go when I headed to dreamland, but I knew at that point I was going. My body was tired and needed the rest.

Right now I feel refreshed.

500 Miles!

Okay, I had no idea I was close logging 500 miles total since I began using Nike +. Well, I crossed that threshold with the run on Monday evening. Go me! Here's my congratulatory video from Nike +: