The Uninspired, Guilty Mind

Hi!  I really meant to post something last night.  I really wanted to but just couldn't come up with anything I wanted to write about.  I think it's because I have not been eating nutritious things and I have not been working out either and I didn't want to tattle on myself :(

I started this blog as a way to keep myself accountable in my pursuit of a healthier lifestyle so I could be a better example for my daughter.  Ommission was not part of that plan.  So here it goes:

I have not worked out since last Friday.  I realize that it has only been four days but I really think it's affecting me mentally.  First of all, I'm tired, like ridiculously tired.  All I want to do is sleep.  Second of all, I want to eat and eat and eat some more.  Third of all, my mood is a little (or a lot, depending on who you talked to) poopy.

So I have now learned that exercise is my "drug" of choice.  In the absence of my "drug", I get cranky and attempt to self-medicate with food.  I gorged myself on roast beef and gravy last night.  It was super yummy but the feeling of poopiness has remained. 

The good news is that I have a session scheduled with Patrice tonight :)  I couldn't be happier about receiving a butt-kicking!  I really hope this will elevate my mood and reinspire me to get up at 4am to get my workouts done.

What's your "drug" of choice?

~Andrea

Rainy days at the beach are the best!

Happy Hurricane Day!  My vacation is officially over and I am completely thrilled to be back home!  I was not able to go ocean kayaking because of our uninvited guest, Irene.  Alex wanted to go for a helicopter ride but had the same problem.

Instead, we decided to hit the gym.  I was extremely happy with my short run on the treadmill.  I usually keep a very modest and slow pace of 5.5 but I was rockin' it at 6.5 mph.  It really felt great :)  Alex wasn't feeling well so he left the gym early to grab us lunch while I finished my workout. 

I rocked out with some walking lunges with twenty pound weights, squat jumps, chest presses, shoulder presses, and abs galore.  Patrice would be proud!  One thing that Patrice has taught me is that you need protein after a good workout so I couldn't wait to get home to some BBQ.

Gotta keep the guns loaded!

Alex and I found a really great BBQ place that is conveniently located across the street from where we stayed.  I may go visit my sister in the future just for the chance to eat there again.  We had tried the pulled pork and loved it so Alex got some more of that plus some beef ribs.  I came in and he insisted on putting a plate together for me so I waited patiently at the table. 

He put my plate down on the table and I couldn't wait to dig in.  So I started off with a hush puppy dipped in honey, cinnamon butter....mmmmmm.......

Then he handed me a napkin.......

He got down on one knee, grabbed my right hand, and asked me to marry him.  After I switched my right hand out for the left, I said yes!!!!  He originally wanted to propose on the helicopter ride but the weather ruined that plan.  I love BBQ and I love him, so this was perfect ;)

What's your proposal story?

~Andrea

Boo Benjamin :(

Good Morning!  It's my last full day of vacation and it's bittersweet.  Vacation is always fun but there is a certain comfort that comes with going back to real world and your regular routines. 

The other day we woke up at five-in-the-freaking-morning to have pictures taken at the beach.   I was pretty excited about it because I have never had professional pictures taken of my daughter and I thought these would be beautiful.  Well, they were gorgeous but they took me out of commission for four hours in the afternoon.  Yay for vacation naps!

When I finally woke up (8 pm), we decided to grab some dinner.  We ended up at Benjamin's Calabash Seafood Buffet.  Never again.  We paid $22 per person and the most palatable things there were not seafood.  They really committed to the seafood buffet idea though; even Alex's beef tenderloin tasted like fish!  The only bonus to the buffet was getting to learn how to eat crab legs.

I'm pretty sure my college roommate Kelly would have laughed at my attempts to eat crab legs (she's from MD).  I have learned that crab is for the patient and that's not me. 

Last night, Alex and I hung out with my sister Jessica and her husband Kevin.  We started the night out at Bovine's Woodfire.  We had a great view of the marsh and the food was heaven compared to Benjamin's. 

After dinner, we headed out onto the MarshWalk, which is a boardwalk around the marsh (go figure).  There was one genius in our group that wore high heels and kept getting stuck in the cracks of the boardwalk...

Oh well, at least I looked cute while getting stuck.

It's been really great seeing my sister and her family!  I'm definitely sad to be leaving them.  Her daughter Audra is very slow to warm up to people and I felt like I was finally making progress with her.  Instead of her greeting me with "No.  Icky," she was actually saying "Hi" to me.  Oh well, back to square one.

What food tragedies have you had?

~Andrea

Vacay Update

Good Evening!  Vacation is going well :)  We went to the Pirate's Voyage on Monday and it was a lot of fun!  There was diving, pyrotechnics, singing, animals, and acrobatics.  Miss Dolly knows how to put on a show. 

We paid $43 per ticket, which was probably a little over-priced.  The dinner started out with a bland creamy vegetable soup.  Next up was a cheesy biscuit (reminiscent of Red Lobster) and half of a rotisserie chicken.  The meal was rounded out with corn-on-the-cob, mashed potatoes and a BBQ pork rib.  For dessert, they served apple turnovers.  Like I said, the show was very entertaining but the food left something to be desired.

There was also an awesome gift shop with very reasonably priced loot.  Sadly, this hat was not purchased :(  I would recommend not buying the souvenir mug before the show.  They sell them in the gift shop for $2.77, as opposed to $4.50 with a non-alcoholic beverage.  When you get into the show, the drinks are included with the ticket so I would just wait to have your soda then.

As soon as you walked in the door, the staff took your picture in front of a green screen and during the show they came around with your pictures.  They were one for $20 or two for $30.  I'm a sucker for pictures so my mom and I bought two and split the cost.  All in all, I was very glad that we went.  

Yesterday, we went to the Ripley's Aquarium.  It was no Baltimore Aquarium!  It was very small and on the expensive side. 

After the aquarium, we went to get our rock-n-roll on at the KISS coffee shop.

I would like to claim that we went here only because we had coupons but alas, coupons or no, Alex had this on his agenda.  I had an unsweetened iced tea and Julia and Alex had some non-coffee blended drinks.  They were surprisingly tasty and wouldn't discourage a visit to this tourist trap.

What have you paid way too much money for on vacation?

~Andrea

Sandy Feet

Hello from Myrtle Beach!  This morning my loved ones are still in bed snoozing away so I thought I would take this opportunity to check in and say hello!

Yesterday was pretty relaxing.  We joined my parents at Denny's for some breakfast and then hung out by the pool all afternoon.  Later, we went to Broadway on the beach and went to Wonder Works.

My brother-in-law Kevin works at the ropes course/zip line so admission was gratis!  It was a really fun place.  Alex and I went on the design-your-own roller coaster, which was pretty awesome.  The best part about that ride was the music:  Beastie Boys "Intergalactic". 

We also did the zip line and the ropes course.  These were both firsts for me :)  I really loved the zip line.  The ropes course was very stressful for me.  It was too high and I felt like I was in a constant "fight or flight" state.  My pillow never felt as good as it did last night!

This morning me and my favorite running partner went for a run on the beach.  He is struggling with an injury so we warmed up with a walk together and then I went out on my own.  In total, I ran five miles in 47 minutes!  I was very pleased with my run. 

I have decided while the idea of running on the beach seems peaceful and beautiful, it is in reality very boring and frustrating.  The scenery is great but it doesn't change and I lose interest very quickly.  I also am a huge fan of picking markers in the distance as my short-term goal while running.  On the flat beach, the markers that I picked weren't as close as I thought they were because it was so flat and things felt closer than they actually were. 

When I got back to the apartment, it was breakfast time!

Yeah, I'm on vacation and my idea of a good time is trying steel cut oats :)  I was actually shocked that the Piggly Wiggly had these so I had to buy them.  They are chewier than rolled oats but I liked them.  There is a recipe for oatmeal cookies on the box that I think I will try when I get back home.

My goal for this vacation is to not gain any weight.  I feel like attempting to lose weight on vacation is a very lofty goal.  So far, I am doing very good :) 

What's your favorite thing to do while on vacation?

~Andrea

Is it Saturday yet?

Good afternoon everyone :)  I hope your day is going well.  Mine is actually going by pretty quickly despite my extreme excitement for my vacation that starts at six o'clock today!!  (!!!)  Alex, Julia and I will be heading down to Myrtle Beach for one week.

I have been busy researching fun things to do in Myrtle Beach and I think I have found some winners!  Since my little girl really wishes that she was a little boy, we will be doing pirate stuff :)  First I will be sending her to pirate skool and then we will be heading over to


I heart Dolly

Dolly Parton's Pirate's Voyage dinner theater!  They are having a special: for $58 for adults ($30 for Julia) you get a ticket to Pirate's Voyage and a ticket to Ripley's Aquarium.  I think this is a super deal and a day o' fun :) 

Other things on the list of to do's: ocean kayaking, laziness on the beach, lazy river, shopping, children's museum, and fireworks!  I'm sooo excited!

On the top of my list of things to pack are workout clothes and running shoes.  I will also be taking my laptop with me so fear not!  I will be updating you all during my vacation :) 

Where is your favorite place to vacation?

~Andrea

Impromptu Spirit Day?

...Hello...spiritful is not how I feel today.  Yesterday? Yes.  Today? No.  I want to crawl back into bed and not come out until my booty is on a beach towel down in Myrtle Beach.  I unconsciously decided to create my own spirit day at work....you know, old school, like homecoming week....

Dress like a Homeless Person Day

Let me back it up a bit.  I went to Busch Gardens yesterday with Mike, James, Julia and Alex and had a blast. 

This is what spirit looks like

It was a ton of fun, the weather was perfect, and the company was perfect!  It was such a perfect day that we decided to end it in the most perfect way:  fireworks!  It was a lovely display that ended around 9:45pm.  Add on time to catch a tram to the parking lot and get everyone packed in the car, we were on the road at 10:40pm. 

The ride from Williamsburg to Woodbridge was uneventful but still took the customary two hours.  By the time I got into bed, it was 1AM.  I don't think I have adequately informed you of my alter-ego (Super Granny) but I haven't gone to bed that late in at least a year!  My alarm clock went off this morning for work at five-thirty and I was angry.

I think it is a combination of the anger, tiredness, and haze of sleep that ultimately caused me to choose this outfit.  I regret this choice everytime I walk by a mirror.  And I'm not really sure what came first, my outfit or my attitude.  I think it was my attitude because I remember just wanting something comfy and warm to wear because I was tired, grumpy and wanted to sleep on the bus.

So yesterday at Bush Gardens, here is what my food looked like:  pork ribs, dill pickles, sour kraut, dinner roll, bratwursts, German potato salad, beef ribs, brisket, roasted chicken, waffle fries, ice cream (with hot fudge, whipped cream and sprinkles), and cotton candy.  After eating whole grains, high fiber, and fruits/veggies, all the fatty, yummy, and sugary foods were like crack to an addict!  I have been wanting sugar all day.  I haven't even had the desire for that stuff really but that is all I have wanted today.  My prescription for that is a run and a good night's sleep!  (Jersey Shore is on tonight so the good night's sleep might have to wait until tomorrow night....)

What's your prescription for getting back on track?

~Andrea

The two week trial!!!!!

Hello again :)  Most of you already know, that I took the plunge and hired a personal trainer to help me get back on the right track back in June/July.  Things have been going pretty well with her and so far I do not regret the investment in myself.  I have eaten through half of my sessions with her and will soon be faced with the decision of whether or not to renew.

I have been toying with the idea of signing up for 30-minute sessions as opposed to the  60-minute sessions I have been doing.  Here is a breakdown of their fees:

Personal Training Fees*Buddy Training = 2 people
	Individual Training	Buddy Training*
1 60-min Session	$60.00	N/A
6 60-min Sessions	$289.00	$205.00/person
10 60-min Sessions	$408.00	$288.00/person
20 60-min Sessions 1 30-min Session 10 30-min Sessions 20 30-min Sessions	$750.00* $35.00 $300.00 $500.00*	$533.00/person
*Installment payment plan available for 20 session packages Click here for Trainer Designation Sheet              Click here for Health History Forms
Youth Personal Training Services (ages 12-15)*Buddy Training = 2 people
1 60-min Session	$45.00	N/A
6 60-min Sessions	$250.00	$175.00/person
10 60-min Sessions	$330.00	$245.00/person
20 60-min Sessions	$615.00	$430.00/person

I have a hard time breaking it down by fee per session and paying more per session even though I am paying less at the time.....do you follow?

I cancelled my personal training session for this Wednesday because I will be going to Busch Gardens with Julia and Alex.  Then on Saturday we are heading down to Myrtle Beach!  Woo hoo!  We will be down there for an entire week and it's going to be fabulous!  So basically, I will be without Patrice and left to my own devices for two weeks (this week and next). 

I am taking this time away from Patrice to do some soul and bank account searching, haha.  I think I have it in me to continue down the path of healthiness but I know that I can easily get discouraged and slip up big time.  I liked having someone to hold me accountable to my workouts.  Do I need to pay $750 for that?????  Maybe not.

How do you keep yourself accountable?

~Andrea

Just peachy!

Happy Tuesday!  I had an exciting weekend with my daughter, Julia.  We finally got to meet her little brother Austin Michael :)  She is very excited and loves being an older sister.  (Now just for the record for those of you who might not know me, Austin is Julia's Dad's child and not mine....what do we call this?  A blended family?)

To celebrate after we got home from the hospital, we made some peach cobbler!  My mom bought a million peaches through her church so it was a waste not, want not situation. 

Julia has always loved helping in the kitchen.  Peach cobbler was the perfect thing for her to help with too.  It was my job to skin the peaches and cut them in half.  Julia's job was to cut them into slices.  Hold on folks, peaches are pretty soft and she was only using a butter knife.

This was a modified recipe that turned out to be quite delicious :)

Peach Cobbler

Filling:

• 4 cups peeled and sliced fresh peaches
• 3/4 cup coconut sugar
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 1 tablespoon whole wheat flour
• 1 tablespoon chia seed
• 1 tablespoon ground flax seed

Cobbler Crust:

• 1 cup whole wheat flour
• 1/4 cup rolled oats
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 3 tablespoons coconut sugar
• 4 tablespoons coconut oil
• 2/3 cup soy milk
• 1 tablespoon coconut sugar, for topping

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.

Generously butter a 1 1/2-quart shallow baking dish. Place the sliced peaches in the dish and sprinkle with coconut sugar, cinnamon, vanilla, and flour. Mix gently and spread evenly again. Bake for 10 minutes.

Meanwhile combine all dry ingredients for cobbler crust in a bowl. Cut in the coconut oil with a pastry cutter or your fingers, to make the texture like coarse crumbs. Add soy milk and stir to form a soft dough.

Remove fruit from oven and drop rounded spoonfuls of dough on top. Sprinkle with last tablespoon of coconut sugar and return to oven. Bake until fruit is bubbly and crust topping is golden brown, about 20 minutes.

That's the worst picture ever...something must have gone wrong when I was loading it haha....maybe I will fix that later....maybe...

The cobbler was very good.  Of course, it was not the standard super-sweet cobbler but it was ooey, gooey and delicious all the same!  I really liked the topping.  It was very nutty and earthy tasting.  I would definitely make this again.

So in not-so-peachy things, I noticed as I was walking into work this morning that I had a slight twinge in my left calf.  Not legitimate pain but the feeling of some possibly brewing for the future.  As some of you may know, I was training for a half-marathon last summer and got a pain in my right leg.  Some said it was shin splints.  I went to an orthopedic surgeon that wanted to inject radioactive materials into me to determine if I had a stress fracture or not.  The end result would have been the same for shin splints:  stop running and rest.  I chose to go straight to the treatment without the radioactive diagnostics.

So anyway, I stopped training and have only recently started running again.  Is my mind playing tricks on me?  Or could something be happening that I need to address?  I have been warming up and focusing on stretching but maybe this isn't enough?

How do you run injury free?

~Andrea

Breakfast Feast

Good Saturday Evening!  My morning was amazing.  I absolutely love the weekends that my daughter Julia spends with me :)  I always take the opportunity to make delicious breakfasts.  Here is a shot of this mornings yummies:

I served up the usual eggs, spinach, onion and flax seed scramble along with southwestern hashrowns (cooked in coconut oil) and extra-lean turkey bacon.  Mmmmm!  The beautiful Asiatic Lillie's were a surprise from Alex.  I sent him out to get some eggs and he came back with those too.  I'm a lucky lady :)

Of course, I topped my eggs off with some of my chipotle goat cheese.  I love that stuff and will be making another trip tomorrow to try another flavor. 

After breakfast, we spent some time watching some classic Saturday morning cartoons.  Remember this one?

It was a great and lazy morning, for sure.  At around one o'clock, I finally got the motivation to get off the couch and go out for a run.  It was raining when I first headed out, which was actually very nice.  After about five minutes, the rain stopped and small slivers of sun started to peak through the clouds.  It was sooo muggy.  It was not fun.

I kept the run to three miles today.  I am planning on going to Burke Lake Park with the Lake Ridge Runners tomorrow morning so that will be a four and a half mile run.  I need to find a training plan for the Maymont 8-miler so I can be sure that I will be ready for the race!

Any suggestions for a training plan? 

What are you training for?

~Andrea

Goat Cheese!

Hello :)  This morning I made the most delightful and quick breakfast.  I purchased some grilled zucchini and egg souffles from Costco.  Just heat up in the microwave and eat!  I topped it off with some delicious chipotle and green onion goat cheese...mmmm.....  I got the cheese from the farmer's market and I will definitely be going back for more!

So it's been a miserable fail on the ten o'clock bedtime.  In an attempt to get some extra sleep under my belt, I have been sleeping in until *gasp* five o'clock!  So needless to say, I'm still very tired.  I did not help this situation by jumping on the treadmill at quarter-after nine tonight.  The good thing is that I ran five miles!  It was miserable and boring, but I did it :)

I'm hoping the weather stays cooler for the weekend so I can get out and run outside.  I definitely prefer pounding the pavement rather than the rubber belt.  Thank goodness tomorrow is Friday!!

What are your plans for the weekend?

~Andrea

Ode to my Favorite Running Partner

Hey!  I hope your day was awesome!  I had a great day myself.  I registered for a race :)

Source



I'm very excited about it.  My dad will also be running the race with me.  My dad is the reason why I run.  I still remember running the last mile with my dad at the Cincinnati Flying Pig Marathon.  I was so proud of him.  I have always loved having that common ground with my dad. 

Another reason why I love my dad is because he did this:

Look at my beautifully mowed lawn!!  It's Christmas in August!  Apparently my dad took a peak at my blog and decided to come over and mow my backyard :)  I'm a very lucky girl.  It was a wonderful surprise and perfect way to end my day. 

How was your day?

~Andrea

*Hot Yoga*

Good morning!  Last night was an incredible night's sleep after getting my booty kicked by Patrice.  I have to admit that I am still not achieving my goal of a ten o'clock bedtime.  I just feel like I have too much to do to be going to bed at ten. 

I was a bundle of negative emotions last night.  I was very stressed about my current situation with my trainer.  It was important to me to make sure that she was available during times that were convenient for me.  I made sure that was the case before I gave her tons of my hard-earned money.  I was under the impression that we had agreed on Wednesdays and Saturdays.  We have trained on Wednesday only when I have that day off and can workout in the morning and we have maybe trained one or two Saturdays.  She always is out of town or attending a meeting or something.  I have known her for quite some time and I feel that she is taking advantage of that.....plus, for the most part, I'm a pushover.

So I was frustrated with Patrice because I wanted to train on Saturday but she is going to be out of town (again).  On top of that, I got into my negative mindset and started focusing on all things wrong.  My house is a mess.  My yard needs to be mowed.  I have tons of laundry to do.  I am not getting into bed by ten o'clock.  Whine, whine, whine.  Blah, blah, blah.  So today, I will be making an action plan of the things that I need to get done to get back on track.

In other efforts to calm my frustrations, I bought a four sessions of hot yoga for $30!  I think this is a very awesome price.  It's up in Reston so that is kind of a bummer but my friend Jen I think lives close and goes there too :)

Source

I'm really excited to try this out!!  Click here for the bloomspot deal.  Hurry though, it's only good for another two days :)

How do you relieve stress?

~Andrea

Successful Shopping Trip in my Closet!

Hello Everyone!  I had a wonderful and pleasant surprise this weekend.  I got some things that I had ordered online on Saturday :)  As per my silly girl ways, I ordered a dress that was on clearance but not in my size.  Truly I wanted the 14 but all they had was a 12.  I decided to go for it anyway.  I was very satisfied to see that the dress fit!!  So that gave me another idea....

I decided to start trying on the treasure trove of clothing that were in my drawers.  All the clothing that I have been storing for "someday" when I lost the weight and could fit into them again.  Guess what today is.....SOMEDAY!  Woo me!

And now for some embarrassing details....The pants were something that I purchased while down at FLETC.  My child was far away from me and I thought I could keep the white clean.  And so I did.  I felt that these would be an OK choice for work today and since they fit again, I was more than happy to wear them!  Within thirty minutes of being at work, I dropped my half-eaten plum in my lap :(  I'm a mother (and a clumsy one at that), I should have known better.  Another embarrassing detail:  That shirt has been sitting in my drawer with tags and size label still on it for approximately two years.  I'm awesome. 

Anyway, here's a quick run down of my weekend:   Burke Lake Park, farmer's market, and scrapbooking! 

And that's what a perfect weekend looks like.

What's your perfect weekend?

~Andrea

Sweet Slumber

Good Morning!  I hope you all had a wonderful night's sleep last night.  I felt like I really slept well last night despite the very excited four year old in my bed.  I fell asleep around ten and when I woke up this morning, I felt fantastic!

I have been having difficulty getting up in the morning for the past two weeks or so.  I have been a chronic abuser of the snooze button.  I was thinking that I was just getting burnt out on the 4am workouts, so I have been allowing myself to sleep in and workout in the evenings (or perhaps just taking more rest days than normal). 

After last night's beautiful sleep, I have come to the realization that I have not been getting enough sleep!  Throughout this getting healthy process, I have been having a lot of DUH moments and this is one of them.  So with that in mind, I am challenging myself to go to bed at ten o'clock all of next week.  This will be more than a challenge since Jersey Shore is back on TV :(  Oh well, that's what DVR is for...

What DUH moments have you had?

~Andrea

Sleepover

Good Evening all!  Tonight is a very special night because my best friend is having a sleepover with me!!!  She's been gone for a while but she's back now and we are partying!

Aren't we cute?  I told Julia that if she was very good and listened to Gma all day, that she could sleep in my bed tonight.  Gma said she was an angel and so we having a fun night!

I made us pizza with ground turkey, sweet peppers, goat cheese and whole wheat crust a la Biggest Loser Flavors of the World Cookbook .  It was pretty tasty. 

While I was making the pizza, Julia was hard at work creating armor for us.  At first she was making us party hats but somehow decided body armor was better.  She created wrist bands, arm bands, finger shields, toe shields and boots.  Here are her fancy boots:



Once dinner was finished, we made the world's smallest sundaes.  Two teeny spoonfuls of ice cream, a little chocolate magic shell and a dollop of whipped cream.  Mmmm...  What's the perfect pairing with ice cream?  A Disney movie!  We watched the first thirty minutes of The Incredibles :) 

I will have to get to bed now because there will be some repentance HIIT tomorrow at 4am!

Good Night!

~Andrea

I bleed purple

Hello!  I have either caught the attention of fellow Dukes or Emily with this title :)  Yesterday just seemed to be very purple for some reason.  It started out very delicious too!

This was the most amazing smoothie I have made so far!  I put frozen peaches, frozen blueberries, chia seeds, almond milk, spinach and.....da da da daaaaaah....

Oh my yummy!!  I've never tried this protein powder (in a purple-y bag) before so of course, I bought it from Costco!  No regrets.  This powder mixes so much better than my last one and tastes so deliciously vanilla-y.  I'm sooo tempted to run back and grab the chocolate too :)   I was a little sad that I was running late getting ready for work because I loved that smoothie so much!  I wish I had time to really enjoy it.

Anyway, my workout was pretty intense yesterday morning.  I did the Jackie Warner HIIT workout on the treadmill.  Usually I do it only four times in total but yesterday I decided to do it one more time for luck.  I was exhausted and sweaty!  Both signs of a great workout! 

After my workout and delicious smoothie, it was time to get to work...

I had at least one admirer of my outfit ;)

What color was your day?

~Andrea