Monday, June 22, 2015

A Day in the Life

A Day Inside My Head
(I apologize)

Inner Athlete: Woo Hoo its Monday! Got my lunch pack packed, my shoes tied tight! 
Inner fat kid: You should stop for Donuts on the way in, who would know?
Me: Mmm donuts.... NO! NO! NO! I didn't spend an hour in the kitchen yesterday to go pay somebody to make me breakfast. 

Inner Athlete: Sitting inside all day sucks. 
Inner fat kid: Did you know this chair spins?! We could spin all day, watch some netflix, and order pizza!
Me: Work. Work.Pizza. Running.Work. Vacation. Work. Cold beer on vacation. Ironman. Work

Inner Athlete; Yay Lunch! 
Inner Fat Kid: Yay Lunch!
Me: Yay Lunch! 
Inner Fat Kid: Wait a second... this is salad!!! Boo Lunch

Inner Athlete: Could you please invest in a treadmill desk?
Inner Fat Kid: I noticed there are frosted sugar cookies in the breakroom. Free Cookies. Frosting. 
Me: Work. Work. Cookies. Treadmill. Work. 

Inner Athlete: Finally! Sunlight! 
Inner Fat Kid: I miss the spinning chair
Me: Sweet Baby Jesus its like the surface of the sun outside. C'mon AC...

Inner Athlete: So what delicious Ironman worthy food are we going to cook up tonight? More chicken Pitas? A salad? Maybe some eggs?
Inner fat kid: You know there is cold beer in the fridge and barros is across the street right? Its your rest day you totally earned this!
Me: Does Pita Jungle deliver? Oh wait, I never made the chicken kabobs... I have some bacon I need to use, better wrap it around the chicken. 

Inner Athlete: There is a lot of smoke outside
Inner Fat Kid: I smell Bacon
Me: SHIT SHIT SHIT 

Inner Athlete: Yay Bacon! And veggies that taste like smoke!
Inner Fat Kid: seriously?
Me: I can make this work still. 

Inner Athlete: My body is a temple and I refuse to eat those smoke filled veggies
Inner Fat Kid: Just peel off the bacon and eat that 
Me: Well. Shit. Better make something for Scott

Monday, June 15, 2015

#FoodPrepSunday #It'sNotRealIfYouDontHastagIt #hashtag

Hi everyone! I am still learning the art of hashtagging, if its an art  I never perfect I will be ok with it! 
I had a couple of people request some of my recipes, here are a few that use as a basis of many meals. Let me know if you like them. Thanks! 

4 requirements for my meal prep... Portable, Cost Efficient, Tasty, and Healthy

Baked Egg
This is one of my favorite breakfast recipes because it’s easy, portable, and holds up well throughout the week.  You can adapt the base recipe and add whatever ingredients sound good to you. I have done artichoke, sundried tomato and feta (seriously awesome), ham and cheese, Spinach sausage and mushroom, the possibilities are endless!

This week I did a Beef Chorizo, bell pepper, and cheese baked egg.

1Lb lean beef chorizo from Sprouts  $2.08 (on sale)
16 eggs (.25/egg) you can also use one of the big egg white cartons
1 Green Bell Pepper ($0.88)
1 Red Bell Pepper ($0.88)
8oz shredded sharp cheddar (On sale $1.25)

This makes 8 servings at $1.09/serving. This can be cut into smaller pieces for little humans but Scott and I have big appetites. I usually supplement this with a green smoothie, toast with avocado, or a bowl of fruit.

Directions
Heat your oven to 425 degrees
Brown the chorizo on the stove until almost all the way cooked, set aside
Chop your bell peppers into small chunks
Crack the eggs into a big bowl and beat until all the yolks are broken and everything is mixed well.
Spray a 9x13 pan with Pam
Spread the chorizo and bell peppers across the bottom and then top with the egg.
Bake at 425 for 45 min, the egg will set and no longer wiggle when you gently shake the pan.
At 45 minutes pull the pan out, top with the cheese and place back in the oven for 5-10 minutes.
(I usually turn my oven off at this time and let it finish baking while the oven cools down)

I leave it in the pan and cut it a slice at night for the next day.


Meatballs

I will do my best to estimate amounts, this is a tweaked family recipe that I have made as long as I can remember and I don’t use measuring tools anymore. I love using meatballs because they are easy to eat at work, I can just cut them with my fork and dive right in.

2Lbs Ground meat of preference, I usually use chicken or turkey because its readily available.
½ cup finely shredded Parmesan
1 cup bread crumbs
1 egg (you can use 2 egg whites as a sub to cut a few calories)
I toss seasonings in randomly. This week I used Italian seasoning, salt, and pepper.

Mix together and roll into meatballs, 2 lbs usually gives me 16 meatballs.
Spray a large frying pan with your oil of choice (I love the new Pam coconut oil spray)
Let the pan get hot and then start adding your meatballs, the pan should be hot enough to sear the meatball.
Keep turning until all sides are browned. You can let them finish cooking in a pot of hot marinara or place a lid over the meatballs and let them keep cooking.
You want the internal temp of the meatball to be at least 165 degrees, you can check using an internal meat thermometer.


Breakfast Burritos

I am still on the hunt for the perfect tortilla. I want one that will hold up, taste good, and not be filled with lard. I am filtering my way through the hippie tortillas at Sprouts, it’s a hard job but somebody has to do it! Heads up, this makes 5 Lauren sized burritos (mfp est cal is 450/burrito) on large tortillas.

5 tortillas (pick your favorite)
1 carton egg whites (again you can always use whole eggs)
1 can drained and rinsed black beans (patting them dry helps too)
2 tomatoes chopped
Sausage of choice (leaving this one open, sometimes I use chicken sometimes I go right for the pork! You can also use ham or bacon or leave it out all together) should be around 16oz of meat. If you choose to go the bacon route, think 1/2 slices per burrito. 
8 oz cheese (give or take)

Brown  and crumble your sausage, set to the side
Cook your scrambled egg whites in a large pan, add in the sausage, tomato, and black beans.
Mix together until every bite of egg has some sidekick yumminess with it

Lay out the tortilla, scoop about 1 cup of egg mixture in the center, add ¼ cup of shredded cheese, and roll that bad boy up!
Wrap in foil or saran wrap. You can freeze or throw in the fridge, they last about 4 days in the fridge before the cheese gets weird.
Reheat in the morning or lunch or dinner or all three if you are feeling extra burrito-y and enjoy!
I put mine unwrapped in the microwave for 2 minutes (increase time if frozen)

Wednesday, June 10, 2015

The Battle Rages On...also a cameo by Amy Poehler.

I battled the fat kid all day long. 
Not in the usual sense, I wasn't trying to shove my face full of pizza and donuts at every turn. 
Don't get me wrong.. I was HUNGRY.
I ran hills last night and I could have happily dove face first into whatever was readily available. 
However I made sure to pack my prepped foods so I was able to stay the MF'ing course. 
Today wasn't about telling the fat kid no. 
No, no pizza for me thanks. 
No, Beer isn't really my thing. 
 It was about telling that little asshole to shut the f*$k up. 
Anxiety, fear, and self doubt were the name of the game today. 
That little voice in my head was screaming today. 
I am not fast enough
I am not skinny enough
I am not working hard enough
I will never follow through with anything
I will never finish an Ironman
I just wanted the voice to go away. 
I don't give a shit if I am not fast enough. I am out there pushing my body and working to be faster. 
Fuck. Skinny. 
Yeah I said it. 
I am strong, I am healthy, and I am working on tailoring my birthday suit. 
That stupid number on the stupid scale doesn't define me. 
It doesn't make me less of a person. 
It doesn't tell you who I am. 
I am a strong badass woman. 
Yeah I wear a fanny pack when I run and I own something called Hoo Ha Ride Glide. 
I still Tri 
(see what I did there)
I will finish an Ironman. 
I will finish if I have to drag my legs behind me like a dog. 
Hell or high water
Blood, road rash, exhaustion, knee pain, sunburns, and black toe nails. 
I will finish.
That little voice inside my head just told me that I just jinxed myself and my finish. 
I am going to crush that stupid voice like a bug. 

The battle rages on. 
Its not always physical. 
Sometimes the mental aspect is worse. 

When in doubt, listen to Amy Poehler. 

smart-girls-0

(Side note, go buy her book. It's amazing. I laughed, cried, and snorted)

amy-poehler-12.1

Thursday, June 4, 2015

Donut Do That

I made a very, very, very bold statement today. 
I am not being held to it... yet. 
I kind of want to take it back
I kind want to see if I can
I know I can finish an Ironman if I put everything I have into it. 
I am not sure I can do this. 
5 months isn't long at all right?
You guys will all help me with the detoxing and shakes?
Okay. Ok. Okaaay. 
I promised if one of my friends signed up for IMAZ70.3 that I would... 
Give up pizza and donuts until after the race.

I know. 
I know. 

Its not set in stone yet. 
I could take it back 
I am a little tempted to see if I can do it. 
But fa reals... no pizza after a 10+mile run? 
No pizza to go with my beer after a 50+ mile ride?
No maple long johns?

I may have really jumped off the deep end this time. 

Monday, June 1, 2015

Living the Sherpa Lifestyle

As a triathlete and triathlete wife I am currently in a cocoon of sherpa bliss. 
What is a Sherpa? 
Well in the Triathlon world it's usually the athletes spouse/parent/significant other/person who lost a bet who will be helping that athlete carry a lot of shit around (Including but not limited to bikes, bags, bike pumps, more bags, sunscreen, wet suits, and more bags), they scream and jump up and down when they see the athlete on the course, they will drive the athlete to the nearest drive through after the race, they come up with awesome signs, and they will listen to every detail of the course including that 3rd bathroom stop that didn't go as planned. 
I really enjoy sherpa-ing for Scott 

One of the best things about being the sherpa is that you are not racing but that's also one of the worst parts.
Watching him train day in and day out, two a days, 100 mile bike rides, and ice baths don't really get me ramped up for my race in October but walking through Ironman Village or watching athletes get their transitions ready really makes me wish I was suiting up with them. 
So why am I in Sherpa heaven? 
Its 3 weeks until Ironman Coeur D'Alene 
Which means I get 5 days by a lake, a really beautiful lake. 
I also don't have to run 26 miles so that always makes me happy. 
However after a few days of sherpa-ing by a lake and out of the heat I get to start my training program for IMAZ70.3
The day we get back I get to plant my ass on a bike. 
There are no take backs, no excuses, no bullshit. 
I am scared. 
I am nervous
I am excited
I am scared
I am putting a lot of trust in myself and that is hard. 
I am embracing the suck
I am dreaming of post training pizza
I am really scared 

There are so many miles between me and the finishers shoot in October. 
Miles that I am excited to take on
miles that lead to pizza 
Miles that lead to amazing things. 

I have sat through 3 soon to be 4 Ironman events and there is really nothing that compares. 

3 weeks until I leave the safe and warm cocoon of my sherpa lifestyle. 
I can't wait to see whats on the other side!