Category Archives: duathlon

Mardis Gras and jam packed day!

We packed a lot of things into today!  Absolutely stunning weather today.  If I hadn’t hurt my back, we would have been biking miles and miles today.  Oh well.  I started off my day with some banana chocolate oats!

Cooked with a mashed banana, 5 grams of dark cocoa powder, and 2 egg whites.  Topped with some nutzzo.  And plenty of cafe au lait!

Then we headed out to do our duty:

We did this for our nieces at the health fair scheduled at the school.  What we do for family, I tell you! 😀

After leaving a pint behind, we hit up the Sports & Fitness Expo in Saratoga.  If I can’t actually be active right now, I can at least look at active stuff 🙂

This was pretty neat!  We talked to a lot of exhibitors about different biking routes in other parts of the county we live in.  We have some new places to scope out!  Lots of cool biking jerseys:

We were hungry at this point, so we ate some gumbo at the Esperanto stand to get prepped for later.

Plus we split this tiny Larabar:

Then popped back into the expo.  I was totally drooling over some of the bikes, and for the second time in about a week, I touched a $10,000 bike!  I’m gonna start wanting one pretty soon…..

I also saw these first hand:

These seem exactly like swim/water shoes, only with each toe housed.  They do not look like they would fit my toes.

There are so many different kinds of races going on this year from 5K to marathons, to triathlons and trail runs.  Too many things!  I totally have the itch to get out there now.

I had forgotten it was Mardi Gras day in Saratoga today (or I would have worn my beads).  So, we decided to stroll downtown.  Or rather walk really, really slow.  I’m still limping a bit, but at least I can walk around.  Yay!  Mardi Gras had some music – check it out, slide guitar!

This group was bluegrass, which is too close to country for me, but they started with a Django Rienhardt tune, which made me so excited!  John called it country fried Django LOL!  Then they got too country, so we went on to some samples.  Many restaurants serve little cajun/creole samplings for $1 and you can vote on what you like.  We went the dessert route today.  First up was a bananas foster bread pudding:

The pudding itself was okay, but the sauce was really good.  I am licking my cup:

Then we needed a drink and I needed a rest, so stopped off for coffee and a bit of reading at Borders:

Then a couple more samples:

This was really good, although a bit eclectic.  The orange creme anglaise was the best part.

Then another sample, which was quite big, so John and I split it:

This brownie had bourbon whipped cream on top. Yummy!  While not really cajun/creole, this was the freshest and best tasting of the 3, so that is what we voted for.

By this time, I had walked way more than I have in 2 weeks, so we decided to go and hit up Kohls so John could get some shoes, and he had success!  I also got a couple things on sale, but I didn’t take a picture, so those will appear this week.

Home time and dinner time by this point!  I roasted up some beets and parsnips along side some pierogies.

Not crazy about the beets, I have to say.  I about fell asleep while eating. I am so wiped out!  I can’t believe how much we crammed into today.  I am also a little full – I ate a lot today LOL.

I also found the perfect cycling jersey for me:

I guess I am going to have to cough up the $75 for this, because I love it!  Suits me pretty well, don’t you think?

Thank you and duathlon hangover

Thank you to everyone from the bottom of my heart for your comments on my duathlon recap from yesterday!  I am thrilled that it inspires anyone to go out and do something more.  Proof positive that anyone is capable of so much more than one might think.  You just need to get out of the comfort zone and do.

I really am beat today.  My legs are fairly sore and I definitely feel like I really pushed it yesterday.  Certainly did not feel like this after my triathlon.  Isn’t that funny? I am also an eating machine today!  It’s hard not to overeat, but my tummy is just growling all day.  Only a walk outside today and that was it.  Still not sure if I am going to the gym tomorrow or not.  I am also really tired, the kind of tired where I can’t keep my eyes open.  I had taken some Tylenol PM last night and got almost 8 hours (super rare for me), and not sure if I need more or what.  I have to stay awake for the Broncos game tonight, though!  :O

Started off the day with some waffles and pumpkin butter plus craisins.

waf1019This was tasty, but only lasted me about an hour before my tummy was growling, so I had a zone bar.

Then the computer problems started.  My laptop power cord has been acting funny and the computer blinks out.  The battery is so old that it won’t stay charged, so I have to use the power cord adapter.  The adapter itself started beeping (who knew it could do that??) – so now I cannot use that computer.  And it is set up for all of my work stuff.  I am able to hijack John’s computer to do some work, but I am having to do it bare bones without all my medical software on it (so productivity suffers).  Ugh!  New cord is on its way at some point.  Did I not say last week that I have some kind of electromagnetic issue?  (I am writing this post from John’s computer as well)

Needless to say that has made me a bit grumpy today and then more snacking on chocolate chips and peanuts.  I think it is also a little bit of the letdown after yesterday.

I forgot to mention yesterday that even when you do careful planning for race day, things can still go wrong.  We had driven a good chunk of the way and I realized that I forgot my water bottle!  It was full and sitting on the counter waiting to go with.  I was a little upset because I knew I couldn’t go the whole race without hydrating.  I had a carton of coconut water, but that was only 12 ounces.  We hit a McDonalds and bought a bottle of water (yay plastics…), but when I put it in the bottle cage on my bike, it was too small and was flopping around.  One bump and that would have been out of there.  So, I tucked it into my front bag.  Do not ever try to ride and unscrew a bottle at the same time.  I thought I was going to wipe out!  Not sure why it didn’t occur to me to just stop LOL.  But, at least I had some water.  I also learned that cold Balance bars are like rocks.  Halfway through the ride, I grabbed the unwrapped bar out of my bag and bit into it and it hurt my jaw to chew!  Normally they are soft and go down easy, but the weather was so cold that the bar was really firm.  Plus I was trying to chew while out of breath.   Lessons learned for the next time 🙂  Weather can change everything about race day.

Pink picture of the day!

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Limiting the pictures today because of using John’s computer.

Fingers crossed for the Broncos!

Question:  Are you dependent on a computer?

Duathlon Recap!

Woke up in the dark hours of the morning and took a peek outside, expecting to see snowy rain, but it was dry.  Fingers were crossed at this point.  Cold, though!  Showered and put on my layers then came down to the breakfast I had set up and ready to fix:

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Tried and true race fuel.  Banana oats with protein powder and nut butter (okay, I drizzled a little chocolate sauce on there, too).

I was getting nervous on the way there.  See how early it is?

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Cold and gray, but no rain.  Starting to have the feeling like “What am I doing???”

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Bike racked up and very chilly right here!

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There were about 80 competitors.  They all looked quite into it too, and I felt funny with my 10-speed clunky bike with all the speedy road bikes.   I also was wondering if there was a height requirement, since everyone was taller than me 😉

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Ready, set, go!!!

First run went well.  My legs were nice and fresh and the cold didn’t bother me after the first half mile.  One mile in and they called out times – I was at 9:26, which surprised me.  I was thinking I was going to do 10:30, but I guess that’s what fresh legs do for you.  At the 1-mile point the course went uphill for probably a 1/4 mile.  Killer hill and there were a lot of walkers (right at the start!).  I just put my head down and plodded up the hill.  I was falling towards the back, which is what I expected.

Here I am coming in from the run and transitioning to the bike.  2.2 miles done!

I didn’t waste any time, but chugged some water, popped on the helmet and went.  I decided against the fleece jacket because of how hot I felt at that point.  That technical turtleneck is amazing!

About 1/2 a mile in was a really steep hill.  So hard, and a lot of bikers were quite slow on this hill and weaving around.  I thank my Lake George rides for making it up the hills.  The wind started to pick up at this point and it was blowing either into my face or into my side for all but the end of the bike run.  I really pushed it for the ride.  I kept chanting “Go big or go home” and “Leave it all on the race course.”   Good thing no one was very close to me to hear all this LOL!  All the while, I kept thinking of having to run that stupid hill again in the last leg.  I was breathing hard for most of the ride, so I was happy about that because it meant I was working hard.  People had passed me at this point on their speedy bikes and I actually assumed I was in last place.

16 miles done! Again, speedy.  I just left my gloves on, chugged some coconut water, put on my running hat and set out.  I knew I was on the last leg (and my legs felt it!).

Hit the one mile mark and the hill.  I was struggling a bit here and just put my head down and jogged.  My calves were burning!  All of the sudden I noticed that I was just walking really fast up the hill, my pace had slowed down so much.  And then I got a stitch in my right side.  This never happens to me.  I took a few deep breaths and actually had to press my hand into my side, which relieved the stitch while I did that.  Then I started thinking “Is this my appendix bursting?” LOL.  I said to myself I was going to finish no matter what.  Plus I knew there was only a mile to go.  The rest was downhill and I tried to go faster.  Hard to do that while holding your side, but it felt so much better to do that.  As I passed the loop around, I saw a few people just starting the run, so I realized that I wasn’t last at all (although only ahead of about 5 or 6 people).  The stitch left with about 1/2  a mile to go.  Here is as much of a sprint as I could manage – and a big smile cause I was done with the other 2.2 miles!


Note the time – my goal was to be around 2 hours and I finished in 1:55 and change!  Yes!!!

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Totally wiped out.  This is one of the hardest things I have ever done.  It was harder than the triathlon and I really laid it out.  I am soooo happy and pleased!

GoWear fit shows this –

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Post race coffee and egg sandwich and a pumpkin scone.

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I am totally wiped out now.  This is my plan for the rest of the day:

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I am all settled in for the after the race watching football and probably a nap with a special treat for myself.  One of those days where I can get away with 2 bakery items in one day LOL!

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I’m still trying to digest that I actually did this today 🙂

Gearing up for the duathlon!

Don’t you love those days where you actually can sleep in, but can’t actually do it?  I was up before 7 am this morning.  Still dark out and I was all snuggly in the flannel sheets.  So, I just lounged a bit and woke John up to talk to him.  Poor guy.  Normally I pop out of bed and hit the gym while he sleeps in every day.

Nice weather here today, I really wish it would be this way tomorrow, but the forecast is looking dimmer and dimmer.  I won’t cancel the race unless it is snowing, and that’s just for safety of biking on snowy roads.  I might whine a lot, though!

I took a little more time for breakfast primping after being inspired by Susan doing that yesterday.  Plus the banana was a larger one, so I saved some to put on top.

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We went to a museum today to view a Degas exhibit.

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I really wish I could have taken pictures in there.  The great thing is that it did not focus on the ballerina pictures that he is most famous for, but all the music background shots.  Pretty neat!

I also  tried my hand at making pumpkin butter from Danica’s site, and substituted honey for the agave.  Simple and delicious.

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Spread some warm on a gingersnap (these are now hidden up high, thank you).

Pink item for the day spotted at Lowe’s!

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Then we stopped for coffee where I did a little carb loading  😉  (right??)

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Apple cinnamon scone.

So, check list for Sunday’s transition bag:

  • coconut water
  • balance bar
  • water bottle
  • bike gloves and stretch gloves
  • running hat
  • cell phone
  • tissues (runny nose from cold, I’m sure)
  • spare bike tire tube and CO2 filler and wrenches (hope I don’t need!)

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This is all going into my front bike bag (except I will be wearing the gloves.)

Planned outfit will be compression shorts and my long workout pants, technical turtleneck, workout jacket and fleece jacket.  I probably won’t wear the fleece for the run, but will need it for the bike.  I will be totally mismatched, but hopefully warm.  Colors include black, light blue, bright red, pink, and dark blue-grey.

Bike tires are all filled up and checked, and chain lubed up.

Here is a link to the race course

I am pretty excited, although starting to get panicky about the weather.  It’s going to be a smaller field.  About 80 preregistered.  Not sure how many will show up tomorrow and register with crappy and cold weather forecasted.  I am okay with coming in near the bottom.  I think the field will be more hardcore than the triathlon was.

Okay everyone!  I will post an update after the duathlon tomorrow when I get thawed out and back home after we go out for something warm and yummy when I am finished!

See you on the flip side…..

Brick training day!

I actually slept until 7 a.m. this morning!  Yay!  It’s so hard for me to sleep that late, although I didn’t get to bed until after midnight.

It looked pretty cloudy this morning, so we weren’t sure if we were going to be able to ride or not.

Breakfast was so yummy:

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  • 40 grams oats
  • 4 grams cocoa powder
  • 1 small banana
  • cinnamon
  • Topped with peanut butter and (oh no she didn’t!) a drizzle of chocolate sauce.

Yum!  After dinking around on the computer for a while and checking the radar, it seemed clear and I really wanted to check out the duathlon course since the road was all marked up for the race in 2 weeks (!!!!).  I actually was overdressed for this, as the closer we got to Albany, the warmer it was.  It was probably close to 60 and really humid.  Ugh!  I had on jogging pants and a long sleeve technical shirt.

We started on the bike route and first thing is a big hill, a steep hill!  Holy crow.  This is a tough course.  It is a beautiful course, though, I have to say.  It’s going to be awesome with fall colors in 2 weeks.

With the humidity, I just wasn’t feeling at my peak and was slow on the climbs.  John actually went ahead of me, which is pretty rare.  We stopped at mile 8 to have a snack (Balance bar).  I likely won’t do this on the actual race day, but I needed it since it had been several hours since breakfast.

snack

Then finished up that route.  After we got back I wanted to do the 2.2 mile run and John decided to go with me!  I about fell over.  Drank some coconut water and headed out.  After about 1/2 a mile, there was a hill…. a long hill…. a really long hill.  Probably 1/4 mile or so.  We managed to plod up and keep going.  This was the big reason I wanted to do the course ahead of time, because I didn’t want there to be any surprises, and now there aren’t.  I do have to say that I am a little scared though.  Remember that I have to do the run *twice* – once before the 16 mile bike ride and then at the end.

I think I can do it – does my face look scared? It is.

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This was after we did the run part.  I was drenched in sweat.  I just don’t do well in humidity.  GoWear fit said 658 calories burned for the bike/run. Sweet.

I think I scared the geese with my sweatiness – they are running away!

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It was time to eat then and we stopped at Pasta Factory:

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Ironically, neither of us got pasta 😀

I did have an awesome pear and gorgonzola salad with walnuts on a bed of spinach.  It was sooo good!

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Shopped for a while and looked at some fun Halloween stuff.  The mall had one of those giant costume stores that seem to pop up this time of year.

Then a stop for a latte!  Yum, yum.

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They made it all purty for me, too!

I am pretty beat.  I feel a mix of both being excited and nervous about the duathlon.  It is going to be tough, no 2 ways about it.

Throwback for dinner!

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Eggs in a basket!  This was fun, since we actually had bread slices big enough to do this with (Nature’s Pride)

So – lucky you guys to have an early post from me tonight!  Tomorrow is back to work for me, and then football where my Broncos take on my dad’s favorite team the Cowboys (booooo!!!).  So we will be watching the game together.

Question:  Ever have eggs in a basket?

Brick and duathlon

Decided on another brick today, this time the bike/run. I planned out a fairly straight bike loop to take twice of a little over 13 miles and then a 2-mile run. I drank this before going out:
pom

I have decided that this is not good by itself for fuel before exercising.  It’s just straight juice without any protein and it lasted all of about 5 miles.  POM is much better as a refuel during.  Lesson learned.  The bike ride was not really enjoyable, as I stuck to the main roads and there was traffic, school busses, traffic lights, and garbage trucks (my mother is probably freaking out reading this – sorry Mom!).   With all that, I did the 13 miles in 1:03 and I figured I was probably averaging about 13 mph.  Not bad.  Stopped at home and had some coconut water and felt super energized.  Gosh I love this stuff.  Makes me wonder if Gatorade is any different.  I did a 2-mile loop in a little over 21 minutes.  I swear I was going faster because I had pace music on in the 170s, so don’t know what is up with that.  I forgot how it feels to run after biking!  Blargh.

I was ready to eat off my own arm when I got done, and cooked up some protein pancakes.  These take no more than 10 minutes from start to finish, which I love!

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The app is filled out for me to do a duathlon in October!  I have sort of been training for it before making up my mind and I just decided to go for it.

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I am ready already, since I am in really good shape with all the work I have done since spring  (did I just say that??).  I’m am nervous and excited.  At least having done a triathlon, I know pretty much what to expect and there is no swimming involved!   Hope it doesn’t snow.  Have a couple 5K in October that we are thinking of doing as well.  Gotta cram in the outdoor stuff while we can.

Lunch was so, so good today:

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Curry chicken salad:

  • 2.5 ounces cooked chicken, chopped
  • 7 grapes chopped
  • 1/2 small granny smith apple, chopped
  • matchstick carrots, probably 1/4 cup
  • 1 tablespoon light mayo
  • curry powder
  • 1 tablespoon slivered almonds

Mix the mayo and curry powder thoroughly.  Add all ingredients except almonds together and mix well.  Place mixture on top of a bed of lettuce and top with almonds.  Yum!

Zoomed through work today.  Software problems on their end, which is annoying, but didn’t slow me down too much.

Had another of my chewy granola bars as a snack with my latte.  For those that asked, the cinnamon chips are just little sweet bits of cinnamon.  Like chocolate chips, only not chocolate.  Hershey’s makes them and they are usually in the baking aisle with the chocolate chips, butterscotch chips and the like.  Addicting little buggers, too.  I can eat them out of hand easily.

Pixie is pretty much recovered from her declaw.  She won’t run around yet, but that might just be because she is the laziest cat in the world:

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She loves laps!  She looks kind of annoyed that I took her picture, though LOL. I also heard from the rehabber that the little kitten is doing really well and has gotten medicine, vitamins and lots of food.  Hope he finds a good home when he gets a little older.

Quick and easy dinner – feta cheese omelet!

dinI love feta cheese.  It is one of my favorites along with gorgonzola and asiago.  Well, really I won’t turn any cheese down (except super stinky ones).

After dinner sweet:

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I am now free for the evening and John has twisted my arm into going out for coffee in a bit.  😀

September challengers – don’t forget to check in here!

Question:  What is your favorite cheese?

Brick and TBL thoughts.

Don’t forget to check in with the challenge!  I woke up wondering what the heck happened to me and then said, “Oh yeah, NROLW and the matrix”.  Owie!!!  I was super hungry and munched on a snack while I decided what to do.

snack

I decided that I felt okay enough to try a brick for duathlon training.  It was a reverse from triathlon training, since the duathlon is run/bike/run.  So I did a 2 mile jog first.  My legs were complaining a bit at first, but after I warmed up they felt okay.  I was going slower for sure.  Then I jumped on my bike and did a 9 mile ride.  It definitely felt different than doing bike/run.  I have never gotten on the bike *after* running.  I am not exactly sure how much of what I felt was the result of lifting yesterday versus the new order.  It was definitely easier than going to running after biking, but I didn’t have a lot of push for hills.  In fact, I kept the gear much lower than I normally ride in because it felt better.

Sign of fall – the Virginia Creeper is starting to turn!

leaves

Came back to my patented oats and blueberry sauce.  Oats instead of oat bran today.

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I tried a new brand – Silver Palate, since I had a BOGO coupon.  I really like these – they have more oaty flavor, plus nice and chewy.  It’s a bit of a thicker cut of oatmeal.

Am I the only one that truly dislikes Biggest Loser?  I have barely watched even a snippet of it, but the whole thing just bugs the crap out of me.  I don’t like number competitions and the booting of people off who don’t lose the most.  That just isn’t constructive, you know?  These people lose incredible amounts of weight at each weigh in and seem so disappointed!  Not to mention having a trainer in your face berating you when exercise is supposed to be enjoyable and something you will want to continue with forever.  They sure don’t make it look like any fun.  Maybe this is why the majority of the contestants gain weight back after the show.   And does this really inspire everyday people to lose weight in a healthy manner?  I ask this seriously and I hope someone will comment that it has helped them.  I just think a lot of people imitate what they see on TBL and then quit because it is too intense and not enjoyable to keep up.

It’s called reality TV.  However, it is anything but reality.

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I tried something fun for lunch – adding PB2 to plain yogurt.  It was really good!  Made the yogurt really thick, though – check it out! Spackle anyone?

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I added some cereal on top of this for crunch.  Will definitely be doing this again 😀

Had a latte and Special K bar for an afternoon snack.

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I was really hungry.  I can’t quite get bars out of my life, even though I would like to.  What I need to do is make more of my own.  It’s not like I haven’t done that before LOL!  I’m just lazy…..

Omelets for dinner!  With feta cheese.  I so love feta cheese in egg dishes (or on pizza).  This was 1 egg with 2 servings of liquid egg white – makes good volume and protein for lower calories!

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You can really tell fall is coming.  Once the sun starts to set, it gets pretty brisk.  We took the scooter out to Starbucks tonight – dang that was cold!  Had to warm up with a yummy latte (it was decaf 😀  )

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Have a great night!  I am going to try my hand at a Wordless Wednesday tomorrow.  Should be fun!

NROLW and Bumble coffee

Nice and cool this morning – so refreshing!  I was so hungry when I woke up today.  Had the very last piece of Ezekiel bread with the last of the apricot jam and PB for my snack.  Tasty stuff.

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Here are some more stealth shots of my new gym.

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I’m in in the last couple workouts from Stage 4 of NROLW.

Today was B:

  • Deadlifts: 1 x 8 55 pounds, 1 x 8  65 pounds, 1 x 8 75 pounds
  • Bulgarian split squats:  3 x 8  35# plate
  • Underhand grip lat pulldown:  1 x 8 60#, 2 x 8 at 70#
  • Reverse lunge with forward reach:  3 x 8  10# dumbbells (yay!)
  • Prone cuban snatch:  3 x 8  10# dumbbells (super yay!)
  • Crunches, reverse crunches, lateral raise
  • Back extension machine (instead of prone cobra) 3 x 8  at 90#

I decided to do the back extension rather than the cobra because I am tired of that one.  😀  I’m feeling strong and it feels so good!

Texted John (I can’t believe I have actually sent some texts recently!) to meet me and bike onward to breakfast!  Speed on the way there, just under 12mph.

Someone there wanted my coffee.  I love this guy – one of my favorite Christmas specials 😀

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And the brekkie!

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Biked home.  Speed on the way home hit 13.5 mph.  Think it was the bagel and the carb boost?  Indeed.

Light on work this morning, which is a good thing because I was meeting someone at noon.  Noon is lunchtime for me, normally – so it was an ‘on-the-go’ lunch.  Been a while since I have had one of these!

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Some cereal snackage when I got back (oooooppppssss…..).

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More delicious coffee after trying to get into a work rhythm.  If I didn’t actually see blood come out when I do donations, I would assume that my veins are full of coffee.

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John grilled steak for dinner – yum!  Haven’t had steak in forever.  I so love our local smokehouse.

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Usually I go and get a bunch of chicken (I’m cheap).  John went and came home with a $8 per pound steak!  One piece of meat that is really worth paying good money for is steak.  Never buy cheap steak.  Other cuts, yes – but not steak.  So good.

Dessert:

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So, I am feeling a little aimless without having a goal since I am not doing the half marathon, although finishing NROLW is a good goal!  I’m doing a couple 5Ks, but it’s not quite the same.  I saw a duathlon in the paper in October this morning, and I just  might go ahead and do that.  It’s 2.2 mile run/16 mile bike ride/2.2 mile run.  I think that might be a good way to send out the active season.  I had an odd desire to to a brick the other day (what was I thinking??), so maybe I should do it.

Or really, what I should do is buckle down and take off the last 10 pounds instead of dinking around.

MST3K from Netflix tonight!

Question: What are your lunches (or any meal) on the go?