Tuesday, January 24, 2012

Sparkly Headband Run

I went for a run after work today. The goal was 4 miles, but my incredible slowness made it so that only 3 happened before I had to meet my sister at the grocery store.

My legs were leaden as I began the run, and didn't ever soften too much. It is difficult to balance running with my new weight lifting plan- I'm always sore somewhere! I walked some, but jogged more, so I'm on my way to being super again. :). Here are today's stats:






I told you I was slow! I need to pick it up. And get a good snack in at the right time, and drink more water, and have a recovery drink or snack when I'm done. So now my poor run looks obvious- of course!

Today I ran in shorts and a tshirt. I was colder than expected since it was supposedly 63 degrees outside. I did have on the cutest headband though.






My friend Tara and I found it at a local boutique called On the Corner and it was worth every penny of the $5 I spent.






After my run (and stretching, I got one thing right anyway), I sat back in my car. You like my passenger seat? What, you can't see my passenger seat? Me either!

We should play a game called "What's Hiding in Katherine's Car?". You might think I have the advantage, but the truth is I have no idea what's in there either. I know a banana and a jar of peanut butter are under my gym bag. A People magazine is in there, a tub of soy protein powder, two coats, a headband that's a gift, a bottle of water, and my giant purse.... Wait, there's more- my weight lifting gloves, iPhone armband, gym pass, headphones, pair of socks, pair of pants, a novel entitled Confessions of a Counterfeit Farm Girl.... That may be all. :)

And I'll leave you with a funny from Pinterest:







- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Tuesday, January 17, 2012

Time to Get a Gun

I know gun control is a hot issue in America.  Where I live, hunting is common, guns are common, and many of my friends have their Conceal and Carry licenses.  I didn't grow up with guns.  Actually, it turns out that I did grow up with guns in the house, but I wasn't aware of it....yikes.  Thanks, mom and dad.  My husband comes from a family that hunts.  He learned to shoot and about gun safety when he was five.  I am pretty scared of guns.  I hate the thought of what could happen accidentally.  But I also can't stand to think that someday the awful thing could be that I don't know how to use a gun.  I asked Lee to start teaching me how to really handle a gun.  I've gone skeet shooting or target shooting a few times for fun, but I want to be able to defend myself if the time ever comes.

My brother and Lee and I went to Lee's family land over the weekend and did some target shooting.  I have to say, it is extremly satisfying to shoot a can of soda off the target and watch it explode.  Who knew?  We made our own target out of a box Lee had originally planned to make into a plyometrics box.











Did you grow up with guns?  Do you have them now?  Do you have any advice for me?

***A gold star for you if you recognized the post title as Miranda Lambert lyrics.

Monday, January 16, 2012

First Run of 2012

RUNNING:

Lee and I were at the gym today when I got a text from Stephanie asking if I wanted to run.  I was a little nervous because the last time I ran was over a month ago, and it was inside on my home treadmill.  After a brutal Shoulders and Abs workout (more on that later), I met Stephanie at the softball field.

Our stats were pretty dismal (due to my frequent stops and us walking the whole first mile), but we ended up with 2.36 miles (3 laps at the softball field) in 36:49.  But I just keep thinking of this post I saw on Pinterest:



We are going to run in the morning and hopefully that 36 is going to turn into a 33!  It amazes me how quickly my body "forgets" how to run.

SHOULDERS AND ABS:

For the past few weeks I have been following the Jamie Eason Live Fit workout plan on bodybuilding.com.  It is my first time to go on the "boy side" of the gym and use weights.  It's been hard and also incredibly fun.  Every day has been a new challenge.  I have discovered that I am a weakling!  I haven't advanced past ten pound weights on most of the exercises for my arms.  Today I did my first Shoulders and Abs workout and it kicked my booty!  I had to use five pound dumbells and some of the exercises were still too hard.  I love the website because it is free and it has a detailed video on how to do each exercise.

Have you ever lifted weights?  Did you enjoy it?  If you are a girl, was it hard to go onto the side more heavily populated by men?

Tuesday, January 10, 2012

No New Things

So today I was going to blog about the wonderfulness that is my Kose Softymo Cleansing Oil from amazon.  The more I thought about it, the more I realized that I am so often entranced by things.  I am such a typical American consumer, caught up in the world and the things it tells me I need.  I read about something on a blog or in a magazine, and I'm to the store or purchasing it on Amazon before I even realize it.  And I'm often giddy with the chance to try something new.  I love the experience of exploring a new beauty product or making a new recipe.  If I'm sad, I buy some lipgloss.  Going to a party?  I need a new dress.

But at the end of the day, those things are only things.  Things that I let get in the way of my relationship with God.  Things are ok when I remember that they are only things.  But sometimes I forget.  I choose to forget.  How terrible!  How seriously wretched am I! 

So for the next 30 days, I am committing myself to buy no new things.  I have more than enough.  If I run out of something, that's different (if I actually run out of laundry detergent or something practical, not like I'm "almost out" of mascara).  Just to challenge myself to stop being so materialistic and give the focus back to God.  What if instead of walking around Target for an hour I meditate upon His words?  Sit down and just soak in His goodness?

This will be hard for me.  Harder than I even realize yet.  But it needs to happen.  Has to happen.  I need to get out of my own way for once and let Him in.

Monday, January 9, 2012

Tortilla and Black Bean Pie

We had some friends over the other night and I made a very modified version of Martha Stewart's Tortilla and Black Bean Pie.

Here is her recipe:

Ingredients (serves 6):
  • 4 flour tortillas (10 inches)
  • 2 tablespoons canola oil
  • 1 large onion, diced
  • 1 jalapeno chile, minced (remove seeds and ribs for less heat)
  • 2 garlic cloves, minced
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
  • Coarse salt and freshly ground pepper
  • 2 cans (15 ounces each) black beans, drained and rinsed
  • 12 ounces beer, or 1 1/2 cups water (I used Bud Light with Lime)
  • 1 package (10 ounces) frozen corn
  • 4 scallions, thinly sliced, plus more for garnish
  • 8 ounces cheddar cheese, shredded (2 1/2 cups)

Directions

  1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. With a paring knife, trim tortillas to fit a 9-inch springform pan. Use the bottom of the pan as a guide. Set aside.
  2. Heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add onion, jalapeno, garlic, and cumin; season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, 5 to 7 minutes.
  3. Add beans and beer, and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium; simmer until liquid has almost evaporated, 8 to 10 minutes. Stir in corn and scallions, and remove from heat. Taste and adjust for seasoning.
  4. Fit a trimmed tortilla in bottom of springform pan; layer with 1/4 of the beans and 1/2 cup of cheese. Repeat three times, using 1 cup cheese on top layer. Bake until cheese melts, 20 to 25 minutes. Remove side of pan; sprinkle pie with scallions. To serve, slice into wedges.
The tortillas I bought didn't need to be trimmed- they fit right into my springform pan.  Also, because this was originally a vegetarian recipe and we were having company, I added a layer of browned ground beef in (which I suggest seasoning).  I also made some refried beans that I used as the bottom layer to "anchor" the other two layers in.  I also forgot to add the corn into the black bean mixture (that's what I get for rushing around trying to get ready for our friends), so my husband helped me take off the layers and shove some corn in there.  It turned out fine.  :)

I honestly really enjoyed this recipe.  It would have been great with chicken instead of the ground beef.  I had sour cream, salsa, and warm queso out to use as condiments (which was good because the recipe was slightly dry).  And it must have been somewhat good, because the couple Facebooked me and asked for the recipe!  Yay. 

FRIENDS:
My husband and I have been making an effort to have people over more lately.  Now that I am done with school and we have more time, our evenings are pleasantly free.  And since I love any excuse to cook/ bake/ play hostess, it really makes me feel special.  I have enjoyed the last two weeks of guests and am really looking forward to who we will have over in the future.

Sunday, January 8, 2012

Turkey Meatloaf Muffins

I recently started doing some workouts from bodybuilding.com.  This has been my first experience lifting weights or even going onto the "boy" side of the gym.  After 4 weeks of 2-3 weekly workouts, I have discovered that I LOVE lifting weights.  It feels so good.  It's satisfying to walk in with a plan (I am using the Jamie Eason Live Fit plan) and complete it well.  Now that I (mostly) have the workout portion of my life under control, I am set to tackle the diet part of my life.

Today I made a recipe suggested from my workout plan.  Target and Walmart were both out of ground turkey and ground chicken, so I had to go to a different Walmart later in the day.

I made a rookie mistake when making my muffins- I had put in all my spices and looked down to realize I was holding a tablespoon instead of a teaspoon.  Not really sure how that happened...I tried to scoop out the extra, but the muffins are a little spicy.  Zing! 

Here is the recipe (from bodybuilding.com):



Turkey Meatloaf Muffins

Calories: 80
Fats: 2 grams
Carbs: 4 grams
Protein: 11 grams

Turkey Meatloaf Muffins 


Ingredients:
Directions:

  1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
  2. Spray muffin pan with canola or olive oil.
  3. Mix all your ingredients together in one large bowl.
  4. Roll the mixture into balls and place in muffin pan. Muffins should be about the size of a racquetball.
  5. Bake for 40 minutes.
    Makes 12 muffins.

    Serving Size:
    Women: 2 muffins
    Men: 4 muffins