Goofy Week

I was hoping to get more hills and long runs in after Runnin' in the Ruff to prepare for Superior this coming Saturday, but no joy. A goofy work schedule left me squeezing short workouts in here and there.

Sun: strength training + hike
Mon: 2 mile barefoot run at Bredesen
Wed: strength training
Fri: 4 miles steady pace at Bredesen
Sat: strength training
Sun: indoor biking and emergency shopping for a TV after my 3 year old flat screen LCD unexpectedly went belly up.
Mon: 6 miles at Bredesen. Planned on 8, but kept getting foot cramps and pulled the plug. For a short, slow run, this one felt harder than it should have. Perhaps because I didn't sleep well, and my training has sucked.

Found an easy new recipe that is pretty good: Baked pollock (or any mild, white fish) with Red Grape Salsa.

1 cup seedless red grapes
1/4 cup chopped onion
1/4 cup chopped sweet bell pepper
1 Tbsp balsamic vinaigrette
1 lb fish fillets, cut into 4 oz pieces
1 Tbsp Greek vinaigrette (I use the Kraft salad dressing, which is basically olive oil + seasoning)
Lemon Pepper to taste.

For Red Grape Salsa, mix grapes, onion, bell pepper, and balsamic vinaigrette. Chill until ready to serve.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees, spray olive oil Pam onto baking pan. Place fish fillets in pan and drizzle with Greek vinaigrette and lemon pepper. Bake for about 10 minutes (depending on thickness of fillets).

To serve, spoon red grape salsa over fish.

Had it with asparagus spears, brown rice, and a frosty Summit Extra Pale Ale.

Dissin' Winter

Still having a hard time getting motivated to run outside in sub zero temps or inside on the treadmill. Been another week of more cross training:

Mon - elliptical + strength training circuit
Tues - 4 miles on the treadmill
Thurs - stationary biking
Fri - gotta get a run in somehow.... then see how My Girls do in the Big Ten Tourny.

We are supposed to have another sub-zero night tonight, which means I'll probably try to get a 10 miler in outside on Sunday afternoon. Saturday will probably be strength training + cross training, or perhaps indoor climbing.

In a feeble attempt to "protest" winter, last night I made Caribbean Chicken Stew with Lime Rice, cranked up the heat, burned some "ocean air" incense, and put on some Marley tunes. Had a nice cold beer to go with it. Here's the recipe:

Caribbean Chicken Stew

1 large yellow onion, chopped
1 large green pepper, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp allspice
1 tsp nutmeg
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
1 bay leaf
1 can diced tomatoes
1 can black beans, rinsed
1.5 cups chicken broth
1 large zucchini squash, cut into bite size chunks
1.5 lbs chicken, cut into bite size chunks

Put everything into the slow cooker and simmer on low heat for a few hours.

Serve over brown rice with juice from lime wedges.

Busy Week

It's been a very busy week! Not so hot for training, but I did get some "other stuff" done:

Sunday: 7 mile easy run and a mega shopping spree at Penzeys. If you like spices, this is the place for you! Definately sensory overload, but lots of fun - and I found a few new recipes to try :)
Monday: Finished X-Mas shopping, got all the gifts wrapped & mailed. It took All. Flippin'. Day.
Tuesday: Strength training.
Wednesday: Easy 3 miles on the treadmill. I would have gone longer, but new flooring was being installed at our condo complex and I got kicked out of the exercise room.
Thursday: B-Day celebration.

Tried a new roasted sweet potato recipe:

Cut up a sweet potato into bite size chunks.
Mix a pat of butter, some olive oil, garlic powder, Lawry's seasoning salt, black pepper, and Chesapeake Bay seasoning (from Penzeys of course). I don't like to measure - I wing it.
Stir the sweet potato chunks into the seasoning so that they're coated evenly.
Bake in a 375 degree oven for 25 minutes.

Served with a New York strip steak and a blend of asparagus, pasta, cauliflower, broccoli, carrots, shrimp, and balsamic vinaigrette. Washed it down with Summit Extra Pale Ale.

I normally don't like sweet potatoes, but this was pretty good! I'm having more tonight with salmon.

I also picked up my new snowshoes from REI this week, but haven't had a chance to try them out yet. Snowshoeing sounds more interesting than running on the treadmill right now...perhaps I'll give it a go on Sunday.

Gotta go lift weights and get a run in.......