7 is the Magic Number

Well I did it...after a slow start I finally did what I was supposed to do. I ran seven miles today! It was slow coming and I stopped to talk to people I saw on campus but I finished the seven miles. I have been trying to get better about eating, drinking more water, and exercising more regularly. It's hard to do when you're tired, work a job, and go to a school. But this week I did the bike, ran, the elliptical, and did some strength training! I hope to swim some next week. I have discovered I really like the bike...I can crank up my resistance and get a really good workout. I also hope to use the rowing machine next week. In the end, having my inhaler back, drinking a lot more water, and doing more activity helped for today's run.

Eating wise, I've cooked twice this week! Meatloaf (just like Grandmas!) one night and Barbeque Chicken another night! I was so proud! I couldn't wait to tell my grandma because it tasted just like hers! I've done good about not snacking as much though with the new cafe at work...that makes it so hard not to eat the delicious baked goods they have! (If you need a great coffee shop....check out Benelux Cafe! They are excellent. My personal favorite is the waffle with specaloos....trust me, it's amazing!)


Recipes for Meatloaf:
Take 1 pound of hamburger (80-90%), chopped onion, chopped bell pepper, Texas Pete, ketchup, 2/3 cup tomato sauce, 1 cup bread crumbs (Pepperidge Farm brand), salt, pepper, 1 egg, and crush red pepper. Mix all of that together. I know the ingredients aren't exact but I just put what I feel like I need. Put in a greased dish and bake in the oven at 350 until bubbling and brown around the edges!

I'll put the recipe for Barbeque Chicken and Potatoes up later. :)

Enjoy!

Training?

Well I decided I wanted to blog this time around when training for a half marathon....

So I was supposed to start last week....I keep saying that. So This week was the week I started.
I want to follow the same game plan I did last time which was kind of intense and I had more time. I'm trying to do this during CornHuskin' (which if anyone goes to MC, they would understand) and with a work load being pretty hard. I have told myself today though I am really going to buckle down and get on it because I have roughly 8 weeks to get ready to run 13.1 miles. Did I mention I'm woefully out of shape? This should be fun.

My new Garmin watch finally came in (the first one didn't work so I had to send it back) so let's hope the second time's the charm. I'm going to plug it in tonight to charge it tonight.

So I ran last Friday around 4 miles...oh how I struggled. I felt physically ill. So first things first:
1. Drink more water
2. Get new inhaler
3. Drink more water

I ran the next day around 2 miles and I definitely did better and felt better. I had been drinking more water and took my pace slower.

My plan (and I'll try to stick to it)
Monday: Short Run/Track Workout
Tuesday:Rest
Wednesday: Short Run/Track Workout
Thursday: Swim/Low Impact Cardio
Friday: Long Run
Saturday: Rest
Sunday: Swim/Low Impact Cardio/Strength Training (depends on my mood)

So I hope I can stick with it. This half is coming up November 11 (the weekend after CornHuskin') and I want to do well. My goal is under 2 hours but at this rate I'll shoot for under 2:10:00.

Oh by the way...I'm signed up for the OBX Half Marathon down at Nags Head :)

No Ordinary Lunch

No boring sandwich today! I made a run to the grocery store after class and started cooking! It didn't take that long either. I found a recipe for garlic chicken online and I tweaked it for my liking.

Ingredients:

Garlic cloves
Chicken breasts
Italian dressing
Brown sugar
Olive oil
Salt/Pepper

So I minced (cut?) up the cloves and threw them in a saucepan with some olive oil and until tender/browning. I then took that off the heat and added in a generous amount of brown sugar (however much you like...I'm not big on exact amounts). I pours Italian dressing over chicken breasts in a baking dish and then poured the brown sugar mixture over it. I baked it in a pre-heated 500 degree oven for about 20ish minutes or until the chicken was cooked through. And that was it! I paired it with a green salad and some macaroni salad from Food Lion. Easy and delicious!

Oh Heyyy, It's Engineering Camp!

So for the past three weeks I had pretty a non-existent life except for engineering camp! Don't get me wrong it was a blast and I met a lot of amazing kids and staff! I wouldn't have traded that experience for anything.

Our typical week day looked something like this...

7:10-Wake up and get ready for breakfast and the day
7:30-Breakfast
8:30-Take the kids to class
9:00-3:30-Free Time! Ha..most of us had class or napped or went to the gym.
3:30-Pick up the kids from class
4:00-Free time where the counselors were "available and visible"
5:30-Dinner
7:00-Evening Activities! This is the part the counselors planned. We did everything from bowling, to water balloon fights, to coffee runs, to "Syme Fun," Engineering projects, arts&crafts, LOTS of sports, and finally a TALENT SHOW!
11:00-Curfew for the kids
11:30-Counselors can finally sleep!
12:00-We finally do actually go to sleep

We had so much fun these past few weeks. I learned how to shoot a water balloon from a sling shot (and I had pretty good aim if I do say so myself), gained muscle weight from the gym, choreographed a dance to "Call Me Maybe," drove a FREAKING FIFTEEN PASSENGER VAN and didn't die, successfully wore Champion shorts every single day, perfected my "mom" look, and so much more.

I hope the kids had just as much fun as I did and hope to see them at NCSU in one or two years! :)

Pinterest Necklace!

So it's finally a post about something besides food. I have been pinning arts and crafts on pinterest since I got an account and here is finally a post on my attempts that turned out pretty well if I say so!

So the craft is a gold necklace with neon pink string.

What I did was took brass rings of various sizes (I got mine from Lowe's) and neon nylon pink string (from Lowe's as well) and arranged the rings like I wanted. I then attached the rings together with the string by wrapping it around a few times and then knotting it off. I then burned the knot so it wouldn't come undone. Once I finished I attached two strings to each side and tied them together! Easy and it looks great! (I wore it the very next night after I finished it)

Presto Pesto!

Clever title right? Just kidding. So I babysit for this great family and they have a garden with fresh basil and parsley. They were nice to share with me! So today I decided to try and make fresh pesto! I haven't had it too often and I really had no clue how to start but thank goodness for the internet. It was easy and I hope it tastes alright. I'm going to get someone to taste test it later. But it looks good!

Recipe:
Basil
Parmesan Cheese
Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Nuts
Garlic

So knowing me...I didn't follow the recipe exactly....I put in what I had and kind of eye-balled the amount of each I needed. I used all of my basil and worked around that. I put it all in a blender and presto, the pesto is done!

I'll let you know how it tastes later and post a picture! :)

P.S. Apparently it was good! :) 

Peanut Butter Cereal

So here is a quick and easy breakfast/snack. I eat it almost every morning for breakfast and it keeps me satisfied for quite some time. I take cereal (usually Honey Nut Cheerios but I prefer Cinnamon Burst Cheerios with peanut butter) and mix in a spoonful of peanut butter. SO GOOD. And easy. I have to thank my friend Michelle Cox for getting me onto this a couple of years ago when she didn't want any of the desserts. Me being a peanut butter lover picked it right up and haven't looked back. Another good think to mix in is peanut butter/honey/vanilla (first three ingredients to no bake energy balls) and mix those in with the cereal. All of this with a huge glass of milk and I'm a happy camper. So if you are looking for a simple easy breakfast or snack just try this! (A lot of people have looked at me like I was crazy but don't judge it until you try it!)