Greetings from Vegas

Hello from the desert!

I’m in Vegas for a work convention this week. Not exactly my favorite place on the planet (loud, crowded and everything smells like cigarettes). Also not exactly the place to be spending a weekend tapering and recovering from the flu. But, I’m doing my best.

Got in a few easy miles yesterday before I left – I definitely felt the toll that being sick took on my body during that run. But, at least I could run!

The dogs sulked while I packed. They got excited at first thinking they were coming with (they always start running around when I pull out a suitcase), but when I told them “dogs are staying” Bob actually went and sulked in the other room.

Pack us too!

Packed the running shoes and some healthy snacks.

Almonds, Kind Bars, and Coconut Water

Only so that I could feel better about an animal-style cheeseburger on the drive out.

Because, Barstow.

And treated myself to some sushi for dinner. I had to escape the noise and lights, so found Sushi Roku in The Forum Shops. Not pictured: some amazing truffle-butter edamame.

A run was on the books this morning, but I woke up feeling drained and crappy again, so I did a little yoga in the room instead. Hopefully tomorrow will be better. In the end, I figure it’s better to recover fully and be undertrained (and I’m already freaking out that I’m very undertrained) than to still be sick for the marathon.

A very happy long weekend to everyone!

What are you doing for Labor Day Weekend?

~etn

Taper Setback

Hi friends! Sorry, meant to post a long run recap for you on Monday, but I got the flu. In August. Less than two weeks before my marathon. Because, of course. Normally I will tough out being sick. But this one knocked me out – I left work early on Monday and have been sleeping on and off since. Boyfriend was incredibly nice and brought me meds, OJ and soup. Needless to say, there has been no running this week yet.

Backing up to Friday, Boyfriend surprised me with some gorgeous flowers at work (he’s been working a ton this past month, in case you were wondering where he was!). It set the tone for a really nice end-of-summer weekend.

I am so lucky (and spoiled).

Saturday was a 12-miler.  I was all set to leave at 6:30, then waited around for almost a half hour hoping my Garmin would find a satellite. No luck. Garmin totally failed me, not picking up a satellite until AFTER I saved my run. So paces were estimated (at one point it told me I was running a 7:30 pace, then about a quarter mile later it said a 14 minute mile. GRRRR.) Run felt fine though, I walked a bit when needed but my overall pace was right on target. Plus I did The Hill (200 feet of elevation gain over a mile).

Met Dad for breakfast – chilaquiles!

Gave my toes some TLC.

Decisions, decisions.

Sunday I went to yoga taught by the Baking Yogi! Then planned out meals for the week (meal plan was derailed by the flu, unfortunately). Made blueberry muffins for breakfast.

 

Grabbed lunch outside on a gorgeous afternoon.

Fried capers. BRILLIANT.

When I asked Boyfriend what he wanted for dinner, he immediately responded “vegetables”. Poor guy – long hours at work means less-than-healthy food options. Not wanting to use the oven again (or spend much more time in the kitchen), I made a salad.

 

And now, bedtime. Yes, I know it’s only 8pm. Hoping I’ll be recovered enough for a few miles tomorrow – marathon is a week and a half away!

How was your weekend? Anyone else dealing with summer sickness? Taper woes?

Google+

~etn

Top Three… Kitchen Gadgets

Good morning and happy Friday! Today is my rest day, so of course I am thinking about food. In that spirit, I thought I’d talk about the top three kitchen gadgets that I rely on the most.

Don’t worry, I haven’t forgotten that this is a running blog. But I’ve always liked to cook, and running tends to make you want to eat healthier, which usually translates to more cooking at home. So here are the top three tools that I use pretty much daily.

1. A Microplane:

Find it on Amazon

This thing is kind of like a cheese grater, but it’s really more for grating things that add flavor. I use it for grating lemon zest (essential in a lot of my go-to recipes), ginger, and when I’m pretending to be Martha Stewart, fresh nutmeg. Since it’s way more handy than a hard-cheese grater, it’s an easy way to get fresh flavors into your cooking – no more bland stir fry!

2. Silicone Spatulas

Find it on Amazon

These things are lifesavers when you’re multitasking in the kitchen. They’re essentially heatproof (at least for everyday stovetop cooking), so you can leave them in the pan and not worry about ruined/warped kitchen tools or melted plastic in your food. Or that burnt plastic smell that somehow lingers in your kitchen for weeks just because you left  a plastic spoon in a pan of pasta sauce ONE TIME for a few minutes while you took the dogs out and won’t go away no matter how long you leave the fan on and the windows open and you’re sure your neighbors can smell it… I mean really, it could happen to anyone. Sorry, wait, where was I?

Anyway, I’m a big fan of silicone spatulas.

3. A Good Knife

Find it on Amazon

This one gets used every single time I an in the kitchen. Personally, I’m a fan of the Santoku-style knife. But go to a kitchen store and try out a few. A knife should feel steady and comfortable in your hand. A good one will last you for decades, but that doesn’t mean it needs to cost more than your rent. Target sells different styles, and Amazon has a huge collection too.

Hope these are helpful when it comes to inspiring less take-out and more cooking at home. Wish me luck on my 20-miler tomorrow!

And of course, a dachshund pic – Bob was trying to help me post this morning.

Oh, am I in your way?

Do you like to cook at home? What’s your favorite kitchen tool?

~etn