Leisurely Ride

Yesterday, I decided that on my ride to work that I would not break a sweat. Just enjoy a smooth and calm (despite traffic!) ride to work. I wore jeans and made no effort to look the part of cyclist with all the gear necessary to pass for the role. The reason I bring this up is to illustrate that we sometimes need to just take it easy. Especially when it comes to exercise. I once read in Bicycling Magazine a column that encouraged its readers to strip their bike of a cyclocomputer and just ride without knowing how far or how fast you're going. The emphasis was enjoying the act of riding a bicycle and not just using it as a means of churning lactic acid. Perhaps it was the lingering effects of my speed 5k earlier in the day but I gotta say, it felt right just enjoying the bicycle for the beautiful and wonderfully efficient machine it is. And the ride home from work - at 10pm there are almost no cars on the backroads of Portsmouth and I enjoyed an equally calming and quiet ride home as well.

For the most part, I am content with my food intakes yesterday. Shortly after my last post, I broiled up the leftover slices of Saturday's pizza and the remaining black bean burger. In addition to actual hamburger roles (all white baby!) from my folks' BBQ, I paired up the burger with some grilled veggies - asparagus, peppers, onions and others I am not able to name:

I must report also that after my lunch before I set off on my leisurely cruise to work, I had such a craving for chocolate. But willpower prevailed! I had a glass of water and brushed my teeth - another remedy to discount the sweet tooth - and off I went.

For dinner I made a pathetic lemon-pepper chicken sandwich with a slice of cheese melted on top. Again, leftovers from the BBQ. It was of course delicious though lacking in much flavor. Fortunately I was enveloped in my reading of Under the Banner of Heaven too much to notice until now, really. This sad excuse for a sandwich went with a corn salsa that ALSO came from the BBQ. Lots of leftovers!

Then, on my ride home I asked B-May to nuke a slice of my aunt's birthday cake ALSO from the BBQ. While we watched the entire first disc of the fifth season of The Office I had that with some milk and later a beer. Then I broke down with another sweet tooth craving, so inconsolable I succumbed to a package of Funny Bones. Terrible little treats but reminiscent of my childhood and while "comfort food" is not a label I can attach to them, every once in a while I pick up this cheap snack at the corner store.

Breakfast this morning was less than enchanting - eggs and toast. Thought I should get a move on the eggs before they go bad - B-May and I have been pretty good about now throwing away food since our move. Gotta keep it up!

Later!

Bleh bleh bleh

In the immortal words of Snoopy, "bleh." It's been a while since I've written and my frustration comes from the emptiness of something I thought I had: willpower. Willpower is the very basis of my training and a clear alternative to the name of this blog. Willpower wakes me up in the morning and gets me up to speed on training runs. Willpower prevents me from eating a bowl of ice cream right before going to bed. Willpower finds me on my bike to commute rather than my car. And willpower should have been the device and means to keep me updating this project daily. Granted, it's a minor slip but since I've last updated, I have no photos to show and no good news for my inner food accountant. (To be fair to myself, there is one exception which is posted below.) That being said,

Labor Day Weekend was just lovely. B-May and I entertained a friend of mine, Liz, from high school on Saturday night and we went out for pizza and beer. Not just any pizza though - a Mayor Foley at Portsmouth Gaslight Co. Delicious veggie pie accented throughout with a sweet tomato sauce. Mental note: buy sweet tomato sauce.

The next morning the three of us had a couple slices of toast each and shortly thereafter set out for a three mile run. We got the loop right this time - and finished just above 30 minutes. We felt like we were going fast but apparently we weren't. My Vibram Five Fingers which I will hereafter refer to as "Ruby Red Slippers" have proven their worth. I worry that my gait is relapsing back to a heel strike, but with this morning's run (fast forward two days for a second here) I am not so worried. More on that in a second.

So B-May went to work but not before a cup of Breaking New Grounds coffee, Costa Rican La Minita - perfect. Liz and I walked everywhere in the city. Portsmouth was once again blessed with a beautiful, temperate day. We break-ed once for lunch at Me and Ollie's where I had a turkey chipotle BBQ sandwich and a (stupid) soda. I most assuredly will get that sandwich again so stay tuned for some digital artwork of its crunchy, saucy construction.

After four hours of walking, we stopped in at Popovers for a lethal slice of carrot cake and a much-needed bottle of water. Waiting for B-May I tried Liz's Frozen Cappuccino which was delicious very very much. B-May caught up with us as we soaked up the afternoon people-watching. She couldn't tame her own craving for something hot and sweet and soon walked out with a chai latte. In her own words, "I'm addicted."

That night we dropped off Liz where she was staying with another friend in Massachusetts and the two of us headed to our respective folks' houses for the night. Around an enchanting fire in my backyard I toasted some marshmallows and even though I followed the sweets with a warming bowl of oatmeal, I couldn't talk myself out of a bowl of chocolate chip ice cream and chocolate sauce (FAILURE) as my Dad and I played Wii Sports Resort to the midnight hour.

Woke up to some comfort food - pancakes and milk - and helped prepare the house for the BBQ that afternoon. With the help of good friends from college and B-May, I snacked on shrimp cocktails, ginger ale, orange soda, veggies with all sorts of dip and tortilla chips with four different salsas and of course guacamole. That was unfortunately just the snacking but thankfully my folks are Weight-Watchers-driven and the following meal of lemon spiced and teriyaki chicken with grilled veggies and orzo salad was entirely from Weight Watchers cookbooks. We of course roasted a few more marshmallows and put together a couple S'mores and we all shared our first Octoberfest from Samuel Adams of the season.

Overall, I had two wonderful days, nearly both of which spent entirely outside. Between walking all over Portsmouth to hundreds of cannonballs and diving practice in the pool with friends, I was more than content.

Today B-May and set off for another 5k in the neighborhood. My misjudgement of distance resulted in times that measured a run that was only 3.0 miles and not the 3.1 we expect to do on Saturday at Exeter High School's Kick'n Into Gear 5k Road Race. Regardless, I think we did pretty darn good. For myself, I gunned it. I shouldn't have as my calves are hating me for it but I wanted to see what was possible. Well, here's the result: 24:56 in 3.0 miles. Without question, my best effort. And B-May was delighted to see that she completed the same distance in just under 30 minutes when she felt she was going slower than usual. Cheers to both of us!

Okay, so now that I'm all caught up, I do have this to share: earlier last week I ambitiously made my own black bean and corn burgers! Check it out!

(Which is more or less what I made sans some ingredients and the relish. Over it)

So the mixture, as it was coming along, looked like it lacked a bit of moisture so I improvised!

Here they are before the grill and to my surprise, they retained their shape nicely!

The finished product. Toss on spinach with a liberal dab of BBQ sauce with some applesauce and my soda substitute and you have one delicious, healthy lunch! Oo-rah!

Later!