Showing posts with label Pandora. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Pandora. Show all posts

Tuesday, July 8, 2014

Not a Fan


I am not a fan of the Monday morning. I am especially not a fan after 5 days off work. The last three days we got later starts to our mornings than normal and I think I got a little bit spoiled. This morning the 4:45 a.m. alarm was brutal. I thought to myself "Well, at least it will still be cool for my walk." Not so much. The humidity was ridiculous and it was plenty warm already. At least there was a little bit of a breeze that helped.

I can not count the number of times I considered scrapping my walk and heading straight home this morning. It was just so tough to keep moving. My first mile was a good minute slower than my second and third. I always feel like I am moving along at about the same speed. Maybe what I am really feeling is the amount of effort I am making. I may be feeling the same effort, but the first mile it just takes more effort to get my sleepy body moving. Then by the second and third the body is working and I don't have to exert as much actual effort to move fast.

The highlight of my walk this morning was Bryan Adams. I hadn't been listening to my Pandora app for the first half of the walk. In an effort to drown out my internal whining, I finally put on my headphones. The first song was Summer of '69. How can that not make you feel at least a little better?  When I set up the "station" weeks ago I used Bon Jovi's Shot Through the Heart as the sample song. Since then I have walked and listened many miles and not once have I heard that particular song. Then this morning just as I was turning it off because I'd met up with my husband it came on :(  Being a good wife I turned off the music and chatted with my husband as we walked the last 4/10 of a mile home. Guess I will have to pull it up on YouTube to get my fix :)

Okay, I certainly don't want to be wishing my life away, but I confess I have been looking forward to the 4th of July for weeks. Starting with Mother's Day through 4th of July is a ridiculous "party" season for us.  We have numerous family birthdays, Mother's Day, Father's Day, Memorial Day, anniversaries, graduations (some years). It seems like every weekend is booked.  This year it was even more challenging since we actually cared about what we ate. I think it was a bit of a wake up call how much we really do indulge without even realizing it. I found it a bit exhausting to be negotiating the calories of a special event or two every weekend.

Additionally, I felt like all my "treat" decisions were based on those parties. I would like a little more flexibility in choosing my "treats". For example, I am looking forward to being able to "afford" going out to breakfast again with my husband. It was kind of our thing to do on the weekend and we haven't gone since before "party" season. I didn't know how to make breakfast out work well with the calories I anticipated using later in the day.

Ready for a good weigh-in in the morning :)




Thursday, June 26, 2014

Hair Bands

Okay, whose first thought was the bands used to tie your crazy hair up or down while you are working out?  Fleurty and Fit makes some cute ones you should check out (I haven't ordered one yet but it is on my list).

When I say Hair Bands I am speaking as a child of the 80s....Poison, Bon Jovi, Whitesnake, etc.  This morning while I was walking I had enough of the lightweight 80s bee-bop music from my current Pandora station. So I created a new station on my Pandora app. I used "Shot Through the Heart" as my sample to create the station. It was fun to hear some more powerful music - Scorpions, Europe, etc. It made me feel stronger.

Speaking of stronger...my knee seems to be recovered. I had a twinge or two while I was walking but nothing that concerned me and nothing afterwards. My happy walking feet burning up the pavement!!!


I wish my cell phone would truly capture all the beautiful sunrises I am enjoying during our morning workouts. This morning the sky was so pink. I loved this shot anyway because it shows the road out before me. And who doesn't love a pink road?  Made me so happy knowing that I am back on my walking regimen.


I was very satisfied with these times for the first time back in almost a week.  I wanted to test my knee and still get a good workout. I think I am accomplished that goal. Even though the times don't really reflect it, it took my body awhile to warm up this morning.

Split
Time
Distance
Avg Pace
Summary49:47.13.0516:18
116:16.21.0016:16
216:06.11.0016:06
316:14.71.0016:15
41:10.10.0521:55

This evening after dinner we took the dogs to the prairie at a nearby park. Started in 1977, the prairie has been planted with tons of beautiful native prairie plants. It is fun to go throughout the season and see all the different plants in bloom.  Many of the plants are taller than me already.  (See end of post for just some of the beautiful plants we saw - photography is one of my passions.)

This guy was not at all happy to have us in his prairies...I think he said lots of bad words!  Redwing blackbirds are one of my favorites...



Millie and Zommie (our 13 year old dachshund) had a good time checking out all the interesting smells. And afterwards we let them run and play ball.



 





It was a nice evening.  I was surprised that Millie tired out before us!!

I took the following flower/foliage pictures this evening as we walked through the prairie. You might think this is a boat load of pictures but I assure you it is just a fraction of what I took :)  They do a guided tour a couple times a month. I need to remember to go sometime to find out what all the different flowers are.









Tuesday, June 10, 2014

Happy Weigh-In Day!


Dodging puddles
First things first...today is weigh-in Tuesday.  I happy to report I lost 3 pounds this week.  Remember last week when I said I was disappointed that I only lost 3 and that I would be grateful later for a 3 pound loss?  I am. The first couple of weeks I hoped for big losses to just have that thrill of a fast start.  By the third week I realize things are going to slow down and I am okay with that.When I get discouraged about the day to day grind, I try to think ahead 6 months.  I am sure 6 months from now I would be content having lost at a 1-2 pound pace.

So that brings the official totals to 11.2 lost and 63.8 more to lose my puppy!  You can follow my weigh-ins on my Progress page.

My husband has been working his tail off too and I am proud to say he lost 5 pounds this week.  That brings his total lost to 24.2.  He started a little before me by quitting soda. He drank a serious amount of Coke. It is a hard habit to break and I am SO proud of him!

This morning's walk was good. I had been a little nervous because I'd been having some pain in the back of my thigh and knee area. Last night it was really bothering me. I could feel it a bit when I woke up. However, it didn't bother me at all while walking :)

When we left the house I thought the rain had stopped, but turns out it had just paused.  When I got to the far end of the loop it started again. Thankfully, it was a light rain and actually felt kind of good. I had planned to walk 3 miles, but ended up walking 2.5. I was a little concerned that my phone would get wet with only a pocket to protect it. My pace was about 16:15 minutes per mile. I would have liked it to be faster, but I was a bit cautious with the wet roads. Hopefully tomorrow will be drier and I can work on speed.

My husband has gotten me hooked on Pandora. I have the app on my cell phone now that I can pull up, plug in my headphones and listen to music while I walk. Pandora allows you to choose music you like and it will create a station based on that. I entered Girls Just Want to Have Fun and I got lots of peppy 80s music :)
I am working on a Tools page to feature things that help me through this lifestyle change. I added Pandora today.  www.pandora.com.

I never listened to music when I walked because I hated ear buds and I thought headphones would be annoying - slipping off my head and such. But I got a pair of Sony headphones a few weeks ago and now I am really enjoying the music. I am trying to decide if I want to wear them in the race Saturday. I don't want to look like a goof :) Also, if I decide to stop listening they are a bit cumbersome to carry and I don't like them down around my neck.

Tonight's dinner is a new favorite of mine - Salsa Verde Chicken Tostadas from Skinnytaste.com. They are super easy and so tasty. The chicken is made ahead in the crockpot with a jar of salsa verde and a few spices. Then later you use that chicken to assemble the tostadas with a little cheese and jalapenos. Bake to melt the cheese. This morning I cooked the chicken before work - takes about 2 hours on high. I put it in the fridge and then warmed it this evening before assembling the tostadas.

Now, I know many people are going to think this odd but the recipe includes a slaw to top the tostada - red cabbage, cilantro and lime juice. Sounds odd, but so delicious - it adds a freshness and crunch that sends the dish over the top. Not to mention the color is amazing. If you are completely irredeemably opposed to cabbage (like my husband) I would recommend red onions in place of the cabbage. Be sure to read the comment section on Skinnytaste - people have made several tasty suggestions for topping them. I have also used this recipe to make party snacks. Instead of tostada shells I have used tortilla chips or Tostito Scoops as the base. Yummy finger food!! 

For more recipes I have tried and heartily recommend check out Skinnytaste.com on my Top Blogs page.

Skinnytaste Salsa Verde Chicken Tostadas