Friday, November 28, 2008 at 05:06 PM

The Best Type of Leftovers

Obviously, Thanksgiving dinner was fantastic yesterday, but how amazing are the Thanksgiving leftovers?!?! I love the classic “Thanksgiving Leftovers Sandwich” with all of the fixings! This is one of Mal’s favorite sandwiches (second to the Red Onion), so when he offered to make me one for lunch today, I couldn’t refuse. He takes his Thanksgiving Leftovers Sandwich very seriously, and, of course, I could only expect perfection from his sandwich-making skills today. 

The sandwich: Turkey, stuffing, and cranberry sauce on whole wheat bread. 

To drink, I had a glass of water with a splash of pomegranate juice. The juice was very concentrated, so just a little went a long way! 

Afternoon Treats

Today’s afternoon snack was so good! It included a half slice of pumpkin cheesecake (leftover from T Day). The crumbly graham cracker crust was so yummy! 

My snack also included a homemade eggnog misto, which I am still currently enjoying. 

To make an eggnog misto:

  • Brew a pot of coffee like you normally would
  • Fill a mug halfway with coffee; fill the other half with eggnog
  • Nuke the mug in the microwave for 60 seconds 
  • Give the misto a quick stir and enjoy! 

Instead of the “real deal,” I used Silk Soymilk Nog, which tastes almost exactly the same as regular eggnog, but lighter and with fewer calories, saturated fat, and sugar. It’s really delicious! :)  

I’m hoping that my afternoon snack will hold me over until my 10-year high school reunion (eek!) tonight, where there will be lots of food! I’m equally looking forward to and dreading tonight, which I suppose is a natural feeling?

Workout

After breakfast, I went for a long treadmill run. (FYI: Breakfast was scrambled eggs, toast, and iced coffee, but I didn’t remember to take a photo until I was almost done eating. I’ve been blogging for 10 months now, and I have no clue how it happened. Breakfast wasn’t that exciting– you guys didn’t miss much.) The running workout that I used today was from an old issue of Shape magazine (October 2007). I keep a fitness binder of various cardio and lifting workouts, so I always have the option of changing things up.

This particular workout is a new favorite of mine! Its intervals are designed to keep your workout’s intensity high, but also manageable, so you don’t keel over! You work really hard for a short period of time then recover at a moderate pace. And switching-up the pace and incline prevents you from getting bored. 

Run Stats:
  • Distance: 6.11 miles
  • Time: 54:28 
  • Pace: 8:53 min/mile
  • Calories: 600 

The RPE in the final column is based on Shape’s Rate of Perceived Exertion (see bottom of post for more info). 

WHAT TO DO TIME (MINUTES) RPE (1-10)
Warm up at an easy pace 0:00 – 10:00 4 – 5
Sprint 10:00 – 10:30 9
Go at a moderate pace 10:30 – 11:30 5 – 6
Repeat minutes 10:00 – 11:30 three times 11:30 – 16:00 5 – 9
Go at a moderate pace 16:00 – 20:00 5 – 6
Increase the incline 20:00 – 21:00 8
Recover (decrease the incline) 21:00 – 22:00 5 – 6
Increase the incline 22:00 – 24:00 8
Recover (decrease the incline) 24:00 – 25:00 5 – 6
Increase the incline 25:00 – 28:00 8
Recover (decrease the incline) 28:00 – 29:00 5 – 6
Increase the incline 29:00 – 31:00 8
Recover (decrease the incline) 31:00 – 32:00 5 – 6
Increase the incline 32:00 – 33:00 8
Recover (decrease the incline) 33:00 – 34:00 5 – 6
Go at a moderate pace 34:00 – 39:00 6
Speed Up 39:00 – 44:00 7
Recover (slow down to moderate pace) 44:00 – 49:00 5 – 6
Speed Up 49:00 – 54:00 7
Cool down gradually  54:00 – 60:00 3 – 4

 

FYI…

My speeds:

  • Easy pace: 5.5 – 6.0
  • Moderate: 6.5 – 6.7 
  • Sprint: 7.2 – 7.5

My inclines: 

  • Increase: 4.0 – 6.0
  • Recover: 1.0 

Rate of Perceived Exertion (RPE)
When doing your cardio, gauge your intensity using the Rate of Perceived Exertion:

RPE 1-2:
Very easy; you can converse with no effort
RPE 3:

Easy; you can converse with almost no effort
RPE 4:
Moderately easy; you can converse comfortably with little effort
RPE 5:
Moderate; conversation requires some effort
RPE 6:
Moderately hard; conversation requires quite a bit of effort
RPE 7:

Difficult; conversation requires a lot of effort
RPE 8:
Very difficult; conversation requires maximum effort
RPE 9-10:

Peak effort; no-talking zone

Time to get ready for my REUNION! Wish me luck! :D

Posted by: Tina 27 comments

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Monday, October 6, 2008 at 08:52 PM

3-Mile Challenge

Ok, guys… l’m going to pretend that today just didn’t happen. I’ve been running around like a chicken with its head cut off all day long. I didn’t take many photos, I just got home from HW, and I really, really, really want to eat dinner (in a bad way!), sooooo I’m going to blog about my workout instead. :)  

Like most of today, my workout was super rushed. I had about 30-35 minutes to squeeze in a quick one, so I decided on a fast and furious treadmill run, which I call the “3 Mile Challenge.”

 

How to:

  • Warm up for 5 minutes (brisk walk/slow jog)
  • Run (and time) mile #1 
  • Recovery – 2 minute walk
  • Run (and time) mile #2. Try to improve your time from mile #1.
  • Recovery – 2 minute walk
  • Run (and time) mile #3. Try to improve your time from the previous two miles.
  • 5 minute cool down (walk) 
I’m off to run around and organize my life! It’s madness! 

Posted by: Tina 7 comments

Posted in: workouts

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