4 Warm-Ups for a Better Workout

I became "friends" with Active.com on Facebook last week and have been pleasantly surprised by their super-informative status updates.

Sidebar: How weird and crazy is the techno-world we live in?! I totally could never have imagined social networking when I was getting online using a dial-up modem to check my Juno email account in junior high!

Today they posted 4 Warm-Ups for a Better Workout. I am horribly guilty of cheating on my warmups, especially since static stretches are a no-no these days, so this was a nice reminder of what I should be doing!

1. Hurdles - loosens tight hips
   Balance on right leg (hold a chair or wall for support) with left leg bent so heel is behind you. Rotate left leg out to left side and forward as if drawing a circle with knee. Do 15 times, then switch legs.
   
   
2. Windmills - relaxes shoulder and neck
   Stand with arms at sides. Circle right arm up in front of you overhead, and then down behind you (like swimming the backstroke). Do 15 circles, then switch arms and repeat.
   
   
3. Foot Rock-Overs - stretches calves
   Stand with feet staggered, right foot flat about 12 inches behind left foot, left toes lifted off floor. Shift weight forward, simultaneously lowering left toes and rolling onto ball of right foot, lifting right heel. Reverse to start. Do 15 times, switch feet, and repeat.
   
   
4. Heel Raises - strengthens calves
   Stand with feet parallel, hip-width apart, hands on a chair or all for support, if needed. Lift heels and raise onto toes for two seconds, then lower. Do 15 times. Repeat with heels together and toes pointing out, then with toes together and heels out.
   [Source]

I'm going to start incorporating these into my pre-run warm-up routine (which pretty much consists of, um, nothing). Gearing up for a big 10-miler tomorrow - first double-digit run ever!

What is your warm-up routine?

Seventeen Pieces

My running schedule has been totally thrown off this week. I typically do three training runs during the week and then a long run on Saturdays, but between my sore knee and my cold and, I'll admit, sheer laziness, I only did two training runs this week. On Tuesday I did three miles of rolling hills on the treadmill, which totally aggravated my knee. Today I was supposed to do 5-miles, but pooped out around 4. I waited WAY too late to run so it was hot out and I drank more coffee than water this morning and... bleh. 

I have 10-miles on the calendar for Saturday, so let's keep our fingers crossed that it goes well! Fortunately, good eats the rest of the day made up for my lackluster cardio morning!

I was so hot when I came home from my run that I made a big fruity Green Monster and slurped down over half of it before snagging a picture.

(spinach, banana, apple, orange juice)

A week or so ago, my blender tragically bit the dust. I was super bummed because it was a wedding present and I have only used it, like, 5 times. I was griping about having to buy a new blender (and trying to compromise by making smoothies in my food processor, but it's just not the same!) and my uncle offered to give me this sweet Magic Bullet-style system that he found in his office's basement. 

I tried it today for the first time, and it works! My only problem is that my blender was two pieces but this sucker is seventeen pieces and now I need to find homes for all of them!

For lunch I had some leftover Italian Chicken Salad on a bed of spinach leaves. It was delightful. 

Italian Chicken Salad
adapted from The Kitchn

Ingredients

• ~3 cups shredded chicken (I bought a rotisserie chicken and shredded it, but you could oven roast 2 large bone-in breasts if you prefer)
• 1/4 medium red onion, chopped
• 2 medium celery stalks, chopped
• 1/2 cup slivered almonds, toasted
• 1/2 cup thinly sliced roasted red pepper (check out Emily's great post on roasting your own)
• 1/2 can chickpeas, rinsed and drained
• 4-5 artichoke hearts, quartered
• 5 slices bacon, cooked and crumbled
• handful of Italian parsley, chopped

For the vinaigrette:

• 2T red wine vinegar
• 1t dijon mustard
• 1/2t salt
• freshly ground pepper
• 1t sugar
• 1/4c olive oil

Method

1. Make the vinaigrette. Whisk together the vinegar, mustard, salt, pepper, and sugar. Stream in the olive oil, whisking until combined.
2. Combine all salad ingredients in a large bowl. Pour in vinaigrette and toss to coat.

Yum. This is one of my favorite salads to make. Red wine vinaigrette, chickpeas, bacon. Good stuff.

I would venture to say that dinner was equally magical. I made a batch of Ashley's Zesty Italian Veggie Burgers and a summery couscous salad. I topped my burger with mozzarella cheese, basil from our garden, tomato slices, and a little pesto. B was more traditional and had his on a bun.

These burgers were huge! I definitely could have made 8 patties instead of 6. The only changes I made were:

• No carrots. I realized I had eaten them all with hummus earlier in the day. Oops!
• I added an extra zucchini and a stalk of celery
• I used half yellow onion and half red onion
• No pepitas, so I threw in some extra sunflower seeds

I am looking forward to having one of the leftovers on a salad tomorrow already!

Tomorrow is also the second to last day before we leave for Hawaii! I have so much to do, mostly in the form of cleaning. I hate coming home from vacation to a dirty house! I need to finish laundry, run and empty and the dishwasher, and just do some general picking up.

Do you do a major cleaning overhaul before you go out of town or am I the only weirdo?

Summer Sniffles

Sorry for the relative blog silence. I get one head cold every summer, and I'm in the throes of it right now. :( I've pretty much been sitting around blowing my nose, watching Buffy the Vampire Slayer on Netflix, and eating almond butter with a spoon.

What? I don't get sick often, so when I do, I totally feel sorry for myself like a huge baby. I'm not ashamed.

I got my new camera in the mail today though, so I am optimistic that I will be feeling better soon. I'm hoping to try a few yummy new recipes before we leave for Hawaii on Sunday.

Until then, it's just me, Buffy, Angel, Willow, Xander and the rest of the gang. It's like I'm in junior high all over again.

What do you like to do when you are not feeling well?