Obviously I’m going to eat (hopefully some super quick meals that are more “assembly” rather than “cooking” will still be satisfying) but exercise is the easiest thing to push off the schedule when life gets in the way. So how do you find time to exercise when it seems like there is no time to spare? My answer for now is going to be “You have to make it a major priority“. My deadlines are not for a few weeks but it’s a lot of work and I have to have the discipline to work with this in mind. The last few days may get tough, but until then I’m willing to do whatever it takes – that may mean waking up early on some days, or working until very late because I want to go to the gym during lunch. I also will try to increase the intensity of my workouts so that less time at the gym still provides me with a quick burn that I crave. Finally, that also means that some other things will have to suffer. I am sure my DVR will miss me dearly (or maybe not, I know I’ll miss it) and as previously mentioned, elaborately cooked meals will be out of the window for the next few weeks. Some healthy take-out once in a while will also give me a little extra time. Lastly weekend work will surely be required. It’s easy to get so stressed out about work that you don’t allow any time for other activities and burn out quickly, but I’m going to attempt to still take care of my body in the meantime. Do you have any other tips?

Onto today’s eats…

BREAKFAST

Raspberry apricot scone, siggi’s vanilla yogurt, fresh raspberries and strawberries

I froze this scone last week and microwaved it for a minute this morning. Unfortunately the microwave totally fried it. This was a little softer than a rock.

MID-MORNING SNACK

I had 1 almond stuffed date form the little batch I made last night. Here is how the whole “process” looks…

(From left to right): whole medjool date, medjool date cut open with pit inside, date stuffed with almonds, date stuffed with pecans, date stuffed with one of each.

A few closeups… easy, right?

So yeah, I had the guy on the left this morning. He tasted oh so sweet.

LUNCH

Leftovers from last night’s dinner at Panza saved me time today as well.

“Free form lasagna” - black pepper pasta sheets, chicken, mushrooms, spinach, plum tomato ricotta sauce (I had mine without the chicken)

Panza was a really great restaurant (casual, yet inviting, great service, delicious unpretentious food) and this dish was fantastic. I loved the fun shapes of the pasta and the chunky tomato ricotta sauce. If I go back there and order this dish again (very likely!), I’m going to ask for extra mushrooms.

After taking this picture, I also added a handful of cannelloni beans for protein. It was a great lunch!

WORKOUT

After all this talk about finding time for exercise, I did in fact find some time for a bootcamp class tonight. I’ve gained weight recently and its impacting my performance at the gym but it’s not going to stop me from keep trying. In fact, I’m using it as a challenge to get back into it and get even better than I was before!

DINNER

Super quick! Beet greens, diced tomatoes, pesto potato salad, roasted beets, goat cheese and pecan fritatta

Quick side note: the pesto potato salad I made for the pool party on Saturday. It’s this week’s CEiMB recipe hosted by The Not So Skinny Kitchen (recipe here). I am not a fan of the mayo-based potato salads but this one was quite delicious. The fresh peppers were an especially delicious addition – they added a great crunch and lots of brightness to this dish. Pics from the pool party set-up…

So yeah, I threw some of the leftover potatoes/peppers into the pan for some extra heft and carbs. I also pre-roasted the beets end of last week (sliced, at 350* for about 20 minutes). Tonight, I sauteed some beet greens in a sprayed skillet, then added 1/2 can of diced tomatoes, roasted beets and potato salad, cracked 2 eggs and finally threw a few pecans in. That was on the stove for a few minutes, then under the broiler for a few more. Done!

Another un-photogenic meal that was really delicious. Obviously beets + goat cheese go well together. The rest of the ingredients enhanced this combo further. Look at all these veggies!!

This was the perfect quick dinner… and the perfect ending to a great day of eats. I will say I’d love something sweet right about now but it’s getting late and I can probably do without. Maybe at least a sweet apple is in my future.

What are your go-to recipes on a super busy night? Mine will have to be sandwiches and stir-fries.

How do you fit exercise in during super busy days/weeks/months? I’m all ears!

So I wanted to talk today about something that I recently noticed about myself… I am a true Internet addict. Yes, many of us spend quite a bit of our time online (especially bloggers!) but for me the problem is that… once I pop, I can’t stop! Okay, maybe that exact expression is more fitting for chips, but seriously… if I allow myself “just 1 minute” to check the email, several hours pass by and its way past my bedtime. I check an email – that leads to a website, or twitter… and you know where that gets you. Twitter is not exactly productive. I’ve been trying to set a strict “bed time” but it’s not working. Anyone else is an Internet addict? I know at least a few of you are. Any tips of how to take it a little easier, or at least help with the whole “get in bed at a reasonable hour so you don’t look and feel like a zombie in the morning”?

You know what helps a bit in the morning though?

BREAKFAST!

How do you like that segway? Oh I crack myself up…

2 When Pigs Fly maple, pineapple, raisin with toasted sesame and ginger toasts with crunchy Barney Butter and a kiwi

Yum, yum, yum. Sweet and sour. Time for work!

MID-MORNING SNACKS

Shelling peas and 1 almond stuffed medjool date (unpictured – I’ll snap a few photos of my new date stuffing method for a future post).

WORKOUT

So Wednesday was my first workout in a week. Yikes! I took a super hard spin class and vowed to never take such a long break from working out again. It was due to a combination of going away for the weekend and work being super busy. Yesterday, I went back for more – this time for an abs + RIPPED class. Basically a crazy awesome bootcamp that I totally thought I couldn’t handle but somehow came out alive out of. The instructor was making fun of me a bit because I kept screwing up. She knows I haven’t been there in a few weeks and we both saw the pretty obvious consequences of such actions. She’s out on vacation next week, but I am going to ace these bootcamp classes again. I used to be one of the best in the class. I want to feel super strong again!!

LUNCH

We had no produce in the house, which meant a quick trip to the farmers market was in order. Here are my 2 favorite booths at the Prudential Center farmers market (open on Thursdays only).

Samira’s Homemade

The 3rd one down is my beloved baba ganoush. They sell it at Whole Foods but it’s cheaper at the farmers market since it cuts out the middle man. I stocked up!

Hehe, the guy that was working there wanted to be in the picture I think. Here you go, sir – your moment of fame.

Spring Brook Farm

This is definitely one of my favorites at our local farmers markets. I love that the girl that runs it is very knowledgeable about their farming practices and chicken raising (they sell their own eggs – from range free chickens that have their beaks for only $3.50/dozen – that’s cheaper than organic eggs at a super market!!).

I also love that their gorgeous produce is significantly cheaper than anywhere else. I think they actually watch their competition and try to undercut it a bit. Hey works for me. It’s still not cheap (i.e. I know they are well paid) but it’s more affordable compared to others for sure.

I bought SO much stuff there yesterday. It was pretty much a 1 stop shop.

… oh yeah, about lunch. I got a sandwich from the Iggy’s stand. They have the chewiest baguettes. LOVE.

Fresh mozzarella, organic tomatoes, organic basil with white vinegar dressing on buttered ficelle (I could do without the butter )

So fresh and delicious. It also held me off for hours, without making me feel super stuffed. Perfect!

DINNER

How could I forget? CEiMB meals are back! This week’s dish was penne with roasted tomatoes, garlic and white beans (recipe here). I got the tomatoes and basil at the farmers market for it so I felt it still utilized some local produce. I like really centering my meals around that.

This took quite a bit of time to make (not active time, just waiting for the tomatoes and garlic to roast) and I’m not sure that it was worth it. Maybe I overcrowded my tomatoes (I nearly double the amount based on reviews online) but they kind of came out stewed rather than roasted. This was a little on the bland side (again, maybe I should have doubled the garlic and oil too to compensate for the extra tomatoes?). We enjoyed it but I won’t be making it again.

Dessert: Russian apple cake made by my mother in law:

Adam and I each enjoyed a little slice with what was left of the greek yogurt froyo. I need to make another batch!!

Are you an Internet junkie like myself? Make me feel a little better – let me know

Any fun plans for the weekend? We have so much going on. It also happens to be our 2-year wedding anniversary this coming Monday and my dad’s birthday so there is lots to celebrate. See you tomorrow morning with a post.

In the blender – 1+ frozen banana, frozen blueberries, 1c water, 1c 1% milk, Greens+ wild berry burst, 8 ice cubes, baby spinach and 1/4t xantham gum and 1/8t guar gum

It made 2 awesome smoothies – Adam and I shared them.

I paired my smoothie with a Food For Life millet toast with Barney Butter

[300 calories]

MID-MORNING SNACK

[70 calories]

LUNCH

Leftover savory pumpkin pudding

Still delicious the next day

[450 calories]

MID-AFTERNOON SNACKS

TJ’s 100 calorie dark chocolate bar

+ 2 somersault packets

[All together: 240 calories]

WORKOUT

I had a lunch meeting, which meant I had to go to the gym after work. I REALLY hate working out after work but for some reason I got a burst of energy right at 5pm. I left a bit later and found Adam on one of the treadmills finishing up his workout. It never gets old seeing my husband running! Unfortunately, the second I started running, all that energy disappeared. I was dragging. I had 4 miles with 6×200 on the schedule but I wanted to get off the treadmill a minute after starting running. I finished 6×200 with walking for recovery for most intervals (I NEVER do that!) and then got off. I probably ran a little over 1 mile instead of 4. Ugh This is my 3rd crappy run in a row. I considered quitting all together last night. Something is off with me on the running front, and I feel trapped. Maybe the 5K I’m running this weekend will be the perfect fun distance for me, and then I can get back to distance running. We’ll see how it goes.

DINNER

Sweet potato gnocchi with brussels sprouts and walnuts (recipe can be found here, originally discovered through Tri to Cook)

To make this, I used the Nuovo sp gnocchi (purchased at Whole Foods). This was super quick and Adam and I both really enjoyed it. The brussels sprouts overwhelmed the sweet potato taste a bit when eaten together in one bite, but alternating bites between the gnocchi and the brussels sprouts resulted in a great balance between sweet and earthy. The walnut pieces added a nice crunch as well. Great, great dinner!

Oh yes, and there was a bit of vino involved. This bottle of Cono Sur pinot noir was fantastic. So smooth. I had this glass and another splash after that. What a fun treat on a Tuesday night!

Label close-up:

Dessert: the infamous peanut butter chocolate chip granola bar cookie

This time I ate it like dessert and enjoyed it immensely. It really is kind of a perfect bar cookie (minus the calories).

Are you ever super tired for several consecutive days? Any ideas on how to re-energize? I’m all ears!

I kept the rest of my toenails in tact, with some pilates and nutritious eats

BREAKFAST

Egg whites, cheese and bacon on a FFL english muffin + coffee

[308 calories]

LUNCH

Ellie Krieger nutty sweet potato soup

[290 calories]

Eaten while on a conference call to make sure I have enough fuel for pilates.

SNACKS

[280 calories]

[120 calories]

+ a Hershey’s chocolate almond bar (unpictured). I don’t know why, but these are my guilty pleasure. I really wanted chocolate so I hit up the vending machine. I hope to keep these incidents to the minimum. [210 calories]

DINNER

We have a few more days with our old kitchen so we’re trying to use up everything we have in the fridge that we won’t be able to cook once construction starts. Today’s dinner was easy and super delicious!

Nuovo portabella & fontina ravioli with peas and vodka sauce + roasted cauliflower

The ravioli was delicious! I love fresh made pasta. These were not only yummy but very pretty – great for a meal for company that can be made in less than 10 minutes! (the ravioli took 4 minutes to cook once the water boiled).

The roasted cauliflower was pretty awesome too (even Adam loved it even though he wasn’t excited about this addition to dinner beforehand). I roasted it for about 20 minutes at 450*. Easy peasy

[~350-400 calories]

Then the snacking began I swear, every time I watch the Biggest Loser, I eat! How screwed up is that?!! I had a packet of almonds and 4 squares of chocolate. I wanted to continue going but realized that there was absolutely nothing I was craving and that I wasn’t hungry, so I forbid myself from going back to the kitchen. Crisis (kind of) averted.

Total calories consumed: over 2,000. It’s still a work in progress, obviously. At least my workouts have their luster back

Have you ever had exercise related injuries… or lost soldiers?

- Become truly Healthy and Sane (have we seen this one before?) – yes it’s an ongoing goal and will be my goal until this statement truly represents who I am. I’ve made a lot of progress with intuitive eating in 2009 and I think this will help me in 2010. I’ve learned that I can maintain my weight without calorie counting, if I just listen to my body, so that’s what I plan on bringing back later in 2010 and mastering ! [I am still taking on calorie counting to jump start my weight loss for the year.]

- Run two half-marathons (and finish them!) – I never thought I’d need to say this last part but I’ve been humbled by my last half-marathon. I am not giving up. I’ve learned very valuable lessons and this year will be my year. Why 2? Because I can’t wait to run another one again, so I already signed up for the Run to Remember on May 30, 2010… and then I need to finish the BAA half in October 2010. Watch out, I’m going to kill it!

- Read more books. With work, working out, blogging, blog reading, cooking, eating out, shopping, etc. reading has moved waaay down the list of things to do. I’m going to be mindful of this and would like to read at least 12 books in 2010 (cookbooks don’t count ). I hope I can’t do this!

- Stay on top of general news and industry news. I am going to be taking more responsibility at work this year, so I need to get sharper. I’ll try to read the news for at least 30 minutes in the morning, while finishing my breakfast coffee

- Finish the year debt free. Adam and I are really good with money. We used to pay our credit card balances in full every month and never purchase anything unless we know we can afford it. We also got used to going out and not really worry about money because our savings account has served as a comfortable cushion. Well in 2009 we bought a condo and are now starting a major kitchen remodel. These 2 things are not only wiping out our savings accounts, but we are also borrowing more money from my parents. I hope that by the end of the year, with savings, we’ll be able to repay my parents in full. This will take effort but I think this this makes it the perfect New Year’s resolution. Don’t worry, you’ll still see meals out and restaurant reviews. We can’t lock ourselves in the house for too long

- Put more effort into my outfits. When I like what I’m wearing, my hair is blown out and I feel put-together, it makes the whole day so much better (even work seems more fun)! I’m going to try preparing my outfits the day before to avoid just grabbing random stuff and feeling frumpy.

- Improve my cooking skills. I’d like to take some cooking classes during 2010 and maybe build confidence for creating some of my own recipes.

- Continue improving this blog. I clearly spend a lot of time writing this blog, so why not make it the best it can be? Constructive feedback is always welcome.

Now let’s see what I ate today…

BREAKFAST

Holey Donuts jumbo cinnamon bun (I wanted simple carbs yet a good amount of calories before my morning boot camp class)

[366 calories with coffee]

LUNCH

TJ’s whole grain flaxseed wrap with tzatziki, grilled chicken, cherry tomatoes and roasted brussels sprouts

Mmm, what a lunch! Hearty, healthy, delicious!

[316 calories]

SNACKS

1/2 pear + 1/2 persimmon

[74 calories]

TJ’s roasted almonds pack

[220 calories]

TJ’s whole wheat Tuscan pane with Samira’s homemade baba ganoush and avocado with lime juice

I will take this snack over dessert most days (and I did today). Yup, that good!

DINNER

Dinner was another fabulous home cooked indulgent tasting meal. I followed this recipe for straw and hay alfredo with roasted asparagus, using 100% whole wheat spaghetti instead of half and half.

The alfredo sauce was really delicious (cheesy and creamy!) and the whole pasta had a great nutty bite to it. It was a good portion that tasted much more caloric than it really was. I think it would be even more fantastic with some fresh pasta.

A 5 oz of Vitiano 2007 cabernet/merlot/sangiovese blend completed this Saturday night dinner perfectly (the wine was nothing special but it had a very relaxing affect ).

[~405 calories, incl. wine]

Total calories consumed today: ~1510 I feel super satisfied! I wish every day was this easy.

I’m off to relax with my hubby. Did you make New Year’s resolutions for 2010? They seem to be quite popular in the blog world. I’m clearly a fan

Today was the definition of intuitive eating.  I felt like I was eating all day long, with short breaks in between, but I tried not to let it bother me and just listen to my body. I actually think I accidentally didn’t eat enough yesterday (work was so busy, I never really got hungry) so my body clearly wants to make up for it. No sweat!

BREAKFAST

TJ’s nonfat organic European style yogurt, 1 pear, pb Puffins, dried cranberries + a handful of cinnamon cappuccino almonds (purchased at the Whole Foods mothership)

MID-MORNING SNACKS

I attempted to eat this Amazing Grass green superfood bar

I love the ingredients list of this guy, but life is too short to eat food that makes you gag so in trash it went! Banana bread larabar to the rescue… love!

An hour later I was still hungry (wtf?!) so I made a little snackaroo to hold me over through a conference call and a dentist appointment. 1/2 FFL english muffin + a packet of Barney Butter. Oh yeah!

LUNCH

I couldn’t come up with anything to bring for lunch this morning so I grabbed a pre-frozen meal from the freezer. I didn’t even know what it was… something I made a while ago that I thought would be a good “emergency” meal. It was rock solid so lunch was going to be a surprise That was until I received an e-newsletter from b.good telling me about their special turkey burger for the day + free fries. I just had to get it!

Turkey burger with bacon, caramelized onions (I opted out), granny smith apples, homemade maple glaze, and whole-grain mustard…

+ baked “fries” with ketchup

This burger was incredible! The homemade apple glaze (how do you make that?!!) was sweet, sticky and really tied together the crispy (sweet) bacon with sour green apples and spicy mustard. So many flavors in each bite, I couldn’t get over it. Definitely worth skipping my little frozen meal

MID-AFTERNOON SNACKS

Seriously, what’s up with my hunger today?

White chocolate cranberry oatmeal cookie, made with brown sugar

One serving of sea salt somersaults

DINNER

My mom got me these mushrooms a little while ago, and I was finally able to incorporate them into dinner. How cute are they?!!

I followed a recipe from Jenna for gnocci with browned butter, mushrooms and flageolet beans, cutting down on butter, subbing pinto beans for flageolets, and adding baby spinach and fresh thyme.

This dinner was warm and comforting. I love the little gnocci pillows!

I’m currently munching on some green grapes. Hopefully my hunger subdues by tomorrow, otherwise I will surely eat my weight in pies

Ooh, I think it’s time to check up on my pie… have you made pie crust before? Any tips or tricks?

Enter my NuNaturals stevia giveaway here.

THE RUN

This morning at the last minute, Molly and I decided to go for a quick run. I have to admit I was a bit apprehensive about how it was all going to go down. I pretty much run once a week now, and it shows… my stamina has really decreased. It was a beautiful day and we decided to just start running and see where that goes… it could even end up with just being a coffee date if the run wasn’t really happening. I met Molly about 1.5 miles into my run and I was already feeling it. I told her how silly it was for me to assume that I could just do 7-8 miles, just like that. I no longer run like I did while training for the half marathon, so I shouldn’t expect to be able to run decent distances just because I the number sounded good to me that day. So off we went, and somehow we both really got into it. Every time we had a chance to turn around, we just kept going! I’m going to fast forward to the end, I ran 9.5 miles today, averaging 9:48 minute miles (with the last 1.5 at an 8 minute mile pace… I was flying)!!!!! In fact, I could even keep going, I just decided it was time to get home. Oh, I also drank 18 oz of water, while running. I’m very proud of this too. This run was just amazing for my self confidence, on every level. I was seriously on cloud nine for the rest of the day and felt like a rock star!! Molly, you rock… and I kind of rock too

PRE-RUN SNACK/BREAKFAST

The usual: ww toast with Barney Butter + 1/2 banana

LUNCH

Lunch was crazy awesome… see it says so on my recipe so it must be true! Wow, I’m a dork… moving on!

I followed Meghann’s recipe for chickpea parmesan burgers, plopped it on a FFL english muffin and voila – an incredible (and filling!) lunch! Some carrot sticks on the side were the perfect sub for fries.

This recipe was super easy, and was seriously amazing. You have to make it asap!!!

And then it was time to enjoy this gorgeous day with my husband…..

I enjoyed a bite of this chocolate sample from Hotel Chocolat

And a delicious pumpkin spice chai with skim milk (no sweetener) from Tealuxe (my favorite tea spot!). Look at the frothy milk… mmm

Having my camera with me at all times comes in handy. This is our street… isn’t it cute?

A juicy apple tied me over until dinner…

DINNER

Shannon brought this amazing roasted red pepper dip to our housewarming party that was camera shy. The dip is slightly spicy and tangy (Shannon added some light cream cheese to cut the spice down) and is absolutely amazing scooped up with crackers, in sandwiches as a spread, and over pasta like in tonight’s dinner (the recipe for the dip can be found here).

Happy husband (candid shot)… I hope you don’t mind, Adam!

My portion: 2 oz whole wheat pasta with 1 chicken sausage, grape tomatoes, baby spinach and roasted red pepper sauce. This was so satisfying, perfectly balanced and absolutely delicious!

PS – This was yesterday’s lunch: 2 ww slider rolls with leftover grilled fish, roasted red pepper sauce and laughing cow cheese. Amazing!!

This sauce is so versatile. I highly recommend it! Thanks, Shannon, for bringing it over. Adam and I are in love with it

I’m off to a few bars to celebrate a friend’s birthday. Happy birthday, Emily!!!

How is your weekend going?

On a somewhat related note – did anyone see the Biggest Loser this week? What an intense episode!! I actually couldn’t fall asleep last night after we got back from San Antonio so I decided to catch up on my BL. Well THREE hours later, I was in tears, yet so happy to see the eliminated player’s progress (I don’t want to spoil the surprise for those who missed it). Did you notice that they didn’t show *her* “after” footage? I went online and found the video, as well as the additional interview. One of the questions actually related to staying away from unhealthy treats. She said that before she puts anything into her mouth, she evaluates whether it will bring her closer or further from her goal, and always chooses the one that gets her closer to it. I think that since most of us don’t have a lot of (or any) weight to lose, and are not on a competitive tv show, we get a little more room for “error,” but I do think that it’s important to stop and think sometimes – and make the “right” choice most of the time. I’ve let go recently, and this reminder will hopefully help me get back on track! I’ll definitely keep you guys posted on my progress Now enough talking, let’s get to today’s eat!

BREAKFAST

Nonfat yogurt, organic apple chunks, Kashi Heart to Heart cereal oat flakes with blueberry clusters, and ground flaxseed + coffee

The cereal was a sample I got in the mail, and I really enjoyed it. Lots of crunch and delicious sweet (but not too sweet) blueberry clusters.

LUNCH

V8 garden vegetable blend soup + Ezekiel english muffin

I ate this in 2 parts (double the soup) since work got crazy busy, and it satisfied my hunger for hours! I am definitely going to be shopping for more V8 soup in my future! It was the perfect “I have nothing in the house but I want a healthy meal” meal

SNACKS

New strawberry oikos

I liked it overall but it was a little too sweet for my taste (plain is totally the best!!).

Trader Joe’s crunchy pb granola bars

DINNER

Given that today is Thursday, I wanted to make another Ellie Krieger recipe. Since I was on vacation for a week, I decided to make last week’s chosen recipe - linguini with shrimp (I had all the ingredients for it at home and this week’s recipe in all honesty scared me a bit ). I cut down on oil, used 2oz of pasta/serving (instead of 6) but otherwise followed the recipe with no substitutions.

It came out quite delicious. After nearly a week of Mexican food, a big bowl of healthy pasta really hit the spot!

Is it me, or is something missing from today’s eats? Oh yeah – dessert!! I have some healthified brownies with cherries in the oven that I can’t wait to sink my teeth into. Healthy “indulgent tasting” treats are what keeps me in check. I am proud of today’s food choices. Are you proud of yours today?

PS – Happy blog anniversary, An Apple A Day! Check out her awesome anniversary giveaway here

Also, win a gift certificate for Stogo here.

EDITED TO ADD: Mmm, brownies….

I started with a glass of Badia a Coltibuono Chianti Classico, Cetamura

Is there anything better than relaxing with a glass of wine after a long work week? Hard to beat! This was a nice glass, flavorful yet light. Perfecto

After talking about how close this place is to our condo and how handy it will come on a cold winter night when we want to eat out but hardly feel like going anywhere, I asked to see the menu. All I wanted was to get an idea of the menu items. It was an innocent request, really. The crostini appetizer sounded too good to pass up, so we decided to split it.

Even though all we ordered was a $7 appetizer, the bartender promptly brought out some warm bread with a white bean spread.

I knew the crostini was coming so I waited to try it until after we ate it. I was so happy I left some room for it! The bread was so fresh (2 kinds were in the basket – regular white and focaccia) and the bean spread was smooth and creamy, and let the nuttiness of the live oil really stand out. Very yummy.

Next up were the crostini. I think they change their selection – on Friday they offered the salmon salad, braised beef, and truffled mushroom crostini (*not the official names of these – just what I call them )

I loved the presentation!

My half portion:

Every crostini was so different. The truffled mushroom (my favorite) was very earthy and rich, the braised beef was very sweet and tender (definitely some sweet bbq sauce or maple syrup was involved in cooking) and salmon was light and fishy. I described these in my order of preference. Overall the combination of the 3 made for a fun tasting. I’d order just a plate of the mushroom crostini next time, if they let me

After enjoying our drinks and appetizers at Lucca, Adam and I decided it would be fun one night to go restaurant-hopping, sit at the bar and just order appetizers. I guess we liked the idea so much that we decided to execute our plan that same night. Stay tuned for another review of our second bar experience at another brand new restaurant!

During my lunch break I went to City Sports and bought myself all sorts of fancy shmancy running stuff – a water belt, running gloves and a new warm long sleeve running tee. It got COLD here in Boston. How many gadgets can you fit on one person?

After work I got dressed and set out for a run. I didn’t have a distance in mind and I wanted to take it easy just in case I decided to run the half marathon this weekend after all. Um yeah, the run did not go well. My legs were heavy and I just wasn’t into it. The entire time I was thinking about all these other things I was excited about doing after my half was over – like more bootcamp classes, trying a new zoomba class my co-workers have been raving about, bringing yoga back into my life – all these workouts that had to be on the back burner while I was training for the half! I put all my energy and thoughts into preparing for Sunday’s race. I think I’m ready to move on. Over the past 3.5 months running has become more than a challenging workout – I learned to love it, but I need to spread the love a little. I’ll still run on occasion during the winter, but I want to concentrate on strength, yoga and spinning during the colder months. I’ll pick up running again next year when it warms up

BREAKFAST

Egg, ham & cheese on a FFL english muffin + coffee

LUNCH

Delicious randomness: corn tortilla, green and yellow beans, borlotti beans, roasted root veggies, grape tomatoes, goat cheese

SNACKS

Caramel, pecan, chocolate chip brownie from Tendercrop Farms

Apple (ha!)

2 Ryvita crackers with Sabra hummus and a hard boiled egg – great combo, although I’m not in love with these crackers

DINNER

I had a fun dinner planned but somehow didn’t realize it required cheese, and we were all out. Plan B was a random pasta dish with wild mushrooms based on this recipe from Cooking Light. I used TJ’s lemon parpadelle pasta, added lemon zest to the mushrooms, omitted the onions, and subbed skim milk + 1 laughing cow wedge for the whipping cream. I really enjoyed this dish although it could definitely be more saucy. Adam thought there was too much lemon and mushrooms and asked if I could take the rest for lunch. Oh well, at least I didn’t slave over dinner for hours

Dinner also included a glass of white wine and some chocolate covered almonds for dessert. Can’t wait for those things to be gone. Note to self: never buy a giant container of choc covered almonds again!!

I’m off to bed, getting up early to take a strength class with Coco. I’m excited to dedicate more time to other kinds of workouts besides running. What’s your favorite type of exercise?