Say Yes to Salad

confessions of a sometimes vegetarian

February 2, 2012
by Maggie
2 Comments

ZWOW!

Zuzana is back! I used to do her workouts when she was on Bodyrock but they got a new girl (who is not as good in my opinion).

She has been back for a few weeks but I only just got around to doing one of her workouts tonight. This workout was:

  • Split squat jumps (in lunge position, jump up and down X times on one leg; then switch to other side)
  • Single leg lunges with back foot on a chair (X times on one leg; then switch to the other side)
  • Superman pushups (do a pushup, but come down to the floor and do a superman, then another pushup, floor, superman, etc…)
  • Skaters!

It was a ponzi pyramid scheme where you go through the rounds and do 5 reps, then 10, then 15, then 10, and finally 5 again. I just did it along with Zuzana and if I finished ahead of her I did jumping jacks. This workout took me about 18.5 minutes.

Here is me afterwards, sweaty face and all:

I definitely would like to build up some more tone, but I have stayed in shape from all the yoga. I can do pushups better than ever before.

Yeah, I know, I was supposed to do a 3-miler today. But I have an update on that front – I am officially going to walk the half marathon - my knee started bothering me this weekend. Sigh. Silly knee. I don’t want to push it. I’m so excited to walk it though! I know I will find a cool group of people to chat with as we speedwalk to the finish line, and I know I will enjoy the training more.

And here is how I fueled up afterwards:

Roasted (no oil) kabocha and butternut squash. I stuck them in the oven at 475F right before I started the workout and they were ready 25 minutes later. I snapped the pic using this awesome app I just found called The Eatery. You take a picture of your food and other people judge whether it’s healthy or not. I am addicted.

So far for the week my other workouts have been…

  • Monday – off (as planned)
  • Tuesday – 3.75 miles running/incline walking (on treadmill)
  • Wednesday – 1.5 miles walking (on my lunch hour) + some additional walking after work (1 mile or so) = 2.5 miles total
  • Thursday (today) – 1ish mile walk at lunch, and the ZWOW I just finished.

What are your workouts of the week? Have you done a ZWOW yet?

February 1, 2012
by Maggie
7 Comments

What Do the Cooks Eat?

I recently read this op-ed article in the New York Times. The title, “Of Mouselike Bites and Marathons,” is clever summary of the exercise and eating habits that go on in famous(ish) cooks’ lives behind the scenes. We’ve all seen fit, slim, healthy cooks (think of the beautiful Giada De Laurentiis) and wonder how they keep their figures while eating all that delicious, rich, buttery food. What we don’t see is that they only take nibbles of most of those heavy dishes, they exercise, and they eat healthily the rest of the time.

Giada (source)

Or else, they’re not fit and slim, and they have health issues. Like Paula Deen. (If you didn’t hear, she recently announced that she has type 2 diabetes.)

Paula (source)

As a very non-professional cook but expert food eater I can definitely attest to the work that I do to stay slim and healthy. I eat salad, I do yoga, I walk (now run… until April). When I make something decadent I try not to stuff my face eat in moderation.

Or, I just make something healthy.

This was a mix of:

  • romaine lettuce (base)
  • sauteed in bacon fat: turnips (or parsnips, I forget), mushrooms, onions, cilantro, garlic powder
  • topped with whipped cream cheese – then mixed in because it gets all melty! + organic balsamic vinaigrette
  • ended up adding a few strips of bacon (unpictured) – I cooked them for Bobby and then stole some for myself

Ah, so good. The bacon fat and the cream cheese make it taste so rich and hearty. (Note: I have said this before but I’ll say it again – when eating bacon, it’s important to get it without nitrates/nitrites!)

Do you make healthy or more decadent dishes?

I like to think food can be both at the same time.

January 30, 2012
by Maggie
4 Comments

I’m Still a Salad Loving Yogi

Thank you all for the encouragement after my announcement yesterday! I just wanted to stop back in and clarify something though – while I have decided to do a half-marathon, I am still going to be writing mostly about yoga and healthy yums that I create (or order in a restaurant, hehe). I still haven’t even decided if I’m actually going to run the half or walk it or do some combination of the two (probably a combo). So this half-marathon training experiment is really more of a way for me to get back into my walking routine, which I have sorely missed.

In September I began a huge undertaking – yoga teacher training. For 3 months I was in yoga classes 3-4 days a week (both taking and observing) and in training on the weekends (Friday night, Saturday and Sunday all day). Yoga was my life, basically. I stopped taking my long weekend walks and I started a new job further away – which meant that I couldn’t walk to or from work anymore either (at my old job I would occasionally walk home – it was probably about a mile). I know I need to write a looooong summary of my TT experiences – I know, I know! It’s just that there is so much to say and I never know where to start.

But anyway, back to the point. I love walking. I miss walking. And I’m using the half marathon as a way to explore the city like I used to.

As for yoga, I will still be teaching it, doing it, and sharing my thoughts and teacher resources with you all. I can’t not talk about yoga.

And for food – I will definitely need healthy nourishment during the training. And I’ve been getting back into cooking at home more – gosh, did I miss it. My new job has brought a lot of balance into my life that I didn’t have before. No more weird, crazy hours (unless I want them). A gym in my building. The opportunity to teach yoga to my colleagues. And great benefits. So because of this new job, I have the chance to go back to my roots and cook my own meals. There is something satisfying about creating exactly what you want, when you want it.

Enough with the seriousness though. This weekend my sister was in for a day and we got to go out for our favorite:

Salad sisters!

We both have reusable bowls from Just Salad and we love to make our own creations.

  • Maggie’s salad: tofu, avocado, and double butternut squash, double broccoli, and double beets. I topped it with a tahini dressing.
  • Julia’s salad: avocado, an egg, black beans, sun-dried tomatoes, corn, beets, and banana peppers. She also picked the tahini dressing.

I had a few bites of hers and definitely want to try it next time. It’s so good to branch out from my usual routine.

Past posts on walking:

What are some routines that you do? Are there any that you used to do and want to start up again?

January 29, 2012
by Maggie
16 Comments

Running (half) Circles

From now until April 15, 2012 I am going to be running circles. Lots of circles in and around Manhattan. Because… I signed up for the More Magazine/Fitness Magazine Half Marathon in Central Park!

No, I’m not really a runner. I can run, but I don’t usually. In fact, I’ve probably berated lots of people for running because it’s not that good for your joints. But for some reason I thought this would be a good idea, and signed up impulsively Friday afternoon. (I’m glad I did.) I think it’ll be really fun – both the training and the actual event. I may not end up running the whole thing (I’m a big fan of the jog/walk), but I will definitely finish.

Me, this afternoon, on my way out for a 4+ miler (thanks for snapping the pic Jules!)

Half Marathon Training Plan

My half marathon training plan will be as follows (based on this source). It’s a modified 12-week plan because I started midway through the first week. The weeks go Monday to Sunday.

Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat Sun
Week 1 (1/23-1/29) off off off off 1m 3.5m* 4.3m*
Week 2 (1/30 -2/5) off 3m 4m 3m off 3m 4m
Week 3 (2/6 – 2/12) off 3m 4m 3m off 3m 5m
Week 4 (2/13 – 2/19) off 3m 5m 3m off 4m 6m
Week 5 (2/20 – 2/26) off 4m 5m 4m off 3m 7m
Week 6 (2/27 – 3/4) off 4m 4m 4m off 4m 8m
Week 7 (3/5 – 3/11) off 4m 6m 4m off 4m 9m
Week 8 (3/12 – 3/18) off 4m 6m 4m off 4m 10m
Week 9 (3/19 – 3/25) off 4m 6m 4m off 3m 11m
Week 10 (3/26 – 4/1) off 4m 5m 4m off 4m 12m
Week 11 (4/2 – 4/8) off 4m 5m 4m off 3m 6m
Week 12 (4/9 – 4/15) off 3m 5m 3m off 2m Race day: 13.1 miles!

*Saturday’s jog (1/28) was on my way to yoga. Thanks to the class I wasn’t sore the next day (today) because it was an amazing stretch. Sunday’s (today, 1/29) was a jog/walk. I think I walked about 1.3 miles of it.

That’s it! I’m hoping to jog most of the allotted mileage, but will be happy as long as I get through it, even if that means walking.

So what will I eat? Hmm….

Snack after today’s run: sauteed (in bacon fat) broccoli stalk, frozen corn, frozen Brussels sprouts, and whipped cream cheese. Because the veggies were warm the cream cheese got all melty and it was fabulous.

Have you ever done a half marathon? Or any other race?

I’ve never done any races before but I did used to run a lot when I lived in California.