New Music Tuesday(s) and Minneapolis Wrap Up

Two weeks of new music -- yay! 

My current favorites: 

JT's new album - The 20/20 Experience. GET THIS IN YOUR HEAD.  The 16-year old girl in me is swooning. Except now JT has ditched the fro and is way cuter. And married. My favorites: Don't Hold the Wall and That Girl and Let The Groove In (very Salsa-esque), Tunnel Vision. Obvi I like this album. 

Blake Shelton- Based on a True Story. LOVE me some Blake. I really like his first single, Sure Be Cool if You Did. But, honestly, I love this whole album after the first listen this morning. Really can't pick a favorite right now, but Small Town Big Town is what comes to mind first thing. This will be my next long run album. :) I really like Doin' What She Likes, too. Really cute. :) The lovey in me just gets the fuzzies. Lame sauce, I know. 

One Republic - Native. I love One Republic. This album doesn't change my mind on that. Really like  Feel Again (their single. Hasn't gotten old to me yet.) and I Lived. Love the lyrics and it rings true to how I want to feel at the end of this whole Michigan experience.  

50 Cent - We Up. New single. Really feeling this one! 

Willy Moon - My Baby. Such a fun song! 

Also, not "new" per se -- but I have been loving on Phoenix's newest album, It's Never Been Like That. It's a fun album, a good slow paced running mix, with some fun upbeat songs, too.

OK -- On to Minnesowwtah :)
Well, getting up at 4:00 AM to catch a flight is never fun, but doing it to see one of your favorite people after 6 weeks of not seeing them makes it a bit easier. :) So, Luckily on the way there I didn't have any delays or issues (Praise the Lord!), and arrived in Minneapolis at 9:00 AM! We did lots of fun stuff, inluding: Mall of America (all day!), downtown Minneapolis (so fun -- LOVED IT), the Walker Art Museum (I would NOT recommend this museum to ANYONE. So weird and we all left feeling creeped out and confused. You can't unsee things....that's all I'm saying), and some good eats! We had brunch at The Local, had giant beers and mexi at Acapulco's, and even cooked out. Last but not least, I got to hold a black chicken, and play with Duke :) Can't wait to go back! Special thanks to Michelle and Dan for opening up their home, and to Natasha and Sheena for checking on Bigs while I was away! Here are some pics:

One of the chickens, and Duke

Trying to teach Duke "up" -- not a success. 

Acapulco's 

Downtown Sculpture Garden -- Cherry on a spoon. 

Downtown. Yes, he's that tall. And I'm that short. 

On the train to downtown. ALMOST missed the train lol 

<3 So, that's my quick trip to Minneapolis with Michael to see his sister and Dan. Had so so so much fun. Even got a run in! Although I ate like shit, I'm getting back on track this week :) I do what I want on vacations lol

Posts will probably be a little inconsistent until the end of April -- my semester is starting to wrap up which means everything is due. Yikes.

Hope everyone has a great week!

Oh -- Special shout out to Rockwall Heath High School Gymnastics team and my bad-A brother Grayson for making it to STATE this year!!! Woo hoo.

Weekend Wrap Up

This made me laugh out loud. I know so many people who probably get tired of hearing about my running complaints/victories -- in addition to all the other fitness-y stuff I talk about. There's certainly a fine line, and I try not to ramble to the folks I know don't care about my race pace, newest ailment, etc. Everyone talks about something too much -- work, their kids, their significant other, money, etc. Mine happens to be working out/healthy eating. Shoot me. 

Ok, please don't shoot me. Just tell me to shut it. Say it nicely though, ifyoudon'tmind.

THAT BEING SAID: Let's talk about the WEEKEND! 

MSU played Friday at 9:00,  but I was in a MOOOOOD (What I mean by that is I told my boyfriend I wanted to "rip his face off for no reason" -- true story). So, after I got off work after working 11.5 hours -- yes, this glamorous life I lead :) -- I ran my 5 miles scheduled for Saturday because I just wanted to be able to sleep in a little. Took some IB Profen, and drank a Spark around 7:15 so I'd be ready to run right when I got home around 8:00. I was slow, but I got that shit done.
So, I did that and was in a much better mood, so we ended up meeting and watching State WIN.

Because it was snowing I ran on the dreadmill, er, treadmill. Snow? Yep. You read that right.

That day in March was last Sunday/Monday. I forced myself into shorts because I was irrationally optimistic. Oh well. We're still in Winter in my opinion (considering it snowed Wednesday and Friday and Saturday morning -- ew), so whatevs. Anywayyyy, I put on my green and got ready for a pub-run. About two miles with frequent bar stops. To support the National Food Bank, of course I had to :) Here's some pics: 

Me and Natasha

Capital Steps in downtown Lansing

Getting a little cray. at 1:00 PM.

So, we finished that up and came back to rest/watch Michigan State lose (ugh). We took a power nap and got ready to hit the town Saturday night. Ummm, this is probably the only decent picture since I had too much to drink. Ugh. Like, throwupinthemorning too much. So awful.


With that being said, I did absolutely NOTHING today. My head was POUNDING all morning (er, afternoon), and I finally got up and moved to the couch at 1:00. Went and sat in the sauna for an hour to sweat all that alcohol out, and am feeling much better. People that legit drink all weekend every weekend amaze me, I just have no desire to feel like shit all the time. Or waste all my money.

Going to hit the hay early tonight after PAAAAAAACKING for my trip :) Can't wait to get to Minneapolis soon! 6 weeks is a long time to go without seeing your love *blush* and I am so so so excited to spend some quality time with the one that I love. Ok, sweetsy stuff *over.*

Also -- thanks for family prayers. Keep em coming if you can! Reminding myself that God is in charge and everything happens for a reason.

Hope everyone had a fun and safe weekend!

Premature Senioritis and Running Babble

Oh...here it is. Spring is here, meaning that May is coming....meaning it seems like *everyone* is graduating. Literally, in one of my classes, there's only one girl that's not graduating this May. 

Oh.....and me. That's right, I'm not graduating this May either...... I'm just excited about the fact that this time next year, I'll be basically finished with my MSW. It will be here before I know it, and then I'll probably be sad about it. That's generally how it works.

So, knowing I have 13 months left of school, why have I been ruthlessly searching for potential jobs on indeed.com, ihiresocialservices.com, etc? Those jobs aren't going to be there next year, Kathryn. If I'd stop doing that all my upcoming assignments would be done, that's for sure.

You know what else isn't going to be there next year (more than likely)? The apartments you look at. Or the houses.

Even Bigs daydreams about post-grad while studying :) 

I am psychotic.

-End rant -

On to running -- I am in my second week of my make-shift training and doing well. My knee is still giving me issues which I am NOT loving, but I've been icing like I should (for once), and trying to get better about stretching/using my roller. I've also been taking IB Profen pre-run (as suggested) these past few days and that's really helped. I also think the kickmyass 90 minute hot yoga once a week really helps, especially while still doing Insanity and abs 2-3 times a week. Since I'm working on overall strength in addition to building up my running endurance again, it evens everything out. Last race training I pretty much JUST ran and did spin, which really didn't give my legs a rest, or work many different muscle groups.

Left: one week ago. Right: This morning, feeling great!

I really don't know how I'd be surviving Michigan without exercise. I know I've said this several times...but I'm serious. It drastically improves my moods AND gives me something productive to do. I'm so thankful to have such a beneficial hobby. Especially when it's frikkin' snowing/icing in MARCH. 'Scuse me sun, it is time for you to make a permanent appearance around these parts. Thanksamil. Adios ice.

The ever-present bruise. 

Anyway -- if anyone has a magic wand knee-fix for me -- please pass it along. I' ll be getting up real early this Saturday pre-St. Pat's festivities to run 5 and am a little bit nervous. I'm hoping to hit up Playmakers one of these Wednesdays for the Sports Injury Clinic. If I end up being unable to run the Bayshore at my pace I will have to get over it. The triathlon will be easier on the knee.

St. Pat's Dash Down Greenville in Dallas. Can't believe this was a year ago.

St. Pat's -- I am excitedddd to see all the pics posted! One of my favorite nonsense holidays. I won't be in Ireland like the manfriend, but Lansing is a close second (ha-ha --not). At least I'll be in great company :)

Stay tuned for some fun pictures from the weekend andddd potential news! 

Sidenote: For those of you that actually read this, my family would really appreciate some prayers, as we are facing some hardships I'd rather not disclose. We would really appreciate it.

Mix it Up Monday & New Music Tuesday

Mix it up Monday
Well -- nothing really super new today. Getting up early was a struggle with the time change, but I trreated myself to some coffee with coconut milk, and that was tastyyyy. I am obsessed with coconut lately. Even got these babies at the store:

COCONUT M&Ms. They weren't as good as I wanted them to be :(

I also started a new devotional with a few girlfriends this morning by Oswald Chambers, My Utmost for His Highest, and I enjoyed it this morning -- totally applied to where I'm at right now, which is not waiting, and just going into "do" mode before sitting and thinking and listening. So, that's something new I'm doing. Also had some of Justin's maple nut butter, and it was delish.

New Music Tuesday
Uhhh...where's the music at? Because there's really not much new out. Instead -- I'll just provide the songs I'm loving today.
 
Sweet - DMB

Cruise - FGL (simply because I am READY for summer, like yesterday.)

Stay - Rihanna Ft. Mikky Ecco. Love this one.

And, just for laughs:

Hilarious. "Veganville" skit :)

Happy Tuesday!

Recipes: Healthy "Classics"

Ok -- so I love me some food. Please show me someone who doesn't -- even 'rexis like food. Luckily, my fam eats pretty much healthy. Except Dad -- if it weren't for my mom, we'd have pizza or macaroni and sausage every night. Or cereal. These are my dad's favorites. Luckily, he doesn't do the cooking or we'd all be unhealthy fatties. Sorry Dad, it's true. 

Anyway, my mom makes the World's Best Turkey Burgers. You've probably seen her famous recipe  floating around on Pinterest -- joking. I've been making them between burger patty and meatball sized, like sliders-ish and throwing them on my salads, like this: 

They're so good. I LOVE them. More than traditional burgers. That's a little mozzarella cheese on top, it looks like squeezable mayo but it's not -- that would be gross. For two patties it's 194 calories.

Anyway, you need, ground turkey, and a veggie mix pack.

This is the only brand if veggie mix I've been able to find. But, this is all you need. None of that 20something-ingredient list. Ain't nobody got time for that. So, thaw the meat and dump in the mix and mix together with hands. Clean hands, preferably. Unless it's just you eating it -- then do whatever you want. Form them into whatever size you prefer, and bake at 350 for 30-40 minutes. I just cut one open and make sure they're done, I don't own a thermometer. I just make sure it's not pink in the middle.

Finished product from today -- makes 11 (I ate one pre-pic) 

Put them over sandwiches, toss with spaghetti squash and tomato sauce, put it in between bread/pita for a makeshift sandwich/wrap. They're so good! These also freeze well, so there ya go. My go to "I'm sick of chicken what do I eat" meat. :) 

New recipe from my Pinterest board I tried -- Ok, I'm trying to branch out and I've sworn off pinning new recipes until I start trying the bajillions that I've already pinned. I LOVE Mac and Cheese, but it is clearly not diet friendly, and since my last cleanse I've really reduced my dairy by like 75%. But, this looked delicious and I kept thinking about making it. So I did. This is how I modified it to make it a bit healthier:
 1 cup of spaghetti squash /1 cup whole wheat pasta instead of the 2 cups of pasta
1.5 cups of the cheese and 1/2 cup of fat free cottage cheese instead of the 2 cups of cheddar
I made my own "bread crumbs" using my Ezekiel bread, garlic powder, and flax seeds.
of course made it spicyyy (more cayenne, dried japs, red pepper flakes, paprika)
I used coconut milk because that's what I use ** I'd recommend getting some skim or 1% because the sweetness is not masked by the cheese. **

This is my "breadcrumb" mixture. 

My roasted veggies. About 25 minutes in the oven at 350 

 Cheese mixture. 

FINISHED! and tastyyy. 

I put all the ingredients in My Fit Pal and figured out that one serving (if this dish serves about 4) is approx. 500 calories -- the average mac and cheese dish is anywhere from 400-600 for a cup, and that's just as a side. I ate mine as my main dish and was totally full.

Other news:

GOT MY BRADY BANDS! Love them. They're so cute. And they seriously stay on. So, for those that need some great hairoutofyourfacethatdontfalloff headbands, these are super affordable, and cute.

Green chevron, gunmetal sparkles <3

Just when you think winter is over, you go on a night run and fall on the damn ice. Hard. Thanks, Michigan. I forgot that March is still freakingggg winter here. Lesson learned. I'll stick to daytime runs or the treadmill until April (ughhh).

Since this pic, it's only gotten uglier. Ugh. 

ANDDDD I got my triathlon training book in AND my super cheap new Mizunos (Amazon Student prime + gift card + late 'model' shoes = 100+ shoes for about half the price. Bonus), so my plan is to read some on Sunday and pick a triathlon -- I'm torn between the Grand Rapids one in early September or the August 25th Playmakers one here in Lansing. Leaning towards the local Playmakers one. 

ANDDDDDDD finally -- cheers to me for securing my next job! I'll be working at the River House (yes -- waiting tables for the first time in three years) this summer when my nanny job ends and my internship starts. Bittersweet :( I am going to truly miss my Michigan family, but it's nice to know I won't be jobless and can still go over to harass them whenever I want :) 

Root Cabernet <3

ANDDDDD -- wow it's been a busy eventful week -- I'll be visiting Minneapolis in less than TWO WEEKS! So so excited to visit a new place and spend time with M/his sister :)


Hope everyone had a wonderful weekend, I'll be spending the rest of this SPRING FORWARD day working on school stuff, since I already ran my 4 miles and can't procrastinate anymore. Happy Sunday! 

For the Love of: Fitness

So many people run because they like it. I really do, but I didn't always. It started out as simply a weight loss means to an end, as it does with most people. But now, I run because I love it. I love getting new running outfits or shoes, to register for races and set new goals, to feel like part of a larger community of runners, to feel fab after a long run, or to increase my speed. What inspires someone to start running?  Better yet, what makes someone keep running?

 I graduated college, started my new job as a social worker in a Medicare rehab facility, and moved out with my then-boyfriend -- all within the same month. Talk about overload. I didn't realize the adjustment to actual adulthood would be so difficult, but it was. I started gaining weight a little before graduation (thanks to my study abroad experience being awesome with OMG-OOD food) --  but really it was the first six months of working full time that I packed on the pounds. 

I didn't work out, I didn't watch what I ate or how much of it I ate. Spoiler alert: it caught up to me. Quick. And stuck to me. Other than my general self esteem, I noticed myself more stressed out and anxious, generally more negative, and feeling gross. Obviously, when I finally jumped on the scale and noticed I was slightly over 140 -- I died. I'd never weighed that. Or ever been close. You can't trick the scales. You can post pictures that make you look skinnier, wear more black, whatever. But the scale means business. And it's not subtle, or kind. It's honest. 

My coworkers were registering to do the Dallas Marathon in groups in December of 2010, and I joined. My friends and I went through one summer doing 5ks a lot, so I knew I could do my 5m leg easily. I started working out, and I just kept going! I didn't lose a lot of weight working up to my 5 mile race, but it certainly jump started my journey. In January, the same group of coworkers and some new ones decided to do a weight loss challenge (general Biggest Loser style) -- and I think it lasted 4 or 6 weeks. I can't remember. Well, I didn't win the contest -- but I did lose almost 15 pounds. I was doing to cardio kickboxing 3x a week and spinning 3x a week with a friend. I was in love. Not only with the classes, but I had a total lezzie crush on the cardio kickboxing instructor. She was in rockin' shape, and super cute. Plus, she kicked my ass three days a week. Totally made getting up at 4:45AM worth it.

 So, I'd lost about 25 pounds at this point, and decided to start incorporating weights in order to gain some muscle and put some healthy weight back on. 

The following December I did my first half marathon (2011).  

After that I started and finished the Insanity program.

September of 2012 I did the Chicago half and shaved over 20 minutes off my time. 

I'm doing the Bayshore this May, and hope to finally reach my goal time of under 2:00:00. YEAYUH.

And this is where I'm at:

Early Dec 2010          January 2013

Aside from feeling comfortable and confident in my own skin -- which is enough of a reason to exercise right there -- my anxiety has decreased so much so that I haven't had a panic attack in over a year and a half. I sleep better (and less), I have found friends through running socially (which also adds accountability), and I'm healthy. Disclaimer: my happiness is not solely due to running and exercise. Let's be clear about that, it isn't a magic wand. But my commitment and loyalty to taking care of myself has been the best thing I have ever done. Somewhere it stopped being about the weight, but the joy I found when I started taking care of me. 

Do what makes you happy, today and every day. 

Mix it up Monday & New Music Tuesday

 Mix it up Monday

Oh yum -- at P Squared in Downtown Lansing. AWESOME. They have SO many wine option by the glass. It's a cute small space, with comfy chairs in the corner, a long bartop, and high top tables. The music was a bit loud, but that's really my only complaint. BONUS: On Mondays their wine glasses are ALL half off. All of them. Even better? Their small plate apps are ALSO half off from 4-9! I mean, hello -- I was excited to go, and then I get there and get that little memo. Anyway, I has a Spanish Rioja and a Chenin Blanc. Both great. My friend Sheena is into super sweet wines (as she says, "like grape juice"), and our waitress was SO sweet and brought out several tastes for her to try before deciding. She may have talked smack behind the bar, but was super sweet at the table -- all that matters :) So, Check out this place. They also have other specials -- Tuesday is $5 off all flights AND all day happy hour (11-6), Wednesday is half off bottles, and Thursday they have some other specials. They also have beer for the non-wino's --- if those even exist. Click here to view their menu. 

New Music Tuesday! 

Kate Nash - Girl Talk   Finally. I love love LOVE Kate Nash, and have for a long time. She's funky and fun, and perfect for summer or a gloom day. This album is a bit more fierce/grungy than her other Brit-pop albums, but I still like it.  Check out Omygod! and All Talk.
Luke Brian - Spring Break Here to Party it's just a comp album, but I love Luke Brian, and I don't care :) Perfect Summer-Prep album.

Had a great morning at East Lansing Hot Yoga Slow Flow (burned over 300 calories per my watch) and excited for my group run tonight at 7:00 with a cupcake for dinner at Sugar Shack!

Happy Spring Break Day to me :)
Happy Tuesday all. 

March: Social Work Month

NASW postcard I got 

Another awesome thing about March is Social Work Month. I love this month, naturally, because I am a social worker. It's one of my favorite self identities, and I will always proudly proclaim, "I am a social worker" when people ask.

If I've been asked once, I've been asked a twohundredbajillion times, "Oh, so you like...take people's kids away?" No, idiots. I don't. And for the record, only a fraction of social workers work for Child Protective Services. 

What social workers actually DO: Work with elderly, help with end of life issues, work with families/children/adolescents/adults/ groups, and organizations. Some do counseling, help with disadvantaged groups, organize classes/programs for teen moms, the homeless, after-school organizations, work for head-start programs or cities, counsel on substance abuse, trauma (sexual assault, abandonment, PTSD, etc.), adoption, foster care, juvenile justice, prison systems.....I'll go ahead and stop there.

For instance: I will be interning at the Michigan State University Counseling center -- and I will work with students of all ages, with anything they bring to me. Being excited to work for free just tells you how excited I actually am :)

If you know a social worker, tell them thank you. More than likely, their job is hard, and they do it because they love it. They probably take on too much, and often forget to take care of themselves.

Tip of the day: Love your social workers, friends. They know other social workers that can help you with things if they can't help themselves. <3