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By kilax, March 22, 2010 4:44 am

I read a statistic in the April issue of Women’s Health saying 8 in 10 people prefer the gym to exercising outdoors (based on a Women’s Health poll) – which surprised me!

Then I read in the April issue of Health that according to research from the University of Essex, people who workout outdoors feel more relaxed and energized than those who stay indoors. Hmm.

I take every “study” I read with a grain of salt. How could you possibly sample enough people to ever make “statistics” like this be accurate?

Of course, that doesn’t mean I don’t use them as starting points for blogging material! Especially these two. When I read them, I really wanted to know what other people think. So…

Do you prefer to workout indoors or outdoors? I suppose it depends on the activity – which do you prefer where? Do you feel more “relaxed and energized” indoors or outdoors?

I prefer all of my cardio workouts outdoors because I find them more entertaining – there is so much to take in outside, especially when running on a trail in a park, or somewhere new! When I do have to do cardio in the gym, I prefer to have a podcast to listen to, or a magazine to read. And I probably do feel more energized when I am working out outside, and the sun is shining… but I feel energized after most cardio, anywhere!

Now, strength? That has to be done in the gym, right?

Comments (21)

By kilax, March 21, 2010 6:41 pm

Day 148 | March 15, 2010: strength

I did a short strength workout during lunch. I really felt like that was all the working out I could muster up. Daylight Savings Time left me feeling all out of sorts. Did anyone else feel super messed up from losing an hour of sleep?

Arm Curl: 3 x 15 @ 25 lb
Lat Pulldowns: 15 @ 45 lb, 2 x 15 @ 60 lb
Pectoral Fly: 15 @ 45 lb, 2 x 15 @ 60 lb
Shoulder Press: 3 x 15 @ 20 lb
Biangular Chest Press: 15 @ 30 lb, 2 x 15 @ 50 lb
Shin Developer: 3 x 20 @ 10 lbs
V Bar Pushdowns: 3 x 15 @ 30 lb

Day 149 | March 16, 2010: 5 m interval run + cross + stretch

That short Monday workout must have done something to me – my entire upper body felt super sore on Tuesday! When I did the bike during lunch, it hurt my arms to hold a magazine and read. Wow.

I was all excited about running in the sun (+ 55° temps!) when I got home, but I wasted 20 minutes trying to figure out the Auto Lap settings on the Garmin, and ended up running the end of the run in the dusk. Wah.

Does anyone know the difference between the Lap Press Only, Start and Lap and Mark and Lap settings on the Garmin Forerunner 405? The Garmin manual description does not make sense. I wanted to press “lap” at the end of each interval, but we tried “start and lap” and it lapped whenever we crossed where we had previously hit lap. I didn’t want that to happen.

So, the splits are all messed up. Anyway, I’ll figure that out.

Steven and I ran step-down ladder intervals: 1600, 1200, 800, 400 with 400 recoveries and a mile warm-up and half mile cool-down. We did the warm-up and recoveries at 11:00, and the intervals at 10:00, 9:30, 9:00 and 8:15, respectively. The last half mile was about 11:30.

We did the 10-minute YogaWorks AM Wake-Up Segment when we got back to the house.

Distance: 5.00 | Time: 51:27
Bike Time: 45:00 | Distance: 7.72 (Set on “Ozark Trails”)

Day 150 | March 17, 2010: rest

Day 151 | March 18, 2010: 4.75 m run

Erin was nice enough to let me tag along with her lunch time running group. I’m so happy I did! Not only was the conversation with her and her friends great, but I really felt like I was pushing myself and it was gorgeous outside – 65°! I think I actually got a sunburn!

Blue skies =

Sunburned Face! I know, you can’t really see it. My face was all red.

I hope I can run with them again. It’s good for me to do something new! We ran further than I ever had before on the southern path along Lake Michigan and I really liked it.

When I was getting dressed to go running, I accidentally kicked the back of my left heel into the bench in the locker room. That wouldn’t be a big deal, but my left achilles was a tiny bit sore Wednesday and Thursday! Of course, it immediately tore the skin off. Ah, the life of a klutz.

Distance: 4.75 | Time: 42:01 | 1: 8:44 | 2: 8:53 | 3: 8:54 | 4: 8:59 | 5: 6:30

Day 152 | March 19, 2010: cross

After eating Vegan Apple Fritters for breakfast, a full lunch, and too many Newman’s Own Organic goodies all I fit in was a two mile walk with Steven, my sister and her boyfriend, who were visiting.

Day 153 | March 20, 2010: 5K run + strength

Seriously. I thought I was done running in weather like this:

and wearing clothes like this:

Sigh.

This was pretty much a FAIL run. I set out to do a tempo run but:

1. The ground was too slippery
2. I couldn’t see because snow kept hitting my face (Later Steven asked why I didn’t wear my ski goggles. Duh! Why didn’t I think of that?).
3. My left achilles was aching

So I called it short at 5K. Meh. They can’t all be great. At least I got out there (and after having a migraine the night before, no less!).

When I got back, I did 25 Calf Raises with Tricep extensions using a 20 lb weight. Then Steven and I did Level 2 of The 30 Day Shred (I used 2 lb weights). I was really struggling with the plank moves, even doing the “easier” version.

Distance: 3.1 | Time: 30:12 | 1: 10:07 | 2: 9:37 | 3: 9:30 | 4: 00:57

Day 154 | March 21, 2010: 7 m run + volunteer

Look at this photo:

Exact same location as the snowy photo above… one day later. The weather in the midwest is so strange! On Saturday it was in the 30s and snowing, and on Sunday it was in the 40s and sunny.

Steven and I went on a 7 mile run. I am happy he was up for it, because I felt pretty lethargic and might have just passed on the run if it wasn’t for him! Unfortunately, his ankle started to hurt at the end, so we walked a bit. I hope that goes away soon!

In the morning (before my afternoon run with Steven) Erin and I volunteered at the Chicago Shamrock Shuffle (a 8K). We worked in gear check for about an hour or so, then were released well before we thought we would be, so we went out to lunch and she showed me around her town a bit. I wish I lived closer to Erin! Wah wah wah (we live about an hour/50 miles away from one another).

Distance: 7.0 | Time: 1:16:00 | 1: 10:33 | 2: 10:41 | 3: 10:46 | 4: 10:31 | 5: 10:30 | 6: 10:42 | 7: 12:11

Do you ever volunteer at races?

Week Summary: 19.85 miles

This was a pretty “off” week for me, exercise-wise. No yoga. Barely any strength. Wacky runs. I felt all out of sorts. I hope next week goes better.

My stupid left foot has been bothering me for over a week now. It started in the ball of my foot, moved to my achilles, and is now in my heel. I have been icing my entire foot 1-2 times a day and it feels great after I do. I just wonder – if this a real pain or just some phantom pain that I am taking too seriously?

Comments (20)

By kilax, March 20, 2010 6:32 am

We used to always share food with our neighbors (who moved), and they would often say, “we feel less guilty eating your treats since they are vegan!”

Believe me – you can make UNHEALTHY vegan food. Oh yes. Like Vegan Apple Fritters!

My sister and her boyfriend are visiting, so we took this as the perfect opportunity to try making Vegan Apple Fritters yesterday. They turned out amazing – just like the ones you buy in a donut shop, just not as thick – we will probably make them thicker next time.

Steven modified a recipe from recipezaar.com to make it vegan (we also modified it to work with the ingredients we already had).

Warning: this recipe takes a long-ass time to prepare (we made the apple filling in advance and got up at 6:30 yesterday… so these would be ready by 10:00!). And it is one LONG-ASS recipe, so click “continue reading” to read on…

Continue reading 'Vegan Apple Fritters'»

Comments (37)

By kilax, March 19, 2010 5:33 am

Are you interesting in your ancestry? Have you done any research on it? What tools do you use?

All I know about my ancestry is what I’ve learned from talking to my parents and grandparents. I have not done any digging on my own. And to be honest, I don’t know much, but I would like to!

A few years ago, a distant relative found my blog and sent me some family information. I thought it was pretty cool that we connected this way. Of course… we have since lost touch!

I thought I would ask this question because I have known a few people to really get into this. I wondered if anyone else was!

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By kilax, March 18, 2010 6:44 pm

I’ll have some reviews coming for you soon…

Like half of the other blogs I read, I received a case of POM juice to try last week! Any recommendations on recipes?

And I got a really huge package today! Guess what was in it?

A whole TON of Newman’s Own Organic Products to try! I AM SO EXCITED!!!

Click to see larger!

Remember when I wrote about being an asker? I was lucky enough that POM contacted me to send a case of the juice, but I contacted Newman’s to try all of their products. Don’t be afraid to ask. You’ll never know what they outcome may be!

I’m really excited to review all of this!

What do you guys think about product reviews? Lame? Cool? Boring? Selling-out?

Comments (44)

By kilax, March 18, 2010 5:12 am

I was going to publish another somewhat rant-y work-related post today, but then I had a dream (nightmare?) last night that I came back to my cubicle after lunch, and found my boss and coworkers looking at my blog. So I took that as a sign – no rant-y post today! (Yay, you’ve been spared!)

And the more I think about my somewhat rant-y work-related posts, they aren’t really about work, they are about people. I really love my job. It’s just the characters that make it so… interesting. Just like in real life – we all have relationships we could complain about. Anyway…

Do you think your dreams have any meaning? Do they ever affect your actions, like mine did last night? What do you dream about?

I mostly dream about real-life stuff – things that are supposed to happen the next day. And I think those dreams have meaning. I also have really vivid nightmares if we watch something “scary” or graphic. I think that is just my brain trying to process what I saw. Last week I had a dream that Matt Damon* was trying to kill me! Why couldn’t I have had a different sort of Matt Damon dream, brain?

*Has anyone else seen Team America: World Police? If so, please tell me you do the “Matt Damon” voice!

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By kilax, March 17, 2010 7:45 pm

Tonight when I was making roasted chickpeas and following our own recipe I realized I made a mistake when I posted it- it should be one tablespoon of garlic powder, not two!

I apologize to anyone who used the recipe like this! I corrected it here.

Comments (39)

By kilax, March 17, 2010 4:28 am

Do you guys listen to the Two Fit Chicks and a Microphone podcasts? I was first introduced to it through Perfect in our Imperfections and I am so happy I found it. I love to listen to it when I am working out. I get a lot of food for thought from it.

They have a segment called “Blogger News” where you can share anything that you find noteworthy. I actually shared some blogger news in their most recent podcast (it’s at the 39:10 mark).

And what was my blogger news? Well, admittedly, it’s not glamorous in nature, but something I am excited about – that I haven’t gotten sick at all this winter.

I know. What is the big deal and who cares? Well, this is the first winter I have eaten healthy and exercised consistently and not had one cold… so I have to imagine those three things are related!

I went to my go-to source, the Well blog on the New York Times, to look for information on how physical activity affects immunity and found some interesting information*:

• The risk of catching a cold or the flu drop if you exercise “moderately,” but if you exercise “intensely”** or for a prolonged period of time, the risk that you will catch a cold or the flu surpasses the risk of a sedentary person.
• Intense workouts and racing suppress the body’s immune response for a period of time immediately after you’ve finished exercising and that the longer the duration and the more intense the exercise, the longer the temporary period of immunosuppression lasts — anything from a few hours to a few days has been suggested.
• Once you’ve caught a bug, intense exercise can make the symptoms and severity worse. Viruses evoke an increase in T1-type helper immune cells which induce inflammation and are the body’s first line of defense against the virus. But if the inflammation continues for too long, the T1-helper cells become counterproductive and risk harming the host. The body’s immune system increases another type of immune cell, T2-helper cells, which produce mostly an anti-inflammatory immune response. In studies, moderate exercise suppressed T1 and increased T2 just a little bit, but intense or prolonged exercise may suppress T1 too much, which could shut down that line of defense before it has completed its work.
• Overall, you should listen to your body and be prudent in your exercise decisions. In general, moderate exercise, such as a leisurely jog or walk, may prop up your immune response and lessen the duration and severity of a mild infection, but be honest about your condition. If you don’t feel well, especially if you have fever or body aches, stop daily exercise until you are recovered. It is okay to exercise if you have a simple head cold or congestion — in fact, it may improve the he way you feel. Just would avoid heavy, prolonged exercise with a head cold, since it can unbalance that important T1 and T2-helper cell response.

In your personal experience, have you noticed any relationship between the amount and intensity of your exercise routine and immunity? Do you think more is involved? Or do you think it is completely random?

*Note, I hate that they test this stuff on mice. WTF? They mention studies done on both mice and humans. Can’t we just skip the mice studies? How similar are our immune systems? Ugh. This is just the vegan in me speaking out.
**Although definitions of intense exercise vary among researchers, most define it as a workout or race of an hour or more during which your heart rate and respiration soar and you feel as if you are working hard.

Comments (37)

By kilax, March 16, 2010 4:35 am

Being vegan, I choose legumes as my main source of protein. And lucky me, there is a huge variety to choose from – and I’ve never met a legume I didn’t like (to consume, ha!).

Since we have been cooking so much with legumes lately, and loving it, Steven and I decided to do a series here sharing some of our favorite legume recipes!

Before I get in to the first recipe though, I have to ask, do you know how to prepare dry beans? That is what we will be using in most of our recipes (instead of canned beans, but I will give the equivalent), and I would be happy to write a post on it, but only if want to read it! I put in a little poll below if you want to answer.

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On to the recipe!

Roasted Chickpeas

If you like crunchy, filling, slightly-salty snacks, you are going to love these! And guess what? They taste just like Corn Nuts!

Ingredients:

• 3 1/2 c. prepared dry chickpeas or 2 cans chickpeas
• 3 tbsp. olive oil
• 1 tbsp. garlic powder (updated to fix typo)
• 1 tbsp. onion powder
• 1/2 tsp. salt + more to taste
• 1/4 tsp. cayenne pepper

Directions:

1. Turn oven on to 425°.
2. Rinse and pat dry chickpeas.
3. Mix olive oil and spices in a bowl and whisk together. Add chickpeas and mix together with a spatula.







4. Evenly spread chickpeas on a baking sheet lined in parchment paper.





5. Cook for 30-40 minutes, stirring every 10 minutes. Once you hit the 30 minute mark, watch them to make sure they don’t burn.

These are such a satisfying treat! I love taking them to work to have as a snack. My only advice? Bring some gum to chew afterward!

Kate has an almost identical roasted chickpea recipe on her blog, but uses different spices and tosses them with the chickpeas after roasting.

Do you think you would like roasted chickpeas? What spices would you put on them?

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By kilax, March 15, 2010 4:52 am

According to a survey in the journal Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise people are more likely to work out harder if they’re alone.

It’s easier to push yourself when you don’t have to worry about someone else’s agenda or pace, explains lead author Genevieve Dunton, Ph.D., M.P.H., of the University of Southern California.

But fitness friendships do have proven perks: People work out twice as long with a friend, Dunton says. (Chalk it up to that “time flying/having fun” thing.)

You know, I think working out with someone can go either way.

You might end up working out harder if:

• You want to impress the friend you are with
• You are having so much fun you end up running faster (or equivalent exercise)
• Your friend has a faster pace and you run with them to push yourself on purpose
• You are participating in a high-intensity group class

And you might end up not pushing yourself that hard if:

• Like the article said, you are worried about their agenda or pace
• Your friend is a beginner and you are doing something you are experienced in
• Your friend is more out of shape than you
• You are distracted by the conversation

I think there is a time and place for both types of workouts. Sometimes, you might need to do a lower-intensity workout, so do those runs with your friend that is a bit slower, and just beginning to run (or whichever exercise it may be). And when you want to do a hardcore workout with a friend, do it with the friend you know will push you.

In in the long run, each and every workout is what you make of it. Just discuss your workout goals with each other so you both get what you want out of it!

I am usually following a training program, and do a lot of solitary workouts. I enjoy the change in actually working out with someone, so I am not that worried if I get off-pace/don’t run as far/whatever! I welcome the variety. Sometimes, working out with someone might be better for my mental health than physical health, but that is okay with me.

Do you work out harder when you are alone? Do you prefer to work out alone or with someone?