Gluten-Free Tailgating

Hey guys, it's June. When did that happen?!

I always feel like spring sneaks up on me, even though it seems like you wait forever for it. Now all of  a sudden we're battling 90 degree heat waves and I'm a puddle of oh-my-god-I'm-melting worthlessness. Not entirely, but you get the idea.

In case you haven't figured it out yet, I'm a huge country music fan, especially when summer comes around. There's something so fabulous (and slightly cliche) about driving around with the windows rolled down, a little Eric Church blasting and jammin' out.

I also happen to believe that country concerts are the best kinds of concerts and am lucky enough to go to them. A lot of them. It's kind of awesome. Last night marked the first concert of the season, which always seems to feel like the official start to summer. Hello, Florida Georgia Line and Luke Bryan.

Let me set the scene for you: big parking lots filled with lots and lots of trucks, solo cups, cornhole, girls in daisy dukes (even if they shouldn't be), guys in cut off plaid, lengthy port-a-potty lines and oodles of cowboy boots and flip flops. Toss in a couple of confederate flags and a sprinkling of cops on bikes pretending to supervise and you're set.

Did I mention the tailgating? I guess it's kind of implied when you meddle all of those things together. I heart tailgating. It's half the fun of going to a country concert. Hot dogs, hamburgers, pasta salad, chips, cookies... Oh wait, nope. Not for our crew. We got creative in support of one of our guests and whipped up an entirely gluten-free smorgasbord of delicious, tailgating-worthy treats.

1. Asparagus & Wasabi Mayo

2. Tortilla Chips & Guacamole

3. BBQ Veggie & Kielbasa BBQ Skewers

4. Lemon Basil Quinoa Salad

5. Clean Cheats Cookies (PB, Pumpkin & Choco Chip)

6. Strawberry Mint Sangria

...Are you drooling yet? You really should be. Recipes to come!

What's the best concert you've ever been to?
Keith Urban, hands down.

What are your favorite tailgating treats? 

Thursday Thoughts

There's something about a short week following a holiday weekend that makes it seem like both the best and worst week ever. On the one hand, a 4-day work week is nothing to complain about - you're that much closer to the awesomeness of the weekend. On the other hand, a shorter week doesn't necessarily mean you have less to get done - just a shorter amount of time to accomplish it all. Yikes.

1. It is HOT in the Boston area today, and the heat/sunshine is supposed to continue through the weekend. I'm not complaining, especially after all the rain, but for someone who turns into a puddle of I-don't-wanna-do-anything in the heat, I'm curious to see how the next few days go.

2.  The Bruins play [finally] on Saturday! Can. Not. Wait.

3. A friend of mine awhile back told me to sign up for Groop Dealz. It's similar to Groupon/Living Social with the discount newsletter aspect, but the items are totally Etsy-esque and adorable - jewelry, home goods, clothing, etc. Today I fell in love with these cute arrow pillows and may need to purchase a couple. Where I would actually put them, I don't know.

(Side note for you Boston folks, there's a $10 for $20 Pinkberry deal on CBS Local Offers right now. I snatched up a couple of those babies pretty quickly!)

 4. Sunday I'm lucky enough to be headed to see Luke Bryan in concert at the Comcast Center with Florida Georgia Line, the first of many country concerts this season. I'm super bummed that Thompson Square is no longer performing due to vocal illness, but am still excited for the show. It doesn't hurt that Luke is pretty darn easy on the eyes. He's my perfect combination of hockey-player-meets-country-music. I melt.

5. You know that feeling when you're totally in love with a song, you stop playing it because you've already listened to it 10,000,000x, forget about it and suddenly it pops back into your life?! That happened to me yesterday in Spin when Save Me San Francisco was on our playlist. SCORE. I heart Train.

What are your favorite ways to handle the heat?
Early AM workouts, flip flops, country music, iced coffee/tea and sundresses for the win!

Old song(s) you rediscovered recently?
Train - Save Me San Francisco and T-Pain - Church (both great workout songs)

Graduation Weekend & A Smoothie Recipe

Per usual, I was a shell of a human being when I returned to Boston last night after a weekend home to celebrate my little sister's high school graduation. I accepted a long time ago that my weekends in western MA typically leave me drained, so I'm in constant go-go-go mode until I start to unwind on the drive back.

It was a great weekend with family and friends and, as predicted, I did tear up on multiple occasions thinking about how this little peanut managed to grow up and graduate from high school already. I am so proud to be her big sister.

I could have done without the rain that graced us with it's presence this weekend, but thankfully Sunday was not as bad as expected weather-wise - just a little cold for Memorial Day. We still enjoyed spending time outside celebrating Em's accomplishments with guests, complete with a campfire, s'mores and a favorite family tradition - wiffle ball.

 
I was able to unpack last night after the drive back and relax for the evening, complete with live tweeting through the awesome premiere of the train wreck we know and love - the Bachelorette. I know, I know. Not everyone jumps on board. But honestly, after you get over the staged drama, absurd outfits and ridiculous conversations, I swear it's entertaining.

This morning I jump-started my short week with 6am Spin class. I'm really starting to enjoy morning Spin - it has the benefits of getting a workout done and over with early on in your day, boosting your energy and metabolism and since you have someone telling you what to do, it's harder to slack off. Since my focus for the next several weeks is on building strength and cross-training to try and end this lack-of-running-streak, I'm hoping Spin a couple of days a week will help.

I've been on a smoothie kick lately. For awhile I never respected smoothies, simply because the ones I tried or made mainly consisted of fruit and juice. Tastes yummy, but for someone who's hungry all the time it really didn't do much in the keep-me-from-eating-my-arm-before-noon department. 

Recently I've been more adventurous with my smoothie ingredients and found some experimental recipes I've liked. This morning was a chocolate strawberry concoction that I thought tasted pretty delightful. Feel free to give it a try - tweak as you'd like, and let me know if you have any other recipes you swear by!

Chocolate Strawberry Smoothie
1/2 C steel cut oats
1/2 C plain or vanilla Greek yogurt
3-4 large strawberries
3-4 ice cubes
3/4 tsp cocoa powder (chocolate protein powder if you have it)
Handful fresh spinach
1/2 C water
Add a drizzle of honey if you want it a bit sweeter

Pulse in your blender and enjoy!

Thursday Thoughts

Clearly I've dropped the ball on posting regularly. My apologies, but this whole lack-of-running thing has my game all kinds of thrown off. I promise to be better, especially since this blog has been a dream of mine for awhile. Forgive me?

As a reader, some of my favorite blog posts have come in the form of random musings and interesting tidbits. Since I've struggled to come up with content lately and experienced writer's block more often than not, I've decided to implement Thursday Thoughts as a gateway into whatever randomness I feel like posting. This could include thoughts, recipes, favorite Pins, or whatever pops into my little head at the time. I know, you're welcome in advance.

1. My little sister is graduating from high school this weekend. WHAT?! How is it even possible that she's old enough to drive a car never mind go to college? Talk about making you feel old. There will be lots of tears, I can tell already.

Little sis at prom last weekend. How gorgeous is she?! Dad's
pretty good looking too.

2. I'm on a rice-cake-topped-with-peanut-butter-and-honey kick lately. Since rice cakes are approximately 35 calories, that totally justifies the excessive amounts of peanut butter and honey drizzle I top them with.

3. I participated in the Reach the Beach, MA relay last weekend with team Dude, Where's My Van? as the injured driver. SUCH a fun race that I cannot wait to be able to run next year. More blog posts on that coming up, scouts honor. 

Side note: I'm adding driving a 12 person passenger van and
van art to my skills on my resume and LinkedIn.

4. I went to my first Spin class Monday night. My bum seriously hurt the day after but I think I've successfully found a new way to not hate the bike, especially since I went to class #2 this morning. Sometimes you just need a dark room, loud music and someone to yell at you to work out.

5. One of my greatest pleasures as a runner is getting someone else excited about the sport. I love running, and if I can pass on some of that to someone else I think it's one of the greatest feelings in the world. I got this email this week from a friend of mine who I convinced to run Reach the Beach back in January and developed a training program for. It made my day.

I'm looking forward to a pedi date with one of my other favorite runners tonight and watching my favorite men in black and gold. GO BRUINS!

Have a wonderful Thursday!

P.S. I finally added C&P to Blog Lovin'. I'm still getting used to the platform so any suggestions, tips and tricks - toss them my way! You can follow here or by clicking the icon in the right hand column.

Thoughts of an Injured Runner

32 days.

That's how long it's been since I've run over 3 miles. During those 32 days I've run less than 10 miles total, and no more than 2.6 miles at a time.

I've taken the time off. I've iced. I've stretched. I've foam rolled. I'm even going to see a sports med doc - voluntarily. For someone who avoids doctors at pretty much all cost, that was a big decision.

We're slowly but surely uncovering the issues, what looks to be a combination of ITBS and runner's knee, and addressing them accordingly. I've had many a finger shaken at me for not stretching enough, not foam rolling enough and primarily for not incorporating enough strength training into my workouts.

My frustration at this point is in a lack of progress. Yes, baby steps have been made. Yes, I should be pleased that I did get in a 2.6 mile run, and that it takes longer for the pain to start than it did before. But there's still pain, and every time I run I'm all too aware of just how my knee feels with every step before the ache begins and almost immediately becomes too much to run through.

Ask nearly anyone I know and they will tell you that when it comes to patience, I have a whole heck of a lot of it. And I do - just not when it comes to my expectations for myself and my goals.

I follow a lot of awesome runners, and normally I eat up what they have to say via Twitter and their blogs as fast as possible. Instead, I've barely looked at Feedly in the past month and scroll past their tweets about gorgeous spring running weather, upcoming races and PRs.

It has become palpably painful to talk, read, or imagine running... and yet I do it anyways because it's become such a big part of my life and I want it back so badly.   

Watching the running community rally around each other post-Boston was awe-inspiring. It renewed my love for the sport and its athletes. And yet while everyone was all, "Let's run for Boston!", I felt like the little kid limping along behind saying, "Hey guys, wait for me!".

It's actually embarrassing at times how absurdly dramatic I feel, and yet the frustration and axiety feel all too real to push it away. Running is my outlet. I've achieved more than I ever thought possible through the sport and I've never felt happier with myself. I could talk about it for hours, and I don't think there are many better feelings than the accomplishment you feel after a hard long run or race, or introducing someone to running and watching them fall in love too.

Now? I see all these people out enjoying this gorgeous spring weather that has finally bestowed itself on Boston and it literally makes me cry with jealousy. No, but literally, I've cried in my car passing people out for a run. How's that for pathetic?

I know there's always more I could do. Maybe take a few weeks off entirely. Ice, foam roll or stretch it just a bit more often. Add swimming into my workouts to cross train, or commit to a stronger strength training regimen. What can I say? It's hard to commit to the unknown and stay positive when you're frustrated and feel helpless that it will get better. What if it doesn't?

Tonight marked PT appointment #5. The result? No running, at all, for a week. The combination of the harsh treatment and my trying too hard to get back to it is clearly not working well - so I get to rest. What I feel like I've been doing for the past month.

Each time I go I grind my teeth and temporarily stop breathing while my good friend Graston works out my IT and quad.

Each time I go I tell myself the pain will all be worth it and that maybe, just maybe, after I ice it and stretch for a day, I'll go out for another run and everything will be fine. I'm talking blue skies, rainbows, unicorns and running for miles and miles with no pain.

Unrealistic, yes, but I've got to hold onto something right?

For Boston.

I had written a post for yesterday reflecting on the magic of the Boston Marathon, my experience as a spectator for the past couple of years, my love for this sport and my pride in this race and this city. Those thoughts seem lost and somewhat inappropriate given the circumstances.

The news of yesterday's tragic events at the finish line has left me speechless, angry, horrified, heartbroken and sad. All afternoon and evening yesterday I felt as though I were having an out of body experience. The incoming pour of texts and phone calls to see if I'm OK, if friends are OK. The stream of updates via Twitter and Facebook of angry commentary, fearful pleas for updates from those who may have been affected, and news with absolutely horrifying video and photos.

My heart is absolutely broken for those affected by these selfish, awful acts. For those runners who finished and had their celebrations cut short by bomb blasts, for those runners who didn't finish and were diverted from the finish line before it even came into sight, and for those who were in the area - runners, spectators, officials, volunteers and others showing their support, cheering and offering their assistance.

For most people, running the Boston Marathon is a dream you wait forever to live out. It has been a dream of mine for as long as I can remember. Months and months of training, dedication, and often fundraising all play out in the experience of running that course and ultimately crossing that finish line. It's an experience that should be celebrated with pride, gratitude and happiness. I can't imagine being robbed of that experience by something like this.

My thoughts, my prayers and my heart go out to all of those affected by the events of yesterday. Thank you to those officials, volunteers and first responders who have worked tirelessly to help those in need and investigate the situation.

I love my city and I love this race. As a member of both the Boston and running communities, I'm confident that both are so much stronger than any evil that may be responsible for such awful circumstances. I hope that we can all find it in our hearts to forgive, to support each other and those that need it. Please pray, love, run or however you choose to express yourself, for Boston.

I'm choosing to let this fuel my love for this sport, this race and the people who make it possible, my appreciation for what an amazing support system I have, and my desire to run Boston 2014.

Just a handful of the Tweets that resonated from yesterday.

Easter 2013

I meant to post this early last week... oops. I've been out of town, having spent the last few days in Tampa for a work conference. We spent 98% of our time in meetings and in conference rooms, but it was nice to enjoy the warmer weather here and there during breaks in the busy schedule.

On to the original post...

In the midst of hectic work schedules, pending changes, frustrating running setbacks and the general craziness of life itself, it's nice to step back sometimes and (attempt to) let go of those things that are out of your control. I'm a big believer that everything happens for a reason, and that even when you feel the most helpless and vulnerable there is a light at the end of the tunnel.

I was blessed enough to spend Easter weekend with people that I love, and even though I couldn't make the trip out to western MA, I still spent my holiday with family.

I hope you all enjoyed your weekend (and now week...and another weekend), whether you celebrate Easter or not, indulged in some sweets and spent time with people that you care about!

Knee update: Still hurting. It's frustrating, I'm annoyed, and I could seriously use some thought-clearing run time enjoying the warmer weather. I've been behaving ridiculously well - stretching, icing and foam rolling, and my workouts have consisted of biking and strength training (yawn). Walking is fine, but every time I try to run the pain immediately comes back. Roar.