Monthly Archives: September 2012

Spoiled Dog (and a recipe!)

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So, my dog is spoiled.

I went to the store yesterday specifically to get canned pumpkin for her. Over the last few months, she has been having issues where she screams in pain whenever she sits or lays down. We have brought her to the vet and found it’s because her anal glands have been filling with fluid. Gross, right? Since then, she has had to go to the vet a couple of times to get her glands ’emptied.’ But dude, vet appointments are nasty expensive. We Googled the problem and spoke with the people at our local pet store, and it seems that upping her fiber intake may solve the problem. Insert:

 

Pumpkin!

About 1 tbsp mixed in with her food, and she should be good to go. With her being a picky eater, I was nervous she would eat around the orange stuff, but dang she gobbled it all up!

 

And now she’s even more drooly! Gross.

 

As if the pumpkin wasn’t enough, she also got some of our dinner.

 

Correction: some of my dinner.

Guys- it was a good dinner.

 

Pork Tenderloin with Apples and Onions

Here’s what you’ll need

  • pork tenderloin (duh)
  • 2 granny smith apples, peeled and diced
  • 1 medium onion (I used 2 small ones from our garden!), diced
  • 1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
  • 1 tsp cinnamon
  • 1 tsp sugar
  • 1/4 cup water
  • S&P

This is what you do

  1. Preheat oven to 450 degrees, prepare a baking pan with olive oil (or Pam)
  2. In a large skillet, heat olive oil on medium heat. Place the S&P’d tenderloin in the skillet to brown on all sides (about 5-6 minutes).
  3. Transfer the tenderloin onto the prepared pan and place in the oven until the internal temperature of the pork reaches 165 degrees (about 25 minutes).
  4. While the tenderloin in cooking, add the onions to the same skillet in which the tenderloin was browned. Allow them to get tender. (approx. 3 min)
  5. Add the apples, balsamic vinegar, cinnamon, and sugar. Stir frequently to fully incorporate. Once incorporated, add the water to the skillet.
  6. After a few minutes, once the apples start to tenderize, cover the skillet and turn off the burner.
  7. When tenderloin is done baking, remove from oven and allow to sit for 5 minutes.
  8. Cut the tenderloin and top with onion/apples mixture. Serve.

Sounds good huh? It is. Even Tyler liked it, and he hates pork (crazy since he LOVESSSSS bacon). And he hates the idea of pairing meat with fruit. Double win for me!

 

As if these yummy eats weren’t enough for the four-footed princess, Tyler came home with even more goodies for her.

 

One of the ingredients is pumpkin! She is going to turn orange soon. I promise to post pictures when it happens.

 

She loved these treats from Wet Noses. She actually played with her first brownie bite last night before inhaling it.

While my dog enjoyed being spoiled yesterday, I unfortunately did not treat myself to such luxuries. I didn’t even work out. And I was SO mad about it. Granted, I do have an exercise-filled weekend coming up, so my body could use the break. But I took out my frustration on Tyler with lots of frowns and moans and groans. Poor guy.

Exercise makes me happy. Even if my body needs the break, I like to indulge in workouts to stay HAPPY. I promised myself that since I was not doing a single thing yesterday, I would have an awesome workout today. And I’m excited for it! I’m going to run at the Y then get in some strength circuits from Best Body Bootcamp. And then I’m going to be HAPPY!

Oh wait, I did do one thing..

 

Fall nails!

Anyone suffer from non-working-out guilt? How do you overcome?

Guest Post: Why Gym Friends Are Da Bomb

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Hello, nutcaseinpoint readers.  It’s Athena over from Fitness & Feta, and I’m thrilled to be here guest posting for Jen today!  When Jen first asked me to write a guest post for her (which by the way was 38473423 months ago, and I’m the WORST friend/blogger EVER for only writing it now), she said it could be about anything I wanted to write about in the whole world.  That even a post about polka dots would be okay.  While I do love polka dots, I’m not sure all of you would want to read about them, so I decided to write about something even better and more fitting for a post on the fabulous Jen’s blog:  Gym friends!

I didn’t always have gym friends.  I always had DANCE friends, especially during my years as a member of the Providence College Dance Company.  Having that group of girls, an “automatic 25 sisters” as we liked to call ourselves, was awesome and definitely one of my favorite parts of my dance experience.  But for the actual gym?  Not so much.  Sure, I would go work out or take a group exercise class with a roommate, but I never really had anyone that shared my same passion or love for working out until I certified in and joined Corpbasics, or CBC as you may have seen Jen write about before.

As much as I love and am obsessed with my gym cult group of gym friends now, they didn’t happen overnight.  You have to put yourself out there.  Maybe you find yourself always standing on the same side of the studio as another girl in a Zumba class you love to take.  Maybe you constantly find yourself cardio-ing away (yes I just turned cardio into a verb) next to the same person day after day because you both go at the same time after work.  Just put yourself out there and say hello.  Such a simple thing can be intimidating and make you get all self conscious and think to yourself, “what if they think I’m a freak?”, but really when it comes down to it — who cares?  What’s the worst that can happen?  The worst is that they won’t say hi back, and then it’s fine because you can go tell all your other friends who are way cooler anyways about that bee-yotch on the machine next to you at the gym.

I started teaching at the Y over five years ago, and I certainly always said hi to people and was friendly, but it wasn’t until a few years into it that I started to make actual friends.  It started when I began chatting with “the tall blonde girl,” not even knowing her name (hi Jen!), because she came to all my classes and stood in the same spot (upper right side of studio, right in front) week after week.  We would chat, about what I’m not sure, and one day she told me she liked one of the songs on my CD.  I burned Jen a copy of my CD to be nice, then a few months later she made me some fudge for Christmas, and well the rest is history.  We started chatting more and more about other classes we took at the Y, and she raved about Liz’s Kickboxing class on Tuesdays.  I tried Liz’s Kickboxing class, shortly after Liz convinced us along with a few other Y girls to join Corpbasics, and we all started “party busing” over there every week.  Boom.  My group of gym friends was born.  And through my recent increase in face time at the Y (instructor, personal trainer, healthy living coach, group exercise coordinator) I’ve made even more friends along the way.

We spend a lot of time doing fitness related things…

But we also make a lot of time for fun!

So maybe you won’t find an insane group of gym obsessed friends like I was lucky enough to, and g-chat with them during the day, and then not be able to say goodbye in the parking lot for a good 45 extra minutes after class ends, only to go home and post on each other’s Facebook walls about how awesome our workouts were…. BUT!  Even just finding one friend that shares the same fitness goals as you do can have a lot of benefits.

I realize that not everyone thinks diet and exercise are as fun as I do.  In fact, most people probably think diet and exercise are the total opposite of anything that could remotely be construed as fun.  But having that buddy can provide extra motivation to get up and get going. It’s a lot harder to say that you are going to just drive home and order a pizza when you are meeting someone for a run, or a class, or a tennis match.  I know that on days I sometimes don’t feel like working out, I will send a text to one of my gym friends saying, “tell me why I should go today.”  And most of the time their response is enough to get me to the gym.  And who knows?  Maybe that friend is the support you need to vent about your workday, or get you to lift an extra 10 pounds, or someone to laugh at your jokes.  Better yet, they may introduce you to other people in their lives and help expand your social circle.  Nothing wrong with a little networking, extra encouragement to keep you on track, and maybe… just maybe… the key to actually looking forward to your time at the gym.

Do you have a gym friend or group that keeps you going with your workout goals?

Thanks so much for the post, Athena! I couldn’t have written it any better- gym friends are AWESOMESAUCE! 🙂

Hair

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I hate hate hate when I don’t workout before a hair appointment. Now I’m gonna have to ruin this prettiness with gym sweat in a bit.

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But first, I gotta clean this damn house.
And mail more sh*t.
And buy food. Human food and dog food. (note to self: don’t forget to get pumpkin purée for Layla- fiber helps the ‘ol anal glands)
And walk the pup.

Besides my super awesome hair job this morning,

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My favorite part of the day has been eating chocolate chip cookies while watching Jessica Simpson -equipped with roughly a half dozen pairs of Spanx under her dress- talk about weight loss. Bwahaha

If you are supremely disappointed with this short post, I suggest you hop on over to Athena’s blog and check out a sweet dinner recipe I wrote about (meat and cheese are ingredients, so click on over!)

Last but not least, Layla says hi.

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Nonchalantly, of course.

Take A Hike

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Hi. It’s the start of football season, which means nothing to me. I’ll be starting back up with school in a couple weeks, so I won’t care that Tyler will be stuck in front of the TV. Because I’ll be stuck in front of this computer doing homework. Yuck.

Yesterday, our little family went for a hike on Heart Creek Trail. Me= happy. This is just outside of Canmore, AB- the edge of Banff National Park.

 

I SO wish this picture was in focus because it’s so great! Ah well, maybe next time.

 

Of course the pup went in the river at every possible chance. She mostly just lays in it. We ran into another woman with her two dogs who called it “hippo-ing.” I’m stealing the term.

 

 

We have to keep her on the leash because she would NEVER come back. Poor Tyler almost got pulled in a few times.

 

It was a perfect day for a hike. Not a cloud in the sky. But it wasn’t too hot either. As soon as we hit sdahy spots, you could feel the cool breeze. Tyler and I always commented every time we walked through a ‘cold’ patch!

 

How pretty is that?!

 

Layla was actually pretty good with posing for all of our photo ops.

 

Probably because she knew that 2 seconds later, she’d be able to hop back in for a dip. That water is fr-fr-freeezing.

 

 

I was usually behind the pack because I was just staring up at the mountains and cliffs. About a month ago, two climbers were found dead after falling about 90 meters into a dry creek bed. We actually saw the spot- there were bouquets of flowers resting at the site. It’s totally erie.

 

 

At the end of the trail, I tried using the self-timer for a family shot, but I was the only one with any light- so you can’t really see Tyler or Layla! #fail

 

Some crazy climbers. We happily walked by. Well, Tyler was pulled by Layla.

 

There were a lot of ‘bridges’ to cross the winding creek. By bridge, I mean two planks of wood nailed together. Really not a great passage for a dude with a dog on a leash.

 

“Hey Tyler, hold the dog who is about to jump in the creek and take a picture of me. At the same time.” Bad idea. But great picture!

 

One last dip before it’s time to head home..

 

Time to go home!

It was a great day, and Layla slept the entire drive back home.

To recap this past week’s workouts:

  • Monday: 30 minutes of kickboxing, 200 situps, 45 minute walk with Layla
  • Tuesday: 40 minutes of spin, lower body circuits
  • Wednesday: 90 minute walk with Layla, upper body circuits, 200 crunches
  • Thursday: Off
  • Friday: 40 minute run, lower body circuits
  • Saturday: Hike, upper body circuits, 200 stability ball situps
  • Sunday: 30 min cardio (haven’t decided which yet), 30 min total body circuits, 30 min walk

This week was definitely a lot different than my usual week’s worth of exercise. I’m not complaining though- I was feeling a little more run down this week, so I didn’t try to push myself too much. I feel a REALLY good week coming up!

I haven’t been really following the Best Body Bootcamp workouts either because I just wasn’t feeling it. I kind of wanted a break from something that was planned for me. Still, no complaints- even Tyler has been noticing how much more fit I look. Can’t hate that!

Anyone do something fun this weekend?

Let’s be wordy

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Let’s be wordy today, shall we? My posts are usually short and picture-filled, but today I feel like being an actual blogger and writing something. Where to start..

1. Weight. It’s not important really how much you weigh, but it is important to be healthy and FEEL good. I used to only weigh myself when I visited my parents (trying to stay consistent with the same scale), but now I have my own and seem to frequent it much more than before. A habit when I wake up, methinks. Since moving, my workouts have been shorter- possibly even less intense- and by myself. At first, the scale read fairly normal, but lately it has been going down, down, down. Does that make me mad? NO WAY JOSE. But it makes me nervous for when and if it starts going back up, up, up. I’m not even kidding- my number is 20 pounders lighter than March. And yet, all my clothes still fit. Last time I checked, those WW and JC commercials told me that when you lose weight, you go down dress sizes. Nope, not the case here. I’m not complaining- I have no monies to buy new stuff! The moral of the story: I FEEL GOOD. No, I FEEL GREAT. And I’m still eating Nutella and chocolate chip cookies and Dairy Queen, so there.

2. Workouts. Like I said- they’re just not the same. Maybe that’s a good thing! I was probably over-exercising in Boston, and my body finally got the ‘break’ when I moved. I usually have one day off a week, one purely strength day, one purely cardio day, and 4 days a week where I do intervals/circuits/whatever I want that combine the two. And I walk the dog a lot.

3. Volunteering. Since I can’t get no satisfaction job yet, I gotta volunteer. That’s right, donate time for free. Yuck. As you know, I volunteer at the YMCA in Downtown Calgary. It’s been pretty sparse work, but I am slowly getting the equivalent certifications in Canada. By that time, I will be legal to work, and hopefully get paid to kick butts. For this upcoming session, I will be teaching a Tuesday night outdoor bootcamp, helping with a Wednesday afternoon TRX class, possibly introducing a kickboxing class indoors, leading a ‘warm-up’ for a fundraising event, and participating in a weekend-long fitness retreat mid-September.

4. School. I just got my grade from my most recent course in grad school: A (or 99.3% if you want me to be more specific). I have two courses to go, and by December of this year I will have my Global MBA with a certificate in Marketing. Attention all you hiring Calgarians: That means I will be an excellent candidate for ANY job requiring a Masters Degree, experience in Finance, certifications in tons of Fitness ‘things’, and CPR and First-Aid certified. I better be getting job offers in my inbox.

5. Dog. She is spoiled. Just yesterday, I took her for a long walk, a dip in the river, bath, and a new Furminator to make her coat shiny and clean.

Back that ass it up, let’s talk about the bath. I am 100% against bathing dogs in human tubs. It’s gross. Lots of hair and dirt- and that’s where I get naked. No. No dogs should be in the human tub. But, we didn’t have a hose so I sucked up every morsel of irritation and placed my 70 pound pup in MY tub. The only saving grace was the hilarity of her sad face and her apparent love for the faucet nearly shoved up her ass. Don’t worry, I Mr. Cleaned the shiz out of the tub when she was out.

6. Wedding. It’s coming along. As much as I don’t really feel the need to constantly talk about it on the blog (omg there are wedding OVERLOAD bloggers that drive me bonkers. Plus, I want some of the stuff to be a surprise for guests, so why bother spilling the beans just yet?!)

  • I got my dress
  • Got the venue
  • Caterer is booked (OPEN BAR, Y’ALL. I’m guessing the ‘yes’ count for guests will go up after reading this)
  • Cake/desserts are in the works.
  • Decorations/flowers: Chosen
  • Makeup/hair booked
  • Bridesmaids dresses pretty much chosen
  • Favors: decided.
  • Scrapbook/guestbook table done
  • Save the Dates going out this week

 

Still need/I don’t feel like doing yet

  • DJ/MC. not that I wanted either, but the planner said I should. To ‘announce’ things. I’m pretty sure people are gonna figure out it’s dinner time when the food comes out.
  • Hotel/transportation. School bus, people. No limos- that’s so Wedding Singer-y.
  • Officiant. Don’t really care.

That’s all. It’s easy.

7. Fall. I do not like cold weather. I have already started walking around the house wrapped up in my blanket. And goosebumps IN the shower. Do you know how hard it is to shave when you have goosebumps? But, fall things are out. And I like fall things. 

 

But I won’t be in NY this year to go apple picking. Or to have my mom make 3 apple pies (1 for me, 1 for dad, and 1 for everyone else who comes to our house). And I won’t be able to stock up on pumpkin butter from Trader Joe’s. OMG pumpkin butter, you guys. I totally forgot about my obsession with this stuff. I put it on pancakes, swirl in oats, on toast, with a spoon…it’s so dang delicious. Apple butter comes in a close second. 

Anyone wanna get wordy? Leave a comment!