No more "Ill do better tomorrow"

Any one who has known me a long time would know that I have been in a constant battle with my weight since I was... well... since I can remember. Whether it was wanting to lose a few pounds or wanting to be in better shape for whatever sport I was involved in or what I am currently facing... needing to live a healthier lifestyle in order to lose a large amount of weight. I have never actually been successful in any of these tasks. I have to say that something about this time feels different. Why is this? I think it is because I have never wanted something more... Proof? This evening I was perfectly comfortable curled up on the couch cuddling with my brother's dog; I had not worked out yet due to self inflicted crappy feeling day caused by a late (and wonderfully fun) night in Mt Pleasant with my friends. It was getting pretty late and I kept thinking to myself, one day off wont hurt anything, but then I realized... yes it would. In the past I would find myself saying "Ill do better tomorrow" on a regular basis...and then tomorrow turned into next week and next week turned into 10 pounds and so on. So what did I do? I got myself changed and headed down to the elliptical trainer and ran for 45 minutes and because I did that it saved my 2 week, workout everyday, perfect record!!! Woohoo!

A Quick Jog Along the Pacific Ocean

To go along with the humble blog beginnings, I had a humble run beginning this morning. I taught my 6:45 AM Core Fusion class -- gotta love the guys and gals who show up with me bright and early -- and then went for a 30ish minute jog on the Santa Monica bike path. Embarrasing to admit, but in the 7 years I've lived here, I'd never done that. Now it's on the weekly calendar! The best part about the loop is that it ends with a long, gentle climb from the PCH up to Wilshire...and right in to the steam room at the Fairmont!

Recipe One - Chicken Fajitas

I am not very profound with the written word so my main contribution to this blog will be copying recipes for us to try each week! I will do my very best to post anywhere from 1 to 3 recipes a week that will be healthy and yummy! We chose our first dinner together and here it is!!

Chicken Fajitas
Makes 8 Servings
150 Calories per serving

1 Lb. Chicken Breast (Boneless/Skinless)
Step 1: Cut Chicken into Strips and place in a shallow baking dish

4 Cups Red and Green* Bell Peppers - Seeded and Sliced
2 Cups Onion - Sliced
Step 2: Toss in with Chicken

1/2 Cup Tomato Juice
1 tsp Chili Powder
1/2 tsp Garlic Powder
1 tsp Arrowroot
1 tsp Bernard Jensen's Broth Powder**
Step 3: Combine and toss with Chicken mixture
Step 4: Place mixture in skillet, cover and let simmer until chicken is cooked
Step 5: Remove cover and "stir-fry" until sauce thickens and coats chicken and veggies

8 Corn Tortillas
Step 6: Place Tortillas in a plastic bag and microwave for 2 minutes to soften

*I hate Green Bell Peppers so I will be using Red and Yellow Bell Peppers
**I don't have this soooo I'll do my best to find it or improvise!

Lowcal Sour Cream (optional)
Makes 32 One Tbs Servings
10 Calories per serving

1 1/2 Cup Low fat Cottage Cheese (1%)
1/2 Cup Buttermilk
1 tsp Fresh Lemon juice
Step 1: Combine in food processor until smooth
Step 2: Store in refrigerator


and For Dessert....
Peach Melba

Half and Half: Non-Fat Yogurt and Mashed Banana
Use this Combination to fill Fresh Peach (or Apricot) Halves
Top is with Fresh Raspberry

Because I cant finish a meal without a little sweet! :o)

Happy Cooking!!

Humble Beginnings

We have a plan. It's not particularly specific, but it's a plan. Grand scheme -- we're going to run a 1/2 marathon together in every state. Thus far we've run a marathon together in Ohio; we haven't decided whether or not that counts towards the 1/2 marathon there. We certainly won't put Ohio high on the list of halfs to do anytime soon! Since we're living half a continent apart, we're going to be virtual training buddies as we're preparing for our races. First up is the Tinkerbell Half in Disneyland, CA at the end of Jan 2012. Seester tells me that we'll be running in green tutus...In any case, we're using the blog to share our workout and run plans for the week. A little bit of motivation and accountability should go a long way for both of us!!

In addition to posting training plans, we've committed to trying recipes together. First up is chicken fajitas (recipe to be posted by Seester in the very near future) and whatever the cookbook recommends for additional sides. We're trying not to over-commit -- just one recipe a week -- we'll see what happens!