Back to normal

I think I'm finally recovered from the hike from Hell. I took Monday off because my legs were extremely sore, and then Tuesday I got back to it with the INSANITY. I took it easy that day, since of course the schedule called for the plometric workout, which makes me feel like a mexican jumping bean. Yesterday's workout, Pure Cardio, was easier than last week, and I felt pretty normal.

Also, I'm not sure if it was the monster hike or the switch to the Wendie version of WW, but I had a great loss this week, finally breaking a 6+ months stand off with the scale. Seeing a 2.6 lb change always brings a smile on my face, and with one week of Wendie under my belt, I am ready for a second week of it with hopefully equal results.

For dinner last night, I made the WW recipe for Moo Shu Beef Lettuce Cups. I forgot to take a photo, so I swiped the stock photo from WW, but luckily, this is actually what they look like:



Here's the recipe:

1 pound uncooked lean ground beef (with 7% fat)
1 cup yellow onions thinly sliced
2 Tbsp fresh ginger root minced
2 medium garlic cloves, minced
2 cups bok choy, thinly sliced
1 medium sweet red pepper, thinly sliced
2 cups mushrooms (about 10 mushrooms; I used crimini)
2 Tbsp low-sodium soy sauce
8 leaf bibb lettuce

Coat a large nonstick skillet with cooking spray and set pan over medium-high heat. Add beef, onion, ginger and garlic; cook until beef is browned and onion is soft, breaking up meat as it cooks. This takes about 5-7 minutes.

Add the mushrooms and cook for 1-2 minutes to give them a head start. Then ads bok choy, pepper, and soy sauce; cook, stirring occasionally, until bok choy is wilted and pepper is tender-crisp, about 3 to 5 minutes.

I deviated from the WW version in adding the mushrooms a little earlier than the rest of the veggies. I also added a squirt of srirach and a tiny (and I mean TINY) blob of that asian garlic chili paste. That stuff is HOT so be careful. It is good with only the soy sauce but it needed something else.

I served with extra soy sauce and sriracha and also some cooked brown rice. Jim LOVED them, and I was shocked at how filling it was. A serving size of this is only 4 points, and its two lettuce leaves with 1/2 cup of mix in EACH. I was full after eating three lettuce cups with about 1/4 cup in each, so its a great, filling, low point yet YUMMY dinner!

My INSANITY Day off...

HAHHAHA. Yeah right. According to my INSANITY Calendar, Sunday is my day off. Jim and I both had the day off from work, and since the leaves are peaking right now we decided to go for a hike. We decided to hike Mount Elbert, which is Colorado's highest peak at almost 14,500 feet above sea level. Its also the second highest Peak on the continental U.S. We figured the view from up there would be fantastic.

Well, let me tell you that my INSANITY day off ended up being the most INSANE of them all.

We left the house around 7 because you have to get an early start when hiking 14ers because it usually takes 8+ hours round trip. Luckily, this time of year we don't have to worry about afternoon storms, but the sun goes down earlier. We took a route that is closest to Aspen, but isn't frequently used. We didn't see a single other person the entire day, and as you'll soon find out...the entire day meant the ENTIRE day.

We have a 14er book, which details all routes to hike 14ers, so we used it to get to the trailhead. Too bad the book sucked for getting to the trail head because we couldn't find the road it was talking about. So we parked and bushwhacked around for like 2 hours before we finally found the trail. Luckily the views were good anyway:



At this point, we figured we'd just go for awhile and then turn back because it was too late to start the 10-ish hour hike. About an hour into the hike, I realized that my legs were WAY more fatigued from the INSANITY work outs than I expected them to be. We kept going, but it was slow moving. We saw some great sights. Probably 10+ other 14ers, great foliage, waterfalls, etc. We got above tree line to about 13,000 feet after about 3.5 hours of hiking. I realized at this point, I was out of water. Dont' you think that would have been a good time to turn around? Except that I figured we were that far, we might as well keep going.

And then we hit the ROCK FIELDS. I hate rocks. We spent 2 hours climbing over rocks and got to the final horribly gnarly ascent to the final ridge to the summit. At this point we were about 3/4 mile from the top, but we looked around and the light was about to hit the ridge, so we had to turn around. That last 3/4 mile would probably have taken an hour and a half anyway. See:



Good thing we turned around when we did because we got out of the rock fields right when the final light left the sky. We had ONE headlamp to share, and spent the final 2 hours of hiking out sharing it. That final two hours probably would have taken 1 hour if we both had headlamps...or if it was light out. My legs were also like jello by this time, and I just broke down in tears. I definitely pushed myself too far, but Jim was super supportive about it.

We finally got back to the car TWELVE hours after we left it. TWELVE hours of hiking. This is ridiculous.

The one victory for the day is this: I checked my heart rate monitor and it read 5,333. Yes, 53 activity points friends. Which means I don't feel one bit guilty for eating an entire box of 7-11 mozzarella sticks when we got home :)

Here are some photos to enjoy!


Changing Aspens along the drive up Independence Pass


An old mining building left from the "Last Chance Mine"


Me hiking!



It is pretty cool to be around 13,000 feet at sundown :)

Insanity Day 5...and Balloons!

Today's INSANITY workout was the same as Day 1 (Tuesday), and I am happy to report that I actually noticed a measurable (albeit small) change in my ability. I noticed that I could sustain the elements of the circuit longer and needed fewer breaks. After less than a week, its nice to see such fast progress!

This weekend is the Hot Air Balloon Festival in Aspen and Snowmass. They have races and other cool stuff, which are unfortunately held pretty early in the morning. However, this evening around dusk they have this thing called "night glow" where all the balloons are tethered in field, but they fire. And as the sun goes down they light up the place. I'm going to go check it out and take some pictures, so I will report back later!

Happy Saturday!

INSANITY Day 4....and Pizza dough!

You can make pizza dough in the bread maker - WHO KNEW!?

Since I am lacking a Kitchen Aid stand mixer, and I am just too lazy to kneed that crap by hand, I figured I'd give it a shot. I don't like buying bread dough, and I finally used up the last of the good stuff that Tania and I had made, so here I go.

Check it out:



I found out its easy to store dough in the freezer too. Just put it in a freezer container that is sprayed with cooking spray. At least one day before you want to use it, take it out and put it in the fridge to thaw completely, and then when you're ready to make pizza, take it out of the fridge and set it on the counter for at least an hour. You want dough to be at room temperature so you can "roll" it out properly. If its too cold, its too elastic!

I topped it with a tiny bit of sauce, a few thinly sliced tomatoes, some thin slices of fresh mozzarella, and a little fresh basil. Its like my modified version of a Margherita Pizza...and of course made on the pizza stone. Can't do home cooked cripsy crust without it! Pizza my way:



I will say, however, that this dough is not nearly as good as the dough I previously used that was made according to Tania's recipe. It is posted on an older blog post, so I highly recommend that recipe of this one!

I think I deserve this pizza after today's Insanity workout, which was HELL ON EARTH: PURE Cardio. The name itself should make you shudder. Or maybe not since you haven't done the workout but one word: BRU-TAL. Most of the other work outs have periodic 30 second water breaks to help bring your heart rate down. Noooooot pure cardio. Eight gazillion squats, power jacks, jumping jacks, pushups and other nonsense. So remind me again why I also decided to go for a bike ride when I got home.

A friend of mine from back in Boston sent me this like today: http://toughmudder.com/

She is trying to convince me to go back East in May 2011 to participate in this ridiculousness with her in Stowe, VT. Why, I ask you, WHY....am I actually considering it. I'm excited to talk to Jim about the feasibility of this little project. While it looks absolutely just stupid, I think it would be fun and challenging....annnnnd I will happily go use my altitude living to my advantage at sea level. Hehe.

Stuffed Zukes

I totally wussed out of my bike ride this evening. I just felt like after a recovery day of INSANITY it would be nice to just leave it at that. And by the time I got home, it would have been to dark at the end of my ride. That sounds like a good excuse, huh?

For dinner tonight, Jim and I had wild caught salmon. I always love the time of year when wild caught salmon is not only available, but also on sale! Because of increased levels of mercury and unfriendly farm conditions, we do not buy farm raised salmon. The salmon was cooked in little foil pouches with lemon, garlic, shallot, and a little olive oil, yum!

To go along with the salmon, I made stuffed zucchini for the first time ever! I have been craving zucchini fries (the WW version - the recipe is awesome, try it!), but stupid me picked up the squash at the store forgetting I had been craving said fries...and I have no panko. So I decided to use the pantry and give stuffed zucchini a shot! I was tempted to use some of the squash from the garden, but they're still a hair on the small side. So using my seemingly neverending pantry, I made this:

Angie's Bloated Squash:
2 medium zucchini halved lengthwise
1 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1/2 cup finely minced onions
2 large cloves garlic
1 eggs beaten
1/2 cup chopped tomato
1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese
1-2 tablespoon fresh chopped basil
1/2 teaspoon salt shopping list
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper shopping list
1/4 -1/2 cup plain bread crumbs

Scoop out inside of zucchini. Chop scooped zucchini into bits and cook in oil with onions and garlic until onions are soft. Combine sautéed ingredients with tomatoes cheese, herbs, eggs, salt and pepper. Add in about 2 Tablespoons of the breadcrumbs to the stuffing mixture.

Lightly salt and pepper each zucchini half. Fill each zucchini with mixture and dust (generously if you're me) with breadcrumbs and some extra parm cheese.

Bake at 375 for 30 minutes in a baking dish sprayed with cooking spray.



They came out really good, and Jim really enjoyed them which was great considering the consistency of eggplant and soggy squash like things dont' jive with him. The zucchini stayed pretty firm, but slightly soft, and the stuffing was crunchy on top. I think it was a good combo. Let me know how yours comes out!

New Look! (and INSANITY Day 3)

So the blog got a makeover today. I also decided to finally change the name, so that an unsuspecting vegetarian didn't come around and become offended by my clearly NOT vegetarian content heh heh....

Today was a good INSANITY day. Want to know why? It was CARDIO RECOVERY Day!!! Whoo hoo...this basically means I sweat about 1/2 as much (which is still more than on any other given day), and it largely resembled a power yoga work out. So not much cardio, but lots of strength and stretching. I feel rejuvenated and ready to hop on the bike tonight....I wonder if that's a bad idea? I would like to walk tomorrow :)

There is this dude playing music on the pedestrian plaza outside the gallery who just really needs to be put out of his misery. Or maybe I need to be put of my misery? He's not that bad, but he's not that good either...and after hearing him play at least twice a week ALLLLL summer, my ears would like a rest.

Cheer folks. Happy Thursday!

Insanity Day 2....and Buff Chicken Pasta

I was pleasantly surprised to find that I could actually GET out of bed this morning, and I wasn't as sore as I expected to be. Today was Day 2 of Insanity, and it was just as brutal as yesterday but at least I did it all. I'm hoping that by tomorrow the initial shock of the intensity of these work outs will lessen enough for me to also get on my bike. Shitloads of APs (activity points for you non WWer folk) here I come (if my body can take both)!

So I've been reading all about this Buffalo Chicken Pasta that you make in the crockpot, and I am finally making it!

Here is the recipe:

Slow Cooker Buffalo Chicken Pasta

4 Bonelss Skinless Chicken Breasts
1/2 cup Franks hot wing sauce
2 Tbsp white vinegar
2 Tbsp melted light margarine
1/8 tsp celery seeds
black pepper to taste
5 wedges Laughing Cow Light Creamy Herb and Garlic
4 cups cooked whole wheat pasta

Place the chicken breasts in a slow cooker. Combine the wing sauce, vinegar,
margarine, celery seeds and black pepper in a bowl and mix well. Pour over the
chicken and cook on low for about 6 hours. When chicken is cooked, cut it
up into small pieces (I actually shredded it with a fork) and add the 4 wedges of cheese, stirring until melted.
Cover and let it cook for awhile longer, just to let the cheese mix in well.
Serve over hot cooked pasta.

For the pasta I chose a rotini style because there's lots of little nooks to grab on to sauce and chickeny goodness.



I also topped Jim's with a dollop of homemade ranch and mine with a few blue cheese crumbles. It was awesome! Jim loved it. I thought there would be more sauce, but the chicken soaks most of it up, and I think if there were more sauce it would be too hot so it works perfectly. I served it wit some celery and dip. Yum!