Lets talk normal stuff.

Posted on September 29, 2014 by HaleyComet

Since I’ve been back from the Blerch, eating through Seattle, & Ohio, I’ve been craving vegetables and fish. Thankfully I stocked up the last time Whole Foods had wild caught salmon on sale. Some things I’ve eaten this week:

mushroom & truffle eggs

Shouldn’t have made the basil pesto look like a log of poo

And another meal of the same

Pesto didn’t turn out much better…

Didn’t even try this time.

Can I have some?

Finally something different

I could live off this.

My knee. Sigh. I’ve rested it a solid week now. Iced it religiously for 5 days, and no-so-religiously for 2-3. Today I tried some intervals (not fast sprints, just decent slower running in between kettlebell movements) and it wasn’t feeling great. Gggrrr. It’s becoming really annoying. It’s not painful enough that I think it’s a major tear or rupture (read: No way I’m going to the Dr), but I’m not used to feeling anything that uncomfortable when I run other than the normal muscle discomfort after 30-50miles. Yes, I know, I know, you can go ahead and hate me. So, what to do? Nothing of course. I think it just needs more rest. Unfortunately, I’ve got a double (2 marathons) this weekend. I should be able to make it through them fine considering I finished the Blerch the day after I fell, but it will probably be slow and less-than-~~fun~~ ideal. K will look at it and give it some sports med/trainer movements and try to narrow down what it may or may not be. Then, we’ll decide what to do. I’m getting around fine and obviously can still physically move/run, so I’m doing the healthy thing and will ignore it a while longer (and rest)!

While resting my knee, I worked my arms, shoulders, and back doing CropFit! Functional fitness, FTW!

This week I’ve completely redone the garden. I needed new dirt and the boxes had become overgrown. Then my wonderful fur children decided they NEEDED to hunt and dig something that had been living in there. My 2 year old rosemary that survived the harsh winter and a week of below-freezing temps (3 days in the 20’s!) was near death. Got that transplanted to a pot and went to work…

Before

Mess.

Dog damage

Fuckers.

During

Out with the old

Moving dirt.

Please let me play in it…PLEASE

Digging asshole

In charge

After
(the middle section isn’t finished, but that won’t be finished for a couple more days. This is close enough to finished)

Before I got this chicken wire fence up, the dogs ran thorough my rows, dug, and dug up 2 cauliflower. My carrot seeds were meticulously planted. I’d worked so hard for 4 days, for it to be destroyed in just a couple minutes. I was furious. Actually, furious doesn’t describe it. But, I’m hopeful. I threw in more seeds, said “fuck it” and the dogs knew they were in trouble. My uncle has carrots and beets sprouting already and when he thins his crops, we’re going to put some of his baby plants in my middle section. So…hopefully between what they didn’t destroy and the transplanting, I’ll have some strong crops. I’m really excited to have a TON of beets. I love them.

Carrots, beets, cauliflower, bok choi, cilantro, chard

Dog proof

After the dog drama, my mom and uncle both praised my extensive work and care to another uncle. I was floored. See, we’re not an overly praising family. (How I ended up independent and not really needy is beyond me.) My uncle is a master gardener and hunter and could (and mostly does) live off the land. He’s impressed and thinks it will do well. And my mom said, “Maybe that agriculture education at Texas A&M wasn’t a waste after all.” Ha. Gig’Em!

Seattle & the state of my knee

Posted on September 25, 2014 by HaleyComet

Arrived in SEA Fri mid-day. Plenty of time to hunt for food and get my friend Halbert ready for his race Sat. The races started at 9am both days, and it was so nice to not be rushed for an early bed/early wake-up. (Which wasn’t so fun when it was HOT on Sunday)

Dinner: Sushi & ice cream! Based on the recommendation of a friend who lived in the neighborhood of packet pickup, we hit Ballard for some really good, and really inexpensive sushi. Then, we could walk it off and find more calories. We ended up at Full Tilt, a local ice cream joint that is also an arcade. So fun!

Delicious tuna.

Taking a picture, of taking a picture, of food.

Arcade!

Sat AM (Halbert’s pre-race) we hit PCC Natural Market. Whoa. Loved that grocery store. I have a thing for grocery stores. Whole Foods is usually good, but overpriced. And their deli/prepared foods bar is usually slathered in canola oil and/or other less-than-ideal ingredients. Not this place. AND it was open at 6am. I think this ties with Central Market for one of my favorite chains. Anyway, I got some pumpkin grits. I will try to replicate this at home. They were delicious. Sure they had some sugar (not really that sweet though), but all the ingredients were REAL. No funky oils. So yes, this was good enough to write about.

Pumpkin everything!

*MY KNEE* While spectating I fell. The race was in a park and there was a steep hill going down to a soccer field. The finish line was on the edge of this long downhill. Anyway, it was really wet due to morning dew and I slid…into the splits. Thankfully my muscles were ok, and I saved my groin from pain, but my knee twisted in a really funky way. It still hurts, 5 days later. 😦 It’s not serious (I don’t think), but it definitely feels ‘not right’. I wasn’t going to skip my race. Not an option and I knew I could walk it if I had to. I felt it all day, but nothing terrible. Anyway, I’m taking it easy this week, but it’s really annoying.

Sat PM. Since the race started at 9 (I spectated and got a ton of books signed by Oats), I left the race site later in the afternoon. This left minimal time downtown before things started closing at 6p. (Why do things close downtown on a weekend at 6?! AND it was home football weekend, TONS of tourists). Dinner plans: restaurant hop to try 1-2 things at each place and not sit in one spot all evening.
Vital Tea: one of my favorite tea shops in the country (located in San Fran & Seattle) to stock up.

Fish market to buy some smoked salmon. (no pic obvi)

Beechers & Le Panier. I had to bring my travel buddy to Beechers. Can’t pass up their cheese. I would never have thought to Le Panier, but someone at the race said it was a “MUST” as it was the best French bakery they’d been to outside of France. I was skeptical and I’m not a big bakery fan, but it was now my “pre-race” so I figured something small wouldn’t hurt. What the hell. Well, it was good, but I do live outside of NOLA where we do have some amazing French bakeries. So, is it the best? I don’t know. Was it good? Yes.
Champignon (mushroom) pasty of some sort. (living where I live, it’s a word we use often. Cajun French comes in handy after all)

Halbert had to make sure his macarons & croissants were safe.

Safety first.

Oysters: Well, I’d had macaroni and a pasty, so who cares what my stomach does at the race tomorrow, right? I figured I’d be going slow and goofing off anyway, so it didn’t matter (nothing bad happened! No porta-potty or woods emergencies!)

Mmm, bivalves.

Sunday race: Nutella & some cake. See race report.

Sunday PM: Tipsy Cow Burger Bar with Anne. I got “the Arsonist” and another chance for more Beechers. I debated if I wanted something that hot since I was flying all day Monday, but I reasoned with myself that we were in the PNW and not in the Southwest or South, so the chances of it being “hot” on my scale, was slim. And I was right. Not hot, but delicious, complex pepper flavors.

Arsonist.

Oh. Did I mention the truffle fries? Ohsogood even though they are not a traditional compliment to a spicy burger.

Truffle everything!

Wish I had more time, but I wasn’t going spend more time in the area without K. It’s just not as fun when he was supposed to be there.

That’s it. Hope you’re hungry now!

May 1: new month, new goals

Posted on May 1, 2013 by HaleyComet

I’m here. I’m not dead. I haven’t quit my 365 workouts challenge. Although, I did seem to “quit” the blog for a while. Then when I kept realizing I needed to blog, I kept putting it off. Oh well, such is life of a procrastinator. I will go back and finish my entries for the past…what, 60 or so days? More? Eeeek.

In the meantime I have been focusing on school (all A’s this semester!), my food, and my workouts. I’m seeing great gains in my body. Now, I’m no low body-fat bodybuilder, or superstar Crossfitter, but I *NEVER* thought my 1 year ago 175lb self would be where I am today. I never would have thought I would be my smallest since high school.

This has been my motivation to blog again. If I never would have imagined being where I am today, where can I be at the end of this year? I still have 8 months to go! That’s TONS of time to change a body.

Here is your warning: there are pictures of me in a bathing suit on this post. They’re not great. I’m not perfect. This is a huge step for me, part of me still can’t believe I’m going to post them. I am not looking to ‘brag’ or show off (far from it!), but rather try to celebrate and embrace the body I have now and continue to work on making myself healthier. And that means mental health too. So, say it with me, “I love my body. I love my body.” This brings me to, Day 1…

This month I’m doing a little photography challenge, that’s fitness related. Disclaimer: I have NO photography skills. My iPhone sucks because it’s been dropped so many times, including submerged in the toilet once. That said, it’s fitness related and will keep me motivated to improve myself and to blog.

What else…I’m at the end of my 2nd Whole30 of the year! It’s going well. I didn’t document the food as much as I did last time. I will do another recap though.

Today for my exercise, SINCE THAT IS THE PURPOSE OF THIS BLOG, I took a walk with my cousin. We went 30min, 2.31 miles. 13:20 pace. Being the beginning of the month, I probably should have done more, but I wasn’t feeling it. Since this month has been food focused and 50miler recovery, my workouts have been much lighter. That’s ok, I’ve got big things coming! Doing a marathon in 2 weeks, then a 50k June 1, probably another marathon in the summer as well. Upping my run mileage!

Back to MAY.

Lets start my food today, Paleo/Whole30 stuff:
I had venison cabbage rolls for breakfast w/sauteed greens. No pic, sorry. They don’t look that great, but they taste good.

Lunch was a kale & salmon omelette with 2 pieces of bacon. Delicious!

Dinner was smoked chicken legs and more sautéed greens.
I’ve had so many greens lately, this has been a staple.

Now, for my May 1 fitness pic challenge. Entries, “BEFORE.”
(be nice people, no photoshop or editing! How many of you are putting non-covered up bathing suit pictures on the interwebs? Not many.)

Unfortunately, I do not think I’ll ever have a complete hard midsection. Being 175lbs a little over a year ago, and also 9 years ago, I think I wrecked my body in that way. Oh well, I guess I’ll always have a little pouch of loose skin around my belly button.
Or, get a tummy tuck when I win the lottery.

I call this, “my tire.” Get it? Heh. I love it. Not my stomach, but the picture.

This, my Photoshop-talented, friend TJ made artsy for me!

And finally, here is a progress pic. My handstands are improving, as is my midsection!

Welcome to May! Kick it’s ass everyone!

FOOD! Since we all love it…

Posted on March 1, 2013 by HaleyComet

Time for another food post. Things I’ve made or eaten the last several weeks…er, month! Oops, another realization I’ve waited too long!
Recipes when available. (Ok, I lied. I only have links to 4 recipes. I usually just throw meats & veggies together! Roasts: I use tons of garlic & onion & spices. Hamburgers. Nothing fancy.) Usually, I just throw things together, or alter recipes to make them Paleo compliant, or just better!

The day after Whole30 ended (Jan 31), we loaded up the car and headed to Houston for my first 50miler. Since I’m originally from the area, I had lots of places to stop. We wanted to hit a museum, Central Market (best grocery store, ever!), see family. My cousins live right across the street—well, dirt road and a short walk–from a raw milk farm! We brought the big cooler and really stocked up. Dairy isn’t Whole30 at all, but if I’m going to have it, it’s going to be this stuff: pastured, no grains, no hormones, antibiotics. Just…love! No dairy from the grocery store for me. Chemicals, hormones, and whoknowswhatelse in that factory stuff. It’s taken a couple years to get to this point of not wanting store bought dairy, but I love this raw stuff. I’m really glad this farm is several hours away.
EatWild is a great site to find local farmers!

When we got home after the weekend, we used the tremendous amount of cream to make our own butter! It’s actually pretty easy, I encourage everyone to try it! You don’t need a big KitchenAid to do it, a hand mixer works fine. It’ll just take a little longer. This is the blog/instructions we usually follow. (her pics are MUCH better than mine) However, the pics & instructions below are all it takes. It’s really simple. I usually divide the butter up and make salted, unsalted and herb varieties. This time was chive, rosemary & thyme.

To start: pour cream in mixer and mix! That’s it. Just mix, mix, & mix some more.

After about 8-10min it goes past ‘whipped cream’ and starts clumping into butter! You’re left with butter and buttermilk. Delicious.
Separate it out with a mesh strainer, squeeze the liquid out, and you’re left with a butter ball. Or log. Whatever shape you like.

Now, lots of food collages! Things I’ve eaten this month.

Lets start with some breakfast.

We have sautéed veggies & bacon frittata. Then, my usual, scrambled eggs (usually with some type of veggies) w/salsa, and home cured bacon.
Marks Daily Apple has some good frittata recipes, but they’re just like scrambled egg: throw whatever you have in there! I had yellow squash, red pepper & spinach. Garlic and onion too, of course. Then bacon on top.

Lets get to lunches! Usually some type of salads or leftovers, that I eat at school. Hence the leftover containers. Here we have kale salad w/apples, radish, pine nuts & almonds, yellow beets, mint & parsley, olive oil & lemon. Delicious. Top right is roast hog and salad. Bottom right is salad with buffalo burger, I think. And then a plain ‘ol salad.

Here I wanted to show some portion sizes. I try to get a TON of volume of veggies. The top left is an egg salad. Veggies piled high with egg dumped on top. I forced myself to eat it all! (the plates are huge) Then roasted veggies w/deer & regular salad. Oyster happy hour (YUM!), I ate 3 doz. Finally, sometimes I get desperate. I *NEEDED* to eat something, and I had an orange. I was in the car. Nowhere to let the juices drip & to put the peel….
SO, an orange in a shoe box it is!

Got my first sack of crawfish for the season (it’s still a little early), and the dogs were VERY interested in them. They thought the mudbugs were delicious, btw.

Let’s address eating out!

Went out several times, especially when we were in Houston. My dining partner got some scallops over risotto (I did not try). When we were leaving the Museum of Fine Arts, the food trucks were parked outside! I was so excited. I got some kind of meat wrapped in bacon. It came with a wonderfully spicy guac. I also got some kind of taco, sans shell. Both were delicious! Finally, some BBQ in a cup.

Now, some dinners!
Fall off the bone crock pot wild hog. (no recipe)
Hog & asparagus
PaleoOMG bacon ‘alfredo’. I altered this and added tons of brocoli, lots of spices. It was really good. I’ll probably make it again.

Here’s more meat pictures.
I think this is deer or hog with caramelized onions & garlic.
On the right, is sausage stuffed pork chop and steamed broccoli. YUM.

And finally, the roast chicken I made this week. I adapted Thomas Kellers Ad Hoc recipe. I used rutabaga, turnips, carrots, leek, onion, garlic, sweet potato. Used some homemade raw butter, rosemary, thyme and tons of S&P. It was so good, I wanted to give you three views. The veggies were out of this world. I love roasted vegetables.

And, there you go! Things I’ve eaten this month! I’d like to do a food post once a week, but I don’t think I have the variety for that. I make 2-3 ‘bigger’ meals a week, and the rest of the time it’s either eggs, big salad or leftovers. The leftovers go pretty far. I’d like to try a new recipe every week, but I don’t think I’d actually take the time for that.

haleycomet365

365 days of workouts, Food, and hopefully some fun!

Tag Archives: food

Lets talk normal stuff.

Seattle & the state of my knee

May 1: new month, new goals

FOOD! Since we all love it…