Runnin’ on Empty…
July 21, 2010 at 8:35 am | Posted in Uncategorized | 10 CommentsTags: C25K, Couch to 5k, Fitness, nutrition
After all the hullabaloo surrounding Factinis & Factomelettes these past two days, we thought a nice, tame post is just what the doctor would order (if we regularly went to see a medical professional about our blog), so today I will be espousing our views about politics, religion, abortions, PETA and other, more relaxed topics than travel and tourism. Just kidding!
Today I shall regale you with tales of my latest fitness craze: C25K! That’s right: I’m purposely prying myself away from a heavenly couch to run five kilometers. More accurately: I’m prying myself away from the comfy couch (that may or may not have a delightful indentation matching the size and shape of my rump) to attempt to train to eventually run five kilometers. Tomaytoe, tomaaahtoe.
I shall be a couch potato no more...
While I know three miles (give or take a few wheezes) may not sound terribly impressive to our more athletically-prowessed (yup, I just made up my own word) readers, for a gal who had spine surgery just a few short years ago, 5k is pretty darn awesome.
And I’m not going it alone! My neighbor, Rhymes With Tinny (also known as Tirginia) got me started on this nine week adventure and we’ve been sweating and complaining together all summer. Yesterday we finished week six and thus far we have been able to employ some helpful tactics to power through the training including:
- Singing about our aches and pains
- Solving each other’s personal crises in excruciating detail to distract ourselves
- Over-analyzing everything (see above)
- Picturing ourselves with “runners’ bodies”
- And lots of encouragement and praise
But we have a funny feeling that weeks seven-nine won’t be the cake walk we are hoping for. From here on out, it’s pain central!
Yay?
~Sarah
Work it, Girl!
June 9, 2010 at 7:46 am | Posted in Around Boston | 6 CommentsTags: 8 Minute Abs, AB Transform, As Seen on TV, Bender Ball, Billy Blanks, diet, dieting, Exercise, Fitness, healthy food, Jillian Michaels, nutrition, Shake Weight, Tae Bo
One of our dear reader(s) recently brought an interesting fact to my attention: when blogging about our health initiatives, April and I usually obsess about discuss food, and grant very little blog-space to the other parts of the healthy lifestyle trifecta: exercise and attitude/mental state. So today’s post will include a few of our super fitness finds!
For example, we all know that April is obsessed with As Seen on TV products like the Bump-it, Ped-Egg, Strap Perfect, and even Pro Caulk (courtesy of Schmatti). What you may not know is that I, too, have an As Seen on TV obsession, only mine is strictly related to fitness products.
As Andrew can attest, there’s a corner of our living room devoted to said obsession. We’ve got the Bender Ball, Tae Bo and Billy’s Boot Camp (complete with Billy Bands), Jillian Michaels’ 30 Day Shred, and even a VHS of 8 Minute Abs (with Jaime Brenkus – you know you remember this guy)!
The godfather of sweat! I <3 Richard Simmons
I’ve loved and used them all over the years. They’re like gym friends – you know, the ones you smile half-heartedly at when you meet near the elliptical because you know you shouldn’t go so long between visits, and when you do get around to working out, you want to impress them with how toned and in-shape you are (to make up for not seeing them in a while) so you work too hard, end up in pain and then quit again until the guilt gets to be too much? No? Just me? Never mind.
Anyway, despite my love of infomercial-based fitness equipment, I do NOT have the Shake Weight (because it seems a little… ummmm… yeah… not family-friendly) or the AB Transform (because I’m not sure even the best infomercial could sell me on “EMS” – electro muscular stimulation). With that said, I’m not against trying these products – I’m just against spending my own money on ‘em. If any of our dear reader(s) have used these products before, do tell!!
Alternatively, if you want a full report about them from yours truly (I vow to spare no details), feel free to purchase them on my behalf! That goes for you, too, As Seen on TV company – I welcome the chance to review your fine (and sometimes moderately sketchy) products.
Yours in fitness fun time,
Sarah
Photo Phriday: McNothing’s
April 30, 2010 at 3:25 pm | Posted in Around Boston, Photo Phriday | 7 CommentsTags: commuting, Dining Out in Boston, Loneliness, McDonalds, North Station, nutrition, You Smell Like Lunch
Think you’ve seen and heard everything there is to see and hear about my long, lonely commute? Guess again… There’s a McDonald’s in North Station that is, apparently, banned from actually serving anything. Check this out:
Apparently this McDonald's serves... nothing...?
So what, dear reader(s), do you think is on their menu?
~Sarah
April & Sarah’s Separation: Day 1, Update 3
April 26, 2010 at 1:33 pm | Posted in Around Boston, Office Humor | 3 CommentsTags: Bacon, Case of the Mondays, dieting, healthy food, Junk Food, Loneliness, nutrition, Snacks
There’s a plethora of junk food in the kitchen and I suffer from fairly serious afternoon snack attacks. I’m in danger of a “healthy eating plan” violation. Help.
No thank you...
April used to tell me that she personally rubbed all the tempting food with bacon, knowing that as a good Jewish girl, I wouldn’t even consider eating it. Without her, this work environment has the makings of a waist-line disaster…
Thankfully my pal RWC has stepped up to fill in as my personal hero (someone get her a cape!). She has made invaluable sacrifices including: eating the last piece of pie to help me avoid temptation, telling me bagels are gross and the cream cheese tastes like refrigerator (you know that taste – ick), offering to share her raw almonds with me, and even volunteering to take me for a walk around lunchtime. She’s a keeper!
But we both miss April. Don’t be surprised if you find us hiding in a corner, hugging each other as we sway back and forth, mumbling incoherently in an effort to keep the loneliness away. At least we are dealing with the pain of withdrawal together…
Back to my corner,
Sarah
April and Sarah Go on a Diet: Mythical Nourishment and Mortal Imaginations
March 24, 2010 at 9:04 am | Posted in Around Boston, In The Kitchen | 4 CommentsTags: Ambrosia, commuting, Diaper, dieting, Dining Out in Boston, Domino's, healthy food, nutrition, Pizza, spaghetti sauce
Other than hallucinations, crumb cravings and oat incidents, April and I have weathered our new “healthy eating plan” well, and have made it through week four without seriously injuring anyone.
Awesome...
During these long, calorie-deprived weeks, I’m fairly certain that our sense of smell has become much keener. Take, for example, our commute home yesterday: as we speed-walked (sped-walked? That can’t be right!) past the Domino’s in Boston’s West End, the scent of pizza wafted into our noses. We nearly stopped (pedestrian) traffic as we came to a screeching halt in front of the pizzeria… And yes, my boot CAN make screeching halts. The aroma of freshly baked dough tickled our noses as the sweet yet slightly acidic tomato sauce and salty, oily scent of melting cheese tantalized us. We gazed longingly toward the pizza shop that, just two months ago during P.D. (Pre-Diet, as that era is called), wouldn’t have given us pause, and wondered if heaven might smell just like that.
As we continued our commute, my erudite friend and I began discussing Ambrosia, sustenance of the Greek gods (and we may also have discussed the more plebeian version of ambrosia – the coconut, fruit cocktail and marshmallow “salad” that April craved when she was preggers but which turns my stomach… That’s not the point… You know how we get distracted… Focus, dear reader(s)).
We may even have expressed our hope that heaven includes an all you can eat gourmet cafeteria that specializes in pizza, chocolate cake, honey roasted peanut butter, milk shakes, nachos, ice cream, beer, cookies, spiced nuts, etc. (Are you there G-d? It’s me, Booty).
Anyway, the heightened sense of smell sounds like a delightful bonus to our slightly more svelte figures, right? Unfortunately our super-sensitive shmekkers also pick up the unpleasant scents, too. For example, walking through a certain neighborhood that shall be left unnamed (but rhymes with seekin’ thrill), we are occasionally accosted by a scent that can only be described as “fish diapers.” Yes, if baby fish ate other fish and wore diapers, that’s what it would smell like on garbage day on seekin’ thrill. Which seems to occur more than once a week. Shudder.
At least the fish diaper smell curbs our appetites!
Here’s to continued success – and nose plugs – in the D.D. (during diet) era!
~Sarah
PS Happy St. Patrick’s Day
March 17, 2010 at 12:14 pm | Posted in In The Kitchen | 8 CommentsTags: McDonalds, nutrition, recipes, Schmargaret, Shamrock Shake, St. Patrick's Day
I adore McDonald’s Shamrock Shakes. But I know the shake is a nutritional nightmare. Big props to Schmargaret for finding me a much healthier substitute, Hungry Girl’s Shamrock ‘n’ Roll Shake. Looks delish!
~April
The April of Our Dreams is GIGANTIC!
March 10, 2010 at 9:08 am | Posted in Around Boston | 4 CommentsTags: Commuter Rail, commuting, nutrition
April and I have a strong sense of right and wrong. We may shush it every now and then, but we know it is there (hence our constant requests for badges and capes and sometimes our overwhelming desire to make citizens arrests). Well, on yesterday’s evening commute, that delightfully judgmental streak came out in full force!
You see, we had hoofed it to North Station to catch our trains, throwing caution to the wind as we played those dangerous Boston Commuting Games, but when we arrived, our happy little hearts sank as we discovered that our trains were running late… or, as the MBTA announcer stated, they were “deeee-laid.” So we decided to engage in people-watching, one of our favorite activities, and that’s when we saw the offense that made us wish April was gigantic*!
A short man in a fugly cap walked past us and dropped a carton of cigarettes. April had half a mind to tell him, but then she remembered that smoking is bad for him and that he should be quitting, anyway, so she didn’t say anything as he passed us. And then it hit me… He pulled the faux-accidental-drop! The box of butts was empty and the lazy litterer in the laughable hat just didn’t want to make the effort to throw it away! Well, that really got us going…
I wanted to go over to him and angry tap (you know, the tap where you use a very firm pointer finger into the tender area by the shoulder) him on the shoulder, point to the box a few hundred feet behind him, and snarl: “Hey litter bug, you dropped something…and your hat is stupid! Go pick up your empty box of cancer sticks and dispose of it properly.”
We started planning out the conversation (a la Arguing in the Shower) and figured his response would be something along the lines of: “Who’s gonna make me pick it up? YOU? Right, you and what army?”
And that’s when we got the idea that April should be a giant. Just as those rude words left his little mouth, he would feel the earth tremble as a gigantic foot stomped in front of him. All he would be able to see was April’s sneaker and the striped sock she had on over her tights. As he slowly gazed sky ward, he would begin to comprehend just how foe-tastic we were… Heck, he might even tinkle from fear… And then he might try to run, but giant April would reach down and snag him in her enormous hand, and then unceremoniously drop him next to the empty box. She could purse her giant lips, raise her giant (though always well-plucked) eyebrows and tap her humongous foot as she waited for the guy to dispose of his garbage.
And we would be heroes. And probably commute for free from then on. We might even get a parade in our honor, and giant April would let me sit on her shoulder as we moved down the parade route because that’s the kind of friend she is.
Thank goodness our trains were less than ten minutes late…
~Sarah
*Tall gigantic, not obese gigantic.
April & Sarah Go on a Diet: Dr. Wilderrol and Mrs. Hoofington
March 2, 2010 at 1:30 pm | Posted in In The Kitchen, Misc. | 21 CommentsTags: dieting, Granola Bar, healthy food, nutrition
As you may know, April and I started our “healthy eating plan” (aka diet, but that’s a taboo word these days) about a week ago and, as part of our commitment to keep it up, we will be updating you, our dear reader(s), on our progress every now and again. Day One wasn’t too bad, though it was a little confusing. Week One is, well, let’s just say it is more trying. Especially for those around us. Witness our normally joyful coffee break:
Even coffee cannot bring joy to a dieting Wilderrol...
You see, April and I have been a little grouchy lately*. So much so that we are starting to resemble that famous personality disordered-fellow of literary fame, Dr. Jekyll/Mr. Hyde. Except we’re more like Dr. Wilderrol and Mrs. Hoofington…
Andrew and I once heard someone mispronounce the phrase “in a huff” as “in a hoof.” Apparently it stuck, and now whenever I’m less than patient and pleasant, he lovingly refers to me as Mrs. Hoofington. Shockingly, that little moniker doesn’t do much for talking me down off my emotional ledge! But I admit that occasionally the nickname is warranted. For example: April and I nearly came to blows over a piece of her oats and honey granola bar.
En route to our train after a particularly difficult day, our stomachs started talking. Truth be told, they were exchanging fighting words (grumbles?). And then it happened… we both noticed that April had a single oat stuck between her teeth from the oh-so-delicious granola bar she had eaten for afternoon snack. And that oat looked mighty tasty… She pried it out, held it up triumphantly and cried: “Snack time for me!” and then cackled like a crazed witch in a kid’s movie. As she started to put the delicate morsel on her tongue, I lunged. It was an out-of-body experience: my hunger drove me to violence! And April, well, April is pretty scrappy and she responded in kind.
Picture a scene from The Matrix (The Oat?) or Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon (Crunching Tiger Hidden Crumb?) – except instead of trained assassins and ninjas, it was two gals on a diet, and instead of some futuristic alternate reality or lush arboretum, we were standing on a busy thoroughfare in Boston’s West End. Yeah. Not our best day…
(Okay, so that may not have actually happened, but that’s exactly how we both played it out in our minds!)
Desperately Seeking Snacks,
Sarah
*Don’t get us wrong, there have been other factors at play regarding our “baditudes”… but we’ll blame the diet!
April & Sarah Go On A Diet: The Spaghetti Sauce Chronicles
February 23, 2010 at 11:20 am | Posted in In The Kitchen | 8 CommentsTags: dieting, healthy food, nutrition, spaghetti sauce
That’s right. Sarah and I are on diets. It’s out in the open. I’m ready to kiss my double chin and empty baby gut goodbye, while Sarah wants to present Andrew with a little less to love on her wedding day.
Dieting is hard. We love food. We love snacking, elevensies and train feast. Thus the diets.
We made it through Day One with only minor hiccups. We did spend 23 minutes deliberating over the most nutritionally optimal afternoon snack, culminating in my declaration that the food industry hates people who want to better themselves. I settled for oats and honey granola bars.
The rest of the day was uneventful. Until our walk home, when I told Sarah about my need to be able to write things down when I’m in the shower (more on that later). Sarah said she had a solution, and I responded: “Spaghetti sauce?” Because I honestly believed she was going to tell me to write on the shower tiles with spaghetti sauce. It made perfect sense at the time in my calorie-deprived state. And it still does.
I might not survive.
~April
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