Helloooo, blog world! It was such a perfect day in Boston that I just had to go for a QUICK run! Since I am in taper mode, I took it easy tonight. I did a total of 3 MILES in ~26 minutes. I plan to take it even easier the rest of the week, but I can’t help but feel lazy when I’m not running as much! Anyone else go through this during taper time? I just hope I don’t feel too lazy that I feel sluggish!

Here’s the Garmin, which only shows 2.57 miles — my “trusty” Garmin took a while to get started! Here it is anyway: http://connect.garmin.com/activity/30089653.

Farewell Cake
As I mentioned earlier, I was recently promoted at work. I am now the new clinical research coordinator and I’m excited to take on this new challenge, especially as I continue to prepare for my second try at med school applications this summer!

This afternoon, we said farewell to my predecessor, Beverly. Even though I have only worked with her for a week, she was such an inspiration that I’m sad to see her go. Our department got a beautiful cake to wish her well.

It was such a light, yummy, and lemony cake! I wish I could tell you where it was from — I just know that it’s somewhere in Braintree?

Best wishes, Beverly! Thank you for all your help!!!

Luna Protein
For those of you who are in Boston and thinking of attending the Boston Marathon Expo – I highly encourage you guys to stop by the Luna booth. They will have tons of goodies to aid in post-marathon recovery!

I first learned of Luna Protein bars while I was at Healthworks last week for a workout! Andrea from their marketing team was there handing out some free samples.

I had certainly heard of Luna before (in fact, one of my faves is Nutz Over Chocolate) but I hadn’t ever heard of their new product, Luna Protein. From this tasting, I learned that it’s a fairly-low calorie snack that has 12 GRAMS of SOY/WHEY PROTEIN and 3 GRAMS of FIBER! Both of those are important when recovering from a tough workout!

There are currently 3 flavors to choose from — cookie dough, peanut butter, and chocolate cherry almond — but of course, my favorite was the PB flavor!

Also, check out this blog from the Boston Team Luna Chix Run website — there are great tips for athletes, including an interview with Joan Benoit Samuelson. You can find it here: http://teamlunachix.com/boston_run/blog_entry/nutrition_tips_for_female_athletes/.

Well, maybe I will see some of you guys at the Expo or at the Luna booth!

Happy running & good eating!
Patricia

Good morning, everyone! We are waking up to a really sunny day in Boston today — so nice! I hope the weather stays nice for the Marathon!!!

Anyhow, this post is going to be a quickie — I had the hardest time connecting to the Internet at Starbucks this morning. I think there’s something wrong with their wireless. Luckily, I found a different free wireless connection to use for the meantime!

For breakfast this morning, I decided to get myself one of my new favorite breakfasts: a ham, egg, and cheese on an English muffin from Emerson College’s cafe. It’s a new discovery of mine and this meal honestly keeps me full until way past noon, and lately, I haven’t been able to grab lunch until around 2ish! I don’t think I told you guys yet but I got a promotion at work and it’s been BUSY!!! Busy but good! But unfortunately, this is another reason why I haven’t been able to blog as much during the day.

Not sure what kind of “English muffin” they use, but it is delicious!!!

I downed this sandwich with some DD iced coffee!

It’s weird, but this meal really keeps me full until later in the day.

I’ve got a busy day ahead but I will try to take a quick break — I’ll be making a shout out to the nice folks at Luna Protein later on so stay tuned!

Have a great day, everyone! I hope I can get back on the blog bandwagon like before again! I miss it so much!

Happy running & good eating!
Patricia

Okay, I promise that I’m back! I finally got a new camera and I am once again inspired to return to blogging! I’ve definitely had a full plate as well since the last time a blog, but all have had good turnouts, which includes a promotion at work! But breaking my camera and my heel problems have definitely discouraged me a bit from blogging, but I’m back! I promise this time – pinky swear!

My new camera is a Sony Cyber-shot DSC-W350.

Source: http://fotoriesel.net/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/Sony_Cybershot_DSC_W350.jpg.

I usually use a Canon, but this camera has several features that convinced me to give it a try, including a 26mm Wide-angle lens and a sweep panorama setting. It was also the best deal they had and comes with an awesome 2-year warranty — good for someone like me!

Anyhow, I cannot believe that it’s 7 DAYS UNTIL THE BOSTON MARATHON!!! I can’t believe we’ve all made it this far. I’m crossing my fingers for everyone that this last week goes well!

Yesterday, I did my last “longish” run before the marathon at 7 miles. I have to admit that I think I let the nerves get to me and I felt quite tired during the whole run. The plan this week is just to do a couple short runs and then REST, REST, REST!

Pop’s for Lunch
To try my new camera, I brought it along with me for lunch when I met up with my fellow Cal friend, Linda, at Pop’s. It’s a chic restaurant in the South End neighborhood of Boston and it’s always been a favorite of mine since I moved to Boston from California. It’s really laid back and never fails to deliver good food!

They actually renovated the bar — looks pretty neat!

Linda and I started out with a nice cold glass of iced tea — it was such a beautiful day outside that a cold drink was perfect! Also, check out the chic placemats — aren’t they cool?! So unique!

There were plenty to choose from, including brunch options, but I decided to go with my usual Pop’s burger! It’s huge and comes with a small side salad and string-cut fries.

The burger itself is served with onion jam, mushrooms, and bacon on a nice buttery brioche. Soooo good!

The burger was delicious, but for some reason, I think they overcooked our fries. They were crunchier than I would have liked them to be, but I still ate them all.

I also ordered a burger to go for Matt — I think he was happy about it, no?

That’s it for now, blog friends! Thanks for all your patience with me while I tried to get a new camera and recover from my heel pain! I can’t wait to share my experiences with you (with my new camera of course) from this last week of training and next weekend’s festivities!

Take care for now!

Happy running & good eating!
Patricia

Good morning, everyone! I know I’ve been gone from the blog for a long time now. The main reason is that my camera is broken — I will hopefully get a new one in the next couple of weeks! It’s so weird not to have a camera and not to be blogging as often.

The second reason I haven’t blogged much is I’ve been quite preoccupied with my painful left heel. When I got back from Mexico, I tried to do a 13-miler that following Monday. Unfortunately, I had to stop at mile 8 because of pain in my left heel. I thought it would be smarter to stop and report this to my coach. Since then, I’ve only been able to do a couple of good runs and have been quite frustrated about it. I think it’s my good old friend, plantar fasciitis, stopping by to say hello!

Yesterday, I had a 16-mile run scheduled but stopped at 13 miles, again because of the pain in my heel. To be honest, I’m quite frustrated by this and I was so upset yesterday that I wanted to cry! I know that I have to stay optimistic and positive about this and believe that I’ve done well for the bulk of my training. I have to trust that I’ve prepared as well as I can and I just now have to focus on getting myself healthy for race day.

Anyhow, here’s the Garmin for yesterday’s run: http://connect.garmin.com/activity/28337404

I felt really good aside from my heel pain.

I hope everyone’s been doing well and if you are training for Boston, good luck in these last few weeks of preparation! I can’t believe it’s only 21 days away!!!

Happy running & good eating!
Patricia

Hi everyone! I’m BAAAAACK! I’m so sorry for my long absence. As many of you know, I was away with Matt and his family on a vacation in Mexico! I am so lucky to have been able to go on this trip — Matt’s family was so kind to include me in their celebration of Matt’s dad’s retirement!

Before I continue, I wanted to report some very sad news: my camera broke! I stupidly took it out on the boat when we went snorkeling and, as expected, it got wet! Luckily, all the pictures were left in tact and that we were near the end of our trip so I already had many photos that I was able to take. My camera, however, did not make it.

Anyhow, I’m just happy I still have tons of photos to share with you guys. As you can imagine, I took TONS of photos, so I probably won’t be able to show all of them here tonight. I will try to write a recap of the trip’s highlights, which of course included a LOT of FOOD!

In case some of you are wondering, I did do three maintenance runs while I was away. I’ll admit that it was very difficult to get my butt out there, but I’m glad I did! One day, the treadmills at the resort’s gym were all being used, so Matt convinced me to run along the beach.

Here’s the map from the Garmin page of our run along Playa del Carmen. I thought it was the coolest run ever!

It was a fairly slow run for me since we were running on sand — and I also got attacked by the waves that I stopped caring about my shoes getting wet! I wish I had taken some photos of our soaked shoes that were filled with sand! Anyhow, we ran 3.77 miles in 41:35. Really slow, but really fun!

It’s quite late already here in Boston so this post is really short…however, I did want to leave you with a teaser photo for what’s ahead on my recaps! Just check out these amazing first views of our hotel and the beach…

This is the front view of the Riu Palace Riviera Maya!

And of course, the gorgeous beach!

I promise, there is TONS MORE to come!

Sorry again for my long absence and I will see you guys again tomorrow!

Happy running & good eating!
Patricia

Happy Friday night, everyone! I am soooo happy to *officially* be on vacation!!!

First, my apologies for not having blogged since lunch time yesterday. It’s been a crazy week and I’ve been so tired at the end of each day. I literally fall asleep as soon as I change from my work clothes and into my PJs! I really had to work for my vacation!

Workouts
Coach Joe gave me a pretty light this week so that I could recover from my 20-miler on Sunday. I think I have a total of only 9 miles so far this week! I definitely feel like I need a recovery week these past few days so i was a nice scheduled “break.”

After work yesterday, I went straight to Healthworks and did the following workout designed by my coach, Joe:

- 10 minute run on treadmill (1.05 miles)
- leg swings
- 2 sets of heelkicks
- stretched inner & outer ankles
- jumping jacks: 2 sets of 30
- knee circles, forward: 1 set of 25
- plank for 90 secs.
- knee circles, backward: 1 set of 25
- stretched
- foam rolled

Today, I got back outside for a short, easy run, even though it was quite gloomy and windy outside. It was nice to get my legs moving even though I was actually not motivated at all. I just had one of those really long days at work, so working out was the last thing I wanted to do as soon as I got off work. But of course, I felt much better and was happy that I did it as soon as I started running.

I ran 4.1 miles today in 35.08. My Garmin 305 was still not charged so I ended up using my simple Timex watch! This watch was my first running watch when I started seriously running almost 3 years ago!

I still love it even though the strap is actually kinda broken! It still works so that’s all that matters!

Sorry, I digress! I did 4.1 miles in 35:08.89 — about an 8:45 min/mile pace. After my run, I cooled down by doing the following:

- lunge position holds (lph): 3 x 6-sec. holds per leg
- lateral leg raises: 1 x 25 per leg
- plank & side planks
- stretched
- foam rolled

By the way, here’s the MapMyRun link to tonight’s route: http://www.mapmyrun.com/route/us/pa/north%20east/506126845165860122.

I really love starting my weekend off with a workout!

Dinner
I was starving by the time I got to Matt’s, but believe it or not, we didn’t have Chipotle tonight! Matt decided to grill some chicken legs, which were on sale at Whole Foods — I got four of them for about $3! When I got there, I quickly made some rigatoni with vodka sauce to eat with the chicken.

The chicken was delicious — perfectly grilled!

For dessert, I enjoyed some Almond Joy!

And now, I’m relaxing and watching some CSI — I love these mystery/detective shows!

I hope you guys have a great weekend! I’ve got a 13-miler planned tomorrow before we leave for Mexico (!!!) on Sunday!

Happy running & good eating!
Patricia

Hi everyone! Hope your Thursday is going well! Mine’s been good so far!

Before I go on to today’s lunch, here’s a recap of last night’s dinner with my girlfriends at Zocalo, a Mexican restaurant in Allston. We bought one of those BuyWithMe.com coupons so we got $40 worth of food for only $20. Such a great deal!

Last night was my third time at Zocalo and it was good as expected! As soon as we got there, we started munching on chips and salsa. I was starving after last night’s workout.

When our entire party arrived, we ordered some guacamole, which they make right in front of you. It tasted so fresh!

Don’t you love the piggie stone bowl that it came in?!

Yum yum!

I munched on so many chips, but I still had plenty of room for the main dish. I ended up getting the steak fajitas! It was a huge serving, but I did a good amount of damage before I packed the rest of it home for Matt. It came with rice, beans, cheese, sour cream, guacamole, and lettuce.

And finally, the fajitas!

Everyone enjoyed the food!

Look at one of my bites!

It was definitely a delicious dinner — quite a treat, especially for a Wednesday night. But as my good friend, Ro, say all the time, you should treat yourself everyday!

Well, lunch is almost over and I gotta head back to work! Enjoy the rest of your day!

Happy running & good eating!
Patricia

Good morning, everyone! It’s finally Thursday! Almost the weekend!

I’m blogging from my iPhone this morning because my computer’s battery is dead – forgot to charge it last night! I usually start my post while commuting then publish it once I get to Starbucks where I have Internet connection. I thought I could at least blog from my phone and write about my workout from last night.

Last night was my first run again since Sunday’s 20-miler. I definitely felt tired still but I’m glad nothing (as far as aches and pains go) was bothering me. *Crossing my fingers* that I can stay healthy until the Marathon!

Anyhow – I did ~4.25 miles at an easy pace. I finished in about 40 minutes. My Garmin 305 ran out of batteries (looks like this is a theme for me lately) so I was only able to record the first 5 minutes of my run. I will try to put up a MapMyRun link at the very least on my Workout Log when I get a chance later today.

That’s about it for now! Look out for last night’s yummy dinner recap later today!

Happy running & good eating!
Patricia

Good morning, everyone! Happy hump day!

I woke up extra early today to make breakfast and because I have to be at work a little earlier today. It was nice to have some time to make an egg & cheese bagel sandwich today. It’s going to be a busy day so I need all the energy that I can get from breakfast.

I just scrambled some eggs, topped it off with Cabot’s mild cheddar cheese slices, then sandwiched them into whole wheat bagels. Yummy!

I’m also enjoying a tall iced coffee with soy milk and sugar-free vanilla from Starbucks — haven’t had one of these in a long time! Was craving it this morning — the first sip of it tasted oh-so-good! I hope my brekkie keeps me satisfied until lunch!

Train Your Brain?
The other day, someone in my running club (The Most Informal Running Club Ever, aka TMIRCE) sent a link to an article called “Train Your Brain: Can Jogging Make You Smarter?”. I just thought it was interesting and wanted to share it with you.

You can find the article here.

Healthworks – Runner of the Week
As some of you guys might already know, I love my gym, Healthworks Fitness Centers for Women. It’s a great community and they really support their members in their fitness goals outside of the gym. In the next few weeks, they are featuring members who are running the Boston Marathon.  Guess who’s the runner for this week? Me! I just thought it was really cool and if you are a Healthworks member, make sure to look out for it in the newsletter.

I have a busy day ahead, including a run after work and dinner plans with some girlfriends, but I will see you guys later! Enjoy your day — another sunny one in Boston!

Happy running & good eating!
Patricia

Hello everyone! Hope you had a good Tuesday! Is it really only Tuesday?!

Anyhow, I am still taking a rest day from running per my coach’s schedule so I went to Marshall’s right after work to shop for some swim suits and pretty sandals for the vacation! I got some pretty good deals — one was $14.99 and the other $12.99 — love that!

I’m sorry I didn’t get to blog during lunch — I didn’t leave the building and just ate lunch with my coworkers in the lunch room. We don’t have WiFi in our building yet so I couldn’t pull out my laptop and blog.

Lunch
I shared last night’s leftovers with Matt to bring for lunch today. It was still good but this dish definitely tastes the best right after cooking.

Still very good though!

There wasn’t very much left from last night so I had some other goodies on the side. I had an organic bartlett pear and a bluberry Chobani.

I also had my favorite lowfat chocolate milk — this has recently become a staple for me since it’s a great post-run drink! Next to it is what was left of my Chobani — I totally forgot to take a picture of it before I started eating it. It was almost gone when I remembered!

It was a yummy, satisfying lunch. It powered me through the rest of my busy afternoon!

Dinner
I was really tired from walking around all day so when I got home, I just put together a quick dinner. There is also a St. Bonaventure basketball game on so we gathered in the living room to cheer them on in tournament play.

I decided to make a veggie burger sandwich just like Sunday night’s dinner. This Gardenburger brand is really delicious! I also love that you can see the actual vegetables that the burger is made of.

I melted some Cabot mild cheddar cheese slices on top of the veggie burger.

It tasted so good with the Ciabatta bread I bought from Trader Joe’s and some baby greens.

I also had some Lightly Salted Kettle Chips on the side.

I ate my meal with a little bit of ketchup — soooo good! After I scarfed my sandwich down, I had another serving of chips. And then look what suddenly appeared on my plate?!

Yup — that’s right! More carrot cake bread and Girl Scout peanut butter pattie cookies!

It was quite a yummy day for me! Okay…that’s it for now. Time to get back to the basketball game! Enjoy your evening, bloggies!

Happy running & good eating!
Patricia