fitness

You are currently browsing articles tagged fitness.

Sunshine and Wine

May 2, 2010 in Uncategorized by traveleatlove | 4 comments

Gooood morning! How is your weekend going? Are you enjoying absolutely gorgeous summery weather?

So far, so good here in Beantown. Well, unless you count the “catastrophic” water main break that has us on a boil notice, which I learned of right AFTER I chugged 2 glasses of tap water.

Yesterday was a very relaxing day that started with a walk around Castle Island in South Boston. The beaches were packed with people just dying to see the sun and feel some warmth after a week that was quite chilly and stormy at times.

The hubs and I spent the morning lolling around the house, me playing on Picasa and TRYING to get some more Foodgawker photos accepted and him working on a Masters assignment. He is so close to being done!

Our walk was about 2.5 miles long, and it felt really good to get moving again. I will run again someday, but you have to walk before you can run, right?

This week I am planning on getting back into shape with some yoga, weights, and spinning. I will need lots of encouragement as I have totally enjoyed my post marathon time off!

After our outdoor fun, we headed to Bin Ends to pick up our wine from the fine wine flea market and perhaps a few more bottles that found their way into our shopping cart. . .

I mean really, its a wine warehouse with awesome prices, knowledgeable staff, and a great selection. Get thee to the next Bin Ends fine wine flea market!

I would rather shop for wine than clothes. True story.

Our newest bottles (and box!!). I joked to my husband that it was like a class photo the way they are all lined up

I am particularly excited about the addition of more Sicilian wine including 2 bottles of the Nicosia Nerello Mascalese and the Planeta which contains the Frappato grape, another to add to my grape tasting list! Who knew so many grape varietals existed?! I also got a bottle of Graham Beck bubbly which I so thoroughly enjoyed at Morton’s on Monday and a Belle Vallee Pinot Gris which is a delectable, summery food wine. Also included, a couple Fitch Mountain Cab Sauvignons. I feel like I could start an entirely separate blog just for wine. . .

I had planned to maybe meet up with Tina from Carrots N Cake at Bin Ends as we had talked about it awhile back at an Oldways event, and luckily we got to see her and to meet the famous Mal after reading so much about him! It was great to see them; I love that they live so close! We chatted for just a few minutes, and we were on our way again.

Our Bin Ends trip was followed by a glass of Travessia Rosé on the deck. Have you tried this wine yet? It’s only available in Massachusetts at the moment, but it is so good. It is the epitome of spring and summer to me, goes well with just about any food, and tastes SO good.

Spending the later part of the afternoon just resting on the deck was perfect and felt like vacation. We followed it up with dinner at the Russell House Tavern in Cambridge, and I will be back later today with a post all about it. A truly delicious dinner with great service was had by both of us.

How was your Saturday? Have you entered my Honest Tea giveaway yet? I am excited about Honest Tea’s delicious, thirst quenching powers in this warm weather!

I will be back in a few hours!

Technorati Tags: Boston, fitness, wine

Tags: Boston, fitness, wine

Spring in the Air and in My Step

April 24, 2010 in Uncategorized by traveleatlove | 11 comments

Just a reminder to enter my Cabot Cheese gift giveaway and to spread the word to your friends! Only a few days left!

Spring is here, and my legs are no longer sore! I celebrated that fact last night by attending a post marathon/ running club kickoff party at Healthworks Back Bay. I was really excited for this event because it meant that I got to meet other runners and fellow Healthworks members to talk about running while snacking on some yummy treats. I have never belonged to a gym like Healthworks which really aims to engage its members beyond just coming and going to work out. Everyone there is super nice, and it is a beautiful, clean facility which should go without saying, but trust me. . . I have belonged to some other well known gyms that could take a few lessons from them!

The spread was celebratory and offered a variety of options for us hungry runners.

There were adorable, delicious, foot shaped cookies.

Too cute. And yummy. It’s a good thing we all ran 26 miles on Monday!

There were Pop Chips. Though I had tasted and enjoyed the plain Pop Chips before, at this event I had a bag of barbeque and almost drooled, they were so good. Desk drawer, you need to stock up on Barbeque Pop Chips please.

And yummy Luna protein bars, which I am saving for a post workout boost.

There was Boston Athletic Association inspiration. I love that unicorn.

And Pearly Bay sparkling wine from Boston Wine Exchange, a great store I visited in this post. This wine was slightly sweet, bubbly, and perfect for a Friday night celebration!

I spent a little over an hour mingling with other runners, learning about Healthworks’ running club, which is open to non members as well, and even winning an awesome raffle bag full of fun goodies like vouchers for B. Good burgers and fries. Kind of appropriate considering I ran much of the marathon with the B. Good french fry and hamburger. I really did. I even asked if they were hot, and they were

After I left the Healthworks event, I strolled through Copley Square and snapped a photo of these gorgeous tulips. Did I mention tulips and daffodils are some of my favorite things about spring? Tina from Carrots N Cake actually posted a similar picture last night! They were just too beautiful to pass up.

And since I was walking by, I decided to stop in to the new candy store next to Marathon Sports, Sugar Heaven.

Sugar Heaven is chock full of sweet treats. They had a refrigerator full of European chocolate, the stuff my hubby grew up on, so I picked up a Galaxy bar, an Aero, and a Dairy Milk for him.

I loved all of the bright colors! I bought a few things, but I just wanted photos of everything.

Chocolate chocolate everywhere!

I needed to get out of there before I spent too much and ended up with a supply of candy that we should not have around.

I walked to meet my husband by Symphony Hall, and passed by the Christian Science center where the fountains were on, and brave people were playing in them.

Boston is so beautiful this time of year!

We had a great dinner at an old favorite, DBar Boston, in our Dorchester ‘hood. I even spotted Chris Coombs, the Executive Chef and recent Chopped contestant. It was too dark for photos, but I had a glass of Mionetto prosecco, lobster bisque, and tuna ceviche. Every meal I have ever eaten at DBar has been excellent, and tonight was no different. It is a cozy neighborhood place with a sophisticated vibe and upscale comfort food menu, not to mention their awesome cocktail list and amazing brunch.

Not too many plans for today. My good friend Meghan, who was in my marathon photos, lost her wonderful grandfather last night, so I am thinking of her and hoping to see her and her family this weekend. It is so hard to see a friend sad, so send her some good vibes if you can.

Enjoy this spring weekend friends!

Technorati Tags: Boston, candy, fitness, Food, Healthworks, running, sparkling wine

Tags: Boston, candy, fitness, Food, Healthworks, running, sparkling wine

My Biggest Running Frustrations

March 1, 2010 in Uncategorized by traveleatlove | 12 comments

Thanks to the help of some blogger friends (Elina & Melissa) I survived my first 20 mile run of my Boston Marathon training. I am planning on doing another 20 mile run in 2 weeks and am toying with the idea of a 22 miler the last weekend in March before tapering back big time.

I spent the week prior to my run eating REALLY well. We normally eat good food, but I bought another tub of Super Red Drink Powder, which I have been drinking every morning or evening, depending on my kale smoothie schedule. Our smoothies have been veggie powerhouses, and I even ate lean chicken a few times. I have been trying to introduce new sources of antioxidants, have been drinking more green tea and in general spent lots of energy focusing on feeling good for the run.

I woke up Saturday morning, confirmed my route online, and suited up before eating 1/2 of a banana with 2 spoonfuls of almond butter and a cup of green kombucha tea.

It was snowing lightly when I started, but before I went 1/2 mile, the sun came out and the South Boston waterfront shone in the light.

Running along, I felt great overall except for frustration #1. I was too full and started cramping up. I let about 40 minutes pass after eating, but even after years of running, I can not seem to figure out a good eating before running balance. It is almost better if I go on an empty stomach, but being super hungry isn’t fun either.

If you have figured out a good running before eating strategy – How soon before a run do you eat? What do you normally eat?

I was able to stretch my sides a little and to eventually get over that full feeling. . . and then spent most of the run with a growling stomach. Then the doubt started to kick in. Even though I have completed many races, including 3 marathons, I still doubt myself on pretty much every run. Do I need hypnotherapy? Positive self talk helps to an extent, but I feel like the negative thoughts drain energy, and I would like to banish them forever if possible!

What do you do to keep a positive mental outlook on runs? Do you ever feel like your mental state totally throws a workout?

My final frustration is the biggest. Overall I am in great cardiovascular shape. I can run at a good pace without breaking a sweat for a long time and don’t have trouble gasping for air or feeling tired in that way. What does happen is after a certain number of miles, maybe 13 or 14, my legs start to kill me. Obviously, some of this is normal, but it is frustrating to have to stop and walk or stretch when I feel like I am not even pushing myself! I would love for my legs to feel less painful. Its not even fatigue, it is just aching all over.

Do you have any suggestions on how to curb leg pain in longer races? Is it weight training for stronger muscles? Stretching more during the week? Popping ibuprofen during the race?

Any and all tips are welcome! And if you have any training questions for me I am happy to answer them.

Please consider my charity raffle for The ALLY Foundation! $10/ticket at http://firstgiving.com/meghanmalloyteamally

The prizes so far? A custom me & goji mix, a one month membership to Healthworks fitness, a case of wine from Wine Cellars of Stoneham, a tour and private tasting for 10 at Westport Rivers Winery, and a $100 Williams Sonoma gift certificate. There aren’t a ton of entries, so there is a good chance of winning!

Technorati Tags: fitness, marathons, running, training