As expected, daylight savings time has put me in a funk. Watching complete darkness settle while I was in my afternoon Spanish class yesterday made me seriously grumpy. It's going to take some serious mental strength to motivate myself to exercise today. Sigh.
On Saturday morning, Dan and I headed into town to go on a run. Now that we live outside of town, running in Saratoga is luxurious because there are sidewalks there. Heh. We went to my original running route for nostalgia. I was all: HEY! There's the alley where I used to stop for a walking break! Hey! Remember when I ran this far for the first time?! Hey! I could never run this far before we moved! I'm sure Dan was like, "Shut up!" But I think it's good to remember where you started :)
My plan was to run for 30 minutes to reach my new goal, but I noticed right away that my legs were seriously tired. I was like, what the what? I figured as I went they'd warm up and I'd get over it, but they felt heavier and heavier. Usually my main obstacle with running is shortness of breath, so I wasn't sure what was going on. I finally threw in the towel after about 18 minutes and took a walking break because my legs were like two blocks of cement. Then I thought back over my week and realized that I hadn't taken a single rest day from exercise. Whoops. I walked for a few minutes, then ran the rest of the way back to the car. When we got home, I made a very grumpy Dan do 20 minutes of Richard Simmons with me (which, I am shocked to report, did NOT cheer up Mr. Grumpy Pants!) and then promised to rest the next day after work.
My legs felt tired at work on Sunday, but I kept forgetting that I had vowed to rest. I kept thinking of different things I could do after work, like a walk or a run or Richard Simmons, but then my little bubble was burst when I remembered I had to sit on the dumb couch. I did, although I felt a little compulsive desire to exercise. Yesterday I had a 5 page paper to write that was due that very day (which I managed to complete in one hour...holla!) and some other homework, so I did not have time to exercise before class. Then once it got pitch dark during my aforementioned Spanish class, I found myself in such a funk that I did not exercise as planned after my classes finished.
So today I must do something. I'm thinking about doing my Richard Simmons DVD later after I do some studying for this big, dumb Anthropology test I have tomorrow, and then perhaps going on a run in Saratoga once Dan gets home from work. These goals are pretty lofty for someone as grumpy as me, though.
On a more optimistic note, I've been making some fabulous recipes the past few nights! Most were found on the interwebs, so here's a little link roundup:
Thursday night I was feeling ambitious and made some mango chicken curry using this recipe. Dan and I went out for Indian on our anniversary a couple weeks ago and he ordered this dish, and when I tasted it I almost weeped with jealousy. I followed the recipe exactly, except that I accidentally bought coconut paste (or something) instead of coconut milk, and it was really sweet and gross, so I mixed a tiny bit of the paste with some almond milk and water. Served with some basmati rice and (store bought) naan, it was to die for.
Friday I made some Spicy Shrimp Skewers on my George Foreman grill, some coco bread, and mixed some lime juice, garlic, cilantro, and lime zest into some leftover basmati rice. Next time I make coco bread, I will add some more sugar because I once had it in a Jamaican restaurant and it was a bit sweeter and more delicious. Also, the shrimp wasn't spicy enough! And I realized when I looked at my plate that I had no vegetables at all. Whoops!
On Saturday, I used the Spicy Shrimp recipe to make Spicy Chicken, but I added an extra tablespoon of Jerk Spice and a bunch more hot sauce, and it was really good. I will even add a bit more spice next time though. Served with leftover cilantro-lime rice, coco bread, and acorn squash it was really good!
Saturday night, I made "Philly Cheese Steaks" with Portabella mushrooms instead of beef, a recipe from Eating Well that has become a staple in our apartment. I always use green peppers, this time I used a mix of green and red. I leave out the flour and soy sauce and add a bunch of garlic. Along with these, I made roasted brussel sprouts (cut in half, ends trimmed off, tossed with a bit of olive oil, balsamic vinegar, salt and pepper, cooked in a 425 degree oven for 15 minutes, flipped over, then cooked for about 10 more minutes) and crunchy sweet potato fries, which I found on the Iowa Girl Eats blog, omitting the cinnamon. They were really good, super crispy (hard to do when baking in my experience). Next time I will add garlic!!
Sunday I used the last of the cilantro-lime rice to make burritos with beans, spinach, cheese, and salsa.
Okay, now I'm hungry after remember all of these delicious meals. Lunch time!
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