I’ve been in a major exercise rut. I’m not particularly motivated to run which is probably due to the fact that I’m out of shape and the trail by my house goes uphill for a mile. I guess I could look at it as hill training but right now it makes me feel like I’m going to die.

I’m already getting off topic.

I signed up for the Shamrock Half Marathon. I’m super excited to go home, run on flat ground, and see my running group. I miss them so much. I really got lucky while I was home. So if you’re in VA find HRR!

When I signed up back in December, my goal was to train well enough to PR. Since we’re 4 weeks out (such poor planning on my part), that’s highly unlikely so I’m switching to plan Z which is to just finish the race.

So in an effort to get back into shape, I decided to branch out and try new things like Body Pump and Spinning.

Good lord, spinning. Everyone I know who takes spin LOVES IT. Sings its praises. I figured if all of my friends love spinning then I’d like it too. Right?

Ehhhh I’m not sold.

Yesterday, I left work early to get to the gym, change, and get in line for class. There were some really nice women in line who assured me that the first class was going to suck but I’d still love it and want to come back for more.

When we got in, the girl next to me helped me adjust my bike (there ARE nice people in Vegas!) but then after we adjusted it and I got on to warm up, we figured out that the bike was broken. Lame.

I hopped over to another bike and barely had enough time to adjust anything. It looked like it would work so I got on and started peddling. I was wearing my minimus shoes because I wasn’t sure if my cycling shoes would work with the bike pedals and it felt really weird to not be attached to the bike.

Not even 10 minutes into class, we started a “sprint”. A few seconds into the sprint, my feet flew out of the pedals which made me pop up out of the seat. Thank goodness I had a death grip on the handlebars. I came back down HARD and broke the seat. I BROKE IT. It was gangster leaning to the left and was tilted down in the front. The crazy spinning pedals also scraped my shin. I was a hot bloody bruised mess in a class where the bike doesn’t even move.

And I rode for the rest of the class on that stupid broken seat.

I’m a talented lady. 

Long time, no blog.

I fully intend to begin blogging regularly again but I’ve been struggling with finding a good work/life balance. I really enjoy what I’m doing but event planning is just one of those jobs that isn’t always 8-5 and sometimes I come home and crash.

So I clearly haven’t been blogging…and I also haven’t been working out.

Confession: I didn’t run the ET Half Marathon. That was partially due to the fact that I threw my back out and partially because every time I ran outside, I felt like I was going to die. Being out of running shape is not fun. At all. I haven’t worked out in well over a month.

Other random things that have happened recently?

I chopped off 6 inches of my hair.

I went home for almost two weeks and it was glorious. I’ve never been so happy to be in Virginia.

Turned 27.

Attempted to run a 5k the day after my birthday. I do not recommend this, especially if you’d been drinking on your birthday.

Got surprised by my awesome friends.

Did I mention that they are awesome? Okay just checking.

I also went on a trip to the lake house (boot free this year)

…and spent the first night in the hospital with poor Jenna-boo because she broke her ankle into pieces.

‘Na had to leave for surgery (like a million screws and plates type surgery) but she insisted that we stay. So we had Cheers for ‘Na.

I’ve also been cooking: salads, quinoa zucchini boats, and yokamein just to name a few.

Roasted Cauliflower and Toasted Almond Kale Salad:

Roasted Veggie Salad

Quinoa Zucchini Boats

Yokamein

I’ll post some of these recipes soon!

So with all that said, I’m off to watch Harry Potter and eat falafel.

I’ll work out tomorrow.

______________________________________________________________

The fall is getting near – and that means that ACC football is less than a couple of months away.  That means that all you Hokies need to get into practice for football tailgates.  Therefore, we have a special treat for you this morning.  On tap is our interview with Kris Schoels (you can follow her on Twitter at @yngmarriedchic and you can also see her bio at YoungMarriedChic.com.  Kris recently co-authored a cookbook Krista Gallagher called, A Taste of Virginia Tech (@atasteofvt on Twitter).  That book can be pre-ordered at Mascot Books.  Below is our Q&A with Mrs. Schoels.  Enjoy!!

@HokieGuru: When did you attend Virginia Tech?  What made you decide to attend?

@yngmarriedchic: I graduated from VT in 2005, seems so long ago! I remember going to Tech to visit the campus as a senior in high school. The first day I was so overwhelmed by the large campus- so many people! The second day I asked my parents if I could walk around by myself and when I walked over to the drillfield, while classes were in session, I looked across at Burruss Hall and thought to myself, “I belong here.” Sounds cheesy, but that’s really how it happened.

@HokieGuru: Are you coming down to Blacksburg, VA this year for any Virginia Tech athletic events?

@yngmarriedchic: Of course!! I come to all of the football games I can get down for, there’s nothing like Blacksburg on a Football weekend.

@HokieGuru: What are your most memorable experiences at Virginia Tech?

@yngmarriedchic: Every year has a different memory, but I have to say it’s probably the first time my roommate took me to the “fancy” dining hall West End. Her brother was at VT before her and had told her that the London Broil was famous and we needed to eat it immediately. We did…and it was amazing.

@HokieGuru:  Tell us about YoungMarriedChic.com.  

@yngmarriedchic:  Young Married Chic was started by me almost 4 years ago. I had been looking for a way to show the world things that I love- baking, cooking, photography, travel, and entertaining. I wanted something that would make “homemaking” cool again and I hope to have done that with YMC- as I give my readers a glimpse into my everyday life.

@HokieGuru:  Let’s talk about A Taste of Virginia Tech, a cookbook that can be pre-ordered at Mascot Books.  This is why we have you here today, lady.  How did you both decide on doing this venture (after all, a book is a lot of work!!)?  How did you research what to put in the book?  How did you decide what recipes to include?  Here’s your chance to generate a lot of free-form prose about this book that I’m sure many, many Hokies will be interested in (we can see some of the research process here at Laura’s Focus Photography).

@yngmarriedchic:  A Taste of VT was dreamed up by my partner Krista Gallagher. She was looking for a way to show people her passion for cooking and all things Virginia Tech. She started the process, found a publisher (Mascot Books), and met with the school to see if they would be interested in such a great project. Last July she brought me on as her partner, and the rest is history! We’ve had the best time creating this book together and the stories from the restaurant owners in downtown Blacksburg have been amazing- just hearing how they ended up in the ‘burg in the first place.

@HokieGuru:  Give us a couple of your favorite recipes from A Taste of Virginia Tech.  For example, give the name of one or two that we might use for tailgating in the fall   For the bachelors who read this blog, give us an example of something they could make after they get home from a long day of work – and want to watch some ACC basketball!! Might be guys that get off the Metro – go in the house – and fall down on the couch – and don’t want to do much work haha.  What is one of your favorites from The West End?  

@yngmarriedchic:  Some of my favorite recipes? Well, it’s hard to just pick a few. I would have to say that the one recipe that is going to have bachelors drooling would have to be the jalapeno peppers stuffed with cream cheese and bacon- then wrapped in sausage and cooked. Perfect tailgating food. Two of my favorites from West End would have to be the Old Hickory Burger and (of course) the London Broil!

@HokieGuru: Does your book include any recipes that are on the low-fat side, healthy, anything for vegans?  If so, please tell us about some of those.

@yngmarriedchic: We do have healthy recipes that could be catered to vegans, thanks to Pita Vera and Gourmet Pantry in downtown Blacksburg. They believe in using fresh ingredients and healthy fats to make dishes- olive oil chickpeas, lentils, and herbs really dominate these delicious dishes.

@HokieGuru:  Let’s close here by asking – what do you want to tell us about A Taste of Virginia Tech?   

@yngmarriedchic:   I think that it’s hard to describe to people what exactly being a “Hokie” means, and why Virginia Tech is so special. Krista and I hope to show them how amazing it is with this cookbook- from the dishes at Tech, the local merchants that make Blacksburg so great, to the huge tailgating groups that gave us their game day recipes. It truly was a labor of love and we hope that you will follow along on our journey- almost at the final chapter (yes, pun intended) with the book coming out in August!

We thank @yngmarriedchic for her time here at The Vitamin Bee – and again, you can pre-order A Taste of Virginia Tech at Mascot Books.

Go Hokies!!!

I mean, I did get to go see the Thunders with some awesome blogging ladies. Cant say that wasn’t a great time!

Why yes, I posted that again. Tired of it yet?

2. Since I’ve moved here, everyone keeps asking me if I like living in Vegas. Don’t ask me again until October when it’s no longer as hot as the devil’s ass. Right now, I hate everything.

Did I mention that it was hot today? And that weather.com lied to me? Rude. If you live in a balls hot climate, please tell me how to survive. Miami, though hot all year, was never this dreadful. Never. Dry heat my ass.

3. Part of the reason why I hate everything is because our air conditioning decided to stop working during the hottest week of the year thus far. It was 90 degrees in my apt today. 90! Thank goodness for maintenance guys because I would have been one angry little gremlin. It took a temporary a/c unit, 3 guys, and over 6 hours to get it fixed but I am so so so happy to not be sweating buckets in my apartment.

4. These are my new besties.

Frankie the Fan and Henry the Humidifier. Oh I love them. Love love love. Especially Henry. It’s nice to not be ashy all the time. Less bloody noses are also a great perk.

5. I bought cute workout clothes in an attempt to motivate myself to get back in shape. Well…I thought they were cute until this happened.

Yup, that’s a lululemon cool racerback tank and a pair of speed shorts bleeding dye into my sink. Another pair of speed shorts also bit the dust. The waistband bled all over the shorts. Lulu isn’t the cheapest workout gear out there so I’m really disappointed in the recent dive in quality. However, the women at the Fashion Show Mall store are amazing and they helped me pick out some new, non bloody workout clothes. Win?

6. I’ve started labeling my las vegas adventures as mis-adventures because something crazy always happens to me. I don’t exactly understand the highway/freeway-whateveryallcallitouthere yet so I frequently end up on the opposite side of where I’m trying to go. But sometimes it’s fun because I stumble across gems like these.

That is a ZOMBIE store! A whole zombie apocalypse survival store! Clearly I must go in there the next time I take a wrong exit and cant find a place to bust a u-turn.

7. I joined a gym. It’s hot. Running outside is no bueno. My plan is to split my runs. Half outside, half inside on the dreadmill. I will learn to love it. I also want to take more fitness classes. I took body pump two weeks ago and haven’t been since because I was sore for an entire week. AND I used the baby weights. Soooo out of shape.

8. I am so obsessed with tacos. I think I ate tempeh tacos 4 times last week. So much for variety!

9. I’m really enjoying my job. I will admit that I’m slightly struggling with finding a work/life balance since event planning isn’t exactly 8-5 all the time. That is completely okay though because I’d rather enjoy my work and worry about squeezing in workouts than hate my job and have tons of time to exercise. I’m working on it!

How did I ever work without two screens? Amazing.

10. Did I mention that I’m a crazy person who signed up for a half-marathon that’s less than a month away? I signed up for the ET Midnight Full Moon Half Marathon. It starts at 12:30 am in Rachel, NV which is about 2.5-3 hours outside of Las Vegas. It’s a point to point race that runs on the fringe of Area 51 (on the Extraterrestrial Highway) and it ends at the Little A’le’Inn restaurant. Cool right? The only thing that is kinda NOT cool is that the first 6 miles is uphill. Yikes. I’ve got some training to do!

Miles 7-13.1 should be pretty good right?

I had planned to blog a lot more…but a few things have changed in the past few weeks.

I started a new job as an event planner! I’m really thankful for the opportunity and so far, I really like what I’m doing. I mean after 3+ years of not working in my field (oh finance, how I loathe thee), I’m relieved and ecstatic to be doing something that I enjoy. I already have a few large events that I’m working on which is exciting and overwhelming all at once. And I have to admit, it’s nice to socialize with people other than the Professor.
 

Running has been nearly non-existent. It has been brutally hot here. I have a whole new appreciation for Virginia summers! It was 113 degrees here two weeks ago and it’s only going to get hotter. If you’re curious as to what that feels like, put a blowdryer in your face and turn it on high. I have taken advantage of the few days that it’s been cool but I’m terribly out of shape.

The scenery is a little different from Virginia. Just a little.

It was surprisingly nice this weekend (well, it was nice at 7am) so I met Charlene and Angela (happy birthday!) out in Summerlin for a Low Key 6k put on by the Las Vegas Track Club. I placed 4th in my age group. I was pretty pumped to get a ribbon. Can you tell?

I plan to run the OBX Marathon again this year so I need to get my booty in gear. I want to PR and I want to redeem myself after last years gallstone-bad stomach-gel vomiting debacle. As much as I hate the dreadmill, I hate feeling like I’m running through the fiery pits of Hades more so I’ll be running indoors a few days a week. I’ve made a loose “get back in shape” plan that I think I can commit to. No excuses.

I’ve also started going to the local farmers market every week. It’s so much more affordable than buying from the grocery store (around $20 a week) and everything is so delicious. I’m eating much better (or cleaner, whichever term you prefer), mostly because of my weekly adventure to the farmers market. 

So that’s where I am at the moment. Things are looking up.

Workout: 1 hour yoga (at home via Yoga Download)

I recently joined a new hot yoga studio after some hard searching. I’m pretty particular about my studios and had been eyeing one not too far from my house but it was pretty pricey. There were also horrible reviews about a lot of the bikram yoga studios. Packed classes, funky facilities, pricey, etc. I found this gem on Yelp! during my search.

No thank you, I do not want to be pimp slapped by body odor. Luckily, I found a great deal for a non smelly, friendly, clean hot yoga studio (not bikram).

I went to my first class last week. I’ve really missed yoga! With the achilles injury, the stomach issues, and the surgery, I’ve been out of practice for a hot (ha!) minute.

Needless to say, it did not go well. I was sweating buckets before we got through the first sun salutation and was wiped out by the halfway point.

So in order to rectify this situation, I’m trying to practice daily at home, even if it’s only for 20 minutes or so.

___________

Instead of giving an unnecessarily long rundown of what’s been going on, I’m just going to go over the highlights. Good? Good.

Surgery/Recovery: Recovery was a bit slower than I’d anticipated but I’m really happy that I ended up going through with the surgery. I had a some really great doctors. And I’m thankful to running for making me go to the doctor. Blowing up at OBX was a great motivator to get the situation handled. In hindsight, I’d been having stomach pain for a really long time and just ignored it. Good riddance.

Running: Sucks a big one right now. I really struggled after the surgery and haven’t really bounced back yet. Running in Nevada has also presented some challenges. The air here is sooooo dry that I have to bring water with me on every run, regardless of the length. The hills here have also been killing me. The only real hill experience I have is with the great Mt Trashmore in Virginia Beach and the half marathon in Williamsburg where I was completely unprepared for the hills and ended up aggravating my achilles. Last week, my speedwork consisted of fartleks. UP A HILL. In 95 degree weather. Sweet baby cheeses I thought I was going to pass out. I know it will get easier though and I’m trying to be patient with myself.

Moving to Las Vegas: Ahhhh, the confession. To put it simply, I came out here to be with the Professor. We’ve been dating since 2007, long distance sucks, and I was tired of traveling across the country once a month. So after talking about it for almost a year, I quit my full time job and rolled out. I am, however, still teaching part time. There were other factors involved in my move but some of those things have changed. It’s made my adjustment harder but I’m getting used to the desert. Kinda.

Racing: Still trying to figure out my fall marathon. I’ve signed up for Miami again (so excited, and I will make it to the start this year) and I’m trying to decide if I want to fly home for some redemption at OBX or if I want to do CIM in Sacramento. I’m leaning toward doing OBX. I think I have more than enough time to get in a good training cycle.

Cycling: I’ve joined a cycling group I am terrified to go down the hills here. The only “hill” I’ve been down was the Pungo Ferry Bridge. I’m sure I’ll get over it but Vegas is much hillier than I expected.

What has been up with everyone else? Any fun updates? Sign up for any good races? Tell me!

Forty seven: Days since my last long run at the beach

One: Amazing goodbye party

Three: Days to drive from Virginia Beach, VA

to Las Vegas, NV

Twelve: Times I sang “Oklahoma” in the state of Oklahoma

Two thousand four hundred and thirty seven: Miles driven cross country

Two: Fab-O Virtual Runs in Las Vegas

Two point five: Miles run in a canyon…and number of times I fell in the canyon

Two: Speedwork sessions where I realized that I’m out of shape

Thirty five: Days I’ve been a resident of Las Vegas and days that I’ve missed Pita pocket

Forty eight: The number of days its been since I posted here.

And I’m back! Catch ya soon!

Sometimes life gets in the way. Things are pretty crazy right now. I quit my job and I’m moving in two weeks. Though stressful, those two things have been fairly manageable.

Sunday afternoon, I found out that someone in my family whom I was close to passed away. She was 29 years young and it was completely unexpected and sudden. My entire family, her fiancé, and her friends are devastated at the loss. I keep hoping that it was some sort of weird mistake, that this couldn’t really happen, that she’ll pop up at any minute with a big smile and a laugh and yell “Just kidding”. However, with each passing day, it becomes clearer that the nightmare is reality.

With that said, I intend to take some time off. Thank you to my wonderful friends who have left me kind words, messages, prayers, lent a listening ear, or simply gave me a hug. I truly appreciate and love you.

So I will be back here when I can. I hope you’ll still be here too.

not a bridal show.

Just keepin’ it real my friends, just keepin’ it real. Twenty four fun dips all for me!

This weekend I ran the Virginia is for Lovers 14k (8.7 miles). I spend too much time trying to figure out what to wear to the race. So you know when they say go big or go home?

I decided an all hot-pink look was the way to go. VIFL is one of my favorite races here and I wanted to as obnoxious festive as possible.

This is what I wore.

Oh yes.

The expo was held on Friday at the Virginia Beach Field House. I went after work and it was very easy to get my bib and swag bag and get out. They did have a few vendors selling things but nothing really appealed to me so I left.

Instead of shirts this year, we got jackets. I ordered a small but it’s really not so small. I also don’t layer much when I run (I overheat very quickly) so I’m not sure how much use I’ll get out of it.

I live close enough to the start that I didn’t have to leave early but there was still a bit of traffic and I had to park in the overflow lot by the Amphitheater and walk to the fieldhouse. Get there EARLY if you want to park close by. The race started at 9am and it was pretty chilly. Windy, 44 degrees, and overcast. And that’s when I decided I didn’t need a jacket.

The great thing about this event is that before the race, you can hang out in the fieldhouse to stay warm. The race also finishes in the fieldhouse so we didn’t freeze after. I met up with the ladies from my running group and we all went out to the corrals shortly after.

When I signed up for the race, I had put something like 1:15:00 for my anticipated finish time. Since clearly I wasn’t going to run that pace post surgery, I started in a later corral. I was freezing my butt off waiting for our corral to start moving!

Thankfully, at the last minute, Jessika gave me her throwaway gloves! I thought I would toss them but I ended up wearing them the entire race.

I ran about a mile and a half before I realized that I wasn’t going to be able to run the entire thing. Since I knew this might happen, I switched to plan B which was to run/walk the entire race. I ran .4 and then walked .1. It worked out really well. Some people didn’t appreciate my all pink outfit and said “Oh GOD” when I passed them. Haters! So rude!

There were a lot of interesting costumes The best one, by far, was Cupid in his Depends diaper. This is the same guy who dressed up like “dick in a box” so I shouldn’t have been surprised that he would rock Depends for a race.

My friend Chris from HRR caught up with me during a walk break and we decided to run together for the rest of the race. I was so happy to have company!

I finished in 1:34:51 which is a 10:56 pace overall. Definitely a long way off from 1:15 but I’m really happy with my time considering the fact that I’m still recovering and that I wanted to lay down on the ground after mile 2.

As always, J&A Racing put on a great afterparty. The race finishes inside so you aren’t freezing your butt off after the race and gear check was organized and easy to get to. Yuengling beers and Moes Burritos were served. Each runner was given a commemorative glass after the race and the ladies were given carnations (which I promptly broke).

HRR dominated!

And my friend Amber ran her longest distance ever! I’m so proud!

How did you celebrate Valentines day?