Good For You

Workout and Brunch

noreply@blogger.com (Cate) — Sat, 25 Feb 2012 02:59:00 +0000

Workout and brunch sounds like a great start to the day, right? The past two days I have done exactly that! I have had the days off from work and got in two awesome workouts and enjoyed two tasty meals.

Thursday I decided to get in my longest run before the Georgia Half Marathon in since there was upcoming snow in the forecast. Thursday I woke up around 8:45am and slowly got all my gear together. I ate half a Gatorade Chocolate Chip Prime Bar (which was just OK), a handful of granola, and a glass of water. The past few weeks I have been going back and forth on the distance of my longest run before the half. For my first half it was 10 miles and for the second it was 12 miles. Adding the extra two miles worked for me. I liked having a longer distance, but not the race distance yet, under my belt. It made me feel more confident and prepared for the race. For this half I have a shortened training plan and don't want to burn myself out. I know I can run the half distance, but I felt better getting in a little longer workout, so I split the difference and did 11 miles for yesterday's run.

After a warm-up walk down through the neighborhood I set off in the direction of the lake. I made sure to keep an easy pace and just enjoyed listening to my current audiobook, 11-22-63. About three miles in I reached the Lakeshore Trail.

Since it was Thursday it was pretty quiet with only a few runners and bikers on the trail. It was a cloudy day but I enjoyed the cool air and stillness of the lake. To fuel for this run I went with a Honey Stinger Waffle and some prunes. About 45 minutes into the run I ate a third of the waffle and switched between that and the prunes every 30 minutes or so, making sure to drink some water as well. Around mile 5.5 and 8.5 my legs felt sore so I took mini backwards walking breaks for about 30 seconds then to rest my legs and work some different muscles. Since the Georgia Half is a hilly race, I also made sure to run up two mini overpasses and a big overpass over the highway twice. Overall it was good run!

I always get a little unsure of myself when going longer than eight miles on a run. I know I can do it, but sometimes the distance intimidates me, but once I get out there it ends up being fine.

I planned my run accordingly so I could end up downtown to try somewhere new for brunch. Katie recently went to Tempo Cafe and after looking at the menu and seeing her pictures I knew I wanted to try it. Its a small family run place with a bright dining area.

I ended up ordering the Gold Coast Omelet which included onions, mushrooms, tomatoes, and spinach, with one yolk and egg whites cooked with Pam instead of butter. What makes Tempo Cafe unique is that the omelets are huge. You are served an actually skillet filled with warm hash browns and then topped with a giant, fluffy three egg omelet. It was gigantic, but I made a good dent and ate about 3/4ths of it.

A great post long run meal! Tempo Cafe is not far from where I work, so I will definitely go back!

Friday morning I woke up to see slushy snow on the ground, so I was happy I got my run in the day before. I recently signed up for a free week of classes at Core Power Yoga. It is a chain of yoga studios that offers a variety of classes. The studios are really nice, almost spa. Last Sunday Diana and I went to the Lincoln Square location and tried the 1.5 level class which was in a slightly heated room. I went back Tuesday and tried the Core Ryder class which is a spin class on a bike that can actually move side to side. Today, I decided to try the Lincoln Park location and went to the Hot Power Fusion class. The class was done in a heated, humid room. It was so humid in fact that about ten minutes into the workout I was dripping with sweat. The class had a great flow through the movements. I am still a yoga newbie and don't know all the proper names for poses so I usually check others in the class to make sure I am doing the right thing, but I didn't feel out of place. It was an awesome workout to have on such a chilly day. I recently purchased a Groupon to the studio for a month and look forward to trying more classes.

After that great workout I headed just across the street to a new restaurant called Jam 'n Honey. I have spotted it from the El several times and since I was so close I stopped in to try it. It's a small place, but quite cute. Every table has a giant jar of Nutella on it and two jars of homemade jam. Everything on the menu looked good, but I have been craving pancakes recently and decided on the oatmeal pancakes. My order arrived quickly with three big pancakes topped with a lemon blueberry compote (which I smeared all over the top) and their signature honey vanilla butter.

Gosh, these pancakes were good. So good. You might think they would be grainy with the oatmeal, but they were perfectly fluffy. I ate about half of them with just a bit of syrup and took the rest home to enjoy later. All the food I spotted on other tables around me look delicious too. I can't wait to go back and try something else!

My "weekend" has been pretty good so far. I love trying new restaurants and being able to explore new places. Chicago is the perfect city for this and it's part of the reason I like it so much!

What's your ideal morning workout and brunch?

A Quiet Birthday and an Upcoming Race

noreply@blogger.com (Cate) — Wed, 15 Feb 2012 17:41:00 +0000

Friday was my 24th birthday. I had the day off work, which was nice and decided to have a quiet day doing whatever I wanted.

I guess you could say the celebration started early because I had cake on Wednesday night after work, since I had the next two days off. Sprinkles, the amazing cupcake shop, is just a block from work so I picked up two cupcakes to enjoy for my birthday. My mom surprised me with a $15 gift card there so I used part of it to grab a raspberry chocolate chip cupcake and a chocolate coconut. The raspberry one was a new seasonal flavor and was good. I love the combination of chocolate and coconut and that one was delicious as always.

Earlier in the week I finally made a decision on what half marathon I am going to run. I have been researching since the new year trying to figure out which one to do and have decided to run the Publix Georgia Half Marathon which takes place March 18th. I have family that lives in Atlanta so I'll have a place to stay and be able to visit with them. The race is less than five weeks away so I have created a mini training plan. I have maintained my running over the past months, but haven't run any longer than six miles in awhile so have I some longer runs planned for the next few weeks. I am going to go with one day a week for speed work, two days of cross training, an easy run, and long runs of 8.5, 10-11, 8, and 6 miles. It is just a basic outline, so it is flexible. Atlanta is pretty hilly and the race elevation profile shows that there will definitely will be hills.

I was a nanny in Atlanta for a summer during college and remember walking and trying to run up the hills in the neighborhood to be a challenge. Chicago is pretty flat so any incline or bridge I see on my runs I am going to make sure to run up. I am also going to work on strengthen my leg muscles. I would really like to get under three hours, because I was so close last time. My last half, the IronGirl, had some major overpasses throughout and I made it through that OK, so I am confident I will make it through this one.

On Friday, my actual birthday, I woke up to an early 5am phone call from my dad. I went back to sleep until about 8:45am when my mom called to wish me happy birthday too. I decided to start off my day with a long run. It was chilly morning, but I got my favorite running tights on and gathered my gear to head out to the lakefront trail. I wanted to get in between seven and eight miles. It actually started snowing around mile two and continued the rest of the day. They were big, fluffy snowflakes and it was fun to run through. It wasn't sticking to the ground yet, so I didn't have to worry much about slipping. I took about two 30 second walk breaks to have some fuel, which were dried plums, but ran the rest of the way. I made sure to keep an easy pace. My legs felt pretty good the whole time although during the last mile I could feel the distance with a twinge of soreness in my legs. By the time I finished about 7.4 miles the snow was really coming down. I walked and stretched to cool down.

As I was walking I discovered a new Pinkberry location in Old Town. I have only tried their frozen yogurt once, but I decided to walk in a get a small birthday treat for myself. I decided on a mini cup of the coconut froyo with dark chocolate crisps and fresh raspberries. It sure was tasty! I was still hungry so I headed over to Chipotle to get one of my favorite meals, a carnitas salad bowl. After lunch I finally made my way to the El and back home. I made sure to foam roll my sore legs and did some more stretching. After a nice warm shower I looked outside to see the snow was actually sticking to the ground. What a lovely gift from Mother Nature on my birthday!

I considered going to a movie, but decided I was happy just staying home. I got some more birthday calls from my family, browsed the internet, and watched some TV on Hulu. I snacked on some hummus, pita chips, and carrots and later had a few dark chocolate peanut butter cups before calling it a night. It was a quiet birthday, but a good one none the less.

What are some of your favorite foods to have on your birthday? Any advice on training for hills?

Holiday Challenges Wrap-Up

noreply@blogger.com (Cate) — Thu, 09 Feb 2012 22:25:00 +0000

Right after Thanksgiving I committed to some fitness challenges for over the holidays. I participated in the Holiday Booty Buster Challenge over at Run to the Finish, Coach Jenny Hadfield's Winter Running Challenge, and the local Frozen Tundra 100. The first two finished at the start of the new year, but the Frozen Tundra just ended on February 1st.

So how did everything go? I think it went pretty darn well! The three challenges all coincided perfectly. They all motivated me to get out there to run or workout because I knew I had to record my workouts for everyone to see. Plus, I didn't want to bail out on a good challenge.

The goal of the HBBC was to stay active during the holiday season. I recorded my workouts on Daily Mile and translated that to points on the group Google Spreadsheet. There were weekly updates, posts, and prizes. On days I didn't really feel like working out, knowing that I was three miles away from my point goal was motivation to get out there. Of course, once I finished the workout I was always glad I did it. I don't think I've ever finished a run or workout and not felt good!

For Coach Jenny's Holiday Challenge I set a goal to run 12-18 miles a week. Coach Jenny sent out weekly emails with motivation, tips, and weekly giveaways. I posted my weekly mileage on her Facebook page. I didn't win any prizes, but my mom, who also participated, ended up winning a medal hanger! She really needed it because all of her medals were just hanging on a hook in the hallway. Now she has a beautiful medal display to show off her eleven medals. This challenge was just another great way for me to keep up with my running. Coach Jenny is always answering reader questions and has tons of great advice and recommendations. I used her training plan for my first half marathon and plan on using her plan again (with a few tweaks) for my first full marathon in October. If you aren't already you should be following her on either Twitter and/or Facebook!

My final holiday challenge was started by a fellow FF Cheer member. This winter was forecasted to be pretty bad so we were challenged to still keep up with our running outdoors through December and January by getting in 100 miles and logging them on Daily Mile. Running in the cold was new to me, since I only started running about a year and half ago and was in Florida. After these past few months I have discovered I really like running in colder weather. According to many people this winter has been pretty mild, which was fine with me, although there were a few very cold days.
I ran through the snow for the first time which was exhilarating. Running in the heat is really draining sometimes, so the cooler weather has led to lots of great runs and even a faster pace.

I attended a cold weather running seminar at Fleet Feet which was chock full of advice that has helped me this winter. Layering is definitely the key to cold weather running. My aunt got me some awesome Athleta running tights, which are fleece lined and are great for cold runs. On top it has usually been a long sleeve tech shirt and then a fleece jacket. A hat and gloves are also really good for chilly runs. The hat, which covers my ears, is great and definitely helps keep my temperature regulated. Before the season I also invested in Smart Wool socks which are my new favorite. They keep my feet blister free and warm. I purchased some YaxTrax, but have yet to use them since it hasn't been very snowy. They are meant for use on packed snow or ice to help prevent slipping.

I finished both December and January with 51 miles each for a total of 102 miles! All of them were outside, since I do not belong to a gym. About four runs were in Orlando, but the rest were all in Chicago. Having the challenge was great motivation to make 50 miles happen each month.

All of the challenges were fun to participate in and a great way for me to add some extra motivation to my workouts. I liked recording my progress along with others. Daily Mile is such an awesome tool for recording miles and workouts. I only started it at the end of August, but I love it! If you aren't on Daily Mile, get to it!

If you participated in any Holiday/Winter Challenges, how did it go?

I'm Going to Run a Marathon!

noreply@blogger.com (Cate) — Sat, 04 Feb 2012 17:47:00 +0000

AHH! I did it! I am officially registered for my first full marathon! I will be running 26.2 miles through my new city, Chicago, October 7th.

I wasn't sure I wanted to run a marathon, but after seeing my mom complete her first one last year the idea was planted in the back of my mind. I figured I needed more time to really decide since it is such a big commitment. It wasn't until volunteering a few months ago at the 2011 Chicago Marathon that I finally decided I wanted to actually run a marathon. I was so inspired by seeing and cheering on those thousands of people. I knew I had to do it. I wanted to do it, and if I trained properly, I could. I contemplated a few different marathons, but finally committed to Chicago. I live in the city so I won't have to worry about travelling, it is one of the top marathons in the country, and the energy and crowd support is some of the best.
Registration opened this past Wednesday at noon. I was working, but as soon as I got home that evening I logged online and registered! I will be one of 45,000 people running the 35th Annual Bank of America Chicago Marathon - I cannot wait!

I am currently rereading Marathoning for Mortals and plan on figuring out my training schedule soon. This is the real deal people. It is crazy to think about how far I have come - I almost can't believe it!

Who else is registered for the Chicago Marathon this year or tackling their first marathon this year? If you have already run a marathon what race did you choose?

Lululemon Warehouse Sale and a Blogger Get Together

noreply@blogger.com (Cate) — Mon, 30 Jan 2012 04:43:00 +0000

On Thursday after work one of my twitter friends told me there was a Lululemon Warehouse Sale going on in Rosemont. I was intrigued and checked online to see how far it was from me and if I could get there easily. It ended up being a 50 minute bus and train ride over to the convention center, so I planned to go Friday.

I woke Friday morning and went on a great 5.4 mile run. Since I finished Unbroken on my last run I started listening to a new book. I decided on 11/22/63: A Novel by Stephen King. I have never read one of his books before but the idea of time travel and trying to stop the assassination of President Kennedy intrigued me. So far so good!

After the run I took the bus and train over to Rosemont. I only own two pieces of Lululemon clothing, some great running crops and compression socks, both of which I purchased at the outlet in Orlando. I think they make great things, but it is expensive, so I was looking forward to getting some good deals. I had heard that the lines might get kind of long so I was prepared with my iPhone for entertainment. I arrived around 2:45pm and the volunteers were saying the line was shortest it had been all day. The line kept a moved pretty fast and I was inside the room within 45 minutes. There was a DJ blasting music and the large convention room was organized into rows by size. There were shirts, tanks, shorts, pants, and accessories. I tried to take a picture, but it didn't really turn out. I thought it might be kind of crazy in there, but it wasn't really. There was enough room to look through the racks and people weren't packed inside. I grabbed some things to try on and went to the dressing room which was just a large, open room with a few mirrors around the perimeter. I was wearing leggings so I just slipped the clothes on over. I decided on a two items and made my way to the checkout line just in time to get an extra 10% off my purchase!

I thought the prices were pretty good, not as cheap as Target (which actually has some great workout gear), but good for Lululemon. I ended up getting the cute Run: Speed Skirt and the Run: Swiftly Tech shirt for $65 total, which is more than 40% off. There were plenty of ladies, and gentlemen, walking out with two or more giant bags of gear, but I was happy with my purchases. I can't wait for the warmer weather so I can wear them!

Saturday evening I met up with some local bloggers for yoga and dinner. A few weeks ago Marisa and Diana emailed asking if I was free for another blogger get together. We had fun last time so I was totally game. We got two more Chicago bloggers to join in as well: Alexandria, who I met briefly at the Rudolph Run, and Katie who I met up with twice last year. Thankfully I got the weekend off work and could join in.

We all met at the Lakeview Moksha Yoga Center where they offer a free community yoga class. The class was good. It was the longest I have ever done yoga (an hour and half), but the time actually went by quite fast. It was a level one/two class that focused on balance in the poses.

Afterwards we made our way just down the street to Native Foods Cafe. It is a completely vegan restaurant that has quite an assortment of meals. It initally opened in Los Angeles and has recently popped up in a few more cities with three built in Chicago within the past year. Diana has written nothing but goods things about the cafe, so I was excited to try it. I am not a vegan, but was up for trying something new. A few things on the menu sounded really good, but I decided on the Portabello and Sausage Burger with Seasoned Native Fries.

The burger was seasoned seitan, which is a wheat, meat like product. The presentation was nice, but the look of the actually seitan threw me off a bit. The seitan was well seasoned and had a meat-like texture. It was different and had a good flavor (I really liked the mushrooms and pesto), but I'm not sure I would get the sandwich again. I will go back to Native Foods to try something else though. The other ladies food looked delicious. Everything that came out was so fresh and colorful!

It was a nice little get together and we had a good time chatting and hanging out.

Sunday I got up and ran a relaxed 3.75 miles. There was a light dusting of snow, but the run went really well. My mom was running the inaugural Tinker Bell Half Marathon at Disneyland, so I was cheering her on virtually. After my run I picked up some tasty doughnuts at Dinkel's Bakery (they are the best) and made a homemade pizza while lounging around and catching up on some TV shows.

Are you a fan of Lululemon? Have you ever tried seitan or a vegan meal?

A Quick Five for Friday

noreply@blogger.com (Cate) — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 15:14:00 +0000

I am joining the Five for Friday crowd this week for a quick update of what's been going on!

1. I just finished off a six day work week and am happy to have the weekend off. There is a Lululemon Warehouse Sale in town this weekend that I plan on checking out and a few local bloggers are going to get together for yoga and dinner Saturday.

2. Last Friday a little snowstorm hit Chicago which covered everything in snow. It was really pretty. I couldn't resist walking home through it. About 5-8 inches were on the ground by the time it ended. The weather since has included rain and warmer temperatures so now there are only a few piles of snow left...

On my way back home from the store Friday afternoon.

My party outfit. (sorry for the blurry picture...)

3. That same night there was a big holiday party for the whole hotel at work. I am more of a quiet person and was a little unsure about going. My coworkers have been talking up the party, pretty much since I started, and made me promise that I would come and dance. Because of the snow there were some delays and problems with public transit, but I ended up making it downtown. Some people who live in the suburbs couldn't make it through though. The party had a 1920s theme and the grand ballroom was fully decorated. There were prizes and food and dancing. We all had a fun evening!

4. I recently finished listening to Unbroken: A World War II Story of Survival, Resilience, and Redemption by Laura Hillenbrand. I like to listen to books when I run and this was such a good one to run with. It tells the story of Louis Zamperini who went from being a rebellious kid to a runner at the Berlin Olympics to an airman for the United States to a prisoner of war in Japan. The book is the story of his life and all the experiences he went through. It reads like a fiction book, but is all factual. It is almost unbelievable everything he went through and a truly amazing story! I can't recommend this book enough.

5. Registration for the Chicago Marathon is Wednesday. I'm excited to register for my first marathon and am crossing my fingers I get a spot!

A Last Minute Trip Home

noreply@blogger.com (Cate) — Tue, 17 Jan 2012 21:42:00 +0000

I just wanted an easy trip home for the weekend to spend some time with my mom, see the cats, and relax at home. I have been feeling homesick recently (even though I was just home a few weeks ago, it was just too short) and when I noticed I had three days off from work I thought I would check what a flight home would be. I checked Wednesday night and it was good deal so I bought them. I packed my bags and made plans to leave right after work Thursday to fly home to Orlando.
Unfortunately, a bit of snow storm hit the midwest and caused delays. Initially the flight was delayed 15 minutes. Then 30 more. Then we were told our plane had been diverted to St. Louis and we would not depart until 11:35.... Ugh. I found a spot on the floor and laid down, waiting for the flight. It had been a long day. I randomly woke up at 5:45am and couldn’t get back to sleep. When the plane finally arrived it still took awhile to actually get off the ground, because of the storm, and we didn't end up leaving until 12:30am CST. I tried to sleep on the flight, but think I only got in 15 minutes. I was really tired when the plane landed at 4am EST. My mom picked me up from the airport and as soon as I got home crawled into bed and slept until about 10:30am the next day.

I was glad to see these furry faces this weekend! (Callie, Daisy, and Marbles)

Friday we made a plan for the weekend and went to the grocery store. After our stop at Whole Foods we made sure to grab some Jeremiah's Ice. I only discovered the deliciousness of this place a few months before I left Orlando and was so glad my mom thought to stop there after the store. I got the gelati with cookies and cream ice and swirl ice cream - oh so good!

I was still pretty tired from the night before and ended up taking a nice nap on the couch for a couple hours. Afterwards mom and I headed to the gym to get in a workout. I haven't been to an actual gym for months, so it was a nice change of pace. We spent about 35 minutes there. I did the rowing machine, a mini circuit on the weight machines, and ended with the elliptical.

We came home and enjoyed homemade Mexican pizza for dinner, which was very good. Since I don't have a cable or a TV in my apartment I settled in bed and watched some TV before falling to sleep pretty soon there after.

Saturday morning mom and I got up to run through the neighborhood. She left a little earlier to get in 8.25 miles. (She has the Disneyland Tinkerbell Half Marathon coming up in two weeks!) I went out for 4.25 miles. The weather was perfectly sunny and cool. The last mile or so I really sped things up, and ended up running a 10:30 mile! I'm pretty sure that's the fastest I have every run before. I ended feeling great!

After a quick shower, mom, Andy (my step-dad), and I headed to Bananas for brunch. Andy had purchased a Groupon so we decided to check it out. I had heard good things and after our runs we were hungry for some good food. Everything on the menu looked pretty good. Andy ordered the Chicken and Waffles, I got the Crab Cakes Benedict (with scrambled eggs) and mom got the Caprese sandwich. Mine was OK, the hashbrowns were no good though. Mom's sandwich wasn't that great either, honestly, we could have made something better at home. The Chicken and Waffles was really the best. We're glad we tried it, but probably won't go back (maybe we just got the wrong things).

While in town I wanted to check out the Outlet Malls to shop so we headed there next. We are having a Holiday Party at work for the whole hotel next week and I needed a dress. I ended up finding something at Banana Republic. We shopped around some more, but I didn't end up finding any shoes to go with it. I did find some good shoes for commuting in the city though.

For dinner that evening mom and Andy made these fabulous corn cakes with shrimp. She has told me several times about how good these cakes were and she wasn't joking. They were served with a tomato, avocado relish and homemade ranch dressing, so tasty!

We ended the evening with another delicious homemade treat: triple coconut cheesecake (from this recipe), which was amazing.

Sorry, not the best picture, but it tasted great! I drizzled some dark chocolate on it too.

Sunday morning we had waffles, hashbrowns, and eggs at home (a much better breakfast than the day before). My plan was to just have a lazy Sunday at home and that's pretty much what we did. We Skyped my brother Patrick and watched some TV. I wanted to get some kind of exercise in that day, but was feeling kind of lazy. After going back and forth we ended up taking a nice walk around the neighborhood, which I'm glad we did. After enjoying some leftovers for lunch, mom and I sat down to watch the DVD of Adele Live at The Royal Albert Hall. A few years ago one of her songs was the free download on iTunes and I have been hooked ever since. It was really cool to watch her show. She sounds exactly like she does on her records, which is the mark of a talented singer for sure.

By the time we finished the DVD, it was time for me to catch my flight home. Saying goodbye is always the hardest part about going back. I really like my job and living in Chicago, but being away from family is tough. I always enjoy spending time at home. After a tearful goodbye I made my way through security and to the terminal to catch my flight.

When I got back to Chicago it was cold and snow was all over the ground. It was a bit of struggle to haul my luggage through, but the snow made everything look really pretty.

Hope everyone enjoyed the weekend and has a good week ahead!

A Look Back at 2011 and Looking Forward to 2012

noreply@blogger.com (Cate) — Thu, 05 Jan 2012 16:51:00 +0000

I have to say that 2011 was a pretty great year. Here are some of the highlights:

Ran my first half marathon in January at Disney World.

Volunteered at the Disney Princess Half Marathon.

Was an assistant coach for Girls on the Run.

Discovered I really like listening to books while running.

Completed my second half marathon, the IronGirl in Clearwater.

Moved to Chicago.

Reached a milestone of losing 100 pounds.

Volunteered at the Chicago Marathon.

Met some local bloggers.

Ran my first 15K and ran with my mom for the first time.

Had an active holiday with my family.

Over the year I have also become a faster runner and joined in some group runs with Fleet Feet, even becoming a member of their FF Cheer team. I completed seven races this year and set new personal records at a 5K, 10K, and half marathon. I even found a job that I enjoy and have also met some great people here in Chicago.

I feel like I have grown a lot this past year and half since graduating college. Losing weight and becoming healthier has really changed my whole outlook on life. I never imagined that I could feel the way I feel about myself now. I am excited to continue my journey!

After such a good year, what will 2012 have to bring? More of the good stuff I hope! There are always new things to try, new foods to eat, new places to go, and new people to meet and I am open to all of that. Here are a few things I am looking forward to doing:

Keep a positive outlook on life.
After volunteering and watching the Chicago Marathon I know that I want to complete one myself this year. I am leaning towards Chicago, but am open to others.
Move to a better apartment that is closer to the city.
Get my own domain name.
To continue my healthy lifestyle. I am going to figure out and reach my happy, healthy weight this year. I am so close to being there!
Keep learning.

So here's to the start of a wonderful new year!!

Source: flickr.com via Cate on Pinterest

How was 2011 for you? Do you have any goals or resolutions for the new year? Any advice on what should be my first marathon?

An Active Holiday at Home

noreply@blogger.com (Cate) — Fri, 30 Dec 2011 02:59:00 +0000

After seven months away from home (the longest I've been away) I finally got to visit last week. I got time off work the four days before Christmas to see my family at home in Orlando. My sister, Caroline, is on break from her work in AmeriCorp and my brother, Patrick, came to visit during his winter break from college. It was so nice for us all to be together again and during my most favorite time of year!

I have been looking forward to this visit for the longest time. I love being in Chicago, but it is hard being hundreds of miles away from family. At the beginning of the month my mom sent me a surprise package in the mail. It was a nifty advent/countdown calendar to me coming home. She wrapped 20 small package and numbered them 1-20 for me to open everyday until my visit. It was perfect! I looked forward to opening each gift.

Here are a few of the things I got: Santa window clings, gum, a daily cat calendar, Balega running socks, Honey Stingers.

Tuesday I opened my last gift to find a picture of our house and our three cute cats saying they couldn't wait for me to get there. After a full day at work I flew out and arrived around 12:30am EST. Mom and Patrick stayed up to come and get me. When I got home I made sure to pet all three cats, Callie, Daisy, and Marbles. I miss seeing there cute little faces everyday.

Wednesday Mom and I went out for a run through the neighborhood. It was so much warmer than it is here in Chicago and was a nice change not having to run in layers. We chatted and completed four miles.

Thursday Patrick and I went on six mile bike ride though the neighborhood. It had been months since I last rode a bike and it was great to ride again. Later we all decided to check out a nature trail at Split Oak Mitigation Park that, Andy, our step-dad, had discovered. Mom and I checked the map and we decided to do the three mile loop and follow the green trail.
The path itself was very sandy at times, thick dirt, grass, or pine covered depending on where we were. It was perfect walking weather though with a bright blue sky. We were pretty much the only ones walking the trail.

We found some deer and wild hog tracks, stopped to take pictures, sang songs, and talked about survival techniques if a bobcat or wild hog were to appear. We actually ran right into a small snake across the trail. Patrick noticed it just in time for us all to kind of freak out and tip toe around. We couldn't figure out what kind of snake it was, and didn't really want to wait to see if it was poisonous.

Patrick totally photo-bombed us!

We discovered a pretty lake in the middle of the forest.

Mom was tracking the walk with her Garmin and as we approached three miles we found ourselves no where near the trail head or car. We just kept walking thinking perhaps the mileage was off. Uh, it was way off. We kept with the green trail, but it was in fact 5.3 miles and not just three. Caroline and Patrick got a little worried we were lost, but we kept following the green trail and made our way back. Although it was much longer than we planned, we had fun and it made for a good adventure!

Later that evening I met Kristin, my Chicago roomie, and our friend, Mari, for dinner at our favorite sushi place Seito. Every time the three of us get together we visit this restaurant. The sushi is made fresh to order and they have some unique rolls to choose from. Mari and I went to high school together and she introduced me to Kristin, her cousin, and we soon became friends and later roommates at FSU. It was nice for all of us to get together again. We chatted, laughed, and walked around Celebration, which made for a lovely evening.

Friday morning Andy and Mom made breakfast bowls and homemade cinnamon rolls, which were delicious. I think I ate four cinnamon rolls that day -that's how good they are! Then the four of us, Mom, Caroline, Patrick, and I headed down to Holopow, which is a rural area of Central Florida. We went to Forever Florida where they offer lots of outdoor activities. We signed up to do canopy cycling. We took a big dune buggy bus through the forest to get to our location. The guide told us about the organization and pointed out some of the animals on the land.

Sally, the alligator, had about eights babies around her. A few are in the water and some are on the bank above her (they are the brown and tan striped things).

Once we arrived at the spot we were given some safety instructions and put on harnesses.

Canopy cycling is when you are hooked into a bicycle looking contraption that is attached to cables above the ground and you move through the forest by pedaling. The track itself was just over a mile or so, but you definitely get a good leg workout by pedaling. We were about 25 feet above the ground. It took around 45 minutes to get through the course. It was something different and we all had a good time!

After our cycling adventure we were all starving and made our way to BJ's Brewhouse for dinner. I enjoyed a tasty berry cider and buffalo chicken pizza. Menchies, a frozen yogurt shop, was nearby and we couldn't pass up an opportunity to grab some.

Since Patrick and I weren't going to be there on Christmas day we decided to have our Christmas that night. We went through our stockings upstairs and then opened our other gifts down by the tree. One of my major gifts was the tickets to fly to Orlando. To open I got a long sleeve shirt, scarf, some cash, pajamas, iFitness hydration add-on bottles for my belt, and a year subscription to Runner's World! My mom wrapped up a box with this cover of the magazine with my face imposed on Kara Goucher- it made me laugh!

After gifts we decided to go on a walk through the neighborhood that evening and check out the Christmas lights. The Family Stone is one of our favorite Christmas movies so we all piled in on the couch to watch it together.

Saturday I went out for another four mile run by myself. We spent most of the day hanging out at the house. We took some family photos for Christmas cards and such. Patrick left midday to head back to Beaufort and after a homemade dinner Mom and Caroline drove me to the airport. I was not ready to go back and really wish I could have stayed longer. After a tearful goodbye I checked my bags, boarded the plane, and landed back in Chicago late that evening.

Since the spa and fitness center, where I work, is located in a hotel, we are open 365 days a year. I got up Christmas morning and opened my last gift (a pair of slippers) before heading to work. It was really strange to not be with family on Christmas day, but I made sure to text everyone Merry Christmas on my way to work.
The day wasn't horrible, it was just different. I wasn't the only one working, so my coworkers and I made the best of things and had fun day. I work with some great people, so it was nice. In the afternoon I Skyped my mom and Caroline and chatted with my dad and Patrick to wish everyone a Merry Christmas. The rest of the evening was pretty quiet though. I had my fill of rich, sweet foods at home, so I enjoyed hummus, carrots, and pita chips while I laid in bed listening to Christmas music and watching Home Alone.

Although it was a short visit I had such a great time seeing my family and friends for a few days. Not being able to see them regularly throughout the year makes me appreciate the time we do spend together even more!

I hope you all had a great holiday as well! What did you do to stay active? What were some of the best meals or treats you enjoyed?

Christmas Favorites

noreply@blogger.com (Cate) — Fri, 23 Dec 2011 03:21:00 +0000

Source: imgfave.com via Cate on Pinterest

Nichole over at Live For the Run did a great post recently listing her favorite things about Christmas and a few others have done the same. Since Christmas is my favorite holiday as well I couldn't pass up making a list of my own.

Tradition: When we were younger we used to open one present on Christmas Eve. Driving around to see the Christmas lights on houses. For the past few years my siblings and I have made gingerbread houses as well.

Movie: The Family Stone, Love Actually, Santa Claus is Coming to Town, The Santa Claus

Songs: I love tons of Christmas songs, but these are a few of my favorites: Christmas Canon, Hard Candy Christmas, The Christmas Song, Merry Christmas Darling, All That I Want. I am enjoying the new Michael Buble album and some Straight No Chaser this year. Plus A Rosie Christmas has lots of great songs and most of the Glee Christmas songs too. Honestly, the only Christmas songs I really dislike are I Want A Hippopotamus for Christmas and All I Want for Christmas is My Two Front Teeth. I cannot stand either- so annoying.

Naughty or Nice: Nice

Real or Fake Tree: Real. I know they're a pain to clean up after, but I love the fresh pine tree smell.

Multi-color or clear lights: I think both are nice. It just depends on how they are used. For instance I like the clear lights on my grandmother's tree, but colored works for ours at home.

Smell: The christmas tree, homemade dinners, baked goods, peppermint.

Seasonal Treat: Our grandmother makes her famous Christmas cookies every year. They are just sugar cookies with green frosting, but are crazy popular. Everyone always asks "Has Granny made the Christmas cookies yet?" We look forward to them every year and they are gone in no time. Unfortunately, I can't make it to Beaufort this Christmas so I won't get to have them this year. Maybe when I visit next year she can make a special batch!

From Christmas last year in Beaufort.

Giving or Receiving Gifts: The anticipation of both are exciting.

Sight: I enjoy sitting in the glow of the Christmas tree.

Best Gift: That's hard to choose... Games or activities that we can do together as a family are always fun, because then it becomes an experience we remember. For example when we got a Nintendo Wii a few years ago. We have had so much fun playing Guitar Hero or Wii Sports or Just Dance together.

Special Memory: I had the hardest time sleeping on Christmas Eve and when I was younger would wake up super early. I remember a few Christmases when I walked out of my room to see if Santa had already come. I would tip toe to the tree and check out all the presents (gifts from Santa were unwrapped when we were younger). I distinctly remember when I was about eight and walked out to see a big plastic play store! It was really hard to go back to sleep then!

Dislikes: That the season isn't longer. Not being able to spend more time with family.

I arrived in Orlando Tuesday evening and have been having a great time so far with my family. Hope you are having a wonderful holiday as well!

What are some of your favorite things about the season?

Source: etsy.com via Cate on Pinterest

Rudolph Ramble 8K: Race Recap

noreply@blogger.com (Cate) — Wed, 14 Dec 2011 05:42:00 +0000

This year I got to run in a wonderful holiday themed race, which combines two of my favorite things: running and Christmas! It is the smallest race I have done here in Chicago, but there were still about 1100 participants, which isn't that small, but I guess for here it is. Fleet Feet Sports was one of the major sponsors for the race and offered a few entries to FFCheer members and I was lucky enough to snag one!

The Rudolph Ramble was my first 8K race, which was exciting and not a race distance you see often. I enjoyed the distance, which is almost five miles.

The great long sleeve tech shirt we got.

The race was on Sunday morning and began at 9AM. I gathered my gear and bundled up to head to Lincoln Park. It was literally freezing; the thermometer read about 30 degrees but it felt more like 23 with the wind. I ate part of a Clif bar and had some water on my way. Once I arrived I had to check my gear, including my warm coat, and got into the start corral. Luckily my timing was perfect, so I didn't have to wait too long in the cold before the race started. The announcer said, "Go!" and I started up my Christmas music running playlist which was full of upbeat Christmas tunes!

Waiting in the cold to start

And we're off!

It had snowed earlier in the week so there were a few patches of snow around the trail and some ice puddles, but there was a good amount of room to maneuver around them. The race course had us run on the paths of Lincoln Park and Lakeshore Trail in a big loop. This meant that we got to see the lead runners speed by during certain parts of the course. The one thing I didn't care for was running right by the finish line. Seeing the finish and hearing others crossing the line when I was only halfway through was not really fun. When you see the finish line it should be time to finish, right? That was the only downer, other than that it was a good race. There were three water stops which were well spaced on the course.

My goal for this race was mainly to have fun (which is a major reason I sign up for races anyway). I was also hoping to complete the race just around an hour. Most of my other five mile runs were about five to eight minutes over an hour, so I was hoping to beat that. I went for it and ran pretty much the whole race. I only walked through the water stops! I started running using the run/walk method (and still use it), but when I run longer than I knew I could with little to no walk breaks I am always amazed. For fuel I had some Honey Stingers about halfway through. The first mile was cold, but I soon began to warm up and even felt kind hot for the last mile.

I tried to race by effort and only looked at my Garmin about four times during the run. Turning in mile three we started to run into the wind. I felt like I was putting forth the same effort as the first two miles, but when I glanced at my Garmin, my pace was not showing that; the wind definitely took some of it. On the way back the wind was at our backs for the last mile or so, which was nice. In the last mile I picked up my pace and made small goals to pass certain people.

I loved these ladies' costumes (which I told them as I passed). I just couldn't be beat by a present!

As I approached the finish line I kicked it into high gear and zoomed across. I felt great! My Garmin said I completed 5.01 miles in 58:47 -awesome! The official 8K results read 58:29.

No race is complete without my post race thumbs up pose!

After getting my gear and some post-race treats, I met some fellow FFCheer members and other runners at the Fleet Feet tent. Sara and Mana, who I met at the Women's 10K, were there and I also got to meet Lois and Alexandria, as well as few others. It was nice to chat with and meet everyone!

There was a mini costume contest which I stuck around to see. There were some great costumes. The winners were chosen by crowd applause. The tree and present I passed ended up winning which I thought was well deserved considering they ran with such big costumes!

Santa and some Elves

Rudolph, the Heat Miser, a Present and Christmas Tree

I was pretty hungry after the run and decided to stop at Feast. I had a tasty breakfast burrito filled with eggs, cheese, guacamole, pinto beans, and pico de gallo, with cheese grits on the side. I mostly ate the inside of the burrito though. It was a great post race meal.

Thanks Fleet Feet for the race entry and for putting on another great race!

Have you participated in a holiday race this season?

Tell Me Seven Things About Yourself

noreply@blogger.com (Cate) — Wed, 07 Dec 2011 22:54:00 +0000

Katie at Peace Love & Oats nominated me as Blissful Blogger back in October and Diana of Veggie Next Door recently tagged me to participate in Tell Me About Yourself so I thought I would join in!

Being tagged means that I have to write 7 things about myself.

1. My family moved to Florida from South Carolina in the summer of 2001. It was a quite a change moving away from my dad, grandparents, cousins, and friends. It was hard, but moving from a small town to a bigger one gave me more opportunities I would not have had otherwise.

2. I fell down the stairs about six years ago and broke my ankle. My sister and I were staying in Atlanta with family. I was carrying my five year old cousin going up the stairs and we decided to go back down and as I turned around I somehow missed a step and we fell. My cousin was OK, just a bump on her arm, but as soon as I hit the ground I felt and heard a snap and screamed. I was helped into the car and driven to the emergency room. The pain was excruciating. To make a long story short I had broken my fibula (the outside bone) in half and somehow chipped my tibia bone by my inner ankle. They couldn't do surgery that night so after getting some medication and a splint we went back home. I was in a simple splint/cast for about a week. Whenever I used the crutches I could feel my bones moving around in my leg -it was so weird and really painful. My mom drove to Atlanta to meet us and I had to ride back to Florida with a broken leg before I finally had surgery. A plate and several screws were put in my leg to fix everything.

My scar on the outside of my leg. It's about four inches long, but not that noticeable anymore.

Two scars by my inner ankle are still visible.

The whole experience was pretty bad. I never realized how important being able to walk is, until I couldn't easily walk myself. For a couple years following I was very cautious and kind of scared of stairs. Everything ended up healing fine, but I continued to have some ankle issues, like rolling my ankles several times and another fall down the stairs. Clearly my body couldn't handle the weight it was carrying. Whenever I think about the whole thing I still get chills; it kind of haunts me. It has gotten better as the years have passed though. Losing weight and getting stronger has definitely helped, but I am still pretty cautious going up and down stairs.

3. My siblings, Caroline, Patrick, and I loved making lemonade stands on the weekends when we were younger. We would set up a little table at the end of the driveway and make lemonade to sell to our neighbors.

4. I am kind of a magazine junkie. I love reading magazines. I like the health and fitness ones, celebrity gossip, running, food, and home stuff. I subscribe to a few and my mom sends me the ones she has after she's read them. Also at work we can take the older issues of the magazines we have throughout the spa and fitness area to read for ourselves. They are easy to read, informative, and give me ideas for recipes or workouts. In high school and college I would go to the bookstore, grab a bunch of magazines and spend the afternoon reading in the store.

5. I only went to two Florida State football games during my four years at college. It wasn't until my senior year that I finally went to one. I rooted for our team every weekend and had intentions every year before to go, but never actually did. I had fun at both games and I kind of wish I had attended more.

6. I have only been to three concerts: BackStreet Boys, Howie Day, and Lady Gaga. We were lucky enough to get 11th row seats at BSB, for my 11th birthday, which I was totally stoked about. Howie Day was in high school and was when I had cast on my leg so I got a great place to sit close to the stage. He hasn't done much since, but I really enjoyed the show. Lady Gaga was about two years ago with my friend and roomie Kristin. The concert was amazing.

7. In my apartment right now (my first that I pay for by myself) the only furniture I own are my bed, a dresser, a fold up chair, and tiny bookshelf which are all in my bedroom. The living room area is really my workout/office space with boxes of books, files, weights and a yoga mat.

So there you have it, seven kind of random things you might not have known about me.
I am going to leave this open ended and pass this on to anyone that wants to participate. Let me know if you post I want to check it out!

Fitness Goals for the Holidays

noreply@blogger.com (Cate) — Thu, 01 Dec 2011 04:48:00 +0000

The holiday season and winter months in general is a time when some people slack on their workouts and eating habits. Being around family, lots of delicious food, and the cold weather can put a kink in your routine. Many media sources say the average person gains between 7 and 10 pounds during the season (source). Edit: Although it is actually less, that extra weight accumulates over the years and is not easily lost (source).
I seriously love this time of year and will spend time with my family and eat tasty homemade treats, but will continue to be conscious and smart about my choices. There is nothing wrong with indulging every now and then! I do want to avoid a big holiday weight gain though (I am just over 20 pounds away from my goal!), so I am joining some online fitness challenges.

I could wait until the new year, but why put off what you can do today, right? The holiday season may be a challenge, but I am up for it! Are you?

Firstly, I joined the Holiday Booty Buster Challenge put together by Amanda at Run to the Finish. Essentially you earn points for the exercise you do, which then transfer to entries in a drawing for a variety of great food and fitness prizes. Just by signing up I have noticed a difference in my workout effort. Since I am not training for anything in particular I have skipped days when I could have, and probably should have, worked out. The HBBC just started last Saturday and it has motivated me to be active almost everyday! If you are interested in the challenge, you can still sign up as a late entry over at Run to the Finish or follow on twitter with the #HBBC stream. I think this is a great idea and will keep me active over the holidays.

About two months ago I was lucky enough to be invited to join the FFCheer team.

"We are a group of Chicago runners, of varied experience levels, from beginners to marathon runners, who want to spread the joy of running. We believe that running changes everything. We are also gear enthusiasts. Want to chat about running gear, how it fits, how it feels? Join us on Twitter @ffcheer or by using hash tag #ffcheer. We are the Fleet Feet Sports Chicago Cheer Team."

This is just another reason why I love Fleet Feet Chicago. I have had the opportunity to connect with some other runners and participate in some great events.

One of the members came up with a great winter running challenge for all runners in the Chicagoland area called The Frozen Tundra 100. The goal is to run at least 100 miles from December 1st - January 31st. This is my first winter in Chicago and is predicted to be pretty bad, but I am going to go for it. If you live in the area you should join along at Daily Mile and you could even win some cool prizes from Fleet Feet!

And finally the Holiday Challenge from Coach Jenny Hadfield. She is the co-author of Marathoning for Mortals (which I used to train for my first half marathon) and a Runner's World contributor who has great running advice, plans, and tips. All you have to do is set a mileage goal for the week and post your mileage to her facebook page. I love reading all of her advice and there are some great prizes up for grabs. There will be weekly drawings and blog posts from Coach Jenny through January 1st. This challenge works in conjunction with HBBC and the FT100 so I am thinking between 12-18 miles a week. To join all you have to do is enter your email address here.

It may seem like a lot, but I think they all kind of work together and I have faith I can do it. I am a little nervous about the Frozen Tundra 100 having never experienced a Chicago winter or run in the snow before. I attended a seminar on winter running at Fleet Feet last week, that was really informational, so hopefully all will go well. Having these challenges and sharing them with you will definitely keep my motivated to keep moving this winter!

Next up on my race calendar is the Rudolph Ramble 8K which is next weekend. It will be a new race distance and hopefully I will have a chance to meet some fellow FFCheer members.

Do you have any goals this season to keep you active? Are you participating in any holiday challenges this year? Up for joining any of these with me?

A Different Kind of Thanksgiving

noreply@blogger.com (Cate) — Wed, 23 Nov 2011 03:10:00 +0000

No big family Thanksgiving this year. sigh. Being hundreds of miles away from family and having to work (Thanksgiving is actually one of our busiest days!) means no time to visit family. This was my first Thanksgiving not spent with family. It was strange not being with them, but I am thankful for their love and support. I am also thankful for all the opportunities I have had here in Chicago with my job, running, and the new people I have met.
It was nice to get texts, tweets, and phone calls from my family yesterday -it made me smile.

Since the Spa, Pool, and Fitness Area (where I work) are in a hotel we are open 365 days a year; I am working through the weekend. My friend and roomie Kristin is staying in town too, but since I work Thursday through Sunday we couldn't really plan a meal ourselves. At work we have free meals in the cafe at work. They had turkey and I mixed it into some tortilla soup with some veggies, which was actually quite good.
A friend from work invited me to an early Thanksgiving dinner with her family Wednesday evening. They made a big dinner that was tasty. It was really nice of her and her family to have me over. I brought along some homemade cranberry bliss bars for dessert, that were delicious!

I'm not the only one working over the holiday weekend, so I thought about bringing in some pumpkin snickerdoodles for my coworkers. I, of course, had to try one just out of the oven, but they were really bland. I threw out the rest of the dough and just kept the ones I made in a bag. I tried them again this morning and they were so much better- maybe they needed time for all the spices to set in? I wish I hadn't thrown the rest away, but oh well. I am going to try to bake something else and just bring it Saturday. I am thinking pumpkin pie brownies, regular snickerdoodles, or trifecta cookies. Any other suggestions?

I had hoped to do a Turkey Trot, but the timing didn't work with my schedule so I joined the virtual one on Daily Mile. All you had to do was make a donation and then run 5K by Sunday. This year all of proceeds go to charity:water. They help get clean water to areas of the world that don't have easy access to it. Being able to turn the faucet on and get water anytime is very easy for us, but in less developed areas it is very difficult. I liked the idea of this virtual Turkey Trot, because instead of my race cost going to get a t-shirt for myself it goes toward a good cause. Plus the holiday season is upon on and spreading some holiday cheer is good for everyone! You can still participate too if you are interested - it lasts until Sunday.

I got up to chilly weather and grey skies, but hit the trail to get in a 5K. My thighs were a bit sore from level two of the 30 day shred, which I did yesterday, but that soon went away once I started going. I ran around and through the nearby park. There were actually a good amount of other people being active this Thanksgiving morning and lots more smiles on the trail. I kept a pretty even pace throughout and finished feeling good.

Now that Thanksgiving is over that means I can officially get all my Christmas stuff out. This is my absolute favorite time of year! I love the music, the energy, the trees, the decorations, being with family, and the spirit of the season. I work downtown near Michigan Avenue and all of the trees lining the street are full of lights, which makes the street look beautiful in the evenings.

I have already been listening to Christmas music for a week or two, but now it is going to be playing almost all the time through Christmas. Thankfully, I get a few days off just before Christmas day, so I will be heading home to see my family and I can't wait!

Hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving!

Lots of Food and Fun

noreply@blogger.com (Cate) — Sun, 13 Nov 2011 18:13:00 +0000

Last weekend my mom came to visit me here in Chicago. It has been just over six months since I saw her last. We talk on the phone often, but it was so nice to see her in person and spend time together. I requested a few days off work so we could explore the city and hang out.

Almost every time we talk I mention a new store or restaurant I have tried and she wanted to try them as well. We had a list of things to try and do which made for a busy weekend.

She came in around lunchtime so we headed to Chicago Bagel Authority for a tasty steamed bagel sandwich. It is a little shop right off the Armitage stop on the Brown Line. There are thousands of bagelwich options and instead of toasting the bagels they are steamed which make them warm, soft, and chewy. (sorry, I didn't take a picture)

Later we had a plan to head to Bucktown/Wicker Park for a quick dinner and then a painting class. We stopped by the new restaurant Melt, where they specialize in unique grilled cheese sandwiches. It was a cute place designed like a school cafe. I decided on the Santa Cruz which was really good. It came with a side of soup, but was nothing great, the star was the sandwich! My mom got the Provence, which was good too, but had a bit too much bread. I think we both agreed mine was better.

Santa Cruz: tomato wrap, artichoke hearts, tomatoes, vegetable cream cheese, provolone, mushrooms

We then walked down to the street to get some hot chocolate from Mindy's Hot Chocolate. This is one of the places I visited on the food tour of Bucktown/Wicker Park. They had a seasonal Pumpkin Pie flavored hot chocolate which we split. Mom also picked up some hot chocolate and homemade marshmallows to take home to Florida. The cocoa was crazy delicious and tasty like liquid pumpkin pie and of course the marshmallow was perfect. These people know how to make hot chocolate!

A few months ago I bought a Living Social deal for Arts N Spirits which is a small studio where you paint a picture. You can also bring food and drink and make a night of it. My sister, Caroline, worked at a place similar to this in college and I was excited to try it myself.

That's the original painting for the night on the right.

We got set up with easels, paints, brushes, and smocks.

This is my "I'm a serious painter" pose

There is a painting that the instructor leads the group through painting. However, you can change the colors or paint your own thing if you want. I liked the picture, but wanted to use some different colors and got inspiration from some of the other paintings on the wall and kind of made my own picture. They play a variety of great music while you paint and take you through the painting step by step. We spent over four hours there and the time flew by. I had a lot of fun and liked seeing how everyone interpreted the painting in their own way. There were a few moments of panic and frustration trying to get the painting to look how I wanted and deciding what to paint. We both weren't sure if we liked what we painted at the end of the night, but the next day were happy with what we created.

We also tried a new (to me) place for breakfast called Bongo Room, per a recommendation. This place was really good. It has a small menu, but everything sounded good. (I think a small menu is usually a good thing because the place knows what they make really well.) We decided to split the breakfast burrito and white chocolate caramel pretzel pancakes. Yes, they were both amazingly delicious.

The pancakes were quite unique and not super sweet like we initially expected. They were pretty filling and were the perfect mix of salty and sweet. The burrito was also delicious. This was great place and I can't wait to go back!

I have been talking about the amazing cupcake shops that are here in Chicago and had to take my mom to visit. We both love cupcakes (but really who doesn't?), so we had to try a few... or ten. (We clearly have a cupcake addiction.) We went to Crumbs first. They make giant cupcakes that all look really pretty and taste good. The Raspberry Brownie Cheesecake was the best of these, but we only had tastes of each.

Chocolate Milkshake, PBJ, and Raspberry Brownie Cheesecake

My favorite cupcakes though are from Sprinkles. The shop is actually right around the corner from work, which is both good and bad. These cupcakes are so fresh and the flavors are perfect. They are a bit pricey, but I honestly haven't had a bad cupcake from them. (I follow them on twitter and everyday they tweet about free cupcakes. The first 50 people to say a secret password get a free cupcake. We got the Pumpkin and Salted Caramel ones for free!) We ended up stopping there twice to try different cupcakes!

Chai, Lemon Coconut, and Pumpkin

Salted Caramel, Chocolate Coconut, Black & White, Chocolate Chip Peanut Butter

We completed the Hot Chocolate 15K on Saturday together.

We ate at a few other places like a great local bakery called Dinkel's where they have awesome doughnuts and enjoyed deep dish from Pizano's. Of course we had to visit my favorite, the Green City Market. We also just walked around the city and did some shopping. Traveling through and around the city involves a lot of walking which was good considering all the eating we did!

I always enjoy spending time with my mom and I was so glad she took the time to come visit me!

Have you ever participated in a painting class? What is your favorite cupcake?

Race Recap: Hot Chocolate 15K Chicago

noreply@blogger.com (Cate) — Wed, 09 Nov 2011 20:45:00 +0000

This past weekend I completed my first 15K race! As soon as I heard about the Hot Chocolate race early this year I knew it was a race I wanted to do.

My mom came to visit me in Chicago this weekend and run this race with me. Friday we headed to Union Station for the small expo. The place was pretty busy, but we got our packets quickly. RAM Racing, the organization that puts on the race, is known for having good goodie bags and well organized events. All we really got in the goodie bag was a running jacket. I thought we should have gotten a few squares of chocolate in the bag though too. The sizes ran way small so we, and everyone else, had to wait in line to switch out the sizes. I wore the jacket on my windy run this morning and it was perfect!

The morning started with an early alarm and chilly weather outside. After getting dressed and making sure we had everything we headed out to catch the El to downtown. We both wore capris and long sleeve shirts with two jackets to get to the race, but were still cold. The Hot Chocolate race is pretty big and the train slowly filled with runners as we made our way downtown. I ate half of a blueberry crisp Clif bar and had some water while riding there. When we arrived at our stop it felt colder than before, but we were closer to the lake so the wind probably contributed to that. We followed the crowds and made our way to Grant Park. The 5K runners were in the starting corrals getting ready to head off. The race announcer said that there was a slight delay because a semi-truck got stuck under one of the underpasses on the course route, so the course had to be rerouted. Soon the 5Kers were out and mom and I made our way over to gear check.

After a quick port- 0-potty stop (they make a nice background for a picture, right?) we found our way to the corrals and after ten minutes started walking to start. They were playing a funny little song that was essentially "Hot Chocolate, Hot Chocolate" repeated over and over; it made me laugh. As we got closer we could see the thousands of people ahead of us filling the streets of Chicago. This was a big race with over 13,000 people running the 15K!

Walking to the start.

Usually when my mom and I have run races in the past we go our separate ways and meet at the finish because we have different paces. This time we decided to run together so my mom ran with me at my pace. As we crossed the start line and began running, my legs felt really strange. They felt wobbly and kind of tight at the same time. They were so cold that it was strange to move them. My toes also were a bit numb the first few miles. In the first mile we went under a big overpass where I lost my Garmin signal for a bit. I thought we were starting out at a relatively easy pace, but we finished the first mile around 11:50. We slowed down a little for the next few and kept going. It was neat to run through the streets of the city. I had heard that in previous years the course was rather tight, but this year whole streets were closed, so there was plenty of room to run. There were a few people spectating for their family members, but it was a pretty quiet course.
The aid stations and volunteers were great. They mixed the gatorade well, cheered on all the runners, and were placed well along the course. We took about one walk break every two or three miles along the course and walked through the water stops. I ate about seven Honey Stinger Chews every few miles and sipped on my water bottle several times throughout the race.

Once we passed the 10K mark I tried to increase my pace a bit. Initially on my training plan I was working for a 12 minute pace, but wasn't sure I could maintain that for 9.3 miles. Since it was my first 15K though there was no real time goal - no matter what it would be a PR. That 12 minute pace was still in the back of my mind though, so I tried to push myself some more.

The last mile was really tough. We were running down Michigan Avenue right by Grant Park. I knew the finish was close, but my legs felt so tired, I just wanted to walk. My mom told me not to walk because we only had a half mile left and could walk when we finished. If she wasn't there motivating me I definitely would have taken a short walking break.

My mom looks so happy and I look like I'm in pain.

When we saw the finish line I began to sprint and my mom and I crossed the finish line together! We finished in 1:54:31 which is an average 12:17 pace! I am always amazed out how much you can actually do if you train and you put your mind to it in running. When I started running I was averaging 14-15 minute miles and I had just finished 9.3 miles around a 12 minute mile pace! Besides tired legs, I felt great and really proud of my time!

I love this one! We were just crossing the finish!

Down the finish line chute we took a finisher's photo and grabbed two squares of Ghirardelli chocolate. After getting our bags from gear check and stretching a little, we walked over to the after party. The field was full of people and tents.

We headed over to the fondue tent first and got an awesome post race treat. Everything was delicious dipped in the chocolate! It was still kind of chilly out so the edges of the fondue began to harden a little, but that didn't stop me from eating it. I could eat that after every race! We then grabbed a cup of hot chocolate - it was after all the Hot Chocolate race. The cocoa was good, but honestly nothing really compares to the cup at Mindy's Hot Chocolate here in Chicago.

I really enjoyed the Hot Chocolate 15K! It was fun to run a race with my mom and I am proud of my race time. I enjoyed the 15K distance too and would definitely do one again.

Have you ever complete a 15K race? What is your favorite post race treat?

I Met Bob Harper!

noreply@blogger.com (Cate) — Sun, 30 Oct 2011 21:54:00 +0000

Friday morning I was checking Twitter and saw that Bob Harper, from The Biggest Loser, was going to be in town. He tweeted that he was going to be downtown Saturday morning, so I checked and rearranged my schedule a bit so I could go see him. I have watched The Biggest Loser since the first season and think I only missed one (I can't remember why). I love seeing the contestants transform their bodies, learn more about themselves, and discover who they really are. It is really inspiring. Bob was a favorite right away. I love his attitude and how he encourages the contestants to be the best they can.

Everyone wants an autographed photo of Bob Harper eating oatmeal, right?

I started the morning with my last long run before the Hot Chocolate 15K next week. I had five miles on the schedule and made sure to get out by 7 AM so I would have time to get over to NBC Chicago. It was a cold morning at 37 degrees. I wore my only pair of long pants (which I definitely need more of), a long sleeve tech shirt, a jacket, gloves, and my new beanie I won from LOLE at Fleet Feet's Chick's Night. I was excited to run so I could continue listening to Catching Fire, the second book in the Hunger Games series. I am 3/4ths of the way through and I am totally engrossed in the story. It gives me another reason to look forward to my next run, knowing that I get to listen to more. It was a good run and I made sure to keep a pretty even, easy pace down Lakeshore Trail.

I ended by the Green City Market (an amazing farmer's market) and quickly grabbed some of my favorites: honeycrisp apples, whole wheat bread, and a tasty egg sandwich. I then got on the bus headed to downtown.

I arrived at the NBC Chicago building and found the Quaker Oatmeal truck where Bob was going to be (it was National Oatmeal Day). There were about 20-30 people outside waiting when someone came to tell us Bob was on his way and that there would be time for an autograph, photo, and a question for everyone in line.
Soon Bob arrived and said hello to everyone. You know sometimes you see people on TV but in person they look or act differently, not the case with Bob Harper. He looks and acts just like he does on TV, which was nice.
I waited in line for maybe 10 minutes and got up to meet him. I was kind of nervous and didn't really know what to say. He's just a normal guy who happens to be on TV though and tried to get over it. I shook his hand and told him how nice it was to meet him. I got a quick picture and autographed headshot as well. I mentioned that I had lost over 100 pounds and he responded with, "That's a big deal!" and something along the lines of "good for you." I said thanks and told him how much I enjoyed his workout DVDs and watching The Biggest Loser.

It was a really quick meeting that ended with well wishes, but he was very nice and encouraging. Bob is really motivating and definitely knows what he is talking about when it comes to weight loss and fitness. I would love to have a personal training session or workout with him; I just think that would be awesome. It was really cool to meet him in person !

The rest of my weekend I worked and the cleaned the apartment for my mom's upcoming visit. She is coming up later this week to run the 15K with me and hang out in the city. We have a long list of restaurants, stores, and things we want to do, so it is sure to be fun.

Have you ever met a celebrity? What fitness star would you like to workout with?

Green City Farmer's Market

noreply@blogger.com (Cate) — Tue, 25 Oct 2011 22:08:00 +0000

I have tweeted about it many times before, but I just had to write a post about the amazing-ness of the Green City Market. I have only been in Chicago for six months, but I think I have been to this farmer's market almost every Saturday. Finding a good farmer's market was important so I immediately went to the internet to do some research. Green City Market had a great website and lots of wonderful reviews so I knew I needed to check it out. The market is located in Lincoln Park and is open on both Wednesday and Saturday from 7am -1pm. This market is everything I was looking for and I look forward to going every week.

I love this farmer's market for a variety of reasons:

Everything is grown, raised, or made locally either from Illinois, Indiana, or Michigan which means the products are not traveling super far. This means you are buying from local families and businesses, which is always a plus.

There is a wide variety of booths. At Green City Market there are flowers, vegetables, fruits, eggs, tamales, breads, pasta, sweets, honey, juice, poultry, meat, crepes, sandwiches, coffee, pretty much anything you can imagine.

Many of the farmers grow organically which is good for you and environment.

Everything is so fresh! You get the chance to buy things directly from those who made it. The vegetables were just harvested the day before and the bread was just made this morning. You are getting the best of the best!

It's a great social activity. There is always a good crowd of people and pets at the Market. It is a fun place to meet new people who likely have a similar food philosophy as you. You can also create a relationship with the farmers and businesses who sell there every week.

You can try new things. Many booths in the market are known for special things they make whether it is a delicious tamale or the best crepe or a unique jelly or type of tomato. I love trying new foods and the market is a great place to do that. Most farmers even let you taste a small bite of something before you buy it.

You're buying produce that is in season.

It's fun!

The guy in the red shirt and hat is there every week with drums, sticks, maracas, tambourines, etc and makes music with all of the kids. As you can see he is pretty popular!

I have tried to taste things from as many vendors as possible. Here are some of my favorites:

Green City Crepes

Whole Wheat Bread from Bennison's Bakery

Best. Tamales. Ever.

My absolute favorite apples!

Sunday Dinner Egg Sandwich. The sandwich changes every week depending on what's in season.

Incredible grilled cheese sandwich made with butterkase cheese.

As you can see there are tons of great things to discover at the farmer's market. Check out Local Harvest to find one near you so you can check out the local goods in your area!

Do you like to visit the farmer's market? What is your favorite food or thing about the market?

Weekend in Review: Blogger Meet-up and a Long Run

noreply@blogger.com (Cate) — Tue, 18 Oct 2011 21:58:00 +0000

This weekend my schedule was filled with activities. It all began Saturday morning with a mini blogger meet-up. Marisa, from Mind Over Booty, planned a yoga and brunch date for some Chicagoland bloggers. Diana, from Veggie Next Door, (who as recently become my running buddy at Fleet Feet Chick's Night) forwarded the information to me and I was glad it worked with my schedule. Marisa, Diana, and I were the only ones who could make it, but the three of us had a great morning!

source

We met at Imagine, A Yoga Studio which is just in Roger's Park. I know some about yoga through DVDs and stretching, but had never actually practiced at a real studio. I was a little intimated about going, but Saturday morning was Gentle Yoga. The studio was great and the class was only $10. I loved the easy flow through all the poses and it was such a great stretch. I am thinking about heading back to Imagine to check out some of the other classes and instructors.

After class we took a short walk to M. Henrietta for brunch. The place was bustling with people, but we pretty much got a table right away. Everything on the menu looked delicious. They are all about using fresh, mostly organic foods and have many vegetarian and vegan options on the menu. I went with the Latina Omelette which was full of black beans, onions, cheese, and tomatoes with a side of roasted potatoes and plantains. It was really good. I tried the plantain, but it wasn't really my thing.

I will definitely go back though because many other things on the menu caught my attention and I want to go try them. Plus I love supporting local businesses that share my food philosophy.

source

Over brunch the three of us had time to chat and get to know each other which was great. I moved to Chicago not knowing anyone, beside my good friend who moved with me, so getting to know new people is great. And we already share an interest in health, exercise, and blogging, which helps. I am usually nervous, quiet, and awkward in new social situations, but most of that went away after meeting Diana and Marisa. They are both really nice and had lots of great stories and information to share. If you have other bloggers in your area plan a small meet-up it is such a great way to meet new people!

Lakeshore Trail (from a previous run)

I worked Saturday evening at the spa, came home, and pretty much passed out it in bed. I planned to get up early and do my long run for the week, but I must have been pretty tired, because I slept through my alarm. Luckily, the weather was cool, so getting out later in the morning wasn't a big deal. I had nine miles planned, which is my longest before my first 15K (the Hot Chocolate 15K) in three weeks. I have run the distance before, but it has been a few months, and the idea of going that far again was a little daunting. I knew I could do it though and kept reminding myself. I ran on Lakeshore Trail, which I love because it is pretty, traffic free (so no stopping at lights), and there are plenty of other people being active as well. It took a mile or so for me to warm up, but then I got in a good groove.
I have been listening to the Hunger Games series during my runs, which are so intriguing. It makes me look forward to my runs even more. I just started Catching Fire and it had me throughly engaged during my run. I sipped on my G2/water mixture and had about five Honey Stingers throughout the run. As I was finishing the last mile I began to feel a stinging pain on the inside of my left pinky toe. It was a blister and a painful one at that. I have never gotten a blister there before from running, so it is kind of weird that it happened.

I was downtown when I finished, and hungry, so I stopped by West Egg Cafe for something to eat. I have been craving pancakes for awhile so I knew I wanted that, but figured I should probably get some protein in as well and order two eggs. I ate everything but the English muffin. It was pretty standard cafe/diner food, but that pancake and syrup were delicious.

The rest of the day was spent icing my knees (which I do after every run), eating some homemade pizza, and heading downtown to babysit for a really cute family. All in all it was pretty good weekend.

Have you ever been to a blogger meet-up or met a fellow blogger? Have you read The Hunger Games series?

Volunteering at the 2011 Chicago Marathon

noreply@blogger.com (Cate) — Thu, 13 Oct 2011 19:07:00 +0000

Wow, what a race! It felt like the whole city of Chicago was buzzing with the energy from the marathon. People come out to cheer the runners on and the streets are packed with spectators, which is amazing.

I was lucky enough to get a spot volunteering for the race this year. I was set up just past mile 20 at Aid Station 15. This is where most people "hit the wall" in the race, so it is an important aid station. We handed out Gatorade, water, and bananas to the runners.
The city of Chicago closes down lots of major streets for this race. We had tables set up on both sides and they were stacked high with fuel.

It was an early morning with a 4:15am alarm. I made breakfast, packed some water and snacks, and was out the door. Any other morning at 5am the trains and buses aren't that busy, but on marathon day they were buzzing with runners and their supporters. I made it to the aid location, which was in the Pilsen neighborhood, which is just before Chinatown, around 6am. It was still dark out and there was already a line of volunteers waiting to check in.

I originally wanted to volunteer with Fleet Feet, but their station filled up before I knew I could get the day off from work, so I ended up volunteering with Chicago Run. It is a local, non-profit organization that promotes youth running in schools. It sounded like a great organization and the idea of helping out at mile 20 sounded good to me too.
I enjoyed the day, but I do have slight complaint about some of the volunteers. A high school group was also volunteering at this station so there were a lot of teenagers around. At first I didn't really mind, but then they started cutting in line and later were not listening to the lead volunteers about leaving room for the runners to go by. Some were just sitting on their phone not doing anything. And worst of all, a few were even laughing at the runners, not to their faces, but seriously - these people are running a freakin' marathon! They weren't all horrible, many were enthusiastic about helping, but some should not have been there. They were all there to get volunteer hours, which is great, but if they didn't want to be there they should have found another way to get the hours in. It was just frustrating and disappointing. That ends my little rant and aside from that I really had a great time volunteering!

After waiting about 20 minutes we all finally started checking in. Each volunteer got a Nike Jacket and baseball cap which were donated for all race volunteers. They were pretty nice! We also learned where we would be stationed for the day. I was given right side Gatorade.

I ran into some college students and other adults and we manned the first tables together. A lead volunteer told us we were to set up tables, attach Gatorade signs, mix the Gatorade, lay out cups, fill them, and stack them up four high. This was quite a task, but our group divided the work up with a few people doing each duty. I mostly stacked and filled the cups with Gatorade. It took about an hour and forty-five minutes to set everything up.

The big street was lined a full block, on both sides, with Gatorade, bananas, and water.

We were gathered for some instructions about handing out the water, not to tell them they were almost there (which they weren't- there were still six more miles left!), to stay to the sides so the runners could get by, and to, of course, cheer on all the runners.

Soon the wheelchair athletes were came through and shortly after the elites. These guys were SPEEDY! The lead male and female runners ran just behind motorcycles with a camera at them the whole time and there were also some helicopters above. I can't imagine running with a big camera in my face.

The Men's leader and winner, Moses Mosop.

That's Ryan Hall!

The Women's leader and winner Liliya Shobukhova.

Then more and more people came running towards us. I loved cheering them on, especially those who had names on their shirts. Some of the words of support we shouted: "You're doing great!" "Awesome job (their name)!" "Looking strong!" "You can do this!" "Amazing!" and one I say to myself during a tough run "You are so much stronger than you know!"

People of all different ages, races, and sizes ran by and were all equally inspiring. There were even a few pregnant women, two guys juggling, men painted in orange, lots of charity runners, a blind runner,etc. It was really fascinating to watch! There was such a range of emotions on the participants faces: some were smiling, some were focused, some looked tired, and others exhausted, a few made it look super easy, and a handful were crying in pain. But they all kept going and continued forward!

There was a steady flow of people for over three hours. The morning had started off a bit cool, but as the sun rose and beat down on the street, it got warmer and warmer. As it reached mid day most people were walking. The number of people coming through began to dwindle and soon the final time car came through indicating that was the end of the race. It was then time to sweep the streets, fold up the tables, and put things away. In no time waste management had arrived to gather the trash and sweep the streets. We finally cleaned everything up by about 2pm.

I didn't even run the race, but boy was I exhausted. We had been going pretty much non stop since 6:30am. Since the roads were closed off to traffic for the race, no busses were running nearby. I was in an area of town I was not at all familiar with so I just walked until I found traffic. Even though the race was officially over there were still people walking to finish to finish the race -that's determination! I took a short break during the volunteer shift for a mini larabar and water, but by 2pm I was starving and not feeling so great, you would have thought I ran the marathon. I arrived at a Jamba Juice and grabbed a Pumpkin Smash smoothie to get something in my system. It helped, but I needed some solid food and finally made it to a more familiar area of town and grabbed a bagel sandwich, before finally reaching home.

My voice was sore from all the screaming and cheering I did, but it was worth it. I think as a group our aid station had some great energy and support for all the runners. We were playing music and encouraging everyone during a tough mile of their race. For being out there for over six hours the time really flew by. Seeing all the runners was really inspirational and has me contemplating running my first marathon. I don't have one in mind right now, but I feel one is definitely in my future.

Congrats to all the Chicago Marathon finishers this year! You definitely "Owned Chicago!"

Have you volunteered for a race before? What do you like to hear people cheering for you during a tough race?

Fleet Feet History Run: 1893 World's Fair

noreply@blogger.com (Cate) — Fri, 07 Oct 2011 16:55:00 +0000

This past Sunday I got the opportunity to go on one of Fleet Feet Chicago's History Runs. Diana mentioned to me how fun the runs were and everything else I have done with Fleet Feet has been awesome, so I was glad I got to participate this time. I love learning new things and the history of the World's Fair piqued my interest as well.

Map of our Run

I headed over to the Piper's Alley location, which was actually my first time in that store, it is much bigger than the Lincoln Square one that I usually go to. There were brief introductions and what the plan for the run was at the store before we headed onto a big yellow bus.

There were about twenty-five of us in the group. We headed over to Jackson Park which is on the southern side of the city. I have never been down there before, but it is really nice. The Lakeshore Trail goes all the way down there and is way less crowded then the trail closer to the city. It was beautiful! We were dropped off and headed onto the trail.

Chuck is the History Run leader and had tons of information to share with us throughout the run. We had a few big picture books that showed us what the area we were standing in at each spot looked like during the fair. I read/listened to The Devil in the White City about a month ago which talks about the World's Fair, so it was cool to actually visit the places where all of that took place. Most of the buildings and things from the fair were made of plaster (and meant to be temporary) so they deteriorated over time or were burned down, so having the pictures was helpful.

The course we took was just over three miles and we stopped about twelve times to stop and discuss the history of where we were standing. This included looking at pictures from the fair, events that occured there, famous people who were around, etc. I found it all quite interesting. It was a little chilly, but such a nice day for this run. We kept a pretty easy pace throughout and the tour lasted about two hours.

The Columbian Exposition, or World's Fair, was held in Chicago in 1893 in celebration of the 400th anniversary of Christopher Columbus's arrival to North America (they even had replicas of the Nina, Pinta, and Santa Maria made and sent from Spain on display!). The fair lasted six months, from May to October, and had over 20 million visitors. It took place in Jackson Park and was full of displays and experiences from countries all over the world.

These are just a few of the many different facts we learned on our run:

This is a replica of the Statue of the Republic which was a major figure at the Columbian Exposition of 1893. It was 65 feet tall and made of plaster. This replica is a third the size of the original.

This is Wooded Island which is about a half mile long in the middle of lagoon in Jackson Park. It was the "nature sanctuary" of the fair. Two of the gardens from the fair are still there: the rose garden and the Osaka Japanese Garden.

Here are the Japanese Gardens which are really beautiful. It is a quiet, serene area right by the lagoon.

This is one of a few buildings that was actually used during the fair and is still around today. During the fair it was the Palace of Fine Arts. It was renovated in 1933 and today is the Museum of Science and Industry.

Overall I really enjoyed the History Run. I thought it was well organized, well paced, and a great interactive way to learn something new. We got to actually run by and see all the places we were discussing and Chuck had lots of great information to share with us. Fleet Feet does one every month, so if you are in the Chicago area you should check one out if you are interested!

In the Japanese Garden

Have you ever been on a history run or would you be interested in doing one yourself?

Chipotle Cultivate Festival

noreply@blogger.com (Cate) — Mon, 03 Oct 2011 01:04:00 +0000

As if I didn't already love Chipotle, I love them even more after the great festival that was put on in Lincoln Park this Saturday!

I loved the design for all of the signs and displays!

Chipotle Cultivate is "a festival celebrating food, ideas, and music, that brings together farmers, chefs, thought leaders, artists, musicians, and participants like you, on a journey toward a world of more sustainable, wholesome, and delicious food." The idea behind the festival was right up my alley and it truly did not disappoint.
I have been seeing posters for it around the city and initially though I wouldn't be able to make it because of work, but my schedule changed last minute and I was able to attend for a little over an hour.
I got up early Saturday morning to run seven miles by the lakeshore. As I finished my run I ended by the farmer's market and Cultivate was being set up nearby, which is a great location in Lincoln Park. The festival didn't start until 11am so I headed back home to change and get everything ready for the day. I finally made it back to Lincoln Park and headed straight into the festival. I only had a limited amount of time so I tried my best to check out as many things as I could.

Entry was free and everyone received a pamphlet when entering. The festival was a good spread of booths and tents with various foods and activities. I had read up on the event before coming so I knew that if I visited four of the five experience tents and got a stamp I could earn a free meal at Chipotle. I thought this was a really smart way for Chipotle to get their message out to people because you learned something at each tent before getting a free meal.

I first stopped by the Cinema Tent where there was a video playing featuring Steve Ells, Chipotle Founder and Co-CEO, talking about how and why he started Chipotle and the food philosophy of the resturant. Besides making delicious food, Chipotle's food practices and beliefs are a big reason of why I enjoy eating there.

That's Richard Blais!

I then walked by one of the two Chef's Tents where big name chefs were doing demonstrations. While walking by I saw Richard Blais, from Top Chef, pass by - he was one of my favorites so it was pretty cool to see him in person! He had a demonstration later on that afternoon.

There was also a wonderful Artisan's Tent that was full of local vendors selling their food and products. I stopped by the Family Farmed booth and picked up some good information about CSA's in the Chicago area.

In the middle of the festival there was big stage where bands played throughout the event.

The next experience tent was Textiles where Loomstate Organic was set up. They make all of the Chipotle workers uniform. I listened to someone tell a group of us how the cotton they use is farmed and then produced into shirts using socially and environmentally friendly methods. They were also selling some shirts for the event.

Some of cool shirts and totes they were selling.

The Animals Tent was nearby so I walked over. This tent was a little sad because the volunteers talked to us about commercial pig farming. I knew some of the information already, that the conditions are horrible and the pigs are not treated well, but they had some of the tiny gestation and farrowing pens that sows are put in for months at a time. I won't go into all the details, but it is really horrible. These pens are banned in the EU and in a few states, but many commercial pig farming is done using them.

Factory Farming

One of the gestation pens.

It wasn't all sad though they did tell us about how some farmers are allowing pigs to live like pigs should, out in the open, allowing them to be social with other pigs, and giving them the opportunity to explore and just be pigs. Some local pig farmers were at also there to discuss how their farms work and why they choose natural farming.

Natural Farming

The final experience tent I visited was Food Facts. It was essentially a huge cube that was full of information about what Chipotle uses and does with their food and some comparison with national food statistics. They are about making "food with integrity" and respecting the earth. Chipotle's goal in 2011 is to serve 10 million pounds of locally grown produce! They exceeded their goal last year of serving over 5 million pounds! Check out the pictures to learn some more interesting and eye opening facts.

I was pretty hungry from my run so I decided to try one of the special meals that Chipotle chefs came up with for the event. There were tostadas, tacos, and chili to choose from. I went with the Carnitas Tostadas which were incredibly delicious and made with local ingredients!

I checked out the really cool kids center as well: Organic Valley was there giving out free chocolate, vanilla, strawberry and plain milk with cheese sticks, there were t-shirts available for the kids to design using stencils and paints, a giant chalkboard, and a free pot and seeds for growing your own tomato plant.

Of course I couldn't leave without getting an awesome coupon for a free meal at Chipotle so I stopped by the Reward Tent to pick it up.

Everyone who put together and worked this festival did such an amazing job and I had a great time! I so wish I could have stayed longer to try some different foods, watch chef demos and learn some more information. I love that Chipotle had a whole festival about sustainable living that was entertaining and informative.

I think this information is important for all consumers to know. Yes, it costs more money to get organic, natural foods and meats, but I think it is worth the price for the environment, animals, and yourself. It's all about knowing where your food comes from and how it is produced. There are some really good books, films, and organizations all about this idea (Food Inc, Mark Bittman has some good articles in the NY Times, anything by Michael Pollan, Slow Food, etc). Supporting local farms, farmers, restaurants, and businesses that share this kind of food philosophy is important to me and something I look for and try to do. The Cultivate Festival did a great job of getting some of this information out to those who may not have been aware. It was the first time they have done this and hope they put together more!

Would you attend Cultivate Festival if it was near to you? What books or films have you read or seen that talk about these ideas? What steps do you take to make a more sustainable world?

Easy and Delicious Spaghetti Squash Casserole

noreply@blogger.com (Cate) — Wed, 28 Sep 2011 18:07:00 +0000

I really like to cook and make new things but with my new work schedule I have had limited time at home. This means I have been eating lots of easy to make meals like casseroles, pbj sandwiches, eggs, and hummus.
I wanted to branch out a little and try something new and went through my long bookmarked recipe list. I found this recipe from Real Simple last year and thought it sounded good and relatively easy to make. After looking over it again I thought I could add some more to it to give it a little punch.
I decided to add fresh spinach and marinara sauce. Then I read the comments below which mentioned that it needed some more flavor so I added some Italian herbs to the ricotta mixture. Someone also suggested adding beans which sounded good to me to give it some more protein.

Before this I had only eaten spaghetti squash once, but I am usually up for trying something new so I went for it. The whole thing was pretty easy to make. I simply roasted the squash, shredded it, and then layered everything in a baking dish to stick in the oven.

Spaghetti Squash Casserole (adapted from Real Simple)

1 3lb Spaghetti Sqaush

15 oz Fat Free Ricotta Cheese

1 Egg

15 oz can Cannelloni Beans

1 Tbs Italian Seasoning

3 cups Fresh Spinach

1-2 cups Marinara Sauce

5 -8 oz Fresh Mozzarella Cheese
Salt, Pepper & Garlic Powder to taste (1-2 tsp each)
Olive Oil

1. Slice the squash in half long ways and scoop out seeds. Then cover sliced side with olive oil and a little salt and pepper. Place cut side down on a baking sheet. Roast 45 minutes in a 400 degree oven.

2. Meanwhile in a bowl mix together the ricotta cheese, egg, beans, Italian seasoning, salt, pepper, and garlic. Also shred the mozzarella cheese and put to the side.

3. Once squash is done use a fork to scrape out the spaghetti-like strands.

4. Spray a baking dish with cooking spray. Then layer spaghetti squash, the ricotta mixture, fresh spinach, marinara sauce, and top with mozzarella.

5. Bake 20-30 minutes until the dish is bubbly and cheese is melted. Enjoy!

More veggies could definitely be added to this and everything could just be mixed together instead of layered if you wanted. Next time I think I am going to add zucchini and maybe mushrooms. It is not the prettiest meal all mixed together but it was really tasty and filling. I love the idea of using the squash as a noodle substitute. It is a great vegetarian meal to add to my recipe book!

Have you had spaghetti squash before? If you have any casserole or easy weeknight meal suggestions please share!

What Do You Do Without Your Computer?

noreply@blogger.com (Cate) — Mon, 19 Sep 2011 18:35:00 +0000

Hello again! I have been a bit disconnected for the past two weeks. My beloved MacBook had to go to the Apple Repair center and it took about a week to get back in my hands. Sorry about the mini disappearance. I have been on twitter here and there through my phone, but my work schedule was different this week, which didn't leave much time to actually be on the computer.

So with no computer for a week, I didn't know what I was going to do. I simply went in to the Apple Store to get some help fixing my iChat and it turned into something much bigger. I use my MacBook everyday to check mail, go on the internet, watch TV, blog, read the news, etc. At first I was majorly bummed to have no computer, but it wasn't as horrible as I thought.

Not having my computer made me realize how much I really use and depend on it. If I am not on the computer, my phone is nearby. It made me think about how everything is technology based today. It is both interesting and crazy to think about how dependent we are on technology. If something were to happen and we no longer had access to our phones or computers I think chaos might ensue because people would have no idea what to do. I wasn't completely disconnected for the week since I had my iPhone, which can do almost everything a computer can, except on a much smaller screen. Not having the computer was more of an inconvenience than anything else. So without the computer I found some other ways to fill my time.
I spent more time reading my current book, Handle With Care, by Jodi Picoult and the latest issue of Runner's World.

Went to the movies and saw Crazy, Stupid, Love which I loved.

source

Met and got lunch with Katie from Peace, Love, and Oats at Sultan's Market in Lincoln Park.

(source: Peace, Love, and Oats)

Took my time at the grocery store and checked out some new foods.

I began my training plan for the Hot Chocolate 15K.

I discovered that Netflix and Hulu have iPhone apps so I watched a few shows on my tiny phone screen.

Otherwise most of my time was spent at work and getting a few more hours of sleep in, which was nice.

Although the time away from the computer was fine I was so glad to get the call last Tuesday that my MacBook was back. My iChat is still not working (the thing I originally went in to get fixed), but my computer is back home.

Since having my computer back, I have noticed I haven't been on it as much as I was before it had to be sent away. This is partly because of my schedule, but I enjoyed taking the time to read or go out with a friend instead of just plopping down in front of the computer. I want to spend my time doing other things, and although I really like the internet I want to make sure I get to do the other things I like too. The whole computer situation was not expected, but I think it turned into something good.

How often are you on your computer or smart phone? What would you do without access to your computer for a week?

To Fleet Feet for New Running Shoes!

noreply@blogger.com (Cate) — Mon, 05 Sep 2011 23:00:00 +0000

The time has come again for new running shoes. I bought my last pair of running shoes in March and in the last two weeks I have noticed that the cushion and support are not as strong. Those shoes have been with me for the last four weeks of half marathon training, the race itself, the GOTR 5k, the Women's Race 10K, the Champions Run 5K, and all my weekly runs (including a few in the rain). My legs have been sore and achey so I knew it was time for some new shoes.

I think the process of getting new shoes is so fun and informative. I headed to the local Fleet Feet store (with my handy $10 coupon from the Women's race) to get fitted this past Friday. I met with Margaret who asked me about my running, if I was experiencing any pain, and then watched me run back and forth through the store. She had lots of information to share with me. I told her about my "runner's knee" issues and she offered up a few exercises, that I was not aware of, that could help. She said I had really good arches (yay!) and was overpronating just a bit. I brought in my old shoes which are Asics Fortitudes, which is closer to a neutral shoe. She decided to bring out some with a little more stability to help with my pronation.
Margaret came back with the Nike Lunar Glides, Asics GT 2160s, and Adidas Supernovas. The Nikes were first. The color was a super bright and bold blue. I got laced up and did a short jog through the store. They felt good, but I was not sure I could pull off the bright blueberry shoes. Margaret said that I was still pronating a bit and that the others might correct that.

Next were the Asics. I did a short jog again. They were a little tight on the sides, but otherwise felt good. I finished up with the Adidas, which were just OK. My foot didn't feel very supported in the shoe during the jog. We got the next size up in the Asics to see if that would feel better and they did. We both agreed that they were the best bet for me. They have more stability for my inner arch which will likely help with any leg or knee pain. Plus they are a really cute plum color. I like them!

As Margaret was lacing up my shoes she showed me a different way to lace them. Essentially you make a little loop using the last two holes of the shoe and run the ends through. After tying the laces I noticed that I felt more secure in my shoes, which I liked, so I think I am going to lace my shoes like that. I thought it was interesting and wanted to share.

Saturday I decided to try out the new shoes on a real run along the lake. They were wonderful! I got out there a little later than I wanted to, so it was a bit warm, but ran five miles and ended by my favorite farmer's market.

My nice new shoes!

The right kind of shoe makes all the difference! I think getting fitted, at least once, is important, so you know what kind of shoe will be best for you. Six months or 300-500 miles is usually how long a running shoe lasts. Over time the cushioning and tread of the shoes wear down and decrease. I definitely notice a difference in how my legs feel after a run in older shoes. After my run Saturday and Monday my legs feel good and I don't have that aching feeling anymore. Yay for new shoes!

I have been itching for a longer race to do next and am thinking about the Hot Chocolate 15K that is coming up in November (it is coming to a few other cities too, if your interested). I have never done a 15K before and this sounds like a good one. I am working on getting a training schedule together right now!

Have you been fitted for a running shoe before? What's the next race on your calendar?