An avid slow jogger

Dwight gets all kinds of magazines at work, and he used to bring them home. I had to tell him to stop, because every physical ailment that was the illness of the month? I had all the symptoms. But he still brings the Web M.D. magazine home. There was an article on Mindy Kaling in the last issue, in which she describes herself as "an avid slow jogger". That is SO me. Or sometimes I am an "avid fast walker". You get the general idea of my pace.

After the half-marathon in October (did you know I finished one?!), I was totally planning on working on increasing my speed, strengthening my core, and continuing my healthy eating plan. I think I forgot all of the above.

With the nice weather lately, though, I've been fast walking / slow jogging outside. It's been great to follow my old paths through the 'hood, except that my favorite 4-mile loop still has ice on it. Thank you, City of Omaha. I did have some nice days outside last week, and then the combination of a chafing issue (forgot the Body Glide) and colder temperatures made it way nicer to stay wrapped in my fluffy bathrobe instead of working out. But this morning I was back on the treadmill. It's supposed to warm up this week - outdoors, here I come.

I had a pretty productive weekend, in that I accomplished one major thing. I've been meaning to paint Alex's old room for a few weeks, and finally did it. And I must be getting better - I only got paint on the ceiling once (previously my specialty), and when I removed the tape, most of the paint on the baseboards was from the last time I had painted that room. Small victories. That room is actually MY room now - it has a couch, a desk, and a bookcase. I painted it a nice warm mocha - it is so calm in there. It really helps that I got rid of all the crap that had accumulated. The bookcases in the girls' old rooms are next!

My genes must be calling on the millenia-old memory of my northern European heritage and storing fat for the winter. I have been so hungry lately - it it's not nailed down, it's fair game. I stepped on the scale this morning with my eyes closed, opened one v-e-r-y s-l-o-w-l-y, and I haven't gained an ounce. Go figure. I must be burning calories by shivering. But lest I get too smug, there is a mother-of-the-bride dress hanging in my closet that already necessitates at least one pair of Spanx. Gotta be careful.

I must be on a smoothie kick. Here are some breakfasts:

Abs Diet banana split smoothie

I have to show you the Before picture so you can see how much spinach is in my green monster

And you can't even taste it! Also in the mix: a banana, half a cup of  Greek yogurt, a cup of almond-coconut milk, and a tablespoon of peanut butter

I found little cups of grapefruit sections at Sam's. I have loved grapefruit forever, but it is not very user-friendly.

This breakfast cookie was in my swag bag from the marathon. Pretty yummy. And filling.

While I know I eat lunch every day, I just haven't taken any pictures. Lunch is seriously my least favorite meal of the day. As a matter of fact, when Erin and I are playing Draw Something and her word is lunch, she just writes "least favorite meal of the day".

But I've had some good dinners. Aly sent me a link to a recipe that she and Alex made and loved, Mediterranean Cauliflower. She said it would find its way into our weekly rotation, and she is right. It is SO GOOD. (I added extra capers). Go get the ingredients and make it this week - let me know how you like it. It is seriously beyond delicious. I served it with South Beach Diet balsamic chicken, and what we call summer salad - baby cucumbers, grape tomatoes, balsamic vinegar, and olive oil. Amy and Dennis gave us some different flavored oils and vinegars for Christmas - this salad was fabulous with basil olive oil.

The cauliflower was so good that we had it the next night with fish tacos. I heated up some black beans and mixed them with a few spoonfuls of Trader Joe's corn salsa.

And then tonight I made some South Beach Diet gingered chicken, which was only just okay. I gave half of mine to Dwight (give it to Dwight, he'll eat anything). Yes, that is Uncle Ben's long grain and wild rice, and yes, I realize the irony of serving rice with a South Beach meal. What can I say? I love carbs. The salad was fairly delicious - mixed greens with sliced pears, kiwi, and baby tomatoes, and TJ's pear vinaigrette salad dressing.

Why yes, that is on a tray. Because we eat dinner in front of the TV. We're those people.

Now it's time for a bubble bath and some Sleepy Time tea...