Eat of the Week: Crockpot Honey Sesame Chicken

My favorite recipe this week was compliments of Pinterest.  It maybe wasn't the healthiest thing in the world, but it was definitely worth making (and eating). It was delicious, easy to make, and I'll for sure want to make it again. 

Here's the recipe:

(The Pinterest recipe link was from the blog Table For Two.)

1 lb. boneless, skinless chicken

salt and pepper

1 C. honey

1/2 C. low sodium soy sauce (I used gluten free)

1/4 C. ketchup

2 T. vegetable oil (I used 1T. olive oil)

2 cloves garlic, minced (I just used garlic powder)

1/4 tsp. red pepper flakes

1/2 C. chopped onion (I don't like onion, so I used a few shakes of dehydrated onion)

cornstarch and water to thicken sauce

1. Place chicken in crockpot and sprinkle with salt and pepper.

2. In medium sized bowl combine honey, ketchup, oil, soy sauce, garlic, onions, and red pepper flakes. Stir to combine and pour over chicken. 

3. Cook on low for 3-4 hours, or high for 1-2 hours. 

4. When done, remove chicken and cut into chunks. Stir together some cornstarch and water and add it to the sauce to thicken it up a little. Place chicken back in crockpot and cover with sauce again. 

5. Serve over rice and sprinkle with sesame seeds. 

What's the best thing you've had to eat this week? 

New Workout DVD, Resolutions, and Books

1. I tried a new Jillian Michael's workout dvd yesterday and today that I really like. I checked it out from the library on Tuesday. It's her Shred It With Weights. You're supposed to use a kettlebell, but you can use a weight if you don't have a kettlebell. 

2. One of my New Year's Resolutions is officially done! My 2011 family blog book came in the mail today! Here's a couple pictures of it. It made my day to actually see and hold all the hours of work I had done in my hands. 

3. I'm getting my cycling certification tomorrow through AFAA (another one of my resolutions this year). I'm excited, but also a little sad that I'll have to skip my long run tomorrow. :( I'll be there all day. I could get up really early to run beforehand, but I'm not sure how hard the class is going to be, so I'm saving my legs for the class. It better not be really easy or I'll be bummed. 

4. I made these really yummy pumpkin spice granola bars last night. I'm going to be mean and make you wait until Wednesday's Eat of the Week post to share the recipe though. 

5. I finished another book. Running On Empty. I enjoyed it, and now I'm excited to watch the movie about it. I put it on hold at the library, so now I'm just waiting for it to become available. There's a few other running books on my reading list, but I think I'm going to take a break from running books for awhile and read something else. 3 running books in a row is enough for me for awhile. I tried reading the Hunger Games last year and gave up after 1/2 a chapter, but I think I'm going to try them again for my next book. 

Have you read the Hunger Games? Did you like them? 

What's your favorire home workout dvd? 

My favorite is probably still 30 Day Shred, but I like all of Jillian's workout dvds that I've tried so far. 

What's the last book you read, or the next book on your read list? 

Runners and Non-Runners Should Read This Book!

I just finished reading Kristin Armstrong's book, Mile Markers, and I loved it. It was funny, uplifting, and inspiring. I kind of want to read it again now. It's due back at the library next week, but I'll share a few snippets of her writing here before I turn it in. I'm also going to add her blog to my blogroll. (She keeps a weekly blog on Runner's World called Mile Markers.)

I Get To:

One of my favorite chapters in her book was the one on gratitude. In one of her posts titled "I Get To," she talked about her ultramarathon running friend who was recently diagnosed with ALS (Lou Gehrig's disease.) One day as she was trudging through a hard workout, trying to make it up a big hill, she caught herself thinking in terms of have to's. I have to make it up this hill, I have to finish this loop, I have to, I have to....Then she remembered her friend whose life was recently turned upside down by his disease and started thinking, No, I don't have to. I want to. I get to. I get to charge up this hill. I get to hit the gym after work. I get to make dinner for my children. I get to pick my kids up from school etc etc.  She ended this post with, "Think about it--If you stopped yourself every singel time you were about to say I have to and changed it to I get to, it might change your entire experience."

There's a little taste of her motivational and inspiring side. It's really does change my attitude towards anything when I think of it in terms of get to instead of have to!  My new goal is to think in terms of get to the next time I'm doing something I don't particularly enjoy. 

Here's a little taste of her funny side:

She was giving a speech on Spring Cleaning, not the house kind, the inside kind where you let go of unnecessary things you're holding on to. She brought some metaphorical visual aids with her that she dug out of her closet. All of them made me laugh, but I'll share this one: "Skinny jeans. Small enough that my daughter Grace could probably wear them, and she's 8. This is proof that I am unable to let go of my skinny-as-a-rail era. I keep the jeans around in case I ever get that skinny again, which hasn't happened yet. I have to be truly miserable to stop eating, and I haven't been that miserable since, well, back when I wore those jeans. Meanwhile, whenever I feel fit and fabulous, I try them on just in case, and all this does is to limit the amount of time I feel fit and fabulous. They need to go, but I keep them. This is proof that no matter how much I think I have evolved and made peace with my body, I can still manage to torment myself. 

I think a lot of girls can relate to this, including myself. :) That's why I found it so funny

There were so many other favorite parts in this book that were inspiring and funny. I wish I could have read it with a highlighter, but since it's a library book I couldn't. That makes it a little hard to go back through and find my favorite parts, but you'll just have to go read it for yourself now and find your own favorite parts! I know runners will love this book, but I also think non-runners would love it too because she uses running mostly as a metaphor to relate to all kinds of things in life that we all go through. 

What's the last get-to thing you did today? 

I got to put away my little boy's laundry. It's so funny what an effect one little word can have on my attitude. When I get to put away laundry instead of have to, suddenly I feel so lucky that I (1.) Have a little boy to put laundry away for,  (2.) Have a washing machine, and (3.) Have laundry period. 

Anyone holding onto anything in their closets/attics that should probably go? 

Living in an apartment the past year and a half has definitely helped me get rid of things that need to go pretty fast, so nothing is coming to mind right away, but I know there is some stuff lurking and hiding in there that could go! Going through our storage closet has been on my to-do list for two weeks now.

Tapering, Protein Shakes, and Running Books

Those are the three things I'm loving this week. 

1. Tapering. I know I whined and complained about it in this post, but I ended up really enjoying it! It was really nice to take a guilt-free break from getting really sweaty everyday. I even did my make-up on of the days when I took B to an art playgroup. :) 

Here he is with all his masterpieces. I love how colorful our fridge is right now. 

I'm feeling recovered and excited for my race tomorrow, although it looks like it's going to be COLD and WINDY. I'm hoping the wind will be to my back, but I probably won't get that lucky. 25K is kind of a weird distance to set a time goal for, so I'm not exactly sure what my goals are. I ran this race last year (<--my blog post about it), so it would be awesome to get a PR, but we'll find out tomorrow if that's realistic or not. (I just looked up my time from last year and it was 1:54 (7:20 mile average.) So, A PR from last year will be my I feel great and everything went perfect goal. My next goal will be to finish under 8:00 minute/mile average, and my I feel awful and everything went wrong goal will be to finish feeling like I got a good workout in. :) Whatever happens, It'll be a good day because I have a $10 fro yo giftcard that I'm planning to use post-race. :) 

2. Protein Shakes. After I read this advice in Kara Goucher's book (It's towards the bottom of the post), I got a few protein samples and then ended up buying my first container of whey protein a few days later. 

I really have noticed a difference in how I feel. Why did I wait so long to start drinking recovery shakes? After I did my whopping workout of 2 miles this morning, I came home and made myself a super hearty and delicious protein shake so I could make sure my legs will be nice and recovered tomorrow morning. 

Here's the recipe for today's shake:

1 C. Unsweetened Vanilla Almond Milk

1 Scoop Vanilla Whey Protein Powder

1/2 Frozen Banana

1 T. Peanut Butter

1 tsp. Chia Seeds

2 T. Oats

It was so good! Go try it. 

3. Reading Running Books. I went from not reading at all last year to having too many books I want to read this year. I made a New Year's Resolution to read one book a month, but I think it's going to turn into a lot more than that. I finished Kara Goucher's Running For Women in about a week, and now I'm reading two books at once. My avid reader sister will be proud. :) (<--Check out her reading blog if you like to read.) 

I've been taking B to Library time once a week for the past year and a half, and I always come home with a stack of books for him, but I never picked any up for me. I used the excuse that it was too hard to look for my books when he was running around the library like crazy, but now I just get online and figure out what book I want before I get there. Then I can reserve them and pick them up. Technology is great. I definitely recommend these two books! Mile Markers is a short, easy, light read, and Running on Empty has me in suspense about what's going to happen next. Who knew a running book could be suspenseful? 

What's something you're loving this week? 

Eat of the Week: Healthy Chocolate Banana Shake

This has been my favorite nighttime snack lately because it's healthy, it tastes like dessert, it's filling, and it's less than 200 calories. 

Scott and B like it too. I've made it several different ways, so I'll share a few of the variations I've made. 

The most simple one is:

1 C. Unsweetened Vanilla Almond Milk

1/2 Frozen Banana

1/2- 1 T. Cocoa

Ice cubes for desired thickness

Pinch of Stevia to sweeten (opt.) 

Blend all ingredients. This one is about 110 calories. Pretty yummy and filling for only 110 calories!

Some other ingredients that you can throw in are a handful of spinach (you won't be able to taste it), chia seeds, avocado, peanut butter, protein powder, oats, and greek yogurt. 

My favorite variation of this recipe I just made last night, and then again in larger portion for breakfast today. 

Here's last night's version:

1/2 C. Almond Milk

2 T. Oats

1/2 Frozen Banana

1/2 Scoop Vanilla Protein Powder

1 T. Cocoa

Ice Cubes

 (This one is about 175 calories)

This morning I made the same one, except I added more almond milk, chia seeds, more protein powder, and spinach. 

Do you get hungry before bed? If so, what's your favorite snack to have?

I almost always get hungry a few hours after dinner. I hate the nighttime munchies, but this snack has helped keep my appetite happy without snacking on a bunch of things and consuming  an entire meal's worth of calories before I know it. 

My First Blog Meet-Up and Funny Running Shirts

While we were in Houston for the Olympic Marathon Trials, I got to meet Laura, one of my blog buddies, at the Children's Museum. It was my very first blogger meet-up, and it was really fun. Too bad we don't live closer because I think we'd be good mom buddies, and good running buddies.  

After the Children's Museum, we had a much needed long nap back at the hotel, and then we headed to the Houston Marathon expo. I love walking around big marathon expos! The free samples might have something to do with that. I loaded up on Larabar minis, and sadly I just ate my last one yesterday. 

I saw several funny running shirts at the expo, so I took a few pictures of my favorites.

 As a new owner of a Garmin, this one made me smile. This one was probably my favorite. 

The truer they are, the more funny they are. Running is definitely my therapy, and my sanity. 

Scott pointed this one out. 

Ya, what could possibly go wrong? 

Do you have a favorite funny running quote?

Scott bought me a shirt last Christmas that says "Run Like a Mother" on the front, and on the back it says, "26.2 Miles of Peace and Quiet." Ha ha. Very true. I love it.  

Eat of the Week: Tofu Chinese Salad

I've never included tofu in my diet before, but I decided I would after I had a really yummy Pad Thai dish with tofu on Christmas Eve. I was surprised by how much I liked it, so I bought some tofu the next time I went to the grocery store. I don't know a lot about tofu yet, so I still can't decide if I'm going to buy it again or not. I've read a few things online about it, and there seems to be some controversy on whether or not it's healthy for you. It definitely has health benefits, so I'll continue to eat what's in my fridge, but I also want to continue to read up on it before I decide if I want to buy more. 

Anyway, whether it's the healthiest food in the world or not, this salad was dang good. And if you're not a tofu fan, just switch it out for chicken.

Here's the ingredients in whatever portion you choose:

Romaine

Spinach

Red peppers

Zucchini

Edamame 

Pineapple

Cashews

Hard or Firm Tofu

Sesame Oil

Soy Sauce

Red pepper flakes

Directions: I browned the tofu in a non-stick pan with a little bit of soy sauce, sesame oil, and red pepper flakes. Then I browned the zucchini and red peppers and tossed all ingredients together. 

It was a really yummy Sunday afternoon lunch! 

What are your thoughts on tofu? Is it healthy or not??

Running Motivation! (Pictures From the Houston 2012 Olympic Marathon Trials)

If looking at these pictures doesn't motivate you to want to get out the door and run, I don't know what will. I think I'll come back to this post and stare at these awe-inspiring pictures anytime I'm lacking motivation to go running. Isn't my husband an amazing photographer? I'm in love with all these pictures.

Enjoy!!

Here's the start of the women's race before any lead packs were formed. Can you pick out your favorite runners? I was so excited to see Kara Goucher, Shalane Flanagan, Desiree Davila, and Blake Russell, but the first time they ran by I only saw Blake Russell because the others were hiding in the back. I completely expected them to be front and center. They were just using smart racing tactics though. :)

 

Janet has a cool story. You can read it here. 

Look at Kara's leg muscles! Wow.

Team USA!!! They finished in this order. 

Look, now I can say I'm in a picture with Kara Goucher, Shalane Flanagan, Desiree Davila, Deena Kastor, and Amy Hastings! Pretty cool huh? 

I was on cloud 9 the whole race. It was so freaking fun to watch. My husband even loved watching it and he's not a runner. 

Those are some serious leg muscles. 

Ryan Hall and Josh Cox were the only guy runners I knew, so here's one more picture of each of them.

So, tell me, did these pictures make you want to go running? 

Christmas at a Runner's House

You know you're a runner when stocking stuffers include Shot bloks, Gu, Glide, A Fro Yo giftcard, and 26.2 Christmas tree ornament

Isn't this the cutest tree ornament? We have a tradition to get a new tree ornament for each other every year, and we try to make it signify something that happened that year. This ornament was for our trip to Boston for the marathon this past April. 

Breakfast was gluten-free pumpkin/oatmeal/greek yogurt pancakes. Yes they're healthy, but they're dang good too. Scott couldn't figure out why he was so full on Christmas, and then he realized it was because he ate 10 of these pancakes for breakfast. 10! These aren't light and fluffy pancakes. They're pretty heavy duty little cakes. I was laughing my head off when he told me he ate 10. 

One of the many highlights of my day. I finally have a Garmin! 

New running socks always feel so good. I love the kind with the tabs on the back. I can't stand when my socks slide down. 

I was way too happy about getting this salad spinner. Scott was laughing at my excitement over what seems to him like a silly little thing. But, I will use this thing all the time and my life will be so much easier for it. In fact, I had this thing open for less than 2 minutes before I was already using it. 

Christmas dinner. My first time making it all by myself, and it was actually pretty fun. Well, fun to eat anyway. We're so excited that we get to eat it all again tonight. Yay for leftovers. (I linked to most of these recipes in my last post.) 

Scott really surprised me with this one. He booked a hotel in Houston for the weekend of the Olympic Marathon trials! I am so excited. Can you tell? I really, really wanted to go, but I thought there was no way we would be able to find a hotel with the Olympic Trials on Saturday followed by the Houston Marathon on Sunday. I would LOVE to run in the Houston Marathon, but I don't run on Sundays, so watching the Olympic Trials will make up for not being able to run the marathon.

The marathon course is going to be a loop that the runners will go around three times. That means three times as many opportunities to get pictures of Kara Goucher, Desiree Davila, Shalane Flanagan, Josh Cox, and Ryan Hall. We're also going to the Children's Museum with B while we're there, and possibly the aquarium, and definitely the marathon expo. :) It's going to be an AWESOME weekend.

I'm so grateful to my husband for making his crazy runner wife so happy this Christmas, right down to the little stocking stuffers. 

I hope you all had a happy and memorable Christmas! We loved our first Christmas with just our little family. It turned out perfect.

Who's your favorite professional runner? 

I've always thought Kara Goucher was so cute, and I love that she's a mommy now too. I can't believe I will get to see her run in person in a few weeks. 

What was your favorite stocking stuffer?

My favorite stocking stuffer this year would have to be the shot bloks only because there's a funny story behind them. A few weeks ago I had bought 3 packs of shot bloks and left them on the counter. I finished the first two packs the week before Christmas Eve, and I went to get the third pack Christmas Eve morning before my long run. I couldn't find them anywhere. Scott was in bed next to where I was sifting through my running basket looking for my shot bloks. I said, "I thought I had one more package of shot bloks. Hmmm. Maybe I only bought two." I gave up looking for them and headed out for my run. Scott must have been dying laughing inside because he had swiped the Gu and Shot bloks I bought right off the counter and hid them to use as a stocking stuffer for Christmas. When I opened the strawberry shot bloks the next day a light went on in my head. I said, "Hey these are strawberry. Are these the shot bloks I bought and couldn't find?" He said he was really surprised I hadn't noticed earlier. We got a good laugh out of it. It was pretty funny. 

Is anyone else going to Houston either to watch or run the marathon?