And The Winner Is…

Published on February 16, 2010 in Exercise. 3 Comments

So yesterday, I had this conversation. It didn’t go very well, but in the end, I won, which is what really matters in arguments, ya know? :) But this conversation wasn’t with just anyone. In fact, I don’t know that you could really call it an “anyone” at all. It was with Exercise. And he was mean. So I blew a raspberry at him and told him to leave me alone. Here’s how it went:

Exercise: Hey Lisa, it’s been since Saturday that you worked out last. If that’s the case, you really should push yourself today.

Me: Well…I don’t know. Mondays are always hard for me to get going. I’ll probably just wait until after dinner this evening.

Exercise: Yeah right. You know that won’t happen. You have to clean up from dinner and you’ll want to spend time with David and relax. There’s no way you’ll want to exercise!

Me: Can’t prove it! Maybe I will! I might even do something pretty hard, like Billy Blanks!

Exercise: You won’t either! You’re a sissy!

Me: Them’s fightin’ words! You better watch out!

Exercise: Whatever! You don’t scare me!

Me: Oh yeah? Well THHHHBPT! (that’s a raspberry in case you didn’t know). I’ll deal with you tomorrow!

Exercise: Fine! Be that way!

Me: I will! Now get!

Whew. It didn’t go well, but I held my own. (and just between you and me, I didn’t end up working out yesterday. In fact, I ate a hotdog during a movie with David, but it was okay because it was on a whole wheat bun. But there’s no way I’ll tell Exercise about that. I’d never live it down). So, um, that’s what happened with me and Exercise yesterday. Today though, we seem to have made amends and I ended up working out. Not to Billy Blanks though. I Wii’d it. Super Hula Hooping sounded a lot more fun. And I threw in a little kung fu as well. To top it off, I went on a bike ride on Mii Island and fell off a cliff. That’s dangerous living! I probably burned more calories that way though, right? Not quite as tiring as Billy Blanks, but a workout just the same. In other exciting news, we recruited another good friend to join our running ranks! Hi Cara!

That’s all for now. I will keep you all posted on me and Exercise. That makes for some good blogging; just throw in a good argument every now and then to keep people coming back for more. Juicy stuff!

Update Shmupdate

Published on February 11, 2010 in Exercise and Health/Wellness. 0 Comments

I ran today. The end…

Okay, okay! I know I can’t just leave you hanging like that so I’ll fill you in on the nitty gritty. What have I been up to this week? Amidst flurries and mud, I actually found time to run. But when the flurries were bad, I worked out inside. Yesterday the sun was out and it was such a nice day, if not a bit cold, so I got all decked out in my running gear…and took a nap. Yes, I did! I’m not exactly sure why I was so tired but I could hardly keep my eyes open. The bad part was that when I woke up I felt like I hadn’t even taken a nap at all. And then I had to work when I woke up too. Blah. Today though was a good run. I am still doing week #4 of Couch to 5K. It seemed a little easier today than before. Yay! I am planning on running again tomorrow and Saturday. Sunday it’s supposed to be cold and snowy again. I’m definitely looking forward to spring. And here’s a news flash for ya: I  just realized that I’ve worked out everyday this week so far! Yippee!

Stay tuned for more workout/running updates and maybe just for kicks I’ll throw in a recipe or two or something totally random just to keep you coming back for more! :)

Did You Ever Know That You’re My Gyro?

Published on February 9, 2010 in Home Life and Recipes. 0 Comments

I just have to say it. I’m pretty pleased with the title of this post. Say what you will, I think it’s catchy. But why am I talking about gyros to begin with? Because, yesterday we got lamb meat!

“Great, Lisa, but what’s the big deal?”

Because! I’ve wanted to get lamb meat for a long time now and can’t find it or am too stingy economical to buy it. However, one of David’s coworkers went to Kansas City the other day and purchased some for us that was pretty reasonably priced, for lamb meat that is. And so I’m excited! (you’ve probably noticed by now that it doesn’t take much to get me excited, does it?). I will probably not be fixing gyros though despite the catchy title. I’ve been in the curry mood and when we have company over soon I will probably fix this recipe. Along with this. And then a salad. And maybe something for dessert. I was looking for some Pakistani/Indian desserts to make but a lot of them call for some really strange (to me) ingredients. So, I may just skip the authentic dessert and stick with American or maybe I’ll go out on a limb and just have fruit for dessert *gasp!* But then again, I like to take chances. :)

4.5 Miles in 30 Minutes…Sort Of

Published on February 9, 2010 in Uncategorized. 0 Comments

Yesterday, I didn’t end up running outside because it was pretty cold and it was flurrying pretty badly. :) So, I ran 4.5 miles inside…on the Wii…in place. Unfortunately, there is a pretty significant difference between running and actually going somewhere and running in place. But! It was something at least. The other night after I finished flipping my pancakes (which were NOT a flop, by the way!), I did Billy Blanks Ultimate Boot Camp. Surprisingly afterward, I was not as sweaty and tired as I usually am. I told David I should do it again because I felt cheated. :) The next day, I felt a little sore but decided to do it again and oh my ouchness! I didn’t get much done the rest of the day and had to take a nap. When I woke up, it hurt to move. My skin itself felt sore. So, anyway, that whole part about me not really feeling like I worked out very hard? Yeah, you can ignore that.

Today, the flurries have let up a bit, so I’m planning to run outside.  Not 4.5 miles though. That would probably take me quite awhile. I still plan on doing week 4 of Couch to 5K. It’s just stinkin’ cold out there. To all you runners in cold climates, my hat is off to you. I guess I better quit whining and go tough it out. Before I do that though, I just remembered a dream I had Saturday night. I dreamed I ran, not 3, not 4, not 5, but 6 whole miles, and I did it without stopping! When I told David, he chuckled and said, “It’s just a dream.” Grrr! The nerve! :) I would love to be able to run 6 miles without stopping (hey, I’d love to run a mile without stopping!), so I better get off my duff and go practice. Ciao!

Flapjacks Versus Jumping Jacks? You Decide!

Published on February 4, 2010 in Exercise and Health/Wellness. 1 Comment

Okay, so I have a confession to make…I didn’t go running today or yesterday (gasp!). But, I really do have good excuses reasons. We got busy with school yesterday and I had to work late both nights and, well, the weather was bad today. So there! I also had oodles of bananas in my freezer and not a whole lot for breakfast in the morning so decided to make some banana pancakes. The only problem is that I doubled the recipe and have about 5 gallons of pancake batter (the original recipe already made a lot, something I didn’t realize when I was measuring the ingredients), so I may be up awhile flipping pancakes before I get to bed. And just as a side note, I am a notoriously bad pancake flipper. A lot of times I flip too early and the pancake breaks apart on my spatula (pronounced “spatoola” :) ) or I flip it on top of another one, or hit the side of the griddle. Hopefully, I’m a better writer than pancake flipper though! I thought I’d make good use of my time and come blog a little bit in between flips

Before I get to bed tonight, I’m planning on working out. My plan is to do Billy’s Ultimate Boot Camp. Now, there’s no need to tell you how that makes me feel as you are probably already scarred by my picture after a previous booty kicking. But, no matter. A girl’s gotta do what a girl’s gotta do. And right now, I need to go flip some pancakes. Hang on a sec!

Okay! I’m back! Nothing burnt, nothing spilled (much). My 5 gallons of pancake batter is slowly dwindling. You know, maybe I should have actually tried out the recipe first before making so many…but I always do that kind of thing. Most of the time, it works out pretty well. One time, I decided to make a new kind of pizza that (to me) sounded really good and hey, you can’t go wrong with pizza, right? Erhm…the pizza was SO GROSS! Wanna hear the ingredients? Pizza crust (okay, that sounds good), dried plums (they’re prunes, people! Don’t be afraid of the “p” word!), balsamic vinegar (what in the world?), garlic (intriguing, no?), chicken, and cheese (nothing wrong with those, right?)

[Brief pause for a quick pancake turn]

So, back to the pizza. Yeah, let me just say that by the time you blend “prunes,” garlic, and balsamic vinegar, lather it on pizza crust, throw on some cooked chicken breast, and patch it over with cheese, you’ve got something really scary on your hands. Yes, my friends, that is what the cooking world would refer to as a TOTAL FLOP! Blech! But how in the world did I start on this rabbit trail? This isn’t really sticking close to topic (but I did say the word “flop,” which is similar to “flip,” which is what I was doing with the pancakes, but I digress…).

Well, I must be signing off or my poor neglected pancakes will burn. More updates later on in the week, so stay tuned for more!

Checking In With Sore Legs

Published on February 3, 2010 in Exercise and Health/Wellness. 2 Comments

Hello all! I decided to update and encourage you all by posting my progress on my blog. Isn’t that so exciting? Let me tell you what I did yesterday. I ran. Wow! Who knew? But, it wasn’t just any run, you know. This is technically week two in my Couch to 5K program. However, after looking at what I was going to be doing, it didn’t look challenging enough, so I decided to skip ahead to week four. First is a 3-minute jog, then a 90-second walk, then a 5-minute jog, then a 2 1/2-minute walk, then a 3-minute jog, etc. That first three minutes went by very slowly and let me tell you, I treasured every second of that next walking period! Then came the 5-minute jog. I was really dreading it but made it all the way through. It helps to have some techno music playing in the background. At any other time, I don’t like techno, but it helps keep me going when I run. By the end of my training session, something interesting happened. Not only did I make it through my very last 5-minute run, but I felt like I could keep going! I realized it wasn’t so bad after all, so you know what I did? I kept running…for another 10 seconds…and then I decided to call it quits for the day. After all, I had to, uh, work or something like that. I didn’t end up running today, although I planned on it. My morning was a bit busier than expected. However, I plan to run tomorrow, weather permitting as we are supposed to have rain and/or snow over the next few days. But, my fellow runners, stay tuned for the next installment on my journey. It should prove to be interesting at the very least, humiliating at the very worst, and comical all the way around. :) For some helpful tips on exercising and eating right, I highly recommend my fellow runner and very good friend, Elizabeth. She has an excellent blog on all things fitness. Check her site out and encourage her too! She ran/walked 4 miles the other day! What a show off good example! :)

Run, Forrest, Run!

Published on February 2, 2010 in Exercise and Health/Wellness. 5 Comments

After some encouragement from a couple of good friends, I’ve decided to start blogging again. I know, I know, exciting huh? Wanna hear something really pathetic? It has been so long since I blogged that I forgot how to log into my own site! Oi. As you can see, though, I figured it out after some guesses and Google searches. So, here I am.

Something new I’ve started very recently is…running! If you know me very well, you will know that running is not exactly my favorite activity. I’d much rather sit on the sidelines eating popcorn and pick on the people who wear spandex and bright orange shorts, or get frustrated because I have to swerve around a runner while driving in my car eating popcorn, or just shake my head at home while eating popcorn when I hear about people running marathons and all that (do you notice a pattern here? Who knew I liked popcorn so much?). Okay, maybe I don’t eat popcorn at every one of those instances, but I bet it made you smile, now didn’t it? So anyway, why in the world would I want to run? I’ll sum it up in two words: peer pressure. Just kidding. :) Actually, behind all the popcorn kernels stuck in my teeth, I have always thought that running a marathon sounded, shall we say, romantic. Well, maybe that isn’t the right word, but “neat” didn’t really sound right either. Anyway, I don’t plan on running a marathon any. time. soon. Just so you know. I’m not crazy (now hush!). A couple friends and I decided to aim for something small…a 5K. Let me just tell you that I dreaded running in grade school. Running “The Mile” was a huge source of stress for me. I wouldn’t be able to concentrate very well in school on the day we would have to run “The Mile.” And for several days before, I would think about “The Mile” and start to panic a bit. So running a 5K (which is “The Mile” x3!) is a bit daunting. That’s why I’m not doing this by myself. I have a few gals who are also training at the same time so we can be an encouragement to each other. If you are interested, the program that I am using to train is called Couch to 5K. It starts out slow. Week 1 you run 60 seconds, walk 90, rinse, repeat. Week 2 you add more running time, etc.  Our first 5k is at the end of March or the beginning of April. I’m not exactly sure yet. If you decide to come watch, I’ll be the one in the very back, glistening in the sun, wearing spandex or bright orange shorts (or both!),  and glaring at you, while you pick popcorn out of your teeth! :)

Where Oh Where Has My Little Blog Gone?

Published on September 23, 2009 in Uncategorized. 5 Comments

You may have been thinking it was going the way of the dodo. I was kind of thinking that too. Lately, I feel that my blog needs some direction. I’m tired of talking about working out. And I’m tired of talking about my garden (by the way, if anyone wants roughly 150 jalapenos, please, please come over!).  Now what? I could turn this into a blog where I talk about food, which sounds yummy. But there are so many blogs where ladies talk about food (they sure are fun to read though). Should I jump on that bandwagon? I don’t know. Maybe my lack of posts of late has been due to my lack of focus here.  It would be really neat to talk about something innovative. I really don’t want to stop blogging. I mean, I finally have my very own domain now and don’t you think my little mobile home with the smiley face is just so cute? So, all that to say, I will continue to blog. I just don’t know what about just yet. It may continue to be a hodgepodge of different things. Or not…Maybe you should come back again so you can find out! :)

New Domain Name: mobilehomeontherange.com

Published on August 29, 2009 in Uncategorized. 0 Comments

This blog is now at: mobilehomeontherange.com. Enjoy.

Is Lisa a miserable rotten so-and-so?

Published on August 29, 2009 in Exercise, Gardening and Uncategorized. 1 Comment

“Why doesn’t she ever post anything?” you may ask. Well so do I. I want to know what is up with my bride. Is she still alive? Is she gardening, working out? WHAT IS GOING ON? AHHHH!!!