Giving myself a pat on the back

Last week, I mentioned that I often set out with an ambitious running schedule that I blatantly make no real attempt to follow through on.

Since declaring, however, that I was not going to make excuses for myself, I have actually completed all of the runs that I set out to do - Go team productive D!

Now that I have completed these runs, allow me to show you what a typical week of running looks like for me:

One speed workout, such as the one below, completed on the treadmill so that I can indulge my OCD side and precisely monitor my speed and distance.

Yes, this makes me sweat a lot, and yes, it also likely prevents me from being asked out at the gym.

One short, fast run, usually between 4 - 6 miles at a pace of around 7:00 - 7:30 minutes/mile (I occasionally do this on the treadmill, also, just to be sure I'm hitting my desired speed, although I despise doing steady-pace runs on treadmills. Stab me in the eyeball.)

One medium length run, untimed, usually between 6 - 8 miles. I would estimate that my pace here is around 8:00 - 8:30 minutes/mile and I always strive to throw in some hill sprints, although that's difficult to do in the rather flat NYC. One of my girlfriends from the city clued me into a short, steep hill on 91st Street between 2nd and 3rd so I usually try to hit that up.

One long, double digit mile run. I would estimate my pace on that to be about 8:30, but I don't allow myself to be concerned with time and just aim for getting in the distance and enjoying myself.

I adapted this training plan around what I have the time and resources to do. As I mentioned....I hadn't been very diligent about following it. However, I'm getting better all the time!

So, now you know! I used the beginner version of this plan when I was training for my very first long race, the 2010 Brooklyn Half Marathon and found it to be effective both in preparing me physically and putting me at ease mentally. Since then, I haven't trained for a single one of the Half mar's I've run, so I'm hoping that in actually training for Queens, I will see a difference in my finishing time - wish me luck!

peace out, I'm going to go run.

I left the island!

I had the treat of venturing out of Manhattan not once, but twice, this past weekend. Although the first trip was still in New York City, technically speaking, I think we can all agree that the Brooklyn Botanic Garden (BBG as it is referred to in all of their informational signage and will be hereby referred to in this here blog) remains a worthy respite from a hot, city summer day.


sunny friends on a sunny day!


I was in complete awe of the stunning floral show on display at the BBG - the roses, the lilies, the exotic greenhouse plants.

not found on 58th street

I didn't spy any peonies (my favorite flower) so in its place my favorite flower of the day was absolutely the sacred lotus blossoms growing from floating lilypads in the Japanese garden.

A perfect combination of weird and beautiful, just my taste!

don't those buds look like shower heads?

Amazing.

this greenhouse flower reminded me of a textile!

mellow yellow

Such a reminder that God's creation is approximately infinitely more beautiful than anything we try to pull together.

My second venture off the island took me much further away to the beautiful Rhinebeck, NY for a surprise birthday party my sweet friend Chloe's delightful parents threw for her big 25th. It was such a wonderful evening of friendship and joy - I always look forward to meeting my friends' families and Chloe's is truly incredible. The thought and time they put into organizing a special event for her was heartwarming and I was so glad to be a part of it!

I took zero pictures - woops! - but trust me that the party was elegant, festive, fun, and left me with a terrible headache Sunday.

I capped off my weekend with a dinner of copious amounts of guacamole (too much is never enough), Trader Joe's indian dishes and Pinkberry with two of my best friends from high school. Being able to share time with these two unbelievable, hilarious, inspiring, encouraging ladies in New York was such a treat and left me with a very happy heart.

This past weekend was so overabundantly joyful that you better believe I was left with a July 5th feeling yesterday. I cured this with the classic documentary musical "Gentlemen Prefer Blondes," shown for free as part of the HBO Film Festival series in Bryant Park!

Diamonds are a girl's best friend

The only slightly unpleasant aspect of that show was the hooligan sitting next to us, sporting a mullet and chain smoking. First of all, that's illegal in New York parks. Second of all, ew.

Hope your weekend was just as lovely and your week is going swimmingly!

It's Sunday. Are you hungover?

If so, I personally can think about having a glass of wine and experience a hangover the next day, so I can certainly sympathize.

And despite your inclination to crawl into bed, close the blinds and pray for death, exercise can actually do a tremendous amount of good in bringing your poor, abused body back to life.

In the final weeks of my senior year of college, I made a rule for myself: if I was too hungover from the night before to run a three mile loop off-campus, then I was too hungover to go out again that night. And since, of course, I wanted to squeeze every drop out of my last weeks of college (because apparently, you can never see your friends or drink adult beverages after you graduate), I always dragged myself through those three miles.

oh, hello college.

Without fail, after a good sweat and a good shower, I felt human enough to put some clothes on and drink more lukewarm beer. Hooray!

Fact: I will always run for beer.

I also enjoyed a Sunday evening yoga class offered at my college gym. Held at 6 pm, I had been able to rest enough that a trip to the gym did not feel too intimidating and the Level 1 vinyasa (I think?) class was relaxing enough that even a tired body could handle it.

As I've grown in my yoga practice and come to understand more of the restorative properties the practice provides, I've learned that it was more than just leaving my dorm room and getting some moderate exercise that would bring me out of my Sunday-funk.

Many poses, particularly twisting poses, serve to "wring out" your organs, releasing toxins and refreshing your body from the inside, out.

So today, try a twisted pose rather than a greasy omelette as your mode of recovery. So, so many parts of your body will thank you. Some ideas:

Twisted seated pose - so easy! - just sit down, cross your right leg over your bent left leg, and twist the upper half of your body all the way to the right, looking behind you. Repeat on the other side.

Twisted chair pose - not quite as easy! but you can do it - from a standing position, slowly bend your legs and lower yourself as if you're sitting in a chair. Bring your hands into a prayer position before your heart, and keeping this arm position, twist to the right with your left elbow outside of your right knee. Return to center, and repeat on the other side.

Happy bending!

Any other sneaky hangover cure tactics out there? I need them.

Coffee: some is good, more is better.

Despite all of the rumors you've heard, New York City is actually not a relaxing place to live. Work atmospheres tend to be competitive and stressful, social schedules tend to be packed to the brim, and if you don't have 14 side hobbies, what are you even doing here?

It is both a blessing and a curse to be constantly busy. I am sort of a contradiction of a person in that while I am very outgoing, social and *ahem* bubbly...I am actually secretly a homebody. Nothing I love more than curling up with tea and a good book, having a friend over for a homemade dinner and conversation, taking a long walk, or watching an old re-run of Murder, She Wrote...I mean, what?!? Who said that!?

Welp, this weekend will not be one of those relaxing weekends.

Literally, every second is accounted for with parties (one of which is upstate!), a dinner, a trip to the Brooklyn Botanical Garden (my inaugural visit! so excited - and, for all you New Yorkers, admission to the garden is free before noon on Saturdays!), studying, running...whew!

I'm very excited, particularly as I will be seeing a few friends I don't get to see often, but also looking forward to a time in my life in which I can take a breather, take a walk, take the time to have a good phone date, do my laundry......

And on that note, it's time to visit my favorite baristas and get my 54 cent Starbucks refill. Yes, I know the exact cost, with tax.

couldn't do it without you.

Anyone else feel like they're always crazy busy...in their "free" time?

PSA: It's cool to look like Casper

While I refer to my porcelain-like complexion as "alabaster," I realize that in reality, I'm actually just freakishly pale. I tried to fight this reality for many, many years to absolutely no avail. I will say that I am fortunate in that while I don't tan, I also don't burn...in fact seem to repel the sun.

twinsies!

I have many painful memories of going in for my annual check-up in high school and having my doctor comment that I "clearly didn't spend too much time in the sun." Yea...except for the hours I spent on my blazin' hot black roof wearing SPF 8 + tanning oil (seriously), timing my "tanning" of each side with a kitchen timer (seriously)...

I've thankfully given up that habit as it is:

a. terrible for me
b. completely unproductive anyway.

Now I've replaced a desire for the bronzed goddess look with a desire to look young forever and never have melanoma, but mostly look young forever (kidding! maybe.). I wouldn't dare venture into the sun without my SPF 70+ Neutrogena spray sunscreen and I regularly harrass my non-Casper-esque friends about their delinquent sunscreen use.

not everyone in this picture applies sunscreen evenly

But even I, it seems, have a lesson to learn in sunscreen application this summer.

The Well+Good NYC bloggers put together a list of sunscreen tips, many of which took me by surprise. I always apply thick and often, everyday, before heading out into the rays (and so should you!!) but what I did not know was that you should apply sunscreen directly to your face (rather than bottle-to-hand-to-face), that you should put on sunscreen before putting on moisturizer, and (and this is embarrassing) that sunscreen expires? I can say with 100% confidence that in a pinch I have used last season's sunscreen, blissfully unaware of its ineffectiveness. Woops.

ahhh, the bliss of the ignorant

Find the full write-up of tips here and don't forget to apply, apply, apply! And wear bronzer.

Also, for the full, government-sanctioned, updated list of sunscreen rules, check out the FDA's official site for sun protection news and information.

Pure, raw lady-date

For my birthday this year, I was the very fortunate recipient of a gift card to New York's own temple of healthy eating: Pure Food and Wine, the raw, vegan culinary enterprise from the beautiful (shocker) Sarma MeIngailis.

A testament to how busy I've been is that my birthday was in May and I was finally able to enjoy my meal at Pure, with, of course, my dear friend who gave me the gift, last night.

Thankfully, it was well worth the wait. I had been dreaming of raw mushroom ravioli and decadent raw desserts for so long that the lines had begun to blur between what I had actually eaten and what I had just seen photos of online and drooled over. The trick I employed to distinguish between the two was to remind myself that I actually hadn't eating anything from the restaurant. Ohhhh, right.

Well I can't say that anymore, can I get a woo-hoo for that?

What distinguishes Pure from other healthy or even vegan restaurants is, yes, that the food served is entirely 'raw': not heated over 118 degrees, but more than that, that it is truly a gourmet dining experience. Sarma does not sacrifice one ounce of elegance or comfort both in the preparation of foods and in the ambiance of the restaurant itself.

This visit was a true indulgence.

We split a maki appetizer to start, which was made of: avocado, delicious, and deliciousness.

Moving right along to our entrees, Ellen enjoyed her favorite, the corn tamales, which succeeded in tasting, dare I say...meaty? I opted for the squash blossoms with cashew nut cheese and green beans which were mysteriously crunchy as though they had been...cooked?

romantic lighting does not lend itself to the best iPhone photography

For dessert we each ordered ice cream treats, perfectly complimenting the warm summer evening. Again, although they were vegan and not really frozen, they were completely, unequivocally....ice cream-y.

to the amusement of absolutely no one, I felt the need to instagram my dessert

How do they do it? Ellen had had the good fortune of enjoying a sampling of the menu with the restaurateur herself and explained how the process of dehydrating and soaking many of the elements of each dish begins a week prior to serving, and how the chefs aim to create combinations that compliment each other in such a way that they trick the mind into assuming it is enjoying a cooked dish. The level of science, attention to detail, and culinary expertise necessary to create each dish is simply mind boggling and left me in awe.

And full and happy.

We also spotted Sarma, hard at work on her laptop in the corner, looking stunning per the usual. I totally gawked. I was definitely the coolest customer Pure has ever had, and they are welcome for my patronage.

The one potential detrimental side effect of this overwhelmingly wonderful dining experience is that I fear I will hate every meal I have until my [inevitable] return. Oh well, sacrifices must be made.

Making excuses

So I have a somewhat legitimate topic to discuss, but in order to discuss said topic, I have an embarrassing confession to make. I love magazine quizzes. And I'm not even 13! I love them. I love buying trashy mags when I'm travelling and I read every. single. page. although I am well aware of the fact that my brain cells are likely declaring a mutiny and I am well aware of the fact that the June 2011 issue is exactly the same as the October 2007 issue is exactly the same as the March 2002 issue...whatever. At least I'm reading, right?

So last time I was flying, I took a very scientific quiz to on why I procrastinate. My results determined that I procrastinate because I strive for perfection, and I fear that if something is not perfect, than it is not even worth doing at all.

So the truly embarrassing part of this whole situation: Glamour/Elle/whichever magazine was absolutely correct. Really. Saw right through me like a pane o' glass.

I cannot even tell you how many cover letters I've drafted and never sent in because I felt that they weren't "just right," how many projects I've started and abandoned because I didn't think I could execute them in the absolute best manner possible, how many important conversations I've neglected to have because I couldn't find the most succinct, articulate, and sensitive words to convey my feelings.

I've also found this same procrastination tactic emerge in my running habits.

As I reviewed the training runs I wanted to complete this week and tried to plan out when exactly I could complete them, a little voice in my head kept repeating, "yea, but you're probably not going to do them all anyway." I'm so used to hearing this voice in my head that I normally let it float on by, but this time, I stopped myself and said [this is all in my head, I wasn't actually having a conversation with myself...] "well, why not?"

Why not, indeed???

I love running, so why is it so difficult for me to complete a training plan? Why do I consistently plan to go on targeted runs, hillwork, or speedwork and then convince myself I can just go run five or six miles at a steady pace, or, lately, black out and somehow find myself on the elliptical, more or less phoning my cardio in?

My attitude is that if I don't feel as though I'm going to do a training run perfectly, or if I don't feel I am going to hit my race out of the park, to mix my sports metaphors, than it is not worthwhile to even try.

If I admit that I truly care about something and am really striving to succeed in a particular arena, and I do not do so perfectly, then in my mind, I am a failure. Worse than that, actually - a failure before my friends, family and peers.

Well that is ludacris.

In all honesty, I would like to be faster. I do care about my times. I would like to put in hard work and see concrete results. Although I would be reticent to admit it if you asked me to my face, I do have a particular time in mind that I would like to finish the Queens half marathon in, and it's not going to be easy. It's entirely possible that I will fail. And I'm certainly not doing myself any favors by not taking training seriously.

Yes, I will finish the race if I don't train. Yes, I will probably finish within a decent time frame.

But I know that I can do better, and knowing that, I should do better.

So my goal for this month is to stop making excuses for myself, once and for all. If I want something, and I know what to do to attain it, the only thing standing in my way like a pack of tourists in Central Park, is me! In order to get out of my own way, I need to get over my fears of trying, of caring, and falling short of perfection and openly admitting defeat.

I'm not exactly sure who I'm trying to convince that I'm "Rico Suave," and since it's clearly not working anyway, I think it is time to give it up.