Recipe: Grasshopper Cupcakes

Way back on Tuesday, I said I'd post a recipe for a delicious treat.  Here it is, Saturday!  Yikes.

I'll save my workout recap for tomorrow when I review **Week 10** of my half marathon training.  Holy Smokes.

So Wednesday night I made some delicious cupcakes that I guess I first learned about 3ish years ago.
Back in the day before I had even run my first race (a 3k) I stumbled upon this blog because of knitting (a hobby that seems to have been replaced by running).  While I was there for knitting, I came across some fantastic pictures of cupcakes (pictures no longer there).

Here's the cupcake post.

And here are my cupcakes.

 I resisted temptation while unwrapping all these peppermint patties...

 Thumbs up for Butter Cream Frosting.  Whipped.

 I only had neon green food coloring, so the frosting's a little bright.  

There's peppermint extract in there too.

Peppermint patty surprise in the bottom!

These are always a hit both at work and at home.  If you like chocolate +  mint... I highly recommend.

Today I did a 5 mile (half marathon) pace run.  Goal pace was 10:23-10:42.

Range was 10:06-10:34.  Success!

Though I did feel sluggish at the beginning.  And I had to stop during my warm up mile to fix my mp3 player and to get a pebble out of my sock.  Then for the first 2ish pace miles I was running into the wind, and mad that I didn't put lip balm on before I left.  I got out of my funk though.  Not sure why I was flying for mile 5... I slowed myself down to 10:06 half way through when I saw I had been running around a 9:45.

After my run I had a large glass of chocolate milk.  It was delicious.  After making myself presentable, we took a drive up to our favorite Middle Eastern restaurant.  Sad they were out of our favorite appetizer, the babaganough...but we got falafel instead.

(after eating two of them)

Then we got pitas (hummus for me and kufta for hubs).  Not much to see, because they were wrapped in foil, and we scarfed them down quickly.

After that we walked around and got coffee.  And checked out the Delaware River which floods often.  And after all the rain we got over the last two weeks, the water level is really high.

This picture is actually further down the river, where we stopped on our way home this afternoon (and a little history tidbit: it's where George Washington crossed the Delaware!)

{source}

Anyway, we had ourselves a nice little Saturday.  Tomorrow I'll be doing my second to last long run before my half marathon!!!  I can't believe it's almost here.

I know I posted earlier about picking up some Clif Shot Energy Gels...but for this half marathon, I decided I'll be sticking with what has worked for my past several long runs...Gu.  I can experiment with the Clif brand after April 3rd.

Friday after work, I swung by a local bike shop to pick up some Gu in favorite flavors.  Much to my dismay they did not have the mint chocolate that I loved so much.  But I picked up a couple in Espresso Love, AND they offered to order the mint chocolate for me, which will arrive by the middle of this week.  Hooray!

Happy Weekend everyone!

Saturday Pace Run

Saturday I had a fabulous pace run.  I tried out my brand new Asics GT 2150s for the first time, and they were perfect.  Very comfortable,  no rubbing or blisters.  The only thing I had to adjust to was the weight -- each shoe is 2.1 ounces less than my Sauconys!  I decided to use the new shoes without the insoles.

Saturday it was about 59 and overcast/windy.  Hooray for running shorts weather!  My legs are in need of some sun or some bronzer/self-tanning lotion.

It was supposed to be a 5 mile pace run.  I planned to warm up, run 5 miles @ half pace (10:23-10:42), then cool down.  Except about .15 miles in, I realized I was flying at a 9:19 pace (what!?!?!) so I stopped and walked for a minute to reset myself then began running at what I thought was an EASIER pace.  That first mile ended up at a 10:37 pace.  So my warm up mile was...still within my goal pace range.

Here are all my times:

I was feeling pretty good at the end of the 5th mile and I guess as I had just run uphill and the ground was now relatively flat, I ran at a faster pace.  I decided to see if I could keep it up for a whole mile on not-fresh legs, and I could!  I then tried to slow down a bit as I headed home, but still had a pretty good pace for the last .76 miles...then I walked for about a minute the rest of the way to my apartment.


I tried to be sure to include some hills along my route to be at least a little like my April half marathon course.

This morning we got pastries from the local bakery for breakfast:

The one on the left is half of a raspberry currant croissant, the one on the right is half of an almond pastry covered in confectioner's sugar.  They are both delicious.  And I think our favorite two pasty offerings from the bakery.

I would LOVE to go for my long easy run today, but it's been raining since the wee hours of the morning.  It is raining buckets.

I think I will end up running anyway at some point.  Just hoping it will let up a little bit.  And actually, as I am typing this, it appears that it might be only a light sprinkle right now...maybe I will try to get my act together and get out the door.  I'll stick with my older running shoes today...not ready to get my bright white shoes dirty yet.

Thanks to those who weighed in regarding my race schedule question Friday night.  I think I have decided to sign up for the other half at the end of May.  Why not!?  It will be a bigger race than my April half, with more runners and more spectators, and a flatter course.

Great pace run!

Yesterday I was supposed to do a 4 mile pace run.  It was sunny and about 45 out-- beautiful!  I am so ready for spring.  I was happy to have a chance to wear shorts again!  Hubs felt like running today too, so we started off together for our warm up.

Our warm up started off up-hill and into the wind.  For mile 2, we decided to head into one of the nearby parks, only to find there were still LARGE patches of ice in the spots that don't get much sun, and mud and standing water in other spots due to the rain we got yesterday.  We walked across the ice and carefully ran through the mud until we finally got to the paved road in the park.  We parted ways at the end of mile 2 and he began to head back home, and I began the 'pace' portion of my run (goal pace-- 10:23-10:45).

Running through the sticky mud apparently made running on dry land seem easy.  I blew away my goal paces (see laps 3-6).  Here were my splits:

Going into the run and after our slower warm up miles, I wasn't sure if I was going to be able to hit the right paces for four whole miles.  After the first pace mile in 10:17, I was shocked and amazed!  I kept it up for the next mile and actually had to slow myself down because I ran the first .4 miles of that lap at a 9:45 pace...woah.  I was able to slow it down to a 10:04.  I was happy to keep up the pace for the following two miles at 10:12 and 10:15 despite running up some hills.

I definitely didn't intend to run these miles faster than my goal pace, but I'm glad I was able to!  It was very easy for the first two, and only slightly more difficult for the second two.  I was able to maintain my heart rate in a good range for the duration.  My average heart rate for the run was 171.

I was wondering if running faster than my half marathon goal pace was defeating the point of the pace run, but since my half is not on a flat course (see below) maybe it's good that I am pushing myself a little harder and running on not-perfectly flat ground (though not nearly as hilly as the race course...gulp).

Crazy half marathon elevation map.

If you haven't already, be sure to check out my Sweaty Band giveaway!

New Shoes: Asics GT 2150 + pace run

Ordered these lovelies last week:.  They came only 2 days later.

I picked up the Asics GT 2150s for $55 - 15% off + free 2-day shipping from Running Warehouse.  I tried them on back in August when I went to Road Runner Sports for my gait analysis.  I ranked them as my number two shoe.  Turns out that 6 months later these are now an "older" model?  And therefore half price.  I'll take 'em!

I got a free reusable shopping bag with my order too.  Nice!  I could have also opted for some reduced price Running Warehouse brand socks, but I bought 6 new pairs in August so I'm set in that department.  I should have gotten them for hubs though.

 

The color is a little...neon...blue for me, and very white (that won't last!).  But I know I shouldn't pick a shoe based on looks alone.  And these were a style that worked well for my slight overpronation. 

I do like my current shoe, the Saucony ProGrid Omni 9, however it is heavy compared to my previous running shoe.  I really realized this when I wore my previous pair (New Balance 904TR) for a hike.  They felt so light on my feet in comparison.  It turns out my Sauconys are 11 ounces (including the Superfeet insole) each.  My old New Balances were 8.6 (Just went back and checked on my scale; I was way off) 7.7 ounces each.  You may think "Wow, 2.4 3.3 ounces isn't that much" but apparently it is.  My feet think it is.

The state of my current shoe:

(Am I the only one who catches the inside of my ankle with my other heel while I run??) 

281 miles later, they are still hanging in there, just not as white as when I first bought them.  I'm still using them for running, I'm not experiencing any pain or discomfort in them yet, I just wanted to be sure to have my replacements on hand for when it became time to switch.

Here's the rundown:

Current Saucony ProGrid Omni 9, size 6B w/Superfeet insole: 11 oz
New Asics GT 2150, size 6B: 9 oz
New Asics GT 2150, size 6B w/Superfeet insole: 9.7oz
Single Superfeet insole: 1.3 oz
(Based on the above, my math tells me the original Asics insole then weighs .6 oz)

So here's my question on the insoles.  I never had insoles before until this past August.  At Road Runner Sports, they were surprised I had not yet had an injury due to my mild pronation, and running without extra arch support in the form of insoles.

I have now used the insoles for 6 months, and continue to not have any injuries (knock on wood!).  Is running injury-free due to the insoles, or would I have been fine without them all along?

I am debating whether to continue use the insoles in the next pair of shoes.
Maybe I'll try some runs with and without the insoles when I switch to the new shoes.

Hmmm....

I will post on my new handheld water bottle after I have a chance to use it (tomorrow?)

And, if you want the code I used for 15% off your entire purchase at Running Warehouse, drop me an email at amandarunsoncoffee (at) gmail (dot) com and I will share.  I don't want to broadcast it and have the code shut down by Running Warehouse (not that I have soooo many people reading where that would happen, but still...)

Oh yeah -- and Friday's run.

It was 70F when I got home from work.  I didn't realize it was that warm because it was also pretty breezy.  I got to wear a short sleeve shirt and shorts!  And I did my 3 mile pace run.  Actually it became more of a 3.44 mile pace run, with 1 mi warm up and .46 mi cool down:

So my desired pace range for this run was 10:23-10:45.  I was within the range, but a little disappointed that it was toward the slower end.  I picked up my pace for my second pace mile- and was around 10:30 at .91 miles, but stopped to get a rock out of my sock.  That apparently cost me, resulting in a 10:44 lap.  So I tried to be just a little faster for the third pace mile and was.  Just to make sure it wasn't a fluke (and because I was still a ways from home) I continued at that pace for another .44 miles, comfortably.  Then I jogged/walked the rest of the way home (.46 miles).

Today was my rest day since I ran on my originally scheduled rest day (Friday was too nice NOT to!).  That's a good thing because today was back in the 40s and super windy (like, wind advisory-windy. Like, people's Christmas trees that are out at the curb and haven't been picked up yet getting blown into the street-windy).

Tomorrow (Sunday) will be my long run.
Hope everyone's having a good weekend!

PS,
I added the Daily Mile widget to my page.
Experimenting with syncing Garmin & Daily Mile.  It bugs me that it shows total mileage, because I used it for a little while last year -- then stopped using it until now, so it is inaccurate.  Then, when I connected my Garmin, it only uploaded since mid-January, not all the way back to the beginning of January.  Oh well.

Ski Preparations and a Pace Run

The previously mentioned friend's big 3-0 birthday celebration did not pan out for tonight.

So I thought I might be able to go to boot camp!  But I had to stop at the grocery store after work to pick up some necessities for our weekend trip:

Just a couple things.  

• Like a loaf of wheat bread
• some fluff
• some PB (already had that)
• apples
• bananas
• dried apricots
• dried mangoes
• Cheez-Its
• Kashi TLC Dark Chocolate and Cherry granola bars 
• Delicious car food like Peanut M&Ms, Swedish Fish, and Sour Patch Kids
• And a 6 pack of Saranac's Adirondack Trail Mix

We like to bring our own lunch for skiing, it's a lot cheaper than buying food at the ski lodge.  The PB and Fluff sandwiches While Skiing tradition began on my husband's and my first big ski trip together to Stowe during freshman year of college.  Somehow it has stuck.  Since breakfast is on the hotel, and lunch/snacks will be cheap, we'll go out for dinner.

I didn't get back from the store in time to make it to boot camp.  But it's probably a good thing, because tonight was going to focus on legs and maybe I don't want to over do it a day and a half before I ski.

This delightful package was waiting for me at home though!

It's my next pair of running shoes!  And a Camelbak insulated water bottle with a hand strap.  More on that later though (after this weekend, probably). 

After I ripped open my package like a Christmas present, I did get in a 3 mile pace run.  Outside.  It was 7pm, so... dark, and 23F.  I wore my headlamp, I was on ice-patrol.

Warm Up: .75 miles @ 11:00 pace.  Half of which was up the big hill behind my apartment.

Tempo:  Goal was 10:23-10:42 pace.  

Based on my goal half marathon time of 2:16-2:20 (I'd love for it to be closer to 2:16 or even less!)

Mile 1: 10:10!

Mile 2: 10:20

Mile 3: 10:23

Cool Down: .55 miles @ 11:37 pace (last .10 was walking).

Total: 4.31 miles in 45:38.  

Average pace: 10:36.

Apparently I had lots of energy despite last night's spinning and tempo run.  I was afraid I wasn't going to be able to maintain the pace for 3 miles since it was outside, and outside is still icy.  I was amazed at my first mile, I actually was closer to 10:00 at the beginning and had to slow it down.  I assume it defeats the purpose of the pace run if I run it too fast.  (Unless my training goes super awesome and I think I can up my pace more than I thought??? It might be too early to make that determination).

So I slowed it down some more for miles 2 and 3, to be closer to the pace I should have been running.  Mile 3 I was more like 10:15ish until I hit a seriously uncleared section of sidewalk that had become packed snow/ice with lots of uneven footprints in it and had to slow down so I didn't break my ankle.  Then since the ice section had brought my pace for that mile down to around 10:30ish, I REALLY sped up for the last .10 of the mile to make up for it.

I was pretty pleased with myself!  I was happy to easily hit the low end of my goal range. 

I came home to find the pup had un-made the bed for us.

Tomorrow, I'm off to Killington, VT to ski!  Where I will wear my special helmet.

(Stowe, VT - 12/31/09)

I'll try to at least post a couple pictures on here or through twitter over the weekend.  Otherwise, I'll be back to the blog after the weekend!

Recap: Training Week 3

Recap of Week 3/12 of Half Marathon Training

The Hal Higdon plan my training plan is based on allowed for some smaller races along the course of the training.  Today, the plan called for a 5k; and I had no 5k to run this weekend.  I instead moved my Wednesday speedwork (postponed due to weather) to Friday, and ran my 3 mile pace run (that I missed last week) today.

3  1/24-1/30

Spin  +abs

3.5 mi  easy

6 x 400   @5k pace

Boot   Camp

Rest

Rest

5k?

Monday:

• 1 hour of Spinning + 
• 50 crunches, 50 oblique crunches, 25 bicycle crunches

Tuesday: 2.85 mi easy treadmill run

Wednesday:  1.5 mile thundersnow walk w/pup and hubs

Thursday:

• 1.85 mile romp through the snow w/pup and hubs + 
• cleaned 12" of heavy wet snow off the cars (and out from underneath the cars) +
• OnDemand Jillian Michaels' 6 week 6 pack part 1 (40 min) + 
• 20 tricep pushups (on knees) + 20 chest pushups (10 on knees, 10 on toes) + 1:15 minute plank

Friday:  3.54 mi run outside (6 x hills workout)

Sunday: 4.94 mi pace run incl. warm up and cool down

Speaking of my pace run, it was 38 and sunny out yesterday!  There's still snow everywhere, but I was set on running outside.

I wore some of my favorites: my Lululemon Run: Energy Pullover, with just a tank underneath, my Lululemon Dash Crop & Baseball cap (because of the sun!).  I started off with gloves, but realized I didn't need them about 2 miles in.

As I wrote before, my target half marathon pace is somewhere in the 10:23-10:41 range, preferably at the lower end of the range, of course.

Warm up was a full mile at an 11:37 pace.

My 3 miles were at 10:30, 10:41, 10:17 paces.

And I was feeling good, so I kept up the pace tempo for another .45 miles (10:12) (apparently a little too good).

Cool down was .49 miles at a 12:32 pace, ending with a little walking.

I'm actually pretty pleased that my HR stayed mostly around 170 until about 2/3 of the way through, but that's also about when I picked up the pace.

4.94 miles, 53:27, Avg HR 172.

First pace run

This afternoon was a balmy 37F. Overcast, with light wind.
Today I was supposed to do a 3 mile pace run with a warm up and cool down. [pace run = half marathon pace]

I decided that while training for this half marathon, I will work more with a range of paces than a specific pace.  Previously I'd stress a little if I didn't hit, say, a 9:46 pace for an interval.  For a non-elite like myself, how likely am I to hit a specific time anyway.

Basically, my goal is a sub 2:20 half...
2:20 half = pace of 10:41.
2:18 half = pace of 10:32.
2:16 half = pace of 10:23.

So for my pace runs, my target range is between 10:23 and 10:41.
I think this will allow me some flexibility.  Later on in my training, I can figure out where in the range I have tended to fall and I can hopefully have a better idea of a realistic time as my training closes in on April 2nd.

Back to today.

This morning's breakfast, made for me by the hubby:

We only had one egg left. But we had a container of egg whites.  So it was a mix of 1 egg + egg whites for 2 breakfast sandwiches.  We didn't have a large selection of veggies in our fridge (cauliflower or carrots don't work on a breakfast sandwich) or any meat to put on this, so hubby cooked up some onions in the best basting oil ever. Plus some shredded cheddar cheese. All on a whole wheat English muffin.  With some fresh pineapple.

After trying to work on the Friday WSJ crossword puzzle and farting around on the internet for too long, I put on my running clothes and prepared myself for a 3 mile pace run.

I warmed up by walking a package to the post office, only to find the lobby had already closed and my box did not fit in the blue drop box.  So I walked it back to my apartment and left the package and set out jogging for the rest of my warm up.

Warm Up: .6 mi. - 9:12 (15:19 pace) Stopped for a quick stretch.
First Lap: 1 mile - 10:34
Second Lap: 1 mile - 10:16
Third Lap: 1 mile - 10:29
Cool Down: .49 mi. - 6:18 (13:00 pace)

Totals: 4.09 miles in 46:52, avg pace: 11:28, avg HR: 169.

{click to enlarge}

Note, my run was not entirely flat.  Neither is my half marathon course though.

I must admit...the first mile (after the warm up) felt a little rough as it began with a decent incline.

Then the wind hit me as I approached the top of the hill.

I started thinking of excuses for why I could maybe walk for a little bit once I made it through the first mile. Then I thought about how I would have to report back on my blog about what really happened on my run, if I gave up on a short 3 mile run. I encountered some un-shoveled and icy sidewalk and began telling myself there was no way I could run at the speed I wanted to without falling on my butt. I was starting to question whether I even had a realistic goal time for this upcoming half marathon. 

ALL BEFORE I GOT TO THE END OF MY FIRST MILE.

What's my deal!? I don't know why I was being such a wimp and so down on myself, but after I hit the first mile at 10:34 I gained a little confidence.  I talked myself out of a walk break. and kept running. I entered a nearby park that was mostly clear, with occasional packed snow sections.  I thought I should take my effort up a notch to compensate for the extra resistance from the snow and ice. And I banged out a 10:16 mile!  Third mile was at a 10:29 pace, then I slowed down to a jog and finally a walk for my cool down.

Anyway, it ended fine.  I can do it.  And I need to toughen up!

I had a buddy while I wrote this post.

I don't know what's up, but lately I've been her bff.  We'rethisclose.  She wants to be on me.  I think I'm ok with that; she's warm.

Dinner was a Curry Cauliflower and Beans Soup, recipe from Wegmans. Will post on that tomorrow.