Gluten Free Living and Bento Lunches

This will be a bit long but contains many pictures so hopefully it isn’t too wordy.

A while back, I realized that just ‘working out’ or thinking about working out, wasn’t going to cut it, I had to change my eating habits as well. Like many Americans, I don’t pay all that much attention when I cram food in m’gob. I may have a brief moment where I realize that what I’m eating is tasty, but I’m more likely going to realize when it isn’t. I can’t always guarantee that it’s nice and balanced in both items and colors (because color is important beyond just looking good). The first step was going gluten free just over a year ago. I was always getting sick with sinus issues, feeling worn out despite sleeping enough, not to mention the odd digestive issue here and there – ahem. Doing a little reading I started to realize that many of my symptoms matched those of someone with a slight allergy to gluten. I decided to slowly start to remove the gluten from my diet as a test. The more I removed, the better I felt. I’d partially done a gluten free diet several years back but not with any effort. It was too tough back then, there weren’t nearly as many gluten free products on the market as there are now. I’d like to note that I never had any testing done and don’t think that simply eliminating gluten from my diet was a ‘cure’, I just know it helps. At the same time I started to look at what I was putting in my body. I began to buy more organic foods and also started looking into what vitamin/mineral supplements I may want to take.

Things were going well, I was feeling better, but I still felt I could do more. Along came bentos. Just in case you don’t click on the link (but I think you should).. bento simply means ‘boxed lunch’ or ‘boxed meal’ in Japan. You can get them at the convenience store (much like ours have evil gas station hot dogs or burritos – only this is better for you), train stations, etc, or you can make your own. Since I really only have the ‘make your own’ option, I began to look into how that would work. My first efforts were… interesting to say the least, and I quickly realized that my idea of portions was off when I was actually consciously eating. So, what all’s there… I figured I would snack on this throughout the day as I brought it to a class but that didn’t happen. At lunch I was faced with a cut up sausage, rice, carrots, strawberries, grapes, and a tomato/motz salad. Ack! Talk about food overload. I would have been fine with just the sausage and grapes to be honest. I kind of remember eating as much as I could and then snacking in the afternoon. I did the same thing (minus the side salad) the next day of the two day class. It was still too much food. But it was full of color, fruit, and veg so I felt good about that at least. And the strawberries were so pretty!  The only ‘Asian’ thing is the rice in this case…

 

Next, I thought I’d try falafel and salad.. with strawberries and carrots again lol…

This also wound up being too much food and I had the leftover falafel for my afternoon snack.. but it was closer!

 

Ok, so then I was home sick one day and thought I should try and make carrot flowers… turns out, easier than I expected. I just took the sharp point of a bottle/can opener and ran it down the length of the carrot, turned the carrot, and repeated. After all that, I just cut the carrot into slices. Worked a treat! I also used some mini leaf dough cutters to cut the cheese into shapes. With that, I had a lovely spring salad. This actually turned out to be just the right amount of food and was quite satisfying.

    

 

 

 

 

It was time for class again…and I figured I would plan better this time. Here’s what I had for those two days.. rice with miso and carrot flowers, roasted chicken, grapes, and a veg or two. Was just the right amount of food.. I was starting to get it!

 

Next up was sesame carrot shreds on rice with chicken salad, Asian style veggies, and some yellow tomatoes. The tomatoes became the afternoon snack this time around.

Recently I wanted to try making a tamagoyaki or a Japanese sweet omelet… they’re tricky and involve a little bit of patience.. not something one usually has in the morning while making lunch. However.. I somehow managed! See? Didn’t it come out oh so nicely? I had it with a chicken/veggie stir fry of sorts, grapes, and cashews and the whole thing was yummy.

Since then I’ve just done a basic fried rice bento… all of my baking cups were in use after I made muffins. Those things are really amazing by the way, highly recommend them!

As you can see, I’ve come quite a way from my first attempts. It’s really not as tough as I thought it was going to be. A lot of the prep work can be done in advance, rice can be frozen in portions, etc. Hopefully some of you kept going if only to look at the pictures of this very long entry. The idea was to blog about each bento on its own but I got way behind and wound up with this. So, now, I’m caught up and can start fresh come Monday morning with new pictures. Maybe I’ll marinate some white fish in miso/wine/soy sauce again… it’s quite good!

I did it!

So, I did the 5k a couple weeks ago… it was long, hard, and amazingly beautiful. I then slept for around 19 hours. Lessons learned, don’t do a 5k without really being prepared and fighting off a nasty cold. I had a couple goals – finish, and finish in under an hour – and I met both, yay! The course started at America the Beautiful Park here in the Springs, wound down along the Santa Fe Trail/Pikes Peak Greenway a while, and then doubled back on itself. Before the race started I was rather nervous and feeling shy. Most people there had others they were doing the even with or they had done it before and knew people, etc. I on the other hand, knew no one, and my parents were MIA. They had planned to be there around 8 as the race started at 8:30, but they wound up being there around 8:20 instead which didn’t leave much time. I got at the back of the group, which might not have been the best spot but it worked out fine after some people avoiding. The runners and walkers were all clustered together, starting at the same time, rather than starting the runners and then the walkers (the event was either a 5k run or a 3k walk). I jogged out with the runners and discovered that my legs were in no way ready for that, but it looked good until I was out of sight lol. I then spent most of the time walking, trying to jog now and then. I wasn’t last until a couple women walkers, and a couple women with jogging strollers, passed me. No bother, I was there to finish not to try and out pace anyone else, so I kept going… and going, and going, and, are we done yet? I had programmed my mp3 player the night before with an up beat, inspiring new playlist.. and yet it wasn’t playing any of those songs. But, at least I had tunes, so I kept going still. I was able to admire the lovely scenery as I went along, lush green trees, the running stream to one side, sun breaking through now and then. I can almost feel sorry for the guy who finished the race in 16 mins, almost. My boss was right about one thing though, treadmills are no where close to the real thing. I was really moved towards the halfway point when several women who were already heading back took a moment to encourage me as they passed, either giving me a thumbs up and a smile or saying something like ‘Almost halfway there!’ I think they could tell that I wasn’t in the best shape mentally, emotionally, physically, etc, at that point. It gave me the push I needed though to keep trudging along. Due to having such a quick start (mostly for show I might add), I was walking slower than I normally would. My calves/shins were screaming at me, I needed water, had to pee, and was pretty miserable. So, thank you to the mystery women, I hope I can do the same for someone in my place one day!

At the halfway point they had a table of kids handing out cups of water (they needed smaller cups and a trash bin) which was much appreciated as my water was back in the car. Around the little orange halfway cone I went and started back. There were a couple of women walking along behind me and that gave me a little boost, at least I wouldn’t be the very last one out of the woods. I know, I have said that I wasn’t in it to out pace anyone, but at that point, I needed the boost. The way back seemed to take less time than the way out had, I think because I had some water and knew it was almost done, I was able to walk faster. At one point, I got fed up with my mp3 player and checked things out. Turns out I had selected the wrong playlist. Once I fixed that I had even more oomph to keep going. Around this point I also had several teary moments with myself. Aside from karate back in high school, I’ve never been the most athletic person. Sure, I used to do yoga and water aerobics, but they are a far cry from the aerobic shape one needs to be in to do runs. Keeping that in mind, I was quite proud of myself for no only signing up, but for being nearly finished with my first 5k. I was doing it! When I got to the bridge to head back to the park I saw my mom standing there with a big smile on her face… though I think part of that was relief that I wasn’t lost on the trail somewhere, injured. She cheered me on, encouraging me to jog a bit. After I rounded the bend where the 3k folks headed to the picnic area, I broke out into a jog/run towards the finish. My dad was positioned about halfway across the field (he got a good shot of me jogging, will post that one and a few others in another entry later). Once I got to my dad he also cheered for me and even jogged a little bit with me but let me cross the line on my own. The pads beeped to let me know the chip had registered my time, the guy there cut the zip-tie holding it to my shoe, and that was it, I was done. And I felt great! I was tired, and thirsty, but felt great. I had done it, I had finished, and the time on the clock was 56:01, I’d done it in under an hour. First thing I said when my dad came to give me a hug was, “There’s less than an hour on the clock!” I downed a bottle of water, hung out while they did door prizes (I didn’t win one), and then headed home for lunch. As I finished lunch and my movie, a migraine set in and knocked me out for the rest of the day. I fell asleep around 3, woke up briefly when mom called, fed the cats, and then I was out again until 8am the next day. I was up long enough to feed the cats and myself, and then back to bed until around 10:30. My body had shut down. I was sweating but had a low temp, didn’t think I could keep anything down, couldn’t shake the headache, and was very tired. I have poor circulation and when I do long walks my hands and feet tend to swell as it gets things moving. They were very swollen after the 5k and I think that the activity while sick, combined with anything that was stuck in my lymph system moving around, just caused a shut down and reboot. The next day my computer went nuts too. One reason I haven’t updated since the race is the computer has been in the shop, aka, Dad was fixing it.

So, despite how rough it was, and despite my body shutting down after that, when I’m asked if I’ll ever do another one, without pausing to think I answer, “Definitely!”

I plan to do lots of walking for a couple months, then start to increase the distance so I’m walking a 5k each time, and then work on jogging. Goal for next year’s is to do it in around 45 mins. Mom said she may sign up for the 3k walk too which would be fun. The race was for an awesome cause and the event coordinators are all awesome friendly people. So, there’s a recap of my first 5k. Was it what I expected? No. Did I train enough before it. No. Did I have a great time. Yes, despite being miserable! Will I do it again? Yes!!

Joy!

I decided to try something new at the gym since I had my brace, mp3 player, water bottle, etc… I did a 5:1 walk:jog workout. And it worked! The first jog minute was really tough, my body mostly saying ‘What are you trying to do to me??’ Each consecutive jog minute got easier and I found myself having to not push it and just keep going with ‘the plan’. Towards the end I found myself actually smiling as I was jogging. I didn’t want to look like an idiot but I smiled anyway because I was thrilled. Thrilled I tell ya! Aaaand then the weekend happened. I spent Saturday dealing with car dealerships, and Sunday feeling like crud so I felt it best to rest. This of course threw a kink in the works. The pattern continued, yesterday I spent the evening emptying out the old car in preparation for returning it to the dealer (lease vehicle) and tonight was spent signing paper work on the old car, still feeling mildly crummy. So, tomorrow’s plan, back to the gym! I’m hoping for a repeat of the ‘joy jog’. We’ll see, I’m pretty sore and allergies are being mean. If nothing else, I’ll at least bike it for 30 tomorrow just to keep active.

Couple more days of the 5:1 and I’m going to change to 4:2 and so on… Don’t have the weeks/days to get all the way to all jogging, but will come close before the 5k.

 

All Aspects

There’s been a lot going on in the World of Monica lately. As I’ve been changing, so have the relationships in my life. Ones that no longer serve where I’m going have begun to fade away, while those that support what’s happening, have been growing stronger. It’s interesting to see. Also noticed that while I’m still a little bothered by the fading, I’m more ok with it now than I have been in the past. Guess I’m growing stronger in more than just the physical.

 

So last we met, I was going to test a new knee brace… it works! Now I just need to train my lungs and continue to stretch often… which is what I’m doing as I type this.

I’ve been reading some pretty inspiring things lately. Just finished Born to Run and am now reading Goddess to the Core. Both books have shown me that, yes, I can do whatever because the ability and strength are there, they’ve just been ignored or pushed aside because of something I was told. I’m starting to see little improvements as just improvements rather than ‘not quite what I wanted’ improvements. Every little bit will eventually stack up to a healthy person.

 

When I started this, I expected to get healthier. I hoped to get healthier not just physically but emotionally, mentally, spiritually, etc… I started to focus strictly on the physical however and hit road blocks all over the place. Things are slipping into alignment now that I’ve started to explore other aspects of my well being. I’m eating better, being active even if it means some yoga instead of a walk/jog, I’m bringing my spiritual side back into things, and I’m stepping back into my power. Now and then I just sit back, look at myself, and giggle at what I see.

 

This weekend is a Reiki Retreat that my spiritual sister and I have put together for some of the lovely women in our lives. I’m hoping to work some physical activity into our spiritual weekend for that balance. I know a couple of them will be all for it, and one may even have a few things she can share, she is a personal trainer after all!

Family, braces, and barefeet

A member of my family (GE) has a habit of picking on my health whenever said family member is around another member of the family (GW). That situation came to pass this past weekend. It was a holiday so the family got together and at some point it turned to talk about my health and weight. Over the years I’ve developed ways to fend off the attacks. GW didn’t have much to say this time thankfully. I really didn’t want to fend off a dual attack, not on what was to that point, a good day. GE started in on my weight and how I needed to loose weight if I wanted to reach old age. With a statement like that, one would think I was a big beach ball. I don’t deny that I’ve got excess baggage, but I’m healthy overall. My numbers at the doc, other than the scale, are good. This was after I got a lecture for adding salt to my food. I don’t eat many premade products, so I don’t get much salt in my diet if I don’t add it. Normally, this wouldn’t be much of an issue on any front. Once my blood pressure is taken into consideration however, this begins to be an issue. If I don’t add salt to my food my BP can get so low that I tend to just be a lump on the sofa. Having low BP and somewhat poor circulation isn’t a spiffy place to be. So, I salt. That hurdle overcome, it was time to take on the next issue, weight. GE picked on my arms and face, saying they were indicators I was overweight. I pointed out that I got their lack of chin, and mom piped in saying she had as well. My chin is starting to be more prominent but it won’t get a whole lot more visible as I get thinner because it’s small, and this is after I had dental appliances to lengthen my jaw as a kid. Yes, it used to be worse. I then mentioned that I’m going to run a 5k in August. I expected that statement to make GE happy. I’m working towards a goal, towards something that will be an achievement and improved health. Instead, it was met with sort of a scoff and ‘How long can you run now?’ … innocent enough question, until you add tonality to it. I could tell GE wasn’t impressed with my statement. Almost like they didn’t believe it would happen. Another family member stepped in and actually sounded interested in it.

 

I’m not sure what brought the whole thing on, aside from another family member gaining a considerable amount of weight recently and GE being upset at that. I had to keep telling myself that I’m doing this for myself, not for them, not for those who doubt. I won’t deny it though, I am looking forward to hearing them shut up about things at some point.

 

Bought a new brace for my knee today. I tested it out a little bit earlier today, feels like it’ll do the job nicely. I’ve also been reading Born to Run, it’s both inspiring and rather interesting. I’m not sure how much of it I can apply to things, though I may start doing some barefoot walks now and then. Being barefoot is something I’ve always enjoyed and was often running around without shoes as a kid.

 

So the plan for tomorrow after work, hit the park or the gym, depending on the temp, and test out the new brace.

Motivation

First, a reminder… drink plenty of water! Yes, it’s a little goofy, but I took the picture to prove to Woobie that I was drinking my water today.

 

 

Things I didn’t want to do today:

• Wake up on time
• Go to work
• Go to the gym

Things I did today:

• Got out of bed mostly on time
• Went to work (was actually a pretty good day)
• Went to the gym

After dealing with mild stomach cramps, a long day at work, and allergies, I really didn’t want to go to the gym after work today… especially since I was there until 5pm. I considered going for a walk down by the creek but it was just too hot out there. I was going to claim ‘Gotta clean, can’t hit gym’ but just before leaving work I found my sansa cases and armbands had come. That was all I needed to get my butt to the gym. New toy time! So, was the trip to the gym worth it? Sure was. Did some elliptical, then weights and stretching. I may have overdone a little on the stomach twisty thing I did, back popped quite a bit, which felt good but the stress might not have been that great for my already taxed lower back.

 

Motivation can sometimes be something that is just outside out grasp, taunting us with its nearness. So, where does one find it? As I mentioned earlier, it was a new toy for me today. Sometimes it can be a buddy to go work out with. The problem with that, gotta find a buddy that is really into it and will motivate you. If you both blow it off, no one gets motivated, and that sort of defeats the purpose. So, what about a reward system? Have to be careful with this one. Most of us have the mindset of ‘I did good.. gimmie cookie!’ thanks to childhood. Sure, we also got gold stars, cute pencils, time with a special toy, but more often than not, it was an edible treat. New clothes are always a nice option, but when you’re working out, you sort of have to wait on needing smaller clothing. Pair of shoes? That can get dangerous and expensive. You could give yourself gold stars, to add up to something, but that kind of works better when someone else keeps track of it unless you have some killer determination. Then again, when you have killer determination, you tend to not really need a motivator. For some people, a combo of motivational tools is necessary. This blog post sets things out in a nice easy to follow pattern that is far better than my mind dump ramble.

 

As I’ve been writing this, I’ve been chuckling to myself. See, the whole reason I’m going through all of this, and pushing myself, etc, is because I’ve signed up for a 5k in August. If you read Leo’s post, number 22 is to sign up for a race. Even that knowledge wasn’t really enough to make me feel good about going to the gym today. I kept saying in my head, I’ve got plenty of time to train, no worries. I know better than that with the shape I’m in aerobically. I’ve never been all that great in that department. Weights, sure, aerobics, not so much.

Time to change that :D

 

In other news, my knees seem to be behaving after working out today. Yay!

 

This is a two picture post btw… here’s a post-workout picture.

Knees at it again

So it was mildly crazy at work yesterday and I happened to wear pretty tall heels. Now this would normally not be much of an issue, but with the heat my feet were a wee bit swollen which caused issues to begin with. Add to that my rapid pace of movement. What did this oh so lovely combo cause? Gold star to those who said ‘knee pain’! Feels like the knee cap isn’t quite in place, like it needs to pop or something or like something’s pulling funny. Add to that the head pain I’m dealing with either from allergies, being dehydrated, or who knows what and I want to curl up and wait things out. Instead I’m trying to stretch things out and relax a bit in the hopes that things get back to livable.

 

Through all this I have come to a few conclusions, one of them being, I miss ritual. I used to do quite a bit of meditation, etc. Somewhere along the way that all fell aside. I belong to a local liberal church but that isn’t doing it lately. Theory I’m playing with is that if I add that sort of activity back in, I’ll be able to .. I don’t know. It’s something to play with.