Workouts: January 30 – February 4

Here are my workouts for the week. No hot yoga, as PAI is building an addition for their studio, so hot yoga is cancelled until the new part opens in mid-february. Elbow didn't feel great by the end of the week, but nothing that a little rest can't handle. I can already feel some flexibility coming back from doing yoga twice a week for a couple of weeks.

Monday:

1 mile jog

WOD: 5 rounds; 7x jump squats, 14x pushups, 21 double-unders (jump rope)

Volleyball: Women’s Power League (we lost)

Progress: I did 3 double unders in a row a few times! Since I can’t do 21 double-unders in a row, I was just jumping 50 times and then trying to do a few double-unders for each set.

Lesson learned: Just because I can eek out 70 pushups, doesn’t mean it’s a good idea for my elbow. My forearm near my elbow is a little sore, so I probably shouldn’t do any more pushups this week, especially if I do yoga.

Tuesday:

Noon Spinning at Capital Club – this class sucked. Terrible music and the instructor didn’t seem to realize how high she was telling us to gear – and then sprint (she wasn’t spinning with us)

Yoga at Arena District Fitness – good class, my arms/shoulders were really sore before

Wednesday:

WOD: 100 Workout created by Lindsay from The Lean Green Bean, with some modifications:
100 squats with 10# medicine ball

90 reverse squats (45 each leg)

80 single leg dead lifts (40 each leg)



70 mountain climbers

60 bridge lifts

50 calf raises with 10# medicine ball

40 plie squats with 10# medicine ball

30 skater lungers

20 knee to elbow in plank

10 burpees

Thursday:

Noon Spinning at Capital Club, 5:30 Yoga at Capital Club

Friday:



My "workout mat" on friday



Abs exercises on office floor and hip/IT band exercises. I didn’t want to work out much because I’m quite sore, and I knew even if I went to the gym to do cardio, I would end up doing something more. Besides, 6 workouts this week is fine.

Pulled Pork Lettuce Wraps

I threw this dinner together one night with leftovers and it was so good.  The last time I made a pork loin, I cooked it in the crockpot and then shredded it and froze most of it.  A few weeks ago I pulled some out for a quick meal.  For the sauce, I used 1/2 bbq sauce and 1/2 homemade huli huli sauce (leftover from another night, recipe below).  I topped it with Spicy Slaw, pineapple chunks, and ate mine wrapped in lettuce leaves Lo had his on leftover hot dog buns.


Pulled Pork

pork roast or pork loin, trimmed of extra fat
1/4 cup water
liquid smoke, if you have it
spice rub of your choice or just a few shakes of seasonings

Add pork to crock, pour water in the bottom, drizzle with a few shakes of liquid smoke, and spread spices on meat.  Cook 8 hours on low or 4-5 on high, until meat shreds easily.

Spicy Slaw

1 head of cabbage (or packaged slaw mix), shredded or cut as thin as you can
handful of shredded carrots
1 tablespoon of GF soy sauce or tamari
2 tablespoons of seasoned rice wine vinegar
salt and pepper
squirt of sriracha sauce or a few shakes of red pepper flakes

Homemade Huli Huli Sauce

1/3 cup ketchup
1/3 cup gluten free soy sauce or tamari
1/2 cup brown sugar
3 tablespoons sherry or pineapple juice
1 piece ginger root (about an inch), crushed
1 clove garlic, crushed
squirt of sriracha sauce or shakes of red pepper flakes


Combine ketchup, soy sauce, brown sugar, sherry, ginger root, and garlic. Stir well.

100 Workout

On Wednesday I wanted to do a leg-heavy workout that would be a little more dynamic than the ones from the WOD Shop website.  I generated ten or so WOD's from that would be good to do at the gym on my lunch hour and typed them into a note in my phone.  I wear my phone in an armband, so I can look at the note easily while working out.  I've also added a few from blogs that I thought would be good options and decided to do this 100 workout that Lindsay from The Lean Green Bean came up with.

Most of my other WOD's have lots of pushups or burpees, and I really needed to limit those because I did too many pushups last week and Monday and my "bad" elbow was getting sore (when will I learn limits!!).  I definitely don't want to get back to the point where I can't use it again since it took SO long to heal, and I wanted to do yoga twice this week, which was going to be pushing it anyway.  I changed her workout slightly because I didn't want to hold much weight with my arm, and I subbed out the 10 pushups for 10 burpees because keeping my elbow straight isn't painful.  Below is my adaptation - click here for Lindsay's original workout (it's towards the bottom of her post). 

100 squats with 10# medicine ball
90 reverse squats (45 each leg)
80 single leg dead lifts (40 each leg)
70 mountain climbers
60 bridge lifts
50 calf raises with 10# medicine ball
40 plie squats with 10# medicine ball
30 skater lungers
20 knee to elbow in plank
10 burpees

I was already a little sore from spinning and yoga the day before, so the next day after this workout I was REALLY sore - just in time for more spinning and yoga.

Gluten Free Buffalo Chicken Dip

Somehow this recipe never gets old.  And since the best dippers for it (tortilla chips and veggies) are gluten-free, it's a no brainer for a gathering.  Sorry for no pic - it's not that pretty of a dip, so I never thought to take a picture. 

Buffalo Chicken Dip

1 8 oz brick of cream cheese - I used the 1/3 less fat version
1/2 cup blue cheese dressing - I used reduced fat Kraft
1/3 to 1/2 cup Franks Red Hot Buffalo Wing Sauce, or to taste
1 1/2 cups preferred shredded cheese, divided (cheddar, monterey jack, whatever)
2 cups cooked, cubed (or shredded) chicken breast (can even used canned if in a pinch)
Bleu cheese, if desired (check for gluten- some brands ARE gf)
additional seasoning, if desired - I like garlic, red pepper flakes, and lots of pepper

I almost always make this in a small crockpot* and to be honest, I don't really measure anything.  I just dump everything in together (except some reserved cheese) and turn on the crock.  After things start to get melty, I stir it up to mix everything.  Grab a chip or a clean spoon and taste it - you may want to add more buffalo sauce or dressing.  Once it's all melted and mix and you're ready to serve, top it off with the extra cheese.  If you're adding bleu cheese, you can either stir it in when mixing, or add it to the top before serving. 
Serve with tortilla chips and celery and/or carrots.  Even people who don't think they really like bleu cheese like this. 

You can also make this in a baking dish.  Just mix up everything except the shredded cheese, spread in a pan, sprinkle cheese on top, and bake until heated through (30 minutes at 350 degrees)

Praline Crowned Brie

This is one of my favorite appetizers to take to a party or holiday. It goes great with wine. Trader Joe's usually has good prices on brie. Sometimes I just buy the wedge and use that instead of a round of brie - it doesn't look as fancy though. While the white rind is edible, it makes it harder to scoop, so I just carefully scrape most of the rind off of the top with a knife. If you leave the rind intact on the sides, it will hold the shape better (this only works with a round of brie).  If you have a big party to go to, Costco often sells a big round of brie for a really good price (like $10?).  It's never bad to have leftover brie.  Again, no pic on this one...I'll post one next time I make it. 

Praline-Crowned Brie

1 15-ounce round Brie cheese (I usually buy a wedge from Trader Joe's)
1/2 cup chopped pecans
1/4 cup packed brown sugar
1 tablespoon pure maple syrup

Place Brie on a pie plate, scrape white rind off top of round or wedge if desired. Cover with nuts. Pat brown sugar over nuts. Drizzle with maple syrup. Bake in a 350 degree F oven for 20 to 25 minutes or till sugar is lightly golden and Brie is warm, but not runny. If desired, garnish with some fresh strawberries. Serve the warm Brie immediately with GF crackers or GF bread slices. Makes 10 to 12 servings.

Peanut Butter and Oatmeal No Bakes

Peanut Butter and Oatmeal No Bakes

I like to think of these cookies as "Cafeteria Cookies" because they were a staple at our school.  It always surprises me when people say have never had these (or seen these) before.  They are simple, delicious, and gluten-free (if you use GF oats).  I added M&M's, because I seem to be doing that to recipes lately - and I never said these were healthy.

Peanut Butter and Oatmeal No Bake Cookies

2 cups granulated sugar
1/4 cup butter
1/2 cup milk (any type is fine)
3 cups old fashioned oatmeal
3/4 cup smooth peanut butter

1 teaspoon vanilla

1/2 cup M&M's

In a saucepan, bring sugar, butter, and milk to a boil.  Allow to boil for 3 minutes, stirring occasionally.  Remove from heat and stir in vanilla, peanut butter and oatmeal.  Carefully stir in M&M's, if using. Drop by spoonfuls on to waxed paper. Allow to cool - they will harden as they cool.  

*another recipe called for 1/2 cup butter and 1/2 cup peanut butter (total of 1 cup for pb and butter), so you can probably do either. 

Wondering why the M&M's are sorted?  I had a bag of Christmas M&M's and I didn't want it to be obvious that they were from Christmas, so I sorted them and planned to use them in separate recipes. 

Steel Cut Oatmeal and Fruit Bake

Steel Cut Oat Bake

I had a whole container of steel cut oats that I found when I cleaned out the pantry that I wanted to use.  Steel cut oats take much longer to cook than regular oatmeal and they are made on the stovetop, so I certainly wasn't going to make them each morning.  I figured the easiest way to prepare them would be in an oatmeal bake.  That way I could just scoop out portions into containers and take them into work each morning.  There are a few recipes floating around the web for this type of bake, but none looked particularly good to me (or included strawberries that I need to use up).  Oats that aren't certified gluten free can cause reaction with people with gluten allergies as studies show that they are easily cross-contaminated.  I usually use gluten-free oats, but these were bought well before I knew about my allergy.  I didn't have a reaction to these, but if you're concerned, you should use certified GF oats.  Sorry for the ugly pic - I'll take a better one next time.

Steel Cut Oat and Fruit Bake

2 cups steel cut oats (mine were from Trader Joes)
4 cups milk (non-dairy is fine)
1 cup sliced strawberries
1 banana
1 cup fresh or frozen cranberries (or blueberries)
handful of dried fruit
1 t. baking powder
2 T. maple syrup
1 t. vanilla
sprinkle of cinnamon
pinch of salt

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Pour 2 cups of boiling water over the oats and let soak for 10-20 minutes to soften.  Drain.  Stir together all ingredients and pour into a greased 9x13 baking dish.  Bake for 50 minutes.  Allow to cool and portion into containers.  In the morning, I just pour a little milk over my oats and microwave for 30-45 seconds (I don't like my food very hot).

Next time I'm going to stir in some eggs or egg whites to add some protein.