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Fitness Friday: Backpacking

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Neil and I are heading out on a grand adventure this weekend. We will be heading out to the great outdoors with just the shoes on our feet and the packs on our back for ONE whole night. I know it’s a big deal, haha. Anyways we are heading out on our first ever backpacking trip. Now we have done our far share of hiking which you can read about here, here, here, and here.

Last night was spent preparing everything to do this trip and it’s pretty crazy everything that you need to bring; okay if you are hardcore you can probably do with less but well I’m not.  So here is backpacking for two:

Our Gear: His and Hers Backpacks, Sleeping Bags, "Pillows", Bladders, Polls and Sleeping Mats

FOOD!

Dinner and Lunch: Backpackers Pantry sent me the Katmandu Curry to try and we decided to pick up a Pad Thai for lunch. Will report back...

Snacks: Triscuits, Newton Fruit Things From Foodbuzz Tastemakers, Dates, Primal Strips (these might be a little old)

Drinks: Water Purifying Drops, Amazing Grass (need our greens) and YogaEarth pre and post workout drink mixes

Energy Foods: Clif Shots, Shot Blocks (Margarita my favorite) and Sweet Wheat wheatgrass

Breakfast: Oatmeal, Goji Berries, Chia Seeds and Peanut Butter

Cooking Supplies: Jetboil, Gas, Mugs (for the Via we haven't purchased yet), Bowls and Cutlery

Fire: Matches, Lighter, Fire Starter and Camp Fire Starter Blocks

Tools: Multi Tool, Knife, Spade (so you can bury your....), Compass

First Aid Kits

Trail Maps and Books

Lights and Cameras (not pictured): Headlamps and yes that is a Farm Sanctuary Pig Flash Light

Sunscreen and Insect Repellent

Clothing: Day 1&2 Outfit (same just change of unmentionables and socks) and Camping Outfit

Other necessary items: Trail Shoes, Rain Jacket, Hat, Sandals (for when we get to camp) and Knee Support

It looks like a lot of stuff eh? Well it is and yet with a few extra socks and a little a bit more food you could easily do 3-4 days with the same amount of stuff; it just looks crazy for one night. Anyways we are going to head out on our adventure tomorrow morning. I’ll catch you up on all the events on Sunday/Monday. Have a good weekend!

Coffee Daze

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Today the Hubz and I woke up early and headed down to Maglianero Cafe to get down to work on my long to do list.  I started with a slow drip Guatemalan coffee and the Hubz a Rooibos iced tea.  Both were really delicious.

I got down to work on a few freelance articles and the Hubz worked on my website before he headed out for a massage and my friend Laura met me for another coffee.  This time I got a soy cappuccino; I wasn’t a fan, I wish they would use something other than Eden Organic Soy Milk. The flavor of Eden Organic is a little off putting, it gets almost sour tasting- YUCK!

After coffee the Hubz and I headed home for lunch (salad with Gardein “chicken”, veggies and lemon dressing).  All of the coffee put me in a bit of a daze so I did a bit of power yoga to re-energize myself and was back t0 work for the remainder of the afternoon.  I finally stopped to make some dinner; a curry lentil pasta dish which I will post the recipe for tomorrow.

Now i’m back to work, once again.

Lastly, I just wanted to encourage you to read my Yoga Aid Challenge post and donate any products (gently used or new) or services to my auction to raise money for Off The Mat.

Does This Shirt Make Me Look Fast?

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This morning the Hubz and I had intended on getting up early to run before heading to Montpelier to watch Allie and Caitlin’s race but after a late night out at a concert we decided that a little extra sleep was a better idea.  Once we finally rolled out of bed we headed on our way but first we made a pit stop at a new coffee shop Maglianero Cafe for a coffee. This new coffee shop is really a beautiful place and it is bike friendly.  I got a hot drip coffee and the Hubz an iced coffee- both were amazingly delicious.

After our coffee we made our way to Montpelier just in time to see Allie and Caitlin at the first start of the race.  While we waited for them to make the loop back to the finish we headed to our favorite Capitol City Farmers Market to pick up some veggies and our favorite bookstore Bear Pond Books.  Around 9:30 am we headed to the race finish line and watched as runners began to arrive and waited to cheer on Allie and Caitlin.

At the start of their run (girls in pink)

Around 43 minutes I turned to Neil and said they’ll be here in 10 minutes, that’s my guess.  Well guess what- I WAS RIGHT ON! Allie and Caitlin turned the corner at 52 minutes and some seconds and they leaped across the finish line at 53 minutes.  They were really amazing and I am so proud.

Check out the shirts the girls made for the race:

and the back of Allie’s:

After the race we headed to The Skinny Pancake for crepes and to catch up.  Neil and I both got the Vegan Monster with mushrooms and salsa and topped with our favorite hot sauce.

Following brunch we headed to the Hunger Mountain Co-op to take a look but we didn’t pick up much just a yummy chocolate bar and coconut rolled dates for the Hubz.  When we were leaving I decided to take a peak at the sign up sheet for my Sugar Blues workshop next week and guess what? It was FULL- even the wait list is full!!! Squeal! Eeek! OMG! The pressure is on!

When we finally made it back to Burlington the Hubz and I took a look at the clock and decided we better head to the gym before it closed.  Today we decided to get a 250 meter swim in as well as our run.  I haven’t been feeling great, a little congested, so todays workout wasn’t the best on top of the fact that my legs were killing me from yesterdays squats and lunges. After our run we stopped in at Healthy Living for a smoothie and coconut water as well as some organic strawberries and organic apples. The Hubz and I shared a banana-peanut butter-flax-coconut smoothie and it was delicious.

Now it’s time for dinner, The Voice, foam rolling and relaxing with a movie. What are you up to this weekend?

Having a Wanderful Month

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Wow this has been a crazy month! I’ve been bogged down with a huge work event that has been dominating my life but now it is finally over (WAHOO!) and I can get back to normal.  That being said on top of my day job I also have my health coaching job which has really been doing amazing.  I have a few new clients and I have a bunch of workshops going on this summer; the first one is next week! In addition to working one-on-one with clients and doing workshops I am also working on setting up a few podcasts and other healthy living materials. I also am back at IIN doing the immersion program, which so far is wonderful.  I know things are sounding crazy already but they get crazier.

I recently was contacted by a friend who writes for Ecorazzi asking if I would be interested in attending and covering Wanderlust Vermont.  UMMMMM hello of course I would be! I have actually been talking about Wanderlust to my husband for months now and had been debating going so when I was approached to cover the event I jumped at the opportunity.  The Hubz is going to head down to Stratton with me so he can take advantage of the hiking and he will also be attending one day of Wanderlust, my anniversary gift to him.  So some of you are probably wondering what the heck is Wanderlust?

Wanderlust is a festival combining the holistic experience of a yoga getaway with the swagger of a rock show.
WHERE:
Stratton Mountain, Bondville, VT
WHEN:
June 23rd – 26th
WHO:
Talent includes regional bright lights and international stars, such as:

· Yoga instructors: John Friend, Seane Corn, Bryan Kest, Boston’s Amy Wren, New York’s Schuyler Grant, Elena Brower, Rodney Yee, Kristen Leigh & Barbara Verrochi plus dozens more
· Musical Talent: Michael Franti & Spearhead, Andrew Bird, Todd Boston, the Wailers, New York’s Krishna Das, Northampton’s Sonya Kitchell, and Brooklyn’s Sub Swara
· Theatrical Performers: Berkshire’s 1st  burlesque show Gypsy Lane, Vermont’s own Bread & Puppet (one of the oldest nonprofit theatrical companies in theUS), + Vermont Vaudeville
· Art Installations: Stratton resident Hugh Joudry
· Speakers: Deepak Chopra, with the support from theOmega Institute, will lead the speakeasy series

If you are attending Wanderlust Vermont let me know!

 

Among all of this chaos the Hubz and I are still going strong with our running and have some really S.M.A.R.T. goals around what we would like to do and achieve.  We are just finishing up C25K and we are going to then work on doing two 30 minute runs and one long run (starting at 2.5m and increasing by .5 until the race) per week until our 5k in July.  Following the 5k we are planning a 10k in September and will be using the Hal Higdon training plan; if we like his we will use it to train for our half as well.   In other active news the Hubz and I are gearing up  to do some backpacking on the Long Trail this summer which should be a lot of fun.  We had planned on doing an overnight trip this weekend but we might have to reschedule do to rain.  Do you hike? Are you into backpacking?

Lastly lets talk about food. I haven’t been doing much for cooking lately due to the crazy schedule I have had.  Most of our food has been pretty boring and basic like greens, beans and grains or salads, however this is all going to change soon! I have plans to start working on another e-book (probably won’t be looking for testers until August) and also working on some really great healthy recipes for the blog.

Well that is what’s going on with me- what is new and good with you?

Ethiopian Date Night

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Is the day really almost over?? I feel like I was unable to complete everything I had set out to do today.  I guess sometimes life sends you in a different direction than planned! Although I didn’t finish the dishes and I didn’t get a few health coaching projects and blog projects done that I had planned to I did get to spend time with a girl friend, spend over an hour picking out new running shoes and then the Hubz and I had a spontaneous date night.

Today we spent over an hour at Fleet Feet being fitted for the perfect pair of shoes for my feet I finally found a pair!  If you have never been fitted for shoes I really recommend that you do because I have spent the last year running/being active in a pair of shoes I chose myself and although they were nice they were just a little off. Once we finished shoe shopping the Hubz and I decided to have a spontaneous date night and take advantage of our (free-win!) Jump On It for Duino Duende.  Jump On It is similar to Groupon and if you share the deal and three others also buy it based on your reference you get it for free! Great deal right? We thought so!

We started our night off with a cocktail; Manhattan for me and a Gin Martini for the Hubz.  For our meal we both got the Tuesday night special the Ethiopian plate, which comes in vegetarian, omni and vegan.  I honestly can’t tell you everything that was on my plate but it included a split pea wat, misir wat, spicy sauce, salad, beets, kale and another item that was tasty but we have no idea what it was.

Everything was really delicious and I can’t wait to head back again for a Tuesday night date and Ethiopian food!  Additionally because of our late (for us) dinner we also were able to enjoy the live music that starts at 7pm at Radio Bean (connected cafe).

After dinner we picked up some cereal and bananas for breakfast tomorrow morning and then stopped into the garden to water our plants.  Now it’s time to sit back, relax and then head to bed to read a good book.

What are you reading right now? I am on the last book of The Girl With… series and I am going to need new suggestions! Let me know what I should be reading.

Running Around

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Good Morning Bloggies!

I know summer is (almost) finally here because I have been running around like a crazy person the past few days.  It’s a good run around though! The Hubz and I finally got our memberships at the YMCA and are looking forward to taking advantage of everything it has to offer.  Yesterday we both ran on the treadmill (even though it was beautiful out- fail) and this morning despite my desire to go to the gym early I chose to snuggle under the blankets with the Hubz and kitty instead; guess I’ll be heading there after work!

After the gym yesterday we came home and I made “pizzas” on sprouted grain tortillas and topped them with lots of garlic, portobello mushrooms, chilies, tomatoes, and dates.  Yes DATES! Such a good combination with everything, you should really try it on your next pizza.

After dinner we walked down to our garden plot and planted some red Russian & lacinato kale, astro arugula and cosmic purple carrots.  We are still discussing what other veggies we want to grow – what do you think we should grow? What are you growing in your garden this year?

After planting we headed home but first we stopped to watch the beautiful sunset over the lake- so pretty!

Today is going to be another busy day with work, meeting up with a girl-friend, gym, health coaching work, blogging and gardening tonight! To help fuel us through the day I made a batch of Isa’s Banana Flapjacks and topped with coconut, berries and maple syrup- DELICIOUS!

A Week In My Life

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Over the past few months I have had a number of requests for me to post more of my daily eats and life.  I have been really hesitant because honestly I am not sure that I can commit 100% to doing it due to how busy I am, however I’m going to give it a shot. For one week I am going to post daily eats and happenings.  After the week I’ll see how I am feeling about it and whether it is something that really interest you and go from there.  Now I won’t be doing three posts a day (unless I’m bored or suddenly my life gets really exciting.) Most of the time you can expect at least one daily wrap up and if I have time I will post late morning and then evening.  Of course all of this posting will be in addition to Weekly Recipes, Healthy Living and Fitness Friday Posts.  Okay so lets get started!

Last night the Hubz and I decided to take a tour of our local YMCA and got ourselves a 3 day pass to try it out.  We have really been debating joining a gym for years but when we were living in Montpelier I had a mini gym at work and the Hubz work (still) has a really nice gym at his work as well as workout classes and a tennis court (lucky, I know), so we never really needed to.  Before we moved last year we purchased an elliptical  and it is great but honestly I want to run, swim and have access to group classes.  Finally we looked into the Y and the prices for a couple are good especially with yoga, BodyPump, zumba and other classes and a really nice lap pool.  The gym overall is pretty basic with cardio equipment squeezed in next to each other; it also has free weights and weight machines but it fits both of our needs.  This morning we used our trial pass and the Hubz swam and I did C25k on the treadmill.  Overall I loved it.  It felt great to be working out at a gym and not at home, alone.  I think that for me a gym is a place you go to workout and there is a certain energy about it that motivates me, along with being able to workout with the Hubz.

 

Burlington Vermont Community YMCA, circa 1940. Postcard.

After our workout we both really wanted Friday Bagels but since we are on a soy/gluten/wheat/alcohol/caffeine free cleanse it was a no go. Instead we decided to go to Magnolia Bistro where they have tons of options that are still inline with our cleanse.  I was really feeling something hearty and starchy so I went with three sides: steamed kale, chipotle black beans and homefries, the Hubz was also feeling the starch so he went with kale, polenta and homefries.  We also got a cup of decaf fair trade organic coffee and big glasses of water.

Now I’m off to work and then heading out to find a Mother’s Day Gift and then it’s shoe shopping with the Hubz.  What are you doing for Mother’s Day?