Post 1/2 Marathon Bliss

What do you do when you've run a successful half marathon?

REST!

That's all I've been up to all week. I kept my gym appointments with my trainer, but I chose to do no cardio or heavy lifting. I was not in top shape running that half & gave it everything I had. I felt I needed healing time... & every time I thought I felt better, another part of my body would get sore. It's okay; I honored my body's demands & relaxed. So here's my week. And as usual, I'll try to tell the story in pictures:

There was a lot of Frisbee with Penny. I wanted to take her for a few long walks, but my body didn't agree. So we played a lot of Frisbee in the yard. I couldn't believe even my arms were sore, but they were. I used a lot of Icy Hot.

Bringing it home!

Throw the Frisbee....now!

After a weekend of Bavarian eating & no cardio, I kept my focus on clean eating. I did very well because I had enough left overs to make it thru Tuesday at work. I cooked Tuesday night, so I was safe for my weekday meals. On Friday, I had my usual weigh-in.

Best. Ever.

I don't remember the last time I weighed this. Probably before I was married. I was feeling really good on Friday... right up until lunch. I was supposed to attend lunch time yoga. At about 11:45 AM, I started feeling really bad, like I had no energy. I'd hit a wall & I recognized I needed to sit out. I ate my lunch instead & fell asleep. Hard. Within 10 minutes, I was already dreaming! And then the phone rang! I was a mess after that; I didn't feel well at all. Which led to some seriously bad eating. And since I blew it at lunch, I decided to enjoy a nice dinner out... sushi with a side of Kindle (I'm reading "Along Came a Spider" by James Patterson, btw).

Sushi Buffet: my weakness.

And today... Saturday. I spent the morning grocery shopping. I spent the day experimenting with new recipes. Yup... this is my first time making hummus in my Vitamix. And it was yummy! I added a bit of extra garlic & lemon juice; I love lemony-fresh flavors.

Finally flexing my Vitamix muscles.

After a bit of a break, I started working on the next recipe: pumpkin cupcakes with chocolate pumpkin frosting. It's another recipe from Gracious Pantry. She does GREAT pumpkin recipes. I had a lot of fun making these. Generally speaking, I don't like being in the kitchen, but I enjoyed the challenge of from-scratch cooking in the healthiest way I could. Here's the finished product:

Pumpkin cupcakes w/choco pumpkin frosting

Here's the thing: the cupcakes are awesome. They're spongy & lovely & taste fabulous. The frosting, though... nope. Don't really like it at all. Which is a shame because there's a bit less guilt with these. These are definitely going to be my go-to recipe when I have to bring desserts to someone's house. But I'm going to have to do something else for frosting because this frosting just doesn't cut it. It's just a shame to ruin a clean recipe with butter cream frosting... even if I have deep affection for butter cream frosting.

Now it's all about relaxing after a busy day. Tomorrow, it's Volksmarch time! 6k walk with Penny, my trainer, & beautiful countryside. And no worries. I'm sure I'll have more photos.

Penny can use PhotoBooth!