I’m baaaaaaaaaaaack.
My fingers had such a nice break yesterday! :) I hadn’t done a Wordless Wednesday since last September.
I think it is a nice change every once and a while. I also loved seeing how your comments changed when I just posted pictures as opposed to pictures and words. Many of you commented how you enjoyed putting together a story in your mind…I thought that was kind of fun!
I am playing around with the idea of doing a daily wordless afternoon post. Right now I generally post in the morning and then again at night, but it would be fun to have a wordless lunch post just to break up the day.
By the way, inside my wrap yesterday was my Golden Sweet Potato Soup from the other night! I really do love that soup! So simple and comforting.
Swim #3 last night!
Apparently, I was so excited my left cheek started to glow uncontrollably…? ;)
Swim #3:
- 15 minute warm-up (freestyle, breaststroke, flutter board)
- 30 minute medium pace (freestyle, breaststroke)
- 10 minute fast pace (freestyle, no stopping after each length)
- 5 minute treading water to finish (I found treading water really easy! Wonder why?)
I didn’t keep track of laps because I was focusing more on technique rather than speed, but I would guess that I swam about 25 laps/1250 metres in about 55 minutes.
My goal was to start doing bilateral breathing which is when you breathe on both the left and right side, as opposed to just one side. I had only been breathing on my strong side (the right side) the last two sessions. It was tricky at first as my left side is not as strong, but after a few laps I picked it up and I am happy to say that I can now confidently breathe on both sides while doing freestyle. Eric is doing great with it too!
What I learned Day 3:
- Good swimmers are efficient and effortless swimmers (I learned this while watching swimmers in the fast lane.) They are smooth and graceful like swans.
- Seeing myself improve and Eric improve is so exciting. We were so pumped on the drive home because we were feeling proud of ourselves. It feels awesome to learn a new skill again!
- Don’t panic when the pool fills up with people and the waves start getting choppy. This is good practice for the tri! It was REALLY busy last night.
- When you go to the late night swim, kiss the sauna goodbye because the entire place shuts down and you get kicked out. Can I hear an Awwww hellll nooo?
I checked our pool for adult lessons and there is currently one going on but it is full and we can’t get in. The next one isn’t until July. The wait list for private lessons is also 17 people long. So, my next step is looking for an instructor who is not affiliated with the pool and just teaches on the side. I find I am really craving some lessons because I really want my form to be the best it can be. At first, my thoughts were along the lines of just swimming so I can finish the race, but now Eric and I are starting to enjoy it so we want to improve!
We didn’t get home from the pool until about 10:45pm. Party animals, eh?
I woke up ravenous this morning. I wanted carbs…and fast.
I made this for Eric yesterday and it was so amazingly good I decided to make it for breakfast.
Grilled Cashew Butter and Blueberry Sandwich:
Ingredients:
- 3 pieces whole wheat bread
- 2 tbsp Organic Blueberry Jam
- 1 tbsp cashew butter
- 2 tsp Earth Balance Margarine
Directions: Take 1st piece of bread and spread a layer of blueberry jam on top. Take 2nd piece of bread and place on top. Spread piece #2 with cashew butter and then add another layer of jam. Add third piece of bread and spread lightly with margarine. Place sandwich onto pre-heated frying pan (on medium heat), margarine side down. Now spread the top side of the bread with margarine. Grill on each side until golden brown and serve immediately.
This was inspired by Caitlin’s Grilled Banana Sandwich.
Blueberry jam is fun!
Intense, isn’t it? You could also use any kind of nut butter or jam too.
Onto the pan it goes…
The smell was quite amazing while cooking. Mmm.
Oh my gooooosh this was so good.
Sometimes a gal just needs bread, no?
The saltiness from the margarine played off the sweetness of the cashew butter and jam so well.
Magnifique!
Today’s question- What forms of exercise challenge you like no other, no matter how good of shape you are in?
I said to Eric last night, ‘No matter how many miles I run or how many intense cardio workouts I do, swimming is one heck of a challenging workout!’ I thought my lungs were in great shape until I started swimming. I am anxious to see if swimming improves my running endurance. Any runner/swimmers out there want to comment on this?
For me:
- Stair walking/running (I used to do 28 floors of stairs in my condo everyday)
- Swimming
- Yoga
- Running, esp. hill or trail running
See you later alligator!
Blueberries are everywhere! Glad that there is another great recipe to try.
Rock climbing is one workout that kills me like no other. Putting your hair in a ponytail the day after climbing is damn near impossible.
Hahaha your glow comment made me crack up!
Swimming really challenges me the most since you can only breathe at certain times. That sandwich looks absolutely fantastic!
That sandwich is amazing-looking. I usually make grilled pb&j but I totally need to mix it up. That blueberry jam is calling my name!
Great job for you and Eric on your swim practices…practice…practice is exactly what will get you where you want to be as a swimmer. If you can get those lessons on technique to make you more efficient, that will help.
Yummy sandwich, is this margarine you use the good kind, I’ve always heard horror stories about margarines and how they are considered plastic.
I am a runner/cyclist/swimmer. I love to run at my own pace and in my own zone, no competition except with myself. I used to be challenged by swimming, but I became a pretty strong swimmer after doing so many masters swim classes and triathlons.
My 2 biggest challenges in workouts would have to be some of the yoga poses in my yoga practices and cycling hills. We have a street on our cycling route in Dallas by White Rock Lake called Loving Dr. (Torture hills is more like it). It is one of the steepest roads I’ve ever ridden on. My hubby can get up to the top with no issues, it takes me awhile….not sure if it is that my quads are just not strong enough, but I tackle it every single time. Believe it or not, north Texas does have some hilly areas and they are really harsh.
Angela, where do you swim at? I know that my local YMCA where I go has a fit swimmer class on tues and thurs mornings. it’s like a giant adult swim lesson :)
Lunges…especially plyo lunges ALWAYS challenge me! They are killer.
OH.MY. I HAVE to make that sandwich!
There are always yoga poses to challenge me. And I plan to start running when I’m done with my evening course in June, this has always been hard for me and I’ve always hated it, but now I want to give it a try.
Here’s my “Awww, hell no!” for you. That would make me sad :(
I never would have thought to put cashew butter & blueberries together, but it’s just like a fancy pb&j! Sounds delicious- thanks for being creative for me :)
Hi Angela, I don’t know if I’ve ever commented…but I love your blog! You got me turned onto green smoothies last year and I am completely in love with them now!!
That sandwich looks amaazing!!! I will be making it soon.
I so wish that I was a runner… I have never been able to make myself get into a routine of doing it though…my body and lungs seem to rebel. Something to strive toward, maybe!
Swimming is my first sport (and first love) so I got that out of the way. Being able to swim constant laps has really helped me with my running and biking abilities. The only thing I struggle with is sitting on a bike for long periods of time.
I really, really want to learn to swim. My gym has a pool and I need to just bite the bullet I think.
That sandwich looks insanely good!
i was a competitive, year-round swimmer from age 5-17, and i can tell you that swimming and running are COMPLETELY different! i could not run a mile without stopping while in the prime of my swimming, and now that i’ve been out of competitive swimming for a couple of years (i’m 20), i’m 100% a runner (first half marathon this sunday!). they are awesome for cross-training each other, but they use your lungs and muscles in such different ways that you can be amazing at one and horrible at the other!
I think that sandwich is what I’ve been craving but didn’t know it =) Excited to try it, what great thinking!
Running is always challenging for me, always.
Spinning is always challenging for me. I go with one of my friends and she can spin her little butt off while I am gasping for breath and counting seconds until the end of the class. But we also run together sometimes and I run circles around her! So I guess it’s all in what your body is used to…
Great swim! I agree that swimming is pretty much always challenging..hot yoga is too for me. Running can always be made difficult if you push yourself and increase your expectations. That bfast looks so yummy…I can’t believe I havent had cashew butter yet!
Without a doubt, the prowler is my lifelong nemesis/favourite. It’s the only thing that has ever caused me to lose my lunch..and I have an iron stomach! I think it’s probably the on of the most demanding/effective conditioning tool ever. We used to do 5x30m weighted sprints with it and on alternate days, we did parachute or weighted-sled sprints and I would define that as the most painful but fit period of my existence. If you ever get the chance to push a prowler, I can’t recommend it enough!
I am partial to yoga. I just love that no matter how “experienced” I am, there is always another challenge. It’s about the path, not the destination.
Just talking about yoga gets me excited!
What kind of yoga do you do?
If you want a SUPER intense workout that will make you drip sweat try INSANITY (video’s by BeachBody)….I can run 10 miles and not sweat as much as I do when I do an insanity workout…seriously it is unreal.
someone needed to tell elvis of this sandwich back then… it would be his new love hehe.
any ab exercises still beat me up good. oh and since u mentioned swimming.. that too always makes me sore the next day no matter how good of shape im in. xoxo <3