Bubbling and Blistering in Punta Cana

So Spring Break part dos. Punta Cana, Dominican Republic. Oh Boy. How do I even begin to describe the turn for the worse that this vacation endured. It all started out fine and good, we woke up at 3am to catch a 9:00 flight to Punta Cana, arrived, stripped off the jeans and donned the bathing suits, and headed to the pool! We got some tasty drinks and enjoyed the partly cloudy afternoon at the pool and beach and guzzled more tropical drinks at the lobby bar that night.

Lets start with the drinks. Oh, the drinks. No Bahama Mamma and Malibu Baybreezes and Sex on the beaches available in Punta Cana, instead there were plenty of Mai Tai’s, Tropical Breezes, Sex in the pool, Grasshoppers, Tequila Sunrises, and White Russians. And the deadly shot aka the only thing that would get you drunk at this resort – the Mamajuana. After guzzling several drinks throughout the day and evening, along with a few mysteriously green shots, we came to the conclusion that the alcohol bottles were watered down. I should have been on the floor, not feeling a tiny buzz. But it was still fun to get dressed up and go drinking with the girls in the evenings. The Grasshopper was a tasty green drink that reminded me of an alcoholic Shamrock Shake. It has mint liquor, creme liquor, and cream. I ordered Baileys on the side most nights and added that too it. One night I went overboard on the White Russians, made out with a guy from Quebec City at the “bonche” or disco, and woke up with a semi hangover.

And then we get to Day number three. In the below picture you can see my legs are quite burned, and after dinner we went to the beach party where we danced, limboed, and played games in the sand. I started feeling sore, achy, and very tired and almost a little sick, so I headed back to the room fairly early. 

Once I returned to the room and started changing into my PJ’s, this little guy gave me a fright:

The next morning I woke up with my wrists, legs and feet swollen up like balloons and these mysterious bubbles popping up over my legs. I felt large and full of fluid, and my legs were pounding like they had a heartbeat. I told Chelsea that I felt like Harry Potter’s evil Aunt Myrtle who he cast a spell on and blew up like a balloon and she floated away. 

The bubbles kept forming and some eventually popped, and oozed everywhere. It was so painfully sore and unpleasant. I was so disgusted by my own body. Thankfully Nurse Meg was there to take care of me, and went to work finding Neosporin and ripped up T-shirts from a group of vacationers that we met who were also Nurses. They took a look at me and had never seen anything like it before. I was a zoo animal at the resort, known around the place as the girl with the bubbles and the burns. The front desk did not even have a first aid kit to help me out. Meg wrapped up my legs in the old t-shirts so that we could travel home without me oozing body fluids everywhere. The plus side was that I got wheel-chaired through the Punta Cana airport and we got to skip many of the lines! 

Once I got home, Mum was waiting for me with gauze, bandages, a big burger, and my favorite bottle of wine. I had never in my life been so happy to be home. And so grateful for America with their wine and burgers and first aid amenities. We went to the hospital the next day and they confirmed that it was in fact second degree burns caused by the Naproxen subscription that I was taking. Whoops.

I flaked like crazy all week, leaving skin flake tracks everywhere I went. I have been living in sweatpants since everything else rubs uncomfortably. I cant wait for my skin to heal and grow back and my life to return to normal. I have been running through the healing process, although it has been painful. I escaped to Vermont for the Easter weekend to hibernate with my family and hopefully regrow all of my skin back before this next week of classes.

It has been a beautiful day in VT today! My skin is feeling better, just itchy, and I suffered through a 10 mile long training run, in preparation for both the NYC Half Marathon in 2 weeks and the RnR Nashville coming up in a month. It was a tough run between the Vermont hills, the wind resistance, my stomach troubles, and my out-of-shape-ness. But the hard runs make all of the other runs more enjoyable right? Average pace was 8:43, so next time I need to slow down! My long run goal pace is supposed to be around 9:14.

This is my last weekend up at this cottage, and I am going to miss it. It is so picturesque on gorgeous days like today when the sun is shining. We went for a family hike this afternoon, and are getting up early to get in a good morning of skiing tomorrow.

Back to school tomorrow for another fun week of classes…. and then Colorado on Friday for Breckenridge and skiing at Copper Mountain! I will post a meal plan tomorrow, although it wont be to extensive. This April is going to be crazy with all of the traveling I am going to be doing. May is busy as well, but thats what keeps life interesting right? I also want to post about my potential plan to compete in the Rock n’ Roll Montreal Marathon in September and hopefully train hard enough to use it as a Boston Qualifier. I will be in Toronto this summer, so it will only be about 5 hours away. But between training for the triathlon, biking, and my love for lifting and wanting to do CrossFit, that might be complicated! Why must I want to do so much… and to be injured again would not be fun. But running Boston is a huge dream of mine. Much to think about! Enjoy the weekend 🙂

Washington, D.C. Tour and RnR USA Half Marathon Recap

Hello! Long time no update. I had a whirlwind of a Spring Break, full of extreme ups and downs. Let me fill you in on the first part, our trip to tour Washington D.C and run the Rock n’ Roll USA Half Marathon!

After a long morning of traveling on planes, trains, and automobiles, we finally arrived in D.C, checked into our hotel, and went out to tour the city! First stop was the White House, and I was shocked at how tiny and unimpressive it looked upon first glance. 

Next we strolled along the National Mall where all of the museums are located, and miles of beautiful grass space. We ended up at the Capital at the end of the Mall. Doofuses —->

Doh. I love my family. What goofballs.

After the Mall we went to the RnR Expo for the race to pick up our race packets. It was crowded, and we (sketchily) saw two of the bloggers that Steph and I follow and I (awkwardly) approached one of them and we got a pic together! I am so awkward and act like a doofus when meeting new, important people. 

Steph ended up doing the full marathon, and I dropped down to the half because of my hip injury. But I am happy to report, that I had absolutely ZERO hip pain throughout the whole race! I was so happily surprised and confused. But because of this injury and because it was Steph’s first full marathon, we both went into this race with zero time goals and a point to make it fun. And we most certainly did. I should bring my camera on races more often! We snapped some pics at the beginning, and for the rest of the race I just enjoyed being around a thousand other running-obsessed individuals such as myself and the opportunity to run through such a historic city.

RnR USA Half Marathon official time: 1:54:12. Not my best time by far, but I had a great time and was just thankful to get through the race feeling good without any hip pain. I ran the first 3 miles with Steph, who had a pace goal of 10 min miles, so we ran pretty slow. After I left her at mile 3, I gradually began to pic up the pace as I realized how good I was feeling, and my last couple miles were around 8 min miles. I am hoping to challenge my PR at the More/Fitness Women’s Half Marathon in NYC in 2 weeks!

After we were showered and re-hydrated, we had a special destination in mind. Crumbs Cupcakery. Rows and rows of beautiful, rich cupcakes. I went with the Reese’s Peanut Butter Cup Cupcake, and Steph had Red Velvet. Mine was eh, the cake part was kind of dry. I had serious cupcake envy over Stephs Red Velvet cupcake.

We met my parents for happy hour and celebrated with Mango Mojitos, and then big, juicy burgers at dinner followed by that large piece of chocolate cake. We had to fork wrestle with Mum over every last crumb. Perfect day of running and eating.

The next morning I met my adorable, matching parents for a quick jog out to the Lincoln Memorial to say hello, and then we quickly showered up to catch our plane ride home.

All in all i was an amazing weekend full of family and bonding time with my best friend, yummy foods and treats, amazing sights and the opportunity to run through such a beautiful city. I loved Washington, D.C and could see myself loving to live there in a few years. Chicago is also giving it a run for its money though….

So that was the UP part of my Spring Break. Post number two will fill you in on all of the gory details of the second part of my spring break, so stay tuned….

Sushi, Wine, and Chocolate – Make The World Go Round

Wordless post because I am
On my phone and letting my computer take a snooze for the week because it is Spring Break!!!

That’s what my last two days have consisted of…

Tomorrow morning bright and early plane to Washington D.C for the Rock n Roll Half Marathon! Lets pray my hip behaves and I can walk to the White House for a picture after…. Full recap of the race when I return!

Courthouse O’Putnam 5k Race Recap

Hi! I know that you are dying to know how my 5k race went today, but before I tell you, you must sit through the recap of my weekend! Another night, another bar, I know, I know. But Cleo came up to visit so it was special. I love her so much. Working at the liquor store and all, she has quite the taste in drinks. Friday night, she brought us strawberry liquor, creme de coco, and strawberry ice cream, which we combined in a blender and made the creamiest strawberry daiquiris that I have ever laid lips upon. Holy creamy berry goodness. I also had my obligatory kissed caramel apple martini, Sauvignon Blanc, a rum and coke since we had fajitas for dinner, beer at the bar (which never normally happens, true sign I was wasted) a tequila shot, and a random shot that that bartender named the “Britt-Burster” because I told him to make us something girly, fruity, and strong. Tasted like an amazing star-bust explosion in your mouth. It was a good night, but drinking that much always leads me to weird random binge eating disorders, and that night was no exception. I came home and housed about 11.3 tablespoons of almond butter and 2.8 tablespoons of maple peanut butter. No idea why. I just felt like it. Stomach was twisting and churning ALL DAY yesterday. woof. Almond butter hiatus for me this week please. Why oh why do I make those drunk decisions… im over it now. Needless to say, I did NOT go out last night. Stephy and I enjoyed a Target shopping trip, Subway, and the movies. We saw Silver Linings Playbook and it was the perfect chill night.

I love these ladies so much. In the morning we went to the amazing Wooden Spoon. I so badly wanted to crave pancakes, and was planning on housing them all week, but with a tummy full of said nut butters, it just was not happening. I ordered the omelette special because it sounded good and I knew I needed something in my stomach. It had tomatoes, artichokes, sun-dried tomatoes, and feta. Deeeelish. Of course upon seeing food my appetite came back full force, so I also stole bites of Cleo and Steph’s blueberry pancakes and DELICIOUS banana, pineapple, pecan-coconut pancakes —–>MUST RECREATE (note to self.)

Another pic from the night that I found that I have to post, because it has two of my favorite things in it: Canada and Cleo. Perfect flag positioning. 

So the race! Courthouse O’Putnam 5k: 24:08 with an average pace of 7:46. Not too shabby for taking it easy and testing out my hip. If I had not been injured, oh man there would have been fire in my pants and I would have blown my age division out of the water for sure. I ended up getting 4th in the division, and Becca got 3rd, which is AWESOME cause it was her first 5k and she got a really cool beer mug, the same one that I got last year that has been sitting on my shelf collecting dust ever since. But that is besides the point. I am beyond thrilled that my hip felt okay!!! (as i knock on wood). It felt tight, and I ran sans music and garmin so that I could closely monitor it the whole time, but it never turned into a raging ache and pulling sensation, even when I ran up the hills.

I think this means that I can run the RnR D.C Half Marathon this weekend at least!!  I think this running hiatus has probably given my body some well deserved rest also. I have been thinking it over, and I am not sure if a marathon is in the cards for me in my future. I kind of like focusing on lifting and strength training, while still being able to do runs of 4-7 miles during the week for cardio and relaxation and mental purposes. I still want to do a long run on the weekends, but probably only from 8-12 miles, nothing too serious. I think that may become my new tactic. And I am going to ease into it slowwwwllyyy. I am not running again until Wednesday. Tomorrow I have another PT session, so I will see what David recommends. I like this new plan. I am beginning to realize that I would rather have small, short and sweet amounts of running in my life rather than no amounts at all. And if giving up the risk of hurting my body through marathon training to have that, it is what I am willing to sacrifice. And that is a great and fulfilling feeling. Thanks for listening to my sappy serenade.

We celebrated the race with bananas and green mint soy iced lattes, in celebration of St. Pattys. 

Steph was the adorable race volunteer directing traffic and waving everyone on by the 3rd mile marker. She rocked it. Check out that flashy traffic guard vest. 

This post is already seriously way too lengthy, but since its Sunday, you know what that means….

Whats For Dinner? Week of 3/10: (holy cow how is it march 10th already…)

Sunday: Sweet Potato Gnocchi and Cinnamon Apples (–>just housed that holy yum)

Monday: Pulled Salsa Chicken Quesadillas

Tuesday: Steph’s Garlic Pasta on Spaghetti Squash

Wednesday: Pesto Spaghetti Squash w/ Chicken Sausage

Thursday: HOME

Friday: WASHINGTON, D.C

Saturday: WASHINGTON, D.C

Easy week of meal planning once again! My grocery bill was under 30 bucks… that never happens.

One last note: Cleo and I are ALL BOOKED for our trip to EUROPE!!! Officially purchased one-way flights to London, leaving on October 1st. Our plan is to travel the world and somehow make it home around November 5th. It is going to be an epic 22nd birthday. I cannot wait for what the rest of this year has in store for me. 2013 is shaping into being one of the best and most exciting years of my little 22 year old life.

Lower Body Weight Workout

Good Morning! Woke up this morning to piles and piles of SNOW. hello. its march now. snow needs to go away now please, its spring time! But in a week and a half I will be on the beach, so I cannot complain too much.

I had a great workout at the gym yesterday that I wanted to share! It was a leg lifting day for me, and I combined it with some intervals on the elliptical and bike and some body weight exercises. I hate the bike and the elliptical.. but combining sprint intervals and going back and forth between the two made the time go faster and actually kind of kicked my butt.

The Workout:

Elliptical:

• 5 min warmup
• 5 min speed/push
• 5 min hills

Body-Weight Exercises:

• 50 air squats 
• 25 mountain climbers
• 50 alternating lunges
• 25 jump squats
• 25 lunge split jumps

Leg Weights: (3 sets of 12 reps)

• Deadlift
• Alternating lunges (20 lbs)
• Single leg bench squats (20 lbs)
• Squat machine
• Side lunges (15 lbs)

Bike 15 min

• 3 min easy
• 1 min sprint
• 2 min rest
• repeat (do this on a hill program for an extra challenge)

Body-Weight Exercises

• 25 pushups
• 25 tricep dips
• Wall sit (1 minute)
• 25 burpees
• Plank and side planks (hold for 1.5-2 min)

Elliptical

• 15 min easy to cool down 

Ta Da! My butt and thighs are pretty sore today, so it was a successful workout. If Steph and I can dig ourselves out of the feet of snow, we are heading to the gym again later today. I am going to do some intervals on the elliptical and bike again, my triceps-biceps-shoulders routine (see post in workout posts folder) and some body-weight exercises like burpees, push ups, and planks. Hold the squats, my legs need a breather.

But for now… I am just going to dream of warm, sunny air and palm trees 🙂 and maybe attempt some homework. Cleo is coming up tonight for some wine and movies and what is sure to be some yummy eats, so ill post about that later 😉

My Body Is Not Built For Marathons

New Update in the Hip Flexor Department: I am currently on a running hiatus :(. There will not be a marathon for me anytime soon in my future. Here is the low down on the past few days. When I left you, I had just tried running on it at the Hyannis Half Marathon, felt pain, so decided to take a week of rest from running. Last Sunday, tried to run again, and felt pain a mile in. So that was when the waterworks started, and I knew that something serious was up. I went to physical therapy Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday, where they heated it, massaged it, stretched it, electrocuted it (just kidding), did everything in their power to try and relax the aggravated tendon, but to no avail. The guy there is great, and was confident that he would have me running, but my hip seems to think otherwise. He referred me to an orthopedic surgeon to have an x ray done to make sure there was nothing seriously wrong, and the x ray came back confirming this, which is a good thing and something I should be happy about.

So both the PT guy and the doctor said it is up to my discretion whether I choose to run in D.C or not. I definitely cannot do the marathon with this hip pain, so if I do choose to run, I will be dropping down to the half. Argh. How aggravating. At this point, I would not even mind doing the half, I love running for 2 hours rather than 4, I just want to be able to do it PAIN FREE! I am resting the hip today, Friday, and Saturday, and attempting the Putnam 5k on Sunday. It will be my test run, to assess my pain tolerance and if I could bear to run with the pain for 13 miles. The doctors said there is not a chance that I could seriously tear anything, so I am able to run on it, I am just worried that it will not get better for my races in April (Fitness Women’s Half Marathon, Rock n Roll Nashville Half Marathon). What a mess. I seriously hate this. Yesterday I was depressed and let myself cry, today is a new day and I am going to take my aggravation out on the weights at the gym and then enjoy the weekend with my friends.

Its funny how much this is getting to me. Running is such a little thing, but such a big part of my life, as this is showing. I am lost without it, and have zero motivation to do anything. You do NOT want me to tell you how many classes I have skipped this week (0 Mom, dont worry….). But really, this not being able to run thing is doing serious damage to my already bad case of seniorialreadyhaveajob-itis. I totally just made that up.

Ok I will stop boring you with my hip woes, thanks for bearing with me while I vent! I will let you know how the Putnam 5k on Sunday goes, and I have another PT appointment on Monday. Pray for my hip flexor to chill!

Now what would this blog post be without food? made a big batch of Quinoa Taco Salad the other night, and have been eating it with my meals throughout the week. I love quinoa, it is so versatile and tastes good mixed with almost anything!

Quinoa Taco Salad: 

1. Cook up a big batch of quinoa, I used 1 cup dry and 2 cups of chicken cooking broth
2. Combine with tomatoes, drained black beans, avocado, cumin, garlic powder, salsa, and anything else your mexican heart desires! I just threw it all in a bowl, no exact measurements, just for taste.
3. Best served hot or cold!

For weekly pizza night with our beloved Trader Joe’s whole wheat dough, we topped it with pesto, fresh mozzarella, olives, sun dried tomatoes, and spinach. Yum. Always a winner. 

And just because I miss her and she is on a cruise right now sailing somewhere in the warm Caribbean, here is a picture of Becca. I am supposed to be flying to Nashville at the end of April to run the Rock n Roll Nashville Half Marathon with her, so lets pray that my hip decides to heal and behave by then. That is a whole month and a half away at least! PRAYPRAYPRAY. This was taken when we ran our own little half marathon on the morning of Christmas Eve. I miss her and winter break and running. I am doing a killer elliptical, bike and leg workout at the gym later today, ill post it later!

Water Works Weekend & A Tasty Burger

Helloooo. So lets talk about this weekend. It was a really weird weekend for me. Some tears were shed, some inter-looking was done, some (emphasis on the some) family time was enjoyed. This was a roller coaster of emotions weekend for me. Its weird, I am usually a happy person, who doesn’t let the little things get to me. But this weekend I just could not seem to keep it together. I kept unraveling at every bad feeling. You know those kinds of days? But today is Monday and its a new week, with new things to be happy about and new things to look forward to.

Saturday I went to the physical therapist to get my hip evaluated and was told some pretty bad news. I strained my hip flexor, and he was not optimistic about my chances of running a marathon in two weeks. I struggled (emotionally) walking out of that place. I am going to go to regular PT sessions this week so that they can stretch and strengthen and work on it, because right now it is just healed scar tissue that is tight and gets irritated when I try to run. Sunday morning I attempted a 3 mile run and felt pain a mile in, so I know that I am not ready yet. I am just praying that these next two weeks of recovery will allow me to at least run the half marathon in D.C. I am not going to give up hope just yet.

On a happier note, Punta Cana is so close!! I finally went bathing suit shopping. Mum and I hit up the Pink store and Aerie, and I got two new cute bathing suits that actually fit! Here is the one from Pink:

Another plus of the weekend —> reconnected with my baby girl Ellie! I brought her back to school with me and couldn’t be happier. She is so much lighter and fun to drive than the Escape, which felt like a tank. She is so shiny and gorgeous.

After my disastrous run on Sunday, I got on the spin bike to get out some pent up anxiety and stress and felt much better. Thank god I can still swim, spin, and lift. When I got back to the apartment Steph and I made our speciality: Turkey Burgers. We have been on a bunless kick, since we have been feeling so bloated from carbs lately. Plus, it is easier to pile on toppings when you eat it with a fork! They were delicious. I had mine with goat cheese, roasted red peppers and avocado, on a leaf lettuce wrap. I also sautéed some brussels sprouts in some coconut oil for the side dish. —> I bought coconut oil last weekend at Trader Joe’s because it has been blowing up around the blog world, and it is sooo yummy to sauté veggies and sweet potatoes in! A tasty, coconutty tropical flavor. Since I slacked yesterday, here is the meal plan for this week! I am actually around all weekend this coming weekend, and need to get some serious work done while also making sure to have a little fun! And get things together for Punta Cana!!

Whats for Dinner? Week of 3/3:

Sunday: Turkey Burgers and Roasted Brussels Sprouts

Monday: Pesto Mozzarella Tomato Paninis

Tuesday: Sun-dried tomato, Olive, Mozzarella Pizza

Wednesday: Sarah is making me dinner 🙂

Thursday: Greek Salmon Burger, Roasted Cauliflower

Friday: Salsa Crockpot Chicken for Tacos

Saturday: Sweet Potato Gnocchi

I will be sure to post pics of all my yummy meals! This week sounds like a tasty one 😉 I have a review session for my exam, a PT appointment, and trip to the gym on the agenda for today. Have a good Monday!