The Trail of Two Sisters

Wow

2008-11-05T00:10:00.000-05:00

Wow.

AHhhhhhh

2008-11-04T17:31:00.006-05:00

So I just voted in my first election ever. As I was heading towards my voting site, I actually got a little emotional thinking about what I was about to do. How coincidental that something so big for me was something so MONUMENTAL for America too! My first time voting will be a HUGE part of history. I hope I make the right choice (clearly the decision is entirely up to me).

I got motivation to wake up at 6:30 a.m. and go for a run. I had a snack of light rye bread with about 1 tsp PB and a dab of jelly. I also drank a big glass of water. I ran straight for about 1 mile - half a mile to the track, and two laps when I got there. There were two points where I wanted to stop but I simply counted to ten and that kind of got me to keep going. I walked for about half a lap and ran the rest of the way. I think I pushed myself a little too hard because I had some pain in my back again today. I plan on going to the gym tomorrow to do some cross-training, and possibly a mile on the treadmil to see how quickly I can do it.

When I got back I had a "lighter" version of my typical oatmeal, since I had the pre-workout snack and my run wasn't extremely draining. I used....

Kashi Truly Vanilla Instant Oatmeal

A little over 2 tbsp !% Milkfat Whipped Cottage Cheese

About 1 tbsp. Naturally More Peanut Butter

Yumm! I also added 1/4 of an apple - finely chopped. It was yummy yummy and about 350 calories. I did 30 minutes of walking in between my Kidsports classes - meaning I got a good amount of exercise including my run this morning. BUT - I'm feeling a little antsy (maybe because of the election winding down?) so I think I may go for a super-quick gym session. I'll possibly be back later to tell you how the gym went!

Erin - are you going as crazy as I am right now?

Truly,

Casey (ahhhhh I VOTED TODAY)

nerves

2008-11-04T00:24:00.002-05:00

i'm really nervous about the election tomorrow. i haven't decided where i'm going to watch the results tomorrow but i do know i don't have anything to do on wednesday until 2pm so....hopefully the results will be conducive to fun.

today's tally:
-blueberry muffin little bites
-glass of milk
-some candy corn leftover from halloween, yummm
-pretzels and hummus (a lot of pretzels and hummus)
-bowl of yogurt and kashi
-1 serving whole wheat spaghetti with A LOT of corn, peas and artichoke hearts in a little teriyaki/soy sauce and some salt

my "XTraining" was walking. it's getting cold. brrr.

no music video today, just this (try not to cry like i did):

Election Excitement

2008-11-03T09:06:00.001-05:00

Ahh election day tomorrow...Manhattan is alive and buzzing with anticipation of the craziness that I'm sure will be going on in just 24 hours. Hope everyone is registered to vote! Erin, I know you are :)

I write to you from Human Sexuality class which will soon be over. My professor is extremely comical and interesting to listen to talk about sex - he is about 60 years old with gray hair, glasses, black fishing vest over a long plaid shirt, and weighing in at about 5 foot 6 and 200 pounds.

Class is over now and I'm sitting in the lounge waiting for my next class, sociology, which starts in about 15 minutes.

This morning was slightly frustrating as I'm trying to work out a new schedule with Shea since she doesn't do her business in the house anymore. Right now I'm taking her out every time I let her out of the cage, and immediately after she's eaten. It's slightly frustrating right now but as soon as she's old enough to stay out of the cage during the day I will only have to bring her out about 3 times a day instead. Poor puppy, as soon as she gets into a habit I have to go and change it and ruin her life!

This morning I tried Kashi Go Lean Naturally Vanilla instant oatmeal. That is an exceptionally long title to have to write about one freakin product. I was pleasantly surprised with the texture and flavor of this oatmeal. Although it was instant and had a sweet vanilla taste to it, the taste was only mild and not artificial tasting. I added 2 tbsp cottage cheese, some water, a bit of milk, 1/3 of a small Gala apple and 1/2 a banana. To top it off I added 1/2 tbsp PB and the entire thing came to about 400 calories. I constructed a bit of a daily food chart to make tallying my daily calorie intake a little easier. I will post it later on. For now, it's off to class for me. Hope today is an interesting topic :) !!

Keep Trailing Along...

2008-11-02T13:07:00.002-05:00

Sorry for no posts yesterday, quite a busy day of recovering from a Halloween hangover, running THROUGH that hangover, and many other weekend activities. It's funny that I am talking as if millions of people are reading this, when in fact I don't even know if anyone else besides myself or my sister has! That's okay though - the more work we put into it, AND as soon as I can post pictures, the better and hopefully more popular it will become. We'll see though =).

Yesterday morning I woke up around 8:30 a.m. (having gone to sleep at about 4:30 a.m.) and had a quick snack of light rye bread with PB and a little jelly plus a BIG glass of water and two advil! An hour later, as Mark was still sleeping, I snuck out and went for a quick run. I ran at an easy pace for a little over a half mile until I reached the track. I walked on the track for about one minute before starting up again. I'm not gonna lie - it was pretty bad. I was definitely feeling the night before. From there, I ran at an easy pace pretty consistently stopping once to walk for another minute. When I finished, I started walking home and about 1 minute later I ran the rest of the way. In total, it was a little over 2 miles but I got through it despite feeling crappy. I came home and made breakfast for Mark and my grandmother, then passed out for about 3 hours to regain some of the sleep I lost!

Today I needed to get some cleaning done so I decided to incorporate exercise into cleaning, thus creating - CARDIO CLEAN! Here's what I did while cleaning the floors...

Almost everything in 10's pretty much...
* 5 regular pushups
* 10 "modified" pushups
* 10 oblique crunches (each side)
* 10 bench dips (realllly worked the arms)
* 3 sets of random arm exercises with 10 reps each
* Alternate between 10 jumping jacks, 10 side jumps - 2 times

Then I would continue mopping the floor for several minutes, while doing squats, lunges, and leg raises at the same time! I did the whole cycle about 3 times and I'm sure I looked ridiculous but I'm also sure I burned some serious calories!

For lunch I had a grilled chicken wrap with lettuce, tomato, and fresh mozzarella. I pretty much ate half - and didn't even eat the bread - I subbed a slice of WW bread instead. There wasn't too much mozzarella so I don't think it was an overload. I also had some spinach salad with sliced granny smith apples and cherry tomatoes.

After lunch I took Shea for about a 2 mile walk. She's finally going outside instead of on her wee-wee pads! I'm so proud of my little satan dog. We made PLENTY of friends outside including two dogs who I'm pretty sure wanted to eat Shea for a nice mid-afternoon snack. Shea did not really acknowledge this. She doesn't realize she lives in Brooklyn, New York and has to develop some street smarts. At this age - street smarts to her mean actually STAYING OUT of the street. I think she was destined for suburbia. Sigh.

I am currently enjoying a nice, extremely strange snack of 1/4 cup of Honey Bunches of Oats Strawberry cereal with 1 tsp Fage and 1 tsp PB. Just a quick snack to hold me over until din din. I am planning to hopefully take another 2 mile walk with Mark a little later in the evening - I'm a walking machine today! I'm trying to stay away from running for a few days because my lower back is in a lot of pain. I think I've been pushing myself a little too much a little too quickly into the training. I guess I'll have to take it slowly and not try to be a running pro in only a few weeks =( .

I'm off to enjoy the rest of the weekend!
Casey

prime not proof

2008-11-02T12:47:00.003-05:00

on friday i re-started my workouts with a 20 minute session on the elliptical and then some lunges and brief weight-lifting. THEN i went to chipotle for free burrito day. i was in heaven. i hardly ate any candy on halloween because i was just so content with the burrito goodness. since the burritos at chiptole are basically the size of a newborn baby i was full for most of the day and managed to eat a roll of sushi and edamame for dinner before i felt like i was going to burst. all in all that was pretty good for the amazing shrinking act my stomach has been pulling on me lately.

saturday i got in a 30 minute session on the elliptical with some lunges and brief weight-lifting. i felt like it was an appropriate increase from the day before. for breakfast/lunch i had a honey wheat bagel with egg and cheese from gw deli. it was massive and i had to eat it in two sittings but it was so worth it, especially with the post-halloween hangover. dinner was grilled chicken and a little bit of pasta with olive oil and seasoning. it reminded me how i should really be cooking at home more.

then i went to see zack and miri make a porno. it was so awful. i was laughing at one-liners consistently throughout the movie but bored to tears at the same time. i also got some frozen yogurt right before (fudge brownie w butterfinger blended in) but got so nauseous halfway through eating it and couldn't finish it. i'm blaming the movie. and i'm so pissed.

since halloween is still so close, this video is going to follow with its weird costume/dress-up theme. (careful, casey, there might be a clown or two) it is also a throwback to my old ring tone- the way i am by ingrid michaelson

Happy Halloween!

2008-10-31T13:45:00.000-04:00

Happy Halloween!!! Hope you are enjoying the holiday and a bunch of candy today Erin!

The morning started out a little rough - spent two hours studying math in favor of going for a run. Now, which would I obviously say deserves preference ina decision such as that one? Running. I don't really care about math - at all! Except for the fact that I need it to major in psychologym :( shucks.

I had some cereal with skim milk and fruit as I studided, which couldn't have been more than 350 calories. It was yummy :)Needless to say, the test did not go so well and left me feeling very unhappy, irresponsible, and pretty much like a FAILURE. But the good news I found out today is that my prof drops the lowest grade!!! Yay for that. Boo for my un-math-friendly brain.

After class I had a PB sandwich on whole wheat. I also had a tad bit jelly. this was probably around 350 calories as well. I also had about 3/4 of a medium apple. Then I went on a walk for about 30min and am on my way to meet up with the BF now.My total so far is about 850 calories. Ill probably have a skim latte soon maing it about 950 or so. I'm happy I at least squeezed a walk in, and will most likely be doing more walking/dancing/moving this evening.

HYSTERICAL: Erin, you will appreciate this. Last night Mark was over for dinner and to help me with some schoolwork. On his way out, I walked him outside and managed to convince him to carry the garbage out too. We ran into my grandmother (who lives downstairs) and good thing we did because she told us recycling doesn't go out until Monday night (I totally should have known that) and we would have gotten a fine had we put them out. Stay with me, I'm getting to the funny part.

So I notice this man coming down the block with a shopping cart, and usually those people are collecting plastic bottles, so I mention it to my grandmother. As he passes, my grandmother decides it would be a good idea to say, "EXCUSE ME SIR, WHAT ARE YOU COLLECTING?" So this man stops and begins to describe to us, in vivid detail, exactly what he is collecting - and I'm sure it would have been interesting had I had ANY idea what he was saying. Finally he managed to tell us he in fact collects electronics.

Upon hearing that this man did not collect bottles and was also probably a little bit crazy, you would think my grandmother would stop talking to him. She did not. She told him "YEAH ITS A SHAME YOU THROW THINGS OUT AND THEY JUST GO TO NOBODY. YOU WANT SOMEONE TO GET USE OUT OF IT.". The electronic-collecting man replied " You ... You..uhh..you come from a long line of them!" My Grandmother says, "WHAT?", not because she didn't understand him, but because she couldn't hear him. He tells her she must be italian and goes on to point to Mark and tell electronic man about how Mark quit smoking.

Please don't ask me how or why this conversation continued but IT DID until we managed to pull her away. Eccentric electronic man continued on his happy electric way.

Well, I'm off to do some trick-or-treating with little ones and then off to a grownup party later! Bye byee!

do-over (and HAPPY HALLOWEEN!)

2008-10-31T10:11:00.002-04:00

okay so i'm starting everything up again today. my little stomach thing made me lose about 5 pounds in about 4 days. sweeeet.

i'm going to run and maybe cross-train today. we'll see how i'm feeling after the run. i know that the decrease in my eating is probably slowing my metabolism down so it is important to get this exercise in. i still did my daily walks to work so i wasn't a complete bum this week!

the yael naim concert on wednesday was great. she is so cute. she just jumped around the stage making everybody laugh and sing with her.

OH AND IT'S HALLOWEEN! YAY! yael did a cover of britney's toxic (a la tristan prettyman, hollaaaa) and it's kind of a creepy song so it can be my video of the day. the images are just some random thing, i'm not sure who did them or why.

Sneaky Sneaky

2008-10-30T10:19:00.000-04:00

So here I am, being a rebel, posting in Sociology class. It's actually a really interesting class on child abuse - so this wil be quick.

After yesterday's break from oatmeal I decided it was okay to have some for breakfast this morning. If my life were a comic book or a cartoon series, today would be titled "RETURN OF THE INCREDIBLE OATMEAL!!"

Shea woke me up AGAIN this morning earlier than usual. She seems to know EXACTLY the days that I am going to be sleeping a little later. Needless to say, my early morning gym session did not work out. I am not a fan of working out while it's still dark outside AND when I have classes I have to rush to right after. Hopefully I'll have the willpower to go right after work quickly so I can rush home and prepare for my math test tomorrow! Ahh statistics...

Okay time to concentrate again!

Casey

Night...ALREADY!?

2008-10-29T22:48:00.003-04:00

Ahh it's night already - where DID the day go? I'm very tired so this will be pretty brief before I go and pass out in bed. The GOOD news is that my first class tomorrow (the 8:05 a.m. one) is cancelled! This means instead of waking up at 6 am I will be waking up around 6:45 or 7 instead and either going to the gym or for a quick run. It will probably be the gym as I will most likely go for a run on Friday morning instead.

My run today went well! I ran about 1/2 mile to the track, and felt pretty good the entire time. When I got to the track I ran for a mile (4 laps) pretty much the whole time, stopping once for 10 or 15 seconds to adjust my headphones. I also had a clothing issue as my shirt was riding wayy up and had to tuck it into my leggings like a granny! By the way - it was raining. Yeah, so many distractions and and bumps in the road but I stuck with it and even ran a majority of the way back home! In total, I figure I did about 2 miles - one mile running, the other a mixture of running and walking. Maybe in two or three weeks I'll be able to do it without stopping once! That is aiming pretty high for such a short time, but a week ago I never would have thought I could ever run a mile straight!

After my workout I had the other half of banana from this morning and half a Kashi bar.

For lunch I went with my grandmother to a nearby diner and had a whole wheat grilled cheese with a cup of vegetable soup. It didn't really fill me up, so I had about 1/2 cup of 2% fage with 1/2 sliced Granny Smith apple and some Fiber One cereal. (Just went back in my post to point out how many times I have referenced to grandmothers in this post.)

Later on I snacked on a granola bar and for dinner had small serving of grilled chicken with broccoli rabe, whole wheat rice, and some salad. For dessert I had some fat-free Carvel Vanilla ice cream which probably had a ton of sugar in it but oh well. I didn't closely watch calories today (as I don't most Wednesdays) but I'll make up for it tomorrow!

Erin - I'm happy you're finally feeling better and that you'll be back to the plan tomorrow!! Maybe you can post what you're planning for the rest of the week. Love youu<3

Goodnight!!
Casey

Best Of Both Worlds!

2008-10-29T09:57:00.003-04:00

So this morning I knew I didn't want ANOTHER bowl of oatmeal (though I would not have protested at all) and should probably mix it up a bit before, as my grandmother says, I "will turn into oatmeal from eating it so much!". I decided that I wanted either waffles or french toast but was completely unable to make up my mind about which of the two I wanted. So then a glorious thought came to me - Waffle French Toast! Here's the recipe, but unfortunately NO picture since I have yet to get a charger for my camera - definitely this weekend though!

WAFFLE FRENCH TOAST

Dry

2 Kashi Frozen Waffles (170 cal)

Wet

1 Egg (75 cal)

1/4 Cup Skim Milk (20 cal)

1 tsp Almond Extract

Sprinkle of Cinnamon

1 tsp Blue Agave (10 cal)

1 tsp Brown Sugar (10 cal)

Topping

1/2 Small Banana (sliced) (50 cal)

1 tbsp 2% Fage (30 cal)

1 tsp SF Maple Syrup (10 cal)

This was quick and easy. First, I popped the Kashi Waffles into the toaster as I prepped the other ingredients. I simply mixed everything together and heated a skillet on the stove.

As soon as the waffles were ready, I poked a few holes onto each side with a fork, so that the batter could easily seep into the waffles.
I soaked both in the mixture and then threw 'em on the skillet. I poured the remaining batter over the waffles and cooked each side for about 2 minutes.

When they were done, I sliced half a banana on top and used a tiny bit of SF Maple Syrup. I also spooned on about 1 tbsp 2% Fage, and a small spoonful of Naturally More PB! Even though they were a tad bit on the mushy side, they still had enough consistency to be AWESOME, satisying, and yummy. I definitely got the best of both worlds - and for only about 350 calories, a small amount of healthy and filling fats & proteins, and a good amount of fiber!

Since it was my day off, I allowed myself to sleep in today - meaning I woke up at 8:45! I just can't sleep late unless I go to bed really really late. Also, I was woken up around 6:45 a.m. by the pup and dozed off again after tending to her every need for a few minutes.

I planned on going running before breakfast but the waffle french toast idea was far too appealing. For now I'm catching up on some of my fave TV shows, Greek being one of them, and I plan on going for that run in about an hour or so. I may also squeeze in a quick run to the gym to do very light cardio and some weight training. Nothing over the top, but if I have a day off, why waste it?

Well, I'm off to really start my day. Running may be difficult due to the fact that my foot has officially fallen asleep since Shea's head has been using it as a pillow for the past hour. Guess she's feeling that 6:45 wakeup!

Back later with updates!

Where areeee you Erin!?!

Casey

Another Yucky Day...

2008-10-28T19:05:00.002-04:00

Today was very yucky out and it was definitely a day to turn off the alarm clock and pull the covers higher over your head and snooze the morning away. Alas, that was not a possible choice for this morning as I had school and work. Too bad the weather couldn't wait until tomorrow when I have the day off!

Anyway, breakfast this morning was the usual bowl of oatmeal (with sliced 3 strawberries and 1/3 a banana) at about 400 calories. That lasted me from about 7:30 a.m. until 11:00 a.m. when I snacked on a quick Kashi bar (120 cal) before statistics class.

I was in such a rush this morning that I had no time to pack lunch, but luckily I snagged one of the last brown rice california rolls from the cafeteria at school! I am guestimating the portion I had was 400 calories, which I figured was fine since it was the only thing I had.

I had an hour break in between my Kidsports classes today and I went to Starbucks and had a grande skim latte (130 cal) with 3/4 of a granola bar (aprox 150 cal). So my late afternoon total was about 1,200 calories.

I planned on doing some form of exercise today but it's too gross outside for a run and since I ran last night I think I'll make today my rest day and just make up for it the rest of the week. Sitting inside hearing the rain and feeling warm and cozy is deffff worth it.

For dinner I made a very random and quick mushroom and tofu stir-fry(150 cal) with some brown rice(100 cal) that I really didnt eat, and a slice of light rye bread(60 cal), coming in at about 300 cal. I only had to get up about five times while I ate to remove several items from Shea's mouth including...

1. Dirty sock
2. Plastic Bag
3. Her own wee-wee pad (gross)
4. A piece of gum (don't ask where she found it)

And right now I'm enjoying 1/2 a sliced apple "baked" in the micro for about a minute with a bit of 2% Fage and a sprinkle of Fiber One cereal (130 cal). According to my recollections, I had about 1,600 calories today, but I always figure I miss something here or there or I am completely off.

My exercise schedule for the rest of the week is as follows:
Monday: 60 min walk, 1 mile run =)
Tuesday: Rest
Wednesday: 2 miles - 1 mile run/walk, 1 mile walk
Thursday: 30 - 40 min c/s, strength training
Friday: AM Run
Saturday: 30 - 40 min c/s, strength training
Sunday: 1.5 mile run/walk

We'll see how close I can follow this. I'm sure there will be alterations to make.

I'm off for now...night! Feel better Erin =(
Case

i've got the grumblies

2008-10-27T22:26:00.002-04:00

my stomach hurts soooooo much. i really don't know what is up but it's been hurting since saturday and it's really time to stop. joke's up. really. come on. it feels like hunger pains but i have no appetite and get really full after eating a little bit. i've been sticking with small meals and tried to walk around a lot. i did the walk to and from work and then around the pentagon city mall and everything. it's getting better but it's just kind of exhausting...

so in case you didn't see this coming, i didn't do my run yesterday because of the weird debilitating cramping, but i did carve a pumpin and it looked damn good. i'll try to get a pic to show you sometime.

last, but not least, my video of the day. i posted this on my facebook but let's not kid ourselves and pretend like you ever look at it. so here you go, "little bit" by lykke li. also fitting because YOU are little bit. haaaaa. (which reminds me i should have not deleted the voicemail daddy left me yesterday...classic.)

Bomb(a)'s Away!!

2008-10-27T21:04:00.009-04:00

Back again =) Dinner was fabulous and absolutely hilarious. First let's review what was on MY menu today.

Breakfast - typical bowl of oatmeal (400 cal)

Snack during the day - Kashi Cherry Dark Choc bar (120 cal)

Snack#2 - Medium apple (130 cal)

Lunch - Two slices WW bread with a black bean veggie burger and 2 tbsp hummus, side salad with veggies (about 400 cal)

Mid-Afternoon Snack - Nature Valley granola bar (140 cal)

When I got home - Cup of tea

Total: Approx. 1,200 cal (burning about 200 cal today in exercise) Net = 1,000 cal

I'm not completely sure how many calories dinner was but since I had about a 600 - 800 calorie window I'm pretty positived I didn't go over.

For dinner the BF and I went to an italian restaurant in my neighborhood and started off with a piece of bread that I'm pretty sure was whole wheat but was unable to tell for sure! For my main course I had grilled chicken with, MY FAVORITE, broccoli rabe. It's bitter but with a dash of salt and some parmesan it's fantasticoooo! I gave half my chicken to the BF and had another tiny piece of bread.

Then of course BF ordered dessert, because he knew I really realllllly wanted some. We split an italian "Bomba" made with Peanut Butter gelato. It was awesome and I'm happy he convinced me to have some. Here's the best picture I could find via google images to show an idea of what the Bomba looked like...

Sooo good and sooo worth it!

Anyway, after dinner we got in the car and waited for a bit as I called a costume store to see if they had my costume in stock. I'm planning on being...ready for it???

BATGIRL!!

Yes, I'm very excited too. I'm even more excited because I've been on the lookout for it for quite some time and the store we called had it! It makes me kind of less thrilled to wear something a lot of people will probably be wearing...but whatever! So just as we're about to pull away in the car, what walks across the street?

THIS!

Which wouldn't have been a problem, as I found it very amusing to see a racoon in Brooklyn. However, the BF is DEATHLY afraid of racoons. It is one of the most hysterical yet ridiculous fears...and his reaction was priceless. After he got over the shock, and I stopped laughing and was able to breathe normally again, he drove me home and went to go pick up the BATGIRL! costume for me.

Ah what a night, tomorrow's Tuesday which means I'm one step closer to my day off (Wednesday!). Goodnight!

Got The Urge!

2008-10-27T19:05:00.002-04:00

Today was a pretty long day. Class at 8 a.m., which meant a 6a.m. wakeup - giving me just enough time to take care of the puppy dog and myself (but mostly the puppy) and head on out to school. The trains were so packed today...Brooklyn is getting way too crowded!

For my second class today, Sociology and the Family, I had a "field assignment" and had to walk from 68th street to 80th street, and then over about 5 blocks from Lexington to York! So that was a decent amount of my cross training today.

Anyway school went well and afterwards I met up with a friend who I work with. We headed over to Barnes N' Noble so she could get a GRE Test practice book and I could get a guide on attempting to figure out Statistics. Me and math just don't get along very well. Barnes is on 86th street so I got a lot more walking in, plus back downtown about 10 blocks for work!

I had two Kidsports classes and then headed home. When I got home my whole body was in pain and I was exhausted from standing, walking, and chasing kids all day! I sat down and had a cup of tea and in about 15 minutes I got the strange urge to go for a run. I pretty much thought I must be crazy for feeling so tired only a few minutes before and quickly switching to "LET'S GO POUND OUT A MILE!" mode.

So, instead of thinking twice, I went onto www.MapMyRun.com and figured out a quick one-mile loop around my neighborhood. I took off and finished in about 10 minutes. I took one break in the middle of the run to walk for two blocks, but I was off again and was pretty pleased with my stamina. I guess I cheated a little bit on tomorrow, and I hope it doesn't hinder the training at all - but I just got the urge and went with it. I sense an addiction coming on...

As for now, I'm heading out to dinner (slightly sweaty) with the BF. Hopefully he isn't offended by my odor ;) .

WRITE ERIN WRITE!!! YOUR ABSENCE IS DEPRESSING!

Back with more updates later!
Casey

Exciting!

2008-10-26T09:06:00.005-04:00

Soo I had to post before I head off into the city to start my day of entertaining a total of over 80 children in one day...why you ask?

Well, today was the day in the plan in which we are supposed to run for a mile. This includes breaks for walking too, but 1/4 mile into it, I felt good - really good - and I kept going all the way to a mile!! I'll admit, the last 1/4 mile lap around the track was a little tough, and I probably should have taken a short break to walk...but I couldn't!! I was so happy and my adreneline rush was so high I just finished it off - coming in at about 8 minutes!! Now, this is a small step in terms of my long-term goal, but I can honestly say I've never been able to do this before. And it only took a week or so of actual "training". I can't wait to keep improving and just hope the weather is as nice as possible to me =/ .

I woke up around 7:30 a.m. today and had half a banana and half a Cherry Dark Chocolate Kashi bar. I have yet to buy a charger for my camera (lazy, procrastinating me) so below is my depiction of this pre-workout snack.

I especially love the banana man, who is very upset about being cut in half. I forgot to include Mr. Cherry Dark Chocolate's reaction to the severing, but I'm sure he was just as shocked & upset! Total - about 100 calories.

When I got back I showered and changed, and had my usual bowl of oatmeal (150)with a bit of skim milk(20), cottage cheese(50), fat-free half & half(20), sliced apple (100) and some Peanut Butter (50) - totaling about 400 calories, which I will certainly need in order to be fueled and ready to go for coaching these birthday parties!

Time to get ready. Good luck on your run Erin!!!

Casey (who by the way, ran 1 mile without stopping) =)

It's Raining, It's Pouring, My Puppy Shea is Snoring...

2008-10-25T14:08:00.005-04:00

That's SO funny because everytime I see Suri I think of you! She is totally your baby-twin. Not only that, but when I was in Italy - everyone there told me I look like Katie Holmes!! Ahh you're my baby!! Or maybe they told me I look like Tom...can't remember, those silly Italians!

Erin & Suri

Katie & Casey

Okay, probably not the BEST pictures, but you can see the similarity right? Haha, maybe not. But I WILL find better pictures of you as baby-Suri, Erin.

Anyway, it is extremely yucky, gross, and dark outside today. It's just a perfect day for lounging around and doing nothing - which is exactly what Shea and I have been doing. It's been working out beautifuly for the both of us. What did NOT work out so beautifuly was attempting to go for one of our nice 2mile walks. We went about halfway the distance we usually do, and when the wind picked up and almost brought Shea along in the process, she decided she was not having it.

We headed home and Shea is now passed out by my feet. Maybe that's the secret to sedating this daemon-puppy, cloudy and gross weather?

For breakfast today was - SHOCKER - oatmeal, the typical bowl, about 400 calories. Mid morning, I had a snack of a Kashi Bar and 1/2 cup 2% Fage - about 200 calories. Lunch was MORE leftovers from Wednesday (the whole wheat spaghetti from the Italian restauarant that I have lived off of for the past three days), except I added sauteed mushrooms and some grilled chicken. I also had some butternut squash with it. I'm estimating about 400 calories for this meal too. SO daily total so far is about 1,000 calories.

I'll probably have an apple in a little while, making it about 1,130.

Today's supposed to be a "rest day", but I kind of feel like exercising anyway. But I'll give myself a break today since tomorrow will be quite hectic - I'm doing a mile run in the morning AND I'm working TWO Kidsports birthday parties in a row! (Each is about 1 and 1/2 hours long, including over 40 little kids under the age of 5!) Alright, I'm off to shower and babysit my two little buddies.

Hope your weekend is going well sis,
Casey

suri cruise is my baby twin

2008-10-24T19:49:00.004-04:00

sooo today i sat around all day waiting for my LSAT score to be posted. it's still not there. it's been such a productive day!!!...not.

but don't you worry little one, i did do my run today! i made it a 20-min run-walk and threw in some lunges. and as for eating:

breakfast: yogurt and kashi (DUH), and then i mixed it up and threw in a whole wheat english muffin with that spray butter we always use at home. the name is escaping me right now.
lunch: whole wheat wrap with grilled chicken, tomato and mozzarella with some balsamic. mmm.
snack: 2 mini-hersheys milk chocolates (i'm blaming the LSAT stress)

dinner hasn't happened yet but i will keep you updated. i'm actually getting pretty hungz but i'm waiting for kenny to call and he is on his own planet...

another thing i did today between clicking refresh on the LSAC homepage was check out perez hilton for the first time in a while. and i think suri cruise is my baby twin. as in when i was a baby that is what i looked like. when i saw it, it felt like the time someone drew glasses on nancy kerrigan's face on the cover of our daily news and it looked just like mommy! haha, remember that? let me know what you think from your personal experience:

and i have to admit that cupcake looks grrrrr8.

oh and i'm going to start doing a music video a day to keep up with your image antics. so here is today's- year of the dog by the lovely sparrows:

enjoy your friday night funnnz.

Silly Funny Loopy Shenanigans

2008-10-24T15:29:00.009-04:00

Ahh Friday afternoon....verrrrry nice...hopefully the weekend will be relaxing and fun =) I'm hoping to do some form of an exercise class this weekend but we'll see if that actually happens! I'm still sticking to the plan and clocked in about 40 minutes of the ellipitcal trainer today which actually flew by...followed by about 15 minutes of upper body work. I'm not really sure how much I burned, and every "exercise calorie counter" website I went to told me something different, so since I didn't use an extremely hard level, I'm going to say about 200 calories, and as for weight lifting around 50. Bringing my total to aprox. 250 calories burned.

Here's what I've eaten so far today...
BREAKFAST: oatmeal(150) made with 4tbsp fat free half&half(40), peeled&sliced pear(100), and bit of PB (aprox. 60cal) So breakfast was around (350 calories total)
PRE-GYM SNACK: 1 slice light rye bread with 1tsp PB and a tiny bit jelly (100cal)
POST GYM SNACK: Half of a Cherry Pie Larabar (pictured) which was vvverrry delish and I definitely reccomend it! (100 cal)
LUNCH: Caesar Salad w/ Grilled Chicken and Parmesan cheese (no croutons!) and a slice of whole wheat bread (aprox. 300 cal)

Something Sweet: 3/4 of a medium sized apple, heated in the micro for about a minute, with 2 tbsp 2% Fage and a sprinkle of Fiber One Cereal. (150 cal)

So in total, I've had about 1,000 calories today, and burned about 250 calories, making my "net" total about 750 calories. That seems a little low but I'm sure I'll be making up for it later =)

My internet search inspired a new search, self-titled "Funny Pictures of Doofy People Working Out". Here are some results.

We start with this young woman, who is entirely too excited to be suspended in mid-air.

Next, we move on to Matthew McConnnashamagday (too difficult to spell), who is one nicely toned hunk of a man, but looks so desperate for hydration he's about to lick the sweat off of his own greek god of a body. Actually, Erin would probably gladly do it for him.

Thirdly, here is an exhibit of what you can typically expect doing exercise while on acid and/or pretending it is the 70's.

The fourth picture is not so much funny as it is mesmerizing to look into a sea of aerobicizing woman wearing more of a variety of colors than you can find in a Crayola box.

And, lastly, no ridiculous exercise picture collage would be complete without the one, the only...

Have a great weekend! I'll be back later tonight PERHAPS for another post,

Casey

anti-ano

2008-10-23T23:20:00.002-04:00

i AM eating enough, little bittlewittles. don't you worry.

and i am not just really happy about taking the picture but ALSO laughing like an idiot because i'm surrounded by more idiots. sigh, aruba, i want to be there right now.

ummm, i don't really know what you want me to write on here besides what i already have. so i'm just going to tell you more random shiz about my life. liiiiike, i'm going to the yael naim concert in dc next week. here's the video of her song that's gotten a lot of airplay:

i'm not so good with html so i hope that works.

much love sis
jayjay

I WILL Vote McCain If You Don't Post More Erin!

2008-10-23T22:32:00.012-04:00

Booooo Erin. Total lack of blog post.You're in the bloghouse. In fact, I am not speaking to you.

To start this blog off, I would like to include a fun, extremely random picture from our Aruba vacation ALMOST a year ago - time has seriously FLOWN by.

Totally looks like a persuasive ad endorsing underage drinking. But it was Aruba, totally legal. Nonetheless, it does not send a very good message. But honestly, who are we trying to fool here? P.S. I - the younger, more attractive sister, am the one in the red stripey weird shirt, proudly displaying my completely legal alcohol above my head, in true American fashion. Erin, in case you were having difficulty, is the one in the middle, looking wayyyy more excited about simply taking the picture in general than her American roots. Can anyone say creeper?

School + work + errands went well today. Extremely tiring and I am fighting to keep my eyes open right now.
At school for a snack I had a Nature Valley Fruit and Nut bar which tasted wayy too sugary and artificial...but i ate it anyway =) I also had a cup of coffee with only skim milk and a tad bit half and half. Yay for not using Splenda! I seriously need to cut back...

Lunch: About 1/4 of my leftover dinner from last night, which was grilled chicken with broccoli rabe over whole wheat spaghetti in garlic and oil. I swear restaurants are all kindsa CRAZAYY with portion sizing - my leftovers will last me well into tomorrow. I also had a slice of whole wheat bread with it.

After lunch I took about a 40 minute walk in the city before my Kidsports classes (today was three classes back-to-back). It felt good to get some fresh, although CHILLY, air. I had an apple before the first class started.

After classes, I had to meet my mom in the Lower East Side around 6:30. I got there early and was starving, so for a snack I had a small skim latte and half of an english muffin with 1tsp peanut butter. It was very yummy.
UPDATE: MOMMA MARY THE FOXY LADY TO OUR RIGHT), THE CREATOR AND WOMB-PROVIDER OF THETWOSISTERS, IS CONSIDERING TRAINING FOR THE 5K AS WELL. How fantastic would it be if we could get her on this blog too? Maybe we'll send her a link and persuade her to join! Thoughts?

DINNER: We ordered Mexican and both my mom and I got the "Chicken Fajita Platter" which left MUCH to be desired. I basically took the chicken, some veggies, and a lot of beans and used my OWN whole wheat wrap to smushhh everything into. I ordered a "house" salad but it was very very....interesting....so needless to say dinner didn't go as well as planned!

For dessert I peeled and sliced a pear and micro-ed it for about a minute, then put 1 tbsp greek yogurt on top and a sprinkle of Fiber One sticks.

I figure I ate between 1800-1900 calories today, burning about 200 in exercise = 1600 -1700 net total. I don't really like counting calories, but I recently started eating more than I used to, since I've been working out harder and more often. Also, I think I was definitely not eating enough, which slowed my metabolism instead of helping it spead up. So until I get a knack for eating this way, and seeing how it works out, I'll try to pay close attention to what I'm eating.
P.S. Jay Jay - From your reports, I think you're not eating enough as well. YEAH I SAID IT. So that's another thing BESIDES YOUR BLOGGING that you should consider increasing. Only a suggestion =) You know I love you. And I know you'll only do something if you want to. BUT SERIOUSLY THINK ABOUT IT. hahaha

Okay, my eyes are closing everybody....
(which is nobody since this blog has YET to be discovered),
Casey (the younger one)

erin go bragh

2008-10-23T22:25:00.003-04:00

today was a loooong day for me too. after finishing my paper but getting no sleep last night, i had a meeting with my adviser early this morning which lasted over an hour. we just brainstormed the whole time. it's actually very exciting. the nerdier i get the happier i am! anyway, then work from 11-5. quick dinner back at home. then a play! it was really good. irish. called take me away. went with austin's mom. good times had by all.

now i'm home and all i have planned is a nice relaxing shower and watching the daily show in bed. it is brrrrr-cold outside.

text or call me to let me know how you-know-what went with you-know-who.

oh and i told you already that i am switching my cross-training for today so i can run tomorrow when i have the whoooole day to do things i need to get done. but i guess if i didn't write that here then it would eliminate the purpose of this, huh? umm, and you know what i ate for lunch because i asked you to give me a rec. but FYI, for dinner i had a thai peanut brown burrito from juice zone. it's AMAZING. really. you need to try it if you are ever down here again. seriously. so good. out of control.

So Immature

2008-10-23T08:35:00.005-04:00

Gooood Morning =)

Got up early today to go for my run because today is a pretty packed day and I don't expect to get home until about 8 or 8:30 tonight. It was chilly out but I wore a simple tank with a light sweater and cotton workout pants. I'm assuming I'll figure out proper running attire as I go. I imagine what other "veteran" runners think of me as I'm passing by. Most likely something along the lines of "Psh, Rookie". On second thought, they probably don't even notice me, as to them I appear to be walking when in fact, I am actually busting my ass! Okay enough being hard on myself, I actually think I did a really good job today. I ran/walk for 30 minutes, just because I had the time and felt like I had more energy to let out. All in all, I think I did about 2 miles.

I followed the Galloway run/walk plan as much as possible, but the cold weather made my skin a little irritated and it hurt to keep running at some points. I have to try "Body Glide", which I hear can relieve that?? I looked it up and immediately saw "Body Lubricant" which made me digress back to eigth grade and giggle an immature giggle.

Before running I had a snack of one slice of light rye bread with a smear Peanut Butter and a tiny bit jelly. When I got home I showered and breakfast was typical oatmeal except I had no milk or cottage cheese (GASP) so I used Fage 0% and some half and half. I also added mixed berries and a little PB!

I'm off to start the day. I plan to do a 30 minute walk at some point =)

Have a good day sister dearest!

Casey

dumb tired

2008-10-22T22:16:00.004-04:00

dear casey:

i am unbelievably tired right now. as you know very well, this is what i look like when i am tired:

and this is what i'm going to look like if i don't stop doing this and actually do my work:

soooo for your info my crosstraining today was just my walk to and from work. and i ate yogurt w. kashi go lean crunch (twice), a whole wheat wrap with mozzarella artichoke hearts and turkey, a donut, and a cup or two of whole wheat pasta with olive oil and garlic powder. plus a lot of coffee and water. and now probably a coke zero for some energy.

i just want it to be the weeeeekennnndddddddd.

and one last happy motivational pic:

Anything But What I Should Be Doing...

2008-10-22T15:36:00.006-04:00

So the day has gone well. Wednesday is my day off - from school AND work, so after breakfast, I cleaned the house for a while and did some schoolwork. I had a snack of 1/2 cup 2% Fage with 4 small sliced strawberries and a sprinkle of Fiber One cereal. I did some more work but just couldn't concentrate. So, I headed to the gym and did 30 minutes on the elliptical trainer. I probably could have done more but I was feeling anxious about getting more work done. I also plan on taking Shea for a 30-45min walk later in the evening.

For lunch I had a small seving of left-over whole wheat pasta w/ a little bit of leftover sauce from Sunday dinner (yummm), a piece of whole wheat bread with 1 tbsp. hummus, and a CHIKN veggie pattie.

SNACK: A little while afterwards I had the other half of my 2% fage with a sliced pear.

By the way - this is ONE of the awesome Peanut Butter variations I use (There are many). It's perfect for snacking or mixing with Oatmeal.

Okay Erin, that's two whole posts in one day, including the detailed version of Shea's near-death experience. Better get writing!!

As for now, I'm off to keep working on this never-ending paper. Feel bad for me, I welcome sympathy with open arms.
Casey

Avalanche and It's Not Even Winter Yet...

2008-10-22T11:30:00.006-04:00

Breakfast: Flax seed oatmeal with 2 tbsp Whipped cottage cheese, 1tsp Naturally More Peanut Butter, 1/4 cup water, a little salt, and 1 tbsp half and half (I ran out of milk). I also had a banana.

The day started off very relaxing, and by relaxing I actually mean very stressful. Want to know why? Well, Leonard Street experienced an avalanche. (Notice her looking quite innocent in the picture to our left).

Shea decided she was extremely bored and NEEDED to get down the stairs to the hallway. What we've done to prevent her from getting down is put her cage in front of the stairs. You would think that would be enough - but no, when you have SuperPup on your hands you must go an extra step and stack something equally as heavy on top of the cage, in this case - a chair. Usually this works but today, as I sat down to breakfast, I see Shea with her two little paws on the cage, sniffing around and looking devious.

Before I knew it, she had jumped up and over, and could only watch in horror as the chair AND cage slowly starting sliding after her. It was one of those moments that happens in slow motion. Me screaming "Sheeeeeeeeaaaaaaaa" as I watched the furniture topple after her, simultaneously thinking "My dog is going to die. She is going to be crushed. It is all my fault".

Needless to stay, the cage MIRACULOUSLY got stuck half-way down. The chair kept going and possibly nipped Shea in the booty which made her yelp and me almost faint, but it landed away from her and I suspect she was more shocked than hurt.

The most hysterical (yet unfortunate for me) part about this is that on top of the cage (pre-avalanche) was a huge bag of treats. While everything happened, they too plunged to their death and Shea was showered in a rain of multi-colored dog bones. When she was over the shock and done cowering in the corner (this may have lasted 40 seconds), she rejoiced in the sea of treats surrounding her.

I picked them up.

More later,
Casey

gummy gut and avocado ass

2008-10-22T00:30:00.002-04:00

Junior is right about a few things: Jay Jay is tired and stressed-out and older. But she is not less attractive...except maybe right now because I'm operating on little sleep and lots of Red Bull...not cute.

I'm feeling positive about this "galloway method" because it seems like I can actually fit it into my life. I walk to work four days a week which is about 15 minutes each way and a round trip of 1.7 miles. So I won't ever be stressed about the walking portion. And after today's 16 minute run I felt good but not exhausted and it did not eat into all the time I have now spent in the library. It actually may have boosted my energy a bit. yayyyyy.

So as for the physical exercise part of this "training" I'm feeling pretty good. However, I think my gummy addiction (Haribo in particular) might get in the way of any efforts to eat smart that should probably go along with tuning up physically. I don't know if I will always write what I have eaten during the day because my mom and sister might actually be appalled and disgusted, but that actually might be good motivation to eat better...hmmm.

So for those of you who care, or don't care but are going to continue reading anyway:

Breakfast: 1 cup fat-free Fage greek yogurt w. 1 cup kashi go lean crunch cereal

Lunch: Custom salad from chop't- spinach w. grilled chicken, grilled asparagus, corn and avocado and "spa balsamic" dressing on the side (it actually was not so great and i only ate half)

Snack: choco. cookie

Dinner: 2 sushi rolls (salmon avocado roll and a crunchy shrimp roll)

Snack: 4 sour gummy worms mehhhh....

yes, i am also addicted to avocado which is part of a funny story to be told at another time because i'm about to leave the library for the night. HOLLA.

Four Stories Is A Long Way To Fall...

2008-10-21T17:42:00.000-04:00

Younger (and more attractive) sister here. Here's our first blog post - a recap of my day. We'll see if poor stressed-out tired older sis has enough time to do hers!

BREAKFAST: For breakfast today I had a nice bowl of oatmeal w/ flax seed. I added 2 tbsp. Whipped cottage cheese (soooo good), 1/4 cup water, 1 small sliced apple, and 1 tsp. of Naturally More Peanut Butter. I also had a glass of skim milk (about 1 cup). It definitely kept me full for a few hours.

The training program we've decided to go with is the Galloway Plan (http://www.jeffgalloway.com/)- with a little bit of our own variation/adjustment where we need it.

Today begins the actual running portion of our plan. We will run for 16 minutes total - walking 2 minutes, running 2 minutes, and we'll do a set of walk/run 4 times (obviously to equal 16). Although I feel like 16 minutes is too little of a time to run, I'm going to listen to the experts instead of my intuition because I definitely want to avoid injury! If I feel I can go for a little longer, I may, but we'll see. Hopefully by doing things the right way, we won't lose motivation and can keep going until we're running for much longer and with much shorter breaks. I recently started doing a lot more walking (at least 30 minutes everyday, even on exercise days) and I'm hoping to stick with that as long as the weather permits it. It's been really nice actually, to have 30 minutes to myself that aren't strenuous but relaxing, giving me some time to clear my head. I don't know if Erin will be doing this, but its completely up to you Jay Jay!

As for now, I'm off to school. I'm hoping to squeeze in the 15 minute run in between my two Kidsports classes today. Ahh, how I love teaching young, extremey energetic kids the basics of sports. Actually, I really do love my job, even if its slightly frustrating sometimes.

SNACK: During the morning, I had a Kashi Peanut Butter bar with a few almonds to hold me over to lunch.

LUNCH: Lunch was two slices of whole wheat bread with 2 tbsp hummus and a CHIKN veggie pattie. I also had a banana.

So in between my break between Kidsports classes, I did go for my 16 minute run (plus a 30min walk after) and here's the scoop:

First Run

Duration: 16 minutes

Method: 2min intervals run/walk.

Location: Manhattan's Crowded Streets!!

How it felt: Since I typically use the treadmill at the gym it was really easy. Running for 2 minutes at a comfortable pace for me isn't too hard. The only problem was the extremely crowded streets of Manhattan. I didn't have enough time to go to Central Park, which would have been ideal for running, so I had to maneuver my way around random streets (and people!!).

Bottom Line: Next time ill save my break for simple walking and relaxing, and switch my run to morning or evening where there isn't so much foot traffic!!

SNACK: After my Kidsports class, I had a quick Luna Bar (Nutz Over Chocolate) since I'm expecting to eat a late dinner tonight.

I'm off to tend to the puppy, as she has just discovered a slightly-opened window in my bedroom (on the fourth floor of our house).

Bye Byeeee

Case