everything pumpkin!

this time of year i love everything pumpkin and pumpkin spice. to name a few treats... pumpkin lattes, pumpkin scones, pumpkin muffins, pumpkin pancakes and pumpkin ice cream. however i do love a healthier version of my pumpkin obsession on a regular basis- pumpkin oatmeal!

recently i've been into steel cut oats over the old rolled oats. i think it's a texture thing but i seem to like them more right now! they cook a bit slower and without a microwave at our house i have to cook everything on the stove top so i buy the quick steel oats. those take 7 minutes instead of 40!

adding to 1/2 cup of steel cut oats... i buy organic canned pumpkin from trader joes. once the oats are cooked i add two big spoonfuls of pumpkin, a teaspoon of vanilla, 1/4 cup of walnuts and little brown sugar and some cinnamon/nutmeg to top it off! mix it well, add some milk if desired, and done- pumpkin oatmeal! much healthier then everything i stated above and still giving me the pumpkin flavor and spice i love for fall!

to your health,

C

life's curve ball

sometimes life has a way of totally surprising you...

and this is one of those times:

despite how much i wish i was in control of everything... i am happy and excited to say that i am not! we will be welcoming baby 'Wally' at the end of december!

while i will spare all of you blog readers of the realities and details of pregnancy, i will keep you updated if and when i have something significant (or not) triathlon/running/nutrition related.

in the meantime i will continue to cheer on and live vicariously though my friends and clients successes. i hope you all are having a great race season!

happy summer,

C

my love for NUUN!

i am happy to announce that i received an official 'ambassador' title for a company i love and live by on a daily basis... NUUN!what is NUUN... the best electrolyte replacement on the market!! they come in tabs that fizz into your water bottle. they have just the right amounts of sodium, magnesium and potassium without any added sugars or fillers! they also come in a ton of flavors! my favorites are banana NUUN and citrus NUUN however they have added some new flavors that may replace my old favorites.

the tablets are seriously something i use almost daily! more so for high volume training loads but even just on hot days when i know i'm going to be sweating. i usually carry a tub in my purse, my gym bag, my car and have been known to keep them in my bike jersey pocket on long rides. i've gotten many of my clients to use NUUN as well. with heavy weight training loads and increased exercise my clients love the tablets!

if you need a electrolyte replacement that is calorie and corn syrup free look no further! i will keep you guys posted on any upcoming events with the company also. they have done a serious 180 with their ambassadorship and it looks like it will be a fun year.

find NUUN here:

http://shop.nuun.com/Nuun

enjoy!!

to your health,

C

Perform Beautifully

sorry- i know firecracker is getting old... and over done. this is the last time, i promise. i just did not have a better song... although i am improving my i-movie skills!

i entered a contest to win a trip to Napa and become an Oakley ambassador. i technically already am in a way because we get sunglasses from them on our triathlon team- but i am just a huge supporter of their company! i really believe when people think 'Oakley' its more then a brand- its a lifestyle.

part of the entry is a video (below). the other part is getting people to vote. so bloggers- if you have a minute please click on this link:

http://apps.facebook.com/performbeautifully/contests/99452/voteable_entries?ogn=facebook

and i would love your vote, any positive comments and support! so THANK YOU!!

smells like summer.

there are many signs around san diego, despite some rainy weather, that summer will soon be upon us...

starting with the tour bus going up torrey pines hill yesterday full of tourists... followed up by hearing 6 different languages on my run around the trails. torrey pines, for those that do not know, is our local state reserve with endless amounts of trails all over the cliff side... views that do not disappoint and come with a guarantee to make your day better!

to your health,

C

a few recent obsessions...

....that may or may not have to do with anything related to pace, heart rate, longest run workout, etc. you get the point.

1. really good balsamic vinegar and olive oil. if you live in encinitas you must do yourself (not so much your bank account) a favor and check out Baker and Olive! not only will you get the best customer service in helping you chose your heavenly treats but balsamic that is aged 18 years... there are just no words to describe how good it tastes.

2. target. jean shorts. $18. made for teenagers. a spring staple.

3. craving something sweet? crave it all the time! especially if you like cinnamon, black licorice and citrus. its caffeine free too!

4. baking. we cancelled cable. i became betty crocker. of course i doubt betty used coconut flour, agave syrup and coconut oil in place of sugar and butter! recipe is below!

5. the ipod shuffle. my pink one was stolen in june... i have not bought a new one since because i am indecisive about the color...

6. lululemon full retail no longer... expect limited sizes and colors of course.

7. anything alice and oliva, sequins or audrey hepburn... online browsing only recommended.

8. the bachelor. i had to add it. i'd be lying if i did not. at least its a great excuse to have a girls night.

*colleen's homemade healthier version of oatmeal cookies*

dry ingredients:

1/2 cup almond flour

1/2 cup coconut flour

1.5 cups rolled oats

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1/2 cup sliced almonds

1/2 cup dried cranberries

wet ingredients:

1/2 cup coconut oil

1/2 cup agave syrup

1 tablespoon dark molasses

2 egg whites (whipped with 2 tablespoons water)

1 teaspoon vanilla

directions:

- combine dry ingredients in a bowl

- combine wet ingredients in a separate bowl from the dry ones

- mix wet ingredients into the dry ingredients until mixed. you may have to add some water if the dough is too sticky or crumbling. it will be thick!

-place tablespoon fulls of dough onto a cookie sheet

- bake at 325 for 15 minutes

P.S. any input on i-pod shuffle color would be greatly appreciated. i really have missed jay-z on my runs!

to your health,

C

its all coming together...

to your health,

C

Best of Solana Beach!

i was trying to video while running... not the best idea. just an afternoon run in the middle of winter! got to love san diego!

to your health,

C

Bring your green hat too!

the next event on tap- get your green on! and your speed on! once again- boys beware: yawn moment- it will be all about the outfit! you can bet ill have the best green from head to toe. starting with green Zoot shoes all the way up to my lime green 'highlighter' Lulu tech- tee. now ill just need to finish it off with some classy target gloves and maybe a new headband.

joining me, myself and i are a few of my clients! i started getting some clients together to meet twice a week from the studio for... Run Club! most of them are training for local 5ks all the way up to half marathons. i am hoping i have rallied a few for this st. patties day event. pictures will be a must for this fun event!

get running- and get your green together.

ps. almost forgot: my you tube video... sort of cheating.. i am pretty sure i got Flexr sports some more hits on THEIR you tube video but i thought it counted since i was in it. that is their commercial that they play at every.single.rockandrollrunning.event. on a big flat screen tv. pretty funny. at least it got me to create a you tube channel!

to your health,

C

My first You Tube Blog... can you find me?

i know. i cannot complain living in san diego.... but here is the forecast! looks like some wet workouts in my near future!

i learned yesterday that You Tube is the 2nd largest search engine behind Google on the internet. i apparently am behind- although i tend to watch a lot of You Tube videos- i did not know people use it so much as a primary search engine. in order to get on the ball with this breaking (insert sarcasm here) news i received i am determined to do some video blogging. looks like ill need my water proof camera this weekend however.

to your health,

C

PR Half Mary!!

i am pleased to report i came home from the surf city 1/2 mary with a personal best! yahhh! 1:38!

waking up race morning was a bit of a struggle... the night before the neighbors, up in newport beach (if you know newport those houses are really close together), decided to have themselves a party... until about 3am or so... which was everything less then ideal to wake up at 5:30am to go run 13.2 miles. so me- having been wide awake from 1am-3am, woke up at 5:30 thinking i had already run the race! counting on coffee and adrenaline i got up and out the door!

my entire plan was to 'see where i am at' in terms of pace vs. heart rate. i have not worn a heart rate monitor in a long time so i was interested in seeing where i could sustain running some what 'comfortably'. i started out in the back on the first wave and took the first mile to do the usual dodging of people as my warm up. by mile 2 i decided i really had no time to waste and got into my grove. by the middle of mile 2 i had caught up to the 1:40 pace group. in the past i would have thought i was running too fast if i was with them. but my heart rate was just under 170 and i felt like i was just out for a 'comfortably' hard run. by mile 3 the pace group was behind me!

i ran miles 3-6 with about 3-4 other people. it worked out that i had finally settled in with people running similar paces. mile 6 was a slight downhill and right turn back onto coast highway. since the course was pretty much flat (only slight ups/downs) i took advantage of any downhill! i ended up dropping the group of runners i was with and got into my grove. i felt the best miles 6-10. i really felt great! my heart rate stayed right around 173-175.

mile 11 i am pretty sure my lack of sleep, wine at dinner and overall pre season fitness caught up to me because i was over it! i was so ready to be done running. i just stayed on it though because i was still on track to beat 1:40 (my previous PR and long time 'barrier'). i finished right at 1:38!

i also finished without completely wreaking myself! i really felt like i ran the race at my threshold because i have run harder half marathons where i feel way worse. so- despite all of the factors- i am very happy to come out of it with a best time!! going in i felt like i could run a 7:30 pace but i just did not know how i would feel. the feeling of being in control of the pace was awesome and makes me realize i have a potential to run faster!

the 1:30's feels like i have entered new 'runners' territory! which is so much fun! breaking 1:40 has been a goal for a while so i happy to say that i CAN run faster and i feel more like a RUNNER! whaooohoooo!!

now to decide whats next...

to your health,

C

pre-race

its been since September since my last race! i feel a little out-of-sorts because i have not been in 'race' mode for a few months! i thought i'd list out my pre-half mary preparations this week.

1. the pre-race pedi. either done manually (myself) with limited color options or book an appointment at salon with too many color options. since it is only wednesday- i still have time to make an appointment. color choice... well we will have to revert to the outfit (#2).

2. pre-race outfit organization. this can really be divided into sub categories since we have the morning of the race, the race and post race drive home.

• morning of the race. start time is 7am. temperatures are predicted be in the 50s. these temps will require and not to be limited to: cream colored juicy knit beanie, oversized zip up lululemon sweatshirt and juicy sweats most likely some horrible color of velour. comfort trumps fashion race morning before the sun comes up.

• actual race attire: tricky here. it will be cold at the start but i will warm up quick once that heart rate gets going. lululemon speed shorts: yes too short for a pre seasonrace/current race weight but the most comfortable thing to chose from. Nytro women's race tech tee- gotta support the people who support me! comes in white with a lot of pink and black accents of skull and butterfly decals. most likely will race in my silver Zoot racing flats. fast and flashy! lululemon bright orange head band. and to top off the entire look my $1.50 Target rainbow striped gloves. i hate the fact that i will probably toss them at mile 3 (not because of their outrageous cost) but because they are my favorite ones!

• post race. if you participate in endurance sports you know you only stay warm for so long right after the event. eventually dehydration kicks in with the combination that its only 8:30am so the temps got up to 60 degrees and you are soaked in your own sweat. post race there are 2 key items: towel and hair brush. a towel drys off the sweat and allows you to put back on the velour pants and sweat shirt without too much hesitation of wasting perfectly clean clothes on a sweaty body for the sake of being warm. hair brush is equally necessary so you look half way decent when you make the stop at starbucks on the way home after the race. yeah yeah- you just did a 'half marathon' but the people in line next to you don't care and you should probably look at least half way put together. if you want to show off- keep that finisher medal on... =)

4. laundry. must finish my laundry to be sure everything is clean for race day.

5. race week nutrition. about the same as my usual. i am trying to cut back on wine consumption although it is not happening as i type this post. i will eat same calorie amounts, just less salad and veggies the night before the race. i do not want any stomach issues due to too much roughage! and to hydrate i will be sure to increase water/electrolyte consumption 3 days out. so tomorrow its me and my water bottle.

6. the once-over on race day logistics. logistics being first where and when to do the 'pack it pick up.' the 'pack it' usually contains a lot of advertisements and maybe a bit size luna bar. usually i eat the luna bar as i walk through the expo. other logistics include where to park before the race and where the most convenient starbucks location is post race.

7. race expo. happens day prior to the race. here is where the vendors sell the following: dorky running socks, 'i run for... ' t-shirts. special sports enhanced water. recovery nutrition. stretching apparatuses. you name they got it. i plan to look and see what is new but not purchase.

8. sleep. this is the most important pre-race component in my opinion. the week out from any race it is important to be getting enough rest each night so you wake up feeling refreshed each morning. especially early morning. my afternoon coffees lately are not helping me get to bed early so i am kicking the habit- at least until after the race is over!

to your health,

C

commuting to work

today i commuted to work with these:

not really by choice... husband commutes to work on his bike but leaves his car in la jolla 13.5 miles away. so when he came home last night, the usual: blasting espn pod casting out of his iphone all while dripping sweat onto my wool pottery barn rug, and said his back was bothering him. well this morning, back still bothering him, he took the only car at our house - my car- to la jolla for work this morning. lucky for me my first client was at a reasonable hour of the morning so i had time to process the logistics of running (yes riding a bike would have been the easiest solution) and make it work!

the gym- work, i am lucky!- is 4.25 miles away all along coast highway. really no reason not to run everyday to work except for the fact that there is no shower. yah yah a personal trainer just needs to look 1/2 way decent and only sort-of-sweaty...

the logistics seemed fairly simple: run to gym, train clients, run home.

run to gym= easy. cute outfit. saw dolphins! minimal "running in fog on hwy101 full of traffic" anxiety.

arrive at gym= very sweaty. red face. how does that happen after a pace of 38 min??

train clients= thirsty, cold, then hungry. did not think this through well at all.

run home= faster pace getting home because i was cold and hungry!

total commute time: 1:15 (60 min longer then a normal commute on bike or in car)

feeling of satisfaction after running 8.5 miles: priceless!

now to figure out how to run to the real estate office and still pull off half way 'presentable'...

to your health,

C

1.11.11

crazy date today not only in the written format but that it really is eleven days into the new year!

our new years resolutions in the walseth house is very simple 'buckle down.' justin and i came up with this over our holiday as we reflected back on 2010 in all of its crazy glory! we had 2 trips out of the country, 3 family weddings, 1 ironman (2attempts) and 2 new jobs! just nuts. this time last year i could have told you what every other weekend had planned for the entire year. so for 2011 we are buckling down at home. staying home and getting to work. it feels good to start a new year with a clean and empty slat.

buckling down also comes with me still getting a feel for an increased work load- not the exercise type just yet- but the 'job' type. it has been fun! real estate is a lot like shopping actually... you get to shop for clients: research homes and their values and find the best deal!

on the exercise/training front i have decided that i need to stay with my 'buckling down' resolution. i am very excited and honored to be a part of the Nytro womens triathlon team again for 2011! this year is going to include a lot more local triathlon racing in southern california and running racing for me. i really want to focus more on running. as i eluded to on my last post it really is the most fun.

this past week i buckled down and actually added up total miles i ran and it looked like this:

monday: off

tues: easy 4miles solo

wed: 10 miles social! the best way to do it

thurs: 3 miles with justin's added 20 sets of stairs and 10 sprint bonus

friday:75 min special from gazelle beth with pick ups

sat: rode

sunday: 1:40 K-mayer special of her 'slow' but really not so slow pace through the ranch

based on my so-called-normal- speed it comes to be about 35 miles! whahhooo! much higher then i thought especially without 'ironman' training.

i have about 2 weeks of hard work left to race the Huntington beach half mary! feb 6th... to be continued!

to your health,

C