WSSC 2009 - Awesome!!

I just got back from the 10th annual World Spinning & Sports Conference. It was such an amazing experience (as per usual). Even though I wasn't able to attend the entire conference, I was grateful for the 1.5 days that I had to spend there. This was an opportunity to focus on myself and my own endurance, while still picking up tips & tricks for more efficient coaching of my clients.

After a super long day of travel, I had about 2 hours to unwind before the Intense White ride (2 hours). It was the most exhilirating experience for me! I didn't think that I'd be able to ride with such intensity, energy, and strength for so long. Josh Taylor was amazing. Last year, I didn't get to participate in his pre-conference ride or the ride with team spinning, so it was my priority to get one of those in during this trip. I am so glad I chose Josh's ride. The music was great, energy was off the chain...couldn't have asked for a better "welcome to WSSC" experience. I didn't get a ticket for the Ride with Team Spinning on Friday night. I think it was for the best, because I was already exhausted from a full day of activity. I rode twice on Friday - one endurance & one strength - each about 1.25 hours. So, in 2 days, I had about 4.5 hours logged on the bike. It was simply awesome.

I'm tired, but ready to head home now. Mission accomplished :-)

Chicken, Potato, & Kale Soup

Chicken, Potato, & Kale Soup

This is my best masterpiece yet. I modified this recipe from the VitaMix blender cookbook. I've made this soup about 4 times, and I finally perfected it. It usually takes me about 15-20 minutes start-to-finish, and the Vitamix does most of the work. Here's the scoop:

Ingredients

3 small yukon potatoes, boiled with skin on (can also use red potatoes)

1 cup low sodium chicken broth

1 1/2 cup skim milk

3/4 sweet yellow onion

3-4 green onions

1/2-1 tsp basil

1/2-1 tsp italian seasoning

1/4-1/2 tsp dried dill

sea salt, pepper, Mrs. Dash to taste

4-5 Fresh, Organic Kale Stalks (about 1/2 of a bunch)

4-5 Fresh Mushrooms (I prefer cremini)

4 pieces grilled chicken breast, chopped

Uncle Ben's Brown Ready Rice (optional)

1 ounce hard organic mild cheddar cheese (optional)

Directions

1. Season chicken breast to taste. Grill chicken breast in George Foreman Grill. Set aside.

2. Spray large skillet with Pam and add approx 1T olive oil. Saute 1/4 yellow onion, 1-2 chopped green onion, mushrooms, & garlic in pan for 1-2 minutes. Add green, leafy portion of kale stalks and lightly season with Mrs. Dash. Continue to saute until kale is soft. Set aside.

3. Prepare Uncle Ben's Brown Ready Rice in microwave (optional). Make sure to get the plain brown rice, as other versions of Ready Rice contain a significant amount of sodium. You can also use boil-in-bag brown rice or your other favorite rice.

4. Place remainder of yellow onion, remainder of chopped green onion, 2 boiled potatoes, chicken broth, & skim milk in VitaMix container. Secure lid. Make sure the variable speed is set to #1.

5. Turn on Vitamix and quickly increase the variable speed to #10; then to HIGH. Run for 5 minutes or until the mixture is steaming hot.

6. Season broth to taste with basil, Italian seasoning, dill, salt, & pepper. Use Vitmix on variable setting #1 to incorporate seasonings into the mixture. I usually eyeball amounts and taste along the way :-)

7. Disperse 1/2 of kale mixture and chopped chicken breast into 3-4 soup bowls. Gently toss together.

8. Turn blender speed up to #3. Remove the lid plug and add kale mixture and potato. Run blender about 5-10 seconds.

9. Pour soup base into prepared soup bowls and integrate. Add 2-3T of Uncle Ben's Ready Rice to each bowl. Top each bowl with chopped hard cheese. You might also want to add fresh chopped green onion to each bowl as well.

This recipe should yield 3-4 servings. You can add more or less chicken, kale, rice, etc to get the desired consistency. I love this soup! It's healthy and delicious. You get a flavorful, relatively creamy soup without using fattening milk or cream like you'd find in a restaurant. ENJOY!

Out of this world raw soup!!

I usually don't post recipes, but for those of you integrating more raw foods into your diet, I highly recommend the soup recipe below. It's great as a first post-fasting meal as well. This recipe comes from The Complete Book of Raw Food, 2nd edition, and was contributed by Abeba Wright & Anna fisk. The Contributor's Note for this recipe reads as follows: "This recipe was created at a 2002 Raw Chef's Training Retreat conducted by Victoria Boutenko. This soup was a hit - the students were scraping the bowl and begging for the recipe." All I can say is that I absolutely concur! Every time I make this soup, I'm literally scaping my bowl. I've usually tweak it a bit, adding more raisins and sundried tomatos for sweetness. At any rate, here it is. It usually takes me about 10-15 minutes to prepare this soup and then I simply sit down to ENJOY!!!

Ingredients (modified slightly from the text):
Soup "Broth"
4-5 fresh tomatos, chopped
Chopped, minced garlic ~ 1-2 teaspoons to taste (Note: I've used garlic cloves in the past, as the original recipe calls for them. however, I found the garlic cloves to be a bit too strong for my tastes. I like the chopped & minced garlic that can be found in the grocery store)
Basil (dried or fresh), to taste
Dill (dried or fresh), to taste
1/2 sweet yellow onion
1/2 red bell pepper (or use a whole one if you like it hotter)
2T lemon juice
sea salt & pepper, to taste
1/4 - 1/2 cup raisins
2 Tablespoons olive oil
1/2 cup sun dried tomatoes

Soup "Meat"
2 roma tomatoes, chopped & deseeded - used for the soup "meat"
1/2 cup sun dried tomatoes
1/2 - whole avocado, cubed (i prefer less, simply because I don't like to eat alot of avocado)
1/2 sweet yellow pepper
1 ear of sweet yellow corn, cut from the cob

Directions:
In order to prepare the soup broth, place all listed ingredients into a VitaMix blender (except for the sun-dried tomatoes). Blend thoroughly with 1/2 cup of water (note: I usually have to play around with the water to get the consistency that I want). Add the sun-dried tomatoes, a little at a time, into the VitaMix.

In a large soup bowl, combine the avocado, sun dried tomatoes, fresh tomatoes, corn, and sweet yellow pepper. Mix the chopped veggies by hand. Pour the soup broth over the chopped vegetables, stir well, and ENJOY!

REST DAY

Gosh, I was so tired & sore today, that I simply slept, treated myself to a sports massage, and put together my office furniture. I should've probably soaked in a hot tub or sat in the sauna today..my poor, achey muscles...who know that bodyweight training could produce such DOMS everywhere?!!!?? It feels great, though, and I can't wait to get back to training this upcoming week. I did cringe a bit, though, when I thought about running the stairs at Mt. Bonnell at some point this week. I'm scheduled to do it tomorrow, but we shall see what tomorrow will bring.

make it a great one, people!

TRX - All Core, All the Time

I attended the TRX Suspension Training Course today, and it was simply awesome! I am convinced that suspension training, coupled with kettlebells, sandbags, tires, etc, will vastly enhance one's overall level of functional fitness. Everyday movements will become easier; your body will work more synergistically to accomplish basic tasks.

I won't post my disseration here, or go on a long rant, but I did want to take a moment to quickly shout out the Fitness Anywhere team on a job well done. I highly encourage anyone who might even be remotely interested in suspension training and/or the TRX to give it a try. The experience is phenomenal. Do the research, buy the equipment, & get busy...you won't look back :-)

Interval Cardio

I did a quick 35-minute interval cardio session tonight...used the elliptical & recumbant bike. It felt great, and I definitely sweated (is that a word???) alot! Kept it short & simple in preparation for the TRX workshop on Saturday since it's a full 8 hours of lecture, hands-on, and working out.

Stairs & Spinning

Wow! I was so excited for this morning to get here that I actually had a hard time sleeping. I was really excited about the challenge of doing something new today, and that's exactly what I did! This morning I got up and headed to Mt. Bonnell to run the stairs. My plan was to get in 20 minutes, but I actually did 30, and made 6 laps up & down the 102-stair path (one-way). Two of the laps I ran the perimeter of the mountain (i.e. up the stairs, across the scenic path, down the trail, and back to the beginning). I was very proud of myself. I had my heart rate monitor on, because I was really curious as to how intense this would be. Turns out it was the perfect interval workout. Running up the stairs, my heart rate got into the anerobic zones; in the recovery periods of the workout, my heart rate naturally dropped. I'm looking forward to trying this out again. thank goodness for my water backpack and an overcast morning :-)

later this evening, I coached spin class, and was able to ride. We did an interval, all-terrain, loop style ride. I was holding back a little bit because I was sweating profusely and I kept losing my voice, but I think that everyone had a challening workout and a good time. I love teaching at the Riata...everyone is so friendly and they all seem to enjoy a good challenge. They bring out the best in me!

Tomorrow I'm not sure what I'm going to do. I think that I want to get on my rower & elliptical in the morning for about 30 minutes total. I have a long "to-do" list, so we'll see what happens....I did really well with my nutritional compliance today as well, so I'm pretty proud of myself. i was starving after spin class, though, so I at a bit more than I should have especially since I didn't get my pre-workout meal in. I figure that it all balances out, though.

Anyway, until then, have a lovely evening!