This Week in Workouts: A New Milestone!

Good morning! I hope your weekend was absolutely wonderful and to anyone who participated in the Boston Marathon, CONGRATULATIONS, you are incredible and I so hope your was one for the books!! In true marathon spirit, this last week included my longest run yet by a half mile. But, it was my fastest 10K and my longest time spent running. 

What is incredibly interesting about this run was that I did the run/walk/run per usual but decided to run the entire last mile. Turns out that was my slowest mile of all! The pace before that mile was 11.01, The 6th mile went up to an 11:38! There really is something to this run/walk/run method!! So, let's talk about what else I did for exercise.

Monday: 3-minute Magic Mile with a 9:30 pace! 

Tuesday: Rest Day

Wednesday: 30-minute run. Ran 3.06 miles :)

Thursday: Long run of 6.50 miles on the Legacy Trail- an old train track that has been converted to a running/biking path. The parts that I ran were a bit boring, but I have heard they get better when you get into the state parks. 

Friday: This Hip Opening Sequence

Saturday: Rest Day

Sunday: Some Sun Salutations

A little housekeeping for this week: The hubs and I will be in California for a bit so getting posts out might be a touch more difficult. My goal is to be able to do 1-2 posts about the area that we are in, great workouts (possibly while on an airplane since I have this one down), and hopefully a third!

Next week we will talk about Jeff Galloway's book, The Run Walk Run Method. If you have not yet finished it, or started it, I totally recommend picking it up!! 

How to Keep and Orchid Alive- and Blooming!

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This may seem like an odd topic for a health and fitness blog, but house plants are proven to increase one's mood and outlook on life. That is, if we can actually keep them alive long enough and not have to slowly watch them shrivel and die. Enter the orchid. Probably, the most thrown away house plant once Easter and spring are over and all those beautiful blooms have fallen.

Thankfully, orchids are really not that hard to keep alive or to keep blooming. Follow a few super simple steps and, chances are, your orchid will be healthy and blooming for years to come! These little fixes have worked for me for years. And now, I have had random people/family/friends who come by ask me how to keep orchids alive. Well, after running through these simple steps so many times, it just made sense to write them down and share them with you. Let's go!

1. Location

Orchids can be fickle little things and having a good location can mean the difference between life and death. For real. To keep your orchid baby alive and blooming (blooming being the key word),  it is best to keep them in a shaded area where they will get mild afternoon sun. Most house orchids like being slightly away from a window with blinds. Direct sunlight is no good.

If your orchid gets brown blotches on it's leaves, that is an orchid sunburn and a sign that it is in too much sun for too long. Direct sunlight is no good. Too little light and your orchid will have dark green leaves- this will not have an easy time re-blooming. A happy orchid should have bright green leaves with no dark brown spots.

2. Feeding

Orchids are super easy to feed, all you have to do is remember! Strange, but orchids LOVE ice cubes. I give each of mine 2-3 ice cubes once a week to keep them happy. This also increases growth and regeneration to make sure they keep blooming year after blooming year (get it, get it??!). Puns aside, orchids should be watered once to twice a week. I give mine about half a cup of water once a week and some ice cubes a few days later as the second watering. If you are seeing lots of water in the catch dish for days at a time, you are probably watering a bit too much.

3. Pruning and Cleaning

This is the most important part of the whole deal. Potting and pruning will mean the difference of an orchid that lives but never blooms and an orchid that blooms annually. If you do this right, your orchid will probably stay in bloom for 5+ months every year!!!

Pruning

An orchid grows by first, having a shoot that produces blooms, then, growing more leaves. Once the last bloom falls, the shoot is no longer necessary and is taking needed nutrients away from the leaves. It is best to cut the shoot a few inches above the base and place some cinnamon on the cut end. The cinnamon cauterizes the wound, so to speak. Give it a few days to heal, then re-pot your orchid and prune some more- but this time, we will be pruning the roots.

Cleaning

The goal of this process is to clean up the roots, check for health signs, and give your orchid more nutrients and space. Like a car, the health of your orchid can only be checked by going underneath. The roots will show you if there is over watering (they will be gooey and white), under watering (they will look dry and shriveled), and if it needs a bigger space (everything just looks packed). 

Once your orchid shoot is cut and healing, you can delicately take it out of it's pot. Chances are, you will need a bigger pot, especially if this is your first time re-potting it. I take my orchid out of it's pot over the sink with the stopper in. It is best to have some water running and clean the roots off. Some wood pieces or moss may get stuck in the orchid roots, be sure to gently remove these.

After the orchid has been cleaned, get your gardening or kitchen scissors (something sharp) to cut away the dead parts of the roots. Dead roots will brown, white and soggy, or black. Be sure to only cut these away. Living, healthy roots will look green and feel sturdy. The living roots are needed to keep the plant healthy. Be gentle and make sure not to break any of the healthy orchid roots. This can be a bit more of a task than it sounds, especially if your roots are packed tight together!

After pruning, I let my orchid sit under running water for a few minutes. This helps get rid of any extra debris and lets them aerate a bit. Then, comes the re-potting!

4. Re-Potting

Depending on how much root you cut away, you may need a bigger pot. The best way to tell if you need a bigger pot is to place the orchid about half to 3/4 of the way down in it's old pot; if roots can be seen over the edge or your are having to push it in at all, you need a bigger pot. If the roots seem to have plenty of room (about an inch between the edge of the pot and the orchid roots) and are not coming up over the sides, you can continue using the pot you have.

Orchid mixes are the simplest thing to use for re-potting your orchid. DO NOT use the old potting mix or regular soil. Orchids needs lots of air, nutrients, and very little water retention. Using regular soil will drown your orchid and using the old potting mix will not give it the nutrients it needs.

Fill the bottom of your pot about 1/4 the way full of the orchid potting mix. Place your orchid in the pot and, slowly, continue filling with potting mix. Be sure that the mix gets between all of the roots. Fill so no roots are showing through the potting mix.

If you really want to go above and beyond, add some packing peanuts to the potting mix. Orchids love packing peanuts as much as they love ice. This will help your orchid stay health and blooming!

Finally, give your orchid some water and place it back in it's happy sun spot. You should have some new leaves start to grow in (1-2 of the old ones may die) and a new shoot begin to form in about 4 months.

Make Your Own Rules

Tara Stiles' Make Your Own Rules Diet book is now available and I have already started reading mine! Of course, there will be a review out shortly- as soon as I can decide whether to read the book then review it or read the book, do the diet plan, and also complete all the yoga flows, then review it. Honestly, the second option sounds much more thorough and quite a bit better. That, however, will take time.

Although I am not a band-wagon dieter, I do appreciate Tara Stiles' health philosophies and need to get my body on a better track than where it is heading. If you are like me, the diet part may not sound so great, but the getting your health and fitness life on track could be what we all need.

Tara seemed very wise in releasing the book before the holidays rather than after. Of course, she could have made more if it was released right before Christmas or at the New Year, but let's face it, we all need a little extra help when pies, potatoes, cookies, and all other not healthy things are being passed around like a necessity.

Really though, I am just excited to get some help with health goals, see what her ridiculously yummy recipes are, and have some fantastic new yoga flows! If that sounds good to you as well, let's do it together! You can order the book by clicking the link above or any of the links in the article :) Now, let's have some fun with health food!

Recipes for Labor Day Leftovers

As you may know, Labor Day was celebrated yesterday. For most of us this meant barbecuing, beaching, and all out relaxing. Of course, there is plenty of eating to go along! For all those out there who had massive parties or even just made some massive amounts of food, you could be looking at some serious leftovers. Of course, there is always the option to eat those leftovers just the way you made them, but, if you want to mix it up a bit, these recipes could help! 

Barbecue Chicken Salad

This recipe uses two things you may have leftover- barbecue chicken and corn on the cob. Whether you are making this as a quick lunch or light dinner, it will be fantastic! Keep it simple by using Worcestershire sauce like the recipe suggests, or really go out and use that delicious, delicious ranch dressing. Yum!

Crab Rolls

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Yesterday we had a low country broil for dinner, sans the potatoes. Yes, it was amazing and I almost wish I had not gorged myself so we could have any leftovers to make these with! Unfortunately, we ate way too much and have no leftovers left. It was totally worth it though ;) Low country broils may be my favorite meal ever to exist!

If you, however, do have crab leftover in your fridge, there is a pretty great chance you will want to use it fast and not in the same way you prepared it. Both of these recipes will be great for day-old crab, just be sure to use it quick! Of course, either one can also be supplemented with shrimp, lobster, or canned crab as well. The first recipe option above is a bit healthier. With only 238 calories and 5 grams fat, it is almost half of the Panera-recommended option. Of course, the slightly less healthy one also seems slightly easier to make.

Oh, and just because it came up with my "crab roll" search, here is a super yummy looking recipe for cinnamon roll protein pancakes. Yes, please!

Wine Granita

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This might just be the best use of stale wine or beer ever. And, if you had a Labor Day party, there is a chance you have a bit of both. Instead of sadly pouring it down the sink, simultaneously wasting your libations and giving your house that oh-so sought after fraternity house smell, use it for a dessert! These granitas will save all that unused wine and beer and the best part is you actually want it to be stale.

For those with some serious dessert leftovers, this list of ways to use cake could be super handy! This one is great for any of those pies and cobblers you still have hanging around.