Today I practiced the front squat with press; push up; pull up and medicine ball clean (precursor to an actual clean). Push ups were full range, which was new. Pull ups were with bands, which I love. The workout was Tabata for each exercise, 6 reps each exercise. Very quick but tiring. One more essentials/training class then I am on my way.
Ran the Microsoft 5K today. Final time, 27:56, a pace 10 seconds slower than last year. Dang it! According to my watch, here were my splits:
That is a slow first mile. I had some things going against me. First, running in the afternoon is not my forte. Second, rushing to the race course after several conference calls and wolfing down a bowl of soup probably not the best way to prep for a road race. But those are just excuses. Let’s face it. If you don’t train, you don’t go fast.
No excuses, but allow me to share my race day pet peeve. Let’s face it, slow runners. It’s quite likely you are aware you are not a 7-min miler. People who are 7-minute milers KNOW they are that fast. Why? Because they work at it. So, then, slower-than-7-minute milers, WHY are you starting with the 7-minute milers? You know what happens, right? You are going at a snail’s pace and slowing everyone down who is forced to pass you. This is why they separate us by time.
There, I’ve said it. I feel a little better. This year was fun. Great sunny weather; skipping work for a good cause; just wished I cold have been a little faster.
This was the second of four “essentials” classes. I’ve done more erging this week than I have all year. (In addition to the below I also found myself on the erg earlier this week at the gym. The poor gym ergs … they looked so shiny and new three years ago ..)
What I practiced: Press; Push Press; Wall Balls; AbMat Sit Ups
Our mini workout was 3 rounds of:
I clocked in at around 12 or so minutes. Looks harmless but you still end up pretty sweaty.
Here are more pics from my London sightseeing by foot…
Run #3: Houses of Parliament, up close and personal.
Run #3: Better shot of BB. Built in 1834, folks. Wow.
Run #3: Nelson’s Column at Trafalgar Square. Last time I was here in 1999, I recall a lot of pigeons. And tourists paying vendors to buy seeds to feed disgusting pigeons. Yet one more benefit for checking this out at 6 am.
Run #3: National Gallery. I hear there’s some cool stuff here.
Run #4: The Serpentine. I had to get an early start as I was leaving this day. We had a week of terrific weather.
Run #4: Kensington Gardens. Whose house is this? It gave off a Harry Potter vibe. Like, maybe where Tom Riddle grew up, but less creepy.
Run #4: Still Hyde Park. What a cool sculpture. Crazy Brits.
Run #4. Marble Arch. It’s hard for me to fathom that this has been around since the 1880s. That’s 18.
Should you need to want to know anything about the public art around Westminster, Wikipedia has a great list.
I’m trying out the Crossfit gym up the street from me. It’s a tiny little studio. Good thing there was just two of us in the beginners/essentials class. In addition to learning correct posture and positioning for a variety of lifting exercises, we did a quick workout of:
Repeat 3x
I was freaked about not injuring myself doing those deadlifts. In fact it was the box jumps then running that made me feel weak in the knees (and not in that romance novel kind of way)
I like it. I suspect this will be a new way to meet some neighbors since it is so close to me.we’ll see how the remaining 3 essentials classes go…
I make it a habit to not take pictures while I’m out running. I think I’ve mentioned this before. I miss a lot of good photo ops, for sure, but I’ve got other things to think about, like staying upright. But, of course, you have to make exceptions when your running route includes landmarks such as Buckingham Palace, Big Ben, Trafalgar Square etc etc.
While in London I did 4 routes, all starting from my hotel in Victoria (just a couple blocks from Victoria Station):
Sunday, 4PM: Buckingham Palace to Green Park to Hyde Park, out and back
Wednesday, 6AM: Down Vauxhall Bridge Road, across Vauxhall Bridge and along South Bank until Millenium Bridge/Tate, then back again. My goal had been to reach London Bridge but at the 30-min mark I had to turn back as to not be late for work.
Friday, 6:30AM: Down Vauxhall Bridge Road, along the northside of the river, past Parliament/Big Ben, up Parliament Street towards Trafalgar Square, down The Mall towards Buckingham and back home.
Saturday, 6:30AMish: Headed East towards Knightsbridge, Hyde Park (northside), Kensington Gardens, Marble Arch, through Green Park, Buckingham Palace and back home.
Home, meaning the hotel. From day 1, Buckingham Palace became my main orienting landmark. No matter what walk or run I was on, I would reach it, sometimes not meaning to, and was able to easily maneuver myself home. Not an easy feat for this directions-challenged chica. Due to time, I tried to stay under 60 minutes for all of these. I was running at such an easy pace, and stopping frequently enough due to picture taking or map taking, that I could have gone on for much longer. A nice way to see the city, especially in the early morning hours, as you don’t have the big crowds to deal with. On the other hand, you can’t actually visit the National Gallery. You can only take a picture of the building.
Run 1: Buckingham Palace, my first destination
Run 1: I think this is the entrance to Green Park. Lots of big arches. I should have journaled this earlier when I could remember
Run 1: Hyde Park Corner. Through Hyde Park. This was a beautiful, hot sunny Sunday. Nearly the end of the Paralympics. I ran into large crowds and a concert on the Green. It was an amazing day to be in such a huge city.
Run 2: This is where my phone failed me, slightly. Took this from South Bank, used the zoom.
Remnants of a big summer in London. Glad I missed the madness. I did receive the benefits, like a cleaner city, volunteers in the Underground stations; cheaper sales at souvenir shops.
Run 2: Turnaround spot, Millennium Bridge, right close to Blackfriars. I wanted to run further, had the energy to, but not the time (I was there for work, after all)
Run 2: View from what I thought was Vauxhall, but was sadly mistaken when after I crossed it nothing looked familiar and I realized I had one more bridge to go. I guess I was more tired than I thought. But I did chance upon Tate Gallery this way. This is actually a Lambreth Bridge view, by the way.
Run 2: One thing I noticed running early AM … lots of people do it, many wearing backpacks, presumably running to work where they will shower and start the day. Also, these huge peletons of bike riders with their own lane, cruising down the main streets. London is where it’s at.
This post is getting huge.
More to come for my last 2 runs.
Foreign foods are always fun, even if ‘foreign’ still speaks the same language. Here are a few Brit goodies:
Black currant juice courtesy of the Microsoft kitchen. I loved this stuff. I never drink the U.S. juices but if my office stocked this stuff I’d be sucking it down day long. It’s for the best that Bellevue doesn’t stock it, I guess.
?? They just tasted like salty, seasoned potato chips. Nothing memorable.
Candy aisle at the airport. So fun! I bought a couple of candy bars with the remaining pounds before departing for the U.S. the Twirl was not great.
I’m better off sticking with my favorite, Ritter Sport milk chocolate with biscuit. What country makes that, anyway?
P.S. My camera phone took those pics. I think they look great. Love that phone.
If at first you don’t succeed, try, try again. And so I did. Today the slow-cooker recipe was “Asian Pork Ribs” (thanks, Betty Crocker iPad app!) …. However that name is way too politically correct so henceforth I shall call these Hoisin Pork Ribs.
Way better than last week. The butcher at Met Market cut these country style ribs in cubes just for me (wow, I used a butcher!). I got back from the store then realized we were out of soy sauce. I ended up using a ton of those little packets we get from takeout sushi.
How can I be a legitimate Chinese woman without soy sauce in my kitchen?
The ribs were great. Husband liked them, kid liked them, I really liked. I stir fried some broccoli and green beans, and used a frozen rice/beans mix, which I still managed to mess up, even though husband tried to help there. I am a lost cause when it comes to rice. Maybe it’s for the best that I don’t eat much rice anymore. Maybe I should give it up all together.
What to try net week? I think I’m all porked out.
I got a slow cooker! Great timing, as the season is finally starting to turn. Remember a while back I was cooking on weekends? Well, the husband was wondering when that would be returning. Well, Husband, that time is now!
I didn’t say it would be great cooking, though. My first slow-cooker creation was this pork tenderloin dish made with plums and crushed pineapple. Not great. The pork wasn’t all that moist. The meat didn’t absorb the flavor all that well. The brown rice was mushy.
I am a 37 year old Chinese woman and I cannot make a decent pot of rice. I miss my rice cooker. Sigh.
This was last Sunday’s dinner. Stay tuned for my second try with the SC…
So, I was in the U.K. for a week for work. Eight days, actually. I had a few goals, knowing that I’d spend most of my time working … These were the food-related activities I wanted to do:
Here is a quick photojournal. You can see for yourself how I did:
I didn’t actually go to this one. I just liked the name. So many kitschy-named pubs all over the place. This goal would actually be tough, because I don’t particularly like beer, and I am a bit self-conscious drinking alone.
Fish. Check. Chips. Check. Even a little tartar sauce. Was that too American? Oh well.
I didn’t actually get one of these, but I loved the pyramid. I ended up with a chocolate crossaint instead (pain du chocolat or something like that). It was meh.
You always know where the pubs are around London by the little (or sometimes huge) crowd of smokers standing around outside. That’s right, pubs are smoke-free in London believe it or not. This was a work-related function that I crashed. Made for checking off the pub task easier.
I guess the East End is where it really is at for great Indian food. I didn’t have the time to get out there, but there were plenty of smaller Indian places all over the city, including outside my window. I didn’t go to that one as it was empty nearly every time I checked. This place had folks coming in right after dinner, got a decent review from urbanspoon. I was seated so I could watch their dumbwaiter system in action, which I loved. AND they gave me a yellow rose at the end of my meal. Is that supposed to signify something? Rogan Josh & Saag Paneer.
This spot (Le Pain Quotidien) ended up as a go-to place for dinner. And once for dessert. It was low-key, oh yeah, and across the street from the hotel. I’m reading “Pride & Prejudice”
I couldn’t help but notice how many people walk and eat in this city. Tons of places all over the city where you can pick up a quick breakfast, sandwich, salad, etc and either eat-in or takeaway. I wanted to be like them, so I found a couple of Pasty Shops at Victoria Station and gave it a shot. Only I didn’t walk and eat. I walked back to the hotel and ate.
Look, British Cupcakes! I didn’t get one of these, though my friend from college who I was able to visit did treat us to some chocolate eclairs from this place. Magnificent!
You can see my reflection in the glass. Lots of women making dumplings in front of the window, to entice us tourists to come in, no doubt. I didn’t have enough cash on me for a sit-down lunch so just snapped the pic instead.
Other places I visited: Wagamama (noodle shop chain); Pret A Manger; M&S Simply Foods; work cafeteria; The, ahem, hotel (breakfast was free, and actually pretty good. I also got lazy one night and ate dinner there. Big mistake as it was the least interesting and most expensive meal I had the entire week, without ordering a glass of wine!) and of course, this “cafe”, which as it turned out I frequented more than once:
For some reason, I was drawn to cappuccinos all week. Must have been a Europe thing. Did you know you get TWO shots in your tall espresso beverage? They do it RIGHT.
So. How’d I do?