Goodreads Challenge 2014: Part 2

I signed up for another Goodreads Challenge this year. I realize that I totally fell off the wagon updating the blog last year, and didn't post anything beyond the first set of books. See My Goodreads Challenge Part One here.

I didn't officially meet the goal of 12 books in 12 months, I only managed to complete 11 by December 31. However, I was mid-book when the year changed, and finished my 12th book by the first week of January, so in my head, it counts.(I have the opposite rule in my head about calories consumed on a Friday night - they don't count. I should do a post sometime about the rules in my head...imagine what life would be like then...)

So without further ado, these were the rest of my books for the Goodreads Challenge for 2014:

Cameron Diaz - The Body Book

From the back cover:
Throughout her career, Cameron Diaz has been a role model for millions of women. By her own admission, though, this fit, athletic star wasn't always as health-conscious as she is today. Her consumption of bad foods had an effect on her skin and her body. "If you are what you eat," she says, "I was a bean burrito with extra cheese and extra sauce, no onions." Learning about the inseparable link between nutrition and health was just one of the life-changing lessons that sparked Cameron's passion to explore the best ways to care for her body. In The Body Book, she shares the knowledge she's gained both from personal experience and from consulting with health experts.

Cameron Diaz offers some insight on her eating and exercise habits. As a former model you sort of have to take it with a grain of salt. There are chapters in here that are clearly written by someone else, with a few of Cameron's interjections to make it seem more like her. But whatevs, I didn't hate it. I ended up liking her more. Except wtf is up with her face on this cover? It doesn't even look like her. She's gorgeous without the photoshopping. Just stop it.

Diane Chamberlain - The Courage Tree

From the back cover: 
Eight-year-old Sophie Donohue just wanted to be like every other little girl. Which is why her mother, Janine, reluctantly agreed to let her go on the weekend camping trip with her Brownie troop. But when Janine arrives to pick up Sophie after the trip, her daughter is not among the others. Somehow, along the forested route from West Virginia, Sophie has disappeared.

I haven't read a mystery in a while, so this was a change for me, to put down the book and think about what possibly could be going on. The subject matter was a little disturbing, the thought of losing one of my own children is gut-wrenching, let alone losing a sick child. It's the stuff of nightmares, but I worked through it and finished it with relief. 

Emily Giffin - Where We Belong

From the back cover:
Marian Caldwell is a thirty-six year old television producer, living her dream in New York City. With a fulfilling career and satisfying relationship, she has convinced everyone, including herself, that her life is just as she wants it to be. But one night, Marian answers a knock on the door . . . only to find Kirby Rose, an eighteen-year-old girl with a key to a past that Marian thought she had sealed off forever. From the moment Kirby appears on her doorstep, Marian’s perfectly constructed world—and her very identity—will be shaken to its core, resurrecting ghosts and memories of a passionate young love affair that threaten everything that has come to define her.

I loved this author, I've read pretty much everything she's written, so adding this to the list was a no-brainer. Her characters are realistically flawed and make the kind of selfish decisions that normal people make, which is nice. An easy and enjoyable read.

George R.R. Martin - A Clash of Kings

From the back cover:
Time is out of joint. The summer of peace and plenty, ten years long, is drawing to a close, and the harsh, chill winter approaches like an angry beast. Two great leaders—Lord Eddard Stark and Robert Baratheon;who held sway over an age of enforced peace are dead...victims of royal treachery. Now, from the ancient citadel of Dragonstone to the forbidding shores of Winterfell, chaos reigns, as pretenders to the Iron Throne of the Seven Kingdoms prepare to stake their claims through tempest, turmoil, and war. 

I love the show, and I love the books. Enough said. Except I'll add that when I read Tyrion's lines in the book, I say them with Peter Dinklage's tone, accent and inflection. Just for some extra fun.

Diane Gabaldon - Outlander

From the back cover:
The year is 1945. Claire Randall, a former combat nurse, is just back from the war and reunited with her husband on a second honeymoon when she walks through a standing stone in one of the ancient circles that dot the British Isles. Suddenly she is a Sassenach—an “outlander”—in a Scotland torn by war and raiding border clans in the year of Our Lord...1743.

This series is huge, not only in sheer size of the novels themselves, but the fact she has written at least a dozen books for the series...there is novellas, graphic novels and prequels that added to the mix and some were written out of order. The whole thing is very complex. And popular. I found this book really addictive and I started the next one as soon as I finished this one. 

Diana Gabaldon - Dragonfly in Amber

From the back cover:
For twenty years Claire Randall has kept her secrets. But now she is returning with her grown daughter to Scotland’s majestic mist-shrouded hills. Here Claire plans to reveal a truth as stunning as the events that gave it birth: about the mystery of an ancient circle of standing stones ... about a love that transcends the boundaries of time ... and about James Fraser, a Scottish warrior whose gallantry once drew a young Claire from the security of her century to the dangers of his....

Another one that I devoured...I'm not going to say quickly because this is no light read. It's more of the same, but when the formula works, it works. The heroine is spunky and the hero is a Scottish hunk. What else do you need?

Diana Gabaldon - Voyager

From the back cover:
Their passionate encounter happened long ago by whatever measurement Claire Randall took. Two decades before, she had traveled back in time and into the arms of a gallant eighteenth-century Scot named Jamie Fraser. Then she returned to her own century to bear his child, believing him dead in the tragic battle of Culloden. Yet his memory has never lessened its hold on her... and her body still cries out for him in her dreams.

Ugh. Ok. I'm getting to the point now where its getting to be a little lame. Her body still cries out for him in her dreams? I still read this, but come on. I like a romantic novel as much as the next girl, but let's be realistic here. Oh wait. This whole story is based on time travel through rocks...

Jillianne Hamilton - Molly Miranda, Thief for Hire

From the back cover:
Professional, experienced contract burglar. It’s not exactly something you can put on a business card. Molly Miranda has made a successful living from “acquiring” valuables and delivering them to clients who pay buckets of cash for her unique services. So what if she has to lie about her lavish lifestyle in Manhattan and her frequent trips out of the country? Molly has everything under control. Things go astray when she knocks boots with her charming roommate right before taking off to Scotland with an untrustworthy wildcard on a job assignment that doesn't go quite as planned. It doesn't help that this new partner-in-crime is super annoying. And attractive… Join Molly on her hilarious adventures as she dodges bullets, trespasses, wears disguises, and steals her way into trouble.

This was a breath of fresh air after the all the ripped bodices and heaving busoms from the past three books (see above). Oh, women can make decisions that are based on something other than a man? The main storyline isn't about love? Blasphemy.  I loved the character, she was a strong female, who took zero bullshit and put work before her dating life. Loved it.


And the "unofficial" twelfth book of 2014, although it was finished around January 3, 2015 or so....

Caitlin Moran - How to Build a Girl 

From the back cover:
What do you do in your teenage years when you realize what your parents taught you wasn't enough? You must go out and find books and poetry and pop songs and bad heroes—and build yourself. It's 1990. Johanna Morrigan, fourteen, has shamed herself so badly on local TV that she decides that there's no point in being Johanna anymore and reinvents herself as Dolly Wilde—fast-talking, hard-drinking gothic hero and full-time Lady Sex Adventurer. She will save her poverty-stricken Bohemian family by becoming a writer—like Jo in Little Women, or the Brontës—but without the dying-young bit.

If you've ever heard Caitlin Moran speak, she speaks really fast, and with the British accent, she's on to the next subject before you realize what she just said, and that it's hilarious. Thankfully I can read her words at my own speed. This Johanna/Dolly Wilde chick is wonderful. Her musings, her reasonings, her inner dialogue is just so heartbreaking and funny at the same time. You end up laughing at her pain, but I guess the moral is that if Johanna will be ok in the end, so will we. Great book.


I've already started the 2015 challenge, and have a good start on it already. Does anyone have any good books they would recommend?

The Ten Commandments of Boot Camp

I finished an eight week Total Body Transformation Boot Camp tonight, and I'm really happy with how it went. Working out with 8 other girls being trained by two trainers *cough*drill sergeants*cough*  wasn't something I was used to and totally out of my comfort zone - I'm used to working out in my basement and running back country roads alone. I'm pleased with the results of the camp too, it's taken my mentality from working out being a chore to being a normal part of the day, which is the shift I desperately needed.

Also, I shaved almost a second from my 30 yard sprint, doubled the amount of pushups and crunches in a set time (Don't ask me how long, I don't know. 30 seconds? 90 seconds? 45 minutes? I was just waiting for the word "TIME!" to tell me I could stop), added a tire flip, and added 6 seconds to my static squat. My measurements all went down, and I lost two pounds overall, but my general attitude towards the scale is one of distaste and despisery, so even if the scale went up (it rollercoastered the entire eight weeks), I would still have come out happy.

In the spirit of watching the movie Noah, which I did the other night and loved, I wanted to share the lessons I learned from Boot Camp (yes, I know, the two bible stories are unrelated but just go with it. And go watch Noah. Russell Crowe is still very awesome.)

The Ten Commandments of Boot Camp

1. Thou shalt not eat a half of a pizza before class. It will sit like a rock in your stomach. It's not in the Nutrition Guide.

2. Thou shalt not skimp on calories on boot camp days. You will need the energy. Running out of steam after 15 minutes makes for a very. long. class.

3. Thou shalt not underestimate the power of the pre-workout. You will want to die less.

4. Thou shalt juice on Sundays. It feels really great to juice on Sunday for breakfast and lunch. The Nutrition Guide suggested waiting until 8pm for a meal on Sundays, but I am an exceedingly devoted mother and my family requested that I eat supper with them. And I got hungry.

5. Thou shalt not skimp on protein powder. Seriously, put it in everything.

6. Thou shalt not take the scale too seriously. Screw it. It is just a number it does not own you.

7. Thou shalt not sass thy trainer. They can and will make you pay for it. "Are we running with sandbags?" "No." "Sweet!!" "I changed my mind. Grab a sandbag." Your proper response should have been "Thank you" and then move on. MOVE ON!

8. Thou shalt not forget the bug spray. There is nothing more annoying than swatting at bugs in the middle of a burpee set.

9. Thou shalt respect thy pushup and thy burpee. Be prepared to do hundreds, if not thousands, of pushups and burpees over the eight weeks.

10. Thou shalt prepare for pain. Stairs are overrated, anyway.

I loved it, and I'd recommend it to anyone.

How to Squeeze More Veggie Servings into Your Day

I enrolled in a Healthy Habits Boot Camp early this winter, and we spent an hour each week examining our eating habits and how to make our eating healthier. Our instructor used the Canada's Food Guide, and challenged us to follow the recommendations. We were to track our meals and count the servings for each of the food groups. I figured I knew how to eat healthy, but never in my life would I guess that I was falling so short of vegetable intake. Even with my veggie box. It was dismal. So I made it my mission to get the recommended 7-8 servings of vegetables in a day.

I had to sneak greens into pretty much everything, because I think I would have gotten really sick of eating salads for every single meal.

Here are a few of the tricks I used. (I should note I am showing the pictures and linking to the recipes only to give credit, they aren't the recipes I personally use).

Skip the spaghetti noodles and use a bed of greens

The concept of putting hot tomato sauce on a bed of lettuce or spinach that wilts when it heats seems wrong, I know. But once you forgive yourself for that and try it anyway, it is good. And the more you eat it, the better it gets. Your palate changes from "This spaghetti tastes ...different" to "This is the BEST salad." See the difference there? It's no longer pasta, just a hot, spicy, tomato-saucy salad. For a mom who's wheat-free and serving three other people who aren't, it's a quick modification to a weekday meal.

This is the closest picture I could find that looked like what mine look like...I don't bother with all the fixings, just dump the spag or chili on a bed of greens and go, but for the sake of a picture, here you are:

Use Spinach in your Pasta Sauces

Wilted spinach is barely recognizable in chili or spaghetti sauces, and you can blow through 2 or 3 cups easily. If you chop it up a  bit, the pieces get so small and your kids will never know they are eating all their spinach.

Use Greens in your Stir Fry

Very similar in concept to adding them to your sauces, the wilted greens give it some different color and flavor. It doesn't hide as well as it does in the sauces, but it really is tasty. And it wilts down so small, you can throw several handfuls in and it's not too much.This picture shows just spinach and chicken, but through all your usual stir fry veg in there too.

Use Spinach in your Smoothie

There are millions of smoothie recipes online with spinach in them, so go try one. It doesn't take like spinach, I promise. A little peanut butter and some chocolate protein, and you are drinking a cold Reese's Peanut Butter Cup. You will never know you are getting spinach into your system.

Use Greens in your Quinoa

I took this recipe (or my version of it anyway) to my mother's house for a dinner one night, and everyone loved it. I was requested to bring it again the next time we had supper. It is so good... I tell everyone that I could (and have) eaten the whole pot by myself. The cranberries, the feta, it all just makes it so fantastic. My favorite hidden greens recipe by far.

I'd love to hear from others how they work at getting lots of veggies in their diets, or any other ways to hide vegetables...let me know in the comments!

Five Reasons You Know You are Addicted to Borgia

I've been watching Borgia on Netflix lately, and it's full of everything I love. Except the incest part, because ew. It takes place in fifteen century Rome, and follows the lives of the Vatican's most intriguing family, the Borgia. I've never heard of them before, but any gamers out there familiar with Assassin's Creed might have. I've been watching the Canal + version, but there is a tamer, watered down version on Showtime as well, and both are on Netflix. I'm totally loving it and finding myself a tad obsessed.

Here are a few of the warning signs that you are addicted (as I am) to this awesome, disgusting, beautiful and disturbing show.

5. You are disappointed Borgia doesn't have a wikia like Game of Thrones that has a biography on every character. 

Every show with a huge cast needs this. Especially when you have casting directors that favor certain "looks" and half the male cast look the same.

4. You have taken sides against the "other" show about the Borgia even though you haven't watched it.

For the record, I've only watched the European version. Things are less censored over there.

3. You expect to see Mark Ryder selfies in your Twitter feed every morning. 

It only happened once since I started following him, but it was great.

2. You debated in your head for a minute about reading the political work by Niccolo Machiavelli, The Prince, because it apparently loosely based on Cesare Borgia. Then you didn't. Because, well....it's early yet. You still might. 

You have full plans to read The Family by Mario Puzo though.

1. OMG you can't wait for season three to start. That is all.

My Goodreads Challenge

In the spirit of my new years resolution, Turn Off the Damn TV (paraphrased, of course), I took up Goodreads' 2014 Reading Challenge. The challenge is an individual one, you can set the number of books you pledge to read during the year. I set my goal at 12 books, so a book a month. Easy peasy.

I'm going to try not to dwell on the fact that Goodreads average number of books in the challenge is 55. Oy. Not this year.

Book One: The Book Thief by Markus Zusak

The Book Thief is a young adult book, but the Nazi Germany setting and the sections of the book narrated by Death are as dark as you would expect. I cared about the characters (Rudy especially- what a little gem he was), and I honestly liked the way the unconventional way the author approached some things. I enjoyed the book by the end, but I was crying like a baby.

Book Two: Orange is the New Black by Piper Kerman

I picked this one because I loved the Netflix series so much. The book was good, though the series was MUCH more dramatized. The series created challenges and drama where there was none in the book. And there is much less lesbian sexytime in the book, if anyone is wondering.

Book Three: The White Queen by Phillipa Gregory

I love historical drama, and I loved Phillipa Gregory's Tudor series, but this one was a different beast. It was a lot more political and the story is repetitive (Oh, look. Edward is off to war again.). And every character was either named Elizabeth, Mary, Richard, Edward or George. It's super hard to keep track of twenty characters when they share the same five names. What also threw me was there was a certain mystery that was left completely unresolved, and it wasn't until I wikipedia'ed it after that it was indeed based on a true story, and the mystery was never solved. How depressing.

I'm realizing this list is are all movies or tv shows now, so while I was thinking my next few books will be Game of Thones, but maybe I should pick a few things that don't encourage me to turn on the tv to watch the story I just read. 

Anyone have any good books they read lately? Anyone else in the Goodreads Challenge?

New Years Resolution Update

We are finishing up month three of 2014. That's 12 and a half weeks into my resolution. If you recall my resolution was to get myself out of a huge rut that involved a lot of tv and not much else:

1. Not watch TV until 9 pm, and use the time after supper to do something. Anything: start a new hobby, read a book, play a board game, organize something, work out, etc. Watching Netflix does not count as a hobby. 

Right off the bat I'll admit the waiting until 9pm thing stopped happening early on. On nights that I didn't have plans, or a project, the tv was turned on by 8pm. I feel like I needed it though. The hustle and bustle of the day just demanded an end and the couch or bed called my name. I still managed to make my days something more than work, cook, clean, watch tv, repeat. 

I did still watch tv, and got caught up in Downton Abbey (not Downtown Abbey as I had originally thought) and like any good soap, it sucked me in for four seasons with the drama and the dresses. And Michelle Dockery's impressive eyebrow span. Oh, and everything that is Maggie Smith.

Check out those eyebrows. 

Oh wait, I'm talking about TV again. Let's get back on track here. 

I did manage to become slightly more productive again after the Autumn of Nothingness. My closets are organized. My basement was cleaned not once, but twice in the past three months. I recently switched around the furniture in my living room (it sounds minor, but little things like that give me a boost.)

I joined a Bootcamp group. We meet every Monday for eight weeks, and spend the first hour doing some sort of workout, like Tabata or the Accumulator. Then we spend the next hour talking about healthy eating habits, mostly about following Canada's Food Guide and the importance of preparing your own food. I had no idea how little vegetables I was eating. I thought I ate healthy (up until the Autumn of Nothingness of course, when I would skip lunch in favor of Peanut Butter M&M's) but now my veggie servings are up around 10-12 servings a day. 

I meet a friend for tutorial sessions on Photoshop and Illustrator once a week (we picked Wednesday's but there was some sort of glitch in the matrix and it stormed pretty consistently on Wednesdays this winter.) We usually worked on something for my job. It was nice sitting in a quiet coffee shop far removed from Mommyland. 

I  finished The Book Thief by Markus Zuzak. It took me a bit, since I put it down for a while, but it was a good read- the last twenty pages or so had me sobbing. My husband walked into the room during these last few pages and when he saw what a mess I was he went instantly from "Honey, have you seen my hat?" mode to "Danger: approach wife with extreme caution" mode. He almost backed up. Poor guy. I almost laughed. Almost. I was too busy crying.

So after three months, things are going back to normal. The mom-shaped blob isn't a permanent fixture on my couch anymore. Not major victories or huge changes here; all minor. All normal things that normal people accomplish...but at least it's something. Something is better than nothing.

(Note: I've been messing around with the design of the blog, but I'm still not happy with it. Most of the time when a page loads, the web font doesn't render, and Comic Sans appears in it's place. Not cool, Blogger, not cool. )

The Search for a New Hobby

Hey all. I changed the look of the blog this week. The other design wasn't working and all the text was displaying as Times New Roman. Thanks, but no thanks.

I recently changed my relationship with a certain item in my house, due to a mom-shaped blob being a permanent fixture on my living room couch. The change happened around Christmas, so I made a resolution to make it a little more formal. Here is my New Years Resolution for 2014:

1. Not watch TV until 9 pm, and use the time after supper to do something. Anything: start a new hobby, read a book, play a board game, organize something, work out, etc. Watching Netflix does not count as a hobby. 

I felt like this fall just sucked the life right out of me. No motivation, no challenges, just an unhealthy addiction to TV shows and curling up in front of the fire. It was just nothing. I was busy at work, and it seemed like when I got home, I needed to put my brain on hold and just not do anything. It was starting to become noticeable around Christmas that I was becoming a blob on the couch, so I decided I needed to change something.

So my New Years Resolution that I started a week before New Years began. I am trying to not veg out in front of the tv until 9 pm at night. Until that time arrives, I have to do something. Don't get me wrong, I used to be able to do things. I had projects, I took on personal challenges, I read books. Just not lately. I think I got lazy. Or the internet made me do it. One or the other. But it's definitely either my fault or the Internets.

 I read this post shortly after I started and it speaks exactly to where I am: Self-Improvement: Why I Am Powering-Off My Electronics & Accomplishing MORE. I don't see a ukulele or painting self-portraits in my near future (though it would be awesome) but I completely feel the line "I don't have any other interests besides Tumblr or Facebook".  Time to change that.

So I have a few goals in mind for the next six months: become proficient in Photoshop, train for my third Tough Mudder in July, get through a few more (lets say four, shall we?) of my "To-Read" list on Goodreads, and keep up with the blog with my progress and little projects I'm up to. Along the way, I'll keep my eye out for a new hobby. Not to sound lackluster or lukewarm about this whole hobby thing. Just that it might be too much too soon. Let's get my sorry ass off the couch first.

Week Four: My Pizzas

Pizza on Fridays is the food highlight of my week.

You can imagine my disappointment when I didn't have time to have a pizza this past Friday.

Looking back though, I had some Thai on Tuesday with some friends, and it was so delicious, it totally made up for it. The Pad Thai was made with rice noodles, and the Chicken Curry was served on rice, so no wheat pasta. And it was SO GOOD. And there were leftovers. I could have eaten it ALL.

Between eating out of the house with friends and family a few times this week, not eating at home has left me with a lot of extra veggies in my fridge. I get my veggie box every Friday, so I took some extra veggies to my sister in laws...there was no way I could get through all those veggies before they went bad.

A Typical Wheat Free Day

I know it sounds like I am going on about Thai food and pizza...but I'm really not starving myself. This is what a typical day looks like for me on wheat free:

Breakfast:
Egg (Fried or hardboiled)
A piece of fruit OR a fruit smoothie (frozen fruit, plain greek yogurt, almond milk, ground flax seed and a small bit of protein powder)

Snack:
Apple
Some almonds or mixed nuts

Lunch:
Leftovers from supper the night before (BBQ meat of some sort and veggies)
OR
Salad (sometimes topped with leftover BBQ meat, or tuna salad (tuna, mayo, fresh dill)

Snack:
Yogurt
Almonds or mixed nuts

Supper:
BBQ meat and a salad OR cooked veggies such as carrots, potatoes, beets, kale chips OR raw veggies such as carrots or cucumber

Snack:
Pistachios, cheese, carrot stick dipped in guac, greek yogurt frozen with some peanut butter swirled in, or fruit smoothie if I was feeling hungry and didn't already have one for breakfast

So fairly well rounded, I think. I have to get through a pile of veggies in the run of a week, so my meals HAVE to include them, whether on Wheat Belly or not.

My favorite meal was always the pizza though. It was just so warm and greasy and flavorful.

My Pizzas

The first Friday was the cauliflower crust pizza. This Cauliflower Pizza Crust recipe is similar to the one I used. It took a little bit of extra time, and grating cauliflower was messy - pretty sure I pulled some out of my hair when I was done. But it was really good...the consistency wasn't too bad and it didn't taste like a cauliflower. Pretty decadent actually. I'd make this one again. Four stars.

The second Friday was a Potato Crust Pizza similar to the one linked, but with my own pizza toppings. It tasted ok...it didn't stay together as one pizza though. All the slices separated, so it was like a little mini pizza on each slice of potato. Like a cross between nachos and stuffed potato skins. It was ok. Three stars.

The third Friday was a Cream Cheese Crust Pizza which was fantastic and delicious and decadent and wonderful. And not something I could eat every week. It was that good. It was similar in consistency to a regular thin crust pizza, but rich and cheesy. The recipe even says not to top the pizza with too much cheese, as the crust is entirely cheese. I would definitely make this one again. Five stars.

My iPhotography does not do Cream Cheese Crust Pizza justice.

My 30 Day experiment ends on Tuesday, and I have to make a decision: do I go back on wheat? Or stay off it? Or slowly wean back on? Or just limit it? I'm thinking I might stay away from it ... I definitely notice less tummy bloat, which I really like. And what is the point of trying it for 30 days and just going back on wheat? Kind of makes the past month pointless. I've already proven to myself I can do it.

Or I might stay on it so I have an excuse to eat Cream Cheese Crust Pizza again. I don't know.

Week Two: There is no such thing as comfort food.

I'm going to start this off with a confession. I cheated. 

It was Friday, and I was picking the kids up from my sister in law's, and we started chatting, and she offered me a beer, which I accepted without even thinking. All I was thinking was "it's hot and it's been a long week and a beer would be great". I was about three quarters of the way through when clued in to what I was doing. I finished the beer and confessed to my partner-in-diet and my husband.

I forgot about it shortly after.

It took two days for my gut to forgive me for it. Whoops.

No Such Thing as Comfort Food

Besides the one slip up with the beer, I spent a lot of this second week examining my relationship with food. It made me realize that junk food has always been a source of comfort for me. Had a bad day? You need some chocolate. Something spicy for supper? You need something sweet. Movie night on the couch? You need chips.  Heading back to work in the rain? You should get a hot chocolate. Kids driving you nuts? You better shovel food into that mouth.  Bored? Eat. Tired? Eat. Stressed? Eat.

The absence of comfort food has made me realize how much I depended on it. Every time I turned around this week, when I would normally turn to something yummy to snack on, my choice was a piece of fruit and some nuts, or a yogurt. It was like expecting a hug and being faced with a brick wall. An apple does not make me happy the way chocolate does. Yogurt is not nearly the late night treat that chips are. I was never hungry in these situations, just needed that dose of food, that comfort, those happy feelings.

So this week I'm learning how not to use food as comfort. Don't get me wrong, I love food. I love a great meal. I love caramelized onions on my pizza... peanut butter smeared on a banana... espresso balsamic vinaigrette drizzled over feta in my salad. Love love love food. Just gotta not be so darned emotionally dependent on it.

Had a bad day? Yes. Hungry? Yes. Hungry enough for another apple? No. Get out of the kitchen then.

Wheat Belly Diet: Week One

Ahh, nice to be back after four months of silence. It's been busy, I guess. Started a new job, trained for another round of Tough Mudder, did some reading, tried to garden and enjoy the bounty (win: rhubarb jam, fail: strawberry jam) and just generally kept up after two whirlwind children. One started a fire in my microwave this week. Just your normal household chaos.

The Battle with Sugar

I had completely meant to do a blog post about sugar in the previous months, but got discouraged when another blog I read did a great post on it, so I didn't think I could do it justice anymore. Here is the article if you are interested: Why Sugar is Worse Than Darth Vader

It was around the time this article come out I think that I stopped drinking sugar in my coffee, and went from a double double to a double cream. Man the first few sips were gross. I made several faces. But a month later, I'm still going. Coffee has become less of a sugary treat, and more of a means to an end, but that's ok.

Ready for the Next Step

We were on the drive home from Tough Mudder Montreal when my brother started talking about the book Wheat Belly, and the claims it made. Like if you cut out wheat, it can cure diabetes, heart disease, schizophrenia, joint pain, etc, and when you reintroduce wheat, your symptoms and pain that you had previously instantly come back.

He explained that the author said that wheat is not bad, just that the wheat we are being fed today is bad. Today's wheat no longer resembles the wheat from our forefathers, or even from our grandparents. There has been so many "advances" in how to change the wheat's genetic code without doing any long term testing to see if these genetic modifications are even good for us. The book says: it's not. And, in addition to all the genetic modification going on, that we, as a society, have become too dependent on wheat...that grocery store aisles are full of processed foods that are filled with wheat or sugar or corn that is just waiting to wreak havoc on our blood sugar. Junk food and comfort food make us feel good, and so we eat more of it, and it keeps on making us sicker.

So even though I'm not overweight, or struggling with an illness, I do want to be healthy, I just finished my latest goal, and hey, I'm a sucker for punishment, so why not? The author, Dr. William Davis, also claims the Wheat Belly Diet will give you more energy, higher mental clarity, better sleep and better skin. Sold!

Sign Me Up!

I didn't think I would have much trouble with it. I rarely eat pasta, I can switch out beer for wine, and I'll just make sandwiches with spinach instead of bread. I should note here that Dr. Davis says that if you cut out wheat, then you are likely to start eating other food in its place, and you should make sure that other food is the healthy stuff, not snack food, or processed food, or anything that's going to make your blood sugar spike. He goes a little crazy with this list, including things like: ketchup, canned meat and curry powder. Incidentally, a few things I'm not willing to give up: ketchup, canned tuna, and adding a bit of curry to whatever healthy dish I'm cooking that needs some kick.

Therefore, I'm more doing an interpretation of the wheat belly diet...eliminating wheat completely, but only limiting the other foods. I feel like since I'm not struggling with any serious health issues, and I eat pretty healthy most of the time anyway, that I'm ok with having ketchup on my hamburger wrapped in spinach. I'm still avoiding things that will spike blood sugar, like oatmeal, rice and ice cream. Close enough.

Wheat Belly: Week One

Much harder than I thought it would be. My starting day coincided with another brutal day of the month (you hear me, girls?), which is usually a carb free-for-all time for me, so it was extra challenging. I had a friend decide to try it with me for 30 days as well, so it was nice to have someone to compare meals with. My husband also agreed to try the challenge, but lasted approximately 1.6 days.

Day One and Two were fine. Day Three was long and I just wanted to nap. Day Four was HARD. This was the day of the microwave fire. I didn't sleep the night before for whatever reason, so between that and the hormones, it was just a perfect storm for a bad mood and an itchy, nerved-up craving for something sweet and carby. Managed to survive Day Four unscathed and woke up to Day Five with a better mood, less carb-hunger and a flatter stomach. I ate like crap the week before and the week after Tough Mudder, and was seeing the effects of this, so even though I'm not doing Wheat Belly to lose weight, I was still very HELL YEAH when I woke up on Day Five.

I'm on Day Six now, and feeling much better. I made cauliflower crust pizza for supper for myself last night and it was positively decadent compared to the rest of the week. This morning I had ground flax seed and almond milk as a hot cereal, sprinkled with cinnamon, raspberries and sunflower seeds, and I actually enjoyed it.

The friend who jumped on board with me sent me this, and it is so fitting to my Day Four mood.

So that was my week one of the Wheat Belly Diet, or my interpretation of it, anyway. I have a whole weekend to get through now, including a few beach trips, hopefully. New day, new challenge. Wish me luck!

Five Things That Shock Me.

For the past year or so, I've been painfully aware of the amount of processing that food goes through, and been making attempts to eat unprocessed and local food. I've come across tons of stories and statistics and watched documentaries and read some books...and there are a few things that I've read or watched that really stuck with me. There are a few more, but I stuck to the top five.

This is the stuff that shocks me.

5. Coke's effect on the body is similar to heroin.
I don't drink pop regularly, but when I read this one I was glad I don't.

Have you ever wondered why Coke comes with a smile? Because it gets you high. They removed the cocaine almost 100 years ago. Why? It was redundant.

In the first 10 minutes: 10 teaspoons of sugar hit your system. (100% of your recommended daily intake.) You don’t immediately vomit from the overwhelming sweetness because phosphoric acid cuts the flavor, allowing you to keep it down.

20 minutes: Your blood sugar spikes, causing an insulin burst. Your liver responds to this by turning any sugar it can get its hands on into fat. (And there’s plenty of that at this particular moment.)

40 minutes: Caffeine absorption is complete. Your pupils dilate; your blood pressure rises; as a response, your liver dumps more sugar into your bloodstream. The adenosine receptors in your brain are now blocked, preventing drowsiness.

45 minutes: Your body ups your dopamine production, stimulating the pleasure centers of your brain. This is physically the same way heroin works, by the way.

> 60 minutes: The phosphoric acid binds calcium, magnesium, and zinc in your lower intestine, providing a further boost in metabolism. This is compounded by high doses of sugar and artificial sweeteners also increasing the urinary excretion of calcium.

> 60 minutes: The caffeine’s diuretic properties come into play. (It makes you have to pee.) It is now assured that you’ll evacuate the bonded calcium, magnesium, and zinc that was headed to your bones as well as sodium, electrolytes, and water.

> 60 minutes: As the rave inside you dies down, you’ll start to have a sugar crash. You may become irritable and/or sluggish. You’ve also now, literally, pissed away all the water that was in the Coke. But not before infusing it with valuable nutrients your body could have used for things like hydrating your system, or building strong bones and teeth.

This will all be followed by a caffeine crash in the next few hours. (As little as two if you’re a smoker.)

Read more: http://www.blisstree.com/2010/06/23/mental-health-well-being/what-happens-to-your-body-if-you-drink-a-coke-right-now/#ixzz2Ob8qeTPz

4. At a meal at McDonald's, you are eating more corn than the hamburger or potatoes.
In The Omnivore's Dilemna, author Michael Pollan spends time tracing the roots to his meals. One of his chosen meals was a fast food meal, and he wondered how much corn went into the making of his meal, from the corn that the steer ate, to the high fructose corn syrup in his pop. An excerpt:

“Some time later I found another way to calculate just how much corn we had eaten that day. I asked Todd Dawson, a biologist at Berkeley, to run a McDonald's meal through his mass spectrometer and calculate how much of the carbon in it came originally from a corn plant. It is hard to believe that the identity of the atoms in a cheeseburger or a Coke is preserved from farm field to fast-food counter, but the atomic signature of those carbon isotopes is indestructible, and still legible to the mass spectrometer. Dawson and his colleague Stefania Mambelli prepared an analysis showing roughly how much of the carbon in the various McDonald's menu items came from corn, and plotted them on a graph. The sodas came out at the top, not surprising since they consist of little else than corn sweetener, but virtually everything else we ate revealed a high proportion of corn, too. In order of diminishing corniness, this is how the laboratory measured our meal: soda (100 percent corn), milk shake (78 percent), salad dressing (65 percent), chicken nuggets (56 percent), cheeseburger (52 percent), and French fries (23 percent)."

So, yes. The calories at McDonald's are coming from corn, not the beef, not the fries, but the corn syrup in the pop, and the corn oil the fries were cooked in.

3. The China Study 
The China Study was a 20 year study that started in 1983 that looked at the correlation between illnesses such as cancer, heart disease and diabetes, and diet that was either plant based or animal based. The China Study concluded that a plant based diet will prevent or reverse disease.

Read that again. A plant based diet will prevent (...ok) or reverse (WHAT? really?) disease.

Think about this statement. Now think about the implications.

Are we living in this meat-eating, the-world-is-flat culture that is completely unaware that we are poisoning ourselves? I don't know. It seems pretty "out there".  I'm still eating meat and meat products. Bacon rocks. Milk is my son's favorite thing. I don't plan on changing that soon. But why aren't I? Why isn't everyone? Culture is a hard thing to turn around.

2. In the United States, the USDA held a mother and her children at gunpoint for selling local food to locals. 
Thank the lord I live in Canada. Watch the documentary Farmageddon.

1. Food dyes contain petroleum. 
They make asphalt and kerosene from petroleum as well.

My daughter ended up in emergency a few weeks ago, all of a sudden started vomiting, and had a fever with an itchy rash. She took an allergic reaction to something and when we said she had a candy, and the nurses immediately said artificial dyes. The doctor also said it was likely.

Kraft is being petitioned in the States to take the artificial colors Yellow #5 and Yellow #6 out of their Mac and Cheese. The UK has a ban on those ingredients, and the Mac and Cheese they sell in the UK tastes and looks exactly the same - they actually use real spices, like paprika. (Here in Canada, they aren't even required to list which artificial colors they use, just the generic term "artificial colors".)

I remember when Smarties changed their recipe and got rid of the artificial colors...I did not like it all. I didn't really get why they would change such a good thing. Now I get it. I totally get it. I'm pretty thankful that there is a company out there that is willing to stand up and say "Hey. Hi there. We aren't going to feed petroleum to you anymore. Don't bother thanking us. It's ok. We're just doing our job."

Sunday Prep Day

If I don't prep food over the weekend, I'm screwed.

Since I'm trying to eliminate pre-packaged and processed food, this means crackers, bear paws, etc won't be on the menu for school lunches. Also I was getting lazy with the snacks at home, the fam was getting sick of yogurt and apples. My husband's schedule has changed the past couple of months, so he was preparing suppers way more than usual. I can throw a healthy supper together fairly quickly, but god bless him, he struggles. He tries. But he struggles.

I found that the weekends that I prepare snacks and plan a few meals my week went a lot easier, and the kids had more snack variety. And I had fewer frantic texts at 4:45pm saying "I don't know what to make for supper."

On a good prep day, I make some healthy snacks. On an awesome prep day, I make some healthy snacks and prep a meal or two.

My food prep is usually a combination of a few of these tasty tidbits.

Carrot Sticks - I cut them using my Pampered Chef Crinkle Cutter, so they look like crinkle-cut fries. Kids love them. I store them in water in the fridge.

Whole Wheat Muffins - My veggie box people grind their own wheat, so we always have whole wheat on hand. The made some buckwheat once too, so I'll throw a cup in buckwheat sometimes. I keep half out and freeze the other half for the rest of the week.
Last Sundays recipe: www.kitchentreaty.com/hearty-spiced-carrot-muffins/

Roast Chicken - We got a few frozen chickens in our meat box, and I love just roasting a chicken and cutting it up without getting into the hassle of the entire meal deal with gravy and stuffing. (Not that I don't love a roast chicken dinner. I do.) After the chicken has cooled, I cut it and portion it into freezer bags. I usually keep a portion or two in the fridge, for a quick protein snack or to chop up for sandwiches.

Protein Bars - After a few unsuccessful recipes I found, I finally modified one to my liking - one that doesn't fall apart in my hands, and isn't sticky. I cut them into individual servings, put them all in a freezer bag and freeze. These are for hubby and I.

Protein bars before being cut. 

Spicy Roasted Chickpeas -  I saw these on Pinterest, and I loved them! They are probably an acquired taste, but I enjoy them. Crunchy and spicy...an "acceptable" substitute for my chip obsession (which I have not, and likely will not, kick.)

Spicy Roasted Chickpeas.

Hamburger - We get frozen packages of hamburger in our meat box, and meal prep goes a lot faster if my hamburger is already cooked. I throw the frozen hamburger into a frying pan, and cook a couple batches up at a time. I usually throw some onions and sage into it to give the flavor a boost. When it has cooled, just divide into freezer bags and toss in the freezer. Great for a quick spaghetti or casserole.

Freezer Slow Cooker meals - I tried a few of these for the days that my husband was home, he can take them out of the freezer and throw them into the slowcooker and not have to think about cooking at all. And that is better for everyone. I checked out these sites, and I think soon I will start trying to modify my regular slow cooker faves into their freezer-friendly versions:
mamaandbabylove.com
kojo-designs.com

Prepping some slow cooker meals for the freezer. 

Hard Boiled Eggs -  Eggs are another staple of our veggie box. I recently started hard boiling them, and keeping them (shell on) in the fridge. They are super handy for a grab-and-go breakfast or a sandwich filler.

Cinnamon Chia Seed Granola- I've only made this once, but will definitely try this one again. It made me buy chia seeds, which are a fun and random little seed. Why random, you ask? This little seed turns into a gel when it gets wet. It's an odd little thing.
Chia Seed Granola

And those are the usual suspects for Sunday Prep Day. I have a few more recipes I'd like to try, have to test out some more freezer slow cooker meals, and I'd love to make a couple huge batches of spaghetti sauce to have in the freezer. Pinterest and websites like 100daysofrealfood.com are always a great source of ideas and information.

I'm just getting into this habit, so I'm interested in what everyone else does for Sunday prep?

Candle Jars....or Pantry Storage?

My mother is a recycling queen.

Yesterday she handed me a plastic bag full of candle jars. Instead of throwing the empty, dirty, waxy jars out, she washes and keeps them. She enjoys recycling...but they were taking up too much space and she wanted them gone. I knew immediately what I would do with them.

I have been on an organization kick lately, and getting my pantry in order. I had just purchased some cupcake decorating supplies, and didn't want the plastic bags cluttering up my shelves. So in went some mini chocolate chips, coconut and gummy worms!

I've got five more empty jars to fill, I'm sure I will find something for them soon. They are on the larger side, so too big for spices. I had put my spices in smaller mason jars anyway.

My pantry is looking more organized already. Building up and organizing my freezer is next!

The Contract. (Or, How I Got My Husband to Lose 20 Pounds)

It was the middle of November. We were curled up watching a movie. Out of the blue, I asked him, "Will you let me control what you eat and how you exercise for two weeks?"

"Sure," he said.

He agreed too easily.

"Three weeks," I amended.

"Sure," he said.

I immediately dug out a pen and paper, quickly wrote out a list of rules, which would function as a contract, reviewed them with him, and made him sign the bottom. I worked quickly, knowing I had managed to catch him in a very agreeable state, and that I should take advantage of the opportunity. Never before, in the twelve years we've been together, have I had complete control over something like this. I couldn't wait to be in charge. I was almost giddy.

Before I share the rules listed in the contract, some background on my husbands health. He's a tall lad, six foot three, and has hovered between 220 and 235 for the past decade and a half. He hits the gym regularly, and can put on bulk by just looking at a set of weights the right way. However, he also consumed 5-6 liters of ice cream a week, and on the nights he wasn't eating ice cream, he was eating mounds of peanut butter slathered on a couple pieces of bread, and a beer stein full of milk. He was strong and fit, but had excess weight to lose.

So this is what I made him sign:

The "At the Mercy of My Wife" Plan

November 17 - December 8

1. Lift weights 3x week (He can choose the days)
2. Run 5x week (I choose the days)
3. Only one coffee per day, the rest is green tea
4. Eat every 3 hours. No exceptions. This will require bringing snacks on work days.  **I approve the snacks**
5. Three water bottles per day 
6. Push ups on command 
7. No supplements, shakes, etc.

Absolutely no exceptions:
 - No snacks after 8pm
 - Mealtimes are single serving only
 - No arguing or whining like a baby

**We will be discussing this on a regular basis, so be ready to report on plans for the day, and how the day went. Provide details.**

So he signed.

His runs were between 3 and 6k, nothing substantial, the point was just to get him outside doing cardio. The push ups on command were by far the most entertaining of all the rules. I typically made him do 15 or 20, sometimes I went up to 50...sometimes only 10. Several times a day. And sometimes one set right after another. After another. One day he did over 200 push ups. A couple times I had him clapping in between counts. Like I said....very entertaining.  His snacks were some combination of: yogurt, apples, cheese, raisins, pumpkin seeds, almonds and clementines. If he had milk, it was only 1 single cup, 250 ml.

He rarely complained, though he did try to swindle an extra gym day from time to time. My surprise push ups only made him grin. I only ever heard him utter once that he was hungry, but I think that was a day he lifted weights and ran. But it was at 9:30 at night, and past snack time, so he waited it out. He followed the rules exceptionally well, although there were a few skipped snack times. He paid for that in push ups.

Within two days of signing the contract his pants were loose. Within a week, his chest and shoulders were getting more defined. By the end of two weeks, he had lost 7 pounds and was noticeably slimmer in his midsection. By the end of three weeks, he had lost 20 pounds. We were both shocked.

I was expecting him to lose maybe 12 pounds over the three weeks. But I assume that not devoting as much time to lifting weights and more time spent on cardio, that he had some muscle loss as well. Which is fine, he was pretty bulky to begin with...he could afford to trim down.

So that is the contract. I know some were asking about it, and its nothing crazy or special. Exercise regularly, and eat healthy in proportioned sizes at regular intervals. I think it worked well for him, because he followed the rules, and knew he had someone else, besides himself, to answer to. Plus, push ups.

What goes around, comes around.

We went out with friends to dinner a few weeks ago, and I don't know why this happens, but the subject of our veggie box came up. Must have been talking about kids, trying to get them to eat, or something along that lines. Whatever. Anyway. I go through my whole veggie box spiel, and she says she was interested in the idea and planned to get signed up. Over the next couple of days, I sent her the contact information of our farmers and didn't think much about it.

Fast forward a couple of weeks, and we are at their place for dinner. We sit down at the table to eat, and they have served Shephard's Pie and some squash on the side. Smelled heavenly.

Then they say that everything we are eating that night is local, from the veggie box they signed up for! Woo! The Shephard's Pie hamburger was even mixed with a bit of the lamb from the box.

And then I asked what kind of squash it was, and she said it was the squash from the box as well. Wait. What? You mean those squashes that we've been getting are edible? I've been using them as ornamental fall decorations around the house!! They are so little and pretty!

 

See? Looks different than other buttercup squashes...more ornamental...

So I passed the word of the veggie box to someone, and in turn they taught me something new! And now I have five little squashes to roast...mmm... And now I'm glad that I talk about my veggie box in random conversations. It all works out in the end.

My Veggie Box.

"Your what?"

That's the usual reaction when I mention my veggie box.

Every week, I pick up a plastic tote full of vegetables, eggs and herbs from a local farmer. I believe it started as a part of a government healthy eating program. I signed up to the program, and now every week, for the past two years (possibly three- I'm getting old and am losing track of time) the farmer packs up a large number of boxes into their cube van, parks in a central spot in town, and townfolk like myself pay the $25 to give back their empty box and pick up a new one.

A mid-summer veggie box. Mmm corn on the cob.

This was the contents of the box this week:

• broccoli 

• cauliflower

• beets

• kale 

• tomatoes

• cucumber(2)

• large white onion

• spaghetti squash

• dozen eggs

And two week before:

• carrots

• red cabbage

• cucumber(2)

• tomatoes

• leek

• broccoli

• small sweet dumpling squash

• large white onion

• swiss chard

• dozen eggs

So you get whats fresh, and there is a good variety, in the summer at least. In the winter, there are a lot of root vegetables, which they sometimes supplement with their own flour, or pancake mix, homemade jam or fresh bread.

The great thing about the veggie box is that it really forces me to eat more veggies. Pasta is a rare thing in our house, as is rice, fries or any kind of boxed side dish. I love love love squash. I am starting to learn how to eat beets (we bought a juicer!), and recently discovered that bacon (from the same farmer!) is a very tasty ingredient in a cabbage dish. You have to get creative.

I really recommend looking into this in your own town. For smaller households, you might be able to negotiate with your farmer to get a box every second week, perhaps. We are really lucky, because our farmer also supplies frozen meat boxes as well, as they raise cattle, pigs and lamb. Grass fed beef...so so good.

When you live in a rural setting, take advantage of the ruralness. Local veggies ftw.

The documentary that changed the way I ate.

The tagline for Food, Inc. is "You'll never look at dinner the same way again". Never have truer words been spoken.

When we watched the documentary, I had no clue about food systems. I had a good handle on nutrition, and the rules: stay out on the outside walls of the grocery store, don't eat food that comes in a box, blah blah blah. I mostly listened to it. I get my veggies from a local farmer, but still bought my meat from the grocery store. And occasionally bought processed food for the sake of convenience and a "treat" for the family: chicken nuggets, chicken burgers, hamburgers, etc.

I was pretty much in the dark.



I encourage everyone to watch it. Granted, this is a documentary about the American food system, but who knows what happens inside an industry?

I've made some pretty significant changes in the eight months since I've watched it. I no longer buy chicken at the grocery store. The only chicken we've eaten since last January (eight months ago) has been whole chickens, raised locally. The farmers that provide us with our veggie box also prepare a meat box as well, so I've been buying their locally grown, grass fed beef. And let me tell you. Grass fed beef tastes so much better.

I've been reading more about what the industry is putting cattle through, and in the book I'm reading now, The Omnivore's Dilemma, by Micheal Pollan, has done some eye opening research.

A cow can't live on a feedlot for more than 150 days, without succumbing to one of the many diseases and sicknesses that it is inevitable with being on a corn fed diet. Bloating to the point their stomachs balloon and put so much pressure on their lungs, it suffocates them. Acidosis -really bad heartburn- to the point of diarrhea, ulcers and liver disease. These cows are sick. Antibiotics are the answer, of course. Antibiotics are pumped into the bodies of those cows to keep them alive as long as possible, to gain as much weight as possible before they are ready to slaughter.

This author, Micheal Pollan, was a part of the Food, Inc. documentary, as was this interesting guy: Joel Salatin. He's probably one of the most memorable characters in the doc. He's being interviewed, and telling stories while working on his farm, and we're literally watching him wring a chickens neck with his bare hands as he speaks. But he is so charming, you actually feel good about the chicken bodies piling up. These chickens are wholesome. Dead... but wholesome.

I hope everyone has a good weekend. Watch the documentary if you get a chance. Find out more about what you are eating. Support your local farmers. More importantly, trust your local farmers. Know that they care about what they are feeding you.

My newest obsession.

Now that Tough Mudder is over, I need something else to work towards. I took a week off to do nothing, and tried to figure out what I'm up to next. And then I saw it. The internet pointed me towards Nerd Fitness website, and a couple of articles in particular.

One article is a success story about Staci, who went from a little overweight to a kickass powerlifter. Besides telling Staci's story, the article drives home the point that lifting big weights does not make you big. That was one thing that was always in the back of my mind, and one of my first questions to the trainer when I started at the gym. I didn't want to get bulky. When I read Staci's story, a lightbulb went off.

The other article is about body fat percentages.

So, between the two articles, I've made some changes, given myself some timelines, and reworked my handy dandy workout whiteboard.

My handy dandy workout whiteboard.

My goals over the next four months is to:

1. Deadlift 150% of my body weight
2. Lower my body fat percentage (I'm hoping by 5%, but would like to get my hands on some calipers first to see what's feasible)

To do this, I'm lifting heavier weights with lower number of reps, focusing more on lifting and less on cardio, and eating every two hours.

This is my second week on the plan and I am loving it. Eating every two hours is awesome. Its making me drink less coffee, so my stomach isn't as rotten all the time, I have tons more energy, and my workouts have gotten way more interesting.

So that's what I've been up to! One journey ended and another one begins.

Tough Mudder. Let's do this.

Mile 7

I am sitting in tall brush under the sparse shade of a tree on the side of a mountain. I am covered in dried mud. No... more than mud. There is small twigs, dead grass and other unknown material dried to my skin. I look to my left. My brother's face is grey. He's in pain and I know he's considering quitting. Movement catches my eye. I watch a bug navigate the debris on my arm. A second one lands. I watch that one, too. Any other day I would have flicked them away, but today I had no energy to care, let alone move. I can feel my friend look at me, concerned. The mountain path we just finished was the toughest yet. We were near the end and people were struggling, myself included. Dozens of bodies littered the edges of the path, on all fours or laid on their backs, trying to catch their breath, coax their muscles to loosen and let them continue the climb. My husband says, "Let's go." He pulls me to my feet and I step into the hot sun. Break is over. We keep moving. 

Mile 3

We walk up to the Berlin Walls as a group. One person asks, "How are we doing this...same as last time?" Someone else agrees. A third person gets into position, kneeling so I can step on his back. I feel a twinge of fear, but I ignore it - I've done this before. I can do this. I use my husband for balance as I step up onto his back with the left foot, and place my right foot in another's waiting hands. I reach for the top of the wall and push myself off from his hands. It worked. I lean way over the edge to get my weight balanced and pull one leg over the edge. I sit up straight, straddling the top of the 10 foot wall. I have no time to stop and enjoy the view or the moment, although I am vaguely aware of the chaos around me. I grip the wall tightly with my hands, lean down and swing my other leg to the other side. My body is pressed against the wall and, still gripping the edge, lower myself down to hang from the wall. My hands let go and I drop. 


Two more walls left to go. And they only get higher.

Mile 9

I watch my teammate successfully get up Everest, one of the obstacles I've been fearing the most. It was his second attempt; his first time ended up with him sliding down the huge greased quarter pipe. I knew it was my turn. He was up at the top of the pipe, arms ready, waiting for me. I pointed at him, signalling to him I was aiming for him. I started to run, pumping my legs harder as I got closer to the pipe. My feet slammed into it...one, two, three, four times. I'm near the top, as far as I can go, and I see the hands I was aiming for. I grab them and they grab back. I shouted at another guy close by to grab my leg, as I twist and try to get my foot up as high as I can. He catches it and between the two of them, they haul my body clumsily over the edge. I get out of the way quickly. I shout my thanks and start the descent down the other side. They don't hear me as they prepare for the next body hurling itself towards them. 

Mile 5

Music pounds. Queens of the Stone Age, my brother tells me later. A teammate hands me half of a banana and tells me to eat it. I decline. My stomach was in no shape for solid food. "You need it," he insists. I take small bites and eventually get it down. I take another sip of water. We're at one of the water stations. There is dirt at the bottom of the cup. I drink it anyway. I'm sitting down again. I don't want to stand up yet, I know I'll be dizzy and likely fall over and I don't want a medic over here. I've heard some others talk about dehydration and the need for more water stations. I sit for a minute longer. The water and music does the trick. Feeling more energetic, I get up on my legs and we start the steep climb towards the next obstacle. 

Mile 2

I get down on my hands and knees onto the mud and rocks. I look into the dark tunnel and it reveals nothing. I know there are people waiting behind me, so I get down on my belly and inch carefully inside. Huh. Ok. Moving carefully doesn't get me anywhere. The tunnel is dark and small and I don't know how long it is. I need to get through the tunnel quicker than this. My crawling becomes quicker, less careful. My knees drag across rocks. My elbows do most of the work, reaching forward, and pulling my body, keeping my hips low. My hands hit dirt directly in front of me. Have I reached a dead end? All I see is blackness. Feel around for empty space. Found it. Twist my body to make my way around the corner. It's a tight squeeze. I wonder how people twice my size, guys like my husband, are getting through this thing. I crawl for a bit longer. I see light! I drag myself through a couple more feet of rocks. I can feel skin being ripped off my elbows. I crawl past the edge into the sun. I hear my teammates start to cheer and I respond by grinning. Let's do this.


(Note on Mile 7: I heard after our group went through this stage of the course that the organizers closed off this leg and shortened the course. People were dropping like flies. Someone saw a guy being carried off this section of the mountain on a stretcher. It was tough.)