goals, moving forward, running, strength

Why I run…

Movin' it with Michelle

For more than 2 1/2 decades, I’ve used running as a source of therapy. I started running in junior high school as a way of trying to find my place in a time where I felt very OUT of place (who didn’t as a young teen, right?).
From a young age, I never felt like I really ‘belonged’ anywhere, and for most of my teen and adult life I suffered from sometimes, quite severe depression.

In 2007 I hit my WALL in life. That moment where in a marathon you feel you just CAN’T take another step, where it hurts to breathe, and even blinking seems painful….Yes…I was there…and it was scary to say the least.

Yet the love I have for my family came bounding to the forefront, and I knew I had to change, to lift myself up, and to start moving forward.

So I signed up for my first half marathon in September of 2007, with only 8 weeks to train. The San Antonio Rock and Roll half marathon will always hold a special place in my heart.

I could barely run ONE mile without walking, but I was moving…My training brought me a new found respect for running, and re-ignited a fire that had been lying dormant for many years. I would work all day, come home to make dinner and feed my then 8 and 1 year old daughters. As soon as my husband got home from work, I’d pass off the kids, and head out the door to run. And after 8 weeks of hard and grueling training, I completed my first half marathon in 2 hours and 19 minutes. Just typing this recap brings tears to my eyes. THIS choice, to train for a half marathon despite my hardships that I was going through, was life saving.

Since then after retiring from the Air Force in 2011, I have completed several more half marathons (Half Fanatic #3915), and 2 full marathons, with my PR’s being 2:02/4:25 respectively. My favorite race of all time, is the Fox Valley Marathon. The Fox River trails are my home away from home, and also volunteering for this race has made it near and dear to my heart.

My goals for this year are to focus on my half marathon speed, but regardless of the race, you’ll be sure to see me smiling.

Why?

Some say running has saved their lives, and I piggy back that sentiment, partially.

Partially?

Yes. Because for me, MAKING THE CHOICE to run, to train, to race, THAT has saved my life. And this ongoing choice, has made me both stronger, and happier all around.

I don’t run to win races. I run, to keep movin’ forward. #pacesetter @womenraces #keepmovinforward

food, Recipes

Pan Seared Steak with rasberry/red wine sauce served with Root Vegetable puree’ and chopped salad

Movin' it with Michelle

Tonight, I’ve prepared a pan seared steak, with a raspberry/red wine sauce served with a root vegetable puree’ and simple chopped salad.

1-1-19Pansearedsteak
What you’ll need for the steak:
Top sirloin steak, or your favorite cut.
Extra virgin olive oil
Kosher salt and pepper
Drizzle both sides with the olive oil, and season liberally with kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper. Set aside.
What you’ll need for the root vegetable puree’:
Bring 6 cups of water to a boil in a medium sauce pan; while you are waiting, start chopping!
3 carrots, peeled and chopped in 1-2 inch pieces
1 medium white onion, chopped
4 medium sized red potatoes, peeled and chopped in 1-2 inch pieces
2 cloves of garlic, smashed
1 pat of unsalted butter
Kosher salt and pepper to taste
Boil veggies until fork tender, (NOT mushy) and place in your food processor and process on high until completely smooth. Cover, and set aside.
What you’ll need for the raspberry/red wine sauce:
1 box of beef stock, brought to a boil with 3 tablespoons of corn starch. (Add the corn starch right away when the stock is still cool or it will clump)
Season with kosher salt, pepper, and rosemary.
Chop one onion, and add to the liquid.
Add in about 2 cups of a good red wine (Pinot Noir or Merlot are two of my favorites for sauces)
Bring back up to a boil, then reduce to a simmer and let reduce down to about half the original amount. Strain the mixture, and put back on the heat. Add in one dollop of sugar free raspberry preserves (or fresh if you have them on hand would be even better!) and whisk until incorporated. Add another pinch of salt and pepper to taste, and let simmer.
Now it is time to sear your steaks. First, preheat your oven to 350 degrees, and line baking sheet with aluminum foil. Preheat a pan with extra virgin olive oil, to a high heat. Sear your steaks (don’t overcrowd the pan) to a golden brown, 3-4 minutes each side, and place on the baking sheet. Cook an additional 10 minutes in the oven, and let rest for 10 minutes before slicing.
While your steaks are finishing off in the oven, you can prepare your salad.
What you’ll need for the salad:
Romaine hearts, chopped finely
½ of a red onion, chopped
2 plum tomatoes, chopped
Kosher salt and pepper to season
Toss with your favorite dressing-I used a sugar free red wine vinaigrette
Plate as shown, drizzling the red wine sauce over the steak, serve, and enjoy!!!
Note-as an added yummy goodness I roasted some button mushrooms in the oven for about 20 minutes, drizzled simply with extra virgin olive oil, a splash of red wine, and salt and pepper. My daughter gobbled them down! Delish!

goals, moving forward, running, strength, training

Three things Thursday on my birthday eve

Movin' it with Michelle

Life is short.
All too often we get caught up in THINGS. But life isn’t about STUFF. It’s about moments, lives, love, family, friends, and moving forward. This week I was told I am losing my job in the spring due to cut backs in budget, healthcare, etc…I found myself heading in a downward spiral, and it terrified me. But instead of throwing in the towel, I maintained my work out schedule after coming home from work, preparing meals and keeping my crazy household maintained.

Life is good.
I have my health so far…and I have made it through almost 41 years without any major illness’s. At work today, I had to process a specimen on a very young (40’s) man that has stage 4 cancer. It never gets easier….23 years in the same field, and it. never. gets easier.

Life is meant for living.
People often ask why I continue to put the work and effort in to my Facebook page, when I am not making a profit from the efforts.
Why?
Because just today, I received two messages in regards to my efforts.
The first:

“Cheers to you my friend. I know this birthday will be filled with lots of emotions. What a great year, you’ve made so many new friends, Moved so many people with your page, food, photos….just remember that you do not have to be defined by what you ‘do’, be defined by what you ‘love’, and who loves YOU. May all your wishes come true.
The second:
I wanted you to know that you have a follower (keeping name private), she does your AB challenge with her daughter, she reads your posts every day and loves your page. Your page is awesome, she loves it. Just wanted you to know you have a strong reach…
Touching lives, inspiring others, MOVIN’ forward is such a joyous part of living to me…

Despite a rough week, my heart is full tonight. And I realize…Life…IS. What it IS, is up to YOU.
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dedication, food, goals

Tonight’s Mystery Box Challenge

Movin' it with Michelle

My husband came home from the store with the following “mystery box” ingredients:

Pork crown roast
Oyster Mushrooms
Mango

For those of you that have been following me for a while, you know one of my dreams is to be a Chef, and own my own restaurant. My husband and I fell in love with the show, “Master Chef” when it first came out, and although he swears I was ready to try out this year, I decided I needed a year to practice, perfect, and hone my skills as a ‘home cook’ that has had NO professional training.
Every couple weeks after our bi-monthly trip to the grocery store, he chooses several ingredients for me to create a dish with for our family.
I try to cook within an hour time limit, but am not always successful yet in that aspect of my goals.
So here is what I did…
I immediately preheated the oven to 375 degrees, and drizzled the pork with good extra virgin olive oil, and seasoned liberally with salt and pepper. I seared all sides of the roast, and popped it in the oven to roast. (Takes about 45 minutes, and I pull it out about 10 degrees early-150 degrees, as letting it rest at least 10 minutes will bring the temp up to the required 160 degrees).

While the roast was cooking, I knew I wanted to make a puree’ with the mango to set off the pork nicely. I chopped 2 mangos and put them in my food processor. I added a splash of chicken stock, drizzled with EVOO, and seasoned with salt, pepper, cilantro, jalapeno flakes, ginger and lemon juice and gave it a few pulses until it was pureed. Set this aside for plating.

Next, I thought since we had 45 minutes for the roast to cook, I’d make an appetizer with the oyster mushrooms. I cleaned several caps for the appetizer, and also sautéed half the mushrooms with garlic to serve in my brown rice-and the appetizer filling.

Stuffed Oyster Mushrooms
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I added 1 dollop of low-fat cream cheese and light sour cream into a bowl. Chop 2 tablespoons of the sautéed mushrooms, a handful of green olives, 1 teaspoon of capers, and 1 chopped green onion and add them to the mixture. Mix well, and spoon onto the caps. Bake for 10 minutes and serve!

Prepare brown rice according to the package directions, and add in dry cilantro, salt, pepper, and the remainder of the Oyster Mushrooms.
Next, sauté your favorite veggie to serve along with the roast once you pull it out to rest for 10 minutes. I chose Asparagus and button mushrooms, tying the dish together.

Plate, and serve!
1-1-12-14Crownporkroast

This delicious dinner can be prepared and served in just about an hour! Enjoy!!!

❤ Michelle

dedication, moving forward, running, Uncategorized

Polar Dash Recap, and more!

Movin' it with Michelle

Today was my first race in over 3 months since I tore my Achilles tendon. Yet when my friends asked if I wanted to sign up for the Polar Dash race series, I was excited to have a race to look forward to again.
We headed out early, despite the challenges of slippery roads, time set backs, and yes, me forgetting my trail shoes and having to run home to get them.
We got to the starting point literally less than 10 minutes before the 14 mile start. I missed meeting up with some amazing women, but did catch Penny from 26.Yikes and SarahJeanne from In Mid Stride.
1-11-14fbpageladies
Lots of laughter, hugs, and chatting and we were FREEZING, but happy.
We headed to the start corral, and I realized WOW…I am doing this. BRRRR….
1-11-14mestart
Not a 1/4 mile in, and we were faced with standing water, ice, and detours through snow banks. But we were HAVING FUN. Crazy right? I mean, really, who signs up for any sort of distance in JANUARY, in CHICAGO? Yup…we did.
So we took a lot of pictures. Stopped to walk the icy parts, and the best part? I didn’t look at my Garmin, at all.
1-11-14carolynme
Several comment were made about our attire…and the best being named the “Polar Princess’s” and the “Tutu crew.”
We stayed together.
No runner left behind.
We finished happy.
1-11-14Polar Dash finish
And afterwards we all met up for lunch, and of course the traditional Bloody Mary. Yup. I drank that.
1-11-14postracedrink
And in the end, people can question our pace time, our finish time, or how we placed….

But guess what. For THIS race, NO ONE cared. It was about being together as friends, laughing, talking, reconnecting, and just RUNNING to be free.
While eating lunch and shortly there after, I found myself laughing…laughing, and smiling so hard I had tears streaming down my face.
THIS is something I don’t do often enough…

But I did it today. And I’m better for it. I thank all of my friends and family, both near and far, for giving me a reason to smile, laugh, live, and run.

food, goals, moving forward, strength, training

Monday’s Movin’…who’s cookin?

Movin' it with Michelle

Image

Tonight’s dinner was off the cuff, and I was plainly just trying to be creative.  Was I completely successful?  I’d say no….but the dish turned out regardless; I simply missed the ‘wow’ factor.

Ingredients:

4-6 pork chops, thick cut

3 oranges, to include the zest/juice

3 sprigs of fresh rosemary

¼ cup extra virgin olive oil

2 gloves of garlic, minced

1 tablespoon of organic honey

1 tablespoon of Dijon mustard

Kosher salt, pepper, cayenne pepper (pinch), basil, and parsley

Mix the above ingredients together in a food processor, pulsing until completing incorporated.  Coat your chops, and let marinate for about 30 minutes to an hour.   Save about ½ cup of the mixture to drizzle over the chops for baking.

Preheat your oven to 375 degrees

Seer your chops on high heat in a pan coated with extra virgin olive oil, both sides.  Place on a baking sheet, drizzle with remaining mixture, and finish baking in the oven at 375 for about 25-30 minutes. 

 

Serve with your favorite veggie; I choose zucchini and mushrooms tonight!  Quickly sautéed them in a pan and VOILA!  YUM!  Gogolowcarb!

Tonight’s work out was a great #TDF start…

Day 6 of the AB challenge done:
25 Sit ups
15 crunches
15 leg raises
25 second plank

Added with:
30 second wall sit x3
3 sets of bicep curls
3 sets of tricep extensions…

A great Monday, all around! #keepmovinforward

food

Simply Chicken Soup

Movin' it with Michelle

Image

I love the fact that most days, I simply take a protein out of the fridge or freezer with NO idea what I am going to prepare. 

With the terrible snow storms and dropping temps here in Chicagoland, I made sure to get my grocery shopping and errands done YESTERDAY so I could at least enjoy the warmth of my home before going back to work on Monday.  Most businesses and schools are officially closed, but hospitals simply can’t ‘close.’  So tomorrow at 3:30 a.m. I will be hitting the roads and getting slapped in the face with -30+ degree winds/temps. 

With that being said, my first thought as I looked at the boneless/skinless chicken thighs was….SOUP.  Who doesn’t love a warm bowl of soup on a cold winter day?

 

SIMPLE CHICKEN SOUP

Ingredients

6 skinless/boneless chicken thighs (or breast if you prefer, but I find the flavor of thighs so much richer and they hold up better in soup)

6 cups of organic chicken stock

Noodles of your choice-if desired

2 tablespoons of unsalted butter

Extra virgin olive oil

2 tablespoons of flour (I use semolina flour)

2 cloves of garlic, minced

1 small onion, diced

2-3 stalks of celery, diced

2 carrots, chopped into bite size pieces

6 button mushrooms, chopped

1 tablespoon of parsley and thyme

2-3 pinches of turmeric to taste

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

You will need one deep sauce pan for the soup, and one fry pan for the chicken.

In the deep sauce pan melt the butter, and whisk in the flour until evenly distributed; about 3-4 minutes.  Toss in your minced garlic, and cook for another 2-3 minutes.  Slowly add in your chicken stock, and bring the liquid up to a boil.  Add in your veggies, herbs, and spices and lower the heat to a high simmer.  Cover the pan while it is simmering.

Next, heat your fry pan and coat with extra virgin olive oil.  Season your chicken with salt and pepper, and seer on both sides.  Cook through, and set aside to cool/rest. 

Next, if you desire, cook noodles to the packages instruction, ensuring you salt your water. 

Chop the chicken finely, and add to your soup.  Total simmer time is about 30 minutes. 

Serve with your favorite bread, crackers, or by itself!  This dish will definitely be on my menu!

Enjoy!!

Please feel free to share this recipe with friends and family, and I would love for you to follow my blog!  XOXO

 

Michelle

 

#keepbeingmore #healthyeats #keepmovinforward

food, goals, Uncategorized

Day 3…I got this…

Movin' it with Michelle

I sat at work most of the day in a fog. My head was/is stuffy, and I just wasn’t feeling myself. I know I have a decent job, and will never complain for being gainfully employed. But I have dreams, hopes, and aspirations. And working in a lab just isn’t one of them.
This brings me back, to over 22 years ago when I joined the Air Force under “open general” status. I wanted to be an Air Traffic Controller….something that was on the flight line, in the deeps, trenches, and you name it. ANYTHING but medical I said…

Here I am, 22 years later, almost 23, wishing I had been given another path. Wait. I may work in a lab…BUT…

But our paths in life, lead us to our destinations.

And my goal as a writer and a Chef are just around the corner.

I felt it today, and found myself nearly giddy with ideas.

So in the crazy winds of the Chicagoland weather path, I found myself shopping for photo books, scissors, and accessories to make my vision REAL.

What a perfect way, to spend a cold and ill feeling weekend, than to cut and paste my future into a vision.

I’m ready. me and Graham