<p>I’m amazed that this thread is still going stong in March! We’ve got quite a dedicated bunch of lifestyle changers in here, LOL! Keep it up, everyone, and good job!</p>
<p>H and I discovered a new running route tonight. I would have never guessed that the street couple of blocks from us goes up such a steep hill! It was a torture to run up the street, but on the way back we felt like wings sprouted from our backs! We decided that this route was a keeper. :)</p>
<p>Isn’t it amazing how you never notice hills until you run (or bike) them, even if you’ve driven it a milllion times?</p>
<p>[USATF</a> - America’s Running Routes](<a href=“http://www.usatf.org/routes/]USATF”>http://www.usatf.org/routes/)</p>
<p>Here you can find new routes or you can create your own :)</p>
<p>Jamie Oliver is a kick
<a href=“http://www.nytimes.com/2009/10/11/magazine/11Oliver-t.html[/url]”>http://www.nytimes.com/2009/10/11/magazine/11Oliver-t.html</a>
I haven’t seen his show, but I have his 20 minute meals on my ipod.
[20</a> Minute Meals | Jamie Oliver](<a href=“http://www.jamieoliver.com/20-minute-meals/]20”>http://www.jamieoliver.com/20-minute-meals/)</p>
<p>Bromfield’s story about her MIL never having had anything except frozen fish sticks until she came to New England, reminded me of a rather embarrassing experience. My mother had prepared some wonderful (fresh) fish for dinner. You could actually recognize it as fish. My brother’s children were very uncomfortable with the sight of it. After taking a small bite the oldest (12) calmed down the other two by telling them: “It tastes like fish sticks. It’s fine”. My mother was almost in tears.</p>
<p>toneranger: That the scale is up doesn’t necessarily have anything to do with salt. I’ve read somewhere that carb is also retaining fluid in the body. There is a lot of carb in a piece of cake.</p>
<p>taitai: I hear you on the cake. On top of that, I didn’t do my normal routine of asking for modified food in the restaurant…just let the dish come out as is. The halibut was wonderful but had a very rich sauce and was served with a creamy risotto. </p>
<p>Haven’t weighed myself today but i was good yesterday so I’m hoping the 5 pounds are gone. I just can’t believe my weight can vary that much from day to day…or be impacted by just ONE meal. Wow.</p>
<p>That was supposed to be 1 1/2 pounds of sweet potatoes. </p>
<p>Sorry :)</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>Bike tourists quickly learn never to trust anything a local says about the flatness or distance of our proposed route. “Ten miles to Grocerytown, and it’s perfectly flat,” they’ll say, and we discover it’s sixteen miles over five steep hills. </p>
<p>One time I was touring on my tandem bike with Fang Jr, who was about five. I called my mother, who has lived her entire life in the area, mentioning a particular road we would be taking. She assured me it was flat. Apparently some tectonic activity had occurred since the last time she drove it, or something, 
because Fang and I had to struggle over a mountain ridge.</p>
<p>^^ so true! And when I run (which is definitely NOT my favorite form of exercise) I am always surprised by those LONG, GENTLE uphills which you would never notice while driving. Even the flattest of roads seems to have some kind of slope! (Great one way - not so great the other!! 
)</p>
<p>Haven’t weighed myself today but i was good yesterday so I’m hoping the 5 pounds are gone. I just can’t believe my weight can vary that much from day to day…or be impacted by just ONE meal. Wow.</p>
<p>Have some double fiber bread- it is my new favorite thing ( next to Dreyers lime fruit bars)</p>
<p>I live in Seattle- hills all over the place-those who bike to work amaze me.</p>
Oh, and I almost forgot to say…don’t be hatin’ on Watergate salad; that’s part of every Thanksgiving meal I’ve ever had!
<p>kids went back to school today. It looks like I ended the week up just 1 lb. Not bad. Though I am beat and don’t feel like cooking tonight.
I also don’t feel like exercising but I will head out to at least get a short walk in. I am not sure if I have allergies acting up or if I am getting my D’s cold. Tired and cranky.</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>Gears. They make all the difference.</p>
<p>Greetings all ye weekend warriors. Took a rest day on Saturday. Today was just an “extra” light cardio day on top of the scheduled iPod nazi days this week. Supposed to be a nice walk, but we have Noah’s Arc weather, so it was back on the $5 yard sale exercise bike.</p>
<p>5 minutes easy warmup
5 minutes intervals: 15 sec. hard/45 seconds easy, five times
5 minutes easy recovery
5 minutes intervals: 15 sec. hard/45 seconds easy, five times
5 minutes easy recovery</p>
<p>It’s just amazing how throwing in those two five minutes of intervals gets the old heart pumpin’. You never get bored because you savor every second of those five minute easy recovery periods.</p>
<p>I will say, this old bike is starting to be a literal pain in the tush.</p>
<p>Well, you all will be happy to know that the fruit salad decided upon was a mixed fresh fruit one w/an optional topping: </p>
<p>7 oz Greek yogurt
1/3 cup lemon curd
1 tbsp honey
1/4 tsp vanilla </p>
<p>Topping is delicious. And I used the 0% fat yogurt. But they don’t need to know that!</p>
<p>Sabaray sounds delicous! In fact, I have a party next week and might bring this.</p>
<p>interesteddad, sounds like you need a pair of bike shorts, with the padded bottoms.</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>Oh, I’ve got the padded bottom covered, don’t worry about that!</p>
<p>What I need is a new exercise bike. My wife bought this one five years ago at church yard sale for $5. It’s so old that it doesn’t even use electricity!</p>
<p>mathmom, they all seemed to love it. I made a mixed salad of raspberries, strawberries, blueberries and banana. Then you could add the topping as you chose. It’s from a Barefoot Contessa cookbook and also called for limoncello (3 tbsp or so) to be tossed with the fruit. Given this was a work function I did not think it prudent to include it.</p>