CadesDad - Nutrition

Zuchini Bread?

nospam@example.com (Cadesdad) — Mon, 25 Aug 2008 18:49:40 -0700

This year we signed up for a CSA with Rock Spring Farm. We've really liked it although we've definitely not known what to do with the herbs.

Last week, amongst various root plants and leafy greens we had a zucchini! I'd guess if poled 85% of the populations first though upon hearing the word "zucchini" is something related to zucchini bread. As a kid I always loved zucchini bread and the other variations banana bread etc. However, I am now allergic to bananas and nuts which makes banana bread a huge allergic bomb.

However I still have zucchini bread!

I talked to Cade about it and he was in. The lil' guy loves to cook and especially loves it if the cooking/baking/roasting involves tools, fire and stirring. This was right up his alley. After assembling the ingredients and being pretty much ready to go, Cade and I went at grating the zucchini. It only took a minute and I could smell the cool, crisp fragrance of zucchini. I continued to grate and the semi transparent gratings were lying on the plate with a pool of zucchini juices.....

Wait. This is NOT a zucchini. This was a cucumber. Now, honestly, I'm not stupid. I knew looking at this thing that it was a cucumber. But for some reason I had it in my head that it was a zucchini and that was that.

I knew that the lil guys heart would be broken if we didn't continue with the recipe. I KNEW that if we didn't include the ingredient we'd be grating for the last few minutes he'd confused and heartbroken. So, we carried on. I did pose the question that perhaps we should call it something different, but Cade overruled. What do I care if our zucchini bread has no zucchini, but has 2 cups of grated cucumber?

That is the story of how we made Zucchini Bread! And as a public service, here they are below: The zucchini and the cucumber.

Cucumber!

Zucchini!

Straight Cranks and the Calm Before the Storm

nospam@example.com (Cadesdad) — Wed, 09 Jan 2008 18:28:48 -0700

Last year at the Apple Duathlon, CadesMom wow the drawing at the end of the race and walked away with a HUGE prize including new sunglasses, a set of Spinervals videos, a new tri outfit, new bike shoes, a sweet big bag, on and on thanks to the good folks at Gear West and the sponsors of the races. For Christmas, my sweetie got me a trainer. Which means that she and I can ride on our trainers together, our own little spinning class! We broke out a Spinerval called, "19.0 Bending Crank Arms". This was a great workout. This workout included off the bike activity doing squats followed by iso's. My legs ache today and I love it.

On the diet front, I've been eating really well lately. The only change I've really made is to increase my fruit and veggie intake and reduce breads. I'm done 5 lbs or so in the last couple of weeks without really trying to lose weight.

This weekend is the P.F. Chang Rock n' Roll Marathon in Phoenix. CadesMom and I will be running. EstersMom is running the 1/2 marathon. This will be the marathon that CadesMom qualifies for Boston. She is targeting a 3:45. Initially I thought I'd try to stay with her ala my goal for the Monster Dash Half Marathon, then I thought I'd run with the 4:30 group and if I felt good push the last 6 or so and now I'm back thinking I'll run with her. I haven't trained at that pace really, and I'm battling a bit of a sore ankle, but I think I have it in me AND I think it would be great support for my lady. Thinking about the Marathon I realized that I won't be really happy running with my current eyeglasses as with any sweat they slide down my nose. It is EXTREMELY frustrating. So after a lunch out today I visited my downtown Marhalls and found these sweet babies. Funny thing is that I went online after buying them and found that they are for sale retail for $129! What a steal I got!? Anyway, I hope they make me strong for P.F. Chang. Funny thing about this marathon is that I haven't really done any specific training for it, but I'm not nervous or anything. Calm before the storm?

TIL Numero Dos

nospam@example.com (Cadesdad) — Sun, 23 Dec 2007 21:09:24 -0700

Yes. Todays, Things I Like (TIL) subject is...... COFFEE! Long long ago, my first real non-temp job out of college was at a small company where one of the ladies had a cup which said, "No Coffee, no workee." At the time I did not see the wisdom which I now comprehend.

Although I can go without, I choose not to. Each morning CadesMom or I brew up a pot (or two). Some days, today for example. Neither of us have felt that great CadesMom is downright S.I.C.K., but the coffee has pulled us through. We've tried several different kinds and I believe that all of these are solid: Kirkland (Costco), Starbucks Mexican Shade Tree, Anything Peace Coffee, and most recently we've had really REALLY good coffee from Alterra.

IsaResults

nospam@example.com (Cadesdad) — Fri, 02 Nov 2007 04:48:54 -0700

I didn't exactly take my measurements and weight exactly at the end of the IsaCleanse program. I ate like crap for a couple of days AND THEN thought, "oh hey, I should weigh in again".

So...drumroll parle vous.....the results.

I'm down 2-3 lbs which is great. The really interesting thing is these measurements:

According to these measurements, compliments of the lovely CadesMom(tm), I've "lost" an accumulative 8.875 inches. Over half coming from the waist and abdomen area - - exactly where I wanted to lose weight. Pretty cool.

I must say I didn't adhere rigidly to the plan - - which makes me want to try it again. I'll look at my calendar and try to find another good time to do the 9 day cleanse and I'll re-record the results and blow by blow daily reports!

Gotta jet.

IsaDay4-5

nospam@example.com (Cadesdad) — Fri, 26 Oct 2007 09:54:41 -0700

Same ol' same ol. Still on the shakes and a sensible meal.

I had forgotten to mention that I'm also taking the Natural Accelerator Capsules. Before to long, I'll be IsaCadesDad.

Still feel fine. Having a meal is helpful too, as I know that when I have my breakfast and lunch shake, I can have a real meal for dinner.

My good somewhat reclusive buddy Shoemaker asked why I didn't just count my calories and limit my intake - - the simple math, burn more than you consume. Bunch of reasons, although I'll admit I didn't think it through entirely.
A. CadesMom had bought the stuff and absolutely doesn't need to lose a lb, and to be honest probably doesn't have one to lose and stay healthy.
B. There is something to be said for throwing oneself into a program. Having a single focus. Without such focus its easy to fall off of the calorie counting type stuff when free food is sitting right in front of you. (as happened Tuesday when there was beaucoup free eats from Buca right down the aisle from me at work).
C. Why not give it a try?
D. I'm tired of listing now, this no longer amuses me.

Anyway, all is well. I'm going to eat a dinner tonight and probably have something tomorrow morning prior to the half marathon. I'm thinking that my goal will be tough. Yesterday, I hit the gym with the lovely Molly, my coworker. We both did our own individual weight routines and then after a bit decided to ride the stationary bikes for 10 minutes followed by 10 minutes on the treadmill. I loved it. We were about half way through the "around the world" setting on the bikes, when I realized Molly was ahead of me! I danced on the pedals (Phil Ligett reference) for the remaining 4-5 minutes to just pass her at the end. Then we hit the treadmill. I didn't really race this against Molly but rather tried to give myself a decent warmup .25 of a mile and then speed up to 7:30 mile pace. The last 2 minutes up bumped up the speed ever so slightly so that I was running a 7:12 minute mile for the list minute or so. In the 10 minutes I completed 1.24 miles and burned just shy of 190 calories.

Great workout and really Fun. Molly said she wants a rematch.

IsaDay3

nospam@example.com (Cadesdad) — Wed, 24 Oct 2007 09:30:25 -0700

IsaGenix

Today is day 3 of the IsaGenix program. Really its day 4 as I was on two days of pre-program get-ready stuff. I made it through the 2 day cleanse period with only a few errors. I did have a couple of candy bars and 2-3 ginger snap cookies. Oh, and two packets of soup crackers I found in my desk. I sorta okayed this with myself since I've also worked out, Lifting weights on Monday and running a semi-aggressive treadmill 5k on Tuesday.

I felt a little tired on the treadmill, but its hard to know if its due to IsaGenix or just to lack of sleep or normal good day/bad day that I might normally experience. Otherwise. I've kind of enjoyed the IsaGenix. It feels good to know that I'm loosing some weight (which I am) and also I enjoy the challenge (despite the couple of chocolate/cracker lapses).

I've also been eating the IsaGenix snacks. There quarter size round half inch thick tablets. I have the vanilla. They're okay, better tasting than they look. Not fantastic, but something to chew on and fill the old tummy a bit. I didn't have a problem with wanting more of them.

Today I get to have two shakes and a "sensible" meal (400-600 calories). I'm SUPER excited. I had a shake for breakfast and will have another for lunch. I'll workout at 2 today. Tonight, we're going to "Onion Rings" for dinner. "Onion Rings" is Cade's name for for Q Cumbers. Cade L-O-V-E-S Q cumbers. Q cumbers is a huge salad bar with pretty decently fresh vegeis, breads, a hot mini bar with rotating things like meatloaf, chicken, potatos, etc. He eats pretty well there. I think his love of Q cumbers may have as much to do with getting a balloon as the food.

At the start of the program I was at a healthy 186. Yesterday pre run workout I was at 183.2 or so, after workout AND big gulps of water I was at 182.5. So I'm down, which is cool. I've noticed that I look slimmer too. My real aim is to get rid of the small innertube/love handles around my waist. They're not huge, but I really want them gone.

This Sunday the lady and I are planning on doing the Monster Dash Half Marathon. I'm vasiliating between being excited and dread. Last year for the Monster Dash 5k it was so so cold at the start. At this point the forecast is for reasonable temperatures, so my fears of a repeat cold morning have subsided somewhat. I think I may have an extra real meal the evening prior and the morning of the race, just to help my body have some energy.

I've decided that I'm going to try to run with my lady the whole way. She's planning to run 1:50. This will be a good goal, difficult but I believe achieveable 8:24 minute miles. The route is really our home turf as we run essentially the same route all the time. The only difference is we don't run the road, we run the rails. Heres a link to the route. It also is on part of the TC Marathon route which I ran earlier. We'll practically run past our house, nice if we need a potty stop! (no, not really).

Oh, one last thing. I compared the EAS protein shake mix I have with the IsaGenix Lean Shake. The IsaGenix protein mix compared really well. It actually had more vitamins added with the same level of protein. Cool. I should be ripped in no time!

Catch-all

nospam@example.com (Cadesdad) — Mon, 22 Oct 2007 08:42:28 -0700

Okay, I'll cover a few recent events here including:
Cade Fishing!
TC Marathon
Recent Run with CadesMom
IsaGenix Cleanse

Cade Fishing
The lil' big guy loves fishing. At the cabin the big excitment, can't contain yourself excitment was to fish. I had purchased two kids superman fishing rods at target; one for Cade one for his friend Esther. Once we arrived at the cabin, "when can I fish?", "When can I fish?", "When can I fish?".

So I put a bobber on each of the lines and tied on a casting weight at the bottom - - much much much safer than a 4 year old and 3 year old with hooks at the end of the line. Once in their hot little hands the kids fished off all the docs, in puddles, in sitting water inside boats, you name it they tried to catch fish.

Soon the fun had to end and we left the cabin. The fishing rods were kept in the roof cargo carrier which greatly disappointed Cade. Once we arrived home we carried all the gear and the cargo carrier itself in the house. As I carried the cumbersome carrier to the basement, this is what I found in the kitchen:

That is the dogs water bowl.

TC Marathon
We'll it was hot, but to be honest, I didn't think it was any worse than the last two Grandmas. 2007 and 2006 Grandmas were brutal. I arrived with my lady at the dome with plenty of time to stand in line for the port-a-potty. After stretching for the first time this year, I decided to unpin my race number from my shirt to my shorts. It was feeling warm and I've learned that if I overheat early in a run, I have a difficult time recovering. The Lady and I walked together to get me to the start and she photo documented all of it. As I made my way to the chute and she walked on the sidewalk it became clear it was going to be nearly impossible to move forward and try to run with the 4:15 pacer. So, I hopped out of the chute and went along side. After the first heat started, I hopped back in the chute with a couple of friends my Lady knows. Then Bam! We're off. It took two blocks and my shirt was off. Better for me, but the pictures tell, not so sweet for those watching the marathon. The 4:15 pacer chick took off. I stayed with her, but not glued to her as some folks are through the first 3-4 miles. She ran right through the first water stop which I did not as I felt hot and thought it was important to get some water. I didn't lollygag though and I caught up without any effort. It was right about mile 2 that Alan Page was playing tuba! Not everyday you see that! At the second aid station I grabbed my water and carried on (I think this was at Lake Calhoun) but I completely lost the 4:15 pacer. I didn't see her in front or behind. Crap! Oh well I didn't really think I could keep it up the way I felt so I just carried on. I noted that my mile times were 9:15 ish with a couple of sub 9's so I was pretty happy with that. I saw Bruce my co-worker, Jane and Esther, and Laura (who made a fantastic sign)! I knew that my lady and cade would be at mile 10 (the Tarrymore Turn) so I was looking forward to them. There was quite a turnout there as CadesMom, Cade, CadesAunt, CadesCousin, and CadesMomsFriend were all there. Jill's husband Ken was running as well so she was cheering on him. I was feeling pretty good at this point. At about mile 13-14 it started to unravel. I arrived half way at just about 2 hours. I was suprised as I had been at the 10k mark as well. I was going a bit faster than I had wanted, but I thought geez that 4:15 is still way in front of me. I reached Minnehaha falls and saw my nephew Michael handing out water at the aid station. It was here that I really died. I didn't feel too bad as it seemed like everyone around me was dieing too. More than anything I felt bad for my family who would be waiting for me at the finish. I did see Steve in a Speedo several times which was a real boost. Hard not to smile. Check out his site and you'll see what I mean.

Through the walk-run death march I ended up surviving pretty well. Somehow my time was better than average (a first for me)! Here's the results:

Medtronic Twin Cities Marathon - 2007 - Marathon
date: Oct 7th, 2007
location: St Paul, MN

Summary
number of finishers: 7229
number of females: 2833
number of males: 4396
average time: 04:48:02
Brian Corrigan
bib number: 4507
age: 36
gender: M
location: Minneapolis, MN
overall place: 2756 out of 7229
division place: 308 out of 725
gender place: 1908 out of 4519
time: 4:35:52
pace: 10:22
chip time: 4:31:42
5k: 28:27
10k: 57:08
half: 2:02:04
30k: 3:03:11
20 mile : 3:19:00

Thats me sans shirt.

Recent Run with CadesMom
Saturday Morning and Sunday Morning this week we had a CadeSitter, Fiona. So we were able to go for a couple of runs. We ran to the park building at Nokomis on Saturday. I had a hard time breathing going out, but coming back felt pretty good. It was a nice run and I was able to stay with CadesMom (although I don't think she was pushing or anything).

On Sunday, she and I took the dogs to the river dog park where they had a B-L-A-S-T. We dropped them off and went for a trot to Lake Harriet and around. We made pretty good time and stopped for Coffee on the way back. What a great way to spend a morning. I love this running thing especially with Cade and especially when I am working hard and stretching my abilities.

New Goal for Tulsa Route 66 is to run with my Lady.

IsaGenix
Robbie, my sister in law has had great success with IsaGenix. The gal and I have been drinking the shakes. Saturday I started the IsaGenix IsaClense program. This is a detox and fat burning program, so I measured my body with the aid of the lovely Shawn, and drank the drinks. We'll see how it goes. So far it hasn't been bad. Saturday and Sunday were "pre-clense" days where I eat one "sensible" meal, drink two shakes and swallow a supplemental pill. Today (Monday), is the first day of the program. Today I drink, 4 4-oz servings of a fruit mixture and I can have several "snacks" which look to be wafers. Unfortunately I forgot to bring any to work today so I'll be drinking lots of water and nothing else. We'll see how the program goes and I'll report back. I'll either do the 9 day or 30 day program. Not sure which yet.