The Vacation High-Five

Fact: Vacations are awesome. 

Also fact: High fives are awesome.

And when your vacation gives you a high five, that's like awesome to a level that hurts my brain to think about.

I went on vacation last week and it was wonderful.  Chicago: does it get better?  No.  No it does not.  Then add my wacky fun family, a wedding, and really nice weather and you've got yourself a Happy Healthy Heather.  Just so you know, that's a good thing. :)

Chicago gave me a big ole high five last week.  Thanks Chicago!  Back atcha!

I had two main concerns before going on vacation:

Concern Numero 1: Clean eating. I was flying, so my capacity for bringing food with me was limited.  Relying on other people or sources for good clean eats stresses me out, so I wanted to make sure I had plenty of access to the good stuff so I wouldn't spend my vacation like some kind of junkie looking for a fix.  So I packed my little ziplocks of oatmeal and almonds, stocked up on Lara bars, and walked to the grocery store first thing.  It was a great way to pass the time while I was waiting for our luggage to arrive.

The next day. 

Yeah, it was that kind of trip.

Concern Numero 2: Exercise. I wanted some. Correction: I wanted lots.  I knew those packs of oatmeal and almonds would only get me so far, and then someone would open the wine.  And there would be crackers.  And there would be pizza.  And there would be pie. And as it turned out, there were all of those things. It's almost as if I have traveled with these people before.

So I walked to the grocery store and carried the groceries back. I got up the next morning and ran 5 miles.  The next day I ran seven miles and walked all over the city.  I carried my kid around, wore a backpack, and went the long way everywhere.  I even took the stairs in the hotel all the way up to the 16th floor.  And when I uploaded my GoWearFit, it rewarded me with nice big numbers that made up for all the pie.

And it was really, really nice.

Tomorrow I'll post pics of my gorgeous run along Lake Michigan under the lights of the city.  For now, I'm still reveling in the fact that I am back from a week of vacation and I didn't take a step back in my wellness. 

Thanks Chicago!  I'll be back soon!

Good day!

Ice cream, cheesecake, and beer, oh my!

Let's just get one thing straight: I was not "good" on my vacation.  I drank wine, beer, and frozen concoctions without looking at nutritional information. I ate in restaurants and shared a chocolate volcano cake with my son. My cousin made these evil peanut butter and chocolate cheesecake bites dipped in chocolate and I ate like eleventy billion of them. 

But it's cool.

Trust me, it was a hassle. Fitday doesn't have an option to just enter, "I don't want to know," for your daily calories and nutrition. Oh no, I painstakingly relived each bite as I accounted for it in my food log, but I did it so I can get to work and back on track now that "vacation" is over.  I wore my GoWearFit and monitored my burn each day, which was a lot since I compensated for a lot of my calories with daily runs, cross-city treks, visits to the park, and even a community 5k.  I know I will be bringing a little extra baggage home with me, but it's so nice to know I have a plan to get rid of it soon.  Cardio, and lots of it!

Eh. I'm back to reality today, and seriously craving some rabbit food.  Vacation was fun, but I'm ready for a vacation from vacation food! :)

Good day!

Vacation, Healthy Heather Style

I've been on vacation (well, what passes for vacation in my family, which means all us crazies piling into my aunt's house in the middle of a cornfield to drink wine, swap stories around the campfire, and play bingo with the carnies at the fair across the alley) so workouts were a little hit and miss.  In fact, I said I was going to take a break from exericse but come on, be serious.  Did anyone really think I would do that?  No, I took advantage of a late start getting on the road to eeek out a workout with Capt. Awesome before we left, and cranked out 90 minutes of cardio the next day while hubby and son slept! 

The next morning I woke up thinking it would be a rest day.  Every one in a while I try that whole "relaxation" think I keep hearing about.  But by 3:00 I was itching for some activity so I hopped on my aunt's one-speed and biked to the local grocery store to pick up some 70% cacao chocolate for the s'mores and the ingredients for my Black Bean Turkey Burgers.  It's a short trip and the weather was gorgeous, and by the time I got back I felt appropriately challenged. It was the perfect vacation workout - blood pumping but not sweating, challenged but not fatigued. It was a vacation from my vacation!

As I pulled back into the yard with my backpack full of groceries, my sister called out, "I thought you were taking a break this week!"

Ha!  I just did! :)

Good day!