The Arboretum, An Usual Crab Hole, and A Bateman Oldie
Day 2 of 28 Day Refocus
Jacksonville, FL – August 3, 2021
It was a pretty overcast morning, but we headed to the arboretum instead of the beach because, frankly, Codee motivated straight for the car after some morning business. I totally understand not being into exercise first thing. Most of the people that I know like to start their day with a workout and I get that, too. It’s great to get moving and “get it out of the way”, but some of us just don’t function like that. The only time that I like running in the morning is if it is a race and there are LOTS of other people involved. My preferred time is in the afternoon and I think Codee is on board with that.
However, I do like to get moving and an easy stroll or walk is my favorite way. During the summer months, I have a few spots that like to frequent and The Jacksonville Arboretum tops the list. They have a bunch of short trails that are almost completely shaded and lots to look at if you are the nature loving sort. It’s also completely dog friendly if they are on a leash and I can usually get Codee into it for at least a mile, even at the peak of his laziness/weight gain/summer heat. The downside is that it’s about a fifteen minute drive from the condo. Of course, Codee has a different perspective and doesn’t see it as a downside, He loves to snooze in the air conditioned backseat. It’s all about how you use your time, right?
Jacksonville Arboretum
Jacksonville, FL – August 3, 2021
Atlantic Beach, FL – August 3, 2021
The storm cleared as the evening rolled in and it was perfect for a beach walk.
Atlantic Beach, FL – August 3, 2021
Atlantic Beach, FL – August 3, 2021
Sweating It Out:
Rain days call for some treadmill time. For resistance training, I added a few different arm moves and a bonus core exercise. I’ll add this on Thursday and Sunday, which gives my arms a break on Saturday and finishes out the week by compounding all the moves on Sunday.
What I Watched:
We need all the laughs we can get these days…well, actually, on ALL days, but anyway…especially now. And you may or may not know about my crush on Jason Bateman, but despite my minor obsession with his current projects, there are lots of his movies that I haven’t watched. I have been working my way through some of the older ones and today I chose this one. There are parts where his character is reminiscent of his character, Marty, on Ozarks and I have to say, I am just fine with that. His dry delivery through ridiculous obstacles gets me every time.
Also, In the past, I have said that I am not a huge Melissa McCarthy fan…we just have a slightly different sense of humor, but her talent is undeniable. I really enjoyed her performance in this one though and the two of them together are hilarious. Yes, it is a movie from 2013, but I still lost my footing on the treadmill because I was laughing pretty hard.
On The Plates:
Brunch was my standard for the week, 700ml of water blended with these ingredients. I opened the bag of chia seeds too much and instead of 12g of seeds into the VitaMix, I got 22g. There is no turning back from that…I believe this is why chefs mise en place their stuff, but alas….I skipped the eggs I was going to have because it was a lot.
Sam Sifton mentioned Gabrielle Hamilton’s piece in The New York Times Magazine featuring her recipe for a sous-chef salad in his newsletter this week. In it, she says, “I don’t question that the greatest meal salad of all time, the chef salad, was created by a chef. The combination of textures and flavors is consummately professional. Sometimes people mistake the salad bowl for a lawless place of disorganized and mismatched ingredients, chopped up and thrown in — dried cranberries on top of pumpkin seeds on top of soggy corn — which offends even me, who stakes no strong claim to her chef bona fides. A salad nonetheless requires a bit of cheffing, a little experienced attention paid to balance, texture and restraint. Not everything tastes better with bacon bits scattered on top.” There aren’t any bacon bits around here, but something tells me that she would not be a champion of this particular plating anyway. Despite the less than stellar photography of this dish, I assure you, the meal salad was great. The cauliflower still has a lot of crunch, adding in texture and the peppery arugula compliments the earthiness of the roasted beets….It’s a favorite combo of mine and I bet it’s not the last time I write that description. I am taking a month off of dairy so I skipped my standard goat cheese, but there is 4oz of shredded, roasted chicken thigh and I mixed in 2tsp of extra virgin olive oil and a splash of champagne vinegar. This salad was a little overdressed, but I definitely didn’t miss the cheese.
Sometimes, when the beets in a dish turn things pink, it is a fun thing. Sometimes, it is not, but it’s almost always delicious and this was tasty.
To wrap it up, I had breakfast for dinner and an apple for dessert. I roasted the sweet potato the other day, so this came together pretty fast. Plus, I got a tiny dose of resistant starch. The unseen heroes of this dish are the 1.5tsp of avocado oil that I used in the pan and my cutting board that I use as a lid. The first teaspoon went in the pre heated pan for the cooked sweet potato and raw broccoli and then, once the broccoli was super bright green, another 1/2tsp for the eggs. Once the eggs were in, I covered it for a few minutes. I was in the mood for pretty runny eggs today. I think the yolk is super delicious with the sweet potato. I wish I got a little more color on the sweet potato, though….notes for next time. 🙂
Cronometer:
The food log app that I use and love is Cronometer. This week, I have a goal of staying below 1500 calories during five of the days and 1700 calories during the other two. I am also doing a version of time restricted eating so I don’t consume anything except black coffee, my daily vitamins, and water from 10PM until 2PM. That means that I have to eat all of my calories in an eight hour window which can be slightly tricky. These are not long term ways of life. I am working a specific program for a specified amount of time in an effort to reset some habits and refocus my nutrition.
I want to stress that nothing that I am posting is a nutrition or training recommendation for you, though. Please don’t think that I am ever recommending my plan for anyone but me.
Garmin Says:
My Garmin app sends data to Cronometer app, so I’m not sure how they have different calorie info, but they do. There’s an algorithm kicking around in there somewhere…
I have my step goal set at 15,000, but in my head I really want to hit closer to 20,000-25,000.