Wordless Wednesday

Running the Great River Ragnar

The Starting Line.

For those of you who don't know what a Ragnar race is I'll explain. My team of 12 ladies ran from Winona to Minneapolis, MN this past weekend.(198.5 miles) In a Ragnar your team is split into two vans. Someone from the team is always running--day or night. Each person runs a total of three legs. You get very little sleep and eat a lot of bagels and peanut butter!

Every team has a name. Ours was "Comin' in Hot".

Since almost every team has some sort of white van everyone decorates theirs. We learned from last year that it's hard to recognize your own van in the dark so we brought along battery-operated Christmas lights. It was easy to spot our van!

Pam smiling as she's starting to run up her first hill.

Since I'm the oldest I got to have the shortest legs. My first leg was 5.3 miles and pretty flat. An easy run. Along my way through a small town three very little boys were cheering the runners as we passed by. So cute! Further along a family had made a sort of tunnel in their ditch using American Flags attached to a fence on either side. (kind of hard to describe). It was probably a tenth of a mile and really fun to run through there. The other gals in my van had very long runs with hills that just wouldn't quit!

My second leg was at night. We wear reflective vests, a blinking tail light and a headlight. It is a totally different experience running at night in a place you are not familiar with. My run was only 3.3 miles so it was very pleasant. My other teammates ran steep hills and on dusty gravel roads. I have nothing but the deepest respect for their running abilities.

My daugher and me posing by another team member's "one mile to go" sign. We were both done at this point.

Another team trying to get a little sleep.

We did manage to nap a little in the afternoon in a park while the other van did their running. After our night runs we were able to shower at a middle school and sleep in their gym. We were one of the first vans to get there so the gym wasn't crowded. Of course lots more people joined us. I have never heard so many different kinds of snoring in my life! I had never slept on a gym floor before. I found out just how hard that wooden floor is.(Can you guess how much sleep I got?)Also when I woke up I found another runner had put her sleeping bag right between my daughter and me.

My daugher and me posing by another team member's "one mile to go" sign. We were both done at this point.

The last leg for me was another shorty. 3.1 miles on a trail through woods. The only tough part was a hill at the very end. Again, my teammates had long runs with lots of hills. You can only imagine how good it felt to be done that morning! (We all loved the "one mile to go" sign!)

  Comin' in Hot with our medals at the Finish Line.

My team of twelve incredible gals included many ages, abilities and experience. This was my second Ragnar but for some it was their first. Many of us are looking ahead to next year and others are saying "ask me in six months". We all found the strength we needed to tackle long miles and nasty hills while running on little sleep. It was a challenge but a joy to find out that we had the physical and mental stamina to see it all the way through. We supported each other and that made all the difference. There was always someone cheering for us. The power of the female carried us all 198.5 miles!

I know that next year I will be another year older. I don't know if my body will be ready to do another Ragnar next year. I don't know if the other gals will want to let me have the shortest miles again. It was such an incredible experience I'm hoping I can be there. If not, I will be with them all in spirit. (and...there are many other Ragnars across the country. Doesn't running through the Napa Valley sound fun?)

How To Get Softer Skin in Five Minutes a Day

If you’ve ever wanted softer skin (and who hasn’t!) try this simple method to improve your skin tone. I’ve started doing it every morning and it feels great! It’s called “Dry Brushing” because you are brushing your skin dry, usually before a bath or shower.       

Giving your body a firm brush all over makes the skin glow by removing the top dull, dead layer of skin and encouraging new cells to regenerate. The gentle massaging motion of the bristles also has a beneficial effect on areas of cellulite and it is an effective treatment for helping eliminate toxins from the body.

The technique is a simple one, and you only need a body brush with natural bristles, such as those of goat or boar, or a loofah. You will need a brush with a handle so that you can reach all the parts of your back. (You need a much softer brush for the face. I've got one but I don't like the feel of brushing my face that much. Some people skip brushing their face.)

Skin brushing is carried out on dry skin. Start at the soles of your feet and work upwards, brushing the legs, then buttocks, your arms, then on to the chest and stomach, your back and finally the face. Brush more gently where the skin is thinnest and always brush towards the heart. Don’t brush any areas of broken skin or rash.

Brushing your whole body in this way will take you between three and five minutes, depending on how many strokes you give to each area. Try to keep a rhythm going and brush for up to five minutes every day and preferably immediately before you have a bath or shower so that the dead cells are washed away.

Skin brushing is best done in the morning as the acceleration of blood flow has quite an invigorating effect. You should be able to see the difference in your skin after just a few sessions - it will become very soft and develop an attractive rosy glow.

A good follow-up for after your shower is Gathered From The Garden's Satin and Silk Shea Butter Lotion. It’s like a body butter and is SO moisturizing!  I like to use it after shaving too.

Have you tried dry brushing?  

Wordless Wednesday

Monkeying Around

I have been having so much fun with my new Canon macro lens. I originally bought it to use when we went to visit my brand new grandson. I wanted to get close up pictures of his little toes, ears, fingers, etc. Now that I'm back home I've been using it to snap pics of flowers in my gardens and a beautiful public garden in our city called Clemens Garden. So here are a few of the pictures that I took that have been enhanced using Picmonkey. ( I actually have a free trial of Photoshop Elements 10 right now but I'm finding it to be  rather complicated.)

Have you tried Picmonkey or have you found another photo editing tool?

Six Recipes for National S'mores Day!

Another reason to celebrate with s'mores! There is actually a special day for them and today's the day! So here are some awesome recipes for many kinds of s'mores....

 From Woman's Day---Frozen S'mores.

From Endless Simmer---S'mores Bars

From Tastebook ---S'mores Dip

From Boboli--S'mores Pizza

From My Baking Addiction---S'mores Whoopie Pies

And my favorite...From  Cooking Classy--S'mores Bites  

What's your favorite way to eat a S'more?

Healthy, not Hungry

We have an friend who is always looking for the perfect diet. I think she has tried every one! But I think her biggest downfall is that she is still hungry so in the end she tends to binge a little and the weight comes back. Is it possible to cut calories and not feel hungry?

Here are some easy ways to eat healthier and trim the calories:

* Fill your plate with produce. Actually half your plate should be produce. You can pretty much eat as many veggies as you want (well,not potatoes or corn)but the more colorful ones like beans, carrots, broccoli and peppers.

*Eat smaller portions. Most restaurant portions are way more than we need to eat at one sitting. I usually take half of my meal home. (great left-overs)Reading nutrition labels will help you figure out portion sizes too.

*Watch the sugar. (my downfall!) I have pretty much given up soda except for the rare occasion when I am out and might have a drink. (malibu and coke with a lime--just one!) Sports drinks, sodas and energy drinks don't fill you up and are loaded with sugar. A study done at John Hopkins University found that people actually lost more weight by eliminating calories from their beverages than their food.

*Start your meal with a salad or soup. However, you can't load your salad up with a high calorie dressing. Also stay away from creamy soups usually made with cream or butter. Eating salad or soup will help fill you up before your main course arrives.

*Eat more protein. This will help you feel full longer. Healthy sources of protein are chicken, tuna, soybeans,legumes and very lean meat. Keep your portion size to about 3 oz.

*Make your own snacks. Easy and cheaper than buying snack packs. Fill up baggies with a trail mix of nuts, dried fruit (look for the sugar content--some are very high) and dark chocolate chips. If you make your own granola you can cut the sugar way back by using honey. Cut-up veggies are always a great snack too.

Healthy eating alone won't shed those pounds but it's a great start. Add in some exercise and you can maintain a healthy body weight.