Home Workout During Quarantine

Photo by Jeffrey Czum on Pexels.com

Many of us are feeling a bit cooped up due to the quarantine.  Social distancing doesn’t have to mean that you can’t get in exercise, and while gyms are temporarily closed you might be looking for a way to stay active or just something to break up your day.  I have worked out at home on and off for years.  I used to have Tae Bo VHS tapes that I loved, but as years went on our VCR broke and I moved on to DVDs.  Then as time went on I got bored of doing the same workout over and over.  My interest would wane along with my fitness goals (more on that another time), so one day I found myself searching for a cardio kickboxing routine online.

What I found was Fitnessblender.com.  The workout was lead by a young woman named Kelli.  She was friendly, she smiled, she encouraged; I liked her.  I remember her bumping into the wall behind her at one point and her making a joke about it and just moving on with the routine.  She was so down to earth and easy to follow.   In the following months I would try different workouts (all free) and during one of them her dog made an appearance- I was even further sold on why I liked her so much!

I appreciate the calendar feature on their site- I can enter my workouts as I do them or I can enter them ahead of time to plan my workouts in advance.  There is also an option to select a workout based on what equipment is required, so if you don’t want to use weights, you can search for ones that are body weight only.

I have purchased a few workout programs from Fitnessblender.  The one I am currently doing is FB Burn.  It’s a month of workouts that they’ve planned out for me; it’s great and I like supporting them.

I’ve also been really enjoying doing Pilates lately.  It’s nice to switch up from weight lifting and running to a different kind of exercise.  I’m feeling the results already as I’m seeing my knees and hips specifically getting stronger and more stable.

I hope you’re encouraged to be active even during these days when we are home.  Give it a try!  Throw down a yoga mat, pick a workout and get movin’!

Photo by Prateek Katyal on Pexels.com

 

 

Inside My Mind

I remember watching the Powerball drawing on TV during commercial breaks years ago.  The ping pong balls would bounce frantically inside the clear box waiting to be drawn up into the tubes where the number would then be revealed.  It was interesting to watch because it was impossible to predict what numbers would be drawn.  I use the Powerball machine as an analogy to describe my thought process to my husband.

Most of the time I consider myself to be a creative person and that also reflects in my way of thinking.  I like to be able to see problems from different angles or perspectives.  I typically like to mull things over and consider all of my options, which in turn tends to make me a slow thinker when it comes to big decisions.  When I’m in the mulling process, it seems like my mind is a Powerball machine and all the thoughts swirling around inside of it are the ping pong balls.  I’ll draw up a random thought, think about it for awhile, and when I’m done I either toss it aside or if I need to think about it later it goes back into the machine.

At night, the machine usually gets emptied so it can be reset for the next day.  As I’m getting ready to fall asleep, the ping pong balls pop up and I give brief pause for each.  This system usually works great and Jason gets a kick of out of the random stories from my day.  However, sometimes a thought that keeps popping up repeatedly with no resolution can be a problem.  Problems with seemingly no solution, decisions that need to be made, tasks that need to be done; these are the kind of things that make it hard to sleep.  If I can’t get the machine to turn off, that means my brain won’t let me rest.

Even more disruptive than the machine that won’t turn off is when the machine malfunctions.  On particularly rough days the machine tips over and the little ping pong balls shoot out everywhere.  Days like that are not fun.  To someone from the outside looking in I would seem frantic, stressed, overwhelmed, or I might be crying in a corner.  The first step in recouping from a malfunction is to realize that the machine has tipped, and then being able to gather all the thoughts that have spilled out and place them back into the machine.  Sometimes not all the thoughts make it back in.  If they are negative or hurtful, so long!  Easier said than done, but I make an honest effort because I don’t want those destructive thoughts to be allowed to be drawn back up again to ponder over and over.

I have a separate section reserved for my dreams, future goals, and sweet memories from the past.  I contemplate these valuable gems repeatedly and then put them back in their special place where I can draw them up to think about them whenever I want.  This is my happy place!

I often draw up thoughts or memories at random, but obviously there are times when I need to be more discerning and pragmatic.  I choose what to think about and how to prioritize by hand picking the ping pong balls that need to be worked with.  I couldn’t function on total randomness, although it makes life interesting when I do!  My methodical and systematic husband often does not “get” my process, but we have great conversations about how we each think about different topics.

When I go for a walks or runs outside I don’t listen to music.  I reserve that time to think, contemplate and process what’s in the machine.  This time is very therapeutic for me, and it is when I do some of my best problem solving or creative thinking.

I love to learn about other people and how they think, so if you wouldn’t mind, please share about that with me!

Image by TeroVesalainen from Pixabay

Just Be Nice: Suggested Trail Etiquette

I walk at a local trail on weekends, and I can’t help but notice a lack of etiquette while I’m there. There are things that I think are pretty common knowledge, but perhaps I’m wrong. In light of that, I thought I’d share a few courtesies that I think make the trail more enjoyable for all.

1. Walk on the right, pass on the left. Easy peasy, just like driving :). Also it’s nice to say “on your left” if you’re passing so you don’t startle anyone.

2. If you are walking with other people, be mindful of how much space you’re taking. I’ve had to awkwardly weave through big groups that included little kids running back and forth and dogs off leash because there was literally no room to pass.

3. Smoking while walking the trail seems like a no-no to me. When I’m working out I don’t want to be inhaling smoke. While not necessarily breaking any laws, smoking while waking along a trail and leaving a smoke haze for others to go through seems inconsiderate.

4. I’ll be cruising along at a good pace and see people along the side of the trail taking a break to enjoy the scenery, and right as I get about 10 feet away from them they suddenly rejoin the trail in front of me, and 98.0% of the time they are slower than me. It would make more sense for them to let me pass, then start their walk again.

5. Don’t litter!

Pizza Dough

Over the years I’ve been asked by people to share the pizza crust recipe I use. I worked at a pizza place for years and had experience making dough, albeit in huge batches, so I wasn’t able to replicate the recipe.  I have tried many recipes over the years in search of the one most reminiscent of the dough from Pizza Palace and this is by far my favorite.  The recipe comes from one of my most loved cookbooks, Cooking Thin with Chef Kathleen.  My copy is dog-eared, food-stained, and the one book that actually gets to reside on my kitchen counter permanently.  Here is the recipe along with my tips at the end:

Easy Pizza Dough

Ingredients

• 3 1/2 cups unbleached, all-purpose flour
• 2 packages dry active yeast
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon sugar
• 1 1/2 cups lukewarm water from the tap
• 1/2 teaspoon olive oil
• Flour, for the work surface
• Cornmeal, to dust

Directions

In a mixing bowl fitted with a dough hook, place flour, yeast, salt and sugar. While mixer is running, gradually add water and knead on low speed until dough is firm and smooth, about 10 minutes.

Turn machine off. Pour oil down inside of bowl. Turn on low once more for 15 seconds to coat inside of bowl and all surfaces of dough with the oil. Cover bowl with plastic wrap. Let dough rise in warm spot until doubled in bulk, about 2 hours.

Preheat oven to 500 degrees F.

If using a pizza stone, place stone in oven on bottom rack, preheat oven 1 hour ahead. Punch dough down, cut in half. Place half of the dough on generously floured work surface. By hand, form dough loosely into a ball and stretch into a circle. Using a floured rolling pin, roll dough into large circle until very thin. Don’t worry if your circle isn’t perfect and if you get a hole just pinch the edges back together.

To prevent dough from sticking to counter, turn over the dough and sprinkle with flour. Also, flour the counter top and rolling pin as needed. Sprinkle pizza peel or cookie sheet generously with cornmeal. Transfer dough to pizza peel or cookie sheet with no lip. Add toppings. Slide dough onto pizza stone or place cookie sheet with pizza on bottom rack.

Bake 10 to 12 minutes or until golden. Roll out remaining dough and top with desired toppings or freeze in freezer bags.

 

My tips:

1) I use a Kitchenaid stand mixer with the dough hook and let the dough knead for a full 10 minutes

2)  I typically use bread flour, but AP flour also yields a nice crust

3) I use a rectangle perforated aluminum pizza pan

4) I bake my pizzas for about 15 minutes because I don’t stretch the crust super thin

5) I make 4 personal pizzas with a batch of dough

6) I like to use Classico Traditional Pizza Sauce and Galbani Whole Milk Low Moisture Shredded Mozzarella

7) I use a bench scraper to cut the dough into desired portions and roll each into a ball.  I let the dough rest on the counter for 5 to 10 minutes- I used to skip this step, but it does allow the dough to be worked more easily

 

Now it’s your turn to make your own pizza!   Give it a try and let me know how it goes!

Simple vanilla glaze

I whipped this glaze up to go over the top of the cherry coffee cake that I made for our Fourth of July celebration.

Here is the super simple recipe:

In a 2 cup pyrex measuring cup (the kind with a handle) throw in 2 tablespoons of butter, microwave until melted (our microwave has a turbo defrost button, so I set that for about 20 seconds).

Remove pyrex from micro- to the melted butter add 1 1/2 cups powdered sugar, 1 tablespoon half and half, 1 tsp vanilla exract- mix with a small whisk.  Add more sugar or half and half based on whether your glaze is too thick or thin.  Done!  Tastes great poured over coffee cake, cinnamon rolls or just licked off of spoon:)

Another blanket update

I’m continuing to work on mom’s blanket. She has recently switched to a new chemo drug and has treatments weekly now. Side effects are always an issue, but we have to keep our eyes on the end result and pray for Mom to get through it so she can feel like herself again!

I still haven’t got to visit Mom and Dad, but as I work on her blanket I think about them and pray for them. Blossom joined me on a recent evening as I was crocheting. I keep teasing Mom that I’ll have to wash her blanket multiple times before I give it to her because of the cat fuzz! She just laughs.

It looks like I have about 30 more rows to go before the edge-work can be done. This rainy weekend coming up sounds like the perfect time to finish.

Blanket update

I’ve been working on Mom’s blanket and it’s looking good! I ordered some more yarn colors from Red Heart and am waiting for them to arrive. The colors I’m waiting on are coral, flamingo, honeydew, lemon, light raspberry and denim. I’m going for a very cheerful and bright outcome. Here are a couple of pictures to show the progress:

I Feel Another Blanket Coming On…

Remember The Blanket?

Well, I just started another one.  This will be a lap-sized version of the original ugly blanket.  I’m making it for my mom who was recently diagnosed with breast cancer.  I asked her what colors she would like and she said any and every so we’ll see what I come up with.  All I know is that I started the first row and I used white yarn.

Mom had her first chemo treatment on Monday and she said it went well.  She has five  months of treatment that will happen every two weeks.  Since mom and dad don’t live down the street from us any more, I get updates from her by texting, email and phone calls.  It’s hard to be far away and not be able to physically check in on them to see how they are doing.  We will go visit them, but I am trying to figure out the best times to go see them when we can be the most helpful.

In the meantime, making a blanket provides crochet therapy for me and my infamous nervous energy.  I can pour love and prayers into it as I work my way through each row, and then when it’s complete,  it can provide Mom with warmth and comfort in any and every color.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The (anti) Procrastination Experiment Part 2

Research has been done and data has been collected in hopes that I can help myself not be such a procrastinator.  In keeping with the idea that knowing how long something will take would help motivate me to get more done instead of putting things off, Sophie and I timed some household chores.  Here is what we came up with:

Unloading the dishwasher, loading it and hand washing dishes that can’t be put in the dishwasher- 5 minutes

Sweeping ( my least favorite job ever!) the kitchen, sun room, living room, hall and bathroom – 10 minutes

Wet Swiffering the kitchen and bathroom- 2 minutes

Vacuuming the living room, bedrooms and rug runners- 5 1/2 minutes

All times include Sophie moving things out of the way (like small furniture, benches, pet food dishes)

I basically can tidy the main floor of our house in 22 1/2 minutes with help.  That is motivating to me, so I think this is going to work.  I may even dread sweeping a little less.

 

The (anti) Procrastination Experiment Part 1

I remember racing the timer to get things done when I was a kid.  It did help keep me motivated and not dawdle.  As I’ve gotten older, I have come to the realization that knowing roughly how long something is going to take to get done is more motivating than racing the clock.  What I mean is that I often put off doing something because I think, “that will take too long” or “I don’t have time for that”.

I am going to conduct an experiment to help wage war against my life long battle with procrastination; I am going to time some of the things I do weekly that I consider to be “chores” or things that I tend to avoid.  I am going to start by timing how long it takes to sweep the upstairs of my house.  I hate to sweep.  I don’t know why.  I just hate it.  I feel like I’m just chasing dust and never catching it all.

Once I make my list I will sort it from shortest activity to longest, and then theoretically I will be able to get things done based on how much time I have, or how much time I want to spend.  I’ll check in once I’ve timed some things and made my list- here goes nothin’!