London here we come

Our flight is tomorrow at 4.55pm... We land in London 11am Tuesday November 2nd. The following blogs will be from London or en route to.. Enjoy

Master Chef

I am currently following some recipes that are 500 calorie or less and simple. These recipes are so easy and simple to make this one takes 20mins and is tasty, filling and good for you. We had this one for dinner tonight and it came out just like the picture, I was so excited. I added chili flakes to give it some kick as I like hot.
You have to try this.
With the Broth you have to play with the taste that suits you.. its easy to adapt this recipe have fun.

Japanese Chicken-Scallion Rice Bowl

Ingredients
Instant brown rice
2 cans of reduced-sodium chicken broth
1 tablespoons sugar
2 tablespoons soy sauce
2 tablespoons teriyaki sauce
1 tablespoon mirin, (see Ingredient note)
3 large egg whites
2 large egg
8 ounces boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
6 scallions/spring onions, trimmed and thinly sliced


Preparation
Prepare instant brown rice according to package directions.
Pour broth into a heavy medium saucepan, along with sugar, soy sauce and mirin. Bring to a boil; reduce heat to medium-low.
Stir egg whites and whole egg in a small bowl until just mixed. Add chicken to the simmering broth. Gently pour in the egg mixture, without stirring. Sprinkle scallions on top. When the egg starts to firm up, after about 3 minutes, stir it with chopsticks or a knife. (The chicken will be cooked by now.) Divide the rice among 4 deep soup bowls and top with the chicken mixture.


Ingredient Note: Mirin is a low-alcohol rice wine essential to Japanese cooking. Look for it in your supermarket with the Asian or gourmet ingredients. An equal portion of sherry or white wine with a pinch of sugar may be substituted for mirin.

LONDON CALANDER

This is a preliminary schedule of our time in London.. Please let me know if you would like to add or if corrections need to be made. Thanks

Mon	Tue	Wed	Thu	Fri	Sat	Sunday
1	2Staying at Anitas ARRIVE IN UK MEETING pub	3	4	5 Ministry Tottenham LUNCH HAZEL	6 Ministry WoodGreen Dinner Liz & Vinny	7 Ministry Yiannitsarou's all day MEETING
8 BETHEL LUNCH WITH STEVE AND AMANDA Tiffy arrive	9 BETHEL MEETING	10 BETHEL	11Staying at Sandras	12	13 Art gallery day	14 4pm jenny & Athos MEETING
15	16	17 Tiffy leave	18	19 Hotel in Leighton Buzzard with Char	20 Hotel in Leighton Buzzard with Char	21 With char then home to Wood Green Need a place to stay this night
22 LEAVE FOR USA	23	24	25	26	27	28
29	30

Im hurting

Well I pushed myself! I went on the run this morning. I did a little stretching and although my calf felt better I was still wondering how it would fair this morning. A big part of me did not want to go this morning but I always put that down to my inherent lazy nature, or procrastination which I'm so skilled at.

I got dressed, picked up newt and met Claudia, we had a friend Join us and hopefuly will continue to join us, Lisa our newest recruit who annoyingly handled the run with ease lol. So we start to run and the first 3 minutes were fine, I breathed well and didnt feel too bad, the second 3 minutes where a little harder but I managed and then the third 3 minutes my wall, I was dying, I had gotten to that point were I pushing myself so hard, I could see I needed to go just a little further my body was screaming out stop I cant please stop, then it happened, I cried out in pain, something in my left calf muscle snapped like someone letting go of a rubber band. I heard the snap and the pain seared through my calf.. I was so mad.. I told the others to keep going, while I rubbed my leg and hope this would just go away.. I hated not running with them, as they passed me on their final leg. Something inside me told me to not do this, to rest but thinking I was being lazy I ignored it.

I'm worried now I have done some thing that could take weeks to heal, I've been reading articles about calf muscle tears and if that's the case if there is any tear even a tiny one I'm out of the game for up to 3 weeks.. all the work I have done!!! To have to stop running for that long is terrible blow. Ill have to start all over maybe.
I'm going to speak to the personal trainer at work today and get his opinion. Hopefully it just seized and needs a couple of days with some gentle stretching and ill be back running.

I felt overwhelmed with all the things I had to do today. One by one they all cleared themselves. My early morning people canceled, and then my leg went and I cleared the rest of the morning. I'm going to work and I'll be giving my talk tonight but otherwise I'm resting my leg.

Another pearl of Wisdom . Always stretch and rest on rest day

I might just write a book called mistakes newbies make while running.. and fill it with mine. Like an idiots guide to running.

Places I wanna eat at when I go to London

I'm making a list in case I forget. I have missed the food of London so much

Turkish

Jennys

Nandos

Toby Carvery

Yum Yums ( West Indian)

Indian @ Paramount in wood green

Yasar Halim (Green lanes)

Cafe English Breakfast

Pie and Mash in Walthamstow

Pasty from Dunns in Crouch End

Crepes from Muswell Hill

will update as more come to mind

New week new running time

Through most of my sleep last night all I could think about was running that extra minute today. After my failure on Saturday I was really anxious. I got up and donned my running gear, Claudia was waiting for me at the trail. We set the clock for 3 minutes and started to run.. It wasnt easy but I did it and I did it 4 times that morning. it wasn't until we had finished our run that I was made aware that we had actually cut our walking time = recovery time. It was hard, I was breathing hard and during at least one of the runs I was screaming in my head, when are we going to stop I need to stop ahhhhhhhh!

But I did it, by George I did it! High Five people!

I have a dilemma, my schedule says that we have rest days. Should I take the rest day or should I push myself. Personally I want to follow the schedule and rest but Claudia wants to run and I agreed. We have been running every day so far so maybe we should keep going. I know my diet is not a streamlined as it should be so the extra running will help. Then on the other hand I was so tired today because of my run, my calf cramped up and its still a little tender. I need to get on and do some serious stretching.

Pros to running every day

Will build faster and better endurance
weight loss faster
body adapt faster
sense of personal achievement
motivation to eat better

Cons

Could injure self because of pushing (ankles are week, knees play up, cramping calf)
could exhaust self during day and it effects my work and ministry and household duties
could start disliking if i push to hard and stop all together.



What to do? Part of me knows I should push myself and the lazy me says take the rest days. I dont know who to listen to. HELP

My Training Schedule

Running Training

Week1
Monday - run2 minutes walk4 minutes x4
Tuesday - off
Wednesday - run2 minutes walk4 minutes x4
Thursday - off
Friday - run2 minutes walk4 minutes x4
Saturday - run2 minutes walk4 minutes x4
Sunday -off


Week2
Monday - run3 minutes walk3 minutes x4
Tuesday - off
Wednesday - run3 minutes walk3 minutes x4
Thursday - off
Friday - run3 minutes walk3 minutes x4
Saturday - run3 minutes walk3 minutes x4
Sunday

Week3
Monday - run5 minutes walk2.5 minutes x3
Tuesday - off
Wednesday - run5 minutes walk2.5 minutes x3
Thursday - off
Friday - run5 minutes walk2.5 minutes x3
Saturday - run5 minutes walk2.5 minutes x3
Sunday - off

Week4
Monday - run7 minutes walk3 minutes x2
Tuesday - off
Wednesday - run7 minutes walk3 minutes x2
Thursday - off
Friday - run7 minutes walk3 minutes x2
Saturday - run7 minutes walk3 minutes x2
Sunday - off

Week5
Monday - run8 minutes walk2 minutes x2
Tuesday - off
Wednesday - run8 minutes walk2 minutes x2
Thursday - off
Friday - run8 minutes walk2 minutes x2
Saturday - run8 minutes walk2 minutes x2
Sunday - off


Week6
Monday - run9 minutes walk2 minutes x1 run 8 minutes
Tuesday - off
Wednesday - run9 minutes walk2 minutes x1 run 8 minutes
Thursday - off
Friday - run9 minutes walk2 minutes x1 run 8 minutes
Saturday - run9 minutes walk2 minutes x1 run 8 minutes
Sunday - off

Week7
Monday - run9 minutes walk1 minutes x2
Tuesday - off
Wednesday - run9 minutes walk1 minutes x2
Thursday - off
Friday - run9 minutes walk1 minutes x2
Saturday - run9 minutes walk1 minutes x2
Sunday - off


Week8
Monday - run13 minutes walk2 minutes x1
Tuesday - off
Wednesday - run13 minutes walk2 minutes x1
Thursday - off
Friday - run13 minutes walk2 minutes x1
Saturday - run13 minutes walk2 minutes x1
Sunday - off

Week9
Monday - run11 minutes walk1 minutes x1
Tuesday - off
Wednesday - run14 minutes walk1 minutes x1
Thursday - off
Friday - run14 minutes walk1 minutes x1
Saturday - run14 minutes walk1 minutes x1
Sunday - off



Week10
Monday - run 30 minutes
Tuesday - off
Wednesday - run 30 minutes
Thursday - off
Friday - run 30 minutes
Saturday - run 30 minutes
Sunday - off

Triupmhs and Errors - Learn from my mistakes

Today, Saturday we didn't do our scheduled run. I admit when I got the text that Claudia couldn't make our morning run I was relived. There was no pretense of the idea that I would go run on my own at 6.30am. So I would get to lay in, awesome. I loved every minute that I got to lay in, I did forget to turn my alarm off so at 6am it summoned me, with glee I picked it up pressed dismiss and turned over with a smile on my face.

By 5pm though I was feeling ugh! I had eaten a jacket potato with left over bolognaise and some chocolate squares. I had been sitting in front of my computer and taken a nap today. I was feeling like a couch potato. The urge to run pulsed within me. I needed to get out and do something. I felt heavy and was starting to feel my mood darkening. But I was on my own.. could I do this. I got up and lay on my bed thinking about running,pictured my self running, the more I wanted to go out and run.. I asked my husband if he would like to walk the dogs while I ran, but he had a tough day and didn't feel like joining me. Annoyed I channeled my emotions got dressed and drove to the trail.


One of the things I like about early morning running is that no one is around apart from other runners or walkers, and we cheerily nod and say good morning and carry on. Today kids were hanging out playing loud music from their cars, or sitting on the embankment of the stream the runs along the trail. It was a busy Saturday afternoon. However the trail itself wasnt overly busy. I also know that on my own I do not push myself. But I prayed for the strength to do this and set my stop watch for my first 2 mins.

No sooner had I run for a few seconds then I knew this was going to be harder then I first thought. No less then 2 hours ago I had ingested a rather ample portion of potato and yummy bolognaise. This had not fully digested and felt like lead in my stomach. I lasted 1min13sec before I stopped and looked at the stop watch arghhh I was annoyed but I was out of breath and this was not comfortable at all.. OK I thought keep going walk to the end of the trail and lets try again. Did I mention that's its rather a warm day today too. Oh and I have just started my period hence the consumption of chocolate. I made it to my marker and started running again, this time I made 1min27sec before I stopped. Now another issue had arisen all this movement had started a movement of its own, I needed the restroom.

One more time I thought I have to try this one more time before I head back. Plus I cant go home this soon what would my husband think..Some kind of runner you are, so pride pushing me and pure stubbornness I turned round and started to run again.. this time I only lasted 45 sec. I was now in physical pain I needed to go to the restroom and NOW. I turned round and started running again this time out of pure necessity, my bowls were about to explode in public this was not something I was prepared for. I leaped into my truck and drove home at a speed only rally cars drive at. I carefully got out the car and sped walked into the house and into my private bathroom.. ahhhhhhh ..


Well at least I know longer feel full of food I managed to move it all around and get rid of some!

I would like to pass on a pearl of wisdom here to those who for some reason hadn't figured this out, Do Not Run After Eating Large Amounts of Food! This can lead to personal and public humiliation. Plus you just cant run when you have food inside you. = My Error

On the plus side, I wanted to run, I actually went on my own and attempted to run and did run. I didn't successfully complete my schedule but I'm going to put that down to the mistake of running after eating and not down to my personal lack of motivation when on my own. Not this time anyway.


Im going to jump into the shower and reward myself with a cold glass of water..

On a personal note, even though I didnt reach my running schedule today, just going out and doing what I did has changed my mood, made my body feel good and generally given me a sense of personal accomplishment that you can beat. Small steps they may be but at least I'm moving forward and it feels great.

Running in London!

So I have a predicament. Half way through our training I am going on a 3 week vacation to London, England. I want to be able to carry on my training. I really do. But my issues are London is a dangerous city. Ive lived there and running on my own isn’t wise. Plus its going to be winter in the UK very cold and wet. Im used to Californian winters which can get cold but its never for long. On a side note it was raining the other morning when we were running, not heavily but it was a little shower and we still ran.. HARDCORE lol…. I was proud of myself, I was proud of us.

I couldn’t do this without the support of my friend Claudia. She is awesome. She is a naturally active person, she does mountain biking, the gym and has her own Harley. We have played tennis in the summer and now we are running together. I wouldn’t do this alone. For some reason I just don’t have the motivation when im alone. Claudia is in her mid 40s and is a picture of health. Both her and her husband take exceptional care of themselves and are a great examples of what we should be doing. They make wise choices about what they eat, exercise regularly, are both regular pioneers and super fun to be around. Im very grateful to have them as friends and the support of my friend Claudia.

Back to talking about London. So im heading back home for 3 weeks. I want to continue my program so that I don’t get off track and all that I’m doing now is not in vain. I could advertise for a running partner while im in London it has to be a local person, its an option at least. I could ask around my friends and see If anyone willing to run with me.

Running For Pleasure? Pah!

Tomorrow is the end of the my first week of my running training program. It is getting easier, not oh this is a breeze easier but my body is accepting that this is what I want to do and its getting used to it. My body is still fighting me a little and im still hitting that wall on every time on the 3rd run but I get through it and my last run is almost fun.

This morning the run was over before it had even started. I wake up in the morning at 6am and groan inside at the thought of running, but I want this and I have friend relying on me so I get up and get dressed. At the moment im not eating anything before I go for a run, I drink a glass of water and try and use the bathroom. If I do not use the restroom my run is almost always interrupted by the need to poop.. So some advice! go before you leave the house!

I have to do a little research as to what if anything I should eat. drink or take before a run. I have been thinking about an energy drink that a personal trainer recommends but I have to do some more research about it. So for now I head out and meet my friend at a car park next to a local trail.

I am a morning person, so getting up in the mornings suits me and gives me a great start to the day, in the mornings I have more energy and If I have the time I can get so much done. I am finding that during the day I get tired. I need to power nap or take a time out before hubby comes home. By the evening im exhausted. This may be because of a change in my physical activity and also not taking in enough food or nutrient rich foods in the day. I am in the process of getting menus together for us. I will post the menus and were I got them from when I get them together.

For now I just keep going!

Marathon Training

Its always been a goal of mine to run the London marathon.. Pah you might say! If you know me then you will scoff once again. At school I did everything I could to avoid running, first of all it took alot of effort and I didnt like the taste of iron I got in my mouth after once around the track. Second I developed way early and had big boobs at school. Back then no one one thought of getting me a sports bra and the boys thoroughly enjoyed watching me run. So I stopped. Regrets? Yes that was mine. I was awkward teenager and felt ridiculed not complemented by the attention I got. So I learn t to hide it and avoid track. I played team sports, Netball, Hockey and Soccer.

Today I'm far more in love with my body, It could be in better shape but I like my basic form.

So yes Im in training. I have been running with a friend most mornings for the past 2 months. We meet at 6.30 am and walk/run for about 1/2hour. I love it, I really do. I love getting up early. I love how I feel afterward s and I love feeling my body adapting and pushing my physical boundaries.

This is the first week of running training. Previously my friend and I had been running / walking for fun and exercise but we never really monitored ourselves to see if were making any progress. We would see a stop sign and say lets run to that, then the next day we would go a bit further or faster. Most of the time we chatted and ran at our leisure.

Recently I had the chance to spend several blissful hours in boarders a rare treat with my busy schedule. I gathered a impressive stack of books ranging from marathon training, stretching to the journal of a reluctant runner. Actually I was first to run by a novel I read about cycling, a middle aged man parents had died in a car accident. He broke down one night after a drinking binge, got on his bicycle and just started riding and kept going. He ended up traveling across the states and one day he noticed his reflection. He was no longer this pudgy over weight man he was trim, could see his defined calf muscles and no longer had a belly. The book is about his encounters and his state of mind as he rides, there is a sub plot and he is looking for his sister who would disappear when he was younger as she was schizophrenic, so we are taken back in time as we learn about his family, his past and his regrets. it’s a very inspiring book.

But back to Boarders., amid the stories of chaffing and hitting the wall, were great reminders that this is the best thing I could be doing, Personal accomplishments and uplifting experiences. I also found my schedule that I am now following. I saw it and thought hey! I can do this..and in 10 weeks wow… The first week. Run for 2 mins and walk for 4 mins, repeat 4 times, by week 10 your running for a full 30 mins. Run for 2 mins anyone can do that right!

Wow running for 2 mins on the first day was hard, how am I going to run for 30mins I thought.. Arghhhh! Thankfully after the first 4 minute walk I was rested enough to attempt the next 2 mins, but I needed every second of those 4 minutes. The second 2 mins was a little better and I recovered faster within the 4 mins of walking. The third 2 mins of running were the hardest, my body felt like lead, it was a struggle to lift my legs of the tarmac, my head was literally screaming out NO I CANT GO ON! But in my world the word cant is banned so I screamed back YES YOU CAN THIS IS EASY, and I did, I did it.. The 2 min signal was such a relief, I was breathing so heavily I couldn’t talk but my body got its self together and settled by the end of the walking. The last 2 mins was had arrived.. I started up eyeballing the trail up ahead of me looking for a land mark that would possibly be the target for when we would get to stop. As I ran it got easier.. So much so that when the 2 minutes were called, I said “is that it?”, I could have kept running and running. Hitting that wall and pushing through seems to be the place were it all just comes together. For some reason I hit that wall every third run and every time I feel like im going to die but that last run where it all feels so good makes up for it. So does standing on the scales every morning and watching the pounds melt away..

The Brien Family

New Baby in the Family

Hello welcome we have a new addition to the Dinsdale/Brien Family. My sister in law Myra has just given birth to a healthy baby boy.

WELCOME TO THE WORLD ELLIOT ( I love his name)

The Excitment started Monday morning for Myra. At around 6am her water broke and she was advised to rest and get some sleep as discomfort meant she wasnt getting the sleep she needed. At noon we all recieved the txt that Myras water had broke. I was waiting outside Aarons work patiently to pick him up for lunch, having left my cell phone at home I had no idea of the news. Aaron comes rushing to the car. "We need to head down to Davis Myras water broke this morning" he stammers. "Where is she I ask?" ( I have 5 sister 2 that have 3 kids each so I know a little about having babys and the time it takes) Aaron called mum and was told that Myra was home resting. " but it could come any minute" he pleaded with me his face creased with concern. Aaron could not be soothed so although I had an idea Elliot wouldn't be making an appearance for while yet we headed down the hill.

Let me explain why Aaron was so concerned to be there on time. Aaron was due to cut the cord. It meant a big deal to him so he wanted to be there when the birth was happening. Personally I like to visit once mum and baby are rested and clean.

We decided we wouldn't rush until we heard that Myra was on her way to the hospital. So we headed to Boarders. We spent about 4 hours reading and drinking coffee till hunger set in and we went in search of food. We ate at Pita Pita and then headed into Davis. Once in Davis we decided to hit up an old childhood friend of Aarons. He had moved and so we spent about an hour knocking on prospective doors and apologizing for disturbing family's late in the evening, it was about 8pm by now. We finally we found Byron through a friend of Aarons living in Portland ! It was a wonderful reunion. You could see the love as two old buddies embraced and the next few hours were filled with laughter and lots of "do you remember when"? I fell in love with his family they are super sweet and totally cool. We left around 10pm with plans to meet up in a few weeks.

By now we where tired, we had no where to stay if Elliot didnt come soon we would be sleeping in the truck, Byron has offered us a bed if needed so there was always that. We decided to head in to down town Davis and go see Aarons brother Owen who works at a bar, I was worried about smelling like a brewery when we first met Elliot, but as timing would go as soon as we got to the pub and said hello we got a call say Myra was on route to the hospital. Yeeeehar!

We where the first to get there and as we entered we could hear Myra throwing up.. poor thing. We opted to wait in the lobby and let Jeff handle Myra, he was a sea of serenity, Well at that point. I heard later he had gotten upset at seeing Myra in so much pain.
Mum, Dad and finally GM turned up, we all settled ourselves in. Me with my laptop ( love wifi) and everyone else with magazines. The first to fall asleep was...... go on have a guess...... yes it was adorable hubby Aaron, then Mum, Dad, and eventually GM took a very short snooze. I cannot for the life of me relax enough to sleep in public. Wendy woke periodically, jumping at Aarons more violent snores. She would jump awake, glare at him and promptly go back to sleep.

We received frequent reports from Jeff and Myras Dula Linda. At 2am Myra had started to push and at 2.30 am Tuesday 5th October Elliot Addison Brien was born weighing a healthy 8.5lbs and 20in long.

Myra had a natural birth, she never once used drugs or pain killers. She used a birthing pool to help with contractions and Elliot was actually born in the pool. She was told if she reached down she could feel his head, which she did and was amazed. As Elliot was born the nurse behind her guided him out and pushed him forward so that Myra could bend down and pick him up out of the water, where he then took his first breath and exercised his lungs with his first cry. He has a loud and strong cry.

We came in 10 mins later so Aaron could cut the cord. Elliot was laying on his mothers chest, the nurses were still busying themselves with clean up and checks, We saw them put him in the scales and do all the checks, his spine, his head etc. Then it was mummy and babys first skin on skin. It was amazing to see, Elliot calmed down as soon as he was on mummy. Elliot likes to have his hands by his face and will always try to get a hand free to do this. He scratched his face a little he loves having his hand on his face too. Elliot has black hair and is very handsome. He has Dinsdale cheeks and a Brien nose.

We left shortly after so Myra could pass her placenta and clean up. We came back in 15 mins later cooed for a bit and made our way home. Aaron was on cloud nine, he got to cut the cord and is completely in love with his Nephew. We returned the next day to visit and found dad very protective and hogging his new son it was very sweet. New mum Myra is doing well, in my opinion Myra is awesome and my new hero, they are the sweetest little family. Before we left she chipped in that now Elliot needed a playmate and we where to hurry up and make that happen.. All I can say on the matter is........WATCH THIS SPACE lol

Baby Elliot half an hour old first skin on skin with Mummy