Treadmill Girl

Happy Monday! I can actually say that this morning because it is only like, 940am, and I have gotten sooo much accomplished already! Thanks to my hubby's early morning alarm, I got up with him at [ahem] 545...yeah well that's why I have so much done already, I've been up since the butt-crack of dawn. Got up, made coffee, unloaded the dishwasher, and sat down to drink my coffee and it was only 615. I thought, I should get up and go exercise now and I will be all done before I have to take kids to school...yes! Early morning exercise is my favorite thing! I LOVE to get up and get it out of the way early. I have been known to get up at 430 in order to get a workout in before we have to leave early for something or another. That doesn't happen very often, but when it does, I feel SO good when I get it done. Accomplished.

So this morning I ran hills for 7 miles. Took about 66 minutes. Another thing you should know about me is that I'm a treadmill girl. I would love to be able to run outside more often, but there a several factors that stand in my way: 1) 3 children who aren't old enough to stay at home by themselves, 2) a hubby with a crazy schedule that includes some early mornings/late nights, 3) the scardy-cat in me (strangers, wildlife, dogs, etc.). That pretty much sums it up. The only extended non-treadmill time I've had was 2 years ago when I was training for the Kansas City 1/2 Marathon. Didn't touch a treadmill for about 2 1/2 months. It was a record. But the scheduling it took to get it done was enough to make me say that I wouldn't do it again until my children got older! So it's just me, my iPod, my treadmill, and whichever children decide to pop in to say "hey" to mom while I'm running in my home office for 30-40 miles per week. I must say that I am also addicted to the "entertainment factor" that is available with the treadmill. Besides my iPod, I also listen to Gayle King on Oprah's XM channel (she's on from 7-8am, and 1-2pm here), and I will also watch Desperate Housewives on abc.com or just put in one of my Girls Next Door DVDs (I have the collection...love it!!). I've heard many runners say that they love the peaceful, serene calmness of running in solitude; when all you hear are your feet hitting the pavement and nature all around you. To feel as one with the world. Well, personally, when all I hear is my feet hitting the pavement all I can think about is, "How much longer? Ugh. Am I almost done?? Ugh." I NEED distraction. Every once in a great while, when I do go to the park in our area to run (probably no more than once a month or so), I will turn on the Praise and Worship on my iPod and feel very close to God...but not to nature..ha!

Well after my run, I took my middle son to school with princess still in her jammies, (oldest son was taken to basketball practice by his dad, thank goodness!), came home and reheated my cup of coffee that I hadn't gotten to drink, and headed for the shower. Then was breakfast! Yay! Food!! I love food! I was thinking last night while I was trying to go to sleep what I was going to have for breakfast! I'm weird that way! So I decided on:

Oatmeal and Egg White Pancake

and

1/2 cup Mixed Berries w/

a single-serve size of Light & Fit Vanilla 0% Plus Yogurt.

I found the pancake recipe on another blog...not sure who's it was...oops! But it is so EASY! And I love easy and quick when it comes to breakfast. It also has a good amount of protein so that's another plus.

Oatmeal and Egg White Pancake

1 packet Kashi Creamy Vanilla Oatmeal

2 beaten egg whites

1 tsp. baking powder

1 tsp. ground cinnamon

Beat the egg whites and add other ingredients. Pour onto hot griddle and let cook approx. 4 minutes on the first side, and 2 or so minutes on the second side. Even good if it gets a little crispy! You can do a variety of toppings, I like mashed banana on top, maybe some almond butter, or even lite pancake syrup. Many times I just eat it plain!

So now I'm fueled up and ready to start another day. I should go take a quick peek at my kids rooms, but I'm slightly afraid to! I haven't been upstairs in a while...that's never a good sign. I'm sure their floors are covered in dirty clothes (even though there is a laundry chute right outside their doors) and their bathrooms probably need a good cleaning, especially the boys! :-S I do need to get it done, though. We have orthodontist and doctors checkups this afternoon after school. I hope you have a good start to your Monday!