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Pursuit of Happiness on Taco (Salad) Tuesday

Pursuit of Happiness
I must say that you all are the most fantastic readers and friends a girl could hope for. As most of you can probably tell, I realize that I am too hard on myself and the post was definitely a way to just try to sort through feelings/thoughts/emotions and to show you all that I am honest. I try not to sugar-coat things and pretend that I'm just a happy little lark 24/7. Not all workouts are great; I have days when I don't want to do anything at all; I have days when my eats are less than stellar; I also have issues with accepting myself for me - those flaws that make me so unique from any other person.

I think (from your comments and other blogs I read) this is notion of perfection is something so many of us struggle with. We feel we must be perfect somehow, no flaws, no missteps, just perfection all the time. That's impossible. We (especially me) need to learn that our flaws, those moles, crooked noses, even pesky little wrinkles make us who we are - totally unique. Is beauty really looking like So-and-so model, just like a clone or is beauty that quirky hair line, that subtle dimple, that mole or freckle? So instead of seeking perfection, maybe we need to be seeking happiness.

I want to be a positive person. I want to find joy in the little things, and this will be a work in progress I know. So, bare with me on those down days. I do think it's important to admit them though and not put on a facade - because I really could just pretend.

Another Wishy Washy Workout Day
So, with that being said, this morning I had my alarm set thinking I might get up and do something. I wasn't sure if it'd be biceps or a step workout. Well, 4:30 rolled around and I rolled over and reset the alarm and was out cold. I knew I could at least get biceps done at lunch, so I wasn't really worried about scheduling and missing a workout. It was really the cardio that I was more worried about. Nothing sounded "fun." My legs are still a bit tight. But as it got closer to lunch, Jason decided he wanted to run at lunch, so I decided to join him and put off weights until after work. See, I can be flexible ;-)

We got in decent 3.5 mile run despite the air being wet enough to swim in. When we first set out, I didn't know how far I was going to make it, but my legs really loosened up and I got into a pretty good groove until the second lap when we had to stop for a car. That was probably about 2 miles in and for some reason I just couldn't seem to get that same smooth groove back. But I finished strong and got it done. I will admit that I felt totally zapped the rest of the day though - as if I'd run 10 miles not only 3.5. I guess it was the humidity?

I did manage to get biceps, triceps and abs done after work. I just walked in and went straight to it rather than think about it. I did supersets of 3x8 unless noted.

SS#1
Alternating bicep curles
Overhead triceps extension (feeling like I may need to increase this weight finally)

SS#2
Cross-body curls
Double-arm kickbacks

SS#3
Incline curls
Lying dumbbell triceps extensions

SS#4
Zottman curls - 2x8
Weighted dips - 2x10

I did abs from an oldie but goody - Cathe Friedrich's Power Hour. I don't know why, but I have always loved the abs work on that one.

Taco Tuesday
I ended up making Red Bean & Seitan Taco Salad Bowls for dinner tonight in attempt to try to use up as much of the crumbly seitan as possible. I sauteed red onion, red, green, and yellow bell peppers, fresh jalapenos with the seitan and red beans and seasoned with salt, pepper, red pepper, chili powder, garlic powder, paprika, and cumin.

For the taco bowl, I simply sprayed a small, round casserole dish with non-stick spray and inserted a whole-wheat flour tortilla shell inside and baked until crispy. I filled with lettuce, topped with the seitan mixture, fresh tomatoes, and Daiya Vegan Cheddar Cheese (and pickled jalapenos as I'm a spicy kinda girl).

New Commenting Tool
I have had a couple of people let me know that they've had trouble either seen the comment section or commenting and getting a reply. I should have done a bit of testing. I thought that if I replied you should receive a notice of that reply. Let me know how it's working for you if you don't mind. I want to make commenting easier for everyone.

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