Setting goals and running motivations

I can't believe it's almost May now ! Very soon we will all be buying Christmas presents and celebrating New Years. How very fast has time passed. Which also reminds me that I should start planning the races I want to do this year. Which also means I should put a running plan with goals together to keep me motivated. I have to confess that I did not go for my Sunday long run just because I didn't feel like it. Shame. It was not a good feeling although I didn't feel too guilty. I was just restless and bothered the whole day and it kinda spoilt my Sunday. Note to self: don't skip another Sunday long run unless I have a very good reason like being knighted by The Queen.

Which is highly unlikely.

This photo will keep me motivated although I believe you don't get a strong back like her by running alone. I will be less wimpy when I do my pull downs in the gym next and whinge less when back hurts after weight training.

Image source: Lululemon Britomart Auckland

I have signed up for adidas Auckland Half Marathon in October and also considering doing North Shore Half Marathon and  the Taupo Half Marathon in August. There were a few 10km races around town but the routes are really boring and if I have to pay to run laps in a park, I can do it myself for free. My goal this year is to finish a half marathon in less than 2:10. I guess I may be able to achieve this but I just need to be smarter and more focused with my training.

One of the running plan I am considering now is from Run Less Run Faster aka FIRST training . The plan focuses on three quality running  per week and relatively low mileage compared to many other training plans and by doing so, reduces the risk of over-training and injuries. On top of the three running sessions, you will need to complement the training with two cross-training sessions which will increase your fitness but not be too stressful on your legs. Sounds very good to me.

I might try this plan out because it looks achievable and not too complicated to follow plus I have read some forums on Runners World where some people claimed that they shaved off 15-20 minutes off the last PR.Last year I bought Jack Daniels' Running Formula and it was just too technical and complicated to follow. I may use it one day when I am more advanced.

Until I get my running sorted, I will indulge with some treats from little&friday. They definitely have the best cakes in town. My orange rosewater cake and bread & butter pudding. This also reminds me why I do not have the same back of the woman in the photo above. Sigh.

When is your next race?

What is your goal?

What training plans are you using for your next race?

Have you eaten something that you shouldn't over the weekend?

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20 Minutes Quickie :Chilli Chicken with Vege recipe

One of my favourite dishes to order in a Chinese restaurant is Chilli Chicken. I love this dish and would eat this anytime. At the same time, this dish can be easily recreated at home with just a few ingredients: chicken meat, celery, carrots, garlic, spanish onions, dried, soy sauce,oyster sauce and my favourite Malaysian thick caramel sauce.

1. I use one whole celery but you can use half or whatever quantity you prefer.I just need to clear out my fridge and the celery is hogging too much space.

2. Chop up the chicken meat and marinate with salt, pepper and soy sauce. I don't use chinese Shaoxing wine like most magazines would suggest when I cook chicken. The chillis and thick caramel sauce will give it a rich flavour. Heat the oil and fry your vegetables first for 1-2 minutes on high flame and add in diced chicken meat. Add in some dried chillies and check that the meat changes color.

3. You can use green onions for this dish if you don't have any Spanish/ Red onions but I prefer them because it's sweeter and the colours are beautiful to the mix. I have added some chilli flakes. Add in salt and pepper to your liking and add in 1-2 tablespoons of thick caramel sauce. The sugar content in the sauce will get burnt if you add it in too early. Add 1/3 cup of water and let it simmer for a minute and it should be ready.

This is my favourite brand of Thick Caramel Sauce. I prefer the ones made Malaysia as the other brands from Hong Kong and China tend to have a strong soy taste and tastes bitter. If you live in Auckland, you can find this sauce in most Asian grocers. A bottle of this can last a wee bit because it's so thick. They are very good for braising meat too.

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Auckland International Cultural Festival 2012

If there is an event in town that involves food culture, you will find us there and one that is not to be missed is the Auckland International Cultural Festival held in Mt Roskill. It's a day when every sub group calling Auckland home comes out to proudly share their culture and food. I don't know the exact number of stalls, but almost every country that I can name, there will be a stall to represent it. What is really amazing is that the African communities of Auckland is largely present in this event which is an uncommon sight until recent years.Auckland has multiple festivals celebrating its diversity throughout the year.There are big events to signify the celebrations of Chinese, Indian, European and Pacifican communities but not as much from the Africans and  possible East Europeans. 

Please be prepared for a food photo-heavy post.

German goodies from Paris-Berlin Bakery in Ellerslie.

There's French

Performance from the Burundian group

Women of Somalia serving up some home-cooked goodness.

A lotus float from the Thais

Thai women in their traditional costumes selling flower floats

A very proud ambassador from the Turkish group

Good-looking representatives from Peru.

A Mariachi band to bring on some mexican atmosphere to the crowd !

Savouring my prawn tacos from the Mexican Grill. I will definitely be checking out their restaurant in the city soon for my mexican fix.

We are crazy for Eritrean/ Ethiopian food but unfortunately there are no restaurants in town serving this particular cuisine. This festival is a really good opportunity to eat our hearts out! I hate posting about the food because it makes me crave for it again. Coincidentally, we ran into Akiliu's family whom I blogged about at the Festival. They were serving up some delicious Eritrean food and coffee to the eager public. We packed two servings of injera for dinner and they  were so kind to offer us to get more of our fix when we are craving for the cuisine again,this really made my day.

Injera bread topped with vegetables, lentils and doro wat..I can never say no to this, it tastes divine!

After a couple hours of eating marathon, we decided to call it a day. I secretly wish that there will be more festivals like this throughout the year. It's a great way to learn of other cultures, try out some new food and be aware of what a great and diverse city you live in.

Do you enjoy cultural events in your city?

What are your favourite cuisines?

Have you tried any African cuisines before? Do you like it?

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Weekend hair with Kevin Murphy Color Bug

Sass & Bide designer Sarah-Jane Clarke

So, you've heard other people talking about their weekend bag, weekend car but weekend hair dye ? Not really. In my earlier post about Kevin Murphy Color Bug, I have mentioned all the possibilities and temptation of having a quick haircolor and then revert it back to work-friendly (for those of us who are not fortunate enough to work in a place that you can show up to work looking like a lucky troll doll without stares at their hair colour when Mondays come. I love the flexibility of having bright-coloured hair for a night out and not having to deal ugly faded hair color jobs after a few washes because you just simply wash it out and put on another color and wear as many as you like.

On my black hair, the color is not very obvious but it's great if you just want a little colour but not too bright. I used purple on the photo on left  and orange on the right.

Here is another ombre hairdo I love but my hair is just too dark to achieve the same results.

I would love to be able to color my hair in different shades of blues and greens one day like the photo above. 

Have you tried the Color Bug?

How do you like the Color Bug ? Does it stay on your hair?

What other colors would you like the Color Bug to have?

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Positivity Friday !!

I am going to try and make this a weekly event to celebrate Friday and the weekend by sharing some positivity and running motivations! It always feel that Friday took too long to arrive and Monday comes too soon. Have a great weekend everyone!

How far are you planning to run this weekend? 

   What is your idea of a great weekend?

Are you planning for a big feast? What are you cooking?

This photo cracks me up everytime!

Source: media-cache5.pinterest.com via Penny on Pinterest

     

Source: blog.runtheedge.com via Penny on Pinterest

Source: icanrelate.info via Penny on Pinterest

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10k fun race and loads of refueling

Trying hard to rub off the sleepiness on my face

For the fun of it, I signed up for an unplanned 10km run on Sunday as part of the Run Auckland series.The first race of the series was at Waiatarua Reserve. Other than the date, time and venue, I didn't find out too much about the route. I arrive to find out that it's 10km of gravel. Fun. The whistle went and I ran easily for a while, hoping for some nice views. None. When I finished the first lap, Runmeter told me it was 2.5km. Crap! I just found out that I had to run the uninspiring lap for a total of 4 times! Blech. By the second lap, I felt like calling it a day because I was bored and running on gravel is really no fun. Anyway, I finished after about 65 minutes. The last few hundred metres felt like forever.

The good thing is that this is my first race in Lululemon attire. I wore my first CRB from Lululemon with Switch Back Shorts in Inkblot. I love how much the  color of my CRB pops in the photos. I was so close to "rewarding" myself by "checking out" new arrivals at LL store. But I was strong.

Our new favorite: Habanero sauce!!

I have a fantastic hubby who wakes up early to watch me run on a Sunday morning and cooks bacon and egg breakfast for me to "refuel" after the run. Nothing can get better than that, oh yeah, he did the dishes too !

Ok I have a confession to make, I love staring at my painted nails when I run. And when I can't decide on the colour, I do 4 colours!

We went for a bite at Angie's and I've ordered this beauties. They are Pie Tee, a popular Nyonya snack with fried casing filled with vegetables and dried shrimps. What a delight!

How was your weekend run? 

Have you ran a race that you wish you'd not? And how you overcome that?

Do you like to paint your nails so that you have something to stare at whilst running?

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Good One Coffee Roasters, Ponsonby

Saturday was a brilliant day to be out and about as the weather was utterly perfect have a stroll around town in search of a good find. My idea of a good Saturday afternoon is having a good brunch washed down by a strong smooth cuppa.

We headed to Good One in Ponsonby as I came across it while searching for Supreme coffee in  Auckland after a trip to Wellington last year. Their coffees are just divine and I was hooked. Good One is not located on the main stretch of cafes and restaurants on Ponsonby road. It is located inside a commercial building that has been thoughtfully transformed into an unique and retro looking cafe with equally as good looking staff. And they are very friendly and helpful too. We were talked through the different type of beans and blend they have and the staff hooked us up with a small bag and gave us 2 free samples to try at home which was awesome. I wish more places would let you take coffee samples home instead of ending up with a big bag that I don't like very much but obliged to finish it.

I had a toasted haloumi sandwish which was so good! Sorry that I missed the photo of my coffee because I drank it up in no time.

After a great toasted sandwich and with bags of coffee grinds in my arms, I can't wait to get home to brew some coffees with the heavenly find 

Good One,

 42 Douglas St, Ponsonby

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Positivity Friday!!

This is an article someone shared with me on FB which I find interesting. Some of these are as I believe just common sense but still worth reading to give yourself something to think about. Here is the link of the complete article on Purposefairy

1. Give up your need to always be right.  The wife is always right, right? Ok, I will try harder.

2. Give up your need for control. “By letting it go it all gets done. The world is won by those who let it go. But when you try and try. The world is beyond winning.” Lao Tzu. This so true because I get frustrated when things are beyond my control and it stresses me out for nothing. Especially true when I cannot tick all the boxes on the spreadsheet of to-do list while traveling.

3. Give up on blame. Give up on your need to blame others for what you have or don’t have, for what you feel or don’t feel. Stop giving your powers away and start taking responsibility for your life. I have to stop blaming my husband when we run out of ice-cream. I know I ate them too.

4. Give up your self-defeating self-talk. “The mind is a superb instrument if used rightly. Used wrongly, however, it becomes very destructive.” Eckhart Tolle

5. Give up your limiting beliefs about what you can or cannot do, about what is possible or impossible. From now on, you are no longer going to allow your limiting beliefs to keep you stuck in the wrong place. Spread your wings and fly!  This is so true. When you think you have a limit, it's as if putting a bottle cap on your head and not allowing yourself to achieve more.

6. Give up complaining. Hmm...do I? Sometimes.

7. Give up the luxury of criticism. Cursing is criticism ?

8. Give up your need to impress others. Check.

9. Give up your resistance to change. Need to work on that

10. Give up labels. Check. I don't even have the money for them. 

11. Give up on your fears. “The only thing we have to fear, is fear itself.” Franklin D. Roosevelt. I need to learn this

12. Give up your excuses. Send them packing and tell them they’re fired. Still working hard on this

13. Give up the past. Check.

14. Give up attachment. I don't have any.

15. Give up living your life to other people’s expectations.  Check.

Here are a few of my favourite pins that inspires me and I would like to share with you all. I love positive phrases like these and try to remember them in time of adversity.

 What are your favourite phrases?

 What are your biggest fears? Are you afraid of change?

 How are you going to spend the weekend?

Have a great weekend everyone !!

Source: google.nl via Penny on Pinterest

Source: s3.amazonaws.com via Penny on Pinterest

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5 Course Degustation at Number 5 Restaurant

I bought a Grabone voucher for a 5-course degustation meal for 2 person at Number. 5 restaurant recently after hearing really good things about this place. It costs only $99 for 2 person and that's a really good deal. This was also our first experience of degustation menu which is becoming a norm in most fine dining restaurants particularly in Auckland. The food here are amazing and every dish was very well-presented to us by attentive staff. My only gripe is that I forgot to bring my camera but it was maybe a blessing in disguise because we might get some weird stares from other patrons.

First course :Seared Scallops with Cauliflower Puree.  The scallops were so tender and I have never eaten a more well cooked scallop on a dollop of buttery Cauliflower Puree. This marks a good start of the night.

Second course:  Chicken Liver Parfait with Crisp Bread and Berry Compote. Fortunately both S and I love liver parfaits otherwise it  will be challenging. The combination of berry compote with the liver parfait sounds strange to some but it tastes fabulous together. My only complaint was not enough crisp bread to spread the parfait on as itwas a generous portion.

Third Course:Green Apple Sorbet. The maitre'd explained that this is to cleanse our palate before the main course. S loves the sorbet and I wish there were more in the glass.

Fourth course: Loin of Lamb with Lamb Springroll with Pea Puree. Sorry that the photo didn't turn out so well in the dim lighting. There is a springroll on the lamb loin. When this dish was brought to the table, it smelt so good and  everything was cooked to perfection. The lamb loin is so tender it's like eating marshmallows. The only component that I didn't like too much was the pea puree. It tasted like baking soda and I didn't like it however much I've tried to.

Fifth Course: Chocolate Fondant with Honey Comb Ice-cream and Coconut Shortbread.
Dessert has always been my favourite part of fine dining. I love love love the honey comb ice cream and coconut shortbread. By the time I dig into the chocolate fondant my belly was close to explosion because I was feeling so full. My hubs happily offered his 'help' to finish it for me.


It was overall a great dining experience. The ambiance is a little old fashioned and stuffy for my liking but the service is flawless and the food is one of the best I have had in a long time. We will definitely be back. Now I just need to stalk Grabone/ Groupon for another voucher.

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Running and refueling

I have to rewrite this post because the one that I did last night was published as an empty post. Frustrating really. I went for my 'long' run on Sunday and the weather was gorgeous plus because it was a public holiday, there were hardly any cars on the road. I need to burn off the gazillion calories I have consumed in the form of chocolate eggs. I ran for a little more than 10km with average pace of 6:31/km. I know this is walking with licking ice-cream pace for a lot of people but it's running for me. I will am slow but I will keep trying. My shins were a little grumpy after my run on Thursday so I took 2 days off without any workout to rest and did some stretching and yoga at home. The overall run was pretty good although it was a little hotter for my liking. For the next 6 to weeks I will be trying to increase my weekly mileage as base training. I have also learnt not to increase my mileage too rapidly to avoid injuries. I have learnt my lessons!

The cows who didn't want to be on the photos but they were photogenic. I don't live on a farm, I just happen to runthrough Cornwall Park with lots of adorable farm animals.

The perfect thing to 'reward and refuel' oneself after a massive effort to get out of bed on a Sunday morning to run is going for a great lunch. Hubs and I went shopping and then drop by at Mac's Brewbar for a bite. I had a Calabreze Sausage with potatoes, poached eggs and salad. Delicious!!

Lunch was followed by a stroll on the beach and a ginger breadman ice-cream!!  I decided that treating myself to a good lunch followed by ice-cream is much more economical than heading into Lululemon. I didn't even get close to one, fearing that I might succumb to the temptation.

The annual Adidas Auckland Marathon is going to open for registration tomorrow. I think I might do the half marathon. I've promised myself that once I can finish a half marathon at sub 2, I will consider a full marathon.

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