Double Eight and Honest Ten

I love 8's, today's 8/8 and I'm feeling extra great! It's the weekend and exactly two months before the 8th of October - my 26th birthday. Yahoo! :D It's never too early to get excited about one's special day, right? Right! This morning, I woke up at 6 and the sun was already beating down hard so no run for me. Instead I did some yoga and after an hour or so started my weekend eats with porky pancakes. Using whole wheat flour for the first time, I was quite worried how it will turn out but the results were so good I ate two right after they came off the pan and decided to bake the rest of the batter into my fave - whole wheat banana bread. Are you sick of reading about my banana breads yet? I can't help it! I just love them. Haha.

“This award is bestowed upon a fellow blogger whose blog content or design is, in the giver’s opinion, brilliant. This award is about bloggers who post from their heart, who oftentimes put their heart on display as they write from the depths of their soul.“

Awww, Katharina is a real sweetheart and passed me this award. Thank you! So I'm supposed to list 10 honest things about myself. Well, here goes nothing:

1. I love that I am able to amuse/entertain myself with whatever way I can. While I enjoy spending time with others, I am perfectly comfortable being on my own. There's the tv, internet, running, cooking, and reading to keep me busy. Other times, I play with my camera and whatever catches my fancy. Salt and pepper shakers were two of my first subjects when I first got my camera.

{Salt&Pepper Wedding}

2. My family and I are fortunate enough to be able to afford balanced meals everyday. I often write about my obsession with fruits and vegetables and you may get the impression that everybody eats the same way as I do back in the Philippines. It's sad to admit though that malnutrition is a huge health concern in my country where about 28 million Filipinos are unable to buy food to meet their nutritional requirements and other basic needs.

3. Issues (such as the one mentioned above) and current events (from Mischa's meltdown to wars) sometimes seem too distant or too huge for me to comprehend that I feel nothing but apathy. It's been said that being indifferent is the worst state and I hate that my apathy stems from feeling like I can't help the situation at all.

4. They say (Who are they anyway?) that one may choose to live life whatever way s/he wants. Only rule is not to hurt others while living your own life. I'm guilty of this attitude sometimes (read item 3) but I'm working on not only loving myself but loving others as well. I know I love my family and friends to death but I have to work on being a better person for other people as well.

5. Maybe items 3 and 4 are the reasons why I'm still single? Haha! Is it really too much to ask for somebody just like my Dad for a boyfriend - handsome, humble, smart, and funny?

6. While I don't care much for makeup, I take the time to prettify photographs. Since I forgot to snap a picture of my breakfast, I took a pic of my pan. Here's why I called them porky pancakes. I wish I could send a pan to each one of you; I really do!

{Unwashed Porky Pancake Pan: Haha, how very classy!}

7. Sorry, TMI but I like getting sweaty. After a run, I relish the moment when I'm doing my stretches and the sweat just pours out from my uhmmm, pores. It feels so cleansing. Makes the shower feel 13,453 times more refreshing! Don't worry; I drink more than enough water throughout the day and after a workout for optimum hydration. :P

8. I don't get contented easily. Don't we all? I feel like my writing, pictures, running, and many other things are so so. Compliments are reassuring but then I'd always find faults and imperfections. It can be seen in a positive light though - a passion for continuous improvement maybe?

9. I can never follow a recipe to the letter. :s I improvise and experiment with my cooking after taking inspiration from others. Oh yeah, Julia - here's the recipe for the kinako banana bread. For everybody else who can't read Nihongo - it's basically mixing bananas with store bought pancake mix (bonus points for honesty)! :D Since I just have to mess with every recipe, I nixed the sugar and doubled the banana. Then I added kinako since I'm addicted to it. Here's my freshly baked BBread from today's breakfast leftover batter (without kinako) which was so moist. It was a good thing I added a bit of water since I read that WW flour absorbs more liquid than all-purpose flour.

{Whole Wheat Banana Bread}

10. PB used to be my crack but when I moved to Japan (where food is the best but lacking in PB awesomeness), I found a worthy replacement in kinako. It's toasted soy bean flour and is used in Japanese traditional sweets. Everything kinako flavored, I tried it - mochi, Kitkat, donuts, ice cream, soy milk (soy overload much?), everything. But the best way for me is to eat a spoonful straight from the bag. Haha!

{KinakoDonut by MisDo: Check out their mouth watering summer goodies!}

I'm going against the rule and not tagging 7 fellow bloggers but I'd love to hear about a random fact or two about yourself at the comments! :D I'm off to watch fireworks tonight, still no plans for tomorrow, and half marathon training starts next week! Eeep! Enjoy your weekend, dolls!

Local, Organic, and Affordable Finds

It's a cloudy but hot and humid Saturday afternoon over here and I just came back from the grocery. Again, I have overstocked on fruits and veggies. Haha! Bananas, avocados, papaya, and peach. Plus, the fridge is now filled with over a dozen different veggies; I am so excited. I'm so pathetic to be excited over fruits and veggies but you understand, right? :P Best purchase of the day were these okra, eggplant, and cucumbers. I bought them at a roadside stand. These stands are unmanned and follow the honesty system. The buyer pays by simply dropping the coins in a marked box. Do you have any of these stands where you live?

{5 cucumbers, 6 eggplant, 18(!) okra}

Would you believe all of those fresh, local, and organic beauties above cost 200 Yen (less than $2)?! Insane, right? A couple weeks ago, I got the freshest beans from the same stand. They were so young I ate some of them raw. If any of you have okra recipes, please share them with me. Thanks!

Aside from veggies, my 8 mile run last night was also something to be excited about. It's the longest distance so far for me and I took it slow and easy, enjoying a light drizzle. It was my most relaxing run ever. Today's a rest day and later I'll be biking over to Rea's. I'll be sleeping over at her place so we can have an early Sunday morning run around the lake. Who is this person I've become? Getting excited over fresh produce and arranging sleep overs to fit in a morning run! It is amazing how being healthy can both be a priority and a source of enjoyment at the same time. It is not a chore but a choice.

What fun and healthy things did you do this week? I was glad to have joined Angharad's Optimum Sleep Challenge and slept well this week. Thank you. Have a great weekend!

Seven Traits

Being a newbie blogger, I was excited when I got my first tag from Kelly. It's called Seven Traits and here are mine:

1(一) I am super family oriented. Just like any other Filipino families, ours is very close. My family is BIG (parents, 2 brothers, 4 sisters, and 4 dogs!) and I always have been a Daddy's Girl. We do everything together and hang out as friends. Living away from them is tough but I manage.

2（二）I love planning, scheduling, and making lists. It could all be in my mind (when running), in a Notepad/Excel file, or in my trusty notebook. It could be a simple grocery list or a general plan for the coming months.

3（三） Patience is not my strong point. I hate waiting. Waiting for people, waiting for a red light to turn green, waiting for results (increase running speed), etc. When meeting people, I make sure to arrive at least 5 minutes before the scheduled meet time because I don't want to make people wait. Being patient is one trait I am working on each day.

4（四） Anything new excites me. If there's a new product or idea, I 'd like to know more about it. If it's interesting enough, I'd read more about it and would even give it a try. Running is still new to me but boy am I glad I tried it!

５（五） I'll have to admit that I'm practical. Buying expensive items without researching or reading a review about it is not something I'd readily do. I like getting value for my money. Having said that, I would gladly pay for really good food or travel.

6（六） Learning is something I'll probably never get tired of. After graduating with a degree in Engineering, I took up a yearlong program in IT. I also studied Japanese. But I feel like I'm not done yet. Graduate school maybe? Must be in the genes as 5 of the 9 people in the family are lawyers, another one in law school, one just finished med school, and the youngest also considering law school. Yikes!

7（七） Being a Libran, I'd like to believe I am balanced. Ha! :P Black or white? Gray. Blue or green? Both. Last night's dinner? Beans on toast plus banana and dark chocolate for dessert. Living a balanced life is a daily goal that I may not achieve everyday but definitely worth giving a shot.

{Balance - it's all we want in life, right?}

The weird figures (which I hope show in your computer) are the number's Kanji. Use them to impress your friends! Haha. I'm passing this to anybody who feels like doing it. I'd be glad to read about your interesting traits.

Running Thoughts

What thoughts go through your mind when running? I started the week right by going on a Monday evening run. It was a great one and I found myself thinking about different things. The miles just fly by when I am lost in thoughts such as:

-Family & Friends. Since I currently live away from home, it's but natural that I miss them pips. Running gives me time to reflect on happy times with them and these thoughts add an extra bounce to my step. When I go back home, I hope to have them as running buddies. :D

-Books. I haven't read a book in looong time that my brain has gotten so rusty. Rea and I talked about reading last Saturday and how I wanted to pick up something interesting. What better material than Michael Pollan, right? So today I'm starting with "The Omnivore's Dilemma: A Natural History of Four Meals" and then read "In Defense of Food: An Eater's Manifesto" next. Have you read these books?

{Reads}

-Food. Thinking about my post run fuel motivates me to go faster. Ha! Running also allows me to have a mental inventory of my fridge, to have a preview of the next day's meals, and to think of ways I can recreate other bloggers' yummy recipes. :P

-Travel. There are a bunch of places I'd like to visit in the coming weeks. The miles just go by so quickly whenever I'm fantasizing about trips. Planning trips is just so much fun. Look at this gorgeous deer that I saw on my trip to Todaiji in Nara last year:

{Fierce}

-Form. Of course, I also think about running related things. I make sure to check on my form: noticing if I feel tightness in my shoulders, focusing on my breathing, and shaking out tension when needed. RunnersWorld says here that efficient endurance running requires just a slight knee lift, a quick leg turnover, and a short stride. I'll pay attention to my stride length in my next run. How's your running form?

-Fellow Walkers/Runners. Whenever I meet other runners, I'd make up stories in my mind about why they run. Each one has a different reason for running and I amuse myself silly with "their stories". Also, I mentally cheer for everyone I meet. Something like: "Run, girl, run!" or "Good job! You can do it!". :D Weird much?

How about you? What fun/weird/happy stuff do you think of to distract yourself from running?

Cool Knees and Hot Tennis

We obviously don't celebrate 4th of July here but reading how each of you spent the weekend was such a thrill. Every post looked so much fun and I could almost taste the yummy food you all had. Haha!

The past few days, I've been bothered by my slow mile pace compared to those that I see on other blogs. So I pushed myself at one of my runs last week and my knees kind of hurt a bit after. My knees which were promptly iced (thus the first half of the post title) are okay now. It was my body's way of telling me that the knees are not ready for heavy pounding yet. Reading about how injured runners feel so bad about not running for weeks scared me and made me realize that there is no need for me to rush. I'm still a newbie runner (just into my 2nd month) and there is no need to be speedy at this point yet, right? I'd like to run for as long as I can, pain free, and enjoy the entire process.

Another sport that I have tons of fun playing is tennis. I've been playing (non-competitive) since I was 10 and still play whenever I can. It's a sport I love and enjoy so much that I could play for hours and not get tired at all. My goal is to put running in the same level as tennis: an activity I am comfortable with and enjoy doing anytime. So for me to reach that, I'll have to stop worrying about mile pace (at least for now?) and relax.

{This girl does not need to rush. :P}

Speaking of tennis, have you seen the Wimbledon Finals? OMG, it was totally worth it staying up late (match ended 2:45AM Japan Time) to watch Roger Federer win another Grand Slam and break tennis records. It could have gone either way as Andy Roddick was playing so well, too. Thank goodness, it was Roger's day. I was sooo tense and sleepy at the same time; I had to do some stretches/stand/snack on peanuts while restraining myself from making too loud cheers (or I might wake people next door) to get through 4+ hours of intense tennis. Woot woot! :D Roger's skill and composure is undeniably the best but I'd also like to point out how his being injury-free throughout the years being an important factor in his superb tennis career. Sure, he is certainly surrounded by the best trainers, doctors, and advisers to keep him in top shape. I'd like to believe though that he listens to his body really well and treats it the best he can thus maintaining top form without suffering any major injuries, right? :P

What sport do you play? Do you like playing/watching tennis? Any favorite sports stars?

Plan or UnPlan? Both!

Thank you all for your sweet comments on my unplanned 10K! Seriously, you guys inspire me to go out and keep moving when I feel less motivated. Does blogging have that effect on you, too? :P

I love making lists, scheduling my activities for the day, mapping out my runs, and obsessively planning my weekend. Since I do not have control over everything (Hello?!), things do not always go as planned. Sometimes, I'd just shrug it off but there are times when just a slight glitch would drive me crazy. Just like everything in life, I want to achieve a balance - to be able to create a workable plan and accepting (even embracing) the changes that may arise along the way. I think that this also applies to being healthy. For example, I try to run 5 days a week. Last week, I ran 3 days and walked/biked another 3 days instead. The normal me would have beat myself up for not sticking with the sked but surprisingly found myself satisfied. This morning, the decimal in my 2.4 mile run did not bother me a bit. At the start of the week, I would always have an idea what meals I'll be having. Somehow, I was not able to replenish my udon supply and so I had soba instead. Perfect for the summer heat! Breakfasts this week were fun with 'unplanned' oatmeal on a rainy morning and oat cakes with grated kabocha and cinnamon on a lazy Wednesday.

{Tokyo Tower Plan}

While planning is key for me, I know what does not work: Restrictive Planning. Detailed planning is necessary for projects (such as the Tokyo Tower construction, building an airplane, opening a business) and other work related stuff but when it comes to fitness, it is recipe for disaster methinks. Who was I kidding when I rationed the goodies shipped from the Philippines to be consumed in over 6 months?! Listening to my cravings and being gentle to myself was more like it. Having a flexible exercise schedule also makes me less anxious and look forward to what I can accomplish for the day. Of course, I understand that athletes and those with dietary restrictions would have to follow a stricter eating and exercise regimen. Those training for a race will also have to go with a sked to be able to achieve targets.

{Bright Outcome}

This flexible planning thing works for me health-wise. I'm sure it should also apply to life in general but that's an entirely different chunk I'm not capable of processing. :P Are you a planner? Or do you just go with the flow? Unplanned purchases are always more fun and sometimes replacing a recipe ingredient results to The Bomb, right?