Speed work, turkey chili and postseason baseball

Ahh, October. There’s nothing like it. Postseason baseball is one of my favorite times of year, especially when my team is playing.

 
(I really need to get my camera fixed!!)

I woke up super early this morning to get my turkey chili started. I was at the store at 7:30 a.m. buying chili powder and a red pepper (how did I plan on making chili and forget those ingredients?) Everything was in my CrockPot and cooking by 8:30. I’ve been thinking about this chili all week, and boy was it worth the wait.

Rockin’ (and really simple) Turkey Chili

• 1 pound 99% Fat Free turkey chili
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 2 cans (rinsed and drained) black beans
• 1 can (rinsed and drained) corn
• 1 whole medium yellow onion
• 1 28oz can of crushed tomatoes
• 1 whole medium red pepper
• 3 or 4 garlic cloves, chopped
• 3 tbsp chili powder
• 2 tsp hot sauce (slow cooking enhances the potency of things so I don’t overdo it. You can always add more later if you want)
• Salt and pepper to taste

You know the rest: Cook chopped veggies and turkey in olive oil in a large skillet on the stove until the turkey is no longer pink and veggies are soft (about 10 minutes) Then add chili powder, salt, pepper and hot sauce. Give a good stir.
Transfer to slow cooker. Add beans, corn and tomatoes. Stir again. Put lid on and don’t touch for 8 hours. Cook on low.

I serve mine with a dollop of plain yogurt and a sprinkle of cheddar cheese. SO good. (Sorry, no pictures..camera is still broken. But trust me—it looked good and tasted even better)

Speed work:

I ran a nice long run on Sunday (around a 10K) and a nice easy 4 miler yesterday. I really needed to get some speed work in (and some weights as well) so I went to the gym after I was done getting the chili together. I started out with
15 minutes on the elliptical at level 7 as a warm up. I like using the elliptical as a warm up because it gets my heart pumping but without the pounding on my knees (which have been feeling great lately. Foot too!)
Then I hit the treadmill and ran at “race pace” for two miles. Here’s my stats:
Mile one: 8:38
Mile 2: 8:29
Total time: 17:07
Then I ran at a slow pace to recover for the next five minutes, then walked for two. I felt great! I love speed sessions. Makes me feel like I can kick someone’s ass.
Then I did some combination lifting on the balance ball. I used a 15 pound body bar and did some arm raises/crunches, and then I did leg raises and lunges on the Bosu ball with the body bar while doing bicep curls at the same time.

Then I went to the DMV. I’m officially a Virginian. No longer a Masshole.

All that running around made me ready for chili and baseball. Oh, and I can’t watch my beloved team play without a beer. (Magic Hat #9. I wanted the Samuel Smith’s Oatmeal Stout but Dennis had dibs on it)
I’ve actually gotten to a point where I can only drink ONE beer or one glass of wine. This is obviously a good thing, since I don’t miss my crazy college drinking days one bit (well, I should say I don’t miss feeling like garbage) And since I’m putting so much work into taking care of myself, I honestly don’t WANT to drink like I used to. Uh oh, I think I’m getting old…