Maple Hummus and Today’s Workout

When we woke up today, it was noticeably quiet outside. I got used to this “non sound” in Chicago. It usually meant it was snowing. Well, my suspicions were right…the parking lot was no longer covered in ice, but snow!

The snow is actually kind of pretty. It’s just unfortunate when it turns to ice….makes driving a little more interesting that’s for sure.

I put on my giant North Face sleeping bag jacket and snow boots and trekked over to the gym. It was pretty obvious no one went to work today! The gym was the most packed I’ve ever seen it. First up was a 3 mile run. Here were today’s stats:

Marathon Training: Week 4

• Distance: 3.00 miles
• Time: 24:56 min/sec
• Pace: 8:16 min/sec
• Calories: 260

Tomorrow I’m supposed to do my long run of 11 miles. Hopefully the weather will warm up a little so I don’t have to deal with ice/snow (also because the Super Bowl is here on Sunday!).

Since today’s run was relatively short, I decided to do some strength training too. I made up a little circuit, going through the whole thing twice. Here is the circuit from today:

• Pull Ups– 2 sets of 15 on the assisted pull up machine. Just standard pull ups! These are a great workout for your lats. My goal is to use less and less weight…eventually not needing the assisted machine.
• Single Leg Deadlift– 2 sets of 12 on both legs using 12lb. weights. Basically, you stand on one leg, holding the weights in your hands (you can also start with no weight), then hinge forward at your hips keeping your back straight (not hunching over). So you’re basically bending over (back straight) then using your hamstrings to bring you back up to the starting position. Here’s a video demonstration in case mine doesn’t make sense.
• Skull Crushers– 2 sets of 15 using 10lb. weights. I do these quite a bit because they’re a good, challenging triceps exercise. Here’s a demonstration (he’s using a barbell, I used free weights).
• Chest Fly’s– 2 sets of 15 using 15lb. weights. I just did standard chest fly’s laying on a bench. You can also do these laying on a Swiss Ball. Here’s an example of how to do these properly.
• Isometric Bicep Curls– 2 sets of 15 holding 12lb. weights on each arm. For this exercise, you hold the weights in both hands. Start by bringing one arm to 90 degrees (like you’re going to do a bicep curl) but just hold it there at 90 degrees. Then start doing curls with the other arm. So both biceps are activated but in different ways. Once you do 15 curls, switch arms.
• Rear Lateral Raises– 2 sets of 15 using 5lb. weights. These are pretty tough for me (hence the 5lb. weights). You basically bend over at the hips (no hunching!) then with your arms completely straight, bring them straight out to your sides and back down again. Here’s an example of how to do these (don’t be frightened by the big muscled man…keep strolling down).
• Single Leg Side Plank– I only did ten of these on both sides. They’re pretty tough and honestly, I was feeling a little lazy at this point. Basically, you’re in a regular side plank (off your knees), then lift that top leg off the bottom one (with control) then bring it back down again. Here’s an example.
• Crunches on Swiss Ball– 2 sets of 15. These are just standard crunches except they’re done while sitting on a swiss ball (makes it tougher).
• Swiss Ball Jackknife– 2 sets of 12. These are a great low ab exercise. Not only that, but they also work your shoulders and core in general (since you’re basically in a plank the whole time). Rest the tops of your feet on a swiss ball with your hands on the ground (so you’re in plank with your feet on a ball instead of the floor). Next, bring your knees towards your chest, therefore rolling the ball towards your abs. Here’s an example.

That was the workout for today!

When I got home, I decided to whip up some dessert hummus. That’s right, dessert. I’ve never tried sweet hummus before but it sounded like something that could work. The chickpeas have a nutty flavor so I thought they’d go well with peanut butter and maple syrup. I found a great sweet hummus recipe on the Wannabe Chef’s blog. Here’s what I threw together:

Maple Hummus

• 2 cups of chickpeas, rinsed
• 1/4 cup Mighty Maple peanut butter
• 1/4 cup maple syrup
• 2 tbsp. of brown sugar
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon

I just threw everything into the food processor and blended! Pretty simple!

I just opened the Mighty Maple peanut butter for this recipe. I knew if I opened it before, I’d probably have eaten the entire thing by now. Pretty tasty stuff…and fun to eat, see:

says so right here!