TwentySixPointWhat?

On Sunday night my boyfriend convinced me to cheat and split a pizza w/ beer for dinner. My taste buds and senses were on overdrive and well, I was still hungry. I signed up to run Dallas marathon and went to bed. Monday was spent researching Paleo recipes and cooking, baking, and cleaning up the kitchen. I did not exercise on Monday. Tuesday morning I felt dense, not quite bloated but not as clean and fresh as I've felt for the past week. When I got home from work I was lethargic but convinced myself that I needed to run, even if it was for only 30 minutes. It was a great run! My feet barely touched the ground.  It was a cleansing run.

Homemade almond meal is so easy to make. In less than 5 minutes you can have fresh almond meal, at a fraction of the cost of ready-made products. Be sure to refrigerate (or wrap, label and freeze) any unused almond meal because it can become rancid after being ground and exposed to oxygen and light.    Difficulty: Easy Time Required: Under 5 minutes- Start to Finish! Here's How: Place 1/2 cup blanched or unblanched almonds in a clean electric coffee bean grinder. Put the lid on the coffee bean grinder and pulse several times until a medium-fine textured meal forms. Don't over-grind or you will make almond butter! Put ground almond meal in a clean flour sifter. Sift almond meal. Place any large particles of almonds back in coffee bean grinder and pulse again. Sift reremaining almond meal. That's it. Use any nut to make fresh, delicious nut meals using this simple technique. Tips: Do not over-grind the almonds or you will end up with almond butter!...

This past weekend was unusually warm here in Virginia. On Saturday temperatures reached the high 60s/borderline 70s and yesterday temperatures rose to 77 degrees. I love running the trails, especially when the temperature is crisp and cool and I can really push myself but I'm not going to complain about our weather over the weekend. I got out rather late on Saturday but that didn't stop me from having a great long run. I took it easy, listened to my body and took the time to capture some images on the trail.  Yesterday morning (Sunday), Tony suggested that we go for a run together. We never run together and I was a bit hesitant. 1) He runs faster than I do and 2) He really, really pushes himself. I had no plan to exercise since it was my rest day but I reluctantly agreed- I'm the one that complains that we don't exercise together so yes, I jump, although cautiously, at the chance to spend this time together. The first measurable segment was only 30 seconds faster th...

This recipe is a modification of 2 Ingredient Pancakes  Holly's Paleo Pancakes Ingredients 2 eggs 1 banana 1 tsp pean ut or almond butter 1 sp lash almond mil k Coo king Ins tructions 1. Mix all ingre dients and run through a food processor to puree 2. OPTIONAL- Add 1 tsp of vanilla extract and mix all together 3. Warm a skillet over medium or low heat with some oil of your choice 4. Spoon batter into skillet and flip when it starts to bubble Top with maple syru p or sugar free/ natural jam.          

Source: http://www.paleotable.com/p/tips.html Seven Steps for Jumping Into the Paleo Lifestyle If you are reading this blog, you are probably already committed to CrossFit or some other form of fitness training. If you have not carried that commitment over to the rest of your lifestyle, I’ve outlined some steps to help you truly optimize your health and reach your fitness goals. But first things first. What is paleo? In a nutshell, paleo is a lifestyle free of sugar, grains, dairy, beans, legumes, and processed foods. It is a life full of energy, strength, and vitality obtained from eating lean, preferably grass-fed, meats; wild-caught, sustainable seafood; and (ideally) local, organic vegetables, fruits, and nuts. Please note my use of the term “lifestyle” instead of “diet.” Paleo is NOT a diet. It is a way of life. People sometimes have a hard time grasping this concept. Here is how many of my conversations in the past year have gone: Them : “So how long are y...

I had a really amazing run yesterday morning which really surprised me because I lacked motivation and my energy levels were low. Before heading out I reminded myself that the only expectations were the ones that I put on myself and I should just take it for what it was - exercise to exercise with no agenda. During the first mile I went through the usual check-in with my body and my thoughts began to wander when I made the decision to try for four miles instead of three. "Really? You're really unsure if you're making the right decision to add an extra mile?" For an endurance athlete, drastically altering your diet is humbling. Your body essentially goes into shock and is left scrambling to figure out how to pull 'energy' from new fuel sources to sustain activities that used to be no more difficult than a wink. I'm glad that I added the extra mile. I ran hard but not too hard and I listened to my body. The main focus of the run was to get out and breathe wh...

A friend posted this recipe to Facebook yesterday.  I'm looking forward to trying it. 14 oz can pumpkin purée 14oz can full fat coconut milk 2-3 tbsp agave nectar or maple syrup 2 tsp pumpkin pie spice 3/4 cup pecans 2 tsp cinnamon 2 tbsp agave nectar/maple syrup Mix first 4 ingredients in a bowl. Chop half of the pecans and line the bottom of 4 bowls/cups. Pour pudding mix over pecans. Mix remaining agave nectar/maple syrup and cinnamon. Spoon onto pudding and top with remaining pecans. Refrigerate for at least an hour, then enjoy!

I am entering the low energy phase for Paleo newbies. I am craving carbs; Pizza!!!! Beer!!! Sugar!!! and I'm constantly hungry. How is it that I can eat a full plate of sauteed veggies, a chicken breast and drink a glass of wine and be full.. only to be starving again an hour later? Went short on my run this morning taking into account the energy low. Down 3lbs. At least the headache went away. Drink more water.

The day after election day. Sigh. We went to bed before 10 pm last night; I'm exhausted. There was no sense in staying awake to watch the election results. My participation in the process (other than my vote) really has no effect on the outcome. I learned this lesson with sports on television and the invention of the DVR hasn't helped change my mind. When I'm exhausted it's time to call it a night and go to bed. I slept really well- dinner consisted of ground steak meat sauted with mushrooms, peppers and spinach with a glass of wine. It was really tasty. This morning I had a difficult time waking up. I avoided turning on the television or looking at my computer. Instead I stumbled into the kitchen and turned on the espresso machine. In my stupor I turned on the radio and the radio announcer on WTOP announced the winner of the presidential election. I let out a muffled whoop! and hopped into the air. Before all that I stepped on the scale (weighing myself every morning...

This morning I woke up feeling like it was Christmas. I grabbed a cup of coffee, curled up in bed with my computer to answer some emails and post an update for yesterday before heading out for a run. It was only 30 degrees outside and I was having a difficult time finding the motivation to subject myself to those kind of temperatures but boy, oh, boy, I'm glad that I got out there. The first couple minutes were rough, as they always are, but I reached the canal path in 7:28 (baseline is 8:00) and then pushed hard to Fall Hill in 15:43 (baseline is 17:00). Instead of the easy 4-miler I had planned I extended my run by following my 5-mile loop- completing it in 43:41. I'm trying to be smart about my running now that I'm starting Paleo again. No carbs = fatigue. Reasonable expectations this time around. . . take it easy and give my body time to adjust. i'm hungry.

Yesterday. November 5th, I hopped back on the bandwagon and am attempting Paleo again. I'm calling it Paleo v2.1. . Sunday evening I met up with a friend for beers which ended with me consuming 3 pints and ordering a pizza. It would seem that consciously or sub-consciously, however you want to look at it, I was eating a last meal, chock full of carbs and all the yummy things I love but have been a major contributor to my increasing waistline. I topped it off the Trickling Springs chocolate peanut butter ice cream (so yummy!) to empty the fridge of the last of the dairy products and called it a night.  Monday morning I felt awful. As always, there were a variety of factors to which my malaise could be attributed - dehydration; feeling the full effects of hitting the ground full-force the day before; sleeping in a strange bed (we've been staying at my place for the last month); or all those carbs. Instead of hitting the gym I came home and curled up on the couch instead. Breakf...

"My body will do almost anything I ask of it as long as I give it time to adjust to new demands." ~ John Bingham  

For the second time in the 15+ years that I've running I ate dirt on the trail this afternoon. It's comical, actually. I was making my way along the flattest portion of the quarry - the USGS trail, followed by the Beach trail. I had just come upon a mtn biker on an area of the trail that widens with the curve and contains a log, causing him to be mid-dismount and a bit flustered as I entered the scene. I hopped over the log, feeling quite spritely, recalling memories of dodging people during the finish at MCM. . . I was hunched over and weaving as the trail snaked with 'S' curves. I was chuckling to myself as I recalled the picture I posted to accompany the MCM race report and the next thing I knew. . .toe. caught. moving rapidly. catch. nope. belly smacker. trail. air. not. in. lungs. Heart racing. "Get up!" Damn, that hurt. Assess the damage - gloves took the brunt of it on my palms, legs are fine, chest is covered in dirt, arm is scratched all to hell. . . ...

Monday, November 5, 2012. I will attempt Paleo - again. Bring it on.

I came back this morning to revisit this post and take the time to write up a decent race report. All too often, I forget the importance of documenting these events and instead push it off and treat it as an after thought. My approach to Marine Corps marathon this year wasn't much different than in other years. The marathon always falls at the end of the season and I don't really have many expectations for how I am going to perform. Marine Corps is the marathon I run because of the emotions it evokes within me- I run for Team Fisher House which means that I'm participating in something bigger than myself. This isn't a marathon I run for personal records or recognition. Participating in this event reminds me - if only for 24 or 48 hours- that we are at war and the men and women on the course, both running and 'volunteering', are serving or have served our country selfishly, without regard for their personal well-being. Some people are on the course to memorializ...