Marine Corp Marathon Taper and Micro Green Mix

Finally taper time is here. Can’t say I’m not ready to reduce the miles although training for fall marathons wasn’t what it was supposed to be, miles nor speed work wise. Every run was just an exercise in escaping painful thoughts of heartbreaking loss.. Although I looked at my plan daily the desire wasn’t there. I just wanted to escape by being outside and trying to make the hurt go away, not by running fast repeats nor logging required miles, just to get lost in my thoughts somewhere outside myself and come back to have it all be a bad dream.

My biggest running fan is gone, my mum. My best running partner is gone, my German Shepherd Shane. I still have Zoey to run with who is a God send and I hope in a couple of years, little Luke will be my big, tough running companion as well. In all honesty it (running) isn’t the same. There is a huge void and I know it will never go away, but I’ve signed up for Marine Corp. and Space Coast this year as well as Myrtle Beach Marathon and Boston in 2016. We’ll see what happens after Marine Corp. If I break down and can’t hold on mentally, it’s time to look for another outlet other than running.

My weight is down slightly from other training cycles. I’m still at a healthy weight and focusing on good nutrition. One healthy treat, maybe on the acidic side though, is a fresh tomato salad on the weekend. I put all sorts of things in with fresh vine ripe tomatoes. Sometimes I add lots of crunch like celery and green peppers but this week I decided on lots of micro greens and fresh parsley, sundried tomatoes for sweetness and marinated mozzarella balls for cheesy satisfaction.

Since I pretty much tossed everything into a bowl and mixed up a willy-nilly dressing, I’m not offering a step by step recipe but simply a list of ingredients to spur your creative juices. Let me know what you come up with for a delicious, nutritious, fresh salad.

Here’s my list: Fresh curly leaf and flat leaf parsley, micro greens, cherry and vine ripe tomatoes with a mix of sun dried tomatoes, fresh avocado chunks, some small mozzarella balls, a little flavor infused oil, fresh lemon and lime juice, pepper, salt, Italian Seasoning and a sprinkling of garlic powder.

WOW! Power packed goodness!