I just can’t figure out why I keep sabotaging my quality runs.  Maybe there is some inner demon inside me that doesn’t want to succeed.  There’s an angel on my left shoulder and an imp on my right. These are not your standard shoulder guardians.

These are the Runner’s Guardians.

There’s the good angel saying take it easy:  “Run the scheduled run, back off if it hurts.  If you don’t quite do what was planned, give yourself a break and go for it next time.” Then there’s the evil imp that says you failed and will never reach your goal: “You didn’t run fast enough. You didn’t run far enough.  Don’t give into that pain, keep running, push through it no matter what.  Ignore the fact that your right leg won’t move.  Forget about your heart that’s beating out of your chest.” Get the picture?!  I’m really beating myself up lately for not reaching higher expectations.

Take my speed work for this week as an example.

Speed work:  15 minute warm up, 8 to 10 time 2 minute intervals at 5K pace with 1 minute jog recovery in between, ending with a 30 minute cool down run.  That was the plan.

This is what happened.

I decided to do the speed work outside, Shane’s leash wrapped around my belly, looking for flat straight roads instead of suffering on a boring track or treadmill.

16 minute warm up.  9 x 2 minute interval at HALF MARATHON pace (that’s about 40 seconds slower than goal!), 1 minute recovery intervals, a 30 minute cool down.  I did do a quick back and chest workout for 20 minutes after but that doesn’t count. It’s not running.

I’m bummed that I never got to 5K pace. Well, I did on the very last 2 minute fartlek but the rest were slow.  I’m trying to be realistic and cut myself a break.  I ran the long run Saturday then went out with Ted and Steve on Sunday when I should have had a rest day.  Sunday we had a picnic party so my feet were in motion most of the day plus the wine …it just didn’t set me up for a good workout on Monday. It’s time to get real. Put on a smile and be grateful I can run and most of the time enjoy every minute of it.

During the course of that speed work, it started to rain.  I mean really rain hard.  At first, things were annoying to me.  My hair was wet and the pony tail on my head seemed loud banging against my collar.  My feet were making sloshing noises as my sneakers became saturated with water.  For every puddle I dodged, I hit a stream of water.  Then, the rain and getting wet became interesting.  The rain washed the sweat off my body and cooled me down.  It was fun playing “dodge the puddles” and I wondered if I would be spared blisters on my feet.  For every negative, there’s a positive. You just have to want to find it.

Relish the bad training runs. Without them it’s difficult to recognize, much less appreciate, the good ones.
Pat Teske

Do you beat yourself up for not achieving your goals or do you look at what happened that could have prevented your best efforts and justify the outcome?

ARBONNE

I’ve mentioned this company before and I have to tell you more about it.  Arbonne is a premium brand with Swiss heritage.  The products are healthy, plant based and inspired by nature making them Vegan friendly.  Never tested on animals.  From skin to food supplements, they have it all.

From the catalogue:

1. Pure:  Free of harmful ingredients such as animal by products, formaldehyde preservatives, petroleum based ingredients, and PABA.  The food items are processed without artificial colors, flavors, sweeteners, no animal products or by-products, cholesterol, saturated fats, nor trans fats.
2. Safe:  Before the products go to market, they are reviewed and finished in formulation by safety testing to ensure quality. The tests include irritancy and allergy testing for all products.  NEVER tested on animals.
3. Beneficial:  They offer premium beauty, health and wellness products consumer and clinically tested to reinforce unparalleled performance.
4. Green Commitment:  Arbonne is committed to environmental responsibility striving to minimize the impact on the environment through implementation and innovative practices.

Products available are anti-aging skin care, skin and body care, cosmetics, health and wellness, and botanicals.

I was sent some product to try

I used all the face wash, the day, evening and eye cream.  The scent of these items was so fresh and bursting with citrus.  They smelled clean and pure.  My sensitive skin had no reaction.

I tried the bronzer and the powder foundations.  The glow they put on my skin was wonderful.  They were light and lasted all day.  Again, my skin gave no negative reaction.

The true test was the Protein Shake.

First, it was higher in calories than I usually allow for my shakes, fat calories that is.  I prefer a no fat shake and then I have room to add peanut butter or other things at my discretion.

Second, I was a bit concerned about the alfalfa, kelp, and 9 grams of sugar.  My stomach can be finicky.  My routine protein formula has 0 to 2 g of sugar.  What would the alfalfa and kelp do to my stomach?  No reaction.  The shake was down right, better than anything delish!

Weighing the concerns:   So it was higher in calories.  BUT…after I’ve added my peanut butters and bananas and such, my usual shake weighs in A LOT higher in fat calories than Arbonne AND it doesn’t taste as rich and smooth.   The sugar was evaluated in the same way.  After I’ve added my customized flavors, my standard shake exceeds 9 grams of sugar.  As for alfalfa and kelp, probably not enough in there to upset the G.I. track.

Ok. So maybe this sounds like an advertisement. It’s not.  I simply met Kathy Rutherford, the Arbonne Consultant at the Turning Stone Expo and she sent me some samples.  No strings.  I just love these products.

If you’re into natural products, Vegan nutrition (or just plain healthy), and you have sensitive skin but want to find something that works, email Kathy and see if Arbonne has something for you.

If nothing else, you HAVE to try their shakes.  So good!

They weren’t kidding when everyone was warned of flooding.  The sewers were on the attack!

Just glad I didn’t have to run past that today. 

I had slightly slushy roads for my run today. It was snowing when I set out and the wind was certainly not helpful.  But I pounded out 20 miles. Not saying it was easy but I did it.  I didn’t walk. When I wanted to quit, I kept thinking about those ultra runners who go for 24 to 30 or more HOURS through amazing environments and outrageous temperatures.  Thinking of the pain and discomfort others endure somehow makes me think that I can push through what I have to for such a small amount of time in comparison.  The best part of my run…I got that runners HIGH going on right now. I’m going to rejoice in it. YAY!

Things you find in your email.  Honestly. I’m not sure who it was from, an address I didn’t recognize. Of course no one signed it but this is what I found:

On day a redhead, a brunette, and a blonde were on their way to heaven.
God told them the stairs to heaven were 1,000 steps and on every step he was going to tell them a joke. If they laughed they would not be able to get to heaven.
So the redhead made it to the 45th step and laughed.
The brunette made it to the 200th step and laughed.
But the blonde made it to the 999th step and laughed even before god told his joke.
God asked "Why did you laugh I haven’t even told the joke yet"
The blonde said "I know I just now got the first one!!!"

It’s an old one. I’ve heard it before along with the 999 others! Still, guess you gotta appreciate a joke, no matter what.

Do jokes make you smile even if you don’t think they are that funny?  I love jokes, just not the raunchy ones.

Great recipe!  I found it on VegMag but changed it up a bit.  Eggless and delicious. 

Chocolate Blueberry Beer Cupcakes – Makes 12 standard sized cupcakes

A neat recipe for St. Patrick’s Day if you decorate them green. 

• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 1 cup all purpose flour
• 1/3 cup Carob powder (or use cocoa powder if you have it on hand)
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 3/4 cup Blueberry Beer

• 1/4 cup really strong brewed flavorful tea, such as Spiced Chai or Hot Cinnamon tea. *The orig. recipe used coffee.
• 1 TBS chocolate syrup
• 1 tsp apple cinder vinegar

Preheat the oven to 325 F. 

Line cupcake tins with 12 cupcake liners. .

In a large bowl, mix the dry ingredients:  sugar, flour, carob/cocoa, baking soda, salt.

In a small bowl, add the beer, tea (or coffee), syrup, and vinegar.

Mix the wet into the dry but only blend until JUST mix. Don’t over do it.

Fill cupcake liners with batter and bake for 20 minutes. Frost as desired. 

A few green sparkly sprinkles or a big dark chocolate kiss

Maybe just colorful sprinkles

Easy.  I made these in 20 minutes between getting home from work and getting dinner on the table.

Well worth that little bit of effort.

If your St. Pat’s Day parade is today, have fun. If not, have a GREAT Saturday anyway.

This was my first day of running since last Tuesday.  It wasn’t good. My hamstring started off sore but then that could have been from 30 minutes of recumbent bike followed by 30 minutes of stretching and non-weighted strengthening exercises for the legs.  Anyway, the run was slow.  On one positive note, only one note , my leg loosened up ever so slightly in the last mile and a half.  4 miles at a 11:00 pace, which included Shane’s multiple pit stops since I couldn’t be bothered to take my gloves off to stop the Garmin, it was 25 degrees and the snow was blowing into my eyes.

The plan for the week:  No speed work, keep the miles low, and ice after every workout. I might get a swim or two in again but have to be careful there as well since I feel the stress in my hamstring when kicking.

OAT BARS!

It’s time to eat something good that isn’t bad for you.  “Really Yummy Oat Bars” is a recipe I found in “The Hip Chick’s Guide to Macrobiotics”. 

The recipe has been adjusted to suit the Apple Crumbles diet.  What diet? Whose dieting????

Makes 12 small squares

• 1/3 + 1 TBS whole wheat flour
• 1 1/2 cups rolled oats
• 1/2 TBS cinnamon (who likes cinnamon?!)
• 1/2 tsp baking soda (*the “Hip Chick” says baking soda isn’t used in macrobiotic cooking but she couldn’t help herself in this recipe.  I used it too!)
• 1/4 tsp sea salt
• 1/2 cup Blue Agave syrup
• 3 TBS canola oil
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 1/3 cup fruit preserves (unsweetened is preferred)

Preheat oven to 350 F.  In a bowl, mix the flour through the salt. 

Add the syrup, oil and vanilla an mix until blended. 

Spray a 9” square glass baking dish with non-stick spray (or, stick to macrobiotics and rub with canola/corn oil). 

Dip a large spoon in water

and press half of the oat mixture into the bottom of the glass dish.

Top with the fruit preserves.

Cover the preserves with the remaining oat mixture, dipping your spoon in water again to make spreading easier.

Bake for 30 minutes. 

Allow to cool before cutting.

ENJOY!

Great day yesterday.  When I was done with my run, Ted decided we should go visit his brother in Syracuse.  The kicker is that Ted wanted to bike out there, 46 plus miles (him NOT me).  Remember that Ted had escorted me on my run and done some looping around. He biked 26 miles early in the morning now he wanted to do another 46?!!  

Ted asked for an hour and a half head start which allowed me to get a few things done.  Since I felt good, nothing was sore and everything seemed in working order after my long run, I spent the time in the kitchen, my favorite room of the house. 

Looking for Ted:

At 2PM Ted called and said he was in Vernon but the wind was against him making the ride more difficult than planned. He said you might want to leave a little later. NO WAY!  I was so worried about him being on those main roads alone, I’d only feel better if I was with him, riding along in the car.

At 2:30 I left the house and tried to contain myself from speeding along in hopes of getting to him. Afraid I would zip right past him, I kept my eyes tight to the side of the road, looking for him almost immediately from leaving the house. Silly but desperate. 

In Chittenango, there’s my rider.  The 35 mile point. I pulled over, he pulled in and said “STUPID wind!”.   It was relief for me to put his bike on the car and drive the remaining 10 miles together.  It was rolling terrain and a tough ride. 

Considering the 26+ miles biked earlier in the day, the wind, the hills, and the fact that he has never ridden any more than 30 miles, I’d say he did GREAT!  A PR for Ted, 61 miles. He got in the car saying, “when can I try this again?”  I’m thinking when my nerves recover from this experience, NEXT YEAR?!!!

The Good Brownie:

Don’t get all…”OH NO! Not Vegan. Those CAN’T be good”..on me.  These are pretty good.

The smashed sweet potato gives these brownies moisture, antioxidants, and fiber.  The consistency is fudgy.  Very little fat and its the healthy kind.

If you get “Women’s Running” Sept/Oct 2010 issue, you’ll find the original recipe on page 56. I changed it to suit my preferences regarding sugar, fat, and overall flavor.

• 1 large sweet potato: stab with a fork a few times and microwave on high about 7-8 minutes depending on your microwave power and the potato size. It should be cooked through.
• 1 TBS ground flax seed:  Mix the ground flax with 3 TBS water and let sit while you mix up all the other ingredients. The flax will soften *This is your egg replacer = 1 large egg
• 2 TBS canola oil
• 2/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder mixed with 1/2 cup Turbinado sugar (sugar in the raw)
• 2/3 cup whole wheat flour
• 2 tsp baking soda
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1/2 cup maple syrup
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 2 tsp ginger
• For Topping:
• 1/2 cup Powdered sugar
• 1 TBS water
• 2 TBS sliced almonds or nut of preference

After you have cooked the sweet potato and when cool enough to touch, peel it and mash it in a bowl.

Preheat the oven to 350 F and grease a 9 x 9 baking pan.

In a large bowl, mix the flour, cocoa-sugar mixture, baking soda, and salt.  Make a well in the middle and add the maple syrup, potato mash.

To the flax seed and water, add the vanilla and ginger.   Add this mix to the maple syrup and potato and now fold everything together. Do not over mix. Only mix until all flour and other ingredients are blended.

Turn into the prepared pan and bake about 20 minutes.

When cooled, mix the topping of powdered sugar and water. Drizzle onto cooled brownies and top with nuts. ENJOY!

Just look how moist these little beauties turn out!

Do you have a favorite VEGAN dessert? (No eggs, dairy, or any animal derived ingredients. No products processed using animal products which includes granulated white sugar. )

Another running day but the morning weather was crapola so I ran on the treadmill.  I had enough running in the rain last Saturday. 

The recap:  4.6 miles on the T/M which included 6 strides at the end.  Back, shoulders, and abs with the weights. Since tonight’s class (First Aid) might go until 10 pm, I wanted to make sure I could grab an extra half an hour or so sleep in the morning.  Thursday, I will only have aerobics (running) and no weight workout. 

As for poor Shane, we had to brave the weather because he needed to go for a walk and get some exercise.  If he doesn’t get exercise, Ted can’t work because Shane will want to play all day.  That dog can be very persuasive when he wants to play. 

So we covered a very wet 2 + miles.  Not much but my feet were soaked, it was cold, and I needed time to brush the pup when we got home.  Warm bath…here I come!

FAST FOOD….. How do you get a healthy meal in when you have so little time?  I picked up these Yves Vegan Sausages when shopping this past weekend in anticipation of this hectic week with little time to cook:

I thought the nutrition looked pretty good. I just tried not to count how many other ingredients were in these honkers.  What is CARRAGEENAN anyway????

Ted grilled them up and, even though we didn’t baste with oil as the directions indicted, they were pretty tasty.  A bit on the “blackened” side but I like “blackened”. 

Ted had real Italian sausages and I cooked kale to go with both our meals.  SOMEONE at the table didn’t like kale and it wasn’t me.

I added garlic and a spring onion to the kale as it cooked.  Ted reminded me that the garlic and onion probably wasn’t a good choice when going to a CPR class.  Whoops!   The poor dummy. If he wasn’t breathing when we started, he sure as heck would REFUSE to breath after I leaned over him!

Sautéed Kale

• 1 bunch kale, wash well and remove tough stems
• salt and pepper to taste
• 1 chopped large green onion
• 2 tsp minced garlic
• 3 – 4 TBS olive oil
• Parmesan cheese

Heat a large, deep sauté pan on the stove top over medium high heat. Add half the oil and heat.

Chop the kale into smaller bite size pieces and add to the pan.  It may be a huge mound of greens when you start but it will cook down. 

When the kale is slightly wilted, add the salt, pepper, onion, and garlic and let cook about 10 minutes.

Add rest of the oil and stir around to coat.  Reduce to simmer until ready to eat or until nice and tender.  Serve with Parmesan cheese.

Topped the kale with the grilled Vegan sausage.  The flavor of the sausage was good. It does need more oil as it cooks because it is a bit on the dry side. 

Do you have a favorite meal to make that is really quick and easy for a busy night?