Get Tough When You Run and Baked Branzino with Herbs

Have you ever wondered how some runners/athletes can push themselves through the point of wanting desperately to stop?  This has always been my big question after finishing a race and not achieving a time goal.  Yes, we celebrate finishing and our ability to run the distance, but we look back and can’t help but ask “Why did I slow down/walk back there when I told myself I wouldn’t ?”  Another question:  “How do I get mentally tough to over come that urge to stop?”  

The following quote by Sarah Bowen Shea “Run Like a Mother: How to Get Moving and Not Lose Your Family, Job, or Sanity” might not be your solution but it’s something to ponder while preparing for that next big race.

“Mental Toughness – Go Get It!” “… if your body never knows what it feels like to go longer, harder, or faster, your mind will never trust that it can.  And the only way you can force your mind to believe it is by crossing your own fence, too.  You don’t have to gun it for 26.2 miles, but you do have to push it for a set period of time.  How long depends on your fitness level, but here’s a guideline:  Go long enough so you’re super uncomfortable and every fiber of you is screaming at your brain to tell your body to slow down,  Then go at least a minute or 5 longer.  

That experience, whether it’s on the track, climbing hills, or going interval work, retrains your mind along with your lungs.  Suddenly, you’ll realize burning isn’t a bad thing; it’s the desired outcome.  Through those workouts you also learn you, too, will survive, you will recover, and you will run again, faster than last time because now you know you can.” 

“…..With running, it’s holding onto the distinct memory of conquering pain that lets us do it all over again.” 

And now let’s review a healthy recipe to help us get mentally and physically tough….

I was doing a little research on Holistic recipes and came across some simple instructions for fish which inspired the following recipe.

Branzino is a European Sea Bass that holds it’s shape well in cooking.  Some of it’s other aliases are:  Mediterranean seabass, loup de mer, robalo, lubina, spigola, branzini, bronzino, or bronzini  SOURCE   It has a mild taste and the bones are small.  It’s a terrific fish to purchase whole and put on the grill. 

Since it’s the middle of winter and the grill is shrouded in a blanket of snow, we oven baked Branzino fillets using a simple but very flavorful recipe.   Easy for a healthy weeknight meal.

Serves 4

• 4 branzino fillet
• ¼ cup vegetable broth
• 2 TBS lemon juice
• 3 tsp minced garlic
• 1 ½ TBS capers – drained and rinsed
• 2 TBS fresh parsley
• 1 TBS fresh tarragon
• 1 TBS fresh chopped chives
• 4 sprigs fresh dill
• Salt and pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 425 F.

Mix broth, lemon, garlic capers and all herbs in a bowl. Set aside.

Season fish with salt and pepper.

Place into a baking dish and cover with herb mixture and juices.

Bake for 15 – 18 minutes.

Serve with juices.

There is a lot of flavor in this recipe so don’t be afraid to use a stronger tasting fish if you prefer.