inspired.

These past couple weeks have been athletically inspirational.

Two weekends ago, I participated in the Head of the Charles Regatta and cheered on Michael and many of my friends at the Baystate marathon. This past weekend, I ran a 5k at a Community College raising money for eating disorder awareness and participated in/coached at the Head of the Fish regatta in Saratoga Springs. I just want to take a few minutes to write about each event and discuss how each helped me make my next running goal....The National Marathon on March 20, 2010 in DC!

Inspirational Day 1: Alumni race at the Head of the Charles Regatta
Lesson Learned: Make it fun!

It was quite an adventure rowing with 8 former UMass alumni who had never competed OR practiced together! Today was about celebrating UMass and rowing and connecting with old friends. I actually have no clue how we did in the race! But that's not what it was about. And shifting the focus made it fun!

Inspirational Day 2: Bay State Marathon Lesson Learned: You cannot control external factors...but, you can control how you react to them

The marathoners' strength was certainly tested today, with freezing temps, gusts of wind, pouring rain, and SNOW! I got chills (yes, partly physical from running around in that weather....but also emotional chills!) as I watched my friends overcome the weather obstacle and finish with personal bests! I was in awe.

Inpirational Day 3: Race Against Stigma Lesson Learned: The reason for being at a race is sometimes much different than the race itself.

I ran this race en route to a regatta in Saratoga Springs. I was drawn to the race becase it was A. at a Community College, and I like to support the establishment I work for! and B. the race raised money for eating disorder awareness, which is near and dear to my heart for both professional and personal reasons. Thus, I was motivated by the race's cause much more than the actual act of racing. This made it a "good day" of racing, even though I didn't run quite as fast as I'd have liked to!

Inpirational Day 4: Head of the Fish Regatta Lesson Learned: It's not about the outcome. It's about the process.

My 11 masters rowers and I raced at the Head of the Fish in Saratoga. We hve come such a long way. Thinking about where we were last spring, and where we ended up this fall is pretty amazing. I had two women race for the first time in a regatta. My doubles partner raced her first sculling event. Five of us participated in multiple races. As I sat enjoying a lovely lunch/dinner at a diner with my great rowers and friends, I felt thankful. Not for the medals we won, but for the relationships we've built over the past 6 months, the improvements we've seen, and the new challenges we've been brave enough to face.

...and after all this inspiration, I decided it was time to suck it up and train for another marathon. I've been thinking about the race in all the wrong ways and wanting to run one for all the wrong reasons: "find a flat fast course", "run a pr", "get faster". But suddenly, after my 2 weekends of inspirational observation, I've developed a new outlook...I am craving the challenge that comes with training for a marathon, the excitement of getting to the starting line, knowing that race day may bring rain and wind and snow, and preparing myself to deal with anything mother nature has to throw at me, and practicing patience and perserverance in both day to day training and during the race.

So the big day will be March 20th down in Washington DC. I'll update on my process as I embark on my training!

SMART goals

I have fallen in love with Andrew Weil's guidelines for a healthy lifestyle http://www.drweil.com/

The guidelines proposed in his anti-inflammatory food pyramid are in line with the recent research on cardiovascular disease, cancer prevention, and overall health and wellness.

As I approach my LATE 20's (eek!) my focus is shifting away from "eating for optimal sports performance" and towards "eating to promote optimal wellness and longevity". I want to eat in a way that not only helps me run and row fast, but also allows me to raise a healthy and happy family, do my job well, and keep my body and mind functioning as long as possible.

The only issue is, following Dr. Weil's guidelines means I will have to make some major changes in my current habits. And old habits are hard to break. But with a solid action plan and good focus, I think I will be able to acheive an anti-inflammatory lifestyle!

I teach a personal nutrition class designed to help people set some nutrition related goals and start to work towards acheiving them. Last night as I lectured on how to design "SMART" goals, I thought about some goals I have for changing my diet and improving health, and how I probably have not acheived them because I've failed to lay out a "SMART" plan. So today I will start practicing what I preach!

SMART is an acronym that stands for:

Specific

Measureable

Attainable

Relevant

Timed

As you plan and execute long term (3-6 month) goals, short term (weekly/monthly) goals, and immediate (day to day) goals, it is important to clearly define what you want to acheive by using the SMART method.

We tend to be vague with goal setting: "I want to eat better", "I want to exercise more", and "I want to lose weight" are some common examples of this.

My very vague goal for the past couple months has been "I want to adopt Andrew Weil's Anti-inflammatory diet". I realize that I need to be much more specific if I want to acheive this goal!

So, I am changing this long term goal to...

"By February 18, 2010, I will live according to Andrew Weil's Anti-inflammatory diet 18 out of my 21 meals per week".

Is this SMART?

Specific and measurable: 18/21 weekly meals

Attainable: I think so...we shall see!

Relevant: yes. This way of eating has shown to have great cardiovascular disease and cancer fighting benefits, which aligns with my values and my desire to live a long and healthy life.

Timed: I'm giving myself 3 months to make some small changes in my diet each week/month so I eventually work up to the guidelines! I will have to cut out my fake sugar intake, some added sugar, some milk, some meat, some coffee, and a lot of the processed foods I eat.

This should be attainable if I cut the long term goal in to some little pieces to work on each month:

Short term goals (October 17-31)
1. eliminate fake sugar; limit added sugar foods (sweets) to 3 times per week

2. limit coffee to 1 mug per day; limit lattes to 1 per week

3. bake 1 loaf of bread, 1 batch of rice, and 1 batch of beans on Sunday nights to have for the week.

4. Limit meat to 1 time per day or less

And then, to stay on track, I will make some immediate goals to focus on TODAY!...

Immediate goals (today)

1. drink only water and tea after I finish my cup of coffee this morning (no fake or real sweet drinks)...plus a glass of wine this evening :-)

2. Eat meat (chicken or red meat) one time or less

3. find a recipe for some good gluten free bread to bake Sunday night!

I'll update on my progress weekly!

culinary "art"

When I observe my culinary students in the Holyoke Community College food lab, the scene looks like something out of "Top Chef": the cooks scramble around the kitchen grabbing spices, chopping garlic and onion, taste testing, and altering flavors as they see fit. Although every student is assigned the same dish with the same main ingredients, each one also adds his or her personal flair with herbs, spices and seasonings. Each cook creates a unique masterpiece. The students' performance in food lab never ceases to impress me (and taste testing all the dishes is a bonus)!

It is sometimes difficult for us mere mortals who just want to get dinner on the table by 7pm to imagine cooking as an "art". We follow a recipe and just hope it turns out like the picture in the cookbook! However, every so often I come across a recipe that gives me guidelines to follow, but also allows me to express my creativity with different flavors and textures...kind of like the cooking version of "paint by numbers"! I love these recipes...preparing them makes me feel like a culinary artist.

I came across a great low fat granola recipe today that does just this: the recipe gives you the proportions and cooking instructions, and you get to pick the ingredients. Go put on your chef's hat and get creative in the kitchen!

Ingredients:
1. Pick a selection of flaked or rolled grains - oats, wheat and barley are all good.
2. Pick a selection of nuts and seeds: almonds, brazils, hazelnuts, sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds, sesame and anything else you like. Coconut is also good but is relatively high in saturated fats. Use you can usually find unsweetened flakes.
3. Pick the dried fruits you would like to use: raisins, sultanas and dates, apricots and dried apples are all good. Avoid things that have been sweetened with additional sugar if you want a reasonably healthy mix.

You also need honey and cooking oil.

Here are the proportions you need:
1 part oil, 2 parts honey, 3 - 4 parts seed and nuts, 4 parts grains, 3 - 4 parts dried fruit

Method
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Measure out the oil and honey into a large mixing bowl.
3. Add the nuts and seeds. They should be well chopped so that no large chunks remain, especially if you are using brazils and pecans.
4. Add the grains and mix everything together very well.
5. Cook the mixture in a shallow open tray. You need to turn the mixture from time to time so that everything becomes evenly browned.
6. When everything is cooked (about twenty minutes to half an hour) remove the tray and finish by mixing in the chopped fruit.
7. Let cool and enjoy (or store in plastic bags or jars for later)!

Source: http://www.greenfootsteps.com/low-fat-granola-recipe.html

Vegan Mofo

October is the vegan mofo (month of food). From my experiences teaching nutrition courses at the college level, I am well aware of the wide array of understanding and misunderstanding related to veganism in our culture.

The British Vegan Society defines veganism as "the practice of dispensing with all products derived wholly or partly from animals." Some are skeptical of this practice, declaring that people cannot possibly live healthy, active lifestyles without eating animal products. While I am by no means a vegan, I do respect the lifestyle and believe with careful planning, one can maintain optimal health on a vegan diet!



There are a number of professional athletes, in both endurance and strength sports, who live the vegan lifestyle and are peak performers in their respective sports: Scott Jurek (successful ultramarathoner), Brendan Brazier (professional tri-athlete), Christine Vardaros (world class cyclo-cross racer), and Kenneth G. Williams (bodybuilder) are just a few that come to mind. These individuals have certainly learned to maintain optimal physical health on a plant-based diet!



One of my nutrition students just started a fantastic vegan blog with much better recipe ideas than I could ever give. Her background in culinary arts helps bring a creative twist to vegan cooking. Check it out at http://vegvenus.blogspot.com/ Try a recipe or two this month to celebrate vegan mofo!

To run, or to nap?

Tuesday, I was tired at work. And rather cranky.



...I was dreading my run.



...but I was dreading taking a "day off" even more.



Last year at some point, I got in the habit of never taking a day off. Sure I'd take easy days, but would never take a day to do absolutely no exercise. On one level, I know this is silly. Any structured team I have ever been on, even a Division I Collegiate team gave us a day off each week. And I always took it. I rested, I did work, I stayed in my PJ's for most of the day...and I rarely got injured. But for the past couple years, I've been around people that never take a day off of RUNNING, nevermind a total day of rest! So even though I know I need to listen to my own internal cues, I cannot help feeling insecure and slothlike taking a total day off.

On Tuesday, I swallowed my pride and made the executive decision that a 1 hour nap would do me much more good than a 1 hour run. I took a nap. I woke up. I felt awesome. I had great, quality workouts the following 2 days: A 1 hour row with pyramid intervals and a 1 hour run at 7 min per mile pace on Wednesday, and a 1 hour run with 4 by 4 minutes of challenging hills on Thursday. I had energy to get school and advising work done. It was a great 2nd half of the week!

Would I have felt the same if I went for an hour run Tuesday? Maybe, but probably not. In the past when I have felt similarly, I have run myself into the ground complaining how tired I am day after day, expecting it to get better somehow....and then I usually get sick or injured.

Moral of the story: I will take days off more often. My body always thanks me graciously.

4 days of food on the go!

My last 4 days of food with no repeats include recommendations for eating on the run. We don't always have the luxury of cooking a healthy breakfast, lunch, and dinner due to time and travel constraints! So, I thought of some healthy(ish) of fast food, convenience store, and grocery store options for those days we are strapped for time, cash, and stoves! All options are relatively low in saturated fat and sugar compared to other choices you could make at these establishments! All choices also are nutrient dense options: that is, they contain more vitamins and minerals and fiber per Calorie than some of the other choices you could make!

Breakfast options
1. GROCERY STORE: Piece of fruit, yogurt, snack size granola or trail mix or nuts
2. CONVENIENCE STORE: balance bar, piece of fruit
3. DUNKIN DONUTS: small lite latte, egg and cheese on english muffin
4. McDONALDS: Fruit and yogurt parfait, coffee with skim milk
think about packing with you: dried fruit, cereal, oatmeal packets, nuts

Lunch options
(lunch and dinner options are interchangeable)
1. DUNKIN DONUTS: flatbread egg white sandwich (no meat), glass of low fat milk or orange juice
2. PANERA: 1/2 sandwich and cup of soup deal (make sure sandwih is on whole grain bread, and soup is broth based, not cream-based!)
3. KENTUCKY FRIED CHICKEN: grilled chicken breast, side seasoned rice, small corn on cob, side house salad with light dressing
4. FRIENDLY's: Grilled chicken sandwich with side of broccoli instead of fries, small frozen yogurt for dessert
think about packing wth you: peanut butter, jelly, whole grain bread, fresh or dried fruits, string cheese, yogurt, milk cartons (or those little milk "juice boxes")

Snack Options:
1. trail mix (1/3 cup)
2. balance bar
3. slim fast or Boost shake
4. small to medium latte made with skim or soy milk (no flavor added)
think about packing with you: fresh fruit, high protein energy bars, packets of trail mix...see my recipe below for my favorite trail mix!


Dinner options
1. WENDY''S: baked potato (with 1 pat butter or tbsp. sour cream), bowl of chili, optional small Frosty for dessert.
2. McDONALDS: grilled chicken sandwich or southwest chicken salad (choose either small fries or small ice cream cone to accompany).
3. GROCERY STORE: fresh rotisserrie chicken breast, whole grain roll from bakery, carrot sticks or pre-cut broccoli dipped in low fat dressing.
4. SUBWAY: 6 inch turkey sub with lettuce, tomato and mustard on wheat, piece fruit, low fat milk.

Recipe for Laura's Favorite Trail Mix
1 cup ocean spray dried cranberries
1 cup mixed nuts of your choice (I like walnuts and pecans!)
4 cups cereal (cracklin oat bran, chex)
1 cup granola (Stop and Shop low fat honey and oats works well)
1 cup goldfish of your choice (original or pretzel tend to work best)
1 cup raisins (for an extra treat, yogurt raisins or chocolate raisins!)

Put in bag, shake it up. Divide in to half cup servings to resist the temptation of eating this delicious treat all at once!

So, there you have it! 14 days of food, no repeats. And remember, all these portion sizes are based on a 120lb female who exercises 1 hour per day...Be sure to check out http://www.mypyramid.gov/ "MyPyramid plan" to find the portion sizes appropriate for YOU!