Saturday, May 5, 2012

Super Yummy Spinach and Apple Pesto

This morning the boys and I walked down to the Saratoga Farmer's Market.  I did not know what I was going to purchase (besides Sage's m&m cookie from our cookie lady Linda).  After dancing to a wonderful bluegrass band, Running the River, we walked back and forth until I felt inspiration for our supper.  Sometimes it is very hard to decide when surrounded by lovely fruits and veggies, but at the moment I saw the big green bag of spinach I knew that I had to have it.  Apples are a usual purchase, and we love spinach, so I thought that the two would be so great together!
I did an internet search and found an awesome recipe for roasted carrot ravioli with apple-spinach pesto.  I did not have the time to make pasta tonight, so I used some spaghetti that I had on hand.  This pesto is AMAZING!  Sage gobbled it right up.  And to make it better, it is so simple to create and easy to make vegan.  For added flair, I added pine nuts and craisins as a garnish.  So delicious!



Thank you 51 Porter, we will be returning to find more delicious creations!

Thursday, April 19, 2012

You Have To Start Somewhere


Well, this past Saturday (April 14th) was our first 5k of the season.  My dad, Rich, and I all ran, and I have to tell you, my dad kicked our butts.  Even though Rich was pushing the boys and I am coming off an injury, I still believe he would have left us in the dust!  All I wanted was to finish and maybe come in under 30 minutes.  I did both, which made me a happy camper.  My time was just over 28 minutes, not my personal best, but I will take it.  By the end of the season I would love to get my time below 25minuets for 5k, and I think I can do that.

Rich and I have gone on two training runs this past week, 5 miles on Monday and 3.5 miles last evening (Wednesday).  We are both feeling strong, positive, and connected.  I cannot speak for Rich, but I am starting to feel clearer.  I am totally loving this year and I am very excited for all of the possibilities that are coming my way.  All seems all right in the universe.

I am really lucky to have two men in my life who love to run.  It has been really wonderful training with them and racing with them.





Our next race is on April 29th in Schoharie, NY.  It is another 5k, this one is to benefit the Schoharie Free Library which was ravaged by the flood waters that hurricane Irene brought with her. 







Flood damage
If you are free on the 28th, you should head on over, down, or up to , Schoharie, NY  for this wonderful run.















I am off to go for a run with my dad.  I hope to see you on the road!

Wednesday, April 18, 2012

My Dark Ride

This is the bike I'm currently riding...my Fuji Comp 9.1
Starting this Sunday I got back on my bike and did a 30 miler with a couple friends.  We stuck to the northern areas of Saratoga County and rode some amazing backwoods roads that weren't too frequented by cars.  By the end of the ride I felt strong and a lot more confident in my ability to have a good season on the bike.

That ride had me really itchin' to get back out and this morning I had that chance.  I was planning on waking at 4:15 so I could be on my bike by 4:30 and get in 90 minutes before I had to get ready for work, but our youngest boy was up almost literally all night.  SO, I could have probably ridden at 3 if I wanted to get a 3 hour ride in (because I was up!), but I decided to stick to the plan.

I probably should have planned on getting ready a little earlier as I'm still not too good at getting ready for the bike quickly.  I ended up out the door at 4:40, but had to turn back home once I got up the block because I didn't dress warm enough.  I thought it was going to be warmer, but it was around 30 when I woke up, so I definitely needed my mittens and ear warmer.  I probably should have put on warmer socks, but didn't think of it.  By the time I got half-way my toes were already numb.

Perhaps I should light my bike like
this for my next Dark Ride??
I finally got on my way at 4:45.  I went down Route 9 because I knew the shoulder was wide and in good shape.  Still, I was a little nervous at times given what happened on my last morning ride.  It was dark most of the time, but luckily the headlight Becca gave me helped on the long stretches where there were no lampposts.  I took it easy and made sure I didn't go too fast at times, but in well-lit areas I really pushed.  Though, I will say, unlike Sunday's group ride, I didn't quite have the push in me that I had then.  Not sure if it's because of the lack of drafting or the friendly competitiveness that makes us want to go faster, but there was definitely a big difference (that difference could also be because of 4 hours of broken sleep!).

I made it to the first round-a-bout in Malta and then headed home.  When all was said and done, I managed just short of 20 miles and finished just as it started to get light out.  I feel good about it though and know next time I'll be able to brave the dark ride a bit more quickly and confidently.


Friday, April 13, 2012

It Feels Good!

FINALLY!  I am back to running and yoga.  That was a tough three weeks but my first two runs out of my injury were surprisingly strong and pain free.

This week Sage has off from school and Rich took off from work.  It has been a great week so far!  We  celebrated my sister's babies on Saturday (they are due in early May), celebrated Easter and my birthday on Sunday, spent a few nights at Rich's mom's house and a night at my folk's.  Rich and I went for a beautiful 4-mile run near his mother's house on Tuesday.  We took it nice and easy because it was my first run after a few weeks off.  His mother lives out on a beautiful country road where everyone we passed waved, sometimes twice (on the way out and on the way back), and the cars gave us enough room where we did not think we needed to bail in the ditch.  Rich and I got to spend some nice quiet time together and we were able to talk freely, which does not happen that often.  Then on Thursday we took a very scenic 10k run alongside The Sacandaga with my dad.  Great run and great conversation.  Both runs are leaving me feeling optimistic about our races this season, which starts with a 5k tomorrow in Broadalbin, NY.

I would like to mention one run here in Saratoga Springs, NY that I think is going to be very nice.  This run is to benefit the Emma Foundation.  The race is on Saturday, May 12th at 9am and there will be a free kids 1/2 mile race just before at 8:30am in front of the Waldorf School on York Avenue in Saratoga.  If you are around this area and would like to support a wonderful school while meeting some fantastic people and seeing a beautiful town, please run on over and show your support.

Wednesday, April 4, 2012

My First Brick

This week marks the first official week of a 20-week training program to get me ready for the Timberman Half-Ironman.  Monday I did an upper body workout.  Tuesday I swam a mile and ran 40 minutes while pushing the boys.  Today the plan was to ride my bike 90 minutes (an hour before work and 30 minutes after).

Being that I was riding outside at 5:00am it was still dark, so I needed to use a headlight on the bike.  It works okay, but it doesn't give you long range visibility.  This was not too big of a problem except for spotting potholes in time...I hit one near the Saratoga Racino and slightly bent my front wheel, but all systems were still go, so I continued on.  About 9 miles into my ride I found myself on Henning Road and didn't see another pothole that was apparently a bit deeper than the first.  So deep, in fact, that I got two flat tires when I went over it.  I didn't wreck, luckily, but when I came to a stop I realized I was roughly 3 miles from home and if I were to walk there would be no way I'd be back quick enough to make it to work on time.  Also, it was only about 5:40am, so calling Becca to come pick me up was out of the question too.  And, for those of you wondering why I didn't fix the flats and ride home, it's because my seat wedge pack is still on its way in the mail.  So, with no other options left, I decided to run, which made this my first brick workout (a brick workout is when you go directly from the bike to running).

My running shoes for today
For anyone who's ever worn bike shoes before, you know that even just walking around in them isn't the easiest thing to do.  In fact, I don't think I've ever walked more than 20 feet at any one time in these shoes before today.  Pushing the bike along with my left hand I ran all the way home and managed to keep a 10 minute pace.

Surprisingly, none of this discouraged me this morning. I felt good and was in a great mood afterwards.  And, to my surprise, my legs didn't feel like jello when I switched from the bike to the run!

Have any of you had something try to get in the way of your workout?  What did you do to get through it?

Tuesday, April 3, 2012

Just Breath

These past two weeks have been hard.  I have not been able to unwind how I normally do, running and yoga, and I am feeling like a piano string wound too tightly.  I am irritable and cranky, my poor family.

I am trying very hard to be a good girl and let this injury heal completely BEFORE getting back into my routine, but lately I have been feeling a bit like a wimp.  There is this nagging little voice in my head saying that I need to be out there running.  I should be out there now.  I should not be sitting around collecting dust and going stir-crazy.  I am weak!

This judgement of myself is a weird form of punishment.  Why in the world am I doing this to myself?  I need to honor my body and give it the time it needs to heal.   If I do not give it the time it needs, I will inevitably hurt myself more and maybe ruin this year's race schedule.

I am trying to be mindful of all of these judging thoughts that are coursing through my brain.  As the thoughts come into my field of mindfulness, I am aware of them and I try very hard to let them go.  I am trying also to accept my injured self for who I am, a runner who cannot run and a yogi who cannot practice yoga at this moment.  However, the one thing that yoga has given me is my breath.  When I start feeling like nothing is going quite right, I bring mindfulness into my breathing and most of the time I do start relaxing and my mind becomes more focused. There are still some crazy moments where bringing awareness to my breath does diddly squat for me, but for the times that it does work I start feeling a little less like a monster.  Breath has become my saving grace.  

Tuesday, March 27, 2012

Committed


With a 4 year old and a 6 month old you sometimes don't get nearly enough sleep.  Last night the last time I looked at the clock was 12:30.  The only issue with that was that I wanted to get in a one hour run and that meant getting up and out the door by 5:00.  Luckily, Elliot woke me at 4:40, so I had plenty of time to get out the door by 5:00!  Other mornings I would have admittedly stayed in bed, but I've been reading The War of Art and one of the author's points is that the person who is truly dedicated to a task will show up even when they don't want to.  And, wanting to hold myself to a higher calling, I really don't want to give in to resistance and not train the way I know I need to.  The pro shows up and does the work, knowing that work done today will feed the bigger calling, which for me is doing well in the Half-Ironman.

Today's weather was a far cry from last week and I actually had to bundle up to keep me warm for the 20 degree run.  Once I got warmed up it was a really nice run.  I forgot about how tired I was and just settled into the dark silence of the morning.  There were a few people out and I even got passed by one runner, but I left my ego aside and kept the pace that would maintain an aerobic heart rate zone for the entire hour that I ran (my ego is also telling me to not share that this runner was also female and a good deal older than me from what I could tell).   If you want to see the route I took, click here.

One of my prevailing thoughts was about what works for improved performance.  There are so many theories out there and so many different methods that have all been tested and have merit.  Part of me wondered what would work best for my body since I've had good results with a lot of different regimens.  As I posted before I'm training in my aerobic zone under the tutelage of Mark Allen in order to build my aerobic base and to hopefully get to where I'm running a fast pace with a low heart rate.  This method requires a fair amount of time to show whether or not it works, so part of me is terrified of spending all this time on the wrong plan.  But, I'm committed to it and am doing what I can to have patience with myself and my runs.  I will be having one interval session a week, so we'll see if that calms my nerves a bit.

Has anyone out there dealt with this?  What training techniques have had the best results for you with endurance races?

Monday, March 26, 2012

Sage, the Wise and Wonderful, Part Deux!

I try to walk Sage to school as often as I can.  It is a great way to start our day together and it gets us outside for a nice, and usually relaxing, walk.  



This morning, we got to Sage's school and beside the door were some flowers.  I said to Sage, "hmm, I wonder what those flowers are for?"  And his response was, "they are for smelling mom!"




He reminds me that we have to stop looking for further explanation and just accept things for what (and who) they are.  Everything is created exactly how it should be and everything has a purpose.  Thank you Sage, I love you! 





Weekend in Boston

Last week, on the 22nd, was our nephew, Kaleb's, first birthday and his celebration was on Saturday, so we packed up our Routan and pointed the beast east Saturday morning.  After dropping Rocco off with Gloria, we met up with mom & dad on I90 at the first rest stop in Mass.  They were hauling our niece & nephew, Anna & Reid with them.  It was nice to caravan with them because we have never been to this area near Boston and they had a GPS with them.

My handsome nephew enjoying his birthday cupcake.
Kaleb's party was at Michael and JoAnne's friend's house, Jamie & Geoff because their little boy, Travis, was also celebrating his first birthday.  Michael sent me a text Friday asking what kind of food they should get for us.  I did not want to have them go out of their way, so I said fruit and salad fixin's would be just fine.  We brought a good amount of food with us, just in case.  We had nothing to worry about.  At the party, they had plenty of veggies, lots of hummus, and lots of fruit.  Jamie also made a nice platter of tomatoes and basil for us (I really wanted the fresh mozzarella on the other platter, but I did good and resisted my longings for the sweet, delicious cheese).  There was one other item that I really wanted and that was the cupcake!  They had regular yellow cupcakes, and then I noticed there were some that looked different.  Holy cow, they were angel food cupcakes with strawberries on top!  Geesh, I really wanted one. I love angel food cake, and to have my very own little one, heaven!  I ignored the cupcakes as best as I could, took some pictures of kids eating them, but did not indulge in one myself.  

Kaleb's best bud, Travis, lovin' the chocolate.
We left the party, battled some good ole' Boston traffic on 93, and ended up at my brother's new apartment in Dorchester.  Their new apartment is beautiful with granite counter tops, travertine tile in the bathrooms, and windows everywhere.  Their old apartment was also very beautiful and in a great Cambridge neighborhood, but it was a lot smaller.  For dinner Saturday night, JoAnne made us quinoa with kale, summer squash, and zucchini.  She normally makes this dish with two slices of bacon in the kale, but she decided that they could live without it for the night.
                                                                
So incredibly yummy!

It was really delicious and it was something that we all enjoyed.  Michael and JoAnne love eating meat, but the great thing about these two is that they really know how to cook.  I love going over to their place because I always learn something new about food.  I also love how they do not really make us feel weird for not eating animal products (though JoAnne kept referring to us as their "vegan friends," which we think is hilarious.)  They even bought us soy milk, not really knowing if we drink the stuff or not, but they got it just in case.  They were thoughtful and extremely caring and it makes me feel all warm & fuzzy.  Thanks guys, we love you!

Just an update on my tushy, it is still very tender, so unfortunately, I think I will be taking one more week off from running and yoga.  I am totally bummed and I am missing my outlets.  Maybe it will be better by Thursday, then my dad and I can take our weekly run.  That would be nice, but I am not pushing my luck.

 


Friday, March 23, 2012

The Fattening Ingredient

My mom sent me an email forward that really struck me.  The subject was "The fattening ingredient" and the body read:


"What is the most fattening thing that you can put into a double banana split?

....a spoon"
If you're anything like me, you definitely got
the answer wrong on this one!


Echoing what my wife posted earlier about Sage choosing apples over chips is that, no matter what food we have around the house, it all boils down to our own choice of action and what we ultimately eat.  We can be surrounded by all the unhealthiest of choices in the world, but they are only bad if we choose to eat them.

I wish I could say my food choices are driven by the healthy option, like Sage.  Sometimes I'm strong enough.  Other times I opt for the spoon.

How's your will-power?  What do you do to say no to the spoon?  This is a tough topic for me, so I appreciate any advice you can share.

Sage, the Wise and Wonderful

Just a quick note on one of our boys.  

Sage, our oldest, taught me a lesson today on nutrition.  After eating our lunch, he came up to me and said that he was still hungry.  Now, I had just poured some salsa into a bowl and was about to get out the blue corn tortillas when he came over.  I thought he was going to ask for this as a snack. but when I asked him what he wanted, he said. "an apple please!"  And then he asked for another when his bowl was emptied.  This small thing shows me that I created a child who prefers to eat delicious crispiness instead of a different sort of crispiness.  However, I do not know if that apple would have stood a chance up against a cookie, but I still think this is awesome.
Eating yummy curried veggies and lentils over rice.





That was DELICIOUS!


Maybe the next time I am feeling like a snack, I should follow Sage, the wise and wonderful, and get an apple out of the fridge.





















Together we can create a world full of children who think that exercising is fun and eating healthy is delicious.




21 Day Vegan Challenge, Day 5 Recipe

For day 5 I made a tofu and vegetable stir-fry with a peanut sauce.

1 lb tofu, cubed
1 onion, chopped
2 carrots, chopped
~2 cups peas
ginger, minced
2 cloves garlic, minced
~1/2 cup peanuts, roughly chopped
3 Tbsp peanut butter
~5 Tbsp water
2-3 tsp lemon juice
2 Tbsp soy sauce or tamari
olive oil

Pan-fry the tofu in a non-stick skillet pan until the tofu is lightly browned. 
In a wok or large fry pan, add oil and stir-fry the onion, peas, and carrots until the onion is translucent.
In a small sauce-pan, add some oil, garlic and ginger.  Cook for a minute or two, then add the peanut butter, water, lemon juice, and soy sauce.  Stir well, until the mixture is smooth.
Add the tofu to the veggies in the wok, pour the peanut sauce on top.
Serve over rice.

Sage looked at this and said, "I don't like this!"  When he says this I ask him to try a few bits and if he doesn't like it, then he doesn't have to finish it.  Usually, his plate gets emptied.  That was not the case for this dish, but he did eat half of what I gave him.
This dish is really rich and filling, so I think he just got filled up sooner than normal.
Enjoy!

P.S.  I would love to hear some of your amazing vegan dishes.  Please share.

Wednesday, March 21, 2012

21 Day Vegan Challenge - Day 4

Today is day four of our Vegan challenge.  My main goal in setting out on this task was to see if I could do it, and to see how it made me feel.  There are so many stories out there about how good this way of life makes you feel and I wanted a piece of that.  One expectation I didn't have was weight loss.  I thought I could expect to lose a few pounds, but I wasn't sure how much since I've seen plenty of pictures of plump vegans along with pictures of the skinny ones.  

So, that expectation was out the window, until I stepped on the scale this morning and it read 176.0.  On Sunday, just 4 days ago, my weight was 184.4.  

I've been eating about 2000 calories a day and exercising 1 to 2 hours while drinking about 3-4 liters of water daily. I haven't felt deprived at all.  Last night I even had a beer.  Tonight my wife made an amazing vegan enchilada dish.  My comment was that if I new vegan dishes could be this good, I could have gone vegan long a go.  Seriously, they were the best enchiladas I've ever had.  

I'll keep you posted on my results, but already I feel really good.  I feel like I have more energy and just better in general.  Extra weight loss is just an added bonus.  

~Rich


Vegan Enchiladas...Yum!


Black Bean, Spinach, Sweet Potato Enchiladas


1 onion, chopped
3-4 cloves garlic, minced
1 sweet potato, chopped
few big hand fulls of spinach, chopped
1 lb black beans or a couple of cans, drained and rinsed
1 bell pepper, chopped 
lime juice
1-2 tsp cumin
1 tsp cayenne powder
salt to taste
approximately 3 cups of enchilada sauce
olive oil

chop the sweet potato & steam until tender.  in saute pan, add olive oil and chopped onion.  cook on med-low heat until the onions are translucent.  add minced garlic cooking together for a few more minutes (careful not to brown them).  add sweet potato, spinach, and pepper, along with spices.  cook together for ~5 minutes.  add ~2.5 cups enchilada sauce.  let cook for approximately 5 more minutes.  

spoon 1-2 cups of mixture in the bottom of a 9x13 baking dish.  spoon ~1 cup of mixture into tortilla wraps and place on top of mixture.  yields approximately 6-8 enchiladas.  pour the remaining enchilada sauce on top.  bake in oven, heated to 350 for 20 minutes.  we put super yummy guacamole on top of ours when they came out of the oven and served them with rice.
Rich claims that if he knew that food like this existed, he would have become vegan much sooner.
What is left of our dinner!

Injured

Well folks, I got my first injury.  Of all things to hurt, I strained one of my gluteal muscles.  I started noticing it at the end of last week and, not really paying much attention to it, I ran on it all weekend.  Son of a gun, now I am forced to rest, lest I hurt my tush some more.  I am going to give it one whole week without running.  I did go to yoga last evening and I was being mindful of my right buttocks, but don't you know, I strained it a little more and today I am having a hard time even sitting on it.  Hmm, maybe Rich will be kind enough to bring me home a donut (not the kind you eat ;)).

As delicious as this looks, it will not help me!

I would have to figure out how to get my right cheek in the hole....Conundrum? Yes!


























Hopefully I can start my training to go farther, harder, faster next week.  I will let you know how my tush is doing soon.  Now to go rub some arnica gel on it and sit on some peas.

What do you do for your injuries?

Sunday, March 18, 2012

Sunday in the Sun

Sage, waiting on Daddy and Mommy
Today has been an active one.  With a forecast of over 70 degrees, there was no way we weren't going to spend a lot of it outdoors.  So, we began with a walk down to One Yoga Saratoga where I went for the 1 hour of Hot Inversion Yoga.  Sage led the way on his balance bike and while I did yoga, he and Becca went down to Congress Park.

Yoga was challenging, but it was different than expected.  For one, I didn't think it would be on the hot side, so class started at a nice and balmy 104 degrees!  If you think doing handstands and headstands is tough, you should give them a try when it's so hot that it's challenging to breathe and you're covered head to toe in buckets of sweat.  Still, I felt like the class was well worth my while.

Foreman Elliot, would you take orders from this guy?!?
Once Sage went down for his nap, Becca suggested I for a bike ride, so I grudgingly went while Becca got do yard work with Elliot acting as foreman.  It was a short 30 minutes out, but it was really my first time riding my bike since getting it from Pat.  It needs to be more properly fitted to me, but it rides great and feels fast.  On this ride I tried to keep my heart rate in check and found that it was a little more challenging to keep a steady heart rate than with running.  If I was on a trainer I'm sure it'd be more consistent, but on the open road with all the hills it definitely was up and down.


Finally, we took a family run down to Saratoga State Park just before dinner so the boys could enjoy the weather and a nice ride in the Bob.  We took it easy, but it was a great run.  We even experimented with taking pictures while running!  What do you think?  ===============>>


Daylight Savings

I hate that night when we have to set our clocks ahead and  lose an hour of sleep.  Rich and I already do not get a full nights sleep, between Elliot and Sage, we are jerked from our dream state to help them return to their's.  Not that I would give up this life for any other, but losing one precious hour is harsh.  So, when the newsman reminds us that it is that time to set our clocks ahead, there is a common grumble of enmity.  How can we go from 24 hours one day to 23 the next?

There is one fantastic bonus to daylight savings and that is that it is lighter later.  Now, instead of rushing to get out of the house before it gets too dark and worrying about making it home before the sun's final rays sink below the horizon, we can take a nice unhurried run when Rich gets home from work.

I am finding that this brings up another issue, supper.  I have gotten into a great routine and I like to have supper on the table by 5 o'clock, 5:15 at the latest.  Sage is in bed by 7 o'clock, so this gives us plenty of table time and lots of time after we finish to hang out, read some books, and unwind after our day.  Now that we go for runs, I cannot get dinner on the table until 6 or so, and I am not making dinners like I used to, and Sage is going to bed soon after eating.  I would like to continue going on evening runs as a family, but I also would like to continue having a set routine for the boys.

Here are our ideas.  Rich thinks that we should make big pots of beans or our other hot meals one day a week and then just re-heat what we need.  I think that if I start supper between 3:30 and 4 every day, we can just re-heat it when we get back from our runs.

I know that I am not the only parent out there who is having a hard time figuring this balance out.  I would love to hear others' anecdotes on keeping a somewhat "normal" routine.

Saturday, March 17, 2012

Happy St. Patty's Day!

Mid-St. Patty's Day Run
Today, was a short, but really enjoyable 4 miler with the fam. We started at the post office where Sage was finding his echo and entertaining the postal worker.  We then looped around town and finished up at the Farmers' Market.

I don't know if it was because it's Saint Patrick's Day, but everyone we encountered was in a really great mood.

Yay Spring!
I'm So Happy!  
   
It's My First St. Patty's Day!!! 






Thursday, March 15, 2012

Slowing Down to Go Faster

As mentioned in an earlier post, a friend of mine and I are competing in the Timberman Half-Ironman.  We're getting our training schedule from Mark Allen Online and Mark is a big proponent of training with your heart rate no higher than your maximum aerobic heart rate, which for me is 149 beats per minute (if you want to calculate your maximum aerobic heart rate, go the bottom of this post).  Allen still says to do 15-20 minutes per week of speed and interval work in each activity, but that we really need to build a good base to carry us the 70.3 miles.  He also claims I will experience an increase in my pace and after just a few weeks should see a dramatic improvement in the speed I can go at a lower heart rate.

I strongly believe in the benefits and effects interval training can have on a person, but I also buy into this low HR approach.  In 2009 when I started back running, I took my time.  I just cared about getting out and going for long easy runs.  After about 5 weeks of this, I tested out my speed and found that I had improved my mile time by 2 minutes!  For some reason I didn't keep doing what I was doing and decided to train at a faster pace.  You might be able to figure out what happened, but the long and short of it is that I didn't get any faster and started experiencing a lot more aches and pains. This has occurred in another area of my life too.  I once followed a workout routine for 3 months where I went for high reps with low weights.  In that time, my bench max went from 195 to 285.   I was so psyched about how much I could lift that I switched to heavier workouts and guess what...the gains stopped.  

It seems to me, the only thing standing in my way is me and my ability to set my ego aside and take things slow for a little while.  Mark Allen talks about how hard this is on our egos and that's why many will never train this way.  To keep our heart rate low usually means we have to slow way down.  For me it means I have to keep my pace at 9:30 - 9:40 per mile for now.  That's dreadfully slow, but I think I'll be okay with it just as long as it's still not that slow a month from now.  

Training slower also means that I have to either slow down my running partners or trail behind.  Last night in our family run, Becca ended up having to leave me in the dust a couple of times because I had to keep my pace down while pushing the boys...thanks for your patience, honey :-)  

I'm excited though at the prospects here.  Along with the Vegan Challenge, I have high hopes for where I'll be a month from now in my abilities.  

Does anyone have some success to report with this training style?  Anyone think it's bunk and can back up their claim?

~The Mr.
---

So if you want to calculate your maximum aerobic heart rate, there are several methods out there, but here's how Mark Allen's does it: 
1. Take 180 
2. Subtract your age
3. Take this number and correct it by the following: 
    -If you do not workout, subtract another 5 beats. 
    -If you workout only 1-2 days a week, only subtract 2 or 3 beats. 
    -If you workout 3-4 times a week keep the number where it is. 
 
   -If you workout 5-6 times a week keep the number where it is.
    -If you workout 7 or more times a week and have done so for over a year, add 5 beats to the number. 
 
   -If you are over about 55 years old or younger than about 25 years old, add another 5 beats to  whatever 
      number you now have.
    -If you are about 20 years old or younger, add an additional 5 beats to the corrected number you now have. 

Tuesday, March 13, 2012

21 Day Vegan Challenge

We have a new page, Challenges.  We plan to post fun and inspiring challenges to bring awareness to healthy habits.

For our first challenge we will be going 100% vegan for 21 days.  Follow us daily to check our progress.  We would also love to have others join us, so who's in?

Saturday, March 10, 2012

Cross-Training

Thursday night Becca and I had our weekly date night at One Yoga Saratoga.  Our instructor, Justin, gave us a class that mixed up hip openers with inversions.  It was a challenging and amazing class and I actually held handstand pose longer than I ever have before.

The following morning I woke at 3:15 to make sure I got to my friend's house in Niskayuna by 4:00am.  He and I are training for the Timberman Half-Ironman.  During the week we each train on our own and once a week we get together workout and swim.  The first few weeks we hadn't really been pushing ourselves all that much.  This week that started to change.  I don't know if it was because of doing yoga the night before, or because of how early it was, but Friday morning's workout kicked my butt!  To add insult to injury we went to the Niskayuna high school pool where my friend's swim coach put us through some pretty tough drills.

The rest of the day I was really achy and unsure of my ability to stand back up once I sat down.  But, every time I sat down, I was able to get back up, so all's good :-)

~The Mr.


Friday, March 9, 2012

Running With My Dad

Thursday mornings are busy around our house.  Get dressed, brush teeth, make breakfast, clean up breakfast, wait for our veggie/fruit wholesaler to deliver our weekly groceries, and then we're off to gramma and papa's house.  The boy's get to hang out with gramma while I get to go for a run with my dad.  My dad and I started running together in 2008 after I moved back home from living in Washington.  He is over six feet tall and I stand at 5 feet, 5 inches tall.  Surprisingly, we make great running partners.  This Thursday was no different, except that our fruit vendor was very late with his delivery so I thought my dad might hit the pavement without me.  Luckily, I have the best dad in the world and he waited.  We ended up not hitting the road until around 11:30.  We have a great out and back route that goes towards the Batchellerville Bridge on the Great Sacandaga Reservoir.  It is a beautiful and hilly 6-mile run.  My folks are so lucky to live in such a picturesque area.  Thursday's run was not the strongest showing by me, but my dad slowed his pace so that we could continue to chat about life.  My dad has a lot of great advice to give.  He is very knowledgeable and he is a great listener.  He has always taken the time to explain something to me if I'm having a hard time understanding.  I love my dad and I couldn't ask for a better running partner when Rich isn't available.

We chatted a lot about the races that we are going to run this year and we are excited for this year's roster.  This year we have decided to run the Mohawk-Hudson River Marathon on October 7th, which starts in Schenectady, NY and finishes in Albany, NY.    We have the Utica half marathon on May 20th (hopefully, still waiting for confirmation on this one), the father's day mule haul, 5 miles, on June 17th,  the Charlton Heritage 5k on June 2nd, a 10k up in Speculator sometime in August (unless if that falls on the same weekend as Rich's Timberman), and the Stockade-athon 15k on November 11th.  I am sure that I will find some other races to run and I will be sure to keep you all updated on how we do.

Do you have any running partners?  What races do you have lined up for 2012?


Thursday, March 8, 2012

Full Moon Morning Run

This morning I was out the door by 5:05 for a solo run.  I rounded the first corner and hanging out just above the end of the road was one of the most amazing full moons I've ever seen.  The best I can describe the color is that it was pale gold.  It was seemingly huge and looked like it was right out of a Lord of the Rings.  Unfortunately I didn't have a camera with me, and even if I did I doubt I would have captured it's beauty.  BUT, my current Chrome background actually looks very close to what the moon looked like:


Just 10 minutes into my run and the moon had already set.  I was so lucky to get to witness it this morning.  The only unfortunate part was that it wasn't shared with Becca and the kids...I know they would of loved it, even if it meant I had to drag them out of bed before dawn :-)

What are some of the more amazing moments you've witnessed while out running or exercising?  I'd love for you to share them with me

Wednesday, March 7, 2012

Finding My Form

My run today was quick. I overslept and didn't get out the door till 40 minutes after the time I was hoping to leave. I was anxious to give my new shoes a good workout, but only managed a quick 2 miles. Also, the Garmin I'm testing was off a little bit. It said I was pacing at about 20 seconds slower than my actual pace. I was excited about my speed, but would have appreciated more accuracy.

My new Brooks Green Silence shoes
I'm really happy with my new shoes and will write a proper review once I've gotten a variety of runs in on them. But today, I want to talk about why I picked them.

A little over a year ago I picked up a copy of Tim Ferriss's book, The Four Hour Body. There's a section called Ultraendurance I: Going from 5K to 50K in 12 Weeks—Phase I & Phase II. He writes about running form and gets into detail about one style in particular that's supposed to be super-efficient and make you faster in the long run...The Pose Method. I did try this style in January 2011 while there was a good bit of snowcover and I ended up straining my left achilles, which Ferriss points out in the book could be an unfavorable side effect of using the technique. However, I still believed in a more efficient running style existing out there and wanted nothing more than to track it down.

Information on efficient running isn't that plentiful or easy to find. The closest thing I did find was posted by Newton Shoes, but the videos I found to be largely about how you needed their relatively expensive shoes to run like this. The majority of the other information I came across was based around the barefoot/natural running style movement, but I found little instruction for how to properly run barefoot. It seemed like the assumption was that if you wore the barefoot shoes your style would naturally change and all would be well...not so with me. I did try a pair of Nike Free Run+ 2s, but didn't change my form and my knees and shins could barely take it. I'll take the blame for not running properly, but I was frustrated with my inability to Google a solution that I could comprehend. So, I went back to a more traditional shoe.
More time went by until Runner's World published an article about Ryan Hall's running form and it talked about the midfoot/forefoot strike running style. This luckily sparked a lot more internet buzz and I was finally able to find more information that I was looking for, except for one thing...what shoes do you need to properly run like this? I started with Asics Gel Nimbus 12s, which are a good shoe in their own right, but not for forefoot running. Also, my feet fell asleep in these shoes, which really made my form fall apart. So, I returned them and made the switch to Brooks Ravenna 2s. I preferred how these felt over the Nimbus, and my feet never fell asleep, but they still weren't quite right for changing my form. I did stick with these shoes though for the last 5 months because they work great with my old running form and are very comfortable for just wearing around.

A week ago, I received a shoe sale promo from Road Runner Sports and luckily came across the Brooks Green Silence. The price was right and a lot of the reviews talked about how good this shoe was for midfoot runners. So, today I took my first quick jaunt in them and I believe I've found a shoe that works for making the switch to my form. The cushion is good, so I don't think this shoe would count as a barefoot shoe. But, the drop between the heal and the toe box is minimal, which makes landing on the balls of your feet much easier. I have to take more runs to figure this out some more, but I feel like I'm finally making big strides after almost 1.5 years of searching.

Has anyone out there struggled to find better form? What tips or links can you share with me? Any advice would be greatly appreciated!

Tuesday, March 6, 2012

Cold Intervals

This morning was on the strange side.  For starters, I woke probably every two hours last night, and each time I woke I felt as though I had slept an entire night...I wish every night of broken sleep was like that because getting up at 5 today was no problem.  However, my alarm going off woke up Elliot, so I had to race to get him  back to sleep before I could go.  Luckily, that only took 3-4 minutes, then I was off.

Garmin 310XT
I've been testing out a Garmin 310XT, and while yesterday it was a little discouraging to view my slow pace, this morning it was like I was running with a training partner.  I'd look at the pace and it actually helped me pick up my speed.

For my run, it was truly a solo outing...no family, no dog.  I warmed up with a 1 mile run up to the Skidmore track and did four 400 meter repeats with 90 second breaks between each. It was quite the brisk morning (5 degrees), which made catching my breath even more difficult.  The funny part about intervals is that they are really difficult.  You wouldn't think that 1 mile of total running would be more painful than a 10 miler, but for me they are.  I would rather go run for an hour or more than spend the 10-20 minutes doing intervals.  But, I know they're good for me and my overall running performance, so I have to keep up with them.  I think once I'm stronger they'll be more enjoyable, but right now they're just torture.

To wrap up my run I did a quick run back home (1 mile) and got myself ready for the day.

On a side note, my wife and I are what we like to call, "Freaks who love fruit."  About 80% of our daily diet is based on the 80/10/10 raw vegan diet.  The long and short of the diet is that you get your calories from raw foods totaling 80% carbs, 10% fat, and 10% protein.  The rest of our diet is cooked vegetarian.  So, getting ready for the day means making two large banana smoothies and packing other luscious fruits for lunch.


Monday, March 5, 2012

My Evening Run

Well, I got in a short 2.5 miler today.  It was the first solo run I have had in a while and it was a total necessity. Today was a rough one.  It started out rocky and stayed that way.  First I could not find Sage's warm clothes for school until I gave up searching and got the boys in the van.  Guess where everything was?  That's right, in the van.  I have no recollection of putting these in there, but I guess I must have.  They couldn't just walk themselves out there...or could they?  That was just the beginning.  Elliot had a hard day too.  He and I must be on the same wavelength.  He's happy, then I'm happy.  I'm happy, he's happy.  Today, he would not let me put him down for one second.  Poor kid must be getting sick or something.
That's where Rich comes in.  Thank God for that man.  He got home and said, "Why don't you take a run and unwind?"  YES!!  Thank you Rich!  My run was great.  I felt strong and I was able to find my center again, even if it lasts for a short while.  So if you feel like there may not be enough time or you are just not feeling it, do yourself and everyone around you a favor and get out there.  Thirty minutes can be so beneficial.  I am ending this day way better than how it began.

Does running with the family dog count as a run together?

Rocco - My sometimes running partner
Rocco and I set out for a short 3 miler this morning around 5:30 and boy was it chilly!  We did a 1.5 mile loop down to Broadway and back twice.  My legs felt a bit heavy and I was just sluggish in general, but I'm chalking that up to the 7 miler I ran with the fam yesterday.  Even Rocco was pulling as if to say, "why are you so slow today?"  Though he wasn't as good a training partner as Becca, and his conversation skills are mediocre at best, he did still keep me moving and seemed to know when to give a quick glance my way to let me know we need to pick up the pace.

We did have one close run-in with a Ford F-350 who was "stopped" at a light but felt it necessary to creep over the crosswalk as I was going by.  Not sure if he didn't see me or if he just wanted to make sure I was awake, but it definitely got me a bit fired up.




Sunday, March 4, 2012

First Run as a Married Couple

Well, today we ran together for the first time as a married couple.  It was a great run.  A little overcast and windy, but fun.  The boys were snug in the stroller, though halfway into the run, Sage asked that we put the windshield up for him.  Poor fella was a little chilly.  


Rich and I figured out that if we push the boys for 10 minutes and then swap, we do not get overly tired.  I know we all like to believe that we can do everything for ourselves, but having someone to help push on longer runs is almost necessary if you want to get out there, that is, unless if you are superman or wonder woman (we all like to think we are, I know).


This is a great time for Rich and I because for most of the run we get to chat about our ideas and dreams.  We have come up with some really wonderful ideas on runs.  We get to talk about Rich's work and work that we would like to do together eventually.  One of our discussions today was about the Mohawk-Hudson River Marathon and when we got  home we jumped on the computer and signed up.  My dad is going to run it with us, I am so excited about this.  Both my father and Rich have run this marathon and I was going to attempt it last year, but I ended up being pregnant during the time when I would have been training.  This is the year!  No new babies and hopefully no injuries.  We do not think that they allow strollers in this race, so I think that they will sit this family run out and play with their grandma's. 


We also get to do a lot of observing on our runs.  We observe how our body's are feeling, how our breath is flowing through our body.  We get to greet many people and show the boys that it is polite to say "good morning" or "hello!"  On today's run, the local high school cross country team was having a practice run around the park.  They are all very young, kind of made us feel old, and they are all extremely heavy-footed.  We could hear them pounding up behind us.  Maybe they did that so that we knew they were coming, I do not know, but I feel terrible for their knees.  Heavy-footedness aside, they were still much faster than us.