Chia Baked Oatmeal (and energy balls)

If you are looking for two easy recipes to please the tummies of your friends, family or guests this holiday season, check out these two delicious options from Joey - featured in our last two newsletters. Not only are these recipes easy to make but there's a good chance that you have almost all of the ingredients at home right now.

For more tips, education, recipes and motivation on all things health, wellness, nutrition and fitness, be sure to subscribe to our free weekly newsletter here. 

Chai Baked Oatmeal
By Joey Mock, RD, LD, CLT

This baked oatmeal recipe uses the same chai spice blend as the energy balls (featured below). This recipe is easy to prepare and tasty and the leftovers are a quick and satisfying breakfast option. This recipe is not meant to make the entire pan in advance and refrigerate overnight because the oats will absorb too much liquid and result in an over-dry recipe that doesn’t turn out. You can mix up the wet ingredients and dry ingredients separately, refrigerate the wet ingredients, and then mix them together in the morning and bake. For an even faster breakfast, bake the oatmeal ahead of time; cool and refrigerate; and reheat the leftovers in the microwave or 300 degree oven until warmed through.

Ingredients

• 2 cups rolled oats
• ½ cup walnut pieces (optional)
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 2 teaspoons chai spice blend*
• ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
• 1 cup fresh blueberries (or fresh raspberries, raisins, or dried cranberries or 1 apple, cut into small cubes)
• 1 large egg
• 2 cups low fat milk (or non-dairy milk)
• ⅓ cup pure maple syrup, plus ~1 tablespoon for drizzling
• 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
• 1 tablespoon butter (optional)

*Chai Spice Blend
1 ½ tablespoons ground cinnamon
1 tablespoon ground ginger
1 ½ teaspoons ground cardamom
¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
¼ teaspoon ground cloves

Preparation

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit.
2. Butter an 8 x 8″ or 9 x 9″ pan. In a medium bowl, mix together the rolled oats, walnut pieces, baking powder, chai spice blend, and kosher salt.
3. Spread the dry ingredients into the prepared pan. Add the blueberries (or other fruit) in a layer on top.
4. In the same medium bowl, whisk the egg. Add the milk, maple syrup, and vanilla and whisk until combined.
5. Drizzle the milk mixture over the oats in the prepared pan. Use a fork to lightly stir so it gets evenly incorporated.
6. Bake about 40 minutes until the oat mixture has set and the top is golden brown. Remove from the oven and allow to cool for about 10 minutes (or until it is fully set).
7. Before serving, melt the butter with the remaining 1 tablespoon maple syrup (in the microwave or on the stove). Drizzle the butter over the top and serve.
8. Enjoy!
   
   Adapted from: A Couple Cooks recipe.
   
   
   

Chai Energy Balls
By Joey Mock, RD, LD, CLT

It’s the time of year again where there seems to be a sea of rich, holiday baked items everywhere! Try these no-bake Chai Energy Balls as an alternative with nutritional value for a tasty, quick, and convenient snack. Sprinkle a little powdered sugar on top for a festive touch. This recipe makes about 16 balls.

Ingredients

• ½ cup natural creamy almond butter
• ¼ cup pure maple syrup
• ½ teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 2 ¼ teaspoons chai spice blend (store-bought or make your own)*
• Pinch of Himalayan Pink Salt
• 1 cup quick cooking oats
• 3 tablespoons oat flour
• Powdered sugar for sprinkling if desired

*Chai Spice Blend
1 ½ tablespoons ground cinnamon
1 tablespoon ground ginger
1 ½ teaspoons ground cardamom
¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
¼ teaspoon ground cloves

Preparation

1. Place the almond butter, maple syrup, and vanilla in a large bowl and stir until smooth. Stir in chai spice blend and salt.
2. Stir in oats and oat flour.
3. Place the bowl in the refrigerator for about 15 minutes to set (this will make the balls easier to roll).
4. Remove the bowl from the refrigerator. Use a tablespoon to scoop mixture** and roll into balls.
5. Place on wax paper. Sprinkle with powdered sugar if desired.
6. Store balls in an airtight container or Ziploc bag in the refrigerator or freeze for longer storage.
7. Enjoy.

**Time saving tip: One of my favorite kitchen tools, an OXO 1 ½ Tablespoon cookie scoop, works great to quickly scoop the mixture into evenly sized balls. This tool would also make a great holiday gift for anyone who regularly makes energy balls (and/or cookies😁)

A vegetarian Thanksgiving (anytime recipes)

 

We started off the day with a ~3 hour bike ride on our road bikes. We left around 10am and the weather was weird - misty, grey, not too warm, not too cold. We welcomed the fresh crisp air and took in the beautiful sights of nature, farm animals and fall colors. It's incredible that after six years of living in Greenville, SC we are still discovering new routes. Although our country roads are typically pretty quiet from cars, this recent ride treated us with no more than ten cars passing us over just over 50 miles. 

After we returned home around 1:30pm, I cleaned up, had a meal and then got to work in the kitchen. While Thanksgiving food centers around traditions, I see this holiday as a way to create memories over food. And there's no better way to create positive memories than around delish food that feels just as good on the taste buds as it does in the belly. 

I wanted to share the recipes that I used to create the dishes that I prepared for Thanksgiving. These recipes are not exclusive to Thanksgiving - I encourage you to try them out and add them to your weekly menu. If you are like me and feel a bit overwhelmed and anxious with detailed recipes, I will list the ingredients below and then you can click on the recipe link when you are ready to follow the actual recipe. I find it much less cumbersome to purchase ingredients in advance and then prep those ingredients in advance, versus trying to do everything at once (shop, prep, cook all on the same day). 

Sesame Ginger Tempeh Stir Fry

RECIPE LINK

Ingredients: 

• 8oz block tempeh (I used two x 8 ounce blocks of tempeh to have leftovers.)
• 1 cup each carrot sticks and green beans
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 1 tbsp fresh grated ginger
• 1 tbsp fresh garlic
• 1 tbsp sesame oil
• 1 tbsp rice wine vinegar
• 3 tbsp soy sauce/coconut aminos for lower sodium+paleo (I used Tamari sauce)
• 2 tbsp maple syrup
• Sesame seeds, green onion, white rice for serving (optional) (I used sesame seeds)

Broccoli and Quinoa Casserole

RECIPE LINK

Ingredients: 

• 2 cups vegetable broth or water (I used vegetable broth)
• 1 cup quinoa (any color), rinsed under running water in a mesh sieve for a minute and drained
• 16 ounces broccoli florets, either pre-packaged or sliced from 2 large bunches of broccoli
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• ¾ teaspoon salt
• 10 twists of freshly ground black pepper
• ¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes, omit if sensitive to spice
• 8 ounces (about 2 ½ cups) freshly grated cheddar cheese, divided (I used brick provolone and just under 1 cup)
• 1 cup low-fat milk (cow’s milk tastes best but unsweetened plain almond milk works, too) (I used cow's milk)
• ½ tablespoon butter or 1 ½ teaspoons olive oil
• 1 clove garlic, pressed or minced
• 1 slice whole wheat bread (substitute gluten-free bread for a gluten-free casserole)

Creamy Roasted Cauliflower Soup

RECIPE LINK

Ingredients:

• 1 large head cauliflower (about 2 pounds), cut into bite-size florets
• 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided
• Fine sea salt
• 1 medium red onion, chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, pressed or minced
• 4 cups (32 ounces) vegetable broth
• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice, or more if needed
• Scant ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
• For garnish: 2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley, chives and/or green onions (I used dried parsley) 

Vegan Apple and Pear Crumble 

RECIPE LINK

Ingredients: 

• 2 1/2 cups pears, chopped (after peeling)  (I used 3 small Bartlett pears)
• 1 1/2 cups apples, chopped (after peeling) (I used 3 small honey crisp apples)
• 1/8 cup coconut oil (melted)
• 1/8 cup dark brown sugar
• 1 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/4 cup dark brown sugar
• 1/3 cup coconut oil (I used ~2 tbsp vegan butter)
• 1/3 cup walnuts, chopped optional (I used a handful each of chopped walnuts and pecans)

My best friend. 

Campy's plate.

He's always so surprised and patient when he receives his own Thanksgiving plate. 

Happy Tummy. 

Weekend training recap: Miles covered and food consumed

On Friday morning, I got in a light strength session, followed by a 25 minute EZ treadmill run before heading to the airport to pick up Trimarni athlete Stephanie, from Tampa, who was in town for a quick 48 hours for a RETUL fit by Karel. I was really looking forward to spending some time with Stephanie, especially since she loves food and swimming, like me!

It doesn't take much persuading to gather together a group of Trimarnis for a group ride but I promised the Greenville Trimarnis that I would make banana bread to enjoy with smoothies, for after our group ride on Saturday. I knew if I made the bread on Thursday, there would be a great chance that it would not make it to Saturday (and instead, it would end up in my belly). Instead, on Thursday evening, I made a delicious loaf of ginger molasses bread, which was perfect for breakfast on Friday morning.

Ginger Molasses Quick Bread

Pg. 182 from Run Fast Eat Slow

Ingredients

1 1/2 cup dark rye flour, whole wheat or spelt flour (I used spelt)

1 inch knob fresh ginger peeeled and grated, or 1 tsp ground (I used ground0

1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

1/2 tsp fine sea salt

2 tsp baking powder

1 tsp baking soda

1 egg

 1 cup whole milk yogurt (I used 0% Greek as that is what I had in my fridge)

1/2 cup molasses

4 tbsp unsalted butter, melted (I used salted)

1/4 cup golden raisins (I used black)

1 tsp orange zest

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease an 8 1/2 x 4 1/2 inch loaf pan with butter. 

2. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, ginger, cinnamon, salt, baking powder and baking soda. 

3. In a separate small bowl, whisk together the egg, yogurt, molasses, butter, raisins, and orange zest. Add to the dry ingredients and stir just enough to bring the batter together. Do not overmix. The batter will be very thick. 

4. Pour into the loaf pan and bake until a butter knife inserted into the center comes out clean, about 40-45 minutes. 

5. Cool in the pan for 10 minutes, then transfer the loaf to a wire rack and allow to cool completely prior to slicing. 

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After Stephanie got herself situated, it was time to head to Furman for a swim (around 11:30am). I looked at the swim workout on paper and thought, "this isn't too bad". Ha! I was SO wrong.

Stephanie is a fast swimmer so it was nice for me to be pushed in the water. Karel held his own in the next lane and he swam super strong, just coming in a few seconds behind us for each part of the main set.

WU: 300

Pre set: 8 x 50's kick with fins

MS:

100 at 65% w/ 15 sec rest

2 x 100s at 70% w/ 10 sec rest

300 at 70% w/ 30 sec rest

4 x 100's at 80% w/ 45 sec rest

500 at 80% w/ 45 sec rest

6 x100's at 85% w/ 5 sec rest

700 at 85% w/ 1 min rest

8 x 100's at 90% w/ 5 sec rest

We had a hard time holding ourselves back so I am pretty sure all the 100's were 85-100%!

After our workout, I made a beautiful salad. And no, we didn't just eat salad after that mega swim.

We also had fresh bread and quinoa for carbohydrates and Karel made a tuna mix for him and Stephanie and I had cottage cheese for our protein (Stephanie also enjoyed Karel's tuna mix).

In the afternoon, I got to work on the computer and Stephanie got her RETUL fit by Karel. The fit took a bit longer than expected as Karel had to do some mechanic work on her bike to ensure that everything was dialed in. We had planned a short late afternoon spin after the fit, but we were unable to get on the bikes as we ran out of daylight. Instead, Campy got a nice walk before dinner

Dinner was ahhhmazing. I made a shredded apple, apple vinegar and olive oil (with a little mustard) dressing to toss in a broccoli slaw, to serve with basmati rice and marinara and cheese stuffed mushrooms. I made tempeh for my protein and Karel and Stephanie had chicken (Stephanie and Karel also had some of my tempeh). 

We relaxed in the evening after dinner after making a loaf of banana bread for the Trimarnis after our Saturday workout.

We don't always plan group workouts with our Greenville athletes but when we do, we like to have fun. Seeing that most of our Gville Trimarni athletes are parents, we feel it is important to balance the outside long bike workouts with quality indoor bike sessions. Therefore, when we have an athlete in town or we feel the timing is right, we encourage our Trimarnis to get outside and ride with us. While it doesn't happen all the time, it's a great opportunity to see them in action and we always have so much fun. Although our roads are super bike friendly, we do enjoy having safety in numbers. 

For our Saturday morning ride, we had Dana, Meredith, Stephanie, Bryan, Al, Thomas, Chris and Karel. 

Oh, I forgot to mention that it was just around 32 degrees when we started the ride at 9am and the high on Saturday was only mid 40's!! But thankfully, the sun was out and we all dressed appropriately. 

We were so proud of Stephanie for riding so strong on our challenging terrain. She was extremely attentive to our suggestions with her gears and managing the terrain. We did have a few delays in our ride, like a broken chain and a flat tire, but they didn't add on too much time to our 3 hour ride.

There wasn't a cloud in the sky and the cars animals were out enjoying the crisp air.  

I had told Stephanie that our roads do not have shoulders were we ride so she saw first hand that we literally share the road with the cars. 

All smiles for 3 hours and over 3600 feet of climbing. 

We didn't have a route picked out for the ride but instead, Karel was the leader and he just let his bike pick the route as we rode along. We just love where we live as there are so many different routes for riding! 

Although the ride was "endurance", it was not an easy ride due to all the punchy climbs for the last hour. 

But, the mountain views make it all worth it. 

After the ride, it was a quick transition (and hello to Campy) at Trimarni HQ before heading off for a 25 minute run. 

And if you were wondering, our running routes are just as hilly as our biking routes. 

Karel ran with Al, Bryan and Thomas and I stayed with Stephanie, Meredith, Dana and Chris.

Although we all had tired legs from the ride, everyone ran really well. 

Perhaps it was this goodness that was to be devoured after the 3.5 hour workout that motivated the Gville Trimarnis. 

After the workout, everyone came inside our house and as promised, I made everyone berry chocolate Clif protein recovery smoothies (with milk) along with my homemade granola chunks and fresh, warm banana bread. Let's just say that there was nothing left of the banana bread and the granola was happily enjoyed with the smoothies. Happy bellies for everyone!

I was a bit tired in the afternoon but I had to get some work done on the computer so I rested on the couch with Stephanie (while I worked) for a little bit before taking Campy for a long walk and then getting ready for dinner.

Seeing that we rarely eat out, we just LOVE heading downtown for dinner when we have company in town (or it's a special occasion). We invited our Trimarnis to join so we had a nice group for dinner at Pomegranate On Main (one of my fav downtown Greenville restaurants). We first walked around downtown for about 30 minutes to show off our amazing downtown to Stephanie and then headed to the restaurant for our 6pm reservation. I just love the vegetarian options on this Persian menu but I went with the special, which was a mushroom, bean and spinach stew served alongside basmati rice. 

Karel ordered the Shish Kabob which included marinated cuts of tenderloin, eggplant, mushroom, bell pepper, pineapple, zucchini, onion and tomato, along with basmati rice with lime and dill.

In typical Karel fashion, he was full after dinner but somehow, had room for dessert next door at Blueberry Frog. I always joke with Karel that he has this special compartment in his stomach that is reserved for something sweet, no matter how full he feels after a meal. Karel has sweet teeth (not just a sweet tooth). 

On Sunday morning, I woke up to an alarm to take Stephanie to the airport (on her birthday!!) and it was sad to say goodbye to her, but, we will meet again at our Clermont camp in mid March. Although her trip was short, it was a great investment to come to Greenville so that she could get a professional fit by Karel to ensure that her bike was all dialed in for her upcoming season of training and racing. 

After I returned home, I was super sleepy so I went back to bed for for 90 minutes to get myself fully rested before my long run on the treadmill.

My run was challenging but in a good way as it required a lot of focus.

30 minute warm-up

MS: 6 x 10 minutes as (3 min steady, 2 min strong, 3 min steady, 2 min strong, 1 min rest)

Then cool down

Total: 1:42

Karel ran outside for 2 hours and did a similar main set.

We typically swim on Sunday afternoon but we were tired and felt we would get nothing out of the swim so we stayed home and stayed busy with some work that we needed to get done.

What a great weekend of eating and training, filled with great people and lots of miles in and around Greenville, SC!

Weekend recap: FOOD (from Run Fast Eat Slow cookbook)

Karel and I take our eating just as seriously as our training.

In other words, without counting calories, measuring food or recording/logging what we eat, we make a conscious effort every day to use food for nourishment, disease prevention and for fuel, while timing our nutrition with our training to best adapt to training stress. We do not have an off-limit food list, we never feel deprived, stuffed or guilty when eating, processed food IS consumed and we even eat gluten, dairy and sugar.  

What a refreshing statement seeing that so many athletes struggle with developing a healthy relationship with food and the body.

Having said all this, like any human being, creating a sustainable, enjoyable and healthy style of eating is always a work on progress. A typical week of eating for me is very different than how I ate 10 years ago and how I ate when I was a teenager. Even though I have been a vegetarian for almost 25 years, my definition of "healthy" eating has changed every year and it continues to evolve based on my love of cooking and trying new food creations. 

As someone who gets inspired by food pictures but feels overwhelmed and stressed when looking at a list of ingredients and instructions to follow, I have never been one to follow a recipe in a cookbook. That is, until I was given the Run Fast Eat Slow cookbook by Trimarni athlete Adam and his wife Taylor as a gift. As a Board Certified RD, health conscious individual and 11 year endurance triathlete, I am not only enjoying reading this cookbook but following the recipes (I still tweak the recipes a bit :)

I feel like this cookbook is a game changer for any athlete who wants to eat a more real food, varied diet. Why? Because the recipes are not only delicious but the ingredients are versatile. This cookbook does not prescribe to any diet fads but instead, includes a variety of starches, grains, oils, vegetables and proteins with plenty of gluten free, vegetarian, vegan and dairy free options depending on your dietary needs. 

I am having so much fun in the kitchen with this cook book and absolutely loving incorporating even more real food into our diet. For any athlete who feels like your eating strategies are based on calories, dietary trends, isolated food groups or restriction, I feel that this book will inspire you to eat in a more nourishing way, tasting food, eating mindfully and intuitively and above all, enjoying the fruits of your labor in the kitchen. 

And above all, I encourage you to eat a more varied, real food diet and to reduce the amount of convenient and heavily processed food in your typical eating regime. Spend more time in the kitchen with yourself, your kids or your spouse.

Need some real food inspiration?

Here are a few recipes that we enjoyed this past weekend.

(Note, I copied the recipes from the book but also omitted what I did/didn't do/use and added my notes. For example, many of the recipes call for toasted nuts or coconut and I did not toast the nuts before using them in the recipe). 

Moroccan Lentil Salad with Cauliflower Couscous

Pg. 96

Ingredients: 

1 cup dried green lentils, sorted and rinsed

1/2 tsp fine sea salt

3 medium carrots, peeled and grated

2 cups loosely packed chopped kale, stems removed

1/2 cup chopped pistachios or almonds

1/2 cup chopped dried apricots

1/4 cup pitted, chopped kalamata olives (I don't care for olives so I left this out)

1 tbsp ras el hanout, Moroccan spice blend (1 tsp ground cinnamon + 1 tsp turmeric + 1 tsp cumin + 1/4 tsp ground black pepper)

5 cups cauliflower couscous

Dressing: Maple-Dijon Apple Cider vinaigrette

Instructions: 

1. Place the lentils in medium pot, add salt and cover with 2 inches of water (my leftover tip: Double this portion of lentils). Bring to a boil over high heat then reduce heat to low, cover and simmer until tender, but not mushy, 25-30 minutes. Drain and set aside to cool. 

2. Place the carrots, kale, nuts, apricots, olives and spice in a large bowl. 

3. Add the cauliflower couscous (see recipe below) and lentils and toss until evenly combined.

4. Add 2/3rds of the dressing (see recipe below), toss and taste. Add more dressing to taste, if needed. 

5. Cover the salad and place in the fridge to chill for at least 30 minutes or until ready to serve. 

To make cauliflower couscous (pg 156)

1 large head cauliflower (1.5-2 lbs)

2 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil

1 tsp ground cumin

1/4 tsp fine sea salt

1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper

1. Quarter the cauliflower head and cut off the individual florets. In a food processor (I use the Ninja Master Food Prep), place the florets, filling only halfway and pulse several times until finely chopped. Transfer to a large bowl and continue with the remaining florets until all resemble couscous size granules.

2. In large skillet set over medium heat, warm the oil. Add the cauliflower, cumin, salt and pepper and cook, stirring continuously until cauliflower is soft but still crisp (about 3 minutes). 

To make Maple-Dijon Apple Cider Vinaigrette (pg 173)

1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil

1/4 cup apple cider vinegar

2 tsp maple syrup

1 tbsp dijon mustard

1/2 shallot, minced

1/4 tsp fine sea salt

1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper

1. Combine the oil, vinegar, syrup, mustard, shallot, salt and pepper in a glass jar with a lid. Shake vigorously until emulsified.

For a creamy vinaigrette, omit the syrup and instead, add 2 tbsp tahini.

The dressing will keep in the fridge for up to 1 week. If the oil solidified, briefly microwave on low until melted. 

Cashew Pesto
Pg. 67
(Original recipe was an arugula cashew pesto but since I eat so much arugula in my daily diet, I omitted the arugula and just made the cashew pesto instead. The recipe called for 2 cups tightly packed arugula)

Ingredients

1 cup cashews or walnuts (I used cashews)

1 1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese

1 or 2 cloves garlic (I used 2 and it was very garlicky - which we like!)

1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil

2 tsp white miso paste (I couldn't find this at the grocery so I omitted it)

2-3 tbsp lemon juice

1 tsp lemon zest

Instructions1. In a food processor, combine the nuts, (arugula), Parmesan an garlic. Process until coarsely chopped. Add the oil, miso, lemon juice and zest. Process until desired consistency is reached.

2. Transfer to a container with a tight-fitting lid and store in the refrigerator for up to 5 days or freeze for up to 3 months.

3. To make a sauce (thinner consistency) just add more olive oil, broth or water.

You can add this to a sandwich, wrap or pita, toss in a salad or add on top of boiled potatoes. 

Giddy-up Energy Bites
Pg. 57

Ingredients

12 large Medjool dates, pitted

1 cup dried unsweetened cherries (I used dried apricots)

1 cup raw chopped walnuts

1/4 cup unsalted almond butter

1 tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder

2 tbsp finely ground coffee beans

1/4 tsp fine sea salt (I use pink Himalayan salt when I cook as it contains iodine)

1/2 cup shredded unsweetened dried coconut

1. In a food processor, combine the dates, cherries, walnuts, almond butter, cocoa powder, coffee and salt. Pulse a few times to chop the ingredients and then process on high speed for 1-2 minutes, stopping once or twice to scrape down the sides of the bowl and beneath the blade with a spatula. Process until the ingredients clump together. 

2. Empty the contents into a medium bowl. Use your hands to shape the mixture into 24-walnut-size balls and roll each ball in the coconut (I combined the coconut into the blender and omitted this step of rolling the balls in the coconut).

Store in an airtight container for up to 1 month or in freezer for 6 months. 

A great snack before an early morning workout. Just be mindful of how well (or not so well) dried fruit digests in your belly before a workout). 

Blueberry Lemon Cornmeal Scones
Pg. 59 - Karel's new favorite pre-workout snack!

Ingredients1 cup stone-ground cornmeal
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup sugar
2 tsp baking powder
1 /2 tsp fine sea salt
1 stick (8 tbsp) cold unsalted butter cut into cubes
2 eggs
1/3 cup whole milk Greek yogurt (I used 0% Greek yogurt as it was what I had in the fridge)
1 tsp vanilla extract
Finely grated zest of 2 lemons
1 cup frozen blueberries

Instructions
1. Position rack in the middle of the oven. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. 

2. In large mixing bowl, whisk together the cornmeal flour, sugar, baking powder and salt.
3. Using a pastry blender or your fingers, work the butter into the flour mixture until it's the size of peas.
4. In a separate bowl, whisk together the eggs, yogurt, vanilla and lemon zest. Add to the dry ingredients and stir until combined. Fold in blueberries. The dough will be thick and sticky.
5. Drop the batter in large spoonfuls onto the baking sheet in the shape of a triangle. Place 2 inches apart on baking sheet.
Bake until lightly browns on bottoms, 15-20 minutes. Transfer to a rack and cool. 

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Double Chocolate Teff Cookies

pg. 187 (I didn't have Teff flour so I used gluten-free all purpose flour)

These are SO good. Crunchy on the outside and soft in the inside. Vegan and gluten free.

Ingredients

3/4 cup teff flour  (I used GF flour)

1/2 cup almond flour

1/3 cup semisweet chocolate chips (I used 60% Ghirardelli bittersweet chocolate chips)

1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

1 tsp baking powder

1/4 tsp baking soda

1/4 tsp fine sea salt (I used pink H. salt)

1/2 cup pure maple syrup

1/3 cup coconut oil, melted (I used canola oil)

1 tsp vanilla extract

Instructions

1. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, chocolate chips, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda and salt.

2. Add the maple syrup, oil and vanilla and stir just until combined. For a more tender cookie, cover the batter and refrigerate overnight prior to baking (I didn't do this last step - Karel was anxious to try these cookies!).

3. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

4. Drop the batter by heaping tbsp 1 inch apart on the baking sheet (our cookies were a little bigger :)

5. Bake in the center of the oven until the bottoms are lightly brown. 12 minutes. Let the cookies cook for 5 minutes, then transfer to a rack to cool completely. 

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I am excited to try out more recipes next weekend. Except for the scones - Karel is asking for more ASAP! I think this time I will change up the ingredients and make cranberry orange scones.

For now, we have a lot of leftovers to enjoy (the best part about cooking!). 

Feed me...I'm training for an Ironman!!

How much food does it take to fuel two triathletes training for the Ironman World Championship? 

A lot!!

With almost 9 weeks left until Karel and I use our bodies for 140.6 miles on the big island of Kona, the training is getting a lot more specific....and a LOT longer. 

There is a lot to juggle every day with work/business, training and the rest of life and a lot of food must be consumed to keep our bodies healthy and well fueled. 

As for our weekly staples (we make at least two grocery trips per week):
Milk
Eggs
Cheese
Yogurt
Deli meat/meat (for Karel)
Tempeh/tofu
Irish butter
Cottage Cheese
Veggies - all kinds
Mixed greens
Fruit - all kinds
Potatoes
Waffles
Oats
Fresh bread - all kinds

Saltine crackers

Pretzels
Rice cakes

Cereals
Maple Syrup/honey
Peanut butter
Jam
Soup
Rice
Whole Grains
Coffee

I think that's it for the weekly staples and there are always "extras" based on what we make for meals, what we are craving and what is accessible and convenient.
But regardless of how much we train or how busy we are with work, there is always time for home cooking. 

A big time saver for us has been preparing a big batch of food and eating twice (and cooking once). One skillet dishes work great for less clean-up but on the days when we have more time, we plan for leftovers and load-up the stove and oven. 

Here are a few of the many dishes that have helped fuel our extremely active and busy lifestyle over the past week. 

A delicious combination of lentils, basmati rice and a stir fry of red peppers, celery, corn and onions (cooked with olive oil) topped with cheese. 

Store-bought DiGiorno spinach, mushroom and garlic pizza dressed up with extra mushrooms and served with a large salad. 

Maple-syrup drenched french toast made with fresh local bread and free-range eggs.
Served with fresh fruit...and did I mention a lot of syrup? I stocked up when we were in Lake Placid! 

We love summer fruit!! Berry, cherry overload!! 

Keeping it simple with Amy's Organic soup dressed up with frozen veggies. Served warm with a dollop of Greek Yogurt. 

The egg salad requires a little patience to prep but it's always worth it!

3 eggs, 1 egg white 
3 large radishes chopped
1/4 cup onions chopped 
3 stalks celery chopped
4 red sweet peppers
Large spoonful Fage 0%plain Greek yogurt
1 tbsp horseradish mustard
Salt and pepper to taste

An overflowing taco stuffed with lettuce, cheese, Greek yogurt, veggie meat, kamut, edamame, peppers, mushrooms, onions and corn.

And while we emphasize a real food diet throughout the day, it's all about sport nutrition "products" when we train to help meet the metabolic demands of training.  

AND to help keep our body in good health by supplying our bodies with the fluids, carbohydrates/sugars and electrolytes that we need.


I hope you enjoy fueling your body in motion just as much as we do! 

Joy to carbs

I can't believe that in today's society, I have to put on a game face and boxing gloves when it comes to talking about carbohydrates.

As a sport RD, it just boggles my mind that I have to convince athletes to consume carbohydrates in the diet (and before, during and after workouts) in order to improve performance, support the immune system and to keep an athlete strong and healthy.

It takes a lot of extra effort to encourage athletes to consume carbs (and sport nutrition) when they are seeking body composition changes but since the "experts" are giving unhealthy and unnecessary advice, then I guess it's my job to not only provide realistic, practical and safe nutrition advice but also lead by example.

(As always, with experience as a clinical RD, working inpatient in the hospital, I treat every athlete as an individual and never do I overlook clinical/personal issues when it comes to tweaking the diet. Thus, another reason why I am not a fan of mass marketed diets/diet cults)

As a health conscious, active individual, you'll never see a day in my life without carbs.
No way, never.
Thanks to carbs, I sleep well, my gut is happy, my blood sugar is stable, I think clearly, I have lots of energy, my workouts are great, I recover quickly, I always have a great relationship with food and I rarely experience cravings. 

Oh, don't even try to ask Karel to give up bread for even a day. It ain't happening.

And because Karel loves his European treats and I love Karel, by default, I love European treats too! 

So I bring you Joy to Carbs.
Oh how we love carbs! 

Fresh baguette dusted with coarse salt, local black bean hummus and trail mix from Swamp Rabbit Cafe.

So easy, so delicious, so inexpensive, so nourishing. Beans, rice and roasted veggies. 

Fresh bread (Great Harvest Bread) with argula, tomatoes, spicy mustard, avocado, onion and homemade egg salad w/ vegenaise (thanks Trimarni athlete Kristen for making this delicious meal for us!) and a side of cucumbers (because they wouldn't fit in my sandwich).

Eggplant pizzas (eggplant drizzled with olive oil, topped with fresh tomatoes cooked on non stick pan sprayed with cooking spray cooked at 425 degrees for 20-25 minutes or until firm, then topped with fresh basil and spicy Cabot cheese). Homemade cabbage with caraway seeds (Karel special!) and roasted tempeh. 

Warm crunchy oatmeal, enjoyed while Campy watches for squirrels.
Oats (typically 1/2 cup), frozen berries, chia seeds (2 spoonfuls), cinnamon (love it!), a little dark chocolate, nuts (ex. walnuts, pecans - spoonful, chopped), banana slices and milk. Cooked and topped with a little granola. 

Quinoa with steamed veggies topped with cheese and a side of cooked tempeh.

Trimarni office snacks for a busy day of working for me and Karel!
Saltine crackers (a great snack option for athletes in the 48 hours before the race!), hummus, raw veggies, grapes and dates...and mint Dove dark chocolate.

Crumbled tempeh, mixed veggies (leeks, peppers, mushrooms, corn), fresh basil, quinoa. 

Ironman fueling - happy tummy Trimrni creations

We are off to Madison, Wisconsin tomorrow!! 

The weather is looking GREAT for race day and our bodies are feeling healthy thanks to a lot of great, delicious, real food!

I thought I'd share a few yummy creations that we have enjoyed over the past 2 weeks. 

Don't forget to yum!

Chia crepes and egg and kale omelet

1 cup whole wheat flour
1/2 cup skim milk
2 tbsp chia seeds
1/8 tsp salt

Dash of cinnamon
3/4 - 1 cup water

1 egg

Olive oil

1. Mix ingredients in bowl for crepes until thin consistency. 

2. In a medium skillet on low heat, drizzle olive oil to lightly coat bottom of the pan. 

3. Pour crepes (around 1/3 cup) in middle of skillet and spread to make a large, thin pancake with back of spoon (you need to do this quickly and your pan can not be hot, it needs to be on the low setting. You may also use this batter for pancakes). 

4. Cook for 1-2 minutes until firm on edges, then flip and cook for 1 minute. 

Omelet
1 egg white + 1 whole egg
Kale
Cheese (Cabot Sharp cheddar)

1. Add eggs (scrambled) to small skillet and then add chopped kale.
2. Flip omelet to cook the other side. 

3. Remove from skillet and fold. Top with cheese. 

Berry Yummy snack!

Snacks on the go!
Peanuts, strawberries, banana

Tomato soup with basil, mushrooms and rice

Combine cooked rice/whole grains, sliced mushrooms, corn and garlic with 1 can tomato soup + 1/2 cup water in large pot. 

Cook for 15-20 minutes and top with basil. 

Mushroom and corn tomato soup

1 box low sodium tomato soup (I use Trader Joes brand)
1 package mushrooms

1 cup corn
Garlic, basil, pepper

Mashed cauliflower and egg veggie hash

Mash 1 head steamed cauliflower and combine with 1 cooked potato (with skin). Season with parsley, a little salt/pepper

Stir fry: eggs, veggies to your liking. Saute veggies with a little olive oil and then scramble eggs with veggies. 

Mellow Mushroom - create your own salad

Out to eat in Jax with friends (Karel did RETUL fits at Open Road Bicycles last Mon - Wed)

Bed of greens
Tempeh
Artichoke
Sundried tomatoes
Cheese
Dressing on the side

Cauliflower "rice" 

Marinated Tofu Steaks

Raspberry pistachio salad

Raspberries

Cabbot sharp cheddar

Pistachios
Shredded carrots
Green pepper

Mix greens

Kale and tempeh stir fry

Cabbot cheese

Sauteed kale, mushrooms and tempeh (in olive oil)

Rainbow salad

Mixed greens

Tomatoes
Apples
Kiwi
Dried blueberries and cranberries
Broccoli
Carrots

Tofu salad

1 package tofu (grilled on skillet)
Sliced celery, tomatoes, leeks
Parsley
Salt/pepper to taste

A few spoonfuls Greek yogurt (Fage 0% plain) to taste
1-2 tbsp mayo
1 tbsp spicy mustard

Tuna salad

2 cans tuna (packed in water) - drained
Sliced celery, tomatoes, leeks
Parsley
Salt/pepper to taste

A few spoonfuls Greek yogurt (Fage 0% plain) to taste
1-2 tbsp mayo
1 tbsp spicy mustard

Eggplant pizza, mango slaw and more!

On Saturday, my body did not disappoint me. I was actually very impressed with how my body performed with 6800 feet of climbing over 85 beautiful, hilly miles. Our ride included a 45-minute (for me), 5 mile climb to the top of Ceasers Head which has an elevation of 3215 feet. And to finish off the fun, I had a good two more hours of riding behind Karel's wheel to finish off our workout.
In the past I would have called this a training camp but now it's just part of our training, in our new backyard.
I will do a separate blog on this ride soon. In the mean time, let's eat!

After our 85-mile ride and 4 mile run, we did a little resting coupled with computer work and then it was time for some meal prep for our first house guests in Greenville!
Our friends Kristen and Trent Norris (and Trimarni athletes) came to Greenville from Charleston for their own personal Trimarni mini training camp in prep for Ironman Boulder and since nothing beats a home cooked meal, I couldn't wait to make their bellies happy after our awesome morning of training (they did a slightly shorter route of around 64 miles followed by a 15 min run).
After our workout we had our first real meal of the day (glass of milk w/ whey protein and handful granola for a recovery snack and then eggs, fresh bread and fruit for a meal for me) and then snacked throughout the afternoon before dinner. Mini carb + protein meals are best for helping the body recover and repair as oppose to one large super filling post workout meal followed by several hours of not eating.

For starters, an assortment of foods to meet the many cravings of athletes after a workout:
-Sweet cravings - fresh dates
-Salty - Pretzels and Triscuits
-Carby - fresh baguette from the local French bakery
-Crunchy - Mixed raw veggies
and hummus for dipping/spreading
 

 

Pizza makes me super happy all the time so I decided to do eggplant pizzas.

Eggplant Pizzas
2 large eggplants (cut into slices)
Panko bread crumbs
2 egg whites (slightly scrambled)
Marinara sauce
Fresh Mozzarella cheese
Fresh Basil (chopped)
Pepper and garlic spice

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Arrange items: plate of sliced eggplant to far right, then shallow bowl of egg whites and then shallow bowl of bread crumbs.
3. Take one eggplant and place into bowl of egg whites for a second until slightly coated (just one side) and then press into bread crumbs and then place onto non stick cooking sheet sprayed with non stick spray. Continue doing this until all eggplant slices are coated.
4. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until breadcrumbs are slightly toasted or eggplant is soft.
5. Remove pans and spread a spoonful of sauce on each eggplant and top with a pinch of fresh basil (as much as you want) and then a few pieces of mozzarella (I just broke the cheese into pieces instead of one thick slice on top).
6. Season with your choice of seasonings (I used fresh cracked pepper and garlic powder).
7. Bake for an additional 10-15 minutes or until cheese is melted. 

Instead of a salad I wanted to do a refreshing slaw that had a bit of sweetness to it.
This slaw is very versatile and you can use whatever ingredients you are in the mood for such as nuts/seeds, raisins, cranberries, dried fruit or a different flavor of yogurt. This was a delicious side to our meal. 

Mango Slaw

2 bags slaw (I purchased from Publix grocery store)
1 large mango (soft to the touch)
1/4 cup unsweetened shredded coconut
Pinch of salt
2 small containers of pineapple chobani 0% Greek yogurt

1. Pour slaw into a large bowl.
2. Spoon yogurt into bowl and mix with a large mixing fork until evenly combined. 

3. Add a pinch of salt (to taste) and coconut and mix.
4. Add cubed mango and combine. 

5. Refrigerate for 2 hours before serving.
(best if consumed within 3 days)

My plate made me yum a lot and my belly was super happy.
For my protein I kept it simple, a black bean Morning Star veggie burger. For everyone else, Karel made baked chicken (his own recipe).
We also had a bowl of Jasmine rice w/ onions because we LOVE jasmine rice. 

And for dessert......

Fresh cold seedless watermelon and

Dark Chocolate covered almonds from Trader Joes.

I hope you enjoyed your weekend, trained hard and smart and did some yumming with your own happy tummy "food is fuel and food is medicine" creations. 

Real food homework and a speedy/endurance track workout

This endurance body is happily fueled by real food.
AND
Plant strong for almost 21 years.

A Karel creation:
Jasmine rice and a stir fry of tempeh, peanuts, onions, mushrooms, peppers and marinara on top arugula.
This creation was enjoyed last night and made my tummy/muscles super happy for an early morning wake-up call (4:20am) for a 5:30am track workout. 

Love your afternoon snack
Honor your biological hunger in the afternoon. Do not expect your body to allow you to go from lunch to dinner without food (especially if more than 4 hours between meals or if working out in the evening). A mid afternoon snack is a great way to nourish your body and boost energy. 
Here's one of my fav mid day snacks: 1/2 cup Chobani Greek yogurt + fresh fruit chopped + a few spoonfuls of KIND or organic granola. Enjoy!

Refueling from a long brick
Asparagus, mushrooms and tofu tossed with pasta noodles and marinara, topped with Parmesan.
Karel had the same (larger portion) but chicken instead of tofu. So much flavor! Yum!

Track workout w/ Karel and a large motivating group - feeling the need for speed (and endurance)
2 mile run warm-up
10 min dynamic stretching/warm-up on track
MS: 3x's through
800
600
400
200
(with 200 jog in between)
~1 min rest in between the 3 rounds to refuel/hydrate
(I had 1 scoop INFINIT ISIS Hydration in my bottle to sip during the workout)
~8 miles total (including warm-down laps in opposite direction)

Trimarni homework

Write down the ingredient lists of the foods you are consuming today. (If you are eating out, look up the ingredients online.)

This assignment is for product awareness and to help you form a healthier relationship with the food that you choose to put into your body. This is NOT designed to make you scared of food or to hate food.
Also, this homework is focused on the ingredients in food and not on focusing on organic, genetically modified, gluten, dairy.

Because there is an overload of information on how to "eat healthy" with so much conflicting information (and often causing a lot of disordered eating habits or feeling incredibly frustrated with food), the first step in creating a more balanced diet is to make an effort to eat more real food. Once you incorporate more real food into your daily diet, you will then need to gravitate toward making time to prepare food and maintain this real food diet. It does not have to be perfect (there's no such thing) but instead, make an effort to prioritize real food as much as possible with your daily meals/snacks.
(and stop reading forums/blogs when the "expert" is yelling at you about what foods are bad. Seek out information that inspires you and motivates you to make slow yet healthy changes that move you closer to your personal goals and contact a professional (RD) who will give you credible information. You can not make changes in your lifestyle if you are always worrying about what other people are doing and you will find yourself with info overload if you continue to use the internet to search for the "right" answer.)

Because it doesn't seem appropriate to start changing your eating habits by dissecting real food if you have yet to be consistent with eating food that is grown from earth, take a look at your daily diet to see what immediate changes may make a meaningful difference in your life and health.

Consider clinical, fitness, religious, ethical and personal experiences when it comes to individualizing YOUR diet.

Show yourself that you can prioritize real food for 2 weeks - making time to cook and time your meals/nutrition appropriately around your workouts and schedule- and your body will be in a better place to start making more individual choices with your diet.


There is so much information out there and many times, info that may not apply to you and your goals (or lifestyle).

Your occasional foods should be enjoyed and your daily diet should enhance life.

Simple swaps can easily improve your health and can keep you from feeling the itch to jump on the elimination food/mass marketed diet train. Instead of hearing that dairy is bad and is causing bloating, swap out the artificially flavored yogurt and replace with Greek Yogurt and add real fruit. If you have heard that whole grains are bad or gluten is bad, consider adding organic whole grains like quinoa, teff, millet or wild rice to your diet.

Like with anything in life, you can't rush changes when you want long lasting results.
So instead of wondering if you should choose organic oatmeal vs non-organic oatmeal.....

I recommend to first transition to using plain oatmeal and then adding your own fresh fruit, nut and spice add-in's instead of prioritizing a quick option like flavored oatmeal. 

It's an easy switch but it does require a lifestyle change. To prepare food ahead of time (and you need tupperware if you are taking this to work to eat)

But to make these changes, you have to not only buy the items but you have to plan ahead. And in our rushed society it's much easier to eliminate foods and "not" do something than to be more proactive and add something to our schedule (yet that something may improve health).

Simply identify any ingredients that may give you an "ah-ha" moment as to why you may not be feeling so "healthy" such as food dyes, artificial ingredients, additives/chemicals. Also ask yourself how and why you are consuming those foods. Remember - you can't eat a salad very well in a car and you can only stuff so much "salad" with your protein and healthy fat choices between two slices of bread. Is bread bad or is it what you are eating and when?

Your goal is to gradually move toward a more real food, balanced diet. Not only will real food make your body feel better but it's scientifically proven that a real food balanced diet provides your body with the necessary vitamins and minerals that can reduce risk for disease and improve longevity, health, performance and mood. If you love to eat and you like all those great outcomes of eating real food, what's keeping you from making the necessary small steps?

The ultimate goal is to not feel the pressure from "experts" who are brainwashing you to eliminate heart-healthy real-foods that may improve your health.

If you need individual help, seek out an RD to treat your individual body.

Happy real food eating and enjoying your body in motion.

Thanksgiving creations

I hope everyone had a wonderful day of giving thanks and the rest of 2013 brings happiness, love, more memories, movement with your awesome body and lots of yummy eats.

For everyone who was worried about Campy after Karel shared some pictures on Facebook, from Campy's vet appointment on Wednesday, Campy is doing great. Thank you for your kind words for our furry child!

Campy has an on/off ear issue inside his left ear and I really like my mom's vet, Dr. Griffin, who Campy saw in September for his ear. Campy's ear has been much better after Dr. Griffin treated him a few months ago, so we decided to get another check-up since Campy still gets a bit sensitive with his ear.

Sadly, Campy had to get a little sedation for his treatment because Dr. Griffin had to get deep inside his ear. Campy was not his normal self that evening but not to worry.....

After a good night of rest, he was back to his opinionated, loving, active self. 

 

 I wanted to share a few creations that I enjoyed for my 21st (or 20th - hard to remember) vegetarian Thanksgiving. I have so much to be thankful for that it is no problem for me to enjoy a delicious Marni-friendly meal around my non-vegetarian family (and Karel) as we aren't spending our meal discussing good or bad foods but instead, sharing memories and of course, doing a lot of yumming. 

Here are a few creations, along with the normal staples of mashed potatoes, steamed veggies, sweet potatoes and stuffing (made out of the bird for me to enjoy with everyone else).

Tempeh celery salad

 2-3 stalks celery (chopped)
1 packaged tempeh (cooked in a little olive oil on medium heat until golden brown)
Chopped onion (about 1/4 cup)
A few spoonfuls greek yogurt (to taste)
Parsley (2-3 tbsp - to taste)
Pinch of salt and pepper (to taste)
1-3 tbsp of lemon juice (to taste)
optional: chopped pickles

1. Mix together and refrigerate for 1 hour.
2. Serve cold.

Cranberry apple cobbler

 

 (I recommend to use a large casserole dish and not a 9" pie dish - I took this pic before the topping started oozing over so I switched dishes - oops!)

Filling:
3 Granny smith apples and 2 pink lady apples (peeled and chopped)
1/2 bag cranberries
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/8 tsp ground nutmeg
2 tsp cornstarch
juice of 1 lemon
pinch of salt

Topping:
3/4 cup milk
1 cup all-purpose flour

1/4 cup white sugar
2 tsp baking soda
pinch of salt

2 tbsp butter (I used Olivio butter)

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
2. In a large bowl, toss together filling ingredients.
3. In a separate bowl, whisk topping ingredients.
4. Spread butter on bottom of casserole dish. 

5. Fill with fruit mixture.
6. Pour topping over fruit filling.
7. Bake for 1 hour or until juices are bubbling or cobbler is golden.

Orange cranberry sauce

 4-5 oranges (or 2/3 cup orange juice)
1 bag cranberries (12-ounce bag)
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/8 tsp ground cloves

pinch of salt 

1. Using a sharp knife, remove peels from oranges and squeeze juice into measuring cup to make 2/3 cup orange juice.
2. Combine the juice, cranberries, brown sugar, cloves and pinch of salt in saucepan. 

3. Bring to a boil and reduce heat to low and stir occasionally until thickened around 10-15 minutes.
4. Serve warm, room temperature or cold (a great "jam" for bread)

(adapted from Eatingwell  magazine - December 2013 issue)

 

The final masterpiece! Happy tummy!

 And Campy was wide-awake to enjoy his own Thanksgiving plate. What a lucky doggy!!

 The best part of having a vegetarian mommy - lots of leftovers for Campy.

Guess what day it is tomorrow????

Small business Saturday!!


We would like to thank everyone who has already placed an order for a custom Trimarni kit - which includes tri top, tri shorts, cycling shorts and/or cycling jersey (purchased together or separately) as well as ordering a Trimarni t-shirt.

Our Trimarni store is only opened for 1 more week so if you are interested in sporting and supporting Trimarni in 2014, check out our store with our NEW design and colors for 2014 (designed by Karel).

Order here: Trimarni Store

Thank you for supporting small businesses!! 

Let's eat! Trimarni sushi, pomegranate banana bread and more!

Pomegranate smoothie
1/3 cup pomegranate seeds
1/2 large orange (without peel)
1 large celery stick (chopped)
1/2 large banana (very ripe)
1 tsp ginger chopped
1 tbsp chia seeds
1/2 cup  milk
1/3 cup greek yogurt (Fage 0% plain)
Small handful spinach
1 tsp cinnamon
~25g protein powder
10 ice cubes
water to meet consistency needs.

1. Blend ingredients for 90 seconds to make a smoothie meal that is thick enough to eat with a spoon. 

Zucchini pomegranate banana bread
2 bananas (very ripe), mashed
1 egg
1 tbsp olive oil
1/4 tsp salt
1 tbsp vanilla extract
1/3 cup skim milk
Pinch nutmeg
Pinch all spice
1 tsp cinnamon
1 cup zucchini (shredded)
1 cup pomegranate seeds.
2 tbsp white sugar
1 tsp baking powder
1 cup oat flour

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray two 8 x 1 1/2 inch pans with non stick spray.
2. Combine all ingredients except flour and mix well.
3. Add the flour until evenly combined.
4. Pour batter in one pan until 3/4th filled. Pour leftover batter in other pan (will make a thinner bread for pan #2).
5. Bake for 45-50 minutes. 

Mixed greens salad w/ fresh fruit and pistachiosMixed greens with pistachios, pomegranate, avocado, raspberries, apples, orange pepper, chives, purple onion, edamame and Parmesan topped with olive oil and a side of bakery fresh bread.

Avocado Sushi
Wild rice (cooked)
Sauteed onions and mushrooms (in oven or skillet - tossed in a little olive oil) or raw
Avocado - chopped

1. Take seaweed "paper" and lay flat on plate.
2. On 1/2 of paper, spread with semi warm rice. Top with onions, avocado and mushrooms.
3. Roll seaweed into roll and enjoy. 

Taco saladMixed greens, avocado, onion, green and red pepper, cucumber, tomatoes, pumpkin seeds, salsa, pinto beans and carrots topped with crumbles chips (from Miami 70.3 travel home stop at Moe's) and a side of cottage cheese.

Why I love my real food diet: It is not a mass marketed diet fad, temporary change or extreme approach. It's real food in a balanced way that fuels life and reduces risk for disease....and it tastes great!
Happy eating!

2 weeks post IM KONA (recipes and pics)

Wow - I can't believe it's been two weeks since IM KONA.

After a few days, the aches, burns and chaffing subsided and that was a sign that I was officially in my off-season...and  I'm totally enjoying every day of it! Three full weeks of no weight bearing activity (ex. no running, plyometrics, etc.), no workout structure and no alarms. There's plenty of time to catch up on house chores, be super creative in the kitchen, take longer walks with Campy and just give a little TLC for my awesome body for what it allowed me to do this summer. And to rest up for a very exciting season of destination races: St. Croix 70.3 (May), IM Austria (June), IMWI (July). There's a lot of work to do in the off season after my recovery period and I am really excited to set new goals and to enjoy another exciting year with my healthy body.

Just to recap the past few weeks, there have been no post-race blues, no guilty feelings about no structured activity (typically 30-60 min of working out a day - swim, elliptical, walking, core/hip work. I've only biked once on my road bike) and a lot of transitions with Trimarni Coaching and Nutrition. There will be many exciting announcements to come but in the mean time I have been working on new services, camps/clinics, discussing coaching with potential athletes (love working with athletes who love hard work and dreaming big!) and Karel now offering Retul fitting and his pre-race "valet" bike tune-up service (IMFL is around the corner and there are many bikes in Jax that are now faster thanks to Karel working his magic on them).

And to summarize the past two weeks in pictures, I must say that my life post Triathlon season doesn't look much different than the training for two Ironmans over the past 22 weeks. Triathlons are my lifestyle, not my life. I will never stop eating for health as I know the same foods that help reduce risk for disease also help to fuel my active lifestyle. 

Can't beat this fall weather! I love my Campy walks!

What a stud - IRON DOGGY!

Sauteed kale with olive oil, tossed in a skillet with a stir fry of corn, cooked quinoa, mushrooms and onions - topped with asiago cheese. Side of cottage cheese (Daisy Brand 2%) and pineapples.

Road bike spin followed by a shop at the farmers market. Not a bad problem to have a bag overflowing with seasonal fruits and veggies. 

Putting my farmers market finds to good use - rye bread with scrambled eggs and fresh strawberries and a side of sauteed kale, onions, garlic, red peppers. 

Thin roasted, crunchy potatoes (425 degrees, slice thin and toss in olive oil and season with salt/pepper and bake for 25-30 minutes or until golden brown) and a stir fry of quinoa, peas, tofu, tomatoes, chickpeas and mushrooms. 

Working at Baptist Medical Center South - I always leave with a better appreciation of my health and feeling so incredibly thankful that my body allows me to do what I choose to do with it. I also learn something new every time I see patient. Luckily, the day I worked last week wasn't filled with Cancer patients. Those days are always hard on my heart. 

Trimarni stew - broccoli, chickpeas, black beans, tofuy, garlic, onions, peppers, quinoa (or brown rice) + marinara sauce (about 1/2 - 1 cup) + water to meet consistency needs. Cook covered on low heat for 1 hour and plan for leftovers (they will taste great the next day).

Karel's Czech inspired egg salad - dill pickles, tomatoes, leeks, green pepper, eggs (hardboiled) and greek yogurt (0% Fage) on a bed of mixed greens. 

I spoke at 1st Place Sports as part of a panel of experts to a group of half marathon and marathon runners. My talk was on pre and during sport nutrition for training and racing. I gave away a lot of my special tips and suggestions and had lots of props. 

What a perfect combo for a snack (or pre dinner munchies) - cucumbers and feta cheese

Oh - SURPRISE! I got a new bike - thank you Karel!! 

.......Which means Trimarni and her one of a kind, custom paint job, is for sale! Email me if you are interested in the price and specs on the bike (Karel has kept this bike maintained since I got her with tune-ups at least every 2 weeks). 

And now - happy times are ahead. This weekend - Campy is taking his first trip to Miarmi for Miami 70.3 to watch Karel race and to cheer on all the amazing athletes (like Trimarni athlete Caitlin from Healthy Tipping Point) who is doing her first ever half Ironman!

After 12 weeks of working together - coach and athlete are reunited at last!

That bike (and the legs behind it) have the need for speed! 

I love making memories with these two!


Happy 5 year anniversary (10/26/08) Karel!! I can't wait to keep making memories with you (and Campy)

What a lucky doggy!

Great times in Miami! Can't wait for race day tomorrow! 

Kona IM training update + yummy creations

Wow - 45 days until the big day!! I'm so excited for my 3rd opportunity to race in the Ironman World Championship and I am incredibly grateful to my body for allowing me to have some awesome workouts so quickly after recovering from Ironman Lake Placid (IM #6). 

Last week was very challenging but I allowed myself plenty of rest so that the weekly volume wasn't so high that my immune system, motivation and body would suffer. 

Sunday was a mentally and physically tough workout thanks to Coach Karel for reminding me that you don't get very far without hard work....and you have to get faster before you go longer. 

Saturday: AM 4 hour bike + 45 min run (average pace ~8:15-8:20 min/mile) (brick)

Bike Main set: 

4 x 30 min @ 10-15 watts higher than IM pace w/ 4 min EZ in between

Nothing like a 2 hour and 16 minute main set to keep my mind focused. 

Monday was a day off (+ hip/core work and stretching). 

Tuesday: AM 1:45 bike (trainer) + 6 mile run (+ 1/2 mile campy run) (brick)
Bike:
Main set 3x's:

5 min @ Z4 watts, 10 min Z3, 5 min Z4

5 min EZ spinning

(another mentally and physically tough workout!)

6 mile run off the bike:
First mile steady, perceived effort 7 out of 10. walk 1 minute.

Main set: 4 x 1 miles at sub 7:30 min/mile pace (Half IM pace) w/ good form w/ 1 min walk in between

(7:22, 7:21, 7:12, 7:18 min/mile)

Cool down + Campy run

Wednesday: AM 1 hour swim + 1 hour run (brick)

Swim: 3100 yards
Main set: (with 1 minute rest in between each set)
4 x 200's w/ 20 sec rest (IM effort)
4 x 100's w/ 10 sec rest (olympic distance effort)
4 x 50s w/ 5 sec rest (fast)
4  25's w/ 5 sec rest (fast)

Run:

20 min warm-up (walk as needed to keep good form, slow pace)
Main set (20-60 minutes):
3 min @ marathon goal pace, 2 min @ half marathon goal pace. Straddle treadmill 30 sec, keep repeating until 1 hour.

Total 7 miles with warm-up//cool down 

Stretching + light hip/core work

Body and mind feel healthy and happy. No signs of being run-down, overtrained or injured and I love the balance of training with life. Just enough training stress for my body to adapt but not too much that my life would feel overwhelming with the upcoming IM. I'm looking forward to a bike-only workout tomorrow, long swim on Friday and a solid 3-day weekend of training with focus on intensity and moderate volume (and day off Tues). My first "long" ride after Placid will not occur until Sept 7th and that will be 5 hours. 

I love to keep my body and brain fueled on a daily basis, in addition to fueling before, during and after EVERY workout that I do. No ifs, ands or butts about it...I love to fuel my body when it is under the most physiological stress as my body doesn't need  "extra" fuel when I am sitting around in the evening after dinner from 7-bed (~9;30/10pm) and it rarely asks for it because it received adequate fuel when I want it to adapt to get stronger, faster and healthier. There is no time during my day that I restrict myself from food so I am consciously aware of when my body needs it the most.

Nutty Fruity Oats

                                   

Peaches

Raspberries

Blueberries

Apples

Raisins

Walnuts

Cashews

Sunflower seeds

Almonds

Flax seeds

1/2 cup oats

Water (no milk at work)

Cinnamon

~10g whey protein powder

(I used a little of everything)

Homemade 90-second popcorn

1/3 kernels in a brown bag and fold over twice and pop for 75-90 seconds.

Cabbage, edamame and quinoa stir fry

Karel's mom's cabbage recipe (steamed cabbage with seasonings)

Edamame (bagged, frozen)

Stir fry - mushrooms, onions, garlic in olive oil with toasted quinoa

(My picture doesn't look that pretty but me an my belly enjoyed it so I wanted to share the wonderful mix of flavors and color). 

Warning: DO NOT EAT this little delicious ball of cuteness. 

2013 Speaking of Women's Health event recap (w/ recipes)

When I started triathlons, I was rather obsessed. My life revolved around training morning and night. Twice a day, everyday. The training lifestyle was not too much different than my college life of swimming twice a day, 5 days a week and then a long workout on Saturday, day off Sunday. Although I had about a year of discovering triathlons after college in 2004, I welcome my new triathlon lifestyle when I was in graduate school as I loved having something to prepare for and look forward to every day, all day. 

That passion, excitement and motivation has not gone away for if it did, I would not be doing triathlons now 7 years later. But instead, my approach to training has changed as I have discovered that triathlons is not my life, but instead my lifestyle. Life has presented many obstacles, highs and lows over the past few years and as much as I had my swim-bike-run routine to look forward to every single day, I had other commitments in life that required more of my attention and energy. 

Before I started my journey to be a RD I remember my dad, Dr. James Rakes, sharing his wise words with me (as he always does)...

"Marni, make sure you have something in life besides triathlons that makes you happy."

Like any stubborn daughter, I listened to him but it took a while to grasp what he was saying. 

My dad never wants me to stop dreaming big and instead, he is my #1 fan that will be cheering me on as all my dreams come true with everything I do. He has encouraged me to dream big but has installed a "hard work" mantra to everything that I do in life. Nothing worth having comes easy. 

After receiving my RD credential, I discovered that he was right, like always. Triathlons are my lifestyle and I never want that love of sports to go away. But, I have so many other things in my life that make me excited and motivated every day to see what the day will bring. And although I have not slowed down my life in the past 7 years, I have learned to create a routine where I can train hard with the least amount of training stress to experience big performance gains. With quality training and a less is more approach, I have so much room left in my day to spend the unused energy that I could spend training more for triathlons to other things that carry the same value (or more) as triathlons. 

                                         

One of the reasons why I went back to school to earn my RD, LD/N credential (Registered Dietitian, Licensed Dietitian/Nutritionist) was to become more credible as a speaker and writer. Now a day, any person with a strong voice and personality can provide info to the public and receive fame and recognition but I never wanted to the loud voice. I wanted a higher education to learn more to give the right advice with a caring voice. A voice that shows that I "get it" and I also practice what I preach. Two things that required time, patience and hard work...skills also used in triathlon training. 

I was invited by 2013 Speaking Of Women's Health to speak on behalf of Baptist Heartwise for Women a few months ago. I love public speaking but with my audience full of women, there was no way I could say no. I love my job and what I get paid to do and changing lifestyles is what I am all about. 

Months of preparation on a power point presentation, time spent preparing for the cooking demo. Practicing, setting things up, rehearsing over and over. The excitement and nerves of when the day will come and then the rush before it starts and the comfort of when it actually begins. Then, the sadness when it is all over.

Public speaking is my release from triathlons. It brings me a similar excitement, passion and energy that I can not explain but welcome when I have the opportunity to provide my philosophy and knowledge about food, health and exercise.

I don't feel that everyone needs to be a public speaker or a writer but instead, finds a few things in life that bring you happiness and require hard work. Perhaps for you, signing up for that upcoming running or tri race is your hard workout and happiness and for others, finding a different outlet to bring happiness, besides training is needed. Whatever you choose to do, remember that to be successful in life, you must love what you are doing. If you are wasting your time doing something you don't love or haven't learned to love and appreciate, step back, re-evaluate and consider your goals and dreams. Sometimes hanging in there is needed and other times, it's time to move on. If something is very important to you, you will find yourself looking back sometime down the road, thinking that you couldn't believe where you were when you started.

My 45 minute presentation was not long enough for me but I did my best to squeeze in as much as I could for a room of 225 chairs. Amazingly, there were people standing in the back and guesstimates were around 240-250 people in the room. Thank you HeartWise for asking me to speak for this was my largest audience I have ever spoken to and I loved every minute of it!

                          

I have to give a HUGE thank you to Mai Oui Gourmet Catering for they were hired by Baptist HeartWise to prepare 4 of my creations for the participants in the talk. They perfected my 3 recipes (tempeh stir fry, avocado mango salsa with pita chip and homemade granola bar) and also provide trail mix for dessert as the participants were leaving. I never like to talk to hungry bellies so even though my talk was at 10am on Saturday, everyone was very happy during my talk...and lots of yumming was occurring too.


                           

Who doesn't love a lecture that has free samples?

                        

What a beautiful presentation!

                       

Yummy trail mix for dessert.

                                  

After spending about 20 minutes discussing my philosophy for eating for fuel, for health and for pleasure and providing a few tips supported by the research of a Mediterranean style of eating, it was time for my cooking demo. When I speak, I try to make sure that my audience leaves feeling inspired and has information that they can easily apply to their every day lifestyle. I don't waste too much of my time talking about grams, portions and recommendations beyond what I feel is most important. Therefore, I stress the importance of the lifestyle component and considering the thoughts behind our actions. I feel there is enough info out there for people to learn what it means to eat healthy but it gets wrapped into a tangled mess because there are too many "experts" out there trying to make a simple concept of eating a more real food diet far too complicated. I try to make eating fun and easy to understand and to break the cycle of women having a negative food vocabulary and to stop the body bashing.

I had a few GREAT volunteers to help me with my cooking demo.

I showed how EASY it was to prepare a homemade trail mix and to bulk it up with cheerios (one of my favorite processed foods for it is fortified very well and is very wholesome) OR popcorn from a brown paper bag (1/3 kernels, roll down back twice and pop for 75-90 seconds in microwave).

While we were preparing the trail mix, I had a volunteer read the ingredients on a protein bar. She was still reading it after we prepared the trail mix in less than a minute.

The Hyatt kitchen hooked me up with a hot plate and I had a blast actually "cooking" in front of everyone. I am not a trained chef but I know food and love to talk about food so my volunteer (Who was a male, a husband of a wife who always attends this conference) was outstanding and we had so much fun cooking my tempeh stir fry. I kept it super simple: 1/2 package of tempeh (chopped) and sautéed in a few tsp olive oil on medium heat with with a cup or two of frozen mixed veggies. We seasoned it with ginger, oregano and garlic and then added prepared quinoa in the skillet for a little toss and voila....a beautiful creation serviced on a bed of greens to make our dish more plant strong.

And lastly, who doesn't love salsa? Salsa actually means sauce but many people think of it as a dip. My volunteer was incredible as she had great cooking skills and I could do all the talk. What a great combo!

I kept the salsa SUPER simple - mango, peaches, cilantro, avocado. All seasonal ingredients for a delicious topping to any sandwich, dish or salad...or straight from the bowl to help boost your vitamin and mineral intake. 

I had such a great time talking that I ran out of time and had to quickly clean up before the next speaker began. What a bummer because I didn't get to answer questions so if anyone has any questions...send me an email as I'd love to help you out.

I also want to send another BIG thank you to Mai Oui and HeartWise for helping me out with my talk. I couldn't have done this without both of them! Also, for the event putting on a top-notch, inspiring, life-changing event for women. I love being part of events like this for I love helping to inspire women and I feel everyone deserves to have good health, happiness and fun in their life and I want to make sure that no day is left wasted. 

                        

At the catered lunch, there was an inspiring video with a segment on Julia Child. I just love her message and what she was all about in life and most importantly, how she approached life and cooking. There are too many quotes of hers to choose from as I love them all but pertaining to my talk, I feel this one is most appropriate. 

Healthy, budget and kid friendly lunch ideas

 First off, a few yummy recent creations from my Facebook page that were enjoyed while working at Baptist Medical Center Beaches last week. Delicious fuel for my body and brain to help me be a great clinical RD to be patients.

                                                       Fruit salad oatmeal

Peaches

Strawberries
Blueberries
Apples
Walnuts and sunflower seeds
Oatmeal (1/2 cup dry)
Water (to meet consistency needs)
~10-15g protein (Whey protein - if I don't add it I'm hungry in an hour)
1 tbsp flax seeds
Cinnamon

        

Yogurt parfait

~4 ounces greek yogurt (Fage 0%)

Grapes
Peaches
Strawberries
Apples
Blueberries
Granola (a few spoonfuls)
Trail mix (w/ a few M&M's for to make my tummy smile)

I had so much fun on set of News4Jax yesterday, talking about my tips for planning healthy, budget-friendly lunches for kids with Melanie. Here are the two segments: 

Part 1 - Don't make it complicated and Dips

Part 2 - Un-sandwich and creating balanced lunch meals

Quick, easy and simple "healthy" eating tips

There are no guarantees in life. We can't avoid cancer, we can only reduce it's risk. We can not prevent injuries but we can increase our chance for a speedy recovery. We can not avoid accidents but we can put ourselves into situations that reduce our odds for an accident.

But what we can do is love the life we choose to live. Every day, all day.

When I was growing up my dad always told me that we all have the chance to live to 90 or 100 years of age. As a young child, 50 was "old" so 100 was just super ancient! But now, I feel so young at 31 and I can't even imagine what it would feel like in 20 years or 70 years! Thankfully, age is just a number that does not slow people down.

I'm sure you've seen the "older" athlete tearing it up on a running or triathlon course or the "older" fitness enthusiast hiking, lifting weights or skiing. My dad always told me that just living to an old age wasn't as important as making sure you are living a quality life. What will you be doing at 70, 80 or 90 years of age? Relying on medications while sitting in a wheelchair in an assisted living facility OR traveling the world after working hard for all of your life to enjoy the riches of your success? My dad convinced me at a young age that every day we should be living a great life and to never take a day for granted. Thank you dad for teaching me the best "rule" of life....live it to the fullest!

Because much of my life involves food and exercise and has been dedicated to learning about food and exercise, I thought I'd share some of my best quick, easy and simple "healthy" eating tips.

To live a healthy life, you need consistent actions to override the occasional opportunities. In order to maintain consistency you must set yourself up for success. If you always try to be perfect, you may always find yourself struggling to improve. Life isn't perfect so you don't have to be either. Sometimes quick, easy and simple is the way to go so here are a few of my tips to get you started.

Shop seasonally, summer time brings LOTS of fresh, local produce but if it isn't in season, consider frozen produce (without added salt/sugar). Think of your plate like a multivitamin - the more color the better. Introduce your taste buds to new flavor combinations. Set up a salad bar in your fridge so you have quick prep at any time. I recommend to prepare at least 3 days worth of veggies and fruit in tupperware so that you can ensure a few quick meals to last you til mid week. 

We all have rushed, busy days and often times, things come up. There's no need to beat yourself up for feeling "off" of your normal routine. There's nothing "lazy" or "bad" about having someone else do the work for you. Don't hesitate to buy pre-washed greens and pre-chopped veggies. Although a bit more expensive, consider pre-chopped fruit if you find yourself buying fruit that always seems to spoil before you eat it. Try to stop for produce every 3-4 days so that you don't have to waste produce. Incorporate quick proteins to your plant-strong meals such as cottage cheese, tuna, deli meat, eggs or grilled tofu. If you find yourself needing to eat out, don't stress - you can always add nutrients to your meal by adding mixed veggies or fruit as an appetizer or dessert to compliment that fast food meal. 

One pot/skillet wonders are fantastic for those who do not like clean-up (which is one of the main reasons why people do not like to cook). Consider having leftovers and throwing it all in a pan with a little oil. Grains, proteins, veggies - a perfect combo for a quick meal that you don't have to attend to (especially if you have just worked out or are coming home to a few chores that need to be complete before eating). Add herbs and spices for lots of flavor as you can eat similar foods for a few days but use different herbs/spices for a whole new flavor experience each time you eat. Consider preparing 2-3, 2-3 cup portions of grains on Sunday to last for the week for easy additions to meals (or invest in a small crockpot). 

If you are going to snack between meals, do so with a purpose. Are you trying to prevent blood sugar from dropping? Are you filling in nutritional gaps between meals? Are you honoring hunger between meals? Are you fueling or refueling? Rather than snacking on similar foods at similar times or snacking for emotions, boredom or stress, think about spending energy on the composition of your meals and then when it comes to snack time, you will find yourself snacking for the right reason and thus, it helping you feel more balance and control with your eating throughout the day.