Changing negative thinking

                                   

Life is hard.
We have our good days and our bad days. 

Consider a change from negative thinking to help you function/perform better in your awesome life.  

1. Accept where you are now and be happy about it.
It's easy to spend much of your life thinking that you would be happier if or when......
Despite life moving forward, it can seem that no matter what you receive, earn or achieve in life, you have a way of postponing happiness because whatever you have now, could be better and could make you happier.
Or so you think.  
Life is filled with challenges and life is hard. You can either be frustrated, angry, anxious or overwhelmed by this fact or you can be happy anyway. 
If you are constantly comparing yourself to an old you or to someone else, consider what you would need to sacrifice, give up, change or restrict in order to achieve what you feel will make you happy. Change your perspective on life as to what truly makes you happy. Why are you not happy now and why is it that you feel you can only be happy when you achieve or conquer a goal?
Whether you like it or not, this is your life.
Don't waste your life journey by waiting for the "right" time to be happy.
Continue to dream big and to be willing to work hard for what you want in life but never let the process of achieving something make you feel inadequate, unhappy or frustrated. 

2. Stop your negative thoughts. 
We think every day.
We have happy, productive and exciting thoughts and negative, worrisome, anxious and pessimistic thoughts.
It's not critical that you have happy thoughts every day but instead, choose to do something positive with your thoughts, particularly the negative ones.
Try to not take yourself so seriously or be so perfect with everything task in your life Be okay with failing and redefine what it means to have a "good" day, workout or meal.
Sometimes thoughts make sense and sometimes we don't know why we are thinking what we are thinking. When thoughts get out of hand and turn into a mental snowball, it's important to immediately stop the thought process, relax and try to dismiss the thought(s).
Create a more positive mindset by bringing positive, fulfilling and peaceful thoughts to your workouts, job, family/kids, body and diet and stop the negative thinking before it gets out of hand. 

3. Quiet the mind
I often tell my coaching athletes to stay present during their workouts. This means ignoring/forgetting about all the many to-do's and struggles in life and simply enjoy the 30, 60, 90 or few hours that you give yourself each day to train your body.
Focus on the present moment. 
Don't let your brain multi-task when you are training.
Staying present during workouts is extremely important but it's not easy to jump in the pool, get on the bike or start running and assume that every stress in your life will magically disappear.
Give yourself 2-5 minutes before your workout to meditate. If this word makes you feel uncomfortable, consider giving up 5 minutes of your busy life for silence, before you stress your body and mind.
Giving yourself a few moments of peace can make you feel less irritable, angry and overwhelmed with your daily life responsibilities but this strategy is very effective for athletes before workouts.
This is not visualization or mental strength building exercise but instead, a practice of emptying your mind as much as possible in a very quiet environment. Whenever a thought, like groceries, a work assignment, laundry, travel or dirty dishes or an argument with your significant other gets inside your head, let that thought pass and forget about it. 
By training yourself to quiet your mind before you need it the most, you will find yourself more focused, attentive and most of all, more happy and relaxed. 


It's normal to have negative or unhappy thoughts but a problem occurs when you think that negative thoughts could be true. When you begin to believe that you are not good enough, you are not lean enough, you are not fit enough or any other thought that makes you feel like you are just going through the motions of life, it's important to take a step back to understand where this thinking is coming from.
Although mental skill training and confidence coaching are effective strategies to improve your happiness and confidence, it's important to reach out to a clinical psychologist who can help you understand your thoughts (relating to athletics/family/career/body image/food) if you find that your thoughts don't make sense and they affect your daily activities and quality of life. 

Lastly, don't let social media make you believe that everyone except you has a perfect life and everyone seems so happy all the time.

There are many ways to capture your positive moments in life.
Some choose to share experiences on social media and others are doing amazing things but life a less documented life.

By changing negative thinking, you may find that you actually have more than you think you have in life.

And that's something to be happy about.

Fuel for performance adaptations

Every morning, no matter the workout volume or intensity, I eat a pre-workout snack of carbohydrates with a little protein/fat. Sometimes it is a rice cake w/ nut butter, syrup and banana slices.
Sometimes it is a banana w/ nut butter.
Sometimes it is a waffle w/ nut butter, banana slices, honey and a scoop of Greek yogurt.
Sometimes it is oatmeal with raisins, berries and chia seeds. I am well educated in the field of sport nutrition and exercise physiology. I am a Board Certified Sport Dietitian with a master of science in Exercise Physiology. I understand the benefits of manipulating the diet and training regime in an effort to metabolize different fuels for energy.  With many different well-researched fueling strategies marketed toward endurance athletes, it's important to understand that the best fueling strategy in the lab or for another athlete may not be the best strategy for you to function and perform well in training and in your life.  When it comes to prescribing an effective fueling and training plan to boost fitness and to change the physiology of the body for performance adaptations, the best dietary and training regime is the one that will work best for you. The best dietary strategy to optimize endurance performance is the one that allows YOU to complete high-quality training sessions to maximize fitness, on a consistent basis, without risking illness, injury or a more complicated health issue. That is why I choose to eat before every workout.
I train better when I eat before a workout. I recover better when I eat before a workout.
I think better when I eat before a workout. I eat better throughout the day when I eat before a workout. I sleep better when I eat before a workout. I can go longer and harder when I eat before a workout. I am happier when I eat before a workout. I feel more energized when I eat before a workout. The moment you let yourself get fixated on one style of fueling or training, you will likely overlook the many different strategies that are effective for maximizing fitness and helping you achieve optimal health. Be honest with yourself. Don't let weeks and months go by, hoping that you need to just "give it more time" for your claimed fueling (or lack thereof) strategy to work for you. If you don't know what will work best for you, reach out to a sport nutrition professional who can help you better adapt to training stress. Whether you are a professional or age group athlete, if you want to achieve favorable performance and body composition results, learn how to train and fuel smarter so you don't have to train any harder than needed.

Brrrrr - weekend training

It's always fun for us to have a friend in town. We absolutely love Greenville and it's special to be able to show off our beautiful area to an out-of-towner.
But when a friend has a similar love for endurance training, it makes for a jam-packed few days, filled with lots of miles, laughs and food.

Not complaining. 

After our friend Lauren and her doggy Jordan arrived from Jacksonville, FL, I made a delicious dinner of lentil soup, roasted potatoes, mixed greens with tzatziki sauce, corn on the cob and protein (tempeh for me, chicken for Karel and Lauren). Dinner was amazing.

Then it was off to watch the documentary Bikes vs Cars at the movie theater, hosted by Bike Walk Greenville

After moving from Jacksonville, FL to Greenville, SC, I can honestly say that I love where we live now....in a very bike friendly community.

 However, after watching the Bikes vs Cars documentary, although it is evident that we are lucky to have so many cycling options as to where to ride (and not to mention the fact that cyclist are respected by cars when asked to share the road), it is acknowledged that we can continue to improve the safety, road conditions, accessibility and awareness for cycling in and around the Greenville community. 

With a large crowd in attendance for the viewing of the documentary (200+ individuals), it is obvious that many people in the community are invested in building an even more bike friendly community.
I'm incredibly thankful for the Bike Walk team for all that they are doing for Greenville, all in an effort to make Greenville a safer, more active and more environmentally healthy community.

After a good night sleep on Thursday evening, it was time to start the training fun with Lauren. 

I woke up at my normal time, 5:45am to get started on some work for the day while waking up my system with water, a cup of coffee and a waffle w/ PB, honey and banana slices (this has been my typical pre-training snack lately).
Around 7;15am, we drove to Furman for our morning swim, which totaled around 4000 yards.

MS:
6 x 100's 85% w/ 3-5 sec rest
400 snorkel, band, buoy, 1 min rest
8 x 75's at 85%, 3-5 sec rest
400 snorkel at 80%, 1 min rest
12 x 50's 90% w/ 3-5 sec rest
500 best effort

Whew. That was exhausting. Time to refuel!

I made scrambled eggs with mixed greens and a little cheese and served that with fresh bread (with an assortment of toppings - jam, honey, butter, nut butter). We also had orange and banana slices.

After letting our breakfast digest for 2 hours, we were about to change into our cycling clothes in anticipation for an outside 2 hour ride. 

Well, mother nature had other plans for us. 

SNOW!!!

So we changed the plans and rode inside for a mid-day trainer ride in our "pain cave."
MS: 4 x 12 minutes w/ 3 min EZ in between
(3 min Z2, 90+ rpm, 1 min Z3+, 65 or less rpm. x 3)

After the trainer ride, it was time to eat....again.
I had a quick glass of milk while preparing lunch and before showering.

I made a large salad with side toppings: chicken, cottage cheese, jasmine rice, quinoa, cheese.
Although a salad wouldn't be my go-to recovery meal, it was nearing 2pm and I was in need of some veggies. Plus, since we went into the bike trainer workout well-fueled, I wasn't too worried about our bodies being completely drained after a 2 hour trainer workout as the workout had a strength endurance focus and it wasn't intense or exhausting.

I was able to get some work done in the afternoon for a few hours and made a quick stop at the grocery store for some food for the weekend. I knew that we would eat the best if food was ready for after our weekend workouts.

We headed to downtown Greenville on Friday evening for dinner and yummed over a delicious dinner from Chicora Alley.
I had the tofu burger which is a marinated slab of tofu on a warm pita, spread with bean hummus.
So good! 

Although the weather was very chilly on Saturday, we were determined to enjoy the Greenville mountains with Lauren. We waited until it warmed-up to the 30's to start the ride so that meant not riding until around 11:30am. 

After waking up without an alarm, around 7am, we felt well rested for an exciting day of exploring.
After a small pre-workout snack (1/2 banana w/ a little smear of PB), we headed out around 8:30am for a 4-mile very easy, conversational pace run around our neighborhood (which is very hilly).
After the run, it was time for a pre-workout meal of eggs, fresh bread and fruit (and some toppings like PB, cheese, butter, etc.). Although the meal was larger than what I would have normally before a long ride, it was very needed considering that we would be out on our bikes all afternoon and our next meal wouldn't come until the evening. 

After letting the meal digest for 2 hours, we bundled up for our ride in 34 degree temps. The sun was shinning which made it much more tolerable. 

We said a quick hello to Mr. Lama and then it was off to Caesar's Head.

Although climbing for 6.5 miles seemed like a great idea while it was happening (as we really warmed up), after taking pictures, we got really cold. Like really, really, really cold.

After a very painfully cold descend, it took a good 20 more minutes of riding to get slightly warm(ish) again.

90 minutes later, we were home after almost 4 hours of riding.

But as cold as we were descending, the views on top of Caesar's head were worth it.
Especially when we could look at our pictures when were nice and warm, sitting by our fire, at home. 

Thanks Clif Bar for fueling our workouts. The mint chocolate bar along with a few Clif gels and water were amazing throughout my ride! 

After the ride, we stuck with our plan to order out at one of my favorite restaurants in Traveler's Rest - Upcounty Provisions. We invited our good friends, Meredith and Lukas over (and their kiddos) and we all enjoyed dinner together (and my mom came over too). It was nice to yum with everyone and not have to go out to eat as we were still warming up from our ride.

Campy was clearly exhausted.
Or drunk.

After an early bedtime, we once again woke-up without an alarm and made it to 7:15am for a great night of sleep. 

After a pre-workout snack of waffle, w/ PB, honey and banana, water and coffee for me, we headed out for a "long" run around 8:45am.

We ran one of my favorite running loops which had no shortage of hills and climbs and great views. It was a great run to share with Lauren and Karel. 9.37 miles later we were home...and with not a peek of the sun, we were still a bit chilly as the temps out were around 23-27 degrees. 

After we came back, Karel was done for the morning and Lauren and I jumped on the trainer for one last bike workout. I only rode an hour and Lauren rode 1 hr and 45 minutes.

Bike trainer workout: 

15 min EZ
Pre set; 4 x 5 minutes Z1/Z2, highest sustainable cadence (~104-108 for me)
4 min EZ
MS: 6xs:
1.5 min build cadence and power from Z2-Z3, 80-100 rpm cadence.
30 sec EZ

Cool down

After our run/bike workout, it was time to eat. Karel made us crepes while we were on the bike trainers so it was nice to walk down to a nice smelling kitchen.
I had Greek yogurt and fruit w/ PB and cacao nib slathered crepes (with cinnamon).

After chillaxing a bit on the couch (while doing work on the computer) and watched Campy destroy his new Valentine's gift (nothing says I love you like ripping the arms and tail off a new bear), around 3pm we headed to the Furman pool for one last workout for the day. 

Swim workout: (2500 yards total)
MS:
2 x 25's
3 x 50's
4 x 75's

5 x 100's
4 x 75's
3 x 50's
2 x 25's
(all with buoy and paddle, 70-75% effort)

As much as I was not excited to swim, it felt good to move through the water with this recovery workout.

After the swim, it was time for grilled pizza. Seeing that I had this meal planned since Friday, I was so excited to get this pizza in my belly, all weekend long!

A big thank you to Karel for standing outside in the freezing cold to grill the homemade individual pizzas. 

Although there wasn't a lot of time to rest and relax, we did watch the Marathon Olympic Trials (DVR'd on Sat) and the indoor track championship on Sun (DVR'd).

As if that wasn't enough training over three days, we managed to have good energy for a 3800 yard swim this morning:

MS:
4 x 50's  kick with fins
200 swim with fins
4 x 50's buoy
300 buoy/snorkel/paddles
4 x 50's buoy/paddles
400 negative split
4 x 50's buoy recovery

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It's a beautiful thing when motivation can stay high with training partners.
Anytime that you ask/want your body to train a lot, train intensely or train at different hours of the day (or two-a-days) you can not neglect proper hydration and fueling (before/during/after workouts).
You can be extremely dedicated to training but if you don't fuel, your body will not reach its full potential.

To think about this another way, wouldn't you like to receive favorable athletic results by doing less work?

Just because a workout is on your schedule, don't assume that just because you check it off your plan for the day that you will gain anything from it.
Proper fueling, hydrating, mobility, sleep, recovery and daily nutrition are essential to maximizing your fitness while helping to keep your body in great health.

Mmmmmm Chili

Brrrrr, it's cold out!

When the weather makes your bones cold, you know it's time to get out a big pot (or crockpot) so you can make yourself a big bowl of chili. 

I love chili.

And this is coming from a vegetarian!

When it comes to making chili, here are a few tips to consider when making your favorite chili recipe:

-Soak your bean mix (I use Goya 15-bean mix) overnight. Although this step isn't necessary, especially if using a pressure cooker, soaking the beans will decrease overall cooking time (without sacrificing flavor) and will make beans more digestible (reducing gas/bloating). 

-To enhance the flavor of chili, sautée onions, mushrooms, peppers and garlic in a skillet before adding to the pot. You can still add raw veggies but this step will really take the flavors up a notch. 

-Season early. Although it's hard to know how much herbs and spices to add to give the chili the right flavor (without it being overloaded), you are looking for a rich (not dull) flavor. 

-Don't oversalt. The beautiful thing about chili is that it can be extremely tasty without a lot of salt. Too salty and you miss out on all the different flavors from herbs and spices. However, some salt is a necessary component to great chili. Keep in mind that if you are using a stock (instead of water), canned beans or tomatoes or some spices (ex. garlic salt) you are already adding salt added to your recipe. 

-Consider making a base chili (vegetarian) with beans and tomatoes and then adding extra ingredients to leftovers. Seeing that if you make a large batch, you may find that by chili meal 4 or 5, you are tired of the same chili recipe. By making a base chili recipe, you then can add different meats, rice, whole grains, veggies or potatoes to your portioned chili bowl base, each day, so your taste buds never get bored. 

-Chili is always better the next day. If making chili for a cook-off or event or to impress your taste buds, just remember that your chili will be even more yummy after 12-24 hours in the refrigerator. 

-Add enough water/stock but not too much. To avoid soup consistency, you want a thick mix. It's better to not add enough water than to add too much.

-Add a surprise hint of flavor. Karel likes to add a little dark chocolate to chili.

-Don't forget about the toppings. Chives, sour cream, greek yogurt, cheese, crumbled chips, nuts, avocado chunks....there are so many options. As if the chili wasn't flavorful enough, when a new flavor your taste buds first and then you get to yum over your chili, it makes for a yum-yum meal. 

There are no shortage of chili recipes in cook books, magazines and on the internet.

So, what are you waiting for?

It's time to start cooking chili! 

Maintaining motivation to train - swimming

As I was swimming the other day, I started to think about the many, many years that I have changed out of warm clothes and into a swimsuit, cap and goggles, only to jump into a cold pool, to swim back and forth for thousands of yards at a time.

Even after starting competitive swimming at the age of 10, I feel so lucky that I still love to swim. However, I can't say that over the past 23 years, it has always been easy to drive myself to a pool, get excited to go from perfectly dry to soaking wet and stay committed to a swim workout.
Of course, when there is a coach on deck and your teammates are working hard, you don't make excuses, you just do the work. 

But the pool is still my happy place. I love the way my body feels when it is non-weight bearing and the fact that I can get a great cardio and muscular workout in the water.  

Now that I am in my 10th year of endurance training and racing (and 23rd/24th year of being a competitive athlete - wow, that is a LONG time, thank you body!), I want to share some of the motivational strategies that I have used over the years to keep me training consistently in the pool.

PRE WORKOUT

~1999-2000 - YMCA Swim team (Dolphins)
I like to have a focus for my workouts. While there is always a warm-up, pre-set and main set, I like having a specific focus for what I want to achieve during the workout. I've learned that it's not good to go into a workout with high expectations with specific paces or time goals because a well-executed workout requires adjusting as you go. You can feel horrible before and have an awesome workout or feel absolutely fresh and amazing and struggle to finish. Although sometimes I do look forward to a specific set and the effort required, I find it beneficial to focus on a skill or mental tactic as these are two very important things to make for quality workouts (and you can bring trained skills and mental tactics to race day).
To help me understand a workout, I always write it down on a piece of paper before the workout. This allows me to walk myself through the entire workout AND to adjust the workout if needed based on time constraints (ex. do I have enough time for 3 rounds of the main set or only 2 rounds?). 

If I really need help, music and a good motivational quote help, especially if I am months away from a key race.
And above all, I always remind myself how great it feels when the workout is over.

DURING THE WORKOUT

2004 - Senior year
It's very easy to lose focus during a workout and to find yourself just going through the motions. Depending on the time of the season, it's hard to mentally see yourself on race day and put yourself into race-day scenarios. Therefore, with every workout, I focus on staying present.
Whereas nature is a great distraction when running or cycling, it's very easy to zone out and lose focus when swimming alongside a black line. Although I have to admit that swimming is very therapeutic when you can zone out and move through the water, when it comes to swim training, it's important to be engaged and attentive to the task/workout, at hand. 

Being present is WAY harder than it sounds because it is so easy to think about what I need to accomplish for the day (in the case of an early morning workout) or what I still I have on my to-do list or to think about something that has nothing to do with working out but is on my mind. Although it can be motivating to zone-off and think about inspiring moments in life, I find it really important to be present so that I take full advantage of my time working out and execute to my full ability.
Having said this, there are some workouts when the workout purpose is to zone out, to have fun and to not be engaged. I really appreciate the workouts when there is less structure and more freedom because when it comes to training, being mentally engaged in specific training can take fitness to another level but it can also be exhausting to be "on" all the time. 

POST WORKOUT

~1996-1997, Dolphins Swim practice (post workout playtime)
It shouldn't be a surprise that I thank my body after every workout. I try to not rush away from a workout only to return to a busy life but instead, I try to give myself a few extra minutes post-workout to reflect. It's easy to overlook great workouts and to ignore what didn't go well and hope for better next time. Whether it's walking after a run, spinning easy after a bike or floating in the pool (or taking a little extra time in the shower), I factor in this extra time into my busy day as I feel it's important to slow down after the hard work is over and to think about what the body allows me to do each day.
I remember some of my favorite memories as a competitive swimmer and they were in the locker room, with my fellow female swimmers, after swim practice. Now as a triathlete,, my favorite part of racing is sharing the race day experience with Karel and other athletes, after the race is over.
I feel that workouts should be just like race day in that no matter how good or bad the workout, it's worth talking about and reflecting.
Some workouts are not fun but you have to do them anyways and some workouts are exciting and fun.
A variety of easy, hard, bad and good workouts are part of being an athlete.
You can't choose easy all the time and expect to get better.

Although it sounds silly, as hard as the body has to work when it exercises or trains, I find that one opportunity, when you are fully devoted to your body working out, is so needed on a daily basis.  

Next time you go into a workout, give yourself a focus/purpose for the workout, stay present and reflect. 

Thank your body. 

Be happy. 

The next time you struggle to get yourself in the pool, remind yourself how great it feels to be an athlete.

And swimming is the best sport ever! :)


2003 - College swim meet (Transylvania University)

Powerful food bowl

I'm not a fan of fad diets that promise "too good to be true" health or weight loss results or require extreme, restrictive eating choices but I'm all about food trends that encourage healthy eating.

If it wasn't for food trends, you probably wouldn't be eating so much kale, avocados or chia seeds!

If you've been a long-time Trimarni follower on Facebook or Instagram, you've probably noticed that most of my meals are eaten from bowls.

Well, wouldn't you know that it is now trendy to eat a meal out of a bowl???

I love the idea of eating out of a bowl for several reasons:
-Flavors are enhanced when combined
-You can incorporate a variety of nutrients into one dish
-You can see what you love to eat
-You can hide what you don't like to eat
-You are forced to sit down and eat with silverware

When I plan meals, I always focus on a template for every meal:
-Plants (fruits or veggies)
-Protein
-Starch or grain
-Fat

Without getting too deep into numbers, here are some numbers to ensure that you are eating "enough"  PER MEAL.

-Plants: Unlimited

-Protein: 25-30g

-Starch or grain: ~50-70g

-Fat: ~10-20g

Certainly, adjust based on your energy and appetite - just make sure all adjustments work for your active lifestyle and health goals.

Note: I like my athletes to think of meal planning as "am I eating enough?" not saying "I am eating too much!" as it helps create a better relationship with food when you focus on eating enough to meet energy and nutrient needs.

As you can see from my powerful bowl of nutrients (lunch yesterday), I have the following in my bowl:
-Plants: mixed greens and arugula, tomatoes, grapes, red and orange peppers, onions
-Protein: Cottage cheese (and some from quinoa)
-Starch or grain: Quinoa
-Fat: Olive oil, chopped walnuts, goat cheese

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Are you ready to start this Trimarni-approved food trend?

Here's how you can get started: 
1) Buy some awesome bowls in all sizes (I prefer shallow bowls)


2) Think about your favorite recipes/meals and how you can eat them in a bowl
(for inspiration, check out this blog)

3) Don't feel the need to combine everything. If you don't like foods to be mixed or prefer one type of texture at a time while eating, divide your bowl into sections so that you have all the components of a healthy and balanced meal....in a bowl.

4) Are you worried that you can't change old habits....like always eating sandwich for a meal?
Turn that sandwich, wrap or pita inside out and serve the bread on the side (you can top with smashed avocado, cheese or hummus)
.


What will you yum over in your bowl?

Feeling off track?

Whether it's traveling, life stressors or multiple events occurring in a short time period, it's easy to feel off track with your diet and workout routine. 

A common tendency for athletes is to see the next "normal" day of life as an opportunity to get back on track. 

With an intense desire to "be really good" until life feels normal again, there's nothing wrong with this, right? 

Well, it's a problem if your "normal" lifestyle habits are so extreme that you can not function well in life when you feel a loss of control over every situation relating to your diet and workout regime. 

For athletes who don't feel safe with their thoughts, choices or feelings when they can not control normal life situations, getting back on track may require an extremely disciplined and restrictive style of eating and going a bit longer and harder with training for the next 48-72 hours, all in an effort to regain control over what didn't go as planned.

This is not only risky for your health but it can cause a roller coaster of emotions too.

The important thing to remember is that we don't have to control every situation to feel and to be "on track".
You can't make up for what happened in the past and you can't control the future, so why not focus on the present?

Give yourself 4-5 days to slowly get yourself back to lifestyle habits that are healthy and productive to your goals.
No need to go to the extreme as being too fixated on "healthy" habits can actually be unhealthy.

As athletes, we already live a very extreme lifestyle and with so many daily decisions and responsibilities, it can be exhausting to feel the need to control everything.

You know that life is going to happen and you will need to travel to work, you will be invited to a party with a smorgasbord of food that you normally don't eat and you are going to miss workouts because life is stressful and busy. 

Rather than letting yourself feel insecure when life is out of your control, perhaps it is time to focus on how you can feel more calm, at ease or at peace with your choices when you find yourself deviating from your "normal" routine.

Remember that anytime you feel off, getting back on track should be focused on you functioning well in life rather than trying to fix what you couldn't control, because it wasn't exactly like you wanted it to be. 

Unselfish ME time

Every morning, Monday through Friday, my alarm wakes me up at 5:45am.

You probably have a similar routine.

First thing in the morning, BEFORE my workout, I have my ME time.

Even though I do not start my morning workout until 7-7:15am, I intentionally get up early so that I have at least an hour to myself before I train.

No matter how tired I feel, I need that one hour. Even though my bed is cozy, I really look forward to me ME time.

Seeing that I spend my entire day, every day, taking care of my coaching and nutrition athletes and Campy, I look forward to the opportunity to do something in the morning that makes ME feel good.

I feel it is important for everyone to have ME time everyday.

You will work, function, think, love and take care of others better if you give time to yourself.

But ME time should be more than just carving out time for a workout each day.

ME time should also include time to tune into your thoughts, goals, interests and emotions.
ME time should not be interrupted or rushed, it shouldn't be spent thinking about other tasks that you need to accomplish or be filled with guilt because you are taking care of yourself, instead of taking care of others.

ME time is the time that you intentionally give to your yourself because you deserve to be high on your priority list.

How will you enjoy your ME time today?

Avocado and Edamame salad

Do you ever make a dish, question whether or not it will be tasty and then find yourself non-stop yumming over it? 

Earlier this week, I found myself doing just that. 

Yumming with every single bite.

I love it when that happens.

This avocado edamame creation started before a bike-trainer workout on Tues evening.
I often find myself preparing meals in the 30 minutes that I have to spare before an evening workout because prepping a meal and then waiting for it to cook after a workout isn't the most fun when you are hungry, tired and ready to eat.
(plus, many times, a hungry and tired body isn't very good at making "healthy" post-workout food decisions).

Because I had a very, very, very soft avocado, I wanted to do something with it besides smashing it up or chopping it on a salad.
I decided to get creative in my kitchen with a big bowl and a few simple ingredients in my refrigerator and here is what I came up with....

I think you will yum over it too!

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Avocado and Edamame salad
1-2 cup shelled edamame
1 small red bell pepper (chopped)
1-2 cup corn
~1/2 cup chives (chopped)
1 avocado (chopped)

Salt to taste

1. Cook edamame and corn until soft (steam or microwave)
2. When corn/edamame mix is room temp (not hot), add edamame.
3. Add pepper and chives and mix together. It's ok if the avocado gets smashed during mixing.
4. Add salt to taste.
5. Refrigerate for an hour and then yum!
(feel free to adjust the ingredient amounts to your liking)

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The great thing about this recipe is that it is a multi-purpose recipe. Oh and it is super duper yummy.

Here are a few ways that you can incorporate this satisfyingly nutritious and delicious recipe into your diet.

-Combine with your favorite grain (ex. Quinoa, Jasmine rice, couscous etc.)
-Pile on top a bed of shredded or topped greens
-Serve with cold noodles
-Use as a topping on scrambled eggs (or an omelet)
-Spoon on toasted bread
-Spoon inside a pita or tortilla
-Serve with chips as a dip at your next party/event
-Enjoy as a snack, in between meals
-Have it as a side dish to a meal

Dietary protein options - take your pick

We have all heard the question that starts the age-old vegetarian protein debate "Where do you get your protein from if you don't eat meat???" If adequate energy and an assortment of plant foods, rich in essential amino acids, are consumed throughout the day, physiologically processes shouldn’t be compromised in a plant-based diet.  For all athletes, diet variety and adequate energy consumption are both key to ensuring that your body stays in great health. This includes eating a variety of carbohydrates, protein and fat.

Depending on your dietary protein choices, consider a variety of animal and/or plant protein sources in your daily diet as each protein source has more than just protein to offer to your body. Vegetarian athletes should make an extra effort to consume nutrients like calcium, iron, zinc, omega-3, vitamin D, B12 and niacin, particularly if the diet is lacking in food variety. 

Understanding that many essential nutrients are required in the countless metabolic pathways that support a body in motion, a chronic nutrient deficiency (or absorption issue) may result in health and/or performance complications. Although a real-food approach should be prioritized over nutrients found in a pill or powder, supplements and engineered fortified foods are an option to protect against (or to fix) a nutrient deficiency. If consuming 1 scoop whey isolate or vegan (pea/brown rice) protein powder (25-30 grams) per day helps you meet your protein needs more easily, that's what supplements are designed for - to supplement what you can not consume (or properly digest/absorb) in a real-food diet.

In addition to meat, eggs and fish, here are some additional plant-based protein sources below. You don't have to call yourself a vegetarian to eat plant-based proteins.
And for vegans, check out this link.

For extra credit reading - a few of my vegetarian articles: Eat right, your way everyday. Fueling the Vegetarian athlete Vegetarian athlete interview Plant strong Thanksgiving

Are you eating enough protein?

(picture source)

As an endurance athlete, you should not overlook the importance of protein in your diet.

Sadly, in our society, we tend to go from one dietary extreme to another when it comes to eat this, don't eat that. Therefore, when one macronnutrient is heavily emphasized or de-emphasized, it's easy to overlook other important nutrients that are necessary to optimize health and athletic success.

In the wake of some pretty extreme, unhealthy and unrealistic eating habits among endurance athletes, it's important for athletes to understand that a low energy and/or low carbohydrate diet is not healthy or performance enhancing.
Certainly "low" can be defined differently among athletes and nutrition experts.

Seeing that protein supports muscle and tissue growth, assists in immune system health, helps with tissue structure and supporting enzymatic reactions and fosters healthy endocrine functioning, without sufficient protein in your diet, your active body can suffer.

Therefore, any athlete who is following a low energy or low-carb diet should take the necessary steps to fine-tune the diet to ensure that dietary protein intake is adequate (otherwise, health and performance issues could arise).

I'm not advocating low-carb or low energy diet but if you choose this dietary route, be sure to not skimp on dietary protein.

Endurance athletes should aim for 1.2-1.7g of protein per kg body weight per day. If you weigh 130 lbs (59kg), this equates to 71-106g protein per day.

Here are a few take-home dietary messages:

• If you are intentionally trying to lose weight, you will want to focus on the higher end of your protein needs to preserve lean muscle mass as you lose body fat. 

• On longer duration or high intensity workout days, daily protein needs should be higher to optimize training-induced muscle adaptions.

• For all athletes, don't miss out on the great opportunity to recover post workout by including protein with your post workout snack or meal.

• Although the recommendations for post workout carbs/protein will vary based on the individual, workout intensity/duration and fitness goals, here are a few suggestions for post workout fueling:

-If you are eating only a snack post workout, aim for 10-15g of protein and around 20-40g of carbs. As a example, 10g whey or vegan protein + 1/2 cup cow's milk (or almond milk) + water (as needed) + 1 banana.  
At your next meal, aim for around 15-25g protein and 40-60g of carbs.  As an example, 2 eggs + 1 egg white (or 3 ounce lean meat) + 3/4 cup oatmeal + 1/2 cup berries + 1 tbsp maple syrup + 1/2 ounce chia seeds.
If only eating a meal (and no post workout snack), aim for 25-30g protein and 50-90g carbs. (higher end of protein and carbs after long duration or very intense workouts)
These are guidelines, not rules. Certainly, it is important that you find the best combo and nutrient timing that works for your workout and life regime.

• As an athlete, it is important to get familiar with the best (and easy to find, prep and consume) sources of protein and carbs in your diet so that recovery nutrition is not an afterthought but instead, easy to execute on a daily basis. 

(For the record, I am absolutely not anti-fat but for the purpose of this blog, I am specifically focusing on protein in the athletes' diet).

• It's important to spread your total protein intake out throughout the day (example 25-30g each meal) so that each meal helps to fulfill your total protein intake needs. Plus, protein (along with fat) increases satiety which can help with overeating and cravings.

• If your typical breakfast is oatmeal and fruit or toast with avocado and an orange, add 3/4 cup Greek yogurt, 20-25g vegan protein powder, 2 egg whites + 1 whole egg or 4 ounce lean meat or fish to your meal for a more balanced meal with adequate protein.

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Some of my go-to plant strong protein sources are:
Organic 1% milk
Tempeh
Tofu
Beans
Lentils
Edamame
Cottage cheese
Eggs

Whey protein
Greek Yogurt

Cheese

I also get protein from nuts, seeds, nut butter, chia seeds, hummus and grains.

Are you eating enough protein in your diet?

Where do you get your protein?

When it comes to a vegetarian diet, there are many critics who believe that meat consumption is a necessary part of a "healthy" diet.  In April, I will be celebrating 24 years of following a meat-free diet. I consider myself to be in great health as a female endurance triathlete but it took time to learn how I can make my vegetarian diet work for my active lifestyle. Clearly, my lacto-ovo vegetarian style of eating is not a fad. I love animals way too much to eat them. As a vegetarian athlete and dietitian, this puts me in a tough situation because it is easy to assume that because I do not eat meat, I will encourage other athletes to not eat meat. Well, Karel eats meat and fish...and vegetables, and fruit, and tofu, and tempeh and grains. I don't lecture Karel when he eats meat because meal time is a happy time for both of us. Thankfully, it wasn't a deal-breaker that I was a vegetarian when Karel and I started dating in 2006. Sadly, because much of the U.S. diet is rich in meat, it's easy for critiques to say that a vegetarian diet is "restrictive" and "unhealthy." The truth is that we can't really call a vegetarian diet “restrictive” because in America, it's very obvious that our society has a very unhealthy relationship with food.....all types of food. In the U.S., we don’t really have a traditional American diet that we can use as a “healthy” reference so how can we confidently say that a vegetarian diet is unhealthy?

As a board certified sport dietitian and triathlon coach, I work with a variety of athletes for a variety of reasons (training, nutrition, sport nutrition, weight loss/body composition changes, etc.).

I'm not one to debate about "where do you get your protein" because I only want the best for my athletes and every athlete has different needs and dietary choices.
With a team approach, I'm going to suggest what I feel will work best for the goals of the athlete that I am working with, but with practical, healthy and safe advice.  
Oddly, in working with so many athletes with all types of athletic and body composition goals, I find that non-vegetarian athletes have similar dietary struggles and health issues as vegetarian or vegan athletes, specifically when it comes to eating "enough" quality protein at meals, using sport nutrition properly, timing nutrition with workouts, eating a varied diet and enough "enough" energy to support metabolic needs. As it relates to endurance athletes (my population of athletes), you should be happy that there are many different dietary strategies that you can follow to keep your body in good health while training. Thankfully, there is no gold standard diet for athletes. Lucky you - you can create a diet that works best for you! Meat or no meat, with all the talk these days with sugar, carbs and fat, it's important that you remember the importance of protein in your diet to support lean muscle mass and to promote muscle and tissue repair.
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When's the best time for a salad?

With so many recipes on the internet and in bookstores, you have no excuses when it comes to healthy eating. 

Planning is often the hard part.  

Athletes, I know you have a lot on your daily plate but if you keep putting workouts and life ahead of planning a diet that nourishes and fuels your busy and active lifestyle, there is a good chance that you are limiting your athletic potential and risking a possible health issue. 

Easy fix: 

Eat a salad for lunch, every day.
Include at least 20-30g of protein, 1/2 - 1 cup grains or small potato and at least 15-20g fat (ex. avocado, nuts, seeds, oil, cheese) with a variety of colorful fruits and veggies.

For example:
A few handfuls dark leafy greens
Unlimited veggies and fruit
1 cup quinoa or barley
2 tsp olive oil
1/4 cup cubed avocado
4 ounce chicken or fish OR 4 ounce tempeh OR 1/2 cup edamame and 1/2 cup cottage cheese

A time saver for busy athletes is prepping these ingredients ahead of time so that you can put together a salad in less than 5 minutes, every day, and you don't have to chop and dice the same produce every day.
Same goes for grains, potatoes and protein. Prepare a few go-to items ahead of time so it's easy to put together a meal.
Turn your refrigerator into a salad bar for easy meal prep. 

A salad at lunch is far enough away from an early morning and evening workout that you will reduce the risk for digestive issues as a lot of roughage/residue in the gut can be uncomfortable if you are working out within 1-3 hours of eating a high fiber meal.

Depending on the day, your salad could be hot or cold.

It's important to eat vegetables throughout the day but depending on your workout schedule, some athletes may be better off with steamed or cooked veggies at dinner instead of raw veggies specifically if you have an evening workout before dinner or struggle with GI issues early morning after you eat a high fiber dinner meal the night prior.

If you just can't eat a salad for lunch due to having to eat with your hands and not with utensils (or having to eat a catered lunch), opt for a pita or sandwich with a protein of your choice and combine with a bag/Tupperware container of mixed raw veggies (ex. celery, cucumber, baby tomatoes, broccoli, mushrooms, cauliflower, peppers, etc.). You can either dip your veggies in a hummus or avocado dip or add cheese, avocado or hummus to your sandwich/pita.

Plus, every bite of a salad is packed with vitamins and minerals which is important to supporting your immune system health.

Happy plant strong eating!

Muscular endurance treadmill workout

I love running on the treadmill and I love cycling on my indoor bike trainer.
Perhaps my love of indoor "stationary" workouts comes from following a black line for 25 yards in for 23+ years as a competitive swimmer.

I enjoy being able to control my workout when I train indoors and to minimize all outside influences like terrain, traffic, wind and cold/hot weather.
But I also love training outside as this is the best environment for me to mentally and physically prepare for my upcoming races.

It's easy to make excuses when it comes to weather and available time to train (morning and night) so for me, I always seek the best environment for a quality workout. Sometimes it is indoors and sometimes it is outdoors.
At time in the year, most of my workouts are indoors - but as soon as it gets warmer, it's hard for me to stay indoors to train. I love the sun and the heat!  

Karel, on the other hand, will make every attempt to train outside, as much as possible. 

For my run workout this morning, the focus was endurance but there was also a heavy strength component. 

My key runs often include a very specific main set whereas my optional and/or EZ runs are form focused and pace and miles are not a priority.

If you are one to despise the treadmill, I challenge you to my run workout as I hope that you love the structure as much as I did as you feel yourself staying focused on each segment and determined to finish all three rounds.

I strongly advise having a pre-workout carb snack before this workout (I had some oatmeal with raisins, cinnamon and honey), at least 1 bottle water (and a gel or energy chews/blocks in case you need a pick-me up in the last round) and a post workout snack/meal with protein and carbs as soon as you can to start the rebuilding. 

I suggest to pace yourself and to go by RPE. This is an endurance focused run so you shouldn't be taxing the heart too much. Your muscles are designed to get tired but not at the expense of your heart working excessively hard.
Keep the effort steady and strong. 

With every segment of the main set, you will have the opportunity to get the HR up a little by increasing the speed and when you run at an incline, this should make you feel powerful. When you finish an incline run and return to 1% grade, this should feel like a slight recovery.

Imagine yourself running up and down hills with a little hard effort before and after each climb. 

Try to keep the same speed throughout the entire round, but adjust if your form starts to suffer. You are better off adjusting your pace, than calling it a day, if you find you were over-ambitious with your intensity at the start of this workout. 

Happy running!
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5 min Dynamic warm-up

15 min jog warm-up (very EZ, light on the feet)
10 min power walk at 15% incline, fast walk (ex. 3.5 mph)

MS 3x's:
3 min at 1% incline (last 30 sec strong)
3 min at 4% incline (last 30 sec strong)
3 min at 1% incline (last 30 sec strong)
3 min at 4% incline (last 30 sec strong)
3 min at 1% incline (last 30 sec strong)
30-60 sec break (straddle treadmill and lower HR as much as possible)
Repeat 2 more rounds

Walk to cool down

(if you are not comfortable performing this all running, you could also use this as a walking workout).

Modification if you are short on time:
5 min Dynamic warm-up
5 min jog warm-up
10 min power walk (this will wake-up your glutes)
2 rounds of the main set instead of three - still keep with the same focus and intensity. 

Simply delicious homemade granola

       

I love simple recipes. 

The less ingredients the better....so long as the final product is packed with flavor. 

There's so much to love about granola BUT when an ingredient list reads:

Whole grain rolled oats, whole grain wheat, sugar, rice, corn syrup, almonds, contains 2% or less of molasses, modified corn starch, palm oil, salt, cinnamon, nonfat milk, malt flavoring, polyglycerol esters of fatty acids, natural and artificial flavor, guar gum, BHT for freshness.

I would much rather make granola at home, than eat a concoction of ingredients from a box/bag.

For athletes, granola is a fantastic energy-dense snack which can pack a lot of calories to help meet energy needs on high-calorie expenditure days. Depending on the wet ingredients (honey, syrup, oil), granola can also be a substantial pre-workout snack as you will receive a nice mix of carbohydrates with a little fat but without a lot of fiber.

However, most store-bought granola's or granola recipes are overloaded with added sugars which makes it hard to call this cereal alternative a "healthy" option.

Although society/media does a great job of making you feel extremely guilty when you eat anything with sugar in it, you are allowed to eat sugar in the daily diet without health implications. And this is specifically talking about the daily diet and not sport nutrition consumed during workouts (this is another topic).
In other words, your diet does not have to be 100% sugar-free as that would eliminate sugars found in fruits, grains, dairy and vegetables so it's important to evaluate your dietary choices and limit/reduce the added sugar.

To start, check out the ingredient lists of the packaged goods/products in your pantry and refrigerator that you typically consume in your diet on a daily basis to better understand how much added sugar you consume each day.

The best part about moving toward a more real food diet is that you will automatically reduce your added sugar intake.
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A great real food swap is to make your own granola. But no need to stress about adding sugar from a natural source (raisins, dates, honey, syrup) to your granola recipe, especially if you are making granola in place of buying cereal, eating a heavily processed food snack or eating a sugary-treat alternative.

When I need a little crunch and a hint of sweetness to top my yogurt for a snack or to munch-on before/after a workout or for a treat, I love my homemade granola mixture. 

It's simple and deliciously good. 

The great thing about granola is that you can be in charge of the ingredients.
Unless you let the granola bake too long, you really can't mess-up your recipe.

I personally prefer to keep the added sugars on the minimal side when I make granola. I don't need a lot of sugar to make my taste buds happy with my granola recipe so I add just enough honey to coat the oats but not to much that my granola is extra crunchy and clumpy.

If you prefer the typical crunchy, bite-size chunks of granola, you will want more of a binder (more wet ingredients like syrup or oil). 

My typical ration of oats to honey is:
2 heaping cups instant oats to 1/2 - 3/4 cup honey.
(if you are using oil, a typical ratio is 3 cups oats + 1/2 cup honey/syrup + 1/2 cup oil)

Here's my go-to granola base recipe:
2 cups instant oats

1/2 cup honey (plus a little extra if needed)
2 tbsp chia seeds (you can omit these if you don't have them)
1/4 tsp salt
1 tbsp cinnamon

Add-in's:
Veronica's Health Crunch mix (chopped) - or any nuts/seeds that you want
Raisins



To prevent honey from sticking to a measuring cup, I lightly spray the cup with non stick spray before pouring in the honey to measure.

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Lay out a non stick baking sheet by your mixing bowl.

3. After you mix together the ingredients with a wooden spatula (except crunch/nuts/seeds and raisins) in a bowl, spread out the mixture evenly on the baking dish (it's ok if a few clumps remain on the sheet).

4. To prevent the edges of the granola mix from burning, lightly turn the mixture with a spatula around 10 minutes.


5. When I begin to smell the granola (around 14-17 minutes), I remove the baking dish from the oven and add the last two ingredients - sprinkling a small handful of raisins and chopped nuts over the granola.
(you can add the nuts/seeds to the mix before you bake the granola but I don't like crunchy raisins so that is why I add them later so they stay soft).

6. When the granola is lightly brown, I turn off the oven and let the granola sit in the oven for a few more minutes.

When you first start making granola, you will want to start watching the granola around 10-12 minutes (keep the light on in your oven) so that you can determine the perfect time baking time for your recipe.

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There are SO many granola recipes so have some fun being creative in your kitchen!

Here's a good tip article on making granola. 

I promise that once you start making your own granola, you won't find yourself spending the time (or money) searching for the "best" or "healthiest" granola in the supermarket.

Here are some additional add-in's to your oat mixture:


Wet ingredients: Coconut oil, maple syrup, agave syrup, honey
Dried fruits - cranberries, cherries, figs, dates, apricots, blueberries, raisins, mango, pineapple
Shredded coconut
Ground flax
Cacao nibs
Goji berries
Toasted wheat germ
Cashews, almonds, peanuts, walnuts, pecans
Spices: Ginger, pumpkin, nutmeg, cloves, allspice
Applesauce
Fresh fruit (chopped apples, pears, apricots)

Plates not pills - Anti-inflammatory diet

Source

There are many amazingly wonderful nutritional properties found in real food.

Sadly, much of our society overlooks the power of food as medicine and in return, abuses anti-inflammatory meds to reduce pain, aches and niggles (and athletes are not immune to this statement).

Certainly, there are times when medications are necessary but with so many people following restrictive diets these days to "be healthy", I do worry that many people are missing out on the many amazing nutritional benefits of a varied, wholesome, real food diet.

To get you started with an improved anti-inflammatory diet, consider adding the following food items, rich in antioxidants, to your diet:

-Ginger
-Cloves

-Oregano 

-Cayenne pepper 

-Pineapple 

-Rosemary -Turmeric 

-Sesame Seeds 

-Omega-3 fatty acids - fatty fish, walnuts, pumpkin seeds, flax 

-Whole grains
-Dark leafy greens
-Celery
-Pineapple
-Fermented food - kefir, sauerkraut, tempeh, yogurt, miso, kombucha 

-Vitamin C rich foods - strawberries, kiwi, tomatoes, citrus fruits, peppers, mango, cherries

Although inflammation is a normal process, it is through a smart training plan and well-balanced diet that you can reduce the chance that your inflammation does not get out of control inside your body.

A more natural, less processed diet can do wonders for your health and well-being.

If you find yourself constantly reaching for anti-inflammatory medications every time you have a problem (ex. you feel sore, tight or inflamed), do your body a favor right now and be pro-active with a more natural, anti-inflammatory diet.

Let your diet be your best source of medicine.

For more info: 

Medical foods for triathletes

Snow day!

Although we have lived in Greenville for 1.5 years, we were so unprepared for this snow and ice storm in Greenville, SC. 

But thankfully, we survived no power for 24 hours.

We know that many people, all over the US, had it a lot worse so my hope is that everyone is safe, warm and healthy. 

Check list for the next ice/snow storm:

 Batteries, all types (especially for portable bubble-makers for fish tanks)

Battery radio

Be sure portable phone charger is fully charged (thankfully it was this time)
Flashlights/Candles

Make sure propane tank is filled for grill outside

Be sure both cars are filled with gas

Buy a shovel and ice scraper
Make sure Campy, Smudla and Madison have more than enough dry food 

Buy books to read and games to play

Buy water jugs (just in case water goes out)

Make more "prepared" meals ahead of time for easier meal prep/consumption

Buy a generator?

With cold rain through the night on Thursday til Friday morning and a little snow, I never expected our power to go out as Charlotte was predicted to have lots of ice and Greenville was expected to get a little ice and a few inches of snow.

After my trainer ride in the morning, I ventured out to get a few extra food items for the weekend (fresh produce, eggs, yogurt, milk and fresh bread - our typical staple foods) on Friday morning and as I was putting away the groceries, the power went out. 

Although it was only 24 hours without power (Thanks Duke Energy for working hard), we were not sure when it would turn back on again. The roads were getting bad and per Duke Energy on the phone, over 1000 houses were affected around our area. I wasn't sure if the power would be out for a day, two days, three days or three weeks. You just never know in these situations so it's best to be prepared for the worst but hope for the best. We were not prepared!

It was a cold night on Friday evening and a loss of power, even for such a short time, really put things into perspective as to how much we use power - even little things like turning on a light to see, charging a phone, keeping our food at the proper temperature in the refrigerator or freezer or heating a cup of water.

It also made me think about all the advances in technology and perhaps, how much we take for granted.

When was the last time you told yourself "wow, I have so much - I feel so fortunate." 

This power outage really had me thinking a lot.

It also really made me think about what's most important in life. 

Thankfully, we were able to Facetime with my brother and his wife Dana, who live in Pittsburgh, who just had their first baby on Friday evening!

Welcome to the world Jackson (Jack) Aaron Rakes!

In the end, we all remained safe and healthy for 24 hours without power.
Again - some people had it much worse as many people depend on power for medical reasons.
I am grateful for our healthy bodies and this storm made me appreciate my good health even more than before.

Campy had his first real experience with snow and Karel and I (and our friends Joey and Tim up the street) explored a lot by foot.

The kids in our neighborhood had fun sledding down our street and there were lots of doggy feet exploring the fresh snow.

With several trips to and from my mom's house (1 mile away) and extra walks to pass the time away, Karel and I guesstimated that we walked a total of 15 miles (or more!) in 24 hours.

It was not safe for us to workout outside so that wasn't an option. Instead, we just explored by foot to move our body. 

Here are a few pictures of our our beautiful snow fall. 

Down goes the tree - down goes the power line. 

Swamp rabbit trail

Swamp Rabbit Trail

Furman University

Furman track - wanna go for a run?

Two simple swaps for more real food

Over several years, I've slowly changed my lifestyle habits and moved myself more and more away from a heavy processed and convenience-food diet toward a very real food diet.

Some dietary changes happened quickly whereas other changes required a different appreciation and time to create new habits.

I really value what real food can do for a body, when it comes to health and performance so I've worked really hard over many years to make some swaps when it comes to incorporating more real food into my diet.

I'm not against processed food and don't cringe at the thought of "food" in a bag but I do believe that some foods, like well-fortified foods, help to keep people healthy in all parts of our world. And since I don't have an off-limit food list, I never feel guilty, anxious or remorseful if I eat something processed.

I have a most of the time diet and then there are foods that I eat some of the time/on occasion. The great thing is that neither one is a mass-marketed diet plan so I am able to eat intuitively and mindfully and it's up to me as to what I put inside my body and when.

And I ALWAYS feel great when I eat and even better after I eat.

One of the biggest lifestyle changes in adopting a more real food diet is breaking away from food that is bought or consumed out of convenience. Certainly, it is just as convenient to snack on a washed and chopped fresh fruit salad that you put together and stored in your fridge and combine with Greek Yogurt or a hardboiled egg, as it is to snack on chips, cookies and bars, but it takes a lifestyle change to make sure fruit is available. 

I really believe that something magical happens to the body when real food takes the main stage. With a more real food diet, there is flexibility so that no macronutrient (carbs, protein, fat) takes the center stage. I prioritize proteins and fats, alongside carbs that pack a lot of nutrient density and give me the energy I need to train consistently well. In my diet, plants certainly get the spotlight and I feel this approach is great for everyone to ensure that your body stays in great health with a variety of vitamins and minerals.

I would like to share two simple real food swaps that you can easily try-out next week. 

For lunch the other day, I had this beautiful stir-fry dish.
Would you believe that this dish only had 5 ingredients???
Mixed frozen veggies, cooked black rice, cooked jasmine rice and tempeh cooked in olive oil.

Instead of a fast-food sandwich or wrap, with the meat and veggies in the inside, let's turn that sandwich inside out and fill a bowl with lots of nutrient powerful ingredients and add a grain instead of the bread.
I'm not anti-sandwich but there is only so much "plants" that you could squeeze between two slices of bread.

This swap does mean you have to eat with a fork and not with your hands but perhaps this can be the start to a new lifestyle change of sitting down to eat - with utensils. And, if you have all these items prepared ahead of time, this dish takes less than 10 minutes to assemble and heat.

This real food swap is so simple.
Consider turning your favorite sandwich, wrap or pita inside out for a more plant-strong meal. 

Your goal is to combine lots of veggies, a grain/starch, a protein and a fat for a balanced meal. You can use any meat instead of tempeh and add any fat that you'd like inside of olive oil.

Ready for another swap?

Before an early evening workout this past week, I was in need of a snack. I had some cooked sweet potatoes in my fridge so I took a few out and drizzled them with a little honey and topped with a little butter and cinnamon. I then added a small handful peanuts for a delicious and nutritious pre-workout snack. 

Eating a granola bar or a sport bar didn't even come to mind as I had real food waiting for me for a yummy snack.

Ironically, as I was eating and thinking about the composition of this snack, it hit me that this pre-workout snack had almost the same calories, carbs, protein and fat as a sport bar! Plus, you save a wrapper by eating real food instead of a processed bar so it's great for the environment too.
WIN WIN.

1 sport bar - ~240 - 300 calories, 5-10g fat, 45-50g carbs, 5-15g protein

Real food swap:
1 cup sweet potato
1 tbsp honey (or 4 pitted dates)
10 peanuts
~240 calories, ~5g fat, ~43g carbs, ~5g protein

What real food swaps will you make next week?

Let go of your psychological safety net

As a lifelong athlete, I have found that when I train my mind as hard as I train my body, I perform well, often exceeding my personal expectations.  

However, mental training is easier said than done!

There have been many times in training and racing when my mind just wasn't in it to win it!
In the past few yeas, I have actually had to work on my mental strength as I was finding my mind to be a major limiter with my training as it relates to the following:
-Overcoming injuries - a fear of an injury coming back, having fear when pushing hard or going long
-Bringing my work/life to a training session - not being 100% present during a workout and thinking about everything that I need to/should do

I've really worked hard on these areas over the past few years so that I can execute better in my training sessions. 

When athletes talk mental strength, I believe many athletes think toughness, digging deep, grit, perseverance. Absolutely, all of those components are important when it comes executing well on race day and in training.

But mental training is so much more than being hard core in the mind.

I think a great component of mental training is learning how to get through specific situations that may be keeping you from making the progress that you feel you should be making.
And sometimes, your biggest limiter may be that you think you can't get any better as an athlete!

Mental training isn't limited to your workouts or races.

A tough situation could be your relationship with your spouse/significant other, anxiety over a health issue (in a family member or pet), your job/career, a family member/child, relationship with your coach, lifestyle habits, past experiences......there is so much that could potentially affect your emotional resilience.
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Many athletes create a team when it comes to training for a race and this team often includes a coach, bike mechanic, sport dietitian and a massage therapist/PT.
But how many athletes actually reach out to a sport psychologist for help? 

Sometimes you really need a professional/expert to guide you (the athlete) in your thoughts as it can be difficult to understand what specific barriers are in your mind and how they can/will affect how you perform on race day.

Having said all of this....

I feel so lucky to have Gloria in my life because she knows exactly what to say, when it needs to be said.

Gloria is a very close friend of mine but also a clinical sport psychologist who has helped me through so many situations in my life, personal and athletic.

Plus, her dog Frida kinda looks like Campy so it was kinda like we were always meant to be best friends....even though we live on opposite coasts. 

In Gloria's latest blog post, Psychological Safety Net, she writes about a topic that I feel so many athletes can relate to and should understand.

I could not resist the opportunity to share this great article with you. 

Here is a little from her fantastic blog post: 

There is a term in psychology that we call self-handicapping. Self-handicapping is a sneaky psychological safety net that athletes can get caught up in if they are not careful or honest with themselves.

Many athletes hold on to their psychological safety net (self-handicapping patterns) for many reasons, but the big ones – fear of failure, ego deflation, disappointment, failure to meet expectations, perfectionism, poor distress tolerance, fear of risking taking, staying in the comfort zone, lack of follow through/inconsistent training behaviors and falling into comparisons.

Check out the rest of the article to learn more and be sure to read her many examples of Psychological Safety Nets.

Do any of her psychological safety net examples apply to you?

How will you break your safety net? 

Super Scrumptious Blueberry Muffins

After my run check-point "test" on Sunday morning, I came home in the mood for a blueberry muffin.

 I didn't rush out to buy a muffin but instead, I went to the internet to Google "Blueberry Muffin recipe" and I combined several recipes based on what ingredients I had at home.

While drinking a glass of 1% Organic milk and about 20g of whey protein and eating a banana with a few pitted dates as my recovery snack, I went to work in my kitchen, making seven super scrumptious blueberry muffins. 

INGREDIENTS
2 Tablespoons butter

1 egg

2/3 cup 0% Greek Yogurt

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

3/4 cup all-purpose flour (you can sub with gluten-free flour if needed)

3/4 cup instant rolled oats

1/4 cup brown sugar

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
2 tbsp chia seeds

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1 cup frozen or fresh blueberries (I used frozen)
Water

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350-degrees F. 
2. Melt butter in microwave. Then add egg, yogurt and vanilla until evenly combined.
3. Add dry ingredients (flour through cinnamon) and stir until just combined.
4. Mix in berries (ok if you smash them while stirring).
5. Add a few tbsp of water to help with mixing. Your batter should be thick but a little water can help for even mixing. 
6. In a non-stick muffin tin (you can spray with non-stick spray or use muffin liners), fill the tins 3/4th way full. You should get 6-7 muffins. 
7. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. 

If you or your family love muffins, I suggest to double this recipe to make 12-14 muffins and to freeze half.....these muffins will not last long around muffin lovers!
Sorry, no nutritional information.I give you permission to yum over your muffin because it is made from real food, because you prepared it and it makes you feel good inside with every bite.
A great way to enjoy the muffin is as a snack (pre-workout or anytime) or for a balanced meal, yum over your muffin at meal time and top with honey, a little nut butter, Greek yogurt and fruit OR with a protein/fruit/veg smoothie OR with a veggie and egg scramble.