Cookies!

Today is a holiday baking day. Does spending the morning at the gym mean I get to sample everything?

On the menu:
My mom's overnight buns, veganized
Cinnamon rolls for Christmas morning
Lemon cookies
Dark chocolate peppermint cookies
Chocolate chip cookies

Yum!

2011 races

Since it's halfway through December already, it's time to start thinking about next year's races. I've already signed up for the Seattle Rock n Roll Half Marathon again next year--I have a sad time to beat from 2010. The goal is to qualify for the Disney Marathon in 2012 (the race is in January).

Then a coworker mentioned the Portland Marathon in October. Said it was a good race, and 2011 is the 40th anniversary or something. THEN I read this article about the best marathons for first-timers, and Disney and Portland were both on there.

So now what? If I run Portland, I'm close to home, don't have to change time zones, don't have to take a ton of vacation time, but its six days after I'll be at a wedding in Maui. If I run Disney, I do have to fly to Florida but I get to run through the parks, which seems hilarious, and January is a good time to leave the rainy Pacific Northwest.

Guess I'll see what my time is in June and how my knee holds up. It hasn't been bothering me lately (go crosstraining!), so I'm keeping fingers crossed.

Ugh...

Obviously, not running too much since this blog hasn't been updated in MONTHS. Shame on me! I have been taking classes at work, but I haven't been putting in miles, which became very clear when I looked at my year-long workout graph on dailymile.com. So SAD. I was logging around 50 miles a month over the summer. Now? Ha. Not even in the double digits.

Time to start running again. I do have a "race" in the works. Hubby and I are doing a local Turkey Trot Thanksgiving morning. It's really more of a fun-run, as there are no timing chips or anything. Eh, our entry fee went to the local food bank, and at least I'm running SOMETHING. So the goal is to run the 5k on a treadmill tomorrow at work before the run next Thursday. At least the few times I have gotten out to run I've been going around 3 miles. I just hope it isn't pouring outside—or snowing, since that seems to be in the cards for Seattle this winter.

Pea soup

I was back in the Midwest for a few days last week. Determined not to completely give up exercise for five days, I tried to run, twice.

Minnesota kicked my ass. It wasn't even very humid or hot, if you ask someone that lives there. When I first came to Seattle, I thought everyone here was a wimp. Complaining about humidity when I couldn't feel it, slapping at bugs I couldn't see, dashing for air conditioning when I didn't think it was that hot.

I'm a wimp.

Running outside felt like running through hot pea soup. I was hydrated, but felt light headed about a mile into the run. I couldn't get a decent breath or keep my heart rate under control. I've been running in 65-70 degree weather, in Minnesota it was in the 80s at least. Blech.

I ran today to make myself feel better. It was 62 degrees and raining. Perfect!

Burn out

Complete burn out after that half marathon. I didn't run for more than a week. I didn't even take a class at work for more than a week.

One month later and I'm finally starting to get a few miles in a week once again. About two weeks ago I got my weekly training update from dailymile.com and it was a whopping zero. Wah wah. That was depressing. Then last week it was a whopping three miles. Better than nothing, but not by much. (By three miles, really.) I was feeling the lack of running. The gym works to sweat, but it doesn't work to keep my brain in shape.

So I hit the road last week and this weekend (hottest weekend so far this year, go figure), and managed 10 miles. A little better. Not great, but better. My head feels better, though. Much better.

Who is now addicted to running? Me.

Now I just need to find the next race ...

I dislike step.

I get to take fitness classes at work for free, so I usually try to do something that lands around lunchtime. It's a good break, I don't have to work out when I get home, and it keeps me awake through the afternoon. Thursdays, I try to go to a class that is a combination of cardio and strength training. I go because I need the strength training. Unfortunately, the instructor is also a step instructor, so once in awhile she pulls the steps out.

I'm not a coordinated person. I can't dance, I don't pick up on footwork too easily and I'm not good at falling properly. So step + me = bad, bad idea.

This past Thursday, the instructor pulled out the steps. I'm already there, I can't just leave, so whatever, I'll try it. We didn't do anything complicated (grapevines and whatever else those crazy step people do), and I didn't even have my step up on risers (not making myself look good here). Despite all that, I managed to misstep and miss the step, rolling my right ankle. Of course, another woman fell and hit her head, so I probably got off easier, but still. If we wanted a step class, we'd take a step class. Plenty are offered. Keep the steps in storage on Thursdays, please?

I felt fine Thursday and finished the class. Then yesterday after work I went to the Capitol Hill Block Party. As with all concerts, I wore boots with no support, really, and was standing for hours. By the time I got home, my poor ankle was definitely swollen. And this morning, its tender.

So no running for me, AGAIN. This is getting old. Maybe it'll feel better tomorrow if I ice it and stay off of it today.

I dislike step.

Cross training to Monte Cristo

We'll call it cross training, but really we just needed to get out of the city and into the trees.

I had read about this hike last year, and we never made it out, so today we went. Monte Cristo is an old abandoned ghost town about two hours (driving, plus a four-mile hike) outside of Seattle in the Mount Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest. It was a mining town, but floods kept taking out the road, so now the forest has taken over again. It's a pretty easy hike, as most of it follows the old road. You do get to cross a river on a giant log, which is kind of exciting, and there are a couple big hills, but there isn't any climbing or long switchbacks like some of the trails out here.

Being in the woods, listening to the river, was wonderful. I forget how much I like the trees until we go to the middle of a forest again. The town itself has an old railroad turntable, a few buildings that were down by the tracks, and pretty much only one building left up in the actual town site—though they've labeled where a lot of the houses used to be. The main street was named Dumas Street, appropriate in a town called Monte Cristo. There are a few other odds and ends strewn about—wheels and tools—but the forest has pretty much taken over once again.

We ate lunch once we got to Monte Cristo, I had a lovely TLT (tempeh, lettuce, tomato), though I probably could have eaten two.

Four miles in and four miles out, and we were ready to come home and eat again.

Kinda want to be a Warrior ...

I'm thinking about attempting the Warrior Dash in September. While the run is only 3 or 4 miles, its the obstacles along the route that are the most intriguing and the most daunting. Here's the run closest to me. And it isn't even all the obstacles--mostly its the rappelling (hello, twig arms!) and the fire jumping. Oh, and maybe the hay climb, but only because the rest of the race will involve hay in the pants which is not pleasant. 

Still considering it. I have until Aug. 30 to decide.

Seattle Rock N Roll Half Marathon

I finished. The 12 weeks of training are done, the final goal is accomplished.

Saturday the alarm went off at 3:15 in the morning. After shoving some oatmeal into my stomach when I wasn't hungry, my hubby and I caught the bus downtown, where we caught a shuttle bus (a school bus, I could barely get my knees in the seat it was so small) down to Tukwila. We then had about two hours to wait until the start of the race at 7. Because of the wave start, I wouldn't be starting for another HOUR after that. The weather wasn't too terrible. The sun was barely up, with cloud cover. It was probably in the 50s. There were already people everywhere, though by 7 it definitely was more difficult to walk around. I don't know an exact number, but there were at least 27,000 people running either the half or full marathon.

Almost one hour to the minute after the very first runners started, my corral (moo) was released to start the race. The tracking system they use is nice--even though all the clocks at the mile markers start with the first group, the tracker on your shoe only starts when you actually cross the finish line. We also got 5k, 10k and 9 mile splits. By the way, the guy that won the half marathon ran it in 1:04:55—he could see the finish line by the time I was starting.

The course goes from Tukwila to Qwest Field in Seattle. It was pretty easy to pick out the out-of-towners during the run. They'd start talking about the terrible uphills when I hadn't even really noticed we were going uphill. On the flip side, they thought it was great running weather, I thought it was really muggy. (But at least the sun wasn't out, and it was good running weather overall.)

There were 9 bands along the half marathon course, which was cool. There was only one boy-with-guitar (really? C'mon, we need drums, people), the rest were pretty good, I guess. You don't really hear much as you're going past. There were also probably 9 cheer squads and a ton of water stations. They also had this Cytomax energy drink stuff, which just made the road sticky when you had to run past the tables.

Best part of the race for me was running through the Mount Baker Tunnel on I-90. It was cool since I drive that everyday (seems much shorter in a car...) and also because they had a DJ in there, so the sound was booming everywhere. As a person that cranks the iPod as high as it can possibly go when running somewhere without traffic, it was nice to have it so loud nothing else could be in my head. And how fun for that guy to DJ in a freeway tunnel? He looked like he was having a blast anyway.

For some reason, I couldn't really get my head into the run. The first three miles were spent dodging people on the route (I started too far back in the corrals), and then I think it was just that there were always people everywhere. I always run by myself, and our other races weren't that big--eventually I'd pretty much be running alone. Not this time (but I should have expected this with 27,000 people signed up). Miles 7-9 weren't fun since my head wasn't in it, I couldn't relax into my pace. Then, at mile 10 I hit the wall big time. Ten miles was the most I'd ran in training, so that had something to do with it, but also I think I had burned everything in my body to burn. Other people were hitting the wall, too. Somewhere between miles 10 and 13 we had to run up an onramp. I love uphills because they kick my muscles into gear and my knees feel better. However, one woman (who I really think was loopy) started sprinting up the onramp yelling as loud as she could "it's a flat, it's a flat!" Hope she was OK ...

The worst part of the race (besides knowing how far I was from Qwest Field and thus the finish line, since I always drive through there) was that we ran past Qwest Field, up through Pioneer Square and back around to the stadium. The finish line is in sight, but we're only at mile 11 or something. That was about where I started getting passed by speed walkers. But dammit, I was going to finish jogging, even if it was a very sloooooww jog. My knees hurt, my feet hurt, my toes hurt, my ankles hurt ...

I wonder if it would have been different had I had some goo or a granola bar or something. They were taking photos at the finish line, and I was willing myself not to be crying in the photos (which now makes me laugh, but really ... there wasn't nothing left).

I got my medal, got the finisher photo taken (I REALLY wonder what that is going to look like) and chugged water, finally tried some Cytomax—I was scared to drink it during the race since I had never had it before—and ate a bagel, and felt a little better.

So yay! I did it. My overall pace was about 12:30. I had wanted to run 12-minute miles, and considering how slow I was at the end, I would guess for most of the race I was. Now I've done it once, next time won't be so bad. And there will probably be a next time since I want to qualify for the Disney World Marathon eventually.

I didn't see many costumes in the race, I'm not really sure why. Lots of T-shirts from other places: Texas, Minnesota, Illinois, Wisconsin, BC Canada. I guess all 50 states were there as well as 23 countries or something. I also had an old man blow his nose into his hand then fling the contents off to the side. Ew. Really, people. And a guy answered his phone while he was running. That was kind of funny. Running along, chatting on the phone. Lots of people also took photos while they ran, or stopped to take photos.

We did not stay for the after-race concert, but headed downtown for some food, then home, when I could finally take my shoes off and found blisters that were bigger than the toes they were on. I'm on the hunt for new running shoes.

Final time: 2:45:18.

Do I look tired? Because I was. This was around mile 11, taken by my dear hubby, who waiting like two hours for me to finish. I'm in the white hat, black shorts, gray T-shirt.

A blurry photo of the medal we got.

The 10-miler

How come my long runs always end up happening when its pouring outside? Sunday was a 10 mile run, and it went well but it started off drizzling and ended up pouring for most of the time. I came home dripping wet again, and as of this morning my tennis shoes still weren't dry.

I started in Magnuson Park and ran home, only getting lost once in Ravenna Park, which is MUCH larger than the map indicates. The map also indicates that you can turn left onto 15th from the park. I found out, however, that you actually run UNDER 15th. Oh well. Made it home in one piece, and neither my knees nor my feet felt too bad. I think I might actually be ready for this run on Saturday! Really hope it doesn't rain. So tired of the rain.

So this week is protein and carb loading. I don't know if it works or not, but its a good excuse to eat pasta. Race time is 7 a.m. on Saturday, we will be heading to the shuttle busses sometime around 4 in the morning. I'm in one of the last corrals, so I would guess it'll be an hour after the race starts before I hit the starting line, giving me about four hours to kill. Wonder if they put chairs in the corrals while we wait?

Hmm

My body is rebelling from all this running. Or at least, my feet are. I skipped my run today because of pain (and swelling, awesome) in the top of my right foot. I can't win. I iced it at work today--this still hurts from the race on Sunday--and that helped, I think. But its just a running thing, so even though I didn't run, I still did a workout over lunch, using minimal impact machines so I can keep strengthening my muscles up until it won't do any more good without hurting my foot.

I hate being inside when its nice out. And someone today had stepped in a dog deposit (or something) without realizing it because it was rather smelly in there--and it wasn't my shoes, I checked. Yuck. Once the pressure is off, I can just go for a walk instead of a run if its nice and my feet hurt.

I'm excited for the race, but at the moment I don't know if I'm more excited to do it or for it to be over. I know I'm going to have fun while at the race but these last two weeks are killing me. I'm sure its going to be over faster than I'd like.

Talking to some coworkers who ran the race last year, it sounds like I'm going to be in the back with all the crazy people. Sweet. I need to figure out how to run with a camera in my hands to capture what I'm sure is going to be great fodder for my fiction writing. Maybe I can end up in some photos. I'm hoping to wear my Realtor's (he's also a friend) T-shirt as some free advertising. Its an adorable shirt (designed by his wife, a very talented graphic designer ... plug, plug, plug), so if I can end up in photos ... I need a crazy hat or something, I guess.

One long run left on Sunday, I'm going to try and get a five-miler in before that. Our last round of guests for a few months shows up tomorrow night, so it'll have to be during lunch, which is becoming harder for me than running after work. Hopefully the sun will shine, that always helps. I'm tired of this Seattle "Juneuary."

10k--check!

It was a great day for a 10k. The sun was out, but it was only in the high sixties with a breeze, so it wasn't too hot. My husband and I were both doing our first 10k, the Shore Run/Walk that benefits Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research. Not a bad place to spend $35 or whatever it was. AND we got a free shirt (long sleeved, or at least it is on people that don't have monkey arms). If we keep up a racing schedule, I'm starting to wonder where all these T-shirts are going to go ...

I managed to pace myself much better than at the last race, ending up with just under a 12 minute mile, which is right where I am. I finished at the back of the pack, but wasn't last, and wasn't even last in my age group. I'll take it.

The run goes along Lake Washington, and I was a bit worried there would be a lot of hills. There were really only two, and only one was big. I think I have living on Phinney Ridge to thank for those hills not being very difficult for me. I'm starting to really like hills, I tend to pass people :) Its too bad Lake Washington Boulevard has pot holes in it because if I wouldn't have had to pay such close attention to the road, I could have watched more of the view.

Only one long run left, on Sunday, before the half marathon.

The next race approaches

Sunday is the 10k race. 6.2 miles. I am actually looking forward to it because 1. It's a long enough distance that I'm forced to really think about pacing 2. It's along Lake Washington so it'll be pretty 3. It should be nice outside!

I'm supposed to run one more 5 mile before the race, but I don't think I'm going to have time. That might be just fine, however, as my feet are still a bit sore from my last two runs. I ran 5 miles Tuesday night and managed to clock in at an 11:13 pace. It didn't feel like I was running that fast—that's a good thing, right? Plus, I'm just TIRED. I think I slept for almost 10 minutes in yoga today. Well, technically I was supposed to be in shavasana, but I fell asleep.

On the half-marathon note, I downloaded our waivers and corral info from the Web site for both my husband and myself. Since he is (significantly) faster than me, he's in a different corral—27 corrals away! I'm not even going to get to see him start the race. That's a bit intimidating. There are going to be a LOT of people at this race. Oh well. I'll be with the turtles in the back. We win at the end of the story anyway, right?

So this is me

Link

Guess I'll keep up with the resistance band duck walks I do almost every night.

Approaching burnout

Yup. Ready to run this half marathon and be done with the hour plus runs for awhile. Of course, it was humid (for the West coast. Real humidity would melt me at this point.) on my nine-miler today, which didn't help my attitude. I STILL haven't purchased a water belt. With only one long run left before the half marathon, I no longer see the point. Until after I run the half and decide I need to do a full.

Uh huh, one long run left at 10 miles. Next weekend is the 10k race at a measly 6.2 miles (ha). Then the 10 mile run approaches. I've decided after seven miles my body goes into auto mode and its all kind of the same until I see the finish line (or our house, whatever the case may be). Surprisingly on today's run my knee was hurting a little bit in the last quarter of the run, but it feels good now. My last mile was all uphill, which I think helps as it gives my other muscles a break. Getting up Phinney Ridge from Greenlake is not fun. At all. I'm not sure that would ever be easy for anyone. Its hard to get up that hill in a car, much less by leg power.

I am looking forward to the 10k. Its a run along Lake Washington, so it should be really pretty, although I'm assuming its also really hilly. It'll be nice to have one more race before the big event as I failed to pace myself at all during the 5k. Hopefully I can control it this time and get more even splits.

My next run is on Tuesday, and its supposed to be nice and sunny. I'm pretty tired of this rain, so here's hoping ...

We're famous!

OK, not really.

My husband and I tried out the vegan restaurant Plum Bistro in Seattle for my birthday this past spring. While we were there eating, I noticed a photographer taking pictures all over the restaurant. I remarked to him that it looked like he was either media or taking promo shots for the restaurant, and wondered if we'd ever catch a glimpse of ourselves somewhere.

Fast forward a few months. One of the e-mail newsletters I get had a link to an article name dropping a bunch of celebrities and something about Plum Bistro. Since this is a vegan newsletter, I was curious if it was Seattle's Plum Bistro (the newsletter is out of NYC). Reading the article, it was! It's an interview with the chef of Plum Bistro, Makini Howell. Turns out she created the food for a fancy-pants Earth Day party full of celebrities in L.A., and is now going to open a Plum Bistro L.A.

On to why we're not really famous. In the article are teeny-tiny photographs, including one that had to have been taken by the photographer in the restaurant the day we were there. Scroll down, see the photo with all the teeny-tiny people in it? My husband and I are the two blobs sitting in front of the big glass garage door. He's in a white shirt and we both have dark hair. We're famous! Oh, and the article is interesting, too.

By the way, if you've never eaten at Plum Bistro, check it out. Even if you aren't vegan. Try the Mac N Yease. 

Happy National Running Day!

My Runner's World and Lululemon Twitter feeds have informed me of this holiday. And although it is my normal day to run, I will not be running today. The weather is really terrible (and supposed to be much better tomorrow) and there is no food in the house for dinner tonight—so I'm waiting until tomorrow for my second five-mile run of the week. Tonight is grocery shopping instead.

More updates on my last few runs later. It's been a busy couple of weeks and I haven't had time to log on and write after work. I also have four or five articles I've read recently online that are waiting in the wings to be blogged about, including a photo shoot for a local vegan restaurant my husband and I were inadvertently a part of.

Until then, go run!

All is quiet ...

Because I haven't been running (sad!).

Last week I went for a run over lunch on Thursday. When I left, it was sunny. About two and a half miles in, it started raining. Well, pouring. Sideways. And blowing. I had two miles back to the office, in the cold rain (and had left in shorts and a thin shirt). So not only was I running faster than normal, I was probably also paying less attention to my form. Of course, my knee was really bothering me at the end of that run.

The next day, bam! Head cold. So now, my knee hurts (even when I'm walking) and my head is all stuffy. With my poor body screaming that loudly, I had to stop, and haven't run for a week. Tomorrow is the first run, 4.5 miles. I missed a long run, so I'll go seven miles on Saturday, but next weekend have to run 9. I don't like the idea of a two-mile jump, but I don't really have an option. And besides, the most I'll run before the half marathon is 10, so that will be a 3.1 mile jump. Might as well get a little practice in, huh?

In the meantime, I've been doing a lot of squats and hip strengthening exercises at home, to help keep my knee where it's supposed to be when I run. I'm going to have quads of steel. (ha).

Rain, rain, go away

I passed on my regular Wednesday afternoon run, mostly because by the time I got home it was pouring outside. After a week of being able to run in some slightly warmer sunshine, going back to the cold rain is hard to do.

To my delight, the sun was shining when I left my office around 12:30 for my 4.5 miles. It stayed out for about 2.5 of those 4.5 miles. Then, just as I was realizing I took a wrong turn somewhere in Medina (where, by the way, I saw two cop cars in three blocks ... man that city-neighborhood-thing has a lot of police busy keeping riff-raff out), it started sprinkling. About 5 minutes later, it started raining. Then, just as I was starting the last mile of my run, it started raining sideways.

I felt bad for all the suits that had left their office to walk to lunch sans umbrella and had to return in that downpour, because by the time I was back at my office, I was dripping wet. And cold—it was not a warm rain. That's what our locker rooms with unlimited hot water are for, right?

I did better than my time on Monday, but I think that was a combination of wanting to be out of the rain and the cold weather numbing my knee, which once again hurts. Though not as badly as it did after my Monday run.

Saturday brings seven miles. Bum-bum-buuum.

Tater-tot-touille

Midwest meets French peasant food.

Months ago, we tried a ratatouille recipe from this cookbook. It's basically a bunch of slow-cooked vegetables. The book suggests serving it over rice or something similar. Traditionally, ratatouille is cooked on the stove top then baked in the oven, like a casserole. Thus the idea for baking it with tater tots on top came about. Everything is better with tater tots!

We've now made this twice.

 As for my run today, I was still tired from the race and all the walking I did on Saturday. My legs felt really heavy and my knee was hurting, but I finished my 4.5 miles ... eventually. Along the way, a lovely bird dive-bombed me. First of the year. For a minute I thought I was in the clear. I wish I could see myself getting dive-bombed, because I have a feeling it's really funny.

Now a day of rest. On Wednesday, another run, this time with my sister, who will be in town. Hope we get another sunny day for the run. Today was beautiful.

8:50?!?

My husband says I'm officially a runner now that I've completed my first race.

We both were up early to head to the race. Nothing like getting up before 7 on a Saturday. The UW Bothell 5k race was kind of strange—there are two points where you go down and back, so you're passing places you've already run; the start and first half of the race are on relatively narrow paths so there is jostling and bottlenecking; and the final half mile goes up this killer hill (and this is coming from someone who runs hills on every run due to where our house is located). BUT, it was pretty, the sun was shining, and we got a free (really really) purple T-shirt.

We ended up starting near the front of the pack, just because that was where we were waiting before the race started. Due to this, my first mile was finished in 8:50. I had to look at my watch about three times. I don't think I've ever run a mile that fast before. Of course, that pace didn't stay, but I ended up with a time of 31:57, an average pace of 10:18, 12 seconds faster than the 10:30 pace I had as my goal. My husband (I'll brag for him here) did it in 21 minutes. So proud!

My next 5k is going to be under 30 minutes.

Funny note about the T-shirt. They're UW Bothell shirts, of course, but the logo is a big, white W on a purple shirt that says Bothell under it. If I cross out the Bothell, its pretty much the same logo as my alma mater, Winona State. Heh. I need a purple sharpie ...

Race day No. 1

It's less than two days away. I'm running a whopping 5k on Saturday morning. Very excited, however, as this is the first "official" race I've ever participated in. As in, I paid money to go run for three miles. At least my money is going toward scholarships for college students at UW Bothell.

The best time I've logged on my training runs thus far is a 10:44-minute mile pace on a 3.5 mile run last month. So, with an slightly shorter distance, and the energy of a race, maybe I can duck under that mark. 10:30, anyone?

Tomorrow is a rest day, and this week I've been loading on protein, since I feel like I haven't been eating enough. Hopefully this all helps boost my energy, which has been lagging this week despite the beautiful weather Seattle is having. C'mon, tofu, help me wake up!

Woot!

Ran another four miles today. My goal was to beat my time from Monday, since I was running the same route, and to my surprise, I not only beat my time, but ended up running 11-minute miles. Only one more minute to knock off before I hit the time I'd love to be running.

The UW Bothell 5k is on Saturday. We'll see how fast I can run that one. I really don't know anything about the race, so any hills will be a surprise.

Next week training amps up again, two 4.5 mile runs and seven miles on the weekend. I'm only about six weeks out from the big race.

Barefoot running creeps up again

It's so trendy right now.

I ran into my neighbor the other day (the sun will do that), and he was wearing some FiveFingers. He informed me they are really hard to get in Seattle, since barefoot running is now the trendy thing.

I wonder if its popular just because its trendy or because its helpful for those of us with knee/foot/ankle issues. I'm sure some of it is trend, yes, but I just read another interesting article about barefoot running, and this one also talks about wearing shoes with less cushion as a way to possibly prevent injuries. That's interesting because my dear husband swears the cheap shoes he picks up at a Big 5 or Sports Authority are easier on his knees over the long term than the more expensive ones purchased at the local running store.

I've never run in cheap shoes. I didn't start running until college, and at the time I thought a person needed good shoes. So I always had decent running shoes. When I started going farther, I went to a running store and was fitted for shoes—even running on a treadmill while they filmed my feet to see if I over or under pronate.

Currently when I run, as long as I don't get too tired and am careful to keep my form, I don't have issues with my knees. But as soon as I start to get tired and my form goes, the knee pain starts up. Maybe less cushion would be the answer because I'd be forced to run properly.

Or I can just keep reading online articles that contradict each other while using my exerband to strengthen my hip muscles.

Grill time

Beautiful day again today. It was even warmer than yesterday, and the sun has been out in full force all day. There was yard work completed, but more importantly, we put together the boxes that are going to make up our gardens! Hopefully we can get them filled this week and buy some plants next weekend.

One of our errands today was to refill the propane tank because its finally time to grill for dinner. And grill we did. Pork chops for the husband, and for both of us, two different packets of goodness. One: lentils, sweet potatoes, red bell pepper, green beans, raisins with an Indian-curry-ish spice mix, topped with some papaya chutney after it cooks on the grill. Two: baked teriyaki tofu, pineapple, red and green bell pepper, green onion and a coconut milk sweet-and-sour sauce. This one was topped with basil, mint and hickory-smoked almonds after it was cooked.

SO GOOD. Looked like summer, tasted like summer, and full of vitamins, minerals, protein and all that good stuff. I love it when new recipes turn out.

Slow and steady ...

Six miles this morning. Luckily the sun is out and its finally starting to warm up. I got to run in shorts and a tank top, plus a hat and sunglasses. Beautiful running weather.

I was only at a 12 minute/mile pace, but the goal is to finish the race, not run it in a certain time. This time. The next race goal will be to beat the previous, but I don't want to get ahead of myself.

This week ended up being kind of a protein-loading week. Hopefully it helps put some more muscles on, because I'm at the point where my muscles get tired long before I can start to challenge my cardio fitness.

Next week is the 5k race. Easy after today's six miles. Maybe I can hit my 10 minute/mile goal in the short race ...

Barefoot=hippie ...

Once again, signs point to me being a hippie. 

I still think I'm going to try the Vibram Five Fingers, just to see if it gets rid of some of my knee issues. As he says in the article, speed is not my goal.

The candyman can

I have had this song in my head for far too long today. I'm not really sure where it came from; I haven't watched Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory in a couple of years. Maybe it was the sunshine?

I lucked out this week—my second short run of the week was today and not only was the sun shining, but also it was 60 degrees outside. Downright balmy this time of year. I really needed the nice weather. I had a grueling cardio/strength class during lunch today, so I wasn't feeling like running. My quads were (and still are) begging to be left alone. But with the sun out, how can I skip a run? So I put in my four miles (in shorts!) and hopefully when I wake up in the morning I can still walk. Tomorrow's workout includes 30 minutes on a bike; my poor quads. Hopefully today's run helped get the lactic acid out from all the squats earlier in the day.

The run went great, as they usually do during a nice-weather spell. I even managed to hit a handful of lights on the walk signal all in a row. It's hard to go more than a mile in Seattle without having to stop for a light, so this was a welcome change. I doubt there are any stoplights during the half marathon.

Saturday brings six miles. Hope this nice weather returns Saturday morning. Hear that, Seattle weather gods? I need sunshine!

Portland

Portland, looking toward the Pearl District (I think) from a drawbridge (we were waiting for the drawbridge to lower).

The hubby and I were in Portland last weekend for two and a half days (about). We had a lot of fun, and I learned that if you're vegan, Portland is a great place to be. There were more food options than I've ever seen before, so we basically ate our way through the city. And some of the best options we couldn't even hit, since they were food carts that are open weekdays. Too bad, really. We'll have to go back in the middle of the week.

Woooooo, wooooooooooooo!

We took the Amtrak train down, and were staying right downtown at the Ace Hotel (very cool hotel, if you're ever in town).

Every room is different, with the artwork directly on the walls. This was the "together" room, since the wall opposite the hands said "together."

Portland has fantastic public transit, but really, its a small city, and especially in the downtown area, a person can walk everywhere. Friday night we just grabbed some snacky food at the restaurant attached to the hotel, Clyde Common. This place is one of the it places in Portland, because it was busy every night we were there, including Sunday night. Even the hotel lobby was busy, as it's attached to a Stumptown Coffee (sorry, not a coffee drinker, so we didn't go there and thus I have no opinion). Clyde Common has some awesome pimenton popcorn (pimenton, I've learned, is Spanish paprika) and good drinks. It was an early night, as the next day we both had our long runs of the week to do.

Saturday brought wind and off/on sun/rain. I ran five miles through the downtown/Old Town/Chinatown/Pearl District, including a short run down the riverfront where they have a big park. It was a pretty good run—Portland, compared to Seattle, is really, really flat. So it was also a pretty fast run (fast for me).

We headed to the Saturday Market after our runs, where I had a fantastic tofu scramble from a vendor there. Tofu scramble! It's really hard to find that in a restaurant here, much less a street vendor. I could barely eat the whole plate, it was so much food (for $6!).

Home of the tofu scramble, and the scramble before I devoured it.

We found a beautiful drawing at the Market, too, that the artist, Sienna Morris, is shipping up here. She does really neat work, drawing things using only the numbers on a clock. It's this interesting take on pointillism.

After the market I wanted to check out a vegan bakery that is really popular in Portland called Sweatpea Bakery. I believe it's in the East Burnside neighborhood, but please correct me if I'm wrong.

Sugar coma ... so good ...

Anyway, we walked in and most people were having lunch, but as we'd eaten at the Market, we got instead a lemon bar, a Charlie Brown bar (this was the hubbys, as it was mostly peanut butter—ew) and a slice of cookies and cream cake, all vegan. Hubby also got a bowl of tomato-basil soup that was really good. I was in it for the sweets though. Best lemon bar I've ever had, pre- or post-vegan.

Turns out, the bakery is in a vegan mall, so next door we found Herbivore, the clothing company (I got a couple awesome t-shirts) and down from that, a vegan grocery store that we didn't go in (too much food from the bakery). Around the corner was a place called Bartleby's, a neat little letterpress/card shop. I think there were some other stores in there, too, that weren't open on Saturdays.

With the long run done, we could go out on Saturday night, but walking back downtown I tweaked my knee somehow, and so was gimping the rest of the night, putting a bit of a damper on our plans. Before dinner, I took the hubby to Powell's Books, where we wandered (slowly) around until we were hungry.

On the left, found at Powell's Books--this is our life. On the right, the hubby with one of his favorite author's signatures on one of the sig walls.

Dinner was at this Peruvian place called Andina, which was really cool because they not only have a special vegetarian menu with at least five different things that can be made vegan (this is so rare in a restaurant, I'll take just five options) but also they had a gluten-free menu. Finally a place that understands friends with all different diets want to go out and have a fun dinner. This was another popular spot, because we got one of the last tables at the bar, and it was just after 5 when we walked in. The hubby got some meat, I had a really good quinoa and mushroom ... thing. I don't remember what it was, but it was good. I also tried their vegan sorbet, blood orange and cilantro, but that really wasn't the best. Too much cilantro, not enough orange, and too sweet all around. Oh well. I had already eaten some cake and a lemon bar earlier.

We stopped back at Clyde Common after dinner and had another drink and some more of that popcorn (I need to find Spanish paprika...) before we were done for the night. My poor knee was really angry with me.

After sleeping all night, the next day my knee was fine. It's the strangest thing. Sunday we stood in line for like 45 minutes to try Voodoo Doughnuts, another Portland institution.

Found in Voodoo Doughnuts. Zombie doughnuts!

They have a long list of vegan doughnuts, which was really nice. I tried a cake glazed and a raised Gay Bar (cream-filled bar with white frosting and a rainbow of Fruit Loops on top). The hubby got one cake and one raised doughnut, too (non vegan) and we both decided the cake doughnuts weren't that good. The raised were much better, but I still prefer Mighty-O in Seattle. Mighty-O does glazes on top instead of frosting, and for me, the frosting was too much.

After the Voodoo experience, we bussed up to Mississippi Avenue and just walked up and down, checking out that neighborhood. It had a ton of quirky stores. We stopped at The Laughing Planet Cafe, where they have lots of vegan options—and fantastic guacamole.

Thoughtfully enjoying my Laughing Planet food.

I had some mushroom-barley soup, which was fantastic, and a vegan Caesar salad, which wasn't as good as the one I make at home. For dinner, we were still on Mississippi, so we tried the Mississippi Pizza Pub (another Portland institution according to some magazines), where we hit happy hour. $1.75 slices, and they always have a vegan pizza on! It's pesto based and was really good. Giant chunks of vegetables, including kalamata olives and artichoke hearts, which I love on pizza. And, the slices are huge. I guess this place has live music almost every night, and once a week they do an adult spelling bee. There is also a kids' spelling bee hosted on Saturday afternoons.

We headed back to Seattle on Monday, stuffed to the brim. Eating so much probably explains why my run tonight wasn't so great. I just felt really HEAVY. My legs were heavy from all the walking over the weekend, plus I had all that extra food (and sugar) in my system. I was also nervous about my knee, since it was so troublesome over the weekend. I did four miles, though, and it went fine. I could definitely tell I hadn't had my Monday yoga class, though. Now, it's back to normal. Only two more months until the half!

Thanks Portland!

Oh, the hills

Didn't consider all the hills when we decided to live in a place with "ridge" in the name. I ran my typical 3.5 mile run backwards today, so instead of a 10-block downhill, I did a 10-block uphill. I think I could have walked up the hill faster than I was "running," but I did manage to jog the entire thing without stopping. Good thing it was at the start of the run. Also convenient was the fact that the rest of the run was at a slight downgrade. So overall, my time was a bit better than Monday's run. Now I'm exhausted.

My next run will be in Portland! Very excited for this trip. Anyone know a good five-mile route in Portland that starts/ends downtown?

Water, anyone?

I had to report for my first day of jury duty today, where I promptly was put in a jury this morning. That meant I didn't have my regular schedule of water, water, water, water, fruit, water, water, water, lunch ... by the end of the day I had a horrible headache. I snarfed down a burrito from Taco del Mar for lunch (love that place ... if you think it's vegan, it is!), ate a granola/power bar and a handful of nuts. While that's enough calories, it wasn't nearly enough water. Funny, they supply coffee but not filtered water. (And only had Styrofoam cups, but that's a different topic ...)

By the time I was almost home on the bus I was really feeling ill. A nearly empty stomach + not enough water + public transportation = horrible car sickness. I got off early to walk in the air and by the time I got home I had convinced myself to attempt my scheduled 3.5 miles.

It was slow going, about three minutes longer than my last run on that route, but it got rid of most of my headache. I need to keep running every time I have a headache, its a lovely feeling to know I didn't just pop a pill that does who knows what to fix the problem. Go endorphins, go! We'll see how tomorrow's stint at jury duty goes, I might get an extra run in this week ...

Now I need to go chug some more water in preparation for another not-enough-water day tomorrow.

Sugar sugar

Listening to NPR the other day, I heard two stories (one and two) about the same study that was just published regarding sugar and our health. The basic finding is that people who consume the most added sugar in a day have a higher risk for cholesterol problems that can lead to heart disease. Turns out, reading a label on processed foods isn't even going to give you an accurate picture of how much sugar you're really consuming. On the label, there is no differentiation between natural sugars (like those in fruit) and added sugars. On top of that, sugar comes in many different names (one article gave the examples of evaporated cane juice and malt syrup).

So here's the thing about sugar for me: It's been the number one hardest thing to reduce in my diet. Giving up meat was easy. Giving up dairy wasn't even so bad. I even gave up drinking my beloved soda (though I do have a Sprite or 7up once in a blue moon--I used to have something every day). But sugar has been HARD. Much harder than I thought, as I just recently managed to scale back. And the kicker is that refined sugar usually isn't even vegan. They use animal bones in the processing of sugar.

This study helps me steel myself against the darn sugar cravings, though. I know if I can just get rid of most of the added sugar in my diet, fruit is actually going to taste sweet, and I can have the sweet I crave packaged in a neat little case that also has some vitamins.

I need to hire a gardener ...

I am officially over the five-mile mental hurdle! On the most hills I've run, yet, too. It is windy today, though I only went about seven blocks running straight into the wind--lucky guess on the direction to run first on my part, I guess.

Running (or walking, or probably biking) lets me see a lot more than I can in a car, including all the people in our neighborhood that have really nice lawns. Though I'm not an advocate for watering grass just to keep it looking like a golf course, it does look really nice when the lawn is thick, green grass instead of the weed/grass jumble we have. I also saw a lot of nice fences (we need a fence, so I suppose that's why I was noticing that), including one that had this intricate carved sunflower made out of different kinds of wood on the front gate. There are very few mass-manufactured lawn ornaments in Seattle. I love being able to see that.

I also spotted two beautiful, brick tudors. I love our house, but I think I'd trade in an instant for one of those brick tudors. These two also had the golf-course grass.

I need to hire a gardener.

That risotto and the number five

So the risotto was NOT as pretty as the picture in the cookbook, but it tasted fantastic! No photo: by the time I finished making it (I'd forgotten how much work risotto is) I was so hungry, and my husband was so hungry, that we ate it. I was done eating with leftovers put away before I realized I should have taken a photo.

The hubby and I both agreed that it almost tasted cheesy. That was kind of nice. Its hard to get that macaroni and cheese consistency (unless you get the Mac 'n' Yease at Plum Bistro. Awwwsome!) but this risotto had it. And it has nutritional yeast in it, so it even had that color of boxed mac and cheese.

Today was another cross training day before the big run of the week. Tomorrow I'm set to run five miles. For some reason, the five mile amount in my head seems really far. It's silly because last Saturday I ran 4.41 miles, so I'm really not going that much farther (or running that much longer) but the number five just seems like a lofty goal. Maybe that's because that's my husband's average run and he's the runner out of the two of us. I jog, use it as exercise, but he runs.

With that logic, then, do I get to officially become a runner tomorrow after I finish my five miles?

Happy Earth Day!

I hope there were many trees hugged today.

Tuckered out

Did my second of the two shorter runs for the week tonight. Now these seem like no big deal. But for some reason I am TIRED tonight. That hasn't happened before, especially when its a shorter run. Maybe I need to eat some protein. While we had quinoa Sunday and Monday (an excellent source of protein, by the way, and its so much better than rice if you need that type of side), I haven't had any other big protein source in dinner the last two days. Tomorrow's dinner has nuts in it, so I'll get some protein then. We're trying another recipe from The Conscious Cook. It's a risotto, and I'll take a photo if its as pretty as the photo in the book is.

Running soundtrack

What do you listen to when you run? Any suggestions for new music? I have my favorites—I've been listening to Prodigy and the Run Lola Run soundtrack since college—and the crappy pop songs that have a good beat (Lady Gaga, here we come!) but as my runs get longer, I'm going to need some more music. I've found I need to have some kind of beat playing in my ears or I get really bored, even when I'm running outside. If I'm on a treadmill at the gym, my iPod is as loud as it'll go just to distract me from 1. the person running next to me and 2. the crap that always seems to be on the TVs (Fox News? Really?). My miles start increasing significantly starting on Saturday, so the hunt is on!

Angry running

I left work today with a terrible headache and a big dose of annoyance (from various office-related things). I really didn't want to run--in addition to the headache I was hungry. However, with 70 degree weather and a forecast of crap tomorrow, I wolfed down a slice of bread (carb addict! Whatever, it works) and went for my scheduled 3.5 miles.

Of course now I feel much better. And I shaved almost a minute off my pace! Angry running for me usually equals faster running. Full disclosure: I also had a big stretch of downhill, but since we live in Phinney Ridge, it's nearly impossible to avoid a long downhill.

The best part? I came home to some lovely flowers from my husband. (And now he's cooking dinner, a quinoa-avocado soup that is FANTASTIC. The recipe is from my friend Hope, I'll have to post it here some time.)

Sometimes running is the best medicine.

Edit: Annnndddd I just added another eight blocks to my running total, as we didn't have any salsa for the soup. Running with salsa, yup.

Love finding new (good) cookbooks

Sometimes I come across a really fantastic recipe that has all the right parts. It's not too complicated, doesn't take too long (usually less than an hour is considered quick for me) and doesn't have any ingredients that are either hard to find or hard to find quality versions of. Tonight I found one of those. It was like restaurant food from my own kitchen. LOVE it when that happens.

Six months ago I was on vacation and caught a random episode of Oprah (who I never watch, but there wasn't cable, so this was the best option). She had Tal Ronnen on, this vegan chef I had never heard of. The food he made on that show looked awesome, and I took note of his name (he was, of course, promoting his cook book). Finally about three weeks ago I bought his cookbook (The Conscious Cook), and that was the awesome recipe I made for dinner tonight. It's called Quinoa, avocado and sweet potato timbale with roasted tomatillo dressing. I did make one tweak: I couldn't find micro greens, so I used sprouts. I also didn't have a ring mold, so my presentation wasn't quite as pretty as the photo in the book, but really, it tastes the same.

Even my husband loved it (it always seems to me he isn't as crazy-in-love with the recipes I could eat on a weekly basis). Most of the recipes in that book are too complicated or time consuming to make during the week, but this was actually really quick (about 45 minutes), and pretty much everything could be done the day before and just assembled at dinner time.

The quinoa in it also hit the spot, as after a four-mile run I needed some protein. My run was also awesome today. Sometimes everything just feels right, and this was one of those days in spite of the sun, clouds, sun, clouds, wind and rain I encountered. I managed to shave time off my last four mile run, and made it back home before there was a downpour.

By the way: The photo from dinner really doesn't do it justice. Ring mold or not, it was quite pretty.

The cholesterol game

I found an interesting blog today, written by a 20-something in Texas called Happy Vegan Runner. She explains in the blog that she found out she had high cholesterol despite being a healthy eater and an active person. So, she went vegan. That's also my story, but one that I don't find much. Even doctors sometimes tend to look at us 20-somethings and assume things are fine, especially if in our medial history we indicate that we don't smoke, don't drink much, exercise and aren't eating doughnuts and fried chicken for every meal.

I was lucky, and had a really good nurse practitioner as my primary care person years ago who saw my family history and decided I needed to have a cholesterol check. And it came back high. So, even healthier eating, courtesy of the American Heart Association cookbooks, and more working out followed. Not much changed over the years, and I finally decided that all the exercise in the world wasn't going to be enough, nor was I going to start taking pills in my mid-20s. Enter veganism. For me, it worked. Last time I had my cholesterol checked (this time it was a new doctor who wasn't going to do it, and didn't understand why I wanted to have my cholesterol checked) my numbers were much better.

So, in an effort to have a healthy life despite my genes, I continue to do cardio, strength train, do yoga and stick to my vegan diet.

Veganize!

Today I attempted to veganize traditional recipes for the first time. I can follow a recipe and things turn out, but I have problems creating my own food and having it taste good. My dear husband has that talent. But I needed to create something to take to a book club meeting this weekend, and the theme is Hawaiian Brunch. So out comes a cookbook we bought in Maui four years ago and haven't touched. In it, I found a mango breakfast cake (like coffee cake) and some pineapple bran muffins. Traditional, of course. Out comes egg replacers and soy-based sour cream (for the mango cake). Both are currently cooling on the stove, ready to be tried tonight to make sure they're good before I serve them to people outside the immediate family. They smell good and look good, so hope is there.

Today was a 3 mile run, though I only went 2.8 because I also took a kickboxing class over my lunch. The kickboxing class left me cranky, but the run was wonderful! It was around 65 degrees so I could run in a tank top (this small thing has a big impact on my mental state), and it was sunny. That also means Green Lake was completely nutty and I probably ran more than 2.8 miles due to dodging people and dogs, but its nice to see all the people out and about. Plus, there was a young corgi out for a walk with it's people. Those dogs are so cute.

Tomorrow is the spinning, strength training, yoga combo class. I have a feeling after all this exercise I'm going to be ravenous this weekend. For tonight, at least, I have breakfast food to sample.

Barefoot running?

No running today, though I wish I could have, it was so beautiful out. I think when I left work around 2:30, it was 63 degrees or something. C'mon Seattle, let's keep spring around now! I'm tired of the cold, wet weather.

I found an interesting blog yesterday called Walk Slowly, Live Wildly. It's about a family of four that lives in their RV, traveling around the country. The whole concept is extremely interesting to me, though I'm not sure my mildly type-A personality would let me live like that. But I digress ...

The woman who writes the blog, in one entry, was walking about wanting to get back into running after a few years off, but when she tried, her knees were bothering her. Damn knees. So she tried these Vibram FiveFinger shoes--basically a way to run barefoot while not running barefoot. My husband had mentioned these sometime months ago (last year, even), but now I'm starting to see them around. I think one of the trainers at work has them, and there is also a thread about it on Daily Mile. I'm very intrigued, and think I need to check them out at REI. I'm certainly not going to run 13.1 miles practically barefoot, but it would be nice to try it out with a small percentage of my training and see how I feel. I know from all the yoga I do that my balance is significantly improved when I don't have shoes on. (Ever try eagle pose in tennis shoes? Not a simple thing to do. Even lunges are harder for me in shoes.) If running in these Vibram shoes could help strengthen my feet and ankles and be easier on my joints, I'm willing to look a bit silly when I run. I probably do anyway.

Anyone have any experience with these shoes? My hesitation is that they are kind of expensive for something I might not like. Of course, I've purchased other shoes that were just as expensive that I hardly wear ...

Meh, what's an extra half mile?

So I thought I had to run 3.5 miles today. So I did. Then I got home and checked my training schedule. I only needed to go 3 miles. Does that extra half mile mean I can eat some popcorn?

The run felt good today. I was really not liking the idea of a run the last half of the work day, but like a trooper (and because I knew I'd feel guilty later) I changed into my workout clothes before leaving so I could stop at Green Lake for my run. Then I left work and the sun was shining! While I only live about 15 miles from where I work, the weather can change dramatically. So my entire drive was spent hoping the sun would stay out. And it did. I think that saved my run. If it had been raining, I doubt I could have found the motivation.

The sun at Green Lake brings out all kinds of Seattlites that you don't normally see around the lake, and I love it. Its one of the best things about the city. Everyone is out enjoying the sun. Some are probably not wearing enough clothes, but if they want to be cold, go right ahead. (Hey Seattlites, sun does not equal warm. Sun equals sunglass, maybe a hat, not flip flops, shorts and possibly no shirt.) The city gets a lot friendlier when we see some light.

My other excitement for the day: I found a new Web site, dailymile.com. See my widget on the right? I'm going to start tracking my training on there. If you're a runner, check it out! And add me as a friend. I've entered my half marathon goal there, too, for everyone to see, so now I really feel committed.

Tomorrow is an easier day: Yoga! Sometimes the Wednesday classes can be a challenge, but I'll need the stretching. Plus, I can usually managed to fall asleep in Savasana for at least a minute or two. Sometimes, that's all a girl needs.

Does gardening count as strength training?

If it does, then I've accomplished my training for the day. If not, let's call this my day off.

Things I learned on my run this morning

1. Once you have been running for awhile, 38 degrees isn't THAT cold.
2. Eighth Avenue Northwest is really dirty.
3. Eighth Avenue Northwest is a wind tunnel.
4. Third is much better than Eighth.
5. People do not like picking up their dog poo.
6. People will bag their dog poo, then leave it on the sidewalk.
7. There is a really creepy GIANT King Kong head coming out of the side of the house at Eighth and 50th in Ballard.
8. The light at Eighth and 65th is really fast: Be ready.
9. After running up the long uphill that is Eighth, running up the steep, short uphill to Greenwood is nothing.
10. When your watch breaks, your iPod playlist works wonders for determining how long the run took.

Ow, ow, ow ...

Bit sore from kickboxing yesterday, plus I did another spin/strength/yoga class today, so hopefully I can walk tomorrow, as I need to get my four mile run in. At least it isn't so far. Every Saturday the runs increase by a mile for the most part. There are two weeks in there where it's a little less: the 5k race and the 10k race. (The 10k, according to the schedule, lands on the same day there is a big fair at work and a wedding in the evening. Not sure how I'm going to work that out yet ...)

The two classes caught up to me today in the food department. By the time I got home, I could have eaten enough food for two people. We had tacos. Easy Friday night dinner to throw together, plus I can make them vegan while my husband has more traditional tacos. The best substitute for cheese cravings? Guacamole. Yum! I don't miss the cheese anymore, but at first I needed something creamy. Now, I just love avocados. Also, the Mexican-style TVP (textured vegetable protein) they sell at PCC is wonderful, and heats up really fast if there isn't time or energy to marinate tofu or portobellos, and you're tired of beans.

Tomorrow night we're going to check out Plum Bistro, a vegan restaurant in Seattle, for my birthday. So excited!

Thursdays

Thursdays are kickboxing day. That means I do more squats than I can count, as they're a favorite activity of the instructor (although today was her last day, so we'll see if the new instructor does all the squats). It also means when I wake up in the morning, my shoulders, quads, hamstrings and triceps are going to hurt.

I love it. It does make me hungry. Dinner tonight was stuffed bell peppers and some Rosemary Diamante bread from The Essential Baking Company (best bread ever, by the way). The bell peppers are stuffed with a mixture of black beans, quinoa, onions, mushrooms, garlic, tomato sauce, a little olive oil, chili powder and a little salt. Topped with cilantro. The recipe is from Vegan with a Vengeance, and is a favorite.

One more cross-training workout before my long run on Saturday. The first long run? Four whole miles. I'll enjoy it while it lasts.

Proving myself to be a worrywart

So after my run on Monday and during the day yesterday my right knee was bothering me, causing a bit of stress, as I had another run today. I've already registered for my race, and can't get my money back, so what happens if I can't race?

I don't think I would care if I was running in a nonprofit race, but the Rock n Roll races, as far as I can tell, are for profit. So why'd I choose this race? Because there is a band every mile on the course. As a person that always runs with headphones, this will be a huge motivator. And for my first race, I'll need it.

So anyway, I was worried all day about my damn knee and whether it was going to hurt like it did on Monday and what I was going to do if it did hurt again. And if I should think about going to the doctor, or if I should ignore it, and what if I cause permanent damage ... you can see where this is going. (Let me add here that never at any point could I not walk because of pain.)

Then, I went to my noon yoga class. I wish I could link to a Web page for the instructor, because she is so wonderful, but I don't think she has one. We did a whole class of twists to detox, and when I left, I felt more clearheaded (and like a wrung-out sponge) than I have in awhile. I decided on Monday I probably didn't have my "head in the game," as real athletes say (right?), and today I was going to concentrate on my running and my form, and when I was done with my run, my knee wasn't going to hurt.

And ... it didn't! And doesn't! Yay! I am honestly so relieved. For as crappy as the weather was (raining, 45 degrees or something) it was a great run, in spite of the fact that I managed to run through a puddle and soak my toes a quarter mile into the run.

So, second run of training, a whopping 3 miles, was successful.

Now I'm going to fill up on Thai food my dear husband so kindly ordered for us to eat for dinner. I need the tofu, anyway, for protein. Since Thai food is one of the easiest things to eat out as a vegan, we eat it all the time. The Thai restaurant by our house must really love us. (And we love them—they deliver!)

Rest day

So today is supposed to be my rest day. The schedule says it should be Thursday, but my dear husband pointed out to me that its probably more important to get in the cross training I like to do than exercise exactly to the schedule. Since I love the kickboxing class I go to on Thursdays, and also love the class I take on Fridays, that left Tuesday for a rest day. So, I rested.

Sort of.

I usually run on Tuesdays, but am now running Monday and Wednesday. So not running during my lunch break was strange. And by the time I got home after work, what with the not sweating and sitting at a computer all day, I felt tired, cranky, fat ... Yes, there is probably something wrong with my mental state. After dinner, my husband and I went on a walk. We walked to the library (.8 miles) then to the tattoo shop close to our house (1.2 miles) and then back home (.3 miles). So my rest day involved a long walk, but I feel a bit better.

Maybe my rest days should only mean a rest from running or other intense cardio. I might go crazy--or drive my husband nuts with my crankiness--otherwise.

Beating the rain

Today was my first run of the 12 weeks of training I have. My previous workout schedule included runs on Tuesdays, Saturdays and Sundays. Now, I need to run Mondays, Wednesdays and Saturdays. I take a yoga class Mondays and Wednesdays, so that means running after work.

The only problem with this is timing my eating correctly, since I tend to be rather hungry by the time I get home from work.

Today, it wasn't such a problem. My employees brought in cinnamon rolls (vegan, from this book), fruit and POG juice (pineapple, orange, guava, which I came to love in Hawaii a few weeks ago). Two cinnamon rolls later, I was through my noon yoga class and still wasn't hungry for a real lunch. I did eat one "burger"--the best non-meat burgers we've found from this book--and a small salad. I can't live on sugar and refined flour (just because its vegan doesn't mean its healthy).

When it finally came time to run around 5:20 this afternoon, I was feeling pretty good, and I only had to go three miles. I managed to make it around Greenlake and then some to make three miles before it started to rain again. Woot! Beat the rain!

By the time I got home, I was finally hungry. My husband and I had one of our favorite recipes, the Pineapple-Cashew-Quinoa from Veganomicon. Oh--and another slice of my birthday cheesecake. The healthy food diet is kind of dead in the water this week.

My time on the run? About 36 minutes, a 12 minute mile. So slow! I'd love to run the half-marathon at a 10-minute-mile pace, and am hoping all this running in preparation for the race helps me speed up. If not, that's my goal for my second half-marathon.

Day one

Today was my birthday, though the celebration started last night, so needless to say it was a rough morning. Luckily, my workout schedule calls for "stretching & strengthening" today, which I finally got to at around 8 p.m.—after starting the day with Mighty-O Donuts (the best doughnuts in Seattle also happen to be vegan!) and ending it with vegan cheesecake (recipe in this book) as part of dinner.

Five-pound weights, some chair dips, an exercise band and a yoga mat and I feel stronger and longer. Or at least like I did something other than sit on the couch all day.

As a side note, I finally watched Food, Inc. today. If you haven't watched it yet, please do. It makes you think about your food choices, and how backward the system is in America.

The plan

So a kind personal trainer at work gave me Hal Higdon's training guide for the novice. It's pretty simple: Strengthen, stretch, run, cross train, run some more. I'm switching a few things around to match up with current exercise classes I take that I love, so for me, training starts tomorrow. No running, though, its a stretch and strengthen day. I can do that.

The program is 12 weeks, with my final long run 10 miles. His view is that the energy around the race will carry me though the full half marathon. I would guess he's probably right, even if I'm crawling across the finish line. My first long run is one week from today, and at only 4 miles, seems easy enough. (And with that, I've probably just jinxed myself.)

Why the blog?

First, the V stands for veggie. I've been vegan for 17 months now. Even though I live in the Northwest, home of all kinds of diets and lifestyles, there are still people who don't understand exactly what is vegan. And when I return home to the midwest? Trying to explain it to some is nearly impossible.

That said, it follows that I've found some of those people don't think you can be a runner while eating this way. That got me thinking that as I'm about to start training for my first half-marathon, it would be interesting to chronicle my experience as a vegan runner. Well, jogger. I was not an athlete as a teenager, and am still not an athlete--or at least what I picture in my head as an athlete. I don't run very fast, but my goal for this race is not to run fast, its to finish.