Apr15

Eating Well

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Eating Well

It’s been over a month since I’ve eaten anything that once had eyeballs and a heartbeat.  Although I have absolutely not given up cheese (or wine, ever) my nutrition has shifted from a eat red meat every once in a while and poultry weekly to a plant based diet.  With the addition of juicing I would say that our eating habits are pretty impeccable. Impeccable is a strong word but in comparison to the average American; our eating habits are actually totally impeccable.  I’ve seen Hungry for Change, Forks Over Knives, Fat, Sick and Nearly Dead, Food Matters; I have watched them all.  Have you? You should.  I listen to the research and I love to take good care of myself.

As a massage therapist, a damn good one or so I’ve heard, I work on an intimate level with people everyday.  I have seen many times what lack of exercise and poor nutrition lead to in the mind, body and spirit, at all ages.  I love to use my mind and my body at 40 is not too shabby, not too shabby at all.  As for my spirit, the more I uncover my inner yogi the more joy I find inside.  I’m psyched about all of that and I know it is all my doing because I stay active, eat healthy and choose to be happy.

I enjoy treating my body well and for me I will never put a price on my health.  I’d rather continue shopping at the Salvation Army and not going out as much.  Oh and buying wine by the case helps because I get 10% off. Plus cutting costs are easy, a great way to do that is to just make more in your own kitchen.  Here’s a delicious recipe for Spicy Black Bean burgers.  The beej threw these together last night and grilled them up along with red pepper, zucchini and sweet potato.  Top them with some avocado, cholula and served them up on Ezekiel Sprouted grain buns.

Spicy Black Bean Burgers

makes about 6 burgers

Ingredients:

2 cans black beans, drained and rinsed

1 T ground flax + 3 T water

1 jalapeno

2 cloves garlic

2 T tomato sauce

1/2 cup Panko breadcrumbs

2 tsp cumin

1 1/4 tsp salt

1/2 cup corn (fresh or frozen and defrosted)

avocado for topping

olive oil (or canola oil) for frying burgers

Directions:

Seed and roughly chop jalapeno. Add it and the garlic cloves to a food processor (or high speed blender) and mince finely. (Alternatively, you could chop them yourselves very finely but it’s just easier at this point to throw them in a food processor.)

Add one can of beans to the jalapeno/garlic mixture and pulse to combine. Add cumin and salt and pulse until mixture resembles chunky black bean dip.

In a small bowl, mix together the ground flax and water. Let sit for five minutes.

Transfer the mixture in the food processor to a large bowl and stir in the bread crumbs, tomato sauce, flax and corn. Stir well until everything is combined. Add remaining black beans.

Heat a little olive oil in a skillet on medium high heat. Form black bean mixture into patties and fry for about 4 minutes per side, until golden and crusty brown.

Serve burgers with avocado slices, hot sauce and ketchup.

Eat Well – Live Well – Be Well

 

 

Apr2

Where I’m At

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Where I’m At

Let’s start with where I’ve been.  After finishing my first cycle of build I was deeply fatigued.  I rested up the week of the New Bedford marathon but there just wasn’t enough rest for me to get.  I was not feeling jazzed about the race, just seemed like a hard training day that had been looming for months.  I managed a PR but could have prepared better – hydration, nutrition, mental clarity.  I tried to blame my watch and my coach for a few days but really it was just me getting out of something what I put into it.  I’m proud of my performance, glad its over and am happy to be back in it.
I just finished week 19 of training and I’m feeling really good.  I’m rested again – despite the multiple and seemingly constant 40 and Fabulous celebrations for the last 3 weeks.

They have been hardy parties and no doubt accelerated our purchase of a juicer one week ago.  I have never been hooked so quickly.  I’m not usually a follow the craze type of girl but this stuff is serious nutrition, no craze necessary. Beet, ginger, carrot, pineapple….sweet potato, apple, celery, beet, lemon…collard greens, pears, lime, broccoli….  The juice is gorgeous and the nutritional goodness just washes over you.  Both BJ and I have noticed a higher, more steady level of energy throughout the day and mental alertness (yes we just got smarter).

If you’re thinking about it, do it.  If you’re not thinking about it, do it.  I’m not talking about fasting just adding 1-2 juices a day along with your regular diet. Start small, don’t deprive just add.   You will feel a difference almost immediately. After our trip to Whole Foods today we are locked and loaded for another week of beautiful juice.  YUM! Note: picture to the left is the opposite of juicing but oh so good.

I am 16 weeks away from Ironman (WHAAA…???), 9 weeks out from Mooseman (WHAAA…???) and I’m sick of cramping on the run so I just purchased a Fueling Plan from The Core Diet.  My training is going really well, I’m nailing all of my workouts, feeling good for each one and getting a ton of bodywork.  BJ has been playing double duty between the Ironman and party support – unbelievable husband stuff, thanks babe. And social retirement is about to take another step deeper as I continue into the depths of training.

And that’s where I’m at, I’m in it and loving it.

Mar10

Forty and Totally Fabulous!

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Forty and Totally Fabulous!

I turned 40 on the 4th.  To say it was a great birthday would be an understatement.  It was a perfectly low key, Jessica type of day starting with a bike and a long run, hubby by my side.  It was a gray New England day, we ran down to the beach, the surfers were out and the sea was rolling.  There was something so forgiving about it, the breaks were pillow like and kind.  So peaceful and powerful.   I was so happy to be there on my birthday.  I felt grateful.

As we neared the end I saw something in the sand, it was big and round.  As we got closer I realized it was a labyrinth.  A huge, perfectly drawn metaphor for life’s journey just waiting in the sand, for me, or so I concluded.  It was so big that I was able to run through it, keeping my pace.  Labyrinths have long been used as tools for meditation so I took it as an opportunity to join my meditation and physical practices.  Ahhhh, as peaceful as you think.  I found the whole thing to be quite auspicious.  I felt joy.

Joan and Lou -the awesome couple that brought me into the world arrived at noon and we headed out to Castle Hill for brunch in my new dress that the beej got for me.  At this point, I’m riding high on the b-day celebration.  A few things are going on here for me, I love good food, I love brunch, I love a few glasses of vino in the afternoon, I love the company and please, who doesn’t love Castle Hill?  It’s such a special place. I made a point to be mindful about my experience, I love being able to recall pivotal moments in life. I totally splurged and ordered the Artisanal Cheese Tasting. Let the mindfulness begin, I thought.  I could have ripped through those cheeses in one bite but I stayed present and truly experienced the cuisine.   For my main course I ordered the the Little Rhody omelette followed by some delicious homemade chocolates, compliments of the chef. Beej got the scallops over kale and quinoa among other tasty items, Lou got Fluke and Joan the Lobster hash.  So delicious.  Every bite was just beautiful.  I felt lucky.

The moments that followed, however were not ones that I was so concerned about staying present with.  We hit the slots over at Newport Grand only to lose more money than we spent on a classy brunch and this was achieved in about 15 minutes. We’ll keep this part short and just say that it’s an interesting place, probably won’t be signing up for the loyalty program. I felt like I smelled like smoke.

Bee-lined home for cake, icecream and a crack den afternoon. Movies, napping and chilling with the pack ensued for the next several hours.  Nothing but good stuff.  I felt loved.

So I’m forty now and I feel wise. I feel grateful. I feel loved. I feel beautiful and I feel joy every day.  As I told beej on our run that morning, I don’t have a worry, a want or a need in this life. And that to me, feels fabulous!

 

 

Mar3

A Little More Effort

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A Little More Effort

I leaned my weight against the door, I turned off my music and listened to my breath start to return normal.  I was done. I didn’t have to train anymore today. I was getting flashbacks to the Cape Cod marathon when I kept promising myself for 17 miles that I could stop at the finish.  I found myself making similar deals today.  Today was the 1st day that I really felt the mental fatigue that Ironman training lends to.  There was no negativity just fatigue and I was never able to shake it.  It stayed with me like the remnants of a meal with too much garlic, it was a heavy coating that kept tugging me back and made everything feel like a little more effort.

Throughout my training today, I kept hearing my dad in my head with his famous quote that I used to hear all the time growing up.  He would pull this out every time I wanted something that he otherwise felt I needed to figure out on my own and work hard to get.  He would say, ‘noone said it would be easy living in America.’  I never quite understood what the hell he was talking and how it pretained to the Grateful Dead concert ticket I couldn’t afford or the strawberry wrap around skirt that I wanted so bad from the boutique downtown.  But it was his answer to all of my requests for wants and now I see that it was his way of making me figure things out on my own, weigh my wants vs. needs and work hard to attain whatever my heart desired.

So it is days like today that I would never change the many hours of frustration and drama that incredible man, my dad, caused me (or that I chose to feel) because today is the kind of day that shows me how powerful I am, how I can overcome anything and finish strong.  Today is the kind of day that counts ten fold on the training log.

Now excuse me while I take a steaming hot shower and make a delicious recovery meal….I was craving brussel sprouts on my run.  Weird?  Yeah I think so.

Feb20

Weekend Bliss

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Weekend Bliss

Sore and tight and grateful to be having a lazy morning. Coffee and books in bed, made stock for my soup and had some quiet time at home. The beej headed up to Whole Foods to get our week’s nourishings.  I hope he treats himself with a blueberry muffin and coffee.  His vices, if you can call them that.

People ask us about our diet all the time, here are a few staples that beej will pick up today.  Raw almonds, walnuts, brown rice, kale, spinach, bananas, hummus, seltzer, ezekieal bread and hopefully a Green & Black 70% (that’s our crack).  We eat mostly a plant based diet with red meat maybe once every 10 days – 2 weeks. We always shop for grass fed and sustainably raised.

We picked up some beautiful beef from the farmers market on Saturday after 90 minutes on the mat at Lotus Fire. It was a fabulous morning, I had the day off from training and work.  We met up with friends and shared in a beautiful lunch after the market.  I loved the class, it was a challenging and deep – it was heavy on core work and breathing – two things everyone can always benefit from.  I took it easy but my core is still sore 2 days later.  I’ll see what I can do about filling that up with white light during meditation today.

Yesterday was my second solo race – 10K along Ocean Drive.  It was a similar route to the 5-miler last month but weather was completely different.  It was warm, sunny, calm on the water, no wind – just a breathtaking day.  Conditions were perfect whereas last time they were a bit challenging – snowy, cold, windy.  My mental piece however, needed a little more coaxing.  I just wasn’t feeling the pumped up piece and excitement this time.  I had to keep reminding myself to find peace in the chaos, I recited some mantras and even took a few things from my latest read Mile Markers.   A book that I wasn’t sure resonated with me but apparently a few things stuck.  Up and Over…

Last time, the mental piece was just there for me. Sometimes its a more physical than mental and other times its the reverse.  Either scenario always brings great learning about myself and builds strength.  I do like that about training.

I did end up with a personal best of 48:43 which is a 7:50 mile and I enjoyed the strategizing piece. I haven’t run this distance since 2007 and my time at that race was 1:00:25; a 9:45 mile.

My support crew yesterday was second to none, putting off their walks and run so that I could take care of business. Thanks guys!  That was key to get up and get’er done.

Feb19

Time to Build

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Time to Build

I received my first athlete email for IMLP this week.   It was like a gentle tap on the shoulder saying hey there crazy person, don’t forget you actually signed up for this. It’s getting real and we’re moving into a  time frame where everything is going to be picking up momentum.  I have completed my Base phase of training, next stop Build.

Ahhhh…..build!  I love build, it’s so challenging.  I’m looking forward to tapping into the strength I’ve gained over the last 13 weeks.  I’ve never been this strong and it feels really good – especially two weeks out from being 40 and fabulous. Tomorrow I get to run another solo race – 10K.  Weather looks good and I’m getting pumped. Based on the post race soreness from my last solo I came to the conclusion that I’m most competitive when racing myself.  My official crew is on board for a 7am race start – Harry, Lhasa, Beej, and the Subie will ride behind me for 6.2 of the fastest miles I’ve ever run.

I love that the pace is picking up, it’s giving me butterflies.  I can feel this incredible machine being built inside. It’s much deeper this time around – my meditation practice has had effects that cannot measured or contained but are weighing in heavy on my successes.   My ability to stay present is stronger than ever and quite powerful when putting out an effort or truly harnessing an emotion.  Not every day is easy so it’s good to recall the empowering times when the ego is a bit charged and there is joy on the adventure.

The beej recently captured a little bit of that on video for me.  This is right after I saw the rest of my workouts leading up to Lake Placid – race week, peak workouts, taper.  Ahhh, so cool. Everyday is a great big step towards hitting this goal.  I like how that feels.

 

Feb7

The Exorcism

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The Exorcism

As scheduled, every two weeks, today was the day I met with Meditator Bob. My time with him is something I look forward to, he is always prepared to and succeeds in challenging me every time. I appreciate his insightful forethought as his teachings never fail to meet my needs on any given day. Today, of course, was no different. Usually when I meet with Bob I feel something specific that I need or a question that I have to be answered. But today, I had no agenda.

He jumped right in with a new subject, one that we have not talked about in the past but that he knew I was familiar with from my recent completion of reading the Gita. Today, his teaching would be based on Karma Yoga – the yoga of action or service. Action without expectation of reward and the offering up of everyday work (i.e. life) to the divine. Lucky for me, I have the perfect career that allows me to practice Karma yoga on a daily basis but with everything profoundly spiritual – I still have alot of work to do. By offering my service to the higher good of all I will help to eradicate negative energy from my life and from that, help to improve the lives of others. With that said, I am well aware that I live in a material world and need to receive currency for my work in order to remain a part of the material world but there is a bigger concept to grasp with Karma yoga.  One that I am now tasked with grasping more of and one that is not just limited to my profession but to my existence on this earth.

We talked for about 30 minutes then moved into our meditation. He explained that we would listen to a recorded, and very powerful, mantra that would help to free negative energy. My directive was to fall into my meditative posture and focus on moving all energy to my third eye. As the mantra played, backed up but a beautiful, earthy drum beat, I could feel the vibration in my intuitive eye and a bit through my chest and back. I just kept breathing and moving the energy up into my third eye as I was instructed. The music stopped and we moved into silent meditation. This is when the exorcism, because that is what it felt like, began.

As our meditation ensued I kept feeling almost a jerking sensation within my body. This sensation is best described as when you are about to fall asleep in class and you are jerked back into consciousness. The difference here was that I was not falling asleep. I’m not sure how long this continued but in ended in a big crescendo, the force shot up my spine and heat filled the back of my head, medulla oblongata territory then moved up and exited through my crown chakra. It was hot and I immediately felt a huge weight lifted out of my body. I was lighter, much lighter. Then I saw two small red circles come into my view (my eyes are shut at this point) and then everything went red. This was followed by bright white and black shapes only to finish with a blanket of deep indigo, feeling of coolness and peace.

Holy crap, what was that? Ok I’m done, all set with meditation today, I thought. As soon as that thought ended, Meditator Bob started to take us back and conclude the silent work. In my reentry I moved my neck around and with forward flexion received several adjustments through my cervical spine and another release of heat. Then I was back, the exorcism was over. I stood up and felt at least 6 inches taller, lighter in my physical and energetic body. We’re not sure what it was that left my body but based on the intention of our work today and how I am feeling now, we’re thinking it was negative energy or possibly a spirit – which would have in fact, made this an exorcism. For sanity sake, I’m going to go with a release of negative energy. Regardless, it was a heaviness that I no longer need to bare so thank you body for doing what you needed to do.

So now, of course, with research supporting a correlation between loss in weight with speed, my ego now wonders….did this exorcism make me faster????

Feb3

Going With It

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Going With It

I zipped up my swim bag and transitioned to my run this morning with everything but my watch.  It was a 56 min Zone 1 run and I wasn’t going to have heart rate or time. A year ago I may have been bothered by this, 6 years ago I would have freaked out but today I decided without effort, to go with it. I figured even if I didn’t run exactly 56 minutes or if my heart rate dropped out of zone my ironman would not be affected in the least. Being able to be flexible, not stress and go with a new plan on a moments notice was far more important than numbers today. So I went with it and it was an awesome run.

After my workout I went to my office to treat clients – my office mate always has the Spiritual Law of the Day card out for all the see. Today’s law, Friday, is the Law of Detachment. It is a day to surrender to the field of pure potentiality, practice detachment, embrace uncertainty and detach from outcome. Hmmmmm….isn’t that what I just did?

Coincidence? Never.

So I’ve been thinking about how I’m really in it now – this at least, has been my response lately when people ask how training is going. I’m in it, I say. I can’t see the beginning and I can’t see the end although I do visualize my finish in the Olympic oval quite often. I’ve been listening to Ironman Lake Placid race reports on Endurance Nation and they’ve been a great source of excitement for me.  I love to hear the stories and they all just confirm that on race day everyone feels invincible, crappy, empowered, dire, on top of the world and at the bottom of the barrel at some point during the day. But I’ve been thinking….isn’t that some of the stuff we endurance junkies are after? I mean, when you go to a marathon and see the pain on people’s faces…..don’t you want some? Isn’t that how we all got into this to begin with? To do something that tests the self, the divine within and with that, shows us the power of human will? Or…is that just me?

Regardless, as I write this I am in a sea of nap alarms going off between my watch, the bedroom clock and BJ’s watch…it’s quite funny actually and very telling of my average day lately.  It’s nothing less than a lifestyle for us right now and I appreciate all those around me for their support and understanding when they invite us over for dinner I say that it must start at 5pm and I need aps.  So, thanks everyone.  Thanks for going with it!

Jan22

Solo 5 Miler and a New PR

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Solo 5 Miler and a New PR

Today on the docket was a 5 Mile Race in bold with several exclamation points.  I suppose that was Cait’s way of sending me her excitement and motivation for a race that she probably knew didn’t exist.  I found out last month when I was scouring the Cool Running website for a 5 miler, even a 10k or a 10 miler in my area.  I didn’t really care the distance, when I read Race!!! on my plan I was thinking race.  As in an organized event with a fee, timing mat, aid station and most of all, other participants.  When I couldn’t find one I thought for one second, well I’ll just let them know I can’t find a race and they’ll give me another workout.  Then in the next second I remembered who is training me, a couple of hard ass pros from Brockton Mass.  Upon receiving my loser email they probably would have been equally amused and confused with my lameness.  I decided to save face and assume their reply.  Go out and race 5 miles…just like the plan says.  I ran this assumption by a fellow Qt2′er and he agreed.  Participants or no participants, I was going to be running a race today.  And so it was….

In line with the last 2 races I’ve done, the conditions were very New England.  We had our first snow storm of the season yesterday dropping about 8 inches of the white fluffy stuff.  Although the fluffy only lasts a few hours here, after that it becomes icy and hard.  Regardless, my head was in the game and I was psyched to get out there to see what my body could do.  I’m coming off a recovery week and I have to say I haven’t been feeling all that recovered.  My body has been tight, sore and my fatigue seems to be holding steady.  I didn’t let any of that get into my head.  I eased into the morning with some coffee and a light breakfast followed by a meditation where I set the intention to PR today.  Setting the goal but then detaching from the outcome was key to lightening the pressure of the race and just allowing myself to be.

We, my support crew and I, arrived at Fort Adams just before 11am.  I did about a 1/2 mile warm up out of the park then threw it into gear.  I felt really good throughout the entire run, the road conditions were certainly dicey and my feet were wet from the start but I just felt strong and steady.  My mind was completely clear as I explained it to BJ – I could see the road in front of me, it was wide and open.  That is what my mind felt like, it was spacious and felt like it was just there for me.  It gave me room and allowed me to be in the moment while not busying myself with internal chatter.  There was none of that, it was peaceful and despite my heart feeling like it was going to beat out of my chest I really enjoyed my experience today.  There is no way my mind would be so effortlessly clear without my meditation practice.  It just continues to prove its power on my performance.  BJ clocked me at 38:29 – 7:41/mile.  This was 9 seconds faster per mile than my last 5 miler which was this summer on a flat course in hot humid weather.  Not bad, I’m very happy with my time and my effort, it certainly felt like a race.

Here’s a little pre race video from this morning.  There are more video clips from today on my you tube channel – check them out.  I definitely see some changes in foot strike from the first to last video.  That right leg of mine, it wants to laterally rotate….more hip and core strength for me.  Now, onto week 10!

 

Jan18

What am I doing?

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What am I doing?

Contrary to what you may think, this is not a question I ask myself often. I do, in fact, know exactly what I am doing and what I have gotten myself into. I remember when I was training for IM Coeur d’Alene the beej kept reminding me to ‘enjoy everything about this experience because there will never be another Ironman like your first one’. Per usual he was right. Riding the cloud of ignorance certainly can be bliss. My experience in CDA was fabulous. I mean, it’s an Ironman so there were times where I thought ‘I hope I don’t die’ and other times when I realized I had recovered enough to continue and therefore felt invincible. But the 2nd time around, I have knowledge so ignorance is not an option.

How has that translated to my training for #2? Well, I feel like I’m taking things a hell of alot more serious because on this IM race day I don’t want to be out there for 14+ hours, I want to be stronger, I want to be faster and I want to be more intelligent about the choices I make on course (i.e. the fatal banana of 2008). I have however taken all the good practices from my prior experience and incorporated them into this year’s journey (i.e. my spanking new pair of jammies worn many times before sunset – thanks mom).

So jammies and bananas aside, what am I doing for training?

I am working with QT2 Systems for my coaching and so far, they are living up to their reputation. They are big on bike fitness, big on weight training, big on consistency and big on recovery. They are basically big on everything as I am training 7 days a week. Right now, I am still in my base phase of training so no intensity or speed work, just building my endurance…my engine.  A typical week includes the following, keep in mind my training plan is built specifically for me based on my experience.

Swimming – 2x/week
Currently drill swims Monday and Friday with a time trial peppered in each month

Bike – 4x/week
Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday (long ride) and Sunday (recovery ride prior to my long run). I’ve never biked 4 times a week, I’m really enjoying it.  Got a great space set up in the basement as I am biking on the trainer 100% of the time at this point.

Run - 4x/week
Tuesday (recovery run), Wednesday, Friday, Sunday (long run) with one double run Sunday and one race every month. These races will vary from 5K to half marathon to triathlon depending on where I am in my training.  In the past, the most I’ve ever run is 3x per week but this schedule is definitely agreeing with me. BJ is a huge believer in consistent running, clearly that has worked out for him and now, I am as well.

Weight Training – 1x/week
I just finished 8 weeks of lifting 2x/week – 2 weeks of adaption lifting which was getting ready to lift heavy and 6 weeks of lifting heavy.  Just today I started on the next phase of strength which is sport specific and includes the following exercises, 3 sets of each: one legged hack lunge (killer), seated row, core work (back ext, sit ups, push ups), one legged squat (killer), lat push down (also killer).  This is a shorter routine than what I’ve been doing for the last 8 weeks but never fear I know they will be filling that extra time with something else.

So there you have it, my typical week.  Currently I’m training just under 13 hours a week and I’ve set a max of 15 hours a week with an agreement to increase that by 20% during the key phase leading up to Ironman. On top of this, I am stretching, meditating daily, doing a ton self massage and self care, practicing yoga once a week, getting massage once a week and napping almost every day.  So add that on top of the 13 hours plus another 12-15 hours of giving massage and you get one active week.  It’s cool, I love it and just keep getting amped for what is to come.

I am stronger than I have ever been and minus the expected fatigue my body feels great.  But that’s not to say that climbing the stairs in my house doesn’t feel like Everest most days of the week.  All of this aside, I’m sure there is NO WAY I would be doing as well as I am without the support of the beej.  Like everything he does, he is kicking ass at helping me kick ass. Thanks babe!