Sweet Potato Cinnamon and Agave Nectar

This is what I looked forward to at the end of the evening tonight..... REALLY! I went to Whole Foods today, and this dietitian picked up and read the food label and ingredients on every single item. Let me tell you, I never knew how many things have soy or soybean oil within it. I successfully found brown rice pasta to make pasta salad for Memorial Day camping trip. I also was delighted by the dried fruit with no added sugar, and the dry roasted nuts that you can scoop and pay by the pound. I also bought sea vegetables, you read that right, sea vegetables. I bought sushi nori to use as a wrap with avocado, tomatoes, cilantro brown rice and black beans. The raw natural bars were outrageously expensive and I passed on those. For right now I will stick to the Lara bars.

As for training, I woke up this morning and all of my muscles ached due to the bike ride last evening. This lets me know the training is working =) I may try and go to a Yoga class tomorrow to stretch out. Tomorrow is my off day, and I can't wait!! I did 35 minutes of more intense swimming this morning. This evening, I went to the HHH3 Group Run. It was a great trail, we must have ran about 5-6 miles. There was about 45-50 people at the run.

This chick is so sleepy tonight! I ate my sweet potato cinnamon and agave nectar and now I am ready for bed. Goodnight

Waking up early was not easy this morning!! I really wanted to hit the snooze alarm, but I am proud I didn't. The sunrise made it all worth while. Check it out! I walked down to the pool and swam 40 minutes- freestyle at an easy pace. I did take a few breaks. I continue to debate whether to join the masters swim team. The positive is getting a lot of coaching, the negative is they start swimming at 5:30am.

After the refreshing dip, I started my day by making breakfast and lunch and evaluation all ingredients on the food label for potential allergens. I did so so so well the entire day,... almond milk, rolled oat, fruit smoothie in the am, spinach salad with chickpeas, and lots of veggies at lunch, almonds, and a Lara bar ( all natural fruit and nut excluding peanuts ) as snacks and dinner Salmon with quinoa. I looked at everything except the pesto that I seasoned the salmon with. I was extremely frustrated to realize after the fact that the pesto had soybean oil and Romano cheese within it! All that work, to introduce something so simple as pesto and NOT look at the label at the end of the night =( This elimination diet is definitely a learning process.

I am happy to say that Chris joined me tonight for my transition from swimming this morning to biking this evening. We did 21 miles from Lake Worth to Delray and back on A1A. I am so proud of him, this was his 3rd road bike ride with me, and he kept pace. Below are a few pictures of us playing around before the ride, and the beautiful moon during the ride. We stayed at ~ 18-21 mph pace.

Back to Nature

I ran 4.5 miles today, it was a group run in Ft Lauderdale off of Saw grass Expressway. Leta and I drove down together and it never seizes to amaze me how down to earth and true she is. I really admire her spirit =) We ran through a great nature park and it was a nice change of pace from Palm Beach County.

Prior to the drive down, I had a doctors appointment with a primary care physician. I went to the PCP primarily to get a physical and explain that I am preparing to attempt a half iron man. In addition, I needed to address an abdominal problem that has be with me for quite some time. It is not a pain/discomfort that hinders me from my daily routine but it has been with me for a while and has not gone away. I am already taking a probiotic, and omega 3 fatty acids.

She sent me home on a elimination diet due to a potential food allergy/intolerance. The way it works is for 3 weeks, I eliminate all foods that can potentially cause an intolerance in my gut. In very simple terms I was told by my doctor if my gut heals, all other parts of my body will feel healthier. I thought to myself, this will be an opportunity to practice what I preach, but I had no how hard it may be to apply to my daily lifestyle.

So.... I am eliminating milk, cheese, eggs, yogurt (all dairy); (gluten)wheat, corn, barley, rye, any fillers in meat products, soybeans, peanuts, butter, mayo, salad dressings, refined sugars, white/brown sugar, high fructose corn syrup, evaporated cane juice, chocolate, and most condiments besides vinegar and spices..... I FEEL like I am my own science project for nutrition and health. This should be very intense, especially for poor Chris.

The first thing I did was stop by the Greenwise section in Publix to evaluate my options. I picked up about 6 or 7 cereal boxes and became instantly frustrated. Almost all of them had corn, wheat, wheat bran or some derivative of gluten. I decided on rolled oats, and/or fruit smoothies made with almond milk, flax seed oil, fresh fruit and ice for breakfast. I also made some hummus this evening for snacks. In the morning I will also be stopping by my favorite fresh fruit and vegetable market. I can never go wrong with having a fruit or vegetable on hand when I want to munch.
All and all, I feel like I need to keep optimal health in mind. I also feel that by apply this to my own lifestyle I may be able to better understand my clients frustrations when I educate them on a gluten free diet, or a lactose free diet.

Here is to my health and well being, I am going back to nature!! Looking forward to the 6 am wake-up call to jump on in that pool. Hopefully I will have a nice sunrise.

70.3 Miles in 174 days and 21 hours

Since I moved down to Florida, I vowed to be outside enjoying the sun more then inside. I also vowed to challenge my body to it's full potential. Thus in 2005 I began to run races. Prior to this point, I would run with my Dad in Pennsylvania every now and then and he has truly allowed me to understand that I can utilize running as an outlet for stress relief, and confidence. But in Florida, training for runs to some people seemed a way of life. I started with a friend/and dietitian to whom I looked up to, and we trained after work in a park close by. The first race I competed in with Nancy was the St. Patty's Day- 5 k at John Prince Park. I will never forget the feelings I had as the gun shot went off, as I pushed through the "side stickers" on mile 2, and the feeling of accomplishment when I crossed the finish line without once walking. As soon as the race was over, I went on to active.com to look for the next close event.

If you know anything about me, I am competitive at heart, and I love to push myself to the limit. This is not only in sports, but through my relationships and situations I pursue in life. Sometimes this is a very positive thing, other times I admit, it could be dangerous. Needless to say, now, 5 years later I have competed in numerous running, biking, swimming events and I started to really enjoy triathlons, and adventure races. The thing about it is, I have never truly trained on a strict schedule. Every now and then I will place in my age group, but I am now looking to move to a higher level of competition.

My Goal is to Complete a Half Iron Man Competition which is 70.3 miles on November 14th in Miami. I had this revolution on Friday, after working at a health fair within a retirement and assisted living community. One of the residence at the community appears to be recovering from a stroke. He was with family members and a physical therapist, relearning how to walk. The determination and the look of perseverance on his face was immeasurable. I had been contemplating the Half Iron at that point for some time, but at that moment, something clicked.

So Friday, after work, I got on my bike at my house and road north on A1A. This is a very typical route that I have completed numerous times with the Stormriders, however today, I had on my mind training. I rode for 27.9 miles. IT WAS a GORGEOUS DAY, and I felt good, not great, but good. I averaged 17 miles into the wind, and 19 miles with the wind. After the ride, I swam 30 laps. Throughout the swim, I realized, I need to find a training schedule, maybe a few training buddies, and most importantly I need to be committed.

Saturday morning I swam in the ocean with my "Muddy Buddies" aka angels. We probably did about 1/4 mile to 1/2 mile. You may ask why I call them angels, mostly because we watch over each other through the rip currents, and crazy ways of the water.

This morning I ran 5.5 miles at a very slow and steady pace. I listened to "A broken melody" soundtrack by Jack Johnson. The music kept me alive, feeling free and hoping/praying that we find a solution to the oil spill. Florida is such a beautiful habitat for marvelous creatures, and I feel so blessed to be alive and well here. I hope our community can come together to protect our oceans and wildlife.

My job today, is to find a training schedule that I can feel confident with and apply it to my day to day life. The pursuit on the road less traveled on begins....