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Showing posts from February 21, 2010

Feeling good with good food

My training is going really well. I really enjoy pushing myself on a daily basis, but with the unpredictable winter-time weather, no week is without good and bad training days. I strive off consistency and when the forecast tells me it will be 60-degrees and sunny and it turns out to be 38-degrees and rainy, I wake up with no idea what to do in the morning. However, I love training too much to do nothing. I always have the motivation to get in a morning workout but some days, it just takes me a little longer than normal to figure out my morning plans. This morning I decided to do my long run since it was 38-degrees and overcast and Karel braved the cold and rode with the group (warming up for his RR tomorrow in Tally). The weekends are typically tempo/aerobic workouts whereas during the week, I like to do a mix of anaerobic/interval and tempo work. I find that the more I push myself during the week (for 60-90 min. workouts), long weekend workouts are much more enjoyable. Since I have b...

Crunchy Oatmeal Raisin cookie

My training has really ramped up this week. How's your training going? Lots of interval work on the treadmill and on the trainer and lots of tempo work in the pool and on the bike. I feel great and loving the daily morning sweat. I am happy that my recipes are fueling my healthy and active lifestyle and based on the comments on my blog and nice emails...I am glad to hear that my recipes are fueling your lifestyle as well :) I figured I should post these recipes before the weekend so that you can cure your post-workout cravings with a healthy and yummy treat. What better than cookies! Enjoy my latest creations! Crunchy Oatmeal Raisin Cookie 3 egg whites 1 tbsp light brown sugar 1/8 tsp cream of tarter 1 tsp almond extract 2 tsp honey dash of all spice and cinnamon 1 tsp baking soda 1/2 cup oats 1/4 cup whole wheat flour 1/8 cup raisins (chopped) 1 tbsp dark chocolate (shaved chocolate bar) 1 tbsp flax seed 1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Spray a non-stick pan w/ non-stick spray 2. C...

Homemade Ceasar dressing and tofu-egg salad

According to scientists, traditionally there are four taste sensations: sweet, salty, sour, and bitter. However, in the Eastern hemisphere, piquance (the sensation provided by, among other things, chili peppers) and savoriness (also known as umami) are also identified as "basic" tastes. I am going to create another sensation: CREAMY I am not sure what proteins are in creamy food and what receptors in our body can detect this "taste" but it's really hard to resist cream-based foods. Ice cream, yogurt, cream cheese, soup, sauce, whipped cream, pie, pudding, risotto, mousse, smoothie, milkshake and pudding. Are you drooling yet? What's your favorite creamy food? In addition to my above list (which I'm sure there are more), two foods come to mind when I think creamy: Salad dressing and Egg salad The other day Karel asked if I could find him a "healthy" Caesar dressing. He loves Caesar salad's when we go out to eat (99% of the time, we eat out o...

Traveling with your bike

When Judy (Iron Girl VP) asked if I wanted to write an article about traveling with your bike, I was so excited. After I committed to the article, I called my mom. She's my travel agent and knows a bit too much about airlines, rental cars and hotels. Let's just say she puts me to ease when I consider traveling for a race. Next, I talked with Karel. Since we've traveled with our bikes and he knows anything and everything about bikes, bike cases and FedEx/UPS, I knew he would be the one for the specifics on traveling with your bike. This article took a lot of research and time...but well worth it. I hope you find it useful when planning your next trip or racing event. If you have any additional questions, just let me know. If I can't answer them, my bike mechanic is sure to know the answer :) Here's the PDF link for printing. Traveling with your bike Also-here is a video that Karel did on packing your bike How to pack your bike for shipping Traveling...

Lots of yummy creations

I've worked with so many athletes and one of the biggest problems for athletes (primarily long-distance athletes) is overeating because of the volume of weekly training. Isn't it strange that you can train for an IM and actually gain weight, as opposed to losing weight? I don't believe in 'rewarding' myself with unhealthy food after my workouts. Remeber my motto: IF YOU EAT WELL MOST OF THE TIME YOU DON'T HAVE TO WORRY ABOUT THE REST OF THE TIME. And when I say the rest of the time, I'm not talking about every night after dinner or every weekend. Let's be a little more realistic and understand that eating a bakery desert, bowl of ice cream, side of french fries, chicken wings + beer (Karel's fav) or handful of chips once or twice a month (or even once every 3 months) will not hurt your performance and/or weight loss journey. And believe me, if you think it can't be done (replacing your favorite post-workout sweets/treats with healthier options), ...

Warm-er weekend, great for training

Did everyone enjoy the warm-er weather this weekend? No matter where you live, I hope you enjoyed a little outdoor training this past sat and sun. We sure did.... (This is an old pic but one of my favorites) What did you do this weekend for activity/training? Karel and I headed out around 7:20am for the Open Road Group ride and although it was a bit chilly, I warmed up fast once we met up with the other 40+ riders. My plan was a 3-3 1/2 hour ride, even though the group ride is a little less than 2 hours. I really like this ride because it is fast and makes me work on my drafting and bike handling skills...along with making me mentally tough. Saturday's group ride was a bit slower than normal because of many of the fast riders racing in Lake Mary, but nevertheless, the 24-26mph pace was enjoyable.....that is, until my cable snapped. Around 20 miles into the ride, Karel drifted back to me, from the front of the pack, to see how I was doing. I smiled and was actually feeling really go...