The Runner's Kitchen

Yesterday was a great day for so many reasons. The weather was g-o-r-g-e-o-u-s and I had a lot of fun at the Coogan’s Salsa, Blues, and Shamrocks 5K in Washington Heights. I lived in this ‘hood during my first 2 years in NYC, so running through the hilly streets brought back memories. By the end of the morning, I almost missed the days of pastelitos and bachata music. Almost.

I was a bundle of nerves, so I was up well before my 6am alarm went off. I started off with a cup of coffee (yup, even before races!) and a slice of toast with banana and a few spoonfuls of nutzo nut butter.

This was the first race that I was EXCITED about running in a long time. I have a few solid weeks of workouts/long runs behind me and no nagging injuries. 

• 2 mile warm-up and strides
• First mile was a conservative 7:00 and then I picked up the pace.
• Mile 2 was ~6:40 (MAJOR hill at the turn-around point)
• Mile 3 was ~6:30
• Final time was 20:50 (6:43 pace average)
• 586th place out of 5,629 runners, 64th out of 2,612 women, and 7th finisher for the Central Park Track Club’s women’s team.
• 7 mile cool-down (30-ish minutes with Jacqui and Sarah and then another 30-ish minutes back to my apartment…7 miles is a generous estimate, hah)
• 12 miles total for the day

Despite being in the first second corral, the start was ridiculously crowded, I felt like I wasted a lot of energy weaving in and out of the crowd. Luckily things thinned out a bit after 800 meters and I was able to speed up. The hills on this course were pretty brutal, but at least the last 1/2 mile was mostly downhill! Last year at this race I ran 21:43, so I think it’s a good sign that this year’s time was nearly a minute faster. Also my time was a PR for a non-track 5K. My previous PR was 20:51 at Open New England’s Senior year (cross-country). Wahoo!

However, there’s always room for improvement. Next time I’d like to make my way up to the first corrall (less crowding, better start position) and pay more attention to running the tangents. I felt like I wasted a lot of unnecessary energy today fighting the crowd. Also, my first mile was too conservative, I need to focus on feeling comfortable with a faster start.

Onwards and upwards, NYC Half Marathon…here I come!

Once I returned home, I immediately devoured a plain chobani greek yogurt, chopped apple, with a spoonful of lingonberry jam.

After my shower, I re-hydrated with an Odwalla Superfood green juice (looked like sludge, tasted delicious!) and a chocolate chip peanut crunch clif bar.

And then…it was time to frolic in the amazing sunny weather! Nothin’ says spring like big sunglasses and a $5 Starbucks mocha frappuccino. I took advantage of the spring temperatures and went for a lil’ walk to stretch my legs. I really think that some light activity after a race or long run goes a long way in preventing soreness.

Around 4pm, I was hungry and ready to EAT (again). I made myself a plate of homemade nachos while I contemplated what to have for dinner. TJ’s reduced-guilt tortilla chips + shredded cheese + salsa + 20 seconds in the microwave = nachos!

Dinner ended up being leftovers from a creation I made the other night. Inspired by Tina’s breakfast pizza, I rounded up a slew of pantry ingredients and made my own version. My favorite thing about this dish is that you can easily make substitutions based on what you have in your fridge/pantry.

Polenta Breakfast Casserole

Ingredients:

• 1 cup cornmeal
• 2 1/4 cup water
• 1 Tbs earthbalance (or olive oil or butter)
• 1 large onion, diced
• 1 large yellow carrot, chopped (feel free to substitute other veggies!)
• 1/4 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
• 2 chicken sausage links, sliced (these had been in my freezer for months, so I used them up, but you could also use vegetarian sausage links!)
• 1/2 cup milk
• 1 cup egg whites
• Salt and Pepper, to taste

Directions:

• Pre-heat oven to 400 degrees, coat a 9″ pie pan with cooking spray
• Heat water in a medium sauce pan, once boiling whisk in the cormeal, and reduce heat to low.
• Allow cornmeal to cook for about 4-5 minutes, stirring frequently.
• Once sides of polenta begin to pull away from the sauce pan, turn off the heat, and stir in shredded cheese and a dash of salt and pepper.
• Pour polenta into prepared pie plate and smooth down with a spoon.
• In a large pan, heat earth balance and cook the onions and carrot until softened (about 3-5 minutes)
• In a medium bowl combine cooked veggies, sliced sausage, egg whites, milk, and more salt and pepper to taste.
• Pour veggie-egg mixture over polenta and bake for about 40 minutes or until top is goldent brown.

Yum! This was a very tasty dish that not only used up random leftovers in my fridge (that bag of cornmeal has been hangin’ out in my freezer since 2007), but it also provided a good mix of post-run carbs and protein.

I ended the night with a cup of tea and some thin mint cookies.

Note: I probably only took photos of about 75% of what I ate today. On days that I run fast (and long) I find that my appetite goes into overdrive. There were definitely some handfuls of Kashi crackers, spoonfuls of nut butter, and extra tortilla chips that went un-documented. After racing a 5k and running 12 miles, my body needed the fuel

Question: If you’re a runner, what’s your favorite race distance?

Is your ipod mix getting a little old? Score some new workout music from Cadence Revolution’s free weekly podcast.

Wondering what to do with leftover bread? Check out this yummy whole wheat panzanella salad recipe.

TGIF! So excited that it’s the weekend. My latest article on True/Slant reveals how one simple change can cut minutes off your half or full marathon time. And who doesn’t want to run faster?

Thursday was a marathon of a day – good thing I started off with an extra large mug of coffee. I was feeling very caffeinated after this.

Plus an orange for some vitamin C!

The main part of my breakfast was a plain chobani yogurt with 2 Tbs of whipped peanut butter stirred in and a crumbled vitabrownie on top. It tasted like dessert! But it also packed a good amount of protein (27 grams) and fiber (8 grams).

Lunch was one of the BEST salads I’ve created in awhile. It included all of the usual suspects: romaine, carrots, mushrooms, feta cheese, sriracha sauce, etc. BUT I also topped it off with leftover Vietnamese noodle and grilled pork salad and a few pita chips with hummus. Mmm, so many great flavor and texture combinations.

My afternoon snack was not one, but two Nature’s Path granola bars. These organic treats are a tad high in sugar (11 grams), but they taste delicious and come in a new eco-conscious box that uses 36% less cardboard than the original. Reduce-Reuse-Recycle. Yay.

Anddd a decaf cappuccino because I wanted to sip on something warm.

After work I was feelin’ a little tired and not exactly excited about a road workout. Buttt I know I almost always feel better after a run, so I chugged some water and nibbled on some dried cherries + dark chocolate chips. Glycogen, get in my muscles!

After my snack, I was feeling a bit more energized, so I ran from my apartment to CPTC practice (2.75 miles). Those of us racing the Coogan’s 5K on Sunday did a special shortened workout – 800m, 600, and 400m @ 3K pace with 400m jog recovery. I have no idea what kind of pace we were running because we did the repeats on the road (estimated the distance), but it basically felt all-out. Lots of cool-down with the group and then another 2.75 miles back home. By the time I returned to my apartment, my Nike + pedometer reported that I had run 11 miles total.

My quads are strangely sore – perhaps from Tuesday’s treadmill workout? It feels like I did lunges although I most definitely did not. Hopefully a few days of easy running will help me rest up for this weekend’s 5k! So.Excited.

After a quick shower, I was ready to eat more asian noodle leftovers. I chopped up some romaine lettuce, grated carrot, and topped that off with leftover pad thai, hummus, and sriracha sauce. Sort of a strange combo, but it tasted yummy!

Of course I was still hungry, so I toasted up 2 slices of Ezekiel bread and topped them with generous spoonfuls of coconut butter and raspberry jam. Unfortunately I was too busy eating to take a photo, oops. If you want to see a visual of this lovely treat, you can check out my post from last Sunday.

I’m lovin’ my new jar of coconut butter! And if you’re worried that the fat in coconut butter is unhealthy, say goodbye to the 1990’s, and dig in! Unlike animal products which have long-chain triglycerides, coconut butter’s fat is made up of medium-chain triglycerides. Research has shown that this rare type of saturated fat can actually prevent heart disease and reduce cholesterol. Coconut has also been show to protect against cancer, boost immunity, increase calcium absorption, and kill bacteria/viruses (due in part to its high lauric acid content). You can read more about the benefits of coconut butter/oil here, here, and here. Yum!

Do you like coconut? What’s your favorite way to eat it?

After giving my shin 48 hours of rest – it feels absolutely fine. Yay!

As usual, I did the weekly CPTC interval workout on the treadmill. A day pass for the Armory indoor track = $30. No thanks.

• 2 mile warm-up
• 3 x 1200m @ 5K pace with 400m jog recovery
  The 1200’s were done at approximately ~6:40 pace and felt surprisingly good! Let’s hope I feel similar on Sunday’s hilly 5K course…
• 3 x 300m @ 3K pace with 100m jog recovery. I don’t think running sub-6:00 minute pace on the treadmill is the wisest plan. Once again, I feared I would fly off the back of the belt, but thankfully not this week.
• I finished up the workout with a final easy mile of running and some walking to cool-down.
• Total: 7 miles

After a bit of stretching and a shower, I headed to the subway for the ride home. To appease my grumbling stomach, I tried something new: a Just Fruit bar sent to me by Gorge Delights. My fruit leather was made of 100% fruit (apple and cherry puree and concentrate – that’s it!) and contained 90 calories, 17 grams of sugar, and 2 grams of fiber. It was the perfect post-run fuel – glycogen for my muscles! I’m going to keep a couple of these in my purse for emergency snacks.

My dinner included another product sample: gardein (garden + protein) crispy tenders. Besides the occasional veggie burger, I’m not a big faux-meat fan. However, these crispy tenders blew me away. They tasted so much like chicken that I almost couldn’t believe I was eating a grain/soy product and not meat. Matt recently wrote a review of the gardein product line - check it out for more info!

After baking the crispy tenders, I chopped them up into bite-size pieces. If it looks like chicken and tastes like chicken, it must be…gardein?

I hesitate to call my dinner a “salad”. It was more like a big bowl of random ingredients. I was hungry. It was late. I needed dinner fast. I promise to cook an actual meal soon (I’m taking an Asian cooking class tonight!). Anyway, into the bowl went: chopped romaine lettuce, dried cherries, gardein crispy tenders, Kashi TLC crackers, cheddar cheese, hummus, and sriracha sauce. Veggies? Check! Protein? Check! Carbs? Check! Healthy fats? Check! Looks like I covered all the bases….

Taking the advice of my girl, Holly -I lived life to the fullest and ended the night with some chocolate. Mmm.

About 12 hours after my treadmill speed session, it was time to hit the road again. After some coffee + a luna bar (maybe eaten in bed…), I headed out the door for a (very) early a.m. run.

I’m not going to sugar coat it, certain parts of this 9-mile run were absolutely miserable. It was 34 degrees, windy, and sleeting/raining. My baseball hat blew off multiple times and I couldn’t feel my hands by mile 7. I am SO ready for spring to be here.

Good things about today’s run:

1) I made a friend in the park. His name is Dave, he’s 72 years old, and we run the same pace. Bwahahaha.
2) I ran with Ani and Chris for the middle miles. Company made the rain + wind more bearable.
3) It felt good to get up early and get my run out of the way.

Also, NO shin pain. A few aches and pains in my feet, but they were fleeting -probably from wearing the lunaracers yesterday.

Before I get back to the grindstone, I wanted to share some things that I’ve been lovin’ lately.

1) Advanced Marathoning by Pete Pfitzinger and Scott Douglas – So far nothing I’ve read in this book is completely groundbreaking (especially if you have a solid running background) BUT the authors do a great job of explaining the how’s and why’s of marathon training. If nothing else, the chapter on nutrition/hydration has convinced me to pay more attention to my fluid intake. I recommend this book if you’re an experienced marathoner looking for direction in your training.

2) After much procrastination, I finally bought a RoadID. If you’re a runner, you should have some form of ID on you at all times. It’s better to be safe than sorry. Mom – are you proud?

Are you a fan of faux meat products i.e. veggie burgers, soy crumbles, gardein?

If you’re a runner, what do you carry with you? ID, cash, cell phone?

Interval workouts and long runs are essential to a solid training plan, but so are rest days. After my right shin started barking at me on Sunday, I knew that Monday was going to be a day off. After some quality time with the ice pack and arnica cream, I’m happy to report that there’s no pain! I plan on going for a run later today (Tuesday), so that will be the real test. Fingers crossed! Lesson learned: Take a rest day now, avoid injury later!

Since I wasn’t hitting up the gym or running around Central Park yesterday, I had some free time on my hands. What to do?? How about a yummy vegetarian dinner with fellow NYC-area foodies!

Caravan of Dreams, a vegan restaurant in the East Village, has been on my “must eat here” list for awhile. The staff was very accommodating and happily reserved a table for our big group last night.

I’m still trying to figure out the settings on my camera, so some of the photos are bit blurry/dark. Believe me when I say that my pictures don’t do the yummy food justice!

It was lovely meeting and re-connecting with NYC area bloggers and food lovers. Thanks for coming out last night ladies!

Jess, Irina, and Liz:

Katherine, me, and Jacqui:

My meal started off with a simple salad dressed in ginger vinaigrette.

And a pot of vanilla hazelnut dessert tea. Who says you can’t have dessert tea before dinner?

For my main entree I ordered the Green Garden platter. I wasn’t sure what to expect, but when I read that grilled carrot polenta was involved I knew I had to try it!

My dish was comprised of a bed of sauteed seasonal veggies (kale, cauliflower, carrots, cabbage), seitan, grilled carrot polenta, and a dollop of vegan sour cream. It was flavorful and hearty without being too heavy. I cleaned my plate! I love how satisfying a good vegan meal can be.

Lindsey digs in!

I think everyone enjoyed their meals – everything looked so good! I have plans to go back and sample some of Caravan’s  ”Live” (a.k.a. Raw) offerings.

Question: What are your thoughts on raw food? I’m not a strict vegetarian, but I’m still interested in exploring vegan and raw cuisine. The creations on Gena’s website, Choosing Raw, always look so yummy! 

Training for a half or full marathon? Matt and I spill the details on what to eat while running.

Short on cash? Check out these awesome and FREE ways to get healthy and fit in March!

Realization #1: I ran 64 miles in 7 days – I think this is a record for me!

Realization #2: High mileage = aches and pains. I ran long on Saturday and felt good.  But during Sunday’s easy 6-miler, my legs started to get a little unhappy with me. My calves were super tight from my long run and I think this caused my right shin to start hurting a bit. I’m being very proactive with the RICE method (Rest, Ice, Compression, and Elevation) and I think it will be fine in a day or two, but running is always going to involve some injury prevention and management.

Anyway, despite my sore shin, it was a very productive weekend of training. I slept a ton on Friday night and woke up ready to get down to business (i.e. RUN!).

I love you, coffee.

Confession: I also really love Peter Pan’s whipped peanut butter. It tastes like frosting. Sometimes a girl needs some hydrogenated oils in her life. All things in moderation, right? Anyway, I slathered an apple in that creamy pb and followed it up with a clif bar. I had a pretty serious long run planned – had to fuel up well!

I had  intended on doing my long run on the treadmill, but thankfully the park roads were pretty clear and I ran mostly outside. I’m not going to lie – I was a little worried that a tree branch was going to fall on my head, but alas I remained unscathed. I ended up running 15 miles in 2:04:10 (11 miles in the park in 1:33:45 and 4 miles on the treadmill in 30:25)

I broke the run down like this:

Miles 1-3 easy
Miles 4-6 marathon pace (~8:20)
Miles 7-11 easy
Miles 12-15 1/2 marathon pace (started off at 8:00 and finished up the last .5 mile at 6:58 pace!!)

I mostly felt good for this entire run. Trying to run marathon pace for miles 4-6 was harder than I thought it would be, but the last (fast!) miles felt really good. Funny how that is… I really think that fast finish long runs are essential when training for 1/2 and full marathons. I didn’t do any while preparing for NYC or Boston and I wish I had. Practicing running at race pace while you’re fatigued will prepare you for the mental and physical fatigue of race day. Or at least I hope it will!

I immediately bought a gatorade to hydrate and followed that up with some greek yogurt (protein!) and dried cherries (carbohydrates!).

After my shower, I made sure to put on my recovery compression socks. Love.these.so.much.

And then it was time for more foodddddd. Luckily I had some leftover peanutty root vegetable stew to fill my belly.

After watching 2+ hours of TV on the couch doing lots of important things, I was hungry AGAIN. I had 3 bowls of Kashi Go Lean Crunch with milk.  Runners need to eat!

My legs were feelin’ like they could use a good stretch at this point, so I walked the mile or so to Whole Foods. I didn’t really need anything, but I wanted to drop off a big bag of #5 yogurt containers for recycling and so I just had to browse a bit…

I came home with a bag full of fun stuff: Kashi TLC crackers, romaine lettuce, frozen strawberries, pinto beans, coconut butter (!!), navel oranges, hummus, lara/clif bars, dried cherries, and floss.

After my hearty afternoon eats (hello protein + fiber in Kashi Go Lean Crunch!), I wasn’t that hungry, but I knew I probably needed to get in some more calories. So I assessed my options and put together a plate of nutrient dense yummy-ness: ezekiel bread toast topped with coconut butter and jam and a banana with lots of whipped peanut butter. Mmmm. After reading about the benefits of coconut oil/butter on Chelsea’s blog, I knew I had to try it for myself. The combo of coconut butter and jam on toast is scrumptious! I highly recommend.

Plus some thin mints that were hiding out in the freezer.

Yay, my article on the Top 5 Running Mistakes to Avoid was featured on Newser. I like this site a lot – it summarizes the day’s top news stories. Perfect for busy peeps!

Fun NYC event coming up: The Village Voice is sponsoring its 3rd Annual “Choice Eats” event on Monday, March 22. The event will feature tastings from  50+ restaurants, including: Café Glechik, Peppa’s Jerk Chicken, Bunny Chow, Sigmund Pretzel Shop, Xunta Tapas Bar, Salumeria Rosi, Jimmy’s No. 43, Xi’an Famous Foods, Lucy’s Whey, Counter, An Choi, and Café Steinhof. If you’re a New York area foodie, this looks like such a fun event! Bonus: there will also be craft beer and wine pairings available with the food. You can purchase tickets here. Bon appetit!

Question: What NYC restaurant/bakery would you like to visit (assuming locale and $$ weren’t an option)? Someday I will make it to Blue Hill….

There were multiple deaths from falling trees in Central Park yesterday, I think running indoors at my gym was the right decision.

The day started out with slushy rain and progressed to windy snow. Oh winter, you’re not welcome here anymore.

Once I was warm and dry inside the office, I chowed down on breakfast: chobani 2%, dried cranberries, and Kashi Go Lean Crunch.

Followed by a mid-morning cup of green tea (not coffee, I swear!) and Hershey’s kisses.

Lunch was leftover peanutty root veggie stew and an apple with a wedge of laughing cow cheese. Umm, there’s not much you can do to make leftovers in tupperware look pretty, but it all tasted very good!

The highlight of my afternoon was a delicious cinnamon roll from Holey Donuts. I don’t even care if I get diabetes. It was that good.

The cinnamon roll was savored with a hot cappuccino, mmm.

As much as I missed working out with the Central Park Track Club, I knew running outside wasn’t a (safe) option. To pump myself up for a solo workout, I reviewed my tips on surviving the treadmill and headed over the the gym around 6pm.

1 mile warm-up
4 x 1 mile @10K pace with .25 mile recovery jog
1 mile cool-down (7 miles total)

I set the incline at 2% for miles 1 and 3 to simulate the terrain of Central Park. I hope I’m just fatigued from Wednesday’’s 12 miles because I can’t remember the last time I worked so hard on a run. Pace for the mile repeats wasn’t that fast (7:13, 7:08, 7:13, 7:05), but I was struggling to maintain good form. I wanted to decrease the incline SO badly, but I gritted it out. I just kept thinking about the hilly 5K I have planned for next weekend – a 0% incline will NOT be an option on race day. I’m a little nervous (ok VERY nervous) about trying to run 13.1 miles at ~7:25 pace next month. Meh.

After waiting 25 minutes for the subway (WHY do half empty local trains randomly run on the express track??), I finally made it home. Famished. I didn’t have time to run to the grocery store, so din-din was a mish-mosh of whatever I had in the fridge.

First I whisked together an easy vinaigrette – 1 Tbs olive oil, 1 Tbs balsamic vinegar, 1 tsp dijon mustard, 1 tsp lingonberry jam, and dash of dalt.

I tossed romaine lettuce, dried cherries, walnuts, and Wildwood baked tofu in with the dressing and topped with shredded cheddar cheese.

I also made myself a plate of tortilla chips + melted cheddar. Andddd then I killed the bag of chips. The reduced guilt yellow corn tortilla chips from Trader Joe’s are SO good (probably the best store bought tortilla chips I’ve ever had). I bought the bag four days ago and they’re already gone. Mmm, salt + carbs = perfect post-workout fuel.

Check out the latest on True/Slant: Are you making these common running mistakes?

Treadmills – love ‘em or hate ‘em? Unless the roads clear up this weekend, I’m facing a long run inside!

Happy Tuesday! Eventhough I didn’t have to leave for work until 9am yesterday, I woke up before 7am. I try to stick to my sleep schedule even on days when I don’t run in the morning – makes things easier! I had quite a few hours to bum around the house, so I decided to have breakfast in two parts:

Brekkie #1: coffee with milk and a scrambled eggs + salsa in a mug. The eggs were so easy to make! I coated the inside of the mug with a spritz of canola oil and then added 1/2 cup egg whites. I cmicrowaved on high for 60 seconds and then stirred with my fork. I popped the mug back in the microwave for another 30-40 seconds, added salsa, and ta-da! Easy breakfast! I wasn’t crazy about the texture of the egg whites, but it tasted good.

Brekkie #2 was eaten at work: orange slices and a whole wheat and nutella sandwich.

Mid-morning I was h-u-n-g-r-y (I’m a bottomless pit the day after long runs!), so I snacked on a Kashi granola bar and a cappuccino.

Lunch was, as usual, a salad from the cafeteria.

• mixed greens, mushrooms, carrots, onions
• pickled beets
• scoop of tuna nicoise salad
• kidney beans
• cottage cheese
• whole wheat croutons
• hot sauce!

And then my sweet tooth called my name throughout the afternoon….

Yogurt covered pretzels (no HFCS or hydrogenated oils, phew!):

And vanilla yogurt with shredded coconut, granola, and oreo crumbles mixed in. Mmm.

After work I headed over to my gym for a short run. I ran 2 miles easy (~8:45 pace), 1 mile at half-marathon pace (7:20), 1 mile easy (8:45 pace) for a total of 4 miles. My legs felt surprisingly good after yesterday’s long run, but I am definitely still fatigued. The 7:20 mile felt harder than I expected!

I stopped at Whole Foods after work and picked up the ingredients for a new recipe, but by the time I got back to my place, I wasn’t in the mood to cook. Instead, I made my go-to easy dinner: salad and healthy nachos. Occasionally people will comment on my dinner salads – are they really enough calories for an active runner? Do they fill me up? As with anything, it all depends on the ingredients. I promise you I’m not just eating iceburg lettuce and fat-free Italian dressing. That wouldn’t be a healthy dinner! I don’t usually count calories, but to illustrate that a salad can be a wholesome and calorically appropriate dinner, I’ve crunched the numbers.

(Plus more chips & cheese that went un-photographed)

• Romaine lettuce and sprouts (25 calories)
• Wildwood baked tofu (150 calories)
• Homemade olive oil based dressing (150 calories)
• Handful each of dried cherries and walnuts (100 calories)
• 2 servings of baked tortilla chips (250 calories)
• 2 servings of part-skim mozzarella cheese (150 calories)
• salsa (25 calories)
• Total: 850 calories

As you can see, that’s certainly enough calories for an active runner such as myself. On the other hand, if you’re trying to lose weight, it might be too much. Every person and every runner is different. The specific meals and training I do work for me, so I post them as examples. However, in the end you have to figure out what is right for your body.

I *might* have ended the night with a little dark chocolate

Do you ever experience criticism for your food choices?

News you can use:

A white bean and escarole soup that’s good for you – heart & soul.

Muscles sore after weight lifting or a tough workout? Under Armour’s compression shirt might be your new best friend.

You know you should eat leafy greens, but how the heck do you cook bok choy? Check out this article for yummy greens recipes!

After taking a day off of running on Saturday and a solid 8 hours of sleep that night, I was ready to knock out a long run bright and early. I fueled up the requisite coffee, banana, whole wheat toast, and nutella (a.k.a. the best thing in the world).

Before my run, I assembled all of the essentials: metrocard, cash, keys, ipod, and luna moons (on the run fuel!).

And then the run began! I ended up running for 2 hours and 15 minutes, approximately 16 miles. Didn’t intend to go this long, but I was feelin’ good, so I went with it. The first 6 miles were with Alma and then the rest were solo. I forgot the charge my battery on my Nike+, so this run could have been anywhere between 15 and 16 miles, but I’m going to call it 16 because I don’t think I was going very slow. Midway through the run I timed the uphill mile in Central Park (W. 72nd – W. 88th) and it was 8:00, seems hard to believe I was running that fast of a pace, but maybe? At the 2 hour mark I ran what felt like “half-marathon” pace for about a mile. I have no idea what kind of pace it actually was (7:30 pace….maybe), but it felt HARD. I stashed some water in the park and had a few swigs of that around mile 11. I also ate some luna moons throughout the latter half of the run. The sugar really helped my energy levels. My right hip and IT band are a little tight now, but no problems during the run. Also, it was a beautiful sunny day. Huzzah for good long runs!

As soon as I walked in the door I started making a pot of oatmeal. I multi-tasked by stretching my IT band while I waited for the oats to cook

I made oats in a jar - rolled oats, 1% milk, chopped apple, chocolate chips, and brown sugar were cooked on the stove and then transferred to an almost empty jar of Crazy Richard’s peanut butter. Perfecto!

Awhile later I was in need of a snack. I was feelin’ a little lazy, so I grabbed a box of Kashi Go Lean Crunch and went to town. I probably had about 2 servings (that’s a lot of fiber, yo!) while I read a book in bed. Since I’ve increased my mileage and workout intensity, I’ve noticed a few changes in how I’m feeling. For example, I am definitely requiring more sleep than usual. Yesterday I took a 2 hour nap and today I snoozed between 2-3pm. Naps are one of my favorite ways to recover from a long run!

After I roused myself from my nap, I was a busy bee cleaning the kitchen floor, finishing up a writing assignment, and foam rolling my tight IT band. Before I knew it, it was time to meet Agnes for a 5pm yoga class. After all that pre-nap Kashi I wasn’t feeling too hungry, so I didn’t pack a snack. BIG MISTAKE. I often experience bouts of hypoglycemia and running high mileage seems to exacerbate it a bit. By the time I exited the subway and was en route to the yoga studio, my blood sugar was starting to drop. Luckily, I was able to buy a Snickers almond bar and I inhaled it in about 60 sec0nds. I started feeling better almost immediately (sugar!!). As much fun as it is to gobble down candy, the shaky, lightheaded feeling I get from low blood sugar is NOT fun. The weirdest thing is that the drop in blood sugar comes on very suddenly – in fact I never even feel hungry. I just go from being fine to “get out of my way and give me some food right.this.minute!” Bah, this is something I’m still trying to figure out – it makes marathon training tough!

After the Snickers bar I was feeling much, much better and went on to have a great yoga practice. My stiff hip flexors really appreciated all of the stretching that we did. Along with higher mileage comes more tightness! The 5pm class at Yoga to the People is such a great way to end the weekend. Love it.

After a little Trader Joe’s pit stop, I came home to make a mexican-themed salad. My fruit & veggie intake was a little sparse today, so I loaded up a bowl with romaine lettuce, alfafa sprouts, salsa, cottage cheese, and organic corn tortilla chips. And then more tortilla chips straight outta the bag because they were so good!

Check out the latest article on Running Shorts – why you should keep a running log.

If you had to gobble down a candy bar what kind would it be?? (Sometimes I think candy bars aren’t much different from fancy energy bars and they’re usually cheaper!)

Lots of exciting things going on today! I’m a guest columnist over at Skinny in the City -  have a look at my article on what to eat after the gym. Who are the gals behind Skinny in the City? Check out this NY Post article for more info. Love them!

Yesterday was another busy day. It started off with the usual coffee and a 3-mile shake-out run with Alma. Sometimes on the mornings of speed workouts, I’ll do a short “shake-out” run to get the blood movin’ in my legs.

Breakfast was a nearly an entire container of strawberries….

And pb&j toast with scrambled egg whites with sriracha sauce. Mmm, spicy protein.

In an attempt to save $$ and use up fridge ingredients, I packed my lunch yesterday. I topped a bed of romaine lettuce with homegrown sprouts, Wildwood baked tofu, dried cherries, and salsa.

Followed up by some salt & pepper popchips andddd an afternoon of near-constant snacking.

Fruit, nut, & dark chocolate trail mix x 3 handfuls. Mmm.

Yogurt covered pretzels. I don’t usually buy 100-calorie packs, but I liked that these didn’t have hydrogenated oils OR high fructose corn syrup. Plus Venus and Serena Williams endorse them and I’m a sucker for advertising.

And a cappuccino because around 4pm I seriously contemplated a nap under my desk.

I had big plans to peace out of the office right on time and head on over to the gym for a speedy treadmill workout, however that didn’t pan out…. I ended up working on a project until nearly 7pm and started to get really hungry. Unfortunately, the only snacks I had at my desk were peanuts or prunes. Hmm. About an hour before I arrived at the gym I ate about 8 dried prunes. A bold move, I know. Thankfully I was able to finish my workout without much tummy trouble, but I need to stock some more running-friendly emergency snacks ASAP!

Central Park Track Club Tuesday Speed Workout (except I ran on the treadmill because I don’t have a $300 season pass to the Armory indoor track…)

• 1 mile warm-up
• 5 x 800m @ 5K pace (200m jog recovery)
  Reps were done at the following treadmill levels – 8.6 (~6:58 pace), 8.6, 8.7 (~6:53 pace), 8.8 (~6:48 pace), and 9.0 (~6:39 pace)
• 3 x 300m @ 3K pace (100m jog recovery)
  Reps were done at the following treadmill levels – 9.5 (~6:20 pace), 10 (~6:00 pace), and 10.5 (~5:42 pace)
• 2 mile cool-down

Felt good, wore the lunaracers. It’s tough going all out on a treadmill, but this workout was a decent effort nonetheless. Stretching and foam rolling afterward.

Afterwards my stomach felt a little less than awesome (oh prunes…), but a gal still has to EAT. I love Kale, so I baked up some crispy kale chips with lots of ketchup and to round out the meal I had a some of Alma’s famous peanut butter pasta.

And a clif bar before bed because I needed more calories. Hooray for a successful day! I’m so so thankful to be back in running shape and able to do workouts and long runs.

Exciting Announcement! Pop chips (love, love, love) has offered to give away a case of 24-single serve bags to a Runner’s Kitchen reader. To enter, leave a comment telling me your favorite flava of chips. I’ll randomly pick a winner Friday morning (Feb 19th). Good luck!

I started off Monday morning in Pennsylvania witha very sunny 4-mile run. Thankfully it felt a lot better than the 3-mile run I did on Sunday evening. FYI – splitting a large popcorn with mom at the movies and then leaving for an icy, dark run an hour later does not make for a good time. Learn from my mistakes. Once I got back from my morning jaunt, I breakfasted on coffee (in my U.S. House of Representatives mug!), OJ, and whole wheat toast with banana and nutella. I forgot how much I love nutella. Luckily, there was a brand new jar in my mom’s kitchen just waiting to be eaten.

And then it was time to head back to the big apple. Highlights from the car ride:

Grandma: “You know, I think that guy Reggie Bush is really attractive.”

Megan: “Who’s that?”

Grandma: “Kim Kardashian’s boyfriend!”

Yikes, G-ma is more on top of her pop culture than I am. Must buy newest issue of US Weekly ASAP.

And the mediterranean salmon salad I had from Panera Bread was pretty good too! Mixed greens were topped with red onion, olives, slivered almonds, feta cheese, salmon, and a mandarin orange dressing. Bravo Panera Bread!

The rest of the afternoon included  my fav juice from Peacefood cafe – the hangover cure. Made with a lovely mix of apple, orange, celery, carrot, and ginger. Andddd lots of unpacking from the weekend.

I was feelin’ a little lazy and instead of making kale chips like I’d planned, I just plated some carrots and peanut butter and tortilla chips, melted cheese, and salsa. I had seconds of both!

I finished off the night with  some girl scout cookies while watching netflix in bed. Delicious. Lazy. Perfect.

Your questions answered! Or at least some of them….

What’s your favorite way to cross train? When I had to take a break from running last summer, I really learned to love spinning and yoga. They both offer different benefits – spinning helped me maintain my cardio endurance and I truly believe that yoga was beneficial in the rehab of my hamstring injury. Even now that I’m running 6 days a week, I’m still trying to keep these activities as part of my routine.

What do you do for a living? I work as the Operations Department Coordinator for a Manhattan law firm. My company has a great cafeteria – it’s where all of my salads come from

What do you reccomend as the best way to prevent running injuries? As soon as something starts to bother you (shins, knees, whatever!), take a day or two off. Admittedly, I don’t always follow my own advice (which is why it took me so long to get over my hamstring injury!!), but it’s much better to nip something in the bud rather than having to take many months off from running.

What is your height and weight? I don’t normally discuss this on the blog, but since I received a lot of requests: I’m 5 feet, 6.5 inches and weigh between 118-120 lbs.

How many miles a week do you run? What would be your number ONE tip for a first-time marathoner? Right now I’m running between 35-45 miles per week. My number one tip for a first-time marathoner would be: don’t start out too fast on race day! The adrenaline and excitement of the first few miles might tempt you to speed up, but don’t do it. You’ll pay for it in the second half of the race.

Where did you learn to cook? Is your family into cooking as well or did you just pick it up as you went? I talk a little bit about it on my About Me page, but I actually didn’t know how to cook at all until sophomore year of college. Over the past 5 years I’ve slowly taught myself how to cook and bake. My mom always made dinner while I was growing up, but it was pretty basic American fare – meatloaf, porkchops, spaghetti, etc. My love of vegetarian and ethnic food is definitely something I’m trying to share with my family, but it’s taking time

Do you have a “special person” in your life? Why, yes. I do! He’s not much of a talker and he’s kind of hairy, but he loves cuddling and even helps out with the laundry on occasion.

Hehe, love you Kiwi!

More questions to be answered tomorrow….

Question: What’s your favorite lazy-day dinner?