Before I get down to business and chat about my running and foodie adventures, I have some exciting news! Matt (NoMeatAthlete) and I are the newest contributors for the online news network True/Slant. The focus of our column will be on all things running: gear, races, nutrition, athletes in the news, etc. We’re still figuring out the direction for Running Shorts, but we’re open to suggestions. Check out our inaugural post and let us know what you’d like to read about!
I totally had a case of the Mondays yesterday, boo. But I did begin the day with a 3-mile run with Alma. That helped get the week off to a good start!
Breakfast was a cappuccino and overnight oats. The overnight oats won’t be winning any beauty contests, but they were filling and yum!
- 1/3 cup oats
- 1/2 cup Fage 0% greek yogurt
- 1/2 cup 1% milk
- sliced banana
- handful of cranberries
- LOTS of cinnamon
The options for a bag-lunch were slim pickings (need to go to the grocery store…), so I hit up the salad bar at lunch time. I enjoyed this beauty outside in the sun (probably one of the last days I can eat lunch outside this Autumn!).
- romaine lettuce, shredded carrots, red onion, mushrooms
- stalk of baby bok choy
- spoonful of white bean & artichoke salad
- feta cheese, cranberries, pumpkin seeds, croutons
- sample of a tostone and a spoonful of rice & beans
- Tbs balsamic vinaigrette
And then some pop chips! They were handing out samples of these little 50-calorie bags near Columbus Circle last week. Score!
Dessert was a (surprise!) magic bar from a co-worker. Coconut, graham cracker, butterscotch chips, chocolate chips, mmm. It’s a good thing the portion was small – these little babies could be dangerous!
And then around 5pm, I poured myself a bowl of Heritage heirloom whole grain flakes with skim milk.
I was feeling kind of bored/blah after I left the office, so I headed back to my gym for some easy elliptical. I pedaled away for about an hour while I read my newest book: The Nineteenth Wife
After some stretching, foam rolling, and showering (still having hot water problems at my apartment, ugh), I headed uptown.
My mission for dinner: Assemble something healthy and tasty with whatever ingredients I had on hand.
I heated up a black bean veggie burger and rolled it up in a whole wheat lavash wrap along with hummus, mozzarella cheese, hot sauce, and shredded carrot. It was surprisingly good!
Dessert came from the fridge & freezer: a warm vita brownie topped with almond butter. Protein? Check. Fiber? Check. Vitamins? Check. Delicious? Absolutely!
As I finished up Mad Men, Season 1, Disc 3, Â my tum started to grumble. Solution? Wallaby vanilla bean yogurt! With a satisfied stomach and sleepy eyes, I set my alarm for an early wake-up call.
Ok, the sun needs to get its act together and start rising before I do. When the alarm beeped at 6:20am, it was still veryyy dark (and rainy!) outside. I dragged myself to the kitchen for coffee (half-decaf) and dried fruit and then set off for the gym.
I went to my favorite 45 minute spinning class (yay, 80′s music!) and then finished up with a increasing speed 4 mile run.
- Mile 1 – 9:20
- Mile 2Â - 9:15
- Mile 3 – 8:00
- Mile 4 – 7:45
- Total - 34:20
Breakfast at my desk was a decaf cappuccino (perfect after my rainy, chilly commute), a banana, strawberry chobani, and 1.5 cups of Kashi Honey Sunshine.
The morning was a whirlwind and before I knew it, my stomach was MORE than ready for lunch. I just finished the very last of the leftover octoberfest veggie chili (wahoo!) and a cornbread vitatop. After this morning’s long gym session, I’m sure I’ll be needing a snack soon.Â
Can’t wait until tonight -Â I have a yummy dinner recipe in the works. Stay tuned!
Who knew pumpkin seeds were so healthy? 85 seeds contain 126 calories, 5 grams of protein, 5 grams of fiber, Omega-3′s, and zinc. Now if we could only make them taste like candy corn…
