The 2010 Eating Wager

And so it begins...

JT emailed me at some point last week and declared, "No Fast Food in 2010." If you know JT, this is a HUGE undertaking. As we sorted through the finer details, we decided to make a bit of a wager (Paul took part in some of the negotiating).

Here is the breakdown:

JT:

No Fast Food

Meaning - no food that is prepped in less than 10 minutes

- no food that comes from a drive thru

- Because Domino's has $5 pizza, ONLY ordering thin crust, light cheese, with at least one vegetable (and I had to fight for an additional vegetable on top of tomato sauce)

- If eating a burger, has to have one additional veggie ASIDE from pickles (and has to come from somewhere where it takes more than 10 minutes to prep)

- King Chef stays in but barely...

Mer:

No Sugar and No Dairy

Meaning -

No refined sugar

No food/sweets containing refined sugar

As much as can be controlled, no "other" sugar aside from Fructose in Fruit.

No dairy (I do take calcium supplements everyday for those of you considering cutting dairy)

So what's the wager:

Again, if you know JT or I at all this wager makes a TON of sense:

If he loses: no more than 2 beers per day for ONE MONTH. No other alcoholic drinks...2 beers. (This is where the negotiating came in because I was pushing for no drinking for 1 month)

If I lose: 1 beer EVERYDAY for ONE MONTH. And, I have to take a picture of me drinking the beer and post it.

I started with my sugar withdrawl a few weeks ago, so I am ready!

JT has opted for the binge until D-day approach. Today on his menu: 4 crispy chicken sandwiches from Wendy's today. I am wondering what the withdrawl is going to feel like. I wonder if this is going to effect the Colorado Springs fast food economy?

Maybe I should send him gift certificates to McDonalds for temptation, hmmm??

ok, JT, time to start!!

mer

Eating and Family

Well, here I am at the end of the holidays freezing in Kansas. I told Paul last night as we were driving in the blizzard that having some hot chocolate sounded oh so good. Not the finest time to not be eating any sugar when it feels like a sugary treat is the only thing that would keep me warm. OK, there are other things that keep me warm (my hubby is warm and cuddly...I know, TMI) but when it is miserably cold outside sweets sound really good.

One of the biggest challenges in this holiday celebration is not actually the sugar, but the fact that my eating habits are so very different from those of my in-laws. Challenge number one was dinner last night - I ended up with a salad with a few boiled shrimp on top. I am actually looking forward to the meal today because Laurie is making a turkey, salad, and plain sweet potatoes for me! How sweet to accomodate my healthy eating in the midst of feeding 18 others :)

(Here is the finished product of my lovely salad with black bean salsa...I added shredded turkey breast on top post pic)

Who knows what the rest of the weekend will hold for meals, but at least I will be well fed tonight!

Stay warm and healthy, and Merry Christmas!

Tomorrow I will send the breakdown of the 2010 WAGER with JT!
mer

Burger and Ketchup

John asked me this morning if I ever got my burger, and yes I did! Saturday afternoon Paul picked up a wonderful burger from Galaxy Cafe for me. I am guessing that many people who are "craving" a burger would go for it in a big way, but here is how I enjoyed mine.

Burger patty sitting a nice piece of fresh lettuce wih tomatoes and onions on top. Ketchup, my favorite condiment (I will get back to this in a moment) and good old fashioned yellow mustard. Yum, yum! I ate it with a fork and knife, as I have a weird thing about eating food with my hands (I even cut pizza), and enjoyed every bite. The red meat energized me and my craving was totally satisfied in a not gross way!

On the ketchup...in case you didn't know good old fashioned Heinz is made with High Fructose Corn Syrup, blech! In my love for ketchup I was torn for quite sometime, but of course there is always a fantastic fresh and healthy alternative available. One year for Christmas, Paul raided the shelves at Whole Foods and got me every organic brand of ketchup to test (now that is love)! What I found is that my favorite brands are those that have little or no added sugar and have very little salt. I really just like the tomato taste. Right now we are working on a bottle of Organicville No Added Sugar Ketchup...bonus is that it is also Gluten Free. If you haven't tried anything other than Heinz I urge you to do so, as you will be pleasantly surprised.

On the no sugar thought...I have still managed to keep the sugar out of my diet. I will be honest that it is not easy, and struggle everyday with it. I know with time the craving will go away, but until then I am suffering. I know this will really help me be stronger and leaner, and maybe in the end mentally tougher for the sacrifice, but it is definitely harder especially this time of year when you can't go anywhere without being flooded with sights of sweets. So for anyone out there reading this, by the way is anyone reading this, who thinks I never struggle with disciplined eating...I sure do!

Bon Appetit!
mer

The Burger and The Long Run

The thoughts of a burger are still looming in my head. Seriously...do I actually want the burger or just some sweet potato fries? I will have 20 miles to mull over this thought tomorrow.

In the meantime, I know where I AM NOT going for my burger:
Five Guys Burgers (which was actually on my list as an option)
Plain Cheeseburger
840 cal, 55g fat, 1050mg sodium

Why even bother going on a run if you are just going to flush it down the toilet???

I am getting to the point of thinking that buying some ground Buffalo and fixin's (yes, I am a Texan and yes we say fixin) and baking my own sweet potato fries sounds sooo much more appealling.

Uggg, I think this is one of those times that I would rather be blissfully ignorant.
mer

Sunday Dinner

Nothing like ending a great week and weekend of training than with a wonderful meal! After the mudfest in Bandera on Saturday, Paul was sweet enough to pick me up after winning his duathlon in Helotes. From there we headed to Boerne only to discover that ONLY 1 restaurant serves food between the hours of 2 and 5. This small town was super busy with people on Main Street shopping, but there was nowhere to grab a quick bite. Maybe I am completely mad, but this just does not make good business sense to me???

The weather was incredible on Sunday and I took advantage with my hill workout at noon. The sun was smiling down on me and it was just so enjoyable.

On Sundays the ritual is to prep Paul for departure on Monday. This entails me making food for him to take for the week in Dallas. On the menu this week is: roasted chicken with whole wheat pasta with diced tomatoes, tomato broth, peas, carrots, italian herbs, garlic, and parmesan. I also sent him with lemon herb rolls. Being as I can't really send him with fish, Sunday evening is a good time to enjoy some fish.

I had: grilled tuna steak over cabbage and spinach with sesame ginger sweet potatoes...YUM! And I made Paul: feta-spinach stuffed salmon with sweet potatoes and a spinach salad.

Side Notes: I found these FANTASTIC Calcium chews that are sweetened with beet and carrot juice. Bonus! AND, I am totally craving a hamburger...I had found a place that serves buffalo burgers in Boerne for Saturday but, surprise, they were closed :)

Bon Appetit!

mer

BRRR, cont.

It really needs to warm up soon. Texas winter is only supposed to last 1 month. While I continue to find creative ways to get my workouts in, I also continue to find creative warm foods to eat. My favorite dinnertime as of late, some sort of warm soup and a yummy salad. Tonight it was beans and brown rice :) Salad was fairly standard: spinach, raw beets, tomatoes, and carrots with Balsamic glaze (walnut-pear balsamic reduction...no oil or salt, of course!)

Tomorrow is a treat at Zoe's with Noelle, Daphne, and Julia! Lot's of pics of the funness tomorrow :)

Bon Appetit!

mer

BRRR...

Yuck is the best word I can use to describe the weather outside :( No sunshine, no hot temps...I so miss summer.

But, the one good thing about this time of year is the opportunity to eat warm food. I had tasty oatmeal with fresh blueberries (got a HUGE container yesterday), and a tablespoon of Oikos Greek Yogurt. It made the oatmeal nice and thick and added extra protein in. Not to mention it added some good flavor.

And, I am looking forward to some spicy Lentil Soup and a Spinach Salad after my run this afternoon.

200 days...the weather is miserable, but the food is going to keep me warm!

Bon Appetit!
mer

The Journey Begins

Here I go, 201 days to the start of Western States 2010. There are 411 of us that were either fortunate enough to be selected, talented enough to earn a spot, or granted entry for other reasons. Whatever the reason, of we all are in for a long and exciting adventure.

The training and committment part of the journey is the obvious. There will be many sacrifices in the coming months, and much support from those whom I love and who love and care for me. I will be grateful for every healthy day I have and all the gifts and wonderful people in my life who will lift me when times are tough and who will stand by me through all the joys and pains of this journey.

But, there is another side to the coming months that I am as committed to as the running. For me, it is all about the fuel I put in my body everyday! It is what I eat for my meals, during my runs, and for recovery. It is what will have me racing at my strongest, at my leanest, and at my most healthy.

When my clients have big race goals, they come to me for "the secret formula." But, always in the end they come to realize that the "secret" is different for everyone and is a constant area of focus. Given that I ask this of my clients, training partners, friends, and even my husband (at least I try with him)...I thought I would share my adventures in my food consumption as I focus on Western States. I will share meals I prepare; recipes that work; restaurants I enjoy; challenges I face; and everything in between.

In the end, I hope that my journey will help others taking similar journeys; make you laugh a little; or just let you appreciate healthy foods available.

I can't wait to share! In the words of Julia Child: "Bon Appetit"
mer