Are Sports Drinks Necessary?
Something to ponder on this rest day. Are sports drinks necessary or are they just empty calories? Personally I only break out the Gatorade when I run farther than 8 miles or so. Anything less and water seems sufficient. When I do get into the Gatorade I mix it half-strength because the full strength is too strong for me.
What do you think?
Showing posts with label nutrition. Show all posts
Showing posts with label nutrition. Show all posts
Thursday, April 21, 2011
Saturday, April 2, 2011
Saturday, April 2, 2011 - Early Mornings and Oatmeal
Rolled out of bed at 0600, had my coffee, a glass of water and a blueberry Soyjoy. I was out the door by 0630 all decked out in my reflective gear and headlamp. The really cool thing about early morning was all the birds singing. That's something I haven't heard since last fall. I saw lots of robins out doing whatever it is they do in the pre-dawn grey. I ran 8.2 miles this morning.
Tomorrow I'm going to attempt my first 10 mile run ever. It will be my first time into double digits. I'm pretty excited about breaking into double digit territory. It's almost like I'm becoming a real runner or something ;)
The Soyjoy was just perfect for early morning pre-run fueling for me. The blueberry flavor was really good. The Soyjoy did a good job of getting me going and leaving me feeling like I had adequately fueled by the end of my run.
Waiting for me when I returned was a nice batch of steel cut oats. I make them using this method:
1 part steel cut oats
4 parts water (adjust down or up according to taste)
Boil the water, add the oats to the boiling water, let cook for a minute or two, cut the heat, slap a lid on the pot and walk away. Let the pot sit on the back of the stove overnight. In the morning, spoon some oats into a bowl and microwave for 2-3 minutes. Put the remaining oats in the fridge for later. Steel cut oats don't get mushy in the fridge so I like to make a big batch to have plenty of leftovers.
Some favorite oatmeal toppers are: bananas, apples, cinnamon, brown sugar, peanut butter, honey, dried cherries, raisins, almonds, pecans, or walnuts.
What are your favorite oatmeal toppers? Any running accomplishments you want to brag about? Please brag away. I love reading about all the great stuff people are doing.
Tomorrow I'm going to attempt my first 10 mile run ever. It will be my first time into double digits. I'm pretty excited about breaking into double digit territory. It's almost like I'm becoming a real runner or something ;)
The Soyjoy was just perfect for early morning pre-run fueling for me. The blueberry flavor was really good. The Soyjoy did a good job of getting me going and leaving me feeling like I had adequately fueled by the end of my run.
Waiting for me when I returned was a nice batch of steel cut oats. I make them using this method:
1 part steel cut oats
4 parts water (adjust down or up according to taste)
Boil the water, add the oats to the boiling water, let cook for a minute or two, cut the heat, slap a lid on the pot and walk away. Let the pot sit on the back of the stove overnight. In the morning, spoon some oats into a bowl and microwave for 2-3 minutes. Put the remaining oats in the fridge for later. Steel cut oats don't get mushy in the fridge so I like to make a big batch to have plenty of leftovers.
Some favorite oatmeal toppers are: bananas, apples, cinnamon, brown sugar, peanut butter, honey, dried cherries, raisins, almonds, pecans, or walnuts.
What are your favorite oatmeal toppers? Any running accomplishments you want to brag about? Please brag away. I love reading about all the great stuff people are doing.
Monday, March 28, 2011
Reset!
Just weighed myself for the first time in about 2 months. I'm up about 3 pounds :-( Just goes to show that you can't outrun the calories. It's time for me to hit the reset button, get back on track and quit letting stress dictate my eating habits. That's what got me where I was in the first place. No more! While I may run because I enjoy pizza and buffets, I need to remember that moderation is the key. No foods are inherently bad. I just need to remember that some things are best savored in very small servings.
In other news, today was a rest day. I did some Wii Fit stuff as my XT for today. I like to do free stepping while watching television. I also really enjoy doing Super Hula Hoop. Don't ask me why, I just do :-D
This morning I tried some 7-grain oatmeal for breakfast. Yum! It was really good and stuck with me pretty well. It's got some of the texture and nuttiness of steel cut oats without the long cooking time. Tomorrow morning I'll have it again, with a banana and less brown sugar. I need to cut back on the sugar anyway. I'm not really sure what brand the 7-grain cereal is. It was from a bulk bin. The ingredients sound suspiciously Kashi-like but I don't think it's Kashi brand. Have I mentioned that oatmeal is in my top 5 favorite foods? Oh yes, we're going to get to know oatmeal pretty well ;-) I almost wish there was such a thing as an oatmeal buffet.
What's your favorite breakfast food? Do you like to customize it?
In other news, today was a rest day. I did some Wii Fit stuff as my XT for today. I like to do free stepping while watching television. I also really enjoy doing Super Hula Hoop. Don't ask me why, I just do :-D
This morning I tried some 7-grain oatmeal for breakfast. Yum! It was really good and stuck with me pretty well. It's got some of the texture and nuttiness of steel cut oats without the long cooking time. Tomorrow morning I'll have it again, with a banana and less brown sugar. I need to cut back on the sugar anyway. I'm not really sure what brand the 7-grain cereal is. It was from a bulk bin. The ingredients sound suspiciously Kashi-like but I don't think it's Kashi brand. Have I mentioned that oatmeal is in my top 5 favorite foods? Oh yes, we're going to get to know oatmeal pretty well ;-) I almost wish there was such a thing as an oatmeal buffet.
What's your favorite breakfast food? Do you like to customize it?
Saturday, March 19, 2011
Fueling up
Fueling up for tomorrow's run tonight by eating pizza from B.C. Pizza. Some of the locations have an awesome buffet, but we just brought it home. It was the Patrolman special for us tonight. Yum!
Here it is in all it's pizza goodness:
Here it is in all it's pizza goodness:
 |
| Picture from http://www.bcpizza.net |
Thursday, March 17, 2011
SwimOutlet.com & Garrett Weber-Gale's Nutrition for Performance Series (part 4)
Woot! Carbs for a bedtime snack. I'm all over that :) I do actually enjoy munching on some granola or dry cereal in the evening. Little did I know it was doing me some good.
SwimOutlet.com & Garrett Weber-Gale's Nutrition for Performance Series (part 3 )
Even though this is focused on swimming, the information is equally applicable to running. Tried and true nothing new, right? We don't make big changes in our gear right before a race, so why would we in our diet? Garrett makes some really good points.
I make a similar steak, but I use a cast iron pan. Get that cast iron skillet hot. Really hot. It works better to start with a room temperature steak. Salt a little on each side with kosher salt. Throw that steak in the pan and leave it alone for 4 minutes. Don't touch it. No matter what it does. Then flip it. Once again, don't touch for 4 minutes. Then, pull the steak and the pan is ready for deglazing if you like to make a sauce. You will end up with a nice, medium, tasty steak. I use a lean cut of beef, venison or buffalo (bison). I usually use a 1 inch thick steak. Thicker or thinner cuts will require adjustment of the cooking time. Serve with your favorite sides. For me that would be a salad and a baked sweet potato.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)