Celebrate Good Times

May17
2012 3 Comments

Written by Linda

Saturday was Prince Lemon’s birthday and Sunday was my birthday as well as Mother’s Day. Lots to celebrate, unfortunately the Caps winning the series was not one of them.

Boo Caps.

Sunday morning I went for my first bike ride since last summer. Just pumping air in my tires wore me out, but I hopped on and took off. Ugh. It was hot and sunny, and my route was hilly, and I now I know how out of shape I am. Sure I can run 13.1 miles, but I can’t bike up a hill. I managed to do 6 miles, and those 6 miles were harder than any half marathon, I was shaking when I got back. I need to do something about this.

I’d like to get a better bike, this is a hybrid bike and I’m working up the nerve to get a road bike. They seem very scary. My bike also has trouble with the gears, it is really hard to change the gears on the left side, so I always keep it in “2”.

Next time I’ll ride on the towpath which is totally flat. I’ll do that until I get my biking endurance up.

We went out to lunch at Mia’s Pizza, which is one of our favorite places. The last time I was there I was told that the pizza crust has parmesan cheese in it, but they could make it for me without the cheese. Great! This time I asked for the crust without the cheese and the waitress told me that the crust has no cheese, but the sauce has cheese. What? This is why it is difficult to eat out when one is a vegan.

I ended up getting the appetizer of fingerling potatoes, and a veggie pizza with no sauce or cheese. And a delicious glass of sangria.

We came home and had our vegan birthday cakes that Mr. Lemon picked up at Sticky Fingers Bakery – Prince Lemon had a peanut butter/chocolate cake and I had a red velvet cake.

Sheila was wondering why we wouldn’t give her cake.

Posted in Fun - Tagged biking, birthday, cake, celebration, food, hockey, holiday

The Lazy Gardener

May12
2012 5 Comments

Written by Linda

I would love to have a vegetable and herb garden, but it is a lot of work. I don’t feel like digging, and I don’t feel like building raised beds. But I hate buying produce which might be sprayed with insecticides or herbicides, or that has been shipped a long distance, or is genetically modified. Farmer’s markets are starting up, and that is a great alternative, but imagine how wonderful it would be to walk into the backyard, pluck a tomato off of the vine, slice it and eat it while it is still warm. It is a living vegetable, full of energy, not depleted on the long truck ride from Florida or Pennsylvania.

I also don’t have time to maintain a garden – when would I do that? In between running, yoga, working, school, sleeping, etc…no time!

My brother in law told me about Topsy Turveys.

They don’t take up any room on the ground, and the only maintenance is watering them every day. He says he uses them and gets tons of tomatoes. The reviews on Amazon aren’t as stellar, it seems people either love them or hate them. But they were only $5.98 each, so I ordered three.

Mr. Lemon went out today to buy tomato plants, soil and fertilizer and we “planted” them this afternoon. They look so pretty! I keep looking out the window to see if they are growing. I hope these work because I really want my very own tomatoes.

My neighbor also gave me a little basil plant yesterday which I planted in my “herb garden” (a piece of dirt that also contains a parsley plant which is now flowering, I think that is a bad thing.)

And just because they are pretty, here is a photo of our “roses” (they are not really roses, I’m not sure what they are, Mr. Lemon got them at Home Depot last year):

Do you like to garden? What do you grow?

Posted in Fun - Tagged garden, home, tomatoes

Racing

May11
2012 7 Comments

Written by Linda

I was putting my bib and photos from my latest race onto my race board and I counted up all of my races – I’ve done 18! My first race was June 2009 and my most recent race was in April 2012. Why do I do these races?

Firstly, it gives me a goal. I would still run if I didn’t have a race to train for, but training for a specific race lets me have a set plan. After my half marathon a couple of weeks ago I decided to just run for fun, no plan, no tempo or interval runs, no hill training. I thought it would be so relaxing, but you know what? It’s not very interesting, I didn’t even go out for my run this morning. I really need a plan.

The second reason is that I get some good stuff. Usually a nice shirt, some free samples, sometimes a medal. I love my race swag. I’ve gotten throw away gloves, lip balm, water bottles, a bandanna, and a rubber chicken.

I also like the race atmosphere, it is exciting and full of energy. Lots of runners just pulsating with energy, hopping or running in place, doing jumping jacks, stretching, and talking. Lots of talking. I can’t talk before a race, probably because I’m so anxious, and I don’t talk in the morning anyway.

And then, the best part, crossing the finish line. That is always the highlight of the race, no matter the distance.

I’ve done 5k’s, 8k’s, 10k’s, 10 milers and half marathons. I almost broke 30 minutes in a 5k in 2009, and I would have if it hadn’t been such a crowded race. I finished in 30:16, that was the fastest I’ve ever run a race. I would love to break 30 minutes, but I’m not getting any faster at my age. I’ve never broken a one hour 10k either. But at this point I’m not running for time, I just want to get out there and do the best I can.

Why do you race?

Posted in Running - Tagged race, racing, running

Cooking Demonstration

May09
2012 Leave a Comment

Written by Linda

On Sunday I attended a vegan cooking demonstration sponsored by the Vegetarian Society of Washington DC. I went for two reasons – because I was really interested in the demonstration, and also to see what it entails because it sounds like something I would like to do.

The presenter also attended the Institute for Integrative Nutrition (the school in which I am currently enrolled) and she works for the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine. She was very knowledgeable, as well as personable and a good cook.

She prepared three things – a kale/pear smoothie, sautéed cauliflower with garlic and parsley, and black bean chili. All of the dishes were delicious, and none had fat. At PCRM they believe in a low fat diet, although she did show us a DVD of Dr. Neil Barnard talking about vegan diets and he advised eating processed “fake” meat, which surprised me. But I do understand that some people need that to make the transition from a meat based diet to a plant based diet.

PCRM has the 21 Day Vegan Kickstart and I highly recommend it to anyone who is considering a vegan diet.

It was a fun afternoon, and I am thinking that when I learn a little bit more in my course I am going to attempt cooking classes. Hey, I love to cook, and I love to teach, and I love nutrition. It seems like something that would be perfect for me.

Posted in Nutrition - Tagged cooking, IIN, nutrition, PCRM

New Running Shoes

May05
2012 2 Comments

Written by Linda

I’ve really been needing a new pair of running shoes. My favorite pair, the Mizuno Wave Rider 13, has over 300 miles on them, and last year when I went to replace them (in advance) the Wave Rider 14 was out and it wasn’t comfortable on me all. Apparently Mizuno got complaints, so they changed the Wave Rider 15 back to the way the model 13 was. I tried them on today, and they still don’t work for me. The ankle is now cut too high and it hurts. I like my shoes cut low around the ankle.

My second favorite pair of shoes are my Saucony Kinvara 2’s, and since Saucony just came out with the model 3 this week, the model 2 is on sale everywhere. I bought a new pair on Amazon for $65.00 – these spiffy purple ones:

The shoes I wear on long runs are the Saucony Progrid Ride:

which are not bad, but they seem really heavy and have too much padding in the heel. Since I am not a heel striker, I don’t need that. My shoes get worn down in the midfoot/forefoot area.

At the running store today I tried the Mizuno Wave Rider 15 – no good. Then the Saucony Kinvara 3 – excellent, I really like the feel of these. And then I tried the Newton Gravity Neutral Trainer:

Wow, these felt totally different than any running shoe I’ve worn. They don’t feel like they have any stiffness at all on the foot part, and the bottom has funky bumps on the midsole that feel strange, but really work when running (I ran outside on the sidewalk). My orthopedist had told me to get Newtons to help avoid injuries and I was resisting because of the price. The salesperson told me that I could get 700 miles on these, I really doubt that! I normally get 300 on my regular running shoes. But we’ll see. They cost $175.00, so I hope they work for me.

He also told me to try my Kinvaras on the road, normally I just wear them to run on the trail because it is softer. But I may take a few short runs with them on the road and see how I feel. I may phase out the Progrid Rides totally in favor of these lighter weight shoes. (Does anyone else weigh their shoes?)

Model	Weight in ounces
Saucony Kinvara 2	8.0
Newton Gravity	9.1
Mizuno Wave Rider 13	9.3
Saucony Progrid Ride	11.0

The colors that running shoes come in now are crazy! I think Nike started that, didn’t they? I will now have to buy new running clothes to match my shoes.

The salesperson talked me into getting these socks too. He said they will keep my feet cooler, much like gloves make your hands colder than mittens. He also said they prevent blisters on the toes, well I have never gotten blisters on my toes, but I decided to try them. They feel strange, but they are lightweight and not uncomfortable so far.

I love getting new running shoes.

And for your food pleasure, here is a batch of Rice Krispie treats, revised to become vegan and “healthy”. They have almond butter and brown rice syrup instead of marshmallows, and organic brown puffed rice cereal. Here is the recipe.