Coffee and Blogging into the New Year

Happy New Year! Mine unfortunately started with a nasty cold and bedtime shortly after midnight.  But, good time spent with old friends nonetheless. 

 

Once again, I’ve been a little MIA on the blogging scene, but, as far as running and diet is concerned, things will start to pick up in my ”oh so exciting” life.  Here’s a little recap on old (and new) developments for all those interested:

 

 

Ummm…Isn’t This Supposed to be a Running Blog?

 

 

As I begin to touch on this subject, a woman just ran by my front window and I am really jealous.  I have (begrudgingly) taken the last two months off of running and my soul may have suffered just a little bit.  After the marathon I developed a minor case of tendonitis in my right foot.  So, I listened to my body (which is always the right thing to do) and gave myself a break.  I finally got in to see a podiatrist a few weeks ago and am patiently awaiting the arrival of my prescribed orthotics which I ordered before the Holidays.  Orthotics + a fancy new pair of running shoes = a soul reawakening for Sara.  It sounds a little obsessive, I know, but I can’t even begin to describe how badly I want to start running again.  I have been going to the gym regularly and doing more yoga during this running hiatus so I’ve stayed on top of my fitness routine.  It’s just not the same.  I’ve touched on this in previous posts (particularly those closer to the marathon when over-emotional exhaustion and delirium started creeping in), but running is just part of who I am.  Without it, there is something missing.  I’m more susceptible to laziness, stress and feeling down.  My head isn’t as clear.  I don’t sleep as well.  I’m way more uptight and prone to feeling sorry for myself.  Running just keeps me strong and steady and I will keep it a constant part of my lifestyle as long as my body will let me…and maybe even a little longer. 

 

Another minor set-back that comes up due to the great state in which I live: it’s freezing outside…and I really really dislike running on a treadmill.  I go through this every year and, for the most part, I manage to still get outside for a brisk run as much as I can, but it’s limited to the weekends since it’s already dark by the time I get out of work on the week nights.  So, treadmill it is…either that or move south (which I can’t say I haven’t thought of….many times).

FOOD!

In the spirit of the recent Holiday season, my diet has crashed slipped a little bit in the past month.  But, I am a firm believer that it absolutely has to happen every now and then.  There must be indulgence, otherwise life is no fun. 

There are a few specific yummy (and healthy…for the most part) tidbits I want to share since my last post:

Stewed Eggplant:

A few months ago I went to dinner at a great Middle Eastern restaurant in town called Casablanca.  I ordered the stewed eggplant and it was so, so good.  It seemed easy enough to replicate, so I recently tried my hand at it:

Stewing

This lovely concoction consisted of a can of unsalted tomatoes in juice, sliced grape tomatoes, eggplant, carrots, chickpeas, garlic, cumin, ginger, cinnamon and teeny tiny potatoes from Trader Joe’s (I bought them because they were cute…I’m such a girl).

I have to say that I was extremely pleased with the result, served over whole wheat cous cous:

See the teeny tiny potatoes?

 Not quite as good as Casablanca…but pretty close and very easy to make.

Roasted Vegetable Pita:

I can’t take credit for this…but, I can give it where it is due.  I usually bring my own lunch to work, but, since I really hate grocery shopping and wait until the absolute last-minute (when I run out of oatmeal) to do it, I had to go out and grab something last week:

Desk Eating

There is a very small, incognito diner down the street from my office called Izzy’s that serves the absolute BEST roasted vegetable pita I have ever had (the rest of their food comes highly recommended as well).  Roasted veggies, humus, deep fried falafel and super yummy cucumber sauce on a whole wheat pita.  Oh so good.

A New Endeavor

I have decided that I want to try a vegetarian diet.  I haven’t officially started yet because I’m still doing a little research on alternate plant-based sources of protein and iron, both essential for runners.  I plan to run the Cellcom Half Marathon in May in Green Bay, so I’ll need to make sure my diet is sufficient during training. 

This isn’t a diet for weight loss, but, more an attempt to live a bit healthier, try some new foods and nutritional sources and see how a diet like this will affect (or hopefully improve) my running.  In my research, I stumbled upon a blog that I really like and think will be really informative: No Meat Athlete: Runs on Plants.  Matt is a marathon runner (running his first 50K today, actually) and decided to go vegetarian back in March.  This blog has a lot of recipes, running tips and other great tidbits on maintaining optimal health while running on a vegetarian diet.

Phew, long post!  But, sufficiently caught up.  Now off to the rest of my exciting start to 2010: laundry and apartment cleaning!

 

Advertisement