Category Archives: Nutrition

Recreation and Resolutions

04 Sunday Feb 2018

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2018 has been pretty good to me so far.  In January I started a temporary position with the Forestry Commission for HR Events running 20 transitional events across England’s woods and forests.  It’s a lovely environment to be in and I really hope that the job lasts long term.  It’s refreshing to be working within recreation.

The funny thing is working in recreation doesn’t mean one has all the time for the world for it.  I often leave early and come back late.  This means my activity has fallen by the wayside a little.  I do have to focus on making the best of this assignment though as I know it’ll be beneficial in my future.  They liked my like with parkrun and that I run events in my spare time.

I love events because I’m passionate about bringing something to peoples lives that will leave an impression.  A slice of time that people will walk away with that you helped personally deliver in their timeline.  It’s a wonderful feeling to know something that you’ve put together can have that affect on a person.

I’ve managed the odd morning run since, I’m still running one run a week.  Last week was an exception because a bad fall on the weekend meant it took my arm a long time to get back into running shape again.  I know it’ll be easier to get back into it once the light returns.

MMushrooms

At the very least I’ve been managing to eat right.  Nutrition is something that can fall by the wayside in office jobs with all that cake.  I’ve been bringing in fresh fruit salads, yogurt and Graze snacks.  I’ve made a habit of Sunday or Monday meal prep lunches.  Please feel free to share your favourite recipes for meal prep in the comments! Above Moroccan Mushrooms and couscous.  Below Greek Salad.

GreekSalad

Another of my favourite Sunday tasks is to Bullet Journal for the week ahead.  I like Bullet Journaling because it blends art with lists.  One of my resolutions for 2018 is to parkrun once a month.  I made this parkrun tracker to help me keep note of my parkruns.

parkrunbulletjournal

Happy running,

xxx

Eleanor

Grazing on the Go

20 Friday Oct 2017

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20171005_113349

Running folk lead a busy lifestyle, that much is obvious.  We’re not just runners.  We tend to be trying to fit running around our day jobs, night jobs, weekend jobs, extra jobs, good will efforts, family commitments, friends and, well, eating.  A bunch of articles out there will tell you grazing is better than large meals, but finding a process that suits you is best, regardless of whatever diet is all the rage.

We like to do that.  Eat.  It’s hard to eat healthily though.  A lot of battle an emotional relationship with food.  As an ex bulimic I am no exception.  I have to battle the desire to down a whole packet or eight of Custard Creams in one sitting sometimes.  There are small things that can help such as a hoard of healthy snacks in the cupboard.

Enter the Graze box.  They’ve been sneaking onto the office desks of snack savvy workers for the past few years now.  Standard sized and bulk snack packs have even made their way to the shelves of Sainsbury’s so their popularity is on the rise.  I thought I’d reboot my subscription after another dip in my health meant that regular snacking was the only way I could really eat and I didn’t want it to be all chocolate since I couldn’t run as much.  Just some of it. 20171002_171851_001

I signed up for the Protein Box and it’s frankly lovely getting a box through the post every Monday.  Not a bill or a bit of junk mail.  A box of four snacks that you can carry in your handbag per day for your snack emergencies … we all have them.  That’s when that Kit Kat looks so pleasing.

A few favorites so far;

  • Cocoa and Vanilla Flapjacks – deliciously like rice chocolate crispie cakes with a
  • good blend of chocolate and grains.
  • Mississippi BBQ Pistachios – smoky and perfect for veggies that might miss a meat flavour, eaten in about ten seconds flat.  Shell first if taking for a run.
  • Salted Fudge and Peanut Cookie – suggest eating by the handful with a large cup of tea.  Delightfully moreish.
  • Cherry and Almond Bites with Green Tea – great combination.
  • Peanut Butter Dipper – great snack pack for studying, could use a larger box!
  • Honey and Lemon Protein Balls – fantastic for the on the run, just zip in a zip lock and go!

For the sake of a few quid each week which is, lets face it, the cost of a pint, the delight of having a box of treats isn’t much of a cost.  If you’re low on funds you can always find small packs of mixed fruits and nuts in every good supermarket section and decant into small pots or zip lock bags.  It’s quite nice working your way through all the snacks with Graze as you get to rate them so your box shouldn’t contain any you’re not keen on over time.  It’s all trial and error, it’s going well so far.

Happy Running,

xxx

Eleanor

New Year’s Resolutions 2016

13 Wednesday Jan 2016

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  1. Drink more water
  2. Eat less sugar
  3. Be more green and renewable friendly
  4. Attend Parkrun once a month
  5. Remember to stretch after a work out/do more yoga
  6. Dig bike back out of the shed and become a confident cyclist.

On the list for 2016’s New Years Resolutions is to drink more water.  Due to IBS I’m now down to three cups of coffee or tea per day by instinct.  I’d like to make sure that what I’m drinking in between isn’t full of sugar which ties into my other resolution of cutting down on sugar.

Drinking more water and cutting down sugar aren’t really measurable resolutions unless you have an App for that but it seems an important thing to consider generally.  It’s about making the right choices.  I’m not going to commit to cutting out sugar entirely because I love Custard Creams so that’s just crazy talk.  Plus cutting things out entirely can be bad anyway.  But sugar isn’t great for the abs and I’m trying to give them a helping hand.

20151227_115625On Boxing Day I bought this nifty purple Water Infuser from Triton on Amazon.  Now our Office Assistant has one and my Team Leader has one on delivery.  They are trending as the idea has caught on.  They handily come in different colours so we know whose is whose.  At the price of £10 it seems a worthwhile investment.

Since I purchased it I’ve tried a different infusion each day keeping it varied with the flavours is good for you.  It means you’re getting in the goodness of different vitamins. So far I’ve tried; strawberry, lime and orange, plum, lemon and ginger, cucumber and ginger.   I aim to always use what is in my fridge so that way I’m being more green by avoiding food waste.  Odd fruits, hers, and spices combine to make tasty water.

Does it work?  Yes, I’ve found I’m less likely to seek out alternative drinks if I have the Infuser with me.  I’m buying and drinking less sugary or caffeinated drinks.  At the moment I’m downing two of them a day.  This is more than I would drink with just the odd glass of water to throughout the day because it’s readily available.

I’ve been in the habit of leaving it at work but it’s perfect for at home workouts, the gym or yoga.  It’s not so great for running with because it’s quite chunky.  Running with it would be a bit of a chore.

Happy New Year,

Eleanor

 

 

Ready for a workout.

26 Sunday Apr 2015

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I find myself asking what next? I’ve trained from sofa to marathon in ten months.  To date I’ve run 6 marathons; Portsmouth Waterside Coastal marathon x3, Scafell Pike Mountain Marathon, Bath Running Festival Marathon, Athens Classic Marathon and the Alexander The Great Marathon.  My personal best marathon time is 5 hours 13 minutes as clocked at Portsmouth in 2014.  I’m by no means done running yet.  I just find myself acknowledging that running has made me the happiest I’ve ever been in my life.  It’s taken me to new heights, new places, I’ve made new friends.  I’ve experienced. That doesn’t just stop at running, surely?  I want to start with a new challenge.  I just need to figure out what.  Something that I’ll spend most of May brainstorming.  There’s more out there, I just know it!

I’ve been incredibly busy setting up the Ovo Running Club for the business I work for – Ovo Energy.   We have every other club that could be thought of accept a running one.  I’ve dedicated myself to lead one session a week and have been busy promoting and getting an idea of interest.  So far we have six members and a club session on Tuesday for 5K at lunch time I have to figure out a route for.  I’m glad to be giving something back to the running world.   1

As well as that I’ve signed up for the gym that we have in the basement.  £10 a month for unlimited use and free classes run by Nuffield Health personal trainers.  They set me up with a strength plan as I want to focus on muscle strength all round as I feel at the moment it’s all just in the legs.  I want to balance out a bit.

Nutrition wise I’m well into my second month of being a vegetarian.  I’m loving that vegetables now seem to have more flavor than before.  I tried a slice of bacon the other day and it didn’t agree with me like it once did so I think it’s cemented now.  This is what Eat and Run by Scott Jurek will do to you.  I doubt I’ll have the will to ever go vegan again as I love cheese too much.  Things change though so we’ll see!

xxx

Eleanor

Three sleeps until Alexander The Great Marathon!

02 Thursday Apr 2015

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That’s it.  All packed.  Apart from a 5k tomorrow morning (to pre stretch my legs a head of a days travel in various tin travelling devices) that’s all the training done that I can.  More weekly training than for any previous marathon so I hope this makes a difference to my time.  I trained for Portsmouth Waterside Coastal Marathon on a mere ten miles per week.  This marathon, despite illness, I’ve been clocking thirteen miles a week average.  I’ve been trying to increase my speed and my mileage a little each week.

Tomorrow I head to Greece for the International Alexander The Great Marathon on Sunday which follows the birth route of Alexander from Palla to Thessaloniki.  I’m so excited to be going back to Greece again.

“You’ve done five of these, you’ll be fine!”  said my housemate this morning as she dropped me off to work.

I’ve been resignedly telling myself I’m happy to just finish rather than aim for the 5 hour goal I’ve been training for.  I’ve been a lot better health wise but I’m still worried about it.  My GP has cleared the run saying it shouldn’t make things worse because I’ve not felt anything whilst training.  There is still a worry.  My GP is quite helpful as he runs marathons as well so he knows what they’re like and he said, “Do it and give yourself the chance to finish it otherwise you won’t forgive yourself” I’ve been overwhelmed by support.  It’s nice to know people believe in me even when I have my doubts.  Which I do.  Frequently.  So here’s me with 5 hours back in my dreams.

ThessThe Face Book page for Thessaloniki reports that, “More than 20,000 runners, a new record number, are going to participate in the 10th International Marathon “Alexander the Great”, on April 5. The race starts in Pella, the birthplace of Alexander The Great in ancient Macedonia, and ends 42 km later by the White Tower in the Thermaikos bay. Runners can also participate in either a 5km or 10km race during the same time. Read more here: http://www.atgm.gr/index.php/en“

On a sad note I say good bye to my Garmin Forerunner 10.  The wGARMINrist band snapped and I ended up having to carry it around. Then to top it off it stopped clocking miles during one commute run to work a few weeks back.  So in a panic I had to purchase a new one.  I quite like this one as it has a Heart Rate Monitor and steps counter so I can monitor my footfall each day.  So far I’ve been averaging between 7, 000 to 10, 000 steps on rest days and exercise days.   All exercise is good exercise.

Happy spring, I hope all those that are still training are having fun getting their long runs in.

Eleanor

Achievement Unlocked 5K A Day

08 Sunday Feb 2015

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downsWednesday morning I ran my first 5k of the week in actual daylight.  Not just daylight.  Despite the frosty temperatures that caused ice to gather like dew on the grass covering the park in a dusting of glitter it was perfectly sunny. Not warm but bright.  I performed more evenly in this 5k with two 9:55 minute miles and 9:13.  Monday and Tuesday’s runs had pesky 10 minute miles in them which upped their times.

I thought that people who hide in gyms all winter waiting for the warmth of summer to run are truly missing out.  Granted my fingers were freezing but my feet were pounding over earth hardened by frost.  Birds sat on a frozen lake looking confused but still getting on with it.  Air plumed out visibly before me reminding me to monitor my breathing.  My knees reminded themselves to lift up and avoid the ache from the cold.  My arms reminded themselves to reach forward in their air.  I’d spent the week working on my press up form and getting to ten press ups per set to work on upper body strength.

My inner monologue shouted things like, “Go hard or go home”, “Grab the air with your arms”, “Knees up”, “Remember your core” small mantras to help me focus and try to maintain that focus.

The most challenging day was Thursday when I had to get up at 6:15 to get the run in before the school run and then go to work the late shift at Ovo.  Maybe it was the full moon energy helping my determination but I woke myself up and pushed out of bed with, “That sub 5 hour at Alexander The Great Marathon won’t run itself!”  I nearly gave in on this run because the cold and lack of air caused my asthma to play up but it was too beautiful to not continue.  The full moon with rainbow rings around it shining through the scattered clouds was setting in the sky hanging low waiting for the dawn to give way to sunrise before letting the sun take over the day shift.

Thursday evening was the night that I also decided that I would work towards a plant based diet.  Steve and I had a date night at Nomu in Bristol and I ordered deep fried vegetables, with a side of sliced fried aubergines and Black Pepper Tofu with rice for a main.  It tasted gorgeous and I was so full afterwards it was incredible!  All those flavors made me decide that just maybe I could give up the bacon and enjoy long distance running until a late grande old age.  I’d already, last month given up dairy due to allergies, so I figured I might as well go the whole hog and cut out the hog.  canford

After a week of running 5k A Day I thought I would start to feel drained.  Last year (2014) I averaged a tiny 10.5 miles per week.  Scott Jurek runs 100 mile weeks, 10 miles a day, 25 miles on weekends.  Kilian Jornet reportedly runs 3-4 hours per day during his training seasons.  I’m no Scott Jurek or Kilian Jornet (my ultrarunning idol) but I’d like to build up my weekly mileage to help progress in my times in general.  I came across new miles to run in my local area.  I became a user of Strava due to the insistence of running friend and blogger Matt.

Instead of feeling drained I feel full of energy. I feel calmer and happier.  This morning I broke the mold of a week of 9-10 minute mile average pace with an 8 minute mile so it looks like I’ve hit a point where I can work on getting faster.  Not one single bit of my body aches or hints at injury like I was concerned it would if I ran each day.  I don’t feel the need for a rest day like I assumed I needed after each run because that’s what training plans teach. As an extra awesome bonus I’ve lost 3lbs since Monday.

I think all those vegetarian and vegan based distance runners are onto something!

xxx

Eleanor

Nutrition: Allergy Trial Cutting out Wheat and Lactose

31 Saturday Jan 2015

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So I did a full week of cutting out Lactose whilst I was away in Scotland and then had a cup of coffee with milk in it this morning as I’d forgotten to buy soya. Not only did it do horrendous things to me physically but I also didn’t like the taste of it and have no desire to have cows milk ever again.  I used to think soya in tea… gross.  Now it has to be soya in everything or it doesn’t taste right.  I would now rather have a black coffee or go without coffee than have coffee with milk in it. Long live soya! I’ll miss cheese the most and yoghurt but I won’t miss feeling like crap every day!  Luckily I’m alright with Feta Cheese so I can still have those scrummy Greek salads.

A running friend called Joe once said, ‘stop eating the shit that makes you ill’ so this is me making a crack at New Year’s Resolution #3 Focus on bettering nutrition.  This week I’m focusing on phasing out Gluten because as well as being Lactose Intolerant I’m also Gluten Intolerant to the extent it gives me migraines and makes me feel like I have a cold if eat too much of it.

Also gluten free, wheat free, nut free, egg free, milk free and salt free organic pasta tastes terrible although the Tomato, Garlic and Olive Pesto saved it by giving it some much needed flavour.  It sounds like such a magical thing to be free of everything but it’s a poor imitation of the real thing.  It takes absolutely forever to cook as well even though the instructions said 4-7 minutes this was a lie.

Whilst on this track I found a few tasty recipes.  Mostly to do with bacon as I had a pack of it that needed using up in the fridge and I hate to waste something so tasty.  These have become favourites because they are quick and free of the things I’m allergic too whilst packing in layers of interesting flavour.

Sweet Potato Scrummy

ChopSweetPotatoBaconFryUpped Sweet Potatoes

4 rashers of good quality bacon

A handful of raisins

A sprinkle of Soy Sauce (check to make sure it’s one that doesn’t contain allergens)

2 chopped spring onions.

Olive oil for frying

Chop into small cubes and boil the sweet potatoes in a saucepan.  On the side fry some cut up bacon until cooked.  Once ready drain the sweet potatoes and add to the pan to lightly fry them with the bacon.  Then chuck in the raisins and spring onions for the last couple of minutes and dash in the soy sauce to preference.  Layer up in a bowl and tuck in!

The inspiration for this recipe came whilst on holiday in Centre Parks where a side dish was sweet potato hash with gammon pieces, cranberries and maple syrup.  I found the mix perfect for a sweet side but wanted to develop something that would suit a larger main dish with a savoury edge.  With that in mind one Friday night whilst craving a takeaway I came up with this to satisfy the sweet tooth without over doing it.

Homemade Butternut Squash, Bacon and Pine Nut Soup

ButternutBaconSoup1 handful of pine nuts

4 rashers of bacon

1 Butternut Squash

Lactose Free Philadelphia

Half a pint veg or chicken stock

Sprinkle of dried Italian Herbs

 

Bring a pan with the stock to the boil and add the prepared Butternut Squash.  Simmer until cooked.  On the side fry chopped up pieces of bacon until cooked.  Drain out the Butternut Squash retaining enough of the stock to produce the consistency that you want for your soup.  With a hand blender or smoothie maker blitz Butternut Squash and bacon together.  Ladle into a bowl and sprinkle on the herbs and pine nuts.  These can be lightly toasted if you prefer a more smoked crunch.  I added to the side a dash of Lactose Free Philadelphia to stir in.  Beautiful nutty meaty soup.  They also make very good balanced recipes to prepare for a work out or after one because they are a blend of carbs and protein.

xxx

Eleanor