Making Lemonade

You know the saying....  To be honest with you, that is exactly what I have been doing for a while now. Something happened in early October.  The fact that I can't put my finger on exactly what happened frustrates me to no end.  Be that as it may..... my left hip region/IT Band has been nagging at me ever since. The first thing I did was cut my running in half and used my foam roll even more.  I figured the problem would work its way out.  Here I am 5 weeks later.

 My IT band is still delivering an uncomfortable, dull ache, that never seems to go away.  Now I am not talking about PAIN, it is completely tolerable, about a three on a ten scale.  My 'situation' does not stop me from mountain biking either. Riding my bike is not painful.  That is a bonus.

 While I would prefer to run outside as many miles as I please,  I have made peace with busting it out on the elliptical. I have upped my gym time to replace my running deficit.  If you play with the cadence and the incline you can get an amazing workout on it.  I am kinda weird about touching the actual machine so I don't hold on to it. I get to  feel "the burn" in my belly since this forces my core to work more.


  Making lemonade isn't so bad if you approach it the right way.  Sometimes I have to shift my goals a bit, that doesn't mean I give up on myself and give myself permission to fall apart.  Been there, done that. I do not recommend it.


I have a really fun but highly challenging run coming up on December 14th at Pere Marquette State Park. I have been looking forward to this race for an entire year.  This is one of the most organized group of friendly volunteers I have yet to experience at an event.  To sweeten the deal...many of my friends will be ther.  With a cap of 700 runners chances are good I will make a new friend.  Last years race was extremely hard and somehow I managed to PR.  I was hoping to do even better this year but I do not believe that is in the cards for me.  No worries, I made peace with it and have focused my efforts toward staying positive and getting strong in the gym.  Regardless of my end result it will be a good day.

Thanksgiving Day hike

 The trails are beautiful this time of year. You should get out there, with your family.

My little monkey slept well that night

Diet vs Lifestyle

  When someone loses 75 lbs everyone wants to know how they did it.  If I had a dollar for every time I was asked "how did you lose the weight" I would be quite wealthy. While I have always enjoyed sharing my story, I often got the feeling nearly everyone was disappointed with my answers/advice.


I wan't able to share a magic potion or special drops that melted their fat away. No fairy dust, no pixie pills to make them slim in a month. I wasn't able to say it was easy.  I did not have a recipe for a secret weight loss shake or some special 'sprinkle stuff' for them to put on their food.  I could not give them the number to my 'wrap' consultant who magically made my waist smaller and thighs no longer rub together.

In 2006 I was a new Mom and roughly 75 pounds overweight and my blood pressure was extremely high.  I had never been this out of control before.  I knew what I had to do, it was like nothing I had ever done before. I was NOT going on another diet. This time I was going to change my lifestyle, change what I ate, change how much I exercised, change the people I hung out with (most of them had to go), change my outlook on life, and the hardest one... change the way I felt about myself.  Little by little, I got where I am today. You hear it all the time.... "It's a lifestyle, not a diet". Well, it's true.

You see....I did not starve, or use any SlimFast shake/bar meal replacement crap, not once.  I ate food, real food, lots of vegetables, leafy greens, fruits, and you know.... all the foods that contain one ingredient, such as broccoli, spinach, sweet potaoes, blackbeans, etc..  Getting my body moving was next. I bought a pair of descent running shoes and began walking, pushing a stroller. I walked everyday for at least 30 minutes and raised my time to an hour when weather was nice. I began finding excuses to spend more time outside. I spent my weekends in the woods hiking with my family or riding my bike.  I found activities that I liked to do, running/cycling, and the weight came off while I enjoyed myself, really it did.



Along my journey I added small changes like drinking more water and keeping track of my food intake. The internet was very helpful while I researched food.  Four years ago I looked up my favorite fast food restaurant, I have not eaten there or at any fast food place since. In June of 2007  I quit watching so much Tv, cut down to less than an hour, and got reinterested in my own life.  I also quit watching and reading the news, if it doesn't happen in my house I wasn't interested.


Changing your lifestyle does not happen over night.  In order to be successful I suggest taking it day by day, changing small things and getting them into your routine making them habits.  I remember taking a good, hard look at myself in the mirror and telling myself what I needed to change, what I wanted to accomplish by these changes.  By talking to myself, looking me right in the eyes, I realized I could no longer lie and pretend I was happy with who I saw in the mirror.  Not only my outside, but my insides. After some soul searching I was able to see that I was the only person who could change these things.  I have control over me, what I eat, what I think, and what comes out of my mouth.  

I had good days and bad but I never gave up. At 44 yrs old I am in the best shape of my life.  I have noticed that the better I eat the better I feel.  The better I feel the better I eat.  Quite a healthy cycle to be stuck in huh?

The Particular Sadness of Mac N' Cheese

My love affair with this cheese soaked noodles began when I was five.  Picture it, it's 1975 and they have come out with this stuff, noodles and cheese powder, in a box.  With a small amount of butter and milk you had dinner.  I quickly learned this was my comfort food.  I fell in love with it, deep love.  By the time I was 7, I could make it without help.  It was cheap, quick, easy, and delicious.

Mac n' cheese was my friend when no one wanted to play.  Mac n' cheese made me feel better after hearing my parents fight.  Mac n' cheese cheered when up when I had boyfriend troubles, and later in life husband troubles.  I used Mac n' cheese as fuel when I was training for marathons.  It was a double-edged sword, that's how I saw it.

After I hurt my ankle in 1999 and could no longer run, I continued to eat it. I ate copious amounts of it.   That cheesy goodness made my life so much better. Everthign was so much better with a mac n cheese buzz. It was definitely my comfort food.  I was happy when I ate it, giddy with delight,  not so much afterwards.  I felt guilty, fat and weak. Those small boxes of cheesy noodles put on the pounds very quickly, especially if you are a couch potato. After putting on 50, 60, 70 pounds whats the point right?  I kept shoveling it in.  What was it about this dish that I found so appealing? At times it felt like a drug, I couldn't get enough.  Spoonful after spoonful, I lost myself in mac n cheese.

Looking at it now, it's rather disgusting.  One of the most processed foods on the shelves these days is macaroni and cheese. To be fair... I don't think it was as processed back in the 70's.  Kraft has been under fire lately for using certain dyes, that are banned in Europe and China, that apparently cause terrible side effects in children, everything from allergies, asmatha, migraines, and even cancer.  Are you kidding me???  This is horrible.  Are you telling me that a simple box of macaroni noodles and cheesy sauce or powder can hurt my kids?  Unfortunate, but true.  I encourage you to do your own research and make your own decisions.

It's a very rare occassion that I will eat mac n cheese these days.  It may surprise you but it's NOT just because of the ingredients.... I can make it from scratch..... Mac n cheese makes me sad, it reminds me of my semi-miserable childhood, my bout with depression, and the fact that I had zero control around it. I choose not to eat it for those reasons.  I no longer have an anchor of cheesy noodles to drag me down.  And, you know what???  I don't miss it, not one bit.

Dirty Kanza: Never Give Up Edition

Yay! We made it

Seven years ago I began my journey to become healthy and fit. I topped the scales at 220lbs in 2005. I started by walking my newly born daughter (2006) in a stroller and graduated to a backpack carrier less than a year later in order to take her hiking and overnight backpacking.  My husband introduced me to mountain biking in late 2007. I landed in the ER my very first ride and had to wait four months for a do-over. My first mtb race was a 60 miler in Arkansas in 2008.  Fast forward to 2011 when I leaped straight into crazy and attempted the Dirty Kanza 200, a two hundred mile gravel grinder in Emporia, Kansas.  Mother Nature stopped me at mile 110.  I went back for my revenge in 2012 and finished in 19 hours.

This 2013 DK I felt I was in the best shape of my life and was ready to hit a goal of 17 hours.  I spent countless hours at the gym, added in running and put in MANY miles on the bike.  I treated my body to special juice drinks, limited my beer, and continued my third year of a vegetarian diet.  I rolled on my foam roller daily and used a massaging stick to work the kinks out, I made sure to get plenty of sleep. Melatonin is awesome.  I set myself up for success, I thought of everything, no?

My KONA

It's an amazing feeling to stand on the start line knowing you did everything within your power to get here.  You feel strong with all that hard work behind you.  All you need now is to have faith you did everything right, you did enough training to get to the finish. It's time for everything to come together. Believe, it's time to pedal and smile.

It felt awesome to be back in Emporia, Kansas.  What a neat town filled with friendly people!  While here I would get a chance to catch up with some girlfriends I made last year.  I would also get another chance at the Dirty Kanza, a beautiful bike ride through the Flint Hills.

All smiles at the start

As race day approached I used the Visualization technique and was able to see myself crossing  the finish line around 11pm.  At 6am Sat, June 1st, nearly 1000 cyclists were going to take off on this challenging ride.  Some of them would be participating in the DK Half-pint, at 100 miles, others would be doing the DK Lite version, chosing 20 or 50 miles.

Ready as I am going to get

I picked a spot on the outside around the 16 hour mark near some friends.  Shortly after thanking my Creator for allowing me to be there, the mass of bikes took off. Turniing the pedals, my first thought was "have I bitten off more than I can chew". Immediately, I kicked the negative committee out of my head and concentrated on my breathing.  The first fifty miles ticked off rather quickly. I rode with some very entertaining people in high spirits. I didn't feel like I was working too hard, the pace was manageable.  Around mile thirty I got to see three wild mustangs frolicking in the field.  Sorry no photo, I was on a mission.  This portion of the ride had small spots of mud, not near as much as I would have expected, to navigate.  No worries, I let the mountain biker in me take over and I was able to ride through most of it.  There was this little creek crossing too. In the deep spot it covered my knees.

Little creek section (photo Brent Windsor)

Making it to Checkpoint ONE at 9:45am, I was elated to be 15 minutes ahead of schedule.  My support crew Emma handed me sunscreen, topped off my bottles and gave me the fuel/food necessary to make it through the next leg.  She had me back on my bike in five minutes.

In this next 49 miles things get a bit tricky.  Myself and the other riders would be fighting an invisible force, the wind.  Mother Nature was making things difficult by delivering this soul sucking wind which had many riders calling it quits.  As the miles ticked off, ever so slowly, it was hard to remain positive.  I knew I was pedaling but felt like I was going nowhere.  I could hear the time clicking off in my head. Tick, tock, tick, tock.  I could not go any faster, I had to accept where I was and what I was able to do.  I swallowed that bitter pill and took in the scenery.  Kansa is a really beautiful place.  The clouds were exceptional, huge white pillows floating in an incredibly blue sky.  We passed several farms with cows so close you could pet them.  I didn't touch them but felt the need to inform them I was a vegetarian in case they had any ideas.  I felt like a speck, so small, in the expanse of Kansas.

Around mile 80 I felt like I was in quicksand and sinking fast. I asked God for help.  I wasn't sure exactly what I needed, maybe chocolate, an attitude adjustment, or to pull over and rest a minute? What is wrong with me?  Negative thoughts were creeping in. Would it really be so awful if I quit?  Within ten minutes of my plea I met Jim D.  He invited me to ride his wheel as long as I needed to get myself together. Happily, he pulled me along the gravel. While he pedaled we got to know eachother.  He was from CO and been riding forever.  He chatted up my ego, started paying me compliments, exactly what I needed.  After several miles Jim pulled over to a tree to refuel himself and encouraged me to keep motorig on.  With my newly acquired "eye of the tiger" I finished this leg at 3:20pm, I was shooting for 2:30pm.  My goal may be shot, do I throw in the towel?

Absolutely NOT!!!  Why would I quit after all the hard work I put into this?  I did not endure a five hour drive to quit. I have 100 miles to go. I would keep pedaling until I crossed the finish line.  I tried to convince my husband, who had already decided he quit, to come back out and fight the wind with me. We make a great team.  I must have given him the right look because he started to get ready and join me. Another guy named Sheldon left with us and made us a party of three.

That speck is me.  (photo Jim Davis)

The wind did not stop, the wind gusts blew me from one side of the road to the other. It was a constant in our faces wind, blowing sideways, never stopping, honestly it was awful.  Around mile 130 there was a question of which way to go, a course marker had been removed or blown away.  While checking the map we noticed three guys pass us taking the incorrect route.  Lucky for them my husband convinced a farmer to chase them down and get them turned around. No one needs to add extra mileage to their already LONG day.

The three of us made it to the final Checkpoint at 8:20pm, still daylight, WHEW!  We had not grabbed our headlights at the last stop, so glad we made it.  When it gets dark in Kansas the lights go out, I mean out!  It is as dark as it gets along these gravel roads, there are no street lights.  On this leg of 50 miles we met Bryan from CO.  He was not prepared for the darkness having chose a small, not very bright headlamp. He asked if he could join us.  Lucky for him, Jim and I had super bright lights, more than enough to share.  We are now a party of four to the finish.

Eric caught this moment perfectly

The four of us crossed the finish line at 1:35am, nineteen hours and 35 minutes of riding. We were ALL smiles, yup me too, even though I missed my goal entirely.


The following morning at our hotel my friend Gretchen, who lives there, was able to stop by for a quick visit. We caught up as best we could and exchanged hugs.  Definitely planning a trip to visit during the summer.  Maybe I can talk her into brewing a special Girls Weekend Brew.

Gretchen and I

I also saw Jim D and was able to tell him THANKS and that I finished because of his help and kind words.

Thanks Jim!

At the awards ceremony Bryan came over, shook my hand and said thank you again for letting him tag along and share our lights.


In retrospect.... My day unfolded exactly how it was supposed to.  If I had quit I would not have met Jim D, helped get those fellas back on course, or been able to share lights with Bryan.  Karma Baby!

Emporia Kansas will be hosting this event in 2014 on May 31st.  I can't think of anywhere else I want to be on that date so I am going back.  Going back after that goal.


AFTERMATH

NY Times reporter Patrick and me


I met this guy named Patrick Farrell at the riders meeting.  He wanted to follow me around for the day and wirte a story.  I was humbled and honored to have been a part of what he wrote and videotaped.  Dirty Kanza was an amazing weekend!

LINK TO THE ARTICLE

LINK TO THE VIDEO

Visualization

When I was in grade school one of my teachers told me " if you can see it, you can be it", not in those exact words.  She took me outside before an important Speech and Drama meet and explained that if I felt positive about my performance and could visualize the crowd laughing and enjoying my skit that it would happen.  You know what? Mrs. Brooks was right!  Even at a young age I understood the power of positive thinking and visualization.  Before soccer/softball games I had dreams of our team winning.  As I got older and started my journey into solo sports, I went to bed dreaming of crossing finish lines, not necessarily taking a podium spot.

Fast forward, several decades, and I am doing the same thing.  I am not cut from the competitive cloth which causes me to dream of podiums. So, I DREAM OF FINISH LINES! I enjoy beating myself, my previous times, more than other people.  That could be the reason why I am able to love what I do even if I am not the fastest or the strongest. Beating myself puts a huge smile on my face.

Visualization very simply means to form a mental image of  (something incapable of being viewed or not at that moment visible).  


I believe in the power of visualization.  I believe if you see yourself being successful you will be successful.  I also believe that if I lack self confidence it causes a negative reaction.  How can I expect to complete something if I don't believe I can?  That would be setting myself up for failure, why would I do that?

If you think about what you want, what you want to achieve, try playing it out in your mind.  What do you need physically, emotinally to get there? Once you emmerse yourself in the goal and the idea that you can make it happen, there is no turning back.  You will embark on a joureny and you will not be the same person at the end.  You will be a stronger version of you and ready to take on the next challenge.

I have been using my visualization technique all week as I get ready to ride my bike on 200plus miles of gravel in Kansas this weekend, Sat. June 1st.  Sounds crazy huh?  Well, it is!  I crossed the finish line last year in 19hours.  I have worked my tail off and am expecting a better finishing time.  I am visualizing about 17 hours, that is having a PERFECT day.  I will be happy with anything less then 19hrs though.  I will still have beaten myself and can be happy with that.

What are you going to visualize? A 5k, a 10K, a half marathon, a full marathon?  Remember.... IF you can see it you can be it!

Black Bean Brownies

Don't judge them by the name.  Try them, try them and you will see what a healthy alternative to store boxed brownies can be.  They are quite delicious and no one will know there are black beans in the mix unless you tell them.  Just make two batches, you will regret it if you don't.

Black beans are awesome. They help reduce your blood cholesterol, maintain normal blood sugars, and prevent constipation.  One cup of beans is 227 calories, 15g of protein, 41g carbs, and 15g of fiber.  NOTE:  There is no signifigant difference in nutritional value between canned or dry beans.  However, the sodium content is higher in the canned beans due to salt added during cooking and processing.

I got this recipe here.  Check the blog out while you are there. I made a couple substitutions. I used half sugar/half honey and used butter instead of the vegetable oil.  If you are in the mood to experiment... try adding a banana or peanut butter. I used a blender, it was quick and easy.

Extra chips added to the mix

Would love to hear your feedback.  My kids love them, they have no idea I used black beans. Enjoy!

Prep time

5 mins

Cook time

25 mins

Total

30 mins

 

Type: Dessert

Serves: 9

Ingredients

• 1 can black beans, rinsed and drained (15½ oz)
• 2 eggs
• 3 tbsp vegetable oil
• ½ cup granulated sugar
• ¼ cup and 1 tbsp cocoa powder
• 1 tsp baking powder
• ⅛ tsp salt
• 1 tsp vanilla
• Semi-sweet chocolate chips for topping (optional)

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
2. Add all ingredients to a blender and blend on low until all ingredients are well blended (there should not be any whole black beans in the batter!).
3. Lightly grease an 8×8 baking dish and pour batter inside.
4. Top with chocolate chips or nuts if desired.
5. Bake for 25 minutes, until toothpick comes out clean after inserting in the center.
6. Cool for 30 minutes before cutting and serving (otherwise they will fall apart).

Makes 9 brownies

Let's Juice

My husband gave me a $100 Amazon gift card back in March.  I wanted to invest in my health and purchase a juicer but dreaded buying another kitchen counter appliance. I started researching different juicers and found that juicers are expensive, I could spend $50 to $400 plus. The more expensive models would accept fruits and veggies whole, rinds, seeds, core and all.  It's overwhelming to read through all of the details and compare them against one another. As I dug a little deeper I found that some juicers have extra attachments, are hard to clean, have a lot of parts, do not juice leafy greens, are loud, and take up a lot of counter space.  I didn't want to get stuck with one of those.

Invest in a good knife, peeler, and cutting board.  Cool glass optional.

I settled on the Breville BJE200XL as my favorite.  The price was right ($99.95) and it was said to be easy to clean and was compact.  I read through a zillion reviews and then decided to take it to FaceBook.   I asked my FB friends what juicer they had and it turns out that four of them had this exact juicer. I asked them the following questions.  Does it juice leafy greens?  Is it easy to clean/operate?  Is it really compact? Does it work well with beets/carrots? Do you like it?

Small enough to fit under my cabinets

All four friends gave it the thumbs up so I ordered one that night.  While I waited for the juicer to arrive I read as much as I could about juicing veggies and fruits.  There is a ton of information on the internet and many books with recipes.  The more I read the more confused and overwhelmed I felt.  What was I getting myself into?

My Breville arrived just three days later.  I am a vegetarian  and already had a refrigerator filled with fruits and veggies. Excited I removed it from the box, washed the parts and plugged it in. ( I love the end of the plug, it has a finger-hole so you can safely plug in or unplug if your hands are wet) I started to follow a recipe and had to abandon it when I realized I was out of celery.  No worries, the juice was fine without it.  The next day I went to stock up on more veggies and bought extra celery.

Honestly, I have followed very few recipes.  I throw in what I have on hand or leftovers, for instance a small handful of peppers, a few grapes or a lone orange/apple rolling around in the drawer.  I don't think you can go wrong just throwing in what you have, but there are certain recipes you can follow if you have a special need... say cancer prevention, migraine headaches, low energy, or heart disease.  I did not want to stress about following recipes so I experimented with fruits and veggies I liked. So far, I haven't made a bad juice yet.

Only FOUR pieces to clean, minus the pitcher.  You can use a glass instead.

My favorite items to juice are Kale, carrots, oranges, spinach, apples, and beets. I also use peppers, grapes, strawberries, and blackberries if they are available... my kiddos usually gobble those up very quickly. I may have a problem though... I am addicted to beets. I have them nearly every day and I get nervous if I am out. ( I will definitely be growing them this year )

Since purchasing the juicer I have juiced nearly every day.  My kids have tried some of my concoctions and liked them but said they would rather just eat their veggies/fruits than drink them.  Either way it's a win!  I am very impressed with the Breville and would highly recommend it if you are in the market for a juicer.  The machine is quieter than most, compact, quick and easy to clean, and works very well.  I have had zero issues.



Start with clean hands.
Wash your veggies and fruits.
Cut and peel if necessary.

Kale, beet greens, celery,beets,carrots,one green and red apple

All blended up

Finished product. YUM!

Depending on what you juice you will have pulp left over.  You can sneak it into muffins, soups, pastas or stews. Feeling adventurous, add it to cream cheese - mix in some herbs or garlic- and spread it on tortillas or toast.  I have chosen to freeze mine and add it to my garden.  The soil will absorb it and help my plants grow beautifully.  Use your pulp wisely, don't let it go to waste.

Frozen pulp

   




If you have any questions please leave a comment.

Happy Juicing!
Wendy