You know what?

Fall running is the frickin’ bees knees. This is definitely the perfect weather for me because I just don’t handle heat well. Thankfully the Calgary weather system is actually gracing us with a proper fall this year. My runs lately have been pure bliss.

To be honest the start of the run wasn’t great. My body just felt off, uncomfortable and plain awkward. But I said to my body, “screw you, let’s do this” and pushing through. It got easier, as it usually does, and my pace ended up being way better than I expected. I ran the exact same route as Wednesday and although that run felt easier, I ran it faster today.

Distance: 9 km

Time: 47:10

Pace: 8:26 min/mile

At the end of this run I just ran like a child, flailing arms and all. In other words, I ran without thought or care. I ran without regard for my body or my pace or my form. I ran with pure, unadulterated joy and it was amazing.

I’m telling you, it’s unbelievable how much I’ve come to love running. I never thought I’d be saying that a year ago. I think in the beginning the notion was there that I might one day find it fun but I don’t think I ever knew I could love it this much. As much as biking, or even more because it’s so new. If you don’t think you’re the running type, it’s worth it to try it anyway. I’m not saying you’ll love it but you might and then you’ll thank me

I also put some new songs on my ipod which always makes me happy when they come up. I’ve decided to start doing a ‘Song of the Run‘ series because there’s usually one song during a run that really sticks out to me and makes me run faster or smile or dance. Yes, I am one of those crazy people who dances while they run. Don’t knock it until you try it because it’s maybe the most fun you’ll ever have. Other than bike dancing, which is just as good.

Song Of The Run (okay, I maybe need a better title than that) : September – Earth, Wind & Fire

Okay, maybe I’m just a big hippie at heart, but this song is the happiest thing you can imagine. If it doesn’t make you want to dance than you might want to check on the status of your soul, or maybe you just don’t like dancing, but that’s a whole other problem. The moment this song came on I got the widest smile on my face and it didn’t go away until the run finished. And I definitely danced.

And now on to the food.

Yesterday was a rest day and I was in the cooking mood when I woke up, so I did. First off I made pecan milk to go with my apple cinnamon cereal. Pecan milk is a great alternative to almond milk, with a nice caramel flavour. You just take 1/2 cup soaked pecans, 3 cups water and some vanilla stevia, whirl in the blender, strain if you’d like and you’re good to go. Sorry, no pic, I ate as I cooked. It just looks like almond milk, though, I’m sure you can figure it out

I also finally got around to starting some buckwheat sprouting (sprouted buckwheat is a staple in Thrive and I always seem to do Brendan’s biding).

Kinda pretty, isn’t it? I drained it and rinsed it today and it actually produced a mucousy substance as though it had contracted swine flu over night, but I guess that’s the nutrients growing, eh? I plan to use it to make some of Brendan’s energy bars.

I finally made some eggplant bacon, as well. Gina, aka the Fitnessita, has been mentioning this stuff forever so I actually got Everyday Raw out of the library just so I could try it. But you’ll have to wait until I try it to see a pic. Okay, I did have a taste and it was smoky and delicious.

For dinner (and lunch) I made a lovely salad. I got the inspiration recipe from the cookbook ReFresh, featuring food from the restaurant chain Fresh in Ontario. Next time I go east I definitely want to try this place.

I changed the recipe a bit, based on what I had. Great northern beans in pesto, artichoke hearts, tomato, avocado and pecans on a bed of spinach/arugula. It was a great combination and definitely satisfying.

I also packed up some of Gina’s Chocolate Chia Pudding to eat after yoga volunteering. I didn’t have maca (still looking for it) so mine wasn’t really ‘malted’, but I added a bit of carob instead.

I also topped it with some hazelnut butter and goji berries. I ate this while walking home and it was a fun, delicious snack. Chia pudding always has such an intriguing consistency.

Okay, I was going to share lunch from today but I’ll have to do it later. My battery is about to die and I have to head off because I’m going to a special yoga class tonight with the owner of Moksha Yoga, the studio I volunteer and practice at. I’m pretty excited.

What do you mean it’s not Sunday?

I am loving having Wednesday off in the middle of the week (It’s Remembrance Day in Canada).  The last two days have felt like an extra weekend.

Yesterday I dragged my butt out of bed early so I could adjust my schedule and headed straight to hot yoga class. It was a new instructor and she was having some difficulty so the class didn’t flow quite as well as usual but it was still awesome. I think she might have been an athlete too, because we did a lot of pigeons, runner’s lunges and all my favourite poses for loosening up my ridiculously tight hamstrings and hips. I feel so much better with all the yoga I’ve been doing lately.

I also got a fantastic tempo run in. It was crazy windy out but I was feeling speedy and energetic. I always second guess myself on this route because there’s a giant hill halfway and I often question if I can keep my pace despite it, but it barely fazed me today.

Distance: 9km (5.6 miles)

Time: 47:40

Pace: 8:31 min/mile

This is right where I want to be with my tempo pace right now so I’m quite pleased. I felt so good at the end of the run, like I could have gone another 5k at that pace, so I’m stoked. Hopefully I can do another 10k race soon because I’m definitely on target to set a PR. My last 10k was May 30 and I ran a 51:46. My goal now is to make it under 50 min. It may be a lofty goal but I think I can do it.

Before yoga I was finally able to try Brendan’s Toasted Apple Cinnamon Cereal recipe from Thrive. I’ve been meaning to make this for months now but I’ve procrastinated because for some reason the long cooking time was throwing me off. It was more than worth the wait, though.

The best thing about this cereal, aside from the crunch factor, is the great roasted flavour the molasses provide. The “cereal” is pretty much a granola made with a ton of seeds and nuts and a coating made up of molasses, hemp oil and spices. It’s quite delicious. Unfortunately I ran out of almond milk the day before and forgot to soak any nuts to make some more so I ended up doing a cheater version of coconut milk. It was pretty much about 3 tbsp of dried, unsweetened coconut blended with just over 1/2 cup of milk and a couple drops of vanilla stevia extract. That blinding white blob in the middle of the bowl is some of the yummy coconut pulp left over after straining (holy overexposure, sorry about that). This is quite a lovely and quick milk solution when in a pinch.

For dinner I decided to try out Melissa’s Raw Pad Thai, which has been waiting patiently in my recipe folder for months now. I really wasn’t expecting this to turn out as well as it did.

It might not look like much – a bowl of red cabbage, carrot, cucumber and green onion may be a feast for the eyes but it isn’t that palatable on its own. However the dressing for this was outstanding and I almost gobbled up the whole (HUGE) bowl before remembering that we were going for dessert in an hour and I might not want a belly full of fiber first. This would have been even better if I’d had the mango & cilantro recommended but I’d used the last of my cilantro in a smoothie that afternoon. Damn me.

It was a good smoothie, though. You can’t really go wrong when pineapple & cilantro play together.

Post-dinner we went out with some new (!) friends for dinner at a great restaurant in town called The Ranche. The last time I was there the dessert was absolutely transcendent. I could have waxed poetic about the intricacies and perfection of that dessert for hours. And, like all good food, it had me swinging from the rafters. Alas, the dessert I had yesterday (the Sweet Potato Cheesecake with Marshmallow & Cranberry Beet Syrup), while lovely, did not quite reach those heights. I plan to go back to try the Banana Rum Sticky Toffee Pudding and hope for better luck. Not to be too greedy or anything. But I love sticky toffee pudding and would have chosen it had I not ordered my wine first and thought the cheesecake seemed like a better match for it.

I really, really planned to take pictures and even had my camera sitting patiently on the windowsill beside me, but I got wrapped up in friendly conversation and didn’t remember until my plate had been licked clean. Too bad, because the presentation was impeccable. I’ll definitely remember when I go back for seconds.

This morning I had a fabulous swim. I’ve been slacking hardcore on my swimming training lately. It’s unfortunately my least favourite of the triathlon disciplines and therefore the one I need the most work on, but I’ve had difficulty being motivated to swim since fall has arrived. Luckily I managed to make it there today and the best thing about midday swims is that I usually have a full lane to myself. It felt good to just get in the water, cruise, and let my mind wander. Unfortunately, since I tend to zone out while swimming I have a hard time keeping track of my stats. I think this is pretty close, though.

Distance: 1750 m (70 lengths)

Time: 42 minutes

Workout: 2 x 25m breast stroke, 2 x 750m freestyle, 2 x 50m side stroke, 4 x 50m breast stroke

Dan picked me up after the pool (he’s had the week off work) and we went to an early matinee at the cheap theatre. We finally saw District 9, which I’ve been wanting to see for awhile now. It actually exceeded my expectations (which were already quite high) and I thoroughly enjoyed it.

I had an early dinner/late lunch that was pretty much just thrown together on a whim. It consisted of roasted cauliflower with a crunchy coating of bread crumbs, nutritional yeast & red pepper flakes, sweet potato fries with chipotle seasoning, and a mushroom, onion & spinach frittata with a little blue cheese on toast. I may or may not have added some ketchup to this post-pic.

Tonight I went to see a play with a friend who got free tickets through work. It was called Speed the Plow, written by David Mamet, on the suitable topic of the movie industry (in case I didn’t mention it before, I work in film/television post-production). The play was really funny with blazing fast dialogue and very truthful subject matter. If it’s playing in your area I’d definitely recommend checking it out. I don’t go to the theatre nearly as much as I’d like because I really do think it’s a completely under-appreciated form of entertainment. The talent involved in even a local production is often amazing.

I’ve had a fabulous ‘faux’ weekend so hopefully the real one lives up to it

The day(s) in pictures

I don’t have a real post yet but I’ve been practicing the last few weeks taking some food pictures, so I thought I’d share some of them now, just to give you an idea of what I eat and what you might have to look forward to . I should have my first post up tomorrow, talking about my long run (24k) and some good pre and post workout meals.

Raw Sushi Bowl. Jicama ‘Rice’, julienne carrots and cucumber, marinated shiitake mushrooms, nori, and (non-raw) baked tofu.

Chocolate oatbran with bananas, cacao nibs, and peanut butter.

Pumpkin smoothie, topped with Nature’s Path Pumpkin Raisin Crunch (my fav).

French toast, topped with strawberries and yogurt.

Green smoothie, topped with hemp seeds and pumpkin granola.

Banana oatmeal with coconut almonds and peanut butter.

Mixed berries smoothie, topped with raspberries, granola, and almond butter.

Really don’t remember this one. It looks yummy, though. Pretty sure that’s Cacao Bliss on top.

Another green smoothie, topped with granola, raspberries, and almond butter.

Apple & Goat Cheese Pizza with Carmelized Onion Compote on Farmer’s Market Pita. Big salad with mixed greens, carrot, cuc, heirloom tomatoes, beets, sundried tomatoes, and an ugly, but delicious Cayenne Dill Tahini Dressing (a la Thrive).

Pizza again from above, because it’s just so pretty.

My version of Natalia Rose’s Power Soup. With berries, sprouts, romaine and agave, topped with hemp seeds and bee pollen.

Coconut Flaxjack, topped with cranberry sauce and popped amaranth seeds. Green smoothie, extra sludgy.

Raw mushroom risotto (from Ani Phyo) and baked tofu on spinach with a lemon miso dressing.

Sweet Potato Sesame Pizza (Brendan Brazier again – I think I like him).

Pomegranate Muesli with Almonds, Currants, Coconut and Chia Seeds. This was my breakfast this morning. HEA-VEN.

That’s it for now. Just so you know, this isn’t going to be a daily food journal type of blog, I just don’t have that much diligence, but I thought I may as well share some pictures to start since they’re just taking up space on my hard drive otherwise. See you all tomorrow!