Terrific Tempo
On Tuesday I had 9 mile run planned with 5 miles at 7:50 pace. I was all in my head about this run and was seriously doubting my abilities to maintain 7:50 pace. I’m not quite sure where my confidence has gone this training cycle but I wish it would come back. My neighbor joined me for the run (i.e., Maximus, his blog alias) and that made me even more nervous. I generally run alone and, therefore, can wimp out when the going gets tough. The result? 7:55, 7:53, 8:03, 7:56, 7:51. The 3rd tempo mile was rough but I got my groove back. The best part? This pace was comfortably hard, the way a tempo should feel.
Green Monsters
So they are very popular in blog land but can you really not taste the spinach? I’ve been drinking (eating?) them for a few weeks now and I promise you that if I tasted spinach they would be a no-go. I generally toss frozen strawberries, a frozen banana (1/2 of one), a ton of spinach, a splash of milk, and some OJ (to add some sugar) into a mixer. It’s delicious. Trust me. This is coming from the world’s pickiest eater.
Birthday Celebration
I can’t wait to celebrate my birthday this weekend with Matt. I just need to knock out a 20-miler on Saturday before the celebration can begin 
Mindful Eating
My friend Ruth sent me this article in the NY Times. It’s about mindful eating and really taking your time and enjoying and savoring each and every bite. Nearly impossible in today’s world. How many of you plow through lunch at your desk while reading email? Yesterday I tested it out and ate my lunch super slowly. It was difficult and I had to remain conscious of it at all times (I was also checking email, etc…I can’t just sit and stare at my cube wall). It definitely helped with digestion. Sometimes I feel like crap later in the afternoon because I gulp down my food in a few bites. Hmm, I think the Buddhists on are to something…
Heel Strike vs. Forefoot Strike
Another interesting article in the NY Times. Naturally, my favorite part of the article is something I said in a post a few months ago – does this mean that those of us who habitually heel-strike…change our form? “If you’re not getting hurt,” Dr. Lieberman says, “then absolutely not. If it’s not broke, don’t fix it.”
Ever had a green monster? If not, you are missing out! I’m officially a convert. Although don’t expect me to start eating chia seeds anytime soon 
Ever tried mindful eating or is it just not feasible? I would imagine that for parents of small children this is impossible!
You. Are. My. Heroine. For doing 20 miles on saturday!
Have a fantastic birthday celebration afterward.
That smoothie looks like you ate it yesterday and then barfed back into that glass. But I’m sure it tastes great. 🙂
I do juice and smoothies daily…I do add some spinach and kale to mine on occasion!
chia seeds aren’t that bad…really 🙂
20 miles! Incredible! I can’t wait until I build up to that! And I will admit your shake doesn’t look as yummy as I bet it tastes!!
Ooh totally making one of those! Yum. Used to make smoothies all the time but have stopped with the cold weather. Don’t think I’ve used spinach before! And I definitely am always trying to be more mindful of my eating, now more than ever as I study nutrition but it can be challenging when you’re busy and tired.
Chia seeds are actually kind of good. For awhile I ate them in oatmeal and stuff. Mostly I am pretty lazy with food. I try to eat healthy with salads and stuff but admittedly eat a lot of garbage: pizza, other take-out etc. eating better would probably help things….
Great job on the tempo:)
I’ve been dying to find a good green monster recipe and so this sounds like a go! I’ll give it a try and let you know what I think.
20-miles before a celebration sounds like the perfect plan of attack. You could eat everything in sight post-run! oh, and let’s not forget about the drinks. HA.
Enjoy!
I admit, I just can’t get into the smoothie movement. Of course, I don’t even have a blender, so that doesn’t help the situation.
Enjoy your long run and then your birthday celebration!
Are you serious–you really drink green smoothies?? I’m impressed. Then, I have to give it a try! Thanks for the pic so I can get an idea of the proportions.
Chia seeds are great! Brent and I started using them to make iskiate (the drink that the Tarahumara used in Born to Run) months before they became a blogger craze. It’s basically water, a bit of OJ/lemon juice/lime juice, sugar, and chia seeds, and it’s sort of like gatorade on steroids. When I drink it during a race, I feel like the energizer bunny – and it’s pretty tasty, to boot!
Not so good at mindful eating, either at work (four days a week) or at home with the kids (three full days a week). I think it would be a really good habit to get into, but my bad habit in that area goes back to when I’d have to bolt my food in order to compete for seconds with my brother and sister. Old habits are the hardest to break. Sigh.
Ahhh…love green smoothies. I got a new VitaMix for Christmas and make a kale smoothie almost daily. I use coconut milk as a base. It’s fantastic!
Nice work on the tempo run. That 3rd mile was tough b/c you knew you still had so much to go. But you did it!
Enjoy the 20 tomorrow. Let’s hope for a good weather day on the E. Coast!
I really truly tried with the green monsters and they disgusted me. I could taste the spinach. Maybe it was in my head, but I swear I could. The savoring food idea sounds great but would never work for me – maybe at dinner, but that’s it. For example, today, after dealing with a behavior problem, writing a referral, checking homework, and, of course, checking email, I had about 14 minutes to walk across school, get my soup, walk all the way back, heat it up, walk back again, and eat it. I do savor desserts though :).
I keep reading about everyone adding spinach to their smoothies and I haven’t tried it yet…but you give a good endorsement, maybe I’ll have to rethink it! I throw chia seeds into my smoothies and can’t taste them….but I also don’t know if they do what everyone says they do 🙂 Hope your birthday celebration was fun!