Life After A Marathon

On October 13th, I completed my first marathon.

I trampled on child sex trafficking by raising (to date) $3371.85 for Happy Horizons Children's Ranch in the Philippines. I trained for over 4 months for that marathon, with about a year of training before that.

I wanted to share some issues I've faced since the big race and before.

Maintaining Injury-free Fitness
In March, I started having severe pain in my right leg (mostly a burning in my hip). I went to the doc, to a physical therapist, to another doctor, to a different physical therapist with no relief.  I did find out there is nothing structurally wrong with me: no bursitis or anything like that.

I knew before I completed the marathon that something in my fitness routine needed to change.  I did start cross-training, doing some spin classes and using the elliptical.  I also lowered my mileage. Despite this, the pain increased, move down my leg to knee and a bit in my shin.

I can run through the pain.  I'm not really getting too much faster, but it's not really affected my speed.  But as I told someone last week, I want to still be able to run when I'm 60 (or 90 if I'm still kicking!). I don't want to just power through it and end up unable to run.

I have taken my sweet time getting back into running post-marathon. We left for Virginia 5 days post-marathon and have been staying in a hotel.  After a week of no running (except for that day when I almost missed the train), I've been slowly easing back into both the elliptical, treadmill running, and trail-running (W & OD, baby!). The feet platforms of the hotel elliptical seem a bit awkwardly placed.  I'm realizing they hurt my knee as well.

So until I can get to a sports medicine doctor, I plan on being very consistent in doing my stretches and strengthening exercises.

Weight Maintenance
Racing makes me gain weight, and I'm up almost 8 lbs from my weight a couple of months ago.  8 lbs is not a ton, but it's enough to make even my looser pants tights.

I am feeling out of shape. Living in a hotel with limited cooking facilities does not help! They also provide meals that aren't always healthy. But I can't use that as an excuse.

When I went back to Boston last week, I returned with my Blendtec (yay!) and bread machine.  I also brought back my bathroom scale and my Weight Watchers food scale.

You all know I am a Lifetime member of Weight Watchers.  I'm also an employee.  I know what to do to get back on track. It's simply a matter of putting what I know into practice during an emotionally challenging time.

What's Next?
The last thing I've been pondering is: what's next?  What does one do after completing a marathon? What's my next goal?

I don't race much.  Over the past year, I've only raced 1 10K (I'm not counting fun runs) and 3 half marathons.  I think I'm going to try and run some 5K and 10K's, starting (hopefully!) with a Thanksgiving 10K I ran last year.  I think living so close to the amazing W & OD trail will help me train in that regard.

Today's Green Smoothie

I'm getting down to business, people!  Who's with me?

Zooma Cape Cod Half Marathon: Redemption

On June 3rd, I ran the hardest race of my life.

It was likely a combination of factors.  I was experimenting with my diet to try & reduce the inflammation in my leg.  I was physically tired due to various factors.  I didn't sleep well.  I started too fast and pushed too hard.

Who knows exactly what happened.  All I know is it was a half marathon, and it was awful.  Hard. Horrible.  Wretched.

I cried. Literally cried I felt so awful.  Do you know how hard it is to run when you are crying?  I only kept running because it meant it would be over sooner.

Needless to say, I had mixed feelings when I won an entry to the Zooma Cape Cod half marathon through the running club I'm in.

We drove down Friday afternoon to stay in a place my husband vacationed at as a child.

A few miles away, we came upon this:

Do you see that rainbow off in the distance?  It almost looked like a reflection from one of those prisms you hang in a window.  Soon it became this:

And then this:

A double rainbow.

I couldn't help but wonder: would this race bring a redemption of sorts?  Would it restore my confidence in my body's ability to run a race?

Everyone told me not to race. Treat it as a training run, they said.  The marathon is only 3 weeks away, and you should be tapering.

So I had no expectations.  I was hoping to run a 2:05 half, but hadn't even done the math to figure out what pace that would be.  My previous half marathon times were 2:12-ish, 2:00:00.0 on the dot, and 2:09-ish (the hardest race of my life).  I figured I could likely do 2:05 without pushing myself too hard.

I got to connect with Colleen Fit Bee before the race (love that woman), and we hung around and chatted for a few.

Before we knew it, it was time to run.

So I ran.

My legs felt heavy the whole time.  They usually do.  Running does not come naturally to me; it never has. It has always been hard work.  I've never had that "light" or "fresh" feeling that runners talk about. I keep running because I can & others can't.

So I wasn't concerned that my legs felt heavy.  I was maintaining about a 9:05 pace initially.  Then the hills set in and my mapping app sort of lost me.

This race was hilly.  Very, very hilly.  We didn't have a serious downhill until after mile 6. And then we went right back uphill.

Around that time, I decided I felt good enough to push myself a little harder.  I kept telling myself I could slow down if I needed to.  At about mile 7 or 8, my phone said I was running a 9:14 pace.  It was more like 9:20 based on the difference between the course markers and the miles my phone thought we were running (i.e. much shorter miles!).

I just kept running.  I ran fast up the hills, even though it was hard.  I ran & ran & ran.

At mile 10, I timed a mile.  8:35.  Not bad at all.  At mile 12, my phone said I'd been running somewhere around an hour and 50-51 minutes.  I couldn't quite read it.  I did the math and figured out I was pretty close to getting a personal best.

So I really, really ran.  I figured if nothing else, I could get in really close to 2:01 or 2:02, which would be amazing on such a difficult course.

I was near the end and rounded the corner.  The big clock said. 1:59.  1:59?????  Would half marathon #4 finally break the 2 hour barrier?

I sprinted and gave it my all.

Almost done - check out that joy!

The clock read 1:59:24.  I gave all the glory to God.

Redemption.

My official time was 1:59:13.  Amazing!

You can see my dear friend Colleen in the reflection! She's so speedy she PR'ed with 1:39 AND placed 2nd for her age group! And did I mention she has lost over 100 lbs?  An inspiration!

Thanks, Zooma ladies, for contacting Parkway Running Club & giving me this amazing opportunity!  The race was unique in so many ways.  It was almost all women.  There were pacers!  I've never seen pacers in a race before.  In fact, after mile 12, we did a little out & back down a side street. Seeing the 2:00 pacers let me know I was close!  Instead of a race medal, we got a cool running necklace that said "Run" on one side and "Zooma 12" on the other.  There was food, music, and lots of fun!

I run because I can.

If you haven't yet read about why I will run a marathon in 19 days, please do.  I will be running 26.2 miles to raise awareness & funds in order to trample on child sex trafficking.  Please consider giving to this great cause.

My Weight Watchers Story: 60 Pounds Lost

I've been wanting to post my Weight Watchers story for a while. Having just passed my one-year anniversary of becoming a Lifetime member (lingo explained later), I figured this is a great time to share!

I weighed 183.5 the day after I had my second son. In the euphoria of having a HBAC, I somehow gained 10 pounds in 6 weeks post-birth.

My precious 6 week old

Baking with the 2 1/2 year old

4 months after that, I was back at 183.5, but not budging. This was in May 2010. These pictures are from around those times.

Still drinking green smoothies

My almost 6 month old

I knew something needed to change because what I was doing wasn't working. My reservations about signing up for a formal diet program were that I had an eating disorder for well over a decade, though I had not been symptomatic in 7 years at that point. I had several friends with disordered eating history who had success with Weight Watchers, so I started doing it "unofficially" (this was the old Points program, so points were easier to figure out), just counting points every day based on the info I found online. I did that for about 2 weeks, lost weight, and my head was still in a good place.

Weight Watchers On-line
At that point, I signed up for the on-line Weight Watchers program.

I was pretty active, chasing 2 little boys and taking lots of walks, so I lost about 10 lbs/month until I reached my goal (about 3.5 months later), which was just under 150. My weight had generally been in the high 150's into the 160's for most of my post-esating disorder years, but my doc had told me years ago that a good healthy range for me is 138-150, so I thought 150 was a good goal.

This was in about October, 2010. I introduced more high-fat foods into my diet and ended up losing about another 7-10 pounds.

Trying Weight Watchers Meetings Out
I fluctuated a bit after that until in April, 2011, I decided to join Weight Watchers meetings. I wanted to try the different type of support and accountability, as well as learn about the new program (I was still following the Points program, not the new PointsPlus system). I was about 155-156 at that weigh-in.

I lost more slowly with the new program, but I made my initial goal weight of 148 in about 2.5 months. If you attend meetings, once you hit your goal weight and stay there for 6 weeks, you become a Lifetime Member and can attend meetings for free. I made Lifetime in June of 2011. I continued to lose weight and have lost about 60 pounds total (I still fluctuate a bit within a 5 pound range).

Personal Reflections on the Program
I love the new PointsPlus system. I love that almost all fruits and veggies have a zero PointsPlus value (so green smoothies are now free!). I like that protein and carbs are now factored in, so that the PointsPlus value has a better overall nutritional value.

I also love that every Weight Watchers member can make Weight Watchers their own within the construct of the program.

I've always eaten a mainly whole foods diet and have been able to continue that easily with Weight Watchers. I do eat a more fat than most people I know who do Weight Watchers. This is how I feel my best, and I adjust my Daily PointsPlus Target to account for this.

And that's the thing I love about Weight Watchers. If I feel like having a banana with peanut butter, I can. Dark chocolate? Sure! Full fat cheese occasionally? Yes! I even sometimes put whole milk in my coffee (I prefer it black ).

I have really grown to love the meeting environment. I love hearing others' success stories and what works for them, as well as getting to share my own experiences. I have found I also need the accountability of getting weighed at a meeting.

Still The Same Joyous Brenna
Though I have struggled with my weight for about 25 years, I still lived a very full, mostly happy life before losing weight. I cannot say, as some do, that my life began because I got thin. Far from it. I have an amazing, blessed life now as I did 2 years ago.

I share this mainly because Weight Watchers is a tool that has worked for me and empowered me to have a more sane relationship with food than I have had in the years since the eating disorder. Weight Watchers has taught me a lot, and I've found new habits and hobbies that will carry me for a lifetime.

Here are some more recent pictures of me. It seems the only time I get a full-length shot is at a race! I did get my husband to take the nice, sweaty shot below :)

Close-up, it was our anniversary :), December 2011

Half of Quincy with Heather of Run Faster Mommy, March '12 (we both PR'ed!)

Today, after walking home in the 90 degree heat carrying too many groceries, looking very serious

I'll talk more about the work of maintenance, my final weight goal and my newly discovered love of running in a separate post :)

Pumpkin Custard, Grain & Dairy Free

I found a pumpkin hiding in my office that was still looking good, so I roasted it. This recipe used the whole pumpkin. You can also use canned pumpkin.

This is a highly modified version of a recipe a friend gave me.

Pumpkin Custard

3 cups pumpkin, no peel or seeds

1 cup almond milk, unsweetened vanilla

1/2 cup coconut milk beverage, unsweetened

4 eggs

1/3 cup egg whites

1/4 cup maple syrup

8 drops liquid vanilla stevia

1 tablespoon pumpkin pie spice

Pinch sea salt

1 teaspoon coconut oil

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.

Mix all ingredients except the oil in the blender. If you're using canned pumpkin, an electric mixer will do.

The recipe says to use a 9X13 pan. I used 2 casserole dishes. Greased the dish with the coconut oil and dump the mixture in. Bake for an hour.

I cut this into 10 pieces. Yum. This is 2 points+ per piece without additions.

I added some shredded coconut and sunflower seeds to mine and had it alongside some scrambled egg whites with veggies. It's be great with fruit as well.

Red Lentil Soup with Lemon: Gluten, Grain & Dairy Free

I resurrected an old favorite today.

I hesitate to show you a picture. It is so much tastier than it looks.

Red Lentil Soup with Lemon
2 medium onions, chopped
5 garlic cloves, minced
2 tablespoon tomato paste
1 tablespoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt, more to taste
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper

1/4 teaspoon chili powder
Pinch of ground cayenne, more to taste
2 quarts chicken or vegetable stock
1 1/2 cup red lentils

1 1/2 cups cooked butternut squash, or the raw equivalent
2 large carrots, peeled and diced
Juice of 2 lemon, more to taste
4 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro

Throw everything except cilantro & lemon juice in the crockpot. Cook on low for 8-10 hours.

Using an immersion or regular blender or a food processor, purée half the soup then add it back to the crockpot. Soup should be somewhat chunky.

Reheat soup if necessary, then stir in lemon juice and cilantro. You can cook the soup with lemon juice & cilantro, but my kids don't like the lemon juice much.

This soup is 3 points+ per cup if you're a Weight Watcher.

Great Foods For After Long Runs

I ran 11.25 miles this morning at a 9:18 pace. That's a spritely pace for me :)

When I got home, I started eating and haven't stopped.

I thought I'd post about some great post-run foods. Being that I'm a Lifetime member of Weight Watchers, I count all the points, of course!

I started with Poor Man's Pancakes as we always have tons of overripe bananas in this house. I had scrambled eggs with veggies on the side.

Lunch was a variation on this falafel recipe with tahini dressing.

Falafel Muffins

4 cups cooked garbanzo beans (chickpeas) (I soak them overnight and cook them in my slow cooker)

1 onion, chopped

2 T dried parsley

6-8 cloves minced garlic

2 egg

2 t kosher salt

1/4 t black pepper

4 t ground cumin

2 t ground coriander

1/8 t cayenne pepper

2 large slices gluten-free bread

Put it in a food processor and process! Rather than try to fry these as patties (I can't get them to hold together) or make them in the slow cooker (same issue), I scooped about 1/4 cup into greased muffin tins. Bake at 350 degrees for about 20 minutes. Makes 12 falafel muffins, 3 points plus each.

Tahini Dressing

6 T tahini

Juice of one lemon

2-5 cloves of garlic, to taste

A tiny sprinkle of cayenne pepper

1/2 t - 1 t salt (to taste)

Sprinkle of dried parsley

Water

Put this all in your high-powered blender. Add enough water so it's 15-16 ounces. Blend until it's, well, blended!

This makes 15-16 2 tablespoon servings, 1 points plus each.

Dessert was Chickpea Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough because I had extra chickpeas!

Chickpea Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough
2 cups warm chickpeas (garbanzo beans)
1/8 cup agave with 10 drops vanilla liquid stevia mixed in
1/4 cup natural peanut butter (I prefer salted)
1/4 cup dairy-free semisweet chocolate chips*

Mix the first 3 ingredients in the food processor. Transfer it to a bowl and mix in the chocolate chips*. This comes out to be about 1 3/4 cups. Each 1/4 cup serving is 5 points plus.

Yum! A full day of fulling food and one full mama.

Next week, I'm running my 2nd half marathon, the Half of Quincy. Looking forward to totally rocking it!

*Given that Passover is approaching, it is fairly easy to get regular-sized dairy & soy free chocolate chips at stores that sell Passover-safe foods, as opposed to the mini chips I usually buy from Enjoy Life/Amazon. Amazon is selling the regular sized chips at a fair price, but I found them at Roche Bros (if you're in MA) for $3/10 oz bag.

Turkey Meatloaf, Gluten free

Last week, I did an experiment and made a turkey meatloaf. I really enjoyed it.

Turkey Meatloaf
1 lb ground turkey breast
1/4 cup ground quinoa
1/4 cup gluten-free oats
3 tablespoons ketchup (optional)
3 tablespoons mustard
2 eggs
1/2 teaspoon thyme
1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
1/4 teaspoon salt
Dash ground pepper
Chopped parsley and celery leaves (optional)
1 carrot
1 medium onion
3 cloves garlic
2 stalks celery

I sent the veggies through the food processor for ease. I added the parsley and celery leaves simply because I had them from this summer's farmshare. The quinoa had been ground in my blender in an attempt to make flour.

Mix everything together in a bowl, and put it in a greased loaf pan. Bake this at 350°F for about 45 minutes. If you have a meat thermometer, it should reach about 170°F in the middle.

I might cover it with foil next time, as I cooked it a bit too long! This is 8 servings and 3 PointsPlus per serving if you're a Weight Watchers person :)

Legacy 5K: Race Re-cap

Hello, friends!

I know I've not been super-active, but I have some exciting stuff in the works. A few hints: an update on my Weight Watchers journey, a series on meal-planning, where I share my monthly GFDFSF meal plan with you, low maintenance guide to fermenting, and some running updates as well.

On a whim, I signed up 2 Thursdays for the Legacy 5K, which was on 2 Sundays ago. Believe it or not, this was only my 4th race of my adult life. When I ran my first 5K in 2003, I ran it in 29:46 (9:36 pace). I ran for about 6 more months, and then I stopped running for 4.5 years due to many factors, including major hip and back issues. I ran a 5K in 2008 in 32:05 (10:20 pace, but it was a huge race and I lost a lot of time trying to gain speed). Soon after I got pregnant and stopped running again.

I ran a little last summer (2010), stopped for the winter, and started again in May when I re-joined Weight Watchers. Then I ran a 10K in July in 58:10 (9:22 pace). I had a goal in mind for the Legacy 5K of 28 minutes or under, but I didn't tell anyone. At the very least, I was hoping for a new 5K personal record.

Here's a race recap for you :)

Starting out, my legs felt a little heavy, so I wasn't running super fast. I figured I'd assess my pace at the first mile marker. I looked at my pedometer at 5 mins, and then again at 10, and thought, "I'm either running at a super-leisurely pace, or there are no mile markers." Soon after that, I saw that people had started running by me, going the other direction, and could see the last turn in site.

I got to the halfway point at just around 13:33 or so and thought, "I could do this in 27 or under!" I also figured my legs felt heavy because I was running at a sub-9 minute pace and didn't know it! Of course, having no mile markers, I didn't exactly have anything to gauge my pace on, so I just ran a little faster. The homecoming stretch was short, so I sprinted and inadvertently passed a guy The crowd was yelling, "You can take him! You can catch him!" I wasn't trying to catch him, just trying to finish fast :)

My official time was 26:08, over 3.5 minutes faster than my previous PR and almost 2 minutes faster than I hoped to run it! I came in 66th place out of 258 people.

A couple cool things:
When I walked into the registration area and was looking at the sponsors, thinking, "It'd be great if I could get some free running gear!" Not 10 minutes later, a woman was going around, asking people to test out running socks! So I got free running socks :)

The race took place at a plaza, sort of an open air mall. Whole Foods was one of the sponsors; that's how I heard about the race because I get emails from them. They had a deal that if you register in the store between 5-7 PM on Thursday, you get entered into a $25 gift card drawing for the plaza. Well, when I registered at 6:30, the race organizer said, "As of right now, you have a 100% chance of winning the gift card. No one else has registered so far." I found him at the race, and I did win the card! So I paid $20 to run, and I'll get a $25 GC!

My next race will be the Chilly Half Marathon.

Garlic Scape Pesto, Dairy-free

Today, I modified this recipe to make a new & improved garlic scape pesto.

Garlic Scape Pesto
3/4 cup water
15-20 garlic scapes
1/4 cup raw pine nuts
1 tablespoon nutritional yeast
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
3/4 teaspoon sea salt
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
3 large kale leaves
Juice of one lemon

Soak the pine nuts in water for about an hour or more. Drain the water and rinse. Trim the garlic scapes of the stringy end (but leave the flower/bud thing) and the hard end on the other side.

Throw all ingredients into the blender. Blend it really well. This makes 2 cups of pesto, and is only 12 points plus for the whole recipe in the Weight Watchers system. That means you can add just over 2 tablespoons to your pasta and it's only 1 point.

I boiled brown rice fusilli and steamed some chicken breast, green beans & summer squash with a side of corn. All veggies were from our farmshare!

Banana Bread: Dairy-free, Grain-free

And Weight Watchers-friendly :)

I joined Weight Watchers again as I have a little bit of weight to lose and I wanted to try their new program. More on that in another post :)

Meanwhile, I'm still eating a low-grain diet and am working on making some of my favorites Weight Watchers-friendly. This is a variation on a Spunky Coconut recipe.

Banana Bread: Dairy-free, Grain-free

Add to blender:
2 bananas
4 eggs
1/8 tsp Vanilla Creme liquid stevia
1/2 tsp sea salt
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp grain-free baking powder

Blend.

Melt in a pan:
1/4 cup honey (I use solid raw honey - if your honey is liquid, no need to melt)
2 tbs coconut oil

Add melted stuff to:
1/4 cup tapioca flour
1/2 cup coconut flour, sifted

This makes sure the melted stuff doesn't cook your eggs.

Dump flours & melted stuff into your blender. Blend again.

Dump into a loaf pan or round cake pan.

Bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes for round pan & 55 for loaf pan.

Cut into 12 pieces. 3 points each.



Not the best picture, but hey :) You get the idea :)

Gluten-free Pasta with Garlic Scape Pesto

I don't know if it's because I walked 3.6 miles in hilly terrain, or I was really hungry - but this dinner was so good! Gluten free, dairy free and fresh from the farm.



Garlic Scape Pesto
4-5 ounces water
15-20 garlic scapes
30-40 fresh basil leaves
1/4 cup raw pine nuts
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 teaspoon sea salt
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper

Soak the pine nuts in water for about an hour or more. Drain the water and rinse. Trim the garlic scapes of the stringy end (but leave the flower/bud thing) and the hard end on the other side.

Throw all ingredients into the blender. Start with 4 ounces of water and add another ounce if the blender is struggling. Blend it really well. This makes almost 2 cups of pesto, and is only 12 points for the whole recipe in the Weight Watchers system. That means you can add just over 2 tablespoons to your pasta and it's only 1 point.

I boiled brown rice penne and steamed some chicken breast (yes, I know that's weird - but I'm on a diet & the chicken was still frozen). In the last 3 minutes of the chicken cooking, I added big cubes of zucchini and lightly steamed that.

I tossed together 1 1/2 cups of pasta with a few cubes of chicken, 2 tablespoons pesto and threw some zucchini on top. You have to try this. My goodness! Could dinner get any better?

Homemade Chocolate Popsicles: Sugar-free, Raw & Easy!

Bear loves these popsicles (scroll down to the end). They are very good. And very expensive.

We recently bought those plastic popsicle molds, in hopes of creating something a little less expensive. I came up with a perfect solution. I generally have a plethora of ripe bananas in my house, so this recipe (a variation on "Awesome Ice Cream") just made sense!

This is not the best picture, but Bear was losing his patience as I held his popsicle out of reach :)



Chocolate Popsicles
3-3 1/2 bananas
1/2 cup milk (I used unsweetened coconut milk, raw nut milk will work as well - I was out)
1 1/2 tablespoons raw cacao powder

Blend this in your blender. It should be about 16 ounces at the end. I poured this into 8 popsicle molds, and put the sticks in. Freeze overnight.

This is 1 point in the Weight Watchers system, even with cow's milk, as long as you don't use heavy cream or canned coconut milk :)

Oatmeal Raisin Cookies - Gluten-free & Weight Watchers Friendly

Today, I modified this recipe to make it gluten free & Weight Watchers friendly.

Oatmeal Cookies
1 tablespoon oil
2-3 very ripe bananas
1/4 cup firmly packed brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon liquid stevia, vanilla
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
1-1/2 cups gluten-free flour blend (high fiber is better)
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt (optional)
3 cups old fashioned oats
1/4 cup raisins
1/4 cup mini chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350°F.

Add the oil to a glass measuring cup. Add 2 bananas to the cup. Either mash with a fork or use a stick blender. If the oil & bananas doesn't equal 1 level cup, add more banana chunks until it does.

Add the banana/oil mix & rest of the ingredients except oats, raisins & chips to a bowl & mix well. For flour, I used 1/4 cup sorghum flour, 1/4 cup potato starch flour, 1/4 cup brown rice flour & 3/4 cup garbanzo bean flour; I would have used buckwheat, but I'm out! I should have added 1/4 teaspoon xanthan gum, but I forgot.

I split this into 3 small bowls, added raisins to one, chips to another and left the 3rd bowl plain.

Drop dough by rounded tablespoonfuls onto ungreased cookie sheets. I made 43 cookies.

Bake 10-15 minutes or until light golden brown. Cool 1 minute on cookie sheets; remove to wire rack. Cool completely.

Each cookie is only 1 Weight Watchers point!