Tag: food

Drinking Game? Maybe not…

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I’ve been slowly not-adjusting to the new Weight Watchers. It’s still the same basic system, where you count points (PointsPlus) and it’s deducted from your daily/weekly allotment, but it’s all calculated differently. Most of the real-foods I eat haven’t changed in cost (proteins and fats mostly the same, whole grains just a little more), and fruits and a good number of vegetables are free! This, plus I get more to deduct from per day. What’s the killer, though, is that now my 12 oz beer costs twice as much as eating a banana! A glass of wine? Three times! And the banana is now free! It’s almost like they want me to stop drinking and just eat healthy!

So last night an out of town friend told me of a drinking game that she and her friend were planning on playing. It included large quantities of alcohol and – gasp – cheap, tasteless, light beer was the only way to survive the game.

I realized then something that my Weight Watchers leader, Phil, has said that he made the choice years ago in favor of food over alcohol. Last night, I realized I’ve made the same choice. No matter how much I like to feel tipsy, if I’m not drinking something that tastes good, that I enjoy, I’ll save those calories for something I *will* enjoy – something that looks like the glass cupcake necklace I have around my neck.

Plus side – I find that I can easily cure a sugar hangover with a brisk run!

Scuba and Running

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Today my athleticism was a combination of dry suit diving with Girl Diver at Alki Cove 2 and doing a long run of 39 minutes in my neighborhood.

I’m desperately needing to get back in the water, if only to increase my endurance for kicking. Diving is great for developing all sorts of muscles, from your legs to your arms (for us Northwest divers at least, it’s 50 lbs of gear!)

My long-slow run was slower than I hoped, but actually over all, pretty OK. I didn’t stay as low in my heart rate range as I wanted, which was disappointing. I do have to contend with hills in my neighborhood, though, which makes it hard to keep my heart rate down without slowing quite a bit. I’m still going faster than 12 min/mi, but I am hoping to do under 10 min/mi, especially by late June. I’m finding that my interest in training is flagging quite a bit. I’m wanting a running buddy (not necessarily a group.) I don’t want to feel pressured, I just want to have fun. I also don’t want to drive too far to run. Driving to run? Really?

I’ve neglected hitting the gym and doing yoga. I’ve also been pretty busy doing a number of other things. I hope to be very busy this summer, so it will be interesting to see how that impacts training.

In the end, I’m caught up in my independence.

On a dietary front, I’m really trying to be mindful of carbs. They make me feel sluggish, hungry, and generally icky. Now, I’m speaking mainly of the refined-sugar type. They also make me cracked-out craving them. This is new for me. I’m about 15 or so pounds from reaching my BMI norm. Here’s hoping!

Extreme Running – NY Times Article

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Mark Bittman (author of our household’s favorite cookbook, How to Cook Everything ) has a story in the NY Times about ultramarathoner Scott Jurek. Not only is Scott Jurek a man who runs crazy distances, he also is a vegan.

I have no intention of becoming vegan, though I do have the intention to clean up my diet more than it is today. I already eat a lot of fresh, local foods, and most of our meat and dairy products come from local, organic and humane sources. I’m trying to limit my overall consumption of meat and dairy, to make other foods more of a staple of my diet. I see vegan as being an unsustainable ideal when done as it is done by most vegans I know (relying on heavily processed, Big Ag foods and petrochemicals). One of the things that exercise makes me ravenous for is protein and fat, which I usually get from meat and protein. I don’t know if I’m not eating the right plant substances when I get that need, but it seems that nothing else satisfies.

Anyway, I digress. Check out Mark Bittman’s article Diet and Exercise to the Extremes. It’s now time for my short and fast run!