Relay Choices + Short Track Workout

Yesterday I posted about how I wanted to do the Bourbon Chase Relay in Kentucky. Some people thought it might be unorganized because it was the inaugural year. So I got to thinking about it, and thought maybe that could be the case. Then some of you suggested alternate relays.

One being the Green Mountain Relay in Vermont from June 20-21st. The other being the Wild West Relay in Colorado August 7-8th. Based on what I could find online, the Wild West Relay looks awesome! Well, they both do really and I have never been to either state, but wouldn't running through Colorado be gorgeous? They even have a Flatlanders category for those of us living below sea level! So funny.

Y'all help me decide! And again, if anyone wants to join, please let me know. If I do Colorado, I would like to form a 6x6 team.

Food & Runnin'
Yesterday for lunch the boo and I made a surprise visit to Greek cafe Papa ZuZu's here in Mt. P. I love that place! I got the veggie pita but instead of pita, I got a spinach wrap. It inlcuded hummus, cucumbers, tomatoes, feta, sprouts and more goodness I forget.

After work I went to the track for a quick run. I only had time for 3 miles, and I was feeling kind of quesy so I only got in 4 x 100m sprints. Haven't uploaded my data yet so don't have exact splits, plus I wasn't even paying attention to my Garmin yesterday so I really have no idea what my pace was. I am going to be doing about 8 tonight so hopefully that will make up for it.

We were planning on heading to a dodgeball game to meet some new folks and possibly play, but we ended up getting lost and missing out! So we consoled ourselves with ordering pizza from our favorite local spot, D'Allesandro's Pizza. I even got Matt to go veggie and order a Big Cheesy with mozzarella, parmesan, oregano, ricotta, provolone & feta. Delish! (No I didn't eat 3 huge pieces.)

This morning I was feeling pretty good and made some yummy Total with a plum, some blueberries, ground flax seeds and Light Vanilla Soy Milk. (Sometime I am going to dedicate an entire post to Total and how good it is for you. I am so glad I started eating it recently! It keeps me so full too, love it!)


Gotta be short & sweet today as I must get to work. Hopefully will update soon on our race pick and some running reports from tonight.

IT"S ALMOST THE WEEKEND! :)

The Bourbon Chase - Overnight 200 Mile Relay

Yesterday I had a new Twitter follower, @willrun4bourbon, and upon checking them out found a great race idea for this fall!


The Bourbon Chase - Lexington, KY - October 9-10, 2009
Here's the rundown:

What? The Bourbon Chase is a unique, overnight relay adventure in which teams of runners cover 200 miles of scenic byways along the famous Kentucky Bourbon Trail. Participants will experience the best of Kentucky. Starting near Bardstown, the Bourbon Capital of the World, and wrapping up with a festive finish in downtown Lexington, the Horse Capital of the World, The Bourbon Chase will treat runners to gorgeous horse farms and the rolling Bluegrass countryside.

And, as the event name implies, the featured attraction of the race will be the Kentucky Bourbon Trail which links the state's legendary distilleries.

When? The Bourbon Chase will take place October 9-10, 2009, with the starting times staggered based upon each team's estimated finish time. Beginning near the Jim Beam American Outpost & Homestead, the first flight of teams will start the 200 mile course at 8am. During the next 12 hours, every 15 minutes a new set of teams will begin their overnight journey through the Bluegrass State.

How? Teams are made up of 12 runners. Each member of the team will run three legs over distances varying from 3 – 7 miles. Each team will provide two support vans to drop off and pick up runners at designated exchange points along the 200-mile route. So, you don't have to be a world-class runner. From casual joggers to serious racers, this event is great fun for everyone.

Amenities? In addition to every finisher receiving a Bourbon Chase medal and a high-performance athletic Bourbon Chase shirt, a post-race party will be held in the heart of Lexington under the shadow of Rupp Arena. Streets will be closed to allow for live music, food and celebratory drinks.

Sounds pretty amazing, right?!

So here's the deal folks. I am 100% down to do this race. Matt's family lives in Kentucky so we would have no problem heading up that way for a long weekend. I can captain a 12-person team, and I already have interest from about 4-5 people.

Important Deets:
We would need to rent 2 passenger vans, and have 2 people who would volunteer to drive throughout the race, dropping us off and picking us up. (Boyfriends/Husbands??) If Matt doesn't decide to run, I am sure he will fill one of those spots.

We would all need to (obviously) find our own transportation to Kentucky, but we could definitely figure out a way to split up hotel rooms for those who would need to. (I believe the race organizers are still figuring out host hotels and all that jazz as this is the inaugural race.)

There is a limit of 150 teams for the race. It probably won't fill up too soon, but I would like to know sooner than later, who is committing to the race.

PLUS-if we register before March 31st, team registration is only $900! That comes out to $75 per person.

If we wait to register, it shoots up to $1200 and for those of us not-so-mathematically-inclined, that is $100 per person.

We do have the option of putting down a $300 deposit for our team, and paying the remainder prior to the race.

If anyone is interested in joining our team, please comment here and let me know how you're feeling about it.

I would like to know FOR SURE, by Wednesday, March 25th. That way you guys could get checks to me by Monday, March 30th.

This is going to be a fun event, and it would be a great way to meet some of you who I only know through a computer! :) KY is pretty far for some of you folks, but it would definitely be a good time had by all! Plus, there would be lots of Bourbon for us to celebrate with post-race!

As far as bringing along significant others, I think that would be fine! The more the merrier! But if we all don't fit in the 2 vans, some people may have to stay back (or go on their own tours of the distilleries we will only be running by!) as we can only have those 2 vehicles on the race course.

So check out the website, check your schedules, and let me know!

GET EXCITED!

Tuesday's Eats & Acorn Squash Risotto

Tuesday's Lunch:Butter lettuce salad with tomato basil feta, black olives, alfalfa sprouts, leftover diced onions & green peppers, and cucumber slices. Red grapes and Sabra Roasted Pine Nut Hummus. I also had a half of a Mediterranean Whole Wheat Flat Bread with the hummus.


I also snacked on a nectarine and a Sargento Colby Jack Cheese Stick.

Dinner: Acorn Squash Risotto

This picture doesn't do it justice! Sometimes the iPhone isn't the best camera for everything :)

Recipe:

• 12 oz. risotto (Arborio rice)
• 1-2 T butter (I used Smart Balance Light)
• 1 onion, diced
• 3 cloves garlic, diced
• 4 cups heated reduced sodium stock
• 1 acorn squash
• 1/2 bunch kale, washed and chopped
• Dash of fat free milk
• Generous shake of parmigiana cheese
• Red pepper flakes
• Ground flax seed
  

Preheat oven to 375. Chop acorn squash in half, scrape out seeds and place cut side down in a casserole or baking dish with 1 inch of water. Bake for 30 minutes then take out, remove water, and turn over to back for another 30 minutes.

While the squash is baking, preheat a large saute pan and melt butter. Add onion and garlic and cook until translucent. Add risotto and toast until shiny and translucent. Ladle in heated stock to risotto mixture one ladle at a time and stir until all liquid is absorbed. Continue this throughout the 18-20 minutes of cooking time and until all stock is absorbed.

Once all stock is added and the squash is finished cooking, scrape out the squash pulp and add to rice. Stir and combine. Add in kale and cover for a few minutes to steam. Pour in some milk, cheese and the red pepper flakes. I also added some salt and pepper, but taste first as some stock is pretty salty. Stir everything to combine and let cook on low for a few minutes. Sprinkle flax on top and mix in.

Serve warm, top with parsley or dill.

*I added grilled chicken, but I wouldn't recommend it! Matt actually LOVED this dish, which I was a bit worried he wouldn't, and he said that he would even eat it WITHOUT the chicken!! He never wants to eat anything vegetarian so I was happy with that. I think this would also be good cooked with some pancetta or sausage.

Dessert:
Dannon Light and Fit Vanilla Yogurt, Total Cereal, 1/2 Mango

Yum! I ate a lot of good food today. I have been soo hungry all day and as I type this, I want something else! Maybe we will make some popcorn. :)

I am also excited to report, that Matt has been running the past two days! He doesn't like running but he is making a good effort at eating healthier and working out. He has so much energy tonight that he just completely cleaned out the fridge and sanitized it! He even half way posed for me :)


I know I'm enjoying my off day, I hope everyone else is having a great Tuesday night!

Redemption!

Yesterday all day I was preoccupied with how my long run didn't go on Sunday. I even woke up in the middle of the night Sunday night and couldn't go back to sleep because I was thinking about it! I usually am off on Mondays, but I decided I had to try to do something yesterday afternoon to make up for the craptasticness of Sunday. Thank you all for your sweet and encouraging comments yesterday, you were all right! Bad runs definitely make the good ones all that much better :)

So after work I set out to do 12 miles at around 6 PM, perfect because of daylight savings time! And...the run went great!! I actually ending up cutting a few corners so it only came out to be 11.38, but that was fine by me because as it was, I was finishing up my run (through the not so nice areas) in the dark. Plus I really didn't want to push myself as I was pretty sore from the weekend.

I felt fab the entire run, and only started to get tired around mile 10. While I was running, I was thinking and realized that this was the longest run I have completed (without walking) since before I went to the wedding! No wonder I was having trouble with 17 miles.

Here are my totals and split times:

Time:	01:59:48
Distance:	11.38 mi
Elevation Gain:	1,760 ft
Total Calories:	1,293 C

Avg Pace: 10:31 min/mi

Best Pace: 07:34 min/mi

Split	secondsTotal Time	milesTotal Distance	feetElevation Gain	feetElevation Loss	minutes per mileAverage Speed	minutes per mileMax Speed
Summary	01:59:48	11.38	1,760	1,703	10:31	07:34
1	00:09:56	1.00	110	60	09:56	08:23
2	00:10:00	1.00	84	68	10:00	08:41
3	00:10:08	1.00	235	248	10:08	08:19
4	00:10:19	1.00	137	196	10:19	07:34
5	00:10:36	1.00	177	55	10:36	09:52
6	00:10:29	1.00	148	49	10:29	09:24
7	00:10:32	1.00	101	166	10:32	09:40
8	00:11:09	1.00	166	126	11:09	09:34
9	00:10:56	1.00	32	151	10:56	09:53
10	00:11:05	1.00	150	151	11:05	09:25
11	00:10:50	1.00	344	364	10:50	08:03
12	00:03:42	0.38	77	69	09:50	08:17

So my goals for this week (and most every week until taper time) are simple: to increase my mileage on my weekday runs. I just don't think I have been logging enough miles during the week to sustain my weekend long runs. I haven't figured out my schedule yet for this week, but I will let you know as soon as I do!

OH, I forgot to mention that I tried Yoga for Runners from YogaDownload.com on Sunday. Loved it! It was also nice because I did it around sunset out on our balcony, and I already told you how nice of a day it was on Sunday. I definitely think that helped me out yesterday, as well as drinking a TON of water throughout the day (about 64+ ounces). I will try to do it again tonight to stretch out, possibly download a new one too.

Monday's Dinner:

I didn't eat too much yesterday and was starving while I was out on my run. But when I got home--yeah, not so much. But I knew I needed to eat something to refuel me. I made Matt some Salmon baked in aluminum foil with onions and peppers, a baked potato, and some Steamfresh Southwestern Rice.

For me, I steamed up some Salmon with dill and garlic, nuked a Sweet Potato and added some Smart Balance Light butter, and had a small bowl of grapes. I finished it all but it took me a while! I absolutely love steamed fish. If you haven't tried it yet, you should!



I didn't get a picture of the sweet potato, but you all know what those look like. :) By the time that was ready, I was so dog tired all I could do was sit on the couch and spoon it into my mouth...but I actually haven't had a sweet potato baked like that, ever, so it was a pretty good treat. Usually I make baked fries out of them. This was much easier! (I actually used to hate sweet potatoes as a kid, one of the only foods I wouldn't eat! Never ate the casseroles at holidays...now I love them!)

This morning I am STUFFED from my oatmeal!


This time I added: About 1/3 cup oats, about 1/4 cup Vanilla Soy Milk Light, a dash of water, 1/2 scoop Soy Vanilla Protein Powder, 1 spoonful of Publix Chunky Natural PB, 1/2 banana (I ate the rest..), some pumpkin spice, Greek Honey, and some blueberries. Delish. I have some plums I want to start adding, but they're not quite ripe enough yet.

Today I think I will not be running. Instead I am going to do some yoga, ice my knees & shins, and study a bit. I am also going to make some Acorn Squash Risotto! I don't really have a recipe so hopefully it will turn out okay.

Wise Words From My Nana...
I was gchatting with my Nana this morning (yep, she's that hip) and I was telling her how worried I was about the race, and I will leave you with her sage advice:

The best way to predict your future is to create it!