What bugs YOU about blogs?

I couldn't resist one more picture of me and Alesha before we went out Saturday night. Aren't we adorable?

Thanks for all of the thoughts on my post yesterday about the nutrition seminar I attended with my Team in Training group. I'm glad that someone agrees with me about this! A few points I wanted to address:

• As far as the caffeine pills thing goes, I forgot to point out that in collegiate athletics, taking caffeine pills to boost performance is considered illegal doping by amphetamines. So why would a dietitian recommend it?
• However, it's been all over the media recently that some form of caffeine is good/safe to help your perform better before a race. I take this to mean COFFEE. I always drink a cup of coffee a few hours before a race or a long run to "get things moving." (Both mentally and physically!)
• But coffee can dehydrate, so I find that if I drink a 1/2 to 1 cup before a run, I need to leave enough time to also drink some water.
• The dietitian that spoke has completed an insane number of races, including four appearances at Boston and several Ironmans! So obviously, she has found what works for her.
• Which brings me to my final point. We all have to find what is healthy and what works for us. For me, that means less processed foods and more whole foods. Does that mean I never eat processed foods? Of course not! But I try to make it a healthy balance. I would be scared to take caffeine pills before a race because I would never take them otherwise.
  

Yesterday my good friend LiLu (who is definitely not a running blogger in any shape or form, she's more of a snarky/sassy opinionist who has found an insane following in DC) posted yesterday about what bugs us about blogs. We got into a discussion about this on Twitter yesterday so I figured why not throw it out here today.

What bugs ME about blogs?

• When some bloggers are "too big" to follow you on Twitter, respond to your comments, or visit your blog. Yet they make sure to communicate with their "popular" clique of bloggers. I think that blogging is a conversation, and should be so. I don't mean that every blogger should respond to every comment, or read every post. We're all busy, life gets in the way. So I tend to stick to the blogs who read me, that way, I feel like I'm actually getting to know you guys & vice versa. (Is that mean??? I hope not!) I love those "big" bloggers who if I @reply on Twitter, they respond. Why would I make the effort if it's only going to be a one-sided conversation? (Of course, maybe they don't know about Tweetdeck. Greatest.Thing.Ever.)
  
• Insane amounts of grammatical errors and spelling mistakes. (I throw these things together fast so I know I have some, so please no tomatoes.)
• Short reader feeds. I know some of you do this, and I still love you! It just takes a little more effort. (I'm lazy, what can I say?)

So how about you guys, what bugs you about blogs?

***

I didn't run yesterday because I suck. But I will be heading out tonight to do something. Bridge? 4-5 mile flat run? Speedwork? Who knows!

Matt and I are heading to the NC mountains Saturday for a wedding, so that should be fun. But that also means running this weekend may not happen. Gonna have to squeeze in a long run (8 to 10 miles) at some point!

Adventures in Juicing + Nutrition Lesson?

This morning's Green Smoothie. Almost 1 cup almond milk, 1 large banana, 1 spoonful all-natural peanut butter (ingredients: peanuts and salt), and at least 4 cups of organic spinach. 20 ounces of heaven. Seriously. Try it.

So I am really getting excited about this marathon! I am so pumped to finally be back in training after about a month off.

Since my first marathon on May 2nd, I've just been so lackadaisical (like that big word?) about my running (and I guess I had a right to be after 4 months of non-stop training). But what I realized is that I really don't like it when I'm not running and training regularly.

Last night after work I ran over to our Team in Training Tuesday night meeting which this week was all about nutrition! We had a dietitian/personal trainer come speak to our group about the basics of sports nutrition and some of the things endurance athletes need to do to keep their bodies in peak performance mode.

She went through the ins and outs of what we should be eating daily, how to fuel your body during a race as well as any supplements/vitamins that you could take.

Honestly it wasn't anything I hadn't heard/read before, I guess it was geared more towards beginning runners. Plus I was a little disappointed that she said her favorite snack was a PowerBar and that she takes caffeine pills before big races. That just didn't scream health to me! To each his/her own, but if I were a dietitian, I would try to recommend fruits, veggies, nuts or minimally processed/all natural snacks (with an extremely low and readable ingredient list). The caffeine pills...I think that's a debate for another day.

But I guess everyone isn't as strict on their foods as I am. (Although, I do partake in some Dorito's actiton on occasion :)

But seriously, check out these ingredients for the PowerBar Triple Threat Chocolate Caramel Fusion:

CHOCOLATEY COATING (SUGAR, FRACTIONATED PALM KERNEL OIL, COCOA, WHEY, NONFAT MILK, SOY LECITHIN, NATURAL VANILLA FLAVOR), CORN SYRUP, CARAMEL (CORN SYRUP, SUGAR, CREAM, WATER, FRUCTOSE, PALM OIL, SOY LECITHIN, SALT, DISODIUM PHOSPHATE, NATURAL FLAVOR, CARRAGEENAN), POWERBAR TRISOURCE™ PROTEIN BLEND (WHEY PROTEIN ISOLATE, CALCIUM CASEINATE, SOY PROTEIN ISOLATE), MALTITOL SYRUP, VEGETABLE GLYCERIN, OAT FIBER, SOY CRISPS (SOY PROTEIN ISOLATE, TAPIOCA STARCH, SALT), DRY ROASTED PEANUTS, HIGH OLEIC CANOLA OIL, ALKALIZED COCOA, AND LESS THAN 2% OF ALMOND BUTTER, NATURAL FLAVORS, SOY LECITHIN, SALT, PEANUT FLOUR, MINERALS: CALCIUM PHOSPHATE, POTASSIUM PHOSPHATE, FERROUS FUMARATE (IRON), VITAMINS: ASCORBIC ACID (VITAMIN C), VITAMIN B6 HYDROCHLORIDE, RIBOFLAVIN (VITAMIN B2), THIAMINE MONONITRATE (VITAMIN B1). CONTAINS ALMOND, MILK, PEANUT AND SOY INGREDIENTS. MADE ON EQUIPMENT THAT ALSO PROCESSES WHEAT.

Hmm, that just seems like a lot of unnecessary gunk to me. I like the ingredient list on my apple or banana with peanut butter. I can count it on (less than) one hand.Or how about my beloved Cliff MoJo bars?...Although still a long list, look how much better this looks (70% organic too!):

Organic Dry Roasted Peanuts, Organic Brown Rice Syrup, Honey Roasted Peanuts (Peanuts, Evaporated Cane Juice, Honey, Salt Natural Vitamin E), Soy Rice Crisps (Soy Protein Isolate, Organic Rice Flour, Calcium Carbonate), Organic Pretzels (Organic Wheat Flour, Salt, Organic Canola Oil, Organic Malt), Organic Dry Roasted Soybeans, Organic Peanut Butter, Organic Oat Syrup, Organic Honey, Vegetable Glycerin, Organic Sunflower Oil, Sea Salt, Organic Gum Arabic, Natural Vitamin E (antioxidant).

Difference in cost? Not significant. Difference in taste? Much better in my opinion! Difference in ingredients? I think they speak for themselves. (Although it does seem like everything processed contains soy. While I am limiting my intake of soy, I'm not getting rid of it completely. Everything in moderation.)

I'm not saying that PowerBar's are necessarily unhealthy, but for me, if I have to eat processed foods, I would rather know what I'm eating.

Ok, let me step down from my soapbox.

Before my meeting yesterday I knew I was hungry for something but didn't want to eat too much, as I would be running in about an hour. So I decided to pull out my new juicer!

If you follow me on Twitter, you would know that I found out Saturday night that a local Twitter friend had a brand new Hamilton Beach juicer that he did not want and would give to me for free. Seriously?? Can I say how much I love Twitter? What is that saying again, ask and you shall receive?! So Matt and I picked up my new toy Sunday afternoon and I've been playing with it ever since.

My Hamilton Beach Big Mouth Juicer works fantastically! As you can see, it is a bit large but not too obtrusive. I line the pulp basket with a grocery bag so I can easily dispose of the juice pulp. The small spout on the right is where the juice comes out.

What's great about this juicer as that there is basically NO prep time! All you do is wash the veggies/fruits and stick them in. Since the mouth is so large, I can just pop an entire apple in there, core and all.


Here were the stars of my juice yesterday. Carrots and apple juice is my new fave, but Shannon suggested that I add some lemon and ginger. I didn't have ginger but I did have a lemon. You do actually have to "peel" citrus fruits (as well as pit peaches or anything with hard pits) but I just kind of used a knife to get the rind off there. I had 1/2 banana left over from a Green Smoothie so I figured I would throw that in there as well.


Holy Yum! This combo was DELISH! It made a TON too.

I love carrot juice because it's so tasty and added with just a bit of sweetness (apple, lemon) it tastes just like a fruit cocktail. Minus the liquor. This was almost TOO sweet if you would believe that! Next time I think I will use half a lemon.

So after the meeting, we all headed out to run "4 to 4.5 miles." I was excited that after we started running, not everyone was doing the run/walk method. Thank goodness. There was a group of about 5 of us who kept chugging along at about a 9:30 pace. Eventually our coach joined us and we all started talking...and slowing a bit. But all in all it was a great run, and when I got home my Garmin said 5.0 miles...and I hadn't even ran it all because I stopped when I got to my apartment. I think they ended up doing 5.8 which is great for a week 20 mid-week run.

I was pretty pleased with the stats too: 5.03 miles in 48:22. Average pace: 9:48. I actually ran a bit more than that too, as I ran to the actual meeting (probably about .3 miles?). I think had we not slowed to chat as much, we would have averaged out under a 9:30 pace.

I think I have picked my marathon training plan...I am super excited because I know I can make this one in sub 4:30 time! Revealing training plan soon...

Do any of you guys juice? If so, any good combos I should try?

Back in Biznass!!

I don't know about you guys, but I am glad that Monday is over! I don't really love Mondays, I seem to be much more productive on Tuesday and Wednesday. Sorry for my absence of late, I am been so busy it's been tough to find time for anything. Quick wrap-up:

• Last week I was busy basically all week with studying for my big test Thursday.
• Wednesday night I was up all night (not even a wink of sleep) and had to drive 2.5 hours to Savannah, GA for my exam 9 AM Thursday morning (thankfully, Matt drove me while I studied)
• The test was SEVEN HOURS LONG.
• Unfortunately, I have to take the test again. BUMMER. I have 30 days to study.
  
• Because I was so cracked out on caffeine and no sleep Wednesday-Thursday, my body was messed up until...basically, yesterday. I felt out of it and so light headed all weekend!
• Although I was sad about the outcome, I was glad for it to be over (for now). I hardly ate anything all day Thursday. I immediately came home and chugged...a huge Green Smoothie + some vitamins. That seemed to help.
• No running ALL LAST WEEK!
• My BFF Alesha came to visit from Raleigh, NC Friday night, and unfortunately I was so wrecked, I had to pass out around 10:30 PM. We did, however, make it out to dinner first at Shem Creek Bar & Grill. We like it raw!
• But we did get up and "run" 4.5 miles Saturday morning through downtown. I had to walk a lot and felt extremely dehydrated and run down. Sorry Leesh!
  
• Stats: 4.5 miles in 47:38. Sllloooowww.
• But we both felt better for getting it done!
• Alesha and I headed to Folly Beach Saturday even though it looked like it was raining in that direction. But it didn't! It was a gaaawwrgeous day. We laid out for awhile, then ventured up the beach to find...a bar. As if I hadn't done enough damage to my body that week, I wanted to start drinking during the day.
• So we found a bar at the newly redecorated Holiday Inn on Folly (that sounds lame, but Folly is such a small beach it's actually a pretty nice hotel) that was beach-side. Perf.
• Alesha forgot her ID so I was stealthily buying us drinks...just like the good old days!
• We had three rounds of cocktails while we watched some drunken girls embarass themselves dancing in their bikinis to the band.
• After we had enough and the sun was setting, we headed home...er, to Taco Boy. We split some guac and each had a taco.
  
• Then we really headed home, got showered up, ate some Doritos (apparently I wasn't mean enough to my body yet) and headed out on the town for some drinks + to meet up with my boss' bachelorette party! (Pics to come soon)
• Matt was nice enough to give us girl time basically all weekend (I hadn't seen Alesha in a loooong time and this was the first time she had been to visit us since we moved to Charleston last August) so he drove us to our first stop, Chai's on King.
  
• Then we walked...in heels...about a mile to Light, a dance club on East Bay Street. We proceeded to dance the night away/eat jello shots/drink some more.
  
• Then we headed to Wet Willie's, a slushie bar on East Bay Street. I had about 1/2 of a White Russian slushie and then spilled the rest on the floor. (Was an accident, but I was glad to be rid of it, waaayy to sweet.)
• By this point, we were dunzo, and called Matt to come get us. It was pouring rain and we were ready for bed! (Alesha, I am sparing the details for you... :)
• Sunday morning, I did NOT get up to run with TNT. Oopsies. But it's okay, I have a lot of training time left and this week marks the beginning of actual training for me.
  
• Last night I was almost 80% convinced that I was was NOT going to run after work. But I was feeling crappy and I knew that I needed to go, so I went. Begrudingly.
  
• It turned out to be a good 3 mile run through historic downtown Charleston. I took a new route and ran down South Battery St and then back up the waterfront, so pretty. I even met up with a little pup named Ollie who seemed to be lost. I tried to take him home to the address on his collar, but he wasn't having any of that so I ran on.
  
• Stats: 3.0 miles in 28:00 minutes. Splits: 9:56, 9:30, 8:34. I'm back in biznass biyatches!
  
• Tonight we have a TNT meeting on Nutrition (woo hoo! my fave topic) and then we are heading out on a group short run.
  
• I think I have decided on a training program! I will post on that tomorrow.
  

***
Coming up on ChasRunner soon: Marathon Training Plan for a sub 4:30 26.2, a blog re-design, smoothie recipes, and all about juicing with my new juicer!

Also, as a follow up to my recent post about the benefits + dangers of soy, check out Gena's post on the topic if you haven't already!

A big THANK YOU goes out to Amy of Will Run for Fun for sending me my favorite Cliff Mojo bars! I mentioned to her that I was so sad I couldn't find these bars in Charleston after she posted about them, and she was kind enough to send me a care package! Thanks girl!


If you haven't checked out her blog, you should. She is a former NCAA cross country and track runner who is now a cross country coach. She has a lot of good running/training advice! (Also if you haven't tried Cliff Mojo, you should!)

Have a fab Tuesday and I'll see ya tomorrow!

don't leave me!

GAH, I know I have been MIA again guys...so sorry. Last week was suuuper hectic and busy with my big test on Thursday and then I had company this weekend and all in all not too much running has taken place in the past two weeks. Not only have I not had time to blog, but I haven't felt like I had much running news to share with you all...

BUT...I am working on some exciting new blog changes and I'm getting back into training mode this week, so stick around, will ya?!

I promise a new post tomorrow...I have so many things to share with you guys! They include some tasty raw dinners, new smoothie concoctions, marathon training plans and a new juicer that I have been testing out!

(Word to the wise, beet juice is gross unless mixed with something sweet...gag me.)

See ya tomorrow! ;)