Sorry for the vertical video.

This morning I woke up at the butt crack of dawn to get my run over with. I didn't want to. I wanted to sleep in, especially since I was so sleep deprived the night before and miraculously didn't take a nap. I was buzzing around all day yesterday, and even went grocery shopping. By the end of the night I was regretting it...my legs were SO achy and sore! Note: Don't run 25 miles, and then go grocery shopping. You should lay down.

Miraculously, my run was pretty pain free. It did rain though...quite a bit. I got out at 7am since I scoured all of the weather reports, and they were saying that by 9am the winds would be 20-30 mph. At 7am they were only 10-20 mph.

The downside was that it was pretty much pouring the entire time. The wind was there, but it was mostly at my side, and luckily I avoided a lot of headwind. My waterproof headphones that I was glowing about ended up shorting out of one ear. I knew I should have knocked on wood. I'm hoping that they will dry out and work like new.

This run is second in line for the rainiest run of my life. The first being 2012's CIM (California International Marathon). That sucker was cold, and raining sideways! This one was also cold, but not intolerable. Lots of puddles were splashed in.

You know what is amazing? I still finished this 10.2 miler at a 10:22 min mile average, and a 149 average hr. Just look at this beautiful graph! Knowing that I did the same run in a RAINSTORM following 24 miles, and managed to still knock 22 seconds off per mile in a run...is kind of awesome. I am truly a MAF believer! The best part is that I want to run every day, and I'm not tired of it at all. I kind of loathe my rest days.

Clearly my 10 miler after my long run is the best run ever for me...like, every week. Haha...anyway, that was just quick update. The rest of my day has involved my heating blanket, naps, and my bacon cookies that I've almost eaten all of. GO MAKE SOME.

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Rainy Day

HeatherIhn 1

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So far I've done two of my runs this week, and can I just say that they were the most incredible runs ever? I had a feeling that I'd see some new PR's this week, since it's a drop down of mileage. I did only 10 miles last Friday, and 12 miles on Saturday (It was supposed to only be 8).

I didn't think that I would progress THIS MUCH. First of all, my run on Monday was a "blazing" 10:04 minute pace overall for 6.2 miles! I even had one mile that was actually under a 10 min pace, and I shattered my previous 5k and 10k...all in this ONE run. What's strange is that it didn't even feel that fast to me. Now going a 10:30 minute mile seems lagging, even though just last week that would have been a fast pace for me.

My run this morning was 9 miles (10 if you include my warm up). I ended up with an average of 10:07 for this one...still SUPER fast for me. In fact, I even PASSED a person. It was a very slow pass. She probably was wondering why I was passing her so slowly haha.  I find that I end up being so excited that I'm running fast that I have to try hard to chill out to keep my heart rate low. I guess it's not a bad problem to have. 

I have one more run tomorrow (8 miles) before my big long run on Friday (24 miles...eeek). Tomorrow I'm going to take a break from shattering records, and I'm going to focus on some light hill work. I need to start incorporating hills gradually into my running so that I'm not completely wiped out when I have to run tiny bits of elevation for the race. I set up a run for about 300ft of elevation gain tomorrow. Gotta eassse into it, and will probably just add 100ft each week. My hill work will definitely be walking at first, and running down the gradual side of the hill to work on my turn over. It seems like a safe amount of work to me.

Also, I caved and bought an Instant Pot. This thing apparently is a 7-in-1 machine that can make soups, steam things, pressure cook, cook rice and grains, act as a crock pot, and even make yogurt. Uh, I know that wasn't a list of 7 things. I am excited that it's a pressure cooker and I can now make bone broth in a tiny 30 minutes! I can also make a whole chicken in 30 minutes, with the meat falling off the bone. I plan on doing that tomorrow, so you will see pictures!

Instant Pot!

Another great thing that I discovered is steaming eggs in it! SO EASY AND FAST. I just set it for 4 minutes on a low pressure steam (accidentally set it for high on the first trial...nothing exploded, and it wasn't overcooked, but smelled eggy). You can just walk away, and then when it's done, I let out the steam and threw them in some ice. The eggs peel SO nicely, even if they are fresh.

I was a little scared about it once everyone started telling me how dangerous pressure cookers were. I made sure to read the directions thoroughly, and now I feel really comfortable using it. This is a start of a beautiful friendship.

LCHF low carb low carb high fat low heart rate MAF Maffetone slow running training

Yee Haw, Records are falling this week!

HeatherIhn 0

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I'm pretty sure the REAL final countdown is going to be the last ten days...but it is absolutely terrifying how quick these weeks are going!

First of all, BAM.

For the first time EVER I have hit 400km in a month!!! For us 'muricans, that is almost 250 miles! The more miraculous part is that I have not needed a single ice bath, nor have I needed to crawl into my desk after lunch to nap. I remain a fully functional, house cleaning, grocery getting, hard working, energetic little bee!

I wanted to organize a chart in which I could visualize my progress a bit better (yeah, that's the artist in me). I'm sure there's an easier way to do this in google docs, but I managed to do okay. The first column is the date obviously, the 2nd is the mileage with the orange and yellows being my long runs, the middle is the average pace, and the last is heart rates. For the middle, I picked the cooler purples to show the faster times, and the red to dark red to show my slower times. And for the heart rate, everything over 149 is in orange, and everything under is in green, and yellow is JUST right. You can see that there is definitely some progress even though I seem to be pushing my heart rate higher than I used to, but only by a couple of beats. Keep in mind that I've also increased my mileage a lot since I began.

Runs have gone well for me, except for maybe today. I ended up stacking all five together without taking a rest day between, for scheduling reasons next week. Tomorrow will be my off day, and I will resume Mon-Wed, rest, and long run on Fri and Sat. It wasn't bad doing my runs stacked together. My legs feel so great that I would really like to run every day if my brain wasn't telling me that I'm asking for trouble.

My run on Wednesday was my fastest overall run yet, at a 10:22 pace. The 10 miler the next morning was also pretty fast for me, at a 10:25 pace. This morning I tried something new and went up to Marin for the San Francisco Running Company's 2 year anniversary run. There were a ton of people including quite a handful of elite runners. I'm a little fan girl since I listen to podcasts on my runs and am familiar with a lot of runner names. Unfortunately I'm also extremely introverted and awkward, so I didn't introduce myself to any of them, wah wah...

Since I still wanted to follow my MAF pace, I ended up being completely alone at the back of the pack. I knew that would happen, because the runners in Mill Valley are another species, I swear. The entire pack is lightning fast! It's fascinating. There is also a great love for the SFRC, and everyone is proud to wear the logo. You can now order stuff from them at their store online HERE, so I highly recommend checking it out! The mug is my favorite mug that I own, Brett, the store owner, CLEARLY cares about the quality of the items he has his logo on. The shirts we have are ones we want to wear daily, and the mug keeps things hot for hours!

I ended up running through the Tennessee Valley trail which is a relatively flat out and back to the beach. It was much hillier than I'm used to unfortunately, so I really struggled through it. At least I got to enjoy the beach which was brilliant and peaceful. I ended up doing an additional four miles on the bike trail in Mill Valley, and that was flat but the sun was harsh. And no, it actually was probably still in the 60's but I am a baby with anything that isn't windless, 60 degrees, and flat apparently.

Tennessee Valley Trail, the BEACH!

So what's next? I need to start working on hills...FOR REAL. I don't know how I'm going to do it, but this week, I might start walking up some and running down for both leg strengthening and turn over. The trick is not over doing it, so I might just do one hill day per week, and maybe incorporate some on my longer runs on the weekend. I also need to get off the stupid bay trail but it's so easy and close!

Lastly, FOOD. I love it, and I've been experimenting with new things! I found this awesome bread recipe here. Don't get put off by the name, I am not exactly looking to be in ketosis but I don't think it's a bad thing either. These buns are delicious and taste really great! I love that there aren't a billion ingredients, and I leave out the fake sugars. I make sure to only eat a half a piece, because they do contain a lot of fiber. I haven't had any problems with them though, if anything they've been great for my digestive system. I also experimented with this Cloud Bread. While it's pretty delicious and has a nice texture, it is super light and unsatisfying. The tops also tend to be a little sticky, not sure if that was my fault. I would continue making them since they are so easy, but I prefer the keto buns. 

Keto Buns - SO GOOD

Cloud Bread in the making, so light and fluffy!

Great texture, very light.

I've also REALLY been enjoying our meat from US Wellness. Despite them being frozen, the meat has been very soft and delicious. My mouth is watering just thinking about it. Here's a burger that we made from the 85% fat ground beef. I threw on some spicy mustard and sauerkraut with tomatoes and onions. I could eat this every day. We are going to be regular shoppers.

Last is our usual scallops with tomatoes. Jon and I stock up on the big bags of frozen scallops at whole foods, which makes for a really quick and easy source of protein. This time I threw in some more greens and put it on some zucchini noodles. Also, amazingly delicious. I'm getting really hungry just looking at this food again.

I took out a lot of the dairy I've been eating aside from the occasional goat cheese and greek yogurt, and I've also been eating less red meat and more fish. I think it's helped a lot with inflammation. I used to have tired feet sometimes, but that has completely gone away. I've never realized just how important and impactful each type of food can be on your body, and I've also never felt better! I don't eat before any of my runs, and I will only eat during my very long runs over 3 hours. It's been good so far, and my energy has been very consistent. Can't talk enough about it...(sorry)

I apologize for cramming all of my info into one weekly post! I'm going to try to break it up a bit more next time. OH YEAH, and I've ran a lot in the Hoka One One Valors this week and they've been awesome!!! They're my go-to shoe now, and I haven't had an issue with them at all. I also ran in some of the new Bondi 4's today, and did the 12 miles in them no problem. I don't really like how they did the tongue on them though, and prefer the Valors. The Bondi's seemed to run slightly large, I usually wear a running size 7, but I kept tripping over the toe since they were a little too big. I AM curious to try out the Cliftons since I've heard nothing but rave reviews about them, but I'm going to wear out some other pairs first before I can justify another shoe purchase. Ok, going now!

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401km DONE! And 9 weeks left!!!

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The daily beautiful sunrise

 It's been a while since I posted. I haven't had too much to report, but today I ran my first race with low heart rate training and I think that's worth noting! I still kept it low, but I'm getting a little more flexible with the heart rates. I allow it to go up to 156 without freaking out, but I generally like to keep it between 149-151.

The race was the 2015 Hot Chocolate 15k in San Francisco. You'd think with Ghiradelli being here and all that they'd hook it up, but it's just random chocolate and sweets. I didn't partake in the saccharine goodness, but the swag was pretty great for this one. The best part was the hoodie that they provided. The girls and boys hoodies are different colors, and the cut was very flattering. It was a nice quality too, and made of a material that was fleecy inside but not too thick. I love it! You also get this giant medal at the end that looks good enough to eat, as well as this plastic mug filled with melted chocolate, hot chocolate, a banana, and other random snacks. There were plenty of bathrooms, plenty of volunteers, and I think three or four aid stations along the course that winds through the Golden Gate Park. You even get a chance to run past the bison!

Bison!!!

I got in pretty early so the price was only $69. I splurged an extra $20 to get a shuttle from Millbrae to the race and back. They had these nice Bauer shuttles hauling people back and forth, and they seemed to fill up rather seamlessly. I happened to be the last person on both of the busses that I chose. I think that the price I got it at was a very good deal considering everything that they provided.

There were SO MANY PEOPLE, almost 8,000 just for the 15k. I couldn't believe what a big race it was, since it was kind of off the radar for me. The crowd seemed to be mostly newbies to racing. You could tell by the bibs on their backs. If you don't know, you should try to keep your bib visible in the front so that volunteers can make sure you're not a bandit, and also that's how they identify you in the race photos. It's a common mistake, and when I ran my first race I'm pretty sure I had it on the back to begin with.

So here's my results. 1:48:05. I used to be able to finish a half marathon in this time! It's only a mini kick to my ego though, I think this time was what I was expecting to do. The course had a couple hundred feet of elevation, which isn't much, but was way more than I've been doing for my training. I managed to run up most of the hills at a VERY slow/nearly walking pace. But you know what? I'm kind of proud of that! I was on tired legs, and running on a tired body (two nights of very little sleep), so I'm going to just pat myself on the back and hope that this week shows some improvement.

I ran with my friend Rini who is also doing the 50 miler in April with me. She is a mountaineer, and I think that kind of training has made her aerobic base amazing! Check out her heart rate before we started. Guess who is who? Not gonna lie, I'm totally jealous, she's going to go far (badum-chhh) in the ultra running world.

I think something is wrong with me. Or Rini. 

The rest of the week's running were great. The sunrises were stunning! The three runs mid week (Tues, Wed, Thurs) went quite well and most of my times averaged at a 10:30 min mile. My 18 mile run Saturday was a serious struggle though. I have been feeling a bit swollen and a bit off the past few days, so my pace was much slower than normal. What's funny is that my first miles were around an 11 minute pace. I had fashioned a iphone armband out of an old sock like this tutorial shows. It's a great concept, and I imagine it would work fine if I picked out a compression sock, but the sock was too elastic and the phone was slowly sliding down my arm the entire time. As soon as I took the phone off, my heart rate eased up and I was going over 30 seconds a mile faster! Lol, it's amazing what little things can really throw you off! I'll be getting my new iphone6 armband soon. I tend to stick with tuneband iphone cases because they are simple, have never failed on me, and come in nice colors at a great price. My pace toward the last 5 miles kept creeping up quite high in direct correlation with the exhaustion and soreness of my legs.

My 18 mile stats. Look at that heart rate soar!

For this week and last week I have reached over 51 miles. It's a big milestone for me, I've never actually done this many miles in one week before. But it also hit me that this is how many miles I'll be running in less than one day. :| YIKES.

Lastly, I'm still toying with food ideas, trying to find replacements for noodles. I took a picture of my zucchini noodles in Pho. I think they shine best in the delicious pho broth. I don't even miss the rice noodles to be honest. The only thing is that they are very low calorie, and when you run as much as I do, you really need all the calories you can get.

Delicious delicious fatty beef pho with zucchini noodles.

I tried these tofu shirataki noodles. You're supposed to thoroughly rinse them, and then microwave them and pat them dry before using them. I even went the extra step and sautéed them in butter before slopping a bunch of spaghetti sauce on top, but man, they were disgusting. It might be fine for people that aren't sensitive to smells, but they smelled nasty to me and the consistency was a little too chewy for my liking. I still think spaghetti squash is the best replacement for noodles with tomato sauce.

rinsed, microwaved, patted dry, and still disgusting. 

Well that's it for now! I'll keep you updated on next week, but I'm crossing my fingers that this rest day will give my body the big boost it needs to get through another week! :) Thanks for reading!

hot chocolate 15k low carb low heart rate MAF slow running

Hot Chocolate 15k, and the most weekly mileage ever!!!

HeatherIhn 1

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Here's my lesson of the day. Don't go to a mediocre Italian restaurant on Christmas Eve, and proceed to order sketchy dishes like mussels, carpaccio and "fresh" wild salmon. No, stick to the classics. Pasta. Meat sauce. Things that have been probably boiled and simmering for hours. 

I'm pretty sure the culprit that night was the mussels. They were mighty suspicious and pretty awful tasting. They had cooked them down to little nubs, and the mussel meat inside was probably the size of a pea. I think we all knew that it was a bad idea, but we were so ravenous at that point that we ate them anyway. NOT WORTH IT.

Christmas morning I woke up and was literally doubled over in pain. I made my way to the couch and Jon brought me lovingly wrapped gifts all excited and I just moaned and pushed them away like the wonderful girlfriend I am. After a couple hours and a good chugging of pepto bismol, I was finally able to half-enjoy Christmas. Jon was also hit by the food poisoning but it didn't effect him quite as bad, and his response was a bit delayed.

I attempted to go for a run, even though I knew it was a bad idea. It was near 3pm and I hadn't eaten a bite of anything. I ran 6 miles at a 12 min mile pace. It didn't bother me so much because I knew I was in rough shape, and expecting a slow jaunt. I didn't eat anything until 7pm. Wayyy under the amount of calories that I need for my training plan.

The day after Christmas I took the day off of work, and my stomach almost felt WORSE somehow. Our stomachs were making all sorts of noises for the entire day and night. So much regret.

Jon had a race this morning. I had signed up for it too, but tried to be the smarter person and transferred my bib to a friend since I'm still at a crucial base building point. It was hard. I miss races, and I wanted to be there for my boyfriend since he had been training so hard recently. I needed to hang back though so I could get in my 14 mile run. 

On a side note, as much as I love Brazen Racing I wish that they would stop with the baby shirts for New Years. I get it, but there are some things that just should never be put on a shirt, and babies is one of them. Also, clowns. 

Also, I feel like I need to tell you that Jon did an awesome job at his half marathon. It wasn't easy, with over 2k elevation. He finished in 2:15, even though he too felt the food poisoning lingering. Here's a picture of him with the baby shirt making a hot dog sandwich.

no more babies.

Fast forward to this morning's run. I took my heart rate sitting before I went out, and it was already high. High 70's...just sitting! Typically my hr is in the low 60's, even sometimes in the 50's if I'm very relaxed. My stomach still wasn't 100% but felt better than before. I went out for 14 miles, and it went alright until about the mid point where my paces slowly started getting slower and slower until I was basically walking and my hr monitor was buzzing every 15 seconds telling me to chill out. 

I love my HR monitor. I love it, I wear it every day, and it's taught me a lot. But days like today I want to smash it to the ground and beat it with my bare fists and then throw it violently into the bay and watch a pelican swoop it up and poop it out. 

I got so mad at it, that at the very end I was walking and my HR was 158 because I was so angry. It didn't help that my poor unknowing boyfriend was texting me and adding to the buzzing chaos. He received a very stern and unfriendly text, and then a crying girlfriend that ran and hid in the bathroom after.

Yep. I'll admit it, this is the first time that I was actually brought to physical tears because of the training. There had been some previous close calls, but this one I just couldn't contain myself. I can only pretend to be positive and loving it for so long before I snap. I kept telling myself on the run, "This is so great! I'm not even sweating, I can go on for days! Sure, I'm slow, but I am uninjured and this is awesomeeee! Look how beautiful the clouds are! I love life!" I don't think it was even 20 minutes later before I blew up like a grenade.

Anyway, I just wanted to confess one of my lowest moments training with MAF, because I know it's not uncommon. THIS IS GOOD FOR ME (AND YOU) AND WORTH EVERY TEAR AND MILE.

Ok, now to bring it back to a more pleasant place before I go. I made more zoodles (zucchini noodles). For Christmas, Jon bought me this awesome fancy spiralizer thing that actually has several types of blades and uses almost all of the zucchini. I blanched them (threw them in boiling water for a very short period of time) and then threw them in some pho broth. SO. GOOD. I seriously did not miss the rice noodles at all, and no this isn't me lying to myself like before. I "mmmm"ed after every bite. So yeah, go forth and make yourself some zoodles next time you get pho! Such a perfect combination.

I have another 10 mile run tomorrow, so you might get another post after that. We'll see if I can maintain composure this time. Hopefully the food poisoning is officially gone by then and my hr can take a chill pill.

I LOVE FOOD low carb MAF training

A rough one...

HeatherIhn 0

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NEWSFLASH: Food Poisoning will make you slower (raise your heart rate). Also, don't eat questionable looking eggs in an old salad bar.

This is just a quick post to say that I got my Spiralizer in the mail today. If you Pinterest recipe ideas for a lower carbohydrate diet, you see all sorts of stuff about zucchini pasta. I had to try it myself. I set the bar pretty low because I've gotten myself a little too excited about this sort of thing before and have been massively disappointed. Although I have to say that I was pretty impressed with the spaghetti squash pasta, but it was kind of an ordeal to make it.

freshly spiralized zucchini

The spiralizer was pretty easy! All you do is twist the zucchini through it, and bam, long shredded "noodles". If you take out the green part it looks pretty legit. The noodles go on for dayyys so if you don't want to be choking them down, you should probably cut them into shorter pieces.

Looks pretty pasta like if you ask me...

I cooked them in two ways just to try it out. I sauteed them in olive oil and I boiled them in soup. I put a little too much salt and oil in when I sauteed them, but the consistency was there. It was also pretty decent in the soup version too, so I plan on throwing these in my pho instead of the rice noodles. 

I highly recommend trying one out. You can also do this with a potato peeler if you have the right kind. Looking forward to eating a lot more zucchini in my near future. :)

I LOVE FOOD low carb tips and tricks

The Spiralizer has arrived! Zucchini noodles GALORE!

HeatherIhn 0

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I'm not going to sit here and tell you that eating no sugar/low carbohydrate is fun. Most of us grew up with a carb-laden, sugar coated lifestyle. I'm from mid-Michigan myself, which means that we grew up on packaged goods and fast food (it's cheap, and when you have to drive an hour to get anywhere, it's quite convenient). My parents also made great home cooked meals which I won't leave out, but it was typical American food. Meat and potatoes. Pasta. The works.

If you are one of those people that never liked sweets, always ate healthy, grew up on organic and unprocessed foods....then good for you. *slow clap*   Just kidding, but seriously, what planet are you from?

Doing this high fat/low carbohydrate diet has been very revealing. Not only is my body snapping back into shape, but the most noticeable thing for me is steady energy. No more fatigue and wanting to crawl under my desk at work for a quick nap. I still do get rather hungry, I feel like I eat a lot and plow through meals that are much larger than I'm used to eating. For instance, at our favorite shabu-shabu place, I went through two plates of meat and my entire plate of leafy vegetables and tofu!

Well I don't need to go into detail. I just wanted to post some of the new things I've discovered either on my own, or through informative podcasts from nutritionists and dietitians (mainly Ben Greenfield, and Dr. Tamsin Lewis since I've been binge listening to Endurance Planet podcasts).

First up is a new pricey obsession of mine. I used to love the GT Chia kombucha drinks, but they were slightly higher in sugar than I wanted, so I found these guys instead. MAN are they delicious! The only downside that I see about them (other than the insane $2.99 price) is that they use Organic Stevia Leaf Extract. I just don't like sugar substitutes in general, but I think I am just a little scarred from my Diet Coke addiction (that I thankfully kicked hard in the butt about two years ago). I'll drink these in moderation, as a treat for myself.

This beverage is divine though. I have only tried these two flavors so far, but they are both SO GOOD, and full of probiotics! There is a wonderful aftertaste of coconut, kind of like drinking a piña colada, but a fizzy one. If only they didn't make such a dent in my wallet, my fridge would be stocked full of them. Be sure to check the labels though because there are so many flavors and the nutrition facts can vary widely between them.

You should be aware that it's common for people going on a high fat/low carb diet to need to up their sodium, so I have learned to solve this with Himalayan Sea Salt. I bought a grinder of the stuff and it is so good! It isn't bleached out and has tons of minerals for your body. I also discovered this incredible salt called Omnivore Salt. It's expensive but oh-so-good! I don't know about the health benefits there, I just like the taste. I am seriously contemplating getting a bunch of these for Christmas presents, I like it that much.

Next up, I found that one of the best sources of Omega 3 Fatty Acids and Vitamin A & D are from Cod Liver Oil. Since I don't like to take pills, I opted for the liquid version (I also think it will be better absorbed that way). I'm not going to lie. It is kind of gross, but I think most of it is mental. It really barely has any flavor at all, and would probably be fine tossed on a salad, I'm just a big baby.

Another thing I've been eating are Brazil nuts. I can't help but think of that scene in Best in Show when I eat them. Anyway, I freeze them since they will go rancid, and I also buy them in the shell. Pretty tasty too, and gives you a good dose of selenium and vitamin E. Do not consume more than two a day though, because you can get too much selenium which can cause brittle hair or nails (or even hair loss).

Last on the list for today is roasted seaweed! I don't know if it's my Korean blood or what, but I love seaweed! This brand is my favorite, but can be quite pricey. I barely buy them but they used to have them where I worked. I now eat a Kirkland brand pack, which actually packs about 5x's more sheets of seaweed, but they're often soaked in oil and it puts me off. I don't mind oil, but I prefer them to be not soaking my hands in the stuff. The benefits of seaweed is that not only is it low in carbs (about 1 gram per serving), but it gives you a little extra sodium and also is a great source of antioxidants and iodine. They also are a great alternative if you're a regular potato chip eater.

 Well, I hope that helps ease the pain a bit. It's a good time to experiment and get creative! Eat plenty of vegetables, and don't be afraid of carbs. Especially if you are doing harder efforts, you should adjust your diet for that. A rough guideline that I found is HERE. Lastly, HERE is a great article from Ben Greenfield for supplements that will help you perform on a low carbohydrate diet. Be smart!

I LOVE FOOD low carb tips and tricks

More things that I love! Food food food!

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 If you hadn't heard, the Bay Area has been preparing for this major storm all week. It finally arrived last night, with some pretty major rain and winds. There was a lot of flooding in other areas, but our location in San Mateo seemed pretty tame. I even got a chance to go for a rainy and calm run.

I had gone at my lunch break, so my stomach was full of a bunch of random foods, and I had drank about two cups of coffee. As a result, I was pretty wired for my run which made it difficult to keep my heart rate down. Usually coffee doesn't effect me that much, but I think we made it extra strong and I don't usually run after letting it sink in for so long.

The run was slow, but I got to enjoy the rainy weather. I even looked over and saw this little sea lion face peek up at me. I never see them over in the bay area, so he must have made a special trip over with all of the extra rain water. I went to reach for my camera and try to take a photo through the plastic bag but he didn't resurface near me. Sooo you get a drawing of how I remember it. It was really damn cute. Yeah, I'm an artist...no this isn't my best work, but if you'd like to see more just go HERE.

I had the night to myself since my boyfriend had a long work dinner tonight. Normally I would just make myself some eggs or eat some tuna out of a pouch. You know, something really helpless and pathetic like that. I decided instead to use this spaghetti squash that's been sitting on our table for months, and make some pasta that way.

It was a success! The spaghetti squash has about 10 grams of carbohydrates per cup. The sauce I used had no sugar and was divine. I don't like sugar in my sauce anyway. I even got a chance to roast the seeds.

To end the night, I decided to toy with a recipe that I've seen floating around on pinterest and the internets. Avocado fries. I don't like avocado, but I really want to because it looks good and I know it's good for you. I just find it completely tasteless and the texture grosses me out. This recipe fixes all of those problems! The texture of the shredded coconut is so good, mixed with some spices like paprika and garlic. I didn't even need to fry it, these are just baked. I will be making these again for sure.

Here is the recipe I went off of, but I didn't do the step where I needed to fry them. The process was a little messy and time consuming, but it was definitely worth it!

I LOVE FOOD low carb training

Feeling productive! Spaghetti squash with meat sauce, and avocado fries!

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There hasn't been too much to report since last week. I'm eating the same things, running the same slow pace, and it's still been rainy and wet here in the bay area. Oh, I guess you'd notice that I did update the look of the site. It's got some kinks...some stretched pictures and overlapping things, but hopefully I'll get those things smoothed out in the near future.

I took some progress photos and compared them to last week. I don't know if it's just me, but I can't really see much of a difference. Trying to be more consistent with the outfits that I wear and the lighting, but the lighting is unusually tricky to get. Can't say I'd be disappointed if I ended up plateauing here, not really looking for a six pack. Might end up just ditching the progress photos if I don't see much improvement in the upcoming weeks.

I'm thrilled to report that I HAVE made some progress, although slight, in my running. I'm trying to focus on a longer warm-up, and to build into my heart rate zone (145-150) slower. (I set my warmups as a separate run so I can get a better idea of an average pace). I've had a lot of success, and it helps me relax a little knowing that I have a little more space to slow down or speed up if I want to. I also managed to get my 8 miler in UNDER an 11 minute mile, which doesn't sound very fast but it's a goal I've been aiming for. Today's 11 mile run ended up being 11:09 but I was running on tired legs. I find at the tail ends of my runs it's really difficult to keep my heart rate down because it crawls up.

I don't eat before any of my runs, but I've also been having a hard time eating enough on the days that I do go on a long run afterwards, so I might need to start eating a bit in the mornings just to give myself a little extra jolt and nutrition. I guess it didn't help that I didn't roll out of bed until 10:30 this morning, and I didn't start my run until 11:30. 

Some things I'm struggling with that maybe other MAFers can help me out on, is I really miss strength training. I've listened to some podcasts about strength training in the maf method but I don't have giant weights or boulders that I can throw down in my house, and I miss doing core work and leg work. I also am not sure to include my warm up into my running plan because I'm walking for 90% of the warmup. I suppose that counts...

Lastly, here are some photos I took this week. These are all done at the Bay Trail near our house. The scenery has been spectacular because of the recent rain. I love this trail, and I love that we are footsteps away from it. It's a beautiful, long, and flat trail that I highly recommend. It's mostly asphalt but there are sections where the side paths have soft dirt (beware of the cat poop bombs). I'll be posting specific posts later about trails, and trying to organize my blog a bit better instead of it just being a giant running diary.

Thanks for reading! By the way, I've included a place where you can receive an email subscription if you want to know when I post new stuff at the bottom right section of the blog.

low carb MAF training

Making Progress and week 3 recap of high carb/low fat eating.

HeatherIhn 2

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