First Ride of 2015

Happy New Year! It's now Day 4 of 2015 and the year has gotten off to a good start. My New Year's Day looked a lot like previous ones -- with a few twists. This year's polar plunge was taken on by Will, not Chip, and a New Year's day brunch was spent with my SpiderOne Racing teammies, not the North Shore Cyclopaths. (Our Cyclopath brunch-hosts, Av and Laurie Hammer, had to cancel due to the flu. Get well quick, Av!)

I spent the mid-afternoon laughing and laughing with Lila, Jen, Kristen and Alison, Cate and Amy... OMG, they are a crazy bunch. A great way to bring in the new year. Thanks, Ladies!

Also kicking off the new year is a Whole 30 Challenge with RAAM bestie Ingrid -- and so far, so good. I love getting a text from her each day telling me how her day went and what workouts she completed. She's a force. Love her.

Over coffee yesterday morning, it was hard to think about heading out in 19 degrees -- really hard. But the temps eventually hit 25, and with a winter storm not arriving until late in the day, I had no excuses not to ride. I bundled up and managed 17 miles on a cold, gray day. No speed records, for sure -- it's hard to move quickly under three layers of clothing, and my toes completely froze -- but it wasn't a bad ride. 2015 is looking good.

Vacaaaation

2014 is coming to a close much differently than my previous two years -- In 2012 and 2013, I was frantically finishing out the Tri Inside the Y, which I didn't participate in this year. (I'll be back on it next year, though. I missed it!) My final days of 2014 have been quiet ones.

My best bro, Pete, has loaned me a mountain bike for the winter. OMG it has a rusty chain. Shayne would freak to see it, but with some work, it'll be good to have on icy, snowy roads this winter. I'm excited for more off-road adventures. I took it for a ride yesterday and it's a little rough, but it'll work for a few months. 

I'm heading out today in 37 degree temps (on the Lexa) to get in a "post-Christmas-excess" ride. Fat season is officially over for me -- it's time to get back on track. Ingrid has partnered with me on a Whole 30 Challenge beginning January 1 -- (Houston doesn't seem so far when you're chatting by text every day) -- and I'm excited for that. I'm rereading It Starts with Food to refresh myself. I've forgotten soooo much!

Very happy to be starting a new chapter in January... Time to get back on the bike and ride.

Dreaming of a Dark Roast

It was cold today, but what else is new? We started the day in single digits, but the sun was bright and temps were on the rise, so I headed out to the slopes for a few hours. (A nice escape). My first few runs were horrid. I just kinda wimped out on some of my turns and took them really wide -- and then caught my board on an edge of ice and landed hard on my right knee. So sore.

Joe asked what was going on, and I told him I was into Day Three of the Carter Cleanse detox and I haven't had any coffee! I showed him a Facebook picture of Leslie cheating on the detox, and told him I was stopping at Dunks on the way home.

He chuckled and said, "Don't take this the wrong way, because I love ya, but I think you're crazy." (Hahaha.)

We then agreed to head down the slope and take a break before getting in a few more runs for the day, and while I waited outside, he popped into one of the buildings. A few minutes later, he came out with a cup of coffee, handed it to me and said "Its decaf. You don't really need the caffeine." He's just the sweetest! I can't say it helped my final runs for the morning, but my mood certainly improved 100%. Just a few more hours on the detox.

The Carter Cleanse

I woke up this morning really desperate for that first cup of coffee... and then remembered today was the day I'm embarking on a three day cleanse with paleo-sister Leslie Carter. OMG. No coffee?! 

The better green smoothie:
Spinach, banana, coconut milk

First up: Lemon ginger water, (Huh. That doesn't sound like it's going to energize me), and a green detox smoothie. With apple, kale, lemon, cinnamon, flax seed and celery. It took me an hour to drink it. (No kidding.)

Mike is in Atlanta for the week -- He's going to miss out on all of the fun.

Vegetable Soup

DAY TWO of the Carter Cleanse: Soup is good, Smoothies ok, (I went for the banana, coconut milk, spinach today), but I'm dyyyyying without coffee. Just. Dying. One more day?!

DAY THREE of the Carter Cleanse: All fine except for the no-coffee thing. I caved in and had a decaf. (Thanks, Joe!) I just couldn't take it anymore. Another spinach/banana/coconut milk smoothie for breakfast -- pic is above -- (I had to delete the other. I just couldn't love it.) Veggie soup again tonight and then I'm done. First thing in the morning, I'm going to have a large coffee. Otherwise, I might not make it through P2.

Tasting the Rainbow

I guess I need to clarify on the Gatorade thing. (Getting Away From the Gatorade, April 28th.) Will drinks Gatorade -- and Chip does too, (on occasion). I sometimes drink something similar on long rides. Still, I'm concerned with the ingredients in what is supposed to be a (healthy) sports drink. (Brominated vegetable oil, red dye, blue dye, etc... ) My teenagers are not endurance athletes. Playing lacrosse or rugby or football for an hour does not work up enough sweat or loss of electrolytes to make a drink like Gatorade necessary. Water and a banana would suffice. But since they want a brightly colored sports drink in their hands on the sidelines, herbal tea and fruit juice will do just fine. (I'm sure they're guzzling down shocking blue gatorade when I'm not looking anyway.)

It's not just Gatorade I'm wary of -- it's the other "health" drinks too. Will grabbed a drink called "Sparkling Ice" from the cooler at the Y last month that claimed to be "Natural sparkling mountain water and fruit juice". I asked him to read the label to me -- and of course he rolled his eyes before reading, "...sparkling water, fruit juice, potassium benzoate, citric acid, yellow dye #6, yellow dye #5..." (Terrific. Benzoate and citric acid = benzene. Way to be carcinogenic.)

I asked out loud, "And why would they put food dye in water? Isn't the natural color of the fruit juice enough?!" Will just took a swig of the drink and winked at me and said, "So I can taste the rainbow."

Getting Away From the Gatorade

Ahhh... Sunday... a day to just relax and unwind before the week begins. (No, wait, scratch that.) Mike is off to the Y to get in a workout, Chip has a lacrosse game in Gloucester, Will has rugby, and I'm squeezing in a quick ride around Manchester/Gloucester during Chippy's pre-game warm up. Typical Sunday.

Sundays are also my meal prep day as we gear up for the week ahead. It's easier to stay on a clean eating plan if food is ready-to-go, and I just made a quart+ of Chip's sports drink. I'm happy to note that Will is inching slowly away from the dark side. A few days ago he mentioned that he didn't mind switching from Gatorade to the energy drink I've been making. Progress! Below is my recipe for our version of gatorade, adapted from Wellness Mama, (Sports Drink Alternatives). No HFCS, food dyes, or BVO! Chip said his friends on his lacrosse team love it... which made me question how they knew what it tasted like. He shrugged and said, "Oh, Oscar didn't have a drink last week, so I shared. And Adam wanted to taste it, too... and, well, you know..."

Ah. I see. I don't have to worry about the chemicals he's drinking, but I do have to worry about his communal sharing of germs. Just great.

NATURAL ENERGY/SPORTS DRINK
Ingredients

• 1 quart brewed herbal tea. (We like strawberry or orange-spice)
• 1/8 tsp Sea Salt
• 1 crushed calcium tablet
• 1-2 cups fruit juice (Natural cranberry-raspberry)
• 1 TBSP honey

Brew tea, add sea salt, calcium, juice and chill.

The Paleo Approach

My post for the Paleo Nut Bars has been popular, receiving quite a number of hits in the last few days. A friend asked me if they were low cal. No, sorry, they're not. I've calculated the calories though. If you want that info, send me an email. (I don't want to scare you.)

I didn't adopt a paleo diet to lose weight, although I wouldn't mind dropping a few pounds. Who wouldn't? I cleaned up my diet because of my health. I struggle with fatigue and a condition called hemolytic anemia. (In a nutshell, red blood cells are destroyed too early in my spleen -- while my bone marrow tries to keep up.) As we've all learned from Lance Armstrong, athletes covet those oxygen-rich, pumped up red cells for performance and endurance. (And since blood doping is out of the realm for me... Wow, that is insane, isn't it?)

I picked up a book called Practical Paleo after several people in my farm co-op suggested a few recipes in it. As I read the book, I became more interested in cleaning up my (our) diets. Mike is on board with a paleo lifestyle, Chip is half and half, and Will... is Will. ("Don't take away my processed fooooood! My chocolate pudding snack packs, Chips Ahoy and Kraft Mac & Cheese!!! I'll DIE!" (So typical Will.)

Adopting a whole foods approach -- eliminating refined sugars, grains (cereal grains, wheat, corn), dairy, and all processed foods -- has helped restore my energy. (A year ago, my bike sat idle all winter long. This year, it's a different story.) I no longer have the overwhelming fatigue that used to hit me in the afternoons. I feel a hundred percent better. I know I'll always have a low hematocrit and B12 -- I can't control that -- but I can definitely control the food choices I make and how they effect me. Paleo is working for us!

Blizzaster* Approaching

We're stuck indoors this weekend as winter gives us a good dumping of snow. We've had big storms before, and this one will be no different, but I'm already feeling some anxiety. The ski bus to Ragged Mountain was cancelled tomorrow, so the boys will be home all weekend. (They've hunkered down with recharged iPods, laptops and a stack of PlayStation games. Heaven forbid they read a book.) So why my anxiety? Well, I'm on Day 18 of a Whole30 (Paleo) Challenge, (a nutritional "reset", if you will) and girl scout cookies arrived on Monday. I've been really good about staying committed to the Whole30 -- no grains, dairy, processed food, etc. -- but I'm nervous about being stuck in the house all weekend with boys and cookies. It's going to be a tough one. And no riding on Saturday on top of it all. Arrghhh.....

So I went to the Y this morning to clear my head -- a 55 minute spin class, followed by 5,000 meters of rowing. (I hadn't done any rowing since the Tri.) I ran into my friend Ana, who'd noticed I'd been at the gym for a while. She asked, "Are you afraid to go home?!" I looked around and saw three other moms on the fitness floor and replied, "Aren't we all?!" (Just waiting for the snow...)

*Blizzaster coined for the impending storm by the talented William Noble.