RUNNING. Discuss

So yesterday I completed my FIFTH MARATHON in the form of the rather hilly (world’s biggest understatement) Loch Ness Marathon.

If you had told me four years ago I would have completed five marathons and be exercising daily in four years time I would have laughed in your face.

So why did I get healthy?

Just over three years ago I found out that my Dad had Motor Neurone Disease.  This is a terminal degenerative disease which slowly paralyses the sufferer whilst they retain full mental awareness.

I didn’t have a clue how to deal with this and as a way of rallying support for my Dad I decided to run a half marathon for the MND Association (http://www.mndassociation.org/).

Problem was I had never ran in my life.  So with the help of my amazing flatmate Krissy we decided to teach ourselves to run.

It was slow and tedious.  Literally learning to run for one minute, then five minutes, then ten minutes and finally building up to a steady (and EXTREMELY SLOW) five km.

But we stuck with it and somehow got round our half marathon and decided to sign up for a full marathon (Idiots).

Then I realised running was so much more than exercise

Unfortunately later that year my Dad lost his battle to MND.  I was devastated (and to be honest I still am on a daily basis) but discovered only I could help myself.

I gave up alcohol which I realised was making me depressed and threw myself into running.  I realised that running could help calm me down when I was distraught, it was good thinking space and almost meditative to me.

I still use running in this way, if I am stressed at work I go and run, if I am upset I go and run.  The added side effect is weight loss and generally feeling frigging amazing.  And just for fun I do marathons.  So let’s discuss those bad boys.

Marathons, marathons and more marathons

So somehow I am now deemed a marathon runner.  Which is mental!

I did Milton Keynes as my first marathon, then last year I somehow ended up doing THREE MARATHONS IN A MONTH for charity.  Thanks to my keen supporters I raised £5000 for MNDA.

This year I asked for a Loch Ness marathon place for my birthday (I am appalled with what I have turned in to) and now have 4 sub 4 hour marathons under my belt.

This is me after I finished yesterday.

So here are some marathon running tips I have picked up along the way (Note these are not marathon specific and whether you are running your first five km or a half marathon these tips will stand you in good stead).

RUNNING TOP TIPS

1. Energy gels and sports drinks are bulls**t

Go to the start line of any race and you will see people have energy gels hanging from their running belts (I saw someone with TEN yesterday, how far were they intending to run?!).  Personally I think they are all crap and you are just filling your body with chemicals, caffeine and, need I mention, SUGAR.  I ran yesterday with the assistance of two very soggy, slightly sweaty, dates and managed to complete the marathon without feeling faint.  Jelly babies are perfect for a sugar hit if you feel you are struggling, but if you are sugar sensitive like moi then dates will do just as well.  Have a coconut water afterwards to get your electrolytes back in check.

2. Running is in your head not your legs

Ok so you need a certain level of leg strength but let me tell you long distance running is all about not giving up.  Your body is more than capable to keep running but if your mind lets you down and tells you to stop then you will.  Try yoga to build some mental strength if that is your thing.  Or do what I do, break the marathon down into ten km sections and tell myself JUST KEEP RUNNING.

3. Chew gum

I always chew gum when I am running as it keeps my mouth fresh and keeps the saliva flowing so I don’t feel dehydrated.  Weird but it works.

4. Don’t over think it

To date I have never managed to stick with a marathon training plan and do not even bother looking at them now.  I think you can turn a marathon into this HUGE DEAL in your head and you know what, it just isn’t.  If you want a plan to give you confidence and comfort that you have done enough then use one.  But if like me you know you won’t stick to it and it will just end up leaving you feeling like a failure, then just do your own thing but make sure you get some distance in at the weekends.

5. Reel it in

As soon as you start everyone bolts off and it is tempting to do the same.  You will be pumped up with adrenaline and raring to go after waiting about to start.  Pick your pace and stick to it, trust me at mile 14 you will be passing the people who overtook you at the start and they will be completely burnt out whilst you are just starting to get into your stride.  I do negative splits, so run the first half slower than the second half. This ties into my ‘running is in your head tip’, as if you do the first half and come away thinking ‘that was easy’ it mentally makes the second half so much easier to handle.

And don’t forget running is all about competing with yourself.  So don’t be overwhelmed with other people’s running achievements, just start running one minute at a time and before you know it you will have ran five marathons and be writing bloody blog posts about it!!

Raw Chocolate Superfood Protein Balls

Not only are these protein balls delicious but they are also packed full of good stuff:

CACAO
Cacao is full of magnesium and anti-oxidants.
My previous article describes the HUGE benefits of raw chocolate(http://thehealthybluebird.com/2014/06/23/this-one-is-good-news-for-the-chocoholics/)

TURMERIC
This spice has been getting a lot of press lately. Inflammation in cells is linked to a number of diseases such as heart disease, cancer and Alzeimers. Turmeric has well known anti inflammatory properties. In addition it is also a fat burner and balances blood sugar. So basically jam it in everything you make from this day forward!

BAOBAB
This fruit is FULL of Vitamin C with ten times more Vitamin C than an orange.  A well known liver detoxifier and cleanser as well as a preventative treatment for heart disease and varicose veins.  I love the powdered baobab from Organic Burst (http://www.organicburst.com/products/organic-baobab-powder-70g).

These balls make a great pre gym energy booster or post gym protein muscle repair snack. Or just ditch the gym and have them as a cheeky afternoon treat!

HOW TO MAKE

Time – 20 minutes
Makes – 20 medium balls

Ingredients

2 x cups of dates
2 x cups of pecans/walnuts (pre soaked for 2 hours)
2 x tablespoon of cacao
1 x tablespoon of your protein of choice (I use vegan pea protein as it’s not bulked up with crap)
1 x tablespoon baobab powder
1 x teaspoon of natural orange essence (vanilla or almond essence work well too)
1 x half teaspoon of turmeric powder

These are so easy to make!

Blend the ingredients in a high speed blender then roll into balls. Put in the fridge for a few hours.

Optional extras

If you don’t have baobab powder or protein powder feel free to leave them out. The recipe still works just as well without them.

For an extra special treat roll the balls in some crushed nuts or coconut before you put them in the fridge.

Red Velvet Cake (Raw Vegan Style)

Cake that counts towards your five a day…. Em ok!!!

Believe it or not it actually exists and it’s really really tasty!

This recipe is based on a raw carrot cake recipe with beetroot added to give the colour (people will eat anything if it’s pink).

You will not believe how much the creamy cashew icing tastes like cream cheese frosting!

Red Velvet Cake

This cake is really simple to make, you effectively just chuck everything into the blender, but it does require a couple of return trips to the fridge/ freezer.

Equipment needed:

– High Speed Blender
– Silicon Cake Mould or if you don’t have one use a normal lined cake tin lined (I highly recommend you invest in a silicon cake mould as you just pop the cake out at the end, much easier)

Ingredients for cashew frosting:

– 2 cups of cashews (soaked for 2 hours)
– juice of one medium lemon
– 2 tablespoons of liquid coconut oil
– 1 tablespoon of pure maple syrup
– water as needed

Ingredients for cake:

– 2 large peeled carrots
– half a medium peeled beetroot
– 2 cups dates
– one and a half cups of buckwheat flour (you can use porridge oats if you don’t have buckwheat flour
– half cup of dessicated coconut
– one tablespoon of pure maple syrup (optional if you want it slightly sweeter)
– teaspoon of cinammon

Method

To make the frosting put all ingredients into your blender adding water to make it a smooth paste (you don’t want it too runny so don’t go mad with the water).

To make the cake roughly chop up the carrots and beetroot and put these into the blender first. Next add the dates, then the remaining ingredients. I have found it is best to add the ingredients in this order otherwise the dates stick up the blender and you are getting nothing mixed!

Press half of the cake mix into your cake mould/tin then spread on a layer of frosting.

Put in the freezer until hard (30 mins or so ) then put another layer of cake base and top with the rest of your frosting.

Leave in the fridge to set (about an hour) and your ready to eat it!

This cake can be kept in the fridge for a week and in the freezer forever and ever.  I tend to slice it up and put it in the freezer as it is much easier to transport to work that way.  Then defrost in the fridge until afternoon treat time!

One top tip to make being healthy EASY

The key to good health is preparation and commitment. Not exactly sexy, but if you want to make it you have to do it.

I think smoothies and juices are a great way of getting lots of vitamins and minerals into your system. But bugger chopping the fruit and veg every morning at 5.30am to prepare myself a fresh juice before yoga!

So one thing I do every Sunday is cut up enough fruit and veg for 5 smoothies.

I then sort them into individual smoothies portions and put them into individual sandwich bags.

Then I put them into the freezer. You don’t lose nutrients by freezing fruit and veg so win win as far as I am concerned!

Then when it comes to smoothie time just chuck in the blender with your liquid of choice and you are good to go.

An added bonus is that you end up with less fruit and veg waste.

The Healthy Blue Birds Raw Chocolate and Banana Brownies

I LOVE cake.  Like really really really really love cake.  So when I found out that there was cake out there that tasted INCREDIBLE and not only was it not bad for you, but it was actually GOOD for you, I was pretty damn stoked!

No-one can have failed to notice the recent media about how bad sugar is for you.  It has been likened to alcohol/drug addiction and has been labelled poison because of the part it plays in developing Type 2 Diabetes.

The good thing about these brownies is that they use natural ingredients such as dates and bananas to sweeten them.  They also contain cacao (remember that stuff from this article…https://thehealthybluebird.com/2014/06/23/this-one-is-good-news-for-the-chocoholics/) which has one of the highest antioxidant counts of all foods.

Anyway I know you are more excited about actually tasting them than hearing me bang on about how good they are for you, so here is the recipe…

Raw Vegan Chocolate and Banana Brownies

Makes roughly 12 (They are so rich and satisfying that I think you only need smallish bites not slabs)

Base

1 x cup pecans
1 x cup dates
4 x tablespoons of dessicated coconut
5 x tablespoons of cacao
1 x (overly) ripe banana
1 x tablespoon of maple syrup or Agave syrup (make sure it is 100% maple syrup and not sugar filled fake maple syrup, it will be clear from the ingredients)

Icing

1 x cup dates
1/4 x cup melted coconut oil
1/4 x cup cacao
1 x (overly) ripe banana
1/4 x cup water

For topping

1 x handful of pecans or banana chips

Now what the hell do I do???

1. Put the pecans, dates, coconut and banana in your food processor and blend until they bind together.  Add the syrup and cacao and either mix by hand or blast in the food processor until mixed.

2. Smooth base mix into a tin or tray.

3. Put dates, coconut oil, cacao and banana in the food processor and blend until all mixed in.  Add water until you get a thick gloopy texture (yup that is a technical term).

4. Spread icing onto the base mix.

5. Sprinkle the pecans or banana chips (or both – go nuts…no pun intended) on top of the concoction and put in the fridge for half an hour.

6. Slice the brownies and then put back into the fridge for a further 20 minutes.

These will last for a week in the fridge but I tend to put mine in the freezer and take out what I need for the day.  This also means they dont get mushed in transport as I take them to work as an afternoon treat/colleague bribery.

Why Carbs are NOT the Devil

Firstly I need to qualify this statement (being a lawyer and all) WHOLEGRAIN UNPROCESSED CARBS are not the devil.  However when it comes to the white stuff you can say what you want about those bad boys.

Carbs have had a pretty bad rep recently, with the Atkins, Dukan and Paleo diet banishing carbs from many a dieters plate.  But wholegrain carbs actually have huge health benefits and should play a fundamental part in every healthy blue bird’s diet.   The majority of the nutrients are contained in the germ and outer covering of the grain.  These are removed during the refining process, hence why white carbs have little nutritional benefit.

The Good, the Bad and the Absolutely Gorgeous

All very well, but what the hell are wholegrain carbs…

The Good – Literally ‘whole’ ‘grains’ such as brown rice, millett, quinoa, bulgar wheat (all bar bulgar wheat gluten free).

The Bad – white bread, bagels, pasta, crisps, white rice…these carbs are effectively sugar in disguise.

The Absolutely Gorgeous – VEGETABLES!  Full of healthy carbs with lots of vitamins and minerals thrown in for good measure

So tell us the benefits

Fibre, fibre and more fibre….Fibre is the part of a grain or vegetable that our body cannot digest, but that is actually where the benefit lies.  Fibre moves through the stomach and intestine, cleansing as it goes and, em well, keeps you regular.  A high fibre diet has been linked to a reduction in risk of certain types of cancer, particularly stomach, bowel and colon cancer.

Slowly digested…Wholegrain carbs are complex carbs which means they are slowly released keeping you fuller for longer thereby helping you control your weight. It also has the effect of controlling blood sugar levels which can reduce your chances of diabetes by 35%.

Carbs reduce cravings… Ever tried to cut an entire food group out of your diet?  Sugar cravings will take over your life, it is not pretty (thanks Mr Dukan)!  Adding wholegrain carbs into your diet will prevent this and make you less likely to cave.

Super duper cheap… not a health benefit but a huge advantage none the less

A word of warning

Food labelling standards only require a product to contain 1% wholegrain to make the wholegrain claim.  Also food manufacturers often colour their products with molasses (that is black treacle FYI) to trick consumers into thinking their products are brown and therefore whole grains.  When reading labels look for ‘whole wheat flour’ rather than ‘wheat flour’ (which is actually just good old white flour).

How to eat

Wholegrains are super simple to prepare – just chuck in boiling water as you would rice.

An easy way to introduce them into your diet is to substitute white carbs for wholegrains, ie rice, bread, pastas.  And if in doubt…..just eat more vegetables!!!!