Monday Check-In

Not a bad week-end overall. Saturday morning I rolled out of bed and hit the road for a 10 miler. My week off from the long-runs set me back some. I was starting to feel every one of my 45 years towards the end of that run, mostly in my calves and left achillies tendon which is something I've not experienced before. I'm hoping as I get more glycogen into the muscles and reduce my intake of inflammatory foods I'll have an easier time of it. Dropping 10 pounds would also help. (I'm working on it). Sunday I hit they gym for an easy treadmill run to spin out the lactic acid and I found that my energy levels were actually better then they were the day before. I don't know what's up with that. Maybe the higher-carb, more nutrient dense diet is finally having an effect on my performance.

Another possibility is the dinner I had the night before at Pure Food and Wine in Manhattan. Erin and I headed in for a date night/late birthday dinner and the food was really spectacular. Pure Food is a totally raw, vegan restaurant that consistently produces quality food with only raw organic ingredients. In this case, "raw" means that none of the food is heated to beyond 114 degrees. Erin was worrying all week that the place would be freezing cold and she had me call up to verify that yes, they do serve hot tea.  If you haven't tried gourmet Raw food, a stop here is definitely in order. The kitchen is very creative and some of the stuff coming out of there is pure magic. I'm not convinced the raw foods diet is the best option for me-it's amazing how long it takes in the kitchen to produce some of those dishes without any actual cooking-but I think incorporating more raw food your diet can really help support health and immune function.

I made a big pot of home-made miso soup yesterday as well as a quinoa/tofu pilaf. It only took, oh, 6 hours or so. The big problem with making tasty vegan food is the prep-time. All that chopping. I suppose I could have had a bowl of Captain Crunch with almond milk. Maybe tonight.