Tuesday, August 24, 2010

Hills and Speed: Check!

Tonight I had and easy 4.5 mile run with 6x45 sec @ level 8. I ran the 4.5 miles between 1-5% inclines at at varying paces, starting at 11:29 min miles, and going up to 10:29 min miles. I did the hill sprints at an incline of 6, running at around an 8:29 min mile. The sprints were really tiring, and I did not quite manage 45 seconds for all of them, so I did a few extra to make up for it. Nothing more to add, except that this was a relatively satisfactory session, and I was really glad that I ran for more sustained distances on the hills, and at a faster pace. The funny thing is, I seem to have ended up with exactly the same time as my easy 5 mile run on Sunday! But I probably missed a few seconds somewhere, though not many, otherwise what would be the mathematical probability of that happening?

Dinner was a bit of a treat: an Ezekiel muffin with Icelandic butter. Now this is purposely meant to sound as exotic as I first found it. Living in the US has suddenly opened up a new vista of food choices. Topping the list is the Icelandic butter and yoghurt. Even in Europe we cannot buy this, as it is simply not to be found anywhere, and although Iceland is part of the European Economic Area, I have yet to see anything of theirs on the supermarket shelves. Anyway, I know it's not very green and I am probably creating some very bad juju with my girnormous carbon footprint, but my only justification is that much like eating reindeer steaks in the Arctic Circle, I just had to try this. She tried it all, and saw that it was good!



Currently there is a programme on the Food Network Channel entitled "The Best thing I ever Ate".  All these chefs are interviewed and they try and describe the best thing they ever ate, and the accompanying sensations. It is quite an interesting experience, because you immediately wonder if you can come up with something, realize that there are quite a few options, and then the fun part begins when you start paring it down.  Although this next item is not the Best Thing I Ever Ate, it is one of the most memorable.
I need a bit of a break from the Green Monsters, so this morning I had granola and yoghurt for breakfast.    The first time I ever tasted this particular combination, was last July, picking up my race packet at the Danskin Triathlon expo.  Walking past a stand, a bloke offered me a cup with some granola and yogi in it.  My surprise at the unexpected deliciousness is recreated everytime I have this:

Bear Naked granola and Banilla (yes it's banana and vanilla) yoghurt.  It is the best - EVER!  It is also a great post-run snack.  Finally I will leave you with one last image (and this one's for Christina).  A few posts ago I mentioned the straw that finally broke the camel's back, and led Stuart to refuse to eat anymore of my vegetarian offerings: red quinoa, green cauliflower and spinach - well maybe a picture really is worth a thousand words!  Happy Wednesday.


8 comments:

  1. That yogurt sounds delicious. Indeed I have never seen or even heard of Iceland butter.

    Great run Natalia! Keep it up!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Seems that you are now really back into this training thing. Nice workout! Very interesting food choices you have.

    ReplyDelete
  3. I love trying new foods - I go out of my way to find things I've never eaten before. I never heard of Icelandic butter before so I'm going to have to try it!

    ReplyDelete
  4. Stai lavorando veramente bene sul "dreadmill" un gran lavoro di qualità che darà i suoi frutti quando correrai su strada. I tuoi post sul cibo sono sempre molto interessanti. Quel tipo di muffins sembrano molto gustosi.

    ReplyDelete
  5. @ Fran: Yes, it is quite yummy, and low fat too.

    @ Johann: I guess I needed a bit of a break, but my head then just seemed to want to stay on holiday!

    @ Greenie: I think you will like it, it's quite creamy.

    @ Black Knight: Grazie tante.....credo che il dreadmill ha i suoi usi. Per me, sopratutto per l'elevazione, perche' dove abito e' piuttosto piatto. Cmq., ho tanta voglia di migliorare, per cui mi sto dando da fare.....i muffins sono ottimi. Soltanto 80 calorie con e nessun zucchero ecc.

    ReplyDelete
  6. You are too funny. I've never heard of green califlower. So do you cook the quinoa first and then add the veggies? what spices do you use?

    ReplyDelete
  7. i could live off of barenaked granola!!!

    ReplyDelete
  8. @Christina:It looks just like ordinary cauliflower, just green. I usually steam it, toss the spinach in a pan with some olive oil, onion garlic and fresh chilli. The quinoa cooks like short-grain rice: equal amount of quinoa to an equal part of water. When the water is absorbed, it's done. then I add the quinoa and cauliflower to the pan with the spinach and sprinkle some kosher salt over it. It is yum, never mind the nay sayers!

    @ Running Diva Mom: Agreed! It is fabulous!

    ReplyDelete