Impossible is a typoRunning my pants off and loving myself along the way

I’ve been all over the diet world in my life — from Atkins to Vegan. One of the ideas that I’m playing with right now is the concept of “Clean Eating”. Well, what the heck is that? Instead of me filling your head with nonsense and half formed ideas, I thought I’d bring in an expert. Cara, of Cara’s Cravings, is a recipe contributer to Clean Eating Magazine. If you’re not following her, you’re missing out on some tasty treats. Make sure you’re getting her pins on Pinterest! One of the things I love about Cara’s Craving’s are some of the sweet treats she develops and shares. I’m constantly in this battle with myself over sugar — Do I take the calorie hit for natural sugar or do I go the chemical route to get artificial sweetness for zero calories. It’s a tough call sometimes and I feel limited because I really don’t know what natural sweetening options are out there.

Cara to the rescue!

Cara graciously agreed to a little guest post on clean eating and the sweet stuff!

No Sugar, No Problem

So I hear your favorite Fit/FatGirl is in the process of a little detox. Are you following along too? Well, good! I don’t mean that in a “Yay for you! You’re going to be drinking nothing but lemon and chili pepper spiked water for three days!” (I’m no detox expert but I really hope that’s not the one you’re referring to.) I mean that in a “Awesome! We could all stand to clean up our diets” sort of way.

Who am I and why do I want to talk about clean eating? My name is Cara and I write a food blog called Cara’s Cravings.  So what? Everyone and their mother has a food blog these days. I’ll tell you what. Cara’s Cravings is healthy living food blog where I share delicious recipes perfect for any food lover trying to maintain a healthy lifestyle. I do this because I *love* food and my weight used to show it. Losing weight didn’t make me lose my love of food and eating; rather, it made me realize there was even more food to love. Now my meals are chock full of good-for-you-stuff yet I still feel like I’m indulging every day because the food is that good. I have found that there is so much more food in this world that I *can* eat freely than those I try to avoid.

What exactly is clean eating? One might consider it a detox for life. Cleaning up your diet from processed, unhealthy foods to heal your body and your mind. Focusing on colorful veggies, whole grains, lean proteins, and healthy fats to satisfy your cravings and fuel your daily activities. Trying to eat more ingredients instead of things that have ingredients.

Clean eating is not eating sugar. Specifically, refined sugar (common granulated white sugar and brown sugar) is a big no-no. The problem is that these are often hidden everywhere – even in foods we might think are healthier choices, such as bottled sauces and dressings, “healthy” granola bars and crackers, and flavored yogurts. Of course, you’re probably aware of many “sugar free” varieties of these foods, but the problem with these is that they pretty much all contain artificial sweeteners (think: the stuff commonly known as the yellow packets, pink packets, and blue packets.) Clean eating is also not eating artificial ingredients. So what’s a gal with a sweet tooth on a clean eating diet to do?

I already alluded to the fact that there are tons more foods we can eat than the number of foods we cannot. Easy-to-find, more nutritious and all-natural sweeteners include honey, maple syrup, and molasses. Other options becoming increasingly more mainstream are succanat (also referred to as evaporated cane juice) and coconut palm sugar. These sweeteners all have caloric value comparable to “regular” sugar but are less processed and retain higher nutritional value.

Each has its pros and cons, including flavor and ease of use, which will help determine which one should be used in place of sugar in a specific recipe. Also becoming increasingly popular is stevia, a zero-calorie all-natural sweetener derived from the stevia plant. In it’s pure form stevia is many times sweeter than sugar (1 teaspoon is equivalent to 1 cup of sugar in terms of sweetness) which makes it difficult to use a direct replacement in baking. One would need to make up the bulk that sugar would comprise with another ingredient. However, stevia is sold in various forms, including concentrated liquid drops (great for sweetening coffee and tea) and bulkier mixes (easier to use in baking or for measuring small amounts.)

Over the past year I’ve been experimenting with these various sweeteners and put them to use in many recipes. I’ve found that I rarely use just one kind of sweetener.

In this Gingerbread Ice Cream, I started with molasses to provide the rich color and characteristic dark gingerbread flavor. I could have used all molasses to sweeten the ice cream, but to shave some calories, I opted to use about half of what I would have needed to create an adequately sweet ice cream, and added liquid vanilla stevia to provide the rest. (If you just clicked that link and dropped your jaw at the price of a 2oz bottle, relax. It seems like a lot of money but I promise it lasts forever. This stuff is highly concentrated and you only need a few drops to sweeten a cup of coffee or tea.)

Similarly, in these Mint-Cacao Cookie Dough Truffles, I used a combination of powdered stevia along with maple syrup. In no-bake recipe, the maple syrup is desirable because it helps to bind the dry ingredients. But just like with the gingerbread ice cream recipe, I opted to lighten the caloric load by using some stevia in addition. (The additional liquid needed to hold the cookie dough truffles together was provided from unsweetened almond milk.)

Now take a look at my Pumpkin Spice Cheesecake Swirl Brownies (that are not only refined sugar-free, but vegan and gluten-free too!) Here I used a combination of maple syrup and another sweetener I didn’t even mention above: dates! Date puree (made from soaking dates in hot water and then pureeing in a food processor) provide not only sweetness and obvious nutrition, but contribute to the soft, chewy texture desirable in brownies and cookies. Also note that instead of oil, I used a combination of applesauce and pumpkin to provide the necessary moisture. These natural fruit and vegetable options provide some sweetness too. Decadently rich and fudgey, these brownies are some of my favorite baked goods to date (no pun intended.)

Lastly, here is an example where stevia did work perfectly well on its own. That chocolate-covered dream you see is a a  Chocolate Raspberry Macaroon Tart I created for Clean Eating Magazine. There you have it. Another resource to support your new clean eating lifestyle, and one I’m proud to be a regular contributor to. I served this tart at a big family party last spring, and the only complaint was that I didn’t bring a second one as well.

I hope that with these ideas, you’re even more excited to kick your healthy lifestyle into gear. But please remember, even though these are all better choices, it’s important to note that one should still try to exercise the principal of moderation and maintain a balanced diet. Lastly, don’t stress about excursions from the “rules” here and there. Remember that your good habits over the course of time will ultimately determine your progress. And once you realize all the quality, wholesome food out there, you’ll want to get right back to it after that once-in-a-while “cheat.”

Cara Lyons is the author of Cara’s Cravings, a food blog dedicated to delicious recipes for healthy living and a regular contributor to Clean Eating Magazine. A self-taught photographer, she will be teaching a beginners’ seminar on food photography at Nourished, a conference geared towards special diet food bloggers, on April 13th, 2012.

Just me and the Road

By @bikerdan584 Dan Cartwright TheRunningMan-A Yearnin Running

Why run? I’ve lost count of the number of people who have asked me this or the number of times I’ve asked it of myself. The truth is I have no idea.

It all started one day when my brother asked me to go for a run as he was training for a charity event and wanted some company.

My first thoughts were, in no particular order;

Why the hell is my brother running if he’s not being chased?

Why the sudden fascination with running when his car seems to be working?

If he’s doing it, could I?

After a few tentative runs of slowly increasing distance I discovered lots of benefits to running. I was losing weight, I was looking better and feeling well. I discovered whole parts of the local area I never knew existed and a whole community of runners across the world, more than willing to share tips and secrets. More over, I found a sport which was open to all, wasn’t expensive and didn’t have pre-conceived ideas of what a typical runner should be.

All of these benefits were apparent but none of them ever answered the question “Why Running?”

Why not another sport, why not join a gym or take up football?

The question rings loud in my ears with every footfall of a long run and it’s met with nothing but the echo of my footsteps in response.

I’ve struggled with weight and personal image for as long as I can remember. And it’s strange because looking at photographs of my past I was never as big as I thought. I guess (or I hope) that everyone has those voices in the back of their mind telling them what they can not achieve, or how useless/stupid/fat/ugly they are. The problem is I’d listened to them so long I could only identify myself by their descriptions and despite the good stuff going on in my life, I still felt like the loser they described.

In running I found a sport which allowed me to test my own self perceptions and my own limitations. I wasn’t being compared to team mates or peers, it was just me and the road. And I could push myself as hard as I wanted. Over time a strange thing happened.

I got better.

I began pushing myself to the limit in order to find what I was capable of and the response wasn’t a voice telling me that I don’t look like a runner, or another telling me I’m too fat to run and chasing me down.

The response was my footfall on the pavement, the rhythmic beat that showed I wasn’t slowing. I was moving forward. Literally taking a step and doing something positive.

It was me doing something more than most.

While others sat in and vegetated I was on the road or in the gym and I was running and accomplishing something.

So where am I now?

I’m 20+lbs lighter than I was six months ago and feel ten years younger I’m faster than I’ve ever been and have taken part in some amazing events and met some great people through running. I have a more positive self image. The voices are still there but now when I run, it’s not to get away from them, it’s to shut them up and show them what I can do.

And on the long runs, either by street light or in the sun, the beat still goes on. I keep moving one foot in front of the other and I keep running.

Why run?

I’ve no idea, but the answer is just over the horizon and if I keep running faster I might just catch it.

DubyaWife’s snarkyness caught my attention on Twitter. Then she had to go a throw her own little Whine and Cheese party about how she was NOT a runner, even tho she was training for a 5K. Once we got THAT nonsense resolved and she declared herself a RUNNER, THIS is what became possible.

OMG What am I doing by Dubya Wife

I hardly slept the night before.  New town, new people, new bed.  This whole Fitbloggin thing was new to me, but I was excited.  I rustled in the bed switching from side to side, hoping not to wake up my roommate.

Get some sleep, DubyaWife, you’re gonna need it.

Finally after trying to think of happy things… rainbows… fairies… unicorns pooping cupcakes… my eyes shut and I was out.  What seemed a moment later, the alarm clock ran, and I jumped out of bed eager to get on my running clothes.  I’m not sure why I was so eager but the nervous anticipation had me racing around like a rabbit in heat.

I made my way downstairs, across the lobby where I began to hear the chitter chatter of peoples.

Oh my gosh, all these people are here.

The nervousness set in more.

More people to watch my struggle, more people to pass me by.  More people to watch me fail.

I’d always imagined my first 5K to be at home, locally.  Not in Baltimore.  Perhaps running with my sister or my brother, who kept pace with me and encouraged me on.  All the while I was knowing that family and friends waitied at the finish line, ready to hug me, to give me a high-five, to cry with me.

This would not happen.

I was a face among a crowd.  I was in a strange city with strange people.  Only very few of them knew my 9 month struggle.  Would they know what this was worth to me?  Would they keep pace with me?  Would they cheer for me?

We made our way down to the starting line.  Nerves set in as a jumped up and down in place.

I am so nervous.  Omg, What am I doing!? WHAT AM I DOING!?!

I had been training since September of 2009.  I’ve had a popped bursa sac in my right knee,  stress fractured in my left knee, and up until this point hadn’t run 3.1 miles at all.  I hadn’t actually ever done this.  I was petrified…. and yet, excited at the same time.

Off we go, down the harbors of Baltimore.  There were many turns and streets we had to navigate, but I had some friends who were right there with me.

“We’ll keep pace with you, go as fast or as slow as you need us to.”

Right.  Great.  Breathe.  Slow.

As I went I listened to their conversation as they effortlessly talked during their run.  Envious a bit, I pushed the thought out of my brain.  It’s not about being like them.  It’s about completing this race.  One 5K – jogging the whole way.

My feet pounded.  My arms swayed.  My breathing rhythmic.

I can’t do this.  Eventually I’ll start walking.  And then I’ll hate myself for it.  I may be running now, but it wont last… just like all the times before.

Get that thought out of my head.  Get it out right now.  Remember what your friends said.  Slow pace, focused breathing.  Checklist of your body.  If you’re not injured, about to throw up, or close to fainting, keep going.  Once foot in front of the other.  One stride at a time.

And so I kept going.  I kept running.  Across wooden docks with the salty, fishy sea air.  Across cobbled streets with Old American architecture-like houses.  A gray haze was over the sky that day, no sun, so that’s good.  Perfect weather.  Perhaps this is the ideal situation for my first 5K.

My heart is pounding… My lungs are having difficulty breathing in and out… And every time I cough it feels like my throat is on fire.  I can’t do this.  I’ll finish this portion and then walk.

One foot in front of the other, DubyaWife.  Focused.

We get to the half way point… or at least close to the halfway point.  I get excited to see that I’m halfway done.

I’m only halfway done!?!? Hell no, I’ll never make it through this.  I’ve gone only halfway and I feel like I’m dying.  My heart rate is through the roof.  Only halfway!!!

Keep going.  One stride and then the next.  Focused breathing.  Listen to your friends conversation.  It will distract you. They are here with you.  They are running with you.  Look at your friends as they give you high-fives for making it half way.  They support you.  They want you to succeed, and you do too.  You can do this.  Keep going.  I find my friend FatGirlsCanRun.  She says she wants to run part of the race with me.  I’m inspired.

And so I keep running, making our way back.  I can’t talk and jog at this point, it’s too difficult.  The crowd is more sparse now.  Only me and my two running friends.  But they’re here with me, they won’t leave me.  I run beside another friend who seems to be struggling.  We focus our breathing together.  It helps me, I hope it helps her too.

I stride.  I stride and I stride and I stride.  We’re getting close at this point.  I look up and see the hotel that is our starting point.  That’s gives me some hope.

Omg, it’s so far away.  I’ll never make it to that building.  It’s so very far away.

I keep going.  I feel like I may cough up my lungs.  Back through the same path, twists and turns, salty harbor air, with wet ground beneath as my feet labor with each step.

I feel heavy.  My legs are heavy.  I want to give up.

The hotel is getting closer.  I can see that I’m closer now.

I’m almost done now, I can just walk the rest of the way… I should just walk…

I want to run in!  I want to run in and know that I finished it the way I started.

You can’t do it.

Yes I can.  Yes I will.

A couple more steps.  A frog develops in my throat.  Tears fill up my yes.  I see the corner where we started, but no one’s there.

See, there’s no cheer.  Your family isn’t here.  No one’s there.

I turn the corner.  I stop.  I look up as my lungs finally start to breathe.

And I’m bombarded with cheers… with hugs… with high-fives… with pictures.  With smiles.  I sob (and almost hyperventilate) cause I’m so happy.

I look up at the sky….

You did it.  You did it.  Be proud.  You did it.

I smile from ear to ear as I grab my phone and call my husband.

Me: “Baby, I did it!  I ran a 5K!”
Dubya: “That’s great!”
Me: <sobbing> “I can’t believe I did it, I ran the whole thing!”
Dubya: “I’m so proud of you!”
Me: “Oh I wish you were here, everyone’s cheering.”
Dubya: “I wish I were there too.  I’m proud of you.  Congrats, baby!”

And so something I thought was impossible was possible. Through the power of positive thinking and a little help with my friends.  

Dubya: “Now get off the phone baby and breathe, you sound like you’re about to die. Ha!”

Special shout out to: @262milejourney @runningknitwit @shrinkinggretch who ran with me and of course @FatGirlsCanRun

How did you start running: I joined the Army National Guard in 2005, 2 miles was the furthest I had ever ran and only because they made me.  I tore my MCL in 2006 and put off getting it fixed until 2009. This was a BIG mistake, listen to your body people! GO SEE A DOCTOR! My MCL repaired itself incorrectly and was getting caught under my meniscus and causing me a ton of pain. I had surgery in March of 2009 and was cleared to run again in August.  I started Couch to 5K as a way to ease back into it.  Well, who woulda thunk that I’d fall in love with it?

Why fund raising: When I got the idea to run a race, I wanted to do something that meant something to me. I chose a race with the Aurora PD(I want to be a cop when I grow up) that benefitted the Special Olympics in my state.  The race atmosphere was incredible.  After I finished, I watched as the police, fire fighters and other runners went and helped pace a boy with Down’s Syndrome across the finish line. I cried.

Why the ACS/Team DetermiNation: When I decided to do a half marathon, I wanted it to be for a BIG cause.  No offense to other organizations but I didn’t want to make one thing seem more important than another. I started to think about what had affected me personally. Cancer. Everyone knows someone who has been affected by some sort of cancer.  Kidney, breast, colon, skin, bone, etc. I couldn’t chose just one, so I chose the American Cancer Society. They have teams to help you train and fund raise, I chose Team DetermiNation. They just spoke to me.

Why the raffle: I wanted to do something big and exciting! I’ll be honest, I was scared that if I just sent e-mails or put a link on Facebook that I wouldn’t raise very much money.  I have to raise a certain amount just to participate on Team DetermiNation and that’s kind of scary.  So, I thought about giveaways that I had seen on blogs.  But how could I get people to donate, sure some might but how could I really motivate them? A raffle! Duh!

How does the raffle work: For every $5 donated on my donation page, 1 you get one raffle ticket.  I will use random.org to select the winners.

What are the prizes: Oh boy, I have a ton! CEP Compression is giving a pair of compression sleeves, Luna sent a whole box of Lemon Zest bars, a friend of mine who is a designer on Etsy is making custom jewelry, better yet, just check it out for yourself.

What made you decide to run in combat boots: I wanted to up the stakes.  I wanted to make this even harder.  The training and race will be nothing of what a cancer patient goes through.  I wanted to show them that I care and I’m trying my best to put myself in their shoes or “Walk a mile in their boots”

Twitter is an amazing thing sometimes. It allows you to get to know and share in the lives of people whom you’d never meet otherwise. Some of them are funny. Some of them are cranky. Some of them are inspiring. And some of them, well, you just wish they lived next door to you so that you could pop on over anytime. Vinny Slavin is THAT guy. The second Vinny tweeted he ran his first 5K, I asked him to write it up for my blog, because Vinny and I share the idea that who you are is NOT limited by who you THINK you are. And that’s why we run – because we know we CAN, and we know it has nothing to do with what we THINK we can’t. So may I present my first EVER Guest Blog Post!

Fat Guys CAN Run by Vinny Slavin

Two weeks ago I ran my first 5k and I did it in 45:15! Two weeks ago I weighed 275 pounds and I’m 5’8”. For those who don’t know me, I’m Vinny and I blog over at The Fat to Fit Diary and I’m here to tell you today that fat guys can run too!

When I was asked by Amy if I would guest blog here, I jumped at the chance. I was flattered that someone would want me to share my story on their blog. I also figured this was the appropriate place to let people know that being fat doesn’t mean can can’t run!

When I agreed to do this race it was supposed to be a “practice race” for my first official race on May 22^nd. In fact, I wasn’t planning on running this race at all. The plan was to pirate this race (I missed the registration deadline) and walk it with a couple of friends who had previously registered for it. The idea was that I had never been in a race setting and this would give me a taste of what goes on so I wouldn’t be so nervous for my first race. Oh I got a taste alright.

The atmosphere was a bit intimidating at first. There were so many people around that looked so…fast. I calmed down a bit by telling myself I was walking this and I’ve done a lot more than 3.1 miles before so this will be cake. Then one of my friends came over to me and said he was looking to finish this in about 35 minutes so he was going up front with the runners. His wife (the other one I was supposed to be walking with) said that she would set the pace for us and that if I needed to slow down we could. Well, I guess I misinterpreted their meaning of the term “walk”. I started to get real nervous. My fastest 5k time before this was about 48 minutes and I pushed it to that get.

Everyone walked to the starting line with the runners in front and the walkers in back. We took our spot near the middle of the walkers. When the race started Kathy (my partner) took off walking, and by walking I mean the fastest possible speed you can walk before you are actually running. By the first quarter mile we were leading the walkers! I kept up with her for a bit then she would get about 30 yards ahead and I would jog to meet her. This went on for the whole race that I was supposed to be walking. My shins starting hurting from the fast walking pace so I ended up jogging most of it.

With a quarter mile left to go and sweat pouring off me like a faucet, Speedy Gonzales next to me asks if I have it in me to run to the finish line. I was like, where have you been, I’ve been running this whole race. So we took off at a decent pace toward the finish. Let me tell you the last quarter mile was amazing. There were people lined up to cheer us on and I’m sure that is what kept me from falling on my face. I saw the finish line, started to run faster and I crossed the line with a big smile on my face (or so I was told). I stopped my watch a few seconds later and it read 45:32. I was extremely happy! What was supposed to be a leisurely practice walk turned into my fastest 5k yet! Not to mention that after it was all said and done, my official time was 45:15.

So to wrap this up I just want to say, that no matter what size you are get out there and move. When I first started last year I had trouble walking for a half mile. I just kept moving more and more each day and eventually I was running. It didn’t happen overnight and I’m not going to say it was easy but it did happen. So next time you feel you’re size is keeping you from doing something, remember these words…

Fat girls…and guys can run!