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Posts Tagged vegetarian chili

13 Weeks Till 26.2

Feb 15

Posted by Shari B. in Marathon Training | 9 Comments

Hi blog buds!

I hope everyone had a lovely weekend whether or not you were celebrating Valentine’s Day.  And a happy Presidents Day to you today, especially those of you who get the day off of work!  Guess what else it is?

It’s Marathon Monday!

We are 13 weeks away from the marathon.  Our planned long run for this weekend was 12 miles.

It occurred to me as I was getting ready Saturday morning that I’m a little neurotic when it comes to getting out the door for a run.   As you may or may not know, I’m a bit of an overplanner (remember when I was packing for my Michigan RV trip?)  I would love to be that person that just decides to take off running willy nilly when I feel like it.  But I’m not.  I have to plan for it.

You’ve read previously in my blog that a 90 minute rule works best for me before a run.  Which means that I have to eat any pre-run food no later than 90 minutes before.  Any closer and I get a crazy cramp in my lower left abdominal area that hurts so bad I can barely walk let alone jog.   Our start time this Saturday was 8:00 AM, so at 6:30 on the dot, I ate.  This time an Ezekial english muffin rather than Ezekial toast:

After getting dressed in my gear, it’s time to pack!  I have a little post-it note ‘checklist‘ that I keep because inevitably I will walk out the door without something, especially that early in the morning.  This week, without my handy note, I would have actually left without my Camelbak of all things!

Here’s the pile of stuff:

Crazy, huh? Questions for my running readers:   Do you do that when you have a long run planned?  Or are you a “roll-out of bed and hit the pavement” kind of runner?

When deciding what jacket(s) to wear, I checked the indoor/outdoor thermometer.  I can’t remember the last time I was so EXCITED to see 30+ degrees outside!  All of our training runs so far have been started in weather around 17 degrees!  This meant I wouldn’t have to worry about my water freezing in my hydration pack.

After last week’s unhappy knees, I made a few adjustments for this run:

1.) I wore a different pair of shoes.

After learning more about barefoot running and the importance of LESS support for your feet, I chose to wear my beat-up old trail runners that don’t have much tread left on the bottom in hopes that this would force me more onto the balls of my feet much like I am in my VFFs.

2.) I brought back an old technique that I sometimes used when I trained for my first half-marathon in 2004:  run a mile, walk a minute.

This strategy allows you to still build conditioning for the distance, but eliminates some of the fatigue your leg muscles will experience.  I’ve always liked this training method because it makes a long run more of an ‘interval’ workout for me when I know it’s broken into mile segments, so mentally I find it easier.  From a speed standpoint, we’ve been averaging 10 minute miles on our long training runs.  You would think adding these walk breaks in would slow us down to 11 minute miles, but it didn’t.  We averaged a 10:20 pace this week!  So when we were running, we were running FASTER.

3.) I iced my knees in the car on the way home from the run.

I didn’t have frozen peas, so frozen EDAMAME had to do the trick.  :)   And I had to pack them in a thermal lunchbox with an icepack to keep them frozen!

4.) I kept moving as the day went on.

Last week I was exhausted and just wanted to stay off my feet, so I caught up on some reading.  Unfortunately I think this allowed my legs to really tighten up.  So this time while I was pretty beat, I made sure that I kept busy and kept my legs moving.  We ran errands, went to Costco, and did some chores around the house.

***

Fuel during the run: 2/3 of a Coconut Cream Pie Larabar at the 5.55 mile mark.

Immediately following the run, while stretching: coconut water, glutamine recovery drink and a banana, plus a ginger root capsule for inflammation

Post-workout meal: vegetarian chili with red quinoa, spinach and nutritional yeast.

The outcome of the adjustments this week: My knees were a little sore directly following the run, then more sore later in the day, but almost back to normal on Sunday.  Whereas last week, I was still hobbled on Sunday.  So that’s a huge plus.  I also didn’t feel extremely sleepy as I had the previous week.   The bottoms of my feet didn’t feel ‘raw’ and I didn’t have any blisters.  So all in all I’m very pleased with how this long run went.

What’s a little daunting from here on out is knowing that all of our long runs will be more distance than a half-marathon.  Yikes.  I’m looking forward to 14 miles, because up until now I’ve only run half-marathons, so 13.1 has been the cap on my distance.  It will be fun to surpass that.  (I say “fun” now – let’s see what I say when I’m actually RUNNING it that day!) ;) This is where you dig a little deeper and remind yourself that you chose this goal for a reason and get EXCITED!

***

Don’t forget that we have FLEX-IT FRIDAY coming up this week, so get your ab shots in to my by Thursday afternoon!

Have a MAGNIFICENT Monday!  See you next time!

– Shari B. =)

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Chili and Ice

Jan 12

Posted by Shari B. in Recipes | 5 Comments

Hi blog buds!  How’s your Tuesday treating ya?  I hope I’m not throwing off your reading schedule by posting in the afternoon the last couple of days.  I thought I’d play with my schedule a bit to see which I like better.  What I’m coming up with is post when it fits, instead on a SCHEDULE! :)   Hopefully it doesn’t matter if it’s morning or afternoon!

Well Monday turned out to be a fun exercise day.  First I did 25 minutes of intervals on the treadmill in the morning.  I really do get bored on the treadmill and have to vary my speed and/or incline constantly just to stay interested.  After a quick warm-up I did 1 minute intervals of 6.0, 6.5, 7.0, 7.5 mph running then walk one minute, then increase the incline a notch and do it again.  The time goes by so much faster that way.

Then when I pulled in the driveway after work, our street had been plowed again!  Which is good on one hand because at least they were moving all of the big ice chunks onto the sunny side of the street.  Unfortunately that also meant our ‘ice trench’ was covered up AGAIN!!!  So I put on my grubbies and some waterproof boots and went out there to dig yet another trench.  It was 50 degrees yesterday so things were just starting to melt a bit in the shaded part of our street.

This ice issue in front of our house has become the neighborhood comedy – neighbors sure like to chuckle at me every day as they drive by, thinking “Suckers!  You got stuck with the worst lot on the street!”  :)   I appreciate that it at least provides a neverending workout, that’s for sure.

But THEN the exercise gets better … because it was so nice out, I couldn’t resist getting the dogs out for a some WOGGING!  It’s been so long I think they forgot what WOGGING is (and you readers may have as well!)  I can’t keep a steady pace with my crazy pups because they like to stop every two seconds to sniff something, then run, then sniff.   So we’re walking AND jogging:  WOGGING.  They had a blast and actually didn’t drive me insane this time.  I think it had something to do with the treats I stashed in my pocket.  ;)   It was perfect weather for a walk.  Now THIS is the Colorado winter weather I love and miss!

***

Every weekend, usually on Sunday, I sit down to come up with food ideas for the week for his dinners (mine are much easier because I always have veggies on hand and as such always have a salad, wrap, sandwich, soup, etc.)  This time MSP said he wanted me to make my mom’s chili during the week, but make it VEGETARIAN.  I’m sorry, say that again? Did you just tell me to make VEGETARIAN chili?  By George, he did!  He said he’d be fine if I used a meat substitute for the beef so that we could both eat it.  (When I made it last time, I just made two pots side by side, mine without beef, his with.) He’s the best, huh?  No wonder I love him to pieces.  :)

So I picked up some Gimme Lean “Ground Beef Style Veggie Protein” and used that in place of the beef.  My mom’s chili is awesome.  We love it.  And it’s very easy and we had it last night for dinner.

I always seem to change the recipe around in some way.  Here’s what I did this time:

Brown 1 package Gimme Lean “ground beef” veggie product in the bottom of  a large soup pot.  If you like onions, you can brown it with that.  I just added a little onion powder, since MSP doesn’t like onions.

After browning, add the following to the pot:

  • 46 oz can of tomato juice
  • 15 oz can organic azuki beans (rinsed & drained)
  • 15 oz can organic kidney beans (rinsed & drained)
  • 1/4 tsp celery salt
  • 1/2 to 1 tsp garlic salt
  • 2 Tbsp chili powder

Simmer for a few hours.

I plated my helping over some spiralized zucchini (just for Cindy, since she wants a spiralizer) and then topped it with some nutritional yeast (in place of cheese).  Mmmm my mom’s home cooking, with a twist!

What are your favorite beans to use in chili?  Are you a WHITE BEAN chili lover or a RED BEAN chili lover? I like ALL chili colors!  :)   I don’t think I could pick a favorite.  I just love BEANS, period!

– Shari B.  =)

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Coyote Snacks & Twilight Running

Sep 9

Posted by in Uncategorized | 4 Comments

Hey, Happy Wednesday to you!  The weekend will be here before we know it!

A BIG thanks to everyone that is coming by to check out the blog!  I am amazed at how many views the site had yesterday – so fun and exciting!  You guys are spreading the word – thank you!  It won’t be long before we get that first giveaway going:  comments from 30 separate individuals on 2 consecutive posts.  I can’t wait to send someone a GIFT!

So yesterday’s 6:00 run was DARK at the start.  Not pitch black dark, but dark enough that ‘coyotes could be eyeing us for breakfast’ dark.  :)   Luckily only the deer came out to stare at us crazies running before the dawn!  This is at the trailhead parking lot looking west to the trail.

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This is to the east.

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The moon was looking pretty “halloweenish”!

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It was a GREAT run day.  I was feeling a little sluggish on the way there, but as soon as I got there I had a burst of energy and tackled the hills with no trouble.  We did 3.57 miles with 599 feet of ascent and 632 descent.

I absolutely LOVE starting my day outdoors in nature, especially with the sunrise.  It’s my favorite time of day and it’s so peaceful.  Are you a morning exerciser or evening exerciser?  When do you feel the most motivated to get in some activity? I’d love to hear about it in the comments section.

My pre-workout fuel was coffee with a side of Genesis toast (a bit of flax oil and raw honey drizzle).  This was at 4:30 in the morning, so it was definitely a day for the “Instant Human: Just add coffee” mug (and I couldn’t resist taking an immediate bite of my toast!)

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After the run and my super long blogging session I had some “sunshine in a bowl” – fresh mango.  I LOVE mango and didn’t want to mask its flavor at all in a smoothie, so I had it all by itself.  It was divine.

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A little later I mixed some Vega chocolate health optimizer with some almond milk because I knew fruit alone was not the best post-run recovery option.  This would NOT mix well with mango, no matter what the label tells you ;)

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My fridge has been looking a bit overstuffed with leftovers so lunch was a random mix of things that needed using up:  wild rice, hummus on 7-grain crackers, spinach & arugula salad – complete with tailfeathers!  The salad also had pepitas, sundried tomatoes, orange pepper, and raw zucchini ribbons, topped with olive oil and balsamic vinegar. MSP said to me that it looked like a lot of food, would I be able to finish it.  I said “Pssh, of course!”.  He was totally right, I could not eat all of the rice after finishing off the salad!

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Pie sounded great for my afternoon snack so Larabar Pecan Pie did the trick, one of my favorite flavors.  (Do I say that about every Larabar?)  :)   I think the only ones I haven’t loved are Key Lime and Cinnamon Roll.

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And a totally BORING looking dinner!  More leftovers!  I imagine you are about as tired of SEEING this dish as I am of eating it, but luckily this batch is gone for awhile!  Vegetarian Chili with Tofu.  I also ate some more of my leftover hummus on a cracker, with a sliver of manchego cheese (not pictured).

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I was low on goodies to make blended green goodness so had to make a trip to the store for some fresher spinach and romaine!  All stocked up now!  Evening ‘snack’ was just a cup of herbal tea as we had a pretty busy evening working on a project in the house.

Well fit friends, the iron downstairs is calling.  It’s LEG DAY!  Have a WONDERFUL WEDNESDAY!  See you next time!

–Shari B. =)

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Don't Finish What You Start (dessert, that is!)

Sep 7

Posted by in FitFeature | 2 Comments

Hi fit peeps!  Hopefully you have the day off for the Labor Day holiday!  Mondays are great when you don’t have to head in to the office, right?  ;)

So my Sunday was delightful.  It was a planned rest day from exercise so I was pretty much a ‘lump on a log’ most of the day.  I did a little painting project and then finished a book I’d been reading on the Kindle.  (Hey speaking of Kindle, if you happen to own one:  Amazon seems to regularly offer a few books for free to drum up some buzz for authors.  The one I just finished was called “Raising Jake” which I originally got for free and is now out there for $9.60.   They also have a lot of classics for free download as well, like “Pride & Prejudice”.  Thought I’d share, since we all love to save some money!)

Sunday started much like every other day, with my favorite liquid, this time presented for your viewing pleasure in my DENVER mug (from Starbucks, of course!):

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And then (drum roll please……) my chocolate chip MUFFIN!

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(with a cup of almond milk in my “thumb mug”)  Oh wow has it been a long time since I’ve had one of these.  It was DEEE-LISH!  I ate about 2/3 and then realized I’d had my fill.  At that point, I noticed that I was eating it just because it tasted so good and no longer because I was hungry, so I stopped and the rest went to MSP, who gladly finished it off for me!

Throughout the morning I had a few leftover chickpeanuts, but the muffin was so filling I didn’t need anything substantial again until lunch.   When I finally did get hungry I had some of my leftover tofu chili with a side of veggies and hummus (there’s one of those wonky carrots again!):

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Shortly after I felt mostly full but could use a bite of something ‘desserty’ to change the taste some, so I broke off a piece of a Chocolate Coconut Larabar (about a third of the bar):

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Later we had a few errands to run and MSP treated me to one of my favorite ‘fast food’ places ever, Tokyo Joe’s! I use fast food lightly because it’s really a great place to get a quick healthy meal.  I chose the Hookipa Salad which has grilled salmon, ginger, greens, edamame, dried cranberries, pecans and a side of soy ginger dressing.   It comes stuffed to the brim in a huge bowl:

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So I cut the salmon in half and dished out half the salad onto a plate so that I have some for another time:

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Oh this salad is SOOOO good.  I just love it.  Tokyo Joe’s rocks.  If you have one nearby, you should go there today :)

MSP was craving rice krispy treats while we’d been out and about so we picked him up the goods to get it made in the evening.  He also wanted them to have chocolate topping, so he also bought a bag of chocolate chips to melt down and smear on top of his creation.  After they cooled he enjoyed his evening snack, while I munched on a few of the leftover chocolate chips.  Here’s something I was was surprised to learn:   Can you believe that Rice Krispies have high fructose corn syrup in them??? I mean really – it’s puffed rice for crying out loud!  What’s the point of ruining it with HFCS?  I don’t know why it surprised me so, but it did in this particular cereal.

Right at bedtime at 9:30 (yes, 9:30 on a weekend night – and that’s LATE for me!  I tell ya, my sleep is important to me!) I got really hungry, so I stirred a quick scoop of Amazing Grass “Amazing Meal” since I hadn’t had my green smoothie for the day.  This would have to suffice. :)   This is one of the few powdered green drinks I actually like.  It’s meant to be a meal replacement shake, as it’s balanced with protein, carbs and fat.  I like it because it’s easily portable – it doesn’t require a blender and it mixes really well with water.

AM_Original_Large140x257 Image from amazinggrass.com

So the FitFeature that I’d like to touch on today, especially as many of you may be heading to Labor Day BBQs and parties:  as I mentioned above, while I was enjoying my ‘planned cheat treat’ chocolate chip muffin, once I’d had my fill it was time to stop eating it.  If you are trying to lose weight or be fitter/healthier, this is a healthy habit to learn!  One of my personal training clients who then became one of my closest friends was great at this and I always admired her resolve.  When we’d meet for drinks or dinner, she would always order dessert.  She would have a few bites and then she was DONE.  She tasted it and had enough to enjoy it,  which kept her from feeling deprived of great foods and kept her from feeling like she was dieting.  So many foods taste GREAT in the first few bites, but then the ‘magic’ disappears.  Bethenny Frankel calls it “The Point of Diminishing Return”.

Don’t just continue to eat something because it tastes good – when  you are full, STOP EATING IT. :)   With high calorie decadent food, don’t finish what you start!

Alrighty friends, I’m off to start my day!  Have a sunny and safe Labor Day!  See ya next time!

– Shari B. =)

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What a Tool!

Sep 5

Posted by in FitFeature, Handy Kitchen Tools | 2 Comments

Happy Saturday morning Blog Buds!  Hopefully you all get to enjoy the extra day off Monday for Labor Day!

First off I want to say thanks for all the great comments and emails about the blog!  Keep ‘em coming!  I love hearing from everyone!  As I mentioned in the email announcement I sent, I’ll offer this site’s first giveaway once there are two consecutive posts with comments from 30 or more different people.  Hmm, I wonder what the first prize will be? A unique mug for your morning coffee?  A cookbook?  An assortment of Larabars?

(speaking of prizes, be sure to read through to the end of the post – you’re in for a fun dessert treat!)

Today’s FitFeature is about a particular kitchen tool, the hand chopper (you may have seen a knock-off version on late night infomercials called the “Slap Chop”.)

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About 6+ years ago it seemed that everyone I knew was having Pampered Chef parties (including me).  As direct marketing parties go, Pampered Chef was a good one!  (Someone cooks food for you then you eat yummy treats!  Gotta love that, right?)  Over the years I have amassed quite a collection of various Pampered Chef tools.  And I must admit that they really do make the prep work easier.  This particular one is a favorite of mine if only for making chopping onions easier and less tearful!  Plus it is really easy to take apart and rinse off.   Kitchen tools that cut down on your prep time are definitely worth the upfront investment if they will propel you to make more healthy home cooked meals with fresh ingredients.  I have a small list of great tools that I use regularly and will feature from time to time.  Here are just a few of my favorites:

  • Mandolin slicer
  • George Foreman Grill
  • ThunderStick (it’s NOT what it sounds like it is!)
  • FridgeSmart containers by Tupperware (keep my veggies fresh much longer)

What is your favorite kitchen tool? Drop me a comment!

On to Friday’s round-up of Feats and Eats!

Weight Training (Back & Tris)

  • Barbell Bent Rows 4 working sets of 12 reps
  • Parallel Grip Lat Pulldowns 4 working sets of 12, 9, 7, 12 reps
  • Tricep Pushdowns 3 working sets of 12, 10, 10
  • TRX Low Row 3 sets of 10, 10, 10
  • Overhead KB Tricep Press 3 burnout sets of 20, 20, 20

Poor pups didn’t get their “wogging” session but we’ll make up for it over the weekend!

Friday started with a cup of coffee pre-workout.  Yet another Starbucks mug, I know!  Those damn mugs call to me when I’m in the store…

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After the workout I was really hungry, so not only did I go for two pieces of toast this time, but I also make a rice protein & almond milk shake.  My usual Ezekial 4:9 sprouted grain bread was nowhere to be found at the grocery store, so I had to go with another version by the same company called Genesis.  This one has a lot of sprouted seeds and has a distinctly sesame taste. – can’t decide if I’m ok with that or not.  After toasting I added raw almond butter to both, then topped one with raw honey and one with raw agave nectar.  While the nectar tasted great, it is thinner than honey and had pretty much rolled off the toast before I got to eat it!  I’m using my favorite toast plate (which is really a sushi plate – my friend Beth made it for me at a ceramic studio as a gift and I use it all the time!)

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We had plans for an early (10:00 AM, cheap seats) showing of a new movie called “Extract” so I packed up some pepitas to take in my purse into the movie with a bottle of water:

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Lunch was my usual BIG salad, this time with a side of wild rice.  I added some orange pepper to my salad today – the only rainbow color I’m missing here is blue!  Spinach, romaine, arugula, dulse, pepper, nutritional yeast, fresh tomato, sundried tomato, olive oil and balsamic vinegar:

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Mid-afternoon snack was just a cup of decaf coffee with non-dairy creamer and a side of two-bite extra dark chocolate (while reading my Kindle – the PERFECT afternoon!)  Had to use my “reading glasses” mug:

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Finally dinner time! I’d been smelling this all day in the crock pot!  My mom’s chili recipe!  (It’s so good!)  But it does have ground beef in it so before I add the beef, I divide some out for me and put MSP’s batch into the crockpot.  First I sauteed some onion and green pepper (that I had used my hand chopper to chop up):

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Then I cut up half a block of remaining tofu I had in the fridge to add to the pan:

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Then I took the plant-based items out of the pan and partially browned the ground beef, just long enough to get it really crumbled (it will cook the rest of the way in the crock pot.)  I added the tomato juice, chili beans, kidney beans and spices to the crock pot and mixed it all up.  I put my tofu, green peppers and onion into a small pan and spooned out some of the chili mixture for my vegetarian version, then added the beef to the crock pot for MSP’s beefy version.

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His is on the left with cheese mixed in, mine is on the right topped with some nutritional yeast (for cheese flavor + some B12) and a few crushed Baked Tostitos:

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It was a GREAT meal!  Very filling!  And SO easy (which is how I like every meal to be – if it’s not easy, it probably won’t get made in my kitchen!)

After dinner we toasted the holiday weekend:

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And later on into the evening, it was time for a dessert.  MSP had standard ice cream and I had the HEALTHIEST ICE CREAM EVER!!  This recipe is credited to  Gena, a fantastic raw food blogger in NYC Choosing Raw, and the post where she shows how to make this banana soft serve is titled “This Post Will Change Your Life” (Click on the title of her post to check it out and see the recipe.)  She’s not kidding, either – it will change your life!  :)   You would never imagine that you could make ice cream out of JUST frozen bananas, but it really does come out that consistency.  It’s GREAT!  I love having an awesome “go-to” dessert that I can feel really good about.   Gena, I thank you for this heavenly creation!  Here’s how it looks (topped with a squeeze of agave nectar):

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Well that’s my Friday friends!  Hope yours was a fine start to a great holiday weekend!  Enjoy!

See you soon!
– Shari B. =)

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