Fit and Hungry

Unless your salad looks like this, you may be consuming more calories than you think. A salad can go very wrong when you combine it with inappropriateness. For example, a spring mix salad topped with Doritos probably ain’t a good idea. And no, not even the “baked” kind. When you’re at home, focus on filling your salad bowl with vegetables and fruit. And don’t forget the protein, add lean meat or garbanzo beans, if you’re a trendy vegetarian. Use cheese and nuts sparingly.

When you’re at a restaurant, order your dressing on the side (if you’re not doing it already). Avoid salads with bacon, blue cheese, or anything else fattening (albeit delicious). Which specific salads should you avoid? Go here for the complete list. However, here are the big ones to watch:

1. Macaroni Grill’s Seared Sea Scallops Salad – 1,170 calories
2. Chili’s Southwestern Cobb Salad – 1080 calories
3. Ruby Tuesday’s Carolina Chicken Salad – 1,007 calories
4. Cosi’s Signature Salad – 611 calories, 45 grams of fat

Be safe out there.

Instead of grabbing a cookie, how about grabbing something that looks like a cookie but isn’t bad for you. The product is Suzies Spelt Puffed Cakes. (It’s a rice cake.)

Yes, rice cakes are synonymous with styrofoam but this one is actually edible. It’s filling, sweet, and only 33 calories.

Don’t like it plain? Here are other ways to help you enjoy this low-calorie treat:

1. Spread a layer of peanut butter or almond butter on top of the rice cake.
2. Eat the rice cake with low fat string cheese on the side.
3. Slap a piece of turkey between two rice cakes.
4. Toss it around the office like a mini freesbie.

Here’s the lowdown:

On September 26th, 2009, I competed in the Duathlon World Championships, a race that tested my strength and my character. Here is my account of the events that transpired on that unforgettable day.

If Only The Run Mattered
by Angel Stone

It’s the morning of the Duathlon World Championships. I wake up and head downstairs for breakfast with Don, a 60 year old age grouper who befriended me during the Parade of Nations. We sit down and eat more than we should. I take carbo loading to another level filling my first plate with cantaloupe, pineapples, and watermelon. My second plate is piled high with a stack of pancakes misted with syrup. Feeling full and anxious, I go back to my hotel room to relax. I spend an hour reading and 27 minutes pacing. Eventually I take a nap. At 12:30 p.m., I eat my final meal before the race, an english muffin and a bagel topped with peanut butter. I feel fat and happy. At 2:00 p.m., I meet Don and his wife downstairs and we drive to the race site. It’s sprinkling outside. At 3:15 p.m, I start my warm up. Normally my warm up is laborious but today is different. I feel light and fresh. At 3:40 p.m., I line up with my age group. The gun goes off. I start running.

I position myself in the front half of the pack and my plan is to stay there for as long as I can. At mile 2, I’m holding my position. Even better, I’m starting to catch the ladies who went out to fast. The light mist is soothing, keeping me cool and relaxed. At the turn around point, the lead ladies are coming up the same hill that we are going down. I count 1, 2, 7, 14, 23 people infront of me. Oh my gosh, I’m in the Top 25. At a competition of this level and with a field of talent red clay deep, I’m near the front. I feel amazing. I catch up to a girl who is struggling. When I pass, I give my standard “you can do it, keep it up.” But something compels me to assist her. I slow a bit and say, “try to stay with me, I’ll pace you.” She says okay, in between breaths. She picks up my pace and we run side by side. My stride is strong, my breathing is under control, and I feel incredible. I hear her start to pant. I say, “slow your breathing down, Erica. You must relax.” She immediately responds taking deep breaths through her nose and out her mouth.

We continue running together. On the last mile, which is heavily sprinkled with hills, she can’t keep up with me. I look back, yell her name, and wave her forward. She does not speed up. I do not wait for her; this is a competition after all. I give her one final encouraging shout and then bust a Usain Bolt straight to the transition area. I feel like a champion. This is going to be the best race of my life. I cross the timing pad and look at my watch. I look again in utter astonishment. I ran 6.2 miles in 40:24 minutes, a 6:31 min/mile pace. I’ve never ran this fast before. Ever.

Jubilant, I run to my bike, yank off my sneakers and strap on my bike shoes. I put on my helmet and stuff the last half of a banana into my mouth. The calming mist turns to rain. It rushes to the ground making stability impossible and a PR questionable. I take my bike off the rack and shuffle as fast as I can to the mount line. I place my foot onto the pedal to clip in but I don’t. My foot slips. Approaching racers yell, “keep it moving, get out of the way, go”. I angrily shout back, “I’m trying!” I scoot up to avoid other oncoming racers and after a few frustrated attempts, I clip in.

I get into a comfortable gear and conservatively ease my way out of the stadium trying to avoid the athletes who now hate me and the puddles of water. I safely make it onto the course and it is clear that the rain is planning to take a front row seat for my grand performance. I drop my chest toward the handlebars and try to ignore it. I pull an energy gel from my leg grippers, tear it open with my teeth and struggle to stay erect while riding one-handed. I’m so bad at this. Sugar and carbs consumed, I’m ready to turn it up. I pass a female cyclist with disc wheels. Yes! I pass a cyclist with aero bars. Yes! Things are going well. I approach an older gentlemen and with a smile say, “this can’t be safe, right?”. He smiles in agreement.

I approach the first of many downhill turns. A novice cyclist, I decide to mimic the guys in front of me. They stop pedaling and slow down. I do the same. That’s when I realize how much braking power is lost on wet roads. I don’t like it. A few minutes later, I come to another downhill turn only steeper and sharper. At the bottom of the hill is a two-way underpass divided by a huge cement column. I approach the descent with extreme care. I stop pedaling and slow down. But I can’t. In a panic, I squeeze the brakes again. Nothing. Desperate to avoid that pretty little cement wall, I squeeze the life out of my brakes. My back wheel fishtails and I head straight for the column. I try to brake, to turn my handlebars, to think of some way to avoid what seems destined to happen.

I am barreling toward a cement column and don’t know how to stop. I am panicking and don’t know how to stop. I am losing all control and don’t know how to stop. And I don’t. I fly head first into the cement column. I scream. My head bounces off the column sending me in the opposite direction. Faster than I ran that 10k, my head hits the ground and I land on my left side, bike still attached. I can’t feel my legs. This sends me straight to crazy-ville. I start to hyperventilate. I see blood falling from my chin onto the ground. Is this the end? Suddenly, I hear the worst sound one can hear after a crash: another cyclist crashing! I shut my eyes and brace myself as a cyclist runs me over. I scream again. I open my eyes and watch him get up and back onto his bike. I’m glad I was there to cushion his fall. Punk!

Three volunteers rush to my side. I, unaware if I will walk again, start crying like a 1 year old. You know, with the suctioned bottom lip action. It is a pitiful sight. An angel of a woman rushes to my side saying, “You’re okay, you’re okay”, while she wipes the snot from my upper lip with her sleeve. (She went above and beyond the call of duty on that one.) With the might of a gladiator, she applies pressure to a spot above my right eye to slow the blood gushing from my forehead. The other people try to remove my foot from my bike shoe. The pain is unbearable. I plead, “stop, it hurts”. I’m not paralyzed. They radio for help as I lay in a puddle of water shivering. The paramedics arrive and shift my immobile body onto one of those flat boards. When they lift me up, I ask, “Is this thing safe?” That’s when I knew I was going to be okay.

The doctors discover that I have a damaged knee and mild abrasions on my hip, shoulders, elbows, and back. I will need stitches to close the gash on my head. And then there’s that mild concussion. My friends are told to wake me up twice each night to make sure I don’t die in my sleep.

On the ride back to the hotel, I sit in the passenger seat and cry. Not the embarrassing tears from before but quiet tears. The tears of a woman who devoted several months of her life to train for this event. The tears of a woman who would have to tell her supporters back home that she didn’t finish. The tears of a woman who was on track to have the best race of her life. My spirit ached.

Today, I still feel a great sadness. Fortunately, I have special people in my life helping me see beyond this disappointment. The show must go on. And it will. I have another triathlon this weekend. It is the last race of the season. I will be there and when that gun goes off, I’m gonna run like a stole something!

A reader asked: Why do you always tell me to eat immediately after our strength training workouts?

I had to post this question because I am constantly reminding my clients to refuel after their session with me. This gentle reminder is usually met by an eye roll and a dismissive, “okay,okay”. But there’s reason why I tell them to do this.

The main purpose of carb intake after physical activity is to replenish depleted stores of liver and muscle glycogen. The timing of carb intake has an important effect on the rate of muscle glycogen synthesis after exercise. Studies have shown that when carb intake is delayed (2 hours after exercise), muscle glycogen concentration is 45% lower compared with ingestion of the amount of carb immediately after exercise.

Are you officially confused? Let me try to break it down.

Carbohydrates play many roles in the body, but one of its main functions is to provide energy to the contracting muscle. Glycogen is the storage form of carbohydrates and it is found in both the muscle and the liver. Muscle glycogen is a readily available energy source for the muscle (the one that’s doing the work). Liver glycogen serves to maintain a constant blood glucose level.

When you exercise, especially at high intensities, muscle glycogen is broken down. When muscle glycogen gets too low, then the liver glycogen becomes a source of fuel. Basically, the longer and harder you exercise, the more your glycogen stores are depleted.

Thus, to replenish these stores (that are now broken down and depleted), you must eat. Trust me, it matters. One of the smartest things you can do after a tough workout is to eat within an hour of the session. The meals surrounding your workouts are some of the most important feeding sessions of the day.

Oh, it should go without saying that I’m referring to healthy foods, ones full of carbohydrates and protein. Once I saw a girl leave the gym, walk into a coffee shop, and leave with a giant drink topped with whip cream and caramel. Hmm?

Never ruin a good workout with poor food choices.

Her name is Lindsay Wilkins. She has a beautiful face, a ripped body, and the audacity to be a nice person. I’m left with no choice but to hate her!

Actually, I am one of Lindsay’s biggest fans. She is a constant source of running inspiration and a friendly reminder that I need to do more abdominal work.

I sat down with Lindsay to discuss her life as an elite runner. She’s an expert so take notes.

1. As an elite runner, you are pretty much at the top of your game. What are your personal running goals?

Eventually, I’d love to qualify for the Olympic trials in the marathon. The next time is 2012 and the window opens up next Fall. The standard is a 2:47. My current marathon time is a 2:49.

2. What has been your greatest running moment?

The Marine Corps Marathon ‘08 was my greatest and worst running moment combined. I came in 2nd place. By 11 seconds!

As the race started, my legs felt more tired than usual. But I hung in there. I was in 3rd place for most of the race. I passed one of the girls at mile 21, which definitely gave me momentum to keep going. Then I was one minute behind the leader.

Everybody was yelling to me, “You’re one minute behind.” From mile 21 to mile 26, I slowly gained on her until I was just 10 seconds behind. She was within touching distance. During the last 2/10 of a mile, my calves cramped up and I couldn’t get her. It was a tough race.

3. Does it hurt more knowing you were so close to a victory?

Yes. If I had come in third or had been a minute or two behind I think it would have been easier to say, “Well, she was better than me and it wasn’t my day.” But to come that close and not win was very difficult. You can be perfectly trained, have everything working out perfectly, and just not feel great on that day.

4. What is your pre-race routine?

I lay out my clothes the night before. On race day, I wake up at 6:00 a.m. I like to eat an hour and a half to two hours beforehand. For the 10k, I don’t think it’s as important to eat that far ahead but definitely at least an hour and a half. Once I’m at the race, I warm up for about three miles.

5. What is your ideal pre-race meal?

I’ve gone through a bunch of different things. Currently, I like eating the Cliff Bar Kids, the little Z-bars. I’ll have one before a short race. Before a marathon, I’ll eat two. It’s important to make sure you’re not eating things filled with fiber. You don’t want stomach issues.

6. What are the common mistakes of runners?

When they start seeing success in their races, they start thinking, “Okay, more is better, and I’m just going to keep pushing it and pushing it”. And then they end up injured.

It’s a major mistake and it really does hurt their training. Also, people don’t pay attention to the smaller things like stretching and getting massages. I do ice baths in the summer after my long runs and after races. They are torture but it really, really helps my recovery and prevents me from getting injured.

7. Do you strength train?

Yes. I love doing weights, yoga, and ab work. It’s important to strengthen other muscles and keep your core and upper body strong. Strength is crucial during a race when you’re fatigued and your form starts to fall apart. I lift weights three times a week. It has definitely helped my running.

8. Have you ever had a bad day? Felt like taking a nap instead of running?

I have days during marathon training when I say to myself, “Oh, when is this going to be over?” I’m one to go out the door and then realize I “forgot” to do something. I will try to put it off every second possible. Even though I may not want to do it right then, I think of how much better I’ll feel when I get back. That’s what gets me out there and gets me going. It’s the feeling you get while you’re doing it and the feeling you get when you’re done.

9. Too many people don’t pursue their dreams because they’re afraid of failure. How do you stay driven and focused?

Running takes talent and training but a huge part of it is mental. Sometimes I struggle with that. I’ll think, “Oh, that person is better than me”. And then I’ll operate as if that person is going to beat me. But you can’t do that in running because you never know what will happen. You have to really believe in yourself and believe you can do it. Anything is possible!

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When you see Lindsay running down the street, be sure to honk, wave, or throw money. If you decide to toss her some cash, make sure the bills are neatly rolled and secured with a rubber band so it will be easier for her to carry.