Day 3: A cooking frenzy!

About 2-3 times a week, I have cook all my meals for the next few days. Here I have some veggies sauteeing on the upper left. Upper right I'm cooking up some lean ground turkey. And in the front pot is spaghetti squash!

So I woke up today feeling great! I got 7.5 hours sleep last night and slept like a baby!

8:00AM Woke up.

8:30 AM 1/4 c. dried apple, raw almonds

9:00AM One hour spin class

10:45AM raw almonds

11:30 1 egg and 2 egg whites with 4 oz imitation crab mixed in, baby carrots

I stopped at Sprout's this morning to buy some more food. On a Paleo diet, and not spending much time at home, you have to plan and prepare your meals ahead of time. Yes, this is very time-consuming. Twice a week, I go into a 1 1/2-2 hour cooking frenzy. . . washing, chopping, cooking, steaming, measuring, and portioning all my food into little Tupperware containers or plastic baggies. That way, in the morning when I head out to work, I can grab a few ready-made meals, throw them in a bag, and then keep them in the fridge at work. Or, during the day, if I come home for a few hours, rather than fishing around in the cupboard for something to eat, and noshing on dried fruit or raw almonds (which are healthy, but calorically dense), I already have some yummy meals ready to toss in the microwave ready to eat in just a few minutes. It's like I'm making my own "convenience foods"!

The time I take out of my day to prepare everything is SO WORTH IT! People say it's expensive to eat healthy. Sure, some healthier options out there (like coconut oil vs. vegetable oil) cost more. But in the long run, planning ahead and preparing your meals at home will save you beaucoup bucks, since you're not grabbing Subway or Flame Broiler, or eating whatever else is in the Standard American Diet (S.A.D.). So, in my mind, it's almost like I'm getting PAID for my time in the kitchen because it is saving me money in the long run!


1:00PM 2 oz chicken breast, 6 oz fresh blueberies, 2 dark chocolate squares

2:30PM 1 Hour weights. Today I did some 5x5 deadlifts and 5x5 overhead press. I got up to 135# in the deadlift (traditional) and failed on my last 65# overhead press. I began arching my back too much and it became more of a push press. (Sigh, I've forever been stuck at 65# and can't get more than that much weight over my head. Oh well, gotta keep on trying!)

3:45PM Branched Chain Amino Acids


5:00PM 1/2 of my spaghetti squash, ground turkey, and marinara sauce dinner

6:00PM 45 Minutes Tread & Shred Class

7:45PM The other 1/2 of spaghetti squash/ground turkey/marinara, more baby carrots, and 2 pimento-stuffed olives!

Macronutrient breakdown: 1194 calories, 73 g. protein, 121 g. carbs, 49 g. fat. I realize this is UNDEREATING and I DO NOT recommend this! Especially for my level of activity. I honestly did not feel that hungry today and when I totalled this up tonight, I was shocked and irritated with myself. Not eating enough will cause your body to start eating into muscle mass. Muscle recovery is slowed down and you risk overtrianing. It can also slow down your metabolism as your body can go into starvation mode. I do have some rice protein powder and might make a little protein shake with some frozen blueberries before I go to bed, but I hate eating anything this close to bedtime because when I have food in my stomach, it is sometimes hard to sleep.

9:30PM LIGHT'S OUT! Got an early morning trail run tomorrow! El Moro rocks my world!

Paleo Challenge: Day 2

7:00AM Wake up. Got 8 hours of sleep and felt great!
8:00AM raw almonds, 1/4c. raisins, 5 egg whites with chopped onion, cooked in coconut oil, and 1/4 avocado
9:30AM apple
10:30AM Ran 3 miles to the HB pier and back with my friend Sarah. Then we did a metabolic conditioning circuit of 25 KB swings, 25 pushups, and 25 Ab-mat situps for 3 rounds. Awesome!
12:00PM A big salad of romaine lettuce with 4 oz chicken breast and cilantro salad dressing.
3:00PM Banana, 1 88% Dark Chocolate square, and 2 scrambled eggs
6:30 PM Raw almonds, 1/4 c. raisins, 4 oz chicken, and 1 c. broccoli

Macronutrient breakdown: 1465 calories, 103 g. protein, 153 g. carbs, and 53 g. fat

So, 2 days into the "challenge", I feel good. But I'm sure I could still be eating more. Especially since tomorrow is going to be a big workout day...And I also need to find some good Paleo recipes since I am getting bored of eating the same foods! (I've been eating a lot of this stuff for the last month already!)

Paleo Challenge: Day 1

5:00AM Wake up. I went to bed at 10:00PM. I fell asleep right away, but didn't feel the most refreshed when my alarm went off.
7:00AM Turkey burger patty, 4 oz sweet potatoes, 10 strawberries (I do a lot of dinner for breakfast due to convenience or whatever).
9:00AM Apple
9:20AM 8 mile run at the Back Bay
10:45AM Grapefruit
12:00PM 16 raw almonds, dried apple, 6 oz blueberries
12:45 PM Started my first day of my new workout program. I wrote a new 6-week strength-training program for myself. I want to increase my strength in all these lifts (front squat, back squat, overhead squat, deadlift, and bench press). I realize that my training for the OC Marathon on May 1st may interfere with me achieving greatest strength. However, all of these lifts plus some other strength work I have programmed into my routine will help increase core strength which will help me as a runner. My ultimate goal is to be a great runner, so I am willing let any potential strength gains take a hit.
Side note: I did mostly legs day. I did 115# front squat and a 90# barbell bench press! Woo hoo!
1:45PM 4 oz chicken breast, 4 oz sweeet potatoes, 1c. mixed veggies
4:00PM 16 raw almonds, 1/4 c. rasins
6:00PM 1 egg + 4 egg whites, 1 c. broccoli
8:30PM apple, 1 88% dark chocolate square

Macronutrient breakdown: 1640 calories, 96 g. protein, 224 g. carbohydrates, 40 g. fat

I definitely should have eaten more today. I had a super busy day at work and didn't bring enough food with me. There were Girl Scout cookies in the break room. It wasn't even a temptation, probably because I am committed to the next 60 days. You would think that by working in a gym with some amazingly fit personal trainers that such treats could be avoided in the break room, but. . . no.

Something else worth mentioning. . . today's diet is typical of what I have beeen eating. Going forward, I would like to experiment with different recipes to add variety to my diet.

60 Day Paleo Challenge

While my blog usually discusses running, races, or other adventures, I'm going to do something different for the next two months!

I am about to embark on a new adventure. This "adventure" has to do with how I fuel my body. Nutrition has always been a confusing topic for me. And who wouldn't be confused??? Every week there is a new book on how to "lose weight and keep it off forever!" Or, some crazy fad diet where you supposedly can eat Twinkies every day and still lose weight. Of course, there's the tried and true "calories in vs. calories out" mantra we've been hearing for years. . . but what exactly are those "calories in" supposed to be? If your daily diet consisted of 1,800 calories from prepackaged, processed, junk food, my guess is you would look and feel a lot different than if your diet was 1,800 calories of lean proteins, fresh fruits and veggies, raw nuts and seeds.

My interest is not just in changing my body composition or achieving a certain look. I also want to improve the way my body performs. I want to perform better when I am out running or lifting weights. I want to recover faster. I want to sleep better. I just want to feel better overall!

So my quest to find the best way to fuel my body began when I was 18 years old. I became a vegetarian. I was a lacto-ovo vegetarian for 5 years. Growing up, I was never a big meat eater. I only ate it because it was one of the 4 main food groups--meat, grains, dairy, and fruits/vegetables! (Remember the old food pyramid?) I remember there were a bunch of kids in my high school who were vegetarians. It was kind of a cool and trendy thing to do. I read a book on vegetarianism and one day just quit eating meat. I didn't miss it. I lost 5 pounds within that first month that I quit eating meat! It was easy.

Most vegetarians don't really eat all that healthy anyway. They get
too many carbs and have poor muscle tone.

After 5 years of consuming no meat, I gradually started eating fish, and then some chicken. I can't even really remember why I began eating chicken and fish. I guess I felt that my body needed more protein. This was while I was in college. I remember deciding to get at least 5 servings of fruits and vegetables in my diet every day, a habit that my body quickly adapted to and something that I easily continue to do to this day. My body loves fresh fruits and veggies!

When I was training at CrossFit Marina back in 2009, I heard a lot of buzz about the Zone diet and the Paleo diet. If you have ever set foot in a CrossFit gym, you will know that those athletes are deeply concerned about elite fitness! They are concerned about the best way to work out, the best way to lift weights, the best way to run, the best way to achieve body fat loss and lean muscle gain, AND the best way to feed the machine! Both Barry Sears and Robb Wolf were frequently touring different gyms and giving seminars on the Zone (Sears) or Paleo (Wolf) diets. I never attended one of these certs, but learned a lot from some of the trainers and fellow Crossfitters about what to eat. I'm not going to go into the details right now about these two diets. But what I'll say is the Paleo diet sounded too extreme, cutting out all grains, dairy, and legumes. However, the Zone diet sounded more reasonable and more doable, so I tried it and found it really hard to stick to. And the whole "block" system was too complicated and more than I cared to learn about.

I wish that was me running in this pic!

So over the past few years, I've had quite the epic exercise routine. I've been busy with lots of running, strength training, CrossFit, yoga, spin class, and some crazy, long hikes. I have fueled myself with a mostly non-processed foods diet. Common staples include: oatmeal, apples, grapefruit, spaghetti squash, eggs, egg whites, raw almonds, blueberries, strawberries, green smoothies (kale, collard greens, swiss chard, spinach, celery, ground flax seeds, rice protein powder, apples), salmon, mahi mahi, chicken breast, salads, tomatoes, string cheese, cottage cheese, yogurt, and protein bars. My favorite "junk" foods that frequently found their way into my diet include: tortilla chips, protein bars, frozen yogurt, chocolate chip cookies, and diet sodas and diet energy drinks.

Mmmmm! So yummy, but sends insulin levels thru the roof!

I know I haven't been a perfectionist with my diet, but I had found a way of eating that helped me maintain a super active lifestyle. But something that always bothered me is that I was never able to achieve as lean a look as I wanted. And I always craved caffeine (diet sodas) and sugary treats (froyo and baked goodies).

When I was getting ready to make a road trip to San Francisco last December for the NFEC 50K, I was browsing around iTunes for a new podcast to listen to when I stumbled across the Paleo Solution podcast by Robb Wolf. I downloaded that and a couple other podcasts that sounded interesting. The Paleo Solution was the first podcast I played and I ended up listening to that podcast for the entire 7 hours to, and the entire 7 hours from San Fran. I was hooked! Robb Wolf and Andy Deas are interesting and entertaining. I learned a lot about the reasons why humans should be eating this way. Their "6 listeners" write in with questions about nutrition and exercise programming. I was definitely intrigued.

I continued to listen to the podcast, and in January, I cut out all grains and dairy. I allowed myself to have cheat meals on the weekend and have my favorite frozen yogurt. But the aftermath of those cheat meals was much like having a "food hangover!" It is really interesting to see, when you eat super clean, how the body reacts to dairy, wheat, and sugars. I have come to the conclusion that many of us have some level of lactose- and gluten-intolerance. So I have kind of played around with a "Paleo-esque" kind of diet this last month. I really notice a huge difference when I am following strict Paleo after a few days. I keep thinking, "Wow, I wish I could feel this good ALL the time!" Just a brief, and stint on this eating plan was enough for me to realize that there is something to it.

Probably one of the most entertaining books on eating like a caveman!

So. . . the whole reason for this post! I have decided I am going to go on a strict Paleo diet for the next 60 days. There are several books out there with slight variations on what is and is not allowed to eat on this diet. I am going to stick to the recommendations by Robb Wolf in his podcast and his recent bestseller "The Paleo Solution." Every day I am going to log my food and my workouts into this blog. I am going to try out recipes and post them here. I will also write about the Paleo diet and discuss A LOT more why I am doing this.

Here is the plan: lean meat (chicken, turkey, fish, pork), eggs, vegetables, berries, raw nuts and seeds, and some fruit. Just so I am not a complete weirdo, I will allow myself to have 3 "cheats" per week. Cheats are limited to the following: one meal (like when I go out to eat with friends), one frozen yogurt with no toppings except for berries, or 2 cookies (because I love cookies!) From previous experience, I might not even take advantage of the cheats because of the aftermath pretty much makes me feel like death.

I am SO looking forward to looking, feeling, and performing better. Now, I'm off to sleep in my pitch-black room! Will write more manana!

Update

I've had a couple people call me out on not blogging much this year. Haha, I didn't even know anyone read this! I mean, there are so many great bloggers out there and so many amazing athletes who have much more interesting experiences to blog about!

Well, I'm going to recap my races of 2010, so here it goes!

Race #1 - February 6, 2010 - WTRS 18K

This was part of Baz's Winter Trail Run Series. It seems like whenever I run these races, it is raining! But it made for some muddy fun times. I carpooled with Molly, Dorene, Annie, and Eric to Blue Jay off Ortega Hwy in South Orange County. The race was 10.6 miles up the San Juan Trail which is a rocky, technical trail and has some steep sections. They're not exactly the most runnable trails, and when it rains, the trails turn into rivers! I slipped and fell at one point. I could feel the sting on my leg, but I got up and kept running for a while. When another runner caught up to me he asked, "Did you fall?" I finally looked down, I realized my leg was covered in blood and it was also running down the back of my leg!
It may look bad, but I just skinned my leg. There were no deep cuts, and I didn't hurt anywhere else from falling. So I kept running and crossed the finish line in 2:21:44, covered in mud and blood, but with a big smile on my face. I was having a blast! :)

It was fun to run that race with my good friend, Dorene. She has been running road marathons for several years, and I recommended the Winter Trail Series as a good way to get into trail running. I remember being concerned about her during the race, and wondering if she was having any fun. It was cold, windy, raining, muddy, etc. And I imagine some people might not enjoy running in such conditions. But Dorene finished just a few minutes after me, so I got to see her cross the finish line, and she also had a big smile on her face! It takes a certain kind of person to "enjoy" running in these kind of conditions! So, I was glad she had fun. She's been running lots of trails this year, and will soon do her first 50K in December--the North Face 50K. And I'm running it too!

As we left Blue Jay, we heard that the storm closed down Ortega Hwy, so we had to go the other direction towards Lake Elsinore. As the storm began to clear up, I took this amazing picture of a rainbow as we came down the mountain!

Southern California is such an amazing place!!!

Race #2 - March 21, 2010 - LA Marathon

This year, the LA Marathon had a new racecourse, which they called the "Stadium to Sea." It started at Dodger Stadium, went through some of the more tourist-y areas of Los Angeles, and then finished at the Santa Monica Pier. Last year, the LA Marathon is where I PR'ed, breaking four hours. But this year, I'm not as well-trained, so my race day strategy was just to enjoy the race!

Molly, Eric, and I at the starting line--and promoting the upcoming Whoo's In El Moro 50K.

As I mentioned in my LA Marathon post for last year, I love the city of LA. I went to school up there, so I lived there for a few years. It was fun to run through some of my old stomping grounds. But I have to say my true love is running on the trails. 26.2 miles of pavement hurts! And there are so many people running. . .

I think there is something like 20,000 runners in the LA Marathon, while a trail race usually has about 50-100 runners, depending on the race. I like the more low-key feel of trail races. I finished the LA Marathon in about 4:31:58, which makes it my 3rd fastest marathon. Not bad for just "taking it easy!"

Race #3 - May 2, 2010 - OC Marathon

After running the LA Marathon, I told myself, "Okay, no more road races! Stick to trails!" Less than a week later, I was at South Coast Plaza and saw a booth for the OC Marathon. I was just curious, so I went over to check it out. Before I knew it, I was filling out an application and swiping my credit card!

So on the morning of May 2, I met up with a couple other friends who were running OC. I have to say, I really do enjoy this racecourse. It was my 2nd year running it. Again, I hadn't been hardcore marathon training, so like the LA Marathon, I decided to just "take it easy." I finished in 4:43:19. I mean, I was really taking my time. Around mile 21, I was stopping in the grass on the side to sit down and stretch. I felt fine. I just wasn't in any hurry. I actually had another race on my mind. . . Whoo's In El Moro 50K, which was just two weeks later. I didn't want to run OC Marathon too hard. Something interesting I'm finding the more I do these long-distance races is I no longer hit that "wall". My body seems to be getting used to these distances. And I'm sure it also helps when I'm not pressuring myself to finish within some time goal.

Race #4 - May 15, 2010 - Whoo's In El Moro 50K

I have been running with Molly (and the Dawn Patrol) for a couple of years now. We frequently do early morning trail runs in El Moro together. So when Molly decided she wanted to put on a 50K in El Moro, I was so excited!!! El Moro is one of my favorite places to run!

Here we are at the starting line, with Molly giving directions for the race. She did a great job with her first race as a Race Director! The aid stations were very well-stocked and well-staffed. The race T-shirts and medals were really cool. And TK Burger was served at the finish line. I saw a lot of my good friends out there. Overall the race was well-organized and I enjoyed every minute of it! And, I also PR'ed in the 50K with a time of 6:34:00. Sweet! And the weather that day was perfect too--overcast and 60's. Overall, a first-class race!

Me, Greg, and Pam at the starting line of WEIM 50K.

My next race is going to be in two weeks from now, the North Face 50K in San Francisco. A bunch of us are going up there to run: me, Dorene, Molly, Pam, Annie, and Shannon who is running her first 50 miler up there!

Over the next month, I'm also going to update on a few other things I did this year, like El Morothon 3, Havasupai, helping out at Los Pinos 50K and also hiking San Jacinto, San Gorgonio, and Mt. Baldy all in one weekend!

Runner Too Cool To Say Hi

Christmas and Running

Dawn Patrol Christmas Eve run

Rachel, Jody, rePete, Molly, me (red shirt and giraffe sleeves),
Shannon, Skip, E-Rod, Jeff S., and Lisa

What would I ever do without this crazy bunch! This picture was taken yesterday morning, on our Christmas Eve run in El Moro/Laguna Wilderness. I haven't been out much on the running scene since the Mt. Disappointment 50K in August, hence the lack of updates on my blog. While I love running, in and of itself, it was the people I run with that I missed the most.

So, here's what I've been up to the last few months!

MT. DISAPPOINTMENT 50K: I took a little break from running. It started with a muscle strain in my left quad that I incurred from my 50K PR at Mt. Dis. But, it was almost worth it. I had a great race! I felt fantastic and full of energy for the first 26 miles of the race, and then there was that insane 5 mile hill to the finish at the top of Mt. Wilson. It was such a great race and I finished with a 6:40. The runner's high lasted for a couple days, but the muscle strain took much longer to heal.

My only picture from Mt. Disappointment...Sadly these hills burnt to a crisp one month later in the massive Station fire in the Angeles National Forest. AC100 had to be canceled and rumor has it that both AC100 and Mt. Disappointment 50/50 will be canceled in 2010.

SEARCH FOR A LOST FRIEND/RUNNER: I got to go back out on the trails on Wednesday, September 23. But, it was for a very unfortunate occasion. Friend and fellow ultrarunner, Gina Natera and her brother-in-law went trail running on Sunday morning, September 20. Most of us found out Gina was missing on Tuesday afternoon. I found out on the SoCal Trail Headz private website. Shortly after, my Facebook feed was abuzz with updates and pleas for help in finding them. Later that evening, we had a conference call with about 25 ultrarunners from the area. The mood on the call was somber, as we were all deeply concerned. The search and rescue volunteers needed help combing the trails of the Cleveland National Forest, so the next day, many of us rearranged our schedules to go to Lazy W and Blue Jay look for them.

Friend, Mike K., EKP, @anaginghipster Jeff, @aquadump rePete, and Shannon on Los Pinos. We could smile again after we received word Gina and her brother-in-law were found safe!

I went with a group up the gnarly Los Pinos trail. By early afternoon, we saw a helicopter hovering over a certain spot in the distance for a little while and then it took off. Shortly after, we got a phone call that she was found and being taken to the hospital. She has since recovered and, of course, is back to running. Her brother-in-law was found earlier that morning and he was also fine. It was a miracle she was found alive. She had been without food or water for 3 days and the temperatures were in the 90s and 100s, with almost zero humidity in the air.

STRESS FRACTURE: While Gina won her battle against Mother Nature that day, I lost mine. That day was the first pain-free run I had since Mt. Dis. After we had word she was found alive, we were happily celebrating by running all the way back to the command post at Lazy W. The Los Pinos trail is covered with loose rocks and I took one little bad step. I felt a pinch in my foot, but it didn't really hurt. I kept on running, and ran a few more times after that day. But that pinch developed into a very painful stress fracture. So in October, I began to take more time off my running.

BONE SPUR SURGERY: When I saw my podiatrist for the stress fracture, I asked her why my foot sometimes tingled on the inside near my big toe. She pointed to a painless bony bump on the top of my foot and said it was a bone spur (saddle bone deformity) that was pinching the nerve and it would have to eventually be removed. It wasn't anything urgent that had to be done right away, but I decided to kill two birds with one stone and have the surgery done while I was taking time off anyway.

This is what my foot looked like when I went to the doctor's office one week after surgery.

I had the surgery at the end of October, and it went really well. There were no complications, and I didn't even need my pain meds. But my foot was wrapped up in stitches and bandages for TWO WEEKS and I couldn't get them wet, which, of course, meant NO EXERCISE! Aaargh! Now I think I have some kind of idea of what it's like to go through heroin withdrawals. (Well, maybe not that bad, but it really sucked.) I began doing situps and pushups and anything I could do, but without breaking a sweat, just trying to get my heart rate up. It was really sad! During those two weeks, I would wake up in the morning, starting to feel like Bill Murray in "Groundhog Day". I was very limited with what I could do. I had to stay off my feet as much as possible, icing my ankle, just above the bandages, foot elevated, watching television ALL DAY.

This is how I spent two weeks of my life.

MAKING A COMEBACK: Now, don't tell my doctor this, but the day I got my stitches out, I thought, "Finally! I'm going to do something low-impact! I'm going to hot yoga!" Ummmm, big mistake. Apparently that was a little too much excitement for my poor little foot. In hindsight, yeah, what was I thinking??? "Hey, Michelle, your foot was cut open TWO WEEKS AGO and a chunk of bone was removed with a hammer and a chisel!!! Don't you think you should take it easy?!?" Then, the very next morning, being a stubborn fool, I went to Crossfit. Wearing shoes was a bit uncomfortable since my foot was still swollen, and the surgical site was somewhat of an open wound. It's a good thing they actually encourage you to take your shoes off when you Crossfit. But I still had to majorly modify my workout. It has now been about 5 weeks since getting my stitches out. Every day, I've been able to increase my exercise load. Every day, I can lace my left shoe a little tighter, and now I'm starting to run again! Yipee!

HELLO AND GOOD-BYE: So, my first trail run back with the Dawn Patrol, about two weeks ago, I met up with Jeff and Beiyi. It was so exciting to be running with them again. But within the first mile, I had to break the news. I'm moving to Phoenix in January! Yes, I'm back to running, but I'm leaving! Amidst all the craziness the past few months, I also left my job in pharmaceutical sales with a nice severance package. I've lived most of my life in Southern California, and now I just want to try something new! I have a place to live out there. I have a few friends and family there. I don't have anything tying me down here, so why not get up and live someplace new? Saying good-bye to all my friends here does not feel like it will be forever. My parents still live in Orange County and there are so many great trail races here in SoCal, so I know I'll be back to run with the Dawn Patrol and the Trail Headz whenever I'm visiting. Plus, there are some great races in Arizona which a lot of my friends travel to run. I'm already making plans to meet up with some of my SoCal friends for Zane Grey, Old Pueblo, a Grand Canyon Rim2Rim2Rim, and, of course, there's Javelina 100.


One of the things that makes me saddest in life is when people come and go, but my family will always be here and I know I'll be seeing a lot of my running friends throughout the years. I consider my running friends to be my second family, a group of lifelong friends. And here's one of my favorite Dawn Patrol pictures taken after our St. Patty's Day run earlier this year!

Okay, well it came out kinda blurry, but here's E-Rod, Alexa, Molly, me, Corrinne, Jeff S. (behind Corrinne), Pete (Mr. Dawn Patrol, himself), (and rePete crouching down behind Pete), and Cyrus