Food

This past week I noticed how much of my life revolves around food. David and I embarked on a 11 day detox and I feel as if life has stood still these past few days.

After much discussion on how miserable it would be we decided to watch the MIZZOU game at the local bar last weekend and watched others eats the local fare we weren't privy too. Our small group meets on Mondays night for dinner and we declined due to the food choice, it wasn't on the list. A friends parents are in town and invited us to dinner, but regretfully we didn't go. Food is the main reason for many social outings, and I felt restricted this week and chained to my living room because I was eating "healthy". No really I was.

It just made me realize how much different my life could be if I cut out all the bad food I eat. I really would like to eat healthier, but not if I feel restricted. I also realized how much I snack everyday and if I could cut that out, how much better I would feel. I want to know if the eating 6 meals a day is really better than eating 3 meals. (I tend eat lunch then snack the rest of the day) I think if my snacks were healthier smaller meals, it would help me to cut back on the snacking at night.

Back to the point. Because eating is a huge portion of my life, I thought how lonely it would be to only eat "organic" all the time. I would never go out or have friends. I think about all the great restaurants I would never eat at, or all my favorites I would have to abandon. The most important thing I will take from this experience is to eat a healthy meal if I know I indulge later, and if I want dessert maybe I don't eat an appetizer of the bread basket.

Tips for running/training for a marathon

My marathon training reminded me when I put my mind to something I can do it! Here are my Top 10 Tips I learned while training.

1. Do not schedule anything for the day after a marathon. However, as one marathoner said the day after, "I'm walking to work the kinks out". Walking on a treadmill will help to relieve muscle tension, even though it hurts.

2. Buy a Fuel Belt. I learned this the hard way, by exhausting myself and getting sick after a long run without drinking anything.
Stay hydrated, they say that for a reason.

3. You will lose at least one toenail.

4. Have two pairs of running shoes that you switch between.

5. Eat "gu" every four miles. There are good flavors out there. I prefer the PowerBar gel brand.

6. If you buy running shorts/skirts buy ones with shorts underneath instead of the underwear. They are much more comfortable. I prefer the skirts.

7. Make sure you use the restroom before your long runs, or make sure there is a restroom on your route. Nature will call.

8. Make sure you have an upbeat playlist to run to.

9. Have a running partner is a great asset, but running is a solo sport so training on your own is doable.

10. The satisfaction of completing the race is one of great accomplishment. One 1% of people have completed a marathon. Count yourself as one of the few.