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Farro Salad with Asparagus and Tomatoes
It’s finally spring! It’s always a little hard to tell in Ohio. Spring technically arrives on the calendar long before the weather changes for the better, but knowing that it’s happening, even if just in title is comforting. Even when the weather refuses to cooperate, we can start to celebrate the trappings of spring in the kitchen and mix up the ingredient list. Ok, so we’re not into the fresh/local asparagus season yet, but you can still get some long-range-transported-out-of-state asparagus at the store, pretty much wherever you live. (Although I feel a little guilty for endorsing this, the harsh truth is that, in Ohio, I do not always eat fresh…
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Questions about Running and Heart Health
As runners, we’re accustomed to hearing that we’ll “ruin our knees” and other nonsense, usually from someone who uses that colloquial wisdom as an excuse to be a couch potato. And although I find those people to be irritating, their assertions don’t trouble me. Given the alternative of being a couch potato, I think my knees are better off belonging to a healthy-weight runner, thank you very much. Yes, every time someone makes a comment about running ruining my knees, I want to say something snarky like, “I hope that can of soda doesn’t ruin your pancreas.” So yes, I still find the insinuation oddly annoying. However, it doesn’t give…
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Flourless Pumpkin Coconut Cookies
When we have potlucks at work, we always pass around a list so everyone can sign up for something. I’ve been banned from bringing desserts because for some reason, my coworkers are suspicious that I will sneak vegetables into the cookies like a parent trying to trick a kid. And by gosh, they’re not wrong. But if they would just give me a chance, I would knock their socks off! They have no idea what they’re missing! Honestly, it had never occurred to me to combine pumpkin and coconut, but what can I say? My preconceived ideas were proven wrong, and I had my mind blown by how much I love…
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Ina Garten’s Beans and Greens
I spent the better part of last year waiting anxiously for the release of Ina Garten’s new cookbook, Cooking for Jeffrey. When I found out it was going to be released ON THE ACTUAL DAY OF MY BIRTHDAY, it felt like I won the lottery. I have historically described Ina as some combination of my culinary soulmate and my spirit animal. Everything she makes is notorious for being done right and being easy to reproduce because of her great instructions. So far, I haven’t proven that theory wrong. My mom anticipated the fact that I would want need this book, and she heroically pre-ordered it for me from Amazon.com. (You too…
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Smoky Black Bean Soup
The hubs and I have a real thing for plantain chips lately. If you haven’t tried them, they’re like extra thick starchy potato chips. So yeah, it’s not like they’re health food, but they do have this fun perk… Unlike the banana chips you typically find in the store, they’re savory instead of sweet and don’t have any added sugar. We discovered this during our 30-day challenge to exclude added sugars, and we may have gone overboard. (It turns out that when your only nutritional strategy is to avoid added sugar, you end up eating a lot of cheese and chips. Maybe don’t follow my example.) Anyways, I’ve been questing…
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Why I’m Embracing Running Now More Than Ever
I have no idea why, but I recently became re-enchanted with running. Running has always been there. It’s been in the background of every day and every week for many many years. I would look at my calendar and give top billing to the things that I thought were most important – school, and then eventually work. Because (unless you’re a professional athlete) they are supposed to be the most important things, right? And then I would try to fit running in around those things. I used running to burn calories and “stay healthy” as an obligation rather than as a separate practice with its own goals and redeeming qualities. I…
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Classic Turkey Chili
I know you’re not cold today, but it’s going to be cold again before it’s perma-warm, and when it is, you’re going to want some of this turkey chili. As much as I hate me some winter, I do appreciate having a good reason to make a giant pot of hot and satisfying turkey chili, one of my go-to winter recipes. So, even if it has been in the 60’s this week, I’m making it anyways, and not to be bossy, but so should you. Gather your ingredients, folks. (Yes, I made this picture tiny on purpose because sadly, I didn’t realize until just this moment that I only have blurry ones.…
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Finding Happiness by Knowing Yourself Better
Or: All I Really Want is Healthy Food and a Good Run I’ve spent a good bit of my life searching for happiness and assuming that it would arrive in the form of the attainment of traditional goals like career success. I have been living with the subconscious belief system that happiness will be a destination, even though my brain knows better. Happiness is in the things we do every day. And if you can’t find it now, then it’s time to make changes! One of the biggest road blocks between me and happiness has been a failure to identify what makes me happy. If you don’t take the time to figure out…
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The Rewards of Record Keeping
Whether for good or for bad, we runners seem to be obsessive record-keepers, logging miles, minutes, pace, race stats, etc. Maybe it’s because I require validation that I’ve done enough, run fast enough or far enough, validation that I’m maintaining my fitness year in and year out. Maybe I’m even looking for validation that I haven’t peaked yet? I’ve been using the same trusty running log for 13 years. There are plenty of good reasons to keep nice thorough notes on your training. Your notes might help you piece together a strategy for improving. Maybe you’re noticing that you run best an hour after you eat a banana or that it takes…
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Everything Bagel Popcorn
It’s Oscar weekend! Does that excite you? I get excited to hear that the Oscars are coming up despite the facts that I generally haven’t seen any of the nominated movies (I’m always like four years behind), and that I’m not likely going to watch the Oscars themselves. Who can stay up for things like this on Sunday night? I’ve got a bedtime to be true to, and if I’m going to cheat on that, it’s going to be for The Walking Dead. But nonetheless, The Academy Awards sound so exciting… the pretty dresses and all that glamour. And the media does a good job of making me feel like I should want…
