Happy New Year!

It’s been a while since I’ve posted, but I’m still here. Work and life were busy over the holidays, so I stepped away from writing for a while, but now things have settled and it’s time to get back to it.

Let’s start with an update:

Marathon Training

I’m happy to say, my marathon training continues!

I backed off of my running a little bit to take a couple of months to focus more on weight training and core work. The idea was to build some muscle and I’m happy to say, it’s paying off. My body is beginning to show some definition, and now that I’m back to regular running workouts, I’ve noticed a big difference. It’s become ‘easier’ and I’m running faster and with better form (if I run on the track at my local YMCA I can see my reflection in a wall of windows which helps a lot).

I use a run/walk method and have been able to increase my intervals to 1:30 (one minute run, 30 seconds walk) and maintain that throughout my workouts without pushing too hard. It’s a big jump from the 30:30 when I started running that left me huffing!

With just 69 days to go until my runDisney Star Wars Rival Run Challenge, I’m focusing on adding those longer runs, and on fine-tuning my diet. It’s tough to figure out pre and post workout foods that work best – what was enough before, isn’t working now with the extra effort. I also know that I’ll be eating around 3-3:30 am when I do the run, but it’s likely I won’t leave my corral until 6-6:30 am, so I need to figure out the food that will help then too: what to eat when I get up, and what to eat (if anything) while I stand around in the corrals waiting to start. If you have tips on what’s worked for you, I’d love to hear from you!

At this point in the game, I’m now running 3x’s per week (two short runs and 1 long run), with 1 or 2 cross-training workouts in-between: strength training and core work.

runDisney

I’ve been watching all the social media sites as the runDisney weekends keep coming. I drooled through the Disney Wine & Dine Half Marathon Weekend posts, and I awed at those participants that pushed themselves through the Walt Disney World Marathon Weekend.

And just when my marathon challenge seemed so far away, we all got a look at the medals for the upcoming Star Wars Rival Run Weekend. Did you see them? I’m so excited! In case you missed them, you can see them all here. Now I’m more determined than ever to complete my challenge: I want that Luke Skywalker and Darth Vader medal hanging on my wall so bad! I just have to watch everyone else enjoy the Disney Princess Half Marathon weekend coming up in February, and then it’s my turn (and good luck to everyone in February!).

Not long now! Just 69 training days left!

Holiday Food

I won’t say I didn’t indulge in any holiday treats, I did. I didn’t go crazy, but I still allowed myself to indulge now and then. As a chef, it’s hard not to take advantage of that time of year to play with and test recipes. Hey, Christmas only comes around once a year, right?

One of the hardest things I endured after going gluten-free was probably my first gluten-free Christmas. Watching everyone else indulge without a second thought in holiday buffets, party food, and stuffing…oh, the stuffing. It hurt.

After that, I promised myself I would never feel left out again. I created a small library of gluten-free recipes of every holiday food I had missed out on, and tested them. And tested…and tested. Some were good, most were not. I crossed out option after option until I was left with a few good recipes I was able to modify or convert to gluten-free and that wouldn’t leave me cringing when I ate them.

Now every year in the weeks prior to the holidays (and I mean even before Thanksgiving starts here in Canada – October), I grab my gluten-free holiday booklet of recipes and get to work. I make sure my freezer is full and my cupboards have all the ingredients I might need to bake a last minute treat. I rarely feel left out anymore. Mincemeat tarts, Christmas cookies of all kinds, holiday scones, cannoli, mini pizza bites, pulled pork empanadas, mozzarella sticks, stuffing, and more.

And I’ve decided, why just leave these foods for Christmas? Keep watching my blog for holiday food posts throughout the year, and by Christmas, we’ll all be ready to indulge!

And so begins 2019..

I hope this year brings you health, happiness and all the things you’re looking for in this adventure called life.