Easy vegan "cheese" sauce

This recipe is really simple and delicious! The best part is, it's made with all natural ingredients. I've never purchased packaged vegan cheese or butter products because I never really felt they were all that healthy. This recipe however just mainly uses unsweetened almond milk, tahini, and nutritional yeast as it's base. Plus, you can make one serving size just for yourself, or you can make a larger batch for a group of people! I used it to top off my broccoli stuffed baked potato, and it did not disappoint!

1 serving- about 1/4 cup of sauce

3 TBSP unsweetened almond milk
1 TBSP tahini
1 TBSP nutritional yeast
salt, pepper, garlic powder, and onion powder to taste

Just mix together in a small bowl and microwave for about 30 seconds or until warm. Then drizzle over your favorite foods for a little extra flavor and enjoy!

Edamame Stir Fry

Today I was feeling a little creative, so I figured I would clean out my freezer a little bit and attempt to create a new recipe. I always seem to stock pile multiple bags of frozen vegetables in my freezer, so stir fry seemed like a pretty logical route.

Ingredients:
1 Bag frozen mixed stir fry vegetables(about 3 cups)
2 Cups shelled edamame
2 Cups frozen broccoli
2 Cups whole grain pasta (I used gluten free corn pasta)
4 TBSP Braggs liquid aminos
2 TBSP Red wine vinegar
1 tsp Garlic powder
1 tsp Onion powder
2 TBSP Nutritional yeast
Salt and Pepper to taste
1 TBSP sesame seeds

Directions:

Start by boiling pasta noodles in a small boiler pan. In a stir fry pan on med-high, combine vegetables, edamame, liquid aminos, and red wine vinegar. Continue to stir and mix vegetables until the are evenly cooked to a light brown, then remove from heat. Drain pasta and mix into stir fry pan. Add in seasoning and then serve. Sprinkle with sesame seeds for garnish, then enjoy!

Cranberry Oat Breakfast Cookies

I'm using the term "cookies" very loosely here, because these really don't taste like cookies at all. They are, however, a healthy and easy breakfast option you can make the night before and eat on the go. They only take about 5 minutes to make, and you don't even need to heat up your oven!

Ingredients:
1 Small very ripe banana
2 TBSP vegan protein powder
3 TBSP Chia Seeds
1/2 Cup oats
small handful of fresh raw cranberries
1-2 tsp cinnamon

*1 tsp of stevia or sugar to sweeten- optional

Directions-
Simply mash the banana up in a bowl until it is in a liquid-like state. Then mix in protein powder, chia seeds, oats, cranberries, and what ever other ingredients you want to add for flavor. Then just use your hands to mold the mixture into small balls, and press out on a small glass or ceramic plate (if the mixture seems gooey or they start to fall apart, slowly add more oats until they stick together better). Microwave for about 3-4 minutes until the cookies can be picked up off the plate without falling apart. (Be careful not to cook too long, or they will turn into rocks!)

Then just let cool for a minute or two and enjoy! I will note that the cookies aren't very sweet to begin with since I don't typically use any kind of sugar when baking, so with the tart cranberries they might seem bitter to some. This doesn't bother me since I'm not accustomed to eating very much sugar, but If you would prefer for them to be sweeter, you could always add stevia or whatever sugar you like to sweeten them up (I added in this option above).

I have experimented with this recipe and made it a variety of different ways. You can also use raisins, cocoa nibs, nuts, or any kind of dried fruit instead of the cranberries if they are too tart. I always like to add about a teaspoon or two of cinnamon to mine, but you can also add cocoa powder, vanilla, or any other spices you like!

Veterans Day 11K

About a week ago I got a text from my Dad asking me if I wanted to do a veterans day memorial run with him. He said it was for a good cause, and that he would pay for my race entry fee if I wanted to do it... how could I even say no!? A free race plus the chance to run with my Father? Um, yes please!

So, after pulling myself out of bed this morning at 5:00, gulping down a gluten-free English muffin, and gathering my GPS watch and Ipod, I headed out into the cold to meet up with my family. We stood around for about 45 minutes before we lined up for the race, and I took my place next to my Father. The next thing we knew we were off! My dad quickly darted around a bunch of people, eager to make his way to the open space at the front of the pack. I followed, and met up with him around mile 2. I ran with him for about a mile, and then he took his exit for the 5K while I ventured out for another loop along the 11K path.

Miles 3-6 were really nice. I talked with a few other runners that worked with my Dad, and slowly kept increasing my pace. I was right on track to finish with my goal time, and I could tell I still had a lot of energy left in the tank, so I decided to let loose for the last mile. This was when things started to go wrong. When I came to a fork in the road, I asked one of the volunteers which way I was supposed to go. He told me right, so I headed right and ran until another runner stopped me and told me I was going the wrong way. Confused, I turned around and headed back in the other direction. I was frustrated about the mix up in directions, but I just tried to focus on keeping my pace.

I was feeling good again until I came to another fork in the road. This time there was no one there, and I still had no clue which way to go. For fear of running the wrong way yet again, I stopped and waited for another runner behind me to catch up and tell me which way we need to go. He wasn't completely sure either, but I followed him anyhow not wanting to waste any more time. Finally, we made it to the finish line. My time was 1:01:02. I was so frustrated. I was only a minute and 2 seconds short of my goal, and I knew that I would have made my time had the course been better marked.

Despite a slightly crummy ending, the race went pretty well. I got to catch up with my parents, and naturally acquired a new PR since it was my first 11K.

My father and I before the race


Here's to another race bib to pin on the wall, and a new PR to break!

The Importance of Rest and Recovery

Like most runners I know, I find it hard to take time off. Whether it's due to an injury, illness, or recovering after a race; taking time off to rest can be hard. After all, as runners we are always trying to better ourselves. We want to increase our mileage, run faster, and improve our times. We want to get stronger and fitter every week. So, wouldn't it make sense to push our limits and bodies constantly, getting in as many workouts and miles as we can? Absolutely not.

As a running addict, I have been forced to learn the hard way time and time again that rest is just as important to fitness gains and improvement as running more miles or adding in more speed work. The thing a lot of us over-ambitious runners seem to neglect is the importance of rest. Sure, it's great to push ourselves sometimes and increase our workload, but we also have to remember that our bodies need time to recover and adapt so we can actually benefit from our efforts. There are a few different ways that runner overdo it:

Training



I found a quote on runnersworld.com that really sunk it, "We train to race, not race to train". This is absolutely right. Time and time again I read more and more evidence proving that constantly pushing your body without adequate rest will only run you into the ground, and more than likely lead to injury and fatigue. None of your workouts should ever cause you to push yourself as much as you do when you are racing. Racing is the only time you should give 100%. Sure, you should include a hard workout once a week, such as a fartlek run, but these runs should still never be executed with as much effort as an actual race.

Along with too many hard-effort workouts, many runners increase their mileage too quickly and don't include cutback weeks. One of the main rules on running is not to increase your mileage more than 10% each week. Increasing your weekly mileage more than that is just asking for trouble. I made the foolish mistake once of increasing my mileage by a little over 20% from one week to another, and ended up with a nasty case of runners knee by the end of the week that caused me to have to take two weeks off. Not giving your body time to adapt to more miles will only lead to injury, so always be sure to follow the 10% rule when it comes to mileage. That being said, this doesn't mean for the next 6 months straight you should increase you mileage by 10% each week. Your body needs breaks and cutback weeks that allow your muscles to fully heal and become stronger. A good rule of thumb is to include a cutback week once every three weeks. A good example of this would be a week with 20 miles, followed by a week of 22 miles, followed by a week of 16 miles. Then, after your cutback week of 16, you could start back at 22, and build, then cutback again. By slowly increasing your mileage and including time for rest, you will reduce your changes for injury and increase your fitness gains.

Racing



Another common issue with overuse is racing. Some runners want to run a race nearly every weekend. However, since racing causes you to really push your body, it's recommended that racing is done sparingly. Plus, the longer distance you are racing, the more time you should take between races. For example, it might be okay to run 3 5K's in one month, but you should never run more than 3-4 marathons a year. While we all enjoy racing and trying to reach new PR's, not taking a break from constantly racing is not only hard on your body, but is hard on you mentally as well. Races take a lot of planning, time, preparation, travel, money, etc. Constantly trying to schedule your life around races is going to drain you mentally and physically. This could possibly lead to feeling burnt out, and could turn something you used to love doing into a stressful chore. Part of the fun of racing is that it's an occasional experience. If you do them all of the time, they start to lose their magic.

Another issue with racing is not allowing your body time to heal afterwards, and the longer the race, the more time you need off. Experts say that it takes your body about a month to fully recover from running a marathon. Now, does that mean you shouldn't run for an entire month? Of course not. However, taking the first 7-10 days after the race off to let your body bounce back is recommended. For most runners this many seem silly, especially if your muscles don't feel very sore afterwards. However, running 26.2 miles is very hard on the body, and it takes a toll on a lot more than you think. After a marathon, the immune system is compromised, muscles are torn, and cells are damaged. (Yes, that's right, the cells in your body are damaged!) So even if you have the energy to run a 10K the following week, you still shouldn't. Many professional and Olympic marathoners take up to two whole weeks off after a race to fully recover before easing back into running. Taking some time off isn't going to cause you to lose all of your fitness or set you back a bunch. Taking a whole week off on running will only cause the average runner to lose 3% of their overall VO2 max, which can easily be gained back in a week or two of regular running.

Injury



Lastly, when it comes to injury, most runners are pretty stubborn. I know, I'm one of them. When an injury happens during training, it can be difficult to allow yourself to take time off and fall behind. I have foolishly ran through injuries before in order to keep training, only to end up making it worse and eventually taking even more time off. It's always better to opt to take a day or two off of training than to try and keep running on it, eventually forcing you to take weeks off. I've learned that it's always better to be safe than end up making matters worse. listen to your body, and know when to say when.

Running can,(and should)be a lifelong activity. As long as you approach it the right way, it will do more good for your body than bad. As long as you let your body rest, heal, and adapt accordingly, you can build a strong base for running throughout you lifetime. So next time you overdo it, or are forced to take some time off, don't look at it as getting behind on your fitness, or falling behind on your training; think of it as helping your body build a stronger athletic base that will benefit you in the future!