Running with all the 'real' runners out there

This is from four weeks ago:

Sometimes, things just work out. I was supposed to be working on a qualifying exam all weekend but my teacher decided to give us some extra time.

So, this weekend for the first time since the EAS 10miler, I got the chance to really run. These past few weeks I've been holding back. I've had to try to conserve energy to work for the rest of the day and also I haven't been eating well.

What I did:
breakfast: smoothie with fruit and protein powder. Waffle. Coffee. 16 oz of water.
three gu packets during the run
3 cones of water per water stop (got a bit much and ran the last few miles with a side stitch)

It was great, I got really sick of running with two miles to go and started speeding up. Something I've never quite done. I was feeling strong but I felt like I could sustain it.

Then....

with half a mile to go, I sprained my leg. But I was trying to make my goal so I tried to keep running on it. I finally stopped after cussing like a mad woman (a hold over from my VT days, when being injured warranted lots of @#$*s) and scaring the bejesus out of two women on the trail. I stopped, walked and tried not to kick myself with the leg that still could. Fortunately, It wasn't bad and I eventually ran the last quarter of a mile.

The ankle got lots of rest since the next week was spent frantically trying to finish the qualifying exam before the trip to portland. Trip was great. We got to run once in that entire 10 day period. Once. we did walk everywhere though. And I mean everywhere!

Sometimes you feel like a runner

and sometimes you don't.

Went for my long run Sunday instead of Saturday. It was supposed to be relatively short 7 miles and I was running by myself. I was looking forward to it but at the same time it didn't seem right to take time out to run while I'm struggling to finish this semester.
I still went to the trail.
Well, I got shin splints in the first mile. Not sure what caused this. I also had an odd pounding headache and fuzzy contacts.
This year as with the last, I lost the enjoyment I get from running around this time. I've been thinking about what might be causing this and I think it is the end of the semester stuff that just gets me down. I'm not getting good sleep. My allergies are starting to act up. I'm stressed because of qualifying exams. Essentially, school is interfering with my extracurricular activities.
Update: ran around the neighbourhood and got shin splints again. I think I need more arch support with the Sauconys I'm using.

Cats

Our neighbour's cat is trying to adopt us. He just sits in the back door and stares in. He's a cute one.
He was there when I left for a run yesterday and still there when I got back. It started one night when I cooked salmon...
Also, my cat will (without fail) want love when I stretch. For some reason he thinks it's perfectly acceptable for me to scratch his ears when I'm in downward dog or triangle.
And lastly, I really like chasing cats when I'm out running. It's really fun to watch them freeze initially when they see me 'charge' and then take off themselves.

good times...

Sugar!

ta ta ta ta ta
oh honey honey.
(I used to love that song)

I've been monitoring my sugar intake lately since it seems like I'm particularly drawn to it. My nutritionist noticed that I tend to eat a little bit of something sugary almost everyday. So for the past two weeks, I've been trying to avoid it and also pay attention to cravings.

Things were going quite well until yesterday.
I had to leave home in a hurry so I grabbed a third of a nature's path bar as a snack (these are fairly balanced bars so I thought it wouldn't be too bad on my sugar levels). Last night though, I was craving something sweet so badly that I ate 1.5 hermit cookies. That in and of itself isn't too bad (they were newman's own) BUT...
I ate the half first and then instead of eating the remaining half, I actually ate a whole other (or for those of you that prefer: a whole nother) cookie! Then I caught myself wanting that half that was left in there.

Today was similar. I had a kashi frozen meal for lunch (sweet and sour chicken). It didn't occur to me that the entree was so sugary I could hear my taste buds singing their special sugar song. So for a snack this afternoon, I had pistachio nuts (good job G!) and 2 nutter butters (aw, and you were doing so well... sad face)

Now I have what I think is a sugar headache. Woe is me.

So here are the pressing questions:
I am quite hyper after I come back from my long runs. Could that be because of the 1-3 gel packets I consume? 100 calories of various sugars per packet. Hmmm.

Also, I eat like a mad woman over the weekend. Sure, saturdays are going to be a food fest since I run for hours at a time but its not just food but food like cookies and white chocolate mochas that I want. Then I get one because, you know, I worked for it. Then I want more. So I get something else on sunday because, you know, I'll work it off.

But that's the problem. I will work it off. But what about the gigantic arse on me that I am still trying to work off in the first place?

Long run 12/1

13 miles at 6 am with Jessica. For some reason, the 7 year old impatient me was around and by mile 6 I was ready to be done. I had the hardest time keeping the motivation going. Having Jessica around made all the difference. On my own, I would have gone home after 7 (probably angry and disappointed in myself). Slept like a mad woman the rest of the day. Also in full on crunch mode for the next two weeks so the blog posts are going to be as incoherent as this one is.

Fun for me and fun for you.

Out of town long run

Long runs when away from home are always interesting. The last long run I did was in Michigan during Sandeep's cousins wedding, it was supposed to be 6 miles so I mapped my run out and went for it. I realized too late I didn't have any gu on me so I took some jelly beans with a little salt sprinkled on. Disgusting! But it worked and the run went off without a hitch.

This time, I planned for the gel, post run banana and the map of where to run. But this time, I wasn't alone. My brother-in-law needed to be back sooner than me so we tried to stick close to home. I figured, I would run with him, drop him off at home and get the rest of the remainder of the 7 miles on my own. But by the time we were done with the first part, I felt empty. So I stopped. I hate running in those subdivisions. It's all concrete on the roads.

Well it turns out, that may have been the way to go. Gilbert said, running on roads is really not good for you. Good thing I stopped at 4.5 miles even though I still feel so guilty about not getting my entire distance in.

But can it be cured?

I think I might have body dysmorphic disorder

While I was in physical therapy today my therapist had me do lunges for 12 minutes. It's a long time and your mind seems to wander. So I was thinking about how tiring this was the last time I did it and how much better I felt today.

So while I was in PT for for my weak hip and tender patella and weak hamstring and weak back and weak abs; I was congratulating myself on being strong!

That god, she is on my side today

Went to get a salad from chick-fil-a. Decided to get four nuggets as well (eat two today, two tomorrow). But they had only packets of 8 and 12, so didn't get any.

Went to the store to get some milk for tea. Saw what I thought was carrot cake w/ cream cheese frosting.
Crap, can't resist carrot cake with cream cheese frosting.

But it was actually banana cake with cream cheese frosting.

Phew.

Crises averted.

p.s.
The salad is delicious with sunflower seeds on it. Cheese on salads is overrated unless it's something like feta or gorgonzola.

I'm just sayin'

Runtex 10Miler recap

Now that the week of hell that lasted 10 days is over. I can post about the EAS/Runtex run for the water 10miler benefitting the gazelle's foundation.

The day started off great. We took off on the race with me running with Carol and Staley but I realized quickly that I wouldn't be able to hang with these guys so I slowed down (that's a good thing since Carol finished at a 8:30 pace and Staley at 9 min). Jessica (who had started out with Sarah and Allison, who were running the 5k) met up with me and we ran together from the half mile point.

It was humid but we started off feeling pretty good. But things went a little downhill from that point. Jess realized that she had been on her feet the entire day before the race (volunteering for the race) and then ate badly because she waited too long. So around mile 2 or 3, it became a very real possibility that she might throw up. I was just trying not to push myself because I still had most of my presentation for a class to work on for the rest of the day (~75 pages in all). So we ran, trying to remember that this was supposed to be a training run and not pushing ourselves. We talked the entire way to try and keep each other entertained/distracted.

Miles 8-10 were probably the most painful. The hills were done. We had successfully avoided pushing ourselves or throwing up but we were just exhausted and wanted to be done. We even took a walk break around mile 9.5 but we seemed to just be sick of it. I think we just wanted to be done.

The volunteers were amazing. They cheered us, directed us and some that we knew even ran with us. I'm not sure if we would have made it if it hadn't been for the familiar faces and encouraging yells and hoots.

It felt good to be done but I'm not sure I felt happy to have run it, just happy to be finished.

So, it turns out Decker 20M will not be happening. I can't deal with these baby hills. Decker's hills would make me cry for my mama.

I think that a hilly race may not be the best way to motivate yourself to run a longer race. During the second half of the race a question kept popping up in my mind: If I'm not doing so well with this mileage, how am I going to keep going for three more miles? But I need to remember that the half I'm running is qualitatively different. It's flat. In fact, some people tell me it's downhill a large part of the way. Supposed to be among the fastest races around.

I'm still in training. I just need to get stronger around hills and not plan to race during hell weeks.

OMG

It's tomorrow. So much hard work and it doesn't really end tomorrow, it just begins. The first race of the season, the EAS 10miler is tomorrow.

After that there might be a very scary (read: hilly) 20K (~12 miles) in our near future called the decker 20K. We'll see, I'm not supposed to know about it since Jessica has only started thinking about it.
And to end it all, the 3M half at the end of december.

But for tonight, I working on my presentation for monday (which is sucky BTW, thanks for asking) and really excited about the race tomorrow. I think sometimes, my need for speed (and I use the term "speed" very loosely here) might be the only thing that keeps me going through 70 pages of dry, inane reading that I need to talk about for 2 hours.

It's tomorrow. I can't wait/I'm petrified of those hills on pecos and scenic drive. But I have a mango flavoured clif shot that deserves to be tried in the field.

Breathe

1st year research presentation in 1.5 hours. So pucky. Need to lay down. Or just throw up and get it over and done with.

Eight days a week...

I don't need a whole extra day, just an extra hour a day would be helpful. Although, I'd probably just use it for sleeping. Also, on a related note. Sandeep and I are having a really hard time adjusting to the daylight savings change. It seems that it takes the body up to six weeks to adjust to the fall change and up to four weeks to adjust to the spring daylight savings change.

JP's irish breakfast at 2 in the afternoon really does make things a little more bearable. It also helps when cute UPS men stop by. Ooh, caffeine and eye candy. Excellent!

The EAS 10Miler race is this sunday and for a brief period of time this morning I considered not running it so that I have more time to prepare for my presentation on Monday. Then I remembered just how much time I've put into training and that it's the only thing I'm looking forward to. Also, I think Ms. "I don't like road races" would kill me after I used what she called my puppy dog eyes to get her to run with me for the race.

Must post

But school demands attention. Will post on Friday.

On Second Thought

Maybe not. Maybe I don't want to run this race.
Jessica and I (and two other girls) ran the bulk of the course set for the runtex 10 miler in preparation for the race. It's behind lake austin boulevard and just so pretty. There's something about running in the neighbourhoods of Austin on a cold day. I get nostalgic/pensive/joyful (all of the above). I can't describe it. It involves feeling so glad to be part of something and at the same time so small and wanting to do something worthwhile. To give back to this world that gives me so much to be happy about.

But that really is where the joy ends. It turns out these beautiful areas of Austin are also substantially hilly. The portion of the run that we tried out will be spank in the middle of the race and it's a mixture of rolling and steep hills. I'm a little worried since I really don't do well around hills.

But that being said, I feel a change. It's as if I'm no longer a girl and I'm sprouting into... I kid. Its just that I feel really strong lately, where in the past I would have needed to walk up one of these hills, this time, I ran every single one.

I will run the race. I will run those hills and walk if I have to. Jessica will run them with me and we will show them who is boss.

Unexpected realizations

Monday workouts with the gazelles are supposed to focus on strength. We were doing circuit training this week. That means run a lap on a track, do a bunch of exercises and then do that all over again. On a good day we can fit in 4 reps. On a really hot day we're lucky if we can get 2 reps in.

Last monday, we were doing core work which involves passing these 6lb medicine balls between partners. I could have sworn the one we (Sarah and I) were working with was heavier. Sarah thought so to but Gilbert overheard us. He said something to the effect of "Gayatri, I thought you were a tough girl. I'm disappointed"
I replied with "It is heavier but that doesn't mean I am not going to do my share!"
I'm kinda proud I said that. So many people tend to presume that just because you would say something about a task being difficult means you're complaining and plan on not doing it. We were just making conversation to distract from the pain.

But the thing that really floored me was how annoyed/defensive I got after he said that. He didn't mean anything by it, he was just pulling my leg. But I didn't like hearing that. It seems a lot of my self-worth in terms of working out is tied up in the fact that I believe that I am not lazy about it. I'll take days off when needed but when I'm there (be it running, yoga or VT as it was in the days of yore), I'm there to workout.

What was my realization you ask? That while most people would be proud of starting or sticking to an exercise regiment or being really good at a sport, I guess I'm proud of the fact that I am persistent at sucking at a sport.

Miscellanea

It makes me laugh every time someone is surprised that yoga can make one sore. Let me count: upper abs, shoulders, biceps, inner thighs, hamstrings, palm right underneath the thumb etc etc so on and so forth.

You know you're in training when strange parts of you ache and you don't even stop to think about it. e.g. "Oh, that was inside the right butt. Good one". Wait, I think that counts as thinking about it.

I feel like such a loser when I get out of the yoga class and then sit with my back hunched. You would think I would know better. Oh yeah, back is also sore. Nice sore. Like my muscles may get over their shyness and come out to play.

EAS 10Miler is only 2.5 weeks away. I can't wait. And by can't wait, I mean I'm really excited/anxious. I also think I'm worried I might injure myself and not be able to run. That would possibly be the worst thing that could happen.

My protein tragedy

I'm supposed to get 30% of my calories from protein. So says my nutritionist. I can barely make it to 26% on a good day. I'm to a large extent a vegetarian and a carboholic. So trying to get 30% protein is indescribably difficult. I tried to help myself out by having an omelette with two eggs and an egg white. We've all been told that almost all the fat is in the yolk and almost all the protein is in the white. Well, we've been told wrong!

Fact:
2/3 of the protein is in the white, 1/3 is in the yolk. So if you expect 7 gms of protein from an egg white, you are going to be sorely disappointed. It's more like 3.6.
In a sense this is good news to me because the yolks are the only reason why I eat eggs.
Another justification for eating the yolk? All the good stuff in an egg, all the nutritive stuff, vitamins, minerals etc are all in the yolk. This also makes sense since that is the food sac for the embryo.

So besides meat, what else is there that delivers protein. No carb-protein compounds like beans but just protien. Dairy?

Long run Oct 20th

We hit the big 1-0. 10 miles at 6 am on saturday and it was amazing. It was just Jessica and me since both Staley and Zaundra ran the IBM 10K today.

I can't believe we did the entire 10 mile trail!
The south first bridge divides the trail into two distinct halves. There's the four mile half which is more populated and more consistently pretty. Then there are the other 6 miles. There are some amazingly pretty portions to this side of the trail. Unfortunately, you have to put up with a few things to get to the pretty portions. For example, a lot of homeless people sleep long the trail on this side for some reason. All the crime on the trail has taken place on this side. Also, you have to run along the street for about a quarter to half of a mile and cross a highway (I-35!) to get to the trail. Uphill (ok, not the entire way, but there is one killer). Still, its relatively quieter on this side and I think overall just a prettier run. Its my favourite side.

So, since it was still dark outside, we decided to run the 4 mile side first and continue onto the 6 mile side hopefully around sunrise. The nice thing about that would be that we still get to do the side that both Jess and I like and the killer hill on the street would now be all downhill. Yaa! Did I mention I HATE hills?

We started the first mile out really slow to warm up. We meant to speed up after that but the trial was so dark that we had to keep going slow for at least the next mile if not more. We took breaks every two miles or so for get a sip of water or take some gel. I think this was key in keeping us going. Since the breaks came so frequently, we never felt it get too hard to keep going. Wait, it might also have something to do with the fact that we stretched our backs out during these breaks too (both our backs were a little vocal during the run). We took it easy and talked the entire way. We walked maybe around a quarter of a mile in total so I have say this was a good run. I felt strong most of the way except at one point when my knee complained a bit. Stopping and walking for a little bit was all it needed and we finished strong.

Notable Sights:
- sudden daylight. I know it wasn't really sudden but it seemed like at one point it was still dark and it was dawn the next.
- a huge, obnoxious house with lines like the alamo along the road part of the run.
- a cocoon that was at least 3 inches in length suspended between two silk wires in a tree. Come to think of it, it might have been spider food suspended in a web not a cocoon. That's going to be one large snack for a spider.
- a duck on the lake gunning it towards breakfast. It was far enough away that we could just see it's silhouette and the massive wave of water it left behind it.
- Andre and josh (/jake/john?) leaving a whole hour after us to do 10 miles and getting done with us.
- Mocha Jess. She has trouble opening the gel packets with sweaty hands. So this week she tried to slit one open and reseal it with foil. She then put this sachet into her shorts with the cut side above the band of her shorts. At mile four when we took our first gel, it turned out, her shorts and her hip also got a little snack.

Keeping yoga in the mix is making sure that I have just the usual aches and pains that one would get from increasing mileage like this. Nothing that causes concern.

When I started running, if I started out slow, I would finish slow but we're getting to the point that we are making up all the time we lose when we start. I can't believe this 10 mile run was easier than the 9 mile run two weeks ago. It's not simply that I am getting better at this running thing but I think I'm also getting over my fear of running long distances.

I need to start keeping track of what I eat. What works and what doesn't. That can be the next post, I suppose.

Long runs for 6/9 and 13/9

Three weeks ago Jessica, Staley and I ran our long run together, 9 miles. This was the longest run I had ever done uptil that point and I was really nervous the entire night before. I had trouble falling asleep but thankfully not too much trouble getting up. The last two miles were a little tough but having Jessica there made a world of difference. The strange thing about that is that I wasn't exhausted. To a large extent, it was mental. I knew I was past 7 miles and I'd never run this far so my brain was telling me that I had to be tired for the last two miles.

Last weekend we were supposed to run 7 miles but I decided I didn't want to drop so far down so ran 8 instead. This time, Staley and Jessica and Zaundra were with me, which is good because we started at 6 in the morning and it was still dark outside. Jessica and Zaundra had planned to do 7 miles while Staley was willing to do 8 with me. Midway through the run, we were discussing how to add the one mile in and he tried to trick me into doing more than 8 miles. His argument was that once I was done, I would feel like I had accomplished so much. But for me, I don't like being misled. I need to mentally prepare for the work ahead. He also will say things like "that's it, now we have only 4 miles left" but in actuality, we have 4.5 or 5 miles still left and needless to say, I don't like that either.
It took a little while to shake the irritation off from that encounter but I think at the end of the day, I would still rather have someone running with me that I get along with than have to do this alone.

Weightwatchers

I think weightwatchers is too concerned with fat and not concerned enough with protein. For example, an ounce of nuts are the same amount of points as a can of coke. Someone on WW please comment.

Whoa Spinach

Is there anything you can't do?

I knew you had fiber, calcium, potassium, vitamin C, folate etc, etc.

But now you tell me you are pretty high in protein. What? Should I be calling all my past, you know... partners to let them know about this?

Different goals

I was eating eggs for breakfast today and thinking about how body builders can eat food the way they do. They eat the same things everyday, in massive quantities and get sick of it. But they still eat it. Similarly, people with eating disorders don't like the purging or the starving but they do it anyway.

I think I know what the difference between them and me is. The end goal is different. They see that the ultimate goal is to get your body to look a certain way (not always a healthy way, mind you). My end goal seems to be to eat and enjoy the food I am going to eat in an attempt to get my body to look a certain way. You see the problem?

I think the saying "you can't have your cake and eat it too" works really well here. I can't eat to enjoy my food and still expect to see results of weight loss from it.

Food doesn't do double duty. It can't be entertainment and sustenance. If it's entertaining, it ain't doing anything good for your body and if it is fuel then it sure as hell ain't going to be fun to eat (except maybe steel cut oats)

things you learn on a long run

apparently you can chaff (chafe? I don't know the spelling) unexpected 'areas' on your body when running really long.

huh.

Weird Wants Wednesdays

Crazy craving for the day:
apples
polenta

SoF- part deux

So some really odd and good things have come from this:

I have returned to yoga after close to 7 months off.
My running is so much stronger and happier because I know I can push myself now.
I have learnt that I can workout in a way that is good for me. By that I mean, workout just to work out. No other agenda. With the injuries, I was just glad that I got to even move so I couldn't workout to lose weight or build muscle etc. This is good to know because it means that I can trust myself not to push me to far.
Its been kind of fun to see how different the two sides of my body are. Especially during yoga, my left hip is so unsure where my right can do things effortlessly. I think its also going to be a good day when both hips can do the same things.
And lastly, it turns out I have a stronger core than I thought I did, my PT didn't need me to do the core exercises that most people in my situation would need to do. Yeah! that one month of ab-lab really helped, eh?

Summer of fun

Well there were injuries and lots of wondering what is wrong with me.

Injured my hip in may and realized that maybe my knee wasn't quite as 'rehabilitated' as I had thought. I tried to rest for two weeks but that didn't help it at all. Since running seemed to help, I went back to running and just took it slow. I did stop by a doctors office and he told me that it may have been a simple muscle inflammation and offered to give me a cortisone shot if the pain didn't go away (FYI, if the doctor's diagnosis invovles the term 'bursitis and a cortisone shot, the odds are he doesn't know/care what the actual problem is). Thank goodness I didn't believe him and went back to even slower than usual running.

A month back, my back siezed up. On the way to running one monday, I realized just how bad it was. I was having trouble sneezing and sitting. So I gave in and got a deep tissue massage. That was great but I knew that at 80 odd dollars, I can't use this as therapy. My decision was to take those 80 dollars back to yoga.
Best decision ever, not completely healed but my back felt better my hips did too. In the meantime, I went and saw another doctor about the pain in my hip. I felt so frustrated because I wasn't even able to describe exactly what was going on with me. My hip on my left hurt, my hamstring on the same side seized up when I ran as did my knee but not so bad I had to stop. And to add to it, my back was in bad shape. It turns out, by Tx law, they can see me for only one injury at a time so my hips, it would have to be.

The doctor comes in all rushed and I'm thinking that he is going to go too fast and get me out of there as fast as possible. But he took his time and after a ton of hip manipulations and very painful thumb presses he knew what was going on. So much so that he was able to predict where it hurt and why.

So the diagnosis is: Sacroiliac joint syndrome + weak abductors on the left + patellar tendonitis . My back is compensating for my hip and since I have back issues already, it's not happy.

Fun. Physical therapy began a week ago and I feel so much better already. My PT is also a chiropractor so he adjusted my hips. The pain in my back went from a loud roar to a small groan almost immediately. Wow!

Next post about the good things that have come from all this.

5th May '07

Breakfast
Coffee w/ splenda and 1/2 & 1/2 (3 carbs)
Eggs - 2 (0 carbs)
Sausage - 2 (1 carb)

Snack
Pistachio mix 3 oz (8 carbs)

Lunch
Indian leftovers (8 carbs)

Dinner
Korean Beef stir-fry (8 carbs)

Total Carbs - 28 carbs
Activity - None

Let's face it -

I'm fat.
This is not a post asking for comments disagreeing with me to pad my ego. I know that I'm overweight. It's just been weird this week. I'm putting on weight since I went off atkins. That's a little crazy considering I have been eating under 2000 kcalories and running 3-4 times each week (also back to 6 miles on saturdays). I mean seriously, is this how its going to be for the rest of my life? I'm going to try and lose the same 10lbs over and over again? The really sad thing is that they aren't even the last 10 that I need to lose. I still have another 13-15 to go to just be in the 'healthy' range. We aren't talking svelte yet. Hell, I'm not even asking for svelte. I picked 5lbs under the maximum I can be for my height as my goal.
Last monday, Gilbert took a picture of the group and it appears that I am the largest of the women in there. That's fine. I don't mind. Yes I do. It's frustrating to see new people come in and become faster than me. That's okay I'm getting stronger too. Then cedar kicks in. Then exams kick in. There's always something, isn't there? I'm not making excuses. I work really hard at running. I am not very good at it but I am diligent. Being slow isn't a result of laziness, it is a result of body type. These aren't running hips, they are child-birthing (as Amanda calls them) hips.
So back to my original point, this week has been tough. I'm putting weight back on but I am faster than I've been in a long time. We did 400m this wednesday and I kept them under 2:15 each time. We did eight of them. So I'm back to the speed I was at before finals last semester (my strongest). So what's the problem? Well the girls I run with ran them really strong and fast
(under 2 mins each). These are girls I was just beginning to keep up with before finals/cedar season. I just want to be able to run along with them and it looks like that isn't going to be happening. But that's okay, I run for myself. I need to keep reminding myself that. I run for my weight, for my strength and for my mind. I run for myself. This is going to be tough to remember.

G - 1st March 07

Breakfast
Coffee w/ splenda and milk (30/0/0/1.5)
Omelette w/ cilantro and chillies, 2 eggs (192/15/0/1)
Apple, small (55/0/2.5/12.5)

Snack
Crunchy peanut snack 1/2 oz (83/7/1/x)

Lunch
Pickle, 2 tbsp (80/6/0/9)
Rice, brown, 1.5 cups (328/2.4/5/63)

Snack
Carrot-orange juice, orange ruins the carrot, 12 oz (155/0/1/34)

Dinner
Quinoa, w/ pine nuts, 1 cup (338/17.5/5.5/29)
Potatoes and asparagus w/ 1 tbsp oil (260/14/5/26)

Total - 1521/62/20/174.5
Activity - Running

G - 28 Feb 07

Breakfast
Coffee w/ splenda and milk (30/0/0/1.5)
Kashi Golean Waffle, 2 (170/3/6/21)

Lunch
Ziti Bake, 1 cup (333/13/2.3/35)
Green tea (0/0/0/0)

Snack
cookie, hmmd, 1.5 (225/7.5/6/33)
All bran crackers, 18 (130/6/5/14)

Dinner
Fried rice, veggie, brown hmmd 1 cups (169/8/2/20)
Milk, 1%, 1/2 cup (77/2/0/9)
Kashi golean crunch, 1 cup (200/5/8/26)

Total - 1334/44.5/29.3/159.5
Activity - Running with cramps

G - 27th Feb 07

Breakfast
Coffee w/ splenda and 1/2/ & 1/2 (30/3.4/0/0)
Kashi Golean Waffle, 2 (170/3/6/21)

Snack
Morning glory muffin (444/22/2/54)

Lunch
Amy's Tofu lasagne, 3/4 (232/8.25/4.5/26)
Green tea, 2 cups (0)

Snack
Light granola, 1/2 cup (158/2.6/2/41)
Milk, 1%, 3/4 cup (77/2/0/9)

Dinner
Pasta, WW, 2oz (210/1/6/38)
Tomato sauce (100/9/2/2)
Shrimp, 2 oz (54/1/0/0)

Total - 1475/46.25/21.5/191
Activity - None

G - 26th Feb 07

Breakfast
Coffee w/ splenda and milk (30/0/0/1.5)
Kashi Golean Waffle, 2 (170/3/6/21)
Butter, light, 1 tbsp (50/5/0/0)

Lunch
Pizza, veggie deep dish, 272gms (705/33/4.5/64)
Fig Newton, ww (50/1/1/10)

Snack
Golden Raisins, 30 gms (91/0/1/23)

Dinner
cookie, hmmd, 1 (150/5/4/22)
Fried rice, veggie, brown hmmd 2 cups (338/16/4/41)
Potato, small (131/0/4/25)

Total - 1584/63/24.5/207
Activity - None

G - 25th Feb 07

Breakfast
Coffee w/ splenda and milk (30/0/0/1.5)
Banana, 1 small (90/0/2.6/20.4)
cookie, hmmd, 1 (150/5/4/22)

Lunch
Breakfast tacos, 1.5 (472/x/3/33)
Hot chocolate, 12 oz (249/10/1/25)

Snack
cookie, hmmd, 1 (150/5/4/22)

Dinner
Masale Bhat, 3/4 cup (303/13/0/39)
CM 9 grain bread, 2 oz (142/2/3.6/23)
Butter, light, 1 tbsp (50/5/0/0)

Total - 1636/40+/16.7/153+
Activity - Sun salutations

G - 24th Feb 07

Breakfast
Coffee w/ splenda and milk (30/0/0/1.5)
Luna sunrise bar (180/4/5/24)
Luna sunrise bar (180/4/5/24)

Snack
Thin crust veggie pizza, 4 oz (250/8.5/1.75/30)

Lunch
Be bim bop, 1 cup (400/20/0/53)
Calamari, 2 large pieces, (100/7/0/3)

Dinner
Beer, 24 oz (307/0/0/25)
Munchies (300/10/1/30)

Total - 1747/53.5/12/190.5
Activity - running

G - 23nd Feb 07

Breakfast
Coffee w/ splenda and milk (30/0/0/1.5)
CM 9 grain bread, 2 oz (142/2/3.6/23)
Butter, light, 1 tbsp (50/5/0/0)

Snack
Apple, medium (72/0/3.3/15.7)

Lunch
Pizza, thin crust, pesto, 8 oz (554/20/3.5/64)

Dinner
California roll, 4 pieces (120/2/3/17)
eel roll, 2 pieces (90/2/0/14)
Pork egg roll, large (250/15/1/17)
Blood orange italian soda, 8 oz (120/0/0/28)

Total - 1428/46/14.4/180.2
Activity - None

G - 22nd Feb 07

Breakfast
Coffee w/ splenda and milk (30/0/0/1.5)
Kashi Golean Waffle, 2 (170/3/6/21)

Snack
Apple, medium (72/0/3.3/15.7)
Peas bhaji, 1/2 cup (115/7/2.5/5)

Lunch
Rice, 1/2 cup (121/0/0/27)
Rajma, 1 cup (187/7/4.5/16)

Snack
Macciato w/ 2 packs sugar & 1 oz half and half (61/3.4/0/7)

Snack
Bread, 2 oz (154/2/1.5/27)

Dinner
Pasta, WW, 2oz (210/1/6/38)
Tomato sauce (100/9/2/2)
Bread, 1 oz (77/1/.75/13)
Salmon, 3 oz (143/7/0/0)

Total - 1440/40.4/26.55/173
Activity - Running

Counting carbs

Apparently athletes are able to make it on a restricted carb diet so I'm going to try and make it for the next month on a 150gms/day of carbs. The last number in the food journal denotes a gms of carbs per food item.
Why for the next month? I will be trying to run five times a week for the next month to get my abilities back up to where I used to be before the finals last semester. Why not add the carb restriction as well. This way, maybe I'll actually see some weight come off without Atkinsian carb intakes.

G - 21st Feb 07

Breakfast
Coffee w/ splenda and milk (37/0/0/1.5)
Kashi Golean Waffle, 2 (170/3/6/21)
Butter, light, 1 tbsp (50/5/0/0)

Lunch
Ziti Bake, 1.5 cups (496/19/3.5/51.5)
Green tea (0/0/0/0)

Snack
Banana, pre run (90/0/2.6/20.4)

Snack
Powerade, ~8oz (78/0/0/19)

Dinner
Rice, 1 cup (242/0/0/53)
Rajma, 2 cup (375/14/9/32)

Total - 1538/41/21/208
Activity - Running

G - 20th Feb 07

Breakfast
Coffee w/ splenda and milk (37/0/0)
Kashi Golean Waffle, 2 (170/3/6)
Butter, light, 1 tbsp (50/5/0)

Snack
Peanuts 1oz (166/14/2)

Lunch
Amy's veggie enchiladas, 2 (360/12/6)

Snack
Stonyfield maple vanilla lowfat yogurt (130/1.5/2)

Dinner
Smart ones, meat lasagne (300/6/5)
Coffee w/ sugar and milk (63/0/0)

Total - 1276/41.5/21
Activity - none

G - 19th Feb 07

Breakfast
Coffee w/ splenda and milk (37/0/0)
Kashi golean crunch, 1 cup (200/2/8)
Milk, 1%, 1 cup (102/2.3/0)

Snack
Tangarine, 1 (64/0/2)
Banana, med (105/0/3)

Lunch
Amy's spinach lasagne (310/12/5)

Snack
Crunchy peanut snack 1oz (166/14/2)

Snack
Grapefruit juice, 8 oz (96/0/0)
CM 9 grain bread, 2 oz (142/2/3.6)
Cheese, 2%, 1 oz (50/3/0)

Dinner
Burrito, guacamole no meat, 3/4 (652/22.5/11.25)

Total - 1924/57.8/34.85
Activity - Running

G - 18th Feb '07

Breakfast
Coffee w/ splenda and milk (37/0/0)
Strawberry oat bar, 1/2 (140/4.5/1.5)
CM 9 grain bread, 1 oz (71/1/1.8)
Butter, light, 1 tbsp (50/5/0)

Lunch
Dim sum, lots (500/15/2)

Snack
Hot chocolate, 12 oz (249/10/1)

Dinner
Peas bhaji, 1 cup (231/14/6)
Green tea, 2 cups (0/0/0)

Total - 1278/49.5/12.3
Activity - None

G - 17th Feb 07

Breakfast
Coffee w/ splenda and milk, 2 (74/0/0)
Oatbran muffin (305/8/5)
Banana, med (105/0/3)

Snack
Banana, medium (105/0/3)

Lunch
Pasta w/ marinara, 1 cup (204/3/2)
Bread, foccacia, 3 oz (250/6/2)

Dinner
Israelly couscous salad, 1/2 cup (155/10/0)
Tangarine, 2 (128/0/4)
Wild oats cookies, 2 (260/10/2)

Chocolate martini, sml (241/9/0)

Total - 1827/46/17
Activity - Running

G - 16th Feb 07

Breakfast
Coffee w/ splenda and milk (37/0/0)
Kashi Golean Waffle, 2 (170/3/6)
Butter, 1 tbsp (76/10/0)

Lunch
Sushi rolls (rice paper, no rice) 6 pieces (204/10/6)
Israelly couscous salad, 1/2 cup (155/10/0)

Snack
CM 9 grain bread, 2 oz (142/2/3.6)
Butter, light, 1 tbsp (50/5/0)

Dinner
Wild oats cookies, 1 (130/5/1)
Rice, 1 cup (242/.5/1)
Misc, lentil and meat stew (200/5/2)
Chapatis - 2 (120/1/3)

Total - 1526/51.5/22.6
Activity - Laser Tag!

G - 15th feb 07

Breakfast
Coffee w/ splenda and milk (37/0/0)
Luna sunrise bar (180/4/5)

Snack
Kashi Golean Waffle, 2 (170/3/6)

Lunch
Vietnamese noodle bowl with fried tofu (326/17/4)

Snack
Tangarine, 1 (64/0/2)
Wild oats cookies, 2 (260/10/2)

Snack
Stacy's pita chips, 1 oz (130/5/2)

Dinner
Tortilla, 2 (220/5/2)
Cheese, 2%, 1 oz (50/3/0)
Fake taco meat, 1/4 cup (130/6/4)
Guacamole, 1/4 cup (170/16/7)

Total - 1737/69/34
Activity - Running

G - 14th Feb 07

Breakfast
Coffee w/ splenda and milk (37/0/0)
CM 9 grain bread, 1 oz (71/1/1.8)
Butter, 1/2 tbsp (38/5/0)
Stonyfield maple vanilla lowfat yogurt (130/1.5/2)
Light granola, 1/4 cup (79/1.3/1)

Snack
Stonyfield chocolate underground nonfat yogurt (170/0/3)
Peanuts 1/2 oz (83/7/1)

Lunch
Chapatis - 4 (240/2/6)
Chole, hmmd, 1 cup (300/18/8)

Dinner
Tortilla, 1.5 (165/3.5/1)
Fake taco meat, 1/4 cup (130/6/4)

Total - 1443/45.3/27.8
Activity - None

G - 13th Feb 07

Breakfast
Coffee w/ splenda and milk (37/0/0)
Kashi Golean Waffle, oat, 3 (240/4.5/4.5)

Snack
Peanuts 1/2 oz (83/7/1)

Lunch
Subway veggie sandwich w/ mayo and cheese, 6" (380/18.5/4)

Dinner
Chapatis - 3.5 (280/2.25/7)
Chole, hmmd, 1 cup (300/18/8)

Seirra Nevada IPA (153/0/0)

Total - 1473/50.25/
Activity - None

G - 12th Feb 07

Breakfast
Coffee w/ splenda and milk (37/0/0)
Egg, 2 (143/10/0)
CM 9 grain bread, 2 oz (142/2/3.6)
Butter, 1 tbsp (76/10/0)

Snack
Fig newton, ww, 1 (55/1/1)

Lunch
Rice, 1/2 cup (120/0/0)
Palak Paneer, hmmd 3/4 cup (162/12/3.4)

Snack
Stacy's pita chips, 1.5 oz (195/7.5/3)

Dinner
Light granola, 2/3 cups (210/3.5/4)
Milk, 1%, 1.5 cup (154/3.5/0)

Total - 1294/49.5/15
Activity - None

G - 11th Feb 07

Breakfast
Coffee w/ splenda and milk (37/0/0)
CM 9 grain bread, 3 oz (213/3/5.4)
Butter, 1 tbsp (67/7/0)

Snack
Hot chocolate, 24 oz (450/18/2)
Super veggie Sandwich (300/5/3)
Latte, whole, 8 oz (146/8/0)

Dinner
Pizza, thin crust, eggplant, 8 oz (505/17/2)

Total - 1718/58/12.4
Activity - None

G - 10th Feb 07

Breakfast
Coffee w/ splenda and 1/2 & 1/2 (37/1/0)
from IHOP:
Hash browns, 1/2 serving (110/5.5/1)
Egg, 1 (63/5/0)
Corn Pancake,1 (120/3.5/1)
Syrup, 1 oz (115/0/0)
Bacon 1 slice (53/4/0)

Snack
Cookie, 1 oz (138/8/0)

Lunch
Chapatis - 1.5 (120/1/3)
Rice, 1/2 cup (120/0/0)
Palak Paneer, hmmd 3/4 cup (162/12/3.4)

Dinner
Amy's veggie enchiladas, 2 (360/12/6)
Ben and Jerry's frozen yogurt (190/2.5/1)

Total - 1588/50.5/15.4
Activity -

G - 9th Feb 07

Breakfast
Coffee w/ splenda and milk (19/0/0)
Sourdough, 2 oz (123/1/1)
Butter, 1 tbsp (67/7/0)

Snack
Banana, medium (105/0/3)

Lunch
Fish Burrito (400/20/4)
Sushi, 1/2 pack (140/2/1)

Snack
Tea w/ milk and sugar (63/1/0)

Dinner
Chapatis - 2 (120/1/3)
Palak Paneer, no paneer, hmmd 1/2 cup (96/7/3.4)

Total - 1133/39/15.4
Activity - None

G - 8th Feb 07

Breakfast
Coffee w/ splenda and 1/2 & 1/2 (37/0/0)
Clif nectar bar (160/6/6)

Snack
Peanuts 1oz (166/14/2)

Lunch
Hummus sandwich (280/x/x)

Snack
Tea w/ splenda and milk (37/0/0)

Dinner
Sushi, 1/2 pack (140/2/x)
Toast, 2 oz (142/2/3.6)
Butter, 1 tbsp (67/7/0)
Izze 1/2 (67.5/0/0)
CM choco chip cookie, 2 oz (135/6.5/0)

Total - 1231.5/37.5+/11.6+
Activity - None

G - 7th Feb 07

Breakfast
Coffee w/ splenda and milk(37/0/0)
Bread, multigrain, 3oz (133/1.33/2)
Butter, 1 tbsp (67/7/0)

Snack
Pita chips, 1 oz (130/5/2)

Lunch
Hot and sour soup 2 cups (150/4/2)

Snack
Pear (103/0/5.5)

Dinner
Fried rice, shrimp, white hmmd 2 cups (479/16/2)

Snack
Tea w/ milk (33/0/0)
Green tea (0/0/0)

Total - 1132/33.33/13.5
Activity - None, Bad cedar allergies

G - 6th Feb 07

Breakfast
Coffee w/ splenda and milk(37/0/0)
Kashi Golean Waffle, 1 (170/3/6)

Snack
Peanuts 1oz (166/14/2)

Lunch
Sushi, salmon less cream cheese (280/8/0)

Dinner
Yogurt, lowfat, 1/2 (70/.75/1)
Yogurt, stonyfield (200/5/2)

Dinner
Hot and Sour Soup, 1 cup (75/2/1)
Rice, 1/2 cup (120/0/0)
Noodles 1/4 cup (180/9/2)

Total - 1298/41.75/14
Activity - None

G - 5th Feb 07

Breakfast
Coffee w/ splenda and milk(37/0/0)
Grape nuts trail mix, 1/2 cup (170/2/5)
Milk, 1%, 3/4 cup (77/2/0)

Snack
Pear (103/0/5.5)
Chicken Quesadillas, sml, 1/2 (168/x/x)

Lunch
Fish curry, 1/2 cup (234/18/2)
Rice, 1/4 cup (60/0/0)

Dinner
Pasta, ww, 2 oz (200/1/5)
Eggplant parmesan, hmmd, 4 pieces (200/21/2.8)
Tomato sauce (150/14/2)

Snack
Milk, 1%, 3/4 cup (77/2/0)
Granola, 1/4 cup (116/5/2)
Lower fat cereal, 1/2 cup (195/3/3)

Total - 1787/50/19.8
Activity - Running

G - 4th Feb 07

Breakfast
Coffee w/ splenda and milk (37/0/0)
Bread, multigrain, 3oz (200/2/3)
Butter, 1 tbsp (67/7/0)

Lunch
Misc, Whole Foods (300/10/2)

Snack
Kashi Golean Waffle, 1 (85/1.5/3)
Kheer w/ rava and milk, (174/4/1)

Dinner
Rice, 3/4 cup (181/.2/.5)
Chole, hmmd (334/16/8)
Beer, Sierra Nevada celebration (200/0/0)

Tea, green (0/0/0)

Total - 1578/40.7/17.5
Activity -

G - 3rd Feb 07

Breakfast
Coffee w/ splenda and 1/2 & 1/2 (37/0/0)
Bread, multigrain, 3oz (200/2/3)
Butter, 1 tbsp (67/7/0)

Snack
Upma, 2 cups (478/13/6.3)

Dinner
split pea soup (101/1/2)
Pita, 1/2 (37/.5/1)
carrot muffin, small, 1/2 (81/3/0)

Snack
Corona, 1.5 (222/0/0)
Cake, 5 oz (374/17/1.7)

Total - 1597/44.5/14
Activity - None

G - 2nd Feb 07

Breakfast
Coffee w/ splenda and milk (37/0/0)
Kashi golean crunch, 3/4 cup (150/1.5/6)
Milk, 1%, 3/4 cup (77/2/0)

Lunch
JJ veggie club no cheese on wheat (558/31/7) WOW!! For Lettuce on bread!!
Clif Nectar bar, 1/2 (80/3/3)

Snack
Apple (72/0.2/3.3)

Dinner
Rice, 3/4 cup (181/.2/.5)
Chole, hmmd (334/16/8)
Yogurt, greek (75/6/0)
Honey (128/0/0)

Snack
Tea w/ milk and splenda (17/0/0)

Total - 1709/60/27.8
Activity - None

G - 1st Feb '07

Breakfast
Coffee w/ splenda and 1/2 & 1/2 (37/2/0)
Eggs - 2 (204/15/0)
Potatoes (61/2/1)

Snack
Peanuts 1oz (166/14/2)
Crunchy peanut snack 1oz (166/14/2)

Dinner
Khichdi, 1/2 cup (226/1/5)
Fish curry, 1/2 cup (234/18/2)
Rice, 1 cup (242/.5/1)

Snack
Bread, multigrain, 2oz (140/1.33/2)
Butter, 1 tbsp (67/7/0)
Jam, 1 tbsp (56/0/0)

Total - 1700/75/15
Activity - Walking

I'm adding extra hundred calories for cookies that I don't have the information for. Clearly, I need to be eating more mindfully and well, less!

Trail of Misery 2.2

Thus begins TOM 2.2 phase: last lap

One of the running guys was told to run proud and finish strong. I guess I need to use that here. Last 18 lbs to go (should have been 13 but I was bad for a while) and I need to buckle down and finish this up.

So No sugar or fried foods. Let's see if I can remember how the good eating rules worked when I still ate carbs. I'll post todays food run next