If you caught the Oprah show today, you may have been surprised to see that Oprah and her staff- some 378 men and women- participated in Oprah’s Vegan Challenge. For 1 week, they left behind their usual fare of dairy, eggs, butter, meat, fish, and all other animal products and even the HARPO cafeteria started serving some vegan options. I thought I was dreaming when I saw the preview for this show because I did not expect this, but I was so proud of Oprah and her staff for bringing attention to this topic. I took some notes to share with you because I know many of you were not able to watch the episode.

Journalist and food expert Michael Pollan, vegan author Kathy Freston, and journalist Lisa Ling were invited onto the show to talk about veganism and being conscious of where our food comes from. Oprah was clear in stating that everyone needs to make the choice for themselves and the show was neither pro-vegetarian nor pro-vegan, but pro-education, much like her show with Pollan several months ago.

Oprah claims that many of us are ‘disconnected’ from the animals, meat industry, and the food we eat each day. As reported by the USDA, 10 billion animals are killed in the US each year for consumption. With such a staggering number, it is important to question how our food gets to our plates.

Michael Pollan thought the Vegan Challenge was fun because it makes people conscious of what they eat. I had to agree with this because when I became a vegan, for the first time in my life, I started reading the ingredients that were in my food. I was shocked to find out that I didn’t know what half of the ingredients were and I still find myself looking up mystery ingredients on a weekly basis.

Oprah’s staff member, Jill, emptied out every item in her fridge that had an animal product in it. By the time Jill went through her fridge, it was virtually empty. She was shocked how much food contains animal products.

Pollan admits to eating meat 1-2 times per week, but states that he doesn’t eat industrial or feed-lot meat and he supports small-scale, local farmers that do not feed the animals grain (i.e. corn or corn by products). Michael’s goal is to REFORM the meat industry, not eliminate it. While I would love to see a meat-free society some day, I do realize that Michael’s approach is probably the most realistic.

As a rare look inside a meat farm, Lisa Ling travelled to Cargill Meat Solutions- one of the largest meat companies in the US. This part of the episode was the most emotional for me to watch. They described the process that each cow goes through from the feed lot to the slaughtering to the processing. Each cow at Cargill spends 200 days at the feed lot where they are fed corn and corn by products. This is to fatten up the cattle where they gain about 3 pounds per day. Each day, 4,500 cattle are sent to the slaughterhouse where they will be guided through maze-like pathways for 2 hours to calm down prior to slaughter. I could almost feel the chill in the air as I watched this somber part of the clip.

It was extremely hard for me to watch the animals looking into the camera, just moments before death. Kathy Freston described how I was feeling when she said, ‘watching the animals in the slaughterhouse didn’t sit right with my soul.’  I could not have described my own emotions any better. It is one thing to read something from a book, but to actually see it happening is very real.

Not surprisingly, the episode did not show the 4 inch bolt that is shot through every cow’s head during slaughter. They did, however, show the pain on Lisa Ling’s face as she watched the slaughtering. The carcasses then go through the process of skin removal, sawing, and chopping/grinding the parts. This part was very graphic, but I was happy that they did show this behind the scenes look because I think it is important to connect ourselves to what we eat. The most shocking thing about this slaughterhouse was that it was supposed to be one of the ‘better ones’ and that many, unfortunately are much, much worse than was portrayed.

The show ended with vegan author, Kathy Freston who served as the vegan guide for Oprah and her staff members during the vegan challenge. Kathy took staff member Jill to Whole Foods to show her examples of vegan foods she could cook for her family. I expected Kathy to show her beans, legumes, lentils, vegetables, fruits, nuts, or seeds, but sadly, Kathy showed her a plethora of packaged fake meats, fake mayonnaise, fake cheese, and fake ice cream sandwiches. I strongly believe that a vegan diet does not need to rely on processed, imitation products, so I was disappointed to see this focus. When I first went vegan, I tried all the fake meat products because that is what I thought I was supposed to eat, but my real satisfaction with veganism only came when I experimented with non-processed foods like grains, beans, lentils, vegetables, nuts, and seeds. That is when it all clicked for me and I knew that I could do it long term.

Oprah and her staff member’s reactions to The Vegan Challenge were very interesting to watch. One of Oprah’s staff members, Joe, said he felt so amazing that he was going to convert to a vegan diet. Oprah, said it was definitely ‘doable’ to eat a vegan diet, but she would be ‘veganish’ from now on, meaning that she will think more about the food she eats and try to eat more animal-free foods. Her partner, Stedman, wants to continue the vegan challenge because he enjoyed it so much. Other staff members admitted that they wouldn’t be converting any time soon, but they did admit that it made them think about what they eat each day. Out of 379 participants, they lost a total of 444 pounds and gained a total of 84 pounds. Some participants said they gained weight because they relied on ‘vegan junk food’ too much. I thought it was great that they showed both sides of the story because it is just as easy to eat unhealthy on a vegan diet as it is a non-vegan diet! I don’t like the portrayal that veganism is some kind of weight-loss diet though.

To end the show, Oprah and staff members at HARPO announced that they will be holding a Meatless Monday each week in honour of this challenge. I think this is a great idea and it shows that no matter what kind of diet you do chose eat, you can always make changes, big or small, to impact the system.

If you are interested, there are a bunch of video clips from today’s show on the Oprah website.

Did you see Oprah’s Vegan Challenge show? What did you think? Do you ever go meat/animal-product free or participate in Meatless Monday?

Breakfast this morning was a fun change.

I don’t have cereal too often because I find it doesn’t fill me up, but this morning I was just craving a bowl with tons of mouth-water toppings.

Sometimes only cereal will do!

Trail Mix Spelt Cereal

Ingredients:

• ~1.5 cup Nature’s Path Spelt Cereal
• 1/2 banana, sliced
• ~1/3 cup Power House Glonola 
• Pinch of unsweetened coconut
• Almond milk
• 1/2 tbsp chia seeds

Even though I slightly over-cooked the Glonola, almond milk makes it all better.

Soft and chewy and crispy and comforting.

How I found My Passion

[For my full A Year Can Change A Lot Series on Career Changes, See these posts: Part 1, Part 2, Part 3,  Part 4, Part 5, Part 6, Part 7, Part 8, Part 9, Part 10]

The other day I was asked what led me to discover my passion for the blogs and bakery.

I was asked, ‘How did you know that it was what you wanted to do?’

For the first 25 years of my life, I had no clue that this is what would make me happy.

Do you remember the Oprah episodes from years and years ago about finding a career that would make you happy?

Those shows were always inspiring yet anxiety provoking for me. I loved hearing about other women’s triumphs and how they went from working a horrible job to running their own business or going back to school to get a degree. I could watch story after story after story, but for some reason I would always walk away from it saying to myself, ‘I can’t do what they did.’

We are talking about an early strike-out here. I remember feeling these thoughts when I was just 15 or 16 years old. I just felt like I would never be able to find the means to follow my dreams like these other successful women did. Sure, I thought I could be happy if I had a well-paying career, but I never thought that I would be able to do something unconventional for a career.

Why did I defeat myself so early on in the game?

Because I simply didn’t know what my passions were!

If you don’t know what your passions are you surely can’t act on them.

For so long, my passion was my eating disorder and it took up all of my free time. I didn’t have many real hobbies. I played in sports for many years, but I obviously knew I wouldn’t be pitching for the Blue Jays any time soon.

I started the blog on October 31, 2008 which was when I began my journey to health. I was looking for positivity in my life and I wanted to reach out to other women who were struggling with the same things that I was; not just about food and weight, but with all aspects of life.

My blog was my hobby and it brought me great joy, especially during a time when I was quite unhappy with my career. For the first little while I figured that I would be ok if I could keep this hobby on the side. It would keep me going and positive. It would be something I could look forward to when I got up in the morning and got home from work at night.

It kept me sane.

Little did I know that pursuing a hobby I enjoyed would be one of the best wake-up calls I have ever had. I felt alive when I wrote and connected with others, when I cooked in the kitchen, and when I explored photography.

For a while, I dismissed my feelings because I felt guilty about them and I didn’t want to admit that perhaps this was what I should be doing. What would people think if I told them? Surely they would laugh in my face and tell me to keep looking for a research job.

One morning I woke up and everything was clear.

I wanted to write. I wanted to open a bakery. I wanted to make healthy recipes. I wanted to help others.

And then I quit my unfulfilling career.

And damnit, I wanted to take a leap of faith for the first time in my life. I wanted to take a chance on ME.

Pursuing a hobby changed my life.

When I am asked how I discovered that this is what I wanted to do, I always thank my blog. It was the hobby that opened my eyes and helped me find my passions.

Passion finding tips:

1) If you have no clue what your passions are, pursue hobbies that you have always wanted to do and go from there. It will feel like you are going on a blind date and you may have to kiss a lot of frogs to find ones you love, but persist on.

2) Not sure what hobbies to pursue? Ask yourself what you enjoyed as a child and as a teenager for clues. Not all of them will be winners, but you will be on your way to finding them. Look at the hobbies you have now and ask if they are telling you clues about your happiness.

Do you currently have any hobbies? Why or why not? Do you know what your passions are in life and what makes you come alive? Do you think you can turn what you love into a career?

Good morning!

My special breakfast this morning was a Green Monster Parfait!

Green Monster Parfait

Ingredients:

• 2 cups spinach
• 1 large banana (reserve 1/4 of banana)
• 1/2 scoop Vega Choc-o-Lot powder
• 1 tbsp chia seeds
• 1 cup almond milk
• 1/3 cup Power House Glonola 

Directions: In a blender, blend the spinach, 3/4 of the banana, Vega powder, almond milk, and chia seeds. In a large glass add a few tbsp of the glonola. Now add a large layer of the Green Monster followed by another scoop of Glonola. Finish with remaining GM (you might have some leftover) and top with the 1/4 of banana (sliced) and Glonola.

The Green Monster Parfait was ok, but not wonderful. I think I had high expectations for it and I’m not sure I liked eating it with a spoon.

After tasting my granola again this morning, I concluded that I overcooked it! Whoops. 

I guess it is possible to screw it up after all.

I would suggest cooking it for no longer than 10 minutes on each side and not letting it get as dark as I cooked mine.

I also concluded that the clump factor is missing in this recipe.

Checkout my ‘old’ Glonola version…

Choco-Carob:

Total clump factor!

However, the original Glonola had too much clumping and stuck together too much. Maybe I can find a happy medium with both recipes?!

I think I am going to make another recipe integrating the original recipe with this one. I will have to tweak it a bit more….you know me, I am picky with my recipes!

It’s Slimming

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Are you ever out in public and you hear a conversation going on and you can’t believe what you are hearing? That was me the other night. I was at a department store looking for a gift for a girlfriend and I passed a group of 3 girls who were looking for back to school clothes. They couldn’t have been more than 9-10 years old.

Girl #1: ‘I need to get some new jeans. All of my jeans at home are fugly.’

Girl #2 & #3: ‘Yea same here.’

The girls were browsing through a couple racks of jeans and holding pairs up as they went along.

Girl #2: ‘I like these ones. I might try them on.’

Girl #1: ‘Those jeans are not slimming at all…they are too light and light colours make you look FAT.’ She scrunched up her face in disgust.

The girl quickly threw down the pair of jeans, as if they had some sort of contagious illness.

Girl #3: ‘I agree, you have to get the dark wash. You will look skinny in them. Dark colours are slimming’

‘Here, try these on. I have this pair and they make your butt look awesome.’

She handed Girl #2 a pair of dark wash jeans to try on.

Then I decided to stop being a creeper and I left the scene.

But, I was sad in my heart for these girls.

They couldn’t have been more than 10 years old and they were already concerned about having jeans that made them look skinny.

I remember being around 11 years old when my disordered eating started to develop. While I admit I didn’t know about slimming jeans (or even had a general fashion sense aside from neon and snap-on bracelets), the feelings were still very real.

It is important that we do not dismiss young girls when they talk about weight or slimming jeans or wanting to look thinner because when you are going through it it, you are like a sponge that absorbs every comment, every magazine ad, or every commercial on TV. Your surroundings are telling you to be ‘skinny’ and to wear ‘slimming’ clothes and so that is what you do.

Our weight-conscious culture seems to infect whatever it touches with messages that you aren’t good enough the way you are and that you need to change your body or wear slimming pants. These messages are hard enough to dismiss when you are an adult let alone an impressionable young girl who is fighting to fit in at school and to find out who she is.

I couldn’t help but wonder as I walked around aimlessly in that department store: What can we do for these girls?

I think two big ways that we can have an impact are 1) Educating about a positive body-image at home and setting a proper example for our kids, perhaps with a great tool like Operation Beautiful. and 2) Introducing special Body-image classes (for girls and boys) into the school curriculum. I don’t think this topic gets enough attention in the school curriculum even though the issue is pervasive and affects all aspects of a student’s life.

Have you ever overheard a similar conversation or perhaps were in a conversation when this was going on? What can we do for young girls who are developing a poor body image?

Good morning!

Last night I forgot to make my planned Vegan Overnight Oats, so I threw them together this morning and I patiently waited. I distracted my growling stomach by shipping out orders and trying to fix my blog that was down.

While I worked, Sketchie got caught up on his beauty sleep (he only got 18 hours yesterday!).

When he sleeps I am overcome with an urge to tickle his toes. I try to refrain myself, but it is hard. He curls them up all cute!

I checked on the VOO after 35 minutes and even though it was still soupy, my stomach demanded to be fed. So soupy VOO it was.

I also made some GREEN banana soft serve!

Avocado Soft Serve

Ingredients:

• 1 large frozen banana
• 2 tbsp avocado
• 1-2 tbsp almond milk

Directions: Add frozen chunks of banana and 2 tbsp fresh avocado and process in food processor. Add almond milk to speed along the process if necessary.

It is very buttery tasting. At first I wasn’t sure if I liked it, but it grew on me like most green things do.

Delish.

How To Bounce Back From A Race

I ran my second 10km race on Monday and I busted my butt legs to shave 7 minutes off my PR.

Afterward, my leg muscles were ready to up and leave my body. They were not impressed with me!

Specifically, my left shin was tight and pulsing with a what-the-heck-was-that ache. This was new for me because I have never had a problem with sore shins before. I suspect it had something to do with sprinting at the end. My quads also hurt as well as my hamstrings. I was tight all over! Dare I say even more tight than following my last half marathon.

Here is what I did to recover:

1) Immediately following the race, I stretched my muscles.

I think it is very important to stretch immediately following a race because if I don’t every muscle seems to clench up and get super tight and cranky. I spent about 5 minutes stretching my shins, quads, hamstrings, and Achilles.

2) After stretching, I ate.

After stretching, I had a large banana. Immediate post-race fuel is important, even for a 10k.

3) Within 1 hour of finishing the race, I ate a replenishing meal with plenty of carbs, protein, and healthy fats + H20.

Even though it was only 9:30am I mowed down on a burger!

4) After my meal, I drank lots of water.

5) Next, the dreaded ice bath.

Ice baths are not fun, but they work. Period.

Here is how I rock the ice bath: I fill the tub with cold water so it just covers the tops of my legs. I get into the tub (with a sweater on! No, I’m not joking) and after getting in, I slowly pour a small bag of ice into the water a little bit at a time. I check the water temperature and aim for it to be around 55-60F. Be careful not to make it too cold, or it could damage your muscles. It should not be painful, just cold. I highly recommend wearing a sweater though. It sounds crazy, but it helps so much. I roll mine up a bit at the waist so it doesn’t get wet.

6) That night, I went on a light 1.5 mile walk to get the blood flowing in my legs.

I do think a bit of light activity helps the recovery process. I think the worst thing you can do is sit all day following a race (unless of course you are injured). Relaxing and kicking up your feet is necessary and well-deserved, but a bit of walking helps too.

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7) The morning after the race, I did Christine Felstead’s Yoga for Runners.

This is a 45 minute yoga DVD that is targeted specifically for runners and focuses on stretches and poses that soothe common sore & tight spots. This DVD is perfect for beginners (like me!) and moves at a good pace which is great when you are sore and your muscles aren’t moving very quickly.

I fell in love with this DVD and use it several times a week. I would highly recommend it to all the runners out there!

8.) Another light walk in the evening.

9) Two days after the race, my legs felt good enough to do a test-run.

Yesterday I headed out on the road, without a watch (I didn’t care about time only how my body felt), and I did an easy 2 mile run. A short run at an easy pace is a good way to ease your body back into your normal running routine and there is no pressure to go fast. I stretched a lot afterward.

10) Chocolate.

Need I say more?

It is now Thursday and my muscles have decided to forgive me. Whew.

Do you have any muscles that tend to get sore quite easily? Do you have any weak spots or areas that are vulnerable to injury?

I would have to say my most vulnerable area is my groin area. It always seems to get tight even when my other muscles are fine. My Achilles also seem to be vulnerable. Last Fall after my second half marathon, my left Achilles was quite sore and I had to take 2 weeks off running. I think this was from all the hills along the course and also that it was very cold during the race (about 1-2C). Eric and I are hoping to get back into strength training again this Fall, so I hope to strengthen up my body again. Leg work, ab work, and arm work shall be done.

Good morning!

Thank you so much for your wonderful comments in my 10k race recap!

Surprisingly, my body isn’t too sore this morning. I attribute this to the ice bath (brrr!) I had shortly after getting home, oodles of chocolate (hell yea!), stretching, and of course some healthy eats.

I ended up having a great day yesterday! I think I was running on endorphins all day long (and copious amounts of green tea!). I finally got around to designing my OSG business card. My new cards will have Glo bakery on one side and OSG on the other side. I ordered them from Print 100. I have been using Print 100 for the past year and I am super happy with their service, free shipping, turnaround (2 weeks), and quality.

For dinner, I whipped up an avocado and tomato salad with mixed greens…

and my Better than Bottled Balsamic Vinaigrette.

And for the main I tried my hand at making roasted apple and acorn squash soup. It sounded delicious and I had a CSA acorn squash to use up!

Mmmm!

Roasted Apple and Acorn Squash Soup

Adapted from B.C. Tree Fruits

Ingredients:

• 2 small apples, cored, cut into pieces
• 1 acorn squash, cut in half, seeds removed
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 1 clove garlic
• 4 cups vegetable broth
• salt & pepper, to taste
• Parsley, to garnish
• Few sprigs rosemary, chopped finely

Directions: See this post for directions.

It’s squash season!!

Mmm squash flesh.

After pureeing the rest of the ingredients, I added the chopped squash and mixed:

This soup was good, but it wasn’t my absolute favourite. If I were to make this again, I would use less apple and more garlic. The apple taste was a bit too pronounced for my liking.

I really enjoyed the chunks of squash in it though. Instead of blending the entire soup, I blended everything except the squash and then I just chopped the squash and mixed it in. It had a great, chunky texture!!

I also added a bit of rosemary and that was a nice flavour in there too.

After dinner I polished off this entire box of Vosges Naga Mango (Dried Mango + sweet curry + dark chocolate). Oh my gosh was this ever delicious! Whoever thought to pair sweet curry, mango, and chocolate together is a genius!

What Have You Learned?

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Seeing as today is the first day back to school in our neck of the woods, I thought it would be a great time to reflect on what we have learned during our journey to health!

Here are some things I have learned along my journey:

• I should strive to be a Size Healthy and not a specific number
• If I honour my hunger signals and cravings, I won’t feel an urge to binge
• There is no point to compare myself with others. It is much more fun if I strive to improve based on my previous accomplishments.
• If I am not happy in my career, I will always have a big piece of my happiness missing and my heart will feel a void.
• My body is not the worthless piece of junk I thought it was, in fact, it is capable of so much more than I thought!
• Use quotes to inspire when you need motivation.
• Eating a vegan diet makes me feel at peace
• Take a chance on YOU. What have you got to lose?
• The goal weight I had set for myself previously was NOT my happy weight
• A ‘Happy Weight’ is probably not going to be the size of a magazine model for most people. Finding your happy weight may mean that you have to accept the size your body was meant to be at.
• Some days will truly suck. There is no way of avoiding this and it is totally normal. There will be days you overeat and feel crappy, fall off the exercise wagon & lose motivation, or have personal health problems to deal with. When I accepted that these experiences were part of the normal ebb and flow of life, I was able to move on quicker and not beat myself up for it.
• Sometimes chocolate is always the answer (like last night!)
• You only get one body and one life, make sure you treat it well and make it a happy one
• Recovering from years of disordered eating took much longer than I thought and is always an on-going process
• Surround yourself with POSITIVITY, good friends, and family. Read uplifting things.
• There are many potholes along the road to recovery. If you trip up, dust yourself off, put on a band-aid, and keep going FORWARD!

What have you learned along your journey to health?

Ah, childhood memories.

I enjoy looking at old pictures, notes, and artwork in a memory box that my mom gave me a couple years ago. It never fails to take me back to those days.

The quote on the front reads, ‘Angela, Knowing yourself is the beginning of all wisdom.’

Sometimes I think about how I have changed over the years.

While I have grown up and matured, I still maintain my childlike innocence and love of laughter. I still giggle, find time to ‘play’, and make jokes. I act silly and do embarrassing things. I am a klutz and it is not uncommon for me to trip over invisible objects. I am shy, sensitive, anxious, and a bit neurotic at times. Really, I was always this way.

No matter how I felt about myself over the years, my mom always saw the good (even when I was a crazy teenager and she probably wanted to disown me!).

I got my love for the written word from my mom.

I still have a love for fashionable workout clothes (oversized red tee and pink sneakers, anyone?), frills and lace, poetic dancing, tutus, and furry friends, much like I did when I was young…

Pink polka dot outfits and rollerskate performances rocked my world…

And still do…

And my love for NEON clothing lives on (much to OSGMOM’s chagrin). You can ask my mom about the time, early 1990’s, when she bought me a neon pink and green spandex outfit at the mall and I insisted that I change into it in the mall bathroom so I could wear it immediately. And it was the only thing I wanted to wear for weeks.

A love of writing, inspired by my mom.

…and the realization that all of us deserve to find happiness in our own unique way.

While our personalities often stay the same, our thought processes, feelings, and actions tend to evolve. To grow we need to constantly challenge ourselves and find new meaning in things.

I used to be a bad friend to myself. While I was easy-going and loving by nature, for many years I did not show this to myself. Instead, I was very utilitarian and dogmatic. I treated myself as if I was in some kind of boot camp, constantly striving for perfection and often tripping up. When the goal is perfection you will find failures with everything you do. So I kept trying hoping some day to gain my acceptance.

What I learned is that I held the power all along to accept myself for who I was. Losing weight would not make me love myself just as it wouldn’t make me love my family or friends any more when their weight changed. I love them for who they are and that is exactly what I had to realize about my relationship with myself. Sometimes the things we perceive as faults or character flaws are things other people come to love about us.

Self-love is a package deal.

If I were to tell my younger self some things I have learned along the way they would be:

• Accept the total package and not compartments: Honour and love who you are, your personality, your talent, and all your less desirable traits.
• Repair from within: Losing weight or changing your appearance will not fix the broken relationship with yourself.
• Get rid of the chip on your shoulder: When you perceive yourself and others as the enemy, your life becomes a battleground. Instead choose love and keep the faith despite the inevitable experiences and people that will hurt you.
• FORGIVE. Yourself. Others. Often. Move on. Life is short.
• Cultivate Childhood Passions: Those hobbies you loved as a kid might be clues to your future success. As a child mine were baking, outdoors/nature, health, sports, writing, animals. When I reintroduced these passions into my life I became much happier.
• This too shall pass. With each year that I age, I am happier. if you are in a hard time, hold on. I used to think my high school days would never end (yes, I got my share of teasing!), but life gets so much better.

What ‘tips’ would you give to your younger self? Is your personality similar to how it was when you were a child?

You might also want to check out my previous posts on this topic: A Letter To My Former Self  & A Letter To My Current Self.

Good morning!

I was so excited when my alarm went off this morning because that meant that I could run today! After a quick check of how I was feeling I deemed that it was a run day. Yippee.

Before I left, I had half of a Glo Bar. This bar doesn’t even exist yet! It is a trial from several weeks ago that I popped in the freezer.

Yum.

After 15-20 minutes of digesting and reading, I was on the road. It was a cool and sunny morning. Perfect for running! I didn’t bring Dwight with me because I wanted my body to tell me how fast it wanted to go and not have any watch feedback. I find the best way to get back into exercise after several days off is to ease in slowly and let your body tell you what it feels up for.

I ended up running my 3 mile route and I felt pretty good, albeit a bit more ‘rusty’ than usual.

I was excited for my first Green Monster since before the Chicago trip. We haven’t had any spinach or kale in the house, but I picked some up last night when I got a huge craving for a GM.

In the mix…

In the GM = 1 cup Almond Milk, 1 tsp Raw Maca Powder, 1 scoop Amazing Grass Wheatgrass, 1/2 ripe banana, 3 cups organic spinach, 1 juicy nectarine, 2 pieces ice.

Mmmm it was silky and delicious! The nectarine was really nice in it too.

And of course loose leaf…

Does Music Make You Workout Harder?

This morning I read an interesting article on the NY Times website about music and exercise. Tara Parker-Pope writes, ‘It’s music’s dual ability to distract attention (a psychological effect) while simultaneously goosing the heart and the muscles (physiological impacts) that makes it so effective during everyday exercise.”

Personally, I have always been a huge fan of pumping the fast beats during exercise and I do believe that it helps me train harder and not give up. However, I will admit that sometimes music just doesn’t seem to be that effective and can even be annoying.

What I thought was most interesting was that research shows there are limits to the impact music has during exercise, most notably during intense exercise. Research suggests that when you exercise at an intense level music doesn’t really have much of an impact. In a recent review of the research in 2009, Karageorghis and Priest claim that music narrows attention and distracts the mind from fatigue during moderate exercise, however during intense exercise “perceptions of fatigue override the impact of music, because attentional processes are dominated by physiological feedback.” Despite music not having as great an impact during intense exercise, many participants still claimed that they enjoyed listening to the music regardless!

I can totally relate to this research because I find that music works great for me during training runs, but during all of my races, I found that the music didn’t have as much of an impact on my performance. At times I even found the music was annoying during a race, but during other times a certain song got me through a difficult mile. It really varies for me! Sometimes during a race I will turn my music off completely and just listen to my breath and focus on my stride, pace, and the course.

What about you, does music make you workout harder? Does it help your training? What about during for intense exercise?

Sometimes I am asked what it is about running that I love so much. I always pause, taken aback by the question, as if I am being asked why I love my husband, my family, my friends, or my cat.

I just do.

But after probing more into my instinctual and immediate response, I start to realize that there are many reasons why I love to run. The answer I give you will depend on the day, the distance, the time, my mood, my body, my sleep, and various other factors.

Today the reason I ran was for mental health.

I knew that today’s run would serve the purpose of boosting my mental health and centering me. Today I just craved a run like nothing else.

Recently, Caitlin had a wonderful discussion on the topic of ‘What are you running towards?’. In my answer to her question, I said:

I’m running towards inner peace. I’d like to think I get there a bit more with each run.

Inner peace is one of the goals I strive for each and every day. It is not always through running that I try to get there; sometimes it is through writing, baking, reading, meditating, cracking jokes, walking, or being with my loved ones. The desire for inner peace was one of the main reasons why I ended up leaving an unfulfilling career and branching out on my own.

I think inner peace is a lovely goal. And running helps me get there.

I have also been asked by frustrated readers how they can learn to enjoy running. Sometimes the answer I give seems a bit odd:

“Have you cried on a run yet?”

“What? No!”

“Then keep running.”

“Have you gotten a shiver through your entire body on a run yet?”

“From the cold, you mean?”

“Keep running.”

I remember the day that hooked me on running. It was during my first 10k race in June 2009. I had been running on and off since August 2008, but I never understood why anyone could enjoy 30 minutes of breathless agony. What kind of strange people were they, I would wonder.

This 10k course was a brutal one, filled with menacing hills around every bend or turn. I laugh about it now, but at the time I was running on steam.

Here is a quote from my race recap #3 (the rest can be found on my race page):

6km-7km: It was hot, but I was truly loving every minute of the race. Each time someone passed me, it motivated me to dig deep within myself and find an extra ounce or two of strength. I thought a lot about Chris during these 2 kilometers and I found myself getting quite emotional in the moment. I teared up at one point as I was so overcome with emotion. I think it had been building for so long now. All of the emotions from my injury were finally being let go. The 2 months when I couldn’t even do yoga let alone cardio exercise affected me more than I realized. I felt free, and yes, while I was panting, and grunting, and feeling sometimes like I was going to die going up a hill, in some odd way I felt so alive. I thought about what Chris must have gone through with his cancer and coming to grips with the fact that he wasn’t going to make it to his thirties. Suddenly everything I was feeling sort of went numb. A tear dropped off my face and I didn’t feel any tiredness anymore. I didn’t curse the hills, I didn’t worry about my time, heart rate, or pace…and I am not sure if the music was on or off.

I just ran.

And this is why I love to run.

The ability to take your emotional junk and leave it on the pavement is something I have not found in anything else but through running. For some it is yoga or walking or skydiving, but for me it is running.

Today’s long run wasn’t really about improving my physical endurance or training for a half marathon. I mean, of course it was to an extent, but really, all I wanted to do was clear my mind and reclaim my inner peace.

It worked.

[But perhaps, not without Kath’s Sweet, sweet nectar recipe too. Two thumbs up for homemade sports drinks!]

How do you find your inner peace?

Toot, toot!

All aboard, the Operation Beautiful Virtual Book Tour!

I am excited to be talking about a body image topic that is very near and dear to my heart this morning- Happy Weights!

But first, a delicious, healthy, and energizing breakfast!

YUM!!!!

Morning Glow Vegan Overnight Oats

Ingredients:

• Classic Vegan Overnight Oats (1/3 cup oats, 1.5 tbsp chia seeds, 1 cup Almond milk, 1 tbsp Amazing Grass chocolate Amazing Meal powder)
• 1/2 apple, chopped
• 1/4 cup blueberries
• 1 dried apricot, chopped
• 1/2 Raw Energy Cookie Bites
• 1 tbsp peanut butter
• Drizzle of maple syrup, optional

Directions: Mix classic vegan overnight oat ingredients and leave in fridge overnight or in fridge for 1-2 hours. When VOO is ready, stir in mix-ins (chopped apple, blueberries, apricot, 1/2 cookie bite, peanut butter. Serve and enjoy!

This was soooooo delicious.

Revved up and ready to roll!

Fun fact about the OB book- OSGMOM has the very first note in the entire book!

You can also find me on pages 25 (my OB note) and 129-131 (I talk about the Superwoman Syndrome). I am so honoured to be a part of this great book!

OK, let’s begin.

I went on a post-it spree in Wal-Mart in honour of this post!

Happy Weight: What It Means To Me

The term Happy Weight seems like an oxymoron, doesn’t it?

I mean, who is ever happy with their weight?

I define a Happy Weight as a weight that your body can maintain with relative ease where you feel healthy, energetic, and sane.

How many women do you know who have said to you, ‘I am at my happy weight?’ and then 2 months later they still say the same thing? And a year later they still say the same thing? It is usually along the lines of, ‘In 10 pounds I will be at my happy weight’ or ‘Just 5 more pounds to lose until I am happy with myself.’

At least for me it always was.

Part of the problem is that the weight we think will make us happy is often not the right weight for our body.

The weight that we desire and the weight that the media tells us we should be is often NOT the weight our own body is happy at. This happy weight will be different for every single one of us. My Happy Weight is not the same as yours and your Happy Weight is not the same as your sisters or your best friends. We are all unique.

It took me years to figure this out. In the process my weight went up and down and up and down.

Many women pick a specific number on the scale that they want to reach. We chose our goal and we do everything in our power to get there and stay there. Often in the process, we lose ourselves and forget that we have worth outside of this goal.

An ‘unhappy weight’ is a weight that we do not feel our best at energy wise, health wise, and hunger wise.

For years, I used to battle with myself, with food, and with the scale to maintain my weight. I fought the battle every single day to stay at that weight. Every morning when I opened my eyes, the first thought in my mind was about my weight. I vowed to eat less and to workout more. To stop bingeing. At night, I would often cry into my pillow, ashamed at myself for eating ‘too much’ food or for being weak and bingeing on junk food. The cycle of shame, guilt, and desperation went on for years.

I always told myself in 10 pounds, I would finally be happy. All I had to do was lose 10 pounds and achieve ‘x’ weight and my life would fall into place. In 10 pounds, I could eat normally, binges would stop, and I could stop hating myself. All I had to do was lose 10 pounds and my problems would be solved.

I would love myself in 10 pounds….but not yet.

Not yet.

For myself, and for many women, the number on the scale is sadly a barometer for our own self-love and self-worth.

If the scale tipped higher, I hated myself a bit more. If it tipped lower, I was a better person worthy of at least a small amount of love, but of course not fully until I achieved my goal weight.

Not yet. Some day though.

I promise.

Well, I finally did lose those 10 pounds and when I got there I realized that the number was actually not my happy weight. I couldn’t love myself yet because- wait for it- I actually had a new goal weight! I was mistaken before. I thought my happy weight was 10 pounds less, but I was wrong, it was actually in another 5 pounds.

I guess I was wrong.

I would love myself someday, but….

Not yet.

Not yet.

5 more pounds, and I promise that you can be happy again. You can eat more in 5 pounds. I can eat normally again. I will love myself. I will be able to concentrate on my school work. I won’t binge when I lose 5 pounds. I will be free of the monsters that tell me I am no good.

These thoughts are easily justified in the mind of someone suffering with disordered eating. You are never good enough. Life passes you by as you chase after happiness in a number.

The problem- and I didn’t figure this out for years- was that when I allowed the scale to be a barometer for my happiness, the number will never be good enough. I will never be happy living this way. Happiness is not derived from some extrinsic factor, it has to come from within to have a lasting impact.

So many women chase a specific number on the scale. When we approach it, it slips away from our grasp like a wet bar of soap. We try desperately to cling harder to it, and it shoots in the opposite direction. We trip and fall many times chasing it. The harder that I clung to my strict diet and exercise regime, the worse my binges got and the more the scale climbed and climbed which only perpetuated the negative thoughts and desire to restrict. It is an extremely hard cycle to get out of.

[Image source]

So how did I find my happy weight?

It took me years and a lot of hard work to find my happy weight, but I can now confidently say that I am there. I attribute this to several choices that I made along my journey. These are my own personal choices and I do not assume that they are necessary for others. It is simply my own experience and what worked for me.

1) I claimed responsibility for my happiness

• For so long, I felt powerless about my own happiness with myself and my body-image. I felt like I couldn’t change myself, my thoughts, or my actions. One day it occurred to me that I had to finally accept responsibility for my happiness. If I didn’t, who would?

2) I ditched the scale

• While I don’t think scales can make us unhappy (ultimately, we have the power to decide that!), I do think the scale was negative for me. To this day I do not weigh myself. The scale can be a useful tool for many people, but it was poison in my life and I chose to stop weighing myself. I have never been happier since ditching the scale.

3) I got professional help

• Having suffered from an eating disorder since the age of 12, I strongly believe the only way I could beat the negativity and find my happy weight was to seek out the help of an experienced professional. I tried and failed many times on my own, but things started to fall into place when I had the counsel of a loving professional. You have to want the help first though. My commitment and determination + a loving professional = the right tools for progress. There is no shame in talking to someone!

4) I stopped counting calories

• Just like scales, calorie counting can be a useful tool for weight loss. However, in the hands of the wrong individual (like myself) calorie counting turned into an obsession. I couldn’t stop even when I tried and it took over my life. I had to get rid of calorie counting and I instead chose to listen to my body’s hunger signals. It took me years to be able to do this successfully. For so long I had denied my hunger that I found it was almost impossible to listen once I tried. The worst part was that I continued to binge even when I stopped counting calories because my body didn’t trust me. However, overtime my body trusted me again and I became in-tune with my body’s needs. This does not happen over night…patience is a virtue.

5) I exercise for FUN and for a healthy personal challenge (not just to burn calories!)

• I never focus on how many calories I burn during workouts anymore. I focus on how I feel and I do things that I enjoy like racing. Find what you enjoy and stick with it. Set goals. See what your body is capable of! Make it an adventure.

Today, I can’t tell you how much I weigh (because I don’t know), but I can tell you that I am at my Happy Weight. I know this because I eat healthy foods when I am hungry and I exercise in a moderate amount. Some days I overeat or indulge in too many sweets, but other times I pass up on dessert. It is all about finding a balance. I don’t starve myself anymore and my body feels no need to binge. My body is happy because it stays about the same size and my clothes fit how they should. If my pants get a bit tight, I know to pass up on a few desserts or extra servings here and there. Nothing extreme anymore.

For the first time in my life, I don’t care how much I weigh because I know that I am healthy and happy. As long as I have this, no number will ever be able to dictate how I feel about myself again.

I decided that all scales should come with a disclaimer when you open up the package…

Half way through writing this disclaimer, I was overcome with emotion and I broke down into tears. I wasn’t expecting to feel those intense emotions after all this time. I guess my heart still remembers the pain I went through for many years.

The fight was worth it.

I am worth the fight.

And so are you.

If you would like to be entered in a random draw to win a copy of the Operation Beautiful book, please leave a response below.

What would your ‘Scale Disclaimer’ read? What does a happy weight mean to YOU?

Greetings!

I loved reading your I Believe comments from this morning…what an amazing bunch you are.

I forgot something from my I Believe list this morning…

I Believe…

• The key to a happy relationship is telling your partner one specific thing you appreciate about them and why, every single day.

This applies to all kinds of relationships…romantic, family, friendship, co-workers, etc. Everyone loves to be appreciated!

When I tell Eric something that I appreciate about him I can literally see his entire face light up with pride. Sometimes all someone needs is a ‘I notice what you do and I thank you for it.’ Now, go on and tell someone in your life how much you appreciate them!

In other news, I could not fathom eating anything cooked/hot/heated up today. It was another scorcher! I was cooking myself and needed to be cooled off…

LUNCH:

2 pieces of Eziekel bread with 1 cup of tomato curry chickpeas. I used 1 cup chickpeas + 2-3 tbsp tomato paste + 1/4 tsp Arvinda’s curry masala spice.

[Ok, ok I lied…the bread was toasted!]

+ Purslane Green Monster made up of 2 cups of Purslane, 1 cup almond milk, 1.5 tsp cinnamon, 2 tsp raw maca powder, ice, ice baby. The cinnamon was fabulous and I didn’t even need any fruit! I can’t believe I have not been adding cinnamon to my Green Monsters all this time. I will also be adding some cinnamon to my next batch of Vegan Overnight Oats too. I remember how much I enjoyed it when Eric made me some and I totally forgot about it.

I am loving Purslane greens in my Green Monsters!

The Purslane is so energizing, largely in part to all the wonderful omega oils and antioxidants it provides. I felt on fire this afternoon and cranked through over 200 Glo Bars baked, packaged, labeled, and boxed up!

Today is our Plan B CSA day which means scarfing some major veggies to make room for the new box! If you need some motivation to eat more veggies I highly recommend getting a CSA share. Eric and I eat more veggies now than we ever have. Surprisingly, I think we have ended up saving money because we have cut down our grocery store trips by half and we aren’t making those impulse purchases like before.

Everything But The Kitchen Sink Salad

Ingredients:

• Greens = Spinach + Mixed greens
• 2 small carrots
• 1 large tomato
• 1 large avocado
• 1 huge green onion stalk
• 1.5 cups snow peas
• Dried parsley, to garnish
• Freshly ground black pepper, to garnish
• Better than bottled balsamic vinaigrette 

Awesome salad! The snow peas were a nice addition!

On the side we each had a slice of cold pie…IN A JIFFY VEGGIE PIE!

I had mine on a bed of TJ’s Habanero and lime salsa.

It was a great dinner!

Dessert was the last of the Cherry, Banana, and coconut butter bread. I am fighting tears as I type this.

This was the defrosted leftovers and it was even more moist and gooey than before. It was so doughy…I was in love!   

Just look at that gooey bread!

For Eric, this gooey bread was a texture nightmare. 

He stuck to his ‘dry’ mini loaves that I cooked the hell out of last week (he just loves them though!).

To each their own.  :tongue:

Healthy Eating: A Love Affair With The Kitchen

Recently, I received an email from a reader named ‘Krista’ telling me about all of these wonderful changes she has made to her health. One of the things that Krista mentioned was that since she has started eating healthier, she spends so much more time in the kitchen prepping vegetables, washing dishes/new appliances, and cooking among other things. She didn’t say that this was a bad thing necessarily, as she enjoys it for the most part, she just thought it was interesting to point out how much more time is required to eat healthy.

Oh did this email hit home with me!

I thought this was such an interesting point about how healthy eating requires not only a commitment to EAT healthier foods, but it involves a commitment to spend the time to prepare healthier foods.

As you can imagine, I spend hours and hours in the kitchen, not only because I run a bakery, but because I prepare and cook most of my meals. Eating healthy is a huge time commitment- there is the washing, drying, chopping, roasting, sautéing, prepping, packing, planning, shopping, DISH WASHING, APPLIANCE WASHING (damn you, juicer!!!!!!), cooking flops (story of my life), etc. Eric always jokes that I should put Professional Dish Washer (P.D.W.) on my resume because I wash so many dishes and so many appliances each day. 

Because my time is limited, I rely on very quick and simple recipes. That is why you will rarely see me whip up a meal that takes longer than 15-20 minutes. Over time, I have figured out what will work for me. While some days the last thing I want to do is prepare a healthy meal for myself, often I enjoy the satisfaction that comes with creating healthy meals that I can feel good about.

Can you relate to having to spend more time in the kitchen to eat healthier? Do you spend more time in the kitchen now than in the past? What are your time-saving tricks to limit the amount of time it takes to eat healthy?

One of the very nicest things about life is the way we must regularly stop whatever it is we are doing and devote our attention to eating.  ~Luciano Pavarotti and William Wright, Pavarotti, My Own Story