I woke up at 7 am on Saturday morning- that’s like sleeping in two-ish hours extra for me. I hopped out of bed to get ready real quick for slow flow yoga at 7:30 am. Saturday’s class focused on hip openers (something I should do more of before each run). This instructor takes the Saturday morning slow flow class much slower than regular slow flow classes. It’s much appreciated.

Last Saturday before my 5k race I went to the same class and it was so hard to move. I was bewildered that I’m able to go for (long) runs after just getting out of bed and moving better than what this felt like. This week felt the same. There were a couple people fewer than last week’s so the class felt even more personal and relaxed. She provided extra strips of foam for cushion on our knees. It was a good way to start my weekend. But it gets better!

When I got home I made Strawberry-Pistachio Pita Pizza snacks. I made these once before but they are so easy to make I should really make them more often. The recipe is from Runner’s World Meals on the Run cookbook (page 29). You place pita bread on baking sheets, spoon strawberry jam over it (the cookbook details how to make your own strawberry spread), and sprinkle shelled/chopped pistachios on top. It bakes in the oven at 425 F for 10 minutes. Once could ask- how can it go wrong? Let me tell you…

  • The pita bread was borderline starting to mold (I procrastinate)
  • The strawberry jam found in the fridge came from some kind of homemade/farmer’s market so who knows how old it is
  • Leaving it in the oven for close to 15 minutes is close to burning

Now, when you’re prepping this treat you might think, “Oh, this is a lot of bread.” (My dad thought that.) Fear not. When it bakes in the oven it becomes pretty flat. Some pieces are a little crispy and others chewy. It was nice that I made it so that I didn’t snack on chocolate for the rest of the weekend.

On Sunday morning there was no snow or ice on the ground. Unfortunately, it wasn’t 50 F at 8 am (28 F) like it was the day before. So I bundled up and went to the local track for five miles. This brought me up to meet my goal for the week of 18 miles. I should end up being around 75 miles for the month of January. Official training doesn’t start until February 21 but in a way this 5 mile run was my “long run.” The run felt comfortable and it’s enjoyable to go out without any expectations. My splits were consistent and averaged 8:43 pace. (Running at this pace still surprises me.)

Well, Mother Nature had to remind us that it is indeed still winter in Michigan in January and the snow kept coming down. When I got home from work instead of rushing off to my usual Monday hot yoga class I stayed home to start preparing dinner. Tonight I made Bison Meatballs with Marinara from Run Fast. Eat Slow. Cookbook (page 120 and 171). I’m always hesitant trying new recipes because half the time I end up not liking what I make after all that hard work! But this was DELICIOUS! There was kale mixed in with the meatballs and you couldn’t even taste it. The marinara sauce had carrots in it, quite different, but also was a good touch.

The Magic Bullet minced the kale up nicely!
Carrots and onions are cooked before adding the diced tomatoes for the sauce
Turns out I didn’t need to add any parmesan cheese to help the taste!

As for my new year’s resolution of a salad per week- I’m 4 for 4! I’m hoping I can make eating nutritiously (like a runner should) a habit during marathon training.