Today's Article, Salad, and The Weekend.

Video:

First off, you might want to check out the video just posted to the sidebar. The online crew filmed it and put it together, so a big thanks to them for that. I understand that they're going to try for a few more later on.


Veggies and Salad

I've gotten some email asking about salads. They want to know what I do if I'm not eating oily salad dressings. Well, after your taste buds adapt, you come to like greens and veggies as they are.

The kind of dressings sold in the store a extremely fattening and devoid of just about anything nutritionally worthwhile. Oil is 100 percent fat, and even if it's vegetables fat, it's not something you want added to your salad. A huge salad might be under 300 calories before dressing, but over a thousand after it's added.

If you're just a dressing fiend, though, then add my favorite healthy dressing. Take a bunch of fresh, juicy tomatoes and a few stalks of celery. Put them in a blender and mix to desired consistency. (Some like it dicey, some like it liquidy like real dressing). Throw that on your salad you you've got a great taste that's great for you.

Lime or lemon juice is another healthy option.

Finally, you might like throwing on some fruit to add flavor.

If if you eat a raw diet long enough, all this stuff will become pleasant additions. Your taste buds get a rest from the stimulants and let you taste the real flavors of your salad.

The Weekend:
This weekend I'll be reattempting my 16 miles run. I've given myself plenty of rest, and I feel extremely ready. Wish me luck.


Article:

This article ran in Friday's Record-Journal:

Pounding away on a treadmill at OMNI Physical and Aquatic Therapy in Wallingford, I was informed that my right hip is higher than my left, which throws off my stride and keeps me drifting to the right. It’s some of the best news I’ve heard since I started this endeavor.

The day after my article in the paper announced that I’d be taking on the Hartford Marathon on a raw diet, and I admitted that I hadn’t the slightest clue about how I should train, I came into the office to find my inbox and voice mail flooded with generous offers of assistance.

I’ve heard from grizzled veterans of dozens of marathons and relatively new runners. Many recommended good books or just gave a few pointers. I’ve heard about the dreaded “wall”, which can leave a strong runner virtually prostrate after 18 miles because they pushed too hard and didn’t take in enough sugar.

At least forty people have contacted me over the last two weeks if you count my blog, some from across the country, and I simply couldn’t answer all the messages. City officials and random people on the street have stopped me to ask about my progress and wish me luck.

But the best opportunity that’s come my way because of this is the offer from the OMNI staff of owner Frank Forte, Exercise Physiologist David Harper, and Chiropractic Physician Dr. Richard Powers. I caught their attention with my article, and they’ve offered to walk me through the training process and hopefully correct any problems I might have before they become injuries.

I’ve been running a few miles a day for years, but I’ve never really pushed myself, and it’s always been with the tentativeness of someone who’s never had a running coach.

So to have someone firmly tell me that I need some work, and who’ll walk me through the nesecarry exercises and running techniques to get my form in good order, is actually something of a relief.

I’ll be meeting with Harper soon to work out the kinks.

Forte has been running marathons for years, and he had a good deal of information for me. We covered everything form the best way to handle water on long runs- do a large figure eight route around your car so you can periodically refill on calories and water- to how to handle the wear and tear on your body.

“The rest is almost more important than the running,” he said, which is something that I’ve been starting to realize over the past couple of weeks.

Following my attempt to run all the way to Cheshire and back to Meriden, a trip of about 16 miles, I slept 12 hours. I also think I’ve been adding to the load of my leg muscles too quickly, which was probably behind my left thigh locking up on mile 14 of that trip. I went from averaging 20-25 miles a week before my training to 45 or so miles last week. I’m determined to ramp up my mileage at a slower rate from here on out.

One of the things that Forte suggested as a reasonable goal to shoot for was a sub four-hour marathon, which is considered pretty respectable for a first timer. I like the challenge, so I think I’ll give it a shot.

He told me that I had a thin build, which will help me out. “You’ve got the genes for it,” he said.

I now find it interested to hear all this talk of good and bad genes. People are plagued by illness because of their genetic misfortune, you hear.

When I was 220 pounds at age 17, I cursed my bad genes. Now that I’m 163 at age 23, have my genes changed? I remember my youth football coach talking to my father when I was 10 or 11 and saying that I was such a big guy, yet I could run down the field pretty fast. I must have good genes, he said. Now I’m thin, but I’m probably not fast enough to distinguish myself sprinting. Now I’m average speed. Did my genes worsen?

All the backaches, headaches, and regular head colds that plagued my early life have vanished since I stopped eating processed food, meat, dairy and eggs four years ago. Things have only gotten better since I started eating just fruits and vegetables six months ago. Did my health genes improve?

No. It’s all contextual. I could probably become a fast sprinter if I demanded it of my body and gave it the right fuel.

I’m determined to run this marathon and do the best job that I can. Plenty of people run them, of course, but it’s going to be especially rewarding to me because of the absurdity of me doing it previously.

Almost every time I take to the road I remember this particularly miserable run I made regularly on that youth football team. It was hot, I was wearing all my equipment, and my lungs were laboring for breath. I was miserable. I hated that run, and I dreaded it. Looking back, I realize that the distance couldn’t have been more than a quarter of a mile!

Now I look forward to my daily runs that cover the breath of the city and beyond. The endorphins are pumping, I’m feeling great, and I don’t feel like my ability to breath has the slightest impact on my ability to run. Running is a joy, even if it’s a joy that sometimes beats the crap out of you and steals your wallet.

I look around on these beautiful summer mornings and wonder why more people aren’t out on the road with me. People complain about the heat, but one of the benefits of this diet is that you run several degrees cooler than the average person. The heat doesn’t really get to me.

Anyone crazy enough to join me? All you need are some bananas and a pair of running shoes.

For daily updates on my training and maps of my routes, check out my blog at: http://running-raw.blogspot.com/

For information on my diet, check out my site: www.raw-food-health.net