Smoothie Adventures, Week 1

Smoothies, smoothies everywhere!  Not for me, I thought.  Too much trouble to get out the blender, use it, clean it and put it away.  Not enough room on the counter to keep it out.  Green smoothies look weird.  When my sister suggested I mix a "meal replacement shake" with fruit in a blender, I replied that I'd rather just drink the shake and separately eat the fruit on the side!  So much simpler!

So why, a couple of weeks ago, did I buy this and ask my Facebook friends for smoothie recipes?

I guess I was trying to shake things up a bit with my diet.  (Pun intended.)  I was bored with my routine and therefore wasn't sticking to it, and also decided that I needed to add more vegetables.  Thought this might be a fun and easy way to do that.  Thought I might actually use a smoothie-maker that was smaller than my other blender and came with cups that could be used for mixing individual smoothies.  Thought I might make smoothies the night before for the next day's breakfast and mid-afternoon snack.  Why I thought that last one is a mystery to me, as in 32 years of working I have yet to get into a reliable routine of making my lunches or picking my outfit for the next day on the night before!  Anyway, I read a few reviews and picked the Cuisinart.  Also bought The Smoothie Recipe Book.

The first thing I learned was that most of the recipes say "drink immediately!"  The only ones recommended for "bringing for lunch" are the ones with lemon or lime in them.  I Googled this and read that the citrus prevents oxidation, which turns the smoothie brown.  OK, don't want that; that sounds even weirder than green!

So far I've tried three smoothies.  The first one had no vegetables in it, and turned out to be my favorite of the three.  It was a breakfast smoothie with 1 banana, 2 clementines and 1/2 cup of almond-coconut milk.  Tasted like a coconut milkshake.  Of course I liked it.  But it wouldn't fit in the travel cup for mixing, so I had to make it in the blender cup and pour it into the travel cup, and clean the both the blender cup and the travel cup.  Oh well.

Next, I picked one to take to work for a mid-afternoon "pick-me-up."  It was supposed to taste like a Bloody Mary, and had lemon and lime in it so it wouldn't turn brown.  Here's what was in it:  2 stalks celery, 1 tomato, 1 teaspoon horseradish, 1 lemon wedge, 1/4 lime, 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper.  Also had to mix this one in the blender cup.  I really expected to like this, so I bought a week's worth of tomatoes.  When my husband asked me what the tomatoes were for and I told him, he said, "You could have just bought V8!"  He was right!  It was like drinking cold, chunky soup.  I like my Bloody Mary's spicy, but this was too much horseradish.  Might be better with less horseradish, but the texture was so unappetizing that I've just been using up the rest of the tomatoes on sandwiches and eating the celery sticks the usual way. Next time I want to drink tomatoes, I think will have a V8!

Smoothie #3 was this morning.  It had actual vegetables in it, and it was going to be my first green smoothie!  But here is what it looked like when I ate it:

That's right, that's what my "smoothie" looked like that when I ATE it, not when I drank it!  It was too much for my smoothie-maker.  It didn't make a smoothie; it just made noise.  When it started to smell like I was burning the motor, I gave up and transferred everything from the blender cup to a bowl and just ate it.  It actually tasted good, although it never would have occurred to me to put these ingredients together in a bowl and eat them for breakfast:  1 cup frozen broccoli, 1 large apple, 1/2 large cucumber, 1 banana, 1/3 cup plain non-fat Greek yogurt.  The recipe actually called for a "scoop" of yogurt, but I could find no clues in the book regarding the size of a "scoop" so I arbitrarily decided on the amount equal to one weight-watcher's point.  The broccoli was minced as I had successfully processed it in the blender cup before adding anything else. 

I might keep trying, but so far I'm thinking I had the right idea back before I bought a smoothie-maker, when I told my sister it was simpler just to EAT food rather than puree it first! 

I almost posted on Facebook this morning, "Anyone want to buy a smoothie maker?"  But I still have most of the almond-coconut milk to finish up so I'll use it at least a few more times.

Any smoothie advice, stories or recipes to share?

Training Log: First Outdoor Run of 2014

Yesterday was one of those days that I might not have run outside if I had been home.  Temperature was in the low- to mid-30's, with intermittent light rain.  I've run outside at colder temps, and I've run in the rain, but the combination just doesn't motivate me - especially when the warm gym and treadmill are less than a mile away.  I don't love the treadmill, but I don't love being cold and wet at the same time, either.

Alas, I was more than 200 miles away from the gym, in coastal New England, feeling like I needed to do something other than curl up with a blanket and a book for the whole day.  In the end it was the setting that got me outside.  As usual, I started to feel more like running as soon as I started putting running clothes on.  Four layers on top kept me warm, and the views kept me happy to be outside.

Here is what my training plan said:  long run, 75-105 minutes

Here is what I did:  86 minutes, run/walk 3:00/0:45 (BTW, I never would have lasted that long on the treadmill.)

I didn't cover very much distance, just a little over 6 miles, so this sign that I saw along the way obviously wasn't meant for me!

Here is what my stretch break at the halfway point looked like.  That's the Atlantic Ocean down below:

And here is the scenery on a nicer day, mid-autumn, last time I was here:

All in all, I was (as usual) glad I got out.  And glad I went when I did.  During the second half of my run, the intermittent rain turned to a steadier one.  After I was back in the house it was falling slush instead of rain, followed by snow.  Then, it felt good to curl up with a blanket and book, without any guilt!

What gets you motivated to run outside when it's not your favorite weather?

Why Am I Writing a Running Blog? Here Are Three Reasons.

I hate to run, or so I say.  I like to write.  Here are the three reasons I’ve decided to combine the two.

1.        Because writing is more fun than running.  People tell me I’m a good writer.  Except for work, I hardly ever do it.   No one has ever called me a good runner, but I do it several times a week.  Running is exercise; writing could be a hobby.  I’ve always thought that I might write for fun and/or money after I retire.  Writing this blog will give me some practice, and maybe I’ll find out if I can actually write anything that other people might choose, voluntarily, to read!

But why blog about running?

 

2.       So I can share without boring or annoying my non-running friends. There seem to be millions of running blogs, but none of them are by me!  None of them are about the things I see or think while I’m running, or about my experiences.  Not that my thoughts and experiences are all that special, but I do have them and sometimes I feel like telling somebody about them.  Most of the people I speak with day-to-day, either in person or on Facebook, aren’t likely to be too interested.  Maybe by blogging, I’ll find one or two people who are, and we can have some fun conversations!

 But why spend time on this?

3.       Because maybe I’ll learn to love running!  Now that I’ve found that I can run (sort of) and have seen and felt the benefits, I want to keep doing it for as long as I am able.  That might get easier if I could actually come to think of it as fun!  (Some people might not call me a runner, or might not even be too sure I actually am running if they saw me in action, but that’s for another post.)  Maybe I’ll find some inspiration from conversations that take place here!

I hope to connect with some other running writers, or writing runners; if you’re out there and reading this, please leave a comment about why you write and how it’s helped you as a runner.  And tell me where to find your blog so I can follow you!