You Don't Have to Travel to Bring in the Bling!

A few friends have asked how I stay focused on training when races seem so far off and training/races in AZ during the summer absolutely stink!!!  Well, I have found there are a LOT of races that you can do virtually that are fun, are for great causes, and give you great bling!  Now a few of the friends joked that "virtually" just means in your head - nope!  You have to actually move your feet!!  :-)  I will dedicate this post to some of the races I have joined and some others that I have heard about...hopefully you can join in on the fun!

The first virtual series that I just love is called The Home Run Series.  You can choose distances of 5K, 10K, half marathon or marathon and you must complete your distances in the month of August.  There are two different medals:

You are awarded this medal for the 5K and 10K distances

(I chose 10K)

You are awarded this medal for the half and full distances

(I chose half)

Jost Running (jostrunning.com) is the creators of this series.  They do one each month.  They believe in getting people together without the obstacles of finance and distance:

Now there are other virtual races that are put on to help INDIVIDUALS with their charity requirements for certain races.  I am doing Running for Lemons virtually as well in the month of August:

The Running for Lemons Virtual Run is a fundraising run/walk to benefit Alex's Lemonade Stand (https://www.facebook.com/alexslemonade) which is a foundation to help support childhood cancer (um, what better cause!!!) You can choose 5K or 10K.  Of course, I chose 10K.  :-)

Now, these are a few that I have heard about but have not signed up for (yet...):

To support the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society by "A Little Goofy" - Until August 15th.  Sign up and run, swim, bike, or walk 3.93 miles (the actual Disney Goofy Challenge is a full and 1/2 marathon that equals 39.3 miles) - http://www.wendysrunforlls.com/Virtual_Registration.html

Virtual run for the charity group Give Kids The World - nonprofit resort in Kissimmee Florida for children with life-threatening illness and their families - is now open.  Register until August 31 or when they sell out (they are close!).  Race distances offered are 5K, Half Marathon and Beastly Challenge (both 5K and half).  If you do the Beastly Challenge, you will get the 5K and the Half Marathon medals, plus a special 3rd medal.

https://www.facebook.com/events/391500024301034/

Now, these just a few that I have mentioned - there are a LOT!  You can google most of the races, but I also recommend that you get onto a FaceBook running group.  They will mention a lot and their individual runners will post their fundraising efforts - and who doesn't love bling, so they usually include some sort of medal.

Hope this has helped.  Shoot me a post or email if you have any questions or are having a hard time finding virtual races.  My philosophy (and many of my running friends) is that if you are putting in the miles to train for your next race how much more fun is it to get a medal in the mail for your effort!

HAPPY RUNNING!!

Dehydrating Fun & Flaxseed Crackers Recipe

So our first recipes in the dehydrator have turned out great!  Though it takes up some space on the kitchen counter, I am so happy we made the decision to add this contraption.  :-)  We went with the Excalibur 3900...here is what it looks like:

Our decision was based on the reviews that it received on Amazon.com and other review web sites.  Thus far, we are pretty pleased with its performance.  In addition to the machine, we purchased the Teflex sheets.  They are reusable, so buy one pack and see how quickly you need more (to save on costs).

The first items we made were banana chips and sweet potato chips.  both turned out good, but we need a little work on them (flavor was spot on, but I would like them a little crisper).  Once we get the recipes just right, we will share!

The flaxseed crackers turned out amazing!!  These will be a staple in our pantry.  Very full of flavor and super duper easy to make!  A few have asked for the recipe, so here it is.  The recipe came from Alissa Cohen's "Living on Live Food."  Her comment on this recipe:  "The basic cracker:  I love these!  They are simple, yet tasty and great for dipping or topping with avocado, tomato and onion.  After you make these once, you can vary the amounts of garlic and ginger and lemon to suit your taste."

Flaxseeds supply an essential fatty acid (ALA).  ALA is converted by the body into the type of omega 3 fatty acids found in many fish.  The richest sources of lignins, which provide fiber, flaxseeds prevent constipation...

2 cups whole flax seeds (soaked in 2 cups water for 4 hours or overnight)

2 cloves garlic

1/2 lemon, juiced

2 Tablespoons Bragg Liquid Aminos (We used coconut aminos)

1 Tablespoon fresh ginger

1. Place all ingredients in a food processor and blend until well combined, and until the garlic and ginger are completely ground.
2. Remove from processor and place on a Teflex sheet on top of a mesh dehydrator screen.  Spread batter into a thin sheet about 1/8 inch thick (or less...I like to make these very thin:  the 'goopy' substance from the flax seeds holds these crackers together even if they have holes.)
3. Dehydrate at 105 degrees for 10-16 hours, depending on degree of crispness desired.  Flip crackers and peel off Teflex sheet after 7-8 hours.
   
   Note:  When you place whole flax seeds in the food processor with the other ingredients, the flax seeds will stay whole.  This is suggested just to grind the other ingredients and to blend the flaxseeds into the mixture.

Please remember that if you are focusing on a raw diet, you must keep the dehydrator under 112 degrees.  Anything above that will "cook" your food...not making it raw (alive) any longer.

 This is what one sheet of the crackers looked like after they were dehydrated.  The recipe yields two sheets.  Sorry, I should have taken a picture of them before we put them into the machine.  I will with our next batch and update this entry with the pic.

  

Homemade guacamole and flaxseed chips were dinner for tonight - YUM!!

Currently we have blueberry bread in the machine.  I will update you with all the pictures and a recipe when it comes out.  

All for now!

Words to Live By

Flying Again

It has been a really good start to the month.  I am back on track with my running and work has been buzzing along pretty smoothly.

Last week, after I picked up the house in preparation for the cleaning lady to get there, I thought to myself, "I really miss my old cleaning lady.  She did such a better job!" So, with that, I let my cleaning lady go, and I hired my old cleaning lady - me!  :-)  The first thing I did was scrub my kitchen floor.  I was so disgusted by what I saw in my bucket after I got done that I continued to clean the living room and entrance way floors as well.  Wow!  Did I feel amazing after that!!

Many of you that know me know that I had incorporated FlyLady into my life when I lived back in Troy.  When I first moved out here, I didn't use FlyLady, but I really didn't even have time to think for myself because of trying to survive work and school (hence the hiring of the cleaning lady).  Well, I am back at it full steam, and I can't even tell you how much my life has already changed since I started back at it.  I love her daily routines, her zone cleaning, and her tools.  She is a God sent!!  My house looks, feels, and smells clean again...plus, my house is getting cleaned deeper than it has in a very long, long time.  If you have never heard of FlyLady, I strongly encourage you to try it out, go to FlyLady.net.  Even if you can't do it all, she teaches to jump in where you are, babysteps, progress not perfection!  I am excited to see how the system will work once the kids get here.  The kids, though, are so helpful.  I hardly ever have to ask them twice to do anything.  Their rooms are usually quite tidy, and the "family areas," as we call them, are always spotless.  We have an agreement in our house that I respect their areas (their rooms) if they respect the other parts of the home...so I don't really harp on them too much about how messy their rooms are.  Well, except for the clothes.  They know that is the only real thing that gets me in a tizzy, LOL.  But I have come up with a system for keeping that at bay as well, so all is really good.

Matt and I have been making some great progress on our eating journey.  We bought a dehydrator this past week and are now experimenting with "living on live food."  Currently, we are in the process of making sweet potato chips, banana chips and bread...all raw.  We are juicing  2 to 3 times a day now, and have almost removed the animal protein from our diet.  I am feeling really really good.  I know that we have a long way to go, but knowing my husband and how diligent he has become with this food regimen, we will be on a very steady course soon.   

On that note, love one another.  God is Love...and that is exactly what he wants us to be.

Good night friends.

Registered for Walt Disney World Marathon!

Well, I know that I said I just didn't know if a marathon was right for me any longer after I broke my foot, but I think it was because no marathon was going to be good enough...except the one I didn't finish - or rather didn't start.  And that is when I dug down deep inside me last night and pulled out the raw feelings and emotions of how I truly felt about not completing that race, and Matt and I talked.  He paused for about 15 seconds after I told him my thoughts and said, "Let's do it!  I am going to do it with you!"  I sat there and cried!  It is what I have wanted, but I knew that Matt wasn't totally sold on going back to Florida and I really didn't have anyone that would do it with me, so I just buried the feelings.  When he was so open and supportive last night, I knew that this is it.  This is the race I am supposed to do.  :-)

Today is 4th of July and we are going to just chill during the day and then go and see the fireworks out on Tempe Town Lake with the SUPs.  It should be a really fun day...I get my husband an extra day this week!  

Happy Independence Day everyone!!