Half Marathon Jitters

^I have a very bad case of it.

It's exactly two weeks tomorrow that I'll be trembling with anxiety about the mean feat that lays ahead of me (i.e. 13.1 miles of all-round body torture, to put it lightly! Haha, kidding. I hope). A gruelling slog with more than 25,000 fellow runners to accompany me (looking on the bright side, it'll make a nice change from always running solo!).



In times like these it's essential that I stay calm and plan ahead. Ok, so I haven't been upping the distance of my training runs per say, but I have been doing as much speed/interval training - combined with some treadmill hill intervals - as possible. I'm ever hopeful that this will provide an adequate amount of shock value to my body, in order for it to complete those 13.1 miles in a time deemed suitable for my runners'-ego.

Besides the niggling issue that is training, there are other, more fun things that I need to address. First of which being prerace nutrition; and second of which is my favourite part: HALF MARATHON ULTRA-MOTIVATING SOUNDTRACK! (Because let's face it, I will need all the motivation I can get)

Needless to say, there's a fine line when it comes to pre-race nutrition. Such a fine line that I'd be scurred to pop so much as a walnut in my mouth (repercussion: potentially too much insoluble fat. Drat). What makes things worse is the fact that there's so many contradictory advice articles on the web - coffee vs no coffee? Porridge vs low-fibre substitute? Fruit vs sports drink?!? Too much opposing advice, I CAN'T TAKE IT ALL IN DAMNIT! (and, calm...).



A pretty legit-looking article on Runners World suggests that between 1.5-1.8g carbs per pound of body weight should be consumed prior to a half marathon. I don't know how much I weigh exactly, but if I took a stab in the dark at 115lbs then that basically means that I should aim for between 172g - 207g carbs. Yes, that's right. The equivalent of a whole day's worth of carbs, all to be consumed before 9am! (the race starts at 9.30am or 10am, depending on which wave I'm in).

I eat porridge ever single morning, so effectively my body is used to this and thus it should be able to manage to digest it, despite the fact that it's considered a fairly fibre-dense meal. Sticking to what you know is probably the best option in this case. My usual combination of oats, almond milk, raisins, cinnamon and honey comes to approximately 82g carbs (according to the myfitnesspal app. Did I mention that I literally am in love with my new iPhone?). In accordance to the Runnersworld guidelines, I should be splitting my carb intake 6:3:1 at specific intervals in the run up to the race. So for me, my macros are as follows:

60% (consumed 3-4hrs prerace) = 103g - 124g carbs
30% (consumed 90 mins - 2hrs prerace) = 52g - 62g carbs
10% (consumed 30-60mins prerace) = 17g - 21g carbs

Doing calculations like these make me feel like I definitely have my shit together (oh sweet mathematic trickery, distracting me from the larger matter of the issue at hand).

Anyway, based on this little bit o' research, I think the best option for me is to stick to my porridge meal, consumed alongside a glass of fresh juice (toying between the idea of carrot, apple and ginger, or a new concoction that I'll need to practice making before the big day!) - that would be meal no.1. Next would be another glass of juice (beetroot for a nitrite boost), perhaps combined with something a little more sustaining. Finally, 30-60 mins prior to the race I think the good ol' banana will do juuust fine. Can't go wrong with a banana.



You might've noticed the running theme of coffee pictures in this post. Besides the fact I really like to take pictures of coffee (or, y'know, empty cups of coffee), it does sort of fit into this blog post - I didn't choose to put them in willy-nilly, people! Y'see, I have coffee on the brain as I'm seriously weighing up the idea of coffee vs no coffee prerace. I had planned to do a coffee fast (i.e. not drinking it at all from 10 days before the race. I know right, this is serious stuff we're talking about here), and then reintroducing it prior to the half-marathon, as I've read that caffeine works better as a stimulant after a (LONG!ish) break. However, now I'm a teeny bit worried that perhaps caffeine is indeed not the answer (I can't tell you how much I hope this is not the case. I drink coffee as an excuse prior to exercise; it's my prerequisite, and it is most definitely necessary, guys).

I plan to drink a lot more than I do now in the week leading up to the half, so that my body is properly hydrated throughout the run (and especially so to counteract the diuretic effect of the coffee that I'll most likely be consuming, despite those silly pre-warnings), plus plenty of sleep. My body clock is adjusting to early morning starts because of work, and I've been really feeling the effects of going to bed past-midnight over the past week or so. Not good, not good at all!

Another post will have to be dedicated on the pressing issue that is my half marathon playlist; clearly, I got a case of verbal diarrhoea discussing my prerace diet, and this has tailed off to be something of a brain-explosion. And in relation to my jitters, well...it's barely touched the sides on nipping those in the bud. In fact, it's probably done the opposite.

Anyone else doing their first half soon? Any advice for a fellow noob? Anything is welcome. Just please don't tell me not to drink coffee, ok? Deal.



^Aha, me after coffee. Ok, so I'll stop with the coffee hype now...

The Art of Homemade Granola

In the current climate of my life, early morning awakenings seem to be a common trend - alongside a diminishing timescale in which to get ready and leave the house by (all in the hope of getting to work on time). It's times like these that porridge just doesn't quite suffice; though it ticks all other criteria, there's no getting around the fact that it is somewhat time consuming to prepare in the morning (besides the issue that once it is cooked, you need to wait yet again for the damn stuff to cool! So not cool, porridge. Sort it out mate).

Fretting over, I found me a delicious way to satisfy my morning cravings for oats in a way that doesn't involve incessantly boiling them on the stove with innate precision). Well hello, good-ol' homemade nutty granola. Where have you been all my life?

There must surely be very few people who dislike granola. Though whilst supermarkets often have a huge variety of every kind of granola you could imagine, chances are that these oh-so appealing boxes of oat-y deliciousness are also full of unnecessary added sugars, and are likely to be made with not-so-good-for-you oils as 'stickeners' (Check the ingredients on the back of the box if you don't believe me!).

This - along with other factors, namely being the price tag - is why homemade granola is a hellalot better than your average pack of Jordan's (who apparently have 41% of the £13 million granola market. See what I mean about price now?!).

Making your homemade granola mix is simples, and you can easily adapt the following recipe to suit whatever nuts/seeds you prefer (or rather, whatever you have stocked up). It also fills the house with a gorgeous whiff reminiscent of breakfast time - the sweet warm scent of oats, nuts and honey is practically unbeatable (perhaps only just capped by the amazing smell that is banana bread in the oven. Oh, heaven's above!).



Ingredients (dry):

150g porridge oats
40g almonds
25g walnuts
25g cashews
2 tablespoons pistachios (can sub for seeds, i.e. sesame seeds or flax)
1 tablespoon ground almonds
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon (ground)

Ingredients (wet & optional additions):

3 tablespoons coconut oil
1 tablespoon manuka honey
a few drops almond extract (optional)
1/2 teaspoon vanilla paste
2 tablespoons dried fruit of choice (I chopped up 6 dried apricots)

Pre-heat the oven to 300C/gas mark 2 and line a baking tray in (suitably organised) preparation. Place your oats into a large bowl. In a separate bowl, place all of your nuts and crush slightly, until they're a suitable slap-dash mix of whole and somewhat crushed/chopped/battered nuts. Combine all dry ingredients and stir.

Meanwhile, melt your coconut oil over low heat before adding the honey. Once the coconut oil has liquified, remove from heat and add your optional almond extract and vanilla bean paste. Pour the mix into the dry ingredients, and stir well to incorporate every ingredient, until the oats/nuts are fully coated and a little sticky.

Spread your mix onto the baking tray and place in the oven for up to 30 minutes. Remove from heat, and leave to cool before adding your dried fruit (an option for those looking for sweetness to enhance and balance the nutty-oat-y flavour of the granola. Place in an air-tight container to keep your homemade batch fresh for around a few weeks (if you did it right, though, your granola shouldn't last even half that long. Trust in the power of homemade granola!).




And there we have it. This recipe was based on a post over at Iowa Girl Eats - my granola totally doesn't look a patch on hers, though admittedly I did reduce the amount of additional natural sweeteners that Kristin originally used.

Leftover Porridge Recipe

If you're going to designate a day for baking, then surely Sunday is the most appropriate - agreed?

And what better reason to start baking than leftover porridge? (courtesy of my boyfriend, of course - 'leftover porridge' simply isn't in my vocabulary).




I mixed 2 eggs (but just one yoke) with the porridge (made from almond milk/water and oats), along with some raisins, crushed up honey roasted nuts (around 15g at a guess - these are SO addictive, beware!), a teaspoon of manuka honey, plus 2 tablespoons coconut flour and a quarter teaspoon baking powder. I distributed the mixture into muffin cases (Pudsey ones, no less! God knows how old they are...) and baked on gas mark 4 (350c) for 35-40 minutes, grating some 90% dark chocolate on the tops about 5 minutes prior to removing them from the oven!

This made 8 muffins plus 3 teeny-tiny taster ones (all of which I ate during the baking process because I'm too damn impatient for my own good). I've yet to give them a final verdict as I'm doing that normal thing of waiting till they've cooled before eating...yeah, it's a new thing for me, I know.

Has anyone else any leftover porridge recipes to recommend me?! I always have some leftover porridge in the pan, though when it comes to porridge I usually just have to finish it. Not that you'll ever hear me complain about that - I'm such a massive greedy guts when it comes to porridge in the morning. This morning, however, my stomach could not possibly warrant for 2.5x my regular portion size (which is large as it is...).

Ah, I do love me a nice Sunday recipe - especially when it consists of all my favourite ingredients! Hope you all have a relaxing day, guys :).

Babushka's Cottage Cheese Pancakes

As promised, here is the recipe for my boyfriend's grandma's cottage cheese pancakes. These were baked by the dozen, so we always had a plentiful amount for breakfast! My god, these are truly delightful - trust me. Spasiba, Babushka!

Ingredients

2 eggs
500g cottage cheese
2 tablespoons flour
1 tablespoon self-raising flour
2 tablespoons sugar
Virgin Olive Oil
Raisins or filling of choice (optional)

Empty the cottage cheese into a large bowl and beat in the eggs. Sift the flour into the mixture and blend until the mix begins to harden. Add raisins or whatever else you'd prefer; raisins work well to sweeten the taste a bit. Heat the oil in a large pan whilst making small patties with the mixture; coat each with a bit of flour so they don't stick to the pan, and then add to the pan. Flip every couple of minutes until they appear golden brown. Best served whilst warm (otherwise I recommend microwaving!). This makes around 12 cottage cheese pancakes.

Please note: a language barrier has prevented me from retrieving the original recipe so this is a bit of a guess-and-make-do style recipe. Results weren't as great as Babushka's, but still tasty. A bit of trial and error is needed with the amounts of flour necessary as mine were too floury and not quite 'wet' enough! Even so, give it a go and I hope you enjoy as much as I do. :)

Breakfast and snack staples

Food is a very self-chosen and particular thing, really. I would say that I'm quite strict with my food choices and tend to eat the same kind of diet daily - call me boring, you may! But to be honest, I think my body works better with this more 'routinely' way of eating, particularly in terms of breakfast and snacks.



I always start the day with porridge. I'm fixated with the stuff, and have pretty much eaten it every morning for the past year (!). Every time I deviate things go wrong; the fruit/yoghurt option doesn't satisfy my belly enough to kick-start the day, and the heavier traditional English breakfast is absolutely not compatible with my rather fragile digestive system. However, I always used to be a Weetabix kind of girl because unlike other cereals you can't possibly over-estimate your portion size (lame but true!).

I make porridge with probably 80% water and 20% milk to compensate for the amount of milk I use in tea/coffee throughout the day; that and the fact that too much milk doesn't tend to agree with my stomach, particularly in the morning. I sprinkle with sultanas and (sometimes) linseeds. Porridge never fails to keep me going until lunchtime (unlike Shreddies - 'Hunger locked up until lunch', such lies!).

My mid-morning snack usually just entails of fruit, and that generally goes for the rest of my daily snacks, too. I'm a massive fruit-fiend. My favourite fruits are bananas (but I usually just eat these for pre-workout energy or post-workout recovery because of the high-carb count), peaches, apples (which I can finally bite into again, post-braceface), grapes , apricots, plums, blueberries, strawberries and raspberries. I don't know, I just can't quite get enough, and the natural sugar keeps me going throughout the day.

For me, there is absolutely no need for crisps and sugary cereal bars, or artificial sugars in general; it's a no-go in my book, because they just provide you with a quick sugar/salt high, which your body may be satisfied with at first, but give it an hour and you'll most likely be at the same level of hunger again.

My ultimate downfall is my love addiction(?) for caffiene. I am a tea and coffee gussler. However, I do try to stick to some kind of pattern i.e. tea with breakfast, coffee as a mid-morning pick-me-up, and limited/no caffeine in the evening.

At work, coffee is a necessity to keep me going through the long shifts. I've heard mixed things about the good/badness of tea and coffee; one minute it's beneficial, the next it's not? Obviously it depends on how much sugar/milk you take. However, I'm sticking to the former conclusion (surprisingly enough). Tea and coffee is too much a part of my life to let go of it now! Besides, I always thought caffiene was a tool for fast metabolism. Do correct me if I'm wrong!