Baby Steps

Do you relate to any of the following thoughts?

"I'd like to work out more, I just don't have time."

"I hate running, it is way too hard!"

"I love food too much to eat better."

"I honestly just don't know where to begin."

These statements are extremely common. We have all thought them at some point and I am sure most of us have said them out loud. These statements all may be true, but are they holding you back?

About 3 years ago, I said the very same statements even though I was running competitively, I simply did not understand what good nutrition was and how to properly fuel for everything I was putting my body through. Instead of eating many greens, proteins, and complex carbohydrates, I was merely "carbo loading" all the time! As a result, I was 15 pounds heavier (and remember I am 5'1'') and sluggish in my running and daily life. I attribute this to my lack of knowledge and as hard as I was working and trying, I was just going backwards.

Although, I look back at those days and wish, "If only I knew then what I know now" I also am thankful now for the knowledge that I have gained. I use this knowledge to pursue a lifestyle of balance and also find that I enjoy my food much more now then I did before.

Focusing on your health means embracing your creativity. You are the artist in designing colorful meals that send your taste buds to the moon and back. You are the designer in creating meals that keep you sustained and alert, meals that carry you throughout the day to be efficient and productive. Embrace your creativity and find the flavors that you love to eat.

Embrace spices to add flavor to your food before resorting to oils and dressings. Experiment, there is no failure. On that note here are some marinade/dressing combos you can add to stir fries and salads that I have created:

-1 tbs Miso Paste (same paste used to make Miso soup in sushi restaurants)

-1 tsp Chili Garlic Paste

-Half Lemon

-2 tsp Soy Sauce (Low Sodium if you can)

-1 tsp Garlic

-1 tsp Sesame Oil

Mix and enjoy

-1 tbs Turmeric

-1 tbs Siracha

-Half Lemon

-Dash of Cumin, Salt, and Pepper

-1 tsp Olive Oil

Mix and enjoy

Be your own culinary artist and share your wonderful recipes please :)

Where the Heart is

As the weeks approached leading up to the Boston Marathon quickly crept up on me, I became excited and also nervous. I went into the Detroit Marathon naive with no idea of what racing 26.2 miles would feel like. Lets just say it really took everything I had and so I anticipated the pain of my next to be unbearable!

Ever since I was young, I heard about the Boston Marathon. I have been a competitive runner since I was in 7th grade so I have invested 12 years of my life into this sport. To be honest, I had no idea what it would be like. I don't like to build things up to be huge because I get nervous so I down played what a big deal going to Boston was. Well lets just say when I arrived to Boston Saturday night, I quickly learned what this magic was about.

In all my years of running, no place ever captured me like this one. Waiting to check into the hotel, which was connected to the Expo (we had no idea so this was exciting for us) I met two of the nicest ladies who were so generous in sharing their abundance of information on the Boston Marathon with me. Our hotel was the Sheraton Boston which was about 2 blocks from the finish line, at the time we thought we were so lucky for choosing that one. Everything felt so right, so magical.

As the weekend rolled on, I made some of the greatest connections with people who loved running more than I do which is impressive! I met people who had run the marathon for 3,4, 5,7, even 30 years. They built up excitement in me and countless moments, I found myself tearing up at the thought of how beautiful this sport is and the breed of people it brings.

The morning of the race, my mom and I walked with the other 27,000 runners to the shuttle buses. I stood in the crowd of people, hearing bits of conversation about how many marathons they have run and where they came to Boston from. As I finally took a seat on the bus, a woman sat next to me. We quickly learned we had the same qualifying time and ended up becoming fast friends. We spent the 3 hour wait in Athlete's Village together and kept each other from getting too antsy about the race.

We met a man who told us that he had run 54 marathons but technically this was his first. When we asked him why, he said that he had gone through Chemotherapy last year and this would be his first marathon back. Both of us immediately cried when he told us, the thing about that weekend was you didn't have to hold back your emotions. Runners are passionate people and it was okay to express how you were feeling, how happy you were to be surrounded by people who truly care about life and embracing their passions.

Most of the talk about the Boston Marathon, unfortunately has unfolded into the bombing situation and so I am writing this post to also remind people of the beauty of this race and of that day before everything unfolded. I have never enjoyed a race more in my entire life. I became emotional at mile 24 thinking of how lucky I was to be there at that moment, surrounded by people who were fulfilling their dreams, by crowds who got us through the race. There is no way any of us could make it through that distance (except the pros probably) without the support from the sidelines. From the kids handing us water cups, giving us high five or from the people holding signs that say "You are Amazing."

Never in my life have I been so touched and overcome with such pride in this sport. But the true amazing people are not only the runners, but also the fans that come to enjoy this moment. My mom who anxiously waited over 3 hours for me to run a race and spend way too much money on a hotel and flight and warm weather clothes that I neglected to pack now that I am all Southern and spoiled!

When the bombs went off, my mom and I were two blocks from it. We saw the smoke, we saw the crowd run. We stayed in Cambridge that night later learning we were a mile from the suspects home. This definitely does not comfort my mind but what does comfort it is the support we received that night. The calls, texts, facebook posts, the love we knew we had behind us.

As I am trying to move on past that day, I am just looking at my life differently. I am one of the luckiest people in the world and so thankful to be here today to share this story. I hope after this weekend people are inspired to follow their dreams. It does not have to be running related or even sports related, but related to what makes you happy and brings out the best in you.

I will be back to Boston again to run that marathon, I will combine with other runners around the world to make sure our sport stays alive. Always keep in mind where the heart is...

Biggest scare of my life

I'm sure many of you have heard about what has happened at the Boston Marathon today. Danielle, being the superstar that she is ran it today. I am so proud of her for doing it, she ran an incredible time. I am also so thankful that nothing happened to her today. My mom was there with her and I finally just got to speak with them. I am so so so thankful they are ok. Hearing their voices was the biggest relief I have ever had. I don't know what I would do without my two best friends in the world. I don't think I will feel completely ok until I see them both back home and safe again. Say a prayer or send your good vibes to those in Boston right now.

I love you two more than you could ever imagine and I can't wait to see you home soon so I truly know you're safe.

Happy belated siblings day!

So yesterday I was not aware it was siblings day until the best sibling ever (Fensta aka Danielle) wished me a happy siblings day. It completely made my night better. I haven't been feeling the best lately, and it was just a nice surprise. Go ahead and just remind your loved ones how wonderful they are to you; it will make them feel good and in return make you feel good too!

Miss you fensta I can't wait to see you in May <3 your best friend.

Homemade Deep Conditioner

I have been really enjoying making my own shampoo and conditioner, but I really wanted to make a deep conditioner just to keep my hair feeling extra nourished. Immediately after my run this afternoon, I whipped up some ingredients I had lying around:

half an avocado
2 tbs Mayo
1/2 lemon juice from a small lemon
1 tsp Argon Oil
1 tsp Castor Oil
2 tsp Water

Then blend all of these together and apply to your hair from root to tip. The conditioner will kind of look like guacamole, I almost wanted to grab some chips and eat it..sadly I am not kidding. Cover your hair with a shower cap or a plastic grocery bag if you don't have a shower cap and let the conditioner sit on your hair for about 20-30 minutes.

After you take off the cap or plastic bag wash your hair thoroughly with a little baking soda and water. Then rinse ends with diluted apple cider vinegar to balance the ph level. This will leave your hair feeling shinier and softer and reduce the greasy after feeling deep conditioners leave. Using a deep conditioner will always give your hair an initial heavier feeling but by the next day it should be back to normal after a good wash.

Successful Healthy Cookies

I finally baked "healthy" cookies that have turned out and taste great!

All I did was blend together:
-3 Big Carrots
-3 Ripe Bananas
-2 Cups Raw Oats
-2 tbs Cacoa Powder (rich in antioxidants)
-2 tbs Ground Flaxseed
-1 tsp Baking Soda
-1 tsp Nutmeg
-1 tsp Cinnamon
-1 tsp Vanilla Extract

After that I added Chocolate Chips and baked my cookies on a sheet at 350. Tasty, healthy (not in just a low fat way) but in the form of antioxidants in your cookies, and easy to bake. Enjoy :)