The Grand Prize

Finally the results of the Maintain Not Gain contest came out today. My team won the grand prize, a six month membership at NIFS for each team member. Very exciting! I’ve never had a gym membership. NIFS is an awesome facility and I’m looking forward to kicking my strength training up a notch.

My knee seems to be recovering nicely from the little mishap 7 miles into a 21 mile trail run last Saturday. I still did another 6 miles Sunday, but by Monday I was pretty sore so I finally took some Ibuprofen, prescription dosage for a day. That knocked the soreness out of my knee. I sandwiched five half mile intervals into a 7 mile run Tuesday and had a 9 mile pace run Thursday. Tomorrow is a cut back week on the long run so it will only be about 10.5 miles. I also managed to squeeze in a stair workout during lunch on both Tuesday and Thursday. Wednesday was burpee night again this week, 75 burpees. I’ve had two solid weeks of training and I feel pretty good.

My diet has changed dramatically in the last couple of weeks. I’m cutting back on sugar, eating more protein, and getting more carbs from vegetables and fruits than from breads, pastas and other starchy stuff. I wouldn’t say I’m on a zone diet, but that is in part where I’m getting my inspiration. I wouldn’t say I’m trying to lose weight, rather I’m trying to lean out a little i.e. lower my body fat percentage.

Here’s a recipe I’ve been using this week. I’ve been using some lean beef my wife broiled Sunday evening.

Saute a cup of chopped onions, clove of garlic, and a teaspoon of chipotle spice in a teaspoon of olive oil. Add 3 ounces of thinly sliced beef, ¼ cup of cooked black beans, and 6 diced prunes. Stir and cook until heated through. Pour onto a plate and sprinkle a ¼ cup of low fat cheddar on top. Very tasty. You can use whatever spices you like and you could even substitute chicken for the beef. If you don’t want meat at all then use a couple of egg whites instead and call it an omelet. Some mushrooms would be good too.