It's 5 am....
The first thing on my mind when I woke up was a cup of coffee...
I can taste it, smell it, I need it......
The second thing.....
Damn that Brendan Brazier.....
5 short months ago I read a book.....
Ok let me re-phrase that....
I read a book every night....
I'm a book nerd....
I'm the girl who celebrates a major office win by buying a new book....
I'm the girl who spends Friday night date night, curled up at home with my dog's and my new love interest of the week.... which ever author I'm reading at that moment....
I've shared bath time with the likes of Dean Karnazes, Rick Hansen, Rich Roll, John Maxwell.... and the list goes on and on and on....
Once every two weeks I treat myself to an inspirational running book....
I love this day... when I walk into the hallowed halls of my local Chapters... Lingering over the smell of books.... Spending hours selecting the right companion for my next literary adventure....
5 months ago....
THAT was what I did... it was an innocent purchase of a book I'd been dying to get my hands on....
"Eat and Run" by the most awesome Scott Jurek....
And this is the book that really got me thinking.....
I was training for my first 100 miler and wanted to learn from the Pro's the the deep dark secrets....
Instead....
I was inspired for a lifestyle change....
"Only for my training season" as I told everyone around me....
I went vegetarian....and then Vegan....
And you know what....
I felt AMAZING...
I trained long and hard days.... 6-7 days a week with little to no down time...
No inflammation....
Great energy....
Amazing muscular results....
Injury free... (for a runner plagued with IT Band issues this was HUGE!)
And a big old smile on my face....
And to top it off I lost 10 Lbs and watched my belly fat start to change.....
The things I learned from Eat and Run inspired me to discover as much as I could about my own body.... and my training....
(Don't get me wrong.... this book is actually not a lecture from Scott on how to eat and why you should be a vegetarian....It's actually an Amazing book about his adventures... its a fun read... and would inspire anyone... runners and non-runners alike to live each day to the fullest....
The Diet part was my own take away....)
Fast Forward to Sept 6....
The weekend of my 100 miler....
Being a true version of myself....
I got to the taper part of my race any went nuts.... I mean.... If your gonna race 100 miles you need to carb load... and do it in advance....
Off came the gloves....
Mushroom pizza, Chips, Candy, Wine by the gallons..... More mushroom pizza...
Nachos.... Nib's... Cheese Sauce..... Ice Cream....More Wine.....
Not a fruit or veggie in sight.....
Although the race went well.... (Minus some major blisters and a DNF at 70K... but that is a whole other blog...).
There were some key notes I noticed almost instantly....
My typical energy was lagging....
My legs felt great, but I was not as light and elastic as I was during training....
It was easy at the time to blame it on the heat....
But if I were really honest.... I believe there was a direct impact by my food choices....
Let me explain a little further....
Post Race....
The gluttony continued for 2 weeks... I gained 4 lbs.....
And felt lethargic, irritable, I couldn't sleep......
My recovery time took longer than anticipated.... and here 3 weeks alter I'm still in recovery stage....
The girl who would bounce back... day after day of pounding, hill climbing, 6 hour adventures.... was now sitting in a hot tub of Epsom salt, thick in the legs... walking 5 mile runs....
If you read my previous post you'll see I started a 24 week plan.....
I had had enough....
No more "weekend warrior"....
This lifestyle change had to be permanent and I now had the proof I thought I needed...
So I started a 9 day cleanse....
Purifying my body for the gluttony and disrespect of the 100 miler binge....
And I felt Great....
I quit coffee again....
I gave up sugar....
And the cravings for both disappeared withing 2 days....
I was back on track...
Sleeping amazing....
My running was coming back....
I was clear headed....
Focused...
And excited.....
So why am I up at 5 am cursing Brendan Brazier.....
Well... yesterday was my first day off my cleanse....
And I lost focus....
Instead of my typically plant based supper, I indulged in home made trail mix left over from my ultra.... Full of amazing nuts.... and Reese's pieces... too which i added smarties.... and m&M's..... So basically I ate a bag of chocolate with a few nuts tossed in for supper, a couple cookies.... and a glass of red wine to wash it down....
And As I tossed and turned...
And tossed and turned....into the wee hours of the morning....
My mind wandered to Brendan's book "Whole Foods to Thrive".
And how the stresses of the food we eat.... the poor choices we make have a direct impact on our ability to sleep.... to reach that deep Delta Phase of rest.... which in return adds more stress on our body...Causing our cortisol levels in increase and our fat storage, and need for more empty calories to increase....
Causing our need for artificial stimulants like coffee, and sugary foods....
And as I woke....Craving the bitter coffee....
I thought....
Damn you Brendan Brazier....
Your 100% correct....
And I..... being the stubborn German I am had to learn the hard way....
With a race weekend ahead and one horrible sleep behind me....
I've learned a valuable lesson.....
I'm a stubborn girl....
But more than that....
Brendan Brazier knows his shit!
http://thriveforward.com/
http://www.chapters.indigo.ca/books/whole-foods-to-thrive-nutrient/9780143176909-item.html
http://scottjurek.com/eatandrun/
http://www.richroll.com/
