Sunday, August 12, 2012

Running on Uneven Surfaces and a Special Smoothie

I have been making an effort this week to eat more protein, and fewer carbs... grains in particular, so I started the day with a protein pancake...



These have become a staple in my diet and if you are interested in the recipe and the method I did a post on my food blog  We can begin to feed...  a while back... simple, easy and delicious.  You can find the recipe on that link.

This past week I got out for a couple of shortish runs around the park that is across the street from where we live now... the perimeter is about 3.75 km. 

When I run around the park with The Captain, we actually run across the street from around the perimeter, because he likes to run on concrete or pavement when he can.  The park side of the route has several surfaces as you make your way round... paved pathway, bark trail, short grass where there is no formal trail and then an area where you must cross the street to carry on so that is paved road or concrete sidewalk.

The last 2 times around, I have been by myself so I stayed on the park side to try out the various surfaces.  I think that the bark feels nice underfoot because it is soft to land on but I do think it makes me a bit slower than when I run on pavement or concrete.  There doesn't seem to be any spring to it.

But I do like running on the short mowed grass.  I am aware that the surface is a bit uneven so it makes me lift my feet a bit higher I think.

I was enjoying it so much today that I extended it just a short way and ended up running 4 km in 26 minutes which is quite fast for me.

W2 R26 @10/1 W2
stretch 10  minutes

After I cooled down and stretched and drank a few glasses of water, I remembered reading this post at The Athletarian about a Blueberry Peach Cobbler Smoothie... and I decided to try it out.

I asked The Captain if he would like one too, and he thought he shouldn't cause he hadn't 'earned' it but I made him one anyway... couldn't have him drooling while he watched me enjoy mine, right?


All ready to whizz up!


And after... look at the color!



I added a bit of Splenda to The Captain's as he likes things a bit sweeter than I do... no sweetener for me.  They were delicious!  And with the addition of yogurt, very filling... I think lunch will be put off for another couple of hours at least.

Check out Christina's blog post at that same link to find the recipe and also information about a giveaway ... a copy of Tosca Reno's EAT-CLEAN DIET Vegetarian Cookbook.


Do you like protein smoothies?  What is your favorite kind?

Do you run on bark trails or short grass rather than pavement or concrete, where you can?  Any tips for me about the bark trails?

6 comments:

  1. I love protein smoothies, today it was a peach, cherry and vanilla protein powder smoothie. YUM. I will have to try this one, it looks and sounds yummy too!

    I like running on uneven surfaces sometimes and I agree it does feel a lot slower! I haven't really run on bark trails though.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Both the pancake and smoothie look delicious! Nice job on your run Elle!

    ReplyDelete
  3. i have only come across a few bark trails but i always really love them! they feel so much better on my legs than pavement. i definitely think it requires me to slow down some but my body just overall feels better which is much appreciated:) that smoothie looks delicious! gonna catch up with Christina's blog here soon so I will have to check it out! hope you are doing well! OH! and so glad you decided to make the Captain a smoothie anyway! he definitely would have been drooling with jealousy:)

    ReplyDelete
  4. Congratulations on winning the Phiten X30 necklace giveaway!

    http://www.therunninggreengirl.com/2012/08/phiten-titanium-necklace-x30-winner.html

    I'm so with you on this - I'm always trying to minimize my carb intake and up my protein.

    ReplyDelete
  5. I'm not the biggest smoothie fan - I like to chew :-) So, I'll take the pancake :-) But, that one looks yummy. Nice run!

    ReplyDelete
  6. Hi my friend! It is so great to get caught up on what is happening with you. Your pancake and smoothies look amazing. I love protein shakes with strawberries, blueberries and bananas. When I Make those, I usually use vanilla protein powder.

    Running on loose surfaces is tough. I find stretching and strengthening my ankles really helped when I was doing some trail running.

    ReplyDelete

Love it when you leave me a comment!