eat run sail: Some Fun New Finds… Faves and Raves

I cannot believe we have been home from our vacation to Colorado and Washington for a whole week already. The time is flying by me… I have been busy with unpacking and putting away all of the food staples we purchased in the U.S., stocking up the fridge and freezer at Costco, food prep for the upcoming week, planning our next vacation in the Spring of 2015, working out, and shopping… yes, more shopping.

I don’t really need Winter boots here as we get so little (if any) snowfall, but it does rain. I decided needed some good waterproof walking shoes because my mesh running-turned-walking shoes get soggy pretty quickly and rain boots are just not supportive enough for my legs and feet. I was on the lookout while in the U.S. but didn’t see anything I liked. But, since we came home I found a great pair of Salomon light hiking shoes with Goretex at a local Sport Chek… on sale! Love them – yes they are jade green - and now am looking forward to walks in the rain. Let it pour!

Next on my shopping list is a new waterproof jacket for rainy day walks… I have a Goretex Sierra Designs coat and matching pants that I wore skiing and sailing for many years.. but the waterproofing is starting to fail after so many washings… I need a new one and have seen some nice North Face jackets, also at Sport Chek.. like this one.

picture from the Sport Chek site

On another note… I opted to try this new gluten free pizza that I found at Coscto this week.

Now, I don’t normally eat many grain foods… a bit of rice when I have sushi only occasionally, and I do really like the pizza crust that I make myself with flax and egg whites… but this box grabbed my attention immediately (probably the picture of the gooey cheese). I tried it out this week with some added canned pineapple and lean ham… and it was wonderful. REAL pizza. I think this will go on my special occasion list now too. It was so good, that The Captain ate the leftovers and would never have guessed the crust was different. If you like thin and crispy, this might be for you.

I got some packages of Drip Drop powder in the mail this week… this is a medical grade electrolyte powder.

It couldn’t have come at a better time for me.

I was having problems all week with my legs feeling heavy and cramping up during the night. I just couldn’t get comfortable for more than an an hour or so at a time.

While we were in Colorado, we made a point of drinking several litres of water every day. We carried water everywhere we went… I felt like I had a water bottle growing from my hand after a few days… because our hosts told us that we should be drinking lots of water, not only to counteract the heat, but to avoid headaches due to being at a much higher altitude as well. We live at sea level and apparently the high altitude near Denver can cause headaches and fatigue. Being well-hydrated counteracts the effects.

After we got home, I kinda forgot about the water and I think that is what caused my suffering. So I got up during the night and made up a Drip Drop drink… tasted great, by the way, and no waiting for any fizzing to subside as with other electrolyte formulas I have tried. I went back to bed and did find I was more comfortable after about 20 minutes, and was able to sleep through the rest of the night.

Since then, I have been making a point to drink more water again... but the Drip Drop powder is going to be a regular supplement from now on.

It is taking me forever to get caught up on my blog reading… I did find a couple of very good posts this week, though, that you might like too:

10 Best Ways to Recover From a Workout by the Go Fit Gals
- some really good tips here.. check it out.
How to Make That Long Run Feel Easier at Pop Sugar
- I bet you are already using some of these tricks… or are you?
5 Exercises to Do Before Every Run at Competitor.Com
- I don’t do this… but probably should. Do you?