The Greatest 5K Ever
After my recent obsession with finding cool 5ks to run in, I somehow shanghaied Adam into promising to come with me to all of them and be there for happy support. He’s also thinking about running a few of them.
ME: Ohmygoodness, I just found the best 5k ever.
ADAM: That I will run in. Afterward I want one taco for every time I scowl at you for having to be up before 6am.
ME: You can have them!
ADAM: Where are you going to get a billion tacos?
We’ll see how this goes. Regardless, I found my September Race.
I was home in Michigan for a few weeks visiting my family, and I can’t get over how much I love that place. It was so nice to just relax and hang out with my sister and stare at Baa’s adorable face until he got annoyed and left the room to finish his cigar.
I ran my first 5k last weekend with my cousins, and I can’t believe I waited this long to ever run an actual race! I had some farm-fresh chocolate milk afterward, which was killer. I had a blast and immediately started making a list of all of these upcoming races I wanted to run—I would totally love to do one a month to keep me motivated and running. Some of my favorites?
I used Run Locator to search for 5ks near me!
Notice that all of these 5ks are in the Dallas, TX area? That’s because I moved back for school (and so I could go on actual dates with Adam.) Nothing like having to wake up at 7:30 to run or risk certain death running in triple-digit heat—so excited to be here! I fell in love with Dallas last fall and can’t wait to get to know it a little more.
Did I miss any crazy cool runs in the North Texas area? Are you a champion 5k runner and have some tips?
This is currently my favorite breakfast! It’s so yummy and so full of great stuff. You can put it in a pretty glass or just throw it in a bowl like I did.
FYI: My favorites are Cascadian Farms Ancient Grains Granola and Chobani Vanilla Yogurt. And berries from Mother Earth.
from The Greatist
from A Beautiful Mess
from Emma Dime
from The Greatist
from Amanda Jane Jones
from Spoon Fork Bacon
from Carlene’s Figments
from Hungry Runner
from Real Simple
Crazy-good infographics from Daily Infographic
I’m home right now with my family, and I didn’t realize how gorgeous it was here until I left and came back. My dad didn’t realize how much he appreciated not finding my clothes all over the house until I came back either.
Peanut Butter and Chocolate Chip Larabars
I used to eat Kashi Go Lean! Bars all day long, because they seemed pretty healthy and were a nice thing to throw in my bag in case I had some sort of hunger apocalypse after work or class or something. A hunger apocalypse, for those uninformed, is when you aren’t thinking about food at all, and then already are so hungry you have to eat immediately or you will definitely die. Ask Adam about them, he knows.
Anyway, Fooducate suggested Larabars as a healthier alternative, because Larabars are basically ground up fruit and nuts, plus some natural flavoring, in a bar.
And the first one I tried (banana bread) was terrible, so I was a little bit disheartened. But they have a whole planet of flavors, so I kept trying…and finally came upon Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip. It tastes like a slightly healthier no-bake chocolate oatmeal cookie.
Now I always have one in my backpack in case of hunger apocalypse. It’s been working great.
Freeze-Dried Fruit
I’ve loved these for a long time, but I’m still going to talk about them because they’re like a revolution. Rather than just drying the fruit (and getting a chewy, sweet snack) they do this other process that doesn’t add any chemicals, but does give you a super light, crunchy, airy snack (like astronaut space food.) They’re really sweet and taste like candy…except they’re just fruit.
I’ve tried a lot of different kinds, but my absolute favorites are Trader Joe’s freeze-dried mango, bananas and strawberries. They can get a bit expensive though, which is why I’m glad I don’t live two blocks away from a TJ’s anymore.
Wheatberry & Barley
When I was a poor kid that had just started paying her own bills and buying her own groceries (still me) I got totally obsessed with rice. I remember calling my mom and being like “oh my sweet lord, will you get me a rice cooker for Christmas!? I just went to the grocery store and bought thirty gallons of rice for fifteen cents! I don’t ever have to spend money on food again, this is incredible!”
I seriously ate mostly rice for three weeks, I thought I had cracked the code on starvation across the world.
Then I got really sick of rice, and learned that white rice is not necessarily the healthiest thing I could have been eating. We’ll talk about the fresh produce sticker shock later (my firstborn for a handful of honeycrisp apples? What will become of me?) but I still really like rice from time to time.
Step in this delicious blend of wheatberry & barley that I found in the freezer section at the grocery store the other day. It feels like rice, but it’s actually a blend of grains and it’s really yummy by itself or as a base for other dishes (which I never cook, because I’m very impatient. If I ever write a cookbook, it will be called “Out of the freezer and into my mouth!” Recipes for the Astonishingly Restless.)
Oh, the plans I have.
Listen, I know I’ve been sort of silent lately, but that’s all about to change. I have been pulling things together and thinking things up and scribbling notes all over the place because this blog is coming back with a vengeance come September. Possibly even sooner. I’ll just have it together by September.
Together, according to my mom, is when you have everything running smoothly and are being responsible at all times. According to her I’ve never had it together, but we’ll see.
If anyone has any ideas for a less exciting update than this one, please, point me to them.
