Run Plant Based

Formerly The Raw Project - Running on a Healthy Vegan Diet

  • Home
  • About Me
  • Recipes
    • Appetizers
    • Beverages
    • Blender
    • Breakfast
    • Chia Seeds
    • Dehydrator
    • Desserts
    • Dressings & Sauces
    • Hemp Seeds
    • Main
    • Sides
    • Soups
    • Tempeh
  • Contact
  • Shop

Half Marathon PR & Simple Basil Dressing

October 7, 2013 by christine

We tried and for a long time were successful at avoiding the Candy Crush Saga addiction. But temptation finally got the best of us and hubby and I have been sneaking in levels here and there. Hey, it’s a fun game and the levels are short and sweet for when you just need to focus on something else. But Miko is not thrilled at having to compete with Candy Crush for attention.

IMG_3062

Lucky for him I’m stuck on a level and taking a break from it.

And I’m thrilled today even though I’m in pain after yesterday’s half marathon because I pulled off a serious PR yesterday coming in under two hours, my official chip time was 1:58:47!

urbancow

That’s considerably better than my past half marathon times and I was a happy sweaty mess.

race

Based on the performance of my long training runs, I wasn’t sure I could pull it off. And the race got off to a rocky start for me. This is my fourth year running the Urban Cow Half Marathon and each year the race seems to get bigger and more popular having about 6,000 runners this year. We arrived on what we thought was early enough, but ended up parking 6 blocks away from the start line and rushing in. I had 15 minutes before my race wave started and there was no way I’d get through the insane outhouse lines, I barely moved 10 feet in 10 minutes! Still a good 20 people back, I had to bail and head to the start line with 4 minutes to start and hope I could hold it until the first bunch of outhouses on the course.

Running a mile while having to pee badly is not fun! But thankfully there were no lines at the first cluster of outhouses since I was running like a mad women to get to them first and I was able to get in and out quickly. Still that threw me behind my targeted pace and I was pushing it and darting around slower runners for the next 3 miles to catch up to and eventually pass the 2 hour pace runner.

Somehow I was able to stay well ahead of the 2 hour pacer until mile 11 when my intense pace really started to catch up with me and I needed to work in smaller and more frequent intervals. I ended up struggling through the last 2 miles taking an interval until 2 hour pacer caught up to me, then running hard until I was well ahead, taking another interval, etc. But, it worked!

I’m pretty careful about what I eat before a half because running for hours with an unhappy stomach is not fun, I’ve been there! Quinoa has always been a good pre-race dinner for me with a lot of fiber and protein that doesn’t leave me, uh, bloated the next morning. I loaded up on a huge plate of Curry Tahini Quinoa the night before and had the leftovers for a simple post-race lunch.

IMG_3060

It didn’t fail me and that’s a good thing!

Another thing that helped me improve my pace was using a treadmill for most of my maintenance runs and a couple of long runs. I know that probably sounds awful, but having that option is a life-saver when it’s too hot or windy. And it helped me set a target pace and force myself to maintain it consistently and get more a feel for a faster pace when free-running outside. I enjoy running outside, but tend to run a little slower while enjoying the views. Working in treadmill runs was a good balance for me. And going straight to the gym after work to burn off work stress to a good playlist was therapeutic.

When I wasn’t stuffing myself with quinoa this weekend, I was enjoying kale salad with a simple basil avocado dressing I whipped up.

Creamy Basil Dressing

  • 1 avocado, seeded and scooped
  • 1/4 cup packed fresh basil leaves
  • 1 medium tomato, chopped
  • 1 clove of garlic
  • 1 tbsp. lemon juice
  • 1/2 tsp. salt
  • 1/2 cup water

Place all ingredients into a high speed blender and blend to a smooth and creamy texture. Use as a dip or dressing. Makes 4 servings.

IMG_3050

It’s simple, but creamy and tasty with a tangy, pesto-like basil and garlic flavor.

IMG_3052

And coats a kale salad nicely.

IMG_3053

Filed Under: Blender, Dressings & Sauces, Recipes Tagged With: avocado, garlic, kale, quinoa, runni, salad

Comments

  1. Jennifer says

    October 8, 2013 at 7:34 am

    OMG! I had to laugh at that first line! I have been the same way! I avoided it for the longest time and I got the app and am now hooked, as well! LOL I have to walk around and play it while Paco follows me. I can’t play it sitting down or he gets pissed! I haven’t connected it to my FB yet tho so I am stuck on a certain level for the ‘waiting’ period. Congrats on making that run…hope you heal quickly, tho! Since the weather is changing here I have been experiencing all sorts of aches and pains…oye! That dressing looks and sounds amazing, too! OMG! YUM!!!!

    • christine says

      October 9, 2013 at 7:40 pm

      Same for Miko, he starts digging at my hand with his paw when I’m paying too much attention to the tablet, lol. Thanks on the run and sorry about the aches, weather changes can be tough!

Hello! I'm Christine, an IT Professional in Northern California. I'm also passionate about a healthy, plant based lifestyle, running, fitness, and being eco-friendly. 40 (ack!), married, with furkids. Read More…

Connect

Tags

avocado banana broccoli carrots curry dining out eating out garlic ginger health news healthnut healthy healthy recipe hemp seeds kale lentils news oil free oil free recipe plant-based plant based plant based dining out plant based eating out plant based news plant based recipe quinoa raw vegan raw vegan recipe running running news salad simple plant based meals simple vegan meals smoothie spinach tahini tempeh tofu vegan vegan dining out vegan eating out vegan news vegan recipe vegan runner zucchini

Sign up now for 10 Weeks to Vegan, the free guided challenge that will make your transition to veg eating a little easier and a lot more fun!

Copyright © 2023 · Beautiful Pro Theme on Genesis Framework · WordPress · Log in