Have Salad – Will Travel

July 27th, 2011 | Posted by Alison Spath in Healthy Habits - (Comments Off on Have Salad – Will Travel)

We just returned from a child-free vacation/mini-adventure.  Our travel itinerary included a wedding, an Ironman, plus two additional carefree days with zero parental responsibilities and a bunch of down time thanks to the generosity and support of some very loving and caring family members.

(did you hear the tires squealing as we tore ass out of the driveway before anyone could change their mind?)

So I’m back!  And here today with a few healthy travel tips before my brood returns and life returns to “normal”.

Pack Your Own Food

Preparing food from home can save you time, money and unknown food options while on the road.  Read more...

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If You Choose to Accept It

July 20th, 2011 | Posted by Alison Spath in Vegetable Lovin' - (7 Comments)

It felt like I was on a mission trying to collect all the ingredients to make The Brendan Brazier Salad.

Good thing a salad mission is exactly my kind of mission.

I already had a bunch of the usual salad suspects on hand:

Not Salad Newcomers

Spinach, kale, a variety of greens (including arugula!) cucumber, avocado, beets, hemp seeds.

Whoops, I almost forgot the carrots!

Eat Me

Boy Carrots, you sure are bossy. And kind of rude.

These were the guys I had to hunt down.

Vega EFA oil

Dulse, Vega Antioxidant EPA oil blend and lentil sprouts.  Read more...

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In the Flesh

July 19th, 2011 | Posted by Alison Spath in Good Reads - (7 Comments)

Want to know where I was last night?

Cool Sky

Well, photographically speaking – I’m at the bottom of that picture of a really cool sky.

Technically speaking, I was at a seminar given by a really cool guy.

The best selling author of Thrive and Thrive Fitness,

Thrive by Brendan Brazier Thrive Fitness by Brendan Brazier

vegan pro Ironman triathlete – none other than Brendan Brazier himself.

Brendan Brazier Seminar at Lori's Natural Foods

I know, right?

Brendan.

Brazier.

Brendan Brazier

(once upon a time I read Brendan’s first book Thrive and I loved his thoughts and ideas so much that I couldn’t shut up about it. 21 posts and counting. sheesh. no wonder I called him my boyfriend.)  Read more...

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Swiss Chard Has a Secret To Tell You

July 9th, 2011 | Posted by Alison Spath in Vegetable Lovin' - (4 Comments)

Swiss chard is your friend.

Swiss Chard

Hi, friend!

(That’s not the secret.)

Actually, Swiss chard has TWO secrets to tell you.  One for now, one for later.

Psst!

Swiss chard is super easy to grow.

No, really. You throw the seeds in the ground, water them if you think of it, spit on them even! Walk away and BAM!  Swiss chard.

Swiss Chard Growing in Your Garden

Remember that secret for next spring. I’ll probably remind you, so don’t worry.

The other secret – the one you can use right now – is that Swiss chard is just like kale in salad.  Read more...

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If You Leave Your Purse Layin’ Around It’s Gonna Get Snatched

July 2nd, 2011 | Posted by Alison Spath in Vegetable Lovin' - (14 Comments)

This is purslane.

Purslane
Most people would call purslane a weed.  Fewer people know that you can eat it. The internet tells me that purslane is really good for you, so it must be true.

I was 14 when I was hired by my grandfather as a professional weed puller and lawn mower.  “Professional”, because I was paid $2.50 an hour for my mad weed pullin’ skillz.

(I just realized those two items are in my current job description, except now I make $0.00 an hour.  Does that mean I’m back to amateur status?)  Read more...

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Don’t Beet Me Up

June 30th, 2011 | Posted by Alison Spath in Vegetable Lovin' - (12 Comments)

I’ve decided that CSA‘s are like vegetable boot camp.

Bunch of Beets from the CSA

Except instead of screaming “Drop and give me 20!!” they throw vegetables at you and scream “Figure out what to do with this!!”

ok, OK, I’m figuring, I’M FIGURING!

(everything I know about boot camp I learned from Full Metal Jacket, FYI)

Beets are yet another vegetable I use to just throw in the juicer because I didn’t know what else to do with them.  Fortunately, I am now in the know.  Read more...

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Hot Off the (Tofu) Press

June 12th, 2011 | Posted by Alison Spath in Dinner Time - (8 Comments)

I love pressed tofu for a myriad of reasons.  It has a different texture than its non-pressed counter part.  It soaks up marinade better and holds together nicely in stir fries.  I’ve heard too that squirrels do not like pressed tofu, but that may just be a rumor.  Squirrels are also supposed to hate marigolds, but I don’t want to talk about that.

You can buy a contraption made for the sole purpose of pressing tofu – it’s called a Tofu Press (go figure) and is basically a little vise that squeezes all the water out of the tofu block for you.  But 1) I’ve already done the vise in my kitchen routine, b) I don’t want to buy one and three) no one has offered to send me one for free.  Read more...

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Salad For Breakfast

February 5th, 2011 | Posted by Alison Spath in Weight Loss - (17 Comments)

I think it was mid-December when I started looking for an alternative to my typical oatmeal/grain-based breakfast.  Not because I stopped digging oats mind you, but because somewhere toward the end of last year I came to understand that sugar is just no good and I wanted to start eating less of it.

Now before you get annoyed with me and that blasphemous statement, I’m not saying that I’ve stopped eating sugar or bread completely or don’t enjoy sweets.  I’m just not eating sugar (or as the case may be, foods that your body eventually converts to sugar – i.e., grains like rice, pasta, bread) on a daily basis like I have for oh, I don’t know – 31 years?  Read more...

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Trail Running Truths

November 6th, 2010 | Posted by Alison Spath in Fitness - (4 Comments)

Welp, a trail race was on the agenda for this morning! 10 kilometers to be exact.

Yes sir – 10 cold, rainy, snowy and more rainy kilometers. On the agenda.

Also on the agenda? A bunch of lessons to be learned. Get ready to take some notes.

Stay in the car as long as you can.

Rainy Race Day

Let’s not rush to get out there just to stand around in the snow and rain, mmmk?

Wet Shawn

Snow is better than rain.

Wet Snow

Because you don’t get soaked quite as quickly. Whose idea was this race anyway?  Read more...

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One Phat Salad

November 2nd, 2010 | Posted by Alison Spath in Lunch - (5 Comments)

I really enjoy playing around with different ways of eating – figuring out what works for me and what doesn’t. It’s like a science experiment really, and I like experimenting on myself. Wait, I mean, I like playing with myself. Ummm, no, that’s not what I meant either.

I read The Zone like 100 years ago, and while the eating plan described there is rather complex and a lot to keep track of, it was still my introduction to the importance of getting fat, carbs and protein at each meal.  Read more...

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