Balance Bar Review and Giveaway

Sports nutrition has always fascinated me: the idea that what you put in your mouth can positively or negatively effect your performance just seems so tangible - something everything athlete can do to improve themselves. So when Balance Bar offered to send me some of their new Balance Bar Dark bars I was pretty psyched. Not only because Balance Bar has been around a long time and has a good reputation, but because this bar has a lot of good in it.

First, it's gluten-free, which can be difficult to find in a nutrition/protein bar. Second, the chocolate in it is made with cocoa that's Rainforest Alliance Certified. And third, it's made with a 40-30-30 nutrition ratio of carbs, protein and dietary fat respectively, an idea that I've heard a lot about (think: Zone diet) because it stabilizes your blood sugar and helps you feel fuller, longer. And fourth, it has 13 grams of protein in each bar, which makes it the perfect food for muscle recovery (as a general rule of thumb, the average athlete should consume .05-.07 grams of protein for each pound they weigh after an intense workout).

Balance Bar sent me their three "dark" flavors: Dark Chocolate Crunch, Dark Chocolate Coconut and Dark Chocolate Peanut. The box was sitting on my doorstep as I pulled in the driveway from a workout I had to cut short because I started feeling dizzy; it was perfect timing. I happily scarfed down the Dark Chocolate Crunch: the crunch and smooth chocolate combo was super tasty and I felt immediately better. I've sample the coconut and peanut varieties too and can't wait to "earn" them in their entirety after another workout.

WIN YOUR OWN BOX!!

Here's how you could win your own box of Balance Bar Dark. Balance Bar will send one randomly selected winner the goodies, and you've got a few ways to increase your chances (leave a separate comment for each thing you do).

1. "Like" Balance Bar on Facebook (comment below that you did that).
2. Comment below and tell me which flavor you'd most like to try.
3. "Like" The Good Eatah on Facebook (comment below that you did that).

A winner will be selected by 11:59pm on Monday, April 8th and will be notified by email (please make sure you leave a valid email address when you comment). 

Disclaimer: One winner per household, email address or home address. If you have won this prize on another blog you are ineligible to win again.

Peas as Protein & Why I'm So Pissy

I am all armed out. For the past week (and for another additional week) I am on doctor's orders "not to use my legs."

I can do everyday stuff, like walk around the house, but I'm not to go for walks, run, bike or use the elliptical or stair climber. I'm going a bit crazy.

For me, breaking a sweat on a daily basis is almost a required event. If I don't, I get cranky and tired. So, for the last week I've been trying to get good workouts in without using my legs.

And, well, It's been challenging.

I've been boxing which is a great workout and I've been lifting - a lot. But really, that's all I can come up with. No squats, lunges, burpees, mountain climbers. No one-leg dead lifts. No lateral jumps. Those were all my go-tos. (And I already mentioned no running. No classes at the gym either.)

I should explain why I'm not supposed to be using my legs: I have stitches in the hamstring of my right leg. I had to get a weird calcified cyst removed and biopsied (haven't heard from doc; no news is good news).

I've been thinking about putting together a little video of the arm workouts that have been successful for me; I have a handful that get my heart rate up, but I just look so dorky when I'm doing them. One of these days I'll get over my vanity and post it :)

Oh! There's a point to this post. A recipe, and a good find that I'm happy to share.

There are many studies that show you need to consume protein shortly after lifting to help build muscle. This active.com article explains it best I think:

"A recent study found that addition of just 10 grams of protein to the post-exercise carbohydrate resulted in a net increase of protein uptake."

Many people use chocolate milk as a recovery drink because of the mix of protein and carbohydrate. I do that too (though I usually choose an added protein nondairy beverage, like the So Delicious brand and Ovaltine - make sure you get the chocolate and not "malt" one), but I recently stumbled on pea protein. Love and Peas, specifically.

I've known it existed for years as an alternative to whey and egg white protein powders, and I've eaten it in foods before but I decided to buy it as a supplement because in the winter I tend to do more resistance training than aerobic. And you guys, I really like it.

It's sweet, but not too sweet and has a mild vanilla flavor. If you use a lot of it, it can taste chalky, like many protein powders, but I tend to stick with one rounded scoop per drink. The best part is, because it's not dairy or egg based, it's good for sensitive stomachs like yours truly.

Here's how I've been eating mine lately:

Banana Peach Pea Protein Smoothie

1 rounded scoop of pea protein powder
1 frozen banana
4-5 slices frozen peaches
large handful spinach
about a cup of coconut milk beverage
(if you like cinnamon - a pinch is a nice touch)

Blend and drink. (A more decadent smoothie I also make with it includes the protein powder, the banana, a scoop of peanut butter, 2 tablespoons of Ovaltine and non-dairy beverage - that one tastes like an awesome chocolate peanut butter milkshake) 

My relationship status with running: It's complicated.

I have a love/hate relationship with running.

Our current status? In blissful love.

The past ten years? Off and on.

High school and before? Deep, deep hatred.

I should clarify that when I talk about running, I usually mean middle-distance and distance running, not sprinting. Sprinting and I have always been on pretty good terms. Sprinting was always a part of the sports I played: soccer, basketball, tennis... you sprint to chase after a ball. I understood it. There was a goal, something to go for. But then I decided to follow in my (record holding) sister's footsteps and try track my freshman year of high school.

That was a mistake. I didn't care for the coach and I was way too immature to appreciate that running itself is a sport. I was told, because of my body shape at the time, that I should be a middle distance and distance runner; I did not agree and therefore held a grudge the entire season and dreaded going to practice. I barely got through practice runs and had incredible anxiety before and during meets. The only event that I enjoyed and that quenched my desire to sprint - the triple-jump - was the one that my sister (a senior when I was a freshman) also competed in. I did okay with it. She'd always place first and I'd sometimes place third; that was pretty cool.

But the middle distance and distance events? I was always one of the last ones to finish. It sucked and I didn't go back.

(In hindsight it was a good thing, the next year I picked up tennis, captained the team my junior and senior year and went on to play in college.)

Fast forward to post-college: my main forms of exercise became rec soccer and training for sprint triathlons. I began to run and I began to like it. I'd still rather bike, or swim, or play a team sport. But I'd run in some 5ks and 5 milers, and one half-marathon, because I had friends or family running in them too. I never came close to finishing in the top quarter of the race. I was lucky if I finished in the top half of my age group, but I was growing okay with it.

In fact, my rocky relationship with running also probably has something to do with the fact that I have some really amazing runners in my life: my husband (a sub 3 hour marathoner), one of my best girlfriends (sub 3:15 marathoner) and my sister (a stud Div. 1 track athlete) - I'd compare myself to them, and figure everyone else was too, so I decided since I wasn't near any of their levels, the sport just wasn't for me.

Fortunately, with age comes wisdom, or, more accurately: as I grow older, I care less and less about what other people think.

When I became pregnant with the little guy I had a small base of running under me. I was running to keep in shape for roller derby, but my fast twitch muscles were definitely more formed than my slow ones. I ran (off and on) for probably the first 14 weeks of my pregnancy. Then it just got too uncomfortable (I still worked out, almost daily, just in other ways). I ran again for the first time probably 8 weeks postpartum: little by little, one mile at a go.

Maybe it was because I had a break from running, or because I had to start from zero postpartum, but during the last year I really began to love it. It was a struggle, getting back to the point where I could run three miles consistently again, and stroller running was pretty difficult to get used to, but it's working for me. I've ran a few 5ks (With the little guy in the stroller and without. With friends and racing for myself). And I finished the Ragnar Adirondacks (a 200 mile relay race) with a group of 11 other amazing mamas.

I mentioned it briefly in my last running post, but I'm enjoying running so much, and the camrederie it creates, and the good it can do (both mentally and physically) that I'm helping to organize a 5k run around here, and it's for a great cause.

If you made it this far, thank you for letting me work through my running issues! I'll be sure to keep the blog updated with our tumultuous relationship.

On that note, here's my favorite running workout that's easy to do on a treadmill (which is where most of my running is taking place due to the frigid cold right now). I find the "break" after each mile really makes the running part go by quickly:

A local 5k run for Sandy Hook

On Saturday morning I took part in a 5k that I'll likely never forget. It wasn't timed, there was no swag bag and the course wasn't particularly scenic. It was in my town, put together by mothers, in honor of some very special people.

A 5k in Newtown, Connecticut was planned for January 19th, but for a variety of reasons, an "official" run couldn't be held so the organizers encouraged other communities to have 5ks of their own in honor of those killed at Sandy Hook Elementary. Some amazing women in my community - the Niskayuna Moms on the Run, decided to put together their own 5k and 1 mile walk, and at the urging of those organizing the Newtown event, donate proceeds locally as well. A $25 donation was suggested; the money went to build a memorial in Newtown, to the local fire department, and to a program at a middle school in Niskayuna that a local girl, who just passed away, was a part of.

I was touched, and my eyes teared as people spoke before the race - about Sandy Hook, about 14-year-old Grace who recently passed (she loved going to a local party store and an employee recalled how she'd visit weekly and loved filling up her balloons - they handed out pink and purple balloons after the run) and they spoke about "helpers," and quoted this from Mr. Rogers:

"When I was a boy and I would see scary things in the news, my mother would say to me, "Look for the helpers. You will always find people who are helping." To this day, especially in times of "disaster," I remember my mother's words and I am always comforted by realizing that there are still so many helpers – so many caring people in this world."

Fred Rogers' words were "shared" and "retweeted" on social media a lot around the time of the Sandy Hook tragedy, but no matter how many times I read and hear it, I get emotional because it emphasizes the good in people, the good in most people. The good in the organizers and in those that ran and walked and donated on Saturday.

When I got home I gave my purple balloon to the little guy. I was happy to watch him drag it around all day; grateful we live in the community we do.


I was recently asked by a friend to be the co-director of a 5k that will take place in our area in September. I was slightly hesitant at first to do it; afraid of being overwhelmed by the work it takes to put something like that together, but after Saturday, and after taking part in other races that benefit great causes, I couldn't feel better about my decision.

Workout Wednesday: The Gift that Keeps Me Moving

My sister got me a pretty awesome present for Christmas. In fact, she loves the little gadget so much that she also got one for herself, her husband, my husband, our parents and her in-laws. It's a FitBit, and in simple terms, it's a suped-up pedometer. In more elaborate terms, it's an activity tracker that monitors your steps taken, floors climbed, and hours slept. It's simple to use, has a free app for your phone and puts all your info in easy-to-understand graphs and stats.

Which is good for me because I haaaaate complicated graphs. 

You can also "friend" your friends on your FitBit profile and compete with them. Now I see why my sister got me one. (I've never known anyone more competitive than her.)

I wear my FitBit when I remember - which is most days. There have been days where I know I won't be moving much (say, I'm driving all day) and I choose not to wear it because the numbers will just depress me, but on normal days when I do wear it, it's a motivator. My goal is 10,000 steps a day; I never get that without exercising and in the winter months, it's hard to get outside, so it's been kind of fun to walk around the house and home gym like a crazy woman and watch my numbers go up. (Okay, maybe some of my sister's competitiveness has rubbed off on me...)

And here's a testament to its durability: My husband wore his when he was snowblowing our driveway. Somehow it came off of his pants (I'm not sure how this happened because mine hasn't ever come loose - he must have been snowblowing pretty aggressively) and it was missing, in the snow, for a good five days. We looked and looked and finally, Allen took a rake to the snow and found it. With a quick charge it was back and running again.  

Here's a great Scientific American blog post on the 'bit.

Wedding Musings

In case anyone's curious, this is a quick snapshot of part of the grounds where the wedding will be. It's an estate on 90 acres of land with sheep and llama and lots of natural beauty.

The wedding is now under five months away and it has me thinking:

I'm trying not to be one of those brides. You know the kind: obsessing over whether the tablecloths will clash with the color of grass that time of year, the kind who goes on extreme diets so that she looks emaciated on her wedding day, or the kind that freaks out that her bridesmaids have tattoos. Thankfully, I could really care less about those sorts of details. The goal for the A-man and I on our wedding day is to profess our love to one another in front of the people that mean most to us in the world, and for our guests to have a whole lot of fun.

However, I am a bit neurotic about one thing: I have a deep desire to feel at my best on my wedding day(and really, what bride doesn't?); the keyword there is feel. Sure I want to look good too, but I believe they go hand in hand: if you feel good, you will look good.

Here's my goal: I want to be in the state of mind to fully enjoy the day, to jump-out-of-bed feeling energetic yet calm, muscles feeling tight but not sore, totally aware, not feeling hungry and not feeling full, skin hydrated, with my heart beating at a calm rhythm. In order to achieve this goal I know my life has to be in perfect balance. It's a balance that I would like to achieve daily, but if I can do it for a few months before the wedding, it's a good start.

1. I have to be eating right, which in my case, along with being gluten and casein free, also means no sugar, very little caffeine and eating loads of vegetables. I'm attempting to figure out if carbs are the best thing for me too.

2. I have to be physically well and in an attempt to be that way I will try to keep up on taking my vitamins daily and staying away from alochol which I know knocks my immune system down a bit.

3. I want to be in the best shape I've ever been in. Not the skinniest, but the most fit. I have fond memories of the way my body felt when I was deep in college tennis season: running and playing tennis for at least three hours a day. I don't have time for such things now, but I will outline my exercise plan come February (meanwhile, I've been chronicling my workouts on the sidebar of this blog)

4. Stress has to be at a minimum. This will be difficult to achieve due to the stress involved in planning such an event, but relying on family and friends to help out and dealing with my stress through yoga, deep breathing and venting to friends will help. Massage is only something I've received a few times, but surely makes a difference for me. Accupuncture is also something I'm interested in.

Anyone out there with stress-free suggestions? Tips on feeling good? Exercises they love? I'm all ears.