January 19, 2012

Cold weather and warm food

I was supposed to go for a run with Jessica this morning, but I ended up canceling and running alone by my house. I had plans to meet up with Renee and Jessica for coffee at 11, and with the drive to and from Jessica's, I'd waste a lot of time that I needed to take a shower and get dressed before coffee.  I live in the middle of nowhere, so everywhere I go takes me at least 15 minutes.

The weather channel was calling for snow, but not until a little later, so I headed out for a run right as my kids left for school. My dad snapped a picture for me, although it's not exactly a great pic:
I need more running pictures! I only have a few and they're all terrible--too blurry, too dark, too far away. Oh well. The first mile wasn't too bad, and I actually felt a little too warm. Considering it was only 14 degrees outside, that was strange. But as soon as I got to the lake front, I felt like I froze into an icicle. The wind was blowing right into my face, and it had started to snow--so all the flakes were going in my eyes. The wind was VERY strong and I felt like I was running in place.

I had the most horrid look on my face as I was running, and I'm sure that if someone had seen me, they would have thought I was a beginner runner pushing myself WAY too hard. I could barely keep my eyes open, but then I saw someone else who was outside--a woman out on a walk. I tried to wipe the grimace off my face, but I think it was just frozen in place.

By mile three, it was snowing pretty hard, but once I was off the lake front, it wasn't so bad. I finished the run and took a super steamy shower.

Then I made my current favorite bowl of oatmeal for breakfast:  1/2 cup of oats, 3/4 cup of milk, 2 dates (chopped), 4 walnut halves (chopped), 1 tsp. brown sugar, and a splash of vanilla extract (about 1/2 tsp).  I put it all in a bowl and then microwave it for 3 minutes on high. I let it cool for a few minutes and then top it with some sort of nut butter--today was coconut butter.
You'll have to imagine the coconut butter on top ;)
I swear, there is something magical about cooking oats in milk rather than water. It makes not only the taste, but also the texture a million times better. After my surgery, I switched back to cow's milk instead of the almond milk because it has more protein, and I have to say I really like it better. The almond milk is a fantastic non-dairy low-calorie milk, but I think I'll stick with cow's milk now.

I met Renee and Jessica for coffee before lunch. I ordered decaf, but I think maybe it was actually caffeinated. I was very jittery on the way home, and I STILL feel jittery. Next time I'll just get tea. While we were sitting there, it started snowing something fierce. It looked like a blizzard outside. It was really slow driving home, and an ambulance went past me (no doubt because of an accident). It was so dreary looking outside, I just wanted to curl up under my electric blanket. Homemade chicken noodle soup was the perfect lunch today!

Tomorrow we're supposed to get 3-6 inches of snow... ironically, tomorrow is my scheduled long run.

15 comments:

  1. I can't believe you love running outside in such cold temps! The funny thing is I was running on a new treadmill at the gym and it has no fan! I sweat like a pig WITH a fan! Thankfully I was on the one closest to the door so I would get a cold breeze whenever anybody came or went! We're supposed to get rain/snow mix tonight. I'm hoping it's nothing at all!

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  2. Your oats always look so much better than mine :( I am going to have to up my milk to oat ratio... I think that's the key! :)

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  3. Awesome run! Good luck with your long run tomorrow!

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  4. We're supposed to get snow tomorrow..blegh. I really want to try that oatmeal! Where do you buy dates? The last place I bought them was an indian food place and they were candied and dry. I thought dates were more "gushy" like prunes? I love milk :) 1% is my favorite! I'm running again tomorrow morning! I'm telling you so I feel accountable, and wont wuss out! :) Oh and Idk if you've checked your sparkmail recently, but I sent you one about how I met Oprah and Stedman :)

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    1. Czesia, you can buy dates in the regular grocery store over with the raisins and other dried fruit. You might be thinking of medjool dates, which are "gushy" like prunes--extremely sweet and big, and a great dessert alternative! But for the oatmeal, I just use the plain old dried dates (they aren't candied, but they LOOK candied).

      I like 1% milk too. And yes, I got your Spark message--will respond today! :)

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    2. Awesome! I'm going to go look for them when I go grocery shopping tomorrow!! <3

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  5. YUM! I love oats, they are the best breakfast!! I love pear and peanutbutter! sounds strange, but its delish!

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  6. I will have to try making my oatmeal with milk. I feel that way about hot cocoa. It is completely different when made with milk - much richer.

    I forgot to tell you this when I posted about running three miles but it happened right after I read your post about running slower. I took your advice and it worked! :)

    And the running must be helping me because I dropped 1.5 pounds even though I am not counting anything and I am just trying to eat reasonably. That NEVER happens to me.

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  7. we are to get 8 inches..tomorrow is a dreadmill day! I hate my commute. I drive a 12 mile trip to drop V off at preschool and then to the train station. After that I train in and walk 13 blocks from the station to my office. The lake is right there and the wind chills are fierce!

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  8. What kind of oats to you eat? I've read through quite a few of your older blog posts and even visited your recipe blog. Sometimes you just call them 'oats' and sometimes 'steel cut' and sometimes 'old fashioned' are these all the same, all different? The only oatmeal I eat right now is the instant packets, but I'd like to widen the variety of what I have for breakfast. Thanks in advance for any advice. : )

    Erin (crazy "everything in common" lady from Michigan)aka Ernie on Google...I'm sure I'll be bugging you enough and leaving enough comments that soon I won't have to remind you who I am. : )

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    1. 99% of the time I use old-fashioned oats. I never ever use the instant packets (I just don't like the packets at all). I've experimented with steel-cut oats (which are the least-processed of the oat varieties) but I really like the plain old-fashioned oats. A quick run-down:
      Steel-cut--least processed, take the longest to cook, looks like tiny little beads.
      Old-fashioned--Also called "rolled oats" because in processing, they are rolled out flat so they look like oval flakes. Takes less than 5 minutes to cook.
      Quick-cooking--Just like old-fashioned oats, only they are chopped into smaller flakes so that they cook faster. (I don't like these because they tend to get mushier--it's a texture thing). I use these occasionally to replace bread crumbs in recipes for meatballs, meatloaf, etc.
      Instant--Other than the "plain" version, they are very processed, contain a lot of added sugar. Cooks in a couple of minutes.

      Hope this helps!

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    2. Thanks for the clarification! : )

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  9. I'll have to try your oatmeal recipe tomorrow morning. I like running in the cold too, but I'm just getting back into running. Your blog is helping me get back out there!

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  10. I'm anxious to try your oatmeal concoction. Looks yummy! :) I ordered PB2 and admit that I was a little bit fearful to try it. I mean, it's POWDER for goodness sake! I mashed up a banana, added 2 tbsp. to it and LOVED IT! Thanks for turning me onto this delicious low-fat treat.

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  11. I was thinking about trying PB2 but I am just not sure ..

    That oatmeal looks fanfreakingtastic though ..yumm

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