5.10.2011

Weighing In

As part of women's lightweight rowing, all athletes competing are required to weigh-in at or under 130 pounds (59kg) the day before competition. This is no easy feat considering our training schedule, daily weight fluctuations and needing to balance muscle with body fat.

This is my first year rowing as a lightweight, and I came back to school this fall at 142 pounds. It has been quite a process making weight.

In the fall, our coach requested that we all maintain weight under 136 pounds. Although we raced a few longer races in the fall, the weight requirement was 133 pounds during that portion of the season.

Over the first few weeks back at school, my weight quickly dropped from 142 pounds to around 136 pounds, just from the increase in training volume and the change to dining hall meal plans. Still, I had an incredibly amount of willpower for the first few months on campus, restricting my dessert intake, and eating between 1500 and 2000 calories a day.

In the winter, our coach requested that we all start to drop our weight down, and the new weight standard became 135 pounds. Of course, 135 pounds seems like a very concrete number when you realize how much your weigh fluctuates on a daily basis. My weight often fluctuates 4 pounds in a day, with my lightest weight in the morning and my heaviest right after dinner.

5.09.2011

Fast Food can be Good Food

"I don't like waiting in line to get my food," one of my dining companions explained to the group, as he complained about the uninspired food quality in the dining hall. Others picked at their poorly dressed salads and shoddily constructed wrap sandwiches.

Meanwhile, I sat there, quietly contemplating my sliced strawberries and banana, covered in honey, granola, yogurt and flaxseeds. This was the third course in an otherwise delicious meal, all procured from that same dining hall.

Why was my food so much better? so much different? Because I care. I care enough to ask for pesto on my salad, to get mushrooms and edamame from the salad bar to put into my fried rice, and to slice my own strawberries so I can have fruit in my parfait.

I don't mind waiting in line for 2 minutes if it means the difference between fresh, hot food and eating pasta that's been sitting in a steamer for an hour. I don't mind going every so slightly out of my way to make my own salad dressing if it means I know everything that goes into it.

It doesn't take a lot of time to make good, healthy food—just a good dose of care and simplicity. Dinner can be roasted broccoli and a piece of good bread. (Bonus points if you grate some parmesan on the broccoli as it comes out of the oven.) A salad can be lettuce and dressing. Breakfast? A banana with peanut butter.

I'm not perfect. There are days when I just don't feel like caring. Yesterday, I ate cake for breakfast. But most of the time, I do most things right. And in the end, I gave the rest of the cake away.

Once a week, make a 5-ingredient dinner. Not a 5-ingredient dish--a whole meal. Salt. Pepper. Oil. Vegetable. Starch.

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Simple Salad

Ingredients
1 lemon
2t mustard
4T olive oil

spring mix
cherry tomatoes

{or arugula and avocado}

Directions
1. Juice the lemon into a bowl. Whisk in the mustard, then the oil.
2. Toss the {washed} lettuce and tomatoes with the dressing.
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5.08.2011

Cake for Breakfast

Today I ate cake for breakfast. Not just any cake, good old from-a-box yellow cake. Then, I ate string cheese for lunch.

I think that just about sums up my food feelings for the day. (Although dinner was better.)

On the bright side, Dan just bought me the most beautiful cookbook! Tender, by Nigel Slater. Very much so looking forward to summer in California so I can grow and cook all sorts of beautiful veggies.


Let me know what you think by leaving a comment or emailing me at piquantprose [at] gmail [dot] com.

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5.01.2011

Watch out team!

These are coming your way...

For everybody else, recipe coming soon!


Let me know what you think by leaving a comment or emailing me at piquantprose [at] gmail [dot] com.

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