The Pre-Workout Snack

 Our current favorite power snack combines two heaping spoonfuls of peanut or almond butter, a small dollop of coconut oil, a drizzle of maple syrup, and a dusting of raisins or mini chocolate chips. About an hour before a workout, I’ll swirl all this into a ramekin and eat it off a spoon.

The idea comes from our friend and training partner Jodi. A few years ago, she invited me to her house in the Hamptons for a training weekend while she was prepping for the Ö TILL Ö, a dawn-to-dusk swimming and running race in Sweden (it's like a super-charged S.O.S.). One afternoon between workouts I caught Jodi slathering peanut butter, coconut oil, and honey on rice cakes. I figured if it energizes her through ultra-distance events, motherhood, and running her own business, it ought to see me through a two-a-day.

Bec had the idea to de-bulk Jodi’s combo. She swapped the rice cakes for a ramekin and spoon, making this the perfect quick-hit before a workout. We usually enjoy this treat up to one hour before a run or 15 minutes before a bike ride or swim. If I’m literally running out the door for a swim, I stop at one spoonful of nut butter. More and I’ll taste peanut butter on my flip-turns. (But if I have a workout on the schedule that's longer than two hours, I'll mix up this combo and spread it on a bagel or toast and have it with an espresso.)   

If you want to step it up from traditional peanut butter, order our eponymous nut butter combos from Chia Charger, one of our sponsors. These butters include chia seeds (the superfood made famous in the book Born to Run) and are made by hand in small batches. My mix is peanut almond butter blended with vegan dark chocolate. Bec’s smooth peanut butter with agave nectar is just a hint sweet. They’re pricier than nut butters at Trader Joe’s, but a worthy indulgence: part of the proceeds go to the Ulman Cancer Fund for Young Adults. 

—Laurel 

Wassner Twins Pre-Workout Snack

Serves 1

2 heaping tablespoons peanut, almond, or other nut butter

1 teaspoon coconut oil (or unsweetened shredded coconut)

1 teaspoon mini chocolate chips, raisins, or dried cranberries

a drizzle (about ¾ teaspoon) maple syrup or honey

teeny pinch fine sea salt

Layer the ingredients, in order, into a ramekin or small bowl. Grab a spoon, scoop, eat, SWIM, BIKE, or RUN.

 

Where We Eat: Victory Garden

Laurel and I were walking around the Village on one of those mild nights last week, looking for a place to get dessert, when we stumbled upon Victory Garden.  We were lured into this little shop by their bright design and frozen yogurt machines. 

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Cross-Training

For most people, triathlon would be the definition of cross-training. Training for three different sports is usually demanding and exhausting enough, but every now and then we like to mix things up and add a different sport or activity into the training plan. Over the weekend Laurel tried out a Refine Method class while I pumped out my arms on the climbing wall.  --Bec

The Epaulet Wall, Rose Lane

NYRR Thursday Night at the Races

The last time I ran a 3k indoor track race was in my Mt. St. Mary’s uniform at the 1997 Northeast Conference Championships. It was the first day of a three day meet where I ran the mile (trials & finals), 3k, 5k and distance medley relay.  Our team won the meet with the most points any team had ever scored in the Conference history, a record that still stands. We collected every just about every award given.  I remember that meet well. 

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Out with the Chips, In with the Popcorn

Our go-to snack after a long training day is chips—potato, tortilla, flax seed or anything in a big bag! They’re salty, crunchy, and full of fat, which we crave after hours of exertion. There are days that we spend up to 6 hours riding, running and swimming and we don’t even get a chance to think about counting calories (except maybe to make sure we’re getting enough). But I’m sick of feeling like I’ve undone all the good I did in a workout by eating something greasy and unhealthy afterwards. So lately, I’ve been willing myself to reach for the popcorn jar more often than the chip bag.  

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Sweet & Salty Glazed Salmon

The idea of cooking fish used to daunt me. After a full day of work and working out, I’d think up every excuse not to make it. My two biggest worries were that it would take too long and that I’d overcook it.

Then, I realized that if I can master three sports, cooking a piece of salmon should be a piece of cake. I surfed around the web looking at recipes and discovered that cooking fish is actually pretty speedy. Roasting seemed the most foolproof, since the cooking time is relatively predictable.  

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Nike+ Half-Marathon/Ironman NY Run Course

This morning a group of us met at the NYC Ironman transition area in Palisades Park for a freezing 13.1 mile training run. This was my first time checking out the River Road course on foot.  I’ve ridden my bike there a million times, but that proved to be no indication of HARD of a run course this is.  It is Quassy Rev3 hard. The only other course I can think of to compare it to is the Bermuda Triathlon, but that was only a 10k.  We ran the first half of the course, a two-lap out and back section on River Road.  This section is really pretty and will be shaded in August. The part of the course we didn’t see appears to be easier, although that section includes a big hill up to the GW Bridge. 

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Breakfast at the Olympic Marathon Trials

The Olympic Marathon Trials are this weekend!  Wondering what some of the top USA’s top runners eat the morning of the big day?  Thanks to Runner’s World’s Pre-Race Q&A's, we have an idea of what some of the contender's will eat.  

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