I’ve been playing around with eating and not eating before a run for a long time now.  Nothing seems to be giving me a consistent result as far as endurance and energy is concerned.  Normally, I stick with not eating.  When I eat, it weighs me down and makes me feel weaker.  Lately, I’ve been struggling either way. 

Today, I decided to try out a smoothie instead of eating solid food.  In the blender went…

• 1/2 cup unsweetened vanilla Almond Breeze
• 1/2 banana
• 1 piece frozen mango
• 1/4 cup raw oats

It was a tasty mix and just enough to get me going

I am trying to increase my mileage little by little before starting the “serious” half marathon training this August.  My plan today was 4.5 miles.  I started off pretty strong and my energy level stayed fairly even until mile 4.  I was getting a bit tired at that point, but just slowed down and took a walk break.  I finished up at 4.68 miles   I think the smoothie did a great job holding me over.  I’ll definitely try that again!

I came home for a mid-morning perk up – press and string…

Later, I had a lunch date with friends at Panera Bread.  Everything is so good there, it’s hard to choose.  Inevitably, I end up getting the same thing – Black Bean Soup and a half Mediterranean Veggie Sandwich…

It was yum! 

The munchies set in at the usual afternoon time, so I whipped up a healthy and filling snack.  I’ve been wanting to make baked oatmeal for grab-n-go breakfasts, but I thought they would make a great snack, too.

I decided to bump up the nutrition even more with the addition of ground flax seed, also known as flax meal or milled flax seed…

  What’s cool about ground flax is that you can use it in baked goods as a substitute for eggs much like the chia seeds.  Remember my Chia experiments?!  The method is similar, also.  To make a “flax egg”, mix 1 tbsp. of ground flax with 3 tbsp. water and let sit until it thickens, about 1 –2 minutes.  Instant egg!  It works great!

Let’s get to the recipe… 

Orange Date Baked Oatmeal Bars

• 2 flax eggs (*see instructions below)
• 2 cups rolled oats
• 1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 1/4 tsp. cinnamon
• 1/8 cup sugar
• 1/2 cup chopped pitted dates (about 10-12 large dates)
• zest of small orange (about 1 tsp.)
• 1/3 cup skim milk
• 1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce
• 1/2 cup orange juice
• 1 tsp. vanilla

For flax eggs:  In a small dish, mix 2 tbsp. ground flax seed …

with 6 tbsp. water and set aside for 2 minutes until thickened…

Place dry ingredients in a large bowl…

Add wet ingredients and stir until fully combined…

Spray a 9-inch baking pan with cooking spray (I line my pan with foil and spray).  Pour mixture into the pan and bake at 350 degrees for about 35 minutes…

Let cool completely.  Cut into 6 bars. 

Dig in…

If you’re not a traditional oatmeal fan, like me, try these!  They have a great texture and the orange flavor goes very well with the natural sweetness of the dates.

Nutritional facts per bar (calculated using www.calorieking.com):  197 calories, 2.7 grams fat, 201 mg. sodium, 40 grams carbohydrates, 18.4 grams sugar, 4.9 grams fiber and 5 grams protein.
3 POINTS per bar

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Dinner was simple, thanks to Gram!  She brought by a crabcake for me, so I heated it up with some leftover spinach…

The husband and daughters were happy with breakfast for dinner!  They don’t know what they’re missing

Have a great day, everyone!

Have you tried flax ?  How have you used it?

Whew!  I finally feel caught up on stuff.  Strange how just a couple of days away really screws up the routine!

Speaking of screwing up the routine, the daughters are off from school now through April 6th!  Aaaah!  I’m hoping we can do fun things together and enjoy our togetherness without me having to do a lot of this…

(source)

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I wasn’t so hungry for breakfast this morning.  It took me a while to decide what to eat.  Finally, I opted for a bowl of Kashi Go Lean Crisp  with Almond Breeze and a load of strawberries…

and a cup of french press with swirling coffee grinds

I spent some time blogging, reading and cleaning, then picked up little daughter from her half day at school.  I took her out for a Mom-Little Daughter lunch.  Her restaurant of choice was Panera Bread.  Works for me!

I had the Garden Vegetable Soup and Tomato and Mozzarella Panini…

Yummy.

It was such a beautiful day that I dragged the daughters ( and Rocky!) for a walk around a nearby trail.   I LOVE SPRING!  While walking, I snacked on an Attune Bar  that I got at Fitbloggin…

Dinner was breakfast for the family.  I, of course, did my own thing.  I made it just as quick and easy.  This heat and eat rice mix from Trader Joe’s is really good…

I added some chickpeas to it …

and served it with leftover veggies…

I like the flavor contrast of the rice mix.  It’s got just a hint of spice and a bit of sweetness from the raisins and apple.  Very nice!

I ended the night with a cup of Celestial Seasonings Madagascar Red Tea……along with little daughter’s creepy toy left by my computer…

Forgive my complaining, but this vegetarian for lent is wearing on me.  In a way, I’m glad because that is the point of giving something up to begin with!  But, it’s getting really difficult and my original enthusiasm about it is waning.  I’ll save my thoughts on it all and what I have learned along the way for a Lent-end post. Which will no doubt end with me writing it while eating a GIANT turkey sandwich

Have a great day, everyone!

What is one food that you could never give up?