So I hear a lot, “what do vegans eat?” but Matt gave an interesting twist to this question.  “What does a vegan eat at a Super Bowl party?”  First I know what you are thinking … do vegans watch football?  I thought they sat around in drum circles and and ate wheat grass and talked about the environment.  We do that during the halftime show.

The first rule to any party for a vegan is never assume there will be anything for you to eat.  That is not meant to be mean, but many vegans are not very open about being vegan.  I for one don’t want to make anyone feel like they have to cook special for me.  I made this choice, they didn’t and that is OK.  I also don’t want to get to a party, find nothing to eat and then I get hangry (hungry+angry, thanks Nick.)  So even if I am told not to bring anything … I will.

Now yes I have to avoid the typical football party fare, chicken wings, ribs, burgers, pizza, and someone’s famous 7 or 12 of 84 layer dip.  But there are many party fare items that are fair game for a vegan.

Chips and Salsa
Guacamole (as long as not made with mayo)
That giant bowl of peanuts
Hummus and chips or pita wedges
That giant veggie platter that someone picked up at the grocery store so there was something healthy there.
Vegetarian chili
Burritos (hold the meat, replace with black or refried beans)

Now if I want to go the faux meat game, there are tons of options.  Veggie burgers, veggie dogs, vegan meatballs and even many recipes to make a chicken wing substitute (and I have to admit, nails the taste and if you miss your wings that bad …)

So what will I be eating during the game this year?  Raw veggies (carrots, celery, ect) because I snack constantly during the game and that way it is lower calorie then snacking all game on chips.  But I will also have some chips, salsa, guac and a black bean dip (or pile them on for nachos.  For the main eats, I will be bringing a veggie pizza, no cheese from a local pizza place that has learned to make it for us and we love it.  So see, not much different.  And for those that have friends or family that is vegetarian (no meat) or vegan (no meat, eggs or dairy) you now realize that many of the things you put out might fit the bill or could be slightly modified and then they don’t have to fend for themselves.

So I have been in DC this weekend and have taken the time to enjoy the ridiculously warm weather (it was 60 degrees in January the other day) and get some miles in.  I typically head out on an empty stomach and will run somewhere for a bagel or few bananas and then run back getting my breakfast and my exercise in at the same time.  The only negative is the morning smells.  Running by the donut shop and smelling the fresh hot donuts or even worse, this morning running by a local BBQ place that was just firing up the smokers for the day.  I know that BBQ is probable not the best morning food (especially for a vegan) but it smelled good enough to almost knock me off the wagon.  But that smell was quickly replaced by the smell of someone’s fireplace or wood burning stove.  A nice crisp morning and the smell of wood burning is just one of those smells that brings back memories of camping with the family.  But those smells are enough to pull me out on the road in the morning and run towards the smell of the donuts, even if I know I am not going to stop to eat them.  Or maybe I just like the feeling of beating the temptation.  Or maybe I like torturing myself … OK, time to stop sharing now.

What happens when you get home from a long day of work, you want to get the workout in, but that family is sitting there wondering what is going to be cooked for dinner.  So you skip your workout for the family, wow sweet.  But that is not fair to you.  Now I am not saying that fast food is the answer to save time and get your workout in.  With a little planning, you can still provide meals for you or the family and save time.

Plan the meals
I hit the store once a week, so before I go, I sit down and plan the meals.  What nights do we have family activities.  When will I need to make dinner to go or dinner for home.  Then I make my list and hit the store once so I am not constantly wasting time buying food.

Have the staples on hand
I make sure I have the staples on hand for throwing meals together.  Pasta, rice, quinoa, canned tomatoes, canned beans, frozen veggies, jars of sauces, spices ... anything that won't expire on me quickly.  Go back and look through that list.  Grab the pasta, some veggies, a can of tomatoes and some spices and I have dinner.

Make extras
When I cook, I cook.  I won't just make a few servings.  I make enough to freeze for lunches or dinner another night.  If I cook soup, I might make 2-3 different ones and freeze individual servings.  Family needs dinner, pull out some soups or that left over pasta dish I made and dinner in less than 5 minutes.

I love my Crockpot
Yes, I am secure in saying that.  What I love about slow cookers is that I throw everything in the morning, leave and when I come home ... dinner.  I also usually have plenty for leftovers as well.  There are a ton of cookbooks and recipes on the internet, but this tool saves a ton of time.  My favorite ... cans of tomatoes, beans, peppers, onions, a bag of frozen corn and spices and when I get home, I have chili.

Hey, you cook!
Now my wife and I share the cooking duties.  We trade off, but I know there are some of you reading this that have to do all of the cooking ... for safety or food poisoning reasons.  Have older kids that you fear will eat take out when they finally leave home?  Well, you have a choice.  You can teach them how to cook.  Get cookbooks and help them learn, but make them learn.   Remember that slow cooker we talked about?  Anyone can open some bags and cans, throw it in there and walk away.  Hey, you cooked!  Thank you for helping me out.

Cookbooks and Magazines
The other problem is coming up with ideas.  I use the internet, cookbooks and magazines to come up with new and creative ideas for meals, so we never get bored.  I use that when planning meals for the week.  When we find one we really like, we save it, make more and freeze them.

With a few of these tips, I spend less time cooking and then have more time to get my workouts in.

The biggest waste of time when you actually find time to workout is running around trying to find your gear to go workout.  You know how it is, you finally find 30 minutes to duck out for a run or hit the gym, but by the time you find your shoes, charge and sync your iPod, the 30 minute window will be over so you say, screw it.  Whatever your exercise of choice is, always have your gear ready to go so you don't have to waste time.  It takes a little prep, but saves a ton of time.  It is typically something I do right before I go to bed once I get the munchkin down so there are no interruptions.  I also typically do it while I am watching TV right before bed.  At commercials, I run around and get my stuff together.

The first thing I do is check the weather.  What is the temp going to be?  What direction and how strong is the wind going to be (for choosing my route)?  Then I plan accordingly.

Since I ride my bike, my bike is by the back door, tires pumped, shoes and helmet right there, jersey and shorts hanging on the handlebars.  If I get an hour, I can be out the door in a minute flat.  My running shoes are also by the door.  My iPod goes on the dock after every workout so it is always charged.  Water bottles are always refilled and at the ready.  Energy bars are always on hand to grab some food on the go.  My gym bag is ready to go lift and when I get back from the gym, nasty clothes come out and I throw new ones in.  My gym bag is actually always in my car.  I have been known to get an earlier flight home and find time to hit a gym or YMCA on the way home with the extra time.  You get the idea, but I spend the time making sure my gear is in order so I don't have to spend the time when the time counts.  The window to get your workout in could strike at any moment, so be prepared.

Why do you try to stay fit?  To keep weight down?  To compete against your friends?  To get to eat junk food?  To make sure you are in the best shape ever to survive the zombie apocalypse?  Just me?

You have all seen that zombie or horror movie where the victim fails to outrun said villain.  I know I am not the only one who has ever though, "man, I could easily out run him and he could never go 10 miles."  Again, just me?

When I saw Run for Your Lives 5K Obstacle Course Run, the word, "awesome" exited my mouth.  Now you can see if you could make the cut when the adrenaline is flowing.

A few years back I had made a resolution to try to read more books.  I always had a list of books that I had wanted to read or were suggested to me.  I had lists of business books that I was "highly encouraged" to read.  But the problem was finding the time.  No I do most of my reading on the plane, or better said, I used to do all of my reading on the plane, until I got my iPad.  Now I read until they tell me I can turn on electronics and I read when they tell me I have to turn it off.  Then I fight the urge to play something that, the be honest, adds nothing to my brain cells other than distracting them from the fact that I am sitting in a very uncomfortable seat for who knows how many hours.  I am sorry, what were we talking about?  Oh yea, books.  One of the things I try hard every day to exercise is my brain.  Yea, that's right, my brain.  But if you are like me with a family, work, and an endless task list, you struggle to find the time to sit down and actually read or absorb some of this knowledge you are trying to name into your eye holes.  So I have taken to multi-task when I exercise.  Some of the best ways to do that is to exercise my body & brain at the same time.

Audiobooks
I usually rip through 1-2 of these a month and it is awesome.  Whenever I hear about a business book or a book that i wanted to read to beef up my professional skills, the first place I look is to see if there is an audiobook version.  If so, I will usually go that option.  I can go for my run and tear through an hour of knowledge and make my brain bigger (in data not size.)

Podcasts
I have about 6-7 podcasts that I regularly follow.  It might be on a hobby or parenting tips or whatever you want.  Write down a list of your interests and search the interwebs and see what podcasts are available.  Again, fill my brain with some knowledge and the same time I am mindlessly running in place on a treadmill.

eBooks or Treebooks
I read eBooks on my iPad and have magazines and treebooks (paper books) that I read.  When I am spinning in place on the bike, I can easily read through a few chapters or articles and fill myself with something other than pop culture.  I don't do this very often, but if I am doing an easy spin on an indoor bike for an hour, I can move legs round and round and still read.  Warning: if you sweat heavily (like I do) then this may not be the best option.  I have had to wipe some beads of sweat from my iPad on occasion.

So this allows me to know off two things at once.  Exercise my body and exercise my mind.  Bonus that it helps the miles or minutes go by faster.

As we move towards the new year, many of us start to look at our New Years Resolutions.  There are always the most common ones.  Lose weight, spend more time with family, get that promotion at work, read more books, learn something new, and the list goes on and on.  One of the biggest problems with these new found goals is finding the time in your already busy schedule to focus on them.  Year after year, I hear the same problems, "I just can't find time" and while my typical response is, "make time," that in itself is not enough.  You have to figure out where to eliminate time in some places to make time in others.  And while I would love to stop doing laundry for the sake of finding time to exercise more, reality says otherwise.  So over the next few weeks, I will share some tips that I am employed to find more time for the things I want to do and spend less time on the things I have to do.

So I mentioned the other day that I was getting “fluffy.”  What that means is over the course of the last few weeks, I did not run, got sick and just sat around doing nothing.  I am up 10 pounds over race season and I don’t look nearly as toned as I did during race season.  To be fair, that happens when you go from training 12+ hours a week to 5 hours a week.  But remember, I have been eating vegan (no meat, eggs or dairy) so most people would say I am eating healthy and I still packed on 10 pounds.  Why?  Portions, or better said, calories.  I can eat 500 calories more than I need in healthy fruits, vegetables and pasta and if it is more than I am burning, then the body packs it away for later use.  That is also the reason that “cookie diets” work because if you are eating less than you are burning you will lose weight.

So the key is to eat the right amount and exercise regularly and it will come back off.  I just have to find a happy medium between “fluffy” and “race ripped.”

OK, full confession, I have been sick lately and gotten really busy at work and when I stood in front of the mirror I realized I have gotten a little "fluffy.". Which means I am up 10 pounds from my racing weight and I don't look nearly as lean as I did this summer.  Even the dog is getting ticked because we have not ran in over 2 weeks.  Time get off my butt and get back focused.

But I think this speaks to a challenge that we all have faced at some point or another.  We fall down.  But what do we do.  Do we stay down or do we embrace our faults and push through.  Time for me to get back on the bike.

Holidays are still really tough for me.  The urge to eat way too much food is just so strong.  Especially with all of the great food.  So I have always tries to make sure I balance it out.  We got up early this morning and made the trek to the family.  Got there early enough for everyone to help get dinner together.  So I took the running stuff and headed out for a 10 mile run to guarantee some guilt free eating.  Now, I just have to get through the next holiday.

I was drive the other day and I saw a billboard that said, "Obesity is a Disease."  Most people would probably just pass that by and not think much more of it.  But it got me thinking.  Is it?  I mean, I did not catch obesity.  I got fat by not exercising and eating too much food that was not good for me.  But is it a disease?  Now I don't doubt that obesity is series and leads to other serious health issues (heart issues, diabetes, cancer, and many others.)  My concern with people thinking it is a disease is that it gives them an excuse.  For example I have a rare genetic disease known as Gilbert's syndrome.  Before you go look that up, it is not serious and causes me no issues.  But when we hear disease, we think of medical science and cures to fix that.  Now there is nothing I did (or did not do) to get that disease, it just happened.  But my obesity was my fault.  There is no medical cure (though people claim there is and others are waiting for the magic pill.)  But is it a disease?  Compared to 40 years ago, people today spend more time commuting, sitting in front of a computer, watching television, playing video games, and generally exercising less.  So, I don't doubt that obesity is series and I believe that things need done about it, but I don't think calling it a disease is going to get any more attention and changes to people's lifestyle.

Thursday, US Congress passed a bill that makes pizza a vegetable.  Yep, go read that again.  Their thought is that tomatoes are vegetables and tomato paste is made from tomatoes, therefore pizza is a vegetable.  The reason behind this?  This now allows schools to keep serving frozen cheese pizzas to children and still fall under the proper ration of fruits and vegetables that need to be made available to school children. 

Ok, there are so many things wrong with this, I almost can’t type.  First, that tomato sauce is loaded with so much sugar in most cases as tomatoes (especially the ones that go into sauce) gave have a bitter taste to them.  Pick up a frozen pizza in the store next time and check the sugar.  Also the pizza we are talking about is not a pizza with peppers, mushrooms, onions and olives.  It is cheese or pepperoni pizza.  Now I don’t have anything wrong with pizza.  I like pizza and I eat pizza.  But I either put veggies on my pizza or have veggies with my pizza (salad) but is pizza a vegetable?

According to the CDC, over 12 million children are considered obese, so this is just throwing more fat on the fire.  We are teaching kids that eating pizza is considered healthy, but as someone who used to eat a lot of pizza, it is not.  The average calories in a slice of cheese pizza can be between 250-300 calories.  Now as a 170 pound adult I should only be eating 500-600 calories per meal (about 2 slices of cheese pizza.)  The munchkin weighs just 60 pounds and can hammer through 2 slices and be asking for more.  Add to that her chocolate milk (that the school tells her is healthy) and the desert that goes along with the pizza and she can consume more that half her daily caloric need in just 1 meal.  As a parent I have a choice and I can pack her lunch, but when she is sitting there with her sandwich, fresh veggies, a piece of fruit and low fat milk, I might as well tattoo “nerd” across her forehead.  And I was a kid and know all about the trading that happens with kids.  My mom packed me a healthy lunch all of the time, but I would do my backroom deals to get my sweet and fat fix.

I actually don’t have an issue with pizza in the school.  I have a problem with the education that needs to happen so kids understand what they should be eating and how much to be healthy.  So by teaching kids that pizza is a vegetable is same as teaching them that the world is flat.  OK, that might be extreme, but you get the idea.  Next stop, ice cream counts as healthy dairy and Twinkies made with whole grain are good for you.  Oh wait, I think those already happened.

PS: Forgot one thing, a tomato is actually considered a fruit so the whole issue is just wrong.  And eve one more thing, this is what the US Congress has time to do?

So I have been a fan of Christopher McDougall wince he wrote the book, Born to Run.  He just did this video of running technique and while it sounds too good to be true, it makes sense, so I am trying it and heading out for 10 miles this morning.

So almost 4 months ago, I went vegan.  When I have to explain to people why I don’t eat this or that, I either get an “ohhh” like I told them I had cancer or I get tons of questions.  I saw this great infographic that answers a lot of questions I have gotten when I tell people, I went vegan.

For the LaMee household, it is the day after trick-or-treat and we have candy everywhere.  There is the candy that the kid does not want and then there is the leftover candy that we did not hand out.  You know how it goes, you are slow handing it out at first because you don't want to run out, then halfway through you realize you are going to have too much and hand out handfuls, but to no avail you have a big bowl of candy just begging you to eat it.

And then it taunts you, calls you, "just one piece, you deserve it."  And for those that can stop there, good for you.  I am not one of those people.  I start off with one piece, then two, then the room starts to spin and I wake up in a pile of empty Butterfinger and Reese's cup wrappers and wonder why I feel like I just beached up somewhere.  So what to do with all of the leftover candy?  For me, I have two things that always work:

1) Give it away / Take it to work
Hey, better somebody else than me.  I make my wife take it to work were it is devoured in a day.  I know what you are thinking and it is a dilemma.  I am contributing to the problem.  But this tactic takes advantage of the "survival of the fittest" mentality.  You eat it and get fat so I don't have to eat it and get fat.  Now if you have a problem with this strategy then ...

2) Throw it away
There is no rule that says you or anyone has to eat it.  The financial side of us many times can’t stand the idea of throwing away something we paid for.  But that $20 loss in candy is nothing compared to the purchase of a new wardrobe, the time you have to spend burning it off, the health costs later down the line.  So chuck it guilt free.  This is actually the strategy I am taking this year. 

It is only $20 and while I will have guilt for throwing $20 away, that guilt is nothing compared to the guilt I would feel putting the weight on and having to start all over again.

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So this week I have been in Chicago, which is one of my favorite places to run.  I have been back from injury for a little over a week now so I have been taking it nice and slow.  Running the miles of trails along the lake is a runners dream.  But this morning it was another story.  Chicago has been getting slammed with heavy winds and those are coming right across the lake.  The waves smashing up on the shore is a gorgeous sight … until you get clobbered by one … and the temp is in the 40s.  So cold, wet, wet and did I mention cold and finished my run, got back the hotel and took a nice long hot shower.  Today’s running lesson is to check to see what the lake report is before you head out.

So this morning I grabbed the dog and we headed out the reservoir to hit the tails for a short 4 miles to see if the muscle pull was doing better.  Good news … run felt OK, bad news … it was rough because for the last 2 weeks, I have done nothing and to be honest, have not really stuck to my eating habits.  I have been eating healthy , just the amount of eating is more in line with a day of riding 60 miles, not a day of sitting and doing nothing.  Pants were feeling a little tight, so it was time to get back out there and do something.  After 4 miles, I felt more like I did after 12 miles.  Time to get back into shape.

I was reading in a Runners World article about people who need to work out first thing in the morning.  I read this and it best described me:

If I run now, I can feel good about it all day.  If I skip it now, I’ll feel guilty all day.

OK, so I was supposed to be tacking a 1/2 Ironman this morning.  But an injury last weekend brought my race season a close a week before the race.  So as I got up this morning and was a little sad, I stepped outside and ... HOLY CRAP IT WAS COLD!  34 degrees to be specific.  So on one side, I was frustrated that 18 weeks of training for this race was out the window, but on the other side, with it being that cold and windy to boot, this was not the race I was training for.  So I just smiled and laughed and figured that my body has issued a preemptive protest against the upcoming cold.  Now when you tell people how cold it is, the first reaction is, "man that water will be cold."  Actually, while the water will get chilly at those temps, it takes a lot to drop a lake a significant amount.  Now a full wetsuit helps, but you quickly get used to the water.  The bigger issue is the bike.  You get out, you are wet and it is cold and you are going to go bike for 3 hours in the cold wind.  So you take on new clothing strategies, like changing into a ski suit before you get on the bike.