I am a proud and self-proclaimed human trash can when it comes to dietary habits. Any of my teammates, friends, or family members could tell you with dismay that some of my favorite snacks include Kit-Kats dipped in Nutella, peanut butter chocolate Oreo milkshakes, and donuts (really any kind, but if you're looking for a donut that will revolutionize your entire life, I would recommend checking out Dunford Bakeries' double-chocolate donuts. Seriously. 10/10). I get a seriously thrill from watching those cooking videos on Buzzfeed because the process of a dessert coming together is a beautiful thing. I have been known from time to time to classify a Snickers bar as a protein bar, and I had cookies for lunch before my personal best performances in both the mile and the 5k. I have a real problem.
But, lately I have (kind of) turned over a new leaf. Because I could never leave my love affair with desserts behind completely, I still make time for them once or twice a week, but I have started seeing someone new. We'll call him Health Food. For years, I avoided even the mention of health food because frankly, it is my opinion that raw vegetables are for people who hate their lives. One of my teammates used to bring sliced bell peppers for snacks during travel meets, and made the mistake of offering them to me a few times which led to some offensive comments by myself about vegetables and the types of people who genuinely enjoy them (so sorry). While I was home over this past break, someone mentioned an individual who had given up one of his vices for the sake of running and seen a huge improvement as a result and watched a video on an elite cyclist detailing what he called "marginal gains"-the seemingly tiny details that separate the good from the great when everyone has equal talent and the same volume details, and when I reflected on what small changes I could make to improve my running, eating was an obvious one. So, I started looking up healthy recipes that actually taste good. One cookbook that I would definitely recommend is The Feed Zone, a cookbook made specifically with endurance athletes in mind. It took a few weeks to really adapt to eating that many vegetables in one setting and learning how to get over the texture of chia, but I have definitely noticed a difference in energy levels, how fresh I feel, and general fitness since making some small changes. A few of my favorite recipes are for chocolate peanut butter chia pudding, chicken quinoa veggie bowls, and banana bread (I know this isn't technically super health food, but when I'm eating desserts that have fruit in them, it definitely seems noteworthy), and being the kind benefactor that I am, I've decided to share some of them with you. There will no doubt be more to come as I discover more foods that appeal to me.
Chocolate Peanut Butter Chia Pudding
Just about the easiest thing you can make, for real.
-1 cup almond milk
-1/4 cup chia seeds
-3 tbsp cocoa powder
-2 tbsp peanut butter
-2 tbsp honey
Whisk those puppies together and toss them in the fridge for a few hours or overnight if you're really feeling wild, then brace yourself for the weird texture of hydrated chia.
Chicken Quinoa Veggie Bowl
-2 yellow squash (what actually is the plural of squash? Is it still just squash? Squashes? Squish?)
-1 bell pepper
-2 medium tomatoes
-1 small can of corn
-1 can of beans (optional if you're feeling it)
-1-2 chicken breasts, depending on how much protein you're in the mood for
-2 solid handfuls of cilantro
-1 cup quinoa, cook according to instructions on bag
Dice up your vegetables and sautee them for ~5 minutes, then add in the corn, beans, diced tomatoes and cilantro. Stir in the quinoa, then cook and shred the chicken before stirring it in. Easy as it gets. Also, this is super versatile so you can heat it up and throw it into just about whatever you want. I use it as a quesadilla filling sometimes, and this morning I got really wild and mixed it in with some scrambled eggs.
I don't know if this counts as a recipe technically speaking, but I just have to share this information because it was honestly the best sandwich I've ever made for myself. You spread pesto on one side and guacamole with sriracha on the other, then fill that guy up with cheddar, some generous slices of turkey, tomatoes, lettuce, and some diced bell pepper. Fair warning, if you have an esophagus that sucks at its job like me, I can guarantee you will get gnarly heartburn from this, but just stock up on some famotidine and you'll be fine. For real, eating that sandwich was a borderline religious experience. This isn't really related to this whole "healthy eating" segment, but it is food-related and mentioning pesto just reminded me of this sensation burger I had. One of my friends made burgers and mixed pesto in with the meat before cooking them. Guys. So good. Try it, I promise you won't regret it unless you're an angry pesto hater, in which case I'm not sure I can respect you because pesto is my exotic delicious Italian lover.
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