Staying Healthy and Active over 50

Please enjoy this guest blog post by Emily Johnson on fitness and aging.

Hitting 50 doesn’t mean you can quit worrying about your heath and fitness. It’s important to keep active and maintain a healthy lifestyle as you grow older. Here are a few tips and tricks to staying healthy after you’ve hit the big 5-0.

1. Have a workout routine with different fitness regimes. It’s important to stretch (yoga), keep your muscles strong (weights), and work your heart (cardio). It’s a good idea to track your activity, too. A good way to do this is with a heart rate monitor, no matter which type of exercise you’re doing.

2. Protect your body. While you’re working out, it’s smart to save your limbs from too much impact and muscle soreness. Products like compression socks, arm sleeves, and braces are great accessories during any work out to keep your muscles and joints at their best.

3. Don’t forget to work your brain! Taking time to read or do puzzles (like sudoku) will increase your brain function as you get older and decrease your chances of early dementia. Take time to learn new things; maybe take a class at your local community college or start up those tennis lessons you keep saying you’ll take. You can get involved in your community, play with your grandkids or pets, even take that trip you’ve been putting off. Getting out and staying social will increase your brain activity and help you stay and feel younger. So grab your friends and go out for some fun! There’s no better time than now.

4. Update your diet. Along with keeping yourself physically fit, you need to make sure your diet is more specified toward an older age group. Some vitamins will be harder to obtain, so a good multivitamin might be necessary if you can’t get them from certain food groups. Also, making sure to drink plenty of water is as important as ever as you get older. You may feel less thirsty as you get older, but your body still needs at least 20 oz of water every meal.

5. Don’t let your relationship with your doctor diminish. It’s most important to keep up with your check-ups and keeping communication open. Even the little things that you think aren’t important could be, so don’t be afraid to make an appointment.

Just because you’re getting older doesn’t mean life is going to stop. You can be your happiest and healthiest self, even after crossing the 50-year mark!

**If YOU have a topic to share, please email me neelyruns@gmail.com with your pitch and I would be happy to have you as a guest blogger :)

Crushing the Competition Banana Coffee Cake

Perfect for after a cold run, this banana coffee cake is a delicious balance of sweet and healthy. A subtle banana flavor with a crunchy topping... You will find it won't last long because you can't help but have another piece!

• 1 ½ Cup flour
• ½ teaspoon cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• ¼ teaspoon salt
• 3 ripe bananas
• 1/4 cup truvia (or 1/2 cup sugar)
• 1 egg
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• ½ cup greek yogurt

Topping

• ¼ cup maple syrup
• 2 tablespoons flour
• 1 tablespoon melted coconut oil
• 2 tablespoons oats
• 3/4 cup chopped pecans or walnuts

Coaching: Preheat oven to 375, spray a bread pan, muffin tins, or a 9x9 square casserole dish. Combine all dry ingredients in a large bowl. Combine wet ingredients in a smaller, separate bowl, then mix into the dry being sure to combine but not over stir! Pour batter into prepared pan. Mix topping ingredients together, pour over top the batter and then using a fork, press the topping into the batter so it won't crumble off when baked. Cook 15min for muffins, or 20-40min for bread. Check every 5min after 20min until toothpick comes out clean.

The Coffee Taper 2.0

Utilizing the benefit of Caffeine in Training and Racing

There is just something about the promise of a hot cup of coffee that helps me get out of bed in the morning. If nothing less, the smell of roasted beans brewing is enough for me to be glad I’m awake. Don’t you agree? Even people who hate the taste of coffee seem to love how it smells. Last winter, I did a short blog on the Coffee Taper and how I utilize the benefit of Caffeine during training and racing. It has continued to be a popular subject, so I decided to resurface the topic and share more details.

My weekly routine is caffeine on workout/long run days, and decaf on the recovery days. I follow this for all caffeinated products, not just coffee. The boost on the workout days is 100% worthwhile, and the recovery run days I still get my cozy early morning atmosphere of a warm drink before I head outside. (Because we all know the culture of coffee time is essential to our day). 

For me, a typical day starts at 5:45am. My husband Dillon gets up for work, so I wake up, drink 6-8oz of water, and then lay back down for 15 minutes or so to let myself slowly wake up. I’m not the best morning person. Around 6, I get out of bed, and head downstairs to feed Strider (our Vizsla Puppy) and get my coffee started. I grind my beans of choice, and turn the water on to boil. I am a craft coffee girl… French press or Pour over are my two go-to methods. I don’t actually own a normal coffee maker. I’m not a purest either, and I need my creamer. I sip coffee, eat a light breakfast, and check emails. I am most productive before 8am! Spending some time coaching (I have an online coaching business), posting on social media, and responding to texts is my usual pre-run rituals. I drink some water or electrolytes after I finish my coffee and breakfast and then I start getting ready for my training with stretching and drills. You can see, my routine stays the same, but the difference is in my coffee choice… caffeine or decaf.

The week of a race, this routine changes slightly. According to smart people like my coach, Steve Magness, the body needs at least 4 days off from caffeine to regain sensitivity to it’s ergogenic benefits. Race week, I have coffee before my first workout, but then it is strictly decaf the rest of the week. This gives me 4-5 days to crave the caffeine and helps me get even more excited for race morning!

*Disclaimer: I always feel terrible on the final workout before the race due to no caffeine. But, I have learned this is normal for me and it doesn’t mean I am not ready.

And to finish this discussion, the best video ever (trust me, it's worth your next 53seconds) !

Energy Bites for Dayz

Almond Coconut Energy Bites

• ¼ cup shredded coconut
• ¼ cup cacao nibs
• ¼ cup cacao powder
• ½ cup chopped almonds
• 7 dates (pitted)
• 1 tablespoon maple syrup
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• Sprinkle of sea salt
• Opt. Shredded coconut for rolling

Coaching: Place all ingredients in a food processor. Pulse until it starts clumping and if fully combined. Roll into balls and then roll the balls in the extra coconut. Freeze.

Chocolate Peanut Butter Bites

• 1 cup oats
• ½ cup honey roasted peanut butter
• ¼ cup flax seeds
• ¼ cup chocolate chips
• Cacao powder for rolling

Coaching: Place all ingredients, except chocolate chips in a food processor. Pulse until combined (add 1 table spoon of water at a time if it seems too dry). Stir in chocolate chips and shape into balls. Roll in cacao powder. Freeze.

Vanilla Maple Protein Bites

• ¼ cup slivered almonds
• 2/3 cup almond meal
• ¼ cup almond butter
• ¼ cup vanilla protein powder of choice
• 2 tablespoons maple syrup
• ½ teaspoon vanilla

Coaching: Pulse until combined. Roll into balls and freeze!

Almond Crunch Breakfast Bites

• ½ cup brown rice crispy cereal
• ½ cup oats
• ¼ cup almond butter
• ¼ cup dark choc chips
• 1 tablespoon honey
• 1 tablespoon flax seeds
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• pinch of sea salt

Coaching: Combine all ingredients in a bowl. Be patient with stirring and slowly incorporate the dry into the wet. Add 1 table spoon of water, stir and let sit for 1 minute before rolling into balls. If it is too dry, add 1 more tablespoon of water. If too wet, add 1 tablespoon of oats. Store in fridge or freezer.

Pumpkin Spice Energy Bites

• 12 large pitted dates
• 1 cup oats
• ¼ cup pepitas (pumpkin seeds)
• ¼ cup pumpkin puree
• 1 tablespoon maple syrup
• 1 tablespoon flax seeds
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
• Salt IF pepitas were not salted
• ¼ cup total mix-ins of choice (Mini choc chips, dried cherries, dried cranberries, pepitas, pecans)

Coaching: Pulse all ingredients in the food processor until combined. Add mix-ins and hand stir. Put in the fridge for 30minutes or more. Remove, and roll into balls. Store in the fridge or freezer!

Recovery Quiche 2.0

Breakfast, lunch, dinner... this quiche works for any meal. Full of healthy ingredients, protein, and flavors. The best part is that left overs taste just as good. (Remember, you can sub the meat for extra veggies, and if you don't like these veggies, choose your own variation! There are no rules, so be creative).

• 3 cups shredded sweet potato (1 medium sized potato)
• 1 cup cooked sausage
• 8 oz chopped mushrooms sautéed
• ½ sweet onion sautéed
• 1 cup sweet corn
• 6 eggs
• 1 cup ricotta cheese
• 1 tablespoon rosemary (or a few diced sprigs of fresh herb)
• Salt and pepper to taste

Coaching: Preheat oven to 400. Shred sweet potato. Oil 9x9in pie pan. Put shredded potato in the pan and pack down to completely cover the bottom. Spray or oil the top of the potatoes. Place in oven for 10minutes. Cook sausage on stove top, set aside. Use the same pan and with the sausage juices sauté mushrooms, onion, and corn. Combine the rest of the ingredients in a bowl and whisk until light. Put the sausage and veggies on top of the crust and spread out evenly. Pour the egg mixture on top and bake 25-35minutes until eggs are cooked through. Cool 10minutes before eating.

A Hard Training Day in the Life of Neely

I often get asked, what does a normal day look like for you? Since I am recovering from my foot injury, I am missing this routine. So I decided to write about it instead.

Every day is a little different, but I kept track of a workout day last month, and figured I would share it with you to gain insight on what my days looks like. Every pro runner is different, so this is just my own workout routine and what others do is most likely not the same, but neither is wrong. The art of running is finding what works best for you as an individual, herein is where we find success. As Roosevelt said “Comparison is the root of unhappiness”.

5:30am-ALARM
Time to get up! First thing I do is drink a few large gulps of water to kick off hydration. Dillon is still sleeping, he gets up at 5:45. I spend 15minutes doing some stretching, mobility exercises, foam rolling, and gentle yoga poses to wake my muscles up.

6am-BREAKFAST
I have a few go-to pre workout snacks that I know are “safe foods” for my stomach. Usually a banana, homemade energy bites, toast, or a Power Bar. I grind beans and make 1 cup of pour-over or French press coffee (I only do caffeine on workout, long run, and race days) and then fill a water bottle with electrolytes. I drink a full 16-24oz of hydration fluids after I finish my breakfast and coffee. I usually stand while I eat breakfast so I can keep stretching and loosening up. I check emails, respond to texts, and get organized for what the day has in store.

7:30am-WORKOUT
Time to warm up. I usually meet a friend or two, and based off what workout is scheduled, I have my go-to places for track, tempo, fartlek, and intervals. I like to do similar workouts in the same place for consistency. My warm up is 3-6miles followed by drills, strides, and a change into my “fast shoes” (the Adizero Bostons). I have my watch set for a screen with just Lap time, Lap distance. I manually split throughout so I have data for each hard part and each recovery part. Here are 3 workouts that I do routinely. They all start with a warm up, drills, strides, jogging recovery throughout, and end with a few cool down miles.

1-3mi tempo at marathon pace, 800 jog, 3x1mi at half marathon pace on 400 jog
2-12x1min hard (5k race effort) on 1min easy jog
3-2 sets of 2mi tempo at 15sec slower than marathon pace, 4x30sec hills on 90sec jog

10:30am-RECOVERY
Immediately after my cool down, rehydration is my focus. Living in Colorado, I have to emphasize fluids more than I ever had before I moved to altitude. But seriously, getting in 16-24oz of water and some fruit and/or a Protein Bar on my drive home makes such a difference in how I recover from the workout. I often use this time to stop at the grocery store (yes, in my sweaty spandex workout clothes, weirdo calf sleeves, and with dried salty grit on my face).

12noon-LUNCH and WORK
This meal varies based on if I am running again or if I am cross training. If I am running in the afternoon, I like a fruit smoothie made with greek yogurt (try some of my fav recipes here), a sandwich, or avocado toast with an egg. My stomach is fickle, and I get terrible side stitches if I am not cautious with my pre-run meals. If I am cross training, I can have anything. I start my coaching work while having lunch. Responding to my client’s emails, writing training plans, updating race schedules, phone consultations etc. I turn on some music and get in a few hours of focused work while Strider tries to convince me that we should play outside instead. I also use this time to post on social media, update my website, and stalk the running world.

3pm-SECOND RUN or CROSS TRAINING
If I do a second run, it is usually 3-5miles easy. The goal is to shake the morning workout out of my legs by stimulating blood flow. Cross training does the same thing, just eliminates pounding. If I cross train, I use the bike, ElliptiGO, or pool for 30-45minutes instead of a run.  Sometimes I go to my PT to use the antigravity treadmill to get in some miles while taking 10% off my body weight to reduce pounding. All have pros and cons, and I use them each as methods for recovery.

4pm-LIFTING
I lift on workout days to keep my hard days hard and my easy days easy. We are in the process of building a home gym, so it is nice to be able to workout from the garage and not have to go anywhere. I do a combination of core, upper, and lower body strength training which takes around 30 minutes of focused effort. (Follow me on instagram for some workout ideas!)
*On non workout days, this block is used for core work and massage/PT/Chiro/physio sessions.

5pm-DONE
By the time 5pm hits, I am done. I’m showered, and ready to refuel and relax. Dillon gets home, and we sit down to dinner. (Try some of my entrée recipes!). After I clean up the kitchen, we put on a TV show (currently Suits, House Of Cards, The Goldbergs) and I sit in the Normatec Recovery Boots, or use my R8 roller. When Dillon is traveling, these are the times I miss him the most. Our boring evening together are a highlight of my day!

8pm-BEDTIME
I take a while to wind down, so I start to bed an hour before I want to fall asleep. I’ve learned that I do better if I shut down electronics and read instead of playing on my phone. I enjoy light reads, fiction, no plots I have to think too hard about. Lights out at 9pm and time to sleep so I can restart in the morning.

A few more days, and then I get to start back to easy running. I have been resting my mind and body, taking the time off to reboot my whole system so that I can get back to this routine and continue chasing my goals. I can't wait to Get Running.

NSG

Not a Part of the Plan

I’m a planner. And when things don’t go according to plan, well, I guess no one likes that. I am withdrawing from the TCS New York City Marathon.

After my last race, the arch of my right foot started bothering me. I listened to my body and took a few days off to let healing take place. The swelling went down, and I felt significant improvement but not enough to get back to full training. I knew after two weeks of nagging pain, I needed answers. An MRI confirmed that there was edema (inflammation in the bone) starting to form, and while there is no fracture, continued stress on the bone would lead to that. So I shut down training, cried, and then came up with a new plan.

In years past, I would have cross trained like crazy with an attitude that nothing would get in my way of running the TCS NYC Marathon. I’ve been training for 15 years, and I’ve been the most consistent in the past 3 years. This consistency has come from a more objective approach, one where I look at the long term, and don’t take unnecessary risks. While I am disappointed to not be able to run my goal race of 2017, I feel fortunate that I can take 2-3 weeks to reset and then focus on being healthy and ready to race in 2018. Thankfully, my coaches, agent, and the NYRR staff are fully understanding and have pulled together in support to help me feel confident in my decision. The good news is that I already have a race on my calendar for November 2018, so don’t worry NYC, I will be back!

Cheers to this stupid, wonderful, heartbreaking, and amazing sport.

Hop to It Breakfast Cookies

GINGER anything is my fav, the perfect kick that gives you a nice boost of energy as you rush out to crush life and fitness goals. Easy to make, healthy ingredients, and tastes great.

• 1.5 cups oats
• ½ cup flour (almond, WW, or other!)
• ¼ cup maple syrup
• ¼ cup apple sauce (can sub pumpkin or mashed banana)
• ¼ cup greek yogurt (or coconut oil for vegans)
• 2 large carrots finely grated
• 1 inch fresh ginger root finely grated (if you freeze it before you grate it is so much easier)
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon nutmeg
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• ½ teaspoon salt

Add ins: 1 cup of any or a combo of the following, raisins, choc chips, walnuts, dried cranberries, pecans, coconut flakes.

COACHING: Heat oven to 350. Combine all ingredients. Mix. Stir in your desired Add-ins. Using a ¼ cup scoop, lightly pack to hold shape and then plop on a oiled baking sheet or a baking sheet covered in parchment paper. Bake 15mins. Let cool before storing.

Recharging Chocolate Cherry Bites

It's no secret that I have a sweet tooth... and that includes anything chocolate. I tried out this new recipe for a tasty dessert and found that these delicious bites hit the spot! Easy to make and full of nutritious ingredients you can feel good about.

• 12 large pitted dried dates
• 1 cup almonds
• 1/2 cup dried cherries
• 1/4 cup cocoa powder
• 1/4 cup flax seeds
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 1/2 teaspoon salt

Coaching-Combine all ingredients in a food processor. Pulse until combined but not smooth. Roll into small balls and pop in the freezer. Yum Yum!

Tour 'de Cobbler

Tour ‘de (peach) Cobbler

Nothing says summertime like a fruit cobbler. I stopped by a fruit stand, and they had a huge box of peaches that were "seconds" on sale... PERFECT for making this dessert that doubles as breakfast because it's so healthy. 

• Base:
  10-12 chopped ripe Peaches (seconds/bruised ones work great! OR, use any fruit or frozen fruit to fill the baking dish ¾ of the way)
  2 tablespoons corn starch
  1 teaspoon nutmeg
  1 teaspoon ginger
  a few squirts of lemon juice
   
• Topping:
  1 ½ cups oats
  1 cup flour (almond meal for gluten free)
  1 cup crushed pecans or walnuts
  ½ cup maple syrup (can sub honey or brown sugar)
  ¼ cup greek yogurt
  ¼ cup coconut oil
  1 teaspoon vanilla

Coaching: Preheat oven to 400. In a large baking dish (9”x13”) combine all the base ingredients to fill ¾ of the height of the pan. In a medium sized bowl, use a fork to mix the topping ingredients thoroughly. Crumble the topping evenly over top your fruit, and bake for 30-40minutes. Let sit for 10minutes before serving or chill and serve within 3 days!

*Serve with vanilla ice cream for dessert and greek yogurt for breakfast