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dried peony flowers (edible). kinda in love with the contrasting petals and colors, all from the same flower. dreaming up ways to put them to their best use 🎨👩🏼‍🍳

since the weather’s turning back to summery conditions, I’m making batches of rhubarb ginger shrub. it’s a favorite first refresher after hot runs, especially with the little hit of electrolytes. if you haven’t caught the shrub craze the last few years, it’s a super old-timey drink containing apple cider vinegar, ginger, water, and a little natural sweetener as the base - and just about as simple as that. also known as switchel, switchy, swizzle, and the most descriptive for its intended audience, haymakers’ punch. 😊 this combo is my favorite, although infusing in fresh strawberries would be exceptionally tasty too. the recipe is one of the all-time most populars over on my blog - I’ve dropped the link to it in my profile.

One of those blog posts that seems extra important to write and share: Answering a question about intuitive eating for athletes vs tracking calories and numbers, and the real question, Are You Eating Enough For Your Activity Level? Link to the article is in my bio.

I worked for a time with a good teacher called yarrow, who taught me about having boundaries, and dropping / not picking up what isn’t mine. the funny thing is before that, I couldn’t stand yarrow. I had my high school students tear it all out of their garden and transplant to just on the boundary, overlooking their HS track. little did I know then the irony, for yarrow is also the warrior’s herb, literally named after Achilles (Achillea millefolium), for legend has it Chiron, the wounded healer, taught Achilles to use it in battle, for it stops bleeding (among many other things). it seems to me now it was relocated to a more fitting place, on the boundary between the track and garden, and overlooking that youthful battleground. I don’t know if that yarrow is still there for I’ve moved on, but every time I come across it growing in the wild, it stops me in my tracks, reminding me of my own strength, of all the benefits of physical/physiological and emotional boundaries, and of course, the power of healing. 🌱

one of the most common challenges I see - and struggle with personally - is not being able to actually break down foods and absorb the nutrients we eat. this is a multi-factorial challenge and often compounded by long runs and higher mileage. one thing that can help is starting meals with the bitter flavor and/or taking herbal bitters. the bitter flavor activates the body’s digestive juices to secrete enzymes and acids to assist in digestion and effectively process foods. I’ve taken to making my own bitters because it’s super easy and cost-effective, and I take them before just about every meal. major improvement in digestion long-term with this one implementation. 🌱

as mileage and/or time on feet goes up, eating becomes almost another part-time job. the last few days I felt like I wasn’t quite eating enough, and not surprisingly, today’s long run felt a little extra challenging. low energy availability is extremely common in athletes, and long term, it can cause widespread physiological and psychological imbalances. so the short story is if you’re moving a lot, you need to be eating a lot. this was a couple leftovers from dinner - celery root, lentils + hazelnuts, sautéed beet greens - big slice of gf/df sourdough, fried egg (jumbo size from one of our older ladies), and an apple. I’ll probably snack again soon. 🤪 also, if you’re still reading, I shared a similar brunch-y recipe (in second photo) recently over on the @territoryrunco Run Journal, and put a link to it on my latest blog post. 🌱

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