Keto Running Mama

It has been a cold March here in Pennsylvania.  I hate March. It is the month when you think you simply cannot take another day of winter...and spring, truly, isn’t even around the corner.  Today, all of our local schools were called off because of inclement weather. I want to scream, “IT IS MARCH!!!!!!!!!” I am ready to stop wearing jackets.  I need for the static cling to stop taking over my hair. I want to run outside without having to bundle up. I am over the frost that is stuck on my eyelashes after a long, cold run.  I want to wear capris. I want to wear dresses and skirts WITHOUT tights under them! I want to wear flip flops! I am ready for spring!!!! So, to console myself, I made a pot of my mother’s homemade chicken noodle soup….redone and low-carb.  It was always salve for a weary soul when I was growing up. Hopefully it will do the trick now….as I await the end of winter….as winter mocks me and every other person enduring this dreadful we...

Today I finished up my 5th week of 1/ 2 marathon training with an 8 mile run.  Just as any runner knows, there are some days when you are just "too."....too tired, too lazy, too busy, too unmotivated, too, too, too, too.  You fill in the blank.  I was just "too  ___________"  this entire week, and it probably will fit my crappy attitude.  There were days this week when I even thought that I must have been "too" overzealous to have chosen this goal to run a 1/2 marathon during the school year.  Had I not known that my life was "too" hectic to take this on? And then...my phone dinged with a text alert on Friday afternoon:   "Do you have a run to get in tomorrow?"  ----From my friend, Greta.  This isn't just any friend.  This is a friend who is well matched for me.  She and I take turns pushing each other.  She and I have a fairly well-matched pace.  Greta has gotten me through training runs for 1/2 marathons, mara...

Getting used to a diet with little to no sugar can be quite an adjustment...especially for kids.  When I adopted this lifestyle, my eyes were really opened to exactly how much sugar we are feeding to our children.  It is in their peanut butter, their cereal, their snacks, their granola bars, their juice boxes, and much more.  When one starts to read labels, one can really see how damaging the cumulative effect of all of that sugar can be! It really is disturbing when you realize how much better you feel without sugar that we have changed the pallets of our children by making them crave more and more of it.  For a long time, my daughters turned their noses up to any keto snacks that I made....largely because they looked good, but when they bit into them, they were not sweet enough.  The funny thing is, they were sweetened....but with low-glycemic index sweeteners that just were not sweet enough for my children. Today, after months and months of working on lower...

Today I finished my 4th week of 1/2 marathon training.  I ran 19 miles this week...and 7 of those miles were run today.  I found myself thinking about a mom who I sat beside at my daughter's softball practice today.  After my husband mentioned my run for the day, she said something that I hear from people time and again.  "I have to give it to you.  I am just not a runner."  She went on to tell me about how out of breath she gets when she tries. I can't even count the number of people who have said this to me over the past several years since I really got into running.  I smile to myself and imagine me popping out of my mother's womb with Saucony running shoes on my feet.  It simply doesn't happen that way.  To a runner, having someone say this to them is just as ludicrous as my visualization of how others think I and others came to be runners.  Those of us who are runners know that it takes practice, dedication, and, yes, miles and mi...

If you have children, you know the "EAT YOUR VEGGIES! battle" well.  Even before I started living a ketogenic lifestyle, I loved to cook.  I enjoy planning for food...looking at pictures of food, writing a menu, shopping for food...I thought I would love feeding my children food.  I. Do. Not. I used to live the typical American lifestyle.  I did not think about whether or not I got in all of my vegetables for the day.  It simply was not a worry of mine.  I stupidly thought I was healthy...and that was that.  Then I was diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis.  I could not believe that this was a genetic problem that I had.  No one in my family had it.  I turned to my lifestyle. First I went Gluten-free.  That helped a lot.  Then I went "clean."  That helped even more.  Then I did an elimination diet.  I still had more improvements in my health.  Then I went grain-free and dairy-free.  I felt even better....

If you are not new to the ketogenic lifestyle, then you already know how to test to see if you are in ketosis.  If you are new to keto, you may be wondering how you know if you are in ketosis.  You will be happy to learn that it is quick and easy to test your urine for ketones...and the test strips are super-cheap.  I just recently bought a jar of 100 test strips for $8.99 on Amazon.  Here is what I bought: What I really liked about this product is that a coupon for a free box of strips was included in what they sent.  You can't beat that! Here are some other signs to look for in order to tell if you are in ketosis: 1. Weight Loss 2. Decreased appetite 3. Mental Clarity 4. Your urine smells funny 5. Your breath smells fruity 6.  "Keto Flu" - If you are new to keto, your body may revolt against you at first.  Rest assured that it will pass and you will feel great when it does.  Don't give up too soon because you feel lousy....

After a day of fasting, I was driving home thinking about what I would eat when I got to my kitchen and could end my fast.  I don't love fasting, but every time I do it, I feel a little more in control of myself.  I remember getting hungry when I was not in ketosis...and I would get home, stuff anything that I could in my face...and feel better momentarily...until I didn't feel good at all.  When you are eating a carb-driven diet, it seems that it is very difficult to keep your brain in control of what you eat.  You feel out-of-control.  You want to eat anything and everything that is in your face.  And you don't care about the consequences...until after you have eaten poorly and feel poorly.  And then you spend the next day feeling bad about yourself....again.  Maybe you will avoid bad foods, eating salads and healthy stuff for the morning and afternoon to try to make up for your foibles the day before....only to come home and choose poorly again...