Wednesday, September 21, 2016

Gluten Free Cornbread

Tomorrow is officially the first day of Fall, which brings football, hot apple cider, cooler mornings, falling leaves, Halloween, chili and cornbread!

We had our first bowl of chili last night and my kids love when I make homemade cornbread. This recipe is easy and quick to whip up, plus it is absolutely delicious! It is even great for a snack the next day or pop it into school lunches for an extra treat.

I have been sticking to a wheat free, non inflammatory diet, while waiting for my foot to heal. The great news is that my foot is almost 100% healed! I am now running short, easy runs and still not suffering from any pain after the run is finished. The road is clear for me to begin slowly training again and I am super pumped about the future!

Alright, for now let's get to the good stuff! 







I love that this cornbread is loaded with great, healthy ingredients - real butter, honey (instead of white sugar), almond flour instead of white flour. The final product is light, fluffy and downright addicting. An entire pan is GONE in one evening... :)


Gluten Free Cornbread
By: Natrunsfar

Ingredients

1 Cup Yellow Cornmeal
1 Cup Almond Flour
1/4 cup honey
1 Tablespoon baking powder
1 Teaspoon salt
1 Cup almond milk
1/3 Cup melted butter
1 Large egg 

Heat the oven to 400 degrees F, lightly prepare your baking pan (you can coat the bottom with olive oil or butter) and begin melting the butter.

In one medium bowl, combine cornmeal, almond flour, honey, baking powder and salt. 

In another medium bowl, combine melted butter, almond milk and egg.

Add milk mixture to flour mixture. Stir just until blended (do not overstir!) and pour into prepared pan.

Bake for 20 minutes, cool for 5 minutes and serve.






Enjoy and Happy Fall!!!

Happiness Is Running Life.

xo,
Natalie

Friday, September 9, 2016

It's Friday + A Good Week Of Running!

Hey friends,
Happy Friday, Happy September!

Two of my kiddos started school this week and it truly hit me that they are really growing up. As we kissed our 4th grade son and 1st grade daughter on Tuesday morning and sent them on their way, I felt like my heart would burst open. They were just babes in my arms and now they are entrenched in elementary school making friends, plowing through homework and playing sports. I feel thankful that our "baby" is just three years old and her biggest mission is getting everyone to cook in her kitchen and play family. She begins a new year of preschool next week and I find myself holding onto her and yet happy that she loves school and her friends so much. Those chubby legs, sweet smell and tiny hands still have my heart and here it is: I am hands down crazy about my kids.






Running is finally going well again (fingers crossed) - I have been running slowly last week and this week. This week consisted of running one day and then cross training or resting the next day. Conservative is the name of the game - I am not taking any chances of irritating my foot again. I can't even begin to tell you how heavenly it is to wake up in the morning and walk across the room without pain. I walk around all day without pain and running has been completely pain free thus far.
My mind definitely wonders about my fall racing season - will anything come together? I am at peace with whatever God has planned for me.
I am estatic about flying to Vermont (one of my dream trips = Vermont in the Fall) in a few weeks to attend Rise.Run.Retreat. A long weekend with the most incredible women runners, in a beautiful setting with laughter, running and food - I cannot wait.
One of the highlights of the retreat is running the Leaf Peepers Half Marathon. At this point I have zero idea if I will be able to even jog 13 miles, so we'll have to see where these next couple of weeks take me and I'll keep you posted on the progress.






CIM was and is my goal marathon for the Fall. It is three months away or 13 weeks from Sunday. Again, I will have to play the wait and see game on this. So much to think about as the race is getting down to the last 500 entries and I haven't officially signed up yet - there was just too much uncertainty. I think if can get into a groove and my foot cooperates, I can train well in the coming weeks, but also I am just not the type of runner who can go into a marathon grossly undertrained. If I don't run CIM then that leaves me open marathon wise until Boston in April. I would be lying if I said I wouldn't be bummed if that was the case, but I have learned you just have to roll with the punches. I would have tons of time to get super fit and fast for Boston - I want to whittle away on a kick butt 5K and half marathon time. I focused a lot on the half last year and I am mentally ready for a big breakthrough on that distance but I haven't raced a 5K in a long time.
In the meantime, I have to say it's been cool to be on the sidelines and cheer for a lot of friends who are training and racing + absolutely killing it in their training. I had so many people supporting me last year on my journey and it's nice to give back that support. We all have our time to flourish and the path for each runner is unique and special.

Okay, wow - that was a mouthful!

Here are a few things that I am loving this week:






I loved this story and the movie looks amazing.


The 50 best running cities!! LA came in at #15 and San Francisco at #1!! Jerold is from the Bay and let me tell you - he is a Nor Cal boy through and through, so he raised his eyebrows and was super happy about this. #teamsanfrancisco


Don't forget I am giving away a Pro Massager from Myo Buddy!! Monday is the last day for entries!!

I am looking forward to a great weekend of running!!! I hope you guys get out and enjoy these last summer days of running and hanging out too.


Have a wonderful weekend.

What are you loving this week? I'd love to hear!!

What fall races are you training/planning for?


Happiness Is Running Life.

xo,
Natalie








Wednesday, September 7, 2016

Myo Buddy Pro Massager Review and GIVEAWAY!


Note: I was sent a Myo Buddy Pro Massager to use in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.



Running and massage are  like peanut butter and jelly, a cobbler and his shoes, rainbows and a pot of gold. They just go so well together...

After a long run or race, nothing feels better than a massage to soothe our muscles and it is an important component to recovery as well.
Wouldn't it be nice to have the benefit of massage without leaving your house?







I have been searching for a way to benefit from a massage in between the times that I visit the massage therapist. My therapist has recommended that I come once a week - which can be expensive and hard to make time to take two hours away from home every week.

In July, I was introduced to the Myo Buddy Pro Massager and it appeared to be a solid product that I was curious to try. I don't feature a lot of products on my blog unless I am sure they are worth talking to you guys about and I am excited about this tool.


Check out my video review of the Myo Buddy Pro Massager!






Simple, easy to use and transport. I appreciate the three levels of pressure, based on how deep of a massage you would like. I have also used the Pro Massager BEFORE a run or workout to loosen my muscles or any cranky areas.  

The two different covers are super helpful, if you just need a light massage with your clothes on (white cover) or a deeper massage with lotion or oil (blue cover). I like the comfortable handle which makes it easy for self massage on a daily basis. Another great feature is the extra long 12 foot cord, which is great for plugging in and using it across the room.


One lucky reader will WIN the Myo Buddy Pro Massager!! Are you following me on Instagram? Click on over to my account and enter for your chance to win (worth $399.00!)!!

I'm also offering a $50.00 coupon code and free shipping.  Use NatRuns16 at checkout to get the discount.







As time goes on and I keep cranking away on running and fitness (I have rediscovered a love for swimming), the more tools I use to strengthen, exercise and recover. This has been added as one of my go to tools and I hope you get a chance to try it also.


How often do you get a massage?


Happiness Is Running Life!

xo,
Natalie