Brownies and Burritos are Bad

Please, please don't hate me for saying so. Really, I have no personal vendetta against either food; I love brownies--particularly as the foundation to a mountainous  fudgy sundae drenched in chocolate and caramel, coated in sprinkles and nuts and topped with several maraschino cherries. And burritos are God's gift to guacamole; a perfect excuse to eat copious amounts of the green stuff without cease or hesitation, or a spoon. They are also delicious. Neither however, are good for running. In fact, I'd venture to say that other than alcohol, they are probably the worst pre and post run foods I could think to consume. Here's the bottom line: I ate too much of both today and my run suffered because of it.

 I had planned to hit  the treadmill for a nice, easy 3.5 miler, my usual Tuesday run, but then I decided to pick up the pace a little and push myself to burn off my sugary fuel. My stomach rebelled mightily. What is this crap, Rachael? Feed me bananas! I pushed through the run but now feel drained and tired both as a result of my quick-ish pace ( a steady 8:40 mile) and my full belly. I guess tomorrow I'll have to be more conscious about food.

used to think running would free me from my food worries--from the constant battle between the good and the bad, the healthy versus the cheap and the inexcusable--or else a daily run would be an excuse to sneak in more chocolate--it is neither. Instead, running has taught me to see my body as a machine (a strong, graceful one on good days and a junkyard heap on others) and to know that food is fuel for the body and spirit. So, I try to eat that which makes me healthy and strong (and happy). While brownies fit in to the latter category ( especially during the final week of the semester) they are inefficient fuel for my brain and body and they make my stomach hurt like hell. 

I will never give them up, however. Chocolate and avocados are my not-so-secret loves. I just won't eat one (okay, three)  brownies before a run or a burrito in recovery. I'll stick to peanut butter and bananas instead and concentrate on being healthy, agile and strong.

Brownies are better for desert anyway. Or breakfast.

Here's to a better, low-sugar run tomorrow!