Breakfast/ Exercise/ Fitness

Green Down The Drain

Happy Saturday morning!

Today is the first day all week that its not raining……but it looks like it might any minute! Don’t know what is going on here!

I woke up around 7:15 after a solid eight hours of sleep and had a piece of cinnamon raisin Ezekiel toast with raw almond butter & raspberry preserves for a pre-run snack:

img_7572

I didn’t have TNT practice today but we were obviously expected to run on our own. I knocked out the 3 miles in 29:30 and was pretty proud of myelf for going so slow. I really tried to pace at a 10:00 mile this morning because my left shin has been killing me all week and because a 10:00 mile will be my half marathon pace. When I really slowed down I noticed that I had more endurance and was in less pain with my shins. Yay!

I got home around 8:30 and immediately stretched and went to work on a green monster. I’ve been reading lately in The Thrive Diet that the best post-workout meal is a smoothie because it is much easier for the body to digest than, say, a stack of pancakes. So, today I made the ultimate recovery drink and used all of the below:

img_7573

To produce:

img_7574

The exact breakdown was:

  • 1 frozen banana
  • 3 leaves curly kale
  • 1 cup unsweetened vanilla hempmilk
  • 1/3 cup 2% Fage
  • 1/2 avocado

It was the thickest shake I’ve ever produced……almost like pudding!

img_7575

But I’ve gotta tell ya………………it wasn’t that good. I thought it would be sweeter because of the banana but it really wasn’t. It mainly just tasted like……kale. I tried to get it all down because it is so amazing for me but I couldn’t finish it! I think I like spinach better in smoothies because it has a more neutral flavor, whereas kale is pretty strong. Anyways, I chased down this smoothie with yet another grapefruit—

img_7577

And then promptly made a big mug of organic Moroccan mint tea. Despite being rather disgusting, this smoothie really did fill me up. Must have been all the healthy fats from the avocado.

And then for Ryan, I juiced him an orange, an apple and two pieces of kale in my Breville! He loved it (I secretly think he’s turning into a vegetable lover!)

img_6501

I think today might be Ryan’s first trip to IKEA, as we hunt for a bookcase so I can finally unpack my cookbook box. Should be interesting!

Have a lovely morning 🙂

You Might Also Like

  • Kath
    May 23, 2009 at 8:18 am

    I thought kale in a smoothie was rather strong too. Spinach wins in my book!

  • polly
    May 23, 2009 at 8:20 am

    have a lovely day, Jenna!

    I agree… spinach in smoothies is my fave! Yay for Ryan with his crazy green drink. Hugs, sweetie enjoy the day with your boy. and great run, by the way! Take care of the cute shins.

  • Andrea
    May 23, 2009 at 8:24 am

    I’m going to have to try spinach in a smoothie… I’m seeing it pop up everywhere!

    Good luck at Ikea! My favorite store 🙂

  • Jen
    May 23, 2009 at 8:26 am

    Hey!
    I’ve been reading your blog for several months now… I love it! You have inspired me to start working out more consistently. I’ve been running for about 6 weeks now and at first i hated it, but I actually woke up this morning craving it. I never thought that would happen! Have a great day!
    Oh, and i’m going to ikea today too.

  • Becky@I Heart Running & Food
    May 23, 2009 at 8:36 am

    All of your green smoothies make me want to make the famous “green monster.” Now I know to use spinach though 🙂 Nice work on getting Ryan to eat the greens…I have also influenced my bf’s diet as well…he has never had so much fiber in his life I am guessing. Have fun at Ikea…I could spend hours in that store! For some crazy reason, Denver doesn’t have one!

  • Foodie (Fab and Delicious Food)
    May 23, 2009 at 8:37 am

    Have a great day!

  • spicygranola
    May 23, 2009 at 8:40 am

    too bad about the kale smoothie. I like it but I use half spinach and half kale, sometimes romaine lettuce too. Also, some fruit juice or frozen fruit might help make it sweet and distract from the overwhelming kale taste.

  • Jenny
    May 23, 2009 at 8:51 am

    buahaha your green monster reminds me of the slime they used to use on those old nickelodeon shows like *figure it out* and *double dare* .. ah, memories..

  • Help Meghan Run
    May 23, 2009 at 8:52 am

    Yup, spinach is great in smoothies. I haven’t branched out to the kale yet and am a little afraid to. 🙂

    www. HelpMeghanRun .com

  • Lacey
    May 23, 2009 at 8:54 am

    Spinach is the only leafy green I can use in my smoothies. Everthing else has too strong a taste.

    I am planning a trip to ikea sometime this weekend too. I have not been in ages and I am looking forward to buying some goodies!

  • Meredith (Pursuing Balance)
    May 23, 2009 at 9:07 am

    Your smoothie might not have tasted good, but it sure is a pretty color!

  • Recipes for Creativity
    May 23, 2009 at 9:18 am

    I have been making my smoothies with kale, but have spinach finally, so I’ll let you know how it goes! Sorry the smoothie wasn’t that great, but it’s great you got Ryan drinking green monsters two days straight!

  • Mara @ What's For Dinner?
    May 23, 2009 at 9:19 am

    I’m a huge spinach green monster fan… dont think i’ll ever stray!

  • katie s
    May 23, 2009 at 9:19 am

    I agree, I like spinach wayyyy more! Could Ryan taste the kale? Does he know what kale tastes like? 😉 That’s a cute picture of Ryan, how luck he is to have you! Have a great time at Ikea!! I just got an awesome bookshelf and Crate & Barrel fyi.

  • Run Sarah
    May 23, 2009 at 9:20 am

    I love spinach in my smoothies, I don’t think I would like kale as I think it would overpower the yummy tasting fruit!

  • Jennifer @ His N' Her Health
    May 23, 2009 at 9:38 am

    I have never used kale. I have been too scared! Only spinach for me!

  • Jenni
    May 23, 2009 at 9:49 am

    Jenna…today was my first run with my new Garmin! How awesome it was not to have to remember where I was running to map it later for mileage!!! So cool. Granted, I am just started out, am overweight and merely jog so my 3 miles this morning was almost double your time! Well, I am also almost 10 years older than you so I’m trying not to feel old and slow! 🙂

    About 2.5 miles in I was really thirsty–it’s not yet the dog days of summer here in Oklahoma but it was warm. I’m thinking today of looking for a Camelbak (sp). Is that a specialty running accessory or do you think I could find one at Academy? Even though I don’t run very far, I think I could really use some hydration for morning runs. Advice?? Thanks!! Have a great Saturday!

    Oh, one more thing…I have an (ancient) Juiceman II that makes the most amazing concoctions by extracting ALL juice from fruits and veggies. I’m nervous about the spinach but I think I’ll try it!

    • jenna
      May 23, 2009 at 3:09 pm

      Jenni,

      I got my camelbak at Sports Authority! I am pretty sure you could find it anywhere…its not that much of a specialty item!

  • Matt
    May 23, 2009 at 10:02 am

    Haha a stack of pancakes is actually my post run meal of choice! Never had any problems!

  • Emily
    May 23, 2009 at 10:08 am

    Your smoothie is so pretty, but I hear you on the kale factor (same reason I hesitate to put kale in my smoothies).

    Looks like Ryan really is enjoying his juice. 🙂

  • Anne
    May 23, 2009 at 10:11 am

    Hi Jenna–

    I have been a long time silent blog follower. I absolutely love your blog and have a great respect for everything that you do. You are such an inspiration.

    I totally love that you are getting your boyfriend to drink his vegetables. I too recently moved in with my boyfriend and take great pride in finding ways that he actually enjoys eating his veggies!

    I started my own blog about two weeks ago. All are welcome =)

    memyselfanded.weebly.com

  • Trish (girlatgym)
    May 23, 2009 at 10:44 am

    I just got the Thrive book – can’t wait to check it out.

  • Shelby
    May 23, 2009 at 11:19 am

    I’m not a fan of kale in my green smoothies either…too bitter!

  • tiffany
    May 23, 2009 at 1:13 pm

    I see a pattern here … Ryan is always shirtless when drinking smoothies, LOL! Are y’all worried he will otherwise get it all over his shirt? 😉 That’s my husband’s problem, anyway … he can’t eat anything without spilling some of it on his clothes!

  • valen
    May 23, 2009 at 5:33 pm

    It takes a lot of experimentation to get green smoothies to taste good. I still ocassionaly have a kale tasting drink, yuck! I like spinach also, but I also like variety. I usually use swiss chard, if you haven’t tried that one yet give it a shot. It has a neutral flavor like spinach and I can put in so much of it without a stron “green” flavor. Just thought I might share what I usually have. 4c greens, 1 non frozen banana (I don’t care for thick smoothies) 1/2c liquid, handful of flax, 1/2c frozen fruit
    This combo doesn’t taste too bad to me, but everyone is different.

  • Amy
    May 23, 2009 at 5:36 pm

    Hahaha…that picture of Ryan so reminded me of my husband–what goofs!!

  • Jen
    May 23, 2009 at 6:18 pm

    I prefer half kale, half spinach in my green monsters. I also usually don’t use yogurt – it makes it too thick and not drinkable. I like unsweetened almond milk, ripe banana and a couple of ice cubes in them a lot -it tends to mask the greens taste to me. A handful of frozen berries helps a lot too!

  • Cate
    May 23, 2009 at 6:30 pm

    Hi Jenna,
    I was wondering…did you make your green monster in the Vitamix? Did you have to cut the frozen banana into pieces before putting it in? I just got a Vitamix and was wondering if you still use yours? What else have you made? Thanks.

  • Meg
    May 23, 2009 at 6:38 pm

    Hi Jenna! I have been reading your blog for about a month now & you are truly inspiring! (((HUGE HUGS))) to you girl! I know losing a family member is so hard, I couldn’t imagine losing a sibling, so my heart really goes out to you. I’m so happy your shins are hurting less! I recently did a half marathon & got a stress fracture in my foot, so I haven’t been able to run in about a month. Anyways, I hope you have a great weekend! 🙂

  • Tanya
    May 24, 2009 at 10:34 pm

    Ack – I cannot imagine putting an avocado in a smoothie and I’m too chicken to try it 🙁

  • Sarah
    May 26, 2009 at 7:52 am

    I couldn’t get over the kale taste either! I choked down a green monster that way one time then immediately switched back to spinach. I’m glad I wasn’t the only one 😉