I love cooking, especially if I can find
recipes that are healthy and will help fuel my next workout. I heard about this cookbook that was
co-written by Olympic medalist, Shalane Flanagan and her college cross-country
teammate Elyse Kopecky.
Shalane is a four-time Olympian,
American record holder, and a world-class marathoner. She finished second in
the 2010 NYC Marathon and ran the fastest time by an American Woman at the
Boston Marathon in 2014 (2:22:02).
Shalane has been sponsored by Nike ever since she graduated from the
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in 2004 and typically runs over a 100
miles a week. A key to performing at
this level for her is having a focus on fueling for health and
performance. She currently lives and
trains in Portland, Oregon.
Elyse is a chef, author, and nutrition
coach as well as a runner and proud mother.
Elyse moved to Portland to work for Nike as a digital marketing producer
after college. Her career took her all
around the world. On her journey, she
took cooking classes and started cooking to fuel her training.
One of the lessons that Elyse learned was
that by adding more fats to her diet, she was stronger and healthier than
ever. After 10 years in marketing, she
moved to New York to study at the Natural Gourmet Institute for Health and
Culinary Arts. After finishing her
studies, she moved back to Portland and reconnected with Shalane.
While they were enjoying dinner one
night, they were discussing the importance of “indulgent nourishment” and the
idea for Run Fast Eat Slow was born. The idea of how to
nourish yourself for the long run.
I was really excited to break open the
book as soon as I got it. There were so
many recipes that I wanted to try. The
first recipe I tried was for the Blueberry-Lemon Cornmeal Scones. To be honest, I didn’t have any lemons, but
followed the recipe other than that. I
loved the texture and flavor of the scones and because it was right after a 20
mile run, I ate way too many. My picky
kids loved them too.
The next recipe I tried was the
Make-Ahead Breakfast Burritos. This is
one of my favorite recipes because it’s healthy, provides plenty of fuel for my
mid-day runs, and is perfect for a quick meal that I can make in just a few
minutes. The recipe made 6 decent sized
burritos. I used eggs, spinach, cheese,
and black beans inside the whole wheat tortilla. I wrapped them in aluminum foil and froze
them all. On days when I was running
behind, I would pull out a burrito, unwrap it, and microwave it for 1 minute on
each side. I would throw it on a plate and
take it to the car for a great on-the-go meal.
Another favorite recipe of mine is the
Swiss Muesli Bowl, which you make the night before. I used grated apples, raisins, yogurt,
vanilla, cinnamon, honey, almond milk, toasted almonds, and old-fashioned
oats. The recipe makes two servings so I
would have it for two days in a row.
This is another great recipe to fuel my mid-day runs. I put this in a Solo cup and throw a plastic spoon
in so I can eat it on the way to work.
The last of my favorite meals is the
Race Day Oatmeal. This is a super easy
recipe that takes less than 5 minutes to make and is the perfect meal for an
hour before my early morning long runs on the weekend or a few hours before a
race. I can definitely feel the benefits
of this awesome fuel source that is easy on my stomach. My go-to ingredients are quick oats, almond
milk, banana, honey, salt, cinnamon, roasted almonds, and raisins. I add the oats, salt, sliced banana, and
water in a bowl. Then I microwave it for
1:30 and mash the bananas. I then add
the cinnamon, honey, almond milk, almonds, and raisins and stir. Like the Muesli, I throw it in a Solo cup and
take it to the car on most mornings. I
typically eat this 3-5 times a week.
While I have mostly used the Run
Fast Eat Slow book for breakfast,
there are tons of great recipes for salads, deserts, snacks, and meals. You have plenty of recipes to choose from and
they all taste amazing. The best part is
that you don’t need to count calories and the food is easy to digest since the
ingredients aren’t full of artificial ingredients.
Authors’ Social Media Links:
I can’t recommend the Run Fast Eat Slow book enough. You can
train like an Olympian, but if your diet isn’t helping you, it is most likely
hurting you. Being able to fuel your
body for success is one key to performing at your best. With this book you get the knowledge of a
dietician and a world class runner. They
have taken their love for running and nutrition and came up with a book that
can help take you to that next level. Be
sure to pick up your copy at one of their book tour stops (click here for locations) or on their website. Be aware though, eating better
might just make you run faster, so be prepared.
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