Thanks to Hillary from Nutrition Nut on the Run for the great tips on maintaining a healthy and natural diet!

Food advocate and author, Michael Pollan, published a slim volume of food wisdom, titled Food Rules. In this concise read, he teaches us that foods your great-grandparents wouldn’t recognize and breakfast cereals that change the color of your milk, should not be kitchen staples in the best interest of your health. Combining “food” and “rules” in a single mixing bowl seems like a recipe for disaster in my book; that said, I have many beliefs that construct my food/eating/well-being philosophy. The following are just a few of my own, personal “food rules”… but, as we all know, rules are meant to be broken every now and again

1. Avoid long ingredient lists.
Hooray for Hot Oats! Breakfast is my favorite meal of the day by far. I love that I can fuel my body with a nutrient-dense bowl of oats with simple, wholesome ingredients that I can count on my two hands… even after adding chia seeds and almond butter! I’m also a huge proponent of making your own snacks. My body feels better and more energized when I eat a handful of homemade trail mix or a cold berry smoothie (both with 5 ingredients or less) rather than eating a processed “power” bar.

2. Make your food beautiful.
I make this a goal of mine every day, at every meal; it’s now second nature to make my plate as colorful as can be. My eyes appreciate the aesthetic appeal, but my tummy is also happier digesting the artwork of fresh foods.

3. Make plant foods a priority.
My taste buds automatically tuned into this “rule”, as it’s been on the table since I was a kid. Greens, beans, nuts, legumes  fruits, and vegetables — lots and lots of them. Organic and local if possible. Meat, dairy and processed grains take the back seat. I don’t, however, deny cow’s milk, nor a piece of wild salmon, or whole wheat flour. I could be labeled as a “flexitarian”, but I’d rather not be. I prefer food sans labels, so why would I need one? I do know that my body runs most efficiently on fuel grown from a plant, not in a plant (Pollan).

4. Indulge often.
The first part of this motto is key: “sweat daily” … then indulge often. Although I feel putting pliable boundaries around your eating can aid a healthier lifestyle, I believe indulging is a crucial aspect in having a positive relationship with food. Whether it be a second iced latte in the afternoon or a bowl of refreshing mint chip gelato after dinner, I think regular treats are meant to be a part of the balanced equation between health and happiness.

What are some of your food rules?

Hillary’s blog is full of fun workout suggestions, recipes, and thoughts on living a simple and natural life.  Check out what products, foods, and workouts she;s loving at the moment!

Abraham Lincoln once said, “All that I am, or hope to be, I owe to my angel mother.”

My mom is my greatest inspiration and my biggest supporter. Often, we don’t spend much time with our parents after we head off to college. There are small visits that become shorter and shorter as time goes on, and we mainly gather over big holidays and family events. Few people get to experience what my mom and I did in the summer of 2011 when she agreed to travel in Elby the LOVE Bus with me across the country to SPREAD the LOVE!

This was by far one of the best and most memorable times of my life and a really special and incredible time to spend with my mom. Bless her heart, she volunteered (not knowing what she was getting into) to be my co-pilot, and we took off in Elby the LOVE Bus and traveled from Colorado to down to Texas, up to Wisconsin, and then down to Kentucky.

Over the course of 2.5 months, she rallied and passed out samples of LOVE in stores, dolloped yogurt on parfaits at events, and endured all the crazy scenarios and situations that we came across on our adventures in Elby the LOVE Bus. She was more than a trooper…she was my savior. Had I not had her by my side, I am not sure how The National LOVE Tour ever would have happened.

That time together I will cherish more than anything. It was one of the best trips of my life.

Cheers to moms and all the amazing, incredible, and crazy things they do for their kids!

Wishing all of the moms out there a HAPPY MOTHER’S DAY!

Spread LOVE,
Maddy

Many thanks to Bobbi from nhershoes for the great tips on how to fuel your body properly!

HAPPY HUMP DAY!!!!!!!!!

I can’t belive I have only 18 days until my marathon!! People always ask me how I fuel before a race and a run, so I thought I would do a little post on just that. I am a huge believer in having a little complex carb plus protein at least 30 minutes before you head out the door for a run and since some of my runs start at 4:45am, I get up pretty early to make this happen!

I usually have a piece of whole wheat toast with a tbsp of almond butter before my shorter runs (anything under 7 miles) and if it’s a longer run I do the same thing, but I eat my favorite Vega Sport Gu’s along the way. I think a lot of time it just depends on what’s right for your body. Some people can’t eat anything before they run and others can have an entire breakfast. I will say that whatever you do while you train, should be the same thing you do on RACE day! While I am running I usually carry a water bottle filled with Fitmixer amino acids as well.

I think my favorite thing to do post run/race is enjoy a big bowl of oats with my friends! I love our Friday morning FUN RUNS!! I always make a big bowl of oats with fruit and my favorite Love Grown granola toppings.

And when I am on the GO I refuel with Love Grown HOT OATS! Friends these babies are soooo good and are packed with energy and good fats! There is around 250 calories in each cup and they have 7-9 grams of protein!! You can buy them on amazon now too!

So there you have it friends. I fuel with LOVE and almond butter