Today is Thanksgiving and I have so much to give thanks and gratitude for in my life. I woke up at my normal weekly time of 3:45 A.M. and was out the door and running by 6:00 A.M. It was cold as usual, in the low 40’s when I started but I realized within the first mile that I didn’t need all of the layers.
I took a detour back toward my house and dropped off my Noxgear light vest and tied my pullover around my waist, just in case the winds picked up later on my run. I kept my gloves and wore them until about mile 4 when I took in a Huma gel.
Thanksgiving Day run
It was kind of exciting to be running on a holiday. I had a lot to think about during the 7 mile marathon pace run. As I ran and passed houses in the neighborhood I could smell fires in the fireplaces and food smells coming from homes along my route. There weren’t many other runners out at this hour but I saw a few. There was certainly more activity than normal with people loading up their cars and walking along the sidewalks taking advantage of a free morning, I’m imagining.
I mixed up my entertainment for today’s run. Normally on a marathon pace run I will listen to music but instead I listened to one of my favorite podcasts, Women’s Running. The ladies on this podcast are so entertaining and they are just being themselves. They talk about a lot of different things and by their own admission, sometimes they even talk about running.
It’s a UK based podcast and magazine and they are currently obsessed with a show called Bake Off. I tried to look it up on some of my streaming services but I can’t find it. I have no interest in watching a baking show but since they are so enthralled in it, they’ve piqued my curiosity about the program. However, today they said that the season is over, so I guess they’ll be on to a new topic next week.
Holly, one of the co-hosts, is a vegetarian and will occassionally talk about her meals when she finds something she wants to share about.
Workout outcome
The podcast entertainment must have been just what I needed because I beat my marathon pace goal by 4 seconds per mile, while keeping my heart rate in the threshold zone. Cadence was a little high at 182 but in all I felt good on this run. It seemed to fly by in no time. I think that is partly because I didn’t have to be at work. I could just run and head home. Our Thanksgiving meal wasn’t until 3:00 P.M. so I felt as if I had plenty of time to prepare.
I think I may have to make running a semi-long run on Thanksgiving morning a tradition for future years. I felt so calm and stress-free the whole day. It was just the right amount of mileage to get out the nerves, but yet not make me want to take a nap.
Thanksgiving feast
Living in a family with both plant-based individuals and others that eat a traditional Western diet is challenging during the holidays. It usually means I end up making two full Thanksgiving meals to accommodate everyone. In addition, two of my family members are also gluten-free. Thankfully, they eat predominantly plant-based and gluten-free so I just make all of those dishes compliant with both requirements.
On the plant-based, gluten-free menu this year I made:
- Butternut squash with wild rice stuffing
- Mashed potatoes
- Green beans with smoky tempeh
- Mushroom gravy
- Mini pumpkin cheesecakes with chocolate almond flour crusts
- Rice Krispy treats with vegan marshmallows
Thankfully, the rest of my family did not want turkey this year, and my husband made his own dishes for himself and the other family members. It was such a great help having so much assistance this year. My sister and niece came early and helped prepare some of the dishes and set the table. Everyone enjoyed the holiday and their food. Even though the desserts were plant-based everyone partook in them and enjoyed them immensely. If you ever want to encourage a friend or family member toward plant-based eating, I recommend starting with desserts.
Workout
- 7 mile run at marathon pace