"Running" news and stories

There are those of us who run to eat. After all, topping off a three-course dinner with molten chocolate cake doesn't induce so much guilt when you think back to the five miles that you jogged that morning. But one Dallas woman is running so others can eat.

Martina Crevecoeur has been running for three years, and in that time she's completed a number of marathons, including Boston's. So when she began training for a half marathon this year, she was looking for some extra motivation.

But instead of goading herself on with self-made promises of a splurge after she crossed the finish line (a decadent meal at her favorite bistro, say), she decided that her reward would be helping others instead. From now until the race on November 7, Crevecoeur is donating 50 cents for every mile she runs to the North Texas Food Bank, and she's challenging others to do the same.

This year's Boston Marathon falls in the middle of the Jewish holiday of Passover, where observant Jews remember their ancestor's flight from enslavement in Egypt by not eating leavened foods. "Leavened" food products include bread, pasta, cookies, etc. - runners' favorite carb-loading meals. Can you really run 26.2 miles fueled with nothing but matzoh?

MSNBC has an interesting story about observant Jewish runners and their personal decisions about whether or not to keep kosher during the marathon. One Boston-area rabbi, who describes running as a "spiritual quest," plans to fuel up on potatoes and matzoh. Another runner plans to Passover rules with dry oatmeal on the morning of the race,

Dry oatmeal? I'd rather have matzoh brei, a childhood Passover specialty of eggy fried matzoh, which can be served savory with cheese and veggies, or sweet (my favorite) with maple syrup.

Source

In my everlasting quest to find sports food products that 1) work; 2) taste good;  and -- most importantly -- 3)don't embarass me either while purchasing them or consuming them, I've come to Clif's new Shot Bloks.

The idea here is to avoid messy gels and sticky sports drinks (see my early point about having my foods embarass me), and the Shot Bloks definitely pull that off. A bit like gummi bears, a bit like jello, a bit like jelly beans ... but good for you, definitely good for you: they've got electrolytes, a blend of complex and simple carbohydrates, and -- do you want more? -- they're organic.

Shot Bloks come in five different flavors; of these five, two flavors (Black Cherry and Orange) come with a kick of caffeine.

Truth be told, I like candy and coffee more than I like exercise. But Shot Bloks make me think that maybe, just maybe, everything will work out in the end  ...