Saturday, December 5, 2009

the cow whisperer


i stopped for a minute on this morning's run to get a picture of the cows - a handful of them were standing near the fence. it was kind of weird because then all the other cows in the field lumbered over to the fence to stare at me. i don't know if they wanted their picture taken or if they thought i had breakfast for them. sorry cows, no corn for you. maybe they knew i was their friend - after watching food, inc i will be a very limited carnivore. (i don't feel comfortable cutting out all meat since i can't eat beans or those "amazing" soy products for protein. yes that is sarcasm, i dislike the miracle-food attitude towards soybeans.)

food, inc. was good though. there weren't many "queasy" moments but watching it right after lunch probably wasn't the best idea. i don't think everyone needs to give up meat, it's certainly a personal choice, and i won't be 100% vegetarian myself. i am interested in finding out more about how the food industry is regulated and making it safe(r). as someone with extensive food allergies, it is very frustrating to scour product labels for hidden ingredients. the fda claims certain foods/ingredients are supposed to be noted with an asterik, bolded, or listed separately in the "warning: contains" section, but in many cases this is still somehow overlooked.

anyway, stepping off my little soapbox now... (food inc. didn't even touch on allergies). feel free to check out food, inc's website, and if you are further interested - watch the movie of course. it's available on dvd or you can also "watch instantly" on netflix.

saturday (12/5) am run: 9.1 miles, 1:19:39 (avg pace 8:45), 25* and flurries

good luck to those running cim and las vegas tomorrow, especially my girl aron!

26 comments:

  1. I have an issue with dairy, it won't affect me if I'm not running but if I am then it hurts my stomach and I find that often products are mislabeled or not labeled as containing milk. I watched Food Inc and did go vegan, but I don't mind tofu and beans. I think it's a personal choice. I eat whatever I want though if I'm hungry and my only option is turkey I'm eating the turkey.

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  2. Awww they look cold.

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  3. Looks like winter came to your neck of the woods.

    Nice way to snap right back into training pace my friend.

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  4. I didn't see any cows, I just saw unprocessed cheeseburgers.

    Actually I'd be afraid to watch Food, Inc. It might make me not want to eat meat and I don't like fruits and vegetables enough only to eat them.

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  5. My morning run seemed almost identical (mileage, pace, and weather). Somehow I always get stuck in bad weather on my Saturday morning runs. Snow wasn't really accumulating at that point, but it was very cold, icy, and wet!

    Hope the cows got you MOOOOO-VING! (sorry couldn't resist the corny joke)

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  6. I'm trying to eat less meat too. I asked for Mark Bittman's "How to Cook Everything" for Christmas. You should check it out. I heard there's a lot of vegetarian recipes and a lot of his meat recipes I've tried use it more for flavoring than anything.

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  7. is that snow? did you say 9 miles? yea it's official your a rockstar anything under 55 degrees is freezing in my book. :)

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  8. Hah - why do you have snow? There is no snow where I am! I'm loving it at the moment, but am paranoid we're gonna pay for it later considering, well, I live near two great lakes/snow belts ;p

    You're right on on the allergy front. As I mentioned, I've got soy issues too. And dairy. And certain fibers. (same issues with beans here too!) And iron absorbancy issues. Which suck s because it rules out giving up meats which puts the impetus on me to be an ethical meat eater. :-/ I too end up spending A LOT of time scouring food labels (and god, you're right soy is in EVERYTHING. soy letchin! gr.) I guess that's what frustrates me about eating ethically - its hard enough to avoid stuff for health reasons and its even harder when you're trying to avoid stuff because of other production issues. And its even harder when you honestly try and get judgmental "BUT YOU DON'T NEED TO EAT xxxxxx" comments.

    I've been looking into some of the local free range/grass fed organic farms. Where I live we can get some of the stuff in the biggest supermarket around, but I tend to feel safer when I can get to the stuff straight from the farmers. Of course, time is an issue with all of these things, but some of them do deliver if you're looking... ;-/

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  9. The lack of education in Food Inc, bothered me more than anything. I almost cried when the woman didn't buy her daughter vegetables because the same amount of money could buy two cheeseburgers. The thing is, she is right, and the sad part of obesity in America is financial. Until healthy foods are more available to people and easier on their wallets, they are more likely to think about the "now" and choose the meal that can feed (and fill) their family for cheaper.

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  10. really don't want to jinx myself here, but we don't have any snow yet *knocking on wood* there's a blanket of snow on the cows! awesome running Lindsay!

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  11. There's this one farm that I always run or bike past and I always talk to the "girls" as I like to call them! The basic wisconsin guernsey cows, they too always seem to move near the fence when I come by. I always feel though it's because of my disco singing coming out of my mouth as I go by! Apparently they too are fans of the Bee Gees!!
    Nice running!
    Got me a nice little 5k race tonight through Christmas lights! Should be fun-cold, but fun!

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  12. I can't give up meet fully either. I don't eat much of it, but sometimes I just have to have a piece of fish or chicken!

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  13. Look frozen beef! Haven't really had any beef since May just personal choice really, thanks for the headsup on Roku

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  14. I keep hearing about Food, Inc. Guess I need to watch it.

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  15. You cow tease! ;)

    I've briefly contemplated trying to be less carnivorous, but am really too lazy. Maybe I should watch that flick.

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  16. Those cows look cold, like they need big cow-sized Sunggies. I liked Food, Inc. Didn't turn me vegetarian but definitely made me think and focus more on buying locally when I can.

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  17. Hi, New to your site here. I actually tried to become a vegetarian long before I started running. It lasted a few months then ended at Wendys for a single. I was craving meat. I tried though, but yes I agree with you on your post, which was really good btw. Keep it up.

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  18. Wise choice! I coun't switch to vegetarian completely, but have cut out beef completely and try to have only veggie atleast a few days a week. We have to start somewhere, right?

    Thanks for your comment...glad to know I'm not the only one with alarm clock issues!

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  19. Thanks for your insight on Saturday. I never really had given thought to having time oriented goals - even though they are certainly quantifiable and measurable. I think I just need to make sure that those that I set are realiztic. I started thinking over the weekend and realized that some of my burn out may be entirely related to not hitting my marathon goal even though I put the training and time in - at least on the surface. Thanks for stoking the fires!

    As far as the food thing - I feel for folks like you with allergies. So much these days are processed with significant additives to increase shelf life. My daughter has a few allergies, and if she's not careful, she could be in for an uncomfortable night. Although thinking about it, her dairy problem isn't severe enough to keep her from Cold Stone.

    As for me, my issue is portioning. If I'm hungry, I'm going to eat whatever is in front of me. Of course for many years I ate everything in front of me even when I wasn't hungry.

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  20. Cow whisperer, lol. Funny pic.

    We have Food, Inc. and have been meaing to watch it for a while (although I'm a little nervous!)

    I'll give it a try soon!

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  21. And for what i's worth - I don't think the 20 second drop in my 800s are as much a sign of increased fitness as much as increased rest now that I'm not killing myself on the Pftiz program. It sucks getting old!

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  22. first off THANK YOU for the shout out :) :) :)

    I really liked food inc also, even already being a vegetarian, it was very informative and has made me think a lot about my dairy sources and even vegetable sources. I think its something everyone should think about.

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  23. Love the random cow pic! LOL!

    Look at that pace! Great job girl!

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  24. I've been curious about that film. I need to see it sometime! I already avoid meat most of the time anyway, just a personal preference.

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  25. just wanted to say the cows look so cute! And i found when i was down in pennsylvania, when i would stop to look at the horsies and cows, that they would stop and stare right back at me, or at least i told myself that they were.

    by the way, you've not written about feeling nauseous on your blog lately - how are you feeling?

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