…because I run marathons.
30 – 50 miles of running a week means I can eat fried chicken, cheeseburgers, pizza, fries, beer, wine, bourbon, tequila, soda, pumpkin pie, candy, pastries, pasta, white bread, ho-ho’s, twinkies, sticks of butter, and a tub of crisco and it won’t add a single inch to my waistline – all because I run. I run and run and run and that’s why I’m thin/slender/lean – that’s why no matter what I eat, I still look good!
that’s right…anything I want…
…
Okay, well, no…not really.
But a lot of people assume that. They’ll look at me and say, “boy, you must be able to eat whatever you want!” If I choose to indulge in something decadent while out with non-runners, the response around the table is, “he can do that because he runs so much.”
Those statements are only half true.
The truth is that I can run the way I do because I eat healthfully; I don’t regularly eat the fried chicken, cheeseburgers, pizza, fries, beer, wine, bourbon, tequila, soda, pumpkin pie, candy, pastries, pasta, white bread, ho-ho’s, twinkies, sticks of butter, and a tub of crisco – and BECAUSE I generally eat healthfully, I can occasionally indulge in a ridiculous meal without having to pay the price for it on my waist.
***
Physical activity is a huge part of being in good cardiovascular shape. However, I could run a marathon a day for a year, but if I ate like crap, I would continue to look like I ate like crap.
eat like crap…feel like crap.
Eating healthfully doesn’t need to mean eating grass, nuts and berries. There are plenty of websites out there with tasty recipes. Personally, my taste buds can be satisfied as long as whatever I’m making involves olive oil, lemon juice, some chili powder and a dash of kosher salt. The point is, you can still eat “well” while eating healthfully.
It all starts with what you fuel your body with. If you normally feed your body junk, it’s gonna look, and way more importantly FEEL, like junk. Feed it right, and the junk will eventually peel away, leaving you looking better because you’re FEELING better! Your energy level will rise, your ability to be active will soar, and running (or whatever physical activity you choose) will become easier – you may lose a lot of weight OR you may remain the same weight and simply redistribute it into leaner, denser, sexier muscle.
***
Yes, I CAN eat anything…every once in a while.
But it’s not because I run marathons; it’s because most of the time, what I choose to eat is tasty, satifying and good for me.
What will you put in your body today?
Run Luau Run 
Well said.
I went vegan 3 weeks ago and have never felt better.
You are a stronger person than I am – though I’ve cut certain things out of my diet, I don’t know if I could give up steak and chicken.
Happy to say that second picture made me want to puke a little today. I’m on week 2 of a healthy high protein diet, and am amazed that I am not craving anything. Totally surprised I can be satisfied with ONE carb serving a day, but realizing I still get the carbs through other foods has been very educational. And I freely admit that my carbs on the weekends are usually beer, but dammit I earned it by then. Thanks for the continued motivation!
…and beer has some wonderfully heathful properties! I will never give up my beer fridge! 🙂
I’ve found that a few beers on Saturday night have a positive effect on my Sunday morning run.
I like to call it Adult Carbo Loading.
Very good point. Also keep in mind that those foods clog your arteries even if they don’t make you visibly fatter.
dinner = twice baked zucchini and corn from farm share 🙂
plus..
3oz of honey dijon chicken tenders
(also making baba ghanouj with eggplant from farmshare)
confession: I’m also making homemade cherry ice cream 🙂
homemade cherry ice cream – probably a lot better for you than anything you could buy at the store.
I was so mad at the subject I didn’t read this for a day or so…whew. We can be friends again!
Lol! I think there were a lot of people who had the same reaction. Hopefully they will eventually read the post. 🙂