Vegan Stuffed Pepper

So a wile back in this blog I said I would be putting up recopies up here..... well oops I forgot, until now. So to save time as a single guy that works, and works out, and then is pretty lazy the rest of the week, I prefer to make one giant meal for the week. It is also good practice for the future (parties, holidays, pre-race get together meals, or when kids enter the picture) . This week, as you can tell by the title) is vegan stuffed peppers. Now a vast majority of my cooking consists of what do I have in my house that would go good together (even though I work in a grocery store) I swear you can come up with some of the best combinations this way. But as far as planning I try to keep meals typical, protein, grain (or starch like potatoes) and vegetables. A recipe that I fall back on is stuffed peppers, depending on budget (or if I want to cut back on meat for the week) I use ground meat of any kind really, I generally use beef or turkey, or quinoa! quinoa is often over looked, but it is a complete protein, one of the few non meat ones. And quinoa also has plenty of nutrients packed into it, as is typical of seeds, yes they are seeds, look it up. Whichever protein you choose, I usually use the tops of the pepper, onion (or shallot if you are making a smaller batch), mushrooms, peas, spinach (any leafy green), and jalapenos (it has been a long cold winter, I like spicy food, and it helps keep the body warm). Cook all that on the stove top (I love cast iron) season it however you like (I prefer garlic grinders, small bits of dried garlic that get ground very fine. freshly ground explodes with the flavor, and the smaller the pieces the more flavor you get, thanks mom!).

 I then use pasta sauce as a base, I say base because I always add freshly ground pepper, garlic (can not get enough) thyme/oregano, chili powder, and what ever else you like, no sauce from a jar has enough flavor. after it is cooked, the peppers (that you sliced the top off of) get stuffed with the delicious mixture, then baked for about an hour at 400f. depending as to how you want the pepper to come out, I like softer over crunchier. My vegetable this week is asparagus, i have a grill pan, and just use coconut oil, pepper and garlic until it looks good (I almost always cook by look, barley time). One of my favorite ways to cook potatoes (usually on the grill, kind of like healthy french fries) is mini potatoes (about the size of a golf ball) quartered with pepper, garlic, and rosemary (I seldom use salt in my cooking, weird considering I am a runner) I know this is not in precise detail, sorry if you need that, then i failed on this post. This is more of a guild line showing that healthy meal prep for about 5 days can be done in an hour and a half. Another good thing, this meal will freeze very well, I have done it several times, just make sure when you microwave that you slice the pepper in half so you do not get that cold center from the microwave. So keep in mind next time you go shopping, it is pretty cheap, (especially if you skip the meat) and very healthy. just make sure to get peppers that can stand on their own, it makes baking them much easier.

Hope this helps to inspire a healthier meal plan
Until next time
Stephen

Carry the fallen Recap

Before I get into what I did this weekend, please allow me to just sat THANK YOU! to every body that has helped me raise money for this charity, it means a lot, I honestly did not think I could raise as much as I did. My posted goal was 250, I figured it would push me to try, I got 310. If you donated through my link you probably already saw this, but for those that did not, this is the personal touch I put on my donation page:

Hello,
A little bit about me in relation to the armed forces. My grandfather and uncle both served this country. I have a rather large number of friends that serve in or have served in various armed forces. A number which grows each year, and this is the least that I could do for them. I can not even imagine some of the things my friends and loved ones have gone through. My grandfather fought in WW2 (he got a purple heart) and my uncle was in Vietnam, his platoon was the first in to Cambodia and the last one out.

This was an amazing experience, the day started off incredibly early, the check in was scheduled for 515am and I only got four hours of sleep, which amazingly was way more than most of the people i talked to that day. We started off a little behind schedule, but it was fun chatting with my friends that I do not often get to see. Before we set off on our march, there was a singing of the national anthem, and short bit about the reason we were all gathered there. We were gathered to raise awareness of an incredibly high suicide rate of veterans, 22 a day. PTSD is serious and many can not get the help they need. We set off at the start line of the Boston marathon around 7am. As we marched we had a police escort for a little bit (and a bunch of the route) and as forecasted it was snowing for a wile while we were marching, but it did not really accumulate, so that was a plus, and most of the day was at or below freezing, the high was about 40, and that was great!There was about 114 at the start, and I think most of us made it to the finish line. There were several designated stops along the way, we all went as a giant group, and got a bunch of those awkward stars, and questions, but that was the point! There was a great support group for us, with a rented rv, one pick up truck, and one small car. The support group all had a wonderful attitude, and had so much food, and a bunch of drinks. they even wrote lovely notes on the bananas.

Our route had us stop off at a donut shop to rest and get coffee, a stop in a natick vfw for snacks (about mile 10). Then the next stop was lunch at a grocery store, and break at a firehouse on a corner of the route in newton. and a few stops for the bathroom as well. point being we did walk a marathon, but this was an event that anybody in decent shape can do! there were a lot of blisters and other issues due to people carrying a whole bunch of weight in their backpacks .

 But that was the point (mine was between 40-50, and i am sure many of the people were carrying more than I was). so with plenty of breaks and such it was doable, that being said rucking a marathon is no cake walk, it was hard, and i was happy to drop my ruck when it was time to do so, but that is what the rv was for if it got to heavy. At the vfw there were personal stories told, and names read to honor those lost to suicide, they were very moving, and served as a reminder as to why we were all their that day.

 One of the most touching things to me was once we finally hit Boston. shortly after entering the city, we had a police escort again, this time it was 3 police cars, and they drove ahead and blocked every street for us, we only had to stop at one intersection for a walk light. But the real kicker was just before taking a left onto boylston st, they shut down the street, and we marched down the street. Once we turned onto bolyston st you could see nothing but blue lights, every street had a cop car blocking off entrance to bolyston st. the fire house had about a dozen firefighters out front cheering us on, the hotels and restaurants had people out front as well, giving out high 5's, hand shakes, applauding, and cheering us on. Heck even in front of the bars, were packed with people cheering us on. as we started down boylston st we started chanting.

ONE TEAM! ..... ONE FIGHT!

and

WE! ..... CARRY THE FALLEN!

Video of the last 1/4 mile down boylston st

Hearing the police and everybody cheering us on, friends and loved ones at the finish line, signs, and everything, yeah, it was an emotional event to say the least. Even writing these words I am tearing up a bit, it was a powerful moment in time. At the end, the leaders that made sure we were safe, and stayed out of the way of traffic, (and that they stayed out of our way), and guided us, kept us smiling, made sure we had all that we needed. They handed out the patches.

Also, as a surprise, marathon sports, which is right next to the finish line, offered up a box of cliff blocks, and guu type stuff for us. They also opened up there store so we could use their restroom, and had foam rollers and recovery sticks (hand held rollers) they truly were wonderful! Every aspect of this event was truly memorable. I look forward to the opportunity to do this one again (and maybe even run the Boston marathon for real, hopefully i can raise the funds and get a bib)

So until next time I will leave you with this thought.
Imagine a world where kindness is bountiful, people are humble, but also know that they are important. And I hope this post finds you and lets you know that there are many ways to help people, but all you really have to do is try. So try your best everyday to make a difference, one step at a time.
Stephen

C5k and a ruck!

This past weekend was a great one! My favorite 5k road series came back with craicfest. Cambridge 5k really does have an epic finisher party! All the beet you could want from 3 vendors and a cider option as well. The people are so nice, you will see so many awesome costumes. One guy was dressed as a pot of gold, and several people wore Celtics jerseys, and finally the coolest one i heard was a guy that dressed as Larry bird, and dribbled a basket ball the whole race! I went as superman again. They had to change the route due to snow, and made the after party indoors, and what a great idea, as the forecast was for cold temps and snow, the snow did not start until after the after party, but was there for the ruck! I was admittedly concerned about the snow, because Cambridge has been piling up the snow as much as Boston, it is pretty bad out there, but the new route was great, no issues. The swag you get from c5k is great, the beer, the food (California pizza kitchen) and they always have cool shirts! Make sure to sign up early, they usually have perks and a cheaper price, i got a hat as well because I registered early, (next year i think i will get the season pass, hindsight is always 20/20 right?) the next race they are doing if you are one of the first 250 you get a cooler shirt. Parking was in the mall and it was free, they gave out 5 free all day parking passes in the swag bag, as well as a coupon book for a bunch of the stores in the mall. If you are a new runner I would highly recommend this race, they have people that are really fast, I think the winning time was in the 17 min time frame, but there are plenty of people over 30, and over 45, and everybody is there to have fun, dance, and dress up. I went into the race hoping to get another pr, my last 2 c5k races I pr'd so I figured it was good luck. I did not, that being said, for my first 5k of the season I am not complaining, just shy of my pr, (I ran a 22:50, pr is about 22:40) so I still have my hope of hitting a 20 (or sub 20) 5k this year! I also learned some things about where you are in the starting corral and what it can do to your head! (I will probably elaborate in another blog post later on)

Next up goruck, they are a company that makes military grade bags and things, great gear, with great customer service! They also do events that are full of pt, carrying heavy stuff, a whole lot of team building exercises, a bunch of marching around a city (they are a national company)  they also have historical stories they share, related trivia, and personal recounts of stories. The people that run the event are called cadre, and they are pretty friendly people, granted they are recanting war stories sometimes and pushing you to do the task at hand. They have several levels of events with varying time frames and distances rucked. They did an H/C/L (heavy/carry/light) the light, more info here. The event was st Patrick's day themed (hence the green on the loges that they had to carry for a very long time, nut as a team and shifting people through). The weather was brutal, and not many came out to do the whole H/C/L and if you did way to go, that is really hard stuff! I have only done a light and am not sure about the upper levels and my training or comfort level. I decided to shadow this event (exactly what it sounds like) i knew a few people that were doing it, and a few of the other shadows. This was a tough one, because fairly early on into the light it went from rain to hail to snow! I was not dressed properly to stand in snow, but that was my fault I have the correct gear. I watched until just before the end and was very happy for everybody that did it, I could see some people hurting, and pushing through, which is always a good thing. goruck is great for getting you out of your comfort zone, and a good bonding experience, watching my friends do it made me nostalgic. I wonder which one I will do next, probably kill that 5k

So until next time 

Keep training

Stephen

Savage Games

So almost all of the people that find their way to this blog have run at least one ocr, and have heard of spartan race. Last year spartan race had three free workouts, the second and third ones were held at Brooklyn Boulders in Somerville . This is a pretty cool rock climbing gym. they are pretty close, not far off of the pike, and there is a free parking lot around the corner from there (20 dane st) it is about a three minute walk, but get there early so you do not miss a spot, the lot is not that big. pretty recently they have started a new monthly event, taking place the first Saturday of every month. I just did the March one and it was a blast! You register online up to the day before, and it is 25 dollars, at the facility it is 30 dollars, then do the typical wavers and check in. The event goes from 8am to 10am, and they run down what obstacles they have, how to do them, and explaining the point system. they have volunteer counting points, and give out a prize for first place. You compete in teams of four, as best as can be accommodated, and you choose your teams when you get there. Us Spahtens had 10 people so we were the only two groups that had 5 people, so they scaled our points down 20% to make things even with everybody else. There were close to 30 stations (obstacles) and they had different influences, some were parkour, some were ninja warrior, and some were ocr.

some of the obstacles were:

• Ninja warrior walls (4 hanging walls with grips near the top and you have to transfer to all 4)
• Cargo Net Climb
• Short walls (run down and back going over 3 foot walls)
• Getting your team up on a small platform without touching the ground
• Parkour monkey bars (it had a pipe traverse and monkey bars and such, no touching the ground)
• Parkour wall set up (going over various heights of walls)
• Balance beam type metal contraption
• Tire Hoist
• Tire Flips
• Handstand (free standing got 1 point, against a wall for 30 seconds equaled a point)
• Yoga block pass (lying on your back, gripping with your feet pass end to end each round to the start is a point, and this was for all 4 people)
• Rope Climb (knotted and no knots)
• Rings (spaced far apart, and kind of high off the ground maybe 6/8 total)
• Buddy Carry
• 2 person Heavy Carry (100 lb dumbbell)
• Hop up stairs, bear crawl down
• Selfie Station (with funky wigs and costume pieces)
• Up a rock climbing wall
• Spear throw
• Broad jump
• ninja warrior short leaping walls (usually seen at the beginning of the first level, but smaller)
• Traverse Rope
• Salmon Ladder

 (Photo Credit: Kay Norm)

I am Sure I am missing some of obstacles, but you get the idea, loads of fun! they are still early on in creating this kind of an event, and they are making changes from previous ones from what i heard. But it was so much fun, and for me it is much closer than it would be to go to an ocr, and much cheaper, and you can meet new like minded people there. I forgot to mention that each station you only get 3 rounds to get as many points as you can. They encouraged you to help out your teammates as needed, and explained what you could do and what was against the rules. Overall it was a very fun, and well pit together event, full of a unique mixture of fun and challenging physical activities, one that i have not seen elsewhere. If you ever find that you do not have a race to go to on the first Saturday of the month, as long as this is going on you should give it a shot, i know ill be going back next month. My team came in third, and we had such a blast, laughing the whole time, and still challenging ourselves. That is also a part of the appeal of this event, The woman that was explaining to us all what we were doing was wearing a funky plastic tube wig on her head that lit up. So think Goofy, Challenging, Parkour, Ninja Warrior, OCR, and an A.M.R.A.P. style workout/challenge and you have a fairly accurate summery of Savage Games. And it is worth it to check it out.

Until next time
Keep Training
Stephen

Blog Update:

So i just saw a slew of photos uploaded to the Brooklyn Boulders Facebook page. From what i remember they only had one photographer and she did an absolutely amazing job. So many photos, all free, and awesome! Here are some of the ones of me that I found.

Yeah, I am really pumped about doing this one again, So happy i found out about this place!

Update April was not as good as i had hoped, read about it here