Autumnal Bliss

Sage pork loin, kale and chard, and sweet potato.  Still licking my chops.  I'm loving getting back into minding what I eat.  This is about three weeks now that I've abstained from grains, dairy, and most processed foods and I would really recommend everyone try something like this especially if GI trouble is ever a concern.  My stomach feels great.  I've had a healthy layer of extra fat around my midsection for the past couple of years even as my training ramped up over the summer.  I can feel it now starting to melt away (for the record, summer weight topped out at about 151, I'm at about 148 average these days).  Energy is great.  I'm not calling it Paleo because I think labels are restrictive.  But it's close to that I guess.  As a former yoga instructor used to say, if you truly enjoy what you eat in the sense that it feels good, it is healthful.  Ice cream tastes good but it makes me feel like shit, so I can't say honestly that I enjoy it.

I was bogged down with some chores for most of the day, including winterizing my bike, which mostly consists of tuning it up and putting the fenders back on.  I also reinstalled the rear rack in hopes of using panniers more often than my shoulder bag.  I don't have a hose outside, and I discovered that washing a bike in a shower is much more trouble than it's worth, as it involves then washing the shower and then taking a shower.  I'm growing tired of this closet apartment day by day.

After tooling around with the bike and then some other organizing, I was frustrated that most of the day had passed in spite of my intentions to head to the gym.  I had accepted that I wouldn't get in any exercise today, but about an hour before dinner I realized that I could fit in a decent run and still have time to cook.  I headed down to Rock Creek for some exploration and found myself on some carriage roads I've never seen before.  The scenery is almost perfect, and several times I found myself in awe at the utter beauty of the orange and yellow that now lines the stoney trails.  Turned out to have a pretty good run, even though the right shin is still on the mend.  It's at the point where it feels safe to run, and I've been good about adjusting based on feedback I get on the fly.  37 minutes on some uncharted, forgotten path.

This evening's jaunt quite harmoniously complemented a longer trip through RCP I had yesterday morning.  I set out with expectations low, just looking to spend some time outside.  I wound up doing a loop and getting lost on some game trails only to run up on what was probably the biggest white-tailed deer I've ever seen in person.  I got close to him, enough that his musk was pungent, and then realized that there were actually four or five other deer within sight that I hadn't noticed.  Most of the outing was run, but I took walking breaks, and even took off the shoes for 15 minutes or so of authentic barefoot running.  Haha.  I guess I'm a sucker for fads after all.  One hour and thirty minutes spent in autumnal bliss.

By the way, if anyone in DC actually stumbles across this, check out the lineup at Red Palace next Saturday night.  I'll be accompanying Naseem of Kingsley Flood on various acoustic devices.  Should be rad.