Wait, you guys are still giving up more $h#t?

The answer to this question, eloquently posed by my buddy Chris (you sir, are a poet), is YES. With May coming up, Joey and I are giving up yet another food group. But there's a twist: we are giving up different things! The discipline off has been quite stringent of late, but we've found a few loopholes that we actually want to close. For example, cheese is still fair game, which Joey has apparently been abusing. A quote from him today at lunch:

"I love cheese so much. I put a half a pound of it in my grilled cheese sandwiches. I add a half inch layer of it on top of my soups. And yes, I rub it all over my body sometimes. If that's a crime, I'm guilty as charged."

Hence, Joey aims to give up dairy in May. I on the other hand have been eating a fair amount of fresh dates. Fruits have not been eliminated, and while dates fit in this category, I've got to bid them adieu. They are quite high in sugar and taste like caramel, and I feel guilty throwing too many of these back.

A question or two that has probably popped up in your mind:

1) WHAT THE HELL WILL YOU EAT THEN?

2) YOU ARE DEPRIVING YOURSELF OF PLEASURE FROM FOOD.

3) WHY ELIMINATE A FOOD GROUP? HAVEN'T YOU HEARD OF MODERATION?

Well my friend, let me address these points!

1) We'll continue to eat lots of whole, real foods. I've been eating a lot of salad, chicken, fish, and brown rice. Delicious.

2) The second statement wasn't a question at all. However, it's a valid point. While I can't speak for Joey, it's probably safe to say we both really enjoy food. While we have a few restrictions on what we eat, I still really enjoy my meals and have appreciated never feeling awful after a heavy lunch or dealing with the crash after a sugar high. This discipline off has also taught me that I really enjoy the benefits of being disciplined. For the economist-minded folks out there, I get much more overall 'utility' from running faster, looking better, and feeling much better than I do from a eating Twinkie, a slice of pizza, or a steak. And let's not forget --- I can still enjoy these foods during single monthly break day (and I enjoy them that much more now that I can't have them all of the time).

3) Ah, moderation. It would be nice to have a small slice of carrot cake every other day, or a nice bowl of white rice with some Trader Joe's Orange Chicken (a fav of mine) once or twice a week. Moderation does indeed work. However, by being accustomed to this discipline off regimen, I feel like allowing myself to eat these foods on a semi-regular basis would almost be a step backward. I'm totally ingrained in my new eating habits and this is a good habit I don't want to give up. The continual elimination of a food group (although this cannot last, I agree), has been working for Joey and I and we'll simply stick to it.

Well, that ends this rousing post. Bye bye dates, and hopefully hello to another incremental improvement in health.

Discipline Plateau: Santa Cruz 1/2 Marathon

Since starting the Discipline Off in January I've set 2 personal records in my running (1/2 and Full marathon PR's) by a pretty wide margin. Coming into the Santa Cruz 1/2 Marathon on April 10th, I was hoping to run somewhere around 1:23 (2 minutes faster than my PR set in February at the Kaiser 1/2).

I did not PR and was totally humbled in the process.

I ran a good race --- 1:25:07, a single second shy of my PR. While I think the course was tougher than the Kaiser 1/2 (rolling hills, some trails, had to dodge slower 10k runners for the last 3 miles --- exemplified in the picture), I still think I needed to realize that I can't go out and PR every single race I run in. My legs feel a bit tired from the Napa Full (ran that a month ago), and I've also been eating a lot of almonds and dates (not great from a calories perspective). I could also do myself a favor and get more rest. I'll still stick to the running and eating plan --- I just need to keep in mind that gains won't be as easy as before.

And now that I've talked about the self-indulgent 'state of Farooq's running', let's talk about my indulgent break day which immediately followed the 1/2. I totally wrecked my body by eating:

1 Muscle Milk post race

Salmon Fish and Chips from Seabright Brewery (this place is kickass, recommend it if you visit SC)

3 twinkies (a typical post race tradition of mine)

6 Kara's cupcakes

1 Double double from In'n'Out

1/2 a Cheeseburger from In'n'Out

1 Order of Animal Fries from In'n'Out

1/2 of a single-layer carrot cake (sadly the double layer was sold out, which was devastating)

1/2 bottle of pepto bismol <---- desperately needed this

Yes, it was disgusting. And it was awesome. Even the pepto tasted kinda good. I paid the price for the next 2 days (My gastrointestinal tract didn't appreciate it), but hey, I'll do it again next month. Until then, I'll just have to stand close to people who are eating sugary foods, stare at them, and breathe heavily while they eat something I can't have. Perfectly normal behaviour.

Food Porn