Beautiful Saturday in June

Rise and shine friends! Happy Saturday!

When you wake up to a sky like this how could you not be happy?

I was up and out early for my run to avoid the heat. I had one glorious run today folks.

13 miles and I swear I could have kept going.

I almost felt like Forrest Gump.

While one never knows how or why great runs occur, I have started something recently that I feel helps me achieve great run status.

I normally carry those cute little Trader Joe’s jelly beans with me on long runs but decided to switch to a beverage.

I have been reading a lot about proper hydration in the course I am currently taking and it is so important, especially in the summer, to make sure you are hydrated to ensure optimal sports performance.

I don’t believe in Gatorade or sports drinks in general because I don’t like the added ingredients and artificial colors.

It is very simple and much cheaper to make your own sports drink. While I do not have the exact recipe on hand at the moment, all you need to do is add orange juice and salt to water.

The recipe I had seen (which I intend to share with you when I find where I saw it) also recommended adding more sugar to the mix. I didn’t add more sugar today and truly didn’t notice. I felt great. I felt hydrated and still had my legs at mile 12 when I would normally start to feel the fatigue.

Maybe this nice bowl of cherries helped me today too.

Food tip: Cherries are packed with antioxidants and are thought to have the highest levels of anti-inflammatory properties of all foods. The bright red color of the cherry is courtesy of anthocyanins which are linked to reducing inflammation at levels comparable to actual medications.

Click here for a link to more information regarding the anti-inflammatory properties of cherries.

Whatever the reason, today was a fabulous run. The kind where you are singing along to your music and snapping photos as you go.