1954 British Empire Games

All of the members of this gold medal crew are still alive.   What a story!  Inspirational.

http://www.vancouversun.com/sports/Gold+medal+rowers+impossible/10073867/story.html

Karen's SO DELICIOUS Kale Salad

My friend Karen is a great cook.  She loves to make new things and she cooks all the time.  I always think she's kind of surprised when I come up with something yummy and new - I'm not really a cooking fanatic.  Lately, though, she's loved my salads.  She brought me this one and I love it!

You need:

Dressing:
½ cup shallots, sliced thinly
butter
¼ cup rice wine vinegar (I buy the kind with no sugar in it)
1 tablespoon oil
1 tablespoon grainy mustard
a touch of something sweet - if you must (I used agave syrup)

Salad:
3 cups Kale
1 cup Mint
Sweet onion sliced paper thin

Saute the shallots in the butter until translucent.  Add the rice wine vinegar and cook it down.  Add the oil, mustard, and agave.

Chiffonade the kale and mint.  Add the thinly sliced sweet onion.  Add the dressing and mix.



Sprinkle blue cheese on the top to serve.

This is a salad that just gets better with time.  Make it early.  Make enough to leave overnight for your lunch tomorrow!

Ack! I Need to Use Up the Bean Sprouts Salad

I often buy veggies with the best intentions of using them the same day.  And I often get distracted and cook something else.  That's okay for most veggies, but bean sprouts are different story.  If you buy them fresh, you have a very short window to use them before they turn into a wet, mushy mess in their bag.

Here's a salad you can make!

You need:

Fresh Bean Sprouts
½ cup water

Dressing
½  cup green onions, chopped
3 cloves of garlic, minced
2 tablespoons toasted sesame seeds (toast your own or buy them toasted)
1 tablespoon sesame oil
Salt to taste
2 teaspoons fresh green chile peppers

Mix the dressing ingredients together in a bowl and let sit.  It's great if you can do this a couple of hours ahead to release the heat in the peppers and garlic.

Boil the bean sprouts in water for about 2 minutes.  Drain and rinse in cold water to cool.  Leave in strainer to drain.

Once the bean sprouts are drained well, mix them together with the dressing in a bowl and let sit in the fridge for an hour.  Sprinkle additional toasted sesame seeds on top when serving.

This salad is even BETTER the next day - but be sure you don't eat it alone.  It's pretty garlicky!

New Milepost

So today I thought I'd test out where 10,000 steps takes me.  Back to the SeaWalk, I walked 5000 steps in one direction then home again.  Again, I began at Willow Point - very close to Frank James Park - home of the Canada Day event "Transformations on the Shore" - where huge logs become this:

photo by Norm Hamilton

And here is 5000 steps away!  (Actually 4,973.  But close enough!)

This walk took 1 hour and 23 minutes.  It was 8.38km.  Good one!

Where do YOU walk?

10,000 Steps a Day

I discovered that my older model iPod nano - which clips on to my shirt - has a built in pedometer.  Great music and a bit of accountability, too.  So today I tried it.

They say you should walk 10,000 steps every day.  I always think I walk quite a bit.  Turns out 10,000 steps is a long, long way!

According to my iPod, today's walk was 4.76km.  I took 5529 steps.  (And burned 239 calories, apparently.)  In order to make 10,000 steps today I need to go back and do it again.

Check out these walking resources:

The Walking Site

The Mayo Clinic's Walking Advice

Walk Where It's Beautiful

Today I set out on a walk I take quite frequently and, part way through, I realized I was walking with a huge smile on my face. Sunshine, fresh air, good tunes in my ears, and some of the most gorgeous waterfront views in the world. Campbell River Sea Walk.

I start the walk at Willow Point and head north. It's 2.3km to "Big Rock", making a 4.6km round trip.

Thank you, Michael Moore, for reminding me how great it is to walk! 

Where is YOUR beautiful walk?

World Records in Track at 90? Of course!

“People make themselves old,” he said. “First they say, I’m too old to do this and too old to do that, and suddenly they look in the mirror and they are old.” I'm inspired by this story of Roy Englert and his teammates!

  Track Team Is Peerless and, Seemingly, Ageless

Masters Rowing - Inspirational!

I recently competed at the Canadian Masters Rowing Championships at Burnaby Lake. It's one of my favorite regattas - mostly because it's all about athletes who are older. Yes, there's a AA category of 21+ year olds, but get into the D and over categories and you're talking about athletes who are 40+. There are even a few who are in their 80's. And I don't use the term "athletes" loosely! These people train hard, getting up before the light several mornings a week to improve their on-the-water performance.

Take a Walk!

A few months back I posted about sitting being the new smoking.  We're simply not active enough!  Here's a great TED talk encouraging us to take walking meetings.  Walk and talk.  What a great idea!

Green Mango Salad

I can't eat enough of this when mangoes are green at the grocery store.  Delicious and spicy.

You need:
1 Green Mango
1 Red Pepper
1 Red Onion
½ c. Cilantro
¼ c. Fresh Mint
Handful of Cashews
1 T. Fish Sauce
1 Lime
1 t. Sambal Oelek
1 T. Olive Oil



Salad:
Julienne the mango and some of the red pepper.  Chop a bit of red onion.  Chop the cilantro and mint.  Mix all together in a bowl.

Dressing:
Mix together the juice of the lime, a tablespoon of fish sauce, a tablespoon of olive oil and sambal oelek to taste.

Dress your salad and sprinkle crushed cashews on top.



Nutrition Information:
Calories 125 per serving
Carbs 13g per serving

Mango
Low in Saturated Fat, Cholesterol and Sodium. It is also a good source of Dietary Fiber and Vitamin B6, and a very good source of Vitamin A and Vitamin C.
Red Pepper
Very low in Saturated Fat, Cholesterol and Sodium. It is also a good source of Vitamin K, Thiamin, Riboflavin, Niacin, Potassium and Manganese, and a very good source of Dietary Fiber, Vitamin A, Vitamin C, Vitamin E (Alpha Tocopherol), Vitamin B6 and Folate.
Red Onion
Very low in Saturated Fat, Cholesterol and Sodium. It is also a good source of Dietary Fiber, Vitamin B6, Folate, Potassium and Manganese, and a very good source of Vitamin C.
Cilantro
Very low in Saturated Fat and Cholesterol. It is also a good source of Thiamin and Zinc, and a very good source of Dietary Fiber, Vitamin A, Vitamin C, Vitamin E (Alpha Tocopherol), Vitamin K, Riboflavin, Niacin, Vitamin B6, Folate, Pantothenic Acid, Calcium, Iron, Magnesium, Phosphorus, Potassium, Copper and Manganese.
Mint
Low in Saturated Fat, and very low in Cholesterol. It is also a good source of Protein, Thiamin, Niacin, Vitamin B6, Phosphorus and Zinc, and a very good source of Dietary Fiber, Vitamin A, Vitamin C, Riboflavin, Folate, Calcium, Iron, Magnesium, Potassium, Copper and Manganese.
Cashews
Low in Sodium, and very low in Cholesterol. It is also a good source of Magnesium, Copper and Manganese.
Fish Sauce
High in sodium.

Fennel, Celery and Lemon Salad

This is a super easy salad to make with simple ingredients.  It's cool, tangy and refreshing.
You need:
1 c. Fennel
1 c. Celery
1 Lemon
1 T. Olive Oil


Slice all ingredients paper thin. About a cup of each and one whole lemon leaving the peel on.
Combine in a bowl.
Drizzle about a tablespoon of olive oil over the top.
Enjoy!

Nutritional Information:
Calories:  46 per serving
Carbs:  5g per serving
Fennel
This food is very low in Cholesterol. It is also a good source of Niacin, Calcium, Iron, Magnesium, Phosphorus and Copper, and a very good source of Dietary Fiber, Vitamin C, Folate, Potassium and Manganese.
Celery
This food is low in Saturated Fat, and very low in Cholesterol. It is also a good source of Riboflavin, Vitamin B6, Pantothenic Acid, Calcium, Magnesium and Phosphorus, and a very good source of Dietary Fiber, Vitamin A, Vitamin C, Vitamin K, Folate, Potassium and Manganese.High in Sodium.

Lemon
This food is low in Saturated Fat, and very low in Cholesterol and Sodium. It is also a good source of Thiamin, Riboflavin, Pantothenic Acid, Iron and Magnesium, and a very good source of Dietary Fiber, Vitamin C, Vitamin B6, Calcium, Potassium and Copper.Olive Oil
This food is very low in Cholesterol and Sodium.