Why Plant Based?

me at about mile 30 of the Hardrock Hundred, 2012 heading down Bridal Veil basin into Telluride

 July, 2012, Sunday morning at 5:47am.....
I crossed the finish line of the Hardrock 100 mile endurance run, arguably the toughest ultramarathon in the US, and certainly ranks up there in difficulty with any race, anywhere. With over 33,000 feet of elevation gain through the rugged San Juan mountain range of SW Colorado, its wild and rugged terrain over high elevation (average is over 11,000 feet), river crossings, snow fields, incredibly steep climbs and descents, exposure, often severe weather, and a 48 hour time limit make it an amazing event.   This was my 10th attempt at this race.   I had been successful only once before, in 2003.. 9 years ago. I was 49.  But, in 2012, I'm now 58 and the odds of my finishing are growing slimmer every year.. age does take it's toll, after all.
But here I am, crossing the finish line, I wasn't fast, in fact,  I was the last finisher, but, I finished!

So, what made the difference between this attempt, and 9 previous tries?

A good friend asked me that question after the race.  I jokingly replied "going vegan!".  Well, maybe it wasn't such a joke.  Could it be possible that diet- simply changing what I ate, could have been a determining factor in a Hardrock finish?

Personally, I believe the answer to that  question is "yes"- but before you  go toss out the ribeyes, and get some kale,  I will say that I'm still learning what it really means to eat "plant based".  I don't have all the answers.  I' m not sure I even know all the questions.  I DO know that eating this way has changed the way I feel, and look, and even reduced or eliminated some health issues that previously prevented me from doing everything I want to do.

This blog will chronicle my experiences and experiments with eating a whole food, plant based diet. I happen to also be wheat free - and let me tell you, eating wheat free is harder than eating meat free!  Almost by necessity, removing wheat from my diet eliminated almost all processed foods.  that's okay, as these are really not healthy choices anyway, and I don't want them on my plate.   I make just about everything from scratch.  We'll talk about that in later posts.  I'm also a full time artist (can't you tell by that fabulous rendition of veggies in my header?), and part time homesteader.  There might be photos of chickens somewhere along the road...(which begs the question: why does a vegan raise chickens? - more about that later!)

Primarily,I'll chat here about training for ultramarathons ( races of distances greater than 26.2 miles) my take on eating a plant based, whole foods diet, some recipe ideas,  how I shop, how to incorporate more whole foods even if you are not a vegan, and who knows what else? Hopefully some interesting and entertaining info...

White Rock Canyon.  Down there out of sight is the Rio Grande  River.
 We did a long 5 hour hike with some friends.  I did say "hike".  
Walking is good  training for ultramarathons, and uses different muscles than running. You WILL be walking at some point in just about any race over 50K - so why not train for that?