I eat giant salads:
For most people salad consists of a pittance of iceberg lettuce, gross tomatoes and a few uninspired cucumber slices. Boring and far from a meal. Heck, I was one of those people still many years after I went vegan. I’m not sure what changed, as it has been gradual and painless- enjoyable even- but somewhere along the way my ideas progressed.
And I have to remember this in my work. When I say ‘salad’ what I picture and what others picture can be drastically different.
No, no, don’t worry I’m not becoming raw! But I recently did 5 days of mostly raw and really learned a lot about raw food diets. Usually when I do a raw-ish few days it ends up very fruitarian-
Breakfast- bananas, apples, nut butter
Lunch- carrot/apple/ginger juice
Snacks- other fruits, kiwi are my favorite when I can find California-grown
Dinner- a gigantic salad with green leaf lettuce, cucumbers, tomatoes, bell peppers, avocado, carrots, walnuts, nutritional yeast and flax oil.
For a few days this is great, but I get bored pretty easily. Maybe it’s the equivalent of the pasta/marinara sauce vegan diet?
This time I wanted to expand my knowledge and experience with preparing raw foods and really challenge myself. It’s also healthy to get out of your own eating pattern to look at the habits you have developed. To anyone who says going vegan is easy, I challenge you to do 5 days raw! There was more than one occasion where I was standing in the local co-op, starving because I hadn’t prepared well, and the smell of vegan mac and cheese was killing me! After an internal debate about why in the world I was keeping myself from such deliciousness, which probably looked hilarious to on-lookers, I went with a seaweed salad and a raw garlic spread on collard greens. This is the dilemma that faces anyone making lifestyle changes and if you are someone who encourages behavior change you have to check yourself occasionally to remember what it’s like.
Also, during this time I finally sat down and read Becoming Raw, the terrific book written by super-star vegan Registered Dietitians Brenda Davis and Vesanto Melina. I picked it up from Book Publishing Co., who are also friends of mine, back at a nutrition conference in the fall.
I’ve been getting asked about raw food diets a lot lately and I’ve never been content with what I’ve read and the knowledge I have ascertained until I read this book. The authors painstakingly reference any research they could find related to raw food diets and discuss it using their expertise as Registered Dietitians and long-time vegans. I think true objectivity is impossible, despite what anyone says, but Davis and Melina are as close as possible. They include a history of raw-food theory written by Rynn Berry and explain contemporary versions of the diet; which is very helpful for anyone working with raw food clients.
My own professional opinion on raw foodism has always been pretty simple. It is an adequate diet where one can get all the nutrients they need (If B-12 is supplemented) and all of those fruits, vegetables, nuts and seeds provide phytochemicals and anti-oxidants in huge quantity, which is health-promoting and chronic disease fighting. But I don’t think there’s enough research to say that it is any better than a whole-foods based cooked vegan diet. I just don’t think foods like lentils and quinoa need to be eliminated. There are plenty of philosophical and environmental reasons to eat raw and I agree with them, which is why I include a plethora of raw food in my diet, but I’m just not convinced that being fully raw is different enough to justify limiting so many vegan options. Though I’ll continue to read the research and advise all of my clients to eat more raw food and to read Becoming Raw.
The authors were kind enough to let me post two recipes from their book. I made this Brilliant Broccoli salad on my first day raw and loved it so much I made it again the next day! The sum is greater than the parts where the tanginess of the lemon and cranberries are a perfect compliment to the strong taste of tahini- and broccoli florets are the perfect vehicle.
1 bunch broccoli
2 carrots, grated
1/2 small red onion, finely diced (I used about 1/4)
1/2 cup dried cranberries
1/4 sunflower seeds
Salt
3/4 cup Lemon-Tahini Dressing (recipe below)
Wash broccoli, remove stems. Peel and grate the stems and chop the broccoli tops into very small florets. Combine stems, florets, grated carrots, diced onion into bowl. Add dressing and stir well to coat the vegetables. Season with salt to taste. Add cranberries and sunflower seeds and toss briefly. Serve immediately!
1/2 cup water
1/3 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice
1/3 cup tahini
1/4 cup flaxseed oil (I used a little less)
3 T nama shoyu or tamari
2 T nutritional yeast
2 T maple syrup or other sweetener
2 garlic cloves
Salt
Ground black pepper
Combine in blender and and process on high speed for a few seconds until well blended. Makes about two salads worth.
This recipe for raw walnut tacos is not from Becoming Raw, but it was another meal I really enjoyed. I first experienced it when Brian Davidson and his wife Jenny made it for me back when he was fully raw. There are a number of raw walnut taco recipes on the internet and they all are basically a variation of the one below. Now you aren’t going to fool a carne-asada loving omnivore, but the similarity to tacos is striking. I love these!
1 1/2 C walnuts (some suggest soaking them in water briefly beforehand)
1.5 t ground cumin
1 t ground coriander
2 t nama shoyu, tamari or soy sauce
cayenne to taste
Ground walnuts in a blender or food processor until you have very small pieces. Place walnuts in a bowl and mix in remaining ingredients. Serve with tomatoes and avocados in lettuce or kale leaves.
What are your favorite raw vegan recipes? Please share them with me! And I really do recommend that all vegans do a raw food challenge and learn more about preparing and eating raw foods. Have a great weekend!
The main goal of our Day in the Life series is to show the world that vegan athletes exist and thrive on their diet and lifestyle. But as we make more episodes a second goal is developing: what crazy situations can we can put Matt in?! Today we spend the day cyclocross training in the snow and cold with bad-ass cyclist Cat Johnson in Boulder, Colorado.
How great is Cat?? I love her comment, ‘I went vegan for the cause!’ Veganism and bike racing: There are many ways to do it and you have to look around and see what fits your personality. Don’t rely on any one way to do either. Cyclocross is the most inclusive form of competitive cycling and in my opinion the most fun!
-No one in cyclocross cares how well you are doing as long as you are having fun. Like when she says, ‘No one cares if you are last’ and there I am, in last place in our training ride!
-There are beginner categories that are truly are beginner and inclusive.
-The courses are loops which makes it very spectator friendly. Bring your friends and fam to cheer you on!
-It’s a mix of skills- speed, bike handling, running, jumping- and this evens out the field.
-You can use almost any type of bike that can run fat tires. And many races rent cyclocross bikes!
-There are single-speed categories and even Single Speed World Championships!
-Some resources: Cycling Dirt, Cyclocross Magazine, the super fun SoCal Prestige Series in Southern California, and a Beginner’s Guide to Cyclocross on Active.com.
-Like Cat says about veganism, you can look to different people for different motivation and figure out which type of riding is best for you.
Your post-workout meal should be easily digestible, high in carbohydrate with some protein and be consumed shortly after your workout. This not only replaces the glycogen you expended, but helps to increase your glycogen storage– giving you more energy for your next workout. And even though protein builds strong muscles, those muscles are fueled by carbohydrate.
1.5 cups non-dairy milk like almond, rice or hemp (Hemp milk is higher in protein than other non-dairy, non-soy milk)
1/2 cup of frozen blueberries
1/2 cup frozen peaches
1 scoop Vega Performance Protein powder
What’s great about smoothies is how flexible they are! Remember our meal-replacing, peanut butter and banana smoothie with Brian from episode one? Cat’s smoothie is similar in that you can easily adjust the calorie ratios. The protein content can be adjusted by switching non-dairy milks and how much protein powder you add, or don’t add! For example I use a higher protein milk and don’t use protein powders. And for Omega-3 I use straight flax oil.
Cat would like to thank her coach Colby Pearce, who took us out on the training ride, her current sponsor Panache Cyclewear and her previous sponsors The Service Course and World Bicycle Relief. And thank you Cat for spending your day with us!
What’s your favorite recovery meal or smoothie? And if you have any cyclocross resources that I didn’t mention please leave them in the comments!
Post 2 about my bike packing trip from Seattle to Minneapolis. My first post was mostly stories and photos from the 15-day, 2064-mile bike trip; today I want to share about the gear I used.
I’ve now logged over 12,000 miles of bike touring since 2001 and each trip is different in some way. I’ve used road bikes, touring bikes, mountain bikes; ridden off-road, on-road, in other countries; I’ve camped with a tent, without a tent, etc. But for every trip there are constants: you need to sleep, you need to eat, you need to be protected from the elements and you need to somehow carry your gear on your bike. I call these ‘systems’. For example, riding SF to LA in 3 days I decided against carrying a cooking system and relied on snacks and burritos along the way. But for longer trips I want the option of cooking my own meals and making my own coffee when I wake up. Now what I’ve learned is you can have these comforts without carrying 40 pounds of gear. Below are the details for what I carried for a 15-day, 2000-mile trip.
In bike touring and in real life, we spend about 1/3 of our time sleeping so doing so comfortably is extremely important. When it’s dark and cold and you’ve a few more hours to ride it’s surprisingly helpful to know that you’ve a warm bag and soft pad to curl up with!
From left to right
Mountain Hardware 35 degree synthetic bag– This Spring bag weighs in at 2lb 4oz. Synthetic, has a hood, zips tight and is affordable.
Titanium Goat Ptarmigan bivy sac– A bivy sac is like a glorified sleeping bag; it’ll protect you from the elements with as little material as possible. This super simple one weighs in at 7oz and is as minimal as it gets. It won’t protect you from a rain storm, but helps with wind and light rain. I have the bug net hood option which makes it more breathable. My ‘normal’ bivy is an Outdoor Research Alpine that is super heavy-duty, but weighs 2 pounds.
Thermarest 3/4 sleeping pad- A pad is not only a soft surface to sleep on, it keeps you off the ground and much, much warmer. I made the mistake of not knowing this on my first big bike trip! This one is 8 years old and has been patched once. They make lighter, better ones now!
Tarp- keeps your stuff off the ground and helps it to last a bit longer. Worth its weight! This one is 11 yrs old, from my first bike trip, which I have cut down from tent size to bivy size.
Trangia West Wind stove– $30! Weighs about 3oz without the ‘windscreen’ which is really just a holder and not much of a screen. Runs on alcohol, which is cheap and easy to find. You just pour in and light! Unlike the DIY stoves you can store leftover fuel right in the stove. I carried additional fuel in a old 20-ounce soda bottle.
Wind screen from my MSR Dragonfly stove, cut down.
Snow Peak titanium spork– I carry this everywhere
Measuring cup- for coffee and when I had to separate foods
DIY pot holder- folded pieces of aluminum
lighter, waterproof matches, aluminum piece to put stove on, can opener
Gear
I rode in my Swarm! kit and had sleeves, knee warmers and a vest for cold weather.
Mountain Hardware goretex rain jacket. I prefer the non-cycling rain jackets as long as they have armpit zips. Also works as a regular, warm jacket! A good rain jacket is worth the initial expense and not a place to skimp. I’ve gone through enough cheap crappy ones that this investment is worth it. I didn’t bring rain pants. I figured if I’m riding and it’s raining I’ll stay warm enough.
Change of clothes for chillin in small towns. I bring a button-up shirt to make up for the poor hygiene. Patagonia zip-off pants and light weight minimal running shoes. Outside of my riding gear, rain jacket and one extra pair of socks this was my only clothing for 15 days.
Rack-less bags are all the rage. Without racks you have fewer things to fail and much less weight. My original Jandd rack weighs more than all of these bags together! Jill Homer wrote a great article about the benefits of a rack-less system (warning: PDF!) and the Adventure Cycling Association has started to carry these bags in their online store.
Two very small companies are leading the way in the progression to rack-less bags, Revelate and Carousel Design Works. The seat bag below is from Carousel Designs and the handlebar bag (along with the pocket and dry bag) are from Revelate. Both are brilliantly designed and built to last. Though, as much as I hate to diss small companies, I have to say I had a very, very hard time getting either of these bags. Weeks to return emails, promised deadlines not reached, unanswered calls…super frustrating. If you are going to order from either of them make sure you have an unlimited amount of patience and time before you need your gear. Maybe they are improving, but from the sound of things on the Bike Packing forums they are not (maybe time to check out the DIY bag forum?). My other two bags, the ones attached to the top tube were one-offs made by my good friend Chris. The top one was used to store snacks and the one that sits in the triangle stores tools, fuel, lights, etc. My friend Errin Vasquez has been making his own bags too.
From years and years of carrying a messenger bag, I don’t mind wearing a bag on my back. They key is to carry bulky- but light- items in it, like your sleeping pad and shoes. I like this Deuter Bag because it has a light internal frame and space which keeps it off your back- and therefore less sweaty. I rarely carried water in it, but it was nice for those few 100 degree days I had. I’d link to it but mine is super old and it looks much different now…
I carry the same stuff as I do on a day ride: multi-tool, pump, tire levers, patch kit; and for touring I include a few ‘just in case’ bits like a tire patch, spare chain links and a few spare bolts. You medical kit and hygiene needs are more individual and items that are figured out as you go on more and longer trips. Mine are pretty basic- I do cut my toothbrush and brush my teeth with Dr. Bronner’s, which also doubles as a cleaning agent when your pot needs it.
For lights I used my commuter blinkies and the Princeton EOS bike light which can be mounted on your helmet or handlebar and be used as a headlamp.
New on this trip, I carried a lock. It’s not much, but this lightweight Knog lock could be the difference between someone riding off with your bike or not.
Handlebar bag and pocket, recently filled with vegan chocolates.
Breakfast time. Often I’d sleep one place and then roll to somewhere with a table to make breakfast. I usually only carried one day of food at a time. If you are traveling lighter you can go faster and get to stores more often.
Another view of my fully-loaded bike.
My bike is a custom steel frame from Seven with close to 50,000 miles on it. I’ve a mix of Dura Ace and Ultegra along with Ksyrium SL wheels- weighs in at about 18 pounds. What if I broke a spoke? Well, that would have been bad. Faith in Vagueness!
I didn’t actually weigh everything, but my guess is that my gear comes in under 15 pounds. It’s traveling light, but still comfortable without spending an insane amount of money. You could easily go lighter, if that’s your goal. But for me this trip was about having fun and traveling light in order for it to be easier. When you go too light it starts to get hard again. And to me bike touring is all about fun!
I hope this list is helpful and if you are thinking about a bike trip in 2012, you should do it! Nothing beats bike touring.