B-A-N-A-N-A-S

Thank you Gwen Stefani for teaching me that 'banana' does not actually have a double 'n' after the first like I admit I've always thought.  If you don't know what the heck I'm goofily referring to, GO BACK TO THE TURN OF THE CENTURY AND LISTEN TO CHEEZY POP/ROCK.

Anyway...

Since I started distance running last spring (training began in January though so really since then), people have told me I'm crazy. psycho. loony. bananas. Whatever word they used, they've been complimenting me by putting me down. How's that work? I'm not a fan. People, these are mixed signals. You tell me I'm crazy but keep it up--you can't just redefine 'crazy' like that.

Now, there are also some people who tell me I'm crazy and mean it--not in the sense that I need to be put in a mental hospital to be treated for psychosis right away (or ever), but meaning that they don't think it's a well thought out idea. I can appreciate and respect those comments regarding my craziness much faster than the others. Yes, I like being propped up but the idea of saying something demeaning as encouragement does not sit well with me.

Whatever the case, whoever the commenter, thank you for thinking about me and caring enough to say something--good or bad. Your words keep me motivated...and keep me humble. But, honestly, I'm doing this for me. At first, I wanted to do this to make my mom be able to be proud of me for something. She's been a runner (though nothing more than a 10K) for as long as I can remember and so I figured she'd be able to connect with what I was doing and find something respectable and prideful in it. Well, I stopped holding my breath on that one. She encourages me to keep it up but it's not exactly the achievement of relational bonding I had hoped for...and that's okay (no lies, it was disappointing for awhile but that's how it is). I run for me. I run to help control my asthma. I run to clear my head. I run to feel. I run to be in the moment. I run to eat chocolate chip pancakes. I run to be proud of myself for doing something I thought I could never do.

And while we are talking about bananas, I just made 

gluten free, dairy free 

BANANA PANCAKES!

1 banana

1/2 c. egg whites

3 tbsp. almond flour

mash

pour 

flip

cool

eat

YOU CAN EAT THE WHOLE BATCH FOR

less than 200 calories 

(actual calorie count depends on the size of the banana)

approx 18g. protein

1 serving of fruit

100% YUM