Hey all! It’s no surprise that what you eat can affect your performance and health. As an example, I was feeling unwell Sunday. It’s rare, but I was so tired and weak by the end of the day that I came home and went to bed at literally 7:20 PM. I woke up after about two hours, feeling hot and my throat was very raw.
As many of you know, I believe in whole food nutrition. As Hippocrates said, “Let food be thy medicine and medicine be thy food.” This is also evidenced through the methods I must use to help take care of my eighty-year old mother – who refuses to go to a doctor.
So as I got up to make my “remedy”. You can make this as a salad or, if you don’t think you can eat, as a blended smoothie. A Nutribullet or similar blender also has the advantage of emulsifying the food, as raw vegetables can be harder to digest. My mother has said that if the illness wouldn’t kill her, that drink would – ha, but it works.
I also used this when I fell ill before Pike’s Peak Marathon and I had no issues during the race.
The ingredients are 2 oranges, 2 carrots, 1/2 a small onion, 1 inch fresh ginger root and 2 cloves garlic. The ingredients boost the immune system and are antibacterial in the body. I mixed this with fresh chopped romaine and spinach and made a vinaigrette dressing of raw honey (antibacterial and antiviral), Dijon mustard (anti-inflammatory), and apple cider vinaigrette (antiviral and anti-inflammatory).
The benefits to athletes of whole food eating are numerous!! If you want more they touch on this in one of my favorite podcasts, “The Science of Ultra”, episode 48, “Recovery and the Immune System”, with Oliver Neubauer, PhD.
The salad is not plated – I was feeling so unwell that I just used the mixing bowl and went back to bed!! The next day I can report that I was mostly better with a 17-mile long run…. 
If you want more information on how living a holistic, healthy lifestyle can benefit you as an athlete, feel free to contact me! As well, check out your options for help to run your best! Have a great day!
