Earth Fare: A grocery experience

I died and went to heaven.

Or, I drove to the other side of town and finally visited the Earth Fare that opened recently.

The organic grocery store is the first of its kind in my tiny pocket of northeast Indiana. While we do have a Fresh Market, there is not a store of this size or one with similar buying power devoted to healthy living and organic produce. The opening had people so excited that the northeast store had caused traffic back-ups and shopping was cart-to-cart, according to friends who live in the area and went to explore.

If you are unfamiliar with Earth Fare, the company says that, "What really sets Earth Fare apart from other stores is the list of things we don't offer...like any products containing high fructose corn syrup, trans fats, artificial colors and sweeteners, and synthetic growth hormones in fresh meat and dairy. We believe food should be as close to the ground as it gets, and we are proud to read the labels so you don't have to!"

According to me, what sets Earth Fare apart is the taste of big city shopping that we just don't have here. The store was clean and bright, the signs were fun and bold and the selection was wide. I was particularly happy to see things like bulk bins for nuts, grains and beans that I don't have at my neighborhood Kroger (though some of the nicer ones do).

There was also freshly ground nut butters and dispensers for honey, agave and maple syrup. Again, given what's available in the city and my neighborhood, especially, it was all so novel. If I didn't have self restraint and serious hunger pangs from HIIT training, I might have gotten all the stuffs as everyone needs 10 pounds of nut butter.

Rather, I limited myself to a few choice things including Lemon Lime Zevia, which I had not seen before, a few bars for California and a special treat for Mark - specialty raviolis from the bulk pasta bins. I was sure that the goat cheese sundried tomato variety would make up for my cross-country solo trip. I even got fresh Parmesan to complement the dish.

I will say that my one moment of weakness came when I spotted the salad and hot bars. I was hungry, tired and the cucumber-tomato salad I had packed seemed less than sexy compared to some of the things I spotted. And, the hot bar is oh-so-cool. Right? Maybe. Not so much if you live in a major metropolitan area (and are thus not even reading this because you don't care about my Earth Fare).

But I resisted. If anything, it gives me a reason to go back.

Running the town pink: A race recap

I have always wanted to run a Mother's Day Race. Well, at least for my past three years as a mother runner. I even went as far as to solicit a prominent Fort Wayne race director to start a race - just for me.

Reality check: I am not that cool. But, I did get my wish. Sort of.

Look! I'm in the lead. Pro Compression star socks for the win!

Three Rivers Running Company (my running store) teamed up with the Vera Bradley Foundation for Breast Cancer and the Lutheran Health Network to present the Pink Ribbon Run. Saturday's first-year event featured a 4-mile run and a 2-mile walk around the Lutheran Hospital campus. The race raised money for breast cancer research, a cause close to my heart, and last I heard the total passed $1,000. It was a good reason to run even if it was the day before Mother's Day!

Race details

Cost:  $25 race registration
Start time: 9 a.m.
Course: The 4-miler had two out and backs plus a weird little zig-zag. There were some wee hills but nothing crazy.
Results: Chip start/finish of 34:25. Third in AG, 51st overall (my running friend beat me for top 50 by 0.02 second)
Swag: T-shirt, water bottle and a sweet Vera Bradley reusable tote. AG prizes, which were two deep (of course, since I was third), were a VB lunch tote for second and a pink VB bag for first.

Race goals

C: Get it done, plus a 2-mile warmup and 2-mile cool down for 8 miles total
B: Finish in 34 minutes, an 8:30 pace
A: Best 4-mile PR of 32: 31

Well, if you read the race details then you know I didn't make my "A" or "B" goals for the race. And that's OK. I feel good about the race.

Four thoughts for 4 miles

1. I ran the race entirely on effort. I had my Garmin on but switched the display to just show the time. I wanted to run hard and not be tempted to slow down or speed up based on what I saw. I also wanted to stop the self defeat that I allow to creep in when I am not hitting the numbers I want. And it worked. I ran two strong first miles (8:05 and 8:06), which fulfilled the week's tempo run. I really slowed the third mile, as I stopped for water and a brief moment to walk because I thought I might puke. It was 9:17. If I had been looking at my watch, I would have been tempted to throw in the towel but I rallied in the fourth mile. 8:17.

2. I came into this race with very tired legs. I had ran three times that week and led two boot camp classes, as well as my Ripped class at the YMCA. My legs spent the better part of Wednesday through Friday in a state of pronounced soreness. I did a light session on the elliptical on Friday to get the legs moving and help them along. It worked but I still felt heavy once we started racing.

3. I finished feeling like I was going to vomit. I have no doubt that I ran the hardest race I could on that day.

4. I ran the warm up and cool down, so I made my C goal and got in a long run for ZOOMA Napa Valley.

Post script

♦ Big thanks to those who took photos for the Fort Wayne Track Club and Three Rivers Running Company. Even if you didn't make me look good.

♦ By the way ... why are race photos such a sucker punch to the self esteem? I will not say more because no one needs to hear me bash myself.

♦ Earth Fare was one of the sponsors and had a massive table of bananas, water and other post-race goodies. They just opened up a store in Fort Wayne, and my excitement is beyond epic. I might have shamelessly pulled the blog card.

♦ I really hope they do this race again. I love the cause, like the course and think it's nice to have a race on Mother's Day weekend.