Kristine Contento-Angell

Category: nutrition

  • Rolling with the unexpected, March 2018

    Rolling with the unexpected, March 2018

    The slew of Nor’easters this past March has been a real downer for my race schedule. All four of the Cross Country & Short Track races I had planned to ease back into the racing mindset have all been cancelled.

    The silver lining is that I have been able to spend more quality time with my family. I’ve had more time to focus on diet/nutrition & interval workouts & high effort training. In fact, I’ve achieved a number of personal training PR’s this month. On the nutrition front, I’ve been playing around with the Paleo Leap meal planner and found a new favorite salad recipe (included below).

    Whole Food, Paleo nutrition plan

    My high school mtb team, Essex Offroad, has also been suffering with limited trail time. But we were fortunate enough to gain access to a giant parking lot (Thank you Metal Cutting Corp!) and we’ve held a few skills sessions in that space.

    Coaching mtb team Essex Offroad

    MTB skills coaching - Essex Offroad

    The other shining moment of March was the arrival of my 2018 race whip – a Santa Cruz Highball! A big thank you to Pedal Montclair, Juliana Bicycles & Santa Cruz bicycles for setting me up this year. Their ongoing support has been amazing & inspiring.

    It’s a bit torturous to have such a beautiful weapon in my grasp and have no trails to ride it on! I decided to go with a hardtail this year to accommodate some of the less technical race courses I encounter through the season. And with my Juliana Joplin to attack the rocky, East Coast race courses, I’m perfectly equipped to handle everything on my schedule.

    With that in mind, I’m insanely excited to see how the Bonelli Park US Cup race & the Sea Otter races go. Wish me luck!

     

    Blueberry & Orange Salad
    (adapted from PaleoLeap.com)
    Ingredients:

    • baby spinach
    • fresh blueberries
    • 2 oranges, peeled and sliced
    • 1 avocado, pitted and diced
    • 1/4 red onion, sliced thinly
    • Walnuts

    Dressing:

    • 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
    • 1 tbsp. fresh lemon juice
    • 3 tbsp. fresh orange juice
    • Juice of 1 lime
    • Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

    Put all the ingredients on a plate or in a bowl. Whisk together the dressing ingredients. Pour dressing over salad.

     

     

  • July 2017 Upate

    July 2017 Upate

    Racing

    Port Peter Pounder – H2H race series, Port Jervis, NY

    July started out on a decent note. Port Peter Pounder in NY – I loved this course, was having a great race but smashed my wheel on a sharp rock and flatted big time. Normally that’s not a big deal but I had some difficulty getting the tubeless valve out and breaking the tire bead. Eventually I got it rolling again, put the hammer down and got back into the pack.

    Pro XCT – Eastern Grind – VT

    Tough day of racing. Love this venue, plenty of gnar, great A-lines and some seriously flowy sections of trail. The heat was brutal, as was the climbing.

    Kenda Cup East – Eastern Grind

    I had a much better day of racing at this one, I felt relaxed and consistent. A top 5 finish in a Kenda cup race has been on my bucket list for a couple years now – I didn’t expect to check that one off, particularly after feeling sludge-like the the day before, so I was absolutely THRILLED when I came through in 3rd.

    Pro STXC – Short Track

    Just lining up with this caliber of racer is a win in my book, so despite being thoroughly FRIED form the Kenda Cup race in the morning, I was stoked to give this one a shot. It seems to me that every moment in this realm contributes to my bank of racing experience, providing confidence and knowledge for future races. As expected, my tank was empty, but I enjoyed the small battle I had at the back, gave it my all and left the weekend on an absolute high.

    Nationals! Snowshoe WV

    A bit of bad luck – I sprained my ankle on day one of Enduro Nationals. That put me out for the rest of the week (no short track or xc). But the town is really cute, and atmosphere is great and I had a fun time being tech support for my son, and photographer for other racers.

    Training

    This year I’ve been focusing on proper recovery food after training and racing – adding a solid dose of protein into my system right away. Seems to be contributing to quicker recovery and less “post race-day hangovers”. One means of doing so is smoothies with protein poweder and a scoop of BCAA’s.

    Family Vacation

    Spent a week mid-July in San Fran, CA with my family. The kids & I spent one day biking all around the city.

  • Holiday binge eating blues

    Holiday binge eating blues

    The holidays are in full force and aren’t going to let up until the New Year. For me, that means eating a ton of delicious but heavy foods. It’s the off season – a time to chill out and eat to my hearts content. … BUT… feeling like a tub-o-lard isn’t really enjoyable.

    When I’ve had a few days of over-eating at holiday meals, I swap this delicious super salad into my diet and the bloated, lethargic feeling is kept at bay.

    Get the goods:

    • Shredded red cabbage
    • Shredded kale
    • Shredded brussels sprouts(if you’re short on time, some grocery stores (Fairway Markets for one) has this mix shredded & packaged)
    • Quinoa
    • Olive oil
    • Balsamic Vinegar
    • Salt & Pepper
    • Any combination of toppings – apple cubes, nuts (walnuts, pine nuts, almonds), leftover meat (beef, pork, chicken all work great), dried fruits (cranberries, raisins, ect), or cooked sweet potatoe cubes.

    Easy to make:

    1. Prepare Quinoa – follow the specifics on the package – typically you’d rinse it, put it in a pot with water or broth (2x liquid to qunioa) and simmer, covered, for 15-20 mins (the liquid should be absorbed).
    2. In a big salad bowl, start with a base of shredded cabbage, shredded kale and shredded  brussels sprouts.
    3. Dump the warm Quinoa onto the salad.
    4. Drizzle olive oil & balsamic vinegar over it.
    5. Sprinkle salt & pepper.
    6. Toss.
    7. Add any combination of toppings. Picture above has apple cubes (gala or honey crisp work great) walnuts & raisins.
    8. Toss it again and dig in.

    Do you have a trick for beating holiday binge eating?