Minimalist Athlete

Dedicated to a plant-based balanced lifestyle, endurance training and sports nutrition Lake Awosting, Shawangunk Range, New York

[minimalisttraining]

I just read your blog about when you had a lipoma on your back on your Lat muscle area. Im thankful for your blog since it made me feel less worried about my diagnosis. I just discovered one in the same spot on the right side on my back. Going to see a surgeon tomorrow about removing it as mine is close to the same size yours was. I had a couple questions if it's ok: Did any other lipomas show up since then? Did anyone ever give you an idea about how you got one?

So glad to hear this post helped you.   I’ve had no other lipomas since the surgery and was not given any explanation as to why this happened in the first place.  The surgery went well and I recovered quickly

[minimalisttraining]

Orange Maca Cacao Bars

Trinitario cacao beans from Costa Rica, maca & orange extract.  Rich in antioxidants and adaptogenic effects.  Yum!

1 cup cacao paste

1/2 tsp organic orange oil

1 tbsp gelatinized maca

4 tbsp raw agave

Read about cacao and traditional chocolate

[minimalisttraining]

Beautiful trip to Costa Rica full of wild beauty, kind people, great food and lots of adventure!

[minimalisttraining]

5hr horseback ride through jungle to waterfall with great lunch of avocado and home made corn tortillas. #costarica

[minimalisttraining]

Costa Rica Day 1. Four hours of jungle driving through clouds on very windy roads to get to our jungle cabin. Beautiful. Also found a wonderful vegetarian Israeli restaurant with the best swarma ever!

[minimalisttraining]

making another batch of my raw Aztec bars (cacao, chia, maca and a few other secret ingredients)

[minimalisttraining]

Great training run today at my favorite place #MohonkPreserve

[minimalisttraining]

Cacao Almond Butter Cups #mksportsnutrition

[minimalisttraining]

My first energy bar recipe which I'm calling "Aztec Bars".   These have a lot of subtle flavors with a great balance of macronutrients and superfoods including: dried cherries, cacao nibs, cacao powder, hemp seeds, almonds, cloves and dates

[minimalisttraining]

Bloomed Wild Rice Salad #mksportsnutrition

[minimalisttraining]

Heirloom Carrot,Coconut Yogurt,Cumin Crisp #mksportsnutrition

[minimalisttraining]

Spiced Açai Energy Bar.  #mksportsnutrition

[minimalisttraining]

Super-Berry Frenzy #mksportsnutrition

[minimalisttraining]

Hey! I saw that you're monitoring your heart rate variability for training purposes. I'm not training for anything, but recently started monitoring my heart rate variability. Do you have any good info or links for info on a normal range for heart rate variability? I can't seem to find anything on what a healthy range would be

Great question.   From what I understand your range is some what specific to your own unique physiology so you need to first establish a baseline (i.e. average number) then track it over time.   It also depends on the device you are using to track HRV which often use different algorithms / scales to track HRV.  I use the ithlete app (see link below) and track my HRV every morning right after I wake up before I eat or drink anything.  I've also noticed that my HRV range goes down when I'm over training, stressed or am not getting enough sleep.  In that way it seems much more sensitive than a standard resting pulse rate type of test.  For what it's worth my range according to ithlete is between 70-90 (while I'm training 5-6 times per week).   I would also check out Phil Maffetone's summary on HRV which is pretty helpful and includes an FAQ from the makers of the ithlete app.   Hope this helps.   

Great Overview Info on HRVhttp://www.philmaffetone.com/hrv

The App I Use for Tracking HRVhttp://myithlete.com/ithlete-HRV-App.html#.U-uLd7xdW1U

[minimalisttraining]

zucchini pasta with carrot shavings, cashews, red cabbage and cilantro in a ginger sesame almond sauce

[minimalisttraining]

Making a big batch of dehydrated caramelized red onions and "anchovy" shiitake mushrooms

[minimalisttraining]

Flavoring my nut cheeses. Will post back final results in a few days :-) 1. Chipotle, sun dried tomato and cilantro cashew cheese with a splash of lime juice 2. Curry, ginger and cilantro cashew cheese with a splash of lime juice