This coming Saturday, July 24th, Chicago’s Chinatown Chamber of Commerce, in partnership with the Mayor’s Office of Special Events and the Chicago Park District will present the 10th Annual Chicago Dragon Boat Race for Literacy http://bit.ly/cGlVY5.

Dragon boat racing has a long and interesting history, if you’re curious, learn more here: http://bit.ly/coP2w7

Over 30 teams will compete on ornately decorated dragon boats propelled by 20 members: 18 paddlers, 1 drummer, and 1 flag catcher. I’m one of the 18 paddlers.

My husband and I were introduced to dragon boat racing by one of his former co-workers. This will be our 3rd year as members of the “Dragon Pirates”; here’s YouTube footage from one of our 2007 races (the team participates in several throughout the day, moving on or not based on wins/losses) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-uu8VUdS-5U.

This year I’m proud to be a sponsor of the team through my company, NutriFit, Inc. We’ll display the company logo and website on the back of our shirts, and the team doesn’t know it yet, but I’m leading some warm up drills before we hit the boats. Paddling full throttle the length of the race without warming and loosening up could be a recipe for disaster - and we can’t win with injured pirates!

Upper body, particularly shoulders, chest and back, and core strength are the driving forces that propel us along the race route. Women naturally lack significant upper body strength, but a consistent strength training routine of shoulder presses, lateral and front delt lifts, bent over rows, and lat pull downs are good exercises for creating a strong base to build greater strength from. I’ve upped my routine over the last couple of weeks, adding in some rotational work and rotator cuff exercises.

Combine strength training, teamwork, a will to win, a strong drum cadence, lots of fluid and plenty of energy bars http://bit.ly/9xbJfF (which I’d best get to baking), and we’re set.

If you’re in the Chicago area, come cheer us on! Supporting literacy by racing up and down the Chicago river with a dragon-headed boat full of friends is a fun way to help bring attention and awareness to a cause that’s near to my heart. The ability to read opens minds, possibilities, and windows of opportunity - can you even imagine if you couldn’t?

Before my husband and I were even married, there was one characteristic (of many, of course) that particularly attracted me to my then boyfriend. He was physically fit, cared about what he ate, although not in an obsessive, crazy sort of way, and had long been a proponent of both. I loved to run, bike, and do aerobics, and although I wasn’t a dietitian then, I did value the importance of a healthy diet. Sort of a match made in heaven, right?

Fast forward through what in October 2010 will be 20 years of married life, and he maintains the status quo. Although I would say he’s taken it up a notch. Before we were married, and during the early years of our married life he ran, biked, and worked out at the health club - like lots of people. But this Saturday he will compete in his 8th triathalon, the Evergreen Lake Triathlon in Normal, IL http://bit.ly/90pQl7 - which is not like lots of people!

Although I’m a personal trainer and run my own private personal training and fitness studio, I don’t train my husband; but I am in charge of feeding him - my other professional specialty! How do I keep him fueled, healthy, and ready to compete? Two words; real food. And plenty of it.

With the exception of the GU and electrolyte drink he uses on the bike, I don’t feed him special supplemental foods, protein drinks, or gimmicky sport specific items. I cook and we eat foods that most everyone has in their pantry. The exception that I take with our food is that I go for “nutrient-density” for the calorie buck. In other words, empty calorie foods don’t really make either one of us feel very good (and who needs that?), but it’s not to say we’re living on sprouts and water, for heaven’s sake. 

I prepare whole wheat pasta, a variety of rices, from brown to jasmine to basmati to wild, high fiber, low sugar cereals - with a strong leaning toward oatmeal (not flavored and not in a packet), high fiber, whole wheat breads, English muffins and pita, heart healthy spreads and oils, organic non-fat milk, yogurt, and kefir, dried beans of all sorts, from black to garbanzo to butter, and lentils of red and brown, salmon, shrimp, and scallops, tofu, tempeh, and eggs, a wide variety of nuts, and a steady intake of 70% dark chocolate. Not to mention that there is near panic when our enormous fresh fruit bowl is close to empty and the veggie bins in the fridge are looking lonely - there’s fruit and/or a vegetable at every meal.

I love to bake, and my repertoire consists of whole grain fruit and nut cookies and fruit-based desserts like crumbles, crisps and cobblers. See, that doesn’t sound like punishment does it?

One final note; no one eats a perfect diet, not even in the home of a dietitian! But making healthy, nutritious food a priority, eating to fuel your life and your sport, and home-cooked vs. restaurant food helps balance out those occasional trips for a summer after-dinner ice cream. . .DQ anyone?

I recently visited family in another city and dined at an Italian restaurant. Now, I’ve been to Italy; twice. I know a bit about Italian food, the focus on and pride in local ingredients, the communal spirit that embraces family and/or friends who share a meal, and how unbelievably fresh and healthy the food can be.

But any hope I had that this restaurant might follow the true tradition of Italian food was lost when I read this description of one particular dish on their menu, “Sausage, meatballs, pepper and mushrooms in a rich marinara over penne pasta and baked with mozzarella and parmesan cheese. You eat it all and receive a Free _____ Tee Shirt!” Seriously?! Come on, there isn’t a restaurant in the entire country of Italy that would offer someone a free tee shirt in exchange for hedonistic gluttony.

I’ve intentionally removed the restaurant’s name, as my goal is not to bash the place. But even if it were, I somehow doubt it would matter much; the place was packed with diners who appeared completely nonplussed at the sheer volume of food they gleefully gobbled off groaning plates.

Here’s the crazy part. One of the diners in my party (yes, a family member for heaven’s sake) ordered that exact dish. In their defense (this person shall remain nameless), the “orderer” was not expecting what showed up and they most certainly didn’t come anywhere close to “eating it all”.

Now, considering my profession, some people who dine at the same table as me get a little “confessional” about their meal choices. I always remind them that I’m not the food police, and please, how fun is it for me to be labeled that unfairly?? Well, the same held true in this situation. Really, what would I even say?  

But I did take a photo - and warned my fellow diner that they’d never know where the pic might show up! And here it is, albeit a little blurry, for your viewing pleasure.

Afterward, what remained was packed up and taken home to serve as a meal for two the following evening. And even after THAT there was enough left that it could be packed into a freezer container for later - yikes! Thoughts?