Brave – Sara Bareilles
Cool Down
Some Nights – Fun.
Oh What a World – Rufus Wainwright
Day 9, April 7, 2014
“A dream’s a dream”
—Jack Johnson, “Dreams Be Dreams”
Around this time last year, my father-in-law, Roland Walker, died. Before he was diagnosed with Lou Gehrig’s disease (ALS), which he battled for eighteen months, he was a savvy criminal defense attorney in Baltimore. He turned eighty-three in the fall of 2013 but embodied the phrase, “Eighty is the new sixty.” He was an avid cyclist, and he worked out daily in the gym he had built in his Baltimore home. As ALS began to take away his ability to walk or to move his arms, he used his courtroom charm to persuade his Johns Hopkins physician to prescribe physical therapy. The physician told him to think through whether physical therapy was the right approach.
“If it makes you feel better, then do it,” the doctor told him. “If it tires you out and saps your energy so you’re unable to spend time with your family, then I wouldn’t recommend it. Physical therapy will not help you walk or hold things in your hand.”
Tough words. No one was surprised when Roland refused to accept this as his reality and set up his PT appointments. By the time he struggled to inhale his last gulps of air, he had lived many months beyond the average ALS patient of his age.
It’s not a stretch to reason that he lasted as long as he did because he took care to stay in shape throughout his later years.
It was Roland who introduced me to the incredible Northern Central Railroad bike trail in Monkton. He befriended the owner of the local bike shop and convinced him to let him store his gear so he wouldn’t have to lug it around in his two-seater. His enthusiasm for boxing, football, biking, fishing, and exercising in general was infectious, and I think I can speak for his children and their spouses when I suggest most of our biking trips—and probably all of our fishing trips—were Roland’s idea. He wasn’t much of a baseball fan, but he liked me, so if I bought the tickets to Camden Yards, he’d go.
A few days before Roland’s death, when we all knew it was close to the end, one of his daughters, my sister-in-law Nicole Upton, made a commitment to herself to get fit and lose weight. By now, Nicole has lost 52 pounds, and her goal is to lose 20 more. In a similar way to what I had been doing, she devised a workout and diet regimen and held herself accountable by following through every single day. The results are absolutely amazing. She acknowledges how hard it’s been but how much she continues to value the payoff. Nicole was one of the people who inspired me to get serious.
Adorable and I had a brief conversation about inspiration versus motivation. Some clients—not just his—want a trainer to motivate them, he said. This approach to training is common in the military. Think drill sergeant.
I am inspired by people, music, art, I said. What motivates me is moi.
Over the weekend I shopped for and prepared meals I wanted to have ready to go. For afternoon snacks, I made granola from Cannell et Vanille with changes and additions kitchen-tested by my sister-in-law Susan Walker. In addition to being absolutely fantastic and enlightened, the cinnamony smells linger for almost as long as a piece of salmon cooked on the stove. I’ve been making this granola for my family ever since Susan shared it with me. Unfortunately, I developed a sudden allergy to nuts, so while I continue to make this granola, I’m sadly not the one who gets to enjoy it, unless I swap out the almonds and pistachios for peanuts.
Whenever possible, I’m using my weekends to roast seasonal vegetables. My favorites are beets, Brussels sprouts, cauliflower, baby eggplant, broccoli, and bell peppers. For lunches, I add these to greens and my baked tofu or leftover grilled fish.
I’ve started to pick up clementines for snacking after work and before yoga or training.
For dinners, I’ve made Channa Masala a staple in my repertoire, and I’m serving it with wilted kale, collard, mustard greens, and whatever yogurt sauce I can whip together on top of half a piece of whole wheat naan. (The Channa Masala recipe is adapted from chef Rupen Rao from an Indian cooking class I took with Lord Baltimore and my sister Ilene Lish, along with her husband, Ethan Lish. The recipe is also on the side of the box of the Channa Masala spice tin.) This is so good and easy to make. Some of the Indian spices are hard to find, but Rupen Rao sells his spice collections online, which is helpful.
In the mornings before workouts, I’ve replaced the slice of toast with a banana and a small glass of freshly squeezed orange juice made the old-fashioned way with a hand juicer, so I’m getting the juice, pulp, and even some seeds. I’m crossing my fingers that the vitamin C will help me fend off a threatening cold. So far, no traces of a bug, although the seeds may be lingering. (TMI?)
Tomorrow is a training day. I’m glad I had three days to recover from Friday’s early morning session, because I did not feel the full effect of what we did until Sunday. I guess it takes a few days for traumatized connective tissues to secrete fluid and become inflamed. Impressed?
Tonight, I worked to find that sweet spot in Christopher’s yin yoga class.
“But if you work too hard to find it, you can’t enjoy it; if you don’t work hard enough, you lose focus and your mind wanders.”
Christopher is like the Yoda of yin. Roland would have been so into him.
Enlightened Granola
Adapted from Cannell et Vanille
Ingredients
3 cups extra-thick rolled oats
1½ cups nuts and seeds. I use a combination of slivered almonds, pistachios, sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds, and unsweetened shredded coconut
½ cup apple juice
½ cup maple syrup
¼ cup olive oil
2 Tbsp. pure vanilla extract
½ tsp. ground cinnamon
1 tsp. fine sea salt
1½ cup dried fruit. I use raisins, dried cranberries, dried blueberries, and dried strawberries, if I can find them.
Instructions
1 Preheat oven to 325 degrees Fahrenheit (160 degrees Celsius).
2 Combine the oats, nuts, and seeds in a large bowl.
3 Combine the apple juice, maple syrup, olive oil, vanilla extract, cinnamon, and sea salt in a small bowl.
4 Pour the liquid over the dry ingredients and toss to coat.
5 Spread the mixture evenly on a baking sheet coated with parchment paper.
6 Bake for 40 minutes until golden. Stir the mixture after 20 minutes to make sure it is evenly baked.
7 Let the granola cool completely. It will become crunchier as it sits.
8 Stir in the dried fruit when completely cool.
9 Store in an
