Currently on Hal Higdon's Intermediate 5K Training Plan. Hal Higdon is one of the GOATs in the training world and here's an excellent profile on him from the New York Times.

For my previous races I used the Nike Run Club training plans (5K, 10K, Half-Marathon). You don't need to use the app, just download the plans. My only note is that the interval workouts are convoluted AF so I had to make adaptations.

My Diet

I went vegetarian after watching Earthlings.

CAVA, Juiceland, Snarf's Sandwiches, Sweetgreen and Soup Peddler are where I get most of my meals from in Austin. Trader Joe's and Sprouts for life.

My Nutrition As A Vegetarian Runner

Protein for Muscle Repair & Growth

• Lentils, chickpeas, quinoa, tofu, tempeh, edamame, Greek yogurt, cottage cheese, and plant-based protein powders.

Carbohydrates for Energy

• Whole grains (brown rice, quinoa, oats), sweet potatoes, whole wheat bread, fruits, and vegetables.

Healthy Fats for Energy & Recovery

• Avocados, nuts, seeds, olive oil, and nut butters.

Iron & B12

• Spinach, lentils, beans, quinoa, fortified cereals, and pumpkin seeds. Pair iron-rich foods with vitamin C (e.g., bell peppers, oranges) to enhance absorption.
• B12: It's harder to get B12 on a vegetarian diet, so fortified foods (cereals, nutritional yeast) or a B12 supplement as it’s crucial for energy metabolism.

Calcium & Vitamin D

• Leafy greens, fortified plant-based milks, tofu, and almonds for calcium. Make sure to get enough sunlight or consider a vitamin D supplement if you're not getting much sun exposure, as it's important for bone health, especially with the high-impact nature of running.

Check out the Research post for more.

Overview

I'm using these apps to track my stats: Oak Meditation, Down Dog Yoga, Sadhguru and Wim Hof Method. To export this data I'm using HealthExportCSV on iPhone.

Asanas

Asanas are the postures that you may recognize as yoga. I practice Ashtanga Yoga, which has six series, each with a sequence of poses to master. I've found that it helps my physical and mental health to practice a few days every week. Most days I do 15+ minute sessions as part of my morning routine.

You can find the full list of poses online, but here's a 30 minute intro session on YouTube by Leslie Fightmaster.

Breathing Exercises

Through yoga I dabbled in the Wim Hof world as well. Now I've settled on three rounds of breathing exercises each morning when I wake up, followed by meditation and yoga. I feel that the breathing exercises wake my body up and get me prepared for meditation.

Meditation

There are many techniques - do your research. Here's my typical approach:

While sitting on a meditation cushion I focus on breathing in a relaxed steady rhythm. Sometimes my eyes are closed, sometimes I'm focused on an object in front of me. Thoughts, ideas and noise come and go but I refocus the mental laser on the present moment through breathing. Over lots of practice sessions and applied focus, thoughts don't come as easily and the rest of the world falls away.

Overview

Yeah, I know.

Whenever I hear people talk about hippy dippy stuff I get weirded out too. But here's the point - this is just another system of ethics and discipline. A lot of these concepts exist in other places like Buddhism, Stoicism, Sufism, Taoism and so on. Add your -ism here.

There's insane stuff in any book that doesn't make sense or wouldn't be appropriate in our modern era. And keep in mind that all of these systems have been heavily edited with context relevant to the people of that time and place.

But the more you study across these ideas the root appears to be the same. Be a nice person, manage yourself and work hard on the responsibilities you have. It's just another way of living.

Thousands of years ago someone named Patanjali wrote down a series of practices called Ashtanga Yoga. You can buy or download that text, The Yoga Sutras of Patanjali, pretty much anywhere.

Check out the Research post for more.