MealEnders Review and Giveaway

November 30, 2015

Disclosure: I was provided MealEnders to try for this review, but all comments are my own.

Through SweatPink, I was given the opportunity to try MealEnders Signaling Lozenges. These aren’t actually new to me – I have tried them before and I think they’re a very cool product, so I’m excited to get to share them.

What are MealEnders? Well, to put it simply, they’re a sweet treat made of two components – an rich outer layer surrounding a tingly inner core of hard candy. This is designed to provide you with a sweet reward before the inner core engages the trigeminal nerve (the nerve that senses “taste”) with long-lasting cooling/tingling sensations that cleanse the palate.

I suppose it’s somewhat like putting a piece of minty gum in your mouth after a meal, but often, the motion of chewing just reminds you of eating. A MealEnder takes about twenty minutes to dissolve, allowing your stomach to catch up and tell you that yes, you are full and no, you don’t need any more to eat.

I know, it sounds crazy. But these things are great. I’m a huge sugar fiend and I’m often finding myself craving something sweet after a meal. MealEnders have helped me kick that craving.

A cinnamon MealEnder lozenge

I have talked here about how I’ve been trying to cut back on sugar. So it doesn’t seem to make sense to eat a piece of candy after a meal. But MealEnders only have 2 grams of sugar and 15 calories. I’m counting every gram of added sugar, but when I can’t convince my brain to shut up with the cravings, these really hit the spot.

I know, I should be able to just stop eating and wait twenty minutes. But if that were easy, I wouldn’t be trying to lose weight right now.

I’m looking forward to having MealEnders on hand as my holiday travels and meals start up. It’s so easy to overeat, especially with all of the delicious foods around.

And you can have them around too! MealEnders will give one of my readers 4 packs of MealEnders, one in each of the flavors (Cinnamon, Mocha, Chocolate Mint, and Citrus). And if you don’t win, you can save 20% on your order by using the code FitHolidays20.

Giveaway restrictions:

U.S. only
One prize per person. If you win this giveaway, and have already won another prize from MealEnders through another blog, please disclose that you have already won so I can choose another winner. Doesn’t mean you can’t enter multiple giveaways! You just can’t win them all.

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Link Roundup

November 27, 2015

While I’m away racing, here are some links to peruse. Just a few articles and blog posts that I found interesting over the last… indefinite amount of time. Thank goodness for bookmark functions.

Seven Things I Did to Reboot My Life – Wil Wheaton is a phenomenal writer and this post is not to be missed.

20 Health Mistakes to Stop Making Before You Turn 40 – Ugh. 40. I plan to be one of those women who at 40 looks like she’s in her early 30’s. I can commit to that, right?

Halloween Weekend – I share Karen’s post primarily for the photo of her dog in costume. I dare you to not laugh at that photo.

Training Gone Wrong: What to Do For Race Day – While I’m thankful that my training has gone well, that’s not always the case. What do you do when race day shows up and your training has gone off the rails for one reason or another?

Sacred Spaces (Goodbye Grandma) – This one will make you cry, but you should read it anyway.

Why Do We Love to Take Things to the Extreme? – An interesting look at the need for extremes. Why do we have to run all the races or run the longest races or do the most pushups or eat the cleanest diet?

What the Hell Happened to Triathlon? – With the popularity of BIG races, smaller races are getting lost. And I think both have their place in your training schedule.

Finally, over the last three years, my friend Chrissy has been cooking her way around the world via some amazing recipes, and she just finished her journey. (But she’s not stopping!) Her blog is phenomenal, and I recommend spending quite a bit of time perusing, but definitely check out her list of favorite foods she’s cooked on this journey. Yum.

Lowered Fitness Standards for Kids

November 25, 2015

This turkey’s expression shows exactly how I felt after hearing this story. Mhy / Pixabay

Yesterday, I’m minding my own business, waiting for a friend in our office lobby so we can go to lunch when I see the following from a friend on Facebook:

My Kid’s School (she used the actual name here): Where control of students’ bodies is so important that teachers repeatedly admonish the children for running… DURING THE ALL-SCHOOL TURKEY TROT

Okay, so that seems a bit crazy. No running during the Turkey Trot? But isn’t that… a race? Nope, apparently the kids were supposed to keep it at a brisk walk. Why?

According to one teacher, it was “because falling PE standards have these kids so out of shape that they’ll fall asleep in class this afternoon if they exert themselves by running this morning.” (My friend’s quote, not the teacher’s exact words.)

Well that’s the stupidest thing I’ve ever heard. And I wonder if that’s honestly the real reason. Because from what I understood about recess, for example, teachers loved sending the kids out to run around like crazy and burn off all of their extra energy. On rainy days where kids had indoor recess, the teachers had to struggle to keep them focused in the afternoons. (Isn’t this how kids work? I don’t know – I have cats. They sleep 22+ hours of the day.)

So I looked up the state’s Physical Education Standards. And I remembered why I dislike government writing. But this section was interesting:

Students will be provided an individualized, developmentally appropriate, and personally challenging instructional program that will advance the knowledge, confidence, skills, and motivation needed to engage in a lifelong, healthy, active lifestyle. With the increase in obesity nationwide, the benefits gained from physical activity include: disease prevention, decreased morbidity and premature mortality, and increased mental health and self-esteem. The benefits of physical education can also affect academic learning. Regular aerobic exercise produces an increased number of capillaries servicing the brain which allows for a greater exchange of nutrients and waste products. This optimizes oxygen and glucose delivery to the brain which can help improve brain performance.

From that, it sounds like running is a good thing! Good for the body, good for general health, and actually helpful in academic learning. So either we’re getting dumber AND lazier thanks to lowered fitness standards or this isn’t the real reason the school didn’t want the kids running.

But what other reasons could there be? Not wanting kids to get hurt? (Not wanting to risk a lawsuit?) The need to be incredibly PC so that no kid wins or loses? Or is the teacher right? That our standards are so low that all the kids have gotten so out of shape that they can’t handle a fun run without needing a nap?

Don’t get me wrong, as a kid, I would not have been running. Not fast, anyway. I was not a great athlete in elementary school, but I definitely ran in PE (and was a master at dodgeball mostly because I just avoided getting hit). But we were encouraged to run. We were told to run. I think we had a Presidential Fitness Test or something along those lines. And these kids are told to NOT run? No wonder as a nation, we’re getting fatter and lazier. Not only because kids are encouraged to not run but because adults think this is okay.

I think maybe this school (and probably others) needs to take a second look at how these kids are being educated and where on the list of priorities we’re placing physical health. No wonder we have a childhood obesity problem.

The Joys and Perils of a Common Name

November 24, 2015

I have a relatively common name. I don’t just mean my first name, I mean my first and last name. Joys of Irish heritage. But don’t get me wrong, I’m not complaining at all. It’s kind of nice to know that I’m a little bit harder to hunt down on Google. Sure, you’ll find me if you search my name, but you’ll find a lot of other people too. (And some of those people are talented! I don’t mind being associate with them.)

My email address is just my name. Which means that I’m constantly getting misdirected emails. Invites to parties, family photos, birthday wishes, even medical records at one point (that was a fun one to straighten out). Thanks to these misdirected emails, I’ve gotten in touch with Me’s in Illinois (near my hometown, which is weird), New York, Colorado, and here in DC. There’s also a Me in Rhode Island, but I can never get off her email lists. Her kid seems pretty athletic though, from what I can tell.

I’ve also met another Me thanks to running. Other Megan is pretty nice, which is good, because I don’t need anyone out there ruining our name. We’re both running Space Coast this weekend and while pulling up my bib number, I discovered THERE IS A THIRD ONE. That’s right. In a race with… I don’t know, 7000 runners (based on last year’s finishers, anyway) there are THREE of us with the same name. Maybe the odds aren’t that slim, but I find it amusing.

Of course, it’s also raised some interesting points. Space Coast is currently on year three of a five year series. And as will happen in a situation like that, some people are trying to cheat the system to get the bonus medals. I will admit, I want all five space shuttle medals because I love the space program. The bonus medals are just a bonus, but I’d be pushing to do all of these races even without them. So as people on the internet will do, they’ve started looking at finisher times. And since there were two Me’s running, that raised suspicions. Then my times looked even more suspicious.

Why? Because I had a really crappy race the first year I ran it. I woke up that morning with a crazy headache and felt like crap. But I wanted that bling, so I slogged through it. Finished in 3:39:29. And I felt pretty good by the end, so I consider it a win. Last year was significantly better and I ran a 2:56:18, which is on the faster end of my total races.

And then a friend told me people were discussing my race times in a Facebook group. Of course, the accusation was that I hadn’t run it the second year, that I had gotten myself a ringer. (Which, if I was going to get a ringer, it would be someone way faster than someone running a 2:56 half.) So I showed up and said “What’s up, yo?” And pretty quickly, people shut up. I wasn’t worried about the accusations, because I had photos. I had a string of race results in Athlinks that showed I was clearly capable of the faster race. No big deal.

It definitely made for an interesting conversation. “Yes, I share a name with another runner (or five). Yes, I had a better race this year. Yes, we’re both planning to do all five years, so get over it.”

Sometimes I think people on the internet need better hobbies.

Check out the Holiday Giveaway Hop!

November 23, 2015

You know I love the holidays. So this year, I’m participating in the Holiday Giveaway Hop hosted by Runaway Bridal Planner and Tutus and Tennies. I’ve been slowly collecting a few of my favorite things to giveaway, and what better time than the holiday season. I’m so thankful for everyone who has been reading and it’s nice to be able to give something back!

What’s a Giveaway Hop? Well, basically a whole group of bloggers are doing giveaways during November 23rd and December 6th. Each blogger has his or her giveaway going, so be sure to check out all of the other sites to see what awesome gifts have been put together. You can follow the hop at the bottom of the page.

So what can you win here? A gift pack of a few of my favorite things!

A pair of Heart and Courage compression socks from Coeur Sports
A really great portable meal container (I use mine all the time) that comes with its own fork and knife. I like to use it to put together a salad for lunch (just keep the dressing on the side, or it gets all over the utensils)
A WTF wine glass. Because who among us hasn’t had that thought while running
A package of mocha MealEnders. I’ve been stocking these up for the holidays.
A tube of Nuun. I’ve been having major leg cramp issues while at the pool lately and until someone said “Hey, have you tried electrolytes?” I couldn’t figure it out. Don’t forget – you sweat in the water too.
A pink Sparkly Soul headband. These are my FAVORITE headbands. The only ones that don’t move and don’t give me a headache
A 13.1 Beecause Charm. Wear it to celebrate your halfs or motivate you on your way to your first!
(not pictured) As many SunRype bars as this Ambassador can shove into the shipping box!

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