Lazy & Crazy & German Chocolate

I am basically lazy, especially when it comes to doing anything right now, which, I suppose, is the essence of procrastination. When there's something that absolutely must be done I usually ask myself when is the last possible moment that this needs to be done, and then I do it a little after that.

So what does this have to do with running? I run, for the most part, to be healthy but since I procrastinate there's always a little voice in the back of my head telling me that it won't be that big of a deal to miss just one day. Of course this happens regularly and all those missed days add up to a not so healthy me.

This is one of the main reasons I got into running long distances. I am not naturally a distance runner so in order to finish without killing myself I have had to follow a rigid schedule. Since I started running I have signed up for ever increasing distances because it scares me into following the plan. A year and a half ago I completed my first marathon. It wasn't pretty, but I finished. Six months later I finished my second. Again, not so pretty, but I am now fairly confident that I am capable of completing a marathon, having done it twice already.

So I'm not afraid of failing (I've touched on this theme before). This has led to a decision to do something that I think is crazy, even for me. I've decided to run an ultramarathon. Technically, an ultramarathon is anything longer than a marathon (26.2 miles). Usually ultramarathons are 50 or 100 miles. The shortest common ultramarathon distance is 50K, or about 31 miles. I've decided to spend my summer training for the Run Woodstock 50K to be run on September 10.

It scares me, and that's a good thing for me and my waistline.

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Speaking of crazy, I am absolutely crazy about German Chocolate Cake, especially the frosting (and yes, I know it was a really lame transition). The Baker's Chocolate recipe is probably the best I've tried. The Baker's Chocolate package has the recipe for the frosting and cake from scratch. The cake from scratch was a little bit better than cake from a box but I didn't think it was good enough to justify the extra cost and effort. Just use a box of German Chocolate Cake mix and make the frosting from scratch.

Coconut Pecan Frosting

Ingredients

4 egg yolks
1 can (12 oz.) evaporated milk
1-1/2 tsp. vanilla
1-1/2 cups sugar
3/4 cup butter or margarine
1 pkg. (7 oz.) coconut (2-2/3 cups)
1-1/2 cups chopped pecans

Directions

Beat egg yolks, milk and vanilla in large saucepan with whisk until well blended. Add sugar and butter; cook on medium heat 12 min. or until thickened and golden brown, stirring constantly. Remove from heat.

Add coconut and nuts; mix well. Cool to desired spreading consistency.

-Recipe from Kraft