Tag Archives: Eat Drink Run Fun

Mulberry Garden Tasting Menu

Hidden down Mulberry Lane in the grounds of a cottage dating back to 1911 you will find the unassuming but brightly coloured doorway to Mullberry Garden.

Taken from www.mulberrygarden.ie

The restaurant opened in 2011 and is only open to the public Thursday, Friday and Saturday from 6p.m. for dinner. It is also available for private hire outside of these times. I was invited as a guest to try out the Tasting Menu on a Thursday evening. The chef, a very talented Tom Doyle changes the menu every week. Tom emails the new menu out to customers in advance (subscriber list), and it’s not just a five line email either. He takes the time to describe each dish, the inspiration behind them and where the ingredients are sourced, all locally I might add. I don’t know of any other restaurant which has a chef going to that level of detail. Having met him during my visit, his passion for his menu’s comes across very clearly, not to mention his friendly and engaging nature. He loves food and every dish is laced with that love.

On arrival we were greeted by Claudio who settled us in the outdoor area of Mulberry Garden. It happened to be a lovely evening out and garden area which is courtyard style with the restaurant wrapping around it was the perfect place to sit back relax and unwind before dinner.

Garden Space

Pit Fire

Ornamental Details

Seating Area

They have an extensive cocktail menu, so if you do visit, go early so you can enjoy a few before dinner in the alfresco surrounds.

Drinks Menu

I opted for the Green Pear which is made with Chartreuse, fresh basil, lemon juice and fresh pear. H opted for the Mulberry Kick which is their signature cocktail, made of infused vanilla vodka, fresh lemon, pomegrante and blueberry juice served in their glass within a glass. Both were refreshing and a great way to start off the evening.

Cocktails

Something quite nice about how they welcome guests is the fact that you are not rushed in and out. You can visit early and relax with drinks and then be shown to your table for dinner and you are also welcome to retire back to the courtyard after dinner to continue your evening. It didn’t have that feel of just filling a time slot for two hours before you are sent on your way. It’s leisurely dining.

Taken from Tripadvisor – I had no interior shots.

Taken from www.goodfoodireland.ie

Tasting Menu

After cocktails we were shown to our table to begin the indulgence that would be our culinary journey for the evening. We kicked off with some fresh baked bread with herb butter which was excellent.

Brown Bread & Herb Butter

Then came an off menu extra of baked potato skins with piped chicken liver parfait which was delivered to the table on a stone. Bite sized crips skins with rich creamy parfait.

Baked Skins – No Filter

The first dish on the official tasting menu was described as Local Cabbage. I’m not sure the name done it justice. The Art of Cabbage may have been more suitable. The dish was a variety of types of cabbage coupled with Oysters. I have to admit I’m not an oyster fan and having a farming background I’m quite familliar with a few varieties of cabbage. Let me tell you, this was not cabbage boiled to within an inch of its life. It was fresh, tasty and the differant textures worked very well. The roughness of the savoy was offset nicely by the sweetness of the Kohlrabi. Who knew cabbage existed without being accommpanied by a lump of salty bacon.

Local Cabbage

This was followed by Glazed Ox Cheek with local beetroot, tarragon, spiced bread crumbs and beet leaves. The Ox cheek, if I remember correctly was slow cooked for hours to make it melt in the mouth tender. I know it was a tasting menu but I absolutely wanted more of this. It was delicious.

Glazed Ox Cheek – No Filter

Not to be out done by those on land, representing the sea we tucked into Roast Cod Loin with potato, brown shrimp, trompettes (mushrooms), chard leaf, baked potato and bacon foam with a citrus herb oil. Again some great textures. Soft flaked cod with the more chewy nature of the brown shrimp. I actually could taste the bacon off the foam, but I’m not a big fan of the whole foam movement I have to say. At this point it was one all between the land and the sea. Both great dishes.

Roast Cod Loin – No Filter

Next came Free Range Chicken with smoked potato mouse, tarragon oil, confit wing, grilled leek and roasting jus. In fairness chicken sounded a little dull against the ox and cod but I’m happy to report it was not the case at all. Perfectly cooked. Extremely tasty. That wirey looking creation in the middle was actually fried leek root and quite nice. Never thought I’d be saying that. The smoked potato mouse was soft, creamy and not overly filling (in a good way).

Free Range Chicken

Moving onto the dessert section of the menu we were presented with Poached Plums, plum jelly, vanilla cream, biscuit crumb and star anise ice-cream. You can from the picture below it was presented beautifully. I’ve never had a poached plum before and while I did absolutely enjoy them, I probably wouldn’t count them among my must have again desserts, but that is a personal choice. The star anise ice-cream I’m happy to say was not too overpowering and the smooth cream vanilla with the biscuit crumb worked exceptionally well.

Poached Plums – No Filter

While working our way through the menu we shared a bottle of Chilean Sav Blanc (€24). By share I mean I drank most of it as H was designated driver. I’m no wine connoisseur and tend to stick to white wine myself but the wine list appears to have been chosen carefully and has a red and white selection to suit every taste and wallet.

El Caminador

To finish off the evening we chose from the selection of hand crafted Irish cheeses. They were served on a large wooden board with honeyed walnuts, mustard pickled vegetables, caraway crackers and the biggest pot of honey I’ve ever seen.

Cheese Board – No Filter

Honey & Caraway Crackers Beautifully Presented

To sum it up I would describe Mulberry Garden as fine dining without the rigidness that often accompanies it. We spent three and half hours in the surrounds of this restaurant. That is leisurely, enjoyable dining without question. The service was impeccable. Anna described every dish to us as she delivered it to the table. Claudio was an excellent host and Tom who took the time to visit around the various tables and have a chat with the diners. The tasting menu is priced at €60 per person, and I consider that great value considering the range of food on offer, the service and the enjoyable atmosphere. I will be returning again without question. This is probably one of my most positive reviews (and I am a newbie blogger) to date and well deserved.

*As we were guests for the evening food was complimentary, the drinks we covered ourselves. The review is fair and honest of the experience I had*

Brookwood – A New York Style Steak House

Leave a Reply

I was recently invited to try out the new Sunday Roast menu at Brookwood on Baggot Street. As it turned out the Sunday Roast was such a roaring success that by the time I arrived at 6 p.m. they were completely sold out. That’s probably a really good sign. I did get to see it being delivered in all its finery to the table next to me which happened to be Carol from Gin & Griddle. You can read her review here. It’s also really good value at €32.50 for a half roast which serves 2 people or €60 for a full roast which will serve 4/5 people. It does of course come with all the trimmings, mash, roast veg, gravy etc. I’ve already booked to return and try it out.

Getting over that little hurdle was eased by the arrival of some wonderful cocktails which are half price on Sundays. H had the amazing looking creation below which is their signature cocktail which is incredibly refreshing and served in quite a novel way. It’s Hendricks Gin, Cucumber Syrup and black pepper.

The Terry
Hendricks, Cucumber
Syrup, Black Pepper

I opted for the Champagne Mag which was an equally tasty mix of champagne with cherries.

Champagne Mag
Champagne, Cherry
Bitters, Maraschino Cherries

The menu at Brookwood is a whos who of steak and seafood. They heavy hitters like fillet and rib eye mixed with the more delicate prawns and mussels are all present and correct.

For starters I opted for ‘Posh’ Potato Skins which were three very ample potato skins with a mix of fillings including bacon and cheese and salmon. The were served on a marble slate with an accompanying garlic mayo dip. While the flavours were excellent and very tasty, they were very slightly over done on the outside.

Potato Skins

H had the Brookwood Salad which was light and tasty with a zingy dressing that was just perfect for a starter. I suspect I’ll try it myself on a return visit.

Brookwood Salad

For main course we both opted for the 10oz Rib Eye steaks. H had his served blue which is just a bit too much alive and kicking for me. I opted for medium. Both were cooked exactly as requested and were excellent. Mine was the right amount of pink and very tender. H’s, well it was still alive so I wasn’t trying that. The steaks are served very simply with just some roast tomatoes to the side.

10oz Rib Eye

We ordered some hand cut chips and seasonal greens to accompany the steaks. All of which were extremely tasty. The greens not over done and still having a nice bite to them. H had garlic butter with his while I opted for Béarnaise sauce.

Hand Cut Chips & Seasonal Greens

As if we weren’t full enough we decided to give dessert a shot. H went for the mouth watering sticky toffee pudding which was just gorgeous with a very generous serving of rich toffee sauce.

Sticky Toffee Pudding

I went for a firm favourite of mine which was Banoffe and the slice was so big I wasn’t even able to finish it. It had a nice thick base and lashings of cream on top.

Banoffe

We also opted for a scoop of ice cream to accompany our desserts. Little did we know that a scoop of ice cream in Brookwood is actually a dessert in itself. It came with a little jug of syrup and small bowl of hundreds and thousands which I hadn’t seen in years and thought were a really great detail.

Ice Cream

While our dinner was complimentary it doesn’t sway my review. The positives of Brookwood I felt were many. The food could not be faulted. It was cooked as requested and delivered by staff who I can only say were exceptional. From Sophie who greeted us at the door to Anna who served our food and the friendly bar men who made our cocktails. Good service in my opinion should be recognised and I have seperately complimented Brookwood via email on their staff.

The surrounds are comfortable and a lot of attention to detail has gone into them. It has the swagger of being Gatsbyesque without being over the top. I do have to say however the tables were too close together and it was difficult to get in and out from my table. Also on the Sunday I was there a group were playing and while they were excellent I felt the upstairs dining room was too small to have such loud music as it was difficult to have a conversation at times. That feedback again was given to Brookwood via email who welcomed it graciously and confirmed they were trying a number of musical options until they found the best fit for the space.

From www.brookwooddublin.com

Dining Room Details

Bathroom Details

Private Dining & Meeting Room

Upstairs Dining Room taken from www.brookwooddublin.com

Downstairs Dining Room taken from www.brookwooddublin.com

Brookwood Dublin

141 Baggot Street Lower

Dublin 2

Ph: (01) 661 9366

Havana Tapas Bar – Brunch with Pink Mimosas

Leave a Reply

On Sundays I’m usually too hungover to get out of bed. Following a fairly dry Saturday night I woke up early, refreshed and eager to do something. Bored of the usual fry up for breakfast I opted to take advantage of a Dining Room voucher I had bought a few weeks back. For a mere €20 Havana on Georges Street were offering Sunday brunch for two with a choice of Mimosa or Pink Mojito to wash it down. I booked a table for 1 o’clock and made my way in.

It was fairly quiet when we arrived, but then again I suppose 1 is early enough for kicking off brunch. First things first we were offered a choice of Mimosa or Pink Mojito. Two Pink Mojitos were ordered and promptly delivered while we browsed the menu. The Pink Mojitos were very refershing and just screamed Summer is not gone yet. As you can see they were pimped out in cocktail brollies and slices of lime. Delicious.

Pink Mojitos

The brunch menu was split into five differant sections. Eggs & Tortilla, On Ciabatta, Salads, Steak & Wings and Paella. I opted for the striploin steak sandwich on a warm ciabatta with sundried tomato pesto, mixed leaves and hand cut fries.

Striploin Steak on Ciabatta

It looked great and was served on a wooden chopping board. While it was very tasty I would have liked the steak to be a little more on the rare side to really bring the flavour out. In saying that I ate everything.

H went for the Eggs Benedict with hollandaise, crisped serrano ham, pequilo sauce and hand cut fries. His was certainly the better dish of the two. The pequilo sauce had a pleasant sweet taste without being too spicy. The poached eggs themselves were cooked perfectly and made me declare that I was going to start poaching eggs. That hasn’t happened of course.

Eggs Benedict

Delicious

The restaurant has a very nice relaxed feel about it with lots of nice interior touches and has been around since 2000. It originally was housed in Camden Market but moved to Georges Street in 2005.

Interior Detail

For the bargain price of €20 we were both stuffed after our meals so didn’t opt for anything resembling dessert and satisfied we made our exit. I probably would return to Havana and try a few of the other brunch items, so thats a good sign.

If you like the review feel free to give my Facebook page a like Here

Havana Tapas Bar

Georges Street

Dublin 2

Tel: (0)1 400 5990

Twitter: @Havanatapasbar

San Lorenzos – Lunch On Georges Street

Leave a Reply

I have been hearing about San Lorenzos for quite some time now. It has been hyped as offering mouth watering food and being the hippest place to hang out in town. Is it? Well lets see.

First of all I have to admit I follow San Lorenzos on twitter and they are a restaurant that engage extremely well with their customers. They don’t just bombard you with picture after picture of what they are serving. They vary the content. They respond quickly. They tell you about what music they play and they are excellent at offering competitions for Sunday Brunch, or #brunchofchampions as its more commonly known.

They serve Modern Italian with a New York twist. The surroundings feel very New York and quite minimal which is no bad thing. There are red leather seats that run down the sides of the restaurant and Tiffanyesque lampshades add a splash of colour. Clean lines and simple. It’s sparse without being dull.

Interior

Myself and H visited on a Thursday evening at 6p.m. The greeting at the door was warm and we were quickly seated. The restaurant was already starting to fill up at that stage. Clearly a very popular destination. Glasses of water were poured and menus handed out. Getting down to business we ordered two Gin & Tonics to start off with. They were as expected very refreshing with slices of lemons, limes and fresh mint leaves.

Gin & Tonic

For starters I went for Pan Fried Gambas in white wine with garlic and chilli. They were served in the shells on a slice of thick bread which was soaking up the sauce. Perfectly cooked and so tasty. The picture below speaks for itself.

Pan Fried Gambas

H went for the Char Grilled Asparagus which came with a poached egg, shaved parmesan and hollandaise sauce. I made sure I tried it. The hollandaise was some of the best I’ve had and the asparagus was tender and the right amount of crunchy at the same time. Both plates were cleaned.

Char Grilled Asparagus

For main course I went for Slow Roasted Pork Belly with a warm salad of marinated artichokes, white asparagus, new potatoes, rocket and salsa verde. The pork was so tender it melted in my mouth and was actually very filling. The salsa verde actually worked really well with it and was a nice change from the usual apple based offering you find with pork. I didn’t manage to finish it but I did have my eye on dessert so was subconsciously keeping space for that.

Slow Roasted Pork Belly

H opted for the Barnyard chicken breast wrapped in Proscuitto with creamed sweetcorn, asparagus, roast potatoes, rocket and lemon. Again it looked great and the taste was a roaring success with the chicken moist and tender. He pretty much licked the plate clean.

Barnyard Chicken Breast

Then came dessert. New York Nutella baked cheesecake with chocolate brownie ice cream for me and Pecan Pie with salt caramel ice cream for H. Mine was outrageously good. The kind of thing you would order as a final meal on death row. The cheesecake hadn’t quite set and was a little on the melted side but that didn’t take from the taste.

Nutella Cheesecake

The Pecan Pie was probably less successful, but then again it didn’t really stand a chance next to mine. It was just a little dry for my liking. H had serious dessert envy so I did let him try mine considered he looked at it so longingly.

Pecan Pie

Overall I was very impressed with San Lorenzos. It met all my expectations and lived up to its hype. The staff were efficient and friendly and the food was excellent and really they are the only two components that matter with a dining experience. There was also a great atmosphere and a nice mix of music. One thing I did find interesting was that the toilets were unisex and the washhand basins have a view into the kitchen. Clearly they have nothing to hide and are turning out great food and I will be back again as I have my eye on #brunchofchampions.

If you like the review feel free to give my Eat Drink Run Fun Facebook page a like here.

San Lorenzos

South Great Georges Street

Ph: (01) 478 9383

Email: info@sanlorenzos.ie

Twitter: @sanlorenzos

La Ruelle Wine Bar

Leave a Reply

Nestled on Joshua Lane which is just off Dawson Street (across from Mansion House) you will find La Ruelle wine bar. I’ve probably walked by it a hundred times and never knew it was there. It was only when it came up on a Grab One voucher that I heard of it. The offer was three tapas and two glasses of wine for a mere €16.

So on a Friday evening after a few pints in Kehoes I headed around to La Ruelle with a friend in toe to cash in my voucher. The venue itself is quite small but thanks to some clever decoration looks deceptively large.

There is a small bar area with a selection of wine just inside the door and the main seating area runs around to the right of that.

Entrance

Bar Area

Seating Area. Picture from: http://www.laruelle.ie/index.aspx

The tapas menu has all the usual suspects on it so we opted for Warm Spanish Croquette, “Beshoffs of Howth” Sautéed Tiger Prawn and Pisto. Excuse my photos, for some reason they all have a reddish tinge off them, I think it was the lighting or the few pints I had in advance of taking them !

Warm Spanish Croquette

They were, funnily enough warm, creamy and actually delightful. I know it’s tapas but four was just no enough for me.

“Beshoffs of Howth” Sautéed Tiger Prawn

It’s hard to go wrong with prawns and I’m happy to report that La Ruelle served up some tasty ones. Perfectly cooked.

Pisto

The Pisto I’m sorry to say wasn’t great. It was all a bit too mushy for me inluding the asparagus which was wilted to within an inch of its life.

The voucher came with two glasses of wine so we opted for Sauvignon Blanc, Croix des Vents, Languedoc, 2011. Light and crispy and a bit too easy to drink which ended in us ordering a full bottle (€23).

Sauvignon Blanc, Croix des Vents, Languedoc, 2011

We also decided to opt for the large Artisan Charcuterie Selection, which was plentiful at €15.95 but lacking in its variety.

Artisan Charcuterie Selection

The service was good, the food was probably just ok, the overall atmosphere was lacking a little and the wine, well the wine was great but it is a wine bar afterall. Despite using the voucher which was for three tapas and two glasses of wine we still managed to rack up another €55 on top of that. I don’t think I would be rushing back to be honest.

Web: http://www.laruelle.ie/about.aspx

3/4 Joshua Lane, D2

The War Memorial Gardens – Dublin

Leave a Reply

I happened to be staying in Islandbridge recently and the view from the apartment balcony included the War Memorial Gardens. I had heard of them many times. I had a rough idea of what they represented but I had never actually set foot in them. Continue reading →

Tinder Man: Who Doesn’t Own A Corkscrew?

Leave a Reply

I recently broke up with my partner of seven years. Maybe it’s that famous seven year itch that people talk about. I’ve only ever dated one man so I didn’t have a lot to compare to when I plunged head first into the male dating pool. I actually had no idea where to begin. The good old fashioned days of meeting someone in work or through a friend or god forbid in the local pub have been replaced by the world of mobile app dating. It’s cheaper, it fits in your hand and you don’t need to leave the couch. It all sounds very convenient.

After some investigation I signed up to Tinder. A mobile app with a logo of a red flame which I assume means to ignite some kind of fire. Tinder streams pictures from your Facebook account and allows you to write a short sales pitch or ‘About Me’ section. You swipe right if you like the picture and left if you don’t. If you swipe enough pictures you will eventually find a match with someone else who decided they liked your picture too. Now you can live happily ever after.

I ended up matching with a guy in the next town from me. We swapped a few exhilarating messages like ‘Hi how are you?’ and ‘Where do you live?’ Clearly he had much more going on in his life because he took ages to reply. I however was nimble of fingers and fired off quick responses which probably made me look clingy and needy, which let’s be honest is not terribly attractive. One thing I noticed when I joined the world of singles was that I could literally say and do anything I liked without having to think what my partner would say. Sometimes when you are in a relationship for so long you move from being two people to being one person and your individual voice tends to become muffled. Tinder apparently also has the side effect of giving you the ability to speak again. I wonder if the developers of it know that.

After a few days of chatting back and forth I took the plunge and proposed that we meet. Actually with my brazen new voice I suggested to my Tinder Man that he make me dinner and I’d call in on the way home from work to sample his culinary delights. I figured I had nothing to lose. The worst that could happen is he would say no in which case Tinder also has your back there with a handy BLOCK option. It’s the equivalent of ignoring someone when you are in a real relationship. As luck would have it he said yes and we arranged for him to pick me up at the train station.

The day arrived and I headed to my train via the off licence for some beers and wine and made my way to my date. He picked me up at the station as arranged in the lashings of rain and we chatted aimlessly on the drive back to his house. He seemed nice enough and that’s always a good start and I’ll talk to anyone really. He opened the door to the house and two excited dogs came barreling towards him. They also someone managed to recognize me as a close friend and welcomed me by jumping all over me. I don’t dislike dogs but these things seemed to literally shed their entire fur coat and leave it on my suit trousers. To be fair he did notice and promptly secured the hounds in the laundry room.

At this point I produced my ‘thanks for agreeing to make me dinner in your house even though I kind of forced it on you’ gifts of wine and beer. He had mentioned he drank Coors so I gave them to him and asked for a corkscrew for my Chablis. “I don’t drink wine” was the response. Marvelous for him I thought but I’ll still take the opener thanks because I love a glass of wine myself. I was a little confused to be honest. Who doesn’t own a corkscrew? And for that matter, not to appear to stereotype people but what gay man doesn’t own a corkscrew?

Chablis

Not to be defeated at the first hurdle I quickly switched into MacGyver mode and came up with a plan. Having watched a YouTube video where a man opened a bottle of wine with his shoe I was certain that should be my next move. So much to Tinder Man’s bewilderment I took off my shoe stuck the bottle of wine in it and leaned out his back door into the rain and started hammering it off the wall. Five minutes later I am happy to report that I was now the proud owner of a wet sock and a perfectly intact cork still in the bottle. YouTube had lied to me. But believe it or not here is the link to the video.

At that point I’m sure Tinder Man thought I was for the birds and was wondering why in hell he let me into his house. Yet he was obviously still somewhat amused by my antics and suggested using the end of a spoon to push the cork into the bottle instead. I wasn’t going to ask if he owned a spoon so passed the bottle to him with an ‘off you go’ nod. He swiftly rammed the spoon into the top of the bottle and low and behold the cork popped. Funnily enough the same time the cork went in the wine came flooding out all over him. I suppose all that hammering on the wall with my shoe was to blame for that. To say he was less than impressed was an understatement. There was a flash of anger followed by a storming off to change his shirt. I had a quick swig out of the bottle while he was gone.

A more composed Tinder Man returned and busied himself checking the dinner in the oven. I stood idly by holding my bottle of wine wondering if he owned a wine glass at all. So to quell my curiosity sure I went ahead and asked him out straight. “I don’t drink wine” was the response. “So no wine glass then” I said with a half a smile. My wine eventually made it into a tumbler and we sat down to dinner. I was thinking to myself either he is very bad at entertaining guests or I’m really high maintenance. After a couple of false starts we actually had quite a nice evening with not a single lull in conversation, although we did talk about bailing hay for about twenty minutes. I’m not sure what surprised me more, the fact that it was interesting or the fact that it was two gay guys talking about it. Not a single mention of Britney Spears all night. Apparently men who like men can still be manly men. Who knew?

Baling Hay

After dinner he dropped me back to my train and said he would like to see me again. Sure why not I thought that was a bit of a laugh and not too bad for my first date as part of the land of singles. In keeping with being a man, I got a few texts the next day and then never heard from him again. I can only assume he moved country because I was a wonderful date. I even sent him a link to the YouTube video of the man opening a bottle of wine with his shoe. That was just to prove I wasn’t crazy. I guess he had already made up his mind that I was.

5 Reasons Why I Run

Leave a Reply

Summer. It’s a perfect time for lots of outdoor running but it’s also the season of beer gardens, drinks after work, boozy lunches and sipping wine on the terrace. I think I need to find a way to combine the two. Now I don’t mean drink while I run because that’s not exactly healthy and may end badly. The thing is lately I’ve been a bit lazy with my running. My focus seems to have shifted a little too much to the joys of eating and drinking and there are just so many joys.

So having hit my goals with the Wexford Half Marathon back in April I once again slipped into being a bit lazy and neglecting my running. Apparently my legs seem well able to remember how to run but my will power has a bit more trouble remembering how to lace my trainers and hit the road.

Sometimes I need to remind myself again about the benefits of running and why I started in the first place. So here’s a quick recap of why I run.

1: It Clears My Mind: The feeling you get when you are running is just amazing. I usually run to music. It helps me clear my mind. I start off at a steady pace and after about 1k I find my mind has stopped racing. The only thing that is racing are my legs. Everything else is left behind and I have a feeling of calm. Sometimes if I’m a bit tired I set myself small goals along the way. I’ll pick a point in the distance and tell myself I’ll run to that. As soon as I reach it, I pick another and keep going. If I hit a hill I might switch to a more upbeat song and I find it pushes me on. Running = calm.

2: It’s Free: Like a lot of people I am a member of a gym. Like a lot of people I pay a monthly membership and never go. Will I continue to do this, probably. Luckily for me it’s only about €20 a month so I can live with that. Running on a threadmill is beyond boring. Apart from that, in my opinion the threadmill does half the work for you anyway. Lacing up a pair of trainers and stepping outside the front door does not cost anything. Sure you need a pair of trainers with at least a decent level of support in them but they don’t need to cost you a fortune. Running = free.

3: The Feeling After: I absolutely love the feeling I get after a run. Sometimes my legs will feel a little stiff or a little tender, depending on how regularly I have been training. Sometimes they have that nice toned/tight feeling which makes you keep flexing your leg muscles with a smug grin. I feel healthy. I feel awake. I feel energised. I sleep better. Who doesn’t want to feel all that especially when it’s free. Running = feeling great.

4: Competition: A bit of competition is healthy, whether it’s just with yourself or with others. Any time I enter a competitve race regardless of whether it is a 5k a 10k or a half marathon I try to improve how I perfromed previously. If I happen to be running the same race with someone else then the competition level kicks up a notch and some racing rivalry creeps in. It’s actually great fun and spurs me on a bit more. Running = striving to improve.

5: Goodbye Belly: As I mentioned I am a member of a gym and my visits are not exactly regular. I should go more often and dedicate time to the other parts of my body but thats another conversation entirely. What I love about running is the fact that results kind of creep up on you. When I started I had a bit (a lot) of belly going on. It didn’t disappear after one run. I didn’t disappear after 20 runs, but it did start to gradually get smaller. For my own vanity I took some before and after shots. It was probably about six weeks into running that I really started to notice the differance. My jeans weren’t quite so tight. My tshirts fit a bit better. The mid 30’s spread of my waistline had stopped. When you notice that it encourages you even more. Anytime I get a bit lazy with my running I dig out my before and after photo’s and they give me the kick I need to start again. Running = goodbye belly.

The pictures below are my before and after shots. The belly is clearly evident for all to see. The pictures were taken probably about 2 months apart. Like I said it doesn’t just disappear overnight you have to work on it. When I get lazy I look at the guy on the right and it reminds me very quickly of one of the reasons why I run.

Before & After

Feel Free To Share

Feel Free To Share

Feel Free To Share

Feel Free To Share

Feel Free To Share

Feel Free To Share

Feel Free To Share

Feel Free To Share