I would consider our family pretty fit but there’s always room for improvement. We’re good about exercising but sometimes cave in on our food choices.
A simple and effective way to improve our diets has been embracing more whole grains. We are adding more medium grain brown rice at dinner. Some people might think brown rice is difficult to prepare but it’s not. We add it and water in the rice cooker (allow longer time than white rice preparation) and it comes out fine every time. Add a little butter and salt and life is good. Broth can add a nice flavor to the rice as well. The brown rice adds a nutty flavor and a firmer texture to the dinner plate.
I’m training for the California International Marathon so we have a big pasta dinner the evening before my long weekend runs. This provides complex carbohydrates that provide fuel. After reading an article in Runner’s World Magazine about the benefits of brown rice pasta we decided to give it a try. The local grocery store carried Lundberg Family Farms Brown Rice Pasta, which has been working really well. This week’s main dish featured their spaghetti with a little marinara, mushrooms and sausage.
The pasta tasted great, settled really well and I noticed higher energy levels while running. We’ve also had the brown rice penne and rotini pastas with similar success.Brown rice pasta may sound a little different than more traditional varieties, but our whole family happily demolished it.
Hopefully this will help fuel me to success for the big run in December! I’ll provide an update after it’s over and I catch my breath.
Jim Morris is Communications Manager for the California Rice Commission. Jim has worked in communications for more than 20 years. When he’s not on the job, he enjoys his family, faith, football, outrageous monster stories and running marathons.
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