My Little Secret to Long-Sustaining Energy

Barley Malt, Unrefined
Unrefined Virgin Coconut Oil
and Brown Rice Syrup

Alarm goes off.  Wake up. 5:30am. Sometimes 6am.  Jump out of bed (okay, not always).  Roll out of bed, get dressed, grab my already prepared water bottles and gel.  Out the door I go, sometimes I just decide just to run close by.  But, when I plan my long runs, its off to the YMCA Trail.  10 miles today.  So, how do I do it?  Over the past year since I started long distance running I experimented with several gels, beans, (the first time my friend Marlene suggested beans when I run, I thought she meant mexican beans, LOL!!), chomps, blocks and what not.  One that sent my body into an acute allergic reaction.  What in the world?  Thank God for Benadryl and for a husband who is viligent enough to spread hydrocortisone cream all over my red, raised, full of whelps body.  What a nightmare!!!  

A day before a long run I would stop by my favorite establishment to buy these long-sustaining gels, beans, chomps, etc.  A bit expensive I must say.  Some of those packages sell for $2.00 or more.  The chomps were my all time favorite and I would come back from my little trip full of these "miracle" little chews.  Hiding them was my goal because having a 15 year old in my house, nothing goes uneaten.  Ha!!!!  

After several long runs using these "miracle" chews, I became exhausted during my runs and beat down afterwards.  I would sometimes stay in a daze for hours after a run.  My family thought I'd gone nuts!!!   Feeling as if I could no longer run long distances, I came across a recipe online from a nutritionist who started using coconut oil before her long runs.  Coconut oil belongs to a special class of fats called medium-chain fatty acids.  These fats are not normally stored in the body as fat, but are instead quickly converted to energy.  Yay!!!

There are times during my runs that I feel I can run more miles, but I stop because I don't want to injure myself.  

If you would like to use this as a replacement for an energy bar, just consume 1-2 tablespoons before a workout or during the day for extra energy. Don't we all need extra energy?

Jennifer's Long-Sustaining Energy (AKA: the reason why I can run 10 miles)

Fill a pan with water.  Fill so that the jar is
at least more than half immersed.
Use a 16oz Canning Jar.

• 1 cup of Brown Rice Syrup (Lundberg's Organic Sweet Dreams Brown Rice Syrup)
• 1/2 cup Barley Malt (try Eden's Organic Barley Malt Syrup)
• 1/4 cup Unrefined coconut oil
• 1/4 cup Organic Creamy Peanut Butter (without hydrogenated oils or sugar added)
• 1 tsp Sea Salt
• 1/4 cup of hot water (I use coffee instead for the caffeine)

First, turn heat to med-low.

Next, start adding your ingredients.  Add the Barley Malt into the jar.  Then, add the Brown Rice Syrup into the jar.  

The mixture should look like this.  Stir with a knife.  

Add the Peanut Butter to the mixture.  Stir with knife.

Next, add the Unrefined Coconut Oil.  Stir with knife. 

Sprinkle in the salt.

Finally, this is what the mixture should look like after 10 minutes of constant stirring. 

For those of you who own a Keurig, set the cup size to the smallest setting. For those

of you who are behind with the times (J/K!!), you can just brew a regular cup of coffee. 

Add 1/4 -1/2 cup of coffee to the mixture.

It will appear to be very thin, but when it cools it will harden. 

Yummy!!!

Put Lid on and shake Vigorously!!!

This is my Favorite part!!  Shake it!!! Shake it!!

(You have to be singing the song, Shake it like a Polaroid Picture)

Happy Fourth of July!!!! 

(You can fill the gel into your tube like container for workouts or just eat by the spoonful. 

Can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 3 weeks. )

One ounce equals 150 calories, 24 grams of carbohydrates, 1.8 grams of protein, and 5 grams of fat.  Ratio of approximately 64% carbohydrates, 5% protein, and 30% fat

Total cost of ingredients:  $25.00 which makes around 2 batches of 16oz gel.

I purchased my items at Natural Grocers and Whole Foods.