As part of my marathon training, I’m also revamping my eating habits.  I’m not making a clean sweep of everything in my pantry and refrigerator.  I’m eating through what I have and then replacing those items with healthier options.  I read through “The Athlete’s Fix” and also re-read “The Feed Zone” and plan on making updates to my diet.  I don’t currently have any bad symptoms that I feel I need to change with my diet, but I’m curious to see what changing my diet does to improve my performance.

Part of this new diet update is eating fresher fruits and vegetables grown from around where I live.  I am very fortunate to live in a place that has so many amazing farms providing organic and biodynamic produce and proteins. (Proteins is the euphemism for free range chickens, pigs, cows and lamb.)  Most of these farms show up at local farmer’s markets and also have their own farm stands that are always stocked with their freshest produce.

I really want to join a CSA, but I don’t think I can eat all of the produce each week before it spoils.  So until I have a family of 4 to help me eat everything I’m going to have to stick with farmer’s markets and Alfalfa’s grocery store.

One of the many pleasures here in Boulder County are these fancy chef table dinners out on the local farms.  They are pretty pricey but include a chef made 5 course dinner with fresh fruits, vegetables and proteins from the farm you are eating at or farms close-by.  It’s hard for me to find friends that are willing to spend the cash to join me at these farm dinners, but luckily these dinners are so amazing that I was able to find friends to join me this summer.

These dinners always sell out pretty quickly and even one company has a lottery you have to enter to purchase tickets.  This summer was the first time I won the lottery and got to attend two farm dinners!  The first farm dinner was out at Aspen Moon Farms, which is a biodynamic farm.  They were just harvesting raspberries, tomatoes, zucchini and squash at the time of our dinner.  The second dinner was just this last weekend at Munson Farms.  Munson Farm is family owned on 40 acres and has been one of the original farms in the area.  They are most known for their sweet corn.  Our dinner included corn chowder, grilled peach & persley salad, green beans, and fresh lamb.

Usually each dinner begins with a tour of the farm and you can ask questions about irrigation, harvesting, etc. It’s usually pretty interesting and then you eat dinner with a view of the amazing Colorado sunsets.  You are seated at a large community table and usually make new friends by the time dessert is served.

Some farms host their own farm dinners — my very first dinner was at a super cute farm in Lyons, Colorado.  The Lyons Farmette hosts farm dinners, weddings and even classes (like pie making and bee keeping).  They have tiny goats, llamas, chickens, wild flowers, and a bounty of produce.  The year I attended the farm dinner at the Lyons Farmette was just after the big floods we had in Boulder County.  The farm was very fortunate and didn’t have any flood damage.

If someone invites you to a farm dinner, don’t hesitate, just say “Yes!” and enjoy one of the best meals of your life.