Psych-Up Dinner #1

I've been a swimmer my entire life, or at least since I stopped crawling on all fours. Mom threw me in a swimming pool in Los Altos when I was two. I fluttered and spun my arms in an outdoor bubble through tears and misery with Mrs. Thomasello until I was old enough to stay afloat and make my way across the pool. It wasn't but a few years later that I earned the coveted "Swimmer of Tomorrow" plaque at my summer team Covington Critters, a six-year-old's equivalent to an ESPY award.

Fast-forward 22 years, and here I am, still fluttering and spinning my arms across the pool, just a few suit sizes bigger. I'm a day away from a championship swim meet and feeling the same jumpy jitters I felt before diving into the six and under 25-yard butterfly two decades ago.

From Michael Phelps to Eli Manning, every athlete has his or her pre-competition routine, some more superstitious than others. It usually revolves around a certain uniform, an inspiring playlist, mix or song, psych-up movies a la "Rocky" or "Prefontaine," a favorite workout, or an energy-packed meal. My routine included all of the above, with a special focus on the meal. Shocker. I know.

Pre-meet meals were always a big to-do in my family. Mom would cook up loads and loads of spaghetti and marinara sauce the night before a big swim meet. I'd stuff myself so much that I feared not being able to fit into my racing suit, which traditionally is a good two or three sizes smaller than what you train in. The thought was the higher the carbs the higher the success. Of course, today we all know this to be an old wive's tale, but I don't plan on switching up my carbo-loading anytime soon. To me, it's more like comfort carbs than performance-enhancing carbs.

I'm not trying to make cuts for the Olympics or NCAAs and my team isn't going for its third straight ACC title like we were my third year at UVa. But I do still want to swim fast for myself and my NYAC teammates. In order to achieve this goal, I've been very good this week (read a sober professional). I went all out with a Sunday fun day, so I could happily be on the wagon until this Sunday's after-party at Brother Jimmy's. When I say all out, I mean all out. My Sunday itinerary included the following: brunch at Public, beers at Zum Schneiders, beers at Horseshoe Bar, sandwiches at Katz's, drinks at Max Fish, drinks and dancing at Pianos. Starting Monday, I began eating relatively well for all my meals.

Last night, in order to avoid eating bologna and cheddar cheese slabbed on top of each other (no bread), I ordered a salad and a smoothie from Crepes on Columbus. I ordered the tropical salad with organic mesclun salad, baby greens, oranges, mango and hearts of palm in citrus vinaigrette. I was debating between that and the Mediterranean salad and the girl on the other end of the phone suggested go tropical. I was glad I did. I normally can't handle meat-less salads. I always ask for chicken. But this veggie-friendly salad was so fresh and tangy I didn't miss a thing. And the citrus dressing was spot on: the perfect amount of sweet and tart. It came with a half-baguette, which was a nice touch, but it wasn't the freshest tasting bread I've had. The butter and extra dressing didn't help that much either.

We have no fruit in the house so I ordered a smoothie. This put all smoothies I've ever tried to shame. I ordered the red mango one with mango sorbet, strawberries and mango juice. I felt so good after drinking it I felt I could jump in a pool right then and there and bust out with a record-breaking 100 breastroke. My second delivery from Crepes on Columbus was a huge success.

P.S. No I did NOT eat this last night. This was a picture of my first delivery from Crepes on Columbus on one hungover Sunday. The crepe was a little thicker than the ones I grew accustomed to in Paris, and the nutella wasn't as thoroughly melted as I like, but I'm going to give them the benefit of the doubt and assume it lost its freshness in its delivery voyage. It certainly didn't stop me from inhaling the entire thing. I'll just have to try the crepe in house next time.

Tonight I head with a few friends to Serafina for psych-up dinner #2. Let's hope the pasta is al dente and the sauce is thick. I was once named the "Swimmer of Tomorrow." Let's hope I still can be.

990 Columbus Ave., between
108th & 109th St.
212 222-0259