Snack purse

So yeah. I def messed up my knee. Grrrr. I ran 4 miles on the treadmill this morning and could barely walk afterwards. I'm going to try to take it easy over the next few days and see if some rest will help. I'm also embarrassingly overdue for some new sneaks so that may be on the to-do list for this weekend.

I like to bring snacks with me every where I go. That used to include m&m's and mini-snickers but more recently, I've toned it down and now carry around spearmints and Werther's hard candies. I'm well aware I look like a grandma while I do this, but it's better than nothing! Usually, I'll just let the snacks loose in my purse but that kind of disorganization drives me batty. Last night I got smart and used one of the free gifts with purchase from Clinique to put my snacks on lock. It's working out very well so far; I don't have to search high and low through my purse for a treat; I simply pull out my handy snack purse and go to town!

I tried a new Pinterest recipe this morning for breakfast that was ok...but probably not one of my all-time favorite breakfasts. I tweaked the recipe to what I had on hand.

Peanut butter and banana chocolate milk
adapted from Simply Scratch
serves 1

6 oz vanilla Greek yogurt (I used Chobani, naturally)
1 cup milk (I used unsweetened vanilla almond milk)
1 banana, frozen
1 tbsp cocoa powder
2 tbsp chocolate PB2
honey as needed

Put all the ingredients in a blender and mix until smooth.

I didn't snap a picture but mine looked exactly like the original author's photo. Chocolate milk is exactly how I would describe its consistency. I'm sure using real peanut butter would thicken it but I didn't mind the thinness so much as I could still taste the cocoa powder. If you've never had cocoa powder, it's very bitter and really not that tasty. I added quite a bit of honey to my blend, which helped with the bitterness, but I still didn't really enjoy the cocoa powder taste. I'll probably just stick with my post-workout smoothie that includes actual chocolate milk. Just sayin'.

Now...I'm off to figure out a way to ice my knee at my desk without looking like a loon. Wish me luck.

Nostalgia

I didn't break any records on tonight's run but I'll take it:

Considering I basically ran in place for mile 3-4 due to this super awesome wind we're having, I'd say it wasn't the worst run in the world. I've also been having some knee pain (yoinks!) so I didn't want to push it.

When I got home, I did two sets of this arm workout that Courtney posted today. Gotta polish those guns for that strapless dress I'll be wearing in a few weeks!

The bent arm lateral raises were killllller.

I went for a very short drive this evening that got me a little emotional. Me, emotional?! What else is new, right? I just started reminiscing about high school. Call me crazy but I looooved high school. I was so innocent and naive and the only things I had to worry about were getting good grades and playing sports. Katie and I would sometimes "cruise" around town, windows down, blasting Coldplay or Eminem (no judgments); those were some of the best nights ever. Tonight would have been the perfect night for cruising.

I got nostalgic because I realized life will never be that simple ever again. Katie has someone new to cruise around with and I don't even have enough money to pay for the gas it takes to cruise. I miss the days where I didn't have to worry about money, or raising money for my job, or bills, or all that other stuff that comes along with growing up and becoming an adult. Don't get me wrong-- I enjoy living by myself and eating pizza for breakfast if I so choose, but I also miss the days when my biggest problem was picking out an outfit for school the next day. I know, I know, don't focus on the past blah blah blah...but sometimes it sneaks up on you.

But I guess you gotta grow up some time, right?

Shrimp and rice bowl with salsa

Oh man, I'm getting really good at making up meals on the fly! I'm really proud of myself for getting tonight's meal together with scarce options.

I am low on the funds right now (end-of-the-month blues) so I'm having to get creative with my meals this week. I want to eat healthy but I can't go buy fresh produce. So I try to keep healthy things in the pantry and in the freezer for weeks like this one.

When I was thinking about what to eat for dinner tonight, I remembered the frozen shrimp in my freezer and the brown rice in my pantry and viola...a very yummy meal was born!

Shrimp and Rice Bowl with Salsa
serves one

4-6 cooked frozen shrimp
1 cup cooked brown rice
your favorite salsa

Spray a large skillet with cooking spray. Place frozen shrimp in the skillet and cook until shrimp is warmed through, about 5-7 minutes. Put shrimp in a bowl and top with cooked brown rice. Add salsa as desired.

This was taken after I had eaten about half of the bowl

I would have loved to add some veggies to this but, like I said, I don't have any on hand right now and I already ate all my frozen veggies. Fresh veggies are almost always best but frozen veggies will do the trick in a pinch. Unfortunately, I finished my last bag of frozen veggies today at lunch. But this bowl did a good job of filling me up until my snack about 1.5 hours later. My snack included a bowl of no-sugar-added applesauce topped with Crispix with about a handful of these wonderfully delicious nuts on the side:

These cinnamon almonds taste just like fall. And we all know how much I adore fall! I've had the cocoa variety before, and although I'm usually partial to chocolate, these are my all-time fave. I highly suggest plucking them up if you ever see them!

Now I'm off to see The Hunger Games movie for the second time. I absolutely loved the book (as did everyone else on the planet, right?) and I really enjoyed the movie. I felt it was very true to the book and also pretty dark. Tiff wants to see it and I told her I would go with her again because I want to be able to take in different aspects now that I know what to expect. And before anyone tries to ask me which "team" I'm on, Peeta or Gale, I'm going to declare that a "moo" point because there is only Team Peeta....there is no such thing as Team Gale.

Best run ever

um...yeah. Best run ever. Literally.

I ran like a boss tonight (my new favorite saying so get used to it.) I'm sure the perfect running weather had a lot to do with it but I seriously felt on top of the world when I was done. Also helping my mood? I figured out a way to challenge myself without paying a redonkulous race entry fee: I'm going to run a race in August with my lady friend Andrea. We ran this race last year and I PRed at 2:07. Andrea really helped me push myself last year and I'm hoping she can help me reach my goal of running a half in under 2 hours this year. I'm super psyched to have a race to look forward to!

Confused about protein powder?

I've mentioned in earlier posts how I incorporate protein powder in to my diet. When I first started buying protein powder, I had no freakin' clue how to choose a powder. I basically just chose the most affordable kind, which isn't a bad plan but it also isn't the smartest nor the most efficient. There are many types of protein powder out there that do different things for your body. Since my goal isn't to bulk up but to lean out, I figured out (through a lot of googling and trial-and-error) that whey protein is best for me. If you're perplexed by protein powder (as I was at first) here is a nice, handy dandy post comparing the different kinds.

The powder I'm using currently.

In other news, my bestie Katie (ya know, the one getting married in 10 weeks!?!!?! Ahh!!) is running Cap City and is raising money for none other than Team In Training! She updated her fundraising website and it brought a tear to my eye. If you have a few bucks to spare, I urge you to donate to Katie's fundraising efforts!! Just $5 gets her one step closer to reaching her goal!

Hasta la vista babies!

Really?!?!?!?!

It's time for another one of my random rants...

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Really ceiling fan?! Of course, the ceiling fan in my living room is silent but the one in my bedroom is louder than crap. It's loose or something but the sounds change throughout the night so it keeps me up as I'm trying to fall asleep as well as wakes me up when it decides to change noises and get louder throughout the night. REALLY?!



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 Really arm rash?! I've had this stupid, ugly, annoying rash on both of my arms for the past few years and can't seem to get any answers as to how to get rid of it. It seems to come along as the weather gets warmer and sticks around for a few months. It first popped up a few years ago so I went to my regular physician who took some blood, ran some tests, prescribed a topical steroidal cream and suggested I lose weight (tests came back that I had a fatty liver, whatever that means.) So I lost weight (hence, the blog) but the rash keeps. coming. back. I finally went to a dermatologist who told me to take over-the-counter cream but, naturally, it doesn't seem to be making much of a difference. I find myself scratching my arms in the middle of the night when I'm awake because of my loud ass ceiling fan. REALLY?!



Really WOW?! I've had more problems with my WOW Internet/cable service than I ever did with Time Warner, which is saying A LOT. I swear, I haven't gone one whole month since August without having to contact them about some issue with my Internet or cable. It really chaps my ass since I pay for this service that doesn't even work half the time! Get it together WOW and stop acting like a bunch of fools. REALLY?!

I'm out.

Make me a bird

I'm officially my old self: I started to feel very overwhelmed with life things this afternoon and the first thought that popped in to my mind was, "I cannot wait to run after work." I have so much going on in my head that all I want to do is run...far, far away from my mind.

"Dear God, make me a bird. So I can fly far, far far away from here."

When I was an exercise-aholic my sophomore and junior years of college, I would be sitting in class, completely lost and not knowing what the hell the professor was talking about, and I would think to myself , "just one more hour until I can go for a run." When I got out of my healthy habits senior year of college (and beyond), the first thought I would have when I was flustered was, "I can't wait to eat." It's funny how the way you comfort yourself changes. I'm just glad my first thought was "run" instead of "pizza" today because it's been one of those kinds of days. Ya know, a large-Tommy's-pepperoni-and-banana-pepper-pizza (baked in the old oven) kind of day.

At least it's Wednesday, amIright?

The rest of my week looks like this:

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The Hunger Games midnight showing

OU, Oh yeah!!

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Girls Night Out with my brothers' girlfriends! (P.S. That is not us...)

Lord, beer me strength.

Peach banana oat smoothie

Last night's mexichicken and sweet potater fries threw a party in mah mouth!

The fries ended up looking more like chunks but they still tasted fabuloso. I sprayed them with vegetable oil and sprinkled on some garlic salt, crazy mixed-up salt and cayenne pepper before baking at 400 degrees for about 30 minutes. They probably could have stayed in the oven for about 3-4 minutes longer but I was anxious to eat and get my run on.

Since it's supposed to be in the 80's today (woohoo), I figured a smoothie would be the best way to start the day. I've never put oats in my smoothies before but I saw a recipe on Pinterest (duh) that looked good so I adjusted the recipe a little and gave it a try. The oats added some thickness that I really enjoyed.

Peach banana oat smoothie
adapted from strawberry-banana & oats smoothie
serves 1

1 cup milk (I used my usual unsweetened vanilla almond milk)
handful spinach
1/2 cup frozen fruit (I used peaches and pineapple)
1/2 frozen banana
2 tbsp oats
drizzle of honey
2 tbsp PB2

Place all ingredients in a blender and mix until smooth.

I'm really excited for 6pm tonight because I get to spend some quality time with this little bugger:

She's getting so big...like a real live human!

Healthy Hiatus

Hola! I hope everyone had a very green weekend! I'm not a huge St Patrick's Day person but since the "holiday" fell on a Saturday this year, I figured I would be Irish for the Day. It was a verrrry fun day but I'm still recovering...go hard or go home, am I right?

Hey Jules!

I took a mini vacation from running/healthy eating at the end of last week. I had a lot of lunch/dinner/happy hour dates last week that prevented me from working out before or after work. I mean, I probably could have tried harder to fit in a workout but the sun was shining, the birds were chirping and the fun was flowing. I really don't feel that guilty about my healthy hiatus because I had a lot of fun! However, I still have goals and Katie's wedding date is fast approaching (73 days! Holy cow!) so I'm back in saddle and ready to keep up my momentum. Sometimes little break to rejuvenate is just what Ryan the doctor ordered.


I freakin' wish I came home to him.


I'm currently making some Mexican chicken in the crock-pot that I cannot wait to dig in to for dinner tonight. Into the crock went 4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, one jar of Newman's Own black bean and corn salsa, and about 1/4 bag frozen corn. I thought about adding a packet of taco seasoning but decided against it. I also have a sweet potato that I'm going to cut up and season for sweet potato fries so stay tuned for pictures!

In a pickle

It's the best time of year! Not only is it light out when I leave work but my most favorite candy in all the world is back on shelves!!

These babies are the best EVER. I don't particularly care for Cadbury Creme Eggs but these are completely different in the best possible way. The shell is crunchy and the inside is soft...best of both worlds. If you've never tried them, I highly suggest you jump on it!

I ran outside this morning instead of doing a treadmill workout. It was just too nice out to pass up! This morning's run wasn't as record-breaking as the last outside run I did and I think that's because I did it in the morning instead of in the afternoon.

If you've been reading for awhile, you know I'm a morning workout type of gal. Now, that doesn't mean I get in my most quality workouts in the morning, it just means I prefer to get it out of the way first-thing. I've noticed when I do work out in the afternoon, I can run faster and farther than when I run in the mornings. Lifting is a different story, meaning I feel I get a more quality weights workout in during the morning. However I contribute this running thing mostly to having more fuel in my body (aka food) in the afternoon. I tend to not eat before my morning workouts, or I'll have a banana or a handful of Cheerios (similar to a baby) but I'm not really hungry in the mornings. Also, my legs are a little more warmed up in the afternoon than when I have just rolled out of bed. That's why I want to try to get in 1-3 afternoon runs instead of just running in the mornings because I want to be able to push myself, which I can't necessarily do at 7am. Why am I telling you all this? Just to see if other people feel the same way. Does anyone else feel that the time of day they prefer to work out isn't exactly when they get in the best workouts?

That being said, I'm in a pickle! I'm starting to feel like I should sign up for Cap City. I really want to see how fast I can run it. But it's so freakin' expensive!! And I don't feel like I have enough time to raise the money to be able to run it with TNT. Maybe I'll run 13.1 miles on my own and make myself a medal...that's the same, right??!

Pinterest recipes

Hola party people! I did work on Pinterest yesterday and made some yummy treats to share!

The first thing I made were oat balls. I'm a fan of balls apparently (TWSS.) The original recipe calls for butterscotch chips but I only had dark chocolate chunks available. I didn't snap a picture of mine but they are def on point. So delicious!

The other recipe I made was dark chocolate avocado mousse. Julie posted the recipe that sparked my interest but I ended up using a different recipe for mine, cutting it in half since I only had one avocado. I don't have a food processor so I just mashed everything up by hand. There were a few visible avocado chunks but I didn't mind them at all. I also mixed in some slivered almonds and peanut butter multi-grain Cheerios. The pictures I took don't look very appetizing but I promise, this one's a winner!!

dark chocolate avocado mousse

mousse up-close

I had every intention of firing up the ole crockpot this morning to make cilantro-lime chicken for dinner tonight but totally forgot when I left the house. Derr. Guess that one will have to wait until tomorrow!

This weekend was a pretty good one on the exercise front! I returned to Demi's bootcamp Saturday morning and I also did yoga for the first time...ever. In college I took a few pilates classes at our rec center but yoga always intimated me. I am like the least flexible person on the planet so I always felt silly attending a class because I looked like a goon just trying to touch my toes. This weekend's yoga class was a fundraiser for LLS so I bit the bullet and attended.  And guess what? I actually really enjoyed it! I still looked like a goon (it was for charity so it's cool) but I definitely loved how stretched out I felt afterward. This morning I saw a flier for a yoga class being offered at my new gym so I may check it out one of these days. You gotta start somewhere, right?!

Any Parks and Rec fans out there?!

Have a great Monday!

MIA

Wassssup?! Sorry I've been MIA. I have a few excuses (super busy at work, had a friend in town, sick as a dawg) but really, I think I've kind of burned myself out thinking, worrying, stressing over my weight loss lately that I needed to chillax (is that/was that ever a cool word?) HOWEVER, I do want to share some yummy treats so I've come out of hiding!

I finally bit the bullet and got my hands on PB2. I've seen it all over healthy-eating blogs and didn't know what the heck it was at first. After I kept seeing all the different ways people use it, I decided to buy up two jars: one jar of the original and one jar of the chocolate.

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Since I'm addicted to peanut butter, I figured subbing a healthier version here and there wouldn't hurt. After eating it in different forms (mixed with yogurt, mixed with water, mixed with milk, mixed in smoothies and oatmeal, etc) I think I like it as a mix-in and not so much as a topping. I still use the real stuff for ants-on-a-log (which have totally made a comeback in my snack dept by the way) and the occasional pb spoon, but the powdered stuff is good in warm oatmeal and especially in smoothies.

peanut butter yogurt dip

I used original PB2 to make this yogurt fruit dip. It is verrrry yummy. It's not that sweet but I found myself using my finger to clean the Tupperware when I ran out of apple slices. I just mixed a heaping spoonful of 0% vanilla Chobani (1/2 cupish) with 2 tbsp PB2. If you like your fruit dip on the sweeter side, adding some honey or a packet of sweetener should do the trick.

I raged a little too hard this weekend in honor of The Black Keys and basically f-ed up my throat, lungs, and voice. Oops. I've been trying to eat more fruits and veggies to get some vitamins in me and rev up the ole' immune system so I made a green monster for breakfast this morning that was thebomb.com. I also had some spinach that was on its last leg that I wanted to use up instead of throw away. This was the perfect amount of sweetness and felt amaze on my firey throat (TWSS.)

keepin' it classy in a stolen beer mug

Sore-throat Green Monster
serves 1

1 cup milk (I used unsweetened vanilla almondmilk)
2 large handfuls of spinach
1 frozen banana
1/4 cup 0% plain Greek yogurt (I used Chobani...obvi)
2 tbsp PB2
a drizzle of honey

Mix in a blender and enjoy in a fun glass!


All the treadmill work I've been doing has been working! I ran outside last night for the first time in forevs. I didn't have any expectations and didn't think I would get very far without hacking up a lung, but I made it through 4.43 miles with an average pace of 9:41! I usually average around a 10-min mile so that is totally boss! I can't wait to try it again when I have full lung capacity to see how fast I can zip around Grandview. Although I don't want to get too fast...people may start confusing me with Usain Bolt.

fun run

Just kidding.

As I mentioned above, I've kinda been stressing out about my weight lately because I'm happy with what I see in the mirror...but then I look at myself in pictures and the two don't add up. It's bizarre-o. I already knew this weekend would be a "cheat weekend" because I had friends in town and had been planning on attending the concert for awhile now, so I pretty much went to town this weekend. Well, the weird keeps getting weirder because, as it turns out, I actually lost a pound after eating like a jerk for three days! Now I'm totally confused. Either way, I'm down 16 pounds since February 5 and I'm just going with it and sticking to my regular scheduled foods and workouts and seeing where this goes.

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