Life is good

Can we just talk about how wonderful weekends are?  Oatmeal made on the stove top is so much better than microwave (although I still like those too!).

This bowl was so good.  I used 1/3 cup old-fashioned rolled oats, 1/3 cup each of milk and water, 1/2 banana, cinnamon and salt for the base.  Then I just added some of my favorite granola and Crunch Time on top–voila! Enjoyed while watching E! News Weekend and drinking green tea.

Sometimes I think my life is so hard… But on days like this when I wake up in a warm house, eat a delicious breakfast and relax on the couch with no worries, I feel lucky for what I have

Speaking of getting lucky, I had an un-pictured steak taco with chips and salsa for dinner last night  along with this lovely piece of tiramisu when I got home…

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, I love my roommates.

The snow is finally starting to calm down a little bit and I think I even see some sun outside!  I have a 5-mile run on the schedule (looks like the treadmill, unfortunately) along with a stop at the library and grocery store.

My cousin Sue sent me an artichoke dip recipe awhile back that I have been wanting to make forever!  I figured the big game tomorrow was the perfect occasion so I’ll need to stock up on supplies for that.  I love the Superbowl!!!

 

An unexpected 3-day weekend

SNOW DAY!!!! They do indeed exist after college… My favorite part is that it created an unexpected 3-day weekend.  Anyway, I have grand plans for the day off which include:

• Big breakfast
• Catch up on The Bachelor
• Laundry
• Clean Room
• Manicure/Pedicure (much needed)
• Small grocery shop
• Kitchen project–TBD!
• Drink the best margarita in the world at happy hour (hoping the weather doesn’t ruin this plan!)

My big and delicious weekend-style breakfast was french toast.  Cinnamon raisin to be more specific and gosh it was delicious. I put flax seed meal on one side to crisp it up and add some more texture.

That pile of bananas was great too!  I threw some chia seeds and sliced almonds on top for crunch and of course had peanut butter on the side for dipping.  A very filling and nutritious meal to start out the day!

I also wanted to show you one of the peanut butters I’m currently working through.  (Note: I usually have numerous jars on hand. ha!)

I have always been a fan of PB and Co. nut butters (especially the White Chocolate Wonderful and Dark Chocolate Dreams varieties–of course) but I don’t usually buy them since they are pricier and have  added sugar.

Since this one was on sale last week and I needed extra for my granola, I went ahead and picked it up.  I’m happy to report it is really tasty and not too sweet!  A nice change from my typical store-brand natural varieties.

I’m hoping to get out of the house eventually today but the snow is still coming down pretty hard out there!  I may have to get creative with my aforementioned kitchen project…

Be back later!

The meal I know all too well

Ahh the Saturday pre-run breakfast–a meal I know all too well.  This is Ezekial Cinnamon Raisin toast with some Smart Balance Peanut Butter and a couple of cuties (eating these by the truckload lately).

I LOVE being back to running consistently again.  As geeky as it sounds, there is nothing I would rather do on a Saturday morning.  Denver weather has been insanely “spring-ish” lately too, so of course that doesn’t hurt.

Why the return to blogging after almost a year?  Because I’m training for this.  And I miss blabbing on F&F of course! I figured there was no better time than now to be logging food and workouts so I can run the healthiest race possible.  I’m only on week 1 of my plan, but I’m feeling good about this one.  If I can figure out how to put my training schedule on here, I will!

So happy Saturday! Looking forward to being back.

Whole Foods Shop, Pizza + Beer

Yesterday was a fantastic day!!!!

The 5k race went well, I got some good relaxation time in, we made a trip to Ft. Collins to try out a new gym a.k.a. sit in the steam room for awhile, made a stop at Whole Foods, received some FABULOUS news from the fam, and spent the evening eating pizza and hanging out with good friends.

How can it get any better than that?!

A WF trip means that many of our favorite items get re-stocked.

My favorite Greek yogurt.

Bar stash replenished.

GRASS.  In packets for convenience factor–but I’ll probably buy a new container soon.  Pricey, but well worth the investment.

Best. salad dressings. ever. I’m a huge fan of the honey mustard, but we haven’t tried the blue cheese yet and I have the feeling it may be my new favorite.  There are LOTS of salads in my future due to this purchase.  Probably didn’t need all 3, but hey we can’t find these anywhere else and they’re that good.

2 small bags of organic goodies and$86.00 later…. Yowza!  I’m sitting in the car, buckling my seatbelt, thinking about how much good stuff I’ll be feasting on this week when I suddenly get a picture message sent to my phone from my brother’s girlfriend Julie.  Subject: I’m engaged, Picture: hand with diamond ring on finger.

AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!! My big bro is getting married! Lot’s of screeching ensued… Yes, we are 12 years old. CONGRATS to 2 of my favorite people in the world! Love you guys!

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This morning’s breakfast was deeeeeeelicious.  Fage with some vanilla almond granola and peanut butter, plus some iced coffee and grass on the side.

I’m cleaning up my food intake and kicking up my exercise for the last month of school.  More of the good stuff, less of the bad, more running, more lifting, hopefully some Bikram, and lot’s of laughing—shouldn’t be a problem.

Check out this flight I had at Old Chicago last night.

I love having the option of trying 4 different mini beers instead of just sticking to one pint that I might not even like that much.  This was the “Staff Choice” and included Modelo Especial, Negra Modelo, Black Fox Saison, and Dos XX Amber.  All very good, minus the semi-flatness of the Dos XX.

There was also some amazing pizza consumed.  I’ve been CRAVING pizza like no other lately so this definitely hit the spot.

I can’t remember the name of it, but it had pepperoni and sausage, mushrooms, green peppers, black olives and red onions. And lot’s of cheesy goodness.

Hmm…So I guess pizza and beer isn’t the best way to “clean up my food intake” but I’m pretty sure that there is no better-tasting food combination in existence.  Any one care to dispute me on this one?

I’m currently finishing up a homemade iced coffee and contemplating a second so I can be extra productive with my school work.  Other plans for the day include cleaning, co-ed softball, a long run (I’m thinking a 6 miler), and a dodgeball championship game.

Lot’s of exciting things coming up in the next couple of weeks!

Starbucks and Saki Bombs

I haven’t had oats in AGES!  Perfect little Saturday morning pick-me-up along with a glass of Simply Orange (we’re out of fruit, this is the best I could come up with!) and an Americano with soy aka my favorite drink in the world.  Better picture so you can actually see the food:

Topped with PB and maple syrup.

I needed something that would hold me over for awhile because I’ll be away from my house until noonish between working the 5k and training a client.  Oatmeal was an obvious choice!

Something fun I did last night:

Yes, saki bombs.  My first ever—-they were fun!  I actually ordered light for a change…

Veggie roll and spicy tuna roll.  Tuna roll was EXTREMELY spicy, exactly the way I like it.  Jessica tried it and said her mouth was on fire for the rest of dinner.  Success.

Buh bye now, I hope you all have a relaxing Saturday!

The perfect pre-workout meal.

Fridaaaaaaaaaaayyyyyyyyyyyy!!!! I had a really good day today.  Nothing super out of the ordinary happened—I just felt happy from the moment I woke from my deep sleep at 5:30am.  Started my day off with a nice little workout sesh which always seems to improve my mood by 100… ate this before I left the house:

This is pretty much the perfect pre-workout meal.  Filling, but not so much that I feel weighed down, easily digestible, good ratio of carbs fat and protein.  It’s easy to modify based on the intensity and duration of exercise too.  Example: If I’m doing a long run (6+) I eat the whole bagel instead of just half, and have a banana instead of the OJ.

And it’s also yummy.

Workout:

• 5 min treadmill warm-up
• BOSU squat and press
• Switch Lunge
• Stability ball wall squat
• Chest press, flies, push
• Step-ups
• Seated row
• Bicep curl w/pulse
• Bench hops
• Tricep dips
• Hamstring cable kickbacks
• Upright row to shoulder press
• BOSU crunches, side-to-sides, oblique twists, toe tappers
• Swimmers

Remember when I used to post workouts all of the time?  Maybe I need to start that up again…

Moving forward, Lunch was a new favorite Amy’s variety that I came across at the organic food store last week:  Lentil Vegetable.

Veggies make everything better. This was a great find.  I’ll definitely be buying it again!

The perfect pre-happy hour snack:

Not really sure why… I suppose any food is the perfect pre-happy hour snack!

Time to go beautify myself for the evening.  Have a fantastic weekend!

Waffle sandwich with a twist

I didn’t know if I wanted something that involved carbs and peanut butter like usual, or something that involved eggs this morning so I went with a combination of both.  Two Vans waffles toasted, pb on one, raspberry preserves on the other, over-easy egg in the middle.  And it was delish!

My packed lunch for today:

Took a picture before-hand because I’ll probably end up eating this on the go. Chicken + hummus + spring mix, carrots, olives.

My resume is finally finished after working on it pretty much all afternoon yesterday!  I’m applying for a food science internship for the summer so I needed it to be perfect.  Who would have thought that it takes so long to sell yourself on one page?

I had some fun with my camera on my study breaks.

As if people weren’t already looking at me weird for taking pictures of things, I had a mini emotional breakdown when I watched a video of my nephew walking for the first time.  I need to go home sooooooooooooon.

I’m off to seize the day!!!!!!

Homemade Cinnamon-Banana Bread

Yuuuuuuuummmmmm.  I made this whole wheat banana bread using a new recipe, thinking that it would be the typical loaf.  I was wrong, but in a good way!  It’s more like regular bread, but with a slight banana flavor to it.  I topped it with more bananas, cinnamon, and a bunch of agave so I will just call it Cinnamon-Banana Bread.  It’s in Jess’s old school cookbook that her Grandma gave her (I think?).  I feel like that thing is an antique!

Still no grocery shopping by the way… here’s the fruit I managed to scrounge up with a little searching.

I have this weird need to eat fruit with breakfast everyday… Something just feels off for the rest of the day if I don’t.  Weird, I know.

Also had this tea latte

Made by yours truly.  I actually managed to stay away from Starbucks yesterday.  We’re out of coffee at the apartment so it’s been tough to not stop on my way to school in the morning.  It’s on the grocery list!  Along with a  TON of good stuff that we’ll be using to whip together a sweet Easter brunch.

Any one have exciting Easter plans? I’m looking forward to skiing like a crazy woman all day on Saturday because I haven’t been to the mountains in what seems like years… more like a few weeks but I’ve missed it!  Sunday, Jess and I are gonna chill  Thanksgiving-style.  I’m talking eat a huge and fabulous meal, falling asleep for a few hours, then waking up and maybe watching a movie if we feel ambitious.  Sounds like a perfect day.

ALMOST forgot about my noteworthy dinner last night…

Pita Pit, I love you.  Even though you took over an hour to be delivered to me and I had to stand outside in the rain and cold to wait.  That’s true love!

Have a great FRIDAY woop woop!

Summer on the mind

For some reason I can’t get spring/summer off my mind lately.  I’ve been thinking about my plans for work, races I want to sign up for (check out this link to see something awesome that I’m doing at the end of August), going camping, hiking, boating, swimming… grilling, having campfires, wearing dresses, being TAN.   The list goes on and on.

Have I mentioned how much I love summer foods as well?  My breakfast kind of reminded me of something I would eat when it’s warm:

Overnight (cold) oats with 1/2 banana, peanut butter and granola.

+ Iced Coffee w/soy milk.

I slept an extra 1/2 hour this morning because I NEEDED it.  Felt so good.  But this means less time to get ready—hence the brief post.

Have a nice Thursday!

Antioxidants galore

I woke up freezing this morning…

…so I definitely needed something hot to eat for breakfast.  This bowl of oats was an antioxidant powerhouse!

I started by microwaving the following for 2 1/2 minutes:

• 1/3 cup oats
• 1/3 cup vanilla soy
• 2 handfuls frozen berry mix (blueberries, strawberries, blackberries, and pomegranate)

And topped with:

• scoop of Hell’s Kitchen Peanut Butter
• pumpkin spice granola
• dried apricot bits
• dark chocolate covered pom seeds

My tea of choice for the morning is going to be this TAZO Green Ginger. It has just a little bit of zip to it.  FYI in case you haven’t tasted it yet–I don’t really like regular green tea at all, but I LOVE this stuff.  I don’t even know what possessed me to try it??? I’m glad I did.

Today’s my crazy day when I don’t get home until after 7, so not sure when the dinner post will go up.  I’m pretty sure that it will involve a Mexican-themed meal though.

Happy mid-week!