Category Archives: foods

Exercise & Eats

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Hey there. I swear to God there were at least a half a billionty things I thought of over the weekend that I wanted to blog about….and then I forgot like all of them. DAYUM.

Last week’s eats: all of them were easy peasy. Honestly, I forgot what the hell I ate on Monday. And I’ve tried jogging my memory all morning (jogging a memory? Don’t get how that came to be a phrase).

Tuesday: Roasted veggies with brown rice and chicken breast. Seriously, so easy. But it was a well rounded meal.

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Wednesday: Pesto Chicken Paninis. I made some homemade pesto, added thinly sliced cooked chicken, tomatoes, and monterey jack.

ImageThursday: Scrambled Egg Sandwich. With leftover monterey jack, ketchup and sriracha! I had loaded up on veggies during the day, so I didn’t miss them in my dinner.

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Friday: Pizza. Lazy man’s dinner, but so tasty! Tyler had football practice and I went to yoga, so we were both pretty happy to plop on the couch with a few pieces o’ pie.

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Last week’s workouts were good, too!

Monday: Hot Yoga, 20 minute HIIT on the treadmill (90 seconds brisk walk, 30 seconds ALL OUT SPRINT), Women’s Health Big Book of Exercises pre-wedding workout.

Tuesday: Hot Yoga, 20 min spin, another WH Athlete’s Workout (used lots of cable exercises and core work!)

Wednesday: Hot Yoga, sprints outside up and down the street (followed by one cat and a big ass bunny), another WH Athlete’s Workout- completed at home and SUPER sweaty.

Thursday: Hot Yoga

Friday: Hot Yoga

Saturday: Hot Yoga

Sunday: Off

Yes yes, lots of hot yoga. But um…I paid for a month unlimited, so I’m stretching my dollar as far as it will go! So far, I have only stuck to the Traditional Hot Yoga class (same format every class) and I have LOVED it. Today I am trying the Baptiste Vinyasa class. Super excited! Plus, you guys…this yoga business is getting my bod ready for the upcoming trip to NY. wink wink

Also, today is the start of the next round of Best Body Bootcamp. I have participated in the last four rounds, and just really like getting 8 weeks of pre-determined workouts. I find I always get myself in ruts: I either stick to some of the same exercises, or I am not seeing any benefits or results from my workouts. By changing it up with what BBB provides, it really just keeps me motivated to workout because I love trying new stuff.

Things totally unrelated to exercise and eats that I feel necessary to share:

I CANNOT stop listening to this song. Over and over. And over. And….over. And yes, I’m dancing to it like a loony in front of my dogs. They are not entertained whatsoever.

If I were to go camping, I would NEED to do so in this tent:

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(Source)

The puppies actually got to get some sun yesterday! Cute little beasts

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We managed to watch all of season 2 of Spartacus. HOLY. The show is crazy intense and I love it. Plus, male full frontal. I mean..c’mon. (yeah yeah there are naked ladies in it too)

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(Source)

This kid filled out mad libs LIKE A BOSS. props to her (and I would do the same)

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(Source)

Any good eats lately? New workouts? I wanna know!

Exercise & Eats: Week of 6/10

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My mind is currently full of wedding crap (the financial aspect, making sure I pack EVERYTHING, making sure I am in appropriate contact with each vendor beforehand, yadda yadda) I am at the point where it’s just hard to imagine having fun at the damn thing. Whatever, I’m not going to go into it because you don’t need to hear about my problems….that’s why I have dogs- they are my therapists.

Moving on to last week’s eats. They were all really boring, but mostly because I was either at yoga/gym around dinner time or Tyler had golf/football. I also don’t think I am going to write my planned itinerary anymore since I tend to stray from it on just about every day.

Monday: Strawberry Turkey Salad to be honest, I hated it. But, I wanted to use what was in the fridge.

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Tuesday: I didn’t really have dinner, but I had a turkey club around 3pm and wasn’t hungry for more than a handful of strawberries and cherries the rest of the night.

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Wednesday/Thursday: I threw together a random pasta salad with Sausage

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Friday: We got some Vietnamese food to go. It was my first time having Vietnamese, and I didn’t LOVE it.

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Now, EXERCISE!

Sun, 6/3: REST
Mon, 6/4: Hot Yoga, upper body pyramid workout, 20 min run
Tues, 6/5: Hot Yoga, lower body pyramid workout, 20 min spin
Wed, 6/6: Hot Yoga, Fitness Kickboxing
Thurs, 6/7: Hot Yoga
Fri, 6/8: Hot Yoga
Sat, 6/9: Hot Yoga

Well, it’s 4pm and I am exhausted. Just

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Well, it’s 4pm and I am exhausted. Just kidding, I have about 6 more hours left in me.

I got up pretty early this AM to down a protein shake and let it digest before heading off to hot yoga. I definitely wasn’t hydrated enough because I had to lay down on three occasions. There were 38 people in the class (pretty tight) and I was conveniently located between two men. SO. Either: a.) I reeked of stank, or b.) those men did. because DAYYY-UM
dayum

Anyways, I pushed myself pretty hard and held some postures a lot longer than I thought my energy levels would let me, so I’m pretty pleased with myself for today’s practice. Still have to head over to the gym for some lower body work and cardio.

Oh hey, SIDENOTE: In case you were wondering what my prep might be for the wedding, I am only following TWO rules (since I don’t believe in deprivation or extreme, crazy diet and exercise regimes)

  1. Only have alcohol 1x a week
  2. Don’t eat past 7pm

Not too hard to follow, but I definitely think it will contribute to my overall mental and physical health & wellness…especially with yoga which is a HUGE factor in my mental health!

I also headed down to the mall today and FINALLY found a dress for the wedding rehearsal.
jesus

I just really needed to find something that was light and airy since we will be on the east coast *HELLO HUMIDITY* and for some reason, all the dresses I had come across so far were lined with so much fabric, I would have been better off with a wet towel. Or they were too short. Or they were made for people who don’t have a figure.

Also, I’d like to point out that I spend approximately 1/2 my time acknowledging EVERY associate at EVERY store. I am one of those shoppers who doesn’t want to tell you hello and doesn’t want to tell you if there’s something in particular that I’m looking for. Just let me look!!

Then, since it is the first nice day in like forever, I took the puppies to the park. Now, on top of the house smelling like pee (when it rains, Reggie pees and poos by the front door), it also smells like wet muddy dog.

6.4 dogs

dogpee

Now onto those recipes I promised.

Spinach Protein Pancakes

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Yeah, they are REALLY good.

Here’s what you’ll need:

  • 3 egg whites
  • 1 banana
  • 1-2 handfuls raw spinach
  • 1 scoop protein powder (I used chocolate because I love the flavor combination with the spinach)
  • 1 cup almond flour

Here’s what you’ll do:

1. Blend the egg whites, banana, spinach and protein powder until smooth.

2. Pour mixture in a bowl, and add the almond flour. Mix until fully incorporated.

3. Pour batter (should make 8 small-medium sized pancakes) on hot, greased griddle. Flip when bubbles rise to the top of the batter.

4. Top with honey (like I did) or whatever you want.

These suckers kept me full for HOURS and I didn’t feel guilty since they were all good ingredients! No, I did not eat all 8.

******

Then, there’s the pumpkin chocolate-chip pancakes. These are my weekend pancakes because um….well, they just are.

6.4 pancakes

 

Pumpkin Chocolate-Chip Pancakes

Here’s what you’ll need:

  • 1/2 c whole wheat flour
  • 1 t baking powder
  • dash salt
  • 1/4 tsp cinnamon
  • 1/4 t pumpkin pie spice
  • 1/4 c canned pumpkin
  • 1/2 T brown sugar
  • 1/2 c unsweetened almond milk
  • 2 egg whites
  • 1 tsp veg oil
  • 1/2 t vanilla
  • desired amount of chocolate chips

Here’s what you’ll do:

1. Mix all the wet ingredients in one bowl.

2. Mix all the dry ingredients in another bowl.

3. Add the dry ingredients to the wet, and mix until fully combined.

4. Pour onto large, greased hot griddle (I use this to make 4 large pancakes). Sprinkle tops with chocolate chips. Once the cakes start to fluff and bubble, flip.

******

And because I had a HUGH JASS can of pumpkin, I then made Pumpkin Bread. Of course, I can’t just eat plain old pumpkin bread, so I sliced it while it was still warm, topped it with chocolate protein frosting (chocolate protein powder and almond milk stirred to desired consistency) and warmed fresh cherries. Seriously good flavor combination (because my computer is now in ‘Canada’ mode, it always puts a red squiggly line under flavor and neighbor and center and a whole bunch of other words. Canadians, please don’t feel the need to correct me just because I now reside in your country..I am used to spelling them this way, so that’s how I type!)

6.4 pumpkinbread

 

Pumpkin Bread

Here’s what you’ll need:

  • 1 1/2 c canned pumpkin
  • 1 1/4 c whole wheat flour
  • 3/4 c brown sugar
  • 1 t baking soda
  • 2 t pumpkin pie spice
  • 1/2 t cinnamon
  • dash salt
  • 2 T unsweetened apple sauce
  • 2 egg whites
  • 1 1/2 t vanilla

Here’s what you’ll do:

1. preheat oven to 350. spray loaf pan (9×5)

2. In a medium bowl, combine all the dry ingredients.

3. In a large bowl, mix the wet ingredients with a hand beater.

4. Add the dry mix to the wet mix and blend at a low speed until fully incorporated. Pour batter in loaf pan and bake for 50 minutes. Allow to cool in pan before removing.

 

Gotta go, the puppies are yelling at me for dinner.

Right, so two posts in one day. Basically,

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Right, so two posts in one day. Basically, it’s a long episode of The Bachelorette, and Tyler is playing video games. Soooo yeahhhhh…

Just two things I NEED to share. Number one: The workout I did today. Consider this your Monday Moves post for the week. It was a great mix of strength and cardio and I was super sweaty and ready to hit the showers by the end. (Note: I completed the workout nearly 3 hours ago and I have yet to shower. Cue the gross factor.)

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(Source)

Number two: The cookies I baked today. I don’t know why I never thought of making these before, but DAYY-UMM they are yummy. I almost didn’t want to share, but realized I probably should since it would be rude to tell you about them, but not tell you how to make them and be all Cookie Monster-esque like me:


GIFSoup

K, onto the stuff. Might as well give you the workout first.

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I did this workout with a 5 minute warmup on the row machine, 20 min spin after Circuit 1, and 15 minute run after circuit 2. I would have completed extra cardio after the third circuit, but I had already made a trip to the dog park earlier in the day AND I needed to get to the grocery store for dinner stuff before Tyler got home. There’s my excuse. Still a great workout, though!

Now…the COOOOOOKIES!

5.27 cookies

 

Browned-Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies

Here’s what you’ll need:

  • 3/4 c butter
  • 1/4 c sugar
  • 3/4 c bown sugar
  • 1 egg
  • 3 tsp vanilla
  • 2 c flour
  • 1 tsp baking soda
  • dash salt
  • 1 c chocolate chips

Here’s what you do:

1. Place the butter in a sauce pan over medium heat. Continuously stir for several minutes until butter bubbles, then begins turning light brown.

2. Immediately place the browned butter in a mixer (or bowl if using hand mixer) and cream with both sugars.

3. Once they are fully incorporated, add the egg and vanilla.

4. Then add flour, soda and salt and mix until just incorporated.

5. Hand fold in the chocolate chips.

6. Place mixture in the refrigerator. Preheat oven to 350 and prepare baking pans. After 30 minutes and once oven is ready, spoon blobs of the dough onto the baking sheets and bake for 12 minutes. Cookies will be soft to touch upon taking out of the oven, so allow them to cool on cookie pans for 5-10 minutes before moving to wire racks.

Night, y’all.

Winesday (day after) Wednesday..and the Brewmaster’s Dinner

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Hey guys. Sorry about yesterday..I just had a really bad migraine that was induced by difficulty at the Registry. Want the story? (If not, skip the following few paragraphs)

SO. I obviously needed to get an Alberta driver’s license..especially since I have lived here over a year. Well, I couldn’t get one until I obtained my permanent residency (in February). I walked into the Registry- which in Canada is like the DMV/RMV/passport place/health care card place/place for lots of stuff. I have usually been going to the location closest to my house. Last month, I went in with my PR card, MA license, MA driving record and money. The girl friggin tells me I need proof of residency. Um yeah, hi, that would be my PR card ya dummy. But no, not acceptable she says.

I needed either a utility bill or bank account statement. OK. So then I went over to the Bank and opened an account. I had the clerk stamp and sign a paper showing my existing account. Go back to the Registry and they say NO it has to be a statement that has been mailed to my address. Tyler called our utility company and added me, but we wouldn’t get a statement for another month. My attempt to get a license was over for that day.

I go back yesterday with BOTH a mailed statement from my bank and utility company. The girl at the Registry denies me AGAIN because my driving record from MA (that I paid $6 to get) did not say the state of Massachusetts on it. Without that ‘proper’ information, I could only get a GDL license (basically a stupid provisional license in which I would have to take a driving test) HELLS NO YOU GUYS. I have been driving for 11 years. I am NOT taking a driving test.

I then resort to looking into getting my driving record from the state of NY. But I found that if your license has been expired for five years or more, they no longer keep your records on file. Another dead end. And the MA website only allow me to obtain a $6 unattested record or a $20 record which would ONLY be mailed to the address listed on my license. Dead end again. I took a screen shot of all that information, along with my OLD MA license (which does not show an ‘issued’ date), my existing license, and all the other correct proof I had to a different Registry office, and the clerk there was SUPER friendly and accommodating.

Long story short, I finally got my license (although it still has potential to be reviewed for the GDL class). There were several trips, lots of time, and COUNTLESS tears shed in the process. So frustrating! It’s not like I’m trying to cheat the system or anything,..just nothing wants to come easy for me.

That was a longer than intended rant. But that’s that. Onto the booze!

Monique (http://burpeestobubbly.com/) sent a couple of pics!

5.23 WW1

Her mom has a wine tote! I seriously need one of those (or these wine sippy cups!)

5.23 WW3

Chelsea (http://thedancingrunner.wordpress.com/) had some TJ’s Charles Shaw (TWO BUCK CHUCK!) Dang I miss Trader Joe’s. She tweeted me the pic saying it went great with buffalo chicken lettuce wraps. Might have to put those on the dinner menu soon!

5.23 WW2

Keith (http://keithsodyssey.blogspot.ca/) sent a pic of a bottle in a sweet wine holder! He mentioned the wine was an Australian Viognier and “This one is fairly new, and still building character. I think it’s going to be a rich deep wine when it grows up.”

5.23 WW4

Check out what my mama sent me! White wine, ya whatever, but the little tags and the bottle topper are the best! Know why? Because I sent them to her for Mother’s Day. I know what that lady needs and what she’ll get the most used out of.

5.23 WW5

And for those of you wondering, my mom isn’t the only one sitting at home boozing it up. My dad is too. Not as much, but I think he’s increasing his tolerance for the wedding. Good job, dad. By the way….DAD YOU’RE ON THE INTERNET! IT’S GOING TO BE ON FACESPACE AND MYBOOK AND TWATTER AND INSTA-WHO-CARES!!!!!!!! (I googled my dad today and NOTHING came up. He’s so mysterious like that.)

5.23 WW6

And now, for my little contribution, I just wanted to write a little ditty about what I was up to last Wednesday. I was invited by Big Rock Brewery to attend their Brewmaster’s Dinner- a launch party for their Rosmarinus Aromatic Ale- that was held at Candela. I felt super privileged to be able to attend the event, and I was equally excited to share the experience with Tyler (and drink the beer!)

The placemats showed us what we were in for:

5.23 WW7

It was a four course meal, with a pint of the Rosmarinus for cocktail hour, a sample size of the beers paired with the shellfish, pork and dessert course, and another full pint with the main course (lamb).

Being incredibly punctual, we were the first people to arrive, and were greeted with a cold pint. And it didn’t disappoint. It has a lovely amount of Rosemary flavor that would be perfectly matched with summer grilled meals- in my opinion.

5.23 WW8

As we sat for dinner, we listened to the introduction by the Brewmaster himself. During that time and in between each course, he gave us info on the premise for this ale, the history of ales, why each course was paired with each beverage, what Big Rock had in store for the future, and plenty of other interesting things! I was getting really excited for each course and am now very intrigued for what the brewery has yet to come. Tyler and I are big fans of the Brewery, and we often purchase their seasonal beers and have yet to be disappointed.

The first course was shellfish. “Potato wrapped jumbo prawns with yuzu aioli, red crab & corn fritters with pasilla pepper and cherry tomato mole” This was paired with Big Rock’s Saaz Republic Pilz. I was hesitant for this course because I absolutely DESPISE shrimp, but I felt obligated to try. I managed to hide my grossed-out face, and continued on to the crab & corn fritters which were delicious with the mole. And of course I loved the Saaz.

5.23 WW10

Second course was Pork..my favorite. It consisted of “Sriracha and maple glazed pork belly, roasted pork loin, pickled asian vegetable slaw, and taro root crisp.” This was paired with their IPA. I have to say, this plate could have been multiplied by 100 and I would have eaten it all. If you’ve never had pork belly- go try it. It is SO delicious. I had to refrain from moaning with each bite- especially since we were sitting among strangers! And the taro root crisps were like angelic potato chips that I needed more of!

5.23 WW11

With the main course, we had another pint of the Rosmarinus. The meal consisted of “Grilled lamb chop, lamb albondigas (meatballs), roasted leg of lamb, buttermilk mashed potatoes and rosemary glaze. I didn’t care much for the meatball, but the grilled lamb tasted immaculately perfect with the ale. Mmm Mmm.

5.23 WW12

Last course- dessert. Even though I was already STUFFED, I am not one to pass up the sweet stuff. Our dessert was “manchego, vanilla and dulce de leche creme brulee , jamon iberico chip.” It was paired with the Scottish Style Heavy Ale with is absolutely wonderful. I mean, that ale alone could’ve been dessert, but the creme brulee with basically a huge piece of glazed ham sticking out of it was just over the top. I really REALLY wanted to eat the whole thing, but my stomach wouldn’t let me!

5.23 WW13

It was a really wonderful event and I can’t express my gratitude enough for being invited to participate.

Ok, now with all this beer and wine talk, I’m craving a glass. Since my migraine has downgraded to a headache, I think I shall indulge. Have a good night!