Love my Mondays!

Scary, but I’m really starting to love my Mondays. I’ll wait for you to finish gasping before I explain why.

Done yet?

K good.

Actually, I’ll let you wait a but before I explain. Just need to recap Sunday first.

Breakfast started with an English muffin topped with leftover guac and scrambled eggs. Pretty dang delish and tons of protein. Helps with the hangover, too. Ok, I’m not sure if that’s proven, but it is in my case.

After breakfast and oodles of coffee was consumed, Tyler suggested we head to Bowmont park for a walk. (Note: It was really my idea, but using the power of suggestion and persuasion, I made Tyler think it was his idea..this is how successful relationships work, people.)

And of course, the youngin’ found her way into the water. I’m pretty sure Tyler almost took a dunk. She was not behaving on the leash AT ALL. There were tons of people out with their dogs and she was just overwhelmed. Lots of whining and half-woofs and scampering.

I managed to take a shot of the river while we crossed one of the bridges. I just thought it was so pretty that you can see the mountains in the background. Look harder, they’re there. (Ooooh correct grammar on their, there and they’re. Jen for the win)

Of course, since it was Sunday, I had to make some sweet treat once we got home. BUT, I decided to make it a healthy sweet treat. For the sake of my thighs. And hips. (Oh god, my hips. Cringe)

Here’s what I suggest: If you want something sweet and indulgent, go ahead and make the full fat version. Honestly, it’ll satisfy the craving. But, if you just want something to satisfy your sweet tooth without overdoing it, try this recipe (I came up with it myself!!!)

Protein Brownies

  • 3/4 c unbleached flour
  • 1/4 c cocoa
  • 1/4 chocolate protein powder
  • 1/2 tsp baking powder
  • 1/4 tsp salt
  • 2 tbsp butter
  • 2/3 c sugar
  • 1 egg
  • 1/4 c applesauce
  • 1 tsp vanilla
  • 1/2 c nonfat plain greek yogurt
  • 1/2 c semi-sweet chocolate chips

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line an 8×8 baking dish with foil and spray with nonstick cooking spray.

2. In one bowl, combine flour, cocoa, protein powder, salt and baking powder.

3. In another bowl combine softened butter and sugar. Once completely mixed, add in egg, applesauce and vanilla.

4. Add flour mixture to egg mixture. Then add the yogurt until fully incorporated. Stir in chocolate chips

5. With a spatula, spread the batter in the prepared pan. Bake for 25 minutes. Let cool completely before removing from dish and serving.

If you try this recipe out, let me know what you think! (I didn’t tell Tyler they were healthified and I caught him going to the kitchen a few time for a brownie!

The sun was still out after I finished baking, so I decided to take advantage. I mean, who knows- it might snow again.

And I got started on another book

I forgot about the whole sun thing, and now sport a terrible sock and capri tan line. G-ross.

Once dinner rolled around…I was craving veggies. And veggies we did eat.

Grilled carrots, mushies and onions and Frank’s RedHot Chicken. To grill the veggies, I slathered them in olive oil, s&p, wrapped them in foil and tossed ’em on the grill. The carrots look burnt, but that’s actually where they carmelized and were really sweet! All in all, good dinner.

Sunday night’s workout was a quick 20 minutes of cardio/strength intervals. It consisted of:

  • Jump squats
  • Leg lifts
  • Pushups
  • Jump rope
  • Sit ups
  • Squats
  • Mountain Climbers
  • Stability Ball hip raises
  • Jacks

Ok, now I can tell you why I love Mondays. Well, for starters- it’s the first workout post-weekend. For some reason, I always have tons of energy. And I can really just get a fresh start.

Pre-workout, I tried out some of this stuff

Razor Blast Powder 8 in Triple Berry. I was nervous to take it because I haven’t yet tried it, and I didn’t know how my body would react to it.

WELL.

Holy balls, did it work. I walked to the gym at 7:30 this morning and absolutely killed my workout. What workout did I do? Glad you asked:

10 minute warmup (I did HIIT on the spin bike)
Round 1 (Do 2x before moving to next round)
Reverse lunge with fly (12 reps w/8lb weights)
Jump Squats (10)
Plank Hold (60 sec)
Round 2 (Do 2x before moving to next round)
Plie squat w/lateral raise (12 reps w/8lb weights)
Mountain Climbers (10)
Plank Hold (60 sec)
Round 3 (Do 2x before moving to next round)
Bicep curl w/overhead press (12 reps w/12lb weights)
Weighted side lunges (10 each side)
Round 4 (Do 2x before moving to next round)
Stablilty ball lower back extensions (12)
Stability ball roll out (10)
Round 5 (Do 2x before moving to next round)
10 double hop jumps
4 pushups
Round 6 (Do 2x before moving to next round)
Weighted Russian twist (10 each side)
V-ups (4 with hold at the top)
50 jacks
Round 7
Fire Hydrant (10 each leg)
Crossover mountain climbers (10)
Fire Hydrant with toe kick (10 each leg)
Crossover Mountain Climbers (10)
10 min Cardio (I did HIIT on the elliptical)

Fuel (otherwise known as breakfast) after this workout was a bowl of eggwhite oats. Delish

I combined oats, an egg white, almond milk and water with a scoop of pumpkin and 1 tbsp of chia seeds. 2 minutes in the microwave and topped it with almond butter.

YES. ALMOND BUTTER. Finally, after three weeks sans any nut butter, I finally have to jars of this nutty goodness!

Happy happy happy Jen. 🙂

Off to take advantage of this lovely day and take my terror of a dog on the trails!

Walking the River and failed cornbread. Sigh.

Yesterday was just your average Hump Day. (I already recapped for you my workout in the last post)

Breakfast was another smoothie bowl (cranberries, bananas, chocolate protein powder and almond milk)

I went back to the library to return my last read, and ended up browsing for a few minutes. I left with three more books. I’m starting with this one:

I am already about 1/3 through and it’s pretty good. The story is about a girl traveling to Burma to find her father that disappeared 4 years earlier.

I ran a few errands in the morning…some of them are top secret, but ONE I will share with you. I brought a bunch of bottles to the bottle return center and I made a whopping $3.30. That can get me about a quart of gas here. Moving on…..

Lunch was another pile of veggies

Layla and I went down to the river and walked around for about an hour or so. The rain has been on and off for the last week, but I really wanted to get her some fresh air. Girlfran got her groove on in that icy water.

We had gone to Bowmont Park where there are some really great trails, off leash areas, and water access. Layla and I even came across some spots that had grassy areas and picnic benches. Noted for better-weather walks!

I have to keep the dang dog on her leash because she would run into the water and never come out. Or she’d run into the woods. Or somewhere -anywhere- that I couldn’t her back. All the other dogs on just about every walk we take are off leash. You’d think she’d get the hint that maybe she should be a little bit more obedient (Insert giant HA! from me)

While we walked, I Skyped with both my parents to just chit chat and show them some of the area we were walking through. Then, this happened:

Yeah, yeah, sure the picture makes that appear much more peaceful than it really was. All of a sudden that thing came out of nowhere. And it was LOUD. So, I started running with Layla away from the train (Still Skyping, mind you). The camera was shaky and I was screaming and the dog was pulling on the leash and darting around every tree. Then the train was gone. Silent. Like it was never there. You’re welcome Mom and Dad for the 2 minute short-action film.

On the way home, I stopped at the store to pick up some dins and I walked out with these puppies:

Dinner turned out pretty OK as well.

Pork tenderloin, applesauce, roasted beets and cornbread.

Unfortunately, the cornbread turned out to be too salty (I think I may have accidently put 1 tbsp of baking soda instead of 1 tsp. whoops) So that was completely inedible. Bummer) Otherwise, it was a pretty satisfying meal. I had rubbed the tenderloin in basil, s&p, cooked on a skillet for about 1 min each side, then roasted at 350 degrees for 25 minutes. Perfection, if I do say so myself.

Quick notes: Survivor was good. I hate Kim with a firey passion, and Revenge was PVR’d (that’s what Canadians call DVR. pff).

This morning’s workout was 45 minutes of at-home kickboxing, followed by 15 minutes of upper body strength (as if kickboxing isn’t an upper body workout. HA!)

I am off to a medical exam (for immigration. EW I want to barf. I hate doctors) then a blood test (again for immigration. Again EW and AGAIN I want to barf.) I know for a fact that I will pass out when they try to stick me with a needle. I am getting nervous just typing this. Insert Heebie Jeebies NOW. ahglishdslkajsflkhdgs WISH ME LUCK!

I made balls…and other topics

As promised, here is the recipe from last night’s dinner (from Eights and Weights)

Healthy Turkey Meatballs

Ingredients

  • 1 lb lean ground turkey
  • 1/4 c breadcrumbs
  • 1 tsp grated parmesan cheese
  • 1 egg
  • 2 tbsp soy milk (I used almond)
  • 1/2 tbsp salt
  • 1/2 tsp pepper
  • 1 tsp thyme
  • 2 gloves garlic (I used minced garlic)
  • Grated veggies (I used carrots)
  • 1 pack of whole wheat spaghetti
  • 1 28 oz can tomato sauce
  • 2 tbsp tomato paste
  • 1/4 cup fresh basil leaves
  • 1 onion (I used 1/2)
  • Cooking spray
  • 1 tbsp olive oil

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degress and spray baking sheet with the cooking spray

2. In a large bowl, combine the turkey, breadcrumbs, parmesan, milk, egg, black pepper, thyme, 1/2 clove garlic, grated veggies, and half the salt

3. Once combined, form into balls (I did 12 medium sized)

4. Baked for about 15 minutes, until balls are browned.

5. For the sauce, heat the oil in a saucepan. Add in the onion and rest of the garlic. Right as it browns, add the tomato sauce, tomato paste, and the rest of the salt. (I threw in a little chili powder as well)

6. Let the sauce simmer. When the meatballs are done, carefully add them to the sauce and allow at least an additional 15 minutes of simmering before serving (I had them simmer about 45 minutes. The longer, the better)

7. Cook the spaghetti per the directions on the box. Top readied spaghetti with balls and sauce and dinner is served.

******

Ok now that we’re done with that, I’d like to give a shout out to Athena for the workout she posted from her Tuesday night class (Oh how I miss Two a Day Tuesdays. Not only for the workouts, but for the peeeeeeople!)

I started with 10 minutes of HIIT on the spin bike, then got right to it.

There were 2 rounds of tabatas. Then cardio after each round. I chose to do a minute of cardio between each tabata for a little extra punch.

Round 1

  • On the bosu: Pushups/Burpees
  • With a medicine ball: Woodchops/Pulses
  • Bands: Bicep curls (In and out)

Round 2

  • On the bosu: Planks/Mountain Climbers
  • With a medicine ball: Front lunges w/twist
  • Bands: Tricep extensions

Then I did all the ab work she posted. (Seriously, just check out her post-linked above- for a more complete description).

Last, I hopped on the elliptical for another 10 minutes of HIIT.

It was a GREAT workout. I swallowed so much salty sweat. (Gross. Cringe. Barf. TMI- I know)

Only difference in my workout from Athena’s was the music selection. She chose to go with a Cinco de Mayo theme. Me: not so much. I have been hearing way too much techno-y/pop-y music lately, that I needed me some rap, hop-hop and otherwise ‘thuggy-thug’ music. (This is no offense to anyone by referring to it as ‘thuggy-thug.’ I just think it’s an amusing way to get the vibe across.) Little Wayne, Nicki Minaj, Jay-Z, Kayne, Snoop and Notorious all made appearances on my playlist this am. I gotta tell ya, that music really revs my engine.

On the way to the gym I heard this song and I got really amped to work out. It really just makes me wanna dance and twist and shake and shimmy. Please tell me that you clicked on the link. And that as soon as the music played, you started bobbing your head or rocking your shoulders back and forth. Admit it. Because that’s what I’m doing. RIGHT NOW. Of course I’m playing it on repeat until I finish this post.

Then, on the way back, I heard this song. It was my very first favorite song that wasn’t and oldie or a Disney tune. Total throwback. Not gonna lie, I have used it quite a few times in playlists for classes I ran in Boston. Best part was when someone in the class would be like “Aww man, great tune” They scored 50 points in my book.

Ok, on to address the notes I left for myself in the last post.

1) Lululemon Swimsuits.

(Source)

I’m pretty sure I am going to buy all of them. I went to the mall yesterday just to “visit” them and I fell in love. Tyler, are you reading? Your lady wants a swimsuit. The gal who freaked out at the Hot Springs 2 weeks ago because of the dreaded bathing suit wearing…WANTS A NEW SUIT. I suggest you take that as a hint.

2) Calgary Beerfest

(Source)

I got tickets for Tyler and I for Friday night. Very excited. VERY. There are so many new-to-me beers that are going to be there. I know, it’s a tough job trying all of them, but I feel I am up to the challenge. A lot of these Canadian beers have rivaled my favorites from the states, and some of them have been just awful. I checked out the list of who will be there, and some of my new faves are..so I’ll at least have some backup.

3) Copycat blogging. I’m actually in a good mood today, so I don’t want to bring myself down if I really get into this topic. Next!

4) At home workouts. I used to hate doing at home workouts because I either didn’t have the space or didn’t have the equipment. But now, I totally love them. I have my own room that I can sweat to my heart’s content. I’ve got my mat, my stability ball and my new weights. So many options.

5) How much I hate washing dishes. The end. I just hate it.

6) Positives and negatives of being a lefty. Positives: I got on a lot of sports teams growing up. I got the lefty desk in school. Negatives: Coaches had a hard time teaching me the ‘opposite’ way. I smudge over pretty much everything I write.

I know there are more, but I can’t think of them right now. I think I just wrote that on my list last night because I had completely smudged up some important paperwork. #fail

7) Sleeping positions. On my belly or on my side. If I am drunk, I sleep on my back with my arms over my head. Totally weird.

8) Favorite chapsticks/lip glosses/what-have-yous. Chapstick: Carmex. But only in the classic stick and only in the original and cherry flavors. Strawberry? Blughk. Lip gloss: Benefit Ultra Shines. I have had just about every color and love every single one of them. What have yous: Exude Lipstick. I have the lip cream in Nude- I got it from my Birchbox a few months ago (which I had to cancel when I moved because they don’t deliver to Canada! Tears, people. Tears.)

This should be sufficient reading for you all for now..There’s a lot more to get done today!

Anyone want to rant/rave on anything? I’m all ears!

Busy bee.. And a great workout!

Unlike Garfield, I am loving this Monday

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source

I made a To Do list for myself (and one for Tyler, haha) and the first thing on my list was a workout. Here’s what it looked like:

10 minute HIIT elliptical warm up

10 left leg front lunges
10 right leg front lunges
10 squats
10 plié squats
(these ate all done holding 10 pound weights. Do this 4x through)

2 minute jump rope

10 bicep curls
10 tricep extensions
10 hammer curls
10 tricep extensions
(again, 10 pound weights and done 4x through)

2 minute jump rope

Donkey kick series left leg
(10 kickbacks, 10 top taps, 10 crossover kickbacks, 10 wide toe taps)
10 froggers
Donkey kick series right leg
10 froggers

2 minute jumping jacks

10 leg lifts
10 crunches
(4x through)

10 skiers
10 mountain climbers
(4x through)

Plank series
(30 seconds each side and 60 in the middle)

20 minute cycle HIIT

Done!

Breakfast was a chocolate strawberry protein bowl. I mixed chocolate protein powder, fresh strawberries, almond milk and ice in the blender and topped with a cup of Honey Nut Cheerios

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Now onto that pot of coffee….

Lots more to do today! I was going to cross ‘walk with Layla’ off my list next, but she seems to be oh-so-comfortably sleeping. And by comfortable I mean holy crap that looks painful.

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Me and Keira Knightly

So far, today has been pretty excellent. The nice FedEx man came and delivered wine.

(I’m pretty sure I creeped him out- I answered the door in my flannel pj’s with a muffin in my mouth)

Tyler and I had gone to Sonoma last October and visited Foppoli Wines. We signed up for their mailing list and this is our second shipment so far. It is so delicious!

Before I began my Wednesday sweat session, I decided to do my best Keira Knightly shoulder pose. Don’t we look identical?

Source

Then, I got my workout on.

In-10-se workout

(get it? Intense, but with a 10 in it? Haha, I crack myself up)

6 minute warmup:

  • 1 min jumping jacks
  • 1 min jog in place
  • 1 min jump rope

2 times through.

The following can be done 3 times through  with 30 seconds of cardio in between each for an intense 30 minute workout:

  • 10 squats with lateral leg raise (each leg)
  • 10 lunged with front kick (each leg)

30 sec cardio

  • 10 pushups
  • 10 back extensions

30 sec cardio

  • 10 single leg squat (each leg)
  • curtsy lunges (each leg)

30 sec cardio

  • 10 tricep dips
  • 10 incline pushups

1 min cardio

Let me tell you, I was SWEATY. Bad idea that I took Layla for a walk after that. My sweat cooled down and I was fa-REE-zing.

Lots more to do today…and I am already wiped!