I may still have to work tomorrow but Friday means I survived my always long Thursdays and I’m a bit closer to my day off on Sunday.
So after some requests, I have decided to bring back the Fitness Friday linkup…at least for now! Hopefully those of you who have participated in the past will want to join back up and those of you new, will want to join in. All I ask is that you grab a button and link back to me, and check out some of the others and help create this community of support in our fitness goals!
-I bought this new shampoo a few weeks ago and oh.em.gee. I LOVE it! Not only does it smell amazing but leaves my hair feeling nourished. I consider this especially important because my hair gets quite the tousling while looking so fabulous.
-After the Boston Marathon bombings, I ran across this tank top on Etsy and with proceeds going to the One Fund, I had to get it! I wore it on my run Tuesday morning and a few people driving by (that I didn’t know!) waved and seemed to show support. It was a really cool feeling.
-THIS.WEATHER! Seriously, I can’t get enough time outside! For the girl who lived in Southern Cali for 3 years and got sick of the endless sunshine (or lack of other weather), you wouldn’t think this would get me so excited but it is and I’m loving it! I’ll still take the rain as it comes but when the sun comes out to play, you can find me on the deck soaking up the sunshine.
-A few weeks ago, I was given the opportunity to try a variety of Food Should Taste Good chips the company sent my way. I wasn’t expecting so much, but as this picture shows – I WAS CHIPPED!
I love how these chips are all natural, gluten-free, low-sodium and created without trans fats, cholesterol or artificial ingredients. And seriously, they DO taste good! And while I’ve got the sweet vs. salty tooth, who doesn’t love a good chip from time to time? Whether to have with some homemade salsa, guac or alongside your salad at dinner, these were awesome. No joke.
I can’t thank Food Should Taste Good enough for allowing me to try their chips and especially because they’re allowing one of you to as well!
But I’m a creature of habit and I’d hate to think that makes me boring especially when I feel like my life is anything but!
With that, I do understand that we need variety in our lives – food included so I’ve been trying to change things up a bit. It may not be much but it’s a step in the right direction:
My usual lunch:
The variety:
This week’s variety of the variety (did you know that was possible?):
It may look the same but instead of banana bread, that’s zucchini bread. I tricked ya, huh?
I’ve also been changing up my snacks a bit. With the weather getting warmed, I’m craving smoothies more and more:
And since Greek yogurt hasn’t been lunch quite so often but is still a constant craving, smaller yogurt bowls have been great for snack time:
They say variety is the spice of life and I’m doing my best to embrace that in every aspect of my life.
One of my favorite ways to catch up with friends is over a good cup of coffee or tea. I consider you all friends, so let’s catch up, shall we?
Blend is in 10 days and I’m so excited I can hardly take it! I’m ready for a fun, relaxing and friend-filled weekend that’s bound to be one of the greatest weekends of the year.
My excitement makes it hard to not start packing already…no joke, we got our packing lists and I’m ready to go. …well, that and maybe buy a new dress to wear for the cocktail party.
I’m seriously obsessed with Pinterest lately…I think this is the reason why I held off signing up for so long. Thankfully, I’ve been keeping my Pinterest time to right before bed. You can’t keep pinning if you’re falling asleep…
Official results of Sunday’s run have yet to be posted…while I know I placed 2nd (!!) in my age group, I’m still really curious to know my exact time, especially because I think I PRed…I think!
I am continuing to practice patience and fight my desire to get my own place but I’m still waiting on some (hopefully) exciting things. I can’t share anything yet because really there’s nothing to share but I’m remaining hopeful there will be something to share someday…hopefully sooner rather than later.
I’ve been watching The Voice this season and I think there’s some serious talent on this show this season. I watched a bit last season but otherwise, I haven’t watched seasons past so I’ve been surprised to see some real talent. I understand it’s TV but I really think there’s some singers in this group that could and should go far in the industry. I honestly believe that.
I’m not exactly sure where to start. It’s been quite the roller coaster weekend but I’m not complaining because without the dips we’d forget to appreciate the high moments in life.
And speaking of high moments, I ended up registering for that race I was talking about on Sunday, though I didn’t end up running there AND back like I was thinking about doing at one point. I think it was a good move because Mexican food isn’t exactly the ideal pre-race meal, while delicious, not really your best option and I woke up Sunday morning not feeling my greatest. I decided I was going to still run the race but would drive myself there and since I was going to be tight on time to shower before we celebrated my great uncles 95th birthday at our house, it was probably best anyway.
I got to the race a little after 7, registered, grabbed my bib and walked and jogged up and down the street to stay warm and get my body warmed up. I think that ended up being huge for my overall race.
We started off fast and I was feeling like I needed to slow down but it was hard in the beginning and I found myself battling my mentality that I couldn’t slow down or I’d basically be walking, I was sure we couldn’t have actually been going that fast. I think we were because after slowing down, I was still maintaining just over a 9 minute mile.
There were moments the run was tough but I kept reminding myself it was only 3 miles and really it was almost over, so I kept pushing. I’m not sure at what point I realized I was in a good place but maybe it was as I looked ahead and felt like there weren’t THAT many people in front of me. It wasn’t a big race, but regardless, I felt like I was in a good place. I pushed what energy I had left and just ran my heart out through that finish line. I grabbed a water, took a sip and stopped my Nike+ app. It was at that point that I had this desire to stay for the awards.
We watched the remaining runners and walkers come in and watched the kids sprint and headed inside the theatre for awards. I sat down and figured it wouldn’t be a big deal if I didn’t place but if I did, I’d want to witness that moment. And lucky enough, I did get to witness the moment they called my name for finishing 2nd in my age group.
I’m not a super fast runner and that’s okay. There will be few times in my life when I can say I placed in a race and that’s also okay. But when those moments happen, or if this ends up being the only one, I will embrace them and appreciate them with every ounce of my being. What a marvelous thing.
And because it’s Monday and no Monday would be complete to me without sharing some new music, I’ve got some good stuff for you guys today. A few weeks ago my friend Lauren shared this band on her blog and I loved it! Lauren and I definitely share similar tastes in music which is just one reason we get along so well.
1. We celebrated a night early last night with Mexican. While my parents didn’t realize we were celebrating Cinco de Mayo until we got to the restaurant, I think my craving for margaritas and fish tacos knew exactly when to turn to high gear.
2. Just because we went out for fish tacos and margaritas doesn’t mean things got crazy. That is unless you call crazy spending your Saturday night watching Big Bang Theory reruns and painting your nails.
3. Though things could get crazy today. Well, maybe not crazy but as I prep this post, I’m thinking about a last minute race entry…and maybe even running to and from the race. That’s a bit crazy…
5. But I should admit, as soon as everyone leaves, I hope to spend my afternoon relaxing on the deck listening to music, reading a book and/or writing.
6. And while I fill my afternoon with sunshine, I also plan to fill my afternoon with hope and positive energy.
7. Because if I want big things to happen, which I do, then I must send that energy into the world. Consider energy in transfer…
I don’t mean in a plane. And I don’t mean jumping out of one either.
I mean that moment when the wind blows threw your hair and makes you feel like you’re flying, whether that be on a walk, run or when driving with your windows rolled down.
When you can’t help but smile and feeling like you’re floating, gliding and flying through the air.
That moment when your problems are as small as the ants on the ground and you can’t help but feel blessed.
Maybe it’s the sun. Maybe it’s the Vitamin D that’s filling my body. Or maybe this is what it feels like to fly.
I told you all that I started LiveFit trainer again a couple weeks ago…well, I lost motivation. Or rather, I just decided it wasn’t quite what I wanted to do again right now. I think I was feeling it to be too rigid (though I was trying to change it up a bit) for having just come off a pretty rigid 1/2 marathon training program. So I’m listening to my body and changing things up again.
So what am I doing?
I’m loosely following the Tone It Up (TIU) Bikini Series workouts.
I say loosely for a few reasons – I want to feel like I have the flexibility to do what I want – I don’t like all of their workouts and therefore may change things up if/when I don’t like a workout – I want to listen to my body, however that may appear.
So far that’s been working out for me this week. And this is what it’s looked like:
I wish I could properly explain what happened on my run Sunday morning but I’m not sure I can get the words right.
You see it wasn’t an easy run. It wasn’t one of those runs where I felt like I could finish. In fact, I kept trying to figure out if I could talk myself into shortening my run because there was no way I was finishing 5 miles. It was one of those runs where I couldn’t believe that I was someone who had ever run a 1/2 marathon and was sure that hadn’t actually happened. As you can see, it was one of those runs.
But then something happened.
It took almost 3 miles for this to happen. The sun was shining the whole time and it took about 2-2.5 miles for me to even start to find a groove (to add some perspective, this usually only takes a mile or so). That’s when it happened…
I turned a corner (both literally and figuratively), the sun was shining bright, music was flooding my ears and for a moment I closed my eyes. What was taking over me was so powerful.
I’m not sure I got the words right but people seemed to understand regardless.
It felt like one giant heart opener in yoga and the light was just pouring into me. The positivity, the excitement, the joy, the hope, the love and life. My heart was so full it felt like it could burst. I’ve never felt anything like that before. But that is why I run.
I wish I could properly explain what happened on my run Sunday morning but I’m not sure I can get the words right. And I’m not sure I’d want to.
I can’t believe it’s May 1st! I also can’t believe it was 85* outside yesterday and it was my day off so I was able to enjoy every ounce of sunlight and warmth possible. I also made sure to rock the windswept look after driving around with all my windows down and the sunroof open. No complaints here.
You know what else I’m not complaining about? This new banana bread recipe.
I got back in the kitchen for some baking on Sunday and it was amazing. I’ve been trying a new banana bread recipe for months and kept getting stuck. It was leaving me defeated and unmotivated and I felt like I couldn’t make something else until I got that recipe right. Well, I was wrong.
I’ve got a new banana bread recipe for you today but it’s not the one I’ve been working on. But it only took one try and I pretty much love it. It’s not a sweet bread but I didn’t want a sweet bread. I wanted something that was delicious, healthy and could be part of a great snack topped with some almond butter and fruit…
Or that I could pair with a little more protein and turn into a lunch in the sun.
That’s exactly what I got.
Cinnamon Banana Bread
by Katie Arnold
Cook Time: 50
6046252
Ingredients
3 bananas, mashed
1 banana Chobani Greek yogurt
1 egg white, beaten
1 tsp vanilla
1 tsp baking soda
pinch salt
1 cup whole wheat flour
1/2 cup almond meal
1 tsp cinnamon
For the optional swirl
1 tsp cinnamon
1-2 TBSP honey
Instructions
Mix all wet ingredients in a larger bowl. Then in a smaller bowl, stir all dry ingredients together. A little at a time, add the dry ingredients to the wet.
Spray a loaf pan with non-stick cooking spray. Pour 1/2 the batter into the bottom and even it out. Now drizzle on our cinnamon swirl and add the rest of the batter.*
Bake in a 350* oven for 50 minutes or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean.
*If you don’t want to add the cinnamon swirl, just pour all of the batter in and bake. The swirl just makes it fun and adds a bit more cinnamon flavor.
