Wednesday, July 24, 2013

Ruined by Soffe Shorts

So I officially decided today that I hate traditional running shorts!  Pretty sure that a liftime of the classic cheerleading and dance costume of Soffe shorts or spandex ruined me from the look and feel of real running shorts.  A few months ago I picked up 2 pretty cute pairs from UA and I really just can't get into them.  First I don't understand why they don't roll at least twice without getting bunchy.  You can roll a pair of Soffe shorts like 3 times before they look weird (albiet they look super short lol).  And second I feel like there is just an insane amount of fabric loose around my thigh.  I hate that when I sit down to stretch I feel like you can see straight up them, because you can, and that they get all bunched up when I run.  I understand this is total #firstworldrunnerproblems but I still had to vent!




I was able to get in a good run today though on my lunch hour.  The first two miles went pretty smooth and I had to walk a bit of the third but it still felt great to finally get a run in outside.  It has been too balls hot to do anything outside since the start of July but the current mid to low 70s is perfect.  Followed it up with my favorite flavor of NUUN which I am sadly now out of :-(  I was actually really surprised that I love the grape most since anything artifically flavored in grape usually makes me gag!  Guess I will have to do another Amazon order soon.



Hopefully everyone is able to get out and enjoy the weather today!

Thursday, July 18, 2013

Starting Over


I need to make this my new life motto!  The last three weeks have been a mixture of amazing vacations, getaways, and celebrations. This has meant that the last three weeks haven't included much in terms of fitness.  Since we left for Minnesota I have gained around 6 pounds and can tell that I have lost a lot of the tone I worked so hard to gain.  I know it isn't always about the numbers but when I know every 6 of those pounds came from alcohol, fudge, eating out, snacking, and more drinks it makes me realize that I need to do something.

Tuesday was my first day back to work and my gym from our weekend trip so I decided to pack my favorite shirt, print off my new honeymoon bikini routine from tone it up (which is brutal by the way), and get to work! 


 
The BF and I also decided that we are going to start having roller dates instead of wine dates!  Both of us suffer from hip and knee pain and the rollers do so much good but we have been slacking hardcore.  Now we are trying to commit to at least 3 roller dates a week!




Wednesday I did 30 minutes of cardio on the eliptical and another tone it up full body routine. And then we went to trader joes and stocked up on some of our favorite healthy staples, and just some of our favorites!  I have a slight obsession with Peanut Butter Panda Puffs and trader joes is the first place I have been able to find them in a few years so I was a super happy camper!



Tonight we have plans all night so I decided to get in early for a cardio session.  I have been dying to try the Itty Bitty Cardio workout from tone it up but my gym is usually too busy to take up the interval time on the treadmill.  Since very few people are at the gym at 6 am I decided it would be the perfect time.  The cardio kicked my booty but it was awesome to feel so accomplished so early in the morning.  Also didn't hurt that I was able to burn 500 calories in 40 minutes!

 
 

Plan for the next few weeks since I don't have too many major events (only one or two a week which is sadly basically none for me) I hope to keep up the good work and watch my food intake like a hawk. Thankfully I have recruited my bestie J to keep me motivated.... things are so much easier with a good friend!

I don't think I can eat anymore fudge!

This past weekend was my final big vacation of the summer!  The BF and I decided that we would love to do a weekend getaway just us two before he left for Minnie in August.  I haven't been to Mackinac Island since I was in middle school and we thought it would be the perfect place for a quick weekend trip.

 

I have gone with my family before but was never able to actually spend the night on the island because of how pricey it can be.  We decided to go all out and stay at The Grand Hotel which is by far the fanciest hotel on the island.  Thankfully they were running summer specials and by staying on the off nights we were able to get a great deal on a food and lodging package!

There are zero moterized vehicles on the island so you have to arrive by ferry and get everywhere by bike, horse, or walking. Since I can't ride a bike (long story) we decided to walk most of it except for a quick horse taxi ride to get to our beautiful hotel.

 
 


We could not have asked for a more perfect experience, everything from the food to the room to the staff were wonderful and there was so much to see and do.  My favorite part is that every night at 6:00pm every guest on the grounds has to be in formal attire.. women in dresses or pant suits and men in a suit coat and tie.  The BF and I love dressing up and it was so amazing to be in such a timless place with guest that also enjoyed the experience. 

The hotel has a lot to do but most of it involves walking through their gardens, playing bocce ball, golf, listening to live music, and porch sitting.  The BF and I had the hardest time just sitting and enjoying ourselves and our environment or walking around the gardens we constantly were asking eachother "what do you want to do?" instead of just enjoying the place we were in.  Def taught us a lesson that we need to just let ourselves relax more often and step away from the chaos and plans of our every day life.







Anyone not from Michigan that might not get the fudge reference in the title, Mackinac Island is known for their fudge shops.  So much so that they call their tourists Fudgies because they mainly just come or talk about the fudge!  About every other store on Main Street has their own brand and flavors of fudge and each one is more than happy to hand out as many samples as your heart desires.  The BF and I decided that we had to try each place before we made a purchase and then bought a pound and a half because we thought we should lol!  I ate all of my peanut butter fudge before we even got home and we are still working on a tiny bit of turtle fudge still.

I am so happy we were able to get away just us two for some much needed quality time before we start oh so joyous long distance hell relationship!

Wednesday, July 10, 2013

Crustless Mini Quiche

While on vaca I wanted to make a breakfast that each person could eat when they decided to roll out of bed on their own time.  I make these at home all the time and decided they were the perfect make ahead/ make a bunch/ crowd pleasing breakfast for the vacation.  Also I had an amazing view from the kitchen island so I was totally in the cooking mood!



These treats could go by a bunch of names, I have seen them online as breakfast muffins, cupcake omelets, mini quiches, etc.  I have always just called them mini quiches so that is what they will be here! 

My favorite part about these is that I usually just add in whatever veggies we have leftover from the week and are about to go bad.  Also on week where we don't have sausage and I don't feel like grocery shopping I just use real bacon bits instead.  Feel free to load these up with whatever things you love and have in your fridge.  The recipe I have listed below clocks in at about 75 calories a piece with 6.5 grams of protein!

Crustless Mini Quiche
 
 
Ingredients (For 12)
10 whole eggs
1 colored bell pepper chopped
1/2 yellow onion chopped
2 cups fresh spinach chopped
1 link Jenny-O Spicy Italian Turkey Sausage
 
Directions
1) Remove casing from sausage in cook in saute pan making sure to crumble the meat
2) Spray muffin tin with cooking spray and evenly divide veggies and meat between the cups
3) In large bowl whisk all eggs and 1/8 cup of water, pour evenly into cups
4) Stir the cups with a knife and place into a 350 degree oven for 25-30 minutes
5) Enjoy
 
I usually package these up 2 per plastic baggie and keep them in the fridge for the week ahead!  Just heat them up in the microwave for about 30 seconds and you have a perfect warm breakfast.



SNQANA4JDRFRRFTHC 5K

So the only productive thing that we did on our vacation was the:

Second, Not Quite Annual, North American 4th of July, Drunk Run Fun Run Race for the Hangover Cure.... or for short the SNQANA4JDRFRRFTHC.  I can't take credit for the name, it was created by the BFs friends a few years ago when they all decided to run drunk one morning.  The race is actually called the Nisswa Firecracker 5K , it is sponsored by PBR and it is held in the super cute little town that is next to the lake we stayed on.  All of us are pretty good runners, but no matter how good you are, after a week of drinking and sun that last thing you want to do is run.  So we decided to keep with the past and pound twisted teas beforehand.  The course is super pretty and winds though a few parks and lakes, and at the end we all got to enjoy a crawfish fry and unlimited PBR!

I can't really consider this a true race, but in my book any physical activity during vacation drunk or not should count LOL


 




Happy Birthday America!

So I was lucky enough to spend the entire week of the 4th in northern Minnesota at the BF's lake home.  It was a perfect week and we were lucky enough to have a bunch of friends make the trek to join us!  Independence Day is by far my favorite day of the whole year (and it's also the BFs which is how I know were meant to be HA).  The whole point of the holiday is to soak up the sun with a drink in hand surrounded by your friends.  So we did exactly that!

I figure a picture is worth a thousand words so it will probably be better then me writing a novel!