Recipes

Wednesday, March 3, 2010

March Challenge

I hate when I go MIA!  Work has been crazy busy, and I’ve also had many work-related commitments in the evenings which has really been screwing up my workouts AND blogging…double whammy!

when I don’t blog for a while I feel blah
and when I don’t get my workouts in I feel REALLY BLAH!  It affects my mood and I hate it…

sad, tired, un-exercised face:

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Hoping things will go back to “normal” after this week…hopefully.

On to my Challenge!

I don’t think I’ve ever done an official “blog challenge” on here, but I thought of one recently and no time like the beginning of the Month to start!

I’ve been having trouble feeling balanced with my eating lately.  At first I thought it was all the Body Pump making my body need more protein.  All this strength training has been making me hungry!!  However I don’t think it’s just that, but I’m just not feeling as “good” as normal.

SO!  This leads me to one issue I always have self-control issues with…food brought into work.  Usually it’s never even all that good…donuts, bagels…etc.  I’ll go cut myself a tiny piece, then another, and sometimes another and I just feel it’s extra “crap” I don’t need.  donut

My challenge for March is to avoid the unexpected office treats!!  I threw in the “unexpected” part, because sometimes I know there will be lunch or breakfast coming in and I can plan around it…like pack a salad to eat along with a slice of pizza that was brought in.  I just have that issue where if the food is there in front of me I tend to dig in, even just a little…but it’s bound to add up.  So there you have it, I figured this is the perfect way to make me accountable for my little goal. 

sweet sweat

I haven’t been to yoga all month!!  Craziness.  However, it was the perfect activity to kick me out of the “blahs”.  I hit up an early Hot Power Yoga class Saturday morning.  Afterwards I felt refreshed and “cleansed”. (edit: I could really go for that feeling right now) 

Sunday morning was Body Pump, with a quick 10 min on the elliptical before.

Monday:  meeting for work = NO BODY COMBAT!!  So sad.
Tuesday:  quick 30min treadmill run before class (for work) (worked late didn’t have time for the gym before class)
Wednesday:  hot yoga? (nope, worked late missed class)
Thursday: quick 30min treadmill run before class (for work) god I hope so!!!
Friday:
visiting a friend after work…so yeah, it’s a no go.
Saturday:  WEEKEND!  YES!  90 min Kickboxing class at 7:30am!
Sunday: depending on if we are back from NH yet, I would love to hit up Body Pump, AND go for a run (5k in 1 week!) 

But enough of the blah’s…on to the good stuff, like when I actually got to workout this weekend!

Before yoga I had 1/2 slice of whole wheat bread with some Barney butter (on 1 side) and almond butter+jam on the other.IMG_8461

After yoga, which is all too conveniently shares a parking lot of Whole Foods, I went in to grab a few things I’ve wanted to try, including these guys:

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My sweaty starving self got to work on oatmeal as soon as I got home.

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Banana oats with about 1T of chia seeds!  Topped with coconut, granola, a few choc. chips from trail mix, a small dollop of almond butter and a small spoon of peanut butter!

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Not all that different with the Chia seeds…I think I’ll have to keep eating.  I’ve heard they “gel”, and may thicken the oats, but I didn’t really notice a huge difference.  They do provide some great nutritionals though.

Requisite weekend Iced Cappuccino of course.

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Sunday before Body Pump I had a super trio bowl of cereal

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with Banana, strawberries, blueberries and skim milk

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Mmmmm coffee.  My bff gave me some of these beans to try.  She picked this flavor up at a little shop in CT:

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I forget the flavors in these beans but it was something like: hazelnut, toffee, butterscotch, vanilla?   Regardless, it’s DELICIOUS!

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After Pump, I did a quick shower+change at my mom’s house and headed to my aunts for a Bridal Shower tea for my cousin’s fiancé :) 

When I arrived, people were already getting through so the pictures aren’t “full”

tea sandwiches

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oh the scones…

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amazing homemade scones, with clotted cream, and jams made by my grandmother.  incredible.

tea + coffee station (p.s. my aunt just re-did her kitchen…I have major “stove envy”)

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cakes and other treats

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Fun girly afternoon :)

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Ok well I think it’s time to end this super RANDOMLY filled post and hit the hay!

I promise to be back to my perky-self next post!!

7 comments:

  1. I love the chia seeds. They are so nutritious and easy to work into oats or a lot of other foods. I understand what you mean about missing workouts, that is the worst and just makes you feel crappy. I hope life get's back on track for you. Good to see you back to blogging.

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  2. It's also nice to see someone else you likes kickboxing. That is my favorite workout.

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  3. Love the tea!!! I get excited whenever I see others having them. I know they are most common these days at showers, but still. Don't let it die! :-)

    I think that's such a great challenge to set, avoiding things at the office. I also had a policy of never having anything, as I'd be too tempted by even just a little bit and there are always more office treats. Those who can exercise control and just have a little possess a willpower I don't have.

    I bought my first chia seeds maybe a month ago? I feel good using them because of the omega 3s and protein, but I have not noticed much 'gelling' in my oats either. Maybe it works better when you soak them longer, like in overnight muesli? Haven't tried that yet, gotta wait for warmer weather.

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  4. Glad you're back! I know what it's like to be crazy super busy! I'm still trying to fit it all in, not very successfully!

    Your oatmeal looks outstanding and good luck on the challenge!

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  5. Don't worry I haven't been feeling my good self either. I'm going back to counting my calories and making sure I'm not "over" portioning my food. The weight just creeps up one morning and I don't feel comfortable. I guess we all have our issues!

    Have you extra tried overnight oats or a breakfast cookie? I like to use the chia seeds that way with my oatmeal and you can tell they gell up. It usually takes them an hour or two to do their magic.

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  6. Good luck with the challenge! Maybe March will be more springy and get you all revved up! I've been banned from running into Whole Foods for two weeks - self imposed, but I was starting to rack up quite the debt!

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  7. i think i should be with you on that challenge! i think it's my inner cheapskate combined with my lack of will power recently :)

    haven't tried chia seeds in my oats, but i did make some jam with it! need to experiment a little more :)

    i have stove envy, too ;)

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