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Excitement

GUESS WHAT GUYS!?!? I got Spin shoes! I am so excited! I plan to go to the gym later tonight to try them out! And look how pretty they are!ImageImageAnd the best part? REI was having a weekend long sale, plus I had store credit, so my total balance was only $10. Not bad!

Ok. Now that that excitement is over, I’ll go over the last couple of days. Last night, my sister drove me to REI to get Spin shoes, and then we stopped at a Ramen restaurant afterwards for dinner. I’ve never actually had Ramen before (besides Cup o Noodles).

We started off with some delicious Japanese salads and edamame. ImageImageChopsticks are most definitely not my strong point; especially chopsticks with a salad! Jeez. 

I had chicken ramen for dinner, which was really delicious and warm. It’s been a tad chilly here lately (relatively of course).Image

Upon returning to school, I decided to do a little “baking” experimentation. My friends had been talking about making coconut bread, so the idea had been planted in my mind. I really don’t have a lot in the way of ingredients; I am out of eggs. So I figured, why not try egg white protein powder?ImageI mixed up some unsweetened shredded coconut, egg white vanilla protein powder, vanilla, and a bit of sweetener, and then popped it in the microwave. I was not expecting the result- it tasted just like a coconut macaroon! I will post the recipe as soon as I perfect it. (Well, as soon as I get my act together enough to actually measure it). I tried it again today, and cooked it for a bit less, so it was almost like a pudding. ImageImageAs you may notice in the first picture, my hand is a bit colorful. Yesterday, I tie-dyed with my dorm. I’ve never done it before, and I had a ton of fun with it!ImageIt had to sit in a plastic bag for 24 hours, and it is currently lying in my room attempting to dye every surface. I’ll post a picture as soon as it goes through the wash! 

Today, I went on a rafting trip with my dorm, and had a great time despite some initial difficulties. The river we were going to was about a two hour drive away. An hour in, the check engine light when on in the bus, and we pulled over. The driver got out and inspected things, and then we were back on the road….for less than an exit. We didn’t even make it onto an offramp before the bus driver pulled over again. The engine was pretty badly overheated and the steering was locked up. There was smoke or steam coming out of the back of the bus. We had to call for another bus which was coming from pretty far away, and wouldn’t be there for another hour. The bus driver finally agreed to at least pull off the freeway, and from there, we had a little freedom to walk around and find food. I ended up with a chocolate banana smoothie from Starbucks. It was also around this time that I realized I had lost my lunch. The dining hall gave us all packed lunches for the trip. I’m pretty sure someone stole my lunch because a lot of people had more than one, and I had…zero. Near my seat, I found a lunch that had been ransacked (as in, no sandwich or chips), so I rescued an apple out of it. 

We ended up getting to the rafting place about two hours later than we had planned. 

Before I go on, let me just clarify that this is no white water rafting. It is way tamer! We were in big rafts and had paddles, in a river with a slight current. Being out on the water made me realize how much I missed rowing! I had so much trouble rowing forward. I ended up just turning around and rowing crew-style. Of course, this wasn’t exactly heavy duty rowing. The whole trip was just super relaxing, and it was a great end of the year dorm event. I’m going to miss living with these people! It’s insane that in a little over 2 weeks, my freshman year will be over! At the same time, this has been a pretty long year in that I’ve had soooo many experiences, and so many memories. Jeez, now I’m getting nostalgic! I’m sure week 9, midterms (yes, I have a midterm in week 9), and finals will take my mind off of that! 

How has your long weekend been? What did you do?

3-Day Weekend

 

Hey guys! I’m just going to pop in here quickly today! I think it may be nap time soon. Even if I stay up late, I cannot sleep in to save my life. Naps, however, are a completely different story. 

 

Yesterday, I finally did another timed mile. It was 20 seconds faster than my last one, but still way slower than I need to be, or am used to being. It made me really realize that I need to work on speed work a ton. I also did some sprints of various distances, and then core. I’m actually kind of sore from that yesterday. 

 

At breakfast, at first I couldn’t figure out why I was so hungry, until I realized that it was already 10 am. I love that classes don’t start until later for me on Fridays!ImageYogurt bowl, plus half a whole wheat bagel topped with cream cheese and egg whites. 

 

It was such a beautiful day yesterday. WIndy, but very clear. Image

 

I stopped at a cafe to pick up lunch between classes. I grabbed a yogurt parfait and a packaged burrito. The burrito was a really strange choice for me; it is definitely not something I would normally buy. I’m not a big burrito eater, especially not pre-packaged ones, so I shouldn’t have been surprised to be underwhelmed. I decided to just eat the beans out of the middle. Classy, right?Image

 

And since I really don’t have that much to say, here are a few more pictures. One more note: I AM GETTING SPIN SHOES TODAY! SO PUMPED! Any advice?ImageGuac. Guac. Guac.

 

ImageYeah. No one wakes up early.ImageImageI was in the mood for a waffle this morning, and I decided to just go for it, instead of fight it. I would probably end up losing that battle anyways. I topped it with blueberries- delish!

 

Ok, two more notes: Only 2 weeks left of school! And then I swear the food part of my blog will be much healthier/more interesting. And, is anyone going to the Healthy Living Summit? I really want to go, and I am just trying to figure out if that would be at all feasible for me. It is before school starts, so it is a possibility! I’d love to meet some of you guys!

 

Have a GREAT 3-day weekend!

Any fun weekend plans?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Social Networking

TOMORROW IS FRIDAYYY. I swear, this week dragged by. And, it is a 3-day weekend 🙂

Right now I am listening to my 25 most played songs on iTunes. A good portion of them are Spanish…heehee. Here’s one of my favorites! SUPER CATCHY.

Check it out.

Before I get into today’s post, I want to share with you guys some of my search terms. “what would peacocks and pigs look like if there were combined”

Awesome.

“cocoa powder gets everywhere”

Yes, yes it sure does!

“ate jar of sunflower butter”

At once?? Yes, I can relate. Kidding. Kind of.

And I’m glad that my blog is the very first thing that comes up if you google “puffed out stomach mono.” The VERY first. Really??

As usual, my day began with a Spin class. I REALLY REALLY want Spin shoes. Like now. Unfortunately, I have no means of getting Spin shoes. However, I do have a $120 credit at REI, which is where I plan to get them, so I guess it is worth the wait.

Breakfast after spin was plain Greek yogurt, sliced melon/pineapple, and a mix of granola and unsweetened muesli. They didn’t have the better kind of granola, but the mixture actually really worked well! Plus a buckwheat pancake. Don’t worry, it was not very sweet. Believe me.Image

Class, blah blah blah, then LUNCH. I had an amazing salad from Coupa. Those toasted walnuts were just…there are no words. They were salty, sweet, and had a perfect crunch.Image

I was still a little hungry afterwards, and I decided kettle corn was just about right. It was kind of embarrassing to go to the same cashier and buy more food….Image

I had a lot of meetings/psych study/section this afternoon. I also had a snack of some type of cinnamon-y bread from a different cafe.

ImageIt had apple and oats…that’s all I know! I love this little cafe- they have the best quickbreads! And they’re not very sweet, either, which as we know, is right up my alley. These snacks got me thinking, how do I define the “no sweets” thing I am doing? It’s funny, it is hard for me to articulate my philosophy and reasoning on what is ok for me to eat or not, but in my mind it is very well defined. No cookies, cake, ice cream. Cinnamon bread is ok. Pancakes without syrup are ok (in moderation). Muffins…borderline. I guess the best way to describe my definition is no desserts. When I get home and have more freedom in the kitchen, I will probably slash sugar a bit more.

And back to the normally scheduled programming…more food!

ImageI had half a frozen microwave english muffin from 4 months or so ago, so I topped that with Garlic and Herb Laughing cow, and half of my last avocado from my Big. I swear, those avocados are magic! It was super soft so I was worried that it had gone bad, but when I broke it open, it was nice and green! I also had a mango and some more pumpkin bread. ImageImageI have a class on evolution this quarter. Thing 1: My professor had a cold, and he was drinking Evolution brand grapefruit juice. Too great. Thing 2: I have to do…gasp, an art project! I am not a very artistic person, and I have to do something expressive about the evolution of carnivorous plants. I went to the bookstore today to buy paper and oil pastels. I accidentally bought pastels instead of oil pastels. The difference? Oil. Pastels are really dry and dusty. However, I had already opened them when I discovered this. Oh well. I decided to test them out, and naturally, what did I do?ImageI was considering doing a blue ombre background but I kind of liked it as is (minus the smudges). Thoughts? 

Messy hands!ImageImageDinner was super boring…I hate eating meat off of the bones! Only a few more weeks! Overall though, today included some pretty good eats! My face is going to hate me though…I had nuts 3x today, including some peanut butter I had with cereal after dinner….oh well. YOLO.

Now, I want to talk about Social Networking with you guys. Do you guys tell people outside of the blog world about your blogs? I generally don’t because I feel like if one is unfamiliar with the food and fitness blog genre, they’d think I was crazy for taking pictures of all my food and posting about it. Do you post about your blog on your personal facebook? I’m deciding whether or not I should try that, but I’m leaning towards not. This summer I want to spend some serious time on the blog, and I’m trying to decide if that is a way I want to spread the word or not. I’d love to hear what you guys do!

Do you tell friends/family/acquaintances about your blog?

The Great Microwave Scare and Something New

Hello everyone! I am loving reading everybody’s posts about BLEND. I am determined to go next year, even if it means doing a ton of random Psych studies for the money! Experiments with my brain? BRING IT ON.

So last night after I posted, I was sitting on my bed attempting to do homework. I had a lot on my mind, and could not sit still. I decided, gym at 9 pm? Why not? Ok, now looking back on it, this doesn’t really seem too late, but I’m definitely an early morning workout kind of girl. But honestly, nothing sounded better than spinning my heart out. I hoped on a bike, shuffled my Now That’s What I Call Music 45 album, and just had such a great time. It was on shuffle, but all the songs came up perfectly for my profile. I was there for about 45 minutes. 

While this was something I really needed, I regretted my decision just a tad when my alarm went off at 7 to go lift weights….but I’m glad I got up! I did this tried and true workout:ImageWhile I love it, I think it is time to start upping the weight on those squats. 

And being the good blogger that I am, I ate semi-more interesting things today, and photographed a majority of them!ImagePlain Greek yogurt, frozen blackberries, and granola with added raisins. It was a different type of granola at the dining hall, and I’m not a fan. It was too sweet. Granted, the other type probably has too much sugar for me as well, but whatever. ImageFor lunch, I bought a super expensive salad in an effort to begin to use up my outrageous amount of meal plan dollars. I had half for lunch, with the plan of having the other half for dinner. (That didn’t happen, as you shall see.)

I had plans to run with my friend after class, but she was feeling sick and I wanted a nap. And a mango. In lieu of running today, we made new plans to run tomorrow evening. ImageThat’s my fruit knife, which I love. I seriously only use it for fruit though, not that I’m complaining!

My snack ended up being larger than planned, and included some bites of my now-soggy salad, banana bread, and another mango (the above mango is tiny, but you can’t tell from the picture). Oh, and some yogurt!ImageFrozen banana bread. Since the school year is ending, I’m trying to eat up my freezer!

Enter microwave woes. For some reason, our microwave wasn’t working, so I went downstairs to use the dorm one-which, by the way, is super janky. And kind of gross. But it got the job done!Image

When my roommate got back, we looked a bit closer into the microwave problem. It appeared that the plug it was attached to was dead, because when we connected my lamp to it, it would not turn on. After further investigation, we finally discovered the root of the problem. The whole octopus the fridge and microwave were connected to was unplugged. Yayyy smart college students. I’m just glad we realized this when we did! The fridge is fullll.

I also received my housing assignment for next year! I’m actually super happy with where we are, although it is technically not considered very good housing. We got a pretty good draw number, but we had a huge draw group (8 people). (Oh, and the housing is a draw- you rank your top choices and they draw numbers.) But the dorm we are in is solid- centrally located, pretty close to 2 decent dining halls, and most importantly, very close to the gym. Because when I’m biking to the gym to go to a Spin class, and I don’t want the extra few hundred feet. You know. 

I decided to make dinner in my dorm, since we had a now fully functioning microwave. I ran into the dining hall for spinach, and left with a slice of cinnamon raisin toast as well. ImageThis stuff is seriously so good! And then I whipped up some guac from the avocados from my big, and a packet of guacamole mix. I the cooked egg whites in the microwave with a ton of spinach, and topped the eggs with guacamole. ImageHave I ever told you guys I like avocados? No?

“Dessert” was more freezer cleaning- frozen blueberries and a Paleo Pumpkin sort-of-bread creation, x2 (because it’s half a slice!).ImageWhooo check out the ice crystals on those blueberries!

Well, that’s about all I have for you guys. I’m currently realizing that my abs are sore….Being the weirdo that I am, I really love that feeling! So if you guys have any great sore abs workouts, send them my way!

Bad Blogger

So guys…I’ve been a very bad blogger in that I haven’t been taking pictures of anything. Or eating anything remotely interesting. 

This morning, I had  Harry and David pear. Image(Old picture…cheating but we’ll go with it).

I also wanted some protein, so I whipped up some egg whites in the microwave, and topped them with a lot of avocado. There was probably more avocado than egg, not that I’m complaining!ImageThis was one of those mornings where I throw a ton of stuff together in a hurry in an attempt to not be late for class…

Lunch is unpictured, as it was not really according to plan. After my 9am class, I had planned to go to the library, but I was SUPER sleepy so I headed back to my room for a nap instead. I ended up finishing off my sunflower seed butter jar with yogurt and a banana, and some carrots. Plus a Harry and David Orange! So not very photographable. Also, I made a major life choice today-I’m not going to open a new sunflower seed butter for a while. It’s time for a break!

Dinner was semi-exciting. I went to a different dining hall, and they had a baked potato bar! I loaded mine up with butter, cheese, and scallions, although it is hard to see under the salad. ImageIn the front is some type of veggie with some type of non-meat tofu-like product. In the back is some couscous with roasted mushrooms. I also had a slice of cinnamon bread (so good!).

So as you can see, not a lot of excitement going on in the food front. Or in life. What stinks about having such a great weekend is that the week seriously pales in comparison. I hadn’t really been bored with my weekdays at all until this week. And now, the week. is. dragging. I can’t wait for the weekend! I am going rafting on Sunday with my dorm, and I have a million and two friends from high school who want to stay with me this weekend (but I have a chem midterm next week, so I don’t know if that will be able to happen). I don’t think I’m ready for the year to be over!

On the plus side, my workouts have been quite good lately, if I do say so myself. They’ve been a little more varied than normal, as in they haven’t JUST been weights, or JUST rowing. Yesterday, I lifted in the morning. I was annoyed because I wanted to do cleans, and the rugby team was taking up most of the bars, so I took some time to do a circuit with pistols and pushups, and then some dumbbell snatches. When a bar opened up, I jumped at the opportunity and did this workout:

10-8-6-4-2

Hang clean (95#)

Box jumps

Technically, I was supposed to do the whole circuit twice, but my wrists were DONE after this. And dropping the bar on myself=not good. I followed this up with some work on the rowing machine…I believe I did 2k. Yeah, my shoulders were seriously feeling the cleans!

Here’s an ab workout I have been loving lately! I’ve been doing it most days with my workouts.Image(The wrestler move is lying down with your legs in butterfly, and then pressing yourself into a crunch with your elbows.)

In the afternoon, I went for a 3.7 mile run with a girl from my sorority. She is interested in running together regularly, and wants to do a half this summer as well. Yay for more training buddies!

This morning I went to a Spin class, and then this afternoon I decided to do a rowing workout. I’m getting inspired to get back on the erg more. In some strange way, I miss those marathon workouts. I definitely have trouble motivating myself to go all that fast though. I could never do a 6k on my own. Today, I did a pyramid:

250 m

500m

1000m

2000m

1000m

500m

250m

I took a minute or two of rest in between. I followed that up with that abs workout above, and a few other moves. Back in my room, I saw all the balloons still here from my Big, and was inspired. ImageI did some crunches with a ballon under my lower back, which was super hard! But then the inevitable happened…the ballon popped. Eh, what can you do, right??

One more thing, I have posted about the concept of Healthy Living College Blogger retreat…if you guys are interested, could you publicize the idea on your blogs as well? The more the word is out, the better! I think we could totally do this thing!