Ouch, My Body

Today every part of my body hurts.  I'm not even being dramatic I swear.  My back and forearms hurt from rock climbing, and my calves, the back of my thighs and abs hurt from my workouts on Saturday and Monday.  My body was telling me to slow down today.  I needed a rest day...don't mind if I do!  I got home from work and went on a walk with this little guy around the neighborhood.

When I got home I was craving something sweet, something pumpkin and something with protein in it.  I did a little searching online and decided to make these:

Pumpkin Protein Cookies

Recipe:

1 cup pumpkin puree

1/4 cup applesauce

1 tbsp + 1/2 tsp cinnamon

1/2 tsp pumpkin pie spice

1/4 cup vanilla protein powder

2 tbsp agave nector (b/c I didn't have molasses)

2 cups rolled oats

1/2 cup craisins (so much better than raisins)

Preheat oven to 300 degrees. Mix all ingredients together.  Place on a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper (makes 12 cookies) and bake for 20 minutes. 

The cookies turned out pretty well.  They were a little mooshy at first, but I think I just went at them too soon.  They started hardening up a little with time. 

In other news...it's going to be 60 DEGREES here tomorrow!!!!! I hope my muscles are feeling better by tomorrow so I can go out for a run after work.  This is the warmest it has been since the fall and it's going to stay there for about 3 days, so I have to take advantage of it while I can!

Day Off Fun

Today I had off from work and Matt decided to take off even though he didn't have the official holiday so he could hang with me....cuz I'm awesome.   We were a little slow to wake up which I quite enjoyed.  When we actually did wake up we ate a quick breakfast and then went to the gym.  I started out my workout with this abs workout with a side of legs.

I found some of these exercises in my Fitness Magazine:

And I found some on their website:

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this plank pike up is killer!

Then I went and did 10 minutes on the bike and 20 minutes on the treadmill doing some hill work which killed my calves.  Right now my whole body hurts. My arms are pretty sore from rock climbing yesterday. 

Lunch:

I've been crazy about eggs lately and today was no different.  I cooked up some spinach and then poured some of my egg whites over them.  I had the eggs on a whole wheat deli flat with the most AMAZING cheese spread on it.  There's a place around here called The Back Burner and they make a cheese spread called Better Cheddar that is so addicting.  I wasn't sure how it would taste with my eggs but it was pretty much the best thing ever.

After lunch I went out to the mall on a mission.  Find a dress for my bachelorette party that is coming up in less than 3 weeks.  We are going to Atlantic City, so I figure I should get something a little out of my slightly preppy comfort zone.  I went in about 7 stores....and found nothing haha.  I'm so bad at shopping.  I'm sure I'll find something eventually, or just wear something I already have.  When I got home from the mall it was already time to start dinner. I had big plans tonight.  I found a recipe on pinterest that looked so good I had to give it a go. 

Cranberry and Walnut Stuffed Pork Loin

I followed this recipe, but I cut my pork loin in half since it's just Matt and I and froze the other half for later.  The hardest part for me was butterlying the pork loin, something I've never done before.  It turned out pretty well though.  I basically cooked boxed stuffing (minus the butter they suggest) and mixed that with craisins and walnuts.  Then I butterflied the pork loin and stuffed the mixture inside and then rolled and secured with toothpicks.  Then I seared the pork for a couple minutes per side and finished it in the oven at 350 degrees for 45 minutes.

YUM. I'm pretty sure I'll be hitting up the leftovers for dinner tomorrow night. 

Snack:

Microwaved banana for 30 seconds with a spoonfull of peanut butter, greek yogurt and some granolla.

My Weekend In a Nutshell

My weekend has been great so far...besides the lack of sleep.  Matt and I went out to dinner on Friday night and then out for drinks with friends.  Something did not agree with Matt and he was up all night getting sick, poor guy.  We were both pretty tired on Saturday morning.  I started out my morning with a nice big bowl of oatmeal:

1/2 cup old fashioned oats, 1/2 cup unsweetened almond milk, handfull of craisins, cut up apple, and a spoonfull each of peanut butter and apple butter.  I have finally cured my aversion to oatmeal.  I just can't eat it by itself.  I have to have fruit cut up in it or have it mixed in yogurt...I'm weird. After my breakfast I left for my usual saturday morning workout! I love weekend workouts b/c I can get a lot more done. I started with this workout that left me  sore the next morning:

Then I hopped on the treadmill and ran 4 miles.  I warmed up for a mile including a 2 minute walk and then I went from speed 6.0 up to 7.4 by increments of 0.2 and ran at each for 2 minutes. I looked like such a hot mess afterwards.  I wish I could be one of those people who "glows" and doesn't sweat like a pig.

Lunch to refuel:

Random veggie scramble:  brussel sprouts, carrots, broccoli and peppers sauted and then I added some liquid egg whites and topped it with cheese.  Apple Cinnamon Chobani on the side :)

And now for the highlight of my weekend: Wine Tasting At The Rent's House!

My dad is in charge of all of the drinks for the wedding.  He wants to have a red and a white at each table for dinner and then have some other options at the bar for cocktail hour.  He went to a local liquor store with our menu and the people there recommended some choices for wines to go with the appetizers/entrees.  So my dad got a bottle of each and we invited some friends and family over to rate them.   Going in to this I thought there might be 5 or 6 wines.  I walked in and found 15 bottles of wine looking me in the eye hahah.

And a table set up with one white glass and one red glass for each person along with a pen and paper for ratings. 

Along with the wine we had strawberries, lots of cheese and crackers and of course chocolate!  I ate wayyyyy too much chocolate. I have serious problems lol.  All the wine was awesome and I would be happy with any of them at the wedding. 

 I think my mom and dad should go in to business after this one. My mom stayed up until 1:30 in the morning the night before getting descriptions of all of the wines.  This picture was taken after all 15 were tried haha. 

Now you would think I would sleep like a rock after this, but somehow I didn't.  I woke up at 8:30 not feeling rested at all. Matt and I went rock climbing, ran some errands and took champ for a walk. Then I really wanted something light for dinner so I cooked up some tilapia, asparagus and sweet potatoes.

And the absolute best part of my weekend?? It's not over. I have tomorrow off!!

Anyone else out there ever hosted their own wine tasting??

Yoga Thursday

The past couple of weeks I've been trying to do either yoga or pilates to mix up my workout routines.  I tend to get bored really easily when working out.  I'm always trying to figure out different things to do with my weights workouts and with running when it comes to treadmill workouts.  By Thursday night I've noticed that my body is just tired.  It's worn out from a week of workouts and week of working (whether it be a super busy week when I'm on my feet a lot like this week, or a slow week when I'm stuck in my chair at my desk).  Yoga/Pilates really helps my body unwind and helps my mind relax. 

Tonight I did an hour of yoga!

My other favorite part about these Thursdays?? I can do the workouts in the comfort of my own home.  This is especially appealing when its 40 degrees out and raining like today.

(Champ's favorite monkey toy making a cameo)

I started out with a 20 minute yoga for runners workout I found on Comcast On Demand.  It was ok, mostly stretching. Then I moved on to a 40 minute Shiva Rea Surf Yoga.  This was INTENSE!!! It started out a little slow but this lady is hard core!

I knew I was in for it when she pulled this one out! I tried really hard and got up for about 3 seconds haha.  Maybe one day I'll be able to hold it for longer.

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When she did this one I had to just sit there and laugh.  How is that even possible??

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After my hour was up I felt really relaxed and stretched out.  Now I'm ready to push through one more day of work until my 3 day weekend!

Weekend Plans:

Date night tomorrow with Matt. We are going to one of our favorite Italian places for dinner.  Saturday I am hoping to get to the gym early and then run some errands after lunch.  Saturday night my parents are hosting a "wine tasting" at their house for our wedding.  My dad went and got some advice about what wines to serve at the wedding and we are going to try a bunch of them out and pick a red and white for dinner.  Sunday Matt and I might go rock climbing in the morning, then I have some wedding stuff I need to work on (picking invitations/figuring out how many invitations we need) and of course my Sunday cooking for the week!



Sick Run and BBQ

I'm feeling a little better today than I did yesterday.  When I saw the weather report for the day I knew I couldn't waste it sitting inside and being sick.  It got into the 50s today which meant I really wanted to run outside! Before my run I fueled up with a good lunch thanks to my sister. She took me to the coop before I left Pittsburgh to get me some snacks for the car and I just finished them today. Delish!

Wheatberry salad on the side

From inside my building I could see the sun shining, but what I didn't expect was the wind when I actually stepped outside. Whooo baby.  I had one of those runs when no matter which way I turned I was always going against the wind. I finished 3.45 miles in about 31 minutes. 

Windblown with a nice vein popping out of my head.  Every time I run the vein come out!!

After my run I drove over to Matt and my favorite bbq shack to pick up dinner.  This place is such a dive, but they smoke all their own meat and it tastes amazing. 

Smoked ham with mac and cheese and veggies. 

Off to watch some ENews....don't judge I can't help it.  I'm a sucker for all trashy tv.

Sick Valentine's Day

I am officially sick.  I woke up last night around 2am and couldn't fall asleep for over an hour because I couldn't breathe out of my nose.  I'm one of those people that require only two things to sleep: Be able to breathe out of both nostrils and be cold so I can curl up in my blanket.  Along with the stuffed nose came hot/cold flashes.  I still got my butt up at 5:45 and headed to work.  Not the best day but I made it through.

When I walked in the door I was pleasantly surpised by 2 things:

I had a box of organic produce delivered to my house today with a LivingSocial coupon I got a few weeks back.  In the box we got some fuji apples, bananas, carrots, potatoes, pears, kiwis, purple lettuce and rainbow chard.  Normally the box would have cost $25 but I got it for $12.

Only one question....what should I make with this???

Anyone know what to do with rainbow chard?? Thinking about adding it to a soup.

My second surprise when I got home:

He knows me well: roses, chocolates, chocolate covered strawberries, runners world and a card.

These are obviously almost finished.

After oogling all my goodies I headed out for a short run to try to rid myself of this cold. I only ran 2 miles because I was not feeling so hot.  But I'm glad I tried.  Then it was time to start dinner. I wanted to make something I know Matt would like.  He loves comfort food so I searched pinterest and found the perfect recipe.  Healthy Chicken and Cornbread Casserole

I pretty much followed the recipe except I used olive oil instead of butter and I used whole wheat pastry flour for the cornbread to add some more whole grain.

We will have lots of leftovers!

Any tips for the rainbow chard??

How was your vday?

Weekend Happenings

This past weekend me and my dad made our way up to Pittsburgh to help my sister and brother-in-law out with the kids for the weekend. My sister is due with her third in March so she could pop any day! We stopped on Friday night in Somerset, Pa about an hour outside of Pittsburgh so my dad could go to a business meeting the next day.  The ride out was pretty uneventful, but then we had to figure out how to get my parent's dog into a hotel that doesn't allow dogs.  Solution?? an empty backpack:

Poor Bo, but hey it worked.

The next morning my dad and Bo headed out to his meeting while I took advantage of the fitness room.

I did a three minute walking warm up and then finished 3.5 miles before I hit up the continental breakfast.  I had a bunch of cut up fruit with oatmeal on top and then some eggs and a peice of toast with peanut butter.

And then I took a look outside.

Not what I had planned for. It snowed the entire day Saturday and the high was in the 20s. Brrrr. We are not in Delaware anymore.  When my dad got back from his meeting we made our way to my sister's house.  Mia and Giona were there to greet us

I offered to cook dinner that night so I decided to make whole wheat sweet potato pizza.  I made one for the kids and one for the adults and they turned out wayyyy bigger than I had expected. Giona helped me with the toppings.

Sauce and cheese for the kids. Pesto, cheese, zucchini and broccoli for the adults. My brother-in-law had to work at the hospital from 7pm-7am which gave Melissa and I the perfect chance to watch Breaking Dawn Part 1!!!!  Love it.

Sunday was a blur.  We just hung around the house and played with the kids. My dad and I started our trip back to Delaware around 4:30 and got home a little after 9.  Needless to say I was a little tired at work today.  Good thing it was a slow day where I could zone out a lot.  I headed to the gym after work and got a good weights workout in and then did ten minutes each on the bike, eliptical and treadmill.  I have a feeling I'm going to pass out early tonight. I might be using a little wine to make sure I do...unfortunately the kids were sick which means Aunt Meggie is getting sick too.  The perils of being an aunt lol.