Workout motivation of a different nature

I’ve posted on workout motivation before… But this is a whole different kind of motivation. In order to eat these tasty treats, I feel the need to workout first.

Today, I was lazy enough to skip the gym all together and just search delish food blogs, instead.

Please vote in the poll for one of these recipes and I’ll make the winner this month! That especially means my friends that read this blog!

Enjoy.

Oreo Cheesecake Cake from Erin’s Food Files

Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cupcakes c/o Food Snots

Strawberry Shortcake Sushi created by Take a Megabite

Pizza Bites from Annie’s Eats

 

Banana Bread Scones w/ Brown Sugar Glaze via The Kitchn

Hot Corn Dip created by Gina Marie’s Kitchen

Chicken, Bacon, and Cream Cheese Taquitos from Mommy I’m Hungry

Easy roasted brussels sprouts

A year ago, if you had asked me to eat a brussels sprout I would have laughed at you. But my great friend, Jess, knows how to cook so well that I will try anything she puts in front of me. In November of 2011 we set out to make some dinner over a fire the night before the Tough Mudder. One of the things Jess brought to prepare was brussels sprouts. She cooked them, I tried them, I loved them.

From that day until this day I have eaten roasted b.sprouts at least once a week (often a few times). They are just so tasty!

Seriously, try them. If you don’t like them – great – but you don’t know yet, do ya?

Easy roasted brussels sprouts

• 1 bag brussels sprouts
• 1 T olive oil OR cooking spray
• ~1 T mustard
• pinch salt
• pepper to taste

Do this: preheat oven to 400 degrees. Cut off rough end of sprouts and rinse; remove any leaves that have fallen off in the process (if you put these in to roast they burn very quickly). Spray with cooking spray or drizzle with oil; add mustard, salt and pepper and toss until coated lightly. On a sprayed or lined baking sheet, spread out sprouts so they are not touching.

Cook for 10 minutes, stir and cook for abut another 10 minutes or until sprouts are slightly browned.

Enjoy!

I love dipping them in BBQ sauce and eating them with turkey muffins and “fried” zucchini chips!

Turkey Meatloaf Muffins

These little mini-meatloafs are made with lean turkey and a veggie for a quick, simple protein to accompany any meal!

I have now successfully eaten them for breakfast, lunch and dinner.

Turkey Meatloaf Muffins

• 1 package lean, ground turkey
• 2 zucchini, shredded
• 1/2 C crushed Fiber-One cereal (or bread crumbs of choice)
• 1 egg
• salt*
• pepper*
• paprika*
• 1/4 C BBQ sauce

*Use these to taste!

Do this: preheat oven to 350 and spray or line 12 muffin tins. Combine all ingredients in a large bowl and use ice cream scoop to fill muffin tins; press down. Cook for about 20-25 minutes, drain oil (which will be present… and slightly gross!) and let cool. Store in refrigerator for a couple days or freezer for long-term use!

Marathon Training: Rest days

This morning I woke up and made one dang delicious breakfast of cinnamon french toast with strawberries:

Cinnamon French Toast for One

• 2 pieces of bread (I used Aunt Millie’s 35 cal)
• 1 egg white
• splash almond milk
• 1 t cinnamon
• cooking spray

Heat skillet to medium heat and cook on both sides until brown. Top with strawberries and your choice of syrup (I used low-calorie cinnamon – mmm!).

Following this breakfast I read up on some scripture, drank some coffee with a mud mask on my face, and then did some fantastic spring cleaning! It feels so nice to have everything so clean!

Tomorrow is my first race since the tough mudder and my first half marathon since the Indianapolis one I did in October where I PR’d. It’s just a local race put on by the Ohio River Road Runners Club (ORRRC). It’ll be an interesting one since it’s local and probably pretty small.

So, two things:

1. Use other races to train for your marathon. When you use races to train you are training in the atmosphere that is most-like the atmosphere you will be in on race day. When you are training regularly there’s nothing like actually getting in a race, surrounded by people, aid stations handy and being timed. It’s great practice for the real deal – plus it’s fun!

2. Rest. I am so bad at resting – I tend to feel guilty if I skip more than one day a week. I know this is a bad way to look at things. It really is. It is so important, however. I did TRX again two days ago for the first time in probably a month and my whole body was sore. I needed some time off to let my muscles rest before trying to push out a great run on Sunday. Taking the time off gives your body the chance to repair and also prepare.

Read up on the importance of rest for runners and athletes, here:

• Runner’s World
• About.com: Sports Medicine
• Mark’s Daily Apple
• Fitnessista
• Active.com
• Get Moving Boston
• Oh She Glows
• Nutrition on the Run

source

Rest up, friends!

Quick Apple Cinnamon Oatmeal

topped with spoonful of Greek yogurt and some walnuts

Quick Apple Cinnamon Oatmeal [my original recipe]

• 1/2 C water
• 1/4-1/2 t cinnamon
• 1/4-1/2 t sugar substitute (or sugar)
• pinch salt
• 1/4 C quick-cooking oats
• 1 small apple, chopped

Do this: bring water, cinnamon, sugar and salt to a boil in saucepan; quickly add oats and chopped apple. Boil until majority of water is reduced. Enjoy!

baby cakes (booty blitz)!

Look what I got for Christmas – this adorable little Babycakes Cupcake Maker and additional cookbook!

Pictured are the applesauce cupcakes from the book! Growing up, my mom would make applesauce cake, which I always LOVED. These are definitely different, but still so good! The Cupcake Maker was very easy and quick to use and even easier to clean up! Wonderful!

 

Depending on how many little cupcakes you eat, you might need a little workout pick-me-up after! I did the following workout the other day and was s-o-r-e. The day after I figured by booty would be feelin’ it and throughout the day I was actually kind of bummed that I felt pretty good. Oh but just you wait! By the time I was home from work it was starting to feel sore. And as the day went on, so did the pain! It was fantastic! Don’t you just love that “that workout worked me good” sore feeling?

I sure do!

 

Baby Cake Booty Blitz

• “The 300” [Slightly modified version of this] – repeat x5
  • 10 wide stance burpees
  • 10 pushups with leg lifts
  • 10 jump lunges
  • 20 crunches with oblique twist at top
  • 10 plank jumps w/ side crunch
• Static Reverse Lunge Tabata style (right leg w/8lb dumbell in each hand)
• Side leg-lift Tabata style – 4x each side (lie on side lift leg front-to-back)
• BodyRock.tv Sumo Squat Challenge (see video below)

kick-butt workout and kick-butt soup

Last night, I laid in bed for hours worrying about the next quarter of school… I’ll be working as close to full-time as I can, starting my internship, and taking 3 classes… Amongst my usual activities. It just scares me. I imagine it’ll end up being just fine, but I like to worry… apparently.

So, 4:30 hit me hard this morning as I got up to go to the gym. I considered sleeping more. I considered just working out in my room. I considered never working out at 5 a.m. ever again. What DIDN’T I consider?

Walking into the gym, still lacking motivation, I thought I’d just do the short workout I had planned the night before and then go home and try to sleep an extra half hour before work…

Instead, I did the workout and was ready to do another since it only took me about 20 minutes. This workout comes from Katy @ Fit in Heels. When I read it, I thought, “oh, simple enough.” When I did it, I thought, “eh that wasn’t terrible.” And now, my butt says “oh, that was worse than I thought while I was still half asleep this morning!!” I’m sore!

The 300 Workout [From Katy @ Fit in Heels]

5 rounds of:

• 10 wide stance burpees
• 10 pushups with leg lifts (these make you feel strong and powerful!)
• 10 jump lunges with twist (holding weight)
• 20 crunches with oblique twist at top
• 10 plank jumps w/ side crunch (I love these!)

So, it was very doable, and I’ll definitely do it again – which I wasn’t sure about initially, but with how sore I am now, I know it was good!

After that, I quickly moved on to do Naomi’s 480 workout. I had done this once before, at home, and remember piling the sweat onto the carpet of my bedroom! I thought about halfway through that I should just call it quits, but I pushed through and finished and followed it up with an elliptical tabata!

And then… I was so exhausted the rest of the day!

I did eat some delish soup at lunch! I got the recipe from Runner’s World. It’s incredibly easy:

Tomato Chickpea Soup [Adapted from Runner’s World mag]

• 1/4 red onion, chopped
• 1 T olive oil
• 1 clove garlic
• 1 28 oz can crushed fire-roasted tomatoes
• 1 15 oz can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
• 1 15 oz can water (use the chickpea can is what I’m sayin’!)
• salt & pepper to taste

Do this: heat oil in a pot and add onion until soft; add garlic. Pour in tomatoes, water, and chickpeas. Boil for about 5 minutes and then let simmer, adding salt and pepper! Eat and enjoy!

 

veggie nuggets and a real run

Today was the longest day spent inside during the most beautiful weather.

Does that sentence even make sense?

Last night, last minute, my old friend “Double Scoop” and I went to the Reds game, sitting front row behind my boy, Drew Stubbs. The weather was perfect, the company was perfect, and the game was perfect.

I was tired this morning.

I worked 8 hours and then headed to class for three hours. Development through the lifespan. I don’t even know how to say the name of the girl who I sit next to, but she’s funny. Her mom’s waiting for her to get married, too. We are young and single and livin’ it up, okay mom(s)?

Then I changed at school and went to go run the stairs at the arena again (I did that Tuesday and phew, it was sweaty and awesome). I forgot to pack socks. Gross.

So, I came home instead. And I went out and ran 5 miles. On foot. Outside. Not on a treadmill. Definately not on an elliptical. Real running, my friends. Praise the Lord!

I’m back! It was my favorite little route and it was perfect.

I needed to eat dinner and it was almost 8pm, but I wanted to make these veggie nuggets anyway.

Veggie Nuggets [my creation]

• 16 oz bag frozen veggies of your choice
• 1 C Fiber One cereal
• 1/2 C oats
• 1/4 C bread crumbs
• 1 egg
• 1-2 T olive oil

Do this: Preheat oven to 425. Spray a baking sheet and wire rack with cooking spray! Cook the veggies as the directions state on the bag. Drain and rinse the veggies in COLD water (I add ice to mine until it melts). Dry the veggies in a towel (they need to be dry or they won’t stick well). In the meantime, in a food processor, crush the cereal, oats and bread crumbs; or use a meat tenderizer (or both, like me). Chop the veggies in the food processor (I don’t make mine very fine, I like bigger chunks). Mix all ingredients together, scoop and shape. Cook 15 minutes, flip and cook 10-15 minutes.

The only way I eat them - with BBQ sauce.

Yummy! Enjoy 🙂

freshly obsessed

In a hurry from the gym to run some errands, I didn’t have time for dinner quite yet but really needed some food.

I grabbed the other half of my yogurt from this morning (CarbMaster Vanilla Chai – you’ve GOT to try it) mixed in some bluebes (blueberries) and some chopped walnuts.

MMMMMM.

And, just FYI CarbMaster (at least this flavor, flav) has 8g protein. Yes, please!

I don’t have much else to say about it. Just mmm, yum.

I’m busy icing my ankle and watching the Cincinnati Reds.

I’ll be doing some baking with Tofu this weekend, any suggestions for recipes using Tofu? I’ve never tried!