Feature Friday: Weight Loss Recap

Hey guys!

I have officially lost 8 pounds! That is 2 pounds away from my goal! I’ve been wanted to write a post on my weight loss for a while now, but honestly haven’t had the time until now, whew! I am so excited to share more in-depth details on what I have been up to!

How I started:

It all started at the end of summer when I realized that I did not lose the weight I planned on losing that summer. In fact, I put on a few pounds! It was time to make small changes in my diet.

In the beginning:

I was not seeing results. I cut back on nearly all of my favorite “bad” foods (cookies, brownies, chips & salsa, deep-fried things…) and tried replacing them with “better” foods. This worked for a while but it just wasn’t enough. I began going to the gym daily for that extra push and still didn’t see the results I wanted. Slowly but surly I was losing about a half pound a week.

What I did at the gym:

• Cardio pretty much everyday
• Ab workouts twice a week
• Zumba 🙂

How  I “count calories”:

From what I have learned, they key to counting calories is to keep it as general as possible meaning, DO NOT COUNT EVERY FREAKING CALORIE YOU EAT. That will just make you crazy. Instead, I keep a journal (or sometimes I just make a mental note) with a general guess on my meals. I will set a limit of how many calories I can consume and then I’ll try to follow it. Some meals I’ll go over the calorie limit but that’s okay. I think it’s more important to acknowledge the amount of calories that are in your diet.

What I’ve learned about weight loss:

• Exercising everyday can actually be fun
• Take exercise classes that you enjoy
• Count calories (as mentioned above)
• Be patient, it may take time but it is totally worth the weight wait! 😛

I have learned so much over the past few months that I am so thankful for. Obvisously, I thank you guys for always encouraging me to try harder and be my best or maybe even encouraging me to let go sometimes and be patient. Either way, I am thankful! 😀

Is there anything you could add to these lists??

Recovery

Hi friends!

No Feature Friday this week due to tons of craziness.

This week I made sure to get out and active as much as I needed to. As I’ve mentioned, I have been feeling like crap lately without my daily exercises! Getting back in the swing of things really hasn’t been an issue at all.

Monday: Biked, ran, and Zumba-d

Tuesday: Tried a new class…. Turbokick! This was really fun.

Wednesday: Worked too much/rest

Thursday: More turbokick

Friday: Worked too much/cooked for the market

I’m really proud of myself for trying a challenging class. I had a co-worker  join my gym so we will be trying new classes and encouraging each other to go to the gym more!

I also have been experimenting with different food choices. Currently, I am focusing on eating a lot more calories for energy. I plan on doing a post of this in the near future! 🙂

Smoothies are a great way to get more good calories after a workout:

 

Blueberries, green apple, dates, vanilla protein powder, Spirulina and banana.

Perfect for recovery after all of that turbokicking!

Do you prefer to go to the gym alone or with a partner?

Spring Cleaning & a RAW Review

Goals for this week:

• Work on the core
• Eat “cleaner” foods
• Start my new Spring Cleaning program*

*I have noticed that heavy breads and meals that focus too much on processed carbs (which I shouldn’t be eating anyway) leave me feeling sluggish and weak. I want to try eliminating all foods that upset my body like wheat, sugar, caffeine, and processed anything(not like I haven’t said this before!) I guess I would consider this as somewhat as a detox, but not nearly as extreme. I’ve been talking about eating better for a while now but this time I have a plan.

So stay tuned for new healthy recipes!

!!!Review!!!

A few weeks ago I was sent a sample of ‘RAW protein powder’ from Garden of Life. I see this stuff everywhere but I was afraid to buy it because not only is it pretty expensive, I didn’t want to be stuck with a big tub of this protein powder if it didn’t even taste good.

The taste was pretty good compared to most protein powders. I really like the taste of raw protein powders. Very earthy without the chalky taste! Can’t beat that!

Not only did this stuff taste great, they sent me a $5 off coupon too! Thanks Garden of Life!

Last night, Scott and I went out for SUSHI!

I ordered my favorite roll…. SWEET POTATO!

Sides: fried fermented tofu and veggie tempura

Maybe I over-did the fried part? Whoops!

 Hi baby tomtom! How did that get in there?  Isn’t he cute? Hogging all the toys and what not.

How was your weekend?

Healthy Eating Help

Hi guys,

Kind of a short (yet very important) post today…

(Source)

My best friend wants to experiment with healthy eating and might possibly take a “vegan for a week” challenge.

Sometimes when she asks me questions I think of my fellow bloggins because a lot of the time, I feel like it would be helpful for her to gain knowledge from you guys too, not just me. Everyone has their own opinions about healthy eating and losing weight, I would really appreciate it if you were all so kind to help my friend out and answer some of her health related questions!

1. What made you want to eat healthier or become vegan?
2. What are some ways of getting in the habit of eating healthier?
3. What kinds of foods do you like eating the best that’s still healthy?
4. What are some easy and helpful workouts I can do at home? 

Basically, I would like everyone to comment below and tell us WHY you eat the way you do. Does eating healthy make you feel so good you would never want to go back? Do you just really enjoy eating whole foods for the fresh flavor? Do you eat healthy for the good looks?

Athletes: You had to start somewhere! How did you start getting in shape? Were you always involved in sports? Any major success stories?

Thanks bloggins!

 Keep the advice coming!

Basic Pancakes & Anythingbutchalkforbreakfastplease

Hi friends! Thank you all for your “get-well-soons” on my last post. I think it’s working, I’m feeling better! 🙂

I’m so ready for spring! I hate this food rut that I’m in! I’ve been eating so much crap, it’s terrible. My body is craving fresh foods. Hurry up and get in season! It is sad that I eat so much crap in the late winter. It’s my worst time of year for everything. I would like to think of my blog as a “health food blog” but lately I’ve felt like that is a lie! :X

So, although I have been trying to eat better, I’ve really been digging pancakes lately.

My basic pancake recipe:

Serves two

I use this pancake recipe on my “chill” days when I feel that it is okay to eat a not so nutritious meal for breakfast.

Remember breakfast = the day’s fuel!

  1 cup flour, sifted (I use half white, half whole wheat)
    1 tablespoon vegan sugar
    3 teaspoons baking powder
    1 teaspoon cinnamon 
    1 teaspoon salt
    1 cup nondairy milk 
    1 egg replacer, prepared
    2 tablespoons vegetable oil
    1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract (optional)

You know what to do.

This mix can be used for just about any type of pancake: blueberry, strawberry, chocolate chip, you name it.

Just add in whatever you like!

But speaking of a nutritious breakfast…

!!!REVIEW!!!

Vega’s Shake & Go Tropical Smoothie

Literally, you mix it with water, shake & go.

I really like how simple this was! You just add it to 1/2 to 1 cup of water, that’s it! The taste was actually pretty impressive. Not too chalky at all! Finally! I didn’t feel like I was forced to chug down a nasty chalky vitamin drink, I could totally taste the pineapple.

Would I buy it? Maybe for a treat. I think these run about $2-3 at Whole Foods, I don’t think I would pay that much for this. But I guess once you think about it, $3 can’t really but you a very nutritious meal anywhere else.

Check out all of that iron, 30% in that little drink! Not to mention 11 grams of protein. I think I might start buying Vega products online once I start running this summer.

Have you tried any Vega products?

Pump it.

Hi guys, Happy Tuesday! Today’s post if filled with random things- I love it! But first…

Look who’s getting muscles…

Ok, so, you still can’t really see them but they are there, I promise! My whole life I have had thee weakest arms, I swear. I don’t even like working out my arms because it reminds me how weak I am. So, this is impressive for just doing Zumba classes the last 2-3 months without any strength training. I honestly do believe that Zumba Fitness is definitely working those delts! Check out those shoulders! Woowoo. 😉

Spring time is pretty much here and it’s time to get out of this nasty “Zumba only” workout routine because it’s time to get strong and PUMP IT.

But while we are speaking of ZUMBA,

On May 2nd I will be teaching a Zumba class! My instructor will be gone that day so I was nominated to take over the class! How exciting. I’m really looking forward to this!!! 🙂

Let’s celebrate with some Edamame Hummus!

• 14 oz frozen edamame, thawed
• 3 T Tahini
• 1/3 cup fresh lemon juice
• 2-3 cloves garlic, chopped
• 1 t ground cumin
• 1-2 t sea salt
• 1/3 cup water to smooth
• olive oil, to smooth

& B l e n d it b a b y !

Perfect in a wrap and great for dippage (as shown above). I really wanted to try this because I don’t know about you but, chickpeas make me extremely gasy! I could never give up hummus. Ever… just sayin’. But the good news is that 1 cup of edamame packs in 17 grams of protein compared to chickpea’s 15 grams. Plus, edamame has about 100 less calories per 1 cup serving than chickpeas. So go make this!

!!!Review!!!

A few weeks ago, 18 Rabbits sent a few samples of the new Bunny Bar for me to review. Seriously, I can’t find this bar anywhere! I was so excited to finally try it.

The 18 Rabbits Bunny Bar is an all organic granola bar that is available in the following flavors:

• Squeaky Cheeky Choco Cherry
• Mini Merry Mango Strawberry
• Rocco Choco Banana
• Deedee Dot Cherry Apricot

My favorite?

This was a hard one because they are all so good but I would go with…

(Source)

They bars are very hearty and only contain about 120 calories and 8 grams of sugar! Besides being the cutest bars ever, I loved how chewy they were. I would definitely buy these. I’ll probably have to buy them online! 😉

Now, time to go study for my psych exam! This should be fun. Thank you reading and I hope you all have a wonderful day!

The Perfect Date

So basically, I love dates.

They are so much fun to bake with because they are unique and full of health benefits such as Vitamin A, antioxidants, fiber, and they are a good source of natural sugar.

One way that I like to eat dates is though eating a Larabar. However, we all know Larabars can be quite costly.

But who needs Larabars anyway? Get some dates, get some nuts, and get some dried fruit then throw it in the food processor and roll them into pretty balls.

Seriously, try this. I will post recipes for my balls as soon as I perfect them! These were so much fun to make, I cannot wait to experiment with new flavors.

What’s your favorite Larabar flavor?

I hope everybody had a great weekend 🙂

Spring Fever

When I got out of bed today I was extremely happy. I just felt really cheery and joyful! I heard the birds chirping away and I felt the morning sun peaking through my window, I could have sworn it was spring.

But no, it’s still February in Michigan and we were blessed to have sunshine and above freezing weather the last few days.

& It was awesome.

I am a strong believer in the ways seasons can affect a person’s mood. For as long as I can remember, my mood has always changed with the seasons. For example, my best season is early fall. I am always happy and I seem to  have so much energy that time of year. I eat better, I work out like a mad dog (for fun!), I am organized, and I just feel great. However, when late winter comes around, I am the complete opposite. I “give up”, I get stressed out, I feel under pressure, I don’t have any energy, and I just don’t feel like myself. Will I be like this forever? Probably. Is it really going to effect my life? Not so much. I guess I’m just used to it. I know I’m not the only one who gets these feelings. I’m not sure if it’s considered seasonal depression because I’m never really depressed… just different. Know what I mean? I hope this mini spring break helps me get back in my groove!

I was so in the mood to start a mini garden or go to the Farmer’s Market and buy fresh spring produce BUT, like I said… It’s still February!

And February did not stop me from making a delicious spring-time-wanna-be lunch:

Three slices of vegan cheese*, hummus, grape tomatoes, grilled onions, grilled asparagus and sprouts all wrapped up and grilled on a Flat Out wrap

*At first I was attempting to make a grilled cheese with veggies but, this hummus wrap idea really would not leave my head! So if you want to make this you don’t really need the cheese.

On the side:

A kiwi and a plum.

I’ve noticed that most of you bloggers eat your kiwi with the skin on. That’s awesome! I don’t know why I ever even cut the fuzzy skin off, it taste really good plus you save a lot more kiwi. Usually when I peel my kiwi I end up losing half the dang fruit just from trying to remove the skin! So don’t be afraid of the fuzzy! I will diffidently be eating more kiwi because of this. 🙂

Some interesting facts on KIWI:

• Contains more vitamin C than an orange
• High in fiber (eat the skin!)
• One kiwi contains almost 10% of your daily potassium
• Rich in minerals

I was loving this kiwi so much that I even packed some with my din-din at work:

This went very well with some homemade strawberry yogurt 🙂

Are you a kiwi skin-eater?

 

PB Oatmeal Cookies & …Fingernails?

Happy Friday, Bloggins!

Ok, so maybe we didn’t end up getting 16 inches of snow, more like half that. It was still fun being trapped indoors all day Wednesday. We all need days like that sometimes!

For breakfast today I had an all-time favorite…

Smoothie in a Bowl

Strawberry Banana Style!

This SIAB was topped with homemade granola and dried apple slices.

And sorry for the ugly photo, natural lighting was not happening this morning.

And as promised…

Chocolate PB oatmeal cookies

 1 cup brown sugar
    1 cup granulated sugar
    3/4 cup crunchy peanut butter ( Heres where the chocolate comes in: use 1/2 chocolate PB!)
    3/4 cup oil
    1/2 cup vanilla non-dairy milk
    1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
    2 cups all-purpose flour
    2 cups rolled oats
    2 teaspoons baking powder
    1/2 teaspoon sea salt

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly grease 2 cookie sheets. In a bowl, mix together brown sugar, granulated sugar, peanut butter, oil, vanilla nondairy milk, and extract.

2. In a separate bowl, mix together flour, oats, baking powder, and salt. Add the dry ingredients to the wet. Mix well.

3. Bake for 10-13 minutes
4. Allow to cool about 10 minutes to firm up before moving off cookie sheet. 

Optional: drizzle with melted chocolate.
Makes: 20 to 25 cookies, Preparation time: 5 to 10 minutes, Cooking time: 45 minutes

Now, for the protein cookies…

Because there’s nothing better than eating cookies after you work-out! Okay, maybe that’s not a good idea because of all that sugar….

Use the recipe above and add 1 and a half cups of chocolate protein powder and 3/4 extra cup of soy milk!

These taste like no-bakes when you leave then in the freezer, Yum! Also, these babies pack about 10 grams of protein per cookie.

And speaking of protein I have some fascinating (and kind of obvious) news to share:

You might recall me talking about how long my nail are because they grow like weeds! And you know what? It seemed like a lot of you have this problem. OK, so it’s not really a “problem” but whatever! 🙂

Anyway, I did some research.

What make nails and hair grow so fast?

• Protein



• A wide v a r i e t y (<– key word) of vitamins (from veggies!)



So HAH to every old person who thinks vegan do not get enough protein and vitamins! As I was researching, I came across lots of people who “knew somebody” that was a vegetarian and their doctors said that they aren’t getting enough protein and that’s why their nails and hair and weak and not growing as fast as they should. Which, ok… I guess maybe some vegetarians do not understand nutrition or how to listen to their bodies so maybe those people were right but, I am still standing by what works for my body and I do know that my nails never used to grow like this before I was vegan. CASE CLOSED. 😉

Do you think long fingernails are a “problem”?

I’m not sure how I feel on this one. I like showing them off but they are kind of annoying… then again I’m not really the girly-girly type!

Earthling: one who inhabits the Earth

Hello hello! I’ve missed you…

I haven ‘t been too busy lately but, I have not been in the posting mood even though I’ve had so much to tell you! Well, not really.

But I have been making lots of cookies to sell at the store my boyfriend works at. I made two kinds so far: Oatmeal raisin with cranberry & Chocolate trailmixers made with agave. They are going for about $2 each because they’re so so huge!

Chocolate Trailmixers

I totally winged this recipe and I was so afraid they wouldn’t turn out! Next time I bake these I’ll be sure to get the recipe down so I can share it with you 🙂

Another dessert I made was chocolate covered pomegranate seeds. I did this by melting a dark chocolate bar, adding the pom seeds to the chocolate mixture, scooping them out and placing them on parchment paper and letting them cool in the fridge.

The best part? Getting two poms at the store for .50 cents each! Whoop whoop!

     What’s to love about pomegranates?

Said to be good for reducing plaque in the arteries

Improves oral health

 Loaded with antioxidants (3 times as much as green tea)

Improves circulation

  

Yesterday I finished watching Earthlings. (See the link to your right under “New to veganism”) This movie was so heartbreaking that I tried to watch it so many times but I couldn’t finish it until now. The hardest part to watch was (the whole thing?) the first part of the movie about pets. If you watch it, you’ll know what I’m talking about. Every human that chooses to consume meat need to watch this documentary. Everybody should be aware of the hell that goes on behind the scenes. If you care about anything other than yourself, this movie will affect you and hopefully you can begin to start making small changes in your life.

The world is in our hands

Have you watch Earthlings? If yes, what did you think? If no, why not!?!?