Back to Reality

Oh how I miss the sandy beaches and gentle roll of the waves as I laid on a towel and read my book! Florida was a lot of fun and relaxation but now it's back to the grind of waking up early and going to work. Just to bring back some memories of last week:

 This was chargrilled amberjack with zucchini and hush puppies! It was delicious:)

And this was stuffed shrimp with a twice baked potato and corn medley, makes my mouth water just looking at it!

The beach was wonderful! The water was so clear and it wasn't too rough, I love just floating around in the ocean.

That's me and two of my brothers, Austin and Nathaniel.

And then my other two brothers, Elijah and Micah and my cousin Caroline! I'm not sure what Elijah is doing haha!

We also went and saw the movie Brave while we were there! I absolutely loved it and highly recommend it! I shopped around some and I got a dress and belt and adorable Steve Madden nude pumps with a bow on them!!

There is my outfit that I got! And my friend Jenny, she's precious! Love our Sunday morning attire!
But anyways, it's good to be back in our routine, though I will miss the beach until next year :)

Happy reading!
                                                                                                       -C

The beach life for me!!

We made it to the beach around 6:20 this morning after driving all night. Let me tell you, riding in the back of a Suburban sandwiched between two little brothers all night isn't my idea of a good time. We met up with my grandparents and aunt and cousin down here and had some fun on the beach today. Only a little seaweed in the water but overall it is beautiful!

This is my new obsession! I asked mom for a book that I could read at the beach and she handed me this. Jodi Picoult is a master storyteller. She can weave an intricate tale with shocking twists that will leave you turning the pages just to read one more sentence! I highly recommend her as an author and this particular story Plain Truth is the best I've read in a while!

But on to my vacation diet..I started out good with a green smoothie this morning. Lunch was a turkey sandwich on wheat bread with provolone cheese and spinach leaves and two peaches. Dinner was fried shrimp and rice, a salad with ranch and some bread. Not the healthiest dinner but it's vacation..I'm allowed a cheat every now and then right?

We are staying on the 14th floor of our condo so here is our lovely view. While taking this picture with my phone, I had a feeling that at any moment, my fingers would open leaving my phone to plummet to certain death. Thankfully this did not happen and I successfully took the picture. :)

Just sleepy little me, saying goodnight! I'll write again soon so stay tuned!

Happy reading!
                                                                                                                  -C

Florida Bound in 3..2..1

Finally the day has come where I can put off packing no longer! We are embarking on our family vacation tonight and my bags must be ready to roll. To get my energy up and body ready for the daunting task of packing, I throw together my breakfast in the form of a smoothie (I wasn't kidding when I said they were my new favorite thing!)

I put spinach, flaxseed, strawberries, Chobani 0% greek yogurt mango flavored, a banana and some ice and drank that smoothie right down. It was delicious!

Then, to procrastinate a little longer, I got on my computer and played around on Pinterest and looked at some of the blogs I follow..until I decided I needed to get my butt in gear!

My new strategy to this packing experience was to put together outfits before I threw everything in a bag so I would have them ready to go when I was on vacation. It still ended up looking like a massive explosion of shorts, shirts, swimsuits, shoes and other miscellaneous items!

I finally was able to cram everything in and now I'm officially ready to be a beach bum!

When you hear from me again I'll be in Florida soaking up the sun!

Happy reading! And happy workouts!
                                                                                                                           -C

Smoothie Fix

So I went for a three mile run and when I got home I was craving a smoothie! I threw together some ingredients, poured them in the blender, turned that baby on and when I finally got a sip of my masterpiece, it was heaven! Seriously, it's the best smoothie I've had yet!

These are the ingredients I used:

1 Banana
1 Spoonful of Peanut Butter
1/2 Cup of Greek Chobani 0% Blueberry Yogurt
2 Cups of Baby Spinach
2 Tbsp of Ground Flax Seeds

                                                          Just enjoying my creation!!

I can't wait to have another! So everyone who reads this should first, finish reading this, and second, go throw these ingredients in a blender so you can find out for yourself how good it tastes! So go..now! :)

Happy reading! And happy workouts!!
                                                                                                             -C

Sand in my toes, the sun on my nose!

I love the beach and big floppy sun hats! The relaxing sound of the ocean just takes me miles away from stresses and worries. But alas, taking a vacation does not mean that I need to also take a vacation away from my mission to get fine and fit! So I'm leaving to go to the beach on Saturday and I'm already planning my early morning runs along the beach before the rest of the world wakes up. I'm also carrying my blender with me to make my new favorite thing, green smoothies! I just feel so incredibly healthy when I drink them. Yesterday I just went out on a limb and piled a bunch of things together for one but when I tasted it..it tasted a little like spinach and not fruit. I suffered through and drank it though for all of its nutritional value.

Who else likes to run at the beach? I find it a lot more exhausting than just running on pavement or track because of always sinking down. But I do enjoy the crashing of the waves next to me. By the way these are my new favorite indulgence! I love the color and feel, so bright! 

Question of the day:

What do you like to do when you run on the beach? Do you run on the soft or hard sand? Do you wear tennis shoes or go barefoot??

I'd love to hear from you!
Happy reading! Happy workouts!!  
                                                                                                                           -C

Do not reward yourself with food, you are not a dog!

I saw this quote and realized how true it is for me and, I'm only guessing here, but also for others! I eat well all day and then right after I work out something in my brain triggers the "I love junk food and I deserve it because I worked out today!" response.

But once I eat it I immediately regret it and wish that I could go back and change it. So why do I not think about that regret beforehand and choose not to eat it? I guess because I'm selfish and want that little bit of pleasure! But I'm pledging to try and say no to junk food and pick healthy foods to eat and then I'll be regret free!

What are some of the ways that you say no to junk food? I'd love to hear your ideas and be inspired to keep eating clean! Just leave a comment!

Happy reading! And happy work outs!
-C

My New Favorite Thing

Two words, Green Smoothies. I know that green smoothies aren't new. People, including myself, have known about them for a while. But until I decided yesterday to try one I found on Pinterest (I am quite the avid pinner lately), I had no idea what deliciousness would greet my taste buds. The first one I tried was like a little taste of heaven. You can find the recipe to it below.

 http://iowagirleats.com/2012/01/04/my-top-secret-diet-weapon/
Thanks Iowa Girl Eats!

You can pretty much try as many combinations as you want! It's like Sonic..except with fruit and spinach. I tried one this morning with this combination:

1 Orange peeled and segmented
6 Large Strawberries
1/2 a Banana cut into chunks
2 cups of Spinach
1/3 a cup of Chobani 0% Vanilla Yogurt
1 cup of Ice

I thought it had a bit of a twang from the oranges, so if you aren't a big orange person I would only put about half an orange or substitute a different fruit for it, but overall I quite enjoyed it!

I was also looking around for information about greet smoothies and stumbled upon this girls Q&A about them and she had some really good information!

http://www.greenthickies.com/ultimate-green-smoothie-guide-part-1-guide-green-smoothies/
Thanks Green Thickies!

So if you are just getting started on your healthy diets or you've been drinking green smoothies for a while, there is always a chance you don't know everything about them and want to learn more!

So check that out and if you have a favorite smoothie recipe you want to share, comment it! I would love to be able to expand my green smoothie recipes! And of course I would love to hear from my readers and know how to make this blog better!

Happy reading! And happy workouts!                                                     -C