Hump Day Quotables

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Happy Hump Day! 

Bootcamp Day #1

I did it! I survived the first day of boot camp!

It was much better than I was expecting :)

 To be honest, I was really apprehensive about starting boot camp, 

as I said earlier, my fitness level is not what it used to be 

and I tend to over think everything; I was being a big scaredy cat.

Worried that I would be the slowest one,

Worried that I would be the weakest one,

Worried that I would be the whiniest one

(ok, I guess I have control over that one)

(source) 

But it was great!

It was a good workout, the leader was super encouraging

and the other participants were also really friendly.

Yesterday was a mix of a little bit of everything.

We ran some laps, did a cardio circuit (high knees, jumping jacks, zigzags, pushups, repeat), 

squats, lunges, more push ups and some moves targeting shoulders, triceps, biceps and core 
(presses, curls and dips.. oh my!) 

Little. Bit. Of. Everything.

(source)


 The leader wants us to set a goal for the next month. Most girls said something like 
“to tone up” or “to not quit”, but I want something more substantial and SMART

I thought about saying "I want to lose ___ pounds",
but let's be honest here (and we can be honest, right??) 
 I'm gonna get super buff... like bench-pressing-a-rhino-while-yogging-uphill kinda buff

(Ashley, you with me on this? Let's find some rhinos...)

And we all know muscle weighs more than fat, 

so judging my progress purely on my gravitational pull isn't sufficient for me.
So I'm gonna go for a loss of __% body fat.
I have a number in my head, but don't want to say it aloud until I do a little more research.

  My bathroom scale is AMAZING and tracks everything, so it should be easy to judge.

(source)

Have you ever done a boot camp? 
Do you have any pre-summer-slash-bathing-suit workout plans?

What % body fat do you think is realistic to loose in 4 weeks? 

I tried to find sources online for a good "one month goal" but couldn't find much. 
I'd love to hear your opinion!

4 truths...

1. im exhausted from a weekend of bachelorette and baby showers...

2.... which means i dont feel like blogging.

3. pissed and jealous i didn't buy a vegetable spiralizer

4. happy to find other people who think SVU is by far the BEST law and order

"That's Nonsense, I Invented Electricity. Ben Franklin Is The Devil!"

-Ash

Healthy Curly Fries

before you read the title/ingredients below and decide it sounds "gross", 

take a sneak peek at the end product 

Mmmmm... so delish!

ok, so now for the secret ingredient

this was another experiment with yet another random vegetable 

that arrived in my weekly box o' organic goodies...

....

turnips!! 

they don't look yummy yet, but they will, just wait

to be honest, i don't think i have ever had turnips before this

and i had no idea what they would taste like 

or how to cook them 

and they sounded gross to me at first 

i mean, just say the word aloud.... turnips... tuuurnippss (see?)

but i feel bad wasting food, and i already had them in my fridge 

so i started trying to brainstorm how i would cook em

then my handy dandy veggie spiralizer arrived on my doorstep

and i just had to use it on something

oh the possibilities! 

soooo spiral somethings?

curly somethings? turnip somethings?

curly fries? turnip fries? 

sure, lets go with all of the above

OVEN BAKED TURNIP FRIES

Ingredients

• 3 turnips
• 1/8 cup grated parmesan cheese
• 1 tsp onion salt 
• 1 tsp ground paprika
• 1 tsp garlic powder
• parsley (to make it look pretty at the end)

 1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Line a cookie sheet with foil and spray with non-stick cooking spray (makes for easy clean up - i use organic olive oil spray).

2. Wash and peel the turnips. Cut into fry-size sticks (the thinner you cut them, the crispier they will be - so you choose between steak fries or shoestring fries). If you are lucky enough to own a spiralizer... spiralize those bad boys.

seriously, i love this thing
wheeeeee!

 3. In a large ziploc bag, combine cheese and seasoning. Add turnips and shake to coat (you may dance while shaking if you want, i've found it adds to the flavor as well as the experience).

4. Place turnips on baking sheet and back for 15-20 minutes (or until turnips are tender and golden).

 

before the cookin'

 after!

 5. Enjoy!

taa daaa!

if any of you are curious about what turnips taste like, because i know i was

i found them to taste similar to radishes (when raw) 

and kinda like a potato-onion hybrid (when cooked) 

they have a slight sweet flavor (like cooked onion)

but the overall dish was tasty

and apparently turnips are one of "The 150 Most Healthiest Foods on Earth"

win-win, eh?

have you ever tried turnips? how do you like to cook turnips?

Friday Smiles

 

Update: Boyfriend just sent me this pic, which made me laugh as well 

I might have a thing for dinosaurs...

Hope everyone has a great weekend!

Paul McCartney's Ob-La-Di Enchiladas

looking for a delicious and satisfying recipe for meatless mondays?

well look no further!

i've made this recipe a few times now

and it's always met with rave reviews!

(not to mention it's perfectly named)

rather than making individual enchiladas

i layered the ingredients like a casserole:

one layer tortillas

one layer tofu, spinach, and mushrooms

repeat

worth noting: i used two bunches of spinach

and two packs of mushrooms...

...and NO cornstarch (i've never had any complaints)

this recipe is also dairy-free making it a perfect choice for the vegan and plant-based crowd

enjoy!

(originally posted at House of Glass)

Banana Ice Cream

Ok... so it's not really banana ice cream.
My sister calls it banana nice cream.
I call it fanana fice fream.
You see, I have a habit of putting an 'f' in front of a word if its fake/faux...  
I've been known to eat fushi, wear fackets and play fribbage

Anywho, regardless of what you call it. 

This faux fanana fice fream is felicious! 

BANANA NICE  CREAM

Ingredients:

• Frozen bananas 
• A splash of almond milk (or liquid of your choosing, I use unsweetened original flavor almond milk)
• Vanilla extract (optional)
• Toppings (optional)
• Thats it! Simple, eh?

This dish does take a little bit of forethought... mainly you have to freeze the bananas ahead of time. I find this not to be a problem as I always have bananas on my counter, insisting on turning brown. When the bananas start to go to the "dark side", cut them up into slices, throw them into a ziploc bag and throw that bag into the freezer. 

Disclaimer: Since this "recipe" is super simple, I will elaborate un poco for your reading entertainment. 

Step 1: Gather ingredients: Open your freezer, grab and remove banana bag. Open your fridge, grab and remove liquid. Open your pantry/cupboard, grab and remove vanilla extract and/or toppings. Place on counter. 

Look, ma! I did it!

Step 2: Place ingredients in blender or food processor (all except the toppings, of course). The almond milk (or other liquid) is just to help in the blending process. I usually add a splash (descriptive, right?) and then after blending some have to add a splash more. Start off with a few tbsp and then add more if needed. 

I forgot to take a pic at this stage. Essentially, it would look like this. 

Please use your imagination to transport this blender into my kitchen. 

Then make the blender red. 

K, thanks!

Step 3:  Press the button that makes it work. Since I don't know what device you are using, I can't give you exact directions here. I personally use the "crush ice" button a few times, then maybe a little time on "blend", maybe some time on "puree" ... basically, do work on that banana until it resembles soft serve ice cream.

Step 4: Spoon fanana fice fream into a bowl. Top with toppings if desired (please note: it tastes wonderful with out toppings, we just decided we wanted to be fatties and splurge this time around). Add spoon.

The final product

His: a spoon full of brown sugar

Hers: Sixlets and gummy bears 

I love how gummy bears get hard in ice cream... yuummmmm

Step 5: Enjoy!

Running, week #3

I have a confession...

The original 4 week running plan was a little too

...um... "intense" for me. 

It appears I overestimated my starting fitness level. 

Modifications had to be made. 

And I'm ok with that. 

As long as I keep doing *something*. 

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I'm proud to share that I did run/walk/jog/elliptical/frolic

23 miles this past week. 

And also attended a few pilates and yoga classes. 

And apparently burned 2572 calories. 

Take that, laziness.

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Bootcamp starts next Monday, 

and I won't have the time or energy to 

continue with a 4-day-a-week running plan.

So I am abandoning the official "running plan".

But unofficially, I will still be working on my cardio. 

In case any of you were actually interested in running plans, 

or planning on following along, 

here are a few links to awesome running plans 

that I was drawing my inspiration from: 

C25K: Couch to 5k

Runner's World 8-Week Beginners Plan

10 Week Beginners Running Program

4 Week Beginners Running Program 

I have to admit, 

my body has not changed much in the past two weeks.

Which could be slightly discouraging, but

I have noticed a definite change in my energy levels 

and overall 'tude the past two weeks.

So while I can't see the outward effects yet, 

my insides are happy :)  

Don't we all love happy insides?!

Oh hello, Hunger Games

why did i resist for so long??

wwwwhhhyyyyy?!?!

actually, i know why

i am usually oppossed to things such as 

reality tv shows, manufactured pop music and books/movies like Twilight 

it's not that i think i'm "too cool" for these things 

i'm stubborn

something about them just irks me 

(and i'm 99% sure that twilight really does suck)

but back to my main thought 

why did i wait so long to read the hunger games?

it was SO good 

i started it this morning 

and already finished it 

(having a day off work helped, i'm sure)

but dang, gina! 

never in my life have a read a book that fast 

i just ordered the next two today 

which means i have to wait 2-3 days to start the second one 

...thats 2-3 days TOO long 

i wish i would have read them 4 years ago when my friends first suggested it 

or a few months ago when more friends suggested it 

ayyyyeee

oh well, i've read it now 

and now i must see the movie 

any one in arizona want to go see it with me?? 

even though i'm weeks/months/years too late haha

Walk Around the Block

Arizona is just LOVELY right now

the colors are so bright, clean, crisp

this past weekend, we had a storm rolling in

so the clouds were GORGEOUS 

i have a weakness for clouds 

i just think they are so rad 

i also take wayyy too many pictures of them

and my friends have been known to make fun of me for it 

regardless, here are some pics from my weekend stroll 

around our neighborhood

clouds, flowers, cactii, sunshine

with no photoshop or filters

just natural beauty

lemon tree and clouds

three little ducks
quack quack quack

AZ canal

clouds, clouds and more clouds

someone was here before me
"hurry up... good job... scary bathroom turn now"

outside wall of the aforementioned 'scary bathroom'
i did not venture inside to see the extent of the 'scariness'

bright spring flowers

purple cactii, about to bloom

tree lined sidewlak

Happy Friday!

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tax season is over

i have a lovely three day weekend

halle-freakin-lujah

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my plans for this weekend:

- clean 

- gym 

- juice

- read 

what are your plans for the weekend?

Who? Us?

The lovely Miss Aislin over at scribbles by a nominated our new little blog for a Liebster award. 

Liebster? I hardly know 'er! 

The purpose of this award/nomination is to recognize the smaller blogs. 

You know, give those hidden gems a chance to shine. 

And we are sooo stoked Aislin thought of us! 

Rules: 

{1} Choose five up and coming blogs to give the Liebster award to. 

Blogs must have less than 200 followers. 

{2} Show your thanks to the blogger who gave you the award by linking back to them.

{3} Post the award on your blog. 

{4} List the bloggers you gave the award to with links to their sites. 

Leave a comment on their blogs to let them know. 

{5} Share 5 random facts about yourself! 

....and now to announce our winners.... 

....drumroll please.... 

[in no particular order] 

{1} Devon @ The Mermaid Chronicles

{2} Olivia @ Olivia.Dee

{3} Kristin @ Skinny Jeans & a Chai Latte

{4} Christy @ Sparkles & Spinach

{5} Leah @ Keep Your Sunnyside Up

And now for 5 random facts about US...

{1} Our favorite movie is Zoolander. 

{2}We once hosted a pirate party that may have ended with 

someone getting dog biscuits glued to their face.

{3} We have both seen every single episode of 

Law and Order: SVU. 

We currently rewatch episodes while 

gchatting with each other from 333 miles away 

ok... ready... go... its loading... 

they're talking... wait your 5 seconds ahead!... ok paused... 

"doink doink"

{4} One of us is obsessed with fruit, the other is obsessed with veggies

{5} Our birthdays are exactly 30 days apart