When in Rome…
Or Basel. Whatever.
On my first full day in Basel, Lucie took me on adventures fit for a blogger! But first we began in a predictable way… taking pictures of yogurt bowls before breakfast!
My bowl was goat’s milk yogurt (which Lucie bought special for me!) with cinnamon, Growing Naturals Vanilla Rice Protein, oats, strawberries, cacao nibs, and more of Lucie’s bread. We took our beautiful bowls outside of a photo shoot in natural light. Priorities!
…
“What healthy foods can I bring to work/school?”
That is one of the most common questions I hear.
The good news is: it’s not hard! If you have some fresh veggies and dip, you’ve made a good start. Add some fruit, a carb, some healthy fats, a protein…. and you’re in business!
One of the easiest sack lunches is leftovers. Make extra of whatever you’ve had for dinner the night before. Stick that in a container and take it into the office. Simple!
Citrus Chickpea Cilantro Salad (click for recipe)
Sunflower Beet Pesto on salad (click for recipe)
Bring along a tortilla, pita pocket, or whole grain bread to eat on the side or stuff your salad into. Or have a healthier chip alternative on the side – I’m really digging PopChips and Pirate’s Booty.
________________________________________________________________________________________
Jenn’s What I Ate Wednesday this month is in the theme of green. I wasn’t as green as usual… but it was a veggie-laden day for sure!
It’s also a “What I Ate at Work” WIAW. I’ve been going to CrossFit right after work this week, so I’m eating more snacky things all day long so I am not starving before class ends.
___________________________________________________________________________________
My routine lately has been to get up, do a quick 15-20 workout (from Pinterest or BodyRock), and make a protein smoothie to cool off and refuel. It’s an addiction.
This morning’s smoothie:
Post-cleanse my favorite addition is CARBS. Peanut butter is a close second.
I brought my tortilla and the makings of a wrap to work. These get constructed on-site so the tortilla doesn’t get soggy.
In my wrap:
See the container in the background? I (once again) over-filled my wrap so half of the fillings were eaten with a fork on the side. 🙂
Yes, I snacked all day. You might even say that I skipped dinner in favor of snacking.
My snacks:
This is really 2 snacks eaten 2 hours apart. I had the ice cream first. Duh.
I’m still working on this one (it deserves its own post… and I’ll make one sans spinach so the pics are prettier 🙂 ), but let’s just say it was incredible. The Vitamix continues to be the best purchase I’ve ever made.
Round 2 of dinner was a piece of Ezekiel bread topped with hummus, tomato, cilantro, and a vegan mozzarella cheese slice (which tasted nothing like mozzarella). I stuck it under the broiler for 3+ mins… let’s pretend I didn’t forget it in the oven… burnt non-cheese isn’t too bad!
***
Crossfit #3 tomorrow. I’m already sore from tonight. Translation: I’m in love.
Annnnd another shameless plea: I am honored to have been nominated as a “Best Healthy Eating Blog” for the 2012 Fitterati Blog Awards on FitnessMagazine.com. If you’re so inclined, pretty please click here and vote for me. 🙂
What are some of your favorite items to bring to work/school for lunch?
What is your strangest/favorite salad topping?
Crossfit is no joke.
Source: list09.com
I took Dynamics this weekend. Dynamics is the 5 hour “training” course you are required to take before they throw you to the wolves you can join a regular class. I left that class feeling alright. We did a couple of workouts. I finished second both times – just behind a guy who rock climbs and looked like he was born in a gym.
Walking into class last night I realized I was nervous. These people are hardcore about their workouts. Would I be good enough to not embarrass myself?
Click for source
I’m pretty confident when it comes to gyms. I have worked out for the better part of the last 5-6 years. I lift free weights in the “boys” section. This was a whole new ballgame.
Self-doubt set in full-force. I caught myself looking at the pic below and thinking “there’s no way I could do that.”
Click for source
The first move was deadlifts. 3 lifts, 2 min rest, add 50 pounds, 3 more lifts, 2 min rest, add 50 pounds, and so on. Women start at 85 lbs. I got through that 85, but decided to play it safe and add just 20 lbs. Did that and added 20 more. Did that. Got irrationally scared. Started to do 3 more when the time gods smiled upon me and we were DONE.
One girl lifted 300 lbs!!! I’m pretty sure I looked like a version of this:
Click for source
Then we did the WOD.
(WOD = workout of the day. I’m so fancy with the lingo. 😉 )
Click for source
First day thoughts:
Click for source
I’m scheduled to go back to Crossfit tonight. In the wise words of my best friend’s mother: “Don’t let that dog know you’re scared of it!”
________________________________________________________________________________________
Naturally, I came home and made a smoothie to end all smoothies. This dream shake was served in a Guinness pint glass. The excess was slurped from the Vitamix spatula.
It’s only a few days into March, but my Crossfit-bruised ego is ready to declare smoothie victory. This is the best smoothie of the month. Not just because it was consumed out of a beer mug (though that didn’t hurt).
Avocado. Banana. Peanut flour. Spinach. Avocado and banana make for an incredibly creamy smoothie. Add peanut flour to that and you have a liquid PB + Banana shake-wich.
I’ve recently been adding a lil’ lemon to smoothies too. I find it helps draw out flavors, not to mention that lemons are good for digestion!
Praise Jesus I can’t fit my face into the actual blender to lick up the remnants… I would lose a tongue on those blades.
________________________________________________________________________________________
Put it all in the blender and mix until smooth!
Top with nuts/seeds if so desired. My topping is a crumbled Endurance Crackers (recipe here from Oh She Glows).
Makes 1 pint.
***
Thank you all for the Best Healthy Eating Blog votes (click here to vote) AND for the FoodBuzzin’ – My Vegan Salade Nicoise made the Top 9 yesterday! You guys totally made my day. 🙂
Have you ever been to a Crossfit gym?
What is your favorite post-workout meal?
The human body is pretty incredible.
25 days ago (pre-cleanse) I was nowhere near the abs I wanted. My diet was not terrible, but could use improvement. I was lifting weights, but had hit a plateau with my upper body and all but neglecting legs. It was time to take the next step in building a better me.
The pictures below are my progress:
The top pic is upper body. I’ve managed to up my weight on many exercises, not the least of which is lat raises. Those has always been a weak point for me.
The bottom left ab pic was taken at week 2 of the cleanse and the right was taken yesterday (11 days later… I promise I washed this outfit in that time). I wish I’d had a before! I’ve ALWAYS wanted 6-pack abs and I’m so close right now it hurts.
This is thanks to 25 days of pushing harder and building a solid foundation with a clean, plant-based diet. It can be done!
I also have to make a confession – I almost didn’t post the ab pic. In fact, yesterday I posted it on Instagram and purposefully didn’t like it to Twitter. I was scared to share my progress with a larger audience!
Then I remembered this post by Lindsay where she showed off her incredible abdominals. She posted her post-baby ab pic to celebrate hard work, to motivate, and because she was PROUD. And she should take pride in her hard work paying off!
Change is hard! It’s overwhelming to begin cleaning up your diet.
In the spirit of building, here’s how I built a healthy lunchtime wrap. At least it was supposed to be a wrap… I got a little carried away with the fillings. 🙂
Prep veggies and slather a tortilla with spread. I used my Raw Sweet Potato Hummus.
Layer your veggies on the tortilla.
My Fillings:
Attempt to wrap the monstrosity up! I had to eat the carrots in the side to make way for the lentils.
Devour.
***
Tomorrow I am trying out CrossFit for the first time! I love a new workout. 🙂
Have you ever tried CrossFit? Do you have any tips to share?
Celebrate Friday with some self-love – What accomplishment are you proud of?
