Arms! and Good Eats

Good morning everyone 🙂

Before I get down to business, I want to send love and safe vibes to all my family and friends in the Saint Louis area.  I always feel as though my blog isn’t the appropriate place to address such serious topics, but St Louis and the surrounding neighborhoods will always be home for me so I feel the pain and sadness.   Be safe, Ferguson and all those in the surrounding areas.

Yesterday Afternoon

I managed to squeeze in a quick stretch session during my lunch as planned, as well as stock up on some awesome Gluten Free goodies.

I haven’t been talking about it much, but I am still working towards a Gluten Free diet for the time being.  I don’t feel that I’ve given it enough time to know for sure how gluten affects me, and I’m still finding myself surprised by little things that include Gluten so I’ve been far from completely gluten free.   All I know is these past couple of weeks I’ve felt better than I have in ages, so my body is happy :).

Workout

My plan called for some more Arm work yesterday afternoon, so I challenged myself with two more arm routines, this time from my NTC app.

Lemme tell ya, my arms were SHAKING during and after these routines.

{gratuitous arm shot…my husband will love this}

Zach was working away in the garden for the afternoon, so after my work out I grabbed a bottle of water and watched the boy work :).  Not a shabby afternoon.

Dinner

On the menu tonight was grilled chicken and salads.  We ended up getting the same kabobs we tried last week from Sprouts because we enjoyed them so much the previous week.

My comparison on instagram of my salad versus Zach’s serving bowl of greens.  Man boys can eat!

My salad included some greens from the garden underneath all those fresh veggies and fruits.  Last nights included: broccoli, mushrooms, celery, scallions, pepper and a couple raspberries from the garden.  YUM!

I also wanted to try some of my new goodies, so I added some crunch to the meal by way of craackers

I actually really enjoyed this brand and would absolutely try them again.  They were thin and airy, but full of flavor! Totally satisfying.

We wrapped up our evening with the series finale of The Office on netflix before both going to bed early.  I think we’re still recovering from a long weekend!

this Morning

I got to sleep in this morning knowing that the only thing on schedule was my yoga for runners, which both were glorious :).  A 715 wake up call + 25 minutes of stretching and opening up my little sore runners joints?  Perfection!

What’s your favorite body part to strength train? 

The Workout That Wasn’t

We’ve all had them.  Day’s where we have big plans for a work out or an activity that you look forward to all day.

A good run, a hike, bike ride?  Good class?

And then for whatever reason, things just don’t happen as planned.  That was the story of my little work out this afternoon.

Good Intentions

After yesterday’s Morning arm routine followed by an evening sculpt class, I woke up sore and exhausted.  Like I mentioned in my previous post, my plan for the afternoon was a nice leisurely hike through my favorite area of the front range.

I woke up, did a brief morning yoga routine and even enjoyed a nice 2 mile walk at lunch.  All warming myself up for an afternoon hike.

Welp, mother nature put a wrench in those plans with scattered storms.  Rain in the mountains is not something I like to mess with, so I decided to lace up my shoes and try and make it out for a run before it got too bad outside near work, even though my legs were beat.

Nope, two laps of the park near my office and right around one mile later, the rain came with a vengeance (and my car windows were down a bit, upps).  I made it back to the car hoping that I could get some miles at home.

Bathroom selfie

Once again, less than a mile in, mother nature decided to continue messing with me and brought more rain.  This time nice enough to be dripping inside of my sunglasses.  Awesome.

At this point, I decided enough was enough, and that someone was telling me I need to take it easy today. And to be completely honest, my tired legs weren’t willing to push through any more obstacles.

Two more miles for a grand total of 3 miles for the evening.

I wrapped up the work out with some 8 minute abs (time 2) and called it a day.

What was intended to be a nice hike turned into a very wet short and slow run that my legs didn’t want to do, with some core work thrown in for good measure.  Oh well. . . you can’t win ’em all, right?

Dinner

At least dinner wasn’t a let down!  On the menu for tonight was grilled tacos, one of our favorite staples.

In the mix tonight was:

• Grilled onion
• Grilled peppers
• Grilled squash
• Fresh homemade guac
• + Corn tortillas char grilled.

I’m actually most impressed with my experimental homemade guac.  I found some “ripe” avocados at Whole Foods yesterday, and figured I needed some healthy fats in my diet, so why not?   The avocado worked out perfectly in my little homemade creation!

Fresh Guac

• One avocado, cut and smashed
• One garlic clove, pressed
• 1 tablespoon of cayenne pepper
• 6 small cherry tomatoes cut into halves/quarters
• Salt and pepper to taste
• Just mix it all together and serve!

YUM YUM  I wasn’t really feeling anything for dinner tonight, but the mix of fresh ingredients and grilled goodies definitely satisfied my confused taste buds.

Missed Pictures

And just for good measure, the pictures that I forgot on my cell phone yesterday

An awesome and TOUGH sculpt class that left me quivering

Delicious sushi from Whole Foods

Happy Thursday Everyone!

Tell me about your last work out that wasn’t.  I can’t be the only one, right?

What I’ve Been Trying: Gluten

Good Morning my favorite blog friends, and cheers to getting through another Monday!

I’m checking in this morning because I’ve been meaning to catch up with you guys on some things I’ve been trying recently regarding my diet.

Disclaimer:  I am NOT a registered dietician or professional of any kind regarding nutrition.  It’s just a passion of mine and something I like to research and am constantly trying to improve for myself.  Please know that what I am discussing here is strictly my opinion and what I am trying to make myself healthier overall.

Now that THAT is over, let’s be clear when I use the word diet.  That does not mean I am on a weight loss plan, or have any intention of losing weight.  I am actually happy with my current weight and have no qualms there.

A couple of you noticed last week that I mentioned my stomach or gut acting up last week.  This is definitely not the first time it has happened, but it was eye openingly frustrating and painful this time.

The symptoms that I normally experience are bloating (horrible word, can I just say), painful cramping and overall I  notice a bit of an extended area in my midsection.  Enough to make my clothes fit uncomfortably on these days.

My Current Diet/Nutrition

I really do try and eat healthy and balanced.

Most evenings Zach and I prepare a healthy, balanced dinner that is full of color.  Shooting for a healthy balance of protein, fat, carbs, etc.

But as a busy 9-5er, it’s my daytime and weekend eats that I think may be getting me in the most trouble.

Most days of the week, I rely on process granola or protein bars high in processed goods and gluten.

Well let’s face it, these kind of eats don’t do many people many good, but then through in a possible sensitive tummy. I’ve thought this to myself often, but when multiple readers have pointed out to me that my symptoms sound like a possible gluten sensitivity, I got to thinking.

Whether or not I have a gluten sensitivity, I need to curb my reliance on these kind of foods.  

Last week and this week, I’ve been focusing much more on eating whole foods both during the day and at night.  My eats during the day have been focused around fresh juice, fresh fruit and good yogurt.

old picture but you get the point

I’ve been LOVING strawberries, cherries and blueberries as of late.  And I’m really feeling pineapple lately so I think that’s going to be on the menu this week.

For dinners, I’ve been doing whatever Zach and I have planned, with less or no gluten adaptions.  For example, we had pizza yesterday, but instead of going crazy on the pizza like I normally would, I filled a bowl with left over salad and had two very small pieces, not finishing the crust (don’t you worry, I ate the good part).

So this week, my goal is AS LITTLE GLUTEN AS POSSIBLE.  Specifically in the form of processed goods.  After a week and a half of just trying to be more cognizant, I’m already noticing a bit of a difference in my energy and how my lovely gut feels.   I’m very curious if it will continue to get better if/as I get more strict.

I’m hoping that you all will hold me accountable for this, as I know it’s good for me one way or another.   I’ve also considered going strictly lactose free if I don’t think gluten/processed foods are the culprit, so stay tuned!

Anybody else have gluten sensitivities?  What goodies do you enjoy eating?  

Anybody with any other sensitivities? How do you deal?