Feb
22
Get Hungry {for Veggies}, Get Happy
February 22, 2012 | 4 Comments
Whenever new research is released in support of a plant-based diet, I can’t help but get excited about sharing it. It can be difficult to pass along these tidbits without sounding like a crazy veggie-power-chick…but just maybe, despite my aversion to dietary debates, I have a little bit of crazy veggie-power chick in me.
Go, greens!
Loving the 3:1 veggie to egg ratio in this morning’s breakfast.
Crazy awesome veggie-power news of the day:
Omnivores typically have more arachidonic acid in their bodies than vegetarians do. What does that mean in the grand scheme of things? The spidery-sounding substance promote mood-altering processes in the brain, leading to higher rates of stress and depression. In a recent short study, omnivores had overall worse moods than vegetarians did. Even consumption of fish-sourced eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) – two fats that are thought to counteract arachidonic acid – didn’t make a significant impact on the omnivores’ moods.
Moral of the story? Get hungry for veggies, get happy!
For vegetarians: how do you share information about plant-based diets without being “that preachy vegetarian?” For carnivores, how open are you to hearing about plant-power research?
Feb
21
Fat Tuesday to Fit Tuesday
February 21, 2012 | 1 Comment
When tradition dictates a day of rich, fattening foods, who am I to deviate from said tradition?
I got in on the Fat Tuesday feasting action by splurging on an order of waffle fries from Dive Bar {downtown Orlando’s best fries, if you ask me}. The grill has a surprisingly huge spread of food on their daytime menu, including a kick-butt house-made veggie burger.
To avoid going overboard with the feasting trend, I opted out of the burger this afternoon, and instead paired my favorite fries with a tangerine, carrots and hummus and a cup of vanilla Chobani. A plate of munchies was exactly what I was in the mood for, and I was more excited about the prospect of a fit Tuesday than a fat one anyways.
By keeping the rest of lunch light, I avoided that awful over-greased sluggish feeling and had tons of energy to hit the gym. I swapped from my work clothes into yoga pants as soon as I arrived home and busted out a fantastic triceps circuit.
Fit Tuesday Triceps Workout:
Triceps dips x 20
Pushup progessions (with Smith machine) x 10
Close-grip barbell bench press x 10
Dumbell one-arm triceps extensions x 20 each arm
Standing bent-over one-arm triceps extensions x 10 each arm
I attempted to add triangle pushups to the end of this series as an extra strengthener, but my arms were already feelin’ the burn. After struggling through my first two, I scrapped the idea from the workout altogether and headed back upstairs to get dinner underway get my keys to pick up dinner 
I’d planned to make a quinoa bowl, but after a light-on-the-veggies lunch, my body was craving a hefty helping of greens. Without a single shred of lettuce in my refrigerator, I turned to Gringos Locos to provide the roughage. Boy did they ever deliver – that bad body had to weigh at least two pounds!
Off to enjoy the last of my Mardi Gras. Stay safe!
Was your day a Fat Tuesday, a Fit Tuesday, or a blend of the two?
Feb
21
The Paperless Office Pledge
February 21, 2012 | 7 Comments
I’ve been noticing a pattern in my dining habits lately, and it isn’t pretty.
Breakfast at home: served on a reusable plate.
Lunch at home: also served on a reusable plate.
Dinner? You guessed it – reusable plate.
Lunch at the office, though?
Which of these does not belong?
A while back, when I realized I was throwing away 3-4 paper coffee cups every day, I brought in a ceramic mug to drink from instead. Opting for a reusable mug was a great step in the right direction, but it never dawned on me that packing lunches in Tupperware, only to serve them on tossable paper plates with plastic silverware, was doing just as much damage to the environment as my coffee cup disposal!
Since I’m a firm believer in making little changes that add up over time, it was a no-brainer decision to find a spare set of reusable plates {and utensils!} in my kitchen to bring along to the office.
If you still use disposable wares to eat lunches from at your office, go ahead and grab an extra mug, plate, dish and set of silverware from your pantry on your way in to work this morning. Take the Paperless Office Pledge with me, and commit to a small, waste-reducing change. In just one year alone, 64 billion cups and plates ended up in landfills. It may not be a blatant world-saver, but five fewer plates from each of us every day is a step in the right direction!
Do you already use recyclable plates when you bring lunch/coffee to the office, or do you grab paper products out of convenience like I’ve been doing?
Feb
20
A Performance Boost for Warm Weather Workouts
February 20, 2012 | 7 Comments
Is anyone else excited that it’s starting to stay lighter later? I love that there was enough daylight to hit the pavement and clear my head after a mentally challenging day at the office.
A quick mile and a half was all I needed to wind down after spending the day writing about the ghosts of biology classes past.
Somewhere along the line, I carved out a quick break for brain food:
Tempeh deli salad, romaine and an orange.
As well as happiness-and-sanity food:
The caramel kisses are addictive, but the real mood-booster was the fresh air at the end of the day:
Thanks to the longer, lighters days, I’m also reminded that spring and summer are right around the corner – and along with them, sweatier outdoor runs!
Gearing up to get the most out of your warm-weather workouts? Cool your neck, according to the National Athletic Trainers’ Association. Hot environmental conditions can slow down an endurance athlete by about 10 percent of their time. Bad news for us Florida runners! When athletes’ necks were cooled with a cooling collar, however, they actually increased their performance by up to six percent.
The Roehampton University study also found that athletes exercised longer before voluntarily terminating their workouts when their necks were cooled. Better time and more stamina? I’m game!
Do you notice a difference in your athletic performance when you work out in the heat {or in the cold?} Do you have a specific climate that your body naturally prefers?
Feb
19
Caffeine for your Monday Morning Ears
February 19, 2012 | 3 Comments
Ah, Monday. We meet again.
Breakfast sandwiches were always a weekend thing for me, but once I realized how quickly they could be assembled, they entered the weekday breakfast rotation. It’s actually quicker to scramble your own eggs than to pass through the Burger King drive-through!
I’m personally ready to caffeinate as soon as I hit the office {so jazzed that our last shipment included a fair-trade, organic roast}, but I’ll also be pulling some of my Monday morning energy from a pumpin’ new playlist. Need some audio caffeine for your Monday? Gotcha covered!
- Bullet in my Hand {Redlight King}
- Adventures of Raindance Maggie {Red Hot Chili Peppers}
- The Last Time {All that Remains}
- Monster you Made {Pop Evil}
- These Days {Foo Fighters}
- Tonight {Seether}
- Don’t Stop {Foster the People}
- Get Through This {Art of Dying}
- Satellite {Rise Against}
If you only check out one song from the playlist, make it the Redlight King anthem. The powerful lyrics about second chances and fighting through any situation are awesome.
Do you listen to music for the music itself or for the lyrics? Although I love both, good lyrics can make up for a not-so-great melody. It’s rare that the opposite is true!
Feb
16
16 Shots of Espresso
February 16, 2012 | 13 Comments
It’s totally one of those mornings that make a drink with 16 shots of espresso almost sound like a good idea.
Although – $23.60 for Starbucks? Sweet baby Jesus.
Ah, the things you stumble across reading the Huffington Post with breakfast.
Other gems from the morning’s reading material:
- Five hottest chefs {I’ll take Mourad, personally}
- Genetically modified Prozac-producing yogurt {So many things wrong with that sentence!}
- Ten inventive new sandwiches {For once, a list that’s actually introducing new recipes instead of recycling old ideas!}
Of course, the tempeh bacon also qualifies as a gem in my eyes…
I promise, one of these days I’ll have something new to introduce as breakfast!
Are you a Huffington Post lover too? What are your favorite sections? In addition to the food {of course}, I’m digging the weird news and the mindful living collections!
Feb
15
Easy Health{ier} Zeppolis
February 15, 2012 | 6 Comments
In retrospect, yesterday should have been the day I gave you a recipe for a simple, sweet dessert.
Then again, planning has never been my strong suit. In planning my trip to my best friend’s wedding in Illinois, I decided a day-and-a-half bus ride from Florida to Illinois was in fact, a good idea. That, my friends, is a planning failure.
At least these zeppolis require essentially no planning and are basically fail-proof!
I brought them to an Italian potluck at work yesterday, and they were promptly demolished. I’ve learned that the trick to potlucks is bringing something simple but unarguably delicious. Potlucks aren’t the time to try out a frou-frou recipe. Salad? Good. Greens? Good. Pasta? Good.
Sugar-covered dough balls? Better.
These are literally the easiest dessert ever – pinch of little stubs of premade pizza dough, bake for 10 minutes, then stuff in a paper bag with powdered sugar and shake-shake-shake until they’re totally coated. Throw in some orange extract if you’re feeling fancy and you’re home free!
Sure, that’s not how the authentic Italian zeppolis are made, but those require making fresh dough and deep frying it. Not only am I saving you time here, but I’m making them lazier heathier, too! {Ignore the fact that they’re carbs coated in sugar. They’re healthier.}
Easy, Health{ier} Zeppolis
Vegan, makes 2-3 dozen, depending on how big of balls you make
Prep time: 5 minutes. Cook time: 10 minutes.
Ingredients:
- 1 ball premade pizza dough {aka from Publix bakery, Whole Foods or your favorite local pizzeria}
- 1-16 oz bag confectioner’s powdered sugar
- 1 tablespoon orange extract {optional}
Directions:
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees
- Pinch off stubs of dough, roll between your hands to form small balls. Place on a baking sheet and bake for 10 minutes.
- IF you are adding the extract, gently sprinkle it over naked zeppolis.
- Remove zeppolis from pan, place directly into paper bag with powdered sugar. Shake until coated and serve warm!
Are you a good planner? I’m great at planning events and parties, but sometimes it’s the little details in life-planning that make me go DUH – what were you thinking, Faith???
Feb
14
What Nobody Tells you About Long Distance Relationships
February 14, 2012 | 11 Comments
Happy Valentine’s Day! Single, in a relationship, “it’s complicated”…whatever your status reads these days, dig up some chocolate, some flowers, and whatever makes you feel like the badass chick you are, and indulge in it 
I entertained a few different ideas for a big V-Day post, including a sickly sweet dessert recipe and a shpeal about loving yourself as much as you love your loved ones, but what I really wanted to share was something a little less sugar-coated-hearts-and-glitter.
As most of y’all know, The Coach and I are currently navigating a long-distance relationship, which has accounted for basically half of the time we’ve been dating. {That would be a year and a half, for my readers who are as nosy as I am.} We’re blessed in the sense that our two hour separation isn’t that far – especially compared to couples who live across the country – but even the Orlando/Jacksonville split has still been challenging nonetheless. There’s a lot of work that we’ve put into making things as smooth as possible until we’re in a position to be in the same place at the same time.
In regards to what I get asked the most frequently – yes, all the challenges are worth it. A thousand times over. Let’s be honest here – long distance SUCKS at times – but toughing out the long stretches to get to the visits are 100 percent worth it. If it wasn’t worth it, there’s no way we’d be doing this.
When we first jumped into this arrangement, I turned to friends in the same situation for advice. As with any challenging personal situation, finding people who have made it out alive made it seem way less scary. My best female friend gave me advice from the year she spent travelling between her home in Florida to her {now husband}’s home in Alabama. My best male friend just ended things with his girlfriend, but for a while, we bonded over our identical situation and helped each other see the good in the tough times. Having people who can relate is absolutely key.
Despite how helpful others’ advice was, just like any relationship, your experience is yours and yours alone. What I’m saying now could be 100 percent different from what you come to experience. Some of the things I was told to brace myself for – like worrying about the possibility of cheating – have been non-issues for us. On the other end of the spectrum, some of the stuff that’s become a big deal for me wasn’t even mentioned by the friends I turned to for advice. You’re in this with your partner. He {or she} is going to be the person you have to lean on and make things work with.
You can go insane comparing your relationship to local relationships. This seems like such a no-brainer, right? Comparing relationships is a recipe for jealousy and disaster any time, but even more so when distance is a factor. No matter how much you try to normalize things for the two of you, the bottom line is that you’re playing with a different deck of cards than most other couples are. It’s easy to feel like your relationship is inferior when your girlfriends are prattling on about how brilliant theirs is {total singleton moment!}
Case in point: Valentine’s Day. I was already bummed about spending the day alone when my college roommate excitedly telling me about the night she had planned with her fiancé. All of the sudden, I started feeling even more down about the situation, and picked a really ridiculous fight with the coach over our plans. Turns out, the night out we had this weekend in Jacksonville {helloooo, Maggianos!} was our own awesome way of celebrating the holiday.
On that note, you’re going to fight, and it’s going to suck. The coach and I rarely fought when we were seeing each other frequently {honest!} It was one of the reasons I fell for him – we could talk bluntly about anything and not let it become a big deal. As I remember it, our first actual fight was six months after we start dating. When we ended up farther apart several months later, bickering became more frequent. Although that comes with the territory of being with someone for any extended amount of time, it’s also exaggerated by the distance. It’s harder to diffuse a budding fight when you’re not having the conversation in person. There’s no body language to read, no hand-on-his-arm tactic to cool things down, no immediate re-connection when you make up. Tension can build between the two of you more quickly without consistent bonding experiences to reduce the stress levels, and fights are going to happen.
No matter how busy you are, you’re going to get lonely. One of the best pieces of advice I was given was to stay busy. Between working full time, blogging, freelancing, spending significant amounts of time in the yoga studio/gym, taking care of my puppy, and staying involved with different circles of friends, I feel like I have a lot to occupy myself…but there are also a lot of times that it isn’t enough. Boredom turns into wallowing, which far-too-easily turns into feeling sorry for myself. Seriously, no good comes out of it. Fill your plate up, add a little more as a side dish, and have some back-up plans for the spaces in between.
You’re going to have times when you’d kick a baby for some romance. Hormonal days when nothing would be more amazing than coming home to a neck massage and a bar of chocolate are a lot tougher when you’re going through them alone. You also start to miss the hell out of everyday things that made your relationship stronger, like relying on him for help with the dishes. {Also considered a form of romance in some relationships 
}
Whatever your greatest insecurities are, they’ll be brought out. Although this experience has brought out a lot of my good qualities – such as independence – it also has exaggerated some of my biggest flaws. There’s a lot of anxiety that can come with a long distance relationship, which can turn a natural worrier into a huge ball of stress. Over-analyzers can find 100 more things to laser-focus on. Whatever issues are the biggest in your relationship and/or personal life when you are together are going to magnify when you separate.
At the end of the day, no matter what crazy situations arise, you’re not in it alone. Your partner has got your back through all of it {and by all of it, I’m definitely including crazy teary-eyed phone conversations over Red Hot Chili Peppers lyrics}. Every day y’all make it is another day closer to your next visit, and once you get there, don’t take a single second for granted. It’s tougher than you’d ever imagined, but it’s going to be worth it.
Have you ever spent extended time away from your partner? What did you learn from the experience?
Feb
13
{Secret Recipe Club} Asparagus with Goat Cheese
February 13, 2012 | 13 Comments
Happy Monday guys! Today we’ve got a secret recipe club dish to…well…dish about!
My Secret Recipe Club assignment was Danielle’s blog, Mostly Food and Crafts, which made me both hungry and acutely aware that I don’t have a single artistic bone in my body! Danielle’s cute, kid-friendly crafts make me {almost} wish I had students again so that we could take some of the ideas for a spin. Instead, I settled for one of her equally awesome recipes: Roasted asparagus with goat cheese and sunflower seeds!
Oh man – the combo of the creamy, salty cheese with the crunchy sunflower seeds {added right after I took the picture} with the crisp asparagus - such a winner! I think after my tempeh bacon-wrapped asparagus adventure, it may be one of my favorite veggies. The green-hater boyfriend loves it too, which is just an added bonus 
I also bookmarked a handful of Danielle’s other drool-worthy recipes to try in the future, including her eggplant and ricotta pizza and her rainbow beans and rice. To be honest, I’m not the biggest bean fan, so any recipe that makes me crave them like her dish did is bound to be a winner!
Feb
10
Why do People Read Food Labels?
February 10, 2012 | 6 Comments
Good morning friends! Friday didn’t come a minute too soon!
Let’s get fueled up and get this puppy on the road!
Two eggs + reduced fat provolone + a sprinkle of paprika {such an awesome flavor boost}
Plus a mini bowl of my all-time favorite Nature’s Path blueberry cinnamon optima cereal. This is especially awesome with fresh blueberries to go along with the freeze-dried ones, but they were nowhere to be found at my fruit market this week. Bummer! {But not too bummy – I’m still sitting here with a bowl full of carbs, and that’s impossible to frown at!}
One meal closer to the weekend!
***
Why do people read food labels?
One of the first bits of advice given out to people trying to clean up their diets is to read the back of the box before purchasing a packaged food. Knowing exactly what’s in your food {ingredient AND nutrient wise} can help you understand exactly what is going in your body and make more informed choices.
According to a study that’s set to appear in the upcoming March issue of Public Health Nutrition, “placing an importance on health” was the most important reason people read food labels. Healthy eating, determining the nutritional value of food and actively trying to prevent dietary diseases were other reasons the participants cited in the survey. Read more from the study here.
I love that the main motivations for the label-reading were health-related {as opposed to weight loss-related}. Checking calories, fats and sugar are great ways for people who need to lose weight to get a handle on their intake, but it’s also important not to get too hung up on statistics. Personally, I don’t read food labels for 80-90 percent of the things I buy {unless we’re referring specifically to ingredient lists}. When I do read the label, I use it to compare two similar products to decide – based on saturated fat/sugar/protein content – which one is more wholesome and nutritious.
It was interesting to see that women were also more likely to read food labels than men. Based on the times I’ve gone grocery shopping with the Coach, this somehow doesn’t surprise me. The last time we went on a late-night Publix run to pull dinner together, I spent 15 minutes comparing food labels before deciding on an organic eggplant parmesan frozen entrée, but he took less than five minutes to grab ranch dressing, Taco Bell chipotle sauce, breaded chicken tenders and a potato. Delicious? Absolutely. Good for him? I’m sure the answer would have been clear if he’d skimmed over the labels on the packages!
Do you read food labels? If you do, what’s your motivation? Do you agree that women are more inclined to read food labels than men are?
