Weekend Come and Gone

Oh how I love Sundays. Relaxing on the couch watching Netflix, drinking coffee and preparing for the upcoming week! I picked up some hours this morning but was out at 10:30 am so can’t really complain. I was not feeling oatmeal with morning so I began my day with a cliff bar – the last of the pack :(. I came home and started preparing lunch that included: beans, kale, spinach, arugula, nutritional yeast, chia seeds, broccoli, and green peppers with a poppy seed dressing (vegan at Aldi – love that store!). I also made some quinoa for the week.

Today is my off day from the gym and my legs will definitely benefit from the rest. My quads are screaming – but in a good way because I know I worked them good.

Some goals from this coming week:

1. Take a spin class at the gym. I got really into spin when I lived in South Carolina but since moving back North, I haven’t had the guts to go myself.
2. Lower my salt intake. I feel like I’m consuming WAY too much salt from my canned beans, soups and spices I seem to add to everything.
3. Stay committed to my training schedule
4. Have a great weekend in Maine. I’m going to visit one of my best friends from college who moved up there a little over a year ago. I have yet to see her new house. She had a baby in July and I am in love with her son so it will be wonderful to see them
5. Enjoy this journey and trust this process

Whirlwind…

It’s been a crazy few days. I’ve had a bunch of early mornings followed by gym sessions which has left me exhausted. I’ve been doing some great HIIT treadmill workouts and they’ve been great but they have left my legs dead  -as I am getting back into the swing with a detailed lifting program.

I’ve been eating a lot of kale salads, overnight steel cut oats, and quinoa. Still working on getting some more variety in my diet. My new obsession? NUTRITIONAL YEAST. It’s delicious sprinkled on a salad or melted on anything and provides a lot of nutrients that my diet has been lacking. I try to stay away from Whole Foods because its so expensive but it’s the only place I can find it without going online.

Still on the lookout for a good vegan protein powder. I tried a sample of Vega Sport recovery in vanilla. I mixed the pre measured serving with about 16 ounces of water since I was out of almond and soy milk. It was pretty good – but I would have liked to have tried it in chocolate. I’m tempted to try this soy protein powder from Trader Joe’s but it only has 16 g of protein as opposed to 16 g in Vega Sport.

Time for dinner! Quinoa salad with a Boca burger 🙂

Getting over the Wednesday hump

Today’s workout was a doozy. I did a 20 minute HIIT workout on the tread that really worked me hard followed by a 25 minute incline walk. I’ll be sure to add them as soon as I can!

After a great cardio day/snow day, I ended the night with drinks/appetizers at a restaurant in the center of town. I had 2 Stoli raspberry vodka’s on the rocks and it was just what I needed! It was nice to spend time with two good friends and catch up on the everyday with them. I also had a hummus plate with cucumbers which was good – but definitely not enough for dinner. I ended up having Ezekiel toast with PB2 when I came home.

I think it’s important to discuss the dilemma I am having with a friend who is totally against this “vegan thing” as she puts it. I really wish I was just being supported. I have not changed – I do not talk about my lifestyle incessantly nor do I really talk about it a lot other then to say, ‘let me Google that ingredient’. It’s hard…

Anyhoo…I’m glad I’ve been able to find a balance while still keeping my social life and goals in check.

I am up early for work tomorrow…4:15 am! Have a great night

Happy Wednesday!

Good afternoon! This morning I woke up around 8 am on my day off to about 6 inches of snow. I don’t mind the snow – if it’s between November 24- December 26th. And even then only a dusting. I had some overnight steel cut oatmeal to give myself some energy for some shoveling. So yummy! Included:

• 1/4 cup Steel cut oatmeal (Trader Joe’s)
• 1 tablespoon pumpkin puree
• 1 tablespoon chia seeds
• Soy silk vanilla unsweetened to get everything going (about 1/4 cup)

I was outside for about 20 minutes and got everything clear and enjoyed a cup of coffee with some soy and splenda to warm myself up!

That reminds me…one of my goals for 2013 is to cut down on the aspartame in my diet with the splenda and fake sugar stuff! I hope to go to stevia/truvia and overtime just drink it without the sweetener.

 

Slow and steady wins the race.

I’m heading to the gym in a little while to tackle a treadmill workout with some HIIT and slow/steady cardio after. No strength training for me which is a relief. My arms are still sore from Monday’s upper body workout.

First some lunch! Have a great afternoon

***Just wanted to throw this out there – follow me on twitter @Buik22285…I’m new at this but will be updating frequently when I get the hang of this!

Welcome

Any readers out there? Check out my about me tab to learn what’s going on with Veg a lot!