Monthly Archives: September 2013

Tangy Cucumber Salad Recipe

Daily Life!, Food for Thought, Recipes, ,

Happy Saturday to ya! Hope your weekend is off to a great start! Mine has been good so far. But someone did not want to get out of bed this morning…

Grumpy Mac
Grumpy Mac

I had a grumpy boy on my hands this AM. But I checked the weather, and it was perfect conditions outside for a chilly walk before heading off to teach Jazzercise. So I pulled out my fleece jacket and Mac’s sweater for the first time this season!

IMG_1835It was a brisk walk with temps in the 50’s this morning, so we were both happy to be bundled up a bit.

IMG_1836When we got home, I warmed up with a cup of hot coffee with pumpkin spice creamer before having some Greek yogurt and half a bagel. This was great fuel for my 8 AM Jazzercise class! I had a fairly full room of sleepy-eyed students. But the pumpkin spice was pumping through my veins to keep my energy high!

After I was home, I walked Mac a bit more because the weather was just too amazing here in Springfield this morning! By the time we returned home again, and I had a long shower, it was time to think about some lunch. I was given 3 large cucumbers from my wonderful Jazzercise student, so I thought I should whip up a quick salad to use them up!

Tangy Cucumber Salad

Typical cucumber salads incorporate fresh onions and tomatoes. But I was fresh out of both of these veggies today. So I opted to add some baby carrots to my salad for extra color!

Ingredients

  • 1 large cucumber, or 2 small
  • About 15 baby carrots, chopped
  • 3 TB zesty Italian dressing
  • 2 TB Apple cider vinegar
  • 1/2 TB minced onions
  • 1/2 TB dill weed
  • Drizzle of honey (optional)
  • Salt & pepper to taste

Chop up the cucumber into bite-size chunks. I chose to cute my large cucumber length-wise twice before more finely chopping.

IMG_1837
From this…
To this!
To this!

Woohoo! Okay, now add in your carrots (or veggies of choice) that have already been chopped.

IMG_1839Next add the remaining ingredients, stirring thoroughly and taste-testing to determine if you need more salt, honey, etc. This salad is all about seasoning proportions and your taste preferences. I like mine a little more sweet, so I added a good drizzling of honey. If you like it more tangy, add a touch more Italian dressing.

Cover and refrigerate an hour or so before tossing once more and serving! This salad is fresh and super low-cal. Use up those last summer cucumbers while you can!

For the rest of my lunch, I made a low-carb wrap with some fresh spring mix spinach and turkey with mustard.

IMG_1841I made my wrap a little too full, so I just folded it in half and ate it like a taco. It works!

Now Nick and I are just lounging around while I snack on some carbs before my Glow Run 5K tonight! Nick is not running with me since me and my girlfriend decided it would just for ‘us girls’, but he may come cheer us on! The race begins at 8 PM. It should be dark and chilly by then – perfect running weather! I hope to snap some great photos of all the glowing runners to share with you all tomorrow.

Get outside and enjoy this weather! See you all after my race!

10K Official

Daily Life!, Food for Thought,

Well, it’s official folks. On October 12th, I’ll be running 6.2 miles!

photoOh man, oh man. I’m not sure if I should be excited or extremely scared! My longest outdoor run thus far has only been 4 miles. And it has left my hurt slightly sore this entire week. Training over the next month should be fun! 😛

I had actually shared with Nick that I was wanting to run a 10K, but I hadn’t found a local one to sign up for. Yesterday, his boss sent out information about this run benefiting a local hospital and several other organizations. We took it as a sign that this was the race where we should attempt the 10K! Nick and I both signed up today. And yes, we are both already nervous 🙂  But, in hindsight, it makes my 5K tomorrow evening seem like an easy practice run!

After work today, I quickly drove to downtown Springfield to pick up my race day packet for the Glow Run 5K! I picked up my glow gear and my hot pink neon glow run shirt and headed over to Salon Moda for a quick haircut.

photo(67)Whadaya think?? She cut off around 2 inches and lightened up my layers a little. I love my long hair and just needed a little refreshing! She also finished me off with some soft curls. I’m always amazed at how hairdressers make curling hair with a flat iron seem so easy! I cannot make my Chi straightener curl my hair the way Amanda can! I guess she’s just a miracle worker.

Dinner

Dinner was pretty easy tonight! We had some aging green peppers in the fridge that needed to be cooked or thrown out asap. So I chopped up those babies with a turkey sausage to saute for a bit with some simple seasonings (mostly salt, pepper, and minced onions). I also threw in some chopped celery and sugar snap peas for extra veggie power.

photo(66)I added a little water to keep the mixture from sticking and getting too dry. After around 10-12 on medium heat, the veggies and meat were perfectly tender and ready to go!

photo(65)Looks delicious, right?! It was super simple. I chose to have mine by itself, while Nick had a small baked potato on the side. He liked it a lot! And his potato helped cut down the salty kick…I may or may not have added a tad too much salt!

By the time we were done eating, it was already pitch black outside! And close to 65 degrees!! This meant I could put on my fleece pullover and still be cool for our evening walk. Nick, Mac, and I set out for a 30-minute walk to help settle our full tummies. All in all, it’s been a great and cozy Friday evening.

Hope you all are having a great start to the weekend. Tomorrow will include teaching Jazzercise at 8:15, then a few hours of rest before my race at 8 PM. Nighty night!

Tortoise Speed

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This morning I was in a great mood when I woke up at 5 AM to head to the gym! I was ready to take on the day…or so I thought.

When I got to the gym and hopped on the Elliptical to warm up, I felt like my muscles were stuck with glue. I could barely move! My body was just TIRED. Mentally I felt great. Physically, not so much. I wanted to get out of there and head home immediately but knew I’d be angry with myself. So I powered through an hour mix of Elliptical cardio and a circuit strength set at Tortoise Speed. I was moving SO slow in comparison to my normal self in the gym. Even after I was warm and attempted a quick 5 minute run before heading home at the end of my hour, I still didn’t feel like my normal self. But I have to remind myself: Any workout, no matter how small, is still a victory for the day. Even if you feel like a tiny, struggling turtle! 🙂

Breakfast

Breakfast today began with an unpictured banana on my way home from the gym. By the time I got to the office, my tummy was grumbly! Usually on Fridays, I try to treat myself a little and make a big batch of yummy overnight oats for my breakfast. But I was feeling super lazy after my Jazzercise marathon last night, so that didn’t happen. I opted for my go-to breakroom oatmeal with fresh blueberries and some Greek yogurt.

photo(68)I added too much water to my oats, so they were exploding a bit more than normal this morning! But my stomach didn’t complain.

I was extra hungry when I left my house this morning, so I grabbed a fairly substantial mid-morning snack.

photo(69)This Chocolate Peppermint Stick Luna Bar was like Christmas and healthiness all wrapped up into one delicious bar! I bought it on a whim last weekend when Luna bars were on sale at Dillon’s. I should’ve bought the entire box because these little beauties are amazing!

photo(70)The best part is that peppermint coating on the bottom!! Yum! (And you can ignore my ginormous to-do list in the background. Work’s been a little crazy lately!) Plus, this little bar kept me full til lunch around 1 PM.

Lunch

Lunch today left me feeling extra full! Which is always a feat for this bottomless pit. I threw together my go-to salad to start. Loaded with all the extra mushrooms and snap peas in the fridge, as they were both nearing the end of life.

photo(73)For a few more veggies, I reheated the balsamic green beans I made the other evening. Still just as yummy!

photo(72)I then whipped up a quick bowl of 2 eggs with a splash of unsweetened almond milk and 3 spoons of cottage cheese. I microwaved this concoction for around 2 minutes, stirring halfway, and it came out to the perfect consistency to be eaten like a cheesy-eggy dip with some wheat bread.

photo(71)Looks weird, but tastes amazing! Plus with all the protein of the eggs and cottage cheese, I was sitting pretty with a full belly. This was just something I threw together at the last minute as an experiment, but it ended up being awesome. I will definitely try it again – maybe for breakfast tomorrow before Jazzercise!

Tonight right after work I’m looking forward to getting my hair cut with my fabulous stylist at Moda, downtown Springfield. Just a trim, nothing crazy. But we do have to discuss my updo she is doing for me the day of Katie’s wedding. I’ve got a lot of hair, and I’m afraid it could be a beast to get up on top of my head and look fancy. But hopefully she will be a miracle worker for me!

And on my way to the hair salon, I’ve got to stop and pick up my race packet for tomorrow’s Glow Run 5K! It’s tomorrow night at 8 PM. The weather is supposed to be cool and gorgeous. It’s going to be such a fun evening! Plus, it’s my girlfriend Carley’s first 5K experience. I know she’ll love it. 🙂 I can’t wait to see all the neon glowing runners!