Tag Archives: breakfast

Mac & Cheese Long Run

Food for Thought, Workouts, , , ,

Happy Saturday morning to ya! Hope you had a great start to your weekend last night. Mac and I hit the sack early and slept for a little more than 8 hours! It’s so nice to wake up without an alarm.

We rolled out of bed at 7 AM feeling refreshed and ready to hit the pavement. I checked the weather to find that is was 48 degrees outside! Nippy!! I pulled on some running tights and  a long-sleeve Lululemon top that I bought just for mornings like this and set off to accomplish something I’ve never done before: 6.2 miles.

Obviously Mac had to sit this one out. Like I’ve mentioned in the past, anything over 1.5 miles makes his ‘tiny dog syndrome’ kick in, and I have to drag and/or carry him the rest of the way if I want to keep running.

The run was fairly easy for me today, and my running pace was immediately faster than normal. I’m going to chalk this up to the cooler temps.

photo(76)I made it in record time! Well, according to my records at least. 🙂 It felt great to run that final stretch down my street and have my Runkeeper app tell me I was over my goal of 6.2 miles. I’m so ready for my 10K on October 12th! I was most worried about making the distance without stopping, but now that I know I can do it, I only need to focus on maintaining my endurance and possibly increasing my time.

So you’re wondering why I called this post the Mac & Cheese Long Run? Well because it was exactly that…

Kraft Factory
Kraft Factory

This is the Kraft Factory that I run by each time I mention going on longer runs. Yes, Kraft as in the Macaroni and Cheese that we all know and love. Most days, the parking lot is full, and I can see smoke coming out of those pipes. But today was slightly different. I got right next to the building (on the sidewalk of course), and I could smell Kraft’s macaroni and cheese just like there was a big bowl sitting right in front of my face!

kraft mac cheese blue boxUmm YUM!! I continued to smell the delicious cheesy stuff for about another mile. I even changed my breathing from my mouth to my nose (which I don’t like doing) so I could get a good whiff of it!

The craziest thing to me is how Kraft’s mac and cheese has such a distinct smell and taste compared to a homemade mac and cheese. It’s very distinguishable! And when you’re about 4 miles into your run, it makes it hard to focus when all you want is a big bowl of carbs to dig into. But I got quite a kick out of it. People driving by probably thought I was crazy as the whole thing had me laughing out loud at myself. So lesson learned: keep your nose ready for some cheesy goodness if you’re ever running down Bennett street in Springfield!

Breakfast

I made it home from my run and stretched well while sipping some water to rehydrate. I was then ready for coffee and FOOD! I brewed my Candy Corn flavored coffee this morning from Target and immediately poured myself a big mug full along with a splash of Pumpkin Pie Spice creamer. It hit the spot after being chilly during my run! I wanted the warmth to continue. So I toasted some bread while I microwaved 2 eggs with a splash of almond milk.

photo(72)A little raspberry jelly perfected this sandwich with the awesome combo of salty and sweet. My eggs got extra nice and poofy in the microwave making my sandwich extra filling!

photo(74)Mmmmmmmm eggy goodness. This hefty sandwich left me super satisfied, but I also had a small cup of Greek yogurt on the side for extra protein.

photo(73)And now I’m very full but still sipping on the coffee. I can’t get enough of the Fall-flavored coffees. But tomorrow is the FIRST DAY OF FALL!!! So my obsession is finally legitimate.

The rest of today will be spent teaching a Jazzercise class (yes, I’m crazy, I know) and doing some Fall decorating with a tiny and extremely whiny dog.

photo(75)For some reason, every time Nick leaves for a longer amount of time, Mac goes into this annoying & whiny mode until he returns. I may have to go to Hobby Lobby to A) Look at all the Fall decor that is 40% off today! and B) Get away from my annoying furry baby for a bit. I love him, but momma can only handle so much.

Have a great Saturday! Get out there and carve some pumpkins or something!

Pumpkin Pie Overnight Oats

Recipes, Workouts, , , ,

Yesterday’s breakfast was a great one that completely has me in the holiday spirit now!

photo(83)Let me preface this by saying my posts are about a day delayed right now. Have you ever had one of those weeks where you are so stinkin busy you can barely find time to sleep, let alone get anything extra done? Well this week has been that way for me. I still feel like I’m slightly drowning. But the weekend is near, and I know if I can make it til then, I will finally have time to recup!

Tuesday night, I took about 2 spare minutes to prepare my Wednesday morning breakfast to make the next morning easy peasy.

Pumpkin Pie Overnight Oats

Into the mix, I added:

  • 1/2 cup old fashioned oats
  • 1.5 tbsp chia seeds
  • 1/3 cup pure pumpkin (canned)
  • 3/4 cup unsweetened almond milk
  • 1 tsp pumpkin pie spice
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
  • a drizzle of honey
  • a little extra cinnamon
  • Raisins (as topping, optional)

I stirred this all up (minus the raisins) until well blended, and then covered it and let it sit in the fridge overnight. The next morning I added a splash more almond milk to soften the mixture up, along with a couple spoonfuls of raisins to add a little sweetness and texture.

photo(84)I loved every bite! I like mine to be extra spicy, so you may not need to add extra cinnamon, etc. I’ve also seen where people will add in 1 tbsp of pure maple syrup to add a nice sweet kick. But that’s the beauty of overnight oats. You can make them match your taste with just a few minutes of playing around in the kitchen.

I also found that this recipe was almost too much for my stomach to handle, so I may try only 1/3 cup of oats next time. The raisins really plumped up the volume here!

Another perk of this recipe? A full can of pure pumpkin is way more than what this recipe calls for, so you’ll have extra pumpkin leftover to make more batches of this yummy stuff throughout the week or to make other Fall recipes!

Long Run + Breakfast

Yesterday started out with a nice 5 mile run – the farthest I’ve ever gone! It’s been rainy each morning, so when I woke up at 5 AM without the sound of rain hitting my window, I slipped on my running shoes and went at it.

The run was a major stepping stone for me since I’m running my first 10K in October. It kept my spirits high knowing that I will probably be able to power through the 10K without walking/dying. I made it to 5.14 miles in 47 minutes. I’m definitely not a power runner, so this was a great time for me. I’m excited to attempt the extra mile this weekend hopefully!

I had to quickly shower and rush off to work after my run, so by the time I sat down at my desk, my stomach was upset with me. Starving! Thankfully my pumpkiny oats were amazing and left me super stuffed.

photo(85)I also grabbed my coffee, vitamins and fruit to tide me over til lunch time. It was a healthy morning! And my post-run tummy was more than happy to enjoy it all. 🙂

Today has, once again, been a hectic one. I swapped with another instructor and taught the 5:40 AM class in place of my usual 6:45 PM since I have a meeting after work I want to attend. But more on that later.

Have a great Thursday! It’s already noon, which means we are only a day and a half from the weekend. Hooray!

 

Tortoise Speed

Daily Life!, Food for Thought, , , ,

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!