I've moved my blog!

Hey guys! To all of you that follow my blog here, I just wanted to let you know that I move it to http://hopefulrunner.wordpress.com/. Check it out! I love the new format and this it really allows me to show my creativity!

The knee and my awesome dinner!

Hi all, well for those of you that don't know I have been having pain in my knee and my foot for about the past two weeks and it has really put a stop to my running, which has been very hard for me to deal with lately. Well, I went to the doc today to have it checked out and he said that I most likely strained or pulled my MCL and it should heal in about two weeks. Damn, I kinda already knew that but figured cause I was in so much pain that it would be a good idea to get it checked out. There's two wasted hours that I will never get back! Yarrrgggg. So, no running for me for another week and a half or so. At least I have been doing good with my food and have not cheated during lent! That makes it much easier for me to rationalize not being able to run and just having to do cross training.
Anyways, before and after my doctors apt I did homework of course. I am working on a research presentation for my biology class about artificial sweeteners, their molecular structure, and the effects that they have on the human body. Boy have a learned a lot that I wish I had known about 5 years ago when I started drinking diet sodas and eating sugar free foods. First of all, it's really scary what this stuff is made of and it is even worse when you learn what it does to your body. Ick!

I took a break this evening from my studies to make some delicious dinner, Spike our cat was keeping me warm, but decided to cuddle up to my books instead when I got off the couch. He looked so cute and comfortable I just had to take a pic.



For dinner tonight I decided to grill up some chicken breasts on my George Foreman grill with some frozen mixed stir fry veggies and fresh brussel sprouts. Mmmmmmmm! So good! I pretty much ate my portion of chicken right when it came off the grill so I didn't get much of it in the pic, but it was delicious and so were the veggies. Lately there is nothing better than a big bowl of steamed vegetables.


After dinner I remembered that I hadn't had any carbs with dinner and saw that I had a sweet potato that I needed to cook...so, I decided to make sweet potato fries! Mmmmmm! I took my big sweet potato, sliced it up and mixed the slices up with a little bit of extra virgin olive oil and sprinkled cinnamon over the top. I baked them in the oven at 425 degrees for about 12 minutes, and they came out PERFECT! Who needs desert after dinner when you have sweet potato fries with cinnamon on them!
Here's what they looked like when they came out of the oven...heavenly!


I also decided to treat myself to a glass of wine after my dinner and "desert". Actually, I had a small glass of each of these...I just couldn't help myself.


Oh! So I sent off for some free samples of tea a few weeks ago from Yogi and they came today! I was so excited to get them and try em out, and they came with a coupon for my next box of tea! Woohoo! I tried the "Antioxidant Green Tea" with a packet of Stevia natural sweetener this evening, and it was just what I needed while I was studying. I love tea, and am really glad that I gave up diet sodas and started drinking it instead.


Well, my day is winding down and hubs left to go hang out with one of his friends so I think I'm going to watch some of my DVR'd shows before I go to bed.
Have a great night guys and I hope you are enjoying my blog!

Lent - Week one update!

Hey all!  I made it through my first week of lent, refined sugar and desert free!  I don't really like the idea of having to restrict something from my diet because usually that type of thing can backfire, but I have been so motivated to be healthier and meet this challenge that I am okay with it!  I have insulin resistance and type-2 diabetes (this is not a new discovery or anything) and during my visit to my doc the other day I told her that I had given up refined sugars and she was very pleased.  She told me that this is one of the best things I can do to keep my insulin issues and metabolism in check without having to take Western medicine, which I am NOT a fan of at all.  So, needless to say, these past 6 days have been great!  I have not had any wierd and uncontrollable cravings to satisfy my sweet tooth, and I think it's mainly because I have a goal in mind and ahead of me.  I have eaten things that are sweet, but are naturally sweetened.  Like, raspberry preserves, stevia in my coffee and cereal, fruit, yogurt, etc so that has done the trick.  I have also decided to get out of the slump of eating the same meal every night for dinner simply beause it is convienent, and have been putting together more dinner combos, which has satisfied my craving for change in my diet.  It's pretty challenging to make sure that I am getting my protein carbs and veggies in every meal, but I have the knowledge so I just need to take the time to prepare the meals.  

I truly believe that my problems with food cravings, mainly sweets, come from the fact that I lack variety in my diet.  It's hard when you are on a budget, don't have a lot of time, and can only eat certain foods....but I have managed to come up with some pretty good dinners!  I have also found some pretty awesome blogs on here from fellow foodies with great recipe and meal ideas which have really inspired me and given me new ideas.  You should really check them out..
www.eatliverun.com, http://nhershoes.blogspot.com/, and http://therunningyogini.wordpress.com/
These ladies are truly inspiring and creative, and I really enjoy reading their blogs! Plus, it's awesome to see what they will be cooking up next!

Unfortunately I have been working on some projects for school that have kept me pretty busy so I haven't been able to take pics of my meals....either that or I just forgot.  DOH!  I will make sure and do that tomorrow.  I have been working on a lot of stuff for school right now not to mention a big research project for my biology class.  Boy, I can't wait till this qtr is over so I can take a break!

Okay, gotta get back to the homework and this nice glass of wine that I am enjoying so I will update more later.  Hopefully with some pics included.

Night all!

Breakfast for dinner and my first day of "non-religious" lent

Hey guys!  I had a great day today.  Today is my first official day of "non-religious lent" as I call it, and it has been a success!  I know, I know...it's only day one, but I am still optimistic.  As part of my internal cleansing I have started using the dry sauna at the gym after my workouts as a way to sweat out my toxins and clear out my skin and it feels great...why haven't I used this before!?  Well, today after class I went to the gym and did my workout and then sat in the sauna for 15 minutes.  I felt so good and clean afterwards, I think I will do it every day after I work out.  I never knew how good I could feel after just sitting and sweating and stretching, it was great! 

I injured  my knee yesterday when I was doing squats and was not able to run today.  I swear I am falling apart!  Two weeks ago, I re-sprained my right ankle, hurt my left foot (all on the same run) and then yesterday I hurt my left knee!  What the hell!?  Oh well, I am going to take about a week off from running and just cross train until my knee feels better...as hard as it is to not run I need to listen to my body.

Today after my workout I went to this awesome little cafe with a friend of mine from my biology class and we sat and studied for about three and a half hours.  I got a lot accomplished!  I got some of my homework done and got a good start on my research project!  Woohoo!

When I came home I was itching to do something other than sit on my butt so I made an awesome dinner for Tim and myself.  I made him blueberry pancakes with apple smoked bacon and hashbrowns.  I made myself two little mini-blueberry pancakes and a boca burger patty, which tasted like cardboard but I needed to protein so I just ate it anyways.  Oh, and I had a glass of wine with dinner, and a cup of Cascade Fresh lemon yogurt for desert. This is the finished product minus about 3 pieces of bacon that Tim couldn't wait to eat. There's Tim..."Can you please take the picture so I can eat my tasty dinner!?" hehe There's my dinner...it doesn't look as good as Tim's did, but it was still tasty and I enjoyed it. :) There's Spike wondering where his dinner is. I swear he thinks he is a dog because he will sit at our feet at the dinner table or in the living room if we are eating in front of the tv, and beg for a bite of whatever we are eating. He will try everything too. One time I gave him spicy salsa that was almost too hot for me, and he loved it...boy did that one backfire. Here's Princess Molly sitting at the dinner table waiting for her dinner. Tim got up for a few minute to go get something and she was right up in his chair waiting to be served. Our cats have the best personalities. Hope you enjoyed the pictures of my tasty dinner! There will be more to come next week. I work a crazy schedule this weekend so I don't know if I will have time to blog with all of the homework I will be catching up on. Catch up with you all soon! D

Giving up something for Lent

In my search for answers, self improvement, growth, and cleansing...I have decided to give up something for lent. Now, I am loosely starting this today, and am going to be preparing myself (since I only decided to do this on a whim this morning) all day today for my next 40 days. This will be no easy task, giving up something completely for an extended period of time never is, but I am up for the challenge! I need this, and can do this!
I have been doing some research this morning to find out exactly what lent is and if you can do it if you are not catholic. I am spiritual, but not religious. I read that lent simply means "the spring season", and since I am trying to do some spring cleaning of my own (mentally and spiritually), I think that this is going to be a fun challenge! I found this when I was researching lent this morning and it really motivated me "Lent is a time for soul-searching, facing great challenges and overcoming mistakes." I am really in need of some soul-searching, so what a great way to get focused!
I also thought this was interesting (not news to any of you, but since I didn't really know what lent was, I found this helpful) "Give up something you love for the 40-day period, symbolizing the Lenten season's return to simplicity and purity. It doesn't matter what you give up - cigarettes, chocolate, television, surfing the Internet - as long as the meaning of its absence holds significant value to you."
So, what am I going to be giving up....I'm sure you are just dying to know! I'm going to give up sugary junk foods, basically anything that contains refined sugars, like cookies, candy, cake, etc. I have been trying to find a way to motivate myself to really stay away from this crap for a while as a way to cleanse my body...and here is my motivation!! I think this is great too because now I will have to find more creative ways to make healthy yet satisfying snacks when I am feeling that urge to have something sweet.
I just have a little bit of trail mix in my car that has white chocolate chips in it that I will finish today because I don't want to waste food, and then it's on! So, who's with me on giving up something for lent!?
Email me on my facebook , or post a comment and let me know. It would be fun to have other people to do this with and check in with..kind of like a support system. Of course, you don't have to give up the same thing that I am, but it's more about the self control facing the challenge.
I will keep you all posted and let you know how I am doing! Oh man, I spent too much time doing this and now I am going to be late for school! Bye guys!

My quest for new and delicious teas!

Well, today has been a rather productive and happy day for me. School, and other things have been kicking my ass lately and I finally have some time to catch up on my blog. I didn't make my egg white omelet today, so no pics...sorry. Like I said, I have been rather busy.
School today was good and for the first time in a while, I had energy when I woke up and was actually able to focus during class. I found this amazing tea the other day (okay, it was never really lost, I had just never heard of it)! My friend makes it and had recommended that I try some and if I liked it, she was going to bottle some up for me. It's called Synergy Kombucha, and is sold in bottles, not tea bags. Synergy is the brand and kombucha is the type of tea, which she makes, and it is so good! I found it at Marlene's (for those of you who don't live over here, Marlene's is a natural food store). This stuff is kind of expensive, so I might see if my friend can show me how to make it, it's so good for you and is so damn tasty! Here is a pic of the two flavors that I have tried so far, Trilogy and Cosmic Cranberry....so yummy!

I was also looking for some new tea to add to my collection since I have been on a tea kick lately. I did a toxin report for my biology class on formaldehyde, and am also working on a research project on sucralose and aspartame. After the extremely disturbing things that I have learned thus far about man-made artificlial sweeteners, I have completely sworn off diet soda and anything labeled "sugar free". I work so hard on a daily basis to make sure that I am putting clean whole foods into my body as well as exercising and staying fit....and then I go and drink a diet soda or use Sweet n' Low and cover all of that hard work up with man made chemicals that won't ever break down in my body and are basically poisoning me. What I have learned has been a total eye opener! So, instead of that afternoon or evening soda, I have been drinking tea. And, why not? I have a nice tea collection, and it's much healthier than diet soda....not to mention it tastes better and is really soothing on these cold days. There is nothing better than coming home from a cold run, taking a shower, and then sitting down in my jammies with my homework and a nice cup of hot tea! I recently went through and did an inventory on my teas just to see what I have, here's a pic of my little collection.



And, these are the teas that I picked up from a tea house in Beijing when I was in China. It was so awesome! This place was like the Costco of loose and bagged teas. They had everything from the least expensive tea to the tea that cost thousands of yuan an ounce. When we went there, they took us into a little room in the back of the tea house and we got to sample as many teas as we wanted to. We just kept picking them out and the manager kept bringing them for us to try. I tell ya, we were a wired bunch when we left there. I ended up getting loose organic green tea, loose organic Pu'er tea (which is a black tea), and this tea called Flower tea that starts out as flowers and blooms when hot water is added. It was one of the more expensive teas but I couldn't resist, it tasted heavenly and looked beautiful in the big glass kettle.



This is what the flower tea looks like..



Okay, I digress....back to my mission for new tea. When I was at Marlene's on my tea mission, I knew I wanted to pick up some Yogi tea since I love that brand, but I wasn't sure what I wanted to get. Caffinated, decaf, detox, green...etc. There is just so much to choose from. I decided to get a new one that they have out called Ginko IQ.



It's supposed to help with cerebral functioning by refreshing brain cells with an abundance of blood and oxygen (and let's be honest here, I could really use some brain refreshing these days). Since I have a ridiculously hard time remembering things and focusing when I am in class lately I thought...what the hell, I'll try it. Well, I don't know if it's all in my head, or if this tea actually helps with brain function, but I have been brewing it up and taking it to school with me in the morning, and drinking it in the afternoons while doing my homework and I have been more alert than I was before. It has been easier for me to pay attention and keep focused in class, which is a great thing. Not that I'm not interested in my classes, but I just have such a hard time "waking up" and being alert in the mornings lately and it makes it hard for me to remember lectures. So, I'm going to keep drinking it and see if anything improves.
I do know that since I have stopped drinking diet soda and using artificial sweeteners, that I have been feeling better. I have been sleeping a little better and have had more energy. I know that these dangerous man made chemicals will never leave my body, but I am going to do what I can to keep them out of there from here on out. Plus, now that I am not drinking that crap anymore....it just gives me more opportunities to drink new and delicious tea! If you guys have any suggestions on any new teas that I should try, please leave a comment and let me know!
Oh, and before I head out and off to bed...Yogi is sending out free samples of some of their new teas. Mine are on the way and should be here in about 4 weeks! Just go to http://www.yogitea.com/Pages/FreeSamples.html.
Later!

Just checking in...

Hey guys.  To the few of you that read my blog, sorry that I have been absent.  I have been going through a lot of stuff lately, not to mention working wierd hours and having a lot homework, so I just haven't had time to dedicate to my blog.  I probably should make time, as it always makes me feel better.  I plan on updating tonight though.  I made an awesome eggwhite omlet for myself nad cheeseburgers with home made fries for Tim last night for dinner, and I was thinking that I should have taken pics so that I could share our dinners with you.  So, I will probably be making it again tonight and I will take pics and give you all an update on what's been going on with me.  

I will check back soon!  Off to school I go...