Working It!

I can't believe this but I have gotten another cold...which is a little frustrating. I woke up at 3:00am today because my noise was stuffy and my head hurt. Not the best way to wake up on a Saturday but I eventually was able to get back to sleep until 7:00am.

I was feeling a bit better and decided to make myself a nice breakfast. Which included a Baked Oatmeal Muffin, a fried egg, a few slices of fresh mango and a cup of coffee. It tasted good to have a different type of breakfast this morning...yummy egg.



The baked oatmeal was sooo good again today!

After breakfast I was finally able to get motivated and head into the gym. I decided to do a favorite workout of mine: Burn 400 Calories Without Getting Bored. I love this workout because 40 minutes of constantly switching machines and doing intervals ensures you are never bored!!! As I was heading to the locker room I saw that a Zumba class was in session. So I decided to jump in for the last 40 minutes of class. Zumba is one of my very favorite workouts!

Why do I LOVE Zumba?

I love Zumba classes because it gives you an awesome workout (burns around 500 calories) while dancing your butt off. Another plus to this class is that you just end up smiling alot because it is almost impossible to look normal doing some of the moves! I totally recommend going with a couple of girlfriends because it is so fun to be ridiculous together.

This class was more latin infused and our instructor Connie was a master of moving her hips. I on the other hand tried to imitate JLO but ended up looking more like Richard Simmons!! I looked completely ridic...I really wish I had a video of myself so everyone could get a good laugh. I knew I looked ridic so I decided to work it and embrace my lack of rhythm, timing and sexiness.

Yep...this is pretty much what I looked like in Zumba today!

I was starving when I got home because of my double workout so I decided to make myself a DIY Matcha Green Tea Smoothie and a Quinoa Spinach Salad with some fresh veggies on the side. I was craving a Matcha Green Tea Latte but decided to try and make it a smoothie instead and it turned out really really good! It didn't look so good but trust me it tasted yummy!

Matcha Green Tea Smoothie

1/2 cup matcha mix

1/2 almond milk

1 frozen banana

1 scoop of protein powder

2-4 ice cubes

Now it is time to relax and enjoy my Saturday of decluttering my apartment and watching the Celtics. My brother has tickets five rows back tonight...I knew I should have stayed another week. :)

Boston Bound

I am flying cross country today to Boston to soak up some much needed family time. I woke up early had a small portion of oatmeal and headed to the airport. The airport was so calm today and I was feeling a little anxiety because I have a connection to make in Detroit...and Delta has really not been to kind to me as of late. :)

I got through security really quickly with my ID and headed to my gate. I decided that I should probably eat something more. I headed to Seattle's Best Coffee because it was the only place in the concourse. I ordered an Everything Bagel and a small Green Tea Latte because it felt right. I have to tell you that I love BAGELS...even though they are so bad for you. This was just what I needed to get through my flight to Detroit.

My flight was on-time and I actually had enough time to sit down and enjoy a meal. My plane was full of runners heading to Boston for the marathon. As I looked at them I realized that I needed to eat something with some sort of nutritional value. :) Maybe something with a little color...my options were limited so I hit up Quinzo's and ordered a Cobb Salad. This salad looked delish and tasted pretty good. It was quite a large serving so I didn't finish it all but it did feel good to eat something that was a little bit healthy.

I love that Quinzo's has a pepper station! Yummo

I don't know what was going on with Delta today but every flight was overbooked and they were giving out $400 vouchers to give up your seat. I really hope this happens on my way home to Seattle because I will totally take a $400 voucher! The flight to Boston was so bumpy they didn't even serve us drinks. I finally arrived in Boston around 7:50pm. YAY!! I had to wait awhile at baggage claim but as I was waiting I had a couple people wish me luck in the marathon...I didn't even correct them. :) I just said thank you and smiled. I was so excited that I was mistaken for a marathoner!!

Finally I got my bag and my brother picked me up, the ladies were already sleeping. :( So as I am writing this blog I am all alone in Boston because everyone is sleeping. Auntie will have to wait until tomorrow to play with Lily!! Time for bed. 

45 Minute Treadmill Killer!

Today I woke up feeling like a zombie. I am definitely a girl that needs eight hours of sleep and last night I didn't get that.

I decided to have a shake for breakfast. I threw some spinach, frozen bananas & strawberries and almond milk in the blender and out came a delicious sweet shake. :) I didn't have to add ice because the smoothie was so thick. I also had a sandwich thin topped with some frozen banana, peanut butter and nutella. I recommend topping oatmeal and sandwich thins with frozen bananas. Check out how the banana just turns to mushy deliciousness.

Amazing mush!

For lunch I brought the quinoa salad I made last night. It turned out pretty tasty considering how simple the seasoning was. I paired my quiona with a leftover chicken tender and some sliced cucumbers.

The feta and avocado really complimented the quinoa well.

Super tasty and filling!

After finishing the workday as a human zombie I headed to the gym to try and get out of my funk. I found an awesome 45 minute treadmill workout on Carrots N Cake's blog. Check it out:

45 Minute Treadmill Killer

Minutes     Speed     Incline

0-5             4.5          1

5-7             5.5          2

7-9             5.5          3

9-11           5.5          4

11-16         5             6

16-21         6             3

21-22         5.5          2

22-23         7             2

23-24         5.5          2

24-25         7             2

25-26         5.5          2

26-27         7             2

27-29         5             8

29-31         5.2          6

31-33         5.4          4

33-35         5.6          2

35-38         6.5          2

38-40         4.5          2

40-45         4.0          1

I really enjoyed this workout. It was really tough but super rewarding in the end. I do have to tell you minutes 27-29 and 35-38 I contemplated stopping because I was exhausted. This workout is a great way to run on the treadmill because it goes by so fast. BONUS: I burned 500 calories!!!

After my workout I headed to sushi at The Tuna House. I ordered some miso soup and my regular roll The Super Nitro Roll. This roll really hit the spot!

I headed home and started to organize my clothes and outfits for Palm Springs on Thursday. :) I'm a planner. Now its time to relax and read with my Matcha Tea Latte Made Easy.

A Little of This & A Little of That!

Yesterday I had such a productive evening. I had set some pretty aggressive goals considering I was pretty exhausted. Below is what I wanted to do:

Hit up Pilates with Sarah - CHECK

I have pushing my body pretty hard this week with cardio so this was a great change! I love Pilates because it focuses on strengthening my core and flexibility without a lot of impact on my joints...man this makes me sound old! 

Walk around Kirkland because it was beautiful outside - CHECK

After Pilates I convinced Sarah to walk around Kirkland and go shopping with me. The sun disappeared but it was still nice enough to walk around. Sarah had told me Romy's was having a 50% off everything sale, so I definitely wanted to check it out. I am so glad I did because I got a summer dress and very stylish belt for $30. As we began our walk back to our cars it of course started raining...and then pouring, typical Seattle.

Super cheap and cute dress!

Eat Something Green for Dinner - CHECK

This week I didn't plan a menu because I have been meeting up with friends for dinner/happy hour a lot. So I got home and decided to follow this motto: A Little of This A Little of That! I have tons of stuff in my fridge so I decided breakfast for dinner sounds great! I cooked up an egg with the works (spinach, onion, garlic, broccoli and feta cheese), breakfast potatoes (1 red potato, a few butternut squash piece, salt & pepper, garlic, onion and oregano) and a half of a sandwich thin with the usual suspects. 

Totally satisfying breakfast for dinner!

This book is phenomenal! It is the perfect mix of Christopher's running journey and the evolution/history of running. After reading portions of this book I was driven to go run longer distances and not worry about my pace. :) This book really made me think about improving my running form and diet. It also made me question how much money I spend on shoes because they could possibly be hindering my running and creating training setbacks. I consider any book that makes me think a winner! :) I recommend this book to everyone not just runners. If you aren't a runner you just may try it after reading this amazing book! 

  Continuing my GREEN theme with a delish Matcha Green Tea Latte!

A little of this & a little of that is a great way to spend an evening and I recommend it to anyone who feels like they are exhausted or need to spice up an evening. :) I think I finally have the reading bug again...so last night I started reading Shadow of the Dolls! It is the sequel to one of my favorite books Valley of the Dolls aka the original Sex and the City. I have been doing a lot critically acclaimed reading so it is time for me to read something that just plain entertains me. :) I will let you know how it turns out! 

Matcha Green Tea Latte's Made Easy

Thank goodness the week is half over!! This morning started off with my typical breakfast of oatmeal and flatbread topped with peanut butter, 1/2 of a banana and a tiny spoonful of chocolate chips. My breakfast hit the spot and I headed into work. :)

Really tasty and simple!

Another busy day at the office so lunch came fast. I had packed some of my leftover tilapia from Monday. It was surprising good and not fishy at all. Apparently my eyes were to big this morning because I had enough green beans for a couple of days. Oh well!!

Even fish can make decent leftovers!

I got an awesome surprise for lunch. My brother's family decided to Skype with my dad and I at the office. It was so much fun to see them. Lil Lily said "Auntie indsay pretty," I have to say that she freaking made my day. I love being an Auntie!!

As soon as 4pm came I was off to my spinning class at Fly Fitness. Apparently everyone decided not to come to class today because the sun was shining. So it was just me and Tracy! We decided to mix up the class, we spent 35 minutes on the bike and then the rest of the class doing strength training. I really enjoy working out at Fly Fitness because every workout makes me feel energized!

When I got home I decided to make a protein shake: scoop of protein powder, 8 oz of milk, handful of ice and a 1/2 cup of blueberries. This shake was beautiful and tasted pretty darn good. I paired it with some leftover chile relleno casserole that was even better the second time. Reheating leftovers is just so convenient and easy, now I am able to enjoy the rest of my night reading, cleaning and relaxing.

Weird combo...not good together but seperately they are amazing!

I didn't feel like a big dessert tonight so I decided to make myself a semi homemade Matcha Green Tea Latte. My favorite indulgence at Starbucks is a Non-Fat Green Tea Latte but they are just so pricey. I was at QFC one day walking down the tea aisle and I saw that Tazo started distributing a liquid based matcha tea. This was so exciting to me because now I can have my favorite latte in the comfort of my own home and as a bonus I am saving myself money. The carton costs about $6 and will make 6-8 lattes. I usually pay $3.50 at Starbucks on each latte. My wallet and I win!!!

Easy, cheap and satisfying dessert!

You simply mix equal parts milk and matcha and heat (either microwave or stove top). After heating you have yourself a delicious Matcha Green Tea Latte! I recommend this to every tea lover.