Turkey Day and a Family Wedding Veggie Style

This weekend was a major challenge for me...thanksgiving and my cousins wedding all during no meat November? Not part of the original plan, but I did it! 

On Turkey day I did a 10k with Bailey and it was freezing. It was -2 degrees when we started. I seriously think that 6 miles was more difficult than the marathon. But we finished. Frozen eyelashes and all. 

This is my second year doing this race and last year my parents stood on the sidelines and froze their butts off, so this year they signed up to walk the 5k! I am so proud that my parents finished and it was under their goal time of 50 minutes :) 

And we ditched the normal Turkey Day meal and opted for Seafood Chowder and my favorite Fruit of the Forest Pie. I am so thankful that my parents were willing to skip out on tradition to help me through the month! 

Yesterday my cousin Carla got married! It was such a fun night. And who can say no to an excuse to dress up? The most difficult part of the night was dinner...there wasn't a vegetarian entree option since dinner was family style, but I made do! I had a salad, bread (totally worth the carbs), zucchini and broccoli, and a couple of mini desserts. 

Here are some pics from the big day! 

Until tomorrow, 

C

Giving Thanks

I have so many things to be grateful for I don't even know where to start. But I guess I'll start with my friends and family. They never fail to be my cheerleaders, companions, workout buddies, recipe tasters, shoulders to cry on, and shopping buddies. I am so blessed to have such a great support team. 

Next would be my bosses. To Uncle Mark, Gerry, and Aunt Polly family sure does make great team.

To Mark and Dani, who have welcomed me into their own family and taught me that the sky is the limit on how you create a successful career. 

And finally to Shelly, kindergarten is by far the most valuable experience I've received through my time at St. Ben's. These children come to school with nothing and we light them up and show them that they can change the world. What could be better than that? 

Next is to all he people who have supported me in the world of health and fitness. 

Trainers: Sara, Kyle, Devon, and Alicia. I have no idea where I'd be without your. 

Bloggers I love: Skinnymeg, BaileyMckenzieLife, katelynAnnLivinnLife, mamalaughlin, fabchicgetsfit, and the list goes on. 

And finally, but most importantly my parents. They have been with me through thick and thin (literally) and I can't imagine my life without them. I was so thankful to get to spend a lazy day with them today and support them when they walked their first 5k. More details about our day tomorrow! 

Hope everyone had a wonderful, warm, safe turkey day :) 

C 

Great workouts and even better food

I lapsed in the eating department when my mom came up for the hockey game on Saturday, so I vented to Bails about it and changed it. It's been good ever since. 

This is what I did today and it was a killer! Felt great. 

I made these salmon cakes for dinner last night...not the hugest fan...going to tweak the recipe this weekend and I'll repost when they're delicious.

Tonight's dinner was AWESOME! I tried out these new Bertolli Vegetable noodles, sautéed spinach and mushrooms, drizzled with olive oil, balsamic, and topped with some feta and parm. All with a side of protein packed cottage cheese. 

Hope those sparked some inspiration for your diet and exercise for this bold holiday week! 

Make it great, 

C

Super Easy Black Bean Cake

You know I'm all about that chocolate life.  This is the second time making this recipe and it turned out 100x better this time than the cupcake version I made for girls weekend. Sorry guys. 

Today was rest day and I knew it was either going to be a candy bar or a healthy treat. I'm glad I chose the latter. Although I'm not sure it was worth the run to Target. Went in for 3 things and left with $35 of groceries.....

Any who. 

Here's the break down: 

We had an 11 year old visitor tonight and even she loved them! I did add about 1/2 c 80% dark chocolate chips for a bit of extra sweetness, but it's still an awful lot better than a normal dessert! 

Also, I made it in an 8x8 pan and it worked a lot better than the cupcakes. 

Try them out and let me know what you think!

Until tomorrow, 

C 

Leg Day

Leg day is my favorite, period. It's my favorite because I can lift heavy and feel it for days which makes me feel like I'm doing something right. 

Today Bailey motivated me to get outside and go for a run. It was a balmy 12 degrees here today so I couldn't resist a four mile jaunt. 

So as many of you know I go to a private catholic college and without fail I seem to pass one of the Sisters every time I'm running. Today was no different. I was running on the sidewalk (which was incredibly icy) and I pass a Nun and she shouts "Oh hun, please do be careful. It's awfully icy!" Only in Central Minnesota....

After my run I decompressed from a big Sociology test I had today and decided to hit the gym. There must've been pigs flying out my window because one of my roommates asked to join me. I love her to death, but in her three years here she has not once set foot in any athletic facility. EVER. So I gave her a little circuit to do and I did mine and her quote of the night was "I have no idea why you think this is fun. Let alone how you get here twice a day." Classic Maria. She also told me she filled her gym quota for the next year with her 45 minutes tonight. 

Here's Maria's first and probably last Gym Selfie.

This was my workout from tonight. You should definitely give it a try. I'm already feeling it! 

Until tomorrow, 

C

Protein packed dinner

What do I do when nothing sounds good at all? I put cottage cheese on the plate and everything else magically appears. (If only that were real life) 

With the sub zero temps and a lack of motivation this was my dinner tonight! 

6 oz shrimp scampi

1T parmesan cheese

1c raspberries 

3/4c cottage cheese 

And of course a side of popcorn for dessert :)

What did yall have for dinner? 

C

Girls weekend!

This event has been on the calendar for months now and I can't believe it's over already. Bailey and I went to visit Katie, Jake, Ryan, and Cailtlyn at the U of M for a jam packed weekend. 

But first I got to spend some time with my favorite baby. 

She warms my heart. 

Then it was off to the U! 

We got my fave tea from publika. 

Got a workout in! 

Went to dinner.

And went to some parties! 

All in all it was so fun to hang with my ladies :) 

Until tomorrow, 

C 

Woman Crush Wednesday

I have never partaken in this Twitter hash tag before, but I am completely obsessed with Kerry Washington right now since I am now officially caught up on Scandal.  

It took me less than a week to watch all three seasons.

If you're not a scandal addict yet you definitely need to cue up the Netflix, grab some sugar free cocoa or tea, a bag of popcorn, and your fave blankie and get watching. No, seriously. 

Kerry Washington plays Olivia "Liv" Pope a White House "cleaner-upper".  You have a problem in Washington, she's your gal. Oh yeah, and she kind of has a thing with the President.  

The fricken President! 

Liv and Fitz ummm yum. 

As dysfunctional and wacky their relationship is; it works. 

With the midnight restricted White House calls.  Or Presidential House Calls....

 Late night oval office meetings. 

And those smiles are infectious when they're together they're always glowing.

I am completely obsessed with them.

I chose Liv as my WCW because she is:

strong, confident

 passionate, driven, 

motivated, beautiful, dedicated, and 

 never goes anywhere without coffee and her phone. 

*cough* sounds like me *cough*

Let me take a second and talk about her wardrobe.  It's PERFECT! So conservative and classy that it makes even the President fall to his knees.  

Doesn't that mean if I dress like her I should have a line of Johnnies outside my door?

hmmmm.  Something must be off about my thought process there....

Ugh.  Can you tell how addicted I am?  I love this show and of course; Liv. 

Liv is the type of person who is completely self-less.  She puts everyone and their issues before herself. She doesn't rely on anyone; period. She's basically a bad ass and if that's not great inspiration I don't know what is. 

And I mean who doesn't want to rock the cover of 

Women's Health in underwear and a blazer.  

Someday that could be me.

So Ladies, the moral of this post is to find someone who inspires you or who you can look up to and just be happy to emulate even the smallest part of them!  Little changes can make a HUGE difference.

Until tomorrow, 

C

PS. Scandal is on tomorrow (Thursday) on ABC at 8pm

Winter "fun"

Yesterday was our first day of snow in Minnesota and I got to spend it inside with my first SNOW DAY! To sweeten the deal school was delayed 3 hours today. Woot woot! 

I got to spend some extra time in the gym both days which is awesome. I was really hoping to get in an outdoor run, but with over 20" of snow here that's not really feasible. Maybe this weekend when I'm with Katie and Bails we can sneak in a downtown run. 

Since I had a late start and I snuck in gym time my getting ready time was limited. So I did what I do best and mixed some neutrals to create this comfy cute look! 

Sweater-Old Navy

Leopard scarf- Express

Leggings-Lulu

Boots- BearPaw

Until tomorrow, 

C

Weekend Fun

This weekend I came home for the visitation of a good friends mother. She lost a four year battle with appendix cancer. 

In spite of the sadness I got two great workouts in with Bailey! Saturday we did the stairs and an arm circuit for the SM challenge then today we ran 8 miles! 

We ran the same trail we ran all summer while training for our second half marathon and of course the full! It felt like a walk down memory lane. This course is really hilly and over the summer there would be times we'd be so tired it would've been faster for us to walk than run. Today we killed it! We ran 11:30ish miles the entire way. 

After shopping we hit a new outlet mall and got some new tennis shoes of course! The Nike factory store was our first stop and we got some great deals :) I got my first pair of Free's. Finally!!!! 

Until tomorrow, 

C

When your co-op teacher brings you health food

Today my co-op teacher brought me a special treat for breakfast. Can you say awesome? I have known this woman for three years now and in September she told me that my journey has inspired her and her husband (an ex marathon runner) to try eating clean. They are now on their second round of the whole 30 and have both lost over 15 pounds. I cannot believe it. I'm so proud that my journey has begun to inspire others. 

Let me get to my point here...

So today when I get to school on my desk is a cute little Baggie with a muffin, cookie, and recipes. Here Shelly had tried some new paleo "treats" and we got to have our healthy breakfast when the kiddos are their pop tarts. 

Health for the win! 

C 

Transformation Tuesday

Today is a big day!

It was my first cardio session with the trainer and it was amazingly difficult.  I felt the same way today that I felt my first boot camp cardio day.  So basically miserable. 

If that wasn't enough I dressed as Bailey's twin today so that I could channel her amazingness and muster up the courage to walk to my class on the third floor.

See the resemblance!

After making it to the third floor and through my theology class I had a KILLER migraine.  I really don't like when this happens...

Here's a fun little recipe that can hopefully brighten your day as much as it did mine!

Oatmeal Mug Cookie
1/4 c oats
1t brown sugar
1T whole wheat flour
1 egg white
1/4 t vanilla, baking powder, and cinnamon
1t flax

Mix and microwave for 1 minute!
Some extra good additions would be raisins, craisins, or dark chocolate chips


Here's the breakdown:
Calories 152
Fat 3.8
Sodium 697
Potassium 212
Carbs 26
Fiber 4
Sugar 5
Protein 8

Since it's Tuesday I will share a couple of transformations!

This is from the SM October challenge.  Look at that progress from week 1-4! Woot Woot!

Can't wait to see the results of this month!

This one is a heart breaker...this is from a cousin's Thanksgiving party my freshmen year of college.  Let's just do a comparison here.





Even when we feel like we aren't doing anything right, there's proof that small changes make a big difference!

C

November Goals

It's that time of the month again...GOALS!

• Workout 6 days a week
• 4 gym and 2 runs

• Hit 75 miles of activity
• NO MEAT! 
• Weigh in once a week and take measurements twice
• Finish the "Fast Before the Feast" 10K in under an hour
• Lose 4 pounds (or more of course!)

I am so excited to announce that I got into the Skinny Meg November challenge and I am on team MEG! She is my health and fitness idol.  I am so excited to be part of this team and share yet another challenge with my fave teammate Bailey! 

Until tomorrow, 

C

Kicking Halloween to the Curb

Halloween. Yet another excuse to eat crap food... I killed it all week with no sweet treats from the office, professors desks, and worst of all the staff lounge, so Friday I treated myself to a latte from Starbucks. Woot woot! 

Here's my favorite "treat" from yesterday. I got to spend a few hours with my favorite baby; Emilia! She was dressed as an irresistible monster. Can you say trouble in say 15 years? 

So I did awesome all week and now tonight my mother made chocolate chip cookies....so here we go! I'm only eating two and I totally burned off the calories today while doing the stairs (talk about a killer workout). 

Here are some beautiful early morning pictures of downtown Stillwater. My all time favorite place. 

If you didn't get your workout in after eating all those yummy Halloween treats here's a fun little workout for you! 

Good luck, 

C