Three Things I'm Loving Lately!

Better Than Sex Mascara

This is one of the best mascaras I've ever tried! The name is a little awkward but the results are fantastic. I have never been able to achieve such great lashes with only a mascara and no primer before! 

Legally Blonde

I've been wanting to watching Legally Blonde for awhile now since I saw the above quote. I have always thought that Legally Blonde and Elle Woods character was very inspiring and I'm glad the world seems to be jumping on board. As someone who has grown up blonde and often treated like I'm not as smart as I am, Elle has always been an inspiration. 

Microwave S'mores 

I have been on a s'mores kick lately and I need to back off before I weigh a million pounds. Making them in the microwave is way too easy!

Bad Runs, Smoothies, and Slippy Headbands

This morning wasn't anything blog worthy- a big ole bowl of apple cinnamon cheerios and 4 hours of dance/gymnastics teaching, pretty normal in my world!

After work, I headed into Stop and Shop because I had to pick up some chapstick that I am addicted to- (Burts Bees of course)- and noticed in the beauty section some thicker headbands so I figured since I've been following the 5K plan so well I deserved some new headbands to wear while working out!

I like the look of these headbands but my entire run I was constantly adjusting it because I felt like it was slipping backwards. The gray band shown in the above picture came in a Goody pack with 3 others- red, black and white. I probably will still wear them but it may be time to invest in bic bands.

I really like the glitter bands that are on their site and am considering asking for some for Christmas! =)

So once I got home I made myself a big salad using a Mediterranean salad mix, chicken, cashews, cheddar cheese, and thousand island salad dressing.

 It was delicious- and definitely a great way to get veggies, protein and some sweet tastes in my system!

After my salad- I dug into my candy I bought yesterday but only allowed myself to snack on THREE of the gold coins. 

Chocolate coins have always been so intriguing to me even as a child. I'm not entirely sure why because I don't always think the chocolate inside of them is the best and apparently they're typically known as a Hanukkah candy- and I'm not Jewish. I always found myself trading candy with my brother so I could have his and begging for them at the store. Now as an adult I even pick them out- still not sure why! 

After letting that settle I headed out on todays run, which looked like this: 

5 minute warm up

3 minute run

2 minute walk

5 minute run

3 minute walk

5 minute run

3 minute walk

3 minute run

2 minute walk

5 minute cool down

I'm not going to lie to you guys- I didn't do the entire 5 minute run when it came around the second time. I ran and walked and ran and walked and ran and walked. I felt like there was no chance I could complete it. I will be attempting this particular run again on another day because I need to make sure I can do it before I move onto the next step. I want to push myself but I definitely know when I've hit a wall and my body won't want to run anymore.

At least the rest of the run went well! The first 5 minute run wasn't nearly as bad as I thought it was going to be and the 3 minute runs felt like nothing. 

There I am halfway through my run at the "tunnel". The trees make a cool tunnel over the road and thought I would take a picture of it and attempt walking backwards...

When I got home I immediately made Roxy spray me with the hose...

Bitch please- I'm busy.

Just kidding. Like she would do that for me- puhlease! The princess was much too busy demanding attention and getting angry with me for walking right past her to get a bottle of water. 

After some sloppy dog kisses I made my favorite smoothie

The bag says it makes two smoothies- but I always just drink the whole bag because I figure that I can use a full cup of fruit anyways =)

So yummy!

My face gets SO red after I exercise- I wish there was something I could do to change it! Oh well, at least I CAN exercise and for that I am extremely thankful!

Now that I've just turned this blog post into a novel I hope everyone has a great day! =)

5K Fitness Challenge Day 9

Today, I completed Day 9 of my 5K Trainer! It was HARD! I had run the previous two days on the treadmill and I definitely need to get out on the road more often then I have in the past week. I think the fact that I live in an extremely hilly area makes it a huge a difference between running on the treadmill and running outside. I was definitely struggling at the end. I may attempt to complete the same run next time I go out just so I know I can complete it successfully and not worry about moving onto the next step right away.

I was excited though because today included 3 minute runs and I honestly believe that 3 weeks ago I never would have been able to run for 3 minutes straight. I still can't imagine running for a full 5K but I still have 5 weeks of training left to go! It's also 5 weeks until I actually run my 5K which is a little scary, especially since I'm running with people from work who have run a 5K before. I just want to be able to complete the 5K and complete my goal!

So here is what my training plan looked like today:

Todays playlist consisted of:

We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together- Taylor Swift

Without You- Glee Cast

Get Right- JLO

Glam- Christina Aguliera

Just Dance- Lady Gaga

Oceans- The Format

Barely Breathing- Glee Cast

Back Here- BBMak

Only Girl In The World- Rhianna

After my run, I munched on some apple slices.

Lately I have been absolutely loving red delicious apples. I've been snacking on them constantly either with peanut butter or without. They have definitely become one of my favorite snacks and are great because they fill me up.

Finally, check out my new sweatpants I've been lounging around the house in constantly. They Say "Love Dance. All Day....All Night" I got them on Sunday at the dance convention and absolutely love them. Is there anything better then brand new sweatpants before they've been washed? They are so soft on the inside. Love, love, love!

I'm off to take a shower and then do some major cleaning around the house! Have a great day everybody!

Strawberry/Banana Smoothie and a Fall Walk

This morning even though *somebody* didn't want to get out of bed, we took a walk down the street and back...

 

The pair of us were a little sleepy, one of us was a little cold without a fur coat, and one of us was feeling rather lazy.

One of us also spent our time sniffing around a very suspicious looking area of plants...

Yup! Poison Ivy. Of course.

Once I got home I decided I was in the mood for a little snack...

Chilled me to the bone but man I love these smoothies. I drink the whole container, not just half and I add in extra milk to make it creamier. Best smoothie ever.

Yum, now off to try to do a work out circuit!

Stress and Anxiety

Oh my goodness, I finished zumba about an hour ago and I am still feeling warm! I had a wonderful workout with all my fellow zumba-ers (is that a word..?) My zumba teacher, Laura, definitely kicked my butt tonight!

When I left class, I was so hungry I couldnt wait to eat until I got home so I enjoyed a granola bar on my short little ride home! Can you tell by how red my face is that I was exhausted and sweaty and gross?!

Of course I forgot to take a picture of what I had for dinner! My weight watcher rigatoni with vodka sauce meal was delicious! I had a piece of toast on the side and drank an entire bottle of water. (my 5th one today!)

Stress/Anxiety

I wanted to take a few minutes on my blog to talk about stress and anxiety since it is a huge part of healthy living. I have always been extremely anxious and stressed. Even when I was younger I remember being so anxious I couldn't fall asleep at night. I now have my stressed managed by don't think that it doesn't sneak up on me from time to time. I am currently prescribed anxiety medication to help me deal with the stress in my life which is of course an option some may not take. I also like to make sure I get exercise everyday to let out frustration. Now I also have worked on being patient with other people and taking deep breaths and REALLY listening to what they are saying. When I go to bed at night I simply focus on falling asleep and how tired I am. I used to just let my mind wander but that led me into trouble and I would end up staying up all night writing down things I didn't want to forget, making lists, and worrying about things beyond my control. 

Overall I believe that anxiety is not worth dealing with your entire life that's why I chose to take control of mine and have honestly been happier everyday since then! 

Pudding/Granola Snack

Happy Friday!

Today I had a normal morning at work and arrived home to eat a delicious lunch.

Does it look familiar?! I'm a little boring and often get obsessed with a meal and continue to eat it until I get sick of it! So there it is again my chicken salad and salad mix wrap!

So far it's been a nice relaxing afternoon. I watched the 2 hour Glee episode from Tuesday night which was awesome! I had been kind of been not too interested in Glee lately...but this episode made me so excited. I almost teared up at the end of the episode and cannot wait to see next weeks!


I decided to mix up a little snack and I was absolutely CRAVING chocolate. I knew the best way to fulfill this craving was to open up a fat free pudding but I also knew that it wouldn't fill me up. So I mixed a Chewy granola bar into the pudding. It was a nice little chocolate fix!

Now I'm off to watch the season finale of Hart of Dixie which I've heard is really good! Then it's back to work and then I'm taking a zumba class tonight!

Thirsty Thursday...Smoothie Style!

Before I headed back to work today I made a DELICIOUS smoothie!

It definitely hit the spot! I enjoyed it with the company of my mom on our front porch.

Then it was time to head back to work....where I managed to sneak in my workout. (The wonders of working in a gym!)

Each exercise was done for 2 minutes, I only ran though this one time but definitely could've benefited from doing it again!

Rope climbing
Squats with medicine ball
Leg lifts on incline
Dead hang on bar- knee ups
Wrist clips
Jumps on bar to front support then cast away on a block

It was a fun workout which shocked my system!

Dinner tonight was yummy. I had rotisserie chicken, garlic mashed potatoes, garlic fried broccoli, corn, and crescent rolls. Mashed potatoes are one of my absolute favorite foods. I cannot resist them! =)

Fall Renewals

Last night before I went to bed, I snuck in a little late-night snack as I was watching Revenge.

Organic Apples with Peanut Butter on top!

That is one of my all time favorite snacks, I absolutely love peanut butter but the apples add just a hint of sweetness into one of my favorite tastes!

As I mentioned, I was watching Revenge while I ate my snack. I love the show Revenge. My friend Megan actually got me completely hooked on it this past fall and I can't stop watching it! It is one of those shows I make time for every week. If you haven't watched it, I highly recommend tracking down the episodes from this season. It is a suspenseful show and I never know what Emily Thorne (aka Amanda) is going to do next!

Speaking of TV shows, this morning I heard on the radio that it was announced yesterday what shows would be renewed for the fall. As we all know, I love my tv. I love to have shows to get caught up on in my spare time. So I spent a few minutes before work this morning looking up which of my shows has been renewed. To see the list click here .

Just to review the shows I have been hooked on this year...(no judgments please! remember I don't get to watch them every week..usually I catch up on them during my days off)

Sundays: Once Upon a Time, Desperate Housewives,  Kardashians (whichever one is on)

Mondays: Hart of Dixie, Make it or Break it, Bachelor/Bachelorette, Pretty Little Liars, Lying Game

Tuesdays: Glee

Wednesdays: Criminal Minds, Revenge, One Tree Hill

Thursdays: Secret Circle

So I was VERY VERY bummed to see that Secret Circle did not make the renewal cut. I read a couple of articles on it being cut before writing this blog post. To see what the producers would have done next season click here.

I really thought that I would have a chance to see where all the characters were going next season...but unfortunately that's not the case! The only other show that I had to watch this happen to was October Road a show that I got hooked on while in college. It only lasted a season and a half before it was given the boot. I still own it on DVD though! 

So now I no longer will be watching Desperate Housewives, One Tree Hill, or Secret Circle. I'm sad that they are off the air, but this year tv was a little intense for me. I started watching a few shows (PanAm, Playboy Club, and Grimm) and eventually lost interest because there just wasn't enough time in the day! Maybe now I can catch up on my Netflix which has been seriously neglected!

Anyways!

For lunch today I arrived home just as my mom was emptying the car from buying groceries so I was in luck! She had just bought all natural, organic chicken salad! Yum yum yum!

I used the same type of wrap as yesterday but of course took a few bites before I remembered to whip out my camera! It was delicious. I threw in some salad mix too so I could get some vegetables in my lunch and also give my wrap a little crunch to it! =)

Somebody...I won't say who...stared me down while I ate....