My Blogger's Digest: II

In the mood for something light, but interesting to read? Check out some blog posts that stood out to me this week :)

So Hum Mantra - Jen from Peanut Butter Runner shared the mantra So Hum, which can be used in your yoga practice or meditation. Jen explains the meaning behind the mantra beautifully. It really resonated with me.

Chicken Crust Pizza - You may have seen the cauliflower pizza crust recipes swirling around Pinterest; however, did you ever think to try ground chicken to make a crust? I certainly have not, but Gina's photo and recipe sound delicious.

77 Healthy Crockpot Recipes - Need I say more? I have loved trying out new recipes to make in our crockpot. Since Justin and I have been working out in the evenings, our dinners need to be quick and healthy.

Skinny Superbowl Recipes - Buffalo chicken dip to guacamole to stuffed mushrooms, this website has it all. I love using Gina's Skinny Recipes when I'm in the mood for baking cookies with a healthy twist.

Superbowl Recipe Ideas

I was surfing my Pinterest board for recipe ideas to make for Sunday's big game and found so many that I can't decide between. We're hosting a pot luck at our place so everyone is bringing something fun! So far we have chili, buffalo chicken dip, meatballs, and dips for veggies. Here are a few that I'm thinking about:

• Baked Brie with Cranberry Sauce and Walnuts

• Martha Stewart's Perfect Mac and Cheese (a coworker made this once and it was everything you could possibly want in good ol' mac and cheese)

• Gumby's Pokey Stix Copycat Recipe



• Mini Taco Bites (or maybe make pizza bites!)

• Cookie Dough Stuffed Cupcake

• Cookie Dough Dip (I think I might make this one and keep it all to myself!)

 

What are you making for the superbowl? Any must-try recipes?

Green Smoothie + HIIT Workout

Avocado in a smoothie is the best idea EVER.

I've been wanting to make a green smoothie for some time now. Finally, I had a couple ingredients to make it happen. And it was yummy! A definite keeper.

Green Smoothie
Serves 1

Ingredients:
- 1 cup spinach
- 1/3 avocado
- 1/2 frozen banana
- 2 tablespoons plain Greek yogurt
- 1 cup plain Almond milk
- Optional sprinkle of Truvia or stevia for sweetness

Directions:
- Add to blender and enjoy!

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Mmmm the avocado made this so creamy. It was delicious. You really can't taste the spinach. It had a hint of natural sweetness from the banana, but I added a sprinkle of Truvia for just a tad more. This smoothie was a great way to refuel my body after a sweaty gym session with protein, healthy fats, and fiber.

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Last night I was in the mood for a run. Not just any run, I wanted a heart-pounding, sprint until you can't any more, run. Whenever this urge strikes, I turn to HIIT (high intensity interval training). My go-to interval workouts are on the treadmill. Tone It Up has a great collection of HIIT workouts for the treadmill and overall toning. Check out their Pinterest page for some ideas (see above link)!

Last night I did about four miles on the treadmill with this workout:

I absolutely love this workout. It's short, intense, and gets the job done. Also, you can scale it to any fitness level. HIIT workouts are beneficial because you burn more calories, lose more fat, during a shorter period of time versus doing longer steady state cardio. I followed Cupid's Cardio up with my favorite Body Pump class, which satisfied my sweaty, hard workout craving.

Do you have a favorite workout? What do you like to do when you're really wanting to push yourself physically?

What I'm Loving Right Now: Beauty Products

There's just something about a new, nicely packaged makeup product. It just demands to be admired.

I always love removing my new mascara from its beautiful floral box and placing it on top of my used collection. It seems to sparkle amongst the smeared and powered bunch.

My favorite way to find new makeup before committing to the pricey cost is to sift through my friends' makeup collections and beauty products - especially my friend Jo Jo's (aka Jolene) supplies. She has it all. And she always has something new.

Last time we had dinner together at her apartment, it turned into makeover night and we tested out some wedding makeup ideas :)

While Jo Jo played makeup artist, she showed me one of her mascara gems..."They're Real!" by Benefit.

This mascara is perfect for making your eyelashes fuller and longer. It adds a bold amount of thickness without it being clumpy. I like to reserve it for weekends and my going out look :)

My favorite every day mascara is Clinque High Impact Curling Mascara. I don't even need an eye lash curler with this one. It lengthens and curls my eyelashes perfectly.

Need something to fluff up your day-old hair? Or maybe you need to hide a little grease after a long day? got2b Powder'ful volumizing styling powder will do just the trick. Jo Jo swore by this, and I picked it up the next day. It works wonders!

I feel like such a makeup rookie having only discovered eyeshadow primer a year ago. This cream keeps all the work you put into your eyeshadow looking just the way you left it without it smearing or disappearing. I tried a sample of the Urban Decay Eyeshadow Prime Potion from Sephora and quickly used it up even though I tried to make it last as long as possible. It was that good. When Jo Jo had it too, I knew it was a sign.

A quality facewash has always aloofed me. FINALLY I have something to praise about. Purity Made Simple by Philosophy cleanses my face while removing makeup and moisturizing at the same time. I rarely need to apply extra mosterizer after it. I read several recommendations about it online before putting it on my Christmas list. I give this two thumbs way up :)

The last must-have beauty product that completes my routine is my favorite shampoo and conditioner, Biolage. It adds volume and keeps my hair cleaner for a longer period of time. I especially like that it doesn't leave a shiny film like cheaper shampoos that tend to add build up and weigh my hair down.

 

What are your go-to beauty products? Any recommendations?

Side Crow!

Headstands scare me. My mountain climber won't come off the mat. And I'm a wuss in chair pose.

However, I did side crow on Saturday and now I can't stop doing it!!

My shoulders and arms have been so sore! I didn't realize doing the pose over and over again would leave me in agony for two days. Now I know why we only hold arm balances for a limited number of breaths in class and not 10 minutes.

Either way, I'm so happy to have this pose in my practice. It's renewed my excitement for yoga. My new studio, in my new city, has really opened my mind to try new poses on the mat. I used to always go for the safe variations, but I've realized if I just try, those little tries add up to one satisfying result.

Apple Sausage Spinach Salad

It's interesting how weather dictates my cravings. Today's warmer temperatures finally put me in the mood for a fresh salad.

This is more of a combo idea rather than a recipe, and I thought it'd be fun to share! I always love seeing how other people mix and match different ingredients that I would never think of combining.

The two stars of this salad, other than the pink crisp apples, are the sweet Italian chicken sausage and The Laughing Cow blue cheese.

 My salad includes spinach, red onion, chicken sausage, blue cheese and apples. For dressing, I used quality olive oil and balsamic vinaigrette. Yumm!

Grateful

There are so many things I love about the weekend.

Hanging out with great friends.

Staying up late and sleeping in.

Snuggling.

Pancakes.

Being lazy around the house with the one I love.

Going on adventures, trying new places, and eating new foods.

But my favorite "me" part about the weekend is going for a run whenever I feel like it. I get to sleep in, be lazy, and eat breakfast in bed with my love. Then when the sun is shining, I lace up my bright green shoe strings and hit the pavement. I don't have an exact number of miles; I just run by feel. I let my mind wander. I let my thoughts soak in all the gratitude I have for this life.

Sometimes my mind drifts to a place where I where I barely remember running. It feels like I went through a time warp, and the details of where I went or how far I ran are a foggy dream. However, Saturday's run brought me to a place that I wanted to hold on to and never forget. I felt a wave of gratitude for Justin. I simply felt thankful to have such an amazing person like him in my life. To say amazing doesn't even do justice to the role he fills in my heart. I felt overwhelmed with a feeling of pure happiness for the relationship we've built together. How simple it is, but filled with so much bliss.

Not every run leaves such a lasting impression on me, but I'm thankful for runs like these that ground me even when I feel like I'm flying.

Snow Bunnies!!

In honor of the inclement weather here in North Carolina, I thought I'd share some of my fun, REAL snow pictures from our trip to Michigan!!

I typically could care less for snow around here because it's just plain cold and it's not really pretty. However, up north it is absolutely magical, and I was mesmorized by how picturesque it made everything! I felt like I was living in my own winter wonderland fairy tale :)