Summer Grillin

I have done previous posts about grilling and easy ways not to ruin your healthy living lifestyle. The bf and I absolutely love to grill. There is something about sitting out on a porch and just relaxing and talking with each other that just makes times stop. We don't have any worries, no stress and don't think about anything but that moment of time together. I would suggest everyone have those moments. If you don't have a significant other go with your girlfriend's. Have a movie night or and shopping date. Anything that will make you just relieve all your worries. The bf and I find it in grilling and of course going to eat Thai. I guess you can you can say we both like to eat. Now that used to be a problem because I would eat just like the bf. When we would grill out I would have all the starchy, fatty foods and when we would go eat Thai I would always eat every piece of rice and normally have 2 spring rolls. Then the next morning my stomach would hurt and I would be miserable and my clothes wouldn't fit . Looking back I don't know why I put my body through so much. I have had to teach myself that I have to treat my body right and once I started doing that I felt like a new person. I wouldn't have changed one thing about this journey.

Now to the food, yum.

The bf decided that he really wanted to grill chicken leg quarters. When I see bone and the skin on those things it makes me sick.  So when he washed them and put them on the grill......

 



 I read a magazine that I had picked up.

 

I had never bought this magazine before and it made me think, why have I been buying those ridiculous celebrity gossip magazines when I can actually learn something from this magazine. As I was reading through I tagged a lot of recipes, workouts that I wanted to try and then one thing stuck out to me that I wanted to share. It was an article about Owning your own greatness. It gave you ways to pinpoint all the things that make you fabulous. 1. Stop looking outside yourself 2. Be more real 3. Zoom in on what you truly love to do- and make time to actually do it. 4. Step into the spotlight. These are four things that I truly need to focus on more. I need to focus on myself and what is good for me.  I would definitely suggest buying this magazine because it really gives you great information for your mind and body and of course some beauty tips:)

 

After I finished my magazine the bf said I should probably start on my side. So I went ahead and cut up my fresh squash and zucchini

 

Added some tasty spices. (garlic, minced onion and crushed red pepper)

 

Once it was almost finsihed I cut down to low and sprinkled the veggies with skim mozzarella cheese,

 

and let it cook until the cheese was melted.

 

Then I made my plate and enjoyed my healthy dinner.

What's a cookout without a styrofoam plate? ha :)

 

Now just reminder with this sort of chicken. The skin and dark meat is not as good for you as the white meat. So I tore off all the white meat and through away the rest ( the bone and skin for sure)

 

 

My ankle was bothering me when I woke up this morning so I decided to let it rest. I am going to the bf's parents house for father's day and they have the best neighborhood to run in. So I will make sure I take some fun pictures, keep up with my food and workout journals and update you on everything on Monday. Happy Friday and Happy Father's Day to all the wonderful Father's out there. I know I got pretty lucky. Look at this handsome man. A girl couldn't ask for a better Father. I love you daddy!

 

 

He sure is a proud papa :)

 

 

 

Day 122:

Breakfast smoothie: 1 banana, 2 tsp of flax seed, 1 1/2 tbsp pb, almond milk and 3 ice cubes (and a few pieces of turkey while I was getting ready , I woke up pretty hungry)

Snack: 2 egg with hot sauce

Lunch: spaghetti squash with marinara sauce and a peice of salmon and a little bit of feta with jalapenos

Snack: non fat yogurt and  green grapes

Dinner:

 

71 days no diet mountain dew- 25 days no soda

 

66 days till final goal





 

 



 

 

 

The Fabulous Birchbox

About a year ago, one of my good friends told me about this thing called Birchbox. She said that every month you get a gift box in the mail with different high end samples. Well me being the girly girl I am I wanted to do it too. She said that it was only $ 10 and every month the box changed. See I love trying out new products and I will spend the extra money if they are worth it butttt it can get pretty expensive buying full size products if you aren't sure if they are right for you. So I wanted to share this month's box with you.

 

 

My face lights up every time I see this box. It's like a surprise present to myself every month.

 

The first thing I pulled out was Comodyness Self-Tanning Intensive. Now I am normally not a self- tanning person because I have olive skin and stay pretty tan but this is perfect for a last minute event.

 

Now these cuties I just love. I am always looking for a file and never seem to find one around the house. With the Tweezerman Filemate Minis I can put all around the house, that way I always have one at hand.

 

I am pretty excited about using the Suki Exfoliate Foaming Cleanser. I think this year I have really started focusing on taking better care of my face. There is just no way I can be like I was in college and have nights where I sleep in my makeup and don't wash my face properly. If I did that I would probably look like an old lady at 30. And nobody wants that :)

 

I love when I get nail polish in my box because well I am pretty obsessed with all shades of polish. It always makes me feel girly and I enjoy nights where I can just sit back and do my nails and relax. (As you can see my nails now, I need a touch up)

 

Now this might be my favorite thing in the box. I have just recently started wearing lipstick and I think it is so fun to change colors to go with different outfits. This Laqa & Co Lil shade is pretty perfect for these summer evenings to come.

 

So there you have it, The Fabulous Birchbox. Let me know if you are interested and I will sign you up. It is so worth the 10$ a  month!!

 

 

Week 2 Workout 3

 

 

Treadmill: 20 minutes (10 minutes incline 15 speed 3.5 - 8 minutes 0 incline speed 4.6 - 2 minutes 0 incline speed 5.6)

 

40 jumping jacks

30 crunches

20 squats

10 push ups

All arm weight machines (15 minutes)

 

Bicycle 15 minutes level 1

 

 

Day 121:

Post workout smoothie: 2 tbsp pb, strawberries, 1 banana, almond milk and 2 ice cubes.

Breakfast: 2 hard boiled eggs

Lunch: Buffalo Ranch Quinoa Chicken Salad (small amount)

Snack: Spaghetti squash with 1 tablespoon of marinara (small amount) and the rest of my Spicy zucchini straws.

Dinner: grilled chicken with squash and zucchini

 

 

Day 70 no diet mountain dew -24 days no soda

 

 

67 days till final goal

 

 

 

 

Spicy Zucchini Straws

My Grammy has always made the best cheese straws. Growing up I remember being at their house and just the smell of them cooking would get everyone excited. She made sure there was always a fresh batch when the Bowen Bunch came to town.  Now they were by all means not in any way healthy but when you are young and run around in the yard all day playing with your brothers and sisters, it really didn't matter. Well now I can't exactly sit down and eat hand fulls of cheese straws so I wanted to find something that would somewhat taste like those delicious cheese straws. This is what I came up with.

What you will need

1 or 2 zucchini's (it depends how many you want to make)

2 eggs (beaten)

Parmesan cheese (grated and shredded, grated isn't pictured because I didn't think I would use it but it is necessary)

Crushed red pepper

seasoning salt



 

Start by preheating your oven at 400'

 

Then chop your zucchini into straw like shapes.

 

Add you seasonings to your egg and then dip your zucchini into the egg.

Then dip your zucchini into the grated Parmesan cheese till completely covered. (you won't use the shredded till the end)

 

Then place on baking sheet.

 

 

Let cook for about 10 to 15 minutes or until somewhat crispy, then add shredded Parmesan cheese to the tops (not a lot).

Then bake for another 5 minutes.

Then let cool.

Once they are cooled.......

 

enjoy your Spicy Zucchini Straws

(don't worry Grammy they are nothing like your cheese straws)

But they are VERY tasty and healthy.

 

 

 

Week 2 Workout 2:

 

Treadmill: 20 minutes  (10 minutes incline 15 speed 3.5 - 8 minutes 0 incline speed 4.6 - 2 minutes 0 incline speed 5.5)

 

20 squats 30 lunges

40 calf raises

50 second wall squat

100 jumping jacks

50 second wall squat

40 sumo squats30 leg raises

20 squats

 

15 minutes bicycle level 4

 

Day 120:

Post workout smoothie: mixed unsweetened berries, 1 1/2 tablespoons of PB, almond milk and 3 ice cubes

Breakfast: deli ham/ turkey/ skim mozzarella cheese wraps (no bread of course)

Lunch: Buffalo Ranch Quinoa Chicken Salad with a handful of Spicy Zucchini Straws

Snack: dry roasted edamame

Dinner: Turkey sausage, pepper and onion pasta with spaghetti squash

 

 

69 days no diet mountain dew- 23 days no soda

 

 

I have set a new weight goal- I have 68 days to reach my final goal!!

 

 





Buffalo Ranch Quinoa Chicken Salad

I wanted to start off with sharing my new highlights :) I think they are great because they look natural and not anything extreme. Perfect for summer. (oh and I'm not driving and taking a picture of myself, waited till I was parked, don't want to make momma nervous ha)

 

Next I am going to share this fabulous dish I made last night. It's called Buffalo Ranch Quinoa Chicken Salad. Now you can't say that doesn't sound yummy. And let me tell you it was.

 

What you will need

Rotisserie chicken (pull off all the white meat, don't use the skin or dark meat)

1 cup of quinoa

Franks red hot sauce

Ranch packet ( way less fat and calories that the actual dressing)

1/2 cup broccoli

3/4 cup shredded cole slaw

 





 

Start by sauteing your broccoli and set aside

 

Then add your chicken and hot sauce (use as much hot sauce as you want) and let cook on high while stirring for about 5 minutes.

 

Then turn down to medium and add 1/2 packet of ranch more hot sauce (if you are like me) and broccoli. Let cook together for about 10 minutes.

 

Will that is cooking begin your quinoa. This is just like you would be cooking rice but doesn't take near is long.  You want 1 cup of quinoa and 2 cups of water. Once the water is absorbed in the quinoa it is ready.

 

I then made a side of sauce to top everything with.

I used hot sauce, the rest of the ranch packet and 1 tablespoon of olive oil

 

I then added all the ingredients together and mixed thoroughly. Don't forget your cabbage. It isn't cooked.

I then made me a bowl and sat down and enjoyed my yummy dinner and an episode of Everyone Love's Raymond. 

 



 

After I finished, I knew I would want a afternoon snack, so I decided to saute some cabbage and red peppers.





 

 

I hope someone will try this recipe because let me tell you it is work it :)

 

Make sure you check out tomorrow for my Spicy Zucchini Straws!!

 

 

Now to the workout

 

Week 2 Workout 1

Treadmill 20 minutes: 15 minutes - inclined at 15 speed 3.5  , 4 minutes jogging 4.5 mph (no incline). 1 minute jogging 5.5 (no incline)



Bicycle 10 minutes at level 7

3/10 push ups

100 crunches

30 squats

2/25 bicycle crunches

30 lunges

2/20 side crunches

50 reverse crunches

2/20 mason twists

30 scissor kicks

 

 

Day 119:

Post workout smoothie: Strawberries, spinach, flax seed, almond milk, 1 1/2 tablespoons of PB, 3 ice cubes

Breakfast: 2 eggs with a teaspoon of sugar free syrup

Snack: Sauteed cabbage and red peppers

Lunch: Buffalo Ranch Quinoa Chicken Salad

Snack: mixed nuts

Dinner: Thai :) Spicy garlic chicken and shrimp with broccoli and cabbage/ a few spicy zucchini straws

 

68 days no diet mountain dew- 22 days no soda

News / Skinny Mozzarella Sticks / Relaxing Weekend

I want to start off with a little motivation and news

I will start with the news. I weighed myself this past weekend and I was shocked when I saw the scale........

I have lost 21 pounds, so I have hit my first goal of 20 pounds but to be honest I never thought I would actually reach that goal but now that I am made it I want to carry on. My final goal is to lose 13 more pounds, once I have completed that, I will be at my perfect weight and I will just have to maintain it. (All together losing 34 pounds)

So if  you believe in yourself anything is possible. I am healthy, happy and have more energy than I did in high school.

 

 

Now to my weekend

 

This weekend was such a relaxing weekend that I defiantly needed. On Friday I was super excited because I had the evening to myself  So I started it off by stopping by the grocery store to make something delicious. I have never been a huge fan of mozzarella sticks because well I just knew how bad they are for you. So I saw this recipe on a girls blog I follow (Undressed Skeleton) and I decided to try it out. So I spent the evening relaxing, cooking, catching up on my favorite shows, wearing comfy pj's and snuggling with Motor. So I will just share a little bit of the evening and the rest of the weekend, along with the step by step recipe for Skinny Mozzarella Sticks

 

What you will need

Skim mozzarella cheese

Milled flax seed

seasonings (I used garlic salt, paprika and Italian seasoning)

marinara sauce (make sure it's low in sugar)

2 eggs

 

 

Start by preheating your oven at 350'

 

Then cut your mozzarella into long sticks and

 

 

dip into the egg.

 

Then add your seasonings to your flax seed and

 

 

dip you egg covered mozzarella stick into the mixture and

 

place on baking sheet. Then put in the oven to bake for about 15 minutes. (the cheese will spill out somewhat but once they cool they stay together)

 

Once they are cooled, you have your

 

Skinny Mozzarella Sticks 

 

 

Just  dip in some warm marinara sauce and you have a perfect healthy snack,

 

 

 

Once my belly was stuffed and the kitchen was cleaned. I snuggled up to Motor for the rest of the evening. 

 

The next day was just as relaxing. I woke up pretty  early because I went to to get my hair highlighted (I normally don't get my hair professionally done but  I was getting it done fore super cheap). I will show a picture tomorrow of how it ended up looking ( I forgot to take a picture), as well as a new step by step recipe.

 

After I finished getting my hair done I went home and decided I was going to lay by the pool for the rest of the afternoon. But first I need to fill my belly with something tasty. I decided to have the rest of my leftover Skinny Mozzarella Sticks and some spaghetti squash with marinara sauce.

 

Then I was off to the pool for a few hours then got showered and went to hangout and have dinner with a few of my favorites.

 



 

The next day I got up super early to go with the bf to take his sister and brother n law to the airport. They are finally going on their honeymoon, so jealous. They will be cruising to Bermuda all week long, while I am stuck in this dang cubicle.

 

After we dropped them off we stopped for breakfast at Cracker Barrel. And boy am I glad because after we finished our delicious breakfast, the bf bought this. I was ready for Sunday fun day!

 

See I don't need to go on vacation to have fun. I have everything I need.

beach towel, slip n slide, and tanning lotion.

 

We decided, 1. we put in it a very bad location because in the end it was a huge mud pit 2. we are too big for this slip n slide , they were serious when they said for ages 5 -12 

3. It was worth every scratch and bruise to act like a kid again

 

Later that evening we hung out with this little fellar and grilled out,

 

this yummy dinner

 

Grilled teriyaki chicken with grilled pineapple and asparagus.

 

So there you have it, my very relaxing weekend, I wouldn't have changed one thing about it.

 

Check out tomorrow for my step by step recipe for Buffalo, Ranch Quinoa Chicken Salad

 

 

Day 116:

Breakfast: smoothie  (strawberries, 2 tablespoons pb, spinach, almond milk)

Lunch: Spaghetti squash with marinara sauce and leftover skinny mozzarella sticks

Dinner: Salad with a veggie burger (romaine lettuce, avocado, grilled peppers and skim cheese) with ginger low fat salad dressing.

 

 

Day 117:

Breakfast:egg beaters with Colby cheese and 2 turkey patties

Lunch: romaine lettuce with ginger salad dressing

Dinner: grilled teriyaki (low sodium) chicken with grilled pineapple (unsweetened canned) and asparagus.

 

Day 118:

Breakfast: smoothie (strawberries, 1 1/2 tablespoons of pb, almond milk)

Snack: 2 eggs with sugar free syrup

Lunch: spaghetti squash with marinara sauce and leftover grilled chicken

Snack:mixed nuts

Dinner:

 

67 days no diet mountain dew- 21 days no soda