The Fitnessista

Sweaty and triumphant

2009-07-14T10:48:00.001-07:00

Hey everyone! How’s your day going? Mine has been bueno- much more laid back than yesterday!

I woke up extra early this morning so I could go for a run on the base trail.

I grabbed a messy nanner with AB before leaving the casa:

And drove down to base. When I got there, it was already too hot to run. I took off, and with the sun blaring down at me and the intense humidity, I couldn’t do it. I didn’t want some active duty member doing PT to find me passed out on the side of the road, so I went inside the gym to get in a little cardio and weights.

I did 40 minutes on the stairclimber –that thing is EVIL!- reading SELF and then did some shoulders, triceps and chest.

After that, I munched a dried fruit strip (for carb replenishment):

And took a Cardio Kickbox class :D
You’re probably wondering why the heck I worked out before taking an aerobics class, but I’ve never taken the class before and wanted to make sure I got in a quality workout since I’m not teaching spin tonight. For me it’s all about quality over quantity and I didn’t want to be bored out of my mind in kickboxing and leave the gym knowing I could have gotten a better workout by myself. I guess I’ll never have to worry about that again because kickboxing was KILLER!!!

I LOVE being able to take classes (instead of just teaching them) and we recently got a new aerobics instructor at the base gym. Before she got there, I had been the only aerobics teacher and never got to take cardio from anyone since the other instructors do yoga and pilates. The new teacher is FABULOUS! We did a circuit style workout with light weights, kicks, punches, cardio blasts and abs. A-freaking-mazing.

So yes, I was a bit of a workout machine this morning and decided to drive a little out of the way to get a juice before going home.

I picked up a smoothie for Jeni and wanted a green juice, but they didn’t have green apples today! So I munched this instead:

(Review is here)

I took Jeni her smoothie (we’re neighbors) and then came back to the casa for another snack since I was still munchy.

Maybe I’ll have something green in my life today because as of now, I’m rockin the carb boat ;)

Next, I got to work on a white chocolate cheesecake to take to the coffee tonight.

I used this recipe but instead of doing the raspberry sauce (which I added wayyyy to much corn starch to and as Stewie would say turned it into a culinary abortion) I used melted chocolate chips and drizzled that on top.

Viesa slept in a bed that’s way too small for her while I cooked:

She’s a petite thing but has a knack of thinking she’s much smaller than she actually is--- like when she plops herself on my chest while I’m sleeping :D

I’m off to finally catch up on your blogs, lay by the pool with a new book for a while, train a client and then to the wive’s meeting. Jeni and I are hosting this one and we’re having it at the Indian restaurant—I get Indian a day early this week! :D

Take care and I’ll see ya tonight.

xoxo,

Gina

Summer Shape Up girls: The spreadsheet has been updated—you’ve got 2 more weeks! Keep tracking those points :D

Today’s tip: Like I said above, quality trumps quantity when it comes to working out. I’m back and forth between two of the gyms here and every day I see a lot of the same thing… people la-di-da-ing on the treadmill at a snail’s pace (SLOWER than they would walk in their natural surroundings) for way longer than necessary, without the slightest glisten of sweat on their face. My motto is: get in, make yourself sweat, and get out. No one wants to live at the gym (unless you make some dollas for it, like I do), and there’s no reason to work out more than 30-45 minutes each day if you’re working at a moderate intensity. Of course, if you’re la-di-da-ing, seeing results will take MUCH longer and much more time out of your life. So if you use your time wisely and work out efficiently, you can be in and out in less than an hour and see amazing results :D

Bom chicka chow mein

2009-07-13T19:37:00.001-07:00

Hey guys! Hope your day went well! I’m happy to say the insanity is over and I got through the two aerobics classes and five training appointments. The next crazy day is Wednesday and the rest of the week should be smooth sailing (I hope!).

Congrats again to Lindsey on her cookbook victory and thank you so much to all of you for entering!!! I definitely recommend purchasing this cookbook if you want to dip your toe into the raw food world… I absolutely love it :D

I started the day with my current fave green juice:

1 green apple, 1 pear, parsley, cucumber and lemon… so tart and delicious

I was really hankering for fruit this morning, so I whipped out this funny-looking Saturn peach that Jeni and I each got on Saturday because, well.. they were funny-looking

I chopped up said fruit and put him into a bowl with his rainier cherry and bananner buddies. I loved that funny little peach! Supa sweet

I taught a sweaty sauna spin class (AC still no workie) and then came home to put the pilot’s dinner in the slow cooker.

I snacked on a square of this extra dark chocolate while I cooked:

Slow cooker Chicken Chow Mein

-1 lb boneless, skinless chicken breasts

-2 cloves garlic

-1 medium onion, chopped

-2 stalks celery, chopped

-2 carrots, diagonally sliced

-1 small can water chestnuts, drained

-2 tbs hoisin sauce

-1 can chicken broth

-1 ts minced ginger

-EVOO, sea salt and pepper

1. Chop all of the veggies and put into the slow cooker (including water chestnuts)

2. Season the chicken with sea salt and pepper and brown for 3 minutes on each side for 3 minutes. Transfer to a cutting board and let cool slightly. Slice the chicken on a diagonal into large bite-sized pieces.

3. Add the hoisin sauce, ginger, seasonings and chicken broth, cover and cook on low for 6-8 hours.

4. Serve with noodles :D

Before:

After a few hours:

The pilot’s plate:

He was a huge fan and it was SO easy to put together.. and our house smells like an Asian bistro. That’s ok with me ;)

After I got his meal a-cookin’, I made the Suddenly St. Tropez salad I love:

(the pic I took was blurry, so I dipped into the archives)

It never gets old and the flavor combination is excellent. I promise to switch things up a little so you guys don’t get bored though ;)

I went to work to train and then came home for a beautiful 20 minute hip opening flow followed by cleaning out the almond butter jar.

I also had this new bar, which I ADORED:

From the website:

Hammer Bar
Cashew Coconut
Chocolate Chip
Nutrition Facts

Serving Size : One bar (50g)

Amount Per Serving

Calories 230
Calories from Fat 100

% Daily Value *

Total Fat 11g
17%

Saturated Fat 5g
25%

Trans Fatty Acids 0g
†

Cholesterol 0mg
0%

Sodium 3mg
0%

Total Carbohydrate 27g
9%

Dietary Fiber 5g
20%

Sugars 19g

Protein 5g

Vitamin A
0%

Vitamin C
1%

Calcium
4%

Iron
8%

* The Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet. Your daily values may be higher or lower depending on your calorie needs.
† Daily Value not established.

Certified Organic Ingredients: Organic Cashew Butter, Organic Dates, Organic Agave Nectar, Organic Brown Rice Protein, Organic Dark Chocolate Chips - Non-Dairy (Organic Evaporated Cane Juice, Organic Chocolate Liquor, Organic Cocoa Butter, Non-GMO Soya Lecithin), Organic Coconut, Organic Bio Sprouts™ - Quinoa, Organic Bio Sprouts™ - Flax
Caution: May contain pieces of date pits, stems, nut shells or seeds.

It was ahhhhhhmazing. Just like my favorite Survival bar, plus chocolate chips! I’m sold :D

I also grabbed a date (the fruit kind, not the man kind)

And a few more cherries for the road:

I went to the base gym to teach Zumba and was doubting anyone would show up because of the AC situation. I munched this while I waited:

It was 2 minutes until class was supposed to start and 20 people came in. Awesome!! Class was great, even though it was much more challenging in the HEAT, but a blasty as usual :D

After class, I munched this in the car on the way back to the other gym for my last two training appointments.

Small Ezek. tortilla with a Sunshine burger, no sugar added organic ketchup and mustard

And a coconut water, for electrolyte replacement:

My last two appointments were fun, even though I was dead tired. The good news: my funny quotes lady has already lost 2% body fat. I’m so proud of her :D

When I got home, I was still munchy –I was a snack monkey today, but two aerobic classes with no AC will do that to ya- so I grabbed Ezekiel toast with a smear of AB and apricot preserves.

Much better :D

Our guest hasn’t arrived –we’re thinking tomorrow will be the day- but to those of you who asked, no it’s not Little Friend. Little Friend was adopted last week by a family who lives out in the country with a lot of other animals.. I hope they take excellent care of her, as we weren’t able to keep her (despite the begging fest I gave the pilot).

Bella was bummed out because she wanted a new sister:

I’m finally chilling in my jammies and going to crash out early. I got a sub for spin tomorrow night because we have a wives meeting, so I’m going to check out the new kickbox cardio class at the gym, get a juice, come home and make white chocolate raspberry cheesecake to take to the wives’ coffee, and be blogging around lunchtime :D

Have a wonderful night!

xoxo,

Winner, winner, fishy dinner

2009-07-13T05:35:00.001-07:00

Hey guys! Hope your weekend went well! Why does it have to be over already? :/

Before I get started with the ol’ Sunday re-cap, first we have a WINNER for the Living Raw Foods cookbook giveaway!

I apologize if I didn’t send you an email to confirm additional entries –there were a crrrraazzzy amount- but I promise I got all of your entries into a spreadsheet bringing the total entry count (including additional entries and comments) to 328!

Using Random.org to generate a random number between 1 and 328 the lucky number was……

COMMENT 191! Mrs LC!

*********Lindsey, please send me your info so I may forward it to Sarma and get your signed GORGEOUS cookbook on the way!!!

On Sunday, we were super productive! We cleaned around the casa, got new bedding for the guestroom:

A bamboo tree for our bedroom (it’s almost 7 feet tall! We have super high ceilings)

And groceries, and misc. stuff for the casa :D

Also, I met my friend Jeni at the gym for a 35 minute elliptical chat sesh –having a friend to talk with during cardio makes it so much more fun!- and then came home to make a delicious dinner.

I decided to do fish tacos, but as always we had to start the party with some guacamole

I grilled some tilapia on the trusty George Foreman and seasoned the fillets with lime juice, lime zest, garlic, salt and pepper, and cumin

I had mine atop a salad with grape tomatoes, cilantro, leftover raw tortilla crunchies, lots of salsa and lime juice

The pilot had his tilapia taco-style with a creamy lime and cumin sauce that I whipped up (plain lowfat yogurt, lime juice, cumin, salt and pepper), broccoli slaw and Texas Pete with calabacitas on the side.

Of course I had some calabacitas too:

They were SUPER easy and probably the best roasted veggies I’ve made so far. Here’s the recipe:

Calabacitas

-2 zucchini, sliced into half moons

-2 yellow squash, sliced into half moons

-2 cloves fresh garlic, minced

-1/2 sweet onion, sliced

-2 vine ripened tomatoes, sliced

-1 small can fire roasted green chiles

-1/2 cup goat jack cheese (or cheese of choice), freshly grated

-EVOO, sea salt, pepper, cumin, oregano

1. Preheat oven to 475*. Spray a roasting pan with EVOO and add the zucchini, squash, tomatoes, onion, garlic and seasonings

2. Roast for 15 minutes, then add the green chilies and cook for an additional 5 minutes.

3. Remove from oven and sprinkle cheese on top—let the cheese melt over the veggies.

Dinner for two (add two points for romantic candlelight, subtract one for lack of placemats)

Que saboroso! After dinner, we watched Next Food Network Star (anyone else obsessed??? I’m cheering for Jeffrey and Melissa) and then it was time for dessert. I decided to see if the pilot wanted to board the banana bus and try Gena’s banana soft serve.

I made it with the usual recipe and added Stevia and cinnamon, then topped it with raw chocolate syrup (equal parts maple syrup and raw cocoa powder.. Meg taught me this trick) and almond butter.

The convo:

Me: Whaddaya think?

Pilot: *grunts in between bites*

Me: So you like it??

Pilot: It’s ^&*$#^&@* amazing.

Me: You know it’s raw… and vegan, yes??

Pilot: What? Really? Well, I love it.

Me: Did you ever think you’d be enjoying raw vegan treats?

Pilot: Never.

He’s a fan :D He also couldn’t believe how healthy it was! I love desserts that make you feel like you’re eating something super UNhealthy, but are actually great for you. Icing on the proverbial cake, right there :D

Today is quite a busy one.. I have to teach two aerobics classes (morning spin and evening Zumba) and sandwiched between that I have 5 training appointments and a Shape Up meeting to run. Not sure why I set it up like that :/ I’ll see ya tonight with my sanity (hopefully) and something (or someone…..!!!!) exciting in our casa :D

See you then, bloggy friends.

Peeeeeeace,

Gina

Summer Shape Up group: For this week, we’re repeating Week 9 because the arm workout kicked my booty. Remember, we have 2 weeks left! It’s crunch time.. literally, haha. Hang in there—I’m working on getting together some amazing prizes for the ones who have stuck with it this whole time! If you have a Summer Shape Up success story, please send it my way!

The vino took my blog

2009-07-12T08:05:00.001-07:00

Hey guys! Happy Sunday! Sorry for disappearing on ya yesterday.. I had every intention of saying hi, but my night ended with 3 glasses of this:

Me laying on the floor hugging Viesa:

And passing out on the couch watching Knocked Up at 10pm. Party. Animal. The pilot cleaned the guest bathroom and office while I was asleep.. what a guy, and I feel like a giant goober haha :/

So to re-cap the weekend a little, I had dinner with the girls Friday night while the boys were at the roll call.

We went to Longhorn and I chose the redrock grilled shrimp with no butter sauce and double veggies:

Everyone was like “whoa Gina, do you need more veggies?” until I finished them off. The frozen Longhorn veggies (and the shrimp of course) were quite delicious.

After dinner, we went to see Public Enemies, which I wouldn’t really recommend. It was very slooooooooow but the eye candy got me through ;)

We were planning on picking up the husbands, but they surprised us by getting rides home from the guys who don’t drink. I was so proud of my pilot—he wasn’t belligerent and knew how to get back to our house, while one of the other pilots told the driver his address was “12” so he had to call his wife to get real directions. Pretty funny stuff :D

Yesterday was bueno—I went running for the first time in about 4 weeks. It’s just been too hot!! So I surprised myself by waking up early, running 35 minutes on the revolving apparatus of death (aka treadmill) and did a breezy 15 on the elliptical before my training appointments got there.

Some of yesterday’s eats:

Cullen juice:

Produce here is low, so I had cooked food for lunch:

It was pretty good covered in red chili flakes:

1/2 of this amazing rawnola bar, courtesy of the lovely Gena <3

I spent most of yesterday with my friend Jeni and it was a blasty :D We did legs at the gym, and ran some errands (to the juice place, Hobby Lobby aka Hizzle Lizzle, Verizon, Publix) and decided we didn’t feel like cooking.

Enter “the pit”

We each got pitas for ourselves and our pilots -- dinner was served :D

That’s when I broke out the organic vino and any potential blogging went out the window ;)

We’re off to Target and the commiscary and were thinking about driving to Jacksonville to have Melting Pot for dinner—we shall see :D

Have a wonderful Sunday and I’ll see you in the morning with the winner of the signed copy of Sarma’s new cookbook and this week’s Shape Up workout.

xoxo,

Gina

Something to do: Keep those giveaway entries coming! I’ll announce the lucky winner at 8am tomorrow EST

Congrats to the Summer Shape Up girls who got more than 10 points for last week: Brittany, Elizabeth D., Heather K., Marissa V., Megan R. and Amanda Will.!!! Great job, girls! 2 weeks left!

Dance party and raw tostadas

2009-07-10T14:05:00.001-07:00

Hey guys! Hope you’re having a glorious Friday :D

I’m SO GLAD you’re liking the cookbook giveaway – trust me, it’s definitely one you want to add to your collection!

I overslept a little this morning (got up at 8:30 instead of the usual 7:30) because the pilot and I were wide awake last night. I think that chocolate ice cream gave me a sugar buzz because I didn’t want anything to do with sleep—usually this old lady is tired by 11. So, we put on the Journey station on Pandora on the pilot’s iPhone (we don’t have any electronics in our bedroom.. no TV, computer, nada) and had a dance party. Meaning I danced around like a giant goofball while the pilot laughed at me and sang along. The little things in life, right? ;)

I had a beautiful green juice to start the day:

(1 cucumber, parsley, apple, lemon)

I wasn’t super hungry so I grabbed a nanner with AB:

And decided to put some raw taco shells in the dehydrator for today’s lonchi.

I followed the recipe from Raw Food, Real World (which is posted online here) and spread the mixture onto the Teflexx sheets.

I got two giant sheets full:

I finished cleaning the casa (by doing the floors.. I always save that part for last because it’s the worst!) and the hunger finally set in.

I gabbed a Larabar before heading to work:

And had two wonderful training appointments and also did 10 minutes on the elliptical with my friend Jeni.

When I got home, the raw corn tortillas were ready, so I decided to make some Chia Chili Cheese sauce to smother on the tacos.

(I also added in a whole jalapeno pepper. With seeds. I wasn’t joking when I said I like spicy, haha)

Since the tortillas dried for a little longer than suggested and got pretty crunchy, I ate them tostada style.

I topped the crunchy raw tortillas with spinach, a sliced tomater, 1/2 avocado, chia chili cheese sauce, 1/2 diced red bell pepper and cilantro.

Ahhhhmazing.

These things were SO GOOD, but left me hankering for something sweet (and to put the fire out in my mouth!). So I grabbed a fig bar from One Lucky Duck that my good friend Gena sent me (thank you again, Gena!) :D

The plan was to eat half….

And then I finished it off :D It was just too delicious to wrap back up and put in the fridge.

So I’m off to do a little yoga (nothing crazy, today’s an off day) and then get ready to meet the girls again for dinner. The boys have a roll call tonight which means they stay after work and have a “meeting” in which they drink lots and lots of Jack. So after dinner and the movies with the girls, we’ll be following each other to the base to pick up our drunken husbands. I’m pretty sure it’s the only job where you’re required to stay and drink with your colleagues :D

I hope you have a great weekend and I’ll see you tomorrow!

Love,

Summer Shape Up girls: Keep up the great job you’re all doing and logging those points! I’ll post the well-deserved shout outs in the morning <3

PS I'm on Twitter for those who would like to follow along :D

A gorgeous giveaway

2009-07-10T06:02:00.001-07:00

***************EDITED TO SAY: This giveaway has ended as of 7/13/09 0800.

Hey everyone! HAPPY FRIDAY!

I’ve got a seriously amazing giveaway to kick off the weekend….

Remember this cookbook that I got (and have been experimenting with a little this week)??

I talked to Sarma, founder of One Lucky Duck and co-founder Pure Food and Wine, and she has graciously offered a Fitnessista reader a signed copy of her new cookbook!!!

This cookbook is outta control amazing. The recipes are easy to follow, don’t require a ton of obscure ingredients or fancy schmancy equipment and demonstrate that raw food doesn’t have to be complicated to be beautiful and delicious. It also includes a boatload of information on nutrition and the raw lifestyle, yet reads like an email from a good friend. I read the book in it’s entirety within 2 days.

It’s also a feast for the eyes with stunning photos…

Recipes for juices….

Salads, soups, snacks and impressive entrees….

Cocktails and desserts….

Are ya sold yet??? :D

Here’s how you can get 2 chances to win this beautiful cookbook:

Leave a comment stating why you’d like to win this cookbook and/or what you’d like to make first if you win
Link back to this post on your blog and send me an email (fitnessista at gmail dot com) with the link to your post. If you don’t have a blog, no worries, just send me an email and I’ll get your extra entry in

I’ll post the winner at 8am EST on Monday, July 13th

***************EDITED TO SAY: This giveaway has ended as of 7/13/09 0800.

See ya after lunch and work ;)

xoxo,

A marble milestone

2009-07-09T19:48:00.001-07:00

Hey guys! Hope you’ve had a great day! I just got back from seeing The Proposal with Jeni and Ashley and it was wonderful. I usually don’t laugh out loud during movies and I was giggling the whole time. It was muy bueno ;)

I spent a majority of the day in cleaning machine mode. I did a bunch of nit-picky little things that make the casa feel soooo good, like polishing the granite and stainless steel stuff, taking everything off the countertops and cleaning, doing the microwave, and usual stuff like dusting, vacuuming, etc. After all of that biznass, I went to the pool to chill and read for a while :)

When I got back in, I was ready for lonchi so I made the pasta version of Natalia Rose’s Suddenly St. Tropez salad

Spiralized zucchini and beet, grape tomatoes, sweet onion, basil, oregano, balsamic, sea salt and goat cheddar.

All mixed up:

It was pretty glorious, to say the least!

Atfer lonchi, I met Jeni at the gym to do Day 6 of this week's Shape Up plan. My legs were sore from teaching yesterday, so I gave them a day off and did biceps and triceps.

Came back to the casa and checked on the babies, got ready and met the girls at Pita Pit for dinner.

I got the usual hummus pita on wheat with romaine, tomatoes, onions, olives, cucumber, jalapenos, mushrooms and hot sauce

Rocked my face off. I love me some Pita Pit!

After the ‘pit’, we went went to the movie (which I highly recommend.. it reminded me a lot of How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days, which is one of my favorites) and then Jeni and I hit up Marble Slab.

I did something I haven’t done in probably 5 years.

That’s REAL ice cream right there—not nonfat, not frozen yogurt, the real thing. Since I lost the majority of my weight, I’ve always had the froyo or nonfat yogurt. I’d take bites of the pilot’s real ice cream, but would never get one for myself because it reminded me of the days when I was 40 lbs heavier and would eat regular ice cream like it was my job. No joke, I hit up DQ a few times each week. So for me, real ice cream = me being at my previous weight and feeling lethargic and self conscious.

You guys know that once a week I have a “treat meal” where I’ll eat food that I normally would not want to eat. For that meal, anything is fair game but ice cream has always been a different story for me because I used to have it so often. I’ve never seen a big deal with having real ice cream, but chose not to because it’s something that I did quite often when I was at an uncomfortable stage in my life. So I’ve stuck with the froyo and nonfat stuff over the past handful of years.

Tonight, I figured I could try having a smaller REAL ice cream instead of the large frozen yogurt, like I normally would. The satisfaction difference was remarkable. The real ice cream was super creamy (and chocolaty!) and I felt more content after my kid’s size than I would have felt with the large frozen yogurt. I don’t want you guys to get the wrong idea about what I’m trying to say (and start the anonymous comments flowing), because I never told myself I “couldn’t” have the real ice cream—I just didn’t want to eat it. Tonight, I wanted the real ice cream. So I ate it, and I liked it. A lot. That is all :D

Well it’s time for me to hang out with the pilot since it’s a rare occasion that we’re home at the same time—he’s been working a ton this week.

Hope you all have a wonderful night and I’ll see ya in the morning!

xoxo,

Gina

Something to do: Meet me back here tomorrow morning for a AMAZING GIVEAWAY!!! Get excited, it’s a good one ;)

My hero, the pilot

2009-07-09T07:25:00.001-07:00

Hey everyone! TGIAF!!!!!! Hope your day is off to a good start :D

Spin and Zumba last night were intense. I still can’t believe I taught 3 classes yesterday with no AC. It’s a little –very- strange (maybe it’s the Arizona girl in me) but it feels nice in there when the AC doesn’t work. Being covered in a pool of sweat feels goooooooood ;)

After Zumba, Jeni and I were starving (of course!) so just the two of us went to Indian last night.

I didn’t have my memory stick in the camera –I had forgotten it in my laptop- but I didn’t get anything you haven’t seen before.

Pappadum:

Dippers:

Vino:

Whole wheat naan:

Baigan Bhartha (extra spicy!)

Oh Indian food, how I love thee. I’m hoping the girls and I can do our cooking class with the owner soon, because I would LOVE to make it at home. I’ve tried, but it just doesn’t taste the same :/

After Indian, I came back to the puppies and fell asleep on the couch watching Mrs. Doubtfire. Does anyone else LOVE that movie? My brother and I used to watch it over and over when we were younger—it makes me nostalgic ;)

When the pilot got home, HE FIXED THE JUICER!!!!! My hero :D He just put a paper towel inside and got out a mallet and pounded the pokey-thing out. Easy peasy. I felt like a giant goober for getting it stuck in there, but Mr. Smart Pilot man saved the day ;)

This morning, I walked the puppies for about an hour because the weather was BEAUTIFUL! It was cloudy and cool and since we haven’t walked the past two days because I’ve been working, I felt I owed them a longer excursion today.

They’re exhausted and will be well-behaved for the next 24 hours:

I made an amazing green juice with using some of the leftover fruit from yesterday's juice disaster.

It had 1.5 green apples, 1/2 pear, 1/2 cucumber, handful parsley, 1 kale leaf, 1/2 lemon (rind and all). Delicious!

For the rest of my b-fast, I did a little variation of the vanilla chia pudding that I've been enjoying lately—I added cinnamon and 1 tbs raw cocoa powder (from One Lucky Duck)

Chocolate Chia Pudding

Topped with a sliced nanner and hefty blob o’ raw almond butter:

A-freaking-mazing :D

I intentionally didn’t schedule any training appointments for today so I could take care of some stuff, like cleaning this casa and floating in my raft at the pool ;) Then gym time with Jeni, dinner and a movie with the girls :D It’s gonna be a good day.

Also, I’ve got to buy plane tickets for Tucson! Last time I checked, they were $400 so I’m hoping I can get a better deal :/ I miss my familia.

Do you live near your family, or far away like I do?? I’m very lucky to have my aunt and cousins in Orlando, but everyone else is in AZ.

Well, I’m off!!! Hope you have a wonderful day and I’ll see ya tonight after The Proposal.

Take care,

Zumba Song of the Day: “Baila, Menea y Goza” by Zumba Fitness

On the banana bus

2009-07-08T12:21:00.001-07:00

Hey everyone! Happy Indian Food day!! Hope your day is going well :D

What a day… it all started this morning with my juice disaster.

I was making a green juice:

And a green apple got stuck in the juicer…. I turned it off, removed the lid and tried to poke the apple through with the poker-stick thingy. Said fruit would not go through, so I flipped the lid over and tried to poke it back the other way. The apple went flying and the poker-thingy got stuck in the juicer lid..upside down.

I even tried spraying it with olive oil hoping to grease it out. No luck. I’m hoping when Mr. Strong Manly Pilot gets home he can fix it :(

I had the rest of my bfast, which was a total repeat of yesterday's vanilla chia pudding.

I’m a huge fan… it’s delicious and so creamy good :D

A couple of hours later, I was a little cranky about the juice incident because I only got a half a juice so I went to the Main Squeeze to get my fix.

Muuuuuuch better.

And since I was in the neighborhood of the little health food store, I stopped in to get my favorite almond butter since I’ve been out for almost 4 days (the tragedy)!!!

I had an 11am spin class to teach, so I munched an Ezekiel with apricot preserves before going to the base gym.

Class was glorious (AC is still broken!!) and when I got home, I was totally hankering for a salad beast.

Today’s mix had romaine, grape tomatoes, 1/2 bell pepper, handful of dulse, 1/2 avocado, 1/2 tbs flax oil, lime juice, sea salt, pepper and raw goat cheddar.

All in a 9-cup mixing bowl….

Pretty sure that’s as classy as it gets ;)

I took a quick shower so I wouldn’t be stinky for my training appointment, and went to the other gym to train a client. It was a blasty.. and a SCENE because a guy (probably in his 60s or 70s) that works out there got mad at a girl for “getting in his space”, chewed her out, dropped the F-bomb in front of everyone and stormed out….

And then I came home for some bliss in a bowl.

It was high time I joined the banana bus and excuse the expression but holy hell, I’m so glad I did. This stuff was RIDICULOUS. Especially covered in a blanket of raw almond butter! The pilot’s gonna love it.

Pure food porn:

Gena, you’re a genius :D

Now I’m just chilling for a little while until I go back to base to teach spin and Zumba. I can’t wait to be filling my face with whole wheat naan and chatting with the girls tonight—it’s going to be glorious.

Have a wonderful day, friends!

Congrats to the following Summer Shape Up girls for getting all three points for yesterday: Brittany, Elizabeth D., Heather K., Katie S., Marissa V. and Megan R!!! Keep it uuuuuuuuuuuup!

Sauna spin and warm fuzzies

2009-07-07T19:06:00.001-07:00

Hey everyone! How are ya? I am SO glad tomorrow is Indian Food Day- from then on, it’s smooth sailing until the weekend :D I just have to get through teaching 3 aerobics classes!

For lonchi, I made another recipe from Sarma's new cookbook: the S&M salad.

Here’s the pic from the cookbook:

And here’s my at-home version:

It had greens, dulse flakes (which I’m officially in love with), leftover rosemary raw crackers that Megan made, sea salt, minced garlic, flax oil, lime juice, pepper and avocado.

It. rocked. my. face. off.

Sarma is two for two on the cookbook recipes so far :D I’ll probably be making a creation from there each day this week.

I also grabbed a medjool date (aka cucaracha) for dessert:

After my glorious feast, I decided to get dinner in the slow cooker for the pilot since I’d be home late from training appointments.

I made him some Teriyaki and Pineapple Chicken

I seasoned some chicken tenderloins with salt and pepper and pan seared them for 1 minute on each side and put them into the slow cooker. Next, I made the sauce using 3/4 cup soy sauce, 1/3 cup brown sugar, 4 minced garlic cloves, 1 tbs sherry, 1/2 ts minced ginger, sea salt and pepper.

After that, I chopped some pineapple a la can (in it’s own juice, drained) and added that to the chicken sauce mix.

Covered, cooked for 6-8 hours of low…

Here’s what the finished product looked like:

I left some microwave rice for the pilot:

Left a note telling to let him know what and where everything was (and that there were organic broccoli steamers in the freezer) and voila- dinner was served :D

I snacked on a piece of raw goat cheddar before going to the gym for some appointments:

And did Day 2 of this week's Shape Up plan with my friend Jeni.

After that, I went to teach spin on base and was not feeling like teaching. The AC is broken (again), the gym is like a sauna, and I was feeling kinda blah in general. That is, until I saw a totally packed spin room :D All the motivation kicked in, we had an awesome, sweaty class and I felt remarkably better when it was over…and looked like I jumped into a pool with my clothes on ;)

Snack: (macaroon-flavored Larabar)

After spin, I had my last training appt of the night at the other gym, which was a blasty because I had the funny quotes lady. She surprisingly didn’t have any noteworthy quotes for tonight (except for maybe when she said that I kill old people?) but a noteworthy story. She said today at work was the first time in 7 years that she’s worn her shirt tucked in and has already gone down a shirt size. We’ve only been working together for 3 weeks! I’m still filled with warm fuzzies :D

When I got home, I was beyond ready for dinner and made some of Natalia Rose’s pumpkin pie in a bowl:

And a salad beast with romaine, grape tomatoes, bell pepper, the apple cider vinegar I got at WFs, garlic, oregano, sea salt, tiny drizzle of EVOO, pepper and raw goat cheddar.

It was deeeeeeelish :D

Well the shower and jammies are calling my name! Hope you all have a fantastic night :D

See you tomorrow!

Much love,

Workout jam of the day: “Careless Whisper” by Seether (awesome for climbs!)

Morning with an old buddy

2009-07-07T08:29:00.001-07:00

Hey hey hey :D Hope you’re having a great morning!

This morning I tried something new for bast:

Vanilla Chia Pudding from Sarma's new cookbook that I got yesterday

Holy deliciousness, this stuff was AMAZING. With hemp milk, chia seeds, vanilla Stevia and cinnamon it was absolute perfection. Since I went veg I’ve definitely missed out on eating pudding because it used to be one my favorite snacks. This is a perfect replacement and makes such a light and delicious bfast, especially topped with fresh fruit.

I was surprised how thick the pudding was, even though I significantly reduced the recipe to make a 1-portion serving.

So good!

I also spent my morning with an old buddy, Dave Farmar. I consider him a friend since he gives me pep talks on life, but it’s been wayyyyy too long since I’ve done one of his podcasts! I finished it out, even though it was quite challenging and felt glorious afterwards :D

To rewind to last night, the pilot and I had a super fast but way delicious meal when I got home from work.

I baked some salmon that I marinated in Annie’s BBQ sauce and served it with roasted veggies.

Eggplant, onion, artichokes, tomatoes, zucchini, garlic cloves, EVOO, oregano, sea salt and pepper.

The pilot had some couscous with his meal (cooked in chicken broth and seasoned with S&P, chili powder and garlic):

The whole meal took less than 30 minutes to cook –I did the veggies at 475 degrees for 15 minutes and then reduced the temp to 425 and added the fish for 8 minutes after pan searing it- and it was ahhhhhmazin’ (if I say so myself) ;)

This morning, before the chia pudding of justice and joy, I had a new Cullen juice:

It had 2 kale leaves, 1 apple, 1 beet and 1/2 lemon. Tangy and slightly sour, just the way I like it :D

I don’t think I’ve mentioned it on the bloggy yet, but I stopped drinking coffee about a month ago. I think coffee has a TON of benefits, and I really do love it, but it got to the point where I was dependent on it. I was groggy and out of it until I had my morning Joe and didn’t like feeling addicted to it. So I went cold turkey and have been drinking morning juice instead. I had headaches like the dickens and was a little cranky in the morning for a few days, but it wasn’t nearly as difficult as I thought it would be. I’m still going to enjoy the occasional java joy, but I wanted to get myself away from *needing it* to survive the day. I have a loooong history with coffee (and it was my study elixir of choice when I was in undergrad and studying until 4am to wake up at 6…not healthy but way better than taking Adderall, which many of the students in my business school took) and am pretty stoked that I’ve decreased the need to have it every day. Juice has been doing the trick so far :D

Another one of my addictions is gum, which I also went cold turkey with when I was chewing a piece of Orbit Mist and decided to randomly check out the ingredients. There was gelatin in there, so I chucked the piece out the window and didn’t have gum at all for about a month. That was a huge step for me because I ALWAYS have gum in my mouth --I just like to be minty fresh ;) I came across this gum at Whole Foods which is sugarfree and has xylitol (which has oral health benefits) in there.

I have been HOOKED ever since! Has anyone else tried this gum??

Are you a gum and coffee kinda girl too? Are you trying to kick any habits??

Well it’s time for me to get the pilot’s dinner in the slow cooker, clean up around the casa, make a spin cd and off to work.

I’ll see ya tonight!

Much love,

Summer Shape Up girls: The spreadsheet has been updated! Please get your points in there and I’ll post a point update on Monday with next week’s workout. Keep it up! 3 weeks—you can do it :D

Grocery goodies and Chia Chili Cheese

2009-07-06T17:50:00.001-07:00

Hey everyone! Hope your Monday has been bueno :D Mine definitely has been! The pilot was off work, so I got to chill with him before I had to train. I promised to post the grocery goodies for ya’ll but also wanted to post the rest of my Orlando foodie. Before we left yesterday, I got to feast two of my favorite places: Panera and Whole Foods!

At Panera I had lunch for bfast:

1/2 Mediterranean veggie on whole wheat with no feta, and 1/2 Greek salad with no feta and dressing on the side

I love how Panera uses real silverware. Fancy schmancy, eh? ;)

Later on, I had a lovely green juice while meandering around heaven on earth (aka Whole Foods)

This little baby had lemon, parsley, kale and green apple

I got some groceries (and actually didn’t buy nearly as much as usual) and also got some hot bar to munch on the way home

Miso slaw (my favorite!), roasted veggies, and salad topped with artichokes, hearts of palm, kalamata olives and baba ganoush.

Here’s what I picked up:

Thai coconuts, raw goat cheddar and Ezekiel tortillas for enchilada purposes

Nama shoyu, apricot spread, raw organic apple cider vinegar, Annie’s ketchup, lemon, Larabars

Mixed fruit, flax seeds, hot salsa, enchilada sauce

Produce! Avocados, cucumber, bell peppers, kale, juicy plum tomatoes, green apples, beets and carrots.

That’s it! Wow. I’m thinking the reason I didn’t go buck wild is because the health food store here actually has a lot of the items I love to buy. Thai coconuts and raw goat cheese are the things I need to travel for right now.

This morning, I started the day with a banana:

And a green juice:

It had 1/2 cucumber, 2 kale leaves, 1 green apple, 1 pear, handful of parsley and 1/2 lemon. I think I’ve finally gotten more juice hardcore because now I crave sour green juices more than sweet juices. The lemon and green apple really do the trick! I’m thinking it’s tied with the “Cullen juice” for first place ;)

I was kind of putzing around the casa for the first half of the day. We had a lot of fun this weekend but didn’t have very much down time, so we were moving a little on the slower side.

I made some cookies (oatmeal chocolate chip from Eat, Drink and Be Vegan):

Of course I tested one for quality purposes ;)

When it was time for lunch, I was way excited to try to make something new.

I took my favorite raw goat cheddar (same nutritionals and ingredients as the Alta Dena brand but around a dollar cheaper and has a better texture IMO):

And added strips of the raw goat cheddar with bell pepper, carrot, tomato, cilantro, sea salt and pepper into collard leaf wrappers:

After the roll up:

With an amazing dipping sauce…..

I bring you Chia Chili Cheese sauce! (Semi-inspired by Kristen's Cheezy Hemp Nacho Sauce)

Check out that cheesy, creamy decadence ;)

To make the sauce, I soaked 2 tbs chia seeds in 1/2 cup water for 10 mins:

I was afraid of working with chia seeds (even though I’ve had a huge bag of them for a few months and haven’t touched them!) but since I know my good friend Heather is a fan, I figured I’d give it a whirl.

The chia seeds gelatinized and made an awesome base for the sauce!

Into the Vitamix went the gelled chia seeds and water, 1/2 yellow bell pepper, 1/2 ts chili powder, 2 tbs nutritional yeast, hefty sprinkle of sea salt, 1 clove garlic, pinch of pepper, and a diced dried chipotle chili (which can be omitted if you’re not a spicy fanatic like yours truly).

And here’s what I got:

It was soooooo good and would be even better with some raw chips dipped in there. Time for me to get some into the dehydrator ;)

The pilot and I went to the gym, where my friend Jeni and I chatted on the elliptical for 45 minutes. Classes at the base gym were canceled today because it was a “family day”. When we got back, we checked the mail and I was beyond stoked to see that Sarma’s new cookbook had arrived!

Since I pre-ordered, she signed my copy:

And included a free fig bar, which went directly into my mouth:

I already have some meals planned for this week from the new cookbook and I can’t wait to try them out!

Well it’s time for this girl to get into wind down mode (by catching up on your lovely blogs) and hit the hay.

Have a great night and I’ll see you in the morning!

Much love,

What’s your all-time favorite cookbook?? My top three are definitely “Eat, Drink and Be Vegan”, “Raw Food, Real World” and “Everyday Raw”. We’ll have to see how Sarma’s new book fits in there, but I can already tell I’m going to love it!

Summer Shape Up: Week 10

2009-07-06T12:27:00.001-07:00

Hey everyone! Hope your day is going well :D Thanks so much for your sweet comments about my military wife post and Orlando re-cap!!

We only have 3 weeks left of the Summer Shape Up challenge. You’re all doing such a great job and huge congratulations to those of you who have stuck with it the whole time! If you’ve fallen off the wagon a little, there’s never a better time than right now to get back on! You know I’m cheering you on ;)

Here’s this week’s workout:

Day 1: Cardio 30-45 minutes (try one of these workouts)

Day 2: Shoulders, Back and Chest
-Warm up: Cardio 5 minutes (moderate intensity)
-Standing V-raise
-Bent over reverse fly
-Stability ball dumbbell chest press
Cardio: 5 minutes (sprint intervals)
-Stability ball side leaning lateral raise
-Cable seated row
-Bosu push up or Stability ball pushup
Cardio: 15-20 minutes moderate intensity
-Cool down and stretch

Day 3: Cardio of choice or take an aerobics class

Day 4: Quads, Hamstrings, Calves and Abs
-Warm up: Cardio 5 minutes (moderate intensity)
-Dumbbell squats (int) or split squats (advanced)
-Pilates side leg lift
-Pike up with the ball
-Seated calf raise
Cardio: 5 minutes (hill intervals)
-leg extension (much slower than the girl in the video)
-stability ball hamstring curl (can do 1 leg at a time to make it more challenging)
-Weighted plie with calf raise
Cardio: 15-20 minutes moderate intensity
-Cool down and stretch

Day 5: Cardio; warm up 5 minutes followed by 20 minutes of HIIT; cool down 5 minutes

Day 6: Biceps and Triceps
Warm up: Cardio 5 minutes (moderate intensity)
-rope pressdown
Cross chest dumbbell curl
Prestretch triceps extension
Cardio: 5 minutes of hills and valleys
Tricep pushups
Dumbbell hammer curl
Cardio- 25-30 minutes (mod-high intensity)

Day 7: Active recovery

Remember, 3 sets of 10-12 reps for each exercise and the last few reps of each set should be challenging. If you can do more than 12 reps of an exercise with ease, it’s time to bump the weights up.

I’m off to work but I’ll be back tonight with the Whole Foods purchases, a lunch recipe and a new cookbook :D

Take care!

Orlando Weekend Part Dos

2009-07-06T06:26:00.001-07:00

Heyyyyyy :D Happy Monday! Hope you all had a fantastic weekend!

We’re back home in V-town and had a blasty in Orlando with Meg, her pilot and my aunt and cousins! Coming back is definitely the worst part about our weekend roadtrips (even though we all know how much I like V-town, haha), but I know we’ll be back soon.

After I last posted (and our outta-control amazing two hour Zumba class) we hit up Einstein Bagels for some bfast.

I got the good grains bagel with egg whites and salsa:

And then we went to Epcot to spend the day there and watch the fireworks.

I packed this little beauty as my emergency snack and ended up munching it later in the day:

For those of you who haven’t been to Epcot, it’s a Disney park surrounding a lake and each portion of the park represents a country. The workers in that “country” are actually from that location and they have food and drinks/cultural artifacts/art/rides/drinks representing that particular area.

We spent a while in Mexico:

I was so happy to be in my homeland :D

So was the pilot:

El piloto y yo:

In Morocco, I got a sweet henna tattoo. The pilot isn’t a tattoo fan, so I’m filling the void by getting henna tattoos on my right foot whenever I get the chance ;)

The paste dries and peels off, leaving a beautiful reddish brown stained tattoo:

We spent a while walking around the park and roasting from the heat, so we decided to go to the Boardwalk to get some food and AC.

We went to ESPN bar which has sports games on flat screen TVs everywhere—the boys were in heaven.

We were very impressed to discover they actually had some healthy items on the menu—there were 3 things I couldn’t decide between!! My aunt, who also loves healthy delicious food, and I decided to each order a different sandwich and give each other a half so we could try two things.

I got the roasted vegetable sandwich (with roasted red bell pepper hummus, portobello mushrooms, zucchini, tomato and onions on multi-grain bread) and she got the grilled mahi-mahi on a whole wheat roll.

I also ate a blurry cucumber salad :/

And these chips (yes, more tortilla chips! Ay ay ay!) with black bean and spinach dip:

Sooooooo good. I’ve definitely gotten my chip fill for a while!

After dinner, we took the boat back to Epcot, and watched the fireworks from there.

They were cccrrrraaazzzyyyyy amazing:

After the fireworks, we walked back to the car amidst the giant herd of hundreds (thousands?) of sweaty (and stinky) people, went back to the casa, and I fell asleep on the couch watching Hancock.

Sunday was a pretty chill day. I definitely got my Whole Foods fix in and will be posting the rest of the foodie pictures (and the purchases) later tonight. The Summer Shape Up workout will be also be up around 3pm EST.

I hope you all have a great day <3

xoxo,

Musings on military life: I’ve gotten a lot of emails from current and future military wives asking for advice, what it’s really like to be “married to the military”, and about the lifestyle in general. I figured (especially considering the recent holiday) that I’d take a little time and write about what it’s like to be a military wife.

Growing up, I said I’d NEVER marry a military man. We lived about 10 minutes from an Air Force base (Davis Monthan in Tucson) and I had quite a few friends in school whose fathers were always gone. I told myself I would never be able to do that to a family or have a husband that was gone all of the time. I guess you can see how that “plan” worked out for me?? I met the pilot of my dreams at a Starbucks and the rest is history ;)

Being a military wife is by far one of the most challenging roles I’ve had to undertake and also the most rewarding by a landslide. Giving up the person you love more than anything for deployments, TDYs (short deployments), long work hours and constantly worrying about his safety can be exhausting, saddening, stressful, frustrating and overwhelming. Deployments are definitely the most difficult part of this lifestyle, but how you choose to react to the tough situation can make or break the entire experience.

The best advice I have for getting through deployments are to: stay busy (take up a new hobby –like a dance class, cake decorating class, learn a new language), start that project you’ve been putting off (a lot of my friends paint their houses while the boys are away), do something you’ve always wanted to, surround yourself with friends and family, look to the other wives for support (they know EXACTLY what you’re going through and probably want someone to hang out with, too), travel (if you’re able to), and take care of yourself the best to your ability.

I’ve seen some wives use that time to eat a lot of junk food because they’re feeling sad (or gone the other way and don’t eat as much as they should) and throw exercise regimens to the wayside. Eating well and working out while the hubby is away is going to make you feel SO much better. Those exercise endorphins definitely helped me make it through the tougher days and eating well helped to maintain my energy levels and cranky-ometer ;) I still had some down days off course (like the time I went into the woods and had a cry fest), but days like that are expected and all in all, I was fine. I had my family, friends, traveled a ton, and kept super busy with work and school.

We have never lived on base but know quite a few people who have and loved it. If you’re going to live on base, try to contact someone who has lived at that base (a friend or online resources) to determine if it’s something you want to do. The convenience of living on base is a huge factor –everything you need is there- but sometimes they’re located pretty far away from “town”. The base here in Valdosta is about 25 minutes away from the most exciting part of the city (which doesn’t say too much, haha), so that’s a big reason why we chose to live off-base.

Most importantly, the best thing I think one can do is to get involved--- in the squadron and by participating in base events. Making friends with the other wives is such a great way to meet people who have a huge thing in common with you and there’s always a chance you’ll see them again.

Yes, the military lifestyle is a challenging one, but it’s worked out for me so far ;) It’s certainly made me grow up… a lot. I used to be so dependent on having friends or family around 24/7 –in college I had the girls over almost every night after dance when I lived in one-bedroom apartment because I hated being alone. Also, as a super type A personality who always needs a plan and agenda for everything, constantly dealing with the unexpected –like the fact that we have NO CLUE where we’ll be living this time next year- has been really good for me.

Since I married the pilot, I’ve made some of the best girlfriends that I’ll keep for life through the squadron and am also more proud of my husband than I could ever try to articulate. Thank you to all of you other military wives and girlfriends out there for your sacrifice, courage and support--- you defend our country and freedom in a magnanimous way. If you ever have questions about military mumbo jumbo or need someone to listen to the Murphy’s Law events that deployments set into motion, just shoot me an email ;)

Orlando Weekend Part 1

2009-07-04T13:07:00.001-07:00

Hey everyone!

(Pic from here) And HAPPY WEEKEND to my non-American readers :D

Hope you’re all enjoying your weekend so far! We’re having so much fun in Orlando… even though half of our little party group remembers all of last night.

This might be to blame:

That’s a pitcher of chocolate vodka and Bailey’s. Yes, it was that kind of night ;)

We got into O-town safe and sound, dropped Viesa off at the pet hotel –she doesn’t stay at my Aunt’s because she tried to eat her Yorkie once – and had a little pre-dinner drink.

That’s a Bailey’s shake.. basically the best thing I’ve ever made in a blender. Frozen bananas, Baileys, Kahlua, almond milk and cinnamon. Absolutely amazing.

We all went to Opa for dinner- one of my favorites. My aunt and I ate at this awesome restaurant last time I was in town.

(Dancing on the tables and napkin throwing are encouraged)

Megan and I (and her pilot’s head…edited to say: he wanted me to note the fact that he was making a goofy face. Hahah)

Of course we got our Baileys and chocolate vodka pitcher, while the pilots opted for Red Bull and Vodka:

(hubba, hubba)

We got the INCREDIBLE smash-at-your-table hummus with pita slices for the table:

And my aunt and I shared eggplant dip:

(I ate the dip and hummus plain since I don’t eat white bread)

Greek salad with goat cheese instead of feta:

Shrimpies!!!

Mixed greens with lemon and olive oil which were a little on the greasy side, but still good:

And some bites of the baklava they brought out for my cousin’s birthday:

We feasted and danced on the table. I call that a good night ;)

We also went out to Chili’s after Opa so that the non-lightweights (aka gladiators) could drink more, but I was done drinking for the night. Instead, I ate my weight in tortilla chips and salsa. They tasted SO good and it was an excellent choice to have it as my treat night for the week—totally worth it.

This morning, we got up and went to a two hour Zumba class at the YMCA. Unbe-freaking-lievable. It didn’t feel like two hours at all and I LOVE taking classes every now and again instead of teaching them.

After Zumba, we were all still a little full from our late-night tortilla chips, so we went to Whole Foods and got juices.

I got a green apple, kale, lemon and parsley juice which melted all of the Baileys away:

Now, we’re off to Epcot and will be watching the fireworks from the Disney area :D

I hope you all have a fabulous weekend. I won’t be blogging tomorrow since we’re heading back to V-town, but I’ll be back on Monday with the rest of our trip re-cap and the Shape Up workout for the week. See you then!

xoxo,

Gina

On the road again

2009-07-03T16:43:00.001-07:00

Hey hey hey! HAPPY FRIDAY!!!! Hope you’re all having a great day so far and have lots of fun planned for this weekend :D You might have noticed already, but I have a new header courtesy of the amazing Zesty Cook who was so kind to pimp my blog a little. If you haven’t been to his site, definitely check it out and get your free ebook while you’re there!

We’re on the road to Orlando right now!

Viesa has been rotating between the pilot’s lap:

and her bed in the back of the Jeep:

While Bella has been curled up like a little baby in my arms:

At one point, I had two dogs in my lap. Not safe (Viesa was shortly sent to her bed in the back) but it was pretty funny.

To rewind to this morning, I started the day bright and early with a Cullen juice before my first training appointment:

(3 carrots, 1 small beet and a Fuji apple)

I came home for a half hour in between clients and grabbed a nanner with AB and also finished off the rest of AB in the jar:

1 more training appointment and then I came home and had the most aesthetically-UNappealing snack I think I’ve ever made.

What’s that supposed to be? Well it LOOKS like some kind of spicy Indian dish but is in fact chocolate pudding. I really wanted to make this after seeing versions in my raw ‘cook’books and on the lovely Sarah's blog, but I got a little lazy with my Vitamixing and didn’t blend it all the way. So my raw chocolate pudding had chunks of avocado and date in there. (I had mixed 1/2 cado, 1 date and 1/2 tbs raw cocoa powder). Ehhhh, it tasted pretty bueno but hopefully won’t be as funny-looking next time.

After the chocolate pudding disaster, we packed up our stuff and got on the road! We should probably be into civilization within the next hour and a half and then IT’S PARTY TIME!!! My cousin’s bday was yesterday, so we’re definitely due for some celebrating- I told her the Valdosta party train was coming to town ;)

We’re planning on going to Opa for dinner and maybe Disney tomorrow, but I’ll be back soon with reports of our shenanigans ;)

Have a happy Friday my friends <3

xoxo,

Reunited

2009-07-02T20:19:00.001-07:00

Hey everyone! Hope you’ve had a great day :D You’ll never guess who I got to play with today….

LITTLE FRIEND!!!!!!!!

I can’t even tell you how happy I was to find out that little friend has been living in my friend Jeni’s neighbor’s back yard for the past week or so. Jeni called to ask what Little Friend looked like, and as soon as she described her I knew it was the same dog. I’m so thrilled that little friend is alive and well and being taken good care of. All is right in the world right now :D

I’m trying to convince the pilot to let us adopt little friend but we’ve always had a rule in this house to not have more animals than people, and since we have two dogs already, I’m losing the battle :/ I’m hoping these pictures will help my case.

(Those floppy ears stole my heart!!!! SOOOOO CUTE!)

I ate higher-raw than normal today, which is a feat for me since I’ve been so busy with training and teaching. Planning meals when life is hectic can get a little crazy.

I had an Ezekiel with AB and preserves (my least raw meal of the day…but it was delicious)

And stopped at that juie place I like for a large supergreen juice:

I also went to Target for two things I needed and a lot of stuff I didn’t really need (Target is the best at doing that), including a new yoga mat.

Bella tested it out for me and I did 2 20-minute yoga podcasts from that yoga place I like.

I read by the pool for a while and had to go into work for some training appointments.

Lunch was GLORIOUS and consisted of a goat gouda and raw goat cheddar plate:

and a GIANT “Peace in the Middle East” salad beast from The Raw Food Detox Diet

It contained some things that I’m usually not a huge fan of (like cucumber and mint) but it tasted like a tabouli salad minus the grains. Super scrumptious!

I went back to work, did Day 4 of this week's Shape Up plan with Jeni and got a break from working to have the quickest dinner of my life.

Raw pumpkin pie in a bowl (another Natalia Rose recipe)—this is one of my current favorites

Thank you to the Vitamix for blending this into creamy perfection

And an entire bag of steamed organic broccoli with lots of red chili flakes and some sea salt

(Gotta represent the upcoming holiday! Plate courtesy of my cute little nana)

I went back to work for my last appointment, which was a joy as usual because this lady cracks me up. Her funny quote of the night was (after doing 3 sets of jackknives on the stability ball): “Do you think that after everyone is gone at the end of the night, the stability balls feel like they’ve been violated? I mean, people are rubbing up against them ALL DAY”.

After work, I met up with some friends from the squadron at Texas Roadhouse. The pilot ordered me a skewer of 6 shrimp (with no butter or oil on it, just seasoned) and a glass of red wine. Does he know me or what?? Sorry I didn’t take a picture for you all but I wasn’t feeling like explaining the bloggy to a table full of fighter pilots ;)

Time to crash! I promise to get back to your questions/emails tomorrow <3

xoxo,

Teaching machine and Indian partyyyyy

2009-07-02T05:50:00.001-07:00

Hey everyone! TGIAF!!! Hope some of you have long weekends off work for the holiday. The pilot does, which I LOVE, and an Orlando weekend is definitely going to happen. Megan and her pilot are coming, too and I know it will be a blasty ;)

The round two of aerobics (spin and Zumba) were great but I think it had a lot to do with the fact that a few of my friends were at my classes last night. It definitely kept my energy up even though my poor leggies were definitely dragging by the end!

I had a pretty awesome reward for getting it through 3 aerobics classes:

Dinner at Passage 2 India :D

There were 12 of us, and it was a a lot of fun. As usual, the food rocked my face off.

Pappadum (I had a lot of these- I was starving!)

Dippers:

I had the usual spicy Baighan Bhartha:

Red vino:

And whole wheat naan (tandoori roti) with a bite of the pilot’s salmon:

Outta control deliciousness. I would eat Indian every day if I could ;)

We stayed at the restaurant until pretty late chatting with everyone and when we got home, I couldn’t shower and get those jammies on fast enough. I sprawled out on one of the couches, passed out, and was carried up the stairs like a little baby by the pilot ;)

I woke up this morning, decided not to walk the puppies so I could do a little yoga –I’ll take them on a short walk this afternoon- because my muscles are in need of serious stretching!

I had a fruit bowl with a chopped apple and a pear:

And a nanner on the side:

I don’t have all of the supplies to make a green juice, so I’m going to do yoga and then pick one up from the juice bar and take one to Megan :D

I have 5 training appointments today (and this isn’t even the busy season!) so I’m going to spend a little time this afternoon reading by the pool before heading to work.

I’ll see ya tonight!
Have a wonderful day <3

xoxo,

Today’s workout jam: “Beggin” by Madon (perfect for hills)

Congrats to the Summer Shape Up girls who got all 3 points for yesterday: Heather K. and Megan R.!!!! Great job, girls!

Playing snake

2009-07-01T12:25:00.001-07:00

Hey guys! Hope your humpday is treating you well:D

I’ve spent the past couple of hours playing snake… feasting and letting my foodie digest before the rest of the aerobics insanity begins (spin #2 and Zumba).

I went to teach spin and wasn’t sure how many people would show up since I usually don’t teach the 11am class. It was PACKED!! There weren’t enough bikes for everyone that showed up… craziness. We had a great class -- I’m sure my style is much different than the girl who usually teaches, but hopefully they’ll be back!

I snacked on the forgotten Larabar from last night on my drive home:

For lunch I made a salad BEAST with romaine, greens, basil, sundried tomatoes, oregeno, red pepper flakes, sea salt, pepper, balsamic and grape tomatoes:

Oh, and a small mountain of raw goat cheddar :D

With some peach green tea extract H2O.

I cuddled up on the couch with my lunch and watched Center Stage with the puppies. Is anyone else hardcore into dance movies?? I just love them all :D

A little while later, I had another snack of Envirokids peanut puffs (Puffins reign supreme but they’re pretty tasty) with vanilla hemp milk:

You might not be able to see them, but positioned at the bottom of the coffee cup are two cocoa-carob macaroons. They came out wayyyy too crunchy, but taste great (I’m still working on perfecting these ones) but they make an awesome cereal companion ;)

It was so fascinating to me to read your responses to my thoughts about fueling properly in my last post. It seems like something that many of us have been through! It’s a tricky balance to find but I promise if you trust your body and make sure you’re eating enough to support your busy and active lives, it will happen. It’s been 7 years since I started my weight loss journey and I still feel like I’m always learning something new.

Time for round 2- spin and Zumba, followed by a beautiful Indian dinner and a glass of red vino ;)

Enjoy the rest of your day!

Much love,

I’m your Bob

2009-07-01T06:31:00.001-07:00

Hey! Happy humpday!!! I’m way excited for the holiday weekend because the pilot has Friday and Monday off work and I think we may be going to Orlando ;)

Last night was a doozy, and I ruined my dinner by snacking on two coffee cups of Envirokids peanut butter balls with hemp milk before teaching spin.

It was a nice, sweaty spin sesh and I had a coconut water for electrolytes on the way to the other gym to train my clients.

I also packed a macaroon-flavored Larabar, but was still full from the cereal so I didn’t eat it:

My two appointments last night were a lot of fun. One of my clients said that I was a lot like Bob. I was like, “Who’s Bob????” and she said, “From Biggest Loser! You train a lot like he does… the only difference is that I don’t have a crush on you. He’s hot” I’m definitely more of a laid-back trainer… no Jillian, that’s for sure (even though I do like her).

When I got home, the pilot was munching his chicken in spicy peanut sauce (which he loved) and I had the famous 10 o’clock dinner.

Sweet potato rounds (I used the 1/2 sweet potato leftover from my lunch raw pasta and baked it during the day, popped them into the fridge to be waiting for me after work)

And an esalada with romaine, a southwest Sunshine burger, red bell pepper, cilantro and salsa

Such a fast and delicious meal!

This morning, I slept in a little because I kept waking up from crazy nightmares and because I was FREEZING-- the pilot turned the AC wayyyyyyy down!

I had a Cullen juice to start the day:

And a little while later, an Ezek english muffin with AB and strawberry preserves and a nanner with AB:

Musings on proper fueling (Disclaimer: If you are currently struggling with ED or are in recovery and think that reading about calorie intake/exercise levels may result in a trigger effect or is a sensitive issue, please skip this particular musing. I don’t ever want to offend or influence others, just share my experiences and what has worked for me and what hasn’t. Everyone is different and knows how certain things affect their bodies and minds—it’s up to us to use our best judgment):

On Wednesdays, I usually eat more than usual because I teach two aerobics classes (spin and Zumba) at night. For the month of July, starting today, I’ll be teaching three aerobics classes on Wednesdays (morning spin, afternoon spin and Zumba) and two classes on Mondays (spin and Zumba) instead of my usual one class--- I’ll still be teaching my one spin class on Tuesday. So on Monday and Wednesday, my fuel intake is going to have to increase to maintain my weight and protect my metabolism. I have spent the past two years working to repair a metabolism that I damaged from not properly fueling my activity levels.

Two summers ago, I spent the summer after graduation with the pilot in NC. We had been doing the long distance thing for a year while I finished school in Arizona and he lived in NC, so I wanted to spend some time with him before out August wedding. He worked all day, I couldn’t get a job knowing we’d be leaving in 3 months, and I didn’t know anyone in the squadron. So I killed the time during the day by hanging out at the gym, taking aerobics classes, doing weights, lounging poolside and drinking protein smoothies from the smoothie bar. I made a LOT of gym friends (who were active duty military or wives that didn’t work) and we would take yoga and step in the morning, then spin in the afternoon. Even though I knew I was burning a mad amount of calories, I wasn’t eating enough to support the activities I was doing—it seems like common sense, but not eating enough had NEVER been one of my problems! I ate when I was hungry and still had balanced meals and snacks, but it wasn’t enough for all of the exercising I was doing. My weight stayed stable –I think my body kicked into dancer mode, because I was used to dancing for 4-5 hours every day- but after we moved to Valdosta, my metabolism was seriously screwed up.

There was NO way I could maintain my NC fitness fun since I was working a full-time 70-80 hr/week (not joking) and had 1 hour in the morning to get my workout in (which, now I know is MORE than enough time for a good workout). I did 30-45 minutes of cardio and a little bit of weights every day, but felt like my pants kept getting tighter and tighter even though I was on my feet at work all day. It was definitely frustrating and I knew that I would have to repair my metabolism to stay at a healthy, happy weight and not have to restrict calories in the process.

Since I was still keeping a food journal at the time, each month I added more calories to my daily intake. Slowly, but surely, I have improved my calorie and nutrient intake to higher level, which supports the teaching, running and weight training I do, and have been able to wear the same jeans size in the process.

So for now, I’m going to add in some food to each meal and snack on Wednesdays (and eat more on Mondays) to make sure that I don’t damage my metabolism by eating the same amount and working out more. I learned the hard way that properly fueling your activity levels is SO important, because when those activity levels decrease it can be difficult to maintain what you’ve accomplished. After losing such a significant amount of weight, I was so afraid to gain it back…. I was used to feeling energetic, confident, and HEALTHY and definitely didn’t want to go back to the way I felt before.

It’s funny how nutrition can be such a balancing act. You definitely need to know your body, what works for you and what doesn’t. I always say that nutrition is an art and not a science, and this example fully proves that ;)

Well I’m off to teach spin class #1! I’ll be back after lunch :D

xoxo,

Gina

Congrats to the Summer Shape Up girls who got all three points for yesterday! Heather K., Leslie E., Meghan N. and Erika L.!!!! AWESOME job! :D

New macaroon topper

2009-06-30T12:09:00.001-07:00

Hey guys! How’s your day going?? Things are bueno over here :D

I started out the morning with a light green juice:

(1 pear, 1 apple, 1/2 cucumber. big handful of parsley)

and a walk with the puppen-havens (puppies) :)

When we got back to the casa, I had the standard bfast:

It fills me up perfectly and I feel like the day hasn’t properly started until I’ve had some almond butter. Speaking of almond butter, THIS is my new favorite:

Woodstock farms raw almond butter!! I picked it up at the health store last week, and fell in love instantly. It even beat out Trader Joe’s, which was my previous fave. It has a very similar taste to the TJs AB, but is much thicker and less watery.

Look how creamy this stuff is:

(That pic was for you, HEAB)

Perfect for topping a macaroon:

And then stuffing said ‘roon into my face :D

I had a few training appointments this morning, which were a lot of fun because the people I’m training right now crack me up. We were doing dumbbell upright rows (for shoulders) and the lady this morning said “You’re lucky I don’t have big tatas, or I would be wacking them with these dumbbells”. HIGHlarious ;)

I came back to the casa and got dinner into the slow cooker for the pilot, since I wont be home until 9:45 or so tonight.

Spicy Chicken in Peanut Sauce

-Spray slow cooker with nonstick spray and add a large chopped onion, 2 cans of diced tomatoes with green chiles (undrained) and 1 can (14.5 oz) of crushed tomatoes; season with 1.5 ts of cumin, 1 ts cinnamon, salt, pepper, and 2 tbs of honey (I used agave)

-Brown 8 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (seasoned with S&P) on med-high heat for 4 minutes

-Add the chicken to the slow cooker and cover with sauce

-Cover and cook on low for 7-8 hours

-Stir in 1/2 cup creamy peanut butter and serve over rice

Super easy, huh?? I put the chicken in the sauce and put the jar of peanut butter next to the slow cooker with the 1/2 measuring cup on top of the peanut butter jar, This way, when the pilot gets home, all he has to do is stir in the peanut butter, let it heat through, and feast out.

I went back to the gym to do Day 2 of this week's shape up plan (those walk out push-ups were intense!) and then came back to the casa for lunch, which was super unique and way delicious.

Raw Sweet Potato and Beet Pesto pasta from this book

It’s just spiralized beet and 1/2 sweet potato, topped with an easy pesto sauce (EVOO, sea salt, garlic, pepper) and I added oregano and red chili flakes, grape tomatoes and raw goat cheddar for dessert.

Definitely an example of things you don’t think would go together AT ALL, but were perfect foodie harmony

Now I’m stuffed, and going to take a nap before teaching spin and training clients until later tonight. I hope you have a great day and I’ll see ya soon!

xoxo,

Shape Up girls: The spreadsheet has been updated- get those points in there! :D Keep up the amazing work!

Silence the inner Gina

2009-06-29T18:42:00.001-07:00

Hey everyone! Monday’s OVER! (well, almost) Thank you again for all of your kind words regarding the exciting announcement. If you’d like to read more about 105 degrees check out this article. And YES I do anticipate having a ton of raw recipes and foodgasms to share for all of you while I’m there :D

Today was pretty standard. I didn’t walk the puppies this morning because it looked like it could start raining any second, so we stayed home and I had a macaroon:

A Cullen juice:

(1/4 gigantic beet, 2 carrots and 1 Fuji apple)

and a nanner with AB:

I have a new favorite raw almond butter (sorry TJs!) so I’ll be sure to snap a pic of the jar for you guys

I started cleaning the casa – I did laundry, moved all the furniture in our bedroom and vacuumed, dusted, cleaned bathrooms and windows- and also made dinner in advance so it would be ready when we came home tonight.

I made guacamole (using the usual ingredients: onion, tomato, mashed cado, lemon juice, garlic powder, hot sauce, cumin, sea salt and pepper)

And pinto and avocado enchiladas from Eat, Drink and Be Vegan. If you don’t have this cookbook yet, I’m thinking you might want to get yourself a copy ASAP. Everything I’ve made from there has been perfection.

I de-veganized the pilot’s enchiladas by adding baked, shredded and seasoned chicken and topped it with organic Mexican blend cheese:

I topped mine with goat cheddar:

I was a little apprehensive about making the enchiladas using small Ezekiel tortillas, but they worked like a charm and not a single one broke in the enchilada rolling process. I also skipped out on using the cashews that the recipe called for because honestly, I don’t want nuts in my enchiladas!

Since I had fresh guacamole in the fridge, I decided to incorporate it into today’s lonchi.

I served it Gena- style on some romaine leaves with a sliced red bell pepper:

And also made a Mexican caprese salad (using grape tomatoes, raw goat cheddar, cilantro, sea salt, pepper, cumin and red chili pepper flakes)

I came up with that idea on the spot, and it was sooooooo scrumptious :D

I choreographed for Zumba, met with my Shape Up group, did 20 minutes on the elliptical chatting with my friend Jeni, a 20 minute heart opening flow podcast from Yoga Download (followed by 15 beautiful minutes of meditation in child’s pose- even though I do find it difficult to quiet my mind and silence the inner Gina), then taught Zumba, trained a client and came home to the pilot and puppers.

I was SO stoked that dinner was waiting and I didn’t have to cook when I got home!

The enchiladas were incredible:

I also had quite a few of these bad johnnies:

(because nothing goes with carbs like more carbs) ;)

dipped into this!

Oooooh, and one of these little guys for dessert:

Well I’m off to… chill :P Have a wonderful night and I’ll see ya tomorrow!

Much love,

Today’s tip: Breathe!!!!! I lot of my clients forget to breathe when we’re strength training. Make sure to exhale on the “grunt” (hardest part) of the movement, like the top of a crunch. You’ll be surprised at how much more effective the workout will become with proper breathing technique.

Summer Shape Up Week 9

2009-06-29T11:58:00.001-07:00

Hey everyone! Hope your day is going well!! Thank you so much for your sweet comments and encouragement regarding the exciting announcement – I’m super stoked about it :D

We only have 4 weeks left of this challenge. Even if you’re just getting started, it’s a great amount of time to make a difference, tone up, and feel amazing. For those of you who have done this plan since the beginning, I hope you’re seeing a significant improvement! I’ve got some awesome prizes lined up so hang in there for the home stretch. Make this last month the best one yet!

Here’s this week’s Summer Shape Up workout:

Summer Shape Up: Week 9
Day 1: Cardio (rolling hills 30-45 minutes) or take an aerobics class

Day 2: Shoulders, chest and back
Cardio- 5 minute warm up
Unilateral shoulder press
Assisted pull up
Walk out push up
Cardio blast- mountain climbers (1 minute)
double-arm dumbbell raise
incline fly press-out combo (can do on the floor instead)
machine ball pullover
Cardio blast- skater exercise (1 minute)
Double crunch (3 sets of 15)
Cardio- 20-30 minutes (moderate intensity)

Day 3: Cardio (sprint intervals for 20 minutes) or take an aerobics class

Day 4: Legs, lower back and abs
Cardio- 5 minute warm up
Limb raises
reverse lunge (add a knee-up by raising your knee up towards your body before stepping back into the lunge)
captain's chair leg raise
Cardio- 5 minutes of hills
booty booster (slide 5)
lunge to plie
dumbbell squat
single-leg stretch
Cardio- 20-30 minutes (moderate intensity)

Day 5: Cardio (steady state 30-45 minutes)

Day 6: Biceps and triceps
Cardio- 5 minute warm up
Dumbbell hammer curl
reverse plank (hold 30-45 seconds)
standing triceps extension
Cardio- 5 minutes sprints
Straight bar cable bicep curl
triceps pushups
long arm crunch
Cardio- 20-30 minutes (moderate intensity)

Day 7: active recovery

Happy training!

Random roadtrip and exciting announcement

2009-06-29T04:58:00.001-07:00

Hey guys!

What a weekend :D

It’s a good thing I told ya I might not be blogging Sunday, because we ended up taking an impromptu roadtrip to Jacksonville to run some errands. The pilot had to pick up a gift for his group commander, and we figured it would be aight to make a day vacation out of it.

On the way down, we munched some amazing raw crackers that Megan made:

(Rosemary crackers and carrot Asian-spiced crackers. Megan makes the BEST raw crackers.. mine are an abomination, so I’m very happy she shares with me)

When we first got into town, we were starving so we stopped at a pizza place for the pilot (who devoured a whole pizza… boys and their metabolisms) and Healthy Way Cafe for me.

I had a beautiful veggie juice with carrots, tomato, celery and cucumber

(Everything at Healthy Way is organic and even the utensils are made out of organic and recycled materials. Pretty sweet, eh?)

And an AWESOME Healthy Way sandwich on Ezekiel with no cheese:

It had tomato, sprouts, broccoli, carrots, cucumber, bell peppers, mushrooms and a red pepper vinaigrette. Love at first bite (Lame phrase, but I’m gonna roll with it haha)

We also make a little stop at the beach!

I made the above sand heart, and mister artsy mc-creative pants pilot made a perfect replica of Bella, laying on her stomach:

Beach bums:

We stopped and bought the gift and then headed to Whole Foods for groceries and dinner.

To my utter dismay (and surprise), the hot bar didn’t have a lot of things I wanted to eat, so I got a little container of greek salad and golden beets

And some brown rice vegetarian sushi:

So good!!! We’re actually driving back in the rain while I type this, but it was such a beautiful day. Here are some of the other foodie highlights from this weekend:

Dinner at Longhorn:

For the first time in forever, I actually couldn’t finish my meal! I had 2 out of 3 shrimp skewers, half of the frozen veggies, and took the 3rd shrimp skewer home along with the sweet potato which I gave to the puppers.

The pilot’s dinner:

(He actually shared a bite of lobster with me this time! Whatta guy)

Shrimp and lobster dip with blue corn and regular tortilla chips:

Vino:

And my delicious Saturday lunch of tomatoes and cado on romaine hearts:

And a cumin-lime dipping sauce made out of raw cashews, lime juice, cumin, sea salt and pepper

Absolutely delicious:

As far as working out goes, I took it pretty easy this weekend. I did have a full-up cardio/weights sesh on Saturday but took the day off on Sunday. During the week, I do so much teaching (and will be adding two more spin classes each week in July) so the weekend is a perfect time to relax, refresh and get my body ready to teach again.

I promised you guys a special announcement…. so here we go:

Remember when I told you guys about 105degrees academy, the first living foods culinary school in the world?? Well, I’M GOING THERE!!!!!!!!!!!! I’m doing the September session and could not be more excited about it. It feels like it’s been a while since I’ve done something academically that I’m truly and genuinely interested in, and as you guys know, I’m a huge fan of raw foods and the culinary aspect of the lifestyle. Back in the undergrad days, I majored in finance because I was always good at math. I figured it would be good to have a business background because I do anticipate opening my own business in the near future. However, finance wasn’t something I was crazy in love with—I just did it to do it (if that makes sense). I’m so ready to learn about something I’m truly passionate about.

Attending the academy at 105 degrees is going to be such a great experience and I hope you guys will be excited to read about my time there. It’s a 4-week course and I’ll certainly miss the pilot, puppies and friends here in the V-town, but it’s only 4 weeks and I think it’s going to be INCREDIBLE! :D Another bonus: Megan might be doing it, too!! Any bloggies out there planning to go to the academy as well?? Please send me an email if you are! :D

Well, I’m off to get started on the Monday to-do list, but the Shape Up plan for this week will be posted at 3pm and I’ll see ya tonight after Zumba and training!

Take care,

Major (mayjah!) congrats to the summer shape up rockstars who got more than 20 points for last week: Brittany, Heather K. and Meghan N.! Wahoooooooo!

Poolside naan

2009-06-27T10:55:00.001-07:00

Heyyyyy :D Hope you’re having a wonderful Saturday so far!!!

You didn’t think I could go more than a week without Indian food, right??? Well, last night I got my fix :D We got it to-go (toga with an “o”) and ate it out by the pool.

Baigan Bhartha (spicy!)

Whole wheat naan:

I live for Indian food… I still can’t believe that I just started eating it a year ago- I’ve been missing out! In college, I had a roommate who was Indian and always wanted to cook for me and I was always like, “Ehhh… it’s ok. But thank you anyway!”. TOTALLY regret that one! So for now, I’m making up for lost naan and spicy delights.

It’s just so good:

The pilot swam while I dangled my feet in the water and read. Summer = the best thing ever

There might have been some of this involved:

(No sulfites detected?? What does that mean exactly? Haha)

I seem to be EXTRA full of antioxidants lately ;)

During the day I also had the usual salad beast:

Some lightly steamed broccoli for a snack (also covered in goat gouda..and red chili pepper flakes). I really wish I could eat it raw, because steaming it is quite a stinky feat

And a “chocolate milk” with hemp milk, Stevia, raw cocoa powder, a frozen nanner, vanilla extract and cinnamon:

A-freaking-mazing :D

This morning started out with a bowl of fruit, since I didn’t have all the juice supplies I wanted (I’m out of my industrial-sized organic spinach tub already).

1 chopped apple and a chopped pear:

I made the pilot some french toast:

And we went to the health food store, Best Buy (so he could get a Wii game he’s been wanting) and Publizzle.

I had a delicious (and unpictured) Supergreen juice from The Main Squeeze and a couple of hours later, munched a Larabar:

That guy I like surprised me with some beautiful roses:

Fresh flowers liven up the casa so much!

Gorgeous

I also made a giant batch of vanilla macaroons:

And some chocolate cinnamon ones :D So if I’ve been promising you macaroons, they’ll be in the mail Monday or Tuesday!

I’m off to float on my raft, hit up the gym, then out to dinner! I will most likely not be blogging tomorrow (I seem to have adapted well to the southern lifestyle of having Sunday off) but I’ll be back Monday with this week’s Summer Shape Up workout, the rest of this weekend’s re-cap and a *very exciting announcement* :D

xoxo,

Gina

Zumba song of the day: “La vida es un carnaval” by Celia Cruz