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Hope you are having a fantastic Friday!!

After yesterday's long day of classes and a sleepy four hour road-trip, I finally made it home!! I have realized that am not very good at doing road-trips by myself, within an hour of driving I was falling asleep at the wheel! So, getting home took me longer than usual because I had to make multiple stops just to get some energy flowing through me. Believe me I tried everything to stay awake, even talked to myself for quite a while! At one of the stops I decided to grab some lunch.

 There weren't many healthy options to choose from at the rest stop. The fruit salad was good, but as you can see the wrap was mainly lettuce :(

I was so happy once I finally got home :) Look what I found!!

 I thought I had lost this bottle, so happy to see it :)  I haven't been drinking much water lately this will definitely help me load up on some H2O.

The parents were still at work when I got home so I decided to make a quick trip to the gym to get my weekly work-out in. Once I got back from the gym the parents were home! It was soooo goood to see them! After catching up, we headed over to my check-out my big bro's new apartment. Lovely family time :)

This morning I woke up super rested! For b-fast I had some foamy coffee, banana,and a mini whole-wheat bagel ( I covered the holes of the bagel with some crunchy PB;)

There is something wrong with the wireless internet in the house :(  So,  today I am working from my dad's computer. It is so weird working with a PC, I am such a Mac brat ;)

Are you a PC or a Mac?? 

How embarassing I am still wearing PJ's!! Well I am off to get ready and meet momma for lunch :) But before I do I am entering Katie's iHerb giveaway! Hope to win so I can try some Maca :) 

Out of the Rut

Hump-day!! It's all downhill from here ;)

And just one day away from Thursday! See, I have a countdown going because after Thursday's classes my weekend begins. I am making a road-trip down to SoFla, aka "home sweet home"... or just South Florida.  I can't wait to see the familia, I haven't seen them in way too long :) OH yeah, I am also going down for a law school open-house! I am a bit anxious about it because this is one of the schools I am hoping to get into (fingers-crossed). I just hope the weather gets better, it has been raining here all day today and I don't want to have to drive in the rain :( ... But enough of my rant. 

Yesterday, was weight training day w/ Rusty! (fourth week). I must admit these weight training sessions have seriously gotten me out of my exercise rut!  Since I started to incorporate weight training to my workouts I have seen great results :)

*Mixin' it Up*

Warm up on treadmill for 5 mins. (4.5 speed and 3.0 incline)

*Weight Training Exercises*

1.  Lay Chest Over Ball: Push-Ups --> (3 sets 15-20 repetitions)

2. Wall Squat --> (3 sets of 15-20 repetitions)
           - I add 10 lbs. free weights
        

3. Cable Row ( 3 sets of 15-20 repetitions)
         -Challenging weight
4. Tricep Overhead Extensions w/ Dumbbells ( 3 sets of 15-20 repetitions)
         - I do 15 lbs. weights

5. Biceps ( 3 set of 15-20 repetitions)
6. Ball Exchange- Abs (3 sets of 45 secs.)

• *Cardio Interval on Treadmill* 
1. 5 minute warm up
2. Run 2 mins. @ speed 5.5 - 6.5 
3. Run 1 min. @ speed 7.0- 8.0 
4. Repeat step 2 & 3, 3-4 times. 
5. 5 minute cool down 

  I do this workout 3x's a week, but each week I change the weight training exercises. However, the cardio interval  has remained the same I have just increased the speed as the weeks go by. The other 2-3 days I focus on cardio: spinning, running, or playing tennis! 

Doesn't all that work deserve a treat? ;) 

Tonight Rusty invited me to some YogurTopia!

 Such a cute place :) 

Our FroYos! Of-course mine is the one on the left since I gave up chocolate for Lent :) I had some vanilla yogurt w/ bananas and strawberries. 

Great Hump-Day Treat :) What are your favorite fro-yo toppings?

BFF... Bowling, Friends, and Food!!

I ended up going bowling last night with Rusty and a couple of friends. Before meeting up with everyone over at the bowling alley, we grabbed a quick bite to eat at "Designer Greens". I got the half/half option, avocado salad and mediterranean panini.  This meal alone was $10 with no drink!!!

Doesn't it bother you when you spend money on a meal you could have easily made at home and saved some money?!?

That's kind of how I felt about this meal!!

 But, after having a bite of the salad I had a change of heart ;) The salad was gOoOD,  it had avocado, egg, mandarins, candied pecan, red onion, corn and goat cheese. Next time, I will just get the salad to make it a bit more feasible, or make it at home.

Bowling was a ton of fun. Surprisingly, I had a couple of strikes, and in the first game I actually broke 100!!! I wanted to beat Rusty but I stood no chance :(

Check out the action shot!!

After bowling, I was pooped and went home straight to bed.

This morning I made oats with a twist :)

• Oats 
• Almond Milk 
• Greek Yogurt 
• Cherry pie filling 
• PB

The twist = Cherry Pie Filling, it gave the oats a yummy tanginess! This mix reminded me of a PB&J sandwich!! Great b-fast to start my Tuesday.

Today, classes were long. Once I finally got home I made a quick bite to eat, burger and fries ;) Two of my favorites  bean burgers and sweet potato fries (baked).

What is your favorite food duo??? 

Simply Yummy

Happy Monday!!!

Hope you had a great weekend :) Why do weekends go by soOo fast??? :'(

This morning I woke up feeling a bit creative and decided to create a sweet Quinoa concoction ;)

Sweet Quinoa Ingredients:

• 1 cup of Quinoa (cooked) 
• 1/2 cup of Almond Milk (vanilla flavored) 
• 1 tbsp of Almond Butter 
• 1 tbsp of Honey (or you can use bananas to sweeten it up)
• Cinnamon (as much as you like!) 

1. Heat up the Almond Milk with Quinoa
2. Add the Honey and Cinnamon 
3. Boil until the Quinoa turns thick and creamy 
4. Stir in the Almond Butter and top off with any ingredient of your liking! 

At first, I was a bit skeptical about how this was going to turn out but it ended up goOod. I love the texture of Quinoa, and I am happy I was able to incorporate it as a b-fast option! (I cooked so much of Quinoa!)

I did some schoolwork and then headed to a spin class. Loved today's instructor, she had an awesome mix and was very energetic!!

Jammin' Songs of the Day: 

1. Shut it Down 
2.  In my Head

Spinning class was about 1 hr. long, and I loved every minute of it! Depending on the spin class I can burn anywhere from 400-600 calories per class. This class:

Calories: 530 

Cal. Fat: 20% 

Avg. Heart Rate: 165 

Max. Heart Rate: 185

 I was hangry after spinning!  I made the quickest lunch possible:  crumbled bean burger, wholly spicy guacamole, and salsa on top of some brown rice. 

After lunch I looked over this awesome cookbook , "Simply Organic". I got it as a gift from my parents!! 

This book "is a simple way to start you and your family in the path to organic living". I can't believe I had neglected this book for so long. I am going to try to make a recipe from this book sometime this week ( everything looks so good)!!! 

Do you buy organic food? Why or why not?

Now Generation

Impatient!

Whether its friends, family, or boyfriend, they all come to the same conclusion, I lack patience. As one of my new year's resolutions I figured it would be smart to work on becoming a bit more patient. It became a resolution not because I felt it was a flaw but just because everyone else thought it was a problem. I had never truly considered how my lack of patience actually had a negative effect on my life. But I think yesterday it hit me!

Rusty has been trying to teach me how to play tennis for the past couple of weeks and yesterday he really wanted to play. I was angry upset because I wanted to go to the gym instead. Honestly, the main reason I didn't want to  play tennis was because I get too frustrated. Frustrated because I make a lot of mistakes and who likes that??? (impatient!). Regardless, we ended up at the tennis courts and from the beginning I had a bad attitude. I wasn't putting in any effort and every ball I hit went straight into the net!! Rusty was so upset with the way I was acting that 5 minutes in he was ready to leave. I realized that I was allowing my impatience to ruin my day.

 The Black Eyed Peas would say impatience is a trait of the "Now Generation"(listen!) haha. Our generation just wants instant results, hence high speed Internet, products such as Quick Trim, and crash diets that promise you will lose 10 lbs in one week!  I realize I am too impatient to give certain "things" time, if there aren't instant results I switch to a new "thing". I can see that being impatient can have a negative effect on many aspects of our life. Whether its a diet, workout regiment, or even learning something new (to play tennis), if we don't see the results we expect we are quick to "throw in the towel". By being impatient I could have missed out on an awesome time with Rusty and would have ruined our Saturday. Once I sucked up the fact that I wasn't going to be a perfect tennis player we had a blast and I ended up playing better than I would have ever expected! So next time you are ready to give up on something because you are not getting the results you want, DON'T! Be patient and the results will come as long as you keep at it ;)

Do you think you are impatient?

By the time we got back from playing tennis it was dinner time. We grabbed a quick bite to eat at Teriyaki Experince, the meal is prepared right in front of you and the best part it is they use water instead of oil to cook it! I got a Pan-Asian Shrimp Noodle Bowl, it is soo goOod!

 And after dinner we gathered with some friends for game night!!! We decided to play Monopoly it was a lot of fun even though I didn't win :(

All my properties are the ones on the left, can u bleieve I lost!! OH well I had a good time. Hope your wekend is going great!!!

Kee-no-wa!

Yesterday I decided to make some Quinoa, wanted a lil' change from brown rice. Quinoa is a very versatile grain (like rice) there are many recipes in which Quinoa can be incorporated in; vegetarian stew, salads, pilafs... And not only is quinoa goOod but it is also goOod for you, it has the highest protein content of any grain (1 cup of cooked Quinoa has 8g of protein).

How to Cook Quinoa:

1. In a cooking-pot soak 1 cup of Quinoa in water for about 30 minutes. Soaking helps loosen the outer coating (saponin) of the Quinoa , which can give it a bitter taste.

2. Drain the Quinoa well in a strainer, transfer to a cooking-pot, add 1- 1/2 cups of water (many recipes call for 1/2 tsp if desired). I don't add any salt that way I can season it to my liking when I use it. I have been wanting to make a Quinoa pudding and that wouldn't be too good if I used salty Quinoa.

3. Cover and cook at medium heat,  I used level 3 in stove top, for about 25 minutes.

4. If it looks a bit wet allow it to cook for a couple more minutes. After 25 minutes it was perfectly done for me. Once you see its nice and fluffy, remove from stovetop and let cool with the cover on for five minutes.

5. You should have great Qunioa!

(Note: 1 cup of dry Quinoa will procude 3 cups cooked)

Once it was completely cooled I was able to refrigerate it. Now I can use it for lunch and dinner! Having things pre-cooked is a good way to make life a bit less stressful. I can have many a quick and healthy meals by having the Qunioa already prepared.

 

I made this lunch in less than 15 minutes! Just added some tomatoes, peppers, and onions to the Quinoa and topped it off with a Gardeins Tuscan Breast.

A gRReat Trio!

It's finally over!! 

 In my school Speech is a mandatory class everyone has to take in order to graduate. Most people take Speech their freshmen year of college to get it out of the way. But since I am not like most ;)  I pushed this class off to my last semester in college! Honestly the thought of public speaking really scared me. But regardless of that today I had to give yet another speech (two down, two more to go). Last night I must have practiced my speech over millionzzz of times, I had a wonderful audience (my friend Jen). Don't know how she managed to listen to me for that long without wanting to kill me!!! I think it went well, just happy it's over! 

Since I was so busy this morning practicing my speech, I had this b-fast: 

Greek yogurt with a crumbled granola bar. This was my first time trying out Yoplait's Greek yogurt and I must say I was disappointed :( I felt that it was lacking creaminess and tanginess, from now on I'll stick to FAGE :)

For lunch I was really in the mood for a bean burger. I have been craving a bean burger for a while but since I have had no time to make them (homemade bean burger recipe) . Instead, I had this lovely trio so it would settle my fix. 

The spicy black bean burger went perfectly with the spicy guacamole,  it turned out scrumptious! My new favorite trio ;) 

Tonight is movie night *Julie & Julia* So I made a quick dinner; brown rice, grilled chicken w/ red and green peppers. 

Gotta go Julia is waiting! And my  chocolate-less sweet ;) 

 Have a GRREAT FRIDAY!!!!!! 

Giving up my "vice"

Hump-day is finally here!!!!

Hope your week is going hella-good :)  Not only is today hump-day but it is also Ash Wednesday, which signifies the beginning of Lent. In an article I read it stated that "in Lent many people give up a vice to further enhance their spiritual journey". Personally,  I take a vice as being a personal weakness or a bad habit. So, I have decided that I am going to give up chocolate, my numero uno personal weakness. Chocolate... I will miss u! 

This wonderful morning began with a hearty bowl of oatmeal topped off w/ crumbled banana walnut bread  (Rusty's mom made it, so good)

Oatmeal: 
-1/2 cup of Almond Milk 
-1/2 cup of Oats 
-Cinnamon
-Small banana 
-Crumbled Banana Walnut Bread (as soon as I get my hands on the recepie I will post it)

I was starved this morning and this bowl of oatmeal was just what I needed.

Last night was circuit-training day with Rusty. So happy and clean before heading to the gym to get all sweaty!

 

 After the tough workout we headed to one of my favorite places, HummusHouse, to grab a quick dinner. Every time I go there I get the Greek Salad, their ingredients are so fresh and the hummus rocks my socks! 

It's so good!

I always try to eat within an hour after training, because that is when your muscles absorb the most nutrients. I guess that's why I felt starved this morning eh!

Hope You Have a Happy Wednesday!

Early Bird???

I was up at 6:30 this morning! Sometimes I find it easy to get up but today definitely wasn't one of those days. Guess I am not much of an early bird. I was so warm and cozy under the covers I did not want to move. For these lazy days when I don't have time to create a decent breakfast.... I rely on instant oatmeal :/

*True Delights* Instant Oatmeal Review(Hazelnut Latte): This was my first time trying anything from the new Quaker "True Delights" line. I must say it wasn't bad, the yummy hazelnut smell permeated my kitchen, for a moment I thought I was in a coffee shop! (who doesn't love the smell of coffee in the morning!) I also enjoyed added hazelnuts in the oatmeal mixture, it added some texture and yummy nuttiness. Overall it is one of the better instant-oatmeal I have had!

When you don't have much time what is your go to grab-n-go breakfast?

I spent my morning at UCF's Einstein Bagels waiting for my next class to begin. Many of the options they have for breakfast are not very healthy, but its always soooo busy (look at the line!).  Bagels and cheese very popular, but I think I will stick to my oats ;)

A bit of Pineapple will make it better

I was able to get most of the cleaning done but I still have some laundry to do :(  As I cleaned up, lunch time came around so I decided to make a quick salad.

 

Just some spring mix, grape tomatoes, and avocado. To add some healthy protein to the meal, I made Gardein's (meat free) Santa Fe Good Stuff, it has 19g of protein and only 160 calories. Best of all it is delicioso and quick! You pop it in the microwave for 2 minutes and its ready for eatin'.

After finishing up some schoolwork I headed to the UCF gym for a spinning class!! It was a great class, I always come out soaken wet with sweat ewww ;)   After class I headed to the tennis courts which are right next to the gym. While I waited for the BF to get to the courts, I munched on a mini CLIF bar  they were handing them out in the gym.

 

The BF is teaching me to play tennis, he played for a "looong time" ( his whole childhood years).  And now he has become my coach!! I really enjoy playing with him, he has tons of patience and IF I learn we will be able to actually play together.  

These are the UCF tennis courts, don't they look pretty :)

After tennis it was time for dinner and the BF (my Chef) made it :) It turned out so goOod. Grilled Mahi-Mahi over a bed of spring mix, and whole grain rice (Uncle Ben's 90 second), and topped off with a fabulous pineapple sauce (creation of the BF).

 

After such a crazy Monday its time for bed! I have a real early class tomorrow, 7:30 a.m. to be exact :( Hope you all had a great Monday :)

Monday Madness!

I overslept today :( Mondays are definitely not good days for oversleeping but after yesterday's work-out my body definitely in need of some rest. Rusty and I have been doing circuit workouts every other day (this is our 4th week). Each week we switch up the exercises, that way we focus on different muscles and  keep our body guessing (prevents your body from hitting a plateau). This weeks' workout invovles various exercises on the medicine ball along with free weights. My upper body is soar, yay :)

Since I was so busy this weekend there were many things that did not get done.  I have some crazzy cleaning to do, schoolwork, grocery shop, and somewhere in there fit in a spinning class.

Luckily I already got the grocery shoppping out of the way. Here are some snacks I got for the week.

 

I love Greek yogurt, it is also better for you than regular yogurt because it is lower in sugar and higher in protein, which in the long run makes you feel fuller. This is the first time I will be trying Yoplait's Greek yogurt, since it was a bit cheaper than Chobani and Fage figured I would give it a go.  I will let you know if they compare

I plan on making yummy salads for lunch this week, so I got this: 

I have loads of old-fahioned Oats for b-fast but I was tempted to try these new True Delights instant-otameal packs. We will see if they are any good.

Obvi for some entertainment I got the Fitness Magazine!!  Mmm... what do you think the 7 fighting dinners could be?

 

Well I am off to continue my Monday Madness. Happy Monday :)  

Valentine's Weekend

Happy Valentine's Day bloggies!!!

Don't you just love Valentine's Day?? I think its a great chance to let the people in your life know just how much you love them. I sent my parents a package full of goodies, they loved it!! And made this yummy Black Forest Tarts for the BF, they turned out gOOOOd! (Thanks for the recipe Gina :)). I did run into a bit of trouble when melting the white chocolate because the power of the microwave was too high, but once I lowered it it all worked out.

This weekend has been loads of fun . Yesterday Rusty (the bf) and I went to Daytona to watch a NASCAR race, it was our first time. I was really hesitant about going, I just did not know anything much about NASCAR and wasn't sure I was going to enjoy it. Surprisingly Rusty and I had blast. I ended up rootin' for Danica its all about GirlPOWER!! ( I even got a shirt ;))

Check out the awesome view we had!

It was a sooo chilly out, I was so happy the BF brought the blanket :) 

After the Daytona trip we were exhausted! I am glad we actually went, it was something different but fun. Don't ever be hesitant of trying out something new you might be surprised of how much you will enjoy it.

Today Rusty made me a delicioso and healthy Valentine's Day  lunch. He made a chicken sandwich, with his special lime guacamole spread (awesomeliciousness), sweet potato thin, and healthy sides. 

After such a good lunch,  I have all the energy I need for a fun Valentine's Day workout with my Valentine! I am so happy Rusty understands how much I love working out and we incorporate in some of our moments together. Having a buddy to work out with makes it a lot easier and fun! Later tonight we plan on eating out and maybe catching a movie. Any movie recommendations? 

Let the Adventure Begin!

Hello Blogoshphere!!!!

I cannot believe I am finally writing my first post! I have been a follower of many healthy-living blogs for quite some time and have always wanted to create my own blog. The ladies (Tina, Gina, Kath, Bobbi, Meg, and many others) that I follow have honestly been an inspiration to me, and it has encouraged me to become part of this lovely community. This is so exciting! But enough of my first-day jitters :)

Let me tell you a little bit about me :) I am currently attending UCF (Orlando, Florida) and doing my last semester. I will be a graduate in less than 3 months, it is crazy how time flies!! Although I am super excited to graduate, there is just something so scary about CHANGE. I have been living in Orlando for 4 years, it is weird not knowing where I will be in a couple of months. I have applied to various law schools but I am still waiting to hear from them :( I try not to let this stress me out, we can't always have complete control over every situation in our lives, right? And that's what makes life such an adventure, you never know what you are going to get.

Trying to live a healthy and active life-style as a college student has not been an easy task. I am sure all of you know how tempting it is for a college student (or anyone in general) just to order a pizza rather than make a healthy home-cooked meal, or spend nights out with friends guzzling down beer and doing some more "pizza" eating ;) hehe. As difficult as it has been I have learned to incorporate healthy-living choices in my everyday life, and hope to share my "Active Adventure" with all of you :)