Random confessions from the Rodeo...

Happy Monday blogging beauties. I hope you're all having a lovely day!

Mine has been more chipper than the norm. Very odd for a Monday! I'd like to thank Mr. Warm Weather and Miss. Sunshine for my joy filled state of mind. Spring is definitely in the air and it's sweet stench tickles my nose with fury. I'm loving every single second of it!

BREAKFAST (meal #1) at 9:20am.

The usual bowl of nutrition to keep my magnificent brain fueled at work.

• 1/2 cup old fashioned oats
• 1/4 wheat bran
• 1 1/2 cups water
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• dash apple pie spice
• pinch salt
• Splenda
• (Microwaved and topped with 1 tbs ground flax, 2 tbs sugar free cherry preserves, 1 tbs Better N' Peanut Butter)

Creamy crack goodness to power me right through my morning.

Random Confession #1 - Every time I use the bathroom at work, I do 10 plie squats and 15 "girlie" push ups off of the sink... HEY, every little bit counts. I sit on my butt all day at work and it feels good to get "something" in. I drink the a LOT of water so it adds up. :)

LUNCH (meal #2) at 12:30pm.

I brought in leftover sauteed veggies and edamame to make a quick and easy lunch! I swear they tasted even better than yesterday. I also had a Thomas's wheat bagel thin on the side with a bit of Spray Butter. I definitely got my veggies in today!


Work was a bit WILD. I felt like a rugged cowgirl trapped at a Buckin Bronco Wild West Rodeo Show. YEEHAW. I lassoed up Ann before completely losing my mind and we mozied on over to Barnes & Nobles for a bit of peace and quiet.


I read a few travel books on Ocracoke Island, NC for the upcoming vacation and sipped on a small African Autumn Tea. It was just what I needed to regain my inner peace.

I also found some intriguing leads with my research. :)


Random Confession #2 - Lately I've been having more than one cup of coffee a day. I was doing really well with just one in the morning there for a while. However, I've been craving them like mad lately. I guess it could be worse. If sipping coffee is the worst of my nutritious rebelling then I think I can go on living.

SNACK (meal #3) at 4:00pm.

I smothered a pile of fresh strawberries (maybe 1.5 cups) with plain Dannon Greek yogurt, cinnamon and a sprinkle of Udi's vanilla granola. YUM!


And then we busted out of the rodeo and went straight to the gym. Giddy up yall!

WORKOUT!

I did it a little differently today. I did 4 sets of each move instead of 3 and I started even heavier than usual, aiming for 8 reps of the 1st HEAVY set OR as much as I "could" do.

Tricep pulldown (cable with straight bar)
90lb x 8
80lb x 15
80lb x 15
70lb x 15
Bicep Curls (barbell)
45lb x 8
40lb x 15
35lb x 15
35lb x 15
Front Shoulder Raise (barbell)
30lb x 8
25lb x 15
20lb x 15
20lb x 15
Tricep Pushdown (plate loaded machine, I did the heaviest weight last on this one)
90lb x 15
90lb x 15
90lb x 10
100lb x 7
21's (barbell)
30lb x 21
25lb x 21
25lb x 21
25lb x 21
Standing Military Press (barbell)
40lb x 8
35lb x 15
35lb x 15
30lb x 12
Elliptical Cross Trainer
30 minutes, 2 min. intervals at levels 6 & 10, 2.73 miles

Total time at gym = 1:20
Max HR - 175
Average HR - 144
Total calories burned = 680

Good grief, this left me a sweaty hot mess. I was on the verge of disgusting! Like I walked into a shower with clothes on and then decided to walk around in them for fun. UGH! I flew home with all of the windows down and my sunroof open to "dry" off. HA! It was a GREAT workout though. I left feeling strong and energized.

SNACK (meal #4) at 7:15pm.

I refueled with a nice cold smoothie. I was ready to bust out the blender again to make a frozen magical concoction. I've been taking the easy way out and just shaking a simple shake in my cup lately. I was craving something frozen though!

• 1/2 cup unsweetened vanilla Almond Breeze
• 1 cup water
• 1 scoop chocolate peanut butter whey protein
• 1 banana
• 2 cups ice
• 3 drops fudge brownie Capella flavor drops

Operation smoothiefication was a success. This filled me right up and cooled me down. Pulling double duty like a protein packed champ!

Random Confession #3 - Nick is playing Modern Warfare again. I would just like to officially declare that I hate the game. I hate the running around shoot em up POW-WOW factor of it as well as the constant loudness blasting out of our surround sound. I've got something I would like to shoot. His X-Box. Oh please, oh please, oh please can I? HA!

DINNER (meal #5) at 9:00pm.

Basically dinner can be summed up in one simple word. DELICIOUS! I sauteed a green pepper and an onion in spray butter and taco seasoning. I also microwaved one serving of Morning Star Farms grounds with more taco seasoning and stirred in 2 tablespoons of peach salsa. I added the grounds and half of the veggies into a honey wheat FlatOut along with some fat free cheddar cheese. I folded the wrap in half and toasted both sides until the cheese got all ooey and gooey. I guess you can call it a Quesadilla.


I had the rest of the veggies on the side and topped it all off with a tomato, 1/2 an avocado, fat free sour cream, more peach salsa and fresh cracked black pepper.


Yes, it's okay to drool if you want to. I did! I could barely contain myself long enough to photograph this sexy plate!

I think we're about to watch another episode of Mad Men. We just started watching the show but I'm digging it. Minus the sexist and completely inappropriate portrayal of weak and vulnerable women of the 50's. I'm so glad I live in the now. Though I do adore the fashion, the makeup, the hair and the cars.

Random Confession #4 - If I really like what I'm watching on TV I watch it smiling from ear to ear with my mouth WIDE open. Not just here and there. No! We're talking for the duration of like a 2 hour movie. I do it the entire time!! I've been caught doing this on numerous occasions by Nick and apparently it's hysterical. He has threatened to capture it on film. I'm scared.

Have a great night!
XOXO
Ildie

Ice Cream?

I woke up with BUNDLES of energy today. WHAAAAAAAA! Naturally this translated into a cleaning, organizing and laundry filled frenzy. I figured I better take advantage of my finickiness while it's still running rampant. My mood could suddenly switch to craving precious couch time instead and then it will never get done. Ahh, the smell of lemony cleanliness makes my nose tingle with excitement.

I celebrated my fresh paradise with a nice cup of fudge brownie flavored French press coffee.


And blog reading, naturally!


My stomach started yelling at me at about 9:00 so I fed it a delicious treat.

BREAKFAST (meal #1) at 9:15am.

I had a toasted whole grain english muffin with sugar free strawberry preserves (Smucker's) on one side and spray butter and cinnamon on the other.


I also made a 4 egg white scramble which I seasoned with pink salt and black pepper.


Last but not least, two Morning Star Farms breakfast sausage links drizzled with sugar free syrup.


I got a bit fidgety after breakfast. I distracted myself with an episode of Dexter. We're almost completely done with season 4. Soon there will be no Dexter love left for me to enjoy. I get sad and misty just thinking about it.

Ann called me around noon and asked me to come over to check out her new apartment. She wanted suggestions on where to place some of her knick knacks and smaller pieces of furniture. She's always said that I have "that touch" when it comes to decorating. I happen to agree with her. HA! Sometimes I fantasize about being an interior decorator. That would be such a fun and stress free job! Oh to dream!

LUNCH (meal #2) at 2:00pm.

I had lunch at Mama and Papa Babushka's house as usual. I had a veggie quesadilla. I KNOW, I've been on a quesadilla kick lately. What can I say, I LOVE EM! I mixed a serving of fat free refried beans with Morning Star Farms grounds and taco seasoning. I also sauteed a green pepper and a yellow onion with salt & pepper. I stuffed the bean mixture and veggies into a FlatOut with fat free cheddar cheese and and grilled it to perfection. I had the leftover veggies on the side along with a vine ripe tomato.


SNACK (meal #3) at 5:30pm.

After my visit I came home and decided that I NEEDED ice cream. Not just ANY ice cream. BANANA SOFT SERVE! I busted out the trusty food processor to make a nice bowlful of creamy sweet goodness. I tossed in two frozen bananas (chunks), about 2 tablespoons of unsweetened vanilla Almond Breeze and 3 drops of vanilla custard Capella Drops. I scrapped, blended, scrapped, blended for maybe 5 minutes and it was perfect. The texture was super creamy and delicious. I topped it with a bit of coconut flakes and granola. HEAVEN IN A BOWL I tell you. HEAVEN!


After my icy fuel, I decided to clean the bathroom. The smell of bleach and scrubbing bubbles was rampant in the house for at least a solid hour. I went WILD in there! It needed it though!! Sometimes I really hate my jacuzzi tub!

Nick had his brother Dan over tonight to watch some recorded episodes of the World Rally Championships. EXCITING right? NOPE! :)

I decided to spend the evening upstairs instead. I haven't blogged from bed in a while. Just me, my laptop, kitty and my remote curled up in a fluffy comforter. That sounded WAY more appealing than listening to men screaming back and forth while sipping Red Stripe and waving their hands all about like hyper children. :)

Before my hibernation into man free zone, I made a quick dinner. I didn't feel like cooking so I came up with a quick plate of goodies.

DINNER (meal #4) at 9:00pm.

I had a smoked turkey, spinach and superfruit preserve sandwich on an Ezekiel whole wheat bun. Of course I had to make sure to get my veggies in so I also had carrots, broccoli and cauliflower with hummus on the side.


And for a bit of a treat, I decided to try one of the new Nature's Path granola bars I received the other day. The Chococonut flavor.


Uhm, this little wonder bar was seriously delicious! I mean I'm partial to coconuty things but trust me, it was FABULOUS! It gets a solid 10 of 10 on my tasty-tasty scale. It was moist, chewy and sort of reminded me of an Almond Joy which I LOVE! OMG! Thanks Nature's Path! I hope I can find them in a store somewhere around here!!


I can hear the boys screaming downstairs as I finish this post. Over cars.... ?? I just don't get it! HA!

I have some serious DOMS in my legs right now. I think I'll stretch for a bit and then watch a mix of HGTV, Food Network and "E" until I pass out. Exciting I know. :)

Have a great night!
XOXO
Ildie