From ‘Joe to Glo

When I got off work today I headed straight to Staples to pick up our wedding invitations. Since we created them ourselves, I sent them to Staples to have them printed on cardstock one of their high-tech printers.

They turned out pretty nice… but not perfect. I definitely want to add a little ribbon or something to make them look a little fancier. Ryan likes them and I think I may be looking at them too critically. Hopefully once I add a few personal touches I’ll be happier with the final product. I just don’t want our invitations to look too homemade. Crafty-looking = good, cheap looking = bad.

Let’s hope they come together. There’s still a lot to do related to these invitations!

Dinner

After spending about an hour at Staples (there were some issues with the cutting machine), I headed home and go to work on dinner.

Tonight we enjoyed sloppy joes with roasted Brussels sprouts.

I love the vinegary taste of these ‘joes! I made them using my mom’s recipe and they’re oh-so-tasty!

I prepared the Brussels sprouts by chopping off the ends, slicing them in half and tossing them in olive oil and garlic salt. I then roasted them in the oven at 400 degrees for about 20 minutes, flipping halfway through.

After dinner I was craving a sweet treat, and since Operation Healthy is in full swing, I made sure to make my evening snack a healthy one!

Thanks to Lindsay, selecting a healthy sweet treat was easy! I received a box full of Glo Bars and Barney Butter packets from Lindsay in the mail today and happily selected an Endure Glo Bar to try.

I’ve seen these bars all over Angela’s blog and was so happy when Lindsay reached out to me to send me some to try for myself.

The Endure bar was chewy and chock-full of cranberries. I can’t wait to enjoy another one of these babies for breakfast tomorrow. Thanks again, Lindsay! 😀

I’m hoping to make it an early night tonight so I’ll see you crazy kids in the mornin’.

Sleep well!

How to Work Out in the Morning

Buy one, get one free deals get me every time.

Thanks to a fantastic BOGO deal at Publix yesterday, I now have two packages of Toufayan thin bagels in the delicious “everything” flavor.

Everything bagels are so flavorful. I don’t generally like thin bagels, but the everything flavor is a good one. I love the combination of the onion flavor with the texture of the poppyseeds. Yum!

Everything Bagel + Cheese

For lunch I made myself a Provolone cheese bagelwich that I enjoyed with a side of grape tomatoes and a sliced red pepper.

Bagelwich

Red Hot!

Lunch also included a fresh apple.

A Taste of Fall

Monday Lunch

Operation Healthy appears to be in full swing! 😀

How to Work Out in the Morning

Beep, beep, beep!

What? The sound of your morning alarm doesn’t motivate you to wake up early and hit the gym? 😉

In all seriousness, it can be very hard to get to the gym at any time during the day, let alone before the sun comes up.

I remember when I made the transition from afternoon workouts to morning workouts. In my first job after college, I hit the gym after work. I got off work at 4:30 p.m. and was able to work out and still be home by 6 p.m. This schedule worked very well for me.

Then I changed jobs. All of the sudden my hours were all over the place. I’d often be at work after 7 p.m., and frequently found myself in the office later than 9 p.m. It was not fun. (Side note: I was seriously miserable in that job and quit after finding a new job less than eight months later. Lesson learned: Bigger pay check does not equal happiness!)

As I became accustomed to my new schedule, I found myself irritated that my varying hours and demanding workload cut into my gym time.

Gradually it became clear to me that if I wanted to make my health a priority and get my heart pumpin’, I had to work out before I went into the office. This meant waking up in the 5 a.m. hour. The horror!

The first week was a challenge. My workouts were not nearly as intense and I felt sluggish.

The next week wasn’t so bad. By Wednesday, I felt like my workouts were returning to their normal intensity. Plus, it felt amazing to be done with my workout as I headed into the office. Checking something off my to-do list before 7 a.m. felt great!

Once the third week of my new morning workout routine rolled around, it felt natural. I didn’t have the desire to sleep in anymore because I felt like I would be missing something. I didn’t want to drive to work without that feeling of post-workout satisfaction.

As I shifted my work outs to the morning, I found the transition easier by following these little tips:

• Commit to it: Your first morning workout will not be fun. You’ll be tired and cranky, but that’s okay! Don’t give up. General consensus says it takes around 21 days to make a habit. Commit to keeping up your morning workouts for 21 days and they will begin to feel like part of your routine.

• Schedule a Workout You Want to Do: For your first morning workout, schedule a workout you want to do. Don’t tackle sprints or a five-mile run on your first morning workout if this is the workout you dread the most! Plan to take your favorite spinning class, walk your dog, or bring a friend with you for an early morning yoga session to give yourself something to look forward to when you get to the gym.

A Walk with Sadie: A Work Out I Always Look Forward To!

• Revel in the Post-Workout Sense of Accomplishment: When your morning workout is over, make a mental note to remember how great it feels to have your workout done before the day really begins. Remember this feeling when the alarm goes off in the morning.

• Make it Easy on Yourself: Make getting to the gym in the morning as effortless as possible by laying out your workout clothes, filling up your water bottle and having your keys ready the night before. (Click here for my tips on streamlining your morning routine.)

• Enjoy that “I’d normally be at the gym right now” Feeling: When I switched my workout to the morning, I loved thinking “I’d normally be at the gym right now” around 5 p.m., when I would typically be working out. It made me appreciate the effort I put into getting my workout done earlier in the day.

*Special thanks to blog reader Katie for inspiring this post! 😀

Of Possible Interest:

• My yogurt mousse mentioned on WomansDay.com (WomansDay.com)
• A beautiful post from Gabriela about learning to love yourself (Une-Vie-Saine.com)
• Red face following a workout: What’s the deal? (FitSugar.com)

Question of the Afternoon

• When do you prefer to workout… morning, afternoon or night?

Operation Healthy

Last night around 10 p.m. Ryan and I both laid in bed feeling overly full. We were both experiencing a serious sugar coma.

Sugar Coma

This weekend was quite the sugary feast. Between the two of us we polished off:

• An Oreo creme pie
• A batch of Funfetti cake mix cookies
• Several mini desserts from Carrabba’s
• One pint of Ben & Jerry’s ice cream
• Small batch of scones
• Several helpings of animal crackers

Before drifting off to sleep, we declared that today would be the start of “Operation Healthy.”

Both of us have been snacking on a lot of sweets lately and I’ve noticed myself feeling more lethargic and sluggish than usual. I can only attribute this to the myriad of indulgent treats I’ve been enjoying daily.

I am all for indulging every day, but in moderation. A cookie or two every day is completely fine, but I haven’t been eating just one cookie. I’ve been enjoying birthday cake at work, baked goods at home and overly indulgent weekends.

Operation Healthy commences today and we’re working together to shift our sweet tooth away from inordinate amounts of baked goods. I love to bake, but a whole batch of cookies chillin’ in a home where only two people live spells trouble… especially when those two people are self-proclaimed cookie monsters.

I will still have my daily treats, but they will be controlled and limited to one or two yummy goodies every day. I don’t want to gorge on ice cream since it only leaves me feeling overly stuffed and lethargic. This decision is not motivated by my weight, but rather by my health and the way I’ve been feeling. I want my energy back! Watch out spinach, here I come! 😀

Workout

I slept like a ROCK last night. I think I yawned my way through BodyPump this morning, and by the time I was actually awake, the class was over. One of the many benefits of early morning workouts!

After the Pump, I took Sadie on a 40-minute walk around the lake near our apartment. Today was apparently “awesome stick day” because Sadie tried to entice me with about five different sticks. She jumped around like a nut job and got quite a few smiles from strangers. Sure, it’s cute when she’s not yours. 😉 Just kiddin’… I love my stick-obsessed pup!

Breakfast

Breakfast was sweet, but healthy! Operation Healthy is in full swing! 😀

Yog + Fruit

Today’s morning meal included a bowl of Greek yogurt, topped with slices pineapple, nectarine and strawberries.

Up Close & Personal

Monday Breakfast

Protein-packed, sweet, creamy, and delicious! Score!

Question of the Morning

• Do you find it difficult to stop eating indulgent foods once you start?
• How to you switch back to healthy eating?