Victory!!!

VICTORY is mine!!! 😀

Guess what I did this morning?

I went running!

6 Mile Stats

And my heel didn’t hurt. Plantar fasciitis ain’t got nuffin’ on me! 😉

Truth be told, I am beginning to think I don’t have full-blown plantar fasciitis.

Though the “running expert” at our local running store felt my foot last week  and said he was pretty sure I had plantar fasciitis, I did a lot of research and talked to more people about the symptoms of the condition. I have come to the conclusion that I may have a very mild case of plantar fasciitis, but that the real pain I was experiencing in my heel last week was likely due to a bruised heel.

Ninety-five percent of the pain I was experiencing in my heel occurred on impact, when I would walk or run. It sounds like those with plantar fasciitis feel tightness and pain regardless of whether or not they’re running or walking.

After noticing pretty intense pain in my heel, I gave myself a little more than a week off from running completely. 

My heel started to  feel remarkably better on Wednesday of this week.Though I was tempted to run on Thursday, I told myself to take a couple more days of rest and save my first attempt at running for this morning.

At 8 a.m., I leashed up Sadie for a run around the lake near our apartment. I promised myself I would stop at the slightest sign of pain. Six miles later our run was done and I was still pain free!

I am so happy. I feel like I will be able to at least participate in the half marathon on August 1. Now I just have to build up my mileage after 2+ weeks off of running my long runs. Eek!

Breakfast

Breakfast this morning resembled yesterday’s lunch because I couldn’t stop thinking about how delicious my spiced up peanut butter and banana sandwich was during my run this morning. (There are some adorable odes to different foods in the comment section of that post that you should check out if you’re in the mood for a smile. 🙂 )

I made myself a pb & b sandwich with Krema natural creamy peanut butter combined with one tablespoon of caramel sauce on one slice of honey wheat bread and banana slices on the other slice.

Banana + Pumpkin Pie Spice

I sprinkled everything with pumpkin pie spice before slicing the sandwich and digging in.

Saturday Morning Breakfast

I don’t know about you, but I find that spreading refrigerated natural peanut butter can be a huge pain. I recently started microwaving the tablespoon or two of peanut butter I remove from the jar for on my sandwich before spreading it, which makes it much easier to spread. Just a lil’ tip!

Ooey-Gooey Peanut Buttery

The Goods

This breakfast was a slam dunk! 😀

Today’s Plans

Today will be a busy but fun day!

Our plans include:

• Returns at the mall
• Pool time
• Select the tuxes/suits for Ryan & his groomsman for our wedding
• Register at Bed Bath & Beyond

Annnnnd I’m off!

A Most Fitting Giveaway

As I was roasting eggplant for our dinner last night, I made sure to reserve some of the roasted vegetable for my lunch today.

Eggplant + Marinara

My mid-day meal included the eggplant in a noodle bowl  featuring Carba Nada egg fettuccine with marinara sauce and fresh spinach.

Noodle Bowl

Thursday's Lunch!

I used to eat noodle bowls several times a week… What happened? I love these guys! I think they may be making a comeback soon…

Krema & Crazy Richards Peanut Butter Giveaway

Could there be a more appropriate giveaway for this blog???

As demonstrated by the multiple peanut butter fingers of Krema peanut butter I enjoyed this morning, I am quite a fan of Krema and Crazy Richards peanut butter. Both varieties are all-natural with only one ingredient: peanuts!

Exhibit A

Sch-weet, huh?

Not only are these peanut butters good by the spoonful (or fingerful 😉 ) but I’ve also used them in smoothies, sandwiches, and peanut butter stuffed French toast with tasty results.

Now it’s your turn to enjoy your own peanut butter fingers full of this creamy goodness!

The wonderful people at Krema/Crazy Richards Peanut Butter Company have agreed to send three winners a jar of creamy peanut butter and a jar of crunchy peanut butter. Two jars! Woohoo!

To enter this giveaway, please comment telling me about your favorite way to enjoy peanut butter.

(And yes, in a Reese’s peanut butter cup is an acceptable answer. 😉 )

Using Random.org, I will randomly select three winners tomorrow afternoon.

PBF Overload

I have a very intense and passionate relationship with peanut butter. Most days our relationship is healthy and balanced. On some days, however, I get a little needy.

Like today, for instance.

One of Many PBFs

This morning I could not get my finger out of the peanut butter jar!

My victim of choice was Krema crunchy peanut butter which I received from the company to sample.

Krema Natural Crunchy Peanut Butter

I am a chunky-pb fanatic, and I couldn’t get over just how crunchy this peanut butter was!

Check Out the Chunks

There were tons of peanutty chunks in every peanut butter finger I enjoyed, and believe me, I had a bunch.

Since peanut butter fingers dominated my morning and I’m pretty sure I ate 300+ calories worth of the good stuff, I kept my breakfast on the lighter side.

I toasted a sweet wheat Alternative Bagel before topping it with two tablespoons of chocolate PB2.

Chocolate PB is Fine By Me

Thursday Breakfast

Like every morning, I also enjoyed a chocolatey calcium supplement (I switch off between Viactiv and Adora calcium disks).

Adora Calcium Disk

This was one PB-tastic way to start the day!

Workout

I think my body was craving the calories from peanut butter after a 5-mile run with Sadie.

During our run we were sprayed by three different sprinklers! Floridians apparently enjoy watering their sidewalks as well… 😉

Of Possible Interest

• Early Morning Exercise Tips (FitSugar.com)
• 10 Fat-Burning Carbs (Health.com)
• Good Post-Workout Meals (CookingLight.com)

A Little Crazy in Our Lives

Sometimes we all need a little crazy in our lives.

Crazy Richards Peanut Butter

Crazy Richards has been my go-to peanut butter the past few days.

I received several jars of Crazy Richards and Krema peanut butter from the company to sample (stay tuned for a giveaway soon!), and was pleased to see that the only ingredient in the peanut butter was peanuts! Ya can’t get more natural than that! 😀

At first I thought the peanut butter was really runny until I realized that refrigerating the jar made it regain the thickness I normally associate with yummy peanut butter. Once I did that, it was smooth (delicious) sailing.

Snack

My mid-morning snack was a peanut butter finger, followed by a piece of honey wheat bread topped with more Crazy Richards natural creamy peanut butter.

PB Fo' Me

With a full belly, I headed out to the pool to soak up some sun while flipping through magazines, painting my toenails and catching up with my friend Leah on the phone.

Lunch

I came home hungry for lunch.

Lunch started with a mini Mexican roll-up.

Pre-Rolled

Rollin' on a River

Along with the roll-up, I shared a big plate (seriously BIG) of rutabaga fries with Ryan.

Rutabaga Fries

Close Up

Dip-a-Dip

It’s kinda nice to eat such a ginormous portion of fries and not worry at all about the bazillions of calories, grease, trans fat and oil you’re ingesting. Rutabaga fries = awesome.

Now it’s shower time… I hope to make it to the bridal boutique before it closes at 5 p.m. to finalize my bridesmaid dresses today, but I think I may be cuttin’ it a little close on time. Hurry, hurry!!