Girl I Want to Make You Sweat

“Girl I want to make you sweat,
Sweat ’til you can’t sweat no more…”

(If you’re looking for a super-fun workout song, definitely check that one out! Sweat by Inner Circle… So catchy.)

As you may have gathered from the above lyrics, my workout this morning was super schweaty!

I did a 30-minute treadmill workout that included 20 minutes of intervals that made my face turn bright red and a sweat ‘stache form more times than I could count.

30-Minute Treadmill Workout

I followed up this heart-pumpin’ workout with 10 minutes of light cardio on the elliptical and a one-mile walk with Ryan and Sadie.

Tastes Like Chicken!

It was such a treat to have Ryan join me and Sadie on our walk! He’s been working some crazy hours at work lately and was able to spend a little extra time at home this morning. Sadie made sure to show him what he misses on our walks every morning by picking up every other stick to try to entice him into playtime mid-walk. She’s like a real woman: Never satisfied. 😉

Breakfast

Ooooh breakfast. You are simply fantastic. Hitting the gym so early in the morning is a little bit easier knowing I get to come home and stuff my face with you. 😀

Today’s morning meal included:

• 1 c. Greek yogurt
• 1 large sliced peach
• 1/2 c. cold Butter Pecan Flax-Z-Snax hot cereal (Now discontinued from Netrition.com because of faulty nutrition facts – eek!)
• Honey

Peach + Yog

Peach + Yog + Hot Cereal

Makes Mouth Happy

What a tasty treat!

Honeymoon Update

Stay tuned for the big HONEYMOON announcement! Ahhh! 😀

Of Possible Interest

• Thwart Thunder Thighs in 3 Steps (FitSugar.com)
• Exercise Can Offset Obesity-Linked Genes (LATimes.com)
• Water Fitness Workouts (FitandFabLiving.com)

The Most Awkward Move at the Gym

Today’s workout included the most awkward move you can possibly do at the gym:

Hubba, Hubba

Doesn’t this move seem wildly inappropriate?

Despite the totally embarrassing nature of this move, it really is a great lil’ one to do to target your tushie.

I felt like a complete tool as I completed three sets of this weighted hip thrust, but my butt felt the burn and that’s what I was goin’ for!

Ryan and I have talked in the past about embarrassing moves to do at the gym. One of his favorites is the hip abductor machine.

"Hey, Baby!"

Something about the hip abductor machine just screams, “Hey, baby! Come look at my crotch!”

The things we do in the name of fitness… 😉

Along with 20 minutes of cardio split between the stair master and the elliptical, my workout included this total-body weights routine:

Work it Oooout

Breakfast

Breakfast today included a little experiment.

I read about Bethenny Frankel’s recipe for brown rice hot cereal in a magazine a couple of weeks ago and made a mental note to try to incorporate the healthy grain into my morning meal.

I started with a cup of Fage Greek yogurt.

Fage

Yog-a-Yog

On top of the yogurt, I added brown rice, sliced peaches and nutmeg for some added texture and sweetness.

Brown Rice Breakfast Bowl

I used brown rice from a packet of Uncle Ben’s whole grain brown Ready Rice which made this meal super easy to assemble.

Eat Up, Buttercup!

The verdict?

Deeeeelicious! It reminded me a lot of one of my barley breakfast bowls, but it was easier to prepare since the rice was pre-cooked thanks to good ol’ Uncle Ben.

Time to get to work, friends. See ya fo’ lunch! 😀

Question of the Morning

In your opinion, what is the most embarrassing move you can do in the name of fitness?

I’m sure you yoga-lovers have some good ones!

Caught Up in You

“I’m so caught up in you, little girl
And I never did suspect a thing
So caught up in you, little girl
That I never want to get myself free
And baby it’s true
You’re the one
Who caught me baby, you taught me
How good it could be”

I love that song by 38 Special. I heard it in the gym first thing this morning and it set my day off on the right foot! There’s something about amazing ’80s music that just does it for me. 😀

Sometimes I think I belong in the ’80s…

'80s Night!

Workout

With “Caught Up in You” jammin’ in my head, I danced my way into BodyPump this morning for a total-body strength training workout.

I felt like my mind was racing a mile a minute throughout the class. I found myself thinking about everything but BodyPump. By the time we were laying on our mats to do some ab work, signaling the end of the class, I was shocked at how fast the class flew by!

Post Pump, I leashed up Sadie for a 40-minute walk around the lake near my apartment. I don’t want to jinx it, but the weather in Florida lately has been wonderful! It’s remained in the ’80s and hasn’t creeped into the hotter-than-heck ’90s for a few days. Woop, woop!

Breakfast

I prepped my breakfast last night which made it super easy this morning!

Last night I cooked up a small batch of pearled barley and let the whole grain cool down overnight in the fridge.

This morning it was ready to be used in a barley breakfast bowl.

Peach + Barley Yogurt Bowl

To make my barley breakfast bowl, I combined a cup of Greek yogurt with the cold cooked barley and topped it off with peach slices and nutmeg.

Oh Yum

I love the nuttiness and chewy texture barley brings to the table.

Gnarly Barley

As I typed up this post, I looked back through some of my old posts about barley and stumbled upon this one that I posted during my first month of blogging. Holy crap-tastic pictures. Thank goodness I invested in a better camera.

Along with my barley breakfast bowl, I also enjoyed a tumbler full of Barnie’s French vanilla coffee that I snagged for the freezie at my gym.

I practically burned off my tongue after the first sip.

The Heat is On

I like really HOT coffee, so I took my time sippin’ it rather than gulping it to prevent the loss of additional taste buds. I’m so scrappy. 😉

Questions of the Morning

For everyone:

• What is one of your all-time favorite ’80s songs?

For the bloggers:

• Do you see a big difference in your blogging now than you did when you first started blogging? What has changed the most?

First Run After the Half

Nine days after running the Chicago Rock ‘n’ Roll half marathon, I finally felt the itch to run again.

I woke up to an extra-chipper dog who also seemed to have the running itch.

Sadie and I tackled our typical 5-mile loop and it felt wonderful. I ran for fun, didn’t push myself at all and enjoyed the music on my iPod. I must admit it felt pretty good to run because I wanted to, not because my training plan said I had to. 😀

Breakfast

After our sweaty run, I was ready for breakfast.

Peanut butter sounded great this morning (but then again doesn’t it always?), so I made myself a peanut butter and peach sandwich, which I dusted with nutmeg before inhaling.

PB + Nutmeg

Peach + Nutmeg

PB & P Sandwich

My breakfast also included a small bowl of fresh blueberries.

Bluebs

A Good Way to Start the Day

If all of my breakfasts contained peanut butter and fruit, I think I’d be a happy girl.

Question of the Morning

Do you prefer working out when you’re training for a race or event or do you prefer exercising simply for the health of it?

I like having a goal in mind, but I definitely prefer simply working out for my health rather than to prepare for a race. I like doing whatever workout I feel like doing on a particular day rather than feeling like I have to do a certain workout to stick to a training plan.

The Elusive Pint

Ooooh breakfast. You are my reason for waking up in the morning. 🙂

I love a filling breakfast and find that my morning meals that contain peanut butter are some of the most satisfying. Gotta love those healthy fats that stick to yo’ ribs!

Today’s breakfast was a peanut butter and peach sandwich that I prepared on an Arnold multi-grain sandwich thin.

Hump Day Breakfast

I sprinkled the nut butter and peach slices with pumpkin pie spice to make it look extra purdy for you guys and also add a little bit o’ flava.

Peachy Keen

On the side I enjoyed several fresh strawberries.

Sweet Strawberries

I love how sweet strawberries are in the summer. They’re so touch-and-go in the winter, but summer berries are always perfectly ripe.

Workout

I woke up a little nervous about my workout this morning. After a week away from strength training, I had a feeling my usual 5:45 a.m. Wednesday BodyPump class would kick my little tooshie.

I was right… kind of. I figured I would struggle through the squats and lunges since I assumed my legs would feel fatigued after Sunday’s half marathon, but I actually found the bicep and should tracks the most challenging. Go figure!

It felt great to feel the burn again! Healthy Julie is back!  We’ll just forget about that little bowl of Ben & Jerry’s peanut butter cup ice cream I had last night, mmm kay? 😉

Actually… Let’s talk about Ben & Jerry’s for a second.

In college Ryan and I fell in love with Ben & Jerry’s oatmeal cookie chunk ice cream.

Ben & Jerry's Oatmeal Cookie Chunk

It is seriously amazing. Sweet cinnamon ice cream with chunks of oatmeal cookies and a ribbon of fudge. It’s heaven in a pint.

Well, we haven’t been able to find this ice cream for years! The grocery store by Ryan’s old apartment is the only location we’ve ever seen carry it. We literally check every grocery store we visit for a pint of this stuff with no luck.

It’s quite the elusive little guy.

Questions of the Morning

• Have you ever had a product you love be discontinued or suddenly become very hard to find?
  
• Which cookie do you prefer: Oatmeal or chocolate chip?