Winter Running Gear

Happy Saturday! I’ve fallen a little behind so the plan is to quickly catch you up to speed annnnnnnddd here we go!

Thursday evening

After work I suited up and hit the road for a quick two-mile run outside before the sun went down. The temperature was in the 40’s so the weather was decent, but the run didn’t feel good to me at all. I really don’t appreciate afternoon runs and neither does my digestive system. I am definitely more of a morning runner person.

For dinner I whipped up a quick banana and egg pancake.

Ingredients:

  • 1 egg
  • 1 banana
  • cinnamon
  • blueberries
  • toppings: apple butter, peanut butter, and banana slices

Then Dana and I headed out for the night to do some volunteering for the Salvation Army. By the way, I am really feeling the holiday spirit lately. I LOVE Christmas!

Friday

Breakfast was a chocolate covered strawberry smoothie.

Ingredients:

I asked for more Jay Robb egg white chocolate protein powder for Christmas. I really really like it. Earlier this week I made another peanut butter chocolate smoothie for breakfast but added kale into the mix and I swear it tasted even better. Thanks again Shannon for the suggestion. NUM.
Fast forward to the evening…there were some major comforts happening around this house. Fire in the fireplace, sweatpants, puppy, hubby, Christmas decorations….

And a meat and cheese platter for dinner which included Nut Thins Pecan crackers (love), amazing havarti cheese which I do believe is my favorite cheese, turkey sausage, and crispy green beans with marinara dipping sauce.

For the beans: I dipped the beans into egg whites, then rolled in almond flour, parmesan cheese, salt and pepper. I placed them onto a lightly sprayed pan, sprayed the tops with olive oil, and broiled on low for about 7 minutes until the beans were golden on top. I really enjoyed them! I had to sneak some veggies in somehow so it was the perfect little side.

The rest of the evening was spent addressing holiday cards and watching Glee from last week. It feels so good to get the holiday cards all done and ready to mail. The way we had our assembly line set up reminded me a lot of writing out thank you cards after the wedding. This went a whole lot faster though!

Saturday

Now here we are on Saturday. This morning I woke up at my leisure, ate my usual pre-run breakfast, banana and peanut butter, and layered up for our Saturday run. This Saturday was our 4.5 mile run. We are still sticking to our 10K training plan!

It was about 25°F outside; here is what I wore:

  • Leggings
  • Sweatpants
  • Long-sleeve wicking top with t-shirt over it
  • Fleece zip-up
  • Normal socks and running shoes
  • Fleece mittens
  • Cotton hat

The verdict: I was actually too warm. I ended up running without gloves for the last third or so of the run. I would much rather be too warm than cold though so I was okay with it.

Each run has been a trial in trying to figure out the best apparel and layers to wear for the given temperatures and the way my body reacts. I haven’t quite figured it out yet, but I hope to before January 1st!

My feet and bottom of my pants were soaked at the end of the run, but that’s to be expected after running in the snow.

Overall, it was a good snowy run. That was the furthest I have ever run in the snow before. It was like running on wet sand and was definitely more challenging than running on pavement.

Alrighty, I’m off to run a bunch of errands and get some stuff down around the house. I hope you are all having a great day so far! XOXO

Question of the day: Is there any must-have winter running gear that you’ve found to be helpful?

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Peanut Butter Banana Cookies SCD

Well hello there and Happy Wednesday!

I am slowly but surely getting caught up on posting some meals from the past couple of days. Come tomorrow I think I will be caught up.

So, back-tracking to Monday. The morning after our anniversary celebration we woke up early and pondered over the breakfast menu for a bit. Nothing was really calling out to me that fit into the SCD so we decided to head home instead. Plus, we would save some money by eating at home.

What I really wanted was a piece of pumpkin bread (SCD) with Parkers Farm Natural peanut butter and the slightest drizzle of honey. In case you were wondering, I have eaten this breakfast every day for the past um, two weeks or so? I am lovin’ it.

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Lunch

Lunch was leftover Rudy’s green beans from dinner the night before. I am head over heels for these green beans. They come with some sort of light teriyaki sauce with sesame seeds and the beans are crunchy, not mushy. They are just perfect. I could seriously go there and just order the green beans and be a happy girl.

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I also ate what very well might have been, my one an only Honeycrisp apple of the season. They are SO delicious but they are so darn expensive! I had to have at least one this fall so I picked one up at the store. I also enjoyed a couple slices of muenster cheese and another piece of wedding cake.

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I hit up the gym in the afternoon complete with a 40-minute elliptical workout followed by biceps, triceps, and some core work.

Dinner

Baked butternut squash fries coated in a small amount of coconut oil and a lean bison burger with pickles, cheese, tomato, and mustard served on a butter lettuce bun.

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Get My Yoga On

To any of my readers who were following me back in June, you may remember I took on the June Yoga Challenge hosted by the beautiful Courtney of Sweet Tooth Sweet Life. In June, I challenged myself to complete 3 yoga sessions each week. It didn’t matter if they were hour-long sessions, 10-minute sessions, super intense, lower intensity….just as long as I did 3 sessions. On Fridays we would report in on Courtney’s blog to help hold us accountable and  to encourage each other along the way.

Well, since completing that challenge I am embarrassed to say I don’t think I have participated in one yoga session since. It’s terrible! I felt SO good during that challenge why on earth would I not continue it like I said I was going to? I just don’t know the answer to that.

Anyway, it just so happens that Courtney is hosting the challenge again this month and you better believe I’m joining in again. I find I follow through so much better when I am actually held accountable with these monthly challenges. (See September Push-up Challenge)

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This time around I am lowering the bar just a little bit. Considering I have been trying to incorporate more running into my routine, and still want to have time for that, I will be setting a goal of one yoga session per week. If I find that this challenge is WAY too easy, I may increase the goal to two a week. We shall see.

The most difficult part of this challenge will be finding the “right” time and most enjoyable time for me to get my yoga on. I prefer the morning however I have a really hard time getting up earlier than I have to for work especially now that it’s chilly in the morning and dark. I may just have to though. If only I could remember the endorphin rush I get after a workout, when that alarm clock goes off in the morning. I’ll work on that.

You can get in on the fun too, check out the complete challenge at: Sweettoothsweetlife.com

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Peanut Butter Banana Cookies SCD

This cookie recipe was mentioned to you last week and I’m glad I’m finally getting around to sharing it with you. These peanut butter banana cookies are 100% SCD legal. They are subtly sweet and the perfect dessert or snack. SCD or not, you can still enjoy this cookie.

If I wasn’t following the SCD, I absolutely would have thrown some chocolate chips in the mix. Peanut butter, banana, annnnd chocolate chips? You had me at peanut butter. Soon my friends, soon. This time you’ll just have to settle for the glorious in itself pb and banana combo.

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Peanut Butter Banana Cookies SCD
Print
Recipe type: SCD Snack, Dessert
Prep time:
Cook time:
Total time:
Ingredients
  • 1¼ cup almond flour
  • ½ tsp. baking soda
  • pinch of salt
  • 1 over-ripe banana
  • ½ cup natural creamy peanut butter
  • 1 egg white
  • 1 tsp. vanilla
  • 2 Tbsp. honey
Instructions
  1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
  2. In small bowl, combine flour, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.
  3. In medium bowl, use hand mixer or stand mixer to combine banana, peanut butter, egg white, vanilla, and honey.
  4. Add dry ingredients; stir to combine.
  5. Use spoon to drop cookies onto non-stick baking mat or cookie pan coated with non-stick spray.
  6. Bake for 20 minutes.

Enjoy!

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One last thing, today is the last day to enter into my LARABAR giveaway. Don’t miss out on a chance to win! You have until 9 pm Central Time to enter into the giveaway. The winner will be announced tomorrow, Thursday October 4th. Good luck!

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