Hi friends!

Woohooooo Dessert E-Cookbooks still goin’ strong!!! Get your copy NOW if you haven’t already….you don’t want to miss out on these 85 pages of drool worthy sweets! =)

This is going to be rather on the short side because I have been awake for about 13 hours now and MUST get to bed!

So, today I went to the doctor to get the results of my bone scan and…………….I have shin splints! Obviously. I’m thankful though that the ONLY thing that showed up on the scan were the shin splints. It could have been much worse! My doctor told me that I can run through these and still get better at the same time-–he wrote me a script to get some physical therapy though so I can learn some strength and stretching moves to get strong again! I’m going to call the therapist on Monday to make an appointment and in the mean time, I am looking forward to my 4 mile run in the morning!

Before I went to the doctor I had a substantial snack of a Chobani, a serving of cinnamon puffins and a big dollop of almond butter!

This REALLY filled me up! My appetite is also much less intense today because it is my rest day! =)

After the doctor I turned OFF the Blackberry, turned ON the fan and laid down on my bed to catch a 30 minute cat nap. Of course though I couldn’t fall asleep because I kept thinking of the million and one things that I should be doing (like emailing out E-Cookbooks!) so it didn’t work out so hot. However, I did make a quick Target trip and finally found a cute running skirt!!!!!

This makes me all the MORE excited to get out and run tomorrow morning! I putzed around for awhile (sent out E-Cookbooks like a mad woman!) and then headed over to Ryan’s with a bagful of groceries to make some of my Famous Enchiladas!!!! If you guys haven’t tried my super simple recipe yet, you must. Not to toot my own horn or anything, but it is pretty flippin’ amazing. And sooo easy. I threw them together tonight in 15 minutes. That’s it!

Tonight I decided to try something new though and for MY enchilada (I get one and R gets 3!), I filled it with tempeh instead of chicken! I bought this tempeh today and really want to find cool new uses for it besides the usual stir-fry so I thought this would be perfect. So, I cooked and shredded the chicken for the boy and kept mine meat-free.

So the tempeh enchilada verdict?

AWESOME. This was definitely the best use that I have found so far for good ol’ tempeh. When it baked in the tortilla (I used a Rudi’s 7 grain + flax wrap for mine) with the cheese, chilies and “secret” sauce, it became irresistible. I actually liked this version much better than chicken!

With cilantro on top and steamed broccoli + salsa on the side!

This is the boy’s FAVORITE meal that I make!

He’s so happy eating his enchilada!

Actually, he was SO happy that we put off doing the dishes and he drove me to go get Berryism for dessert! I had a kid’s cup of the organic chocolate with dark chocolate chips + coconut—

Time to go soak in the tub then hit the sack. R is fishing at 5 tomorrow morning and I am running at 6. I guess we are quite the early bird couple, eh?

© Jenna for Eat, Live, Run, 2009. | Permalink | 24 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: enchiladas, frozen yogurt, nut butter, vegetarian, yogurt

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Hahahaha well I guess my last post really didn’t fool you guys!

Ryan actually spent a lot of time writing that post…he has been excited about writing that for a whole year since last April Fools day he asked if he could and I sort of sighed and said “maybe next year”. Well last week he brought it back up and said I told him that he could a year ago and so I finally relented. How funny is that?! Thanks for the laugh, babe! ;

On a different note, I am very happy to tell everyone that the Blogger Dessert E-Cookbook is ALL DONE and ready to be purchased at the donation price of $10!!

People, this “book” (it is a Word document) has 85 pages of amazing desserts that I have been drooling over for a week now!!!!! Everything looks amazing and I have spent the past week putting many hours into making it presentable and professional. It is only $10 and remember what an amazing cause your money is going to! All you have to do to get a copy of your very own is to first donate $10 to my Team in Training fund and then send me an email to HelpJennaRun@gmail.com telling me you made your donation and you would like you e-cookbook. I will send you a reply with the attachment when I get the email (could be tomorrow afternoon if you do it after I go to bed…aka 6:30 eastern time). Easy as pie!

And now—–look what came in the mail for ME today!!!

Thank you, thank you, thank you Abbie!!!!! I went from not knowing really anything about a foam roller to doing some major research online all day and apparently this little tube is a miracle worker when it comes to muscles. I read online about how it can help shin splints, too, and so today after I swam I gave ‘em a roll! It hurt like the dickens because I was rolling RIGHT ON my shin splints, but I think it might have helped? Afterwards I pulled on my knee socks with ice packets stuffed inside (I’m cool, I know) and walking down the stairs was actually a bit less strenuous. I’m looking forward to experimenting with this thing more in the future and, who knows, it might just be an answer to my prayers!

This morning on my way to work I had a breakfast sammie for a snack!

This is a toasted Rudi’s bagel with 2 egg whites and a babybel cheese….all melty and delicious. Not quite like the breakfast sammie that Ryan so eloquently described in my previous post, but it was pretty durn delish.

Around 8:15 I had oatmeal for breakfast (duh)!

The combo today consisted of:

• 1/2 cup oats cooked in 1 cup water and a pinch of sea salt
• 1/2 scoop chocolate protein
• 1/3 cup Zoe’s Honey Almond Granola (love this stuff on top!)
• 1 HUGE scoop Naturally More

I love adding granola because it gives the oatmeal such a delicious crunch! I try to get a little oats, a little granola and a lot of peanut butter in every spoonful! In the later morning I also enjoyed a Kom-rob-your-bank account-cha, courtesy of my mama who had come to Greenwise to shop!

Now I had planned on just having an apple and an Odwalla bar after work and on the way to the pool to swim…….however……and this is NOT a joke……we made pizza and I of course can never turn that down (and it is free!)!!

The pizza was a spur of the moment decision and Mallory (my co-worker) and I topped some of our leftover italian dough with pizza sauce, mozzarella cheese, feta cheese, gorganzola cheese, sliced tomatoes, caramelized onions, olives, mushrooms and artichokes. Basically we used everything we could get our hands on!!!!! We baked it at 425 for 12 minutes and could hardly wait to dig in. Most of me (okay pretty much all of me) really wanted to just bag my workout and instead gorge myself on gooey hot pizza but I knew I would regret that decision later. So, I instead gorged myself on ONE slice of pizza and called it a “pre-workout snack”.

(it was actually a pretty big slice…not gonna lie)

I was a little worried about swimming lap after eating the pizza slice only 30 minutes before, and maybe I just have a stomach of steel, but it actually worked out really well and gave me tons of energy and no cramps! I had a great 30 minute swimming session, too.

Here was my routine put into a workout form for yall in case you want to try what I just did!

*I swam freestyle the entire time*

Warm up: 50 meter swim

200 meters with 1 minute recovery in between each 100

200 meter kickboard drill

200 meters with 1 minute recovery in between each 100

200 meter kickboard

200 meters with 1 minute recovery in between each 100

200 meter kickboard

The whole thing took me 30 minutes to do and I actually am pretty proud of myself because during that first 200 I was totally dying. I really had no idea how I was going to go on and it was SO HARD! After the first 100 I wanted to quit because I was panting so hard but I just kept going and at the end of the workout, I could swim the 200 meters rather effortlessly. I’m working myself up to being able to swim a fast, easy (??) 400 meters because that is what the triathlon is, but I think it’ll take me awhile!

When I got home from swimming I tried my last Better Whey of Life yogurt with strawberries!

This was my first time trying the plain yogurt variety and I have to say, I like the fruity ones better! Very unlike me but I think it is because while I DO like plain yogurt, I like my plain yogurt to be of the thicker Green style. Overall I was impressed with Better Whey of Life yogurt and would not hesitate to buy the fruity flavors at the store when I can find them!

And then for dinner tonight I actually DID have my first meat since February—–salmon (oh how I have missed thee!)

My mom was SO nice to make me my favorite salmon dish and put it in the fridge before she went to work this evening! Everything about it was absolutely perfect and I relished each and every bite!

Tropical BBQ Salmon

• 1/4 cup pineapple juice
• juice of 1 lemon + zest
• 1 tbsp chili powder
• pinch sea salt
• 1 tsp cumin
• 2 tbsp light brown sugar
• 4 salmon fillets (about 6 oz each)

Combine the pineapple juice, lemon juice and salmon in a plastic baggie and set in the fridge for about an hour to marinate. After an hour, preheat the oven to 400 degrees and remove the fish from the bag. Combine the brown sugar, chili powder, lemon zest, cumin and salt together in a bowl and then rub this mixture over the fillets. Place the fish in a baking dish sprayed with nonstick spray and bake for about 10-15 minutes depending on how well done you like your salmon.

She also made my favorite spicy veggie slaw from this cookbook (amazing!)

I inhale this stuff like its nobody’s business. This is the side dish I most often request my mom to make and it has been made countless times for birthdays and special events. Basically it is just a mixture of all sorts of veggies (cabbage, bell peppers, carrots…) and mixed with spices and canola oil mayo. I LOVE it and this cookbook! My parents actually ate at this restaurant in Anguilla, which is my DREAM!! They said it was fab., obvi. We have made countless dishes from the Blanchard’s cookbooks and the pages of the books (there are two of them) are stained with love! I highly suggest checking them out!

And then there was dessert of course—

Thank you, Kristen!!!!

Well that was a doozy of a post alright! I hope everyone has a happy Humpday evening and a great Thursday morning! Remember to email me at HelpJennaRun@gmail.com for your copy of the fabulous Blogger Dessert E-Cookbook! You won’t regret it! =)

© Jenna for Eat, Live, Run, 2009. | Permalink | 54 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: april fools, chocolate, dessert, Dinner, homemade pizza, oatmeal, Product Reviews, salmon, Snack, swimming, training, yogurt

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I know, I know………….I asked for it!!!!! But I am SO tired!!!!!!!

I knew I probably wouldn’t get my usual 7 1/2 – 8 hours of sleep last night, but I wasn’t expecting to only get 1 1/2!!!!!!!!! Yep, that’s right. I didn’t fall asleep until 1:30 in the morning. Ryan passed out at 8:30 (exhausted from his trip!) and even though I took a sleeping aid, I still managed to somehow keep myself up all night long tossing and turning. At 1:00 I woke up Ryan and he gave me a back massage and even then I actually debated if I should just get up, shower and get dressed. I finally fell asleep after that but have felt like a truck hit me all day. So was it worth it?? Of course =) This just goes to show that above all, I am a total creature of habit. I have to have my exact routine every night where I eat dinner, pack my breakfast, blog, take a bath, do bible study, read, rub tiger balm all over my legs (haha) and go to bed. I can’t just switch it up for one night! Oh well.

But look what the boy found me at the store last night!

Yay! Of course I have tried it already today and of course I love it. I seriously have like six different nut butters goin on in the fridge right now!

This morning when I was all bleary eyed and half asleep, I took a strong coffee + clif bar for the drive to work:

I LOVED this clif bar flavor. I’d have to say that it is now my favorite. It tasted like a girl scout cookie!

My manager was sweet enough to recognize I’d had a rough night (aka I was in my glasses at work because my eyes had sunk into my head) and bought me a Kombucha! It did make me feel a teeny tiny bit better.

And then around 8:00 I had breakfast….naturally!

This mix contained:

• 1/2 cup oats
• 1 cup water
• pinch sea salt
• 1 banana
• 1/2 scoop chocolate protein powder
• 1 big scoop Naturally More peanut butter

I really like the nuttiness of this peanut butter. Nice for a change!

When I got home from work I mixed together a quick yogurt bowl for lunch:

• 1 plain chobani
• 1/2 cup cinnamon puffins
• 1/2 cup Zoe’s Honey Almond Granola
• 1 scoop almond butter
• drizzle raspberry preserves

Yum, yum, yum.

All I could think about at work is how I wanted to run today. I know, it sounds crazy since I am beyond exhausted but it hasn’t been the best day and running is how I release a lot of stress. However, deep down I know that I can’t run today since I just ran Saturday. Right now it seems I can only run twice a week and as much as I want to, I know I’ll pay for it tomorrow (shin pain!) if I push it today. Maybe I’ll ride my bike instead?

akkkk tired!

© Jenna for Eat, Live, Run, 2009. | Permalink | 40 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: bars, granola, oatmeal, peanut butter, Product Reviews, Snack, yogurt

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Hi!

My appetite is SO weird. Like, I was starving my brains out all day yesterday and all this morning and early afternoon and then….wham! I’m full! I can’t figure it out. Anyways, I spent the afternoon cleaning my room, washing my sheets, working on the e-cookbook and walking Mikan. Midway through (surprise), I was STARVING, so I had a Chobani to tide me over til’ dinner:

After I ate this it was like something finally clicked in my body and I was like wooahhhh I am so full right now! I know that sometimes when we think we are hungry, we are actually really thirsty, so maybe I was a little dehydrated from class this morning or something. Regardless, I was glad that something finally filled me up and felt much better with a satisfied tummy!

I was still pretty full by the time dinner rolled around, but knew I needed to eat or I would wake up at 3 am starving tomorrow! I made a simple feast of baked tofu (1/2 block tofu baked in 2 tsp sesame oil, rice vin, tamari, sea salt and garlic powder at 400 for 30 minutes), a baked garnet yam and a salad with goddess dressing-–

An almond butter stuffed date for dessert!

Ryan is getting home from his weekend hunting trip this evening (he didn’t even have cell phone service!) and I am going to surprise him. This is going to mean that, without a doubt, I will be one very tired baker in the morning but some things you just have to sacrifice sometime! In the past seven days we have only seen each other for a total of 15 minutes. So I’m willing to be tired tomorrow to see my love!

See you tomorrow!

© Jenna for Eat, Live, Run, 2009. | Permalink | 26 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: sweet potato, tofu, yogurt

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Whew!

The list is dwindling down for today and I am feelin’ pretty accomplished!

Let’s see, I:

1. ran 4 miles
2. did some yoga
3. plugged away for 2 1/2 hours on the blogger dessert e-cookbook
4. got a handful of emails done

Pretty successful little Saturday I would say. The dessert e-cookbook is coming along great!!! After this morning, I have 37 pages done and they look fabulous. All the dessert recipes sound absolutely delish and I can’t wait until I have a finished product. The perfectionist English major in me likes to have my projects very very organized and aesthetically pleasing, and this is no different! I urge you to send me your recipe today if you have not already so that you can have a spot in the e-book. Also, those that did already send me recipes, if you have a picture somewhere can you send that as well? The pages look so much prettier when accompanied with your wonderful picture under the recipe title!

After a few hours of plugging away, my mom and I decided we needed a little adventure and I took an apple for the road—

We set out for the brand new (as in just opened in January) Tampa Bay History Center!!

I don’t know if I have ever gotten into it on here, but I have a serious love affair for history museums. I always was “that kid” in school who ADORED history class. If I hadn’t been an English major in college, I most definitely would have been a history major. I love all things history…..historical novels, history textbooks, history museums, war history, epic movies…..the whole nine yards. I was SO excited to finally get to experience this new state of the art history museum in downtown!

We had a light lunch in the museum at the Columbia Cafe, a branch off of my favorite restaurant.

I ordered the 1905 salad and black bean soup combo, my two favorite things at the Columbia. I got the salad with no meat and the dressing in the side and dumped copious amounts of hot sauce into my black beans and rice.

And relished a couple huge bites of warm Cuban bread (drool)–

And then we were off! The museum was, hands down, one of the best I have ever been in! There were so many interactive things to do and I had a little too much fun in the pioneer house….

I am five years old.

We also watched a very interesting short film on the Seminole Indians that was shown in an amphitheater that felt like you were outside in the forest, which I loved.

The little museum store had a big glass candy jar filled with Mike n Ikes!! I naturally had a tiny handful.

And then we got home just as my stomach was rumbling for the millionth time today (gahhh what am I going to be like when I run 13 miles if this is what I’m like when I run 4?!) and I had the classic granola + yogurt combo for the second time today….

And now I’m all set to work a couple more hours on the dessert e-cookbook, hit up the library and help my mom make dinner. She’s making whole wheat spaghetti with homemade vegetarian pasta sauce. Recipe to come later!

I hope everyone is enjoying their Saturday!

© Jenna for Eat, Live, Run, 2009. | Permalink | 27 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: apple, cuban food, granola, lunch out, Snack, yogurt

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Happy Saturday, friends!

Ahhhh it feels amazing to be well rested and have nothing on my plate today except to relax at home. Funny that my internal body clock still woke me up at the bright and shiny hour of 4:45 this morning! There was no hope of falling back to sleep….my eyes were open wide and I was ready to go! I guess this is actually a good thing since Saturday will always be my day for long runs!

I had a little snack of a toasted HempPlus waffle with pumpkin seed butter and raspberry preserves with a cup of black coffee around 5:15—-

And then I got caught up on some emails and blog comments for the next hour before I set out on my run around 6:30! I LOVE running at the hour just before the sun rises. There’s something magical in the air and watching the sun rise over the skyline of downtown is one of my favorite things. I ran in the grass alongside the bay and knocked out 4 miles. I kept my pace nice and easy, around 9:30-10:00 the whole time, and finished in 39:50 minutes. I wish I would have brought my camel bak though because around mile 3 I got so thirsty!!!

On my ipod I was listening to the new running mix that Abbie sent me!! Thank you, Abbie—I loved it!

When I got home I immediately stretched and then made a delicious yogurt mess for breakfast!

This mess included 8 oz Voskos, 1/2 cup cinnamon puffins, 1/2 cup Zoe’s Honey Almond granola, 1/2 banana, 1 scoop freshly ground almond butter and a drizzle of raspberry preserves

Decadent! I ate while icing my shinies down. Then, I stretched some more with Polly’s 10 minute Yoga for Triathletes! This felt, in Polly words, YUMMY!!! Thank you, thank you, Polly! I loved this quick 10 minute sequence and my hamstrings loved the deep stretches. Definitely started my day off right

I’m off to shower and then start working on the e-cookbook! I LOVE all these recipes yall are sending in!! I will be closing it on April 1st so please get me yours soon! Remember, send them to HelpJennaRun@gmail.com .

See you in a bit!

© Jenna for Eat, Live, Run, 2009. | Permalink | 23 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: nut butter, pre-run snack, runs, training, yoga, yogurt

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Hi guys! Happy Humpday!

Today has been much been the norm…..non-stop! I like my days busy but definitely count down til the weekend and I’m sure most of you are the same way. I couldn’t fall asleep last night (so much on my mind with fundraising!) and around 8:00, made my way back downstairs for my standard “night-cap” aka 1 weetabix biscuit with reduced fat milk. Sometimes a tiny bowl of cereal is all you need to get to sleep and it has worked every time so far! Sorry no picture because I was in a daze!

This morning when the alarm went off it felt like someone had hot glued my eyes shut. Seriously, I could not open them. I read Psalms with one eye!! I think God understood. After reading, email checking and throwing on my uniform, I headed downstairs and made a snack:

A NEW bar

And 1/3 cup egg white fluffies made in the microwave and sprinkled with sea salt

I have to admit, I was a little hesitant about trying this new bar after my experience branching out with new things the other morning. But, I have seen these on Gina’s blog and we seem to have the same taste so I forged ahead! SO GLAD I DID because this bar was a-m-a-z-i-n-g!!!!! All raw and made with brown rice protein to give a little boost. I LOVED this bar and liked it even more than larabars and pure bars because it had 7 grams of protein that helped me work strong all morning. This was the cinnamon raisin kind and it tasted heavenly. I am so glad I picked up a couple of these last weekend at Whole Foods! Definitely a keeper in my book!

This morning I also had this yummy concoction to drink (which I drank about half of):

Around 4:45 this morning, my boss looked at my coworker and I and told us that “we looked tired and could use some juice”. We sort of just stared at him and then he told us to go pick any juice we wanted off the shelf to drink and wake up! I chose carrot juice because I had never had it before and it looked very interesting! It turned out to be really yummy actually…very cool and creamy.

Breakfast was around 8:00 and was pretty much standard oatmeal—-3/4 cup oats with 1/2 banana, 1/2 scoop chocolate protein powder and……………

I finally busted out my new sunflower seed butter, courtesy of my friend, VeggieGirl!

I had never tried sunflower seed butter before but it was total yum this morning. I would liken it a lot to peanut butter because it had the same sort of nutty taste. Very delicious and really gave my oatmeal a staying power punch!

At work today we DID try the new multigrain bread, although we are re-working the recipe a bit and trying a new one tomorrow. Today we used a starter of oats, quinoa, millet and bulgar wheat-–

And the finished product included bread flour, whole wheat flour, honey and starter….

It turned out SUPER SOFT….like a multigrain bunny bread!! We thought it was too fluffy though and needed to be bit more “seedy” so I made a new starter, which I will use to create a new bread tomorrow containing oats, millet, flax, oat groats and wheat berries.We’ll see how it works tomorrow!!

We also played a fun little game………….

Ryan posed the challenge the other day of eating 5 saltines in 1 minute. Apparently it cannot be done. Well, no one tells Jenna that it can’t be done, so today at work we had a little saltine-eating showdown.

Well, I cheated. I stuffed all five saltines into my mouth in a minute but I couldn’t swallow them all because they became like dust in my mouth! I put them all in my cheeks and then was laughing so hard that I almost choked. I spit them all out after the minute was over. It was prettyyyyy amusing.

Anyways!

After my bad experience yesterday with exercising too soon after lunch (cramps and side-stitches galore!), I decided to eat something light this morning while I was working and then have a big snack after exercise. The plan worked! I chowed down on this delicious Odwalla bar and banana around 11:30—

And then I swam my heart out! It was much more difficult without my cute little coach there to give me constant drills and motivation, but I tried to drill myself by giving myself exercises to do. For instance, I would swim four laps and then use the kickboard and kick for two laps. I did that a couple times and it really got my heart rate up there (yes, I wore my hrm today!). At points, my heart rate was in the 170s and I was really workin’ it! However, after what felt like FOREVER, I glanced down at my hrm and saw I had only been going for 25 minutes. Sigh. 25 minutes it was though because the pool closed at 2:00 today and I was beat at that point! I guess I’m not quite at Micheal Phelps level yet

When I got home, I was excited to test out a new flavor of Better Whey of Life Yogurt with a weetabix!

I tried out the Acai Mixed Berry and LOVED it. This was super creamy and totally delicious. Two thumbs up!

I worked all afternoon on emails, fundraising ideas and making fliers to post in the employee break room at work. I finally broke around 3:45 (I know, so early) for dinner! Tonight for dinner I defrosted and heated up leftover meatless sloppy joe and served it on top of a big baked garnet yam with a sprinkle of mozzarella cheese

I also had a HUGE salad with romaine, grape tomatoes, celery and red pepper with Annie’s dressing

The baked spud turned out to be so huge that I couldn’t finish all my salad!

But I still had you-know-what for dessert!

Now, may I present, THE FIRST TEAM IN TRAINING FUNDRAISER!!!!

Let’s get this Team in Training season kicked off right!!!! I am proposing the idea of a blogger dessert e-cookbook.

Basically, if you would like to participate (and I urge you to…this will be a blast!) please email me a simple dessert that you have come up with and love! Yes, it has to be created by you...but it can be as simple as graham crackers, marshmallow fluff and peanut butter. Anything goes….just make it sweet! Once I receive all your recipes, I will type them all up together and create an e-cookbook!! Then, I will put the cookbooks up for donations on the blog. I think this will be a HUGE success and it will be awesome having a real cookbook with everyone’s dessert recipes in it. Perfect for parties, friends or just when you get the sweet craving after dinner! Am I convincing you yet?!

I will be open to receiving recipes from RIGHT NOW until April 1st at 5:00 pm. From April 2nd on, the book will be ready and available to be purchased for a donation price. If this is a success, I would love to do more cookbooks in the future but for right now, this is desserts only!

Now this is important…listen up! EMAIL THE RECIPES (and a picture if you can!) TO HelpJennaRun@gmail.com . I created a new gmail account just for this purpose so please use that for dessert recipes ONLY! I look forward to hearing from you….this is such a great cause and I thank you all ahead of time for your participation in making this great!

**A HUGE thank you to those than contributed donations last night……we are now $500 up and going strong!!

© Jenna for Eat, Live, Run, 2009. | Permalink | 60 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: bars, cereal, dessert, egg whites, fruit, juice, leftovers, Product Reviews, Snack, TNT, yogurt

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Hi!

A huge continued thank you for Team in Training donations!! You guys seriously rock Also, thank you for the great ideas regarding fundraising ideas! The words “jenna bread auction” sort of got my wheels turning a little bit……….

So, this afternoon I went with my mom and my brother to Trout Creek Trails, where I did my 5K trail run a couple weeks back. I had in mind to run 3 1/2 miles and I actually did do 3.4 miles (according to my handy dandy Garmin…love this thing), but it was very “meh”.

First of all, I REALLY need to stop eating a heavy lunches and then running only an hour later. I know eggs aren’t the heaviest, but I still had a cramp on my run and had to stop once to get rid of it! I think on the days that I plan to run in the early afternoon after work, I’m just going to have something like a clif bar and some fruit for lunch and then a big snack after the run. Hopefully that’ll do the trick!

Other than the cramp, my shins were still rather sore from pounding actual pavement instead of soft grass on Saturday (at quite a fast pace!) and I GOT LOST TODAY!!!! No seriously, rule number one when running in an unknown spot should be GO BACK THE WAY YOU CAME!! DUH jenna! I started out okay today and tried to follow the same path as I ran a few weeks ago, but ended up getting all turned around right when I hit mile three and actually started to panic (omg what if the sun sets and I never find my way back to the car??!) and thank God another runner was around for me to ask the way back to the parking lot. I was only about a half mile from the lot, but I had gone in the opposite direction and needed to cut through the woods to get back. Obviously the point here is that I have zero sense of direction and really need a running buddy. Enter Team in Training! Too bad I have to wait until May 16th to meet my new teammates!!

I went SUPER SLOW today. I’m actually really trying to slow down my pace to a 9:30 or 10:00/mile because I know that a) going super fast will hurt my shins and b) I won’t be able to hit 13.1 at a 8:00/mile pace. No way. Today I paced pretty consistently at 9:30 so I was happy with that.

Another crazy thing that happened this afternoon was that right when we were leaving the trail and getting ready to get on the ramp to go on the expressway, two cars CRASHED only about 10 feet from our car!!!! It was totally crazy…like it was happening in slow motion or something because we were so close. My mom screamed and I called 911 and gave directions because we were the first ones at the accident. We rushed out of the car to help the people and it turned out no one was hurt but one of the little girls in the back seat of the car that was hit was bleeding and scraped up a bit. Very very scary. Please drive carefully, friends!

After all the craziness, I snacked on a banana and drank some coconut water to refuel. It was HOT outside!

And then when I got home, I made dinner! I was excited to try a new Amy’s dinner tonight!

This meal is very simple and delicious. It is a tasty combination of brown rice, veggies and marinated tofu, all tossed in a yummy Japanese inspired teriyaki sauce. I was worried that because it was so simple it might also be on the bland side, but it definitely was not. This was hearty and surprisingly filling for only 290 calories. The rice was perfectly cooked and the tofu was chewy and delicious. I paired it with a yogurt for some extra protein (the meal contains 10 grams):

Honey on top….just the way I like it!

While I ate dinner I iced my shins and had a heating pad on my back (slept wrong last night and have been in major pain all day today at work!). For dessert, I had my favorite coconut milk ice cream sandwich

I just can’t get enough of these. Seriously the best thing since the VitaMuffin .

I’m off to soak myself in a hot bath then hit the sack. I’m exhausted today!

The pool at the Y closes at 2:00 on Monday and Wednesday, so tomorrow I am packing all my swimming stuff and going directly there after work (also packing a banana and an odwalla bar!) to swim for about half an hour. See you when I get back, hopefully with yummy new bread pictures!

© Jenna for Eat, Live, Run, 2009. | Permalink | 49 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: Amy's, banana, coconut milk, Product Reviews, running, yogurt

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Happy Tuesday!

I have to admit, I was NOT in the greatest of moods this morning. Actually, I was rather Oscar the Grouch (that’s how I described myself to Ryan when we talked on my break around 8:15). But seriously, you would be too if you got BLASTED by the sprinkler system at 3:45 a.m. My car was directly in the line of fire and there was no getting around it. I got soaked and my hair was all wet with nasty sewage water when I got to work. Meh.

However, I had the BEST SNACK YET this morning and it kept me going strong at work for a full 5 hours. No empty starving feeling in the pit of my belly while I worked. It was awesome and proved to me that I definitely need a larger snack in the early hours than what I have been eating

A delicious, hot and gooey egg & cheese bagel half with the other half of a banana from the other day (was on its last leg in the fridge!). For the bagel sammie, I used half of a Pepperidge Farm Fruit & Grain bagel and topped it with a slice of 2% cheddar and two microwaved egg whites. For some reason, I’ve always been very scared of putting eggs in the microwave! I tried one time about a year ago and the egg white totally blew up at me so I’ve stayed clear since. However, I always watch in envy as other bloggers get it perfect (Tina & Gina!) and so this morning I decided to try again. I sprayed a tiny ramekin with pam and then added two egg whites and a pinch of salt. I zapped it for one minute and it turned out perfect!!! Totally light and fully and such a cute little shape. I will definitely be doing this more often because it is soooo fast and you don’t have to get pans messy. Doing the micro-egg-white approach is perfect for my morning snacks because it gives me another fast shot of protein to help me stay satisfied until breakfast.

As for breakfast, I had some overnight muesli--

1 yogurt + 1/2 cup muesli + 1 spoonful ab and raspberry preserves. Delicious and filling! I just love this combo. A great alternative to oats.

My bad mood lifted throughout the morning and I had fun baking a chocolate and vanilla vegan cake for the wedding cake tasting today!

I hope she liked them!! =)

I felt even better when I walked in the door and saw that the magical Amy’s fairy had visited me!!!!!

Yummy meals to sample!! I can’t wait! I think I want one tonight….what should I try first?! I’ve actually never tried any of these before. I’m so anxious to try the new line of southern meals but that Indian entree looks delicious and I loooove me some paneer cheese! Thank you so much, Kimberly…what a great addition to Meatless in March!

For lunch I made a quick wrap using a morningstar farms original grillers burger, a tiny bit of ketchup, a TON of texas pete, lettuce and about a fourth of a delicious ripe avocado….all wrapped tightly in a warm Rudi’s 7 grain and flax wrap!

+ a delicious treat……STARFRUIT! Makes me so happy =)

Man………I don’t mean to complain to you snow birds up there but it is 80 degrees outside!!! Should I brave it and wear my camel bak for the 3 miles I have planned or do I treadmill it??!! As Caitlin was saying earlier, running in the heat is just something we Floridians have to deal with and it can be tortuous and even dangerous! I don’t think running 3 miles in 80 degree heat is dangerous, but I wouldn’t run if it was over 80. That is usually my cut-off point. In the days to come I might have to run on the treadmill during the week and then have one long run outside in the early early morning on Saturdays. I’m feeling SO optimistic about my shins its not even funny (although I don’t want to jinx it…knock on wood knock on wood!). I’ve been stretching so much, as well as doing a couple shin strengthening exercises daily, and they haven’t been bothering me at all. Last fall I could hardly get out of bed in the morning without excruciating pain, but now I finally feel like I am really advancing in my mileage (3 miles is sort of a big deal to me) and I’m doing it by strengthening my legs and increasing my cardio endurance! Let’s hope I keep on feelin’ good…….

Okay–see you for dinner!

© Jenna for Eat, Live, Run, 2009. | Permalink | 43 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: almond butter, egg whites, fruit, muesli, Snack, veggie burgers, yogurt

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Good evening!

May I present Slacker Strawberry Shortcake—-

And, yes, it is totally the slacker version because I have a degree in pastry & baking and yet still relied on Bisquik Heart Smart Mix to make the biscuits! :O Sometimes a girls gotta do what a girls gotta do, ya know?!

Yesterday when we were at Greenwise getting out pizzas, Ryan not-so-casually proclaimed that he would love nothing more than strawberry shortcake. The strawberries were actually 4 FOR $5 (can you even believe?!) and he totally freaked and was like, “ahhhhhh do you know how to make that?! Please, please, please!!!!!” I was in a tired state of oblivion and sort of shrugged him off and we walked out strawberry-less. Well, today I felt sort of bad about it…I mean, I DID go to culinary school and Ryan NEVER outwardly states that he wants dessert. I mean, the guy is a Cold Stone addict and rarely eats anything I bake. I can’t shoot him down on his one and only request, can I?! So, today when he was out fishing, I ventured back to Greenwise, got the strawberries, the biscuit mix and the whipped cream.

Here are the supplies:

First, quarter 2 pints of strawberries—

Then, take a big handful of strawberries and put them in a small pot. Add about 1/4 cup sugar, a little vanilla (vanilla bean is best) and a tbsp of so of water. Turn the heat to medium and bring to a simmer. Once simmering, reduce the heat to very low and cook for about 15 minutes.

After 15 minutes, transfer the hot strawberry mixture to a blender. Be careful…don’t splash yourself!!!! Whirl until smooth and then put mixture back on the stove. Add a small spoon of cornstarch (optional, this thickens the sauce a lot) and bring the heat back up to a simmer, whisking constantly. After the mixture comes to a simmer take it off the stove and cool.

As for the rest of the quartered strawberries, sprinkle another 1/4-1/2 cup sugar over the top and mix well to combine. You could also add some orange zest, which I would have done, but I didn’t have any on hand. Put the sugared strawberries in the fridge and let set for at least an hour…the longer the better!

Lastly, make the biscuits. You could make your own from scratch or you could be a slacker like me and use the mix. All I did was add low-fat milk and I formed four little biscuits, which I baked at 450 for 7 minutes. When you are ready to serve the dessert (not before!), split the biscuits in half and pour a little bit of the strawberry sauce on half. Spoon over some sugared strawberries and a big dollop of whipped cream. Top with the other biscuit half and add another big dollop of whipped cream on top and more strawberries. To make it even taller and bigger (like I did for Ryan), layer another biscuit on top! Serve with additional whipped cream, more sauce and ice cream if you wish.

He LOVED it!!!!!!!!! Look how happy he is after fishing with this in one hand and a rum & coke in the other:

This afternoon around 1:30 I started to get a bad lack-of-protein headache so I had an early (and hefty!) snack of a 0% Fage topped with the other half of this morning’s Odwalla bar and a drizzle of almond butter. I swear, I can’t go one day without this stuff!!! This snack kept me full for the rest of the afternoon and my headache promptly disappeared.

And then for dinner, I waited until Ryan got home around 6:30 and he fried up the snapper he caught today—

While, I, in the spirit of Meatless in March, had a big spinach salad with grape tomatoes and goddess dressing

And a baked garnet yam with a Sunshine burger (topped with hot sauce and ketchup!)

I cooked the Sunshine burger on the stove this time instead of the microwave and the difference was remarkable. It was crunchy on the outside and chewy…SO much better!

After dinner we had dessert!! Now, I actually DON’T LIKE strawberry shortcake!! I know..who am I?! I love all desserts, really, but strawberry shortcake is just sort of “meh” to me because I don’t like the unsweet biscuits with sweet strawberries. Its just sort of weird. I like it more when it is made with angel food cake or something sweet. Biscuits just don’t seem to go in my book…but Ryan sure loved it! I do LOVE strawberries though so I went out and got myself some frozen yogurt from Berryism, a totally 100% all natural yogurt place down the street that does nonfat plain frozen yogurt with no added sugar. I got a small topped with dark chocolate chips and then I came home and topped it with the strawberry mixture and some all natural “cool whip” for a sundae!!!

Holy goodness, this was a-m-a-z-i-n-g!!!!!!!!!! And HUGE!!!!! So huge I really shouldn’t have eaten it all because I was full to the point of elastic waist pants but I just could not stop. I love it that it actually was “healthy”! The yogurt from this place clocks in at only 130 calories per cup and has live active cultures in it. Of course then you top it with chocolate chips, sugary strawberries and “cool whip” and its not so healthy anymore but still!

Its only 9:00 but I’m about to go put on those elastic weight pj bottoms right now and snuggle with the boy. Tomorrow brings lots of fun stuff like getting to see Caitlin and Meghann again for a dinner of Thai food! Yay!

© Jenna for Eat, Live, Run, 2009. | Permalink | 26 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: almond butter, odwalla bars, salad, strawberries, sweet potatoe, veggie burger, yogurt

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