WIAW #59

Good Morning! Happy Hump Day Everyone! I hope you’ve been having a great week!

I have a busy day ahead of me, but I wanted to pop in and quickly share a day of my eats from yesterday! I worked 6-1 then got a workout in before heading to relax for the evening. I thought this would be a good post to share so you have a look at what I eat during a day that I work and workout.

Thanks for creating the link up Jenn! Arman is hosting the WIAW party this week so you can head his way for more food posts!

And without further ado, onto the food!

What I Ate Wednesday Tuesday

Working at 6 in the morning means that I have to get up at 4 and leave by 5:15 at the latest (I live about a half hour away). To get my day started, I had a cup of black coffee (Christmas mug optional).12665877_10157151864060377_1437315545_nFor breakfast, I made my usual egg white scramble with peppers and zucchini topped with ketchup and a piece of toast with a runny egg!12660339_10157151864105377_2122468132_nI took my break shortly after 9 and dug into one of my prepped spaghetti squash containers. There’s ground turkey, tomato basil pasta sauce, broccoli, red pepper, spaghetti squash and a Laughing Cow cheese wedge!12660374_10157151864200377_260746295_nAfter work, I had a couple kiwis before hitting a quad workout. I hit a PR on back squats of 100 pounds for 4 reps! I know that’s not the heaviest, but I’ve been working hard at getting my form right before going heavier. 12650371_10157151864145377_730746485_nI had my usual protein shake on my way home from the gym. I think I’ve reused this picture like 4 times now because I always drink it way too fast to remember to snap a new picture. 12583772_10157104173835377_228671283_nAbout an hour after my shake, I dug into my favourite post workout carb source: oats! Yesterday I made pumpkin egg white oats topped with blueberries and butter!12647915_10157151864245377_1253253336_nFor supper, I heated up another one of my pre-made meals. This time it was chicken, green beans, and purple sweet potato. 12660291_10157151864295377_536558003_nMy evening snack before I crashed around 8 was a piece of toast with peanut butter and butter! So simple, but so good!12674281_10157151864340377_614342697_nThose were my eats from yesterday! I’m off to go get my stuff together for today and head into town. I have a workout on my mind then my first PT session followed by work 2-9!

I hope you have a fantastic day!


How do you take you eggs?

Favourite oat combo?

Meal Prep 101: 7 Tips to Help

Good Morning Friends! How is everyone doing? I hope you had a great weekend and an awesome start to the week yesterday!

I’d like to apologize for the disappearance on the blog at the end of last week. I didn’t intend for it to happen, but I had writer’s block and couldn’t come up with anything to say. Luckily, I spent Saturday morning meal prepping for a few days and thought I should share some of my tips I’ve learned over the past couple of years! I am by no means an expert at meal prepping, but I do have 10 tips that might help you out!

Meal Prep 101: 7 Tips to HelpmeapprepPlan
Before I go grocery shopping, I like to plan out what I’m going to make. Depending on my work schedule I may prep up to 5 days of meals, whereas sometimes, it may just be for 2 or 3 days. It’s also important to decide what meals you’re going to prep. Do you just need to do lunch or breakfast? Maybe you want to prep some dinner items to speed up the cooking process on the day of?

Frozen or Steam In Bag Veggies
These save me so much time! I’ll stock up when these on sale and use them daily. I usually don’t even cook them if I’m prepping for a few days since they’ll thaw out once they’re in their containers in the fridge. When you heat up your meal, they’ll cook in the time it takes for the rest of the food.12647998_10157147303525377_1719216265_n
Containers
Invest in good quality containers! You don’t want to be throwing them out after a few uses. I like getting ones that stack nicely and look the same. I have two different sets that I’ve been using that include the ones pictured below.12674282_10157147293410377_56289596_nI’ve been lusting over these ones that come with 1, 2 or 3 compartments from Amazon, but don’t see the point in purchasing more when the ones I was given do just fine. Glass pyrex containers are also a good choice and last forever!

Pre-cut Produce
I find that I’m much more likely to use my fruits and veggies if I take the time to slice them all at the same time. I’ve thrown out peppers or cucumbers because I was too lazy to cut them and they went bad. Having cut veggies in my fridge also cuts down on grabbing something that isn’t as good for me just because it’s easier!12648190_10157147293460377_948259041_nDon’t Over Do It
You don’t have to make everything ahead of time. If I spend more than 3 hours meal prepping, I go crazy! I like to make things that are going to save on time. I don’t mind making my breakfasts every morning, but things like chicken I’ll cook all at once.

Prepare Before Dividing
I like to divide my food into single serving containers instead of just having it all in one. Before I put it into the containers, I’ll gather everything I need so I don’t need to go looking for something mid-way through my process. I like to put it into big bowls or containers, but you could also just leave it in whatever you cooked it in.12647700_10157147292915377_417458719_nKeep It Interesting
I like to try at least one new thing every week or every other week. This week I tried purple sweet potatoes (not as good as orange sweet potatoes in my opinion) and Monique’s Healthy Pumpkin Zucchini Chocolate Chip Bread. This bread is one of my favourites now! It’s so good!12650776_10157147293645377_2087854272_n12626036_10157147293775377_755561452_nThose are my 7 meal prepping tips!

Have a great day!


Lets Talk…
Do you have any tips?
Do you meal prep?

 

WIAW #58

Good Morning! Happy Hump Day! I hope you’ve been having a great week!

I want to apologize ahead of time if this post doesn’t make sense, I’m currently typing it up on Tuesday night at 7 and I’ve been up since 4 in the morning! I was FaceTiming with Matthias earlier and wasn’t making any sense so I’m curious to see how this turns out!

Although I’m typing this up on Tuesday, I’ll be posting it on Wednesday for What I Ate Wednesday! I love having a place to share what I ate in a day without judgement. Jenn created this link up so that bloggers could celebrate eating and not have to worry about judgment, comparison, restriction, or guilt!

What I Ate Wednesday Monday

I was off from the gym on Monday, but was helping my mom with a couple houses before heading to my alma mater to sell one of Matthias’ textbooks. Knowing I had to get up at 4 on Tuesday, I wanted to get up close to that time so it wasn’t completely awful! I ended up getting up around 5 and started writing my weekend recap post while drinking a cup of coffee. I ended up making it to the gym around 6:45 and powered through a quick 45 minute back and biceps workout before my mom picked me up around 8.

I had my usual protein shake after my workout then got to work with my mom. I hadn’t planned to go so long without real food, but I ended up waiting 3 hours until after we were done working. I dug into some cinnamon oatmeal with blueberries and butter. 12650406_10157127076775377_1001666316_nShortly after that, I snacked on some chicken. Totally boring, but I really enjoy it!12606834_10157127079630377_409013984_nAfter selling the textbook, we headed back home. As we were driving home, I snacked on the same Roasted Garlic crackers that were in last week’s Friday Favourites with deli turkey meat and a Wholly Guacamole Mini!12625601_10157127076645377_104106261_nLater on, for supper, I reheated some prepped spaghetti squash, sauce, and broccoli!12625956_10157127079440377_1559373984_nMy dessert on Monday was very delicious! I made cinnamon french toast topped with Nuts ‘N More Salted Caramel Peanut Butter and some Walden Farms syrup! It was the best way to end the day!12596516_10157127079265377_1789332549_nI also had two mini Hershey chocolates, one was milk chocolate and the other was special dark!12606967_10157127079700377_267906263_n

Good Food Weekend

Good Morning and Happy Monday! I hope you had a great weekend!

I had a great weekend filled with some great food that I can’t wait to tell you all about. I’m going to keep this intro short because I just want to get to it! Linking up with Katie for Marvelous in my Monday and Erin for Weekend Snapshots!

I was off on Friday so I headed back to my hometown for a few different reasons. I needed to pick up prescriptions, a few more things from my dad’s, and to see my sister. It was a beautiful day to be driving!12571260_10157120556090377_1439547130_nMy sister and I went out to supper at our favourite restaurant/cafe and I had one of the best meals! I ordered one of the specials which means I was able to have a starter. I decided on the falafels to start and they were delicious!12584082_10157120556115377_1291318152_nMy main was a butternut squash and goat cheese pizza! I’ve never had something like this before and I was surprised by how much I loved it. I took one bite and I was in heaven!12583889_10157120556195377_1967006311_nAnd you can’t go out for supper and not get dessert! This cafe makes the best dessert crepes so I went with the special one of the week which was peanut butter cookie dough! Holy cow it was good!12571364_10157120556355377_1240723409_nThe rest of the evening was spent relaxing and going to bed early which is my kind of night (you know you’re old when).

I woke up Saturday excited since I was going to be heading to the market. I had one booth on my mind, but also wanted to check out one of my regulars. I stopped at the booth I almost always go to which is a raw food booth. They had a couple new things so I decided to try a chocolate peanut butter fudge and some kind of peppermint square. I meant to write down the names to include, but obviously was too focused on the food (what else is new).12575872_10157120556530377_1719112359_nI haven’t tried the peppermint square yet, but the fudge is pretty tasty!

My next stop was what I was looking forward to 🍩! My friend had invited me to like a page on Facebook a few weeks ago for a new vendor, a donut vendor at my local market! There’s never been one from what I can remember so I needed to check this one out! She only makes two kinds a week and I saw this week she was making salted caramel so I knew I had to get one! For those that don’t know, salted caramel is my jam! 12575913_10157120556465377_2048823766_nI had this baby on my way back to where I live now as my pre-workout and it did wonderful things for my workout! I had a really great chest and triceps workout before doing a little HIIT circuit that I made up. The circuit made me realize that I really need to up my cardio game which is something I’ve been wanting to work on!

I did all of this and was back home by 11:30 AM! I spent the afternoon doing some meal prep and helping my mom make healthier banana bread muffins!12584069_10157120556630377_180690255_nThese were some of the best homemade bananas I’ve ever made and am thinking about posting the recipe on here at some point (let me know if you’re interested in that)! I probably had three or four throughout the afternoon and evening with some butter because if you’re eating banana bread without butter or peanut butter you’re doing it wrong (in my opinion anyways)!

Nothing too exciting happened on Sunday since I worked 6:45-1:30, worked out, had a staff meeting, then came home to relax. I have been going to bed nice and early (like 9-9:30) the past three nights which has been absolutely wonderful, but that’s not exciting.

That was my weekend in a nutshell! As I’m finishing this, it’s 5:37 AM and I need to get my butt going so I can make it to the gym by 6:30!

Have a great start to your week!


What’s your favourite kind of donut?

Tell me one thing you did this weekend!

Friday Favourites #39: Week of 1/22

Happy Friday Everyone!

Yesterday was technically my Friday since I have today and tomorrow off from the gym, but I am going to help my mom with a couple of houses once this post goes up! I’m looking forward to taking the full day off tomorrow! I’m actually going to be heading back to my hometown for a few hours to pick up a couple of things, but besides that I’ll be taking it easy!

I haven’t written a Friday Favourites since January 1st! In all honesty, I haven’t really been loving anything new, but I have some new ones to share today! Thanks for the link up Heather and Katie!

Friday Favourites #39: Week of 1/22

Friday Favs Winter

The other night when I was browsing Instagram for hours I came across a photo of oatmeal that someone posted. Now you’re probably thinking so what, it’s just oatmeal, but the girl that posted it had added butter to her oats! I knew right away I needed to try this and try I did! I don’t know how to describe the taste, but it makes them creamier and even more tasty! I tried it yesterday with my normal cinnamon oatmeal that I added blackberries too and I know I’ll be eating it again! I added 5 grams, which is slightly more than a teaspoon (by slightly more, I mean it’s 1.06 teaspoons) and it seemed like a good amount.12584188_10157109488005377_834656480_nYou may notice that I listed the amount of butter I used in grams. That is because I am back to flexible eating or IIFYM (if it fits your macros). Since the summer ended, I had been really loosely tracking, but earlier this week on Monday, I started back at it. I had been wanting to for awhile and I’ve been feeling really great this week.

Another food item that I’ve discovered this week that is a favourite are Roasted Garlic Multi-seed Crackers from Crunchmaster! Anything with garlic I’m all about and these are no exception! I had these with some deli ham and mustard yesterday for a snack and it was delicious! 12571201_10157109488085377_1355791531_nCoffee!! This past summer I really started to enjoy my homemade iced coffee, but could never really deal with the taste of it warm. Well my friends, this week I tried hot black coffee and I actually liked it! Now I’m curious and wanting to try other brands of coffee!

And if you need to laugh: The 33 Best Chandler Bing One-Liners! Here’s my favourite!

Have a great weekend 🙂


How do you take your coffee?

What do you add to your oatmeal?

 

 

netflix and working out (ToL#9)

Good Morning! How is your day going so far?

It’s time for another Thinking out Loud Thursday! Amanda created this weekly link up as a place to talk about anything and everything! Thinking-Out-Loud

Earlier this week (or maybe on the weekend), Netflix announced release dates for some returning shows and new shows!

I’m most excited for the return of Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt and Grace and Frankie! I watched the first season of both of these shows in like 2-3 days! They are a really easy watch and pretty funny! I still have to wait until April and May for these shows, but I’m happy that there’s going to be a second season for both of them."Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt" season two (April 15)"Grace and Frankie" season two (May 6)The most exciting and the show that I have been waiting for since they first announced they were doing is FULLER HOUSE! There’s only a little over a month until I can finally get my fix! I’ve been stalking looking at the cast’s instagrams and it makes me even more excited!

And on to my other topic for today’s post… working out. My lifting has been pretty great at my new gym which I’m a fan of. What isn’t going so well, incorporating more cardio or HIIT circuits.

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I think besides my 5-10 minute warm up before I lift, I’ve done cardio at most 2 times since 2016 started 🙈🙈 I don’t know why I find it so tough to do, but I’m going to work at it over the next couple of weeks. I’ll let you know how that works out.

I’m off to go get my stuff together for my workout and work afterwards! Have a great Thursday! We’re almost to Friday!


Any shows you’re looking forward to watching on Netflix?

How do you like to do cardio?

WIAW #57

Good Morning! How has your week been going so far?

Before I share what I ate earlier this week, I wanted to apologize. I’ve been absent more than I would like on here. Work has been kicking my butt and I’m way more tired than I thought I would be. I have Friday and Saturday off this week so I’m hoping to figure out a schedule and maybe get some posts written ahead of time! If anyone has any tips, I’m all ears!

My favourite day of the week is here! I don’t know, but I absolutely love seeing what other people have been eating! Luckily, What I Ate Wednesday is around to fill this nosiness of mine! Thanks for creating this link up Jenn!

What I Ate Wednesday Saturday

I had to work the opening shift on Saturday this past weekend for the first time! This meant my hours were 6:45-1:30. That’s right, 6:45 in the morning! I’m happy I haven’t had to work an opening shift during the week since that shift starts at 4:45! Anyways, I was up pretty early on Saturday so I could have a good breakfast before leaving for work.

I made an egg/egg white scramble with spinach, zucchini, and red peppers. I also had some strawberries and a piece of toast with raspberry jam! It was one of the best breakfasts I’ve had in awhile!

12571078_10157104173915377_1205797293_nOn my break at work, I dug into my prepped meal which was chicken, broccoli and a Laughing Cow wedge! I’ve been eating this the past few days at work and I absolutely love it!12606839_10157104174000377_348435468_nAfter my shift was over, I hit a quick back and biceps workout before heading home. On my drive, I drank a protein shake made with chocolate peanut butter protein powder!12583772_10157104173835377_228671283_nAfter a quick shower, I was sitting down to eat supper. My mom made steak, potatoes, and carrots. I forget what she does to the steak, but it’s one of my favourite ways to eat it.12570941_10157104173645377_1178891296_nThis was followed by a couple blueberry muffins that my mom also made! The streusel on top is my favourite!12607120_10157104174745377_1035295968_nThe rest of the evening was spent sitting on the couch watching a movie with a bowl of protein ice cream! I topped it with a couple of thin mints and some Annie’s chocolate bunny grahams. It was really tasty!12575828_10157104173785377_1840540271_nThose were my eats from Saturday! I hope you have a great Wednesday!


What’s your favourite kind of muffin? 

Any meals you’ve been repeating lately?

 

 

Currently: January 2016

Good Morning! I can’t believe it’s already Thursday, this week has just been flying by!

I’ve been wanting to do a survey for awhile now and I’ve been seeing a lot of the Currently one being done. I know I’ve done this at least once during my blogging, but I think that was a few years ago. I thought it would be a good way to update you. I may start doing it seasonally or every few months.

I’ll be linking up with Amanda today too to share my thoughts!Thinking-Out-Loud2

Currently: January 2016currently

Current Book: I’m actually not reading anything right now. I’d love to hear some suggestions though!

Current Music: I’ve been loving Sam Hunt’s song Break Up In A Small Town! It’s great during my workout when the chorus drops, it really gets me in the zone. I’ve also been playing Rachel Platten’s Wildfire album a lot!Current TV Show: Since I’ve been working in the evenings lately, I’ve been watching a lot of talk shows. I’m talking about Live With Kelly and Michael, Rachael Ray, The View, and Ellen! I don’t know why, but I just absolutely love them!

Current Movie: I haven’t watched a movie in the longest time, but I do really want to see the new Star Wars movie (I know it came out awhile ago so it isn’t exactly new anymore)

Current iPhone Wallpaper: This picture of Matthias and I when we were in Hamburg one day! It’s one of my favourite pictures of us.12511521_10157083134965377_1277514339_nCurrent Drink: I finished a mug of green tea a little while ago so I’ve just been drinking water since then.

Current Food: I’ve been loving my Laughing Cow cheese wedges. I’ve only tried the Light Swiss ones, but I want to try the other ones! 12540325_10157081032495377_1723667510_nCurrent Obsession: All things sugary! I don’t know why, but I’ve been eating all the sweets since being at my mom’s. I’m starting to cut back because I don’t feel the best when I eat a bunch of it.

Current Wish: That I could be spending time with the boyfriend! I really miss him and I wish we could be together on the same continent, in the same time zone, in the same city. Long distance is tough!IMG_2714Current Need: Sleep! As soon as I’m done this post, I’m passing out for the night!

Current Procrastination: Finding a re-certification for my first aid. I need to re-cert every year before I renew my personal training certification and I keep putting it off! I’ve found a few courses, but I haven’t signed up for one yet.

Current Blessing: I feel blessed to be able to live at my mom’s. It’s nice coming home from work and being able to heat up food to eat that I didn’t have to make myself. I am also blessed in that I’m able to save some money since I’m not having to pay rent or spend that much on groceries!

Current Excitement: I’ve been thinking about my quad workout for tomorrow and am very excited about it! I’m going to add some plyo bursts to get my heart rate up! I’m excited now, but I know in the middle of my workout I’ll be hating myself!

Current Mood: Tired! I’ve had a long day and am ready for bed.downloadCurrent Bane of my Existence: I can’t seem to think of anything besides repaying my student loans 😶 Why is school so dang expensive!?

Current Link: I found this article on Buzzfeed yesterday and had a good chuckle at some of the points. It’s 21 Pictures That Prove Canada Is Not A Real Country! I have some other Canada related Buzzfeed articles that I’m thinking about sharing in tomorrow’s post.

I hope you have a great Thursday! You’re almost to the weekend!


Pick one or two of the survey questions and tell me in the comments! I would love to hear some of your answers! 

WIAW #56

Good Morning! How is your week going?

We’re in the middle of a snowstorm here so the drive into town later is going to be a lot of fun. I don’t mind the snow, but hate driving in it!

Before I head out to brave the winter, I wanted to pop in to share what I ate yesterday. These are my favourite posts to read and to write so I hope you enjoy it! As always, a big thanks to Jenn for beginning this link up and letting me be nosy!

What I Ate Wednesday Tuesday

I started my day off much like last week’s WIAW only I added a sliced banana to it! The picture is recycled from last week, but seriously, you need to try this peanut butter! I have been loving it!12498498_10157058057220377_2091143518_nI was in the mood to bake yesterday so I spent an hour or two experimenting with a new recipe to no success. Isn’t that the worst! I’ll still eat it, but I had really high hopes for it.While it was baking, I whipped up my lunch. It was three eggs sunny side up with red pepper, spinach, and a Laughing Cow wedge. 12540325_10157081032495377_1723667510_nThe afternoon was spent snacking on pretty much anything that didn’t have any nutritional value. I had some of my “creation” that became a little better with peanut butter, some of my mom’s butterscotch peanut butter balls, and French Toast Crunch.

Supper time came before I knew it so I sat down to eat what my mom made for us. I realized this also looks similar to last week’s WIAW too. There was chicken stir fry and some rice with veggies. 12540028_10157081032830377_646466226_nI’m typing this up a little early, but when I’m done, I’m going to go grab a snack. I haven’t decided on what yet, but I have a feeling it’s going to have some more sugar because I definitely haven’t had enough of that today 🙈🙊

Anyways, that’s all from me today! I hope you have a great Wednesday!


Do you like snow?

What was your last baking fail?

I dropped the ball…

Good Morning Everyone! I hope you had a fantastic weekend and are set to take on the week!

I never meant to drop off the face of the blogging world at the end of last week, I just underestimated what starting work again would be like. I briefly mentioned it in my last post, but I started at my new job at a gym the middle of last week and it’s been a little crazy ever since.

Today’s post is much like my other Monday posts in that I’ll be updating you on my weekend (trust me, it isn’t that exciting), but I’ll also be recapping the end of last week since I disappeared.

Let’s take it back to Tuesday! I found out Tuesday morning that my letter of employment was ready and that my supervisor wanted to meet later that day! I quickly showered, threw some stuff in a suitcase and drove the hour and a half to my new job! After meeting with her, I headed to my mom’s house which is where I’ll be living because a) it saves me money and b) I’d rather not live on my own. The rest of that day was spent settling in and reading some work documents.

I was up bright and early on Wednesday to help my mom for a few hours before my first shift! My mom cleans houses so on top of my shifts at the gym, I’m going to be helping her a few days a week. I worked with her until just after lunch then headed to the gym. Right away I felt welcomed and I already know that I’m going to enjoy my time there.

I was able to sleep in on Thursday! I say sleep in, but I was awake around 8. I headed into town to get a workout in at my new gym before heading to work! Before I went to the gym, I had to stop at a grocery store to pick up a travel sized shampoo and body wash so I would be able to shower before my shift. While I was there, I noticed that they had Boom Chicka Pop Holidrizzle on sale for .99 cents!! I picked up the Dark Chocolatier Sea Salt and White Chocolate Peppermint flavours. Needless to say, they’re both gone and I can’t pick a favourite! They were both really good!

I had Friday off so I went back to my dad’s (where I used to live) to pick up a few more things since I packed in a rush on Tuesday. After that, I headed to the town that my university is in to meet up with some of my friends! I hadn’t seen them since September so it was great getting to catch up with them! I headed back to my mom’s Friday night since I had to work Saturday.

Saturday was much like Thursday in that I woke up, went to the gym before work, then worked. I’m starting to feel a lot more comfortable on the floor and am really enjoying myself!

I had Sunday off so I relaxed most of the day! I had a FaceTime date with Matthias and then I ran a few errands with my mom in the afternoon. Besides that, I caught up on reading blogs and watching YouTube videos!

I hope you have a great start to the week! I’m off to help my mom for a few hours then heading to get my workout in before my shift starts!

Linking up with Katie and Erin!


Do you like your popcorn salty or sweet?

Have you found any great sales/deals lately?