flashback friday: last year.

hello! i feel like i haven’t talked to you guys blogged in forever.  but here i am! *waves*

hope you enjoyed sarah’s guest post.. and i hope you enjoy guest posts in general because i can assure you that is all you are going to see here in about two weeks.

two weeks.

i am getting married in two weeks.

balls.

needless to say, i’ve been keeping busy with wedding details and house stuff.  for those of you who don’t know, marshall & i bought a house in april and had the ridiculous idea to renovate 80% of it.  there is still a lot left to do and we have to be moved in before the wedding.

which, in case you missed the memo above, is in two weeks.

here is what is on the house to-do list:

• kitchen countertops (my brother is doing concrete countertops.. should be badass.)
• install kitchen sink/faucet
• buy kitchen table/chairs/bar stools
• buy living room furniture/rugs
• get all blinds cleaned and reinstall them into the window openings
• seal & trim sliding glass door
• install 2 dog doors
• take off all doors (there are 7), cut them down (to accommodate for the new tile floors), possibly paint them and put them back up
• all window sills
• patch damaged sheetrock in 3 window openings (thanks, marshall’s friends who were trying to help)
• paint one bathroom
• paint one bedroom
• touch up paint in a zillion places
• bathroom countertops (both bathrooms)
• bathroom sinks/faucets/shower heads/tub faucet/etc
• bathroom light fixtures, mirrors, knobs, towel racks, hooks, TP roll holder, etc (both bathrooms)
• heater/cooling vent register covers (all of them)
• closet/door knobs (all of them)
• stain deck
• buy a dresser for marshall
• buy a desk & love seat & TV for the office

and the wedding to-do list:

• find a guest book pen
• finalize the rehearsal dinner menu
• buy 12 disposable cameras
• finish photo clothes line
• make various signs needed for reception
• flower girl dresses

gee.. which one is longer?

as you can see, my stress lies in the house issues. i am pretty happy with all the wedding plans, not stressed about that at all in fact!

anyway.. i haven’t been taking photos of anything really. i will show you what i’ve got, but i cannot promise that it will intrigue you.

it has been super hot, so i have been eating my faux protein frosty a lot this week.

i thought i would re-visit the recipe since i haven’t talked about it in months! i know miss PBJenny is all ‘bout this thing :)

• 1/2-3/4 cup almond milk (or milk of your choice, i use unsweetened vanilla almond breeze by blue diamond)
• ridiculous amount of ice
• 1 scoop (30 grams) vanilla protein powder (i use EAS brand 100% whey)
• 1-2 TB unsweetened cocoa powder (depending on how chocolatey you like it)
• 1/2 tsp xanthan gum (this is the KEY ingredient)
• sweetener of choice (in this one i used 1/4 of a frozen banana for my sweetener, but i always switch it up)

blend, blend, blend.

devour.

i kid you not, this tastes identical to a wendy’s frosty. but it’s healthy. and i love it. a lot.

i have also been munching on insane amounts of veggies & hummus lately!

this particular plate had mini bell peppers, cucumber and mushrooms.

i actually mixed this hummus (garlic flavored sabra) with a squirt of beaver hot & sweet mustard.. ever since HEAB introduced me to that stuff, i can’t get enough of it! (by the way, HEABs just found out she is having a girl! congrats!)

dunkalicious.

i made it to the gym both wednesday AND thursday! wow, that is some kind of record considering my lack of working out lately!

i thought i would share both workouts with you since i haven’t rambled about my moves in ages.

wednesday’s cardio treadmill sesh:

minute #	speed	incline
1	5.5	0%
2	5.5	0%
3	6.0	0.5%
4	6.5	0.5%
5	7.0	0.5%
6	7.5	0.5%
7	6.0	1%
8	6.5	1%
9	7.0	1%
10	7.5	1%
11	6.0	0.5%
12	6.5	0.5%
13	7.0	0.5%
14	7.5	0.5%
15	6.0	1%
16	6.5	1%
17	7.0	1%
18	7.5	1%
19	6.0	0.5%
20	6.5	0.5%
21	7.0	0.5%
22	7.5	0.5%
23	6.0	1%
24	6.5	1%
25	7.0	1%
26	7.5	1%
27	6.0	0.5%
28	6.5	0.5%
29	7.0	0.5%
30	7.5	0.5%
30-45	3.5	15%

total time: 45 minutes, total distance: 4.25 miles

thursday’s upper body workout:

i took part of this workout from the pages of the latest issue of oxygen magazine.  they talked about giant sets, which are basically just supersets beefed up! when you do two exercises back-to-back without rest, that is called a “superset”.  when you do three exercises in the same manner, it is called a “triset”.  a “giant set” is when you combine four or more exercises back-to-back without rest.  i commonly refer to this as a “circuit”, but i like the way “giant set” sounds. it is fun. what can i say, i am easy to please!

the upper body moves in the article hit all major upper body areas (chest, back, shoulders, biceps & triceps) and did so in the best way possible: biggest muscles first, then smaller muscles. i like working out this way because the bigger muscles are able to sustain the whole workout.

anyway, here is the workout i did:

• 5 minute elliptical warmup

giant set: three times through (with a 60 second rest after each time)

move	weight	reps	muscle worked
flat bench dumbbell chest press	20# ea	15	chest
two arm dumbbell row	15# ea	15	back
seated overhead dumbbell press	15# ea	15	shoulders
alternating biceps curl	10# ea	15 (each side)	biceps
skull crushers	10# ea	15	triceps

finished the workout off with some core:

• 25 bench tuck crunches
• 50 decline bench crunches
• 100 oblique twists on decline bench
• 25 back extension reps on stability ball

and then i stretched!

the end.

it was awesome to get both a cardio workout and a lifting workout in.  while i don’t feel guilty about taking days off from working out in order to get ready for my wedding & the move, i definitely miss working out. i genuinely enjoy exercise.

speaking of exercise.. i just wanted to mention something. i know i am one of those “screw the scale” types, but yesterday i picked up my scale to pack it for the move.. and the curiosity got the best of me. i am sure you know what that is like. i decided to step on.

i lost 4 pounds.

what? weird. i have been to the gym twice in ten days and i lost weight? now, that 4 pound loss wasn’t in just the ten days because i hadn’t weighed myself in weeks.. but i was under the impression that i would have gained weight due to my workout neglect and my recent dessert indulgence.

that just reconfirms what i already believed: weight loss is all about what you eat! sure, it has a little to do with working out, but i believe that weight loss is 80% what you eat and 20% exercise.

i have been watching what i eat, making sure my portions are proper, getting a good amount of protein in at each meal, eating when i am hungry and stopping when i am full.. and it’s working.

i couldn’t be happier! i wanted to share this with you guys because i know a lot of women kill themselves for hours on end in the gym and don’t lose a pound because their nutrition is not where it should be. and you know what they say: you can’t out-train a bad diet.

it’s SO true. you can’t. and who would want to? like i mentioned up there, i exercise because i enjoy it. not because it will let me eat whatever i want (it won’t) and not because i want to lose weight (it may help, but minimally.. i burn maybe 300 calories in each workout).  when i want to fit into my summer wardrobe, i don’t focus on the gym. i focus on the kitchen. and i make sure i am spot on with what i am eating. which, by the way, still includes eating whatever i like. just in moderation. i have enjoyed pie and ice cream on father’s day and plenty of white, doughy bread when it is staring me in the face. i just make sure the rest of my meals are balanced and clean.

okay.. end of rambles. just wanted to give you guys my two cents, for what it’s worth!

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flashback friday!

it’s the fourth of july weekend, so i decided i would flash back to last year’s weekend.  several of you read my blog back then, so this may be a tad repetitive for you and i apologize, but i think it is always fun to do the “a year ago today…” posts. so bare with me.

a year ago this weekend…

• i was eating breakfast cookies:

1/3 cup oats, 1 scoop vanilla protein powder, 1/2 banana , 1 Tb cocoa powder, 1 Tb PB&Co Dark Chocolate Dreams, unsweetened coconut, splash of almond milk

goodness. i need to bring these back into my life.

• i was getting comments from these lovely blog friends, i am so glad we are still buds a year later!

susan, danica, lynn, ellie, emily, k, jenny, holly, kailey, anne, haleigh, angharad (first comment she ever left was that weekend!), sophia, jess, ashley, april, jasmine, caroline, maya, julie, leah, other caroline, other emily & michelle.

• i bitched about a raisin being in my vitatop parfait!

ironically.. i love raisins now.

• i ran my first 10k (with my sister suni & bro in law eric)

well, my first and only 10k, actually. i want to do another one sometime soon!

• i went to the demolition derby & watched cars get smashed and fireworks go off

we are going again this year! it is tomorrow night :)

• my friends steph & alex had a BBQ and i made miniature patriotic cheesecakes

cute, right? recipe is here. they are having another BBQ this year, on sunday, and i plan to make patriotic desserts again! can’t wait!

• mister randy dog turned 4 years old and i made him a birthday cake

randy turns FIVE on monday. you can bet there WILL be cake!!

• marshall got me a food processor for our second (boyfriend/girlfriend) anniversary

he knows the way to my heart. through kitchen gadgets. this year will be our 3 year anniversary, but since we are getting married in two weeks.. i am not sure we will have to celebrate the whole boyfriend/girlfriend thing anymore!

• my brother & sister in law lost my unborn nephew (who we called “peanut”) at 8 months pregnant :(

sad. this is hard. it will be a year on saturday… we are going to go on a hike in the mountains and let some balloons go in his honor. i know he is up in heaven and there is a reason he was taken from our family before even coming into this world, but it is still very hard.  i am happy to report that my brother & his wife are expecting another baby boy (due in november!) so that is exciting. but we all think about peanut often and wish we’d had a chance to get to know him. <3

that concludes flashback friday! what a difference a year makes. i am engaged, randy is a year older (but no more mature, he still gets into the trash), and i like raisins! then again, there are the things that stay the same. i still love races, we are going to the demo derby & having a BBQ just like last year and i plan my food according to what holiday it is.

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well, you know my weekend plans, since i just told you during my flashback! but i’d love to hear yours.

Qs~

1. what are your 4th of july plans? what delicious food you are going to make? any traditions you have for the 4th that you’d like to share with the class? in addition to the hike, the demo derby, the BBQ and randy’s birthday, we are going to the REAL (soccer) game tonight and working on the house… as per usual.

2. favorite veggie to eat RAW? this. is. hard. ohmygoodness. i guess i will have to say bell peppers because they pack so much flavor. but i also love raw mushrooms. and carrots! oh, hell, i like them all.

have a happy & safe holiday! i will try to check in sometime this weekend!

xo. janetha b.

p.s. happy birthday, k!