Seriously though. Study upon study all confirm that a good post-workout snack is one of the best things you can do for yourself. In simple terms, your body is most able to put nutrients to good use right after you have finished sweating off that cute little tush of yours. After doing some of my own little research, I’ve compiled a list of post-workout foods that you can afford, and why you should invest in them:

The Post Workout Foods Your Body is Begging You To Eat:
(Or at least the ones I tend to consider worshipping…) 

1. Pita Chips and Hummus
You’re going to notice a lot of carb/protein combinations- it’s because your body loves a good carb and protein marriage, silly. How do I do it? I love the taste of roasted red pepper hummus- it’s high in fiber and keeps me fuller longer, and the carotenoids from the red pepper give it an extra oomph. I also prepare my pita chips myself: tear up a pita and put it on some foil- drizzle it with a little olive oil and some salt and pop it under the broiler for a minute or two.

2. Greek yogurt and berries
If you seriously need to hear me rave any more about greek yogurt, then just call me sometime and I’ll talk about it for hours. Otherwise, I’ll direct you here. As far as berries go, they are just absolute freakin’ superfruits and they taste incredible with greek yogurt.

3. A turkey sammich and an apple
If my stomach is a-rumblin’ and I could go for more than just a snack, I always find myself scrambling for a turkey sammich. I tend to eat my open-faced (just one slice of bread) because too much break makes me feel too full, but eat however much you’re craving! I use whole wheat bread, lean shaved turkey breast, and a big handful of spinach on top. I love cutting up an apple to eat on the side… If I have a sweet tooth and am extra hungry, I usually dip it in some peanut butter. Super filling, and absolutely delicious.

4. A peanut butter and banana sammich and an apple
I tend to eat something like this after a really tough workout… Often, I’ll treat this “snack” as a meal replacement by adding some cut up carrots and cucumbers. The reason I don’t eat this one often? I adore peanut butter, but I’m no fan of its high calorie content. On whole wheat bread and with a drizzle of honey and a glass of vanilla soymilk on the side, however, this is one of the most satisfying snacks I could ever treat myself to.

5. A protein bar
This is never my first choice, just because I really love fresh fruits and vegetables post-workout… but if I’m on the go, I almost always reach for a luna bar. I always ask for these in care packages I get from home, and they’re a good guilt-free, low-cal snack that keeps me full. My favorite kind is the chocolate peppermint stick. So good. Drooling. This article on Livestrong.com explains the benefits and downfalls of protein bars. My advice? Do the research, and find one that you like and that you are comfortable putting in your body.

So anyways. I went on a joyous 1.4 mile jog today (that’s right, building up dat endurance! Sorry I’m not a hardcore 7 mile jogger… yet) and then came back home and did this POP Pilates workout, followed by this one… And I am now sufficiently beat. So of course, I sat down to some post-workout nummies: greek yogurt and some iced green tea. Proceed to be jealous:

Please ignore my horrid chipped nail polish. It was the best manicure I’ve ever gotten… Two weeks ago. I can’t let go of Midnight in Moscow just yet.

And on that note, enjoy yo’ post workout snacks. Peace out, playas.

Ugh.

Hearing the word “diet,” first of all, absolutely makes me cringe. After trying and failing at tons and tons of restrictive diets over the past seven or so years, I can promise that you are not the problem. Your weight is not the problem. Dieting is the problem. I recently bought and completely read an absolutely remarkable book called Intuitive Eating, and I cannot recommend it enough. (I’m also reading Superfoods Rx, and have equally fantastic things to say about it.)

I’m equally as unqualified to provide any advice to anyone, so I’m taking a shot in the dark here. Anyways, this is my two cents: Eat what you want. If you’re craving something, eat it. Eat as much if it as you want. By all means. Learn what makes your body feel its best. Give your body what it wants. Get your heart rate up because you want to. Because it feels good. Because it’s empowering. If you’re like me, you’re not likely to ever fully abandon the calorie-counting, thin-obsessed mindset, but you can do this: focus on being a better you. That fitspo is encouraging to look at, but trust me; it’s most encouraging when the fitspo is staring you back in the mirror, and you’re happy with what you see.

This is the background on my lappy right now, and I really really love it. Here’s what I say. Free yourself from the social constructs of thin and fit and beautiful. Work hard at being the best version of yourself that you can possibly be- that’s advice I’ll stand behind.

Five Quick Reasons Why You Will Love POP Pilates: 

1. Cassey is too cheerful not to love. Seriously. Even when you’re cursing her out during a workout, you can’t help but love her. Sometimes she’s a little too peppy for me, but when I’m in the heat of a workout, her annoying peppiness gets me through to the end.

2. The workouts are quick. Have ten minutes to spare? That’s all you need.

3. It’s free. If you have access to YouTube, you have access to POP Pilates.

4. There is a blog counterpart! Cassey knows her stuff and is devoted to sharing it all through her blog, blogilates. Recipes, a directory of all of her YouTube videos, and

5. The workouts are just that right level of challenging. They’re difficult enough for me that I usually pause it halfway through a set so I can lay flat on the floor in snow-angel stance and beg for mercy….  But not so grueling that you can’t do them.

To say that I am not much of a runner yet is a severe understatement. I played tennis in high school and rowed crew in a nationally ranked novice boat last semester… but my running endurance is absolutely zero. So, I’m starting with baby steps. I want to be good at this, and because this site is already growing pretty quickly, I really want people to know how much more I have to learn and how much more I have to work at. My run with Piper yesterday was almost exactly a mile… 1.03 or something like that. My run today? 1.3 miles. I’m taking some serious baby steps, but the important thing is that I’m doing it, and if I push myself just a little harder, run just a little further, I believe I can get better every day.

So if you’re about to start your freshman year of college, if you’re going into your senior year, if you’re still in high school or if you’ve been out of school for years… If you believe you can do something, then you can. I’m about to queue up a list of my goals for my sophomore year, and I’m thrilled that so many people are already joining me for the long haul!

And now, I’m off to spend the rest of the day packing my life up into plastic bins. Even though I am a sweaty hot mess, do you think I will shower? Heh heh heh. I am disgusting.

The contents of the happiness in this bowl:
Quaker oats
teeny amounts of:
cinnamon
nutmeg
honey
brown sugar
craisins
crushed up honey nut cheerios.

I don’t really count calories, nor do I ever really eat honey nut cheerios… But I can promise this is low in cals and absolute heaven. I just finished it and I already miss it.

1. Greek Yogurt is (sorry for the cliché) a superfood. It’s so good for you that if it could somehow grow a mouth and beg you to eat it, it probably would. It’s overwhelmingly low in fat, has a buttload of protein, and hardly any calories.

2. It’s blissfully creamy. Whenever I eat it, I tend to just ponder how something with the consistency of sour cream could be so good for me. Ugh.

3. It’s versatile! You can eat it so many different ways. Go sweet and add some fruit in it, or go savory and use it as the base for a dip. The possibilities are absolutely endless. My favorite way to eat it is plain with a big gob of honey. ’Scuse me while I wipe the drool from my face.

4. It gives you strong bones, a bump-bumpin’ heart, and a squeaky clean digestive system. Who doesn’t want that?

5. All dat protein will make you all muscley and buff. Mmm.

6. My favorite kind of Greek Yogurt is, hands down, Fage. I desperately wish I could have a never-ending supply of the stuff. Few foods make me this happy… But seriously, when I have Fage Greek Yogurt and Honey, I literally feel like the honey is doing cartwheels all the way down my esophagus. And I’m not the only one who feels this way: Nicole from Pinch My Salt agrees that Fage is only the best. And I’m jealous of her free samples.

So anyways, jump on the bandwagon and give this stuff a try. All the cool kids are doing it.

So here we go. Phytonutrients 101:

One of my strongest beliefs is that a healthy diet is not simply about giving your body what it needs to get by. It has so much to do with giving yourself what you want. Phytonutrients are not absolutely essential to your survival as a human being, but if you want to live longer, reduce your chances of falling ill to chronic diseases, and have a happier life, then you want to make sure phytonutrients have a front seat in all of your food choices. So let’s get to the science of these things.

The word “Phyto” is greek for “plant,” and phytonutrients are, as you might be able to guess, organic compounds coming from plants that many people believe can promote our health. According to Superfoods Rx, “Phytonutrients are nonvitamin, nonmineral components of foods that have significant health benefits,” and “there are literally thousands of them in our foods.” Different phytonutrients serve different purposes, like helping the cells in our body communicate with one another or help protect your body against inflammation after an injury. There are SO MANY jobs that phytonutrients serve inside our bodies that doctors are still discovering them! Steven Pratt, M.D. and Kathy Matthews, the authors of SuperFoods explain that while there are a butt load of kinds of phytonutrients, if you’re just starting out, like I am, there are just three that you really should get acquainted with:

Polyphenols: If you’re like me, this word sounds familiar. You could probably spell it correctly at a spelling bee and you could confidently stand up with me to say that it is a “science word.” Great news, friends. Polyphenol is more than a science word. These great little things act as antioxidants: they help against inflammation, allergies, and make you a super healthy human. Holla! I bet you’ve been getting your daily doses of polyphenols your whole life, and you had no idea. Polyphenol containing foods include tea, wine (my personal favorite…), berries, and soybeans.

Carotenoids: All at once, let’s say it together. Carotenoids. Ahhh, didn’t that feel good? I bet when you said it, you thought of carrots. I did. It’s a good way to remember that carotenoids are literally the things that give yellow, orange, and red vegetables their color (can I get a what-what for sweet potatoes?!). They include beta-carotene, another one of those terms I know you’ve heard, but probably don’t quite know what it means. Here you go: beta-carotene functions as an antioxidant, protecting us from unwanted things like aging and cancer. Get ‘cho carotenoids from anythang orange, yellow, or red: apricots, tomatoes, mangoes… You get the picture.

Phytoestrogens: That’s right. Plants have estrogen. These puppies help fight hormone-related cancers (prostate, breast…), diabetes, and coronary heart disease. You can find them in fruits like apples and pomegranates, vegetables like carrots, and whole-wheat and soy based products.

So there you go. Your crash course on phytonutrients. I bet you’re pleased at how much more intelligent you are now that you have read this. Now, go eat a carrot.

Yes, I have a snap back hat on and I am contemplating going to bed before midnight. I do not deserve to be twenty years old.

I came across this book, and twelve pages in, I am already enthralled. Perhaps if you’re lucky I’ll even tell you the fourteen foods that will change your life in “SuperFoods Rx: Fourteen Foods That Will Change Your Life.” Maybe. Just maybe.

“It has been estimated that 300,000 to 800,000 preventable deaths per year in the United States are nutrition related. These include deaths from atherosclerotic disease, diabetes, and certain cancers.

Here are eleven disastrous developments in nutrition that are ruining your health and the health of most everyone in modern industrial societies:

1. Increased portion sizes.
2. Decreased energy expenditure; people just don’t exercise enough.
3. Unhealthy balance of fats in the diet: an increase in saturated fat, omega-6 fatty acids, and trans-fatty acids, along with a huge decrease in omega-3 fatty acids.
4. An increase in consumption of processed cereal grains.
5. An overall decrease in fruit and vegetable intake from historical standards.
6. A decrease in lean meat and fish intake.
7. A decrease in antioxidant intake and calcium intake (especially from whole foods).
8. The unhealthy ratio of omega-6 to omega-3 fats, which is associated with a long list of chronic diseases.
9. A marked increase in refined sugar as an overall percentage of caloric intake.
10. A decrease in whole food consumption, which has led to a marked decrease in phytonutrient intake.
11. A decrease in the variety of foods eaten”

Source: SuperFoods Rx: Fourteen Foods That Will Change Your Life by Steven Pratt, M.D., and Kathy Matthews, pages 12 & 13 

For that reason, it’s much easier to take her on runs. Most obvious is the fact that she pulls the hell out of me and makes me run faster than I would if I had just gone by myself. Of course, this does hurt my shoulder more than it probably should. Oh well, I’m embracing my last few days with my pup until thanksgiving. So, running it is.

Before the run, Pipe was feeling all noble and crap while I tied my shoes:

And then afterwards, she was all like “I’m old and grey and it’s too hot for us purebreds out there. Leave me be on my cold linoleum.”

So, I’m going to leave the old lady to her linoleum floor and go lay poolside for an hour or so. What a bum.