Wordless Wednesday

Alright, so this post won't be completely wordless since that would essentially mean I'm not talking, and if you know me at all-you would know I need to talk!

So here goes more of a 'extreme-picture-laden' Wednesday :)

The day started off AMAZINGLY! ...probably since the very last thing I did the night before was watch this:

For anyone who wants to know-I cried when they finished their 5k. Sap-I know, but I just can't help it! I can't wait to help people overcome their fears and do more than they ever dreamed possible!

So I got up-and in celebration of my personal training aspirations did a Jillian Micheals workout! Ain't no betta way to start the day!

Oh wait, there is - I remembered to grab my Bible before heading off to breakfast in the dining hall. This always makes my day get off to a great start! I love beginning the day in The Word. If you're looking for a way to start your day off right, do it with Jesus! You won't be sorry :)

And to make my day even better, I got to try my sample of this:

Chike Nutrition Ice Coffee Mix

AHHHH! You guys- seriously, I don't even know how to explain how freakin' amazing this stuff is! I'm not sure if it has like a-kajillion more times the caffeine as coffee (ok-actually I do know, it says on the package that it has about the same amount as one cup regular caffeinated coffee). But it seriously got me so 'jived' (<- word of the day!)

It was delicious tasting and is sooo good for you! Seriously-it was like a party in a coffee-shop in my mouth! 

 

And I can have a good excuse for drinking it, because it has so many vitamins and minerals and PROTEIN! 20 g worth! Ya... pretty much like 3 eggs! :O 

It comes in a nice little single serve package like so...

And you put it in 10ish ounces of water (or milk) like so....

And mix (with a fork, blender ball, just shaking, anything!)

*Chike also sells a bunch of other flavors of single mix-in protein drinks, if you aren't a coffee-Fein like myself!

It is soooo smooth! Honestly, I can NOT take just mixing any kind of protein powder with just a liquid, I think it taste chalky and gritty and have to just use it in a smoothie to be able to bear it. But this-this was something special! It mixed in so easily and quickly and tasted like a creamy, decadent latte! I gave it a splash of milk, just because I wanted it to go farther, added so coffee ice cubes and away I went! Happily slurping my way through the day....

Slurpin' through some Chemistry homework... believe you and me-ice coffee Chike Nutrition style really makes Chemistry easier to bear! Fun almost! ...almost...

I also snacked on some hummus dip in a cute little single serve squeezable package-cute no?

And got to try yet ANOTHER one of my product review samplings - Crunchies.

It's freeze dried pineapple!

Look at those stats! :O The whole package had 150 calories. Wowza! Not to mention 180% of your vitamin C need, 6g fiber and 12% iron. And the only ingredients: pineapple!

Crunchies has a bunch of different freeze dried snacks, both fruits and vegetables; mixed blends, seasoned goodies as well as organic options.

They are so good for you, fun to chop on, delicious and an easy to grab snack!

So after Chem lecture, Physiology lecture, Chem recitation, Physiology lab (where I go to be the volunteer to have my urine analyzed! Woo-hoo! ..too much sharing? :/ Sorry!), working on a group project for over 2 hours, and homework, homework, and more homework - how do I reward myself?

With a HUGE bowl of granola of course!

Yum x 3!

But now I feel like this....

So I'm off to bed! Goodnight and God Bless!

*If you actually made it to this point in the post-I am honored, amazed and wish I had your attention span!

~Chike Nutrition and Crunchies only sent me samples to review. I was not given any other compensation. All opinions are my own.~

Pina Colada Parfait

Oh the beach... the sand, the sun, the fruity drinks with the fun straws and little umbrellas! They're soooo cute :) 

What isn't cute is the 5 kajillion (ok maybe a little bit of an exaggeration but not much!) calories they come loaded with! And with like 20 lbs. of sugar, they are sure to leave you feeling a little less less than a sand-diva. (If you truly want a pina colada drink be sure to check out my pina colada smoothie recipe here.)

Stop crying... no really... stop crying-you'll get your keyboard all wet and then it won't run, and then you won't be able to finish reading this post, and then you can't make the great recipe that is coming up shortly! I have a solution! You can still have your pina colada fix AND feel confident strutting that swim suit on the beach! It's my Pina Colada Parfait! 

Ingredients: 

-1/2 cup yogurt (I chose Dannon Light n' Fit Pina Colada, but if you don't have this you can sub. in vanilla, pineapple, plain, Greek-for some extra protein, or really anything but those are my reccomendations)

-1/4 cup chopped pineapple

-1-2 strawberries (for a little color)

-1/4 cup Fiber One Cereal (or granola.... like my Hodgepodge Granola which you can find here)

Directions:

1. Assembly is as follows: strawberries, yogurt, pineapple, yogurt, pineapple and top with cereal/granola (although if you're anything like me, as soon as I take the picture I mix it all up so I have a little bit of everything in each bite!)

Nutritional Info:
Your nutrient stats will all depend on the type of yogurt you use and what you choose for your cereal/granola-but I can assure you that it will be 100000 times better for your beach bod than any pina colada mixed drink!

I wanna know: What's your favorite way to make a parfait? I'm always looking for unique and new ideas! :)

Pina Colada Smoothie

I know, I know, it's only February but I am still dreaming of summer! I love the bright skies, warm weather and delicious treats that are customary to that time of year! Like fruit! Even though we can get fruit year round due to the nifty little invention of airplanes and trucks, there is still a much more plentiful and cheaper assortment of fruit during the summer!

So what is a girl to do when she wants a summery treat in the dead of winter? Did you guess travel to Hawaii?! That was my first option, but unfortunately I don't quite have enough money...or time off from school for that matter! So I am going to go with my plan B-create an amazing healthy smoothie that reminds us all of Hawaii on a warm July night (not that I've ever actually experienced that, but pretty sure if I had-it'd taste remarkably close to this smoothie! :P

I've combined the sweet flavors of banana and pineapple with the creamy goodness of yogurt and milk, and threw in some protein powder (which mostly goes unnoticed) but, it is this secret ingredient that will assist us in our quest to having that 'Hawaii beach body' as well! :)

Ingredients: 

-1 container (6 ounces) Dannon Light n' Fit yogurt-FROZEN (best flavors to use: vanilla, plain or pineapple)

-1/2 cup skim milk or Coconut Water

-1 scoop protein powder (vanilla works best)

-1/2 frozen banana

-1/4 cup pineapple chunks (frozen works best but fresh is thawed)

-Ice if necessary 

Directions:
1. Pretty straight forward...add everything to a blender and blend until smooth

     ~Add ice cubes or more frozen pineapple chunks to create a thicker smoothie

     ~Add more milk if you want a thinner smoothie

Nutritional Info: