Friday Favorites

TGIF! I think the universe knew I was excited for this weekend so it made time slooow down. After work I am headed out to Pennsylvania tonight to spend some time with one of my best friends. We don't have any solid plans yet but we do know we are doing our long run together as we are both training for CoDel marathon! Other than that, we will just have a good time like always! I'll be home on Sunday for a little Super Bowl party at my parent's house so busy busy I'll be! Anywho, before I sign off and head into this weekend, I am sharing some things I've been loving this week.

Not a very good picture but I eat it too fast before I can get a good photo... oops!

Honey Cardamom Granola

This is a recipe from Run Fast. Cook Fast. Eat Slow. by 2017 NYC Marathon champion Shalane Flanagan and chef Elyse Kopecky. I finally picked up some cardamom last week {why did I not own it before?!} and this was my first recipe I tried out with it. It just needs some basic ingredients {and ground cardamom if that isn't basic to you like it wasn't for me} and it's super easy to make. I made it while meal prepping over the weekend and it's been my go-to snack all week. I may or may not have made it two more times since then... Enjoy it either plain or mixed in with some yogurt!

Calia Running Top

This top caught my eye while perusing through Dick's Sporting Goods back before Christmas. I'm not sure if it was the color or style but I knew I needed to have it. I resisted but then somehow it ended up under my Christmas tree this year. Luckily it did because it has been my favorite cold weather running top the past few weeks. The moisture-wicking material is lightweight yet still keeps me warm. I absolutely love the look of the high neck and the fact that it keeps my neck toasty. There is a front hoodie-like pocket that is more practical when wearing casually, not while running. Also, the whole Calia by Carrie Underwood brand is super new to me but after looking at other clothing they offer, I love it! 

KitchenAid Food Chopper

I'm almost embarrassed to write about this because I've honestly had this food chopper since my bridal shower in June and literally JUST remembered I had it. I typically buy onions at Aldi which means about 6 comes in a bag when I only need a quarter of one for a recipe. When this happens, I chop the remaining onions up and freeze them for recipes in the future. I went to go do this the other day when I realized why do it by hand when I have a food chopper?! Total game changer. I had my onions peeled, chopped, and in the freezer within minutes! This particular chopper has a 3.5 cup bowl where you put the food to be chopped or pureed so it holds a good amount. I was able to put 2 onions cut into quarters into the bowl to chop at a time. I'm excited to use this in the future when making salads or other recipes that involve chopped ingredients.

Question of the Day: What is something you're loving this week?

Currently

Happy hump day! I'm not sure what it is about this week, but it really is dragging. Maybe the universe knows I have a fun weekend up ahead? Who knows. I've had a couple blog post ideas rolling around in my mind lately but haven't had the chance to really sit down and put those thoughts to metaphorical paper. To help break up this week, I'm sharing a "currently" post with you all! Here is a little update on my life currently...

I am currently...

Eating

Honey cardamom granola from Run Fast. Cook Fast. Eat Slow. by Shalane Flanagan and Elyse Kopecky. More about that in a later post!

Wearing

All the scarves! It's been so chilly here in New Jersey.

Listening To

Hot Country station on Spotify. It has been powering me through my runs lately!

Reading

7 by Jen Hatmaker. I'm only halfway through but it's a true story about Jen Hatmaker spending 7 months to focus on 7 different areas of excess in her life. So far, so good!

Watching

This Is Us. I’ve never been as up to date with the current season as I am now. Usually I am 3+ episodes behind and can’t have any discussions with my friends who are up to date. 

Drinking

Nuun Vitamins. Trying to keep all the germs away!

Question of the Day: What is something you’re currently eating, wearing, listening to, etc.? Pick one :)

Coastal Delaware Marathon Training Week 6

Happy Monday! I had some good runs last week but of course, slacked in the strength training. Eventually I’ll learn to balance everything out, right? One thing I focused on this week was stretching after my runs which is something I am not always the best at. I even went as far as doing some foam rolling throughout the week to loosen up my legs. I am looking forward to this coming week of training because I will be doing my long run this weekend with Rachel, who is training for CoDel with me! I hope you all have a great week!

Monday: 3 miles

Tuesday: REST

Wednesday: 4 miles

Thursday: REST

Friday: REST

Saturday: REST

Sunday: 13.1 miles

Weekly Total: 20.1 miles


Question of the Day: What is your go-to post-run recovery?

Friday Favorites

Happy Friday! This was a 4-day week for me so it went by pretty fast. We have some tentative plans for the weekend. Today is my mother-in-law's birthday so we will be going out to dinner at some point and then our friends want to get together one day as well. I'll also squeeze a long run somewhere in there. I hope you all have a good weekend! :)

Green Mountain Cinnamon Sugar Cookie K-Cups

For those of you who don't know, I stopped drinking coffee religiously close to 2 years ago. Lately I've been craving some flavored coffee so this k-cup fell in my hands at the perfect time. John saw this flavor at work and thought I'd like it so he brought it home for me to try. He was right, it's so good! It has a light cinnamon taste that isn't too overwhelming, but covers up the strong coffee taste that I'm not a huge fan of. I like to make it with some vanilla creamer on the weekends and enjoy it while lounging around.

Vitamin C Drops

Last week I got hit with a cold that surprisingly didn't stick around too long. On the first day I woke up with it, I decided to stop at Rite-Aid on the way to work for some DayQuil and ended up grabbing a big bag of Vitamin C drops, too. I am so glad I did because they are great! I used them in place of cough drops {I'm guessing that was their purpose} but I liked them better because they didn't have that medicinal cough drop flavor. The bag I got was a citrus variety. Although my cold is gone, I've still be using them throughout the day if I feel a little itchy throat or just want one.

Cold-Eeze Lozenges

My mom had given me these a couple weeks ago so when my cold hit, I grabbed them out of the cabinet right away in hopes of shortening my cold since that is what they advertise. Wow wow wow I was actually shocked that they worked! I woke up with my cold on Monday and kicked it by Thursday! Normally they stick around for awhile. I was also taking NyQuil and DayQuil throughout the week but I always take that when a cold shows up so I truly believe these worked. I had the sugar-free cherry flavor and they were okay. The flavor wasn't too strong but by the end I felt like I was like sucking on plastic. I don't know if that was just because they were sugar-free or not.

Source

The Simplicity Challenge

I found out about this challenge on Instagram on New Years Day and jumped right in. Emily Ley, the creator of the Simplified Planner, has created this challenge as a way to simplify your life in 30 days by completing a simple task each day. The challenge can be started at any point throughout the year and could be taken at your own pace. The tasks range from cleaning out your fridge to detoxing your social media feeds. My favorite task so far was simplifying my phone. I deleted so many unused apps and refreshed the wallpaper on my phone.

Question of the Day: What is something you're loving this week?

My 2020 Goals

Originally I wasn't going to share my 2020 goals on here because I have no intention of doing monthly updates like I did last year. The more I thought about it, I figured why not? Maybe typing them up here and putting them out in the blog-iverse will make sure I keep up with them. Or maybe they will give you an idea for a 2020 goal for yourself if you're still racking your brain for one. Either way, here are the goals I've set for myself {aka typed up in a note on my phone and have been thinking about since the year has started}, enjoy!

Hot chocolate + frozen Cool Whip is a good form of self care on a cold night!

Take Care of Me

Whether this means saying "no" to something or a weekly self-care day, I really want to start making ME happy. So far I've been loving dedicating a part of my Sunday night to putting on a face mask and relaxing.

Just a small fraction of books I want to read {and some I’ve already read!}. 

Read Books I Have in the House

I have a habit of picking up new books from the thrift store whenever a title strikes my eye so my goal is to focus on reading them before buying any more. On Goodreads I set a goal for 12 books this year. I am sure I will surpass that number {I have already read 2 books since January 1st!} but I wanted to pick an attainable number just in case life gets wild, like it usually does.

Not pictured: all the post-it flags marking all the recipes I want to try. 

Try 24 New Recipes

This is actually a goal between John and I. We both are tired of eating the same old, same old, so we have decided to try 24 different recipes throughout the year. The idea is to pick 2 a month: 1 my choice and 1 his choice.

Make Running My #1 Priority

In case it wasn't obvious, I love running. Lately I've been letting the craziness of life keep me from putting my full effort into running as a whole. In 2020 I want to put running at the top of my priority list by following my training plans to the best of my ability and truly incorporating strength training, foam rolling, speed work, and all that other good stuff into my training.

Question of the Day: Did you set any goals for 2020? If so, what is one of them?

Coastal Delaware Marathon Training Week 5

I finally got a strength training workout in! I was sick for most of this week so the fact that I got any type of work out in is a miracle. Although I felt crappy going into my runs in the beginning of the week, I ended up feeling great during them. I’m working hard at pushing myself {as long as I am not too sick!} and getting my workouts done. Week 5 is done and we are now less than 3 months out from the marathon!

Monday: REST

A night run while it was slightly misting out. 

Tuesday: 4 miles

Wednesday: Strength Training

I was busy right after work so a 7:30 PM run it was!

Thursday: 3 miles

Friday: REST

Saturday: REST

Sunday: 11 miles

Weekly Total: 18 miles


Question of the Day: What do you typically do about your workouts when you’re sick? Sit them out or push yourself?

Friday Favorites

Happy Friday! With a 3-day weekend ahead of me, I am so happy it's Friday! This week wasn't too bad as I took a sick day on Wednesday which broke up the week. I just needed a day to kick the last of the cold that was lingering. It really did help!

I have a busy weekend ahead of me! Tonight I am going to a Board & Brush night with my mom and sister for a girls night. Tomorrow we have plans with John's college friends but with snow on the radar, I am unsure what the back up plan is. Sunday is my father-in-law's birthday so we will be celebrating that. Busy busy! Good stuff, though! Before I sign off and start my crazy weekend, I'm sharing some things I've been loving lately.

Reading at Night

As you might've read in Wednesday's blog post, I have a goal for 2020 to read 12 books this year. With my job, I don't really have time to read during the day and then I'm usually getting things done around the house or running once I get home. I've been making it a habit to read right before I fall asleep at night. It is so enjoyable and keeps me from mindlessly scrolling through my phone. My only complaint is that sometimes I get so into my book that I stay up late reading.

Untapped Chai Waffles

I'm a sucker for anything chai flavored so when I saw these chai waffles at my running store a few weeks back, I knew I HAD to buy some. The flavor is phenomenal! It's the perfect amount of spicy and sweet. I'm not 100% when a waffle should be consumed when it comes to running, but I've just been eating half of one after a run to hold me over until my next meal.

@2020TrashtheTrash on Instagram

A runner {@fueledbylolz} I follow on Instagram recently started a new Instagram account to follow her 2020 NY resolution of getting rid of something each day that doesn't serve in a positive manner. If you haven't noticed I love anything to do with decluttering and cleaning so this really struck my interest. Each day Hollie shares what part of her life she has cleared out and items she has gotten rid of. So far she has purged a variety of areas in her life from her social media to shelves in her garage. Seeing her posts each day motivate me to go home and clear out different parts of my house.

Question of the Day: What is something you're loving this week?

Coastal Delaware Marathon Training Week 4

It’s hard to believe week 4 of training is already done! This week was a little lighter on the mileage as I adjusted back to working a full 5-day work week but they were all solid workouts! Strength training went out the window as I used a lot of my free time to spend time with my brother. He leaves this week for an unknown amount of time so I took advantage of the time we had. I’m actually looking forward to getting back into a routine this week, as long as this cold I have goes away quickly! I hope you all have a great Monday!

Monday: 3 miles

Tuesday: REST

Wednesday: 3 miles

Thursday: REST

Friday: REST

Saturday: REST

Sunday: 10 miles

Weekly Total: 16 miles


Question of the Day: What is your go-to snack/meal for before a long run?

Friday Favorites

Is it me or was this first full week back at work the longest week EVER? I am so happy it's Friday because this teacher is beat! We have a couple plans on the agenda for this weekend. Tonight we are going to the gym together, tomorrow morning I am going with a friend while she tries on her wedding dress, and then Sunday we are spending time with my brother as his leave is ending very soon. Somewhere in there will also be a long run. It should be a good weekend! I hope everyone has a fun weekend :)

From the Ground Up Cauliflower Crackers

I'm a big fan of cauliflower based food so I was excited to see these on sale last week at Shoprite. After scanning the barcode with my WW app, I saw they were only 3 points for 41 crackers, so awesome! When I first opened them, I legit laughed out loud. No wonder you got so many for so little points, the crackers are like miniature Cheez-it sized! Regardless of the size, they are tasty! I bought the sea salt flavor but they almost have a hint of garlic flavor to them. Their website shows that they have nacho and cheddar cheese flavors as well so I might be picking them up on my next grocery trip!

Freeosk

Over the past couple of months I have been obsessed with this cool machine in my local Walmart called a "Freeosk." They name pretty much describes it because it is a kiosk that gives out free samples! The one I go to is about the size of a small vending machine and has a huge screen with an opening at the bottom where the sample is dispensed. The Walmart I go to frequently has one on an endcap and all you have to do is scan a QR code on the screen using the Walmart app, watch a short {usually between 10-15 seconds} commercial on the product, and then the sample is dispensed. I've gotten some pretty interesting samples ranging from mini bottles of Tabasco sauce to sample packs of Cottonelle wipes. I'm a huge sucker for free samples and anything small/travel sized so this is totally up my alley! If you go to their website, which I've linked above, you can search to see if there are any in your area. After looking in my area, it seems like they are primarily in Walmarts and Sam's Clubs and we only have a few within driving distance.

Outer Order, Inner Calm by Gretchen Rubin

This was my first book of 2020 and what a perfect book to start a new year! Outer Order, Inner Calm is another wonderful book by Gretchen Rubin {one of my FAVORITE authors!} that is more of a guide than a novel. Gretchen shares all the tips and tricks for creating outer order in your life to help create an inner calm within yourself. I am all about that decluttering life, especially during this time of the year, so this was a great read for me. I like how it's broken up into small little tidbits within sections so I could read it in spurts without worrying where I left off. I also love how it focuses on all the different aspects of outer order, not just decluttering your house. I highly recommend this {and any other Gretchen Rubin book} to anyone who needs a little motivation to bring some order to their life. Each time I read a part of this it made me jump up and organize something in my house, just sayin' ;)

Question of the Day: What is something you're loving this week?

2019 Goals: December + Overall Update

We may be 8 days into 2020 already but it's never too late for me to wrap up my 2019 goals! Today I am sharing how I did with my 6 goals throughout the month of December and then also a little tidbit about how the overall year went. While I do have a few goals set for myself this year, I don't think I am going to do a monthly update this year. I'd rather just post random updates as I see fit!

Goal 1: Maintain a Healthy Lifestyle

I definitely ended this year on a lazier and more unhealthy note, but I still felt good! Marathon training started in the middle of the month and so far so good! I was able to get in a lot of great runs during my Christmas break.

Overall: I believe I put a lot of effort into this goal throughout the whole year! Leading up to my wedding I changed my eating habits and added a lot of strength training to my routine. These have carried with me since then.

Goal 2: Reduce, Reuse, and Recycle

I'm not sure if this makes me sound cheap or weird but I actually don't care. When it came to wrapping gifts this year, I reused a lot of things from last year. I had saved all gift bags that were nice and even kept some of the tissue paper that wasn't super wrinkly. I was able to wrap {or I guess bag?} all of my Christmas gifts for people without buying anything new/wasting paper.

Overall: Having this as a goal definitely made me very aware of my wasteful habits. I almost completely transitioned to only using reusable bags. Every one in awhile I'll forget them at home so I'll use plastic but I always find a way to reuse them afterwards. I am glad that I have now adopted some great habits!

Goal 3: Reduce Phone Usage

I found myself spending a lot of time on my phone towards the end of this month when I was just sitting around, relaxing. This is definitely a goal I could've worked harder on but didn't.

Overall: Like I said, I could've done better with this goal. Going into 2020, I am more aware of this bad habit and am already working on ways to keep myself off my phone. 

Goal 4: Try New Recipes

December was a very VERY busy month for us, as I'm sure it was for all. Because of this, we hardly even ate at home, let alone made a new recipe. Although towards the end of the month I went on a grocery shopping strike {okay, maybe that sounds dramatic} because we already had so much food in our fridge. freezers, and pantry that we needed to eat up. This caused us to get a little creative {pizza on bread or pasta with random frozen veggies tossed in, anyone?!}. It wasn't anything crazy but did require some creativity.

Overall: I'd say we did pretty good with this most of the year! We added a lot of new meals into our rotation thanks to trying to new recipes. We have a goal of trying 24 new recipes {2 a month} in 2020!

Goal 5: Give Back

As crazy as it sounds for this time of year, I can't think of any giving back I did throughout the month of December. Oops!

Overall: This was a goal that I felt like I focused on in spurts. I enjoyed going through old stuff and donating to Purple Heart so I am hoping to make that a habit in 2020.

Goal 6: Save Money

I'm actually surprised that we did well with this goal in December, of all months! We were really strict about our spending with Christmas gifts and still managed to get great things for people. All the parties and my grocery strike helped us save money in the "grocery" category of our budget.

Overall: 2019 was a good year of budgeting for John and I! We established a budget and worked hard to stick to it. A couple little unforeseen bumps along the way caused us to shell out some money we didn't expect but that is what an emergency fund is for! If you take away anything from this post today, please let it be that you will make an emergency fund and not touch it until absolutely necessary. The amount in your emergency fund can be up to your discretion {Dave Ramsey suggests $1,000}. We would've really been in the hole this year with our pipe bursting, heat breaking, many many car troubles, etc. without it.

Question of the Day: What is one goal you have made for yourself in 2020?

Coastal Delaware Marathon Training Week 3

Happy Monday! It’s hard to believe New Year’s was just. Few days ago. With my free time this past week, I was able to squeeze in a good amount of runs. On Sunday I finally got a new pair of shoes so of course I had to try them out :)

It’s so dark here in the morning and I feel like I’m not as much of the morning person as I usually am. I hope you all have a great day!

Monday: REST

Tuesday: {New Year’s Eve} 3 miles

Wednesday: {New Year’s Day} 3 miles

Thursday: Speed Work- 2 miles

Friday: REST

Saturday: 8 miles

Sunday: 2 miles
I bought a new pair of Brooks Ghosts and just needed to take them for a quick spin!

Weekly Total: 18 miles


Question of the Day: How do you make yourself a morning person on these super dark mornings?

Friday Favorites

Hello & Happy New Year! I feel like it's been a long time since I wrote something on here other than a marathon training update. Because of the holidays, I had off for the past 2 weeks so I took advantage of that time to enjoy time with friends and family. In the midst of all that, I took some time off from the blog but now I'm back and ready to roll in the new year! In typical Friday fashion, I'm sharing some things I've been loving lately.

B&BW Cracked Heel Cream

Somehow I've become addicted to Bath & Body Works items over the past couple months so this shouldn't come as a surprise, haha. I picked this up at their Body Care Day sale and I am so glad I did! My heels are constantly cracked and hurting but after using this, they feel great. I put a little on my heels each night and wake up each morning to soft heels! I recommend wearing socks when using this so it doesn't rub off on your sheets.

Aftershokz Titanium

My in-laws surprised me with these as a birthday present last month. Even though I had been wanting a pair, I was still skeptical of them. I'm happy to report that after almost a month of using them on my runs and even a few times at the gym, I'm obsessed! Aftershokz sit on the outside of your ear and conduct the sound through your bone instead of inside your ears. This allows you to hear anything around you along with the music. I was surprised at how clear the music was and also how well I could hear my surroundings without them being too distracting. I feel a lot safer running while listening to music now!

B&BW Bright Lemon Snowdrop Spray

Surprise, another Bath & Body Works item! This was another Body Care Day purchase that was purely because I just loved the lemon scent. I'm not one to switch up the perfume I wear {I've been wearing Taylor Swift's perfume, Taylor, for years now} but after smelling the sweet lemon scent, I knew I'd love wearing it. It's more of a light lemon smell which is great because it's not too intense. The bottle is also huge so it'll last me forever!

Tostito's Black Bean and Garlic Chips

I grabbed these at the store while getting some regular Tostito's and man are they good! The garlic flavor is strong enough without being too overpowering. I keep eating them plain because they're flavorful enough but they would probably taste good dipped in salsa or queso!

Question of the Day: What is something you're loving this week?