oh my god this looks SO good
(via freshcleanfit)
(Source: bealoverbeafighter, via soskinny-sopretty)
The paleo diet isn't necessarily ideal, an evolutionary biologist says -
Have you heard of the Paleo Diet? Maybe you’ve even tried it. The idea is to eat what the cavemen ate - meat, fruits, and vegetables - because our bodies haven’t evolved to eat the food that exists today. I don’t think we would have evolved to invent frozen yogurt if it wasn’t good for us, but see what you think. Read the article from the Washington Post and then check out Dr. Cordain’s site about the diet to see if it’s something that may be right for you!
Guilt-Free Guacamole
1/2 cup 0% fat Fage Greek Yogurt
2 cups steamed, chopped broccoli
1/3 avocado
1 cup chopped orange pepper
1/3 cup packed cilantro
Dash of hot sauce
Dash of salt
Juice of 2 limes and 1 lemon
I was fortunate to luck into a bushel of broccoli - oh happy day! And with friends coming to visit I had an appetizer to make. It was one of the first really warm days so I wanted to make something light, fresh, and healthy so as not to blow the diet. A quick Google search showed me a few broccoli dips, but this one from KathEats looked the best: http://www.katheats.com/favorite-foods/fiesta-broccoli-dip I served it with baked tostitos and it was a huge hit! No one guessed there was broccoli in it, but they all thought it tasted delicious. We ate it all before I could take a pic of the final result, oops, but I guess that means it was a success!
@MiniUSA Love this bike rack!
Who needs jewelry when your fiance gives you this sweet bike rack for Valentine’s Day instead?
Matt and I installed it in about 30 minutes on a sunny Sunday afternoon. The instructions were easy to follow and aside from a few small misunderstandings on our part, we figured it out without a problem.
The best part is that as a short female, I was still able to easily lift my bike up on top of the car. My bike is extremly light, and I am extremly strong, but I think anyone with a dose of athleticism could do it too!
Go here to find the perfect bike rack for your Mini: Shop Mini USA
I loved my bright yellow Walkman back in the ’80s, but haven’t really thought about them since the ipod came out. According to this stellar review, sounds like they’re a contender again!
I was recently selected by Klout (a website and mobile app that uses social media analytics to rank its users according to online social influence) to receive one of the coolest “Klout Perks” ever - a Sony Walkman W (special Meb Keflezighi edition).
I must say…It was a pretty great feeling to know I was 1 out of 5,000 people selected to receive this based on my social influence on “active lifestyles”.
I had the opportunity to go out for a run today and give the headphones a try and I absolutely LOVED them! The Walkman W is light weight, comfortable, has impressive sound quality and was super easy to set up.
A short 3 minute charge equals 1 hour of playing time, and you can get up to eight hours of uninterrupted play when fully charged. Plus, getting your music onto the Sony Walkman W is as simple as dragging and dropping the files (for both PC and MAC). Took me a total of 10 minutes to get 1.6 GB of music uploaded and out the door.
Once I hit the pavement I was super impressed by the sound quality as well as how comfortable the Sony Walkman W fit. It stayed in place the entire run with no shifting at all.
The volume controls and the shuffle on/off button are located on the left side. The play/pause button and buttons to change the tracks are on the right side. All functions are super accessible, which I LOVE.
Overall, I was super impressed with this MP3 player and can’t even believe I was lucky enough to be selected to get this for free.
If you’re a runner, biker, or someone who spends time in the gym (lifting weights, elliptical, rowing, etc) than the Sony Walkman W is totally for you. There is even a new completely waterproof version for swimmers (it works up to 6ft under water).
You can purchase the 2GB Sony Walkman W at Sony.com for $59.99 and if you purchase the Meb Keflezighi edition for $10 more you’ll enjoy pre-loaded audio tips by Meb and a Runners booklet with tips on running, nutrition, stretching, strategy and a list of Meb’s favorite motivational running songs. A portion of sales goes to the MEB FOUNDATION in support of Health, Fitness, Education — Balance.
Happy cord-less running everybody:) If you have an specific questions feel free to comment below and let me know, I’m happy to answer them.
Check out my new avatar! My amazing fiance, Matt, created this of the two of us and I just love it. Pizza and Pilates is all about life balance, health, and FUN - this encapsulates all of that. Hope you like it too!
Tough Choices
Yesterday was the Oriole’s opening day at Camden Yards! I’m not a huge baseball fan, but I do love the camaraderie that comes with living in a city that rallies around its sports teams. Last year was a good year for the Orioles and the two live games I attended were a ton of fun so I was looking forward to opening day and the start of their season this year.
It was a huge event in Baltimore - more than half the city took off work and started hanging out at the bars across from the field starting as early as 10am, regardless if they had tickets for the 3pm game or not. I knew all my friends and my fiance would be doing this and that it would be sure to be fun. Especially when the weather called for 60 degrees and sunny! However, I also knew this would mean a day of drinking beers and eating bar food. I love a Bud Light and a burger, but this probably would have been 10 Bud Lights, burgers, fries, nachos, a few sugary shots, and no exercise other than standing in a crowded bar all day.
The choice was tough, I wanted to have fun, but I didn’t want to blow my health goals. In the end, I decided to go to work and the gym instead of day drink. I thought about a dress I wanted to fit in for my Wedding Shower at the end of the month, and the bike ride and hike I wanted to do over the weekend. Envisioning those goals helped make the choice easier. I was a bit jealous of my friends, sure, but I made up for it by having a drink at happy hour and then getting up early the next day to go for a hike, something I probably would not have been able to do if I’d made the choice to go. I’m either growing up, or my wedding really is motivating me to get in great shape!
So next time you’re faced with a choice, envision what you’ll get from each outcome and see which one lines up with your goals. It may help keep you on track!
trainerjackw asked: Hallie, I just wanted to stop by and say that I love your blog and all the fun recipes you post. Especially one of the spinach pizzas you posted recently. How long have you been cooking? Are you a pilates trainer?
Hello! Thanks so much for your note. I’m glad you like the recipes. I’ve been cooking since college, and like to keep it as simple and healthy as possible. I teach both private and group Mat Pilates. I love the mat because you can do it anywhere and need no equipment, although I am curious about reformer. How about you? I take it from your name that you’re a trainer? Any specific specialty? I’ll check out your blog too!
Another great, easy, tasty recipe. No joke, this is ridiculously simple!
Linguine
Shrimp
Asparagus
Olive Oil
Lemon juice
Parsley
That’s it! I cooked 1lb of linguine according to the box. Steamed the asparagus while I roasted the shrimp (lightly coated in olive oil, salt and pepper) for just 8 minutes, then mixed it all together - tails still on to retain the flavor and juice to the shrimp - with 1/2 c olive oil and the juice of two lemons. Season with fresh parsley, heat up some crusty Italian bread and crack open a white wine. It made 6 servings and could not have been quicker and easier. It’s such a great last minute dinner, hope it works out for you!
My office is running a recipe contest where the winner gets an iPad mini. Hello motivation! All you have to do is follow the guidelines of a Lean & Green. But you don’t have to be on Medifast to enjoy this quiche. It’s delicious and gives you just the right amount of protein:carbs:fat for a perfect meal.
I love this recipe because it is so versatile. You can vary the veggies and the cheese to create different flavors. I found the chipotle cheese gave it a lot of flavor so I didn’t have to use all of my condiments. Plus, even though it makes one serving, it was so big I had to split it into two!
Veggie Breakfast Quiche (adapted from Sandy’s Kitchen Vegetable Quiche)
Makes 1 serving
2 Light Queso Fresco & Chipotle Laughing Cow Wedges (1 Healthy Fat)
½ c Part-skim, low moisture, 2% shredded Mozzarella Cheese (1/2 Lean)
1 c Egg Beaters (1/2 Lean)
½ c Scallions (1 Green)
½ c Zucchini (1 Green)
½ c Tomatoes (1 Green)
½ tsp Pepper (1 condiment)
¼ tsp Salt (1 condiment)
Directions:
Preheat your oven to 375 degrees. Lightly coat a square baking dish with Pam cooking spray. Chop all your veggies and combine with the rest of the ingredients in a bowl and mix together. Leave out just a little bit of the shredded cheese for later. Use a fork to break up the cheese wedges and blend them with the rest of the mix. Pour in your baking dish and bake for 35 minutes. Remove from oven and sprinkle the little bit of shredded cheese on top. Put back in the oven for an additional 5 minutes.
Pesto, yum! Happy Homemade Pizza Week!
(via showmethebedroomfloor)
Time to get back to my pizza roots with a healthy, homemade, veggie pizza.
Things I learned:
1. I used a lot of evoo to sautée the onions and mushrooms. I made a later pizza with steamed broccoli and baked chicken, which eliminated all of the oil!
2. My first attempt I used the whole wheat Boboli crust on a cookie sheet. It wasn’t as crispy as I like, so the second time I used the regular thin crust directly on the oven rack and it turned out perfect!
3. One Boboli pizza crust says it serves 6. That’s a lie. It makes 3 servings.
4. Finally, your options are endless so it can be a lot of fun to experiment! Plus, it’s so much cheaper and healthier than delivery pizza that we should really all be making it ourselves all the time. Enjoy!
Happy National Nutrition Month!
What better time to retackle your health and wellness goals than during the month dedicated to educating you on what to eat to feel and look your best?? Sponsored by the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, you can find all sorts of cool nutrition info throughout the month on their website.
They had me at their vegetable themed Sodoku game.
Such a question! Love means different things to different people, I suppose. This group of kids have the closest thing to an answer that I’ve heard:
What Love means to a 4-8 year old: A group of professional people posed this question to a group of 4 to 8 year-olds, ’What does love mean?’ The answers they got were broader and deeper than anyone could have imagined
See what you think:
‘When my grandmother got arthritis , she couldn’t bend over and paint her toenails anymore.. So my grandfather does it for her all the time , even when his hands got arthritis too. That’s love.’ – Rebecca, age 8
‘When someone loves you, the way they say your name is different.You just know that your name is safe in their mouth.’ – Billy, age 4
‘Love is when a girl puts on perfume and a boy puts on shaving cologne and they go out and smell each other.’ – Karl, age 5
‘Love is when you go out to eat and give somebody most of your French fries without making them give you any of theirs.’ –Chrissy, age 6
‘Love is what makes you smile when you’re tired.’ -Terri, age 4
‘Love is when my mommy makes coffee for my daddy and she takes a sip before giving it to him , to make sure the taste is OK.’ – Danny, age 7
‘Love is when you kiss all the time. Then when you get tired of kissing, you still want to be together and you talk more. My Mommy and Daddy are like that. They look gross when they kiss’ – Emily, age 8
‘Love is what’s in the room with you at Christmas if you stop opening presents and listen.’ –Bobby, age 7
‘If you want to learn to love better , you should start with a friend who you hate” –Nikka, age 6
‘Love is when you tell a guy you like his shirt, then he wears it everyday..’ –Noelle, age 7
‘Love is like a little old woman and a little old man who are still friends even after they know each other so well.’ –Tommy, age 6
‘During my piano recital , I was on a stage and I was scared. I looked at all the people watching me and saw my daddy waving and smiling. He was the only one doing that. I wasn’t scared anymore.’ – Cindy, age 8
‘My mommy loves me more than anybody. You don’t see anyone else kissing me to sleep at night.’ –Clare, age 6
‘Love is when Mommy sees Daddy smelly and sweaty and still says he is handsomer than Robert Redford.’ –Chris, age 7
‘Love is when your puppy licks your face even after you left him alone all day.’ -Mary Ann, age 4
‘I know my older sister loves me because she gives me all her old clothes and has to go out and buy new ones.’ –Lauren, age 4
‘When you love somebody , your eyelashes go up and down and little stars come out of you.’ - Karen, age 7
‘You really shouldn’t say ‘I love you’ unless you mean it. But if you mean it, you should say it a lot. People forget.’ –Jessica, age 8
The winner was a four year old child whose next door neighbor was an elderly gentleman who had recently lost his wife. Upon seeing the man cry, the little boy went into the old gentleman’s yard, climbed onto his lap, and just sat there. When his Mother asked what he had said to the neighbor, the little boy said, ‘Nothing , I just helped him cry’.“You just know that your name is safe in their mouth.”