Thanks for all your New Orleans ideas and suggestions! I LOVE getting the inside scoop – where to go, when, secret lines, etc. Fab. Keep your ideas coming! :D
Breakfast was soo refreshing today. Yesterday, one of my must-read blogs, Vitamin-G, featured a smoothie recipe that sounded so healthy and energizing, I knew I had to give it a try. Plus, I already had all the ingredients on hand – sweet!
Blueberry Banana Smoothie:
In the mix:
- 2 servings Nasyoa silken tofu
- 1 cup frozen blueberries
- 1 banana
- 1/2 Tablespoon chia seeds
- 1/2 scoop vanilla whey protein powder
- 1/2 cup unsweetened vanilla almond breeze
- 1/2 Tablespoon agave nectar
Omg, if you would have asked me a year ago if I would have eaten 5 out of the 7Â ingredients above, I would have given you googly eyes… Anyways – blend, blend, blend!
Blueberry Banana Smoothie!
I stashed this in the freezer last night and let it “thaw” in my car while I was working out this morning.
By the time I was showered and ready, so was my smoothie. (Not showered… just ready!)
Oooo, it was a good one! Thick, creamy and perfectly sweet. Mmm-mmm good and sure to keep me fueled until lunch time with so much staying power from the whey protein powder, tofu and chia seeds. Repeater!
Lunch is some faaabulous, leftover Jambalaya and Cornbread.
I just love the texture and big flavors in this dish. Dy-no-mite!
A modest amount of cornbread. You can’t really tell, but this half moon is about 1 inch thick and ohhh, 4 inches long. Man, I love this stuff!
So, this challenge I alluded to last night and in my post title? Well, every year for the period between Ash Wednesday (today) and Easter – Lent – I usually I give up the GOODS: sweets. If you know me even a little bit, you’d know that this is pure torture but obviously, worth it. This year I decided to go a little different route, though. Instead of giving something up, I’m issuing a challenge to myself:
40 Day Movement Challenge
The time of Lent is actually 46 days on the calendar, but we’ll call it 40 for ease. Highlights:
- Move for it least 20 minutes a day
- Can include weight lifting, workout DVDs or any form of cardio (walking, running, elliptical, classes)
- Doesn’t have to be all in one sitting (10 minutes free weights in the a.m., 10 minutes jump roping at night)
I respond really well to challenges and I feel like these next 40 days are going to be just that – a real challenge. By Day 20, I might be highly annoyed with myself for going on this journey, but I want to do it for Lent, and for myself. I’ll be creating a tab at the top of my site later today called “40 Days” to track my movement!
Care to join me? I’m extending the 40 Day challenge to each and every one of you! If you have a blog, create a “40 Days” page tracking your movement and link back to my page (I’ll give you the link tonight.) Let me know the URL of your page and I’ll add it to mine! If you don’t have a blog, create a chart to hang on your refrigerator, or somewhere highly visible so you won’t forget. We’ll be in it together. To success! :D
I kicked Day 1 of the challenge off with a kick-butt a.m. workout! I did the following circuit, 3 times in a row:
- 15 jumping jacks
- 30 push ups
- 30 dips
- 50 squats
- 40 crunches
Followed by 3 miles on the treadmill. Day 1: DONE! That circuit is killer, by the way! My legs and arms are JELL-O! :D
Alright buddies – I’m off to start my day. Have a GREAT one and let me know what you think about the 40 Day Movement Challenge!
~~~~~
If you participate in Lent, are you giving anything up this year?
Have you ever given anything up cold turkey? How’d it go?
NodokaChan1 03.14.2014
I became a vegetarian in one night If you are asking if cold turkey works… vegetarian for 3 years. Woot! I don;t know what I would do for lent though… There are a lot of things that need improvement.
Tofu 101: Your Guide To All Things Tofu! | Iowa Girl Eats 03.19.2012
[…] Blueberry Smoothies […]
Meri 01.25.2012
I know this is a post from last year but I came across your site because I starting a swimming routine today and I was looking for new shakes to take with the initiation of “my new lifestyle” and I really enjoy reading your blog. That being said I will take this challenge for this year’s lent starting today (even though lent is about 30 days away…) Just because I am weird like that :-)
Press, Sizzle, Crunch! | Iowa Girl Eats 02.22.2011
[…] am off to complete a Total Body Circuit then hit the hay by, fingers crossed, 9pm. I’ve had a persistent twitch in my left eye (I […]
Bradford Horgan 10.07.2010
Great Post, thanks for your useful Post. I will come back soon . Great tips also : stop picking
Lisa 02.18.2010
I like this idea. I am trying to get into working out but having so much snow has put a damper on it for me. I will take the 40 day Challenge with you. I will also get my blog running so I can track my progress. Dusting off the treadmill and putting the Elliptical trainer up stairs should help. BTW 20 years ago I quit smoking cold turkey after smoking for 18 years. I think mentally I was ready for it to end. Put a pack of smokes in a basket told myself I could have them if I wanted, Never touched them. 6 years later I threw them out. I can’t figure how to do this with food. I can’t imagine the smell that would create!
Kristilyn (My 29th Year) 02.18.2010
I really find that I can’t give anything up cold turkey, but rather modify it. Like, instead of eating fast food everyday (something I did when I was 50 pounds heavier!) I’ve modified my diet and don’t even miss fast food. We still have healthy fast food (Subway, Sushi, healthy Mexican places), but now my husband and my palates have changed so we don’t crave the greasy stuff.
For Lent I’ve decided to only let myself have 100-150 calories worth of a dessert in an evening – if needed. If I’m not hungry, don’t have anything. Of course, this is stuff like banana soft serve, or some dry cereal, dried fruit and nuts – something to snack on in the evening. I’m counting calories right now, but have to learn to listen to my hunger signals as well. Instead, I was having way too much at night, thinking I had to reach some sort of calorie goal, when I’m sure by the end of the week it would all balance out.
Good luck with the 40 days of moving! I currently have a schedule where I workout 6 days a week and have a day off. I agree – the sweets thing would be hard!
K
Jamie @ The River Runs 02.18.2010
Great idea on the lent challenge – I’m definitely in! As for giving up things cold turkey – I gave up pop in I think… 7th grade? So many years ago, and I’ve probably had a total of less than 10 sodas since (guesstimation total of amount in mixed drinks from college… =)
Hillary [Nutrition Nut on the Run] 02.18.2010
Dang — 30 x 3 push-ups. You go, girl!
PHAB Lifestyle » Mmmm…mmmm..good! 02.17.2010
[…] also decided to join Iowa Girl Eats and her 40 day Challenge! I thought it would be a good way to keep me accountable and give me a goal to keep me moving […]
Tike 07.26.2011
And I was just worneding about that too!