Good afternoon! I hope you are all having a great Tuesday. My work week is pretty slow right now, which was great at first but now is starting to get super boring. Like yesterday I had fun browsing blogs, pinning on Pinterest, and sort of goofing off, but eventually I got bored and the day was just dragggging on. I think today will be a little better, but it is still off to a slow start.

Part of the reason we are slow at work right now is because many of our contracts with clients are wrapping up and we are waiting to hear if we won new business. Cross your fingers that we do so my boredom will end! Haha but really, these slow times are rare so I need to stop and appreciate them before I’m back to feeling stressed. Phew!

Workout

My workouts this week have been sorta…meh. While I did wake up this morning early enough to run a mile with Jack and complete part of an Insanity DVD, I was feeling kinda unmotivated and just went trough the movements without really pushing myself like I usually do. Don’t get me wrong I will still tired and sweaty, but I definitely was lacking my normal intensity.

I think part of this reason is because I am getting really excited for Tina’s best body boot camp next week and am just over my current workout routine. I think I should probably just go ahead and join a gym to make this boot camp easier, but I want to wait and see what the workouts will look like before I take the plunge. Hopefully I can make it through a little longer with my Insanity DVDs before I start this new routine! We will see…

In other workout-related updates, my friends and I recently purchased a Living Social deal for 5 hot yoga sessions for $15. Yay!

I should admit that I have never done yoga before so I will probably look like a total goon while taking these classes. At least none of my other friends have done yoga either so we will be in the same boat. I can’t wait!

Recipe

Ok, so as I mentioned yesterday, I did some baking this weekend that turned out some really amazing healthy (er- relatively healthy) cookies. As I was lounging around recuperating from my hot run on Sunday, I suddenly had the urge for something sweet. We didn’t have any desserts on hand, but I remembered that one of my favorite bloggers Tina @ Carrots N Cake has a large collection of healthy cookie recipes on her blog (including the one minute peanut butter cookie that I have since recreated multiple times. So good).

Anyway, I dug through my email archives where I save all of the recipes that I want to make and found her awesome list of cookies. I looked through each recipe and the required ingredients and I decided that the Almond Butter Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies were exactly what I needed They came out perfectly and I have been eating ~~way too many of~~ them all week! Yum! Here’s how they came together:

First I preheated the oven to 350 degrees. Then I lined a cookie sheet with parchment paper and set it aside.

Then it was time to make the dough. Into a large bowl I combined old fashioned rolled oats, almond butter, brown sugar, baking powder, 3 egg whites, and chocolate chips. I mixed everything together until I had a uniform dough.

Then I spooned out small portions of the dough onto the parchment-lined cookie sheet. I think it’s important to note that these cookies don’t change their shape much in the oven, so if you want round uniform cookies you should shape them by rolling them between your palms. However, I left mine natural-looking

Then I placed these in the oven and baked them for about 15-20 minutes or until they were firm and their edges started to brown.

Then I removed the cookies to a cooling rack and let them cool for a few ~~minutes~~ seconds before devouring one

These were delicious!!

Enjoyed with skim milk, of course.

I think that without the chocolate chips these cookies may have tasted too “healthy,” but because of the sweet, decadent chocolate chips (I used kind of a lot…woops!) they tasted awesome. I hope you enjoy this recipe!

Almond Butter Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies

Recipe type: Cookies

Author: Adapted from Tina @ Carrots N Cake

Prep time: 3 mins

Cook time: 15 mins

Total time: 18 mins

Serves: 12

These cookies are made healthier by the use of oats, almond butter, and egg whites. They are so delicious, you won’t be able to stop at just one!

Ingredients

1 1/2 cup rolled oats
4 tbsp brown sugar
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 cup almond butter
3 egg whites
1/2 cup chocolate chips

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper and set aside.
Add first five ingredients in a large bowl (through egg whites) and mix until well combined.
Add chocolate chips, and mix just until incorporated.
Spoon cookies out onto parchment paper and bake for 15-20 minutes or until cookies start to brown on the edges.

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I hope you enjoy these as much as I am!

So tell me, what’s your favorite kind of cookie? I really liked the almond butter flavor in these, but I bet they would have worked with peanut butter too (goodness knows I love peanut butter cookies). Yum!!

Also, have you ever tried hot yoga??

Hello everyone and good evening! Sorry this post is going up so late; I had to go to a stupid training during my lunch break today (which is usually when I write or finish writing my post b-t-dubz) so I wasn’t able to post an update. Sorry! Plus the training was a repeat of one I’ve already been in so it was a total waste of time. Ugh. But better late than never, right?

Anyway, I have some big news to share with you guys…

I’m going on a trip! See if you can guess where…

This was when we went last year. Any guesses??

How about now?? Have you all guessed it yet??

That’s right! I’m going to Rome!! And soon, too! I will be heading to Rome with Fabio and my family for six days at the end of August! Woohoo! I have to express my gratitude to my mom for inviting me on this trip (and paying for it ). THANKS MOM!!!

So yeah, I’m getting really excited for the trip and I promise to share all the details with you guys

Workout

My workouts this week have been going really well! Yesterday I ran with Jack in the morning and then ran with him again to the dog park in the afternoon. I had a hard time pulling myself out of bed to complete Insanity yesterday morning, but at least I made up for it by running in the afternoon. As long as I can get some type of cardio in my day I’m happy!

Today I woke up to run with Jack and completed half of an Insanity DVD and this YouTube workout that I have told you guys about before. It’s such a quick outer thigh workout and I really like doing it Hopefully the rest of my workouts this week will be just as good!

Recipe

I told you guys a couple of weeks ago about my failed attempt at overnight oats. I knew that it was mostly because I was lacking chia seeds to absorb the liquid and hold everything together. Despite my attempts to make the oats without chia seeds, they turned out liquidy and awkward and I wound up having to finish off the oats in the microwave. Not exactly what I had in mind.

So, during my shopping extravaganza last weekend, I picked up some chia seeds for overnight oats. I also got some packets of ground flax seeds to add to the mix. I was so excited to try them both!

In case you are unfamiliar with the health benefits of chia seeds and flax seeds, I’ll briefly point out some of the highlights:

Benefits of chia seeds (According to Dr. Oz)

Great source of fiber, omega fatty acids, calcium, antioxidants, and protein
Delivers the maximum amount of nutrients with minimum calories
Increases stamina and energy over long periods of time
Delivers 42% of your recommended daily value of fiber in a single serving
Grows hair on Ch-Ch-Ch-chia pets (kidding! not really…)

Benefits of flax seeds (According to WebMD)

Reduces your risk of heart disease, cancer, stroke, and diabetes
Good source of omega-3 essential fatty acids, “good” fats that have been shown to have heart-healthy effects
Also a good source of lignans, which have both plant estrogen and antioxidant qualities
Contains both the soluble and insoluble types of fiber
Fun fact: King Charlemagne believed so strongly in the health benefits of flax seeds that he passed laws requiring his subjects to consume it

See? Aren’t they incredible? Plus neither seed has much of a taste at all (though flax seeds are a little nutty tasting I guess) so they are perfect for adding in to other meals. Awesome!

With my new super food ingredients on hand, I did some googling to find an easy and flavorful overnight oats recipe that I could add the seeds into. I came across this recipe for apple cinnamon overnight oats. It was super easy and delicious! Here’s how it came together…

First I found an empty jar in my cabinet and made sure it had a matching lid to screw on tight. I tend to save tomato and apple sauce jars when I’m finished with them, so luckily I had a few to choose from.

Then, I added rolled oats, non fat Greek yogurt, skim milk, unsweetened applesauce, honey, cinnamon, chia seeds, and flax seeds to the jar.

(If your applesauce is sweetened, you can probably omit the honey.)

Once all the ingredients were added to the jar, I screwed on the lid, shook everything up, and popped into the fridge to chill and congeal overnight.

In the morning, I transferred the mixture to a bowl (unless you are using an almost empty nut butter jar and want to eat oats in a jar!) and dug in.

I was a little worried I wouldn’t like the texture (I’m weird about soggy stuff) but this was pretty smooth and I was a fan! I had a little bit of my homemade peanut butter granola, which I later sprinkled on top for some crunch.

The apple & cinnamon flavor combination in these oats was delicious! Plus, now that I have the proportions down for the recipe, I can’t wait to play around with other topping and flavors to see what I come up with! The possibilities are endless

Apple Cinnamon Overnight Oats

Recipe type: Breakfast

Author: Adapted from The Yummy Life

Prep time: 2 mins

Total time: 2 mins

Serves: 1

These overnight oats are easy to make, nutritious, and so flavorful! They are the perfect summer breakfast.

Ingredients

1/4 cup uncooked old fashioned rolled oats
1/3 cup skim milk
1/4 cup fat free Greek yogurt
1 1/2 teaspoons dried chia seeds
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1 tsp. honey, optional (or substitute any preferred sweetener)
1/4 cup unsweetened applesauce, or enough to fill jar

Instructions

Pour all ingredients into a resealable jar.
Screw on lid to jar and shake to combine.
Place in refrigerator over night.
In the morning, transfer to a bowl and add desired toppings (granola, fruit, nuts, etc.)

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So there you have it, one of my new favorite summer breakfast recipes! Yum!

So tell me, have you tried chia seeds or flax seeds? My sandwich thins are topped with flax seeds, but I’m almost positive they don’t do anything for me because they have to be ground for your body to digest them. The ones on my bread are definitely whole. Oh well!

Also, just in case you forgot, I’M GOING TO ROMA! Am I annoying you yet??