Win a $10 Target gift card + cereal and a game!

I've got another giveaway going on!

Check it out:

I'm giving away a prize pack with 2 boxes of cereal, a $10 Target gift card and a retro Parcheesi game.

To enter this giveaway, pop on over to my other blog and follow the instructions.

Good luck!

12 miles. Treadmill style.

I had a great plan for yesterday's long run. I was going to meet Bridget for 3 miles at 7:30. Then Elisa would join us for 5 miles. I'd finish with 4 miles by myself. 

Only, that didn't happen. 

See, it was cold this weekend and my body has been rebelling against the cold. Not in a "Oh, I don't like the cold and would rather not go out in it" kind of way. That I could handle. No, it has been rebelling in a "I'm going to kick all of your nerve pain into high gear and I'm going to keep it like that for hours and hours and hours" kind of way.

Not pleasant.

I've learned that if I'm feeling a certain way and it is too cold and windy, my body can't handle it. The pain while I run is one thing -- and, believe me, I can handle pain while I run -- but the lingering pain is another thing entirely. After a cold run, my feet can hurt for a full day. Same with my hands. And my face? It is bad. My face gets a feeling like I've just been shot-up with Novocaine. And it doesn't go away. The worst is my nose. In addition to the pain from exposure, it is red and raw -- some combination of sunburn (the antibiotics make me more susceptible to sunburn) and response to the cold.

Lovely, right? Right.

So, I've more or less learned my lesson and stick to indoor runs when the conditions aren't right. Like this weekend.

Saturday was 5.75 miles on the treadmill. Sunday was 12.3.

So much for a long run with friends!

It didn't bother me too much. After all, I got to run in shorts:

Never a bad thing.

But, you know, treadmill miles can be boring and there's not a lot of fun stuff on TV on Sunday morning. How many episodes of "Say Yes to the Dress" can a runner really watch? 

So, long run on the treadmill: Done. 12.3 miles. Sure, I wanted to stop at 9. And at 10. And, I really, really, really wanted to stop at 11. But I kept going and even finished strong.

Now, can we just get some warm weather sometime soon? 

Please?

Have a great week, everyone!

 

Spring!

Happy first day of spring!

We've been waiting and waiting for this day, with its promise of sunshine, flowers, and warmer days. And yet . . . here is what spring looks like this morning in Happy Runnerville:

Well, they've got their hockey sticks so they're happy!

Have a great day, everyone -- snow or no snow!

Designer Whey snacks and sips.

I have never been a huge protein powder kind of gal so it is quite the admission to say that I've recently been won over. Which I have.

Let me give you a little history: I'm super wary of soy (the main ingredient in many protein powders) and try to avoid it. Also, I believe in getting nutrients from whole foods.

But then, in January, I was put on my sugar-free diet and, well, things changed. Not the soy part -- I'm still not in favor of soy. But the protein powder part. That, I'm down with.

See, if I want to have sugar in my diet, it needs to be from natural sources like fruit. But it also needs to balanced out by plenty of fiber and protein. Since fruit generally is pretty high in fiber, that first part is covered. Protein, though? There isn't all that much of it in fruit.

Welcome to my world, protein powder!

When I was given the opportunity to review Designer Whey protein powder I was excited to try it out. I started out by adding a scoop of the vanilla powder to my regular smoothies (banana, strawberry, a little almond milk), ate a few of their protein bars, tried the pre-mixed shakes after two tough runs, and then I decided to get a little crazy. I decided to branch out a little and experiment. I made some different smoothies with success and before I knew it, I was cooking-up (OK, processing up) new energy bites recipes.

Yes, that's apparently what passes for crazy around here!

Anyway . . . I added the vanilla powder to some of my standard energy bites recipes and felt pleased that my sweet treats were now protein rich as well.

Good for me.

And then things got even better for me. I opened my can of white chocolate protein powder. I took out a bag of pistachios. I went to town.

To Delicious Town.

Friends, these are my favorite:

You want the recipe, don't you?

Of course you do.

And I'm not stingy, so here you go:

Pistachio White Chocolate Energy Bites

• 1/2 cup shelled pistachios 
• 1/2 cup unsweetened shredded coconut
• 1 cup whole (but pitted) medjool dates
• 1 scoop white chocolate Designer Whey protein powder
• about 1/8 cup water

Process the first 4 ingredients in a food processor until well blended and the nuts and coconut are finely chopped. Add the water and pulse. The mixture will begin to clump together in a big ball. This is what you're going for. Once you have this dough, stop processing and form into balls, or squares if you prefer. I like to make mine big enough for two bites but feel free to make yours smaller or larger.

*     *     *

These are so good. The pistachio/white chocolate combination is perfect and the dates give the energy bites just the right amount of sweetness.

For someone (like me!) who needs to be concerned with balancing carbs with protein, these are a good solution.

I also made a wicked-good green smoothie:

Smooth. Creamy. Satisfying.

And easy to whip up:

• 1 frozen banana
• 1 cup frozen spinach
• 1/2 an avocado
• 1 cup almond milk
• 1 scoop vanilla Designer Whey protein powder
• a few ice cubes

Blend.

Drink.

Enjoy.

Here's what I like about Designer Whey protein powder (aside from the really good taste of the white chocolate):

• Whey is something that I can consume (my options are limited, after all), so that's a win right there
• It has a low glycemic index
• It is grain-free (gluten, corn, etc.) and peanut-free
• All the whey is produced in the USA

Here's what I don't:

• It contains soy lecithin. Granted, not that much but still. Why must there be soy in everything? I really wish this was a completely soy-free option, since there aren't many out there.

Overall, I like the products. 

I'm using it instead of yogurt in my smoothies. I'm adding it to my energy bites to balance the carbs. I'm checking out other recipes and have found a few dessert ones that I really need to try. For me, Designer Whey is a good addition to my pantry!

To buy: Designer Whey is available at most grocery and mass market stores. You can find store locations on their web site.

Have you tried Designer Whey? 

What do you think? What's your favorite recipe using protein powder?

Thanks for stopping by!

Review disclaimer: I was sent free products for this review through FitFluential but was not otherwise compensated. The opinions expressed are entirely my own.