// high five! it's friday! //

Happy Friday!  Can you BA LEAVE it's already Friday?  Time flies by when you're having fun and especially when the weather is gawgeous.... except for today.  Spring decided to revert back to winter and it's raining and chilly out!

Here are 5 of my faves from this week and what I'm looking forward to!

1.  I started a new workout program- ChaLEAN Extreme on Monday.  So far, so good.  I'm a little worried about this weekend's exercise plans because I'm travelling, but I'm committed to getting them in somehow.

2.  Josh and I had a rare weekday date last night.  We went to The Mill House (a local wood fire pizza place).  Josh got a yummy pizza and I opted for the chicken salad.  Both were delicious and I was actually craving a salad (I crave them from time to time).  There was a local musician that was playing that Josh and I both like, so that was an added bonus to the date.  I also had a glass of wine.  There's not much better than a good glass of pinot grigio.

3.  This weekend I am going to visit my Grandparents in North Carolina.  I don't get to see them and spend time with them near as much as I would like to. I'm going with my Sister and her cute fam, so I get to spend time with them as well (I'm most excited about Cooper time, to be honest).

4.  Josh and I cooked a kickass chicken artichoke pasta Wednesday night.  It's one of my faves that I have never made for Josh before.  Don't know why not, but that's about to change.  It was a huge hit and I am craving some right now.

5. The weather during the first part of the week was gorgeous and warm.  The pups and I got a few good long walks in during the evening, and I'm thankful for that!

What are your 5 Friday Faves?  Share below!

5 CLEAN EATING tips for beginners!

Today is Tuesday and it's not just ANY Tuesday. Today starts the first of many great things to come...  

Today is TIP TUESDAY! 

I'm here to talk about 5 tips to help a beginner start implementing and incorporating CLEAN FOODS into their diet! 

So, I started a 75/25 clean eating lifestyle just about two years ago. Although I strive to do my best day in and day out, I still LOVE what I call 'dirty' foods. That sounds so wrong, doesn't it!? Oh well. 

So, these are a few things that worked for me and that were EASY things I could do without too much work. Here they are! 

#1- STOP eating plain white bread. Choose 100% whole wheat OR whole grain. 

#2- REPLACE regular pasta with, again, whole wheat or whole grain pasta. 

#3- KNIX the soda. It's bad for you. You'll thank me later. Try flavored water with real fruit or try La Croix water if you need the carbonation 

#4- when grocery shopping, shop the perimiter of the store and not so much in the food aisles. This is the veggies, fruits, meats, and dairy. 

#5- when in doubt, if a food has over 10 ingredients or it has something you can't pronounce, just drop it. Don't waste your time, money, or health on it. 

Maybe you've already heard or read these before, maybe it's new to you. I hope that at least ONE thing I've mentioned is helpful. And for goodness sake, if you're just starting off and you drink 12 cans of coke a day, then please ease into this lifestyle. No one says you have to cut cold turkey (unless YOU want to, of course). This is a lifestyle change, not a fad. So, do what you can in your time. 

*please note that I'm not a nutritionist, expert, or a dietician. I am just a human who makes mistakes (ouch, that was hard to admit) 

Healthy Banana Bread

I wanted to make it a priority to take on a banana bread recipe and make it health{ier} than most recipes I've seen.  A lot are filled with sugar, butter, white flour, etc.  Although I LOVE those ingredients, they don't always love ME!

So, I did some Pinterest browsing and came across a recipe I decided to give a GO with.  The recipe I used came from The Cooking Doctor.  I followed the directions just as they were laid out, except I substituted 2 cups of whole wheat flour in place of the regular white flour.  I also added chopped pecans AND a little extra spice (a sprinkle of cinnamon).  YUM.

The reason why this recipe caught my attention was because of the limited amounts of sugar (only called for 1/2 cup) and only 1/4 cup of butter (which is half a stick).  It also used plain Greek yogurt, which is one of my favs and something I keep stocked in my fridge.

Here's the recipe (adapted to my substitutions)

Healthy Banana Bread

Prep Time: 10 mins
Cook Time: 45-60 mins
Yield: 1 loaf

Ingredients:

1/4 cup butter
1/2 cup sugar
3 ripe large bananas
2 cups whole wheat flour
2 large eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp baking powder
a pinch of salt
1/2 cup plain Greek yogurt
splash of cinnamon
chopped pecans (about a handful--add more if you like em'!)

Instructions:

Preheat oven to 350F.

Cream the butter and sugar in a mixer until blended and fluffy.

Add vanilla extract and then the eggs one by one.  Beat for another few minutes.

Add in the mashed bananas and then add in the yogurt.

Mix the dry ingredients (flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon) together in a separate bowl.  Once mixed, slowly add to the wet mixture.  Beat until combined.

Stir in the pecans and mix until well incorporated.

Pour into a greased loaf pan.  Bake for 45-60 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clear.


Notes: You can use regular flour instead of whole wheat, as was in the original recipe.  You can omit the nuts and go plain or you can add in chocolate chips.  Possibilities are endless.


The bread is a sweet treat, but not overly sweet like a cake.  To me, it's the perfect thing.  It's even better warmed with a lather of butter.  Try it, it's worth the extra calories.

Cardio and Cupcakes

Cardio and Cupcakes.  Two things that mold my life together.  Two things that I completely LOVE {and love to hate}.  Two things that are completely OPPOSITE.

I've been thinking for quite some time that I wanted to change my Business Page on Facebook.  It was The Good Life Blog, named after this exact blog I'm writing on today.  It worked out fine from the beginning, but as time went on, I feel like the business page didn't really represent ME.  I'm not a BLOGGER full-time (I strive at blogging once per week), so I felt like it didn't really represent who I was.

Cardio and Cupcakes.  That's ME.  I am a fitness lover.  I am a cupcake lover.  I do cardio to eat cupcakes.  Okay, not all of the time.  But, you won't find me turning down a cupcake very often.

As a fitness coach, which I am, I strive to eat clean 80% of the time.  To be honest, it's more like 60-75% of the time.  I love food.  I love sweets.  I love cupcakes.

But, on the other end of the spectrum, I do get a good high off of a great workout.  I love cardio.  I'm a cardio girl. 

It was ONLY FITTING to name my new brand-- Cardio and Cupcakes.

I hope you like it!

Stay tuned for tips/tricks/blog posts/etc. on my page!  be sure to follow me for the latest updates!

XO,

Flashback Friday: Weight Loss Style

A huge passion of mine (which you should be able to tell by this blog) is health & fitness.  I'm not an expert.  I'm not a professional.  I've just had a huge transformation and a huge desire in continuing my health and fitness in the years to come.

I try to workout at least 5 times a week.
I try to eat clean 80% of the time.
I am human.
I make mistakes.

At-home workout programs WORKED for me.  It's the ONLY thing that WORKED!  But, that does NOT mean you can't go to the gym, join a fitness club, etc. and get results.  EVERYONE is different.  I will say if you've tried a gym in the past and it hasn't worked out for one reason or another, give at-home workout programs a TRY.  You MAY just be highly surprised!

Here's a little flashback Friday into the life I grew to know.  The life of being overweight, feeling fluffy, getting worn-down after climbing the stairs, and to a life of always WONDERING what it would be like to be FIT for one time in my life.  Oh to dream... if only I knew where I'd be RIGHT NOW.

This was in 2008.  I was the Maid of Honor in my Sisters wedding.

 

A size 12.  Large.

 

This was in October 2014.  Size 4.  Small.

 

Share below your flashback Friday! XO,

 

High Five! It's Friday!

Another week has come and gone and one of my favorite days has finally arrived... FRIDAY!

I guess the only reason it's my favorite day is because it's the last day of the work week.  How sad is that?  It's not that I don't love my job.  It's just that when you are running on Day 5 of the same ole, same ole, you get TIRED and burned out!

Friday's used to be about going out, having fun with friends and staying out late.  Now, I'm lucky to be up at 10PM.  I think I'm just so drained, it's only natural for me to get to bed early.  Plus, my whole mindset has shifted.

Truth be told, I've never really enjoyed partying it up till 2AM.  I'm just not that girl.  If you are, then that's great! 

Here's a little fun facts about the week and some of my favorites:

1. It was Josh's 29th Birthday on Wednesday!  We celebrated the best way we knew how.....grilling out steaks (his fav!) and then finishing the night with a homemade (somewhat) strawberry cake.  Okay, let's be honest... I used a box cake mix but spruced it up a bit.  I DID whip up some homemade cream cheese frosting from scratch...take that Betty Crocker!

This is Josh from this past Sunday, celebrating his birthday with the rest of our family.  He had his favorite dessert of all time, cheesecake.

 

2. Josh and I got to enjoy the fresh air and warmer temps.  HELLO spring.  If it wasn't raining and cold today, I'd almost believe that SPRING is here to stay.  I love colder weather and the thought of snow, but I'm SO ready for warm weather.  I love both of them and I love that we get to experience 4 different seasons every year.  We are blessed, right?

3. Well, this hasn't happened yet, but I'm looking forward to Josh being home Saturday (tomorrow).  He's working tonight not far from home, so he will be home the rest of the weekend with me.  Let's just say when he's gone the whole weekend, I'm super bored and miss him tons.  YAY for spending time with him!

Okay---do you have any faves from the week or anything you're looking forward to this weekend?  I want to hear it!

XO,

Hematoma in Dogs

This past Tuesday, Josh texted me (hello modern technology) that Stella's ear was swollen.  I didn't think much of it.  I asked if it was her ear inside or what part of the ear.  He replied with "her ear flap".  Still not knowing a thing about health and well-being, I just shrugged it off.

Poor Stella has been through more in her short 3 years with me than any dog should ever go through in their whole time here on Earth.

When I got home from work that evening, Josh said she was fine, she just had fluid in her ear, and even jokingly asked if he could stick a needle in there and pop it!  I absolutely, 100% said NOOO!

I still wasn't really concerned (again, that's my naïve self!).  But, I did decide to do a little googling.  I googled "fluid in dog ear".  The results were scary.  Shocking.

Hematoma.

What in the world is this?  Apparently, it's a socket of blood that forms when a blood vessel bursts due to either: excessive shaking of the head, ear mites, ear infections, trauma, or dog fighting (goes hand in hand with dog fighting). 

Well, I knew she didn't have an ear infection.  But, I do know that Hudson (our 64 lb. goldendoodle who thinks he is Stella's size--- 12 lbs) likes to pounce on her and get her to play with him daily.  Stella isn't that playful (she's an older dog, mind you) and our 15 month old puppy doesn't get that.

So, the next day, Stella's ear got even BIGGER.... MORE FLUID= one freaked out dog mama!

I called immediately to our veterinarian and she was seen yesterday.  It is Hematoma.  The only thing they can do is Surgery, to drain it.

What's the problem you may ask?  Stella has Addison's Disease.  It's a disease where her body starts shutting down when she gets put in a stressful situation.  Surgery=MEGA stressful situation.  The last time she had surgery (the only time I've ever known her to have it) was not long before she went into a complete Addisonian crisis and almost died.

My heart is torn.  Right now we are icing her ear 3 times a day in hopes that it will stop expanding.  But, if not, then we will have to explore the idea of surgery.

I.AM.FREAKING.OUT.

Is this how it is with children?  Not sure if my heart can take it!  Do you have any experience with Hematoma in dogs?  What was your experience like, if so?  Give me some tips!

XO,