Till Then Smile Often

Oh, How Pinteresting!

 

Happy Hump Day everyone! I am so glad to be halfway through this week!!! Work has been crazy so glad to see the light at the end of the tunnel. In New England it is super cold so what else is there to do?????? Pinterest. I knew you would guess that right!

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Feel free to join me on pinterest here.

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Is this not the most gorgeous lip gloss ever???

Source: twitter.com via Kerry on Pinterest

Always strive to be better!

After this week may need one of these beauts!!

When I want to ring the neck of a certain Government official this mantra works to keep me out of jail! 😉

Nuff said!!! Just the cutest thing ever!

Apple Vinagrette… say what? Gotta try this one!

Source: trendpins.com via Kerry on Pinterest

Felt like this on day 2 of my cleanse! LOL.

Love this color combo. For some reason blue makes my brown eyes pop.

Happy Love Day with this free printable! XOXO

Can’t wait to see what everyone else is pinning. Don’t forget to linkup over at the Vintage Apple.

Cleanse Update, Product Review and Playlist

Just wanted to give you a quick update on the cleanse I did for three days…..I am down a total of 4 pounds. YEAH!!! It really gave me the kick-start I needed after getting over my grief to hit the gym HARD.

My workout yesterday consisted of 20 minutes of cardio followed by a Back and Biceps weight training session and then closing with another 20 minutes of cardio on the treadmill. The workout I followed can be found here.

I tend to mix up my workouts every 4-6 weeks so my muscles do not get used to the same exercises or weight. My go to website for all things fitness is Bodybuilding.com. Don’t let the name fool you, there is something for everyone from beginners to pros. They have free “pick a plan” workouts. You enter your gender, age range, and goal and they give you the workout programs that meet that criteria. Each program gives you the nutrition to follow, recommended supplements, and workouts. The workouts can be printed out and used as a written log you can take to the gym.

When I first started to lift weights (which is essential for building lean, toned muscles) I used the Jamie Eason LiveFit Trainer program. I loved it and was very happy with the results I got. I love that they also have videos for all the given exercise so you don’t feel completely lost when you go to the gym and learn the proper form.   I am not a paid spokesperson I just love and use that site A LOT!! 🙂 Check it out, you won’t be sorry!

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I recently purchased a necklace from Bits of Splendor and I am so in love with it!! Her shop can be found here. 

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 SOURCE

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You can even customize it with your initial. I am just in love with Anchors and anchor print fabric lately. I think it is a reminder to me to stay grounded, stay strong and not to get swept away in the little things. This necklace fit the bill and will be a new staple in my everyday jewelry rotation.

*I bought this necklace with my own money and am not being paid for my opinion. I just love to find and share businesses that I truly love and shop at myself.*

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So I figured I would share my top 5 songs that are hitting my playlist often, or push me while I workout. Hope you enjoy!!

1. Hero – by Skillet

2. Invincible – by Adelita’s Way

3. Air Force Ones – Nelly

4. Bad Girlfriend – Theory of a Deadman

 5. Don’t Stop the Party – Pitbull

 What music gets you pumped to workout? Let me know in the comments section! Now get to the gym!!!

 

Doing a cleanse

There are a lot of different types of cleanses out there, and many reasons on why to do a cleanse.  Some of the reasons for doing a cleanse are:

1. Weight loss

2. Detox of the kidney, colon and liver

3. Jump starting a new fitness program

There are countless other reasons however for me personally.  I recently suffered a loss of my kitty and so I didn’t workout AT ALL for like a week and a half. Eating as if I was going to workout but then decided to just snuggle on the couch with my puppy who seems to miss kitty too. That led to a few extra pounds that I do not want to keep and I have a 5k race coming up in a month. So doing a cleanse will not only help me to drop some of the extra pounds but also kickoff a new training schedule to get me ready to run in the next month.

 

There are many different types of cleanses:

1. Contain protein and veggies

2. Protein, veggies, and fruit or fruit juices.

3. Fruit or fruit juices only

4. Combination of all but add in special root herbs and laxatives.

 

With a cleanse you will be consuming a relatively low amount of calories. You will want to consume a lot of water to keep everything moving through your system, keeping yourself hydrated and feeling full. You can sometimes be tired or get headaches due to the releasing of all the toxics. It is also a type of fasting so calorie level is lower than normal, so with that in mind you should only be doing very light activity (walking only) and should consider doing it on a weekend. Cleanses can range anywhere from 2-7 days. I don’t recommend doing more than 3 days.

 

My current Cleanse Day one and two:

6am – 1 scoop of protein powder and 8-12 oz of water

8am – 1 scoop of protein powder and 8-12 oz of water

10am – 1 scoop of protein powder and 8-12 oz of water

12pm – 1 scoop of protein powder and 8-12 oz of water

2pm – 1 scoop of protein powder and 8-12 oz of water

4pm – 1 scoop of protein powder and 8-12 oz of water

6pm – Large salad with 2-4 cups lettuce and any additional veggies (mine was red onion, celery, carrots, spinach, green pepper), 4 oz of chicken with dressing of oil and vinegar.

 

Day Three – This is a juice day cleanse

6am – Juice – Mix of veggies and fruits (see below from today)

9am – Juice – Mix of veggies and fruits

12pm – Juice – Mix of veggies and fruits

3pm – Juice – Mix of veggies and fruits

6pm – Large salad with 2-3 cups lettuce and any additional veggies (mine was red onion, celery, carrots, spinach, green pepper), 4 oz chicken with dressing of oil and vinegar.

Juicing

 

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P.S. This is not a long-term solution, this is just a way to get your body back in balance. Overall health and wellness should be achieved from a clean diet, exercise, rest and lots of water!

***Disclaimer: I am not a doctor, licensed nutritionist, dietician or trainer. I’m simply a health and fitness enthusiast who is sharing my experience and what has worked based on my own personal research and experience. Please consult your doctor with any medical issues, before beginning a cleanse or training program.

Saw It. Pinned It. Did It. – Chicken Grape Feta Cheese Salad

For another addition of Saw It. Pinned It. Did It. I am doing Chicken Grape Feta Cheese Salad. Go check out the two co-hosts of this linking party, Steph and Katie if you haven’t already. They are both kinda awesome!

My inspiration is below and I made a few minor changes and made my own homemade dressing (don’t worry it took like 2 seconds to make in my magic bullet).

 
 
 
 
 

 

My version:

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Salad Ingredients:

2 cups romaine lettuce or greens of your choice

1 medium stalk of celery diced

1/8 cup of walnuts finely chopped (slivered almonds is a great substitute)

1/8 cup of feta cheese

.06 ounces of red onion (optional)

4 ounces of shredded or chopped chicken

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Salad Dressing – Based roughly on Jack Lalanne Juicing recipe but I can’t find my copy so had to improvise 🙁

  • 1/2 cup strawberries
  • 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
  • 1/2 teaspoon sugar substitute
  • 2 tablespoons EVOO, coconut or almond oil

 

Instructions:

Since I cook my chicken in bulk (like 2-3 pounds) on the weekend I just have to pull out the desired amount. This helps with staying on tracking and not staring at the fridge wondering what you are going to eat. I cooked mine this week in low sodium chicken stock and seasoned to taste with italian seasoning, onion and garlic powder. Feel free to use your favorite chicken recipe but note you want it rather low key as the dressing adds a lot of flavor. Shred the chick in a blender, food processor, or by hand.

Chop all your veggies and the walnuts. Toss in your favorite mixing bowl and serve!

For the Salad Dressing:

Mix all ingredients in a blender (I used my magic bullet) and serve. Can it get any easier that that?!

According to Myfitness pal the breakdown for 2 TBS serving of the dressing is:

Calories – 68; Carbs – 2; Fat -7 (this is based on using EVOO – amount of fat is halved when using coconut oil).

 

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Feel free to join the linkup and take a look at all the other projects completed!
 
 
 
 
 

  

Oh, How Pinteresting!

 

Oh how glad I am that this week has been better than the last. After a really rough last week I am feeling much better and ready to take on the world { or just this week, better to start small 🙂 }.

I am absolutely addicted to Pinterest. I have made quite a few things and most have been a success, others serve as inspiration and I try to make them a little better (mostly recipes). So for those of you with the same addiction welcome to the madness, let me add to the insanity! You can find me on Pinterest here.

Maybe my next puppy?

 How I wish my living room looked!

 

 

Source: nailstah.com via Kerry on Pinterest

 Such a great winter color.

Source: alejandra.tv via Kerry on Pinterest

 My next office project – organization and shelves!

 Love the color and length!

 

Have you had any success on Pinterest? I would love to hear what you have made so let me know in the comments.  Come back tomorrow for Saw It. Pinned It. Did it.