May in Pictures

If you follow me on Instagram you likely saw some of my #MayIsMyMonth posts. I had a significant birthday in May and decided to celebrate the whole month long with something special to me each and every day... from visits to new restaurants, new foods, new activities and adventures.. and it all culminated in a week long getaway where I experiences a first-ever full body massage, a whale watching boat tour, a black bear watching boat tour and many beach walks, and a rainforest... it was a lot of fun and I want to share just a few pics with you...

Really looking forward to June... and now I am off to the golf course.  Catch you soon!

What was your favorite thing in May?

Nuzest News... New Recipes, A Sale, and a Fabulous Giveaway!

Yowzers!  There are so many different ways to use protein powders these days... many clever foodies are baking up a storm, and powering up even decadent desserts with protein.  They are making fudge, and cookie dough.  They are baking cookies and cakes and flipping flapjacks.  They are powering up hummus, and sauces of all kinds with added protein.

A favorite protein powder of mine is this 100% golden pea protein from Nuzest. Clean Lean Protein. It is a complete protein that is vegan, with no soy, dairy, eggs or nuts... no additives or preservatives... no fillers no sugars or sweeteners.  And I liked it so much I signed up to be an affiliate.

In spite of that little commercial, I do think you will want to check out some of these creative and tasty ideas from Nuzest  for yourself.

Here is one that I know my vegan friends in particular will enjoy.  It uses aquafaba from chickpeas instead of egg whites.  Click on the image to follow the link to the recipe.

I urge you to check the Nuzest site regularly for new ideas or sign up for the newsletter if you like.

If you do decide to purchase, use my affiliate code eatrunsail to receive a 15% discount.  And remember, shipping is free on orders over $50. That is a big deal these days... especially for Canadians where shipping costs are very high.

And here is a bit of terrific news... the Creamy Cappuccino is on sale right now.  That's right!

Creamy Cappuccino Clean Lean Protein with a best by date of September 2017 is now on clearance. Click on the image to shop.  Unfortunately the discount code does not apply to clearance items.  But I am looking at picking up 2 of them myself... Happy Birthday to me!

And last, but certainly not least, Nuzest has a terrific giveaway happening throughout the month of May.

You have an opportunity to be one of 5 lucky people who will win a tub of Clean Lean Protein, and a tub of Quick Vita Kick, along with one Good Green Snack bar.  Follow the link on the image to enter.  Canadians and Americans may enter.

Have you entered the giveaway yet?

6 Ways to Maintain Motivation

Sometimes I get lazy with my self-care routines and practices.  I always start out a new program with all kinds of good intentions and motivation.  And, after a while, even if it is going well, and I am seeing results, I tend to start to slack off and take vacations from my new habit... until I realize I have given it up completely and need to start again.

This has happened with food plans, exercise programs, evening skin care practices... and even with my supplements.  I am not sure why this happens but have been doing some self-evaluation and make an effort to turn it around.

I have come up with a list of ways to keep myself on right track... to keep my motivation to practice my new habits more consisitently.  Perhaps they will be helpful to you, too.

1.  Keep the WHY in mind. Set SPECIFIC and TIME-RELATED goals.

I find I do much better if I have a particular why or goal in mind.  When I am training for a running event, I know that I need to do my training runs as specified in order to actually be able to run a successful race.

Last Summer I wanted to rock a particular dress at my nephew's wedding so I worked hard on my food and exercise plan to make that happen.  I wanted to look good in the pictures that would be taken throughout the day and that vanity kept me on track.  Who cares if your WHY is shallow or vain. It is YOUR why and whatever it is, it is valid.

2. Make sure your expectations are REALISTIC.

This is a big one for me and in the past I have fallen into the trap of setting a goal that is just not attainable. It can be very crippling.  I think now I probably don't reach high enough but I really do not like to fail.  So, I make sure I am setting goals that are challenging but do-able.

You may be able to lose 10 pounds in a month, but you probably cannot do it in a week!

3. Make an ACTION PLAN and outline the PROCESS in detail.

It is all well and good to say you want to do a 5 km run in 6 weeks, but if you are not running at all, you had better have a plan.  Do some research and find a program such as C25K that you can follow and that you want to follow.  It might entail working with a coach, or joining a group.  Write out your
plan in specific detail, including your shopping list for equipment/supplies, your schedule and anything you need to do to make these steps happen. Do you need a babysitter?  Do you need to set up a phone app with reminders?  The more details the better.

4. Make sure your plan fits your LIFESTYE and your TIMETABLE.

If you like to sleep in on Saturday morning, and your new running group gets together at 7 a.m.  how likely are you to stay with it?  If your husband or partner wants to have dinner with you every evening, you are not likely going to want to attend a 6 p.m. Weight Watchers meeting.  You have to be happy and comfortable with your plan or you will not follow it. If your family is unhappy, you will not follow it. If you are tired and miserable, you will not follow it.  I am not saying you cannot make changes, but I doubt that overhauling your life is going to work for very long.

5.  Keep a JOURNAL.

This is key for me, whether a food journal or a training diary.  I like to keep notes and see my progress. And I pretty it up with colored pens and stickers! I like the process of writing down what I am doing and seeing my efforts in writing.

6. REVIEW, EVALUATE, and EVOLVE. 

Celebrate successes. Forgive failures.  Change the plan if your progress is way more or way less than you expect.  It is important to keep on top of things and I think that these reviews help with commitment and interest and ultimately with motivation.

Motivation and commitment are very personal and will change from person to person, and even throughout our lives.

What motivates you to keep going with a new program or a new habit?

May is My Month... Indulging in a Little Self-Care

I said so long to April with a wonderful morning run.  I woke up on Sunday to a beautiful and sunny, if somewhat windy, morning and could hardly wait for an hour after drinking my protein shake to lace up my Mizunos and get outside.

This run was a bit further than the last outing... no faster certainly, but I thoroughly enjoyed it. Sometimes I tell myself I really ought to give up running altogether but when it goes this well, I know I am not quite ready to call it quits.

Instead of drinking water while I stretched and cooled afterward, I tried a protein recovery shake.  A while back I won this tub of Vega protein in a giveaway but had never tried it.  Every time I have gone to use it, I see that is says RECOVERY on the label and back away.

I do not usually have a protein drink after I run or workout so it has sat neglected in my pantry. Well, I am looking to new horizons at the moment so I decided to give it a try... with plain water as suggested on the label. And it was pretty tasty.  How wrong can you go with Vanilla anyway?

I realized, that with having the pre-run shake, and then the after-run recovery shake, that an actual breakfast would be out of the question, so just showered and got on with my day.  I ended up having a nice afternoon outing with The Captain and loving some more outdoor time under the warm sun and blue skies. These beautiful Spring days have been much too rare this year to not get out and enjoy them.

So, you may be wondering why May is My Month.  It happens that I have a May birthday.  It also happens to coincide with a national holiday called Victoria Day, for the birthday of a famous monarch who ruled the British Empire for many, many years. She is also the namesake of the city I where I live.  I am sure you will have heard of her.

I love to share my birthday with Queen Victoria, because the Monday on or before the actual date is a holiday so our co-birthday often falls on a long weekend.  When I was in school or working, I usually had it off.  That is not the case this year however... the actual day falls after the Monday holiday and that turns out to be a good thing, as we have planned a little birthday getaway. It will be nice to have the hustle bustle of the weekend out of the way before we start out.  Details about that little trip and planned activities will come later.  But I am pretty excited about some of it...

This is going to be a significant birthday for me number-wise so I have decided to ramp up the celebrations somewhat and indulge myself a little...  or perhaps it will turn out to be a lot!  Every day this month I am going to give myself a little birthday gift... it can be something I do for myself, or make for myself, something I feed myself, or even purchase for myself... it can be anything that I consider self-pampering or self-supportive or even self-indulgent.  It might be as simple as a cup of matcha tea outside in the sunshine with a magazine, or even 20 minutes soaking in a bubble bath... as long it is something I want or enjoy, it will count. 

Usually on my birthday, I do something nice for someone else... and I will, but this year, I am taking the month of May to celebrate me!

The whole point is to emphasize the need for self-care and self-love... both of which I know I often tend to ignore or put off, and I am sure many others do as well.   I will be using the hashtag #MyIsMyMonth on IG and Twitter to promote my self-indulgence.

Today is the first of May.  My first gift to myself was a delicious and nutritious spinach and blueberry chocolate protein shake before I headed to the fitness room to do my kettlebell workout this morning. 

I am not sure what the rest of the day holds... but I do know there will be cake!  This Simple Chocolate Mug Cake with Greek yogurt and minty chocolate sugar free syrup is on the list for my first day of celebrations!

Do join me if you like.  You can find the recipe here.  

Do you celebrate your birthday month too?  What is your favorite way to indulge yourself?  Do you use a particular recovery shake after your workouts/runs?

Loving Lately... April 2017 Edition

With our weather finally getting a bit warmer, and the days definitely getting longer, I am somewhat inclined to get out and run more often. So far my runs are not getting any longer but certainly more frequent.  It is harder to get motivated to get out there when not training for a specific event for sure and when I am spending so many hours on my legs with all of the walking I have been doing too... some of that will have to go I think, especially when my tennis season begins.

I am also making an effort to do more yoga. I love Yoga when I am actually doing it. I have been using the Yoga Fix workout from the 21 Day Fix DVD series I bought from Beachbody a few years back. I like that it is only 20 minutes long and has a series of Sun Salutations and balance poses that I am familiar with and comfortable doing. It gives me a good stretch and makes me feel like I am doing something good for myself.   I really appreciate that I can do these sessions in front of my tv, in the privacy of my own surroundings, and have to admit that they are often done in my jammies!

I normally enjoy a protein shake with some blended fruit in it before my morning workouts on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays.  Lately I have been keeping a bag of fresh spinach leaves in the freezer, and at least once a week I add some to my smoothie.  If I have a piece of banana, or some berries along with the protein powder and nut milk, it makes a delicious drink... kinda pretty!  And I think it is a great way to get in some vitamins and fibre as well.

I don't do a lot of food prep... but there are a few things I like to make sure to have on hand so will normally take a bit of time on Saturday or Sunday to  make a bit for the week ahead.

I love this Cloud Bread or Revolution Rolls... just egg and Greek yogurt baked into soft buns. I use them for burgers and sandwiches and store them in the freezer. They thaw in minutes, too and the texture doesn't change.

This past weekend I baked a spaghetti squash and will use it for a couple of breakfasts or lunches. I have started cutting them cross-wise before baking as I find the strands separate so much easier this way... and last night when my husband barbecued chicken breasts, I had him cook a few extra... also for lunches. Nice to have that ready to just slice and toss into salads or quick soups.

I love to experiment in the kitchen. Yesterday I made a Zucchini Grilled Cheese Sandwich and used a mixture of grated zucchini and beaten eggs as the bread... delicious!  I made one with ham for The Captain and he loved it... and he is not a zuke fan by any means.

I put a few slices of cheddar on top of the patties to melt and then stacked them.  Kinda messy so I ate it with a knife and fork but really tasty!

We spent some time on Saturday, which just happened to be Earth Day, working on our container garden on our balcony/deck.  Love the little green oasis we are putting together. 

And I am also loving that I am getting this dental work done and behind me. This coming week I will  have 2 old fillings replaced and also prep work done for one more crown. Not loving the $$ it is costing but will be so nice to have it done and behind me and off my mind.

What are you loving lately?