Protein Pancake Recipe

Hey guys! Hope everyone's enjoying the wonderful spring weather and getting outside to get those workouts in! I just wanted to share a quick recipe with you guys that I tried this morning. I've made several different kinds of protein pancakes in my day. Most of the time with not great results. This morning I decided to try the Tone It Up Perfect Fit Pancakes. I've been a member of Tone It Up since about February, those of you not familiar Tone It Up is a community of girls trying to eat clean and workout daily. It's led by two girls Karena and Katrina who are super fun and motivating. I had purchased some of their Perfect Fit protein because a lot of their recipes use it for baking, plus I just always have tons of protein powder on hand. People have given their protein pancakes rave reviews so I decided to try them this morning since I had some extra time after my Booty Call!
The recipe:
1/2 Banana
1/4 cup egg whites
1 scoop Perfect Fit Protein
2 tbs vanilla almond milk or skim
1 tsp cinnamon

Mash up your banana, add your almond milk and mix it well. Once that's good and mixed up add the egg whites, protein and cinnamon. Pour the mix into a hot skillet that's been sprayed with non stick spray and let it cook! Flip it carefully after about 3-5 minutes and let the other side cook.

I added some fresh strawberries and coffee with mine. Yum! It was way better than any other protein pancake that I've had. You should know that the batter is a little thick and the pancake turns out a little more dense than the traditional pancake. But it's super filling, it actually kept me full for over 4 hours. My coffee was another Tone It Up plan recipe: A cup of coffee, a packet of stevia and 1/4 cup of unsweetened vanilla almond milk. I can't wait to try other things added into my pancake to change it up. Definitely comment if you can think of some yummy combinations for me to try!

And starting Monday is the Tone It Up Bikini Series. Leah and I are partnering up to do this 8 week workout series. It takes you right into the beginning of summer. I'm excited, this is my first Tone It Up Bikini series. It looks like it going to be big! And the wonderful Tone It Up girls are super generous and give out lots of prizes through out the series. Make sure to check it out and sign up!

Crazy Week + GIVEAWAY!!!

The past week has been a bit hectic for me as my AC went out in my car, which of course cost me an arm and a leg, and just a few other random hiccups that came up.  Needless to say, my diet and exercise have gone by the wayside, and the scale is NOT forgiving!!   I am getting back on my game starting RIGHT THIS MOMENT!

I had the opportunity to taste and review QuestBar's newest flavor, Cookies & Cream, as well as the not so new Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough flavor.  I have to say, the cookie dough flavor was just EH for me, mostly because it tasted too "fake" or too "protien-y" for me.  That one will have to be a no-go!  On the other hand, the Cookies & Cream bar kinda rocked my socks off!!  It tasted pretty much like exactly what you'd expect.  Flavor was on point!  Not too fake, not too "protien-y", just right.  I would definitely add this bar to my stash!!  Speaking of......

*****EXCITING NEWS ALERT*****

We have a box of 12 of the new Quest Cookies & Cream bars to give away to one lucky reader! To enter just leave a comment with your favorite cheat (clean or not) on Kiley's post HERE. We'll be randomly selecting a winner on April 18, 2014. Earn an additional entry by sharing this post on your Facebook or Twitter and commenting HERE that you shared!

-L <3

Cheat Clean!

Today I received some Quest Bar samples in the mail. 

I'm not usually a huge fan of protein bars because a lot of them are just glorified candy bars. They have wonderful sounding flavors but then you open them and they are unrecognizable gooey lumps. However I have heard awesome things about Quest bars so I was excited to review them, especially their new cookies & cream flavor. 

When I opened the cookies & cream bar I was initially a little disappointed by the way it looked. It is the standard looking gooey protein bar. I cut a piece off to try and set it aside. Opened the chocolate chip cookie dough bar and again was disappointed in the appearence but cut a small piece off. 

I tried the chocolate chip cookie dough first. It was ok, not great. It had a very protein taste, and it didn't love the texture. Again it wasn't bad but definitely not something I would purchase. After that my expectations for the cookies & cream weren't very high. It was DELICIOUS! It had a similar texture to the first bar but the taste was amazing and it has little bits of cream mixed in. Quest definitely nailed it with this bar. I can definitely see half a bar mid afternoon helping kill my sweet cravings! I'm so glad I was sent these bars to try. I definitely plan to pick some up to keep to keep at work for the next time I need to "cheat clean"! Next up will be Leah's review of the bars, and she's even pickier about food taste/texture than I am so stay tuned for that! 

AND

I'm so excited for our first give away! We have a box of 12 of the new Quest Cookies & Cream bars to give away to one lucky reader! To enter just leave a comment with your favorite cheat (clean or not) and we'll be randomly selecting a winner on April 18, 2014. Earn an additional entry by sharing this post on your facebook or Twitter and commenting here that you shared!

Abs Are Made In The Kitchen? Can I have the recipe?

Ok.....I have a confession.....I've definitely put on the "boyfriend layer". You know, that weight you gain when you first start dating someone. You're going out to dinner and opening a bottle of wine with dinner, ordering dessert....next thing you know you've gained a few pounds. I know I'm not the only one. Most of us have been guilty of letting ourselves go when we're happy. Unfortunately these habits are way too easy to get used to and they are counter productive to my ultimate goal. So I've decided that I need to take control. For me I need something more concrete than "I'm going to stop eating crap" or "I'm just going to try to do better". That means nothing. So I've decided to commit myself to Weight Watchers to help me shed the boyfriend layer. I know a lot of people who have had great success with their program. What I like about it is that I can eat anything. Nothing is off limits, I just have to remember portion control. It's almost like a game to me. I keep experimenting with the best way to "spend" my points. Another awesome thing is every workout I do at Koko tells me the number of activity points I earn. My diet and exercise totally work together! I know, I'm a complete geek. So I'll be keeping you updated on my progress. Wish me luck!

Ok...so for the past week I've been hinting at a surprise. I am so excited to tell you guys that I've been chosen to be an ambassador for Athleta Esprit de She. Athleta is a company I've been familiar with for a long time. I have been buying their products for years, I actually ran my first half marathon in Athleta clothes. They have created a race series exclusively for women call the Esprit de She series. It features runs, dualathons and triathlons. I love the series because it removes some of the intimidation of 5k's or triathlons because it's for women only. Women of all fitness levels. I'm excited to be doing the Katy 5k on May 8th. It's a Thursday night "happy hour" 5k with a bubbly bar and market at the finish. If you're interested in joining me just let me know. I'll give you my ambassador code which has a few perks for you if you use it! Another perk is that means some awesome give aways for my readers so make you keep checking back! Hope to see you in Katy!

Gym-xiety?

Kiley and I were sitting down at lunch yesterday discussing our goals and the past week we've had.  I was, of course, telling her that I had my struggles and triumphs.  I had lost a couple of pounds and then turned around and ate horribly and ended up right back where I started.  Such is life, I guess?  So I just need to hit the gym harder, right? (and stop binging on crap!) 

There is the other problem.  My "gym-xiety".  Have you ever gone into the gym so pumped about your workout, but as soon as you get there you see all of these sexy people that look like they don't even need to be there? 

Yeah, that's what happens to me. So then, instead of going over to the free weights, like I was planning to do, I just go hop on the elliptical....in the BACK ROW, far corner and hope no one looks at me. =(  Does anyone else feel this way, or am I just being crazy?  I don't know, but it happens almost every time I go!!  Any tips or advice would be greatly appreciated!!!  ha ha

I used to do Zumba at least once a week with Kiley, so I will leave you with this meme, which is EXACTLY correct about our experience:

-L <3

Kokonut!

I spent several years doing Crossfit. I started Crossfit in 2009 and went at least 3 times a week but more like 4-5 times a week for 4 years. I absolutely love the Crossfit community. I loved the grueling workouts, collapsing from sheer exhaustion after each class. I discovered in early 2013 that I had lost my passion for Crossfit. I went from going faithfully and never missing a class to going maybe once every 2 weeks and always having an excuse to not go. But I do like working out so I knew I still wanted to be active. From February 2013 until February 2014 I tried several different things. First the Bar Method, after 2 months I realized it also wasn't for me. I tried going to a gym following a plan from a personal trainer. That was ok. I tried using an online plan but didn't really enjoy that. And then I found:

I actually got a flier in my mailbox and decided to go in and check it out. I made an appointment for the following day. After meeting with the trainer, taking a fit test, being shown around I joined right then and there. Koko is different....it's digital fitness. Every member has a USB with their personalized program that you plug into the machine when you walk in. You go through a full body strength workout in about 30 min. They also have treadmills and elliptical machines for cardio. Koko cardio sessions are all 15 min and are high intensity intervals. The cardio programs are recorded on MP3 players and tell you when to change speed and incline on the machines. I love it, it's like having a personal trainer without having to talk to anyone. Another awesome aspect is that each member has their own website to log into. It shows their progress, strength gains, nutrition program and BMI changes. The fitness industry is finally using technology to make the most effective workout. I am hooked and working towards my perfect workout. A perfect workout happens when you complete your strength session at perfect pace. So far I've gotten several 99% workouts but no 100%. 

The Koko Smart Trainer

Tomorrow I'll be talking a little about my nutrition plan as well as letting you guys in on an exciting secret! 

WCW......sort of....

Yes, I know it's Thursday. I meant to post this yesterday but we had quite the long day here in DC. So you get my version of WCW a day late. I wanted to just take a second to give a shout out to a few girls in my life that have been a huge inspiration in my fitness journey. First up.....

Ashley Smart

I met Ashley late 2013 when I was looking for a new hair stylist. I asked around at my gym and was given Ashley's name. I knew from the second I met her that she was awesome. She's not afraid to lift heavy and is proud of her muscles. She's constantly posting inspiring thoughts and pictures, she's always encouraging everyone to be healthy and active. Not to mention just a few weekends ago she took second in the bikini division at the Phil Heath Classic. Awesome!

The second and probably biggest inspiration to me has been

Katie Russell

This girl here has to be one of the mentally toughest women that I know. When I was going through my divorce I joined Bayou City Crossfit's all female class. Katie was the coach. She was the perfect combination of tough and encouraging. Not to mention she's a complete badass athlete herself. She is a 2 time Crossfit Games competitor. While I was doing Crossfit she pushed me further than I thought I could go. Out of all of the positives aspects of Crossfit, I can without hesitation say that having Katie as a coach is the thing I miss the most.

Both of these women are amazing athletes but they have one thing in common that makes them even more inspirational. They aren't just athletes. They have lives, they have friends, they travel. They have found a way to balance that healthy lifestyle. They aren't letting life pass them by as the work towards their goals. That is awesome. That is how I want to live.

Here is one last thought for those of you still far from you goals like I am: