Thankful Hearts

Today, I felt like writing about living life to the fullest and making each day count. Staying positive and appreciating the amazing lives we have, are things that sometimes people forget to consciously acknowledge... myself included. I try to stop each day and just take a minute to realize how lucky I am and to be appreciative of all the opportunities I have been given, the wonderful friends and family I have been blessed to be surrounded by in my life, and how thankful I am for this healthy body and mind that I have. But of course, there are days when I am busy, a little selfish, not putting myself in other people's shoes before I speak or act, or too caught up in my own trivial issues to take that time to be thankful. Being more thankful and grateful for all that I have, and being more respectful and understanding of the people in my life are things that I am working on making a more conscious part of my daily routine. Life here for us is only temporary and will always end sooner than you planned. We are not in control of the amount of time we have on this earth, only the way in which we choose to spend that time. Talk to your family more, take the time to learn something new about a friend, help a stranger, start each day by saying thank you, let go of something that would normally make you mad, acknowledge when you feel your mood start to go sour and turn it around, and let the people who care about you most know that they are appreciated by just saying thank you for no particular reason. I want to smile, give, appreciate, and love a little more everyday because I don't have perfect control over all the things that will happen in my life, but I have complete control over my attitude and my actions.

"One day your life will flash before your eyes... make sure it's worth watching."

"If there ever comes a day where we can't be together, keep me in your heart, I'll stay there forever." -Winnie the Pooh

"Always believe that something wonderful is about to happen."

"Start each day with a grateful heart."

"If all the hate in the world followed me, I would continue to love and live happily. Nothing can stop me, my ambition won't falter, my attitude is one which nothing can alter. Sunshine and light fill every space in my heart, sharing it with others is my favorite form of art." -Whitney Daniel

"I have decided to be happy because it is good for my health." -Voltaire

<3 Health and Happiness

Feelin The Burn

LEG DAY! Most people have a love-hate relationship with leg day... I tend to be more on the love side of that fence. Your legs contain largest and strongest muscles in your body (which I got to see when we dissected the lower body of our cadaver in anatomy lab... talk about AMAZING)... because these muscles are so large, they take a lot more energy and effort to workout than say the upper body muscles. I love leg day because I am addicted to that wobbly, jello-like, I think my legs might collapse right under me feeling that I get walking out of the gym after a hard leg workout.... and if I DON'T feel like that, I think I obviously must not have worked hard enough. Today my workout went a lil somethin' like this:

Bulgarian Split Squat (I used dumbbells)
Squat With the Smith Machine super-setted with Jump Squats
Lying Leg Curls
Thigh Abductors super-setted with...
Thigh Adductors

Then, for cardio I did 20 minutes of HIIT (High Intensity Interval Training)

And nowww... to go get a lil creative in the dining hall and make a delicious post workout meal!
I am going to make a turkey pita wrap...

Whole Wheat Pita
Deli turkey slices
Some hummus
Raw Spinach
Slice of provolone cheese
Garlic Powder
Red Pepper Flakes...

Put it on the panini press til the cheese melts and MAGIC... If you can be a little creative, eating healthy in a college dining hall IS possible :)

<3 Health and Happiness

A link to make you smile...

Below is link to a page I came across on the website "stumble upon"... It is a page of quotes from children ages 4-8 about what they said when they were asked the question: What does love mean?

Some of these quotes are absolutely amazing and you can't read them without smiling.  :)



A beautiful thing I stumbled upon

Daily Doses...

Move: Get up and do something! Try to push yourself harder than you think you can at least a little bit everyday... Go to sleep at night knowing that today you did something you didn't think you could, tried something new, and made yourself a little more awesome than you were when you woke up :) Today's move is JUMP SQUATS because you can do them anywhere, without any equipment, and it will use almost every muscle in your body. Just stand with your feet shoulder width apart, hands on your hips, and back straight. Squat until your thighs are parallel with the ground (or a little lower if you are looking for even more of a burn), then explode through your feet jumping as high as you can off the ground. When you land, make sure your knees are bent to avoid injury. The faster you do jump squats, the more of a burn you will feel. Jump squats will not only work your muscles but also get your heart pumping. You can even add weights into the mix if you want even more of a challenge. 

Eat: I love pancakes just as much as anyone else... the only problem is that they don't exactly get an A in the nutrition gradebook. One of my favorite foods that Gabe and I make are PROTEIN PANCAKES... They taste just as good as regular pancakes, only one will fill you up, and you feel good about eating them because they are so good for you! What you will need

• One Scoop of protein powder... Any flavor will work... My fave is banana
• 3/4 cup of egg whites... or you can use regular eggs
• 1/2 cup Oatmeal

Mix the ingredients together in a bowl. I like to also add cinnamon to the mix because it makes the pancake taste amazing! Then, just put the pancake mix into the pan and cook it! Couldn't be easier! You can put lots of different toppings on your pancakes- syrup (I like to use sugar free), fruit, peanut butter, almond butter, cocoa powder, the list goes on! Once you got the basic recipe, you can be creative and experiment with different ways to really make it your own.

See:

I love this picture. It makes me miss being little... when life was simple and everything was new.

Feel: "Yes, I've made mistakes. Life didn't come with instructions." Love this quote. We are all human, and part of being human is making mistakes and learning from them.

Women can be strong AND beautiful...

The caption in the pic says... "A great pleasure in life, is doing what people say I cannot do."

Numero Uno

Here goes... The first post on my blog! :) Not sure who will read this blog, whether or not it will have an affect on anyone, or if anyone besides my friends and family will actually look at my blog, but I'm here, posting it anyways... writing for anyone and everyone who wants to add a little sunshine to their day! There are so many thoughts and ideas floating around my head about what to do with this blog, that I'm not really sure where to start. One thing I AM sure of however, is that fitness, nutrition, and happiness are the 3 things in my life that I am the most passionate about. 3 constants that make up my lifestyle. 3 beacons that guide me through my day from the time I open my hazel eyes in the morning til I lay my head on my pillow at night. Various people have told me that I am "crazy" for being so obsessed about what I put into my body and working out... and to those people all I have to say is... If I am crazy for wanting to make the only body I have been given in this life as healthy and amazing as I possibly can, than by all means, continue to call me crazy because I will take it as a compliment. One life. One mind. One body.


<3 Health and Happiness