Don't play with your food, kee-ads.

The start of my Thanksgiving week was early and gorgeous!!!

LOVE watching the sun come up over the city!

Fire ants on a cheese log greeted me and gave me some energy

Red apple with fat free cream cheese, agave nectar and cherry craisins!

 for a 6-mile run with my biggest fan(ny)....

and a BodyPump class!

If you have never done a bodypump class, I highly suggest it... If you are just starting out and have no idea what weight to use (I felt the same way when I started), here's a list of what weight I use for each muscle group. My weights are in the normal range for women.

Warm-up: 24 lbs.

Squats: 30 lbs.

Chest: 24 lbs.

Back/Hamstrings: 24 lbs.

Biceps: 18 lbs.

Triceps: 18 lbs.

Lunges: 24 lbs.

Shoulders: 18 lbs./5 pounds in each hand for lats/pec deck/rotator cuff exercises

And now, I'd like to share a clip with you that had me tinkling my pants.... 

I love how they're calling it "adorable" and this poor child is screaming bloody murder and running for her life. Hilarious.

Lunch:

Corn and peas with reduced fat parmesan and salt and pepper

Spinach wrap stuffed with chopped carrots, sauted spinach, leftover crabcake, fat free cheddar cheese, and mustard!

Followed by a cup of cheer!

  

I stuffed it down, because today, I am on a mission.

Today is operation Christmas tree.

See, since our closets in our tiny apartment are packed to the brim, my parents let us store our tree down in Nokomis, which was a great idea until I started decorating for Christmas and realized I had no tree. 

Wah, wahhhh.....

So, I set out for a ROAD TRIP!!!!

Ohhhh the open road!!!!

Except this little demon was blocking the front door.

Guess who's back, back again....

I had to use my sweet nunchuck skills to get past him and feed Tina some ham, 

but once I got those two things accomplished, I was on the road, and it was a beautiful day!

Of course, once I got there, I realized I didn't have the key to get it.... So, I had manuever my way to the extra key, but I will tell you that I had to get past this mother to get at it.....

Dang it Dad! Gets me every time!!!

He still thinks it's hilarious to put this fake snake in different places every time we come down to the house.

A few minutes, some serious tree hauling, and a stolen bag of extra food from my parents house later, Operation Christmas Tree- Stage 1 was complete.

booya

Why yes, I do like my Virginia Slims lit, thank you very much!

Got two Powerade Zero's on the way home because it was buy one get for a penny! When I got in the car, I realized what I had done....

Guess Christmas runs deep in mah veins!

Little health tidbit, a lot of people think they need to replace everything lost from exercise with drinks like Gatorades and Powerade. 

Here's the deal, you don't lose the amount of electrolytes/carbohydrates in these drinks if you are exercising for more than an hour at a high intensity. At this level, there is a significant drop in sodium and potassium. 

In most cases, unless you're running a half marathon or it's 105 degrees out, water will do just fine. 

Actually, the calories in these drinks are typically over 300 in a normal sized bottle and will cancel out most calories you just burned, so if you are trying to lose weight, avoid these sugary drinks.

So, either just stick to water, or if you like the taste, try Powerade Zero.

I got back, threw some more pumpkin seeds in the oven and assembled/decorated our tree!!!

Favorite ornaments!

One casualty. May you rest in peace.

Hallelujah! Hallelujah!!!!!!!!!! The finished product.

I ate all these pumpkin seeds standing up in the kitchen.... because they were THAT good warm.

Had my final class, ran some errands, then came home to a delicious but filling dinner!!

That burrito was good, but boyyy was it filling!!!

I used the leftover whole wheat pasta/quinoa mix, frozen peas, and pasta sauce I had in the fridge.

I fried up some tofu and spinach with basil, oregano, Italian seasoning, and salt.

Mixed 'er alllll up, topped 'er with some parmesan cheese, and ate two bowls!

Now, I'm having an intimate night with my DVR..... 

New Girl, here I come!

Awesomely Awkward.

Today, I am thankful for Christmas trees. Nuff said :)