This upcoming Tuesday’s CMT just might be Christian Music Tuesday.

You see, the personal TVs at our community gym have every single channel imaginable…besides ESPN. Channels you’ve probably never even heard of before. Yeah, no ESPN at the GYM.

Luckily, the wall TVs get ESPN, so I could still watch the Duke vs. FSU game while running on the treadmill. There was only one problem…those TVs are muted, so I couldn’t hear the commentary.

That’s okay, I have my iPod.

And then my iPod died 2 minutes into my run. Frack.

I can barely run in silence outside, there’s no way I can do it on the ‘mill.

So I turned to the two music channels on the personal TVs for help (there are music channels, but no ESPN. What is wrong with this picture?). I plugged in my headphones and hoped for the best. The two channels I had to choose from were Contemporary Christian and R&B Classics. Frack.

The R&B Classics were too slow, soooo I listened to “You are my Shepard” and “The Blessing,” among other Christian songs. All while cheering/cursing at the TV.

The songs were surprisingly fast and very very uplifting, but I sure missed rocking out to Katy Perry, Rihanna and Nicki Minaj.

Lesson of the day: If you think you need to charge your iPod, chances are you need to charge your iPod.

Nonetheless, it was an exciting game that kept me entertained on the treadmill for 6 miles at 6.2-6.7 mph/1.0 incline, followed by some leg weights.

Fueling for this run was tricky because it was a late afternoon game. I usually run in the morning or early afternoon because of my sensitive stomach.

I gave it my best shot. Cinnamon raisin toast + sunflower seed butter + banana. Plus frothy coffee. The usual.

Followed by a glass of kefir + pumpkin + cinnamon. No, you don’t need to get your eyes checked…I store canned pumpkin in an old almond butter jar.

Clementines + Cocoa Roast Almonds.

I also ate a ton of this raw/vegan/gluten free buckwheat granola I found at Home Goods. I’m the girl who buys food from Marshalls, remember?

Emmy’s Granola is truly the bomb dot com! Super crunchy and studded with dates and almonds. I’m going to try to make my own non-raw (baked?) version because I lack a dehydrator.

I like eating granola before my runs because it’s calorie dense and doesn’t make my stomach cramp as easily.

For me, running fuel always includes chocolate, no matter what time of day it is. I found these Cinnamon M&Ms on clearance at Target after the holidays.

As someone who pours cinnamon in my oatmeal and baked goods, I had to try them.

Mmmm! The cinnamon flavor is fabulous. The best part? These M&Ms are JUMBO sized. The more [chocolate], the merrier.

I had zero stomach cramps while running. Score! I don’t give my stomach enough credit—it has improved a lot over the past couple years.

Then I nerded out and wore my amazing Spider-Man tights to bed .

Though my legs really did feel fresher when I woke up, I declared today an active rest day.

I took a walk around Costco while noshing on samples. Greek yogurt, kefir, seaweed salad, and Food Should Taste Good chips w/ spinach artichoke dip. Our Costco rocks!

Then I took a real 3 mile walk around the snowy neighborhood (not quite as delicious, but very relaxing).

Then I did 40 min. of the latest Dave Farmar Power Yoga Podcast (from 10/30/11). The actual podcast is 1 hr 40 min, but my arms were done after 40.

Had you been in my basement, you would’ve heard…

Ohh sh*t

Oh my gahhhhh

Oh no…no no no. No freaking way.

How many darn Chatarungas are we gonna DO?!

It’s been a loooong while since I’ve done yoga. I missed Dave Farmar. He’s insightful and hilarious. He has this way of calming me down. I should listen to him talk while I drive.

[His podcasts are free, if you didn't know already. You don't even have to download the podcasts…just search for him in iTunes and hit play.]

I am holding off on using the unlimited monthly yoga pass I mentioned because I want to build up some yoga muscles at home first. That way I can benefit from the classes more and not just hang out in child’s pose (and curse under my breath the whole time).

Maybe in a month or so?

Despite my cursing, I was impressed with how much I was able to keep up during the podcast. Thanks to doing gymnastics for years, I have the flexibility part down pat. I’m strength training more these days and I guess it’s working…minus the chatarungas!

Yep, yoga works these secret muscles that just cannot be targeted with any machine or dumbbell.

You know you’re a chocoholic when you eat chocolate off the sidewalk. Allow me to explain…

On the way to the gym the other day, I found an unopened Toblerone bar just sitting on the sidewalk. I couldn’t find it in my heart to leave it there (all alone!), so I picked it up. Aaaaaand ate it.

Aaaaand I’m still alive. And I’m officially a chocoholic and slightly ridiculous. I know, I know, but…it was an unopened bar of TOBLERONE! I swear, our neighborhood is the safest place I’ve ever lived.

*Warning: Don’t try this at home! LLE is not responsible for any illnesses acquired from consumption of chocolate found on the sidewalk.

You know you’re ob-freaking-sessed when seeing this Stuffed Grape Leaves CASSEROLE in the latest issue of Vegetarian Times makes you literally drool on the elliptical. I swear, it’s sweat. Uh huh, riiiight. Must find grape leaves somewhere and make this!

You know you’ve run 10 miles when a loaf of pumpkin bread can’t even attempt to finish baking before it’s literally attacked. Needless to say, there was no photo shoot for this guy. Next time.

You know you’re still holding onto the holidays/an excuse to eat chocolate all day long/2011/being 23 when the sight of this makes you sad. Goodbye, dear Christmas tree. You were a beauty.

You know you’re looming credit card bill with purchases made over the holidays is coming when you dream about someone charging $27,000 to your credit card (‘cuz you have that large of a credit limit and all…).

You know you drive an old car when your new dream in life is to one day own a car with seat warmers! Want! Need!

You know you’re still a kid at heart when the first thing you do when snow starts [randomly and unexpectedly] falling from the sky is stick out your tongue…

…and then proceed to worry about your run planned for the next day. Fortunately, the sun came back and melted the snow away. Ran 8.0 miles in 1 hr. 13 min. (avg pace: 9:12 min/mi). Booyah.

You know you’re in desperate need of clean laundry when you spritz perfume in each arm pit before heading out for a run in previously worn running clothes. Gross, but effective. I smelled good (and matched my shoes + socks!). Whatever, squirrels don’t care what I smell like.

You know you’re a runner on-the-go when you keep protein snacks in your glove compartment for your daily commute, as opposed to incase of emergency. Every day is an emergency, y’all.

This week’s Soy Simple topic is Protein On The Go. Now that I’m commuting about 35 miles to and from work every day, I have to make sure I have protein snacks packed in my purse/glove compartment at all times. A famished Allie sitting in traffic is a scary Allie.

This means I always have a stash of protein bars and almonds with me. If I’m running out of the door after a workout, I make a protein smoothie to guzzle on the road.

You know you’re crazy when you’re still drinking protein smoothies post-workout in the winter.

Consuming snacks high in protein, especially after a workout, helps you repair and build muscle. I have toted around hard-boiled eggs and Greek yogurt in my purse before. Ya do whatcha gotta do!

Other snack ideas:

• A handful of roasted edamame
• A small carton of chocolate soy milk
• Banana w/ soy nut butter
• Homemade protein bars

I found this in the Women’s Health Training Guide 2012, which had some more snack ideas.

Tell me…how you get in your protein on the go!

***

$50 Grocery Store Gift Card Giveaway

To enter this week’s Soy Simple contest, simply re-tweet this blog post by Sunday, January 15th using the #soysimple hashtag. A winner will be selected at random from all participants and will be notified through email.

Example: “@readerhandle RT @livelaughtweet New Post: You Know… {$50 Grocery Store Gift Card Giveaway} http://bit.ly/wNuvMW #soysimple”

Contest is only open to U.S. residents, 18 years of age and older. One entry, per person, per contest. Good luck!

This post is part of the Soy Simple campaign (you can read more about the campaign and my disclosure statement here).

You know those people who eat 3 square meals a day? I am not one of those people. Most definitely not. I snack all the live long day. I try my best to eat snacks that are high in protein to keep me satiated and keep my muscles happy. Though I eat a fair amount of almonds, hard-boiled eggs and yogurt, I sometimes rely on soy protein to keep me going.

Snacks w/ soy I fancy:

• Luna Bars: Chocolate Dipped Coconut is my favorite flavor
• Clif Bars: Carrot Cake and Spiced Pumpkin Pie, please!
• Steamed and roasted edamame
• Roasted soynuts: When I was younger, I ate roasted soynuts all the time because I was allergic to nuts…tragic.
• Tofu jerky: I grew up eating this because my mom loves it. Sounds kinda funky, tastes delicious.

I know some people say energy bars are just like candy bars. But if given the choice between a Milky Way and a Chocolate Dipped Coconut Luna Bar, I’d choose the latter. All nutrition aside…solely based on taste.

My favorite bars by far are Z-Bars. Not because they make me feel like a kid again (well, maybe), but because they taste like a dense, chewy cookie.

They’re made with organic soy nut butter and oats!

I get them every so often, but because I can demolish up to 8 in one sitting, it’s usually just a couple at a time. While I haven’t tried making my own Z-Bars at home, I made these Protein Energy Bars posted by Angela over the weekend that serve as a great soy snack.

Angela’s protein bars are wonderfully simple and take just 10 min. to throw together from start to finish. I used Alive! Shake protein powder and sunflower seed butter.

So they don’t look or taste like Z-Bars, but they’re packed with protein, whole grains and healthy fats. A great snack to tie you over until dinner…or in my case, the next snack.

Next time I make these, I plan on throwing in some nuts and/or seeds.

Snack away!

Tell me: What do you snack on?

This post is part of the Soy Simple campaign (you can read more about the campaign and my disclosure statement here).

All summer long I’ve heard from just about everyone how blazing hot Charlottesville gets in August. Much to my delight, it’s been relatively cool the past couple weeks. In fact, I even had a few goosebumps at the start of my run this morning!

Yes, goosebumps. Don’t worry, they didn’t last long…

I ran 4 miles around my beloved asphalt mall parking lot. I started running down a road at the very beginning, but I quickly turned back around because I knew it’d be a bad idea to run on the hard concrete sidewalk…and I wasn’t about to run on the busy road.

The rest of the day was spent applying for a job, yapping with friends from home and taking care of blog work. I was completely in the zone and got a lot accomplished. Yes!

I took a break from the computer for lunch at Revolutionary Soup on the Downtown Mall.

I met up with Lizzie, a blog reader (and newbie blogger). We talked about blogging, post-college life and Hong Kong!

The menu at Rev Soup was overwhelmingly long…in the best way possible.

I wasn’t in the mood for hot soup, so I ordered the Gulf Coast Salad with house spice, shrimp, avocado, roasted red peppers and a hard boiled egg over spring greens with a zesty dressing.

The shrimp was especially delicious–I loved the seasoning and the grease! I know…what?! Seriously though, the oil they used was fabulous.

I ate a big brunch post-run and thought I wasn’t hungry, but once I started eating, I cleaned my plate down to the last lettuce leaf!

I swung by Sweet Frog on my way back to the car for some sugar…in the form of cookies and cream, mango and original tart with raspberries.

I didn’t end up going to work today because the bakery lost power during yesterday’s storm. I had plenty of blog work on my plate to keep me busy though!

(I’ve been blessed with a wonderful/clean desk in my room at Krissy and Eric’s house. I love living here…I love them!)

I feasted on apricots and sunflower seed butter while working away. I caved last night and bought a tub of little apricots at Whole Foods.

Best impulse buy ever.

Said tub is half empty already. Oops. Apparently, I am an apricot monster.

Alrighty, time to resume blog work. I swear, it never ends!

I had a dentist appointment today.

We live an hour away from our dentist. Despite the fact that there’s a dentist 0.4 miles from our house, we still go to this guy. Why? We’ve been seeing him for 20 years (since I was a tot). He and his wife take good care of us. As in, they do all the annoying paperwork and they’re like FBI agents when it comes to the cavities in my mouth.

Wahhhhvities!

I was 110% sure I was in cavity trouble today. I mean, my teeth have touched their fair share of sugar the past two months.

But, I had…

ZERO CAVITIES!!!

I was skeptical. I even asked him to go back and triple check a few spots (no idea why). He said there were none to be found! Unbelievable, really.

He said he thinks I’ve passed my cavity stage but I think it’s actually because I flossed every day from January to March as per my New Years’ Resolution.

I started to let my new ‘habit’ slide after March, but I picked it back up last week when I found out I was due for another appointment. Seriously, flossing the week before your appointment works wonders. I’m 2 for 2 now!

Moving right along…

Anytime I have to drive somewhere somewhat far away, I search for Trader Joe’s on Google maps to see if there’s one close by. And what do ya know? I found one just 2 miles away from my dentist (we have a bunch of them here…I don’t know why!).

Look what I found in the New Items section (my favorite!)…

THIS!!!!!

I sincerely believe that it will actually improve my life.

I also got…

Whenever someone emails me asking what to buy at TJ’s, I suggest these two right off the bat. I’ve had my fair share of dried mango slices and this one is unlike any other in the world.

This is my favorite decaf coffee at TJ’s. Whether or not that’s because of the drawing on the cannister has yet to be determined.

I’ve wanted to try these veggie burgers for quite some time now. I’ve suspected that they’re the ones served at Sunflower Vegetarian Restaurant, which I absolutely adore.

With frozen spinach and a melting chocolate bar in my car, it only made sense for me to spend an hour shopping at the two-story Forever 21.

I stashed the chocolate bar in my purse (so it wouldn’t melt…and in case of emergency!) and said a little prayer for the spinach.

I walked out with a few shirts. Not bad!

Then came an early bird dinner for this granny. There was no possible way I could wait 2 hours to eat dinner with my parents, even though I knew there’d be shrimp involved.

I made a huge salad with romaine lettuce, tomatoes, avocado, tomato basil hummus and the above veggie burger.

The veggie burger was a bit spongy, probably because it was made with tofu. It wasn’t bad, but certainly not the best I’ve had. It is most definitely not the one from Sunflower.

I washed it all down with chocolate and butter pecan ice cream! You know, to celebrate not having any cavities .

I’ve got some work to take care of tonight. I better hop to it. Have a good one!

Okay, so I love our blender from the 80s with all my heart. It’s been with us since the early days in Kansas (yes, as in Toto Kansas) and has moved with us from house #1 to house #2 to house #3 to house #4 to house #5 to condo #6 to house #7. Yes, we’ve lived in practically every town in Northern Virginia! (Thanks, Mom!)

Now you know why I dislike packing so much?!

Anyways, I used a modern Oster blender today to make my smoothie and realized blender technology has advanced quite a bit in the last 20 years.

It was love at first blend!

It blended my frozen spinach to a juice consistency. I was thrilled.

You don’t want to see what’s surrounding this blender though. Oh maybe you do. Then you’ll understand the excitement behind my upcoming departure…

I kept the photos small as not to burn your eyes! You’re welcome.

Back to blending. I was so excited I threw practically everything in there.

Spinach, Amazing Grass, Greek yogurt, banana, berries, almond milk, and ice.

I really really really won’t miss this pool either. Especially at 3 AM!

Work was extra fun today. I ate a few granola cups with milk in between serving customers.

<

Oh is that a ring you see?

Oh yes of course, I made a ring out of a twist tie today. Isn’t it just gwah-geous? It’s emerald! From Emerald City! Somebody’s got The Wizard of Oz stuck in her head today.

Note #1: It was only on my actual ring finger because I needed my right hand to photograph it! It didn’t stay there…I wouldn’t want to give the wrong impression.

Note #2: I think I need a hand lift. As in a face lift for my hand. Wrinkles everywhere!

***

For dinner, I’m going to dig into this beautiful tub!

I rationalized that since I’m leaving town tomorrow and my fridge is empty, I needed to go to Whole Foods. It’s the only nice part of packing and moving.

I was pleasantly surprised to see calamari today. I even let out a rather audible whaaat?! by accident.

Awkward.

Quinoa, cabbage and grilled tofu.

Artichoke hearts, grilled eggplant, corn, and [hidden] black eyed peas

Bird’s eye view!

I’m off to play tennis now with Eric (Krissy’s husband!). Should be fun!

Tell me: What was your favorite movie as a child?

The Wizard of Oz was definitely my brother’s. I don’t remember mine. Mom?

Hey m’dear blogglings!

I’ve got a shorty post for you today because, well, I slept for 12 hours last night and then went straight to work for 8 hours. I set 7+ alarms and dismissed them all. My alarm clock gave up on me! Yep, I sure can sleep.

I was greeted with 2 new products at the bakery today. Blondies (with butterscotch and white choco chips) and Chocolate Sunflower Butter.

IIIIIIIIIIIIII KNOW!!

My life is now complete.

I’ll say it’s just as good, if not better than the Naturally Nutty Cinnamon Vanilla Sunflower Seed Butter (say that 5 times fast). I even bought myself a jar to spoon in the comforts of my room.

As for the blondies? Sweet and sinful!

I made myself a snack plate mid-shift full of my favorites.

My daily orange (brought from home) and a spoonful of Chocolate Sunflower Butter.

I also munched on a thick slice of swiss cheese (the end piece that would’ve ended up in the trash) and a nubbin’ of a blondie x 5?

I better go make something for dinner before the blondie starts calling my name!

Tell me: Blondies or brownies?

ME!

I [literally] cut the asiago cheese for tomorrow’s Popeye loaves in between kneading dough this morning. Heh. I declared today that my favorite bakery task is cutting cheese. Kinda random, huh? It’s just so therapeutic and after you’re done, you can munch on a couple cheese cubes!

You can’t deny, seeing the end-product confirms the importance of the task!

Let’s zoom in on the good stuff…

Now you understand why I love cutting cheese?

After work I took care of some online work for 2 hours while munching on a couple handfuls of Multigrain Puffins. <–amazing! I’d only ever tried the cinnamon flavor before, which I wasn’t too impressed with.

I loved this though. It tasted a little like Kix!

Then I napped for a much needed 1.5 hours (I worked the opening shift today on just 3 1/2 hours of sleep. I was plagued by insomnia last night!).

Finally at around 4PM, I wiggled my way down to the apartment gym to run. Remember I’m trying to build up my endurance again?

I ran 2 miles for a total of 4 miles this week. I’m going to loosely follow the 10% rule and increase my mileage weekly from here on out. I also incline walked (3.0 incline 3.7 mph) for another 25 minutes.

***

Double Salad Dinner

#1 A big portion of my Cool as a Cucumber Salad

#2 Romaine lettuce with mini peppers and smoked salmon <–gifted to me by Matt!

There was just one portion of smoked salmon leftover from this past weekend’s sandwich special and I was allowed to take it home with me. Weeeee!

Slice of cheeeeezy Cheddar Garlic on the side.

I’m currently enjoying part of a Savannah Bar and frozen blueberries for dessert.

Alrighty folksies, it’s time for me to clean up, wrap up and hit the hay. I desperately need me some shut eye. G’nite!

Tell me: Are you a cheese lover? Got a favorite?

Cheese has been one of my favorite foods since I was a wee little toddler (just ask my mom!). My favorite hard cheese is Robusto, one that I’ve gotten from Whole Foods. It’s a gouda-style cheese that tastes a little like parmesan. I also love soft goat cheese and swiss!

Last night I was lying in bed paralyzed with lower back pain, while some kids (yes, kids) down the hall were blasting music so loud the walls were sh-sh-sh-shaking. You didn’t hear? I celebrated my 88th birthday yesterday. I must have forgotten to tell you.

After removing her dentures and inserting her earplugs, Granny Allie drifted off to sleep, dreaming of quieter days…

Needless to say, the apartment gym was empty this morning! I caught up on Casey Anthony news (still obsessed) while treadmilling (run+walk) for 25 min., ellipticalling for 15 min. and doing leg exercises with 2-15 lb. dumbbells for another 5 min.

Post workout, I loaded up on veggies. I’m working the afternoon closing shift at the bakery again today so I’m saving the carb fest for later.

Another penny pincher salad consisting of romaine lettuce, mini peppers, avocado and hard-boiled eggs.

Well, 3 poorly peeled hard-boiled eggs that is. Those egg shells were stubborn!

I also enjoyed 2 small slices of Cheddar Garlic.

For dessert, I drank a cup of kefir with frozen blueberries.

Looks like somebody needs to whip out the ironing board!

Actually, granny duties will have to wait because it’s time for WORK. Have a great weekend, y’all!

Tell me: Got any fun weekend plans?

Wimbledon started yesterday and I’m sad to be missing out on all the action! At this time last year, I was a recent graduate (freshly unemployed), and I watched the tennis tournament all the live long day. However, I’m a workin’ woman now and I don’t get ESPN 2 nor do I get The Tennis Channel in my room. DARN!

My only chance to catch the action here is at the gym.

Luckily, Andy Roddick was playing during my 45 min. elliptical session. The fact that I can only watch Wimbledon at the gym will pretty much guarantee I workout every single day for the next 13 days…

Gooooo Andy!

For breakfast, I made a humongous smoothie with blueberries, raspberries, Greek yogurt, Amazing Grass Energy, Spinach, protein powder and almond milk.

Gurgle gurgle.

I saved my carbs for the bakery…

I snacked on various slices of bread with sunflower seed butter…and some dessert crumbles…and a couple shots of granola!

On the drive home from work, I brainstormed dinner ideas based on what I had in the fridge. Eggs, peppers and bread. Same as last night…meh. A salad from Whole Foods sounded much tastier.

I got me some greens with seafood salad, catfish, grilled tofu, jicama, hearts of palm and chickpeas.

I could eat this for dinner every day!

Of course I got a Botanic No. 3 Kombucha to go with my salad.

Dessert was a couple slices of Cinnamon Chip bread and1/2 of a Savannah Bar.

I am 5 [short] minutes away from entering a deep carb coma, which is actually perfect because I’ve gotta be up at 5 AM tomorrow to open up the bakery.

G’night!

Tell me: Who’s your favorite athlete?