A Letter to Me at 18- The finale of the 4

Dear 18 year old me...

You thought this final letter would never come, I bet! Well, here it is- the grand finale, the final chapter of the quartet. While this letter serves with no theme, no overall idea to take with you into the office or out on a date, it is still a very important message in which I hope you take to heart. Short and sweet, here are my final words of advice that I hope you'll take with a grain of salt and a pinch of sugar-

Take leaps of faith, the bigger the better. The landing may be rougher after some dismounts than others, but you will not fall on your face as long as you keep your head high and your heart open to new experiences.

Crd*t

Learn to enjoy being alone. Learn to enjoy days without breaks from human interaction. Time is time and whether you are sharing it with your closest friends, mere acquaintances, or alone, it is time that is to be savored and soaked up by simply being alive.

Enjoy your body, please. Don't compare it to magazines, Victoria's Secret catalogues, TV actresses, and even your friends on Facebook. Instead of focusing on what it looks like, work it to enable you to do amazing things. You've already built up amazing strength to jump over 5 feet, 4 inches in the high jump. You will go on to run over a couple thousand miles with the short and long runs accumulated throughout your late teens and early twenties.

Eat right, fuel a motivated and active spirit. Don't dwell on the fact that you are either pear shaped, apple shaped, strait shaped, etc... "Confident" is the best body type, and the best thing about that is the fact you get to choose that body type- so choose it and move on.

Crd*t

Don't ever shy away from an opportunity to strike up a conversation. Even if it's with the man sitting next to you on the plane, the girl waiting behind you in the coffee shop line, or the family browsing the supermarket aisle beside you. Human interaction is a complex, beautiful, strange, and bemusing thing. We'll never understand why, but just complimenting her hair or their children's smiles brings immense joy in many forms to you and the ones on the receiving end.

Laugh. Everyday. Notice how it makes you feel. Now, go out and make sure that you can make at least one person experience that happiness just by being in your presence. If you can make someone laugh and encourage happiness, you are doing a great service to humanity.

Crd*t

Learn to enjoy children. You will want them some day (don't worry- not at 23, but you will later I'm sure). Plus, they know what's going on. Their spunk, enthusiasm, perspectives, and joy are the key ingredient to a young soul- keep this young spirit within yourself. Our bodies may grow old, but you can choose to always be young at heart.

And finally- don't take life so seriously. I know this is a hard concept to grasp (I know because I am still trying to conquer this myself). But every single person on this earth is on the same team just trying to make it in this chaotic arena we call Earth. Thank God every day for your blessings, laugh off negativity, and just be you- you're the only You this planet will ever have so make your presence light, lasting, and full of life.

Until you're here sitting behind your computer, typing letters to your ghost of the past, remember you are well on your way to the rest of your life. Every step counts, every word matters, and your thoughts define you. Make them beautiful, and make them yours.

Love always-
M

Chocolate&Gluten-Free Lent! Day 3

It's day 3 of lent and that means the third day without ANY chocolate or gluten products. When I set these rules for my 40 days of lent, I wanted to choose things that I knew were going to be a challenge. And while eating a chocolate donut, I realized what I needed to do...

So far, it has not been too shady. Just taking more time to read the labels to make sure no sneaky wheat/gluten ingredients were used in making the food I am consuming. Thank goodness for Trader Joe's gluten free breads and protein powders, I have been able to still make tuna fish sandwiches with only natural tuna fish, organic mustard, jalapeno salsa, and veggies for my take-to-work lunches. I've also been enjoying more salads topped with seared fish or white bean soup with quinoa.

 I have also been able to have tasty desserts like peanut butter and honey on race cakes and gluten-free frozen yogurt .

But this morning, I ran into a terrible craving for pancakes... and since it is hard to think "pancakes" without the fluffy flour that makes up these breakfast staples, I had to be creative... So I came up with this recipe to suffice... And it was no compromise. Just a tasty alternative!

GLUTEN-FREE VANILLA PROTEIN PANCAKES 

...WITH PEANUT BUTTER TOPPING

Ingredients-
Pancakes:
3 Egg Whites
1 Tbs Chia Seeds
2 Scoops Vanilla Raw Protein- Whole Foods
1 Tbs Almond milk- unsweetend
1 (mashed) Banana
Peanut Butter Topping:
1 Tbs Natural, Organic Peanut Butter
1/4 cup Fage 0% Greek Yogurt

Combine PB and yogurt into a small dish. Set aside.
Combine all pancake ingredients into a large bowl. Mash banana into the egg white mixture until creamy. Heat small skillet on medium high and spray light layer of non-stick cooking spray. Place dollop of mixture on skillet, flip after 2 minutes or until bottom is brown. Repeat. 

Top with PB/yogurt topping and indulge in a healthy pancake breakfast!
(Makes 3-4 small pancakes)
Calories per small pancake w/o topping- about 92
Calories w/ topping- about 120

Happy Weekend, everyone!

Healthy Treats

I was just informed ALARMED at the fact that Easter is only 55 days away. March 31st, also known as the segway into Spring, is just around the corner and I for one want to fit into a teeny weenie some-mis-matched bikini when the sunshine makes its grand debut...

Hello, College Days!

To help me get back into suit shape, I've been looking through Pinterest recipes, tips and tricks to help whip this bod into firm and fab!

One treasure I stumbled upon was this recipe for No-Bake Peanut Butter Protein bars...

With every ingredient already in my pantry (because my breakfast smoothie has a recipe longer than the Grammy's guest list), I decided on a whim to give it a try. Mix Chia seeds, peanut butter, honey, protein powder, and oats and you give birth to...

And these babies were tasty, too! Filling and fueling, I give these snacks two thumbs up! Get the RECIPE here along with more tips on eating and living healthy!

Breakfast is Going Green

Have you ever considered the way the body digests food in order to make energy for us to live daily? It breaks down the nutrients from what we eat and then stores it in our muscles and tissue for energy to take on the activity of each day. But have you thought about the energy that's needed to break down that food to begin with? Leaving less energy for you to do fun things like run, play scategories, and gab with friends.

That's why I thought I'd try this detox smoothie created by Kimberly Snyder, a nutritionist with world wide perspective and clients lining the Hollywood hills (including Drew Berrymore and...*AHEM* Channing Tatem.) Hellloooo Magic Mike! 

The drink is comprised of leafy greens and fruits. Blended with no liquid but that from within the fruit and a cup and a half of ice water, this drink is mostly fiber, protein, and energizing complex carbs. The recipe makes 2-3 servings, depending on how much you need to feel full and satisfied. I made it this morning with enough leftover for tomorrow's sunrise yoga session at Lululemon.

I will admit, it does not have the sweetest taste ever, and you can really taste the *healthy*. But I was able to sip it down with no problem! Pair it with a cup of coffee, of course, and your morning will be supercharged with healthy goodness and special digestive powers!

Find the recipe for the Glowing Green Smoothie on Kimberly's website. You'll also find celebrity reviews and raves. Stay cool this weekend... and drink up!

AthlEats!

Hello lovely friends! I just wanted to use my Wednesday post to introduce you all to my newest trial&error project- AthlEats!

My new blog (FOUND HERE) Is all about my adventures in the kitchen and outside the house in order to live a happy, healthy lifestyle. I post many different recipes and workouts on this blog, but would love to use these instances to form a community in order to motivate others to become active and eat healthy too!

I would love to know what you think and send your own healthy recipes my way to mkel412 (at) gmail (dot) com to become a part of my newest venture! Could it fail, absolutely! But just like I mentioned in THIS post, it's spring! Why not try something to see if it could succeed with flying colors!

I will still be On the Wing daily, so don't forget to stop back for everything in-between!

Get Real, Barbie

I found this after wandering around my Facebook timeline this morning and it made me do a double take.

Ladies! If you've ever attacked your own positive body image and this Mattel toy played a role model in your life at one point, I urge you to read and put into perspective:

Eating Disorder Awareness Month---And Barbie has an eating disorder!

• If Barbie were an actual women, she would be 5’9” tall, have a 39” bust, an 18” waist, 33” hips and a size 3 shoe.
• Barbie calls this a “full figure” and likes her weight at 110 lbs.
• At 5’9” tall and weighing 110 lbs, Barbie would have a BMI of 16.24 and fit the weight criteria for anorexia. She likely would not menstruate.
• If Barbie was a real woman, she’d have to walk on all fours due to her proportions.
• Slumber Party Barbie was introduced in 1965 and came with a bathroom scale permanently set at 110 lbs with a book entitled “How to Lose Weight” with directions inside stating simply “Don’t eat.”

Read that last bullet again... I think that's incredibly messed up. That message reached millions of little girls who could have gotten the impression that Barbie's secret of not eating is the key to being beautiful, since she is the symbol of beauty ((or is she)), kiddies.

Don't fall victim to society's depiction of a "beautiful body". Because they come in all different shapes and sizes. We weren't made from a mold or out of plastic. You were made by the hands of an artist, creating everyone different and beautiful for the world to learn from and appreciate. Enjoy that body, baby, cause it's the only one you're going to get!



Thank you, Maya Foss, for sharing.

Funky Shorts

I sure do miss those Cross Country days. Weekends in high school spent racing on grassy hills and muddy slopes in butt-huggers. Call me crazy, but these bathing suit-looking bottoms were the most comfortable things run in...

And now that training is starting back up for spring and summer tri's and 5k's galore, the best way to motivate this chica is with some stylish spanx!

Like these designs from Funky Running
My personal favorites are the ones with the most vibrant, colorful, full-fledged patterns. Because I want to be picked out of a crowd when I am climbing those hills come mile seven!

Also, the red dog paws and sunshine tye-dye from THIS SITE caught my eye...
Plus, I have to look colorful when I compete in this little wonder...

Any of these stick out to you readers? I need some advice on my next race-day-outfit splurge!

Quick Cakes

Have you ever heard of The Cupcake Diet?

( PS- After I go to pastry school, I WILL learn how to make these... then devour them, starting with animal)

I hadn't either until I stumbled upon a recipe on Pinterest and it lead me to the website designated to helping women lose weight by keeping up with their cupcakes. (Insane Awesome, right?) I am going to try this new mentality with my own few tweaks. Like I said in a previous post, it's not about eating less, but rather eating right! It's also about moderation and self control.

So the basic jist of this thing is to make a batch of cupcakes. FULL FAT, FULL SUGAR CUPCAKES! No fat free cake mix, no sugar free splenda sweetened frosting. Do the whole 9 yards! Because these tasty treats are yours to enjoy!

But in exchange, they must be the ONLY dessert you have a day. So no cookie after lunch and a cupcake after dinner. No, you must learn the value of dessert, and appreciate your cupcake with all the love you would shed on a child (Ok... a little extreme, but we ARE talking cupcakes here!)

Since I am a sucker for peanut butter and chocolate, I said fare-thee-well for a month. JUST A MONTH, and made these quick and easy chai minis to have with a cup of decaf tea after dinner. I must say, I had my first one last night, and they were scrumptious!

(Use the 1 cup water, but steep with 2 black chai tea bags)

+

(Add 2 Tbs honey and stir until fully mixed)

+

(Garnish with nutmeg)

Voillaa! Now you can make your cuppycakes and eat them too!



Eating Healthy on a Budget!

Last night, I found myself a little rumbly' in the tumbly' and craving something healthy yet quick. Of course I thought "ha, Maxann, you know that's an oxymoron right?"

Then I snapped out of it and jumped to my feet with great angst, "I CAN DO THIS!"
*Cue the dramatic batman fight theme music*
I tore through my almost barren fridge (That's what you come to when your family has been out of town for nearly a month) and to no avail, I was almost reaching for the jar of peanut butter and a spoon. But ALAS! Plan B is never that far from thought!

 I raced down the stairs to the extra freezer (Ok, I'll admit, I fell down the stairs *Cut dramatic batman fight theme music*) and opened the door to find a bag of frozen brussel sprouts, which happen to be my favorite vegetable, and some pre-patted turkey burgers. *Cue Hallelujah music*

So with a little creativity and a stove+oven, I came out with this for dinner:

Turkey Burger on top of a bed of arugula and sliced Roma tomatoes alongside oven-roasted sesame garlic Brussels sprouts.  (Total calories 350-375)

So content (and full!) with my dinner choice, I settled in for the evening with the latest issue of Self
(But not before eyeing a 5-minute chocolate mug cake recipe. You can find the recipe HERE and to make it healthy healthier, use truvia instead of sugar and skim milk instead of whole.) 

But hey, your dinner was healthy, so take on dessert with a spoon and a clear conscious.

Do you have 4 minutes?

I stumbled upon this little video on you-tube and I got tired (and a little sore) from just watching her sweat and do this four-minute workout. I mean, MY GOODNESS! Look at these abs! Something here is working for her...

I tried this workout this morning, since I only had 20 minutes before I had to get out and get my day going, and did it whoop my tail!

15 seconds "Blaster" push ups. 5 seconds rest. 15 seconds "Jumper", then 5 seconds rest. Do this repeatedly for 4 minutes. Your body will scream through the wonderful pain, "THANK YOU!"

Healthy vs Skinny

Our bodies are our gardens - our wills are our gardeners. ~William Shakespeare

I have been active since I can remember. Skiing in Colorado by the age of five, basketball and softball since six, then becoming a full time cross country and track runner in high school. I was always on the move. The thought of "watching what I eat" was something of a distant whisper only noted in fashion magazines and exclusive gym VIP rooms. In other words, I ate what I wanted with out a care because I knew I'd burn it off the next day.


(seconds on icecream... yes those are m&m's)

Then college came, and after a semester on the track team building muscle like a machine, I gained 15 pounds. When I went home for Christmas break, I heard wonderful comments from my family including, "Goodness, you got some muscle on you," "Where did my tiny Maxann go?" and my personal favorite, "I thought you were running track, not playing football!" It's true, my neck was thicker than a big rig wheel and I could bench press my own weight.

Unfortunately, when I returned to training come January, previous issues with scoliosis interfered with my field events and I had to quit the team. Over the next few months, I couldn't lift nor could I run or do much cardio. So sure, that muscle faded, but i didn't loose the weight. It melted into flabby, unneeded weight from food-therapy. April came and my back healed, allowing me to walk and do light cardio. I shed some weight and in attempts to try to loose the pounds, I also gave up about 1/3 of my intake of food. I was indeed desperate.

When summer came and I took a trip to Alaska, I found myself on the first night in the gym, ellipticalling and overlooking the beautiful sunset over the Alaskan pines on shore (Sunset was at 11pm, sunrise at 4am) I felt great... for 15 minutes. It was then I realized that I wasn't healthy, I was just wasting away. I may have shed the freshman 15, but I also lost my ability to do something I loved- stay active. We also took a free metabolism test that came complimentary if you used the gym more than three days in a row- my metabolism had dropped to only burning 1050 calories a day (without exercise). The gym official (and myself) were stunned. When I explained my diet, he reminded me- your body needs more fuel to re-learn how to burn it. It then hit me- I had sabotaged my metabolism.

This post is to remind ladies that "weight" is not the issue. It never should be. It should be about "health" and how you feel. After this wakeup call, I started doing activities I loved-dancing, running, and yoga. I started to watch what I ate (with wiggle room for treats now and then) but never held back when I knew I should eat or if my stomach reminded me that I was indeed hungry. For anyone who made a resolution to lose weight, do it to become healthy, not just for the numbers on the scale. And find happiness along the way, because HOW you FEEL is ultimately more important than HOW you LOOK

Keep Cool, Stay Smooth

Spending some relaxing time in Florida, I am definitely enjoying the sunshine state and its abundance of January rays. The warmth is also causing some fruity cravings that are commonly consumed in the summer months.

To beat away the slight sun burn from yesterday's beach trip, I slurped down this for lunch and it for sure kept my stomach full and cool.

Frothy Fruit Smoothie

1 cup 1% (or skim, your pref) milk
2T 0% Plain Chobani Greek Yog.
(The dairy also reduces any puffiness acquired from any sunburnage.)

1 Banana, sliced
Handful Frozen Whole Strawberries

Blend together for a sweet treat that doubles as a healthy meal! If you're still hungry afterwards, grab some pretzels and hummus.What up New Years Resolution, made easy!

Sugar Cleanse Day 1

So I have decided to try a Sugar Cleanse. If you know me, then you know I have a HUGE sweet tooth, and I'll eat anything sweet: Chocolate, Candy, Cereals, Sugar in my coffee (overload!), doughnuts (Ok, Krispy Kreme may have ruined that one for me already...) etc...

You get the picture... I am a sweets junkie

So I am trying something new: Taking all refined sugar out of my diet. I have heard it does some amazing things for your health.. such as clear your complexion, helps with weight control, and provides you with more energy!

So, we'll see how this goes! I'm trying it for 18 days, but hopefully it will curb my cravings for sweets long after this time has gone by...
I'll be updating much along the way, and thanks for checking out my blog!