Pre-Race Fuel

Ran my first ever 5 mile race yesterday morning!! My friends Lauren (in photo below), Tivvi and I did the YMCA Valentine's Heart Throb in Onalaska, Wisconsin. So fun!!

I used to absolutely hate running- like we're talking girl in the back of gym class fixing her hair and struggling to complete 4 laps DESPISE physical exertion here. My mindset was that I was a dancer and I didn't want to/wasn't able to do any other form of training. Then, my sophomore year of college I took a class called "Designing a Personalized Fitness Plan." It brought me to the realization that, with a bit of dedication, I was capable of running too. My take away: the grass isn't greener on the other side, it's greener where you water it! I like this concept because it's not only applicable to fitness goals, but also to life in general.

I've grown to really enjoy running and frequently include it in my workouts in addition to dance. Nonetheless, I was skeptical about entering the race yesterday. I hadn't ever run anything longer than a 5K, and on top of that hadn't ever run outside during the winter time.  Despite my hesitation, I signed up and am so happy that I stepped out of my comfort zone and did it.
I was especially surprised with the amount of energy I had during the race! During some runs, I've found myself fatigued halfway through, but this one felt much easier than I expected. I think a lot of this can be attributed to the way I fueled up in preparation.

Friday night I made myself this pasta dinner. Here's what I included in my race-eve meal:
spinach salad with tomatoes and onions
broccoli (frozen steamers) and an apple
2 ounce serving size of whole grain angel hair pasta
1/3 cup marinara sauce
1/2 or 1 tsp olive oil (I put it on the pasta but you could also put it on the salad, or do a little bit of cheese instead. I would advise against leaving out both olive oil and cheese because combining a bit of fat with the pasta meal helps to slow digestion)
4 ounce grilled chicken breast

I also had a bowl of oatmeal a few hours before bed!

For breakfast I had 2 pieces of toast with peanut butter, and I brought a banana with peanut butter for right before the run. To avoid having to awkwardly fashion a contraption for bringing the peanut butter along with, I sliced up the banana and made these little baby "banana sandwich snacks." :) These can be nice to freeze ahead of time, throw in some tupperware and bring to the gym as a pre or post workout snack on the go! I use one banana and about 1 1/2 tsp peanut butter total.


I love experimenting with different types of peanut butter--this time I used PB Crave. It's cookie dough flavored! I bought it at a food fair a while back and a portion of the proceeds go towards the fight against child hunger.



It's crazy how much what you eat impacts endurance and physical performance!

This passage is an example of my motivation for staying healthy:
"Your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit...whom you have received from God. You are not your own, you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your bodies." 1 Corinthians 6:19-20

In my interpretation of this verse, it is saying that our bodies aren't our own because they are a gift to us from God, paid for through Jesus. It is through our physical bodies that our souls are best able to thrive. Therefore, making healthy lifestyle choices does more than influencing the outward appearance. It also helps us to function optimally, providing the opportunity to reach our greatest potential intellectually, spiritually, and socially.

Happy pink week!
Amanda Emilee :)

Busy? Plan Healthy Snacks!

It's been quite an exciting week!! I had my first article, "Worksite Wellness," published in the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics e-journal. If you're a member of the Academy you can read it at http://www.eatright.org/studentscoop/.

I also submitted my dance conditioning workout video for the Women's Health Magazine Next Fitness Star Competition! You can check out the link here to get a preview :) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mT8x-bZkRZs A big thank you to Thomas and Cameron of the Viterbo Filmmaker's Guild for filming and taking a few still photos.

A huge happy birthday to my Dad!! He is one of my biggest role models and I am so blessed to have him in my life. It was so much fun to celebrate with my family! :) My mom made a delicious football shaped carrot cake that I even got home in time to help decorate.
Between submissions, school exams, dance classes and birthday celebrations, I was kept happy and busy. I would venture to guess that many people are in the same boat.

With a lot going on, though...when do you have time to eat?! And what to have?!

I've found that a key in maintaining weight is incorporating healthy snacks. If these snacks have a little bit of carbs, protein and fat (yes--fat is important too! :) ) they help to keep your metabolism going and keep you from overindulging and getting too hungry later on. On top of this, you're fueling your body through the day so you can keep your energy level up and perform at your best!

A great way to get started incorporating healthy snacks is by packing two snacks to bring with you the night before. Here are some of my favorite snacks:
1.  6-7 Chocolate Chips, 10 Almonds, and Blueberries or Strawberries
I'll sometimes do butterscotch chips or peanut butter chips, depending on what's on hand! :) I usually buy frozen strawberries or blueberries because they're cheaper and then you don't have to worry about them going bad.
2. "Ants on a Log": Celery, Peanut Butter (or PB2!!) and Raisins on Top 
PB2 is a one of my absolute favorite products. It's a form of powdered peanuts that are pressed to remove some of the fat. It's only 45 calories for two tablespoons, and the only ingredients are peanuts, salt and sugar (and cocoa powder for the chocolate flavored PB2, which I have right now). You just mix 2 tablespoons of it with 1 tablespoon water and it tastes just like regular peanut butter! I buy it at HyVee

3. Apple or Orange with Sargento Light String Cheese 
Sargento has lots of great reduced fat cheese products! I prefer reduced fat to no fat because, like I mentioned before, your body needs fat!! It also helps keeping you full and a lot of nonfat products will add carbs to compensate for the taste in taking out all of the fat. One of my favorites is their reduced fat pepper jack.
4.  1/2 cup Chobani greek yogurt! 
I have plain right now which I sometimes add cinnamon and agave nectar to, but it's sold in tons of different flavors (including dark chocolate, which I'm eager to try!). They also make individual sized cups that you can throw in a lunch box with a cooly pack for on the go. This protein packed snack will not only leave you feeling satisfied, but also provides you with some calcium!
5.  Special K Multigrain Crackers

24 of these crackers gives you a nice balance of some carbs, protein and fat for 120 calories!

6. Luna Bars
I generally am not a granola bar fan, but these make for a great post-workout snack on the go! They could also be a midmorning pick me up. Luna bars come in a variety of types, including luna protein bars, luna fiber bars and luna bars for women. They include a lot of nutrients as well--including iron and calcium which are really important!!


7. Carrots with two Tablespoons Hummus
Carrots are more quickly digested (higher on the glycemic index) than some other vegetables. But doon't let this scare you away from carrots--they provide lots of great nutrients!! By pairing them with a little bit of fat and protein provided by the hummus, it slows digestion and makes for an overall fulfilling snack :) My favorite type of hummus is Tribe roasted garlic flavored!

Snack planning is fun because you can mix and match to find what works best for you. And even when you find a snack that you love, remember that variety is really important in planning a well balanced diet. Your body needs lots of different nutrients, so continue to switch it up!

Happy snacking and superbowl sunday to everyone! :)

"God is love." 1 John 4:8

Amanda Emilee :)

Got home from a great run tonight and came across my bag of quinoa in the cupboard!!

Quinoa is generally treated like a grain in the culinary world (though it technically isn't, botanically speaking). It's pronounced "keen-wa" and provides a plethora of health benefits. One specific highlight is its high protein content: quinoa's endosperm can be up to 60% protein (as opposed to most wheat endosperm at around 3%!). 

 

For those of you who are unfamiliar with this so called "super food," it resembles what I envision the offspring of rice and Spaghetti O's would look like. The serving size on the bag is 1/4 cup, and to clarify that is 1/4 cup uncooked. Upon cooking, the starch gelatinizes, and in this process the granules swell with water. In doing so, it yields approximately 1 cup of cooked quinoa. 

Quinoa is super satiating and I especially like having it for dinner after a workout. I've experimented with it a bit in the past and made this shrimp and veggie combo a few months ago:

For dinner tonight I had:

1/4 cup quinoa (170 cal)

3 oz Tyson frozen chicken breast strips (100 cal)

1/2 cup marinara pasta sauce (70 cal)

1 slice reduced fat Sargento provolone (50 cal)

1/2 tomato and1/2 onion 

  

I paired it with a side of broccoli and an apple, enjoying a Frango mint for dessert! :) 

Unfortunately, I left a majority of my spices at my parent's house (just recently moved into my new apartment!) so it was lacking in that regard, but overall I liked the combo. Definitely going to keep this one in mind to perfect in the future! :) 

I will leave you with my favorite Bible verse:

Mark 11: 23-26 "Truly, I tell you, if anyone says to this mountain, 'Go, throw yourself into the sea,' and does not doubt in their heart but believes that what they say will happen, it will be done for them. Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours. And when you stand praying, if you hold anything against anyone, forgive them, so that your father in heaven may forgive you and your sins."

Happy Friday everyone! 

Amanda Emilee :)

 First post ever and so excited to be entering the blogging world!

I am creating Sugarplum Hearts as a health, wellness and all around happy life site. My goal in creating this blog is to hopefully encourage and inspire others (and myself!) through ideas regarding healthy lifestyle, tasty and healthy recipes, work outs, practical application of nutrition knowledge and any other fun (and probably girly) facts that I acquire along the way. Below I posted a few of my favorite things as a bit of a preview :) 

Over the years, I have learned a lot from challenges with body image and staying fit that come along with being a ballet dancer, dance team member and cheerleader.Through my journey thus far and amidst my pursuit of a Bachelor's degree in nutrition (which I recognize is still very much so in progress--I have a lot left to learn!!) I have established two philosophies that I find to be crucial to a healthy mindset, and are as follows:

Philosophy 1) Everything in moderation. You've heard it before, but let's address it a bit more deeply. Labeling elements as "good" or "bad" leads to skewed perception; when you red light some foods and green light others you are restricting yourself and setting yourself up to face unnecessary obstacles (like being hungry or really sick of the same type of food). 

For example, apples are good for you in moderation--but if you eat 20 of them in one sitting, I'd be willing to bet your body probably won't be too happy! Likewise, it's important to enjoy some "good for your soul food" every once and a while, too. Having a small portion of that homemade pumpkin pie Grandma made with Crisco will make your Grandma, heart and stomach smile, no matter how high the calorie content and low the nutritional value. Accepting the occasional indulgence will not only leave you feeling satisfied, but an infrequent increase in leptin levels could also surprise your body and give you a quick metabolism boost! 

Philosophy 2) Focus on the Positive. Okay, okay- so upon initially hearing it, sounds really cliche, right? But think about what positive really means. Positive is defined as "consisting in or characterized by the PRESENCE of features rather than their absence." So often I hear people saying "I can't have -insert obscenely long list of foods they deem unallowed- I'm trying to be healthy." It's draining to be focusing that much energy on what you shouldn't be having and it leaves little time- or energy- for you to put consideration into what your body does need. If you direct your energy towards getting essential nutrients each day (example: shooting for atleast 5 fruits and veggies/day), you won't have room in your brain to worry about what you shouldn't be having. Chances are, you probably won't have much room left in your stomach for extra junk food, either! Filling up on nutrient dense foods will leave you fulfilled and energized. This same idea can apply to exercise--think about what you have the most fun doing and get at it!! I'll touch more on this down the road :) 

For now, just want to preface further blog posts with a little bit about myself. I am a 20 year old dietetics student at Viterbo University. Originally from Rochester, MN, my faith in God is the stronghold of my existence. Everything that I enjoy doing--dancing, cooking, baking, playing the piano, work outing, and interacting with all my loved ones- have been integral parts of my development that I thank God for. It is because of Him that I first discovered my passion for ballet, and while much has changed in the past 17 years, the sparkle that fills my eyes and heart in putting on a pair of ballet shoes remains to this day. I look forward to sharing more of my journey through Christ, and in doing so want to share a bit of food for your soul (different type than Grandma's pumpkin pie--sorry, maybe I can dish up some of that in time to come :) ).

"...know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God...therefore honor God with your body." 1 Corinthians 6:19-20 

People are often referred to as bodies with souls, but I prefer to think of humans as souls that have bodies. That being said, the body is our most valuable gift from God, and respecting it through an active and well balanced diet is critical to reaching our greatest potential in all aspects of our lives!!  

Prayer: Lord, please help me to respect and love my body. Thank you for providing me with such an awesome gift. 

Happy Sunday and best wishes to all as they begin a new week! Amanda Emilee :)