Friday Flashbacking

Happy weekend! Hope you’ve all got fun, or at least relaxing things planned :) I’m working. You know how it goes…

Loved hearing about your favourite cookbooks! There were a few new ones to me, and a few classics. Ch-ch-check it out:

• Better Homes and Gardens Cookbook
• Fix it and Forget it, Lightly (for crockpots)
• Betty Crocker Cookbook (the old, classic one)
• Veganomicon (I want this one so bad!!)
• Joy of Cooking
• Eat Clean cookbooks by Tosca Reno
• Weight Watchers cookbook
• The Biggest Loser cookbooks
• Clean Eating cookbook
• The Flat Belly Diet Cookbook
• Hungry Girl
• websites – allrecipes, recipezaar

Awesome! I don’t use cookbooks a lot, but you seriously can’t beat one that gives you great recipes every time. Unfortunately, they’re hard to come by!

Now down to business. I had a stellar workout this morning that I must share.

Duration: one hour-ish

Warm-up:
5 minutes easy on the elliptical (center driven this time, loved it!)

Cardio:
10 minutes on the elliptical, increasing the resistance by 3 every 2 minutes

Weights:
Alternating sets of incline push-ups, tricep dips, YTWLs. Three sets each.

Cardio:
10 minutes running on the treadmill, increasing speed by 0.1 mph every minute

Weights:
Alternating sets of dumbbell squats (heels raised on plates), cursty lunges, single-arm Romanian deadlift. Three sets each.

Cardio:
10 minutes on the rowing machine. Alternating overhand and underhand grip every 2 minutes.

Weights:
Alternating sets of weighted swiss ball crunches, reverse crunches, side crunches. Two sets each (ran out of time).

Cool-down:
Stretching :)

It was at this point that I realized my cute pink workout shirt was on inside out!! Ugh!! I also forgot the watch for my heart rate monitor. First time ever! Double ugh! I was clearly not on my A game when I stumbled out of bed this morning.

Refuelled with a giant bowl of oatbran.

Mmmm… I’m craving my comforting breakfasts now that it’s cold in the mornings again. This was 1/2 cup oatbran, 1 1/2 cup water, 4 dates, 1 tbsp coconut and 1 tbsp almond butter that sank in the hot oats.

Work work work.

Supper!

So, those look like spring rolls, but they’re actually lentil and bulgur salad with tofu rolled up in rice paper. Dipped in baba ghanoush. How’s that for cross-cultural?

And some thinly sliced watermelon.

But today isn’t just Friday. It’s Flashback Friday!! Today’s flashback is going to be cheesy, but I promise it won’t be sappy! :P I thought I’d feature some photos of Chris and I over the years. We’re coming up on our four year anniversary in November. Crazy!!

Here we are on New Year’s Eve (Dec ‘05) right after we met (yes, I had short black hair). The couple we’re with are the ones responsible for our meeting! I worked with Kayla at Starbucks, and her husband Chris is best friends with my Chris. She randomly asked me if I’d be interested in meeting Chris at work one day, and the rest is history!

Here we are that same night, completely hammered :P

Posing in front of the world’s largest axe in Nackawic, NB, Feb ‘06

Romantic, no?

Motorcycle trips and picnics in October ‘06…

New Year’s, Dec ‘06, in a town in Nova Scotia called “The Garden of Eden.” For realz. With Kayla and her Chris again, it’s a tradition!

In Halifax, Feb ‘07, visiting my bestie Erika! <3

In Jamaica, March ‘07.

Being attacked in May ‘07.

Likely a result of too many of these…

Oh tequila sunrise, you saucy minx you.

No pictures of us together on New Year’s that year. Those are usually messy times anyways :P Another Halifax trip to visit the bestie in summer ‘08!

Aaaannndd New Year’s this year. Soon after celebrating three years together.

This was before I started dancing to old Rancid songs in the living room :P

Then I started the blog. And our lives have been documented in detail for the world to see ever since :)

I have no question today. Just some words of wisdom. I was sent to cover a conference today and the lecturer was talking about leadership qualities. One of her points really hit home for me.

And with that, it’s my ridiculously early bedtime! See ya tomorrow! :D