“If you give a mouse a cookie” as related to exercise

Expectation for waking up: cheerfully stretch and waltz out of bed while woodland creatures pull up the sheets and fluff the pillows while humming Grieg’s Peer Gynt, after which you go for a lovely, cool run.

Reality: you feel like a thousand pound woman who needs the aid of a crane to get out of bed and it’s already 85 degrees outside.  And your eyebrow is throbbing because you were probably bit by a pernicious Texas bug.  That was me this morning.

For mornings such as thus, I use my cookie theory.  If you give a runner (me) her clothes and shoes, she usually put them on.  If a runner is dressed, she will usually walk out the door.  If a runner is already outside, she will either head to the gym or go for a run.  If a runner is already moving then she might as well finish the blasted exercise that she planned on doing in the first place.

So when you wake up and the thought of finishing an entire workout seems impossible, just start out by getting dressed.  You don’t even have to have a good attitude about it; it's ok, you have my permission.  It’s all about outsmarting those negative thoughts so you can move past them.

Sometimes it’s better to take a rest day and you should listen to your body, but most of the time we just make dumb excuses for not being active.  If you wait until the weather is perfect, your body is fully awake and rested, and the stars are in alignment, then you will never exercise.

Healthy Smoothie Recipes

I love using my Magic Bullet to whip up a post-workout or breakfast smoothie.  They’re easy to throw together and can be packed with nutrients.  My mother was ahead of her time when she started making “green drink” (a parsley and pineapple juice concoction) whereas nowadays the term “green smoothie” is quite common.  Do you have some favorite ingredients or recipes to share?

The basic ingredients list of any smoothie I make is: yogurt, fruit and/or veggies, a liquid (usually milk but sometimes fruit juice), something frozen (usually fruit), and then any extra spices/seeds/nuts.  Basically I want protein, fiber, and vitamins and minerals for a complete meal.

I’m going to warn you now that if you are adding spinach or blueberries, then you should not go to work without brushing your teeth.  Unless of course you want to realize after you meet with a client that you had a forest growing between your teeth.

I love adding flax seeds because they add fiber, omega-3s, and other good nutrients and add a bit of a nutty flavor, especially on days when I don’t want a carb-heavy meal.  Nuts are good to add too, but keep in mind how many calories they pack.  When it comes to spices, they are a terrific way to add flavor without adding fat and calories.  You can also add coco powder to change things up.

The only ingredients that I have experimented with but haven’t seemed to nail down are oatmeal and pumpkin puree.  The oatmeal tasted well, just raw, and the pumpkin required so much honey/sweetener to make palatable that it didn’t seem worth the effort.  At that point I just wanted pumpkin pie anyway.

Vitamin C Smoothie:

•  ½ C yogurt, vanilla or other flavor (Dannon is my favorite because it real ingredients)
• Half a navel orange
• ½ C frozen, cubed cantaloupe
• Handful  spinach leaves
• 1 tsp flax seed 
•    ½ C vanilla soy milk (or regular milk)

Faux-chata Smoothie:

•  ½ yogurt
• 1 frozen, cubed banana1-2 scoops vanilla protein powder (I use the whey and soy kind from Kroger, but your needs might be different)
• Tsp or so cinnamon
• Enough milk to make smooth

Almond-Berry Smoothie:

•  ½ yogurt
•  ½ C frozen mixed berries
• Banana
•  ¼ C almonds
•  ½ C milk

Ants on a Log Smoothie:

• ½ yogurt
• 1 celery stalk
• 1 TB peanut butter
• ½ frozen raspberries
• Banana
• ½ C milk

Ginger-Mango Lassie:

• ½ yogurt
•  ½ inch ginger root, or a generous sprinkle of ground ginger (but fresh tastes WAY better)
• 1 C mango
• ½ C frozen banana or pineapple
• ½ milk or pineapple juice
• Generous sprinkle of cinnamon or cardamom