It’s been a while since I’ve done a random, workout, what I ate type of post. As I was going through my phone, I noticed I had a lot of photos to upload and share. I’ve been getting back into my running routine now that the weather has cooled down. It seems a bit odd since it’s July and the weather usually does the opposite. I’ll take advantage of it for now.
I seem to tap out at seven miles lately. I can’t get the knee to go any further, but I don’t want to push it either. We all know my injury background, and it’s no bueno.
I am very lucky to live near miles and miles of endless beautiful running paths.
Sometimes I feel like I’m running somewhere tropical. The neighborhoods around me are full of hibiscus and palm trees. It takes me back to my life in Hawaii.
But then there are spiders…
And random graveyards…
After my run, I made a quick lunch to go.
The salad had lettuce, croutons, corn, avocado, turkey, cheese, tomatoes, carrots, cucumbers, and Italian dressing.
Later in the afternoon, Paulina and I went to grab coffee at Rush Espresso. I ordered the medium caffe latte with four shots of espresso. I love how thick the milk was. On a side note, Sealy and I are going to start a new series on the blog called 24/24. We are going to explore 24 greatness of Charlotte in 24 hours. On Saturday, we are doing 24 coffee shops in 24 hours. So, if you have a favorite coffee spot in Charlotte or the surrounding area, leave it in the comments!
Later in the afternoon, I stopped at Whole Foods to grab some kitchen staples and some food. I’m trying to fit in more protein without protein powder (I’ll explain my trainer’s craziness soon) I’ve been eating more frequent meals high in protein.
I grabbed the chicken fajita and grilled peppers on the Whole Foods hot bar and had that when I got home for extra protein. It was really good! I MAY HAVE ADDED KETCHUP…SHHHHH.
And then to hit my macros, I had some salmon and broccoli later in the evening. I don’t know how people eat so much protein! If you have any tips that don’t require protein powder or protein bars, let me know!
For breakfast, I’ve been doing the unsweetened almond milk, 1 cup of special k cereal and 2 hard boiled eggs. It’s boring but it works. My trainer is trying to put 10 lbs of muscle on me. I’m just going to trust him. The morning carbs help me get through the workout.
Also, I have been obsessed with baking cookies. Remember the recipe I posted the other day from the NYT? I did it again…
Luckily, I didn’t have to keep them laying around the apartment. It was Paulina’s birthday so I made them for her. She loved my cookies 🙂
Well, I better get back to brainstorming with Sealy for our new series called 24/24!
I’m confused, that spider looks as big as that tree. Please tell me that spider is not as big as that tree.
I think they forgot to take it down after Halloween…or it’s real?
Oh my God, I was staring at the picture for minutes and didn’t understand what’s going on with that spider, haha! Now I get it
I mean…I’ll always take a batch of chocolate chip cookies. Just say the word, girl.
I mean…you can come take them anytime!
Omgosh!
That spider! I had to quickly scan through the rest of the post to get to the comments…my mind was spinning about that spider!
Now, back to re-read your post more diligently. 🙂
Same here, I was thinking she was pretty brave to even stop to take a picture. Real or not that picture gave me a little anxiety lol
Taralynn! Would you mind sharing a little more about your workouts and your macros?
I have been lifting heavy weights for about 6 months now, and I look a lot more toned than I did before I started, but I can’t say there has been a whole lot of muscle growth. I’m pretty skinny, and I would love to put some curves on this body. I think part of the problem is that I am not eating enough calories in general and also not eating enough protein. There is so much conflicting information about weight lifting and building muscle out there…I’m just curious to know what you’re doing!
Thanks!
Jamie
OH My Stars that spider is huge I’d have a heart attack fake or not. Australia has a big spider called the bird eating spider and just the picture gives me the creeps. here’s a link if your curious http://www.telegraph.co.uk/earth/earthnews/3353693/Giant-spider-eating-a-bird-caught-on-camera.html
PS your salad looks yummy!
Love these types of posts 🙂 Can’t wait to hear about your new workout regimen and eating plan!
7 miles is a lot for getting back into running!! Great job!
I love these types of posts! Great idea for 24/24 as I am a newcomer myself! I can say that you should definitely head to Nova’s Bakery for coffee (I had the BEST iced coffee there!) as well as Smelly Cat Coffee down in NoDa! (The name throws all people that aren’t diligent Friends watchers) – The place is a little hole in the wall, but with really cool artwork, and board games that you can help yourself to!
I have been trying to get more protein in too! I put flax seeds and chia seeds on my yogurt, cereal, peanut butter toast, smoothies, even salads. You probably know but most nuts and seeds have lots of protein. 🙂 I also switched from almond milk to soy milk because it has way more protein!
I love reading these posts. You inspire me to be healthy/workout. 🙂
I’m not sure what your meal plans look like but other ways to incorporate protein in your diet is snacks:
1. hummus and veggies
2. pnut butter and apples
3. turkey rolled with cottage cheese and peppers.
4. protein pancakes without protein powder (I make them with a combo of coconut flour, wheat flour, 2 egg whites and 3 TBS of cottage. You can’t even taste the cottage cheese.) I made these for breakfast and the protein was 27.5 grams. I put some blueberries, lemon zest and the juice of a 1/2 lemon and they were so good. Lemons and blueberries go great together. I bet you could all sorts of good things with this. I bet a banana and walnut pancake made with these ingredients would taste good.
I hope this helps. 🙂
I love your blog. It is so inspirational. I have been on a good fitness run and have lost 30 pounds. I am now 6 pounds from my first big goal. I just moved and started working midnights, and my motivation/energy has greatly decreased. Any tips or suggestions for getting back at it? Do you ever get discouraged or fall off of the wagon? What do you do for those times?
Thanks so much 🙂
I make meringue cookies sweetened with stevia and eat the whole batch. Basically pure protein dessert.
So glad that spider wasn’t real! I was getting really concerned!! Those cookies look amazing! And 7 miles?! Dang girl! Work it!!
Love these posts! And also looove to 24/24 so excited to see how that plays out 🙂
I try to eat a lot of protein, too, 1.5-2 times my own body weight. Mostly chicken, tuna, salmon, tofu, low fat feta cheese, nuts, beans…
My favorite go to for a protein boost is yogurt (or quark, which is kind of the high protein version of yogurt) – it’s the perfect snack any time of the day! With rolled oats, (frozen) fruit and nuts, Mmmh!
Have you ever considered doing a sprint triathlon? I know that half marathon as your original goal but its not worth it if you injure yourself! The triathlon I did was 0.25 mi swim, 13 mi bike, 3 mi run. It’s fun and not too difficult! Plus swimming and biking are much easier on your knee and now that you are staying in one place for an extended period of time you can jusitify getting something clunky like a bike! Biking is a great way to explore a city too!. Just something to consider 🙂
Y’all should try Amelie’s and Smelly Cat, both in the NoDa area!
i used to work at that whole foods! i just moved to charleston, but my suggestions for coffee shops in charlotte are: not just coffee (uptown and southend locations), amelie’s (NoDa), smelly cat (NoDa), central coffee (plaza midwood), dilworth coffee (dilworth!) and Fabo (which just moved their location to ballantyne).
You should eat quinoa! It’s a protein, but it feels like you’re eating a carb. That way, you aren’t stuck eating so much chicken and fish. Plus it’s super versatile and you can eat it for breakfast, lunch, or dinner and you can make sure you hit your macros throughout the day.
It’s so great that you’re here in Charlotte! I highly recommend Smelly Cat in NODA, as well as Amelie’s in NODA. Central Coffee and Nova’s Bakery on Central Avenue are also some of my neighborhood favorites!
Also – Dilworth Coffee in Matthews is worth checking out. Alice Jules in downtown Monroe is great, especially on the way back from Waxhaw. There are some really cute jewelry and clothing stores in downtown Monroe that are fabulous!
Hey Taralynn!
Here is my favorite protein snack. Super easy.
-1 container (4-6 oz) of plain greek yogurt (chobani or oikos or something)
-1 tablespoon of chunky natural peanut butter
-1 packet of stevia like truvia
Mix it together and voila! It is SO good.
I’m a runner and you and I have the opposite problem: I need more carbs less protein.
I’m a blogger too, and I actually featured you on my “favorite bloggers” post. Here is the link: http://runspineatrepeat.blogspot.com/2014/07/my-favorite-bloggers.html
Enjoy!
I love this kind of post about your workout&food and the photos of the beautiful landscape!
I try to eat a high protein diet, at least 100 grams a day. Here is a typical day for me:
Breakfast:
-100 calorie greek yogurt cup with 1/4 cup Nature Valley Protein granola
-piece of fresh fruit
Morning Snack:
-String cheese
Lunch:
-Turkey sandwich
-1/2 cup cottage cheese with fresh fruit (strawberries, raspberries)
-1/4 cup almonds
Afternoon snack:
-1 scoop of Gold Standard whey protein mixed with water
Dinner:
-Grilled chicken
-vegetable
Evening snack:
-greek yogurt with 1/2 cup Fiber One Protein Cranberry Almond cereal
or PB2 with greek yogurt and sliced apples.
Figuring out how many calories to eat is tough! I work with a trainer and I have been in a calorie deficit to lose some weight I gained after a shoulder surgery. I hit my goal and have now been on a calorie progression to figure out what my daily calorie intake should be to keep at my current weight. I’ve been doing this for a few weeks now and I am eating about 300 calories more a day and my weight and lean muscle has stayed the same. I’ve never dealt with calories correctly so this is so amazing to me! Sorry so long of a comment, but good luck working out your food transition!
Taralynn- I remember a post where you said you hate cilantro bc it tastes like soap. I love cilantro & thought you were crazy, but look!
http://reasoniamhere.com/2013/09/24/why-10-of-the-population-hates-cilantro-and-the-rest-doesnt-know-any-better/
Thought you’d find this interesting!
I’ll be flying into Charlotte at 6am on Saturday off of a red eye from across the country! It would be SO great to know your favorite coffee shop as I’ll be needing it to stay awake for the rest of the day :)!!
Taralynn (and others who may have the same dilemma),
I really had to amp up my protein and general caloric intake when I transitioned to more compound/bodybuilding lifting. Since my fitness journey started 18 months ago, I’ve shed my body fat % and gained almost 10 lbs of lean muscle. I notice that when I’m not getting enough protein, my workouts are burning my muscle growth.
I eat eggs every day, and keep a bag of raw almonds in my desk at work for energizing, protein-helping snacks. I also keep a quick reference list in my phone of the average grams of protein in common sources (how many grams in each egg, in a portion of chicken, in a portion of steak, etc.) It helps when I’m really trying to hit my body weight + some in grams.
I also focus my meals around protein (generally meat) and veggies. I’ve transitioned to eating a “meal” for lunch (instead of a salad, sandwich, soup) and have found that the bigger meal in the middle of the day (usually meatloaf and veggies, chicken and veggies, chili with meat and beans, etc.) keeps me fuller, more fueled, and gets more protein in.
Beans are a GREAT source of fiber and protein, too! Adding tofu (silken) to smoothies can help make them creamy and up protein.
how many servings do you get from that recipe? Says 18 but looks like you can get more.
Hi Taralynn,
I saw you are looking for suggestions to get more protein into your diet. Protein bars and protein shakes are a quick and easy wait to get protein in, but it gets redundant. I love to get turkey burgers and chop them up in the frying pan or keep them whole. If you do this with multiple patties you can save the rest of the turkey burgers for later meals. Another thing that I do to keep a high protein diet is buy fresh low sodium turkey or chicken deli meat. Hope this helps some!
Greek yogurt has a ton of protein in it! One Trader Joe’s container of non-fat raspberry is 13grams. Then if you add in granola there’s even more protein in it. Makes a good snack or breakfast meal.
Go to Not Just Coffee on 7th st. Vanilla Sugar Latte with almond milk and just a dash of dark chocolate…..It. Is. Heavenly. Enjoy 🙂
so great