Home alone for the night. Just ordered Indian but Netflix ain’t buffering and I’m too braindead to get any work done.

I think this means I’m going to bed at 8:30pm so I can beat the Sunday morning gym crowd tomorrow.

How #fitspo is that??

Before and After

8am 5k along the Connecticut coast. Nothin’ but beach, boardwalk, and Nikes.

(For the record, this was my second formal 5k! At Color Me Rad last years my time was about 35min. Today was 33:32!!!)

CLEARLY TIME TO DRIVE AN HOUR TO THE BEACH TO RUN A 5K.

February 2011 - February 2013

Dallas NABPC - New Orleans Mardi Gras

70lb difference

I love my job, but it’s painful to realize that losing weight has, by itself, been even more helpful in my success than improving my skills as a body painter. How screwed up is that? Two years ago not a damn soul noticed me. Last week it was compliment after compliment after free drink. It’s hard not to feel weird about it, honestly, even if I’ve enjoyed the change.

I don’t really think I was prepared for the emotional weirdness of weight loss, but here it is. The photoset that sums up the past two years of my life more than anyone else.

Already have 4 days worth of food prepped and packed, now just gotta pack clothes and I’m off. Running every morning, painting every day, going out every night.

I love my job! Work Hard Play Hard!

Raw Motherfuckin’ Carrot Cake

It’s vegan, it’s gluten free, there’s no refined sugar, and it tastes good as all fuck

I hope that title got your attention because I am that passionate about this recipe. I finally broke down and got a food processor just to make this, and I was not disappointed.

Be warned: loooots of nuts mean it’s a bit pricey and high in calories. I spent probably $35 on enough ingredients to make two batches, and each serving (about 1/10 of a cake) is 400 calories of awesome nutrients.

You can make one 4” cake with three layers as pictured above, or about 10 cupcakes which was what I wanted since I wanted to bring them while traveling this weekend. Choice is yours!

Cake:

• 1 1/4 cups pecans
• 1 3/4 cups dried shredded unsweetened coconut
• 1/4 tsp sea salt
• 1 1/2  inch chunk fresh ginger 
• 2 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1 Tbsp raw coconut nectar or honey
• 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
• 2 cups grated organic carrots
• 1/3 cup golden raisins

Frosting:

• 1 1/2 cups raw cashew pieces (preferably soaked overnight)
• 1/2 cup coconut water
• 1/3 cup agave nectar or honey
• 2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract and seeds of a vanilla bean 
• 1/3 cup coconut oil (warmed to liquid)

For the cake, process the peacans until they’re crumbled, then throw in everything else except the raisins until it’s a paste. Mix those in after.

For the frosting, soak the peacans over night, then process those first. Once they’re pastey, add everything else and blend until frosting consistency. You might want to experiment with the coconut water to get a consistency that you like.

HOW FREAKIN EASY IS THAT?

[Here were my 2013 goals.] How am I doing after month number one?

• Weight: on track! down 4lbs since New Year’s and 72lbs since my heighest! 178lbs and 27% body fat even! Current long-term goal is around 165lbs or 15% body fat, which should be attainable some point between June and December.
• Running: better than thought! My goal was to get my mile time to around 10:15 consistantly, but I ran a 9:21 mile a few weeks ago and 3 miles in 31:05 today. So I’m going to up the ante: new goals are to get my 5k (3.1 miles) under 31:00 by June and around 30:00 by December. Holy cow!
• Lifting: on track, I think. I won’t bore you with the numbers, but my goal was to about double what I was lifting and I’ve started to already see improvement. I’m not sure if this was a realistic goal to start, but I’m definitely improving which makes me feel great!
• Sleeping and food: amazing! nutrition is great. Homemade everything, sticking to an almost entirely plant-based diet. Mostly veggies, a few eggs, and some random stuff like tofu and homemade gluten free waffles. No complaints! Plus 7-9hrs of sleep a night HOLLA

I am the fucking happiest person every right now, okay?

Not even roller derby or anything cool. Just a friend of mine who really wants to go.

I clearly need to figure out what I want to wear haha

• January: Roller Derby Polar Dash
• February:
• March: local 5k on a Connecticut beach!
• April: Color Me Rad 5k
• May: Long Island Mudder 5k? Dirty Girl 5k?**
• June: Foam Fest 5k*
• July: Run For Your Lives! 5k
• August: Spartan Race*
• September: Warrior Dash?**
• October: Tough Mudder?**
• November: Manchester Road Race!* Local tradition :)
• December:

*still need to buy … **need to solidify the plans!

Basically my plans for February’s Cupid Undie Run got called off because I forgot I was going to a face/body painting convention for work that weekend (the one fucking weekend I do anything all year), so no official race next month? Hopefully I can find something last minute, but it’s not looking good. And by the time December rolls around hopefully I can find something too? Gah!!!!

• 1/2 scoop chocolate whey in almond milk
• small slice fresh-made gluten free banana bread (finally figured out what to do with all those overripe bananas!)
• 2 pieces tempeh bacon

Somehow, food and fitness have become my central motivators—not weight loss. It went from “I’m trying to lose weight so i’m eating less and going to the gym,” to “I’m going to the gym and eating amazingly so I’ll end up losing weight.”

Fitspo is perfect.

Easy, Clean, Vegan Tempeh Bacon!

As promised this morning, vegan tempeh bacon recipe! But first, I want to call your attention to two things:

1. Look at the difference in ingredients lists between this simple recipe and Morningstar’s Soy Bacon. Which do you think is better for your body, hmm?
2. Morningstar’s isn’t even vegan. Milk and eggs? Goddamn ya’ll.

At any rate, here’s the recipe:

• Mix all the ingredients (besides the tempeh) in a well-sealed plastic bag.
• Cut the tempeh block into long, thick strips then let is soak for as long as possible in the bag. You can make this on the weekend, then grab pieces as you go all week long! How awesome is that?
• Heat up a pan about medium-way with some olive oil, then throw the tempeh on! Turn after about 2 minutes. You can also broil it for a crispy, oil-free option—just remember to keep an eye on it and turn once brown!
• Drain on paper towels

And to everyone who’s like “why do vegans need bacon?”:

OH MY GOD MY BREAKFAST.

• piece of sprouted bread
• raw cheese
• avocado
• raw purple onion
• bit of sundried tomato
• homemade tempeh “bacon”
• one runny egg
• tiny bit of organic maple syrup and sriracha

400 calories even.

Not vegan, but so far so good with the raw cheese. No weird stomach issues to speak of so far, so this might be the solution to any cheese cravings I get.

I’ll post the bacon recipe later once I get home from work… so good though…

I’m a big fan of @gymandmotivation, and his playlist has gotten me through quite a few hours of lifting heavy things. So I took a few other songs he’s posted in the past and made two fan playlists of sorts, mostly because I needed more of this to work out to.

Playlist 1: http://www.filehosting.org/file/details/415803/Gym_&_Motivation_II.m4a

Playlist 2: http://www.filehosting.org/file/details/415801/Gym_&_Motivation_III.m4a

Download these things and everyone’ll be ‘mirin’ at the gym. Got it?

(You can name them whatever you want, but I like storing them in my mp3 the same place where I put his. Because, you know. Consistency.)

Two weeks without a rest day. My sciatica is hurting me again.

So even though I was sprinting between boxing bags yesterday, I’m having trouble walking today.

DON’T BE LIKE ME. Take days off.

West African Peanut Sauce Veggie Challenge

Peanut butter and veggies. What more could a fitblr ask for? And to boot: gluten free, vegan, and no refined sugar!

Here’s the deal: we’re going to break out of your you normal, boring eating routine, okay? Below is a recipe to an amazing peanut curry sauce. It’s easy to make, unique, cheap, and taste delicious on everything.

So:

1. Make the sauce.
2. Put it on 3 different vegetables you haven’t eaten in a while.
3. Throw it on top of some brown rice or quinoa!

I put it on cauliflower, carrots, and eggplant.

Other awesome options include: bell peppers, kale, brussels sprouts, broccoli, cabbage, squash, zucchini, asparagus, leeks, parsnips, pumpkin, sweet potato, peas, string beans, mushrooms, edamame, celery, or whatever else is hiding in your pantry.

All vegetables have different benefits. Why are stuck eating the same five things??

Here’s the recipe:

• Take your veggies and bake them at about 350*F. You’ll want to do this for at least half an hour, until you can poke through ‘em with a fork. Some olive oil on top might help.
• Saute a finely chopped onion and some finely chopped garlic in peanut oil until the onion is transparent.
• Add about 3/4 cup of tomato sauce (or really, even a few mashed up tomotos.)
• Once that’s all cooked together, add about 1/3 cup peanut butter. If you’re using the unsalted type, you can throw in a splash of ammino acids or soy sauce.
• Mix in a tiny bit of water until you get a good consistency, like a thick sauce. You may also need to add some more at the end, as the peanut butter has a tend to get really thick really fast.
• Add in 2tsp nutmeg, 2tsp ginger, and 2Tbsp curry powder.
• Cook for another few minutes, adding water if it gets too thick.

Throw it over vegetables and brown rice or quinoa, and enjoy!!