Merry Monday!

I hope the title of this post can inspire some positive thinking – YES, it is Monday…but that can be a good thing! It’s the start of another exciting week, right? Ok – I’m not even convincing myself!

When the alarm clock went off this morning, I wasn’t super motivated to move. But eventually I resisted the temptation to stay under the covers and got ready for the gym. Before I left, I ate half of a Chocolate Brownie Clif ZBar:

I’m so happy these bars have come into my life. I know many people I’ve suggested these to have said they didn’t really care for them, but they honestly taste just like a brownie to me! It makes for a great pre-workout snack because I feel like I’m treating myself!

I realized I didn’t have as much time as I thought to workout, so today was another cardio today – sorry, boring! I did 40 minutes on the elliptical. Tomorrow is my leg workout – much more exciting 🙂

For breakfast, I knew I wanted oatmeal – it’s pretty much a no-brainer these days. But the fun part is deciding what to add to the oatmeal. Today, I decided on whipped banana-cranberry:

The recipe is pretty straightforward:

• 1/2 cup rolled oats
• 1/2 cup water
• 1/4 cup unsweetened vanilla almond milk
• 1/4 cup unsweetened chocolate almond milk
• 1/2 large banana
• 1/2 tbsp. flax
• 1/2 tbsp. wheat germ
• 1 tsp. maple syrup
• 1 tbsp. dried cranberries

Add to that a spoonful of peanut butter, and you have one delicious breakfast:

A yummy spoonful (sorry, it came out a little blurry):

I decided I needed a little extra fuel:

How very ominous looking 🙂 You can tell I’m having way to much fun experimenting with pictures. But if you look closely enough at the mug, you’ll see a definite flaw – my reflection! Anyway, I topped off breakfast with a delicious mug of Coffee Cocoa.

Yum! I’m telling you, the topping is what makes this drink. Total breakfast calories – including the ZBar – are roughly 460.

I’ve got a busy day ahead! I’m planning on making my lunch and will likely be going out to dinner with my roommate. I will try to post lunch separately but may have to post both meals together on Mondays and Wednesdays just because of timing.

Have a Merry Monday! 🙂