My New Favorite Salad Recipe

After getting my feelings out towards eating clean and living an overall healthier lifestyle, I really have been trying to buckle down with preparing meals at the beginning of my workweek. As much of a pain as it is to have to make the effort to make a weekly menu, shopping list, and spend a couple hours in the kitchen prepping meals ahead of time, it really does make a huge difference.

 

One of my favorite quotes to remind myself of is, "fail to plan, plan to fail." For me personally, this quote couldn't be more true.

I love salads, but I find that they can get really boring really quick, especially - for some odd reason - when I prepare them at home versus a store-made or restaurant/takeout salad. (My absolute favorite salad of all time is the salad bar at Ruby Tuesday; so good, so fresh!) I always think I'll love the salads that I prepare at home, and I do for the first couple of times, but they just get so boring for me. I think the difference with this salad is that it's super simple, but also the dressing is amazing!

 

Ingredients:

Romaine Hearts (I use the pre-cut leaves, because I'm lazy ;-) )

Chopped Mini Sweet Peppers

Red Pepper Flakes

Grilled Marinated Chicken, cut into strips (I marinade with this Cilantro-Lime Marinade)

Grated Parmesan Cheese

Wegman's Basil Vinaigrette (for those of you not blessed with a Wegman's, first off, I am truly sorry [it's THE BEST GROCERY STORE; us northeasters are very loyal to our Wegman's!] but here is another bottled option that's similar or some recipes for a homemade version.)

 

It's simple, quick, easy to prepare, and tastes so good! I would love to hear about some of your favorite salads to add to my menu!

 

 

Happy Eating! :)

 

 

 

xoxo UP <3

 



Quick, Easy, + Healthy Breakfasts

Now I know that I touched on this subject recently, however I wanted to elaborate on the topic and give you some more options of easy and healthy breakfast ideas. Especially since the warmer months are upon us and not everyone likes to eat a hot bowl of oatmeal when it's warm out. (I do!)

So, here are some of my "favs" when it comes to eating well in a pinch...

1) Sliced pears sprinkled with cinnamon, chia seeds, and chopped walnuts.

2) Whole grain and/or whole wheat toast with almond butter (Trader Joe's is my favorite). You can also top this with some banana slices or berries.

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3) Egg whites (you could include the yolk) with mozzarella cheese, spinach, and arugula. I know there's cooking involved, but cooking eggs is honestly so quick and easy. Just heat a skillet with some olive oil, and add the ingredients for a quick and easy scramble or omelet!

4) Whole grain and/or whole wheat toast (I use Ezekiel Bread) with either fresh or frozen berries (raspberries are my favorite) and cinnamon.

5) A simple and easy fresh bowl of berries; my favorites are raspberries, blueberries, strawberries, and black raspberries.

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What quick, easy, + healthy breakfasts do you like to make??


xoxo UP <3
 

My Favorite Workday Breakfast

There is nothing harder for me on a rushed morning before work than making sure I eat a healthy and nutritious breakfast. I, unfortunately, am probably the worst person in the entire world when it comes to time management in the morning when getting ready for work. And I find it really difficult to leave myself enough time to get a decent breakfast in (I know, I know, just wake up earlier!).



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However, my go-to breakfast on workdays (and most other days as well) is when I prepare oatmeal the night before. If I don't leave myself time to eat it at home I simply have it ready in a to-go container and can either eat it on my drive in or at work. My absolute favorite oatmeal is steel-cut oats, blueberries, flax seed, and tons of cinnamon. There's something about oatmeal that just makes you feel so good, full, and warm.

So, if you're like me in the mornings and always rushed, try some oatmeal on the go. It's delicious, nutritious, and leaves you feeling full. As the saying goes, "breakfast is the most important meal of the day;" don't skip it! :)


What are some of your favorite things to add to your morning oats??


xoxo UP <3

The Benefits of Drinking Lemon Water

I feel like lemon water is kind of the newest (but really not new at all) trend that people are talking about. I see the benefits of lemon water listed all over Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, you name it; it's everywhere! I find this kind of funny considering lemon in water is so simple and something that people have been doing for years.

 

However, it is true, there are so many benefits of doing something as simple as slicing up some lemon wedges and putting them in your bottle. Isn't it great when being healthy is easy?!

 

Found this great little graphic on Pinterest!

If this list doesn't encourage you to throw in some lemon wedges the next time you have a glass of water, I don't know what will! Here is a great link of some other benefits as well.

 

 

Any other water-drinking hacks you know of??

 

 

xoxo UP <3