Rhea and I started our Thursday morning with some trail time. It was just what we both needed! We headed to Two Rivers and spent an hour exploring and playing. I have really been struggling with my trail running confidence since my ankle sprain in 2018. Between that initial sprain, all the time I have taken off to let it heal, and every twist, tweak, and sprain in-between, I have lost my confidence on trail. A goal in 2020 is to get that BACK. I do not like running scared and unsure, so I am going to be intentional about positive thinking while trail running, while also doing all of the maintenance and strength training I need to do to stay healthy.
I know that goal will take some time, so I need to be patient and stay dedicated. It felt AMAZING to trail run with Rhea yesterday. I loved every second of it.
She is such an amazing trail runner. I can’t believe she’s only a little over a year old. I hope we have many, many years of trail running ahead of us.
This picture cracks me up. Rhea was literally having the best day of her life. She smiled the entire time we ran. I loved getting to watch her explore. She also does such a great job listening to commands. She would run 50-100 yards ahead of me, then stand off the trail and wait for me. She’s just the best!
This girl loves water. We took a few water breaks – some times she would drink and some times she would just splash around.
After our run, I came home and heated up lunch. Jake helped me with meal prep and grilled a bunch of chicken for us. It was incredible. I also roasted some broccoli, which we had with the chicken. Both of these are so flavorful – eating healthy doesn’t have to be boring! I used garlic powder, onion powder, black pepper, turmeric, and a Cajun seasoning on the chicken, then let it all marinate in some broth for about 20 minutes. I topped frozen broccoli (so easy) with ghee, black pepper, garlic powder, and coconut aminos then roasted it on 350° for about 30 minutes, stirring occasionally. They both turned out SO delicious. We are both getting back on track with our eating and training. We feel our best when we follow an 80% Paleo diet – and I say “diet” meaning a lifestyle, not deprivation of food, that just isn’t sustainable. By 80% Paleo, I mean that we still eat bread, oats, and beans, which aren’t ‘allowed’ on a typical Paleo diet. We are endurance athletes, so carbs are important for us. We tried 100% Paleo, and while we felt really good, our training definitely suffered. By adding in bread and oats, we found we had more energy – you just have to find what works for you! There’s no one-size fits all. (Sorry for that tangent!) We are ready to be back on track after a few weeks of splurging. We enjoyed it, but I missed prepping and my body missed feeling better – no more bloating and acid reflux!
After lunch, I put away all of our Christmas decorations. It was sad. I’m already ready for Christmas 2020! When I finished putting everything back into the attic, I was hungry again, so I made a smoothie. This has spinach, an apple, pineapple chunks, a banana, protein powder, collagen, and almond milk. It was SO good.
After my snack, I finished up laundry and made a monthly spending sheet for our budgeting goals. I can share this if anyone is interested! Next week will be our first week of using it, so we will see how it goes.
For dinner, we had brussels, salmon, and grapes. I cooked the brussels in our AirFryer with ghee, maple syrup, black pepper, and garlic powder. They cooked at 350° for two rounds of 10 minutes – I like to shake them up in-between. While those cooked, I seasoned our salmon filets with lemon and Primal Palate’s seafood seasoning – hands-down the best seafood seasoning I’ve ever used. I shared a link at the end of this post for my favorite seasonings. Dinner was wonderful! Jake told me he was savoring every bite because he knew he’d be sad when it was gone. Ha!
After dinner, we relaxed for a little bit and then worked on our NYE puzzle. We are getting closer to finishing it! Jake is a million times better at puzzles than I am…he worked on the left side and I worked on the right…he got SO much more finished than I did.
Today is my last day of Christmas break, so we are lounging. I slept in until 8, which was incredible. I grabbed some coffee and my computer, then crawled back into bed to knock out a few things and relax. This break has been wonderful. I am ready to get back to work, but I will miss spending the days with my girls.
I’m not sure what all we have going on this weekend. January is slower for us, which I am stoked about. I’m ready to do nothing for a little bit! November and December were constant go-go-go, so I’m hoping January is slower.
Here are a few of my favorite seasonings! I use these just about every day. Just click the picture.
This is my go-to seafood seasoning. It’s amazing on any kind of fish. If you buy one seasoning, this is IT.
We love turmeric. This is one of my favorites.
Happy Friday, friends!