Getting My Walk On

I went to sleep at 9:30 last night.

It was wonderful. Sometimes an early night is just the ticket to starting the week off right!

On Saturday, I spent the day shopping with my mom, followed by the movies with Shaun (a post I can't wait to share with you!) and then participating in a walk for MS along with some of our friends.

We did the walk in Belmar, NJ (down the shore for you non-New Jerseyans) and walked in honor of our friend's mother who suffered from MS and is no longer with us. It was a great day for a great cause! We showed up to register and found out that the walk was not in fact a 5K as originally thought...it was 6.5 miles! More than a 10K!

We were...surprised...but ready to tackle the challenge! Unfortunately the weather was not as cooperative as we'd hoped. It was overcast and chilly all day.

Good thing we walked to keep warm! We all donned team shirts, designed in Yankees theme.

After our 6 miles, we made our way back to the home base. Though I thought it would be super easy to power through this...it was a walk after all!...it was actually more challenging than I thought it would be! My quads were burning like crazy. Oh and I was in pajamas by 5:30pm and asleep by 9:30 last night. Just sayin'.

Shaun & me with our great friends Ryan & KristenShaun & me with my parents

And of course after the race, we got our eat {and drink} on! The home base (which just so happened to be one of our favorite shore bars) was serving up a barbecue for all the participants. I got down with a big dish o' food. It was good.

The moral of the story? I have a new appreciation for walking :)

So how did you spend your weekend? Have you ever felt like a long walk gave you just the work out you needed?

5K + Pina Colada Smoothie

I've definitely got a case of the Mondays, friends. I had one of those nights where I woke up around 3:30 and felt wide awake until about 5:00. AM. I was so frustrated because I felt tired all evening! Time to face the day despite my lack of sleep last night!

In better, more accomplished, motivational news, I ran a 5K yesterday! It was fantastic. I love the group support during races and when it's all for a good cause, how can you not feel inspired? Along with some of our friends, I ran the race with Shaun, my sister Kimberly and her boyfriend Nick. It was a cold, but beautiful morning! Here we all are post-race:

Don't you feel so accomplished after finished a race? The last race I ran was the Corporate Challenge through Central Park almost 2 years ago. It felt great to get back in the action!

Meanwhile, this weekend I concocted a new smoothie. You've already heard me proclaim my love for a bright, refreshing, healthy smoothie, which I usually make with a ripe banana and a handful of baby spinach (of which the spinach taste is completely undetected, I promise). On Saturday, I was really craving warmth, sun and sand, so I created a new smoothie of the pina colada persuasion. Intrigued?

Pina Colada Smoothie
1/2 C unsweetened almond milk
1/2 C coconut water (such as Zico)
1/2 C crushed pineapple
1 tbsp honey
2 tbsp shredded coconut (optional, for added coconut flavor)
splash vanilla extract

Blend all ingredients together. I use a giant glass measuring cup for a one stop measure, mixer and pourer. Serve over ice.

This smoothie is a bit thinner than one made with banana. I didn't mind. However, you could also add spinach to it for thickening and added nutrition. I did add some spinach into it, but wanted to photograph it for you au natural since it was so pretty.

I'm guessing you could also add a few scoops of pumpkin for thickening without changing the flavor too drastically. Oh and to pulverize that shredded coconut, you're really going to need to blend the heck out of it! I'm thinking that coconut extract would also do the trick. This smoothie is so summery and refreshing that I'm really dreaming about it on this 27 degree morning. In fact, it reminds me of being here...

which makes me happy.

So there you have it. Yet another way to mix up a fantastically delicious {and healthy} smoothie. So what do you think? Have you ever gone outside the box with smoothies? Do you ever have sleeping issues, as I did last night?

Psst...the Book Club page was updated today!