Blog Archives
Brussel Sprouts and 9 More New Things I Tried This Summer
Since today is that last real day of my summer vacation, I’m going to re-cap some of the things I did this summer for the first time:
1. Brussel Sprouts: In all my 19 years I have never before eaten a brussel sprout before last night. My parents were as leery about the mini-cabbage vegetable as I was. Last night, we made Roasted Brussel Sprouts with lemon juice, garlic, onions and tomatoes. Guess what? They were not disgusting at all; we enjoyed them! They look just like a baby head of cabbage, and taste just like a broccoli stalk. I would definitely make these little guys again. They are 8 calories each and packed full of vitamins like C, K, and manganese. They also are an anti-oxidant. Nutritious and Delicious and now I feel silly for avoiding them for so long.
2. Almond Milk: I won’t say too much about this now, saving it for a future post. But my week on almond milk was full of recipe experiments…
3. Visiting the East Coast: In July my family flew to New York City for the first time. Granted, it was more for medical reasons than vacation but we took advantage of being in the city and explored every part of Manhattan we could. What an amazing city!
4. Eating at Farrell’s Ice Cream Parlour: where I witnessed my dad eat more ice cream than ever before!
5. Riding a New York Subway: Watching all those Law & Order episodes had me feeling a little sketchy about the subway. We survived!
6. Seeing a movie in 3D: Yes, I am behind the times. Before Katy Perry 3D, I had never seen a 3D movie. Now I got some sweet new glasses ;)
7. Spending the night in a hospital/eating hospital food: Not quite the glamorous setting it’s made out to be in movies, but the hospital coffee wasn’t half-bad.
8. Going to the doctor’s office alone: a moment where I realized I was an adult. Needles and no one’s hand to squeeze!
9. Going One Week with out coffee……just kidding, I didn’t try this. :) Are you crazy?!?!
10. Blogging! This has been so much fun, posting and talking about what I love. Thank you for reading! Keep coming back for recipes, workouts, healthy habits, college life and extra surprises :)
Vacation & Exercise
Most people look at vacation as just that: a time away from responsibilities which includes daily workouts. It’s usually a time of relaxation, where the calories don’t count and you stay far far away from any treadmills. But you pay for it the day you come home, unhappy with the number on the scale and a little rusty the first time back in the gym. I think exercise should be a part of any vacation and it really can be a fun point of the trip! If you are anywhere in nature, all you have to do is seek out a trail and explore with a hike. You don’t even have to think of it as “working out” – it’s sightseeing on foot which will benefit you more than just keep calories at bay. You might end up seeing some pretty great views you would otherwise have missed out on.
But if you are going somewhere less natural (say… New York City) you’ll have to get a bit more creative. We were in the city for 17 days this July. My surgical procedures did not begin until Day 5, so we had a few “play days” and you bet we hit up Central Park. The place is AMAZING! It goes for blocks and blocks with a ton of paths leading in different directions. There are baseball fields and bike paths and fitness classes on the lawns. It’s an impressive place to totally take advantage on for getting active.
My family rented bikes and made a lap around the park which has some incline. Then I found a running path around a gorgeous lake, about 1.75 miles, and got in a few laps with the locals. It was actually a highlight of the trip, and I really enjoyed getting to work out in such a new and unfamiliar but fabulous place. Vacation isn’t really an excuse to be completely lazy; it should inspire you to get creative with a workout and find a new way to be active. I’m lucky enough to have my Photographer/Mom to capture the moments.
