Live, Grow, and Evolve: More chocolate please.

Hi Y'all!

I hope you all had a great week and are taking time to enjoy today because... IT'S FRIDAY! I love Fridays so much because that means the weekend and it also means LEG DAY! Leg day is my absolute favorite workout day. And this quote is the reason I love leg day. With each workout I do, I am starting to feel stronger, both physically and mentally. I think the mind has so much to do with how far we can really push ourselves. Our muscles and bones can do it.. it's our mind that holds us short. The focus in my workout today was to shut that little voice up in my head that says "I'm tired" or "That's too much weight" and instead say to myself "add 5 reps" or "you're only getting stronger". What I have realized these past few months of intense training is that to get stronger you have to make yourself uncomfortable.. and then that's when you push it even harder. Hard is good. Hard is what makes us stronger, more fit, healthier. By pushing myself to the point where I am almost in tears is what has made me feel good and get stronger. Mental attitude is the key.

My leg workout today was absolutely killer. I could barely walk afterwards and my legs were shaking so much. I love that feeling more than anything! Sore today. Stronger tomorrow. Below you'll find this workout and I challenge you to try it! Change it up, add more reps, add more weight, change it up to your liking.... but just do it! Nothing can beat the wonderful feeling after a good leg workout.
Here it is:

Pretty killer! If you have any questions about the moves, please let me know!

So yesterday I had to say goodbye to one of my favorite instructors at the community center where I workout. I had to say goodbye because she was leaving for California for a family vacation and by the time she gets back I will have already left for college. She has helped me get so fit over the past year and has been such an amazing inspiration. She is a studly triathlete and puts together and instructs the best workouts (be it spin, weight lifting, cardio reps, core blast, etc.). I don't know where I would be today without her. After saying goodbye to her, I felt really sad and dreary all day. It is finally starting to hit me that I am leaving in 10 days and will have many more goodbyes to come. I was feeling really down and laying in bed, when luckily, my dad got home from work and came and talked with me. He said something that really changed my sad perspective of the situation. He said, "You know, Ali.... for ever amazing person you have to leave behind, there will be an even more amazing person you meet". That changed my perspective so much. Obviously, I am still very sad that I had to say goodbye to an amazing inspiration in my life; but there will be so many opportunities to meet people just like her in Portland. And not to mention, I will be back in the winter to visit her and do more workouts with her.

Because I felt so sad, I naturally was craving warm soup and chocolate (it is also "that time of month" so I was craving it even more. Haha.) My mom took me out for Vietnamese pho soup. If you have never had pho soup, you need to have it now. Like stop what you're doing and go get some. It is a ~~warm~~ hot (very hot) bowl of goodness.

Look at it! Perfect for soothing sad feelings. I got the chicken and vegetable pho and topped it with fresh mint, bean sprouts, some jalapeño, lime juice, and sriracha. Delicious.
And of course I had to satisfy my chocolate craving. So I did some (successful) experimenting earlier in the day and ate my experiment right before bed! I created frozen yogurt! YUM YUM YUM! And it was actual frozen yogurt.. made in a machine. Not that good ol' "profroyo" that is stuck in the freezer for 1 hour. This was real, creamy, delicious frozen yogurt. Get yourselves ready.

QUEST PB CUP FROZEN YOGURT:

You guys. This was beautiful.

I want more. Now. Gimme gimme.

Look at that beautiful quest cup. So much love.

serves 2 (generously). You need an ice cream/frozen yogurt/sorbet machine for this. Or I am sure you could just freeze it. But it will not be as smooth and silky.
1 cup almond milk
3/4 cup greek yogurt (I used Fage 0%)
3 Tablespoon cocoa powder
Sweetener of choice (I used 2 stevia packets, 10 chocolate stevia drops, and 5 vanilla cream stevia drops)
1 tsp vanilla extract
Cinnamon (I sprinkled a bunch in there because I add so much cinnamon to everything)
A Quest Cravings PB cup (all chopped up)

1. Combine all ingredients except pb cup. Mix very well. This is your "base". Stick in the refrigerator to chill for at least 2-3 hours.
2. Whip out your fro yo machine and pour your base into it.