Chocolate Covered Cherry Frosty Malt

With a title like this the recipe most definitely couldn't be healthy, right?
Surprise!  The recipe is totally good for you AND includes the average serving of Energy Bits organic spirulina.  Perfect news for those of you that 1) love chocolate 2) don't like swallowing bits and 3) love frosty treats!

Even better news?
The amazing people at Bits of Health (Energy Bits, Recovery Bits, Vitality Bits) are giving away an amazing gift with the purchase of Recovery Bits from now through February 21, 2014.

RECOVERYbits are 100% organically grown NON GMO chlorella tabs - an algae that has been used for fifty years by homeopaths and Japanese for anti-aging, preventing colds, detox, strengthening the immune system, aiding digestion, helping to prevent hangovers, improving athletic performance and more.   

Your gift comes in an cute black organza bag that contains a full tin of RECOVERYbits, a single sample serving of RECOVERYbits, a fun pair of ENERGYbits sunglasses, an ENERGYbits pen and some stickers to show you love of bits. This $35 retail value is yours absolutely FREE with the purchase of at least one bag of RECOVERYbits. It's a fun and healthy Valentines Day gift we think everyone will love, even more than chocolates.♥ BUT with my smoothie recipe you get the best of both worlds...algae AND chocolate!  Nothing says "I love you" like giving someone the gift of a healthier, more energetic life.

Forward From The Heart readers get 20% off any and every purchase with the code HEART!

More info on chlorella here.

And info on spirulina here. 

I personally have Energy Bits (spirulina), Recovery Bits (chlorella) and Vitality Bits (50/50 blend) currently all in my fridge.  I take Energy Bits pre-workout or at the start of my work day, Vitality Bits when I am teaching/working and only have 60 seconds to re-fuel between clients, and Recovery Bits at the end of a hard day/workout, if I feel a cold coming on, or if I have indulged in too many unhealthy treats over the weekend.  I can't imagine getting through my 9 hour training days, 12 hour work days, or recovering from a run without my bits!  All for just about $1.38/day.  

This recipe would taste great with any of the bits!

1 cup frozen dark cherries, unsweetened
8 ounces chocolate almond milk
30 bits of your choice, I used EnergyBits

Blend until smooth.  I prefer an immersion blender so I really can tell that the bits are fully blended.
It is the perfect mid-day energy booster and also satisfies any sweet craving you may have.

Fun story about how I named this smoothie:
As I was taste-testing I immediately was taken back to childhood.  To me, this tastes exactly like those chocolate malts that come with a wooden spoon.  Those of you that have tasted Energy or Recovery bits know that dehydrated algae has an earthy taste.  In the case of this smoothie, the earthy taste lends the nostalgic "wooden-spoon" flavor of a malt from the ice cream truck.  Quirky?  Yes!  But a little bit of quirkiness is worth it to take in one of the best superfoods!  Enjoy!

Click here to order your bag of bits today, and don't forget to use code HEART to save 20%!

A Very Healthy Cookie

It is no secret that I love cookies.  But I really need to get my sweet tooth under control.  On the other side of that, I tend to get grumpy if I don't get a sweet treat.
Here is a clean eating, nut-free cookie that definitely satisfied my sweet tooth!
It is SO healthy that you can eat it for breakfast or as a snack after your workout.

Healthy Chocolate Chip Cookies

2 ripe bananas
1/3 cup sunflower seed butter
2/3 cup unsweetened apple sauce
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 tsp sea salt
1/2 tsp cinnamon
dash of nutmeg
1 1/2 cup old fashioned oats
1/2 cup dark chocolate chips (to go vegan use carob chips OR dried fruit!)

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.  Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
In a large bowl mash the bananas.  Add the remaining ingredients through nutmeg and stir until blended.  Add the oats and chocolate chips, stir til blended.

Spoon a rounded tablespoon of the cookie dough onto the lined cookie sheet.
Bake for 20 minutes or until golden.

Store in an airtight container, refrigerated for optimum freshness.

Enjoy!

ALT Bar by Larabar

A little over a week ago I came home to find a cute little package on my doorstep.

I opened it to find the new ALT bar by Larabar.

Those of you that read this blog know that I LOVE Larabars.  Simple, clean ingredients that taste good and work great as a healthy snack or mini-meal in between teaching classes.  You may also know that I love all things green, especially green protein!
So, to say I was excited to try the new ALT bar is a drastic understatement.  To say that I fell madly in love when I saw that the bars contain protein from peas is, well, quite true.

So, what is an ALT bar?
ALT, in the case of this bar, stands for "Alternate Protein Bar."  It is the first-ever protein added bar from Larabar AND it uses an alternative protein.  Rather than soy or whey the ALT bar has peas.  That's right, the little green guys that grown in the garden.  How amazing is that?!  Research can lead you in 1,000 different ways on soy and whey, but we all know and love our little green peas!

The stats

• vegan
• gluten free 
• dairy free
• non-GMO

The traditional Larabars contain anywhere from 3g to 7g of protein, depending on the bar.  The new ALT bar contains 10g of protein.  That is great news for someone like myself, who isn't a huge fan of meat but needs lots of protein to keep up energy levels.  I also really LOVE the fact that I can read the ALT wrapper, just like the Larabar wrappers, and see just a handful of ingredients, all that I can pronounce and that I could pick up at the market myself.

Wondering where the Lemon Pound Cake bar is?
I *maybe* ate if before snapping a picture.  Oops.

The flavors

• Peanut Butter Cookie
• Cinnamon Apple Crisp
• Lemon Pound Cake
• Pumpkin Pie

I enjoyed all four flavors.  They are a little more dense than the original Larabars, but with the same great flavor that satisfies my hunger and sweet tooth.  As usual, Peanut Butter Cookie is my favorite!
The bars were perfect for a breakfast or lunch on the go or for a healthy snack.  FFTH readers know that I recommend keeping healthy snacks with you at all times, and these bars would be a perfect addition to your bag or desk top supply.

Now, for the fun!

Larabar is continuing the generosity and will send one lucky reader the same gift box that I received.  Not only will you get to try the new ALT bar, you will be one of the first people to do so!  Impress your friends with the latest vegan protein bar!

Entering is easy, just leave a blog post comment!  Other entries can be obtained, if you wish, by completing a few easy tasks :)

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Thanks for entering!  If you know me at all then you know I am absolutely dying to say this right now:
Next time you are looking for a healthy protein bar GIVE PEAS A CHANCE!

Please note:  I received the box of ALT Bars as a complete surprise and gift from Larabar.  The idea to review the product and offer a giveaway was purely from my love of the new line of bars.  Receiving the product for free did not in any way effect my opinions and the above post is my 100% honest feelings.

A week of smoothies

I hope you enjoyed the Green Smoothie Challenge as much as I did!
It is always fun to take part in challenges to have support from others, but you can also do a green smoothie challenge whenever you want!
I wanted to put all of my smoothie recipes in one post to make it easy to access and to give you the chance to plan out an entire week of drinks.

1  Coconut Lime Avocado

2 Pineapple Cucumber Kale

3 Green Strawberry Grape

4 Purple Dessert Smoothie

5 Oatmeal smoothie

6 Strawberry almond kale

7 Green superfood

Adding a green smoothie or green juice to your day helps you to get more fruits and vegetables in your day than you can with just eating them.

To make it easier on your grocery list (and budget!) pick one or two drinks and get enough to make those for the whole week.

I love the way I feel after drinking juice or a smoothie.  Satisfied without being overly full.  And I love knowing that I have filled my body with fresh foods!

Let me know which one(s) you try!

Drink your oatmeal!

It's Friday and Day 5 of the Green Smoothie Challenge!  Are you loving it so far?

From mom telling you that oatmeal is a good breakfast because it "sticks to your ribs" to the many studies that, thanks to soluable fiber, oatmeal can help lower cholesterol, there are many reasons to start the day with a bowl of oatmeal.  But maybe you are low on time or oatmeal just isn't your thing.
The smoothie I am sharing today not only has greens but oatmeal, too!

My recipe for Overnight Steel Cut Oatmeal goes great in this smoothie :)

Oatmeal Smoothie
1/2 cup Overnight Oats
8 strawberries
1/2 cup almond milk, or milk of your choice
1-2 handfuls spinach
1 tbsp sunflower seed butter or nut butter

Blend all of the ingredients until smooth, adding more milk to thin to your desired consistency.
For best results use frozen strawberries.


I really liked the flavor of this one and, thanks to the oats and sun butter I was not hungry until lunch.

Got a smoothie recipe you want to share?  Join today's link-up!


There is still time to enter to win Honey Stinger Lemon Waffles and Organic Energy Gels...head here to enter!

Make sure to stop by my co-hosts blogs for even more green smoothie fun:

Katherine /  Hope 

Ashlee  

Jezz  / Kristine 

A Purple Green Smoothie!

Hey ho!  It's day 4 of the Green Smoothie Challenge!
How is it going for you?
For me, I am feeling better, enjoying the new flavors I am getting to try, and I don't know if you are noticing this, but my skin feels and looks better!  All those vitamins, minerals and free-radical fighting compounds, huh?
Today I would like to share a green smoothie that is actual a lovely shade of purple.  It also feels a lot more like a dessert than a health drink.  Alway a plus!

Purple Dessert Smoothie

1 banana, peeled
1/2 cup frozen blueberries
1 tbsp peanut butter, or the nut butter of your choice
4 oz (1/2 cup) chocolate milk of your choice
1 handful baby kales

Blend until smooth.  And it will be smooth, creamy and delicious!  Perfect if you tend to have a sweet tooth mid-day or in the evening.
If you haven't tried one yet, make this be the green smoothie you try!

As part of this awesome challenge Katherine has TWO giveaways going on!

Ormus Greens

• Grown and produced in America
• Certified 100% organic AND non-GMO
• Completely raw (cold drying process)
• Eco-friendly

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Sun Warrior Liquid Light

• Helps balance pH in the body
• Replaces electrolytes
• Goes great in smoothies, juice or just water

a Rafflecopter giveaway

And don't forget to check out MY giveaway hosted by Honey Stinger.  Awesome organic workout fuel products!

As always, don't forget to check in with my co-hosts Jezz // Kristine // Ashlee //  Hope for even more recipes and fun ideas on how to stay healthy!

Did I really just eat that?!

I used to despise counting calories.  I would put pen to paper after each meal or snack and it would drive me to binge eat.  Seriously.  Too much thinking about calories and what I was consuming would stress me out.  But now I have MyFitnessPal and I pretty much love it.
It is fun, at the end of the day, to enter what I have eaten and what workouts I have completed.  It is a great way to keep tabs on how much I am consuming and if I am getting enough calories on days when I teach a lot.
So what's the drawback?  Well...it's right there.  In front of my face.  The handful of M&M's.  The cookie that I popped in my mouth while cooking dinner.  And the numbers don't lie.
It also has been VERY shocking to see how many calories and fat are in restaurant items.  Hidden fillers, sodium and cooking products really add up.

I had one of those shocking moments on Sunday.

Before I begin, I would like to ask you to suspend all judgement on the food, and the name of the food, that I chose.  Take it easy on me, okay? :)

Photo from Perkinsrestaurants.com

We had a very busy weekend so when Sunday morning rolled around we headed to Perkins for brunch.  I ordered the Country Cookin' Benedict.
I am a huge fan of Eggs Benedict and this menu item is English Muffins topped with sausage patties, cheese crumbles, gravy (duh!) tomatoes (for health) and cheese crumbles.  Add a side of country potatoes to make it a meal.  I did choose fresh fruit instead of a Mammoth Muffin.  *pat on the back*
Okay.  So I knew I wasn't ordering health food.  Anything that used a dropped G in the menu name is bound to be packed with fat and calories.  However, it wasn't until I had entered it into MyFitnessPal that I really felt the pounds packing on.

1,561 calories
91 grams of fat

EXCUSE ME?!  That is more calories than I typically take in, after exercise, in a whole day.  And the fat?  That is probably about 3 days worth for me!  Turns out it is under the "Over The Top Specialties" section, so, I mean...I really should have known.


I felt horrible.  Not just after the meal, which I did have a food hangover from until about 7:00 that evening.  But for not being more aware of what I was eating.  I am a Pilates instructor.  A personal trainer.  A fitness blogger.  I should not be eating things smothered in gravy, right?

But.

It was good.

And I don't eat like that every day or even every week or month.

So what is the moral of this tale?

It is horrendous that foods like this exist.  If I wanted a big breakfast, I should have made it myself for less calories and fat and definitely less chemicals.  But it is life.  And we all have moments when we indulge, right?  Will I order that again?  Maybe.  Next year.  Did I let it ruin my week?  No way!

Monday I jumped right back into a banana and peanut butter for breakfast, a green smoothie for lunch and as many veggies as I could eat.

So.  Indulge.  Occasionally.  One meal won't make you fat.  But be aware of what you are eating and how often you are taking in the bad vs. the good.  And make sure you will really enjoy what you are indulging in so that you feel satisfied instead of just wanting more.

Have you ever ordered something and searched it later, only to find out it was a calorie monster?

Do you allow yourself to order gravy covered breakfasts?

Do you count calories?  Do you use an app for it?

It's Day 2 of the Green Smoothie Challenge!  How are you doing?

Today I had one of my favorites:

1 bunch kale

1 bunch spinach

4 strawberries

8-10 grapes

1 cup COLD water

Blend until smooth for a refreshing, energizing drink!

Overnight Steel Cut Oats

Why is it that some of the healthiest, yummiest food looks...well...not so pretty?
Today, my recipe is one of those.

I just LOVE overnight recipes.  It feels like Christmas Eve or like waiting for the Tooth Fairy!  Mix a few ingredients together and wake up to magic!  Or breakfast.

1 cup unsweetened almond milk (or your milk of choice)
1/2 cup steel cut oats
Optional add ins:
1-2 tsp sweetener of your choice (I used honey, but maple syrup, agave, raw sugar--all would work great)
A few shakes of cinnamon

Place ingredients in a bowl, stir, cover, and refrigerate overnight, but will taste even better 48 hours later!

For my bowl I added a mashed banana and about 1 tbsp of sunflower seed butter.  Microwaved for 30 seconds and *bam* a super tasty and comforting breakfast.

What add-ins are you going to use?

Does this count as a "raw" recipe?

And, now, I would like to interrupt this blog post for a moment of cuteness and real talk:

Have you seen this?  Eeeep!  Or, rather, Peeeep!  It is so cute but also so very true!  Maybe I am just having a girly/mom moment, but seeing this on GMA this morning made me want to tear up.  And re-post on Instagram.  And now blog about it.

We really are all the same on the inside.  

Pink, green, turquoise, mint...we are still marshmallow fluff on the inside!