Cantaloupe Salsa + Liebster Award!

This was from our post-class (well, for half of us, anyway) potluck feast. :D The recipe is from here and it makes about 2 cups. :] (I portioned each serving as 1/4-cup.)

Cantaloupe Salsa

19 calories, 5g CHO’s, 1g protein, 0g fat, 1g fiber, 87mg sodium per serving!

Ingredients:
-2 cups cantaloupe, diced
-1/4 cup sweet onion, diced
-2 tbsp cilantro, chopped
-1 2-in. fresh green chile, minced
-2 tbsp fresh lime juice
-1/4 tsp salt

Instructions:
1) Mix everything and eat immediately.

This was a sampling of the awesomeness there was to be consumed.

There were also a bunch of other desserts (sadly not pictured :[ )!

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Super abrupt change of topics! :O I’ve been nominated for the Liebster award! Thank you to Theresa over at Glitterbombs of Glory (I love that name, haha :D ). I’m not sure I have 10 people to nominate because everyone at GGS seems to have gotten it already, but if anyone’s up for answering 10 questions, lemme know!

Here were the questions I got:
1. What was your first race?
I’m so glad I actually have an answer to this question, hahaha. My first and only race was the 2010 Nike Women’s Marathon. I enjoy lifting weights, pole dancing, hula/Tahitian dancing, BJJ, kickboxing, pilates, yoga…so in short, running kinda falls at the very very bottom of the list. I like sprinting! (I don’t think that counts though. :[ ) Oh, the plight of having crappy type I muscle fibers. :/ I make up for it with my Type II’s though!

2. Why did you start your blog?
I’ve been writing in journals for the past 14 years, but this particular blog was started for two main reasons:

• To keep my closest friends updated on my life after I moved across the country for grad school (and right after that, for med school). I kept it pretty much hidden from the rest of the world for several years since I’m a fairly private person. :o
• To have a place to stockpile all the recipes I’ve tried out :]

3. What is your favorite motivation to keep working out?
In short, I am fueled by two things:

• My vanity and dreams of badassery (I want to set all the state records in powerlifting for my weight class)
• I’d like to be able to lead by example for my future patients. Somehow, I think they’re less likely to listen to me about healthy dietary choices/incorporating exercise into their lives if it’s completely blatant that I’m not practicing what I preach/I know nothing about it.

4. What is your favorite post-race meal?
A sushi buffet with unlimited salmon sashimi. :] If that’s not an option, I would probably go for Amphawa Thai Noodle House in San Francisco, because I’ve pretty much decided that it’s the best Thai restaurant on the planet.

5. If you could run anywhere in the world, where would it be?
All over Hawai’i! (I’d really love to be in a warm/hot, tropical place right now, but alas.)

6. How do you share your trail of glitter and sparkle?
I like making the people around me happy, and even more so for close friends, so I like sending them care packages and/or cooking them foods that I know they’ll like. :] I’m a big believer in karma and the whole, “you reap what you sow” philosophy. I think I’ve been incredibly blessed to have the people that are in my life with me, so I try to do what I can for them whenever I can.

7. What is your favorite fitness activity?
This is a toss-up between powerlifting and pole-dancing. I love em’ both equally. Don’t make me choose!

8. What is the best piece of advice you’ve heard about blogging and/or fitness?
I have issues with the “fitspo” quotes that put down other body types and/or focus solely on looking hot. Yes, looking great is awesome, but if that’s your only source of motivation, it can very quickly and easily lead you down an unhealthy path. As for body-shaming, everyone has to start from somewhere, and there is absolutely no need to bring someone else down in order to make yourself feel better.

Two that I’ve come across recently are…

• “I’m working on a new me, not because the old me is bad, but because the old me can improve.”
• “My goal doesn’t have a finish line; that’s why it’s a lifestyle.” (This goes hand in hand with my EXB t-shirt.)

I’ve always thought of myself as a “work in progress” of sorts, and while I know I’ll never be perfect, that’s fine with me, because I’ll always have something to strive for. :]

9. What is your favorite meal to cook?
Lately, I’ve been on a salmon kick. (When am I ever not on a salmon kick? I’m usually too poor to buy it, but as I’ve been living at my friend’s, this has changed.) The latest was Sweet & Spicy Dijon-Encrusted Salmon (…recipe scheduled to be posted in the beginning-ish of June, because I wrote everything wayyy too far in advance).

10. Any suggestions on a new race to sign up for?
I want to do a Tough Mudder at some point in my life! Or be a zombie in a zombie run. :D

I’m tagging…

• Diana @ HIIT Mom
• Lindsay @ Your Fit Trip
• Montana @ Pretty Lil Mudder

These ladies are part of my team over at Girls Gone Sporty! :] Check their blogs out if you have a chance! :D

1) Describe your favorite workout.
2) What do you like to do to wind down and relax after a long/stressful day?
3) What’s your biggest challenge when it comes to fitness?
4) Do you have a favorite brand of workout clothes?
5) What are some of your favorite songs on your workout playlist? (If you don’t have one, what are some of your favorite songs in general? :] )
6) What never fails to make you happy?
7) Favorite meal to cook (or eat)?
8) What are 3 of your future goals?
9) If you could change one thing about the world, what would it be?
10) What’s your dream job?

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Kahlua-Baked Brie

Lemme just throw in a disclaimer that this stuff is in no way healthy, but it is delicious in every way possible and you need to try it. I don’t usually even like cheese and I still thought it was amazing and couldn’t stop eating it. :O (We spread it on crackers. <3 ) Billions of thanks to Rey for giving us this idea. *-*
This is pretty much one of the easiest recipes in the world because you never have to remember portions (it’s 1:1 for everything).

Kahlua Brie

Ingredients:
-1/2 cup Kahlua
-1/2 cup brown sugar
-1/2 cup pecans
-1/2 small round of brie

Instructions:
1) Preheat oven to 350. Bake the brie for 15 minutes.
2) While brie is baking, pour kahlua + brown sugar into a saucepan and bring to a boil. Simmer for ~10-15 minutes. Add the pecans and stir to mix.
3) Pour kahlua mixture over the brie.
4) Serve on crackers!

Creamy Salsa Dip

My friend’s boyfriend was in town for Labor Day weekend, so we decided to have a late lunch, despite the fact that I’d had 3 plates of food about 1.5 hours before heading over. My church feeds me well, and I have a problem with eating everything on sight.

Homemade whole wheat roll, potato salad, vegan mac n cheese (made with “cashew cheese”), stuffed zucchini + salad (romaine lettuce, bell peppers, half a drizzle of vidalia onion dressing).

Twas delicious! He recreated one of their favorite salads from Panera (Spinach Power Salad). “Fresh baby spinach, roasted mushrooms + onion blend, diced eggs, applewood smoked bacon, frizzled onions + smoky Vidalia onion vinaigrette.” I’m gonna have to try to recreate this one of these days.

I had to pick all the bacon bits out, but it was well worth it. :O

The salsa wasn’t made from scratch, but perhaps next time! We enjoyed them on almond crackers, which are a new discovery to me. They are delicious, and come in a bunch of different flavors!

Creamy Salsa Dip

Ingredients:
-salsa
-cream cheese

Instructions:
1) Mix until smooth.

(It’ll be less lumpy if you use a block of cream cheese instead of the fluffy one that she had at the time. :O )

Avocado Pesto

I meant to add nutritional yeast flakes too, but forgot about it. It was late. :/ You can use this as a spread, a dip, a pasta sauce (probably best not to reheat it though)…the possibilities are endless! :D I didn’t have pine nuts (they’re morbidly expensive), so I subbed with cashews instead.

Avocado Pesto

Ingredients:
-2 avocados, peeled with seed removed
-handful of basil leaves
-2 handfuls of cashews
-garlic powder, to taste
-black pepper, to taste
-splash of lemon juice

Instructions:
1) Combine everything into a food processor and blend until smooth.

Yogurt Fruit Dip

I was desperately trying to fight off a sickness of some sort back near the end of April, so aside from guzzling fluids like there was no tomorrow, I also bought some strawberries (they were on sale!) to bring along to the potluck we were having. I thought it’d be kinda cool to bring along a dip of sorts, so I made a really simple/quick one.

Yogurt Fruit Dip

Ingredients:
-1 cup of plain greek yogurt (Fage 0%)
-2 tbsp natural peanut butter
-brown sugar, to taste

Instructions:
1) Mix everything together.