Our desk jobs and computer savvy lives make it very difficult to go and spend time outside. Even though I workout regularly, I find myself going from my office to gym to home with nearly no time spent outdoors. This got me thinking... A nature lover like me ought to be outside more! Several studies show that spending time outside is highly beneficial for health. So for all you couch potatoes and video game ninjas, try to get your butt out! You will be happier, focus better on work, gain some essential vitamin D (its science!) and enjoy what planet earth has to offer! Its time to unplug and reconnect my friends! Well, spending time outside can be harder in the winter if you live in the northern part of the US. Thankfully, I LOVE to ski! And being in Jackson Hole is the best type of skiing you could possibly do. So for the most part, I will be spending my at least 30 minutes outdoors skiing the badass slopes of Jackson Hole Ski Resort. For the days that I will be working, I will go for a winter run or walk or find some other winter activities to do. Walking and playing with my snow loving dog is also a great way to spend time outdoors! Here is what I did last two days to spend time outside: The first pic is from my 3.6 mile run around my house couple nights back. The second and third from last night walking my dog in super snowy weather in Jackson Hole! What did you do to spend your 30 minutes outside??
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Its the best to run outside! There is so much pretty stuff to look at! The second pic above is when Justin and Snow joined me for my 3rd day! What a great team I have :D My ten day running and yoga challenge went great! I ran 3-4 miles every day and did 30 minutes of yoga. It was refreshing and fun to stick to the challenge for all this time. I also substituted 2 of the yoga sessions with 1 hour long (in and out) sauna sessions at the local YMCA gym. This felt wonderful and was very useful in helping me relax my sore running muscles. I had to substitute two outdoor runs with 2 runs on the treadmill as its been super snowy outside! Here are some of the pics from my run and yoga challenge! Above first two pics from my sauna sessions. Saunas are great for relaxing your body and clearing your skin! I rarely use makeup! Third pic is from my treadmill running session! What kind of challenges do you like to do to meet your health goals?
Stay tuned for my new challenge! I am one of those people who needs deadlines constantly. If I don't have a deadline, its highly likely that I will procrastinate and not get it done. Last few days I have been missing doing yoga and running because I have either been too busy at work or going to CrossFit instead. I want to give my body a break from lifting weights and instead want to focus on stretching, flexibility and breathing exercises. It also happens to be the best running weather in Idaho Falls at the moment! The temperature is between 30 - 50 F and you won't get too hot running even if you tried. So its time for me to put on a running hoody and get on the road.
So, here's the plan. I will run 2-3 miles every day for the next ten day followed by 30 mins - 1 hour of yoga. I will try to post links to youtube videos that I will follow for yoga daily. Ideally, I would like to do a range of yoga routines including Vinayasa, Yin, heated flow, etc. I plan to attend at least a couple of yoga classes in the next few days to have some in person instruction. So excited! Stay tuned for my ten day challenge. You should try too!! Now, I am off to get a quick 2 miler in with my best running buddy: Since its Halloween weekend and pumpkin is literally everywhere, I figured, might as well use it to some good! This cocktail is oh so good and just melts in your mouth. Its comparable to Old Fashioned except the pumpkin bitters used in this drink are delight to the taste buds. Here's the recipe: 1. 2 oz pumpkin bitters (recipe below) 2. 1.5 oz bourbon (I used Jim Bean bourbon) 3. Dash of Couintreu 4. Ice! Mix up the ingredients for a divine halloween cocktail and show off as a classy mixologist to all your guests! The Pumpkin Bourbon wonder looking smashingly good! For pumpkin bitters: 1. Cinderella pumpkin chopped 2. 1 star anise 3. 1 cinnamon stick 4. 6 cloves 5. 1 tsp allspice 6. 1.5 cups sugar 7. 1 quart water Chop up cinderella pumpkin and add with rest of the ingredients to a pot. Bring to boil and simmer for 30 - 40 mins. Keep stirring once every 5 - 7 minutes. Drain and strain the concoction into a separate bowl. I put it in the freezer to cool. Can be stored for a couple weeks. When serving with the cocktail, make sure to completely remove the sediments - it tastes way better! Chopped pumpkin with star anise, cinnamon, cloves, allspice, sugar and water simmering away! Hope you enjoy this Halloweeny/ Fall cocktail!
As a vegetarian, I am the odd one out when visiting Justin's family and when friends invite me for dinner. Part of the reason I wanted to start collecting some of my recipes and favorite dishes was to share them with friends and family who can't figure out how I can survive without meat. Strange, eh? Seriously though, I love those guys. But being vegetarian is awesome and I love it all the time. Justin mentioned that I tend to look for food options only for myself when planning dinner and looking for restaurants. Oops! Thats a bit a selfish of me! But living in Idaho and finding good veggie food options is like spotting a mountain goat in Atlanta. So, I tend to cook at home a lot and get worked up when looking for a restaurant to eat at. I recently decided, for fun (and naturally to be a better person...) that I will match my dinners to what Justin wants to eat. Halloween night, Justin wanted Chicken Cordon Bleu. I have been wanting to make that for him forever! So finding a veggie recipe to go with it was really exciting. I found a recipe for Aubergine Cordon Bleu and modified it a bit so we could cook our dinner together without too much extra mess. Plus its fast and oh so yum!! What you need for one serving: 1. 1 Aubergine sliced to 5mm thick slices 2. Swiss cheese slices (I do think that Pepper jack cheese would taste even better) 3. 1 Tomato thinly sliced 4. Handful chopped thyme, basil 5. 2 Tbsp breadcrumbs (add more if needed) 6. 2 Tbsp all purpose flour (add more if needed) 7. 1 Tbsp parmesan cheese 7. 1 egg 8. 1/2 teaspoon paprika 9. Salt and pepper to taste 10. Toothpicks 1. Preheat the oven to 350 F 2. In a baking pan, spray non stick spray so that the aubergines don't stick to the bottom. 3. Layer the cheese, tomato, thyme and basil on the aubergine. Add salt and pepper to taste. Roll the aubergine slices along with the cheese and tomato and secure these rolls with toothpicks. 4. Crack the egg in a separate bowl. Either brush the egg on the aubergine rolls or dip the aubergine rolls in the egg bowl so that the aubergine rolls are fully coated with egg. 5. In a separate bowl, mix the paprika, flour, breadcrumbs and parmesan cheese and mix them up. Roll the egg coated aubergine rolls in this mix so that they are totally coated with the mix. 6. Place the rolls in the baking tray and bake for 15-20 mins. You want the rolls to be crispy brown so be patient. 7. Remove, serve and enjoy! Sliced Aubergine and tomato (top left) and the mix of flour, breadcrumbs, cheese and paprika (top right) Rolled aubergine slices with cheese, tomato, basil, thyme and salt and pepper (top left). Aubergine rolls covered with first egg and then the flour breadcrumb mix (top center). Ready to eat Aubergine Cordon Bleu! Yay! This is really delicious recipe and I am so glad I came cross it. I will definitely repeat at least monthly (if not more) because its quick to put together and you can't go wrong with it. Hope you enjoy this vegetarian cordon bleu!! |
MahimaNuclear Engineer, Product and Strategy expert, Vegetarian, Adventurer. Categories
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