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How to Become a Therapy Dog Team, Black Workout Capris, and Getting Ready for Bikini Season

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Hi, I'm Tina!

I’m the owner of Carrots ‘N’ Cake as well as a Certified Nutrition Coach and Functional Diagnostic Nutrition Practitioner (FDN-P). I use macros and functional nutrition to help women find balance within their diets while achieving their body composition goals.

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Goooooood morning to you! I hope your day is off to a fabulous start!  :mrgreen:

So, this blog post is all over the place with all sorts of topics and randomness, but, hey, it might be kind of fun, right? Here we go.

Snack

I had a running date with Kerrie at 11:00 yesterday, so I made myself a snack beforehand. I was starting to get a little hungry, and I can’t exercise on an empty stomach, so I spread a wedge of Light Queso Fresco & Chipotle cheese on a rice cake and topped it with a sprinkle of chipotle chili powder and a couple of slices of red bell pepper. Holy yum! That Queso Fresco & Chipotle Cheese has a serious kick to it!

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Workout

I met Kerrie at KFIT and then we headed out for a run. We hadn’t seen each other in over a week, so we had a lot to talk about. We did a loop around the area and ended up covering about 4.5 miles together.

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I wore a new pair of black capris from Reebok for the run yesterday. They’re the PWR Fitted Capri, and I’m a big fan of them.

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I have to admit, I thought all black capri workout pants were the same, but these one are in a league of their own. First off, they really, truly stay put when you exercise. The legs are fitted at the bottom, so they’re tight, but not restrictive and don’t ride up when I workout.

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These capris also have a wide waistband with a the words “strength” written on the back, so they’re both flattering and motivational at the same time. The material is soft, smooth, and moisture-wicking (PlayDry technology), so it moves with you and keeps you cool. And, at $50, they’re an affordable and high-quality gear option. Love ”˜em!

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Lunch

After running, I headed home to make lunch, which was a Veggie Masala Burger from Trader Joe’s and a baked potato with broccoli and cheese. Yum! Loved this lunch! Why don’t I eat baked potatoes more often? They’re so delicious, nutritious (depending on what you top them with, of course), and satisfying. Baked potatoes might have to become a regular “thing” for me.

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Snack

The sun came out yesterday afternoon and it was a beautiful day.

pug sunning himself

I guess the warm weather and sunshine made me crave fresh juice, so I whipped up a big batch. In the mix: cucumber, celery, apple, red bell pepper, carrots, and ginger.

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I drank my juice while watering our lawn.

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We’re at it again this year”¦

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Let’s hope some grass grows!

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Three Questions Thursday

It’s Thursday, which means Three Questions Thursday happens today! Keep those questions coming!

It’s so great you take Murphy to visit people and I would love to do the same thing with my dog. How did you get him certified as a therapy dog? Did you have to take a class?

I actually just wrote a post for the Count Us In program for Harvard Pilgrim Health Care about how Murphy and I became a therapy dog team. Check it out! How My Dog and I Became a Therapy Dog Team.

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Is it hard to get the at-home UV nail polish off? The stuff from salons is and it destroys my nails. Curious how your nails look when you take the polish off.

I actually just peel it off. The nail polish doesn’t chip at all (it’s amazing!), but, eventually, the polish will start to peel away from my nail. Once it gets really loose, I just peel it off in one piece. The “proper” way to remove the polish is by soaking your nails in acetone, which you can buy at Ulta with the Red Carpet Professional LED kit or at CVS or another drugstore.

Congrats on your healthy colon! I too, have UC and also am in remission. It. is. great. I just have a couple of questions/ comments: Do you eat a gluten free diet? (I dabble in it once in a while, but I slip up because I feel ” too restricted.”) Do you feel like “relaxing” your work outs have helped you to achieve a healthier digestive tract? (I used to train for marathons, it wasn’t until I gave it up that I saw significant improvement; overall.)

I don’t eat a totally gluten-free diet, and I’m still trying to figure it all out. I met with an RD a few weeks ago, and she thought it might be fiber (not gluten) that upsets my stomach (wheat bread verses a cookie), and I think she might be onto something. For example, I ate quite a few scones and toasty white bread sandwiches in Ireland last week and had zero stomach issues, which makes me think gluten might not be the issue. I’m still playing around with different foods and figuring out what works and doesn’t work, but it seems like a low-residue diet keeps my colon happy and healthy.

As far as workouts go, I can’t seem to figure it out for the life of me. I’ve cut back a ton on my workouts and have even taken off entire weeks at a time, but things don’t get better and have even gotten worse at times. It makes no sense. However, running long distances like you mentioned does seem to upset things. When I was having a flare, I often saw more blood after a long or intense (intervals) run. I haven’t been able to correlate my other workouts to my symptoms though. On occasion, certain CrossFit workouts made things worse, but other times, they had no effect at all. I tried to figure out if it was certain movements, type of workout (heavy lifts verses metcon) or duration, but I haven’t been able to find a pattern. My doctor insists that my workouts aren’t causing my flares, so I just try to take it easy when I experience symptoms.

Health News & Views

Spring has officially sprung, which means it’s time to start thinking about bathing suit season. Are you ready?

The thought of slipping into a bathing suit right now might make you feel a little uncomfortable, but some pre-summer planning can get you bikini-ready without much stress. If you start incorporating these easy tips and tricks into your everyday life now, you’ll look and feel great in your bathing suit when the summer weather rolls around!

Easy, Everyday Tips to Get You Ready for Bikini Season

Questions of the Day

Do you have a favorite pair of black workout capris? They’re not all the same, right? 

How do you get ready for bikini season?

Do you like baked potatoes? How often do you eat them?

P.S. The Chicago Running Bloggers are organizing a 5K to raise money for the victims of last week’s Boston Marathon Tragedy. Just wanted to pass along the details: https://www.facebook.com/RunForBoston5k.

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