Weekly Recap

I realized that I didn’t do a recap last week, and I guess I am not totally sure whether I am going to do them on the same days of the week or not, but I wanted to throw a small one in!

I started my week off on Monday with a green smoothie, a great arm workout, and some vegetable-packed ground chicken chili. Monday evening was a little rough for me. It can be difficult to work full-time and be in the mood to go to the gym after a long day of work. Sometimes, a pre-workout will help get me in the mood, but if I have it too close to time I try to go to sleep, I’m very restless. So, I unfortunately didn’t get as much sleep as I’d have liked and was a little groggy the next day.

Tuesday morning started with another green smoothie packed with fruits, vegetables, superfoods, and seeds. I had a delicious salad for lunch – it consisted of kale, romaine, red and green cabbage, cucumber, avocado, quinoa, and edamame. After work, I tried to do some relaxing yoga and deep stretching so I could help myself get to sleep better. I love to dim the lights (I have white tree lights up year-round), light a candle, and play some soft music in the background. I graded some papers and fell into bed.

Wednesday was super-busy at work, but I was excited to go to the happy hour later! We headed over to Deja Brew, a bar in Oak Lawn that has a pretty unique list of craft beers and tons of different whiskeys. The group I was with got roasted vegetable flatbread, pretzel sticks, veggie nachos with radishes, and southwest egg rolls. I did indulge in an Irish mule (they had a ton of themed drinks for St. Patrick’s Day) and a raspberry cider.

Thursday was a stormy day in Chicago. It was dark and pouring for most of the day with sporadic thunder and lightning. It was a good day for reading some unresolved mysteries on my lunch break – I don’t know who else goes down the Reddit rabbit holes, but the gloomy weather set the perfect tone for some unsettling chillers.

After work, I met up with my best friend for dinner. She can work some very long hours sometimes and she has 5 dogs to take care of, so we don’t get to see each other as often as we’d like, but we always have a blast when we make time!

We went to Nickson’s Eatery in La Grange. It was a small and quaint spot, and they have some really interesting items on the menu! I went with a sandwich that had pickle-brined chicken, sweet vinegar slaw, red chili gouda, and “come back” sauce on a pretzel bun with their mixed greens as my side. I try to keep the carb count low, but I am a total sucker for pretzel buns, and I don’t beat myself up for having them once in a while!

Friday was another cold and windy day, and I had a dentist appointment in the morning. No cavities! After my appointment, I walked Oliver for about a mile. I realized that I had forgotten my gloves and had to wear this old pair of work gloves of my dad’s – I looked totally ridiculous, like a cartoon character with oversize gloves, but at least they kept my hands warm!

I had a little extra time before I had to be at work, so I made a quick trip to Mariano’s for a small “fun” grocery haul. I get the majority of my vegetables and protein at Aldi because it’s more cost-effective, but Mariano’s and Whole Foods have more specialty items that I can’t find elsewhere.

I got some sparkling antioxidant water, the Beyond Meat burgers (my favorite!), siggis yogurt (vanilla with almonds and cherries and vanilla with cinnamon, apples, almonds and oats) roasted garlic hummus, and Lara, Perfect, and RX bars! The Perfect bars are a little higher in calories, so I usually have those as a pre-workout snack, but they are absolutely delicious.

After work, I headed to the gym. I used an exercise ball to work out my inner thighs, abs, and legs. I also did lunges, leg lifts, and squat jump variations on a step-board, and I wrapped up with twenty minutes of high intensity exercise on the elliptical.

After the gym, I got home and had a cashew and blueberry Perfect bar and some sparkling water, and now I’m blogging and listening to music (currently playing: Deftones – Hexagram) with Julian! I don’t have a ton planned this weekend, but we’re going to get our taxes done tomorrow and hopefully make a trip to a forest preserve on Sunday. Personally, I want to be as far away as possible from the St. Patrick’s Day parades in Chicago – I know it’s a tradition, but some people have no chill, and I’d rather take my dog out to explore!

What’s everyone else’s plans for the weekend?