25 Days Of A Slimmer Christmas!

The idea behind this is to get you more aware of what you are eating and how much you are being physically active. I know some people don't want to deprive themselves of a certain food but the idea behind this is figure out some alternatives so that you have variety in your diet. Give it a shot you never know what you might discover. So I figured what better time to really focus on staying on track than at the holidays?

Each day you will have something new that you need to follow whether it be a food restriction, adding more exercise, making healthy substitutions etc. 

I thought of this because I need a jump start to get me back on track and get me through the upcoming holiday season. Then I thought why not include my friends and family and make it a fun challenge with prizes and all! 

So here are the guidelines:

 Challenge will begin at 12am on December 1^st and end at 11:59pm on December 25^th (Christmas day).

 There will be three prizes awarded:

1^st – Most points earned

2^nd – Most weight lost

3^rd – Most creative

I am not telling you which prizes are for what that you'll just have to wait to find out. 

Here are the three prizes: 
- Picnic Gift Basket
- Rest and Relaxation Gift Basket 
(made especially to the winners likes) 
-A one year subscription to The Food Network Magazine. 

So hope those are incentive enough for you!

For the entire challenge you must complete these two things - this is the base and it grows from here.

• Must do at least 30 minutes of physical activity 4 times a week (physical activity could be anything. If you are currently not physically active start small)
• Make a restriction to one unhealthy food that you really like or find that you have been over indulging in daily. Meaning you cut back on the amount or you cut it out of your diet completely for the 25 days.

Here are the daily requirements, some of them continue from that day until the challenge ends so please read carefully:

December 1^st – Drink 6-8 glasses of water for the remainder of the challenge

December 2^nd – Eat a healthy breakfast

December 3^rd – Vegetarian day! Every meal must be vegetarian (get creative trying new proteins)

December 4^th – No fast food for the remainder of the challenge

December 5^th – Eat only 100% whole wheat (ie. Pasta, bread, rice, crackers, etc)

December 6^th – No snacking on things like chips, Doritos, pretzels, etc.

December 7^th – Do 15 Minutes of Guided Meditation

December 8^th – Plan and prepare all your meals for the following day

December 9^th – Add 15 minutes to your physical activity

December 10^th - No candy for the remainder of the challenge

December 11^th – Eat 5 servings of fruits or vegetables

December 12^th – No peanut butter for the remainder of the challenge

December 13^th - Limit your caffeine intake

December 14^th - No ice cream for the remainder of the challenge

December 15^th – Eat fruit with breakfast as well as 1 snack

December 16^th – Get a friend or family member to exercise with you that is not part of the challenge

December 17^th – No chocolate for the remainder of the challenge

December 18^th – Replace your dessert with a piece of fruit or yogurt

December 19^th – Complete one random act of kindness (The more creative the better)

December 20^th – No take out for the remainder of the challenge

December 21^st – Do 20 minutes of guided meditation

December 22^nd – Try a new exercise/class or do something that isn't part of your general routine.

December 23^rd – Eat fish (If you are vegetarian or vegan: Try a new protein or one you don’t eat as often)

December 24^th – Try a new vegetable

December 25^th – Use weights or resistance in your physical activity

Here is how you will earn points throughout the challenge:

-If you complete each of the individual daily requirements you will earn 1 point for each one you do .  

-For all the cumulative requirements you will earn an additional point for each day that you continue to follow that requirement.

-If you complete the required 4 times a week of at least 30 minutes of physical activity you will receive 1 point for each week. (week will be from Saturday to Friday).

-You will earn 2 points per week for your personal restriction.
.

-You will also earn 1 point for each additional day that you add in at least 30 minutes of physical activity above the required 4 times a week. 

Here is how to make sure I know about creativity:

I will be providing you with a log. When you complete each day be sure to add as much detail as possible about what you ate, what your physical activity was, something that helped you accomplish that days tasks. The more you give me and the more creative you are the better!

For weight loss:

This will be on your honor. If you would like to be in this part of the challenge be sure when you email me that you include your starting weight and then at the end you will resubmit with your ending weight.

Now let the fun begin!!

If you would like to participate please email alysadventures@gmail.com with your name (include twitter and blog if applicable) as well as what unhealthy food you are making restrictions too and what the restrictions are. If you would like be part of the weight loss challenge please include your starting weight.

 I need to receive your email ASAP so I can send out the logs to everyone.

Once I receive your email I will be emailing you a confirmation that I received your entry and I will also attach an excel log for the challenge. If you do not receive a confirmation email within 24 hours then please resend your email.
I will also be creating a facebook group as a support system during our challenge so we can keep each other motivated!!
Please use the log each day as you will need to send it back to me when the challenge is over to be eligible for the prizes. Remember, be as creative as you can. See if you can come up with new workouts, try new recipes, etc.

Also it would great if you tweet and FB your daily sucess by using #25daysslimmer

End of challenge:

Between December 26^th until December 30^th please submit your log. Also include notes of things you liked, didn't like etc. If you are part of the weight loss challenge also include your ending weight. I will send out a reminder to submit your log so you don’t miss out as this is a very busy time of year!

I will announce the winners the beginning of January.

Please let me know if you have any questions.

Happy Challenge!

March Foodie Penpal Reveal!

It's that time again to reveal my foodie penpal package for March! It came from Marie all the way from Ohio state. I can't thank her enough for her thoughtfulness, she really listened to my likes and dislikes.

I opened the box and the first thing I saw was this...

The color immediately caught my eye because I have a new love of lime green with it being the lymphoma awareness ribbon color. Marie sent this to me because I had told her and she checked out my blog that I was a cancer survivor. This it from her school. They do a dance marathon every year called Buckeyethon to raise money for Nationwide's children's Hospital hematology/oncology department. I was thrilled to learn about such a great thing Ohio State does and of course all the goodies inside!!

The first thing that I pulled out was a yummy jar of peanut butter. peanut butter is one of my all time favorite foods so I was thrilled.

But this wasn't just any ordinary peanut butter, this one was packed full with even more portein than normal and it is all natural! And boy is it yummy. Marie also sent me the recipe for the traditional Buckeyes which I plan on using some of this peanut butter to make!

Next out of the bag were these little gems...

The thought behind these yummy Dessert Delights was that I told Marie I love baked goods but that I was trying to stay on the healthy side of things. These are great I did try them and then ended up giving them to my friend only because chewing gum aggravates my TMJ which I suppose I should tell people about but I always forget. either way they tasted great and I love the thought and idea behind them.

Then last but certainly not least was this...

It isn't just your normal run of the mill hot chocolate though. It is a nutritional supliment which according to Marie's note has added protein in it. I think this will be great to save as a recovery treat after one my road races or long training days! Marie if you read this could please send the brand name and maybe the nutritional information?

Thank you again Marie for this package. You really did an amazing job thinking about lots of different things about me. And also thanks to Lindsay over at The Lean Green Bean for creating this program and running it so well for all of us!

Now for the fun part how you all can get involved...

-Just head over to Lindsay's Blog and click on the link to sign up.

-On the 5th of the month, you will receive your penpal pairing via email. It will be your responsibility to contact your penpal and get their mailing address and any other information you might need like allergies or dietary restrictions.
-You will have until the 15th of the month to put your box of goodies in the mail. On the last day of the month, you will post about the goodies you received from your penpal!
-The boxes are to be filled with fun foodie things, local food items or even homemade treats! The spending limit is $15. The box must also include something written. This can be anything from a note explaining what’s in the box, to a fun recipe…use your imagination!
-You are responsible for figuring out the best way to ship your items depending on their size and how fragile they are. (Don’t forget about flat rate boxes!)
-Foodie Penpals is open to blog readers as well as bloggers. If you’re a reader and you get paired with a blogger, you can choose to write a short guest post for your penpal to post on their blog about what you received. If two readers are paired together, neither needs to worry about writing a post for that month.
- Foodie Penpals is open to US, Canadian residents & UK residents.   

Please note, Canadian Residents will be paired with other Canadians only. We’ve determined things might get too slow and backed up if we’re trying to send foods through customs across the border from US to Canada and vice versa. So, I’m going to keep two separate lists and match US w/ US and Canada w/ Canada! 

***If you’re in the UK, please contact Carol Anne from This Is Rock Salt at rocksalt@thisisrocksalt.com to get involved.

Tri Mania Expo

I found out about the Tri Mania Expo very late. I got an email from Max Performance because they had a booth at the expo. I had no idea such an expo existed so I looked into it. This was Thursday and the expo was Saturday. I got Sara to go with me so I registered. It was hard to believe there was this whole expo with seminars and it was free!

I did also take a look at the clinics they were offering as well. There was only one that I was interested in called eating to peak. However it started at 8am which meant I would of had to out of the house by 6:30 to get there on time. I decided against that, leaving at 8am was  early enough.

We got there at about 9:15 and headed in to the seminar room. There they were talking about the science of training which turned out to be quite interesting. But the one at 9:45am is what we were
really there for, The triathletes guide to weight loss and weight management by Nancy Clark. It was fantastic!

I already knew that weight loss relies mainly on diet and not exercise. But I know I was one of those people that thought 'I have increased my training so much why am I not loosing more weight.' This reminded me that I need to focus on what I am eat as well as my training.

I loved that Nancy took the time to explain how to cut calories and still have the energy you need to train. 

I also had no idea how to figure out how many calories you burn without additional exercise so this part was also extremely helpful! All in all this was a fantastic seminar and I definitely learned a lot of new things that will help with my training.

After the weight loss and weight management seminar there was another seminar about preparing for a triathlon swim. Sara and I both decided that was something we would be interested in staying for as well. It was lead by Rick Lil. As the seminar got started we quickly learned that it wasn't going to be what we thought it was. I then read the whole description of the seminar and realized that it was dealing with the mental/anxiety part of the swim. Which don't get me wrong is a very big part of it but not what we thought we were going to be hearing about. We thought it was going to be more of play by play on how the swims were going to go. But that is what you get for not reading everything. It was still helpful to learn about how to learn to figure out where your stress or anxiety is coming from and how to deal with it in a way that will help you get through the swim.

After that there was a break and there weren't really any seminars that we wanted to go to until later in the day so we headed down to the expo.

I learned a lot from the seminars but the expo was what I was looking forward to the most. Although I have done one triathlon I am still a newbie and really don't know all that much or have all the appropriate gear so this was the place to be!

We walked in and there was a crowd of people but it wasn't overly crowded which was nice. We were only about three booths in when I spotted the Leukemia and Lymphoma Societies Team In Training booth. Since I had been an honored hero for two of their training teams I figured I would take a look at what races they were starting teams for to see if there were any I wanted to do. One the immediately caught my eye was the Tufts 10K For Women. Since I had started this whole "racing" lifestyle everyone I have talked to (well all the women I had talked to) raved about the Tufts 10K. I really wanted to do it BUT it is held on Columbus Day and that is a teacher training day at my school and they don't let you have the day off. So I wasn't going to do it. Sara talked me into it with the argument of the race will always be on Columbus Day so sooner or later I will have to take that day off. So I signed up and then of course played the same trick on her and so now we are signed up together. I think this will be fun!

We then moved onto another booth that was online training/coaching for athletes of all kinds. Sara was interested so she was talking to them. Not that it isn't something I would be interested in but unless someone wants to sponsor my training there is no way I can afford to have coaching. But they sounded great!

I started to think about how I should tweet that we just join TNT and realized I didn't have my phone. Now I have never lost my phone and since this was a huge expo I figured it was long gone. The only saving grace in my head was that I could use find my iphone and at least maybe get it back or delete everything on it (which would suck royally). The only place it could be was in the seminar room so we left and headed back up there; in the middle of them talking to Sara I might add.

As we were walking along the hallway we looked at all the little places we stopped. but of course I noticed this right when a seminar was letting out so we were basically going up stream. As we were walking along a man asked us if we were looking for a cellphone. I of course said yes and he told me that he had told one of the volunteers about it and they should have it. Ironically enough he recognized me from being up there earlier. Sure enough I walked in the they had it sitting on the table. I was so thrilled!! I guess there is still good in this world and not everyone is out to just take things. So now that that little crisis was averted we headed back to the expo and Sara finished with the online coaching.

There was some great things there

We got this calendar that actually has a lot of the races on it for you. The good/bad thing was that once we looked through it we found a bunch more that we wanted to do!

There were also lots of place giving out free samples!

I have never tried either on these. The Aero Shot sounded interesting it is basically just a very fine powder that you suck into your mouth and it dissolves almost instantly. I will definitely let you know how that one works if I use it during one of my races.

Max Performance was also there and they were giving away a wet suit which would have been great to win. Tim one of the race directors was there and we got to chat a little as was Megan one of their swim instructors. I was also able to saving $10 on my registration to the Title 9 Women's Triathlon in Hopkinton this fall which is always a plus cause we all know how expensive this can be. I loved the experience with Max Performance last year so I am looking forward to doing not only the Title 9 but also the Mass State this year!

We also met a lot of teams and clubs that were around the area which was cool. There were several that sounded like they were fun and also more low key. As in perfect for me because they were more focused on offering training but in a go at your own pace kind of way. I was really interested in Dreamfar Triathlon Club but all their trainings I am already booked and they are in concord so that wasn't overly exciting but they were so nice I would have seriously considered joining them.

I also found a place that I could finally get some stuff that says triathlete etc. So of course I bought this for my car!

I also got a triathlon license plate holder cause why not make the car complete? The best part is that I really don't look like what most people think of when they say triathlete and neither does my husband so we get some funny looks but hey I did it therefore I am a triathlete!

For those of you who know me you know I LOVE the color purple so when the people from Hero Triathlon told us we could take a swim cap I just had to get this one. Who doesn't need an extra swim cap? The why not wear one that says be a hero? I have already worn mine during one of my training swims this week.

I then found something I thought was too good to be true. It is called Choffy! Now when you think about Choffy you might think it is some kind of gourmet coffee or something. I know I certainly did. However I couldn't have been more wrong. It is actually brewed chocolate. Well actually brewed cocoa beans to be exact. I could not wait to try this. They added french vanilla creamer to it which gave just enough sweetness/flavor. It was really good. I am really upset that I didn't buy some while we were there cause now I have to order it to get any because there is no store or distributor here. But I have to say if you ever get a chance to try it go for it because it really is good!

The most upsetting thing that because we registered so late we were not one of the people that got a swag bag. HOWEVER at 1pm if there were any leftover they were giving them on a first come first serve basis. Sara and I were first in line, which aside from being the most likely way to getting a bag we also got to chat with one of the volunteers who as it turns out is also a blood cancer survivor and had done a race with Team In Training. So needless to say we ended up with a swag bag and it was filled with some fun stuff...take a look!

All in all this was a fun experience and I will definitely be going back again. Hopefully as I get more into triathlons and get more comfortable with my own abilities I will be able to get involved with the competition parts as well.

Thanks to everyone at Tri Mania for arranging this. Of course to all the volunteers cause lets face it with everything relates to theses kinds of races, etc they wouldn't be possible without and this certainly wouldn't have been either. and last but certainly not least all the vendors and presenters for the seminars. I learned so much and feel like I am more prepared for my adventures ahead of me!

A Delicious Experiment!

My class did a berry tasting last week. We turned it into snack and they got to choose which berries they wanted to mix with their yogurt. As it turned out there was a giant bowl of cut up strawberries and blueberries that was left over. I don't know about you but I hate throwing perfectly good fruit away. So I put it into a bag a brought it home.

When the weekend rolled around I knew I had to make something with it before it went bad. But I had no idea what I wanted to make. Then I remembered a strawberry bread that a friend of mine had made and figured it would be fun to make a bread. I turned to my friend Google and started searching for a recipe. After not that long I came across this recipe for strawberry nut bread.

I got started. I already knew that I wanted to change the recipe slightly by using whole wheat flour instead of bleached flour, I was planning on omitting the nuts and using a mix of the strawberries and blueberries. I started collecting the ingredients and got to the cinnamon. I looked all over the kitchen with no luck. Then I remembered my husband had made a cheesecake recently and asked where the cinnamon was. That is when he told me it was gone. Cinnamon is not really something you can replace with a similar taste so I thought I wasn't going to make this after all. But I remembered I had this...

I dumped some into my small food processor and pulsed until it was basically a cinnamon flavored wheat flour. I got about a 1/2 cup from what I processed. I filled the remainder of the cup with oats. So I eliminated a cup of flour. I also cut the sugar down to only one cup. I also thought the 1 1/4 cup of vegetable oil was alot. If I had bananas I think I would have tried to substitute with them but I was all out. As it turns out I had chocolate flavored olive oil that my cousin had given me for Christmas so I used 1/4 cup of that and 3/4 vegetable oil (I cut out 1/4 oil as well). I mixed everything together except the fruit and the batter was a little thick. I added a 1/4 of water to thin it out a little. I folded in the fruit and it seemed to be working.

I like to be able to give things away as gifts so I decided to put this into small loaf pans. It made four small loaves. I spooned the batter and in and they were ready for the oven.

I just hoped this little experiment of mine worked out.

After about 50-60 minutes they seemed to be done. I pulled them out of the oven and let them cool.

I could not wait to taste them. So I sliced it up and hoped for the best!

It was fantastic! I even got my husband to try it and he was just as surprised as I was at how good it turned out. I have since tried it for breakfast adding a little bit of chocolate peanut butter to it and it is just as delicious! If you want to give it a try I have included my adjusted recipe but you can always what kind of experiment you can come up with!

Strawberry Blueberry Bread:
2 Cups whole wheat flour
1/2 cup processed cinnamon harvest Kashi cereal
1/2 cup oats
1 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
1 cup sugar
2 cups sliced strawberries and whole blueberries
4 eggs
1 cup oil
1/4 cup water

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Lightly grease 4 4x2.5 inch loaf pans.
2. Sift together the flour, cereal, oats, baking soda, salt and sugar in a large mixing bowl. Make a well in the center. Beat together the eggs and oil and pour them into the well. Stir just enough to moisten the ingredients. If batter is thick slowly add in up to 1/4 cup of water. Fold in the strawberries and blueberries. Pour mixture into prepared pans; fill containers no more than half full.
3. Bake in a preheated oven about 60 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool 20 to 30 minutes before removing from pans. Move to a rack to cool completely before slicing.

January Foodie Penpal Reveal

I am a little late posting this as I was debating what I wanted to do as I have the unfortunate experience of being one of those participants who foodie penpal went MIA and unfortunately did not receive a package this month. I just have to say that it was not a pleasant experience knowing that I worked hard to put together a package for my foodie penpal and then did not get the joy that usually accompanies this program, you know the feeling like when it's christmas and you get to open all your presents. I will say this was of absolutely not fault but my foodie penpals. Lindsay did what she could to try and get in touch with them but like me had no luck. So Since I have no reveal and Amy who I sent a package to does not have a blog I am going to share her thoughts on her package. I hope that is allowed.

Amy was fantastic, when I emailed her asking about her diet and likes/dislikes she got right back to me. She told me she and her family try very hard to adhere to being vegan. I am not vegan and had never put together a vegan but I took this challenge and made it my mission to make sure everything fit within her life style. She was even nice enough to get her package a little bit later than usual as I was away until January 17th but made sure she got it within plenty of time.

Here is what she had to say about it:

Thank you so much for the box of delicious food.  I'm eating some dark chocolate as I write this.  We have had so much fun trying new things.  My kids (I have 7 children ages 7 mo - 12) were enthralled with the coconut and plantains.  They were curious about the seaweed and had fun trying to get each other to eat it.  Today for lunch I broke out the chips and salsa.  I have never had tomato-free salsa and I must say, we all loved it!  Especially my husband.  This is a high compliment coming from him.  He grows heirloom tomatoes and we've lived in Mexico off and on over the years so he is picky about his salsa.  It was delicious.  We have enjoyed everything. 

Your thoughtfulness did not go unnoticed by my daughter Hannah who commented, with delight, "We can eat all this stuff.  It's all vegan, isn't it!"  I must admit I plucked out the chocolate and the kids don't know it was ever in there.  Just a little something for mommy. :)

I love Trader Joe's.  I lived in Ohio and would drive an hour to Cincinnati to shop.  We just got one in Utah and, again, it's an hour drive.  I haven't made the trek but your box of goodies have tempted me to make it a priority.

Thanks again, Alyson.  You made this such an enjoyable experience from your first upbeat, inquisitive email to this gorgeous box of food. 

Your friend,

Amy

I was so thrilled that not only Amy enjoyed it but that she also got to share it with her family. This is what Foodie penpals is usually like and I can't wait for February's package! Here is the info for those of you that would like to take part in March's program:

• On the 5th of every month, you will receive your penpal pairing via email. It will be your responsibility to contact your penpal and get their mailing address and any other information you might need like allergies or dietary restrictions.
• You will have until the 15th of the month to put your box of goodies in the mail. On the last day of the month, you will post about the goodies you received from your penpal!
• The boxes are to be filled with fun foodie things, local food items or even homemade treats! The spending limit is $15. The box must also include something written. This can be anything from a note explaining what’s in the box, to a fun recipe…use your imagination!
• You are responsible for figuring out the best way to ship your items depending on their size and how fragile they are. (Don’t forget about flat rate boxes!)
• Foodie Penpals is open to blog readers as well as bloggers. If you’re a reader and you get paired with a blogger, you are to write a short guest post for your penpal to post on their blog about what you received. If two readers are paired together, neither needs to worry about writing a post for that month.
• Foodie Penplas is open to US, Canadian & European residents. Please note, Canadian Residents will be paired with other Canadians only. Same with Europeans. We’ve determined things might get too slow and backed up if we’re trying to send foods through customs across the border from US to Canada and vice versa.

If you’re from the US or Canada and are in participating for November, please CLICK HERE to fill out the participation form and read the terms and conditions.

You must submit your information by March 4th as pairings will be emailed on March 5th!

*If you’re from Europe, please CLICK HERE to signup.

Hope you go out and find your own adventure,
Aly

25 Days Of A Slimmer Christmas Challenge!

The idea behind this is to get you more aware of what you are eating and how much you are being physically active. I know some people don't want to deprive themselves of a certain food but the idea behind this is figure out some alternatives so that you have variety in your diet. Give it a shot you never know what you might discover. So I figured what better time to really focus on staying on track than at the holidays?

Each day you will have something new that you need to follow whether it be a food restriction, adding more exercise, making healthy substitutions etc. 

I thought of this because I need a jump start to get me back on track and get me through the upcoming holiday season. Then I thought why not include my friends and family and make it a fun challenge with prizes and all! 

So here are the guidelines:

 Challenge will begin at 12am on December 1^st and end at 11:59pm on December 25^th (Christmas day).

 There will be three prizes awarded:

1^st – Most points earned

2^nd – Most weight lost

3^rd – Most creative

I am not telling you which prizes are for what that you'll just have to wait to find out. 

Here are the three prizes: 
- $50 Spa Gift Card
- Rest and Relaxation Gift Basket 
(made especially to the winners likes) 
-A one year subscription to The Food Network Magazine. 

So hope those are incentive enough for you!

For the entire challenge you must complete these two things - this is the base and it grows from here.

• Must do at least 30 minutes of physical activity 4 times a week (physical activity could be anything. If you are currently not physically active start small)
• Make a restriction to one unhealthy food that you really like or find that you have been over indulging in daily. Meaning you cut back on the amount or you cut it out of your diet completely for the 25 days.

Here are the daily requirements some of them continue from that day until the challenge ends so please read carefully:

December 1^st – Drink 6-8 glasses of water for the remainder of the challenge

December 2^nd – Eat a healthy breakfast

December 3^rd – Vegetarian day! Every meal must be vegetarian (get creative trying new proteins)

December 4^th – No fast food for the remainder of the challenge

December 5^th – Eat only 100% whole wheat (ie. Pasta, bread, rice, crackers, etc)

December 6^th – No snacking on things like chips, Doritos, pretzels, etc.

December 7^th – Take a walk either after lunch or after dinner.

December 8^th – Plan and prepare all your meals for the following day

December 9^th – Add 15 minutes to your physical activity

December 10^th - No candy for the remainder of the challenge

December 11^th – Eat 5 servings of fruits or vegetables

December 12^th – No peanut butter for the remainder of the challenge

December 13^th - Limit your caffeine intake

December 14^th - No Chocolate for the remainder of the challenge

December 15^th – Eat fruit with breakfast as well as 1 snack

December 16^th – Get a friend or family member to exercise with you that is not part of the challenge

December 17^th – No ice cream for the remainder of the challenge

December 18^th – Replace your dessert with a piece of fruit or yogurt

December 19^th – Complete one random act of kindness (The more creative the better)

December 20^th – No take out for the remainder of the challenge

December 21^st – 1 alcoholic beverage allowed (If you do not drink alcohol then limit another beverage that you might be over indulging in this time of year)

December 22^nd – Try a new exercise/class or do something that isn't part of your general routine.

December 23^rd – Eat fish (If you are vegetarian or vegan: Try a new protein or one you don’t eat as often)

December 24^th – Try a new vegetable

December 25^th – Use weights or resistance in your physical activity

Here is how you will earn points throughout the challenge:

-If you complete each of the individual daily requirements you will earn 1 point for each one you do .

-For all the cumulative requirements you will earn an additional point for each day that you continue to follow that requirement.

-If you complete the required 4 times a week of at least 30 minutes of physical activity you will receive 1 point for each week. (week will be from Saturday to Friday).

-Since the 25^th is on a Tuesday you will receive 1 point for every day you are physically active for at least 30 minutes from December 22^nd – 25^th.

-You will earn 2 points per week for your personal restriction. (Same rule applies for this as for exercise) 1 point for each day you do this from December 22nd - 25th.

-You will also earn 1 point for each additional day that you add in at least 30 minutes of physical activity above the required 4 times a week. 

Here is how to make sure I know about creativity:

I will be providing you with a log. When you complete each day be sure to add as much detail as possible about what you ate, what your physical activity was, something that helped you accomplish that days tasks. The more you give me and the more creative you are the better!

For weight loss:

This will be on your honor. If you would like to be in this part of the challenge be sure when you email me that you include your starting weight and then at the end you will resubmit with your ending weight.

Now let the fun begin!!

If you would like to participate please email alysadventures@gmail.com with your name (include twitter and blog if applicable) as well as what unhealthy food you are making restrictions too and what the restrictions are. If you would like be part of the weight loss challenge please include your starting weight.

 I need to receive your email by November 30^th at 10pm or you will not be eligible for the prizes.

Once I receive your email I will be emailing you a confirmation that I received your entry and I will also attach an excel log for the challenge. If you do not receive a confirmation email within 24 hours then please resend your email.
Please use the log each day as you will need to send it back to me when the challenge is over to be eligible for the prizes. Remember, be as creative as you can. See if you can come up with new workouts, try new recipes, etc.

End of challenge:

Between December 26^th until December 30^th please submit your log. Also include notes of things you liked, didn't like etc. If you are part of the weight loss challenge also include your ending weight. I will send out a reminder to submit your log so you don’t miss out as this is a very busy time of year!

I will announce the winners the beginning of January.

Please let me know if you have any questions.

Happy Challenge!

August Foodie Penpal Reveal!

Oh where to even begin! My Foodie Penpal this month was Emilie from Scarborough Food Fair. I was overly excited before my package even arrived when I found out the Emilie was actually living in Boston which is basically my neighbor! But she is originally from Missouri which I think is fantastic! Then my foodie package arrived and I really can't thank Emilie enough. Everything was exactly what I told her I liked and didn't like she took very good care of me. And of course thanks to Lindsay over at the lean green bean for creating and sustaining such a fantastic program!

So now on to the fun part revealing all my delicous goodies!

 One of the best things about the package was that Emilie not only sent me a little note but she included a note on everything she sent me! The first thing that I pulled out of the box was...

Kale chips! Not just any kale chips but ranch flavored too. I must say that this was a first for me I have never had kale chips so I of course had to open them immediately and try them. I am not a big fan of ranch in general but these were tasty. The down side was that my husband ended up stealing the bag and finishing them all up on me so I guess you could say he liked them too.

Next out came...

mango chips! Now don;t be fooled these are not what you would normally think of mango chips instead of being sweet they are more savory. I actually dove into these while watching TV that night they were yummy and a lot healthier than a normal couch snack.

I of course had to get into...

these cookies next. They were exactly what I love whole grain, dried fruit and sweet! Although I prefer soft cookies and these were crunchy the taste was still amazing. I had to make sure I put them right into the cookie jar so I didn't just sit and eat them all!

The next thing was something that I couldn't wait to try because it combined two of my favorite things, chocolate and banana!

I saved this little jem for a few days later as a pick me up right before a workout. It went beyond on my expectations, not only was it delicious but it gave me enough energy to do a swim and bike workout! YUM!

I had told Emilie how much I love chocolate but that I was also trying to stay on the healthy side. She found this...

it was great to fulfill that chocolate craving while it only being 100 calories. This was a fantastic treat!

I loved that Emilie sent me a few things that were not food related. One of them was a lip balm!

I was a little nervous that it was a smoked salt lip balm but it is actually wonderful. I carry it in my purse with me all the time now!

The other thing she sent me was a copy of her boyfriends CD.

Although I am not a huge fan of folk music the very next day on my way to work I popped the CD in the car and listened all way there and then on the way home as well. There were some things I liked so it was nice to be exposed to something new!

 I have to admit that I saved the best for last. I am a big fan of nut butters! and Emilie took a look at my blog and previous foodie penpal reveal posts and noticed that I liked Justin's chocolate hazelnut butter. So she sent me a challenge!

She sent me some of Justin's but also the Peanut Butter Co.'s dark chocolate dreams peanut butter. She asked me to see which one I liked better. I couldn't wait to try it. I like to have a whole wheat deli thin with peanut butter and banana for breakfast in the morning so I put them to the test. I put justin's on one half and peanut butter co. on the other. I am pleased to announce that the peanut butter co. won! I think it because I just LOVE peanut butter and adding chocolate to it just made it better.

Thanks Emilie for this great challenge as well as this fantastic package I couldn't have been happier!

Now on to how you all can become involved with the Foodie Penpals.  

In case you’re a new reader, here’s a reminder of what the program is all about:
-On the 5th of every month, you will receive your penpal pairing via email. It will be your responsibility to contact your penpal and get their mailing address and any other information you might need like allergies or dietary restrictions.
-You will have until the 15th of the month to put your box of goodies in the mail. On the last day of the month, you will post about the goodies you received from your penpal! 
-The boxes are to be filled with fun foodie things, local food items or even homemade treats! The spending limit is $15. The box must also include something written. This can be anything from a note explaining what’s in the box, to a fun recipe…use your imagination!
-You are responsible for figuring out the best way to ship your items depending on their size and how fragile they are. (Don’t forget about flat rate boxes!)
-Foodie Penpals is open to blog readers as well as bloggers. If you’re a reader and you get paired with a blogger, you are to write a short guest post for your penpal to post on their blog about what you received. If two readers are paired together, neither needs to worry about writing a post for that month. 
-Foodie Penplas is open to US & Canadian residents.  Please note, Canadian Residents will be paired with other Canadians only. We've determined things might get too slow and backed up if we're trying to send foods through customs across the border from US to Canada and vice versa. 
If you’re interested in participating for August, please CLICK HERE to fill out the participation form and read the terms and conditions.
You must submit your information by September 4th as pairings will be emailed on September 5th!

*If you're from somewhere besides the US, Canada or Europe and want to participate, send me an email and I'll see if we get enough interest this month!

July Foodie Penpal Reveal!

I am not even sure where to begin with this month. My foodie penpal Sonia The Mexigarian who is in California really paid special attention to everything I told her I liked and didn't like. I guess I need to start with the one thing that intrigued me the most!

I had never tried candied ginger mainly because everyone said that it had quite the kick to it. As it turns out Sonia ended up saying the same thing. So of course I had to open it immediately to see for myself. I didn't necessarily hate it but I didn't enjoy it either. I think it is something that is simply an acquired taste and I am not sure I will ever acquire it. But I am thankful I got to try something new.

This is the next thing that was opened immediately! I absolutely love nut butters and chocolate so this was right up my alley! I opened it up and I was in love. I brought it to work with me and I have been having it with my breakfast. YUM!

Although this had pecans in it I figured I would give it a shot. It was actually quite delicious and the caramel was so smooth and creamy. It was also a from a local farm too!

Although these look like they are for children they are great. Apple and banana are two of my favorite fruits so I was excited. They are really handy because you don't need a spoon for them. They have come in very handy for a little burst of energy right before a workout!

These were yummy too. I love dried fruit! I had never had this particular trio from Trader Joe's. I ended up adding it into my granola to make my own little version of trail mix. It added a good sweetness to it and made it that much better!

Although I have not tried this yet. One of my favorite comfort foods in PB & J. I am thrilled to be able to try this homemade apricot preserve! Sonia's mom made it! I love getting homemade goodies!

This gave me a real laugh probably because there are things that I have to do this to so my husband won't eat them either. Sonia wrote on the bag so her husband wouldn't eat them before she could send them to me. I have yet to try these but I am excited to do it soon. I think these will be a great alternative to potato chips.

This was absolutely amazing. Chocolate, wafer and hazelnut cream filling! I ate one and then kept the second one for a snack later on. So excited Sonia sent this!

Sonia is also an artist and she sent me these. She asked me what my favorite animals were and since I told her cats and dogs this is what she sent me. They are very well done and if anyone else likes them make sure you check out her blog so you get to know her.

Thanks again Sonia for the fantastic Foodie Penpal experience!! And thanks to Lindsay over at The Lean Green Bean for putting this whole program together.

And now it's time for some details about Foodie Penpals.  In case you’re a new reader, here’s a reminder of what the program is all about:
-On the 5th of every month, you will receive your penpal pairing via email. It will be your responsibility to contact your penpal and get their mailing address and any other information you might need like allergies or dietary restrictions.
-You will have until the 15th of the month to put your box of goodies in the mail. On the last day of the month, you will post about the goodies you received from your penpal! 
-The boxes are to be filled with fun foodie things, local food items or even homemade treats! The spending limit is $15. The box must also include something written. This can be anything from a note explaining what’s in the box, to a fun recipe…use your imagination!
-You are responsible for figuring out the best way to ship your items depending on their size and how fragile they are. (Don’t forget about flat rate boxes!)
-Foodie Penpals is open to blog readers as well as bloggers. If you’re a reader and you get paired with a blogger, you are to write a short guest post for your penpal to post on their blog about what you received. If two readers are paired together, neither needs to worry about writing a post for that month. 
-Foodie Penplas is open to US & Canadian residents.  Please note, Canadian Residents will be paired with other Canadians only. We've determined things might get too slow and backed up if we're trying to send foods through customs across the border from US to Canada and vice versa. 
If you’re interested in participating for August, please CLICK HERE to fill out the participation form and read the terms and conditions.
You must submit your information by August 4th as pairings will be emailed on August 5th!

*If you're from somewhere besides the US, Canada or Europe and want to participate, send me an email and I'll see if we get enough interest this month!

June Foodie Penpal Reveal!

So it is that time again to reveal my June foodie penpal package! I have to give a big shout out to Jillian, she put together a very yummy package for me. Be sure to check her blog out as well and see what she is up to! And of course a big thanks to Lindsay over at The Lean Green bean for putting this whole program together.

I am not even sure where to begin. Well I guess I have to say that on the day my package was delivered it was 90+ degrees outside and there was no one home to bring the package in so it was in the heat. When I saw it sitting on the stairs my first though was "Oh I hope there was nothing melt able in there." You see I told Jillian how much I love chocolate so I was sure there probably was. So I think that is where I will start, she sent me two different kinds of chocolate!!

The first being a new flavor of candy bar from Ghirardelli, cookies jubilee. It was absolutely delicious in fact I am ashamed to admit I ate it all in the same sitting. The second being some chocolates made by Quality Streets direct from Ireland! They were just as delicious! And I got the added bonus of being able to tell my friends from Ireland all about receiving them at which point they almost knocked me down trying to find out where they were and where I had gotten them from. I guess they are very popular even in Ireland! Even though I had to put them in the fridge for a while to solidify before I could eat them they were still all well worth the wait! 

This was the one all chocolate thing she sent me that did not melt however the irony is that it was so hot there was no way I was making hot chocolate. I can't wait to try it though because it sounds simply divine!

Then I noticed this cute little green with white polka dots box and when I opened it I was delighted to find Flour-less peanut butter cookies. They were so good I did not believe they were flour-less. I actually had to stop myself before I ate them all. However Jillian was almost awesome enough to add chocolate chips to them as well which made them even better. She was nice enough to send me the recipe via email and I have already made my own batch that are gone as well. So delicious!!

Keeping right in track with the peanut butter theme she also sent me three different kinds of nut butter from Justin's. They certainly added a lot of variety to my breakfast every morning. I have to say the chocolate hazelnut butter was probably my favorite but no one reading this should really be surprised by that at this point. haha!

Jillian also sent my some of Annie's snack mix which is so yummy. I brought the box to work and leave it my classroom cabinet so that I have it on hand for when I need a little snack. Mind you at this point there really isn't much left! :)

This leads me to the last things in my package. I have to admit that these bars are something that disappointed me as this is the second time within my four months of being in foodie penpals that I have write to my foodie penpal telling them I do not like nuts and have gotten bars that have nuts in them. I understand that finding bars that do not have nuts is quite difficult as I have done the searching for myself but it is still disappointing none the less to get something you do not like. I have to admit that I will give the Odwalla bar a try as you never know if their might be that one thing that makes nuts ok to me. But both Lara bars I had gotten in April and expressed my dislike for them so I did not try them again and the cliff bar I have had before and walnuts just aren't for me. 

Other than the nuts this package was delicious! I was thrilled to get a bunch of new things to try and an amazing new recipe to be able to make for all my friends even the ones with gluten allergies! So thank you again Jillian!!

So here comes the fun part for those of you who would like to get in on all this Foodie Penpals fun find out how right now!

-On the 5th of every month, you will receive your penpal pairing via email. It will be your responsibility to contact your penpal and get their mailing address and any other information you might need like allergies or dietary restrictions.

-You will have until the 15th of the month to put your box of goodies in the mail. On the last day of the month, you will post about the goodies you received from your penpal! 

-The boxes are to be filled with fun foodie things, local food items or even homemade treats! The spending limit is $15. The box must also include something written. This can be anything from a note explaining what’s in the box, to a fun recipe…use your imagination!

-You are responsible for figuring out the best way to ship your items depending on their size and how fragile they are. (Don’t forget about flat rate boxes!)

-Foodie Penpals is open to blog readers as well as bloggers. If you’re a reader and you get paired with a blogger, you are to write a short guest post for your penpal to post on their blog about what you received. If two readers are paired together, neither needs to worry about writing a post for that month. 

-Foodie Penplas is open to US & Canadian residents.  Please note, Canadian Residents will be paired with other Canadians only. We've determined things might get too slow and backed up if we're trying to send foods through customs across the border from US to Canada and vice versa.

If you’re interested in participating for July, please CLICK HERE to fill out the participation form and read the terms and conditions. 

You must submit your information by July 4th as pairings will be emailed on July 5th!

*If you're from somewhere besides the US, Canada or Europe and want to participate, send me an email and I'll see if we get enough interest this month!