Bod Pod

Have any of you guys ever seen one of these machines before?

(Photo Source)

It's called a Bod Pod and it is used to measure body fat percentage. The machine uses air displacement to measure lean muscle mass, body fat, organs, etc. This test is as accurate as underwater weighing but is much easier to perform. All I had to do was wear tight shorts, a sports bra, and a swim cap (air pockets in your hair can mess up the results!) and then sit in the machine for about 2 minutes total. They run two tests to make sure it is accurate and each lasts for 30 seconds. I am not really concerned with my weight but I thought it would be cool just to see if there is a difference pre and post half-marathon training. There was also a special going on for students to take the test for $15 instead of the normal $25.

Workout

Let's talk about yesterday's workout first. Oh my gosh was it hard! I started out by doing some arm work. I did 21's (7 bicep curls, 7 bicep curls half way down, 7 bicep curls half way up, repeat 3 times) it made my arms burn, and then I did some overhead flys, overhead presses, and some tricep extensions. I also did a bunch of pushups - 4 sets of 10 to be exact. Oh and did I mention that they were man pushups?! I am so excited I don't have to do the girly ones anymore. It was a nice workout and I'm feeling it a little bit today. After arm work I headed over to the stair master. I completed 30 minutes on it. It was so hard but I told myself at the beginning that I was going to do it and I did. I was a sweaty mess after it.

Today I had a 3 mile run scheduled but I didn't drink much water today and it was catching up with me. I also didn't even start running until 10 p.m. I stopped at 2.25 miles because I was exhausted and my legs were chafing so bad! I think I am going to have to throw out the pair of shorts I was wearing because every time I wear them it happens and it hurts so bad.

Have you entered the Chobani Giveaway yet? You still have some time left!

 

Also, please help me reach my goal of 100 people donating $13! Forget that Starbucks coffee tomorrow morning on your way to work and help out this great cause instead!

Have you ever done any sort of body fat test? If you had the chance to take one, would you?

Roommate Bonding

* This giveaway is now closed *

I feel like I hardly have any time to fit in blogging lately with this new job because before it I was always writing my posts at night. Now I am trying to do everything when I get off work at 9:30 so it feels pretty hectic. I think that if I do them earlier in the day I won't feel as rushed at night with studying and blogging so we will give it a run for it's money this week.


On Saturday Jancee and I went to the mall and then to AT&T so she could get a new sim card for her phone. At the mall we spotted a few great deals at GAP. Alex's sister told me they were going out of business and everything was 50% off! I couldn't let this deal slide by so we went in and checked it out.

I picked up a running jacket, sunglasses, and some socks for me and because I couldn't walk out of there without something for Alex, I got him a plaid long sleeve shirt. As soon as I got in the car I immediately put on the new sunglasses I bought.

After all of the shopping we did, we were pretty hungry. If you follow me on Twitter you probably already know what we ended up picking up... Pita Pit! This was my first time going to this amazing little restaurant. Jancee recently got a job there and has been talking about it a lot so I had to try it.

I got the Gyro, which is seasoned beef strips, and I added green peppers, tomatoes, mushrooms, onions, and their Tzatziki sauce. The sauce was good and this combo was delicious. I will definitely be going there often to try out more combinations. Since it was my first time I was afraid to go crazy with the combos but I am sure next time I will change it up!

It was definitely a fun day with Jancee! Even though we live in the same tiny little box of a room together, we hardly get to do anything together very much with our busy schedules so it was much needed.

I actually wore the jacket I bought at GAP on my run today and it was super comfortable. It didn't bounce around even with heavy things (ie. keys, ID) in my pockets, kept me warm, and it even has thumb holes! My run today was my first official run of my half-marathon training! I will post my full training schedule soon.

It was nice outside and in the high 40s so I took advantage of it and ran 3 miles outside. I'm pretty sure that it is supposed to drop down into the 20s by the end of the week. It felt good to be outside but it was super windy and I felt that no matter which direction that I ran in that I was running into the wind.

Giveaway

It seems like it's been awhile since I've had a giveaway on the blog so I think it's time for one! I still have some awesome stuff to giveaway as part as my New Years Resolutions Blog Giveaway!

This week's giveaway is from Chobani. One lucky reader will win a variety box of Chobani yogurt!

If you have never had Chobani Greek Yogurt then you are definitely missing out! They have several different delicious flavors, low-fat options, dessert flavors, and fun squeeze tubs that are perfect if you are on-the-go. Chobani yogurt can also replace sour cream, butter, oil, and a number of other ingredients in your cooking to make it healthier. Check out some of these awesome recipes by clicking here and see how you can make your cooking a bit healthier with Chobani.

How to enter

Mandatory: Check out Chobani's website and comment telling me which flavor you would like best.
Optional: Like my Facebook page and leave a comment saying you did.
Optional: Tweet about the giveaway and make sure to include @trufflesntread and @nothingbutgood in the tweet! Comment below saying that you did

I will choose a winner on Thursday! Good luck and have a great week :)

Beachbody Products

Have you ever heard of Beachbody? No? Well, have you ever heard of P90X? Probably?

Beachbody is the company behind these popular videos along with many other health and fitness programs and they asked me to share my thoughts with all of you about some of their newest programs so here goes nothing!

Insanity

 

"The INSANITY Workout might just be the hardest fitness program ever put on DVD. Your personal trainer Shaun T will push you past your limits with 10 INSANITY workout discs packed with plyometric drills on top of nonstop intervals of strength, power, resistance, and ab and core training moves. No equipment or weights needed. Just the will to get the hardest body you’ve ever had."

Overview: Insanity's method consists of intense interval training and keeps you at a constant state of challenge as you alternate between the aerobic and anaerobic intervals. INSANITY is designed to keep you working at your max and as a result, burn up to 1,000 calories in an hour in order to get a great body in 60 days.

My thoughts: I have personally never tried INSANITY but have a few friends who have done it and have heard several good things. Personally, I love the fact that you can do an intense interval workout from the comfort of your own home. I also like that the INSANITY discs are all different and you are not doing the same workout every day. After one month you use a new set of discs to keep things fresh and interesting.

Click here for more information on INSANITY.

P90X Certification 

 

 

Overview: P90X Certified Trainers are in high demand and the training you get can change your future. The training you will receive will give you the right tools to train clients of all levels. You will also understand the science behind what makes P90X such a great workout. All training workshops last for 2 days and are offered in several different states. If you are looking to make your personal training business expand, associate with a well-known brand, and reach more people then P90X Certification is exactly what you need.

My thoughts: If you are a personal trainer then go for it! You can never be certified in too many different classes or workout programs. If this will help your business grow then why wouldn't you want to get certified?

Click here for more information on P90X Certification and where Workshops are held.

Brazil Butt Lift Master Series Advanced Workout

 

"This series gives you advanced workouts and new tools to work your muscles from angles you never imagined and sculpt the booty you've always dreamed about. "

Overview: This workout is designed to work your muscles in new ways and give you results in just 30 days. This workout works 3 majors muscles: the gluteus maximus, medius, and minimus which help to sculpt your butt and give you a bikini ready body. The series offers 3 different kits from Base to Elite which offer different options as to what products you get. All kits receive three Masters Series workouts, sculpting guide, calendar, stability ball, online support, and a 30-day money back guarantee. Some kits offer more items such as a foam roller, ankle weights, a slimming formula and a yoga mat.

My thoughts: I like that the program uses a stability ball and the users would become more familiar with stability ball exercises. I personally don't think I would ever buy this workout because I think that there are several effective workouts that can work these muscles but if you are inexperienced and really want to focus on that muscle group then it would be beneficial for you. I don't like that this workout series is for one specific muscle group though because all muscles in the body should be worked to prevent injury.

Click here for more information on the Brazil Butt Lift Master Series.

Les Mills Pump Cross Training

 

"Order the LES MILLS PUMP Cross Training Deluxe Package NOW and you'll receive
hardcore fitness tools, plus exclusive cardio workouts to help torch calories and
activate more muscle fibers. You'll burn fat faster and supercharge your metabolism!"

Overview: This system comes with 3 different DVDs from high intensity interval training, sports drills, to kick boxing workouts. It also comes with a step platform and weight plates to increase the effectiveness of your workout.

My thoughts: I like that this system includes different types of training that you can do at home. Beginners can do the workouts without weights or the step and more advanced people can add the weight to increase intensity. 

Click here for more information on the Les Mills Pump Cross Training workout.

_______________________________________________________________________________

Overall I think that these are all great products and love the ones that include different discs that allow you to change up your workout so you will never get bored. I enjoy working out from the comfort of my own home and have several different workout DVDs already so I wouldn't mind adding a few of these into my collection. 

What do you think about these products? Are you interested in trying any of them?

A Solution to Treadmill Boredom

The weather here has been ice cold. The wind chills have been horrible too - to the point that if I am outside for too long my cheeks look like they have wind burn and are super red! Not cool. When I was looking up the weather forecast for this week (praying that the temps would go up) I found that they were going down instead and there would be chances of snow.

Cold weather makes running outside unbearable so I depend on the treadmill to get my runs in. I don't mind the treadmill for a quick 15 minute run or if I am watching TV at the same time but if I have absolutely nothing to entertain me for the long runs then I am more than likely to skip out on the last few miles. Does this happen to you to? If yes, then you are in the right place!

The other day I was reading Tina's blog, Carrots 'N' Cake and came across a solution to treadmill boredom. She came up with a fun treadmill workout called Treadmill Roulette: Music Edition.

(Image Source)

I stopped after song number 6 and made the recovery into my cool down. I was running short on time as I was supposed to be ready for a lunch date at 12:30 and it was already noon! My run was about 20 minutes and a little over 2 miles.

This was a really fun way to focus more on the songs rather than the run while still pushing yourself. If you aren't a runner then you could change up the speed for different walking intervals too!

Stay connected

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What's your favorite way to beat treadmill boredom?

The New Late Night Option

It's the weekend! Who's excited? I know I am!

Before I get started with last night's adventures I want to point out that today is Alex and I's 10 month anniversary! I can't believe we have only been dating that long because it seems like it has been way longer. Needless to say I am incredibly happy with this man and have enjoyed every moment with him!

Last night's dinner was delicious so I figured I would share it on the blog today. I had a wheat wrap with turkey, red peppers, green peppers, mushrooms, tomatoes, spinach, and of course avocado! I am loving avocado lately and have been putting it on everything.

After work I headed over to Alex's house to hang out. Earlier this week a new bakery opened up in "The Village," the little area off of campus that has shops, bars, and restaurants.

The new place that opened up is called Insomnia Cookies and they had a coupon floating around Facebook this week to announce their grand opening last Sunday and to offer us a free cookie! We hopped in the car and headed over to use up our coupons and it seemed like everyone else on campus had the same idea because the bakery was packed with people. They had a "Free Cookie Line" for people who weren't buying but just grabbing their free cookie so we were in and out of there in less than 5 minutes. Alex and I both got the Double Chocolate Chip cookie and it was super warm and gooey.

After we grabbed our cookies we headed over to his sister's house to visit for a little bit. When we got to their house we saw that they a box of cookies and brownies delivered to them a few minutes before we got there! The brownies were realllly good and I would highly recommend those if you ever pass by one of these little shops.

The neat thing about Insomnia Cookies is that they deliver until 3am. There is another late night pizza company near campus that delivers pizzas until some crazy time like 4 or 5am on the weekends too so I think they are up against some pretty sweet competition! 


Have you ever had Insomnia Cookies before? What do you think of the idea of having fresh cookies delivered to you at 3am?

G.B.L.

A quick way to sum up today would be G.B.L!

I am watching Jersey Shore right now and they are always saying G.T.L. - Gym Tan Laundry - but because I didn't go tanning I figured G.B.L. - Gym Blog Laundry - would be more fitting for this post!

Yesterday when I was getting ready to get dressed to go workout I noticed that I only had 2 clean sports bras in my drawer! You know you need to do laundry when you only have 2 clean ones! I was going to try and hold off until next weekend when I went home but there was no way I was going to wear the same sports bra every day for a week and a half. That's just gross.

Now don't think that I was just going to wait to take my laundry home so my mom could do it I mean that is part of the reason. Laundry at school is expensive and you have to pay with quarters.

Just to do two loads of laundry it cost me almost $5! I think that laundry should be included in the room and board but of course it's not. It's just another way for them to make a little extra cash off of broke college students.

Workout

Instead of waiting for my laundry to get done and then go and workout, I threw my clothes in the washer and headed to the workout room which is conveniently the next room over in my dorm. After I completed 2 miles on the treadmill I went and switched my laundry over to the dryer and then came back and worked on arms. I didn't go too crazy today and just did some basic arm workouts. I can already tell that my upper body is getting stronger as today I was able to do 20 regular pushups and last week I could only do 10! Woo-hoo!

Fun Fact

And in case you didn't know - today is National Peanut Butter Day! Eat up!

 

(Image Source)

Here are a few yummy recipes to celebrate!

No Bake Peanut Butter Protein Bars
Chocolate Peanut Butter Protein Smoothie
Mini Chocolate and Peanut Butter Dessert Shooters

Also, right now I am at 95 Twitter followers! Can I get 5 more!? Let's get to 100!

When do you know that you need to do laundry? Do you wait until you are completely out of socks, do you have scheduled laundry days, or do you wait until the hamper is piling over?

Shocked by the Generosity

Do you see those rosy red cheeks? Those aren't from a hard workout - they're red from the frigid air!

So since it was so cold today I thought I would stop by Starbucks between classes and grab some coffee to warm myself up. I ordered their new Vanilla Spice Latte and it was pretty good. I have been hearing some good things about the drink and thought I would try it for myself. It may easily become one of my new favorites.

I also got a piece of banana chocolate chip coffee cake. I don't have a picture of it because I already scarfed it down :)

If you are a dedicated reader then you should know by now that I have been raising money for my aunt. Today I checked my Paypal account to see how much I have raised to date and I have raised over $1,000! I am so shocked by the generosity of some people. I can not believe how generous some people are when it comes to helping out a great cause and a great woman. My aunt 100% deserves this and I am so happy to be doing this for her. My initial goal is for 100 people to donate one dollar for every  mile I am going to run for a total of $13 donated per person and some people have been exceeding this amount and have been donating up to $50 for every mile. I am in shock when I find this out from people and just want to give them a great big hug.

Thank you to everyone who has donated so far and thank you in advance for those of you who are going to donate.

Also, there are exactly 100 days until the race! 4 miles on the treadmill is on today's agenda.


Have you ever done a fundraiser before? Do you have any tips or tricks for raising money?

FSTG Giveaway Winner & A Surprise

I have been having so much fun working with these awesome companies over the last month! I am glad you all have been participating in and enjoying the giveaways so much!

Giveaway Winner

A winner has finally been chosen for the Food Should Taste Good Giveaway!

Congrats to Rachel! Please email me at trufflesntreadmills [at] aol [dot] com with your shipping information and a phone number so we can get you your variety box of Food Should Taste Good chips! I hope you enjoy them as much as I have been.

Surprise! 

The surprise that you all are wondering about is that a new winner has been selected for a previous giveaway I held. I had to redraw for the Healthy Bites Giveaway as the original winner never contacted me. I just went back to the original comments and drew from those as I thought it would be much easier than holding another contest.

So here is the new winner that was randomly selected...

Congrats to Ray! Please email me at trufflesntreadmills [at] aol [dot] com so I can give you Lindsay's contact information so you can talk with her about which Healthy Bite you are most interested in and let her know of any allergies you may have.

                                                                                                                                                            


There are still a few more giveaways I have in store for you all that will be taking place later this week but for now I am about to go hop on the elliptical for a quick cross training workout and maybe throw in a little bit of strength training after?

I have one question for you all before I go though. Are you still keeping up with your New Years Resolutions? Did you have to change them up to fit your needs at all? Or did you drop them  altogether? I haven't had to change up my resolutions too much and I think I am doing a pretty good job with them. Last week was pretty hectic with my schedule and on the days I did workout I went hard so I was sore pretty much all week and ended up having 3 rests days and my resolution was to not have more than 2 per week. I am not too upset about it because there was nothing I could really do about it so I am just going to make this week a better week!

My other resolution was to continue raising money for my aunt! As of right now I have raised almost $700.00 with the help of family, friends, and a generous blogger. I have a goal of 100 people donating $13 each, $1 for every mile I am going to run. If you would like to help out I would greatly appreciate it!

Catch Up Day

Happy Monday everyone! Were you all lucky enough to have the day off today? Classes were cancelled but that doesn't mean studying could stop too. I woke up this morning and ate breakfast while I wrote a paper. I wanted to get it out of the way early that way I wouldn't have to worry about it tonight. I also had some reading to catch up on and had to take a quiz for my online class.

Look at this cute little key chain my mom got me. Giraffes are my favorite!

It also doubles as a USB! Isn't that cool? I have never seen anything like it.

After I finished my homework I headed downstairs to the treadmill. Today was going to be an off day but I thought that I should throw in a little bit of speed work. My run consisted of sprints on the treadmill. I have honestly never done them on the treadmill but I really liked doing them on it because of how consistent the pace is. I did a 5 minute warm-up at speed 6 then began the jog-sprint intervals. I ran at speed 6 for 1 minute then sprinted at speed 9 for 30 seconds. I repeated it until I had done 6 sprints. I was going to only do 5 but am glad I threw in that extra one. I finished with a short cool down and some stretching.

After my run I grabbed some food. I had a salad, rice with veggies, and some fresh strawberries. The strawberries were definitely the best part.

 

Do you like doing speed workouts on the treadmill?

A Yummy Lunch Date

Yesterday Alex and I went to Noodles & Company for a fun lunch date. When choosing where to go for lunch I was going to pick one of our favorite Mexican restaurants but then decided it would be fun to go somewhere he has never been especially because I think everyone should try Noodles & Company! This used to be the only Noodles & Co. that I was able to go to because there wasn't one in my hometown but they recently opened one so my mom and I are super excited!

I snapped this photo as we were driving away. I am still getting used to the "take pictures of everything for the blog" thing. When we were in line waiting to order I told Alex that he couldn't dig into his food until I took a picture of it and he was fine with it and didn't think I was too crazy :)

 
Noodles & Company has several different dishes from around the world. They have a variety of noodles, soups, sandwiches, and salads that are either American, Mediterranean, or Asian.  I chose the Japanese Pan Noodles with a Cucumber Tomato salad on the side and Alex ordered the Wisconsin Mac & Cheese.

The Japanese Pan Noodles are made up of caramelized udon noodles in a sweet soy sauce, broccoli, carrots, shiitake mushrooms, Asian sprouts, black sesame and cilantro. It is somewhat spicy and fills you up. Good thing I had Alex there to help me finish it!

Alex ordered the Wisconsin Mac & Cheese with chicken and it came in a huge bowl. The mac & cheese is their number one seller and I definitely talked it up on the way there which probably led him to his decision on what to order. They make it with a blend of cheddar and jack cheeses, cream, and macaroni and then grate more fresh cheese on the top. When it came to the table it was still really warm so the cheese melted right in when he stirred it up.

It was one delicious lunch date!

Don't forget, if you haven't already entered in the 5th giveaway of the New Years Resolutions Blog Giveaway then enter today! A winner will be chosen on Tuesday!


Have you ever tried Noodles & Company? If so, what is your favorite thing there?

Drawing a Blank

*This giveaway is closed*

All day today I was trying to figure out what to post about today. I didn't want to leave you guys without a fun post before the weekend started but I seriously had no idea of what to write about. I know that some bloggers keep journals and write down interesting topics so that when they draw a blank they have something to fall back on. I should really look into doing this because I always think to myself "that would be fun to blog about" and then when it comes time to blog I can never remember what I wanted to say!

After my workout today when I was enjoying a protein shake, it hit me that I should share with you guys some of the great products I have received in the mail.

Earlier this week I had mentioned that when I went home on Saturday there was a pile of packages waiting for me. Some of the companies that teamed up with me for the New Years Resolutions Giveaway sent me some products to review and some other companies sent me some samples of their products just because! I love people. So here's my review of some of the products I received:

Chike Nutrition

Chike Nutrition is a company that makes high-quality protein supplements that are perfect if you are trying to lose weight, eat healthier, or want a protein-packed shake after a workout. Chike sent me some of their Iced Coffee in convenient single-serve packs.

They are a great way to start the day, as they have the caffeine equivalency of one cup of coffee or perfect after a workout because of the 20 grams of protein. Chike Nutrition is a company that is "obsessed with taste," and let me tell you - these are pretty darn good.

I had one of the Iced Coffees after my workout today. I added water to mine but you can use milk instead. It tasted great and mixed really easily in my Blender Bottle. I really like how convenient the single-serving packs are because then you don't have to deal with measuring and can easily throw a pack in your gym bag.

The Iced Coffee is great for coffee lovers but if you don't like coffee they have 5 other flavors including Chocolate Bliss, Strawberry Burst, Orange Creme, Banana Magic, and Very Vanilla.

Disclaimer: I received these products free of charge, however all opinions are my own.

Food Should Taste Good

Food Should Taste Good (FSTG) sent me four different flavors to try: Multigrain, Barbeque Sweet Potato Kettle Cooked, Original Sweet Potato Kettle Cooked, and Sweet Potato.

So far I have only opened up the Sweet Potato bag and have been snacking on them ever since. I didn't want to dive into all of the bags at once and have 4 open bags of chips. The Sweet Potato chips are simply delicious! They have the perfect crunch to them and have a slight sweetness to them. I haven't tried them with any dip but I imagine they would be good with fruit salsa or apple butter.

I love that FSTG believes that good food is made from real ingredients. All of the chip varieties are gluten free, cholesterol free, have zero grams trans fats, certified Kosher, and many varieties are vegan.

Once I eat up all of the bags I received I want to find the Lime and the Chocolate varieties as well! There are 23 tortilla flavors and 4 Kettle Cooked Sweet Potato Flavors. You can check out all of the flavors that Food Should Taste Good offers here.

Disclaimer: I received these products free of charge, however all opinions are my own.

Workout

I haven't done any abs in awhile and wanted to get in a good ab workout. I went through all of the different workouts I have written down and came up with a new one, that you can do anywhere. And when I say "anywhere" I mean it. I completed this workout in my dorm room, which is incredibly small and I'm pretty sure they thought munchkins would be living in it when they built it.

Do you like my red and black color combo? I thought it would be fitting since our school colors and red and black! Anyways, the 10-10 second planks are a toughie but a goodie. I also added on another set of them at the very end of the workout after the last set of crunches but forgot to add it in the picture!

Giveaway

Food Should Taste Good wants you to try some of their delicious flavors! They offered to give away a variety box of 4 flavors to one lucky reader! (I don't think you will be getting the exact same flavors I received but you never know!) I will be randomly choosing a winner on Tuesday.

How to enter

Mandatory: Visit Food Should Taste Good's website and let me know which chip variety looks best to you!
Optional: Follow Truffles n' Treadmills on Facebook
Optional: Tweet "I want to win a variety box of @FSTG_Chips from @trufflesntread www.trufflesntreadmills.blogspot.com"

Make sure you leave an additional comment for each entry for more chances to win!


Also, I still have three more giveaways coming up! I will also redraw for the Healthy Bites Giveaway if the original winner doesn't email me soon! 

That was a long post for not having anything to say earlier today ;) Have a great weekend!

I Caved

Happy Wednesday everyone! Over the past week I have been doing training for my new job and today I officially passed the test and can now actually work when I go to work instead of stand there and watch the other guy do the job, which is extremely boring.

I have also been craving guacamole the last few days and there is only one place to get it on campus - Taco Bell. I try not to eat much fast food but the guacamole was seriously calling my name so I went with it. I tried really really hard to resist my temptations but I just couldn't. I met Alex there for lunch but I didn't want any of their burritos because I usually feel like crap afterwards so I tried a new menu item, the Cantina Burrito.

(Photo Source)

The burrito was stuffed full with premium Latin rice, black beans, guacamole, pico de gallo, roasted corn & pepper salsa and a creamy cilantro dressing. It was huge, filling, and tasty! I thought that it tasted like Chipotle. I opted for the veggie burrito but you can get chicken or steak put in if you want.

Workout

After classes I hit the gym for some weight lifting. I focused on arms and legs. I didn't have a workout made up ahead of time, I just went with it but am pretty happy with how I felt afterwards.

Giveaway winner

Now it's time to announce the winner of the Artisana Nut Butters giveaway!

Congrats to Keri! Please email me at trufflesntreadmills [at] aol [dot] com with your shipping information and let me know which butter you would like to try!


Also, I still have not heard from the Healthy Bites Giveaway winner, Heather! Heather if you could please email me by the end of the week that would be great.


Do you ever give into fast food restaurants?

Amazing People of the Blog World

Blogging has opened up a variety of things for me from meeting other inspiring bloggers, forming partnerships with amazing companies, and becoming more involved in health and fitness. It has also allowed me to share my daily musings with friends and family who are back at home while I am away at school. Having this blog has also made it extremely easy for people to donate to my Ovarian Cancer Awareness Fund that I have created in an effort to raise awareness and help my aunt who has been fighting the cancer since 2006.

I was extremely lucky to find Erica's blog a few months ago and have been following her ever since. She was super nice and mentioned my cause in her blog post today! She even donated toward the cause which makes me one person closer to reaching my goal of 100 people donating $13! I was extremely happy to come across her post today and it just shows how amazing the people of the blog world are!

Thanks again Erica!

If you want to donate just click on the PayPal link in the upper right corner of the blog! Thank you so much ahead of time for your donations! You are helping a truly amazing woman.

Artisana Nut Butters

* This giveaway is closed *

Today seems like it has been taking forever. I am already ready for the three day weekend that is coming up and it's only Monday. Help!

If you remember from yesterday's post, I had mentioned that when I went home on Saturday that there were a bunch of packages waiting for me. There were so many that it felt like Christmas all over again!

One of the packages contained some goodies from Artisana Organic Foods. The package contained 2 jars of their nut butters and 8 different single serving squeeze packs. This was my first time trying anything like this and so far, so good! I'm not really sure what to use the coconut butter with but their site has some recipes that use the butters so I am going to have to do some searching. If you have any great recipe ideas, please share!

The best thing about the Artisana Nut Butters is that their factory contains no peanut, gluten, dairy or soy products at all which makes all of their products very safe for those with food allergies. In the package they also sent a little guide that tells you which Nut Butter tastes best with certain foods and which ones work great in recipes. I took their advice and tried the Almond Butter with a banana today for a post-workout snack.

It was pretty good. The butter had a gritty texture to it and tasted exactly like almonds. The Almond Butter was great to have right after a workout because it had 7 grams of protein! And get this, the only ingredient in it was Organic Raw Almonds! If you are an almond lover and a butter lover then this is perfect for you.

If you are loving my feedback so far, then you are in the right place! One lucky reader will receive 1-8oz jar of butter (any flavor) and the single serving squeeze packs as part of the New Years Resolutions Giveaway!

How to enter

Mandatory: Leave a comment telling me which Nut Butter you would choose if you won

Optional: Tweet about this giveaway "I want to win the @ArtisanaFoods giveaway from @trufflesntread http://trufflesntreadmills.blogspot.com/2013/01/artisana-nut-butters.html" and leave an additional comment saying that you did

A winner will be chosen on Wednesday!

Disclaimer: I received these products free of charge, however all opinions are my own.

                                                                                                                                                            

Workout

Today is the day that I am officially starting my half-marathon training. I have been running off and on recently (more off than on it seems like) but last night I made up a training plan and I am going to stick with it! I will make it look all pretty later this week and post it so you can all see what I'm up to.

In the book for today was strength and cross training. For my cross training I did the stair stepper for 15 minutes and then headed over to the kettle bells for some strength moves. Most people don't even touch the kettle bells because they have no idea what to do with them but they are super versatile and can be used for a number of workouts. I did squats, kettle bell swings, and rows. I completed 10 reps/3 sets of each workout and was feeling good. After I looked up some different exercises that can be done with kettle bells and found this great site for a full body kettle bell workout. I think I am going to have to incorporate these into my workouts more often.