Chocolate Espresso Protein Smoothie

What is it about 3pm that requires something sweet and a little bit of caffeine?

Even on weekends, I feel like I need a pick-me-up. I try to stick to one cup of coffee on weekdays but sometimes I drink two on weekends when I’m relaxing in the mornings. This morning, though, I skipped the second cup of jo’, which gave me full permission to have caffeine in the afternoon.

I made this a couple weeks ago as a breakfast smoothie and added almond butter, flaxseed, and skim milk. Today I made a lighter version to act as a snack. Careful, smoothie lovers. Some smoothies can pack a whopping 400 calories!

Chocolate Espresso Protein Smoothie
The following ingredient amounts are approximations; I didn’t measure anything because smoothies are flexible like that.

3/4 cup milk (I used coconut milk because we had it handy)
1 scoop protein powder (I used Vanilla Latte from ToneItUp.com but chocolate or vanilla work; this just has caffeine in it)
1 tsp ground espresso
1/2 frozen banana
1 tbsp dark cocoa powder

BLEND!

Red Velvet Smoothie

It was one of those days.

I woke up and went to turn off a light, kept on for the new kitten, and there was a SPIDER right next to the lamp light switch. omg. dead.

So, I promptly called J, who was inconveniently working 30min away, and he suggested taking the lamp outside. UH NO. What if it fell on me? more death. It crawled into the bowl of the lamp, so I put not one but two binders on top of it. NOPE. It crawled out of the one tiny crevice. J suggests vacuuming it up. Sounds reasonable. Actually, sounds hilarious, but I got on the couch and had the extension vacuum thing in my hand and had a mental break down. SO FREAKING BIG.

I just cried hysterically until 9am when my apartment complex office opened. They sent maintenance. Totally worth what I pay in rent.

THEN I had to take my wailing, screaming, pissed off kitten to the vet. He was sad in the cat carrier and antsy in my lap. It was a long 40min each direction but he’s a healthy baby. Yay! And his vaccination made him sleepy, which was exactly what I needed since usually he’s a level 12 [out of 10] energy.

So what do you do when life hands you spiders and screaming kittens? Make dessert smoothies. Duh. I saw this on Pinterest and pinned it immediately. A little drool might have been involved, too. Actually, this smart lady is the reason I put cottage cheese in my smoothies now. Can you say protein boost?

I am on this ridiculous smoothie kick but something about having dessert for breakfast (did you know that’s better? dessert for breakfast instead of after dinner? because you burn those calories off throughout the day! win!) is even better. Almost counteracts the tarantula in my apartment. Almost.

Red Velvet Smoothie
Adapted slightly from Dashing Dish

1/2 c cottage cheese
1 scoop rocky road (or any chocolate) protein powder
1/2 tsp vanilla
1 tbsp cocoa powder
3-5 drops red food coloring
2 tbsp fat free cream cheese
1 tbsp vanilla pudding mix
10 ice cubes
1/2 c water
2 packets stevia

Blend all. Top with sprinkles if desired [or whipped cream!].

Creamsicle Smoothie

Hi, June.

Something about June is just romantic. The summer heat, the fresh watermelon, and endless mojitos and margaritas.

Also, those of you who know me know that I started an internship at a nursing home. Wanna know the insider scoop of working in a kitchen?

1. You WILL get burned. They keep some plates hot for hot food, and I mean HOT. The lids to the hot dishes are also extremely hot. Heads up.

2. You will want to eat dessert. A lot. I am the salad bar and dessert girl. And some of these desserts – it is all I can do not to eat them. Like the other day I was placing place-and-bake cookie dough bites and it would’ve been so easy to pop one in my mouth. But, I’d like to keep my job. So.. I didn’t.

3. The dishes aren’t just hot, everything is hot. I have a little pocket thermometer and that baby read 100°F the other day. IN MY POCKET. So it was at least 90-something in there.

4. The salad bar is a finicky thing. The girl that I train with said she has never dropped the containers down into the freezer part. Well, clearly she is better than me. Day 2? Dropped. Fail.

5. You will not eat lunch until a non-lunch hour. I am sorry, but 2pm is not lunch. But, it is here.

Hence, after I get off work at 5:30pm, I’m either starving from being on my feet for 8 hours or just too hot to eat. When it’s the latter, I make a smoothie.

This smoothie is 92% from Tone It Up. I added a few more pineapple chunks and used a creamsicle protein parfait from The Fit Station, my other job.

Creamsicle Smoothie
Adapted slightly from Tone It Up

1/4 c almond milk
1/4 c orange juice
1/2 c plain yogurt (or creamsicle protein parfait)
1 scoop protein powder (I used creamsicle from the parfait)
5 chunk frozen pineapple
1/2 frozen banana
3 ice cubes

1. Blend!

Tropical Smoothie Bowl

Apparently smoothie bowls are in.

The first time I saw a smoothie bowl I thought what the heck. Why would you want to ‘eat’ a smoothie with a spoon? Straws are so much FUN! Unless you’re worried about wrinkles because apparently straws cause wrinkles but ain’t nobody got time to worry about that.

But today when I made this smoothie it was so thick, I thought maybe I should pour it into a bowl and give it a whirl. I topped this bad boy with some almonds, chia seeds, and chopped up nectarines and was pleasantly surprised. While I do love sipping smoothies through a straw, it was nice to have a little texture in this smoothie.

After the last few posts of straight sugar, I’ve been really trying to be healthy. Like REALLY. I’m already seeing results from this Tone It Up Bikini Series and am super excited to see the end result. June 21, baby. Let’s go. [I also get to see THIS girl June 21, so even more motivation to stay on track so I can celebrate with her!]

But anyway, this tropical frozen delight is perfect as a pre-workout fueler. Smoothies are my jam these days. J got a Magic Bullet for me for my birthday last year and I didn’t really have a whole lot of use for it over the winter but now I’m drinking 3-4+ smoothies per week. Love blending things into smithereens.

Tropical Smoothie Bowl

1/4 c orange juice
1/4 c coconut milk
1/3 c frozen tropical fruit (pineapple, mango, papaya)
1 frozen banana
3/4 c frozen orange yogurt (or plain frozen yogurt with creamsicle protein powder or just plain frozen yogurt or regular non-frozen yogurt – if using non-frozen, may want to add a couple ice cubes)
1 scoop protein powder if using non-protein powder yogurt
Toppings: chopped nectarine, chia seeds, almonds

1. Blend all but toppings.
2. Pour into bowl.
3. Top with toppings. Optional to add: coconut, chopped mango, etc.

Chocolate Covered Blueberry Smoothie

I switched from Planet Fitness to The Rush yesterday. And I couldn’t be more excited.

I was talking to someone at work the other day, asking if they liked being a member of The Rush, and he said, “Well, you will get judged there.” He was kidding, because Planet Fitness is a “Judgment Free Zone” and The Rush isn’t, but honestly? I like the judgment. I like to look around and see people doing things I’ve never seen or even though of before.

I want to look around and be inspired. To want to try something new or push myself to better my strength and my body. And the bathrooms – guys. They are legit. Seriously. I have a little ‘The Rush recap’ on my Instagram 365 pictures, and there’s a picture of the bathrooms. Really, people. They’re awesome.

But anyway, enough about bathrooms and judgment. Let’s talk about the real workouts I’ve been doing. I’m living in and loving Tone It Up Land. Today marks the first completed week of the Bikini Series. HELLO STRAPLESS BIKINI – HERE I COME.

So, the boyfriend is pretty adamant about protein. Or, let’s just say he’s pro-protein. Like, the powder kind. We were starving after a pretty intense workout the other day and came home and made some smoothies. We are THAT couple [that goes to the gym and drinks protein smoothies together] and I couldn’t be happier.

I had been concocting this protein smoothie all morning. Actually, the night before, too. Because if I am going to be working out and sweating this much (and drinking liquid protein), I’m going to want it to taste good. And this does. Trust me.

PS: 27g of protein in this bad boy!

Chocolate Covered Blueberry Smoothie

1 scoop vanilla (or chocolate!) protein powder
1 tbsp cocoa powder
1 tbsp Hershey’s syrup (optional – but it’s better to have sweets in the morning because you burn them off throughout the day, vs. at night!)
1/2 c frozen blueberries
8-10oz plain almond milk
2 ice cubes

Blend. Drink. Enjoy. Build those muscles.