Keto adventures, Recipes

Meatballs with marinara sauce and ricotta cheese!

Movin' it with Michelle

Tonight we had meatballs and marinara sauce topped with ricotta cheese. I know I’ll be eating carbs tomorrow for Sunday’s race so wanted to eat healthy today. Yum!! And so easy!! 1 lb of ground beef, 1 egg, 3-4 tsps of almond flour, salt, pepper, garlic powder, oregano, red pepper flakes (seasons to taste, about a tsp each) and 1/4 cup of Parmesan cheese. Form the meatballs and sear on all sides. Top with marinara sauce and transfer into a 350 degree oven for 30 minutes. For the last five minutes remove and top with ricotta cheese and return to the oven that’s been turned up to broil for five minutes. Voila!!

What’s your favorite weeknight meal? Do you have any races this weekend? Good luck if you do!!

Cheers!

Michelle

moving forward

Weekend with family in Arizona!

Movin' it with Michelle

My parents bought a home in Arizona a few years ago and were kind enough to fly us out this weekend. Here are a few of my favorite photos from the weekend!!!

Have you ever been to Arizona? The mountains were so beautiful and I’m so glad we were able to make the trip thanks to my folks flying us out. It was a busy yet relaxing weekend away! At the end of the day life is all about family and making memories.

Cheers!

Michelle

moving forward

Three things they don’t tell you when you retire from the military.

Movin' it with Michelle

Three things they don’t tell you when you are retiring from the military…the list is vast but here are a few of the things I learned.

 

Transitioning is hard. Plain and simple. For 20+ years you were part of something bigger than yourself and the meaning behind serving your country cannot be put in to words. You will feel lost and empty as you search for your new place in life. I liken the feeling to post-partum depression (something I suffered with quite severely after my second daughter was born) where you just feel like something is MISSING, well, because IT IS. And I can say while the feeling does fade with time, it never quite leaves completely.

 

No one in the civilian world (at least not many I have encountered over the last almost 8 years I’ve been out) will care what rank you were, what medals and awards you received or what positions you may have held. It has no meaning to most in the civilian world, and it leaves you feeling a bit slighted for all the hard work you did while you served.

 

You will never have a core group of friends like the ones that you served with in the military. My Air Force brothers and sisters and I will always hold a very special bond, and I can go months without talking to them and then pick up the phone as if we haven’t skipped a beat. I have not been able to find another group of friends like I had when I was in the Air Force, and I miss that bond dearly. Sure, I have friends, but fleeting friends that entire my life for a season rather than a lifetime.

 

But at the end of the day, nothing can take away the fact that you served whether in theater or stateside and the military will always be a part of who you are as a person. Hang on to that pride, and never let it go.

Basic training photo

Retirement photo, 20 years later

 Were you or any of your family members in the military? I come from a long line of prior military members. Did they struggle when they got out? I urge you to be there for anyone that may be struggling not only with retiring from the military but life in general.

As always I appreciate the comments, likes, and shares.

Cheers and keep movin’ forward!

Michelle

half marathon training, Keto adventures, moving forward, Recipes

What a difference a day can make

Movin' it with Michelle

Wednesday I went out for my short run after work, and felt incredibly strong. I always wonder how I can pull these runs after working all day, but I got it done and it felt great. Fast forward to today’s long run, and whoa…but we’ll get to that in just a bit. I haven’t gotten a chance to write since my last post about mid-life due to crazy schedules, but just thought I’d share a little about my week last week.

Like I said, my mid week 5k went great. I settled in after the first mile and was able to let go and just run. While I often miss my once speedy average pace of 9:15 for short runs, I will celebrate my time no matter what. I didn’t get to run much for the year of 2016 while my husband was deployed, and 2017 was busy playing catch up for the year I lost with my husband, and moving my family across the country to start our Florida adventures.

 

This weekend started out really lovely. Friday night I cooked dinner and we relaxed at home. Saturday my husband came up with the idea to drive to Clearwater to watch the sunset and have dinner with one of our neighborhood friends. It felt SOOOO great to have my toes in the sand!!!!

 

Today was my long run. The last one before the Gasparilla half marathon on the 24th of this month in downtown Tampa. We had ten miles on deck, and I knew as soon as we walked out of the front door, that this run was going to suck. Mile 2 my stomach started to talk to me and we had to make a pit stop at the house after mile 3. (I don’t think Mexican food is a good idea before a long run, especially when its going to be blazing hot with full on sun with absolutely no clouds for miles. Thank God for the breeze!!). Mile six, the same thing happened and we had to swing back to the house yet again. We had gone 7.5 miles and I just didn’t think I could keep going. I drank some Nuun and had some Huma Gel, but I was still grey and pale. My hubby said I needed to stay home, and he was right. He finished out his ten miler, and I spent the next 30 minutes getting my body temperature regulated. Looking at my Garmin stats it showed my heart rate had gone to 195 bpm. Yikes. This will definitely be my last long distance race this season. I’ll stick to 5K and 10K distance until the fall/winter months, or until I cave and get a new treadmill. (My Mom had given me one back in IL, but it was old and just wasn’t working anymore so we had to get rid of it).

2.10.19longrun

For dinner tonight I made Beef bourguignon over cauliflower mash and it was amazing. To keep it keto friendly I omitted the carrots, but I feel like it was missing something with leaving them out.

Please click the links for the recipes!

How was your week/weekend? Are you training for any specific races? How do you handle running in extreme temperatures?

Cheers, and have a great week!!

Michelle

 

 

 

moving forward, real life adventures, Thankful

Battling mid-life

Movin' it with Michelle

I am battling with being 46 years old, sort of…I am caught between looking back on my past, and looking towards the future. I’ve read so many articles where women boast that the 40’s are an amazing decade to celebrate because by then you’ve “got it all figured out.”

But I don’t. While I am getting there, I still know I am not where I want to be in life. I still have unwanted debt, student loans hanging over my head, and am in a career I didn’t choose for myself. Thankfully my husband I sat down and redid our budget and with some major fun cuts we should be able to have a handle on our debt within six months minus my student loans. Who’d think a 46 year old would still have student loans?

Do I regret going back to school at a later age to obtain my MBA? Sometimes, yes. It hasn’t helped me progress in my career, hasn’t launched me into a new career, and heck at my age it’s a little late to make a career change in all honesty. But am I proud of those three little letters in my signature block? You’re darn right I am.

Looking back, though, I can honestly say despite many challenges I sure did live my best life in my younger years. I lived it up with friends, I embraced my Air Force career, and I sacrificed a lot for my kids which is something I’d never change. This says a lot, because I used to look back and regret so many things, yet now I can celebrate all I overcame, and all I endured. It has made me who I am today.

My goals moving forward are to give all I can to my kids so that they don’t have to struggle like I did as a young adult. To keep dreaming big, all while keeping it real. My Mom recently asked me, “If you could make a career change, what would you do?” I struggled with an answer, but after much thought I can say this…I’d have my own restaurant, write a book or two or three, be a health/wellness coach, and most importantly do something where I could use my experiences to help others. Yup…that’s what I would do.

Life_quotes_to_live_by-3

Today I am thankful for:

  1. My past, for it made me who I am.
  2. Morning snuggles with my husband, for this simple act makes my day so much better.
  3. My daughters. They are amazing young ladies.
  4. My life. For it is short, and sweet, and I do my best to embrace each day.
  5. Sunshine. It truly soothes my soul.

What are you thankful for today? Do you have any regrets? If you could have one career in life, what would it be?

Cheers,

Michelle

moving forward

Weekend wrap

Movin' it with Michelle

I had a great post written in my head, but my laptop won’t connect to the internet and my husband is too busy watching the game to help me. So here’s the short and sweet of the week/weekend.

My youngest tried out for the school play and got a part!!! She’s so excited. We celebrated with seafood at Pinchers since we get a military discount there!

My hubby also got a small promotion at work. He took a pay cut coming down here to Florida so he’s back to where he was in Chicago. Yay! So one last dinner out before we lock down on our budget. My dear friend Kandace helped us celebrate.

Today I ran my 9 mile long run. It started out quite humid but it was cloudy so that helped. My husband was constantly running in front of me and I couldn’t keep up and was getting frustrated so I sent him off to finish on his own at around half way point. I continued to struggle but I at least could settle down and just run my own pace. The sun came out at around mile 7 and I officially boarded the struggle bus. I finished 9 miles at an 11:40 pace and can honestly say that I didn’t have a single “easy” mile.

Since it’s Super bowl Sunday we got a bunch of quick and yummy snacks. Onion dip, spinach dip, meats, cheeses and shrimp with cocktail sauce.

I created a yummy taco dip as well. Brown a lb of hamburger meat, add garlic and low sodium taco seasoning. Add one large jar of Queso cheese and 2 chopped green onions. Yum!!

How was your weekend? Are you watching the Super bowl? What’s your favorite game day food?

Cheers!

Michelle

moving forward

New Month! Welcoming February

Movin' it with Michelle

My year hasn’t started out the greatest. I’ll be honest. Between the bronchitis, work, and lack of running due to said bronchitis I am just plain tired.

When I get tired and/or stressed, I sleep walk. Yup…I’ve been known to wake up in random places of the house and just this past week I woke up twice at 5 am on the couch with no recollection of how I got there. Really?!? Yup…

I blame the lack of running to be honest. While I’ve managed a few runs despite being sick for so long, the whopping 20 miles I logged in for January just don’t cut it. My knee really hasn’t been happy so I’ve been walking vs. running (which I don’t log as miles) so I am praying my half marathon goes ok on the 24th.

I also have been too tired to write the last few days, so wanted to start February out with a short one at least. SO here’s to February, a new month and new opportunities!!!

tired

So today I am thankful for one major thing…IT IS FRIDAY AND I CAN SLEEP IN TOMORROW!!!

What are you thankful for? Have you ever been known to sleepwalk? What is your go-to stress reliever?

Cheers,

Michelle

Thankful

Frozen tundra

Movin' it with Michelle

Gosh, I can’t believe the weather across the Midwest (well, I CAN, I’ve lived in it for years having grown up in Minnesota, and having had been stationed in Alaska for three years, and lived outside of Chicago for almost 7 years, but STILL).

I had started to complain about our chilly temps until I saw the forecast up north. I’ll take mid 40’s of a low, and highs of 60’s this week. Heck, I ran in a tank top last night. While I do miss living up north for many reasons, I DON’T miss that winter weather at all. Check this out, so sad, stay warm my northern friends!!

1.29.19florida

Today’s Thankful five:

  1. The longer days. During the winter it’s dark driving in to work, and getting dark on my way home. More day light means I can get more running done in the evenings. Score!
  2. Long showers. You know, the kind where you blast your favorite music, take your time, and even shave your legs!
  3. My husband. I know, I’ve listed him before. But he does all he can to get home from work in time to take our daughter to her Tues/Thurs jujitsu lesson so I can have an hour and a half to myself. Between deployments and work trips he’s gone a lot, so it means a lot that he always steps up to help when he’s here.
  4. Florida. My body couldn’t handle another winter, so I am so glad we live here where the coldest temps I’ll have to deal with is mid to high 30’s.
  5. My blog! 🙂 It feels good to be writing again, even if most of my posts are short and sweet.

How’s the weather where you live? What are you thankful for? THANK YOU all for reading and following along.

Cheers,

Michelle