Hi all! How was your day? I must admit, I was in a bit of a funky mood all day… for no particular reason, I think it might have been post-trip blues, because like I tweeted.. I was just feeling restless.
Since I was 18 yo I lived in Berkeley, CA for 4 years, Baltimore for 2 years, and now (almost exactly) 2 years in Phoenix. I like change, I like living new places and trying new things. There are so many places I’d still like to live, tops for my US list includes: Boston, Chicago, Austin and Nashville. I’d also like to live in San Diego or Santa Barbara, but since I already lived in California they don’t make the first list :p .. and that’s just the US.. I’d absolutely love to live abroad at some point as well. I like Phoenix way more than I ever thought I would. And November through May it’s pretty much awesome, and countless times I’ve been in awe, and enjoyed bragging about a breathless Sunset while it’s 80 degrees in February. And I don’t even mind our crazy summers too much.. oh I don’t know, just a little random venting on my part 
I think it always helps to have various little things to look forward to, and the countdowns are on!
My Birthday: 13 days
OCB AZ Figure Competition: 26 days
Trip to Seattle for a friend’s wedding: 31 days
Olympia Weekend: 51 days
NPC Iron Woman Fitness Competition: 60 days
Lots of exciting things to look forward to!
FITNESS
I started the day with an upper body workout with my trainer.. lots of Pull-ups, High Rows, Rear Delts, cable Press-downs and I’m blanking a bit.. I was just doing what I was told :p
Cardio:
1) 30 min. SS Cardio: 20 min. Inclined Treadmill, 10 min. Resistance Elliptical
2) 60 min. Spin class. Great class today, lots of resistance = great glute workout 
NUTRITION
“High” carb day! I mentioned in a previous post that I’ve been playing with different macronutrient ratios as I diet-down for my next Figure/Fitness competition. Well it just seems that lower carb is what my body likes. So its been about 5 days since I’d had starchy carbs, so today was particularly tasty :p
Pre-workout I went with the usual PB Protein Ice Cream..
I’ve mentioned before that I tend to crave textures, often even over tastes, and one of the things I’ve been missing, since I’m not eating dairy at this point, is yogurt! This mix turned out to be fantastic and totally satisfied my craving.
Yam topped with Snickerdoodle Tofu Pudding..
I just microwaved the Yam, and for the Tofu Pudding I mixed in 1 tsp Vanilla Extract, Vanilla Nectar Stevia drops and Cinnamon.
My first attempt at making Seitan turned out great. This time I used Sarah’s recipe to make a baked version.
While that was in the oven, I stumbled across this interesting recipe and wanted to create my own version. Since cheese isn’t on the menu at the moment, I though Hummus would be a great substitute.
I whipped up a (large) single serving of Hummus by throwing the following ingredients into a food processor:
1/2 c no-salt-added Garbanzo Beans
1 tbsp Lemon Juice
2 tbsp H20
1/2 tsp Cumin
1 tsp minced Garlic
dash Red Pepper
Then I grilled 1/3″ thick Zucchini slices on the George Foreman for ~4 min., then speared Hummus on each slice, added a piece of Baked Seitan, and rolled up. It sort of looks like sushi :p
This turned out pretty good, though it’s really messy to eat. And next time I probably will just skip the Zucchini part, because the Seitan was awesome, and goes so well with Hummus.
Dinner was Tasty Bites Madras Lentils with a few ounces of Chicken Breast mixed in.. not pretty, but so.. appropriately.. tasty!
Dessert was a new Protein Almond Milk Ice Cream.. White Chocolate & Cherry! I just added 2 tbsp Sugar-Free White Chocolate Syrup to the Ice Cream then tossed in ~1/2 cup chopped frozen Sweet Dark Cherries in near the end.. this was fantastic!
What other places would you like to live?
Fun Links
who says dieting can't be delicious! wow I want everything here! and snickerdoodle tofu puddnig?!! that sounds SO good!! ummm the MGN is on backorder for almost every flavor ahh i want the cake batter!! oh well, i can wait!
I emailed you, so check it out
I am SO excited!
Wow, your eats look great!! Definitely will have to try some of those ideas.
I miss it, but not the SNOW! UGH!
Places to live…anywhere on the west coast (I'm in FL now) like Oregon, Washington or California….San Diego is DEFINITELY on my list too.
Where in Baltimore did you live? I grew up there
Hey Alyson! I have a couple of questions for you. I hope you don't mind!
1) Why do you cut out dairy during your contest prep? As a vegetarian I rely heavily on fat free cottage cheese and Greek yogurt for lean protein sources, but I know that's pretty uncommon for people who are prepping for contests. But I've never really understood why people cut it out, so I was just curious what your take on dairy was.
2) How do you split your workouts throughout the day? Like do you do weights and cardio in the a.m. and then another cardio session in the p.m.? Or vice versa?
3) How often do you practice your stage routine? Everyday? And for how long (i.e. 30 min, 1 hr, etc.)?
Sorry for all the questions. By the way, I would love to live in Atlanta!!
I've only lived in one place.. albuquerque! I do like it here though- I guess it's a safety net!
What a neat idea for the zucchini wraps.. it does look like sushi!
what?? minneapolis wasn't on your list?!?!
not gonna lie.. winters are COLD. but having four REAL seasons is awesome, and lets you try out all sorts of new things! minneapolis is huge on health and fitness too. i love it!!
i've lived here my whole life, except for one year in Boston.. where i quickly found out i am NOT an east coast girl. nothing personal – it's just a different attitude/lifestyle out there. this "where else could you live?" question is actually one of my favorites… maybe bolder, or portland? but probably not permanently… i want to stay in minneapolis for good!
LOVE LOVE LOVE your blog, Alyson!!!! I'm a new follower – and I'm hooked!
Question for you – I ordered some MGN pure isolate after reading your rave reviews, but many of the flavors were on backorder (this was early last week). Now, it looks like nearly ALL of the flavors are on backorder…and bodybuilding.com is being very sketchy about when they think it will be back in. Do you have any info about this? Feel free to e-mail me directly…
So glad you liked the seitan – I loved it too and it's so easy to just slice and freeze. Super dense and filling too!
I have only lived in Florida!! But I would really love to live in a bigger city like New York, Chicago, or Boston, however the winters in those places are what scare me because I am definitely not used to the cold!
I also ordered some MGN pure isolate, I should be getting it today!!! Can't wait to try it, but I did have the same problem with the cake batter mix it was in backorder so I had to settle for Vanilla
You sure have moved around!!!!! Do you do this on your own. Scary!
Me, I want to escape to Hawaii!
Twitter: NourishedFit
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Yup, on my own.. but always exciting!
ooh my birthday is in 10 days!! i love that countdown!!! maybe if I eat exactly like you I can lose some weight for it
Twitter: NourishedFit
says:
Go Leos!
Hey Alyson! I am a new follower and I am currently doing Body For Life. I intend to keep this way of living for my entire life. I love eating protein packed meals and doing my workouts (cardio, usually spin, 3x a week; weight lifting 3x a week; and yoga 3x a week). I am wondering if I am getting too much protein though. :/ I think yesterday I got around 150 grams. I am 18 years old, about 118 lbs, and 5' 3". I try to aim for a 40/40/20 diet, but it's usually a lot higher in the protein than carbs. I have been eating and exercising like this for about a week and a half and I am seeing some results, especially in my stomach. Before, I was always just doing cardio and eating a low fat, low calorie (1000 or less) diet. My stomach was never as defined as it is becoming now. I am excited, but I just don't want to gain fat from excess protein. How much protein do you consume? I agree with you, I think my body likes a lower carb diet too.
Twitter: NourishedFit
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I'll email you tonight!
O alyson, can I send you a gift! puhhhleasssee!
that seitan roll up thingamabober looks so creative! like sushi!
I made the almond milk ice cream too last might, but I mixed it in that new Peanut flour from Traders and some berries, it was like pb and j ice cream!
Twitter: NourishedFit
says:
haha.. if you want! Did the Clean Food book get there? And I seriously need to make a TJs run! I saw the Peanut Flour on Julie's blog too and it sounds so good!
Yes, I got it! big thanks for that! I'll make some stuff out of it and post it soon. I'd love to send you a little gifty! I dont have your address tho, dont worry, I wont advertise it!
Twitter: NourishedFit
says:
Oh good! I'll email you
..
you have so much fun coming up! except i don't see new york or long island on your places to live…
hahaha
i really like your carb day too! haha especially the fu snickerdoodle pudding! i'm thinking i would develop a mildly insanely large obsession with white chocolate sugar free syrup. must. find. now.
Twitter: NourishedFit
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I would love to live in NYC for a short period of time, say 1/2-1 year.. ideally after having come into a large amount of money &/or meeting a sugar daddy :p
My birthday is in 17 days! Yay August! Your carb day all looks delish! Thanks for sharing the competition rundown with us from your weekend in Vegas!
I am a new reader and found you through my girl Naomis blog!!! U got some really yummy and creative eats!!! Love it!!!! WOW you got some shows coming up too, how exciting!!! I know how much hard work that is for those shows, my friend used to do them, so I give MAJOR kudos! U look fab girl, keep it up! Great blog and cant wait to start reading more now! xoxo