I love Reese's to Pieces

As the alarm went off this morning, my right calf simultaneously decided to cramp up. What a fun way to wake up at 5:30 a.m.! I must admit it did make me hop right out of bed and not linger in my warm, cozy sheets. In my wide-awake state I went to the gym for a total-body weights workout and caught up on People magazine while cranking out 25 minutes of light cardio on the elliptical. Since Ryan has the day off he joined me on my daily morning 2.5 mile walk with Sadie which was a nice treat.

Since I usually pack my breakfast and lunch the night before to take to work the next morning, I was pretty excited about my breakfast today even before I went to sleep last night! Reese’s Pieces for breakfast!!!

Okay, fine, not quite… but pretty close! I added a 100-calorie pack of Reese’s Snacksters to my Greek yogurt for a peanutty-crunch.

The Yogi Tea triple echinacea green tea flavor is yummy! Green tea can fall a bit flat for me sometimes, but this one packs a punch and holds a lot of flavor.

I love a sweet start to a Friday!

My night last night was pretty packed as I headed to the gym immediately after work for a metabolism test. It was pretty informative and I learned that I burn roughly 1,454 calories in a day if I do absolutely nothing! I knew before the test that your body typically burns 10 times your body weight at rest in a day, but I was happy to learn from the metabolism expert that my body is very efficient and is actually burning more than that amount. The woman I spoke with said my active lifestyle and dedication to the gym is to thank for this result.

I think it’s easy to get caught up in exercising to see physical changes in your body, but this helped bring me back to the real reason exercise is so important – our overall health. Though exercise makes me feel better and I actually enjoy it, knowing that my heart is happier and my body is healthier is true motivation to continue with active, healthy living.

When I got home I was pretty darn hungry since the test mandated a 4-hour fast and my body is used to snacks and mini-meals frequently. Ryan earned extra boyfriend points for having dinner ready when I walked in the door.

The barbecue grilled chicken and steamed broccoli hit the spot and I think I polished off this entire plate in less than three minutes. Hungry girl!

I then took off for a girl’s night at my friend Laurel’s apartment where I enjoyed this fantastic drink:

It’s like a fancy spin on hot chocolate. Creamy, rich and very satisfying. Apparently I’m not the only one who thinks so, because all of my friends had fantastic things to say about this drinky as well.

Enjoy your Friday!!! The weekend is almost here… YAY!