Protein shake with orange + honey

Um. YUM y'all. When I worked as a barista we had this frozen dreamsicle drink that mixed orange juice and white chocolate with a vanilla powder mix and it was delicious. This is my healthy version of that drink! I used two whole oranges (unpeeled, of course), honey and a scoop of vanilla protein powder. You put all of that in a blender along with half a glass of ice and about 1/4 to a 1/2 cup of your liquid preference (dairy/soy/almond/coconut milk or water). Add more liquid as necessary while blending. I'm really a guestimator in the kitchen, so just eyeball the honey. Just remember it's always easier to add a bit more later than to fix it if it's over sweetened! Don't be crazy, okay?

Protein shakes are really great post-workout meals. You can make them quickly and take them on the go if you're in a rush after your workout. They're also a really good supplement if you eat a mostly vegetarian diet like I do. I've heard complaints about how expensive protein powder can be, but the Target brand is really delicious and is very affordable. I'm talking $15 for 30+ shakes. 

I've got a tutorial on a really yummy coffee protein shake too and lots of delicious ones coming your way over the summer.

Do you drink protein shakes? How do you drink yours? And have you ever noticed how "protein" is the one exception from the "I before E except after C" rule? WEIRD.

She's beautiful but will KICK YOUR BUTT: say hello to Nichole Huntsman

If you've hung around MBD for the past few weeks you probably remember me mentioning the Revolt program that I'm doing. I'm so thankful that Nichole's team reached out to me (they offered me a free 12-week trial in exchange for blogging about the program every week). It was exactly the motivation I needed because me and my beer gut were very much in a love/hate relationship. Plus I was getting very unhappy with my health and physical appearance.

The thing I absolutely love the most about this program is Nichole! She's doing the daily workouts right there with you, commenting on the private Facebook group (that's where we post our progress and confess all of our slip-ups) and following the same meal plan that she posts for us each week.

Right before this post I did today's workout in my living room (while watching Nichole do it in hers) and I just loved it. The workouts are suuuuper short (but INTENSE) and she doesn't edit out her mess ups! When she's getting really into the zone and does 5 more reps than what she said we were supposed to be doing, she just stops, says "woops" and goes into the next exercise. She's as real and sweet as she is beautiful (and yes that might make you hate her a little bit).

I honestly feel like I could shower the Revolt program and Nichole with praises all day, and I still wouldn't be able to convey how this thing is (technically speaking) 1000% awesome, authentic and worth your time. Once I reach my body fat % goal I'm going to post my before and afters, because I really think that might be the only way to show everyone how amazing this thing really is.

If you have any questions or want to know more about the program you can visit Revolt's about page, comment below or email me whenever you like. Besides that, HAPPY FREAKING WEEKEND Y'ALL!

Coffee protein shake

On the Revolt plan we're supposed to have a protein "shake" every day after our workout (which is supposed to be just the powder mixed with cold water). I adjusted it a little bit to appease my frozen coffee craving, and it's with hardly any extra calories added to it!

All you need is a scoop of whey protein powder (both chocolate + vanilla flavors are delicious), 4-6 oz soy milk* (almond milk is also really good + water would work just fine), 2 packets of instant coffee, ice and a blender. Makes 2 servings. Less than 150 calories for a 12oz serving.
1// To keep the powder from clumping up, add a little bit of your liquid to the blender first. 2// Add your scoop of powder and packs of coffee. 3// Pour in a little more liquid. 4// Measure out about 3/4 of a tall cup of ice then dump into the blender. 5// Add in the rest of your liquid, though it may be a good idea for you to save some of it back to prevent the shake from being too liquidy. 6// Blend and BAM. Yummy shake. 

*Soy milk will have more fat than almond milk, but it also has more protein per serving. Fat from both of these milks though are healthy and will help in all kinds of things ranging from a higher metabolism to regulating blood pressure to healthier skin (especially almond milk on that last one).
**Adding a full banana to your shake is optional, weird and also delicious. If you do this take half of the amount of ice out of the recipe.

I normally drink both servings because I don't eat that much during the day, and when I do it's veggies and fruit, so the more protein the better!

Obviously I don't really go by the meal plan provided for us. Plus I just don't eat as much as we're supposed to. The idea is to graze on food all day and keep your metabolism in check, which is a fantastic way to eat. I've done it once before and it's the healthiest I've ever felt! So with saying that, eating more accordingly to the meal plan is one of my biggest goals (then onto the million supplements I'm supposed to remember to take every day!).

And let's be real here. I'm a poor (veeeeery poor) college student. The meal plans honestly aren't expensive to go by (don't get me started on the supplements though) but I'm b-r-o-k-e. Or maybe I buy clothes too much. I'm not sure.

My biggest success with the program is working out. BAM. I feel so good now! I don't feel like I'm healthy yet, so I'm not content...but I am content with my effort to get where I wanna go. Ever heard that saying, "easy come, easy go"? Well the reverse is true..."hard come...hard...go..??". Mmkay, maybe not. But I've done a really good job of not staying active over the years since high school (ooooh those high school days. The only things I really miss are cheering and soccer). So getting back to that really active lifestyle and level of fitness will take some time. One day I'll be so very happy and proud of myself and what I'm doing for my body!

You can check out another recipe I did here that's similar to the breakfast we're eating this week. Just take out the meat, add more veggies (peppers, onions + salsa) and only use egg whites. DELICIOUS!

Revolt Fitness Program

Well hi guys! Long time no see, huh? Man school has been kicking my butt yall. But I don't wanna dwell on that, instead let me tell you a little about the fitness program that I started last week. 

The pictures above are before and afters of Nichole Huntsman, founder of Revolt. This lady is amazing. She's a busy mom of four who lost 60 pounds after each pregnancy (that's a total of 240 pounds!!). After her last child she became really obsessed with nutrition and fitness and eventually entered one of those fitness bikini competitions after transforming her body. And won. She has so much dedication and drive.

She also felt like she had a unique take on fitness+nutrition and was anxious to share it with others. Her social media and blogging outreach team contacted me about joining the program for free in return for blogging about each week as it passes (it's a 12 week program). After researching it a little more I knew I was completely game for giving it a go!

It's like a personal trainer delivering a meal plan custom-fit for you along with workout routines that she does via video right along with you! And man, last week was TOUGH.

There's so much to tell you about the program and my thoughts on it, along with the struggles and successes I've already had. If we're being honest here, I'm not good at restricting myself. If I want some froyo, I get froyo. If I want Taco Bell, I get Taco Bell.

But I'm also getting older and further and further away from my high school metabolism and physique. I'm definitely lacking in the exercise department and I really want to protect my future by keeping my heart healthy now.

I'll be back next week with more details and updates on how it's going! In the mean time, have you ever done anything like this? What's your diet/fitness regimen? I wanna know what works for you!