Countdown to 2-5

Ahhhh.. the countdown is officially on as I’m hitting the big 2-5 in exactly one month! Is it just me or does 25 sound a lot older than 24? Honestly, I don’t think it’s that big of deal but it’s funny to think back to when I was 18 and what I thought I would be doing when I was 25. I’m pretty sure I said I wanted to be married with kids by this time and that goal has definitely changed!! I’m thinking more along the lines of 30-32 now. Of course I want kids, but why rush it. Isaac and I are happy with our little lives now – it’s fun to have limited responsibly and to have the pleasure of being spontaneous. I’m totally loving life right now!

Moving right along – here’s my lunch from yesterday

A lovely spinach salad topped with left over quinoa, avocado, tomatoes, and balsamic maple sauce. And a few crackers with hummus for good measure.

After work I attended a workshop on Google Wave. Considering I’ve been on Wave for a little over 2 months now you’d think I should know what I am doing- not so much. The workshop helped me figure out when and why it’s useful and that it doesn’t replace any of the tools already out there – it just enhances them.

I came home from the workshop and Isaac prepared breakfast for dinner:

Hers:

His: (everything x 2 or 3)

Actually Isaac prepared the egg in the holes / veggie sausages and I “cooked” some sweet potato rounds. I got the idea from Meghann, who had the rounds with her lunch yesterday. The process is super simple- slice a washed sweet potato and lay the slices flat on a plate. Microwave for 1 minutes, flip the slices and microwave for 1 more minute. The rounds come out soft on the inside and perfect for dipping into ketchup!

I love having breakfast for dinner and having someone make it for me made it even better.

Although I don’t post about my beverages everyday, on a normal day I drink water (be it tap, filtered or sparkling) and tea, that is pretty much it- unless I am feeling wealthy and want to splurge on a Kombucha. Normally, I drink at least a few cups of tea at work and most of the time I reuse the same tea bag for those cups. Then I typically have one cup after dinner, unless I’m in the mood for sipping plain hot water, which I do often. I drink tea/hot water to keep me warm AND to keep me fro munching the morning/afternoon/night away. Most often the latter.

What kind of tea do I like, you ask? Well, I love to sip naturally sweet teas, as they tend to take away my cravings for sweet stuff and fill me up after a meal. I like having green tea on hand to wake me up in the morning, and peppermint or ginger teas to soothe my tummy when it’s feeling off. At any given time I have multiple flavors and brands of tea in the cabinet- I like to have choices.

So when Jamie from Zhena’s Gypsy Tea offered to send me some samples of the tea to review I was obviously stoked to try out some of the different flavors. Especially since the only Gypsy flavor I had tried before was the Coconut Chai.

If you haven’t heard of Zhena’s Gypsy Tea before here’s a bit about the company:

We offer exquisite teas and herbal infusions of exceptional character and rich underlying attributes. Combining the ancient tea blending principles that began with the earliest monks and herbalists with the latest health research, Zhena’s Gypsy Tea produces hand-crafted, premium quality, all natural and organic healthy infusions to please the palate and delight the senses. We take pride in selling only teas that are 100% organic and 100% Fair Trade certified.

A commitment to social responsibility and the well-being of others has grown Zhena’s Gypsy Tea from a small humble band of loyal Gypsy Tea consumers to a growing successful brand and we are grateful. Our mission is to enrich the lives of people everywhere through our offerings of only the healthiest and freshest teas, herbs and botanicals available.

They sent samples of many flavors from their Luxe Leaves line (Premium Couture, Biodynamic, and Pink Tea for Women)

Luxe Leaves: Premium full leaf tea packaged in 100% biodegradable hot couture sachets. (I feel posh just typing the word couture sachet, I can’t imagine how I am going to feel when I drink it).

Premium Couture: Combining the ancient tea blending principles that began with the earliest monks and herbalists with the art of aromatherapy, our aromatherapeutic teas are hand-crafted, all natural and organic healthy infusions with the wellness benefits of volatile plant oils, choice leaves, and diverse botanicals, that enlighten the spirit and nourish both body and senses. (This is the one type of tea that offer that is packaged in a box rather than the traditional tin).

Flavors: Acai Berry, Bed & Breakfast, Chamomile Rose, Dragon Well, Earl Greater Grey, Peach Blossom Oolong, Tropical Garden, Vanilla Orchid

Biodynamic®: Beyond organic.

• Highest paradigm of sustainable farming.
• Self- sustaining ecosystem free from any external and unnatural additions.
• Heals the environment for future generations.
• One of the smallest carbon footprints of any agricultural method.
• Oldest non-chemical agricultural movement in the West, predating the organic farming movement by 20 years.

Flavors: Black Forest Berry, Blueberry Vanilla, Caramelized Pear, Kiwi Peach, Mango Ginger. I am so pumped to try Caramelized Pear- doesn’t it sound decadent?

Pink Tea for Women’s Health: Healthful and refreshing SUPERBERRY TEA specially blended for women’s health and vitality. Marrying the antioxidant superpower of berries with the naturally occurring catechin polyphenols already rich in green tea, each signature offering of Pink is a lush harmonious blend of superior top-tier sencha green tea and juicy, succulent superberries full of health-boosting, age-fighting nutrition. The Pink Tea is in support of The Breast Cancer Research Foundation and a minimum of 85 cents of every dollar goes to research and awareness programs.

Flavors: Aciaberry Green Tea, Cacaoberry Green Tea, CherryBerry Green Tea, PomBerry Green Tea, and WholeBerry Green Tea.

Gyspy Tea offers it’s tradition line as well – and most of their teas can be purchased in sachet tea form or in bulk. It’s quite easy to spot Gypsy Tea at the store because it comes in pretty little tins! The best part is that the tins are 100% recyclable and air-tight, which protect the leaves from light and keeps the tea fresh.
I had a cup of Egyptian Mint Green Tea to wake me up this morning.

It had a wonderful mint flavor, was aromatic and energizing. I think I’ll be wanting this every morning from now on out!

Work went by quickly as I was a busy bee and afterwords I booked it to the gym where I did a quick 20 minute run on the treadmill. (AHHH……. It’s so nice to be able to run again!) I also used the plan that Gina (The Fitnessita) came up with for Caitlin for my arms and combined it with the WMM plan that I’ve been doing.

Here’s what I ended up with:

• Overhead press: 3 sets of 10 with 10-pound dumbbells
• Dips: 3 sets of 10 using my own body weight
• Stability Ball Push Ups: 3 sets of 10
• Plank: Held for 90 seconds
• Side Plank: Held for 60 secs (each side)
• Plank ups: 10 (these are going to be the death of me)
• Lateral Raise: 3 sets of 10 with 5-pound dumbbells
• Cable Tricep Extension: 3 sets of 10 on the lowest level (my arms were on fire)
• Stability Ball Leg lifts: 3 sets of 10
• Sit ups: 2 sets of 10

Whew, this was quite the little workout. I have a strange feeling I’m going to be sore tomorrow.

There are so many great “get healthy” challenges going on around the blog world- Angela is Whittling Middles, Caitlin is Pumping Iron,Tina is Losing the Dough and I know Gina is getting ready to start her Winter Shape Up. Just wanted to throw that out there in case you are interested in getting into shape for the spring as well. I know I am, so I’ll probably be taking a mixture of their ideas and putting them into action (like the workout above) so that I can be in the best shape of my life for my 25th year!

Also, please check out my guest post over at Iateapie where I detailed my 5 favorite products from 2009.

- Brittany

Tagged as: plank ups, quinoa, spinach salad, Turning 25, Zhena's Gypsy Tea