Spinning on St. Patrick's Day...Seriously?

Friday was the longest day of my life (ok...a little dramatic).  I was so ready for the up-coming weekend!  We had a planned family gathering Friday evening, Brian was coming home, and of course Saturday was St. Patrick's Day!  As an Irish girl, I love St. Patty's day. Corned beef, potatoes, parades, beer, what's there not to love?  As work finally ended on Friday I quickly drove home to pick up my sister and meet my family out for some family fun.  It was the weekend, so I allowed myself to indulge in a piece of pizza and some Yuengling (or a few).  I mean, it was a weekend to celebrate after all!  Excited to see my boyfriend (It's been a month!) and family members, we all enjoyed each others company with some good laughs and a few cocktails.  Before I knew it it was midnight...and I had a few too many drinks than planned (not my fault I was not buying or driving). A reminder popped up on my phone "Reminder: Spinning at 6:30 am.  DO NOT MISS LIZ" (I talk to myself in the 3rd person with my phone).  Well crap.  I had to get home.

The Saturday morning spinning class is in high demand.  You must sign up at least a week in advance...and skipping is not an option. As my alarm went off at 5:45 am (dear lord) I knew there was no turning back.  I had to spin.  I got myself together and went.  Of course this wasn't the hour long class...oh no, it had to be the 80 minute class (I wanted to cry).  There was no use in complaining so I just spun....and spun and spun and spun.  I'm pretty sure I sweated out all the Yuengling from the night before (The gentleman next to me said I looked rough...thank you sir.)  And then as the class came to an end, the instructor ended the class to a song called "Hangover" I'm pretty sure it was directed to me.

Note to self:

 +

do not mix (for future reference)

Moral of the story:  No excuses.  For exercise or anything in life.  People can see right through excuses, so just keep it simple and always be truthful.  If I didn't go spinning, the only person I would have been hurting was myself.  The fact that I got up and moving even (when I didn't want to) was a personal victory in its self!  I was so proud that I made it to the class (and didn't pass out) I felt great after the workout! And it definitely is the best cure after a night of a few too many drinks.  Plus I knew St. Patty's Day was going to be filled with beer, food, and some more beer.  The more calories I burned this morning...the more I could indulge! 

The other moral of the story is don't drink so much the night before your spinning class.

I headed downtown with Brian and his family.  (Brian is my boyfriend if you haven't figured that out by now)  We got there around 11 am (we had a late start to the day) and headed straight for The House of Blues.  We enjoyed the sounds of  live bands while savoring every sip of my $10.25 beer. (no that's not a typo I paid $10.25 for a Budlight)  The streets of Cleveland were lined with Cleveland-ers celebrating St. Patty's day and enjoying the wonderful weather (It was in the mid 70's!)  There were over 500,000 people downtown dressed in green and wishing they were Irish (everyone loves an Irish girl!)  We were surrounded with friends and family, and it was definitely a day to remember!

Brian and I outside the House of Blues

The crowd lines the street of East 4th

Tracey and I found Buddy! (my  brother)

Beautiful weather for the patio of The Clevelander

Brian and I at The Clevelander...broken sunglasses :(

I started my day with a hearty healthy breakfast that filled me up and gave me energy.  I love breakfast (its the best meal of the day!) so I always enjoy finding new recipes that are healthy and yummy!  These scrambled egg whites were easy to make and are filled with protein!

Scrambled Egg Whites

3 egg whites

chopped peppers and onions

1/4 cup skim milk

1/8 teaspoon no salt seasoning

This was so easy, that you can really mix it up and do a lot with it.  These just happened to be the ingredients I had in my house.  I found the best way to get the egg whites with no yolk is to carefully crack the egg half way down the center and split the egg in two.  (make sure you hold the egg in one side of the the cracked egg) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t-OwbEy-Vxk Here is a video that shows how to separate the egg (it reminds me of "how to separate an egg for dummies" haha)

Once you have your egg whites add in your 1/4 cup milk, and chopped veggies. I used onion, and green and red peppers, but you can get creative with it. Whisk this until fluffy and everything is mixed.

Spray your pan and pour in your eggs.  You can easily make this an omelet, I chose to do scrambled.  Add in your no salt seasoning (I like McCormick, but there are a lot of different kinds)

Scramble your eggs until fluffy.  I served with 9 grain whole wheat toast (It's from Heninen's and is the best bread ever) and a banana.  This was a great meal loaded with protein and potassium!

I got hungry and ate the banana before the pic...