Peanut Butter Fingers

I did my presentation over a blog called Peanut Butter Fingers, pbf for short. Julie Fagan is a full-time blogger, personal trainer, and exercise group instructor. Fagan has been blogging since 2009 and has 1.5 million page views.

Her blog caught my attention because I am also trying to blog about health and fitness and different ways people can lead a better lifestyle. Fagan doesn't only blog about health and fitness she also writes about her life and just random things that happen with her and her family.

One thing that I really took away from reading her blog is just because it might be labeled a "health and fitness" blog doesn't mean you can't connect with people with other things. Letting the readers into your life makes them want to come back and read it because it is something different every time.

Pbf biggest strength is probably how relatable it is. Also a monkey could navigate the blog. There are tabs that are set up at the top for different categories whether it's recipes, workouts or even questions about her life and blogging.

If you are looking for a good blog to learn more about health and fitness or even to just read about random daily things Peanut Butter Fingers is a really good blog to follow. The link is http://www.pbfingers.com.

Stretch It Out

A lot of people don't really think about stretching when you are done with a workout or even before. After lifting with our strength and conditioning coach I finally realized how important it really is.

Our Strength and conditioning coach makes us stretch every time we finish a workout. You never realize what benefits stretching really brings until you start doing it.

Here are some of the benefits that stretching can be.
1. Reduces muscle tensions.
2. Increases range from movements of the joints.
3. Enhances muscular coordination.
4. Increases circulation of the blood to various parts of the body.
5. Increases energy levels.
6. Relief from pain.
7. Improves posture.

Just from those seven benefits you can see actually how important it is to stretch. You can get so many injuries just from not stretching before or even after. It is better to stretch to prevent an injury than stretch out a pulled muscle because you didn't stretch in the first place.

We Said Beach Where

Normal college students get to go to Padre or Florida for their spring break. Well when I first committed to play college softball I didn't realize that meant I didn't get a spring break anymore.

The past 4 years I got to spend spring break in St. Joseph, Missouri and let me tell you every year it feels like the farthest place from the beach there is.

While most people were on the beach in warm sunny weather us softball players got to experience 30 degree weather and snow. 

Whoever has played an outside sport knows playing in the cold is probably one of the worst things to play in. I can't tell you how many times we all said we couldn't feel our hands or had people go get hand warmers for us. We even had two little heaters in the dugout, and with 18 girls you have to get closer than you have ever been to your teammates to feel the warmth. We just looked at it as a way of bonding with one another. 

Driving 6 hours away to play softball in freezing weather in the snow isn't what we thought we signed up for. Games got cancelled and pushed back because of the weather and honestly we played probably the worst we have played in awhile.

Even though we didn't get to spend spring break on a beach or an island, we made it worth it because we were together. It may not have seemed like it if you walked by us because we were probably all complaining about being in Missouri in the snow. But in the end we will appreciate being together and having memories even if they aren't on the beach. 

Who Knew Healthy Could be so Good

Eating healthy can get boring, with all the meal prepping at the beginning it tends to become the same ole same ole. One thing that I try to do is make eating healthy more fun. Finding new recipes and trying them all can make eating healthier way more fun. 

One of my favorite meals is fried quinoa. If you like fried rice you will love this. Quinoa may sound weird but it is not only good for you, but it also taste amazing!

RECIPE:

• 1 cup quinoa (or 2½ to 3 cups leftover cooked quinoa)
• 1 ½ cups water or low-sodium chicken stock
• ¼ small onion, chopped
• 2 carrots, peeled and chopped
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 2 eggs, lightly scrambled 
• ½ cup frozen peas, thawed
• Sauce:
• 1 ½ tablespoons teriyaki sauce
• 2 ½ tablespoons soy sauce
• ¾ teaspoon sesame oil

instructions:

1. Rinse quinoa a few times in cold water.
2. Bring quinoa and water or chicken stock to a boil in a medium saucepan, and then reduce to a simmer. Season with salt.
3. Simmer for 15-20 minutes until quinoa is fluffy and cooked through. Remove from heat and let set for five minutes or so. Fluff with a fork.
4. Cool and store in the fridge for 15 minutes.
5. Mix teriyaki, soy sauce, and sesame oil in a small bowl. Set aside.
6. Heat ½ tablespoon olive oil in a large pan over a high heat. Add onion and carrot, cook about two minutes. Add in the rest of the olive oil and the quinoa. Stir-fry about two minutes. Add sauce and stir-fry until about two minutes. pour scrambled eggs in quinoa. Throw in peas, then toss everything together until the peas are warmed through.

Things Only Teammates Will Understand

When you have 18 girls together all the time you would it would get to be too much and it wouldn't work out but really it's perfect. 

Being on a team there are certain things and sayings that only your teammates will understand. 

1. The panic you get when you see your coach calling. 

-You think of everything and anything that you could have possibly done wrong. Then think of an excuse to get you out of any trouble.

2. The fear you have the night before a terrifying workout. 

-When you know you have a tough workout the next whether it is running or weights you dread waking up. The alarm goes off and you know you automatically are going to be sore for the next week. 

3. If coach is buying you know how to split the money.

-Everyone whose on a team knows when you go out to eat and coach is paying and gives you a limit you know how to split money. You can order something more expensive than the limit because you borrowing the money your teammate didn't use. This is the only way math has helped me in my life. 

4. The phrase "Is my farmers tan noticeable?" 

-Almost every time we go somewhere and someone is wearing a tank top you will that question. One of the flaws about softball is you look like you have been working on a farm for 8 hours a day. 

5. The agony of defeat and the sweetness of a victory. 

-One of the worst things to experience as a team is losing. Only one thing makes up for losing and thats winning. Nobody likes losing but when you lose as a team you come back even stronger making the win 10 times better. 

Benefits of Green Tea

One of the things I try to drink every night is green tea. Some people may not like it because they think it taste too bland. If you don't like the flavor of plain green tea there are a bunch of different kinds you can find, all you have to do is go to Walmart! 

Green tea is one of the most healthiest drinks you can have. It helps for weight loss to your brain functioning and has a lower risk of getting cancer.

5 benefits from green tea 

1. Green Tea Contains Various Bioactive Compounds That Can Improve Health. 
-The tea has a lot of small minerals that are very important to the body. So don't get an off brand because it won't have all of the same minerals. Even if you did get an off brand the benefits will still outweigh the risks. 

2.Compounds in Green Tea Can Improve Brain Function and Make You Smarter.
-Caffeine in green tea is what helps you to stay awake. It doesn't have as much as coffee does but it has just enough and it doesn't cause you to crash after drinking it. 

3.Green Tea Increases Fat Burning and Improves Physical Performance.
-If you look at the ingredient list for fat burning supplements you will see that green tea is on there. Caffeine has shown to improve physical performance from mobilizing fatty acids from the fat tissues and using them for energy. 

4. Antioxidants in Green Tea May Lower Your Risk of Various Types of Cancer.
-Green tea is on of the best ways to get powerful antioxidants. There have been many studies that show the results of someone that has drank green tea has a much lower risk of getting cancer than someone who doesn't. 

5. Green Tea Can Help You Lose Weight and Lower Your Risk of Becoming Obese.
-The tea boosts your metabolism and decreases body fat in the stomach area. 

The Hard Part About Being Fit

A lot of people think that working out and lifting is the hard part about being healthy and fit. When in reality the hardest part of all is about eating right.

Meal prepping can be one of the hardest things to keep up with while you are working out. Especially when you come home and your roommates have a Papa Johns pizza sitting on the table but you just have to get your tupperware out and eat your chicken and rice.


Anyone can go to the gym and lift some weights and even run a mile or two. But it takes a different kind of person to be able to keep up with a meal plan and actually stick to it.

Once you do it for awhile you start to get used to it and don't mind it at all. One good thing about meal prepping is that you always have a meal ready. The most you have to do is pop it in the microwave for a couple of minutes and it's done!


Even though you envy your roommates for eating that delicious pizza you know that meal prepping will be better for you in the long run. Then once your done the results that you see will be better than the person eating that pizza.