Kayla’s Guide to Hibernating

it is definitely too cold for me to go outside. Imma wimp when it comes to winter weather.

This arctic weather calls for a lazy relaxing day in the apartment.

So I might have spent most of the day catching up on DVRed episodes of Girls, The Biggest Loser and Emily Owens MD

Being cooped up in my apartment also gave me time to sit down and do a major study sesh for my upcoming AFAA Group Fitness Certification exam

 

after the grueling process of studying for the NASM personal training exam in December, this material feels way more accessible. It helps that I find the material interesting and I now have a basic understanding of exercise science thanks to NASM.

Today was also the perfect day to prep food for the week. Nothing makes me happier than a tupperware of homemade turkey meatballs in the fridge.

I’m a fan of eating these meatballs for dinner or a mid day snack.

 

I did [briefly] venture to the outside world for the sake of fitness– now that’s devotion! A great motivation to go out and sweat? One, the gym is guaranteed to be nice and toasty. And two, sign up for a class in advanced with an instructor you love so you can’t skip the class even if you really want to. Tonight was a conditioning class with one of my favorite instructors who I haven’t taken a class with in a year.

And of course, breakfast for dinner makes everything better

After staying away from pancakes for a few weeks, my pancake obsession is back and strong than ever.

 

Since I spent most of last week running around Manhattan and Brooklyn going on job interviews, auditions, etc it is nice to have a nice lazy but productive day in the apartment.

 

Question of the day: how are you surviving the cold weather?

 

even better fried rice.

greetings from a [very long] NASM study break

That stack of notecards is the bane of my existence.

This week has been a bit… much. Working + Studying + Being Sick = one overwhelmed Kayla. Being sick ruins everything!

Work is going well minus the whole sick thing. It’s definitely forcing me out of my comfort zone– I’m usually not a very extroverted person and tend to avoid talking to strangers at all cost. Meeting new clients is definitely going to be a challenge for me, but it’s good to leave my comfort zone, right?

Some perks of being a personal trainer (or at the moment a personal trainer in training– PTIT)

• getting beat up by my fellow co-workers. I was the guinea pig last week for a mock training session with one of the veteran trainers. He definitely didn’t take it easy on me and proceeded to reduce me to a pile of sweat. Good thing I love working out!
• being required to wear yoga pants. Nice and comfy all day long, yes please.
• when the work day is over I’m already at the gym and dressed for a workout.

 

 

So, tonight I finally felt the good kind of rumbling in my tummy– HUNGER! Considering I’m usually hungry ALL THE TIME, having no appetitive for the last few days has been odd.

It was time to bring back a California favorite : picky eater “fried” rice

While the first time I made it it was pretty good, I definitely went a lil crazy on the soy sauce. Today’s creation was like a million times better than the original

brown rice + soy sauce + sesame oil + carrots + zucchini + eggs + CHICKEN!?

oh yes, that’s chicken in there. It’s well known that I’m TERRIFIED of cooking chicken, like, don’t make me touch raw chicken because it freaks me out and I’m convinced I’m gonna get food poisoning, terrified. I’m making strides to get over my chicken phobia, friends!

new and improved picky eater fried rice

•  Start by heating up a frying pan on medium heat
• While the frying pan is heating up, prepare all the toppings: today I cut up some carrots and zucchini in one dish, scrambled an egg with a bit of pepper and salt in a second dish, and cut up a chicken breast into small pieces seasoning it with salt and pepper.
• Add a bit of olive oil to the heated pan.
• Once the oil is heated up it’s time to cook the chicken. It’s easy, I promise! Let one side cook for about 2 minutes, then flip all the pieces over. Once each side is cooked (it will look white and no longer pink) mix in a splash of soy sauce. Continue to move the chicken around the pan to season it with the soy sauce. To check that it’s fully cooked cut open a piece– it should be fully cooked inside.
• Move the chicken to plate on the side (I put it on a paper towel to blot the excess oil)
• Next up is the veggies. In the already heated frying pan add a bit more olive oil and add in the carrots and zucchinis. After about a minute add a splash of soy sauce and sesame oil. Once the carrots are a bit soft, move the veggies to a bowl on the side.
• Last is the scrambled eggs. Pour the eggs onto the pan and mix until cooked.
• Now it’s time to mix it all together with the rice. I used microwave brown rice because I’m lazy, but any already cooked rice is fine. Put the chicken, veggies and rice in the pan with the eggs. Add a touch of soy sauce and sesame oil until it’s seasoned to your taste.
• Enjoy!

Adding soy sauce throughout was a good idea because it seasoned each ingredient throughout the process so by the time I added the rice I didn’t have to add much more. The salty flavor was way more subtle this time. Adding sesame oil was also new-to-me and added an extra flavor to it.

What’s your favorite add-ins for fried rice?

for me it’s definitely the above + edamame. And in the case of hibachi rice peas.

What else can I do with all this raw chicken I got in my fridge?

(I’m looking for something easy and fool proof….)

 

and lastly go check out Instamotivation . Um perfect for finals season… or if you’re studying for a daunting personal training certification like this gal…….