Foods I Take to Wake: Third Edition

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Spinach, Bananas, & Almond Milk

 Welcome back to Foods I Take to Wake. I’ve (Emily, here!) received a lot of questions around how I eat on campus and survive my days of being a gluten-free vegan without dying of lack of protein (doesn’t happen, folks) or only eating cardboard-flavored foods. I promise it’s not impossible. The food I eat is tasty, delicious, and absolutely INCREDIBLE. I love food, and I love sharing my passions with you. Every other week, I’ll be dishing out three of my go-to foods for everyday life, especially when I’m away at school. Let’s get to it!

Note: I am not affiliated with Trader Joe’s & as such, my words reflect my love for the product, for my health, & not at all about money. I must really love them…

P.S. Today’s foods are my favorite. Without them, I wouldn’t survive on campus. Seriously. As long as I have these three ingredients, I’m never hungry or nutrient deprived. See my training wheels smoothie to build the base!

P.S.S. If you haven't already, check out post I & post II.

SPINACH

Spinach blows my mind sometimes. Besides helping pregnant woman have enough folate in their diets, it’s a superfood with a lot of amazing benefits. It helps regulate blood sugar, can help with asthma, as been linked with cancer prevention, packs  a punch with vitamin K for strong bones, gives you healthy skin and hair, keeps you regular, and is packed with fiber, phosphorous, is a great source for non-heme iron, and is high in beta-carotene. Raise the roof! Woot woot. Okay, that’s lame. I’m still a foodie geek through and through.

BANANAS

B-a-n-a-n-a-s … had to go there. The whole banana is a magical entity, curing indigestion for some and acting as a shoe polish for others. The banana wears many hats. I’m serious about that polish trick. All jokes aside though, bananas are awesome. They help stimulate the growth of healthy bacteria in the body, while also helping to guard the sensitive lining of the stomach i.e. for ulcers. Bananas are full of fiber and help poor digestion. They control blood sugar and help stave off cravings. They’re great in smoothies, brownies, as ice cream splits, eaten with almond butter slathered on top, or baked with a little almond milk for a creamy sugar-craving elixir. They were my best friend when I was training for a half marathon, and they’re still #1 in my life helping me kick bad habits as well as not starve on campus. Love them!

ALMOND MILK

Ahhhh Almond Beverage. How can I explain my feelings quite so productively. First of all, it ROCKs. Thank god Almond milk exists. Let me just celebrate Trader Joe’s though. Finally a non-dairy milk that isn’t chock full of quite so many impossible to pronounce ingredients. One day, I’ll be able to make my own almond milk, but until then, she’ll have to do and boy is she a star. Almond milk is the perfect liquid for my smoothies, it’s excellent as the base for my oatmeal, chia seed pudding, added for corn bread or used to dip cookies in. But why do we love almond milk? It packs 30% DV of calcium (vegan = not hard to get nutrients). It’s packed with vitamin E — hello, glow. It keeps your digestion on track, supports healthy blood sugar, and helps with muscle strength and restoration. You know how good chocolate milk is for you? It actually is I swear. Imagine cacao almond milk as being the best cure-all for recovering athletes, healthy adults, and women on lady’s holiday. Food for the win.

+ what are your favorite foods that you couldn’t live without? share below or on facebook!

Be sure to tune into my snapchat (@efriend216) or follow me on instagram or twitter (both @yourfriend_em) for my adventures and foodie finds! xx

Monday Quotes

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+ How can you be more of yourself today? It’s easy to get caught up in trends, thought patterns, and the movements of others. But in all of that craziness, are you still being yourself? What makes you feel authentic, alive, and lit up? Take that perspective and live imperfectly and beautifully.

Be sure to tune into my snapchat (@efriend216) or
follow me on instagram (@yourfriend_em) for all
of my adventures and foodie finds! xx

Setting Smart Goals & a Free Printable!

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So you want to turn your dreams into a reality. They can be something you’ve been working for all of your life or something new that’s fired up your senses and has you energized to work hard hard hard. They also don’t have to just be dreams — finishing up a long-term project, advancing in the company, or getting your house ready to be sold all count as well! Here is where S.M.A.R.T. goals come into play and are oh so important. To help you out, I’ve created a free printable – find it below – that you can download and print off.

So what are SMART Goals? Specific, measurable, attainable, realistic, and timely goals. Below, I (Emily, here!) walk you through each of these pieces. To do so, I am going to use the example of launching my new site (gasp! it’s coming!).

Is this goal specific?

Having a huge goal can be just as stressful as not setting one in the first place. Here, you want to be as detailed as possible. The more information that is pushed into the planning of this goal, the better. Ask yourself these questions:

  • Who is involved?
  • What do you want to accomplish?
  • When? Where? Why?
  • Which requirements and constraints exist?

For example: “I want a new site” is not specific enough and feels quite overwhelming. However, “I want to create a new site that better reflects my brand and business to be released on October 6th” is more specific, defined, and allows me to take actionable steps toward reaching the target goal.

Is this goal measurable?

Establish how you’ll measure your success. How will you know when you’ve finally achieved your goal? Create a checklist of tasks to get done and check off each item as it’s accomplished. To help you, use some of these worksheets from my Staying on Top of it All series.

In my example, some of my tasks might look like: by new site space; find fonts that represent my brand; create my name; design my logo; format imported content, so on and so forth. All of these are smaller tasks that when completed will create my new site!

Is this goal attainable?

When you identify your goals, you develop attitudes, abilities, and skills to reach the desired outcome successfully! We often get caught up in what we think we should be doing instead of going after our core desires. If this a goal that aligns with the future vision of your authentic self?

My new site is an extension of the changes I’ve made in content on the blog, the many avenues my life has taken in the last six months, and leaves space for the adventures to be had in the future. I’m excited by the new name, imagery, styles, yet comforted by the familiarity that will still flow through. It’s going to be great, and I can’t wait. <– that’s what attainability looks like! If you’re setting your goals for what you think you should be doing, stop. Listen to your energy, not your ego. It is there that you’ll figure out if this is something you truly want or not.

Is this goal realistic?

You have to be willing to put in the necessary work to move towards your goal. Are you truly committed? Have you done something similar in the past? What do you need to achieve your goal? Be honest with yourself about your available time and energy and then plan accordingly. To stay inspired and motivated, make your goals challenging enough according to your answers to the questions above.

For example, I’ve already made Bridal Coaching by Emily on the new hosting platform, I’m in love with the work that I do, and while exhausting, creating a new site is fun and exciting for me.

Is this goal timely?

To ensure that you finish your goals in a timely way, anchor them with a deadline and mark each deadline in your planner/calendar/ or worksheet to stay on track for stress-free success!

The new site will be launched on October 6th — that means that no ifs, ands, or buts, the new site will be available for your viewing pleasure on the 6th … woohoo :)!!!

So there you have it:
only the best goals are SMART GOALS |
specific, measurable, attainable, realistic, & timely

happy goal setting! Xx.

Curious about answering those questions without having them just become overwhelming thoughts in your head?
Try printing out this worksheet and using it to help:

+ want more help around reaching your goals?
Reach out, and contact me! Xx.

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Be sure to tune into my snapchat (@efriend216) or
follow me on instagram or twitteror periscope (all @yourfriend_em)
for my adventures and foodie finds! xx