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April 15, 2015

Spring Makes Everything Happier

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Every winter, I slog through cold, dark, and dreary runs, wondering if maybe I don’t actually love running as much as I thought I did. And then every spring, I fall in love with running all over again.

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I was planning on sleeping in this morning; I even signed up for a yoga class tonight after work at Epic Yoga in Dupont via ClassPass (it’s too late to cancel now, so I guess I’ll still be going!). But at 6 a.m. I was WIDE awake thanks to Zara being loud/rambunctious. I tried to fall back asleep but kept peeking outside – it was gorgeous. Cool and clear, with a beautiful sunrise. Man, I wanted to go for a run. Around 6:40, I randomly decided to text my friend Sokphal. “I can’t fall back asleep – any chance you are up too and heading out for a run?” A mere minute later and she responded “I’m up! I have to do 6 miles. I can be ready in 15 minutes!” I wrote back “Let’s do this!” Run date it was. 🙂

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A little while later and we were hitting the pavement! I felt great – energized and excited to be out and about. We decided to run from her place in Rosslyn down to the cherry blossoms. I’m running down to see them tomorrow morning, too, but with them only in bloom for a mere week, I want to see them as much as I can. 🙂

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We ran down along the Mt. Vernon trail…

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Then over the bridge that I forget the name of that pops you out right by the Jefferson Memorial and the tidal basin where the cherry blossoms are.

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Seeing the cherry blossoms in the early morning is the best thing ever – no crowds. We had them nearly to ourselves – the only other people out were runners and a few people taking engagement photos. It was a little soggy from yesterday’s rain, but still beautiful!

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I was happy to see the rain hadn’t knocked all the blossoms off the trees, although some have definitely fallen already. It looked almost like pink snow – so pretty!

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We ran back via the reflecting pool, and look who we ran into! My college buddy Sarah, out for a solo morning jaunt. 🙂 I’m running the cherry blossoms tomorrow morning with her and our friend Kathleen – can’t wait!

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Thanks again for the random last minute run date, Sokphal! The miles FLEW by. 🙂 Good luck on Monday in BOSTON!!

6 miles in an 8:08 average pace – wow! I don’t know where all this speed came from all of a sudden, but I’ll take it. I think my body is just happy to not be wearing 40 layers of clothing every time I run!

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When I got home, I refueled with some oatmeal. I made my standard perfect microwave banana oatmeal and stirred in some cottage cheese when it was done. Topped with sliced almonds and walnuts, and some fresh raspberries. Delish!

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I’m working from home this morning, then heading into the city after lunch to finish out the workday. After a couple month hiatus from using the co-shared office space downtown I signed up for last fall, I decided to sign back up again last week. I put my membership on hold while I was traveling like crazy in February and March, and I figured once I was back maybe I’d just stick it out at home to save money. Well, a few days straight at home was enough to make me realize I needed to sign up again. I know working from home sounds awesome when you don’t do it all the time, and it is amazing/a big luxury once in awhile, but if you do it every single day it’s super lonely. I just find I’m MUCH happier when I get out of the house/have to put real clothes on/am surrounded by other people all day. Also, not being surrounded by household tasks/adding those on to your to do list during the day helps a lot with stress, too.

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On Monday, I was downtown and it was GORGEOUS out, so I met up with my friend Sarah for lunch! Sarah and I used to work in public relations together way back in the day – it’s always fun to see her. We work right near each other so we met up and strolled down to the Teaism by the White House for lunch. I was really in the mood for a burger, so I went with it. It came with pickled jalapenos and grilled onions, plus a side salad of kale and romaine. Hit the spot!

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And for dessert, one of their delicious salty oat cookies. They make THE best cookies. Love the salt!

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As for yesterday’s lunch at the office, I packed my lunch! I threw together a quick tuna sandwich before racing out the door in the morning. (For more packed lunch ideas, check out the packed lunch section of my recipe page.)

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The tuna salad was just canned chunk light tuna + about 1/3 of an avocado + a big squeeze of dijon mustard. When I make sandwiches, I like adding broccoli slaw onto it – adds a nice crunch, plus some extra veggie power! I threw some arugula on top, too.

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I packed an orange (forgot to take a picture) to enjoy with my sandwich – pre-peeled, because I hate making a mess once I’m in the office. As for snacks, I packed a Kate Bakes Bar and a Nourish Snacks Mr. Popular (half popped popcorn – so good).

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The “Eat Your Greens” bar is a new one from Kate Bakes (local DC company and love her bars) – I saw it over the weekend while at South Block Co. juice bar with Matt and picked up a few. It’s made with pulp leftover from the South Block Juice – hellooooo, fiber! It was tasty, too.

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Speaking of local DC companies, I wanted to give a quick shout out to Slender Seven – their founder & CEO, Nikki, is a blog reader and hand delivered (so sweet) a sample of her new healthy & eggless cookie dough to our house last week. Matt and I tried it immediately and wow – it’s insanely good. The ingredient list is chickpeas, almond butter, chocolate chips, cane sugar, coconut oil, lemon juice, and baking soda (7 ingredients – hence the company name), and somehow that combination tastes EXACTLY like real cookie dough. You can eat it raw (my preference) or bake it! She just launched the product officially last week – so far, it’s available at Yes! Organic locations in the DC area. Good luck, Nikki! I’m sure you’ll be in Whole Foods in no time. 🙂

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As for the dinner front this week, on Monday night I was craving something vegetarian after my lunchtime burger. Matt was heading out for a soccer game so we weren’t eating together, so I threw together a really easy meal with this Channa Masala from Trader Joe’s.

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I’m not hugely into frozen meals, but the ingredient list for this is stellar, and it’s really delicious if you bulk it up a bit with other things! I served it atop a massive quantity of microwave-wilted spinach, plus part of a container of 90 second plain brown rice. Boom – a healthy, super fast dinner is served.

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While I was throwing it together, I snacked on some raw carrots. I love snacking on raw veggies while I cook – nice way to get in a little more veggie power/stave off starvation at the same time. 😉

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As for dinner last night, I went to a post-work yoga class at Edge Yoga with Chelsea via ClassPass (it was amazing as always), and then we hit up nearby SweetLeaf for enormous salads to refuel, as per usual. Fun to catch up with her!

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This post got way longer than I planned – oops! If you made it this far, well done. 😉

Have a great day, everyone!

- anne
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23 comments
  • Katie @ Live Half Full
    April 15, 2015 · 12:18PM:
    I love how you bulked up the freezer meal! My husband's out of town this week, so I might swing by Trader Joe's and stock up and give it a try!
    Reply
  • Emma @ Life's A Runner
    April 15, 2015 · 12:18PM:
    I had actually never seen cherry blossoms before coming to Vancouver! I'm not sure if they are only a "coast" thing, but apparently they do not make an appearance in Alberta. ;) Also, my first thought when I saw them was the Cherry Blossom 10 Miler - I guess I need to get to DC one day to run that, hey? I also think I will have to try out that Channa Masala. It will be a much nicer alternative to Annie's during these long study nights. :)
    Reply
  • Sarah
    April 15, 2015 · 12:36PM:
    That Slender Seven cookie dough sounds awesome! Nikki went to the same college as me, so I was actually just reading about her and her company the other day. I'm hoping her products make it down to Florida soon!
    Reply
  • Sam @ Grapefruit & Granola
    April 15, 2015 · 1:18PM:
    I am also loving spring! The warmer weather is perfect (although, I just walked outside and it's cold again... not sure what that's about!)
    Reply
  • Erin @ Her Heartland Soul
    April 15, 2015 · 1:31PM:
    DC is so beautiful in the spring! Look at all those cherry blossoms!
    Reply
  • Johanna B April 15, 2015 · 2:04PM:
    I love Chana Masala. I will have to try it your way next time. I usually have brown rice but the addition of spinach is brilliant.
    Reply
  • Dani @ DaniCaliforniaCooks
    April 15, 2015 · 2:11PM:
    I am totally a seasonal runner too. I have so much energy in the fall/spring for running but turn to different activities during the winter and summer!
    Reply
  • Catherine April 15, 2015 · 2:42PM:
    I am not a big fan of running but I think scenery like that would make even ME a convert! I love DC!
    Reply
  • Erin @ Erin's Inside Job
    April 15, 2015 · 3:04PM:
    I've been finding a lot of decent meals at TJs recently that have minimal ingredients and things I can actually pronounce. I am still not a huge fan of them, but I like to wander in periodically. I am excited for running here in Chicago in the spring. There have been a couple days that I have made it out, but then it decided to get cold again. Thankfully I think things are looking up and spring is here to stay!
    Reply
  • Ash Diamond
    April 15, 2015 · 3:06PM:
    Those pictures are awesome, especially the one where she looks like she's flying over the cherry blossom pool. :)
    Reply
    • Anne
      April 15, 2015 · 3:08PM:
      I love that one, too! :)
      Reply
  • Ellen @ My Uncommon Everyday
    April 15, 2015 · 3:17PM:
    I'm loving spring in Chicago so far! School is stressful, but being surrounded by such prettiness makes everything feel just a bit happier :)
    Reply
  • Shel@PeachyPalate
    April 15, 2015 · 3:54PM:
    Yummy eats! Spring does make me a happier nicer person all round! And I get so much more done with the longer bright days!
    Reply
  • Jillie
    April 15, 2015 · 4:07PM:
    I feel like the only time I can get myself out of bed to do an early morning run before work is when it's spring or summer. Spring because it's absolutely beautiful outside and summer because well, it's freaking hot if it's anytime past 10AM sometimes! I'm the same when it comes to working from home. I need the "good mornings!" from other people in the office as well as taking the effort to put on an outfit and be in an "office" space. It's weird because I work in an open office set up and I get so annoyed when I hear other people eating their lunches or being loud on the phone - that's when I prefer the silence of working from home!
    Reply
  • Ashley @ A Lady Goes West
    April 15, 2015 · 5:04PM:
    Hi Anne! Wow! Looks like a great setting for a run, so good work! And yoga in the evening is a perfect way to stretch out the muscles you worked. You know, I use broccoli slaw as a pasta replacement a lot and never thought to add it to tuna. Great tip! Enjoy your Wednesday! :)
    Reply
  • Bets April 15, 2015 · 5:28PM:
    I'm so sad Slender Seven is only in DC, I would loooove some right now!
    Reply
  • Fiona @ Get Fit Fiona
    April 15, 2015 · 5:53PM:
    The cherry blossoms are stunning! I'm also jealous of the tulips. They won't be blooming here for another couple weeks.
    Reply
  • Kirtley @ The Gist of Fit
    April 15, 2015 · 6:16PM:
    LOVED the pics today!! Gorgeous blossoms, amazing clean eating ideas!!!!
    Reply
  • Roadrunner April 15, 2015 · 8:40PM:
    There is nothing like running on a nice Spring morning!
    Reply
  • sally @ sweat out the small stuff
    April 16, 2015 · 10:43AM:
    My boyfriend and I traveled to Baltimore this weekend and took a day trip to DC to see the cherry blossoms. Unfortunately we didn't have them all to ourselves like you. It was SO crowded. But so beautiful it was worth it. Glad you get to enjoy them in the mornings before the crowds. And wow! When I was there not a single flower petal had fallen yet. I guess the rain knocked some down. I really did get to see them at peak.
    Reply
    • Anne
      April 16, 2015 · 11:36AM:
      Yeah, it was absolute madness over the weekend!
      Reply
  • Allison Keskimaki April 16, 2015 · 7:49PM:
    Oh my gosh, Anne! Sooo jealous. I was in DC last year with my 8th graders for the Cherry Blossoms and it was amazing (and CRAZY packed). Thanks for the Blue Apron discount; excited to try it!
    Reply
  • Kris S April 17, 2015 · 1:25PM:
    gorgeous photos!! :)
    Reply
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anne mauney fannetastic food
Hi, I’m Anne! I'm a Washington D.C. based Registered Dietitian, mother, runner, and lover of travel, adventure, and the great outdoors. I've been blogging since 2009, sharing a mix of lifestyle content, recipes, and fitness tips. Come for the recipes – stay for the fun!
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anne mauney

I’m Anne, a Registered Dietitian and mother. I've been blogging since 2009 and love showing others that eating nutritious foods and staying active can actually be fun rather than overwhelming!

When I’m not writing or cooking for fannetastic food, you can find me running, coaching nutrition clients, or on an adventure with my family. Feel free to reach out - I'd love to hear from you!

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