Fasting and Feasting

Posted on March 28, 2016 by Alison @ Daily Moves and Grooves

He is risen!! He is risen indeed!

Happy Easter, friends! ♥︎

Phew, wow, I cannot tell you what’s going on inside of me right now, because you would have to physically shut me up (or pry my fingers from the keyboard in this case). Joy, gratitude, stress, fullness, tiredness.

Last week was a stressful week, but powering through the stress made the Holy Triduum and Easter all the sweeter.

*Disclaimer: These next few paragraphs include content relating to fasting and restriction. Please take caution ♥︎ Those with mental disorders (including during recovery from eating disorders) are not required to fast from food.

In light of Good Friday (the day we commemorate Jesus’ death), I fasted from Thursday night until Saturday (not a full fast, just less food than usual). Obviously, it was challenging. The point of fasting in the Catholic Church is to feel hunger and weakness as our Lord did in His time of suffering for our sins, and to unite our (minor) sufferings with His.

When I fasted for the first time last year, I was in a more delicate place regarding my relationship with food. I was a lot more worrisome about making sure that I was eating enough but not more than I was supposed to. This year, fasting was 100% sacrifice mode for me. You don’t have to tell me twice to eat enough at this point in my life, so I didn’t have to worry about mixing up restriction with fasting at all.

Although sacrifice is involved, we’re encouraged to be smart with fasting. I had a three hour class and then a campus tour on Friday, so I made sure I had just enough energy to get through those things. Fasting should not cause you to be utterly incapacitated nor make you feel super lightheaded/nauseated.

The most significant thing I noticed while fasting this year was that it was freeing to feel that hungry yet know that my hunger pangs were volitional not for restriction but for sacrifice. It empowers me to be okay with being very hungry sometimes, because I know the hunger doesn’t have to be connected to the intention of losing weight. Does that make sense?

Anyway, I was planning on doing a quasi-fast on Saturday, but I went out to lunch with my parents and family friends, and this happened:

I couldn’t be rude and say no to their generosity and kindness….

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I also took— not one— but two naps on Saturday. They were both 20 minutes, so I don’t feel too bad.

The weather cleared up nicely by late afternoon, and I hadn’t moved and grooved in a while, so I did this workout (one of my favorites!) by the river.

For whatever reason, I think my body produces a HECK of a lot of gas after I eat a big, fatty meal and then work out later that day. ‘Cause my GI tract was hurtin’ from after I worked out until much later that night. (It felt just like this day last summer!) The gas just stays inside of me and it feels like pins and needles are poking me from the inside out.

TMI, but welcome to the blog.

Saturday night involved the coolest Mass of the year—the Easter Vigil! Followed up by a late night Easter celebration, which commenced the FEASTING. It was also fun to wear makeup again 🙂

I went to bed at 3 AM, haha. I got 6 hours of sleep that night, and now I’m typing this at midnight the night after. I’m so prudent with my life decisions.

Easter Sunday started with a 30 minute walk to brunch with the family + family friends!

THIS PLACE. Dreams. Check it:

apple donut holes for appetizer, because Easter

cast iron skillet cornbread with honey butter *moment of silence*

my entree: cornmeal crusted cod + mango salsa slaw sandwich on brioche

also shared some of my mom’s “Breakfast Club” waffle sandwich (triple decker with fried chicken and fried egg + syrup for dipping)

Heart-stopping on so many levels. It was so wonderful seeing my family again too. Thank you for making the trip up here, Madre and Pop!

Then I went back to the dorm to do some homework (blah) before hanging out with friends from the Catholic Center and eating MORE.

air saxophones

WOMEN.

radiant souls

tradition ♥︎

It looks like it was warm outside, but it wasn’t. We sucked it up #ForThePics.

What a blessed day. I am at a loss for words except “Alleluia!”

The rest of the day involved me rushing to get in an assignment due at 5pm, mobile soup kitchen with my inspirational friends, and late dinner.

spinach artichoke dip to share (we all burned the roofs of our mouths devouring this)

arugula salad with golden raisins, candied walnuts, blue cheese, red onions, and Italian herb vinaigrette

my aunt’s homemade zucchini bread with almond butter

Plus another cookie and more almond butter.

Thank you, family. Thank you, friends. Thank YOU for reading this and supporting me so lovingly. Thank you, Lord for your Death and Resurrection and Love beyond imagination.

Hope you all have a splendid Easter week!

So tell me:

Three things you did this weekend!

The best thing you ate this weekend!

Do you have any insights on fasting/feeling very hungry after having experienced an eating disorder?

Five Minute Friday #9: What Motivates Me

Posted on March 25, 2016 by Alison @ Daily Moves and Grooves

It’s Good Friday.

My three exams are finished for this week.

I’m strangely alert and amped up as I type this at 1:30 AM (a bunch of us were out doing a Holy Thursday procession around downtown Boston).

Here’s what got me through this week (and what gets me through every week, for that matter):

link to video here!

I’m definitely missing so much information that I wanted to tell you from this week, buuuuuut I should hit the hay.

*as I get distracted on Facebook*

If you’re celebrating Easter this weekend, I wish you a blessed and joyous one indeed. If not, I wish you a blessed and joyous weekend too!

So tell me:

What motivates you?

What are you doing this weekend?

Anything in particular for Easter?

He Is Risen

Posted on April 5, 2015 by Alison @ Daily Moves and Grooves

HALLELUJAH!

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It has been a long couple of weeks, but Holy Week and Easter have allowed faith, hope, and love to persevere. The love God shows us through Jesus Christ’s Passion and Resurrection is beyond comprehension.

Whether you are celebrating Easter, Passover, or just LIFE this weekend, I wish you the very best. I love you!

Here are some photos from Holy Thursday and last night’s Easter Vigil Mass!

#turnup for Jesus

I am currently jamming out to music in my dorm at 1AM (with headphones in— roomie is sleeping) because HE IS RISEN.

Have a blessed Sunday, y’all. ♥

So tell me:

What did you do this weekend!?

Facts About My Recent Eats

Posted on April 2, 2015 by Alison @ Daily Moves and Grooves

I now firmly believe that spring is on its way.

Boston has been gracing us with some gorgeous weather these past few days (after snowing twice over the weekend), and I can’t help but smile as I walk down the streets, breathing in the ~~urban smoke and bus fumes~~ fresh air. It’s not quite warm yet, but as long as I don’t have to wear my marshmallow jacket, I’m good to go.

I really don’t have time for blogging this week, but I’m blogging anyway. As I said on Monday, blogging is therapeutic, especially since my posts are typically lighthearted. So today I’m sharing you some of my recent eats, along with some fun facts about each!

Thinking out loud style— with Amanda!

1) Pepper shakers don’t dispense the pepper fast enough for me.

I only add pepper to my eggs nowadays, but when I do, it’s like a Boston blizzard of pepper. I douse my omelets with it. Sometimes I take the top of the pepper shaker off if it’s not coming out fast enough.

2) The dining hall does not know what curry is.

This was sweet and sour chicken that they called “red curry chicken.” Delicious, but so incorrect. #offendedAsian

3) I didn’t finish off my almond butter jar just so I could have oatmeal in a jar.

These weren’t overnight oats, but it still hit the spot. I microwaved some quick oats with cinnamon, a pinch of salt, and water. Then I stirred in vanilla protein powder and a sliced banana before letting it cool and dumping it into the almost empty almond butter jar. Perfect.

4) Some days, I unintentionally go pescetarian.

baked scrod with barley + salad with tuna

Which is why I give up meat and peanut butter on Fridays during Lent, because giving up meat isn’t quite a huge sacrifice for me…

5) This Moroccan chicken and couscous dish had dried figs in it and I FREAKED OUT.

I freaked out because I ♥ dried figs and this made me very happy.

6) This was the sandwich of my dreams.

This was a whole wheat roll with roast beef, pepper jack cheese, lettuce, tomato, roasted vegetables, and honey mustard, all toasted until the cheese was melted. Yes, it was messy. Yes, it was bomb.

7) When the dining hall has Sargent Choice (all healthy options) night, I ironically become very stuffed because I want to try everything…because it’s all healthy, right?

baked chicken nuggets with sweet potatoes, side salad, and honey mustard + turkey chili with cornbread

I’m storing some extra in the body in preparation for fasting on Good Friday. {jokes}

8) Hi, my name is Alison, and I am a bananaholic.

I won’t deny that it’s a problem, but listen, I could be hoarding much worse things in my dorm.

The real reasons why I take so many bananas from the dining hall are the following:

I freeze some for snacks.
The bananas are usually greenish when I take them from the dining hall, so I let them ripen in the dorm for a little bit so that I can take them down to the dining hall to eat with my breakfast on a later day. I like my bananas slightly spotted when I’m eating them with toast, oatmeal, pancakes, etc. because they’re sweeter (and healthier!).

9) I’m on the brink of an emergency because I’m almost finished with my second jumbo Costco-sized jar of peanut butter of the semester.

Alison’s body composition: 65% water, 25% peanuts, 10% bananas.

10) I hope you all have a wonderful day filled with nutritious and delicious eats! Let us give thanks (especially on this Holy Thursday!) for the food we have to nourish our bodies and souls.

Go be the sugar, spice, and everything nice in someone’s life today.

So tell me:

Do you have a holy grail condiment or spice?

Have you ever eaten an imposter ethnic food?

Is it easy for you to go meatless?

Fascinating Friday Links #32

Posted on April 18, 2014 by Alison @ Daily Moves and Grooves

Hello!

So you know how I said I wanted that piglet from my dream a couple nights ago? Well, I’ve found a way to vicariously have a pet piggy— Hamlet The Piggy on Instagram. I mean….

Victoria and I are now watching every cute animal video on Youtube, “aww”-ing at every puppy and wishing we had one as we lisp through our retainers. (That was an oddly vivid description.)

We also went out to eat sushi last night. It was delicious, but we definitely did not stuff ourselves like we did two nights ago. Goin’ light, ya know? 😉

Moves yesterday included lots of air squats, pushups, and sit-ups throughout the day (basically the 100 challenge) + some fun burpees thrown in there. It wasn’t a formal workout, but I enjoyed taking study breaks to get the blood flowin’ and the muscles working!

Since I missed sharing Fascinating Friday Links with you all last week, I’m especially looking forward to this week’s list! Enjoy!

Health & Fitness

[Keep your bones strong!] 18 Surprising Dairy-Free Sources of Calcium via Greatist

[Love TRX] 45 Insanely Effective TRX Exercises via Greatist

[Get over the bar] How to Complete a Chin-Up: 9 Tips to Help Pull Yourself Over The Bar via Your Trainer Paige

[There is a difference] Difference Between Building Muscle and Building Strength via Cotter Crunch + Workout Nirvana

[Athletes need proper fuel] Fueling for Sports via Kath Eats Real Food + Fresh Food Perspectives

[Move…] Love Your Butt Workout via Purely Twins + 30 Min Bootcamp Workout via Peanut Butter Fingers + Hop to It Workout via Fitnessista + Burpee Box Jump Chipper via Peanut Butter Runner

[…and groove :)] Full Body Workout Inspired by Grease! via The Body Dept.

[Get inspired] 5 Instagram Accounts to Follow for Healthy Eating Inspiration via Health News and Views

Food for Thought

[Let go] 9 Things to Stop Doing During Hard Times via Marc and Angel

[Don’t let your ED define you] I Am Not My Eating Disorder via Fitting It All In

[Appropriate for Good Friday] Why I Do Favors and Don’t Expect Anything in Return via Goins Writer

[Amen] I Will Never Have a Thigh Gap via Thought Catalog

[Weaknesses make us stronger] When Does Weakness Become Strength? via Olive to Run

[They balance out for some people] Inner Bitch vs. Inner Narcissist via Snack Therapy

Food for Belly

[Cookie dough for breakfast?] Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Smoothie via Edible Perspective + Nut Butter Breakfast Cookie Dough via The Big Man’s World

[Such a great idea] California Roll Amaranth Salad via Back to Her Roots

[So springy] Coconut Lemon Poppy Seed Loaf via The Healthy Maven

[Why, hello.] Coconut Syrup Banana Split via The Kitchy Kitchen

[Comfort] Sweet Potato, Kale, and Sausage Bake with White Cheese Sauce via Pinch of Yum

[Creative] Strawberry Banana Smoothie Cake via Fit Foodie Finds

[Want these] Vegan Banana Nut Scones via Cookie and Kate

[Perfect] S’mores Macarons via Budget Bytes

Miscellaneous Fun

[Help out the new mamas out there] 10 Meals You Should Make Your For Your Friends with New Babies via Pinch of Yum

[Incredible] 60 Most Powerful Photos That Perfectly Capture the Human Experience via Distractify

[Honest and hilarious] Real Life of a Newbie Runner via I Think In Comics

[For bloggers] 5 Tips to Improve Your SEO via The Healthy Maven + Photography Tutorial— Editing From Start to Finish via Fit Foodie Finds

[Be a green machine] A Guide To Salad Greens via Oh My Veggies

[So many possibilities!] 76 Genius Ways to Use Coconut Oil In Your Everyday Life via Greatist

[Not all things that say “Whole Grain” are whole grain] Decoding Whole Grain Food Labels via Cooking Light

Hope you all have a wonderful weekend and a blessed Good Friday and Easter if you celebrate! I promise to not accidentally eat meat or nut butter today. I actually unintentionally went meatless yesterday now that I think about it…maybe that makes up for last Friday?? 😉 Breakfast this morning was a nut-butter-less yogurt bowl with a sliced banana, chia, hemp, cereal, cinnamon, nutmeg and honey. I also made Victoria Gina’s famous cookie dough cereal this morning and she loves it!

After Good Friday service today, we’re all heading up to Boston for the final college visit EVER (Boston University for me, Northeastern University for Victoria). We’ll be spending Easter up there, so we’ll get to see Ben too!

“He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness; by his wounds you have been healed.” — 1 Peter 2:24

So tell me:

What are you doing this weekend?

What did you have for breakfast this morning?

Do you like watching videos of cute animals?