Tag Archives: dates

Burn More Calories Than Sex: Getting Sweaty on Valentine’s Day

valentinstag

by Mariah Edwards-Heflin

It’s Valentine’s Day, the holiday where all are taught to express our undying love with copious amounts of chocolates, desserts, and of course, sex. We’ve all heard that you can burn up to several hundred calories in a sex session with your boo, so who cares if we polish off those chocolates in one sitting, right?

Sorry, but no. 150 pound person can expect to burn just 72 calories during 15 minutes of sex. While fun, your little Valentine’s Day shenanigans won’t replace the calorie burn of the gym.

So does this mean you need to stress going to the gym to lift some weights on the most romantic day of the year? Not necessarily, unless you are really that committed to the #gymlife. Then by all means, be my guest, it’s actually pretty powerful foreplay before the main event. But there are a ton of fun, active, and healthy dates you can do on Valentine’s Day that work up more of a sweat than a roll in the hay.

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Cherry Vanilla Chia Protein Balls are a Post-Workout Blast from the Past

cherry-vanilla-chia-protein-balls

You know that craving you get for a Cherry Vanilla Dr. Pepper? It’s a pretty killer flavor combo. While we couldn’t carbonate these protein balls, we were able to capture that taste we all love. Only we did it with real cherries and real vanilla and zero caramel coloring. We didn’t even use high fructose corn syrup or Red #40.

Nope, we’ve got six very natural, very wholesome ingredients literally rolled in to one ball of tasty, craveable goodness. Pop one, pop two, it’s a taste that will take you back to your childhood while satisfying your very grownup hunger before or after you hit the gym. (more…)

Treat Your Workout with Chocolate Covered Pretzel Protein Balls

chocolate pretzel protein balls

Three words for you… Treat. Yo. Self. If you know Parks and Rec, you know the reference. Only we believe in treating yourself all the time, not just one day a year. Especially after a workout!

When you’re on a run, crushing the weights, or sweating through a cycling class it’s easy to get tunnel vision and feel like there is no light at the end. These little Chocolate Covered Pretzel Protein Balls are that light. Finish the grind, then treat. yo. self.

chocolate protein ball

We love making these because they’re ridiculously easy. We also love making these because they’re ridiculously delicious. Just five ingredients, most of which you probably already have in your well-stocked pantry, and five minutes of prep is all you need for yummy, indulgent, homemade copycat Larabars. (more…)

Raw Sunflower Butter Cookies Make a Healthy Take Along Snack

The first time I tried sunflower seed butter was at a farmers market in Portland, Oregon several years back. I had just passed by the third strawberry stand lining the market’s north side when I stumbled upon a tent with a middle-aged gentleman pedaling exotic-looking nut and seed butters. One of the butters was made of sunflower seeds. Despite my initial reservations I dipped my toothpick in, gave it a lick and walked away with a half pint.

That’s the kind of thing that happens when you visit a bustling farmers market. You try new exotic flavors and discover little gems of health like sunflower seed butter. Thanks Portland. I owe you my love of yet another nut butter for that one.

Since trying sunflower butter that first time I’ve experimented with making my own nut and seed butters at home in order to venture outside the peanut butter realm. Almond, cashew and chia seed nut butters are all delicious but I’d yet to try my hand at sunflower seeds. That is, until now. (more…)