Breakfast of Champs

Two words: Protein Pancakes

drooling yet..?

Who doesn't love pancakes, especially when they are healthy and packed with protein! Funniest thing is that I was never a huge pancake person, the box of pancake mix in our pantry had expired in 2008, if that tells you anything ha!

Once I started this diet I craved the WEIRDEST things, and that included pancakes! I scrambled around to find a good HEALTHY recipe, but let me tell you it is definitely trail and error... I "nailed it" a couple of times haha! I started comparing recipes and finally came up with the PERFECT (and simple) protein pancake recipe!

The key ingredient here is the baking powder, that's what makes the pancakes nice and fluffy! 

As for the protein powder, it is optional -if you don't want it, don't add it- I fluctuate between 1 and 2 scoops depending on what I think I might want to eat that day so that I can save some of my protein numbers for my other meals.

     

Add water till the mixture is at the consistency you would like-- I prefer mine more liquidy, that way it makes more pancakes :)

What's great about these pancakes is you can pretty much top them with whatever you want!
No matter what additions I choose I always finish them off with the greatest creation ever Walden Farms Pancake Syrup this stuff is the amazing and its guilt free!
P.S. you can order it off Vitacost OR find it at Sprouts supermarket! 

PUMPKIN PANCAKES!!! I topped these with organic pumpkin puree and the Walden farms pancake syrup to indulge in my pumpkin obsession! You can also add the pumpkin directly to the batter! I finished these off with a little bit of cinnamon! YUM

For just plain ol' pancakes and syrup I use this great Smart Balance butter, it tastes so similar to the Land-o-lakes butter I am used to using but a lot "healthier"
1 tablespoon: 50cals//5gFat//0gCarbs//0gProtein

This is the what I like to call the pancake sampler haha! Two pancakes are just plain ol' pancakes, the middle pancake has 1 tablespoon of Enjoy Life mini choco chips mixed in and saving the best for last I put 1 tablespoon of peanut butter which just melts on the pancake and top that with bananas! I enjoy eating the bananas and strawberries with every bite, seriously SO delicious!

I definitely plan on using this recipe even after I am done with this diet, I like that these are so simple to make and a healthier alternative to traditional pancakes! I hope this recipe works for all of you and if you have any questions feel free to ask! The below nutrition facts are based off of the pancakes alone (with the 2 scoops of protein powder)-- so just make sure that you account for everything you add to your delicious protein pancakes! 

What's in your cup?

My love for coffee runs deep. I love waking up a brewing a fresh cup and letting the aroma fill the house, seriously THE BEST! While home brewed is awesome, I also love me some Starbucks... I mean pumpkin spice lattes are basically heaven in a cup! After starting this journey to my bikini competition I was given a MAJOR wake up call, nutrition facts are real (DUH Lindy)! I mean obviously I knew about nutrition facts but I never really paid attention to them... especially in my coffee!

Luckily Starbucks is one of those awesome places that actually have their nutrition facts posted. They list the calories on the board next to the drink and also have really great pamplets in store or you can go to their site for the- nutrition breakdown.  Looking this over was very eye opening! It is scary to think how bad one little coffee drink can be for you!

Lets just take a look at the oh so famous Pumpkin Spice Latte (Grande) 

Nutrition Facts Per Serving (16 fl oz)

Calories 330	Calories from Fat 70
	% Daily Value*
Total Fat 7g	11%
Saturated Fat 4.5g	22%
Trans Fat 0g
Cholesterol 30mg	10%
Sodium 220mg	9%
Total Carbohydrate 52g	17%
Dietary Fiber 0g	0%
Sugars 50g
Protein 14g
Vitamin A 20% Vitamin C 0% Calcium 50% Iron 2%
Caffeine 150mg**

Needless to say I am no longer drinking these delicious drinks (at least not during training) but really it made me take a step back, seeing how many grams of carbs and sugars were in a 16oz drink. For those of you who don't know what 50 grams looks like, it is a little more then 1/4 of a cup of pure sugar! AH!

Now I'm not saying never drink Starbucks again because I still do, I have just modified what I order! They have this great section on the pamphlet that allows you to "make it yours" that way you can see the nutritional facts in everything you add to your coffee! 

MY ORDER

Almost daily I enjoy a Venti iced unsweetened black tea, because it is refreshing but also gives me that little shot of caffeine to get me through that mid-afternoon slump. As for coffee I love the Pikes peak! I am not to the point of drinking it black, so I stick with a splash of skim milk and either a couple pumps sugar-free vanilla OR one packet of Splenda. After my show I do intend to have at least one PSL but NOW knowing what I do, this will be my cheat treat!

First OFFICIAL post

Happy Friday Everyone!

So I have been contemplating what to do for my first "official" post... Now its been like 3 weeks of over-thinking something so simple! Therefore here it is, my first OFFICIAL post!

Like I mentioned in my bio I am very into fitness and I have decided to challenge myself and do a NPC bikini competition! I am exactly 6 weeks out, I am still lifting heavy (4 sets of 15) and trying to "burn out" on my last set. I am on a diet that focuses on my macros (fats, carbohydrates and proteins) I use the app www.myfitnesspal.com to keep track of my numbers. I absolutely recommend this app to everyone even if you aren't on a specific diet. Understanding what you are putting into your body is important, it is like knowing the gas or oil your car needs to run; food is our fuel so make sure you are giving yourself premium!

My biggest struggles: my horrible sweet tooth and my love for carbs, give me all the pasta and bread!!! If you are a person who doesn't like sweets I am insanely jealous of you! Luckily there are some really amazing bloggers with great recipes of healthy baking and other great healthy dishes!

Last weekend I stumbled onto withpeanutbutterontop.blogspot.com and I love love love her blog! I have gotten so much inspiration from Samantha and have tried a few of her recipes which have all been AMAZING, and the best part is that she breaks down the nutrition facts! 

STYLE

As I was running around Tucson getting groceries for all these great recipes, I felt it necessary to be comfy! Since we are finally at a point that wearing long pants won't give you heat stroke I decided to throw on my thrifted overalls, with a crop and my "firkenstocks" Targets $20 version of birkenstocks, and my over the shoulder Old Navy bucket bag.

FAVES FROM THIS WEEK

Ezekial bread (found mine at Trader Joes) french toast with strawberries and Greek yogurt! I used her recipe again but modified mine just a hint, instead of making a "cream cheese" I just added a little bit of sugar-free vanilla syrup to my plain Greek yogurt and used as a dipping sauce! I LOVE breakfast/brunch and french toast is definitely a fave, so finding this healthy recipe was like striking gold! 

http://withpeanutbutterontop.blogspot.com/2014/06/strawberries-cheese-french-toast.html

Cauliflower Pizza one word YUM! I followed her awesome recipe but instead of a calzone I just left mine as an open face pizza! I also added turkey pepperoni, red bell peppers and fresh basil!
http://withpeanutbutterontop.blogspot.com/2014/05/cauliflower-veggie-calzone.html

I borrowed the picture off Samantha's blog because it makes your mouth water and I also ate mine before I photographed haha! I loved this easy to make pesto sauce! I served mine over zuccini linguini and it was awesome!
http://withpeanutbutterontop.blogspot.com/2014/07/chicken-avocado-pesto-pasta.html

Welcome to Strength & Style!

Hi my name is Lindy Waddell, welcome to Strength&Style! I am so excited that I am finally starting my blogging journey! I am 23 years old, and loving life! I am (fingers crossed) starting nursing school in January, I can’t wait to start this next chapter of my life and see what the future holds!

From a young age I loved fashion but also liked getting down and dirty on the field. More recently I have taken my athleticism and turned it into a passion for lifting! Fit is the new skinny right?! My next goal is a fitness competition, stay tuned for progress pictures!

When I am not living in gym clothes I also love styling new outfits. Shopping, thrifting and creating, that's my style…literally! I love sharing fashion ideas and hope that I can inspire you!