Royal Pains Official Team Photos

All photos by Brandi Wilson of Firebranded Photography. She is a freakin' rockstar.

Ninja Breakfast Shake

I made this breakfast shake in my Ninja blender. However, I also think that ninjas would consume this shake for breakfast. For 210 calories, it's enormous and has 35 grams of protein.

You could leave the espresso out, but that's how this particular shake differs from my post-derby protein shake.

It makes a ton, definitely enough for two big cups. I think the calories would be insufficient if you only drank half and gave the other to a significant other or roommate. Maybe you could do that and supplement with granola bars.

It's icy and creamy and delicious. I'm in love. I've always been leery of drinking a meal, but this really did keep me full until about 11am!

I got these in vanilla at Costco: http://www.premiernutrition.com/protein-shake.html. I think they taste a little funny alone, but fabulous blended with other things.

PB2 is available in a lot of grocery stores. It's basically powdered peanut butter, which has the oil removed to make it lower-fat. http://www.google.com/products/catalog?q=pb2&oe=utf-8&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&client=firefox-a&um=1&ie=UTF-8&tbm=shop&cid=2144934620024901535&sa=X&ei=I6u_T4TtJen22gXs5J2OCg&ved=0CLMBEPICMAc

If you happen to have cold-brewed espresso, this would probably be even easier to make and might not even need ice. I'm thinking a frozen banana would be a nice ice substitute as well.


Ninja Breakfast Shake
(makes 1 really big shake)

1 vanilla protein shake
1/3 cup ice
2 tbsp PB2
1 tsp unsweetened cocoa
2 shots espresso

1. Pulse all in blender until evenly smooth. Drink before the ice bits melt.

Coconut Berry Freeze: Light Summer Dessert

I made this by accident. It was delicious and does not require an ice cream maker (which I do not have).

This is straight out of the freezer. Oooh.

This is fluffed up a bit. Different texture, but also yummy.

Coconut Berry Freeze
(serves 2 as dessert)

2 cups frozen mixed berries (no sugar added)
11 oz coconut water

1. Pulse in blender until smooth.
2. Set in freezer until desired consistency is reached.

Monday Style

I hope you like pictures because that's what we've got today!

I've been dying my own hair for more than a year. My regular stylist finally made the color perfect. 

I bought this dress on a whim at Target for $12 on clearance. Yes, that's my work bathroom. Sorry.

I was feeling particularly cute-dressed for work one morning.

This is my pre-cut, home-dyed hair. It looks all right here only because you can't see it close up. I love this Bettie Page t-shirt, and this jacket that my mommy gave me for my birthday.

Step-It-Up Health and Workout Plan

I'm feeling pretty good on skates right now, but I think I'm looking a little fluffy in pictures. Minimizing that fluff would inherently improve my derby game as well, so I'm going to re-commit myself to training like an athlete.

Here's the basic plan I sketched up for myself. This is in addition to my current vegetarian diet and four days of skating per week.

General Lifestyle
30 minutes weight training during lunch breaks Monday through Friday
Only drink alcohol post-games
Never drink energy drinks or soda
No traditional desserts/sweets
Drink coffee/lattes with skim milk and no sweeteners
Drink as much water as I can

Food Intake
Daily breakfast with no sugar, high protein
Daily lunch of salad with extra veggies and lean protein
Daily dinner of whole grains, lean protein, and extra veggies
Low-sugar granola bars as snacks
Low-sugar protein shakes after practices

Goal: Go from 181 pounds back down to 160
Possible future goal: Get down to 145 pounds

In the first 24 hours, the only difficult part so far has been avoiding sweets. After practice the first night, I made a smoothie from ice, a protein shake, PB2 powdered peanut butter and unsweetened cocoa. It was magnificent! After dinner yesterday, I was really wanting dessert. I blended unsweetened frozen fruit with coconut water. Delicious! I'm going to make this work.

Hot Basil Thai

I went here on a whim. A delicious, Thai-craving whim. And I was not disappointed.

These rangoons were crab-free and oh so yummy. I died a deep-fried death.

And this pad kee mow with tofu? Some of the best I've ever had. I dare say, absolutely better than Zen Zero in Lawrence. The medium spicy was a solid medium: delightfully hot but not quite painfully burning. The friend I went with thought her mild pad thai was overly spicy, and the waiter explained that the restaurant is authentic Thai food and not fusion, so it's a little spicier than many people expect.

If ever you're in Johnson County and wanting Thai food for pretty standard Thai prices, I'd absolutely recommend this place. I'm going back as soon as someone will go with me on a non-derby day.

Hot Basil Thai
7528 W. 119th St.
Overland Park, KS 66210
http://www.hotbasilkc.com

Game 4: Community Faces Photos

As always, thanks to Steve Yates and KC Star Community Faces for the first batch of game photos.

http://mingle.kansascity.com/photos/2012/dead-girl-derby-mustache-mayham/

My niece!

I'm in the background.

My mother-in-law!

Me jamming.

Me pivoting. This is probably my favorite position, to be honest.

Me bumping. Jamming and pivoting the whole game is a little more than I'm ready for, so breaking things up as a blocker is a nice change of pace.

If I remember correctly, I dodged the block here. What a game!