I've had a pretty successful evening if I do say so myself. First, since pretty much my entire body is sore from a couple of tough workouts in a row... I just went on a little 5k around castle island. The sky was GORGEOUS tonight. Also, the ocean was super choppy outside of the island, but, the bay was flat calm. Pretty cool. Yes, I'm obsessed with the ocean.

Not kidding this was 5 minutes later taken from the beach side. No filter on any of the above!

Then, I got home and made some bacon. Nitrate-free, of course.

Then, I threw a chicken-spinach-feta sausage (took off the casing) on the grill pan with the bacon for a few minutes and put it on a bed of spinach.

Diced up organic locally grown tomatoes and avocado and added crumbled feta. Then, I topped it with dressing that I made from pesto. So basically, I made pesto the other day from the basil in my garden and tonight I added a bit of extra virgin o/o and lemon juice to it to thin it out. Then, I topped it on the salad. Then this happened:

OMG best salad ever. Ever. Eat it up. Put it in a wrap (I put some of it in a wrap). It's just so good!

Ok, another thing I wanted to mention in the blog tonight is the ALS #icebucketchallenge. I'm pretty sure most people I know that have participated in the challenge ALSO donated. I have a good amount of friends that are either friends or are acquainted with Pete Frates so I know that ALS fundraising is near and dear to their hearts. For those that are a little confused about all the ice dumping... here's the low down: Either dump ice on your head or make a donation to ALS fundraising at petefrates.com or alsa.org. A lot of people that dump the ice, also make a donation. I was sure to make a donation last night after my #icebucketchallenge. That being said, if you are unable to make a donation - dumping ice on your head is still creating AWARENESS. I shared this article on the blog last week, but, I'm sharing it again because man, it's such a shame that there hasn't been much research on the disease. This whole #icebucketchallenge thing is helping. To read Pete Frates story: click here.

Now go make that salad and have a GREAT week! xo

For my sugar-free challenge friends... I have a dinner for you. The best part? It's easy to make and apparently it tastes pretty damn good. Rob gave a lot of praise to this one tonight... #win.

Sooo... how's everyone doing with the sugar-free? Getting easier? Not craving it as much? I'm a convert. I'll never go 100% sugar-free as I think it's important to 'treat yoself', but, I have much more energy during the week and overall feel better. Anddd, I think I'm a little trimmer, too. The pants are feeling a tad looser. That was NOT the goal with this challenge, but, I'll take it!

So, I've been reading up a lot (like, A LOT) on more on sugar-free, gluten-free, lower carb, etc health benefits. Partly because of this challenge and my new found happiness sans sugar, but, also for something else that I'll touch on at a later date. Now, more than ever, I'm eating as healthy as I possibly can and doing a TON of research. (that's part of the reason you haven't heard from me in a while).

Anywayyy... tonight's dinner was simple. Here we go...

Need:

- 1 package of organic, nitrate-free bacon (can be found at whole foods - have had a hard time finding this anywhere else)
- Organic chicken breasts (can be found at most supermarkets, however, I find the most bang for your buck at Whole Foods)
- Organic asparagus
- Extra Virgin OO
- Juice of 1 Lemon
- Salt, Crushed Red Pepper, Parsley (fresh or dried)
- Organic mayo
- Organic honey
- Yellow mustard

Marinate the chicken breasts in the lemon juice, extra virgin, salt, crushed red pepper, parsley, and garlic. Set aside for an hour or so (the longer the better).

Next

- Wrap 4 asparagus with 1 slice of bacon, repeat as many times as needed to feed who you are with (I ate 2 groups - 8 pieces of asparagus, Rob got 3, so 12)
- Drizzle with evoo & a little crushed red pepper
- Bake at 350 for 10 minutes, then, throw it on the grill or grill pan for another 5 on each side to crisp it up
- Set it to the side with tin foil over it

- While the asparagus are cooking - Mix together 1.5 parts yellow mustard, 1 part organic mayo, and 1/4 parts honey in a small bowl and set aside (this is the dipping sauce)

Next

- Wipe the grill pan clean but leave a little bacon grease :)
- Toss the marinated chicken breast on the hot pan and let it cook 60% through
- Flip them and cook through
- Let them rest for 2-5 minutes