If you don’t believe that our daily food choices directly impact how we feel—especially during physical activity—then I have some news for you. You’re wrong! 

After a weekend of indulgences (beer, wine, froyo, ice cream, a frappucino, hotdogs, a hamburger, gooey macaroni and cheese, and a couple of salads for good measure) and 3.5-hour car rides to and from Jackson, my return to Bikram yoga Monday evening (after a 4-day lapse) was B-R-U-T-A-L.

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I was a sweaty and stiff mess, but I wasn’t the only one who struggled (a few of us agreed the hot room felt hotter than usual). I’m just glad I made it through the entire 90 minutes without having to rest.

I drank plenty of water throughout the long weekend and Monday, but no amount of water can negate the effects from the delicious-yet-mostly-unhealthy foods I consumed all weekend. It was totally worth it, though!

Thankfully, tonight’s yoga session was less strenuous, since most of my meals these last few days have been fairly healthy.

Let’s move on to What I Ate Wednesday.

Breakfast: I guzzled a banana-strawberry-mint smoothie (with a generous handful of spinach, half a scoop of vanilla protein powder, hemp seeds, and 2% milk) and ate a chocolate chip cookie dough Larabar (delicious, but way too sweet for breakfast). (Recycled photo, by the way.)

Lunch: I had 2 small leftover pieces of pizza (loaded with veggies and a few pepperoni slices) and a handful of baby carrots dipped in natural peanut butter.

Snack: I forgot my trusty banana, but I did have a container of Liberté coconut yogurt that hit the spot.

Dinner: We reheated some leftover carrot-sweet potato-ginger soup from the freezer and paired it with an edamame salad and some French baguette crostini from The Fresh Market.

Leftover chocolate and raspberry cake just might make an appearance post-dinner. (I’m still full of soup and it’s getting late, so who knows…)

Happy Hump Day—and enjoy the rest of the week!