Quest Bars! +Recipe

I cannot even begin to describe how much I have fallen in love with Quest Bars.  With 15 flavors, they offer so much variety for many different taste buds.  The first time I tried a Quest Bar was this past school year on campus, and since then, I have been #OnAQuest!  They have definitely become a recent obsession! 

Quest Bars are packed with 20 grams of protein, are low-carb, and only contain 1 gram of sugar.  This is amazing for anyone who is trying to gain protein, cut sugar, or even eat low-carb.  Some of my favorite flavors include cinnamon roll, chocolate chip cookie dough, and cookies and cream.  What I love about them is how versatile they are.  I can eat one before I go to the gym for some added protein and energy, I can eat one after the gym as a post workout, or I can have one as a snack (for recipe's, check out Quest Nutrition).  Quest Bars sell at places like Dick's Sporting goods, GNC, and The Vitamin Shoppe for about three dollars a piece, but are more than worth the money.

Of course Quest bars taste wonderful right out of the wrapper, but it's always fun to mix it up and try different recipes!  In upcoming blog posts, I will be trying out and showing you guys several different Quest Bar recipes that are all delicious and so easy to make!

Recipe: Quest Bar Cookies

What you'll Need:

• Your Favorite flavor Quest Bar
• Baking sheet
• Parchment Paper

You can literally use any flavored Quest Bar that sparks your taste buds.  The one that I think tastes the most like an actual flavored cookie would have to be the Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough.

The Process:

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.  Place your parchment paper on your baking sheet.  Begin by taking your quest bar out of its wrapper, and putting it on your baking sheet.  Then, split your Quest Bar into as many pieces as cookies you would like, and flatten them out.  When they're cooking, they will expand a little, but not as much as most cookies.  They will puff up more than they will expand. After flattening your bar, set them apart on the baking sheet, and put them in the oven.  Set a timer for about 8 minutes.  If you want softer cookies, set it for about 7, but if you want them to be golden brown, 8 minutes is the way to go.  When they're done, you will notice that they are crispy around the edges, and soft on the inside.  This is the perfect snack that tastes like an actual cookie, but is a #cheatclean.

Enjoy your cookies!

Look out for more recipes coming soon!

xoxo
-Lex

Commitment.

I've always struggled with commitment.  When I say commitment, most people immediately think of relationships, but for me that isn't the case!  In this case, it is completely different.

I've always struggled with feeling comfortable in my own skin.  I've always felt, like many other people, that there were SO many things about my body that could be improved upon.  Many times I've "committed" to some kind of diet or cleanse that I expected to see fast results with.  Every time I've made this choice, my head has never been fully in it.  I would feel like I wanted it so badly, but as soon as someone offered me a cookie, I would decide that I wanted that more.  This has been a consistent cycle in my life for the last few years.  Especially in high school, I always felt like I needed to be watching what I ate, working out, and making sure that I was committed to taking care of my body, but I was NEVER serious about it.  I let myself "cheat" more than once a day, comforting myself when I felt guilty about cheating by telling myself that I obviously didn't want to deprive my body.  Every time I decide to try some new diet, it lasts for about three days on average, and then I cheat a few times and give up.

In High School I never felt as comfortable as I knew I should, and every time I failed at one of my quick fix diets, I felt worse about myself.  Going into my sophomore year of college, I plan to make an actual difference in my body this time. It's time to be serious about working hard for what I want, which is to lose the weight that I have let accumulate for so long, even if it's just a little bit.  Everyone has to start somewhere, and this is my somewhere.  This time, I am committing.

P.S. Obviously with this change will come recipes and different workout tips, so stay on the look out for those!

xoxo
-Lex

Waking Up For an (Early) Workout

In honor of today being National Running Day, I thought, what better way to honor this day than with a post about one of my favorite hobbies!
Running is something that I became interested in a few years ago when I was a Junior in high school.  At this point, like any beginner, I could barely run half a mile without stopping/walking.  Nowadays, I can do a heck of a lot more than that, and feel so proud of how far I have come.
Finding time in our busy lives to workout can sometimes be kind of (a huge) struggle.  Especially in high school/college/early twenties when you are learning how to balance work, school, internships, clubs, and other activities you decide to immerse yourself in as a young adult.  When I was in high school, even though my school began at 7:45 in the morning, my crazy self decided to start going to the gym in the morning!  Now, this was in the middle of cheer season, when practices and games were in full swing, so on a typical day I wouldn't be home right after school.  Despite this, somehow I still got my butt up every morning (almost) at 5 AM and was at the gym busting out a workout.  This was hard at first, but I ended up feeling better by the end of every day because I had worked out that morning.  Now, some might wonder how I did this, and that is exactly what I'm going to share with you guys today. How exactly do you get up THAT early?

1. Go to Bed relatively Early that way waking up won't be hard in the first place because you will be fully rested and ready for the day!
2. Set your Alarm! This is essential, because obviously if you don't you won't wake up in time to get in that early morning workout!  Set it as one of your favorite songs that pumps you up! I always set mine as 'Wet' by Nicole Scherzinger because it automatically wakes me up!
3. Set out the clothes you plan to wear (Or sleep in them).  Whatever will get you out of bed, up and moving in the morning, should be your plan so that you get up quicker and with ease.
4. Prepare your bag the night before!  If your armband, headphones, towel, and water are all in one place, it makes it easier to get up and out the door.  Maybe even bring your favorite granola bar for afterwards!
5. Make a playlist that excites you and energizes you.  If you already have your favorite playlist, it never hurts to update it with a few new songs so you never get tired of hearing the same things all the time.  Some of my favorite songs to run to are 'Classic' by MKTO, 'Wet' as i mentioned above, and 'Somebody Gon' Get It' by Timeflies Featuring T-Pain.
6. Put it in your calender/agenda/phone/make it a date! For me at least, I am 10X more likely to do something if I write it down or make it a date with myself that I cannot miss!
7. Last but not least, Stick to what you love!  Don't go to the gym and run 3 miles if you absolutely hate running.  If you love the stair machine or the bike, stick to those, but always remember to change it up to keep your muscles guessing!
   
   If you have any other suggestions, feel free to write them in the comments below! 
   Check me out on Pinterest: Alexa Dauphin 
   Thanks so much for reading!
   xoxo
   Lex

What it's like to have a best friend who is better than my sister.

My best friend in the whole wide world is Lexie Walton. She is my ride or die. For those who watch Grey's Anatomy (like Lexie) she is my Christina to my Meredith. My other half.  So here is a list of why she is amazing and I am so lucky to have her.

1. We have the same name. Whenever we hang out we both are refered to as Lex. Most people would say we are attached at the hip.. But you know what? That's what happens when you find your soul-mate!
2. We have the same exact personality.. We do and act the same way. We even tend to say what the other is saying at the time. I always say "oh silly" and lex always says ILY 
3. Lex goes to school down in South Carolina and I go to school in ohio so we do not get to see each other much during the school year, but when we see each other over winter break and summer it's like nothing has ever changed.
4. She buys me food and brings it too me.
5. She can read my mind and knows what I'm thinking before I even have to say it. 
6. My family is her family, and her family is my family.
7. Both our moms are not afraid to yell at us and steer us in the right direction. 
8. We both have different interest too which keeps things fresh. She plays lacrosse at school and I am in my sorority (KKG)
9. Going to different schools we always have new stories to tell each other every weekend.. Whether it may be about boys or a party we went to that weekend, or bitching about classes.. It just happens.
10. We are inseparable.   
11. She always loves meeeeee 
12. even when I'm drunk :) 
13. "Every blonde needs a brunette best friend!"
14. This is her lacrosse number :)
15. She made this post! 
    
    
    (Written By Lexie Walton, co-writer of The Preppy List)

Why Having a Sister Is The Bomb Dot Com

When I was young, all I did was pick on my sister.  We're only two and a half years apart in age, so basically what that means is we fit into the same size clothing, and about 3/4 of my closet is in her room.  I buy something, she thinks it's cute, she steals it, I find it in her room, and I yell at her about it.  But nothing changes.  This is the way it's always been.  As we have gotten older, it seems to happen more and more.  I remember how mad I used to get when our mom would buy us the same outfit, but in a different color.  If she tried to wear it on the same day, I would throw a huge fit and someone would have to change.  Nothing's changed.  Since I started college, she took it upon herself to move literally half of my closet into her room, including my bathing suits, but I've since taken them back.  Even though she get's on my last nerve sometimes, I feel so lucky and so blessed that I have a sister, especially one that is so close in age.  There are so many reasons why having a sister is the bomb dot com.

1. They're Permanent. Literally, you cannot get rid of them.

2. You Have Someone To Share a Closet With.  All. The. Time.

3. They'll point out all your flaws. They'll also point out things you didn't even think were flaws

4. They will back you up anytime your parents are being annoying.

5. You'll Always Have a Non-judgmental Listener and Friend.  They have to listen to you, they have to be there for you, and they are.

6. You Can Argue With Them. If I didn't have my sister to yell at about all the things she does wrong, I would definitely have some built up anger, and we don't want that, do we?

7. Someone to Hang out with All the Time.  If i'm bored, ill linger in my sister's room because she has no choice but to let me hang out with her.

xoxo
-Lex
(with a little help from my sister lol)

Ways I Stayed Organized My Freshman Year of College

As I was talking to my friends dad last night about my first year at college, he was surprised when I said that I thoroughly enjoyed it.  I can honestly say I am so happy about where I chose to go to school, and believe that it was the best fit for me.  I believe that my organization had a lot to do with my happiness, even though obviously the people, classes, activities, and other aspects helped as well.  I think one of my best qualities is my ability to be organized, and it's something that brings order to my life when I remain organized.  I thought because of this that I would share a few of the ways that I stayed organized my freshman year of college!  Enjoy!

1. Use an agenda.  I promise that your planner/agenda will become your best friend, and it was something I always had with me, whether it was in my purse or in my book bag! I've always been big on using a planner, because writing things down help me to remember it more than just jotting it down in my phone.  One of the ways that motivated me to use it more was to personalize it!

2. Make a To Do list, every day.  On my desk in my dorm room I had a note pad that I would write down all the things I needed to accomplish the next day and either put it in my planner, or kept it on my desk, depending on what I was doing that day.  This really helped to visualize how much I needed to finish and what had priority over what.

3. Use different colors!  Whether it was in my notes or my planner, my notebooks and agenda were filled with different colors and different highlighters.  Using different colors stimulates your brain to pay attention and focus more clearly on what is written if it is written in something other than black pen or pencil.

  

4. Get your work done first, so you can have fun later.  Something that really helped me this year was putting in the time to get my work done so that I could do fun things with my friends.  One of the awesome things about college is getting to go out during the week, but if I was going to go out, I had to make sure I finished everything on my to do list. 

5. Read your Emails! Set up your email on your phone/tablet/computer so that you get notifications when you receive an email.  I cannot even explain how helpful this is because teachers are constantly sending out emails about class cancellations, homework assignments, or dates for different assignments.

6. Balance your extra curricular activities.  Whether it be a sorority or a sport, balancing those things and making sure that one is not affecting the other is so important in college.  Making sure you have your work done and planning your time accordingly is so important (this is where that agenda comes in handy). 

7. Always make time for naps.  Yes, this actually did help me stay organized.  College can be overwhelming and stressful at times, so if you have time, take a quick nap to recharge your body so that you can accomplish more later!

8. Keep your room organized!  I was lucky enough this year to have roommates who cared about cleanliness as much as I do.  If your things are cleaned up and organized, chances are you will feel more organized just because of it, because I don't know about you, but it stresses me out when my room is messy!

Those are the main ways that I stayed organized my freshman year of college!  Hopefully some of these helped, and inspired you to try some of them if you haven't already.  Thanks for reading.

-Lex

Cup-cup-Cakery

This weekend, I went to visit some friends and, while walking around the town, stumbled upon a cute cupcakery! They had so many different flavors to choose from and each cupcake was pretty cheap! 

It's the little pleasures in life that keep it fun! Getting to do things like this put a smile on my face and make my day a little bit brighter!

-Lex