Happy Wednesday, friends. Today is an exciting one over here and I'm feeling very motivated. One of the reasons being that I can't stop thinking about how great Ellie Goulding and Andra Day's performance was at the Grammy's on Monday night and it totally reminded me how obsessed I am with Ellie Goulding...I mean come on, look at this British badass! #goals.  [embed]https://www.instagram.com/p/BB1QN_LTfS8/?taken-by=elliegoulding[/embed]

On a more serious note, today is my last day working at Group Two Advertising. WHAT?! I will no longer be working in advertising and I am pursuing a career in fitness full time. I'm pretty psyched, people. I've learned so much from my time in the agency, but all along I've kept up my fitness jobs part time, and I came to realize that I just needed to take the leap and jump in full time.  Every day when I would get to work, there was just this little hole in my heart because I wasn't pursuing what I am truly passionate about. GOODBYE desk job! I'll chat more about this later, because I know there might be some others in the same boat, but for now, let's talk about these Peanut Butter Banana Protein Bars...

There's not many combos that can beat a little peanut butter and banana. Sure, the taste is spectacular, but aside from the taste factor, the energy that these two foods provide together are perfect for starting your day, giving you a little afternoon boost or keeping you full at night.

 These Peanut Butter Banana Protein Bars are packed with protein to keep you full and satisfy that sweet tooth. They have a dense and moist texture, much like a pound cake or corn bread. And the best part is, these are so easy to make - one bowl, one pan! 

You'll want your bananas extra ripe for this recipe - easier to mix and also adds more sweetness! 

MMM, look at that crumbly, cake-like goodness :) 

[yumprint-recipe id='16'] XO- Rach

Have you ever taken a big turn and different direction in your career?

What's your favorite post-workout snack?

What's one of your favorite food combos?

Hey there! How was everyone's Labor Day weekend?

Mine was great - considering the awesome protein pancakes recipe I'm about to share with you :) On Friday evening, Michael and I headed up to the Poconos to stay with a couple of our friends at their house. I had never been up there before and it was just beautiful. So peaceful, quiet and we couldn't have gotten more lucky with the weather. I don't have many pictures because I wanted to disconnect a bit this weekend from technology. On Friday night we sat on the porch and had a few too many drinks in the cool weather. We had intentions to get in a workout Saturday morning, but instead we slept in and drove up the road for a diner breakfast - you know, the greasy kind that cures all feelings of a hangover? So great.

After getting some food in our bellies, we geared up for a full day at the lake with a huge cooler filled with LOTS of beer and snacks. We got to the lake and headed into the water for a full day of floating - with our floating cooler. We swam (floated) all the way to the other side of the lake and back, and didn't get out of the water for a good 3-4 hours. 

Obviously in Gator gear for an awesome Gator win on Saturday night! Full of beer and all sunned out, we headed back home to relax and grill a delicious dinner of chicken, asparagus and zucchini. 

We headed back to Philadelphia yesterday late morning. Today has consisted of lots of relaxing! I got in a great workout earlier, mostly because I had all the time in the world and didn't have to rush! I love that, don't you? I'll post my workout later this week - it was a sweaty one! Now we're just enjoying being lazy (aka blogging + watching Arrested Development the rest of the day) before getting back into a busy working routine tomorrow.

Before working out, we woke up slow and I wanted pancakes, but after a weekend full of not the healthiest meals, I wanted a healthier version - cue the homemade protein pancakes! These are easy to make and if you're one of those "ew cottage cheese!" people, I'm sure greek yogurt would work just as well :) 

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I love having homemade snacks on hand when I am really busy and need to grab some quick energy. Store bought protein and energy bars are usually so expensive! I stick to either Lara Bars or Kind Bars because they have the cleanest ingredient list and are delicious, but I just cannot afford them every week. It's super easy to throw together something similar with ingredients that you probably already have on hand. Yesterday I threw together Peanut Butter Oat Energy Bites. These are an example of how you can make your own. I always stick to minimal ingredients (makes it the easiest) and make sure I have a protein, healthy fat and carb to cut the hunger and give me sufficient energy. I also tend to add in some sweetness in the form of chocolate. Always chocolate.

The key with making these is the consistency. I have found that a no-fail formula is to have about three to four dry ingredients and only one to two wet ingredients - one of which should have some binding power (like a nut butter.) For example, in these bites, I included almost equal parts protein powder and oats. I then added in equal parts chia seeds and chocolate chips. After adding three tablespoons of peanut butter, I mixed everything together and slowly added one tablespoon at a time of almond milk. This is key!! You don't want the mixture to be overly dry or wet. It should be like a really thick cookie dough that you can easily form into balls or bars. These are truly so easy to make and you can play around with so many different flavors and add ins.

Ingredients: 

• 2 scoops vanilla protein powder
• 1/2 cup rolled oats
• 1 tbsp chia seeds
• 2-3 tbsp chocolate chips (I got a little heavy handed with this ingredient)
• 3 tbsp peanut butter
• 3-4 tbsp almond milk (could also use water)

Directions:

• Combine protein powder, oats and chia seeds and mix
• Add peanut butter and mix well (mixture should be a bit crumbly - cue to add more liquid)
• Add almond milk or water one tbsp at a time and mix
• When mixture is at a dough-like consistency, fold in chocolate chips or any other add ins
• Roll into balls and place on wax paper
• Store in fridge or freezer

Enjoy!!

Rach