My {Orange} Fix

Nothing rhymes with orange.
After relentless thinking....
Wait! Nope, still nothing.

My friend Hannah and I are obsessed with finding new gyms and places to work out. By this point in my life, I have successfully tried hot yoga, room temperature yoga, Zumba, boxing, kickboxing, ballet boxing, cross fit, Pilates, cycling, belly dancing and almost every major sport. So naturally, I strive to find the latest and most inventive trends in fitness.

The first stop on our list: Orange Theory Fitness. The idea behind this place is that most people don't spend enough of their workout in a high intensity or fat burning zone, so they don't get the results they want. This problem is cured by strapping a heart rate monitor around your waist and attempting to see your name in the "orange zone" pop up on a big screen while you're working out.

PS the orange zone is quite rough.

The first thirty minutes of class consists of running on a treadmill in an orange room. We're not talking just orange walls, but orange lights! The second half of class involves rowing machines, suspension training, free weights, BOSU balls, and lots of planks. 

I like to think of it as a giant playground. Plus, I don't get kicked out because I exceed the height limit {I was a tall child and quite possibly am still bitter over this issue}. 

One question people kept asking me was why would you pay someone to run on a treadmill for 30 minutes? But my answer is it's not just running. You have your own personal trainer telling you what incline and speed to you need for interval training.

But don't be too intimidated! I ran the square mile around my house that same morning and was able to do the class. It's only an hour and you'll feel great afterwards.

So without further ado, it's recipe time!


Orange Marinated Chicken Breast over Salad
Serves 4

For chicken:
3-4 chicken breasts
2 oranges
2 lemons
1 lime
1 cup fresh sage
salt and pepper to taste

For salad:
1 bag fresh spinach
2 avocados
1/2 cup dried cherries
1/2 cup slivered almonds

For sanity:
Bread

This recipe is super easy. You can marinate the chicken before your workout and have it ready to cook when you come home! It's best to marinate the chicken 3-4 hours before cooking for the best flavor, and use all of the sage, not just the leaves.

It's really your choice how you want to cook the chicken. I grilled it on this occasion, but I've baked it in the oven and it turned out great. Either way, make sure to season with more salt and pepper before and after the chicken is ready to eat.

For the dressing, I made a light citrus vinaigrette using orange, lemon, olive oil and white-wine vinegar. Altogether it's a simple recipe, but you'll find that you may already have a lot of these ingredients in your pantry or fridge. And if you have leftover chicken, you can whip up a healthy late night dinner instead of busting into your stash of Kraft Mac & Cheese.

Perhaps the best part of working out is feeling invincible afterwards. It's a vicious cycle, working out to burn off the food, feasting out of pure, unadulterated hunger, then having to workout again. And I live for this feeling.