After a 1 week break from workouts, I finally felt like I had enough energy to get back into exercise yesterday. My body was literally craving a run! It was also a good excuse to take a much needed break from unpacking.
For some pre-run fuel, I tried out a Vega snack bar that I had in my purse since…well, that would be anyone’s guess.
I really enjoyed the Vega Vibrancy Chocolate Bar (top), but I didn’t care much for the chocolate Whole Food Energy bar. Somehow I managed to polish it off over the past week though.
This is the Vega Chocolate Vibrancy Bar below. It was quite good with a nice chocolate flavour and sprouted buckwheat groats for crunch. It tasted like dessert which is always a plus in my books.
I headed over to the beautiful Lakeshore for my run. This was my first official training run in Oakville. The only other time I think I’ve run in Oakville was the Oakville Labour Day 10km race that I ran in 2010.
It’s such a gorgeous trail, I felt like I was on vacation.
Do I have any readers who run around Lakeshore? I was thinking about starting up a running group at some point. Let me know if that would interest any of you!
I was quite delighted to see a bunch of long staircases throughout my run. That sounds so sick and twisted, I know.
Back in 2007-2008 when we lived in a condo in Toronto, I used to walk 28 flights of stairs every day (it took me about 4 minutes if I remember correctly) as a way to sneak in exercise since my job was so sedentary. I’m a big fan of stairs and will walk them whenever I get a chance.
This one just screams run up me!
I’m seeing some interval stair workouts in my future… :)
This little guy may seem innocent, but he tried to chase me when I got too close.
Some speed training ensued…bahah.
With all the craziness that’s been going on with the move, I completely forgot about all the races I have coming up back to back- and two of which are 10k’s:
- April 15th: Mercedes-Benz Oakville 10K
- April 22nd: Toronto Yonge Street 10k
- April 28th: 5k Ford Race to end Diabetes in Oakville
I guess I’m going to have to start getting back into a consistent training mode. I haven’t run over 6km in a dog’s age.
For my post-run breakfast, I had a rather GREEN bowl of vegan overnight oats. Much like Green Monsters, you don’t taste the greens in vegan overnight oats (when made with a banana or other sweetener).
A couple years ago, a few blog readers told me to try combining a Green Monster and vegan overnight oats. I thought they were crazy (in a good way, obviously) and finally got the nerve to try it…oh, two years later!
All you do is blend a Green Monster before bed and pour it into a bowl of rolled oats and stir it all up. In the morning you will have a Green Monster/vegan overnight oat hybrid waiting for you in the fridge. I’ve made it with spinach and also with kale and both were delicious. I’m telling you, I was kicking myself for waiting so long to try it out!
Just trust me on this one. Did the Green Monster ever steer you wrong?
I rest my case.
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Green Monster Vegan Overnight Oats
Yield
1 serving
Prep time
Cook time
0 minutes
Total time
Ingredients
- 1 large handful fresh spinach or small handful of kale
- 1 large ripe banana
- 1.5 tbsp chia seeds (necessary for thickening)
- 1 cup almond milk
- 1/3 cup regular, rolled oats
Directions
- In a blender, blend together the spinach, banana, chia seeds, and almond milk until smooth.
- In a cereal bowl, add the oats and then pour the smoothie on top. Stir well until combined.
- Place in fridge (uncovered is fine) overnight. Give it a good stir in the morning and then enjoy it cold, straight from the fridge. Add desired toppings as you wish such as nut butter, granola, coconut, fruit, etc.
Now I REALLY what a green monster. I am SO making one in the morning! :D
I run in Port Credit along the Lakeshore but will definitely join you in Oakville if you start a group there!!
This entire post has made me miss living in Ontario SO much! I made the oats for brekky this morning, delish!
I have a question about the soft serve banana in some of your other parfait overnight oat recipes. I tried it this morning….but I couldn’t get the banana to puree very well (in a food processor). I ended up adding some soy milk and was able to get it then. It was a bit of a disaster this morning, but it tasted delicious! Maybe I will wait till the weekend to attempt another parfait. I will stick to your one dish overnight oats recipes for during the week. I left the kitchen in disarray! Oops!
Wow! the place is great for running Angela. The stairways are wonderful way to divert your energy to going up and down, releasing more calories. The place is lovely, thanks for sharing. Oh by the way, I think the green monster oat is deliciously healthy. gotta try this out.
love this blog angela! thanks so much for all the awesome recipes. i am inspired! just wanted to say that if you like those vega bars even a little bit, you will loooove the vega sport chocolate coconut protein bars! seriously amazing and my go-to before runs. you must try if you haven’t already.
I cant wait to try them!!
I’d love to join you guys on a run as well! I’m in Burlington, but sometimes make the trek into Oakville to run with a friend. Let me know if you get something organized.
I have never tried a green monster (not really a smoothie person), but for some reason the idea of green overnight oats appealed to me so I tried it! I don’t have a blender, so I used a 2 cup mini chop and blended it in two batches. I really enjoyed it and just made my second batch – this time with frozen blueberries added to the mix. Looking forward to my green and purple breakfast tomorrow :) Congratulations on your new home and cookbook plans! Your blog is one of my faves and I look forward to your posts and recipes.
Love the decorating you have done & LOVE the green monster oats idea!! I always get so excited checking your page if i haven’t done so in a couple days – there is always something new and delicious to try out! :) Thanks Angela! And yes, I agree, stairs are so much fun :P
Angela! You are a genius! My green smoothie and my oatmeal always fight over which one I will pick for breakfast! I hadn’t thought of combining the two. Awesome idea! Your blog is inspirational! Thank you for sharing with the rest of us!
Here is the story behind my vegan journey: http://goodcleanfood.wordpress.com/2012/02/19/sick-of-being-sick/
Vegan now for just over 100 days! I am in love!
Congrats on your journey :)
Awww, Ang– I’m so honored to be mentioned in your post! Great minds most definitely think alike, hehe. Yay for green monster ONO, you can never get enough greens, no? :) Oddly enough banana and spinach go terribly well with oats– almost like PB&J!
You just reminded me I need to whip up a bowl of green monster overnight oats– it’s been far TOO long :).
Wow, what a great idea to mix and match oats with a green monster! Iv’e tried it for fun this week and I’m hooked! Sometimes I think the oats aren’t ‘green’ enough and the green monster sometimes just doesn’t fit my appetite. This combo is the best of both worlds! green oats, what’s not to like!
Angela,
Thanks for posting this recipe! I am on a yeast cleanse right now, so no bananas for me. (BOO!) I can’t wait to try this in a few weeks. Right now I make my own green monster using spinach, kale, almond milk, ice, chia seeds, milled flax seed, peanut butter, bee pollen, hemp powder, and oat bran. It’s tolerable. I know that fruit will make it better!!
Is it possible to replace the chia seeds with flaxseed? I don’t really know the properties of all the grains/seeds…
The chia seeds absorb a lot more water than flax, so I’m not sure if flax seed would work well. I think it could be too runny.
So I tried your overnight oats last week – I did the Strawberry-Carob ones, since I’m a strwberry fiend… and they weren’t bad at all!
Then yesterday I decided I needed some more overnight oat action, and was scrolling through your recipes to find a new flavor to try. I came across your apple pie oatmeal – not overnight oats, I know… BUT THEY COULD BE!
So I’m proud to say I invented apple pie vegan overnight oats, and they were DeLISH!!! I actually preferred them to the strawberry carob one, but I’m thinking strawberry-apple pie could only be an improvement, right?!
glad you enjoyed them Heather! I’ve had apple in my overnight oats before and it was fun.
I love running by the lake in Oakville. Are you planning on doing the Oakville Half Marathon in September? I’m doing it. Starting to train now. Would be interested in a running group – I’m in Oakville too – and a very beginner runner!
I made this for breakfast the other day and loved it! I am not vegan, but am leaning towards a vegetarian life. Thanks for posting this delish breakfast. It kept me full all morning. (Oh, and I am 35 weeks pregnant, so it gave me lots of needed iron, protein and fiber.)
glad to hear that Susan!
I was wondering if you’ve ever used steel cut oats in over night oats? They’re pretty much all I use for hot oat meal but was curious if they’d work over night.
I just made these and they are in my fridge for tomorrow’s breakfast as we speak. I’m hooked on green smoothies but have been wanting oats. This is the perfect combination. I can’t wait for breakfast tomorrow.
hope you enjoy them!
Wow Angela, I have been following your blog for a while and keep meaning to try the Green Monster and the Vegan Overnight Oats. But a combo? I am not sure if I could handle that ;) I really must try them both soon, they look so tempting and healthy. I’ll work my way up to the combo dish…
I know it’s weird right?