iHerb.com Review & $50 Giveaway

Disclosure: I was given the opportunity to receive free product from iHerb.com to review my experience. iHerb.com is sponsoring the 2 shopping spree giveaways. No other compensation was received.  As always all opinions and thoughts are my own!

I was contacted a few months ago by the awesome people at iHerb about trying their products and offering to giveaway two $50 shopping sprees for my readers.  I immediately said yes because iHerb is a site I already use and love!

iHerb is one of the world's largest online stores for natural health products. Their website says their products are typically 30-40% less than other health stores and that everything is fresh due to a high product turnover rate. Ordering from the site is really easy and secure, and I've never had a problem with any of my orders. 

With the seeming explosion of health products on the market and in recipes, many stores now carry more organic and natural options.  However, many times because the inventory is small I find that the prices of the natural products I love are so high in local grocery stores or health food markets.  I've been using iHerb to buy things I use on a regular basis like Bragg's Liquid Aminos, coconut oil, and supplements because I usually find it's cheaper online at iHerb.  

Some of the brands I love to order from iHerb include Quest Nutrition, NOW Foods, Bragg, and Bob's Red Mill. iHerb carries herbs, supplements, grocery items, beauty and skincare products, sports nutrition products, baby products, and even pet products.  They even carry some of my favorite products like Quest Bars, Nuun, Alter Ego chocolate, and Justin's Nut Butters. 

Here's some photos of my latest haul thanks to the people at iHerb.  

I picked up some essentials like apple cider vinegar, coconut oil, tea, and dark chocolate. I tried that yummy Parmesan Rosemary Quinn popcorn for the first time and it's SO delicious-I'm definitely ordering that again! 

I also ordered some non-food products like Method natural all-purpose cleaner, supplements,  jojoba oil, and an e.l.f. makeup eyebrow pencil.  

I love shopping at iHerb not only because of the great selection, but because of the fast shipping! The  last time I ordered, I literally got a shipping confirmation later that day. My order arrived in two days, well-packaged and everything accounted for. They also offer FREE 1-5 day shipping for U.S. customers on orders of $20 or more every day! Free shipping makes online shopping savings count for me.  

Lucky for you, iHerb has offered me the chance to giveaway not one but TWO $50 shopping sprees at iHerb.com! It's a great chance for you to stock up on all of your favorite products.  

All you have to do to enter is use the Rafflecopter widget below before 1/30/2015, 12:00 AM EST.  

This is open to all readers, US and international!

Giveaway Guidelines

• Winners must register to iHerb.com to claim their prize.
• Shipping is free and the giveaway is open to US and non-US residents. (Specifically for winners out of the US, they are responsible for any additional taxes/duties/brokerage fees levied to them by their Customs Agency and/or Postal Service.)
• If you are an international reader, please check to see that iHerb ships to your country by looking here. 

a Rafflecopter giveaway

If you want to order something now or in the future, first time customers can also use my discount code below to save $10 on your first order!   

Where do you buy natural or health food products? What would you order from iHerb.com?

Bangin' Good Shrimp {from The Skinnytaste Cookbook}

One of my goals for 2015 (a repeat from 2014-whoops) is to take the time each month to try one more-involved recipe from a cookbook I have. I always have big ideas of trying lots of fun recipes and have a nice collection of cookbooks but frankly, dinner ends up being something easy or a quick idea I find on Pinterest.  It's a waste to have all those beautiful cookbooks collecting dust on my shelf so I am determined to crack them open each month. 

To hold myself accountable I'll be documenting a new recipe from a cookbook each month that I've tried and love.  I mean, I wouldn't want to share a recipe that was awful with you all. 

For Christmas I received The Skinnytaste Cookbook (see here to buy!) which I had been itching to get my hands on.  As I quickly flipped through the cookbook last weekend I was immediately interested in some of the easy and yummy-looking seafood recipes since I sadly do not buy seafood often. I decided to go with a recipe for Bangin' Good Shrimp which is inspired by the delicious Bang Bang Shrimp from Bonefish Grill.  Bang Bang Shrimp are deep fried and covered in a delicious sauce, so this Skinnytaste version is much healthier but just as flavorful!

The recipe called for making a salad to serve the shrimp over, but I ended up serving the shrimp over quinoa and having a salad on the side. I put the original recipe with the salad directions below anyways!

Bangin' Good Shrimp 

(from The Skinnytaste Cookbook)

Ingredients

5 tablespoons light mayonnaise

3 tablespoons thai sweet chili sauce

1-2 teaspoons Sriracha sauce, or to taste

1 pound shelled and deveined large shrimp

2 teaspoons cornstarch

1 teaspoon canola oil

#NoExcuses Challenge MadLibs with Sweat Pink

Sweat Pink put out this super fun Mad Lib (remember those?) to kick off their #NoExcuse Challenge so of course I'm participating!  

Hey 2015, it’s me, Lauren from Breathe Deeply and Smile

This year I would like to sleep more, _simplify my life_, and qualify for the Boston Marathon!.

It would also be super duper awesome if I also did ____spent less time on the interwebs/phone_____ this year. It’s not a resolution, though, just a reminder to myself to try and have the best year yet because life is meant to be lived in the here and now.

The thing I am looking forward to most this year is doing things that make me happy like travelling and cooking!

I’ll use the one thing that truly gets me out of bed in the morning which is_coffee and my 10 alarms to help me get up, get running, (verb) and get after my #NoExcuses 2015.Speaking of excuses (ahem), my very favorite excuse is not wanting to go out in the cold and I have used it to get out of doing exercise and putting actual pants on on more than 100 (number) occasions.I vow to move my body and be more healthy this year even if it means I have to get dressed for the cold and wake up early. 

Thursday Thoughts 1/8/15

I have lots of random thoughts floating around so joining Amanda's Thinking Out Loud linkup sounded perfect. 

1. Obligatory comment about the cold and how it's awful it is.

2. What is not awful is your boyfriend convincing you to go to Dooby's in Baltimore for dinner since your apartment is freezing, and there's snow on the ground after the city's first substantial amount of snow on Tuesday. I am convinced that ramen (or pho!) is the best meal to cure the winter blues, especially when it's Ramen night at Dooby's and a free draft is thrown in the mix. 

I devoured all of this leek and mushroom ramen and drank all the warm miso broth-it's good for the soul. 

3.. Yesterday was a fabulously freezing November Project  workout with snow and ice still all over Baltimore.  When you get up at 6 AM to run down to the Inner Harbor to get your fitness on outside with a bunch of other people and have lots of fun doing it, you know you are officially crazy and hardcore.  I, however, seriously couldn't feel my fingers on my run back to my apartment and it took me a while to thaw out. 

#weatherproof #justshowup 

Yes, NP_BAL snow angels happened. 

Any coffee and hot chocolate vendors want to sponsor NP-Baltimore for the season? Anyone?  Bueller?

3 Swag-filled Spring Half Marathons You Should Run with Me

It's a new year and while I'm a little late on planning my spring race schedule, I do have 3 half marathons set in stone so I better get running! These three half marathons also have awesome swag and medals so you should totally join me in running them if you are looking  for some fun east-coast races to motivate you through the winter. 

Last year I ran the inaugural Philadelphia Love Run and while the race was lovely the pouring rain weather was not (you can read last year's race recap here).  I'm determined to have a less miserable day to conquer this half marathon so I'm running it again this year on March 29,2015.  

The perks sound even better this year with a free Phillies baseball home game ticket (first 10,000 runners), commemorative mug, spinner finisher medal, and vanity bib. 

Last year's medal was almost the size of my face, and I still managed to give a thumbs up at the finish line despite the conditions. The course reminded me of the Philadelphia Half Marathon course with an Art Museum start and running along the river.  

Register here  ($92 through 1/31/15) for a great early spring half marathon in the City of Brotherly Love! 


Secondly, I'm proud to be an ambassador for the ZOOMA Annapolis Race Series on May 30,2015 in Annapolis, MD. 

I'll be talking more about the race series, but in short, it's a women's race series event (men can run if they choose) with a half marathon and 10K around beautiful, seaside Annapolis.  

Since it's all about the swag, this race's bag includes a women's tech tee, pair of Feetures! performance socks, ZOOMA journal, reusable bag, and awesome medal. 

The charm at the bottom is removable and can be added to a necklace or bracelet! 

Pair this fun race with the awesome after-party and it makes for a great girls weekend! The 10K gets a slightly smaller medal, but all the same swag and fun so it's a great event if you aren't up to training for the full 13.1 miles yet as well.  

Register here (Half-$105, 10K-$75) and use my ambassador discount code LAUREN15 to save 10% off your registration!


Pay attention to this third race because I'm really excited about this one.
The ODDyssey Half Marathon in Philadelphia has been on my radar for a while but totally became a must-race after it made Runner's World list of coolest medals in 2014.  They just revealed the 2015 medal, and it doesn't disappoint! It mounts to the wall, opens a beer, and the ribbon can be used as a lanyard!  

Goals for 2015 {and looking back at 2014 in photos}

I had goals for 2014, and didn't complete all of them. I find it not to be a failure, as it's always nice to strive for big goals, things change, and reflection & inspiration isn't wasted.  I did get to live more in the present, be bold, and travel more in 2014. I also definitely ate more greens and got a shiny new marathon PR in Chicago.  

2014 was a great year full of many wonderful memories. My first relay race, travelling literally across the country for Hood to Coast with Nuun, applying to graduate school, growing my blog, running the Chicago Marathon, taking a trip to Boston, seeing multiple friends get married, having the confidence to apply for opportunities (with most of them panning out!), and taking a little bit more charge in my own life. 

post-Hood to Coast party with Team Nuun Lemon-Lime

wedding fun

November Project Baltimore Positivity Award

NECDC Relay Fun with NP-Baltimore ladies

Focusing on Progress with Seiko

As the holiday season comes to an end, there is a lot of focus on resolutions and changes for the next year.  I prefer to first reflect and look at all the progress I made in the past year. As always, there is still plenty to work on, but I am proud of my accomplishments in 2014. 

To me, progress means celebrating your accomplishments while always striving for more. 

I  trained hard and PRed in my second full marathon, again almost hitting my goal time exactly despite setbacks.  I also worked hard on growing my blog and staying active in the Baltimore community. In 2014 I focused on networking with others, helping grow the November Project Baltimore tribe, and raising money for the Women's Health and FEED Run10Feed10 Campaign .  

As far as 2015, I want to only create bigger goals to strive for. 

It was fabulous to receive a watch from Seiko at the end of the year, especially since their message is about progress. 

I was sent the Seiko Core SSC877 which is a solar-powered chronograph watch with features such as split-time measurement, stopwatch function, and a date calendar. I usually take forever to replace a watch battery once it dies so I love that this Seiko model has a 6 month power reserve once fully charged by light.

Besides the innovation of the Seiko watch, I love the way it looks. It is beautiful and is just as much like a piece of jewelry as it is a functional timepiece. It mixes in well with my wrist full of various pieces and can be dressed up or down. 

Having it on my wrist during the holidays has been a great reminder of the progress I have made this past year. Despite a few missed workouts, many Christmas cookies, and a few lazy days, it is nice to remember how far I've come and to ponder what 2015 may hold for me.  

Disclosure; I received a complimentary Seiko watch of my choice through my partnership as a Women's Health Action Hero. I received no other compensation. As always all opinions are my own. 

Mint Chocolate Protein Bites and Winter Wellness with GNC PUREDGE

Disclosure: This post is sponsored by GNC PUREDGE. As always all opinions and thoughts are my own!

As a self-proclaimed sweet tooth, the holidays are a fabulous time for all sorts of treats. While I definitely don't shy away from enjoying Christmas cookies (okay,so really I seek them out), I love to make sure I'm getting some good eats in during the day as well to balance out my diet.  That usually means making sure I eat something green each day and get enough protein in during the holidays.

That's why I was really excited to try the GNC PUREDGE products. This line of products is a great source of whole-food-based nutrition that tastes great and makse eating healthy on-the-go easy during the hectic holiday season.  

I was always skeptical of products found in GNC because it seems there are so many things on the market today loaded with artificial flavorings, preservatives,ingredients I can't pronounce, and things as a chemist I know shouldn't be in food! 

I was really surprised by the ingredient lists of GNC's new PUREDGE line. 

The products have: 
-no preservatives
-no GMO1-added ingredients
-no wheat, yeast, fish or egg
-no sugar alcohols
-no artificial additives,colors or sweeteners
-no banned substances AND
-no gluten.   

Pretty much everything people look to stay away from, not that I know what else they could remove!