on hiatus for now, i’m currently in transition. once i settle into a routine i’ll start blogging again.
i had breakfast, too :) June 11, 2008
breakfast was yet another modified version of the purple power smoothie. i wanted a smaller one, only about 6oz. of liquid and i was trying to figure out a way to take the milk out while still having enough substance in the drink. solution: applesauce! it worked. today’s power smoothie looked like this:
i know, totally unappetizing. but i like it because it packs all of my vitamins, nutrients and nutritional supplements into 225 calories. which means i had room for 1c. kashi go lean with 1/2c. of soymilk and 1tbsp. of pecans.
and i’m actually still satisfied nearly 3 hours later. kashi is pretty good for that, i love the balance of carbs, fiber and protein. i added the pecans for fat and voila! the perfect power breakfast.
a good morning June 11, 2008
i’m not normally into niceties like “how are you?” and “good morning!” because a lot of the time people say them just for the sake of asking. but it really has been a good morning for me and, this being my blog and all, i’d like to have a good share about how i am. especially because last night i went to bed pretty grumpy. i even tried to blog before i went to sleep (which, as we all know, rarely happens) but wordpress wasn’t uploading my photos so each time i tried to put one in i ended up losing the whole post! that was frustrating enough but it just made an annoying situation worse. i had logged on to post about my potato failure and how my hunger seemed just insatiable all day, including right before i went to bed. long story short, i had some baked zucchini slices for dinner because the sweet potatoes burned in the oven and then deflated in the microwave for my second attempt. i was really craving starchy veggies, too.
i can start my good news there, actually, because awhile back i posted that i had read about the health and weight loss benefits of starchy vegetables and i found the article! prevention hasn’t steered me wrong yet so i’m inclined to trust their research.
another motivating factor from this morning:
Created by MyFitnessPal – Free Calorie Counter
i’m down two more pounds! i was pleasantly shocked when i stepped on the scale, i had to step on and step off multiple times just to believe the number it was flashing me. this is a milestone because it’s the lowest i’ve ever checked in at! i’m practically ebullient!
i’m also getting better at reading my body. this morning my alarm went off at 505 so i could wake up and get ready to go swimming but, unlike every other morning, i felt like i would benefit more from the extra two hours of sleep. normally i can’t wait to swim in the morning so i knew i must have really needed the rest. i still get to go to spin tonight 
then i get a girl’s night out because SARA is in town! we’re going to lunch after she lands and then she’s got some other people to see while i finish up my workday and workout. then we’re meeting up after she goes to dinner with another friend (that leaves me free to make something for myself and skip eating out twice in one day) at my apartment to be girly and get all dolled up for a glamorous wednesday night… you know, if we can actually swing that 
i’m happy just to be able to spend time with her. i’ll take pictures!
a hungry day June 10, 2008
if yesterday was an unexpectedly satisfying day, today i’ve been hungry within an hour or two of eating anything! it’s so frustrating but i’ve got a lot on my mind and i’ve managed to keep myself distracted. it also helps that i drink a lot of water. when we got the sparkletts service i had them set it up right next to my desk
it’s the foolproof way to stay hydrated, i just roll my chair over for refills when i get thirsty (or hungry one hour after eating, grr).
i had a morning snack again today because i’ve been eating breakfast so much earlier than i’m accustomed to now that i swim. today i had what was left of my fat free vanilla yogurt (about 1/2c.) with 1oz. of pecans and the other half of my juicy delicious cantaloupe.
oh yes, and another hungry girl cookie.
lunch after that couldn’t come soon enough… i had a cup of spaghetti squash with 1tbsp. of olive oil and some fresh goat cheese. it is the sun-dried tomato kind i bought at the farmers market.
for dessert i had homemade chocolate mousse. i whipped it up last night with two ripe avocados and cocoa powder. it tastes so rich and decadent and creamy one would never know it is made with avocados. i got the recipe from shape magazine and used sugar-free maple syrup and splenda.
i served about 1/4c. and it was so rich i couldn’t finish it! i’ll have to share it with my friends this week so the rest of the batch doesn’t go bad. sara is lactose intolerant and loves dark chocolate so i hope she likes it!
i got hungry too soon after my indulgent-looking (and tasting) meal but i held off until 330, almost 4, to eat my pre-workout snack, the rest of the Think Organic bar i had a taste of yesterday.
very disappointing. the ingredients are simple like larabars but it sure doesn’t match up in taste. my workout starts in half an hour and my tummy is rumbling. some days are just better than others. *sigh*
the best i can do is hang in there. at least i have my workout and sweet potatoes tonight to look forward to!
a smoothie before swimming June 10, 2008
but first, last night.
pre-workout snack was CHOCOLATE COVERED STRAWBERRIES. i know, so fancy. i would never buy these for myself but they were a gift so i had to eat them (only because i knew it wouldn’t put me over the edge, i got all three for less than 150 calories). and they totally hit the spot.
to be fair, i also had a taste of a new bar but only a small piece and no picture.
post-workout i didn’t have a snack handy except for the rest of the bar and i wasn’t feeling it so i decided to wait ’til dinner. dad grilled chicken with honey chipotle barbecue sauce and it was yummy. i had maybe 2 or 3oz. cut into strips and rolled in a whole wheat tortilla with avocado slices and salsa with a side salad.
i didn’t add up the calories for this one but i do know that i burned about 450 more at spin class and when i woke up this morning i had lost 0.2lbs! haha, it’s a tiny consolation that i’m moving in the right direction.
this morning i went swimming. i pushed myself to go faster than yesterday and i managed to squeeze in two extra lengths in the same amount of time. i beat my 10 lap time by two minutes. i logged 15 minutes and 22 lengths (11 laps). if i could only get there earlier i would have more time to swim… i’m working on it.
pre-workout i had the purple power smoothie. i redid the recipe and now it’s like this:
-1/2c. light vanilla soymilk
-1/4c. egg whites
-1/4c. liquid mangosteen supplement
-1c. frozen cherries
-1tbsp. powdered greens
-1/2tbsp. flax oil
awesome. this is officially my pre-morning workout breakfast/snack. it has 290 calories, 26g carbs, 9g protein and 8g of fat. power smoothie indeed.
and it tastes good, i swear! post-workout i had a flax waffle and a light string cheese to round out breakfast at 450 calories.
great start to a great day! this is totally the calm before the storm but i’m in a great mood about the rest of the week and the adventures it will bring anyway!
non-food related post June 9, 2008
omg! (excuse the text lingo)
i just realized how crazy busy this week is going to be and now i’m freaking out a little! maybe writing/typing it out will ease the stress. i’d hate to unnecessarily raise my cortisol levels…
now i don’t even have time to blog about it, i’ll post an update soon as i can
pesto chicken genius June 9, 2008
i had the simplest sandwich for lunch but it was magnificent. pesto is good on EVERYTHING! except maybe ice cream but i haven’t tried it.
i put two slices of deli chicken on an ezekiel bun with 1tbsp. of my homemade pesto and presto! lunch.
dessert was a hungry girl cookie:
the best part is that was hours ago and i’m still not hungry! as soon as i hit publish i’m sure that’ll change, though…
purple power smoothie June 9, 2008
i am back to my AM swimming regimen as of this morning. breakfast part one/pre-workout snack was a smoothie. i basically threw some stuff in the blender and got this:
it was good but i plan on modifying it for flavor and calorie content tomorrow. it consisted of 3/4c. of light vanilla soymilk, 1/4c. of egg whites (for protein), 1/2 a frozen banana, 1/2c. of frozen cherries, 1tbsp. of powdered greens (for fiber) and 1tbsp. of flax oil (for good fat). i love that i was able to squeeze all of those nutrients into a delicious frozen drinkable breakfast, go me. tomorrow i think i want to add nonfat vanilla yogurt as part of the 1c. total liquid dimension (so 1/4c. of egg whites, 1/4c. of yogurt and 1/2c. of soymilk) and 2oz. of vemma mangosteen supplement. i also want to just use cherries for the fruit, the greens mix better with tart fruit than sweet banana i think. and good lord, 1/2tbsp. of flax oil is plenty! a whole tablespoon sets me back 120 calories! i’ll take sixty and 7 grams of good fat, thank you very much. we’ll see how it comes out tomorrow, i can’t wait to try it!
breakfast part two was 1/2c. of cottage cheese with 1oz. of pecans and a drizzle of honey.
AND my fresh fruit summer staple:
JUICY CANTALOUPE! it’s my ultra fav, i can’t get enough!
pictures from the weekend June 9, 2008
i’m back. i had a fantastic weekend, food-wise and otherwise
i think i like keeping away from the computer on the weekends, i’m on it all day everyday at the office so it’s nice to just be and enjoy everything else while i can. i’ll continue to take pictures of all my meals but i don’t think i will blog after each one like i do during the week.
saturday was my idea of a perfect day. i was so good with my food choices, too! it went like this:
-workout (jazzercise)
-farmer’s market
-errands
-lay out by the pool
-shopping
-dinner at a friend’s house
-chic night out with a different friend who was in town for the weekend
-in bed late BUT got to sleep in
here are the food pics
with morning workouts i find myself having breakfast in two parts. i’m still trying to strike a good balance of nutrients and calories to maximize the benefits of this. some days are better than others…
fresh sun-dried tomato goat cheese
homemade salsa
homemade turkey burger on an ezekiel sprouted grain bun
<INSERT FAVORITE SUNDAY SONG HERE>
i baked these from hungry girl’s recipe
yup i ate them all!
lies, i only ate this one.
and this one
rowing June 6, 2008
i found an article in shape magazine for a cardio workout on the rowing machine. i missed my jazzercise class today because i was stuck in the office ’til later than usual so i decided to give it a whirl. consensus: i really really liked it! only burned 216 calories in half an hour but i supplemented by doing another 30 minutes on the stairmaster. all in all, a great friday workout! lots of cardio that i’ve been lacking and, because it was on my time and not within a rigid class setting, i took as long as i wanted to stretch. i mean, i have nowhere else to be on this fine friday evening…
except at home eating of course! pre-workout i had some pistachios and the other half of the grapefruit for 225 calories.
that was actually still at the office. then i went to the bank, then to the gym, THEN i got to go home. i had the rest of the cottage cheese muesli with banana slices. i have to say, i have some pretty great ideas but that was my best idea ever!
and i’m super full for 370 calories! i think that was dinner. i had originally meant it to be just my post-workout snack but it’s already late-ish and i have to go to bed early tonight, the early saturday workout beckons! i think i’ll read or watch a movie for a couple hours because i really don’t feel like cleaning… i’ll save that for next week before sara comes! (my best friend sara is going to visit arizona next week! we were roommates in college and she’s from LA so i rarely get to see her.)
