Posts from — April 2010

Rainy days and Mondays.  Boo!

Nothing a good breakfast won’t fix!  I woke up starving, so I decided to eat breakfast before going to the gym.  I went with a bowl of Puffins with almond milk and banana…

I headed to the gym for an easy going 35 minutes on the Arc Trainer and 10 minutes of upper body work on the circuit weight machines.  On my off-run days, I’m trying to take it easy on my legs.  I’m worried about overtaxing my hip/IT band.  I’m trying keep injury to a minimum while I’m upping my mileage with running.  I’m just not quite sure what to do at the gym on the off days.   Any suggestions?

I hit up the grocery store  for a few things, then headed home for lunch.  I had some tofu that needed to be used, so I made a tofu scramble.

In the mix…

• 1/2 block Nasoya Lite Firm Tofu
• 5 button mushrooms, sliced
• 1/2 roasted red pepper, chopped
• slice 2% cheese

Alongside, a slice of light wheat toast topped with one of my favorite spreads…

All together now…

I had a busy afternoon with school activities, so I prepped dinner early.  I wanted to try out a recipe from this month’s issue of Cooking Light for Chicken with Lemon and Olives…

I had all the ingredients on hand…

It was a simple recipe, but I found it to be lacking in the flavor department.  I served it with whole wheat orzo and roasted green beans…

Roasted green beans are so good!  I used frozen organic green beans from Trader Joe’s, spread them out on a baking sheet, drizzled the beans with olive oil and roasted them at 400 degrees for about 15 minutes.  No doubt the best part of the meal…

***

It’s been one week since I’ve taken a little more action and gotten back on track with journaling.  I have been making sure to write down what I am eating and, when I remember, I’ll write down the POINTS for a meal, also.  It has brought back my awareness and I’m not mindlessly snacking as much. 

Just for kicks, I hopped on the scale this morning.  I tried not to be anxious about it.  I knew that overall I felt better and more in control, so that was a positive no matter what number the scale wanted to display.  But, I’m happy to report that I was down 2.4 lbs. !  I like when the scale is nice

Have a great day, everyone!

How did you do with your “action plans” this week?

Hi everyone!  The weekends are flying by lately, aren’t they?!  We had lots going on Friday and Saturday.  And lots that involved food. 

I have to say my eats were random on those days.  On Friday, I was busy doing errands and helping my good friend get ready for her daughter’s party, so I never really sat down for a prepared meal.  Saturday was the same.  I had a light breakfast, then went to a Victorian Tea sponsored by a Christian school that my MIL supports.  We go every year and it’s always such a nice time.

The school’s gym is transformed into a very frilly affair…

With a long table of various tea sandwiches and sweets…

I went for a few of the cucumber sandwiches, fruit, brownie and chocolate chip bites…

Pretty good, eh? 

Sunday

I was happy to get back to my normal routine on Sunday!  It was a run day, too, so even though I had plans for lounging around the house all day, I needed to get the run in first.

I whipped up a Blueberry Oat Smoothie to get me started…

• 1/2 cup frozen blueberries
• 1 cup unsweetened vanilla Almond Breeze
• 1/4 cup oats
• 2 drops liquid vanilla NuStevia

After that settled, I headed to the ancient treadmill in the basement.  It was raining outside and I wasn’t quite up for trying out a “rain run.”  I shudder just thinking about it!

I hit a new milestone – 5.1 miles!  All the planets seemed to align for this run.  The smoothie held me just right, my legs cooperated and I felt strong throughout the entire run.  I stayed consistent with a 10:1 interval and it worked out great.

When lunch time rolled around I was ready!  I made a sandwich using an Ezekiel hamburger bun stuffed with Applegate Farms Herbed Turkey Breast, baby spinach and dijonnaise…

I added a side of carrots, a Gala and a few Kashi TLC  Country Cheddar Crackers…

and a few more CRACK……ers…..

Later in the afternoon, I got hungry again, so I  had my favorite snack…

For dinner, I tried to use up the leftovers that were hanging out in the fridge.  I turned leftover grilled salmon and zucchini into a delicious dish – Creamy Salmon and Spinach.  Of course, the star ingredient…. again (told you I was obsessed)…

I sauteed fresh spinach in garlic until starting to wilt.  I added the zucchini and salmon (flaked in small pieces) to warm through.  To finish, I stirred in 3 tbsp. of raita and served it over whole wheat couscous…

It was seriously amazing!  Leftovers never tasted so good!

*****

A special shout-out to my friend, Heather at Skinny Sushi for the Sassy Pear Award!  Thanks so very much!  Please go over and give her a big ^5 for making it to Onederland this weekend!  Congrats, Heather!

Have a great day, everyone!

Do you run or walk in the rain? 

Today was a run day.  I was excited for it and ready for another 4.5 miles. <——- who is this lady that says these things??? 

First, I needed to fuel up.  I tried another smoothie, this time with some protein to see if it affected me any different. 

In the blender…

• 1/2 cup canned pineapple
• 1/2 cup nonfat cottage cheese
• 1/2 cup unsweetened vanilla Almond Breeze
• 3 ice cubes

It tasted great!  I think the key was this organic canned pineapple…

It seriously was the best canned pineapple I have ever tasted.  So sweet and fresh tasting!  I found this in the natural foods section of my local Giant supermarket.  I really like that many of my regular grocery stores are carrying more and more organic foods. 

On to the run.  It was a little rough at first.  The Pineapple Protein Smoothie sat like a rock in my stomach for some reason.  But, I pushed through and finished out at 4.66 miles in 1 hour and 3 minutes.  My plan is to increase my mileage every two weeks by a half to one mile.  Then, beginning in August, it will be hard core half marathon training!

***

For lunch, I made a flavorful sandwich with Applegate Farms Herbed Turkey Breast, asiago cheese and lettuce on a Thomas’ Bagel Thin…

paired with carrots and a Gala…

and some press cuz I missed it this morning…

I got hungry later in the afternoon, so I dug into Kashi TLC Country Cheddar Crackers…

Potential for disaster here.  These are a lot like Cheez-its.  You guys know how I feel about those.  They do bad things to me.  And my hips.

But, I was the model of self-control.  I doled out my portion and scarfed gingerly nibbled on each one, savoring every bite. I’m really trying this week!!

After my nibbles, I got to prepping dinner.  The plan was Grilled Salmon with Raita (okay, I’m officially obsessed), grilled zucchini and homemade naan bread.

Have you ever made your own naan bread?  It’s easier than you may think!  The dough is a breeze and very easy to roll out.  Each bread can be cooked in a skillet, but I love to put them on the grill.  They take on a great flavor that way. 

I usually make naan with regular white bread flour, but this time I tweaked my recipe by using half white whole wheat and instead of an egg, I used a “flax egg” for fun…

Whole Wheat Naan Bread

• 1 pkg. yeast
• 1 cup warm water
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 3 tbsp. milk
• 1 beaten egg (or 1 “flax egg” )
• 2 tsp. salt
• 2 cups white whole wheat flour
• 2 1/2 cups bread flour

Combine yeast and water;  let stand 10 minutes.  In a large bowl, add sugar, milk, egg, salt and flour.  Mix in proofed yeast.  Knead for 6-8 minutes. (Can be done in a stand mixer fitted with a dough hook).  Let rise 1 hour.

Punch down dough.  Divide dough  and roll into 12 balls.  Place on tray, cover and let rise for 30 minutes…

Preheat grill.  At grill side, roll each ball into a thin circle…

Place dough on oiled grill …

and cook about 4 minutes.  You’ll see them start to puff up a little…

Turn over and cook another 4 minutes…

I like to brush the tops with garlic-infused olive oil for more flavor…

It’s very hard to not eat all of these before the rest of the dinner is ready…

The salmon and zucchini went on the grill, then we were finally ready to dig in…

except for little daughter…who had to have a hot dog. :\

Salmon and raita = <3

I’m obsessed.

Have a great day, everyone!

What food are you currently obsessed with?