Category Archives: snack

Myself According to Others

Posted on May 11, 2011 | Leave a comment

I had a pretty eye-opening day today for a few reasons. I might allude to this every so often on Twitter and even here on the blog but I’m exploring what feels like Phase II of my quarter life crisis (Phase I happened when I turned 24 and this blog was a result of that part!). I’m owning it though and trying to let life soak in even if it feels surreal.

Today I had the opportunity to see myself how some others’ [might] see me and while that sounds a little conceited I learned a lot in reflecting on those experiences and am feeling good.

It all started this morning. I had my usual breakfast – half a pear and some pineapple and an English muffin with peanut butter on one half and an egg white on the other.

I had the pleasure of lunching with a Twitter friend who I am proud to now call an In Real Life friend. We talked about everything from food to Southern accents to life and things in between. I felt like I got some great feedback on an idea I shared and saw it though a fresh perspective which was really welcomed. I definitely enjoyed that break in my day!

The afternoon went smoothly. I snacked on some more Glutino pretzels and an apple before hitting the gym after work.

I surprisingly wasn’t sore from my class yesterday so I got in a decent workout without fatiguing my legs too much. 3.4 miles on the elliptical followed by 20 minutes on the bike and then it was time to race home. Tonight kicked off free yoga in Dupont Circle and I planned to meet a friend for class which I used as my cool down and stretching time. The 60 minute class loosened my muscles and felt great. It also seemed like we were the object of peoples’ interest with folks watching us do our poses, taking pictures, and more! I imagine those folks thought we were really into yoga or confident to do lots of poses in a busy urban park. With a clear blue sky and perfect temps, it was the best way to spent a spring evening!

I started a pot of rice as soon as I got home and ate dinner in reverse order while waiting for it to cook. I started with a serving of baked beans and half a pear and ended up with more BBQ pulled chicken and a serving of brown rice pilaf with carrots, broccoli, and onion.

I’m tired after all the activity today but will sleep easy knowing I got a little more clarity during this crazy month!

Do you ever stop and consider how others’ may perceive you?

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Feels Like a Whole New World

Posted on April 21, 2011 | Leave a comment

During Passover there is a big focus on food. It takes a lot of attention to remove anything leavened, make with corn and soy, etc. out of the mix for 8 days!  Even though I’m used to devoting a good amount of thinking time to food it seems like Passover has kicked it up a notch for me. The discovery of gluten free matzah has also opened up a whole new world of meal ideas for me! Also going without my usual whole grain carbs is a good change of pace from what I feel like has been a carb-heavy couple of months.

There is a traditional breakfast called Matzah Brei which is matzah soaked with water then mixed with egg, sugar, cinnamon, and cooked in a frying pan. While I was home my dad tried his hand at an adapted version, mixing in about 1/3 of a piece of matzah with one egg, salt and pepper.

I recreated this with a pinch of cheese and had it alongside fresh cut fruit (and not sausage – that was my dad’s!) yesterday for breakfast before my flight back to DC.

This morning for breakfast I wasn’t sure what to eat. I woke up with a stomach ache and I’m not sure what caused it. I had some blueberries and pineapple with a spoonful of charoset and an egg with 1/2 a piece of matzah, half with red pepper spread to eat my egg with and half with almond butter and strawberry jam.

My stomach thankfully felt a lot better so perhaps it was hunger pangs? Either way, it was amazing to have a bit of carbs as part of breakfast to give me some morning energy!

I ate around 9 and my stomach was grumbling by 11:30. I grabbed some pistachios to hold me over until just past noon. Lunch was a hugh jass salad with roasted broccoli, asparagus, carrots, and sweet potato, olives, sundried tomatoes, and a pinch of parmesan cheese.

A couple of hours later I was hungry again and broke into my snack of plain Greek yogurt with cinnamon, pineapple, and a bit of strawberry jam mixed in.

Sure enough, by 4:15 I was hungry and picked up a small cup of vegan leek and potato soup. It was pretty tasty and I was glad to have something that finally filled me up!

I headed to the gym after work and did 35 minutes on the elliptical. This felt a bit tougher than usual, perhaps because of a bad night’s sleep or maybe because I didn’t fuel how I usually do on workout days. After stretching and foam rolling I headed home to relax a bit until I was hungry for dinner.

Around 7 it was time to eat. I started with small bits of potatoes and a dairy free squash casserole that I brought back from home. I also had deconstructed stuffed cabbage (meatballs and cabbage in a tomato-y sauce) with some horseradish. Man, I love my Bubbye’s (grandmother) cooking.

I wasn’t quite full so I had some kosher for Passover tomato sauce mixed with spinach with 2 little pieces of a basil cracker (gf matzah variety!) that my grandmother sent me back to DC with.

I’m snacking on some fruit and hoping that tomorrow when I wake up it feels like a whole new work and my body is a bit more energetic!

Do you tend to eat a lot of carbs / grains throughout the day? Do you miss them when you don’t eat them?

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Posted in breakfast, dessert, dinner, lunch, snack, Uncategorized

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Letting Intuition Take Over

Posted on April 15, 2011 | 1 Comment

I’m not sure if I’ve been mentioning this on the blog but my nightly snack habit has resurfaced. I try to limit it to fruit or some cereal but I know that sometimes I eat more than I should. Yesterday morning it appeared like that habit caught up with me and my body was ready to show me who was boss. (I’m going to give you meal times to give you the complete picture!)

I woke up at my usual time and got ready for the day. I packed my breakfast to eat at work when my stomach was telling me that it wasn’t ready for a meal yet. I had a few nibbles here or there but nothing I would classify as major.

Staying in touch with my stomach, I drank some water and coffee and headed off to my meeting, breakfast in town just in case. It wasn’t until 10:15am that my stomach finally started rumbling letting me know it was ready to eat. Enter Bob’s Red Mill Mighty Tasty GF Hot Cereal (my usual BRM love) in a Jar! Cooked in half water, half almond milk, I added in blueberries, a bit of maple syrup, and almond slices on top for a delicious meal!

Despite not being hungry I took my lunch break to enjoy the sunshine. These gorgeous flowers captured my eye and reminded me that spring is finally, finally here!

Around 2:30pm I was hungry for lunch. I had a favorite salad combo as of late – spinach and romaine, black beans, roasted carrots and asparagus, sun-dried tomatoes, and a sprinkle of cheese, all topped with Annie’s Green Garlic dressing.

Snack time came around 4:45 – half of a Yoplait key lime yogurt, 1/2c grapes, and some peanut butter.

I hit the gym after work to give my new sneakers a test run. They felt great during my elliptical. However, I think that taking a long lunch walk tired me out before I even got started. I wrapped up after just under 30 minutes and spent a good deal of time stretching.

I was hungry by the time I got home around 7:15 and made use of the final piece of bread in my apartment – an Udi’s whole grain hamburger bun! Review to come. I toasted it up and topped it with spinach, red pepper spread, sriracha, an egg, and a slice of lite cheddar cheese. I had the final 1/4c of baked beans on the side.

Dessert was around 9 – raspberries and blueberries (plus half a pear) topped with cinnamon, a few chia seeds, a pinch of crispy rice cereal, and peanut butter.

I was excited when I woke up this morning and was hungry! I feel back on track and in control which is a wonderful feeling. I think yesterday was my body reminding me it’s time for spring and summer eating / foods and I was happy to listen!

I had “oats” in a jar, this time with the last 1/2T of peanut butter and the same toppings as yesterday. I also had an egg white on the side.

Here’s to Friday even if it includes a lot of Passover cleaning and packing for my trip tomorrow!

Does your body ever say “enough” and demand a break from food?

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Posted in breakfast, dinner, healthy, lunch, snack, staying on track, Uncategorized, workouts

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Wrapping Things Up Wednesday

Posted on April 13, 2011 | 1 Comment

As the day draws to a close it feels like I’ve accomplished a fair amount in preparation for my trip. Not only have I started getting organized by writing my packing list and doing laundry, I’ve also started my extensive Passover cleaning list! There are a few less jars in my fridge too as I used up the last drops of things in my meals today.

I seem to be back in my groove because I have pictures from everything I ate today save a few frozen blueberries and a few bites of a whole grain bun.

Breakfast was a small bowl of blueberries, pineapple, and orange plus an egg on an English muffin with ~1T of red pepper spread, sriracha, and half a slice of lite cheddar cheese.

Lunch made good use of leftovers and frozen veggies. I topped a bed of fresh spinach with frozen bell pepper strips, a few broccoli florets, and a couple of T of peas and corn plus leftover teriyaki chicken breast and 1/4c rice.

Late afternoon my stomach started growling again so I snacked on some grapes and pineapple and a salad of romaine, sauerkraut, sun-dried tomato, and a few green olives.

After work I cozy-ed up on my couch to do some reading. My legs have taken a beating in the last week and I knew that today needed to be a rest day. I still walked over 3 miles in commuting and a few errands though! I finally finished American Wife while I roasted up some veggies for dinner.

Dinner was my last vegan black bean tamale, roasted asparagus and carrots, and a serving of baked beans.

I just finished snacking on a pear and some blueberries (with a sprinkle of cinnamon, pinch of chia seeds, and maybe 1/2T of crispy rice cereal) while watching Modern Family and I’m going to wrap up a couple more things before bed.

Do you write out a packing list before a big trip? Are you reading anything good – I’m looking for a new book now!

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