Category Archives: snack

Getting Ahead of Myself

Posted on April 5, 2011 | 1 Comment

It’s not often that I hop out of bed 25 minutes before my alarm, especially on a Monday morning coming off of a not-so-great night of sleep. But yesterday I found myself eager to get the day started. Perhaps the allure of warm and sunny weather got me excited?? I tackled a couple of chores to kick the day off productively and then it was time for work.

I was hungry and searching for a snack a good hour earlier than I usually do. I’m not sure what breakfast of an English muffin with red pepper spread, hot sauce, and ~1.5 egg whites plus pineapple and blueberries was missing but I made up for it with ~1/3 of a Larabar and a fruit leather with a schmear of peanut butter.

On my lunch hour I hit the gym for a total body conditioning class. After a month in the Tuesday class that features a lot of body weight exercises, sprints, and high intensity training, this class left me aggravated and wishing it were Tuesday. The instructor was the opposite of motivating and I did not enjoy a lot of the exercises we did. Oh well, a workout is a workout, right? I cooled down with some time on the elliptical and then it was time to eat.

Lunch was leftover chicken on a bed of spinach with brown vegetable rice.

My afternoon snack was some cucumber slices with 1/2T of hummus plus a mini bag of popcorn.

The rest of the night was spent tackling errands and chores followed by relaxing.

Do you ever find yourself ahead of real time?

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Posted in lunch, snack, Uncategorized, workouts

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The Power of Something New

Posted on March 21, 2011 | 2 Comments

Over the weekend I did a little spring shopping. I’ve reached the point in winter where I’m sick of my clothes, bulky sweaters, etc. and am ready for color and new options in my closet. With that mindset I packed this tank that I purchased for my workout tonight and I was loving the way it made me feel. Love the power of something new! It is fitted on top and looser around the stomach so that I can be comfortable and confident in any kind of yoga class.

In keeping with the new theme, I decided on Cream of Buckwheat in an almond empty almond jar for breakfast. Normally I save this option for a Friday or when I have to take breakfast to go but I loved the change. I had blueberries and some almond slice crumbs on top as well.

Lunch was leftovers reimagined. On top of a bed of spinach I had roasted bok choy, snap peas, and pineapple with some baked chicken.

Mid afternoon I got hungry (lunch held me over maybe a couple of hours) so I had this mini-bag of popcorn.

About 30 minutes before the end of work I had an apple with some peanut butter before heading to the gym. I donned my new shirt and hopped onto the elliptical for a quick 4 miles in 43 minutes. Instead of my usual stretching routine I decided to attend the new vinyasa yoga class I discovered last week. I actually skipped out on savasana because my stomach started growling. ~2 hours is a long gym session!

The only thing I had on my mind for dinner was a homemade Chipotle salad since I had all the ingredients on-hand. On top of romaine lettuce and spinach I added snow peas, carrots, celery, a small drop of leftover brown rice, some corn, and Cuban black beans. I topped my bowl with green salsa and some cheese.

My hunger came back though and I’ve been snacking on frozen fruit and a toaster waffle. Yum.

Does new workout gear make you feel more confident, fitter, and better when you wear it to the gym? I was feeling fantastic tonight!

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Posted in breakfast, dinner, lunch, snack

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Tennis Practice Throwback

Posted on March 15, 2011 | 5 Comments

I’m not sure if I’ve mentioned it on the blog before but I was on the tennis team all throughout junior high and high school. I loved being part of a team and the sport of tennis. I still try to play as an adult when I can!

After warming up for a mile on the elliptical I headed to my usual total body conditioning class. Today’s felt just like tennis practice. We had a different instructor who led us through 45 minutes of speed work drills, footwork springs, walking stretches, and boot camp moves. The class was a refreshing change from my usual routine and really got my heart pumping. Save for a couple of groan-worthy moments, the class really flew by!

After yesterday’s breakfast “debacle” (I didn’t stay full for very long) I rotated back to a favorite – PB&J English muffin with an egg white and half a pear, diced.

I only had a bite of a Larabar before my workout and didn’t get hungry for lunch until I sat back down at my desk. I had a grilled chicken breast with onions, black beans, a carrot, and green olives over arugula and spinach.

After an afternoon meeting I snacked on some popcorn and strawberries. I was in a finger foods mood O:-)

After work I ended up on my couch reading Room for an hour and a half before I got hungry for dinner. The book has sucked me in!

Dinner was quick and easy tonight: a sweet potato with a warm vegetable salad. The salad included:

  • 2 carrots, grated
  • 1/2c black beans, rinsed and drained
  • 1/3c frozen peas
  • 1/4c frozen corn
  • chili powder, garlic powder, cumin
  • 1t ketchup
  • 1.5t BBQ sauce
  • 1/2t each mustard and syrup

Combine all ingredients in a bowl and stir well. Microwave for ~90 seconds and enjoy!

Now it’s Biggest Loser time although I’m debating picking up my book again. For some reason, technology has been overwhelming me after work and I’m trying to honor that and unplug when I can.

Do any of my DC friends play tennis? What is a go-to quick and easy meal for you? Eating with your hands – yay or nay?

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Posted in Biggest Loser, breakfast, dinner, healthy, lunch, snack

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Dish Pan Hands

Posted on March 14, 2011 | Leave a comment

Would you believe that in the last 24 hours I have done the dishes 4 different times? For someone who doesn’t have a dishwasher, that’s quite the load! It also means that I’ve been cooking up a variety of things and really am feeling like my old self, cooking wise.

What have  I been making? Well, yesterday I started off cooking up my first recipe from Eat, Drink & Be Vegan – Hide the Lentil Tomato Sauce. It’s a published recipe that I followed to a T besides adding in chopped onion. While I can’t type up the recipe for you I will say this – I was ready to return the cookbook until I tasted this tomato sauce and then proceeded to have it for a snack and dinner yesterday as well as lunch today over about 1/2c brown rice pasta with some broccoli and bell peppers mixed in.

This morning I had an egg white sandwich on 2 slices of Udi’s whole grain bread with red pepper spread and some cheddar cheese. I also had a few strawberries and a quarter of a grapefruit on the side.

This didn’t hold me over well at all and I broke into my afternoon snack – an apple with peanut butter, earlier than I had planned to. Lunch was a simple greens salad with a sprinkle of Parmesan and the aforementioned pasta.

This afternoon some colleagues popped some popcorn and were kind enough to share. I had maybe a cup and a half before I left for the day. When I did I was quite hungry and had a piece of toast with cheese before a 6:30pm yoga class.

Tonight’s vinyasa flow class was my new class of the month and I really liked it. It was fast paced, stretched my tired legs, and we did handstand work! I was easily able to do a handstand from my gymnastics days and was thrilled. I actually ran to and from the gym so I got an unexpected cardio workout in as well.

I debated what to make for dinner and finally decided on Kath’s Spring Greens Soup which was delicious. I omitted the butter, croutons, and doubled the broth and greens and now have extra for lunches this week. I also had some beans on the side for protein.

I just finished munching a bit of plain popcorn and now it’s off to bed.

Have you cooked up anything good lately?

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