Evening and Afternoon Update!

* I forgot to put up my dinner! I steamed asparagus and brussel sprouts...

Then added a piece of lasagna on top

 


I am heading to Jeff's sister's- Missy Mo's gym shortly. She is letting me use a guest pass to see if I enjoy this gym, isn't that sweet !?!
When I got back from class and before I took Jack for a walk, I had an afternoon Snack:
Greek Nonfat Blueberry Yogurt and

Chai Bumble Bar ( I had half)

Chai Bumble Bar Review:
I LOVED the smell of this bar!! It smelled exactly like chai! I really enjoyed this one in comparison to the cherry chocolate and I would say it is a tie with the apricot for me- The sesame was not overpowering, and it was sweet but cinnamon like as well. It was just the right amount of crunch and chew and sweetness for me. 

Lunch:
I packed my lunch in my Pink Insulated Lean Cuisine lunch bag- they were specifically designed to support Breast Cancer awareness/research. I order them online every year and they are available in september- october but they go FAST! I remember the first year they came out, I didn't get one because they ran out! this past year I ordered several and gave them as presents - half of their cost is donated to the komen foundation! They cost $9.95 ( well they did...I don't know about upcoming years) and I had free shipping! They have expanded their designs as well! Isn't it darling!?

I had an organic pear and an arnold sandwich thin filled with baby spinach, two slices of turkey and one slice of ham, and a chocolate.


Breakfast:

Smoothie ( vanilla designer whey protein, organic milk, frozen blueberries, 1/2 banana,frozen mango), I had the other half of banana with some peanut butter , some kiwi and pineapple and a piece of newman's own double fiber bread.

I WAS sooooo full.. It took me awhile to actually finish this breakfast.

 

* If you have noticed this yellow dish (and I have an orange one as well), they were christmas presents and are from pottery barn. I really enjoy them because they make my pictures a little more colorful on here, and they work so nicely for Jeff and I. It makes it a better surface to eat on if we eat in the living room.. and it makes it easy to carry everything in there as well. *

Update to Last Night:

I did have dessert! I made a single serving of No Pudge Brownie Mix using nonfat greek yogurt. I added some mini chocolate chips and a little peanut butter too.

Salad and Sandwich

1/2 slice of bread with Ham, mustard, 1/2 slice colby and 1/2 pickle
1/2 slice of bread with Turkey, colby, pickle 1/2.

Salad: romaine, bean sprouts, broccoli, cauliflower, carrots, radish, snap pea, cabbage, hummus, a little goddess dressing

Mish Mosh Lunch and Chicken Salad Dinner

Lunch:

Asparagus spears in sicilian sauce with a little cheese (Sargento Reduced Fat Mexican)

Apple crisp sprinkled with cheese, I heard about apple pies with cheddar on top and figured I'd give it a whirl. Honestly, it was delicious but you couldn't taste the cheese at all.

On the side I had a chobani nonfat greek Strawberry Yogurt with half of a whole wheat British Muffin.

The Snowman says "Yay!"


Dinner:

Super Easy Super Healthy Chicken Salad

Ingredients:
I sliced up red grapes, length wise (about 2 cups)
Chopped Organic Celery Hearts ( I used 1 bunch)
1 green onion chopped
Boiled Chicken Breasts... (I did three here and it took about 20 minutes). let them cool, then pulled the chicken apart and into the bowl ( boiling makes it super easy to pull apart for "shredded chicken" )
Then I binded everything with:
1 container of Chobani Plain, Nonfat Greek Yogurt ( the 5.3 oz size , but I could have used the bigger tub)
1 big Tablespoon Helmann's Fat Free Mayonaisse ( its about 25 calories, 0 g fat)
Salt
Cracked Black Pepper
Stir and let sit in the fridge for about 2 hours.
That whole bowl ( it is big! it holds 8 cups) is total less than 600 calories, 108 g protein, No Fat ( well, about 1 g from the chicken but i took off what I could see). It also offers fruit, veggies, and calcium!

It was delicious!
I used a whole wheat wrap and added sliced purple cabbage, sliced raw almonds and hot sauce!

Clean

Update* Body:
Run.. 36 minutes. knee still weird, not painful , weird. That is the only reason why I would still run is because its not "painful". Just strange

Lunch:



Repeat from last night because it was SO GOOD! YUM YUM YUM.
Salad, the other half of the chicken, sweet potato and apple, toasted kale with s & p. A little goddess dressing. Perfection.


The house still doesn't "look" super clean, but I swear I am exhausted from everything. It smells clean, and its much better than before. Here is a run down:

Accomplishments:

• Got rid of about $600 + worth of clothing. Now that estimate is what it cost when I bought them.... now all of this is probably worth about $200. Not pictured is a pile I am sending to my sister, and also a big ol pile of clothes that I will see if any of my friends want. Ah... it feels so good to get rid of stuff!
  
• Swept all the floors ( always gives me a problem with my Asthma)
• Mopped the Kitchen, and Bathroom
• Pledged the living room, hall, bedroom floors.
• Did 4 loads of laundry (and counting)
• Dusted
• Cleaned the kitchen (counters, stove, microwave, sink)
• Cleaned bathroom, shower, sink, toliet etc.
• Re arranged my closet
• Put away all my summer clothing despite yesterday's high of 63 .. and..
• Re arranged my "room" ( our third guest bedroom is my wardrobe
  dressing area and since the semester began, it just kept getting messier and messier. It feels SO nice!)
• Gym- run 4 miles +
• Returned DVD, I rented Fred Claus. I thought it was pretty funny but it didn't get good reviews I guess.

sigh, my feet are exhausted

I did not feel like standing up to cook anything. So I got this South Beach Living frozen pizza for one a week or two ago on sale. I think these taste pretty darn good and they have the right amount of protein for me. I used to make frozen dinners ALL the time because my brother didn't really want me cooking (:-P Matt!) ... I think he feared I would burn the apartment down... well anyway, what I enjoy about them is they are portioned , you know exact calorie count in your "entire meal" without counting/adding up etc. *Note to self post about weight loss programs**
There are definitely things I do not love about frozen dinners: sodium, added preservatives, chemicals, fat, taste, quality. I just prefer the taste, protein, and veggie contents of South Beach stuff. Anyway, I was in the mood for pizza but needed/wanted a protein rich dinner.

The Box:

There it is with the last of the salad mix

And the night is not over... We are heading out to celebrate our friend's birthday after Jeff gets back ( should be any minute). HAPPY WEEKEND TO ALL!

Dessert: No pudge with half organic banana, pb, extra nonfat greek yogurt, and a splash of reisling

Bumble Bar Surprise!

I ran some errands, went to the gym and grocery shopped a little... and came home to this

The Amazing People at BumbleBar ( Click here to Visit There Site ) sent me a package!!!!!!

I was so excited to try ONE of these Bumblebars because

• The Bumble Bar is gluten-free, wheat free, dairy free, and ceritified organic AND rich in flax seeds! I have whole flaxseed, ground flaxseed, Flaxseed butter and oatmeal with flaxseed in it, and Uncle Sam Cereal with flaxseeds. Yet, I haven't yet tried a bar with a good source of flaxseed until now!
  
• Check out this older post, http://runlmo1.blogspot.com/2008/11/nuts-lna-and-cla.html for more healthy fat info about nuts and Flaxseeds!
  
• Here is some info from their site"Flaxseeds contain an abundance of life-enhancing Omega 3 Essential Fatty Acids (EFAs). Omega 3 EFAs maintain healthy cell structure and help protect against heart disease, cancer, arthritis and more. EFAs are thought to bolster your energy, improve hormone regulation, improve immunity and reduce stress. Flax seeds also represent one of the best dietary sources of lignans, a class of phytoestrogens that nutritionists say protect against breast, colon and prostate cancers."

I thought they would send me one or two.... THEY SENT 12 !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Thank you Pam and Glenn and everyone at Bumble Bar!

There are all 12 and Jack! They range in calories from about 180-230 , have about 8-11 g Fat ( Healthy Fat!!), have about 5-7 g protein and 4 g of filling Fiber.

A good option for vegan, organic snack. I tried my first one ( Jack was SOO intrigued, I gave him the first little bite)

Review: Cherry Chocolate.

I enjoyed it because you could SEE the flaxseeds AND the cherries. It TASTED like what "healthiness" should in a very refreshing way. Larabars are a very similar comparison but they are different. Bumblebars are made with sesame seed, and I could taste it very much so. I am not a fan of sesame seed, but I did like the thin and wide shape of Bumblebar, it takes you longer to eat this ( which I liked). I hate eating a tiny skinny bar that has 200 + calories and leaves you feeling like you hadn't had anything at all.

I also enjoyed this bar because I have studied just how healthy flax seeds are and would choose a bumble bar to get in some CLA, Fiber, and Omega-3's. I am not certain if everyone would enjoy this particular flavor though (the others all sound fantastic). Jack loved it but he's not a fair judge). I CANNOT WAIT to try the lemon, oh and the chai, or the cashew, and the original flavor that started it all too!

Here was my lunch: Leftover Pasta Bake and A slice of Turkey and.. A chocolate window!

Christmas Party 08

Appetizer Hour:
My Glass #1 of Sonoma Merlot, Jeff's Glass of Bass

Oh My gosh... quite possible this was the best cheese I have ever had

Brie with Cranberries ( they were fresh softened deliciously cherry like), and Goat Cheese with Pesto

Here is mine: It was soooooooo satisfyingly delicious

I should have taken a picture of everyone at our table! I warned them when we sat down that I take pictures because I write a blog about food and nutrition. I was completely surprised that everyone was genuinely interested in knowing why and what it was like and they all want to get the link to the site- so whenever they stop by- Hi Michelle, Justin, Melissa,Woody, Christ, and Gretchen!

Glass #2 and Bread

I am not a huge bread person but I like to try things. I ripped off a hunk but it was too chewy

Salad: This was a very interesting way to do a Caesar Salad. A rib of romaine, anchovy slices on top, thin strips of parm cheese, that little wafer tasted like cardboard.

Entree:

Chicken on top of creamy mushroom risotto, zuchinni, steak. Last year they had a similar dish only with chicken and salmon. I mentioned everyone at our table being interested in my blog, well we had quite the discussion about this entree! My steak was medium-well. There was no pink at all. However, Melissa's was bright vibrant red, Justin's was a rose/blush, Jeff's was a mix of Melissa's and Justin's- It was incredibly odd how the same dish came to 8 people at the table but the steaks were cooked all different. Mine was so well-cooked that I could not even chew it. My chicken was very tasty, however, Michelle's chicken was very dry-

Congratulations Michelle ( she is having a baby girl!).


Dessert:

I ate the whip cream, the nuts, and that chocolate stick coming out towards you! I had a few bites ( again I like to try things) but I am not a huge fan of pudding AND I was full!

Overall Recap and Review:
I think the cheese was phenomenal and made my night! Everything was "tasty" otherwise so I hate to bring up the negative because it was "over-the-top"! It is definitely a fancy place and I love being able to attend. On top of that, to hang out with Jeff's co-workers because they are all about our age and really funny was fantastic! Last year, Jeff and a few others formed a secret band that played a great set of cover songs. They were outstanding, however, this year shortly after they began practice the drummer caught pneumonia. He had to be hospitalized and has some permanent damage but is overall fine now. Unfortunately, they couldn't do it without him. So we missed out on that but I got to spend more time with Jeff since he wasn't playing.

Jeff and I at the Tree

Initiation of the New Employees: Teams had to dress up one person like Frosty The snowman. We cheered for this guy because they were right next to our table- and one of the new employees sat with us. (They won, so they had to sing Frosty The Snowman)

I had so much fun chatting with Emily, Christy, Jennifer, Amy, Stacy, Michelle, and Melissa! Hi, Ladies if you stop in!!

Earlier Friday...
Lunch:
I know it is not as "spectacular" as the food above- Leftover pasta and chicken from the other night.

Mid-Afternoon Red-White-Green Snack( actually at about 4 because I did NOT want to go to the xmas party starving)
Red and Green Peppers, Mushrooms and a little blue cheese dressing (full fat deliciousness)
Chobani Strawberry with Pistachios

Body:
Cardio: A fantastic run. A wonderful run.

I "sprinted" 4 miles. I stretched for a few seconds at each mile but jogged in between all the sprinting so no walking for this lady!

My general treadmill pace: 6.5 mph (recovery/slow jog) 7.5-7.7 mph (usual, comfortable pace) 9.3-9.8 mph (sprint)

9.8 felt super sonic- I felt like I was going to fall off the treadmill, which made it even more exciting hahaha. I didn't keep track of much else aside from running for at least 2 minutes of each mile above 9 mph... So it was mostly at a 7.5 speed, I would sprint when a good song came on during each mile at 9.3 bump it up to 9.8 then recover at a 6.5 for no more than 2 minutes... back up to a 7 + then back up to a spring etc.

My goal was to run the entire time, sprint during each mile and I met my goal.

Mind:
I turned in my paper, I only studied a little. I felt a little burnt out from the three papers due total this week. I have this weekend to study so I wanted to pace myself.

Soul:

Fantastic evening. After the holiday party we went downtown to a bar - one of our friends' birthdays- so we danced with them and had a phenomenal evening!

Paper # 3 Done!

"Eat me Eat me Eat me" said my breakfast to me:

British Whole Wheat English Muffin ( from Trader Joe's)- meh its okay

Slice of Healthy Canadian Ham

1/2 cup Cage Free Egg Whites (Trader Joe's)

w. hot sauce and

Black Coffee in my snowman mug from college

Banana with Smucker's All Natural. I have been eating Smucker's All Natural since freshman year of college (8 years!) and I have never gotten tired of it. So yummy, the only ingredients are peanuts and salt.

The banana was really small...

2 Lunches ?

I normally do not have a mid-morning snack- most of the time I am writing or reading or exercising before lunch and just never hungry. I think it has alot to do with habit because when you are used to not snacking mid morning, you usually aren't hungry. But today, I was heading to campus mid morning (10:30) in hopes of getting as much of my project due tomorrow done as I could. So I had this Chobani Blueberry to hold me over..

SO GOOD! I swear, this is by far my favorite yogurt. I strive to consume organic dairy products ( Check out the Tag "CLA" for info why) but this yogurt is just soooo delicious. I have tried stoneyfield organic, fage, and Trader Joe's brand and Chobani just beats all of them in texture and taste ( in my opinion!). I for sure like all of the others but Chobani ROCKS!

I was so involved in my project, I realized I needed more fuel by 2 pm- grabbed an Odwalla Protein- another yummy mini-meal

( sorry for the repeat photo - didn't have my camera today on campus)
Good news- I finished my project at 4 pm!!! Woohoooooooo!!! It is due tomorrow by 5 but I am not even going to look at it anymore since I need to spend all day studying for either/both of my finals next week AND... getting ready for Jeff's work's Holiday Party. It's at the Umstead Hotel and Spa... Gorgeous new, total upscale, ritzy place.



Quick Dinner:

Big Delicious, In Need Of Veggies Salad

( greens, red pepper, green pepper, mushrooms, snap peas, EDAMAME, hummus from the other day)
Smoked Salmon from TJ- this brand was SUPER SALTY... i mean "country ham" salty... ick
Garlic Twists ( I used TJ pizza dough with garlic herb seasoning and cheese)

Body:
Gym trip Late Afternoon: Elliptical 30 minutes, Bike 4 miles

Mind:
Paper #3 FINISHED!! It was actually a series of small papers combined for this project on College Women Food Choices. I will make a separate post to explain it!

Studying tomorrow for Research Methods Final and/or Nutrient Metabolism Final ( Lipids)

Soul:
I got a big ol chocolate bar (hershey's dark pic tomorrow) and Jeff and I are watching "Tropic Thunder"...

I am getting in trouble for writing and not watching so its boyfriend-time

Dining Hall Day

So I worked on my paper on Minority Health most of the morning and into early afternoon, I was sooo hungry so i ran over to the dining hall but wanted to take it home with me so I could take a photo!

Here is what I took home:
Box #1:
Salad with mixed green and hummus base
Olives

Carrots

Cucumber

Mushrooms
Broccoli

Tomatoes
Kidney Beans

Chickpeas

Grapes

Strawberry

And... Box#2Meatloaf. I do not know what possessed me to get meatloaf, other than it was the only protein option really ( the luncheon meat looked gross and in case you can't tell, I am not a fan of lunch meat either)...and I knew Jeff would like it if I didn't! I only had a couple bites, it was good but I knew it was super high in fat and I didn't need the calories from fat- the salad was delicious and I put in WAY too much hummus so it filled me up very well. I put it into the fridge for later!


Mid Afternoon Coffee: with a splash of organic cream and brown sugar!
This helped me finish my 5 page paper due tomorrow!

Goodbye Thursday Hello Weekend

Breakfast:

Pumpkin Pie for 1!
Oat crust, filling as usual, and organic oikos vanilla on top and a half of a banana on the side.. with flaxseed butter

Here is the explanation:

"Crust":
1/2 Cup total of Irish oats ( I mixed flaxseed cereal with it too)
Put into an Oven AND Microwave safe dish (I used this corningware dish) with
1/2 cup water ( so that the oats are soaked but not floating in water)
Microwaved for 2 minutes
Spread out oat crust to the sides of the dish so that its a flat crust like shape
Put oven-safe dish into (toaster) oven at 375 for about 5 minutes

"Filling"
Mix following ingredients into a separate bowl
1/4 cup organic pumpkin (puree not filling)
1/3 cup egg beaters- or I've used carton egg whites only or 4 egg whites
pumpkin pie spice
1 teaspoon Brown sugar
1 teaspoon of Maple Syrup (or more brown sugar)
1/2 teaspoon of Baking Powder
Microwave for 2 minutes or until slightly firm all over

Put-It All-Together:
Take out crust dish w/ oven mitt!
Spoon this slightly firm mix into the crust dish
Put back into oven for another 5-7 minutes + at 375
Topped with a spoonful of "cream" aka nonfat greek yogurt, sprinkled with cinnamon

On the side I had a half of banana with pb


Lunch: Whole Foods Salad


If you often read my blog, you can tell that I NEVER treat myself to lunch out. Mostly because I enjoy preparing my own food, secondly because I HATE to spend the money when it is so much healthier and CHEAPER to plan a tiny bit and have foods for lunch. However, being sick and being on campus until 1 pm ( and having class at 3:45) I knew it would be the best option to either stay or head to Whole Foods less than 1/4 mile from campus! So, I thought it would be a nice treat to myself to get a yummy made-my -own salad!
Broccoli

Roasted and non, Red Bell Pepper

Quinoa

Chicken

Mixed greens

Feta

Purple Cabbage

Cucumber
Corn and Black Beans
Two quarters of roasted potatoes ( top right)

And, an artichoke

Pineapple and Strawberries

Dinner:


leftover Whole Wheat Pasta and Sauce, Half of a whole grain bun for a mini-tofu sammy, extra veggies (peppers, cauliflower), parm cheese, some chicken in there too...

Body:

I certainly DID NOT feel well enough to get in a workout after class ...ARGH! I barely had a voice and felt really tired after the interview and lunch. But I needed to stay for class. Calling the doctor in the morning for meds!

Mind:
Met April on campus at 9:30 to get equipment, then we met our freshmen interviewee for our project on College Freshmen Food Choices. The interview we conducted took about 30 minutes, then we went to the library and transcribed the interview. Apparently this takes a looonnngg time, ( it took about 1.5 hrs)

Class: we talked more about TG, but mostly cholesterol and phospholipids and went over our exam from last week. I did alright ( I got a B)... but so many people in the class did worse than the last exam and we all studied so hard. I think it was because there were SO many places to mess up, SO many enzymes for each pathway - so he gave us an extra credit opportunity to work in groups and re-do the first problem. We did great!

Soul:

It was so nice to treat myself to Whole Foods, $8 for lunch is outrageous but I never do it! I sat outside too, the sun was really warm but the air was cool.

It was also SO nice to be out of the house all day! Even though I still felt ill and was exhausted, i have been "couped up" in the house all week being a total bum on the couch! ( i needed to be but..)

After lunch i searched for articles to support my metabolism research paper and found a bunch!

Another lake trip to Nana's is in store for this weekend since she is having "thanksgiving" early, but I am un-sure if I will go mostly because I have been so sick that I haven't been able to get alot of my research done. I also would hate to bring my cold with me and get nana or any of jeff's sisters/neice/nephew sick!

It's Thursday!!! Grey's and Ugly Betty soon and I am catching up on Private Practice right now...