What I Eat (Day 4)

• Breakfast – Overnight Oats (1 cup Oikos, 1/2 cup magic muesli from Whole Foods, 1/4 cup Silk soy eggnog…I was out of milk!, sprinkle of granola); 16 oz water
• Snack – Iced coffee (Cool Brew, 6 oz milk, 2 tsp condensed milk, 2 tsp half & half); French bread…hot from the store!
• Lunch – pimento cheese panini on French bread; carrots and hummus
• Snack – Tall soy latte from Starbucks
• Taught 5:00 – 6:30 and took class 7:00 - 8:30 (had an apple on my break; 24 oz water)
• Dinner – Jimmy Johns Beach Club with no mayo (on white bread) and skinny chips; bite of Hil’s chili with a few saltines; an orange; water

It was kind of an unusual day.  I was supposed to teach a dance lesson at 9:30 this morning, so I was up early which means my breakfast was earlier than normal.  But then it got cancelled because the girl’s pipes were frozen (it is unbelievably cold here!).  I ended up with an open morning, which was perfect because I needed to work on a few things for a 3:30 nutrition appointment. 

I’m loving overnight oats…I’ve finally found a breakfast I’m enjoying again.  When I take them out of the fridge in the morning they are really thick…too thick.  I always add a little milk to thin it out, but this morning I was out of milk.  The soy eggnog that’s been in the refrigerator since Christmas worked perfectly (it hasn’t expired yet, I promise!).  I loved the nutmeg flavor it gave the oats…worked well with the spices of the granola.

While I was out running a few errands, I started feeling hungry again.  I guess I’m not used to eating breakfast so early.  It;s hard for me to resist the freshly baked, warm French bread that they put up by the grocery registers.  Like I said, I was hungry and of course when I got to the checkout line it was there staring at me…I totally gave in, bought a loaf, and actually ate a handful driving home in the car!

The pimento panini was AMAZNIGLY GOOD!  Crunchy bread and gooey, melted cheese; how could it not be?  Followed that up with a soy latte from Starbucks (that’s where I was meeting my nutrition client).  I only had a tall because it was my second coffee of the day.  I’m not doing too hot on the green tea resolution (but I am drinking a lot more water).

Here’s where the second change in my day happened.  I was also supposed to have a private lesson at 6:30…but it got cancelled too!  What’s up with today?  The weather gets a little cold and everyone needs to stay home?!?  JK :)

I took class instead.  And then had sandwich number two for the day.  Jimmy John’s has become a once a week thing since I move into my apartment.  It’s close to Hil’s house, so I pick up a sandwich after I leave the studio and then go hang out with her.

Critiques of today: Not enough variety (2 coffees and 2 sandwiches…both on white bread); NO salad (meaning not enough veggies…Who am I?  At least there were sprouts, cucumbers, and tomatoes on my sandwich);  no green tea!  Oh well, nobody said a dietitian has to be “perfect”!

What I Eat (Day 3)

• Breakfast: Green smoothie (1/2 avocado, 1 frozen banana, 8 oz OJ, 1 cup spinach, ice); coffee (Cool Brew, 6 oz milk, 2 tsp half & half); water
• Lunch: Pimento cheese sandwich on sprouted whole grain bread; mini cherry pie Larabar; water
• Taught 1:00 – 5:30 (had a Starbucks grande soy coffee frappaccino…LOVE!; plus water)
• Snack: apple and hot chocolate
• Taught 8:30 – 9:30
• Dinner: Turkey chili with Saltines; Nicoise salad (same as yesterday and the day before, minus the salmon…got enough protein from the chili)

On the days when I actually dance (meaning not just teach) I sometimes give my self a break from working out…that’s what happened yesterday and today.  I spent the morning choreographing which is a good enough workout for me! 

I packed my lunch today knowing that I wasn’t going to have time to run home and eat.  Planning ahead!  I love pimento cheese…such a treat.  It reminds me of my mom.  Hers was straight mayo, shredded cheddar, and jarred pimentos.  But you know me, I had to do something a little more fun! 

I followed this recipe but used Greek yogurt instead of mayo.  When the flavor of the mayo is overshadowed by stronger ingredients (such as cheese) I have no problem completely swapping it for   yogurt.  Chicken salad, in my opinion, needs some mayo…the chicken has too mild of a flavor and I don’t want to taste the yogurt. 

Two sweetened drinks today!  Not good!  I don’t want to drink my calories!  I had planned on the frapp (did you notice I didn’t sweeten my first coffee?).  But it is FREEZING outside and the studio is nearly as cold.  They sell hot chocolate and I needed something warm.

I was totally planning on having the “salad of the week” for dinner, but Hil cooked chili!  Can you believe it?  On Monday Adam called me bright and early for mom’s chili recipe…which sadly I don’t have. But I do have one that I think tastes just like it.  Later that day Hil texted me for the same thing!  Must have been the cold weather.

She wanted to “lighten” it up, so I told her to halve the oil, swap ground turkey for the ground beef, and use only one pound.  It was delish!  She can cook after all!  And by the way, Saltines are a must with chili…no whole wheat crackers allowed.

I followed-up the bowl of chili with a salad…gotta get my veggies!

Making over-night oats then off to bed.  First lesson is at 9:30am and last one ends at 7:30pm…it’s been such a busy week!

What I Eat (Day 2)

• Breakfast: same as yesterday - overnight oats plus half of a pear, 16 oz water; coffee (Cool Brew, 6 oz milk, 2 tsp half & half, 1 tsp condensed milk)
• Lunch: same as yesterday - Salmon Nicoise Salad; water; mini Larabar; iced coffee (same as above minus condensed milk)
• Taught 3:30 – 10:30 (had an apple and about 30 oz water…and cookie cake!)
• Dinner: Split pea soup; 16 oz water; carrots and hummus; spoon of pimento cheese (homemade…more on that tomorrow); orange

I really should just move into the studio…I was there from 11:30 – 1:30 and then again from 3:30 – 10:30.  LONG DAY.  Hence the two cups of coffee??  Only one of them was sweetened though!

After lunch I was craving something sweet.  I love Larabars and the minis are even better because they are perfect for a small snack (or sweet treat).  The regular sized ones are better for a more substantial snack (they run about 200 calories).  The ingredient list is the best part (besides the taste…mine was cherry pie):

dates, almonds, unsweetened cherries…THE END!

I love that these bars are REAL FOOD…no artificial anything!

I really don’t get hungry when I’m teaching, but I took Hip Hop on my break tonight (great class! more of a workout than my four mile run yesterday) and felt like I needed a little quick energy to get me through it.  Of course I had an apple in my purse.  Later in the night it was someone’s birthday and I couldn’t resist the cookie cake.  I love cookie cake!

The split pea soup was frozen from last time I made it…so while I was waiting for it to defrost (I didn’t plan ahead) I snacked on carrots and hummus.  And then the pimento cheese.  This was at 10:45pm and I was starving! 

Fruit for dessert…I’ve already had cake!

Night!

What I Eat (Day 1)

It’s been a while since I’ve done this…and I’m officially starting my New Year’s resolutions today - was I really supposed to do that last week?  There was way too much football left to focus on new things :) But football is over for me, so no more excuses!

• Pre-run snack: 1/2 pear
• 4 mile run
• Breakfast: overnight oats (last night I combined 1 1/2 cups Oikos and 1 cup Magic Muesli; this morning to half of that I added a sprinkle of Kaia Foods buckwheat granola, 2 tsp maple syrup, splash of skim milk); 24 oz water; coffee (Cool Brew, 6 oz milk, 2 tsp half & half)
• Lunch: Salmon Nicoise Salad (inspired by this recipe) - broiled salmon, boiled potatoes and green beans, red peppers, 1 hard boiled egg, cherry tomatoes, dressing (I followed the recipe I linked to above but left out 1/4 cup of oil and used Italian Seasoning instead of the fresh herbs…can’t wait until I have an herb garden again); hummus and carrots; water
• Taught 3:30 – 9:00 (drank 24 oz of green tea mixed with water)
• Dinner: Green smoothie – 8 oz OJ, 1 frozen banana, 1 cup spinach, 1/2 of a small avocado, ice; 24 oz water; carrots and hummus

I almost didn’t run this morning…so cold!  But I bundled up and headed out and was glad I did.  Think I’m gonna do a little boot camp tomorrow!

I’ve been in a bit of a breakfast slump lately…can’t find anything that I really want to eat.  So I’ve been changing it up a bit from the usual “cold weather” oatmeal.  Last week I did toast with cashew butter.  This week it’s over-night oats with a little of this oh-so-crunchy granola I picked up at Whole Foods.  I’ve actually made buckwheat granola before from this recipe and really like it!

More water, less coffee!  And it was unsweetened!  And I drank green tea instead.  Did I meet all four of my resolutions?!?  Yep!  My plan is to drink at least 2 cups of water before my first coffee each day.

My salad for the week is based on two things…1) I haven’t had salmon in a while (I try to at least once a month) and 2) I need to “detox” from my weekend of football food (cheese burger, fries, M&M’s, roast beef poboy, chips, alcohol) which means I’m going to eat more like a vegetarian this week.  All of the salad ingredients are ready to go in the refrigerator…shopping/prepping ahead of time is so helpful/essential for healthy eating. 

 

And don’t let the smoothie scare you!  It tastes just like a banana-orange smoothie!  Promise!  The avocado makes it creamy and the spinach makes it more nutrient dense.  And you can’t taste either!

Night…Go Auburn (for tonight only!)

Happy New Year

I love the beginning of the New Year…it feels like such a fresh start.  Time for setting new goals, trying new things, and looking forward to what the upcoming year has to offer.

I have lots of other personal goals, but here are some of the ones related to nutrition & fitness:

• drink more water (and less coffee!)
• cut back on sugar
• drink more green tea
• run more often (now that my ankle feels better)

It surprises people that I have a hard time drinking enough water.  But I really have to force myself to drink 8+ glasses per day.  I drink plenty while I’m teaching, but during the day not so much.  Cutting back on iced coffee will hopefully help.  I’ve gotten into the habit of having two a day sometimes…when I should be drinking water instead!

I have a sweet tooth.  And I think that’s one reason why I love coffee so much.  It’s my “sweet treat” for the day…which I guess is better than having cake/cookies/ice cream/candy all the time. 

I sweeten my coffee with about 1-2 teaspoons of condensed milk…kills two birds with one stone (sugar and milk).  But I like coffee unsweetened with a little half and half too and should try to drink it that way more often.

Green tea is so good for you and I don’t drink it enough.  It’s one of the only eating habits that I didn’t adopt from my Houston roommate Danielle, (who is a RD at MD Anderson and knows her stuff).  She loves tea :) Habits I did pick up from her?  More veggies and whole grains, and less meat.

It seems like every Fall I develop some sort of foot/ankle pain…probably because during footballs season I never sit down.  With all dancing, teaching, choreographing, and running I am always on my feet.  This year was no exception.  To deal with my ankle issues, I cut back on the only place I could.  Running.  First I cut back to just running less distance.  And then fewer days.  And then NOT AT ALL.  But that did the trick.  And now that football season (and Saintsations) are coming to an end and my ankle is feeling better, its time to step it back up.

As for the “new things”, I’m trying to get myself back in the nutrition world.  When I first moved home to Baton Rouge from Houston I looked for a wellness-type job similar to the one I had at LifeTime Fitness.  No such luck.  But the Saintsation position and a great job teaching dance at Tari’s have kept me busy (and allowed me to use my nutrition degree in a really positive way…dancers are under so much pressure to be thin, but many have terrible eating habits and don’t know how to stay thin healthfully). 

All that being said, the job search is on.  I’ll keep you posted!

Of course I’m cooking today…cabbage (as slaw in my all time favorite feta dressing ) and black-eyed peas, ham, collards (all in a delicious soup that is a cross between these two recipes)…for luck, health, and fortune in the new year! 

Happy New Year!  Geaux Saints! (and Panthers!)