Staying away from the refreshments..

Tonight will be a challenge...

Breakfast was not so hot - I had a black bean breakfast burrito. It was very bland, and I will not be making it again. I like the eggs alone, but the whole wheat wrap made it bland and too grainy.

But before I get to lunch, yesterday taught me a lesson. I was busy during the day, and neglected to eat any snacks (of the two recommended per day - think small meals throughout the day as being better than three large meals). I went to bed super hungry, and woke up a bit irritable. DON'T SKIP ON THE SNACKS! If you think it's too late to eat a snack (like before bead) a glass of skim milk usually does the trick! I'm thinking tomorrow I will post a whole thing on healthy and unhealthy snacks because that's something I didn't learn until recently.

For lunch (and I'm going to make it for dinner), words cannot explain how delicious this is: Zucchini and Mozzarella Flatbread

I love Flatbread - and I found a great whole grain brand - Aladdin's Bakers. I bought it at shoprite. No words - really no words!

Here are some tips for buying bread:

• Look for bread that has a couple grams of fiber, it adds to the richness in your diet and means there will be less fillers
• Bread that has fewer than 100 calories per slice - these often have the same amount of nutrients as our unhealthier friends, but they won't make you feel disgusting later!
• In our house we eat pita pockets. These are delicious and easy to pack in case you're in a rush and need to eat lunch at your desk or on-the-go.
  

For a snack I also made a deviled egg with a kick . It was like any other deviled egg - I will be trying Rocco Dispirito's version at some point. I'll let you know, which is better.

I'm getting a communication award tonight, and there will be refreshments. Let's see how I fair. I will update tomorrow!

Feeling better than ever - join me on my journey.. 361 Days to go!

Beware salad eaters...

What a day! What a day! I have been super busy today, and it seems like when you are really busy, it is even harder to stay on track.

I woke up and quickly made a Mexican Egg Scramble. It was very very tasty. Usually, I am thrown off by the texture of black beans in the morning, but it was just the right amount.

For lunch I took a page out of Rocco Dispirito's book Now Eat This! ; I made the Grilled Turkey Salisbury Steaks with Tomatoes and Provolone Sauce. I just made a bunch of turkey burgers from ground meat at the beginning of the week (similar to what I do with chicken).

The sauce is:
1 cup evaporated skim milk
1 tbsp cornstarch
1/2 cup shredded sharp provolone cheese (though I used 1.2 provolone and 1/2 horseradish cheese)

Whisk the skim milk and cornstarch together, add it to a sauce pan. Whisking continuously, allow the mixture to thicken and boil. Reduce heat and whisk in cheese. Be careful because burnt diary is super gross. This is by far one of my favorite meals. It's great to grill up with some onions and tomatoes.

Dinner was a little bit of a challenge. I met my wonderful friend at Pf Changs. I did not know until today that it is ranked among the 30 Worst Fast-Food Restaurants (source: Fitness Magazine). There are, however, healthy alternatives: Mahi-Mahi, Asian Ginger Salmon, and Lemon Scallops. According to our adorably nice waiter, the Mahi-Mahi is deceiving because the sauce it almost completely butter. I opted for the Scallops, and they were just as delicious as any other fattening thing on the menu, but they were the healthy option. For those non-seafood lovers out there, you can ask for your food to be "vegetable stock velveted" - what that means is, instead of cooking the food in horrible fatty oils, the food is cooked in a vegatable, or chicken stock if you ask for "chicken stock velveted."

For those salad lovers out there BEWARE - the Chicken Chopped Salad with Ginger Dressing is a whopping 940 calories, 68g fat, 10g saturated fat, and 2,225 mg of sodium - NOT ALL SALADS ARE HEALTHY!! If you go out to eat, google your restaurant before you go there. Do you research; I did, and instead of feeling like I was about to go into cardiac arrest when I was done, I felt full, but energized.

Unfortunately, I didn't have time to workout, but tomorrow I will be hitting the gym super hard again!

362 Days to Go :)

A little ice cream never hurt anyone...

Ah today was filled with lots of great food and it was super easy to make. I am also happy to announce that prior to this project, I had been working out on and off, but since my last weigh in I have lost six lbs. That was great motivation.

This morning I had a Broccoli-Cheddar Omelet. While it tasted good, I would suggest less broccoli for anyone interested in making it. I also realized that in my last post my pictures didn't show up, for whatever reason. I'm going to fix that problem tomorrow.

For lunch, I had a VERY super delish Bean and Cheese Potato, which also came from Fitness Magazine:
Microwave 1 medium potato (this took about 5 minutes)
Top with 1/2 cup canned black beans, rinsed and drained
1.5 cup diced cooked chicken
3 tbsp shredded low fat cheddar cheese
2 tbsp salsa
1 cup steamed broccoli
Dollop of nonfat Greek yogurt

For those who haven't discovered the joys of Greek yogurt, you need to try it. I'm not saying this because, as a true Greek, I am obsessed with all things "Greek." It's super creamy. Chobani is my favorite kind; the flavored raspberry is so delicious. I could literally eat it all day.

Anyway...
Since I worked out this morning (20 minutes on the stairs, and a circuit workout, which I can post if anyone is interested - you know considering I have tons of followers - thanks Justin :) ), and I wouldn't be home from work until seven o'clock today, I made myself a quick shake (also from Fitness).

1 cup skim milk
1/2 banana
3 tsp unsweetened cocoa powder
3 ice cubes
Blend it up, and you've got a shake (this was just OK)

Dinner was a pork roast that I got form Sam's Club, so I don't have the recipe. Sorry ya'll (said in my best impression of Ruby, or maybe Paula Dean - I'm not sure which one I'm imitating. It's like this weird southern identity crisis).

I also treated myself to ice cream tonight because it was free at Baskin Robbins - which I didn't actually end up going to because there was no parking and an out of control line. But the idea was in my head, friends in my car, and so we made out way to the Ice Cream Depot in Milltown. You've got to live a little!

The best part of this experiment is that I now totally freak my fiance out when I do impressions of Julia Child, but I think it's hilarious.

Oh and P.S. - quick cooking tip. I found it really useful to grill up about eight chicken breasts on the George Foreman Grill on Sunday (before the work week begins, and I find myself with little time). This way, I can save myself time when a recipe calls for grilled chicken!

363 Days to Go :) Keep on Truckin'

Let the games begin

Today I have dedicated myself to a new project. As an American, I am bombarded with tons of fitness news in television, magazines, newspaper, and anywhere else I turn. How do we know what is good and what really stinks? For this project, I have decided to commit myself to 365 days of healthy eating and exercise utilizing popular culture artifacts such as magazine articles, television shows, popular cook books - anything of the sort, to answer this question.

The good thing about this blog, is that unlike other items in "the media," I am not owned by anyone; therefore, I will give an honest opinion of everything I try.

And so it goes:

Today I started my day with a Whole-Grain Banana Muffin (courtesy of Fitness Magazine)
This muffin was very delicious!

Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees
Mix together:
1/2 cup whole-wheat flour
1 cup oats
1/2 tsp salt
1.5 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp baking soda
1.5 mashed bananas (should equal about 3/4 cup)

Mix together:
1/2 cup plain nonfat yogurt
1 egg
1/4 cup honey
2 tbsp canola oil
1 tsp vanilla

Add the two mixtures together and stir until everything is combined. Place in 6 greased muffin tins and bake about 12 minutes. Serve with a glass of Skim Milk.



For Lunch, which was not so delicious, I had Roast Beef Roll-Ups with Cauliflower Soup. Infact, thinking about it is making me a little queasy. I cannot pin point exactly what I didn't like, which is unfortunate. Either way, I wouldn't recommend making this, but if you're adventurous why not? This is also from Fitness Magazine.

Saute 1/2 sliced onion and 1/2 sliced bell pepper in 1/2 tsp olive oil.
Divide among 2 slices of roast beef spread with spicy mustard to taste. Serve with 4 whole-wheat crackers

Cauliflower soup:
saute 1 chopped onion and 2 minced garlic cloves in 1 tsp canola oil
Add 3 cups chicken stock - bring to a boil
add 2 cups cauliflower florets. - cook for five minutes
Season with s & p, and 2 tbsp of Parmesan
Puree


For dinner I made Cheesy Turkey Meatballs (Scroll down a bit and the recipe is on that page).
I have made this before, it's very delicious. Unfortunately, I don't have pictures, but I will post them tomorrow!

Day One - 364 to go :)