Welp, I survived my first week on the night shift!* *happy dance for making it through and then another happy dance for having the energy to happy dance in the first place.
And I have a few other things I’m happy dancing over this week:
1. Cottage Cheese
Or more importantly, rediscovering my love for cottage cheese! Not really sure why, but I go through these phases where I totally forget all about it. There I am just loving on my Greek yogurt while poor CC sits in a cold dark (ok, so they’re not so dark…work with me, it’s all for the imagery) freezer in the grocery store. So sad.
Well, over the last couple of weeks, CC and I have been meeting up for breakfast* *Seriously, what is it with me and dating my food?
With a cinnamon raisin English muffin topped with peanut butter, honey and cinnamon, topped with blackberries and one of my favorite granolas, topped with raspberries, almonds, and coconut, and finally topped with a berry mix and something NEW!
I finally got around to trying the Uber Larabar from my Blend Retreat swag bag this morning…a little on the sticky side but not bad…I really can’t wait to try the Bananas Foster flavor next!
But back to CC…he and I haven’t only been starting our days together…
Last night, as I rummaged around the kitchen trying to think of what eats to pack for work, I had a stroke of genius:
Say hello to my gorgeous friend!
Let’s break down the layers: red quinoa, CC, chickpeas, diced zucchini and some of this:
Stumbled over this guy when I was shopping for my Foodie Pen Pal last week and I’m already halfway through the jar!
Topped with a little Italian seasoning, this 377 calorie bowl hit the spot and kept me full for hours!
And now you’re probably wondering where the whole calorie count plug came from. Well, allow me to explain:
2. My Fitness Pal
Remember when I said in this post…a follow up to this post, that I was making some changes to help myself get back on track and feel in control again? Well, after hearing so many of my bloggy buddies using myfitnesspal.com for their Fitmixer Bootcamp, I decided to have a little look-see.
I’ve never had good luck in the past with calorie counting. I can’t help it, but I have a very OCD kind of personality (like I seriously would have have had a breakdown midway through a run when the treadmill or my Garmin stopped working). Once I realize I can know all the numbers, I HAVE to know all the numbers…know what I mean? Well, that flaw has brought on some pretty scary feelings in the past when I’ve tracked my diet. I become obsessed…like down to the last teaspoon of condiment on my *insert food here*…I have to know how many calories, how much fat, how many…*gasp* SUGARS!!!
That being said, I’m happy to say I’ve been using My Fitness Pal for two weeks now to track my diet and exercise and I haven’t once felt any freak out/weirdo moments and I think I know why…
I’m connected with friends who provide me endless motivation (if Lindsay can burn 389 calories doing 84 minutes of cardio, I can get up and do SOMETHING!), and the added bonus of stalker privileges…hey, sometimes I get bored at work at 3am!
And you can seriously count anything as exercise…the other day I saw that there’s an entry for ice fishing! Lol
Entering food is FUN with the easy barcode scanning option…you don’t even have to search the database for a food, just hit a button and scan the barcode with your phone…BAM instantly entered!
And lastly, I get to nurture the OCD a bit with colorful graphs…the 5 year old in me attributes it to getting a sticker after being good all day in school! 😉
I waiver a bit on the carbs and fats but man do I know how to get in my protein!
But I can’t just thank CC for that, because there is a third thing that elicited a happy dance this evening…
3. The return of PANCAKES!
But not just any pancakes…Lean Green POWERCAKES!
After drooling over Kasey’s delicious creations week after week on Instagram, I FINALLY got around to making my very first powercake today and it was sooooooo good!
Definitely take a look at her powercake recipes…I hear from aVERY GOOD source that the pumpkin roll is a must try!
But for now, how about one more look at this beauty?
Topped with thinned Razzle Dazzle PB, raspberries, and a dusting of cocoa powder!
Only 346 calories! 😉
*happy dance*
Any recent discoveries or RE discoveries have you dancing this week?
I’m not gonna waste any time…who came here to party?!
Happy What I Ate Wednesday!
As always a BIG THANK YOU goes out to Jenn of Peas & Crayons for hosting our weekly shenanigans! And if you’d like to get in on the fun posting your delicious eats, click here for all the deets!
So I totally had a whole slew of pictures from the other day all set and ready for the party…all I needed was to transfer them from my camera and do a little editing…and I totally forgot to do that before I left the house today!
Sooooooo, instead, how about some random deliciousness that’s yet to make it off my computer over the last month? 😉
Just in time for summer, I’ve rediscovered my love of hot steamy oats…and what better way to have them than OIAJ (oats in a jar) topped with banana and cinnamon?
But on the days where I opt NOT to sweat all over my breakfast, I’ve been loving on some fried egg sandwiches (with Vegemite of course), cottage cheese with cantaloupe, blueberries, and cinnamon (rockin’ combo by the way), and Greek yogurt topped with granola, fresh fruit, crushed up Nerdy Birdycookies…eh, pretty much anything goes with me!
I’ve also been doing some major damage on the fresh veggies I’ve been carting home from the farmer’s market each weekend!
Hellllllllllloooooooo salad beast!
Baby spinach, portobellos, roasted red peppers, corn…you name it! But what really makes a salad is the toppings…actually, that might be the REAL reason why I’ve been eating so many lately! 😉
Nutritional yeast, Mrs. Dash, and salsa are nothing new, but what I’ve seriously been loving is the added CRUNCH of crushed up Beanitos or roasted soynuts!
Along with my mountainous salads, I’ve also been having fun DRINKING my veggies!
Yep, I’m not really having a problem with that part of my goals for the month!
I still can’t get over the surprise every time I throw random combos of fruits and veggies in the juicer and out pops something so fresh and delicious!
And well, since the theme this month IS sensible snacking…
Mmmm, snackages!
Gotta give a shoutout to my girl Debbie for introducing me to Snackimals and also Lizzi for sending me these amazing Bounce energy balls…just what I needed at work the other night when the sleepiness came!
What snack do you grab to ward off the sleepies?
What is your favorite salad topper (not dressing)?
My name is Heather! I'm a southern gal with a passion for food, fitness, and photography...and alliteration if you didn't notice! Here you'll find a mix of random musings, delicious recipes, and hopefully a chuckle or two! Check out my "About' tab to learn more!
