Day 271 Watermelon Recipes

Exercise: Had a GREAT Spin Bike class this morning! Burned so many calories.

Try these great watermelon recipes! Great for summer treats!

Breakfast: 1 boiled egg, 1/4 cup oatmeal, green tea, frozen blueberries.
Lunch: glutten free pasta with tomatoes and mushrooms, mixed veggies, corn, chicken, 1/2 carrot, water
Snack: unsweetened cocoa in vanilla soymilk, some raw unsalted almonds
Snack later: Special K granola bar (purchased for a trip, but eating it now...woops).
Dinner: salad with cucumbers, tomatoes, leafy greens, chicken, 1/2 sweet potato, water
Snack: 2 wedges of watermelon.

Yum! Here is how I eat
watermelon. Just bite right
into it.

Vince uses a spoon and makes
cute little round watermelon
bites.









Ate 1/2 of this.
This pic is really from
yesterday. Had the
leftovers today.





Dinner



Day 270 Sweet Tomatoes Healthy Restaurant

Exercise: None Today

Went to Sweet Tomatoes Restaurant Today. They have a variety of healthy foods to choose from.
They also have unhealthy foods such as white pasta, pizza, sweet treats, buttered breads etc. Choose wisely. Sweet Tomatoes Restaruant.

Breakfast: 1 boiled egg, 1/4 cup oatmeal, frozen blueberries, green tea
Snack: cantaloupe wedge, water
Lunch: glutten free pasta with tomatoes and mushrooms, chicken tender on leafy greens, greenbeans, corn, 1/2 carrot, small orange, water
Snack: peanut butter sandwich
Dinner: Salad: leafy greens, spinach, garbanzo beans, onions, mushrooms, cucumber, zucchini, sunflower seeds, tomatoes, Mexican meatball soup with rice and cilantro, a little cherry/apple cobbler and a chocolate brownie, water

Lunch

Day 269 Want Stronger Abs? (My Video)

Exercise: Spin Class for 35 minutes at the gym. Spin is a must do if you haven't tried it! Intense bike workout. 

Check out my video using the "peanut ball.

Get this ball and gain stronger abs. A DVD comes with it that models a few more ab and back exercises. Be sure to use the ball on a regular basis!

Breakfast: 1 boiled egg, 1/4 cup oatmeal, frozen blueberries, green tea
Lunch: peanut butter sandwich, water
Early Dinner: large salad with tuna, onions, boiled egg, 1/2 carrot on the side, water, cantaloupe wedge
Snack: 1/2 grapefruit
Late Dinner: quinoa, broccoli, mixed veggies, one egg roll, water

Tuna Salad

Unhealthy eggroll. Need to go grocery shopping again!

Day 268 Southern Charm Cherry Cobbler!!! (Super Healthy)

Exercise: Elliptical machine at the gym, arm weights, the peanut ball ab floor exercises.



On the elliptical maching

Hopped on the elliptical today and loved it again! Enjoy pretending I'm running really fast! LOL Did I just admit that? Since my "IT" band is still healing, I'm not running at the park much.

Cherry Cobbler to die for!
I found my healthy desserts!!  (Check out the video). My husband and I did get organic veggies and fruits from Kristina a while back when she still had her business at her home. Now of course she is "big time" and has coops, videos, is on FOX tv and other shows like Great Day Houston. I just love all that she does.

Been off work a week now and noticed I quickly gained 3 pounds. If I look at my blog I see why. Getting back on track today with eating properly and more exercise just as if I was still working. Must have a schedule in order to stay on track.

Breakfast: 1 boiled egg, 1/4 cup oatmeal, green tea, frozen blueberries, water

Snack: wedge of cantaloupe

Lunch: mushrooms and sweet potatoes, zucchini, salmon on leafy green, water

Snack: vanilla soymilk with unsweetened cocoa. Later 1/2 grapefruit
Snack small orange, water, few raw almonds (unsalted)

Dinner: glutten free pasta with seaweed with squash, mushrooms, broccoli, some Alaskan wild caught salmon, water

 

Back to the healthy meals.

Day 267 Workout DVD called "Insanity!"

Exercise: Did leg and back weights at the gym today. Spin bike for 5 minutes.

Yesterday I dusted off the "Insanity" workout DVDs. Tried them a year ago, but felt they were extremely difficult for me so I hid them with hopes of never seeing them again! I've fallen off the horse lately and haven't eaten as well or exercised as much, so I decided enough is enough. I am ready to work harder. I pulled out the Insanity tapes. Did the cardio/abs one. It is very high impact and motivating. You use all body parts during the workout. It is fast paced/high intensity. You work at your own pace though. I am once again very excited about trying all the Insanity DVDs and hoping for those extreme workout results! Here is a pic of my DVD video:

To learn more, check out Insanity Website.

Breakfast: 1 boiled egg in corn tortilla with mixed leafy greens, green tea

Lunch: left over from yesterday's birthday dinner: chicken with goat cheese, sundried tomatoes, spinach, mixed veggies, linguine (restaurant food!), water

Snack: peanut butter sandwich on multi-grain bread, water

Snack 2: vanilla soymilk with unsweetened cocoa, few almonds

Dinner: broccoli, mixed leafy greens with sundried tomatoes, sweet potatoes, chicken wontons, water

Snack: apple slices and some dried fruit, water, few peanuts

Lunch

Dinner

Day 266 Vince's Ugly Birthday Cake

Exercise: First day of the "Insanity" workout DVD at home. It ate my lunch! 35 minutes of cardio/abs. Later in the evening...danced to Bobby Darin music...my favorite!  : )

Made the ugliest cake ever!! Wow, just look at it. Obviously, I don't bake, but this was ugly. Frosted around it first with some regular frosting, but then I put some glaze over it. Never buying that again. Hardened quick and wasn't drizzling over the cake. Eeewwwww! Embarrassing!

The ugly cake!



Birthday boy with his new shoes.




Maybe I should have trashed it
and bought another cake!

Today is Vince's birthday. Balloons, cake, gifts! What fun it is for me!!  : ) We started celebrating yesterday. Vince gets free coupons on his birthday. Had free pancakes and egg omelette at I-Hop. Later, free sandwich from Schlotzkey's and a free haircut at Sports Clips.
Baking a yellow cake with chocolate drissle for him today.  Ate at Fratelli's for dinner and yes, we had a coupon.  : )

Breakfast: 1 corn tortilla with egg, squash, white onion, mixed leafy greens all scrambled, green tea
Lunch: peanut butter sandwich, water
Snack: almonds, grapefruit
Dinner: Appatizers: 3 stuffed mushrooms. Dinner: Stuffed chicken with goat cheese, mushrooms, capers and sun dried tomatoes, veggies, pasta, some bread, water. (Ate 1/2 my meal)
Snack: Too much birthday cake!!

Stuffed mushrooms. Very good!

Dinner from Fratelli's Restaurant.
Vince's friend Barbara owns it.
Very nice restaurant! We love the food!

Day 265 Purchased: Restore Exercise Ball

Exercise: None
Bought the Restore Peanut Ball to engage and tighten my abs more during exercise. Watched the video and tried out the exercises. Will continue for a couple weeks to see if there is a difference. Seems a bit too easy. Maybe I'll be proven wrong. Peanut Ball The reviews seem positive so I'm hoping for the best. You can get it at Academy for under $10.

Breakfast: 2 corn tortillas with egg omelet. Omelet had squash, red onion, mixed leafy greens. Green tea, pineapple.
Snack: cottage cheese, cantaloupe wedge
Lunch: OMG! My snack didn't agree with my stomach. Sick soon after. Ate crackers and PowerAide drink after for lunch.
Dinner: small vegetable pizza: red onions, mushrooms, cheese, olives, green bell pepper, water
Snack: 1/2 grapefruit

Breakfast



Dinner



Day 264: Healthier Frozen Treats

Exercise: Walked at Memorial Park for 4.25 miles. 

The desserts I usually eat at home are fruits or plain Greek yogurt with fruits. BORING! I am in search of more interesting healthy desserts. Are they out there? I found this: Healthy Dessert Recipes. Some still have butter and refined sugar, which is what I am trying to avoid. You can always use other flours rather than the bleached flour, use skim or low fat milk, and use natural sugars instead of refined. I would like to try some of these frozen treats.

Breakfast: 1 boiled egg, green tea
Lunch: quinoa, chicken, broccoli, red potatoes, tomatoes, water
Snack: pineapples, sliver of cantaloupe, 1/2 slice of pepperjack cheese, water.
Snack: vanilla soymilk with unsweetened cocoa
Dinner: peanut butter sandwich on multigrain bread (while making the "real" dinner)...little chicken, 1/2 sweet potato, some squash, water.
Snack: grapefruit later tonight when I get back from our walk.

lunch

snack

Part of Dinner

Day 263 Quest For Healthy Desserts!

(Friday)
Exercise: Arm and ab weights at the gym. Spin bike for 15 minutes.

Can dessert really have little calories and be healthy for you? I'm on a quest to find out. Found a website with some items I might be able to incorporate, but still not right up my alley. I'm looking for really healthy guilt free yummy desserts. On a scale of 1 - 10, I'd give these about a 5/6 in the healthy department, but they are certainly better than the chocolate cheesecake I ate the other day. Semi-Healthy Desserts
I'll look some more for tomorrow's blog.

The more I lift weights, the more hungry I am! Eating more desserts and not making the best choices. Wish my leg was better so I could just run every other day. Need to somehow get back into a routine. Hard during the month that I have off work. This month will prove to be a new challenge.

Breakfast: 1 boiled egg, 1/4 cup oatmeal, gree tea, bowl of watermelon, cup of water
Lunch: chicken with pineapple over it, broccoli, red potatoes, mixed veggies, water
Second Lunch!: 1 corn tortilla, 1 egg, cheese slice
Snack: Snickers Candy Bar (went to the grocery store hungry)! Bad move.
Dinner: BBQ hamburger meat with BBQ sauce, fries, broccoli, water, 2 slices of bundt cake.

Add caption

(can't really eat healthy when at a friend's house and they serve
yummy goodies, right)?

Day 262 Whataburger Nutrition Facts!

Exercise: Pulled weeds from the "garden to be." Plan to go to spin class this evening.

Today I helped Vince rehab his townhome to prepare to sell. After a few hours I knew I was going to get a Whataburger! Definitely premeditated! Vince + Trish working together = Whataburger!! Sort of funny really....Vince thinks about everything and is very maticulous about doing things (not a bad thing) and I just jump into things without thinking because I just want to get it done fast (not a bad thing). Together....not so good! Ha ha! Whataburger....felt better for about 15 minutes. Now the thought of eating all that saturated fat and empty calories bums me out. Interesting how I used to CRAVE Dr. Pepper. Didn't drink it all because I didn't like it anymore. Whataburger Nutrition Facts (if you can call it nutrition!).
Here is what I ate:
Dr. Pepper: 190 calories (small)
Small fries: 320 calories
Whataburger Junior: 300 calories
Total: 810 calories
I'll burn about 640 calories in spin class tonight. Won't even burn all those calories! Imagine eating the regular Whataburger: 620 calories. Just nuts! This is why I rarely eat this way anymore.

Did some work towards the neverending garden this morning. Went well, but have a lot more to do.


Phase 2




Phase 3

Breakfast: 1 boiled egg, multigrain bread with 2% cottage cheese and turkey bacon on top, green tea. Snack: small handful of unsalted almonds, cup of vanilla soymilk with unsweetened cocoa
Lunch: qunioa with red bell peppers, tomatoes, broccoli, chicken, water
Lunch #2: Whataburger Jr, with cheese, small fries and a Dr. Pepper!
Dinner: some chicken in multigrain bread very late. (10pm).
Dessert: 1/2 a zucchini muffin with walnuts and lemonade green tea from Starbucks.

Day 261 What Are Foam Roller Exercises?

Exercise: None. Resting my leg.

Bought a foam roller to massage and stretch my hips and thigh muscles and to increase flexibility in muscle tissue. It hurts like crazy, but I know it is working. From the website, "The deep tissue massage from the direct pressure of rolling over these trigger points also aids in the breakdown of fibrous scar tissue that can build up in injured or tight muscles. Breaking down this scar tissue will increase the flexibility and pliability of the muscle. The deep massage may also result in a localized increase in blood flow that will help to flush excess metabolites and toxins from the area."

Read more: FOAM ROLLER INFO and VIDEO. Years ago I pulled my IT band and was told by physical therapists to use the roller, but I never did. After a recent injury, Laurie mentioned it to me. I bought it today and am very excited about making progress.

Breakfast: 1/4 oatmeal, green tea
Lunch: sweet potatoes, quinoa with red bell peper with tomatoes, broccoli, chicken, water
Snack: watermelon, almonds and vanilla soy  milk with unsweetened cocoa later.
Dinner: left over lean turkey meat with canned tomatoes.
Snack:

Day 260 Fig Anyone?

Exercise: Walked 3 miles at Memorial Park this morning. Leg really bothering me now.  Ran into a brief light rain shower. Enjoyed the cool unusual 80 degree weather.  

So many plans for this great day today....about to go walking at Memorial Park, buying a roller for my IT band pain and maybe some tank tops for the summer heat : ), learn some more Spanish, pick up all the large "gardening debris" I left in the backyard, water the yard so I can pull more weeds tomorrow, visit my school, do some pilates floor exercises and stretches and work on reading, "The Energy Bus."

Am I the only one who had never eaten a fig? Actually had never ever seen one either. Come on. Figs have been around since Biblical times. Can't believe I'm just now discovering them. My principal offered me a fig today. Another staff member apparently grew them on a tree. I didn't want to eat it because my experience with figs are fig newton cookies (which aren't my fav) and the dried figs Vince eats that have tons of sugar and are too sweet and have a hard texture. The fig my principal offered me was...well, it looked quite ugly and wilty looking. To my surprise, I loved the fruit! I must buy some. Had no idea what I was missing. Apparently they are very healthy for you too. All you need to know about FIGS is a click away.

Breakfast: 1/4 cup oatmeal, 1/2 salmon patty, green tea
Snack: watermelon, peanut butter sandwich on multigrain bread, vanilla soymilk with unsweetened cocoa.
Lunch: hot dog from Costco with mustard, onions and a bit of relish
Snack: bowl of cherries, water, 2 figs.
Dinner: lean ground turkey meat mixed with tomatoes and red bell peppers, bean mixture with corn and onions, water
Snack: Went to Fuzzy's after Toastmasters and shared a Greek salad with Vince, water



watermelon



Day 259 Leg Injury

Exercise: walked/jogged 2 miles, leg and back weights for 20 minutes at the gym.

Decided yesterday that I was going to begin training for a 1/2 marathon. Other people do it so why can't I was my attitude. I know from the past, that I tend to jump into running after being a way for a while and expect to be the same. I push myself until I usually overdo it and get hurt. So this time I was prepared to start out very slow and take it easy. Planned to only run 1/4 mile, walk 1/4, run 1/4 walk...etc for 3 to 4 miles. It was soooo easy for me so I figured I was past that point. I decided my limit would be to run 1/2 miles. I read in running magazines that you should stay at your level for a couple weeks and then increase what you are doing 10%. So I was ready to be patient. I'm sad to say that after running the 1/2 mile at a faster than normal pace, the side of my left knee/leg hurt again. After going out tonight I realized it is injured. Hurts with every step I take, especially when I lift it up. About to watch a movie with my Vince so I plan to ice it a bit. Must go walking with Maria tomorrow. We have to motivate each other to keep exercising during the summer. I'm sure I'll have to walk at my own slow pace though. Bummer. I really wanted to run a 1/2 marathon. Someday I guess.

Breakfast: green tea, 1/4 cup oatmeal
Lunch: 2 sandwiches on multi-grain bread with 1/2 avacado, turkey bacon, cheese, water.
Snack: vanilla soymilk with unsweetened cocoa, one dried fig.
Dinner: lean ground turkey meat mixed with canned diced tomatoes with garlic, canned mexican style black beans with onions and corn, zucchini.
Dessert: slice of watermelon, some cherries.
Bad Choice: went to Ooh La La and had the best darn chocolate cheesecake ever.

(Yep, broke out the canned food today. Think it may make my life a bit easier and I'm okay with that. Vince ate it too). Usually worry about too much sugar in canned foods, but suprised to discover the beans only had 2 grams.

 Don't be fooled by the fact that the cheesecake is cut in half. Vince didn't eat half, but he did have 2 small bites. It was all me!

Day 258: New Pasta Dish

Exercise: Raked, pulled and cleaned out weeds this morning for 1.5 hours. Great exercise and gets the heart pumping.

Working on a new section of the backyard. Phase one was to just begin to clean out the weeds. Doing a little each day. Not sure where I'm going with all this yet.


Before



Phase 1: The Clearing Phase



Thinking, "I really don't know what
I am doing!"



Breakfast: 1 boiled egg, 4 strips of turkey bacon in a multi-grain bread, green tea, vanilla soymilk mixed with unsweetened cocoa.
Snack: 2 dried figs, water
Lunch: wakame (seaweed) pasta with mixed veggies and orange bell peppers, chicken with rosemary.
Snack:
Dinner:

Made up a new recipe for lunch. Layer the ingredients.
Bottom Layer: Seaweed noodles. Add pepper, salt and olive oil
Middle Layer: throw on sliced orange bell peppers, tons of cut tomatoes.
Top Layer: chicken with seasoning and rosemary.

Day 257 Rice Glutten Free Pasta With Seaweed

Exercise: Vince and I walked 2 miles at Memorial Park today.

First weekend off work. Lazed around most of the day for a change. Went to a gardening class and learned all about lawn care today. Hoping to eventually have my own garden of vegetables one day. Have a lot of clearing of weeds to do tomorrow. Will be good exercise.

Had some gluten free rice pasta today. King Soba Organic Brown Rice & Wakame Gluten-Free NoodlesThese unusual noodles are made with all the benefits of brown rice as well as wakame - a sea vegetable rich in minerals. Try these noodles with mixed vegetables.

Also bought some dried figs. 5 grams of fiber and lots of potassium. Trying to eat maybe 2 per day.
Breakfast: 1 boiled egg, 1/4 cup oatmeal, green tea, bacon sandwich on mulit-grain bread.
Snack: Cherries, vanilla soy milk with unsweatened cocoa
Lunch: Organic rice noodles, chunks of tomato, mixed veggies (carrots, corn, greenbeans), spices, red bell pepper all mixed in the pasta, wild Alaskan salmon on the side, water
Snack: cherries
Dinner: After our walk at the park I just had to have pancakes!! Went to I-Hop and ordered 4...yes 4 harvest grain pancakes and even had 2% milk. Boy, that was like drinking a milk shake! Felt huge afterward and vowed never to do that again.



Lunch




Rice Pastas. Organic and only $1.99 at HEB.
You get 4 bundles of pasta in each bag.




Bag of figs from Costco.




This would look so cute in my garden.



Day 256 Bitter Sweet Day : (

Exercise: Walked 3 miles at Memorial Park with Sherrie this evening.

The Gang!

My favorite 2 weeks of the entire year ended. I worked with the most amazing 5 ladies I've ever met these past 2 weeks. If you have ever had that moment in time where you know something turned your life in a new direction, then you can understand that happened for me these 2 weeks. Let me explain as you wonder how this correlates with a food blog! ha  I'll get to that near the end of the story.

Story goes...5 ladies get together for 2 weeks in a central location to write language arts curriculum for about 10 hours each day. Get the gun right??! So I thought. Being around these ladies made me want to go to work each morning with a smile. I wondered what fun things the day would bring. You see, I usually work in a room all alone. I do get out in classrooms sometimes, but the teachers are busy with the kids. The kids are usually the highlight of my job. It was so wonderful these 2 weeks to feel part of a "teacher" team! To be included in something important. I loved it!

There was one who was our fearless leader. She handled all with grace and positivity. She kept the entire shabang running and always knew what to say in her kind and understanding way. She is so cool!

Then there was another who was just darn cute and reminded me of my little sister. She was funny, outgoing and kept picking on me for some reason.  : ) It was great to be around her young energy! She nearly caught on fire and I saved her. That is another story!

There was the one who used to be a physician. Yep, but the other doctors in her practice were getting kidnapped in Mexico so she and her family had to flee! Now she teaches here. I'm really not making this up. She was strength to me. My life will be different because I saw how she handles situations, works like no one ever before and is so strong willed. Now I think before I act and am on my way to being a stronger person. She makes me want to clean my entire house, do laundry, garden, run a mile and read a book all in one afternoon! That is how she is. 

Another is so sweet and I could see how much she loves her family. She is a worry wart like me, so fun-loving and has really good stories. I can relate to her a lot.

Last, but not least, another one is dealing with many similar issues I dealt with years ago. I wish I could give her the right answers, but it is something she has to experience to learn from and grow from. I know she will come out greater on the other side and will look back on it all as I do, and know she made the right decisions.

This ties into my food blog because these ladies went out to eat with me. We ate so many snacks during the work day and ate at fattening restaurants. I literally feel huge! Started back with Spin class yesterday. Here is just some of the junk I have eaten this past week. I'm horrified.


Ran into a parent of a student I
taught several years ago and she
bought me a fruit tort.




Don't be fooled. This salad has white pasta, fattening dressing,
cheese, chicken salad and tuna with lots of mayonaise. The chili has
all sorts of processed ingredients as well and beef.



Potato soup and salad both have lots of
fattening bacon.



Just down right bad to the bone!

Day 255 What The Heck Is This???

Exercise: Spin class! Burned almost 600 calories tonight.  : )

We took snacks to work today. Someone brought this unfamiliar fruit. What fun we had with it! Hiding it in people's areas, purses etc. Beyond silly behavior, but you can get quite "slap happy" when you write curriculum all day long. Would you eat this? Once we got over its spiney, hairy, needle like appearance, we found out it was pretty darn good! Was told to crack it open by biting it. Hmmm, I don't think so. Grossed me out to do that. Cutting it open with a knife suited me just fine. Thank you to the person who commented and explained what it really was. I had no clue they were so colorful. The Fruit Link.

Here you see the fruit inside. Reminds you of the center of the earth diagrams you saw in elementary school right. So the "inner core" would be a seed that you don't eat. You would eat the "mantle."  : )  I hope you remember all that vocabulary about the Earth. The fruit has the exact texture and taste of a green grape.
Right now this "hairy ball," (you can imagine the jokes about that one at work) is hiding in Vincess drawer. I'm waiting for him to open it to freak him out. Can't wait for it!

Breakfast: 1 peanut butter sandwich, green tea, 1/4 cup oatmeal, some cherries

Snack: OMG...a bean and cheese flour tortilla taco from work, some fruit

Lunch: Once again ate out with the gals from work. (last time though...last day of work!!)

Dinner: chicken wontons, sweet potatos, mixed veggies, water, cherries

Lunch at La Madeiline: potato soup with bacon,
spinach salad with chicken and strawberries and bacon.
BACON....eeeek!



Dinner