Beans, No Greens

I keep thinking it's Monday again.
I made oatmeal last night but wasn't feeling like eating it this morning. Instead I munched on a bar while working and drank coffee.
I've been trying to only eat when hungry, so today I didn't have a snack before workout.
Lunch was supposed to be a melted cheese, bean, and spinach sandwich pressed on the grill, but the spinach was bad smelling. So I went with a different plan.
This (Orowheat thin, grape tomatoes, and garlic and herb Laughing Cow):became this:
Complete with teeth marks. I ate the carrot on the side as well as a half cup of black beans.


Within 15 minutes I had a Zbar. Afterward I drank a cup of mint medley tea. I need more tea options! I love mint teas, but sometimes want a little something different, like ginger or an herbal fruit tea.
Around 4:00 I got hungry, and decided to eat a Chobani.It was delicious, and also my last one. I'll just have to go back to Whole Foods then.

Before dinner we made a few dips. I made a quick guacamole out of an avocado that we needed to use, and the boyfriend made hummus. We ate all of the guacamole with a spoon. Then we moved on to dinner. On the menu: Tomato soup and half a grilled cheese sandwich. The cheese was the last of the Amish swiss.
I did not eat all of my soup, but I did eat all of the sandwich. Mmmm....

Duang Tawan

Theme of the day: No cooking!


One good thing about blogging is that I realize how many packaged foods I can consume in a day. (I also keep a food diary for calorie purposes, but I don't always step back and really consider what I'm eating.)
Breakfast: This morning I had a Chobani strawberry with half a banana.
On the side I enjoyed a few Puffins.
Snack: mini Cashew Cookie Larabar.Workout Woes:
My workout today wasn't super great. I felt like I should've had a rest day, although I often feel like I don't deserve rest days because I'm not yet where I want to be physically.
Most of the advice I read about running and aerobic activity is intended for healthy, active people. I feel like I should push myself and workout more than someone who is at their desired weight. I read an article recently that stated people who are looking to lose weight should aim for 250 minutes of exercise a week. This is what I've been going for, although I've read a few articles that say that is overtraining. I don't know what to think.
/end rambling

My lunch was also out of a package.
I'm going to try to make these myself. It might be simple enough to make a batch and freeze them for emergencies. The only thing I'm not sure of is corn masa. I've never made that before.

I had a snack later of the other half of the banana and a Mojo bar. The Mojo was tasty. I love salty and sweet!
Dinner: It was a surprise dinner date! Mr. S told me he was bringing me to the cafe, and we ended up driving to our favorite restaurant, Duang Tawan. They are a sushi and Thai restaurant in Baton Rouge, on the corner of Sherwood and Coursey. We haven't been in quite a while. The sushi is what made us try them years ago, and the curry is what keeps us going back. It is to die for!
We shared a sushi roll for our appetizer. It was a JB roll (Japanese Bagel). The ingredients were simple, classic and tasty: salmon, cream cheese, and scallions. The chef makes excellent hand rolls as well.
I wanted to try something new, but I ended up sticking with one of my old favorites: Panang Curry with shrimp. (The rice was added after the photo-op.)
The coconut milk makes it creamy and sweet, the dried pepper flakes add a mild kick, while the lime leaves add an interesting subtle flavor.

Did you know I have a lime tree? I bought it to use the leaves in curry. The only con to Panang Curry is that there aren't many vegetables, only a couple tiny slivers of red bell pepper. I know that that's the way it's supposed to be, so I shouldn't complain. I stole a few of my date's green beans and eggplant. Here's his Pad Ped Pork:
One other thing I like about Duang Tawan is they use seasonal vegetables, and sometimes throw in a little surprise to your dish. (Like sweet potato, eggplant, etc.) It always compliments the dish, and feels like a bonus.


Off to watch "The Soup" and drink a Sam Adams!
P.S. Later on this night I had a couple of these:
And a piece of plain pepperoni pizza from Schlittz & Giggles, which is a bar and pizza joint located in downtown Baton Rouge.
I blame it all on Mr. Greens.

'Bani, 'Sagna, and Tater

This title is either my eats for the day, abbreviated, or a hillbilly sorority. You Decide!
Is is only Thursday?
Update: The neti pot seems to have helped, although I might take another waterboarding session tonight.
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Breakfast:
This morning I had yogurt, honey, granola, coffee, and cantaloupe. This was starting the day right! Chobani 0% with super nutty granola, local Louisiana honey, Italian Blend coffee, and a juicy if somewhat bland cantaloupe.
I forgot to snack today! The gnawing feeling started when I was at the gym. Oops. My performance was good, but I got a little nauseated and thirsty.
Lunch:
I more than made up for the calories at lunch! Leftover homemade lasagna for the win! It looks kind of gross in this picture, but trust me, it was to die for.On the side: a lovely spinach salad with yellow bell pepper, grape tomatoes, black olives, walnuts, and a hunk of feta cheese.My mom's version of this salad is better - she makes one with just tomatoes, cucumbers, onions, bell peppers, and salty black olives. A little olive oil, vinegar, s&p. No lettuce. This is what I wanted (it goes well with pasta), but I didn't have those ingredients.
It worked out to be a lovely lunch. The above lasagna is 1.5 servings, and yes I ate it all! Don't hate.
Snack time later in the day: I ate a Luna Peanut Butter Cookie. This was free from drugstore.com - wahoo! - when I made my last order. I thought they just really liked me, but they sent my mom the same sample.Pros/Cons:
Pro: The flavor was awesome. I love a real peanut butter taste, and I thought they delivered.

Con: I don't like the crispiness of the Luna so much. It's too much like a rice crispy treat.
(The way I talk I sound like I have some serious gum problems, but I just really like soft and chewy bars, not hard or crispy).

For the record I've only had one other Luna, and didn't really like it (S'mores flavor). This was definitely better. This PB cookie has piqued my interest enough to want to try one of their hundred other flavors.

Dinner was a baked potato. This potato was so huge! I weighed it before cooking and it was over a pound. Needless to say I cut it in half after baking it.
Toppings: plain nonfat greek yogurt (Voskos brand), green onions, and a slice of pan fried deli ham. It was yummy! I'm glad I didn't attempt to eat over a pound of potato.
Before dinner I snacked on a few Smokehouse almonds.**I'm going to Neti and call it a night.**

Two Beers and Bug Spray

Just finished doing a Neti Pot. Mmmm...salty nose!Whatever will help this 3 day old sinus headache - sign me up!



Today I had the day off - Yay! My schedule is a little confusing mostly because I often work overtime on my off days. Last week I crammed in all of the overtime I could for this pay period, so that I could have a full day vacation.
I slept in and was greeted with the sun and my lovely kitty.
I drove my boyfriend to work and then made a monster omelet. It contained spinach, mushrooms, onions, and cheese. Unfortunately it also had too much butter. I gave up eating it halfway through. It was replaced with yogurt.
I caught up on a few blogs and email, and within a couple of hours went to pick up my boyfriend from work.
When I got back I ate a few pieces of cantaloupe. This particular cantaloupe was purchased more than a week ago and it never smelled ripe. I finally opened it up and started eating it. The season must be over for melon. Here in the south it's hard to tell when summer is really over.We went to Highland Coffees to refill our Italian Blend stash, and on the way there saw an interesting sign. Huh?
At Highland, we also got two iced mochas. It was a "treat" kinda day.
While we were there I saw a flyer for a fun run.Sounds good.
Dinner: Homemade lasagna, made by my boyfriend. (I grew the basil!)
It was a classic lasagna with meat, cheese, and whole wheat pasta. We shared dinner and a few beers with a new neighbor out on the porch. (How white trash is this picture? Oh wait, let me throw some cheetos and flipflops in there...)
That reminds me - I set up a trap for the fruit flies in our kitchen using a mason jar and vinegar. This method has worked before for me. Just secure a cone of stiff paper to the jar with a little vinegar at the bottom. The flies go in to investigate, and find it hard to return; most of them drown. and yes, that's Paris Hilton. It's from her new line. Bug traps are "Hot".Dessert:
After dinner we ate two pomegranates.
I've never eaten a pomegranate before, but I've drunk the juice. I was very interested to try! Here's what I did after a bit of research:
First I stuck my fingers into the skin, poking it, and feeling little pops of seeds disengaging.
Then I rolled the fruit around on a cutting board, feeling more seeds come loose inside from their walls.Finally cut it open and ejected the seeds. They were great right out of a big bowl like sunflower seeds. Beautiful, sweet, juicy seeds. I would definitely go through the trouble again.
Also: my boyfriend spit out the seeds, I chewed them and swallowed. Just in case you wondered
who was tougher. (answer: me)

Emergency Burrito

This morning I felt like a light breakfast, which is kind of funny since most of my breakfasts are the same calorie wise. I had a plain, non-fat Chobani which I topped with half a serving of Super Nutty Granola, a drizzle of honey, and on the side I had a banana and coffee.A bit later I had a Clif bar as a pre-workout snack.
Lunch was leftover roasted vegetables. I brought roasted chicken and gravy, but I didn't feel like eating it.
It smelled so good! Several people made comments and complimented my lunch.
Around 2:00 I had a coffee break.Then snacked on an apple and cheese.Dinner was super easy. I had an emergency burrito in the freezer.
I ate this with a yellow bell pepper half, and a few grape tomatoes.
Also Food Should Taste Good Olive chips and salsa. Don't Forget - fizzy water and lime!
Good Night!