Project: Food Budget - Week Four

Goal: $50

Actual: $20.59 (Giant)
Actual: $37.13 (Weis)

Bonus Card Savings: $3.36

After taking some time to browse through the weekly flyers I saw significant savings just by buying some of my produce from Weis versus Giant.  Luckily, Weis isn’t too far out of my way, so after picking up a few things from Giant I made my way to Weis.  Though when it comes to other items Weis is not the place to go, but as I review the prices of the products I buy on a regular basis I will begin narrowing the stores I shop at and get to know more of the stores set up so I can be more efficient when I’m shopping.  Though I should have grabbed the blueberries from Giant.   The paper said Weis had them for 2.99 a pint, however, when I went to the resister I had to void 2 items.  1) Blueberries, which turned out to be 4.99 a pint and 2) My Naturally More Almond Butter.  I thought that both the Almond butter and Peanut butter were 2/$5, however it was just the pb.  I felt bad having to void it, but I wasn’t paying 5.99 for that.  By returning the pb and the 2 pints of blueberries I saved $15.97 from my grocery bill.

Produce Savings by buying at Weis verus Giant:
Eggs: $.99 vs. $1.49
Greep Peppers: $10/$10 vs $1.99/lb
4lb bag of Oranges: $3.99 vs. 4.99

I did spend more money on the Avocado at $1.89 each and the Large Seeded Grapes totally 6.25 for the bag.  They are so good though I couldn’t help but splurge on them.

(will add later)

Meal Plan:
* Breakfast

* Post-Workout

* 10am Post-Workout Meal

* 1pm Snack
 
* 4pm Snack

* 7pm Dinner

Staples Purchased:
#1 Naturally More PB $2.50 (saved $.49)
#1 Ziploc Round Storage  Containere $2.89
#1 Ziploc Take Along Rectangle Food Storage $3.39

I’m not sure if I saved anything by buying the storage continners at Weis, but they came in pretty handy this week.

Overall Week:
I did better with my budget, but clean eating I did stray a bit from my original meal plan due to being stressed out about a few things.   

Project: Food Budget
Read about Project: Food Budget challenge.

Please check out these wonderful blogs, and give them support as they take on this challenge.
Participating blogs:
    * Emily Levenson
    * Veggie Converter
    * Dairy-Free Cooking
    * Veggie Burgher
    * The Happy Cactus
    * Test Kitchen Tuesday
    * Newly Vegan
    * Veggie on the Cheap
    * MeloMeals: Vegan For $3.33 A Day
    * The Veggie Life
    * Caroline Cain Holistic Health
    * Going Veggie
    * Under The Apple Tree
    * Be the Change

smells like a healthy choice

I had an itch to go running today, especially with it being such a beautiful day that I couldn't help even at the evening hour of 7:30 driving to city island so I could run along riverfront Park.  I couldn't help but smile when I came across the entry sign that greeted me with "Free Parking Today! Have a Great Day!."  There were so many people there, so I hoped that this was a good sign that the weather would hold up.

I didn't want to go to far, especially since I had already gone to the gym this morning, so I set my run keeper and decided that I would only do 2 miles as I made my way toward the bridge. 

I surprisingly followed my plan in which turned out to be a great way to see some of my friends as on my way back to the park I was surprised to see a friend of mine walking toward me.  He and his roomie were just heading out for a nice evening walk. We chatted for a few and then went on our way.

image source

I ran for most of the trail, but did take some time to just walk and catch my breath.  I'm really trying to get myself outside to run so I can work up my endurance, because it's just not the same when your running on the treadmill.  I would love to work up to my 10 mile goal this year and know I've really worked for it, but challenging myself with running outside.

I was glad to see the bridge and knew that I was almost to my 2 mile mark.  I stopped at the bottom of the stairs to stretch my calves, especially since they were feeling a little tight and then headed toward my car where I finished my stretches.  Halfway through my stretches a runner passes by and it was someone I knew.  I love the fact that I decided to go out running late and still managed to see my friends also making the decision to make healthy choices.  It really does make my heart happy.  Once my friend stopped at his car to grab his post-workout drink he made his way over where we chatted for a good while about running and our other social actives.

It was a very fantastic night and I'm super dupper glad that I decided to run tonight and I even ran into two more friends when I stopped at the gym to clean up.

linen fresh

I was pleasantly surprised to see the sun out this morning and gladly took advantage by hanging my laundry on the line. I began my first load around 8am and an hour later headed outside with my basket of towels and cloth pins looking forward to the smell of fresh linens.

I remember fighting with my mom about hanging the cloths on the line and today I was happy as a lark to be able to. Maybe it's because I'm more appreciative of these things now that I'm older, but I also know that God has been making little changes in my heart to match up with His plans. Just the thought of it makes me giggle as I know that these will take me to the next step.

 IMAGE SOURCE

While my linens were washing I started to prep a few meals that I had on hand one being preparing my wheat berries for my Creamy Wheat Berry Cereal----super excited for. Though time went by pretty quick and the next thing I knew the clock stroke 10 and I hadn't even washed my face yet or gotten out of my jammies and so I began to freshen up to prepare for my walk with a friend.   I was disappointed that I didn't get everything done, but I only needed to finish baking my muffins and mix together a black bean salad so I figured I could take care of that later.  I was a little later, but it was necessary so I could help out my roomie.  She needed some things moved from the yard so she could finish mowing.  I met my friend at our rescheduled time of 11:30am and we made our way toward front street to walk along the river.

It was a beautiful day and I'm glad we were able to enjoy it and take the time to catch up, because it's been awhile since we last saw each other.  Our first mile was a brisk run, but then feathered out to a walk for the last 3. 

I heart thee (birts bees) chapstick

Ever since spring came along I've not been taking my jacket and since I typically workout in the morning I don't have a standard place to put my chapstick.  This has really been a dilemma, especially since I keep misplacing it and without a designated home I am afraid this is going to be an ongoing problem.  Uggg.

Today I found my chapstick in a running jacket that I keep at work.  Haha, still in the pocket, go figure! 

The sad thing is that it;s costing me money since I've had to buy 2 new ones, because I keep forgetting where I put it. 

I remember in High School and many years later I was a chapstick brand user, but about 5 years ago moved to soft lips, which I have recently traded in for Berts Bees Replenishing Lip Balm.  I love it and don't know how I used the other brands for so long.

 

 IMAGE SOURCE

Project: Food Budget - Week three

Goal: $50

Actual: $62.02 (Giant) 

Bonus Card Savings: $13.68

This was another challenging meal prep with trying to balance everything out (45P/45C/10HF).  I need to find an easier way to do this and save money so I can begin to buy supplements.  Then things escalated when I got to the grocer and realized I wasn't going to have enough time to cook any of my meals, so I had to think of some alternatives.  Luckily, I still have a ton of leftovers from last week that I was able to use.

Original Plan: * Breakfast:      Overnight Oat Berries+Cereal     * Post-Workout     Protein Cookie * 10am Post-Workout Meal     Black Bean Oat Burger * 1pm Snack     Yogurt Bowl * 4pm Snack     banana + pb * 7pm Dinner    Teriyaki Tempeh + Brown Rice

Adjusted Plan * Breakfast:      Overnight Oat Berries + Cereal * Post-Workout     Protein Shake * 10am Post-Workout Meal      Cottage Cheese      Cherry tomatoes (leftovers) * 1pm Snack     Yogurt Bowl * 4pm Snack     Power Toast (leftovers) * 7pm Dinner      Tuna + Cucumber + ww WASA      + Red Wine Vinegar + Carrots

Staples Purchased:

#1 Sugar in the Raw $2.89
#1 Giant Vinegar $0.85
#2 Strawberries (32oz for 3.89) Going to freeze one package
#1 Burt's Bees Lip Gloss $2.69
#1 Sports Creme $6.49
#1 Antibiotic Creme $3.66
#1 large Quaker Oats 1-min oats $3.69
#1 Bobs Red Mills Wheat Berries $2.99

Total Staples: $23.26 (not including the strawberries)

Project: Food Budget

Read about Project: Food Budget challenge.

Please check out these wonderful blogs, and give them support as they take on this challenge.

Participating blogs:

• Emily Levenson
• Veggie Converter
• Dairy-Free Cooking
• Motor City Girl In the Steel City
• Veggie Burgher
• The Happy Cactus
• Test Kitchen Tuesday
• Newly Vegan
• Veggie on the Cheap
• MeloMeals: Vegan For $3.33 A Day
• A Guy, A Girl, And a Dinner Plate
• The Veggie Life
• Caroline Cain Holistic Health
• Going Veggie
• Be the Change

it's become second nature

Do I sleep in, or workout, sleep in or workout............ahhhhh..................
I kept going over these two options last night for a good 20 minutes.  Sleep I definitely lost trying to determine what to do for my rest day.  It's kind of funny considering over a year ago I would have easily chosen to sleep in.  However, now a days it's a challenge, because I love working out so it's become second nature to set my alarm early for a workout.  It's an addicting drug I don't ever want a cure for, but I do need to learn to take a break so I did finally decide to sleep in. Plus, I knew if I'd gone it wouldn't have been a rest day.


I  need to keep repeating over and over again until it finally sinks in:
Rest Day = a day for my muscles to recover from all the abuse I put them through at the gym.


So far this challenge has been helpful in other areas that I'm weak in; like consuming enough protein.  I'm pretty sure that's why I've had D.O.M.S. so often, because those are the days I forgot my protean shakes and wasn't able to eat anything until 4-5 hours after my workout.    Consuming enough protein is a huge struggle for me, mainly because it's harder to have amount of protein you can get in a small amount of meat.  I  know that if I was more educated in Vegan-Vegetarian Protein this wouldn't be an issue., but I'm not there yet.  So this week, I've made sure to incorporate a lot of meat; Chicken Breast and tTlapia  Do you have any suggestions for ways to consume more protein without throwing off my carbs and not having to eat so much meat?


My goal is to be between 1550-1650 calories on days that I'm working out with a 40/40/20 ration (152g of Carbs and Protein + 32g of fat).  I also have come to realize that I need to lower that number on my rest days since I wont be as active.  Though I find it frustrating, because it seems like the only way to achieve this balance is with meat and veggies and it doesn't leave much room for incorporating recipe meal, which tend to jump my carbs far more than my protein killing the balance.


I was looking forward to 4:30pm when I would meet my hairdresser.  ahhh, now I feel better and my hair is manageable again.  I've been blessed with super thick hair, but it makes it hard to keep styled so I purposely  have it thinned out and styled very similar to the picture below.   However, I really have been liking how my hair looks with the help of the flatiron that I'm curious to see what it would look like longer, so today I just opted to just go with a basic trim and a major thin out. 

I really did accomplish a lot today, even a trip to ashcomb farms so I can get an idea of the financial impact to start a garden.  Now that I have a yard I really want to take advantage of being able to grow some of my favorite fruits and veggies.  I want to keep it simple,  so I'll be planting cauliflower, cherry tomatoes, blueberries and strawberries.  Though I may be tempted to add heirloom peppers if they're available.  At only 1.99 a plant it's not going to be a huge impact on my budget.

cauliflower plants at Ashcomb.  I really wanted to pick up a few.

I even made it home before dark and managed to get some cooking done.
* Cooked pasta and brown rice
* Marinated and baked my tempeh
* Grilled Chicken breast and tilapia seasoned with Caribbean Citrus& from
  Mrs. Dash on my George foreman

Goals this week:
* Adjust meal plan-calorie intake on rest days.
* Actually REST on my rest day
* Buy 4 more sets of the divided Tupperware (pictured above) for my meals as
  they are super handy.

The beginning of a new challenge

It's day 2 of my 12-week transformation and I'm feeling pretty good and keeping focused. I did sway from my meal plan for Dinner last night as my roommate made dinner and it was just so yummy. Plus, it meant I didn't have to cook, but I really do need to prepare my Tempeh, but I think I will do that Wednesday night.

I've been logging my food at FitClick and finalizing my workout log.  Today I put together most of it, but I still need to add in my measurements: before + the picture and then transfer my Monday and Tuesday Workout to the notebook.  I simply used a comp book and then hand wrote some key notes from the plan for review and then printed out my daily logs and glued each day to a page in the comp book.  I tried gluing it, but the glue soaked through so tapping it was the cleaner method. 

Here are some sneak pics to show what I did and really how simple I kept it, which is a challenge for me to do.

Tomorrow is my rest day,so that's either planning a meal, cooking or doing yoga/stretching before the day ends.  I do have some light cooking I need to do with my Tempeh and I need to grill more chicken and Tilipia for the rest of the week, but other than that it will be an easy day.  I am thinking about talking an easy walk either on the Treadmill or if it's not raining during lunch and maybe spending some time in the sauna.

so close I can taste it

I love my life, but I never would have imagined that when I turned 30 I would be working half a month to pay on student loans and credit cards (and that's only the minimum payment).....YIKES!.  Though I'm proud to say that this last year has been a driving force in my finances.  I've been taking charge and clearing out the negatives on my card balances and it feels so fantastic because I'm so close I can taste.  It will be wonderfully to finally be card free, so I can really focus on clearing out my student loans.  This however, wont be so easy to knock out, but at least I'll be able to start.  

The last few weeks I've lost track at really how close I am and haven't really made any goals on knocking out my debt, until tonight.  The funny thing is that I really need to give thanks to the pompous ass I was ranting about the other week in my post from my gym.  Though I do have to give him ups as his social skills are improving.  I happened to run into him Wednesday night after my workout since I decided to sleep in Wednesday morning to give my legs a little more recovery time.  He came over and informed me of a new promo that ended Friday.  He mentioned $27 a session and I was ready to pounce then, but after further discussion it turned out to be a package deal of 3 visits a month at $96.  It's a slight savings since a normal 1 hour session is $40, but once you add in the $96 contract fee it brings it back up.   I did tell him I would check my finances and get back to him tomorrow.  

 Once I got home and unpacked all my gear and prepped for breakfast I reviewed my finances.  I knew that there wasn't going to be any give as my day job only covers my basis bills.  However, after doing a little math and seeing what extra funds I would have if-when my evening job has hours again I was a little giddy.  After playing with the numbers I concluded that if I can work a minimum of 3 shifts a week I would be able to pay off my debt by December while still being able to take advantage of the personal trainer promo, and have a little extra.  

As much as I was excited about this, I knew that I didn't want to sign any contract before I actually had a steady income of extra hours so I decided to pass on the training for now.  It really doesn't matter how much I would like to take advantage of the training services at my gym I really can't until I have paid off my card debt.  Once that's done I can focus on my creating an amazingly toned body.  I just need to stay focused in clearing out my debt and not take on any new financial additions that would distract me from clearing it out sooner.  Plus, I can't think of a better treat after clearing out your financial debt then treating yourself to a personal trainer to begin your body transformation. 

Since it will take a few months before I can really enjoy treating myself to personal training I"m going to stick with the 12-week program that I'll be starting next week.  It's a great program and once I gather my goals and create deadlines for my progress, which will help me to stay focused I know I'll be rewarded by changes in my body definition.  I also really really need to take progress photos.  I'm so bad at this and I know if I just take them, I will be more positive and less likely to have the feeling of why bother, because I'm just going to fail.  The goal is to take them this weekend and then update each month for the next 3 months.

Project: Food Budget - Week three

Goal: $50

Actual: $62.02 (Giant) 
Bonus Card Savings: $13.68
           

This was another challenging meal prep with trying to balance everything out (45P/45C/10HF).  I need to find an easier way to do this and save money so I can begin to buy supplements.  Then things escalated when I got to the grocer and realized I wasn't going to have enough time to cook any of my meals, so I had to think of some alternatives.  Luckily, I still have a ton of leftovers from last week that I was able to use.

Original Plan: * Breakfast:      Overnight Oat Berries+Cereal     * Post-Workout     Protein Cookie * 10am Post-Workout Meal     Black Bean Oat Burger * 1pm Snack     Yogurt Bowl * 4pm Snack     banana + pb * 7pm Dinner    Teriyaki Tempeh + Brown Rice

Adjusted Plan * Breakfast:      Overnight Oat Berries + Cereal * Post-Workout     Protein Shake * 10am Post-Workout Meal      Cottage Cheese      Cherry tomatoes (leftovers) * 1pm Snack     Yogurt Bowl * 4pm Snack     Power Toast (leftovers) * 7pm Dinner      Tuna + Cucumber + ww WASA      + Red Wine Vinegar + Carrots

Staples Purchased:
#1 Sugar in the Raw $2.89
#1 Giant Vinegar $0.85
#2 Strawberries (32oz for 3.89) Going to freeze one package
#1 Burt's Bees Lip Gloss $2.69
#1 Sports Creme $6.49
#1 Antibiotic Creme $3.66
#1 large Quaker Oats 1-min oats $3.69
#1 Bobs Red Mills Wheat Berries $2.99

Total Staples: $23.26 (not including the strawberries)

Project: Food Budget

Read about Project: Food Budget challenge.
Please check out these wonderful blogs, and give them support as they take on this challenge.

Participating blogs:

• Emily Levenson
• Veggie Converter
• Dairy-Free Cooking
• Motor City Girl In the Steel City
• Veggie Burgher
• The Happy Cactus
• Test Kitchen Tuesday
• Newly Vegan
• Veggie on the Cheap
• MeloMeals: Vegan For $3.33 A Day
• A Guy, A Girl, And a Dinner Plate
• The Veggie Life
• Caroline Cain Holistic Health
• Going Veggie
• Be the Change

fit smartie

I relished in the thought of pulling the covers over my head and sleeping for another day in hopes that when I woke up the pain would be gone. It's unbearable and every time I walk the sharp pain reminds me that I need to slow down.  I'm not sure what the underlining factor is to my self injuring behavior, but I really  hope I figure it out soon, because I'm not sure how much longer my legs can take it.  

It so hard to tell myself to slow down when I feel like I can fly during my runs; however my legs just can't take all that extra beating and they remind me with every step.   I really need to sit down and work though my goals and create a plan that will help get me to my desired fitness level without continually re-stressing my muscles to the point of overkill.  I need to train right and slow down.  I have all good intentions when I begin my workout, but once I get started I just can't stop and sometimes it's for a silly reason like impressing a cute fitness boy.....like from this current injury.  I had been checking him out Sunday in the weight room and 15 minutes into my 20 minute cardio he made his way up stairs and landed on the elliptical 15 behind me.  I was supposed to only have been doing a 20 minute walk to cool down after my leg routine (machines), but I decided I would run two minute  intervals instead.  Yes, I already knew this was a bad idea, and that I needed to stick to my original plan, but I found myself hitting the time button until I added another 15 minutes.
I could just be a glutton for pain, because I knew I was going to pay for it, but I wanted to come across as something more than I was...yes I got sucked into the desire to impress.  I'm not sure if he was looking my way, but it seemed a few times that he was going to come over and say hi, but half way over he would make a quick u-turn .  It was the kind of reaction of heading out the door and realizing that you forgot your keys and needed to turn around to get them.  I probably wouldn't have thought much about it, but he did this 3 times just while I was on the seated calf machine.  He even, when I was done with my cardio upstairs, took a water break right after I was next to the water fountain prepping my towel to clean my machine.  This could all very much just be in my head, either way it doesn't change the fact that he was a cute fitness guy and I'm a cute fitness girl.  hmmmmmm.

 

I need to find a balance.  I need to be a fit smartie, who works herself just enough to keep the blood flowing, and the body happy during and after a run.  Any tips on what to do?  

I've been spending a lot of time between fitclick and bodybuilding.com reading and checking out some new exercises to incorporate into my routine and I came across their 12 week body transformation plan for women-fat lose by  Jamie Eason so starting next week I'll be posting printable workout cards for this routine and logging in my training on my bodyspace page.  I think this will be a good start and help increase my exercises library and really start to see some definition, especially if I can stick with tthe meal plan that long.   It seems pretty easy, but kind of bland, but I need to make some sacrifices if I want to see change in my physique.  I also want to start adding more supplements to my diet, like L-Caritine and Omega 3 Fatty acids,  since I currently only take Iron and a Vegetarian Multivitamin.

12 week body transformation plan for women-fat lose

Yummy Possiblities

WEEK UPDATE: MAY 2, 2011
A NICE WALK OUTSIDE

The weather finally held out for a little while, at least enough to hit the blue trail at Adam Ricci Park in Enola.  It's a mile and a half trail that took about 30 minutes on a slow conversational pace.  It was my first time at this park so to be expectant I was lost once I got inside trying to find my friend.  The park has a grand playground that made me want to romp and play, but time was short since I had to head home afterward and prep my meals.

YUMMY TUMMY MEALS

PRE-WORKOUT BREAKFAST

- Eggs and Oats Pancake

POST WORKOUT

- Vanilla Protein Shake (scoop powder + 12 oz water)

SNACK

- Quinoa and Mango
- Sweet Potato, half

LUNCH

- Power toast topped with Chic Energy Bites - cheerful cheery
- Carrots

 SNACK
- Cottage Cheese
- Cherry Tomatoes

DINNER

- Strawberry Romaine Salad topped with Asian Sesame Crusted Chicken Nuggets



AHHH...JUST WHAT I NEEDED

Even though things in my life have slowed down a bit there have still been a few bumps int eh road that have caused some tension and luckily a friend of mine is a massage therapist who offered his services.  You forget sometimes to just ask your friends who work in the same field you need.  I headed over Tuesday night around 7pm where we hung out in talk mode for awhile before starting.  Time just stood still while soothing music played in the background.  It was just what I needed and nothing like the School of Massage type massage, which is the only place I've gone for a massage--usually because my best friend wanted to go.   Once I was ready to get up I headed to the kitchen where we continued our conversation and added a few more before leaving around 10pm.  I can't believe I was there that long, but it's not to often that I get to see him, so it was nice to no have to rush and just enjoy our time to catch up. 

THE RAIN SUCCEEDS AGAIN...5K RESCHEDULED
My work sponsored 5k was rescheduled for the 25th due to a mud slide and several flooded areas where our students would be running.  The haha part is that we made it out to City Island and all the kids were bussed in and then they decided to cancel it.  The good thing, despite getting the bottom of my pants and shoes soaked was being able to catch up with some of the guys that I don't see except for at student events. Though I was slightly glad it was canceled since my leg (hip flexor) was hurting pretty bad and I really didn't want to run on it.  The bad thing about not running today was not having any competition, which meant even on my bum leg I could have won first place overall girls.  Rats.  Hopefully

I was totally psyched to see this movie after watching the previews 5 times on Friday and found myself and a few other friends, including my fav guy, catching the 10pm showing.  It was super cute and even a great watch with the guys, who I heard laugh quite often.  Typically, my fav guy and I are more rambunctious, but tonight not so much.  I have my thoughts on why we were so well behaved, but for now I'll leave it alone and say it was a great night and a softly sweet ending. 

SPRING CLEANING

I spent my Saturday afternoon helping my grandparents take down the porch enclosure and prep it for the summer.  It didn't take too long with the 3 of us and were were able to put up the false picket fence up in it's place.  Later on that evening I spent some time rearranging my room, which was much needed.  Now I just need to take a few Rubbermaid tubs to the shed and file some I don't know what to do with this paperwork and my room will look suppurb.

HAPPY MOTHERS DAY

I made sure to give my grandmother her card and call my mom before heading to church to wish her a very happy mothers day.  After service I made it to the gym to work on my legs and walk, but I ended up running a little.  Also, hope the guy I saw today, who was behind me while I was running is there again next Sunday.

Project: Food Budget - Week two

Goal: $50

Actual: $74.49 
            $48.33 (wegmans)
            $26.16 (weis)

I spent several hours last Sunday planning my meals using the Sunday Circulars for this week and finally made it to the grocer Monday night after 9pm.  I found everything I needed between Weis and Wegmans, but remembered while shopping at Wegmans that I needed protein powder and ???, which caused me to go over budget.   I was hoping to spend a little less since I used a good amount of ingredients from my pantry, but I guess I can be thankful that I didn't spend any more.  I still didn't get to making any no-knead whole wheat bread this week, but hopefully I will get a chance to attempt that on Saturday while taking care of my laundry.

Mango is typically 2 for $5 so when I saw Weis had them 10 for $10 I grabbed 5 in hopes of freezing 3 of them for later.  I'm not sure how well they freeze, but for $1 each I'm going to find out.

I needed mayo for my Cesar Dressing, but I didn't want to use my Safflower mayo at a whopping 100 calories per tablespoon so I picked up Hellmans Light Mayo, which had only 35 calories per tablespoon and ingredients I understood.  Kiwi was also 2 packs of 6 for $5 so I picked up a pack. 

While at Wegmans I ended up helping a young engaged couple who were looking for hosin sauce.  It turned out to be in the organic isle and when I brought it over to them we ended up talking for over an hour.  They are very sweet and good talkers.  We went jumped from several topics, even politics and religion and if it wasn't so late I probably would have stayed and talked to them longer.  It always nice to be able to make new friends when out and about

Key code:
(*)  from my pantry
(B)  bought
(**) sale items

Menu:

PRE-WORKOUT BREAKFAST

- Eggs and Oats Pancake
     * eggs + all white's egg whites
     * cinnamon
     * chia seeds
     * oats
     * soy milk
     B strawberries **
     B greek plain yogurt **

POST WORKOUT

- Vanilla Protein Shake (scoop powder + 12 oz water)
     * vanilla protein powder

SNACK

- Quinoa and Mango
     * quinoa
     * coconut flakes
     * cashews
     * agave nectar
     B mango **
- Sweet Potato, half
     * sweet potatoes

LUNCH

- Power toast topped with Chic Energy Bites - cheerful cheery
     * 15.gran bread
     * weis pb
     * sunflower seeds
     * chia seeds
     * dried cherries/craisins
     * cashews
     * almonds
     B medjool dates
- Carrots
     B carrots
 SNACK
- Cottage Cheese
     B cottage cheese
- Cherry Tomatoes
     B cherry tomatoes **

DINNER

- Strawberry Romaine Salad topped with Asian Sesame Crusted Chicken Nuggets
     * sugar in the raw
     * vinegar
     * red onion
     * poppy seeds
     B light mayo
     B romaine lettuce
     B strawberries **
     B plain greek yogurt **

     * soy sauce
     * garlic
     * ginger
     * sesame seeds
     B Chicken Breast **

Staples Purchased:
#1 Vanilla Protein Powder
#1 10lb pack of Wegmans Boneless Skin Less Chicken Breast ($1.99 per lb)
#5 Mango (10 or $10) Going to free 3 of them.
#3 Chobani Greek Plain Yogurt (4 for $5)
#3 Yoglait Greek Plain Yogurt

Project: Food Budget

Read about Project: Food Budget challenge.
Please check out these wonderful blogs, and give them support as they take on this challenge.

Participating blogs:

• Emily Levenson
• Veggie Converter
• Dairy-Free Cooking
• Motor City Girl In the Steel City
• Veggie Burgher
• The Happy Cactus
• Test Kitchen Tuesday
• Newly Vegan
• Veggie on the Cheap
• MeloMeals: Vegan For $3.33 A Day
• A Guy, A Girl, And a Dinner Plate
• The Veggie Life
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WEEK UPDATE: APRIL 25, 2011
CHIROPRACTOR

On a scale of 1 to 10, my pain level was a 0.  This was two weeks in a row now so I only have to wait one more week before I can hit the ground running.  I enjoy his mix of humor and seriousness, which adds a fun dynamic when we discuss my current workout limitations.  Though I do have his approval to begin running in the next week when I start my new routine, but I have to start slow.  However, being that I don't know what that word means I had to ask as for me that means only doing 3 or 4 miles versus 6.  He gave me a smirk and added his dynamics.  I'm actually pretty proud of myself for being as good as I have have been with listening.

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The joyous feeling of knowing that I can begin running soon can be described as the same feeling of seeing butterflies on a sunny day.

 

  RAIN, RAIN, GO AWAY.

The last few weeks have been pretty wet outside and hasn't left a desire to begin walking outside, but we've been trying to push ourselves despite the odd.  However, today our plans were thorted again and we rescheduled our walk at Adam Ricci Park for May 2.  

My workout plans weren't all washed up, since I was able to swap my outdoor walk for the treadmill, which is good since I gorged so much at our Administration Appreciation Lunch at Sammie's downtown Harrisburg.   I can't believe I ate so much food and even finished with a chocolate cake with chocolate icing.  It was really good, but I really shouldn't have eaten it. 

I kept at an easy pace on the treadmill and changed it up with some intervals at 2.8 and 4.8 for an hour.  It all worked out well, since I ran into some friends at the gym who were finishing up their workout as well.  We ended up hitting juice n' java afterward to chat till they closed.   

HOT AND HUMID NIGHTS

The last few nights have been proving that summer is arriving, or at least that rainy nights leave my room feeling muggy and stale. It is however, it was still more bearable then being on the 3rd floor in my my apartment in Historic Carlisle on a warm summer night.  That's like living in a brick oven.

CELEBRATING NO MORE JURY DUTY

For the last 18 months my friend Daryl was driving to Philadelphia once a week to be on jury duty for several trails and he's officially done so a group of us headed to Arooga's Sports Bar and Grille for wings and then dollar bowling at the Coliseum.   I wasn't to thrilled with Arooga's, but I ordered the Turkey Burger--not their specialty or even close.  Next time I'll order wings.  We all trailed to the Coliseum afterward.  I had to try on several shoes to finally find a decent pair, which is a good enough reason to just buy a pair.  I really hate bowling shoes.  They are hard and thin and just plain ugly.  I had a great time and hung with some friends who were giving me and another person a hard time.  I love my friends, but sometimes you just need to let things blossom by themselves even if you feel that the two people involved are totally oblivious.  Though it did cause some some unknowns and cautiousness for a while once the culprits left we were back to our silly ways.

Heard this song this week and wow....

CALMLY CHAOTIC WEEKEND

I had many good intentions for getting more accomplished this weekend, but left a lot to be done.  I finally arose from my slumber around noon on Saturday and headed straight for  some coffee.  Once I felt like I was able to function I started a load of laundry, then two and finished with a third all while cleaning my room, finding a recipe for whole wheat bread and working in a quick 20 minute cardio.  Then headed to evening service and sushi at Fuji Do. The sushi night had been in the works for about a month, but nothing was official until earlier in the week.  The service was pretty bad and I wasn't happy that the server  left the empty chopstick papers and dirty plates, but took my sliver of paper that contained a list of my sushi order and ingredients.  The menu had a varied selection, but overall my favorite was the Shrimp Tempura and wished I would have ordered it instead of one of the basics I did order.

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I was up around 9:30am on Sunday, but it still didn't help in accomplishing anything more than yesterday.  After my morning coffee I spent about 4 hours reviewing the Sunday Circular and planning my  meals around the current contents of my pantry, sales items from the circular while staying under 1400 calories with a balance of protein, carbs and fat.  I was pretty close to my numbers so I put together my grocery list and headed to my dad's for an oil change.  When I arrived they were about to eat dinner, so my dad had me grab a plate for some basic garlic bread and spaghetti.   My dad was pretty frustrated with my Mazda and kept yelling at the engine.  Apparently the design of my engine wasn't thought out, especially since the filter, which is changed every 3000 miles wasn't in a more convient location.  This led to my filter staying and only adding new oil to my bone dry engine, which just had 2 quarts added on the 15th. I did manage to fit in some time at the gym before making my grocery run and finally making it home sometime around 11pm.