Class from 830-530

I signed up for a Family Law Mediation course during Intersession, which means I go to class from 830-530 for four days!  Although the hours are long, I get really good food and I will be certified to mediate divorces after!

Food from the day:

I apologize for the photos but I had to use my phone, as bringing a camera to a CLE full of attorneys is not really appropriate.

My snack was this Pria bar I got at the store last night.  I have never had this bar before but it was on closeout.  I didn't enjoy the bar-it had a weirdly strong mint aftertaste- and probably would not pay the 20 cents again.

Lunch was Amazing!  TreeBeards catered today and brought with them their famous (or just well known to the local downtown crowd) Chicken/Sausage Gumbo.  Yum Yum!  

I used willpower and ate in moderation!

I filled up half my plate with the amazing salad which was full of color:  radishes, yellow peppers, cherry tomatoes, spring mix, mushrooms, carrots.  I accidentally drown my salad in dressing because of the ladle, but it was still delicious!

I ended up only eating a bite of the french bread but saved room for dessert:

I am SO MAD this picture is blurry, but this little concoction was delicious!  It wasn't a brownie or a blondie.  It was very sweet and chewy and tasted like honey.  Anyone have any ideas?

Anyway lunch was good.

This morning I slept until 6 and by the time I checked on the gym it was packed!  (Later tonight will be rant on New Year Resolutionist who through a wrench in my regular routine!).  I hit my stationary bike and watched the news for 20 minutes. 

I have a 3 mile run and strength on the training schedule, but might make today a rest day instead.  I really shouldn't though!

We Went Grocery Shopping!!!!

Since we took a 2 week vacation to Indiana then NYE, we hadn't been to the grocery store in a little over a month!!  You could see wall behind every shelf of the pantry and were left with bread, 1/2 box pasta, and pasta sauce.  BUT NOW:  FULL Pantry!  Notice the shelf dedicated almost entirely to my hubby's ChefBoyrDee (better than fast food for lunch I suppose)

More grocery goods:

YUM:  an entire bowl of squash.  I am so ready for my spaghetti squash bake.

Apples and Bananas, i.e. my survival.

With all my new goods I finally had options for dinner.  But, I have been craving yogurt and banana for days!

So...

I diced up one medium banana and 1/4 large apple

Then topped with Dannon Light n Fit (it was on sale), 1 tsp almond butter, Kashi, cinnamon, and honey.  This was unbelievable and really hit the spot.

Also two pieces of toast trying to use up my old jelly.  I really didn't need this bread and probably shouldn't have eaten it, but oh well.  The dog did get about 3/4 of a slice.

Dessert:  (Yes I ate two desserts today) was a cup of Hot Chocolate.

Race Prep:

As I mentioned I really wanted to improve my diet in preparation for my race.  Ideally I would like to drop about 5 pounds (1 pound a week) because that is the race weight I feel best at, but....snacking and a sweet tooth may prevent that.  I still feel that my training is going well, but I am not getting faster so it may be time to buckle down and count the calories (ugh!).

2 in 1 Toners

Great Moves to Try by Women's Health

Taco Bell Diet?

For starters:  I had the last bowl of my tomato bisque with a cheese and pepper grilled sandwich.

I ate dessert with lunch:  1 pack 100 calorie Oreo Crisps

Taco Bell Drive-Thru Diet

If you have been watching TV lately you have probably seen the Taco Bell Drive-Thru Diet commercial with Christine as the new "Subway Jared".  Honestly, the first time I saw the commercial I thought it was a joke, sadly it was not.  Taco Bell as diet food?  Really?

I remember my love-affair with the T-Bell in college.  Every Friday night my roomie and I would have a T-Bell date and then after hitting the big 2-1 we would hit up T-Bell about 3am for a post-bar food run! Lucky for me I had a really fast metabolism and plenty of time for the gym, so those T-Bell pounds never packed on.  But, once I got engaged and entered wedding mode I gave up Taco Bell (and many other bad foods). 

I haven't given in to the T-Bell craving since college and don't know that this "Drive-Thru Diet" will make me change that.  Although I think it is a positive step to add healthy choices to fastfood menus because so many Americans rely on fastfood; I read with caution Christine's story. 

Being healthy is all about healthy choices and exercising.  As the find print at the bottom of the website points out, Christine made healthy choices and exercised for over two years! 

Overall?   I am glad T-Bell is offering healthier options.  I would like to see the 1,000+ calorie items nixed or fixed.  I still believe the only way to lose weight is simple:  Calories consumed - calories burned.  But if I am ever in a pinch, the Fresco Chicken Ranchero looks pretty good.

Check out the "Drive-Thru Diet" here.

abc News:  Subway Had Jared, Now Taco Bell's Got Christine

Your thoughts on the Taco Bell Diet?

Leftovers Creation

Lunch was an omelet (1 egg, 2 egg white) with salsa and cheese.  On the side Whole Grain bread with strawberry jam

What to do with that leftover veggie tray?

We had quite a full leftover veggie tray from our NYE party and needed to find a way to use it up before the veggies went bad.

Chopped up the leftovers, there was also a full carton of cherry tomatoes.

I cooked up whole grain shells while I roasted all the veggies with olive oil and pepper.

I cooked up two chicken breast.

Combined everything in pan.

Added a can of Cream of Mushroom.

Let it heat through, stirred in about 1/2 to 3/4 cup Parmesan Cheese.  (I really like Parmesan cheese).  Looks so good!

I ate half a chicken breast and picked out most of the tomatoes for myself (hehe)!

Dessert was this candy coated prune and 100 calorie pack of Oreo crisps.

 

Last Weekend of Freedom

I started my Monday morning with a Kashi waffle topped with nuked apples and a dollop(or four) of whip cream!

Sorry for the lack of posting this weekend but it was the last few days with my hubby before he started work today and I start class on Wednesday!  Ugh!

The last week has been lazy and full of mindless snacking!  Leaving me feeling less than stellar to start the new year.  Such is life!  I have almost one month and half until my half marathon so I have made the decision to change my diet in preparation.

I will cut out alcohol (it dehydrates me and is unnecessary), sugar (try to at least), and processed snacks (no nutritional value).

I am hoping this diet change will be the final kick in preparing for my big run!

Some eats from the weekend:

Tomato bisque with grilled cheese (1 Arnold sandwich thing and 1 wedge Laughing Cow)

Buffalo Wild Wings Blackened Chicken Salad:  the biggest salad ever!

Tuna Salad with apple chunks, tomato, and lettuce.

We also ordered in Chinese (cannot find the pictures!) and rented two movies:  The Ugly Truth and The Hangover.  Clearly we each picked a movie.  I though both movies were just okay.  I am hoping to rent Julie and Julia!

In Texas the Ball Drops at 11

Yes, the ball drops at 11pm in Texas.  It was yet another sad realization of living in Texas.  I could NOT believe it:  how do you watch the ball drop at 11?  So sad.

On a happier note, our NYE party was fairly successful!

My NYE dress-I had been waiting to wear it!

Now onto the food:

Bar setup

We had everything organized

The Spread

Up close

More food!

Table center piece

Needless to say:  Sandra (Semi-homemade) would be proud of me!

We actually toasted at like 11:30pm.  We watched the crazy man jump his car on ESPN, so we just DVRed the ball drop and watched it after!  (We may or may not have toasted to the Central and Pacific timezones!)