My mind has been all over the place today, so if this blog ends up that way, my apologies in advance!!
First off, I am postponing my recipe trial...I realized that I have a whole lot of food in my fridge that I need to finish before I go out buying more!
And that brings me to the title of the post. I don't know how many of you out there are cooking for one, but it ain't easy! I feel like I end up letting so much food go bad because I can't finish it before it's too late. Unless, of course, I want to eat the same thing every day for a week. For example, my hummus. I love the stuff, but unless I eat a serving of it every day for 8 days, there is no way I'm going to finish it before it needs to get tossed. And don't even get me started on my produce :(
So, rather than buying a bunch of new stuff and letting everything else go bad, I decided to make a hodge podge of a meal tonight! I cooked up the rest of my pasta and divided it in half. Then, I steamed up some peas and tossed them up with half the pasta and some pesto that was close to going bad. Yum!
After that, I sauteed up some garlic in olive oil and added TJs Six Bean mix. This mix is awesome! It has white kidney beans, cranberry beans (never heard of those before), red kidney beans, black beans, white navy beans & black-eyed beans. Once that was warmed up, I mixed it with the other half of pasta. I divided it out into containers and will freeze most of it. Now, I have meals for all week!
The 3 P's - Pasta, Pesto, Peas!
I was feeling under the weather again this morning so I just had my mocha for breakfast. A couple hours later I downed one of those yummy biscotti. For lunch, I ate one of the delicious pretzel rolls with a butter knife and jar of almond butter at my side...oh yeah!
Tell me that doesn't look amazing!!
Tell me that doesn't look amazing!!
After my workout I had some green sludge :) Okay, I threw in a banana and some blueberries too!
It still looks like green sludge though!
Now, on to my HUGE accomplishment! Yesterday, not only did I bike to the store in the morning...but then I agreed to go for a "ride" with my friend. This "ride" ended up being 20 miles! My bike is just a little cruiser.
We are talking ONE speed. This is NOT a bike meant for distance riding. There were moments where I thought I wasn't going to make it! My quads were on fire...and then by the end, I could barely feel them at all! Oh, how amazing I felt when I finished though!! It was awesome. Now, I want a bike meant for long rides so I can really see what I'm capable of!
So, today I was all pumped to move up my Sculpting workout to the 2nd Phase (since I already moved up with the cardio one), but I soon realized that my poor quads probably could not take it after yesterday's ride. I want to be able to walk tomorrow, ya know?
But after today? It's all Phase 2!
After my workout, I got to thinking about what makes me feel strong. No matter if the scale budges or if the inches are coming off, there is one thing that always makes me feel like progress is being made. And here it is...please, excuse the pit stubble, it's been a long day!
Now, I'm not talking about my bicep because, well, there isn't much of a bicep :) What I AM talking about is that crease between the shoulder and the bicep. My shoulders always build up really fast and that crease becomes apparent fairly quickly. It just makes me feel like I'm getting strong! I love it!!
On to another track: I really, really, REALLY want to get over my coffee problem. It is a waste of money and calories. It sounds so easy right now, but come morning I will be fighting tooth and nail to get to that coffee shop! So, I must come up with a plan. My goal is to be caffeine-free by August 15th!
On that note, even though I'm sure I forgot half of the things I wanted to write about today...good night!
Food For Thought:
It still looks like green sludge though!
Now, on to my HUGE accomplishment! Yesterday, not only did I bike to the store in the morning...but then I agreed to go for a "ride" with my friend. This "ride" ended up being 20 miles! My bike is just a little cruiser.
We are talking ONE speed. This is NOT a bike meant for distance riding. There were moments where I thought I wasn't going to make it! My quads were on fire...and then by the end, I could barely feel them at all! Oh, how amazing I felt when I finished though!! It was awesome. Now, I want a bike meant for long rides so I can really see what I'm capable of!
So, today I was all pumped to move up my Sculpting workout to the 2nd Phase (since I already moved up with the cardio one), but I soon realized that my poor quads probably could not take it after yesterday's ride. I want to be able to walk tomorrow, ya know?
But after today? It's all Phase 2!
After my workout, I got to thinking about what makes me feel strong. No matter if the scale budges or if the inches are coming off, there is one thing that always makes me feel like progress is being made. And here it is...please, excuse the pit stubble, it's been a long day!
Now, I'm not talking about my bicep because, well, there isn't much of a bicep :) What I AM talking about is that crease between the shoulder and the bicep. My shoulders always build up really fast and that crease becomes apparent fairly quickly. It just makes me feel like I'm getting strong! I love it!!
On to another track: I really, really, REALLY want to get over my coffee problem. It is a waste of money and calories. It sounds so easy right now, but come morning I will be fighting tooth and nail to get to that coffee shop! So, I must come up with a plan. My goal is to be caffeine-free by August 15th!
On that note, even though I'm sure I forgot half of the things I wanted to write about today...good night!
Food For Thought:
- What makes you feel strong? Where do you see your progress?
- How do you go about breaking a bad habit? What is yours?
I just gave up all caffine in the last 6 weeks...we won't even talk about how much dt pepsi I would go through in a week. It was REALLY hard for about the 1st week but then it just felt like a waste to drink it. Water is so much better. I decided to have one a few days ago, took a couple of drinks and didn't even want it!
ReplyDeleteFor me, i had to change my morning routine completely which wasn't too hard since I started working out in the morning which meant my water bottle was with me!
You can do it!
The way my arms look now are probably my favorite part of my body after 40 pounds down. I can now confidently rock cap-sleeved shirts and halter tops. :)
ReplyDeleteMy shoulders/arms look the best right now -- TurboFire's punches has totally helped. And, surprisingly, running has helped my upper body too: all that arm pumping I suppose!
ReplyDeleteCooking for one is such a pain! I love going to the farmer's market and buying insane quantities of fresh produce but back when I was at college I'd go crazy trying to make sure I'd use it all up. Now I'm at home feeding others, so it's easier!
ReplyDeleteYou are looking great, definition all over the place.
ReplyDeleteI really need to start cooking more. Now, I usually reserve that for Sunday. I may have to go to Trader Joe's and grab me some of that bean mix. I like pinto beans and the occasional Lima bean but other than that, I'm not really a "bean" girl. I think I need to learn to love them and incorporate them into my diet.
If you're looking for healthy recipes for one - try buying the original Biggest Loser cookbook. I make stuff out of there ALL THE TIME. There's a great rice, feta and spinach dish that serves two, blueberry pancakes that serve two, chicken meatballs that freeze awesome in individual packages and can be pulled out to make the really great recipe for meatballs subs (that serve one).
ReplyDeleteI love that cookbook. It literally saved me from giving up on eating healthy and/or eating frozen diet meals.
I see a bicep there! Your arm is built like mine. Strong chest and upper shoulder muscle. No matter how lean I get I never see a bicep vein :(
ReplyDeleteI feel strong when I'm bench pressing 125 lbs. I see my progress first in my abs.
I used to bite my nails and then I got fake ones. Now I don't bite them and my real ones are awesome. I pull out my eyebrows now...haven't found a cure for that yet.