"Where the willingness is great, the difficulties cannot be great. "

BREAKFAST

My new favorite breakfast bowl combination that is making regular appearances...

2/3 cup Kashi Vive cereal

1/3 cup yogurt

1 small red delicious apple

2 tbsp. Skippy's Natural crunchy PB

I attempted to find Kashi Vive at Walmart today and it was not a successful trip. Instead, I ended up buying Kashi GoLean which seems to be similar. When I find Vive again I will be stocking up, no question it has become one of my favorites.

LUNCH

Soup:

Left over tomato soup with added broccoli, tomato, onion, and red pepper flakes

Sammie:

Arnold thins, toasted

Lettuce, tomato, onion

Laughing cow cheese

I was a bit too full after this meal, probably because I ate it too close to breakfast, but yet again I wanted to get something in my stomach before going into work. Working a schedule that begins at 5PM is terrible for my diet.

DINNER

"Hujass" salad:

Bed of romaine lettuce, celery, tomato, and onion 

1/2 pear

Morning Star chick'n patty

Walnuts

Raspberry vinaigrette 

I forgot I had feta cheese to top this with until I finished it and was super bummed!

After dinner I decided to make rice krispie treats for some friends tomorrow considering I have the things lying around, but haven't made them yet in fear that I would eat them all myself. Okay...I may have eaten some of what I made off of my spoon, but I didn't indulge in a treat just yet.

Who doesn't love this old classic? Marshmallows, butter, and cereal...how can you go wrong? I do want to try this with a cereal other than rice krispies though, but can't be sure that people will care much for them. 

SNACK/DESSERT

Making those rice krispy treats had me craving this more than the treats themselves. Rice krispies in 2% milk topped with 2 tbsp. sugar! Hehehe. It felt so good to eat this combination, almost as if I were a kid again sneaking table spoons of sugar onto my cereal when no one was looking.

I am officially finished with the driver's manual book, now it's review time! Originally I gave myself a two week span, but I am so ready to get this done and over with. For once I actually feel excited to drive. True I am still nervous, but the feeling is passing once I think of all the positives! Watch out everyone you may see me on the road soon enough. ;)

Netflix added Man V. Food to instant watch so I know what I'll be doing tonight!

"One of the things I learned the hard way was that it doesn’t pay to get discouraged. Keeping busy and making optimism a way of life can restore your faith in yourself."

Last night I spent time with my friend Michelle instead and we played Wii for hours. Usually I don't care for Wii, but I enjoyed the game Just Dance. So silly, yet fun. I have yet to try out the fit fit though. By the way...I did have my twisted frosty with extra m&m's and I do not regret it one bit! My problem is indulging and feeling terribly guilty, but as time goes on I am learning to cope with that feeling and realize indulging on rarity will not hurt me.

I opted to wake up earlier than usual today and I did. Yay. I like having more free time to myself before going into work and I usually find myself rushing around. Well, not this time. 

BREAKFAST

 

Chocolate walnut oatmeal pancake!

Pancake:

1/3 cup Quaker oats

About 1/3 cup egg whites (The kind from the carton)

1 tbsp. unsweetened Hershey's cocoa

1 tsp. vanilla extract

1 tsp. cinnamon

1/4 tsp. baking soda

1 1/2 tbsp. yogurt (In batter) 

1/8 cup walnuts, chopped

Topped with warm apples and yogurt 

This recipe is still slightly new to me and this pancake way by far the best one I have made. Originally I planned to make it with a banana, but as usual they were all gone.

LUNCH

I attempted to make hummus today, but ti turns out it doesn't work well at all in a blender. Oh well, I smashed the rest of the chick peas with garlic, onion, chili powder, ground pepper, and salt. The mixture went into the refrigerator for about an hour before I decided to eat them over a bed of romaine, tomato, and broccoli.

 

DINNER

This feta cheese always taunts me when I walk in the store so I figured I would try it. Feta cheese may be my new favorite cheese. I found myself wanted to eat the entire container. Haha. I decided to have a sandwich and soup tonight and of course I used the feta!

Sammie:

Arnold Thin

Turkey lunchmeat

Lettuce, tomato, onion

Feta cheese!

I made sure to toast my sandwich and melt the feta on my turkey. Oh my god! Delicious.

A cup of Campbells' low sodium tomato soup with extra tomato and broccoli. I added in hot sauce for a nice kick. This meal was just what I was looking for.

For dessert I had an oatmeal raisin cookie, but I'm thinking I would have been more satisfied with a piece of chocolate. Tomorrow's breakfast will be a bowl of Kashi, apple, and PB no doubt...I have an enormous craving! I also bought banana's today and can't wait for them to rippen so I can try them in an oatmeal pancake.

Work out update:

I haven't been keeping up with 5 days a week, it's been rough. Lately it seems as if I have a lot going on emotionally and physically so I am not making my work out a number one priority at the time. It's a possibility that I have tendinitis so it's making a lot of movements difficult at the time. It hurts to even brush my teeth! =[ I do feel that I have been maintaining my measurements, if not losing. There will be another update soon.

On a good note; the snow seems to be melting! It's in the 40's! Yes, this is something to celebrate in my eyes. Okay I know it won't last, but I can dream. Off to study for my permit some more...I'm almost done.

"Let him who would enjoy a good future waste none of his present."

1/2 cup vanilla yogurt

1/4 cup Bear Naked apple cinnamon granola 
1 medium apple

I added a dollop of peanut butter today and oh my I want PB in my messes ever day! I wish I added more, but I wasn't sure if I would like it or not...who was I kidding?

AFTER WORK OUT SNACK 

Half of an orange from yesterday. Need that vitamin C!

I managed not to skip a work out today. After reading The Chic Life's post about squashing work out excuses I told myself "I can do this! Do the best you can! It will pay off!" My work out plan is a bit too challenging for me, but I stick with as much of it as I can do. My abs are sore, but it will pay off and I will only get stronger.

I did say that I would take my measurements and weight today for my challenge, so here it is:

Smallest part of waist: 27 inches

Waist at belly button: 33.5 inches

Hips: 35.5 inches

Weight this morning: 119.8

I'm not concerned with my weight anymore I am mainly concerned with my waist to hip ratio. When I lose around 2 inches off of my waist I will look much healthier and toned. Also, I have come to realize that I do have a pear shape. Pear is a good shape and I must learn to embrace the curves that comes along with it. 

LUNCH 

Okay, this was more of dinner because I ate it when my parents had dinner. I wake up late what can I say? I am a little embarassed by this one, but I have become an extreme fan of bowl messes. They had sloppy joes, maccaroni and cheese, and peas. My equivalent is 1/4 cup sloppy joe, 1/2 cup Kraft mac n cheese, and about a 1/2 cup of peas. Does this sound gross? I don't care. =]

DINNER

I took a light approach for dinner and had to feed my peanut butter and banana craving I've been having all day.

Arnold thin

1 tbsp. Skippy's Natural creamy PB

1/2 banana

Cinnamon

Side of...

6 Seneca Gingerbread Apple Chips

Only $1 at Big Lots! Normally we buy the cinnamon, but these taste almost the same to me. Only 140 calories for 12 chips and they aren't doused in grease. Seneca has a wide variety of apple chips and also carry sweet potato chips, which I have yet to come across. Pick them up if you happen to spot them.

I wanted to talk to you about NuVal if you haven't heard of it yet. NuVal is nutritional value listed along with the price of items. They take calories, fat, carbs, etc. into consideration when giving a rating from 1-100. The higher the number, the better for you. Simple, right? Unfortunately only a select few stores have this for their customers. If you would like you may suggest stores near you where you would like to see NuVal. Many people are not educated in nutrition, even those of us who think we are may be surprised by their scores. Having NuVal can take out a lot of guess work plus lead the busy and slightly lazy into a healthier life style. Although they do not have wide selection of grocery items listed with their scores on the website they do have some and update frequently. Do you think this is a good idea or should people rely more on their own nutritional education?

 

"If there is no struggle, there is no progress. "

BREAKFAST

Oatmeal pancakes! Recipe courtesy of Kath Eats Real Food.

How I made my lovely pancake:

1/4 cup Quaker oats

2 egg white

1/4 tsp. baking soda

Vanilla extract

Cinnamon

I topped it with a medium warm apple, 1/4 cup vanilla yogurt, and walnuts. Delicious! Thanks again Kath for providing a new way to eat my oats.

I also had a cup of this Celestial tea. If you haven't tried this flavor yet I suggest doing so. If nothing else, boil this in a pot instead of lighting a candle. Hah.

LUNCH 

Okay, lunch wasn't anything special at all. I just put together the quickest thing I could think of.

Salad:

Romaine lettuce

1/2 cup re-fried beans (Left over)

Tomato, onion, and jalapeno "salsa"

Sprinkled with sharp cheddar cheese 

Dash of chili powder for spice

I also had half of an unphotographed orange a bit later.

DINNER

This was left over from my parents dinner, minus the fries.I haven't had a real hamburger in months! Oh, it was delicious. (This is also on a small plate, it makes everything look huge. I didn't have room for my fries either.)

Hamburger:

Lean ground sirloin burger

Arnold Thin

Lettuce, onion, tomato, pickles

Mustard

Side of white corn

Fries:

1/2 medium sweet potato

Season salt

Vegetable spray

I microwaved the potato for about 1:30 to make it tender ans sliced into strips.

Heated the oven to 450, although I think 400 may do the trick.

Sprayed my baking sheet with vegetable spray.

Arranged fries on baking sheet and sprinkled with season salt and spray a coat of vegetable spray.

Cooked for around 10 minutes.

I've never had baked sweet potato fries and of course will be eating them more often. Yes I do like my fries more on the burnt side, just like my eggs. 

I am still feeling my work out from yesterday and am worried that if I continue tonight I may strain my muscles too much. Being a beginner with exercise I can't be sure if the soreness is alright to work through or if I may injure my muscles. Research will be at hand. I also need to take my measurements tomorrow morning before I forget so that I can track my progress.  

Did I mention that I got my email from Food Buzz last night about becoming a publisher?! Tomorrow I will be filling out my contract and sending it in. Blogging has been a key element in my life the past couple of months and I am determined and excited about giving inspiration to others as well as keeping my self motivated on this journey.If you haven't checked out Food Buzz click my link under my about me. The website has tons of yummy recipes and great foodies.

Alright, see you tomorrow guys! I'm off to find more great recipes to try.

"Great ability develops and reveals itself increasingly with every new assignment."

BREAKFAST

Medium banana

Kashi pumpkin pie bar

This was my first time trying the Kashi bars and I did like it, but most of the reviews I read said this one did tastse like pumpkin pie and to me it wasn't close. I am very picky with my food textures and this was a good medium between crunchy and chewy. Like I said, I do like it, but next time I will be trying a different flavor. 

LUNCH

My Mom made a ton of sauerkraut with kielbasa, smoked sausage, pork, and hot dogs so of course I had to have something. I chose to have smoked sausage of half an Arnold Thin with sauerkraut to top it off. I made veggies my main concern in my simple salad with 1 tbsp. balsamic dressing. My lunches and/or dinners will most likely contain sauerkraut ingredients for the next few days. 

DINNER 

I was basically starving by the time I ate dinner, but yet again I kept it easy. After not getting much sleep and getting up in the morning for work I can't say that I feel like doing much of anything. Tomorrow I will be sleeping waaaaay in. =D Anyway...

1/2 cup oats

1 medium banana

1 small apple

Dollop of yogurt 

Cocoa and cinnamon

Can I eat this everyday for every meal? Haha. 

My bed will be seeing me earlier than usual tonight. *Yawn*