Foggy Skies

What a dismal day outside! Funny enough, I'm in a pretty good mood though. Must be cuz it's the weekend and work is a distant memory for the moment. :)

Last night FH went to meet up with a friend for some beers, so I took the time to finish work, hit the gym, get cleaned up, then meet them later. Fridays at the gym are so nice. Nice and quiet even at 5:30. Personally I like working out on Fridays because then I don't feel quite so guilty about any weekend treats I decide to partake in...it's just a matter of finding the time really...and this week it worked out great.

I had a GREAT run on the treadmill. Had I not been meeting FH and under a bit of a time crunch I totally would have stayed to run longer. I did my usual 5 minute incline warm-up, then set to running for as long as I could....usually I do 5 minutes, Thursday I managed 6 minutes, last night I made it to TEN minutes. Go me! Rested for only a 1 minute walk, then finished out the remaining 4 minutes running...then did sprint intervals for the cooldown portion on the treadmill timer. (I do hate that it automatically goes into cooldown mode and shuts off at 25 minutes....so even if you have time and there is no one waiting for the equipment, you still have to break to reset and start up again.) Anyway, I did a total of 16 minutes of running. Baby steps, but getting better all the time. Followed up with a set of bum exercises and three sets of crunches.

When I met up with the boys they were three sheets to the wind...haha. So I opted for one drink (vodka/soda) and by then I was starving so ordered myself a hamburger and salad. Now normally I would order my burger with cheese, mayo and probably bacon...but I took this one as it came...just ketchup and veggies...and it was really good. I even ditched about 1/3 of the bun because it was too big and unnecessary. The salad was perfect and it came with just a toss of balsamic vinegrette. Nice. Later when we got home I opted for a cup of tea before bed, while normally I would be perusing the cupboards for a sweet treat. :)

This morning FH was feeling the need for the "morning-after" breakfast so I agreed to a meal at our favorite greasy spoon. I did overindulge, but having said that it was a late breaky and no lunch was required so it all sort of works out. I had a great mushroom & cheddar omelette, 1 slice of toast, about 1/2 my pan fries, and some bacon. Later when we stopped at Starbucks I remembered that I've already had a big treat for today so opted for just a regular coffee with my usual bit of raw sugar and skim milk. I really just feel soooooo on my game!!

Now I'm off to the gym, and since I've got extra time I'm hoping to go that extra distance on my treadmill run today! Plus some extra upper body strength and maybe a stint on the Stairclimber or Rowing machine.

Dinner will be perogies, but I'm only having 4 with a bit of salami and a huge side of veggies!

Product Review - Late July Sandwich Crackers

I have long since jumped off the bandwagon for the individually packaged 100 calorie snacks. Sure, I tried the Thinsations, the mini Smart Pop bags, the baked chips, and enjoyed a few varieties of them, but in the end I have lost interest in the fad and found better ways to spend my money (and calories!).

I'm not a big fan of all of those wrappers either, but there is something to be said for a pre-portioned snack. I still like to have a few options in the cupboard and the glovebox for hunger emergencies....and sometimes a girl has to take a little extra enviromental wrapper with her snack. Generally I go for some type of granola bar, but those get boring after a while.

Mainly I just found that most of those "100 cal" options contain a bunch of useless ingredients...and none of them offer any kind of sustainability. I usually wind up eating three bags of the processed junk and completely undoing the whole point of the low-cal option!

So, when I found these Late July Organic Snacks at Pete's Frootique I was intrigued. I chose the peanut butter sandwich crackers. They came individually packed as any of the other previously mentioned treats do, but they are organic so no yucky fillers or weird ingredients to pad the flavor. They do clock in at 160 cals, but I've learned to suck up a few extra calories in favor of cleaner eating. It just means I'll eat one less scoop of yogurt or something later!

The ones I tried were cute and bite-sized. The crackers were rich, creamy, and salty...and the peanut butter was thick and tasty. Nothing artificial tasting...no greasy aftertaste. And because there's actually a little protein in there it filled my hunger feeling for a reasonable amount of time. I would certainly buy these again to keep around for a treat or an emergency snack....I will also definitely track down their other products and give them a go.

To top it off, Late July is a family run company and just seems so down to earth. Their website is actually more of a family blog that happens to highlight their products. Fun to read. Love that.

Virtually Annoying

I'm having computer related work issues today...soooo annoying. Working virtually has many great pros, but when the software I need to do my job quits working and the technical help I need is on the West Coast and not out of bed yet it makes me cranky. I'm all for a bit of slack time in the work day, but not when I have lots to do and it's Friday. They'll expect me to be around later to deal with things and I am soooo not staying late due to issues beyond my control.

Grrrrr.

Anywho....the movie last night was quite good (The Wrestler)...the popcorn did end up making it's way onto the menu, but I blame FH. He never buys popcorn...ever. So I stuck to my plan of not buying any and figured I was all safe...but he came back from the snack bar with a bag of buttery goodness in hand. Damn. Better than eating a bag all to myself, but I still managed to cram my greasy hand in that bag quite a few times. Oh well, it's certainly not the end of the world. I still only had decaf coffee when we went for drinks first and drank a whole bottle of water along with the popcorn. Can't win every battle, right?

Thankfully I did get that trip to the gym as planned. I had a great run on the treadmill...managed to up each interval for 1 minute, so in the end I ran a total of 15 mins. Added in tricep pulldowns and bicep curls as part of my strength training as I have been totally neglecting my upper body lately...and finished up with my three sets of different crunches and my new favorite bum exercises thanks to Eurydice.

I'm hoping to get in another yoga session of some sort today and another trip to the gym for a similar workout. With all of these work issues though, I'm not sure on a good timeline...plus FH may either need the car or a ride to visit a friend who is in from out of town. I'll make something work, just not sure what quite yet. Once that is sorted out, it will either be a quiet night in or possibly dinner out with the friend. Either way, it will be nice to release the stress of the workweek!

Today's menu...

- much needed coffeeeeeee w/ demerara & skim
- last 2 banana oatmeal muffins w/ PB2 (review to come this week)
- clementine
- veggie quesadilla: small ww tortilla w/ spinach, tomatoes, carrots & cheese on the Griddler...with salsa & homemade guacamole
- side of 1% cottage cheese
- grapes
- dinner: hopefully dinner out...but if not, perogies w/ sauteed onions & sliced cacciatore salami & steamed veggies
- if at home: blackberries & non-fat Activia yogurt

Noon Yoga

FH rented us a couple of movies for last night so I didn't have time for yoga before bed like I had hoped. I mean, I could have squeeeezed something in but I doubt it would have been very relaxing knowing that I was keeping FH waiting so I didn't do it. I had a great chiropractor session and didn't want to ruin that with any bizarre stretches or poses anyway, so really it all worked out.

So instead I opted to do a session of Power Yoga #3 from yogadownload.com today before I made my lunch. Excellent option. I had already done my morning emails and work, it had been a couple of hours since breakfast, and FH had gone out to do some shopping. Glad I did it. I've mentioned before that I like this practice because it is somewhat of an introduction to Sun Salutations and isn't too strenuous or too simple. I do need to get on downloading a longer version though.

I will still hit the gym after work for my treadmill cardio and strength training. We are going to the movies with friends tonight but not until the late show so I have plenty of time for a workout, dinner and shower before meeting them. I like the idea of a later dinner anyway as it will keep me from being hungry at the movie theatre. I plan to pack along my trusty lululemon water bottle and some sort of 100cal snack from home. Movie theatre overpriced greasy popcorn be damned!

Today's eats...

- coffeeeeee w/ demerara & skim
- 100gr Liberte Mediterranee Dulce de Leche yogurt w/ 1/2 banana sliced
- banana oatmeal muffin (sooooo good dipped in the yogurt)
- tossed salad sprinkled with shredded cheddar and mixed with salsa & 1 tsp light sour cream as dressing, with small ww tortilla rolled with homemade guacamole
- clementine
- 1/2 Lemon Zest Luna Bar before gym
- leftover Baked Chicken & Bean Rollup, steamed brocolli & cauliflower
- tea @ pre-movie drinks
- water & granola bar (or similar snack) @ movie

Steak-a-licious

Steaks on the Griddler turned out great. I made a quick marinade of dijon mustard, Worchester sauce, s&p, oregano, paprika, basil and a bit of oil to bind it all together....letting the steaks rest in that for about 1/2 hour while I got the potatoes baking and the sprouts prepped. They were thick-cut tenderloins so I chose to use the open-style grill as opposed to the panini-style. Worked just like a real BBQ! Our steaks turned out perfectly cooked with grill marks and all. :) I ended up just boiling the brussel sprouts instead of roasting them, but they still hit the spot. I baked a couple of small Yukon Gold potatoes for each of us too.

I did make it to the gym yesterday. I finished work about 15 minutes early, so I grabbed some clean workout gear and headed out to get there for just after 5:00. I figured it would be really busy...which it was, but I've seen it worse...but I still managed to get a treadmill right away so I was happy. I did a shorter warm-up because I wanted time for more running intervals, knowing that my running times would be shorter due to my congestion. I still managed to get my first run up around 5 minutes, but the rest of them were only 2-3 minutes with 1 minute walks in between. In the end I still ran a total of 13-14 minutes...so not my best, but nothing to sneeze at. I finished my workout with 3 sets of different crunches, bum exercises, and some new bum exercises I found in Clean Eating magazine.

Today will be a yoga day. FH is taking the car for the afternoon and then I have a chiropractor appointment at 5:30. I don't like running or working out too hard after a chiro appointment so I think it's the perfect day for a Power Yoga download.

Today's menu...

- coffee with demerara & skim
- 1.5 servings (3/4 cup) 1% cottage cheese with 1/2 sliced banana
- banana oatmeal muffin
- tossed salad, with 1 oz leftover steak & 1 tiny baked potato w/ butter
- Chinese apple
- Baked Chicken & Bean rollups, with salad (I'm thinking spinach but it will be whatever greens are on sale), and homemade guacamole
- blackberries w/ no-fat Activia yogurt

Morning After

Last night was a raging success of course! How could it not be with my honey home, some tasty treats, good chat and good cuddles?! I overindulged in the pre-wine cocktails (a variation on a Cosmo) but wised up later in the evening and drank some water instead of letting FH fill my wine glass again. :) Unfortunately that cold I mentioned a few days ago is really trying to take hold now but I'm fighting it every step of the way. That mixed with the drinks made for a bit of a rough night of sleeping, but now that I'm up and about I feel not too shabby.

Had to get up a bit early this morning to start some work before heading off to a 10:30 appointment. So I got ready right away to start feeling human (don't you just feel better when your face is washed and your hair is done and you've put on your nice pants?). Started my morning with lots of water and a pink grapefruit...seriously great because normally I'd be straight to the Coke or something made with bacon when I have a hangover...but because I reminded myself this is no slacker weekend and I'm on a healthy roll I happily ate my fruit and felt extra good because of it.

Not sure what I'll do about exercise today. My brain tells me that I should head to the gym for a run and a bit of strength training, but of course I'd rather stay home with FH so we shall see. I'm sure I can squeak an hour out between work hours and dinner though so that will be the goal. If all else fails, a yogadownload can always been fit in before bed.

Today's menu...

- grapefruit
- Fibre Source granola bar (in the car)
- large Second Cup coffee w/ raw sugar & skim milk
- lunch snack plate: lemon dill hummus, 1 oz salami, 1 oz very stinky blue cheese, 1/2 slice cheese bread, carrots stix, baby tomatoes, grapes
- banana oatmeal muffin w/ PB2
- steak (tenderloin! on the Griddler), baked potato, roasted brussel sprouts
- blackberries & non-fat Activia yogurt

Good Day

I just about fell off the scale this morning. I finally had the big loss I've been waiting for! For the first time since before Christmas I am finally back at my happy weight. Not just my comfort zone, but at the bottom of my comfort zone! I forgot to weigh in last week, but two weeks ago I was up to 157 (highest I've been in MONTHS...possibly a year) and today I am back down to 151.8. Woooohoooooo!

What a great day for it. FH will be home in just a few short hours...after being gone for what seems like an eternity...today is day 36. Some trips just drag on and this was soooo one of them. Yaaaaieee for the boy on dry land!

And since good things come in threes (well, bad things do so good things must too right?)...I get to have wine and cheese for dinner!

I'm sure you'll understand if I don't go to the gym tonight. But I did already do some crunches and bum exercises. :)

Monday menu...

- coffee with demerara & skim
- oatmeal with banana, chopped date, coconut & drizzle of chocolate PB2
- grapefruit
- (potentially an afternoon muffin or small snack depending on when we break out the wine and cheese)
- red wine, 4 kinds of cheese, salami, crackers, olives, grapes, cheese bread!
- snuggles with my future hubby!

Short Post

To offset the lengthy post from yesterday (that I imagine most of you got bored and quit reading before the end...haha) tonight's will be short and to the point.

I had a lovely sleep in this morning. The sun came out and the temps were high enough to leave the house without a jacket. So I decided to spend the day without any deadlines. Coffee while reading. Some shopping. More reading in line for the car wash. Skipped warm yoga in lieu of a day all my own. Household chores. The Amazing Race. Now, Oscars and blogging. Some Hatha yoga before bed.

Today's menu...

- late breakfast of 100gm Liberte Mediterranee Dulce de Leche yogurt with 1 chopped Medjool date & 1/2 banana, with a banana oatmeal muffin
- grande bold Starbucks coffee with half n half & raw sugar
- cocoa coconut Larabar
- carrot stix, cauliflower, rice Krisps & lemon dill hummus
- Butternut Pasta Bake (from freezer) with steamed brocolli
- chopped kiwi & blackberries with Activia non-fat vanilla yogurt

FH will be home tomorrow!

Long Post

I finished up a ton of work yesterday, so around 4:00 I "treated" myself to an early trip to the gym. I know, a "treat"! ha! I figured I might as well go and get it done with so I could relax and enjoy the rest of my Friday night. Not that I had any big plans, but I was looking forward to a date with my sofa.

I did exactly the same thing I did on Thursday....nice, solid interval run on the treadmill followed by crunches and bum exercises. I made a quick attempt at deadlifts again, but I feel like I'm going to hurt my back so I need to stop one of the trainers and get them to show me the correct method.

Made a stop at the Bulk Barn on the way home, and while there I got myself a couple little treats and let me tell you how proud I am that I only ate exactly what I planned and haven't just rampaged through them. :) I had the 10 previously mentioned Easter malt eggs while I watched TV last night and taste tested a few of the dry roasted peanuts and chocolatey snack mix, but that was all. Good girl!

After my late shower and comfy time on the sofa, I came up to peruse yogadownload.com some more. Unfortunately the site was having some display issues, so I didn't spend a lot of time looking. Instead I opted to download two more freebies that I could see the descriptions for....Detox #1 and Lunar Flow #1. I decided to try out the Detox practice before bed, and aside from the crazy Warrior 3 that I sooooo cannot do yet, it was a good session. Lots of twists and folds for cleansing the body...it was great after the week of working out I've had.

This morning I got up early to meet Tasha, Lynn, Farm Girl, and Angie downtown for breaky. To read the story of our day head on over to Angie's blog or Lynn's blog since they have both already documented our day's escapades. :) Leave it to a group of food bloggers to spend their girl time eating at Cora's, drinking at Starbucks, and grocery shopping at Pete's Frootique!

During our trip to Pete's I picked up a few veggies...avocados because I've been on a real mexi kick lately, brussel sprouts because they were so beautiful, fresh carrots because I love me some good carrots with hummus (which is waiting patiently in the fridge). Lynn pointed out a new caramel flavor of Liberte yogurt, so I grabbed that and then I also finally got to partake of the Pete's cheese counter because FH will finally be home on Monday (yaaaaieeeee!!) and we always have a wine & cheese dinner to celebrate his return. I got four kinds of cheese, a couple of links of our favorite salami, and a loaf of dense cheesy bread. I will add some olives and crackers and fruit to the plate when it's time to serve. FH is in charge of the vino. I also picked up ONE beautiful truffle from the fancy chocolate counter...it was perfect and yummy! I could have eaten a whole selection but I bought just one and I'm glad I did.

By the time I got home I was feeling tired and lazy, but I chugged some water and made a small snack of deli turkey and pickles with a handful of the dry roasted peanuts and felt much better. So I changed my clothes and hauled myself off to the gym after about an hour of downtime. 6:00 on a Saturday night and the gym was a ghost town. Guess there's only a few of us lame-o's with nothing better to do on a Saturday evening. haha.

So I hit the treadmill again because that seems to be the cardio of choice this week. Warmed up and got running, doing the same interval pattern that worked so well the last two days. I decided to make today a longer session so when I finished up my 25 minutes I jumped over to the elliptical and did another 25 minutes there on the interval setting. Finished up with the ever popular bum exercises and crunches.

Came home and made another nice big salad with ranch & salsa, alongside a couple of baked chicken nuggets and Superfries. Sort of seems to be my "avoid the fast food" meal of late, and although it's not the healthiest choice it works out quite calorie friendly considering.

Had myself a nice long bath, read a couple of magazines, enjoyed a dessert of a banana oatmeal muffin topped with some of the new chocolate PB2 I procured from Angie today. That's right another pb2 fan in the house! Angie has done a great job promoting this stuff!

And now after this lengthy post I am off to bed. Tomorrow is warm yoga and a few chores and errands.

Bulk Barn

We didn't have Bulk Barn out West. Most supermarkets have a large bulk section right in the store....some better than others, but most with a good selection. It was always a handy section when I worked as a cashier...I could buy just a handful of trail mix, or chocolates, or dried fruit on my meager budget for a work snack.

When we moved to Halifax it took me a couple of months to figure out why the supermarkets don't have bulk. I thought it was just another East Coast anomaly...sort of like how there are only two grocery chains to chose from. I don't do a ton of bulk shopping, but I did miss it.

Then I discovered Bulk Barn! I drove past one almost every day for like six months....then finally went in one time when I was looking for movie night snacks. What a selection! Baking supplies have never been so easy to come by. And reasonably priced. Everything I've ever picked up there has been a better price than most stores, and the best part is that if you only need 1/2 cup of something you don't have to buy a whole bag or package.

Last night I stopped in to get trail mix for my next oatmeal bar variation. I ended up buying a variety of things and will be able to mix and match til my heart's content. Pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds, flax seeds, hemp seeds, nut pieces, sultana raisins,... I also found demerara sugar which I love in my coffee but hadn't found since I've lived here. Top that off with the ability to buy just 10 Easter malt balls and I was in heaven. If I'd bought a bag somewhere else temptation would have led me to eat the whole bag...but instead I planned for 10 and that's all I had.

They also have an interesting selection of organic products (not necessarily in bulk) like cereals, soups, sauces, etc. Plus lots of teas, imported candies, oddball snacks and other fun things. Not to mention the wall of baking pans for rent or purchase. Really a great, unique store. Can't believe we didn't have these out West.

Dancing on the Treadmill

I so totally know what the first music downloads on my new computer are going to be....and what I'll be running to at the the gym tomorrow....

FitHits: Movie Edition

Love. It. (well, maybe minus their closing choice...but I'm willing to give it a try!)

F&V

How is it that I'm getting sick even after an almost perfectly clean week? Look at my menus...I've eaten salad every night since like Sunday and my fruit intake is higher than it has been in ages and I've been getting some form of good exercise every day. Yet, while lying in bed last night I could feel a scratchy throat coming on and now I can feel it moving to my sinuses. Just in time for FH to come home on Monday. Yippee. So, water and Vitamin C are my friend today.

I blame the shoveling in 80km/hour winds and blowing icy rain last night.

Ya, it took me three attempts to get all of the shoveling done. First time out, my fingertips froze so fast I barely got around the car done...20 mins max. Then about an hour later, I tried again and lasted another 20 mins. So after dinner I dug around in the closet, found a second pair of gloves and layered them up with a couple of those hand warmer thingies and finally managed to stay out there a full 30 mins and get the driveway cleared. Who needs a workout after that? Not me!

I've already been back out there this morning for another 20 mins clearing the pile of heavy, soggy crap the plow left at 2am too. And now they are telling me we are in for more of this on Sunday! Farm Girl was right....FH will be cabbing home from the ship and shoveling his way in to see me.

OK, enough snow rants for today. Nine storms this season, I guess you guys are probably sick of hearing about it!

No big plans on the agenda for today. Just another work day of getting through some paperwork and continuing to clear up my desk. Love that my new computer takes up so much less desk real estate! Since I didn't work out last night due to all of the shoveling I am planning to head to the gym tonight for some more treadmill work, bum exercises, and another attempt at deadlifts. We will see how this throat/sinus thing plays out...if I'm hurting then I may switch from treadmill to yoga instead. Have to be feeling tip top for my breakfast with the blog girls tomorrow morning!

Today's menu plan...

- coffeeeeee with brown sugar & skim
- 2 x banana oatmeal muffins
- 1/2 grapefruit
- seafood chowder (from freezer), baked rice Krisps
- last of the fruit salad
- ciabatta sammich w/ smoked deli turkey, light cheddar, salad greens, red onion, honey dijon served with brocolli/cauliflower & lemon dill hummus
- tea & muffin

Recipe - Banana Oatmeal Muffins

Lucky you guys! A product review and a recipe all in one day. :)

Last weekend I had wanted to make some oatmeal muffins, but while looking for the recipe I landed up finding the Oatmeal Raisin Bar recipe instead so the muffins had to wait. But I ran out of the bars so now was a fine time to try for the muffins again. I searched online and found a few recipes, merged some ideas together and here is what I ended up with. I'm sure it could still be tweaked, but the muffins turned out moist and pretty delicious so I thought I would share.

Banana Oatmeal Muffins

3/4 cup whole wheat flour
3/4 cup all purpose flour
1 cup large flake oats
1/2 cup brown sugar
2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp cinnamon
pinch nutmeg
1 cup milk (I used 1/2 cup unsweetened vanilla Almond Breeze + 1/2 cup skim milk)
1/2 cup applesauce
1/2 tsp vanilla
1 cup mashed overripe banana

- Combine all dry ingredients in one bowl.
- Combine all wet ingredients in another bowl.
- Add dry to wet and stir just until combined. Don't whip or overmix.
- Scoop into a sprayed muffin tin. Makes 12.
- Bake at 400 degrees for 18-20 minutes.
- Cool in pan until easy to handle, then let completely cool on wire rack (I turned them upside down because the bottoms were still a little sticky).

Enjoy!

Product Review - Mr. Krispers Baked Rice Krisps

It occurs to me that I've been really slacking on my food product reviews. I have actually tried a lot of fun new stuff over the last couple of months, but have failed miserably in reporting about any of it to all of you. I will try to be better!

My current find is Mr. Krispers Baked Rice Krisps. I picked them up last week at Planet Organic mostly because I was lured in by the giant sale display near the store entrance. Any reasonable substitute for a greasy potato chip generally catches my interest and since these come in a number of chip-type flavors I thought I'd give them a go. To start, I opted for the simple Salt & Black Pepper flavor. I figure if I like them, I'll try one of the other more exciting flavors next time.

As the name implies, these are baked crackers made from rice...they go out of their way to mention brown rice specifically but if you read the ingredients there's a combo of white rice and a bit of corn in there too. All healthy ingredients though. They are thin, crispy and light. For 90 calories you can have 25 of these little treats and since they are about the size of a twoonie it's a reasonable portion. Even though they are light, they are sturdy enough to hold up to a swish through some hummus and the s&p flavor is nice and strong enough to still taste even with the garlicy dip.

I'd certainly pick them up again as a snack to keep in the cupboard for one of those days where I'm craving something crunchy. More like a cracker than a chip, but isn't that true of most healthier crunchy options? I think I'd like to try the Sour Cream & Onion flavor for a more chip-like experience.

The only thing I really didn't love was the price...$3 per bag on sale...for approx 100 gram bag.

Storm Watch

That's right. Here in Halifax we are due for yet another Winter storm today. Expecting it to start snowing around noon and the prediction is for 20+cm of the white stuff...PLUS...blowing freaking ice pellets and other fun things like that. This is not my impressed face.

Soooo....at least it's a good TV night....and I haven't had a Shred session with Jillian since the weekend so I think we'll meet up for a sweat and I can follow that with some more downloaded yoga. I didn't get a chance for yoga last night because I was fiddling with my new computer for a few hours after work (goodbye stupid Works, hello again Office!) and didn't even head to the gym until 8:00. So by the time I worked out, got home and ate dinner (at 9:45!) there was no time to properly digest for yoga before bed.

My workout last night consisted of a great run on the treadmill. Fast-paced 5 minute incline warmup, then my running/walking looked like this: 5 min run/1 min walk/4 min run/1 min walk/4 min run/1 min walk/1 min sprint/1 min run/1 min sprint/1 min walk. I wanted to keep going, but believe it or not there were people waiting for treadmills at 8:30pm on a Wednesday. The gym can be really busy at the oddest times! I then grabbed a mat and headed over to the mirrors where I did another set of Eurydice's bum exercises, three sets of different crunches, and one set of deadlifts (thanks Randi for mentioning those...I would never have thought of them!). I totally need to work on my form, but I think I had the right idea.

By the time I finished at the gym and grocery store it was really late and I was honestly considering stopping for fast food on the way home, but I talked myself out of it right away because I've been having a good week and didn't want that rock of grease sitting in my tummy overnight. ewwwww. So instead I made my fabulous salad and had it with egg salad on half of a fresh ciabatta bun (both of my freezer options were still frozen solid). I was soooo proud of myself!

Miss Jen! I want to thank you for your fabulous comments. You always tell me how hard I rock just when I need it. Most of the time I feel like I'm not really giving it my all, but you show me that you see me differently and that makes me feel great. Thank you for that!!

I haven't been tracking or writing down my activities or anything anywhere other than my blog this week and I think it is working well for me. I usually try to make notes on my calendar about what activity I did and whether I was OP or not...and then if I have blank spots or cross things out it makes me feel like I failed. So, unwittingly this week I haven't been doing that and funny enough I have been pretty much exactly OP and I've gotten some form of a workout in every day. Interesting. Go me!

Today's menu....

- coffeeeeeeeee w/ brown sugar & skim
- 1/2 ciabatta bun w/ natural PB & 1/2 sliced banana
- fruit salad w/ 100 cal cottage cheese cup (strawberry)
- baked rice chips, cauliflower & lemon dill hummus
- chili from freezer (it's thawed now!), tossed salad with ranch & salsa and some of those little tortilla strip salad toppers
- tea and a new baked treat (if I have time to bake...seems like the thing to do during a snow storm...either scones, banana muffins or a variation on Tina's Oatmeal Bars)

Hatha #2

Yesterday afternoon I had to go to the clinic for my second Twinrix shot (grrr....$20 friggin to stab me in the arm) so I took my gym gear with me since the clinic is right next to my gym. I was surprised at how busy it was for 4:30 on a Tuesday. I'm not sure why I expected it to be quiet...I guess just because it seemed like earlier to me. Anyway, there were a few open treadmills and that's all that really mattered to me.

I did a quick 5 minute walking warmup, then started running...did about 7 minutes to start then switched to intervals. Slowly but surely I'm building my stamina. This time I started to get a stitch in my side, but otherwise the rest of my body seemed to be handling it just fine. Finished up the intervals at 20 minutes and slightly cooled down for 3 minutes.

Then I grabbed a mat and headed over to the mirrors where I did one full set of Eurydice's bum exercises. Thanks girl! They were great...just difficult enough to know they are working. I think next time I will start doing three sets. I also did three sets of different crunches and some tricep pulldowns. A little less than I had planned but due to the wait at the clinic I had to cut the gym short to get home and finish up work for the day.

Before bed last night I tried Hatha #2 from yogadownload.com. It was OK, but I definitely liked Hatha #1 better. I can't put my finger on what it was...especially since most of it was the same...but something just wasn't as nice as #1 was the night before. I am happily building my little downloaded yoga library though. Tonight I hope to surf through and buy a couple of longer practices...and I think I'll try a power yoga session again.

Wednesdays are conference call days, so no sneaking off early for a gym trip...so we shall see how work goes along before deciding on the workout for today. I'm aiming for at least a treadmill run, but I'd like to get another session of strength in since we are due for a snowstorm tomorrow and chances are I won't bother heading out to the gym in shitty weather.

Today's menu:

- coffeeeee with brown sugar & skim
- Oatmeal Raisin Bar
- fruit salad (apple, clementines, kiwi, banana, blueberries) with remainder of Liberte Svelt vanilla yogurt (didn't eat it yesterday) and wheat berries
- small ww tortilla with almond butter
- dinner from freezer: either Butternut Sausage Pasta or chili...with spinach salad (baby spinach, tomatoes, red onions, shredded carrots, part skim mozza, "goddess" dressing)
- tea and oatmeal raisin bar

Hatha

Due to time constraints and a slightly tender foot I decided not to hit the gym last night. Mainly because I didn't take my workout gear with me when I went to the doctor and I didn't have time come home and then go out again. So instead I stuck with my original plan to try a new practice from yogadownload.com. My whole body was pretty stiff from Sunday's warm yoga class, so I opted for a beginner practice... Hatha Yoga #1. It was lovely! Perfect, calming, stretching workout for before bed. The ultimate 20 minutes. I felt relaxed and refreshed. Definitely a keeper.

Funny, because the very first yoga class I ever took was a Hatha class at the Y in Victoria about 4-5 years ago...and at the time I was soooo bored. The instructor spent a lot of time focusing on the movements (which I'm sure has actually benefitted me greatly since then) and my partner and I thought if that was what yoga was like that we likely wouldn't ever do it again. So, I opted to try a Flow class next, which I enjoyed much more and it saved the practice of yoga for me! Since then I've tried different varieties and I enjoy most of them all for different reasons. Last night, this Hatha practice was just what my tired hamstrings needed.

Once I've completed setting up my new computer, and worked out the budget for this month I am going to sit down and make a download list of the longer practices. I've enjoyed the free sessions and am now ready to take on the longer ones.

Today I plan to get in a good hard cardio session at the gym, with some upper body strength training, crunches and bum exercises. I think another Hatha session will be in order tonight so I plan to download #2 and see if I like it as much as #1.

Menu plan for today...

- coffeeee with skim & brown sugar
- Oatmeal Raisin Bar
- fruit salad (banana, apple, kiwi, clementine, blueberries) with 100 cal cottage cheese cup (pineapple), small ww tortilla with almond butter
- last of the yogurt pre-gym
- Amy's bean & cheese burrito, served with light sour cream & salsa, and "mexi" spinach salad (baby spinach, tomatoes, red onions, shredded carrots, light cheddar, ranch dressing & salsa)
- tea & Oatmeal Raisin Bar

Hamstrings

As seems to be the new norm, my hamstrings are killing me after my great warm yoga workout yesterday. I don't know if it's because I'm tall, or just my inflexibility, or something else...but my hamstrings are always super tight the next day. It's the good kind of hurt...love it. :)

Not sure what my activity will be today. After work I'm heading back to the doctor to have a plantar's wart frozen off the bottom of my foot so I'm guessing it might be a little too tender for treadmill running. We shall see. Maybe I'll ride the bike if that would be better for my foot and I will definitely do some stretching and maybe another beginner session from yogadownload.com. I've tried all three of my initial downloads and I am ready to try some more.

While out at the doctor I will be in the neighborhood of Pete's Frootique again, so I think I will pick up a couple of things. My shopping list is pretty short this week (due to a bit of an overshop last week...typical of me!) but I do need a few things so it will be fun to shop around in there again. Next week, when FH gets home, I'm sooooo going to check out the cheese department!

Today's menu:

- coffeeeeeeeee w/ skim & brown sugar
- one of Tina's Oatmeal Raisin Bars
- kiwi
- small ww tortilla w/ light cheddar, tomatoes, green onions, spinach....grilled on the Griddler...served with leftover steamed veggies from last night
- 100 cal cottage cheese cup (pineapple)
- bigass spinach salad (baby spinach, tomatoes, mushrooms, red onions, 1/2 hard boiled egg, sprinkle of real bacon bits, part skim mozza, "goddess" dressing)
- tea and another Oatmeal Raisin Bar
- (possibly leftover Smart Pop...I indulged in a 1/2 bag last night)

Recipe - Oatmeal Raisin Bars a la CNC

Weekend baking is somewhat of a must for me....mainly at this time of year, and especially when FH is away. It's one of my favorite time-passers. Of course, with FH away I usually end up eating everything I bake so I try to be careful when choosing a recipe. It should be either healthy (ie: low point/calorie), freezer friendly, or make enough yumminess to share with the neighbors.

Last night I was looking for a banana oatmeal muffin recipe that I've seen on a blog recently, but I can't remember which blog it was (do any of you know?). During the search I happened upon Tina's current featured recipe over at Carrots 'n' Cake...Oatmeal Raisin Bars. Since it was getting late and I wanted to get baking, and since I had all of the ingredients on hand I decided to give them a go. Yummmm.

These were super quick and easy to make. Required very basic ingredients and came together in no time. The hardest part was waiting for them to cool suffiently so I could get them out of the pan and give them a try. (They need to be quite cool so they don't crumble apart.) These bars are dense and chewy with just a bit of a crusty edge....quite like a good granola or cereal bar. Tina recommends cutting into nine squares, so they are a decent size....filling like 2 or more cookies would be. I totally recommend giving these a try. In the future I think I'll try using this same recipe to make a trail mix granola-type bar.....yummmmm....can you just imagine pumpkin seeds or nuts or other dried fruits?

Bikinis

Let me just say this....no matter how much weight I've lost, or how hard I work out, I still hate my ass. I've mentioned this before. It was actually nicer when I carried more weight back there...at least then it had shape! Now my bum is kinda flat...certainly not perky...and still doesn't look too hot in a bathing suit.

However, shopping for a bikini can certainly motivate a girl to get to her yoga class and to dig out those magazines she's been hoarding and start looking for the exercises that help tone and firm the buns and love handles.

I did find two bikinis at Aqua today. Thanks to the ladies that mentioned going there on my other blog....I found it before I read your comments. (Did you know that there isn't one place in all of MicMac Mall that sells bathing suits? Weird.) Tried on about ten different suits. Quickly learned that my bottom is a size larger than I had figured...booooo....but not as bad as it was the last time I bought a suit like four years ago. At least I like my top half!

Immediately left the torture chamber of the fitting room and headed straight home to make sure I was going to have time to get to that yoga class. No way I wasn't exercising off that waffle I ate this morning! :) I heart warm yoga...today's class was a different teacher... her practice was similar , but nicely challenging in a different way and just as stimulating as always. Good times.

Today's eats....

- Cora's bigass waffle with a mountain of fresh fruit, custard and a bit of whip cream
- coffee
- Starbucks tall 1/2 sweet non fat black tea latte (these are growing on me for sure!)
- last unfrozen serving of cabbage casserole, with extra steamed cabbage, carrots & cauliflower...and leftover of last night's "mexi" salad
- tea and baked treat...I'm thinking banana muffins of some variety

Valentine's for One

Menu....

- medium coffee with blend cream & 2 raw sugar packets (see how I avoided a latte!)
- Second Cup blueberry oatmeal breakfast cookie (4 points and all natural!)
- 4 Schneider's chicken nuggets & 1 serving McCain fries (that's right, I left the mall food court and came home!)
- Guiltless Gourmet chipotle black bean burrito, served with HUGE "mexi" salad (tossed salad with salsa & ranch dressing, topped with shredded light cheddar) and salsa & light sour cream
- late dessert of Organic Daybreak cereal w/ vanilla Almond Breeze
- midnight snacky-poo of Old Dutch plain ripple chips

Activity....

- 30 Day Shred level 1 (finally I have weights!)
- 30 Day Shred level 2 (only 1/2...too many weird shoulder things for my bad arm)

All in all, a pretty good solo Valentine. :)

Rock On, Girl

That's right....this girl had NO candy at the movies. Didn't even want it. Packed my lulu bottle full of water and was happy as a clam (well, as long as clams really are happy...what an odd saying).

:)

Sweat is the Cure

I was barely getting any work done. Grumpy Guss I was. Sitting here randomly clicking back and forth between work and Facebook and really only doing the bare minimum. So much so that I'd almost talked myself into going to back to bed.

Screw that.

So instead, I washed my face, combed my hair, changed my clothes, salted my driveway (oh yaaiee for the 5 inches of ice that salt won't help!), and went to the gym. Something about taking lemons and making a martini or whatever, right?

Ha.

I did a fast walking warmup for 5 minutes, then set off running as much as I could for 20 minutes, and finished up with fast walking inclines for a final 5 minutes. I then decided that my arms and shoulders have been sadly neglected (except for yoga) so I headed over and did some lat pulldowns, delt rows, and tricep pulldowns. I'm sure I'll hurt tomorrow but isn't that the point? Finished up with 3 sets of different crunches intervalled (that's not a word but you know what I'm sayin) with elbow planks in between.

So now when I eat that movie candy tonight I will have earned it. No grumpy guss guilt here!

Grumpy

FH has been gone three weeks now. I'm definitely at that hump I hit when he goes away. Bored, lonely, grumpy. It's not helping that tomorrow is happy heart day and because it's a Saturday everyone is busy. Couple that with some girly drama, then some extra cookies, and beating myself up for said drama and cookies and you get a cranky girl. Can I say bah-humbug in February?

*ptttthhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh*

Anywho....so no activity for me yesterday. The weather here was dismal, hazy and gross so I didn't have any desire to leave the house. Honestly I had planned to set up my new computer and do some downloaded yoga last night, but once I got comfy with the remote and the leftover cookies (ya, the bag that I put aside for friends is now gone) I didn't accomplish much of anything. The computer and monitor are out of their boxes and I did vacuum so I suppose that's something, but not the something it was supposed to be.

Today is a new day, right? I got a lot of work done yesterday so hopefully nothing too major pops up today and I can continue to work on getting that new computer running. Once I do, I will definitely do some yoga because I don't have time for the gym today. Tonight I'm going for dinner and a movie with a bunch of girlfriends (premiere of Confessions of a Shopaholic!!) so I want to be out of this funk and feeling good before I go. Yoga should help!

Enough whining. Today's menu...

- coffeeeeeeeeeeeee (I should have made a double batch!)
- oatmeal with vanilla Almond Breeze, banana, cinnamon, wheat berries, and a drizzle of vanilla yogurt
- small ww tortilla grilled with tomatoes, spinach, shredded carrot & light cheddar (I heart my Griddler)
- golden delicious apple
- dinner at Jack Astors (I'm thinking salad and one martini)
- water and some kind of candy treat at the movies

Good Girl

So I was a good girl yesterday...even with all those cookies! I stuck to the plan and worked out 20 minutes longer than planned, so I call it a success. I can definitely see a correlation between getting my ass out the door and hitting the gym the minute I'm done work and better eating. By the time I've worked out, get home, eat, shower, then sit down it's so late I don't have time for random boredom snacking.

Today's plan is similar, but I do need to make time for setting up my new computer. It arrived yesterday and I didn't even get to take it out of the box. I'm so excited since this poor laptop is now 3 years old and dying a slow slow death.

My workout last night was not as planned but it was still good. I had intended on treadmill running and bum exercises. When I arrived at the gym there were a few free treadmills, but when I came out of the change room like 3 minutes later they were all full....so I had to hop onto an elliptical instead. No biggie, I can burn just as many calories...I had just been looking forward to working on my running time. I did 25 minutes on the elliptical, then an extra 20 minutes of fast-paced walking inclines on the treadmill. I finished up with crunches...but no bum exercises because I forgot to take my notes from Eurydice's post. oooops. I will try again today.

Menu plan:

- coffeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee
- 100 cal cottage cheese cup (strawberry) mixed with a few spoonfuls of vanilla yogurt, wheat berries, & 1/2 banana
- veggie wrap: small ww tortilla w/ hummus, tomatoes, spinach & shredded carrots
- golden delicious apple with almond butter
- 1/2 granola bar pre-gym if needed
- grilled turkey sausage (leftover from making cabbage casserole), served with steamed cauliflower, cabbage & baby carrots
- tea & cookies

(approx 23 points)

Wheat Berries

I keep forgetting to mention that I finally picked up some wheat berries at Bulk Barn this weekend. All the blog chatter about these little things got me curious, that's for sure. As Amy mentioned, they are labelled as "hard wheat kernels".

From Wikipedia:
"The term wheatberry or wheat berry refers to the entire wheat kernel (except for the hull), comprising the bran, germ, and endosperm. Wheatberries have a tan to reddish brown color and are available as either a hard or soft processed grain. They are often added to salads or baked into bread to add a crunchy texture; as a whole grain, they also provide nutritional benefits since they are an excellent source of dietary fibre."

They are a bit of a pain to prepare. Not that it's difficult, just time consuming. I soaked my raw wheat berries for about 6 hours on Sunday evening, which cut the actual boiling time down to around 45 minutes...but I felt like I really had to watch them the last 10 minutes for fear of overcooking. I was probably too worried though. Since then I've just been keeping them in a plastic wrap covered bowl in the fridge. They expand quite a bit when cooked...I wound up with a couple of cups.

Monday I added a scoop to my oatmeal and they were just as yummy and chewy as expected. They added a nice texture and a sort of nutty flavor to the mix. Today I chose to mix a scoop into my cottage cheese and again I was pleased....nice extra texture and taste to go with the slightly mushy and creamy cottage cheese. Now I am going to surf the net for a wheat berry recipes...hopefully some kind of salad and maybe some muffins.

Overall wheat berries are an interesting addition to my food repetoire...although I will likely only use them once in a while since a batch takes some time to cook (I like to decide spur of the moment most of the time) and lasts for quite a while (I also tend to like variety).

Cookie Monster

I was going to use the title "Cookies for Breakfast" but the auto-complete tells me I've used that before. Hmm....I'm sensing an issue.

So it was crazy late....like after 7pm...when I finally finished work last night. I was starving and in no mood for the gym. I hate when that happens. I hastily reheated some casserole for dinner, but didn't bother making my salad. Of course, I ate so fast that I thought I was still hungry and polished off a bowl of chips and dip too. Not the end of the world had I gone to work out, but now I had a full stomach so running wasn't the least bit appealing. I convinced myself I would do some yoga later but you know how it goes when you are grumpy. Ya, so instead I made cookies.

I definitely ate a few too many but trust me it could have been much worse. By the time I was done baking I was in a better mood (baking is soooo my stress releiver) so I wasn't eating them just out of boredom. Whew. Of course, I ended up having two for breakfast with my coffee this morning and two more with lunch. :) Points-wise I actually came out on the low side. Health-wise definitely not my best day.

Damage control: I packed up a dozen and took them to my neighbor. I have another dozen in the freezer. And one more dozen for some friends. That only leaves a few on the plate which I'll eat up tonight and be done with. :)

Long day today but I'm already in my workout pants so I'm going to change my shirt, wash my face and head to the gym right now. I promised myself another good running practice and some bum exercises today. If I feel like doing more than that, then that's just a bonus.

Menu:

- coffee, two cookies
- coffee, two cookies
- small ww tortilla with smear of hummus, light cheddar, tomatoes and shredded carrots
- golden delicious apple
- 100 cal cottage cheese cup
- leftover homemade seafood chowder (from freezer), tossed salad with oil & vinegar & soynuts
- tea, two cookies

(approx 26 points)

Better

Yesterday afternoon I remembered that I needed to pick up my Twinrix vaccine and stop by the clinic to get my first shot....so I decided I should do it on my way to the gym, since the clinic is literally next door. Of course, being 5:30 there was an hour wait at the clinic...but the girl said that I could leave my name and come back in 45 minutes if I wanted, so that's what I did. I didn't want to wait an hour for a 3 minute appointment when I could be doing something constructive. So I modified my workout plan. I was already dressed and ready, so I went straight in, dropped off my purse & coat, then hit the treadmill.

I got a solid 25 minutes in. Warmed up, then ran TEN MINUTES straight (that's my recent best), followed by intervals for another ten minutes....running as long as I could before taking a walking break. In total I think I ran 16 minutes. This gave me time for three sets of crunches alternated with three sets of squats. Did a quick stretching cooldown, fixed my hair, grabbed my stuff and was back in the clinic waiting room within exactly 45 minutes (slightly sweaty but I'm sure the doctor has dealt with worse!).

Since I missed out on my strength training I decided to do some yoga later before bed. I still had Power Flow #3 from yogadownload.com to try. It is an introduction to power yoga...walking you easily through Sun Salutations A & B...lots of bends and downward dogs....much more my speed. A good workout without knocking me off balance!

Due to my busy day, I managed to stay strictly OP. I even stuck to my promise to myself to get to bed at a normal time. I did my yoga around 10pm, had my tea, watched one more Gilmore Girls, and was in bed by 11:15 reading my book. My light was out by midnight....first time since FH left! Got up early this morning to finally go get my blood tests done (I've been procrastinating on it for a couple of weeks and keep forgetting I have to fast for it) but when I got there the clinic was closed for some reason. Slightly annoying that I got up and got ready only to have to come home, but oh well. Excuse for Starbucks of course!

Today's plan...

Gym: 45 minutes cardio, crunches, bum exercises, upper body strength
Yoga: another session of Power Flow #3

Menu:

- 1/2 banana bread Larabar
- Starbucks grande non-fat 1/2 sweet black tea latte
- 1/2 apple, 1/2 banana
- oatmeal made with water, vanilla Almond Breeze, raisins, & wheat berries
- carrots & homemade onion dip
- 1/2 granola bar pre-gym
- cabbage casserole, salad with "goddess dressing"
- kiwi with Liberte Svelt vanilla yogurt
- tea

(approx 24 points)

Off Plan

Ugh. This weekend was an all-out disaster. For no good reason.

Friday started out pretty well. I knew I was going drinking with some friends so I made sure to watch what I ate all day and had a good carby dinner to help suck up the drinks. The drinking itself wasn't my usual clean & low-point vodka/sodas though...there were ciders, beers, shooters....too much. I did however avoid the 3am pizza stop. In fact, I just came home and went to bed like a good girl.

Saturday was hangover day. Stupid shooters. So the food started out just fine because mostly I wasn't feeling too hungry. When I did eat it was a carefully planned egg salad bagel and juice. Later I started to crave the ultimate hangover meal from McD's but even then I talked myself into the chicken nuggets and fries in my freezer instead. Still within my daily points. Later though I got into the snacks and it all went to hell from there. Mostly I just felt super guilty about missing my big Saturday workout. I had been looking forward to really focusing on some strength training and working on my running again, but I didn't do a damn thing. I blame the shooters.

Sunday I woke up with the best intentions. Warm yoga day! So I was careful with my early eating, choosing to take in lots of water, yogurt, and a bagel-sandwich to tide me through the early afternoon. Of course, then I went out to run errands which ended up taking much longer than planned and I didn't make it back in time to get to yoga. Booooo. Also, I decided to make that cabbage casserole, which took over 2 hours to cook so dinner was crazy late and the snackfest that ensued while I waited was ridiculously over the top. I had stopped at Bulk Barn for barley and ended up leaving with a few other things, including stupid Valentine's jujubes...that store is a hazard.

All in all a bad, guilt ridden weekend for me. Up 2.6 pounds this morning. Serves me right.

I just can't seem to get this whole plan thing to stick. No matter what the current plan happens to be. I never used to go nuts on weekends unless there was something specific on the agenda...and then for the most part I was planning for it. I rarely missed weekend activity plans unless FH was home and we had something on the go. What a slump I'm in!!

Anyway, on the upside I got lots of fresh groceries this weekend and the cabbage casserole turned out pretty good. Next time it would need more seasoning and less barley, but otherwise all good....and it made about 10 portions so I have lots to freeze. This week I have a lot of choices from the freezer for dinner...all of which can be paired with fresh salads and veggies.

Today's plan...

Gym: after work...45 minutes cardio, crunches, bum exercises, arm strength

Menu:

- coffeeeeeee
- 100 cal cottage cheese cup (pineapple) with 1/2 banana
- leftover beef stew
- baby carrots & homemade onion dip
- 1/2 banana bread Larabar before gym
- cabbage casserole, tossed salad with "goddess dressing"
- kiwi with Liberte Svelt vanilla yogurt
- tea (I finally found the Stash decaf vanilla nut!)

(approx 22 points)

Buns

That's my problem area. My buns. Kind of flat and droopy. Especially since I lost weight...funny enough I actually like my buns better when they had some meat on em! I'm always looking for a way to perk those babies up!

So yesterday I asked Eurydice about the bum exercises she often mentions, and today she posted about them. They look great, so I'll give those a go at the gym tomorrow for sure.

I also tried the Yoga for Buns #1 from yogadownload.com last night. Let me tell you that this session is too advanced for me just yet (my own fault, as it is labelled level 4 advanced intermediate!). It is a power vinyasa yoga session with a bit too much speed and far too much balancing for me. I will have to take a couple of steps back and try a few other sessions to get my balance up to par before trying this one again. Today I will try the Power Yoga #3 which is level 2 advanced beginner...much more my style (I hope!).

Yesterday was another great on plan day. I was really starting to slip in the late afternoon...even so far as to talk myself out of going to the gym just for a couple of minutes...but once I got up and walked away from my desk I decided to walk straight to my bedroom and put my gym clothes on. Once I stepped outside to warm up the car and happily realized I didn't need to shovel or scrape anything I was back on board! So off to the gym I went for a full hour of cardio and two crunch sessions.

I did a quick walking warm-up on the treadmill....then varied interval runs....quite proud that my first stint of running was SEVEN MINUTES! I ran for as long as I could...then stop for a walk when I felt a stitch coming on. For the remainder of the 25 minutes I ran 2-3-or-4 minutes with no more than 1 minute recoveries in between. Then I hopped over to the elliptical for varied inclines and resistance intervals for another 25 minutes. In between and at the end I did my crunches...3 sets of 3 different kinds. I skipped the stairmaster because there was an instructor showing newbies around and they were in my way. Then came home for dinner and shower and some relaxation before doing the 20 minutes of yoga before bed.

Today will just be to try the new yoga since I'm heading out tonight. I'll fit it in this afternoon for a little break from work. Tomorrow back to the gym for lots of cardio and new bum exercises.

Today's menu:

- coffeeeeeeeeeeeee
- Organic Daybreak cereal with vanilla Almond Breeze
- last of the fresh strawberries & blackberries
- leftover Italian Wedding soup, toast with hummus & tomatoes
- 1/2 apple with 1oz light cheddar
- leftover beef stew with added frozen veggies
- heading out for drinks with some friends from Victoria!

Yoga Bonus

Click on over to Kath Eats Real Food to find a lovely yogadownload.com surprise!

Shoveler

Seriously. I should get a cape and a badge and start answering to the name "super-shoveler".

Even after my lovely neighbor helped out by clearing the mouth of my driveway yesterday, the plow went by again...then the sidewalk plow went by. So as soon as I was done enough work for the day I had to head outside to deal with the three new messes I was left. I also had to dig out my car (yes, I had already spent over an hour twice the day before...) since it was sitting under 4 inches of frozen snow and the pile between our two cars was reaching three feet. Needless to say, I was pooped after another hour of lifting and pushing that heavy stuff around, so I basically collapsed when I was done.

No gym. No yoga. Just some much needed stretching and laying around. And there might have been a dip into FH's Oreo ice cream. Stupid. I don't even really like the ice cream.

Oh well. Today is a new (snow free for now!) day. I have this evening free so a trip to the gym for lots of cardio and crunches, plus potentially some other strength exercises is definitely on the agenda. Might try another yogadownload tonight too....I have Yoga for Buns #1 to try out.

I'm continuing to work on eating what I have on hand. Even after saying that last week I got all caught up in shopping at Pete's Frootique so I am using up as much as I can before I start buying anything new. I have plenty in the freezer (chowder and chili and chicken, oh my!) and enough fresh stuff to see me through at least the weekend. Especially since I plan on treating myself to at least one meal out this weekend. I will be back out at the mall where Pete's is on Monday night so I think I will wait until then to get any new fresh produce, etc. I am looking forward to NOT visiting a grocery store this weekend!

I think Sunday night I will sit down and figure out what to do about the "cabbage roll concoction" I've been thinking about. I'll probably go the casserole direction instead of actual rolls because it's easier to assemble. I hope it works!! Until then....

Today's menu:

- coffee with skim and brown sugar
- Organic Daybreak cereal with vanilla Almond Breeze
- Italian Wedding soup, crackers
- tomato slices topped with basil, mozza, and drizzle of balsamic
- 1/2 apple with almond butter (pre-gym)
- chili, toast with Olivina margarine, salad
- last of the Source ff lemon yogurt with some fresh berries

(approx 24 points)

Sore

I am stiff from my neck to my ankles. Hamstrings and one hip are finally loosening up after being well worked at warm yoga on Sunday, but shoulders/back/neck are feeling the effects of the double load of shoveling yesterday. Thank God for the great neighbor that cleared the heavy snow plowed into my driveway this morning. I will still have to go out there and do some final clearing and deal with the mess between the cars though.

I did do a nice short relaxing session from yogadownload.com last night. Lunar Flow #1. Ended up being the perfect choice since it focused on similar moves to my Sunday class at Breathing Space and helped with the tension in my hamstrings and hips. I have two more free classes downloaded and if I enjoy those I will probably go for a couple of the longer ones and pay for them. I had a great podcast from them last year that I loved, but it got wiped from my iPod and I haven't figured out which one it was yet. It was just about the most perfect 20 minute yoga workout ever.

Today is a gym day, so hopefully some of the ice on my car loosens up this afternoon (I see a lot of scraping in my future) so I can go after work tonight. Last Wednesday I had really wanted to head downtown to try out one of my gym's other locations' yoga class so I will try for that again, but if timing doesn't work out then I will head to my usual location for cardio and crunches.

Due to the excessive amounts of shoveling and time spent in the icy weather yesterday I decided I had earned a baked treat. So I dug out the bag of Quaker Low Fat Bran Muffin Mix I've had in my cupboard forever and made a dozen...1/2 the batch I added blueberries, the other 1/2 batch I added shredded carrot and pumpkin pie spice. So proud of myself for sticking to the muffins and not giving in on chocolate chip cookies or something else that I would have stuffed myself with. I ate my two earned muffins and reveled in my NSV!

Hooray for another day totally on plan!

Today's menu:

- coffee with skim & brown sugar
- blueberry bran muffin
- Liberte Svelt vanilla yogurt with fresh strawberries & blackberries
- leftover Gardennay red pepper & black bean soup with dollop of light sour cream, Garden of Eatin multigrain tortillas, 1 oz light cheddar, salsa
- grapes
- 1/2 apple after gym if needed
- beef stew, toast with Olivina margarine, leftover green beans
- carrot bran muffin with tea

(approx 24 points)