Category Archives: brussel sprouts

No sugar day and Slim-Shoppin’ article!

Slim-Shopping has posted an article on my weight loss, sharing the company of bloggers like Lisa, Shelley, Diane, and others, so if you would like to stop by and read Jennifer’s site, please do!

Boy did I sleep well last night!  Guess it was that long bike ride or something.  I got over 8 hours, which is unheard of for me.  My legs felt a little tired, but good.

I decided that today would be a no-sugar day.  Started off with a bowl of cream of wheat cooked with a banana and 2 egg whites, topped with pecans and a little prune puree.

Doesn’t it sound like something a 95-year-old would have for breakfast?  It was good, though.  Except I would have like some fluff on there 😳

Started work on the most frustrating of notes after a 4-day hiatus.  You know those days where there are computer issues and you just cannot be productive at all?  I really need to find a company that has a different platform to work in.  Their in-house programmers really created such a clunky software platform instead of using industry standard ones.  It creates a lot of headaches all around and they are constantly updating it.  I spent a lot of the morning as close to crying from frustration without actually crying.  Great day to decide to go no sugar…..

This is Pixie trying to ignore all my cursing today:

I took a break for lunch and made the chicken curry salad that I have been eating lately.

Yum!  Things settled down a bit and I was able to get work done, but it put me a couple hours behind.  I was hoping to get in an afternoon run, but that wasn’t going to happen.  I was so ready for the latte this afternoon:

My beloved caffeine friend (sprinkled with nutmeg).  I also had a dish of blueberries:

Blueberries are such a fun and interactive food, don’t you think? (or is it just me?).

I was going to make BBQ shrimp for dinner, but BBQ sauce has sugar in it, so I had to think of something else.  When in doubt – go eggs!

Feta/egg/egg white puff (cooked in the microwave for about 1.5 minutes).    I poured the brussel sprouts onto the plate and they landed onto my pear.  Ick! I am one of those people who doesn’t like my food touching too much.  I’ve always been that way.  Gravy was always problematic 😀

I decided to take a run after dinner.  I headed down to the track and started plodding.  It was really hard tonight.  I think it was probably because I biked 40 miles yesterday (duh).  After 2 miles, I started to pull to the right, so I stopped.  I have a race to run on Sunday and I don’t want to mess that up.  I have to say that I have really lost confidence in my running since my injury.  Very curious that I so looked forward to a long bike ride yesterday, and running 3 miles  fills me with a little unease.  I worry that I won’t be able to finish the race (not really likely, but the feeling is still there).  I think I won’t feel right about it until I get back to full speed and strength.

I am off to make a protein snack and company is on the way over, so I am out of here! Have a great night 🙂

Question:  Are you a food separator?

Blogging it all and Brussel Sprouts!

* Don’t miss the giveaway from earlier – open to everyone! *

Back to real early spring weather today.  Drizzly and cold!  Ah well, it was fun while it lasted.  I drove to the gym today for lifting.  Started with a 1 mile jog on the treadmill.  I cannot believe I haven’t run since last Tuesday!  Then the weights:

  • Chin ups: 2 sets of 2, and 1 set of almost 2!  Yay!
  • Barbell split squats:  3 sets of 8 (each leg) at 75#
  • Close grip lat pull downs:  3 sets of 10 at 60#
  • Push ups:  3 sets of 10
  • 1-leg dumbbell dead lift: 3 sets of 8 (each leg) with 15# DBs
  • Side raises:  3 sets of 8 with 10# DBs
  • Planks:  3 sets of 90 second holds
  • Triceps kickbacks: 3 sets of 10 with 12# DBs
  • Cable bicep curl:  3 sets of 8 at 40#
  • Horizontal woodchop: 3 sets of 8 (each side) at 40#

I had someone come over and ask me about the planks.  Unusual that I get interrupted during lifting or even talked to by the guys.  He asked me what the plank was and what muscles it worked.  Maybe he will give it a try 😀  See, they do notice you lifting and it isn’t always a bad thing.

Came home to banana custard multigrain cereal.  Funny, Andra mentioned in my giveaway post that she used Country Choice multigrain cereal, and here I had it for breakfast!  With dry almond butter.

This was the most lame batch of nut butter I have ever made and I think it was the result of blanching the almonds to get the skin off.  Never again.  Also note the 2 little chocolate chips on there.  John had gotten the chips down to put on his breakfast and gave me 2 to eat (I was salivating over them), so I put them on my oats to document I ate them :mrgreen:

Today I am showing every little bite that goes into my mouth, just to keep myself honest.

Mid morning snack:

1/2 scoop of vanilla PP with cinnamon mixed with a little water and topped with a chopped up medjool date.  This was surprisingly good.

Slow work day today.  I have been trying to get caught up on blog stuff and emails.  If you email me and have not gotten a response, please email again.  I try really hard to get to them all, but sometimes I wonder if they go to my spam box (or if my replies go to your spam boxes).  Also, is anyone getting emails when I reply to a comment question in that section?  I wonder if I have that figured out yet.

Lunch time:

Lame ‘bagel’ thin with tuna salad and lettuce.  Yes, the woman who said she was tired of tuna went and bought some more.  Veggies with lunch!

John made me a protein latte for a snack.

I am liking these, although I worry that I will want sweet lattes when I go out now.

I was really hungry for dinner.  10 minute cook time is always good for that.  More pork (surprise, surprise) with my brussels and strawberries.

For those that wonder about cooking the brussel sprouts, they are super easy.  The recipe is sort of based on Alton Brown’s recipe for brussels.  For each person, you will use 4 sprouts.  I just shred them with either a mandolin (please use the hand guard, knuckles are not a good addition to this dish) or a knife.  Melt 1 tsp of coconut oil (or any oil) in a small fry pan and add the brussels.  Add some salt and pepper and toss around.  I slap on a cover and give it a shake from time to time to make sure they don’t burn.  In tonight’s pan, I added a tbsp of slivered almonds, too (just living on the edge, folks, have to get my excitement somewhere).  It takes about 5 minutes to cook these.  Put on a plate and top with craisins!  Sweet and savory.

Also in the spirit of all that enters my mouth, I had 1/4 cup of rice that John cooked up.

Yummy, white jasmine rice that is oh-so-addictive for me.

Produce update:

F: 1 banana, 2 clementines, strawberries, 1 date

V: 1 serving of carrots, 1/2 serving of salad, 1 serving of brussel sprouts.

Tomorrow I am going to do a post on the anatomy of a meal and how I put them together.

Evening snack while writing this post is a ricotta/chocolate protein powder mix.

Doesn’t look all that appetizing, but good.  😀

Question:  Did you know Tuesday morning is free pastry day at Starbucks?

http://lovetoeathatetoexercise.blogspot.com/

Lifting and chowda!

Another chilly day today.  Okay, it’s way past chilly LOL.  This is the time of year where a 100-year-old house loses some of its charm.  It’s almost like we can see dollar bills getting sucked through the heating vents….

Braved the cold to hit the gym, of course.  Still more people than usual.   Wonder if that will carry over into next week?

  • Chinups:  2 sets of 2
  • Romanian barbell deadlift:  3 sets of 8 at 75 pounds

Alternating sets:

  • Barbell bench press:  3 sets of 8 at 55 pounds
  • Seated lat row:  3 sets of 8 at 55 pounds

Alternating sets:

  • Reverse lunges with 1 dumbell on shoulder: 3 sets of 8 at 20 pounds
  • Arnold press: 3 sets of 10 with 10 pound dumbbells
  • Horizontal cable woodchops:  3 sets of 8 at 40#

30 second rest between sets again.  Then it was 40 minutes of walking on the treadmill.  I was lame and read a magazine while doing that today.  Unlike Jody, who really challenges herself!

Home to pick up John and off to bagel Wednesday!  There was a bowl of puppy chow at the cafe, so I had some with coffee while waiting for my bagel.  I was starving.

Then the arrival of the breakfast star.

I really have to keep myself from wolfing these down on Wednesdays because of the time it takes from finishing my workout to actually eating is much longer than my normal days.  Hangry!

I noticed my arm is still a little sore from the blood draw on Monday.  I have myself a little bruise!  This tech put the needle up too high, right at the crease in my arm, and then the supervisor had to fiddle with it, so that made the hematoma.

It’s purty, isn’t it?  It didn’t really hurt during, though.

Using up those corporate waffles for lunch!  I made an egg sandwich with laughing cow.

I cooked the egg in the microwave.  I know some of you do this, but those that don’t should try it.  It takes about a minute and the eggs come out nice and puffy.  This is 1 egg and 2 whites.  Don’t overcook or it’s like chewing on rubber bands.

Had a fun snack today:

Honey roasted peanuts and dehydrated mini marshmallows.  Sounds weird, but it fits that sweet/salty thing I so adore.  Of course, multiply this x2.  Guess the sugar monster is still hanging around.

Work has been somewhat slow today.   There are times when I wished that I worked a job where I was paid the same no matter how much work came in, because when there is no work – I don’t get paid! But, there are other perks that make up for it most times.

So it seems about half of you have cruised before.  I really liked the cruise we did 10 years ago because we could do whatever we wanted.  We ate very casually instead of the formal dining, because that just isn’t us.  I am sure it is going to be better with 10 years of technology that has passed, too.  When John and I were having breakfast this morning I was talking about how I was looking forward to running on the ship (there is a track on deck).  I so wished that I took a picture of his face 😀

Speaking of John  – here he is slaving over some clam chowda for dinner!

While I was waiting for soup, I roasted up the last of the brussels:

And then soup was on!

John is a good cook.

Hopefully I will have a longer run tomorrow morning.  I can’t believe it is New Year’s Eve on Thursday!  I need to start thinking about my goals for next year.  Might have something to do with working on my snacking 😉

NROLW and more camera woes.

In an effort to be extra green this week, I decided that I was going to bike to the gym no matter what this morning.  I didn’t even check the weather to see the temperature, I just bundled up and went.  I knew it was above freezing because there was no frost on the car 😀

I have 1 week left of New Rules of Lifting!

  • Barbell squat:  2 sets of 8 at 85 pounds
  • Dumbbell squats with heels lifted:  4 sets of 15 at 20 pounds
  • Overhead shoulder press:  4 sets of 20 with 12 pound weights
  • Step ups:  4 sets of 15 with 25 pound dumbbells
  • Underhand grip lat pulldown:  4 sets of 15 at 60 pounds

Man oh man.  I am not liking this part very much.  I love lifting, but this is pretty intense.  I tend to take a little more than 30 seconds between sets and that is what makes this so rough.

Walked on the treadmill for a bit and then biked home.  The sun was bright and shiny, so the ride wasn’t bad at all.  I cannot believe I am still getting on my bike in mid November LOL!  Biking makes me so happy.

If you read my post earlier, you know I had steel cut oats for brekkie.  Num, num.

I will show you a pic of my cafe au lait that accompanied it – even though the Broncos do *not* deserve to be featured on my blog right now…..

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Annoying day at work today.  Tough dictators makes for slowness and frustration.  Ah well, not every day is quick and easy, right?

Took a lunch break for another waffle sandwich!  I am so into sweet and savory right now.

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This sandwich was roasted turkey breast, laughing cow cheese, and apple butter!  And yes, to answer a question, I do toast the waffles.

So, my new camera is acting up.  Okay, my refurbished camera is acting up.  You can see what is happening on this post.  That pinkish hue gets on a lot of my photos and the LED screen gets all funked up.  It doesn’t happen all the time, but too many times to just deal with it.  It’s under warranty, so I was on the phone with Olympus to get it straightened away to send to them.  Of course, they won’t tell me if the repair is under warranty until they see the camera, but come on!

I am so addicted to taking pictures that I am panicking about not having this camera again.  Although my mom is going to let me borrow her new camera.

Snack with my latte:

snack1116

So yesterday evening was not a good eating time for me.  You know how I blogged about wanting to eat yesterday?  Well I did.  I managed to have some toast with apple butter, some dark chocolate chips and pretzels and a little leftover bread pudding during the course of the football game last night.  And I did not feel full!  What the heck is up with that?   How could I possibly not be full?  Bah!  So, today is really one of those days where I leaned out the calories to make up for that.

No broccoli for dinner tonight!  Heehee.  I did a basic sauteed chicken breast and roasted brussel sprouts, plus some applesauce.

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A-1 sauce for dippin’.  I am in a roasted, sauteed vegetable rut.  Like you all couldn’t see that for yourselves!  Although, I like my ruts.  Guess that’s why I get in them!

Evening snack for MNF:

larabar1116

This is pretty good.  Nice coffee flavor, although I don’t drink sweetened coffee, so it was a little weird to have a sweet coffee flavor in my mouth.  I like the gingerbread larabar better.  What I really need to do is make more of my own.

Question:  Are you in any kind of rut now?

Taper week begins

The temperature was 28 degrees when I got up to go to the gym this morning.  That’s too cold even for me to bike!  I had to find the scraper to clean off the car.  Then I get to the gym and a sign says it was closed for Columbus day.  Could they not have posted this sign on Friday?  And they were open on Labor day, so not sure what is up with that.  Grrr… today was supposed to be my last strength workout before the duathlon.

Too cold to even want to run outside that early, so I just had some breakfast and got to work:

cow1012

I had a chill for most of the day and wanted a hot lunch.  I used the rest of last night’s chicken and pineapple and cooked up some broccoli, cauliflower and carrots to pair with it.  Just as good the 2nd day!

lunch1012

The sun was out for a while and it warmed into the upper 40s, so I decided to take a break and go out for an easy run.  I actually ran to my bank and back.  Took about 30 minutes, so I am guessing maybe 2.5 miles or so?

Post run snack (latte had with it).  Not too sweaty for a change LOL!

nanarun

I’ve been in saute mode lately.  Made some more shredded brussel sprouts sauteed in coconut oil and topped with craisins.  This sounds weird, but it is a really good flavor.

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Pink item for the day. The knockout rose is still blooming outside, although with several days below freezing, I think it is the last gasp for them.
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Done with work, so it’s time for some relaxing (MNF!!) and trying to be some sort of productive.  I just saw a preview for Where The Wild Things Are.  I love that book so much as a kid, and the previews looks so much like the story in my mind.  I can’t wait to see this!

Question:  Are you going to see Where The Wild Things Are?

Bagel day and brussel sprouts

You know what Wednesdays are!  No lifting today, so John and I just headed out on the trail to downtown.  It was much earlier than normal since we just got up an went.

The decaf here is so much better!

coffee1

Plus my nummy bagel.  I know food shouldn’t make you happy, but it does for me sometimes 😀

bagel1

Day 2 of decaf is going well.  I am not nearly as tired today, and still no headache, which is shocking.

Singularly frustrating day with work today.  The AS team was messing around with the software, which causes glitches that end up interfering with productivity.  Lower productivity = lower pay.  Argh!  One of the large downsides to working on production.  I can earn varying amounts in an 8-hour day depending on the quality of the dictator or software glitches.

Tried a different thing with my wrap today.  I made my usual tuna and hummus wrap, but added cucumber to it.

lunch4

It definitely was different.  I really noticed how sweet the cucumber was, which I had never really thought about before.  Still working on this box of clementines, too!

For dinner I made another egg sandwich, but no broccoli tonight! LOL!  I did a variation on Alton Brown’s brussel sprouts recipe.

dinner5

I shredded it and pan sauteed it with some coconut oil, salt and pepper, and topped with dried cranberries.  Really good!  Even John liked it.  I think the texture of this is the most appealing, as well as the sweet/salty with the dried cranberries.  I actually think I must enjoy the cabbage family most, as broccoli, cauliflower, and brussel sprouts are some of my favorite veggies.  How weird.  You would think that someone who didn’t like vegetables much would like a different family of them!  Brussel sprouts were a food I never in a million years thought I would eat, let alone really like 😀  Thanks to my commitment to the Great Veggie Experiment, I have added some things to my repetoire.

Another good reason to eat from the cabbage family?   Studies have shown that the phytochemicals in them can possibly help prevent some forms of cancer!

Question:  Have you ever tried brussel sprouts?

The great Brussel Sprout experiment

Okay – I did it! I made (and ate) brussel sprouts.

First off, let me say what my only background of brussel sprouts is. You know that Jones Soda pack that comes out with the holiday flavors? One year had turkey and gravy, brussel sprouts, cranberry, and pumpkin pie. So, we opened the brussel sprout one, and the rank cabbagey odor that came out of the bottle was not even as bad as the taste. A weird sweetish, sulfury yuck. So, that’s where I’m coming from – even trying them is a big deal.

Anyhoo, back to today. Fresh brussel sprouts, which I quartered, tossed in a little sunflower oil, kosher salt and pepper. I put them in the toaster oven for about 20 minutes or so, flipping 1/2 way through.

They actually don’t have a lot of taste, milder than even cabbage or cauliflower is, in my opinion. I think I liked them, didn’t love them. The texture was almost meaty. What I did really like was the little leaves that fell off and got super crispy. They were almost like potato chips, and I could see peeling the leaves off and toasting them for a snack.
So, verdict is that I will get them periodically for something different. Victory for me on a new veggie!

Thinking about trying brussel sprouts.

I am not a big veggie eater. I only have a hand full of those that I like, which sometimes makes eating healthy a challenge. I do try veggies from time to time to try to expand my repertoire, usually without success unless I puree them LOL. (But, whatever works, right?)

I have to say that I am very tempted to try fresh brussel sprouts. Lyn over at Escape from Obesity made some and they really look good. Roasted, too – which is one of my favorite ways to eat the veggies I do like.

This would be a giant step for me, a veggie-challenged person, to try one of the most picked on veggies out there.

Maybe I’ll pick some up this weekend.

I’m skeered…..