A Cozy Saturday
Friday started with a bowl of perfection…
A bowl of chai-tea oatmeal topped with Bear Naked granola was spicy and warmed up my cold nose.
And this was the last picture of food I got to take all Friday! Poops to forgetting the camera!
John and I went to a Hot Yoga Sculpt (yoga with weights class) on Friday night before we went out and it was awesome - I used 5 lb weights and went up to 8 lbs for some moves - I’m getting stronger guys. :D
I also did a yoga abs routine (from Tara Stiles’ book) and it was nice to get our workouts in before Friday night fun!
I’ve been asked to show what I eat on the weekends and how I deal with cravings so I’m going to try and do that more. The way to deal with cravings? Give into them! :D
I started the day with a slice of toast and this flavored Fage which was yummy - love the strawberry-goji flavor!
I wanted a cozy Saturday without any work or huge plans to go out - it’s Shark Week. That special time of month where poor John goes inside a steel cage for his safety.
From the safety of the steel cage, he can throw my crazy craving foods at me - Annie’s Bunny Crackers and frozen yogurt.
We had a fun errand to run and I got my treat sf vanilla latte - the day was so chilly!
I have cravings like everyone else - but I just crave different things.
We went to Delightful Pastries in Lincoln Park because I was craving more coffee! I have nothing on JSTOR to support this but black coffee cures cramps. It’s better than any drug or heating pad.
I was craving more warmth so I got a bowl of vegetable barley soup…
…and Kind Bars. I seriously crave these bars. John shared this Fruit and Nut one with me but my favorite are the Blueberry Vanilla ones!
And do you see what I see?
Yup, that would be me reading the first Harry Potter book. I swore to myself it would be one of my February books - I’ve tried reading the book at three separate points in my life before and HATED IT. Yes, I said it, I hated Harry Potter and didn’t make it past the first few chapters ever.
I wanted to love it because other people loved it, and like Dickens’ books, I wanted to feel wrapped up in a serial novel that everyone was wrapped up in.
I had a couple of false starts this month and just couldn’t stand the writing - why are someone’s feet described as being as big as dolphin babies? That’s just silly.
But today was different and something clicked.
Sitting in a cafe, I went through a lot of the book and the story finally unfolded for me.
John kept making this face to me because I kept complaining about why Harry needed to be left with such an abusive family and I wouldn’t let him tell me.
But he was pretty jazzed I finally was enjoying the books because he loves them so much.
We came home and made tofu with peanut sauce and Chinese “fried” rice which really hit the spot.
But this is all I wanted! :D John and I got my frozen yogurt fix - red velvet and french vanilla dotted with these chocolate raspberry nibs.
I hope you are having a wild and crazy Saturday or a cozy one with me!
Strawberries & Cream Cold Oats
My cold oats floweth over!
I’ve written before how I dislike the texture of overnight oats so I call these shower-time oats! I add my oatmeal to my cold base and it softens while I’m in the shower and do my make-up.
In the bowl, I chilled almond milk, Chobani Greek yogurt with vanilla extract, pureed strawberries (courtesy of Fresh Picks!), and a full cup and a few tablespoons of water!
I keep my fridge pretty low and in the morning the mixture had an ice cream like texture and the bowl was really puffy!
I added the oatmeal in the morning, went about my routine, and a half-hour later added two tablespoons of yummy Bear Naked granola to the top which added a lovely cinnamon note.
Cold, creamy, smooth, and crunchy- Perfection!
This was the first toy Nigel got from his grandparents (John’s parents). At 10lbs he couldn’t lift it up and would push it around with his nose, get tired, and abandon it.
Now he flings it around the room.
I think shark week is here because I’m about to start crying because my dog is growing up.
Hope you are all having a great morning.
Look How They Shine for You & Everything You Do
Good evening and happy Thursday!
Rest assured, where ever you are right now, you wish you had Nigel’s job.
Patrollin’…Trying to catch me eatin’ mom’s stuff…
Rewinding to this morning, I started my day with something new!
So Delicious Coconut Milk! It was very yummy and very rich tasting because it was much thicker than my almond milk. I drank a cup and one fifty calorie serving has nearly four grams of saturated fat (eek!). According to this article in The New England Journal of Medicine, saturated fat may not be all that bad for you though.
But it’s filling. SO Filling. Like “you just ate an entire tofu block by yourself filling.” I’m thinking this is a winner for smoothies or homemade frozen yogurt!
I still prefer a splash of almond milk in my pumpkin spice coffee. Even though the days are finally longer in Chicago, I can’t give up the pumpkin.
Workout
My morning workout was a a glorious five mile run in 46:59. It was 46 degrees and getting sunnier so much sooner in the morning and I rocked the shorts - with gloves and a thermal - but still, the shorts!
I’m splitting the day today because I’m busy so hot yoga will happen in the p.m.!
After my run, I enjoyed my delicious Chai Tea Oats!
Would you like some oatmeal with that Chai? :D Yeah, I made it extra liquidy today - a full cup of almond milk and a quarter cup of boiling water from my tea kettle. It was really warm and yummy!
I enjoyed a packed salad for lunch - a ton of baby spinach and half and avocado with fat-free wasabi-dijon dressing! Oh my goodness. My salads are so sexy delicious - seriously.
I am obsessed with avocados lately and they are another fruit quite high in good, natural fats. It’s amazing - my skin and hair are glowing.
Back to the to-do list, lovelies! :D
A Good Long Run
I am training for the Fargo Marathon, and I hope I can buy Frances McDormand’s awesome sheriff hat from a tourist shop. I love this movie and I am loving marathon training.
I had planned a simple 5 miler today for my first long run from my intuitive/adaptive running plan. Instead of my planned run, I ran a 6.51 miles in 1:06!
It was an interesting run. I decided to run late and kept spooking myself running through my usual dark streets as I prefer to run away from people and cars. Around mile 2, I got really anxious and my heart was racing - I kept thinking someone was behind me until I ran another mile and a half. After that I got into a groove and was pretty happy with how I felt.
Around mile 4, I decided that heck, I can do a 10K and once I finished a 10K, I decide another little bit wasn’t a big deal - so yay for 6.5 miles!
I tried to share my excitement with Nigel but he wanted nothing to do with me.
Why am I so happy? First, this is my first long run since The Goofy Challenge. Second, this is my first long run with no knee pain. I felt so hopeless after the Marine Corps Marathon and never thought I would run normally again. I hope this good luck stays with all my long runs!
***
I ate yummy homemade pizza last night and kept it pretty light today with a cold n’ creamy oatmeal bowl.
In this bowl, I had a Chobani 2% Strawberry-Banana Greek yogurt, instant oatmeal, unsweetened almond milk, and a dollop of peanut butter and Polander blackberry preserves.
I left out the banana because of the richer Greek yogurt and only ate half the bowl because it’s super filling. I am loving cold n’ creamy oats and if you need an alternative to overnight oats, this is it!
I’m working on my “exciting” weekend list - hope everyone is having a good one!
Yummy Meals: Cold n’ Creamy Blueberry Oats + Butternut Squash Fries
I really disliked my first bowl of overnight oats - the texture wasn’t right to me. But I have always wanted to find a way to enjoy cold oats and for my dinner yesterday, I whipped up a bowl and I loved it!
In the mix went one Chobani blueberry Greek yogurt (0% always, one mini container), one small banana, one cup unsweetened almond milk, and instant old-fashioned oatmeal.
I mixed up the Greek yogurt and almond milk and layered the ingredients. I put it in the fridge for only fifteen minutes and served it with a dollop of Polander Blackberry jam, mixing everything together right before I ate it!
Delicious. The texture was perfect - and the bananas really thicken up the mixture making it spoon like ice cream.
I also snacked on a little bowl of pistachios. I get most of my fats from nuts, peanut butter, and avocado because I have a hard time digesting heavy oils and dairy based fats - but I’m a vain girl and I know fat helps with shiny hair and nails so I try to get my fat from different sources!
Friday’s first meal was another veggie chicken sammie. You might be thinking, “Mehnaz, I expect more than seeing the same sammie three times.” Well dear reader, please lower your standards till tomorrow. :)
Life handed me butternut squash today, instead of sweet potatoes. So I thought, “Can I make fries with that?”
Yes, Virginia, there is a Santa Claus.
I didn’t know if this would work, but I cut my butternut squash into strips, and baked them in a 425 degree oven for twenty minutes, flipping them once.
They worked. And they were yummy. I dipped them in Rooster sauce and went to town on my breakfast. :D Hope you had a great start to the day!
