Have no fear, I am alive and kickin’!
Well, sort of. I’m getting my butt kicked at work with typical end of year/beginning of year HR stuff but can see the light at the end of the tunnel! I’ve been so busy working late hours or early morning hours by the time I get home, I just plop down on the couch and curl up with Carlos and Iggy. Totally opposite of the blogging dedication I’ve had since 2008 but the truth is, I like the new-found balance. I’m getting my workouts in at 5:30am, feel energized all day at work and relaxed when I come home taking my time with dinner, dishes and tv. No more rushrushrush as I try to fit in 2 hours of blogging every day.
This new year of 2013 is no different for me than any of the other recent years. I don’t have any “resolutions” or new “goals.” Not to say resolutions are bad but for me, well… I have no end goal. For me, healthiness is forever and I forever will have to fight.
I’m working really really hard on trying to eat to my prescriptive eating that my dietitian prescribed to me which means I’m eating what feels like a lot of food. Every day for breakfast, I eat 1 grain, 1 fruit, 2 protein and 1 fat. My go to meal is eggs and an english muffin w/ clementines or an apple.
This is a really easy breakfast to make, even on days when I’m trying to get to work. Eggs take all of 2 minutes to cook and I can let them cook while I’m pouring my coffee and putting together my lunch/snack items. Yeah yeah, I know my english muffin looks burnt above but I like it like that. Carlos cringes every time he see’s my toast 
While that breakfast may not look like a lot, the tricky part comes in when I have to hit my goal of 3 servings dairy or 6 servings of grains. Anyway, I think I already told you that in one of the other posts.
I’ve been trying to focus on fruits that are more berry or citrus-y versus banana’s. Banana’s tend to be a little higher in carbs which isn’t bad in itself but since I’m eating enough grains throughout the other foods, I think it’s better that I try to shy away from banana’s every day.
I love fat!
The one thing I’ve noticed about the eating plan I’m on is that I “get” to, or better worded “am suppose to” eat fat. My body (our bodies) need it! Duh, right? I’ve stopped eating low cal, low fat things (Norma, did you hear that?!)
The truth is, I love it! My favorite snacks are:
- 1 tablespoon peanut butter, pretzels & fruit
- broccoli/carrots with full-fat ranch and either string cheese or some almonds
- cheese, crackers & fruit
You know what my other favorite thing to do is? Go to Subway or order a sandwich from Jimmy Johns and have them put mayo on it. I would have never done that in the past 4 years, ever! But, what I’m learning is, if I have a little mayo on my sandwich for lunch, I won’t go crazy with candy at 3pm. I ask them not to go crazy with it (cuz Subway can really load that stuff on) but I’m telling you, it really does make the day feel so much more balanced.
Wedding Bells & Portuguese
My little sister is getting married in a few weeks (EEEEKKKKK!!! It was short notice, she told us in November) so the next couple of weeks will be wedding showers for her and then, Vegas! I am beyond elated for her – she and her soon-to-be husband are high-school sweethearts and have been together for 10 years. Random fact: actually all three of my sisters are still with their high-school sweethearts. I’m the only one in my family who said “NO WAY!” to those goofs who I spent time with. Anyway, soon, all four of us girls will be married and living our happily ever after.
And, I finally did something I’ve wanted to do for years. I signed up for a Beginners Portuguese class! It starts the last week of January and runs 8 weeks. Has anyone learned Portuguese as an adult? I’m nervous that I won’t learn it quickly because I struggle with memorizing words but we’ll see. Why Portuguese? Carlos is from an island off the west coast of Africa called Cape Verde. Most people including his family speak Cape Verdean Creole which is based off Portuguese. The official language of Cape Verde is Portuguese so if I learn Portuguese, then I can at least have some sort of basic conversations with his family when they all get together. Everyone (except his mom) speak English but when they get together as a group, they tend to gravitate toward speaking Cape Verdean. Probably way more than you EVER wanted to kwow but, now you know.
Okay okay, I gotta jet. Happy Wednesday, Friends!
I’ve found that a simple way to not spend so much time on blogging is to let the quality of your site really slip so that your posts are just quickly-typed pieces of crap. But maybe that just works for me…
Love the information on how you have added some fat back in…..one Prior fat girl to another, I too have added some fat back in. And still have managed to wear a size 14 pair of jeans instead of a size 28!
Stacy Klone
KitchenWerks
Sounds like you’ve found a good routine. Way to go with the 5:30am workouts. I keep saying that I’m going to get back into the habit, but then I keep putting it off. I know Portuguese! Actually just spoke some with a Brazilian couple who was here visiting a couple days ago. I hope to Angola or Mozambique some day.
Oh how I wish I could get up at 5:30 and take a quick walk. 7AM is the earliest I’ve managed lately.
I think spending more time on real life and less on blogging is a really good thing.
You have a very amazing family and so many blessings in your life. I love it that you are immersed in living.
Yeah, I need to spend a bit more time on rel life myself! Sometimes I get too involved with my work and I can’t seem to shut down or close myself off, meaning everything else falls by the wayside.
If you have that work-life balance your work will probably benefit in the long run. I guess its all about planning, something I need to get better at!
ha! I thought that your well-done english muffin was breakfast sausage at first!
Yay for signing up for Portugese classes!
Ooh I want to eat all those clementines so bad! YUM!
How do you have time to get in a 5:30am workout and eat a real, honest-to-goodness sit-down breakfast before work? I get my workouts in at 5:30am and it’s all I can do to grab a Greek yogurt and bring it with me to work!
I don’t struggle too much with it…
5:30-6:15ish Workout
6:30-7:00 Shower & get dressed
7:00-7:30 Pour coffee, pack lunch & make breakfast
7:30-7:40 Leave for work
I normally eat the eggs & english muffin to-go like a sandwich. Well, a sandwich without the top. I cook the eggs long enough so they are medium and won’t run all over. I wrap them in a paper towel and eat it like I would something from McDonalds.
The above is a rough outline. My work is pretty flexible so if I get in at 7:50 or 8:15, it washes out in the end because most the time, I work through my lunch.
Try making eggs in the morning – it really doesn’t take as long as you think! {As long as you aren’t planning to sit down at the table & eat.}
Jen this post is encouraging. You will get there. A happy healthy relationship with food.
Keep up the good work.
Jen, definitely great that you’re eating whole foods as opposed to packaged treat stuff. But seriously, dude…that is not an English muffin; that is a hockey puck.
Oh, and I’ve learned a few choice Portuguese profanities from my many Brazilian friends…
But I’m still much more fluent with the Italian profanities I learned in my childhood.
Out of curiosity, what time do you go to bed?
I love the idea of working out in the morning, but I am bad about not getting to bed at a decent hour so it usually takes all my strength to drag myself out of bed at 7am or later.
I totally thought your English muffin was sausage! I’m with Carlos – cringing!!
I make an omelette out of egg whites at night. I add cheese & broccoli. It warms up great in the morning to eat at work. I’ve also recent become addicted to pancakes made out of Greek yogurt, egg whites, flour & baking soda. I make up enough for two mornings. They warm up great too. The best part is using different flavors of yogurt to make a variety of tasty pancakes. And they are sweet enough that you don’t even need syrup!
Love your planning. It’s the foundation of a good food day. When I don’t plan and pack, I always make it harder.
And I love fat too! The good, the bad–the worse–fat is simply delicious. I have to be very mindful, or I eat too much fat. My best!
My friend and I were having the fat-is-good conversation just the other day. It’s easy to think fat=calories and so it’s a no-no.
I love hearing how you’re finding the balance in your life. Happy for you!
I’m really impressed because I’m a sleepyhead, so 5.30 am is impossible for me. I wish to get up before 7.00. Love your blog!
I’m so jealous – I love foreign languages and would LOVE to learn Portuguese! There’s a rumor in my fam that I may actually have some Portuguese blood in these veins too – maybe you can teach me something