'stuff' happens

As much as I'm an advocate for planning ahead, stuff happens. Yesterday was a TERRIBLE day for many-a-reason. I had too much on my figurative plate and was trying not to put too much on my literal one. I nearly broke in to tears when I found out we forgot to turn the crock pot on, and that meant dinner wouldn't be done until 10 pm. 'Lets order a pizza!' I blurted. My always loving husband said, 'What about Taco Bell? They have some better selections then pizza, but I'll leave that decision up to you.' So with a little encouragement from the hubs, I chose a couple things off the Taco Bell Diet menu. Like their website says, I ate better. Lets face it, not the best- but given the circumstances, I ate better than a pizza, and for that I'm proud of myself.

Another reason I'm pleased with myself today is because I hopped on the scale this morning to see a loss of 4 pounds! I am very happy about that! So that's 4 pounds down, 93 to go. I try not to look at the big picture too often, need to set mini goals. Lets do a lil' goal right now. To get down to pre-preggers weight. I'm only 37 pounds away from that. Ah, now doesn't that sound not as overwhelming???

Here's my discovery of the day: Nutella. I've heard of stuff, had never tried it. Read about it recently in one of my cheapie magazine finds, and decided to give it a shot. Now there's a lot of debate as to whether or not Nutella is a healthy snack. I personally haven't done any scientific studies or anything, but I will tell you one thing - it's delicious. Put the serving size amount on a piece of whole wheat bread, or top some fruit and I'm in snack heaven. It's actually very similar to peanut butter. Only tastier. It's made with hazelnuts and provides some proteins. So in the 'battle of the spreads' its team Nutella for me!

Buttermilk Pecan Chicken

What I thought would turn out to be a horrid day, turned out awfully good! I made my return back to work. For some silly reason, I decided it would be a fantastic idea to bring muffins for my co-workers. Sure it was a nice gesture, but what was I trying to do? Commit diet suicide? There were 24 assorted flavors of over sized muffins staring at me from the conference room, with their yummy aroma in the air all morning. Oy vey! However I am proud to say that I didn't partake of any muffins. It was a banana and granola bar, FTW! I'm working part time now, so I'm free to do what I'd like in the afternoons. Today, my sister and I decided to enjoy the weather, and take a stroll outside with the baby.

Apparently a lot of other people had that idea too. I was particularly impressed with one elderly fellah. Here I am, 25 years old, getting tired from WALKING. But this guy was up in age, and was walking with the assistance of two forearm crutches, struggling with each step. If I didn't think he would think I was stalking him, I would have taken a picture to show you the true inspiration that he was. He helped motivate me to do another lap, so 1.5 miles accomplished today. Hoo-rah!

Next: dinner. Buttermilk pecan chicken. This recipe is a keeper, and its SUPER easy, and CRAZY delicious. All you do is lightly pound 4 chicken breast between some plastic wrap, and then marinate in a cup of buttermilk in the fridge for an hour. Then, a cup of panko bread crumbs & a cup of toasted pecans get chopped in the food processor. Then take the chicken out, coat with pecan mix, bake for 30 minutes @375. Enjoy!

So tomorrow is Tilapia Thursday. Here's a snippet of my conversation with my husband this evening:

Jessie: I'm scared of the tilapia. I don't like seafood unless its battered and deep fried.
Matt: It's a replacement. Like Sammy Hagar and David Lee Roth. Obviously it's not the same thing, its a replacement.

Well, honestly I miss you and your hush puppies Captain D's! But I'm going to turn a new leaf tomorrow and see if I can create some healthy seafood that I actually like.

DCBA

I love Half Price Books stores! You know, the name is kind of misleading, because they don't only just have books, they have magazines too (and well for the record: cds, records,and movies too)! In the back you can find old issue magazines for a steal of about fifty cents a piece. So I stocked up on some Health, Fitness, and Shape magazines. I've already collected some fantastic recipes, and some really great ideas. For example - I found this acronym I plan on living by.

DCBA. Diet first, Cardio second, Building muscle third, and Abs last. This comes from Myatt Murphy, author of 'The Body You Want in the Time You Have.' How brilliant! So he says spend 60 minutes a day preparing healthier meals. Spend 20 minutes a day three-five times a week doing cardio. Spend 15 minutes a day three times a week strength training. Lastly, spend 5 minutes a day three times a week doing ab exercises.

How doable and practical is that? I haven't been 'cleared' from the doc yet to do anything more than lifting the baby. Thinking happy thoughts that when I go see her tomorrow she'll clear me to do whatever I darn well please! So because of my restrictions, tonight's 'cardio' will be walking with the fam, enjoying this crazy 70 degree weather in November.

Always Be Prepared

First of all, welcome back, me! Yup, I know it has been almost a full year since I've posted. And in that time I whipped up an adorable little baby, who is now just over a month old. That being said, I need this blog and your support now more than ever! A lot of my pre-preggers clothes aren't fitting, and they were already freakishly large before. So let us not waste any time, and get down to business!

Always Be Prepared! Not just the scouts motto, but its mine too when it comes to food. In the past I've learned that meal planning is key to healthy eating. Otherwise you find yourself frustrated not knowing what to cook, and the next thing you know you're being asked if you want that super-sized!

So here it is: my menu for the following week and my grocery list. I went to both Aldi's and Wal-mart - viva savin' monies! I found everything I wanted EXCEPT for whole wheat bread crumbs. Imagine that, Wal-Mart not stocked with what I need... oh well, c'est la vie.

PS - if you don't understand why my blog is called negative equals positive, please refer to my first post!