All posts for the month August, 2012

August Foodie Pen Pals!

This month I participated in Foodie Pen Pals, a fabulous program set up by Lindsay at The Lean Green Bean! Food Pen Pals pairs up bloggers (and non-bloggers too) who exchange boxes filled with delicious food goodies. This was my first month participating and it was so much fun.

(FPP picture)

I was paired up with Marsha, a non-blogger who sent me a wonderful box full of some really tasty snacks! I’m not going to lie, I’m a really difficult person to buy food for, being the vegetarian, gluten-free, health freak that I am, but Marsha did an amazing job and I loved everything she picked out for me!

It’s like Christmas!

I got my box the day after I moved back to school, and all the snacks did a great job of making my kitchen shelves look a little less bare.

The first thing I dug into was this Raw Crunch bar. I packed it with me when I volunteered at the Triple Crown Half Marathon (link) last weekend and it was absolutely delicious. I loved the flavor and texture of these bars, they were full of nuts, seeds, and all kinds of delicious and healthy. I would definitely buy these bars myself and I’ll be one the look out for them in stores!

The gluten-free gingersnaps were soooo good. So good, that I might have eaten them all in one day. It happens. The cookies were spicy and completely addictive.

I don’t normally buy packaged cookies myself, they all some how mysteriously disappear in within a day. But they were a fun treat.

CHOCOLATE ALMOND BUTTER. We already know about my love for all things nut butter, I’ve bought this almond butter before so I already knew I was going to love it. Justin’s chocolate almond butter is like a packet of pure heaven.

Thank you Justin.

I ate the packet by itself. No shame.

It’s probably a good thing I can’t afford the whole jar of chocolate almond butter, it’d be gone in about 3 seconds.

I haven’t gotten the chance to try any of the tea but I love green tea and I haven’t tried Bigelow brand yet, so it will be fun to try a new brand!

I haven’t gotten the opportunity to try the smoothie either. It looks really delicious though! I’ve been saving it for a long day of class when I get really desperate for a healthy snack.

Marsha did a great job of putting this box together for me! I absolutely loved everything she picked out, they were all things I would have bought myself and very delicious. Thanks Marsha!

If you want to see the box I sent, hop on over to Jacquie’s blog: Bee Morse Farms. Warning, I made a huge mailing-chocolate-in-the-summer fail (sorry Jacquie!).

I loved participating in Foodie Pen Pals! I hope to do participate again (assuming that my teeny college-student budget allows it!). Thanks Lindsay for putting it all together!

11 Comments

by greensandcoffeebeans on August 31, 2012 • Permalink

Posted in Food

Tagged foodie pen pals, fpp, gluten-free, healthy snacks, pen pals, vegetarian

Posted by greensandcoffeebeans on August 31, 2012

https://greensandcoffeebeans.wordpress.com/2012/08/31/august-foodie-pen-pals/

Busy Bee {WIAW}

Whew yesterday was longgg. I didn’t get back to my apartment until 9:00 last night, so I had to get a little creative on the food front.

Pictures are pretty awesome today, just warning you now. Poor campus lighting and camera phones are not a good combo.

Breakfast:

What’s up peanut butter oatmeal. You can do no wrong. I started adding cottage cheese into my oatmeal for an extra protein boost in the morning. It sounds a little weird but it makes for a very creamy and salty combination. Love it.

Yellow bowls make me extra happy, anyone else?

Breakfast part 2:

Two eggs to get me through the morning. Recycled picture because I was running a little late. Oopsies, but I still made it to class with 2 minutes to spare. Three cheers for power walking.

Lunch:

A golden delicious apples. Golden delicious apples are my favorite, other apple just don’t compare. The Harris Teeter near me sells 3 pound bags for $4 and I’m going through a bag a week! Hey, an apple a day keeps the doctor away, or it at least keeps my tummy happy.

Massaged kale salad with olive oil, apple cider vinegar and mushrooms, with some baked tofu sticks on the side. There was supposed to be avocado on this salad but I totally forgot to add it before leaving for class in the morning. It would have been way better with avocado, but then again isn’t everything?

Afternoon Snack:

Edamame! I think people get confused when they see me eat this because no one seems to know what it is. They don’t know what they’re missing out on. I walked a couple of laps around the Graphic Arts hallway while eating this, I was four hours into SIX hours of computer classes and my but was starting to fall asleep. It kills me a little.

And carrot sticks with hummus in the coffee shop after class. I had some time to kill before heading to dance auditions at 7 so I set up in the coffee shop to attempt to get some work done. I’d be lying if I said I spent more time working on homework than reading blogs, but hey, at least I got some work done.

Dinner:

Okay my dinner was really sad, but it’s the best I could do with being on campus for 12 hours.

Banana, and

Raw Revolution Spirulina Dream bar. This was my first time trying this bar and I really like it. It’s not very sweet and a little earthy tasting, but I’m a little weird and actually enjoyed that. I think bars are usually way too sweet so this was a nice change. It wasn’t an ideal dinner but it was full of healthy fats (thanks to the cashews) and had a decent amount of protein. And it was green!

See! One of my notebooks now has green fingerprints all over it but I’m totally okay with that. This bar was actually perfect fuel for dance auditions, it left me satisfied but I didn’t feel heavy or weighed down.

Late Snack:

Cottage cheese with peanut butter, flax meal and cinnamon after getting home from auditions. I’m on a cottage cheese roll right now, it’s so good and has so much protein in it. I think I could eat it all day long.

I also had an un-pictured plum and carrot dipped in peanut butter because it was late and I forgot. Oh well.

What’s your favorite (meat-free) protein source?

How do you survive long days? Lots of coffee =)

9 Comments

by greensandcoffeebeans on August 29, 2012 • Permalink

Posted in College LIfe, Food, What I Ate Wednesday

Tagged busy, college, food, gluten-free, student, vegetarian, what i ate wednesday, wiaw

Posted by greensandcoffeebeans on August 29, 2012

https://greensandcoffeebeans.wordpress.com/2012/08/29/busy-bee-wiaw/

How to Avoid the Cafeteria.

Now that I’m living off campus, and without a meal plan, it’s my personal mission to eat as little food from the dining hall as possible. Mainly because the food is gross and overpriced. Well it’s not gross, but it’s not exactly tasty and I’m a broke little college student so I’m trying to save money where I can.

Here are tips for avoiding the cafeteria (your wallet, and maybe even your waistline, will thank you!)

Invest in some tupperware. Tupperware is absolutely key for packing food. I have no less than 3 tupperware containers wedged in my book bag on any given day. If you’re sporting a book bag, flat compact tupperware is best. We won’t talk about plastic baggies because we love the Earth and we’re not going there, right? Right.

Tupperware with built-in utensils is an added bonus, but not if they awkwardly snap in half when you’re using them. Not that I know from experience or anything. RIP blue plastic fork.
Nutritionally dense foods are your friend. When book bag (or purse/lunch bag for all you working adults) space is at a premium, higher calorie (but healthy!) are important. They will keep you fuller longer and take up less space. Kale is delicious, but it’s not exactly small (but if you want to keep a bundle of kale in your book bag, by all means go for it). Excuse to eat more peanut butter? I think so.
Peanut butter!
Avoid runny foods. It’s not cute when your backpack starts to drip. Especially when it ruins that paper you spent all night working on.
Make sure you pack enough food. This is important. You don’t want the hunger beast causing you to make rash decisions. It’s not pretty, and it makes that junky vending machine look tempting. Don’t fall into it’s trap by packing lots of healthy snacks. I always find it’s better to pack more food and have some left over than to not pack enough and be crabby and hungry.
Me when I’m hungry. Watch out.
Don’t pack stinky food. I have an unnatural love for curry but I will never use curry sauce in a meal I plan to eat on campus. It’s like the tuna sandwich on an airplane, don’t be that person. And stay away from the garlic.
Exnay on the curry.
If you want to pack temperature-sensitive foods, make sure they’re the first thing you’re going to eat. I generally pack something that should be refrigerated for lunch because it will still be cold when I’m ready to eat it, but I pack room temperature foods for dinner. Let’s keep things food-poisioning free.

Do you eat at the dining hall on your campus or cafeteria at your work (if you have one)?

Favorite item from your childhood lunch box? I was a big fan of bagels, I think I ate one everyday for two years in middle school. Little Debby Nutter Butters and Swiss Rolls were the highlight of my elementary school lunch box.

Marvelous in My Monday

Happy Monday!

Oh Mondays, how I love to hate you. I can’t blame Mondays too much, it’s not Monday’s fault that it got stuck after the weekend in the weekday line up. Poor guy just can’t compare.

I love the Marvelous in My Monday posts that I’ve seen circling around (thanks Katie!) and wanted to jump on the bandwagon. I’m always looking for ways to make Monday a little less sucktacular and this seems like the perfect way to do so. Why not start the week on a good note?

Things that made my Monday Marvelous:

Morning spin class. I love squeezing a workout before class. Those exercise endorphins put me in such a good mood for the rest of the day. It also makes sitting in class for hours at a time so much more bearable!
Waking up early enough to catch reruns of Boy Meets World. Learning sappy life lessons all before 8 am. This show makes me nostalgic for 90s TV, TV shows today just don’t compare, I miss TGIF!
My apartment got a new dishwasher! So far every major kitchen appliance has broken since moving in (with exception of the fridge), three cheers for cheap student apartments. On the bright side, it’s gotten us a new microwave and dishwasher. As long as the broken appliances continue to be replaced with new ones I won’t complain. Now if only that oven would break…
Sparkly new dishwasher!
28 people came to my Pilates class!! So. Many. People. It was a little nerve-wracking but I love that so many people are coming out to class and I hope the numbers stay that high. We even ran out of mats, which is not a problem I’m upset about having.
Yummy foods packed for lunch. I’m on day number 8 of not eating out and still going strong. My Tupperware collection is getting a little out of control…

Massaged kale salad made with olive oil, apple cider vinegar, red kale, mushrooms, avocado(!) and baked tofu. I love red kale, purple things are better. It’s a fact.

And dinner:

Two eggs (I knocked my cartons of eggs out of the fridge and broke all four eggs in it, was able to save two of them. Never said I was graceful) and stir-fried onions, green beans, mushrooms, broccoli and collard greens with Trader Joe’s Red Thai Curry Sauce. My love for curry is starting to reach new heights, I can’t seem to get enough of it. Unfortunately the Indian food scene in Boone is sparse.

I had my Somatics class today. I’m taking the class as part of my dance minor and I can already tell I’m going to love it. The class is all about mind-body connection, and understanding your body (very hippie and very awesome). Our homework is 10-pages of coloring. Coloring in a college class? I’m in love.
Dance auditions are tomorrow! I love the process even if I don’t make the cut. I’ll take any chance to dance I can.

What made your Monday marvelous?

What’s your favorite 90’s TV show? I’m pretty much love everything that came on ABC’s TGIF!

3 Comments

by greensandcoffeebeans on August 27, 2012 • Permalink

Posted in College LIfe, Fitness, Lists

Tagged apartment, boy meets world, dance, eggs, kale, lunch, monday, pilates, spin

Posted by greensandcoffeebeans on August 27, 2012

https://greensandcoffeebeans.wordpress.com/2012/08/27/marvelous-in-my-monday/

Three Things.

The first week back to school has been a little hectic, can’t I go back to wearing yoga pants all day? Yes, I like that idea.

I saw Emily‘s Three Things Thursday post, I thought it looked like a fun way to recap the week, so I’m totally stealing the idea, even if it’s not Thursday.

3 things that made me smile:

Sunday dinner with my roommates! We made eggplant and zucchini parmesan with farmer’s market corn on the side. The dinner was so delicious and it was great to hangout with everyone.And when you’re gluten-free you get a whole pan to yourself. Bonus.
18 people came to my Pilates class this week! That’s the biggest turnout I’ve had so far! I felt a little rusty after not teaching over the summer but I think it went pretty well!
Volunteering for the High Country Triple Crown Half Marathon. Got to hangout with some cool people, pass out water and gatorade to some fierce runners (most of the course was up hill, there was even a 1500 ft climb, and then winner still finished in 1:14, crazy!) and I got a free neon volunteer shirt
The picture doesn’t do it justice. Dance auditions for fall concert and I’m seriously considering busting out this t-shirt just to make sure I get seen =) And please ignore the major under eye bags and toilet in the background. I was working off 5 hours of sleep.

3 things I’ve been eating:

Golden delicious apples – Golden Delicious is my favorite apple and I was giddy with excitement when I found a big bag of them at the grocery store for $4. It’s also apple season in NC so I’m ready for some delicious local apples soon!
Coffee, coffee and more coffee, but is that really a surprise, no? I mean you can’t really eat coffee, but that’s not the point.
Eggs, I ate 5 of them today. I might have a problem. They’re just so tasty, cheap and easy. And I can’t resist a good runny yolk!

3 things that made me frown:

Decoding binary, I’m learning binary for my digital printing class and it makes my head hurt.My homework was to decode this whole sheet. It’s as fun as it looks.
I had some delicious gluten-filled chocolate chip cherry oatmeal cookies my friend made last night. The cookies were amazing but my stomach didn’t like it and it definitely let me know this today. Steering clear of all gluten for a while.
I haven’t worked out since Thursday, I’m starting to get antsy, I just want to get up and run around!

3 things that keep me sane:

Yoga! I’ve been to two classes so far this week! My body has definitely been craving it, the practices were tough but it just means I need more yoga in my life!
Quiet mornings with a cup of coffee before my roommates get up in the morning. It’s incredibly relaxing and gets me ready to start the day. The perks of being a ridiculous early bird.
The Disney channel on Pandora. It takes me back to my childhood and makes me feel warm and fuzzy. I love listening to it before bed.

Tell me three things about your week!

First Day of School {WIAW}

This month’s What I Ate Wednesday theme might be Summer Staples, but summer time is over for this girl. Back to college for Lea.

Yesterday was the first day of my senior year of college! It blows my mind that this is my final year of college. I have to start figuring out what I’m going to do with my life and be responsible or something. That one needs some work.

My morning started with a NEW breakfast. I know, crazy talk.

Overnight oats with plain greek yogurt, unsweetened vanilla almond milk, peanut butter and cinnamon. This new breakfast was created out of necessity because the microwave in my apartment is broken (boo) and I’m too lazy to make stovetop oats before class. Overnight oats it is! I miss warm oats but this definitely works in a pinch. Our microwave mysteriously disappeared while I was in class today so I’m hoping to come home to a new one tomorrow. Fingers crossed!

My morning cup of coffee. So necessary. I bought this mug at World Market, it came in a set of six and they are my new favorite things. I think they’re cute, they’re small and teacup-like and they make me a feel a little fancy. Yes, I do get way too excited about coffee mugs.

I went to an 8 AM yoga class to get my blood flowing before my 9:30 class. Definitely the perfect way to start the morning, headstands before 9 AM are always a good choice. I had an apple post-yoga on the way to class. Walking and eating, welcome to college. Food on the go is necessary.

Lunch was eaten in the hallway while waiting for my 12:00 class. My schedule is a little crazy this semester so I basically try to shove food in whenever I can. Like 6 straight hours of class with 10-minute breaks crazy. I seem to always forget about lunch when registering for class. Lunch is pretty unimportant when trying to graduate in 4 years.

Kidding, I love lunch. Lunch today was tempeh with zucchini and collard greens, which I definitely forgot to take a picture until I finished, whoops. I also had a black bean patty that was leftover from my friend’s potluck dinner on Monday night.

Totally a normal snack to be eating in an academic building. People might have stared. Whatever.

I had a Cherry Cobbler Uber bar in between my last two class (during some blog reading!). I was in a major lack-of-caffiene slump (I might have a problem) and needed a pick me up. I love the new Uber bars, I’m a big fan of all the extra nuts in these bars, I think it makes them much more filling than the regular larabars.

I inhaled this banana and peanut butter I as soon as I walked into the door of my apartment. Six hours of class makes me hungry! So hungry that I didn’t notice a piece of banana fell on my hand, awesome.

I had dinner a couple of hours later after lazing around for a few hours. I’m savoring my downtime as much possible because I know it won’t last long this semester.

Summer squash, onions and collard greens with two fried eggs on the side. The eggs were a little bit of fiasco since I’m still getting used to the oven in my apartment, they were completely brown on one side and a step away from raw on the other. Yeah, I’m working on it.

I had a snack of cottage cheese, peanut butter and cinnamon after practicing some Pilates (I taught my first class today!). It sounds like a weird combo but I promise it’s delicious. This snack has a ton of protein too, which is an added bonus.

My eats are going to be pretty interesting this year. I no longer have a meal plan now that I’m off campus and I’m trying my best to avoid campus food altogether because it’s pretty expensive. I’m trying to cook and pack my own meals but it’s a pretty difficult task considering I’m usually eating on the go and have no microwave access during the day. I’m trying to figure out some easy, packable meals I can make throughout the week the are both quick and cheap, which will be quite the adventure. Any advice is definitely welcome!

What are your favorite portable meals? I need some ideas!

If you’re in school, what classes are you taking? I’m weirdly interested in the classes other people are taking, some of them sound really awesome! This semester I’m taking Flexography (basically package design), web development (aka the blog will be pretty soon!), 3D animation, digital printing methods, entrepreneurship and somatics (mind-body connection class, should be fun!).

4 Comments

by greensandcoffeebeans on August 22, 2012 • Permalink

Posted in College LIfe, Food, What I Ate Wednesday

Tagged classes, college, first day of school, food, on the go, what i ate wednesday, wiaw

Posted by greensandcoffeebeans on August 22, 2012

https://greensandcoffeebeans.wordpress.com/2012/08/22/first-day-of-school-wiaw/

Whirlwind.

Hey! Long time no see!

It’s been a crazy week to say the least. Recap? yes.

Thursday:

I had mandatory training for work. In Boone. I couldn’t move into my apartment until Saturday, so I had to make a the three hour trip to Boone for three hours of training. Six hours of driving? Sounds like a good time. Luckily, my mom was sweet enough to come along with me (and drive!) which made for a pretty fun day trip.

I got finished with my training around 12:30, so my mom and I grabbed lunch before heading home. We were hoping to go to Black Cat but the line was already out the door and I was pretty hungry, so we headed across the street to Melanie’s instead. Melanie’s is a cute little brunch place in downtown Boone. They offer a variety of fresh and local ingredients and have a lot of great vegetarian options, always a bonus. I ordered the Omelet of the Day which included feta cheese, artichoke, mushrooms and spinach with a side of fresh fruit. I didn’t remember to take a picture but it was absolutely delicious. I loved the feta cheese and artichokes together with the eggs, and unexpected combination but so good.

Friday:

Friday morning I woke up bright an early to catch a Basic Training class. I only had a few days left in town so I wanted to get in all my favorite group fitness classes before leaving. This workout was a toughie but I loved it.

Friday was also my last day at my internship! They bought me a cake (marble flavored!) to celebrate my last day which was so sweet of them.

It’s got a few slices missing but you get the picture. I’ll pretend like it was gluten-free and didn’t give me a stomach ache the next day. Worth it though.

My internship was such a great experience, I learned so much, got to work on a lot of really cool projects, and got to work with some really nice people. I’m definitely going to miss it there!

Friday evening my boyfriend and I had a date night to spend some time together before I go went to school. We originally planned to go out to dinner, but we both decided we just wanted to stay home instead. We grabbed subs from Jimmy John’s (veggie lettuce wrap for me, lots of meat and bread for him), grabbed a movie from Red Box (Jeff, Who Lives At Home which was different but good, with lots of dark humor) and just enjoyed each other’s company. It was a pretty perfect evening.

Saturday:

Saturday was an apartment packing extravaganza. I feel that by adding extravaganza at the end of something you don’t really want to do it makes it sound more and makes me more likely to do it. Example: Dish Washing Extravaganza! Paper Writing Extravaganza! Root Canal Extravaganza (okay that still sounds awful)! Much more fun sounding.

But before packing I stopped in for one last group fitness class at my gym, kickboxing! I hadn’t been to a kickboxing class all summer and after taking that class I regret it. It was so much fun and I was dripping in sweat by the end of it. It was definitely an amazing workout.

I should mention it’s a bad choice to wait to pack until the day before you move. Learn from my mistakes. At least I got fro yo.

Tart and Oatmeal Cookie flavor with bananas, a peanut butter drizzle and carob chips. Oatmeal cookie might overtake tart for my new favorite flavor, it’s so cinnamon-y and delicious. You better watch your back tart.

Sunday:

Move-in day! It was a long one. My parents and I got into Boone around lunch time so we hit up the Earthfare deli/salad bar to fuel a long afternoon of carrying boxes.

Salad with spring mix, alfalfa sprouts, mushrooms, carrots, chickpeas and feta cheese, plus sauteed veggies and steamed broccoli on the side. Hit the stop.

Enter 2 hours of moving things into my new apartment(!), which I am loving. It’s so nice to have my own room again, apartments are a million times better than dorms. I’ll have to give a tour if I even finish unpacking all the way. Yeah, it could be a few weeks.

My family and one of my roommates then headed out for dinner at Coyote Kitchen. Coyote Kitchen serves what it calls “Caribbean soul food” and it is one of my favorite restaurants in Boone, everything they serve is absolutely delicious. It’s a little pricey for my college budget, but I definitely take advantage and go when my parents are in town.

I ordered a Gabriella burrito sans tortilla (because I like to be difficult):

“Rice, black beans, blackened tofu, sweet red vegan nayo, sweet potatoes, roasted sweet corn, roasted red pepper, and zucchini and squash” with a side of cranberry chipotle salsa.

Unbelievably good. And FYI ordering a burrito with no tortilla is definitely the way to go, they give you way more filling, which is definitely the best part.

After dinner I ran my parents all around town to pick up things for my apartment. Sorry guys.

Monday:

Monday morning my parents and I headed out to Blowing Rock to check out the outlet mall. There weren’t many spectacular deals but I did snag a cut dress from the Gap.

We grabbed lunch at Black Cat before my parents headed out of town. Black Cat is another Boone favorite, they make some of the best burritos I’ve ever had and all for a very college-friendly price. I ordered a “Satay It To Me Softly” (yes, all of their other burritos have equally awesome names):

“Tofu in a spinach wrap stuffed with broccoli, carrots, caramelized onions, a spicy thai peanut sauce, cheese & rice” except minus the tortilla for me again, and a side of coleslaw. The peanut sauce in this bad boy is AMAZING. I would drink it if I could. Not kidding even a little bit.

My parents headed home after lunch, it’s always a little sad to see them go but I definitely excited for what the year has in store.

For dinner we got together with my friends that live in the apartment next door and had a potluck dinner. It was a very college-y spread of chicken, roasted asparagus, Kraft mac and cheese, green beans, cheesy bread, these black bean burgers from yours truly and chocolate chip oatmeal cookies. It ended up being a pretty random mishmash of food, but a good time. We’re going to have so much fun living across from each other this year.

Today:

Today was the first day of classes! What’s up senior year? I can’t believe I’m already a senior, where has the time gone?

But I’ve got to get up early to get books in the morning so it’s bed time for me!

What did you do this weekend?

If you’re in school, how was your first day?

Would you rather have a date night at home or go out?

1 Comment

by greensandcoffeebeans on August 22, 2012 • Permalink

Posted in College LIfe, Fitness, Food, Restaurant Review

Tagged apartment, college, dates, first day of school, food, fro yo, restaurants, workouts

Posted by greensandcoffeebeans on August 22, 2012

https://greensandcoffeebeans.wordpress.com/2012/08/22/whirlwind/

10 Servings of Vegetables {WIAW}

What’s up Wednesday? You sure snuck up on me fast this week. Maybe it’s just me but the week has been flying by, probably because I have about 10 million things to do (i.e. pack) before Sunday and not much time or motivation to do any of them. Good thing I’m a master procrastinator.

And on to my eats:

Breakfast: Good old peanut butter oats, but watch out! I’ve got a new addition this week:

Flaxseeds! I saw the bag on sale at Kroger the other week and picked some up. Omega-3s are pretty lacking in my diet so I thought this would help give them a boost. Omega-3s are good for maintaining cardiovascular health and helps reduce inflammation in the body, sounds pretty good right? And totally random but my dad looks just like the Bob’s Redmill guy.

It’s uncanny.

Oh, I also had a plum and an egg between getting home from a 6am spin class and going to work.

Morning Snack: Edamame.

Lucky for me they spilt all over my purse on the way to work. Mmmm… linty. Chasing soybeans around the bottom of your purse is not a good start to the morning.

Lunch: Lunch was in a few pieces because I was starving when I got home so I downed a few spoonfuls of peanut butter and an apple before actually making real food. I was a little bit hungry. From there I had a fried egg:

Photogenic, no?

Then I made a large heaping bowl of vegetables:

Farmer’s market zucchini, onion, roma tomato and spinach plus Trader Joe’s Thai Red Curry Sauce because I literally cannot get enough of that stuff. I bought another bottle last week and the cash asked me what I was planning use it with. My reply: Everything. Everything tastes better with curry sauce. Fact. Curry cupcakes? Not gonna lie, I’d probably still eat them.

Afternoon Snack: My afternoon snack was courtesy of some seriously delicious farmers market finds. Farmer’s market find number one:

Grape tomatoes. They’re so teeny and cute. I used to hate tomatoes as a kid, but they’re starting to grow on me. It helps when they’re yellow and adorable.

Farmer’s market number two:

Black bean hummus. This stuff is like heaven in a plastic container. It’s spicy and savory and absolutely addicting. My favorite part is the chunks of sun-dried tomato in it. I’m not ashamed to say I ate half the container in one sitting.

Dinner: My dad treated the family to dinner at Sweet Tomatoes. I’m a huge fan of Sweet Tomatoes because where else can I get 10 servings on veggies in one sitting?

Demolished. I have to take a picture of my plate every time I eat at Sweet Tomatoes because I impress even myself with the amount of veggies I can put away. However the people waiting behind me in the salad bar line are usually not amused.

I also had a small bowl of vanilla frozen yogurt topped with banana and granola and a second bowl of grapes for dessert. I mostly ate the bananas and granola off the fro yo because it was too sweet for me. I’ll take my old lady tart flavor over vanilla any day.

Late Snack: I had a half-sized bowl of my usual morning oats before going to bed. Something about cozying up with a warm bowl of oatmeal before bed is just so comforting and relaxing. We’ll pretend like it’s not 90 degrees outside.

I’ve got to be up earlier for a trip to Boone in the morning so I should probably be getting to sleep!

6 Comments

by greensandcoffeebeans on August 15, 2012 • Permalink

Posted in Farmer's Market, Food, What I Ate Wednesday

Tagged bobs redmill, flaxseeds, food, omega-3, salad bar, vegetables, what i ate wednesday, wiaw

Posted by greensandcoffeebeans on August 15, 2012

https://greensandcoffeebeans.wordpress.com/2012/08/15/10-servings-of-vegetables-wiaw/

This or That.

Today has been pretty uninteresting. I went to a 6 am spin class (wonderful), went to work and then spent the evening ~~procrastinating~~ packing (moving back to school on Sunday!). I hate packing, if some packing fairies decide to pop up and I find all my stuff boxed up tomorrow morning I wouldn’t complain. Please?

I thought a survey might be fun. I’ve seen this one all over the blog-world. I thought I’d hop on the survey train too.

This or That?

1. Run/workout in the heat and humidity or freezing temps and snow? Heat and humidity! I’m the BIGGEST wimp ever when it comes to running in the cold! Maybe you remember this terrible 5k I ran in the cold. Cold is gross. Plus I usually get sick after running in the cold which is no bueno.

2. Have washboard abs or flat abs? Washboard! I like to dream big =)

I definitely wouldn’t mind having Sanya Richard Ross’ abs.

3. Dr. Oz or The Doctors? I’d probably pick Dr. Oz over the Doctors but I don’t like how overzealous he is when it comes to recommending supplements. I’m also not a fan of how he has to bust out the preserved body part every time he talks about a different disease. A nice illustration would get the point across.

4. Cardio or strength? Both! I burn out if I don’t constantly mix things up. I have the worst gym ADD. That being said, I’m really digging cardio at the moment, but with some weight intervals thrown in.

5. Cravings: Protein or carbs? Carbs! All day everyday. I could literally just eat carbs all day (and peanut butter!) and be completely content. People who claim they don’t like carbs are ridiculous. Carbs are delicious.

Yes yes yes.

6. Jillian Michaels or Bob Harper? Probably Bob Harper, I didn’t watch much Biggest Loser when Jillian Michaels was on it and I’ve never tried any of her videos, but Bob seems nicer. Plus he’s a vegan, which I think is pretty cool.

7. Frozen Yogurt or Ice Cream? Fro yooooo. I had a bite of my dads ice cream the other week and was almost sent into diabetic shock. Not really, but I like the tartness of frozen yogurt much better. But if someone offered me a free scoop of ice cream I certainly wouldn’t turn it down.

8. To train: Upper body or Lower body? On the fence, I like working my lower body because it’s way stronger than my upper body, but I feel like balancing things out. And lunges are my nemesis and upper body workouts don’t include lunges so I’m a fan.

9. Protein powder or food with protein? I know it’s so much better to get protein from food, but protein powder comes in delicious flavors like vanilla and chocolate! It’s a nice change from eggs/soy/beans/cottage cheese galore. But I don’t buy protein powder very often so most of my protein comes from food.

10. Lunges or squats? Squats! Anything but lunges please. I hate hate hate lunges. They’re good for me but they feel like torture. I would rather do burpees than lunges, I hate them that much.

11. Sweet or salty? Sweet, salty is great but I would rather eat 528457298457 pounds of fruit.

12. Workout attire: cute or comfy? Comfy, I look like a hot mess when I’m in the gym. But buying cute workout clothes is totally motivation to get my butt to the gym.

13. Body Pump or Heavy lifting? I’ve never taken a Body Pump class but my gym offers something that sounds similar, I like heavy lifting better. I love seeing the progress you get with heavy lifting and feeling like a beast.

14. Yoga or Pilates? Even though I teach Pilates, I have to say Yoga. I love Pilates, but I never crave Pilates like I crave a good yoga session. Yoga encompasses so much more than just a workout, and I think that’s part of why I’m drawn to it.

15. Nike or Adidas? I’ve actually never owned anything from either brand, crazy right? I think Nike’s stuff is cuter though.

16. Running on the treadmill or outdoors? At the moment I’m loving the treadmill, but I’m sure that will change when the weather cools down. But right now AC definitely beats out 95 degree summer weather.

17. Whole Foods or Trader Joe’s? I love Whole Foods but my wallet loves Trader Joe’s.

18. Summer or Winter Olympics? Summer! Mostly because I’m not a fan of the snow or cold, and I love watching gymnastics and running. But at this point I’ll take any Olympics I can get my hands on, I’m still in the midst of some serious Olympic withdrawals.

19. Exercises classes or Exercise videos? Classes by far. I get so lazy when it comes to exercise videos, classes are so much more motivating. I love the atmosphere and I feel like I push myself so much harder when I’m working out around other people.

20. Steamed veggies or roasted veggies? Roasted veggies! So much more flavorful and less squishy.

1 Comment

by greensandcoffeebeans on August 14, 2012 • Permalink

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Tagged abs, carbs, cardio, fro yo, olympics, protein, running, strength, Survey, this or that, trader joes, weight training

Posted by greensandcoffeebeans on August 14, 2012

https://greensandcoffeebeans.wordpress.com/2012/08/14/this-or-that/

Things I Did This Weekend.

I had a busy weekend and lots to catch you up on, so list it is!

I helped move my brother into his dorm (it’s still weird, he can’t be that old), and came to the conclusion that boys are way more minimalist than girls. His load of boxes was last than half of my typical load. But, I wasn’t complaining while moving those boxes up flights of stairs.

Post-dinner my family had dinner at the Flying Biscuit. I love that place, vegetarian-friendly southern food? Count me in. I got a Tofu and Tater Salad:

Not my picture, I got hungry (source)

Mixed greens, scrambled tamari-marinated tofu, feta cheese and rosemary roasted potato (aka carby white potato heaven). I cried a little after not eating the biscuit (but I still snuck a pinch of one) but it didn’t stop me from enjoying their famous cranberry apple butter, straight up, with a spoon. I’m such a classy lady.

Fro-yo followed a couple of hours later. Tart with bananas, chocolate covered raisins, peanut butter and granola. Sooo delicious. Delicious enough that I forgot to take a picture. Not sorry about it.

Saturday morning I was going to go to another CrossFit class, but my mom was going to the farmer’s market, and sometimes family farmer’s market trips win out over CrossFit, especially when you’re moving back to school in a week. But I’m still hoping to catch a class one more time before I leave for Boone on Sunday! We got quite the haul at the farmers market: cantaloupe, watermelon, peaches, apples, blueberries, figs, yellow squash, zucchini, grape tomatoes, corn, beets, kale and black bean hummus. I think I’m set for a while.

I bought a new pair of flats the other weekend and I’m working on breaking them in, which means mad blisters in the mean time. Luckily, Hello Kitty band-aids have magical healing properties

I ran a 5K Saturday night! On the treadmill. I’m working my running endurance back up in time for some fall races. I’m ready for fall running weather. The summer heat is slowly killing me.

Who else watched the Olympic closing ceremonies? The closing made about as much sense as the opening, but I still loved it. Any ceremony with an interactive Freddie Mercury performance is fine by me. Though I think if Tupac got a hologram, he deserves on too.

Today I went through some serious Olympic withdrawals. I don’t even remember what I watched on TV before the Olympics. The Olympics should happen every year, or every month. I don’t know how I’m going to wait until 2016.

I went to a Basic Training class this evening and we did a kickboxing sequence on the ground, think Pilates side series but kickbox-y, my legs were burning! I’ll definitely have to incorporate into some of my own workouts.

Dinner tonight:
Tofu, onions, bell pepper, and farmer’s market kale and beets cooked in dijon mustard. It was quite the yummy combo.

5 am spin class in the morning!

What did you do this weekend?

What’s your favorite restaurant meal? Mine is this sandwich from the Remedy Dinner in downtown Raleigh. But my salad from the Flying Biscuit is a close second.

Does anyone know what Bob Costas does when the Olympics aren’t happening? Mystery.