edible adventures!

Microwave Baked Oatmeal

It’s been a while (again).

i’ve been slowly getting back into the routine of eating healthier - though i’m not super into it yet because the cold makes it difficult since i’m always wanting hot comfort foods to warm me up.

i’m sure by the spring time i’ll be back to my old veggie-munching, fruit pounding self. i also haven’t been on the bike since my event in october, so my metabolism is just not where it should be. 

anyway - here’s my recipe for a relatively healthy, warm and different recipe. it’s oatmeal that tastes like a cake and it’s pretty damn healthy.

ingredients:

2 pkg instant plain oatmeal (you can sub out whatever flavor you want)

1/2 c almond milk

1 tbsp brown sugar

1 egg

1/4 tsp cinnamon

pinch of allspice

1/2 tbsp chia seeds

small amount of pumpkin seeds

small amount of slivered toasted almonds

mix everything very well in a coffee mug, put in the microwave for 2.5 minutes. that’s it. super easy, super quick, super customizable and super delicious. because of the egg, it’s got extra protein and sets up like a cake or muffin rather than a porridge.

give it a try!

hibernation?

it’s been a while. roughly about 14 minutes after i completed my 30 mile bike ride for BikeMS, i basically threw myself off the wagon. i ate whatever i wanted for basically 3 months…and I’ve gained a little bit of weight back. Honestly, it hasn’t been much (about 7 pounds). However, I also haven’t worked out since then. Well that’s not true, I had been going to the gym until the first week of November, so there’s that. 

I’ve got like 10 months til my wedding, so I’m not even worried about losing those 7 pounds before the wedding. I just feel so out of shape. My muscles have shrunk, they spasm often and I pull muscles in my shoulders back and legs frequently. It sucks.

So I’m getting back into it ASAP. I’m turning 24 in 2 weeks, and I want to get myself a new bike for my birthday. Well…maybe a used (new to me) bike. I don’t want to spend more than $1000 (well, I’ve got $400 in amex gift cards so…really I don’t want to spend more than $600 cash). I’m hoping there’s a shop in the area with a nice sale going on, since it’s the winter. We’ll see.

In the meantime, I’m eating a honeynut chia pudding for breakfast with some starfruit green tea and a banana. Let’s do this!

allez!

I completed BikeMS NYC today. After which I basically slept and ate all day. It was an extremely draining experience. Seriously, I’ve felt like I was hit by a train basically all day. But it was so much fun and I’d love to do it again, especially if I had a better bike.

I feel so freakin’ accomplished!

Lassi

ah. the lassi - an indian yogurt-based smoothie-ish type drink. it’s not really a smoothie, it’s got a much thinner consistency. but DAMN is it delicious.

needless to say, i’m drinking one as my post-workout recovery. it’s date and banana, here’s the ingredients:

plain yogurt

banana

two dates (you should probably puree them before putting them in the blender with the other ingredients…mine turned out to have a few large chunks, because i put them in whole)

teaspoon of honey

almond milk

cinnamon

nutmeg

also, if you’ve got it, you can sub cardamom powder out for the nutmeg, it’ll be more authentic.

I feel like a teenager again.

I’ve been working out 4 times a week for the last 3 weeks. 

And now I’m hungry. ALL THE TIME. it’s ridiculous.

at least i’ve been sticking (mostly) to the healthy stuff. fruit, veggies, etc. i’m still not worried about the occasional cheeseburger, because i’m not of the mindset of cutting out things that are bad for you, but instead focusing on putting more good things in.

i’ve been eating more carbs lately, which i’m fine with because i need them for energy on the bike and in the gym. as a matter of fact, since i’ve been meal planning lately, i’ve decided to try and get in 1 pasta dinner a week.

actually, here’s my meal plan for the week (keep in mind it already started):

monday - night class, had to eat on campus. got a bowl of vegetable soup and a quesadilla with black beans, jalapeños and pico de gallo in it.

tuesday - getting dinner with friends at a local brewpub. it’s suprisingly fancy and expensive, so i don’t know what exactly i’m getting. just about everything on the menu is $25-$30, with the exception of the cheeseburger for $18.50 (lol). but their beer list looks awesome, so excited. really traditional style stuff.

wednesday - chicken shawarma. i actually have to marinate the meat overnight, so i’ll have to prep after i get home from dinner.

thursday - turkey taco casserole. it’s basically a taco made with ground turkey, but no tortilla, so you layer the taco fillings in a bowl and just eat it with a fork.

friday - thai red curry! haven’t made this in a while. delicious stuff. 

saturday - chicken sausage, mushroom and spinach pasta.

so this week isn’t exactly vegetarian, but it’s still pretty healthy - especially keeping in mind that i’m still generally doing green smoothies for breakfast and fruit for lunch.

less than a month until my BikeMS event!

veganism?

a majority of my diet has been raw vegan. like, i’m not saying i’m a raw foodist now - i wouldn’t feel right categorize myself like that. i do eat cooked food sometimes. i do eat meat and dairy sometimes. but a MAJORITY of the food i eat is raw. fruit. vegetables.

and even when i eat cooked food, a lot of the time it’s still vegan or vegetarian. i used to be the kind of guy to say ‘if there’s no meat, it’s not a meal.’ i honestly did not feel satisfied unless i had animal protein in every meal. unless i was having breakfast cereal or something. even grilled cheese…i wouldn’t have it unless there was ham, bacon, or some other meat in it.

rambling. anyway.

nowadays, i can have a smoothie for breakfast. or lunch. and that’s really all i need. or maybe a sliced beefsteak tomato with some salt, pepper and herbs sprinkled on it.

i will say this though: now that it’s getting colder, i find myself more in the mood for cooked foods - especially soup.

again, i don’t see anything wrong with cooked food. i was just making an observation about my eating patterns, which are far different from where they used to be.

Current Weight: 162

BREAKFAST, MUHFUCKA!

A SHOT OF APPLE CIDER VINEGAR

GREEN SMOOTHIE

HUGE GLASS OF FRESHLY SQUEEZED ORGANIC ORANGE JUICE

BIG ASS HONEYCRISP APPLE

so…yep. that’s my breakfast. at 10:30. I’ve got class soon, totally told myself I’d work out twice today (early morning, then again at like 5 or 6).

I’m super pumped now, but when I first woke up …well…tried to wake up… at 7, I was not havin’ it. So I’m getting all this hydrating, energizing food in my face and just push it extra hard later tonight.