Eights Weeks Schmeight Weeks

I have just solidified my menu for Thanksgiving this year.

What?

Method Rather Than Menu

I couldn’t bring myself to bore us all with my exact food choices every single day, but I have been keeping track. Here’s a day’s worth of food:

Oatmeal
Brown rice with veggie-packed Artichoke sauce
1 pear
2 rice cakes with 2 Tbs peanut butter
Lean beef chili

That was yesterday. Today I woke up CRAVING protein at breakfast.  So far I’ve had:

2 egg whites with 1 slice roast beef and 1 slice reduced fat provolone
1 carrot oatmeal square
salad with romaine, celery,  onion, brown rice, fontina cheese, light ranch

That should hold me over until dinner, which is at my friend Sandy’s house for Ladies’ Supper. It’s a girls only supper club and I’ve been invited as a guest. The theme is Southern food (ouch for the waist line). I made a pecan pie.

Sunday I did legs and they’re still sore today. I only managed 1 mile after the leg workout and yesterday we skipped. Today I did chest and abs and 45 minutes of cardio.  My skin looks good, I feel pretty good but I don’t think I’ll be sportin’ some rocking self esteem any time soon.

Plugging along.

Friday’s Stats, That’s All

Friday’s eats:

1/2 cup brown rice with 1/2 teaspoon of honey
1/4 cup brown rice, broccoli, chicken breast with homemade orange sauce
2 rice cakes with 2 Tbs peanut butter
Salad with chicken breast, romaine, celery, carrots, tomatoes, 2 pretzel rods, light mayo, light ranch
red wine

Friday workout:

Shoulder, Tris with HP, 3 mile run

Man Approved: Chicken Enchiladas

I’m not sure there’s anything authentic about these chicken enchiladas (hint: there isn’t), regardless they are easy, delicious, healthy, and a total crowd pleaser. They do take advantage of some processed, canned food, but sometimes you just need easy. I’ve made these the last two times we’ve had company for dinner and people always go back for more. Even my mexican friends! That’s not a bad sign at all. So, authentic or not, make them!

Plus, they get a high fork rating.

Here’s the other thing: there are some easy shortcuts you can use to make these even faster to make. When I was really short on time I made them with rotisserie chicken breasts that I shredded, and a packet of store bought taco seasoning instead of my own.  Shhh!

Of course if you don’t want to use the condensed soups you could make a roux and add fat free half and half for the base but…in this instance, I’ll stick with the cans.

Man Approved: Chicken Enchiladas

1/2 cup chopped onion, any kind you have on hand
1 (4 ounce) can diced green chiles
2 (10.75 ounce) cans 99% fat free, low sodium cream of chicken soup
1 cup light sour cream
1 1/2 cups shredded cooked chicken breast meat
taco seasonings (I use salt, pepper, red pepper, paprika, cumin, cayenne, chili powder, onion powder, garlic powder) OR 1 packet store bought taco seasoning
1 cup shredded 2% cheddar cheese
6 (12 inch) flour tortillas (I use the Mission low carb – no one knows!)
1/4 cup skim milk

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F, spray a 9×13 baking dish with cooking spray.

In a medium saucepan over medium heat, saute the onion until tender. Stir in the green chiles, cream of chicken soup and sour cream. Season with your taco seasonings. Mix well. Reserve 3/4 of this sauce and set aside. To the remaining 1/4 of the sauce in the saucepan, add the chicken and 1/2 cup of shredded Cheddar cheese. Stir together.

Fill each flour tortilla with the chicken mixture and roll up. Place seam side down in the baking dish.

In the bowl of the reserved 3/4 of the sauce add the milk. Spoon this over the rolled tortillas and top with the remaining 1/2 cup of shredded Cheddar cheese. Bake 30 minutes.

I’m Not Complaining About The Hours Though

Yesterday I finally got some hours, more than I thought. I was supposed to temp for a couple hours so I got up and had my oats, then packed some baby carrots for my snack and anticipated being back in a few hours.

Nine hours later I walked through the door in a daze because I was so hungry. HP and I pushed our workouts to today and I sort of want to feel guilty about it, but, dude. Oats and baby carrots. I needed food.

Then we folded three loads of clean laundry, because we hate folding and leave the clean clothes to wrinkle in a pile on top of the dryer, and watched another episode of Season 1 Sons of Anarchy (getting caught up on the first sesaon, DVRing all the new ones till we’re caught up.)

(That was clearly really important information that I needed to share with you. I know you care.)

Today I’m trying to track down a new headhunter, have 8 job postings open in tabs to apply to, go to the bank, fight with the unemployment offices, go through the circular and make the grocery list, hit the gym later.

At least it’s rainy and gloomy out. I’m in the mood for a rainy and gloomy day.

Thursday eats:

1/2 cup oatmeal
handful of baby carrorts
10″ wheat crust pizza with chicken sausage, turkey pepperoni, jalapenos, low fat mozzarella (~ 700 calories)
2 pretzel rods
1 glass of red wine

Thursday workout:

none

Unemployment Sucks

I slept horribly last night, riddled with nightmares about everything around me getting broken, destroyed. A large glass house that didn’t belong to me with windows shattering, people getting hurt, cars exploding. Destruction all around me.

Methinks I have a little anxiety going on, no?

I found myself sitting in the bathroom last night with tears pouring off my face and unable to get all the snot out of nose. How does that much snot accumulate so quickly? I’m freaking out about money – paying the rent and buying the groceries and student loans and car payment and insurance and taxes and this week I barely logged 16 hours. Not for lack of trying, as I call the temp agency every day to tell them PUT ME IN.

Now I’m back to thinking I have to fight with the unemployment office – VA keeps sending me to MD and vice versa and you can’t imagine the lovely headache that’s causing me just thinking about it.

I’ve considered a career change to, like, dog walking or pharmaceutical sales but honestly just don’t know what the fuck to do. I’m smart, educated, with experience and a hard worker. Someone just hire me already!

Wednesday eats:

1/3 cup oats with 1/2 tsp honey
1/2 cup brown rice with Artichoke sauce
1 orange
2 rice cakes with 2 Tbs peanut butter
2  healthy chocolate cupcakes
Rotisserie chicken, 1/4 cup rice, salad
3 glasses of red wine

Wednesday’s workout:

4 mile run

Amy’s Daddy’s Artichoke Sauce

This is a recipe my dad sent me saying “when I make this all the girls come over! They love it!”

My dad lives in a neighborhood of old ladies. They love him.

Anyway, I made a couple  minor tweaks to my taste but overall it’s his deal. And it’s delicious!

Amy’s Daddy’s Artichoke Sauce

1 large red bell pepper
1 Vidalia/sweet onion
1 small can slided black olives
1 small jar marinated artichoke hearts (must use the marinated artichokes! We want the brine since it’s the basis of the flavor profile)
1 heaping tsp minced garlic
1 28 oz can diced  tomatoes (or you could dice fresh tomatoes)
salt & pepper to taste
crushed red pepper to taste
1 Tbs basil
1 Tbs parsley
1 packet Splenda
1 tsp extra virgin olive oil

Cut pepper and onion into thin strips. Saute in 1 tsp oil until onions are translucent.

Put remaining ingredients into the pan including the liquid from the artichoke jar (cut artichoke hearts into smaller pieces if too large.)  Cook over medium heat until boiling, stirring occasionally. Reduce heat to simmer and cook for 1 hour. Continue to stir occasionally.

Serve over angel hair pasta, or rice, or (if you’re me) just eat it with a spoon.

Happy Pounds

Because I am a math genius:

1 part being happy + 1 part having no routine = 5 pounds

Well, 5ish anyway. I can’t say for sure because I haven’t gotten on the scale but even if it’s not a total of five pounds, in terms of body composition it works out about the same.

Meaning, bad. And gross. And detrimental to my self esteem.

So, I’m paying a little closer attention again. It seems that left to my body’s own intuition it will settle about here, in this slightly soft with a little extra baggage place.

I hate here.

But I’m not exactly up for hard core dieting or counting or forced portions or eating by the clock. I think I can manage a hybrid of sorts. That is to say, I’m not counting calories (yet, unless I really can’t get these pounds to budge) but I’m being more conscientious about my choices and trying to amp up the workouts. And I also decided that maybe writing down what I’m eating here (I know, YAWN) will help me. Not because anyone else gives a rat’s ass about what I’m eating (oh wait, HI SHAM!) but because it will help me to see it all in print. So, yeah, here we go.

Oh, I’m also not doing any sort of caloric split. No low carb, or high protein, or 40/40/20, or vegetarian, or raw, or paleo, or anything. Some days most of my meals are plant based until dinner, some days they’re more protein based overall. I’m going for what I crave, so long as what I crave is healthy, lean, mostly-whole food regardless of it’s macronutrient profile. No more shoving chicken onto my plate (and adding an extra 100+ calories) just so I can get in 3 oz of protein!

Also, I’m not giving up my wine. Or vodka. Huzzah!

The goal, by the way, is to feel great by Dec 1 when we board a plane to Seattle to visit HP’s family. Easy peasy.

Tuesday eats:

1/3 cup oats with 1/2 tsp honey
1/2 cup brown rice with Artichoke sauce
2 rice cakes with 2 Tbs peanut butter
1 orange
1 can tuna with 2 Tbs light mayo with raw broccoli, celery, cucumber
1 healthy chocolate cupcake

Tuesday workout:

Back, Bis, Abs with HP

Shipping Up To Boston

We made it up to Boston this past weekend, a success especially considering that the last time we tried that we ended up with The Weekend of Fail.

I’m interrupting this post to say: I know he’s an Iron Chef and all, but nothing that Bobby Flay makes looks good to me.

Anyway, Thursday night we were here:

and it was an absolute blast. Aside from the fact that Fenway is the fucking shit, I think the amazingly good time had something to do with the fact that we were with these kick ass people:

Oh yeah, and this guy may have had something to do with that as well.

You think?

Friday we went to see his grandfather and after lunch I managed to get lost when I went to get the car while they waited out front for me. In my defense, the streets of Marblehead were formed by cows and, dude, they are NOT on a grid. I was on a one way street and two blocks up from the restaurant and you’d think that making three lefts would get me back there but, sadly, no, that did not work. I finally made it back and we all laughed at my expense and, whatever. It was vacation and warm enough for them to be outside until I got back.

Friday night we partied with the Herd and can you believe that we didn’t take a single picture of that evening? I can’t either. I assure you that I was a great time.

Saturday morning was a bit of a cluster fuck and it’s not worth the story about why, but let’s just say that I was supposed to meet my mother for breakfast, making it the first time I’ve seen her in six years and she couldn’t make it but, oh, don’t you worry, she made up for it later. It was a weird day.

Lunch at my aunt’s was great even though we didn’t get to girl chat like we normally would have and Saturday evening I was asleep on the couch by 9:00. I’m wild like that.

We left Sunday morning without any trouble and had the dogs licking our faces by 4. I threw some chicken in the crockpot so we’d have something to eat this week because the fridge is bare after a weekend sans trip to the grocery store.

I temped one pathetic day this week and have a few hours for Thurs but that’s it. The lack of paycheck is getting old. Very, very old. And I’ve finally sold the last of anything valuable that I had – pulled it out of the safe and off it went. At least I’ll be able to pay my rent for another three months with the money.

Ok, I know you want to see one more:

Movie Day

I'm pretty sure I maxed out my job search yesterday, I think I spent a solid eight hours scouring the job boards and submitted resumes prefaced with the uninspired "I am pleased to present my resume for consideration."

Currently I am taking up residence on the dog-blanket covered couch, watching a DVR'd episode of Glee, fantasy house shopping in another state, and waiting for the smell of my General Tso's chicken to come wafting out of the crockpot and making the house smell delicious.

It's pouring rain and gloomy and neither dog pooped this morning but they're just going to have to wait a few hours before they get their next chance. I was hoping to get to the bank and grocery store today (because my life is so super awesome) but I don't feel like trekking out in this weather. I do believe that this evening will be spent curled up on the couch while a beautiful, buff boy rubs my feet and we watch funny movies.

I've managed to work out every day this week, even though one day all I managed was 2 miles on the treadmill. A lame workout is better than no workout. And HP just IM'd me to ask if I wanted to do cardio with him tonight.

I love that man.

Posted via email from Amyella