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All Work and No Play

May 17, 2010 by

Today was day #2 – on my own in Washington, DC. After a brisk run, followed by a little morning work, I headed off to the Smithsonian – a place that I had not been in over 20 years. I spent more than two hours wandering the halls of the Natural History and the American History museums. I even got the chance to visit Julia Child’s kitchen! During this time, I was torn between loving the freedom to come and go as I pleased, but wishing I had Scott with me to share the experience.

On the way back to the hotel, I stopped off for afternoon tea at a local favorite – Teaism in Penn Quarter. Teaism would not be my first choice for authentic afternoon tea (British style) – it’s more focused on Asian tea. But the cafe provided a great atmosphere to enjoy my English breakfast, some cake, and a cookie. Because I had nowhere else to go, I took my time, savoring the drink and good eats, and reading a magazine from cover to cover – something I rarely do nowadays.

Tomorrow I actually have to WORK, but thankfully, not until 10 AM. I’m planning a 6-mile run around the city, then another dinner out tomorrow night. Life is hard when you’re on a business trip – he he!

Filed Under: Fitness Tagged With: , , ,

How Many Calories Are in Your Favorite Cheese?

May 4, 2010 by

I love cheese. If I were on a deserted island and could choose to have a few foods at my disposal, cheese would definitely be one of them. My love for cheese has also passed down to my children. I distinctly remember my son’s early experience with cheese. We were at the grocery store when he was about a year old. I let him hold a block of cheese (tightly wrapped of course) just to keep him occupied. I turned my back for a minute or two only to find that he had gnawed through the plastic to eat the block of cheese. Yep, he’s my son alright.

(Photo courtesy of Flickr)

We all have our favorite cheese(s). My favorites happen to be aged parmesan, extra sharp white cheddar, and the lovely Greek favorite – feta (oh yeah!). There’s just something about breaking off a big chunk of fresh parmesan or cheddar and savoring each little nibble. Pair it with a good wine, some grapes or other fruit, a little French bread, and you practically have a meal. Plus, don’t even get me started on the calcium and protein that just adds to the wonderment of this versatile food – because, like bacon, cheese seems to make everything taste better.

Most of us know that all cheeses are not alike. Some are strong, others mild. Some are stinky, while others have no particular scent. Ok, so you’re smart enough to know the different types of cheese. But, did you also know that not all cheese has the same amount of calories? That’s right, some cheeses are lower in calories and fat than others. Let’s take a look at these popular cheeses and how they rank on the energy scale…

(Full-fat, per 100g or about 3.5 ounces)

  1. Ricotta – 185 calories and 14.8g fat
  2. Feta – 250 calories and 20g fat
  3. Camembert – 297 calories and 24g fat
  4. Mozzarella – 301 calories and 25g fat
  5. Swiss – 400 calories and 30g fat
  6. Stilton – 411 calories and 35.5g fat
  7. Cheddar – 412 calories and 34g fat
  8. Parmesan – 452 calories and 32.7g fat

Uh oh, seems like two of my favorites rank on the low-end of the “good for you” scale. Oh well, there’s always room for feta.

Filed Under: Food Tagged With: ,

5 Ways to Avoid Snacking

April 28, 2010 by

(Photo courtesy of Flickr)

Hi All! I’m back from Austin and I am tired! I’m so glad that I have about 3 weeks to recuperate until I travel again. And speaking of traveling…

Ma’am, do you know how fast you were going?

This morning, while on my 5 mile run, I noticed one of those radar speed signs that tell drivers how fast they are going. As I approached the sign, I noticed it posted 27 MPH, referring to the previous car that went past. As I came closer to the sign, the number quickly change to 8 MPH…then hovered between 8 and 7! How cool is that – a speed radar sign that seemed to accurately capture my running miles per hour! Next time, I’m going to take a picture to prove it – he he! See officer, I wasn’t speeding, but I’m on track for a PR!

Stress and the Snack Monster

As most of you know, I’ve been a little stressed and frustrated at work these days. There have been significant changes in the staffing model of our group, which is causing great uncertainty and unrest among the troops. As a result of this and other daily stressors, I’ve had the urge to snack more throughout the day. I’ve even found that I need to bring out all of my “tricks” to get me to stop snacking, including:

5 Ways to Beat the Snack Monster

  1. Chew gum – This can provide a temporary fix of having something in your mouth to chew. Although, if you chew too much and too often, you may take in too much air, leaving you with a bloated feeling.
  2. Eat a mint – Again, this gives your mouth and teeth something to do while your mind is resisting the urge to snack.
  3. Brush your teeth – Brushing my teeth gives me that clean fresh feeling in my mouth. Brushing also seems to send a signal to my brain that I’m finished eating for the time being.
  4. Use a teeth whitening strip – I keep these handy at home, in my purse, and on trips. Not only do they make your teeth whiter, but you have to wait 30 minutes before taking them off, which is usually enough time for the snacking urge to pass.
  5. Drink a glass of ice cold water – Sometimes when we have the urge to snack, it’s really because we are thirsty. Drinking a glass of really cold water takes care of that thirst and makes you feel full all in a few gulps!

What are your tricks to avoid snacking during the day?

Filed Under: Fitness Tagged With: , , ,

Do Not Disturb

March 16, 2010 by

Hey All,

I didn’t sleep well at ALL last night. It doesn’t help that I was:

A) Up late picking out clothes for Fitbloggin
B) Up even later worrying about my clothing choices Fitbloggin
C) Distracted by Miss M who, at just 2 years old, insists that she is not tired and would like to play with cars in the dark

    Ugh! Sleepless nights are hard and they make for even harder mornings. So, it may be no surprise that I did NOT run today as planned. I had hoped to get an extra hour of sleep, but that plan didn’t go over very well.  I need to hang a sign on my door that says Do Not Disturb – too bad Mr. C and Miss M can’t read yet. The other day, Mr. C so kindly asked me, do they let you sleep at work? No, mommy does not get nap time at work – or at home apparently.

    Maybe I’ll actually get some sleep at Fitbloggin – he he! Unless of course, we’re all going out dancing, at which point I will stay out all night reliving my sorority girl days. I’m hoping Ashley can give us all the scoop on the Baltimore restaurants and nightlife!

    Aside from Low and Behold, has anyone else started packing yet? I’m usually like Low and pack a week or so in advance just because I’m so excited. But, I literally feel like I just unpacked from my trip to Orlando, so I’m not motivated to start packing yet. Aside from my trip to Baltimore, I’m headed back to Orlando just after Easter, then back to Washington, DC, for a week in May. Anyone else have travel plans for the Spring/Summer?

    The other day I went to the grocery store and found myself in the produce section, as always. I’m very frustrated that fruit costs so much, yet you’re supposed to eat 4-5 servings a day. Looking at all the fruit, I was reminded of the healthy eating tip about buying several single pieces of fruit and placing them in a big bowl on your counter or desk at work. Then, when you have the urge to snack, you eat a piece of fruit.

    I tried that, but unfortunately, the fruit is not ripe and won’t be ripe for a few days. So it is just sitting in my cute little bowl mocking me as I contemplate what snack I can actually eat. Some chocolate chips are sounding good right about now.!

    Oooh, wait. Scott just came home with 4 quarts of ice cream from our local dairy…

    This is exactly what happens when you’re fruit is not ripe – he he!

    Have a great night.

    Filed Under: Life Tagged With: , , ,

    Snack-free Saturdays

    February 6, 2010 by

    Hello everyone!

    As most of you know, Saturday is a “no run” day for me. Sometimes I do yoga, but most of the time, Saturdays just end up being a rest day for me. Although I’m still active on Saturdays – running errands, etc. – I definitely don’t burn as many calories as I do when it is a running day. So today, I thought I would try to institute a no-snacking Saturday. Honestly, I have been trying to cut back on snacks altogether, but when I’m also trying to keep to 1,600 calories a day (and not cutting back on my runs) I find that having a snack once or twice a day is almost a must. But on days when I’m not running, I really have no reason to snack, other than the typical excuses, like boredom, habit, etc.

    So today, on my first no-snacking Saturday, I started off with a sweet beginning…

    I was really in the mood for a pastry of some sort for breakfast. So early this morning, I ran up to Deerfield’s bakery – a local favorite – to peruse their daily breakfast goods. They have so much to choose from that it was hard to decide. What I love about Deerfield’s, aside from the variety of pastries they have, is the fact that they have small bites or mini-size items of donuts, danishes, etc. This way, you can get a few small things to try, instead of buying one big coffee cake. I opted for a mini Cherry danish, which was only about 3/4 the size of a computer mouse…

    I savored every bite with a bit of Fairmont Breakfast tea (from a stay at the Fairmont a while back). Ahh…so yummy. After I was finished eating, I realized that I had broken one of my rules of breakfast – to always include protein. I debated on whether to have some Greek yogurt or a spoonful of peanut butter but I really wasn’t hungry. And, I’m really trying to only eat when I’m hungry. So – no protein. 

    Lunch was simple – a 1/2 salami an Swiss sandwich on rye with some steamed carrots and a few Reduced Fat Cape Cod chips…

    Surprisingly, after having such a small breakfast, this light lunch kept me full all the day to dinner. I guess I really am shrinking my stomach!

    For dinner, we opted for On the Border. We haven’t been there in soooo long, but decided to give it a try again since we had a gift card.

    After having a dozen tortilla chips and some salsa, Scott and I split the chicken fajitas…

    I had two small to medium fajitas, which was just perfect. The fajita meat was really good, better than many fajita chicken meat I’ve had – but Scott’s chicken fajitas are still the best. Hmm…can’t wait for summer grilling season!

    When we arrived home, we got the kids in bed, then I cooked an oatmeal chocolate chip cookie for dessert…

    Ok, this really wasn’t just ONE cookie – can you tell by the shadow? I actually had 3 very small cookies…

    Yeah for me! I did it – I actually got through whole Saturday without snacking! Now, we’ll see if this has any impact on the scale tomorrow 😉

    Have a great night everyone.

    Filed Under: Fitness Tagged With: , , , , ,

    An Unexpected Work-at-Home Day

    February 1, 2010 by

    Hey All!

    I worked at home today – with the kids! I hadn’t planned on working at home at all and especially not with the kids. But, when push comes to shove, I do what I have to do.

    Before Scott left to teach a class, I hopped on the treadmill for about 45 minutes. We have a separate heating system (electric heat) in our basement where the treadmill is. For some reason it is super hot down there every morning. So, I’m usually a sweaty mess by the time I come upstairs.

    Breakfast was 1/2 a carton of TJ’s vanilla Greek yogurt, with a teaspoon of all-natural peanut butter and a few walnuts…

    I also had the last of the OJ, which was seriously like 2 ounces!!! Why even bother leaving 2 ounces of juice in the carton? I just don’t understand it.

    Lunch happened to be leftover homemade fried chicken from Saturday night…

    I had two small pieces, although I could have easily eaten more. I paired the chicken with some steamed baby carrots and about a cup of Trader Joe’s shells and white cheddar..

    Let me tell you, it is REALLY hard to work at home with the kids! At their ages, they demand all of my attention – which is not a bad thing except when I need to work. Fortunately, they both take naps and can be calmed by a Disney show (desperate times call for desperate measures).

    While the kids napped then watched a Disney show, I was heads down in a project for work. Between working a little before getting on the treadmill, and working in the afternoon, I was able to finish my project and put in about 3.5 hours at home. Whew – what a day! I was so busy – and HANGRY – that I just had to have a snack – 2 small homemade chocolate chip cookies and a 1/2 cup skim milk. Plus, right before dinner, I was starving and couldn’t wait. Had a small, snack pack of Sunchips too – blah! Oh well, still under 1,600 calories for the day.

    In all of my craziness today, I actually found the time to make dinner…

    I tried a new Giada recipe for creamy orzo (at least it was new to me). Minus the peas, I thought this dish was really good, although I had to add a bunch of salt and pepper for taste. I’m glad I quartered the recipe because Scott and my son did not like this AT ALL! That’s ok though – Giada will never know. The kids and I also split a turkey burger which is the reason why it looks so small in the picture!!

    Now, I have about 200 calories that I could still eat to get to my 1,600 calories a day – I’m thinking a small brownie and a little Breyer’s vanilla – what do ya think? 😉

    Restaurant Diet Update

    So today, it has been officially 4 weeks since we started our Restaurant Diet, vowing not to spend any of our own money on food outside of the house. So how did we do? We did fantastic!! By having gift cards from Christmas at our disposal, we were able to get our fix of eating out without spending money. So, for the most part, we really weren’t tempted to stray.

    That is, until yesterday. That’s right, we decided to end the diet one day early. We contemplated going to Panera for lunch and using the last of our meal gift cards. But Panera just didn’t sound good. So, we opted for the Italian cafe near our house. Kids eat free on Sunday and we actually had a free meal to boot. So, we spent about $14 to feed 2 adults and 2 children – about $3.50 a person. Not bad!

    So how much money did we save? Well, we were regularly going out to eat 2-3 times a week with the kids – blowing about $75. Then, between Starbucks, Barnes and Noble cafe, and going out to lunch, Scott and I easily spent another $25 a week, if not more, between the two of us. Overall, we probably saved about $400 by on the Restaurant Diet, which is well worth the effort!

    Gotta get to bed. See you all tomorrow!

    Filed Under: Dinner Tagged With: , , , , , ,

    Washington, DC: Congress, Coffee, and Cupcakes

    January 20, 2010 by

    Hey all!

    I’m blogging from Washington, DC! Before landing, I enjoyed my go-to airport breakfast nourishment….

    This was actually a combination of breakfast and lunch. The  yogurt cup is actually a pretty healthy choice as far as airport food goes. 

    Upon arriving at the DC hotel, I was overwhelmed at how many “suits” were in the hotel lobby. I actually felt quite out of place in my jeans, so I hustled up to my room without looking at anyone. But then, I decided to venture off for a little 30-minute walk to find my next cupcake destination…Red Velvet Cupcakery…

    Don’t let the plain jane box fool you. Because when you opened it, there were these two lovelies inside…

    My signature cupcake, the Red Velvet, and the Lemon Coconut cupcake. Hmm…so yummy! And, I would know because I ate both of them while sitting in my hotel room working. That’s what happens when I don’t eat a real lunch. Plus, on the way back from the cupcake shop, I stopped off to pick up a skim mocha…

    This, unfortunately was NOT very good. It had a funky taste so I drank about 1/3 of it and thew the rest out. Blah! But hey, I didn’t have to pay for it!

    Now, I’m off to meet my friend Prachi for dinner! I’ll be back later to fill you in on our dinner escapades!

    Filed Under: Travel Tagged With: , , , , , ,

    Holiday Wrapping Anxiety

    December 7, 2009 by

    Evening everyone!

    If you love high-end bath and beauty products, check out this awesome giveaway from my alter ego blog – Bistro Chic! You may just win a fabulous gift from Crabtree & Evelyn.

    Around 11 AM, I was soo wanting a little something sweet. I walked into the staff lounge to find not 1, not 2, but 3 big coffee cakes! Apparently, it was a coworker’s birthday (the woman who sits next to me to be exact – shows you how much I’m clued into those things 🙁 ) Anyway, I debated on whether to have a sliver of the apple, the pecan, or the chocolate.

    12.7 Chocolate Coffee Cake

    And Chocolate it was! Oh so yummy, especially with a big cup of Tazo Awake tea to wash it all down…

    12.7 Tazo Awake Tea 2

    For lunch, I brought a salad that I premade last night before going to bed. I love to make my lunch ahead of time because it saves me SOOOO much time in the morning. And it also prevents me from going out to eat, aka spending money.

    12.7 Chicken Salad

    I think I overdid it on the lettuce a bit because this salad turned out to be HUGE! However, the chopped parmesan-crusted that Scott made last night tasted awesome in the greens!

    I made it home from work first so I was in charge of making dinner – Turkey Tacos!

    12.7 Turkey Tacos 1

    I did most of the chopping and prep work last night, so making dinner was snap. I accidentally filled my tortilla WAY too full and could barely pick up the monstrosity up without having it fall apart…

    12.7 Turkey Tacos 2

    My ONE monster taco was enough to fill me up – along with a few chips and guac. 

    Post clean up, I debated on whether to completely throw myself into my personal training book to study, or tackle the mound of presents that I need to wrap. Hmm. maybe a little of both.

    12.7 Crate and Barrel boxes

    I started with the gifts for coworkers – all from Crate and Barrel. I obviously like shopping there if you can’t tell. It was very dangerous when they opened a huge store 5 minutes from my house! Anyway, having C&B so close does come in handy around the holidays. I was able to pick up a duo of these shiny tealight holders for everyone on my list…

    12.7 Crate and Barrel tealight holders 2

    They came in a bunch of different colors so I made sure everyone had a different color set – pretty snazzy I think 😉

    Does anyone else buy their coworkers gifts? 

    Well, I got through two of the presents and decided I just wasn’t in the wrapping mood. I don’t actually mind wrapping presents – sometimes I really enjoy it. But around this time every year I have wrapping anxiety – where I’m afraid that I’ll wait until the last minute to do my wrapping and then have to do it ALL on Christmas Eve.

    12.7 Green Present with red ribbon

    I can always tell when I’m getting tired by how lax my wrapping gets. This one didn’t turn out too bad, despite being so wiped out from the day.

    Now, I’m off to study. I need to get up extra early tomorrow to run because Tom Skilling – Chicago weatherman extraordinaire – is predicting quite a bit of snow in the early morning. That means a rough commute for me!

    Have a great night!

    Filed Under: Dinner Tagged With: , , , , ,

    What I May or May Not Have Eaten Today

    December 1, 2009 by

    Let’s play a game – It’s called, What did Jennifer eat today?

    1) Breakfast = Oatmeal with walnuts or Kashi?

    Answer…

    If you chose Kashi you would be correct! I enjoyed a nice size bowl of Cheerios topped with a little bit of Kashi Go Lean Crunch. This was a super energizing breakfast after another hard and sweaty run on the treadmill. I keep pointing out that it was sweaty because, for some reason, it is exceptionally HOT in our basement. You think it would be cold down there – after all, it’s a basement in Chicago!

    12.1 Kashi Go Lean

    2) Lunch – A small salad or a bowl of minestrone soup?

    Answer…

    And the salad is the winner!! Around 1:10 PM, I was contemplating what I would have for lunch. Because I did not bring my lunch, it was very obvious that I needed to actually leave my cube to get something to eat. Then, I realized that we had an all staff meeting at 1:30 PM – oh s–t!! I ran out of the building so fast all you could see was my hair flying in the wind. First, I headed right across the street to Go Roma – super convenient I thought. Until I saw the line! My God people, it was nearly 1:30 PM, why haven’t you eaten lunch yet – I thought – not out loud of course. So, I made a side trip a few doors down to a local deli where I threw together a quick and health salad…

    12.1 Salad with egg

    Although, I walked back into the building JUST as the meeting was starting, so I threw the greens in the fridge and didn’t eat them until around 2:30. I was starving by this time, but a crisis was averted.

    3) Dinner – Leftover chicken and dumpling soup or peanut butter and jelly?

    Answer…

    Yes, I was so lazy tired tonight that I didn’t even feel like warming up soup. So, it was a PBJ kind of night…

    12.1 Peanut butter and jelly 2

    It was rather tasty and looked kind of fancy – as fancy as PBJ can get – on my sparkly placemat from Crate and Barrel.

    4) Dessert – Ice cream or chocolate chip cookies?

    Answer…

    Ding, ding, ding – you are correct if you guessed ice cream – Edy’s Slow-churned Butter Pecan ice cream to be exact. I swear this had lower calories for the simple reason that they added fewer pecans. They were definitely few and far between in this quart, if you know what I mean. You might as well just call it butter ice cream, with a few pecans. Maybe I’ll have better luck at the end of the quart. I will be happy to find out 😉

    12.1 Edy's butter pecan 2

    5) But, the real question is what did I eat today that I did NOT take a photo of:

    a. Starbucks mocha frap

    b. Chocolate log cookies

    c. M&M’s

    d. All of the above

    I am embarrassed to admit it, but answer D is correct. I was a junk food eating machine today. I guess that’s what happens when you only eat a bowl of cereal and a small salad all day. Blah! I guess I really am human like everyone else.

    Well friends, I’m off to study!

    Filed Under: Dinner Tagged With: , , , , , ,

    Another Reason to Eat Chocolate?

    November 10, 2009 by

    Despite getting up at 5:40 AM, somehow I managed to not get to work until 9 AM. I am really despising traffic these days. I need to invest in some books on tape. Too bad Jenna’s book isn’t ready yet 😉

    Because I was up so early, it was still dark out and I had to wait for about 30 minutes before heading out to run. I did my typical 4-miler, although it was pretty fast. I am actually sore right now, but I’m not sure if that is from the run or from sitting in 2 hours of traffic!

    Being that it was so late, I ate a B-nana in the car…

     

    11.10 breakfast

    I really should NOT be taking photos (or eating for that matter) when I’m driving. My blogger alter ego is such a bad influence on the regular me.

    Work was another totally laid back day – sweet! I could really handle this lifestyle for the next month or so – just get me to Christmas baby! Lunch ended up being Rachel Ray leftovers…

    11.10 lunch1

    Just look at those little dumpling’s, aka gnocchi, they’re showing off for my new camera…

    11.10 lunch2

    Later in the PM I had a snack attack and noticed some freebie granola bars in the staff lounge – bonus! Nothing like a healthy and free snack…

    11.10 snack

    Surprisingly, we have not had our usual obscene amount of food yesterday and today. Ahh, it’s the calm before the holiday food storm.

    Scott’s teaching tonight so I had to fend for myself. Why is it that when I have to cook for myself, I end up eating leftovers or a sandwich?

    11.10 dinner1

    But one thing is for sure, I do eat less when he’s not around. Boys are bad influences on girls in the eating department – for the most part anyway. I wish I could do the reverse and inspire him to eat healthier – or at least smaller portions. I’m just saying it like it is.

    11.10 dinner2

    News of the Day…

    This just in – a new study from Spain reports that chocolate can help prevent hardening of the arteries (arteriosclerosis) which is a precursor to heart disease. Not that I actually need another reason to eat chocolate, but I’m happy to hear that it does the body good! Now, if they could just find that chocolate helps you make more money and get a better night’s sleep, then I’d be all set!

    I celebrated this new-found chocolate wisdom with, what else?

    11.10 cookie

    A few more of my oatmeal chocolate chip cookies that I made last night.

    I need to get some sleep tonight, so here’s to a wonderful and restful night to all of you!

    Filed Under: Dinner Tagged With: , , , , , ,