Sunday Prep Work + a Book Review

As I mentioned before, planning and being organized are two huge things that help me eat healthy throughout the week.  When I have classes and am busy with reading and assignments, my time is very limited when it comes to preparing meals.  It can be tempting to eat a lot of junk food or buy lunch somewhere because it's convenient, so to avoid that I try to do some prep work ahead of time, and always have healthy snacks with me.

Sundays seem to be a good day for me to spend some time in the kitchen prepping food for the week.  Yesterday I made a few things to have on hand.

I cooked a pot of couscous which I'll put on salads.  I love adding grains to salads to make them more filling, and I think the texture adds a great dynamic.

Sidenote - I'm so in love with this trivet from Le Creuset that I got as a Christmas present!  My dream is to have a kitchen filled with Le Creuset cookware one day, but until then, I'll get my fix where I can :)

I also hard-boiled a few eggs.  They're a great source of protein and also very filling.  I'll add one to a salad or a sandwich, or just eat one plain for a snack.

The couscous and hard-boiled eggs will be perfect for some salad beasts like this:

I already had a salad beast for lunch today!

I made some seed and raisin balls to have for snacks on-the-go; they are really so addicting, I can't get enough of them!

While I had my food processor out, I figured I'd make some amazeballz, too.  This time I made the blueberry-lemon flavor, but I just used bottled lemon juice instead of lemon zest and fresh lemon juice.

I've been wanting to drink more green tea lately, but I tend to only drink hot tea right before I go to bed, and most of the green tea that I have contains caffeine.  So as the weather is (slightly) warming up, I figured it was a good time to make iced tea, which I'm more likely to drink earlier in the day.  I added 9 tea bags (6 lemon green tea, 3 mint green tea) to 6 cups of cold water, and put it in the fridge overnight.

And it turned into iced tea!  Magical.  Couldn't be much easier than that.  I read that you can let the tea bags steep in the fridge for 24 - 36 hours, so I'll remove them tonight.

All of that prep work will make it much easier for me to make healthy meals and snacks throughout the week - definitely worth the effort (and dirty dishes), in my opinion.

I've been absolutely craving mushrooms and spinach lately (I guess my body needs antioxidants?!) so I decided to incorporate them into my brunch yesterday.

I sauteed some mushrooms and spinach and then added two scrambled eggs to the skillet.  On the side:  sliced strawberries and banana, and a cup of coffee (with a splash of almond milk and cinnamon added - so good!).

My dad has one of those single-serve coffee makers which automatically makes some froth on top (without any milk or anything!).  Love it.

As if I'm not already obsessed with cinnamon enough, I've found that it's delicious added to coffee.  Awhile ago, my aunt told me to add cinnamon right to the grounds when you're brewing coffee, and then recently one of my friends added cinnamon to his cup of coffee at Starbucks (so that's why they have those little shakers of cinnamon by the milk pitchers...).  I finally decided to give it a shot - and it's amazing!!  I've never liked to add sweetener to my coffee (unless it's iced), but cinnamon is a wonderful and healthy way to switch it up a bit.

Book review:

This month I participated in Peanut Butter Fingers' book club and read The Secret Life of CeeCee Wilkes by Diane Chamberlain.  I wasn't sure if I would actually have time to read the book, but it was definitely a page-turner and ended up not taking very long to read (plus was WAY more enjoyable than reading casebooks for school).

(Source)

Description from the back of the book:  "In 1977, pregnant Genevieve Russell disappeared.  Twenty years later, her remains are discovered and Timothy Gleason is charged with murder.  But there is no sign of the unborn child.

CeeCee Wilkes knows how Genevieve Russell died, because she was there.  And she knows what happened to her missing infant, because two decade ago she made the devastating choice to raise the baby as her own.  Now Timothy Gleason is facing the death penalty, and she has another choice to make.  Tell the truth and destroy her family.  Or let an innocent man die in order to protect a lifetime of lies."

I was a little taken aback by the first line of the book: "She couldn't concentrate on making love."  Now I've read a few romance novels in my time, but I had the idea that this was more of a mystery book than a lurid romance novel.  However, I think the opening line is misleading - it really is more of a suspense book than anything else.

The story spans a period of many years - from 1977 to 2004.  The first few pages are set in 2004, then the story really starts in 1977.  Personally, having an ending ruined is one of my biggest pet peeves ever.  (I cried a little when someone ruined part of the 7th Harry Potter book for me.)  So I actually wish the first few pages weren't in the book - they don't give away the entire ending, but they foreshadow a lot and allow you to "crack" part of the mystery pretty early on.

One of the characters, Corinne, really got under my skin near the end of the book.  I was getting a little frustrated because I just could not relate to or empathize with her.  But in the end, the character began to evolve and I found her to be a lot less annoying and much more sympathetic.

What I loved about the book: it really drew me in and held my attention.  It's been a long time since I've read a book that I could not put down - I even took an entire Saturday morning (and a little of the afternoon) to finish reading it.  Luxury!  There's nothing quite like losing yourself in a good book.  I also really liked the many different family dynamics in the book.  There are tons of different types of families, relationships, and bonds formed throughout the novel, and many tear-jerker moments for me.  (But I'm also a sap.)

Overall, I thought it was a great story and really enjoyed reading it.  I would definitely recommend this book if you're looking for an intriguing story that 'll suck you in.  It's a fairly easy and quick read, but as a heads up, I would say that it's not a light-hearted, feel-good kind of story.

Okay, I think that's long enough for today :)  I hope everyone had an awesome weekend!

Oh yeah, one last thing - grow, plants, grow!!

Song of the day:

"Skyscrapers" by OK Go.  I've already featured an OK Go song on here before, but since they're one of my favorite bands, I figured I would go ahead and share another one.  I think that "Skyscrapers" is one of the best songs from this album (Of the Blue Colour of the Sky) and OK Go just released a music video for it.  Although I wish it featured Damian (the lead singer), the music video is still pretty sweet, even without him.  The woman in the video is Trish Sie, Damian's sister, who has helped to choreograph a lot of their other music videos.  Hope you like it!

Jotting it Down, Rocking it Out

One thing that is absolutely crucial for me in trying to balance a busy schedule with eating well and exercising regularly is planning.  I'm a Type A kind of person, and I love organization.  (Nerd alert.)  As a kid, I used to spend entire days organizing my sister's room, just because I couldn't stand her clutter (she grew out of that and is very organized now, though).  My love of to-do lists goes hand-in-hand with my love of organization.

Classic picture of my sister dressing up in a crazy outfit (an old dance costume of mine, actually), probably around the age when I would organize her room.  Really, I just wanted an excuse to post this.  

I have a "master" to-do list on my computer, but I also keep pads of paper everywhere (in my kitchen, living room, bathroom, bedroom, purse) so that I can jot something down right when I think of it.  I've found that incorporating healthy to-do list items into my master to-do list really keeps me on track.  This includes planning ahead for a lot of things like what recipes I want to make, when I can go to the grocery store, what I need to buy at the store, a general idea of my meals during the week (depending on how much time I'll have for prep), when I can exercise, and what kinds of workouts I want to do.

This is me, around 10 years old maybe?  Already an organizing fiend.  When I was really young I wanted to be a maid when I grew up.

I realize all that planning might seem a little extreme, but it's what works for me and it really helps me to balance my stress level while keeping me on track.  I'm sure everyone has their own system - you just have to figure out what's best for you.  I personally find that writing things down and/or having them on my computer keeps me sane because once they're out of my head and written down, I don't constantly obsess over all of the things that I need to do and remember.  And it feels good to cross things off, too!

When I have to wake up early, I like to have a lot of food prepped the night before.  This usually includes breakfast, lunch, and snacks.  As I've mentioned before, breakfast cookies are a great way to have breakfast ready and waiting first thing in the morning.

I recently made a breakfast cookie with 1/3 cup old-fashioned oats, 1/2 scoop Sun Warrior vanilla protein powder, a spoonful of natural peanut butter, a splash of almond milk, a glob (technical term) of unsweetened applesauce, some slivered almonds, some dried blueberries and dried cranberries, and cinnamon.

I mixed all of those ingredients together, flattened out the mixture, and put it in the fridge overnight.

And in the morning it was ready to be eaten - super quick breakfast, and very filling.

This morning I enjoyed the breakfast cookie above, which contained 1/3 cup old-fashioned oats, 1/2 scoop Sun Warrior vanilla protein powder, a spoonful of natural peanut butter, a glob of unsweetened applesauce, a splash of almond milk, 1 T ground flax seed, some raisins, some slivered almonds, and cinnamon, topped with sliced strawberries.  Corny flower design optional :)

After class I did a repeat of Tuesday's workout - 7 minute warm-up on the elliptical, a strength-training plan and an incline interval treadmill workout, followed by stretching.  During my workout, a nice lady came up to me and said that she had seen me "rocking out those push-ups" and asked how many I could do - totally made my day :)  I was struggling with those push-ups, too, but that comment made them all worth it.

Tuesday was my first time trying the assisted pull-up machine, and it was a beast!  I've been intimidated by pull-ups ever since 4th or 5th grade when we had to do those Presidential fitness tests (remember them?) and there was no way I could even do one pull-up.  Although I'm heavily dependent on the machine to get me to the top, it felt good to go through the motion of a pull-up, and boy could I feel it yesterday in my chest, shoulders, upper back, and arms - although I was sore, it's a great feeling to know that I've challenged my muscles in a new way.

I'm off to dominate some more of my to-do list.  Have a great night everyone!

Reader question:  Are you a to-do list fan?  Do you plan out any of your meals and workouts, or just go with the flow?


Song of the day:

"Oh No" by Girl Talk.  One of my fellow interns last summer (hi Morgan!) told me that Girl Talk is the best music to work out to, and she wasn't kidding - it seriously gives me way more energy than I would have otherwise.  I still like to listen to my customized workout playlist, too, but now I always put Girl Talk on when I get on the treadmill.  It gives me the motivation I need to push through and is especially great for sprints.  Case in point - today I really wanted to decrease the speed on the treadmill and then I heard the lyrics "don't stop get it get it" repeating over and over - how perfect is that?  It pushed me to go just a little further than I thought I could, which was awesome.

And here's the best thing - you can download Girl Talk's latest album, All Day, in its entirety, for FREE on Girl Talk's website.  How cool is that?  And if you go to the home page, he has more free music and "pay what you want" music.  Also, Gregg Gillis (the artist's real name) went to Case - where I go to school now - so that's pretty sweet.

Mug for the Camera

Yesterday I worked on making some healthy snacks to take with me on my upcoming trip.  I have TONS of recipes bookmarked that I want to try out, so this gave me a chance to make a few of them.  First up:  carrot cake breakfast cookies from Angela at Oh She Glows. 

I subbed agave nectar for the maple syrup (because I had a new bottle that I hadn't tried out yet), but other than that I followed the recipe exactly.  I did have to let them bake a few minutes longer than the 14 - 15 minutes Angela suggested, though. 

Verdict?  Delicious!  I had one for taste-testing purposes, and then wrapped the rest up individually in plastic wrap and put them in a Ziploc bag in the freezer.  This way they should be fresh when I travel, and I can't eat them all up this week :)

This morning I went to the gym for cardio (elliptical and stairstepper) and then I went to school a little earlier than I normally do on Mondays to be on a panel of students who have had environmental jobs/ internships.  There were almost as many panelists as audience members, haha, but it was fun and I got a new mug as a "thank you" for being on the panel!

I've gotten my dad and my grandparents Case mugs as gifts, and now I'm really happy to have my very own!  <--- Nerd :)

I've got class until 7:30 tonight, and then I'm excited to head home and check out the stuffed peppers that are cooking in my crock pot right now.  Can't wait for an already-made warm meal and 2 Broke Girls!  Hart of Dixie is a rerun tonight :(  But that's probably best because I've got a ton of things to do this week.

Later gators!

Reader question:  Do you have a favorite mug?  I like to match my mug to my mood :)

Song of the day:

"Sadie & Andy" by Princeton. 

Photo credit:  Maryam, my bff and concert-going partner-in-crime

I got to see Princeton and 3 other bands at this awesome barn late last summer and it was so much fun and such a cool venue.

Hopping into March

I learned something interesting from Kath this morning:  saying "rabbit rabbit" on the 1st day of each month as soon as you wake up is supposed to be good luck.  There are lots of variations of the saying, too.  I had never heard that before!  I am kind of superstitious and like quirky traditions, so I think I'm going to try to remember to do this.  Do you think it still counts if I set a reminder on my phone??  Haha. 

One of my "tricks" of balancing a healthy lifestyle with a busy and stressful school schedule is having ready-made meals on hand that are nutritious and quick to throw together.  This semester, I have one class that goes until 7:30PM and another class that goes until 8:00PM, so those nights I don't have time to cook a meal from scratch when I get home.  Plus, I'm hungry and want to eat right away!

I generally like to cook on the weekend and then either refrigerate leftovers to have throughout the week or, even better, freeze leftovers so they'll last a long time.

One of my go-to recipes for stockpiling frozen meals is sweet potato and black bean burritos.   I use black beans instead of kidney beans, add 1 cup of water instead of 2 cups, omit the mustard, use 8-inch whole wheat tortillas, and omit the cheese.  I also gently combine the mashed sweet potatoes with the black bean mixture rather than adding them to the tortillas separately; I think the flavors taste better that way. 

I'll have one fresh out of the oven, and then freeze the rest for later.  The recipe says it makes 12 burritos, but last time I made a batch I actually got 23!  This was because I used smaller tortillas (8-inch instead of 10-inch) and I used more sweet potatoes than the recipe called for.  

They're so easy to freeze and they reheat extremely well.   Just wrap each burrito individually in foil, then put them in a plastic bag (or multiple bags, depending on how many burritos you made) and store in the freezer.  when you want to re-heat one, place a frozen burrito in the oven at 350* (still wrapped in foil) for 30 minutes, then unwrap and put it back in the oven for 15 more minutes. (I just put it back in the oven sitting on top of the unwrapped foil - no need to dirty a pan!)  Add a side salad, veggies, and/or some fruit and you've got a great meal.  And I think waiting for the burrito to re-heat is the perfect time to get my lunch ready for the next day/ wash some dishes/ pick up around my apartment, etc.  It's a good excuse for me to be productive before plopping down on the couch and relaxing and/or studying for the night.

I also love to use my crock pot for making meals (including breakfasts).  It's so great to come home to an apartment that smells wonderful and to have a hot meal ready and waiting for me!  In the fall I made a big batch of veggie soup in the crock pot, and when I was tired of eating the leftovers, I froze a couple of containers for later.  This past Sunday when I was planning out my meals for the week, soup sounded good (go figure it was actually 60* yesterday when I ate it!) so I put it in the fridge to thaw at the beginning of the week and then heated it up in the microwave yesterday.  I topped it with some nutritional yeast (great source of protein and vitamin B12 with a slightly cheesy flavor) and had an orange on the side, which made a very delicious and satisfying meal.

I can't remember the last time I peeled an orange - it's been years.  And I know why: they are such a pain!  It tasted delicious (my grandparents sent a box of grapefruit and oranges from Florida), but I'll stick to my clementines; the orange was so juicy and had millions (seriously, millions) of seeds in it.

Today I did week 3 of the Fitnessista's winter shape-up plan again.  I can tell that my running is slowly improving, which is exciting!  My hair tie broke while I was on the treadmill today, though - luckily I was able to tie it together for a temporary fix and avert a disaster!  True story - one time I got to the gym, changed into my workout clothes, then realized I didn't have a hair tie with me, so I left.  It's a necessity. 

On the schedule for tonight: shower, eat dinner, watch 30 Rock, and bake cookies.  See ya later!

What's your favorite meal to make (or heat up) on busy days?  Any great crock pot recipes?

Song of the day:

"L.I.F.E.G.O.E.S.O.N." by Noah and the Whale.  A good song for a new month and a fresh start!