What's On My Grocery List?

After multiple posts showing all the naughty foods I love to eat/feel I deserve, I thought I'd share with you the staples in my diet. I made a list of what I find myself typically buying at the grocery store. This is a basic list of what I like to have in my pantry or refrigerator at all times. With each item, I have listed its benefits and how I incorporate it into my diet. I have so many friends tell me they have difficulties grocery shopping, so I hope this list helps give some ideas!

Fruits/Vegetables:

Apples: Fiber, vitamin C

Easy way to add to your diet: Just enjoy the whole fruit on its own! Use as an alternative to sweet desserts.

Avocado: Cholesterol-lowering monounsaturated fat, manganese, protein, vitamin K.

Easy to add: Add sliced avocado to your sandwiches or make guacamole as a veggie dip. Or try my avocado "butter" or best guacamole ever.
Beware: Most store-bought guacamole is loaded with soybean oil, sour cream, or other unnecessary ingredients.

Bananas - Vitamin B6, vitamin C, potassium

Easy to add: Add sliced banana to pb toast/oatmeal or add frozen bananas to a smoothie.

Warning: Do not eat an unripe banana. Green bananas contain a protein called chitinase that is too difficult for the body to digest. This = stomach pain. Trust me. Speed up the ripening process by keeping them joined to another banana or storing in a brown bag.

Blueberries: have the most antioxidants of all the berries, rich in fiber, vitamins A, C.

Easy to add: to Greek yogurt, smoothies, cereal, or oatmeal.

Carrots: Vitamins A, K, C and fiber

Easy to add: pack baby carrots as a snack with a Greek yogurt based herb dip. Shred over salads.

 

Cantaloupe:Vitamins A, B6, C, potassium. Loaded with water.

Easy to add: drizzle chopped melon with honey for a healthier dessert. 

Spinach - rich source of omega 3s, Vitamins A,  C and K, manganese, folate, magnesium, iron.

Easy to add: to salads, omelets, or pizza.

Beware: Spinach needs to be washed well as the fibrous stems can collect sand and soil.

Sweet potatoes - Vitamins A and C, manganese, copper, fiber

Easy to add: Sweet potato "fries" or puree with skim milk, maple syrup and cinnamon.

 

Tomatoes: Vitamins A, C, and K, lycopene (antioxidant)

Easy to add:  Make gazpacho, eat fresh, sliced tomatoes w/ spinach and mozzarella, use lots of ketchup (but watch sodium and sugar levels).

Herbs/Spices:

Cinnamon: Manganese, anti-microbial, controls blood sugar

Easy to add: Sprinkle on oats, coffee, smoothies, sweet potatoes.

Garlic:  Manganese, Vitamins B6 and C, allicin (an antibacterial compound)

Easy to add: Saute with any vegetable or chicken. 

Warning: too much garlic and you won't get kissed. :O

Whole Grains:

Barley: Fiber, selenium

Easy to add: Creamy Barley with Tomatoes and Greens or Baked Apples with Barley Sausage Pilaf

 

Oatmeal: Manganese, selenium, fiber and protein

Easy to add: Best breakfast choice in my opinion! There are endless toppings for oatmeal. Try something new everyday using fruit, nuts, yogurt, flax seed, or nut butters.

Beware: oatmeal packets can be loaded with sugar and unnecessary processed ingredients.

Whole Grain/Whole Wheat bread/pasta: whole grain foods keep insulin levels low, good source of fiber.

Easy to add: a slice of toast with nut butter and banana slices is one of my favorite breakfasts. Use leftover bread to make bread crumbs for baked chicken.

Beware: Please note that "multi-grain" does not equal "whole grain." Multi-grain just means more than one grain. Whole Grain is the entire kernel that has not been stripped of its nutrients.

Legumes:

Chickpeas/Hummus: Fiber, protein, manganese

Easy to add: Use as a vegetable dip or a spread on sandwiches.

Beware: Some hummus have added oils for a creamier consistency. Try making your own in a food processor.

Black beans: Folate, fiber, manganese, protein. Low in calories and have no saturated fat.

Easy to add: add to omelets or salads, toss into your salsa for extra fiber.

Nuts/Seeds:

Almonds: rich in omega 3s, manganese, vitamin E, protein, fiber

Easy to add: make snack bags to bring to work, sprinkle on salads, oatmeal, or even toss in a smoothie.

Walnuts: have the highest concentration of antioxidants of all the nuts, manganese, protein, fiber

Flax seed: omegas 3s, manganese, fiber

Easy to add: Add to salads, oatmeal, or smoothies. Add to baked goods for extra fiber.

Animal Products:

Chicken:  Vitamin B3, protein, selenium. Chicken is lean and is high in protein which builds your muscles.

Easy to add: My favorite chicken salad

Eggs: Selenium, B12, protein

Easy to add: Hard-boiled eggs are quick snack. Boil a few for your work week - they will last up to a week in your refrigerator. 

Goat/Feta/Mozzarella Cheese: Calcium, protein. How can cheese not be on my list? I mean seriously. These 3 cheeses have the lowest fat content.

Easy to add: Goat cheese and feta add a nice kick to salads or omelets. Mozzarella works great on homemade pizzas. Pair with apples and melons.

Salmon: Vitamins D, B3, and B12, omega 3s, selenium, protein

Easy to add: pair with crackers as a snack, or with eggs for breakfast.

Greek Yogurt: Calcium, phosphorous, vitamin B12, protein. Probiotics found in yogurts boost your immune system by battling bacteria. Not all yogurts have them though. Look for "live and active cultures." Greek yogurt is a great source of protein.

Easy to add: Use for a base for salad dressing or dips, smoothies.

Beware: Many low-fat yogurts are high in sugar. Fage Total 0% yogurt (plain) is your best best with 80 calories, 6g of sugar and 15g of protein.

Other:

Snack Bars: many bars I eat have a good amount of protein or fiber in them. I specifically like Luna bars for their protein and wonderful taste, and Gnu Bars for extra fiber.

Beware: Many bars are high-calorie and contain a lot of sugar. I recommend bars that are 200 calories or less if this is just a snack. Pair with a fruit for a great breakfast.

Drinks: 

Water, water, water. It's free!

Milk: Iodine, calcium, vitamin D

Easy to add: Use as the liquid in making oats and smoothies. Eat with a cookie. ;)

Juice: If I drink juice, it's always 100% juice.

Beware: juice cocktails or ades - holy added sugar alert.

Red Wine: antioxidants, reservatol. Pinot Noir has the most reservatrol per glass.

***Disclaimer: I am not a nutritionist nor do I have any training on this subject matter. All information about vitamins/nutrients came from the Worlds Healthiest Foods site or the book The Food Doctor. I am providing this list solely as an example of my current diet. This list is not comprehensive; we all know I eat a lot of cookies.

In other news:

Thank you so much for all your kind words regarding my shin splints! They feel a lot better! Here's why:

I sat like this at work all day:

Julius (my old trainer) used a ball to roll out the muscles. PAINFUL!

Then I cried.

How creepy am I in this pic? I was laughing so hard bc he didn't know I was taking this! Now he does!

And then I bought 20 Fage Greek yogurts from Publix...Don't judge me! They were on sale!

Peanut Butter Review & Recipe: Christina's Crazy PB&J Smoothie

Nanette from Krema Products was nice enough to send me some of their peanut butter to review. I was really eager to try their products because they contain only one ingredient: peanuts! How awesome is a peanut butter that has no added sugar, salt, or hydrogenated oils? Crazy awesome!


Speaking of crazy, Krema Products also makes the Crazy Richards line of peanut butters. The Krema line is found in the Midwest and the Crazy Richards line is found on the East Coast. There is no difference in the peanuts or the manufacturing process used to make the two lines--they just have different labels.


I was excited to see that I had received a crunchy and creamy peanut butter from both lines.

Peanut butter testing is serious business. I grabbed my roommate for Mission: Devour Peanut Butter. First, we tried the crunchy. As soon as we opened the jar, we could smell the peanuts. It smelled so fresh!

Before I sampled it, I could tell that it was going to be good. The aroma alone made my taste buds sweat.

My thoughts: nut perfection in a jar! The nuts are ground perfectly--not too crunchy to the point of wearing down your tooth enamel, but crunchy enough to make a delicious pb&j on toast. 


Boding's thoughts: This tastes very natural. Despite the viscosity, this peanut butter still retains that "stuck to the roof of your mouth" quality. 


Next we opened the creamy. Holy liquid on top. Boding was concerned that this wasn't even peanut butter, but I reminded him that the oil separation was normal. A quick stir with a knife was all we needed to get this butter ready for tasting!

Do not, I repeat, do not dump out the excess oil. I learned my lesson with my last peanut butter samples.

My thoughts: creamiest peanut butter ever. It was incredibly smooth. This peanut butter would be perfect to drizzle over oatmeal or Greek yogurt. It's so creamy that spoonfuls just kept falling into my mouth like magic. I wasn't mad...


Boding's thoughts: The texture is extremely soupy. It had a true to taste flavor in that you could tell there were no added preservatives. It would be great for mixing into cottage cheese or oatmeal. (Great minds think alike!)


We may or may not have busted out the Nutella for a delicious sweet & salty combo.

How fun are their labels? I love the colors. I think Krema Products should take note of this awesome lime green color and consider redoing the labels one day ;)

And again, how often do you see nut butters with an ingredient list like these:

Because I have no problem overdosing on peanut butter, I decided to make a smoothie so I could indulge a bit more.


Christina's Crazy PB&J Smoothie!
In the blender:

• 1-2 tbsp Crazy Richard's crunchy peanut butter
• 1 frozen banana
• 1/2 cup frozen blueberries (or any fruit for the "jelly" flavor)
• 1 container vanilla Greek yogurt, 5.3 oz
• 1 tbsp flax seed
• splash of skim milk

YUM! This smoothie is a great source of protein. It is lightly sweet with a bit of crunch from the peanut butter and flax seed. Make one now!

For more information about Krema Products, please visit their site. They also have a blog! Crazy Richard's daughter writes this blog to educate people on the health benefits of peanut butter and she has a bunch of great recipes. Check it out!

As I blog this, I'm laying in bed watching Food Network (duh) and wearing this crazy contraption:

Sad story: I have shin splints. I noticed some pain when I was doing lunges yesterday, but I thought I was just being a wuss from too much tequila the night before. When I started running today I nearly flew off the treadmill because of shooting pains. I limped to the bathroom and big, beefy dude whose name I cannot remember asked if I was okay. He confirmed that my pain was shin splints and that I need to stay off it for a week. GAH. I said, "Ok. That's fine. I'll just stay in the man zone and get buff." His response: "Yeah! Let me train you for a week and you'll get swoll!" SWOLL?? REALLY?? Men are crazy!

What's your favorite peanut butter recipe?

What's your favorite smoothie combo? I need recommendations!

Here's to a great week! 

Out With the Old, In With the New

This morning Nikki and I went to Hominy Grill for brunch. The restaurant, located downtown on Rutledge St., is in a shabby old building dating back to the 1880s. The clapboard walls, tin ceilings and hardwood floors give the former barbershop a very homey, antique feeling. 

The menu has traditional Southern fare, with pancakes, french toast, eggs, buttermilk biscuits, and of course, grits. You may recognize Hominy Grill from Anthony Bourdain's No Reservations when he devoured the "Big Nasty Biscuit": a buttermilk biscuit with fried chicken, cheddar, and sausage gravy.

Aside from the regular menu, the restaurant offers daily specials which are written on chalkboard menus.

If I hadn't just had french toast last weekend, I would have definitely ordered the cinnamon french toast. I instead chose one of their daily specials: black bean, salsa & cheddar omelette with avocado sauce, home fries, and corn bread. 

Hominy Grill has traditional Southern corn bread that is on the drier side with just a hint of sweetness. "Yankee corn bread" is sweeter and more like cake. (Reason #922958725 why I don't mind being called a Yankee. I like my food sweet!) The omelette was pretty good but the avocado sauce kind of freaked me out. I'm 100% sure this was avocado pureed with sour cream. Ick. Here's a picture of the inside:

Nikki had a buttermilk biscuit with egg and cheese and a side of grits.

 

I was in l-o-v-e (ok, maybe lust) with her biscuit. I think I ate more of it than she did. It was so moist and crumbly. We both thought the grits had a great texture but needed salt. Here is a picture of us outside the restaurant, photographed by a stranger who obviously doesn't know the rule of thirds. Our poor hands got chopped!

After brunch we stopped by Dillard's to exchange my beloved Michael Kors watch. I used to own this baby:

Pretty, right? Well, that "gold" you see started wearing off after only 2 months. Not so pretty. I exchanged it for the all silver so I wouldn't look so ghetto-fab.

This watch means serious business. Not only is it about as large as my head, but I could probably clock someone with it....haha GET IT? Oh and did you guys know I was a magician?
Now you see it...

Now you don't! 

I've got tricks.


News in my boudoir: nope, not a man, just new paint & furniture. A couple weeks ago I decided to paint my wall green. Are you at all surprised that I chose a color called Guacamole green?

 A week later, my bed arrived. Reason #298579284 why it's cool to have muscles: you can put beds together! 

I started this project the other night and good heavens it was a chore. So many nuts, bolts, and washers.

My roommate walked in right as I started and pointed out that I was building it upside down. Thank goodness he wanted to help. It took us about 30 minutes to do the frame:

Another 30 minutes later we were done!

Now I'm off to take a nap on my favorite food book. I hope that by some miraculous diffusion process I absorb some of this information. According to Boding, diffusion is "the transfer of particles, specifically ions and nutrients, from one permeable membrane to another permeable membrane." Sure. Let's just hope that diffusion is real so I wake up a better cook. 

OH YES I sleep smiling!! No wine like last time. After my diffusion nap, my friend Kelly and I are going out to dinner where we will hopefully run into 5-10 available men. That should be enough! ;)

From Baby Back Ribs to Baby Muscles

There was a time in my life where I thought it was so great to be skinny. Not average, not muscular, not healthy, not fit -- just skinny. After a significant weight loss over about a year and a half, I was just happy with being skinny. From 2004-2005 I lost 45 pounds. Yes, the little nugget you see pictured to your left used to be bigger. Over the course of that year, I lost 30% of my weight. It was a slow process with a lot of factors. 

As a senior in high school, my best friend Nancy and I thought it was funny that we shared the same size clothes and even weighed the same. What wasn't funny is that she was 5'9 and I was 5'2. I never thought I was overweight. I didn't think anything of my clothing size increasing every year because, hey, it always had growing up...except I wasn't growing any taller. 

My freshman and sophomore years of college were very difficult. There were a lot of changes that I didn't adapt well to: moving into the dorms, being surrounded by unhealthy eating, and parents going through a divorce. I was put on an anti-depressant, eating fast-food regularly, started a birth control that made me blow up, and walking a block to class was my form of exercise. My parents drove me to crazytown and I started having panic attacks. Then the unintended weight loss began. 

In the Spring of 2004, I read that caffeine can increase anxiety, so in an attempt to minimize it, I gave up soda and coffee completely. And I wasn't drinking skinny lattes or diet cokes - more like full-sugar cokes and frappuccinos on the regular. This was an immediate 10 pound weight loss. 

In the same year, I took myself off anti-depressants. It was my mom's idea that I needed them and since I was all about rebelling against her in college, I said screw it. I also made the switch from the depo-provera shot to BC pills. There went another 10-15 pounds.

The last unintentional part of the weight loss journey was moving out of the dorms. I'm not even kidding when I say that my first bf (Hi Chris!) and I ate out almost every day that we were together. Big decisions for us meant Chinese food or Burger King. I was a pretty gross eater too - I ate just as much as he did and even dipped my french fries in mayo...When I moved out of the dorms I started cooking for myself and I rarely went out to eat. Bam went another 10 pounds.

I was excited about the weight loss, and started exercising to lose another 10 pounds...but not to get fit - to get skinnier. I was working out a lot and gave up a lot of foods: soda, coffee, juice, pork, red meat, fried food. Those foods became fear foods, and anything labeled fat-free, low-calorie, low-carb or lower-sugar was safe to me. For a short while I became slightly obsessive about what I ate to the point where I was no longer enjoying myself. I never got to a point where I was dangerously skinny, but looking back I realize that I was too thin (for me) and too deprived. That to me meant unhappy and unhealthy.

My previous post on finding a balance was such a huge step for me in that I sometimes still have a hard time eating those "fear foods" and being okay with it. Judging from the responses I received on that post, I felt it was safe to discuss my past and show that I'm not just some skinny girl who's able to chow down burgers whenever I want. I have now learned to eat what I want because I do it in moderation with exercise.

And now I'm all about the baby muscles. To me, skinny no longer represents happy or healthy. Regular exercise, being comfortable with what you eat, and maintaining that balance = happy and healthy. I started training with Julius this year and have learned to love the muscles. I was so petrified that I'd "bulk up" before but I realized it's not going to happen. Just the other day, Katie started her muscle movement. She has written two posts featuring several bloggers (including me!) who are proud of their new muscles. Katie has had quite the journey herself and I am so proud of how far she's come. I think it's so important that we focus on being healthy and happy and encourage each other to embrace those baby muscles and continue our exercising! 

Muscles are the best. They make you better-defined, fierce, and you don't have to ask boys for help with opening pickle jars. Everyone should get some! Plus, muscles usually require exercising in the man-zone of the gym....yes, please. 

So, what stage in healthy living are you in? Have you lost some weight or gained some muscle? Found a new exercise you love or completed your first race? My current goal is to be able to do a pull-up. One pull-up. I can't do it without jumping and I want to be able to just do it. Julius told me that the average woman can't do one, but I'm on a mission now!!

Hope everyone has a wonderful Wednesday!


***My weight loss is not typical was due to several factors. Please do not use the amounts lost per each factor as a guide to your own weight loss. Remember that every body is unique and bodies react differently to each of the factors that contributed to my weight loss. :)

Saturday Faturday or Sunday Funday? Both sound great!

I cannot lie to you guys. This weekend I ate things that don't belong on any site with the word "healthy" in its title. Why did I do this? Because I can. Life is all about balance and as Julius would say, I "eat clean during the week and eat dirty on the weekend." Another friend, Stark, always says "Work hard, play hard." He probably wasn't referring to exercise, but I've applied these two quotes to my life regarding fitness and nutrition. Being well-behaved during the week grants me that free pass to be naughty on the weekend. 

I have found that this type of balance works for me. I'm not saying that everyone should eat like a mouse or give up their favorite foods Monday-Friday just so they can eat a truckload of food come Saturday. I just think when you are nourishing yourself with healthy foods the majority of the time, it is okay to indulge occasionally. Don't fear the spinach...or the pizza. Your body wants you to have both. I'd be a raging lunatic if I didn't have the occasional burger or slice of cake. Wouldn't you? In the past I have found that depriving myself only makes me binge later. I eat chocolate pretty often. I know that if I don't eat it here and there, my body will be so excited to finally see it, that I'll eat a damn cake. Then I'll feel cake pregnant. And I don't want any babies, cake or human.

Since I gave up alcohol, my perspective on drinking has also changed. I love beer. I love wine. And God bless tequila. But do I need to throw back Patron every Friday and shotgun Coor's Light? Ehhh probably not. Can I enjoy a glass of wine with dinner and have a few during the weekend? Absolutely. Moderate drinking has been so much more fun. In the past week I've had 3 glasses of red wine and two beers. I haven't had a hangover and I've gotten a lot done.

Sunday Funday began with a blogger meet up at the Fat Hen. Amelia is moving to Denver, so she chose this restaurant for her last Charleston blogger meet-up. Amelia + her husband, Blair, Lindsay, Erica, and I met up for brunch. The Fat Hen is located on John's Island, and from Mt. Pleasant, I felt like I was going on vacation. The drive over is really pretty and I was so excited to get out of Mt. Pleasant. I'm acting like it was hours away, but it was really only 14.6 miles from my house.

Upon seating, we were immediately served water in Mason jars. How cute!

 

The brunch menu has a lot of fantastic options, and I had a difficult time deciding what to order. Erica tried to catch me in a rare serious moment, but I caught her camera flash first!

I chose what my eyes immediately darted to when I first saw the menu: Creme Brulee French Toast served with Grand Marnier and strawberries.

Although it wasn't fancy plating, the food was good. The toast was really soft and doughy, with a custard-like taste. I was expecting more of a crispy crust, like Creme Brulee, but didn't get that at all. It was very very sweet. I think everyone enjoyed their meals, which included eggs Benedict, a crab crepe (amazing!), scrambled eggs + fruit, and an escolar over mixed greens special.

The Fat Hen parking lot makes for a great photo op:

Can I just say that Amelia's husband, Kevin, did a wonderful job at his first all-ladies meet up? The topics of conversation ranged from blogs, to hair stylists, ex-boyfriends, and back to blogs. He actively engaged in all of our girly conversations and took like ninety photos of us outside. I feel like blogger meet ups are a great way to either scare the shit out of your boyfriend/husband or test their tolerance....how do you ladies feel about me bringing a man on a first date with us? HA.

Sunday Funday continued...I migrated from John's Island back to Mt. Pleasant, straight to my pool. I met up with Jen, Hannah, Mike, Scott, and Kelly to bake in 100* weather. HOT DAMN it was hot. We lasted about two hours until we decided we needed refreshments: beer and burgers. Poe's Tavern on Sullivan's has the best burgers. It's fun to sit outside (by the fan of course!) and enjoy cold beers and humongous, creative burgers. Their menu has burgers, chicken sandwiches, nachos, and fish tacos. I've always wanted to try the Tell-Tale Heart: a burger with a fried egg, apple wood bacon, and cheddar cheese. Yep, it sounds like a great way to have a heart attack but I'm thinking all the cardio I did this week would negate balance it out.

Totally worth treadmill pounding. I think Hannah would agree for her special of the day: a burger with jalapeno jack cheese and fried pickles. 

 

Scott said, "I only work out so I can eat more." He went with Edgar's nachos: tortilla chips, Edgar's drunken chili, monterey jack, pico de gallo, guacamole, sour cream, jalapenos, and scallions.

That wasn't all the damage I did this weekend. No, my friends, I ate a lot more. Margaret was my eating partner in crime this weekend. Friday night we sipped red wine and I ate a lot of pretzel m&ms (I want to marry these!). Last night we ate Blue Bell banana pudding ice cream. Can you believe that is real? It even has chunks of wafer cookie in it.

 

And Saturday night we ate at La Pizzeria in Mt. Pleasant. La Pizzeria is a small restaurant that serves authentic Italian pizza. It is reallyyyyyy good. I had a slice of Margherita with

San Marzano plum tomato sauce, basil and fresh mozzarella. 

Margaret had a Bianco pizza with spinach, Romano cheese, and red pepper.

We also shared a Sicilian style slice. We must have lived in the South too long because we pointed at the slice and said "Oooh, we want that one, with the fried green tomato." The server said "Um..that's eggplant." Oops.

Weekend Recap: red wine, pretzel m&ms, pizza, french toast, burgers, beer, and ice cream. THIS IS WHY I WORK OUT.

Do you know how excited I was to drink milk and eat oatmeal for breakfast this morning? You have no idea. 

Do you ever have weekends where you eat whatever you want because you know you deserve it? Do you ever regret eating this way or do you enjoy it to the fullest? Do you eat similar to me by eating clean for the most part and then giving in occasionally? Or do you have another balancing method? Please share! Enjoy your week!