Fresh Legs

Today coincidentally became my rest day.  The alarm went off, my running gear was all prepared by my bed, and it was all planned for me to go out into a short 2-mile run.  But then I decided that I’d rather keep my legs fresh for tomorrow’s longer run.  And considering the fact that my body felt like lead at the moment, I decided I could use the extra sleep. 😉

A half hour later, I was out of bed and ready for breakfast.  I used up the rest of the quinoa in a similair concoction to the one I had yesterday morning.  Except this time I heated the soymilk and quinoa together in the microwave, adding a ton more cinnamon, a handful of raisins and a banana.  Love it…it has almost a “wild” taste to it (in a good way 😉 ).  Think of it as a brown rice type of thing…not as an oatmeal replacement because it isn’t.  I think it would actually be really good with apple juice included in the cooking liquid to sweeten it up a bit too.

I knew it wouldn’t be enough to keep me full, so I also ate a toast with pb and raisins sprinkled on top, after seeing it so often on Tina’s blog. 😀 

I stopped by the hospital for a brief visit, to sit in on a cardiac rehab class.  Most of the people in the class were there to learn how to lower their cholesterol through positive diet and lifestyle changes.  It was really interesting to listen to the RD, and I feel like I learned quite a bit myself!  One man jokingly said he felt so confused, because he’s always hearing different advice from different people…”No protein, no carbs, no fat: what can we eat other then vitamins and minerals?”  We all started laughing, and the dietitian was there to answer any and all questions…which of course included the age old good advice for balance and moderation of all foods! 😀 

There were also some good recipes that she handed out including pan fried fish (which I plan on trying myself!) and tofu stir-fry. 

When I arrived back home, I got to work on finding what I could from the refrigerator.  It is Wednesday, after all…the day before grocering shopping, which means food is becoming scarcer by the moment…ha!  Thankfully I still had a bit of spinach left and there were some goodies in the freezer too..

I made a side salad with the last of the spinach, the last 1/2 a carrot, the last of the black beans, the last of the red onion (are you noticing a pattern here? 😉 ), and the last clementine.  For my main entree I had a slice of toast topped with a veggie burger topped with a slice of melted cheese and catsup.  On the side were some homemade french fries with more catsup…yum!  Not too shabby for a “we’re out of everything and I’m starving” meal. 😉  So thankful tomorrow is shopping day though!

I decided this afternoon that I needed to get out and do something to prevent myself from getting stir-crazy on my rest day.  I have a hard time sitting still and knew I’d end up going running if I stayed home (which beats the purpose of a good rest day!)  So I headed out to Whole Foods.  What better way to spend your rest day, right? 😀

I also had an encounter with starbucks, where I got an iced coffee with soy… 😉

I bought myself some major goodies which I’m super excited about…and bought myself a peanut butter larabar to try, but wasn’t hungry this afternoon.  I’ll be saving it for when I need a snack, because I’m super excited to give it a whirl. 😀

Dinner tonight was incredibly yummy.  And best of all?  It was easy to put together, nutritious, and approved by all members of the family.  Score!

This is the Baked Shrimp with Feta from Cooking Light’s April ’09 issue…

Yield

4 servings (serving size: 1 cup)

Ingredients

• 1  tablespoon  fresh lemon juice
• 1 1/2  pounds  large shrimp, peeled and deveined
• Cooking spray
• 1  teaspoon  olive oil
• 1/2  cup  prechopped onion
• 1  garlic clove, minced
• 2  tablespoons  bottled clam juice
• 1  tablespoon  white wine  (I skipped this part due to not having white wine in the house)
• 1/2  teaspoon  dried oregano
• 1/4  teaspoon  freshly ground black pepper
• 1  (14.5-ounce) can diced tomatoes, drained
• 1/2  cup  (2 ounces) crumbled feta cheese
• 2  tablespoons  chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley

Preparation

1. Preheat oven to 450°.

2. Combine lemon juice and shrimp in a large bowl; toss well. Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Coat pan with cooking spray. Add oil to pan, swirling to coat. Add onion to pan; sauté 1 minute. Add garlic; sauté 1 minute. Add clam juice, wine, oregano, pepper, and tomatoes; bring to a boil. Reduce heat, and simmer 5 minutes. Stir in shrimp mixture. Place mixture in an 11 x 7–inch baking dish coated with cooking spray. Sprinkle cheese evenly over mixture. Bake at 450° for 12 minutes or until shrimp are done and cheese melts. Sprinkle with parsley; serve immediately.

On the side I made brown rice and some frozen mixed veggies.  Who says frozen veggies have to be boring, by the way?  They’re a super cheap way to include some vegetables in your diet, and can be enhanced with herbs and spices.  I added some dried basil and garlic powder to a bag, to add some flavor.  Yummy, quick, cheap, nutritious… 😀  It’s nice to have a spare bag of veggies in the freezer in case you ever run into “empty fridge syndrome.” 😉

For a snack tonight, I had a bowl of multigrain cheerios, raisins, and soymilk…crunch, crunch, crunch.

Now I’m continuing to work on homework.  I have so much to cover, but I just keep telling msyelf, “one step at a time.”  Somehow it all gets done! 😀  Happy Hump Day!!

Exercise: 4-mile after dinner walk…nice and leisurely to keep today as a rest day. 😀

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