Weekly Bites #16

Good evening, good evening, my friends! I'm home early because I'm rocking a REST DAY. Yup, I'm so sore from my last two classes at The Club that pretty much every muscle group in my body hurts. Sore to the touch, actually. Plus, I slept like crap and I'm fighting a cold that wants to make an appearance. I'm sharing these very important details of my life because... for those of you that struggle with this... it's VERY OK to take an unplanned rest day. I'm sure some of you are thinking "um, big deal... you're taking a rest day [insert eye roll]" but, there are also a few of you that struggle with going off-schedule.  I get it, I used to really struggle with taking rest days in general, nevermind unplanned ones. However, the most important thing I've learned about health and fitness in my 32 years is this... LISTEN TO YOUR BODY. I say that phrase all the time, but, when it comes to health... listening to your body trumps everything else. Cravings, tiredness, too much energy, lack of energy, stress, etc. Your body is telling you what it wants... listening is key. I know that resting today, fueling my body, and getting adequate sleep will make me feel 100% better tomorrow during my workout. Plus, rest days are when the magic happens... they are just as important as training days. Muscles repair and grow bigger and stronger during periods of rest, making them an integral part of a training schedule. Got it? Ok great.

Moving on, it's time for "Weekly Bites". I have another solid array of eats to share with you again this week and once again, I'll mark them GA or NGA for those that are interested. Let's get to it!

This was dinner after a big event I had last week. It was late, Rob worked late, and so we went to the freezer for options. It was actually delicious lol. Veggie burger, two fish sticks, and Alexia sweet potato tots. (GA except for ketchup)

I refueled again properly in the morning with a smoothie bowl.  (GA)

Random lunch: Spinach salad with slivered almonds, hemp seed hearts, fig dressing and an ezekiel english muffin with almond butter and cinnamon. That popcorn is the Quinn brand kale popcorn - it's good! (GA)

St. Paddy's day dinner: Open faced roast beef sandwiches on Irish soda bread with sliced sharp cheddar, mustard and micro greens paired with sweet potato and kale chips. (GA)

Oh hey, another smoothie bowl. (GA)

Friday lunch: This "roasted butternut" salad from b.good is SO SO GOOD and surprisingly filling. (GA)

Friday dinner: Salmon prepared the way my mom always made it when I was growing up. We joke that this salmon makes salmon-haters love salmon. (It worked, Rob doesn't like salmon!). Ready? 1 tbs of dijon mustard, 1 tbs of brown sugar, and a dash of cayenne pepper... mix the ingredients and spread on top. Bake on 475 for 12-15 minutes depending on thickness. DELISH. (GA)

Made use of the leftover roast beef and greens on Saturday to make a bit of a cleaner version on a small tortilla. YUM. (GA)

Dinner on Saturday night at Pastoral: This pasta dish was on special... mushroom, guanciale, EGG, carbonara. HEAVEN. Delectable! (NGA)

Dinner yesterday: Organic ground turkey tacos with spinach, avocado, and a sprinkling of cheddar paired with sweet potatoes. (Pretty much GA - the mild taco seasoning doesn't affect my GERD).

That about wraps it up - what were you favorite eats of the week?? xo

Weekly Bites #15

Hi friends - hope you're having a nice week. We've made it to Wednesday and after tonight, it's all downhill from here! Well... for me anyway because I have a HUGE event tonight at Legacy. 

I've kept my promise this week and have a roundup of weekly bites to check out. This week's meal trend has been smoothie bowls. What's yours?

Once again, I'll give each meal a (GA - gerd approved) or an (NGA - not gerd approved) label for those of you interested in controlling acidic foods.

Dinner: Grilled buffalo chicken with mashed avocado and asparagus. (NGA because of the buffalo sauce but it didn't bother me because it was mild and lightly dressed)

Lunch: This awesome house salad with seared tuna from Burtons Grill (GA). 

Breakfast: My favorite smoothie bowl with sfh coconut whey protein, frozen strawberries and mangoes and topped with 1 tsp each of almond butter, coconut, cacao nibs, hemp seeds, and a couple tsp of goji berries. (GA and obsessed) 

Lunch: Spinach salad with chicken, sweet potato, and dressed with hummus. (GA) 

Dinner at Capo with friends: artisanal meats and cheeses (my fav and kinda GA?) 

Breakfast: loaded oatmeal with the same toppings as my smoothie bowl. (GA)

Lunch: Curried chicken with 1/2 sweet potato and veggies.  (GA except for peppers)

Snack: I don't buy these all the time because I eat all of them... Dried mango slices. (GA) 

Dinner: Thai peanut salad that I threw together with romaine, spinach, sweet taters, almonds, chicken, little bit of cheddar and homemade peanut dressing.  (GA)

Breakfast: Smoothie bowl on repeat! 

Lunch: Spinach salad with sweet potato, almonds, roasted chickpeas and a fig vinaigrette. (GA) 

Dinner: Toasted tortillas with cheddar, black beans, and corn. (All gmo-free) and GA

Dessert: Crumbled thanks-a-lot Girl Scout cookies, coconut pieces, and 2 tsp chocolate chips. 😍

Have a great rest of your week!!! Xo

Weekly Bites #14 (Formerly "Bits & Bites")

Hello Hello! I hope every single one of you living in the Northeast have at least 10 minutes to spare today to get outside. 60-70 degree weather? Yes, please! 

Sooo it seems as though the "Bits & Bites" series is pretty popular on FFF so I've decided to make it a weekly post. Sound good? I've also given it a name change because it doesn't make sense anymore since it's evolution from the first few posts. Plus, since I talked about getting a better handle on my GERD diet - I figured I'd keep myself honest via FFF. Food labeled (GA is 'gerd approved' - food labeled NGA is not).

Now... let's get to it! 

Friday Night Dinner: Tuna melts made with celery, capers, mustard, mayo, salt, & pepper served with baked sweet potato "fries". (GA except for the ketchup)

Breakfast: Green Smoothie - Green juice, SFH coconut protein powder, mangoes, 1 tsp almond butter,  and water topped with granola and coconut butter. (GA)

Meal Prep: Hash Brown Breakfast Bake This is so delicious and will be remade with either sweet potato zoodles or the Alexa version of sweet potato tater tots (will make it a bit healthier). (NGA)

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Breakfast: Strawberry/Mango Smoothie made with the same coconut SFH fuel. (GA)

Meal prep for lunches: Salads, quinoa, and HB eggs. (Peppers not really GA but, I'm learning they don't really bother me at all in small amounts) 

Lunch: Spinach, 1/3 cup of roasted chickpeas, cucumbers and Cindy's fig dressing. (GA)

Dinner: Trader Joe's veggie burger (sneaky delicious) with fried egg, avo, and roasted sweet potatoes. (GA)

Lunch: Spinach salad, chickpeas, avocado, and a tbs of hummus. Mix this all together and the hummus works as a dressing... AND IT'S DELICIOUS.  (GA)

Saturday AM Breakfast: Discovering that I can make delicious pancakes from protein powder is a total, friggin', game-changer. Message me or comment below for recipe. (GA)

Saturday post-workout lunch: GMO-free corn tortillas with hummus, roasted chickpeas, sauteed spinach, and avocado. (yes, this combo is delectable and yes I meal prepped roasted chickpeas last week :)) (GA except for all that crushed red pepper - whoops)

Sunday dinner: I meal prepped roasted chicken and sweet potatoes on Sunday night. Here it is served with a side of brown jasmine rice. (GA)

Post workout snack (every damn day): Hummus and carrots. (GA)

Dinner: Noodle bowl made with lots of ginger, a little garlic, and liquid aminos (or soy sauce). (GA besides peppers and the garlic)

And finally... snack time! Guys - you still have time to enter to win these bars (Until Thursday at 8pm) - CLICK HERE!

Welp, now I'm hungry. Please let me know in the comments below --
Do you want more of these "Weekly Bites" posts? Are they helpful?!

Have an awesome day! xo

*Please note: The GERD diet is tricky and since no two humans are alike, many people have different foods that make them symptomatic. That being said, most docs give a sheet of approved/not-approved foods and the notations I make above pretty much follow that. Go see your doc if you have symptoms, questions, concerns, etc. I'm just sharing my experience and meals, not a how-to guide. :)