Goals for July

It's July 1st, which means it's time to reflect on the month of June and the progress I made on my goals as well as set new goals for this month!

June's Goals

1. Get into the 180's

2. 15 runs in June

3. 90 oz water per day

4. Track w/integrity EVERY DAY!!

I'm happy to report on each of these goals!! WOOHOO!

Get into the 180's

I'm happy to report that as of this morning I'm fluctuating between 189 lbs and 188.4 lbs!  I recorded the higher of the two for HappyScale!  This means I met my milestone 4 and can start work on Milestone 5!  Slow and steady wins the race!

15 Runs in June

I'm counting this one done -- on a technicality... technically my "Month of June" started mid-week, So I'm counting all the runs that week instead of just the calendar mark.  Training calendar trumps actual calendar, right?

90 oz Water Per Day

This one is a bit tricky -- I didn't necessarily track the water I drank... I just made sure to drink a LOT especially after a hot run or after being in the humidity for a while.

My Go-To mug is a 32 oz double wall insulated deal that I refill multiple times per day.  I also fill it to the brim with ice at each refill, so the actual water content may be significantly less than the 32 ounce mark.

Moving forward, I'm just going to keep pushing water...

The silver lining is that I haven't had pop (or soda if you're southern) in a long time.  Well over a month -- so this pushing water focus is helping in that arena.  I'm a long time diet coke addict, but realized it was slowly killing me so I've since reformed.  I now obsess over coffee, tea, and water.

Track with Integrity every day!

I nailed this goal -- and I can honestly say that it's so much easier when I'm doing the 21 day fix meal plan.  I usually can bust through all my portions for the day and still have points leftover.  Cooking at home helps with this too -- as it gives me more control over what I add to the food, how my meals are prepared, and how big my portions are.

I'm trying to fall into a rhythm with eating that goes something like this:

• Breakfast - eggs or a smoothie
• Snack - Protein shake if I workout in the AM, coffee + fruit if I workout later that day.
• Lunch - Leftovers, a Big salad with lots of veg + protein, or avocado toast w/egg
• Snack - Fruit usually, or I skip it if my lunch was sufficiently large.  My go to around this time if I'm starving is an apple with almond butter.... mmmm
• Dinner - Protein + veg + carb,  I like to designate a carb to this meal time.  Something about having a carb at dinner helps me feel full and satisfied, even if it's just a half cup of rice.
• Dessert/Snack - Date Rolls (homemade), Greek yogurt w/ honey & nuts, or skip if I'm full.

Goals for July

1. Crush my Runs!!  (As planned)
2. Be active every day!! (Workout, run, or active recovery - yoga, pilates, foam rolling, stretching)
3. Drink up!!  (Water, water, water, unsweetened tea, water, water, coffee...)
4. Hit Milestone #5 -- 180!

I've got this!

What are you goals for this month?

Did you crush your June Goals?

What's your rhythm for meals throughout the day?

What I ate this week #1

Overview

This was my first week trying out the new Smart Points on weight watchers.

It's like learning to walk again.  Throughout the week I learned that some of my favorite "go to" foods have different points values while others stayed the same (yes eggs!).  This meant that more than once this week I found myself reevaluating life choices...

Each day I get 30 smart points and I have a weekly allowance of 42 -- this is a change from points plus where each week everyone got 49 points.  It's roughly a point per day, so I just vowed to earn those points back with activity!

I try to each breakfast, lunch, and dinner everyday with a few snacks thrown in if I'm hungry.  As mentioned in previous posts, I'm dabbling with the idea of honoring my hunger and listening to my body.  This translates to really trying to snack when I'm ravenous and to not force myself to finish the last few bites of my favorite foods.

This week's Breakfasts

I start every day with a cup of coffee.  Every. Day.

If I don't, for whatever the reason, it's a bad day -- for everyone.  I either make french press coffee or just throw it in my regular brewer.  I like hot or iced but either way I take it with milk or cream and stevia for about 1 smart point.  Then, for this week at least, I added in one or more of the following:

• Egg in a nest - 4 sp
• Homemade banana bread - 3 sp
• Scrambled Egg Whites - 0 sp
• Breakfast sausage patty - 3 sp  *I made a big batch on Sunday in the oven*
• Homemade unsweetened applesauce w/ cinnamon - 0 sp
• Fresh apple or peach - 0 sp

It's easier on busy days to grab a slice of banana bread -- which requires no prep work.  I can dip it in my coffee and polish off my slice without dirtying too many dishes.  On slower mornings, I lean to the hot savory eggy options.  I just love eggs.  MMM...

Next week I want to try making a larger batch of Eggs in a Nest and reheating them throughout the week.  I might also add in some more fruit smoothies if the weather heats up.

This week's Lunches

When I'm at work, I eat my packed lunch without fault.  When I work from home (which is at least twice a week), I'll dig into leftovers instead.  This week, I tried to pull in the reigns with a bit of Sunday meal prep -- I baked off a batch of chicken and squash, let it cool, and packed 5 containers for the fridge.

• Chicken w/ Squash - 4 sp
• Leftover - *varies*

This week's Dinners

This was a busier than normal week -- with evening meetings that ran until 8pm on multiple nights for either hubby or me.  I knew the menu had to consist of things that could easily be reheated and larger batches that would mean leftovers.  Leftover = less future cooking!

• Monday - Korean food night!  Had leftovers of everything but dumplings
  • Kimchi soup - 3 sp per bowl
  • White rice - 6 sp per cup
  • Cucumber salad - 1 sp per cup
  • Bulgogi - 2 sp per ounce
  • Dumplings - 2 dumplings for 3 sp
• Tuesday - Leftover Korean food
• Wednesday - Pasta night!
  • Baked Vegetarian Pasta - 12 sp per serving
  • Texas Toast - 4 sp per serving
• Thursday - Dinner Meetings
  • Pizza Meeting -- 10 sp per slice
• Friday - Leftover Pasta night!

This week's Snacks & Desserts

• Sugar Snap peas + Baby Carrots - 0 sp
• 2 Tbsp Red Pepper Hummus - 2 sp
• 22 Pistachios in shell - 2 sp
• 12 Mini Pretzels - 2 sp
• 2 squares chocolate - 4 sp
• 2 Girl Scout Cookies (Tagalongs) - 6 sp
• Fresh Apple or Peach - 0 sp
• Salad -- 1 slice Hard Salami w/ lettuce & Balsamic Vinegar - 1 sp

Still don't know what the plan is for this weekend -- but one things for sure, I'm exhausted!

**If you'd like any recipes for the listed foods above, please leave me a comment/reply and let me know**

What are you eating this week?  

Have you tried the new Smart Points?  

What are your thoughts?

 Any recipes I should try?

Just for Fun Friday #3

Making Mandu!

This week, hubby and I made homemade Mandu!  This is the recipe we used.... Thank you Maangchi!

This is something new we tried for the very first time -- and we think it'll become one of our family traditions!

What's Mandu?

 Little Pockets of heaven!  They are dumplings made with a seasoned meat and vegetable stuffing that are then steamed, added to soups, or in my case pan fried.  (It's basically a Korean Pierogi with a thinner skin or the Korean version of a Potsticker...SOO GOOD!)

To make them I used two kinds of store bought "skins" -- Big round ones (like below) and plain old Wanton Wrappers.

We mixed up the meat mixture -- I used all Beef instead of some beef, some pork... added seasoning, onion, green onion, garlic, cooked and chopped sweet potato noodles (like the kind you used for JapChae), and crumbled tofu.

You take a thin little wrapper, add some filling and fold up your little balls of deliciousness.  Pictured here you see three Mandu made by hubby (on the left) and two made by me (on the right) -- you can tell because my ends point out and his are crumpled in.

Once we had a nice stockpile build up, I pan fried a few in some vegetable oil -- SOO GOOD and CRISPY!

Random Childhood story

I've always been a fan of any kind of dumpling.  Korean Mandu, Chinese Pork Buns, Polish Pierogis -- if it's a cute little dough packet with a delicious filling, then it qualifies as one of my favorite foods.

Growing up, my grandparents lived very close to a Catholic church that had very Polish roots.  My paternal grandmother was part Polish -- so she loved this!  Every year, the church would coordinate efforts with the heavily Polish local population to put on a full blown "Polish Festival" to raise money for their church and Catholic School.

This this was the Sh**!!  There were Super sketchy Carnival rides, Polish bands to play Polka non-stop for the whole 3-day festival, a grown-ups only Beer Tent and all your typical carnival foods -- including Caramel Apples, Elephant ears, and funnel cakes.

There was a huge tent with nothing but games -- ring toss, balloon dart pop, bingo, etc... even Texas Hold 'em!  All games cost a quarter or $0.50 and would go towards fundraisers for the school or charity.  If you won a game, you'd get a prize -- Once I even won a GORGEOUS doll!

At the very back of the festival's lot, there was a CANDY TENT!  The entire tent was just display after display of candy -- some pieces were 5 for a penny, others were a quarter each, and the full bars or packs were a dollar or more.  I would save up my money (or beg for allowance) and stock up on candy.  The festival was in August and at times I would still be eating my candy horde well into Halloween season...

The Polish festival was something we looked forward to every year.

The best part was the fact that they had any kind of Polish food you'd like -- Kielbasa, cabbage, and of course PIEROGIS!   That's right -- addition to all the other food stands, you could also get the most delicious, fluffy, crunchy, chewy, cheesy, potatoe-y Pierogi ever!  They always had three kinds -- Potato, Cheese, or Potato & cheese.  You could get individuals or combos and they let you have as much sour cream as you needed.  My favorite were the potato & cheese (why choose right?).

I remember ordering some that were so fresh and hot that I couldn't wait to take a bite!  I burned the crap out of my mouth, but it was worth it.

For this Just for Fun Friday -- I challenge you to either:

(1) Try some MANDU!!  Any local Korean restaurant (worth their weight) will serve these either steamed or pan fried -- try them both and let me know which you prefered!

(2) Make some dumplings!  Any kind of dumplings!  I have found that one common thread through most cultures is their embrace of the dumpling...

What will you do Just for Fun today?  

What's your favorite kind of dumpling?  

Do you have any fun things you like to do with family every year?

What to Eat Wednesday #3

What to eat this week -- Energy Foods!

I have been SOOO TIRED this last week!!!  Decided it was because of too much junk (too much junk food, junk activity, and junk entertainment -- not enough quality stuff).  Did some research and found this article from Shape that lists foods that can boost your energy levels.  

Here are the 10 energy boosting foods

1. Salmon
2. Citrus
3. Eggs
4. Beans
5. Walnuts
6. Leafy Greens
7. Bran Cereal
8. Dark Chocolate
9. Coffee
10. Water

Food Facts

1. Salmon -- contains Omega-3 fatty acids  = energy
2. Citrus -- Vitamin C boost immune system and helps balance energy and alertness
3. Eggs -- (See What to Eat Wednesday #2 for more info) -- just pure awesomeness
4. Beans -- B vitamins = energy
5. Walnuts -- good for your brain and also has Omega-3's
6. Leafy Greens -- Vitamin C, K, Calcium, beta-carotene, and folate
7. Bran Cereal  -- B-complex vitamins, fiber -- varies by brand/type
8. really dark chocolate -- stress fighting/energy boosting nutrients
9. Coffee -- Caffeine -- duh...
10. Water -- See Thirsty Thursday Post!

Recipes to Try 

I decided on these three recipes that are a combo of energy boosting foods.  I'm going to try them!  Dare you to do the same!

1. Pan Seared Salmon with Kale and Apple salad
2. Mexican Egg Bake with Spinach, black beans, and cheese  (Side of grapefruit please!)
3. Trail mix made with Walnuts, Bran Flakes, with Dark Chocolate nibs!

What do you include in your diet that boosts your energy?  

What do you do when you have energy slumps?  

How do you stay away at your desk all day?

Japchae love!

Made this yummy bowl of Japchae a few days ago for lunch. 

 It was SOOOO YUMMY!

I am a firm follower of all things Maangchi, so I used this recipe. I made a few alterations -- only veggies (no beef), extra mushrooms (cuz I like 'em), and a bit of extra sesame seeds (again, cuz I like 'em). 

SOOO good and super filling. 

For those of you that aren't Point.Five.Korean, or are but (shamefully) haven't tried this dish -- DO IT! It's a great all in one dish that can be jazzed up or tweaked to accommodate Vegetarians (carrot eaters), meat lovers (sane people), or anyone following a restricted diet. 

It's also great warm, room temperature, or chilled -- making it a great thing on these 100++ degree days where the heat and humidity make your face melt off.

Also please note the size of the bowl... Yeah ... those carrot pieces are about two inches long. I like big bowls and I cannot lie.

 Knowing full well my passion for big bowls, my mother-in-law recently found me two big bowls - both white, one round and one square. I used the round one for my Japchae in the photo. She's great like that :D. Why big bowls? Growing up half korean, there were always a variety of bowl sizes in my house. Super small condiment/side dish/banchan bowls. Super huge mixing bowls. Super Deluxe Extra Big Kimchi making bowls. 

 All kinds of bowls. Some with lids, some without. Some with intricate patterns, some plain white. Some heavy, some light. Some made of metal, some made of wood, some made of "shatter-proof" ceramic.

When it came time to eat a meal that I particularly liked, I made sure to reach for the biggest bowl I could find. This love for big bowls filled with my favorite foods has rolled over into my adulthood. Big bowls of popcorn. Monstrous salads. Humongous batches of bibimbop. Big bowl lovin' comes complete with a preference for one bowl dishes. Anything that can be tossed together and munched on is a huge win in my house.


  Do you love a big bowl when you see one?
What's your favorite "one bowl" dish/recipe?

Leave a comment/reply and let me know!  ^_^