Author: foodsweatandbeers

Workin’ It

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Hello out there fellow worker bees!!

If you’re like me at all, you MAY BE a 20-something YoPro (Young Professional, NOT yogurt professional, though that’d be glorious too…) And a common challenge in the world of my fellow YoPros (other than sitting on your booty for most of your entire day) is what to do for lunch.  I’ll admit, when I first entered the working world, I had recently broken my foot.  So my day to day thought process when it came to lunch was something sort of like this:

“Yeah… I could crutch over to the fridge, get some ingredients, put together an amazing dinner the night before work, put it in an adorable and eco-friendly lunch tote, and crutch to and from the fridge at work to retrieve it and eat with my homemade chopsticks… OR!! I could drive to Taco Bell for an easy to eat cheesy double beefy burrito with a side of 5 layer nachos and a soda!”

In my crippled state, my lazy bones aching with lazy, guess which one I chose?

First, you go in my mouth. Then, my hips. Sound like a plan?

When I started Weight Watchers, though, I realized that planning for your meals can actually SAVE you time, energy, and (hooray!) calories!  I don’t normally prepare anything too extravagant, but here are some of my usual go to guys for lunch treats:

  • Grilled, seasoned chicken breast – George Foreman = my secret lover. I grilled many en masse, and keep them safe and sound in my tupperware. You can add them to sammies, you can toss them in quesadillas, or just eat them plain!
  • Solid white albacore – A can of this, plus Hellman’s Low Fat Mayo (15 calories per serving), is a perfect sandwich filler for me!
  • Bird’s Eye Steam Fresh Vegetables – These are a total staple in my lunches.  One bag = 2 lunch sides for me, toss them in the microwave, and go to town. Some of them are pre-seasoned, which is nice, but all of them are delicious, seasonings be damned.
  • Arnold’s Sandwich Thins – I feel like, if there was some sort of unofficial sponsor of the healthy living blogosphere, these would be it. Totally versatile, totally delicious, a mix of textures and flavas, all great!
  • Laughing Cow Wedges – Again, a no-brainer. They are a dream to replace butter, cream cheese, mayo, etc. I use the queso fresco flavor on sandwiches with some lettuce and tomato for a spicy pick-me-up, and the blue cheese on sammies or wraps with some Frank’s Red Hot (Literally, I DO put that $*** on EVERYTHING!).
  • Jell-o Mousse Temptations – Best dessert that is portable that I know, to date. My favorite part? To quote Stifler: “I can taste the bubbles!” There are delicious little air bubbles that make it taste sorta like if pudding and tonic water had a love-child, and dipped that baby in caramel. (well that’s just the caramel flavor, but that’s my favorite).
  • Zatarain’s Red Beans and Rice – I know, you can’t prepare these at work a la minute, but prepare them the night before and you’ve got at LEAST two meals waiting for you in tupperware! Add some lean protein like shrimp or chicken breast, and you could definitely stretch it to three (I say two, and some people are probably like WHOAH THERE, Godzilla, that’s a heaping big serving… Yes. I like big meals. And I don’t think I’m the only one…)
  • Extra Dessert Delights (ESPECIALLY key lime pie flavor) – I had a 40 day span of time (some call it Lent) where I gave up sweets/desserts/the whole nine yards. These became my desserts.  I picked up a small carton at Sam’s Club once I realized how tasty they are, and never looked back. They maintain their flavor for a LONG time, and they rock for taking care of that sweet tooth.

While that’s not a comprehensive list by ANY means, those are some of my most frequent players in the game of lunch.  Curious about what I ate today? Well, after a breakfast of Chobani Champions Honey-Nana (love that name) with some Kashi Berry Blossoms and Tupelo Honey thrown in for texture, my lunch actually featured a fair amount of what I’ve listed.

Note the ADORABLE tote I brought it all in?

Toasted Flax Seed Sandwich thin, tuna sammy with that low fat mayo, some lettuce (thanks, Durham Farmers’ Market) and tomato, and a side of roasted veggies (also thanks to the DFM!!).  As for dessert, I’m still chewing it! (Yeah, it’s the Key Lime gum. Violet Beauregarde, eat your heart out!

If you’re a YoPro, what are your lunch staples? Or, if you stay/work at home, how does that change what you eat?

Do you think Violet Beauregarde is the most detestable character from the classic story of Willy Wonka’s baller factory?

Discuss.

 

Feeling a little Good Juju

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Yesssss!!! A beer post!!!!

Definitely feeling some Good Juju!

Tonight’s beer was again courtesy of the GREATEST SALE ON EARTH at A Southern Season. We have a new girl at our office who I knew was from Denver so, in true “I have no clue what the heck I want… oooh pretty bottle!” fashion, I picked up a bottle of Good Juju from Left Hand Brewing Company.  I was not disappointed (only further supporting my belief that beautiful beer bottles tend to yield delicious brewskis).  I also noticed on the bottle that it mentioned it was a beer brewed with ginger and my love for ginger in new things knows NO BOUNDS!

I poured a glass into my fancy-pants Fullsteam commemorative glass from their Triangle Restaurant Week Kickoff Party this weekend. It looked sort of like a lovely light amber/copper color when I initially poured, with no real foamy head (which is indicative primarily of my expert poursmanship).

I could smell the ginger, but I think that was mostly because I had my eye nose out for it. Slowly savoring my first sip (like I do with my food) I instantly tasted the ginger in a way I would’ve even without the hint from the bottle. It wasn’t very carbonated, which was a bit of a bummer, but it was still light and totally drinkable, especially paired with the shrimp from my dinner. To be honest, I’d get this beer to share with some of my foodie friends who love weird flavor mixtures (i.e. beer and ginger). I don’t think I could’ve drank a lot, but perhaps one more would’ve been the perfect dessert for my dinner.  At only 4.5% ABV, too, I wouldn’t be buzzing after more than one and a light dinner (another bonus). All in all, I’d definitely buy it again, and would LOVE to share it at a dinner party with a crowd!

From the Brewer:

Fresh ginger kisses the lithe malty body, copulating with the hop in this pale ale ancestor. Emancipate yourself from the dead of winter, none but the vernal equinox can free the light. A refreshing frivolity. Hey mon. Shuccha fwangaa! Better a witch doctor than a trouble maker. Quit yor’ bitchin’ an’ get to witchin’.

Savoring Every Bite

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So, the focus of this post will be on the first two aspects of my name: Food, and sweat. I think it would only be reasonable to keep the beers as their own post, for organization and also for the sake of bloggers/blogettes who hate beers (though I think, if you give them a chance, they could grow on you…)

Today, in each of my meals, it became abundantly clear.  I am, and will ALWAYS BE, a member of the clean plates club.

We went to Bandido’s Cafe in Durham, the one true love of my Mexican craving belly. I had pipe dreams of taking a picture of my meal before I consumed it.  Unfortunately for all you lovers of food pictures, our waitress decided that after we got chips and salsa, we were probably no longer hungry, so by the time our meals came to the table, my mind was on one thing, and one thing only.

The bottom of this plate.

Moments later, as the rest of the table oogled our coworkers new baby (who is adorable) and pushed beans and enchilada bits around their plates, I was completely finished. My plate resembled almost to a T the one pictured above (only with less food on it). I got the Racy Rodriguez, my go-to lunch combo, with a blackbean enchilada, soft chicken taco (of which I tossed the tortilla after two bites) and a side of blackbeans. Oh, and my arm’s weight in chips salsa. I savored every bite, taking little ones, in order to enjoy it all.

It was no surprise, then, when I was at the gym and had finished a rocking Ab Sculpt and Body Pump class, that my WIW (weigh-in Wednesday) was no different than last week (174). That being said, it was a great workout, and I felt killer afterwards.

The Ab Sculpt class at O2 Fitness features a different set of workouts every week that just focus on your core (abs, lower back, obliques, etc). I have to admit, I just started going to this class whenever I can, and I LOVE getting that little jolt in before Body Pump, and my abs always feel rocked.  Body Pump, once a foreign term to me, seems to be ALL OVER the health/fitness blog world, so some of you may not be familiar with it.  However, for all you newbies (especially y’all who are interested in trying it) let me say, it’s the one class that has changed the shape of my body more than any other.  Today’s class was a mix up of different releases, and went in a pretty standard order (warmup, squats, chest, back, triceps, biceps, lunges, and abs). We nixed the shoulder track because the other class had to come in, but I felt like rocked nonetheless.

I came home to roast a few veggies that I’d picked up at the Farmer’s Market (zucch, red onions, some squash I never got the name of, and eggplant).

Pre-roasting!

And added them to three skewers of shrimp from Tar-jay (aka Super Target), to make this GLORIOUS concoction:

Hiding under the shrimp, you can spot MANY veggies... right?

DeLISH! I pulled the shrimp off the skewers to eat them, mixed it all up with veggies, and ate it all, one or two pieces at a time. I’m big on cutting my pieces into little bites to prolong the pleasure of the eating experience (that almost sounded sexual… I’m not mad.) The beau had a pepperoni Freschetta, which tasted looked bomb.com. (I may have snuck a few nibbles of pepperoni,  shhh…) Let’s just say that, other than the tails of the shrimp (you can’t eat them, right?) there is NOTHING leftover. No matter what it is, bowl or plate, I will leave it clean as a whistle.

Tomorrow is Thursday (Rebecca Black, 2011) and my VERY favorite weekday.  Early morning Body Attack express class, work post-shower, maybe a little trip to the mall, and GLASS NIGHT! (basically a happy hour that I host where we consume craft beer and appetizers and talk beer with friends and strangers.)  I bet I’ll clean my glass, too.

PERSONALLY if I don’t set aside leftovers even BEFORE I eat a meal, I will eat every last bite on the plate. It’s just in my nature… as the eldest of 5 kids in a family of 7 (and 2 dogs… and a REALLY hungry turtle) I always felt like eating meals was a sort of… competition or race. and by GOD, I was going to win.

How about you? Do you clean your plates? Or are you a big fan of leftovers?

Woooo Wednesday!

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True Life: I’m a Woo Girl.

For further explanation of this kinda lady, go no further than How I Met Your Mother’s definition:

A Woo girl is a type of young woman, who like the cuckoo bird or the Whip-Poor-Will, gets get name from the signature sound she makes.

“Wooooo!”

So yes, I’ll woo at anything many things.  However, one thing that I look forward to woo-ing at every week is Wednesday, mostly because it is the day featuring:

THE CHANGING OF THE SALES!

Much like the changing of the guards at Buckingham palace, this is the time honored tradition wherein Harris Teeter and Food Lion change up what’s on sale at their fine establishments.  Just one look at this site:

That's what I like to see, gimme those sales baby....

updated every Wednesday gets me all WOOOOoooo!! excited.

It’s not something I’m proud of, this grocery store discount rapture, but it is a part of me and I encourage others to embrace it, and celebrate each Wednesday morning with a reverent observation of the Changing of the Sales.  And give yourself a try at the ol’ Wooooo!!  I firmly believe there’s a woo girl (or boy) living inside of each of us, you just have to figure out the minor events in life that will bring her (or him) out.

What little thing has made you Wooooo!!!! lately?

Summer Lovin’: Had me a blast!

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Victory Summer Love Ale

My deepest apologies, as all future images of beers I drink will be of the actual beer that I drank (unless I get buzzed and forget to do that…) Honestly, when I purchased/drank this beer last night, I hadn’t even considered making this blog so woops, my bad.

ANYWHO, as a former Philly-area kid, I am more than familiar with the “With Love, Philadelphia XOXO” campaign, and it’s one of my favorite things about returning to the city of brotherly love. I love to see what they do with it every time.  For example, one classic:

Dear Jersey Shore: Ben Franklin was the original “Situation”. PS Come see him. With Love, Philadelphia XOXO

"Say WHAT?! Franklin had NONE of this..."

So when I spotted this beer, a collaboration with the campaign and one of my favorites, Victory Brewing Company, at the Southern Season sale, I jumped at the chance to try it all the way down here in NC.

I’ll admit, I’m normally a big fan of summer ales (and most seasonal beers in general, with winter being the exception) so I knew I was setting myself up for a winner. When I cracked that bottle open and took a whiff, though, I couldn’t resist grinning that doofy grin I get when I know I’m going to like it just from the scent. The smell reminded me of citrus and (shock shock) summer, like a refreshing lemonade, fresh squeezed. It was reasonably hoppy, which is right up my alley, with a nice amount of carbonation that reminded me a little bit of lemon seltzer, and as far as drinkability goes, I could DEFINITELY see this one by my side at the pool this summer.

We had red beans and rice with this, but I wish I’d had made a blackened mahi mahi or some other light fish dish to pair with this beer.

How is it not Hump Day?

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Howdy blogosphere!

My heart actually broke a teensy bit when I looked at my calendar today and realized, to my chagrin, it was Tuesday, not Wednesday. Having just spent the past 8 weeks without doing an actual full workweek (vacations, sick time, trips, coming in late, etc) this week already feels painfully long.  Unfortunately, within the first 6 minutes of my Body Combat class yesterday, I twisted my right ankle, slipping on sweat, and fell on my fanny in front of the jampacked class full of my fitness peers.  After joining Shia in a hole of shame for a while:

Holes, anyone?

I climbed out, gingerly, and made it back home to ice my ankle with a bag of fro-peas (true story).  Today, I decided to take the day off from getting swoll. I’m not going to mess around with my ankle after the great foot breaks of 2k10 (lefty) and 2k4 (righty). Lunch was pretty standard, your basic “taco salad” a la Jordan:

Muy delicioso!!

  • Romaine lettuce (courtesy of the Durham Farmer’s market)
  • 1/2 tomato
  • 1/2 green pepper
  • reduced fat mexican cheese blend
  • Salsa
  • Black beans and chicken seasoned with about 1/16 a packet of taco seasonin

I also enjoyed some tasty slices of watermelon for a snack.  Dinner was more like brinner, with an old standard:

  • Arnold Multi-grain Sandwich thin
  • Turkey bacon
  • 1 egg, 1 egg white
  • Sargento reduced fat Colby cheese slice
  • Reduced fat Wheat Thins
  • half a small avocado (heavenly)

Now that I’m stuffed, it’s time for a little downtime with the beau and Jack Bauer (Yeah, we’re pretty late on the 24 train…  Luckily we could watch every season in like, a bit over a week if we really stuck to it.)

This is mostly how I feel after eating that avocado...

Welcome to the Jungle

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Every day is the first day of the rest of your life, right?

Well today’s the first day of this, my newest internet endeavor.  After reading hours upon hours of the words of my peers, women and men who I admire immensely, that helped inspire my own journey into a healthier lifestyle, I felt moved to start a more official blog of my own.  In March 2010, I began tumbling, which has also been a key to tracking my food intake, exercise, and Weight Watching. Almost a year and a half later, I’ve lost 40 lbs, changed my entire outlook on day to day life, and added a hearty dose of health/fitness bloggers to my day-to-day readathon in the early hours of my morning. It’s my hope to add something to this blogging community, something I can be proud of come August 19th when I hit the streets of Philthy-delphia (aka my old stomping grounds) for the 3rd Annual Healthy Living Summit, an event I used to be satisfied with reading about.

That being said, I’m not a runner. I’m not a health nut, nor am I a nutritionist, and I’m not quite a foodie (though I think I’m getting there…) I’m a hungry young professional living in the Research Triangle of North Carolina with a general enthusiasm for fitness, adventure, and (the newest addition to my list of hobbies) craft beer.

I’d love to use this blog as an outlet to pick up my writing, a passion I used to have as a young’n, and track my health, fitness, food, and beers that have piqued my interest.

Feel free to give me a read, follow along, and maybe (if I’m lucky) I’ll help someone else find the chutzpah to change their lives for the MUCH better.