food

Eating Good in the Neighborhood (pool.)

/ foodsweatandbeers / 7 Comments

Good evening all you morning glories!!

I’ll admit, last night I was running on empty for a few hours before I got home. Two and a half hours volunteering in the blazing heat, a long day at the pool, emotional episode of Extreme Home Makeover (I have more feelings than I should), so when I got back to the apartment, I could barely keep my eyes open let alone my hands typing.  My sincerest apologies to anyone who was chomping at the bit to hear about the life and times of Jordan.

The following post is for my sake as much as advice for others in a similar situation.  In this summer season, it’s extremely tempting to lay out by the pool, eat a mountain full of burgers/hot dogs/grilled delicacies and throw back dozens of Bud Light Limes (the beer snob inside of me cringes, but luckily my inner Jersey girl enjoys it too much to be judgey.)  However, with two days in every weekend, this can really add up.  I’ll admit, my Memorial Day weekend was a bingefest full of the following:

Each of these was filled with at leat 12 Bud Light Limes

Don't worry, I only ate 2/4 bags of chips

I decided to up my game and come up with some ways to keep your body from ballooning into a lobster shaded blimp over the course of those summer days and nights by the pool.

  • Rolls are for suckers and saps. Seriously, if there’s one thing I’ve realized, it is that cheap hot dog buns and burger rolls can actually make the delicious grilled meat significantly less delicious. Lettuce = your friend.  And I promise you, I’m not saying this as part of any ulterior Atkins motives, I love bread and think you should enjoy it… when it’s good. But why waste carbs and calories on cheapy rolls that have all the nutrients bleached outta them?! If you’ve got quality bread, go for it. but if not… don’t even bother.
  • Fruit, fruit, the magical fruit. Summertime is that beautiful season where you can get delicious fruits on the cheap. And it’s always a welcome addition to any BBQ or grill out experience.  You’d be amazed at how surprised people are when you show up with cut fruit, like you’ve given them a new opportunity to live their wildest dreams.  But really, you sliced some watermelon, threw in a pint of washed blueberries, and pulled some grapes off the vine like any quality future soccer mom or dad would. The best part about this? You’re guaranteed that something at the BBQ will be delicious and healthy.  And you seem like a MasterChef.

    this is a game changer

  • Healthy dips are your friend. That being said, while I could (and would love to) bathe in a vat of guacamole, moderation is important in every way/shape/form. Use some crispy veggies as your dipping tools or, if you must, baked chips. Hummus, guacamole, they give you the same feeling as dunking baguette slices into pizza dip, without the same level of bloating poolside.
  • If you must drink beers, go for light. I know, I know, normally I would never advise this. But truly, the sun and dehydration and lack of eating normal foods can make those heavy beers go straight to your head. No one wants to have to call the lifeguard on you for being a wastey face at your neighborhood watering hole.  It’s not classy, and it’s just the worst hangover you’ll ever have in your life.

    Thank goodness for the Miller Lite-guards to save the day. But seriously. This is someone's job.

  • Speaking of which, get in that pool! It sounds like a given, right? Getting in the pool at a poolside event?! why the heck not? However, let me share a fun little pearl of wisdom. “Be like the duck.”  Doesn’t make sense? Roll with me…  Ducks look like tiny cute calm critters on the surface but, under water, they are a flurry of activity.  Yesterday was the first time I did a few of these exercises from the Fitness Magazine Pool Workout, and it was great because no one realized that I was working it or they were too embarrassed to mention it in front of me. Either way, I feel like I squeezed in some fun little exercises without cutting out any fun times with my friends. Even just treading water is more than standing there, right?
  • Sweet Sangria. I have to admit, I’ve never made my own Sangria. But I’ve drank other people’s, and it’s. just. the best.  Plus, it’s jam packed with healthy stuff like fruit and wine and… wine.  Here’s a recipe I found which is next on my “list of things I want to make that give me a sense of healthiness and also make me feel like I’m chilling on a spanish coast”: Healthy Sangria.  More often than not, it’s tastier and more refreshing than those BLLs, and much much prettier.

    Did you know Tori Amos has a song called Sweet Sangria? Now you do!

  • Water, water, everywhere and not a drop to drink?! No way, ladies and gents. Even though you may feel like you do not have to drink water because you are in the water and at the pool, you are not a creature who can be hydrated through osmosis (seriously. didn’t you go to 7th grade science?!) You are a person, and people are happiest and healthiest when they are hydrated to the brim. For every poolside adult beverage you have, why don’t you enjoy a cool water bottle as well? It will slow you down so you don’t get too buzzed, and it will keep you from passing out from dehydration. Once, when I was a little kid, I missed a chance to swim with sharks because I got dehydration and semi-fainted. You don’t wanna miss out on shark swimming, right?! (Feel free to insert any other cool experience if shark swimming scares you.  When you faint from dehydration, you can’t have any fun.)

    I'm fun and friendly!!

I think those are all the little bits and pieces I can think of right now that will keep you (and me!) healthy and happy, without having to roll us outta the pool like Violet Beauregard post blueberry transformation.

Do you have any tips and tricks for staying healthy at poolside BBQs and events?

Did you realize that’s the second time I’ve mentioned Violet Beauregard in this blog which isn’t even a week old?

Stay happy, slather on that SPF (skin cancer is no joke), and enjoy your Sunday!

 

Savoring Every Bite

/ foodsweatandbeers / 4 Comments

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?

Summer Lovin’: Had me a blast!

/ foodsweatandbeers / 4 Comments

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...