Eat With Me.

Seriously though, wouldn't it be fun if we could all just eat super healthy meals together all the time? I'd be down. I have had some questions regarding what I eat on a regular basis and why I eat it, so I thought I'd do a few posts of my meals every now and again and give you some explanation. Hopefully it will give you some new ideas!

Today's Breakfast: Chocolate PB Oatmeal

I like to eat oatmeal for breakfast because it fills me up and keeps me full through out the morning. I especially love it in the winter because it makes me warm. In my post on oatmeal a few days ago many of you mentioned that you like oatmeal but the oatmeal packets don't keep you full. I would recommend to you to try using the old fashioned oats that you buy in the big canisters instead. The quick oats (you can find them in the canisters as well and they are the type that come in the packages) are still good for you. However, the slow cook/old fashioned oats are lower on the glycemic index, meaning they won't spike your blood sugar, and they contain more fiber. Instant oats have been processed more than the old fashioned oats have and may have lost some of the nutrients in the process. I use the old fashioned rolled oats for everything. 

My oatmeal procedure: 

Mix 1/2 cup old fashioned oats & 1 cup water in bowl

microwave for 3 minutes, stir, microwave 1 more minute

Add 2-3 TBS ff/sf chocolate pudding mix, 2 tsp of cinnamon (or just a lot), and stir it together

add a few dollops of PB to the top of that

For this combo: 275 calories, 11 grams of protein, 11 grams of fat, 2 grams of sugar, and 8 grams of fiber. 

Sometimes I will add a drizzle of honey or some chopped up banana. 

Today's Lunch: Tuna Wrap & Salad

  

For the wrap I use a La Tortilla Factory Low Carb Tortilla, a big handful of spinach and an individual packet of tuna packed in water mixed with some fat free miracle whip. I try to get as much protein in at lunch as possible. 

This whole wrap is about 200 calories and 26 grams of protein.

To this combo I add my favorite little side salad.

 I use THIS quick steam method to steam about 10 baby carrots and a cup of broccoli. I put those over a big bed of spinach and then i cover them in mango salsa. You may think it's gross. I think it's DIVINE. salsa is an awesome way to add flavor to your salads without adding calories. I use a little bit of fat free ranch on the side, because I love ranch.

 For this entire lunch, both the wrap and the salad, it is 338 calories, 30 grams of protein and 20 grams of fiber. Yep almost all my necessary fiber for the day in one meal. AWESOME. I like to eat this lunch for a few reasons. 1) I try to get a lot of protein. 2) Between the veggies and the protein it's VERY filling, for a very low amount of calories. Vegetables are awesome like that. 3) It's really tasty. It is still weird to me that I can stomach tuna after hating it my whole life. I like to eat foods that are voluminous. A lot of food for a low amount of calories.

Snack: 1 egg plus one egg white

 I knew that I wasn't going to be getting in a ton of protein for dinner, so I wanted my snack to be straight protein. It's quick, easy, and tasty. I fry up one egg and one egg white in a non-stick pan with some Pam. I sprinkle it with a little fajita seasoning, and that is it. 

This comes to 87 calories and 9 grams of protein. If I have more calories to spare I'll add in two more egg whites.

 Today's Dinner: Salad at Pizza Factory

 This pic is kind of a struggle, but you get it. My salad consisted of: spinach, romaine lettuce, chopped tomatoes, broccoli, cauliflower, LOTS of beets, a few spiral noodles, edama me, mandarin oranges, pineapple, cottage cheese, sunflower seeds, and some pretzels and goldfish for garnish. I get 1/2 fat free ranch mixed with 1/2 regular ranch on the side and just dip a lil' bit on my fork. The cottage cheese does most the work for the dressing. 

I also split 1/2 a dry breadtwist with Benita. 

Man I could eat this salad. EVERY. SINGLE. DAY. I LOVE it! It always tastes so fresh and good to me. I try and amp up the veggies and the lean protein here.

I estimate this meal with the bread stick included to be about 450 calories, 20 grams of protein, and 9 grams of fiber.

We also stopped at Maverick tonight for some fat free frozen yogurt. My cone was about 165 calories, bringing my day to just over 1,300 calories. Because of my goals right now I am aiming to eat 1,300 to 1,400 calories per day. When I am eating intuitively I tend to eat about 1,500 calories.

What I would consider pro's about my day:

TONS of fresh veggies.

No "in between" random snacking (handfuls here and there) I am a snacker, so this is big for me.

I made good choices when eating out. 

5 small meals throughout the day.

What I feel like I could improve on:

A little more protein. I ended up with 77 grams and I like to hit 90-100. My dinner was where I was lacking.

I really try to avoid processed white flour at all costs. Pizza Factory bread sticks are my vice, which is why Benita and I always just split one. That way I feel like I get a little indulgence without going over board. 

While frozen yogurt isn't a horrible choice, my last snack could have had some more nutrition to it. 

All in all I'm happy with the day's eating. 

Do you eat small meals throughout the day or are you a 3 square meals type of person? I like to eat several small meals. Probably because I love to eat! What are your favorite salad bar toppings/components? Mine are edama me and beets! I LOVE beets...I love everything on my salad pictured above. it's SO good.