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Big Healthy Breakfasts

Some people think of healthy meals and all they can picture are those teeny tiny little gourmet meals where the glaze looks like more of the meal than the meal itself in their mind. Looks a little like this, right?

Food

Does this ring a bell with you? You feel like you can only eat a tiny bit of food and that you’re surely going to be starving within an hour. I want to show you exactly what I eat for breakfasts quite regularly so we can explore this idea a little more closely.

Let’s dispel those myths, shall we?

I’ve noticed that I can pack quite the doozy of a breakfast for fewer than 500 calories. I mean, we’re talking tasty egg dishes and oatmeal and a smoothie–all at once. See that? I have what appears to be three breakfasts in one! All for fewer than 500 calories, and with tons of lean protein. The best part is, I stay full for several hours with all of this food and I can even have a snack a little later in the morning.

Let’s break it down so you can see how this works

1. One packet of Great Value maple and brown sugar oatmeal, prepared with water. 150 calories

The Oatmeal Artist: French Toast Oatmeal (Milk, vanilla extract, salt, cinnamon, syrup) - super yummy. i never made my French toast with cinnamon so I didn't think it tasted like French toast, but awesome anyways.. (PS with almond milk it works in the microwave, not with regular milk though)

2. Five egg whites with a pinch of shredded cheese and spices of choice, 91 calories (18g protein!)

Egg white microwave scramble

You can also add a ton of veggies and make a veggie scramble, which adds minimal calories and packs a TON of vitamins and nutrients. And aside from salt and pepper, Mrs. Dash is a wonderful way to spice up the eggs.

3. One fruit smoothie or milkshake. My regular morning staple is 1 cup frozen mixed berries, 1 scoop protein powder and water. Sometimes I make a milkshake with a few Tbsp milk, one frozen banana, 1Tbsp peanut butter, water and 1/4c Greek yogurt. 190 calories (or 255 calories for the milkshake)

Fruit Smoothie

Total calories for three breakfasts in one: 431!!!

Then, around 11:00am, I usually have a light snack. Sometimes I’ll make chickpea salad or just munch on a serving of cottage cheese. This usually amounts to another 150 or so calories. So, I’m still under 600 calories by lunchtime.

Wanna know what other myth this defies? The one that says that healthy food takes so much longer to prepare. Wrong! Oatmeal packets take about 5 seconds to prepare. Egg whites can be scrambled in the microwave in minutes and a smoothie prepared in a Magic Bullet takes about 15 seconds. That’s faster than drive-through, my friends! And it’s so incredibly healthy and nutrient-packed that it makes little sense to eat any other way.

Healthy eating really can be that easy…fun…colorful…nutrient-dense…fast… I could go on!

What’s a typical breakfast like for you?

*all calorie estimates were based upon my own ingredients using the Sparkpeople.com nutrition calculator

Weekly Meal Planning

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Breakfast:

  • Milkshake: 1 frozen banana + 1/4 c plain Greek yogurt + a dash of milk + 1 Tbsp peanut butter + water
  • Maple and Brown Sugar Oatmeal
  • 5 Egg Whites + a Pinch of Cheese

Snack: 

Lunch:

Snack:

  • Chickpea Salad: 1 can chickpeas + 1 chopped tomato + 1 small chopped onion + 1 chopped cucumber + 1 Tbsp olive oil + 1 Tbsp vinegar + 1 Tbsp lemon juice

Dinners:

  • We have grilled chicken, burgers, subs, and a frozen convenience meal (veggie-based, pretty healthy) on the menu for dinner.
PA202075
This menu makes me so excited. The Amazeballs are one of the best treats on the entire planet. They taste as amazing as the name suggests. It’s hard not to eat them all when I’m prepping them. The black bean stew just makes me feel all warm inside. It’s just like chili, but it’s super healthy. That full pot of color just makes me smile. I’ve had some serious cravings for maple and brown sugar oatmeal (you just can’t make it the same yourself), so Peanut and I each have a bowl of it in the morning. And a milkshake for breakfast? Um…yes please! It’s important to get excited about your food when you’re eating healthy. It makes all the difference in the world.

I tend to pack most of my calories into breakfast and the beginning part of my day. Reason being is that I work out in the mornings before work, so it only makes sense to pre-fuel and post-fuel. Then, I generally taper off the calories for the rest of the day. It feels much better to go to bed at night with a light belly rather than an over-stuffed one. The morning is when the metabolism starts rumbling and the evening is when it should start slowing down. My food patterns naturally mimic my metabolism.

I’ve been enjoying throwing together these random chickpea salads for snack. It’s almost become a weekly staple of mine. I just throw whatever veggies sound good together with a can of chickpeas. I wrote out above what I threw together this week. A clean dressing of olive oil, vinegar and lemon juice provides the perfect taste for almost any veggie mixture. That salad divides up among the five weekdays perfectly.

Our dinners often change, but we try to always have a rough schedule penciled out. I sometimes eat a little bit differently than my family does, perhaps subbing a Boca burger for a full-fat meat burger and a whole wheat bun for a pointless white one. This week, I’m going to try extra hard to stay out of all the snack-y things we have in our kitchen right now. It’s really throwing off my game.

What are you eating this week?

Weekly Meal Planning

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Breakfast:

  • Milkshake: 1 frozen banana + 1/4 c plain Greek yogurt + a dash of milk + 1 Tbsp peanut butter + water
  • Maple and Brown Sugar Oatmeal
  • 5 Egg Whites + a Pinch of Cheese

Snack: 

Lunch:

Snack:

  • Chickpea Salad: 1 can chickpeas + 1 chopped tomato + 1 small chopped onion + 1 chopped cucumber + 1 Tbsp olive oil + 1 Tbsp vinegar + 1 Tbsp lemon juice

Dinners:

  • We have grilled chicken, burgers, subs, and a frozen convenience meal (veggie-based, pretty healthy) on the menu for dinner.
PA202075
This menu makes me so excited. The Amazeballs are one of the best treats on the entire planet. They taste as amazing as the name suggests. It’s hard not to eat them all when I’m prepping them. The black bean stew just makes me feel all warm inside. It’s just like chili, but it’s super healthy. That full pot of color just makes me smile. I’ve had some serious cravings for maple and brown sugar oatmeal (you just can’t make it the same yourself), so Peanut and I each have a bowl of it in the morning. And a milkshake for breakfast? Um…yes please! It’s important to get excited about your food when you’re eating healthy. It makes all the difference in the world.

I tend to pack most of my calories into breakfast and the beginning part of my day. Reason being is that I work out in the mornings before work, so it only makes sense to pre-fuel and post-fuel. Then, I generally taper off the calories for the rest of the day. It feels much better to go to bed at night with a light belly rather than an over-stuffed one. The morning is when the metabolism starts rumbling and the evening is when it should start slowing down. My food patterns naturally mimic my metabolism.

I’ve been enjoying throwing together these random chickpea salads for snack. It’s almost become a weekly staple of mine. I just throw whatever veggies sound good together with a can of chickpeas. I wrote out above what I threw together this week. A clean dressing of olive oil, vinegar and lemon juice provides the perfect taste for almost any veggie mixture. That salad divides up among the five weekdays perfectly.

Our dinners often change, but we try to always have a rough schedule penciled out. I sometimes eat a little bit differently than my family does, perhaps subbing a Boca burger for a full-fat meat burger and a whole wheat bun for a pointless white one. This week, I’m going to try extra hard to stay out of all the snack-y things we have in our kitchen right now. It’s really throwing off my game.

What are you eating this week?

Clean Stuffed Acorn Squash

Healthy? check
Clean? check
Filling? check
Low-cal? check

What’s not to love about a recipe like that?

Clean Stuffed Acorn Squash

  • 3 whole acorn squash
  • 1lb ground chicken
  • 1 cup cooked bulgar wheat
  • 1/2 carton sliced mushrooms
  • 1 cup chopped tomato
  • 2 cloves garlic, diced
  • 1 onion, chopped

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Slice each squash in half and clean out the seeds and pulp. Place the halves face down in a pan in 1-2 inches of water. Cover the skins of the squash with tin foil. Bake in the oven for 40 minutes, or until the flesh is fork-tender.

While that’s baking, start cooking your ground chicken on the stovetop until done. Drain grease, if there is any (the leaner the meat the better). Add in all your veggies and the bulgar wheat. Saute until everything is cooked through.

Once the squash is cooked through, let it cool a bit and then spoon the filling into the center of the squash and serve. Makes 6 servings.

I separated the stuffing into six different serving containers and wrapped the squash completely in tin foil in order to take it to work for lunches. I heat the filling and squash up separately and then scoop the filling inside the squash bowl at work. It looks like one heckuva meal and indeed it’s pretty darn filling. When I plugged the numbers into the Sparkpeople nutrition counter I came back with just 259 calories and loads of nutrients, vitamins, protein and all-around good stuff!!!!

This meal was a perfect match for the lunch option on the Jamie Eason plan and perfect for this harvest season. I hope to make a Southwestern version with the rest of the squash that’s coming out of my ears for next week. Check back for another taste-tested, Bounsee-approved stuffed squash recipe next week!

Weekly Food Prep

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The bag of food that I brought to work this morning was rather comical. The sheer amount of food would have fit into at least two lunch bags. Oh my gosh! But it’s all super clean, super healthy food, mostly lots of greens and lean protein. It just takes up space, that’s all:) As I mentioned in a previous post, I’m beginning the Jamie Eason LiveFit series this week and trying to follow the plan as closely as possible.
Today was also chest and tricep day and my arms feel absolutely lethargic. When I try anything as simple as lifting my fork or opening a food jar, I feel shaky. Oh boy! I immediately fueled my muscles with a small smoothie consisting of 1/2 scoop of Perfect Fit protein powder and some frozen berries. Many know, and as I’ve  learned through my studies with NASM, that fueling with a bit of protein and carbs within 1/2 hour of strength training makes a huge difference in results. That fuel is quickly used for muscles, but you only have that short 1/2 hour window to take advantage, and I made sure I did. I also stopped to stretch my chest throughout the day today since I know I’m going to feel it soon if I don’t.
I really take pride in eating this well, so I really hope the results are for this program are all they’re cracked up to be. 
Breakfast (total 359 calories): 
  • 1/2 scoop protein powder + 0.25 cup frozen berry smoothie
  • 1/2 cup quick oats + cinnamon + 0.5 Tbsp honey
  • 5 egg whites + veggies (tomatoes, spinach, onion and broccoli)

Saute all your veggies and just add egg whites
Snack 1 (282 calories):
  • 2 Chicken Muffins served inside lettuce leaves
  • Broccoli with Mrs. Dash seasoning

Lunch (266 calories):
  • 1/2 acorn squash stuffed with ground chicken, bulgar wheat, onion, mushroom, garlic and tomato.
  • 1/2 cup cucumber

Snack 2 (366 calories):
  • 2 Chicken Muffins 
  • Kale salad with just a tiny sprinkle or raisins and walnuts with an olive oil/balsamic vinegar dressing

Dinners:
  • We have steak, grilled chicken, whole wheat spaghetti, turkey sausage and pork chops planned for the week. I’ll pair my lean meats with something like a 1/2 sweet potato for my starch and Brussels sprouts for my veggies, as required by the plan.
Bedtime Snack:
  • 1/2 cup cottage cheese or Greek yogurt with 1 tsp sugar-free jam (for muscle growth while I sleep)

Yes, this is a LOT of food, much of it high in protein, with a low caloric price. That’s what happens when you start eating cleaner. You can actually eat way more. As in, a whole grocery bag full, judging by my trek to work this morning. Ha!
When I prepped my food last night, it was quite the debacle. I was getting so tired and the food prep seemed to be taking forever (although so worth it!). I went to put something in the fridge and bumped the door. Two entire shelves of condiments fell and messed up the whole kitchen floor. Then, I went to mop up the mess and accidentally put cooking oil in the mop bucket instead of vinegar–the jugs look the same! This was all after forgetting an entire jug of protein powder in the cart at Walmart and running all the way back across town to claim it. After mopping, the floor was still sticky. I just wanted to go to bed after all of that. Luckily, I was finished with my food prepping and Peanut was already asleep so I took the opportunity to duck away. Hubster promised to mop again today. He can be sweetheart sometimes!
I was able to get most of my produce from the farmer’s market this weekend. A few tomatoes, onions, and sprigs of broccoli came from my very own backyard garden. The acorn squash was definitely from my huge backyard supply. I look forward to eating stuffed squash for at least the next two weeks. I hope to share a few of my recipes as I create them. This week, I will be able to share my chicken bulgar-stuffed squash, since that’s what I whipped together for my lunches. It took me awhile to eat that whole sucker today!
And so, Week One begins!

Weekly Workout Rundown

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Monday:

Tuesday:
  • 35 min AM run, 2 miles
  • 30 min brisk walk at lunch

Wednesday:
  • 40 min AM run, 3.2 miles
  • 20 min Maybe Mudder

Thursday:
  • 30 min brisk walk at lunch

Friday:
  • 20 min Maybe Mudder

Saturday:
  • 60 min TurboFire

Sunday:
  • Rest

You’ll noticed I added something a little new to my routine this past week. My lunch workout buddy is training for a Tough Mudder this coming September, so we’ve been incorporating the boot camp training plans into our routine. I don’t mind. They’re actually pretty tough. You start out as a Mudderling, grow into a Maybe Mudder and emerge as a full-grown Tough Mudder.
Since the Tone it up Bikini Series is over, I’ve been toying around with what I want to do next. Until I decide, I’ve been blending different programs like TurboFire, Barre and Insanity into my daily routines. I like to think that this plan provides really good cross training for my body.
I recently purchased Tracey Mallett’s FIT program after reading this great review. I really like it. And it does get your heart working. I’ve loved Tracey Mallett ever since I picked up a VHS tape of her boot camp at a rummage sale several years ago. It was the only video I could justify substituting for running because of its intensity.

Other than that, I’ve been trying to spend my days being more present, really focusing on summer traditions and giving my son some full-on attention. While I was busy studying for my NASM test, I was still doing things with him, but not giving him my undivided attention. He played outside while I studied in a lawn chair. So, it’s time to actually throw a few pitches and hit a few baseballs instead of just handing him the T-ball stand.
I was going to do a separate weekly food prep post, but really the menu this week was quite easy and can be explained quite simply. I felt that I needed to go light this week, and this menu definitely delivers. It’s piled with colorful fruits and vegetables and aside from the syrup, contains absolutely no processed foods.
  • Breakfast: Whole wheat pancakes Hubster made from scratch + a small handful of blueberries + sugar-free syrup.
  • Snack 1: Vanilla Greek yogurt + a small sprinkling of sliced almonds
  • Lunch: Giant helping of Power Greens + a few dried cranberries + a few walnut pieces + 1/4 sliced avocado + this fabulously easy and tasty strawberry vinaigrette.
  • Snack 2: A pile of veggies (broccoli and beans from the garden!) + artichoke hummus

I just read that probiotics might have a positive effect on anxiety and depression. Isn’t that fascinating?! I’m sure there needs to be more studying done to confirm that, but in the meantime, it can’t hurt to add Greek yogurt into my repertoire more often.
Any good workout program suggestions for me?

Weekly Food Prep

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This past week, I prepped all of my meals on Sunday, which is becoming quite a regular habit for me. For a little something different, I used the Quesadilla and Crepe recipes from Blogilates. I kept my snacks pretty simple.

Breakfast: Crepes with banana and strawberries
Snack: Grapefruit
Lunch: Quesadilla with pico de gallo
Snack: 2 hard-boiled eggs (one yoke removed)

Making the crepes and the quesadilla tortillas at the same time was a little bit time-consuming, but it was totally doable. I had to make two crepes per day and two tortillas per day for five days, totaling 20 circles. You can see how that might take awhile. Usually, while the batter was cooking, I was busy working on something else, like cutting veggies or boiling eggs. Seriously though, for the time it takes to prep one day for an entire week, it’s more than worth it. I’m eating super clean and healthy AND making it to work on time because all I have to do is throw my pre-portioned meals in my bag and go.

I’m really loving Cassey’s Cheap Clean Eats series. If there’s anything about food prep that I love, it’s when the food is affordable, easy, fast, and clean. This can sometimes be quite a lot to ask for, but with resources like Cassey’s and Tosca Reno’s, it certainly is possible.

I hope to continue building and sharing meal plans like this in the hopes that I might be able to inspire clean eating in your meal schedule too. Seeing what resources I’m using, what snacks I’m munching on, how I’m prepping meals, and how I’m spacing out meals, I hope that you might be able to help you make food prep a normal part of your schedule too. If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to ask.

How do you prepare for the week?

Healthy Creamy Cucumber Recipe

Spring reminds me most of cookouts in my grandparent’s backyard where they always served creamy cucumber salad–along with corn-on-the-cob and hamburgers of course. Creamy cucumber salad is one of my all-time favorite things about summer. As cucumbers come into season, creamy cucumbers become part of the regular meal rotation.

This week, I’m enjoying an extremely healthy take on the dish. This was an experiment for me, but after testing it for several day, I have to say it’s quite amazing, especially after marinating in its own juices for several days. I’m happy to say that this experiment was a success and I’ll be using this recipe in place of the old mayo-loaded standby. Healthy, easy and clean are always my style.

Healthy Creamy Cucumber Salad

Ingredients:
2 cucumbers, sliced
1 sm carton plain Greek yogurt
1 can chickpeas
3Tbs vinegar
1tsp sugar
1tsp dill
1/4 Tbs onion powder
salt and pepper to taste

Directions:
You may choose to peel your cucumbers first, but I feel like it amounts to throwing away valuable nutrients, so I leave my peels on. Mix all ingredients thoroughly in a mixing bowl. This recipe makes about 5 servings.

I like how the onion powder adds taste to the Greek yogurt. I’m normally not a fan of subbing Greek yogurt for mayo, but the onion powder makes the swap perfectly acceptable to me. That’s just what it took to give the yogurt extra flavoring without all the fat. And of course the Greek yogurt has so much more nutritional value than mayo.

Bon appetite!

Tone It Up Bikini Series Printable: Meal Planner

Just when I was about to plan my meals and grocery list for next week, I thought, duh, I should make TIU-themed a printable for that. So I did. It has a meal breakdown, based on the TIU Nutrition Plan, and a shopping list section. Print a new copy each week. After all, being prepared is one of the most crucial steps toward being successful in this fun health series.

Get your free printable here

Check out the other TIU Bikini Series printables I’ve designed too. Let me know how these are helping you get organized and assisting you in leading a healthier lifestyle for these next 8 weeks.

TIU Bikini Series Motivational Quotes
TIU Bikini Series Measurement Sheet

Ultimate Tone It Up Bikini Series Printable

If you have any other ideas for me or a printable you’re dying to have, let me know in the comments section and I’ll see what I can whip up. Also, if you wouldn’t mind taking a second to follow me on Bloglovin or via email, I would be ever-so-grateful. Sign up for either one on the sidebar to follow along with all my updates. I just might have more printables coming your way. I love hearing from you!

Don’t know what the Bikini Series is? Check out what it’s all about right here. Prepare to make the best decision of your life. These girls are amazing.

BIKINI-SERIES-BIKINISERIES-Tone-It-Up

Easy Black Bean Soup for Weight Loss

Runner’s World printed some amazing “One-Pot Wonders” in their November 2012 issue. I actually rented the magazine from the library on a recent trip. I’m so happy they have a subscription, so I don’t have to add yet another to my mailbox.

This is my version of the runner-friendly soup. I eliminated most of the spicy stuff, because I’m not into spicy food. I also used chicken broth instead of vegetable broth, but you could easily switch back if you’re vegetarian.

For some reason, this recipe just made me feel all warm inside. It sort of tastes like chili and fall and backwoods cabins and comfort–it’s still snowing in Wisconsin, after all. See how I form emotional connections to food? In this case, it’s all good because RW touts this recipe as ideal for weight loss and an efficient way to refuel after a run. It’s chock-full of filling fiber, oozing with vitamins and nutrients, and very low-cal. It just makes me feel good all over.

Black Bean and Tomato Soup

Ingredients:
3 servings sliced bagged carrots
3 cans black beans, rinsed
1 28-oz can diced tomatoes
1/2 jar roasted red pepper
2 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 onion, chopped
2 cups chicken broth
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp garlic powder
salt/pepper to taste

Directions:
1. Heat up the olive oil at the bottom of your soup pot and fry up the onions and carrots in it until soft. Add all remaining ingredients, turn down the heat, and let simmer for about 20 minutes, stirring occasionally. Makes 7 servings.

Nutritional Content (approximate), per serving, according to the SparkPeople nutrition calculator:
258 calories
5g fat
42g carbs
13g protein
13g fiber
1g cholesterol

They say to fill your plate with more colors. This rainbow soup certainly qualifies.

This recipe requires very little preparation and you can certainly be doing other things while the soup is simmering. It makes your entire house smell amazing too. I am certainly going to be adding this to my regular rotation. The soup is only for me though as Hubster is allergic to tomatoes and doesn’t care for black beans. It doesn’t really suit my four-year-old either. More for me, I say!

This recipe really goes a long way. I was able to throw one serving into the freezer for those crazy unpredictable days and feed our babysitter another serving for dinner. The five remaining servings will be coming to work with me all week. Mmmmm.

My weekly food prep was pretty easy considering all I had to do was divide this dish into 7 containers. I’ll also grab one kiwi per day to accompany the stew. I prepared baggies with fresh mixed veggies and hummus for my afternoon snack. Then, I can’t live without a few morsels of chocolate for dessert. This week it’s Hershey’s Special Dark Nuggets with almonds. Breakfast will be oatmeal with my favorite mix-ins: peanut butter, honey, raisins and protein powder. I’m pretty much a vegetarian until dinner:)

I might have to try the RW chicken and quinoa soup soon too. What’s your favorite comfort soup?