Mostly A Good Day

I almost made it through the day where I didn't put extra food in my mouth at non-meal times. (Just typing that out makes me feel ridiculous...) I ended up eating some pretzels with lentil dip before dinner, and some cinnamon flavored baking chips after dinner because I had a major sweet tooth. Tomorrow, my plans are to drink more water during the day and eat every 3-4 hours. Although I am having dinner at my in-laws, so I will do the best I can.


BREAKFAST (8:30 am)

Strawberry Muesli:

1 cup strawberries, sliced
1/2 cup Kashi Go Lean Crunch cereal
6 oz. Chobani brand honey vanilla Greek yogurt
2 TBSP chopped peanuts
Dash cloves


LUNCH (1:30 pm)

Zesty Bean and Summer Slaw Bread Salad:

1 cup shredded cabbage, 3/4 cup shredded carrot, and 2 TBSP chopped red onion
1 slice rye bread, chopped
½ cup great northern beans
¼ of an avocado, chopped
1 TBSP orange juice, 2 TBSP rice vinegar, ½ tsp celery seed, sprinkle of pepper

This was a modified version of the Zesty Bean and Summer Slaw Pita recipe in the Cinch book. I am becoming bored with the recipes, and I am also on a rye bread kick lately, so I jazzed this one up. It was really good.

I had my daily dark chocolate right after lunch.


SNACK (4:45 pm)

Plum with Yogurt and Cinnamon:

1 plum, peeled and sliced
No whole grain
6 oz. Chobani brand very berry Greek yogurt
1 TBSP slivered almonds and 1 TBSP PB & Co Cinnamon Raisin Peanut Butter
Dash Vietnamese cinnamon

YUM!


DINNER (7:30 pm)

Tuscan Panzenella Salad:

½ cup cup chopped cucumber, 1 vine-ripened chopped tomato, ¼ cup chopped red onion, and 1 chopped beet
2 TBSP whole grain croutons
½ cup great northern beans
¼ of an avocado, chopped
Dash balsamic vinegar and dash dried basil


I was inspired yet again by California Pizza Kitchen's salad menu, so I modified this one to meet the Cinch plan. I thought it was OK. Hubby didn't like it... said it was "too beany".

A quick follow-up on my "becoming bored with the recipes" comment above. Although the recipes in the book really are quite delicious, I wish a Cinch cookbook would come out. I have been an avid meal planner for years, and I find a lot of satisfaction in keeping up the variety of foods for myself and my family. Lately, I have been spending a lot of time searching for new recipes to try. I even made a list of Spring foods to incorporate into my next grocery list and meal planning, including:

Apricots
Cherries
Radishes
Cherry Tomatoes
Asparagus
Zucchini
Fennel
Scallops
New Potatoes
Okra
Sugar Snap Peas
Kumquats

I love Spring!

Day 11 - Feeling Better

I'm not 100%, but I am getting there. I suppose there is a light at the end of the tunnel. I'm actually quite surprised how quickly I jumped right back on the Cinch plan. I spent 3 straight days of random eating; I was sick and stressed out all of last week; Mother nature paid me a visit; The scale climbed up 3 lbs.; and amazingly I started over yesterday with no problem. I think this "diet" will be easy to maintain over the long-term.


BREAKFAST (8:30 am)

Strawberry Green Tea Muesli:

1 cup strawberries, sliced
2/3 cup Kashi Go Lean cereal
6 oz. honey vanilla Greek yogurt
2 TBSP chopped peanuts
Green tea leaves


Love, love, love this breakfast. The breakfasts in this plan are easy to pack on-the-go for work.




LUNCH (1:00 pm)

Spinach Walnut Bleu Cheese Pita:

1 cup fresh spinach and 1 large chopped plum tomato
1/2 whole grain pita
1/4 cup bleu cheese
2 TBSP chopped walnuts
Dash balsamic vinegar


As I ate my pita today, my co-worker right next to me said "Something smells good." She looked to see what I was eating, and then my other co-worker pops his head over my cube and says "Seriously? How do you have time to make that?" I actually realized how easy it is to throw a plum tomato in my lunch bag, pack a handful of spinach in a ziploc bag, measure 2 TBSP of walnuts in a side container, wrap a pita in foil, pack a knife, and keep some balsamic vinegar on hand at work. Sounds like a lot, but it took me 5 minutes this morning to pack both my breakfast and lunch. I already had a snack waiting on me at work, so there was no need to pack one.

SNACK (5:30 pm)

Lemon Lara Bar
8 oz. organic skim milk


DINNER (8:00 pm)

(I made this one up based on a recipe in the book.)

Pistachio Nut Dusted Chicken, Wild Rice, and Sauteed Spinach with Tomatoes:

1 cup fresh spinach leaves, ¼ cup green onion, and 1 chopped plum tomato - sauteed
½ cup cooked wild rice
3 oz cooked organic “Smart” chicken
2 TBSP chopped pistachios
Dash basil and 2 TBSP balsamic vinegar for the spinach and tomatoes; Dash garlic powder and tarragon for the chicken

This one was quite yummy!