July 1, 2009

The Olive Garden Diet

Now I'm not suggesting that anyone make a habit of this, but I ate two meals at the Olive Garden yesterday. There was one right outside my hotel, and it was near where my mother lives, so between meetings we met for lunch. I had the linguine alla marinara (310) lunch portion and a salad, no dressing. Then after my last meeting we met for a late light dinner, and had minestrone soup (100) and a salad, again no dressing. It was a horrendously low protein and low fat day for me, but the chance to eat calorie controlled pasta is not something I'm willing to give up!

For the record, I do not think that Olive Garden is Italian any more than I think that Taco Bell is Mexican. I've lived in Philly too long to mistake it for real Italian. That being said, I love it! My old employee Lisa, the girl from England, used to love Olive Garden too... we'd eat there when we were on the road. Made me miss her to be there, and even more so to be in Scranton.

Today was a more normal day, even though I'm on the road. Breakfast was a whey protein shake with skim milk and flax oil while I drove here from Reading from 5 am to 7 am. Lunch was a garden salad with a cup of the cottage cheese that I brought from home, plus a teaspoon of the flax oil so lovingly packed by MR in multiple ice packs and a cooler bag. Dinner was a Subway Club salad. After my last meeting, which starts at 7:30 pm, I plan to enjoy a nice glass of wine in my room and go to bed! It's been a long day: two hour sunrise drive, meetings at 7:30 am, 1:30 pm, 4 pm and 7:30 pm, and I took Bikram yoga in between the morning meetings! It was an amazing class... a guy taught it, one I'd never met, and I got to contemplate the fact that the one time a cute guy is teaching my yoga class, I am wearing the most hideous yoga outfit I've ever put on. Apparently the sky blue yoga top one size too large was a Poor Life Choice. I'm sure it would look good on someone... else. Oh well, no matter, I got an incredible workout, and learned a lot in the process. I was still sore from Monday and probably didn't drink enough water beforehand, so I wasn't very good, but I'm extremely accustomed to looking like an idiot in front of attractive men, so it was no big deal.

Okay, back to work... home tomorrow: work during the day, advanced vinyasa at night! When it's difficult, I just remind myself: it's not 108 degrees in here!

Posted by april at 6:05 PM | Comments (1) | TrackBack (0)

June 29, 2009

In Case You Ever Wondered...

How you can't be skinny if you eat out a lot.

Check this out:

http://www.olivegarden.com/menus/garden_fare/nutrition_information.asp

Posted by april at 8:43 PM | Comments (2) | TrackBack (0)

June 28, 2009

Spicy Tangy Cold Eggplant Salad for a Hot Summer Day

1 eggplant, cubed, steamed in lemon juice until well cooked then drained
1 crown broccoli, chopped
2 tbsps soy sauce (low sodium)
ginger powder, garlic powder
lemon juice

Marinate the eggplant in the soy sauce with ginger and garlic and lemon juice. Add broccoli, steamed beforehand if you prefer it a bit more cooked, or just add it to the hot eggplant if you like it nice and crunchy. Stir and leave to marinate in the fridge until chilled. Top with a squeeze of fresh lemon and some fresh ground pepper and serve.

Great for a hot summer day!


Posted by april at 11:04 AM | Comments (1) | TrackBack (0)

Staying Hydrated -- and Black Bean Nacho Coleslaw

You don't need a CR blog to tell you the importance of staying hydrated, especially in this weather. I don't know what it's like where you are, but it's been 90 degrees here and quite humid. It's my favorite kind of weather... I grew up in North Carolina so the summers here in Philly rarely bother me at all, and I despise winter.

A lot of people, myself included, don't really notice when we're not drinking enough fluids until the problem gets pretty bad. Thirst isn't a good indicator, as it seems one is often not thirsty enough. I notice that when I'm dehydrated, I get symptoms that one wouldn't necessarily realize are connected, like a headache, fatigue, irritability (no, I'm not naturally that way!) and puffy eyes/face, as well as more pronounced circles under my eyes and a bit of tightness in the skin right under the eyes.

Taking Bikram (hot) yoga at Steamtown Yoga in Scranton really brought home the dehydration issue to me. I probably hadn't had enough water in advance of the class -- they recommend drinking 3 liters of water the day before you take a class, and one liter in the hour in advance, as well as an entire liter during class. I was so dehydrated after class that I found myself thinking, "If I need IV fluids, at least I know all the nurses at the hospital!" Of course after drinking more water I felt fine, but I really noticed the immediate symptoms of dehydration. They say that your first three classes are the hardest and then you adjust to the heat and it gets much easier. I found the class very challenging but I really liked it, and I felt so much better afterwards that I was determined to come back as soon as possible. This time I'm going to drink enough in advance, and I'm hoping to go to class tomorrow at 9 am in Scranton (hitting the road at 4:30 am for meetings starting at 7, but hopefully I'll make it to class between meetings!) so right now I'm working my way through a 1.5 liter bottle of iced white tea.

One of the unexpected benefits of Bikram yoga that I experienced right away was a dramatic improvement in my skin. I looked like I'd had a facial, and the benefit continued all through the day I took class and throughout the following day. If you were to practice three times a week, you could stay in a continuous state of looking like you just emerged from the spa -- all for $15 a class instead of $90 or more for a facial! Pretty good deal!

I loved Bikram, but it was really, really hard. I don't think I'd recommend it to anyone who hasn't already taken some yoga or practiced another kind of hard physical discipline. I felt like I was going to die at certain points in the class, and I've been practicing for over a year. The room is 105 degrees with 60% humidity, and it causes you to pour what seems like gallons of sweat. It's amazingly cleansing though, like a 90 minute detox. I noticed that my body felt after one Bikram class the way it feels after about four days in a row of my regular vinyasa flow classes, and those are not easy classes. It's awesome. If you haven't tried it and you're in pretty good shape and not afraid to feel some discomfort at first, give it a shot. For the rest of your life you may find yourself thinking, when confronted with a challenging situation: "Hey, at least I'm not in a 105 degree room!"

It's so much easier to stick to my calorie goals now that I'm no longer locked in a conference room with high calorie food. Even in spite of several going out and celebrating post-campaign events, I'm still losing weight again, and have been back at yoga almost every day this week. I'm investigating yoga studios in the places I travel to, and it's fun to practice in different locations and different styles of yoga. I bought a beautiful mat bag, and it encourages me to take my mat with me when I hit the road.

Here's a quick recipe for a hot summer day:

Black Bean Nacho Coleslaw

2 parts green cabbage, 1 part red cabbage, chopped
1/2 cup black beans (canned is fine)
Cider vinegar
Cumin, garlic and chili powder
Nonfat cheddar cheese, shredded, 2 oz
2 tablespoons store-bought taco sauce, I used Ortega
2 tablespoons nonfat sour cream

Mix up, serve cold. You could even top with a dash or two of your favorite hot sauce. It's what happens when my potluck favorite, Nonfat Nacho Black Bean Dip, makes friends with the cabbage in the fridge.

Off to yoga... happy Sunday to all!

Posted by april at 6:09 AM | Comments (1) | TrackBack (0)