yummm....

Have you ever just started throwing some food together without any recipe, any plan, and it comes out FANTASTIC?? Well, I have and just did! OMG...this salad is probably one of the best things I've ever had...yeah, I know..."it's just a salad" but, man! It's good...here's what I threw together:

• about 2 cups of baby spinach
  
• few leaves of curly lettuce, chopped
• 1 roma tomato, chopped
• 1 cup lettuce roll filling (shredded carrot, shredded red onion, chopped tomato & bell pepper)
• 1/4 cup crushed pineapple (canned, packed in juice - not syrup)
• 2 tbsp toasted sesame seeds

for the dressing, I blended:

• 1/2 tsp of sesame oil
• 1 tbsp Bragg's liquid aminos (tastes like soy sauce, but it's HEALTHY)
• 1 clove crushed garlic
• 2 tbsp apple cider vinegar
• 1/2 oz. raw cashews (i'm guessing - it was about 1/2 a handful)

It's sooo yummy. Whenever I make the lettuce roll filling, I make enough for it to last a few days. And the first three ingredients of the dressing are actually what make up the dipping sauce I use for the rolls. :)

Anyway, just thought I'd share...ttfn!!

p.s. I probably put more vinegar than that in the dressing...I'm a vinegar freak and could literally drink the stuff :P hehe

you know...i try

I try to stay motivated...I try really hard not to "cheat". And I know that I am super-strict and hard on myself sometimes. But, I really NEED to be that way. I need to give myself more "tough love" and less "awww...it's ok, you can have another rice krispie treat" :( I gained four fucking lbs since last week. Wanna know why? Because I stopped exercising (made stupid excuses) and started eating a rash of shit that's not good for me. Dammit!! Now, I know it's mostly just me retaining water (I can see the edema, so I'm sure that's what it is). But still...wtf?? I KNOW I have to do this stuff. I KNOW I need to exercise at least 5 days a week. I KNOW I can't be eating Chinese food (even if I do order the veggie plate w/steamed rice). Whaaaaaat theeeeee fuuuuuuuuuuck??? I know I am being harsh, but after so many years of being overweight and eating whatever I wanted, etc., ENOUGH IS ENOUGH!! I feel so good when I exercise...I feel so good when I'm eating healthy. And I know that's what I need to fucking focus on, but it's so much easier to call myself a dumbass for eating bad food & not getting off my ass. :( Gaaaaaaaaaaah!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Ok, so...to recap the important stuff...

1. Exercising feels great! My body loves to MOVE!!
   
2. Eating lots of healthy fruits and veggies makes me feel like I have more energy.
3. Drinking more water, while not tasty, is better for me than drinking Crystal Light.
4. Getting OFF of the computer and spending time on ME is necessary for my happiness.

I am doing all this because:

1. I want to be healthy
2. I want to be happy
3. I want to have enough energy to do ANYTHING
4. I want to learn how to ride a bike
5. I want to samba in Brazil one day
6. I want to learn a martial art
7. I want to NOT give a shit if people witness me eating (god forbid! lol)
   
8. I want to go into any fucking store and buy clothes that fit and look good on me
9. I want men to want me and women to look at me with envy

So, there :P~

I needed that....

updates...weeeeeeeee!!!!!!!

Well, it's been over a week, and I'm still eating vegan...shocking, eh? ;)

Seriously, it hasn't been that bad. Aside from a minor freak out when DH wanted to eat at Pappadeaux, it's been easy-peasy. I have my fruit smoothie in the morning (2-3 pieces of fruit, tossed in the blender along w/a 1/2 c of vanilla soymilk & a tbsp of ground flaxseed)...for lunch, it's usually a salad and some hummus & pita bread (I still loves mah hummus)...for dinner, salad &/or cooked veggies & some more fruit. Honestly, I love salad...AND fruit...sometimes together!! hehe...I have a recipe for this awesome blueberry dressing - it is SOOOO good! Of course, my fave dressing right now is a mix of: freshly pressed garlic, horseradish, dijon mustard & balsamic vinegar. DH says I've been eating so much garlic that it's starting to come out of my pores! eeeeep!! It's all good though, he says it's not "offensive". :D

Since this is the first week where I felt even relatively healthy, I've started working out again. I have a few workout DVDs to rotate, and a book w/core, lower body & upper body exercises to do. The schedule in the book is to work out M, T, Th & F. So, I'm doing my regular aerobics DVDs on those days as well (prior to the exercises) & I'm going to do my yoga workouts (killer DVDs w/Shiva Rea - LOVE her!!) on W & Sat. Sunday will be my day of rest. (I'm gonna need it!)

Anyway, that's it for now. Still working on getting stuff together for FCI. More on that another day. ;) ttfn!