Mid-Week Food Prep

Sunday isn't the only day of the week you can do food prep. It is just the most popular, and that is understandable.

Many people consider Sunday the "gearing up for the week" day of the weekend; I know I do! So Sunday is often the day that we cook a roast, or a whole chicken, or make a big pot-o-something to eat on for the week (chili and big crock-pot meals come to mind!). 

But, Sunday isn't the only day you can do it!

Take tonight for example. 

It's a Tuesday evening and not much is happening at Casa Beebe. There is no Monday or Thursday night football to watch, no pressing house chores to do, no homework (yay!).

I was making fish for dinner on the grill.

I decided that since I already had the grill going I should go ahead and cook up some turkey sausage to have for easy protein additions to my  lunch for the week. I didn't make a whole chicken or a roast this past weekend, so I don't have an easy protein source for grab and go in the morning this week. 

While that was going on I was thinking about what should be on the menu for tomorrow night. I decided some of our home-grown spaghetti squash could be used up, and since I was already in the kitchen waiting for dinner to cook, I might as well throw that in the oven.

I pulled some homemade tomato sauce out of the freezer and stuck it in the fridge to defrost overnight. I also pulled out some ground chicken breast to defrost. 

Tomorrow night, all I will have to do is brown up and season the ground chicken, toss the defrosted tomato sauce on top, heat it through and then put it on top of the pre-cooked spaghetti squash. EASY! 

I love easy. Especially on a .... HUMP day! (I love that commercial!)

Dinner tonight was rock fish that we caught ourselves, alongside some steamed broccoli and some home grown butternut squash that I roasted on Sunday. 

If you are in the kitchen making dinner or prepping food, pause for a moment and consider what else you could easily do in that moment that will make life a little easier. 

Do you do mid-week food prep? Do you add extra this or that to the grill? Why or why not?

Meal Plan February

Did I tell you that I wrote a dinner meal plan for the whole month of February?

Yup. The whole  month.

After I spent all that time doing an inventory of my freezer, I decided I should actually come up with a plan to use all that great stuff!

Now, I don't expect to follow this exactly. In fact, there have already been several alterations or changes that have occurred over the last week or so.

But I have been using it as a guide and even if I decide to make something different from what is on the menu for the day, switch days around, or as happened on Saturday night, something unexpected comes up and we aren't home for dinner, it has still given me a greater awareness of what is hiding in my freezer.

As a result, I have been doing an incredible job of using stuff from the freezer in my meals instead of buying more stuff.

I went grocery shopping yesterday and as far as food went I bought some fresh veggies, some lunch stuff (meat/cheese/wraps) for Chris and a bunch of household stuff like toilet paper and paper towels.

Another great bonus is that our meals are being varied and I'm bringing back some favorites that sometimes get skipped, like Posole and spinach lasagna.

This week:

Monday: Pesto veggie pasta
Tuesday: Pork chop, healthy fries, green veg
Wednesday: Poblano Corn Chowder
Thursday: it says cod, but I realized is is Valentine's Day so I am changing it to steak, potato and veg.
Friday: Pesto Basil Artichoke Mozzarella pizza
Saturday: Shrimp Poblano "curry"

As far as workouts go, well I am still doing a pretty good job of doing something most days. I am still really struggling with my neck/shoulder/back issue. It gets better, but then I DO something, like workout with high intensity or scrub my bathroom from floor to ceiling and then I am put back out of commission for several days. I'm working on it though and trying to keep my chin up.

Sunday: Walked for 2.5 miles
Monday: Recumbent bike for 40 minutes
Tuesday: Yoga for 28 minutes
Wednesday:
Thursday:
Friday: rest day
Saturday:

I don't know exactly. My workouts are somewhat dependent on how my shoulders and neck are doing. Yoga if I'm not doing so good, a walk or some other cardio if I am doing better. My ultimate goal at this point is to just keep doing some kind of workout, ANYTHING, at least 5 days of the week.

That's the plan kids!!

Do you have a plan? Lent starts tomorrow...do you observe? Are you giving anything up?

I am taking on a meditation practice. I hope to use the next 40 days to incorporate guided meditation into my life on a regular basis. I won't say daily, but several times a week.

Meal Plan 1.27.13

Okay, so I know this is late. I haven't made the time to come and post for the last couple of days, but I want to keep doing this, both for myself and for others who may want/need it.

Let's quickly review last week:

Sunday: We are having Slow cooker curried beef short ribs with greens and rice for sure! CHECK!

Meatless Monday: Eggplant and pasta delight (I only used half the eggplant I bought, so I don't want it to go to waste) CHECK!

Tuesday: Chris' choice, he said it is Taco Tuesday! CHECK!

Wine Wednesday: Smoked pork chops and cauliflower "faux"-tato mash, and wine! CHECK!

Thursday: Thai curry shrimp chicken with rice and sauteed snow peas CHECK!

Over the weekend my friend Kelsey came to visit (more on that later) and so we didn't have specific plans for food. Friday: Steak, potato, salad. Saturday: Dinner out. Sunday: Pizza in. 

Overall I did AWESOME with sticking to my meal plan last week. 

Workouts for the week:

Sunday: Yoga - no

Monday: Yoga - yes!

Tuesday: Swim - no

Wednesday: Yoga or Walk - yoga yes!

Thursday: Swim - 2.7 mile walk yes!

Friday: Yoga or Walk - no

Saturday: Walk - yes! hike in the snow. 

Sunday: Walk - no

Not too shabby!

What's on the menu for this week:

Meatless Monday: Portobello mushroom and red pepper quinoa salad

Tuesday: Trader Joe's Lime Chicken Burgers on thin buns with salad

Wednesday: Thai Chicken Salad w/peanut dressing

Thursday: Cod with broccoli and salad

Friday: Pork Chop, sweet potato wedges and green veg or salad (depends on what is left in the fridge)

Saturday: wing it

SUPERBOWL SUNDAY: I think I'm making a chili and some snacks for the day. 

Workouts

Sunday -none

Monday -none

Tuesday -none

Wednesday - Yoga

Thursday - Walk/swim

Friday -Walk/swim

Saturday -Walk/swim

Sunday -yoga

Alright...that's the plan! Did you do your meal planning this week? How's it going? Are you sticking with it?

Weekly Meal & Workout Plan 1.20.13

Eggplant and Pasta Delight with Green Salad

First let's recap how we did last week on the food and exercise front and then I'll share the meal plan for this week! 

Sunday: Actually, I don't know. Chris wanted to grill something and bought a variety of stuff at the store, so I'm not sure what he is making. - Uhm, nope. Chris ended up being really tired after his middle of the night work call, so I made dinner and it was nothing healthy. I made a chili-mac mix. Yes. It was easy, from a box and can, though I did spice it up with some extras like red beans and feta. It was very tasty, just not super healthy. 

Meatless Monday: Vegetarian Jumbalaya with sauteed mixed greens (Trader Joe's!) - A total winner! But I forgot I was serving the greens and made a salad instead. Still good!

School Night Tuesday: Chris' choice - He ended up making an amazingly good seafood soup. Thank you! 

Wine Wednesday: Eggplant and pasta with salad and wine - check! 

Thursday: Thai red curry shrimp with rice and sauteed snap peas - I switched out this meal for Saturday's and we had Korean Noodle Salad instead. Totally delish!

Friday: Homemade flatbread pizza (mozzarella, spinach, mushrooms, pesto) - Hmm..nope! I had friends over and we had hawaiian food takeout (teriyaki chicken, kahlua pork, yakisoba noodle, rice, macaroni salad)

Saturday: Korean noodle chicken salad - Chris decided to smoke a brisket, so we had that instead, with salad. 

Sunday: Slow cooker curried beef short ribs with greens and rice - this is getting ready to go in the slow cooker when I am done with this post! 

Well you can see we didn't follow along 100%, but that is totally okay. Having the meals planned is a huge help to me, and having the food in the house to make all these meals is a huge help in avoiding pizza takeout or fast food. Last Sunday's dinner wasn't the best, but sometimes ya just gotta roll with it. 

How did I do with my workouts? Honestly, only ok. You may know that I have an "issue" with my neck/shoulder muscles. Well, Monday I woke up with a headache. I went to the gym anyway and did a short run and some yoga. By the time I was done with the Yoga I had a screaming headache. I got home, took some advil, ate, rested and went to the chiropractor. She gave me orders for NO running/jumping/weights for at least a few days. Yoga and swimming were ok. 

Workouts for the week:

Monday: Run/Yoga Brick - Check!

Tuesday: Swim - Check! ~30 minutes/750 yards.

Wednesday: Yoga or X-train - no. I was still in pain so had a massage and another chiro adjustment.

Thursday: Run - no...rest for my neck.

Friday: Swim - I did a 20 minute Firm Express cardio/sculpt workout at home. I tried to take it easy, used light weights, did lots of stretching both during and after the workout. 

Saturday: X-train - OH...hell no. My neck was so pissed off from that workout yesterday! It was obviously too soon. I couldn't hardly turn my head. I spent most of the day laying down, went in the hot tub twice, took advil, Chris gave me a massage, I massaged it myself...ugh! 

Sunday: Run - hahahaha...a run is not happening today. If it warms up at all I might go for a walk, but otherwise I will be doing some yoga in the living room to try and continue stretching out my neck. 

Okay, so a minor setback with my neck. I am trying to take care of it, will go back and get another massage this week, and likely will keep all of my activity this week loooooow impact. 

Here's the plan for this week then: 

Meals (tentative nights)

Sunday: We are having Slow cooker curried beef short ribs with greens and rice for sure!

Meatless Monday: Eggplant and pasta delight (I only used half the eggplant I bought, so I don't want it to go to waste)

Tuesday: Chris' choice, he said it is Taco Tuesday! 

Wine Wednesday: Smoked pork chops and cauliflower "faux"-tato mash, and wine!

Thursday: Thai curry shrimp with rice and sauteed snow peas

Friday/Saturday/Sunday meals are a little up in the air. My bestie is coming to visit and we have some tentative plans for the weekend so I'm not sure how meals are going to stack up. If our plans work out Chris will make dinner one night and it will probably be steak and potatoes. I plan to make a beef tagine with butternut squash one night. But all of that is kind of up in the air at this point. So for the weekend we have a "tentative" plan, but will also be open to winging it and going with the flow. 

Workouts for the week:

Sunday: Yoga

Monday: Yoga

Tuesday: Swim

Wednesday: Yoga or Walk

Thursday: Swim

Friday: Yoga or Walk

Saturday: Walk

Sunday: Walk

The name of the game is to stay active, but keep it low impact to prevent more difficulties with my neck. 

Alrighty! Have you meal planned for your week? I keep saying it, but it is a key to a healthy lifestyle for me. No, every week and meal isn't perfect or follow the plan exactly, but I know that my eating would be worse if there was no plan. 

What's on your menu for the week?? 

Weekly Meal & Workout Plan 1.13.13

Hello Friends! Happy Post-Season Weekend!

There have been some amazing football games this weekend, some amazing upsets (in my mind) and just all around good times. The Texans and Patriots are still battling it out as I type.

As I posted last week, I created a meal plan and a workout plan to help keep me on track for the week.

I did a pretty good job of following both of these plans - not perfect, but pretty good. 

The meal plan stayed mostly in tact with a few shifts. Wednesday and Monday meals were switched, Thursday night we ended up getting Thai for dinner and so Thursday's dinner moved to Friday. Friday's meal got nixed. 

As for the workouts, I did a pretty good job, but had to take a little break the end of the week. 

Monday: Yoga - Check!

Tuesday: Swim - Check!

Wednesday: Yoga - Check!

Thursday: Run - Check!

Friday: X-Train - no, I was so sore and tired I decided to rest

Saturday: Swim - no, we ended up having other things fill up our day.

Sunday: Run - hmm...it's not looking good at this point

I did spend some more time meal planning for the week and have put the menu together for the week. 

Sunday: Actually, I don't know. Chris wanted to grill something and bought a variety of stuff at the store, so I'm not sure what he is making. 

Meatless Monday: Vegetarian Jumbalaya with sauteed mixed greens (Trader Joe's!)

School Night Tuesday: Chris' choice

Wine Wednesday: Eggplant and pasta with salad and wine

Thursday: Thai red curry shrimp with rice and sauteed snap peas

Friday: Homemade flatbread pizza (mozzarella, spinach, mushrooms, pesto)

Saturday: Korean noodle chicken salad

Sunday: Slow cooker curried beef short ribs with greens and rice

Workouts for the week:

Monday: Run/Yoga Brick

Tuesday: Swim

Wednesday: Yoga or X-train

Thursday: Run

Friday: Swim

Saturday: X-train

Sunday: Run

My scale has been all over the place this week, so I plan on staying off of it for a while so it doesn't freak me out. I have a post coming up this week about portion sizes so keep an eye out for that! I also have a couple other posts in the percolator that should show up on the blog this week as well.

Happy Sunday!

Weekly Meal Plan 1.5.13

One of the things that I have talked about before as being critical to my healthy eating/weight loss success is meal planning and preparation. I don't know why I have to continually remind myself of this simple fact, or why I fall off the bandwagon with it so much, because it is truly one of the KEYS of managing my weight.

I cannot "wing it" when it comes to healthy eating. If I do not have my meals planned, some food prep done, and healthy snacks - that I will actually eat - easily available I will very quickly slip up and eat a bunch of not so healthy food. This is especially true if I am tired, overly hungry or emotional for whatever reason. Recently I have seen a word to describe this phenomenon and I like it: hangry.

Since it is the first of the year and I am hitting the refresh button on my healthy habits I took some time this morning to review the contents of my fridge, freezers and pantry. I hate to waste food and what better way to use up food and plan healthy meals than by starting with what I already have on hand?

When it comes to food inventory, grocery list and meal planning I am a pen and paper kind of girl all the way. I love technology for many things, but my meal planning isn't one of them. I can't really explain why.

All of that scribble-mess is the inventory and some notes about dinner ideas based on items I already had in the house. 

Next came the grocery list, which was pretty short and consisted of mostly fresh or perishable things like fruits, vegs, yogurt and cheese, with a few staple items like granola and wraps for Chris' lunch. 

I hit the grocery store even though it is the first Saturday of the month (bad time to shop) but it wasn't too bad. 

I've said before, one of my grocery shopping secrets is listening to my headphones. I was rocking out to Lady Gaga radio on Pandora... ooopah Gagnam Style...woot woot! Hey..whatever works, right? This is a great tool for me because I hate grocery shopping but the music helps me tune out all the other people and just focus on what I need to do. 

I came home and unloaded my groceries and then sat down to write out my "official" meal list for the week based on what I actually ended up buying at the store and what I have on hand. 

This goes on the fridge and then it is easy to see what is for dinner when and it takes all of the "what do you want for dinner tonight" lameness out of the equation.

This week I head back to school and my one class is on Tuesday nights, so Chris will be responsible for dinner those nights.

While I call this my official menu it is pretty flexible. If we move dinners around from one night to another it is fine with me, and we do this pretty regularly based on what is looking like it needs to be used up sooner than we thought, or if Chris doesn't want to make grilled salmon on Tuesday but wants to make something else on the list. As long as I have a pretty solid starting point, I'm good.

I don't really plan breakfasts or lunches because I eat the same things so often: oatmeal with peanut butter, cranberries and chia seeds is a favorite, or granola/yogurt/fruit mess is another favorite. I like cereal for quick breakfasts, too, but I don't buy it too often because I tend to overeat it.

Lunch is frequently leftovers from dinner the night before. If there are no leftovers I'll make a sandwich with lots of veggies, or a salad, but one of my favorite lunches is a mix of cooked rice or other grain, beans (black or kidney), some seasonings like cumin and garlic, chopped fresh tomatoes, avocado and maybe some cilantro or sprouts. This is a hearty and filling lunch. I also, when I am menu planning and meal prepping, will make a pot of soup or chili and eat off that for lunches for the week. Chris doesn't really like leftovers more than one time, so it works out that a big pot of soup can feed me for a week.

Here is the menu for this week:

Saturday (today): Fried Teriyaki Chicken with roasted sweet potato wedges and steamed broccoli
Sunday: Sausage Stuffed Acorn Squash
Monday: Beef and Cheese Pasta with green salad
Tuesday: Grilled Salmon Steaks with roasted potato wedges and broccoli
Wednesday: Spaghetti Squash with chicken-tomato sauce and green salad
Thursday: Grilled Steak with cauliflower mash
Friday: Roasted Turkey leg with roasted butternut squash cubes and green salad
Saturday: Sun Dried Tomato and Bean Risotto with green veg/salad (whatever is left)

What is on your menu for the week?