Overnight Oats

It has been far too long since I last blogged. That’s what an extremely busy career will do to a person. I haven’t even had time to Brunch! Oh, the horror!  I jotted down a few notes, so I may go back and fill in a few days of events if I ever get a chance.

Anyway, I just enjoyed a glorious bowl of Overnight Oats for breakfast. I didn’t think I was going to blog about it, so I didn’t take a picture. In case you are wondering, Overnight Oats are a mixture of raw oats, liquid (milk, almond milk, greek yogurt), sweetener (sugar, honey, agave, stevia), and whatever else you want (banana, chia seeds, etc.). Mix these all together in a bowl (or an almost-empty nut butter jar), cover, and refrigerate the oats overnight.  Hence, Overnight Oats.  In the morning you can add toppings: nut butter, granola, nuts, crumbled up muffin, etc. Then you eat it, cold.

Last night I mixed a bowl of oats, chia seeds, two small dashes of pumpkin pie spice, two tiny drops of almond essence, and honey.  This morning I topped it with a dollop of almond butter. Did I mention it was glorious?

In other news, I have had my Vitamix for 21 days, and I have used it 18 days. I love it! So happy I purchased one. It may be the placebo effect, but I think the increase in my consumption of greens and fruits is giving me more energy. I hardly eat fruits and veggies, even though I like them. Usually the fruit at the store looks uber gross (blemishes, etc.) and the veggies spoil in the fridge before I have time to cook them (work gets in the way). Buying a few fruits and veggies a few times a week and quickly blending them into a green smoothie works best for my schedule, and allows me to have fruit and veggies every single day.

That’s all for now. Off to start a very busy Saturday.

xx Brunchinista

The Beginning

This blog might suck.  In case it turns out to be totally awesome, I’m going to write everything down.

On August 20, 2011, I discovered “healthy foodie blogs” (HFBs). How could I not have known about this before?!  I’m the human Google for goodness sakes! I guess one doesn’t know about something until it is needed.  I was on the last legs of a very restrictive diet regimen. I had successfully lost a lot of weight and I was trying to figure out how to transition back into eating all of my gourmet foodie delights without regaining the weight.  First,  I Googled to find out how someone on TV lost weight; she is my height, was heavier than me when she started, and looks great now.  Apparently she used the Bar Method….which I had never heard of (again, my human Google cred is slipping). My Google search for reviews and opinions about the Bar Method led me to a few HFBs where the bloggers had tried the Bar Method and other barre workouts.  I then embarked upon an all-day research fest about barre workouts so I could determine which one was the “best”. Ultimately, I settled on the Bar Method Beginner’s Workout and the 3-DVD Physique 57 series, Volume 1.

Having selected and ordered my future awesome body, I returned to my first love: FOOD! Since August 20, 2011, every single day I have read HFBs. Every. Single. Day. I’ve been digging through the archives of the sites I like, with an insatiable appetite for learning how to cook healthier foodie items. I even went out and bought chia seeds and nutritional yeast! I haven’t tried the chia seeds yet and I’m on the fence about the yeast. The nutritional yeast is reputed by the HFBs to be an excellent source of protein and some other stuff that makes life awesome, so I’ve been sprinkling it randomly on various food items.

Then, on August 28, I happened to be flipping channels and saw the Vitamix blender on QVC (or Vita-Mix, or VitaMix, depending on what blog you read). Again, I had never heard of it.  I felt healthier and thinner just watching the demonstration on TV! I watched the full one-hour demonstration while Googling the validity of this wonder machine….then I bought it. I also got an email from Groupon advertising 50% off a set of 10 Barre classes…with a live instructor at a real studio. All the fitness bloggers and the HFBs said they got the best results and helpful correction on their form by going to live barre classes.  So I bought the Groupon. I guess me AND my bank account are losing weight! Let me just say, I am NOT buying anything else. Especially not that Lululemon stuff! (BTW, that is pronounced “loo-loo-lemon”) I mean really….who knows if any of this crap is gonna work anyway?

Well…I think it might.  I got my DVDs in the mail yesterday.  Today I tried the Bar Method Beginners Workout.  Let me just say, I have the tightest hamstrings on the planet! THE tightest, I tell you! I think I did about 70% of the workout. This is the first time I have exercised since January. This workout did not feel “beginner” to me! I was literally talking to the instructor, saying things such as, “You’re kidding, right?” when he cued certain moves.  That backward reverse push-up thing that works the triceps is murder! I think I did like 5. Maybe.

Despite my protestations, I really do need to develop a balanced relationship with food and exercise. So, welcome to my journey. I am a food-loving, dessert-loving, exercise-hating girl who is going to give barre workouts an honest try. Now that I lost the weight, it is time to firm up. The fact that my biceps are hurting as I type this is a good sign. Let’s hope I stick to these workouts…and drink a million green smoothies prepared in my state-of-the-art Vitamix that LOOKS like it came out of a 1950’s kitchen.

xx Brunchinista