Mumble Jumble
Hey hey hey š Hope youāre having a fabulous almost-Friday! I LOVE reading all of your name suggestions for the cafe!! I knew you would be an amazing resource and I canāt wait to meet with the owners and pick one out. Weāll let you know tomorrow š
The rest of yesterday started out mellow, then turned into a frantic scatterbrained frenzy.
Lunch was glorious:
I made a Thai-style salad beast, by putting greens, bell pepper, shredded carrot, cucumber, fresh pineapple and 1/2 diced avocado into a bowl
Then topped it off with a dressing made of raw almond butter, rice wine vinegar, cayenne and Nama shoyu and fresh cilantro
Face was rocked š
Next time I think Iāll skip out on the avocado, though. The salad had plenty of healthy fat from the almond butter and didnāt technically need more, but the taste didnāt match as well as I thought it would. Mung bean sprouts would be great in this, too š
I had a training appointment, came back to the casa to walk the puppers and make dinner to pack up and take to the gym.
Tonight was the Jumble-aya from Eat, Drink and Be Vegan (Iāve made this before, and knew it would be perfect to have after work).
I packed it up into containers to take to the gym, and one for the pilot:
When the batch was finished (using sticky brown rice.. one of my favorite carby delights), I was really, really hankering for some sweets.I didnāt think it would hit me so soon (Lent started THAT DAY) but I think it was the fact that I was subconsciously telling myself to stay away from them. This my friends is why diets are painful and often unsuccessful. What makes you want something more than anything in the world? Telling yourself you canāt have it.
Lent obviously isnāt a *diet* but staying away from sweets has that same forbidden attitude, which should make these 40 days very interesting (and very rewarding when I stuff my face with a Liz Lovely cookie, or three, on Easter).
To fill the *sweets void* I had some brown rice cereal:
After leaving the casa and getting to base for pilates, I realized that I left my base ID at home. I did this last week, too, and they will NOT let you on base without an ID. It doesnāt matter how much you beg, tell them you work there, or bribe with raw macaroons⦠they just wonāt go for it. Last week, I drove the half hour home to get the ID then back to base (and missed pilates) but tonight I just wasnāt going to do it. Thank goodness Ashley met me on base to get a visitorās pass for me (thank you, friend).
Zumba was glorious, and then I came to the squadron to wait for the pilot who is debriefing right now after his flight.
I wrote this post from the squadron bar (yes, they have a bar at their place of employment) and munched my jumble-aya.
Usually donāt mind hanging out at the squadron but I couldnāt wait to get home, take a shower and put some jammies on š
The pilot and I came back to the casa and CRASHED!
Iām off to make some green juice, meet Ashley at the gym and then go for a run. I *will not* let the cold get in my wayā¦.
See ya this afternoon <3
xoxo,
Gina
Q & A (from the Ask Me Anything page)
You have a huge amount of people that follow your blog, which is awesome! How did you get people to notice it in the beginning?
In the beginning, I just wrote my little heart out about things I know and care about. I also made sure to read and leave quality comments on other blogs (more than ālooks good!ā but tried to think of something fun and different to say) with hopes that other blog readers and bloggies would visit my blog. I kept on trucking on, and am very fortunate to have the amazing readership I have today.
What exactly is in the Indian dish that you always get? Any other suggestions for healthy, low-cal Indian food?
I LOVE baigan bhartha (pureed eggplant with tomatoes, peas and spices) and dal bukara (which has lentils and spices), with some tandoori roti (whole wheat naan) to scoop everything up š Other low-cal and healthy options are veg jalfreezi (mixed veggies, I ask for no potatoes), channa masala (chickpeas with tomatoes and spices) and (assuming you eat meat) anything from the tandoori menu, which is grilled meat with peppers and onions.
I’m training for a half marathon & trying to lose about 7 lbs. Online I’ve found that I should eat 1395 calories/day to lose, yet I see so many bloggers who eat WAY more than that and maintain a low weight. Any thoughts on this??
I think that during training isnāt a very good time to focus on weight loss goals, as you can inefficiently fuel yourself and result in injury. Some bloggers have super metabolisms, which I wasnāt blessed with, and I know for me, I wouldnāt be able to eat as many calories as they do (or the types of food they do) on a regular basis and maintain my weight. Every body is different and it really is an art to find what works for you. Iād say focus on your half marathon training and goals (making sure to fuel your body with the best nutrients and not worry too much about calories), and if the additional training doesnāt get you where you want to be, tweak your eats once the half is over.
When I’ve seen you have goat cheese on your salads at restaurants, is that on the menu or are you asking for it? Do most restaurants have goat cheese as a substitute in their kitchens?
Many restaurants carry goat cheese, and if they do, Iāll ask for some on my salad instead of whatever cheese is offered. Usually Iāll scope out the menu to see if āgoat cheeseā is a component of any of the meal options and if it is, you can bet your booty Iām asking for some š
if/when you have babies…how many do you and pilot want? Will you raise them vegetarian/pescatarian or no? and will you continue to make menus and be head chef for the cafe even when you move? ps I think you rock š
I want 2, and the pilot wants 100 (haha), so maybe weāll compromise and have 3? Weāll have to see how all of that goes š We want to raise our kids eating white meat only (organic), with red meat on occasion (kind of how the pilot eats), but if they decide they donāt want to eat meat later on, thatās fine too.
Iād love to continue to make menus for the cafe after I move- I hope it works out that way!
how much do you weigh? you talk about weight being just a number but how do you know if you’re gaining ‘weight” or muscle??
I donāt like to talk about weight on the blog for obvious reasons. That information wouldnāt help anyone and would just make readers compare themselves to me, which is just silly because the chances are very low that they would have the same height, weight, activity level, body fat, and age as I do. Every so often, I pinch myself with the calipers (or have a friend do it) to check my body fat but usually Iāll just go by how my clothes fit. If my jeans are comfy, things are bueno. If they start to get tight, itās time to evaluate my workout routine and eats (by going through my planner).
what nationality is "the pilot?"
A mix of seksi, hawt, Irish and German š
Great Q and As! I have wondered about the baby question myself! Your baybays will be adorable! Also interesting why you don’t post your weight – I noticed you hadn’t but figured I just missed it. This makes sense though!
OK The nose thing. First off, I hope the person was genuinely curious and not being mean spirited. Second, I remember you mentioning not liking your nose before. Third- I DON’T SEE IT! I know we all have things we would like to change about ourselves, all the while someone else wishes they could be more like us…but honestly YOUR NOSE IS JUST FINE. Seriously, I don’t even see what you are even talking about. And also, not to be down on myself or anything, but I rarely go out of my way to make someone feel better- that’s how strongly I feel about the nose thing not even being “nose thing.”
P.S.- I will work on being more complimentary to people. I usually think something in my head like- oh those shoes are nice, I like her outfit…it just doesn’t occur to me to sayt it out loud.
PRIMAL.
name your cafe primal :)i think that encompasses the whole, natural, raw, vegan motif.
and props to you for how you handled the nose comment. i hope that person sees what a jackass they looked like for asking.
“What makes you want something more than anything in the world? Telling yourself you canāt have it.” Gosh,I totally agree with that statement. Just amazing what your mind can do–it can make or break you.