Catching Up

Hello again! Sorry for the delayed post--my usual Friday post was postponed until after the craziness of moving in had settled down.

After much indecision, I finally decided on a format for the next 9 months or so. I posted my plans in the comments section from the "FEEDback" post, but I'll copy it here so that everyone can have the heads up:

Thanks, everyone! I really appreciate your suggestions. I have decided to keep a similar format to my current one--after all, if it ain't broke, don't fix it, right? I'll be photographing as many meals as I can, with a new emphasis on snacks, especially pre-workout snacks. I will try to mention the workouts themselves throughout the week too. In addition to the three posts during the week, I will devote one post per week to a special topic: articles, product/restaurant reviews, or my food philosophy. I hope you all like it!

With that said, I need to catch up on my meals through Friday. While I didn't get a chance to photograph all my meals throughout the road trip, there are several examples of (relatively) healthful road food for those of you interested in that sort of thing.

First, I must backtrack to my final days of cooking at home.

Wednesday
I tried a new protein powder for my smoothie on this night--Vega Complete Whole Food Health Optimizer, berry flavor. I hate to admit it, but I actually had to pour this down the drain. I simply could not stomach it. Something about the aftertaste seemed to "supplement-like." Basically, I ate the granola, plus a few spoonfuls of the smoothie, but I called it a night after that. What a waste of mango!
Thursday
To make the most of my last day at home, I wanted to start it off right with a bowl of banana oats. This version included a healthy blob of cashew butter and lots of wheat germ. Heaven in a (girly ruffled) bowl.
I made another breakfast favorite for lunch: scrambled tofu. This time, however, I added mushrooms and wrapped it up in a whole wheat tortilla. I love me some tahini.
Dinner was spent out with my brothers-in-law, my sister Lea, and her brother-in-law (if that makes any sense). I chose Nabeel's, where I ordered lentil soup and a peasant salad. The salad was excellent, but when I tried the soup, I kept reaching for the salt shaker. I didn't bring my camera to this one, so you'll have to use your imagination.

Luckily, my final smoothie was a success. You just can't go wrong with cherries. Also, note the different variety of So Delicious. It's not the fruit-sweetened variety I usually buy, but it's still a less "junky" form of ice cream...and on sale!
Friday
We hit the road early, so, true to form, I stuffed some cereal in a baggie with a few mix-ins: GoLean, sliced almonds, and raisins. I nibbled on this as I drifted in and out of sleep.
For lunch we hit up one of my favorite semi-fast food places, Panera. I usually get the You Pick Two option, so that's what I did this time, not even considering the portability factor--big mistake. I got a half Strawberry Poppyseed Salad with a bowl of Garden Vegetable Soup. Neither soup nor salad ranks high on the "grab and go" meter. I ended up gulping the soup at a traffic light and stuffing lettuce leaves in my mouth once we got on the highway. Oops. PS. Aren't they supposed to give you bread with soup? They gave me some lame potato chips instead. I felt a little cheated, going to Panera and not getting any bread.
Aside from its inability to be transported and easily eaten, my lunch was not especially filling either. I relied on my good friend Dr. Weil to satisfy my hunger. I've had this Goji Moji bar before, and I still say it tastes like the inside of a Fig Newton (probably due to the abundance of fig paste in the ingredients list). Good, but I didn't notice a lot of Goji or cranberry flavor as proclaimed on the package.
For dinner we went to Ruby Tuesday, where I completely gorged on the plentiful salad bar. They even had edamame! I also ordered the most ginormous sandwich on the planet, aka the Veggie Burger. I am not sure if the patty itself is vegan, but I ordered the burger without cheese or mayo. No pics here, but you'll see leftovers later...

After a SuperTarget run and a few hours of unpacking, I said goodbye to my parents. I'll miss them, but I'll be back for a visit soon enough:)

Be back later today with one of the aforementioned "feature" posts.