Eating Well:Yogurt & Granola
It seems to me there are 3 typical groups of food enthusiasts: those who are born with the metabolism of a hummingbird, those who work out and moderate their food intake, and those who just don’t give a damn.
Being somewhat of a mix of the latter 2 groups, I’ve put on a few more pounds than I’d care to have over the last couple years. Not surprisingly, my weight gain had a direct correlation to (no shit), injuring my back at work thereby disrupting my gym routine, having a death in the family, getting laid off, and joining Yelp in the same year. Ultimately, taking care of myself was moved to a slow-simmering backburner of my life.
Totally non-related to the new year, I decided I had enough. No scratch that, I decided to get off my fat arse and actually DO something about having enough. I’ve started to seriously track what I’m eating, reduce my alcohol intake, and be more active. So when I was sent a box of Quaker New Delights Granola to sample, I was psyched. Seriously. I had been eating granola bars as dinner on breaks between my Intermediate Algebra night courses.
Apparently, these babies are new to stores beginning this month, and what’s more important to me, they have natural ingredients and a moderate amount of calories. I decided to switch things up a bit from my normal dry granola yogurt topping. The result was a slightly sticky, faintly tart addition that enhanced the texture and imparted the subtle sweetness I was hoping for.
So far Quaker has 3 flavors, Dark Chocolate Raspberry Almond(pictured), Toasted Coconut Banana Macadamia Nut, and Honey Roasted Cashew Mixed Berry. Surprisingly, I haven’t tried the other 2 yet. Yeah, I know. The “true” food enthusiast in me wanted to sample each one in the same day, but that’s how you get fat.
Here are the ingredients for my favorite breakfast/lunch/snack at the moment:
1. 1 cup of fat-free plain yogurt, whipped with a fork or whisk til creamy
2. 1 tbsp of agave nectar
3. 2 tbsp of dried wild blueberries
4. 1 Quaker True Delights granola bar or 1/2 cup dry granola topping of your choice
I love food blogging, but I hate what it’s done to my waistline. Err, not that I had much of one to begin with…
I hear you on that. I’m trying to find ways to make eating healthy interesting. It has really come down to planning out meals in advance.
Hey good for you! I totally agree with you that adding seemingly innocuous pounds just snowballs until you’re stuck. I think I’m stuck, but thanks to your shared success, I’m a bit more motivated to try now and get out of the “just don’t give a damn” way of things. = )
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flit, flit!
I thought I’d flit in and mention that since I’m trying to learn about cooking, I’m also considering going totally vegan for about two weeks (or as long as I can stand it) just to see what it’s like. I keep hearing of health benefits gained from boycotting dairy and red meat. it’s going to probably take me two weeks to switch over, and I’ll let you know how it goes. My motivation is curiosity mainly.
flit Those granola bars sound good. flit
oh ya, and I say this as someone who is absolutely addicted to a LOT of dairy products. and I like to grill steaks, chicken, and pork too. This will be quite a trip. flit At least I do like vegetables, fruit, and tofu. flit!
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Alex-You’re not stuck! You can always start changing just little things here and there like cutting out dessert, taking your dressing on the side, or drinking more water. I’ve found by taking small steps, it makes the seemingly unsurmountable obstacle of losing weight much easier.
Kevin-That’s a noble goal and I’d be interested to hear about your results! I tried going all macrobiotic last year and found it was very difficult to go “cold turkey” on foods I had been eating for years(and I don’t even eat a lot of meat as is). It’s really a whole new way of life, and for me, I’ve found moderation is the key. I can still eat the foods I want to just in much more limited portions. I’d recommend checking out this book. I never fully went macrobiotic, but it did teach me a good deal about eating whole grains and healthier foods:
http://www.amazon.com/Macrobiotic-Way-Michio-Kushi/dp/1583331808/ref=sr_1_9?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1234036943&sr=1-9
I never was a fan of yogurt but those pics look fantastic! As for the food enthusiast types I’m definitely in group 3 at the moment but slowly working my way up to group 2. *sigh*
I’m not a big fan of yogurt either. It tastes a heck of a lot better dressed up and displayed in a bowl. Plus, the fat free plain yogurt has a heck of a lot less calories, no added sugar, and it fills me up! Which is more than I can say about a bowl of fruit loops.
I need to join you on that diet!
Sounds good!
Food Bloggers Diet Group:
Destination: the salad bar