Goodness, Gracious, Great Bowls of Chocolate!

“Goodness, gracious, great balls of fire!”

Love that song and love that scene in Top Gun! Goose warms my heart. 😉

Today’s lunch was a great bowl o’ chocolate, in the form of brownie batter hot cereal.

Coco-Tastic

Into the mix went:

• 1 tbsp. cocoa powder
• 1 scoop All the Whey chocolate peanut butter cup protein powder
• 1/2 serving Flax-Z-Snax chocolate cream hot cereal
• Water

Flax-Z-Snax Chocolate Cream Hot Cereal

After nukin’ it up for about a minute and a half (and stirring regularly), I had one heck of a rich and chocolatey lunch.

Brownie Batter in a Bowl

This concoction seriously reminds me of brownie batter. Love it.

Speaking of sweet treats, I see a trip to Mochi for some frozen yogurt in my near future… It’s becoming a bit of a Friday staple, I think.

Weekend Plans

Another weekend is upon us (Hooray!) and I can’t wait to get the fun started!

My plans include:

Friday:

• Drive to St. Pete with Ryan and Sadie for dinner with my parents

Saturday

• Spend all day on the boat!!!
• Meet with potential wedding DJ
• Birthday dinner with my family (My actual birthday is on Tuesday)
• Eat my mom’s homemade red velvet cake with the best cream cheese frosting EVERRRR

Sunday

• Meet with potential wedding officiant
• Drive back to Orlando
• Surprise birthday dinner with Ryan

What are YOU most looking forward to this weekend???

I am so excited to get out on the boat! I can’t wait to have some fun in the sun!

Of Possible Interest

• Become a Faster Runner in 6 Weeks
• 6 Eating Rules for Faster Weight Loss
• Exercises for a Better Butt

“Healthy” Drink Shocker

I think the Attune chocolate bar I ate last night sparked a chocolate craving in me this morning.

I figured a bowl of brownie batter hot cereal would ease my sweet tooth a bit and get some chocolate in my belly in a healthier way than a big bowl of chocolate ice cream with hot fudge sauce (which is what I really wanted) would.

Brownie Batter Hot Cereal

Thursday's Breakfast

I enjoyed my bowl of chocolate goodness with a hot tumbler full of my gym’s free coffee. Today’s coffee combination was Barnie’s cinnamon butter cookie and French vanilla coffee flavors combined.

I would have no problem downing a big ice cream sundae for breakfast. I see no boundaries between my meals (which is probably why I love breakfast for dinner so much). Growing up one of my favorite breakfasts was leftover spaghetti with my mom’s marinara meat sauce… I actually preferred it cold. 😀

Does eating foods typically reserved for dinner or lunch gross you out in the morning, or can you down a slice of pizza before 9 a.m. without a problem?

Bring on the pizza!

“Healthy” Drinks

My friend Katherine emailed me a pretty interesting link the other day. It was an eye-opening look at popular drinks Americans consume daily. The biggest shocker? The “healthy” drink (Naked Protein Zone Banana Chocolate drink, 15.2-ounce bottle) that had 70 grams of sugar… the same amount of sugar found in five Breyers Oreo ice cream sandwiches. Yikes!

Pick One: Protein Drink or FIVE Ice Cream Sandwiches

So which one do you choose?

Pass me the ice cream puh-lease! 😀

It Doesn’t Get Much Fresher Than That

On one of Sadie’s morning walk routes, we pass a big grapefruit tree. For the past couple weeks I’ve been waiting for a ripe one to be low enough on the tree for me to reach.

Today was the day! I plucked the ripe fruit off the tree and stuck it in my jacket pocket. I looked like I was pregnant with some obscure little melon baby for the duration of the walk.

Immediately when I got home, I cut into the fruit.

Freshly Picked Grapefruit

(Kinda looks like a lemon, huh?)

It smelled unbelievable and tasted even better. It doesn’t get much fresher than that!

I polished off the whole fruit before hopping in the shower. Yum.

My breakfast continued with my brownie batter hot cereal concoction and a tumbler full of my gym’s free Barnie’s cinnamon butter cookie coffee.

Brownie Batter Hot Cereal

Friday's Breakfast

Workout

I was all over the gym gettin’ my workout on this morning! I hopped from cardio machines, to free weights, to weight machines and back.

My total-body weights blast looked like this:

• 10 min. stair master
• Leg extensions
• 10 min. stair master
• Step ups
• Shoulder raises
• Dead lifts
• Tricep dips
• 5 min. stair master
• Bicep curls
• 5 min. stair master
• Leg curls
• Abs

I did three sets of 15 reps of each exercise, with the exception of abs. For my ab workout I did different kinds of crunches for the duration of the song “Popular” from Wicked. I am getting SO excited to see the musical with my mom and sister tomorrow!

Super Bowl Party In Your Future?

Super Bowl 2010

If you have plans to watch the big game on Sunday with friends and family, chances are typical game day foods like chips and dip and greasy pizza will be served. For healthy game-day appropriate appetizers and entrées, click here to read my latest Examiner article.

Yes, you can still enjoy favorites like mozzarella sticks and boneless buffalo wings. 🙂