Can there be too much of a good thing?
I’m not sure I could tire of dark chocolate.
How about Nutella? Can you imagine having 5.5 tons of it? Thieves in Bad Hersfeld, Germany have made away with a trailer loaded up with just that much of the hazelnut-chocolate-y crack spread. According to this report, that’s about $20,700 of Nutella.
Seriously. What would you do with all that nutella? What are they going to do with it?! More importantly… will this cause a shortage? 😉
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On to healthier, less-alaming things. It’s WIAW time! This is probably the last day of normal (for me) eats pre-competition. Cheat days are gone and I’m back to being super-strict. How do people do this for 16+ weeks?!
Check out my 7 low-sodium, protein-filled meals below, and then click here to head over to Jenn @ Peas and Crayons to get to see how more normal people are eating!
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Meal 1:
This morning I woke up SORE. After getting my workout mojo back, I’ve been hitting the gym hard. After my morning cocktail (apple cider vinegar, water, Glutamine, and Fitmixer Aminos) I talked myself into an include treadmill walk. I promised myself I’d only go for 20 mins to work out the soreness. Well, once I got started I realized I was feeling MUCH better and did 40 mins!
That’s not to say that I didn’t spend the entire walk thinking about breakfast. I was dreaming up something tropical and full of flavor. Mango-Coconut TVP Oats. I added coconut and butter extracts, then imagined I was on an island.
I can’t remember who suggested it, but adding a little baking powder to the original recipe made these nearly double in size. I’m a volume eater, so I was in heaven. Recipe at the bottom.
Meal 2:
This was so awkwardly timed. I had posing practice so I didn’t wan to do that on a full tummy, but I was doing a leg day after which I refuse to do on an empty tummy. So I scarfed this down between the two. I’d recommend a little more time for digestion before 4 sets of 25 ass-to-the-grass barbell squats.
Shredded chicken with raspberries and pepitas. And black pepper. It’s good. Really.
Meal 3:
I’ve seen Sarena do this for so long, I finally had to try it. Cinnamon-roasted kabocha squash topped with vanilla protein powder “sauce.” OF course, I had to #strangebutgood-ify mine up by making the protein green. I blended it with spinach and maple extract.
You can’t taste the spinach… I don’t think my trainer believed me. Whatever. It was just the thing to take for a quick protein + carb shot after a killer leg day.
Meal 4:
Is it weird to crave chicken? I did. Shredded chicken with green onion and diced cucumber. I tossed it in a quick nutritional yeast dressing (nooch + apple cider vinegar + cumin + red pepper flakes).
Meal 5:
I have “tested” this dish more than any recipe I’ve posted on this blog. I think I finally got it right tonight!!! And I took pics. Recipe will come verrrry soon (read: as soon as I can motivate to edit said pics).
It’s an Indian curry. I shared it with a friend, who gave it her stamp of approval. 🙂
Meal 6:
I missed my salmon today! Normally I like it with fruit for meal 2, but I definitely couldn’t do seafood right before squats (trust me – that is less-than-pleasent if it burps back up… TMI?). Anyway, I decided to have evening salmon.
Sautéed portabello mushroom, red pepper, nutritional yeast, and salmon (pre-cooked during the Sunday food-prep with lemon and dill).
Meal 7:
I was conflicted tonight. I needed more carbs, so it was a good night to try the baked chocolate chip Quest bar I’ve been seeing everywhere. But I also wanted cottage cheese. So I went half and half. Turns out that was brilliant because I still have the other half of that bar to eat – it was AMAZING!
My cottage cheese was mixed with cocoa powder, vanilla, a little stevia, and cinnamon. Topped with strawberries.
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Mango-Coconut TVP Oatmeal
- 1/3 C Textured Vegetable Protein (TVP)
- 3/4 C water
- 1/2 tsp cinnamon
- 1/4 tsp coconut extract
- 1/4 tsp butter extract
- Stevia (or other sweetener), to taste
- 1/4 C egg whites
- 1/8 tsp no-sodium baking powder
- 1/2 mango
- Unsweetened coconut, toasted
Add TVP, water, cinnamon, extracts, and stevia to a small pot. Stir, and bring to a boil over med-high heat. Cook about 5-6 mins, or until liquid is mostly absorbed.
Reduce heat to medium. Pour in egg whites and baking powder. Allow to cook for 2-3 more mins, stirring frequently so that the egg doesn’t form chunks. The mixture will become voluminous.
Scoop into bowl and add mango and toasted coconut (I toasted mine in a pan with a bit of coconut oil).
Note: For a vegan option, add a flax egg or simply leave the egg out.
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Diet changes come tomorrow. No more cheat days. Reality has set in… I will be walking across a stage in stripper heels and a bikini in a month. Ack!
What would you like to have 5.5 TONS of?
What have you learned not to eat before a workout?
