So I am making a conscious effort to spend less money in 2012. I realized that a lot of the big line items on my bank statement were food because either I wasn't planning meals and buying tons of random shit or I was just buying way too expensive items at Whole Foods. This is my first shot at planning for the week so let me know what you think!
A few tips if you're in the same boat:
- Only buy specialty items at more expensive stores. Example: You can't find Manuka honey at Publix.
- Write down your daily menus and only buy from that. Example: Last week I almost got $5 worth of diet cranberry juice with fizz because it was new. Really necessary? Nope.
MENU
p.s. the links link to the recipes!
MONDAY:
B - Egg White & Veggie Omelet, Ezekial Bread Toast, Fresh Spinach/Carrot/Apple Juice
L - Grilled Chicken Breast (Use Mrs. Dash seasoning) & 1/2 a Sweet Potato
D - Turkey Lettuce Wraps w/ Cashews
S - Fat Free Yogurt, Pre-Made Snack Mix (15 almonds, handful of cranberries), Strawberries, BabyBell Light
TUESDAY:
B - Steel Cut Oats w/ Blueberries and Peanut Butter, 1/2 cup Almond Milk
L - Grilled Chicken & other 1/2 of Sweet Potato
D - Turkey Burgers w/ Avocado and Salad (Whole wheat bread - duh)
S - Fat Free Yogurt, Pre-Made Snack Mix (15 almonds, handful of cranberries), Green Tea, Blueberries, BabyBell Light
WEDNESDAY:
B - Egg White & Veggie Omlette, Ezekial Bread Toast, Fresh Spinach/Carrot/Apple Juice
L - Nicoise Salad
D - Out to Dinner (I figured no one really cooks EVERY night and if you do that's amazing)
S - Fat Free Cottage Cheese w/ Blueberries, Pre-Made Snack Mix, Green Tea
THURSDAY:
B - Steel Cut Oats w/ Blueberries and Peanut Butter, 1/2 cup Almond Milk
L - Nicoise Salad
D - Baked Tilapia w/ Veggies & Brown Rice
S - Fat Free Cottage Cheese w/ Blueberries, Pre-Made Snack Mix, Green Tea
FRIDAY:
B - Blueberry Banana Shake (w/ Peanut Butter), two pieces of Ezekial Toast
L - Turkey Sandwich on Whole Wheat
D - Fish Tacos w/ Guac & Greek Yogurt Slaw
S - Fat Free Yogurt w/ Blueberries, Pre-Made Snack Mix, Green Tea
GROCERY LIST (Print and tear this off if you want):
- 2 chicken breasts
- 5 tilapia filets
- 1.5 lb of ground turkey
- Eggs
- Whole wheat tortillas
- Ezekial Bread
- Berries
- Veggies (for all meals)
- Brown Rice
- Cabbage (for fish taco slaw)
- Almonds
- Cashews
- Cranberries
- Cottage Cheese
- Yogurt
- 1 sweet potato
- romaine lettuce
- spinach
- bag of carrots
- 2 tuna packets
- steel cut oats
- 2 avocados
- baby potatoes
- green beans
I probably forgot something (whoops). I hope you enjoy the meals!
xo,
zo
Sunday, January 29, 2012
Tuesday, January 17, 2012
Farm Burger
Hello why did it take me so long to go here? I just don't understand. How did not one of my friends drag me down to Decatur (and now Buckhead) to eat one of the more delicious veggie burgers I've had in Atlanta. Local produce, grass fed beef, composting?!?!? Yes please.
While I do love my Yeah! Burger cobb salad, their veggie burger needs a little help. Farm Burger, on the other hand has a kick a$$ veggie burger and from what it looked like, an amazing regular grass fed burger (my hot date/bf had finished it all before I got a chance to even ask for a bite! Thanks a lot!). I bet you're wondering what the big deal is with this grass fed stuff. Well, readers (all 20 of you, thanks mom for forwarding to your list serve) a cows stomach is meant to digest grass, not corn and grain like most beef shops. When cows walk around and eat grass, not only are the raised in a humane way (moooooo) they don't over-eat and they're not being force fed with hormones, the absence of these things inevitably makes the beef healthier with higher concentrates of beta carotene and Omega-3's all of which help reduce cholesterol, diabetes, cancer and high blood pressure.
Now to the veggie burger. It's no secret that I heart quinoa and that is the base of this burger, along with some awesome chopped carrots and other veggies. Needless to say, it was a smashing hit. Also, they have a chalkboard of seasonal fresh local veggies that I'm sure you can ask to get added on.
My Order:
- Veggie burger with lettuce, tomato and Swiss - sauce on the side
XO,
zo
While I do love my Yeah! Burger cobb salad, their veggie burger needs a little help. Farm Burger, on the other hand has a kick a$$ veggie burger and from what it looked like, an amazing regular grass fed burger (my hot date/bf had finished it all before I got a chance to even ask for a bite! Thanks a lot!). I bet you're wondering what the big deal is with this grass fed stuff. Well, readers (all 20 of you, thanks mom for forwarding to your list serve) a cows stomach is meant to digest grass, not corn and grain like most beef shops. When cows walk around and eat grass, not only are the raised in a humane way (moooooo) they don't over-eat and they're not being force fed with hormones, the absence of these things inevitably makes the beef healthier with higher concentrates of beta carotene and Omega-3's all of which help reduce cholesterol, diabetes, cancer and high blood pressure.
Now to the veggie burger. It's no secret that I heart quinoa and that is the base of this burger, along with some awesome chopped carrots and other veggies. Needless to say, it was a smashing hit. Also, they have a chalkboard of seasonal fresh local veggies that I'm sure you can ask to get added on.
My Order:
- Veggie burger with lettuce, tomato and Swiss - sauce on the side
XO,
zo
Monday, January 9, 2012
My Favorite Tips from Dr. Oz
It ain't no lie, I love Dr. Oz. He explains health issues so they make sense to lil' ole me and he lives a super healthy lifestyle. I don't know what it is about him...he's like my cool uncle that I trust to give me sound advice (and sneak me wheat grass shots under the table). I wanted to share some of my favorite tips from him with you all. I figured right about now everyone is struggling with their weight loss New Years resolutions (I know I am) and need a few pick-me-up's to get back on track. Here goes the best one is at the bottom...
#10: Plan your meals ahead of time. That way you're less likely to make an unhealthy last-minute food choices.
#9: Check your poop. Ha, poop. It's no laughing matter. If your poop isn't brown and you may be super sick, unless you ate some beets.
#8: Skipping meals can cause your body to go into a fat-storing starvation mode (yikes), making it harder to burn calories.
#7: Slow the hell down. I'm guilty of this but slow your roll when you're eating. You will get fuller faster and wont eat as much.
#6: Try distancing yourself from negative vibes/people by observing them without judgment when they occur and just walk away. Peace, man.
#5: Floss your teeth. This is from the Dr. but I originally got this advice from one of my greatest friends. She said to me "Be true to your teeth or they will be false to you!" She was 87 years young and still had ALL of her real teeth. Miss you Pearly.
#4: Stretch. Even if you didn't exercise that day. It will help your posture and just get your blood flowing in the AM to wake you up for a productive day.
#3: Ok so this isn't Dr. Oz's but it's mine. Get OFF WebMD and stop self-diagnosing. I convinced myself I had a brain eating amoeba from my neti pot just because I had a fever. If you think you're dying, go to the ER. Good lord.
#2: Talk to your friends, family or a shrink. When you face life's stresses by yourself, you make yourself older through anxiety and that can actually physically hurt your body. You can reduce your aging by having a chat over a glass of wine with a friend (make it red and you will get a double dose of goodness).
#1: Replace an occasional dinner with some good ole fashioned knockin' tha boots (that's right, I just said that). Healthy sex may help you control the amount of food you BOTH eat and it's great exercise, among other things. Ahem - get your mind out of the gutter!
You can check out his show's site here or follow him on Twitter.
Xo,
Zo
 |
| I heart Dr. Oz |
#9: Check your poop. Ha, poop. It's no laughing matter. If your poop isn't brown and you may be super sick, unless you ate some beets.
#8: Skipping meals can cause your body to go into a fat-storing starvation mode (yikes), making it harder to burn calories.
#7: Slow the hell down. I'm guilty of this but slow your roll when you're eating. You will get fuller faster and wont eat as much.
#6: Try distancing yourself from negative vibes/people by observing them without judgment when they occur and just walk away. Peace, man.
#5: Floss your teeth. This is from the Dr. but I originally got this advice from one of my greatest friends. She said to me "Be true to your teeth or they will be false to you!" She was 87 years young and still had ALL of her real teeth. Miss you Pearly.
#4: Stretch. Even if you didn't exercise that day. It will help your posture and just get your blood flowing in the AM to wake you up for a productive day.
#3: Ok so this isn't Dr. Oz's but it's mine. Get OFF WebMD and stop self-diagnosing. I convinced myself I had a brain eating amoeba from my neti pot just because I had a fever. If you think you're dying, go to the ER. Good lord.
#2: Talk to your friends, family or a shrink. When you face life's stresses by yourself, you make yourself older through anxiety and that can actually physically hurt your body. You can reduce your aging by having a chat over a glass of wine with a friend (make it red and you will get a double dose of goodness).
#1: Replace an occasional dinner with some good ole fashioned knockin' tha boots (that's right, I just said that). Healthy sex may help you control the amount of food you BOTH eat and it's great exercise, among other things. Ahem - get your mind out of the gutter!
You can check out his show's site here or follow him on Twitter.
Xo,
Zo
Wednesday, January 4, 2012
Radial Cafe
Vegan options, check. Farm-to-table, check. First certified Green Restaurant in the state of Georgia, double check! So many reasons to love Radial Cafe besides from the fact that the food is wonderful! Check out what being green means for this local restaurant. It's located right smack in between downtown and Decatur. And on weekend make sure you call ahead because the wait can be a tad bit long. However, they do have delicious organic shade-grown coffee, which discourages weed growth and encourages bio-diversity among many other things, for patrons while you wait.
I've been going here since I moved to Atlanta and am finally ready to share this gem! Plus, they are open for dinner now which they weren't before. So now when you're going to dinner in that area you don't have run straight to Fox Brothers (hard to stay healthy with Frito Pie, just saying). My typical order is the Biscuits and Vegetarian Gravy but I'm trying slim down so I decided to try something new!
Just an fyi - they're closed on Wednesdays. And for dinner, you can order any entree halved.
My Order (Make sure to check out their weekly specials too):
- Hummus with Whole Wheat Pita (awesome)
- Walnut-Lentil Burger. So Yummy with spinach, onion, oats and quinoa flour.
Whoopsie I forgot to take a picture because I was too busy stuffing my face. So here's one I stole from the world wide web that I thought was pretty. :)
Xo,
Zo
I've been going here since I moved to Atlanta and am finally ready to share this gem! Plus, they are open for dinner now which they weren't before. So now when you're going to dinner in that area you don't have run straight to Fox Brothers (hard to stay healthy with Frito Pie, just saying). My typical order is the Biscuits and Vegetarian Gravy but I'm trying slim down so I decided to try something new!
Just an fyi - they're closed on Wednesdays. And for dinner, you can order any entree halved.
My Order (Make sure to check out their weekly specials too):
- Hummus with Whole Wheat Pita (awesome)
- Walnut-Lentil Burger. So Yummy with spinach, onion, oats and quinoa flour.
Whoopsie I forgot to take a picture because I was too busy stuffing my face. So here's one I stole from the world wide web that I thought was pretty. :)
Zo
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