Monday, January 12, 2009

Calorie Burning Monday

This day has been very productive for me! I slept in a bit -8:30- but it felt so nice and I am not ashamed :) When I got out of bed I had a stretch and went straight to the kitchen to make a bit pot of oats! I made 1/2 cup oats, 1 cup water, dash of Cinnamon, 1 shot Craisins, 1 shot raisins, 1/2 handful of Quaker Oatmeal Squares and 1/2 shot sliced almonds:
I also had a cup-o-coffee not pictured. I showered, cleaned up bfast dishes and got dressed for work. I am having a hard time adjusting my lunch meal around my 11PM shift. I don't know whether to eat before I leave or at my 3PM break or what! So even though I was still quite satisfied from bfast I forced down a snack to hold me or possibly replace my lunch. I had a big red delicious some Mrs. May's and a Cliff bar:


At work I was glad I had a snack because I didn't end up taking my break until 4:30PM! I had a couple cups of Mogicha Tea and I made the Perfect Non-fat Vanilla Latte! My first officially "good foam" added to 2 shots Espresso and a shot of sugar free vanilla-yummmm! Sorry no pic, I can't even bust out my phone at work so a camera as of now if off limits.
I wore my HRM during my shift today to see how it compares with a day of sitting on my butt and working on set. This is the first test and here are the results:
Time: 5 hours
Calories: 900-whoop whoop!
I then walked to Albertson's to get ingredients for dinner. That burned 40 more calories! Can you believe 940 calories with no intended work out! I am curious to see what the totals are tomorrow where I will be wrapping the set I built on Saturday, and on Thursday where I will be in Traffic School-bummer I know. I think this is the ultimate experiment- variables included!
When I returned home I was pretty tired and needed some fuel for cooking so I snacked on this and read my new magazines. Eggplant Hummus with carrots and edemame:
So lately I have been craving an old time favorite of mine that I am surprised I haven't made sooner; Kale and Tofu with brown rice!!!!
Kale and Tofu Recipe
It all starts with this:
I have not tried this pre-cut and pre-washed package of kale before but it is a huge time saver and I love the no clean up!
Ingredients:
  • 1 package Kale or 1-2 bunches chopped
  • 1 package Tofu
  • 3/4 cup water
  • 3 tbsp Soy Sauce
  • 1/2 tbsp Hot Sesame Oil or not hot
  • 1 tbsp olive oil
  • 1 tsp Pepper
  • 4-6 cloves garlic minced

The brands I use:

This is how I cut my tofu- 12 pieces 1 inch thick. The thinner you slice the tofu the quicker they will brown and they absorb more flavor. Because I use med-firm tofu it falls apart a bit and you can mix it like a hash, but you can use firm tofu and the kale and tofu will stay separated. It is your choice.
Add oils to pan and saute garlic

Add tofu in one layer and add 1 tbsp of soy sauce
Brown Tofu on both sides over Med High heat Mix water, pepper and 2 remaining tbsp of soy sauce. Add whole package of kale to pan on top of tofu. Pour water mix on top and quickly cover pan. Steam fry for 3-5 min until kale stems are soft. I like my kale like I like my broccoli- aldante!
Remove lid and toss gentlyServe with brown rice!
Tonight I am trying a new product from Costco; pre-cooked brown rice! All you do is microwave it!
Here is my plate! I had 2 servings like this!!!! I could really eat the whole pot, but I will savor it and have some tomorrow too! I like to make a lot of this at once and heat it up or eat it cold!

Hope you enjoy my favorite meal! I am off to watch some tube and get a good night's rest- tomorrow I will be doing some serious manual labor!

C

17 comments:

  1. Your dinner looks deliciously nutritious!

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  2. oh wow i should find that pre-cut kale. the main reason i haven't tried kale is it seems daunting straight from its fresh state. this seems cool though!

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  3. yum! How freakin' HOT was it today..omg love CA but seriously, it's January!? That's a good idea to plan for your work shift, even if it's weird to eat early it's so much worse to get hungry! Ha and I love your "shot measurements"

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  4. So glad Meghann had you do a guest blog today! I love your blog and your story if a lot like mine. I can't wait to continue reading

    Erin
    primadharma

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  5. Your meal looks great! I love browned and flavorful tofu!

    Now I want a heart rate monitor, too!

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  6. that looks great! and I have a block of tofu in the fridge that I NEED to use today! I may just have to try this out!

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  7. Yum, your kale and tofu looks great! I actually don't think I've ever tried kale, but I want to!

    How'd you like the Black Cherry Almond Clif? I don't think I've ever tried that flavor before.

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  8. So glad Meghann had you do a guest blog today! I love your blog and you live so close to me, it's nice to see fellow Cali bloggers! Can I add you to my blogroll. I too am going back to school to be an RD I start class on FRIDAY!

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  9. hey girl! love your blog. awesome dinner!

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  10. A shot of craisins, haha love it! I also LOVE your dinner - looks fabulous!

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  11. You've combined three of my favorite foods!!!

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  12. Love the Kale and Tofu Recipe! And can not believe you burned 900 calories at work! I probably burn 0 on my butt at my desk all day. :(

    Also did you check out my post yet? ;)

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  13. Your kale and tofu looks deeeeeeeelicious! And I am so fascinated by your HRM experiment. I have a new HRM and was curious about doing the same thing for fun but didn't want to run out the battery -- it seems like it held up well throughout the day?

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  14. Holy cow that is a ton of calories to burn at work! I should do that, thanks for the idea!

    Your dinner looks amazing!

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  15. So technically, if you wore your hrm all day it would tell you how many calories you burned in a day? I'm curious. That's neat that you burned 900 calories while at work though! Wow!

    Your dinner looks AMAZING! I have never had Kale, I keep meaning to try it but haven't seen any around.. I don't count CANNED as an option for my first time trying it. But yeah, your dinner looks delish!

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  16. your oatmeal looks so yummilicious!!!!

    i see that you live in LA. ME TOO!
    don't you just love sunshiny-cali??? ;]

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  17. Hey bloggers thanks for the sweet words!

    blueskyworld- thanks! I love LA weather, but I must admit the absence of seasons. I would kill for a fall with colors!!

    Kim- I think that's the way it works, but I am no expert. I am just doing an experiment for myself to see if my day of work could count as an excerise routine! Kale is amazing and I highly suggest trying the real deal, just buy a bunch and wash it, strip the stems by hilding the ends and making a fist around the leaves and pull them right off, then cut them into 1 inchish pieces and steam or add to canned soup!

    sarah- I think the battery is always running cause the watch is always on> but I'm not sure bout that, didn't think about running the battery out!

    meghann- I love how you posted my guest blog!!! You are the best! I am happy about the calories too, but remember I had no run on that day so it may or may not even out!

    bobbi- How cool that you are becoming an RD too! Good Luck with your first class! I am starting very slow with one class this semester to ease into going to school and working! Please add me to your blog roll, I love your blog!

    Mrs. LC- I think everyone should try kale, at least once. The black cherry almond Cliff is really good, bit bites of cherry and almond, not too sweet just right!


    carolinebee- I agree, I try not to let myself get too hungry or my day is hard to recover! This weather is the weirdest! All I can say is Global Warming!

    madisonsong- the pre cut kale is the best I will be using kale alot more for sure! It saves me a dishload and sweeping the floor, somehow I always get kale bits everywhere in my kitchen when I cut a bunch!

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