BREAKFAST
Ugly Eggs with Green Tea.
I'm getting run down. All this stress and exercise is taking it's toll on my body. I'm thinking of giving the gym a miss today. This is such a difficult decision to make. Ummm, exercise addict anyone?
I'm getting run down. All this stress and exercise is taking it's toll on my body. I'm thinking of giving the gym a miss today. This is such a difficult decision to make. Ummm, exercise addict anyone?
LUNCH
Organic Cardamom Veggie Soup with an Organic Grass-Fed Beef Burger chopped and added.
A cup of Wild Sweet Orange Tea.
I also had 1/4 of a small Organic Carrot ....
.... and 1/3 of a stick of Organic Celery.
AFTERNOON SNACK
3 slices of Applegate Farms Organic Oven Roast Turkey ....
.... 1 Organic Hard Boiled Egg ....
.... 1/3 of an Organic Carrot ....
.... 1 stick of Organic Celery ....
I am obsessed with chocolate. And not just any old variety. It's gotta be the absolute finest in quality and cacao bean source.
I skipped the gym at lunchtime today and went for a walk through the West Village. I ended up at a chocolate emporium of sorts in Chelsea Market and lost myself in varietals from across the globe.
I came away with a few tasting-sized (tiny) slivers of a new brand called Askinosie. It's a sustainably-promoted brand and was developed by an ex-lawyer with a love for chocolate. He makes blocks of chocolate with their source emblazoned across the package and pictures of the farmer who picked the cacao beans. Each block comes with a bar code so you can trace the story of your bar.
I love this! I love the idea of combining chocolate, travel and sustainability. It's my own (secret) dream to start a chocolate line. I'd love to travel to Ecuador, Tanzania, Honduras and all the other places where cacao is grown. To learn the process from the ground up and to produce and market organic chocolate that focuses on health and quality. My creative side could come out in the marketing too. One day .... one day.
So anyway, (sorry, I lost track in my chocolate daydream), I bought a handful of half-bite samples and began the taste comparison process. I started a tasting chart, (fine chocolate can be compared and tasted like wine, with noticeable aromas, flavors and distinctions), and I was blown away by the results. I tasted burnt toast, leather and mushrooms in one, then jasmine, orange blossom and fresh cut grass in another. We're so bombarded with cheap and nasty mainstream chocolate in general society that we've missed the nuances of quality produce. The popular brands are so doused in sugar that the taste of the beans is completely drowned out.
After today's experience I'll never touch a bar of Hershey's again. That stuff is rotten. Incidentally, I stopped by Godiva on the way home today. I was given a free sample of their Raspberry Dark Chocolate Gem. I couldn't even taste the chocolate. It was just a candified mess of sweetness. I had a look at the ingredients in the other Godiva products and found their overpriced 'high end' goodies packed full of corn syrup, sorbitol and a bunch of other nasties. Ummm, no thanks. I also hear Godiva uses the cheapest bulk-buy cacao beans in their chocolate. It's amazing what good marketing can do as suckers flock to their store to throw away their money on junk.
Another great discovery today: when I buy quality chocolate and really focus on tasting it properly, I feel like I've eaten 4 whole family sized blocks after only swallowing a few squares. Such is the effect of an abundance of flavor distinctions.
My new hobby is chocolate tasting, (as opposed to chocolate scoffing).
I skipped the gym at lunchtime today and went for a walk through the West Village. I ended up at a chocolate emporium of sorts in Chelsea Market and lost myself in varietals from across the globe.
I came away with a few tasting-sized (tiny) slivers of a new brand called Askinosie. It's a sustainably-promoted brand and was developed by an ex-lawyer with a love for chocolate. He makes blocks of chocolate with their source emblazoned across the package and pictures of the farmer who picked the cacao beans. Each block comes with a bar code so you can trace the story of your bar.
I love this! I love the idea of combining chocolate, travel and sustainability. It's my own (secret) dream to start a chocolate line. I'd love to travel to Ecuador, Tanzania, Honduras and all the other places where cacao is grown. To learn the process from the ground up and to produce and market organic chocolate that focuses on health and quality. My creative side could come out in the marketing too. One day .... one day.
So anyway, (sorry, I lost track in my chocolate daydream), I bought a handful of half-bite samples and began the taste comparison process. I started a tasting chart, (fine chocolate can be compared and tasted like wine, with noticeable aromas, flavors and distinctions), and I was blown away by the results. I tasted burnt toast, leather and mushrooms in one, then jasmine, orange blossom and fresh cut grass in another. We're so bombarded with cheap and nasty mainstream chocolate in general society that we've missed the nuances of quality produce. The popular brands are so doused in sugar that the taste of the beans is completely drowned out.
After today's experience I'll never touch a bar of Hershey's again. That stuff is rotten. Incidentally, I stopped by Godiva on the way home today. I was given a free sample of their Raspberry Dark Chocolate Gem. I couldn't even taste the chocolate. It was just a candified mess of sweetness. I had a look at the ingredients in the other Godiva products and found their overpriced 'high end' goodies packed full of corn syrup, sorbitol and a bunch of other nasties. Ummm, no thanks. I also hear Godiva uses the cheapest bulk-buy cacao beans in their chocolate. It's amazing what good marketing can do as suckers flock to their store to throw away their money on junk.
Another great discovery today: when I buy quality chocolate and really focus on tasting it properly, I feel like I've eaten 4 whole family sized blocks after only swallowing a few squares. Such is the effect of an abundance of flavor distinctions.
My new hobby is chocolate tasting, (as opposed to chocolate scoffing).
I had 3 slices of Applegate Farms Turkey Bologna for protein before my walk home.
DINNER
3/4 cup Blue Hill Bay Dill Pickled Herrings and a bowl of Cardamom Veggies Soup.
2 slices of Chocolate Chili Fudge for dessert ....
.... and a Coconut Water Icypop.
PRE-BEDTIME SNACK
I knew I'd miss my 625 deficit today. Even though I was ahead of my game until I got home from work. But I'm despondent and finding it difficult to focus on my goal when my throat is sore and the scales are going up and down thanks to PMS bloating.
I ate a slice of China Black Rice Toast with 1/2 Tbs All Natural Peanut Butter, 1 organic Strawberry and 1 stick of String Cheese.
I ate a slice of China Black Rice Toast with 1/2 Tbs All Natural Peanut Butter, 1 organic Strawberry and 1 stick of String Cheese.
I had 1 more String Cheese Stick at midnight, right before bed.
I didn't mean to stay up so late, but Dave and I are busy packing and sorting through our new york lives before the Big Move in 2 weeks. There is so much to do.
I didn't mean to stay up so late, but Dave and I are busy packing and sorting through our new york lives before the Big Move in 2 weeks. There is so much to do.
STATS
TOTAL CALORIES: 1735
CALORIE DEFICIT: 286
EXERCISE: Brisk Walk 125 mins
CALORIE DEFICIT: 286
EXERCISE: Brisk Walk 125 mins