What I Eat in a Day
Every morning starts off different for me. I always talk about trying to wake myself up sooner, but my body will not let me be an early riser no matter how hard I try. After I wake up I usually stare at my phone for some time (guilty I know) before I pry myself out of bed. I light some palo santo to cleanse the air around me; I find that this calms me every morning and helps relax me if I had any disturbing dreams the night before. Fun fact about me: I used to have really bad night terrors as a kid, I would wake up with bloody noses after them. I could do a whole post about these dreams if any of you are curious to see what the inside of my brain looked like as a child. From then I walk myself to the bathroom, where I wash my face and brush my teeth. My OCD kicks in hard when it comes to skincare, I have to wash my face every morning when I wake up or else I’ll start my day on an anxious note. After that I put my contacts in (incase you didn’t know I am blind as a bat, seriously my vision is terrible) and from then I wonder downstairs into my kitchen.
Before I get my meal started, I always make sure I drink a lot of water first thing every morning. I fill up by 32 oz Hydroflask (Linked for y’all in case any of you haven’t conformed yet, seriously though best thing to have come into my life) with ice, lots of water, and half of a lemon juiced. I drink lemon water every morning to add more vitamin C into my diet as well as helping detox toxins out of your body. Plus it tastes damn good, like a personal lemonade without all the added sugar. Some days I opt out of this and go with ACV or I’ll do both. I just go with however I’m feeling in the moment. This is usually when I’ll typically have my matcha/cacao. I know what you’re already thinking, I drink A LOT in the morning. BUT, in my defence, I don’t drink coffee anymore so I find other sources to help brighten me up every morning.
Once my drinks are all done being prepared, it’s now time for breakfast! Typically I start making my breakfast around 9-9:30, but it really just depends on when I get myself up and out of bed. Lately it seems like I’ve been sticking to the sweet side of breakfasts. Since taking myself off birth control, my hormones have been all sorts of whack and my sweet tooth has been through the roof. This morning I whipped up some good ol’ oats on the stove. Oatmeal and I have really come a long way as friends. In the beginning we just really didn’t seem to get along, she would do this when I would tell her to do that. You know, we just weren’t on the same wavelength. Recently we have reconnected and started vibrating on the same level, really bettering our relationship. Today were best of friends and enjoy each others company at least once or twice a week.
Okay can we just take a second, pause and realize that I just wrote a relationship struggle between me and oatmeal as if oatmeal was an animate object...I’m leaving it in here.
Anyways, this morning I whipped up a bowl of creamy oats! Like I poetically said above, oatmeal and I just couldn’t get it together for the longest time. It wasn’t until about two months ago where I finally found a way to prepare it properly. I don’t know what happened, something just seemed to click inside my brain. Typically I go for a nice golden oats, seasoned with cinnamon, turmeric, ginger, and a little bit of black pepper (helps the turmeric get absorbed faster), but today I went with a new flavor: banana bread. This has to be my all time favorite flavor of oats, the banana adds a natural sweetness and richness, making it perfect for your morning. I love having meals like this to start my day off because it seems to keep me the fullest longest, that way I’m not getting mid-morning cravings before lunch.
Banana Bread Oatmeal:
Ingredients:
¾ cup almond milk
½ cup water
1 tbsp chia seeds
½ mashed banana
1 tsp cinnamon
Directions:
Bring water and almond milk to boil on stove top
Once a rolling boil has formed, reduce heat down to low and add in all ingredients
Keep stirring until everything is evenly combined
Cook for about 3-4 minutes or until everything is thick and creamy
Pour out into bowl and top with your favorite toppings. I choose: sauteed cinnamon bananas, (which I warmed in a pan with cinnamon and a little water) frozen raspberries, hemp seeds, blueberries, almond butter, and pumpkin seeds
Around noon is typically when I start to get hungry, not starving but my stomach does groan at me a little. I usually start making my lunch around 2 but I always make myself a little snack before then. I’m a snacker, I usually have small little bites throughout my day to keep my hangry side at bay. Usually I go for something super fast, like avocado toast, or a fancy rice cake, or a small bowl of granola. Below is an example of a boujee rice cake.
Ingredients:
½ mashed avocado
Edamame
Nutritional yeast
Micro arugula
EBTB (everything but the bagel seasoning AKA heaven on earth)
Another fancy rice cake I enjoy is taking it to the sweet side. I smear almond butter all over a cinnamon toast rice cake top it with blueberries and hemp seeds. Such a winning combo in my eyes and will satisfy that sweet tooth. For another sweet treat, I like granola and frozen fruit bowls. I combine my favorite granola, either Ancient Grains by Nature’s Path Organic or Purely Elizabeth, with frozen mixed berries, add in some almond milk and you have one satisfying snack.
A couple hours go by and now I’m ready for lunch. After my snack today, I drove around town hitting up every store imaginable, never put off errands my friends. My lunches always vary depending on what I have in my house, some days I get fancy and other days I keep it simple. Today I went with an easy to make loaded veggie bowl, these have been my go to ever since embarking on this vegan journey. I used to meal prep veggies at the beginning of the week, but after time they would get all weird sitting in their meal prep containers so I stopped. I actually turned away from roasted veggies for months because I couldn’t stand to eat them anymore. Lately I’ve been adding them back into my diet and I’ve slowly but surely started to regain my love for them.
One thing I always make sure to have in my house at all times is veggies, and lots of them. I mean I am vegan, I only live off plants! I keep them all raw and uncut until I need to use them, that way every meal has a fresh prepared veggie inside. I usually keep the base simple: either spinach, kale, or mixed greens, somedays a mix if I’m feeling it. I dress my greens with a little bit of Chosen Foods avocado oil, lemon juice, himalayan salt, and pepper. Trust me, it took some time to get used to the simplicity of this dressing. At first I couldn’t stand it, I used to be a sauce kind of gal, everything had to have a sauce on it for me to be able to eat it. Slowly I transitioned out of that phase and started to be accustomed to how simple and clean this way was. After the base is built, I add in my plant based proteins, healthy fats, and usually a seed of some sort.
Details: spinach and kale tossed in avocado oil, lemon juice, himalayan salt, and pepper + roasted asparagus + purple cabbage + cucumber + spicy sesame baked tofu + roasted mushrooms + roasted yellow and red bell pepper + avocado topped with red pepper flakes and black sesame seeds
For the spicy sesame baked tofu, I take organic sprouted tofu and cut it into cubes. Toss it in a little toasted sesame oil, coconut aminos, (A way healthier option than soy sauce) and sriracha then bake for 20-25 minutes at 375 F flipping halfway through. If you’re not a tofu lover, you need to try baked tofu. It is the biggest game changer in the tofu cooking game in my opinion.. All the veggies I coated in avocado oil and roasted them alongside the tofu, same time and temperature to keep things easy.
By the time I’m done with lunch, it’s usually anywhere from 3:30-4 pm depending on how quickly I can get the meal prepared. My eating schedule is weird, I know, but this is what works best for me in this present moment in my life. Eventually it will change once I can get myself up and going in the mornings. Today my meal kept be pretty full, but no lies here, I did get some snacks at the store I munched on a little after lunch.
I’m not a perfect eater and I don’t strive to be one. There was a point in my life where I was limiting myself and letting myself go hungry because what I wanted didn’t fit into my macros. But you know what happened? I was unhappy, I became depressed and developed a toxic relationship with food. I’m still not perfect, I still think really negative thoughts about myself if i indulge on a little too much, but I have come a long way. I let myself eat what I want when I want it, and in return I’m a lot happier because of it. I always want to feel like I’m able to eat freely, being able to eat what I want and still live a healthy lifestyle. Being healthy doesn't just involve what goes inside your body or what you do to sweat each day, it’s about how you think of yourself. A strong confident mind will exude a healthy body, and you will radiate your power to the world. So let yourself snack on some Hippeas like I did, or maybe a new flavor of Jo Jo’s from Trader Joe’s! Life is too short to limit ourselves. Everything is about balance, don’t restrict yourself.
So after indulging in some Hippeas, I was satisfied until dinner. I took my dog for nice sunset hike, so I worked up the hunger I needed. I usually don’t eat dinner until 8-8:30, sometimes 9 every night. I don’t really believe in that “don’t eat after 7” rule. Frankly, I think it’s stupid that someone said you have to eat your last meal before a certain time or else you will blow up like a balloon the next day. False, that will not happen, you can eat whenever the hell you want and whatever time you please and still wake up the next day feeling fabulous.
My dinners are always different, sometimes I eat a feast and sometimes I keep it simple. I usually make extra veggies for leftovers that I’ll use for dinner to make preparation simple. I’ll throw them in a bowl with some rice or pasta, or I’ll make a quick little quesadilla. Today I went with pasta because I’ve been dying to try to red lentil and brown rice spaghetti I bought from Trader Joe’s weeks ago.
Details: Trader Joe’s red lentil and brown rice spaghetti + kelp noodles (super high in iodine which we lack as females!) + sauteed zucchini + roasted mushrooms, asparagus, and peppers + baked tofu all sauteed in avocado oil, sesame oil, coconut aminos, and lemon juice + then topped with avocado, EBTB, sriracha, and micro arugula
I finish off each night with some hot green tea before bed. Sometimes if I want some dessert I’ll have some frozen berries, maybe I’ll make myself some nice cream, or even a some granola bowl.
And with that my friends concludes my lengthy what I eat in a day. If you’re wondering what I drink throughout my day, I only consume water or I’ll have some kombucha. I refill my Hydroflask at least 3-4 times a day. Water is so crucial and essential for our bodies and has so many health benefits. It’s such an overlooked thing in out society, it should really never be something that is forgot about. We’re so fortunate in America to have easy water access at our fingertips, so please don’t take it for granted. Drink it up!
I live a very balanced lifestyle of consuming rich nutrient dense veggies but also letting myself indulge in some of my favorite snacks. Balance brings happiness to life, once we start to restrict is when unhappiness floods our lives. As always, love every meal you are able to make, appreciate each bite you take and be grateful that you can do so.
Sending you love and light on this beautiful day or night where your beautiful soul may be.
Xx,
Nicolette
#vegan #balance #whatieatinaday #healthylifestyle