What I Ate Wednesday + A Day In the Life: 01-16-2019

Welcome to a special edition of What I Ate Wednesday meets A Day In the Life! Who's excited?!

I thought it would be fun to showcase what a "typical" Sunday looks like when I'm not doing Alchemy stuff since Hummusapien is indeed a full time job, much of which happens on the weekends. I usually spend weekend mornings at our Grandview location to be on site during our busy brunch time, but this was a rare day where I didn't go into the store. I took advantage by catching up on a bunch of blog projects while it was cozy and beautifully snowy outside!

I clearly don't have a traditional schedule and I do work a lot; but I'm also really intentional about finding dedicated, device-free time to hang with Jeff, my friends, or call my family. That's what life is really about, after all. Speaking of being busy, I'll also be digging into some awesome goodies I've added to my routine in partnership with my friends at Care/of!

8:00am:

We woke up to the sound of the birdies and lots of fresh snow and headed downstairs to make coffee. We usually eat my shakshuka, make pancakes, or go out to brunch on weekends at Fox in the Snow or Northstar but we were both majorly craving shakshuka this morning. While Jeff brewed the coffee and started chopping the potatoes (he's the designated potato man), I got to cooking one of the best brunches in all the land. I've been really into grapefruit lately, too.

Now let's talk vitamins! Care/of is a personalized online supplement company that delivers daily vitamin packs with honestly sourced ingredients right to your door each month. First you take an online quiz assessing your goals, lifestyle, and values. Then their team of doctors and scientists provides suggestions and research backing those claims. I've been using Care/of on and off for a while now, but I decided to hop back on in January because the stores get busier, I'm traveling and eating out more, and my life overall gets a bit chaotic. Not every day is bursting with fruits and veggies and there's times where I have gaps to fill. My goal is to make sure I'm getting the nutrients I need and not a bunch of stuff I don't. I also want to take intentional measures to boost my mental health. I actually scheduled my first ever therapy appointment this week!

9:30am:

Once we finished eating, I worked on some Instagram content for my Hummusapien account and also posted a giveaway and stories for Alchemy announcing the egg sandwiches that start today at our South Side store. I like to respond to instagram comments in blocks, so I took about 10 minutes to respond to a bunch from recent posts.

As a registered dietitian, I strongly believe that food comes first when it come to getting the nutrients you need. But life gets crazy and even us RDs need backup at times. Since supplements, unlike food, are not regulated for safety, effectiveness, or quality, I'm always careful to choose companies that prioritize transparency with ingredient sourcing and provide evidence-based research. Indicators of quality are the Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP) and National Science Foundation (NSF) certifications, and Care/of has both!

Now if you're taking a laundry list of medications (which may interact with supplements) or feel you have a deficiency, please consult a doctor or registered dietitian for a more detailed dive into what supplements you should be taking and why.

10:30am:

An hour or so later, we threw on our gym clothes for a little sweat sesh. If it's Saturday, I'll try to make it to Grit Plyo class which is super challenging and only 30 minutes. I decided on a treadmill run and some much-needed stretching this time around.

Since I've been feeling stressed, eat mostly vegetarian, and sometimes have some tummy distress (thank you, stress!), I wasn't surprised to see Care/of recommend ashwaghanda, calcium plus (contains vitamin D, which mostly everyone, especially in non-sunny states, is deficient in), digestive enzymes and the gut check stick. Hooray for probiotics!

11:30am:

After the gym I showered and got to work on making rice krispie treats for an upcoming blog post for a client, blueberry banana muffins (my banana bread recipe as muffins with bloobs instead of chocolate chips) to have for snacks throughout the week, chickpea salad for lunches, and a pot of lentil soup. I like to bust out a bunch of cooking at once so we have food ready to go in the fridge throughout the week.

1:00pm:

I enjoyed chickpea salad on toasty sourdough with avocado and lettuce plus salt and vinegar chips for lunch. It was SO satisfying and exactly what I was craving! I spent the next couple hours photographing and editing both the rice krispie treats and the banana muffins.

Now let's chat about my hopes for 2019 and how the recommendations based on the online quiz results addressed those goals:

Prioritizing mental health: Vitamin D can help improve overall brain health, mood, and well being. We also know that gut bacteria impacts not only immunity, but also anxiety and stress. Ever heard of the brain-gut axis? Yep, the brain and gut talk to each other, which explains why anxiety and depression can trigger abdominal discomfort. Let's do this, gut check stick!
Sleeping more: I'm setting hard boundaries for bedtime this year and not setting my alarm too early. Lately we've been going upstairs around 10pm and waking up at 7am. Getting at least seven hours of sleep is just as important if not more than eating well and staying active. Since many people are deficient in magnesium and that impacts sleep and energy, it's a good one to add to help combat restlessness (especially if you don't eat lots of leafy greens, beans, and nuts or drink a lot of alcohol). Care/of also has a product called Dream Team, a quick stick option made with melatonin, a hormone the brain makes naturally, for sleep support.
Reducing stress: I put screen time limits on my phone and am trying to be more intentional about not constantly checking my inbox and social media. I plan on using less technology by deleting the apps from my phone once a week. Ashwagandha and rhodiola, adaptogenic herbs used in Traditional Chinese Medicine, may help the body better adapt to stress so I'm excited to incorporate those into my routine.

3:00pm:

I took a little work break to chow down on a muffin and do a load of much-needed laundry.

After hanging up my clothes, I got back to writing. First I created an invoice I forgot to do for an Alchemy catering gig and then I spent another couple hours editing photos and drafting the content Monday's Best Balsamic Vinaigrette Recipe and this post. I write a lot of my blog content on the weekends when I have big blocks of time or early in the morning during the week before doing Alchemy stuff.

5:30pm

Jeff and I lounged on the couch watching Conan O'Brien for a while before ordering Harvest pizza for dinner. The Spicy Yuma is our favorite! I topped mine with leftover bean balls and Jeff had sausage. We made a salad to have on the side and I had a glass of red wine.

7:30pm:

For dessert we chowed down on my chocolate covered cherry rice krispie treats. You're gonna love these! They're inspired by my Peppermint Chocolate ones. Then we cozied up and watched Rain Main before heading up to bed.

10:30pm

Bedtime! We usually go bed around 11pm or 11:30pm on weekends after multiple episodes of Madam Secretary, but we were both really tired. Now it's time for a discount code!