What I Ate, Day 5

Breakfast

2 cups coffee

4 oz. fat free strawberry yogurt

½ sliced banana

1 cup Coach’s Oats, cooked

1 tbsp. peanut butter

1 tbsp. protein powder

½ cup vanilla almond milk

Carbohydrates:  101g     Protein:                  45.5g   Fat:  17.5g

Snack

4 oz. carrots

1 serving multigrain crackers

1 stick string cheese

Carbohydrates:  23.5g   Protein:                  8g         Fat:  12g

Lunch

Peanut butter and jelly on whole wheat bread

(1 tbsp peanut butter, 1 tbsp jelly, 2 slices bread)

2 oz. carrots

1 cup sugar snap peas

Fat free Greek-style honey flavored yogurt

Carbohydrates:  80.5g   Protein:                  27.5g  Fat:  12g

Snack

Blueberry protein shake

¼ cup cottage cheese

Carbohydrates:  9g         Protein:                  17.5g  Fat:  6g

Snack

1 cup steamed broccoli w/ red wine vinegar

Carbohydrates:  14g       Protein:                  3g         Fat:  0g

Dinner

1 cup farfalle pasta w/ ¼ cup Vodka sauce

6 meatless meatballs

1 cup steamed broccoli

Carbohydrates:  59g       Protein:                27.5g    Fat:  10g

Dessert

Hot chocolate with marshmallows

Carbohydrates:  38g       Protein:  2g

How Did I Do? 

Ballpark:               Carbohydrates: 263g       Protein:                175g      Fat:  39g

Actual:                  Carbohydrates: 301g       Protein:                131g      Fat:  57.5g

What I did:  I ate well today.  I packed a lot of healthy food for an extended day at the park, and since today was a rest day, I gave my body a much needed rest after four active workout days.  Overall, I think my diet was fairly well balanced.  Extrapolating my total caloric intake from these grams ({total carbohydrates x 4 cal/gram} + {total protein x 4 cal/gram} + {total fat x 9 cal/gram} = total calories), we can see that my total caloric intake was 2245.5 calories, a mere 145.5 calories over my ballpark.  Not bad!   

Tips!  Have you noticed that I haven’t eaten one salad?  Just about every diet I’ve investigated has at least one meal that includes mixed greens and grilled chicken or fish.  I’m not saying that a grilled chicken salad is not a great meal, but a healthy diet does not necessarily include that.  Personally, I am not satisfied with a salad as a meal.  My diet is mine.  Your diet is yours.  Make it yours and make it work.  If you can’t live without dark chocolate at 4 pm, you shouldn’t have to, nor should you feel guilty about it.  Your diet needs to sustain you physically and emotionally, and guilt is a horrible dinner date.  There is no one magic bullet that will make your diet great, nor is there one single item that will lead to a poor diet.  Your diet is a combination of small choices that hopefully add up to a healthy whole. That healthy whole provides you with the nutrients you need to not only survive, but thrive.  

Please ask questions when have them in comments, or email me (natskedat at gmail dot com).

Have a great day, and eat well!