Like many people, I gained back a few pounds over the holiday season. Considering that it included Thanksgiving, a trip to Montelucia, and a trip home for Christmas… I wasn’t at all surprised to see big numbers on the scale when I weighed in last week.
As I always say:
Losing Weight is Not About Making Perfect Choices Every Day. It’s About How You Recover.
That being said, I had an amazing recovery this week! And, as a result, I’m down -4.2 lbs! Can you believe it?? I still have a few more pounds to lose to get back to where I was in November, but I’m on track and heading in the right direction! Woo hoo!
After my quick weigh-in, I headed to Fort Collins for a hair appointment! I’m wearing my hair a little darker these days, so that means that my touch ups are less frequent.
I have the most amazing hair stylist and it’s always fun to catch up with her while she does my hair. And, she had my favorite magazines on hand to read!
She always has great celebrity magazines, but it’s that time of year where all the magazines are featuring weight loss stories. I looooooove reading these (as I’m sure many of you do as well.) I didn’t get into the Kardashian issue as much as the People magazine… I highly recommend you pick it up! Inspiring stories!
After my appointment, I had plans to meet my friend Robin for lunch at a nearby shopping center. We went to PF Chang’s which is one of my favorite spots, with SO many healthy options!
Robin and I started off our meal with a full order of Shanghai Cucumbers as an appetizer. It’s featured on the menu as a side dish, but it’s an awesome appetizer and I highly recommend it! They toss the cucumbers in soy sauce and I suspect a little sesame oil. The cukes are sprinkled with some sesame seeds. Perfection!
For lunch, I ordered veggie sides. They have a HUGE list of veggie sides that I LOVE, but I was even more excited to see their list had a lot of new items on it.
All that being said, I ordered THREE small sides. I knew fully that I wasn’t going to be eating all of it, but I figured it would be fun to have a bunch of different flavors to enjoy!
What did I order? They have a new GF Asian Tomato-Cucumber Salad. I HAD to order that, and I cleaned that plate! I also ordered the Lemon Scented Brussels Sprouts. Seriously? How do you make things lemon “scented”? Just a weird concept for me, but DELISH!
Lastly, I ordered an all-time favorite that I’ve been eating for years… Spinach Stir-Fried with Garlic. Knowing they saute the spinach in oil, I requested light oil so that my veggies weren’t drenched in calories. REALLY delicious!
PF Changs posts all of their nutritional information online, which makes it so easy to calculate what you are eating. That being said, here’s the rundown of my lunch. I brought home more than half of the brussels sprouts and spinach, but had I eaten it all this is what it would have cost me for a fantastic filling meal:
Large Shanghai Cucumbers: 130 calories
Small Lemon Scented Brussels Sprouts: 230 calories
Small Spinach Stir-Fried with Garlic: 120 Calories
Small Asian Tomato-Cucumber Salad: 60 calories
On Sunday, I met my friend Kristin for coffee and followed that visit up with a manicure, pedicure, and a trip to Target. As I was leaving Target, I spotted this sign as my stomach started grumbling.
I decided to try it, and it was AWESOME! Truth be told, it’s small and about the size of a taco. So, don’t expect it to be huge, you’ll be disappointed.
What it’s not small on is FLAVOR! This was absolutely delish… and I’ll be having it again. They also have a marinara chicken flatbread. Thinking I’ll try it too! Check out the stats below for the Spinach and Artichoke one. Seriously reasonable!
There are always good choices and horrible choices when you’re out and about. It’s really about making sure you’re choosing the things that are on the healthy side. Being the 1st of the year, there are always lots of healthy new options to try.
Have you tried any new healthy items this new year while dining out that you’d recommend?