Yes, that’s right. The stars all aligned today and gave us a beautiful day, some free time, and a day off for Chris to put up with my freaking out gracefully show me how to use my bike. But that’s all later… I had a day to fuel up for it first!
It was my first day reporting as a full-time “reporter.” I spent it in provincial court, which is actually my favourite thing to cover. The worst part however, is that it always goes longer than expected and you can’t eat anything in the court room! No matter what I do, I’m always stuck in court with a growling tummy at some point. It sucks. I tried to be prepared regardless, starting my day with a giant bowl of oat bran.
My favourite kind of bowl.
- 1/2 cup oat bran
- 1 1/2 cups water
- 1/2 scoop vanilla whey powder
- 1/2 a banana
- pinch cinnamon
- ground flax
- unsweetened coconut
- carob chips
- almond hazelnut butter
Then I packed a giant bag of food.
It was kind of embarrassing when I had to get my bag inspected before entering the courtroom, only to reveal it was jam packed with food.
I ate the two banana muffins, plum and babybel around 11 am. I was hungry for lunch, but didn’t have time. Lunch didn’t come till 2 pm when I ate the tuna pita and gala apple. Then I ate the cashew cookie Larabar at about 5:30 before our bike ride 
I found this handsome boy waiting outside for me.
I apparently look geeky-er than usual with a helmet on…
I neeeed to get contacts so I can wear sunglasses and see at the same time.
I drove around my parking lot for a bit trying to get a handle on the bike. To be honest, it was terrifying. I got used to the thin tires and handlebars pretty quickly, but that high seat killed me! I almost crashed every time I stopped the bike. And it took me about 2 minutes to get ready to get on the bike.
Chris suggested we bike through downtown, which immediately set me in panic attack mode. There was no way I was ready to ride along rush hour traffic and get on and off the bike at lights. So instead we went up towards this “experimental farm” (I think they just experiment on potatoes, but I’ve heard stories about cows with holes in their stomachs). It was absolutely gorgeous, the sun was shining and we were surrounded by lovely green fields.
It was just a short ride to get me broken in. Here’s the stats:
Duration: 35 minutes
Calories: 202
Max HR: 163
Avg HR: 123
Chris took me on some hills (I’m sure it was on purpose, the jerk) and it was so. hard. Wow. My legs are still in rough shape from yesterday’s run. At one point I had to get off and walk my bike. It felt like I was carrying cement between my hips and knees. I hope my tri is on flat terrain!!
After the bike ride, I came home and made a very exciting dinner. I stopped by this local bulk store called the Scoop & Save. I’ve never been there before and it was fun to check out all the goodies they had. I’d say Bulk Barn is still the best for straight up bulk goods, but this store had a lot of imported stuff and foreign packaged foods. Including shirataki noodles, which I’ve been dying to try forever.
These were not the tofu kind. They’re the regular kind made with Japanese yam.
Now, I’m not entirely sure how something has zero calories. I have a feeling these are like those cooking sprays that say 0 calories for one spray, but are like 10 calories for two.
As soon as I picked these up, I knew I wanted to make some Hungry Girlfredo. I made the sauce a little different though. I microwaved two laughing cow cheese wedges with 1 tbsp fresh parmesan, 1/2 clove garlic and some pepper.
I also added some steamed broccoli, cauliflower and 1/2 cup TVP.
My thoughts on the noodles? I loved them!! I thought they tasted like a mushier, lighter version of rice noodles. Almost tasteless. I’ve heard this isn’t always the case with the tofu shirataki noodles, so I definitely suggest trying these out before you give up entirely!
My only complaint was that it left me temporarily full. Not surprising, seeing as it has no calories! They do apparently have a lot of fiber, so that’s gotta count for something. I had a fairly substantial dessert about 90 minutes later of two chocolate protein poose cookies and a bowl of strawberries. Now I’m fully satisfied
Alright, Chris has reappeared and wants to go get his dinner. He apparently doesn’t get as excited about mushy Japanese “noodles” as I do. I’ve got the next two days off, including swimming lessons in the morning. See you tomorrow!
haha your bag looks like mine when i work on the weekends! i’m glad i’m not the only one who brings an insane amount of food.
Yay for your first bike ride! I still get nervous about crossing roads, but it has gotten a little bit easier. I wish we were going to have nicer weather this week, it’s supposed to rain everyday here.
Love your biking gear! I get nervous biking on the road too, hopefully with practice it gets easier for us.
I am still adjusting to my road bike. It can be really scary to ride it at times. It’s just such a delicate position to be in….tiny tires, speed, balance, and the posibility of serious injury. I think we’re sooo brave to even try! Good luck with your rides. As you build up miles you’ll gain confidence and ability!
Yay for biking! My very favorite sport! It will get much easier with time and you will be flying along. Go easy on the distance at first, you need to condition your sit bones for biking, even with a padded seat/shorts. They will probably be sore for a while.
Those noodles look interesting. For some reason, I always thought shiratake noodles were made from mushrooms. I don’t know how that got in my head.
Congrats on your first bike ride. I totally love your stash of food. That is exactly what I would do and pack to prepare for something like that!
That’s so great you got on the bike! I bet it was scary given it is something new! Good for you!
I hate being stuck somewhere with a growling tummy and no access to food as well! I am like you and jam my bag with food- you can never be too prepared!
Your dinner looks very good!!
i am so glad i am not the only one out there who was worried about getting on a skinny tire road bike! i got a single gear fixie last year and crashed twice. but i am alive, and am going to break out the bike again once the rain lets up. you look cute next to your ride! also have you thought about prescrip sunnys? i got my boyfriend some because he cant do contacts and he loves em.
thanks for eating and posting on the shiratakis. i bought some and they are waiting in my fridge to try out.
thanks for the good luck wishes! i am doing ok. ive never heard of chia i will have to look into it.. i do however have some CHAI haha yum.
I’ve already had 3 falls in the last month from not getting unclipped in time. I love riding and I’m going to have to watch that I don’t short change the running and swimming end of things. Are you taking the swimming lessons at UNB? I’ve heard about those and may check them out.
[...] ride. Chris and I made plans to head out together. We actually haven’t been biking together since my first time out. I only wanted to do an hour, since I still feel like I’m in a bit of a “recovery week.” But [...]