Do you, or Don't you....
 

carry food with you? What do you carry? I just read about someone that carries a measuring spoon in her purse, which I thought was a great idea!!

Tell me pls what you have in your bags and purses (or cars). Im struggling with my weight again, and being caught without food is something that will mess my whole day.

I have food with me EVERYWHERE.

Car (always):
emergency protein shake in glove compartment, emergency Nabisco 100-calorie pack of crackers in center console, 6-pack of bottled water.

Bag (always):
1 or 2 emergency protein shakes, fork & spoon, ziploc bag of multi-grain crisp bread, bottle of water.

Lunchbox (everyday = most of the following):
1 - 2 cans of Diet Sprite Zero, tuna salad, small tub low fat cottage cheese, 1 - 2 low fat string cheese sticks, apple, banana, clementine (when in season), 1 - 2 protein shakes, Instone High Protein pudding, small bag of almonds/walnuts/cashews, small tub no-sugar tapioca pudding, small bag baby carrots and/or other veggie, and Nabisco 100-calorie pack.

Gym Bag (always): protein shake, extra bottle of water, small bag of almonds/walnuts/cashews.

BTW, I don't necessarily eat EVERYTHING that's in my lunchbox during the day, but I like to be prepared :D (for what? a nuclear attack? LOL). I also eat about 4 snacks a day and practically live in my car some days -- going from school to work to the gym, etc.

I normally have my lunch bag with me with Breakfast, Lunch + a snack in it, even when I'm just going to my SIL's to visit. But I also have an emergency supply in my desk drawer at work of 2 small cans of veggies (string beans, etc.) a couple of packets of protein powder and one of those little ready made lunch packets by Bumblebee Tuna (Light), the ones with the Tuna Salad and Crackers together (for the days that I walk out and leave my lunch bag on the counter).

Me too - I often carry food with me, depending on the day's schedule. Getting too hungry will totally screw my eating plan too, so I take a minute every morning and think about what I'll eat, where, and when. Sometimes I'll plan the day in Fitday, print it out, write the meal times in next to the meals, and stick the whole thing on my frig door. I realize that it may seem :crazy: to normal people but it's a necessity for me to plan, plan, plan.

In the trunk of my car are a case of bottled water and 20 pack of protein powder packets, so that's my emergency stash. I can get the juice bar at my gym to mix up my own protein shakes (theirs are loaded with sugar) with their water, ice and blender, so that's an easy meal while I'm at work -- though I may gag if I drink another protein shake (major burnout :p ). I have an insulated lunch bag with one of those freezer inserts and frequently take cottage cheese concoctions to work. Another easy portable meal is chicken breast and a cut-up apple. And I make my own protein bars, which are the ultimate in portable.

My gym is right across the street from a huge grocery store with sushi and salad bars, so that's another emergency option if I'm at work, but not the best choice. I'd much rather fix the food myself so that I know the quantity and what's in it.

Meg, I'm intrigued...would you mind sharing your recipe? :)

I'd love to, but then I have to share Mel's also -- no, not because we're really the same person :lol: but because hers are really good too.

Meg's Protein Bars

2 cups protein powder of your choice (I’ve used chocolate Nitrotech, chocolate and vanilla MetRX, and chocolate Grow!)
1 cup uncooked oatmeal
1/2 cup nonfat dried milk
1/4 cup natural peanut butter, either smooth or chunky
Optional (see note below): nuts, dried fruit, chocolate chips, extra peanut butter

I use my Kitchenaid stand mixer with the dough hook to mix this, but you could mix and knead with your hands also.

Blend the three dry ingredients together. Blend in the peanut butter. Here’s the tricky part — add enough water to make a sticky mixture. The amount of the water depends of the brand of protein powder. For the ones I have tried (above), it’s between 3/4 and 1 cup of water. You don’t want it dry and crumbly, but not too wet and runny either. The consistency should be quite sticky. If you are not using a mixer, you’ll need to squeeze and knead this with your hands until it is blended.

Spray a 8x8 or 9x9 pan with PAM. Press the mixture into the pan evenly. I spray my hands with PAM also before I do this so it doesn’t stick. Refrigerate for a few hours and then cut into individual bars, wrap in plastic, and refrigerate.

I cut mine into six bars, but you could do eight if you wished. The nutritional info is based on six bars per pan, so you’d need to recalculate if you do eight.

Note: — if you are not too concerned about calories, you can add in extra peanut butter, dried fruit (raisins, dried cherries etc.), nuts, and/or chocolate chips. If you want to use any of these, just add them to the nutritional info and recalculate.

Nutritional Information (six bars per pan)

250 calories
26g protein
18g carbs
8g fat

Mel’s Pumpkin Protein Bars
8 egg whites
1/2 C low fat cottage cheese
2 C oats
1 C canned pumpkin
4 scoops vanilla protein powder
1/2 C water
1/2 C Splenda
1 tsp vanilla
2 tsp pumpkin pie spice (cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg, mace, ginger…)
1 tsp baking soda


Mix together in blender and pour in 9 x 12 pan, sprayed with Pam. Bake at 350 for 20 minutes. Cut into 6 bars for a complete 240 calorie meal.

If you want these crunchy, then take the bars and cut in half then slice down the middle. Spray cookie sheet with cooking spray and place cut side down. Re-bake at 375 for so minutes until brown and crunchy.


Mel's Chocolate Flavored Protein Bars

Use same recipe as above, but substitute 2 tbs. Dry cocoa powder instead of pumpkin pie spices. Use chocolate protein powder.

Note: Both these recipes are very hard to blend completely in my blender. I have used the blender to mix the egg whites, cottage cheese, and oatmeal, then transfer it to a stand mixer to complete the recipe. Otherwise, plan on spending a lot of time turning the blender on and off and using a rubber spatula to mix the top layer into the bottom where the blender blades can mix it.

Lately I have been relying on our cafe at work for veggies and dip (I have very limited time at home to prepare my own). Also, I carry cup-a-soups (not the creamy kind), flavoured tea (my warm comfort foods) and either a small banana or clemintine orange. These are choices I enjoy, without being too bad for me and satisfy my sweet tooth when I crave sweets. Also, I can "drink" at my desk, but not eat, so the soup fills the gap for me.

Thanks, Meg! (And Mel!) :) I'm excited to try them -- I've been in a bit of a protein shake rut myself lately. Still drinking them, but getting a bit sick of it. It'll be nice to try something new.

Thanks again! :)

Some great ideas!! I never thought about keeping protein powder and bottled water in the truck!

Thankyou for the recipes Meg! They look great....how long will they keep unrefridgerated?

I keep lowfat granola bars or 100 cal packs in my van..but when I goto work, I take my lunch and always bring an extra snack (banana, 100 cal pack snack, 1/4 cup nuts) something *just in case*. If I am going somewhere and wont be home (say shopping for the day) I take a granola bar (low fat/150 cals approx) with me that way after lunch and before dinner I have my snack. It fits in my purse and it is pretty quick to eat without looking like a pig for eating. I also do not eat even half of what I order in the restaurant if I stop to have lunch...sometimes I also bring lunch with..just depends on what is happening for the day, if it is just me, I bring lunch, but if I am meeting people for lunch then I order small and NEVER finish even 1/2. I also DO NOT bring the other half home (eliminates the urge to snack on it during my drive home) Since I HATE leftovers this helps me alot..

meg & kate - what type of protein powder mix do you guys use? I have been trying to find one that doesn't taste like chalk. Thanks! :)

I can't keep water in the car from about October through April, but I usually bring a bottle with me. Heck, I can't leave my gym stuff in the car while I'm at work. If I do I've got dead batteries in my MP3 and worse, frozen soles on my workout shoes!! :lol: I keep low cal bars in my file cabinet, along with single serving applesauce and fruit. None of these tempt me enough to eat them all. I try to bring my lunch, and snacks, most days. Lunch varies - often leftovers - but snacks are usually fruit, hard-boiled eggs, lf/ff yogurt, or any combination. I can go to the grocery store and hit the salad bar if I don't have anything with me. It's a very small town, and there's nothing resembling a decent restaurant, never mind one that might serve something healthy!

I always have water with me. i mean i never forget it.

i always have a banana and an apple in my car. I always plan ahead for meals that i will be eating away from home. this usually included a sandwich, pb or chicken. a cup of carrots, a cup of sugar snap peas, and a fruit, bananas, grapes, apple or clementines.

I always have hot tea in my purse. the other day i was out shopping and my purse was so heavy and i opened it up and i had 2 frickin apples in it. sometimes i forget and over pack. HA! better safe than sorry.

I'm a commuter who's out of the house at least 12 hours a day, so I always take a ton of food with me. I eat breakfasts 1 and 2, lunch and at least one other snack away from the house on weekdays. It all has to be stuff that can fit in my backpack because one leg of my trip is on bike so I'm big on kashi bars and fruit that doesn't bruise easily. ;)

My mom is the queen of car food. I think she could feed a family of 8 for the weekend on the food in her car. We're hardly ever in ours, so the most I ever have in there is water.

Well, it's not in my purse or car, but....
 

I keep my desk well stocked.

Let's see, what's in there now....

-set of measuring spoons
-set of measuring cups
-snack size applesauce
-snack size pudding
-oatmeal
-apples
-peanuts (That's what the measuring cups are for)
-raisins (ditto)

I work in a large office with a fridge, so I stock up on food for the week every Monday on the way in. That way, lunches and snacks are all planned out and there's little room to fall off track. I'm also online all day, so I track everything in fitday as I eat it.

I don't allow eating in my car, but I do keep a bottle or two of water on hand. And I have found forgotten apples in my purse, like Laura! :dizzy:

-Amy

I ALWAYS carry! You never know what kind of situation you may be stuck in. In my purse you can almost always find a chocolate mint Zone bar (cut into halves for about 100 cal. snacks each), crunchy granola bars, reduced sugar granola bar (for DD), 100 cal. snack pack (for DD), and sometimes a piece or two of beef jerky. Plus, I never go anywhere without my water. Being prepared is so important for me, and carrying healthy snacks with me is just one more way to ensure my continued success.

Beverly

Beverly you have done amazing!! I love the beef jerkey idea, I dont have to worry about it freezing, its not heavy and I can leave it in the glove box of the truck and not worry about it!

I dont carry a purse so this will have to be adjusted...a tote in the truck maybe? I work at home, but I get caught out enough that I sabotage myself when I get home.

You ladies have some awesome ideas...and I love the measuring cups and spoon ideas!

Thanks so much for your imput! Just awesome!

You know - I DON'T carry food with me. I think I have an old protein bar in the bottom of my purse, but since I don't care for them much, it will probably lie there in state until it expires! :rofl:

When I fly, I carry a bottle of water with me, because depending on the airline they can be really chinzy about how much H2O they divvy out. I'm a semi-white-knuckler (I LOATHE turbulance with a passion...just went thru it this past Saturday from SFO to JFK) which isn't exactly something that makes one hungry! We ate breakfast before going to the airport and I just drank a ton of water while I was on the plane...I get so PARCHED in flight.

Generally, I'm either at work, at the stables, at the gym or at home, and I know what my food sources are in those places. Right now I'm in NYC and it's been pretty easy to find 'healthy choices' (there IS the deadly Snack Credenza just outside my office but along with the crap they also put out some beautiful whole fruit...) although Jim and I have been indulging in some New York specialties while here...it IS partly a vacation and we HAVE been doing tons of walking and sightseeing!!!

Gee, Y'THINK???

Holy macaroni, Meg!!! IT'S ALL OVER ME!!!!! Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!! :yikes:

RFLMAO cuz I SHOULD NOT be allowed in the kitchen alone!! It's on me...it's on the toaster...it's on the cat...:dizzy:

:rofl:

...now it's on the keyboard... :lol3:

I use EAS MyoPro (chocolate). They also make it in handy little ready-made containers. Meg (or Mel?) hates it, so you may not like it either -- but I love it.

OMG, Kate, I'm laughing until I'm crying! :lol3:

I use the dough hook on my Kitchen-Aid mixer to mix the mess up. Then I spray my hands with PAM (as well as the pan) and pat it in and it's relatively neat. I sure hope you got everything cleaned up -- this reminds me of the Cat in the Hat Comes Back and the Pink Stuff. :rofl:

You might want to try Mel's recipe instead -- it's much more refined and ladylike (just like Mel).

Meg, I sprayed EVERYTHING with Pam!! There was Pam on the WINDOW, for Pete's sake (which the cat enjoyed licking off, by the way). And I'm sure the recipe wasn't actually s'posed to include an entire BOTTLE of Pam.

This is seriously all about me and my (in)ability to function in the kitchen. I failed an English presentation in 7th grade because I *tried* to make chocolate chip cookies. Utter mayhem. And my skills haven't improved much/at all since.

The recipe is fantastic and everything is totally under control now. The problem started when I chose to use my regular old electric mixer after adding the water. Everything kinda spiralled hellward from there.

Yeah, and/or The Cat in the Hat and the bathtub ring that wouldn't stop following him (or is that the same thing?) -- because that is EXACTLY what I was thinking...it went something like this:

1. Blob on fork
2. Kate shakes fork
3. Blob on measuring cup
4. Kate shakes measuring cup
5. Blob on t-shirt
6. Kate shakes t-shirt
7. Blob on counter
8. Kate scoops up blob with fork
9. Blob on fork
10. Repeat entire process as needed

:D

:rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl:

I'll contribute something more useful later!

I carry all my food everywhere.

Mel

I will carry water with me all the time... When I work I usually take cottage cheese and strawberries with Splenda for my snack in the morning and in the afternoono... I come home for lunch, usually, but if I don't I take leftovers...

Kate,

I love your posts, This is sooo funny!!!

I hope all is well now,
rabbit

Are you cleaned up yet, Kate?
BTW, how is your shoulder?

I carry food everywhere. I think those gladware containers were invented for me. Salads with chicken, brocolli and chicken, salmon and salad, apple and cottage cheese, turkey chili and salad...my latest food mania is rice pudding made with brown rice and splenda, mixed with cottage cheese. I make oatmeal pancakes by the batch and carry them occaisionally. My regular 4 pm meal is one of my protein muffins (banana walnut, pumpkin chocolate or carrot...the recipe is everywhere on this forum...and my latest, a tofu brownie). My gym bag contains several cans of tuna and a can opener (I figure I can find a carb anywhere) and usually an apple. I keep a case of water in the back of my car, too.

Mel

Hi Mel :)

All cleaned up now!! And BOY are Meg's protein bars YUMMY!! Well worth the mess. Probably ;) . I'm going to try your recipe next!

Question for Meg: Once you refridgerate the bars, should they end up solid or kinda pliable? Mine are very bendy, but again I may have screwed up somewhere.

My shoulder is much better, Mel, thanks! I've been experimenting with those exercises you guys recommended this week :) .

Mel,
Tofu brownies? How do they taste? The only tofu I've ever tried was a "tofu-dog" and it was terrible. Though if it requires as much work as the protein bars...I might pass (I don't have a cat to lick up the mess lol)

I made Mel's Pumpking bars last night and forgot to put the oatmeal in, they were nasty, but smelled really good! How do you get it NOT to freakin' stick. I put olive oil and spread it all around the pan... I don't use Pam because I find there's a taste I don't like in it... When I do this to other things I make there is never a problem... Any suggestions?

I haven't made those bars in ages...I can't believe you forgot the oatmeal! I make muffins instead. I don't remember ever having them stick. I use a non-stick baking pan and spray it with Pam. For the muffins I just use non-stick muffin tins- the oversized ones- and don't even bother with the Pam.

Mel

Just wanted to pop in to say that I made Mel's pumpkin bars yesterday and they're SO yummy. I cut them into 12 servings and will use them as snacks. Thanks, Mel!

Haven't been posting, but I still read here every day. Still working on summer weight gain but making good progress. The information and advice here is so helpful - thanks and my best to everyone! :)

Hi Karyn Lee! :wave: Great to see you again!

I spent the past two days -- from 7 am - 5 pm -- attending a fantastic personal training workshop in a downtown hotel ... and just had to laugh to myself about this thread while I was there. You see, it was a roomful of personal trainers and everyone came loaded down with coolers and insulated lunch bags full of food and everyone was eating every two hours! It was a roomful of people who eat just like I do. :lol: One of the first things the instructor said was that it was OK to eat whenever ... and people did. So we were all whipping out chicken breasts at 8 am and little Gladware containers of broccoli and brown rice for lunch and shaking up protein drinks during the breaks ... and NO ONE ate the candy that the hotel had set out in bowls!

I packed protein bars, chicken breasts, sliced up apples, a bag of of my muffins (recipe here, they were a huge hit), cold oatmeal and protein powder (not so good), carrots, and bottled water and survived quite nicely. It's a shame that what's so normal for lots of us -- carrying around all this healthy food and eating it every two to three hours -- is seen as weird or odd or obsessed by the rest of the world. :dizzy:

People with coolers, unite! :rofl:

This has been a great thread--very entertaining as well. I could learn a lot from you guys. I do pack my lunch everyday but if I get stuck at work later than expected, which happens more than I would like I am up a creek. I don't normally make food choices, I just don't eat or more recently I have been eating large quantities of peanuts because I can get them at work. I actually bought some Southbeach bars with the intention of carrying them with me for that purpose but have only remembered to do that a couple times.

I don't remember who asked for suggestions on the protein powder but the two that I have seen most people say the most positive things about are Optimum Nutrition and Designer Protein. Personally, I use Optimum Nutrition and I don't think it tastes like chalk. I also make my protein shakes with yogurt which you guys might find more palatable. You can put other stuff in too--fruit obviously, crystal light drink mix powder for flavoring, davinci sugar free syrups, use your imagination. Dana Carpender put out a whole smoothie book this past year with a bunch of great ideas in it.

I'm going to try making Protein bars from the Protein Power board tomorrow Kate. I hope I don't have quite as much trouble as you did.

Meg, that story is hilarious! :)

I tell ya, the best thing I ever bought was a big Eddie Bauer soft-sided insulated lunch sack.

And funny story: Yesterday was the big dog show at school. It was from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. with no scheduled breaks for the dog handlers. I'd packed my handy-dandy lunch sack with carrots, a banana, Meg's protein bars :) , string cheese, cottage cheese, etc. I had to leave it in the car, though, because (obviously) there were dogs everywhere. At about 12:30, other students started coming up to me and saying things like, "Kate? Do you have any food?" because they know I ALWAYS have food with me! So I fed a relatively small army yesterday with the contents of my lunch sack!

Funny that I have a reputation now as The Chick With Food :) .

Petra, good luck with the protein bars. If you have a real mixer, you'll be all set. Just be sure you buy some Pam, too. :)

I just tried Meg's protein bars....pretty dang good! And no disasters to report in the kitchen. ;) Hi Kate! Beware the blob!
I've had this can of protein powder (GenSoy Vanilla Shake) for quite a while without opening it until today....I am skeptical no more! :D Thanks, Meg!

I'll try Mel's pumpkin bars next.

In purse: an Odwalla peanut butter bar (2 WW points)
In car: extra bottled water, whole wheat crackers, a cheese stick if I'll be out a while

Not working this year (as a teacher) but I used to keep dried fruit, Wasa crackers and small cans of low sodium V-8 in my desk.