Anyway, dinner tonight was at Wagamama after a gym sesh with my friend. Its different than many other restaurnts. For a start, its not. Its a mix between restaurant andfast food. Its all prepped there, and freshly cooked, including squeezed juices, but very causal. Its designed from a Japanese Noodle Bar. Now don’t run expecting raw fish – its very fusion. Japanese yes, but Chinese and Western Influenced heavily. So its very “foreigner/gaijin” friendly

We had a 2 for 1 voucher, but I still stuck to “healthy” rather than expensive

I had the yasai yaki soba. “Teppan-fried wholemeal noodles with egg, white and spring onions, garlic, mushrooms, butternut squash, green and red capsicum and beansprouts. garnished with mixed sesame seeds, fried shallots, pickled ginger and spicy coriander vinegar.” Mmm, tho I never find the “squash”. Never mind, its pretty healthy. I dont have nutritional info, but work from the points weight watchers give it.

I also love the Chicken Tama Rice “marinated and grilled chicken breast with stir-fried zucchini, shiitake mushrooms, red and spring onions in a thickened oyster, fresh ginger, garlic, and wine sauce. served on japanese-style rice” DELISH but heavy on the portion size and therefore cals.

If you don’t care about cals, go for the Katsu curry. Its like a Scnitty. Yummy. They also have some great desserts, but I usually skip and head for gelato.

Also word for the wise, they dont have entrees, they ahve sides. Foods come out in any order, its just very cas. I’ve never had any problems some love it some hate it.

Goji Bar

Name: Well Naturally AntiOx Bars
Description: Your daily serve of antioxidents
Price: $2.50 $1.80 on special

“Each bar contains your daily serve of potent antioxidants”

Nutritional Details (per 40g bar): 160 cal, 7.5g fat, 3.9g sat fat, 4.6g fibre. Most of the fat is from the chocolate.

Taste: A very sweet muesli bar, covered in dark chocolate. Its quite chewy and tasty, and a treat, rather than a daily snack.

Verdict: It is a little low in protein, so not a post gym snack, and pricey, but no more than other bars of a similar calorie range (pria) They were good for stopping a craving for a chocolate bar. I would buy one again on special, of the other flavour or wait until no-one buys them, as they are very similar to muesli bars, just more expensive. The anti-ox doesnt really “do it” for me. Too gimmicky, but they are nice and sweet.

I am personally interested in the second half, but when I read the book I realised it was more than just getting skinny and fit, but mentally fit.

AJ Rochester is a genius. A hilarious genius. An “ex-fatty”, author of Confessions of a Reformer dieter (next on my reading list, but you should read it first) The Lazy Girl’s Guide is very similar to what most people do, but gives you the mental support you need, through humour and down-to-earth facts you only want to ignore.

She says she doesnt cut things out (although the book asks you to avoid some foods) including chocolate and alcohol into meals, giving you a practical guide on how to survive friends, family, co-workers and buffets.

She rationalises those crazy thoughts you have “They must be trying to sabotage me” (they are!) and how you can overcome it. She gives you new ways of thinking about yourself and life. She also adds a chapter about your kids and what you can do to help them.

Its a great motivational read, I borrowed it from the library (my new bestie)

But on an entirely different note, this post may help you if you’re an Aussie looking for staple foods, or anyone, looking for ideas.
I thought I’d explain some of my essentials, including their brands…

DAILY – What I ALWAYS eat

Fresh fruit and veg

Tomatoes (Roma!!) baby spinach (hate purple curley leaves), sundower Apples, bananas, strawberries

Carbs

Bread – Burgen Range
I LOVE the rye so much! Hummus and tomato sanga’s arent the same without it!
But the others are nice too, and I can’t wait to try them all. I seriously have inner dilemmas at the shop when I have to pick one. THEY ALL have added health benefits, from the 200mg of calcium in the Soy-Lin, so the antiox in the fruit They are WHOLESOME breads, and although thicker and heavier than your normal supermarket stuff and thus per serve more cals, per 100g its usually less and is SO satisfying!! SERIOUSLY good stuff

Pasta

Oats Homebrand is FINE, but i use the anchor toasted muesli from hotels etc. cos its yum and pretty low cal

Snacks

Vita-Wheats are a new for me, but a new fav, along with wholegrain rice cakes (sweet chilli and sour cream flavva. They are high GI but I have them with cottage cheese to make it last longer)

Dairy

Milk - Anelene only cos its super high in calcium. My friend says if she had to give up whole milk, she’d have this. I’m not a huge fan of dairy milk anymore tho. Wish we had chocolate Anelene like Indonesia
Soy – I know, not dairy, but its a replaces. I LOVEEEEE Soy Milky lite. Seriously, NEVER bought So Good again and the Coles is just watered down muck in comparison. I LOVE it. Creamy  and SOY-y
Yogurt – Vaalia all the way. I used to fluctuate between Aldi and this, but they changed and taste like Jalna. SERIOUSLY tastes great! I love licking the lid when the thing is done – its all thick and yummo. I also use it like sour cream, and usually dont sweeten it. Its GREAT. Diet yogurts are disgusting in comparison.

What I get if i have money…

Pria Protein Bars – mmm mint choc chip. They are good but I don’t binge on them cos they cost so much!

WW foods – hated the frozen pudding, but their ice-creams are great and eclairs and good little treat.

Flaxseed oil – replace butter with this gorgeous stuff!! I put it on wilted spinach in omlettes, or mix a little on my oats. But watch out! Caloriffic!!

Lite whipped cream can – I used to think it was a waste of cals until one day I made a cake and put it in the fridge. The cream lost its air and turned into runny lite cream. But there wasnt much of it at all!!! It doesnt have HFCS, and I dont use it often but its a little indulgence on a strawberry

Anyway FREEBIES

This was one of them. Thank goodness, their RRP is $1…

Annie’s Veggie Bar (with fruit base) offers

• “no added sugar
• fibre
• log GI
• no added colours/flavours
• 100% fruit and veg
• dairy/gluten free
• nut free
• great fruity taste”

…in one tiny 15g bar. “Each bar contains phytonutrients equivalent to two serves of fruit and vegetable.”

I swear I’ve had these before but they were sugar laden and kiddy food. They taste similar. But these are better for you. By a LONG way. So if you are still buying those fruit straps, pay the extra for better. If you’re not… well you decide.

Each 15g bar contains:

153kj (or 36 kcal), no fat, 9.45g sugar, 4.5g sodium. They are green. And not at all filling. BUT have one of these with a cup of tea/water and rest easy knowing you’ve just had two serves of fruit/veg.

In the form of..apple, plum, boysenberry, cherry, carrot, pumpkin, tomato, beetroot, celery AND brocolli.

All in all I wouldnt buy these. I am a cheap uni student. And love veggies. But if you struggled with veggies and needed an arvo pick me up, may as well.

PHOTO SOON

PERSONAL

You can call me Red. I’m older than a teenager and younger than your mother. I live in sunny Australia and have been to many-a-state. I don’t stay rooted, but move around. I am engaged. I love lolcatz (hence nom-nom-nom) and turtles.

MIND

I believe that balance is important and we should indulge. I am a perfectionist. Don’t drive with me when I reverse park. Takes me forever. But its perfectly in the lines. I am also a stress head and a worrier. I have/had food issues. I will try to keep them OUT of this blog, but am always here to help! I do not live up to what I’d like to be (super healthy, super smart, super sexy superwoman!) BUT I acknowledge that and am learning to let go.

BODY & FOOD

I am not fat. I was almost overweight. I am not a stick. I was severly underweight, but I put it back on. I am at a happy medium where some women envy, some women gloat. I am not toned and deceivingly unfit because I am quite slight.

I no longer count calories religiously, however, I am generally interested and have approx ideas of how big I want meals. I read nutritional info meticulously, but usually the ingredients list.

I eat skim and non-fat. Sometimes. I eat sugar-free sometimes. I eat sweeteners. Sometimes. I eat sugar and full fat. Sometimes. I figure, fat is bad. Fat is good. Sugar is bad. Fake sugar is bad. So I’ll have a little of all of it. Gunna die of something anyway. I’d like to cut out sugar. But I am an addict…

My biggest vice is giant chocolate cookies from the vending machines. I dunk them, warm, in soy milk, alone in my room. Thank goodness the damn thing is broken!

FITNESS

I do not play sport (tho I wish I did. I’m an unco) and have to make myself exercise. Yet you’ll find me doing something on most days. I wish I liked it more! I enjoy aerobics because I concentrate on not being unco isntead of the pain.

I am in love with Fernwood gym. I wrote this after I visited it and didn’t acutally do anything. So it could just be lust

WHERE YOU ARE NOW

My blog. For food reviews, recipes, personal rants, health, fitness, restaurants wherever I am etc. Wish I could keep a cool food photo blog but I would be even more of a freak then.