I've been trying to switch up my breakfasts lately, seeing as how it's the most important meal of the day, those who eat a nutritious breakfast reap more health benefits, etc.

I'm almost strictly an eggs girl, preferably over easy with a side of Natural Ovens toast. I've never really cared for pancakes or waffles or anything sweet, generally. Cereal is OK, but it seems nutritionally bereft to me. It's not, especially if it's something such as Kashi or Grape Nuts, and if you pare it with some turkey bacon and fruit. But as a rule, I go through eggs and eggs white around here pretty fast.

But I stumbled upon Aunt Jemima's low-fat pancakes the other day and it's been a welcome, quick breakfast change. Sunday I bought the whole-wheat variety, in lieu of the low-fat, since I'll always choose healthy grains and fiber over low-fat any day. One-and-a-half minutes in the microwave and you're done. Since I'm not big on syrups - I think the syrup I have in the cupboard is about two years old. I should probably do something about that. - I've taken to heating up unsweetened, frozen mixed berries, and throwing on top of that about a teaspoon of honey. The berries themselves, when cooked, form a syrup of sorts and make a nice topping on the pancakes.

Plus, antioxidants!

I've been cooking up three pieces of turkey bacon on the side - two for me, one for my dog - and while it isn't as filling as the black bean and salsa egg breakfast I described the other day, it is a nice way to get in a serving of fruit and berries normally reserved for the warmer months.

I would really like to see some warmer months any day now. Ugh. I've again had to run inside because of the weather, and after a week of being outside with the dog, it makes me sad to drone on the treadmill at the gym. I know my friend Hanna will run outside in any kind of weather Mother Nature throws Chicago's way, but not me. I'm a wussy. I cut about 1:30 off of my time last night, though, so that was something.

This is going to make me sound like a git, but working out these past few weeks has felt strangely familiar. Much how I did when I was at the "top of my game." My body knows I'm not - again, still about 8-9 pounds and hours of training from that - but my mind is operating as it did back then. Which is to say that "this" is what I do. "This" means eating right, working out, taking care of myself.

It feels good to not feel so damn frustrated about being at the gym. It wasn't so many weeks ago that I had that feeling so it really does go to show you that it only takes a few weeks to shake off all of that negativity and get back into the swing of things. What I am, more than anything, is hopeful because of it. Hopeful that the health and energy I had two years ago can be reclaimed. Hopeful that the last few items of clothes in my closet that have eluded me for 18 months might be mine again. At least by the summer, if not the summer itself.

Life happens, and we get knocked off track. And it happened to me - hard. It's taken me almost a year to shake off the dust and get back to taking care of myself again, and it's been more difficult than the first go-round - while I know I'm lucky in that I didn't regain all of the weight I lost, it sure felt like it.

I'm becoming happy again, inside and out. It's worth holding on to.

Posted by Erin at 08:38 AM | filed under: Recipes

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