Weekly Meals – Oct. 11 – 15, 2021

October 19, 2021 sirisvayLeave a comment

Weekly meals are back! … sort of. It’s been a while, but things have been one wild thing after another. The short story is my health took a turn and landed me in the ER, and it was a whole dramatic thing. That all said, I’m better now, and up and running, literally – I’ve been on my feet in high heels all day at the office. Anyway, the week after my ER visit and trying to get back to normal, I ate healthier than I usually do to make sure I’m getting all the daily nutrients I need and more.

So, what did I eat last week? Let’s see!

photo of Dwaeji Bulgogi on a plate with lettuce and chopsticks

a photo of a whole grain cake with mixed canned tuna and fresh avocado

a photo of a strawberry and banana smoothie in a Nintendo Link cup and pink straw

overhead view of a countertop with ingredients for spring rolls: sliced steak, vermicelli rice noodles, shredded carrots and fresh lettuce.

a photo of a Chicken Salad Wrap, with a tortilla shell and layered in lettuce and chicken salad.

• Dwaeji Bulgogi
>> I didn’t go to the Asian market to get thinly sliced pork shoulder, so went with regular HEB pork slices. Have to try the right cut of meat next time!
• Tuna Avocado Rice Cake
>> This is a recipe I saw from Blogilates, and she makes it with canned chicken, which I didn’t have so gonna try that next time!
• Jamba Juice recipe for Strawberries Wild smoothie with added Metamucil supplement
• Spring Rolls with sliced ribeye steak
• Chicken Salad Wrap
• Ramen with Sliced Steak
>> AKA when you’re too lazy to cook real food so you dress up packaged ramen to look fancier than it is

I guess if you wanted to put a theme to this, it would be high-fiber content – from the hella increased intake of fruit, avocado and fiber tortillas (that I also used for breakfast) down to the daily Metamucil supplement.

What’s on your plate? Anything exciting you’re looking forward to cooking/eating?

xo
Siri

health

Completing the Blogilates 21 Day Tone Challenge | Progress Pics

February 4, 2021 sirisvayLeave a comment

This post is long overdue, but better late than never! At the start of 2021, and for the month of January, my sister and I completed the Blogilates 21-Day Tone Challenge with Cassey Ho. Normally, I’m pretty active with a routine workout schedule but I know my sister has been struggling with maintaining one since the pandemic hit, so I suggested we do this challenge together virtually.

Disclaimer: Yes, I am naturally thin. I am aware and have never complained about my weight or the way my body looks. That said, I have been active and eating healthy for YEARS and maintained my fitness. Plus, there are plethora other reasons to eat healthy and work out regularly in addition to weight loss and vanity.

Every day for the 21 days, we video chatted each other, and we did the day’s video together, each one focusing on a different area of the body. Admittedly, even as fit as I am, some of these videos were challenging, but it honestly felt great to feel the sweat dripping onto my workout mat and the burn in the muscle areas. The best part? Knowing that you put in the work to take care of yourself is incredibly rewarding.

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food · health

Weekly Meals – Jan. 23 – 30, 2021

February 1, 2021December 9, 2022 sirisvayLeave a comment

This week has been INSANE. There is so much going on, and I’m starting to struggle to keep up. I… may or may not have had a few cheat meals this week and skipped some workout days…

But anyway, here are the tasty meals I enjoyed, made by me, friends and family:

Kimchi soondubu jjigae
- What I learned: generic grocery store brand kimchi is not as effective or flavorful as authentic kimchi from Asian grocers.
Agedashi tofu
- What I learned: READ the recipe and don’t mix up your frying oil LOL
Gumbo | Canteen & Cocktails virtual cooking class
- What I learned / note for virtual chefs: A word of advice if you are teaching a class: please consider your audience. Sure, there might be cooks among the class, but there might also be those who don’t cook often. Not pictured are baked oysters, because I threw them out. They really out here telling me to take good, ample care of fresh oysters prior to cooking them AND THEN cook them right? That’s a lot of responsibility.
Fancy ramen | made by a friend
Korean BBQ feast with family

It just dawned on me that the theme for this week’s dishes was TRYING NEW RECIPES! Aside from the not-pictured cheat meals I treated myself to, every day I was cooking food I hadn’t tried before, aka the jjigae, tofu and gumbo. These are much more involved recipes – not fit for just one solo person – so I probably won’t have them in my regular meal planning rotation, unless I know I’m cooking for people 🙂

What new recipes are you dying to try? Share them in the comments!

xo
Siri

food · health

Weekly Meals – Jan. 17 – 23, 2021

January 23, 2021December 9, 2022 sirisvay1 Comment

So far, 23 days into January, I’ve kept up with a consistent workout and healthy meal plan, and I want to start documenting them on my blog to track the progress and potentially provide anyone with new ideas for cooking!

Right now, during the COVID-19 pandemic, I’m only going to the grocery store every other weekend, so I’m meal planning for two weeks. Wasting food makes me sad, so what I try to do is look at recipes that have overlapping ingredients so I’m utilizing the most of my groceries – namely produce. It can be challenging, but it’s like a puzzle that you piece together!

This week, I cooked these dishes:

Guacamole, salsa and paleo chips
Spinach tofu stir fry
Veggie spaghetti with homemade spinach pesto
Salmon, avocado and rice
Ribeye steak, broccoli and rice — my parents got me a new iron skillet for Christmas so I HAD to try it out on the steak!
Almond milk chocolate chip pancakes with fresh strawberries and honey

Admittedly, I had more rice than I usually eat. For years, I tried to cook and genuinely enjoy cauliflower rice, but it never appeals to me, and I end up not eating my entire meal.

What are y’all cooking? What new recipes are you finding and trying out? Share them in the comments! I’m always on the lookout for new things to make 🙂

xo
Siri

COVID-19 · health · Mental Health

My Thoughts During Mental Health Awareness Month

May 25, 2020December 9, 2022 sirisvayLeave a comment

Mental Health Awareness Month is nearly over, and I’ve had productive time to ponder life, especially during the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. Living in isolation in my apartment and social distancing from people have presented an opportunity for my true introvertedness to revive itself, and admittedly I’m glad it did. By indulging in my introverted tendencies, I’ve become more myself again versus wearing the mask and putting on an act in front of people – this is not me saying I’m fake, but it’s definitely a light switch when I have to interact and be extroverted. In reality, I get anxious and nervous at the thought of being around people.

Mask - Persona 5 - Mental Health Awareness Month

Some of my goals in life is to enforce the importance of mental health and taking care of one’s health, as well as fighting the negative stigma associated with mental health. In the past, “taking a mental health day” was another ordinary slang phrase to me that I used loosely, but since my young adult life, it’s evolved into a bigger, more meaningful statement. My mental health is my number one priority, and I’m glad I was able to use this time alone to properly focus on it, like I have been promising myself for the past few years but never made ends meet.

What have I been doing to dedicate to myself? Here are a few things:

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