Reaching for the Stars: Why I'm in Love with Goal Setting

I have always loved stargazing.  There is nothing better to me than sitting underneath a blanket of stars.  Even better to catch a glimpse of a shooting star or rare comet.  I have loved astronomy since I was a small child.  For a week of my life, I seriously thought I wanted to be an astronaut.  But I kind of suck at science, and I hate math so…

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I grew up believing that I could be anything, and that the possibilities for my life were as endless as the starry universe.  All I ever wanted was to know my purpose, and to truly live my life, free as a bird, with no regrets.  To be honest, I often have no idea what I’m doing.  I still don’t have a solid grasp of what my purpose is.  I don’t even know if I think I have one purpose.  Maybe my purpose is an underlying thread that ties all of my experiences together.  Maybe my purpose is not what I do, but who I am/who I will become.  #deepthoughts

I love setting goals.  It makes life more exciting for me.  When I pinpoint a goal, I get giddy with excitement.  My imagination runs wild.  My heart races.  I start to focus instead of floating randomly through life, like a feather through the air.  It gives me a sense of purpose.  I immediately start researching and figuring out what I need to do to reach that goal.  I become obsessed and relentless until I reach it.  No matter what your goal is, the steps to reaching it are pretty much the same:

1)      Ask yourself:  Is this goal reasonable?  Like, seriously?  If it is, give yourself a deadline.

2)      Ask yourself if you are really willing to do what it takes.  The only thing stopping you is yourself.  That pretty much eliminates excuses.  You will always find a way to do what you truly want to do.  You can't always rely on inward motivation or outward inspiration.  Sometimes you are not going to feel like doing anything.  Stuff happens. The goal becomes bigger than yourself, and a consistent effort is what will produce results.

3)      Do some research.  Read stuff.  Ask people who have done what you are trying to do… how did they do it?

4)      Break it down into small steps so it’s not so overwhelming.  If your goal is a big one (like running a marathon or purchasing a house), set some mini, short term goals as stepping stones to the end result.

5)      Surround yourself with like minded, positive people.   Get yourself a support group.  There is power in numbers.

6)      Eliminate anything (or anyone) that is not helping you reach your goal.  If your goal is weight loss, get rid of the junk food in your house.  This also goes with #5—if there are people in your life who will not support you, cut waaaaaaaaay back on the time you spend with them.

7)      Get organized… okay, try to get organized.  Do your prep work.  Do your homework.  Work toward your goal a little bit each day/week.  Results come with consistent effort.

8)      Spend your time more wisely.  I am a die-hard procrastinator with a love/hate relationship with schedules.  I hate the monotony of following a routine week after week, but I need it so badly!  Haha!  I made a block schedule of my week in 30 minute increments so I could figure out where to fit in various activities (like my daily workouts). 

9)      Reward yourself for reaching your mini-goals.  This doesn’t have to be anything big and expensive.  Give yourself a pat on the back, or a sticker or something.  Enjoying the journey is just as important as the end result.

10)   Once you’ve reached your goal, set another one right away!  Rinse and repeat.  Don’t stop until you die.

So basically, if I didn't reach any of the goals on my 10 by 30 Bucket List, it's because I probably faltered on one of the above steps.  Or maybe I set too many goals at once.  That’s been known to happen… 

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Life is Short: Eat pancakes!

I love pancakes, y'all.  I pretty much love all traditional, high-carb, sugary breakfast foods.  I've made the switch to high protein breakfasts featuring oatmeal, egg whites, and the like.  I quickly get bored with eggs and oatmeal, so I went on a hunt for high-protein versions of my favorite breakfast foods. 

I soon discovered... protein pancakes.  I didn't know that protein pancakes could taste so good.  When I first made this, I was expecting heavy, gritty bricks.  Instead, I ended up with a stack of buttery, light, fluffy cakes that rival the ones at my favorite local diner.  This recipe (adapted from this one) is my favorite by far.  And the best part is, they are all natural.

Pancakes (now, with Protein)
Servings:  1, makes 3 to 4 pancakes
Prep time:  5 min
Cooking time:  5 min

Ingredients:
1/2 c old fashioned oats
1/2 c low fat or fat free cottage cheese (if you're watching sodium, use reduced sodium or no salt added)
1/2 c egg whites (or egg beaters)
1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp cinnamon
dash of salt (optional)
water (optional)

Mix everything together in a blender or food processor.  I used my Ninja blender.  Funny story:  One time the Hubs was unloading the dishwasher, and the Ninja blades were in there.  He didn't see them and cut his hand pretty bad.  For at least a week after that, he told everyone he was attacked by a Ninja.

Anyway, we're mixing.. for about a minute.  Let the batter rest for 2 minutes. If your batter is a little too thick, add a bit of water until you get the consistency you want.  You will probably also end up with more pancakes. :) 

Spray nonstick spray on and heat up your griddle or pan on medium heat (300 degrees on an electric griddle).  Pour the batter from the blender into rounds on the pan/griddle.  When the edges start to bubble a little, flip and continue to cook for another minute or two.

Add your choice of fruit, some light butter, and a drizzle of syrup (I use sugar-free cuz I be lame). Double or triple the recipe and freeze these bad boys.  Just make sure to thaw them out before you are ready to eat them.

Nutritional Info (per serving)

Calories:  326

Total Fat:  5.5g

Saturated Fat:  2g

Sodium:  290 mg (with no-salt cottage cheese)

Total Carbs:  34.5g

Dietary Fiber:  4g

Sugars:  6.5g

Protein:  32g

Percentage of Calories

Protein:  39%

Carbs:  42%

Fat:  14%

***Please note that nutritional info is estimated, and varies based on the ingredients you use.***

BANANA BREAD!!

I love bread.  I love bananas.  Banana bread is my boo.  I found a great recipe here and tweaked it a bit because I didn't have dates, and I wanted to use up a gigundo container of greek yogurt before it spoiled.  This bread is moist, dense, and downright delish.

So... moist... *drool*

Banana Bread
Serves:  1 (if you're greedy like me)
Prep time: 
Cooking time:  45-50 minutes

Ingredients:
3-4 ripe bananas, mashed (or 2 cups worth)
1 c oat flour
1 c whole wheat pastry flour (you could just pick one type of flour and use 2 cups;  I used what I had)
1/2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1 tsp vanilla or almond extract
1 egg
1 egg white
1/2 c plain nonfat greek yogurt
1/2 c unsweetened applesauce
1/2 c honey
(optional:  chopped nuts, raisins, dates, chocolate chips, ground flax meal, or whatever you like)

Directions:
Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.  Grease and flour a loaf pan or square baking dish

In a medium sized bowl, beat the egg, egg white, applesauce, honey, and vanilla until very well mixed.  Add bananas and combine thoroughly.  Set the mixture aside.

In a separate, larger bowl, mix your dry ingredients (flour, baking powder and soda, and salt).  Add in the wet stuff and stir until just moistened (don't over mix).  If you are adding stuff like nuts or chocolate chips, fold that mess in now.  Don't forget, cuz you'll be mad. 

Bake for 45-50 minutes in loaf pan, or 35-45 minutes in a square, shallow dish.  Do the toothpick test-- if it comes out of the center clean, you're good to go!  Let it cool for 15 minutes before transferring to a wire rack (or whatever you've got).  Once completely cool, wrap that bad boy up tight and stash it in the fridge.  Enjoy!

I called it "banana cake" so my kids would eat it.. but they're funny like that :)