I was in Amherst last weekend, where I went to college, and it was a challenge. The combination of traveling and being in a place easy to fall into old habits made it hard to be healthy. There were no vegan slip ups, but I did eat more potato chips and dip than I'd like to admit. I need to admit it though, that's the point of a food blog. I ate Cape Cod salt and vinegar potato chips dipped in... fake spreadable HYDROGENATED margarine. So unhealthy in so so so many ways. The taste of really fake butter reminds me of the "I Can't Believe It's Not Butter!" at my best friend's house growing up and while I recognize it as gross, it is also somewhat nostalgic for me and irresistible to me. I also had a bit too much white french baguette with baba ghanoush and tomatoes and artichoke hearts for breakfast one day- reasonable but not as healthy as I'd eat at home. I made vegan tiramisu cupcakes and only ate one, which is pretty good of me. For eating out while away, I had half of a cheeseless veggie panini and some salad one night and vegan tofu florentine of multigrain bread with homefries for brunch one morning. Better than I used to be, but not as good as I'd like to be. Maybe once I'm at my ideal weight I can eat this sort of stuff occasionally or while traveling, but as long as I'm still trying to slim down I gotta stick to healthier fare. So last night was a clean slate, back at home, back on track. My biggest focus is going to be to stick to the things I was good at initially but have since let slip, like eating standing up and unplanned snacking.

Food log:

Dinner last night: 1/3 of a small pizza from a pizza shop nearby with tomato sauce, sliced tomatoes, pineapple, vegan cheddar and buffalo sauce and three little garlic knots on the side as a treat from the pizza man for not having any hot peppers for my pizza. For dessert I had three squares (3/16) of a dark chocolate with marzipan Ritter Sport bar.

Breakfast: Gimme Lean sausage formed into a patty with spinach, sundried toms and crushed red peppers sauteed up on one slice of multigrain bread with fresh spinach, red onion and fat free vegan herbed mayonnaise. I also had half a pear and a cookie, one of the choco peanut butter oatmeal ones from last week. Cookie was bad of me, but you win some and you lose some.

Lunch: leftover slice of pizza from last night.

Upcoming snack: mixed greens and beet tops salad with raw beets, red onion and sunflower seeds with a simple dressing of Braggs and red wine vinegar.

Dinner: thus far undecided. I got free spinach at the farmer's market from my farm share farm that starts in June that I want to use up. Hopefully something good will come of it.

I need to focus on more fruits and veggies, at least one serving at breakfast and two at both lunch and dinner, and more protein since I'm going to start up with some strength training tonight. Already some days I'm good about this and some days I'm not, but I need to make sure I'm good most days. I feel much better when I am.