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Starbucks’ Frequent Flyer
Monday was a marathon day full of activities from double track practices, appointments and a team meeting, school and a 90 minute PE class. The entire day was spent on the opposite side of campus as my room, so I packed my laptop and some snacks and spent the day walking all over. With awkward amounts of time in between plans, I found myself at Starbucks twice during the afternoon. For me, I prefer to study in the coffee shop than the library; it’s comforting.
Welcoming all of the caffeine-seeking students.
My first trip was around lunch time and I paired my homework with a Spinach and Feta Breakfast Wrap. I love that Starbucks offers “healthy” alternatives to their pastry crap baked goods.
Starbuck’s Spinach and Feta (whole wheat) Wrap with egg whites and tomatoes contains 290 calories with 10 grams of fat, 19 grams of protein, 4 grams of sugar. It’s first ingredient is whole wheat flour, followed by vegetable oil and oat fiber. Hands down, this beats a sugary pastry like the Iced Lemon Pound Cake. Let’s look up the nutrition of this “breakfast” while we’re at it:
One slice of the lemon cake with white icing contains 490 calories, 23 grams of fat, with a measley 5 grams of protein. It packs 46 grams of sugar (the first ingredient, by the way), which will leave you hungry about 60 minutes after eating this fruity-flavored breakfast disaster. You are literally better off eating a Pop Tart.
A few hours later, I was back during one of the hour and a half gaps in my schedule and I really needed something warm to go with my accounting homework. Decaf Skinny Cinnamon Dolce Latte did the trick! I didn’t need caffeine, I just love the taste of espresso ;) The fat-free, sugar-free drink is a healthy “snack” because it still contains a sufficient amount of protein and calcium from the nonfat steamed milk without that sugar high and crash. With a sliced orange I had already packed, I was recharged for night classes and the third workout of the day.
*By making it “skinny” you are removing 40 grams of sugar and 13 grams of fat, while still keeping 12 grams of protein.
I am in no way affiliated with Starbucks, just a proud customer ;)
Just to be safe, I think I’ll skip the coffee shop today before the baristas start to think I have a problem.
Paper Cup Pick-Me-Up
Today’s caffeination came in the form of an Iced Tazo Passion Tea, just as bright as today is shaping up to be! (That sounded a lot cornier than I intended.)
My mom is coming up to my school for a visit tomorrow, so last night I made her a canvas painting to liven up her desk at work. Just a little whimsical and colorful decorative piece. With the passion tea and sudden urge to paint, I got to thinking about where inspiration comes from. For me, there are many people who inspire me to be healthier, fitter, happier. I know as girls, we tend to compare ourselves to others but I think it’s healthy to aspire to those around us who are more successful at things than we are. I’ll share first:
- Taralynn at Undressed Skeleton inspires me to bake healthy! She’s always recreating delicious desserts with less fat, sugar, calories, etc.
- Lauren Conrad inspires me to put together cute outfits and matching accessories.
- My leg workouts are inspired by Carrie Underwood (that girl is toned!)
- I will forever be aspiring to Jillian Michael’s Abs.
- To be as comfortable with my body shape as Miranda Lambert
- To be as disciplined in my workout plan as any professional athlete
Now it’s your turn. :) Who inspires you and why?
Breakfast at Starbucks
Apparently last night at midnight, Taylor Swift’s title track off of her new album “Red” was released. It’s a huge improvement from We are Never Never Never Ever Ever….Never Getting Back Together (although that’s not saying much..). There’s hope for the rest of the album still! The new song sparked an impromptu dance party while getting ready for school ;)
I almost always make myself a bowl of oatmeal in the morning to have with some coffee and fruit, but today I decided to let Starbucks do the work and order the Perfect Oatmeal. Have you had this stuff? It’s so yummy! Comes in the perfect size to-go cup with some mixed nuts, dried fruits and some brown sugar. I like to swap the brown sugar for some cinnamon and milk instead. So hearty. So warm. So delicious. So Perfect. Whoever named it was spot on.
This is also 100x more nutritious than any Starbucks pastry item for breakfast. No matter how tempting that blueberry crumb muffin might look, it’s full of sugar and fat and nearly 500 calories. The oatmeal, mixed nuts, dried fruit, milk and cinnamon clocks in at 350 calories, with whole grains, fiber, protein, “healthy” fats, and calcium. Pretty obvious winner here ;)
I’m hoping this healthy breakfast pays off with brain power for my first mid-term later this morning!
