In it for the Long Run

wellness | intuition | curiosity

What I Ate Wednesday: Taking the Rut out of Routine

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Today I’m linking up with Jenn & friends for What I Ate Wednesday, where I share a day’s worth of meals & snacks.

Routines. Can’t live with ’em can’t live without ’em.

Breakfast:

Iced soy latte & yogurt parfait from Blue State Coffee (post 3 mile run)

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Let me just say I love efficiency. I love finding the most effective and fastest way to achieve certain goals. Whether that’s discovering new little life hacks, a faster route to work, the best time of day to workout, the quickest line at the grocery store or getting the most value out of my grocery trips with food planning/prepping. Routines can make things pretty damn efficient. Imagine reinventing your day, every single day. That’s a lot of work. They break the big into the do-able. They provide comfort and stability.

Lunch:

Chocolate peanut butter baked oats (failed recipe experiment, still half decent – just not blog recipe worthy)

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Snacks:

Pink lady apple, nut butter dates (almond butter, honey pretzel peanut butter & coconut butter)

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But routines have a dark side. Once you establish your daily plan it’s easy to go on autopilot. Eat the same foods, watch the same shows, go to the same bars, rinse repeat. It’s easy to find yourself on a Friday afternoon thinking, “What did I do this week?” Routines allow your memory to coast. When everything around you is familiar it’s much easier to stop paying attention. However, when you travel somewhere your memory and brain are working in overdrive collecting all the new sensory information. That’s why after a trip it feels like you’ve been gone forever, but everything feels the same.

Dinner:

Zoodles & arugula with 2 eggs and a 1/2 Sweet potato with avocado, hemp seeds & pecans

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That’s the predicament I’m finding myself in. Not wanting to fix what isn’t broken, but not wanting to look back every week bewildered that time has flown by. I have to get back into the driver seat and make some new turns. Sometimes getting lost can be fun…. right? On Sunday I went to a Matt & Kim show at the House of Blues with my roomie. It was such a blast. But want to know something kind of embarrassing? I got nervous before going because I knew it would unsettle my Sunday routine. Luckily, that didn’t stop me, and I found it fitting that one of their lyrics goes “thinking about tomorrow won’t change how I feel today.” Yup. Needed that reminder. (side note, they regrammed my shot from the concert and I lost my shit)

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Your Turn:

  • What’s your favorite part of your routine?
  • How do you shake things up?
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Comments

  1. YES…I would have totally done the same thing on Sunday, because GASP it would mess up my routine! It’s amazing how we get these things into our heads and do it again and again. And I feel that the older we get the harder it is to change that routine, because well we’re stubborn. I’m working on this with my eating…shake it up, change it up, and don’t always go by the rules! XOXO

  2. I’ve definitely had the same reaction to a last minute event. If I don’t have time to plan for something (aka adjust my routine) there’s a part of me that wants to back out. I’m more stubborn than I’d like to admit. Honestly, whenever I’m with my family they shake things up. Being on vacation is one time when my routine goes (mostly) out the window.

  6. I’m not even huge Matt & Kim fans but I would have lost my shit too. Also, Pink Lady apples=best kind of apples, end of discussion. I agree–I have a love/hate relationship with routines. I love them until I hate them.

  7. True, so darn true about routine. I crave it, yet I operate on autopilot and wonder what I’m doing with my life. 🙂 I do try to get involved with something new every week and if I don’t like it, I don’t have to repeat it. But at least I know that I tried.

  8. I love a good routine because it makes it easier to stick to healthy habits (for me, anyway), though it definitely makes every week feel the same! Those nut butter dates are such a great snack idea by the way. Perfect for mid-afternoon!

    • Totally – like my workout plan is a non-negotiable because of how good I feel after. If I had to decide every single day whether or not to go or at what time it would be so much easier to skip. Nut butter dates are soooo good, plus there’s so many options.

  9. Pink lady apples are the best! nice choice. I love what you did with the sweet potato as well – i find them so boring so that looks like a delicious way to change it up.
    I love my daily routines so i hardly ever stray, BUT once in a while i’ll go out for dinner with my boyfriend during the WEEK (shocker) which is a nice way to change it up

  10. Great eats! I think I’m going to invest in a zoodle maker:) That’s a great shot you took at that concert, btw. Totally worth regramming!

  13. First of all, congrats on the Matt and Kim regram!! That’s so exciting!! …and secondly, oh my word!! I seriously feel JUST like this… it’s like, I love my routine and hate it at the same time… okay those are strong opinions, but you know what I mean! I enjoy it, but want to mix it up! I love traveling because it forces me to mix things up! …but I also want to do it naturally sometimes ya know?! Seriously great post! Totally agreeeeeeeee!!

  14. Those look like some good eats! I love routine usually, but I can also be super spontaneous. I do have a hard time though when things put a wrench in my plans. I have been getting better at being flexible though. The concert looks amazing!