10:00 am Journal

I’m writing this at about 10 am; I just finished my early morning walk. It’s the weekend, so I woke up later than usual. While walking this am, I tried to be more mindful of what my body craved and what it needed to be fueled and recover well. As the end of the walk approached, I realized I was craving a vegan Caesar salad.

A local restaurant makes a great vegan Caesar salad that I love. It’s made with good croutons and vegan dressing, but they include capers. I always ask for it without capers, but I’ve decided it’s time to make my own. It’s perfect timing because we have been waiting for my spring-sown lettuce/greens to grow so we can include them in the garden’s daily harvest.

I have enough cabbage from the store, endive in the garden, and two types of kale in the garden to make my own version of this Caesar salad. I could use just endive, but I know that adding two types of kale will help me get more nutrients, and the cabbage will bulk up my salad. Which aligns with my goal to wait longer before doing harvest from my garden this summer. I’m interested in harvesting larger kale leaves so a smaller daily harvest for a few weeks allows the kale leaves to double in size.

So now I’m heading to shower, but before I do that I will first harvest my endive and two types of kale from the garden and give them an ice bath. I think I will also have a protein smoothie to help me prepare for working in the garden later.

3:42 pm Journal
So, I made the salad with a bomb homemade dressing, but skipped the protein smoothie and made my gluten-free crusted tofu in the air fryer instead. I ate the salad first with homemade garlic croutons and shared the tofu with hubby right after. I hoped to add the tofu to the salad, but I prefer the salad alone. I enjoyed this meal and will have the protein smoothie before preparing a late lunch soon.

I’m currently on day 24 of sharing my daily walks online, and it feels good to start including the meals I’m making with produce from the garden. It will be cool to look back over how they fueled my walks and what I grew this summer.

How are you coping with the increasing heat? What meals are you craving as it gets warmer?

While it’s day 24 for sharing my walks online, this has been a 100-week streak of mindful movement for me. When fitness challenges were heavier or longer than a daily walk, I took a few days off to recover and get back to moving with a simple daily walk within 2-4 days. I’m really proud of myself, and I’m very thankful to my accountability sisters and tribe for helping me the last 9 months.

Let me know if you joined me for a walk, time in the garden, or meditation today, and remember, you’re always welcome to join me tomorrow. Whether it’s 30 minutes, an hour, or just a walk around your block, join me for a walk and a moment to breathe this weekend.