My new favorite pick-me-up

It's probably been clear from my lack of posts lately that things here have been BUSY! And when things get hectic, I tend to shove everything down on my priority list that's not an absolute must-do. I'm working on making blogging more consistent, really I am!

Anyway, one thing that tends to happen when I get stressed is that many of my good eating habits go out the window. I neglect to prepare lunches for the week, and then don't have anything quick to grab as I head out the door, so I go eat at fast-food central at the university. Not only is this bad for my overall health, it's also not great for my wallet (or our saving-for-el-salvador fund!). So I've really been trying to make sure that I have food ready to go. Since I try to head to the gym in the mornings, in addition to lunch, I need a quick protein pick-me-up for after my workout. I've played around with a few different things, like boiled eggs and string cheese, but I've found that I really need something that I can eat/drink while I walk back across campus to my office, and peeling an egg just doesn't work while I walk. Apples work great, but don't have as much protein as I'd like. So what's a girl to do?

Eat like a man. And by that, I mean take advantage of all the different protein powders and drinks that are out there. I resisted this at first, but recently I've stumbled upon a formula that is tasty, quick, full of protein, and convenient. I take a 32 oz container and fill it with ice, then add one scoop of vanilla protein powder. I then fill the container half full with coffee, and fill it the rest of the way with fat-free milk. Yum! The ice blends the powder well into the rest of the drink, and there's no need to add additional sugar or splenda since the protein powder is pretty sweet already. I stick the whole container into my gym bag (yep, make sure the lid fits well and is leak-proof!), and the ice keeps it cool the whole time I'm working out. Since the coffee and milk are full-strength to start with, the melting ice doesn't water it down too much, and I have a delicious frappe kind of thing to drink as I walk across campus. The best part? This drink holds me easily until lunch and beyond.

I know that there's a better choice than protein powder out there for this, but I feel like it's the protein that is really helping with keeping me satisfied for the rest of the morning, and I just don't think that coffee and milk alone would do that for me. But are there alternatives to expensive protein solutions? I'm on the lookout, and I'll keep you posted.