A Hungry Woman

Yesterday's page-a-day treat:

Ah, me. I am a wildebeest. And I've been known to exhibit red antish behavior from time to time because me and hunger—we are enemies. If I want food and if I cannot have it, well...I get lightheaded, I get irritated and I lose my patience. I, quite frankly, do not get along with hunger. At all. Not one bit. And I like to think that I am not alone. (Am I?)

I've always been a fan of planning accordingly. I like to "always be prepared with healthy food on hand." And that's also why I should never be set loose in a Whole Foods or Trader Joe's. Or any grocery store, really. (How nerdy is it of me to actually love grocery shopping?) Case and point:

The saddest thing about it? I actually stopped by Trader Joe's AGAIN on my way out of town. It was on my way to the highway, which would lead me back home to a place where these two lovely destinations did not exist! And I was going to need some lunch on the road. And I did really want to get some of the Brown Rice bread I had been served for breakfast. Good excuses to make another stop? Maybe not, but who really cares. I'm satisfied with my purchases, and I kept hunger away while I was driving which allowed me to revisit my Gaga experience quite nicely, thanks to an iPod full of her music. Jammin'!

Back to hunger. Let's talk about that little jar of goodness you see in the bottom right corner of the picture above. MaraNatha Sunflower Seed Butter. Flippin' good! My sister had very recently recommended it to me, and I do love me some sunflower seeds, so I thought—why not! I'll give it a whirl on my crispy little apple.

I'm glad that I did. It's fairly divine. Not too sweet...

...perfectly creamy. And it didn't affect my stomach in any way. Sometimes, when I eat too much peanut or almond butter, I get a nauseating (somewhat bloated) feeling in my stomach. Perhaps due to a minor, undiagnosed nut allergy. It won't stop me. And thankfully, I don't have to worry about it with the sunflower seed butter. I ate the apple above on Tuesday when I got home from my trip to the city, and had yet another serving of this tasty treat just yesterday. (Am I addicted? Is that a bad thing? Maybe and no.)

A salad, a smoothie and some sunflower seed butter on a few crackers made for quite the lunch. And it kept me from confronting hunger for quite some time, which is always a good thing.

Today's lesson? As my page-a-day hints, make sure you stack your 'fridge and pantry with equal parts meals and snacks. And make those snacks as healthy as you can. When you're hungry, you are hungry and should absolutely eat something. Your body needs it, especially if you're a fit-freak like moi! All that working out means nothing if you aren't partnering it with a healthy, balanced diet. Where else do you think our muscles get the energy to build and rebuild themselves?

PS: Tune in on Sunday for "one" heck of a thing! There's a thing that happens on Sunday. I'm so excited to share it with you, dear and loyal (and any new) readers!

Question: What healthy snack are you currently obsessed with?