I am not too picky on the granola, but I always read the packages. They can be horrible on the calorie count. I found a recipe for energy bars online and I made it to take with. I tasted a bit and it wasn't bad.

1/2 cup salted peanuts (I used unsalted instead)
1/2 cup raisins or dried fruit (I used dried cherries)
1/2 cup roasted sunflower seeds
2 cups raw oatmeal
2 cups of rice krispies (I used puffed rice instead)
1/2 cup of peanut butter
1/2 cup of brown sugar
1/2 cup of light corn syrup
1 teaspoon of vanilla

1. In a large bowl, mix together the peanuts, raisins, sunflower seed kernels, oatmeal and toasted rice cereal. Set aside.

2. In a medium microwaveable bowl, combine the peanut butter, brown sugar, and corn syrup. Microwave on high for 2 minutes. Add vanilla and stir until blended.

3. Pour the peanut butter mixture over the dry ingredients and stir until coated.

4. Spoon it into an oiled 9” x 13” pan. Press down firmly. (It helps to coat your fingers with margarine, oil or cooking spray.)

5. Let stand for an hour to harden, then cut into 16 bars.

The end result is 225 calories, 30 grabs of carbs, 6 grabs of protein, and 9 grams of fat. Using unsalted peanuts and puffed rice probably changes that a bit, but for the better.

LOL Val. I try and snack on fruit as much as possible, but without a fridge for 5 days it doesn't seem like much of an option.

Thanks for the recipe~!~

hey cannon, good to see youre still around and kicking it, sorry i havent been by much lately, but thanks for popping into my journal.

id like to comment on some of the food talk that has happened recently. I think that whether or not a person is able to completely cut out foods they enjoy has to do with personality type. Its kind of like... say you were a smoker, lol, just humor me for a second here... some people quit best by just going completely cold turkey and staying away from the stuff forever. but not everyone can do that, and so some quit best by slowly weening themselves off of it, whether through patches/gums, or just eliminating smoking at certain habitual points. Ok, so food addiction obviously is not the same as smoking, because you cant go cold turkey on food. however, you can go cold turkey on your trigger foods. But not everyone can respond to this method well. Part of what I find to be funny about it is that just like smoking, food addiction is very psychological. which means that everytime we allow ourselves to indulge, we submit ourselves to the possibility of losing control to those compulsive and/or obsessive emotions. The real key is finding which personality type you have. Any person with a serious issue that really needs correcting is likely to have at least a few slip-ups. However, which scenario are you more likely to screw up with? Are you the kind of person who can go cold turkey and only have 2 slip-ups a year (basically negligable in the long run), or someone who would lose control from deprivation and binge 60 times a year? if its the second case, then maybe that person is better off with minor indulgences, as long as they can keep those within their calorie plan and make less slip-ups per year than if they were doing it cold turkey.

Personally, I am against allowing myself to have minor indulgences on a more frequent basis, because I feel it prevents me from breaking my psychological connection to food. And while I was going to rant on about that, and say that I feel that is best, I got to thinking about all i just typed above. What really matters most is doing what works best for you over the long haul. Which method can you keep up better and make into a permanent change? As long as a person who indulges and enjoys food stays aware of all the psychological mumbo jumbo going on during the indulgence, and doesnt allow themself to succumb to it, then they can succeed no problem. And i do suppose, that like most things in life, the most successful route is a nice mix of the two lifestyles. Someone who can eliminate trigger foods completely for the majority of times, but is able to indulge every now and then for a good reason and not lose control.

Food for thought i suppose. hope all is well cannon, keep up the good work.

(I realize that while it is grammatically incorrect and probably somewhat confusing, I did have a tendency to change person perspective during that rant, lol. So please realize that while I did say "you" alot, it wasnt meant directly at one particular person. Just a generalization toward the public in general. A sort of open thought forum in the socratic style, lol))

I think you're right Coach. It all depends on the individual. However, look at these 3 choices:

1. Body like a Greek God, but totally looking at food as fuel. Eliminating all food which aren't the most nutritious and avoiding all social outings where food is served.

2. Body which is Obese and pigs out on anything and everything.

3. Slightly chubby body, but able to enjoy the taste of good food and good spirits. Able to go out and socialize without precutting and measuring everything. Overweight, but definitely not obese.

Given those 3 choices, I'd pick 3. What I really want is to not be overweight at al and still enjoy foods I like without overdoing it. I want to be fit and trim, but I still want to enjoy good food and good drink in moderation. The times I have had the most luck losing weight and keeping it off were the times I indulged and kept it in check. Is dropping 100, 150, or more pounds important to me? You betcha. Am I willing to deprive myself for the body of an Olympic athelete? No...well maybe if that body belonged to a former Olympic gymnast and she has a great face and a sweet personality too, but I digress.

certainly those three choices arent the only ones out there, but i think you are aware of that anyways. what i think is important is that while coming to your conclusion there, you dont have unreasonable expectations. You arent sitting there expecting to be able to eat all you want and still look completely buff. There is a real importance in understanding what we want and what we are willing to do. For alot of people, those two dont share common goals. Most people out there (the majority of those who never succeed) have expectations that are far above what they are willing to do to reach them. and unfortunately, they dont generally ever come to understand that gap.

While some others (not neccesarily anyone round here) might get a little pissy about the idea of you settling for just being overweight and still enjoying yourself, i think it is perfectly fine. after all, looks are purely subjective and superficial, as long as you are healthy, having a few extra pounds and getting to enjoy yourself while at it is completely fine. in fact, my own goals are not vanity based, and I could not quite care if I ever have well defined abs or anything like that. i just want to be healthy and able to perform well.

as long as a person can keep their values in check and not allow them to basically become a slow death, then i see nothing wrong with them enjoying food and thinking the way you do. Its like the alcoholic who can still sit down and have a glass of champagne at a wedding without completely reverting back into alcholism. it really is a sign of some amazingly strong will. personally, I dont think ive got that, lol. but i certainly respect anyone else who does.

Thanks for the reply Coach, I see what you're saying. One thing I'd say is I'm really not settling for being overweight. Personally, what I hope to achieve is something between the 1st and 3rd choices on there.

Well I'm leaving in the morning and I'm not so sure that I'll get a chance to post before I leave so in the event that I don't, I wanted to thank everybody for all the support and let you know I'll be getting back very late Sunday night so if you don't hear from me for a few days it doesn't mean I'm somewhere in the fetal position with the remains of 8 packages of Oreos or anything.

have a good trip, will check on you when you get back

hilarious Cannon. Hey, have a great getaway. Stay conscious and aware and love yourself and you will be very glad of your choices.

HA HA HA I hope yo have a great time - looking forward to hearing from you when you get back and reading abt all your fun and adventure
Have a good safe trip!!! You will be missed

yes you'll definitely be very missed

hope you have fun and safe trip
Lena

I want to be the Greek God!! haha But you are right, Choice 3, I'd take it. Right now, I think I am falling it at number 2.

Too funny, but true.

We won't worry! Have fun! Bummer about the fridge situation!

Hey I'm back--I'll try and do a concise update because I have a bunch of messages and things to get caught up on. This place is actually the first place I went upon returning and I am looking forward to getting caught up with everybody.

My progress on my trip was mixed. I did a lot of eating at weird hours and while I got really good exercise, I also got a really nasty blister (My leather gym shoes weren't as worn in as I thought they were and on Friday I looked down to see half my white sock was now red). My weight is up, but last night we go in about 3:30 and that meant basically shotgunning diet pepsi and even hitting a McDonalds drive though just for something hot to eat. We hadn't had much sleep and it was very important to be awake for the 6 hour drive. I think when the sodium goes away I'll have a better idea of just what damage I did. The snacks I brought with did indeed help, but I gave into temptation a bit more than I should have too. Overall, I give myself a grade of C-. I hope this blister becomes a calous soon because it is realy going to be a problem with working out.