I was a jerk in college. Scratch "was", I'm probably still a jerk. You can't really outgrow that can you?

Some of our fun little frat-boy games involved embarrassing ourselves and others in the supermarket. One way we'd accomplish this feat was to crowd around the shopping cart of some hapless individual and shout out, "Good Gawd, look at what these people eat!"

Now this statement was rarely appropriate to what was in the cart. It didn't matter; we were jerks. What followed was several announcements over the intercom and the addition of several items of our own choosing until the completion of our beer purchase had been made by our designated non-player/guy-old-enough-to-buy-beer. We'd leave the store laughing like idiots and high-five-ing each other while some housewife tried to regain her composure and restock her cart. Trust me, it was freakin' hilarious (only to us).

This and a lot of other shenanigans practically guarantees I'll have a few talking points during my inevitable stay in purgatory.

This confession will now segue into one of my favorite energy sources: the smoothie.

I love my smoothies; they're quick, cold, and taste great. The ingredient list is short and I always have stuff on hand, and with my Magic Bullet, it's oh-so-easy.

There is no real recipe, just a list of ingredients I combine in different ratios to create a certain calorie range (140 - <300). They are:

1. EAS Protein Powder - chocolate tastes best imho
2. Unsalted Natural (peanuts only) Peanut butter - drained of excess oil
3. Frozen berries (my favorites are blueberries and marionberries)
4. Banana
5. Unsalted Natural (almonds only) Almond butter - drained
6. Nonfat Yogurt
7. Water
8. Ice

Initially I logged into Fitday.com and use their food journal to create the right ratios based on their nutrition database. After a while I just had an idea of what to combine to get the desired calories and protein/carb ratios. For example, a full serving EAS Protein is 140 calories + 1/2 (3 inches) banana 46 calories + 1/2 cup blueberries 41 calories = AWESOME + 227 calories.

Values for each ingredient are on the website and experimentation is a must. Also know that it takes very little (a teaspoon = 35 calories) of an ingredient like peanut butter to make a dramatic difference in the flavor. Even the protein blended only with ice is pretty good.

So, that's it- my favorite diet fuel. It may not be all that exciting but hey, food is supposed to be just that- fuel. If you have any additional ideas, please let me know. And to all those people I've been a jerk to throughout my life; my apologies. Please find comfort in knowing that I plan on expanding my renaissance beyond my waistline.