Down 20 Pounds! Whoopee!

Ok, I am happy to announce that I hit my second 10 pound goal. I have been flirting around this 20 pound point for a little while with various trips distracting me from reaching this goal.  I was so happy to see the scale Sunday morning when it said I had made it.

Today I am renewed, and ready for another good week. 25 week days until the beach. I hit the cardio hard on the bike this morning and did an hour and a half. Thank goodness I can watch HGTV while I exercise.  Sometimes it is the only thing that gets me through that last 20 minutes. I have to see how the renovation turned out!

To reach my two hour goal, I will take my dog for a walk this afternoon and we’ll both be happy!

My chocolate protein shake this morning was enhanced by my remaining coffee and a dash of cinnamon.  Having some yogurt for a mid-morning snake and then for lunch I will have a vanilla shake with frozen fruit in it.   Over the weekend I stocked up at Costco on their frozen Lean Cuisine meals and I love those! Later in the week I will have them for a lunchtime treat.

I am excited to be making progress.

Note: The woman in the picture is not me.

10 Ingredient Salad Recipe

My aunt told my mom about this one and I took lots of liberties with it! The story is…my aunt lost LOTS of weight by eating this salad for lunch each day.

You know how things get passed around and you aren’t really sure if you got all the ingredients? Well, you don’t have to worry about that with this one! Just be sure you have a lettuce type thing in it and you’ll be fine!

Find 10 different things to put in your salad. Make them healthy things! Here is a list of some of our favorites:

• lettuce: iceberg mix, spinach, fancy greens, or whatever mix you like
• fruit: mandarin orange sections, strawberries, dried cranberries
• nuts: walnuts, pecans, pine-nuts (toasted, honey glazed, roasted, plain)
• colorful tortilla strips
• protein: grilled chicken breasts, sliced left over steak, strips of ham (oops! I mean that wonderful turkey I found that only tastes like ham!), boiled eggs, a tiny amount of bacon bits
• cheese: swiss cut in strips, grated cheddar, low fat skim mozzerella, laughing cow skinny cheese
• veggies: red, green, yellow, & orange bell peppers, red onion, white onion, green onion, carrots – chopped or whole baby ones, celery, fresh broccoli, fresh baby spinach

I usually look in the pantry and refridgerator and see what I have on hand. I try to chop up a bunch of veggies to have handy during the week, so it makes it super simple to pop together a salad at lunchtime me or for the hubby’s nightly salad prep for lunch the next day for him. I make the salads for my husband & I different from our boys by putting higher carb items on it for them.

Top with balsamic vinegar and olive oil dressing and YUM!  We all love this, though my older son likes a different dressing.

Last night’s salad was served as a side to a main course, so I didn’t include meat.  Here is what is in the picture above:

This particular salad included:

1. lettuce
2. boiled eggs
3. bacon pieces
4. cheddar cheese
5. Swiss cheese
6. strawberries
7.  red onion
8. carrots
9. red bell pepper
10. balsamic vinegar & oil dressing

Do you have a favorite salad combination you can share? Please do! I would love to hear how YOU make a salad!

Day 115 – Exercising…..huff, puff, keep going!

Today is day 32 in the countdown to the beach and I feel good. Can you hear the echo of that James Brown song?

This is the view from where we’ll be staying with our extended family in June. Isn’t it inspiring? Amazing? Wonderful?  I am popping it on here to remind me why I need to be able to wear shorts.

You know those little summer clothing items called skorts? They are a combination of a skirt and shorts and have a kind of flap over the front? I really want to find a comfy one to wear. I used to wear those all summer long! Of course, that was when I was probably 50 pounds lighter. Well, it is another goal.

Maybe I will dig my summer clothes out and sort through them today to see all my old favorites that I have saved. I probably have 4 different sizes in plastic storage bins.

I know I really should locate my swimsuit, but just can’t face it yet. Maybe in 2 weeks?  That being said, I have to admit that after only 3 days of this new intense cardio program (well, it is intense for ME) I can see a positive difference in my thighs. That is really hope inspiring.  32 days. What can I do in 32 days?

Last night’s Pesto Chicken was a huge hit again!  I can’t believe I haven’t included this awesome, yet simple, recipe I modified from the South Beach Diet yet.  Here it is!

Baked Pesto Chicken

Ingredients

• Boneless, skinless, chicken breasts
• Pesto

Place 1/4 c. of your favorite pesto in the bottom of a baking pan large enough to hold your chicken breasts.

Flatten chicken breasts slightly and place in pan on top of pesto.

Top with more pesto. Cover, and bake for 40 min. at 375 degrees. (At this point the original recipe calls for uncovering, topping with swiss cheese, but we don’t miss it!)

Test with meat thermometer to make sure it has reached 165 degrees for safety, then enjoy!

Served with our favorite green beans. This time, I used fresh tiny haricot verts and quickly boiled them while I sauteed some chopped white onion until it was tender, threw in a few bacon bits for a splash, then put those on top of the drained green beans.

I got a huge surprise from my two boys also! Last time I prepared Pesto Chicken, they were less than complimentary about it. In fact, I remembered them saying, “I DON”T LIKE THIS!” So, I prepared one of my “10 Ingredient Salads” for them and they both were really disappointed they didn’t get served the Pesto Chicken! Those chicken breasts were large enough to share, so we did, and everyone was happy, plus they got the salad veggies.

Dessert was fresh fruit (strawberries & blueberries) served in parfait glasses! What a special looking treat. I think our tastes have definitely changed while on this program. After 115 days, I guess they should!

One thing about this meal I really loved was that it was so easy. I prepped the chicken earlier in the day and held it in the refrigerator. Green beans were just a “take them out of the bag and toss in boiling water” kind of thing while I sauteed the already chopped white onions and bacon bits. The fruit was the only thing that took a bit of time and I had help from my son. Do you have an easy “go to” kind of healthy dinner or recipe to share? I would love to hear!

Post Boston Trip Results (Day 114) Only 33 days until the beach!

Whew, we really ate like we wanted and I tried all kinds of new things: Malaysian food at Penang, cannoli at Mike’s Pastry, lobster rolls (which were like chicken salad but with lobster). Of course, we had warm Doubletree Cookies every night and sometimes during the day – when my boys would talk the front desk into giving them some. 

We walked everywhere we could and took the subway. It was hard on my poor feet with plantars, but I think it did keep the pounds from piling on. I only gained a little bit over a pound!

Monday began my COUNTDOWN TO THE BEACH!  7 weeks until I have to put a swimsuit on in front of my entire family. Argh.  I am so thrilled we are going to the beach and have been looking forward to it since we scheduled it. But, the reality is, my body just doesn’t look the way I want it too. I am realistic enough to know that 7 weeks will not turn me into a Barbie doll body, but at least I can make significant progress and will feel better if I am doing something about it.

I thought about making my own “7 week” plan, and have decided to look at it as 7 weeks of focusing on the week days to really make a difference in my fitness level. That is 35 days.  I want to make each of those 35 days really count. Thinking this way kind of helps keep me motivated .

My new plan is that on weekdays I will have protein shakes for breakfast & lunch, eat yogurt and fruit for snacks and have a decently healthful dinner. As usual, lots of hot green tea or herbal tea is allowed!  On weekends, I may loosen up a bit and that way I can tell myself to wait until Sat. for something that is really tempting me. I find that it really helps me get past that craving, then when Sat. comes there are many times I don’t indulge.  Isn’t it funny, the types of psych games we plan with ourselves?

Also, I upped the cardio exercise to 2 hours per weekday. For the majority of that cardio, I am doing the stationary bike at our YMCA due to foot issues, and have added a 15-30 min walk with the doggie to add a bit of variety. We’ll see how that walking part goes and if it doesn’t cause me too much pain, I will increase the walking since it is so much easier to fit it into our schedule.

My son told me about a cool site that you can put your food in and track exercise and everything else is super easy on it. I just started using it and he’s right, it is easy! I love seeing the nutrition numbers, and it will let you track your water consumption too.  www.livestrong.com is the site. Tell me what you think!

Wish me luck on counting down the days until we go.  I will still be looking for healthy menu options for our main course meals, so if you have some tasty ones to suggest, I would LOVE to hear from you!

Eating Out and Making Good Choices

Eating out can be a challenge. Below are my typical rationalizations for overeating or making poor choices and my “much healthier” ways to overcome them.

 

 

• Since you have paid for this food you must eat it! (Most of the time, you can take it home and eat it at another meal. Another tactic – get someone else to eat it!)
• You work hard, you deserve a treat! (Remember that you can eat whatever is tempting you after your stricter phase is over, or that you can consider treating yourself to a healthy life by NOT eating it.  Delay eating it until the weekend when you are not as strict and perhaps you’ll choose to not eat it at all!)
• It looks soooooo good!  (It will still be there when I am at my goal weight.  It looks much better on that plate than on my thighs! “A moment on the lips, a lifetime on the hips!” as my female relatives say.)

That being said, I love to eat out and there are also times when it cannot be avoided.  So, here are my current “go to” menu selections for eating out and staying healthy!

Chipotle’s vegetarian burrito bowl – no tortilla to add carbs, but loads of flavor. Since they build it for you when you order, you can control what is on it.  Here is the nutritional info so you can put your own special together.  My veggie burrito bowl totals up to 450 calories, and if I want to add some fresh guacamole and a few chips it is another 220 calories.  I know when I walk in that is what I am ordering and am VERY happy about it.  Most of the time I will get it without the cheese since I don’t taste it much and that will save 100 calories too.  My husband usually adds the chicken which is 190 calories, but doesn’t get the black beans which are 120. Both my boys get it with the chicken or beef and love it!

Wendy’s Apple Pecan Chicken Salad. They offer this salad as a full size with a full breast of grilled chicken at 540 calories, or a half size with half the protein at 380 calories.  The size I order is based on how I have eaten that day, and I will typically order the smaller size. At first I thought it wouldn’t be enough food, but it certainly is now! I guess my appetite has shrunk as I have been on this program.  I use everything that comes with it and enjoy the pecans, cranberries, blue cheese crumbles, and love the raspberry vinaigrette!  Generally, my boys will opt for  burger and the fries, but at least I am able to keep on track.

Subway’s Oven Roasted Chicken 6 inch sub!  My newest favorite, and a special thanks to my husband for introducing me to it!  Load on the spinach and red onions, great bread, and the chipotle southwest sauce and I am all set!  This sub is 343 calories the way I build it.  As long as I don’t get chips, I am happy with the calorie count and the flavor is great.

So, if I find I am out and can’t plan ahead these are my “no fail” “no think” great options! Not bad, eh?  I would to hear what menu items you have found that fit your plan and are easy to grab and go!

Stawberry Smoothie & Progress

Mmmmm, this is so yummy! It’s beautiful too with the strawberry flecks and vanilla bean specks.

Pop the following in your vitamix blender:

• 1 c. homemade vanilla fat free yogurt
• 4 frozen strawberries
• 3 packets of Splenda (or agave) or to taste

This will count as one probiotic and fruit.  Probably should have put more fruit in it to count it as a whole fruit serving!

We had a weigh in today and all moved down on the scale except for my son, Nathan. He’s really building teen muscle, and I think he’s redistributing is body fat into muscle. He gained .4 of a pound.

Jeff traveled this past week, so he wasn’t able to get his regular exercise in and didn’t lose as much as he’d like.

We have a trip to Chicago this upcoming weekend, and are concerned about how we’ll eat.  I think we’ll return and be ready to hop back onto one of the more rigorous cycles. We will be home for 2 days and complete this Cycle III, then be ready to go.

We have given ourselves permission to eat what we want without going crazy and know it will be challenging to stay on our plan. Sometimes you just have to live your life and we don’t get a chance to travel and explore like this very often. We want to enjoy every minute of it! I do worry about gastro issues though since we have been eating so healthfully for 45 days now. We may have tummy troubles from fat in that Chicago style pizza, but really want to eat it!  Keep your fingers crossed for us!

Savory Chicken in a Crock pot with Spring Vegetables

Another keeper! We all loved this recipe and wouldn’t change a thing!  Thanks to Stephanie over at A Year of Slow Cooking for this awesome and easy dish!  I meant to take a picture, but we were so hungry we gobbled it up! I will take one next time, I promise!

 

 

 

 

 

 

Balsamic Chicken with Spring Vegetables

–4-6 boneless skinless frozen chicken thighs  (I used thigh strips since that is what the store had that day)

–1 whole head of garlic

–2 zucchinis

–2 yellow squash

–1 orange bell pepper

–1 yellow bell pepper

–1 red onion

–1/4 cup balsamic vinegar

–2 t Worcestershire sauce

–salt and pepper

Salt and pepper your chicken pieces. Mine were still frozen, so a lot of it fell off, so I had to just dump it on top.

Put the chicken into the crock.

Wash and cut all your vegetables and put into a mixing bowl. Peel the head of garlic, but keep the cloves intact.

Toss the vegetables with balsamic vinegar and Worcestershire sauce.

Pour the vegetables on top of the meat.

Cover and cook on low for 6-8 hours.

I cooked this for 6 hours and the temp reading was right where I wanted it to be – 165 degrees.

We ate this on top of saffron rice and it was heavenly!

Weight loss update: end of Cycle 2

Our family is doing GREAT!  We have lost a total of over 42 pounds in 34 days. Jeff is traveling this week, so it may be quite a challenge for him. You know how it is, you work long hard hours and are really tired and want to treat yourself nicely at the end of the day. Your food is going on your expense account. You deserve it. You won’t get to try this particular dish anywhere else! These sound familiar?

I must admit that I am really happy that we have moved to Cycle 3 on this program. Two starches per day, meat whatever day we want, and the thought that I can drink wine again makes me not want to!

We continue to exercise and my feet are hurting much less! The boys are getting stronger and stronger with their circuit training. Nathan is playing tennis every afternoon, and Jeff does the spin class most mornings.  I admit I have slacked off and am focusing on my Pilates and cardio right now. I will add the circuit training back in a month or so.

Jeff and I were talking about how incredible our blood work would look now that we are dining so healthily! We are still working on that Just 10 Pounds thought, and we made our first 10 pound goal.  Now we are determined to meet that second one!

I think we are incredible!