Something Different

It seems like I keep trying something new to lose weight, but I think that the problem has always been "diets" or "plans". Over time, I've slowly realized that the best thing to do, is to take my food intake back to basics. We, as North Americans, eat way too much processed food and to be honest, I really believe that is the main problem causing obesity. I've been reading a lot about eating "paleo"; this is just taking it back to caveman days. If you can look at an item of food and say, I'm pretty sure a caveman would have been able to grow/find this, then go ahead and eat it. If not, then you should probably reassess what you are feeding yourself. I haven't been going crazy cutting any foods out, but I have tried a few things and the idea seems simple enough. Proteins and vegetables are important, and fruits of course.

On top of this, I've read a lot of things suggesting that when you are obese you really don't need 3 meals a day. You aren't going to starve. When I eat just because the clock says it's noon, I'm not really helping myself, I'm hurting myself. I should eat only when I feel hungry. Other "diets" say you should never let yourself get hungry. I think that's crap. You will not die if you skip lunch and just drink water.

I have been trying a liquid meal once a day. I bought Atkin's shakes and Ensure. They are a couple hundred calories with lots of nutrients, and while I feel a little hungry during the day, I know that's okay.

I guess the 2 ideas are conflicting - eating "paleo" and drinking meal replacement shakes - but I'm just trying to figure out the best way to live my life in a healthy way. What works for me, may not be the best for you and vice versa. Which I think is really important for everyone to realize. Just because some diets work for some people, does not mean that when they don't work for you, that you've failed. It just means you need to listen to your body, and find the combination of health tips that do work for you.

I guess that's it for now!

Cabbage Soup

I'm not actually doing the Cabbage Soup Diet... well, not AGAIN that is. Depriving yourself does not work, don't kid yourself. However, by swapping your lunch or dinner (or both?) with this, you can make sure you get some extra veggies in, and be sure you are eating a healthy meal. I would advise that you add some sort of protein to the meal you eat this soup with. I had a Weight Watchers string cheese (1 pt) with my bowl. So, here it is:

Cabbage Soup

(not sure of the Weight Watchers points on this, but a similar veggie soup recipe they have on their website is 0 points. I round up to 1 or 2 points, just in case)

Ingredients:

6 large green onions

2 green peppers

1 or 2 cans of tomatoes (diced or whole)

3 carrots

1 container (10 oz.) mushrooms

1 bunch of celery

Half a head of cabbage

1 package Lipton Soup Mix

1 or 2 cubes of bouillon (optional)

1 48 oz can V8 juice (optional)

Season to taste (salt, pepper, garlic powder, curry, etc.)

Slice green onions, put in a pot and start to saute with cooking spray.

Cut green pepper stem end off and cut in half, take the seeds and membrane out. Cut the green pepper into bite size pieces and add to pot. Take the outer leaf layers off the cabbage, cut into bite size pieces, add to pot. Clean carrots, cut into bite size pieces, add to pot. Slice mushrooms and thick slices, add to pot.

You can use beef or chicken bouillon cubes for seasonings. These have all the salt and flavors you will need.

Use about 12 cups of water (or 8 cups of water and the V8 juice), cover and put heat on low. Let soup cook for about 2 hours.

I changed it up quite a bit; I think you can figure out how to make it the best for you. You can add veggies, remove some you don't like. I would advise starting out with not very much bouillon and soup mix, and slowly add these things bit by bit, so as to not make it too salty. I also advise using more cabbage than it says to. I used almost a full head of it, and it shrinks down to pretty much nothing after cooking.

Word of advice - make sure the pot you are cooking with holds 12 cups of water plus all the things you add. Mine didn't. I think I got about 4 cups of water and all the veggies in.

I don't have the nutritional values for this soup, but most calorie websites have similar soups sitting at about 70 calories for 2 cups. Of course, I always increase my guessed numbers, just in case, so I said 100 calories for 2 cups.

That's all for now folks :)

Cooking It Up

Yesterday I was cooking it up like crazy! I made some awesome Weight Watchers recipe BBQ Chicken Chili and a variation of the Cabbage Soup of the famed "Cabbage Soup Diet". It was surprisingly fun, cutting up veggies. You would think that standing in a kitchen slicing food would allow your brain to wander and worry about things that need to be done... but my brain was completely blank. Maybe I was just focusing on not cutting off my fingers with such a large blade. It was nice to not think about anything. Anyways, I thought I would share these recipes since they are healthy and filling and actually really yummy.

BBQ Chicken Chili - 5 WW Points per serving

Ingredients:

1 lb. ground skinless chicken breasts

1 large onion, chopped

1 green bell pepper, seeded and chopped

3 garlic cloves, chopped

2 (15.5 oz.) cans red kidney beans, rinsed and drained

1 (15.5 oz.) can pinto beans, rinsed and drained

1 (14.5 oz.) can diced tomatoes

1 (12 oz.) bottle chili sauce

1 (4.5 oz.) can chopped green chiles

1/4 cup chili powder

2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce

1 tablespoon molasses

1 tablespoon packed brown sugar

1 tablespoon ground cumin

Place the chicken, onion, bell pepper, and garlic in a slow cooker; stir with a fork to blend. Add the kidney and pinto beans, tomatoes, chili sauce, green chiles, chili powder, Worcestershire sauce, molasses, brown sugar, and cumin; mix well. Cover and cook until the flavors are blended and the chili thickens slightly, 4-5 hours on high or 8-10 hours on low.

Serving = 1 1/4 cups

280 Cal, 3 g Fat, 1 g Sat Fat, 31 mg Chol, 1172 mg Sod, 44 g Carb, 10 g Fib, 22 g Prot, 97 mg Calc.

I changed it up just a bit by leaving out the green pepper (not a big fan), and green chiles. Also, instead of regular packed brown sugar, I found Splenda brown sugar and used that instead. I mixed everything up into the crock pot and then put it in the fridge overnight. The next morning, I started it up and slow cooked it on low for about 9 hours. This is definitely a good one to make for husbands too (mine's a picky eater but loves this)!

I think I will post the Cabbage Soup in a separate post, I don't want this one to seem so long. Okay, so... make this Chili, it is yummy :)

Holy Crap

I seem to have forgotten this blog... my husband reminded me a few times over the last year and a bit, but I let it slip my mind again.

I just read my last post and it was from before doing the Susan Komen! I thought I better update because someone might think I went and died that day doing the race! Let me tell you, that day was more painful than I could have imagined. If I knew if was going to be like that, I would not have done it. Not long into the race my lower legs and my feet went numb, so it was like carrying dead weight around the rest of the way. There was only one water station, which was horrible, I could have used many more. But, of course, the day was a success - I finished, second to last (but not last!) and cried. I was so overcome with the realization that we really can do anything. Our bodies are more resilient than we give them credit for. I am incredibly glad I participated in that.

This first pic is us getting ready for the race to start.


My Weight Watchers leader came back up the hill for me and her daughter. It was nice to see her coming back up to greet us and then encouraging us to the finish!

I think next time, I want to actually train for the race though :)
More of an update later... probably lol