Tuesday, January 29, 2013

Weigh In Tuesday

After another week of not too many workouts, I'm very pleased with the results! Next week I will kick my own ass at the gym! :) I will be taking my progress picture tomorrow :)

WEIGH IN : WEEK 16

Starting Weight: 307.5 lbs
Current Weight: 255.4 lbs
Weekly Loss: 2.2 lbs
Total Loss: 52.1

Monday, January 28, 2013

Skinny seafood portofino

Experimenting with food is a huge key to a successful diet, in my opinion. Keeping things fresh and trying new flavors will keep you interested and motivated in keeping with your goals. While grocery shopping last week, I noticed a new item that piqued my interest. Philadelphia cooking creme. If you only use a little, it's relatively low in fat, and has a good protein! It comes in a low fat version too, but I haven't found that yet. I will keep looking! I plan on trying this with a few different recipe ideas to see how well it works, but I am definitely impressed so far! I used savory garlic for this recipe :)

Ingredients:

Non stick cooking spray
3 cloves garlic, minced
3 tablespoons red onion (I use dehydrated)
1 cup sliced mushrooms
Sprinkle of Mrs. Dash onion & herb seasoning
Dash of Italian seasoning
1/2 cup low sodium beef broth
7 oz peeled shrimp, raw or cooked
2 tbs Philadelphia cooking creme
1 and 1/2 cup spaghetti squash, cooked
2-3 tbs parmesan cheese


In a large sauté pan, heat up cooking spray on medium heat. Add garlic and red onion, stirring often to brown. After 5 minutes, add mushrooms in an even layer. Add seasonings. Brown on both sides until mushrooms are caramelized and lightly crispy. Deglaze the pan by adding the beef broth and picking up the browned bits with a wooden spoon. Add shrimp and heat through. Add 2 tablespoons of cooking creme and stir until it creates a creamy sauce. Add the spaghetti squash and stir. Simmer everything together to meld the flavors and serve. Sprinkle with parmesan cheese and enjoy!

Tuesday, January 22, 2013

Weigh In Tuesday

Well, after a record breaking week last week, this week is the lowest weight I've lost. I'm a little annoyed with myself because after having such a good week work out wise, I haven't been to the gym since. I just never got around to it. I stayed active mostly, but not one gym workout. In Sunday we went and helped grandma load, carry and stack wood for two hours so I know I got some good exercise then, but not enough. Regardless, I will take a 1.4 lb loss because it brings me to 49.9 lbs lost!! I am definitely calling that 50 hehe. I'm very excited and proud!


WEIGH IN : WEEK 15

Starting Weight: 307.5 lbs
Current Weight: 257.6 lbs
Weekly Loss: 1.4 lbs
Total Loss: 49.9 lbs (50!!)

Tuesday, January 15, 2013

Stew!

It's been awfully chilly outside these past two weeks. All I feel like having when it's cold outside, is warm, delicious comfort food. That's when the soup craze started. Lately, I've been craving a thicker broth, like stew. For Christmas, Aaron made me a delicious replica version of the ultra fattening (but AMAZING) traditional Québec ragout. It was lean, but needed a thickening agent. That's when we played around with corn starch for a bit. After the initial successful thickening of the ragout, I tried again with my soups only to have a mini heart attack when I saw how many carbs and calories were going into my broth, mostly in vain because it really wasn't working too well. I gave up on the idea for a whole until recently. I was walking through the grocery store and saw a sale on top round beef roasts. At this point, I am over ground turkey and I was craving some red meat. All I could think of when I saw it was stew. That's when I began to research low carb thickening solutions again. I came upon this website that had the most genius idea ever. So simple, I should have thought of it myself! Purred low carb veggies, people!! That's the secret! I've had stew three times this week and I can't stop lol. Here is the recipe for my reinvented skinny stew! Enjoy!

Ingredients:

• 1 top round beef roast, fat trimmed and cooked in the crockpot on low for 8 hrs. (You will have LOTS of left overs!)

• 2 medium turnips, peeled and cubed.

• 2 cups of green cabbage, shredded.

• 1.5 cups of green beans, trimmed.

• 4 cups of low sodium beef broth.

• 2 tbsp of Mrs. Dash onion and herb salt free seasoning.

• 1 clove of garlic, minced.

• Fresh ground pepper to taste.

• 2 tsp tomato paste.

In a large pot, bring the beef broth to a rolling boil. Add garlic, tomato paste, and seasonings.
Add turnips, green beans, and cabbage. Boil until vegetables are soft; about 10 minutes.
With a slotted spoon, take the turnips and 80% of the cabbage out and put into a blender. (I use the magic bullet) Add a spoonful of broth to mixture. Purée until very smooth. Add back to broth.
Add 6 oz of the slow cooked beef and stir everything together. If it isn't thick enough to your liking, keep boiling gently until more liquid evaporates and it reduces.

Tada! Done! That's it! It's the creamiest, thickest, most satisfying way of having my lean and green yet!




Weigh In Tuesday!

This week was a huge victory for me :) I had great, frequent work outs, I drank a lot more water, I ate very well, and it showed! I lost 4.8 lbs this week. That's insane! I haven't lost that much since my first 2 weeks! This week also marked hitting three awesome goals. With this weekly loss, I am officially one third of the way to my goal!! That feels incredible. I still have a lot of work ahead of me, but I am that much closer! Also, I am now officially in the 250's. I think the last time I must have been there was in 2008. Maybe even 2007. Huge! ANDDDDD I am now only 1.5 lb away from 50 lbs lost and my next progress picture :) one happy girl here!! I've also had many small victories this week. Where I'll notice something that wasn't there before. For example, I can now feel my ribs and hip bones when I'm lying in bed. Weird victory, right? Most people feel those daily lol. But it was all new to me :) I can bend over and tie my shoes without much effort. I can go longer during cardio exercise without having to stop for a breath... All these little things, make for a very happy me :)


WEIGH IN : WEEK 14

Starting Weight: 307.5 lbs
Current Weight: 259 lbs
Weekly Loss: 4.8 lbs
Total Loss: 48.5 lbs

Tuesday, January 8, 2013

The Hoodie Experiment : Week Thirteen

Time for new pictures :) yay!

Week one, week eight, and week thirteen!



Weigh In Tuesday

I am really slacking about writing in my blog except for on Tuesdays. I've had many awesome small victories lately, but I feel like I share everything on Facebook, so I don't need to share it on here... Regardless. I should start doing more blogging. It might keep me a little more accountable. I'll admit I've been slacking off a little these last two weeks. I know how important it is to eat my 5 medifast meals everyday, but lately, I've only had about two per day and supplementing with low carb veggies and fat free dressing. I also have been slacking on my water intake. My pink water bottle is no longer usable (I used it so much it got gross!!) so I have to find another one I like. I know that's not an excuse, but it's really been hindering it. I don't really know where the slacking off is coming from? Maybe I got too comfortable in my routine and slowly just dropped it? Too much stress? Either way. I need to refocus. I think when I have some spare time tomorrow I'll read some medifast success stories on their website. That oughta do it.

Speaking of stress.... 4 days ago, my darling hubby found out he was being laid off from his job. That erases and restructures our entire spending budget. Mainly that we don't have much of one anymore. I was worried about when it came time to re order more medifast. Fortunately, my awesome friend Brittney who was doing medifast also, was a blessing at just the right time. She sadly discovered after a few months on the program that it was upsetting her stomach and she wanted to change her diet. It was too late for her to return her meals, so she so very generously donated all of her remaining stock. Which was A LOT! Thank you Britt, I am very grateful! I won't have to worry about that part of life for a while, which is amazing :) I have every faith and confidence in her that she will continue on the path to health with a different method!

Alright. Enough jabbering and now the results :)

WEIGH IN : WEEK 13

Starting Weight: 307.5 lbs
Current Weight: 263.8 lbs
Weekly Loss: 2 lbs
Total Loss: 43.7 lbs

And I just realized I was confused on my weeks! I am starting week 14 today and I thought I was starting week 13. Which means I am a week late for taking my hoodie experiment photo! I will do that when I get home :)

Tuesday, January 1, 2013

Weigh In Tuesday!

Happy New Year! 2013 is going to be a great year for me! :) I got to start it this morning with a weigh in!

WEIGH IN : WEEK 12

Starting Weight: 307.5 lbs
Current Weight: 265.8 lbs
Weekly Loss: 3.2 lbs
Total Loss: 41.7 lbs

I'm feeling so blessed that things are flowing so well right now! I've lost almost 10 lbs in the last three weeks and resisted all temptations to holiday treats! I'm feeling strong and more confident about myself and my abilities! I will finish 2013 with many victories! :) This year will be so exciting :) p