Cleaning out my fridge and finding alternatives.

I have learned that in our house we just don't eat leftovers like some people do. If it gets shoved in my fridge, it stays there until the creepy-crawlies find it. Ewww.

After a few years of that I had enough. I try to make just enough meal for us to eat at one setting and if there are leftovers they better get eaten for lunch, or they're outta there!
Still, we end up having clutter with condiments, bottles, cheeses, fruits, and veggies. I try at least once a week ( the day before garbage pick-up)  to go through my refrigerator. I like to get rid of anything out of date and take a note of what needs to be re-stocked.

When I clean out my fridge, I also take the time to wipe it down, even making sure to clean the seals on the doors. (The seals can get so gross!) I also check to make sure my box of baking soda is still doing its job. Its important to have that deodorizer in your fridge so your fresh foods keep from absorbing other food smells and tastes.

So when I decided to start my new diet back in May of last year, I needed to keep a couple shelves in the refrigerator for myself. This plan has worked out great for me! I only keep what I am allowed to eat on my shelves. I also did this in my pantry. I have my own diet sections in my kitchen. :) This keeps me from the temptations of snacking on the first thing I see. Having kids in the house means cereal bars, cookies, puddings, and crackers which are all "off limits". If I have my alternative foods on my shelf, I don't have an excuse!!!

Lets talk about alternatives:

As I have mentioned before, I am at a point in my diet that I want to maintain my weight and exercise for health. Making the right food choices is still an act of will power, so I consider myself still dieting. lol
When I go to the grocery store I look for products that are sugar free, low fat, and gluten free.

Even though these cake mixes are sugar free, they are certainly not Fat free, Calorie free, or Gluten Free. You have to be careful not to be fooled by marketing. Read the labels!!! Make sure you know what your goals are in order to make smart choices.

Sugar free Jell-o's are fun and I like that you already have the serving size dished out to you. Serving size is also something you want to look at when you are reading labels, for example......

Fat free Fig Newtons are awesome in flavor, but they are not sugar free and a serving size is just two cookies! :(  (Not enough in my book. lol)

I tend to stick with fresh fruits and veggies because I am trying to go gluten free. There are "only so many" options in the gluten free sections here in Wrangell and most of them are not sugar free, so I am stuck making my own goodies.... Like these wonderful low carb, sugar free, gluten free Apple Cinnamon Muffins......

( Recipe posted on A Spoonful of Wellness page)

These muffins are so good and good for you! An apple bran muffin from Starbucks has a whopping 57g net carbs in it where as one on these muffins of comparable size only has 4g net carbs!!! Wow! What a difference. :)

Fat Free Chobani I will indulge in once in awhile. They are so yummy and good for your digestive system, but they do have sugar  and a lot of sodium in them. Gluten free though! :)

Frozen grapes are a fun alternative to ice cream in the evenings. Instead of Chocolate chips, try using Carob chips, switching from white bread to whole wheat like Ezekiel 4:9 Sprouted Grain Bread ,

even though its not gluten free, would be a healthier choice that your whole family might enjoy. Instead of using regular dressings on your salads try using the Walden Farms 0 calorie dressings. Drop the dip and start using salsa! ( I love salsa, and I can make my own! Its not that hard. ) Pop your own popcorn and top with sugar free chocolate chips, coconut flakes, and raisins!!!! Yummy!

Use sugarfree creamer in your coffee, give turkey bacon a try, use big lettuce leaves instead of buns when you are eating a hamburger!!!

There are so many alternatives out there and if you have a few minutes on the Internet, you can discover them for yourself!

The Wii and the Gazelle: A love story

I love my Gazelle!!!!
This is the only exercise machine that I can't get rid of! I have had my Gazelle for 6 years. Its beat up, worn out, the calorie computer is gone, and one rubber shoe stopper is missing, but it is pretty much indestructible! :)
The Gazelle is basically a swing set for your legs and arms. Its totally low-impact on your knees( A huge plus for me ). You are the motor to power it, so exercising during nap-time is quietly awesome! For years, I would plug my headphones in and run until the babies woke up, but then........
We Bought A Wii

One of the programs we purchased with our Wii was the Wii Fit Plus program. This program is full of great exercises and it makes working out fun! When I came across the running game I was excited. I wondered if I could Gazelle with the Wii remote in my pocket? Would it work just the same as if you were walking in place?
Yes!!! It works great!! I can actually hop on my Gazelle and walk around the Wii Island!!! It is so much fun to feel like you are going somewhere when you are exercising. (Very important for this lady!!!)  I get so board looking at the same corner of the room every day. lol

I try to work out at least 30 minutes a day. Yesterday I didn't, and I felt so guilty, but it happens. When I Gazelle I burn an average of 200 calories in 30 minutes!!!

The New Me :)

I am going to give you the low-down of what I am eating these days to keep my self in good maintenance!

Since going on the HCG diet I have learned that smart food choices are key. Cutting out Gluten and Sugar is a huge part of what I am doing right now. Exploring new recipes and thinking outside the box is important, otherwise you will just end up eating the same old diet food everyday. Who wants that? There are only so many Lean Quisine's out there..... especially in Wrangell.

Breakfast:
There are actually alot of options for breakfast, but I know alot of us don't have time to make anything from scratch. About 4 days out of the week I grab my trusty sliced Golden Delicious apple and add 1/2 cup of low fat cottage cheese, or 1/4 cup of Adam's all natural peanut butter for dipping! I will also make waffles and scones with Bisquick's Gluten Free Pancake and Baking mix when I really think I need comfort food. Sugar free syrup is an awesome way to dress those waffles up and I love Walden's 0 Calorie Raspberry Jelly on my scones. :)
Eggs and Bacon are another trusty favorite for everyone in my house. Its super hard not to have that wonderful buttered bread with my eggs, but I can substitute that with drop biscuits I make from Bob's Red Mill Gluten Free Biscuit and Baking mix.

Lunch:
Lately I have been on a smoothie kick! There are so many amazing smoothie recipes out there. When I was on the HCG diet I found this wonderful detox smoothie called the Phase 2 Smoothie: 3oz of raw baby spinach, 5oz of frozen strawberries, 3oz of low fat cottage cheese, 1 tbsp Hershey's unsweetened cocoa, and two packages of Stevia. Blend in a blender and enjoy! When I notice I need to clean out my system....ah.hem......., I have a Phase 2 Smoothie and viola! :) I feel great the next day!
Another smoothie that will give you a little pep in your step is my favorite! Peanut-Banana Espresso Smoothie: 1 cup low fat milk, 1 tbsp instant espresso powder, 1/4 cup Adam's Natural Peanut Butter, 1 ripe banana, and a cup of ice. This makes a super filling smoothie that gives you desert satisfaction!!!

Dinner:

I am eating more veggies that I ever have in my life! Just as this photo shows, I am filling up half my plate with leafy greens. I love the Fresh Express Spring Mix you can get at City Market as well as the Baby Spinach leaves. :) I try to have my greens at least once a day, but twice is best. City Market has brought in a great selection of Walden Farms 0 calorie salad dressings, ketchup, BBQ sauces and jellies. These 0 cal sauces have saved my life! I love all the flavors and I don't feel guilty about pouring on the dressing! Yay!
I can also mix the dressing in with my tuna or boiled egg for a super low calorie spread and I like to marinate my chicken breast or diet steaks in the BBQ sauces. So good!
I use the George Foreman Grill to cook my proteins fast. It is hard to cook a meal for my family and then cook for myself, so the Foreman Grill comes in handy. I also try to match what my family is having for dinner, so I don't feel left out. Here's an example:

 My family eats:

Banquet Chicken,
mashed potatoes,
white country gravy,
home style biscuits,
and asparagus.

I eat:
3-5oz of grilled chicken breast ( marinated with Walden Farms Honey BBQ sauce)
1 cup faux-tatos ( take a bag frozen cauliflower, microwave for 10 minutes, add to 1/2 cup cream cheese, blend in food processor)
1 Bob's Red Mill Gluten Free drop biscuit
all the asparagus I want!

An apple a day!

I eat an apple every day! I know, seems weird right? Well when  was on the HCG diet I was allowed to have an apple for breakfast and I just haven't stopped! lol My favorite apples are Golden Delish, Honey Crisp, and Fuji. I also love a good apple for an evening snack.

(("Fred came rushing in to his Dad. “Dad!” he puffed, “is it true that an apple a day keeps the doctor away?” “That’s what they say,” said his Dad. “Well, give me an apple quick ? I’ve just broken the doctor’s window!”."))

These are the jokes, people! lol

Apple Facts & Benefits:

• Apples are fat, sodium, and cholesterol free.
• A medium apples is about 80 calories.
• Apples are a great source of the fiber pectin.
• One apple has five grams of fiber.
• The apple is a highly nutritive food. It contains minerals and vitamins in abundance. The food value of the apple is chiefly constituted by its contents of sugar which ranges from 9 to 51 per cent. Of this, fruit sugar constitutes 60 per cent and glucose 25 pet cent and cane sugar only 15 per cent.
• Apples are useful in kidney stones
• The skin of apple should not be discarded when taking it in raw form as the skin and the flesh just below it contain more vitamin C than the inner flesh. The vitamin content decreases gradually towards the center of the fruit. The skin also contains five times more vitamin A than the flesh.
• Iron contained in the apple helps in formation of blood.
• Raw apples are good for constipation.
• Cooked or baked apples are good for diarrhea.
• Apples have been found useful in acute and chronic dysentery among children. Ripe and sweet apples should be crushed into pulp and given to the child several times a day.
• Apples are of special value to heart patients. They are rich in potassium and phosphorus but low in sodium. It is also useful for patients of high blood pressure.
• Apple is also said to be beneficial to gout patients caused by increase of uric acid in blood.
• The apple peel water is an excellent medicine for the inflamed eyes as an eye wash. The over-ripe apples are useful as a poultice for sore eyes. The pulp is applied over the closed eyes.
• Tooth-decay can be prevented by regular consumption of apples as they possess a mouth cleansing property.
• The apple is the best fruit to tone up a weak and run-down patient. It removes deficiencies of vital organs and makes the body stout and strong. It tones up the body and the brain as it contains more phosphorus and iron than any other fruit or vegetable.

Keeping track of what you eat!

I have always kind of kept track of the calories I would eat in a day, but mostly in my head. I have had a few diaries over the years, but never kept up with them. Now with all this technology we have these days it is so much easier to keep track!
Counting calories really became popular when the Nutrition Facts became mandatory in 1990. Just recently I watched a video of a study in which a group of people followed a diet. Half of the people kept a food diary and the other half didn't. The study found that the people who kept a food diary lost an average of five pounds more than the people who didn't keep a diary!
Here are some great apps that can help with counting calories and keeping track of your food intake. :)
 http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/10-great-healthrelated-apps-iphone-ipad/
I recently started to use Calorie Counter and Diet Tracker just for reference and so far I am happy with it. :)

My son asleep in a Sumo suit! Just had to share. :)

Vitamins

No matter what diet you are on it is always a good idea to take vitamins! This is hard for me because I am NOT a pill popper. I don't remember to take them and when I think about it I put it off. :(
The problem with "not" taking vitamins is that your body will not be getting what it needs to function properly when dieting.
I know this first hand....... My fingernails will get brittle and even get vertical lines in them, my body will start to bruise with the slightest bump and my hair will start to fall out in mass amounts when I take my showers! Eeew! (Let me tell you, the hair falling out sure changed my mind about taking my vitamins!!!) I will also be lethargic, get cramps in my muscles, and my attitude changes because I don't feel well.
I turned to Melaleauca in my case because they have the most wonderful vitamin packets!!! They are called Vitality for women and I couldn't be happier. :) They are not terribly expensive and the packets are designed for and AM dose and a PM dose.  I don't have to have 7 different bottles to open everyday and I don't have to think about what kind of vitamins to take! I just rip open a packet in the morning and take those pills with breakfast. SIMPLE

HCG Diet

Well most of you know that I have tried a few diets since I have had kids.
My after-pregnancy weight was 190lbs for almost a year!
The first diet I was successful on was the Slimfast diet. :) I was 22 years old and I needed to lose that stubborn pregnancy fat! I drank a slimfast shake in the morning, ate a slimfast bar for lunch, and then I had a Lean Cuisine for dinner.
It was a tough diet to be on in the beginning. There was no snacking allowed and I delt with hunger pains and cravings for the first couple weeks. Once I got through the first couple weeks, my stomach had shrunk and hunger wasn't a big deal anymore. I did a ton of walking for exercise with my two kiddos in a double stroller. Fun times! I lost 30lbs on that diet over the summer.

Eventually I crept back up to 180 again and I yo-yo'ed many times with many silly diets. I even got hooked on Ephedrine for awhile. (Never do that again) Anywhoo, I still would gain the pounds that I had lost in the summer. Why?
Because I am a huge comfort food eater! I love bread, pasta, butter, anything deep fried, pastries......, its not fair everything that tastes delish' has to be bad for you! ~Pout~

Last year a few of the local ladies started losing major amounts of weight, and the buzz was a diet called HCG. I totally didn't know what it was about, so I looked it up and found out it was a hormone supplement that tricked your body into using up its fat stores while you were on a Very Low Calorie Diet. I did my research and decided to give it a try.

On 5/7/2011 I was 184lbs

By 6/15/2011 I weighed 168lbs.

At 9/17/2011 I weighed 150lbs.  So in four months I lost 34lbs with out exercising! None at all! And it wasn't even hard. I was never extremely hungry either!

I have been off the supplement for almost 4 months now and I have maintained a nice 145lbs..... even over the holidays!!!

If you are curios about the HCG diet, check out this program that I went through.... myhgcplus.com . This site will tell you everything you need to know about the HCG program.

Now that I have gone through the program I have learned a whole new way to maintain my body and keep the weight off with the right type of foods and exercise! This is what I will be sharing with you in my blog. :)

Pepperplate!!!!! Sounds funny....I know.....

Ok,
My first recommendation for everyone is to sign up on Pepperplate.com ! Pepperplate is the most awesome way to collect and manage recipes you find online from various sites. Especially for dieting!!!{ Import and edit recipes from the most popular recipe sites by simply pasting a URL.}  I use Pepperplate every single day, between my PC, iPad, and iPhone. {Eliminate stacks of books and piles of paper in the kitchen!} I love to collect and categorize all of my recipes as I import them and Pepperplate's program updates my iPad and iPhone instantly. {Carry your shopping list with you and add to it in store with your recipe collection .} Its so nice to be able to have that shopping list with me at the store so I don't have to try and remember what funky type of food I am after. :)
Do me a favor and check Pepperplate.com out! Even if you don't have and iPad or iPhone, you can still collect all those yummy recipes on your PC. :) Yay!!

Its about time! :)

Hello Ladies!!!! I have started this blog for the sole purpose of sharing my dieting adventures with you!! Since this is totally a blog for family & friends, don't be surprized by my crazy, unprofessional techniques. lol I hope you can benefit from the things I have discovered!