Quick and Dirty “Quesadillas”

I’m not sure if this is technically a quesadilla, but it is great whatever it is. This is a great dinner idea for when you’re in a rush and don’t have a lot of time to put dinner together. That is, this is quick if you have two large pans so that you can cook both of these “quesadillas” at the same time.

Ingredients (2 servings):

• 2 Ezekiel tortillas (typically found in the frozen section of your grocery store)
• 1 cup black beans
• 1/4 avocado
• 1/2 cup shredded fat-free mozzarella
• 2 to 4 oz. turkey breast lunch meat (I’m not a big meat eater, so I just use one slice in each quesadilla… give the lunch meat a try! It’s good).
• ½ bell pepper (chopped)
• 6 cherry tomatoes
• ½ cup plain nonfat Greek yogurt (for a dipping sauce)
• Red chili pepper flakes, salt, and pepper to taste

Directions:

• Set both skillets onto large burners and turn the heat to low.
• Spray each skillet with nonstick spray.
• Place a frozen tortilla in each pan.
• Tear the lunch meat up a little so that it can be evenly distributed over the surface of each tortilla.
• Spread ½ cup of black beans into an even layer on each tortilla.
• Chop a green bell pepper and then place ¼ cup of bell pepper in an even layer on each tortilla.
• Chop the avocado and then place half in an even layer on each tortilla.
• Chop the cherry tomatoes and then place half in an even layer on each tortilla.
• Sprinkle ¼ cup cheese onto each tortilla.
• Add seasons as desired
• Use a spatula to help you flip half of the tortilla over.
• Serve with Greek yogurt as an optional dipping sauce.

Nutrition:

This graphic is a screen capture of this meal in my My Fitness Pal food log. All of the nutrients are based on one serving, which is half of this recipe.

Curry

This was my first attempt at making one of my most beloved meals, curry. I love any kind of curry! This recipe uses chicken, but you could leave that out and it would still taste great.

Ingredients (for two people):

• 6 oz. /or/ 1-1/3 cup cubed potato (about one medium potato)
• 1 cup light coconut milk
• 6 oz. boneless skinless chicken breast strips (I find that each strip tends to be about 2 oz.)
• 1 bag (16oz) California style frozen vegetables (broccoli, cauliflower, carrots)
• 1 tbsp. curry powder
• 1/8 tsp. crushed red chili pepper flakes
• ¼ cup nonfat Greek yogurt
• Salt & pepper to taste

Directions:

• Heat the chicken in a thin layer of filtered water in a large skillet. I used setting 3 on my stovetop, which is a low medium heat. Leave the heat setting at the same temperature throughout the preparation and cooking time.
• While the meat is heating up, chop the potato into small cubes.
• Cook the potatoes in the microwave for 4 minutes and 20 seconds. Check on them and if they are not yet soft, cook them some more.
• The meat should be thawed out by now, so either take it out of the pan to cut it into small pieces or cut it in the pan. I don’t use a nonstick or cast-iron pan, so I just cut it in the pan.
• Add the coconut milk, yogurt, curry, potatoes, and crushed red chili pepper flakes to the pan.
• Stir everything together until it is well blended.
• If the chicken pieces are white, go ahead and add the frozen veggie mix to the pan.
• Everything should be in the pan now. Stir it around from time to time till the veggies are hot and the sauce thickens a little. This shouldn’t take more than 15 minutes.

Nutrition Information (based on the brands that I bought):

This graphic is a screen capture of this meal in my My Fitness Pal food log. All of the nutrients are based on one serving, which is half of this recipe.

My Plateau Scare

A very scary thing happened last week. My weight loss stalled. I lost and gained back the same .2 pounds daily. This went on for about five days before I told my husband what was going on. We talked about lots of different aspects of what I had been doing over the last week to see if anything was different. The only thing that had changed was that I was working out a little harder during my exercises. I had previously been keeping my heart rate in or below zone three while doing cardio. In the week that my weight loss stalled, I had been staying in zone 4 more and even spending a small amount of time in zone 5.

I had done some research when I started exercising on heart rate zones and what’s best for weight loss, but I guess I went away from that over time. From what I read online, the top of zone three is a great place to be at for both weight loss and health. I think the main reason that I started to push myself more during cardio was because I wanted to eat more. I knew that if I pushed myself harder I would burn more calories and thus have more calories that I could consume that day. However, through the complicated way that bodies burn calories through exercise, that didn’t work out so great for me.

I’m so glad that my husband suggested that I actually reduce the heart rate zone that I stay in while exercising. I have to admit, I was a little skeptical that his advice would work, but it did! Two days ago I started keeping my heart rate at the top of zone three again, and presto! I’m losing weight again! Now, if I want to eat more I work out for longer, not harder.

* Check with your doctor before changing your diet. What works for me may not work for you.

How We Do Cheat Night ~ Sabotage Free!!

Our Wonderful Fattening Tradition

My husband and I created the tradition of pizza and ice cream night about as soon as we started dating. He loves ice cream and I love pizza. As you know, eating these two items together in their full fat versions is a sure fire way to gain weight. I’ve experimented with making healthier and lower calorie versions of pizza before, but I find that having low calorie pizza doesn’t satisfy my pizza tooth.

How to Make It Work

 

This combination that I’ve pictured here is the best option that I’ve come up with. I’m so excited to have finally figured out a way to have deliciousness without gaining weight! As long as I exercise for about 45 minutes to an hour on our splurge day, I find that I don’t wake up to weight gain the next morning. In fact, I still lost .2 pounds when I weighed myself the following morning after eating this.

The “Ice Cream”

 

 

The ice cream that I chose is made from almond milk and has a lot less sugar than all the other options I’ve found so far that are also low fat. This ice-cream is a conundrum. It is sweet and delicious with only 7 grams of sugar and no artificial sweeteners! I posted a pic of the back of the carton so you can inform me if I’m wrong, but I don’t believe anything in that list is an artificial sweetener.

 

 

 

The Pizza

I choose the pizza for this meal because it has 430 calories for one piece of French bread pizza. The fat content is really high at 21 grams, but it’s just bad enough to be satisfying without completely killing my diet for the day. I avoid fat throughout the first part of the day and just become ok with going a little over still on my fat intake overall that day. In case you’re wondering about other aspects of this items nutritional content, there are 47 carbs (4 dietary fiber and 5 from sugar), 7 grams of saturated fat, 6 polyunsaturated, 7 monosaturated, zero transfat, 13 grams of protein, 10 % vitamin A, 10% vitamin C, 15% calcium, and 10% iron in each French bread pizza.

The Cost of It All

This meal is also cheaper than some other pizza ice cream combos that we’ve tried out in the past. I spent about $2.30 on the French bread pizza at Publix. The box comes with two pizzas. I bought the So Delicicious Almond Milk ice cream at Whole Foods for about $4.80. It recommends a ½ cup serving size, but we split the container and had a full cup each. I ate my French bread pizza with two table spoons of light ranch and about ¼ teaspoon of creole seasoning. My husband didn’t add anything to his pizza.

Wrapping Up

I know that this sounds like a terrible meal for a diet, but I think it’s essential to find ways to satisfy cravings for foods that we love so that we don’t go crazy. This meal does make us go over on our fat for the day, so it may not be a good idea for everyone, but if you’re like us and just can’t give up pizza and ice cream, you may enjoy this meal.  

* Check with your doctor before changing your diet. What works for me may not work for you.

My Inspiration Picture

I was reading Fit to the Finish’s blog today titled “Finding Inspiration in a Picture” and it incited me to write a post about my own inspirational picture. I liked this post because she used a picture of a thinner version of herself for motivation, as opposed to a model. I’ve tried posting pictures of thin girls on the fridge before, but it doesn’t work. When I look at a picture of myself from when I was thinner, I know what I ate then and how active I was. I don’t know those things about other unknown people, so it doesn’t do me a lot of good to look at them to try to feel inspired.

The picture that I have chosen is perfect because I was even surprised at the time that I had gotten that thin. It’s also a great picture because I know what size jeans I was wearing and what I weighed. If I look at another person looking thin, I don’t know those things about them. Are they a size zero? Do they have a high metabolisim? They probably don’t have a sluggish thyroid like me… I start to think of all the reasons that I can’t look like the person in the “inspiration” picture. When I look at an image of myself, I have remarkably fewer comebacks.

I’m Craving Mexican Food!

Quesadillas with Refried Black Beans

This is a great recipe for doing alone or with the help of loved ones or friends. There are so many small easy things to be done to get this ready that you could ask for assistance from people of all different cooking skill levels. I find that this tends to be the case with Mexican food in general. Perhaps it has something to do with the culture in which these dishes originated? I don’t know, but I love the idea of a kitchen full of people all helping out.



Ingredients (2 servings):

• 2 Ezekiel tortillas (typically found in the frozen section of your grocery store)
• 1 cup of low or fat free refried black beans
• ¼ avocado
• ½ cup shredded cheese (I used mozzarella)
• 5 oz of shredded chicken (I cook then shred 4 small chicken breast strips)
• ½ bell pepper (chopped)
• ½ cup plain nonfat Greek yogurt (in place of sour cream) (optional side)

Directions:

• Follow the directions on the package for how to cook your chicken strips. Make sure to start these first so they can cook while you get the rest of the meal ready.
• Warm two large skillets on the stove top on medium heat (heat setting 3 or 4). It’s fine to just use one pan too if you want. I use two so that the quesadillas will be ready at the same time.
• Chop the bell pepper then divide into two portions and set aside.
• Add ¼ cup of shredded cheese to each portion of chopped bell pepper.
• The Ezekiel tortillas tend to come frozen. Thaw them out 10 seconds at a time in the microwave. Flip them over in between each 10 seconds until they are slightly warm.
• Warm the beans in the microwave as well. I cook them for a minute, stir, and then take it from there till warm.
• Each person will get 1/8 avocado. Now would be a good time to cut your avocado into eighths.
• Chicken strips are great because they cook faster than larger chicken breasts. Once they are done, chop them into small pieces.
• Divide the chicken up into two portions and then add the chicken to the bell peppers and cheese.
• These quesadillas are going to be the kind that fold over, as opposed to the larger two tortilla kind. Place you chicken, bell pepper, cheese filling onto half of the tortilla and then fold it over.
• Do this with the other tortilla as well.
• Place each quesadilla onto a pan.
• Let the quesadilla cook on each side until it is slightly browned or the cheese is melted.
• It shouldn’t take more than 3-5 minutes on each side. 

Summary:

Each plate should receive 1 quesadilla, ½ cup refried black beans, and 1/8 avocado slice.


What’s for desert?

Perhaps you have enough of your daily sugar allotment left over and you can have a no sugar added fudge pop, or maybe a sugar free pop instead. 


* Check with your doctor before changing your diet. What works for me may not work for you.

Are You Sure This is Healthy? Breakfast

My husband and I absolutely love this breakfast! It tastes like desert but it’s actually really great for you. I read online recently that oranges, almonds, and oats are all great for lowering you cholesterol. It’s also supposedly better for lowering your cholesterol if you eat these things together rather than separate.

I had noticed that many weight loss bloggers or vloggers have oatmeal for breakfast. I wanted to give oats a chance because of this, but at the same time I really dislike oatmeal. It’s boring and I don’t enjoy the texture. If you are in the same boat that I was in, you may want to try this breakfast out. There’s no cooking involved and you can make it in advance and store it in your fridge.

Men tend to eat more than women and larger people tend to need more calories than smaller people, so if this will be split between two people with different caloric needs, adjust your breakfast accordingly. My husband and I drink an iced coffee protein shake with this and he has an additional small bowl of cereal and one hardboiled egg white. I’ll list the protein shake too below if you’re interested.

Yogurt, fruit, and oats breakfast (2 servings):

• 1 cup quick oats
• ¼ cup almond milk (unsweetened)
• 1/8 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1 apple
• ½ orange
• ½ cup Greek nonfat plain yogurt
• 10 whole raw almonds

Instructions:

• Chop the almonds into small pieces. I don’t use pre-chopped just because it’s not what I have on hand.
• Chop the half orange and apple with a knife or in a food processor. Be careful not to over process the fruit because their individual textures are nice and give the meal variety.
• Mix everything together and either store it or divide it in half and serve.
• If you would like to have a larger serving of this, you may want to reduce the amount of fruit in this dish so that you don’t go over on your daily recommendation for sugar.

Coffee Protein Shake (2 servings):

• 4 cups of coffee (see instructions below)
• 2 scoops of protein powder
• Ice

Instructions:

• Brew the coffee twice as strong as you normally would. This is important because when you pour the hot coffee over ice, the ice will melt and weaken the coffee.
• We drink these shakes in 24 oz cups. The ones we use are BPA free and cost about $5 each at Wal-Mart.
• We blend the protein powder and coffee in the food processor because it’s less of a hassle than using the blender. You could probably also just use a shaker cup.
• Once you’ve mixed your ingredients together, fill your cup up to the brim with ice and then pour the mixture over the ice.
• If you would like to add a little something extra to these shakes, you could try 1/8 teaspoon of cinnamon and or a tablespoon of almond or sun butter. If you add almond or sun butter, make sure to do so when the mixture is still hot.

* Check with your doctor before changing your diet. What works for me may not work for you.

It Feels Decadent Snack

I don’t know about you, but I love coffee and chocolate together. When I first started dieting I thought, surely I can’t eat things like that. However, it turns out I can in moderation. I find that doing little things helps me to stay happy and on the right track.

I haven’t noticed this snack affecting my weight loss when I weigh myself the next day, so I’m assuming it’s ok. Diabetics can try something similar to this as well. Just exchange the Andes mint for a sugar free snack.

I use almond milk to whiten my coffee because regular milk creeps me out and because almond milk has better nutritional content than regular milk. If you live near a Trader Joes try this snack with their chi coffee blend. It’s really great!

Coffee Chocolate Snack:

• 8 oz coffee
• 1/8 cup almond milk
• 1 Andes mint

Nutrition:

32.4 calories, 2 fat, 29.7 sodium, 3 carbs, 2.5 sugar

* I found the nutrition information for this snack using My Fitness Pal.
* Check with your doctor before changing your diet. What works for me may not work for you.

My Favorite Lunch

When I first changed my eating habits, I did not like the idea of eating salads. So, I tried out having soup, sandwiches, lean frozen meals, etc. After trying out many different options, I decided that I actually prefer to eat salad for lunch.

I learned from Pinterest and other online blogs and vlogs that it’s a good idea to cut up all your veggies when you have some extra time and this way they will be ready meals throughout the week. If you prepare your veggies all at once, you will only have to clean the cutting board and such once!

On to the salad!

I like fattening salad dressings like caesar and ranch, so I knew that I would have to find a tasty alternative. I have heard good things about apple cider vinegar and hummus, so I decided to try combining them to make my salad dressing. It tastes great and it’s great for you!

I like to use organic romaine hearts for the lettuce part of my salad because it’s easy to measure. The three packs of romaine hearts at whole foods will make 6 average size salads for me. Feel free to add more lettuce and veggies to this if you want a larger salad. This is a low calorie salad because I snack a lot throughout the day.

Dressing:

• 2 tablespoons hummus
• 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar

Salad:

• ½ romaine lettuce heart (this is based on the size or an organic romaine heart, which may be smaller than nonorganic)
• ¼ cup chopped or shredded carrots
• ¼ cup cucumbers
• 1 boiled egg white
• ½ can of tuna or 2.25 ounces (I don’t recommend albacore due to its higher mercury content)
• ¼ cup celery
• ¼ cup broccoli
• ¼ cup green pepper

Directions:

• Chop the romaine heart.
• Mix the hummus, apple cider vinegar, and tuna together for the salad dressing
• Mix all the veggies together and top with dressing.

* Check with your doctor before changing your diet. What works for me may not work for you.

Off to a Great Start

My situation...

I have always watched what I ate and I tried to make healthy decisions, but I’ve almost always still been a little overweight. I tried Weight Watchers (by borrowing a friends book) and I tried counting calories for about a week each time before going crazy. I’ve tried just eating better and exercising, but I would always trail off and back to my old lazy ways. I don’t know if you are like me or not, but I can tell you what’s changed the tides for me.

I’ve started using technology!

It was too time consuming to track the calories and nutrition content of everything that I ate before, but now it’s easy with the help of great apps like My Fitness Pall or Loose It! These apps are both great and both FREE! I use My Fitness Pall and it is excellent, but from what I can tell Loose It! is very similar. You can scan in what you eat using the bar code on the item or you can look it up in the apps huge database of items. Make sure that you check the nutrition information though because the information is sometimes a little off.

How many calories am I burning?

Using one of those two apps will help you to track your diet and exercise, but I also recommend that you invest in a heart rate monitor. The kinds that use a chest strap to detect your heart rate seem to get the best reviews online. I really love my heart rate monitor, by Wahoo, because it appears to be very accurate and it connects to my iPhone instead of a watch like most of them. What I mean by this is that when you look at what your heart rate and such are, you’ll be looking at your phone, and not a watch. If you decide to get the kind of monitor that connects with your phone, try out the Digifit app. I tried out a few others, but I found that this one was the best and most enjoyable app to use for this purpose.

So how has all this technology impacted my results?

For the first time ever I can really conceptualize what’s going on in my weight loss journey. I take 30 minutes out of every six days to exercise, I scan the barcodes of what I eat, and I incorporate cheat items into my diet so that I stay happy. Every morning I get up and weigh myself first thing. This may sound like a chore, but I love it! I have the kind of digital scale that tells me what I weigh to the tenth of a pound, so I am able to get good news most mornings. Tracking my progress through various apps and in different ways has become a fun activity for me because I love knowing and understanding what effect my choices make.

Friends!

I hope that anyone reading this has a friend, family member, etc. to share their weight loss journey with. I find it very motivational that my husband and I are in on this journey together and that we can talk about our progress with each other. I know that it’s harder when the person that you live with doesn’t want to eat healthfully, but if this is your case don’t let it stop you. If you make the meals in your house, just give them extra portions or have lots of snacks available for them. However, please try to avoid having the kind of snacks around that are your weakness. If there are snacks that they like that you don’t, those are the perfect ones to keep on hand.

One more bit of advice…

Don’t starve yourself! You can eat nearly all day long and feel completely content while losing weight. I like to break my food intake up into three meals and three snacks. My day of eating and exercising goes in this order: breakfast, snack, lunch, snack, dinner, exercise, and snack. If you use one of the calorie-counter apps it will tell you how many calories, grams of fat, carbs, and so on that you should eat in each day. When you exercise it adjusts these amounts so that you can eat more. Make sure that the changes you’re making to your diet are ones that you can stick with. Find out what your minimum net calories per day is so that your body doesn’t go into starvation mode (which will only hurt your long term weight loss).

The future of this blog…

This post is just an introduction. In the future, I plan create briefer posts with more specific information. For instance, I love to cook so I will post snack and meal ideas along with pictures and directions. If I find out some other useful or interesting information I may also post that. If you would like to request a specific topic I will address it if I am able.

Remember, I am not a nutritionist or trained professional. I have done a lot of research online and through various health and nutrition books, but I’m no doctor. Always research things yourself or ask your doctor for their opinion on what you should do to lose weight.

* Check with your doctor before changing your diet. What works for me may not work for you.