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06 November 2017

Hubby made what he knew has long been a favorite breakfast of mine--old-fashioned oatmeal. Didn't have the heart to tell him it was more carbs than I should start the day with so I added butter and cream to offset, and it did. Two perks of this: he had dished up the portion I used to eat, which was two cups; I could only eat half of it! And even that amount has left me quite full. I'll probably have a snack later (some veggie sticks, most likely) just to keep my levels stable, but I won't really want much more than that until dinner time. And I feel great about that. I mean, it's one of the reasons I've always loved old-fashioned oatmeal--it's filling and long-lasting.

This is big chore day.
-Working my way through a mountain of laundry (thanks, Teen daughter who throws everything on the floor so that clean and dirty are thoroughly mixed! Guess who's gonna see a lot less clean stuff? That's right. The same things I've washed that were never-worn for the last month are being packed up to donate.)
-Got a piece of very lean beef searing, and it will go into the oven to roast for dinner, along with root vegetables later on.
-It's also prep day. Today I am making salads: tuna salad, egg salad, and chicken/cabbage salad. I am making veggie sticks: carrot, celery, zucchini and cucumber. I am peeling grapefruit. I am making peach melba tofu 'yogurt' which is an old favorite breakfast. I am making strawberry yogurt 'pudding' for a wonderful light dessert or snack. Both of these are loaded with protein.
-Brewing sun tea (okay, countertop tea.)
-Feeding Audrey so I can make whole grain bread tomorrow.

And after that, who knows? I love busy-at-home days.

(3 comments)

05 November 2017

I am so happy that things are working and the weight is beginning to drop. I have always been one whose loss shows within the first five pounds, because it comes off my waist first. And sure enough, after dressing today in black yoga pants and a t-shirt, my husband looked up and said "Your diet is really working, you look thinner already."

I've added another reason to why this is so important now--keeping in mind always that my health is paramount, and of course that I simply want to look better and feel more confident. There is a person coming back into our family circle (long, ugly story and I won't bore you with it) who never, ever, found anything of any value in me simply because of what I weighed. This woman could not, cannot give any kind of compliment UNLESS you are noticeably thinner. She never missed a chance to praise herself on her own weight, and she wore every piece of clothing as low cut/high cut/slit to here or there/skintight as possible; her goal, she said, was to walk into the room and know that every man there instantly wanted her and only her. (Fortunately my husband found her completely inappropriate and less than desirable.)

I know when we see each other again (which I hope will not be any time soon) she'll immediately look me up and down, measuring me, definitely finding me wanting. But you know what? Where that used to make me feel just as worthless as she meant it to, now it just makes me defiant. As in I don't care what you think, my husband thinks I am beautiful and desirable at every single weight. As in I am working on healthy weight loss, not relying on crash dieting or colon cleanses or the latest miracle quack remedies...and we won't even talk about the repeated plastic surgery.

I'm just realizing what I should have known all along; I AM beautiful just as I am. I like my face, and I'm working on liking my body. But my self-worth is NOT measured by my scale or my tape measure. Not any more. It doesn't mean I can't be pleased or proud at how well this new way of life is working, because I can see that it will be easy to make it permanent and I like the benefits it will bring.

So yeah. Go me. Go ALL of us, as we walk this path to better health and happier lives. We got this. Oh yes we do. We so do.

(10 comments)

04 November 2017

WOW!

(2 comments)

02 November 2017

That's better! At least now I know the accuracy of numbers and know that my scale is the same as the doctor's. So this is definitely a step down, just as it should be.

Pleased with myself today. I went to the grocery last night and hubby had asked me to pick up ice cream for him--I looked through a particular brand on sale, a good one, and found two flavors I don't like (spumoni, and eggnog) but he does. Now it can sit in the freezer until the last spoonful, and I won't want a single bite.

This is a day for food prep. It's just really important for someone like me to have lots of available things on hand, things that taste good, are the right kind of components, and that I enjoy eating.

I'm making vegie sticks (zucchini, cucumbers, carrots) and a small mixed salad. I'm also making the 'chicken coleslaw' I mentioned a few entries ago--finely chopped cabbage, diced cucumber and celery, and shredded carrot, mixed with avocado oil mayonnaise and sauteed chicken. YUM! I'm making tuna salad, too. And a Diet Center favorite breakfast, a sort of yogurt-tasting tofu dish, which is blended strawberries, drained extra-firm tofu, and a little Crystal Lite drink mix (today it's pomegranate) to flavor it.

I've got lots of apples, some incredibly good homemade applesauce (no sugar, flavored with caramel and vanilla extracts and cinnamon!) and some grapefruit to peel. I'll also make a favorite for evening snacks--sugar-free Jell-O dissolved with boiling water but blended with nonfat Greek yogurt instead of cold water. It's thick, creamy, tangy....perfect. Lots of protein.

Planning, planning...it's all in the planning when I want so much to succeed at this. And I believe I will. I know YOU can, too. Happy Thursday!

(5 comments)

30 October 2017

Still working toward the Diet Center thing, but also currently reading a GREAT article in FIRST FOR WOMEN magazine (issue date 11/13/17) about healing your pancreas. Mine has been damaged by previous health issues, and pancreatitis is part of my maternal family history (my grandfather died from it :( so I take it seriously.) What fascinated me (which is why I bought the magazine, something I seldom do anymore) is the connection between insulin resistance/pancreatic disease/weight loss.

For instance, I should be drinking more coffee (she says, as she sips her first mug of the day. Yum!) Coffee dials back blood-sugar fluctuations by 50%, according to Harvard University researchers. Credit goes to chlorogenic acid, a compound that boosts muscle cells' sensitivity to insulin. Cool beans! (yes, pun intended. Or would that be hot beans? whatever.)

Unwind with red wine (my favorite, even though women are 'supposed' to like white wine much more. I don't.) The reservatrol in just 5 ounces of wine makes muscle cells more sensitive to insulin. To get the benefits, favor dark wines (again, yum!) which are richer in reservatrol. (Or, if you don't wish to drink wine, try Reserveage Nutrition Reservatrol 250 mg.)

And indulge with cocoa. (Once more with feeling: YUM!) Compounds in cocoa make cells more sensitive to insulin and improve the liver's ability to process blood sugar. For a sugar free treat, microwave 8 ounces of unsweetened almond milk one minute, whisk in 1 tablespoon of cocoa powder until smooth, and sweeten with stevia. Because I dearly love mocha flavored anything, I combined this with the coffee I am currently savoring...PLUS a sprinkle of cinnamon, which is also known to help with insulin issues.

He advocates the equivalent of 2 large cloves of garlic each day, chopped or minced. No problem. I use a lot of garlic in my cooking anyway. You're supposed to crush it and let it stand for ten minutes before you cook it or mix it with acid (lemon or vinegar, as in a salad dressing or marinade) or just eaten. The reason for this is that allicin, which is what heals the pancreas, isn't found simply in the garlic--it's a combination of two compounds that are stored separately in the cells and must be ruptured to allow them to mix, for maximum potency. Well, who knew? If you don't want to eat it raw (I don't) you can cook it on low for up to 15 minutes. Any longer than that will degrade the benefits.

I won't copy the entire article here but these are bullet points:

POWER UP WITH PROTEIN. When women eat a high-protein breakfast, their bodies are able to use insulin 105% more efficiently than when they skip breakfast (or indulge in a high carb breakfast.) For maximum impact, aim for 15-20 grams of protein.

EAT EVERY THREE HOURS. Space out meals and snacks accordingly. Women who followed this pattern, had steady blood sugar throughout the day--and after two weeks, their blood sugar levels were four times lower than those who ate three square meals without snacks, even though their meals had the same basic nutrient composition!

FAVOR THESE CARBS. Two servings of carbs each day, 1/2 cup of high-fiber whole grains, like barley or couscous, or one slice of whole grain bread. (Which, by the way, I'll be baking myself--whole grain sourdough, because sourdough is better for diabetics and causes much less spiking, since it is already fermented.) When healthy adults eat a high fiber diet for six weeks, their blood sugar levels were 33% more stable.

MOVE FOR 7. A Canadian study shows that varying 20 second bursts of sprinting with 2 minutes of slow walking for just 7 minutes each day helped women improve their insulin levels by 53%--changes that were equal to or better than those seen in a control group that exercised hard for 50 minutes straight. To do this, jog in place for 5 minutes to warm up, then complete 3 rounds of burst-and-rest, followed by 5 minutes of cooldown stretches.

So I'm finally seeing a drop, and it's motivating me to get on with this to the best of my capabilities. Because we were traveling all weekend, I am 'off' as usual, and that means today is mostly liquids, which helps flush out toxins (my hands and feet are always puffy with retained fluids when I've been traveling, whether by car or plane.) I'll be drinking lots of good things--more water than usual (did you know it's recommended that you drink half your body weight in ounces of water, in addition to everything else you drink? This is not a problem for me, as I average at least a gallon or two each day, and during the hottest part of summer at my camp job, sometimes as much as five. And yes, my doctor has approved that. Ice, sliced lemons, fresh water, bring it, baby!) I'm having extra coffee with the sugar free cocoa mentioned above, mixed with coffee. Also having low salt V8 juice mixed with beef bouillon, which is delicious. MIGHT have a diet Pepsi, later. We'll see.

I might have mentioned before that I have studied nutrition since 1983. I will always try to improve my health any way I can if it involves good food and exercise, rather than pills and 'magic formula' this or that. My former sister-in-law tried every single quack product on the market, always trying to be thinner. I will never do that. But this...well, adding these principles to my plan, I see no harm in.

So away we go. Happy Monday, everyone!

(2 comments)

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