I just want to say thank you for reading my blog, and being with me as I try and create a human transformation. To date we have had over 1,000 hits on my site and it thrills me that people out there are enjoying the topics I'm covering.
To date I have lost 26 pounds and they keep falling off each week. I hope you readers have found tips and suggestions to help you as well. If anyone has a specific topic or subject they would like to know more about please let me know. Suggestions are always welcome.
Again thank you to my readers, and I hope you stick with me!
Saturday, May 28, 2011
Saturday, May 21, 2011
Calorie Counting vs. Weight Watchers Points Plus
A few weeks ago, I decided I would try counting points+ and calories and see how I felt about the two. I will start off by saying I HATED trying to calculate points. I have a handy little app on my phone that did most of the work for me and I still felt it was a pain.
I only counted WW Points+ for a few days, but it just irritated me. I was, however, not irritated by simply counting calories. For me, this was just much simpler, and admittedly, I may not be getting as much information about what I eat, or percentages; but the results still speak for themselves.
I have lost 5lbs in the last 2 weeks, counting calories alone. I have slacked off on working out but still the scale dips lower and lower. I have now lost nearly one third of weight I am striving to lose and my pants keep getting looser.
If Weight Watchers isn't your thing, give calorie counting a shot. I know it takes some effort but if you track as you eat, but this will help keep you from over eating during the day. When I see I only have 500 calories left at the end of the day for dinner, I plan a dinner that's right around 500 calories.
Try my favorite Calorie Counting App! Available on the iPhones, Blackberries and Android Phones.
I only counted WW Points+ for a few days, but it just irritated me. I was, however, not irritated by simply counting calories. For me, this was just much simpler, and admittedly, I may not be getting as much information about what I eat, or percentages; but the results still speak for themselves.
I have lost 5lbs in the last 2 weeks, counting calories alone. I have slacked off on working out but still the scale dips lower and lower. I have now lost nearly one third of weight I am striving to lose and my pants keep getting looser.
If Weight Watchers isn't your thing, give calorie counting a shot. I know it takes some effort but if you track as you eat, but this will help keep you from over eating during the day. When I see I only have 500 calories left at the end of the day for dinner, I plan a dinner that's right around 500 calories.
Try my favorite Calorie Counting App! Available on the iPhones, Blackberries and Android Phones.
Saturday, May 14, 2011
Ghirardelli Chocolate and Caramel Squares
In my quest to lose weight I am trying to cut back on my sweets. Finding treats that are low in calories and still leave me feeling like I got my sugar fix are hard to find.
Yesterday, I tried the new Ghirardelli chocolate and caramel squares. It was a variety back that features a dark chocolate with caramel, a milk chocolate with caramel and a milk chocolate with a a vanilla caramel.
Oh My Goodness! So delicious! They just melt in your mouth. The vanilla caramel was my favorite, I tries the regular caramel in milk chocolate too. I don't like dark chocolate very much, and usually only when accompanied by mint, like a Klondike bar or Junior Mints.
The bag specifies that 3 squares is a serving, and consists of 220 calories. However, these puppies were so sweet I was able to eat one, and like half an hour later try another one. Therefore, I had two small 75 calorie chocolates :)
If you need to keep a small, utterly rich and delicious treat around, grab a bag of these. Just remember to eat one at a time, and savor it so you don't devour the whole bag.
Thursday, May 12, 2011
Funny but Gross
While reading my morning weight loss and fitness emails today I ran across a very crude and funny article.
The article is the about the fact that Pringles Light uses Olean (the brand name of Olestra) as a way to reduce the amount of bad fats they use to make their "light" chips and the side effects of eating them.
For you who do not know, Olestra has some pretty nasty side effets including loose stool, diarrhea, and abdominal cramping. Also Olestra inhibits absorption of certain vitamins and nutrients.
The FDA was also very hesitant to approve this product fearing consumers would eat more junk food with Olestra since it had less calories and would not make healthier choices in their food.
Well Olestra/Olean were approved by the FDA and are now in several varieties of chips. The writer of this article learned first hand about the after math of eating to many Olean chips. Readers beware, this article is graphic and kind of raunchy, but it has a point. Read at your own risk...
The Article: Pringles Light!
The article is the about the fact that Pringles Light uses Olean (the brand name of Olestra) as a way to reduce the amount of bad fats they use to make their "light" chips and the side effects of eating them.
For you who do not know, Olestra has some pretty nasty side effets including loose stool, diarrhea, and abdominal cramping. Also Olestra inhibits absorption of certain vitamins and nutrients.
The FDA was also very hesitant to approve this product fearing consumers would eat more junk food with Olestra since it had less calories and would not make healthier choices in their food.
Well Olestra/Olean were approved by the FDA and are now in several varieties of chips. The writer of this article learned first hand about the after math of eating to many Olean chips. Readers beware, this article is graphic and kind of raunchy, but it has a point. Read at your own risk...
The Article: Pringles Light!
Wednesday, May 11, 2011
Food TV Blues
I have a hard time watching cooking shows. They have this horrible side effect of making me think I am hungry.
However, I've learned it's better to watch my cooking shows after I have eaten. The food still looks amazing, but I'm not as tempted to eat.
Plus I get inspired to try and make the food I saw on the show or some healthier version.
We watched Diners, Drive Ins, and Dives tonight and they had a pretty good looking veggie burger, but now I want to make my own! I will try and find a recipe to share...
Tuesday, May 10, 2011
Hydrate yourself
It's very important to properly hydrate yourself at all times. Drinking water is vital to keeping your body healthy.
Yes coffee and soda do count, but they also have ingredients that are not good for you and do not flush out your body like water does.
It's also very common to wean yourself off soda with water. Soda is a hard habit to break believe me I know first hand how hard.
Drinking water also combats water weight. It sounds silly, but your body won't retain and hold excess water if you are properly hydrated.
So drink your eight glasses today!!
Wednesday, May 4, 2011
Homemade Pizza
Last night we made our own pizza at home and it was delicious. I picked up the Pillsbury Thin Crust Pizza Dough in a tube in the dairy section at Safeway yesterday for half price!
I already had sun dried tomatoes in the cupboard and crimini mushrooms from two nights ago. I grabbed some spinach from the produce section and bought some pre-cooked roasted chicken pieces. Another item I already had in my fridge is a tube of fresh Italian herbs, which I mixed into a little bit of oil.
We bake the pizza crust on a cookie sheet for 5 minutes before you add your toppings and bake for an additional 6-10 minutes. I smeared some of my herb oil on the crust and sprinkled on shredded mozzarella cheese, diced chicken, sun dried tomatoes, crimini mushrooms and onion.
When it came out of the oven I sprinkled it with a little Parmesan cheese. It was amazing. It was very light, but still was very filling. The only improvement I felt was the oil herb mixture needed more Italian herb mixture.
My significant other made his pizza his way. It consisted of sun dried tomatoes mixed into a Alfredo Marinara sauce we had in the fridge, with chicken, mushrooms, lots of onion and mozzarella cheese. I tried to only eat a bite, but I ended up eating a whole slice of his too.
Best part, I ate like 1/4 of the pizza and only put myself back 485 calories. A slice of pizza from the leading pizza chains can set you back anywhere from 300-600 calories PER slice, and we all know they don't use fresh ingredients.
Admittedly, my dough wasn't fresh and the chicken was precooked but I still think it's a step up from the fast food choice.
I already had sun dried tomatoes in the cupboard and crimini mushrooms from two nights ago. I grabbed some spinach from the produce section and bought some pre-cooked roasted chicken pieces. Another item I already had in my fridge is a tube of fresh Italian herbs, which I mixed into a little bit of oil.
We bake the pizza crust on a cookie sheet for 5 minutes before you add your toppings and bake for an additional 6-10 minutes. I smeared some of my herb oil on the crust and sprinkled on shredded mozzarella cheese, diced chicken, sun dried tomatoes, crimini mushrooms and onion.
When it came out of the oven I sprinkled it with a little Parmesan cheese. It was amazing. It was very light, but still was very filling. The only improvement I felt was the oil herb mixture needed more Italian herb mixture.
My significant other made his pizza his way. It consisted of sun dried tomatoes mixed into a Alfredo Marinara sauce we had in the fridge, with chicken, mushrooms, lots of onion and mozzarella cheese. I tried to only eat a bite, but I ended up eating a whole slice of his too.
Best part, I ate like 1/4 of the pizza and only put myself back 485 calories. A slice of pizza from the leading pizza chains can set you back anywhere from 300-600 calories PER slice, and we all know they don't use fresh ingredients.
Admittedly, my dough wasn't fresh and the chicken was precooked but I still think it's a step up from the fast food choice.
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