James Brown

I feel good. I feel I am mentally back on track, and in control like I was before the holidays. And that's big.

Last week I didn't lose an ounce. I said I was going to work extra hard to make up for it and I did. I lost 3.5 pounds this week. 

Here's what I think were the major contributing factors:

- Cooking. I prepared all my own meals except one. I almost always had a big side of veggies (my go to veggie mix was sauteed zucchini, red onion, tomatoes with basil and salt & pepper - mainly just because it's what I had in the fridge!). I either used 1 tsp of olive oil or cooking spray but I also added a splash of chicken broth for extra flavor without the oil (I always seem to have a box in the fridge).

- Protein. When I was hungry for the most part I ate protein for meals and snacks. My favorite protein packed items from this week were fat free plain Fage yogurt - I ate about 1/2 a cup on a baked potato for a few meals this week along with a side of veggies. Another was light string cheese wrapped in a piece of turkey and microwaved for 30ish seconds, and roast beef.

- Apples. Besides protein my go to snack was an apple that I often had with the protein.

- Outdoor Running. Intervals of walking and running OUTSIDE! You burn more calories when you run outside due to the uneven terrain etc. I also love the feeling of being unhinged whereby I am not running at a certain pace the entire time, and I am more apt to dictate my own pace - which actually makes me run faster than running on the treadmill! Today it was nasty, so I had to go back to the dreadmill, but hopefully not for too much longer. 

- Small Indulgences. I did go out for a nice dinner for a birthday celebration. I had a salad and a petit filet (with no butter etc), one cocktail, one glass of wine and I even had a delicious cupcake. Other than this I really stayed on track. I think if you let yourself slightly indulge once it really helps staying on track the rest of the week.

I think what is helping me the most is that I am not looking for instant results and I have come to terms with the fact that this is going to take time.  When you realize that, it just doesn't seem as daunting as it really is.

For anyone counting... this means I have 8.5 more to lose by the end of April to reach my short term goal of losing 18 by the end of April! I am well on my way :)! 

SONG THAT KEPT ME RUNNING THIS WEEK: "Rolling in the Deep" Adele. A-M-A-Z-I-N-G song - actually the whole CD is great - you should check it out!

RANDOM TIP OF THE WEEK: Tea, tea and more tea. Not only are some teas great for you - green and white teas. They also can be a very satisfying end of meal drink! That's one of the things that really helped me this week. Sometimes when I would finish a meal I knew that I should be satisfied but I still felt like I wanted something else. I would cap off the meal with a glass of tea or two and it really helped me feel more satisfied. I specifically am really enjoying flavored white teas these days! My favorite is Imperial White Peach....... so fulfilling.

THIS WEEK'S RECIPE: Country-Style Beef & Green Pepper Soup (modified from a Clean Eating recipe). This recipe is delicious and super healthy! The balsamic is a must!

Country-Style Beef & Green Pepper Soup

Ingredients:

It tastes so much better than it looks, promise :)!

- 2.5 tbsp olive oil, divided

- 12 oz extra lean ground beef, I used ground sirloin

- 2 medium green peppers

- 1 cup chopped yellow onion

- 1 lb of fresh tomatoes chopped

- 6 oz fresh green beans, broken into 1-inch pieces

- 1 cup frozen whole-kernel corn

- 2 cups coarsely chopped green cabbage

- 3 cups low-sodium beef broth

- 2 tsp dried oregano

- 2 tbsp balsamic vinegar (this makes it!)

- 1 tsp sea salt

- 1/2 tsp ground black pepper

Directions:

1. Heat 1 tsp oil in large pot or dutch oven on medium-high - tilting to coat. Add beef and cook until browned. Drain excess fat and then place beef on paper towels to remove excess grease. 2. Heat 1 tsp oil in pot on med high. Add bell peppers and onion and cook for 6 mins or until edges begin to brown, stirring occasionally. Add beef back to pot along with tomatoes, beans, corn, cabbage. broth and oregano. Bring mixture to a boil over same heat, then reduce heat to a simmer, cover and cook for 15 mins or until beans are tender-crisp. 3. Remove pot from heat, stir in remaining ingredients. including remaining oil. and let stand for 10 minutes before serving to allow flavors to meld.

Nutrition info for a 1.5 cup serving: 182 calories, 5.5 grams of total fat, 1 being sat., 17g carbs, 3.5 grams fiber, protein 16 grams, 4pp+!

*Hopefully there aren't too many typos - i am pooped and don't feel like proofreading tonight!

Best Friend

Last night I read an interview with a big-time trainer who was asked how he can convince people who have struggled with losing weight to believe in themselves. He said "We have the choice to be our worst enemy or our best friend."

I have self-sabatoged myself for years, like a worst enemy would. I am starting to act like more like a good friend and am working towards a being a best friend to myself - mind and body. I guess my own BFF.

Tonight (honestly) when thinking "should I take the easy route out for dinner and get a pizza?... it's been a hard day, I'm tired, it's so easy and I want that cheesy-carb comfort"....I thought that's not how a best friend would treat themselves and went a different route. 

The trainer's point of view clearly hit home to me, and I am going to think about being my best friend a lot. Not only in food choices but in activity choices. Sometimes if I can get the kids to take a nap at the same time (a super super rare feat in this house), I am going to treat myself like a best friend and do something like catch up on reading or doing something personally productive.

On a separate note, it's been a long time since I've had a real post - and I am glad to be back - these holidays took a toll on me. They were great in terms of great times and fun with friends and family but really bad in terms of the food choices I made (which included things like large quantities of gourmet cheeses, sugar cookies, peppermint bark, and red wine.) Hello - I'm human and was bad :(. 

I gave myself license to go crazy in some regards, although I did exercise religiously and have now been running every other day. I was scared to get on the scale, as I could tell I had gained at least a few lbs. back. So starting in early January I did a short detox of sorts to try to press my "reset" button, and get my body used to eating mainly healthy whole foods again. I'm back and hopefully better than ever - I will have a weigh in update next week (if it's pretty or not) as well as a great healthy make-ahead superbowl party recipe!.

SONG THAT KEPT ME RUNNING THIS WEEK: "Because I'm Awesome" The Dollyrots (I think the lyrics are funny, the song is really upbeat, plus if you are having a bad day you can remind yourself that you are awesome. lol)

RANDOM TIP OF THE WEEK: A "smoothie" made with water (vs. dairy or soy milk) is a great, low-calorie way to get some fruit and veggies in. I sometimes have been having one when the kids eat dinner, so I can hold off until a later dinner without eating their scraps or snacking on bad stuff.

THIS WEEK'S RECIPE: Provencal Soup (modified from a Mark Bittman recipe). Added bonus green smoothie recipe too!

I can not highly enough recommend Mark Bittman's cookbook - The Food Matters, 500 Revolutionary Recipes for Better Living. Natural food, minimal ingredients cooked well. It and he are great. The soup is a great recipe if you want to get more veggies into your diet, and it is also great for a cold day.

Provencal Soup

1/4 cup of olive oil (I used a little less than this)

1 large onion, chopped

6 garlic cloves, smashed or chopped

Sea salt and black pepper

1 medium eggplant, cut into cubes

1 large or 3 small zucchini, chopped

2 red bell peppers, chopped

3 cups of chopped tomatoes (canned are fine, include their juice)*

*I used canned because tomatoes are out of season so canned are actually "fresher"

3 cups of chicken, vegetable stock, or water. (i used chicken)

1/4 cup of black olives pitted and chopped

1/2 cup of fresh basil, plus more for garnish

1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese for garnish (optional) 

1. Put the oil in a large pot over medium heat. When it's hot add the onion and garlic, sprinkle with salt and pepper and cook stirring until the onion begins to turn golden, 3 to 5 minutes.

2. Add the eggplant, zucchini, peppers, tomatoes, and stock. Bring to a boil then reduce the heat to med-low. Cook, stirring occasionally until the tomatoes have broken up and the eggplant and zucchini are super tender, about 45 minutes. (Awesome MB tip: the soup can be made up up to this point and refrigerated for several days or frozen for months; gently reheat before proceeding). Stir in the olives and basil in the last 5 minutes of cooking. Sever garnished with more basil and parm.

Green Drink

This amount serves 2

(and it's much better if you drink it through a straw and also a festive wine glass helps!)

1 cup kale or collard greens - firmly packed, ribs removed if kale!
1/2 cup loosely packed fresh flat-leaf parsley leaves
1 granny smith apple - cored and chopped
1 large ripe banana
2 1/4 cups of water (I like to add a few ice cubes)

Combine all ingredients in a blender and mix until smooth - if it's too thick add a little water

113 calories per serving

Best-Laid Plans

Plans are good.

Especially when trying to get healthy. 

Weekly meal-plans or at least dinner plans help you get more organized and stick to a menu vs. opting for something unhealthier (pizza, take out etc.) in the moment. 

Exercise / running plans not only help to make sure you get all of your workouts in in a week, they also make sure that you are increasing your endurance on a consistent basis. 

Longer-term plans are great because they can help you stay focused on a particular goal, and make you less likely to skip workout days.

When I started this quest to get healthy and start running in July - one of my longer-term plans was to run a 5K in October (actually this weekend!). I was well on my way, completing the Couch-to-5K plan in early September and running 3 miles every other day in my last couple weeks of running. The problem with plans is that they can't always hold true with reality.... as you can't control everything (no matter how hard you try!). 

I've injured my right leg. I have a bad shin splint and a medial gastroc. strain. Long story: more time off of everything except swimming, 4 weeks of physical therapy. Short story: no race Sunday.

Am I disappointed... VERY! Am I discouraged...NO! I am not loosing nor going to lose confidence or enthusiasm. 

Running has given me SO much in such a short time frame including:

-Focus

-Confidence / Not caring what other people think 

-The urge to be more active in general

-Greater appreciation of nature

-Help to lose over 20 lbs. since July

-Reduced Stress & Anxiety

-Increased Energy

-Increased Positivity 

(look... don't I look happy in this picture from this weekend... :)

Am I ever going to give it up... no way! I'm hooked! 

The truth is...plans are still important - sometimes they just have to change a little. My plan is still to run a 5K, but now I'm running one on Thanksgiving. I am going to start swimming to keep my endurance up and start strength training my arms. 

That's my revised plan. And it's a good one.

SONG THAT KEPT ME (THINKING ABOUT) RUNNING THIS WEEK: "Animal", Neon Trees 

RANDOM TIP OF THE WEEK:   Eating small amounts of certain nuts (almonds, pistachios and walnuts) can lower LDL ("bad") cholesterol and your risk for heart disease. They help improve lipid levels and circulation. Make sure to get the raw, unsalted versions and since they are so tasty... I recommend measuring them out (so you don't overdo it). 

Soup Prep...Mise En Place (kind of)

THIS WEEK'S RECIPE: Healthy "Cream" of Asparagus Soup... YUM!

I was inspired to have a "soup-a-thon" this weekend due to a bad cold virus... and the delicious cream of tomato TJ's soup I highlighted in last week's post. I am trying to not eat very many processed foods so I wanted that delicious, warm creamy soup feeling - but in a wholesome, and natural soup! 

I turned to "The Best Light Recipe" cookbook from the famed America's Test Kitchen. They try a recipe sometime 30 different ways until they find the version that tastes best! I made healthy versions of Butternut Squash soup, Cream of Mushroom soup and Cream of Asparagus. All were delish but Cream of Asparagus was the best of the bunch! I highly recommend this cookbook if you like to cook more complicated recipes. It has a lot of great recipes that don't even seem "light"!

Here's the Cream of Asparagus recipe which as been adapted from the original America's Test Kitchen version. 

-4 medium shallots

-1 tsp vegetable oil

-1/2 tsp salt

-3 garlic cloves pressed through a garlic press

-1 tbs unbleached all-purpose flour

-1/4 cup dry white wine

-1 bay leaf

-1 1/2 cups low-sodium chicken broth (organic if possible)

-1 1/2 cups low-sodium vegetable broth

-1 1/2 pounds asparagus (1.5-2 bunches), woody ends removed and cut int 1/2 inch lengths

-1/2 cup half-and-half

-Ground black pepper, and salt.

First - Combine the onion, oil and 1/2 tsp of salt in a large saucepan. Cover and cook over medium-low heat, stirring often, until softened about 8 minutes. Stir in the garlic and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds.     Second - Stir in the flour and cook for 1 minute. Whisk in the wine and bay leaf; cook until the wine is absorbed, about 1 minute. Whisking constantly, gradually add the broths. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat; cover, reduce the heat to medium-low. and simmer until the broth is slightly thickened and no longer tastes of flour, about 5 minutes. Add the asparagus and continue to simmer, uncovered until tender, 7 to 10 minutes. Remove the bay leaf. 

Third - Puree the mixture in a blender (tip: do in batches, only fill blender half-way and use towel at top over lid)...until smooth, and return to a clean saucepan. Stir in the half-and-half and cook over low heat until just hot (do not boil), about 3 minutes. Season with alt and pepper to taste. Serve immediately. 

Per 1.5 cup serving:140 cal. 5 g fat. 6 g protein, 5 g. fiber... YUM!

The Fruits of My Labors!