Stomach Shrinking

I feel like I'm channeling Yum Yucky with this title, but I think she's right when she speaks of stomach shrinking! Over the past 2 days, my dinners have consisted of appetizer portions at restaurants and they have totally caused me to feel extremely full. I don't think they were extremely large appetizer portions, but more than enough for me. Amazing. Change happens with healthy habits.

Eggplant Casserole Redux

This past Friday night I made my first ever Eggplant Casserole. It turned out okay, but could have been better. I gave it another go on Sunday and it came out much better. In fact, this is how I'll make it with meat from now on:

2 eggplants
1 lb ground meat (I use the extra lean)
onions
green onions
garlic
bellpepper
seasoning (I use Tony Chachere's)
plain breadcrumbs

Bring large pot of water to boil. Cut eggplant in half, then in slices. Peel eggplant. Place in boiling water for 10-15 min or until tender when pierced with a fork. Remove from water reserving 1 cup of the liquid.

Brown ground meat in a skillet with onions, green onions, bellpepper, and seasoning. Drain.

Combine eggplant, ground meat, and bread crumbs in a 9 x 13 pan until you reach your desired consistency. You may need to add more seasoning to taste. Add some of the liquid from the boiling of eggplant as needed to add some moisture to the dish. Top with a thin layer of breadcrumbs.

Bake at 350 degrees for 30-45 minutes or until you feel it is set.

Enjoy!

At some point, I'm going to add some mushrooms to this dish. I think I'll cook the mushrooms with the meat when I do.

Eggplant Casserole

Over the last few years, I've been obsessed with all things eggplant.

Fried eggplant.
Eggplant parmigiana.
Baked eggplant.
Eggplant chips.

You name it! If I'm at a restaurant and eggplant is on the menu, that's what I'm having. Over a year ago one of my colleagues brought an eggplant dish to work, eggplant casserole. Yum! I had to know how to make it. Her mom sent me her recipe, and I'm just now trying it out. I was always intimidated by the sheer idea of picking out an eggplant. From what I've been told, you just pick one up. There's no rhyme or reason to selecting one. So that's what I did. Here's the recipe as I prepared it tonight:

Ingredients
Eggplant
1 lb ground meat
breadcrumbs

Cut eggplant in half, then cube. Peel.



Bring a pot of water to boil. Place eggplant cubes in water. Boil until tender, about 10 min.



Brown ground meat with onions, green onions, & garlic. Season meat to taste. Drain.

Drain eggplant in colander.



Combine eggplant, ground meat, & breadcrumbs in a casserole dish. Add more seasoning to taste.



Top with a thin layer of breadcrumbs.



Bake 30-45 minutes or until top and sides have browned.



Here's the recipe without images:

Eggplant Casserole
1 eggplant
1 lb ground meat (I use extra lean)
breadcrumbs

Boil a pot of water.
Cut eggplant in half, then into slices. Peel and cube.
Place cubes of eggplant in boiling water.
Boil until tender when pierced with a fork. Approximately 10 minutes. Drain.

Brown ground meat. Season with onions, green onions, garlic, and seasoning (I use Tony Chachere's). Drain.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Combine eggplant, ground meat, and bread crumbs in a casserole dish. Add additional seasoning to taste. Top with thin layer of breadcrumbs.

Bake for 30-45 min or until top & sides are done.

Changes I will make next time:

• use 2 eggplants for 1 lb of ground meat, I wanted more eggplant in it
• add more seasoning (onion, garlic, green onion, and bellpepper)

I wonder how good this would be with mushroom instead of ground meat. I think I'll try it with 1/2 pound of meat and add mushrooms to fill it out. Just a thought...

Crackerfuls

Have you tried Ritz Crackerfuls?



A co-worker had a box last week and gave me one to try. I finally downed it this afternoon and I was pleasantly surprised. The package states it has 140 calories, 7 g of fat, & 3 g of fiber. 1 package is a serving. Not too shabby, in my book.

Take a look at their website, there are 4 different flavors:

• Classic Cheddar
• Four Cheese
• Garlic Herb
• Cheddar Cheese & Bacon
  

The Garlic Herb has the most calories of the 4 varieties, the others are 130 calories.

All in all, it was a good afternoon filler as I wanted something to get me through the afternoon.

I'm sure I'll try the Classic Cheddar & Four Cheese. Not a fan of items that are bacon flavored unless it is actually bacon.

Do you

I'm of the mindset that one should figure out what works for you and do just that!

Yes, there are many guides out there about weight loss, living a healthy lifestyle, and this that & the other. However, one person's panacea is another's worst nightmare. Therefore, find what works and stick to it.

Last week I was listening to a radio show where the guest was talking about how she lost 146 lbs in her year to renewal. One of the tips she gave was to eat every 2 hours and drink water. Water, she stated, not water w/ Crystal Light added to it. <--Those are the kinds of things I'm talking about when I say that's not everyone's panacea.

If someone needs Crystal Light added to the water, so be it! That's what that person needs and only that person knows what works for them.

When I'm asked what my "diet" is the first thing I state is that "I'm not on a diet." (I don't like that word). I'll then tell them what works for me, stressing that what I'm stating is for me. I encourage them to explore and determine what works for them. To me, the key is finding a comfortable plan that one can maintain.

Yes, I lost the majority of the weight following Weight Watchers. It worked for me because I had a variety of foods to select from, basically what I was already eating. I just changed how I was eating. I found out what would work for me.

The key to me is doing you.

Investing

Earlier today I read Pat Barone's post titled The Olympic of Permanent Weight Loss. Do check it out if you get a chance. I read through her 8 elements of what it takes for permanent weight loss and the 5th one called out to me with bells! It reads:

5. Investment. To reach their goals, world class athletes invest in themselves by finding excellent coaching, support, training, education and equipment.

I am totally in agreement with that statement. If you aren't willing to invest in your own health, then what are you willing to invest in? You only have one body (yes, cliche, but oh so true)! Why not take care of it?

One way I invest in myself it is by trying to be a mindful eater. I am not a dieter. In fact, I don't like the term diet. I see it as limiting or eliminating foods, and that's something I can't get with and will not do.

I just do my best not over indulge. I am a self-described cookie monster. They are, by far, my favorite sweet. I can't pass up a warm chocolate chip cookie. It makes me happy just thinking about them...but I digress. Even with cookies, I can eat them without going overboard.

For example, the evil goodness of Girl Scout cookies arrived yesterday. There was a point where I could open one of those sleeves of cookies and devour the entire sleeve in 20 minutes flat. Not anymore. The cookies were delivered about 10 am yesterday morning, and I didn't open the box until 8 pm last night. Even when I opened the box I didn't eat one. Instead, I took out 1 serving (5 cookies) and placed them in a baggie for my lunch. I then placed the remaining cookies back in the box.

It was that easy!

I'm investing in myself by controlling what and how I eat.

Unbelievable!

One day last week, I saw a blurb on twitter about something to do with Taco Bell and hoping it didn't catch on. I didn't follow up with the tweet, not thinking much of it. Then I was with some friends later in the week and someone brought it up. What? You've got to be kidding me. I couldn't believe what I was hearing.

Really? Eating at Taco Bell for health?!?!

Then I saw the commercial. Oh gracious!

Now, I will give it to the commercial and the website in that they specifically state results are not typical and the "drive-thru-diet" is not a weight loss program. Yet, they use the term "diet" which is widely thought of as a means to lose weight. Are they using doublespeak to confuse folks? Methinks so.

Let's dissect this a bit more.

• 7 of the 9 items are under 9 grams of fat. More specifically they are 7-8 grams of fat with 2 of them being 4 and 4.5.
• the average amount of sodium is 910(mgs) - what happens if you add sauce?
• the 2 items with the least amount of fat has the least amount of fiber (2 gms)

The website with all of this information doesn't tell us what else Christine did to lose weight. It states that she didn't want to cut out fast-food so she choose those specific items. Now, I'm no Taco Bell enthusiast (I don't know when the last time I ate there), but I don't recall seeing that particular menu advertised before (though I could be wrong). So how long has those items been available? For more than 2 years? Just curious.
Additionally, what else did Christine do?

All in all, this seems like false advertisement to me. Just a means of getting more customers when a lot of folks pledge to lose weight.

Resistance is futile

Are their certain foods where resistance is futile?

cookies (as discussed in this post)
deviled eggs (lately and perhaps because I don't make them or get them often)
brownies (w/ pecans)
red velvet cake (especially if it is moist)

What about you?

My weakness

Cookies!

I

Cookies!

They are my all time favorite snack item to consume.

While I like pie, cake, chips, candy, and other items that have an abundance of calories, I can limit myself with those items. I can turn them down without a second thought. I attended several dinners a few weeks back where everyone ordered desert except me. Why? Because the extra calories weren't worth it. Yes, the desert items appealed to me, but not enough. Now, if a warm cookie had been on the menu I would have succumbed. I guess that is a plus to that being my weakness....knowing that most places don't serve cookies for desert. :)

I'm kind like Cookie Monster.

I. Want. Cookies!!!!!

If they are there, I will consume. No doubt about it.

I reflected on how I ended up at a weight of 236 pounds and one of the reasons was cookies. I used to make cookies on a weekly basis, either from scratch or those break and bake ones from Nestle (those were just too easy). I would also purchase cookies from the bakery in the grocery store of they were sold on the counter at the place I was eating lunch. That would be my desert.

Suffice it to say, I knew I had a problem with cookies. And I still do. It didn't go away because I lost weight or began eating more healthy. What happened, was I became better able to control my impulse. Yes, it is still there and I do cave at times, but not as often.

I don't keep cookies in the house and I don't purchase those break & bake cookies anymore.

I do purchase those 100 calorie cookie packs to feed my desire. Yes, they are expensive, but they work. They give me my cookie fix in a limited quantity and limited caloric quantity. I do what I have to do!

What's your weakness?

Put the fork down

Do you take your time when you eat? That is one thing that I'm working on doing. Dong so allows you to enjoy the food and actually begin to feel full as you're eating. I don't recall where I read that, but it is true. The basic idea is to place the food in your mouth. Put the fork down, chew, swallow, enjoy the food. Perhaps take a drink of water. Repeat.

Instead, many of us practice the following: place food in mouth and immediately place additional food on the fork for the next bite. Or better yet, place more food in our mouths when we haven't swallowed the previous amount.

Raising hand. Yes, I'm guilty of that. Are you?

I'm doing better though. I'm working on taking my time to eat so that I enjoy the food. I've found that using this tactic allows me to feel full, which in turn causes me to eat less. I've also read that it takes up to 15 minutes to begin to feel full. Therefore, taking your time to eat will aid in that. If you scarf your food down in 5-10 minutes, you may have a tendency to eat more because you don't have that full feeling.

Have you thought about trying that tactic?

Next week

I'm traveling next week to DC for a conference. In order to combat any weight gain, I've already started planning:

1. Purchased dining out kit at WW meeting on Wednesday.
2. Looked at restaurants around hotel/convention center online to determine various eating venues.
3. Packing WW 2 point bars, fiber one bars, and dried mango for snacks.
4. Taking my walking shoes! Plan to get in at least 1-2 miles of concerted walking each day (with my nike +).
5. Taking my water bottle so that I can get in my daily serving.
6. Taking my multivitamins also.
7. Will get a good night's rest each night.

All in all, I hope to do okay while I'm there.

Nutrition Diva

This is a great source for information on eating healthy: Nutrition Diva

She offers an audio podcast you can subscribe through iTunes (iTunes URL), a newsletter, a twitter feed, and a facebook page.

Direct link: http://nutritiondiva.quickanddirtytips.com/

Oh, take a look at some of the other offerings from the Quick & Dirty tips website - they are good also.

Travel

One thing I was worried about with this program was eating on the road. Between now and the early part of March I will be traveling a great bit. Just like the weekends, when my schedule is interrupted, so is my eating. Well, I had an overnight trip this week and I did okay. Not good, but okay.

On the day of travel, I veered off track and had a cookie while on the road. That was the only blip that day. The next day, I did fine with breakfast, but I didn't have any snacks between breakfast and lunch. That meant I was really, really hungry by the time lunch rolled around. That is not a good thing because I tend to overeat when I'm hungry. I also wasn't good about drinking water that day so that didn't help. Anywho, I did have a basil pesto whole wheat pita pizza and a cup of soup for lunch. I made sure to take my time as I ate so that I could begin to feel full. I finished off the cup of soup and 2 slices of the pizza.

As I was getting on the road to return home, I realized I wasn't going to make it without something else in my system. I stopped by Smoothie King for a smoothie. That helped. I made it home with the smoothie and 32 ounces of water. I didn't eat any meat prior to 6 pm!

I'll be on the road again in about 2 weeks. I need to plan better and take some snacks. eeeee

Why lessen the meat?

I've been having an off-blog conversation with a group about my efforts. One of the questions that came up was about the timing with veggie by day. Specifically:

Isn't it better to eat meat during the day when your body can work it off, instead of at night only? Or is it a mental thing for you too?

Valid question. Here's my answer:

I don't think giving up meat will necessarily lead one to be more healthy. I think it is more of what and how you eat that makes more of a difference. Cutting out high fat and sugary foods and replacing them with more natural and filling foods is the key. At least that is what has worked for me.

This exercise, for me, is a bit of a mental thing. I want to see if I can do it for a sustained period of time. I'm not totally giving up meat, but I am paying attention to how I am eating meat.

How'd I do?

Not too bad! As I stated previously, my biggest challenge will be not drinking coffee. I broke down and had a cup this morning. I did decrease the amount of sugar that I put in it, but I just couldn't pass it up. Anywho, I was good the remainder of the day.

I never let myself get hungry. I ate a little bit of something every few hours. Luckily I have the type of job that I can do that. I recognize that everyone doesn't have that luxury. I'm thankful that I can eat as needed at my desk.

So, back to my day, I balanced my eating out and I wasn't hungry or missed the idea of eating meat or items with refined sugar. For dinner tonight I did have meat, since I can after 6 pm and I didn't actually eat until after 7 pm. I had smother okra with shrimp served over rice.

I was quite consistent with drinking water. Oh gosh, almost too much! It seemed I was in the bathroom ever 45 minutes.

My food items are ready for Tuesday already. Generally, I prepare my food items for the next day as soon as I get home from work. If I don't, then I stay up too late. Getting it done immediately gives me more time to relax and do much of nothing later in the evening.

Day 1 tomorrow

Well, tomorrow's the day. My plan is to eat no meat during the day. I've packed my lunch and snacks for the day:

fat-free milk*
naval orange
grapes
strawberries
fat-free yogurt
hummus
whole-wheat pita bread
baby carrots
lettuce, tomato, & cucumber salad
balsamic vinaigrette dressing
mixed nuts

One of the tenets of this eating plan is to not consume any refined sugar prior to 6 am. That is going to be the hard part. I put sugar in my coffee and I like a small something sweet right after lunch. I'm going to have to ease into that part of this plan.

I am, however, headed to the gym in the morning. I'll write more about my workout plan (which I've been doing for quite awhile) on another day.

*I keep (plain) oatmeal and cereal at the office for breakfast. That's why you see milk, but nothing to go along with it.

Grocery shopping

Headed to the grocery store this morning. Some of the things I'm purchasing:

• frozen veggies
• yougurt
• whole wheat wraps
• mushrooms
• hummus
• salad items
• couscous
  
• fruit
• milk