Friday, February 26, 2010

Weekend time!

So glad that it's Friday!  Getting ready to go take my physic exam, it's my 4th exam this past week so it's been a busy one!!!  I was really not good this past week with the whole diet, but oh well right?  I went out this morning and did my barn work.  That's my exercise on Monday and Friday haha.  I'm heading down to Littleton this weekend.  Going with my sister tonight to see her high school's musical at Columbine.  They're putting on Guys and Dolls.  I get extra credit for going for my theater class so it works for me! haha! 
Today I've been busy this morning.  I got up and went out and did my barn work, then I groomed my dog and gave him a bath.  He looks so good now!  Then I got my house all straightened up for the weekend.  Ready to rock and roll! 
As far as eating goes today I prob haven't been eating enough.  I had special K this morning, then I've had 1/4 C of my trail mix and an apple.  I need to eat something else but I really don't have anything around to eat.  I need to go to the store when I get back on Monday. 
Well I didn't have much to say today, but I just wanted to check in and let you all know I haven't forgotten about my blog haha!  I'm so excited that I have more people following!  Next week I plan on being really strict and back to my diet and workout!  Thinking about doing the special K challenge just to jumpstart everything.  I researched it today and I would get the right amount of calories with it, so I think I will!!  Anyways have a good weekend everyone!!!!

Healthy Eating!
Michele

Wednesday, February 24, 2010

Beef Stroganoff (healthy style :-) )

So tonight I actually cooked something haha.  And I found my camera so I have decent pics of it!!  Tonight I used my left over pot roast from the other day to make beef stroganoff.  Such a good comfort food for a cold night!  Before giving the recipe I just have to say that I was better today about eating right, although I really didn't eat enough today.  I got caught up studying.  I have 2 more exams to go this week!  Then the weekend, where I get to study for Ornithology.....Spring Break can't come soon enough!! 
On another note I have a phone interview next Thursday with Disney!!!  I'm hoping to go do their internship program from June-January.  Should be so much fun!!  Just another incentive for me to want to loose weight!!  FLORIDA!! haha!  Ok well I really don't have much else to say today, so here's my recipe!

Healthy Beef Stroganoff

4 oz left over pot roast (or you can cook it through the day, mine also had cooked carrots with it)
1/2 C chicken broth (or if you have beef broth, I just had chicken broth)
1 serving of whole wheat pasta ( mine was about 1 C)
1 T flour
4 T water
salt and pepper to taste

Cook pasta according to box directions.  In pot bring chicken broth to a boil.  When it's boiling add pot roast so the flavors can meld together.  let simmer for about 10 minutes.  In a separate bowl mix water and flour together this is called a rue.  Take and mix the rue and chicken broth together, continue to simmer for about 5 more minutes.  Salt and pepper to taste. 
Mix pasta in with the gravy and beef and enjoy!!


The first pic is the pasta I used, the second is the rue, and the third is the finished dish.  I know it's not so pretty but it sure is good!!! I hope you enjoy it!  Just to let you all know that this makes a lot for one serving, I couldn't finish it all!!!!  Total calorie count is about 420, and I know this is more than my usual dishes but I made up for it during the day by cutting down on calories there, I just planned a head for it!!  ENJOY!


Michele

Tuesday, February 23, 2010

Whew what a day

Sorry for the earlier post, I was just so full of emotions at the time.  Anyways, today I wasn't so good this afternoon...I ended up eating some homemade chocolate chip cookies that I made over the weekend.  I prob shouldn't have eaten them, but with all of the stress of the day whatever! haha.  We got about 7 more inches of snow over the weekend so that made the whole barn work a lot harder to do yesterday.  I sure got my extra work out in haha.  I plan on doing my sit ups before going to bed tonight, that way today isn't a total loss.....
I guess I can't really say today was a total loss becasue I prob ended up hitting about 1500 calories which is good, but with all the wrong foods!!  haha!  Oh so early today I was in class and waiting for it to start when I over heard a girl talking to her friend.  She was telling her she's trying to loose weight so she's eating healthier and eating snacks through the day.  Thinking to my self, hey that's what I'm doing I got a glimpse of her first snack of the day....and all I wanted to do was look at her and go oh man, that's way too much food!  She had a trail mix, which is full of protein and really good for you, but in small quantites.  She probly had about 2 C's worth.  I first thought to my self, well maybe she's only going to eat part of it... no she ate the whole thing.  It's things like that that really make me want to write this blog...to help educate...Being a zoology major I"ve learned a lot about the way the body process food, and honestly the best way to loose weight, consume less than you burn...nuff said haha.  The whole concept of eating several SMALL meals through the day is to help out your metabolism and keep it going.  If you skip breakfast and eat two large meals your body may think your starving and just store all the food as fat to help it survive.  But then why should everyone eat above 1200 calories if I'm saying that it's better to eat less calories....that's because your body does need a certain amount of food to fuel it.  And that includes a wide varriety of carbs, lipids, proteins, fats, and minerals.  Your body needs all of these!! Trust me, I just took a physiology exam on it haha.  But too much of one thing can be really bad for you!
That reason alone is why some of these fad diets are not good for you!  Like the atkins one with no carbs....carbs are needed for energy storage and to help transport nutrients across your cells!  You cannot survive well with out carbs.  Also your adding a lot of extra fat that your body can't use and just ends up storing it, usually around your stomach area causing belly fat. 
One other piece of advice to everyone out there is if you take a multivitamin take it at lunch instead of early in the morning.  Most vitamins in a multivitamin are water soluble, so they need plenty of fluid for your body to absorb and use them efficiently!  Just make sure throughout the morning to drink plenty of water, remember your suppose to be getting 8 cups of water a day!   Not only will this help with your weight, but skin and everything!!
A theory I'm working with right now is body temp and metabolism....I have a very low body temp naturally and I alos have a slow metabolism....but with both of these I have b-12 deffiencey so I'm I'm on a b-12 sublingule and I'm seeing what my temp does...so far it does raise up to close to 98.6....that's from about 96, so that's an interesting thing.  If you feel like it see what your temp is like in the morning when you get up, then like 10 mins after you eat!  See what it does!  Let me know so i can kinda see if this all correlates with each other!!
Anyways, I know this was a long post, but I think it was good to help explain my knowledge of eating healthy and how to loose weight!  Now I just need to apply all that myself haha!!!!
good luck out there and I will post later!!

Michele

Stirring up Old emotions

So there was a shooting today at Deer Creek Middle School in my home town of Littleton, CO.  2 kids were injured before the suspect was tackled down by teachers.  The two who were injured are going to be alright.  This shooting just hits way too hard because this is the same town where the Columbine Shootings happened 11 years ago.  This time it wasn't kids who went to the school but an older male with a rifle.  This just makes me question humanity and what the heck!!  This is our third shooting at a school in Jefferson county over the past 11 years.  I have a combined emotions of wanting to scream, cry, or I just don't know!! UGH!!!!!!  Please play for the kids, families, and teachers of that school!  One of my good friends' sister attends that school.  She is alright just shaken up I"m sure.  Just makes the whole town remember back to the horrible day of the Columbine shootings and how scary that was.  I was in 6th grade during the time of that and it was so scarry, I'm just sorry that these kids have to go through it as well.  Sorry this is rambling I just needed to get this off my chest

Friday, February 19, 2010

Good Morning!

Good morning everyone!!  It's Friday! WOOO haha.  We got about 3 inches of snow last night so it's cold out, but pretty haha.  So I did my weight in this morning and I seem to have gained like 3 lbs.  But I looked back over my week and remembered that I started my work out / weight lifting this week.  So it's natural to gain muscle weight before starting to drop lbs of fat.  So next week I should see some drop!  But good news!  I did loose 2 inches around my waist, .5 inch around my chest, 1 inch around my bicep, .25 around my forearm, and .75 around my calf.  So add all of those together and I lost 4.5 inches this week!  That in its self if exciting!!  I was bad yesterday... I gave into having McDonalds for dinner.  The reason being is that it was late when I got out of class, it was snowing, and cold.  So I knew my drive home would be a long one and I was starving!! So I just stopped by and got chicken nuggets and fries....I know I know, bad Michele!!!  But today is a new day, no living in the past haha.  I have to get out and do some barn work today which will burn some good calories, also with my work out.  I'm heading down to Littleton this weekend to celebrate one of my best friend's birthdays.  He is turning 23, we are all getting so old!! haha.  Anyways have a good weekend everyone and keep plugging along!

Michele

Tuesday, February 16, 2010

Busy Busy Busy

Whew what a busy day!! Tuesdays are always busy!  I'm on campus from 8-5 and only one hour break in there from classes!  So with this comes challenges of eating!!  Before starting all of this, with days like this I would be lucky if I would eat at all.  So I had to get creative on simple things to bring with me to campus.  One thing is trail mix!  Now I had to make my own because I"m allergic to almonds and most trail mixes have almonds in them!  So I just got raw cashews, sunflower seeds, walnuts, coconut, and yogurt covered raisins.  It really good!!  So along with that I brought an apple with me, half a turkey sandwich, a baggy of carrots, and a babybel cheese.  Sounds like so much to eat and it is!! But trust me is' only like 1,000 calories for all of that!!  Another accomplishment is I actually ate breakfast!  Special K with 2% milk. 
Also knowing that today was going to be busy I decided for dinner just to put a pot roast in the crock pot.  I just seasoned it up with garlic powder, onion powder, salt and pepper.  I also added carrots and small red potatos to the pot and like a cup of water.  Turned it on low and let it simmer all day.  Oh it was so good then I got home, and I even have left overs to do something else with tomorrow night! 
So this morning before running out of the door I happened to notice my pedometer sitting on my desk.  So I thought why no I'll put it on for the day.  The current count is at 10,147 steps.  That's crazy!! Especially before putting it on I had already been out in the barn feeding the horses and everything!!  That just tells you how much running around I do on Tuesdays haha.  So that's about 5 miles of walking today! 
Still not quite done for the day, going to do some ab exercises that I found in a magazine that looked really good.  My calorie count fell below what I want it at, at about 1300 calories for the day.  And i"m full!!  Harder than I thought it would be to get to 1500! 
Anyways I hope I didn't ramble too much and healthy living to everyone!

Michele

Sorry no pic today of my food, I was too excited to eat it and totally forgot!

Monday, February 15, 2010

I'm back with Firey Fish Tostadas!!

Finally I am able to eat again!!  Haha!  Thank goodness, I can get back on track with my loosing weight!  Still a slight cough so I can't really go run a mile, but I can do at last some stuff haha.  So this past weekend was an alright weekend; stayed at home with my little sister while my parents left town to celebrate Valentines day.  So I can say that my weekend eating was not very good...oh well right? 
Well since this past weekend was Valentines day I got the chance to really look at the day and instead of despising it like I usually do because I'm usually single over the holiday I attempted to take a new out look on it.  I saw it as a day to celebrate love, not only of a significant other, but family and friends.  I would not be where I am today without their love and support and I'm very thankful for all of them.  
Anyways on from that subject I won't bore you with a sap story haha.  Tonight I got the idea to make fish tacos healthy.  And it really turned out well!!  I called it Firey Fish Tostadas! Here's the recipie for you at home:

3 oz salmon fillet
1 T taco seasoning
1 small whole wheat tortialla
2 T sour cream
3 T black beans
1/4 C salsa
Small hand full cheese
Cole slaw mix (no sauce) 

Cover salmon fillet with taco seasoning and let sit for about 3 minutes. Grill Salmon filet either either in grill pan or on grill. Grill on each side for about 4 minutes each.
Crisp up tortilla in pan by spraying cooking spray on either side and toasting on med heat for about 2-3 mins on each side.
Heat up black beans in microwave for about 1/2 a minute
Assembly:
Place tortilla on plate, put black beans on top of it. Top with cole slaw mix, sour cream, salsa and cheese. Top with salmon fillet. Enjoy!!
 This only has about 300 calories in it and trust me it's plenty to eat!! I couldn't finish it all!
Now just keep remembering that this is only one serving.  A tip if your making it for more than one person you can take your tortilla and spray both sides with cooking spray.  Place on a cooling rack on a cookie sheet and place under the broiler.  Just be sure you keep an eye on it so that they don't burn!!  Also if you do not like black beans you can use any type of bean that you want.   Also instead of salmon you can use tilapia or even chicken.  I guess you could even use beef.... What ever you want!! Enjoy and stay healthy!!!  Also the red splotches on the fish are just added hot sauce because I really wanted spice!

Michele



Note: Sorry the pictures are such bad quality, I take them with my phone.  I really need to get out my camera and start taking really good pictures of my food haha.

Wednesday, February 10, 2010

Blah

Well I'm back to not feeling well and now it's really my stomach not accepting any food what so ever.  So I haven't forgotten about my blog just have nothing to write really.  Been drinking Gatorade, and little bit of soup.  That's really all I can take in.   I hope it passes soon because only taking in like 100-300 calories a day is not good! haha.  I'm starting to feel kinda weak but the Gatorade helps keep me hydrated and going alright.  I just hope this stuff passes soon!!  Anyways I hope everyone is doing well and I'll be back and strong after I get better!

Michele

Saturday, February 6, 2010

Feeling better

So I'm starting to feel kinda better, not 100% yet but not like I was.  I'm down home at my parents for the weekend and haven't really eaten much since I'm not feeling too good.  But there is good news to all of this, I'm down 2 more pounds!! Woo haha.  So now I"m down 7 lbs, 43 more to go.  My goal for this upcoming week is to start exercising some, hopefully I'll be feeling better so I can do so. 
So tomorrow is Super Bowl Sunday!! WOOO!  Who are you rooting for?? I'm going for the Colts.  So then the big thing comes down to food for the big day.  I am going to be completely honest with with you all....I'm not going to be really calorie counting tomorrow.  I'm just going to have fun with my family and not worry about it for a day.  I know I know I'm terrible, but I figure it's one day.  And with how much I eat anyways it won't be too bad.  Remember that when trying to loose weight I'm having to force my self to eat more haha.  It surprises me how much food it takes to reach 1500 calories with only eating healthy food! Crazy!!!
Well I'm out of here for the day, I gotta run to the store to get stuff for tomorrow and then going to my sister's color guard comp later today.  I will talk to everyone later!!  Happy weight loss!

Michele

Thursday, February 4, 2010

Sick

Well I have managed to catch a bad cold...yay go me haha.  During all of this those I have been trying to think of healthy eating still, even while your sick.  So I went to the store looking for something that would feel good on my throat while being easy on my stomach.  I thought soup, that would be a great option!!  So I found Campbell's light chicken with rice condensed soup.  I was afraid at first that this would not have much flavor to it, but I was pleasantly surprise!  It was actually very very good.  It only has 70 calories in it!!  So I had a couple of crackers along with it and it was a great dinner for being sick.  Also for breakfast I had toast with peanut butter which is full of protein and still soothing on the stomach!!  Another good option if your throat is sore is Ben and Jerry's Froyo!!  mmmm it's so good, and not too horrible for you either, better than ice cream!  So give it a try!
So since I have decided that this year will be a new start for me not only with the loosing weight am I trying to change but other aspects of my life...I actually took a chance on Tuesday night and tried out for the acapella group on campus.  Unfortunately I had managed to loose my voice that day and did not make it in.  I was though, very proud of myself for even trying out.  The old me wouldn't have even tried because of fear of rejection.  I know it's not related to weight loss but it was a pretty big step for this new me!! 
Well everyone, I think I'm going to go have some soup and relax and maybe do some reading for classes.  Have a good day everyone and stay healthy!!

Michele

Tuesday, February 2, 2010

Pound for Pound challenge

Hello everyone!!  So I was watching the Rachel Ray show this morning and they were talking about this new program called the pound for pound challenge.  Pretty much what you do is go to this web site http://www.pfpchallenge.com/ and you pledge to loose a certain amount of weight.  For every pound that you say they donate enough money to buy a pound of food to donate to your local food shelter!  I challenge all of you out there to do the same.  I pledged for 30 lbs because I know this is a very realistic number for this challenge!!!
So I do want to share with you what I had last night for dinner because it was super good, and not to mention super healthy!!  We're talking about like 350 calories at most!!  So what got me to thinking about making this meal was thinking about how healthy sweet potatoes are for you!  One prob though, I"m not a huge fan of them!!  So I got to thinking about what I could do to make these yams edible for me haha.  So I decided to make baked sweet potato fries!! Here's the recpie for you all!!

Sweet Potato Fries
1/2 sweet potato
1 Tbs butter
1ts seasoning salt

Preheat oven to 425, line a cookie sheet with foil and place a cooling rack on top of foil.  Peel and cut the sweet potato into strips, about 1/2 inch wide.  Melt the butter in the microwave and add the seasoning salt to the butter.  Toss the potatoes in the butter mixture and space evenly on the cooling rack.  Baked for about 15 minutes and check on them.  Then if not quite crispy enough bake for a little longer.  I had to bake mine for about 20 minutes all together!!

Now remember that this recipe is enough for only one person, so double, triple, quadruple depending on how many people you are feeding!!
To go along with these wonderful fries I grilled a 4 oz steak in my grill pan with some simple steak seasoning, and had some coleslaw along with it!  The coleslaw I got as a mix and I'm sure I could cut down on calories by making my own sauce for it, which my mom knows how to make a really really really good one but I need to get the recipe from her for it.
Well I will leave you with a pic of the meal and I really hope that you too join the challenge to loose weight and donate to your local food shelter!!

Michele