Day 27

Day 27 and Im starting to get anxious about my weigh-in on Saturday morning.  Im really hoping to drop that next 2.5 lbs to be down a total of 20 lbs in my first month.  I havent gone off the diet or given myself any reason to believe that my weight loss would slow down but the human body is a funny thing.  Ive been on other diets where they start off strong and then I end up in a plateau for weeks at a time... so I guess Im just hoping that doesnt happen yet. 

I forgot to go to the Medi-Weightloss Clinic last night for my B12 injection so Ill be going tonight after work.  Last night I just got all turned around because I took a side trip to WalMart to buy nicotine patches (Ive been using them to try to quit smoking since January 2nd) and the WalMart didnt have the ones I needed so then I had to go to the nearest Walgreens instead.  Youd think that their prices would be similar, considering they have the same parent company, but theyre MUCH more expensive at the pharmacy (like $10+ more). 

But I did get my patches and I had a good breakfast today (a scrambled egg, 2 slices of turkey bacon & half a grapefruit) so I have a good start to the day.  Now if I could only clone myself to get some help with my projects at work, Id be all set!

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Clean Eating Weight Loss Meal Plan 108

Breakfast

Evolution Fresh Berries and Honey Nonfat Greek Yogurt

A packaged yogurt parfait makes great clean eating breakfast because its healthy, fresh and filling. This parfait has creamy yogurt that tastes fantastic with fresh berries and honey. Not only does it taste good, it delivers energy all day long.

Mid Morning Snack

Fresh Berries

Lunch

Pepper Jack Chicken Sandwich

Supple chicken with spicy pepper jack cheese gave this sandwich good flavor and texture. Its an easy and delicious choice. Find recipe at Clean Eating Sandwich.

Afternoon Snack

Blueberry Raspberry Smoothie

Dinner

Egg, Sliced Turkey and Shredded Lettuce Salad

Lighten up your dinner with a plate full of refreshing salad and low-calorie protein.

Thanks again for visiting Clean Eating Weight Loss Meal Plan!

Hope you enjoyed todays healthy meal ideas.

See you next time.

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Quinoa Oatmeal

The first time I cooked with quinoa I was shocked that something so tiny, with the consistency of sand and the tendency to find its way into every nook and cranny of the kitchen could be so tasty. Its an interesting little grain well suited in both sweet and savory dishes. For people cutting back on carbs its also a great whole grain substitute for in recipes that call for things like white rice or couscous. And Id be lying if I didnt mention that half the reason Ive been so keen in it lately is that its really fun to say.

Quinoa has also helped me solve one of my biggest complaints on this diet: boring breakfast. I can only do the whole grain cereal or whole grain bread with low fat yogurt and fruit so many times before Im tempted to trade meals with the dog. Enter quinoa oatmeal. Fulling and versatile. I make a big batch at the beginning of the week and eat off it whenever Im in the mood. Its good hot or cold. Sweetened with fruit and agave nectar or salty and crunchy with cashews.

Technically this recipe only works for the maintenance stage of the diet but it would be just as good without the dried fruit, perhaps adding in some other spices to give it a kick instead. Ive also started making it with half milk and half water for the liquids as the full milk makes it a little too porridge like for me in the summer. You can do whatever you want to the quinoa to make it suit your tastes but youll want a little sweetness and some flavor added in or it can be a bit too bitter.

Quinoa Oatmeal

1 cup quinoa
2 cups milk

1/3 cup dried fruit
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 tablespoon agave nectar

Place quinoa in a sieve and rinse well under cold water. Tip the quinoa into a saucepan and add the milk. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to a simmer for 5 minutes.

Add fruit and cinnamon then simmer for 8-10 or until all liquid is absorbed.

Stir in agave nectar. Serve topped with fruit or cashews and milk.

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How to Lose Weight in a Week of Vacation and Stay on an Eating Clean Diet

How to lose weight in a week...

...is a tough question to answer; and its tough to do. If youre on an eating clean diet, you can certainly lose weight in a week, because cutting back on processed ingredients leads to cutting back on fat, sugar and cholesterol. You wont lose a drastic amount; but you will lose one to two pounds, which is a great start for a leaner, healthier you. 

If you continue to eat clean, and incorporate exercise, your weight loss will continue, and an eating clean diet will become a lifestyle.

But eating clean requires motivation and dedication. Isnt that hard to do on vacation?

Youre right. Vacations are for fun and rest, not restrictive diets. But if eating clean is already your lifestyle, as it should be, then why not eat clean on vacation too? 

How to lose weight in a week, even when youre on vacation?

Relax, enjoy yourself, eat clean and be active! When you come back, feeling well-rested and (gasp!) looking thinner, you wont have to deal with that awful post-vacation guilt.

If you need help on how to eat clean on vacation, check out and tips below.    

1. Put eating clean on your mind, even before you leave.

With an eating clean diet, being mindful is key. When you put yourself in a healthy eating mood, even before you leave, youre more prepared to reject temptations during vacation.

My recommendations are to join social media communities and sign up via email at health and fitness sites. You might not realize it now, but these online mediums healthy reminders offer motivation all day long.

Another tip is to purchase health, weight loss and fitness magazines before you leave. They provide visual reminders, as well as boredom cure for long trips.

My favorite magazines are Fitness RX for Women, Clean Eating Mag, Oxygen, and Muscle & Fitness Hers.  

2. Plan meals ahead.

A well-prepared meal plan is the best ammo against binging on vacation. It saves you both emotional stress and money, because it keeps you from splurging on sudden cravings. Meal planning is also fun by giving you something to look forward to. 

You can plan for eating out too. Look up restaurants that serve healthy options. If you plan to visit a must-try local establishment, research the places menu online, and find healthier dishes.

3. Book a hotel with a fridge in the room.

Having a fridge in the hotel room allows you to store fresh foods from local grocery stores. Youll have instant access to fresh produce, and will most likely eat out less too.

If you can, opt for suites with a kitchen or at least a microwave. 

4. Go to the grocery store as soon as you arrive.

Or at least make it one of the first things you do. Load up on fresh produce, healthy snacks and bottled water. Give your brief stay a healthy setting as soon as you can.

5. Prepare portable healthy snacks.

Healthy snacks are sold in every grocery store, but may not be available at the tourist sights you will visit. Bringing your own healthy snacks like trail mix packs and healthy snack bars lets you eat clean during snack attacks.

6. Limit alcohol intake.

Its fair to consume alcohol during vacation. After all, youve worked hard all year, and need to relax. Just beware of liquid calories and try not to over-indulge. One or two alcoholic beverages during dinner will not ruin your diet.

7. Look for a gym in or near your hotel.

If your hotel offers a decent gym, use it. Resume your workout routine as if you were still home. If your hotel doesnt have a gym, then look up gyms outside of the hotel. Corporate gyms like LA Fitness and 24 Hour Fitness often offer free trials.

8. Bring home exercise equipment 

If you arent comfortable with your hotels gym or asking for free trials from corporate gyms, you can always workout in your hotel room by bringing lightweight equipments.

My recommendations are exercise DVDs and stretch bands. If weather allows, you can always jog or hike outside.

9. Make sightseeing active.

Instead of sitting on a tour bus, walk around to visit sights. Make your vacation as active as possible. If you work a 9-to-5 desk job, take advantage of this free time to burn some calories.

10. Keep a food journal.

Its easier to eat clean if you document all your food intake. Seeing an entire days consumption, along with time of consumption and estimated nutritional facts, reminds you to stop overeating just because youre on vacation.

How to lose weight in a week of vacation?

Its still a hard question to answer; and its still hard to do.

But the tips above should help.

And I hope you practice them all.

Thanks for reading! See you next time.

 

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Clean Eating Recipe Rainbow Slaw Stir Fry

Clean Eating Recipe: Rainbow Slaw Stir Fry

Ingredients:

• 1 bag of store-bought rainbow slaw
• 1/2 cup of green onions, diced
• 2 table spoons of organic extra virgin olive oil
• 2 tea spoons of vegetable oyster sauce
• 1/2 tea spoon of Tamari gluten-free soy sauce
• 2 tea spoons of dark vinegar
• 1 pinch of white pepper powder (optional)

Directions:

1. Heat wok or pan on high over stove top, and add oil.
2. When oil becomes heated, reduce heat to med-high.
3. Add green onion. Stir and let cook for 1/2 minute. Then add a bag of rainbow slaw. Stir for another 1/2 minute.
4. Add oyster sauce, soy sauce, vinegar and pepper, and stir for one minute.
5. Reduce heat down to medium, and let cook for the next five minutes while stirring occasionally.
6. At the end of five minutes, turn heat up to high, and stir rigorously for another 1/2 minute.
7. Turn off heat. Transfer contents to plate.

Enjoy!

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Flourless Peanut Butter Cookies

After the third or fourth night in a row of having vivid Salvador Dali-esque dreams about baking cookies I knew something needed to be done. I ceded to my subconscious and scoured the internet for a cookie recipe, any cookie recipe I could eat. No flour, very little starch and no sugar puts most recipes out of the running. After looking through enough gluten free vegan blogs I found cookies I could make with what I had on hand without much trouble and gleefully went about doing so.

The great thing about these cookies is that since they are vegan and therefore egg less there is really no reason to cook them. You could very easily mix this up and eat it raw to satisfy a cookie dough craving. With my new found ice cream obsession Im thinking of making this batter again and tossing it raw into vanilla custard. The decadence of such a thing is grin worthy and obviously something I will try very soon.

For the first time around however I resisted the urge to eat all the dough raw (though a couple spoonfuls were sacrificed before the oven got turned on) to see how these would turn out. Substituting in the agave nectar caused a strange reaction in the oven, browning the bottom of the cookies heavily without burning them. There was a bit of smoke in the kitchen and the cookies werent very pretty but otherwise they were great little treats.

Believe the recipe when it says that super creamy more expensive peanut butter is best. I used the cheap natural peanut butter I had on hand and ended up with gritty cookies. If taste is more important to you than texture use whatever nut butter you have, your cookies will just look odd.

Also the original recipe involved sugar and corn starch so switching that out for agave nectar and arrowroot caused interesting problems. You may have to play with amounts of sweetness and starch to get a good consistency. I would suggest putting in too little agave and then adding the arrowroot bit by bit until you get the dough to firm up. I made the mistake of tossing in all the agave and then adding too much arrowroot to compensate. If youve never tasted raw arrowroot I wouldnt suggest it as it isnt pleasant. Almost like a gritty fermented yam or something along those lines. Not something you want your cookies to taste like. So use the arrowroot sparingly.

Ive yet to find sugar free chocolate chips so I used a meat hammer to break up baking chocolate. This was extremely satisfying and worked out well. The uneven bits of bitter chocolate worked out well in my overly gritty cookies

Apparently these cookies did a good job imitating real cookies because I havent had cookie lust dreams since making them.

Flourless Peanut Butter Cookies

1 1/2 tablespoons flax seed meal
3 tablespoons water

1 c. creamy peanut butter (the kind that does not separate into oil and nuts is best)
scant 3/4 cup agave nectar

1 tablespoon arrow root
1/2 cup chocolate chips

In a small bowl or ramekin, use a fork to whisk together the flax meal and water. Allow to sit 3-4 minutes or until it gels.

In a mixing bowl, combine the peanut butter and agave nectar. When the flax seed egg replacer has gelled, add it to the mix. Add the arrowroot and mix well. The mixture should be pretty stiff. Add more arrowroot if the mixture is too soft to hold peaks when you lift the spoon out of it.

Stir in the chocolate chips as gently as you can.

Refrigerate the cookie dough for 15-30 minutes. Turn the oven to 350 degrees to preheat during this time.

Scoop the chilled cookie dough into small balls using a normal eating-sized spoon. Place the cookie dough balls onto a baking sheet about 2 inches apart from each other.

Bake cookies at 350 degrees for around 15 minutes. You want to take them out once the tops are getting brown. The cookies may still seem soft at this point, but they will harden as they cool.

Original recipe from the Aprovechar healthy cooking blog.

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Mastery

Very soon after Roarke started lifting his head like crazy he FINALLY mastered rolling over from back to tummy and tummy to back! Im thankful I have two more items to check off the developmental milestone list before our 4 month check up! PHEW! It isnt that I would get scolded by our doctor or anything, but you always feel like they are judging you, if you know what I mean, and you see their minds working as they wonder why your baby isnt where they should be yet.

My big boy is also starting to really enjoy sitting in his big boy chair!

Ummmm... has someone been drinking?

I continue to enjoy him sooooo much! 

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