Are you truly ready for weight loss

Your weight-loss success depends in large part on your readiness to take on the challenge. If you jump in before youre ready, your weight-loss plan may buckle under the first challenge. Use these questions to assess your weight-loss readiness.

1. Are you motivated to make long-term lifestyle changes?

Successful weight loss depends on permanent lifestyle changes, such as eating healthy foods and exercising more. That could represent a significant departure from your current lifestyle. Be honest. Knowing that you need to make changes in your life and actually doing it are two different things. You may have to overhaul your diet so that youre eating more whole grains, fruits, vegetables and low-fat dairy products, for example. Youll also need to find time to exercise for at least 30 minutes nearly every day of the week. Exercise is especially important to prevent regaining your lost weight.

Your motivation for undertaking these changes may be better health, improved appearance or just feeling better about yourself in general. As long as your motivation is a healthy one, it doesnt really matter what it is. Find your motivation and focus on it.

2. Have you addressed the big distractions in your life?

If youre dealing with major life events, such as marital problems, job stress, illness or financial worries, you may not want to add the challenge of overhauling your eating and exercise habits. Instead, consider giving your life a chance to calm down before you launch your weight-loss program.

3. Do you have a realistic picture of how much weight youll lose and how quickly?

Achieving and maintaining a healthy weight is a lifelong process. Over the long term, its best to aim for losing 1 to 2 pounds (0.5 to 1 kilogram) a week. To lose 1 to 2 pounds a week, you need to burn 500 to 1,000 calories more than you consume each day. You can do that through a low-calorie diet and regular physical activity or exercise.

Initially you might lose weight more quickly than that if you make significant changes — just be sure the changes are health supporting. Dont get discouraged if your rate of weight loss slows a bit after bigger initial losses.

4. Have you resolved any emotional issues connected to your weight?

Emotions and food are often intertwined. Anger, stress, grief and boredom can trigger emotional eating. And if you have a history of an eating disorder, weight loss can be even trickier. Start by identifying your emotional issues related to food so that youre prepared for the challenges. Talk to your doctor about what weight-loss options are best for you.

5. Do you have support and accountability?

Any weight-loss program can be difficult. You may face moments of temptation or become disheartened. Having someone in your corner to offer encouragement can help. If you dont have friends or family you can rely on for positive help, consider joining a weight-loss support group.

If you want to keep your weight-loss efforts private, be prepared to be accountable to yourself with regular weigh-ins and a log of your diet and activity. You might also want to consider joining an online program or using a certified health coach.

6. Have you embraced the weight-loss challenge?

If you dont have a positive attitude about losing weight, you may not be ready. If you dread what lies ahead, you may be more likely to find excuses to veer off course. Try to embrace the vision of your new lifestyle and remain positive. Focus on how good youll feel when youre more active or when you weigh less. Picture yourself celebrating every little success along the way, whether its opting for a low-fat cottage cheese snack instead of chips or going for a walk.

Youre ready for weight loss: Now what?

If you answered yes to all or most of these questions, youre probably ready to make the lifestyle changes necessary to work toward permanent weight loss. You may be able to forge ahead on your own, creating your own lifestyle program for healthy eating and exercising. Or you may feel you need help.

Educating yourself about the process of successful weight loss and maintenance is a start. For example, learn more about the dietary changes necessary for losing weight. See a dietitian or enroll in a behavior-based weight program that can help you change the habits that can interfere with weight loss, such as eating when youre stressed or bored. If you have a significant amount of weight to lose, you may benefit from medically supervised weight loss with a team of health professionals that may include a dietitian, a therapist or an obesity specialist.

What if youre not ready?

If you answered no to more than one of these questions, you may not be ready to embark on a weight-loss program right now. And thats OK. Explore whats holding you back and face those obstacles. In some cases it may simply be a matter of timing. For instance, you may need to resolve other stressors in your life first. In other cases, you may need to work on related issues, such as your feelings toward weight loss or your willingness to commit to permanent lifestyle changes.

By Mayo Clinic staff

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Failed But Yummy Souffle

Ive had a lot of fun cooking this year.  I ate a lot of things I never thought I would, cooked things Ive never attempted before and learned a completely new way of eating.  There are just two cooking goals I had for myself before the year ended that I didnt get around to: mastering a soufflé and making a gelatin dessert that set properly.  So on Christmas day with the chef to egg me on I thought I would try a simple (or so I thought) soufflé so I could get that obstacle out of the way. Like so many things in life it didnt turn out the way I thought it would but it was still fun and delicious.

A lot of little things went wrong while I was trying to soufflé  I forgot to sift my flour.  The whisk wasnt perfectly dry.  My safety net disappeared to attend to a cat feeding before the snow got too bad emergency just as I was starting the part of the process I was unsure about.  I was flustered from being at an annoying job for the 6 hours before dinner.  And my family was walking in the door just as I got to the step where I couldnt walk away from my ingredients without them falling.  It wasnt an ideal situation to begin with so I wasnt too surprised when my soufflé didnt poof.  Fearing just this out come I had given the fella strict instructions on which bottle of wine to open for me in my fallen soufflé sadness and just the right tone to say “there there bunny” to me.

I pouted over the sad looking soufflé but since everything else on the table looked so fabulous I never managed to look any where near as pathetic as my fluffy obviously starving to death princess did. 

Besides I had every one I loved around a big purple table with amazing food, even a soufflé failure couldnt get me down.  And the surprising thing was that the soufflé, as unattractive as it looked tasted really great.  A creamy cheesy warm treat.  It nicely filled the gap in the dinner left by the crispy rolls or focaccia  we usually have at holiday dinners. 

So the good news was the soufflé despite its ugliness was tasty enough to warrant the effort which means Ill be motivated to try it again on a day with less stress when I can better focus.  And Julia Child has an entire section devoted to soufflés in Mastering the Art of French Cooking that I apparently need to read over a couple more times.  I will make a puffy wonderful soufflé happen.  Most people have resolutions about losing weight, I have them about cooking somewhat complicated food stuffs.  Ill let you know when I succeed.

Cheese Soufflé

1 teaspoon butter

1 tablespoon Parmesan

1 cup milk

3 tablespoons butter

3 tablespoons sifted rice flour

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/8 teaspoon pepper

1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper

1/8 teaspoon nutmeg

4 egg yolks

5 egg whites

1/8 teaspoon salt

1 cup coarsely grated swiss or Parmesan cheese

Before you start:  place your eggs on the counter so they will be room temperature when you need them, measure out all your ingredients and have them close at hand, and make sure all the bowls, whisks and mold are very clean.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Butter inside of soufflé mold and sprinkle with cheese.  Set aside for later.

In a small pot put the milk on a medium heat to begin boiling.

Melt the butter in a medium saucepan.  Stir in the flour with a wooden spatula and cook over moderate heat until foamy, about 2 minutes.  Remove from heat.  When mixture is no longer bubbling pour in the boiling milk.  Beat vigorously with a whisk until well blended.  Beat in the seasonings.

Return to medium high heat and boil, stirring with the whisk for about 1 minutes.  Sauce will be very thick when youre finished.  Remove from heat and set aside while you separate eggs.

Drop the four egg yolks one at a time into the hot sauce pan, reserving the whites in a metal or ceramic bowl for later in the recipe.  With the whisk beat the yolks individually into the sauce.  Continue with each yolk until well incorporated.  Keep the mixture at a tepid temperature while preparing the egg white mixture.

Beat the five egg whites and salt with a whisk or in a stand mixer until stiff by starting at a low speed, gradually increasing it as the eggs become foamy.  Take about a minute to raise mixer speed from low to high, constantly using a spatula to push the eggs off the sides of bowl and into the beaters.  Stop when the beaters leaves slightly shiny peaks in the surface of the mixture.

Stir a big spoonful of the egg whites into the warm sauce.  Stir in all but one tablespoon of the grated cheese.  Delicately fold in the rest of the egg whites being careful not to over fold and break the fuffly consistency.

Put the incorporated soufflé mixture into the prepared mold.  It should be about 3/4 of the way full.  Tap bottom of mold on counter to smooth the surface of the soufflé  Sprinkle with the remaining cheese.

Set rack in middle of the oven and immediately turn heat down to 375.  Do not open the door for the next 20 minutes.  In 25 to 30 minutes the soufflé will have puffed a couple inches over the rim of the mold and the top will be nicely browned.   Serve at once.

Gluten free version of recipe from Julia Childs Mastering the Art of French Cooking.

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Clean Eating Weight Loss Meal Plan 115

Breakfast

Nonfat Plain Greek Yogurt with Honey and Lemon Zest

Creamy, delicious and protein-rich, nonfat Greek yogurt is a quick, healthy breakfast that you can easily whip up and enjoy. 

Mid Morning Snack

Fresh Cherries and Blueberries

Take advantage of the summer with sweet, refreshing summer fruits!

Lunch

Chicken Salad Spinach Wrap with Fruit Slices

A simple wrap full of hearty protein and vitamin-rich veggies creates the perfect clean eating lunch on the go.

Afternoon Snack

Asian Pears

Asian pears are full of vitamin K, potassium and fiber; best of all, they are juicy and sweet. They curb sugar cravings and leave you satisfied until dinner time.

Dinner

Steamed Turkey Patty and Egg

An interesting but cleaner way to cook turkey patty is by steaming; because steaming retains more of turkeys nutritional value while tenderizing the meat. To add more protein and flavor, we cracked an egg on top.

We recommend seasoning the ground turkey as you would a turkey burger, then press turkey into a flat patty shape with hands, and lay in a steamer-safe bowl. Then, crack an egg on top of the meat, and place bowl in steamer. Steam for 15 - 20 minutes, or until turkey is thoroughly cooked. Enjoy with a side of vegetables. 

Its an easy dinner thats also tasty and clean.

If youre looking for a durable steamer, we love Hamilton Beach Original Steamer with two-tiered food divider and an automatic switch to a warmer when cookings done. Its an awesome kitchen tool that makes eating clean easier.

Get it at Hamilton Beach Original Steamer!

Thanks again for your time!

Hope you enjoyed todays Clean Eating Meal Plan!

We hope to see you next time.

And if you havent yet, please sign up via email to get new clean eating meal plans!

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Week 16 Weigh In Results

Well, yesterday I had my week 16 weigh-in at the Medi-Weightloss Clinic and got some great news.  I am now down a total of 48.5 lbs!  Since week 14 I have officially lost 4.4 lbs. 

If you had said to me at the beginning of February when I began following Medi-Weightloss that I would be down nearly 50 lbs by June, I would have told you that you were crazy... that my body was so exhausted from yo-yo dieting that it would never lose so much so quickly again.  Thankfully, I would have been wrong. 

I know I have never mentioned my actual weight in my blog before but I think today is the day.  Im feeling really good about my progress and think Im finally ready to share that intimate detail.  When I began Medi-Weightloss in February I was 262.5 lbs.  I am now down to 214 lbs and nearly halfway to my goal of losing 127 lbs.  I am now the closest I have been to the weight I was when my husband and I met since... my husband and I met!  (I believe I was around 205-210 lbs then - May 2007) 

It was not long before that (May 2006) that I weighed the least amount I have in my adult life (175 lbs) after 18 months on the Atkins diet.  Unfortunately I was not meant to remain that size for long but I remember how much better I felt physically and mentally when I was able to do 200 sit ups/day and shop in non-plus size clothing stores.  My former friends Ben & Jerry had other plans for me though and I packed on 30 lbs over the course of a year between moving twice, getting divorced from my 1st husband, a short stint in the hospital, and then finally meeting my (now) hubby.  By the time we met, my dinner regularly included sugary drinks with candy/chips and the days of doing 100 sit ups twice/day were over. 

I think if I can reach 175 lbs again, that will put me someplace physically where Id feel comfortable trying to start a family but if I can make it to 135 lbs, that is where I WANT to be. 

One way to get where I want to be instead of where I am... resisting temptation, a difficult task for someone who could previously eat the majority of a large pizza followed by a 1/2 pound bag of skittles and a pint of ice cream.  My solution?  Strong flavors.

Yesterday at the grocery store I had a coupon for a dollar off a 12 oz bag of Seattles Best ground coffee.  Well, Stop & Shop doesnt carry Seattles Best so I decided I wanted a special flavor anyway, just to perk up my Saturday night.  The flavor of choice?  Godiva Chocolate Truffle.  O. M. G.  I could not have chosen better!  What incredible chocolate flavor and a nice amount of caffeine (it managed to keep me up till midnight and for those of you who dont know, I typically fall asleep on the couch around 9pm).  I definitely recommend this coffee to anyone who is a dieting choco-holic like me!!

Also, last night I made (for the 2nd time) a recipe my Medi-Weightloss Clinic had printed out copies of for everyone to take... I wanted to make it according to all the instructions (first time I left out the crushed red pepper flakes) before posting it here so I could say for sure how it was... and its incredible, although the red pepper flakes do make it pretty spicy so if you cant stomach spicy, leave them out but they definitely add a kick that is obviously missing without them.  Heres the recipe, enjoy!

Smokey Turkey Burgers

1.25 lbs ground turkey

1/2 cup chopped yellow onions

2 tsp whole ground cumin

1 tsp coriander

1/2 tsp salt

1/4 tsp ground black pepper

1 tsp crushed red pepper flakes

1 tsp chili powder

1 tsp garlic powder

Finely chop 1/2 cup of yellow onions.  Add onions and all the spices to the ground turkey, then mix with spatula or clean hands.  Form mixture into 4 oz patties.  Place on grill (or non-stick skillet) and cook for 3-4 minutes/side or until cooked through.  Nutrition Facts:  Serving Size, 1 patty; Calories, 157; Total Fat, 9g; Sat Fat, 2g; Monounsaturated Fat, 3g; Polyunsaturated Fat, 2g; Trans Fat, 0g; Cholesterol, 75mg; Sodium, 289mg; Potassium, 262mg; Total Carbohydrates, 2g; Dietary Fiber, 0g; Sugars, 0g; Protein, 17g.  ?

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First Foods

I just had to share Roarkes very first time eating food. Gotta love avocados!

My heart could just explode with love for this little boy!

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September Photo Dump 2015

Our best photos from the month of September! My favorite thing this month was long walks with Roarke and Remi aka R&R!

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Sweet Potato Fries

Oh steak fries how Ive missed you!

Okay so they werent quite steak fries but they were close enough. These sweet potato fries were out standing and I cant thank our friend Lindsay enough for blogging about them (she posts a lot of good simple recipes from a variety of cookbooks, you should start reading her right away.) It wasnt until I reread the rules for eating on high fiber days that I realized sweet potatoes count as a high fiber, low GI ingredient. The exact second I found that out I remembered these fries and put them on our list of recipes for this week.

Combined with portobello steaks, a baby spinach salad, and a California red wine made for a very happy making meal. I even went the extra mile and made spicy ketchup by mixing half jerk sauce with half organic unsweetened ketchup. This made an extraordinary dipping sauce that perfectly contrasted the sweetness of the fries. That with the well marinaded tender portobellos almost made me forget I was on a often complex frustrating diet. Figuring out fake out recipes that make me stop missing things I wish I could eat it what keeps this diet from making me crazy. That and the wine.

Ive read about the Red Truck wine several times this week so when a long day at work drove me to knowing I needed wine I decided to stop into the grocery store across the street from my 40 hour a week job and find it. This wine isnt super special but its a very drinkable blend of Syrah, Petite Syrah, Cabernet Franc, Grenache, Mourvedre all from California. Its big and tannic with hints of chocolate and licorice. Nothing intense but some nights I want something that doesnt blow me away and this did the trick. Besides I was just drinking it with dinner to whet my appetite to go out to a Shiraz/Syrah tasting. They were all bargain wines but I still had a blast.

Sweet Potato Fries

2 medium sweet potatoes, peeled
2 tablespoons oil
2 teaspoons fructose
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon ground pepper

Preheat oven to 425°. Cut sweet potatoes in half lengthwise, then into wedges. Toss wedges with oil. Combine fructose, salt and pepper, shake onto sweet potatoes, toss again.

Put on a baking sheet lined with aluminum foil spreading out wedges as best as possible so they dont over lap and bake for 15 minutes. Pull them out, turn them over, and bake for another 10-15 minutes until they’re golden brown and crispy on the outside. Sprinkle with more kosher salt and/or cumin or your favorite fresh herb.

Original recipe from Lindsay at Fork Full of News.

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