Hard-earned, but oh so sweet

For the all the self-loathing I did in the last post, this one should a relatively positive one! I got on the scales this morning, and not only did I lose the weight I had gained over the holidays, I'm down another lb. for a total of 27lbs. lost! I have worked out 3 days in a row (go me!), and have been sticking to a pretty sensible diet. Breakfast is the easy part for me; I'll eat a low-fat Pop Tart, a VitaTop (those things are seriously amazing! Chocolate for breakfast + only 100 calories=heavenly!), or occasionally a whole-wheat scone. I used to ALWAYS have to have some form of protein for breakfast, and that usually was something stuffed inside a biscuit from Chick-fil-a or the Bread Basket. I really thought I would miss those things, but in all honesty, I don't. I've had one Chick-fil-a chicken biscuit since April, and it really wasn't as great as I remembered it. Lunch and dinner are pretty interchangeable to me. I don't eat "better" at one than I do the other, unless I totally splurge at lunch. Sometimes I'll eat a salad from Zaxby's (House, grilled chicken, no cheese or fried onions, toss the bread, and I use my own fat-free ranch dressing) or have a pre-packaged meal from Lean Cuisine or Healthy Choice; other times I'll eat leftovers from the night before. Since I live with my mother, I am usually cooking for 2 versus just myself, so it's a lot easier to prepare something more elaborate. Last night, for example, I made an awesome (yes, I'm bragging on myself, because it WAS!) turkey meatloaf, steamed cauliflower, and fried okra. Yeah, I said it-FRIED. However, I used just enough oil (vegetable oil, because 1-we had it on hand, and 2-I don't like the taste of olive oil on certain foods) to barely coat the pan...maybe 1 tsp. I lightly breaded the okra with whole-wheat flour (my new favorite food find!), and pan-fried it until slightly browned. My mom love love loves okra, so she was ecstatic to have that again. I guess the point of all this is to say that I can eat pretty much whatever I want, but with modifications. I still get to have sweets (dessert last night was strawberries and light Reddi-Whip!), but I eat smarter. At the suggestion of a really sweet person (Thanks KW!), I am now soft drink free during the week. I thought I'd miss them, but I really don't. I'm drinking more and more water (I've always drank it, but not necessarily as much as I should've!), and flushing impurities out of my system. I think I mentioned an awesome low-fat squash-zucchini casserole recipe in my first blog post, and since I'm making it again tonight, I figured I'd share it here (I'm also going to attempt a low-fat blackberry cobbler, so I'll post the results of that soon!). Let me know if you make it and love/hate it!

Low-fat Squash-Zucchini Casserole

2 medium zucchini, cut into 1/4-1/2 inch rounds
2 medium/3-4 small squash, cut into 1/4-1/2 inch rounds
1/2 cup chopped Vidalia (or other sweet) onion
Cooking spray/spray "butter'' (I use the kind by Parkay)
1/2 cup Greek yogurt OR fat-free sour cream (can use a little more to reach desired level of creaminess, but that's the amount I prefer)
1/4 cup reduced fat Parmesan cheese
1/2 cup 2% sharp cheddar cheese
1/2 sleeve Whole-wheat Ritz crackers, crushed and sprayed with cooking spray or spray "butter"
Salt/pepper, to taste

Saute zucchini, squash, and onion in a pan coated with cooking spray/butter until really soft, but not completely mushy. Stir in Greek yogurt or fat-free sour cream, Parmesan cheese, cheddar cheese, salt and pepper, and then place in a casserole dish that has been coated with cooking spray. Top with crushed Ritz crackers and bake at 350 degrees for approximately 30 minutes, or until Ritz crackers are browned and casserole is bubbly.(note: oven times/temperatures may vary, so you might have to cook a little longer!). This recipe will serve 4 (or 2 huge portions, but I'm not advocating that!). Happy Healthy Eating!

Happy (Belated) Birthday America! (but not so happy weight gain...grr)

I so slacked over the holiday weekend, let me just say that. It wasn't necessarily WHAT I ate, but I definitely ate more of the healthy stuff than I should have. Amazing how low-fat/fat-free stuff can sabotage you just as much as the bad stuff. I had lost another lb. before the weekend (so a total of 26), but after consuming steak, baked beans, angel food cake (wish the calories in it were angelic and floated on up out of it...sigh), a ton of frozen raspberries, and snacks, I wound up GAINING:(. Like I said in my first post, I knew there'd be setbacks, but to have eaten mostly healthy foods and nothing really bad (well I guess steak isn't THAT healthy, nor are the sugar-laden baked beans), it was kind of a let-down. I had a discussion via text message on Sunday with a guy friend of mine who, while pretty fit, admits to having incredible cravings sometimes. I think it makes me feel a teensy bit better to know that I'm not the only one who isn't always satisfied with a piece of fruit or a bottle of water (and hello, who really DOES get satisfied with a bottle of water?!). There's simply some things I refuse to give up, like my Sprite Zero and Diet Coke. Bad for you? Yes. Laden with calories? No. To me, the fact that they have no calories is a major plus, and I feel like as long as I don't consume them endlessly (I have 1, maybe 2 per day) they're not doing me all that much harm. This is where the aforementioned guy friend and I disagree; his doctor says they're worse than regular soft drinks, but I've also heard doctors say that they're not that bad either. Who knows? If I was to drink the regular versions of them, I'd be consuming about 200-300 extra calories per day, and to me, that's not worth it at all. I think a lifestyle change is all about give-and-take. Am I going to be perfect always? Heck no. Am I going in the right direction? Most of the time, sure, with a few twists and turns along the way...and I'm pretty content with that right now.

Shameless plug, but if you aren't already getting emails from Hungry Girl, you definitely should! Hungry Girl sends out emails Mon-Fri (minus holidays) filled with recipes, healthier alternatives to fatty foods, and lets you know about awesome new healthy products! I bought Lisa Lillien's (Hungry Girl herself) cocktail cookbook a couple of weeks ago, and it's got some awesome healthy party foods in it...I made low-fat pigs-in-a-blanket over the weekend, and they're YUM!

Background Info

I read somewhere that if you post your intentions, they become easier to stick with, hence why I created this blog. Back in April of this year, I got fed up with being...fat. I've been overweight my entire life, and started (and stopped) numerous diets. Diets don't work, period. You can only stick with something restrictive for so long before you go off them and gain weight back as soon as you start eating "normally." Normal for so many people includes chips, cookies, fried foods, etc. I know that those things, in MODERATION, aren't necessarily bad things. However, when you have no willpower against those godawful things, moderation goes to hell in a handbasket! I finally decided to be proactive and go for a complete lifestyle change. It was rather drastic at first; I got my mom to go along with it, since I currently reside with her. She was all for it, but unlike me, she had very little weight to lose. Having a partner made/is making it a lot easier, though. When we started out, we cut out fried foods, all white bread/pasta/sugar, pork, and beef. We allowed ourselves no snacks, and were basically starving for the first couple of weeks. Gradually over the past few months, I've discovered healthy snacks (in portion-controlled bags, mind you) so starving is no longer part of the picture, thank God. June 29, I hit a milestone in my weight loss. I am finally down 25lbs.! The thing that gets me is, I could've been down a lot more had I started exercising more frequently. Exercise has always been torturous for me. I hated feeling out of breath and having my whole body hurt. I've been doing it more regularly now, but at first, I would exercise maybe twice a week, if that. My mind usually starts screaming at me that I'm going to fall out and die from lack of oxygen while I'm doing it, but the rush I get after completing my usual 30 minutes is awesome! Any and all encouragement is greatly appreciated, and if I can be of any encouragement to YOU, please let me know! I plan on using this blog to give updates on my weight loss, my defeats (because I know I'll have them), and me being a FOOD lover, I'll also share favorite recipes of mine that I've made over to be healthier (I made an awesome squash-zucchini casserole tonight!).