Progress is happening...

So we just completed our 3rd week of the low GI plan.  The diet itself is really easy to maintain.  I sometimes question if I am doing it right because it is really easy.  But I guess the scales don't lie and I am doing something right.

I am officially down 10 lbs from the start date 3 weeks ago and Tim is down 5lbs!!!!

We have not been exercising like we should, the progress we have made has been primarily the diet, which if you did not get what I was saying earlier really does not even feel like a diet. LOL  Tim and I have still eaten out on a few occasions and I think this helps from feeling like you are depriving yourself of anything.

We have found some great new recipes and I am preparing them with only 1 serving size for each of us.  There are no left overs or risk of going back for seconds.  This has helped out a lot as well considering Tim and I love good food and have a hard time saying no to the second plate.

We also discovered the joys of fat free plain yogurt as a sour cream substitute!  It is great!

Our goal for the next week or two, is to increase our exercising.  This coupled with the diet should keep this weight loss chugging along.

Seeing progress is the best motivator to keep doing what you are doing and then do more!

Say When...

So I am not sure if this is a Southern thing or not, but when someone is putting food on your plate, they often tell you to "Say When".  Well in family and large group gatherings, you can always count on the laughs to circulate when someone or many someones let the plate keep getting food piled on.

I mean can you really blame them with all the good home cooking?  Problem is when the meal is done, you have many people sitting around rubbing protruding stomaches talking about the great meal and how stuffed they are now.  Again this maybe a southern thing, or maybe a just my family thing ;).

My point to this little anecdote, is that this "Say When" concept and then the incidental stuffed tummies has been on my mind a lot lately.

I have been reflecting on how the years have passed and how many pounds have packed on, and I have asked myself "When will I say When?"

When will it be enough to make me stick with better diet and exercise?

I am unfortunately not a person who can just do one or the other and the pounds melt off.  It takes a lot of consistent hard work as well determination to restrict certain foods from my life.

So in an effort to FINALLY "Say When", I am going to be chronicling mine and Tim's progress on this health and wellness journey.

I have opted not to call this a weight loss journey because it is not solely about that.  This about Tim and I both knocking on the door of 30 and wanting to have several more healthy active years to our life.  We want to have kids and be able to run with them and play without being hindered by our weight and fitness level.

So here we go folks.

This past week has been a little introductory get in gear kind of week.  We bought a Wii Fit and have both exercised 4 out of 7 days.  This week, we plan to add the gym into the mix for 2 to 4 days.

We are also starting a low GI diet tomorrow.  It has lots of tasty food and seems like it will be satisfying, but helps us find a balance what we eat to improve our health.

Wish us luck and we would love to hear from you as we share our food diaries, our exercise efforts, and general progress on this journey.

By the way, just adding in the 4 days of physical activity have me down 5 pounds for the week!

Beef, Broccoli and Noodles

Servings: 4

• 1 pound boneless top sirloin (we used sirloin tip) • 1 tablespoon sesame oil • 1 clove garlic, minced • 1/4 teaspoon salt • 1/8 teaspoon pepper • 1 sliced onion • 2/3 cup low fat beef broth • 1 tablespoon cornstarch • 2 tablespoon water • 1 tablespoon soy sauce • 1/4 dices ginger • 3 to 4 cups of broccoli

Heat wok or large nonstick skillet over high heat. Add oil to coat. Add garlic, onion and sirloin which has been thinly sliced. (Partially freezing makes slicing meat across grain easy.) Stir fry for 3 to 4 minutes or until just brown.
Add salt and pepper, stirring in beef broth. Mix cornstarch, water and soy sauce. Slowly stir into broth mixture and bring to a boil and cook until thickened, about one minute. Stir in ginger and broccoli. Cook over medium heat for 5 to 10 minutes until broccoli is desired tenderness.

Udon Brown Rice Noodles


Boil beef broth 
cook noodles as directed on package

drain noodles (save broth)

Lasagna Recipe

1 lb. ground turkey breast (optional)

1 1/2 tbsp. basil and parsley

1 or 2 zucchini

1 small onion

1 (32 oz.) jar spaghetti sauce (or homemade)
1 (8 oz.) pkg. lasagna noodles, uncooked
24 oz. part skim ricotta

2 cups Mozzarella cheese,shredded

Brown ground turkey in skillet with onion and zucchini; add Italian seasoning and mix well. In a bowl mix the meat and veggie mixture or veggie mixture for vegetarian lasagna with ricotta cheese.  Into 9x13 inch metal pan pour enough spaghetti sauce to cover bottom. Top with single layer of noodles. Spread with half of meat and ricotta cheese. Top with 1/3 of Mozzarella cheese.Add another layer of noodles and lightly cover with spaghetti sauce. Cover with remaining meat and ricotta cheese and 1/3 of Mozzarella. Add third layer of noodles and cover with remaining spaghetti sauce.
Cover tightly with foil and bake at 350-375 degrees for 1 hour. Top with remaining Mozzarella. Replace foil and let stand for 10-15 minutes.  For browned cheese (which we love) broil for about 3 to 5 mins.  Watch closely to make sure not to burn the cheese.

Served with homemade garlic bread and fresh green beans.  Bread recipe on separate post.

NOTE: May be made ahead and reheated or frozen. Heat some extra sauce in saucepan and ladle over top of each serving if lasagna seems too dry.

Quick and Easy Italian Dinner for 2

For this quick and easy dinner you will need the following

Main Dish

1 bag of frozen or fresh tortellini (your choice of filling)
1 Jar of marinara (again your preference)

Follow instructions on package of pasta. Drain pasta. Stir in heated marinara sauce.

Side Dish

1 to 2 Zucchini
Prosciutto (optional)
Onion
Olive oil
1/2 lb Tomatoes
Salt and pepper to taste

Trim off the ends of the Zucchini, and cut them into rounds about 1/4-inch thick. Sprinkle them with salt and put them in a colander for an hour, to give the salt time to draw moisture from the slices. If you're strapped for time you can omit this step.

Cut an abundant 6 ounces of medium-sliced prosciutto into thin strips and sauté it in some oil in a pot with a finely sliced onion. As soon as the onion is a light golden brown, add 1 pound of blanched, peeled, seeded and chopped tomatoes. Cook for a few minutes, add the zucchini, and finish cooking everything over a brisk flame, stirring every now and again. Should the pot begin to dry out add a few tablespoons of water or broth. The zucchini should be cooked but not falling apart, while the sauce should be fairly thick. When they're done check seasoning, adding some pepper if need be, as well as freshly minced parsley and basil to taste. This works equally well as a vegetarian main dish or a vegetable.

How to blanch/peel a tomato

http://www.christonium.com/culinaryreview/ItemID=11930973656349

Soft Whole Wheat Bread Recipe-Finally!

We finally found a recipe for Whole Wheat Bread that produced a loaf that was not so dense you had to have a gallon of water to wash down the bite.

We purchased a bread maker not that long ago and have been trying to obtain that soft light loaf of whole wheat bread ever since.

Thanks to Linhart Live Blog for the recipe.

Ingredients:
1 and 1/4 cup warm water
1 tbs butter
1 tbs white vinegar (this helps the yeast make big bubbles which makes the bread chewy)
1 tsp salt
1/4 cup potato flakes (this helps make the bread soft and the dough rise)
1/4 cup dry instant milk powder (another softener)
1/4 cup honey OR 1/3 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup vital wheat gluten
2 and 3/4 cups white whole wheat flour (white whole wheat is simply softer)
1 tbs dry active yeast

Directions:
Place the ingredients into your bread machine in the order listed above. Set it for a 2lb loaf on the whole wheat cycle with "light" crust. While the bread machine is in the kneading cycle make sure it is incorporating all the ingredients. Scrape down the sides with a rubber spatula if needed. At the beginning of the final rise cycle take the dough out and pat into a smooth ball. This will give you a smooth and pretty crust.

(We have baked this loaf in the bread maker and the oven. The oven gives you a softer less dense loaf by a mile. 350 F for 20-25 minutes. )

As soon as the bread is done baking remove it from the machine or oven and let it cool inside a ziploc bag or air tight container or wrap it in a towel for about 1 hour. This will make all the steam absorb back into the bread making it soft and chewy.

Calories 116.7
Protein 4.07 g
Total Fat 1.31 g
Dietary Fiber 3.12 g

Trying to live the sustainable life

Over the last several months we have made the switch to primarily organic foods. Tim and I feel better about what we are putting into our bodies, and feel better about the impact we a leaving on this earth.

Since the summer season brings so much tasty fresh veggies and fruits, we have been trying to supplement our groceries with food from the farmers markets, and our garden.

We raised a very small garden this year. We wanted to see what we could get to grow. To our amazement, the garden is thriving with a few exceptions. We have a completely organic garden. We have used worm poop liquid fertilizer and chemical free alternatives to deal with pests. We also have a compost bin going so we will have our own organic fertilizer for next planting season.

We have about 30+ tomatoes ripening as we speak. Zucchini, banana peppers, broccoli, cabbage, bell pepper, basil, and parsley.

We just ate our first zucchini tonight with dinner. There is an amazing amount of satisfaction in eating something that you grew yourself.

Since our garden is small and limited variety, we have supplemented the remaining produce with food from the farmers market. We have been purchasing extras to freeze for the winter.

We have also been baking our own bread. It is difficult to find bread that does not contain high fructose corn syrup and other additives that are terrible for you. We have found options that cost around $4-$5 per loaf.

We thought it would be a great idea to have bread that does not compromise our new lifestyle but will also not break the bank.

Most realize that unfortunately it tends to be more costly to eat organic and live a "green" life. Well it can be difficult, but you have to find ways to save money, while still giving your family only the best natural ingredients, chemical free cosmetics and household products and protecting the earth we all live on.

We have changed all of our cosmetics and personal care items to safe chemical free alternatives. My one vice is my deoderant and hairspray. There is not really a comparable hairspray that does what I like for my hair, and the deoderants leave much to be desired. So, for now these two will be my biggest eco sins.

Tim and I really do view our lifestyle change as two fold. We are bettering ourselves and helping to better the planet.

I am a believer in the adage that every little bit helps. So, that is what we do everyday. Something, anything to make our lives better and hopefully make the environment better as well.

I will start to post some of the best recipes we have found recently for anyone who is interested.

The picture above is of our early garden. A picture of the jungle it has become is soon to follow.