Hey everyone! Last week I talked about starting a food journal, well, I was going through my day planner and stumbled upon a few pages from my old 2007 food journal! Let me just tell you, I'm amazed that I lost any weight back then, I can't believe I ate this stuff while trying to lose weight...I figured I would share just a few of the gems that are there;
Nov 19,2007
Breakfast: Chex cereal with whole milk, and a couple spoon fulls of sugar (I didn't measure out the correct portion of cereal either)
Lunch: Turkey Sandwich with mayonnaise (on white bread, with lots of mayo), cheese, and chips.
Snacks: 100 cal. pack of "Cheese Nips), cup of coffee (with lots of creme and sugar)
Dinner: Mac & cheese, fried ham.
Dessert: a 170 cal. Oatmeal Creme Pie
November 20, 2007
Breakfast: 90 cal granola bar, iced tea (with sugar)
Lunch: Taco Bell; 2 "Ranchero Chicken Soft Tacos with NO lettuce or tomato, Nachos and cheese sauce
Dinner: KFC Extra Crispy Chicken, Mac & cheese, and potato wedges.
Dessert: Hot cocoa (made with whole milk, extra scoops of hot chocolate, and lots of marshmallows)
November 21, 2007
Breakfast: 170 cal Oatmeal Creme Pie, half a cup of coffee (again with lots of cream and sugar)
Lunch: McDonald's; Cheeseburger, small fry, all together 550 cal.
Dinner; Homemade pizza, probably 3 slices (This was before we started using whole wheat flour)
November 25, 2007
Breakfast: Nothing (not good)
Lunch:Hot dog and chips, (on a white bread bun)
Dinner:340 cal frozen dinner, I ate less than half, so I decided to eat a 450 calorie piece of cheesecake to make up for it...go figure...
Snacks: 100 cal. Cheese Nips, a 70 cal. piece of chocolate
November 26, 2007
Breakfast: A Ham & Cheese Pouch (from the local doughnut shop, for whatever reason I thought that they were only 150 calories...oh how young and naive I was...
Lunch: a grilled cheese (on white bread, with 2 slices of cheese) and Ramen noodle soup
Dinner: Popcorn chicken, and wedges
Snacks: 70 cal piece of chocolate
Dessert: A nice sized piece of pretzel Salad (which is made of jello, pretzels, sugar, cool whip, and cream cheese).
I will remind you that what I was eating here, was still LESS than what I was eating back in 2006, so believe it or not, I actually did cut back...
I was most amazed by the fact that I ate as much fast food as I did...looking at this shows me how much my diet has changed in the last few years...I'm so proud that I eat vegetables now, and eat so much healthier! :)
I think that back then I should have tried to balance it out better, like if I had Taco Bell for lunch, cut back the portion, and maybe have a salad for dinner, of course back then I hated salads...I made mistakes of either not eating anything or eating too little for breakfast, but then I'd eat unbalanced meals...
I think that if I'd changed it up back then, I would have lost weight faster, and I would be healthier, but I didn't know then, what I do now...no matter what I did back then, it has gotten to a good place now, and no matter how bad I ate a few years back, it makes me so grateful for the way I eat and live right now!
Here is an example of what I ate the other day:
Breakfast: 1/2 cup of cottage cheese with about 7 pieces of canned fruit mixed in the cottage cheese
Lunch: A deli turkey sandwich on 2 slices of low cal whole wheat bread =100 cal., a 50 cal piece of cheese, and lettuce, and 7 "Wheat Stix" instead of chips.
I had a cup of coffee after lunch, and one later in the afternoon, (both made with Stevia In The Raw sugar substitute and Fat-Free coffee cream.
Dinner: a salad with beets, feta cheese, 4 olives, and some low cal dressing, and 1 slice of homemade pizza (which is made with half whole wheat flour)
I've changed portion sizes, added veggies, and have switched to some low cal/fat free options. I just wanted to share with how I ate way back in 2007, when I started losing weight, I am much healthier than I was back then! Thanks for reading, have a great week!
~Michelle
NOTE: Everyone, I've decided to take a break from blogging for a little while, I may come back to it, I'm not sure...I just need to take some time and be there for my family right now...I'm making a lot of travel plans for the Summer, and I need to focus on other things for now...I will leave the blog open so you can still ask me questions, I will still be able to answer them, feel free to talk amongst yourselves on here, you can always find me on twitter (just check the twitter link on the side of the page)! I thank every single one of you that have read my blog, you guys are great! Keep up the work outs, the good eating, and the weight loss! I am so grateful for all of you, thank you! I wish all of you nothing but success in your weight loss and your life! This isn't goodbye forever, just goodbye for now...again I thank all of you for all of the support!
xo ~Michelle
Welcome to my blog!
Monday, March 7, 2011
Sunday, February 27, 2011
Fit Facts...
Howdy! Let's talk about weight loss fun facts! For instance, I've recently heard that drinking COLD water, like really cold water, boosts your metabolism. Personally, I prefer to drink my water at room temperature, I find that I can drink a lot more, and it quenches my thirst better, just my preference...
I've often wondered about this next question myself; what time of day is best for working out, morning, afternoon, or evening? Well, from what I've heard/read, it doesn't really matter, whatever time that works best for your schedule is great! The only bad thing that I've heard, is that you shouldn't work out before you go to bed, because of the endorphins, it will keep you awake at night. So try to avoid doing that...I like to work out in the morning, I like to start my day with it, it gives me energy (most of the time, depending on how well I slept the night before), plus I just like to know that it's done and I can move on with the rest of my day.
I don't mind working out in the afternoon, I just feel like by the time I'm done, my energy is zapped for the rest of that day. I don't really work out in the evenings..
I've heard that you should eat breakfast within the first half hour to an hour of waking up, and I've heard that you should eat before working out, that way your body will have something that will give it energy as you work out...I don't usually follow this rule, I work out before I eat, most of the time. And I don't eat within an an hour of waking up...I'm a rebel ;) Sometimes I do eat and then work out, but usually I don't...but I ALWAYS eat breakfast, it really does kick start your day! Never skip breakfast or any meals for that matter!
You also should drink water WHILE you work out, again I don't do this, I really should but I'm so into the work out, whether it's yoga, running or the elliptical, and I just don't think about it...Plus it's kind of hard to carry a water bottle when you run, or when your doing a yoga work out...I can drink when I'm on the elliptical, but I just don't feel like it first thing in the morning and I'm not thirsty...though I do drink lot of water throughout the day, it's my beverage of choice! :)
This isn't really a "fact" but I want to tell you all to start a food journal, I know, it sounds like a pain, but it does help when your trying to lose weight, or even maintain. When I first started losing weight, I tried to have a food journal, but I never would keep up with it, but last year I needed to see what I was eating and how I was working out, so I started to write it all down. Now, I still keep one, and it isn't hard to write what I eat or my work outs. I just write the date, what my weight was that morning, what I ate for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, if I had any snacks, and what my work outs were, and how long I worked out. If I gain a pound, I can see what I had the previous day, and what my work outs were...you must make sure to write EVERYTHING that you eat or dink! If you don't, the journal really doesn't help you...
I will share one last fun fact with you, as a runner I found this cool; you burn about 100 calories in every mile that you run, no matter how fast you go! I just found this interesting/awesome!
Anyway, I wanted to share some of these things that you can try if you want to boost your metabolism or give you some energy! Thanks for reading, talk to you later!
~Michelle
P.S. Boosting your metabolism means that you will burn more calories, you need to have a higher metabolism to burn more fat and calories...another little fact for ya! ;)
I've often wondered about this next question myself; what time of day is best for working out, morning, afternoon, or evening? Well, from what I've heard/read, it doesn't really matter, whatever time that works best for your schedule is great! The only bad thing that I've heard, is that you shouldn't work out before you go to bed, because of the endorphins, it will keep you awake at night. So try to avoid doing that...I like to work out in the morning, I like to start my day with it, it gives me energy (most of the time, depending on how well I slept the night before), plus I just like to know that it's done and I can move on with the rest of my day.
I don't mind working out in the afternoon, I just feel like by the time I'm done, my energy is zapped for the rest of that day. I don't really work out in the evenings..
I've heard that you should eat breakfast within the first half hour to an hour of waking up, and I've heard that you should eat before working out, that way your body will have something that will give it energy as you work out...I don't usually follow this rule, I work out before I eat, most of the time. And I don't eat within an an hour of waking up...I'm a rebel ;) Sometimes I do eat and then work out, but usually I don't...but I ALWAYS eat breakfast, it really does kick start your day! Never skip breakfast or any meals for that matter!
You also should drink water WHILE you work out, again I don't do this, I really should but I'm so into the work out, whether it's yoga, running or the elliptical, and I just don't think about it...Plus it's kind of hard to carry a water bottle when you run, or when your doing a yoga work out...I can drink when I'm on the elliptical, but I just don't feel like it first thing in the morning and I'm not thirsty...though I do drink lot of water throughout the day, it's my beverage of choice! :)
This isn't really a "fact" but I want to tell you all to start a food journal, I know, it sounds like a pain, but it does help when your trying to lose weight, or even maintain. When I first started losing weight, I tried to have a food journal, but I never would keep up with it, but last year I needed to see what I was eating and how I was working out, so I started to write it all down. Now, I still keep one, and it isn't hard to write what I eat or my work outs. I just write the date, what my weight was that morning, what I ate for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, if I had any snacks, and what my work outs were, and how long I worked out. If I gain a pound, I can see what I had the previous day, and what my work outs were...you must make sure to write EVERYTHING that you eat or dink! If you don't, the journal really doesn't help you...
I will share one last fun fact with you, as a runner I found this cool; you burn about 100 calories in every mile that you run, no matter how fast you go! I just found this interesting/awesome!
Anyway, I wanted to share some of these things that you can try if you want to boost your metabolism or give you some energy! Thanks for reading, talk to you later!
~Michelle
P.S. Boosting your metabolism means that you will burn more calories, you need to have a higher metabolism to burn more fat and calories...another little fact for ya! ;)
Saturday, February 19, 2011
Redemption...To Yourself...
Hello! I hope that everyone had a nice Valentine's Day, and didn't overindulge too much, but if you did, now's the time redeem yourself!
This time last year, I was slowly gaining some weight, I wasn't sure why, I just couldn't figure it out, but I've been thinking about it recently and I think I figured it out...
I don't like to say this because I feel like I failed, but I did something that people who lose weight sometimes do; I lost a nice amount of weight (80 lbs), and then gained some back, not all but like 13-14 lbs! At the time I didn't think that I was being that bad when it came to food, but looking back,I had this crazy logic that was, if I ate something and no one saw, then it didn't count. Weird right? It's not that I would eat huge amounts of junk food, it was actually healthy stuff, like a handful of granola, or some dried fruit, or a handful of low cal cereal, not a huge amount but I knew that I didn't need it, plus I would have more than I really should have had. I did work out pretty hard, though. But in retrospect I regret ever snacking, I'm a person who can't really "snack", my idea of a snack is a nice cup of coffee with fat free creamer and 2 packets of a low calorie sugar substitute (I use Stevia In The Raw), a big cup of coffee ends up being around 60-70 calories. I have that after lunch and it curbs my appetite until dinner.
Anyway, I just don't eat snacks, but back then I would have a snack because I thought it was ok, I thought that I wasn't eating enough. You know, I screwed up, and I own it, and now I know that I have to stay on top of my diet and my weight, if I see a change in the numbers on the scale, I need to adjust what I'm doing, I'm not going to sit back and gain weight again, like I did last year.
Since last year I've lost weight, have a much healthier diet, and have a pretty good workout routine! Gaining back those couple lbs, actually was kind of a good thing...it was a wake up call to tell myself that I lost weight, but I can gain it back faster than I lost it, and the numbers on the scale can go up so quickly...I need to keep myself in check.
Right now, I'm not sure what weight I would like to be at, I just want to play around and see what weight is more comfortable and one that I can maintain.
I've made mistakes, but I know that I'm way better now than I was last year, and completely different than the person I was 5 years ago...I've kind of gone back to the person that I was back in 2009, when I was really good at losing/maintaining!
I just want you all to know that even though I did lose weight, I also made bad choices and gained a little back, but I want you to now that even if you've made mistakes you can still redeem yourself! I screwed up, but by screwing up it gave me the drive to change my habits, and myself! Even if you fall off of the wagon, don't say "I messed up, I might as well give in", you can change, messing up can be exactly what you need to light that fire under your butt and get you motivated again!
I hope that this helps those of you that have made mistakes when it comes to weight loss, or has been a cautionary tale of what to avoid if you are just staring your weight loss journey, you don't have to gain any back, just don't think that it will stay off by magic, you need to watch your food and your work outs...Thanks for reading!
~Michelle
P.S. I'm not a big fan of sugar substitutes since most of them contain "aspartame" or "acesulfame" which I've heard can possibly cause cancer, I don't know that for sure I've just heard it. Which could mean nothing, one day something is good for you, then the next it's bad, a year later it's ok again, so who knows if it does cause any kind of health issue? I just stay away from it, I use Stevia In The Raw, I use 2 packets in my coffee, that's it and I use it only because I haven't heard of health problems associated with it, I just know that it doesn't have any "aspartame" or "acesulfame" in it, and neither does Sweet 'n Low, which I haven't tried yet. It just is a low calorie option to sugar in my coffee. Just wanted to let you know that!
This time last year, I was slowly gaining some weight, I wasn't sure why, I just couldn't figure it out, but I've been thinking about it recently and I think I figured it out...
I don't like to say this because I feel like I failed, but I did something that people who lose weight sometimes do; I lost a nice amount of weight (80 lbs), and then gained some back, not all but like 13-14 lbs! At the time I didn't think that I was being that bad when it came to food, but looking back,I had this crazy logic that was, if I ate something and no one saw, then it didn't count. Weird right? It's not that I would eat huge amounts of junk food, it was actually healthy stuff, like a handful of granola, or some dried fruit, or a handful of low cal cereal, not a huge amount but I knew that I didn't need it, plus I would have more than I really should have had. I did work out pretty hard, though. But in retrospect I regret ever snacking, I'm a person who can't really "snack", my idea of a snack is a nice cup of coffee with fat free creamer and 2 packets of a low calorie sugar substitute (I use Stevia In The Raw), a big cup of coffee ends up being around 60-70 calories. I have that after lunch and it curbs my appetite until dinner.
Anyway, I just don't eat snacks, but back then I would have a snack because I thought it was ok, I thought that I wasn't eating enough. You know, I screwed up, and I own it, and now I know that I have to stay on top of my diet and my weight, if I see a change in the numbers on the scale, I need to adjust what I'm doing, I'm not going to sit back and gain weight again, like I did last year.
Since last year I've lost weight, have a much healthier diet, and have a pretty good workout routine! Gaining back those couple lbs, actually was kind of a good thing...it was a wake up call to tell myself that I lost weight, but I can gain it back faster than I lost it, and the numbers on the scale can go up so quickly...I need to keep myself in check.
Right now, I'm not sure what weight I would like to be at, I just want to play around and see what weight is more comfortable and one that I can maintain.
I've made mistakes, but I know that I'm way better now than I was last year, and completely different than the person I was 5 years ago...I've kind of gone back to the person that I was back in 2009, when I was really good at losing/maintaining!
I just want you all to know that even though I did lose weight, I also made bad choices and gained a little back, but I want you to now that even if you've made mistakes you can still redeem yourself! I screwed up, but by screwing up it gave me the drive to change my habits, and myself! Even if you fall off of the wagon, don't say "I messed up, I might as well give in", you can change, messing up can be exactly what you need to light that fire under your butt and get you motivated again!
I hope that this helps those of you that have made mistakes when it comes to weight loss, or has been a cautionary tale of what to avoid if you are just staring your weight loss journey, you don't have to gain any back, just don't think that it will stay off by magic, you need to watch your food and your work outs...Thanks for reading!
~Michelle
P.S. I'm not a big fan of sugar substitutes since most of them contain "aspartame" or "acesulfame" which I've heard can possibly cause cancer, I don't know that for sure I've just heard it. Which could mean nothing, one day something is good for you, then the next it's bad, a year later it's ok again, so who knows if it does cause any kind of health issue? I just stay away from it, I use Stevia In The Raw, I use 2 packets in my coffee, that's it and I use it only because I haven't heard of health problems associated with it, I just know that it doesn't have any "aspartame" or "acesulfame" in it, and neither does Sweet 'n Low, which I haven't tried yet. It just is a low calorie option to sugar in my coffee. Just wanted to let you know that!
Saturday, February 12, 2011
Past, Present, And Future...
PAST :
Hey everyone! I must confess, in 2007 when I started to lose weight, I was no angel! I did cut my portions, but I still ate some fast food, and didn't eat a ton of veggies. I did work out, I started out little by little, working my way up to more exercise. I also don't think that I started losing weight for the reasons that I should have...
I thought that if I lost weight I would be skinny, happy, pretty, and that I could finally wear cute clothes in the size that I always wanted to be, to be able to find clothes in my size. Now those reasons are probably normal for the average 15 year old, but I wish that I decided to do it for my health, clothes can come in second. I think back to all the diseases that were just around the corner from me, I was on headed down the road for diabetes (pretty sure I was pre-diabetic), breathing problems, increased risk for heart attacks, cancer, heart disease, strokes, and if I didn't change I would have gone from overweight teen to obese adult! Back then all that registered with me was clothes, I never really thought about the health risks. I'm glad that I did something to change the course I was on!
PRESENT:
I'm now 19, and I eat healthier now than ever before, I work out 6 days a week for 40-50 minutes a day! It has taken me almost 4 years to get where I'm at now, it took 2 years to lose weight, 1 year to maintain (and gain), and this year I've lost a few lbs and I'm finding my comfortable weight. Over the years I've learned a lot about exercise and eating well, I know what my weaknesses are when it come to food, and I know that my head is what makes me over-indulge, not my body. I'm learning to think of food more as "fuel" for my body, not as something to do for fun, I still enjoy food, just less of it, and much healthier food!
To lose weight you have to find a reason to do it, as much as I wish that mine was for health, I know that if that was my reason, I wouldn't have stuck with it, clothing was fun and it gave me the drive to do it, so I guess in the end I'm thankful for that! You also have to do it for you, if you do it for anyone else, you won't stick with it! Also don't go into it thinking that losing weight will make you happy, you need to know that your weight only plays a small part in your unhappiness, and you need to figure out what the main problem is.
When you are losing weight you will slip up and you will make mistakes, I do too, but at the end of the day as long as you say "tomorrow will be better, tomorrow I'll be better", and you wake up that next day and you have that drive to better yourself, you'll be just fine. I've found that as long as you strive to be better, you will be ok, it's when you give up and give in, is when you've cheated yourself out of your own greatness.
FUTURE:
Over the past 4 years my work outs have changed, I do different things with different levels of intensity, my diet has changed too, I know that over the years my work outs and diet will change even more, as I grow up. There isn't one magic diet and work out that will work the same for everyone, and it won't stay the same over time. As your body loses fat, you need to increase intensity of your workouts, your diet will need to be changed too. I wish that I could tell everyone to do x,y, and z, and you're done, but I can't. I've had to play around with different work outs and changed my food to see what works and feels right for me, and you will too. Heck, I'm still figuring this stuff out too! This blog is to give you some ideas to incorporate into your own plan, so thanks again for reading ya'll! Have a great week, and Happy Valentine's Day! (Watch those chocolates!) ;)
~Michelle
Hey everyone! I must confess, in 2007 when I started to lose weight, I was no angel! I did cut my portions, but I still ate some fast food, and didn't eat a ton of veggies. I did work out, I started out little by little, working my way up to more exercise. I also don't think that I started losing weight for the reasons that I should have...
I thought that if I lost weight I would be skinny, happy, pretty, and that I could finally wear cute clothes in the size that I always wanted to be, to be able to find clothes in my size. Now those reasons are probably normal for the average 15 year old, but I wish that I decided to do it for my health, clothes can come in second. I think back to all the diseases that were just around the corner from me, I was on headed down the road for diabetes (pretty sure I was pre-diabetic), breathing problems, increased risk for heart attacks, cancer, heart disease, strokes, and if I didn't change I would have gone from overweight teen to obese adult! Back then all that registered with me was clothes, I never really thought about the health risks. I'm glad that I did something to change the course I was on!
PRESENT:
I'm now 19, and I eat healthier now than ever before, I work out 6 days a week for 40-50 minutes a day! It has taken me almost 4 years to get where I'm at now, it took 2 years to lose weight, 1 year to maintain (and gain), and this year I've lost a few lbs and I'm finding my comfortable weight. Over the years I've learned a lot about exercise and eating well, I know what my weaknesses are when it come to food, and I know that my head is what makes me over-indulge, not my body. I'm learning to think of food more as "fuel" for my body, not as something to do for fun, I still enjoy food, just less of it, and much healthier food!
To lose weight you have to find a reason to do it, as much as I wish that mine was for health, I know that if that was my reason, I wouldn't have stuck with it, clothing was fun and it gave me the drive to do it, so I guess in the end I'm thankful for that! You also have to do it for you, if you do it for anyone else, you won't stick with it! Also don't go into it thinking that losing weight will make you happy, you need to know that your weight only plays a small part in your unhappiness, and you need to figure out what the main problem is.
When you are losing weight you will slip up and you will make mistakes, I do too, but at the end of the day as long as you say "tomorrow will be better, tomorrow I'll be better", and you wake up that next day and you have that drive to better yourself, you'll be just fine. I've found that as long as you strive to be better, you will be ok, it's when you give up and give in, is when you've cheated yourself out of your own greatness.
FUTURE:
Over the past 4 years my work outs have changed, I do different things with different levels of intensity, my diet has changed too, I know that over the years my work outs and diet will change even more, as I grow up. There isn't one magic diet and work out that will work the same for everyone, and it won't stay the same over time. As your body loses fat, you need to increase intensity of your workouts, your diet will need to be changed too. I wish that I could tell everyone to do x,y, and z, and you're done, but I can't. I've had to play around with different work outs and changed my food to see what works and feels right for me, and you will too. Heck, I'm still figuring this stuff out too! This blog is to give you some ideas to incorporate into your own plan, so thanks again for reading ya'll! Have a great week, and Happy Valentine's Day! (Watch those chocolates!) ;)
~Michelle
Saturday, February 5, 2011
Give Salads A Try!
Hello Blog friends! I have really been getting into eating salads, they are so versatile! You can put pretty much anything in them, from fruit, to nuts (use sparingly), and chicken or tuna! There is one drawback to salads, and that is the dressing...I can't eat a salad without dressing, so I've found that Kraft Fat-Free salad dressings are great! As with everything, check the label, and make sure that for 2 TBSP of dressing the calories are about 50 cal or less. Kraft has a good variety of flavors!
Here is a list of things that I like to mix and match in my salads;
Lettuce, of course (bag lettuce, or a head of lettuce, which ever you prefer)
Spinach leaves
Leftover Chicken
Olives (green or black)
Pickled Beet Slices
Mandarin Oranges
Capers (They come in a jar and have a salty flavor, just a few of them)
Cheese (like shredded cheddar or crumbled feta, you can use low fat cheese)
Croutons (I make homemade croutons with low cal whole wheat bread)
Tomatoes (either grape tomatoes cut in half, or a regular tomato diced)
Green beans, wax beans, garbanzo beans (I use a few beans from a can)
Apples are good too
You just have to make sure that you watch how many of these things you put in the salad, don't put more than just a few of whatever you putting in there, I don't put all of this in my salad at once, I pick a few things. You really have to watch the croutons and the cheese, just a little goes along way!
Here is my recipe for my low-cal homemade croutons;
Ingredients
Half a loaf of store bought, pre-sliced whole grain or whole wheat bread, it should be around 50-60 calories per slice.
Olive oil
Kosher salt and Coarse ground black pepper
Garlic Powder (optional)
I take half of the loaf of bread, cut the bread into cubes, about 1 inch. Put the cubed bread into a large bowl, drizzle a little bit of olive oil, add a few dashes of salt and pepper, toss the bread to coat every piece of bread, you may need to put in more salt,pepper, and olive oil. Once it is lightly coated, Spread the bread onto a large rimmed baking sheet, you can drizzle more olive oil, salt or pepper, if needed. Now if you want a garlic flavor, you can take just a teeny bit of the garlic powder and sprinkle it on the croutons, put them in the oven for 10 minutes, check to see if they are crunchy, if not swirl them around a bit, then back in the oven for 7 minutes, and check, if still not done, do 2 minute increments until crunchy, like a crouton should be. If they are almost done and your afraid they will burn, you can leave them on the baking sheet on a towel on the counter until they cool. There you go, low cal croutons!
This week, I made a delicious Panzanella Salad, it was from Teresa Giudice's (from Real Housewives of New Jersey) Cookbook, "Skinny Italian". I got the book for Christmas, and this is the first recipe I've tried and this is the best panzanella salad I've had! You have to make croutons, and I don't think that you should use homemade croutons for this recipe, it is better to use Teresa's recipe in this case. Here is the recipe, it makes 8 servings;
Croutons
1/3 Cup extra virgin olive oil
2 garlic cloves, minced (I used 1 tsp of minced garlic in a jar)
1/8 tsp salt
1 loaf of day-old crusty Italian or French bread, cut into 1-inch cubes
Position a rack in the center of the oven, Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
Wisk the oil, garlic, and salt together in a large bowl. Add the bread cubes and toss well, I added a little more salt and olive oil, the bread just wasn't coated enough for me. Spread on a rimmed baking sheet. Bake, stirring occasionally until golden brown, about 10 minutes. Let cool.
Salad
1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp black pepper
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
4 large ripe tomatoes, cored, seeded,and cut into 1/2-inch dice
4 ounces of fresh mozzarella, cut into bite size cubes (I used 8 ounces of feta cheese and cut it into cubes)
1/2 cup pitted and chopped kalamata olives
1/2 red onion, finely chopped
10 fresh basil leaves (I actually used 12 spinach leaves, I'm not much of a basil fan, used spinach for color)
1TBSP drained capers
To make the salad, wisk the vinegar, salt, and pepper in a small bowl. Gradually wisk in the oil. Combine the croutons, tomatoes, mozzarella (or feta), olives, onion, basil, and capers in a large bowl. Add the dressing and toss well. Let stand for 20 minutes before serving.
It is SO good! I highly recommend this cookbook, I plan to use several recipes out of it!
I hope that this has inspired all of you to give salads a try, they are so good, and this is coming from a girl who never would have touched lettuce 3 years ago! Thanks for reading everyone, have a great week!
~Michelle
Here is a list of things that I like to mix and match in my salads;
Lettuce, of course (bag lettuce, or a head of lettuce, which ever you prefer)
Spinach leaves
Leftover Chicken
Olives (green or black)
Pickled Beet Slices
Mandarin Oranges
Capers (They come in a jar and have a salty flavor, just a few of them)
Cheese (like shredded cheddar or crumbled feta, you can use low fat cheese)
Croutons (I make homemade croutons with low cal whole wheat bread)
Tomatoes (either grape tomatoes cut in half, or a regular tomato diced)
Green beans, wax beans, garbanzo beans (I use a few beans from a can)
Apples are good too
You just have to make sure that you watch how many of these things you put in the salad, don't put more than just a few of whatever you putting in there, I don't put all of this in my salad at once, I pick a few things. You really have to watch the croutons and the cheese, just a little goes along way!
Here is my recipe for my low-cal homemade croutons;
Ingredients
Half a loaf of store bought, pre-sliced whole grain or whole wheat bread, it should be around 50-60 calories per slice.
Olive oil
Kosher salt and Coarse ground black pepper
Garlic Powder (optional)
I take half of the loaf of bread, cut the bread into cubes, about 1 inch. Put the cubed bread into a large bowl, drizzle a little bit of olive oil, add a few dashes of salt and pepper, toss the bread to coat every piece of bread, you may need to put in more salt,pepper, and olive oil. Once it is lightly coated, Spread the bread onto a large rimmed baking sheet, you can drizzle more olive oil, salt or pepper, if needed. Now if you want a garlic flavor, you can take just a teeny bit of the garlic powder and sprinkle it on the croutons, put them in the oven for 10 minutes, check to see if they are crunchy, if not swirl them around a bit, then back in the oven for 7 minutes, and check, if still not done, do 2 minute increments until crunchy, like a crouton should be. If they are almost done and your afraid they will burn, you can leave them on the baking sheet on a towel on the counter until they cool. There you go, low cal croutons!
This week, I made a delicious Panzanella Salad, it was from Teresa Giudice's (from Real Housewives of New Jersey) Cookbook, "Skinny Italian". I got the book for Christmas, and this is the first recipe I've tried and this is the best panzanella salad I've had! You have to make croutons, and I don't think that you should use homemade croutons for this recipe, it is better to use Teresa's recipe in this case. Here is the recipe, it makes 8 servings;
Croutons
1/3 Cup extra virgin olive oil
2 garlic cloves, minced (I used 1 tsp of minced garlic in a jar)
1/8 tsp salt
1 loaf of day-old crusty Italian or French bread, cut into 1-inch cubes
Position a rack in the center of the oven, Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
Wisk the oil, garlic, and salt together in a large bowl. Add the bread cubes and toss well, I added a little more salt and olive oil, the bread just wasn't coated enough for me. Spread on a rimmed baking sheet. Bake, stirring occasionally until golden brown, about 10 minutes. Let cool.
Salad
1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp black pepper
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
4 large ripe tomatoes, cored, seeded,and cut into 1/2-inch dice
4 ounces of fresh mozzarella, cut into bite size cubes (I used 8 ounces of feta cheese and cut it into cubes)
1/2 cup pitted and chopped kalamata olives
1/2 red onion, finely chopped
10 fresh basil leaves (I actually used 12 spinach leaves, I'm not much of a basil fan, used spinach for color)
1TBSP drained capers
To make the salad, wisk the vinegar, salt, and pepper in a small bowl. Gradually wisk in the oil. Combine the croutons, tomatoes, mozzarella (or feta), olives, onion, basil, and capers in a large bowl. Add the dressing and toss well. Let stand for 20 minutes before serving.
It is SO good! I highly recommend this cookbook, I plan to use several recipes out of it!
I hope that this has inspired all of you to give salads a try, they are so good, and this is coming from a girl who never would have touched lettuce 3 years ago! Thanks for reading everyone, have a great week!
~Michelle
Sunday, January 30, 2011
Try Something New and Different!
What's up everyone? This week is all about new things!
This weekend, I tried Yoga for the first time, and it was great! I got this beginners set that came with a mat, a foam brick, a strap, and a 30 minute Yoga dvd, for like $17! I have read people say that Yoga is very calming, and I thought that I'd give it a shot, well they were right! I felt this automatic sense of calm wash over me, you let everything stressful in your life fall away, all you do is focus on the poses and stretches! By the way, the poses feel so good, you can feel all of your muscles stretching!
I'm going to do cardio 3x a week, and the other 3 days I'm going to do 30 minutes of Yoga with 15-20 minutes of weight training thrown in, so we'll see how that goes!
This week I have been sick and my diet has been pretty much soups, 'cause that's all that sounds good... so it got me to realize that I like eating lighter, so I'm changing my diet a little, I'm starting to eat more salads, having them as meals sometimes.
I just have realized that I don't like really heavy meals, I'm still going to eat things like pasta, meat, and stuff, but I'm cutting back on the portions. I also have decided that I would like to lose 2 more pounds, I feel like I would be a little more comfortable going between 138-140.
When Summer comes, I'm going to replace my elliptical with running and bike riding. (Can you tell I'm excited about Summer coming, I talk about it every post, sorry, just can't wait!) I will probably still do Yoga, and I might look into Pilates in combo with Yoga...all I know is that I actually do like it, and all day Saturday I was in a very "zen" mood!
So I would like for all of you to go outside of your comfort zone and try something different, whether it be yoga, pilates, work out dvds, whatever interests you! I've heard that there is a "Zumba" dance work out that a lot of people like, so maybe give that a shot! Try something new, who knows, you'll either love or hate it, if you hate it, try something else, there are tons of different exercises to try!
So thanks again for reading my post, you all are AWESOME! Have a fantastic week!
~Michelle
This weekend, I tried Yoga for the first time, and it was great! I got this beginners set that came with a mat, a foam brick, a strap, and a 30 minute Yoga dvd, for like $17! I have read people say that Yoga is very calming, and I thought that I'd give it a shot, well they were right! I felt this automatic sense of calm wash over me, you let everything stressful in your life fall away, all you do is focus on the poses and stretches! By the way, the poses feel so good, you can feel all of your muscles stretching!
I'm going to do cardio 3x a week, and the other 3 days I'm going to do 30 minutes of Yoga with 15-20 minutes of weight training thrown in, so we'll see how that goes!
This week I have been sick and my diet has been pretty much soups, 'cause that's all that sounds good... so it got me to realize that I like eating lighter, so I'm changing my diet a little, I'm starting to eat more salads, having them as meals sometimes.
I just have realized that I don't like really heavy meals, I'm still going to eat things like pasta, meat, and stuff, but I'm cutting back on the portions. I also have decided that I would like to lose 2 more pounds, I feel like I would be a little more comfortable going between 138-140.
When Summer comes, I'm going to replace my elliptical with running and bike riding. (Can you tell I'm excited about Summer coming, I talk about it every post, sorry, just can't wait!) I will probably still do Yoga, and I might look into Pilates in combo with Yoga...all I know is that I actually do like it, and all day Saturday I was in a very "zen" mood!
So I would like for all of you to go outside of your comfort zone and try something different, whether it be yoga, pilates, work out dvds, whatever interests you! I've heard that there is a "Zumba" dance work out that a lot of people like, so maybe give that a shot! Try something new, who knows, you'll either love or hate it, if you hate it, try something else, there are tons of different exercises to try!
So thanks again for reading my post, you all are AWESOME! Have a fantastic week!
~Michelle
Saturday, January 22, 2011
Different (And Awesome) Exercises!
Hi all! This week let's talk about different exercises! I like to have a balance between "weight Training" and "cardio", I do weight training 3 times a week and do cardio the other 3 days, and usually take Sundays off.
Weight training is using dumbbells, or weights of some kind. It is really something that you do in repetitions, you don't do them very fast.
Cardio is something that is fast pace, like running, dancing, walking, etc.
In the Winter, I've been using my elliptical 3 times a week, and I vary the level of intesity that I do it on, for about 40-50 minutes every time. On the other 3 days, I use some exercises that I got from a magazine and I throw in some of my own exercises and I use dumbbells, for about 40-45 minutes each time.
The exercises that I do are lunges, squats, side leg lifts, I kick my legs as high and hard as I can, and I do this move where I squat and come up and twist and punch with dumbbells in my hands, almost like punching the air.
The magazines that I got some exercises from was Seventeen, one of the routines was a Yoga routine, and I LOVE it! In the article, it shows a pose that you hold for 30 seconds, then you transition into an exercise, it brings me this sense of calm that is amazing, and it really uses the strength of your own body!
I will warn you though, I've looked Yoga up online, and some people say that some of the exercises are kind of dangerous, I'm going to start doing "beginners" yoga, I'm not quite ready to stand on my head (nor do I think that I will ever be!)
Be careful before working out, stretch really well, and know your limits, it is one thing to push yourself, it's another thing to push yourself over the edge, so just please be careful!
I'm looking forward to warmer/sunnier weather, I am going to get back into running and walking, riding my bike, all that great stuff! This Summer, my goal is to get up to running 6 miles, and not stopping! But, before I can do that, I'm going to have to go slow and work my way up there, start with running 2-3 miles, so that I don't hurt myself.
There are lots of different exercises that can be found in magazines or online, or even just come up with your own! Don't be embarrased to pick up a copy of Seventeen and check out the exercises, or you can probably find them on seventeen.com. They do have very good exercises and healthy eating tips! Please don't think that exercising has to be boring, it can actually be fun!
I hope that this helps all of you learn to love exercising like I do! Thanks for reading! Talk to you next week!
~Michelle
Weight training is using dumbbells, or weights of some kind. It is really something that you do in repetitions, you don't do them very fast.
Cardio is something that is fast pace, like running, dancing, walking, etc.
In the Winter, I've been using my elliptical 3 times a week, and I vary the level of intesity that I do it on, for about 40-50 minutes every time. On the other 3 days, I use some exercises that I got from a magazine and I throw in some of my own exercises and I use dumbbells, for about 40-45 minutes each time.
The exercises that I do are lunges, squats, side leg lifts, I kick my legs as high and hard as I can, and I do this move where I squat and come up and twist and punch with dumbbells in my hands, almost like punching the air.
The magazines that I got some exercises from was Seventeen, one of the routines was a Yoga routine, and I LOVE it! In the article, it shows a pose that you hold for 30 seconds, then you transition into an exercise, it brings me this sense of calm that is amazing, and it really uses the strength of your own body!
I will warn you though, I've looked Yoga up online, and some people say that some of the exercises are kind of dangerous, I'm going to start doing "beginners" yoga, I'm not quite ready to stand on my head (nor do I think that I will ever be!)
Be careful before working out, stretch really well, and know your limits, it is one thing to push yourself, it's another thing to push yourself over the edge, so just please be careful!
I'm looking forward to warmer/sunnier weather, I am going to get back into running and walking, riding my bike, all that great stuff! This Summer, my goal is to get up to running 6 miles, and not stopping! But, before I can do that, I'm going to have to go slow and work my way up there, start with running 2-3 miles, so that I don't hurt myself.
There are lots of different exercises that can be found in magazines or online, or even just come up with your own! Don't be embarrased to pick up a copy of Seventeen and check out the exercises, or you can probably find them on seventeen.com. They do have very good exercises and healthy eating tips! Please don't think that exercising has to be boring, it can actually be fun!
I hope that this helps all of you learn to love exercising like I do! Thanks for reading! Talk to you next week!
~Michelle
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