You can't look back, you can only go forward

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Picture on the far right was when I lost 100 pounds (2 years ago)

I know I've been rather quiet here in blog-land this year.  This is mainly because I feel as though I've fallen off the wagon and have let people down.  As you'll see from my weight tracker, I am seriously over goal.  It's not that the program stopped working... it's that I did.  I'm still tracking...most of the time...until I get to a point of self-entitlement and then I blow it.  I won't go into details because I was given great advice today at Weight Watchers by Anne Marie - you can't look back.  Look at the total lost as of today (106.8 pounds) and go forward from there.  As of Tuesday coming (March 12) I will be celebrating two years of having lost 100 pounds.  I never would have thought that I would have kept 100 pounds off for two entire years. 

Now for the next several months (not saying how many), I will concentrate on losing the weight I have put on.  I am grateful that I have gotten a hold of this before it became 20, 30, 40 or even more.  I have an arrangement with a good friend of mine who also struggles to maintain and I am hoping we can encourage each other, while keeping each other accountable.

I was reading one of the Weight Watchers message boards on Facebook the other day and someone else posted about how difficult maintenance was and how they, too, had started to re-gain.  Someone said that they had come to the realization that when they first got to goal the compliments poured in at every turn.  For months afterwards you are running into old friends and it boosts you up time and time again when they "notice".  Eventually though, the novelty wears off, the compliments stop coming and real life sets in and people see the "new" you as just... you :)  I think my mistake, and many other maintainers, was not finding something in my own life to replace that euphoria of the compliments.  I'm not sure if this makes sense, but I totally got what this person was saying.  I'm not saying that I want people to continue complimenting me - the problem is with me, not the people around me.  It's something I need to work on.

So onward and upward (forward!).... stay tuned!

On another note, I'm trying Davids Teas in the hopes that the yummy flavours will keep me from snacking on sweets :)

Epicure's Everyday Meatloaf with a twist

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Epicure's Everyday Meatloaf with a twist

Ingredients

• 2 large eggs, beaten
• 1/4 cup (60 ml) skim milk
• 1/2 cup (125 ml) dry breadcrumbs
• 3 Tbsp (45 ml) Epicure's Seasoning for Meatloaf
• 2 lbs (1 kg) lean ground beef, chicken or turkey
• Epicure's Sea Salt, to taste 
• Large bell peppers (any colour), sliced into 8 thick rings (about 1 ") (the peppers are the twist!)

 Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 375° F (190° C).
2. Whisk eggs and milk in a large bowl. Stir in breadcrumbs and Seasoning for Meatloaf.
3. Add meat and Sea Salt, and mix well.
4. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper or tinfoil (spray if using foil!) and place pepper rings on sheet.
5. Divide meat mixture between pepper rings and pat down.
6. Bake approximately 40 minutes (make sure no pink in the middle!)
7. Brush with Epicure's Chipotle Ketchup and, if desired, add cheese and broil until melted.

Delicious!!!!!!!

Un-ribs are...

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Meh...

Here's the after picture, as promised.  Roasted squash and oven fries, broccoli and my version of "ribs".  Overall they are not bad, but unfortunately they've missed the mark with respect to tasting like ribs :(  Next time I might try the What's for Dinner for wings...without actual wings :)

My un-Super Bowl un-ribs

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I was inspired to make these "ribs" by my little brother.  He's done an amazing job of losing weight (way to go little Bro!), but I know he dearly misses ribs.  I am determined to find something close to ribs, but much healthier.  Epicure has a "What's for Dinner" pack called Slow Cooker Stampede BBQ Ribs.  Following the directions on the package, each serving of ribs would work out to 19-22 Weight Watchers Points (wowsers!  nearly an entire day's worth of points!).  I knew I could do something to fix this.  So what is it about the ribs that we all love?  It's the MEAT not the bones, right?  And if your sauce has enough flavour, you shouldn't miss all the fat from the ribs, right?  Sooooo... I used super lean boneless pork chops (sirloin I believe) and trimmed any visible fat from them (just over 2 pounds with of pork).  In my slow cooker I added 2 sliced green peppers and 1 long red pepper, 2 onions and 2 tins of mushrooms (drained), put the pork on top and then mixed up my sauce.  The package directions call for ketchup and since I didn't have any, I decided a tin of fire roasted tomatoes would do nicely.  I made the rest of the recipe according to the package (except I didn't have regular vinegar, so I used cider vinegar :)  Points according to my e-tools, based on 6 servings, work out to 7 points+ per serving!  Not bad eh?

My pseudo-ribs are now simmering away in my crockpot and will be supper tonight with some Epicure oven fries (using my brand new bottle of Pizza Seasoning for Oven Fries....I'm so addicted to this stuff!) and some broccoli.  I will eat this all while NOT watching the Super Bowl....sorry football fans - I've got better things to watch!

Stay tuned folks... I'll upload an "after" photo after supper tonight and will give you my final thoughts on these un-ribs.

Little Bro - if this turns out like I hope, I'll save you some to try out :)  xo

One giant step... and a frittata that Popeye would be proud of

Pin It I took the plunge and went back to Step class tonight.  Overall it was great (I really do love that class), but my feet and my brain REFUSE to connect!  Oh well, there's always next week.  I did realize that I am probably not ready for the super-hard Wednesday Step class though...maybe in a few weeks after I get my "sea legs" back :)

Tonight's supper:

Spinach and Sweet Potato Frittata made in my Epicure rectangular steamer.  I cut up one small sweet potato, chopped about 1 cup of spinach leaves (remove stems) and microwaved them for 2 minutes in the steamer.  While that's cooking, mix two eggs and 3 egg whites with Epicure seasonings of choice (I used Herb & Garlic, 3 Onion and BLT dip mix).  Stir steamer contents and then add egg mixture and microwave again for 3-4 minutes.  Enjoy!  Super high protein meal that tastes great too!  I think it's missing something, but can't put my finger on it yet...maybe some chopped ham or something...  Stay tuned, I'll let you know if I figure it out!

Yet another odd meal combo!

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I have no name for this one yet.  My friend Lisa at WW inspired it and I modified slightly.  Cook spaghetti squash (I use the microwave), toss in the frying pan with some salsa (homemade Epicure Salsa, of course!) and a chopped onion.  I added some Epicure Maple Bacon Sea Salt, Epicure BLT dip mix and a bit of Epicure Mango Curry dip mix.  Sautée for a bit and then toss in a drained tin of tuna (packed in water).  Cook until heated through and then top with 1 oz of low fat cheddar cheese.  It might be an odd combo, but it totally worked!  Lisa used bacon bits when she made hers and she didn't add tuna (not sure about the onions) or the Epicure spices (at least I don't think so!).  I think this would be even better if I used feta cheese instead of cheddar...yum!!

Door number two

Pin It Walking through the door is the toughest part.  I feel like I've said this recently ;-)  Tonight's walk was through the gym door.  First time back since before I left for the UK... over a month!!  I went to Zumba and was SOO happy to see my Zumba buddies!!!  It felt great to be back.  Debating trying a new step class tomorrow night, but I might be dead after tonight, so I might have to wait for my next life ;-)

So tonight I took "door number two" and am officially back into the swing of things...back to WW, back to work, back to the gym...

Just walking through the door

Pin It They say that's the hardest part about going back to Weight Watchers.  Walking through the door.  I have taken this journey "through the door" many times in the past, only my return is usually years after my departure, not just a month.  I walked through the doors at WW yesterday for the first time since mid-December.  It was bad.  Really bad.  But it could have been so much worse.  I was up 8.3 pounds in just over a month.  I'm disgusted with myself, yet proud of myself at the same time.  In the past, I would have not gone back (for years).  This time I knew I had to.  This is just a blip in my life as a Lifetime member of Weight Watchers.  This is a new week and a new year, so I'm back on track and I accept that this will happen from time to time, but I will do everything in my power to stay on track.  My fridge is stocked with good foods and I even through out some perfectly good candy from Thornton's (if you've been to the UK, you'll understand how hard that was!).  Onward and upward (hopefully downward at the scales though!).

If you gained (or think you did) over the holidays or on vacation and are thinking about not going back until you get back on track - please go back.  Waiting to go back until you get back on track is like getting cleaned up to take a bath.  It makes no sense.  If you could have done it alone, you would have done it years ago.  Suck it up and just do it :)

Confessions of a chocoholic (yes, shopoholic too)

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Me at the Eiffel Tower in Paris...obviously!

I am officially back from vacation now and today was day two back to work.  I think I'm suffering from the post-vacation blahs...blech...can I go back?

I had a good vacation. It was great to spend time with friends, be away from the everyday and to relax.  I did some touring (Paris...oooh la la), did eating (LOTS OF EATING) and really did relax.  I'm always sad to leave my friends there, especially my buddy (some of you know her as Anonymous Ann).  It's OK though....I'll be back :)

I won't go into details on my bad eating, but I'll just tell you it was bad.  Very bad.  And completely my own fault.  For some reason when I'm on vacation I develop this awful sense of entitlement - as though I deserve to eat dessert every single day...as though I deserve to have that Starbucks muffin with my coffee... I don't do that at home so there really is NO reason I should be doing this away.  Believe me when I tell you that I was not coerced into it either.  That's it.  Story closed...  the scales will tell the true story on Saturday at WW when I have to pay the piper.  I am moving on and will get back on track.  It might be a significant gain, but it's by no means ALL of it, so I will recover.  I have to...I bought nice clothes in England that I still have to fit into!

I had grand plans to jump back into healthy eating and working out as soon as I landed back home.  The healthy eating has been a success (a minor slip-up, but I DID track it and I DID have the points available to cover it), but after two days back to work, I have still not hit the gym.  Missed step last night and am going to have to miss zumba tonight.  I'm just too doggone tired!  I will give myself this week to get the eating under control and to get over the jet-lag.  Next week - no excuses!

In case you missed last night's post, you should check it out - I made cauliflower pizza crust!  Yum!

BBQ Chicken Pizza with Cauliflower Pizza Crust

Pin It For ages I have seen recipes for this and thought it was something I would like to try making... it is also one of those recipes I put off making for some reason.  Tonight on the way home from work I was craving pizza...but the only carby/crust-like thing I had in the house for a crust was whole wheat Wonder Bread...not exactly enticing!  BUT I had a fresh head of cauliflower... so here it goes...

The recipe I chose was by Brittany Mullins over at Eating Bird Food.  I made her recipe for Healthy Pizza with a Cauliflower Crust.  As I always do with recipes, I made some modifications.  I did not have basil or oregano in the cupboard...but if you know me well, I do have a TON of Epicure spices :)  OF COURSE!  I actually used the brand new Seasoning for Pizza Oven Fries as well as Roasted Garlic.  I baked the crust on my Epicure baking sheet using my silicone baking mat.  In hindsight, I should have realized two things - one - cheese and eggs are very sticky, so it did stick a tiny bit to the mat...not a huge deal, but the second thing I realized is that the silicone baking mats are not to be used under the broiler... so I then had to transfer the crust to a broiler-safe pan (my brand new Epicure Crisper pan!!!! Check out the space-age design of it!)  In the end it worked out OK, but next time I will probably just bake it on the baking sheet on parchment paper as Brittany suggested in the recipe :)  I'm afraid using the Crisper pan with the raw dough would be a disaster as the dough itself is quite soft and a bit "oozy" :)  

The flavour overall was GREAT!  I am a bit concerned over how well it will reheat.  I am thinking it might be a bit like re-heated mashed potatoes...but I could be wrong.  I'll find out tomorrow night when I have the leftovers for supper!  If you are a die-hard, true pizza eater who insists on eating your pizza by hand, then this is not the crust for you.  It is truly a fork (and if you want to get fancy, a knife!) kinda pizza.  I topped mine with Bulls Eye BBQ sauce, chicken, peppers, onions and mushrooms (pre-sauteed) and a bit more cheese.  I ate half of the pizza (it was about a 9" crust I'd say).

Stay tuned for tomorrow when I will write my "true confessions" about what I ate over the holidays...

My ironic prize

Pin It I had this (seemingly) strange phone call a couple of weeks ago.  Some lady "claiming" to be calling from McCormick/Clubhouse Seasonings was phoning to tell me that I'd won a prize!  Yeah right...  She said she had attempted to send me two emails notifying me, but that she had not heard back and maybe her emails had gone into my spam folder.  Sure enough, they were there!!!  She really WAS from Clubhouse and I really DID win a prize!!  I NEVER win anything!!!  Apparently I entered a contest on their website in August where they were looking for healthy cooking tips - I vaguely remember entering now...although I can't recall what my suggestion was... I think it was something to do with using chicken broth rather than fat when cooking and using lots of seasonings :)

So the ironic part of this all... I started selling Epicure in October of this year! :)  For those of you not familiar with Epicure, it is a direct-sales (think Mary Kay or Tupperware) company that focuses on seasonings, spices, dips and cookware products.  So this new Epicure consultant has won a SPICY prize from the competition!! haha  Here is a picture of my prize pack - value of approx. $95 CAD :)  I have to admit that I do love Clubhouse seasonings in addition to my Epicure seasonings - in my world (kitchen), there's room for spices of all variety!

T'was the 3 weeks before Christmas

Pin It Well, slightly more than three weeks, but T'was 3 weeks and 2 days just didn't flow right :) 

Whew, what a week!  My Live at 5 story was on Wednesday night - if you haven't had a chance to see it yet, you can view it here.  My blog hits exploded (I think it was something like 400 hits in 24 hours...usually that's about 2 weeks worth!).  People I have never met have contacted me on my blog or on Facebook to congratulate me (how cool?!)...,there you go - my very own 15 minutes of fame! haha  I was nervous at first, but it's been fun :)

I have now finished my Christmas shopping and decorating, I am somewhat packed for my trip to the UK (did I mention I'm spending Christmas in the UK??), have finished my first (since Junior High) sewing project - a gift for someone in the UK, and I have packed up my latest Epicure order (last BIG one before Christmas).  Crazy weekend!  Thankfully this coming week doesn't hold any major plans.  Just the usual - work, gym, work gym :)

Things weight-wise are somewhat stalled.  Had a great week food-wise / fitness-wise, but saw a gain of 1 lb on the scale.  Not sure why, but am pushing through this week.  I am going to try a "no sugary treats" week (work-week only!) and see if that helps.  I am finding that once I start with sugar, I can't stop these days! 

Not looking forward to resisting the sugary treats over the holidays.  I think I may have to take up knitting or something to keep my hands and my mind busy while I'm away.  I know I just "took up" sewing...but it's hard to lug a Singer onto a plane...and they'll allow me 6" knitting needles through security I believe ;-)  I have to remind myself that it's about the PEOPLE and the place I'm visiting, NOT the food...although the Brits sure do know how to make mean Thai and Indian food... Ok, maybe one of each... My plan will be the same as last year - healthy breakfast and lunch and a slightly relaxed supper on the nights we go out.  I do plan on avoiding the "low fat" lemon poppy seed muffins at Starbucks UK this time though - I ate them last year thinking they were a wise choice, only to find out (recently) that they are 9 points each!  hahaha, ignorance is NOT bliss! 

Happy first week of December everyone!  What are your plans for your health this Christmas season??