Reader Suggestions Galore

Alrighty!

I got a ton of comments from you guys on my last post. Thanks so much for all your opinions, input and suggestions. I did notice, however, that nobody suggested the "Amputee Diet," and I'm a little disappointed. I really believed at least SOMEONE out there had tried chopping off a leg at some point. That's, like, a guaranteed way to lose at least 30 or 40 pounds or something. Okay, I have no idea how much a leg weighs, and I guess it depends on how much YOU weigh, but you get the idea.


Today I want to start by showing you guys how the weight loss thus far has changed my face. I can't explain how happy it makes me to see CHEEKBONES! Please excuse the terrible webcam photos. ;)

August 8th, 2009 to today:


December 2008 to today:



And now I realize that I SERIOUSLY need to pluck my eyebrows. This is just disgraceful:



I also know how easy it is to skim over and read quickly through blog entries. I do it myself (guiltyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy!!!!!!!!) so I'd like to point out a few things from my last entry that apparently went unnoticed by a few of you guys. :)

1. I have worked with a personal trainer.
2. I have eaten a very, very balanced diet with all the suggested things your body needs and wants to be a fat burning, fueled machine.
3. I have done cardio heavy workouts.
4. I have done cardio plus strength training.

Yeah, I have rocked the weights, and even tried this torture device, otherwise known as "Gravity.":


I will also add that I've done a TON, TON, TON of research on nutrition. I didn't go to school for it, and I haven't worked with a nutritionist, but I know a LOT about it. I've modified and adjusted my diet with great precision (crunched the numbers, worked the ratios, tracked, tracked, tracked) and tried each type of eating plan, giving it three to five months. Low carbohydrate just works best for my body. I believe (and many of you commented) that people are all different. I don't believe in a one plan fits all idea. I do think it would be interesting to go see a nutritionist, so I'll think about that one. :)

Also, it appears that a few of you guys might have gotten the impression that I'm looking for a quickfixinstantresults type of plan. Nope... I'm just really interested in all the crazy fads people have tried. And the Diet Coke and crackers just sounds hilarious. In all seriousness, I would try this one just to say I tried it. Nobody has given me these details. I'm about to go stuff myself with saltines just to try to figure it out on my own.

So! It's time for some Q&A:

Q: Is Zumba fun?
A: Hell yeah. It's like... if you ever won a bet or proved someone wrong and did a goofy dance, it's like that, but doing it for an hour. It's a total blast!

Q: Dear sweet baby J, how did you get that perky ass just by doing Atkins?! No squats or anything??!
A: I've always had a badunkadunk. I can't explain it, but I've totally got an apple bottom.

And now, I'm going to list some reader suggestions here. I'm not going to direct link, so copy and paste / look into it at your own risk. I'm condensing the info you could find by going through the comments, but don't take these as my personal recommendation. Okay, disclaimer over.

Tracking sites:
-Nutrimirror.com
-Sparkpeople.com
-Daily Plate on Livestrong.com (I've used this, it's great.)

Programs:
-Weight Watchers
-JillianMichaels.com
-South Beach
-Medifast
-Blood Type Diet
-Crossfit

Other suggestions:
-See a nutritionist.
-Read 'Eat To Live' by Joel Furhamn
-Do the treadmill for 1/2 hour a day.
-Walk for an hour a day.
-Eat a cottage cheese and asparagus lunch. (Love this... I always have fat free cottage cheese and asparagus in my fridge. I usually boil water, then put the asparagus (with the thick bottom end cut off) in the water and boil it for about 3-5 minutes, until it's tender and easily pierced with a fork. And I love the low fat string cheeses.)
-Cut what you eat in half to shrink your stomach.
-Hide your temptation food in the trunk of your car so you have to run out in public and risk looking like a crazy person each time you really, really need to eat it. (My favorite and the funniest suggestion.)

That's it for today. Tomorrow I'm going to do a post on The Biggest Loser and their crazy crazy craziness.

Oh yeah, have I mentioned I love you guys? 'Cause I do. **smooch!**

~Jenn

Jenn's Light Veggie Pasta and Garlic Roasted Potatoes

Okay, so I know that I shouldn't be eating potatoes and pasta in one sitting, but I decided to live a little bit. Dan wanted to do a romantic night of cooking a badass dinner for both of us and renting Changeling.

Well, his idea for steak sounded awful to me, particularly since I don't eat red meat. He wanted roasted garlic new potatoes and asparagus. I agreed as long as he went to the store and got the asparagus and picked up some thin wheat pasta for me.


Jenn's Light Veggie Pasta

1/2 green bell pepper, sliced
1/2 red bell pepper, sliced
1 cup broccoli heads, bite sized pieces*
1 cup cooked asparagus spears, cut into bite sized pieces*
2 servings thin whole wheat pasta
2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1/2 cup water
1 tbsp chopped garlic
1 tsp black pepper
1 tsp Italian seasoning

*the asparagus and broccoli can either be raw and sauteed with the rest of the veggies, or if you do microwave pouches, add them just before putting the mixture of all veggies onto the cooked pasta.

Spray a pan with nonstick cooking spray. Coat chopped veggies (except for asparagus and broccoli if using pouch cooking) with extra virgin olive oil. Put the veggies into the pan on medium heat. When the veggies start to warm up, sprinkle with black pepper, Italian seasoning and mix in the garlic. Pour water into pan and cover, steaming for 10 minutes or until veggies are tender.

Meanwhile, boil noodles in a pot until they are at your desired tenderness.

Drain the noodles when finished, pour veggies on top and voila! Top with light butter and Parmesan cheese for a nice extra flavor.




Jenn's Garlic Roasted New Potatoes

12 new potatoes (gold or red)
3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 tbsp garlic powder
1 tbsp dried onion flakes
1 tsp parsley
1 tsp Italian seasoning
1 tsp black pepper

Preheat oven to 450. Line cookie sheet with aluminum foil. Wash potatoes and cut into bite-size pieces (I do eighths.) Put the pieces in a bowl and stir in the olive oil until pieces are all coated. Mix in all the seasonings and stir until evenly coated.

Put the potatoes on the baking sheet and cover it with aluminum foil. Bake for 20 minutes. After the 20 minutes, remove the top sheet of aluminum foil and put back into oven for another 15 minutes to get the outside nice and crispy.

Enjoy! :)



And here's a picture of Dan's dinner for all you meat lovers out there:

A Week In Food - Part I

So, I'm in love with this UK show called "You Are What You Eat."



They take these people's entire week's worth of food intake and analyze it. They also put the equivalent on a big table for them to look at in hopes it will scare the crap out of them, or at least embarrass them.

I'm going to do this for my diet. I'm taking the last week, and analyzing it tonight. I will be putting together a table and doing a photo of it tomorrow.

Jenn's Nutritional Information for the Week of 1/27-2/4
Calories = 10,950 (average 1565/day)
Sugar = 476 grams - 247 from fruits/veggies = 229 (average 33g /day) (no more than 50g per day of refined sugars recommended)
Carbohydrates = 1392 grams (average 199 / day) (130 g per day is recommended)
Fat = 310 grams (average 44 / day) (40-50g per day is recommended)
Protein = 650 grams (average 93/day) (84 g recommended)
Sodium = 11614 mg (average 1659/day) (2400 US recommended 1600 UK recommended)
Fiber = 272 grams (average 39/day) (25g per day is recommended)

Overall, I'd say that looks pretty damn good. I could be eating less in the way of carbs, but all of them come from whole grains, brown rice, fruits and veggies.

The calories on here are taking into account pure consumption, not counting the calories I burned off through exercise.

:)

Tomorrow I'll be putting down a full list of what I eat in the same way the show does, ie:

1 large slice chocolate cake
6 large lagers
3 fry ups
4 curries
4 packs of crisps
8 orders of chips

...etc. Except mine won't be bad food, nor will it be British.

And I'll do my best to come up with as close of a visual representation as possible of the food I take in. :)

~J

Chicken and Broccoli Casserole

This one is a great source of fiber and protein.

Chicken and Broccoli Casserole
1 pound skinless, boneless chicken breasts, cut into 8 strips
*I use farm raised chicken - I haven't figured out local growers yet, but if you choose free-range, it's better for you, and better for the chicken.

4 cups bite-size broccoli pieces
1 can (13 oz) mushroom pieces and stems, drained and rinsed
1 can (10.75 oz) low-fat, condensed cream of mushroom soup
1/4 can water
1/2 tsp dried rosemary (I used herbs de province)
1/4 tsp paprika
1/8 tsp ground black pepper

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Arrange chicken in an 8x8 baking pan that has been sprayed with nonstick cooking spray. Top with broccoli and mushrooms.


Mix soup, water and rosemary. Spread over chicken and vegetables. Sprinkle with paprika and pepper.


Bake, uncovered, for 50-60 minutes or until chicken is no longer pink and broccoli is tender. Let set 10 minutes before serving.


Makes 5 servings.


Nutrient Analysis:
168 calories
3g fat
1g saturated fat
351mg sodium
10g carbohydrate
4g dietary fiber
2g sugar
25g protein

Served with a salad:


And we have leftovers! :)

Frickin' Delicious Hamburgers

Also known as "Meat Patties," which sounds disgusting... these hamburgers rocked our faces off.



I served these on Natural Ovens Better Wheat Buns:
Serving Size: 1 Bun

Calories 170
Total Fat 2.5g
Saturated Fat 0g
Cholesterol 0mg
Sodium 140mg
Total Carbohydrate 30g
Dietary Fiber 3g
Sugars 5g
Protein 7g

Meat Patties:
1/2 cup oatmeal or oat bran
1/2 cup fat-free milk
1/4 cup egg substitute (I forgot this, but they came out fine)
1/2 tbsp dried parsley
1 tsp ground mustard (omitted for mine)
1 tsp dried or 1 tbsp fresh minced onion
1/2 tsp salt (omitted for mine)
1/4 tsp chopped garlic
1/4 tsp ground black pepper
1 lb extra-lean ground beef or ground turkey (7% fat)

Mix the first 9 ingredients. Add ground meat and mix well. Shape into four patties. Cook in the microwave, in the conventional oven, or on the grill.

Conventional Oven:
Preheat to 425 degrees. Arrange patties on a baking pan that has been sprayed with nonstick cooking spray. Bake for 20 minutes.

Microwave Oven: Arrange meat patties in a circle, on a microwave-safe dish, leaving the center empty. Cover with wax paper and cook on high for 7-8 minutes, rotating 1/4 turn halfway through cooking time.

Grill: Cook over hot coals, turning once, until done. *I used my George Forman. Because I forgot the egg, it was super juicy and didn't stick together 100%, so I just sprayed the grill with nonstick cooking spray and it was fine. They were delicious and I saved a bit of calories too! :)

Nutritional Info:
(makes 4 servings)
222 calories
9g fat
3g saturated fat
71mg cholesterol
127mg sodium
9g carbohydrate
1g dietary fiber
2g sugar
26g protein


With these kinds of nutrition numbers... you just can't beat a delicious, juicy, healthy burger with the kind of staying power that hungry guys (and girls) need! :)




Oh, and don't forget a nice salad! :)

Protein Powder and a Sexy Man

I went to GNC today to get protein powder for my shakes. I stuck with sensible vanilla and chocolate. No banana or cookies and cream for me. Yuck!



Dan took me to lunch at an Italian place downtown, and it was great. I had a delicious chicken salad with baby greens, toasted walnuts, raspberries - all tossed in a yummy raspberry dressing (My favorite!)



Dan had his usual spaghetti and meatballs. :)



Gah, isn't he CUTE???? :)



He hates it when I take his picture. But then I just remind him that I'm a photographer, and that's what I do. And he usually caves in and smiles. Oy, I love him. :)
<3<3<3

Rolled Chicken and Asparagus

I had forgotten how much I love sweet potatoes. My Mom digs them and I can't even remember the last time I had one!

Sweet Potatoes, Baked
2 sweet potatoes (medium, similar size and shape)
Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Cinnamon
Butter

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Line a cookie sheet with aluminum foil. Clean off the sweet potatoes, then pierce with a fork or knife in several places. Cut off the ends and brush a bit of olive oil on the tops. Place on cookie sheet and bake for 30-45 minutes or until soft.



When finished, cut open the top of the sweet potatoes with a slit, and push the sides of the potato in (wearing oven mitts) until the insides come out the top. Top with butter, cinnamon, or any spices of your choosing. Salt, pepper, nutmeg, etc are good as well.



Rolled Chicken and Asparagus
1 lb skinless, boneless chicken breasts
24-30 asparagus spears (tough ends removed)

2 tbsp lemon juice (I used juice from 1/2 of a fresh lemon)
6 green onions, chopped (omitted for my recipe)
1/2 tsp salt (optional)
1/2 tsp ground black pepper
*I also added Ms. Dash chicken seasoning.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees (or turn down oven to 350 degrees if you're already baking sweet potatoes). Cut chicken into 8 or 10 strips, each about 1x5 inches long.



Wrap each strip around 2 or 3 uncooked asparagus spears. Fasten with toothpicks. Place in a covered baking dish that has been sprayed with nonstick cooking spray. (I did a cookie sheet.) Sprinkle with lemon juice, onions and spices.



Bake for 20-30 minutes or until chicken is no longer pink. Remove toothpicks. Serve hot or refrigerate until chilled and serve cold.





Makes 4 servings

Nutritional Info:

Rolled Chicken and Asparagus:
151 calories
2g fat
82mg sodium
6g carbohydrate
3g dietary fiber
2g sugar
28g protien

Sweet Potato:
103 Calories
0g fat
41mg Sodium
541mg Potassium
24mg Total Carbohydrate
4g Dietary Fiber
20g Sugars
2g Protein
Vitamin A 384%
Vitamin C 33%
Vitamin B 120%

This is going to be a great snack for me (the leftovers.) My trainer says that every time I put something in my mouth, she wants it to be one complex carb and protein.

Speaking of which, here is one of the snacks I had today. Grapes and fat free cottage cheese:



~J

Chicken Breasts in Mushroom Sauce

Deeeelicious! If you like juicy chicken and mushrooms, this one is for you.

Chicken Breasts in Mushroom Sauce
2 cups sliced mushrooms
1/4 cup chopped green onion (omitted for mine)
2 tbsp unbleached all-purpose flour
1/4 cup water
1/2 cup plain fat-free yogurt
2 tbs dry sherry or water (I used water)
1 tsp instant chicken bouillon (low sodium!)
1/4 tsp salt (omitted for mine)
1/8 tsp ground black pepper
1 lb skinless, boneless chicken breasts
1/4 tsp paprika

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Saute mushrooms and onion in a skillet that has been sprayed with a nonstick cooking spray.



Meanwhile, mix flour and water in a covered container and shake well to prevent lumps. Add to mushrooms along with next five ingredients. Cook, stirring constantly until thickened.



Arrange chicken in a 9x9 baking dish that has been sprayed with nonstick cooking spray. Pour mushroom sauce over chicken and sprinkle with paprika. Bake for 30 minutes or until chicken is no longer pink.



Voila!

Nutrition Analysis:
170 calories
2g fat
152mg sodium
8g carbohydrate
1g dietary fiber
3g sugar
29g protein


I served mine with a nice salad:



And notice the portion size - this is a side plate. :)



Here are my leftovers:



My trainer gave me a great idea to scramble eggs with spinach and put them in a container for breakfasts through the week. I took her advice and it looks great. I did 2 whole eggs and 6 egg whites. :)



Also I got these really cool tupperware containers (tupperware.com) - they expand, so you can have a container to fit whatever kind of leftovers you've got! :)~ Plus, they're in bright, fun colors.



Also, this is what I had for lunch:



2 slices of flax fiber bread, turkey, lettuce, light mayo, mustard, reduced fat Swiss cheese and some fat free cottage cheese with paprika on top. Yum!


~J

Footie Pajamas and Food.

It was so cold yesterday I just couldn't get warm. I was wearing socks, footie pajamas, pants over the footie pajamas, a shirt under and a jacket over the footie pajamas.

Yeah.



I had a nice sandwich and soup:



And this morning tried to emulate the uber healthy morning breakfast I see on all of your health blogs... oatmeal, flaxseed, banana and almond butter. I didn't have any walnuts. ;)




So, what else is new? Today I will be buying a new battery for my car.

I think the cold brings out my car problems. Grrrrr! >:(


J

Corn Bread Taco Bake

Okay, so I was going to make lasagna for dinner tonight, but apparently I relied too heavily on the "shopping list" from the book, because it didn't include lasagna noodles, even though the recipe calls for them. I'm sure I should have been smart enough to remember "duh, I need noodles" but I was working from the list.

So, I'm making the ungodly Corn Bread Taco Bake for dinner. This is a recipe I got from Dan's sister Christina; ever since she made this for dinner one night when we were over, Dan's been begging me to make it. (How she stays soooo beautiful and thin while eating this kind of food, I'll never know and will be eternally jealous.) :)~

It's totally unhealthy. I calculated 514 calories per serving, and that's with substituting ground turkey for the ground beef and organic corn for regular.

So, here's the recipe and photos.

Corn Bread Taco Bake

Prep 20 minutes / Bake 25 minutes

1 1/2 lbs ground beef (I used ground lean turkey)

1 can whole kernel corn, drained (I used organic canned corn)
1 can (8 oz) tomato sauce
1/2 cup water
1/2 cup chopped green pepper (omitted for my recipe)
1 envelope taco seasoning
1 package (8.5 oz) corn bread/muffin mix
1 can (2.8 oz) french-fried onions, divided
1/3 cup shredded cheddar cheese

Preheat oven to 400.

In a large skillet, cook beef over medium heat until no longer pink. Stir in the corn, tomato sauce, water, green peppers and taco seasoning. Mix well. Spoon into a greased 2-quart baking dish.



Prepare corn bread mix according to package directions for corn bread. Stir in half of the onions. Spread over beef mixture.



Bake, uncovered, at 400 for 20 minutes. Sprinkle with cheese and remaining onions. Bake 3-5 minutes longer or until cheese is melted and a toothpick inserted into corn bread layer comes out clean. (Corn bread will be golden brown.)



Makes 6 servings.

Each serving = 514 calories (when prepared my way) :)~

My serving (These are the small sandwich sized plates, by the way):


Dan's serving (plus another plate):


Because this is a pretty darn unhealthy dish, I had a nice salad:


Here are the portions compared:


Did I mention Dan was REALLY happy to have this? He's asked for it for his birthday. :)~



~Jenn