Eat Right for Your Type

Over the last week, when I wasn't getting pecked to death by students, I was reading a book called "Eat Right 4 Your Type.  Basically it talks about how the dietary needs for people with different blood types work and why.  I actually looked into this because I'm trying to find something that A) helps me lose this weight and B) helps me feel better.  

Also, every month I'm trying to add a vitamin to my regimen.  The more I look into these things the more I feel I need to be listening to my bodies individual needs.  The dramatic difference I have seen in my own outlook and attitude since I started taking vitamins is unbelievable.  I haven't felt this good in years, and hopefully soon, my body will start to reflect how healthy my mind is.  These are the vitamins I take every night:

The two small clear gels are my Vitamin D.  My savior from psuedohypothyroidism.  Continuing clockwise you'll see my Cod Liver Oil, Vitamin B (Which has helped my depression and anxiety significantly), my multi-vitamin, and the giant one in the middle is CoQ10.  I want to add Vitamin C to the party, but I take one step at a time.  I am loving the fact that taking these, and getting my chemical balance back in order, means that I am 100% off ALL anti-depressants, anti-anxiety meds, and sleeping aids.  I'm not against medication, and I will take it again if I need it, but it's nice to have that choice.

The biggest and smallest pills next to a quarter = perspective.

My hope with this new diet is that it will help reset my metabolism.  Since my blood type is A- I will follow the type A eating regime.  I won't go into too much detail (because I don't want to get sued), but basically I will eat as a pescatarian.  No red meats, very little poultry, and no gluten.  The no gluten part isn't exactly what the diet says, but it does say if you have issues with mucus to avoid it.  I have terrible sinuses and if this could help me wake up headache free it will be worth giving up things I love.  The meat however, apparently it just makes my ass fat.  It will take a lot of willpower for that one...

I'm just working to have a body that can keep up with my energized brain.  I love all this energy I have and I want to figure out a way to get my body caught up.  I'm going to fight off disease and live a better lifestyle.

Easy Peasy Breakfast Sandwich

So I'm trying to figure out some simple easy to make recipes for breakfast.  I'm terrible when it comes to breakfast, so it's best if I have something that I can grab as I run out the door 5 minutes late to work.  So I thought I would try a trick that I saw online.  The recipe is super easy and they still taste really good when you heat them up.  There are the best for a quick breakfast on the run (when you have access to a microwave.

Ingredients:
12 eggs
12 strips of bacon (regular, Canadian, or turkey)
12 whole wheat/high fiber English muffins
12 slices of cheese (I prefer Cheddar for a nice strong taste)

1.  Crack one egg into each cup of a cupcake tin.  In hindsight I would have scrambled the eggs before filling the tins, but c'est la vie.

2.  Cook in the oven for 10 minutes at 350 or until done.  While they cook prepare your other ingredients.

3.  Fry up some BACON!

4.  Toast the English muffins (hopefully you have a 4+ slice toaster cause this part can take a while.

5.  Build each sandwich with one egg, one slice of bacon and one slice of cheese.

6.  Stick it in the freezer until you're ready to eat it.

7.  To reheat, heat the egg separately, about 1 minute in the microwave, and squeeze excess moisture out of it. (This is the only unappetizing part, and I'm trying to figure out a way around this.).  Then heat the rest of the sandwich for 1 minute, stack it back together, and enjoy!

I still have some tweeking to do, but overall I have really enjoyed this recipe!  It has been quick and it lets me to get a high fiber, high protein breakfast.  The way I made it with pork bacon and cheddar there are 296 calories.  You can easily reduce that by using low fat cheese and turkey bacon (or Canadian Bacon).  I'm trying the all natural route so I used the closest thing.

I hope these make your mornings easier too!

Yummy Yummy Spring Rolls!

There are two things in life that you can't buy:  Fabulous Friends and Homegrown Tomatoes (it's a song, look it up).  Well tomato season never real got going around these parts, but thank goodness I have Melissa of They Call Me Hypo.  We had our Asian food extravaganza and it turned out AMAZING.  She made Baked Crab Ragoons that were low fat, delicious and easy to make.  Seriously go to her blog and check them out.

I made Fresh Spring Rolls that will go great with anyone's asian themed meal.  These are the perfect appetizer because they are low calorie and very filling.  They are a perfect start to your meal, or even as part of the main course.  The best part is they are really easy to make and you can substitute the vegetables you like for ones that you don't.  The first recipe of these I tried had a lot of rice sticks in them, but I added sprouts instead.  So vary the recipe based on your likes.

Fresh Spring Rolls with Sweet Sesame Dipping Sauce

Fresh Spring Rolls

• 1 cup shredded carrots
• 1/4 cup packed cilantro leaves (or more if you love cilantro as much as I do)
• 1 cup shredded lettuce
• 1 cup clover sprouts
• 1 tsp chopped garlic (yeah, right.  I think I used about a tablespoon)
• 1/4 cup finely chopped green onion
• 1 cup chopped, seeded red bell pepper
• 16 cooked medium shrimp, shelled and deveined, cut lengthwise.
• 8, 8 inch round spring roll wrappers (I use tapioca wrappers)
• red pepper flakes, to taste

1. Mix all the veggies, and the red pepper flakes, into a large bowl until they are well combined.
2. Soak the spring roll wrappers until they are soft and malleable. Lay them out on a flat surface and smooth until flat.
3. Lay four pieces of your shrimp on the wrapper.  I like to put the cooked side down so you can see the color through the wrapper.
4. Place about 3/4 cup of the veggie filling over the shrimp.  Fold one side of the wrapper over the top of the filling.  Then fold the ends up over the top wrapper.  Then just roll until the wrapper is securely holding the filling in.  Be careful not to tear the wrapper, but also work to make sure the wrap isn't too loose.
5. Continue until you have all eight rolls completed.
6. Dip and enjoy!

Sweet Sesame Dipping Sauce

• 1/4 cup lime juice
• 1/4 cup rice-wine vinegar
• 1 Tbl sesame oil
• 2 Tbl reduced sodium soy sauce
• 2 tsp brown sugar
• 2 tsp fresh ground ginger

1. Mix all ingredients in a jar, secure lid tightly, and then shake it!
2. Enjoy it with your spring rolls.

A super easy, super healthy recipe.  Nutritional Information per serving of 1 spring roll and 1 Tbl sauce:  130 calories, 15g carbs, 1g fat, 13g protein, 1g fiber.

Don't you just want to eat all of that?  Well you can!!!

Look forward to next month when Three Stones/They Call Me Hypo will conquer healthy holiday options!  Things will be delicious you'll be able to serve them to your whole family without anyone knowing they're good for you!  Be there!  Now go over to They Call Me Hypo and check out the recipes for Baked Crab Ragoons and Sushi, so you can impress your friends with an Asian food night!

Food Matters

I have been really sick this past week.  Like really, really sick.  Fever, chills, aches, cough, congestion, puking...you name it.  The upside is that I feel very svelte, the downside is I feel like crap.  The moral of this story is that I had a lot of time to sit at home and watch TV in between naps.  One of the things that I watched was Food Matters.  It's a documentary about nutrition and how it can affect our health.  It was amazing, and I highly suggest that you watch it.  To sum it up, food is best for you in its freshest form, and 51% of your diet should be raw.  Also taking vitamins is very good for you and can help prevent and cure disease.  So for October I am OVER processed foods.

For the next month I am going to eat everything in the freshest form I can.  When I cook I'm going to use olive oil, butter, etc., because regardless of how high in calories it is, it's not made from chemicals that your body can't process.  This makes a lot of sense to me because when I look around at my friends that are healthier versus my friends that aren't as healthy, it's really the amount of processed foods they're eating.  So I'm going to make food for myself and really cleanse out my system.  Also I'm going to snack on raw fruits and vegetables and I think that I'm going to feel better.  Taking Vit. D so changed my life that I have real faith that by changing my nutrition and increasing my vitamin intake I'm going to see real changes in how I feel, and that's what's most important.

So hopefully definitely next month will be chock full of some really delicious recipes.  Starting with the Three Stones/They Call Me Hypo Asian Food Night!  It will be fresh, it will be delicious, it will be awesome.  I'm very excited about this turn and I'm really looking forward to listening to my body and seeing how changing what goes in it will change how I feel.  You are what you eat and I'm tired of being things that I can't pronounce!

Hi My Name Is Bree...

And I'm an addict.

I am addicted to food.  It's the only way I can explain why I have to eat, even when I'm not that hungry.  I will eat and eat and eat, and its negatively affecting my health.  The biggest issue between being addicted to food and being addicted to something else is that you can't quite food cold turkey.  You have to eat, or you die, this makes it hard to regulate.  I wish I could go cold turkey, but that would be considered anorexia and not approved by any medical professional.

The diet I've been on this month I would give myself a D.  I have had beef and pork (two times each) this month, which is a dramatic decrease for me.  The one thing I am most proud of is that I haven't had any fast food this month.  That has been hard and I realize that I only have a couple of days left in the month and I'm going to make it!  I'm already formulating what I'm going to next month and I'm excited about it, but that's for my next post.

I didn't do the best with exercise, but I did sign up for Yoga and Abs through HR at work.  They are intense and I'm really enjoying them.  I'm also going back to bellydance, which I'm very excited about.  So while I haven't worked out everyday, I have done some things to increase my physical activity.  There is still a lot of work for me to do toward my goal, but I have hope.

This weekend marks the second Three Stones/They Call Me Hypo cooking extravaganza.  Look forward to some good pictures!  Also next month there will (hopefully) be a lot more recipes and pretty pictures to share with everyone.

Current Weight:  210.5

La Cucina Mexicana

I had a great weekend!  This weekend marked the first week of (hopefully) a new tradition!  I got together with my friend over at They Call Me Hypo to have a super healthy mexican food night, that followed all of our various dieting rules.  I made tequila, lime, garlic marinaded chicken and some yummy baked onion rings!  Also we made a healthy version of a strawberry margarita that I can't wait to share!  Here are the recipes:

The Skinny Margarita

1. 1 shot of tequila
2. 1 cup frozen strawberries
3. 1/2 cup diet sprite
4. A squeeze of lime juice
5. A dash of orange extract
6. Ice to taste
7. Blend that shit!

It is delicious and counts the same as a shot of tequila! I use the frozen strawberries more instead of ice, gives it a really good flavor.  You can see it does come out a little foamy from the sprite, but it is delicious!

Also I wanted to point out how funny it is that I posted the drink first.  Obviously I have my priorities straight.  Here is a mouthwatering picture of the main course!

(Chicken, onions, pico de gallo, and cottage cheese enchiladas with an amazing cilantro pesto!)

Tequila, Garlic, Lime Marinade

1. 1 cup garlic sliced
2. 1/2 cup cilantro chopped
3. 1 jalapeno diced
4. 1 serrano pepper diced
5. 1 cup lime juice
6. 1/2 cup tequila
7. 1/3 cup soy sauce
8. 1 1/2 lbs chicken breast cut as desired
9. Throw everything in a bag and marinate overnight.
10. Grill on the bbq, grill pan (if you like char) or bake in the oven until done.

The onions:

1. Slice onion (sweet onions come out the best) and pop out the rings
2. Put on a baking dish and drizzle with left over marinade
3. Put under the broiler until soft and done

The Pico de Gallo

1. Chop some tomatoes (take the seeds out)
2. Do the same with red onion, jalapeno, and cilantro
3. Mix in a bowl and enjoy!

If you want the recipe for the delicious enchiladas, go check out They Call Me Hypo!  She always has amazing recipes that are low in calories and high in flavor.  She'll be posting this recipe soon.  Also, I'm already looking forward to next month when we concur Asian cuisine!

Making a Decision

So I've been at this for a few weeks and I'm not succeeding.  I am really frustrated, but when I look at what I'm doing on a daily basis, I shouldn't be loosing weight.  I'm not making the choices I need to take.  I need to make a decision.  I am deciding this is something that I want.  This is not a game, this is something that I have to commit myself to.

So I'm coming up with some rules for myself.  It is September 1st and while it will be too late for me to use these rules today, I will follow them for the rest of the month and see how I do.

1.  No more cheat days.  I've always told myself that I get one day a week to eat what I want, I have been taking that too far lately.  Also it opens the door for further justification.  So this month there will be no cheat days.

2.  No take out/fast food/pre-made food. I will prepare all of my food so that I know what's in it, how many calories are in it, and how much I am eating (the only note to this is that I may take a business trip to Canada, in which case I will eat the freshest thing I can find)

3.  No red meat or pork.  This one will be HARD, but in the end I think that it will improve my system.

4.  No junk food, candy, baked goods, anything that should be considered a 'treat'.  The goal is to eat fresh, and detox my body.

5.  Limited amounts of carbs.  I'm not going to give them up, however they will have to fit into my daily limits and be either whole grain or high in fiber, and only one in a meal.  So no corn with potatoes and pasta.  I must pick one.

6.  I will record everything that I eat.  I have a subscription to weight watchers and dammit I'm going to use it.  Nothing will go past my lips without being recorded.

7,  I will exercise everyday.  Even if its only some sets of abs, I will not go a day without doing something.

And...that's all I've got.  I think that will be enough for now.  Next post I'll let you know how I'm a huge boozer...only not ;).  Also I promise there will be some excellent recipes coming out, with delicious looking pictures!