Diets, Food and Everyday Life!

American’s obsess over food as we collectively gain weight. (P.S. not me over Thanksgiving i lost 1 lb) I found this interesting article in the New York Times about how people from LA/Hollywood will come into the most posh high end restaurants and order their food not the way it’s supposed to be cooked.

This happens to be the highlight of the article for me.
“It is a contradiction not lost on the city’s food purveyors. ‘People in this town have a terrible definition of what they are,’ says Eric Greenspan, the owner and chef of the Foundry on Melrose in Hollywood. ‘They spend their whole lives obsessing over a healthy body, so they come to a restaurant like mine and order their salmon steamed and then wake up at 2 a.m. and go to Tommy’s and get chili cheese fries.’

Greenspan’s analysis of this Hollywood phenomenon is part chemistry — people don’t really know what they are eating — and part psychology. ‘If their souls were satisfied,’ he reasons, ‘they would be eating the salmon the way it should it be ordered.”

If you think about it this is how America thinks how we act on all sorts of levels not just food. We snub what we should be experiencing and dumb down the order, only to stick our fingers in the honey pot when we think no one is looking.

You can read the entire article here.

So I guess that sometimes one just needs to eat more. I have upped my calorie intake, especially this weekend and am down to 153.0 this is down .8 from my lowest recent weight.

I am very proud of myself for sticking too it, this week I will stay right on with the calorie numbers and not let my net calorie intake fall below 1400. I am going to run today, maybe at lunch too.

YAAY for me, I was stuck there for a few weeks but made it through.

So today I am taking a hint from a friend of mine and having a weighing myself experiment. Here is how it is going so far. Weigh in one was before bathroom use first thing in the morning, weigh in two was after peeing, weigh in three was after eating breakfast and after first bm of the day. Four is after lunch and bathroom break of the afternoon. Five is before my workout. Six is right after the work out and seven is after my shower.

1. 155.8 9:24 AM
2. 155.6 9:28 AM
3. 154.6 10:15 AM
4. 154.4 2:10 PM
5. 154.4 6:30 PM
6. 154.8 7:10 PM
7. 154.6 7:30 PM

I will edit this post throughout the day.

I am going to preface this post by saying that weight loss is a very unique journey. When people loss weight it is different for everyone.

I feel that I am loosing weight too slowly. I have been eating between 1200-1300 calories per day and exercising 8 out of the last 12 days. As advised by my friends on the chat forums at Calorie-Count plus I am going to up my calories for the next two weeks. Hopefully this will kick something into high gear.

Let the experiment begin.

I was between 160-159ish in these pictures.

So yes I have plateaued this week. I am feeling kind of down and not really gun hoe about anything at this point. Like I told my best friend last night I am just glad this year is almost over and I hope that I make it through the end of the year.

Oh a good note in the last 12 days I have worked out 8 days. Yes that is more than half. I am really excited. I thought I should start taking my measurements, so here goes.

Weight 153.8
Chest 38
Waist 34
Hips 41
Left arm 12.25
Right Arm 12
Left Thigh 23.5
Right Thigh 23.75

Today I bring you an invaluable artible straight from Hungry-Girl.com, she is one of my all time favorite blogs I often get recipes from her site as well as discover new groceries.

Here are her “Top ATE Thanksgiving Tips ‘n Tricks!”

1. Eat breakfast and a protein-packed lunch before the big feast. If you starve yourself during the day, you could wind up SO crazy-famished by the time you sit down at the dinner table that you gobble up WAY too much food.

2. Go for lean, white meat turkey to get the most bang for your calorie-buck. Dark meat has about 15% more calories and 30 - 40% more fat than light meat. And ditch the skin while you’re at it (that’s where most of the fat hangs out!).

3. Drink plenty of H2O throughout the day and during the big meal. It’ll keep you hydrated and clear-minded (so you’ll be less likely to make bad food choices), and it’ll help fill you up faster.

4. Treat yourself to small portions of the seasonal side dishes and desserts you’ve been craving all year long. If you deprive yourself, you could end up raiding the fridge in the middle of the night and going overboard!

5. Start with a salad and/or some soup. Then fill your plate mostly with healthy sides and lots of lean meat. Chances are you’ll be pretty satisfied and full by the time dessert is served.

6. Bring along a tasty guilt-free dish, so you know you’ll have at least one thing you can splurge on. Check out our recipe round-up below for some good ones! And if you’re not into baking, or just feeling lazy, toss together a fresh fruit salad (try drizzling it with some Torani Sugar Free Coconut Syrup).

7. Burn calories, not the turkey. Remember, the more calories you torch with activity, the more you can consume without gaining weight come Turkey Day. If you’ve got the day off from work, you really have no excuse to skip the exercise (okay, unless you’re prepping dinner all day… then you have an excuse!). If you can’t get in a full workout pre-festivities, make a point to take Fido on a fast-paced walk, take the stairs all day long (two at a time if you can take it!), and just try to be extra-active throughout the day. You could even organize a game of tag football with your family members (you know you’ve been looking for an excuse to tackle one of your irritating relatives!).

8. Wear your favorite form-fitting clothes and you’ll be way less likely to overeat. No stretchy pants, people!!!

Ok this one is for all you outdoor walkers who don’t feel like driving your normal route to find out how far you walk.

http://www.gmap-pedometer.com/.

I can’t say enough great things about Google, except they won’t hire me. But I am a total Google addict and I love Google.

This is a diet must know for all dieters.

http://www.healthydiningfinder.com/site/

This site provides an analysis of the best foods to eat at each restaurant listed.

Also don’t forget the dining out basics.
1. Even if you not going to take it home, have the waiter bring a to go box with the meal. Automatically put half of your food in the box.
2. Eat your vegetables first and drink at least one full glass of water before the food.
3. Ask the waiter to not even bring the bread to the table, bread is not why your eating out so why waste the calories.
4. This is my personal favorite, don’t drink alcohol at the restaurant. It will lower your inhibitions and lead to poor decision.

Use these tips and eat up, going out is fun. Think thin.

I love, love, love this tuna steak. It doesn’t taste like fish at all.

Ingredients
1/4 cup olive oil
4 teaspoons Old Bay Seasoning
2 teaspoons lime juice
2 teaspoons lemon juice
1 lb tuna steaks
Directions

1. Combine Olive Oil, Old Bay, Lime and Lemon Juice in zip lock bag.

2. Mix Well.

3. Put Tuna Steaks in bag and marinade 20 minutes, turning occasionally.

4. Place your best gill pan over a hot burner, I suggest Le Creuset 9.5″ Square Skinny Grill in red of course.

5. Put tuna steaks on the hottest part of the grill and leave on each side without touching them for 2 minutes per side. The should be slightly seared on the outside and fleshy red on the inside.

Your looking at about 325 calories per serving, 1 lb should be 4 servings.