Ok, so talk to me, please, food guru's - calorie counting etc.

[TanksHill]

Chickens and goats!!

I am still on the band wagon. Had a couple cookies last night but over all I am a veggie eating machine. I think the problem I am having is omitting the sugar in my coffee. It's nothing compared to before... But I don' think it's helping my cause.

I still have no scale but will take my measurements this week. I think we all have been doing this about a month now right?

Uggg

gad to hear your all doing so well.

Oh Abie I am very jealous of your cow!!!

gina

 

[Quail_Antwerp]

Yes, Gina, it's been almost a month - and I haven't taken any measurements yet. Nor weighed myself. But. I haven't completely avoided all carbs and sugars the entire time. My veggie intake has definitely increased, and I've definitely paid more attention to the amount of protein I'm eating.

Tonight E and the kids wanted tacos...so for my serving I just put a cup of browned ground beef on my plate, a dollop of sour cream, and then buried the beef and sour cream with lettuce, tomato, and cheese (No tortilla, chips, etc.) It was yummo! but I only ate about 1/2 of what was on my plate and I was FULL.

Anyway, mom was here today and we were discussing the whole healthier eating. She asked me, "Well, how long have you been working on eating more veggies and protein compared to carbs and sugars?" so I had to go back to see when I first posted this thread, and when I asked her why she replied, "because you don't look as paunchy in your stomach as before."

Mom hasn't seen me since Mother's Day - and she says she's seeing a difference?! I'm not seeing a difference - I mean, I'm still in the same sized clothes so far.

When will my pants fall off???

 

[freemotion]

When will my pants fall off???

I think the requirement for that is that you must be in a very public place!!

 

[ToLiveToLaugh]

Looked back on my last post and it sounded a bit cranky. I didn't mean that! I'm studying for finals, so everything is coming out wrong right now.

 

[Javamama]

ToLiveToLaugh I don't know - honestly, it IS expensive. But we don't spend money on much else - we don't go out, we don't take vacations (we don't travel well anyway). And because my kids are like bottomless pits most days and very active, they do get filler carbs such as breads and pasta and rice - but I try to keep it whole grain. I have one child who would be fine eating meat, veggies and dairy, and the other two would rather starve than eat this way.
Oh - and it's not NO carbs - Free says 2 servings a day for women and 4 for men IF you are trying to lose weight. If you are at your ideal weight then I think you could add more if you feel good with more.


Abi - What a great price on the beef! Around here it's at least double

Aly - great job! I really go back and forth on this eating.

 

[freemotion]

So lemme get this straight. No lentils, no grains, no cooked carrots, minimal peas, no potatoes, no fruit. The only things my boyfriend would be able to eat for protein would be yogurts, eggs, milk, and cheeses. And even I would have to eat meat to cover my protein, and I normally only have meat once or twice a week.

I don't know how this would be possible for us. The Boyfriend can eat 12 hardboiled eggs in a sitting. I'm fairly certain we would go bankrupt. Shoveling in oats, lentils, beans and rice has been the only way we've managed so far.

Am I missing something? How do you guys do this?

It is a different mindset, something we had to work towards and change our thinking, habits, and budget, too. You are not alone. Been there, done that. Gradually succeeded.

Yes, your bf can eat 12 eggs at once, but he doesn't need to. Three or four would probably do. If you need to, you can get the cheap store eggs for now, and make pastured eggs a future goal. We've all been there. I still depend a lot on cheap storebought meat and chicken, although it pains me and I use less and less. I am still on my journey towards my ideal. You gotta do what you gotta do.

Lentils and dry beans are ok, just consider them a very good carb, and a half cup is a serving. So if you want to lose weight, 2 carb servings a day for women, 4 for men, limit or eliminate grains. If you are very active and slim, have more carb servings, but not INSTEAD OF veggies/protein. Keep everything in proportion. More carb servings means more veggie and protein servings. The number of servings for weight loss is based on an average that most people are very successful with, fairly quickly. Some individuals can tolerate more, some cannot tolerate that many.

I do advocate the use of carrots, as the fiber moderates the impact of the naturally occuring sugars, especially if scrubbed but not peeled. Carrots are very high in fiber. I have never had anyone in my groups not lose significant amounts of weight while eating carrots daily, if compliant on the carbs and refined foods and other priniciples of this lifestyle.

Fruit: for women, one serving per day, two for men, on average, for weight loss. NO JUICE! Three servings per day is a max for most people in order not to trigger weight gain, due to the way the liver stores glucose.....the average person gets their quota with three servings of fruit. After that, it is stored as fat for later use. This is without any other sugars in the diet!

Hope this helps!

 

[Henrietta23]

When will my pants fall off???

I think the requirement for that is that you must be in a very public place!!

Yep, for me it was in the high school when I was leaving one day with my arms loaded. They started to slide right off. Hall full of kids. I had to put stuff down and yank them back up. Those pants went away that day! Yikes!!
Congrats on your mom noticing!! Feels good doesn't it?

 

[Quail_Antwerp]

OK so somewhere along the lines I totally missed that 2 half cup servings of carbs per day would be OK - I've been trying to completely avoid carbs.

I haven't had a slice of bread since I think uh Wednesday of last week - and I had a pasta dish with it - and that's the last real carb loaded foods I've had to eat so far. Starting Friday and until today, I was waking up every day with a dull headache and going to bed with the same headache. I don't know if it was from going cold turkey off carbs or what?

But today, no headache.

Breakfast was eggs with cheese and coffee.

We had an apple for a snack.

And now I'm having a late lunch, because I lost track of time, but lunch is a bunless hamburg, and some cooked and mashed cauliflower with butter and cream cheese mixed in.

Bunless hamburgs are totally my new addiction! I've found ways to mix it up, too. Sometimes I add cheese, or other veggies.

For today's burger, I've caramelized some sliced onions and green bell peppers in EVOO and have layered it on the burger with tomato and wrapped the whole thing in 2 large Romaine Lettuce leaves.

It's YUMM-O!!!


eta: the kids and E want spaghetti tonight - I have some whole wheat noodles, so I may try cooking that up and giving myself that 1/2 cup serving, but having a large salad on the side to fill up with.

I can totally do this!

 

[TanksHill]

You rock Aly. One thing you need to remember is your not quite cold turkey on the carbs. There are a few in that apple and probably in some of the other things your eating.

I find I wake up with a headache if I have not drank enough water the day before.

One question for Free or whomever, I want to do a stuffed bell pepper recipe tonight. I usually use rice in the mix. If I leave it out do you have another suggestion?

I have brown rice, lentils, quinoa. Are any better than others?

gina

 

[BeccaOH]

Hope the cauliflower turned out well. Here is the basic recipe for what I do.

Mock Mashed Potatoes (Cauliflower)

1 medium head cauliflower
1 tablespoon cream cheese, softened
1/4 cup grated Parmesan
1/2 teaspoon minced garlic
1/8 teaspoon straight chicken base or bullion (may substitute 1/2 teaspoon salt)
1/8 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
3 tablespoons unsalted butter

Clean and cut cauliflower into small pieces. Cook in boiling water for about 6 minutes, or until well done. Drain well; do not let cool. In a bowl with an immersion blender, or in a food processor, puree the hot cauliflower with the cream cheese, Parmesan, garlic, chicken base, and pepper until almost smooth.

Here's a unique salad that I think I mentioned that uses things that are now in season.

Cucumber and Strawberry Salad

1 cup sliced Strawberries, divided
1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
1 tablespoon lemon juice
Dash of salt
Dash of cayenne (optional)
Fresh ground black pepper, to taste
Stevia, to taste
1 whole cucumber, sliced

Combine all but the cucumber and a half cup of strawberies in food processor. Puree until smooth. Pour over sliced cucumber and strawberries. Allow to marinate for at least 10 minutes.