Doing a little happy dance!

So I am really proud of my weight loss. I don't mean to brag but this is a pretty big deal for me. I lost around 23 pounds since January of this year.

I wanted to share a little bit how I lost the weight (and started eating healthier) in case it might help someone else reach their goals. I'm a food nerd so bare with me if I go into the weeds a bit.



Weight track My Plate

Chart of 1 day's intake

1. Calorie Tracker App: I use the free MyPlate app. I enter my weight every morning and everything I eat during the day. You simply scan the UPC code on your food. The app has graphs which help me track my weight loss and what I eat each day. Love them graphs (Nerd alert!) I would love to eat pie every day, but barring that a pie chart will suffice... My goal was to eat  around 1200 calories every day. 😰


2. Exercise: So in January I joined a gym. I went 6 times a week and spent 20-30 minutes on the elliptical. Boom - coronavirus. When the gym closed, I started walking and jogging at least 3 times a week. I love to listen to podcasts or music. I got leggings and shorts that hold my phone. The Google Fit app tracks my runs.🏃


Tracked on Google Fit

The key to exercise is raising your heart rate so that your body's fat burning mechanism kicks in. You can learn more here: https://www.openfit.com/target-heart-rate-for-fat-burn. When I used the elliptical I targeted about 130 bpm.

When I jog, I don't have a heart rate monitor so my goal is to jog until I feel like I'm about to die. Then keep jogging, okay stop. Then walk. I admit I don't like jogging.


3. Vitamins:  I had a few vitamin deficiencies back in January (D, iron and B12) so each day I take: probiotics, calcium + D, B12, iron, magnesium, and a daily vitamin. Magnesium is good for mood and I can really tell that it has made a huge difference. I use a pill sorter so I guess I'm officially old! 😂

4. Nuts: Every night, I eat 1 Brazil nut, 1 walnut, 4 almonds and 2 cashews. 1 Brazil nut has 100% of your chromium for a day! Chromium and magnesium help your body regulate blood sugar. Almonds also regulate blood sugar. Walnuts lower your bad cholesterol and raise your good cholesterol, and they reduce the desire to snack. Cashews ward off anxiety and depression.

5. Better Diet:
So in general I have cut my carbs from about 55% of my calories per day to about 35-40% of calories. What a typical day looks like:

Cholesterol free eggs

Lowers your cholesterol!

Breakfast: Almost every day I eat 2 egg beaters cooked with a half tablespoon of ground flax. This is about 70 calories. I sometimes put salsa on it.  Maybe 1 day a week I eat 1 slice of thin whole grain bread toasted with Benecol (a margarine that lowers your cholesterol). 🍳
Lunch: Usually this entails tofu in chicken broth (about 100 calories) or some chickpeas mashed with olive oil and maybe toss in fresh tomatoes and cumin (about 200 calories). Or some leftovers from dinner.🍜

Dinner:🍗 I try to cut the carbs, not completely but drastically.
Often I eat meat and a salad or vegetable. Such as:
Meatballs with reduced sugar spaghetti sauce with salad.
Chili with meat/beans and no noodles.
Chicken with roasted broccoli.
A chicken/bean burrito bowl with no rice.
Stir fry (meat/veg) no rice.
Some days we have pizza, tacos or a burger with a bun, but I just try to not go completely crazy. It's okay to have a little carbs at dinner when most of the day you avoided them! Moderation!

6. Restricted snacking. Like I said I eat nuts at night where as I might have previously eaten sweets. During the day I might grab a string cheese or 2 crackers with a tiny dab of peanut butter.

I also buy plain Greek yogurt and mash frozen blueberries and throw them in the Greek yogurt. No added sugar. Greek yogurt has protein, vitamin B12 and the probiotics help prevent obesity. It also reduces hunger.

Ground flax = da bomb

7. Modified baking. I grind quick oats in my coffee grinder into oat flour. When I bake I use a combination of approximately: oat flour (40%), whole wheat flour (40%), and ground flax seed and all purpose flour (10% each).
When I do bake I really limit my intake which is tough.


Muffins with whole grain

8. Less Beer, more wine. 🍺🍷Beer unfortunately has a ton of carbs. In general I have up to 3-4 drinks a week. [Not at the same time].
Other carbs I cut are juice and sweetened liquors like amaretto (If you know me at all you know I love amaretto with orange juice so that was a bit tough). No sugar in my coffee. No peanut butter or jam on my toast. No cereal or oatmeal or waffles or pancakes or candy mostly except as a treat. 😢 No pasta or rice.


9. Key takeaways:

• Slow weight loss. If you lose weight too fast your hair can fall out. I did not encounter this.
• Flax is a super food that has no flavor so it can go into anything. Just don't eat too much at once. Also you have to grind flax seeds (coffee grinder) or buy them already ground; your body can't digest the hard exterior and when they go through your gut in tact you could have some problems. 
• Olive oil helps lower blood sugar, cholesterol and helps lose weight <- Super food
• Chromium and magnesium are nutrients your body needs to regulate blood sugar. 
• Drink a lot of water. This is hard for me. I just try for 3 glasses a day. I know its supposed to be 8, but, baby steps. Coffee and alcohol don't count in the total.
• Going forward I need to do strength training to build muscle because I lost a lot of muscle mass.
• Even if you dislike exercise, at our age we just have to bite the bullet and do it. Official recommendations are: at least 150 minutes a week of moderate aerobic activity or 75 minutes a week of vigorous aerobic activity, or a combination of moderate and vigorous activity. 

Note: None of this should be considered medical advice. I am not a health/nutrition professional but I do have a degree in food science.

What did you want to be when you grew up?

Well maybe we are all still fine tuning that. Here's what I wanted to be when I grew up at different ages:

Age 5-7:
-Writer
-Actor
-Cocktail Waitress

Age 8-15:
CIA operative

Age 16:
Architect

Age 17:
International business

Age 20-30:
Food science

Age 30-49:
Stay at home Mom (primarily)


Ugh. What the hell sort of convoluted thought process was this? Of these paying jobs I have held exactly 2: Waitress and Food Scientist. Check. Check.

But I actually wish I had been the writer, actor and spy.  I mean let's be honest. These are way better. I am recently holding a ton moderate amount of regret about not following my dream to become a spy. Like why the hell didn't I just go for it?

Now I'm too old. I wish I could go tell my 16 year old self to become a CIA operative. I was pretty obsessed with it. Fuck.

This is why I don't tell my kid what they should or should not pursue. It's not my choice. It's their life.

I offer a few ideas they say are 'lame'. I have been known to tell my kids they will never be the next LeBron James. (We ain't tall).

But it's up to them. 1000%.  Go find your thing and learn a bunch of cool stuff and do amazing things.  Godspeed.

Brain dump

Here's some random thoughts on my mind:

1. I really wish I had diversified my alcohol purchases. I am currently in possession of a ton of white wine. But I really want some margaritas, Malibu and Irish Cream.

2. This week I had to resist my urge to do my kid's homework. Weird I know. 

3. Family is currently considering a squirrel launcher. Because he keeps knocking down bird feeders and eating all the bird food.

4. Have rarely laughed so hard as I did watching the Netflix show 'The Kominsky Method.' I literally spit my coffee out and started choking. Highly recommend. 

5. Recently I started rewatching Grey's Anatomy from Season 1. It's like getting entirely new shows because I forgot about 90% of it.  

6. Its really boring here. I mean really boring. Sorry this is boring.

My anti-bucket list: 10 Things I never want to do before I die

1. Get bit by a spider and get really freaky abilities

2. Wake up to rats in my hair that are tangled and can't get out

3. Go on a cruise. It used to sound good but not anymore... Sorry cruise industry. #corona

4.  Can my own food. My degree is in food science but I'm afraid of messing it up and getting botulism.

5. Get a tattoo. I really hate needles so even though I have thought about it, I just can't. I have to calm myself down before shots and blood draws.

6. Walk on those glass bridges over a very deep place like the Grand Canyon really would freak me out

7. Get a pet snake. I just don't like snakes.

8. Fly in a rocket. No thanks. I enjoy the Earth too much I guess.

9.  Anything involving sharks or other creatures that might eat me

10. Sky diving or bungee jumping. I prefer activities where I am not facing death in the face. Those sound more scary than fun.

What do you never want to do?

What's different, what's the same during shelter at home

So as we know this is unprecedented times and things feel different because we are sheltering in place. A lot is different but some things are the same. Around here, this is my list of same stuff and different stuff. I'm not including the universal stuff like wearing masks, not going out to eat, etc.

Different: #1. I used to only drink 2 cups of coffee a day. I'm up to 3-4 now. It's a comforting ritual. And I stocked up!!

Same #1. Alcohol consumption = same. I mean I get it that people are home and bored but moderation is important. If we all come out of this as raging alcoholics, the virus won and we are losers.

Different #2. Buying groceries in a huge trip instead of every day. Now I have to think for a long time to make my list. The boys inevitably say, "I thought you were going 15 minutes ago." And I say, "I am still working on my list."

Same #2. I am home normally anyway because I am not working. So my basic routine is the same.

Different #3. Usually I am alone but now the boys are here and husband works from home 2 days a week. So I have more company.

Same #3. Every day I get dressed. Getting dressed makes me feel normal.

Different #4. I am normally a news junkie but I don't have it on because I don't want the kids to have anxiety from all the bad stuff they are reporting. I'm down to an hour a day or less.

Same #4. Exercise. Well unless its too cold out. Hee hee. I'm a wuss. But I try to exercise every other day.

Different #5. My hair is coming back in my natural color. Haven't seen it since I was 14. Interesting to see what it will look like. I don't mind waiting to get my hair done because I am social distancing to flatten the curve.

Same #5. There is still hope. We can't lose hope. Things will get better. It will take time staying home to prevent the spread.

9 Things I Just Can't Handle

Do you have something you just can't handle at all? Here are mine (in no particular order):

1. Black pepper

2. Really bad 70s elevator music

3. When restaurants put brussel sprouts / beets on your plate but it wasn't listed on the menu for your entree

4. Violent movies

5. Katy Perry

6. Bleu cheese

7. Jar Jar Binks

8. Gollem in Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit

9. Walking in bare feet on asphalt or cement

My crazy quarantine food I invented

So this is literally something I love that I invented on accident:

Are you ready? sesame seeds toasted in bacon grease. Crazy, right?

Here's how it happened:

Nicholas is home from UW and he has a certain way of making bacon. He seasons it, cuts off the parts he doesn't like, and cooks it in olive oil. It's quite good. He gives me the parts he cuts off and I cook them in a little tiny pan.

I decided to try my own "seasoning" so I put sesame seeds on my bacon. But they didn't stick. So they mostly fell off into the bacon grease. By the time the bacon was done, the sesame seeds were brown.

I took out the bacon to a paper towel then put the sesame seeds on the paper towel too. And tasted them. I was like, Holy Shit I just made something really good!

You can put these on any food. I put them in my tofu cheese soup. I know you're thinking, what the hell is tofu cheese soup?!?

Here is the recipe:
8 oz chicken broth or bouillon broth
1 slice American cheese
3 oz cubed extra firm tofu
minced onion

Melt the cheese completely in the broth and stir. You may need to microwave to get it to melt. Add the tofu. You may need to microwave again to get it warm. Add the minced onion. Then add the sesame seeds toasted in bacon grease. Just a small spoonful.

Its a delicious low carb, low calorie lunch.

Homeschooling during covid: 

Here are 6 tips for homeschooling during distance learning:

1. If your offspring start complaining, just start talking about typewriters... "well when I was young I didn't have a computer. I had a typewr….. " they will leave you alone really quick!

2. When the teacher emails you, 'did junior get that assignment...' say "New Phone who dis?"

3. If your kid will not get out of bed and you can't wake him/her up, grab the chainsaw! Walk in their room and vrrooom…… works every time.

4. Did you forget how to do {insert grade level math here}? Download photomath. It's an app that solves math problems. Honey, we are not paid enough! Am I smarter than a tenth grader? No. No I am not.

5. Lunchtime! This is the school subject I am good at! I don't care if we are all going to die of COVID. (well I sort of do actually)… but I can successfully make a PB&J and hey... you can now feed your kids WHEAT bread (tire screech sound effect) because you can realistically say, "I'm sorry honey, there is a pandemic and the stores are totally out of white bread." Mom Of The Year award.

6. Boxed wine. Can't get your kid to submit assignments? Boxed wine.     Don't know if they will flunk their class? Boxed wine.    The teachers think you are a terrible parent because your kid is behind? Boxed wine.

Good luck everyone! Remember not all superheroes wear capes. Many superheroes walk among us and are TEACHERS and they deserve thoughtful Christmas gifts and comfortable slippers and all kinds of nice things that I hope are still on the shelves during a pandemic. Like soft toilet paper,  hand sanitizer,    boxed wine.    Sorry I bought a ton of boxed wine, I hope you can still buy a box for yourself.

#NotSorry

Good luck home distance learning parents!

12 ways to make small changes to eat healthier:

I have seen a lot of posts from people who are eating like crazy during the shelter in place time. I totally get it. I'm on a super sucky diet right now and I'm trying to eat healthy. Here are a few things I do:

1. Egg beaters!!! These things are AWESOME! There is no cholesterol and each "egg" portion has only 25 calories. Most mornings I eat an Egg beaters (Kroger brand) "omelet". 1 egg equivalent portion or 2, its just 50 calories or less. Then I throw in 1 tablespoon of shredded cheddar or parmesan cheese and some sesame seeds. It's a delicious little breakfast for under 100 calories.

2. Flax. Oh man this is like so freaking healthy. I grind mine up in the coffee grinder. I store them in a Ziploc bag in the fridge and I throw them in everything. They are super healthy for you!! Lots of healthy fats as well as vitamins and minerals.

3. Oat flour. There is a flour shortage so to extend my flour supply I use oat flour in lots of recipes. You just grind quick oats in a coffee grinder. Use them in recipes asking for flour, but also anything else like meatloaf, sauces, French toast. They lower your cholesterol and have other health benefits too.

4. Sesame seeds are THE BOMB!! nuff said.

5. Skim milk. Oh honey its just so healthy. No saturated fat or cholesterol.

6. No sugar in the coffee. Sad face. Sad face. I know... sugar in coffee is so good but this is one way to reduce your sugar consumption.

7. Sugar free spaghetti sauce. This is a thing now so why not!? I add chopped garlic because it lowers your cholesterol.

8. I switched from beer to wine because there is less carbs. This is probably bad nutritional advice but there it is.

9. I try not to eat carbs for breakfast and dinner. I know. ...sad face.... I love carbs but since I cut back and started exercising I have lost weight.

10. A very depressing but healthy snack is plain (I know it sucks) Greek yogurt with 1 teaspoon of honey or some chopped almonds. Sorry. It sucks but there is hardly any added sugar.

11. Almonds. Every day I eat 4 almonds and 1 Brazil nut. Almonds lower your blood sugar. 1 Brazil nut has 100% of your day's supply of selenium and chromium. These are essential nutrients and your body uses chromium to regulate blood sugar. It's a easy way to get lots of nutrition just don't eat like a big pile of them because they have a bunch of calories.

12. Bryers carb smart fudge bars are really good and only 60 calories. I love these suckers!

Thanks for reading my list. I am kind of weird about stuff I eat but I hope this helps if you want to make tiny changes.

Surviving a quarantine when you can't see the horizon:

Or how to stay sane ...

This year I started going to the gym and I started listening to podcasts while I was there. Wow. It was like a new world opened up. Now I am not going to the gym, but I still listen to podcasts.

They really do keep my mind busy. I enjoy them when I am jogging and when I am sewing. My favorites are: Hysterical History, Paranormal and My Favorite Murder. I listen to them on the app Podcast Player.

Another thing I do is look out the window. I know that is crazy but just seeing people walk by makes me feel like I'm not alone. My sewing machine faces a window and I can see people cycling, jogging, walking with dogs and strollers and stuff.

Sometimes I see this little puppy going on a walk and I see his little short legs and it makes me smile. You can see just from the way he walks that he is happy. 

So if you are sad you can always message me. I would be happy to talk to you. It's okay to say, "this really sucks and I feel alone." I will be an ear to listen.

Quarantine blog day 16 (ish) but who's counting...

Today's topic is mood altering pills.

No not those kind... I'm talking about magnesium. I swear to God this stuff will level you out. Every day I take 500 mg. If you are sad or you cry a lot or feel really horrid, I recommend it. It makes you feel less sad.

Foods that are high in magnesium are: spinach, soy, dark chocolate, seeds, almonds, avocado, brown rice, crab, wheat germ and yogurt.