Healthy Eating & Losing Weight

Here's some tips and tricks to eating healthier whether it's at home or in a fast food restaurant.

I kept track of what I was eating using an Excel spreadsheet, but myfitnesspal.com is another way you can keep track of what you eat. The benefit to keeping track is so you know what foods are bette for you. I also used a Weight Watchers app on Android which gave me the number of points to consume (based on the information I gave) then it would convert whatever I ate to points which is one of the main reasons why I lost weight. It's also why I kept an excel spreadsheet.

Now watching what you eat/going on a diet doesn't mean you can't eat out at restaurants. I can eat at Wendy's, McDonald's, and other places and not gain anything. How? You can get their nutritional information from their websites which helps you plan your meals before you go. Some are a PDF that you can save (like Wendy's) and can look at it anytime you need to whereas others you have to go back to the site. Overtime this will become second nature and you won’t need to resort to the nutritional information that often unless you want to change it up. With the android app, you can see how many points the food will give you before you order it.

One other thing that I have used is a Green Tea Appetite Suppressant (Walgreens brand) which is about $6 for 30 pills. The directions say take 2 a day, but I was taking one a day and still lost weight; however, everyone is different including their bodies so do what works for you.

Eating  healthy and losing weight is not an easy task, but it is a rewarding one plus it can be completely customized to what you want.

Now unless you have an Android phone, you won’t be able to bring the app with you because I’d doubt you’d want to carry a tablet around while grocery shopping (I know I wouldn’t). If you look up the company and/or food then you might be able to find the nutritional information which will help you plan your trip. If you can’t then do what I do: shop whole grains/wheat, buy fresh fruit or frozen fruit – NOT the canned because it actually isn’t that good for you. If you have thyroid disease – avoid eating too many raw veggies (more on that later) plus your diet can be more complex than someone without it.

I hope this helps steer you in a direction :)

Grilled Cheeseburger Wrap

I love hamburgers, a lot. I love finding new ways to eat them, too. This is the most 'clean-eating' recipe/idea I've seen yet. You have to try it.

Ingredients :

1 lb ground beef

1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce (I used a little more to taste)

1 tablespoon ketchup

1 teaspoon dried minced onion

pepper and salt to taste

5 flour tortillas (the larger ones)

shredded cheddar cheese

sliced tomatoes

yellow mustard

Directions :

• Brown ground beef in large skillet and drain.
• Add Worcestershire sauce, ketchup, dried onion, and salt and pepper to the beef and simmer for 5 minutes.
• Sprinkle shredded cheese down center of each tortilla. Add a few heaping tablespoons of the beef mixture on top of the cheese.
• Spread some mustard on top of the beef along with some slices of tomato.
• Roll up tortilla burrito-style and place wraps on preheated grill (either indoor or outdoor)
• Grill wraps for about 5 minutes until cheese is melted. Cut on a diagonal and serve immediately.

Source

Chicken Enchiladas

Chicken Enchiladas with Red Chili Sauce

Ingredients :

1 medium onion, chopped fine

2 jalapenos, seeded and chopped fine

1 teaspoon canola oil

3 medim cloves garlic, minced

3 Tablespoons chili powder

2 teaspoons ground cumin

3 teaspoons sugar

1 15-oz can tomato sauce

1 cup water

1 large beefsteak tomato, seeded and chopped

1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breasts (2 large breasts)

1 cup extra sharp white cheddar, shredded

1 cup monterey jack cheese, shredded

1/2 cup minced fresh cilantro

12 (6-inch) soft corn tortillas

cooking spray

salt and ground black pepper

Directions :

Preheat oven to 425.

Combine the onion, jalapeno, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and oil in a large saucepan. cover and cook over medium-low heat, stirring often, until the onions and peppers have softened, 8-10 minutes.

Stir in the garlic, chili powder, cumin, and sugar, and cook until fragrant, less than 30 seconds.

Stir in the tomato sauce, water, and chopped tomato. Bring to a simmer, and cook until slightly thickened, 5 minutes.

Nestle the chicken into the sauce. Reduce heat to low, cover, and cook until chicken is cooked through (thickest part reaches 160 degrees), about 12-20 minutes. Transfer the chicken to a plate, and set aside to cool.

Strain the sauce through a strainer into a medium bowl, pressing the onion mixture to extract as much liquid as possible. Transfer to a large bowl and set aside. Season sauce with additional salt and pepper to taste.

Shred the chicken into bite-sized pieces, add to the onion mixture, and add 1/4 cup of the enchilada sauce (drippings strained into the bowl), 1 cup cheese, and the cilantro. Stir to combine.

Stack the tortillas on a plate; Microwave on high until warm and pliable, 40-60 seconds. Spread the tortillas on a clean work surface, and spoon 1/3 cup of the chicken mixture evenly down the center of each. Tightly roll each tortilla and lay seam-side down in a greased 9x13 inch baking dish.

Lightly spray the tops of the enchiladas with cooking spray. Place in the oven, uncovered, for about 7 minutes, or until the tortillas start to brown slightly (skip this step if you don't like the crunch).

Reduce heat to 400. Remove enchiladas and pour enchilada sauce (remaining drippings strained in the bowl) evenly on top. Top with the remaining cheese.

Cover dish with foil, and bake an additional 20 minutes, or until heated through.

Remove foil and bake another 5 minutes, until cheese browns. Remove from oven and let stand 10 minutes before serving.

Serve with sour cream, guacamole, salsa, additional cilantro, etc.

Source

Easy Peasy Baked Potatoes

I love baked potatoes like no other, but I hate all the prep work included. Especially turning on the oven when it's hot and humid out. Here's a great way to get baked potatoes, without making your house into a sauna.

Ingredients :

As many potatoes that you can fit into your crock pot / however many you want or need.

Directions :

• Wash your potatoes well and let them dry. Then wrap each potato in a piece of foil (no need for pricking them).
• Place the foil wrapped potatoes in your crock pot.
• Cook on low for 8 hours.

Source

Maple Bacon Biscuit Bake

You've read the title, need I say more? Sweet, Chewy, Gooey .. droolworthy!

Ingredients :

Syrup

1/2 lb. bacon, cooked until medium-brown

1/3 cup brown sugar

1/4 cup all-purpose flour

1/4 cup maple syrup

2 Tbsp. unsalted butter

Biscuits

2 cup all-purpose flour

2 tsp. baking powder

1/2 tsp. salt

1/4 cup cold, unsalted butter

1 cup cold milk or buttermilk

Directions :

• Preheat oven to 475 degrees F.
• Lightly grease an 8" square pan.
• Chop the cooked bacon into 1/2" pieces.
• Combine the bacon with the remaining syrup ingredients, stirring until well combined.
• Spread the syrup/bacon mixture on the bottom of the prepared pan.
• Whisk the dry ingredients for the biscuits together in a bowl. Work in the butter until the mixture is crumbly. Add the milk or buttermilk, stirring to make a sticky dough.
• Drop the dough in heaping tablespoonfuls on top of the syrup in the pan.
• Bake the biscuits for 10 minutes. Turn the oven off, and leave them in the oven for an additional 5 to 10 minutes, until golden.
• Remove the biscuits from the oven, and immediately turn the pan over onto a serving plate. Lift off the pan, and scrape any syrup left in the pan onto the biscuits. Pull biscuits apart to serve.

Source

Kids & Nutrition

I don't have kids, but I do know that kids should not be automatically put into the 'typical kid' mold of only liking chicken nuggets and hot dogs. I heard someone say the only day, after being asked why her child only eats cereal and fruit juice "She's a typical kid, all kids are like this until they're a teenager then they eat only pizza and fries". She was very serious about this, and definitely didn't say this in a joking manner.

Some cereal is great, don't get me wrong, but to eat this and only this, and to think it's acceptable not to try to introduce anything else because 'he/she wont like it, don't bother' is simply insane! I'm pretty sure her daughter wasn't eating Kashi cereal, either.

This is exactly the mindset of a parent who will have a future fussy eater, then wonder why! I've personally see this happen with my own eyes, and it's sad. There are so many different foods and experiences to have around food, that the child won't have when they're older because they'll be too fussy to try. I've been to lunch with a friend, who, on the entire menu, only liked the french fries, he was that picky.

It's sad to see people give up on nutrition and health, and I wish I could flip a switch to make them care.

Here's to one of many posts about children and nutrition!

Food Rules

This is from the first world war. Apparently times haven't changed that much.