It isn't cheating ... It is really relapsing!!

Last night I was talkking to a friend of mine who is fighting the weight loss battle just like I am. She and I have talked about the issues that face both of us and I have tried to give her as much information about what I am doing to lose weight as possible. During our conversation she asked how I was doing with my program over the past week. I told her that the reality was that I hadn't been making very good choices and needed to get myself back on track. It was at that point that I realized that as an obese person fighting to change everything I do to lose weight, I was actually relapsing. People talk about cheating when they are on a diet, but when you are trying to change your lifestyle you aren't cheating. When this happens you are actually relapsing just like any other addict would be who has fallen off the wagon, so to speak. With this in mind it is important to realize that relapsing for 2 - 3 days won't ruin 45 days of hard work. Will it postpone weight loss goals? Yes it will, but it isn't the end of the world unless you let it be. If you are more than 30 pounds over weight when you start this program, you have to realize that you will never completely win the weight loss battle. This program is being developed to help make it easier to lose weight sensibly and keep it off, but you can never declare victory. After I lost 125 pounds the first time, I declared victory. I thought I had won the battle of the bulge, but the reality was that I hadn't. After all these years, I have finally realized that there is a lot more that goes into losing weight and keeping it off than just dieting. You have to change what you eat. You have to change how you exercise. You have to change how you think. When you fall back into old habits, don't get angry with yourself. Look to others to be your support group and let them help you get back on the right track. As more people become followers of this blog I want to try and network everyone together. That way we can have our own network support group to help people with questions and to help with getting past relapses. I am out of time for the day so I will continue this topic in my next post.

There is no easy fix

I was talking to a friend of mine the other day. She had had weight loss surgery over a year ago and lost the weight that she wanted to. Now over a year later she is finding that she is starting to gain weight back and she is not happy about it. The type of surgery she had entailed creating a small pouch for a stomach. The problem is that once you stretch the pouch it is stretched and you can't have further surgery to redo it. I have always though of weight loss surgery as a radical last resort. It is an easy fix, but it isn't permanent. The other issue that I have is that rather than approaching the problem from an information standpoint we avoid the real issue of why the person is overweight to start with. There are very many different reasons that a person can become overweight or even obese. A few years back I went to a an appointment with my doctor and during our talk the subject of my weight came up. He wanted to prescribe me with a pill to help me lose weight. In the end he couldn't because my blood pressure was too high to make use of the pill acceptable. As I look back on that day, I think to myself how ridiculous the idea was. The physician had no real understanding of why I was overweight. He just had the facts in front of him that I was. How do you treat a problem without identifying the underlying causes behind it. It is my goal with this weight loss / food program to provide as much information as possible so that people can make educated decisions about dealing with their weight and how to approach weight loss. By understanding the background of how our body works we can determine the best actions to get the results we want. I know that this is a slow process and that people do get bored easily. That is why I am always trying to find new and exciting options for healthy meals. That is why I also suggest a slow approach to exercise. It is also why I don't consider this a diet plan, but rather a food plan and a way of eating naturally. I want people to be able to share the same type of success that I am. Just remember, there is no easy fix!

Reached my 45 day goal!!

Part way thru the first 45 days of my weight loss program I decided to set a goal for myself. I told myself that if I could lose 36 - 37 pounds I would have lost 10% of my total body weight. I anxiously got on the scale Friday to see where I stood after 45 days. It was close but I just made my goal. I had lost 36 pounds in 45 days. I know that I won't lose as much over the next 45 days because of the fact that my body has a lower Basal Metabolic Rate due to reduction in weight. I need to start to add walking to my daily routine so that I can make up for the lower BMR. I wanted to start walking on Saturday, but I have had a lot of foot pain for various reasons the last 2 days. Tomorrow I just need to deal with it and start walking. It is going to hurt at first, but there is nothing I can do about it. If anyone who reads or follows this blog has a weight problem and would like to learn more on what they can do, I would be glad to help. I will continue to post healthy but interesting recipes on my blog as well. When choices are limited it is easy to get bored with what you eat. It is because of this that I tirelessly look for new and innovative recipe ideas to try. Any of the recipes that I post on the blog will have been made at least two times and final adjustments made for the best possible tasting dishes. My next weigh in will be at the 60 day mark on or about the 26th of December depending if I have access to a scale or not. It is my goal to have lost between 8 and 10 pounds. Check back soon and as I will continue to update my blog with more information.

Spicy Chicken Curry

Ingredients:

2 Tablespoons Coconut Oil
3 Medium Onions Chunked
2 Pounds Boneless Skinless Chicken Breasts Cut Into Small Pieces
4 Cloves Minced Garlic
4 Teaspoons Cumin
2 Teaspoons Paprika
1 Teaspoon Chili Powder
2 Cups Diced Tomatoes (Drained)
2 Cups 99% Fat Free Evaporated Milk
1 Teaspoon Salt
2 Tablespoons Dried Cilantro
4 Tablespoons Lemon Juice
1 Can Panang Curry Paste


Directions:

1) Heat oil in large pan

2) Add onions and chicken to oil and cook for 8 -10 minutes until chicken is no longer pink

3) Add Garlic, Cumin, Paprika and Chili Powder

4) Cook for 1 minute stirring

5) Add Evaporated Milk, Diced Tomatoes and Salt

6) Bring mixture to a boil

7) Reduce heat and simmer uncovered for 8 minutes

8) Add Cilantro, Lemon Juice and Panang Curry Paste

9) Cover and simmer for 5 minutes

As with all of my recipes this recipe is made from all low glycemic load foods. Because rice is not a low glycemic load food you can either eat the curry by itself with the Cucumber Raita sauce or you can pick up a 2 small bags of tofu sharitaki noodles. These tofu noodles have no glycemic load. When using them it is best to rinse them thoroughly under cold water and them boil them in a saucepan just like regular noodles but only for about 5 minutes.

Cucumber Raita

1 Cup Plain Greek Yogurt
1/2 Cup Finely Chopped Cucumber (Peeled & Deseeded)
1/2 Clove Garlic (Minced)
2 Teaspoons Raw Lemon Juice
1/2 Teaspoons Salt


Mix all ingredients in a small mixing bowl until well combined.

Cover and refrigerate for at least 1 hour before serving.

People just don't get it!!

I just got finished reading an article about the lengths that contestants would go thru to lose weight on the biggest loser in oreder to win the Grand Prize. It wasn't so much the story that infuriated me as it was the comments left by members of the uneducated public. They think that all fat people eat hoho's and ding dongs and whatever other piece of crap that think causes people to be fat. While there are plenty of people that that may be the case, the reality is that most Americans suffer from obesity because of poor diet and lack of exercise. When I make the statement poor diet, I am referring to the staples of American cuisine as it stands today. People eat tons of potatoes, rice and breads. They eat out on a regular basis and are subjected to the caloric nightmares that the restaurant industry has taught us to ignore. Most Americans partake of a diet that includes tones of processed and boxed foods. Thru it all the biggest factor is how our bodies process the food we eat. The uneductated would have you believe that if everybody ate the same foods that everybody's body would look the same. It is just false. Some people can eat out a couple times a week and then eat processed packaged foods the rest of the week and still not be obese, but put that diet in the hands of someone who's body can't process the food correctly and they will be obese. Thru this whole experience I have been educating myself more and more on how to approach my own obesity. I have made sure to drink a large amount of water on a daily basis so that people cant simply say you are dehydrated and you lost water weight. If I drink 1 ounce of water for every 20 pounds I weight then there is no way I can be dehydrated. People need to wake up and realize that the common foods that we eat on a daily basis are a recipe for physical disaster. I realize that my weight loss has slowed down from the beginning of this program, but I also realize that there are things that I need to do in order to continue to lose weight. My goal is to be at 330 - 332 pounds when I weigh in on Friday. If I can reach that weight then I will have lost 10% of my body weight in 45 days. I have been eating healthier than I ever have in my life and my body has responded very favorably. Since I change dthe way I eat, I have yet to have a single flare up of heartburn. Prior to following this program I would suffer from heartburn on an almost daily basis. My at rest pulse rate has dropped from the high 90's to the low 80's which is more in line with where it should be. My sex drive is higher and my performance is stronger as well. My mood and energy have both changed for the better as well. I never realized that the things that we eat and take for granted can be so detrimental to our bodies.

Lebanese Chicken Shawarma with Tahini Sauce

I decided to be a little bold today and take on a Lebanese dish called Chicken Shawarma. It is a very tasty middles eastern sandwich served at most Lebanese restaurants. I tracked down a couple of recipes and added my own little spin to them for the final product. As with all of the recipes posted here, all of the ingredients are all low glycemic load foods. This recipe will probably take you a little leg work as chances are you wont have all of the spices in your cupboard.

Chicken Shawarma:

4 Boneless Skinless Chicken Breasts
1/2 Cup Malt Vinegar
1/4 Cup Plain Greek Yogurt
1 Tablespoon Vegetable Oil
1 Teaspoon Lebanese 7 spice (Found in Arabic food markets or you can make your own)
1/4 Teaspoon Ground Cardamom
Salt & Pepper to taste

Lebanese 7 spice:
Equal parts of the following spices: Ground Allspice, Ground Black Pepper, Ground Cinnamon, Ground Cloves, Ground Nutmeg, Ground Fenugreek and Ground Ginger

In a corning ware or glass baking dish, mix together the vinegar, yogurt, vegetable oil, 7 spice, cardamom, salt and pepper. Place the chicken breasts into the mixtureand turn once to ensure coating. Cover dish and marinate for a minimum of 5 hours or overnight.

After marinating the chicken cover the baking dish with foil and place in an oven preheated to 350 degrees. Cook the chicken for 20 minutes and then turn the chicken. Cook Covered for an additional 20 minutes and then remove covering. Uncover and finish baking for 10 minutes.

Remove chicken from the dish and slice into thin strips. Serve sliced chicken with tomato, onion and lettuce with all wheat 6 or 8 inch wraps. Top wrap with juice from marinade and Tahini Sauce.


Tahini Sauce:

1/4 Cup Tahini (Sesame Paste)
1/2 Cup Plain Greek Yogurt
1/2 Teaspoon Minced Garlic
2 Tablespoons Raw Lemon Juice
1 Tablespoon Olive Oil
1 Tablespoon Fresh Chopped Parsley
Salt & Pepper to taste

In a small mixing bowl combine together the Tahini, Yogurt, Garlic, Lemon Juice, Olive Oil, and Parsley. Season with salt and pepper. Cover and refrigerate.


I made this for the first time this evening and I was totally amazed by how moist and juicy the chicken breast were. I had only been able to marinate the chicken for about 5 hours so it was not quite as flavorful as if it had marinated overnight. The Thaini Sauce isn't something that can stand on it's own, but when combined with the chicken, lettuce, tomato, onion and wrap it blended in amazingly. Enjoy this hearty and healthy dish as a brwak for the monotony that a meal plan can bring.

I can't wait for Friday!!

It is only Monday and I can't wait for Friday to get here. For most people it is because they want the work week to be over and done with and enjoy the weekend. Not me!! I want Friday to get here because it is my 45 day weigh in!! I can't wait to see where I stand after following my program for 45 days. I have some healthy but tasty meals lined up for this week as I get set to weigh myself Friday morning. Tonight I am making my Orange Chicken recipe, Tuesday is going to be Lebanese Shawarma chicken wraps, Wednesday is Curry Chicken and Thursday is Mongolian Beef. I have found that in order to make interesting meals I need to step outside my comfort level of an American diet and look at what the world has to offer. Some of these recipes are very healthy to start while others require a little bit of adaptation to fit within my low glycemic load scheme. After I weigh in on Friday, I have to get ready to start my walking routine on Saturday. Going to be hitting the mall at 7am for 30 - 40 minutes of walking. I am going to incorporate walking into my daily activity for the next 45 day period. Needless to say I am excited and psyched up about tackling the next step in the process.

Chili Recipe

This is my second attempt at chili since starting my low glycemic load program. The first recipe that I put together tasted more like a vegetable beef soup than chili. I love chili, so I was determined to rework the recipe and come up with a satisfying, flavorful and healthy chili recipe. After some experimentation this is the result of my efforts:

Makes 11 bowls of chili

3 lbs ground beef from chuck
3 medium onions - chopped
3 cloves minced garlic
26 Oz stewed or diced tomatoes - drained
8 Oz tomato sauce
46 Oz tomato juice
3 Tablespoons chili powder
3 14Oz cans of black beans - rinsed and drained
4 teaspoons oregano
2 1/2 teaspoons cumin
1/4 teaspoon allspice
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/2 teaspoon black pepper

Directions:

Brown ground meat in skillet with chopped onions.

While meat is browning add tomatoes, tomato sauce and tomato juice to large stock pot and heat on medium high.

Next add in the minced garlic, chili powder, oregano, cumin, allspice, cayenne pepper and black pepper to the stock pot. Stir chili base in order to distribute spices.

Once ground meat is browned and onions are cooked add the mixture to the stock pot.

After adding ground meat and onion add in black beans to stock pot. Stir chili and simmer for 40 minutes.

This recipe is tasty and simple. All of the ingredients have a low glycemic load.

My first five weeks.

I weighed myself on Tuesday December 1st. I was concerned that I would have lost very little, nothing or even gained because of the Thanksgiving Hoilday. I say this because during the Holiday week I split a large Nachos and Cheese Sticks at Denny's, I ate a whole large tub of popcorn with butter at the movies with my wife, I ate out at Fire Mountain for Thanksgiving Dinner which included turkey, gravy, chicken, stuffing, green beans w/bacon, roll w/honey butter and ham. I have to admit that I made a few trips to the buffet as well. The friday after Thanksgiving my Mother in Law made her traditional Thanksgiving dinner so I had turkey, stuffing, green bean casserole and jello cake for dessert. Now you know why I was concerned.
Imagine how amazed I was that I had lost another 7 pounds. So my total weight loss in 35 days was 30 pounds. Obviously had I made different choices I would have lost more weight. My wife Tasha has been piggybacking on the program with me and even with eating almost the same things as me, some worse and some better, she lost an additional 1.5 pounds to bring her total to 13.5 pounds.

What I am finding with this eating program is that you can cheat off of it and still be able to have a net weight loss over almost a two week period. I don't reccomend that somebody who is trying to use this program for weight loss purposes go out and eat all the same things I did though. In all honesty this has been the easiest 30 pounds that I have ever lost in my life. Interestingly, some foods that I used to eat no longer appeal to me now after eating this way for 30 days. After eating the nachos and cheese sticks I felt like I could throw up I was so ill. The popcorn tasted good and didn't bother me. I also tried a Reese's Peanut Butter cup on Thanksgiving because they used to be my favorite candy and I wanted a treat. Big mistake, it tasted so sugary and sweet it was all I could do to finish the two cups in the package. I told Tasha about it and she was a little surprised that it would taste that bad. She decided to try one over the weekend and could only finish one cup and gave the other one away. Needless to say the ones that are in our pantry will be going in Christmas stockings for other people to eat.

Becasue this weight loss has been so easy, I decided to enlist the help of a couple people to see how the program would work for them. I contatcted my mother and my best friend from high school Aaron Falvey. My mother is going to follow the guidelines and see how it affects her weight and her overall health. Aaron is in the process of looking over the approved foods list that I sent and is seeing if it will fit in with his natural food approach to eating that he has been following. I think it will because the program builds on eating natural foods and then goes a step farther by employing only low glycemic load foods in your diet.

My next weigh in will be at the 45 day mark next friday 12/11/09. I want to see how much weight I will be able to lose during the initial phase of this program. After the first phase is complete, I am going to add in 30 minutes of everyday walking over the next 45 days to see how this affects the amount of weight I am losing as well. I have always believed that exercise is a very important component of any weight loss program, but when dealing with people who are morbidly obese, like myself, it is good to get some weight off initially and boost their energy level before starting them off on an exercise program. It is also helpful for those who are extremely overweight to have the emotional pick up that losing a good bit of weight with out exercising brings. After the second phase, I intend to incorporate light weight training into the third 45 day phase to stimulate muscle growth, toning and better absorption of blood sugars by the body.

What I want to do with this program is be able to present it to those people who are extremely overweight like myself and have them be able to follow a step by step guide to help them lose the weight. Once a person reaches 400 pounds, the odds of them losing weight is very small. This really bothers me because 368 pounds wasn't all that far from the 400 pound threshold. It is my personal belief that if you have the mind set that you really want to lose weight than this program can work for anybody no matter how large they are. Losing 30 pounds in just over a month with no exercise is a God send to me. It has helped me to feel better, have more energy and be in a better mood. All of these things will help to contribute to my continued success on the program. The other part of this program that I am excited about, is the fact that there is a lot of back ground information as to why you need to eat the things you are eating. Most people who lose weight and talk about it always emphasize how they had to work out all the time and that they ate smaller portions and just ate healthier. What the heck does that all mean. How can I look at that statement and apply it to my life. What I wanted was a set of guidelines to follow and by doing a ton of research I think I have finally found it.

I will continue to keep everyone posted on my successes and my failures. When you try to lose weight it is important to realize you didnt get where you are overnight. Nobody snapped their fingers and suddenly you weighed 368 pounds. Undoing that process takes time. My ultimate goal is to see where I am after 6 months in the program. So after 4 phases of 45 days, where will I be.