After a long absence

I know there aren't many followers left on this blog, and it's been almost two years since I've posted, but I thought I would try this again.

At first, I just got behind in posting. I guess back-to-school and then the holidays distracted me.

But, then, in January of last year, my dad died suddenly and unexpectedly of a heart attack. It was a shock to the entire family, but we are recovering.

Unfortunately, I haven't lost any weight since I last posted. In fact, I gained weight. I don't mean to discourage anyone else out there trying to lose weight, but I want to be honest.

I weighed 285 pounds last week, and was down to 282 this morning.

The most frustrating thing is that I know how to lose weight. I know it's just as simple as eating appropriate portions of healthful foods and exercising. But, I don't do those things.

So, let's try this again. With the weight gain, I really need to lose about 150 pounds.

Here's to healthy living!

Do you have any holiday weekend advice?

In the U.S., this coming Monday is Labor Day. For many, that makes this a three-day weekend, and that often means routines are off, schedules are different, eating temptations are increased.

What are your plans for the weekend? How will you deal with barbecues and ice cream and other temptations? How will you be healthy this weekend?

At our house, we'll forego the ice cream and snack on the giant watermelon we bought.

Tell us what you plan to do!

Recipe Makeover

One of my favorite recipes has always been a classic 1970s dish called Frito Salad. (It may well have been around before the 1970s, but I know we had it a lot back then.)

But, with Fritos corn chips, regular salad dressing and cheddar cheese, it's not very low-fat or low-salt, and those things can make a difference when you're trying to eat healthy. So, I've done a makeover on the recipe. Let me know what you think.

Here's the original recipe, the way my family makes it:

Fritos Salad

1 head iceberg lettuce, shredded or chopped finely

1 tomato, chopped

1 green onion, chopped
1 can Ranch Style Beans, drained and rinsed (15-ounce can)
8 ounces shredded cheddar cheese
1 bottle Catalina salad dressing (I'm not sure when this recipe was written, but the 16-ounce bottle on the market today may be to much)

1 package Fritos Original Corn Chips (14.5-ounce size bag)

In a large bowl, mix together the lettuce, tomato and green onion. Add the beans and stir well. Add the cheese and stir well. Pour the salad dressing over the top and stir to mix. When ready to serve, add the corn chips and mix well.

And, here's my re-do of the recipe:

Taco Salad

4 cups of shredded green leaf lettuce
1 large tomato, chopped (or 2 Roma tomatoes, chopped)
2 green onions, chopped
1 or 2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro, to taste
1 can black beans, drained and rinsed (15 ounces, or about 2 cups of home-cooked and drained black beans)
4 ounces low-fat or fat-free cheddar cheese
Fat-free Catalina salad dressing, to taste
Tabasco sauce, to taste
6 corn tortilla, toasted in the oven or toaster until crisp, or 6 ounces of baked tortilla chips,

In a large bowl, mix together the lettuce, tomatoes, green onions and cilantro. Add in the beans and stir well. Add the cheese and stir well. Add just enough salad dressing to add some flavor, but do not drown the salad in the dressing. Add a few drops of Tabasco sauce, or let each person add the hot sauce as desired. Put about a cup of the mixture on a plate and crumble a toasted tortilla or a few chips over the top.

Do you have a recipe that you've done a makeover on? Share the recipe or a link here!

Doing this naturally

I overheard a conversation at work this morning...one co-worker was congratulating another on his weight loss. They went on to discuss the specifics of the "diet" he is on. He explained that when he went to the doctor to get his latest shot, the doctor explained that his blurry vision, pains in his sides, etc. were all caused by his body "detoxing" and that it was nothing to worry about.

I'm going to have to tell you right now, I'm struggling to make this happen, to lose 100+ pounds, but I'm going to do it naturally. I'm going to eat healthily, exercise, do the right thing. Anything with that many scary sounding side effects is just not worth it to me, especially when a natural alternative is readily available.

I realize the natural course takes a lot of willpower, and that's a major problem for many of us. But, blurry vision???? No thanks! I'll stick to my big salads, lots of veggies, whole grains, low-fat, and less sugar plan.

Drinking water

Drinking water has been a topic of interest around our house for quite some time. Mainly because our daughter hates to drink water, almost refuses to drink water. In fact, just about the only thing she will drink is probably one of the worst things possible...red "punch." She won't drink ice tea, she won't drink regular fruit juice, and she definitely won't drink water.

Thank goodness she likes to read. Somewhere recently, she read about putting lemon or lime juice in water to make it easier to drink. So, yesterday, she drank a large glass of water, after squeezing a few lime wedges into it. I was very happy!

I'm sure I've suggested such a thing before, but as Mom, my ideas are rarely considered!

Maybe this will be the start of a new trend!

Oh my!

I fell way behind on my blogging!

I had to work in a different town for a week, so that threw me off my routine.

Thanks so much for all of the wonderful comments everyone's been posting. I appreciate them all!

Another big pitfall for me is eating out. My family ate out at a local Mexican food restaurant this week. I was tired and stressed....I was half-way through the second spinach and mushroom enchilada and feeling overstuffed when I remembered that I was supposed to save half of my meal for the next day's lunch. I have found that making that conscious decision before I ever even get to the restaurant helps me to cut back on how much I eat and spreads my eating out dollars even further.

Of course, that plan works best when #1 you are familiar with the restaurant and its meal portions and #2 you remember to put the plan into action.

Unfortunately that night, I hadn't left enough for lunch the next day. But, rather than just keep eating, in order to "clean my plate," I stopped right there. I let the waiter take away the rest of that burrito.

I need to alert my husband and daughter to the fact that I want to take half of my meal home with me. That way, they can remind me, if I forget.

I haven't weighed in a while...scared to. I think I'll try to work extra hard at staying on track this coming weekend and week and then weigh.

I'd say I haven't been too bad, but I haven't been too good, either. For example, when the afternoon munchies hit this week, I didn't have any healthy snacks with me. But, I chose a snack mix with low-fat pretzels in it, rather than a candy bar and cola. I did remember to bring iced tea with me to sip on. That surely was healthier than colas every day.

If you're working on the same issues I am, good luck this weekend! I'll be thinking of all of you out there, as I try to stick to my own plan!

My Eating Weakness

I stress-eat, and I know it. I am an editor, so I am frequently "on deadline," which is usually stressful. Which means I usually eat. Stress-eating for me means junk food, typically snacky foods that I can eat while I work. Chips are a favorite, as are candy bars. And, soft drinks.

But, I've found that if I bring healthy snacks from home, especially on deadline days, I'll choose those snacks rather than something from the vending machine. And, to ward off the soft drinks, I bring iced tea to work. We have a refrigerator with ice, etc. So, I can treat myself to something more than water without adding on the calories.

My healthier snacks include:

Walnuts
Baby carrots
Apples
Oranges
Yogurt
Dried fruit
Strips of red bell pepper

Do you have any ideas for healthy snacks to replace the junk food I used to eat?

(Photo of baby carrots courtesy of www.freeclipartnow.com)