Toxic Hunger

I'm on the road - but I wanted to post this excellent article about hunger:

http://drfuhrman.com/ask/archives/2005_01_03.aspx

I suffered from toxic hunger (sounds like a pathetic radio ad) for 40 years. Now, I only get hungry when I really am hungry!

Yesterday I visited with a neighbor I haven't seen since Christmas. She went on and on about how good I was looking and she finally decided it was my haircut. I haven't changed my hairstyle since I last saw her, so it must be the weight. And the healthy glow from all that produce!

CSA

I signed up for a CSA this summer. CSA stands for Community Supported Agriculture. You pay money up front and then all summer long you get local, organic, freshly picked produce. Such a great deal. Each Saturday morning I go to the farmer's market down the street and get my bags of produce.

Last week was the first week (it takes a while for stuff to get growing here) and I got all kinds of weird stuff like garlic scapes, brocolli raab, and tatsoi. I also got herbs (basil, cilantro), peas, spinach, beet greens (with little baby beets) arugula, radishes and a huge head of lettuce. That picture really doesn't do it justice. It seemed as large as an 18 month old child. We are still munching on it.

Check out CSAs in your area. I think they are a great deal!

Weighing In

 

http://tidwellstudios.com/images/weighingin_lg.htm

For the last 4 weeks I have plateaued on my weight. I was stuck at 198 for nearly a month. I started to worry that I would never loose more weight, that I would never be really healthy, that I would always be chubby. But I kept eating nutritiously because I wanted keep feeling good. Part of the reason I plateaued might have been because in 3 weeks we: celebrated 2 birthdays, high school graduation, a dance festival, senior recitals, an anniversary, 3 house guests, and went to China! I ate right and exercised through all that, but the scale wouldn't budge.

Yesterday when I hit the scales (I weigh in about once a week) I found that I was at 193! WooHoo! Only 4 lbs away from the 180's! That brings my total weightloss up to 44lbs.

Roland reminded me that when he lost 40 lbs he hit a plateau for about 3 weeks and then finally the weight loss resumed. So, if any of you hit that plateau hang in there! Don't give up!

..................

For dinner last night I made this green bean stir fry that was delicious! Margaret, the author of the recipe, is in our Green Goddess group. I cut the sugar out and only used half the sesame oil and it was good. I served it with a big salad, brown rice, and grapes.

Green Goddess Club

My friends Angie and Kelly have been eating healthy for years. They approached me about starting a healthy eater's group. I had to think about it for a month or so, I didn't feel qualified to hand out advice after only 4 months on a healthy diet. But they convinced me that it was a good idea.

Like 15 year olds starting a band, it was all about the name. I wanted to name it "Hippie Chics" or "Hemp Honeys" but Kelly nixed that. Finally we settled on a name and sent out this email:

………………….

Who?    You!

What?   Our very first Green Goddess meeting!

When? June 15^th – 8:00 PM

Where? Angie's Home

Why? 

After years of people asking why we eat this way, how we eat, what we eat, and telling us how hard it would be for them, we have joined our super green goddess powers to bring our “exceptional expertise” (ha!) to you. We will discuss food. How to eat so your body will thrive! How to eat to avoid disease and illness! How to feed your family so they can be their very best! This is all very exciting.

Our panel of “experts” (wink) include:

Kelly – life long healthy eater – creates healthy food that tastes great

Angie – healthy eater for 8 years – passionate about nutrition and excellent food

Robin  – the newbie who is turning her life around through superior nutrition

R.S.V.P. – reply to this email today so we can prepare enough delectable samples

Disclaimer: We are not professionals. We have degrees, but not in nutrition. We are not selling anything. We would like to be on Oprah and make lots of money, but mostly we want you to feel as good as we do.

Feel free to send this to anyone you think would be interested in joining us!

..............................

So, 28 women showed up. We talked about how we got started, why we love to eat this way, and then we ate delicious food that is healthy and nourishing for our bodies (green smoothies, black bean mango salsa, and fajita burritos). Ladies stayed until late - we practically had to kick them out. It was fun!

It was such a success that we are having our next meeting in July. 

You are invited.

Still Here!

I'm still here, working on a big salad! I think some of you may be worried about me because I haven't been bragging posting lately. What with all the milestone celebrations my family has had and our world travels (sounds so glamorous hu?) you might think that I have slipped back to cinnamon rolls and cheesy pulled pork. Well honey, you would be thinking wrong. I'm still going strong and feeling better and better. I only need 6 hours of sleep a night!

Here is my Father's Day menu from yesterday (Roland has lost like 53 lbs! Hubba Hubba):

• Grilled Veggies (zuchinni, eggplant, sweet potatoes, peppers, onion, mushrooms, garlic scapes) marintated in 1T olive oil, 2 T spicy mustard, 3 T basalmic vinegar, 1 T red wine vinegar, 2 teaspoons Montreal steak seasoning - if fat isn't a concern to you add more oil. I grilled a ton so I made much more marinade and will eat leftovers tonight. The peppers are the best, I used the baby ones.0
• Mango salsa salad (recipe below)
• Potato salad (make your normal recipe - leave out the eggs and use veganaise instead of mayo. Not low fat but a wonderful treat!)
• Sun Dried Tomato Hummus with warmed pita
• Coconut/Rhubarb Ice Cream! (recipe below)

Roland said the Mango Salad on top of the grilled eggplant was "recipe book worthy". Happy Father's Day indeed!

This menu is heavy on meal prep. I made the ice cream and hummus on Friday, the mango salad and potato salad on Saturday, so on Sunday I could focus just on grilled veggies and the fathers in my life. I doubled each recipe (or tripled!) so I don't have to cook today or tomorrow.
...................................

Black Bean and Mango Salad - Kelly O.  I had this for lunch today on a large romaine salad, So good!

Ingredients:

·                        1 15.8 ounce can black beans, drained and rinsed

·                        2 cups mango, diced

·                        1 cup sweet red bell pepper, diced

·                        6 green onions, thinly sliced

·                        1/4 cup cilantro leaves, chopped

·                        1/4 cup fresh lime juice

·                        1 tablespoon olive oil

·                        1 seeded Jalapeno pepper, minced or hot sauce to taste

·                        Salt to taste

Preparation:

Combine all ingredients, including beans in bowl. Toss and serve.

........................................

Coconut Ice Cream: My mom sent me this recipe from this blog. I modified it and served it over fresh berries. It was delicious. I made it with the rhubarb (see the full recipe link) but I think I liked the parts without the rhubarb better. I plan to serve this on the 4th of July with blueberries and strawberries.

Ice cream:
1 cup (4 oz/110 g) raw walnuts
1 can (14 ounces or 400 ml) full-fat coconut milk, preferably organic
1/4 cup (60 ml) agave nectar
2 Tbsp (30 ml) coconut sugar* (I used brown sugar)
2 medium peaches cored or pitted and cut in to chunks (about 9.5 oz or 265 g)
1 Tbsp (15 ml) freshly squeezed lemon juice
20 or more drops stevia, to taste (I used agave)
Pinch salt
1 Tbsp (15 ml) vanilla
* If you are not following an anti-candida diet and don’t have these sweeteners, you can use agave or maple syrup for the glycerin, and Sucanat or brown sugar for the coconut sugar.


For the ice cream base, place all ingredients in a blender and blend until perfectly smooth. Pour the mixture into an ice cream maker and churn according to directions.  Turn into a container and freeze until ready to serve.  Makes 6 servings.
If you don’t have an ice cream maker, you can prepare it this way: Prepare the rhubarb swirl as above, and place in a container.
Line an 8 x 8 inch (20 cm) square pan with waxed paper or parchment paper (plastic wrap won’t do in this case).  Set aside.
Blend all ingredients for the ice cream base as above, and pour the base into the prepared pan.  Freeze until just solid, then turn onto a cutting board, peel away the paper, and using a sharp knife, cut into about 25 squares.  Store the squares in a plastic bag in the freezer until ready to use.
To serve the ice cream, place 4 squares for each serving in a food processor and process until it comes together in a ball, then for about 10 seconds more to create a “soft serve” consistency.   Eat immediately.

Inked

I'm totally famous now.

Image from the Denver Post
Go Here!

Beijing

I will not blog for the next week or so as I will be in Beijing!

I think it will be easy to eat lots of healthy food there. I promise that I won't be tempted by scorpions on a stick. Even if they are dipped in chocolate!

Wieners or Turkeys

My healthy eating mentor, Sharon, told me that when it comes to changing your eating habits there are two kinds of people, wieners and turkeys.

Wieners slowly making changes, wiening themselves off of unhealthy food and slowly introducing healthy food.

Turkeys go cold turkey.

I am a turkey.

What are you? A turkey or a wiener?

All Or Nothing

I got my hair colored yesterday and my dear stylist asked how I had lost so much weight. When I told her she wrinkled her nose and said, "That's not right. You can't really eat like that!" 

Sigh. Yes you can. In fact, once you start you will WANT to eat like this. Junk food, sugar, fat, and cheese burgers lose their power over you. Pretty soon you are salivating over a salad (I never ever thought that would happen).

"But to never have cake again!? What about fudge? I could never live a life where I can't have junk food! I could never do that!" I hear this a lot. What do these people think? That I got fat on veggies and suddenly I started eating fewer veggies and lost weight? Honey, I got fat on junk food and gave it up for a healthier body and it has been an excellent trade.

Let's talk for a moment about the "all or nothing". I'm kinda an "all or nothing" girl, with exceptions. If I have the opportunity to each chocolate cake I am probably going to pass, but if it is delectable-gourmet-top notch-hard to come by-chocolate cake, I'm in for at least one bite. One of Roland's clients sent a package of Omaha steaks as a thank you for a job well done. On his birthday we grilled them up and I had a bite - just one bite did it for me - I preferred the grilled eggplant. For the record, Roland didn't even taste the steak. But eating unnutritious food is a rare thing - not even once a week - because really, we aren't often exposed to food of that gourmet quality. And, honestly, it doesn't taste that fabulous to me.

If you are considering eating this way here is my advice: tell yourself that you can eat whatever you want. For heaven's sake we are talking about loving life here! If you need that caramel, have it! But wait until you have been religiously on the diet for 6 weeks. You will find, as I have, that one bite - one taste - does the job and you won't need more.

At times I get tempted. We had a piano recital at our house last week and there was left over cake. That cake was calling my name. Loud. I could hear it from my bedroom. So I told my boys to eat as much as they wanted (they didn't want any) and then tossed the rest into the dirty garbage can in the garage. But mostly I can walk away from junk.

This recipe is a little junky because it has veganaise - fake mayo. But oh, what a wonderful way to eat broccoli!

Robin's Red Broccoli Salad 
(I made this up myself!)

Dressing:
1 T agave (could use honey instead)
2 T red wine vinegar
1/3 c. veganaise (has the same amount of fat as mayo - so if you aren't doing vegan just use mayo)
Mix together in small bowl.

1 head broccoli - chopped (chop stem into small pieces)
1/3 cup green onion
3/4 cup small chop celery
1/3 cup diced red onion
1 1/2 cup grapes sliced in half (I use red grapes)
3/4 cup walnuts - toasted

Mix salad fixin's together and pour dressing over the top. Mix dressing in thoroughly so all the salad has a touch of it. This salad tastes better if you wait a few hours to eat it (or on the 2nd day) if you do that add walnuts right before serving. Double the batch so you can snack on it for a day or so. Yummy!

Hint : I soak my broccoli in the hottest tap water for about 10 minutes in my salad spinner and then spin it out, make the salad and put in fridge to cool. Broccoli that is soaked this way has a better taste and prettier color.

Bolder Boulder 10K

We did it! I ran about 4.2 miles - that is one mile longer than I have ever run. Roland ran the entire thing and ran fast after he left me at the 5K mark. Noah is the fastest but had to stop at a porta potty. Ike is fast too and said he wants to do lots more races like Bolder Boulder. I don't think there are any other races like this.

The boys complained a little the day before the race and I was worried that they were going to try to back out. But they woke up early Monday morning (we had to leave the house by 5:00 AM) and were wired. We drove to Broomfield and took a shuttle into Boulder.

There were 56,000 racers. Quite a few of them dressed up in costume. I think Roland ran the entire race because he wasn't going to be passed by an old man in a tutu.

This picture was taken right before our wave started. There were 80 waves and we were in the NE wave. I think there were at least 200 people in our wave. I had butterflies in my tummy and Noah was dancing around full of energy.

Roland "helped" Ike do the YMCA dance.

That is my ponytail. I think this was at the 3 mile point and I was feeling good. The first mile is always so hard and I want to quit, but then when I hit mile 2 I get in my groove. Can you see the speed limit sign on the right side of the road? It was posting people's speeds at 5 or 6 miles an hour. I was going 4 miles an hour. Woohoo!

Bolder Boulder tracks your progress every mile so I was able to track my 5K time which was 3 minutes faster than the Garden of the Gods race 4 weeks ago. That made me happy.  I walked miles 4 and 5 and ran mile 6 so I could come into the stadium running.

The view entering the stadium. I got a little teary at this point. People were hooting and cheering and so very happy. By this time our family was spread out on the race. Noah came in first and then Roland and then Ike, and finally, little old slow poke me. Roland would have been at least 10 minutes faster if he hadn't run the first 5K with me.

Roland and Ike waited for me at the finish line. It was a pretty big deal. We were all quite happy.

After a healthy sack lunch provided by the race we watched international professional racers finish the race in 28 minutes. That is just over a 5 minute mile for 6 miles! My fastest mile was 13.36 minutes. Those runners were very impressive. Two of them collapsed as soon as they crossed the finish line. The altitude is killer.

Then they celebrated Memorial Day. There was a 21 gun salute, 6 parachuters, and 56,000 people singing along with "Proud To Be An American". It was very touching.

Next year you should join us.

We are going to wear dedications to Grandpa Wade and his brothers, Gene and Roland on our backs.

I'm gonna run the whole thing next year.