Vegetables galore...

There are a fair amount of people out there that think eating healthy can be boring and dull. I have to admit that I really do disagree. I mean, how can this be considered boring?

The best part of summer is all the fresh fruits and vegetables!

Veggie Combo #1

Saute 1 medium white onion in about 2 teaspoons of olive oil over medium heat. When that starts to get slightly transparent add about 8 oz. sliced portabella mushrooms and let those cook for about 3-4 minutes until thet start to get limp (just barely). Add 1 small sliced zucchini and half a pint of grape tomatoes and let that saute for another 2 minutes before adding 1/2 pound asparagus, with the stalks cut in half, and the seasoning of your choice (this time around I used an Italian blend). Let all of that countinue to cook until the asparagus gets tender and add a bit more seasoning with the low-fat/fat-free cheese of your choice (or the regular stuff if you would like!)

Makes 2-3 servings depending on how much everyone loves their veggies!

Cede even wanted some!

A new beginning...

Spring and summer are times for new beginnings for so many things! We get to have more fresh vegetables again, the new flip flops hit the pavement, and in my case, a new outlook on a few ideas.

Last spring, I had lost about 20 pounds and was getting used to the idea of losing weight. I thought that losing all the weight I wanted to lose would make life so much easier and I would automatically have all my body worries go away. Life would be peachy keen and worry free!

Ummm… Not so much!

Instead there are variety of different issues that can pop up and the realization that there are flaws that one used to consider a liability that can now be considered a benefit. Who knew one could draw strength from a weakness simply by recognizing it and talking about it? I sure didn’t!

Sometimes, I think I talk too much once I get started on a topic and that can come in handy when friends notice something and point it out. It also helps when you decide to go see a therapist or just spend time talking to those that are close to you. Then I step back and think about what I said a good portion of the time…

Getting past plateaus is frustrating, but my biggest struggle in this whole weight loss thing (besides finding the right strategy/wagon – but more on that later) is realizing that even if you are trying to lose weight the healthy way, you can end up having unhealthy thoughts.

The thing is that about two months ago or so, I realized that I was still thinking of myself as being fat. Now, I know that is rather normal for a fair amount women since we all want to be our own version of perfect, but I had a hard time saying thank you when someone would compliment me or comment on how skinny I was getting. I just wasn’t seeing the results that everyone else was seeing. My confidence was a bit low at that point and with scary thoughts like thinking about buying a new bathing suit coursing through my mind – I hit the low. People were making comments about me wasting away and that bothered me! (I’m not wasting away, honestly I eat plenty – I promise!)

It got to the point where someone commented on how tiny I am getting and I responded by saying that I still feel fat even after losing almost 70 pounds! The reaction that I got from her and others in the room made me realize that it was time to talk to somebody.

I was still seeing myself as I had always been – insecure about the way I looked, hiding behind anything and everything, afraid to let even my family and friends see anything that I was ashamed of, and completely scared of the changes that were happening.

That after years of being a plus-size girl and then 17 months of working on a big lifestyle change, I have had hard time accepting the fact that I now shop in what I have always considered to be the "skinny" part of the store. I always wanted to shop there one day...I always wanted to be more athletic, the one that could eat anything and not gain a pound, to be able to wear all that cute stuff etc. I thought once I lost all the weight I wanted to, things would be perfect and all the problems would be solved.Hardly...I'm still working on getting to my goal, but I've encountered new bumps in the road. It’s a journey, but one that I am getting comfortable on and it has been teaching me a lot in regards to who I am. There will be more about this since dealing with the bumps gets easier when one opens up and talks to people :)

Yuummm...

OK, the whole challenge of trying to eat healthy can be a little traumatic when someone tells you that you can't eat chocolate or eat the things you really enjoy! But, I'm here to say that you don't have to give those things up - it's just time to enjoy them in moderation or switch things up to make them healthier.

I just spent a weekend with friends at Lake Geneva and it was one of those weekends filled with talking, laughter, food and wine. The type of weekend that you want to repeat over and over again! We made french toast casserole, cinnamon bacon, a dinner filled with vegetables and grilled meat products, and grilled fruit sundaes. Then to top it all off, throw homemade salsa and cheese curds in for watching the Kentucky Derby! It was a blast and nobody went hungry and I mean nobody! We had so much food left over...


A couple of us are trying to watch what we eat as we are working on getting into shape or trying to shed a few pounds, but we were also on vacation! We knew we wanted to enjoy our food since most of us are the foodie-type. So we made it a bit healthier in very simple ways :) Cut the butter in the casserole and used egg beaters (it was a Paula Deen recipe, so that was easy to do), baked the bacon and the brownies for the sundaes were made with bananas.

Yes, that's right, bananas! Think of a chocolate covered banana in reverse...

Hungry yet? It turns out that bananas can be used to substitute for oil and butter in recipes just like applesauce, but they have a stronger flavor so aren't used as often in that capacity. I had a bunch of bananas on the counter and decided to be adventurous on day :) It turned out to be a good thing!

Dark Chocolate Banana Brownies

1 Pkg. Dark chocolate Brownie mix (9x13 size)
4-5 very ripe bananas
1 T Spice Mix
1/2 c caramel sauce (the fat free ice cream topping is what I used)
1/2 package dark chocolate chips

Preheat the oven according to the directions on the box. Grease a 9x13 pan. Mash up the bananas and mix everything up until the mix is completely moistened. Now put the mixture in the pan, spread it out and bake according to the directions on the box. You may need about 5 minutes less and these will be fudgy. If you want a more cake like texture, substitute one egg for one banana.

Yum!