This week I have lost .5 pounds, which sounds pretty miniscule, but this is the first week where I've noticed a real change in my clothes, which makes me happier than any poundage loss could. I'm just wired like that. Last night my size 6 Gap Modern Boot pants were quite a bit more saggy than they should be/have been in the past, and when I went to go sign some paperwork at my new job yesterday, I was hiking them up as I walked across campus. It was a bittersweet happiness because I freaking love those pants and really don't want to imagine my daily life without them--they are that great. However, it will be nice to go buy a 4!
This week I think I have really come into my own with the WW. Meaning, I am learning how to live my life on WW, not force WW on my life. I have come to terms with the fact that I like having a big dinner with my family. Therefore, I am now planning for that. I eat a medium sized breakfast (so I don't get hungry--I've noticed small breakfast means BIG 4:00 pm snack), a small lunch, a tiny snack here or there, and for supper, I eat whatever I fix for the family (within reason, of course). I just love that time--preparing the food, sitting around the table, making something that the kids enjoy and that makes them excited. So I plan for that. One additional thing I've been doing is doing more "make your own" stuff. For example, we are doing make your own tacos this week with some chicken that I'll put in the slow cooker with spices during the day. Kind of like Chipotle stuff or something. Anyway, I got all the additions to tacos that we all love, but I'll just make mine a little more WW-friendly--more veggies, less cheese, etc. The kids love feeling involved in dinner, and it is good for me to eat what they are eating, but with a few adjustments. I also have a big bowl full of pizza dough I made last night chilling/rising in the fridge. It should be enough for two pizzas, which is a half for each kid to do with as they please and a pizza for Matt and me. I am going to do ours with chicken, spinach and caramelized onions and goat cheese and just a drizzle of honey. Then we'll have a big salad together. There will be great leftovers for lunch the next day and plus IT'S PIZZA. Who doesn't love that?
(I'll go ahead and confess here--I don't always add up the points after supper. I have an idea of how I did, but I've found that actually adding it all up makes me feel pinged in or something. So I add up during the day and eat a mindful dinner, and then I just go on happily. It makes me feel good about the whole thing. I do measure and weigh my servings [most of the time] because I feel that if I'm letting myself off the hook as far as adding up diligently goes, I do need to remain mindful of how much food I'm piling on.)
This brings me to the other thing that I'm making peace with. Since I like to cook so much, I don't buy many prepackaged foods. It is just something that I started doing pre-WW. I don't trust preservatives, and I hate wondering what I'm giving to my kids (I will cop to my Lean Cuisine/Diet Coke habit, however, although I'm trying to move past that). Plus it costs a lot more to buy a jar of pasta sauce or a packet of taco seasoning than it does just to jazz up a jar of crushed tomatoes or mix up some chili powder with spices. The problem with this is that a lot of WW recipes or diet recipes in general rely on convenience foods and sugar-free/fat-free ones at that. At first, I really thought about giving in and just buying that stuff. But, really, just thinking about that stuff makes me throw up a bit in my mouth. C'mon now...fat-free half and half is an abomination. Fat free processed cheese? Just say no. Why eat loads of that stuff when you can have a bit of the real thing? So that's what I've been doing. And I find myself much more satisfied. I do occasionally buy the "light"versions of things (one brand of sour cream in particular that I like), and Neufchatel cheese is just fine because I don't feel like it is "messed with," but I don't go out of my way to buy fat-free. And I've found much better go-to's than relying on prepackaged stuff. For instance, this morning my throat was hurting, which means HOT CHOCOLATE PRONTO. It is the only cure, amirite? But instead of reaching for that sugar-free mix that tastes like the the grindings of the chocolate that God forgot, I just mixed up some cocoa powder with a tiny bit of sugar, vanilla extract and 1% milk. Tasted fudgy and delicious and while having a bit more fat than the mix, left me satisfied and cured. Plus, that's a milk serving.
I am also getting better at baking things that are delicious and WW friendly. This week's recipe is a prime example. My kids called it Elvis Bread because they both love Elvis (Alice may love him too--I'm not sure. I haven't asked.). My mom lives in Memphis, so whenever we visit her, we go to Graceland. On one trip, I bought a little Elvis cookbook. It contains the following recipe:
Peanut Butter & Banana Sandwiches
2 large bananas
6 slices white bread
1 stick (1/2 cup) butter
1 cup peanut butter
Peel and mash bananas. Mix peanut butter with bananas thoroughly. Toast bread lightly and spread mix on bread. Melt butter in skillet and brown sandwiches on each side slowly until golden brown.
I may or may not have made this. A couple of times. It may or may not be ridiculously delicious. I admit nothing. But if you believe everything that you hear, this is what Elvis was eating when he died (here is where Sam would pop up and say "ON THE TOILET!" because as much as he loves The King, he cannot get past the place of his death). And for good reason. A cup of peanut butter? A stick of butter? It made my heart sieze when I ate it (if I did eat it at all) and I'm a healthy 20-something year old girl with no narcotic addictions.
This peanut butter banana bread from Cooking Light is also ridiculously delicious. In fact, it is the best banana bread I have ever eaten and the favorite of every member of the family. Bar none. And for 200 calories a slice, it is the perfect breakfast with milk or coffee and a bit of fruit. I made it exactly as it is listed in the recipe because I had all that stuff on hand, but, if you plan on making it, be sure to read the comments because a lot of people have changed it up a bit here and there, and it all sounds delicious. Just a note--don't be tempted to leave off the glaze. It really makes it. And makes it feel indulgent and naughty and Elvis-like. It is funny because we were all enjoying some yesterday morning for breakfast and Sam got really quiet and goes, "Elvis would have loved this," and just sighed like his heart would break. Oh, Sam. Now if we could only find a replacement for another recipe in the book: Meatballs and Bacon. And yes, it is exactly what it sounds like. I have never made that one. Nothing to come clean about there.
Anyway, I hope everyone is having a great, healthy week!
The biggest reason why I hesitated joining WW was because of all the fake food. I didn't want to go back down that route. But I told myself, I would start with fake and learn how to replace with real.
ReplyDeleteThe fiber aspect helps a lot so I can replace all this crappy light bread with high fiber versions sans HFCS and such. FF half and half is disgusting, as is FF sliced cheese. I do eat FF sour cream, but only breakstone. I'd rather use my points on real stuff in moderation than a helluvalot of crappy stuff.
I wish I could cook more, I really enjoy it. K has really gotten on the cooking bandwagon and is learning, but isn't good about being WW-friendly and I don't have the time to do it regularly. Thank you for the recipes you post- the soup was good (even better on day 2) and I may have to make this bread for K & E!
I should have posted that the soup is even better on day 2. It definitely is. I made it the night before I posted the recipe, and I hadn't eaten lunch yet. When I ate lunch, I almost went back and edited to add that.
ReplyDeleteThe bread is the same. And quick breads are a great way to catch the cooking bug!