Happy New Year! 12 weeks have passed since I've started WW and I'm 10.2 pounds down. Now this may not seem like a lot of weight but mind you I had to navigate Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Years. That's a lot of snacks, meals, cookies and drinks to think about. Now that the New Year has began I feel a rush of new motivation and a head start in weight loss for 2014!
I was not impressed with Weight Watchers at first glance but have really come around to it, things I think make WW different than an ordinary diet plan.
1. The meetings-its good to feel you are not alone. There are other people in the world that have ate their way through half a bag of chips or took a third helping of lasagna and better yet they live in your neighborhood.
2. The stickers- getting stickers for weight loss is super encouraging, think about the stickers you got on tests as a kid!
3. The accountability through tracking- I really thought that the transition from calories to points would be one of the things I wouldn't like about WW, I've had success with calorie counting. The points make choices simpler and less daunting. I like only worrying about 26 points vs 1400 calories.
4. The weigh ins- another thing I didn't think I'd be able to handle, I mean it took me awhile to let myself know my weight on the scale let alone another person! Now I actually like it, it gives me extra motivation during the week knowing someone else is seeing my weight and knows whether I'm gaining or losing.
There are a lot of things I like about WW meetings, trust me its an investment and I wouldn't be paying if I felt like I could do it on my own just as well. If you are toying with yet another diet I say give Weight Watchers a try, commit to 2 months and see if it works for you!
Wednesday, January 8, 2014
Saturday, October 26, 2013
First Week Impression of Weight Watchers
I joined Weight Watchers on 10/20 so I've been following the plan for almost a week and had my first meeting today. There are some things I really like about WW and others I could do without. For the things I like: Free points foods! Who knew you could eat all the vegetables and fruits you want?!?! Well, within reason you try pulling this rule on corn or potatoes and you will be looking at a point blowout! I made a soup with chicken, beans, quinoa and corn and created the recipe on their website- a can of corn was 15 points, lets just say corn and I are no longer on speaking terms.
You have points for the day, which as a calorie counter this was the part I was least convinced about, but I do like them and hope I get the hang of calculating them soon.
The other tracking feature I like is the workout tracker, I have used caloriecounter and myfitnesspal and I always had the sneaking suspicion that they were giving me way too much credit for my workouts. On WW I got a decidedly low amount of points for my workout which I appreciate so I don't feel like I can go home and eat an extra 800 calories.
Things I don't like, the website is not user friendly, I mean I pay $42 a month to use the website and go to meetings and I can't believe how many glitches I'm finding! Half of the 'my tools' didn't open the first few days I was on it and I registered for the meeting 3 times because even after I registered there's no where that specifically states 'you signed up for xx/xx/2013' which really concerned me.
I went to the meeting without my temporary card (yes this was my fault, but in my defense you can only get to the temporary card by registering for a meeting which I had already done 3 times) and they had no communication between the website and the meeting computer to look me up.
The meeting was a lot of fun, there was even someone who brought a pair of pants she could jump in an out of with her clothes on in front of us (love that cliche, but who doesnt'). We all received a list of Halloween candy and their respective points on our way out! Terrifying! I think I'm going to be baking Taralynn Mcnitts pumpkin bars to curb any cravings!
Sunday, January 20, 2013
delicious dinner and a fun new snack!
Winter has me loving a good crockpot recipe and this has been my favorite to date. I am a huge fan of skinnytaste and have enjoyed every recipe on her blog that I've tried. I have irrational anxiety about not pairing a meal with either a cheese or a carb but I know with her recipes I will be satisified without those so without further ado I present Skinnytaste's "Santa Fe Chicken". It tastes like you scooped out a burrito and only ate the contents, only and its less than 200 calories for a 9 oz serving! Yum!
I modified her recipe a bit as you can see below. I added spinach (I cooked it the whole time and could barely see it when it was done, so I would add it about an hour before serving next time but if you have a picky eater this might work out well.) Have slightly less chicken and corn and a lot of hot sauce.
Mine clocks in at 163 per serving, paired it with Tostitos Cantina chips (15 for 150) ~313 meal
| Raw, Boneless, Skinless - Chicken Breast, 22.4 ounces | 672 | 0 | 8 | 146 |  |
| Vegetable - Red Bell Pepper, 1 pepper | 30 | 8 | 0 | 1 | |
| Red Pack - Petite Diced Tomatoes, 1 container (1 4/5 cups ea.) | 88 | 18 | 0 | 4 | |
| Spices - Cumin, 1 tsp | 8 | 1 | 0 | 0 | |
| Onions - Raw, 0.25 cup, chopped | 17 | 4 | 0 | 0 | |
| Goya - Black Beans Premium Drained Rinsed, 1 container (1 4/5 cups ea.) | 315 | 67 | 2 | 25 | |
| Spinach - Raw, 4 cup | 28 | 4 | 0 | 3 | |
| Knorr - Chicken Bouillon Extra Large Cubes, 1/2 cube | 10 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| Spices - Pepper, red or cayenne, 1 tbsp | 17 | 3 | 1 | 1 | |
| Spices - Onion powder, 1 tbsp | 24 | 6 | 0 | 1 | |
| Spices - Garlic powder, 1 tbsp | 28 | 6 | 0 | 1 | |
| Corn - Sweet, yellow, canned, whole kernel, drained solids, 0.5 cup | 66 | 15 | 1 | 2 | |
SUNBELT FUDE DIPPED COCONUT CHEWY GRANOLA BARS.
The fudge dipped bars were only 10 calories more than their undipped counterparts so obviously the right choice was made. I always feel fancy eating coconut so these bars tasted good and I could wear my tiara without irony while eating them so it was a win-win
Pizza Cravings
Make your very own delicious pizza at home for just 140 calories a slice!
Sunday, January 13, 2013
meal for 2 in less than 10 for about $3 a person
I love food, I don't get people that think eating is boring or are super picky because that's not me. I also love instant gratification I can spend 3 hours completing a task but the best part of it is putting a check mark next to it to show its done. Thats why I love eating something warm and rich without having to put a lot of time of effort in it. Warning this looks likes I've been paid by steamfresh but I haven't I just love steam-anything!
Here it goes:
(30 cal per 1/2 bag)
(180 cal per serving)
(80 calories per 1/4 cup)
Here it goes:
(30 cal per 1/2 bag)
(180 cal per serving)
(80 calories per 1/4 cup)
Start by tossing your couscous and asparagus in the micro for 5 minutes, while you are doing this grab a 1/2 cup measuring tool from your cupboard and measure out your goat cheese.
Take asparagus out and cut it up into 3/4 inch pieces.
Once done toss goat cheese, asparagus, and couscous in large bowl and mix together.
Put in microwave again for 1:30 on 8 and serve! Delicious
Calories: 290
Carb: 36g
Protein: 14.2g
Fiber: 5g
Sodium: 524mg
(The sodium is a little out of control (I'm a salt lover, can't stop wont stop) at 35%.
To reduce it, add another bag of veggies to make 3 servings and make a slightly more reasonable ~23% of your sodium intake,)
To reduce it, add another bag of veggies to make 3 servings and make a slightly more reasonable ~23% of your sodium intake,)
Friday, January 4, 2013
Cheese and crackers swap
Sargento ultra thin cheese. In my opinion these are the best cheese slices, they are full of that great flavor but thin so you still have a lower calorie cheese slice.
My second addition would be cereal
Yes crackers are buttery and delicious, but we are really just looking for that crunch! Cereal is fortified and usually has air pockets so you feel like you are getting a lot more crunch for your cal.
1 slice of ultra thin colby jack and a 1/2 cup crispix = 95 calories
Thursday, December 20, 2012
Great Northern, Spinach and Hummus Dip
I love hummus, in fact every time I buy a container it is gone in days. Even though its healthy its not eat a whole tub healthy so I figured out a way to make it last a little longer by adding other ingredients to it to make it a meal.
So above are the ingredients (not pictured: garlic, salt, pepper, EVOO)
Step One: Microwave spinach, mean while put can of great northern beans in a skillet with 2 TBS of EVOO add garlic, salt and pepper to taste.
Step Two: Once spinach is cooked start adding to skillet and mixing and mashing with the beans.
Step 3: add 4 TBS of hummus and 2 TBS of goat cheese
Step 4: Microwave on high for 1 minute and mash together one last time
VIOLIA! This is half of what this recipe will make. This would be great as a dip for parties with pita chips & veggies or eat plain as a meal.
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