Turkey!!

One of my favorite meals now is anything that involves turkey cutlets.   They usually come in a pack of 4 thin cutlets I have made them a variety of ways. I have marinated them in a lemon pepper and grilled on Forman grill. For my kids and hubby I just grilled them added a some sauce once c
done and baked for like 5 min to melt some mozzarella on them. Sort of a more healthy chicken...or turkey parm. They loved them. My most recent was in a pan a small amount of olive oil and just a few sprinkles or lowreys seasoned salt. I really used a very small amount because I am trying to limit salt intake.

Now to complete that meal I put some olive oil in a pan. Some garlic and baby bella mushrooms. Cooked them up until they were a little softer...not to much more is going in to cook... The I added some zucchini and red bell peppers and let them cook up a bit...sorry my times are not great. It really depends I like my veggies to still have a crunch..Some people like them soft. Cook them for you.  Then I added some spinach arugula mix. And let that wilt just until soft. I the added some pepper and some season vinegar....see photo. ...  I love this stuff. My father actually bought for me I'll have to ask him where he got it haha!  I don't add a lot maybe one or two table spoons then I'll taste it. I like vinegar but I don't like it to over take my food either. But some people don't like it as much if your one then don't add!  Spice it anyway you like.  your  veggies!!!  Then I cut up half an avocado to eat with the yummy turkey!

Enjoy!!

Have a good week!!

Dori

Tuna sandwich hold the mayo please

So I was again hunting for a sandwich. They are so much easier when running out with kids or working at noon. So I tried tuna.   As usual I started with my low sodium ezekiel bread toasted. I always toast mine be I keep it in the freezer since I am only one eating it I don't want it to go bad before I do.

So I used one can of tuna. Solid white in water.  Then because i am trying not to use mayo. I added a table spoon of trader Joes cilantro jalapeño hummus.   This is definitely a spicy tuna dish.  I added in 1/2 a teaspoon of cumin and 1/4 teaspoon of chili powder and like 4 drops of sriracha.  Mixed it all up and put it on the bread. Now Mine was a tad bland compared to my normal tuna so I added a few more sprinkles of cumin. Now salt would have fixed it but I am really trying to avoid.  So I am trying to become use to things with less sodium. I topped the sandwich with half an avocado. 

On a side note as well a few days after this sandwich I made the same tuna for dinner. Since I am trying to avoid the carbs at night I topped it with a slice of go veggie soy cheese cheddar flavor with jalapeños and then heated it in micro for like 20 seconds to melt cheese. It was supper yummy and spicy!  I have also tried that cheese on my morning eggs for a kick!!

Happy healthy eating!  

Dori

PB & J....With a healthy twist.

So I have been craving a PB & j. I am allowed a cheat meal every week however I don't think I want to use that on just one sandwich. So I have been trying to work it out.

So today I toasted up some ezekiel break and I spread on some sun butter. Now I am not a huge organic person. Simply because I can't afford to buy all organic foods. But when I can I try and get some organic items. I went with the organic sun butter. Simply because there is only 30 mg of sodium compared to 120 I think it was of the non organic.  I may be off on that but it was much higher.  Since I am trying to decrease salt because of my bp I went with the less. It also only has 5 G of carbs compared to 7 of other. Not a huge difference but still less.

My only issue was finding a jelly or jam. Right next to my sun butter was Crofters super fruit spread. 8 total carbs and 5 sodium. Not bad. Compared to 13 and 15 in the Welches in my fridge. There were 4 different ones and I plan on trying them all. I choose however raspberries, yumberries, morello cherries and red grapes. And it's delicious. There are chunks of fruit in the spread. So I used that and the sun butter on my sprouted bread and yum! 

It definitely was not a normal pb& j. But definitely helped the craving and was so yummy!

Happy healthy eating!!!

Dori

String beans and edamame

String beans have become a staple in my diet. They are easy to make I add all kinds of fun things to the and both of my kids love string beans so it saves me from making multiple vegetables.  I usually get fresh when I can but trader Joes sells a big bag of frozen string beans that were on sale so I bought a bunch! 

The other night I made a string bean edamame mix.  Now I apologize. Most times I just add this or that. So my measurements on this will be bad. I will try in the future to be more accurate.

I start off with some olive oil. You don't need all that much. Then I throw in 1 of those garlic cubes from past post. One cube is one clove. I let that heat till the garlic melts then I throw in the bean.

Now I would say that I use about 2 cups. At least. Depends on the day because I usually try and make enough for the next days lunch.

After that I add. Some black pepper, salt ( 30% less sodium )  and I just let it for for a while since the beans are frozen. If fresh I just let them get warm.

Then I throw in a whole red pepper and let it cook a few min. I like my veggies to still crunch so I don't cook them long. Then I add about 2 tablespoons of balsamic.  Then cover the the beans and pepper with 2 big handfuls of spinach then cover until the spinach is a bit wilted.

Then I heat up the edamame.(see pic)  I bought these pack they are super easy to use. I throw in one whole pack mix it all up and serve.

I have for myself added some hot spices like paprika. Or even a touch of sriracha but not for the kiddos.   You can really add whatever your taste likes.

Happy sunday!

16 pounds down today!  Had a fun day with kiddos. I can not wait for summer. I love living where there are 4 seasons however the kids need a park and now! 

So since I started advocare I have not had any bread. I love sandwiches and I love mayo. I am not a huge fan of the olive oil mayo. I have seen recipes in making your own mayo but I was looking for something to substitute it all together.

So I made 2 hard boiled eggs. Three them in my pampered chef food processor. The in half an avocado and half a red pepper.  Chopped it all up.  Then I threw in 2 tbsp of trader Joes jalapeño cilantro hummus.  I put it on some low sodium ezekiel bread. And yum!  I definitely needed some salt I would say but since I am trying to decrease my sodium I didn't add any. But at times I do use a 30% less sodium salt.

There are many other ezekiel breads. I just chose the low sodium for the same reasons as above.

http://www.foodforlife.com/what-are-sprouted-grain-breads.htm

That's a page that explains the benefits of sprouted bread as well as some of the ezekiel bread types. 

Happy healthy eating!

Dori

Quinoa for breakfast!

So I have been trying to experiment not only with quinoa but breakfast.  I love eggs and can eat them almost every day. But I need some verity at times. So I went to pinterest and found quite a few breakfast recipes with quinoa.  So I figured I would give it a try. I have tried a few recipes.   And have come up with one with bits from a few recipes and my own zing. I think this is the best one so far but I'm not quite done experimenting. So I start with 1/2 cup of quinoa and 3/4 cup of almond coconut milk. I use unsweetened. But if you want it sweeter used the other kinds. (Picture below ) 

I added a few tsp of vanilla for this time 2. And 1 tsp of cinnamon.  And brought it to a boil. Make sure you watch pot it will boil over fast. The. Reduce to simmer and cover for 15 min. Or until the quinoa is fork fluffy.

Now after I changed it from every recipe. Because it always seemed so bland!  This time I added a handful of blueberries. Half an apple some chopped pecans and 1/4 of a banana.  Then I topped it with a splash of the almond coconut milk because it still seemed a bit dry.

Bananas have a lot of sugar. However  they are very good for you as well. I only used 1/4 because I want to watch the sugar intake over all. But how much you use is your preference.

As for my choice I'm pecans over any other nut. I but a new type every time I run out to keep some variety. They are always raw thought. So next week if I make this it may be chopped walnuts or chopped almonds. All depends what is in my cabinet.

I tell you it was very good. I think I may experiment with different baking spices. Maybe some pumpkin pie spice. But that's for another morning. Some raspberries would probably be delicious as well.

I did cut the quinoa in half after it was cooked and put some away for tomorrow before I added the fruit.

Enjoy!

Happy weekend and warm regards.

Dori

How I get through work.....

Work days are alway tricky because there are sooo many temptations. On the advocare plan your advisor will help you and tell you the do's and don'ts. Two of them are coffee and dairy. Now I'm a nurse and a mom of 2 coffee is another major food group. I thought I was done!  Especially since there is always a pot at work!  Spark got me through. I tell you I am sleeping better because I am not still wired from to much coffee and there is no crash. 

So to get through my day.

1. I aways have 2 packs of spark in my lunch bag. I don't always need them but I have them just in case.

2. I take the meal plan that my team gives me and I plan out my whole day. I put it all on the counter and run down the list. See pic below ....

3. I always bring a meal replacement shake and my blender ball cup. Just in case I have a bad night and eating a full meal is not in the cards.

4. After I run down my list I add 2 extra snack. Just in case there is a really big temptation or if I am just hungry so I won't go for the vending machine! 

5. Then when I have a point where the temptation is just to much. I stop and think before I grab. And you know sometimes I give in. I'm human. I'm not perfect. But I always give it the extra though. Do I really want it. Is it worth it.

Valentine day was super hard!!!  But I made it through. 2 days later I had 2 pieces of candy but hey. I wanted it. And you know I jump right back on track! 

I hope this helps at least one person get through their day! !

Warm regards  Dori. 

P.s this pic is missing my meal replacement shake be it was take on the cleanse phase. No meal shake on cleanse phase :)

Progress and pampered chef

So as of today I am down 13.5 pounds.  Still losing. I figure I'll re measure once a month and plan on the advocare cleanse every 90 days. I juts figured out I could get blogger as an app and since my computer is in basement that is usually chilly this works so much better!!

So there are 3 things I got that have seriously helped me with this journey.

1. A big box of assorted Tupper wear. I got those rubber maid ones. But make sure you have the really small containers as well. I use them to carry my dressings and sriracha to work.  I don't like my dressing to sit on salad forever. And since always use oil and vinegar at the moment I can't just bring the bottles.  ( I am just trying app for first time I hope the pic shows up)  I am sure most people have seen these. I think you can even get smaller containers. And most times you can get a big assortment box at a wholesale club.

2.  A blender ball cup. They seem to be the new thing! And man you can get them at Walmart for like 6 bucks!  It makes mixing my meal replacement shakes and my spark a snap. However I would advise get one just for the spark. One you mix of
spark in it   it always seems to smell like spark.

3.  This is the manual food processor from pampered chef. I love this thing. There are only 3 pieces and no wires. Easy to clean. I use it all the time to chop my veggies for omelets. I love it. 

So the pics seem to just go in order from the post as I post the but at bottom of blog. I think. Haha. Anyway at least they are there!  I'll try and get another recipe up later today. Thanks for stopping by!

Warm regards. Dori 

Salmon for lunch!

This was one of my lunches that I make for myself.  This is usually a treat because chicken is much cheeper then salmon and easier to cook with kids running around.  Chicken i could cook the night before but i like my salmon fresh and cook just before i eat it!

Now for the veggies I have some diced up tomatoes and avocados with some cooked spinach.  What i do with my spinach is i put a small amount of olive oil in a pan with some garlic.  No i have just found these little garlic cubes at Trader Joes ...love that place....The brand name is Dorot

I have oly tried the garlic but i love them .  They stay in the freezer and when put in the pain it blends so well with whatever i am cooking.  

Anyway i throw 2 in the oil and let it heat for a few minutes then i throw in at least handfuls of baby spinach.  Now remember when cooking greens like this they well usually cook down quite a bit.  I am still exploring but I go through alot of spinach an kale.  Once they start to wilt a bit....and i don't like to kill the greens i just like them a lightly cooked i add whatever comes to mind.  In this particular picture i added some pepper, and dash of low sodium salt and some balsamic vinegar.  cook for another min or so based on your own taste and well cooked you like your greens and then out of the pan they come!

Now for the salmon i like to grill mine.  I like it to have a bit of crunch on the top and open to moistness.  I love spice so alot of my recipes i have spice but anything can be chanced to fit you taste.  So since we are in the middle of winter and my grill is buried somewhere on my deck that is also buried i break out the Foreman grill.  I rub a small amount of oil on the top of the salmon  and then i coat the top in my spice mix...I got the mix from Pinterest however I changed it up slightly:

1/2 tsp of chili powder

1 tsp black pepper

1 tsp paprika

1 tsp cumin 

1 tsp onion powder

The original recipe called of 1 tsp of salt however i omitted that because i am trying to limit my salt.   Not only is to much salt bad for your heart and blood pressure but it will make you retain water as well. 

I always have extra because i am usually making just one piece of salmon.  I save the rest for another day.  The i grill. Now this is all preference  Some people like their salmon rare.  Personally i like mine cooked through yet still very tender.  That other item on the plate is half of a sweet potato.  I do my carbs for lunch.  Nothing fancy i like my sweet potatoes bake.  I clean them, rub them with a small amount of olive oil, then wrap them in tin foil and cook on 375 for about 45 min to an hour.  Depending on size of the potato  I will usually chekc them after about 30 min just to see where they are at then adjust my time accordingly.   I will usually cook like 5 or 6 at a time then throw them still in foil in a zip lock for the week.  No be warned i have wraped my potatoes double and sometimes the juices still seep out and make a mess in my oven.  You can put them on a bake pan however the time may increase.  

So that is one of the many lunches i have enjoyed since starting my advocare jourmy.  Hope you enjoy!

Thanks for visiting!!

http://i451.photobucket.com/albums/qq240/beastie-boy87/25.jpg

The beginning

Hi!  My name is Dori.  I have decided to create a blog about my weight loss journey and how I am not just dieting but creating a healthier lifestyle for myself.   I have always has struggles with my weight but none more then after I had my babies.

My daughter is 4 and my son is 2.  I knew i didn't lose all the weight after my son was born however never really thought to much of it.  I didn't like it but hey I work and am busy with these two maniacs!  Anyway this year went to a doctors visit i was not only heavier

then I had been when i was pregnant but my blood pressure was 140/109!!








I had to do something.  Not only am I an RN but i work in a emergency department, in a hospital that is not only a STEMI center ( heart attack) but a Sroke center.  I am well aware of the warning signs and the symptoms that can lead to both.  All i could think of was my kids growing up without me and that scared me.

So I called my cousin....she had told a month or so earlier about this diet system that she is an adviser for that she used to get herself healthy and feeling great.  It's called Advocare

I was so worried about it because I SUCK at diets.  Well this is not a diet!  At least not in my eyes, sure there are things you need to limit and avoid but i am eating more then i was before i started this and i feel AMAZING!  I have already completed the challenge and i was so scared, it was like okay of comes the training wheels!

At least that is how i looked at it.  It 24 days taught me how to eat right.  How to fuel my body for my day.  How to keep my self feeling good all day!  I loved it.  I was eating all the time yet i felt amazing and guess what???  I was losing weight and inches!  So at the end of my challenge i was 12 pounds down and 6 inches down!  I was amazed  and that made me lose those wheels and keep going.  I still stick to the plan and there are some of the supplements I am continuing, the Spark drink that replaces your coffee i love!  I love coffee trust me however Spark gets me through my day! And even better! i am sleeping at night better then i ever have!  I use the meal replacement shakes occasionally and they are delicious!  I am going to be exploring many of their other products and will tell you about every one i try and my experience.

I was so happy with the challange and how i felt that i decided to become a distributor.

www.advocare.com/140218818

That is my personal site!  Feel free to drop buy!  However even if your not up for the full challenge hang around my page!  I am going to post all sorts of yummy healthy clean recipes that i try.

Advocare has truly changed my life and if I can be a personal billboard for them it is the least I can do. I feel that if people knew that this is NOT a diet but a life style change where you are not meant to starve yourself, that having a day where you cheat a little does not mean your a failure but human, more people would give it a try.  In my book it was worth every penny.

So stay tuned for some great recipes some not so good ones...ill post them because my taste may not be everyone's taste!  And of course more about Advocare and how it is continuing to change and make my life better!

Warm regards!  

Dori :)