Planning helps me make sure that I have a good balance of protein, fats, and carbs. For example I wouldn't have a Tortilla Pizza on a day I ate Oatmeal for breakfast. I'd be pushing my personal carb limits. With a plan I can see something like that before it happens.
Planning helps me make the best choices. By having a plan in place I rarely get caught in the "crap grab." "Crap Grab" happens when you are hungry and have no plan. You grab any old crap that is around ;)
Planning helps me use leftovers wisely. I don't like waste and when I sit down and plan a day (or two) in advance I can figure out ways to use food in the most cost effective way.
Planning helps me not overeat. I know if I'm eating something that is not on my "menu" for the day (last minute invite to lunch, having a hungry day, popcorn at a movie) that I am eating extra... something that can either be dealt with with a little longer walk or later in the week with a lower calorie meal choice.
Starting out: When I was first starting on this journey I made a list of 3-4 Breakfasts, 3-4 Lunches, 3-4 Dinners and 3-4 Snacks that worked well for me and I just rotated those for awhile. Slowly I added a few more new menu items and now... well you know I eat oodles of different things each week.
I plan a day or two advance nothing more than that. I write it down because that is the only way I will remember. My short term memory is well ummm short. I try and do it faithfully. Every once and awhile I come home late, too tired and I say, "Ehhh I'll just figure it out tomorrow" and sure enough the next day the "crap grab" begins and I find myself eating way more than I should have. Not a good thing. So I plan... to set myself up for success.
Here's what I ate yesterday...
Breakfast: Shelly's Irish Cream Mochachinno. Mmmm like a good for you Non-Alcoholic Mudslide.
Shelly's Irish Cream Mochachinno1 cup Vanilla Soy Milk (you can use ANY milk or milk/water combo. I'm a soy girl)
2 Tablespoons Sugar Free Torani Irish Cream Syrup
1 scoop Click Espresso Protein Powder or Chike Coffee Protein Powder
1 scoop Chocolate Protein Powder
3-4 Ice Cubes
Whiz in blender till smooth. Top with Homemade No Sugar Added Whipped Cream, optional.
Lunch: The last of the leftover Green Bites. I like to heat them up in the toaster oven versus the microwave. I ate 4 sitting in front of the computer working on a project that was due last week but the flu that invaded my body had other plans.
Dinner: A variation on my Cottage Stuffed Peppers. I'm calling them Alfredo Peppers.
Shelly's Alfredo Stuffed Peppers
3 peppers of any color, stemmed, seeded, and cut in half lengthwise
1 Yellow Onion, chopped
2 Small Zucchini (I used one green & one yellow), diced
3/4 pound Ground Beef (or Turkey) (about 1/2 a package)
1/2 cup Store Bought Alfredo Sauce
3 cloves Garlic, minced
1 Tablespoon Fresh Basil, chopped
1/2 teaspoon Oregano
1/2 teaspoon Kosher Salt
a few twists of Black Pepper
1 cup Cottage Cheese, drained (small curd, plain)
3 Tablespoons Parmesan Cheese (divided use)
Olive Oil for sauteing
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Place the peppers in a lightly oiled Pyrex casserole dish, season with salt and bake for 20 minutes. Remove peppers, drain any water that has expelled from the peppers and set aside. Increase oven temperature to 400 degrees.
Saute onions and zucchini till golden. Add ground meat and saute till no pink is seen. Add sauce, seasonings, salt & pepper. Mix till combined. Off heat add drained cottage cheese (I just put it in a mesh sieve or small holed colander for about 20 minutes to remove any excess whey) and 2 Tablespoons of the Parmesan. Mix to combine. Use an ice cream scoop to spoon mixture into partially cooked pepper halves. Top with additional 1 Tablespoon Parmesan cheese. Bake at 400 for 20-25 minutes (until peppers are fork tender.)
Snacks: Roasted Chickpeas, an adaptation on my Cookies & Cream Coffee Protein Cake I ate during an awesome episode of Grey's Anatomy (finally this was like an old school Grey's episode), oodles of coffee & tea...
Shelly's 5 Minute Cookies & Cream Coffee Protein Cake (version 2)1 Egg, beaten
3 Tablespoons Milk (I used Vanilla Soy)
2 Tablespoons Sugar Free Torani Syrup (I used SF Vanilla)
2 Tablespoons Canola Oil
3 Tablespoons Multigrain Pancake Mix
1 Tablespoon Unsweetened Coconut
1 Instant Nescafe Coffee Stick
1 scoop Cookies & Cream Protein Powder
Pinch salt
1 Measuring Cup or Microwave Safe Mug
In a measuring cup or microwave safe mug, Mix egg, milk, syrup and oil and combine thoroughly. In a separate bowl, mix pancake mix, coffee, coconut, protein powder and salt. Tip dry into wet and stir till combined.
Nuke on high for 2 minutes (my microwave is getting old and needs 20 seconds added now.) Let it sit for three or so minutes (it pulls away from the sides) before tipping the cake onto a plate.
Yields 4-5 slices. Served it with a squirt of Sugar Free Land o Lakes Whipped Cream and a drizzle of Smucker's SF Fudge Sauce. Soooo good. This morning for breakfast I'm having a slice with some Almond Butter and SF Fudge Sauce smeared on, it tastes Nutella-ishOther Eggface Protein Cakes
More Eggface Menus
A few more thoughts...
Eat. Don't skip meals. When I miss a meal I tend to overeat the next time I'm around food and fellow weight loss surgery peeps know overeating means an hour or so of OUCH, PAIN. Plus eating planned meals also does the obvious good stuff like keeping blood sugar balanced and metabolism in high gear. Talk to your nutritionist about an eating plan based on your lifestyle... I do 3 meals, 2 small snacks.
Keep a food log for a few weeks. It's pretty interesting to see everything in B&W. Find a free online program like fitday.com and enter everything for a few weeks. Yeah, it’s a pain in the ass but when you see the calories, fats, carbs, protein grams you can usually pretty quickly see if things are out of sync. I was pretty religious logging my food the first 2 years. It taught me about portions and nutritional values. Now I get on a every few months, log for a few weeks and do a reality check making adjustments as needed.
I'm no saint. I'm just a girl that battles the same demons that you do. If a poor food choice is made, I recognize it and try to figure out a way I can set myself up for success next time (bringing a healthy snack, finding a yummy healthy alternative for what I'm craving, etc.)
This is a lifetime war against obesity. Like any war you head into each battle hoping to win. Sometimes you do and sometimes the enemy gets the upper hand.
"Success is not final, failure is not fatal: it is the courage to continue that counts." ~Winston S. Churchill
So I regroup, strategize and come back fighting the next day. No guilt, no beating myself up, one poor choice does not have to become a bad day, month, year, years.
Well, so I call the blog The World According to Eggface - Recipes and Ramblings, the above would be the ramblings part ;) If you are still reading here's a few more Tips for the Long Haul that are helping me. Hope they help you too.
