Tackling Obesity: Top 100 Influencers and Brands

Onalytica shared their Top 100 Obesity Global Influencers List. I was honored to be on the list among many community advocates, academics, medical professionals, and others who are leading the online discussions of obesity.

I believe our voices are powerful and hope that through engagement online and in the real world, good things can happen in reducing the health impact of obesity, allowing those that choose to seek treatment for excess weight and obesity access to those treatments and reducing the stigma and bias those affected by obesity face. I am happy to share those messages and my personal journey with obesity anywhere I can.

To read the report and see who else is on the list: Tackling Obesity: Top 100 Influencers and Brands

It's National Chocolate Cake Day!

Way back in 2008, I made the original version of this microwave mug protein cake after seeing a bunch of white flour, sugar versions on the internet. I've adapted that original recipe slightly over the years but it's still my go-to when I want CHOCOLATE.

Shelly's Chocolate Microwave Protein Cake

1 Egg, beaten
3 Tablespoons Milk (I used Vanilla Soy)
2 Tablespoons Sugar Free Torani Syrup (any flavor)
1 Tablespoon Canola Oil
3 Tablespoons Multigrain Pancake Mix
2 Tablespoons Unsweetened Cocoa
1 scoop (50 cc-ish) Chocolate Protein Powder
Pinch salt
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, cocoa, protein powder and salt.

Tip dry into wet and stir till combined.

Nuke in microwave for 2-3 minutes (microwave strength varies, look for dry top.)

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.

Serve with No Sugar Added Homemade Whipped Cream, Sugar Free Chocolate Syrup, Sugar Free Caramel Syrup (Smuckers), Raspberries, Strawberries, Cherries, Sliced Bananas, Melted Peanut Butter, a sprinkle of Nuts, a dash of Cinnamon (Mexican), a scoop of Protein Ice Cream or Sugar Free Warm Vanilla Custard.

You can also turn these into into mini muffins by pouring the same recipe above into a 12 cup mini muffin tin and baking at 350 for 10 minutes. I love to drop a single frozen cherry in each middle and make chocolate covered cherry muffins.

No Sugar Added, Protein Packed, Low Carb, but most importantly DELICIOUS.

More Eggface Protein Cakes
More Eggface Weight Loss Surgery Friendly Desserts

Oodles of Healthy Breakfast Ideas

It's National Breakfast Week in the U.S. We've been told for years it's the most important meal of the day. The jury is still out on the science of that but what I know for sure is it's a delicious way to start a day.

Here's a few of my favorite healthy, low carb, protein packed breakfasts...

Shelly's Sand Dollar Ricotta Pancakes
Breakfast Bento Box with cottage cheese, berries, and my Apple Breakfast Loaf
Shelly's Green Chili & Cheese Egg Bites (Crustless Quiche)
Shelly's Cinnamon Breakfast Quinoa
Shelly's Greek Egg Bowl
Shelly's Coffee Caramel Nut Greek Yogurt Parfait
Scrambled Eggs and Grilled Zucchini
Shelly's Pancake Bites
Hard Boiled Egg on a Stick
Shelly's Pistachio Mini Protein Muffins
Faux Fried Egg
Scrambled Egg and Avocado Bowl
My Favorite Protein Shakes
Scrambled Eggs, Sauteed Mushrooms and Parmesan Bowl
Make Ahead Protein Smoothie Bags
Shelly's Sweetened Ricotta, Apples and Chai Spice Protein Granola

More Breakfast Ideas

P.S. No time to cook in the AM's I hear you... all of these are great for dinner too.

Heads Up: Your Weight Matters National Convention Scholarships Open Now

The Obesity Action Coalition (OAC)'s 5th Annual Your Weight Matters National Convention will be held August 25-28 at the Gaylord National Resort & Convention Center in Washington, DC. The convention is designed for individuals wanting to learn more about weight and its impact on their health. For those needing financial assistance in attending there are limited scholarship opportunities available and that application process opens today.

For more information and application.

The ‪#‎YWM2016‬ agenda is currently in development I am so excited about the diverse speakers and topics. I hope you will make plans to join us! Stay updated on all the latest convention news: including our discounted room block, agenda and more as it's released by signing up for convention e-news alerts: www.YWMConvention.com

Eggface Comforting Care Package Giveaway

It's that time of the year when the creeping crud comes creeping. I spent the last part of 2015 and the first part of 2016 feeling like a train wreck (bronchitis, ear, upper respiratory) I had started to feel better but then I traveled across the country (plane cabin pressure, ouch) and found myself on a ladder, cleaning a vacated bird's nest out of a rain gutter in the middle of a rain storm (ahhh the life of a single girl) so it held on a bit longer than usual.

The Prize: If the creeping crud gets hold of you here's a care package of weight loss surgery friendly, sugar free, comforting items to make life a little more bearable. It's Giveaway Time!

Celebrate Vitamins Multi-Complete Chewable with Iron (Mango-Peach) 60 ct. (Celebrate has tons of new vitamin flavors, go check them out!)
5 packets of Celebrate Vitamins High Protein Chicken Soup (27 grams of protein in each serving)
5 packets of Celebrate Vitamins High Protein Tomato Soup (27 grams of protein in each serving)
Sistema Microwave Soup Mug To Go
Caramel & Coconut Girl Scout Cookie Tea
Thin Mint Girl Scout Cookie Tea
Sugar Free Wild Cherry Cough Drops
Kleenex
Hand Sanitizer
Cake Batter (can not live without this) Chapstick and Pumpkin Pie Chapstick
Tisserand Head Clear Aromatherapy Roller Ball
Fuzzy Aloe Vera Socks (I literally have like 10 pairs of these)

How to Enter: LEAVE A COMMENT on this blog posting (be sure to include a name and some email address where I can contact you if you are the winner) Scroll down to # of comments/post a comment below to leave yours. That's it, easy peasy.

Example: Jane Doe jdoe@someemail.com
For fun: I'd love to hear what comforts you when you are sick.

Contest Period Ends: Sunday, January 31st, midnight (Pacific), sometime Monday, February 1st. I'll draw a name using a random number generator and announce the winner here on the blog! I will also email the winner at the address provided. You'll have one week (7 days) to respond to my email or another winner will be chosen. One comment entry per person. Blog comments are moderated so there may be a slight delay (up to a few hours, especially at night if I'm sleeping Zzzz) in seeing your comment/entry post. Giveaway is open to anyone in the contiguous United States (48 contiguous, AK & HI, sorry it's a legal issue international laws govern giveaways and a money $ thing)

Good Luck!

P.S. You might want to watch my Instagram feed for a very cool pop-up giveaway beginning very soon!

Heads Up: Premier Protein Costco Coupon and Getting More Active

I am new to the wearable fitness tracker world. I'm a couple of weeks into my wearing my Fitbit HR and I'm in love. Thank you to Premier Protein for providing it and for helping me with my 2016 commitment is to be more active. The first step in getting more active is really understanding how active you actually are. Two of my favorite features so far are the activity reports you can have emailed to you and the silent alarm feature.

The silent alarm uses vibration to alert you at times specified, you can set it for up to 8 times a day. I'm using it to remind me to get up and move around during my mostly seated work hours. It's like an invisible coach giving you a nudge... hey get up, it's time to move! For those of you that attended the Your Weight Matters National Convention in 2014 you'll remember that fun speaker Dr. James Levine who explained how we need to get up more through the day because "our chairs are killing us" and shared his research on how our sedentary lifestyles are contributing to obesity and other negative health effects.

The weekly reports Fitbit sends via email are great. You can store the data and compare your weeks which really helps you see how you are progressing toward your goals. I was sick last week so it was interesting to see the major activity drop and then the past few days as I re-entered the land of the living. Seeing my activity data in black and white helped me aim for a little better than the day before. I also love the badges you get for reaching certain goals. The other day I got one for climbing stairs. It reminds me of Girl Scout badges. I was super proud of my stairs badge that day. I know... I'm a goober.

You can also choose to be more social and compete in challenges with pals. I haven't tried that yet. I'll report back from time to time and let you all know how it's going and any fun features I mess with.

Heads up to fellow Premier Protein fans (and Costco members) you still have a few days to get in on this month's Costco coupon book deal and score $5 off  Premier Protein shakes through this Sunday 1/24. Perfect for taking with you on a walk or hike and logging those steps.

Looks like vanilla is the most popular at my Costco. I just made a great shake the other day with vanilla. Oh how I was loving this shake last week when I was feeling like crud (upper respiratory, sinus, ear) it was so soothing on my throat.

Shelly's Blueberry Muffin Protein Shake 

1 (11 oz.) Premier Protein Ready to Drink Vanilla Shake
1/4 cup Frozen Blueberries
a few Ice Cubes
a few dashes of cinnamon

Blend on high till well combined. I topped it with No Sugar Added, Homemade Whipped Cream and another dash of Cinnamon. Yum!

This post is sponsored by Premier Protein. For the purposes of this post Premier Protein provided me with products used. Thanks for the yummy shakes. Want to learn more about Premier Protein products LIKE their Facebook page and tell them The World According to Eggface told you to stop by.

Let me know how you like the Blueberry Muffin Protein Shake and any cool Fitbit features I should know about.

Bento Box Lunches

Most days I am able to work from home. I especially love the days I am able to fill my bento box with some snacks and/or lunch and move my "office" to the patio. Thankfully I can do most anything from there unless it's raining (computers and water do not mix) or my neighbor's who have a workshop in their garage go on a band-saw kick (always during a conference call.) There are some occupational hazards to working from your patio though. Yesterday a huge piece of fried chicken dropped from the sky a few feet away. Seriously... a KFC looking breast portion.... scared the beejeebees out of me... too heavy for some bird flying overhead to carry I guess. Now I've heard of swinging chickens but I don't think they meant batter dipped with 11 secret herbs and spices.

These are a few of my most recent bento box lunches. Click on the highlighted links for recipes and resources...

Pink Box (top left): Leftover Grilled Chicken and Sliced Hard Boiled Eggs with Bagel Spice
Green Box (top right): Greek Yogurt Dip (Greek Yogurt and a sprinkle of Dill)
Blue Box (bottom left): Sliced Cucumber "Crackers" and Tomatoes
Orange Box (bottom right): Pecan Chocolate Chip Quest Bar Protein "Cookies" 

Pink Box (top left): Bacon and Green Onion Deviled Eggs
Green Box (top right): Tomatoes
Blue Box (bottom left): Cheesestick
Orange Box (bottom right): Pecan Apple Pie Quest Bar Protein "Cookies"

Pink Box (top left): a few Olives and Artichokes
Green Box (top right): Mozzarella Balls
Blue Box (bottom left): Grilled Ham & Cheese Melted Cold Cut Roll-up wrapped in Lettuce
Orange Box (bottom right): Pecan Chocolate Chip Quest Bar Protein "Cookies"

Pink Box (top left): Turkey Cubes and Sliced Cucumber "Crackers"
Green Box (top right): Greek Yogurt Dip (Greek Yogurt and a sprinkle of Dill)
Blue Box (bottom left): Shelly's Mini Apple Breakfast Loaf (Chai Spice Protein Version)
Orange Box (bottom right): Gruyere Cheese

More Bento Box lunches, FAQ's and an Online Source for them
My Bento Pinterest Page (Tons of Lunch Ideas)

National Soup Month Recipe Round-Up

January is National Soup Month. There’s nothing like coming home to a hot bowl of soup for lunch or dinner on a cold winter's day, it's a like a big, soul-warming hug from your Grandmother. Here's a round-up of my favorite soups from the blog, traditional recipes with a few healthy revisions I think even Grandma would approve.

Shelly's Chinese New Year Meatball Soup V1 Long Version V2 Quickie
Shelly's Italian Beef & Bean Soup
Shelly's Cannellini Bean Soup
Shelly's "San Antonio Marriott Rivercenter World Famous" Tortilla Soup
Shelly's Black Bean Soup
Shelly's Split Pea & Ham Soup
Shelly's Bacon Cheeseburger Soup

Recipes above pictured left to right:

A few other favs...

Shelly's Garden Meatball Soup
Shelly's Kidney Bean Soup
Shelly's Zucchini Soup
Shelly's Cannellini Artichoke Soup
Shelly's Crock Pot Carne Asada & Soup
Shelly's Mexican Lentil Stew

Drum roll...

Thank you to all who entered The World According to Eggface Celebrate a Healthy New Year Giveaway

The random generator has selected:

Annie W.
wazny79@xxxxxxx.xxx

Congratulations Annie! You are the winner of the latest Eggface Giveaway! You win the Nike workout bag filled with some of my favorite Celebrate Vitamins protein shakes, vitamins, healthy weight loss friendly products and more. You have mail!

Want to learn more about any of the contents of the giveaway above: Click here for more info and sources.

Not a winner this time... no worries another Eggface Giveaway is starting very soon! Follow along on the Blog, Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest, Instagram for the latest eggciting announcements! FYI: If you are on Instagram be sure to follow along for my occasional 1 day Pop-up Giveaways (there will be a couple this month.)

Post Weight Loss Surgery Menus: A day in my pouch

A day in my pouch is a series of blog posts to show what a typical daily menu looks like in my post weight loss surgery world. My first healthy and delicious menu of the New Year...

Breakfast: New Year's Day tradition at my house is to make breakfast and watch the Rose Parade. One New Year I'd love to go up to Pasadena (it's not too far) and check out the floats up close, they stay on display for a few days after. My favorite this year was the Miracle Gro float... if you watched it, it was the one with the Mission. Crazy cool details. I would have loved to take a real world look. Ty Pennington of Extreme Makeover: Home Edition, Diner Revival, Trading Spaces (remember that show) was riding on it. Anyway... it's on the Bucket List.

For the first breakfast of the New Year I made Cinnamon Churro Ricotta Pancakes that we topped with some cooked apple (cut up a couple of apples, squirt or 2 of Sugar Free Caramel Torani Syrup, dash of Apple Pie Spice, cooked till soft but still holding shape)

More Eggface Pancakes

Lunch: I reheated a few of these Green Chili and Cheese Bites (Crustless Quiches) from our New Year's Eve party (and by party I mean curled up on the couch watching Ryan Seacrest.) These are my current fav of my bites. I love the gooey cheese middles when you pull them apart. They are sort of jalapeno popper -ish. Yummy.

Shelly's Green Chili and Cheese Stuffed Bites

2 Green Onions, diced
1 can (4 oz.) Mild Green Chilies, diced
1/2 cup Monterey Jack, shredded
5 eggs
1/2 teaspoon Kosher Salt
a few twists of Black Pepper
12 small Fresh Mozzarella Balls, cut in half

Preheat oven to 350. Wash and deseed chilies. Dice. I prefer to buy whole chilies and dice them myself (less seeds.) Beat eggs and add all ingredients except the mozzarella balls.

Spoon into a greased (Pam works great) mini muffin tin. Add a half of a mozzarella ball to each.

Bake for 30 minutes at 350. Allow to cool slightly and they will pop right out. Makes 24. They reheat great in a toaster oven (preferred) or microwave.

Dinner: I was supposed to go out to dinner but I'm still feeling cruddy. I finally caved in and went to the doctor and I'm on day 4 of a Z-pack. Hoping they kick in soon... they take longer post weight loss surgery (I'm gathering an absorption/RNY thing.) I've got a trip (our annual Obesity Action Strategic Planning Meeting and a tour of the Your Weight Matters National Convention YWM2016 hotel) next week and this crud has to be gone. If you follow me on Twitter and Instagram. I'll be tweeting and posting some pictures and fun stuff from my travel adventure and the meeting.

So Plan B for dinner... I had a cabbage and some mild Italian sausage links (both lucky foods for the New Year) I decided to make a sort of stuffed cabbage on the fly with what I had on hand... it turned out really delicious. Ohhh speaking of luck... Eggface 2016 Raisin Toss Final Tally 10/12 (not bad)

Shelly's Quinoa and Sausage Stuffed Cabbage Rolls

1 (10 oz) package Path of Life brand Quinoa & Kale
2-3 Mild Italian Sausage Links, removed from casing
2 Tablespoon Parmesan Cheese
6 Cabbage Leaves, cooked
1 cup Marinara Sauce
1/4-1/2 cup Shredded Italian Blend Cheese

Cook a head of cabbage (boil in salted water) and set aside 6 of the largest leaves (use the rest for another meal.) Prepare the Path of Life brand Quinoa & Kale (nuke 4 minutes, any flavor would do. Cook's Note: If you can't find this product some cooked quinoa, a handful of cooked spinach and seasonings of your choice would be an alternative, about 2 cups total) while that cooks remove the sausage from it's casing and brown. I combined the cooked quinoa and sausage, added 2 Tablespoons of Parmesan cheese.

I filled 6 of the biggest cabbage leaves with the mixture and folded them into little burrito-like packages. Spoon 1/2 cup of sauce into a Pyrex baking dish. I used my favorite Rao's straight from the jar.

Place cabbage roll bundles side by side on top of sauce.

Top the cabbage rolls with the remaining 1/2 cup of sauce and shredded cheese.

Bake at 350 for 30 minutes till bubbly and cheese is slightly golden.

More Eggface Healthy Italian Recipes

Snacks: Too much coffee and a couple of Quest Protein Bar Cookies (my favorite S'mores with Pecans and limited edition Pumpkin Pie)

More Days in my Pouch