Secret #4 Smaller Goals

OMG....looking at the overall goal of losing the total amount of weight can be enough to scare even the most dedicated dieters away, solution.....set smaller goals! Goals that you can accomplish within a few days to a week! Accomplishing small goals can help keep you motivated and encouraged to keep aiming for that ultimate goal!

Here are a few examples of short-term goals that you could set for yourself:

-no soda for one week
-only eat natural sugar (like fruits...not the bag of white sugar) for a week
-exercise 10 minutes everyday this week
-drink 64 oz if water everyday before I can have one soda
-eat at least 3 veggie/fruit servings everyday this week
-eat one thing with high protein for every meal this week
-lose 5% of my starting weight
-instead of late night snack time this week I will read or work on something crafty
-no sugary breakfast foods this week
-no skipping a meal this week
-eat a healthy snack between meals to help with the "hunger monster"
-eat smaller portions of every meal this week..don't over indulge
-eat slowly and allow food time to digest instead of speed eating this week
-do not wear my "fat jeans" at all this week
-Don't obsess over the scale this week...eat right and weigh at the end of the week
-this week when I'm craving ________, I will read the bible instead of giving into my craving (check out www.madetocrave.org for some amazing God Girl advice)
-keep a journal/reflect on your day everyday for a week. How was your day, what did you accomplish, what if any where your setbacks, what was your mood, emotions, cravings, etc.


Try a Weekly picture challenge! Sometimes it's hard to notice the small changes that other people notice because we see ourselves everyday, pick a bikini or workout outfit that shows your body and take weekly photos of yourself in the same place, same positions and your will be amazed at the differences you would never have payed attention to before!

Homemade Baked Seasoned Sweet Potato Fries

Homemade Baked Seasoned Sweet Potato Fries

Preheat oven to 400

Peel 5 medium sized sweet potatoes

Wash and cut up (into french fry size pieces)

Put into a bowl

Pour ¼ cup of oil over top of them in the bowl

Sprinkle 2 tbsp of sweet n low in bowl

Sprinkle 2 tbsp of cinnamon in bowl

Sprinkle a couple pinches of salt in bowl

Use both hands to mix well until all fries are coated with oil and spices.

Place in a large baking dish spreading out fairly evenly

Bake uncovered for 25-30 minutes / until tender

When there is about 5 minutes of cooking time left sprinkle with a pinch of salt and sweet n low

Remove from oven

Place on a plate with a paper towel underneath to pull out excess oil

EAT UP!! J

Nutrition Info

1 medium sweet potato   - used 5

Calories 130                                        650

Fat 0.39g                                              1.95

Fiber 3.9                                               19.5

Sodium 16.9                                       84.5

Corn Oil 1 tblspn    -   used 4

120                                         480

14                                           56

0                                              0

0                                              0

(Spices used: Sweet n low, salt, ground cinnamon) 0

Makes  24oz  cooked fries

Total Recipe

1130

57.95

19.5

84.5

Per Ounce

47.1

2.4

0.8

3.5

Each ounce make about ½ cup of fries

Secret #3 Finding New Motivation

WHEN and yes I said WHEN, you get bored of your dieting lifestyle/dieting system, it's time to find a new one....NOT GIVE UP!!!!!! I have hit that peak of not really putting a 100% effort in Weight Watchers, but I am nowhere near my goal weight!!!!!
I have found new motivation! :) 
A friend introduced me to a site called www.loseit.com and I think it is great!!!!!  The site is an easy, convenient, not to mention FREE, way to track food, exercise, and weight! On top of having a website to access there is also an app. for both android's and iphones!! You can also chat with other members through their forums on different topics relating to losing weight. The best thing to me is the fact that you earn badges for your profile as you do well and accomplish different things....kinda like a pat on the back for doing the right thing!! :)


As far as weight watchers, I will still continue to point out recipes and work with points some, however through this site you only have to worry about calories, so it is a little easier to work with. I checked to see how it measures up to the weight watchers points system and the calorie count add's up to the appropriate amount of daily points (within 1-2 points). It does not include the extra 35 in calories like weight watchers, however if you go over your calories a little it would kind of be like having that extra 35.


If you decide to join look me up and add me as a friend (Crystal Cain) I believe this is going to give me a "refreshed" look at the dieting world because it's something new to work with.




Good luck dieting everyone! :)

Bulked Up Teriyaki Stir-Fry

Bulked Up Teriyaki Stir-Fry

This recipe makes 15 one cup servings.  Mix is 3.5pts per cup by following recipe exactly.

Ingredients 
24 - oz boneless, skinless chicken breast (diced)  12pts
4 - Packs Knorr Asian Sides Teriyaki Noodles  32pts2 - Large Green Bell Peppers (Sliced into strips)
1 - Large Yellow Green Pepper (Sliced into strips)
1 - Large Red Bell Pepper (Sliced into strips) 1pt (for all 4 bell peppers)1 - cup matchstick carrots 0pts2 - 14 oz cans of La Choy Bean Sprouts 1pt (for both cans)
½ - cup Kikkoman soy sauce 2pts
½ - cup Kikkoman teriyaki sauce & marinade 4pts1 - tbsp Kikkoman soy sauce (separate from above) 0pts
1 - tbsp Kikkoman teriyaki sauce & marinade (separate from above) 0pts
½ - tsp paprika 0pts
½ - tsp chili powder 0pts
½ - tsp onion powder 0pts
½ - tsp garlic powder 0pts
½ - tsp chicken seasoning 0pts8 - cups water 0pts
Non stick cooking spray 0pts

Directions:
1. Spray a large stir fry pan or skillet with non-stick cooking spray
2. Place pan on burner, turn on high heat and add diced chicken breast
3. Cook chicken until done
4. When chicken is cooked, add all spices and stir chicken until spices have coated the chicken well
5. Add all peppers, carrots, bean sprouts, soy sauce and teriyaki sauce to skillet with chicken
6. Turn burner down to medium-low, mix everything well and cover with lid
7. Stir frequently while preparing noodles
8. Bring 8 cups of water to a boil
9. Add teriyaki noodles and bring back to boil
10. Turn heat down to medium-low
11. Cover and let cook until noodles are done (until water has cooked out)
12. Keep a close eye on noodles and chicken/veggie mix to ensure that neither sticks and burns
13. Once noodles are done, add to skillet with chicken and veggies and mix well.
14. Add one additional tbsp of soy sauce and 1 additional tbsp of teriyaki sauce when you add the noodles, mix well.
15. Turn heat to low and cook while stirring constantly until liquids have almost disappeared
16. Turn burner off, serve in one cup servings

Secret #2 Bulk it up!

You can take a simple meal that's high in calories and "bulk" it up to make it less fattening! HUH...add more food and it's less points...YES!!!!
The key to bulking food up is to find low calorie additions for an already great meal. 

*One of the easiest ways to bulk up food is to add veggies (or more veggies) to it. This helps increase the overall amount of food. By adding the veggies and mixing it into your dish, it increases the number of servings you have while decreasing the calorie count per serving!  This works well with stir frys, pasta dishes, and cassaroles. (I'll be adding a few recipes to show how well this works soon). 

*If you eat a lot of "Lean Cuisine" type meals because they are quick and convienent and they leave you hungry even after you eat them, the same rule applys to them. These prepacked meals comes with more than enough sauce to cover extra veggies. By adding extra cooked veggies and mixing them in well you can get full while still enjoying your favorites at the same time! If your not good at paring up foods or you just don't know what you could add to bulk it up, look for meals that already have veggies in them and add more of the same kind of veggies! You can purchase microsteam bags that you can pop in the microwave and they are completely cooked in just a few minutes!  

*When cooking with spaghetti noodles, an easy way to bulk your dish up is to add "La Choy Bean Sprouts" (they'll only add about 1 point) or mix in a pouch of "Tofu Shirataki noodles" (they'll only tack 40 calories - about 1 point) onto your meal, and you'll feel like you're pigging out on pasta)  these both look remarkably like your typical spaghetti noodles and when seasoned to match your dish mixes in so well you can hardly tell they are not spaghetti type noodles.

*When you add meat to a recipe it could add hundreds of unnecessary calories! So when you add meat to a recipe use meat's that are low/lower in fat. Boneless, skinless white meat chicken is always a good choice. Chicken goes well with almost ANY recipe you can put together! Sometimes I even substitute ground beef for ground white meat chicken. 4oz is only 2pts!  When using beef look for lean cuts, even ground beef has 96% fat free meat! The lower the fat content, the more you can add to your meal!

Look for low point recipes coming soon! Enjoy "bulking" it up!

Starting Over - Tips for losing weight.

Today I have decided to rededicate myself to Weight Watchers with a whole new way of thinking, this isn't a diet, it's a way of life, a way to stay healthy! After watching my weight go up and down every week since I stopped tracking and before I got sick (which I think really just gave me an excuse to stop caring) I am deciding to set new goals and not worry about how I have messed up in past weeks. After looking back over all of the weeks since I have started, I see even though it's only a little I am still on the losing side! I still haven't went back up to my original starting weight. So I am starting with a new mind set, setting new goals and this time I will be successful! :)



My New Goals and TIPS for anyone trying to lose weight:

1. TRACK EVERYTHING, EVERYDAY....even if I go over!

2. Remember 1 bad day doesn't mean give up.....tomorrow is a new day and you don't have to give up when you mess up!

3. Work on smaller goals....don't worry about the "OVERALL" goal at first. Setting smaller goals and reaching them will help boost your confidence and help your weight lose progress. Think about goals such as 5% of your starting weight as your first goal, 10% of your starting weight as your second goal, then go from there.

4. Exercise 30-45 minutes 3 times a week. Create an exercise goal and stick to it! Whether it is walking your driveway, playing the wii, or going to a gym create a routine and stick to it!

5. Unless it is a special occasion (birthday, anniversary, etc) don't "splurge" (food wise-going out to eat) until you have reached your first goal. After you have reached your first goal reward yourself with something your really enjoy (it could be a night out with friends that you avoid because of all the calories, an extra large blizzard, or a trip to your favorite restaurant).

6. Ask for help from the people around you! Don't hide the fact that you are trying to lose weight! The people around you are your support system! A friend, a spouse, a family member can be your accountability partner and help you make the right decisions when it comes to eating and exercising! It might surprise you, someone you are close to may even be struggling with the same thing and may be relieved to have someone else working toward the same thing!

Remember every day is a new day, a chance for a new beginning, start today!!! Don't wait for tomorrow because what I have learned tomorrow will NEVER come!!!

Secret #1 Cut Where You Can

One of the biggest and most valuable things I have learned while being on weight watchers is that less really does mean MORE! Cut the fat and calories where you can and you can increase the amount that you can eat!

When buying things in the grocery store look for key words like: lowfat, fat free, natural, whole wheat, low sodium, fiber enriched.

*If your gonna use cheese...pick a fat free kind.

*Instead of using butter...find a low fat whipped margarine instead.

*When flavoring foods stock up on spices instead of marinades. Spices like onion powder, garlic powder, chili power, paprika, basil, parsley, sweet -n- low (for the sweet tooth in us) and even liquids like red wine vinegar and lemon juice are all ZERO! Take advantage of this WONDERFUL thing. Mix and match spices and come up with combinations that you like to flavor different meats and veggies for a wonderful calorie free flavor enhancement!

*Buy fresh veggies when you can, not only can you eat more because you know what you are putting in them, but they taste better. A lot of canned veggies are so full of sodium and high sodium is bad! Sodium causes you to retain water, which could cause you to show a weight gain until your water intake matches your sodium intake.

*Buy fresh fruits or canned fruits in it's own natural juices. Watch for canned fruits that say in light or heavy syrup...this add sugar and calories that you could avoid!

*If your gonna eat cereal....cut out the cutesy kiddie cereal, eat a whole grain and sugar free if you need sugar add a tbsp of sweet -n- low....and always use skim milk.

*If you must use sandwich meats...find things like 98% lean turkey breast and ham. Avoid processed meats like bologna and hot dogs that are just full of bits and pieces of different things. You can find turkey hot dogs and bologna that are only 1pt a piece!! 98% fat free never tasted soooo good! :)

*When shopping the meat counter look for 97/3 and 96/4 ground beef, 97% fat free chicken and turkey breast (you can even found it ground if you don't like beef), and for others look for lean cuts and don't be afraid to ask the cutter to make special cuts for you that are leaner...that is their job and they are more than happy to do it for you!

*When being pastas look for whole wheat pastas and pastas that have added fiber. A great brand to look for is Ronzoni Smart Taste Pastas. They have spaghetti, penne, and rotini that I have found. A serving is only around 3pts, verses 5-8 with regular pastas.

*Bread is a weakness for me...I'm a southern girl I was cornbread fed! Being on a diet doesn't mean you have to give it up...low carb diets are soooo overrated! Find whole grain breads with lots of fiber....weight watcher hint...the higher the fiber, the less points. Natures Own has three types of  loaf style sliced bread that is only 35 calories a slice....for those people who think 1 pt doesn't matter...it does when you can have 2 slices of bread for only 1 pt instead of 2 points per slice for regular bread, and best of all this bread comes in white, wheat, and honey wheat. Be sure to look for the white bags that say 35 calories per slice.


So what it all adds up to is when you make the smart decisions to cut fat and calories where you can, it really does mean you can EAT MORE! :)

:) Happy Healthy Eating! :)
Make it a lifestyle change, not a diet!