A Challenge for June

I used to believe that a "treat" day once a week was a nice idea. However I have found that one treat day turns into more cravings the next day and maybe a crash. Now I have two treat days to overcome. My weight loss is set back by three days at least. If I treated myself on Sunday it is Tuesday before I am back on track. Now I only have a few days left in the week to make progress. I don't want to spend the first half of the week making up for treats on Sunday. Anyone else seen this pattern when they have treat days? My challenge is to have no treat days this month. Rather than treat days I want to think of everything I eat as my treats. A big salad can be a treat. This is my new way of eating! I do not need "treat" days. I also want to be more steadfast in my food journaling. This should help hold me accountable!

Goals for my body this month are to reach 139 pounds, build more muscle and run three miles in half an hour. My food goals are to eat less than 120 grams of carbs each day, about 80 grams of lean protein, fill in the rest of my calories with healthy fats and take my vitamins every day.

This is why I am glad it is June!!

View from my kitchen window this winter.

Memorial Day the Healthy Way

"Dieters" are constantly looking for excuses to go off their diet plans. I know the feeling! My number one excuse are holidays. "It is a holiday so I deserve some junk food," I tell myself. But is there ever a good reason to put junk inside our bodies? Is that what we deserve? Once those few moments of enjoyable taste and texture are swallowed we have to live with the hours of guilt and other repercussion which can take days to overcome. This is why I am trying to forget about the idea of being on a "diet" that can be broken and rather focus on a lifestyle of healthy habits. Good habits can take a while to form but once they are they can be our best friends. Let us make healthy holidays a habit!

How often do we forget the true reason for the holiday? We become easily distracted with preparing for family get togethers and what food we are going to eat. Let's put "food" on the side lines and more emphasize on the actual reason for the holiday.

Today did I prepare some healthy food for my family but we also tried to focus on the reason for Memorial Day. My husband Andrew installed a flag poll and we flew the stars and strips for the first time since we moved here two years ago this month. His mother came by and we all drove to the veterans cemetery where we paid our respects to the memory of her husband who passed five years ago one June 19th.

Andrew hanging our flag.

Veterans Cemetery.

For holidays such as Memorial Day and the 4th of July we think grill. Juicy steaks and burgers. Bags of chips and ice cold sodas. Let's not even mention the desserts! This year I did not miss these foods. I am learning to enjoy and anticipate healthier options just as much.

Zucchini Turkey Burgers

The zucchini in my Zucchini Turkey Burgers add juicy tenderness to what could otherwise be a rubbery burger because of the lean meat.

Ingredients:

Medium size pack of lean turkey meat

Three medium to small zucchini

I encourage everyone to be creative in their seasoning.

Experiment with different combonations to see what you enjoy. Here is what I used today:

Onion powered

Garlic powder

Basil leaves

Paprika

Dill weed

Fennel Seeds

Italian Seasoning

Grate your zucchini and mix in all your seasoning.

I mixed my turkey meat in with my hands. My son was standing near me in the kitchen on a chair watching mama cook. He said," no, no mama. Messy hand. Wawa." He then turned on the sink and told me wash my hands. :)

Form into patties of whatever size you like. These taste great from the grill, baked in the oven or pan fried.

If you are a BBQ sauce lover try this lower sugar and pretty potent concoction.

Worcestershire sauce

Liquid smoke

mustard( any sort)

A1 sauce

ketchup

vinegar(any sort)

I mixed about one tbsp of each ingredient and put in an empty spice jar.

For dessert I made whole wheat banana bread muffins. These were supposed to be for my husband and son but of course I ended up eating one! Therefor I am not including the recipe. Although a healthy option if you are going to "cheat" muffins are not part of a healthy lifestyle for controlling PCOS symptoms so make at your own risk! hahah

Go ahead. Look at my messy kitchen! Don't worry it is clean now. hehe

Happy Memorial Day!

Zucchini and mushroom scrambled eggs

Ingredients:

One small zuchini

three eggs

one cup chopped mushrooms

Grate the zuchini and chop the mushrooms

Mix together with a little seasoning of your choice

Lightly sauté the zucchini and mushrooms until soft and set aside.

Beat your eggs with a little seasoning. I like some salt, pepper, onion and garlic powder and a dash of Italian seasoning.

Add the eggs to the zucchini and mushroom.

Scramble until the egg is well cooked. It may seem a little moist because of the water in the zucchini cooking out.

This is what I ate for breakfast and it was delicious.

Look at the difference in my face!

2006

2009

Mexican Stuffed Peppers

Mexican Stuffed Peppers The way I make them are low in saturated fat, and carb and high in fiber and healthy protein.

Ingredients:

1 lb lean ground turkey meat

ten minute brown rice

( follow directions for 4 servings of rice)

Three large bell peppers

one packet taco seasoning

Mexican seasoned shredded cheese

your favorite salsa

Cut the tops off your peppers and clean out the seeds. Set your oven at about 400 degrease and precook your peppers until they are a little bit soft. About 15 minutes. Set aside for stuffing soon.

Get your rice started on the stove or microwave so that it is ready to add to the turkey.

Brown the meat over medium heat and follow the directions on the seasoning packet. ( You can always season with your own mix of herbs and spices if you like.)

Add the cooked rice to the meat and mix together well.

Stuff the meat and rice into your bell peppers and top with a sprinkle of cheese.

These only need to bake long enough to finish cooking the peppers and melt the cheese. About another 15 minutes at the most.

Here are the completed stuffed peppers! They are not the most beautiful food in the world presentation wise but when my husband had one for dinner he said it one the best meals he ever had. He does not usually say that so they must be good!

Enjoy!!

Here I am now at about 145.

Here I am four years ago at around 170.

Good News

Each day I wake to the knowledge that I live with a disease that cannot be cured. This is the bad news. The good news, I can almost 100% control my symptoms simply by choosing the right things to eat. Ok maybe it is not always "simple." Knowing the best foods for a body with PCOS can be a challenge. Many of what most people consider "healthy" foods are not always the best for PCOS. Everyone's body is different so what works for one person may not work for another. It has been a long, hard journey coming to an understanding of what works best for me. After ten years of trial and lots of error I have developed a life style of healthy eating. Yet I am always learning new things and tweaking my diet. I trust that what has helped me manage my PCOS symptoms can help others as well. I look forward to sharing delicious healthy recipes and what I learn as I travel down this road of Cooking Up Health With PCOS!