Down 1, Three to Go!

Happy Halloween.....We are passing out the candy we received last night at our church's Trunk or Treat!

I really wasn't feeling the whole GAME ON thing yesterday or today. I'm tired. I didn't sleep well. I have had a headache for two days, possibly allergies?  Poor Me. Welcome to my pitty party, I'm done complaining now. 

I haven't gotten the official score reports, but I think my team did pretty well on week 1.  Last night, I really struggled to eat my last meal and finish off my water.  I know I would have thrown in the towel and crawled into bed if I wasn't accountable to my teammates.  Today, I really watched my carb intake because I really want to shed that pound I gained back from my Saturday free day. BOO!

I am thankful to be held accountable to someone other than myself.  Other than the bazillion gallons of water I drink each day, I think the team aspect might be the key to being successful. 

To my running friends, I am ready to sign up for another race.  I bought some new running clothes for inspiration since my other clothes are packed away in storage.  I will post pics soon.  Prepare to be jealous! 

Race Suggestions?

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Sunday Shopping

Disclaimer:  I am not a professional nutritionist or dietitian.  Therefore, you cannot sue me like that guy sued Mickey Ds for making him fat.  However, I have researched a lot about eating healthy throughout the years and the information listed below is merely my conclusion after such said research.

Today, Mom and I went to Sam's.  Mostly she needed stuff for their business and my strong muscles.  If you have been reading my blog, then you realize this is my third trip in 7 days.  Wow!  I must plan better. 

I decided that today I would talk about what my nonprofessional opinion is about the GAME ON DIET.  I can't give my complete true opinion yet, because I haven't read the book.  It is sold out at Barnes and Noble and I am too lazy to drive across town to the Hastings.  My SIL, said she would let me borrow hers, and since I'm cheap that way, I will wait. 

I did read this recently ( I forgot my source...please don't sue me for plagiarism)  Foods linked to weight loss in order of impact were yogurt, nuts, fruit, whole grains, and vegetables.  Yea! Game On!

It is about creating a healthy lifestyle.  Ridding yourself of the chemicals and "stuff" found in processed foods and my much loved diet dps.  I am not a vegan, vegetarian or organic nut.  I am a meat eater.  I actually LOVE beef, but red meat is harder for your body to process (slows down your metabolism and is typically higher in fat)  Therefore, I try to limit my beef intake to once a week 

It is about portion control and eating foods that have a low Glycemic Index.

What is the Glycemic Index?

Not all carbohydrate foods are created equal, in fact they behave quite differently in our bodies. The glycemic index or GI describes this difference by ranking carbohydrates according to their effect on our blood glucose levels. Choosing low GI carbs - the ones that produce only small fluctuations in our blood glucose and insulin levels - is the secret to long-term health reducing your risk of heart disease and diabetes and is the key to sustainable weight loss.

Man, can you tell I'm a teacher?  Here's the DL (down low for those who aren't as ghetto as me):

When choosing your carb for your meal, fruits generally have a lower GI than the other carbs.  For example, the GI of an apple ranges between 30-40.  Anything below 55 is considered low.  A baked white potato is almost 100.  Now, if you eat the skin, the GI goes down. Don't ask me why, because I don't eat the skin, so I didn't research it.  Something about that's where are the nutrients are, blah blah. 

Here are some cool websites to help you with GI

South Beach Diet - this is where I first heard about the GI (8 years ago) and where I got the original recipe for the delicious Quiche Cups .  It is broken down into 3 categories, Low GI, Med GI  and High GI (STAY AWAY!)

Glycemic Index - here you can do a search for a specific food

Crossfit - this is how my hubby has lost about 30 pounds since January.  Crossfit is a type of workout, but they also teach you about GI

The Glycemic Gourmet - here you can get a printable shopping list of 101 low GI foods.  Warning, they try to get you to buy their cookbook.  You have to give them your email, then they prompt you to buy the cookbook, twice.  Say no if you don't want it, and the list will be emailed.  You can download and print. 

Enough about the carbs and GI, let's talk proteins.  Fish, Chicken and Turkey are better choices than red meat.  Greek Yogurt (low GI, 14 grams of protein) is a good choice.  Cheese is a good choice (low GI), but watch the fat content.  Laughing Cow is the best brand of cheese for watching your weight.  See here where I talk about Babybels and Wedges. 

My mom buys Low-Sodium Starkist Tuna Packets for her "snack" protein.  I'm not a big fan of tuna, but if you are, it is GREAT choice. 

Here is my morning snack...it works great for me at school.  Sometimes the I eat a banana instead of the apple.

I lost 2.6 pounds this week.  Gained one pound back after my "free day".  I am still getting my weight loss bonus.  

I hope this helps your Sunday Shopping. 

Game OFF

Today, I got paid for cleaning my own house!  I know you are jealous.  You too can have $3.23 cents if you want to come clean my floors and dust!

After cleaning, I took a nice run.  It felt really good this morning.  My breakfast consisted of water and a large spoonful of peanut butter.  My favorite prerun snack.  Very rebellious, I know.   Then I fooled around and didn't eat again until around 1pm.  Mom and I visited Rosa's Cafe, where we had nachos, chips, queso, and SWEET tea! 

Our eyes were bigger than our stomachs and we left a lot of chips.  If you know me well, you know I love my chips and hot sauce.  What is wrong with me?  In the past I could easily put away a basket by myself.  I actually took a picture of my nachos, but I got a new phone this afternoon and it is on my old phone.  Sorry. 


Then before the game, we had Raising Cane's Chicken Fingers and another SWEET tea.  We didn't even eat much of the fries. 

Speaking of Game OFF...My Red Raiders took the game off, unfortunately, Iowa State did not.  We got our Scarlett and Black bottoms beat at home after beating OU in Norman last weekend.  The Rangers took the Game Off last night, so I guess that just sums up my sports weekend.  Thankfully, I'm not a Cowboys fan so I won't mind if the lose tomorrow. (do they even play?).  Anyway, Mom and I enjoyed popcorn, m&ms and I had hot chocolate at the game Jones.

Now, I am making my brownies about 12 hours later than I planned.  I'm going to enjoy one before bed and save the rest for my kids to enjoy tomorrow.  I really don't think I will be that tempted.  If I am, they will be going in the trash.   

Did you notice, I did not have one single diet dp today?  I am going to try to stay away from them.  I do so much better on my running when I don't have them.  I hope to make them a once in a while treat.  My sweet tea will probably be a once a week treat, but I'm okay with that.  And, NO, I am not going to sweeten it with Truvia or any of that other "natural" sweeteners.  I like plain white sugar in my tea. 

 

Game On Friday

My Game was On...even with chips and queso in the teacher's lounge today.  Once a month the parents in our building provide lunch for the staff on Friday.  Today, Kindergarten parents prepared baked potatoes, chili, queso, chips and salad.  If you know me very well, you know I LOVE me so chips and queso.  I was a good girl.  I had a baked potato (I didn't eat all since they were huge) and salad.  Lyneil suggested we put the laughing cow cheese in ours since we couldn't have butter or sour cream.  I put two wedges and it turned out pretty delish!  I took my own salad dressing and some extra veggies.  I was proud that I wasn't even tempted by the Halloween cookies!  I had oatmeal with pecans and agave nectar (new fav) and turkey bacon for dinner tonight since the rest of my family headed to the deer lease.

Last night had to be my free sleep night because the Rangers couldn't put those pesky Cardinals away.  Actually, the Cardinals are my second favorite team in baseball, so I would be rooting for them if they were playing anyone else.  They will probably keep me up tonight, but since I don't have to be anywhere in the morning, I will still get my sleep points.  I may even get to bake those brownies tonight if the Rangers let it go extra innings. 

Speaking of lack of sleep....Lyneil and Andy are headed to Aggieland this weekend and they are going to something called Yell Practice.  I'm pretty sure that is Aggie for Pep Rally late at night.  Anyway, I hope they have a great weekend.  Lyneil's little sister, Andrea, is on my Game On team.  They are actually my husband's cousins.  They are pretty awesome ladies so I have to love them even though they are Aggies. So, here is a cheer Yell for you two...Beat the hell out of Mizzou Whoop!  You can imagine how it pained me to type that. (This is my way of seeing if they really read my blog)

Good Night and God Bless!

Fashionista Friday!

Today, the kids got to wear their Halloween Costumes to school.  I'm a little sad my little guy no longer wants to be a super hero, but this gruesome zombie!

My favorite thing about fall is definitely not the cool weather, but I do love BOOTS!  My friend has some boots like these, but I'm not sure how I feel about them.  Her boots actually have more fringe, but I am sure that is too much for me.   What do you think?

Three Things Thursday

1.  MEAL OFF...After much internal debate, I decided to take my "free" meal tonight.  We went to Jason's Deli and I had my favorite manager's special.  I ate a half California club without the sprouts, a cup of fire roasted tortilla soup and a side of fruit.  I may have had a little soft serve cone.  Yummy! 

2.  DAY OFF...My plan is to take Saturday off.  Texas Tech has a home game and if I feel like braving the weather, I won't be able to pack my appropriate snacks.  I can already taste the sweet tea and smell the brownies cooking.  I may make them for breakfast.  However, I won't use Saturday as my exercise day off or my sleep day off. 

3.  SCALES...I really don't like to weigh myself.  I usually just go by how my clothes fit.  Lately, that hasn't been so good,hence my need to play GAME ON.  As of this morning, I have lost 2.6 pounds.  It will be interesting to see how much that number will change tomorrow after my night off.  My official weigh in day is going to be Saturday mornings.  That means I don't have a full seven days to reach my 1% body weight loss goal this first week, but hopefully my meal tonight won't make that much of dent in my weight loss.  You will probably hear tears of regret in the morning if it did!

Send me any recipes or menu ideas you would like me to share to cgzant@gmail.com.  I think the more you can vary what you eat, the happier you will be, and the more successful you will be in the end.  Have a Fantastic Fashionista Friday!  We'll be sporting our Halloween Costumes!

Decisions, Decisions & Great Buys

For those of you new to the Game On Diet, you get one meal off a week and one whole day off each week!

I am struggling on when to take my meal off and day off.  I mean, do I really want to take my meal off Friday evening and all day Saturday?  Is that sabotaging my Monday morning weigh in?  Maybe my meal off should be in the middle of the week if my day off is on the weekend?  Then, another part of me is thinking I shouldn't really take a WHOLE day off. 

I took a mini York peppermint patty today and ate it about 2 pm.  It really hit the spot.  Now, I'm still full from my evening meal and am trying to decide if I really need to "spend" that other 50 calories. 

Food RE-Review

I bought the Oscar Mayer brand turkey bacon last night at Sam's  and it was very good this morning.  I just heated it up in the microwave.  Maddox, my five year old, loved it!  It is a million times better than Jennie O.  Don't waste your money!  My sister-in-law said the Butterball brand is also good. 

Another great find at Sam's was the Chobani brand Greek Yogurt.  They have a 12 pack for a little under $12.  It has strawberry, peach and blueberry.

I also picked up some little Babybel cheese.  Jaxxon, my son, loves these.  I thought about the laughing cow, and passed.  Lyneil said she would go pick some up and we could share.  We decided it would be pretty tasty on the Triscuits she found. 

The Rangers' World Series game was delayed due to rain in St. Louis, so I am going to enjoy my extra sleep!  Keep drinking the water! 

Stealing a line from Jim at 50 after 40

Be Great Today!

Sweet Treats...Game On Style

I have a sinus/lack of diet dp headache...so this will be short, SWEET and simple!  I am never really hungry, but I do crave something sweet.  The fruit helps, and in the past, I would have grabbed a diet dp.  Here's how to get your Game On! and feed that sweet tooth.  (I'm already planning on brownies for my day off...and I will be licking the batter off the spoon!)

Weight Watchers Fudge Bars...one is only 45 calories!

Skinny Cow...only the truffle bars are 100 calories.  There are several different flavors of flavors.

My sister-in-law let me in a little secret, a variety pack of fun sized m&ms, twix, snickers and 3 musketeers....all less than 100 calories.

If you missed it before, I love York Peppermint Patties and Junior Mints. 
The mini York peppermint patties are 50 calories each.  I haven't checked on the Junior Mints since I usually purchase them in the Movie Theatre Jumbo box. 

I checked on Chick-fil-a tea and a small is 100 calories.  I'll be saving that for my day off and splurging on a large!

Now that I have given some suggestions for blowing your 100 calories, how about something useful?

Lyneil's Smoothie Recipe...protein, carb and fat all in one.  BAM!

Greek Yogurt
Fruit of choice..best if frozen
Nut of choice
a little milk....blend together

Hope you had a great Tuesday!

Game On Diet Day 1

Other than a slight headache because of no caffeine, I feel really good today.  Stuffed, in fact.  Five meals a day, eaten every 2-4 hours with 3 gallons liters of water is really filling!  I'm getting all my points today. For my exercise, I took a little run after Shannon got home from his new job as a Lubbock Fire Fighter!  I haven't ran consistently since the spring.  My lungs were not happy with me!  

My Food Critic Report for Today's Menu

The turkey bacon for breakfast wasn't my favorite.  It is a bit salty.  I may try another brand or maybe organic.   I added a little agave nectar to my oatmeal this morning since I like sweet and that turned out pretty good.  My lunch of the crock pot chicken and potatoes was pretty good.  The chicken stock is well worth the 15 points from my free 100.  I'm beginning to enjoy greek yogurt more and more. I think having it with fruit satisfies my sweet tooth pretty good. I decided to do grilled fish and a salad tonight.  The new dressing was a keeper.

Tomorrow, I will be having my Quiche Cups.  This time they feature turkey sausage for extra flavor.  I'm not a big fan of eggs, so I have to put lots of other "stuff" in there.

I think my snacks will probably stay the same most days.  I'm having my grilled chicken salad tomorrow for lunch.  Dinner is still a toss up depending on when we get home.  It may be another salad or a wrap.

Quiche Cup Recipe

10 oz. frozen chopped spinach
1 c. egg substitute
3/4 c. reduced fat shredded cheese...I used little mozzarella and feta this time
1/4 c. diced bell pepper
1/4 c. diced onion
1/2 pound of turkey sausage or ground turkey, browned

Salt and pepper to taste.  You can also add Louisiana hot sauce....but I haven't checked the label to see if it contains sugar.  It may be a no no on this diet. 

Microwave the spinach for about 5 minutes.  Drain and blot dry well.  Mix all ingredients. Line muffin pan with liners.  Spray with nonstick spray.  Fill muffin cups.  Bake at 350 for about 30 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.  This made 18, but I didn't fill them all as full as some.  I think I full muffin cup would probably be your protein serving.  We put ours in a large ziploc bag and freeze.  Then we just microwave them in the morning as needed.  You can substitute any vegetables or meat or just do vegetarian quiche.  If they are not a "dry" as you like upon reheating, blot more of the water out of the spinach next time. Enjoy. 

Crock Pot Chicken and Potatoes

Saute onion and celery in olive oil.  Poor about 2 cups of chicken broth in the crock pot.  I used organic low sodium.  Cut up four red potatoes into cubes.  Add chicken.  I used frozen boneless skinless chicken tenders that I had from sprouts.  Probably about 1 1/2 pounds? Turned my crock pot on low and let it cook for about 6-8 hours or until the chicken is falling apart.  The chicken broth takes about 15 calories of your free 100 calories for each serving. 

I had mine with steamed broccoli.  It was a very filling lunch. 

Enjoy. My Game is ON!

Get Your GAME ON!

Game On Diet...a way to kick your friends' butts while shrinking your own!  I am a competitive person, so I think I will enjoy the Game On Diet.  It is not really a diet in my mind.  The restrictions on food are minimal.  I am playing against family and friends, and there is money on the line.  I think this is just the motivation I need to get my running jump started, again. 

Here is a breakdown of the Game On Diet:

Meals - 5 a day made up of the following: a fist of carbs or fruit, a palm of protein, and a thumb sized portion of fat.  Two of the meals must also contain two fists of veggies.

Water - 3 liters a day....I'm a teacher with no potty break for 4 hours....I see this being a problem.

Exercise - 20 minutes a day

Sleep - Must get 7 hours of sleep

Create a new good habit and break/lessen an old bad habit....aren't I already?  I mean, I have to give up my beloved sweet tea and diet dp :(  My new habit is getting back to blogging to track my progress, share menus and recipes and to motivate others toward healthy lifestyle choices.  My old bad habit I am breaking is making sure I wash my face properly every night before bed. 

Communicate with members of your own team and opposing team daily aka TRASH TALK

BONUS!!!  You get 100 free calories a day, one meal off and one day off each week.  Also, you get bonus points for losing 1% of your body weight.

The game runs for 4 weeks.  There are also penalties that I will save for another day.

My plan for DAY ONE

Breakfast (Meal 1 @ home before school)
oatmeal w/ pecans (carb, fat)
turkey bacon (protein) I cooked this already

Snack (Meal 2 while teaching ?)
2 lowfat cheese sticks (protein)
Honeycrisp apple slices (fruit)
walnuts (fat)

Lunch (Meal 3)
crock pot chicken w/ potatoes (protein/carb/veggie/fat) I will post the recipe tomorrow after I decide if this is worth sharing.  This also contains chicken stock which will take about 15 of my free calories
steamed broccoli(veggie)

Snack (Meal 4 after school snack)
Greek yogurt (protein)
strawberries (fruit)
walnuts (fat)

Dinner (Meal 5 with the fam)
Salad ( 2 fists of veggies including lettuce, baby spinach, bell peppers, cucumbers) with oil/balsamic dressing...I am trying a new Walden Farms dressing.  If you haven't heard of this brand it is gluten free, sugar free, calorie free, carb free, cholesterol free dressing.  Some flavors are really good and others not so much!)
Grilled Chicken
Small Potato or grapes?

My 100 calorie plan for today is either a 45 calorie weight watchers fudge bar or a mini york peppermint patty for 50 calories. 

I have a great recipe for a quiche I am sharing tomorrow....and hopefully the crock pot chicken and potatoes!

GAME ON!

I'm BAAAACCKKKK! Game On!

Life is always full of craziness and some people just have more crazy than others!  After a wonderful vacation with the family to Disney World and all states along the way, my summer vacay came to a screeching halt.  We decided to move which meant finishing our remodel so we could sell our house.  I worked 12-14 hours every day for 2 weeks.  I don't care if I ever see paint or tile grout AGAIN! 

Then, I had to focus on getting my new classroom organized.  I am now teaching second grade at a small school south of where I live.  It is the same school my hubby grew up attending.  It has been WONDERFUL!  My mental health is worth the 8K pay cut I took.  I do miss my BHC girls, but I am a much happier person. 

I am dusting off my brooks and starting a new diet game called Game On!  There is a $50 bye in and if my team wins, we each walk away with $150.  You get points for drinking water, eating properly and exercising.  My plan is start back slow...couch potato to 5k, to keep from injuring myself again.  I usually eat pretty healthy but my love of sweet tea is about to put me in a new wardrobe.  I promise to keep you posted. 

Enjoy your weekend and GO RANGERS!