Shaping up - Diet and exercise

[luckiest1]

So I wonder if I could freeze my avacado halves if they get ripe and I haven't used them up?

ETA: Found this on Practically Edible.

Contrary to popular use, you can freeze Avocado. Not whole or in slices, or in any way that you'd want to use in any kind of "solid" way afterward, but rather as a purée that you can use as a salad dressing, sandwich spread or base for a dip such as guacamole. Start with soft, ripe fruit. Remove the flesh into a bowl, mash with something acidic such as lemon or lime juice (use 1 tbsp per two Avocados). Pack into plastic container with a lid, leave a bit of room at the top for expansion during freezing, and freeze for up to 5 months. Plan to use the purée within 3 days at most after thawing it; if there's a bit of water in it, just tip the container and drain it out.

[annabear]

Yes, freezing it mashed with lemon or lime juice works ok. I think the frozen halves were 'quick frozen', which we can't do at home, dang it! I've done the mash & freeze when I've found avocados on sale, or have gone a bit overboard and bought too many at one time.

So this is what happens when we have no Clay news - we start talking about foods he hates!

[luckiest1]

Hey, just cuz he hates it.......doesn't mean I have to!

[Couch Tomato]

well the benefit of getting a job and out of the house.. running for planes trains and automobiles -- and busses LOL.

\

Love guacamole but don't eat avacados plain.

[claytonic]

Thanks for the timely tip about freezing avocado. I bought a large quantity today since I need a butter substitute because my doctor told me my cholesterol is too high. Funny how some people think that only overweight people have a problem with cholesterol. I am not overweight but even when I was UNDERweight, I still had a higher than acceptable level and it also surprises others.

Speaking of overweight, my dog is due for her annual needles shortly and I just know the vet is going to frown about the fact that my dog hasn't lost weight! She isn't too bad but when lying down, you can see she needs to lose some weight. It's my fault because I just can't resist giving her a little bit of what I eat, over and above her normal meals. Her food is 100% raw bones + minced chicken, vegetables and oatmeal, i.e. 100% home cooked, no commercial food at all as I just don't trust the dog food industry. A friend of mine was buying the most expensive dog food thinking expensive = the best but gosh, it costs more than the best salmon you can buy, and I still don't trust it!

OH and speaking of avocado and dog food, did you know avocado is toxic to dogs? I had no idea until about 3 years ago.

[claytonic]

luckiest1, I've made marmalade using your recipe, but I got somewhat creative and added lime, lemon, pineapple (very little) and fresh ginger. It tastes yummy, the only imperfection is that it is not thick enough but I had decided that it wouldn't matter as I could also use it for a hot drink. (I used to buy a ginger cordial, and there was a variety that also had lime with ginger. Rather than drink it as a cold drink, I'd add boiling water and have it as a hot drink in winter.)

Anyway, thanks for the inspiration. If you have any ideas about how to make it thicker next time, let me know. But otherwise I am really happy with it because the ingredients would read 100% fruit (orange, lemon, lime, pineapple), fresh ginger, sugar.

TIP: For those who don't know, if you have a teaspoon of lemon juice at the start of your meal, it improves absorption of nutrients. (That's from my doctor who practices nutritional medicine)

Right now, I am trying to find a simple recipe for lime/lemon pickle. Every recipe I have seen on the net so far is too complicated and lists ingredients I have barely heard of.

[luckiest1]

Hmmmm, maybe next time let it reduce a bit longer? Mine turned out quite thick, the consistency you wuold expect from marmalade, once I let it set in the fridge.

[FearofH2O]

TIP: For those who don't know, if you have a teaspoon of lemon juice at the start of your meal, it improves absorption of nutrients. (That's from my doctor who practices nutritional medicine)

Right now, I am trying to find a simple recipe for lime/lemon pickle. Every recipe I have seen on the net so far is too complicated and lists ingredients I have barely heard of.

All I drink except for morning coffee and evening tea is water with lemon or lime juice squeezed into it. But I did read that you should have hot drinks with your meals to prevent plaque buildup. But then again I also read that too much water leads to kidney problems. I just don't know what is good to drink.

I am vowing to go back to counting calories this week. I let the stress of too much to do get to me and eat anything and everything. Our last day for preparing taxes at the library is April 9. With the deadline approaching I am feeling a little less stressed. Now it's all family and friend's returns that I must do at home.

Most of the junk food is gone as well as almost all food. I'll be careful shopping his time.

[claytonic]

TIP:

For those who don't know, if you have a teaspoon of lemon juice at the start of your meal, it improves absorption of nutrients. (That's from my doctor who practices nutritional medicine)

Right now, I am trying to find a simple recipe for lime/lemon pickle. Every recipe I have seen on the net so far is too complicated and lists ingredients I have barely heard of.

All I drink except for morning coffee and evening tea is water with lemon or lime juice squeezed into it. But I did read that you should have hot drinks with your meals to prevent plaque buildup. But then again I also read that too much water leads to kidney problems. I just don't know what is good to drink.

I am vowing to go back to counting calories this week. I let the stress of too much to do get to me and eat anything and everything. Our last day for preparing taxes at the library is April 9. With the deadline approaching I am feeling a little less stressed. Now it's all family and friend's returns that I must do at home.

Most of the junk food is gone as well as almost all food. I'll be careful shopping his time.

I've heard the same about not drinking cold liquid with meals and also about too much water being a risk. I intend to get some info on that and will let you know what I find. I think 2 liters of water per day is the standard recommendation. I don't drink enough water although I have it with meals. I know some people who don't drink water AT ALL! All their liquid is soda pop or wine or coffee, etc.

[claytonic]

Sugar, fructose and weight gain

* Reporter: Helen Wellings

* Broadcast Date: March 27, 2009

A mountain of research has convinced reformed 'foodaholic' David Gillespie that it is the fructose in sugar that is making us fat.

David Gillespie calls himself a recovering lawyer and reformed 'foodaholic.'

Six years ago - with 40 extra kilos on his waistline and getting more obese each year - he vowed to discover why he couldn't stop eating and constantly put on weight despite going on diets.

A mountain of scientific research convinced him it's not fat that makes us fat, but the fructose in sugar. Once in the bloodstream, it instantly converts into fat. Gillespie's book calls it 'Sweet Poison.'

Are vitamins teaching our kids bad habits?

"When we eat fat protein and carbohydrates we feel full. There is no such control for fructose, you can eat as much sugar as you can get into your mouth and it will never fill you up," Gillespie said.

The more we sugar eat, the more we crave - not only sugar but other foods too.

"If you eat foods with sugar in them, you are going to get fat, but it is the much more insidious thing that is much more dangerous - it makes you immediately a candidate for Type 2 Diabetes, for heart disease and for a range of cancers that have been directly linked to sugar," Gillespie said.

Pie in the sky: takeaway myths tested

In the 19th Century, our diet included about 1 kilo of sugar a year - in fruit, when it was in season. Now, with supermarket shelves laden with sugared foods and drinks, we consume on average 50 kilograms a year of sugar.

Our calorie intake has increased 30% since the 1980s.

Fruit juice is a sugar shocker, full of fructose. A glass of apple juice equals 4 apples; orange juice, 4 oranges.

"It contains exactly the same amount of sugar as a soft drink, as coke - that's eleven teaspoons of sugar - eleven in apple juice. As soon as you finish the glass of apple juice you have in the morning, the first mouthful has already been converted into fat in your bloodstream," Gillespie said.

Healthy child called 'fat and obese'

David and his 6 children each have a couple of pieces of fruit a day and drink plain water, not juice.

"It is much better to have the whole fruit rather than the juice of the fruit. When you juice a fruit, you throw away the fibre and keep the sugar so you are keeping the worst aspect of the thing and throwing away the best."

Low fat foods are usually high in sugars and salt.

"Most BBQ sauces, 55% sugar; plain tomato sauce 21% sugar; tomato paste 11% sugar; chilli capsicum spread 12% sugar; mayonnaise 20 - 25% sugar; ice-teas, this container has 10 teaspoons of sugar alone; sesame poppy crackers for your cheese almost 10% sugar; and most jams 60 - 70% sugar," Gillespie said.

"A lot of people say you shouldn't eat Coco pops because they're full of sugar but they are about the same sugar as supposedly healthy cereals. And All Bran actually contains 13% sugar. Muesli? They have plenty of dried fruit in them which has fructose in it as well, so that will put on weight," Gillespie said.

Consumption of artificial sweeteners is soaring. David Gillespie used them to unhook him from sugar addiction, then stopped using them, as he wasn't convinced of the long-term effects.

The world's first low GI sugar, an Australian innovation, has just been launched. Called LoGiCane and manufactured by CSR, it's touted as a healthier alternative to normal table sugar.

"Low GI sugar is a naturally occurring table sugar that has been processed less, that has a lower GI of 50 compared with ordinary table sugar which has a GI of 65," Dr. Barclay, Chief Scientific Officer of the Glycemic Index Foundation said.

Low Glycemic Index foods are slowly converted to glucose in the body thereby, helping weight control.

Dr Alan Barclay says all sugars should be eaten in moderation, but low GI sugar "�is a better sugar."

David says less processed or not, sugar is bad for us.

"It doesn't matter if it's plain white sugar, brown sugar, raw sugar or castor sugar, they are all exactly the same - all fructose."

So what's OK for sweetness?

"Have a really dark chocolate 70% - 80% cocoa has a lot less sugar. If you are going to eat cereal, have Weetbix, very low in sugar. Most alcohols are fine, It's the mixes put with the alcohol that are the problem. Beer is fine," Gillespie said.

David's simple message for losing weight and staying healthy?

"No diet .. avoid sugar," he said.

And David Gillespie says trying to reduce sugar dependency is similar to reducing or giving up smoking or drugs - extremely difficult to achieve and to stick to.

http://au.todaytonight.yahoo.com/article/5...ose-weight-gain

ETA:

Liney or annabear

Do you have a brand name for that raw almond butter?

I am trying to find it here, but so far the only one I can find is a lightly roasted version, and I want the raw one....

[luckiest1]

I'm back to healthy cooking again, now that the kitchen is up and running. I've had a bit of time at work to spare lately, so I've been googling and facebooking around and found some cool stuff.

First off, the blog called 101 Cookbooks - www.101cookbooks.com or you can search it and become a fan on Facebook. Some really great, vegetarian, but yummy recipes! The author, Heidi Swanson, also has a cookbook out called Super Natural Cooking, available on Amazon.

Also, not sure where I came across this, but a book called The China Study by T. Colin Campbell. There is a 7 page excerpt available online here. Looks really interesting, so I may put a hold on it at the library and see how long it takes to get a copy in. Has anyone read it?

So I made a couple of recipes that I saw on Chef At Home (Canadian Food TV show).....Carrot Ginger Vegetarian Protein Soup and Oatmeal (Carrot) Muffins. These were a hit with both boys, and when I worked it out on thedailyplate.com, since it made 19 regular sized muffins, they only have 6g of fat per serving. The soup is also fantastic, but it's only for me! Too many "weird" ingredients for the boys. And no, I am not a vegetarian, but I don't eat much meat. Some chicken, fish and seafood, rarely red meat. I'm just trying to find ways to get more fruits and veggies into my everyday meals, for my sake as well as my sons'.

[luckiest1]

So where are all the dieters? On hiatus?

Has anyone heard of the 100 Mile Challenge? I've seen quite a bit about it on Food TV. I'm not doing it (me, give up mangos? nah) but it's an interesting premise...only eat food grown or produced within 100 miles of your home. I took a trip to the local farmer's market on the weekend, just for something to do, and because I was looking to purchase some locally grown rhubarb. I found the rhubarb, and I also lucked out on some honey crisp apples (which have been next to impossible to find this past year) - and guess where they were grown? France.

[djs111]

.Carrot Ginger Vegetarian Protein Soup

That sounds interesting - speaking of ginger, I think I will start a search for ginger slices with a sugar substitute. I adore candied ginger slices, but don't like the sugar.

Oh, cool, I just found a recipe for crystallized ginger where you simmer the slices without sweetener and then dust with Stevia. Well, more to it than that, but I will try it!

A favorite restaurant meal in Holland was pannekoeken - more like crepe than a pancake, with huge choice of toppings. I always got Gouda cheese and ginger slices. My boyfriend always got fresh tuna.

I know ginger is good for me. But I just like it anyway. I would eat it if it was terrible for me!

I read about that 100 Mile thing in Domino magazine a couple of years ago. The advice was to go very early and shop at the busiest stalls.

[Couch Tomato]

So where are all the dieters? On hiatus?

Has anyone heard of the 100 Mile Challenge? I've seen quite a bit about it on Food TV. I'm not doing it (me, give up mangos? nah) but it's an interesting premise...only eat food grown or produced within 100 miles of your home. I took a trip to the local farmer's market on the weekend, just for something to do, and because I was looking to purchase some locally grown rhubarb. I found the rhubarb, and I also lucked out on some honey crisp apples (which have been next to impossible to find this past year) - and guess they were grown? France.

I have a feeling I'll be back here full time after my doctor's appointment today.

I went to an earth fest last week and one of the things I want to try is this:

http://www.farmfreshtoyou.com/index.php

of course I should just walk to the farmer's market every saturday. LOL.

I think I need to treat my losing weight like this project with some big reward at the end (other than good health that is BWAH) like a trip to Italy. hee

[luckiest1]

Reward systems work well for me, too.

I need to find a better farmer's market. The one I went to (the only one I know about locally) was pretty bad. Apparently there is more there on a Saturday so maybe next weekend I'll give it another chance, but I'm thinking that if I went just a little bit out of town I'd find a lot more.

[Couch Tomato]

OK she chewed my ass up but good. So I will try try again to get back on track.

Take my medicine

track my blook sugards

eat correctly

exercise

How hard can that be?

[djs111]

track my blook sugards

I am guessing that one........

[Couch Tomato]

heeee

[Couch Tomato]

Ok day 1 of my doctor telling me I was going to drop dead before I'm fifty if I didn't pull it together...

After I picked up the kids from school I drove straight to the marina and walked about 2 miles. They have a GREAT trail -- and what kept the kids occupied was running ahead of me to read the little "exercise stops" along the way. It's hilarious..about every quarter mile - you can stop and do sit ups or pulls ups or stretch..bwah. They tell you how to do it. I didn't bother with it ..just did my walking. It's right on the water and it's beautiful.

Tomorrow I pick the kids up and take Tyler to his baseball practice. Instead of sitting in the car or on the bench reading a book while the kids run around in the hour 1/2 I'm waiting for practice to start I will walk. So twice a week at the baseball park. Twice a week at the marina is my goal.

I have a new glucometer.

I discovered and joined the fitday.com website. I like it cuz it has a journal..tools for calories and calories burned. I'll try it out and see how it goes. The only thing I hate is the annoying ads trying to get me to get the premium membership. I will see how this works first before I shell out the extra 20. I may do it to get rid of the ads. I found that keeping track of calories really helps me although it's tedius. And frankly I eat the same crap all the time. I'm starting at 1900 calories a day. I know that seems like a lot but really I will DIE if I do less than that. I'm going for about 2.5 lbs per week. I know that's a bit higher than recommended but I have my goal weight for the gala. If I can do the exercises I can do it.

I still need to figure out my reward LOL.

[claytonic]

Do you have a pedometer? They are inexpensive and really do give you an indication of how active you have been for the day. A half hour walk isn't really of much use unless you are making decent strides, so it isn't how long you walk for but HOW you walk, and the pedometer measures that for you.

The reward part is really important.... I spent a fortune rewarding myself when I quit smoking 21 years ago, but I calculated that based on how much I was smoking and the price of cigarettes today, I have saved $80,000 from going up in smoke!

My cholesterol is too high, so I have to reduce saturated fat but I still have it as a treat in a pizza or something with coconut milk. To prevent myself from losing weight, I have been using considerably more olive or peanut oil in my cooking and the bonus is my skin is no longer dry!

You should really consider the alkaline diet Liney has been on, she's lost a ton of weight but it is really a very healthy diet. Also, I've read about people who simply changed nothing in their diet except to remove sugar, and they lost considerable weight.

But here's the best solution:

[luckiest1]

Couchie, what's important is that you get yourself out and about and walking. I think your plan sounds great to start. I usually walk 20-30 minutes at lunch, instead of sitting at my desk and eating. I figure I can munch on things while I am working, better to use the time doing something active. I also walk the dog(s) at least twice a day, once in the morning and once at night. That is not as stenuous of a walk, since they tend to stop and sniff or pee or whatever, but it's still something. I used to do nothing but sit on my butt all day. Last night I also went out and raked the lawn. I figured it was nice out and it was better than watching useless TV (which I did anyways with AI8 but that was after). Hee. My goal this summer is to start using the pool at the gym. I guess that means I need to go out and buy a bathing suit that actually fits, huh? I meant to do that last year but never got around to it.....my old one is like 5 sizes too big now.

If that fitday site you mention is anything like the one I use to track my calories and excercise, it should keep the things you usually do in memory for you, so if you tend to eat the same things a lot it shouldn't take too long to track your day. I pack myself a healthy lunch and snacks in the morning before work, and when I get here, I take a few minutes to input it all to the site, even before I eat it. That way, I am motivated to stick to eating it and not go out and buy something unhealthy at lunch time instead. My rewards are usually on the weekend....I give myself the two days off from tracking calories, even though I am still fairly careful about what I eat. But sometimes I indulge a bit. You can't be good 100% of the time!

[Couch Tomato]

heh I wanna do a little bit more to that damn scale.

Lucky ..what do you use. I put my breakfast in..and yeah it will save my informatin. We'll see how it goes.

[luckiest1]

I use www.thedailyplate.com. Or actually I think now you have to log in using http://www.livestrong.com/ and then choose The Daily Plate. Anyways, I've been using it for a couple of years and it has my whole history in it now.

[Couch Tomato]

oh ansa told me about that one...maybe I'll try it out to before I get stuck on the other one. I do like it so far though.

[Couch Tomato]

ok since my visit to the doctor last week I've done very well on my diet. Had a lapse yesterday when I went a couple hundred calories over -- and it wasn't even the chocolate cake LOL but the damn macaroni salad. Although I'm not quite sure that what was on fitday is right as I did use low fat mayo. All the other days not only did I meet my calorie count I mostly came hundreds of calories under. When you're kinda looking at everything you eat closely it just really helps.

Exercise I haven't done as well on but will try harder. Taking the kids bike riding today while i walk. Looking forward to that.