NEW YEAR'S BLISS

The Shopping hype was started by the million and zillion stores who are currently trying to outwit each other with the latest and greatest sale!  It helps to hold onto the reins during these crazy times to keep from going into debt.  It's also a good time to hold onto the reins during the Holiday festivities and to resist the sugars that  seem to come in every shape and form, and quite literally float in the air with their alluring scent.    The other day I  heard either on the radio, or the television;  that the average American gains four pounds during the Holiday Season.  Get this,  the weight never comes off,  and  it begins to accumulate year after year.  Unless of course you naturally have self control,  diet all the time,  or you're a Gym Rat, and you never leave a good treadmill behind.  

I'm proud to say that my horse literally didn't run away with me this year!  I didn't over indulge in shopping (basically because I was already broke),  nor did I give into the alluring aroma of my favorite Mac Nut candy, and all the other bad Belly Fat foods that have  helped me self destruct  in the past.   A  better word, SELF INDULGE!  I must say it,  I feel great about both hurdles!  I am worth this race, and I'm going to win it!

Instead of gaining four pounds,  I've lost four pounds in this month.  (December).  I didn't take any diet pills, didn't need to,  nor do I want to lose weight that way.  I  am learning  how to eat, so I will never be an obese person again.  I will do it naturally, using healthy information,  and my goal is to lose another thirty pounds either by my birthday in March, or most likely by my start date of July 1,  my one year anniversary on the BFC.  I'm not a fast loser,  but I'm a loser all the same!

My two favorite Christmas gifts are coming in pretty handy, so maybe shopping  is a necessary evil.    I've gotten used to the weight of my ShapeUps during my evening walks,  and my New Balance "heart rate monitor''  watch are proving to be quite useful tools while I follow the eating plan of The Belly Fat Cure book, authored by Jorge Cruise.  I'm walking a total of 45 minutes, and using our Elliptical another 30 minutes.  This combination is making me feel  in control, stronger, and fiercely motivated to change myself as I enter into the New Year.  HAPPY NEW YEAR TO ALL OF YOU WHO WANT CHANGE!  MAY YOU FIND PURE BLISS THIS COMING YEAR.   BLISS   1.) complete happiness  2.) heaven or paradise.  

THE GIFT

A few weeks ago I was shopping in Costco and stopped by the watch and jewelry glass case near the beginning of the aisles.  I've been thinking about getting a heart and pace monitor watch, that I once wore over ten years ago when I was exercising with it on.  It has a strap that  fits around your chest area where your sternum is, and it measures your heart beat,  and relays this information to the watch that comes with it.  You set your age, weight, and it sets your target  goal  for burning fat.     When you are exercising aerobically, or go out on your walks it will beep to let you know you need to speed up,  and it will beep when your heart is racing, and you need  to slow it down  because then you are being ineffectual, and your heart is pumping too hard.  It's an ideal tool for weight loss because it keeps your work outs within your targeted  "fatburning''  stage.  Whether you are taking  twenty minute walks, which is suggested for health benefits on a daily basis, or doing a  run for those athletes that are more aerobically fit, or if you're taking an Aerobic lesson such as a Zumba class this is an effective tool to use.

Now back to my story: My husband kept texting me to go to Costco and pick the one I'd seen up for at least several weeks now, and that would be his Christmas gift to me!   It took me that long to think about getting it,  because I was still wondering if I would  use it or not.  The one I'd seen was a Nike brand, and it looked like a good one for about $65.00.  I went to Sport Authority and there range was anywhere from 69.00 up to 200.00.  You know what they say about people who put things off;  if you snooze you lose!  As of yesterday they no longer had it, and oh they do have the two hundred dollar one,  but not the one I wanted.  I will have to wait to get one somewhere else, if not I'll go to the  Sports Authority's After Christmas Sale.  

Now yesterday after work I stopped by Costco for a bag of dog food, and other produce, and my husband had gotten  the same idea two hour earlier, and  he also picked up a bag of dog food, and most of the same items that I had gotten. He did send me a text message that he was going to Costco, and I left my cell phone in my truck and  missed his message by minutes.  He said he also looked for the watch  while he was there and didn't see it,  so instead he walked up to me with a HUGE can of  Brown & Haleys MACADAMIA ROCA!   He said, "here Merry Christmas, I know how much you like these".  I handed them right back to him and said Merry Christmas, I'm sure you'll enjoy these." MEN! It's taken me months to loose 20 pounds, and I'm still in the ball park.  One 32 oz can, did I mention HUGE, would be my demise, since I can't eat just one!  Three little pieces have 16 grams of sugar, and 17 carbs.  We are eating on the BFC plan,  15 grams or less of Sugar per day, and this includes three meals and two snacks! Entering into the New Year lighter, and brighter!

All I Want For Christmas Is My... Thirty Pounds Gone!

Every year I have good intentions to mail my gifts ahead of time so they will make it to the mainland before Christmas.  Today I find myself standing in a gigantic line, package in hand in the Post Office, on a lovely Saturday morning.  I was happy when I made it out the doors leaving my box in good hands,  minutes before their doors closed at 11:00 sharp!    Doesn't the U.S. Postal Service realize we work during the day, and that there hours of operation are not conducive to mailing anything out that requires a scale and  postage.  Saturday is the day we are home, wrapping, mailing, and running around frantically looking for a roll of Scotch Tape.  We don't need the P.O. to close their doors on Saturday @ 11:00a.m.  Banks have moved up into the twentieth century, they now stay open  on Saturdays to 3:00 p.m., and amazingly some are open on Sunday.  It might not be the Internet, and emailing that is bringing the U.S. Postal Service down, it may just very well be those lousy hours they are willing to stay open. Just an observation...

I did manage to get my Christmas shopping done early for one person in particular.  Yes, it's me.  I'm the easiest person to shop for  because I know exactly what I think I need.  This year it happened while I was shopping in my favorite store, The Ross Store.  We did get one of those over here about ten years ago, and it's like going on an African Safari hunt.  I can stay in this store for about two hours when I'm in the shopping mood (guys you might not know what this feels like), and I can leave with plenty of items I absolutely can't live without.  Okay I could live without most of it, but I tell myself I work hard, and I am worth it!

This time I came home with my early Christmas present and they are the new Skechers Athletic Shoes called SHAPE-UPS. They have a little tag attached that list the benefits of these amazing sneakers!   Are you ready for this? The tag says, they may * Burn more calories  *Strengthen the back  *Firm calf and buttock muscles  *Tone and firm thigh muscles  *Increase cardiovascular health  *Improve posture * Reduce joint and back stress. These are some pretty amazing claims, and there are more claims but I'm too tired to type them all out.  My favorite reads - Get in Shape Without Setting Foot In A Gym.  Okay, these better work since I don't have enough money this year to spend on a gym membership.  All I know so far is this;  I took my dogs for a walk up our hill and these shoes weigh so much more than I'm used too, thus causing me to feel more tired, and my breathing increased, as we made it to the top. However I do like the fact that they make me a whole inch or two taller, they are brand new, and pretty looking for a shoe, and they also seem to cut down on the impact from the pavement.  More to follow as I observe them.  Thank You Santa!   Girls, I hope Santa is good to each one of you because you're on his Good List!  MERRY CHRISTMAS, HAPPY HOLIDAYS, AND  MELE KALIKIMAKA!

JORGE CRUISE RECIPES

I am struggling this past week, and the scale is showing signs of my stress!  Up three pounds from my 167lb.  My two year old washer is now officially broken, and had been leaking underneath it for about  a week, maybe two weeks now, before the floor started showing signs of sponginess, and now it looks like ceramic tile was the better choice for this area.  Luckily I have enough left over tile from two years ago still sitting in the corner waiting for me to get my second wind back so I'll do something with it.  Two years ago I finished our kitchen/family room remodel with my best friends help.  My contractors worked on the hardest parts in our kitchen, such as the plumbing, electrical, drywall, hanging cabinets, laying granite, and our lighting.  My friend helped me paint, and lay the hardwood floors in our family room, and in the laundry area, and  I laid the tile in our kitchen and pantry floors.   I drove to the dump over thirty times that year, and threw a counter top up on my truck that slide across and busted  my back window out in the process.  I never felt so tired in all my life as when I was working full time, and renovating.  I feel like I've been hibernating for the past several years. Now our plumbing in our bathroom sink is stopping up, Drano is not helping, our shower faucet is leaking from the spout and near nothing is coming from the overhead spray...  Cry, Cry, Cry, Cry, Cry. Plus I already can't stand the holidays...

Okay somebody stop me right here!   My blessings are: I better COUNT THEM:  I have a roof over my head, too much to eat, a warm cozy bed, clothes on my back, a truck that runs (with gas in it), shoes on my feet, a job, a paycheck, health coverage, a 401, 3 weeks vacation a year, co-workers,  friends, and a family who loves me most of the time!  Okay I'll shut up now.  WOW, I have a lot plus the three pounds I don't want! 

Maybe this will help create a spark!   Sometimes we learn by reading books, or some of us learn by a more visual approach and this is why Jorge's site on You Tube is a nice change to sink our teeth in to. For example;  he has all his recipes, and messages on video. It helps to see how he makes his delicious shakes,  and all the products he uses.  So go to You Tube on the Internet, and type in Jorge Cruise.   He has a lot of good information to absorb.  I've got to get a grip, and I've got to get my second wind back in following the BFC plan more accurately because I'm eating the BFC way, but I am pigging out at the same time.  For some reason my appetite seems to have made a change from feeling satisfied,  to feeling hungry all the time.  Hot Tea helps but not all the time. Maybe it has to do with a lack of eating a lot of fresh vegetables, because I haven't been eating them like I was before.   Back to the drawing board then.    To the Girls, how do you do it when you just don't feel like doing it?

Rain Rain Go Away...

I woke up to a downpour that lasted through out the night, and had to leave my warm cozy bed while it was still dark out, to be hit in the head by water falling off my roof ( in buckets)!   As I arrived to work I gingerly stepped out of  my truck into  three inches of water, which seemed to be  raging rivers circling  around my tennis shoes, causing them to become instantly drenched.   It's better to wake up like this I suppose, than to wake up and find your roof had blown off your house, or business due to the 40MPH winds like the Oahu residents  experienced during the night.  The firefighters were busy over on that island repairing roofs, and cutting up tree's that had fallen down in the roads.  It's been quite some storm!  We were lucky this time, and  can safely say the drought for  the Hawaiian Islands is officially over.  The Big Island  of Hawaii is getting hit with a ton of rain right now, and they  have  flash flood advisory warnings tonight,  so they  no longer  have drought conditions either, which  rarely happens to that island in the first place.    I'm sitting here blogging with my jacket on, and my little dogs have their ski jackets on too!  Okay, I didn't really write this did I?   I did buy them  some cute doggie fleeced lined little cover ups with  fuzzy collars, which my husband said is humiliating to them, and he also doesn't want me to take them out in public looking this way!   I told Mochi and Oreo they look very cute, and they wagged their tails, so I think they think they look good too!  Shssss, don't tell my husband I'm talking to dogs, he'll think I'm crazy! (Even though he does it - all the time!)

Well today I ate the following:  Org. Coffee w/ half n half.  Salad (no dressing- forgot to put it on), Yams, Egg Fu Young  (Tofu Style).  Snack: Dark Chocolate Mac Nut/Raw Almond  Cluster (homemade).  Dinner: Chili, made with organic beef, cheese, and sour cream and a cup of Unsweetened Almond Breeze milk.  I missed breakfast because I didn't want to go out on my break to grab something from Starbucks because of the rivers, and my shoe's and all.  Most mornings I walk over on my break to SB and  get a breakfast sandwich,  made with Bacon, Egg, and Gouda cheese,  on an Artisan Roll.  The BFC list the S/C Value  1/2.  I usually get a tall bold coffee to go with it, no sugar, cinnamon and half and half.   Hope our Sisterhood is thriving, and everyone is having a great week! Stay dry and warm too!

21 WEEKS FOLLOWING THE BELLY FAT CURE

Today I'm ending my 21st week of following The Belly Fat Cure lifestyle, and I am twenty pounds lighter than when I began on July 1, 2010.  Jorge Cruise, #1 New York Times best selling author wrote this lifestyle plan for those of us who are Carb lovers!  The Carb Swap System is his trademark eating method that guarantees you will automatically steer clear of foods full of the sweeteners and processed carbohydrates that chronically keep insulin levels high and belly fat present.  Each day your total eating goal needs to be 15 grams of sugar and 6 servings of carbohydrates. Calculate carbohydrates: 5 to 20 grams = 1 serving;  21 to 40 grams = 2 servings;  41 to 60 grams = 3 servings.  After about a week or so it becomes easy to remember this when you start reading labels on the food products you are buying.   Another key is to keep your three main meals close to 5 grams of sugar or less, and  Carbs @ 40 grams or less, that is 2 Serving size,  three times a day. ( Eat two snacks such as walnuts, macadamia nuts, almonds, and other sugarless snacks!  No fakes sugars of any kind!

Getting this weight off has  improved my overall health.  I am going for my next twenty pounds, and I wish I could say that I've lost it already! Time is an issue and it involves setting small goals, and sticking to them.  Once you get the drift of the recommended daily S/C Value of 15/6 in your head, your belly will catch up, and it becomes a lifestyle!  So keep trying...

I think it's a good idea to get your hands on the BFC book, not only for it's information, but also for the great Recipes, the Food Items List with  the S/C Values, including the very important Serving Size. This could be why some people aren't seeing a decrease in their weight. This weeks Face Book page has Jorge showing off his abs, and he said, he's doing the 8 -minute AB Sculptor that is found in his book. I better start those because my stomach still looks like mashed potatoes!   All I can say is,  I'm trying...

Have a great week and keep trying to live healthy, and find your inner joy!  After all it's the Holidays!

Cauliflower Pizza Crust

Step 1: Shred a fresh head of Cauliflower. I bought an inexpensive Blacker and Decker Food Processor,  you can use a large cheese shredder, and make it the size of rice.

Step 2: Mix together the following ingredients:

2 Cups riced/shredded Cauliflower

1/2 Cup Mozzarella

1/2 Cup Parmesan cheese

1 Egg

2 cloves of fresh Garlic

Step 3: Spread the mixture to about 1/2 inch thick oblong shape or circle,  like you would dough on a lightly (olive oil) greased pizza pan or cookie sheet. Bake 350 degree for about 20 minutes. I like my crust to be a nice golden brown on top, so I set the dial to broil the last 2 - 3 minutes.  Watch it so it won't burn...

Step 4: Add your favorite toppings, making sure to use a low sugar sauce, and then bake 350 degree,  until  the cheese has  melted. Probably about 10 minutes. Slice it  up and serve.

Note:  I'm not big on red sauce so I have used the Sun dried Tomatoes in a bottle from Costco (8 pieces chopped up).  I then  chop Green, Red, or Orange Bell Peppers, Zucchini, fresh Spinach leaves, onions, mushrooms, and top with Mozzarella, and Parmesan cheese.   If you like this pizza,  make it a different way using  Cheddar Cheese topping over your veges.  I also read another recipe using Zucchini as the crust but I haven't tried it this way yet.   I think it's great for those who want glutton free food items, and for some of us who really love our vegetables. I take it to work the next day because it's super healthy, and taste good cold.  Enjoy!

THE ROAD TO RECOVERY

I wish I could say I enjoy the holidays like I used to when I was a kid. During this time of year emotions run high, people feel too rushed, and the Season brings a lot of stress over spending, and gift selection as we  head into December like a frigging freight train.  Today my boss told me he is asking his family to donate to it's local Food Bank in their home town, and he will do the same with the money he usually spends on them.   I like this idea a lot!  The front page of our local newspaper stated yesterday, that over two million people will lose their extended unemployment as of today!  Our local unemployment is the lowest in the nation around 6.70%. 
I've spent the past two weeks getting over the worse flu I think I've ever had, mainly due to the severe headache's caused by the tension of all the coughing I was doing.  My chest is feeling a little less stress on it now, and my energy levels are slowly climbing out of the trenches to the place I was before getting sick.  I've worked this past week in almost a daze, and when the end of my shift rolls around, I drive home from work to recuperate.  My doggies haven't been on a walk in two weeks! They are coping because I bought them some hard Nyla bones to take their energy out on.  I wasn't ready for this flu since getting the flu shot four weeks ago, and all the medicine we had in the house was outdated.  I was finding cough medicine dated 2007. I was finding Tylenol that was dated 2001.  Guess we haven't been sick with the flu in a long time. Tonight I went to the health food store and picked up a bottle of Barlean's Oliveleaf Complex and Bronchial Soothe. This new Barlean's supports a * Healthy Immune System, *Healthy Joints,*Healthy Blood Pressure, and *Cardiovascular System. It's a Super Orac Antioxidant.   Last week my lowest weight was 167, and tonight it is back to 169 lb.  I am still following the BFC guidelines and I'm on the road to recovery, but I want to get back into my comfortable routine of eating fresh vegetables, and planning balanced, healthy meals.  Hope everyone else is having success in your lifestyle plan. Remember to keep your feet firmly planted on the ground, and spread your wings so all can take shelter beneath them!