Perpetual Healthy Eating and Fitness Rant & Rave thread

[nadra24]

Chocolate balsamic vinegar sounds like it would be awesome as a dressing for a strawberry spinach salad!  Not so much in the chicken soup, though. 

[Run Amok]

Yummy wrap inspired by the instinct diet book- that will likely be my lunch all week:

1/2 cup mixed grilled veggies (I have some leftover from a bbq and tons more I can grill)
2tbs of lowfat alfredo sauce or feta cheese
1/4 cup of balega bean salad from tj's but any bean salad or cooked bean would work
100 cal high fiber wrap of your choice
side salad

about 300 cal add more cals by increasing the cheese or beans
easy to carry to work and do the wrapping part there
yum!

[Ice Cream]

Yummy wrap inspired by the instinct diet book- that will likely be my lunch all week:

1/2 cup mixed grilled veggies (I have some leftover from a bbq and tons more I can grill)
2tbs of lowfat alfredo sauce or feta cheese
1/4 cup of balega bean salad from tj's but any bean salad or cooked bean would work
100 cal high fiber wrap of your choice
side salad

about 300 cal add more cals by increasing the cheese or beans
easy to carry to work and do the wrapping part there
yum!

What is balega bean salad.  I googled and balega seems to be a sock brand...

[cgraz]

I was wondering the same thing...  I do love the socks!

[Run Amok]

Sorry, misspelling- it's Balela... it's a middle eastern bean salad. You could make it on your own, or any bean salad will work. The trader joe's version is really piquant and yummy, so I've been buying that one. It's pretty much beans, parsley, lemon, onion, and maybe a little oil. Lots of lemon though.

[rocketgirl]

He grilled steaks last night, but they were weird.  Looked more like pork.  Tasted like steak though.  Are the steaks at the store usually dyed or something?  I think these were those Omaha steaks or something similar.  There was some kind of event in town recently where you could get something like $20 steaks for $25.

He had carrots and potatoes in the fridge, so I cut up and boiled the carrots, drained, and added butter and honey.  Cut up the potatoes with oil, parsley, garlic, and salt and oven-roasted.

For dessert, a chocolate Easter bunny, sort of like that Nestle Crunch bar.

And wine. The Rex Goliath pinot noir is not bad for cheap.

I don't know that any of that was healthy eating, but it met scrounging through the fridge for food and making something from scratch.

[wherestheportojohn]

How interesting that you had Balela yesterday, RA.

I made a big batch of Balela salad yesterday morning. I heart tj's, and tried to find a similar recipe.

Turned out quite tasty, IMHO. 

[Run Amok]

I only wish they sold it in a big vat! That stuff is deeeeeeeeeelish!

If you shop at tj's (and like balela) another summer salad you might like starts with their whole wheat couscous. On the back (side?) is a recipe for tabouleh. I make the couscous as described on the box and then add diced green peppers, red onion (or shallots), mint, and a can of chick peas. I don't love parsley, so I skip it. Anyway, lasts several days in the fridge and is quite refreshing. You can add feta...or not. You could definitely add cukecumber- but then it only lasts 1 day.

[wherestheportojohn]

I love tabouleh....num num num

[Run Amok]

I should say that the recipe I mention really isn't a traditional tabouleh- it's just a tangy summery salad. Yummy though!

[cindyleigh]

20# since Feb. 1st.  Whoohoo!

Wow!  My goal is 20# by Aug. 24 (my sister's wedding).  That's just about 20 weeks.

Of course, if I lose 40 by then ...I would be thrilled!

[merigayle]

i am pretty convinced that my inability to lose weight is directly related to abnormally high levels of stress i endure. Once my spring race season is over (mid may) i am going to try to focus on some weight training and see if that helps. I just do not want to start right now as my first race is Saturday and then i have 2 races following that.

[Mom of Scooby]

Yesterday I stepped on the scale after two weeks of only kinda sorta monitering my eating and I was at my low weight still!  So happy about that.  I do pretty much log my food but have gone over ALOT.. I guess maybe not terribly over when I calculate my exercise.. but really, some days I had 2200-2400 calories and I still sort of lost. I do get some type of exercise ( usually running and elliptical on an active rest day) at least 6 days a week, but I was also kind of injured a bit from my fall and a pulled groin over the last two weeks.

I am convinced some times that the more I eat (obviously within reason and good healthy whole foods) the more I lose or stay stable... so strange but maybe there is something to this theory of holding onto weight if you aren't getting enogh calories.

I wonder if yoga is helping?  I don't burn that much but maybe something about it?

[BobM59]

I've finally reached a weight where I feel that I don't really need to LOSE any more weight.

I am not satisfied with my overall body composition.  I need to build more lean muscle while I keep my body fat in the ballpark of where it's at right now.

Has anyone who was previously strong and heavy done this successfully?  For reference:

Age          Weight             Strength            Notes
21             235                   Very High            Playing football.   Lifting only.
22             180                   Very High            Ended football career, lifted AND ran every day.  Young/single
23-30        190-200            Moderate            Career blossomed, free time fell.  Running only.
30             220                   Moderate            First kid / Sympathy weight.  Yikes.
31             190-200             Low                   See 23-30
33             175                    Low                   Low-carb diet + running.  Need to add power.

Halp!

[witchypoo]

you need isometric exercises, maybe some weights.  up the miles.

what's your running pace (generally)?  easy for you?  or moderate effort?

eat some carbs - you'll need them if you're moving more.

[BobM59]

you need isometric exercises, maybe some weights.  up the miles.

what's your running pace (generally)?  easy for you?  or moderate effort?

eat some carbs - you'll need them if you're moving more.

I do about 35 miles / week at different length runs.  In the 7 range I do about 7 minute miles, down in the 4 range I'm closer to 6:20.  If I do a 10 miler, maybe 7:30.  All are hard by the end of the run!

[wherestheportojohn]

Hope you'll accept advice from an old lady who loves to cross train.

Start lifting again, but differently than the old school 'football workout' lifting:
Multiple muscle groups instead of isolation.

Example~~~> bicep curls while squatting on a Bosu Ball.   challenging and fun!
Example~~~> reverse lunges with overhead press.

Kettle bells, Heavy sandbags, ship ropes, etc etc are fitness toys which lend themselves to increasing mass and core strength.

Do you have weights in the basement? Belong to a gym?

[wherestheportojohn]

Witchypoo is wise: add more good quality carbs.

[Courtney]

Hope you'll accept advice from an old lady who loves to cross train.

Start lifting again, but differently than the old school 'football workout' lifting:
Multiple muscle groups instead of isolation.

Example~~~> bicep curls while squatting on a Bosu Ball.   challenging and fun!
Example~~~> reverse lunges with overhead press.

Kettle bells, Heavy sandbags, ship ropes, etc etc are fitness toys which lend themselves to increasing mass and core strength.

Do you have weights in the basement? Belong to a gym?

Agree. 

[wherestheportojohn]

Court,
Do you have a basement in your new place?
Workout area!!