Tag Archives: Diets

Aztec Diet: Day 33: More Temptations

March 23, 2013 carolannnewsome Leave a comment

Pounds lost: 17

Pre-Breakfast: 1/2 ruby red grapefruit; Breakfast and lunch: Blueberry Banocada made with almond milk; Snack: 1 cup cottage cheese and 1 apple; Dinner: 1 can tuna, 1 tablespoon Miracle Whip, 2 slices sprouted multi-grain bread; snack: Nestles’ Crunch Bar

Today was another draw. My team leader, Eric, is a sweet young guy with a shaved head and a Batman hoodie. He wears baggy but not saggy jeans. He’s got a cute scruff of beard along his chin. Tonight he announced, “I don’t bake,” then proceeded to lay full-sized Nestles’ Crunch Bars on our desks. I stared at it for a while and pretended to consider options. Eventually, I admitted to myself that I was eventually going to eat it, and agonizing over it was a waste of time. So I broke it up into little pieces and nibbled at it while we completed training, as if this would make eating it more virtuous. I noticed it was 200 calories, same as I had planned for my evening snack. I skipped the flax crackers.

No, I’m not proud.

I have no trouble turning down alcohol and other things which are bad for me. Chocolate is another matter. Avoiding temptation is not hard. I can keep my hand out of those big bowls of candy.Turning it down when it wraps its slinky arms around your neck and plants a big kiss on your mouth is another thing entirely. And while a Crunch Bar is not the skank ho of temptations, it is far cry from finding Johnny Depp in your bed.

I feel so cheap.

Maybe, by the time this project is over, I will have the mental tools to resist being flogged with chocolate.

Meanwhile, here is a perfectly harmless temptation for sci fi fans.

Sherdan has spent many years planning for the future. Now he’s in control and he is expected to forge a fresh new start for the people in his program, people he has shaped and can’t abandon, but Britain’s PM has other ideas and Sherdan must face the full might of the UK. On top of all this he has to face the one thing he never expected to feel; love.

Anya is on a mission from God to find out why she has been sent to the heart of Bristol, and what she can do to stop the world being plunged into war. When she finds herself forced to pick a side and join the fight, only her faith in God can see her through.

Sherdan’s Prophecy is a tale of high stakes and political intrigue. A science fiction novel where faith and technology come together to take the human race another step closer to the final showdown. Where a few select people make decisions on behalf of many. A gritty account of power that shows both the best and the worst of humanity.

Aztec Diet, Diet, Food

Aztec Diet Day 32: New Job, New Temptations

March 22, 2013 carolannnewsome Leave a comment

Pounds lost: 17

Breakfast and Lunch: Carol’s Kale Blueberry Variation; Snack: Mandarin cutie and a handful of popcorn; Dinner: venison stew with quinoa; Snack: popcorn, 1 small homemade chocolate chip cookie and seasoned nori; Bedtime Snack: 1/2 ruby red grapfruit

Today started my third year as a seasonal employee grading short answer type questions on state proficiency tests. I love the job. The pay is decent and the working conditions are pleasant. They do their best to make a tedious task agreeable.

One of these things is allowing quiet snacking at our desks. Another is encouraging team leaders to keep large bowls of candy on hand, and to even pass these around. They also keep several well-stocked vending machines full of junk food and a free coffee bar that includes hot chocolate (my personal bete noire). Some team-leaders even bake cookies and bring them in.

I’ve been thinking about this for several days, how to deal with this. I packed a bag with a cutie, several cups of air-popped popcorn, 2 apples, a serving of venison stew and some seasoned nori, along with several bags of green tea. Overkill, perhaps, but better than than succumbing to processed sugar.

I did fine before our break, slowly sipping on a cup of green tea. I did way too much nervous munching during the second half of our training. Mostly because our 15 minute break was not long enough to eat my stew. So my juices got going and I found myself nibbling away at my desk. Boredom also contributed as I waited for the presenter to review information I’d already grasped.

Today was a draw. I avoided the processed junk but ate too many carbs. My plan for tomorrow is to switch to a tuna salad sandwich on sprouted bread for dinner and toss in some celery sticks. Also some herbal tea-bags. One cup of green tea at 5:30 p.m. is okay, but after the break, I need something that won’t keep me awake all night. I think hot tea will satisfy more than the cold water I had after break tonight and cut down on the munching. As for the popcorn, I’m torn. Though it’s carby, it’s better than other options. But if I have it, I know I’ll eat it. If I don’t have it, will I succumb to other temptations? I don’t know.

Does this sound like a military campaign? It is. This is War.

Aztec Diet, Diet, Food

Aztec Diet Day 31: Dr. Bob’s Smoothie Recipes

March 21, 2013 carolannnewsome 3 Comments

Pounds lost: 17 pounds

Pre-Breakfast: apple Breakfast: Chocolate Cherry Banocada; Lunch: 1 Cup low-fat cottage cheese; Snack: ruby red grapefruit; Dinner: Venison Stew; Snack: none

I get a lot of hits from people looking for Dr. Bob’s smoothie recipes. I don’t post them here because I don’t have permission. ABC does, though, and they posted three of them (including his go-to Kale Blueberry Smoothie) along with a recent story about the Aztec Diet. Check them out here: http://gma.yahoo.com/blogs/abc-blogs/aztec-diet-focuses-ancient-superfood-120103048–abc-news-Recipes.html.

Meanwhile, keep checking this blog for my own culinary experiments.

I was brave enough to put on my old pants today. Yes they zipped up. Yeah! No, they were not comfortable. Boo! Soon, though, soon.

Nothing much else to say. I spent the rest of the day polishing a flute. And, no, I am not being euphemistic.

Chocolate Cherry Banocado

“Banocado” is a term I coined to refer to any smoothie that consists of fruit added to 1 banana and 1 avocado. This will actually produce 3-1/2 cups of smoothie, so it’s perfect for two people. If you want to be more in keeping with Dr. Bob’s recommendations, you can use 1/2 avocado and 1/2 banana. The produces a smaller carb load. The problem isn’t the avocado, it’s the banana. I can just have never figured out how to keep 1/2 an avocado, so I reduce my carb load the rest of the day. The other solution is to only use 1/2 a banana. I have no problem with that.

Aztec Diet, Diet, Food, Lia Anderson Dog Park Mysteries

Aztec Diet Day 30: Field Trip

March 20, 2013 carolannnewsome Leave a comment

Pounds lost: 17

Pre-Breakfast: apple; Breakfast: Mango Tango; Costco Samples: Chobani blueberry yogurt, romaine lettuce with ranch dressing and a single crouton, 2 bites of grilled salmon patty (yes, I know you’re only supposed to take one); Snack: Starbucks cafe mocha; Lunch: Miso Green, 12 oz water with 4 TBSP ground chia; Snack: cottage cheese Dinner: venison stew served with quinoa; Snack: none

The venison stew is lovely. Which is good, because it’s playing all week.

I hope nobody thinks I’m holding myself up as a model of dieting perfection. Mostly, I wanted to record my intake and recipes, and since this is the thing I’ve been most preoccupied with for the past month, it was natural to put it on my blog. Otherwise, I’d have nothing interesting to put in my blog unless I were to post spoilers to my current Work In Progress, and you all know THAT’s not going to happen.

I’ve figured out a few things about weight loss, none of them earth-shattering.

1. Persistence is more important than perfection. I’ve snuck the occasional guilty treat. I don’t beat myself up about it, I get back on the diet and keep moving forward. I do document it though, because it helps me pin-point my weak spots. It also keeps me aware of how often I’m cheating. It’s too easy to justify the “occasional treat” until it becomes so frequent, you’re not dieting anymore.

2. It’s important to choose a diet and modify it so that it suits your schedule and your chemistry. In the case of the Aztec Diet, I’ve included more healthy fats. This is critical to managing my TBI and my depression. Cacao is also beneficial for mood management, and is frequent addition in my smoothies. I’ve increased the focus on raw foods because I find them more conducive to health and weight loss. I often start my day with a piece of fruit because my mandatory morning trip to the dog park pushes breakfast back to 10 a.m. And I create my own recipes. It’s so much easier to stick with a diet that I enjoy. I may not be losing weight as fast as those who stick strictly with the diet as written, but I know I can stick with it long enough to reach my goal.

3. Celebrate progress (but not by eating). My lounge-around-the-house pants are getting saggy. I see the beginnings of a waistline. I’ve had three people in the last week tell me that I look thinner. And, during my monthly trip to Cost-co today, I ate the healthy samples and felt no pull towards the mac ‘n’ cheese.

Yes, I did get that cafe mocha at Starbucks afterward. Anna handed me her Starbucks card and told me to get whatever I wanted while she picked up a few things at Target. (Obviously, Anna is one of my dietary weak spots.) As I said above, I’m not perfect. But I also perused the pastry case with only mild interest, not desperate longing. I’m losing my craving for carbs. I can eat without having to nap afterwards.

These things are all worth celebrating. So I give myself an “atta girl” every time I have to pull my pants back up. I do not buy myself an ice cream cone.

There’s a lot I can improve. I’ve got to work on handling restaurants. I need to drink more water. And one day I WILL add exercise back into my daily routine. But today I am thinner than yesterday. And I am not as thin as I will be tomorrow.

After Cost-co and Target, Anna and I went to Dick’s Sporting Goods so I could ogle the crossbows for research purposes. It’s so important to have an acquaintance with one’s murder weapons. I have to say they are really ugly looking pieces of equipment bearing only a slight resemblance to their Medieval progenitors. The hunting arrowheads are much more elegant. I also looked for Howling Coyote Predator Lure. I was thinking of buying a bottle so I could smell it. No, I’m not a pervert. It plays a part in my book. Alas, only deer urine. Anna offered to take me to her place so I could sniff her prize schnauzer, Hillary, who is in heat. I declined. It wouldn’t be the same.

If anyone has ever smelled coyote estrus, feel free to post your impressions below. You will earn my eternal gratitude.

The factory next door was making a vilely pungent batch of artificial smoke, presumably for human consumption. We decided that our clothes had to be permeated with the stuff from our stroll through the parking lot. We considered taking a walk in the woods to see what kind of wild-life we would attract. Then we considered the ‘wild-life’ usually hanging around in Burnet Woods and changed our minds.

Mango Tango

Aztec Diet, Diet, Food

Aztec Diet Day 29: Crock Pot Magic

March 19, 2013 carolannnewsome Leave a comment

Pounds lost: 17

Breakfast: Dr. Bob’s Kale Blueberry Smoothie (Aztec Diet) with romaine instead of kale (I was out of kale); Lunch: 1 avocado with peach-mango salsa; Dinner: wild-caught salmon patty on sprouted multi-grain bread with Miracle Whip and cheddar cheese*; Snack: 1 oz. pomegranate juice with 12 oz water and 4 TBSP ground chia and 2 Mandarin cuties

I went shopping today. Bought lots of lovely, fresh produce for smoothies. But what to do with the stuff going limp in the bottom of the refrigerator?

This is where my crock-pot comes into play. Tomorrow will be stew day. I’ll clean out the produce drawers and set up my solid meal for several days in one fell swoop (what the heck is a fell swoop, anyway?**)

I’m currently thawing out some deer Rudy gave me (I’ll bet your landlord doesn’t butcher his own deer, so you can use beef instead). I’ll toss that into the crock pot with some bay leaves and wine. Some water and bit of salt. While that is getting tender, I’ll chunk up my left-over veggies and toss them in. Onion, bell pepper, carrots, celery, whole cloves of garlic. If I had greens that needed to be used up, I’d toss them in, too. But I’ve been a good girl and loaded all my greens into smoothies. No potatoes, though. Don’t have them in the house since they are vegetable-non-grata in Aztec Diet Land. Easiest is to toss in quinoa in the last hour. Brown rice would also work, but it gets mushy if you don’t cook it up separately. Don’t use too much water, as the vegetables will add broth as they cook down.

Simple. Easy. Two of my favorite words.

I’ll tell you how it turns out.

* Yes, I have switched my solid meal from lunch to dinner. No, this is not advised by Dr. Bob. But it’s stopped my late-night snacking on popcorn.

**This phrase is thought to originate with Shakespeare. Who knew? http://www.phrases.org.uk/meanings/at-one-fell-swoop.html

Aztec Diet, Diet, Lia Anderson Dog Park Mysteries

Aztec Diet Day 28: Empty Fridge Syndrome

March 18, 2013 carolannnewsome Leave a comment

Pounds lost: 17

Saturday
Breakfast: Eggs scrambled with mushrooms, red bell pepper, broccoli and cheddar cheese; Lunch: Kale Apple Carrot (Aztec Diet) Snack: Mandarin cutie; Dinner: Marie Callender Herb Roasted Chicken dinner. No, this is not advised, but at least it is no longer in the freezer. I wish I could say I was virtuous and skipped the potatoes. I can’t.

Sunday
Pre-breakfast: apple; Breakfast: 2 Cups Papaya Blackberry Smoothie; Lunch: 1 Cup Papaya Blackberry Smoothie and 1 large pink grapefruit; Snack: air-popped popcorn; Dinner: wild-caught pacific salmon pattie on sprouted multi-grain bread with a 2 TSP Miracle Whip and 4 oz pomegranate juice in 12 oz water with 2 TBSP ground chia.

My stomach is getting smaller. Not only is my paunch shrinking, I’m finding I am full on less food. This is a very good thing.

Eating fresh food requires that you actually use that food before it spoils. Now I’m out of avocados, out of kale and spinach, out of blueberries, almost out of frozen fruit. I have a lot of bananas, romaine, carrots and tofu. An almost empty fridge invites experimentation and odd combinations. But, no, I’m NOT going to make a smoothie out of that.

Today I was busy causing problems. Peter and Brent were grilling poor Kitty about her illicit relationship with the deceased. Poor woman is alone, 1,500 miles from home and has no one to turn to. Lia is sympathetic, but Peter doesn’t want her mixed up in police business. Think she’s going to listen?

So Lia and Peter are grousing at each other and I was too busy to shop. This morning I discovered not all combinations are good ones. I thought cacao went with everything. It does not. I’m leaving it out of the recipe below, because adding it made the whole thing taste like mud. Which did decrease my appetite and made it last longer. You can add it it you must, but hey, it tastes like mud.

Papaya Blackberry Smoothie

Aztec Diet, Diet, Food

Aztec Diet Day 26: Going off the Reservation

March 16, 2013 carolannnewsome Leave a comment

Pounds lost: 16

Thursday
Pre-breakfast: 2 Mandarin cuties; Breakfast: spinach, feta, tomato and onion omelet, rye toast, small portion of hash browns; Lunch: cottage cheese; Snack: 2 Mandarin cuties; Dinner: Yellow Submarine; Snack: none

Friday
Pre-breakfast: apple; Breakfast and Lunch: All Day Blueberry Banocado Smoothie; Snack: non-fat cottage cheese; Dinner: grilled cheese – cheddar on sprouted grain bread cooked in 1 TSP coconut oil; Snack: none

Woke up this morning to a 16 pound total loss. I seem to be doing best when I have solid food early in the evening and am able to skip the evening snack. So I’m switching the program to eat solid food for dinner and smoothies the rest of the time.

Yellow Submarine

All Day Blueberry Banocado

Aztec Diet, Diet, Food

Aztec Diet Day 24: Lucky Leucine

March 14, 2013 carolannnewsome Leave a comment

Pounds lost: 14

Pre-Breakfast: apple; Breakfast: Dr. Bob’s Kale Blueberry Smoothie (Aztec Diet); Lunch: Hot Guac; Snack: granola with almond milk; Dinner: none; Snack: none

Today was a day of rest, so I kept things simple. No new recipes today. I wasn’t hungry, so I skipped dinner. So I’ll use this space to talk about an article I read last week.

University of Cincinnati researchers, Randy Seely, PhD and Karen Ryan, PhD, are looking at diets a different way. Rather than looking at fats, carbs and sugars, they are examining the role of micro-nutrients in weight-loss.

They note that that leucine, an amino acid not manufactured in the body, triggers brain pathways that reduce food intake and body weight. Leucine lowers elevated blood sugar levels. It is also necessary in healing bones, skin, and muscle tissue. Adults need 14 mg per pound of body weight, between 2 and 3 grams a day.

Foods containing leucine include: egg whites (a top source with more than 4 grams in a cup of egg whites) soybeans, lentils, some cuts of beef, Chicken, tuna, shrimp (a one ounce serving give you 3500 mg), fish, brown rice and cows milk. Cottage cheese is a terrific choice at more than 3500 mg per 200 calorie serving.

for leucine levels of specific foods, look here: http://nutritiondata.self.com/foods-000082000000000000000-1.html?

Aztec Diet, Books, Diet, Food, Lia Anderson Dog Park Mysteries, On Being a Writer

Aztec Diet: Out of the Office

March 9, 2013 carolannnewsome Leave a comment

My New Blender
I missed posting yesterday. Looks like I won’t be able to get back here until later tonight. I’m still on my diet. I got a new blender, which I LOVE. http://www.amazon.com/Oster-BVCB07-Z-Counterforms-7-Speed-Stainless/dp/B002RBXHSC/ And it looks like the last several days of stalled weight (and my chocolate binge of yesterday) were due to a normal influx of hormones. Drool Baby is even back on the top 100 list for Mystery Series at Amazon. Things are back on track.

I’ve been tied up because I contracted with a narrator to produce an audiobook of A Shot in the Bark. I’m terminally jazzed. She’s got a terrific versatile voice and is very professional. I think she’s going to be perfect for Lia. AND she got right on it. So I had to put everything else on hold while I got production notes together. I have high hopes for release before the end of May. If all goes well, Drool Baby will be close behind.

Today’s Saturday, the day I usually plug a couple fellow writers – Give them a look-see!

When her best friend is murdered, Julie O’Hara, a body language expert, packs up her suspicion and flies to Boston for his funeral. Who could have killed rising artist Marc Solomon, and what does Castle Cay, the Solomon’s mysterious Caribbean island, have to do with it? Before long, Julie’s sixth-sense pulls a hidden string that unravels a deadly conspiracy…and her own troubled past.

http://amzn.to/13IRzNi

Nightmares of a horrific car accident haunt Amber, and the scars go deep. As she struggles to regain memories of the past few years, Amber receives a phone call from an old high school friend, a woman who has been missing for three months. The call is disconnected as her friend pleads for help.

With her neighbor at her side, Amber digs into the disappearance, but sinister men are watching and they don’t like Amber’s meddling. While danger lurks, Amber discovers secrets that may unravel her life.

Someone wants those secrets buried…

“A twisty, intense mystery that scares, surprises, and satisfies” Traci Tyne Hilton (Mitzy Neuhaus Mystery series)

http://ow.ly/fL9oB

I’m off to the dog park, because Poo waits for no man. Or woman. I’ll catch you up as soon as I can. Promise.

Keep Chugging that Chia!

Aztec Diet, Diet, Food, TBI

Aztec Diet Day 17: Brain Food

March 7, 2013 carolannnewsome Leave a comment

Stats: Still holding steady at a 9 pound net loss.

Breakfast: Greek yogurt with 1 Cup blueberries, a mandarin cutie and a banana; Mid-morning: 20 oz water with 4 TBSP chia; Lunch: Hot Guac Salad, 16 oz water with 2 TBSP chia; Snack: 1 Cup cottage cheese, 40 calorie snack pack of seasoned nori; Dinner: Spinach/Papya/Mango Salad 12 oz water with 2 TBSP chia Snack: 1 oz air-popped popcorn

Yesterday the blade assembly on my blender fell apart. New blender is not due until tomorrow evening. All is not lost. I plan to eat the same things I’ve been eating, just not blended up. It will be a nice change.

I’ve mentioned before that I suffer from mild traumatic brain injury (TBI). For years the conventional wisdom has been that these injuries do not see improvement after two years. Due to the large number of head injuries resulting form the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, medical science is finally questioning this assumption.

People like me tend to fall through the cracks because, hey, we know what side of the toothbrush the paste goes on, and we can take a shower by ourselves. Those are the standards for being functional. Never mind how long it takes us to do these things, how stressful it is, or how exhausted we are afterwards. We may retain our level of intelligence, yet struggle to make decisions and complete simple tasks. We are often too fatigued to do more than get up in the morning and feed ourselves.

I’m very fortunate to have a group of fellow suffers to share experiences with. Aside from getting the validation and emotional support sadly lacking in the medical community, I have also learned much about managing my condition. We’ve had to learn to be our own doctors. I’ve had gains in both productivity and well-being, despite being years past the two year mark. The gains are very modest, but the impact they have on my life are enormous.

One area that needs more attention is the role of diet in treating TBI. It makes sense that the same foods which are beneficial for Alzheimer’s patients would also help TBI sufferers. Couple this with a diet that reduces carbohydrate induced brain-fog, and the possibilities are intriguing. This is the Aztec Diet in a nutshell. To further enhance these effects, I am researching specific foods that enhance brain function.

Some Goodies:

Hot Guac Salad

Mash up the avocado in a bowl. Mix in the lemon juice, then add the cumin, to taste. spoon salsa on top, then top that with the cheese. spoon this into romaine leaves. you can treat large leaves like taco shells. The small inner leaves make lovely little “boats” just big enough for one bite.

Spinach/Papaya/Mango Salad

No need for dressing. The fruit moistens the spinach.

Lia Anderson Dog Park Mysteries by C.A. Newsome

Tag Archives: Diets

Aztec Diet: Day 33: More Temptations

Aztec Diet Day 32: New Job, New Temptations

Aztec Diet Day 31: Dr. Bob’s Smoothie Recipes

Aztec Diet Day 30: Field Trip

Aztec Diet Day 29: Crock Pot Magic

Aztec Diet Day 28: Empty Fridge Syndrome

Aztec Diet Day 26: Going off the Reservation

Aztec Diet Day 24: Lucky Leucine

Aztec Diet: Out of the Office

Aztec Diet Day 17: Brain Food

Murder. Romance. Dog Slobber.

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Murder. Romance. Dog Slobber.