Monday Meals: Easy Low-fat Enchiladas

1/2 lb. 97% lean ground beef
1/2 lb. Pepper Stir Fry Mix
1 can enchilada sauce (10 oz)
3/4 cup Fat Free Shredded Cheddar Cheese
8 corn tortillas or 6 small Whole Wheat tortillas

1. Heat oven to 375ºF. LIghtly grease 7 x 11 inch glass baking dish. In large skillet cook beef until done. Add pepper stir fry and cook until vegetables are heated through. Add 1/2 the can of Enchilada sauce and 1/2 cup of the cheese to skillet, stir and remove from heat.
2. Spoon enchilada filling onto tortillas; roll up and place seam sides down in baking dish.
3. Pour remaining enchilada sauce over top: sprinkle with remaining 1/4 cup cheese. Bake 15-20 minutes or until hot.

Week 15

I know I skipped posting last week but I went camping and other stuff so I just didn't have time. I've decided not to take my measurements for a few weeks because I seem to be stuck in that area for now. We'll see what happens. I was hoping to have gone down 20 lbs. by my birthday, but I didn't quite make it... 18 lbs. is pretty good though. :)

Tomorrow's the 3rd Anniversary of my 26th birthday. I refuse to get older if my husband isn't around to acknowledge my age progression. :) Anyway, I'm going to eat whatever I want and I'm going to enjoy it. I try to eat healthy for the most part and I'm successful 90% of the time, but a few times a year I want to just indulge in delicious awful food like brownies and Oreos. :)

The reason I don't do it more than a couple of times a year though, is because it only takes 8 hrs for any extra calories you've consumed to metabolize and be stored as fat. That's why it's possible for people to gain a few pounds over Thanksgiving weekend. Honestly, I won't be able to eat that much anyway because my stomach has shrunk.

Stomachs are cool like that, they can either grow or shrink to accommodate how much food you put into them and tell them to get used to. It can take a couple of weeks for your stomach to shrink and you'll feel hungry, but if you persist in eating only the calories you should, your stomach will start to feel full faster after having eaten less.
Well, that's all for now. :) Have a great week!

Tuesday's Tips: 7

In order to feel satiated make sure you include a decent amount of protein in every meal. Now I'm not saying you should eat an entire cow or something (although an occasional burger is nice), I'm saying eat lots of different types of protein like nuts, beans, and soy. Fish, lean poultry and egg-whites are excellent choices as well. One of my favorite forms of protein is seafood: crab, lobster, oysters, shrimp etc.... yummy and it's almost completely fat-free.

Protein=Feeling Full! :)

Besides, if you're working out your muscles with resistance training, you need protein to build your muscles.

My Bread

If you'd like an almost Fat-Free, super yummy, healthy Bread Recipe, click here.

Week 13: Recap and photos

So here's a Recap on my weight-loss journey.

I'm not sure how much I weighed in 2008 but I was not happy with my appearance at all. Here are a couple 'Fat' photos:
(I can't believe I'm sharing these: oh well)


In May 2009 I started exercising but not watching the amount of calories I was eating so I got up to 185 lbs. (Yuck!)

Anyway, I was determined to change that before I even thought about having another baby so I worked out really hard and ate 4 meals of 400 calories each and dropped down to 165.

Then I got pregnant. The day before I gave birth to Clara I weighed in at 194 lbs.

6 weeks postpartum I was down to 170.

Now I'm down to 154, I can't believe it, it's WONDERFUL! I keep losing weight and it's become easy to watch my calorie intake and I'm always motivated to exercise. I have finally gotten rid of a lot of my 'Fat' clothes and I went out and purchased some NEW smaller clothes since I feel as though I look a whole lot cuter than I did 15 months ago when I was 31 lbs. heavier.

For those of you who still think that 154 seems like a lot of weight remember that I'm 5' 9" so my BMI is only 22.74 which really isn't bad.
If I had the same BMI and I were only 5 '4", I'd weigh 132.5 lbs.
I think I'd like to drop another 14 lbs. and get down to 140, but we'll see what happens. I'm feeling healthy and cute and happy and I NEVER want to feel chubby again. I want to be Super Sexy for my husband when he returns from his deployment and I know I can make it happen.

Here are a couple of pictures from last week:



Getting in shape seems hard at first, but once you've developed healthier habits, it can come rather easily as long as you're not looking for the quick fix. I lose 1 or 2 lbs. every week and that works for me, maybe it could work for you too. :)

Week 12- Steady Progress

I've been doing what the doctor said and I can already feel a big difference in my knees; not much pain, and my knee-caps aren't shifting around like they were! YIPPEE!

By the beginning of next month I should be able to start running again! I can once again see that 5 K in my future! Also, I now have a couple of different friends who want to do it with me, so I'm going to start looking around for races toward the end of the year! Just the thought of it gets me itching to start training, but I'll stick to what the doctor has ordered.

Something else I've noticed is that I've had to increase the weight on the machines I use or I don't feel like I'm getting a workout.... so....I'm assuming either the weights are getting lighter or I'm getting stronger. My arms aren't progressing the way my legs are but that's because I'm unable to use the machines that require a grip so I do what I can, and I'll be happy with any progress for now. :)

Speaking of progress, check out the sidebar; I'm down 14 lbs from where I started, and my inches are moving in the right directions... I.E. my waist is going down and 'just above the knee' is going up! Feeling good over all, how are you doing? :)

Tuesday's Tips: 6

I've decided that whenever I have a craving for something healthy, I'm going to make the effort to go out and get it no matter how much it costs. The other day I really wanted an artichoke, so I put it at the top of my grocery list, looked around the kitchen for other things I should pick up while I was at the store, loaded my kids in the van, and went shopping.
I bought my artichoke, and after the kids were down for the night, I cooked it up, put on a good movie, and thoroughly indulged in my healthy snack.
From now on, this one of my mottos, "if it's healthy and I'm craving it, then it WILL be mine!" :)

Sunday Sweets- Blueberry Muffins

Healthy and Heavenly, these muffins are one of my favorite snack foods. The recipe is low-fat, easy and the results are delectable!

Yield: 1 dozen medium sized Muffins

Preheat oven to 425 degrees F

In a large bowl combine:
2 cups whole wheat flour
1 tsp salt
4 tsp baking powder
1/2 cup brown sugar

In a separate bowl combine:
1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce
1/2 cup water
1 large banana (mashed)
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
zest of one lemon (or 1/4 tsp Lemon extract)
-mix thoroughly

Pour wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and mix until just combined, then add

1 1/2 cups frozen blueberries -mix lightly.

Bake in greased muffin tins for about 15 minutes or until toothpick inserted into the center of one comes out clean.
(Each muffin is approximately 130 calories)

New Note: Substituting pureed cooked vegetables like sweet potatoes or cauliflower for the applesauce is also a great way of sneaking some extra veggies into your diet.