ON THE HUNT FOR HEALTHY PAD THAI!

Lots has happened since my last blog, but first, a recipe I concocted tonight for me and my hunny:



I was inspired by a recipe I saw on www.eatinghealthy.com and wanted to modify it, for my low caloric and low sodium lifestyle.... so here is what I did: (find the original recipe at: http://www.eatingwell.com/recipes/pad_thai.html)



Makes: 4 servings, about 1 1/4 cups each
Serving Size: about 1 1/4 cups each
Active Time: 25 minutes
Total Time: 25 minutes

Ingredients

• 1 serving of noodles
• 2 tablespoons sesame oil, divided
• 1 tbsp. of minced garlic
• 2 large eggs, lightly beaten
• 4.5 oz of cooked chicken
• 2-3 cups bean sprouts
• 1 shredded carrot
• 1 celery stalk (thinly cut)
• 1/2 cup sliced scallion greens
• 1/4 cup rice vinegar
• 2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
• 2 tablespoons Twin low calorie brown sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
• Chopped dry-roasted peanuts (optional)
• Lime wedges (optional)
• Garnish with mint (optional)

Preparation

Prepare the sauce while water is boiling (rice vinegar, Worcestershire sauce, crushed red pepper flakes and Twin low calorie brown sugar  (or brown sugar)

1. Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add noodles and cook until just al dente, 6 to 8 minutes. Drain.
   
   (this package of noodles I bought at T&T today in the fresh aisle - It has 5 ea in the package so I only used one and put the rest in the freezer)

1. Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a wok or large deep skillet over high heat until very hot. Add garlic and stir-fry until golden, about 10 seconds. Add eggs and cook, stirring, until scrambled, about 30 seconds. 
   
   
2. Add cut up chicken, carrot, celery and onion, bean sprouts and the remaining 1 tablespoon oil; stir-fry for about 2 minutes.
   
   
    (I always have chicken ready for quick meals.  I cut one boneless chicken breast in two and that is our portion for our meals, nowadays)
   
   
   
3. Add the noodles and prepared sauce; toss until heated through, 1 to 2 minutes. If desired, sprinkle with peanuts and serve with lime wedges. (I served it with mint and lime)

VOILA!  It was quite tasty and will definitely make it again!  I particularly liked using the sesame oil as it gave it that "peanut" taste.  I seem to be ok with this oil (as I have a nut allergy!) so it was a big treat for me.

Almost a year has gone by and there have been many downs, rather than ups in the past while.  Tonsil surgery, my father's passing, taking care of my mom.... let me tell ya, my weight has been doing major yo-yos.  Dropped 17lbs in 10 days with my surgery, gained it all back (and then some) with eating out after my dad passed away, while cleaning the house out of my parents' belongings and getting my mom placed in a home.  Fast food isn't the best when trying to lose weight, even if you take the "healthy" versions...  

 

A month ago, I joined Curves and Herbal Magic.  So far, 14.8lbs down and 16 inches lost.  I love the support I have with them.  They cheer me on.  I've also been prepping for my bellydance camp, which is coming up in 4 sleeps!  A year of waiting, and it's finally here.  Time sure has gone by quickly.

 

Although not having been to Curves this week, I've been practicing my bellydance routine like mad as next Friday, I am performing it in front of my fellow bellydancers and Aziza herself.  I am excited about going to camp but am also quite nervous.  I push through my fear of being the only plus sized girl at camp.  My insecurities are through the roof but again, I push through it... I know I'm going to have an amazing time.  I know I'm going to make new friends.  I've just got to push through my insecurities.

 

4 more sleeps and I'm away at camp!  I'm almost all packed and ready to shimmy my buns off!  I wonder how much weight I'll lose!  :) *cross fingers*

Lovely hike at Meech lake

shot from the back of the laboratory, now in ruins.

 

What a wonderful way to spend a sunny Sunday with my hunny.... We went up to Meech lake and went hiking.  Went to the lake itself, came back and hiked all the way to the Mill.  What an amazing place, so tranquil and wondrous.  Met lots of hikers along the way.  My hunny even said that next time, we should garb up and take pics there... (and most likely get odd looks from other hikers LOL!)  Took my Garmin with me (which I have not used in a long time, shame on me!) and it clocked at 4.2km. 

After the hike, we perused the local boutiques, bought some yummy smelling candles at Doozy Candle Factory ( www.doozycandle.com )and headed to lunch at Café soup`herbe.  Much to my hunny`s dismay, he failed to noticed it was a vegetarian restaurant... he was like: ''there's no meat on the menu... oh wait.... *sigh*''.  He and I both had their yummy salad (soup'herbe).  Expensive, but yummy.  Again, a great way to spend a sunny Sunday.

My right knee and left ankle are a little tender right now, but nothing a hot tub won't cure!  :)  Gotta be in good shape for salsa tomorrow and bellydancing on Wednesday!  I have a few pics to share that I took with my phone, but  it really doesn`t do it justice.  It's a good hike, but so worth it!

falls at the laboratory.  So tranquil...

1-2-3, 5-6-7! It’s Salsa time!

 

 

        Many months have passed yet again and the battle of the bulge continues.  The weight I have lost has started to creep back again.  *sigh*  That’s what happens when you tend not to exercise as much & when classes aren’t running until the fall!

 Although I have not gone running in months (damn plantar fasciitis!), I have been treating it with ice and massaging to get it better for dancing (and visits to my chiropractor for foot adjustments).  I have started up my dancing lessons with my dance partner again and am now learning Salsa.  We both love it and are looking forward to learning more latin dances.  It’s kinda going away from the traditional ballroom dancing that we’ve been learning but this really makes us sweat!  Salsa is so fast and has so many spins… you have no choice but to get warm!  I believe that the next latin dance we will learn is the Bachata.  I can’t wait!!!!  I’ve also registered to bellydancing again.  I found another place nearby and it starts this week (I honestly can’t wait!)   It has been TOO LONG since I’ve moved my hips to the rhythmic beats of an Arabic drum.  Hopefully, my dancing salsa 2x a week (includes practice time with my partner at my place on Sundays), and bellydancing once a week will help me slim down again….

 

This summer’s been so full of great adventures with my hubby.  So many renaissance faires, so many walks in the forest and enjoying nature so many wonderful moments with my hunny.  Awesome summer!

buh buh buh blues....

So a couple of months have gone by without me blogging.  I've been struggling with my emotions (and physical ailments) these past couple of months.  Guilt, sadness, pain, exhaustion, resentment, feeling overwhelmed, etc... to which I will address below. The balance between life and physical fitness was getting to be overwhelming for me and had to take a break with my coach.  Leading up to that decision were many nights of exhaustion and missing my husband.  (This is where some of the guilt lays).  Spending every evening with my husband is and has always been wonderful as we enjoy spending time together (however odd it may seem!) and being away from home 4-5 times a week was getting to be too much for me  (plus with all the travel time in between). 

I've felt extremely guilty for having a "life" of my own (which I know may seem odd for others but not odd for me to say that) and guilty for taking a break from my coach.  The fear of disappointment was very strong for both and didn't help my emotions.

Shortly after taking a break with my coach, I went to the dentist to have some dental work done.  It was a long and excruciating process to which I could not seem to recover from.  I had TMJ.  The constant pain and popping of pain killers every 4 hours were really draining.  By the time I got home, I would eat quickly, rub my mouth pop pain killers and cry.  Thankfully, 2 weeks ago, I went to see my chiropractor (as I figured that ingesting Advil or any other type of pain killer - prescribed or not - every 4 hours every single day for 2 months was not right!) and he adjusted my jaw.  I am now feeling much better and have been Advil free for a week!  The pain has gone to my foot now (the one I had fractured a while back)  - I now have (for the past few weeks) plantar fasciitis.  Good gawd!  I just want to get better!!!!  Seriously! 

The lack of exercising and bad eating habits (carbs and soft mushy foods) has taken a toll on me.  I'd see my weight go up a bit, and I resented myself for it (to which would induce depression and make me want to eat more.  When I did, I'd beat myself up for it.  Viscious cycle!)

I jumped on the scale this morning and was happy to see that those extra pounds that I had gained, are slowly coming off as I can now eat healthier (thanks to my chiro!) and although having pain in my foot, have been walking.  Next week is my run.  It worries me to no end as I just want to be able to please my coach but know that she'll be disappointed in me for not training these past weeks.  I can only do my best. 

I don't want to make this blog post seem like I am making excuses or to be negative but more so explain where my mindset has been.  I may look like a strong person, but at times, am not.  This gorgeous weather has been helping my moods and the almost pain free jaw (not foot) is helping as well.  Now to get 100% better and get back on track and said goodbye to the blues!!! :)

First jog!

My new running watch!  GPS and all!

A month has gone by since my last post... I've been away on a trip and was sick for 2 weeks.  My workouts were non-existent while sick, but still managed to sneak a few workouts in at the hotels we were staying at and walk for hours during our trip.  Also happy to report that I have lost 14lbs so far.  Yay! 

So last night was my first jog outside.  Adorned with my new Garmin 405CX, I went for a 2.3km jog with my coach, doing intervals of 1 minute running, 1 minute walking.  Took us forever to try and figure out this nifty watch I have, but alas, couldn't make it work.... so it was just an expensive watch.  Boo.  Was able to make it work this morning while playing around with it, so it'll be ready for tomorrow's run! 

My hubby and I are now members of Vibraforme.  It's similar to T-Zone vibrations.  This machine causes the muscles to contract at extremely rapid speeds which causes an increase in muscle mass and thus reduce the excess fat in the body.  A 10 minute workout makes you sweat like crazy but burns mega calories.  They say up to 500 calories but counted it as less, just in case.  I was nauseous afterwards but the trainer said that it was because I really pushed myself and overdid it.  We'll see next time (which is on Friday!)  It's not going to replace my workouts, not at all, but is a nice compliment to what I'm already doing.  Hubby's doing this with me too!  So proud of him for wanting to join me!  My convincing phrase? "Dude, it's only 10 minutes" to which the trainer said: "did you just call him dude?"  LOL!  Now to work on his desserts..... ;)

Ottawa run

Well folks, another exciting moment on my journey!  I've just registered for my 2nd 5k event!  This time, I plan on running it!  On May 26th at 5pm, I will be running with my coach at the Ottawa Run!  I will require many months of training but know I can do this.  I've shown last night at my bi-weekly training that I can push myself to the max and dig deep for that inner strength to give even more.  I am so excited, you can't even imagine… Who would have thought that I would like this so much?! This will be my trial 5k for my ultimate goal, the army run!  Ever since I heard of the Army run event last year from friends and my coach, I've wanted to join the masses in this fun activity.  I am looking forward to sweating, pushing myself, and getting that rush when crossing that finishing line!  Let's hope that I beat my last 5k record of 53:11!