Saturday, July 25, 2015

Cut the calories in your favorite Pasta Dish: Diet Pasta


 My New Way at 375 calories.  "Veggie Alfredo"  ( 7/15 dish)


**The Old Recipe was 855 calorie Alfredo & Sausage Pasta  
   

Dear Diva:  
I am redoing one of my favorite dishes.  Pasta!!  My old version at 855 calories is practically my whole days worth of calories in one dish. And that doesn't include the garlic bread I used to eat with it - so add another 206 calories for that and my favorite pasta meal comes up to 1061 calories.  Yikes!!  But don't worry Diva -there is no complicated recipe involved in saving those unwanted calories - just #4 simple changes that you can try with any of your favorite Pasta Recipes…

1-     Drop the extra’s – say no to the garlic bread, the top layer of “crusty” cheese and the condiments like Parmesan cheese off the table and out of the pan, those extra’s add up.
2-     Switch the Italian sausage for seafood - you don't have to miss the flavor - white fish and shrimp absorb spices and flavor wonderfully.  Season the seafood at least 2 hours before cooking with them for maximum flavor. **I like the premixed New Orleans style seasoning you can grab at any grocery store or Mrs. Dash with Italian Seasonings.
3-     Replace pasta noodles with cauliflower (and other assorted veggies if you like). Cauliflower is a great faux pasta (or potatoes + you can mash it or shred it), season it well and it will be a great low carb replacement.  Cauliflower also absorbs the pasta sauce well so use a light hand when seasoning the veggies.  If you want a firmer pasta feel, steam or boil the pasta to your desired tenderness.  I prefer a mushy noodle – so I cook my veggies until they are practically falling apart, very tender.

4-      Cut the serving of Alfredo pasta sauce in half and add an equal amount of chicken broth. Blend a portion of the cooked veggies in with the sauce to thicken it and then ladle it over your “veggie noodles”.

##calories #diet #pasta  #weightloss #trophywifediet

Wednesday, July 22, 2015

Weight Loss Motivation to Keep Going after Gaining: Restart Diet


AUHGGGG!!
Dear Diva's:
OMG ... The New Year, Couch Potato Time, getting relaxed on my exercise routine and a poor diet put my weight back up to 198.  (putting my weight loss at 13 pounds). AUGHHHHH  I can scream all I want- but I cant blame anyone but myself.  If I stuck to this I would have been at my goal weight by now.  The sad part is I did this to me. Of course the good news is, even though I messed up I have the power to do better!!

"Treat your body as if it belongs to someone you LOVE!"

And better is what I am doing! More Healthy Recipes and Dieting Tricks and Tips, Turning some of my exercise sessions into "Fun" Activities. I also decided to share a little more of my journey here on the blog and with friends. I think the accountability will help me to stay on point with the diet and exercise.  

So here I am at the gym weighing in... you know I weighed in my underwear and then posed for the picture. No way am I adding the weight of a sweatshirt to the scale.  #accountability
 My first steps: -Recording my weight and calories on a regular basis, so I know where I am and will be less likely to have my weight get out of control again.  I am using the free app My Fitness Pal (http://www.myfitnesspal.com/welcome/learn_more).  The app lets you record and track what you eat and snack on as well as your exercise and water intake.  There is a place for notes and sharing with friends.  You can even read blogs, get weight loss & fitness advice and sync the app to other tracking devices.
-Finding healthy, yet tasty recipes.  Along with browsing the internet, I went to my local library and checked out a bunch of books with healthy dishes and eating tips.  I read popular titles from authors like Jillian Michaels from the Biggest Loser and Joy Bauer from the Today Show.  And I watched informative and entertaining, (sometimes funny) videos on YouTube of real people dieting and sharing their weight loss journey.  Check out Mz, Brooklyn recipes and real talk about her weight loss struggles (https://youtu.be/vnhEKRorzUs), BorderHammer who throws out great advice (https://youtu.be/eDJJFAreV6k) and Lose Belly Fat who has some great before and after photos (https://youtu.be/3ZJ6NDjFDZE).

I will continue to share what I am doing and learning using me and not just stock photos #real. And of course we will keep this diva and continue to share plenty of beauty and fashion tips.