<$Thursday, August 9, 2007$>
Zoned Thursday: swimming the fat away (and piling it back on my baked potato)
| My affair with Gym is still going strong. It's the end of the third week (almost), and by now my morning swim routine is pretty, er, routine. I'm in much better shape than when I started, and my waistline is actually continuing to shrink in spite of all of the fast food and deli sushi we indulged in last week. I gotta tell ya, little motivates me to exercise more than being able to eat what I want (within reason) and still be in decent shape. Still, I'm trying to keep it Zone-y. I've done pretty well this week, except for Tuesday night when I took home some deli boxed lunches left over from a meeting. The sandwiches wouldn't have been too far off the mark, but I couldn't resist the chips that came with them. At least I was saved from further temptation by whomever it was who stole the cookies out of both boxes (*glares at Cookie Crook*). I got myself back on track partly by allowing myself the indulgence of a baked potato that I Zonified as much as possible. Actually, I think the meal turned out pretty Zone-friendly. Potatoes aren't necessarily verboten in the Zone (nothing is, really, as long as you have balance), but they're definitely meant to be consumed in moderation. With that in mind, I picked up a couple of small russet potatoes on a recent trip to Wild Oats and proceeded to Zonify them thusly: Zone-friendly Twice Baked Potatoes For one serving: 1 small potato 2 strips of turkey bacon, chopped 3 wedges of low fat Laughing Cow cheese Bell pepper, chopped onions, chives, etc., to taste 6 large black olives, crumbled 1 oz grated cheese Bake your potato according to your preferred method (mine is poking holes in the skin and nuking it in the microwave for five minutes). Once it's done, slice it open and stuff it with all of the remaining ingredients. Return to the microwave and cook for 2 minutes, or until the cheese is melted and the bacon achieves the desired state of crispiness. Enjoy. This contains more or less 3 blocks of everything, and is pretty filling. I won't do this one very often, because despite the leanness and low-fatness of the meat and cheeses, it still adds up to a pretty good amount of calories, plus potatoes = unfavorable carbs. Still, it makes a pretty delicious treat when I'm in the mood to splurge, and doesn't throw my blood sugar or my routine out of whack. And it's fast and easy, too. And now I'm craving baked potato for dinner. Labels: healthy living, recipes, Zone |
<$Thursday, July 26, 2007$>
Zoned Thursdays: Making Up With Gym
| Earlier this year, Gym and I had a falling out. It wasn't Gym, it was me. I just wasn't feeling the spark, and that lack of passion was rapidly growing into resentment. I felt it best that we take a break. But this Monday morning, I woke up filled with self-loathing after an entire weekend filled with one-night-stands with the fast food establishments of my fantasies, and decided it was time to pack in my pride and go crawling back to Gym to give things another try. Gym welcomed me back with open arms and an empty pool. I suspected that Gym and I would get along better in the mornings when the day hasn't yet had a chance to discourage me and I'm still full of focus and optimism, and I was right. I also suspected that I would enjoy swimming better than any of the other available options, especially if I could get there at a time of day when the pool wasn't full of seniors doing water aerobics (or the locker room full of their drippings). I was right about that, too. On Monday, I had the pool all to myself. I swam until I couldn't stand to swim any more, and then I sat in the hot tub for a few minutes, which I also had to myself. Not a bad way to kick off a week, let me tell ya. I went back again on Wednesday. That time I had to share the pool with a couple of other people, but there was plenty of room for us all, and it was still pretty peaceful. And I still got the hot tub to myself. I'll go back again in the morning. I'm aiming for three times a week, and then I'll try to make myself go for walks through my neighborhood on the weekends. I'm already feeling more fit, and my sore muscles are already looking and feeling more toned. I'm sorry I left you, Gym. I think we can make it work this time around. ~~~ Quick & Easy Zone Breakfast This isn't so much a recipe as it is a concoction, thrown together out of convenience and surprisingly tasty: 1 packet instant oatmeal (I like Quaker's Weight Control in Maple & Brown Sugar) - 3 carb blocks 2 tsp natural peanut butter - 3 fat blocks 3/4 cup 1% cottage cheese - 3 protein blocks Follow packet instructions to cook oatmeal. Stir in peanut butter and cottage cheese. Enjoy. This is what I eat every morning for breakfast at work, since with my commute I don't have time to eat at home. It keeps me feeling full and energized all morning. People give me strange looks when they see me stirring cottage cheese into my oatmeal, but like I said, it tastes surprisingly good. Labels: healthy living, Zone |
<$Thursday, July 19, 2007$>
Zoned Thursdays: Healthy Chips & Queso
| So much for showing some restraint. Today's diet lapse wasn't so much Frugal Brain's doing, though, as it was simply a complete lack of will power. If I can just go a couple of days without very much sugar or processed carbs, I pretty much stop craving them. But man, once I indulge in them, I can't get enough. So in order to help get myself back on track, I'm starting a new regular feature here: Zoned Thursdays, wherein I'll discuss my diet progress and share tips and recipes. Every Thursday. Obviously. This week, my progress has been nonexistent. To get my mind off cookies and cake and get it to start craving healthy goodies again, I give you my recipe for my favorite healthy, Zone-friendly snack: Zoned Tortilla Chips & Queso 1 small (fajita-sized) low-carb, whole wheat tortilla (1 carb block) Canola spray 2 wedges low-fat Laughing Cow cheese (1 protein block) 1 tbsp salsa (more or less, to taste) 3 whole black olives or 1 tbsp guacamole (1 fat block) Pre-heat oven or toaster oven to 450. With pizza cutter, cut the tortilla into 8 small wedges. Spread on cookie sheet or toaster oven rack and spray both sides with Canola spray. Bake at 450 until crisp (about five minutes). Meanwhile, place Laughing Cow cheese in small, microwave-safe bowl and microwave until soft (30 seconds should do it). Stir in salsa. Either crumble olives and stir into mixture, or have guacamole on the side. Dip your chips and enjoy! Counts as 1 Zone block. I love this stuff. It takes about five minutes to throw together. It tastes as good as Velveeta & Rotel queso I used to make, without any of the trans or saturated fats. The homemade baked chips are surprisingly yummy, too. I haven't played around with seasoning them, because I like them just fine as is, but I'm sure you could get creative and try some different seasoning. If you do, drop a comment here and let me know how it turns out! Labels: healthy living, recipes, Zone |