Soups! It's What's For Lunch and Dinner!

 Now, don't you go off and worry about me. I'm not going to be too silly when it comes to my new diet and exercise program. I know my limits, and I know my boundaries. I also know that you can overdo something and burn out, then you don't have the umpf to keep it going so you can meet your health goals. For me, eating correctly starts with the breakfast choices, and as everyone is quick to tell me that breakfast is the most important meal of the day, I have another thought about it. It's the one meal I can't really take the time to prepare and clean up before going to work, so I have decided that during the week when I'm working, I'll do a protein hemp shake and take all of my vitamins. On the weekends I can do a more hearty breakfast. I have this thing about cleaning as I go, and I don't want to end up being late for work! I can be late for the weekend!

    For lunch and actually supper or dinner, I've been having fun making soups. It's almost winter and since we have had a rather mild Autumn with only a few colder days, I didn't pull out my soup recipe book until about a week ago. I bought the book online when I thought I would buy myself an Instapot last year either for my birthday or for Christmas. I didn't actually end up buying the Instapot, but the recipe book has been amazing! There are too many books out there to give total credence to just one; you can easily find them on Amazon and do yourself a favor, get the one with photos so you can experience the colors, the textures, and judge for yourself if what you end up creating is the same thing you saw on the pages!  I didn't get the Instapot because I think I rather like the time it takes to make a good soup. If I had more people to cook for maybe, but right now it's not worth the effort. I'm good with the stew pot!

    Today, I decided to go through the kitchen and do a bit of a cleaning out of the fridge to see what I could throw into a stew pot and make for the next several days. When I do that I am just as likely to have a stew or soup with meat as I am to have one without meat. To my surprise, there were no pieces of meat that needed to be cooked immediately, so the winner ended up being a squash-based veggie soup with carrots, mushrooms, onions, and yes, squash pieces. After pureeing three yellow summer squash to make the base I realized it seemed a bit thin for what I wanted, so I threw in a few potatoes that were actually just purchased, and did not in any way need to be cooked immediately. They made a difference! So good.

    The multitude of spices seemed to go on for a minute as I poured in ginger, pepper, salt, garlic, rosemary, turmeric, and basil.  I decided chives would be a good color and be so pretty as they spread out and left themselves to lounge on various chunks of tubers. I was correct. The deliciousness could be smelt from downstairs, and two neighbors commented on how they wished they were my dogs. I think they think I give soup to my dogs, and they'd be correct. My dogs were quite happy, not going to lie. I did, however, because they are dogs, mix their soup with a bit of dry kibble and yeah, they ate it all in one standing. They don't sit to eat. 

    I have soup for the next three days and where I will end up taking some to work with me on both Monday and Tuesday, I know I will be eating and/or consuming fair fewer calories than I would have if I had made a bigger meal for each setting. I am hoping that by choosing to eat soup more often, I can cut my calorie intake by at least half and maybe more! That's always a good way to lose the extra pounds and stay incredibly satisfied and full. I can put a little coconut oil in the mix and make that really happen. You just never know with me. I could be 100 pounds lighter in 3 months if I keep this up; well, no, that wouldn't be good.  I'll settle for 30 pounds. We'll see what happens.

    I would write out the recipe but I didn't really use one. I just pureed the squash, added water, threw in some Greek yogurt, corn starch, and potatoes for making it thicker, then I added carrots, chopped onions, squash chunks, and the nearly-too-dead-to-eat mushrooms which, by the way, did not kill me. I wondered about it. I had to make a quick decision about the mushrooms. I really wanted them in the soup, but you also have to gauge whether or not dying for the cause is truly worth it. I know in hindsight, I made the right decision. This is good.   I let the soup simmer on medium heat for an hour, then lowered it, and let it cook until the potatoes were done. I add cheese when I spoon it out, and Laura added sour cream to her bowl. That was interesting. I'll do that later tonight. Ohhhhh....soup.

Photo Credit: Me

Coconut Oil is Your Friend.

 Remember, I'm not a physician. I am not licensed medically in any way. I wanted to state that plainly before going forth with the suggestions and/or information that is NOT to be used as medical advice. Have I covered that part sufficiently? I think I have, OK, let's move forward, shall we?

    I use coconut oil for a few things and I have used it for centuries. Wow, I can't believe I just told you the ultimate secret to my long life. Well, there it is folks; it's coconut oil. Pure and simple. No, really, pure and simple coconut oil. Don't be fooled by any imitation! Use the real stuff. It works. What does coconut oil do for you? It all depends on how you use it, and if you have bad drains in your house or flat, another bit of advice would be to rub the oil on your body AFTER you bathe, but if you have a good drainage system, you can add a tablespoon of the oil to your bath every night. Again, let me say professionally, I am also not a plumber. I write. That's what I do. I write things. I also work as a support for a really cool trading company, but that's also not a qualification for telling you how to use coconut oil. Be aware.

    So, coconut oil has some amazing properties. I'll leave a link here for you to read about it:  https://www.naturallivingideas.com/eat-coconut-oil/  This particular article tells you 23 reasons why you can eat coconut oil straight off a spoon and be OK. Some of the benefits include, but are not limited to: heart health, weight loss, and prostate reduction (I don't really have a prostrate, but hey, some of my readers do.) It helps with energy, metabolism, and satiety, and of course, it helps with moisturizing your skin whether you eat it or rub it all over your body.  By the way, rubbing it all over your body when you're with someone you love offers an entirely different benefit that isn't mentioned in the article. It is, however, a fun and healthy way to enjoy the oil. Just sayin'.

    Coconut oil stimulates your metabolism, making you feel fuller and giving you the energy to complete the activities of the day (or night) you can use coconut oil in cooking, substituting it into your food rather than using other oils. Don't get me wrong, other oils such as virgin olive oil are good for you too. You can overdo the coconut in some cases, and that could also lead to some issues that aren't all that pleasant, so be sure and read up on side effects as well as benefits. One notable side effect that can happen is a looser stool if you take in too much. Just keep that in mind. Look at me being all Mom!  (Eat your veggies too!!)

    Why am I so excited about coconut oil? I've already told you. It's changed my life from the dull and boring woman I was (not true, I've never actually been boring or dull) into the svelte and happy soul that I am. I am actually over 480 years old; coconut oil has seen me through the Revolutionary War, Culloden before that, and the skirmishes that took place just outside my village south of Edinburgh back in the 16th Century.  Craig and I, my Highland husband, have seen it all. He's been using coconut oil for some of the aforementioned reasons and let me tell you, being able to say I've kept this man for over 390 years, speaks volumes about the true effects (and affects) that coconut oil can and does have on a body. Craig's prostrate is fine; no really, it's fine, really fine.

    All kidding and nonsense aside, I've literally been singing the praises of the oil of my choice for years. I am getting back to it for weight loss purposes. I had stopped eating it for some reason. I haven't ever stopped using it as a body moisturizer, and I've never stopped using it in my cooking, but for some reason, I stopped adding it to my coffee and tea. If you do that, it also acts as a natural lip balm, again, just sayin', your lips will not be cracky and ugly if you add coconut oil to your hot drinks. (Tip: it won't dissolve in cold drinks.) I even add it to my hot cocoa and let me just say that will light up your face, change your mind, and make you do a dance you've not done in a very long time. The dance is good. Try that, and see if I'm lying. If I'm lying I'm crying! Good good stuff!

    OK, well, read the above article for me, and go out and buy yourself a bottle or bucket of coconut oil. I buy mine in bulk at the Apothecary site, here's the link for that: https://www.bulkapothecary.com/coconut-oil-92-degree/  I use it in my soap making too. I'm telling you, this stuff will make you question everything you've ever been told about anything that kept you down. Boost that joy! Boost that smile on your face. Rub a little, eat a little, that came out completely different than I thought it would - - sorry, still thinking about Craig I suppose. Here's the blog about the man just in case you were wondering who I go on about in my dreams and when I need a smirk on my face.  https://judestringfellow.blogspot.com/2022/04/naked-bearded-man.html  ENJOY your day!!  Enjoy your fat loss. Enjoy your energy. Enjoy your new life.

NOTE: I have decided to give up coffee for the month of December (2022) and if it works out for me I'll stop it altogether. I'm doing gunpowder and/or Yerba Mate tea with coconut oil. We'll see if it works. Of course, I know it will.

Photo Credit: healthtipswatch.com 

Yerba Mate! OK! New Never Hurt.

 I'm one of THOSE people who will find out about a new thing, which is usually not new at all, but has been served for centuries. I'll find out about it, and then I'll just research it to the hilt, try it, and then tell everyone what I think about it. I'm going to do that again, but I'll have to wait until I get it delivered to my door before I can. It's Yerba Mate (mau-tay) tea, and there are Yerba Mate extract pills as well! Yes, there are. So, why am I trying this? (Them?)  Weight loss, of course. I'm now being sucked into the vortex that is the internet, which is telling me that all my worries and concerns will be completely eliminated if I just drink more Yerba Mate tea, and if I take a couple of Yerba Mate extract pills every day. So, here I go.

    According to the studies it (they) is/are good for me, and yes, I do read them, I'm not going to pop pills of any sort or drink teas of any leaf without first researching. I have the benefit of using both Google and my kid, since my kid has been thinking about drinking it and using it, and she's in contact with a nutritionist who recommends Yerba Mate to her patients who are wanting to shed pounds quickly. Sad news however, the kid can't drink it or take it as it has higher dosages of caffeine. She'll dry up and freak out like no other, and we really don't want to do the whole staying-at-the-hospital-all-night again. She'll have to do this the really old fashioned way, which is to just eat less calories, work out, and drink more water. I'll do that too, but I'll include the Yeba Mate as well. I can (I think) handle the caffeine.

    There was a product that I used last year that kicked my butt to the side of the road and then left it there to die a horrible and slow death. It was BHB (a KETO thing) and let me tell you, it slapped me something silly. I was over the top gone, but in their defense, I was the idiot who overused it. I literally overdosed on the stuff and didn't mean to. If I had died it would have been an accidental overdose, and what a sad thing for my friends and family to have to deal with. So, I'm telling you that so you'll be aware, and you can do your own research before putting things into your mouth and gut that can cause you to end up on your face in the hallway trying to make it to the bed to die with dignity.

    MCT oil is another thing that I tried that was too hard for me. You can achieve the same result however, I can anyway, by adding coconut oil to your coffee or tea. It's not as gross as it sounds. I swear, it really helps with both digestion and keeping your satiety levels up a bit. I love it. I put coconut oil in my morning coffee, as well as using collagen powder. That coffee is really dressed up, let me tell you. If you were to buy a coffee like that at a specialty shop you'd pay $10 a day for a 12 oz cup of Joe with all the crap I put into mine.  Well, I mean, it's just coffee, heavy cream, collagen and coconut oil, but that would cost you a bit if you ordered it. I don't do that. I like to keep my money in my bank a bit longer. I think the last time I bought a coffee outside of the house was in 2018. Dang. I just realized that's almost 5 years ago. Well, well, well...we are getting older, aren't we?

    So, the Yerba Mate is something like the Matcha in that is full of antioxidants, it's really good for you, it has enough umpf to get you through the day, and maybe you won't feel all jittery like you would if you had the same caffeine equivalent as you would if you drank the amount of coffee you would need to meet the levels that are in the Yerba Mate. I'm not sure exactly how many grams or whatever you call measurements of caffeine, we'll say grams, but you can get more for your buck with Yerba Mate than you can with coffee. I never really like dissing coffee, because I have a love thing going on with the brown brew, but let's be honest, I'm not the brightest bulb in the box - - I could be wrong about things; could be. I didn't say I was.

    There are those typical 30-day challenges out there that I may do when I do get the Yerba Mate delivered. I will do the whole photo thing but I don't think I'll post them since I don't show my body off really. When I do get down to the size I want to be and the belly is flat, the boobs lifted, and my daughters are screaming at me for stealing their clothes, then I'll post a few things. Until then, you'll have to wonder. (Don't put yourself out, I'm about average.) Be safe, be kind, and be diligent. You deserve the research to be done before you embark on any new adventure. Don't be like me. Be like you! 

Photo Credit:  Guayaki.com

Satiety!! I Need More of it in my Life.

 You can eat all you want and all you think you need, and somehow, within an hour or so you feel hungry again! Has this ever happened to you? Oh my gosh, it's the worst. Have you ever been really sick, and as you're healing you feel as if you can't eat enough to stay full? It's non-stop carb throwing, and you (I) just can't stuff enough food into my head for whatever reason. I think it's my body saying it needs it, but my body really has no idea how big it has gotten over the past few months...AGAIN!  

    I used to hear people, and I probably still do, say that they have struggled with their weight all of their lives. That's only half true with me, well, now it's a bit longer than half. I didn't have a weight problem as such until I had my third child! Then, oh yes, I had a real issue. I gained a bunch of weight with the last one, and it never really came off the way it did with the others. I only had three, thank you Jesus, but at the same time, my weight went up with the first, grew steadily with the second, and then exploded with the last. I went from being 134 when I got pregnant in 1985 with Reuben, to weighing over 190 pounds after giving birth to Caity. That's 56 pounds, and after Caity, I just sort of stopped working out as much, and eventually, over the next 25 years, I gained another 25 pounds!!

    In August 2020, I remember clearly, that I must have passed by a window or something with a reflection. I saw myself, and I was just shocked. I was upset. I remember thinking "That's the reason you feel badly, Jude. That's also the reason you fell off your horse again! You're fat!"  Now, in our society today, we're not supposed to fat-shame, or body-shame, or whatever, but the hard cold facts are the hard cold facts. At just under 5'7" tall, I weighed 216 pounds and I had NO REASON to be that large. It was both unhealthy and made me unhappy. You can't be comfortable in your own skin if you don't like the way you look in it. I was (and do) avoid mirrors. I don't want to see it, I don't want to remind myself that it's still there.  I've lost down to a reasonable size by all accounts of what our society accepts, but I am NOT where I want to be. I am the one I want to impress, no one else.

    Satiety is the feeling you get inside your gut when you're full. It helps you to stop eating and to feel satisfied with whatever it is inside of you. You can achieve it without eating all the empty calories and I'm going to tell you how you can do that. I'm not making something up that I created or conjured on my own. I'm not that smart. I went to the source; Google! I owe all of my intelligence on diets and exercise to the experts who have posted and written articles about it. I don't have to see that the author is a licensed physician either. If a person (like me) has had great experiences and they have achieved their goals, then I read what they had to say and I take it without a grain of salt since it worked for them. If they are trying to sell me something, I usually find another article.

    Years ago I went to a doctor about my gut being too big, and this doctor was both unhelpful and unprofessional in my opinion. Due to the type of insurance, I had at the time, and the fact that there really wasn't a Google to help me out on this matter, nothing really changed. The doctor told me to diet and exercise, and the diet he gave me was nothing like a doctor should have given me. It was full of the wrong types of foods really, and he said nothing about obtaining satiety so that I would eat less. Facts are facts; if you eat fewer calories and burn more calories than you take in, you'll lose weight. It is what it is. I also want to tone and do some shaping as I go, so yeah, I wanted expert help. I found it. 

    Today starts another round of me being more aware of what I am eating, how I am eating, and why I am eating it. I remember being really full and happy when I was eating more of the homemade trail mix that I made. It has calories for sure, but it also keeps me from eating empty calories. I need more fiber-rich foods in my body, more proteins, and fewer things that turn into (or are made of) sugar. I don't really do straight sugar anymore. I don't have diabetes, but I don't want to get it either. I am eating as if I am pre-diabetic I guess, so I can be more aware of what my health is all about, and I can be prepared to be a partner for someone who may have it. Why put someone through agony as they have to watch me eating something made of sugar? No. I don't need it, and if I ever have a partner or friend that is diabetic, I want to be the one who supports them, not discourages them. That's just me. I think that way.

    There are ways to obtain satiety that are really simple, and you may already know most of them. Here's a cool article about it too: https://draxe.com/health/satiety/

    Just as a tip or two you can do the following to feel fuller:

• drink a full glass of water before you eat
• eat protein-rich foods, fiber-rich foods (chicken, grass-fed beef, eggs, nuts)
• eat more greens (dark greens)
• change up your snacks from wheat-based to fruit or veggie based
• potatoes are not your friend; if you must, try sweet potatoes
• use a smaller plate so you feel as if you've eaten more
• spice it up a little. Some spices actually boost metabolism

There are just so many ways to do this. You can use little hacks all day to keep the ball rolling so that you don't feel as hungry. Stay busy. Don't find excuses to go into the kitchen so you can stare into the cabinets or refrigerator.  Here's a thought, and I had t really work on this one, when you're at the store remember YOU are the one buying the groceries! You are the one who determines what will go into the cabinets and the refrigerator and therefore, into your mouth. When I had kids to feed I used them as an excuse for why I ate so poorly. I'm so very happy my own daughter doesn't do that. She won't allow my grandkids to eat stupid things, and I really am so thankful to her for that. I've told her so, too. I feel as if I could have been a better mom in that sense, but again, the role models and the resources I was left with weren't the same as they are today.

    We're all in this you know. We have to be more of who we should be so that we can be useful, needed, helpful, and be there for others as long as and as strong as we need to be.  There are excuses to be had, but why do that? We can also decide for ourselves that we're going to be the change we want to see in ourselves. I'm still not where I need to be, or where I want to be, but I will be. It will happen. It's a matter of effort, time, and willpower. I think it's worth giving it another shot. Remember, it's not failing if you don't quit. NEVER quit on yourself. You're worth too much.

Photo Credit:  Musclehack.com