What is the Common Factor?

Utopian Rope Sandals Anyone?

I've always loved sunflowers but appreciate them even
more now that I know their seeds are a healthy fat option.

It has been 34 days since I started the Flat Belly Diet. The first four days involved the Anti-Bloat Jumpstart program, which meant eating 1200 calories a day. Since then I have been on the 28-Day Eating Plan. Calories have increased to 1600 and menus are now more varied.

I can safely say that my pantry is now stocked with nearly every good fat and vinegar variety out there, bar one. I'm still looking for high-oleic safflower oil. The diet has taught me a lot about a healthier approach to eating. That's a definite benefit.

It's been well worth the extra effort and expense. I am down nearly nine pounds. And he best thing is I don't feel as if I'm being punished on this diet. There's enough variety and flexibility built in to let me go about my day without being consumed by thoughts of food and eating. I do make a point to pack healthy snacks when away from home though. I base them on menus from the Flat belly Pocket Guide. One of my favorites is an apple, 2 tablespoons of almond butter and 6 small wheat crackers. Lana meal replacement bars are also a must.

Grocery shopping is time consuming, especially when looking for those not-so-familiar items. During yesterday's trip to the market, I had a couple to contend with. One was tahini, a butter made from roasted sesame seeds. I should have known that it was in the Organic and Natural Food section of the store, which is exactly where it was.

What I found most interesting about the tahini was the information on the back of its label: "East Wind Nut Butters are made by a worker-owned cooperative in the lovely Ozark hills of rural southern Missouri. As equal partners in our business we take pride in producing quality products at the most reasonable price. We also make Utopian Rope Sandals."

So Many Resources, Never Enough Time

Lydia loves being outside.

Children, animals, nature... three great ways to reconnect with oneself, spiritually-speaking. If I'm feeling a bit out-of-touch, it helps to spend time with one or the other. They seem to be interconnected and embody life in its simplest form. I like that.

Hand a kid a bucket, a big stick and a couple of rocks, and then direct them to the nearest mud puddle and they'll stay busy for hours. Add Fido to the mix and they'll lose complete track of time. It's a simple concept but true.

If you happen to come visit, don't be surprised by the micro piles of (I don't want to misrepresent my skills as a housekeeper.) Wisconsin Natural Resources magazines evident in nearly every room of the house. The publication has been delivered to my door for many years and to be honest, I have a hard time getting rid of them. I do not claim to have read every issue from cover to cover but whenever I pick one up and begin leafing through, I'm always amazed by the great information and wonderful photos inside.

This month's issue has a picture of a young girl on the cover holding a young garter snake. The headline reads: "Trips to See Snakes Saw-Whets and Sturgeon." The article it references is "Explore with the Experts," in which they list twenty-nine spring through fall field trips hosted by The Natural Resources Foundation. They are meant to enhance your outdoor experience here in Wisconsin. I am not posting the list but let me say this, if you've ever thought about going deep into the forest at night to listen to wolves howling, or kayaking through a remote wilderness, or taking a hike in the wetlands to learn about different species of frogs, or trying your hand at fly fishing, then check out the latest issue of Wisconsin Natural Resources.

Denver The Dog

Sucker for cuteness...

The Demise of Pinky Pig

Pinky Pig. Just another stuffy from the county fair. I think not!

Ellie was three when Aunt Kelley gave her the pig with the bright pink snout. The toy was one of several that she and a friend won at the fair earlier that summer.

Pinky quickly became Ellie's favorite stuffy. Whether she was playing with friends or having dinner with her family, Ellie kept Pinky close by.

Many months passed and Pinky Pig started to show signs of wear. Her coat was dull and polyester protruded from her seams. As time progressed, her condition worsened. It was obvious that Pinky's days were numbered.

In an effort to extend Pinky's life, Ellie's mother added more filling, but to no avail. Pinky's fabric had weakened and her seams gave way. She lost all of the new filling and was no longer the "stuffy" that Ellie once knew.

But Ellie refused to give up on her favorite pink pig. She insisted on taking her everywhere. Before long, it became apparent that the pig's fate was sealed. She had become a mere shell of her original self.

Ellie's loyalty was steadfast as she tucked the gutted lifeless pig inside her purse. Pinky continued to accompany Ellie as she visited friends and went on shopping trips with her mother.

It was one such outing that led to the demise of Pinky Pig.

While shopping at a church sponsored garage sale, Ellie inadvertently left her purse on a sales table. Once they realized what had happened, Ellie's mom asked the sales lady if she had seen it. Ellie and her mom were quite surprised by the answer she gave. Yes, the lady did remember the purse. She sold it to a customer a short time ago. Ellie and her mom looked at each other as they thought about the little, pink, emaciated pig tucked safely inside.

Flat Belly Comfort Food

This is the first time I made this recipe. It is from the Week 3 menu in the Flat Belly Diet Pocket Guide.  I prefer to use penne but you can use any type of whole wheat pasta. This hot dish was quick to make and was so satisfying—comfort food for a cool rainy day. The recipe calls for marinara sauce with less than 400 milligrams of sodium in a 1/2 cup serving. I used Franceso Rinaldi To Be Healthy Spicy Marinara Pasta Sauce, which had 330 milligrams of sodium and 60 calories.

Cheesy Pasta with Spinach: Mix 3/4 cup cooked whole wheat pasta, 1 tablespoon canola oil, 3 tablespoons shredded reduced-fat mozzarella cheese, 1 cup baby spinach leaves, and 1/2 cup marinara sauce. Microwave for 2 1/4 - 2 1/2 minutes to melt the cheese and cook the spinach. I like to add a bit of Mrs Dash Garlic & Herb Seasoning Blend. Serve hot.


Note: Two of my favorite healthy marinara sauces (low sodium, etc.) are Francesco Rinaldi TO BE Healthy Spicy Marinara Pasta Sauce (Woodman's in regular pasta sauce isle) and Cucian Antica garlic Marinara Cooking Sauce—only 36 calories per 1/2 cup. I buy it at HyVee in the Organic and Natural Food isles)

The Good, The Bad and The Ugly

This has not been a blogging kind of week. It's difficult to find words meaningful enough to post with all that is going on in the world. If only I could attach a soft focus lens to my brain, then I'd be able to absorb the events a little easier. 

For anyone who might be curious about how the diet is going, I'm down 7 pounds and working on the eighth. It had been three weeks yesterday since I started the 28-Day Plan. The Flat Belly Diet guide stated that you can lose up to 15 pounds during that time. Since weight loss never comes easy for me, I'm content with what I have accomplished. New foods are added each week so I haven't felt deprived and I like that I'm eating healthier. It will be a permanent way of eating for me. Of course I will be able to eat more calories once I've reached my goal weight. 

I'd like to express my frustration with Blogger templates. It seems the more you try, the worse things get when it comes to the layouts. I have two blogs on Blogger and have not been thrilled with the functionality of either. Whether or not I've set up permanent residence here is yet to be seen. I can't even text wrap my photos since adjusting the width and that's downright annoying.

 

Pinky Pig In Madison

A Lesson On Perspective: Having a

good sense of it never hurts. 

Can't Judge A Pita By Its...

Since following the Flat Belly Diet, whole wheat pitas have become a staple. They are usually a healthier choice than other breads so I don't mind. What is surprising is that the number of calories varies immensely from one brand to another. There is a 30 calorie difference between the two varieties shown here. It would be natural to assume that the smaller pita by Toufayan Bakeries would contain fewer calories than the larger Kontos brand but that isn't the case. There are 140 calories in the larger pita, which is what the plan calls for, and 170 in the other. The extra time it takes to check nutritional information prior to purchase is definitely worth it. I could have saved myself a few calories if I had done so. 

If personalities had color...

Elyse and Samantha showing their colors

on a warm summer afternoon

Hearty and Healthy

 Olive Tapenade Pasta

The simplicity of the meals on the Flat Belly Diet

makes losing weight less of a chore. This dish took

only minutes to prepare and tastes great.

No Foodie Here

A Little Diversion 

At first glance you might think this post is about cats, flowers, or photography; but it has nothing to do with any of those things. The photo is simply a diversion.

In all honesty, I am not much of a foodie, or that crazy about cooking; although you might think otherwise considering the number of posts that reference the topic. It's just that eating healthy and feeling good are way too important to ignore. With that said, I hope this photo has been a pleasant distraction because now I want to share a few more thoughts about the Flat Belly Diet.

Here are a couple healthy recipes from the Pocket Guide. Both are very simple to make and quite satisfying—and under 400 calories each.

Pumpkin Crunch Cereal: Mix 1 cup Kashi 7 Whole Grain Puffs with 1 cup fat-free milk and 1 small sliced banana. Top with 2 tablespoons pumpkin seeds. Total calories is 393.
Tapenade Pasta: Mix 3/4 cup cooked whole wheat pasta, 2 tablespoons black olive tapenade, 2 teaspoons olive oil, 3 tablespoons shredded reduced-fat mozzarella cheese and 1/4 cup roasted red peppers. Microwave to warm through and melt the cheese. Total calories is 362.

One observation that I've made since starting Week 3 is: I started losing track of where I was at on the diet when I began to shift meals around. That is allowed but can be a little confusing. The flexibility is nice though.

Variety: The Spice of Life

Menus in Week 2 of the Flat Belly Diet 28-Day Program are also based on four 400 calorie meals a day. I've customized them with a few selections from the previous week. Today's afternoon snack, a Blueberry Smoothie, is a recipe from the Jumpstart program.

A few choices for Week 2 are Vanilla Pecan Parfait, Sesame Chicken Stir-Fry, Mediterranean Sandwich, Edamame Potato Salad and Tapenade Pasta. Oranges, fat-free cottage cheese, whole wheat pasta, grapes and hummus are a few added items.

The attempt to buy olive tapenade for the Tapenade Pasta proved to be quite challenging. The twenty minutes it took me to find it proved to be a waste of time since I purchased the wrong kind anyway. The bright side is that it should only take thirty seconds to find it next time.

Eating out requires planning—definitely more than what I've done since starting the diet. I always make a point to tuck my Flat Belly Diet Pocket Guide into my purse but I usually forget to bring the required MUFAs, which depend on what kind of protein, grain and vegetables you eat. It's best to have a restaurant in mind and choose your meal based on information provided online.

As I mentioned in an earlier post, I've raised the yellow flag on the Strawberry Chocolate Waffle. Although it is an allowable meal on the plan, I have a tendency to overindulge in foods that include chocolate in any form.

Raspberry!

Pretty, oh so pretty… layers of cereal, yogurt, raspberries and pecans served up plenty of eye-appeal at breakfast this morning—plus it tasted great. And it was the perfect opportunity to use one of my favorite Pfaltzgraff goblets.

If you'd like to give Vanilla Pecan Parfait a try, layer 1 cup of Kashi 7 Whole Grain Puffs, 1 cup fresh or thawed frozen unsweetened raspberries, 6 ounces fat-free vanilla yogurt and 2 tablespoons chopped pecans into a parfait glass.

Kashi 7 Whole Grain Puffs contains buckwheat, barley, triticale, oats, rye brown rice, hard red wheat and sesame so  expect your jaw to get a little extra workout. It is not the most flavorful Kashi cereal I've ever had, and puffed "bits" bounce around my kitchen like styrofoam whenever I do, but it is a nice healthy Flat Belly option, especially when presented in such a lovely fashion.

Change Is Inevitable

Let's pretend that this is what I see

when I look out my kitchen window.

Tomorrow will be day seven of the 28-Day eating plan and I'm happy to report that things are going well. The whole process has broadened my horizons as far as eating. There have been a few challenging moments but I managed to work through them. As I enter into week two, I will be shopping for a few items that were not on the previous shopping list. I look forward to the new menus. I would now like to share a favorite quote from an earlier post.


"Change has considerable psychological impact on the human mind. To the fearful it is threatening, because it means that things may get worse. To the hopeful it is encouraging, because things may get better. To the confident it is inspiring, because the challenge exists to make things better."
—King Whitney Jr.

Deprivation: Not Feelin' It

As I make my way through the Flat Belly Diet 28-Day Eating Plan, I learn a little something new every day. Such as, how to create healthy meals in minutes and combine foods that are satisfying and nutritional. I've appreciated the variety of foods included in the plan, and its overall flexibility. The meals and snacks are approximately 400 calories each, give or take a few, and all of them are interchangeable.

I have exercised my right to interchange on more than one occasion this week. But rights are easily abused so I've raised the yellow flag on the The Strawberry Chocolate Waffle. I think you'd understand if you tried it. You know, too much of a good thing...