Low Carb Support

WOW! Has it really been that long since I’ve been here?? Well, life does happen. Here are updates on some of the “stuff” that was going on in August. My husband’s back issues resurfaced with a vengence at the end of December, the steroid shot isn’t helping and he’s now facing surgery. My sister, on the other hand, recovered nicely and is leaving next week on a Disney park-cruise vacation with her husband their daughter and her family! Sadly, my 94-yr. old aunt’s heart finally gave out in late October, barely a month after she had gotten settled in a temporary facility. I’ve been home to PA 3 times and ended the year 22 pounds back up from the low point in August…sigh. I am on the way back down though…224 this morning. Water/fluid is a significant part of the problem; I recently read that for every ounce of carbs you eat it requires 2.7 ounces of water to store it! HOLY MACKEREL! No wonder I felt like the Hoover Dam! But I am finally back to clean eating, drinking about a gallon of water a day and feeling SO much better! So resolve #1 is to stop torturing my body with the carbs I know I need to avoid.

Resolve #2 is to switch up my exercising. I broke down and bought one of those Fluidity Systems and the workout is really quite good. Of course that was about the time my back decided to make me the twisted sister and my physical therapist didn’t want me doing anything other than his exercises and the treadmill. Right before the Christmas trip I was cleared for my other things but we left for PA and all bets were off. I am back at the ‘mill and want to get back to the barre next week.

Resolve #3 is to get back here more regularly. It’s a good accountability tool for me, along with posting my daily eating, etc over at TLC. Accountability and like-minded support are as important as water and exercise for me so I am really going to try much harder.

I’m also going to post a product review and LC recipe or two so stay tuned! Hope your new year is all you want and need!

I like things that have a head-rattling crunch so when I tried these crackers, I was very pleased. Smackaroos come in 6 different flavors; plain, sesame, garlic, rye, onion and cinnamon. The only ones I have not been able to try are the onion.

The ingredients are listed as follows:
Flour (soy/almond/hazelnut/gluten), water, soybean oil, xanthan gum, baking powder (sodiuum acid phosphate, sodium bicarbonate, corn starch, calcium phosphate), salt. This was the plain variety; the others each include whatever flavor they are made as (dehydrated onion or garlic, etc.) The cinnamon ones do have Splenda in them also - these are quite tasty as a scoop for a mock cheesecake filling! I like the other flavors with veggie cream cheese for a snack. They are a hard cracker but the crunch is wonderful. They even made me hungry for my Rueben casserole. Here’s the recipe:

Cook a piece of corned beef brisket in the crockpot, nice and slow and with lots of water. Once it is cool enough to handle, pull it apart (put meat in a seperate bowl), discarding the fat and spices. Shred/chop the meat up into bite-size pieces and set aside.
In a small bowl, microwave 8 ounces of cream cheese until very soft/melty. Add 3 heaping tablespoons (or more if you like) of fresh horseradish (not the sauce); 2 tablespoons of good, zingy, grainy mustard; tabasco sauce, pepper, garlic powder and Worcestershire sauce to taste. Stir this together (microwave a bit further if necessary) into a sauce consistancy. Pour this over the meat in the bowl and mix well. Spread this mixture evenly in a 9×13 pan; top with well-drained sauerkraut, then shredded Swiss cheese. Bake at 350* until the cheese is browned to your liking and the dish is hot thru. Serve with your favorite LC 1000 Island dressing (or make your own w/LC ketchup, mayo, dill relish, garlic powder, Worc. sauce and sweetner). The Smackaroos rye or plain flavors make a nice accompanyment to this dish.

The mock-cheesecake filling I make is 8 ounces of cream cheese, softened beaten and sweetened combined with a pint of heavy cream that has been sweetened and whipped. A bit of vanilla can be added to each or chocolate extract and cocoa powder…the possibilities are endless.

Smackaroos can be purchased at http://www.lowcarbandmore.net , along with the SF ketchup. buy cialisbuy cialisbuy levitrabuy levitrabuy propeciabuy propeciabuy somabuy somabuy levitrabuy cialisbuy propeciabuy levitrabuy somabuy cialisbuy propeciabuy levitrabuy somabuy cialisbuy levitrabuy propeciabuy soma

This is a support and motivation group and anyone who is doing any type of diet is welcome!

A group of women and men who help support each other in becoming healthier and shedding extra pounds. A site that makes it easy to find extra encouragement, information, motivation to help you in your dieting goals.

I realized earlier this week that I have actually hit a milestone…I have reached the half-way point of my long-term weight loss goal! When I started I figured that 150 pounds would be a reasonable weight for me…45 (now), 5′6″, not an overly large frame…I was starting from 270 pounds so that is a goal of 120 pounds off. I am sitting solidly at 210 pounds now and still working at the downward trend.

It’s late August and here in MN that means State Fair time…
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Ever since Carb Options products have dwindled down to nothing I have been looking for a good, no-sugar-added spaghetti sauce. I tried the stuff from Hunts and it’s OK but I was still not too happy. Then I found Light Ragu! I wouldn’t be surprised if it’s the Carb Options stuff re-labeled but frankly, I don’t care…this stuff is really good! It’s sweetened with Splenda so it’s not as sour-ish as some sauces can be…very tasty.

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I’ve been out of touch for a while…since March I’ve traveled to FL and PA, started physical therapy for two different problems (off-track knee caps and a twisted spine), had a biopsy and am trying to get ready for houseguests!

The good news is I conquered the crave monster and am losing weight again. Since the beginning of the year I’ve lost 30 pounds…WOOHOO! That puts me less than 2 pounds from a 60-lb. total weight loss since 2004! I had my bloodwork done a few weeks ago and the triglycerides are down to 83 (HDL-35, LDL-119, overall chol.-170)…the doctor called me, we chatted about the results and I am finally off that last dose of the niacin. She does want me to come back in 3 months for a re-check but I really don’t think it’ll be a problem.

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And it’s making me crazy. “It” is what I call The Carb Crave Monster and I am struggling to get it back into submission. This is what happens to me when I let myself have a small amount of the wrong kinds of carbs…a little bit becomes a bit more and the next thing ya know, I’m eating half a sleeve of Ritz crackers, just ’cause they’re there! And it’s when I’m off plan that I get that miserable hunger pang…the half sick to my stomach, gnawing feeling that makes it so easy to just run through the drive-through at The Clown for a mcbreakfast sandwich, anything to make it stop! It’s actually almost a bit scary for me; I know that I shouldn’t be eating these things but…

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I have a friend that calls chocolate “Girl Beer”…pretty accurate if you ask me! I am primarily a cookie/brownie/cake lover but I have found a dark chocolate bar that is excellent.

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Everyone wants to succeed in their efforts to lose weight and/or get healthy and here are a few tips that helped me. Food Preparation, Exercise and Support…

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Well, OK…for the first time. I’ve been living the low carb life for just over 3 years and I do enjoy it. I have always had weight issues, since I was a kid and as I got older they just got worse. I dieted and aerobicised about 35-40 pounds off in the mid-80’s to get into the U.S. Navy…as soon as I hit boot camp it started to creep back on due to the carb-loaded diet they fed us.

Fast-forward to 2003. My weight peaked out at somewhere around 275 pounds, which on a 5′6″ frame (and a miserable “apple” shape/distribution to boot) was just too much. I met a couple of people that had “done Atkins” and were quuite pleased with the results…I decided that I had nothing to lose but weight and would give it a try. So, on January 4, 2004 I started a life-changing journey.

The first thing I noticed (after induction) was the energy! Read the rest of this entry »