Frank & I prepared to conquer Thanksgiving by doing only protein days for the days leading up to it. Our weekend was really hectic, and we both ended up gaining a few pounds, but it's 3 days later & we've both already lost the weight we gained. I'm 1 lb lighter than I was pre-Thanksgiving, and Frank is back at an 11 lb loss. It wasn't a total disaster!
Here's how the weekend went...
Wednesday night I met Frank for dinner after work at Boulder Creek. We cheated & had cheese fries. Oops! It had been a while since we ate carbs so we were beyond stuffed when our actual food came out. I had a Chipotle Skirt Steak with a Caesar salad (did you know that comes from Mexico, not Italy?) and steamed veggies. Frank had a steak (can't remember what cut) with a baked potato & vegetables.
He didn't touch his potato & could barely get through his steak. I could only eat half my steak & brought the rest home. Breakfast on Thanksgiving was my leftovers.
The day of Thanksgiving was really wonderful. Frank played football with the guys in the morning & I made a side dish & dessert to bring to my parents' house. We spent the day with my family because Frank's family went upstate. As always, there was a ton of food.
My mom's best friend brought over some Dukan things since she's on the diet also, so I snacked on her version of pizza a bit. Here's what I ate that day:
-antipasto: shrimp cocktail, olives, tomato, a little bit of cheese, 1 fried ravioli in gorgonzola sauce (omfg amazing)
-main meal: roasted butternut squash side dish (I made this), green bean casserole, stuffing!!, stuffed mushrooms with sausage, gravy. I didn't eat any turkey because I'm weird.
Frank's meal:
-antipasto: fried ravioli. He doesn't eat much else.
-main meal: my grandma's homemade manicotti, turkey, mashed potatoes, gravy
-dessert: tons. He has a crazy sweet tooth!
The day went much better than planned. We had small servings of the things we loved & I was only up a pound the next day. I'll take that!
My biggest disappointment about being on Dukan during Thanksgiving was not having my standard turkey sandwich that night. Normally everyone is still over hours after dinner is done & we all have my favorite sandwich later that night: stuffing, turkey, cranberry sauce, mozzarella on rye toast dipped in gravy. NOM NOM NOM. My favorite! I only eat this sandwich once a year but I was very happy when I weighed myself the next day that I didn't eat it this year.
The rest of the weekend was hectic, but great. We spent the day with Frank's family the day after Thanksgiving & his mom made roast beef & roasted chicken. I had some of her broccoli casserole because it's delicious.
All in all it was a nice Thanksgiving weekend. After a few days of drinking & eating I was up 5 lbs & Frank was up about 6. Crazy! We decided to get right back into the Dukan diet as of Monday morning & have both lost the weight.
Wednesday, December 1, 2010
Monday, November 15, 2010
Recipe: Asian Stir Fry
Asian Stir Fry
- 2 chicken breasts, cut into cubes
- 1 onion, chopped
- 1 green pepper, chopped
- 1 red pepper, chopped
- 2 TB rice wine vinegar (unseasoned - no sugar)
- 1 TB soy sauce
- 3 garlic cloves, minced or pressed
- 1 TB stir fry sauce (must be no sugar - you can omit this is you can't find it)
- Crushed red pepper or hot sauce if you want spice
- Fat free chicken broth
- Sesame ginger seasoning (comes in a powder & is in most grocery stores)
Chicken broth is amazing when you've cut oil out of your diet. I use it to saute things instead of oil.
Place the cut up chicken pieces and sesame ginger seasoning in a large ziploc bag. Spray with non-stick spray & pour 1 TB chicken broth into bag. Seal bag & shake to coat all of the chicken with the seasoning.
Heat a pan over medium-high heat. Add the onion and peppers & a little chicken broth. Cook until soft, adding some chicken broth if needed.
Once cooked, remove vegetables & set aside.
Put the heat up to high. Put the chicken in the pan when it's on high so that it sears on the outside. Once the outside is cooked, lower the heat & cook through.
Once chicken is cooked, add the vegetables back to the pan. Add the garlic, soy sauce, stir fry sauce & vinegar to pan. Coat everything & cook until vegetables are heated through.
- 2 chicken breasts, cut into cubes
- 1 onion, chopped
- 1 green pepper, chopped
- 1 red pepper, chopped
- 2 TB rice wine vinegar (unseasoned - no sugar)
- 1 TB soy sauce
- 3 garlic cloves, minced or pressed
- 1 TB stir fry sauce (must be no sugar - you can omit this is you can't find it)
- Crushed red pepper or hot sauce if you want spice
- Fat free chicken broth
- Sesame ginger seasoning (comes in a powder & is in most grocery stores)
Chicken broth is amazing when you've cut oil out of your diet. I use it to saute things instead of oil.
Place the cut up chicken pieces and sesame ginger seasoning in a large ziploc bag. Spray with non-stick spray & pour 1 TB chicken broth into bag. Seal bag & shake to coat all of the chicken with the seasoning.
Heat a pan over medium-high heat. Add the onion and peppers & a little chicken broth. Cook until soft, adding some chicken broth if needed.
Once cooked, remove vegetables & set aside.
Put the heat up to high. Put the chicken in the pan when it's on high so that it sears on the outside. Once the outside is cooked, lower the heat & cook through.
Once chicken is cooked, add the vegetables back to the pan. Add the garlic, soy sauce, stir fry sauce & vinegar to pan. Coat everything & cook until vegetables are heated through.
Day #7
As of Day #7 we're on phase 2 of Dukan - The Cruise Phase. I'll be posting our menu daily & our progress.
Day #7 - Vegetable + Protein:
Frank & I decided that even though we can eat vegetables, we aren't going crazy on them during vegetable + protein days. I could eat tons of them, but I know that it will slow down my weight loss.
Breakfast: 1 scrambled egg, 1 slice FF American cheese & turkey bacon on "bread."
Lunch: Asian Stir Fry
Snack: Crab stuffed mushrooms!
Dinner: We went to my parents house for dinner & it was tough. My mom is Italian & she makes incredible sauce & chicken parmesan. She made special stuff for us because she's the best. I had grilled shrimp parmesan with FF mozzarella & Frank had grilled chicken parmesan. Staring at mom's homemade chicken cutlets was torture.
I wanted to eat salad, but I had to skip that also. There was oil on it, cheese, candied walnuts & orange slices. My mom makes the best salads. I'm still not sure what I'll dress my salads with on Dukan.
Day #7 - Vegetable + Protein:
Frank & I decided that even though we can eat vegetables, we aren't going crazy on them during vegetable + protein days. I could eat tons of them, but I know that it will slow down my weight loss.
Breakfast: 1 scrambled egg, 1 slice FF American cheese & turkey bacon on "bread."
Lunch: Asian Stir Fry
Snack: Crab stuffed mushrooms!
Dinner: We went to my parents house for dinner & it was tough. My mom is Italian & she makes incredible sauce & chicken parmesan. She made special stuff for us because she's the best. I had grilled shrimp parmesan with FF mozzarella & Frank had grilled chicken parmesan. Staring at mom's homemade chicken cutlets was torture.
I wanted to eat salad, but I had to skip that also. There was oil on it, cheese, candied walnuts & orange slices. My mom makes the best salads. I'm still not sure what I'll dress my salads with on Dukan.
Week One on Dukan
Today completes week #1 for both Frank & I. Here's our results:
Frank: -7.5 lbs
Jamie: -4 lbs
I'm jealous of his 7.5 lbs!
The week was a little rough. I was very cranky after work on Friday because I wanted to go out to eat & drink wine & be fancy with my boyfriend. We couldn't do that. I had a slight fit & then we laughed about it. Frank brought up filet mignons for dinner & we went and bought some shrimp so I could have surf & turf. Instead of our normal bottle of red wine, we had vodka & diet tonic. We ate & then got on the couch with our drink & DVR. I was asleep in about 30 minutes, but that's because I was exhausted. Saturday was rough for Frank. He was cranky like I was on Friday. It was his turn. We got through it!
Here's what our shopping list looked like:
-3 lbs chicken breast
- Filet mignons
- Shrimp
- Fat free shredded cheddar & American cheese slices
- Eggs
- Turkey bacon
- Lean rib eye steaks
-Ground beef
-Sugar free ketchup
-Linda Fiveson's breads (see next paragraph)
- Oat bran
- Fat free greek yogurt
- Skim milk
- Sugar free chocolate syrup
- Fat free yogurt
There's this amazing weight loss & nutrition counselor on Long Island & she puts her clients on gluten, fat, sugar & preservative free diets. She also sells a ton of her "fake foods." They're incredible & made from REAL FOOD. They aren't full of strange ingredients that I can't pronounce. We went to her & bought some of her "breads," "pancakes," and "flagels." They do the trick. They toast up & make us feel like we're semi eating bread.
She also makes popcorn shrimp. The breading is some sort of powdered milk, but it gets crunch in the oven & is totally amazing. I wouldn't have gotten through week one without these.
Here's the bad stuff: For most of the week I was completely exhausted by 4pm, but that's because my body doesn't have carbs to burn for energy & is working like crazy to burn fat for energy. I am ok with this. Frank & I both had horrible headaches for a few days, but his are just about completely gone. Mine are better, but not gone yet. You don't, um, "go to the bathroom" much. The oat bran helps with that.
Here's the good stuff: We lost 11 lbs combined. THAT is awesome. I have a ton of energy when I first wake up & it makes getting ready for work a lot easier. I don't even need coffee, but I had a few Skinny Lattes to cure my sweet craving. We are both sleeping like we're dead. I haven't slept this good in a long time & I'm a serious sleeper. I sleep more than anyone I know.
Sample Week One Menu (This is my menu because Frank doesn't eat yogurt or seafood):
Breakfast: 2 scrambled eggs with 2 slices fat free American cheese & hot sauce
Snack: 1 glass of skim milk with sugar free chocolate syrup, or a Tall Skinny Latte
Lunch: Grilled chicken with fat free Greek yogurt mixed with herbs, or Grilled chicken with hot sauce & fat free ranch (not sure if the ranch is cheating, but whatev)
Snack: Fat free yogurt with oat bran
Dinner: Grilled shrimp! I had this almost every night. I also melted some fat free cheese in a pan & let it "burn" a bit. Then I put some garlic salt on it & ate it with my shrimp. I know, weird.
Frank: -7.5 lbs
Jamie: -4 lbs
I'm jealous of his 7.5 lbs!
The week was a little rough. I was very cranky after work on Friday because I wanted to go out to eat & drink wine & be fancy with my boyfriend. We couldn't do that. I had a slight fit & then we laughed about it. Frank brought up filet mignons for dinner & we went and bought some shrimp so I could have surf & turf. Instead of our normal bottle of red wine, we had vodka & diet tonic. We ate & then got on the couch with our drink & DVR. I was asleep in about 30 minutes, but that's because I was exhausted. Saturday was rough for Frank. He was cranky like I was on Friday. It was his turn. We got through it!
Here's what our shopping list looked like:
-3 lbs chicken breast
- Filet mignons
- Shrimp
- Fat free shredded cheddar & American cheese slices
- Eggs
- Turkey bacon
- Lean rib eye steaks
-Ground beef
-Sugar free ketchup
-Linda Fiveson's breads (see next paragraph)
- Oat bran
- Fat free greek yogurt
- Skim milk
- Sugar free chocolate syrup
- Fat free yogurt
There's this amazing weight loss & nutrition counselor on Long Island & she puts her clients on gluten, fat, sugar & preservative free diets. She also sells a ton of her "fake foods." They're incredible & made from REAL FOOD. They aren't full of strange ingredients that I can't pronounce. We went to her & bought some of her "breads," "pancakes," and "flagels." They do the trick. They toast up & make us feel like we're semi eating bread.
She also makes popcorn shrimp. The breading is some sort of powdered milk, but it gets crunch in the oven & is totally amazing. I wouldn't have gotten through week one without these.
Here's the bad stuff: For most of the week I was completely exhausted by 4pm, but that's because my body doesn't have carbs to burn for energy & is working like crazy to burn fat for energy. I am ok with this. Frank & I both had horrible headaches for a few days, but his are just about completely gone. Mine are better, but not gone yet. You don't, um, "go to the bathroom" much. The oat bran helps with that.
Here's the good stuff: We lost 11 lbs combined. THAT is awesome. I have a ton of energy when I first wake up & it makes getting ready for work a lot easier. I don't even need coffee, but I had a few Skinny Lattes to cure my sweet craving. We are both sleeping like we're dead. I haven't slept this good in a long time & I'm a serious sleeper. I sleep more than anyone I know.
Sample Week One Menu (This is my menu because Frank doesn't eat yogurt or seafood):
Breakfast: 2 scrambled eggs with 2 slices fat free American cheese & hot sauce
Snack: 1 glass of skim milk with sugar free chocolate syrup, or a Tall Skinny Latte
Lunch: Grilled chicken with fat free Greek yogurt mixed with herbs, or Grilled chicken with hot sauce & fat free ranch (not sure if the ranch is cheating, but whatev)
Snack: Fat free yogurt with oat bran
Dinner: Grilled shrimp! I had this almost every night. I also melted some fat free cheese in a pan & let it "burn" a bit. Then I put some garlic salt on it & ate it with my shrimp. I know, weird.
Friday, November 12, 2010
The Beginning of the Dukan Diet Lifestyle
Frank & I decided that we needed to lose some serious pounds. We saw my mom's best friend (and my favorite person in the world) when we all got together for some fall festivities & she looked AMAZING. Her secret? The Dukan Diet.
Frank & I talked to her about the diet & we decided that it was the best option for us because he LOVES meat. When I say he loves it I mean that he could live on it. My problem is portion control & condiments. His is fast food & ketchup. He jokes that we have bottles & bottles of condiments & I joke that we have to buy "family size" ketchup for just him. You can't access a lot of Dukan info in the US yet, but we wrote down all of the "rules" that Linda told us & spent hours on Google putting it all together. Here's what we figured out:
-For the first seven days (we both want to lose 50 lbs so we had to do the first phase for 7 days) you eat nothing but lean proteins and fat free dairy. That's it. No fruits & veggies at all. This appealed to Frank, but I love vegetables & wasn't too excited about it. Such is life. This phase is called the "attack phase." You see big results in this phase & it jump starts your weight loss. For me, this was appealing because I battle unnormally high levels of insulin which leaves me in a state of hot flashes & sweating after meals that include grains, bread, too many fruits etc, and then leaves me shaking like a leaf when my sugar plumits a few hours later. It's a mess. Frank can tell if my sugar is high or low from a mile away becasue I get all crazy.
This "attack phase" has been great for me because my sugar has been totally stable & I've felt really really good. No shakes, no sweating, no falling asleep because my sugar is so high. I'm on day #5 and I'm down about 5 lbs. I'll write more on that later. All-in-all I feel pretty great.
-The second phase is the "cruise phase." During this phase you alternate days of pure lean protein and fat free dairy with days that include vegetables. I'm very excited about this phase because I miss mushrooms & tomatoes. I'm starting this phase in 2 days and the first thing on my menu is homemade tomato sauce with breadless meatballs and fat free mozzarella. Yummmmm. I'll write more on this phase when I get to it.
So, Sunday night we got home from a weekend trip & stopped at the grocery store. We stocked up on meat, fat free yogurt, skim milk, fat free cheese and eggs. We started the diet on Monday & it was much easier for Frank than I thought it was going to be. I was crankyyyyyyy by 9pm, but I got over it. I noticed that I didn't have that "starving feeling" that I normally have around 4pm & that made me very happy.
This starts our weight loss journey with the Dukan Diet. I'll post about it as we go & I'll try to update every day with what I ate. I love love love to cook, so any recipes I come up with I'll post on here also. Happy dieting!
Frank & I talked to her about the diet & we decided that it was the best option for us because he LOVES meat. When I say he loves it I mean that he could live on it. My problem is portion control & condiments. His is fast food & ketchup. He jokes that we have bottles & bottles of condiments & I joke that we have to buy "family size" ketchup for just him. You can't access a lot of Dukan info in the US yet, but we wrote down all of the "rules" that Linda told us & spent hours on Google putting it all together. Here's what we figured out:
-For the first seven days (we both want to lose 50 lbs so we had to do the first phase for 7 days) you eat nothing but lean proteins and fat free dairy. That's it. No fruits & veggies at all. This appealed to Frank, but I love vegetables & wasn't too excited about it. Such is life. This phase is called the "attack phase." You see big results in this phase & it jump starts your weight loss. For me, this was appealing because I battle unnormally high levels of insulin which leaves me in a state of hot flashes & sweating after meals that include grains, bread, too many fruits etc, and then leaves me shaking like a leaf when my sugar plumits a few hours later. It's a mess. Frank can tell if my sugar is high or low from a mile away becasue I get all crazy.
This "attack phase" has been great for me because my sugar has been totally stable & I've felt really really good. No shakes, no sweating, no falling asleep because my sugar is so high. I'm on day #5 and I'm down about 5 lbs. I'll write more on that later. All-in-all I feel pretty great.
-The second phase is the "cruise phase." During this phase you alternate days of pure lean protein and fat free dairy with days that include vegetables. I'm very excited about this phase because I miss mushrooms & tomatoes. I'm starting this phase in 2 days and the first thing on my menu is homemade tomato sauce with breadless meatballs and fat free mozzarella. Yummmmm. I'll write more on this phase when I get to it.
So, Sunday night we got home from a weekend trip & stopped at the grocery store. We stocked up on meat, fat free yogurt, skim milk, fat free cheese and eggs. We started the diet on Monday & it was much easier for Frank than I thought it was going to be. I was crankyyyyyyy by 9pm, but I got over it. I noticed that I didn't have that "starving feeling" that I normally have around 4pm & that made me very happy.
This starts our weight loss journey with the Dukan Diet. I'll post about it as we go & I'll try to update every day with what I ate. I love love love to cook, so any recipes I come up with I'll post on here also. Happy dieting!
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