Super Bowl Sunday Healthy Snack Ideas

Hello Friends!!!

Josh has been SuperBusy gearing up for some of his clients for SuperBowl Sunday.  For us this means it is SuperBowl Snack Time! :)  You do not have to go rogue or get off the diet plan that you are in order to take part in celebrations. Josh posted last week about preparing yourself for these type of gatherings.

I hope that you enjoy the recipes we found on fitsugar.com and they were posted by our friend Michele Foley. These healthy recipes are sure to have you scoring the touch down with your family. Have a great weekend! 

Oh Josh wanted me to let you guys know that he is down .4lbs he only has 3lbs to go to hit 20lbs lost!

Thanks,

Kelly

NUT BUTTER DIP

©Michele Foley Fitsugar.com 2012

Pick a fiber-filled fruit like an apple or pear to eat alongside a tablespoon or two of nut butter. The natural sugar of fruit won't have you crashing the same way a soda will, and the protein from the nut butter will help sustain your energy through the day.

FRUIT KEBABS

©Michele Foley Fitsugar.com 2012

You'll be shocked at how fast fruit kebabs disappear when put out on the table. Make them even more special by adding a blue agave cinnamon dip to the mix. (substitute maple syrup with blue agave)

To make your own fruit kebabs, get an assortment of different fruit and cut into bite-size pieces. After that, all that's left is to skewer! You can use standard kebab skewers to do so.

MANGO SHRIMP SKEWERS

©Michele Foley Fitsugar.com 2012

Food on a stick is always a smart choice for get-togethers. Hands stay clean, and the dish is easier to serve. Mango shrimp skewers are quick and easy to cook up and will keep guests coming back for more.

Recipe
1 pound of shrimp, deveined and shelled
1 flesh of a mango
1 teaspoon of cumin powder
1 jalapeno, seeded depending on your tastes
Salt to taste

Directions

1. Puree all the mango, cumin powder, and jalapeno in small blender or food processor.
2. Skewer the shrimp and cover with the half of the marinade. Allow the shrimp to marinade in the fridge for a half hour.
3. Cook until shrimp are pink in color and top with the rest of the marinade

Serves 4-6.

CUCUMBER RANCH DIP

©Michele Foley Fitsugar.com 2012

Rethink ranch dip by substituting Greek yogurt for sour cream and mayonnaise. Instead of the powdered spices and salt, quickly chop up some chives, parsley, and garlic for our cucumbers with ranch Greek yogurt dip. There is so much flavor packed in these fresh herbs; only a little salt is needed to satiate your palate. This dip will complement any raw vegetable, so be sure to try it on bell peppers, carrots, and broccoli florets.

Ingredients

1-2 cucumbers, cut into 1/2-inch wedges
1 clove garlic, mashed into paste
1/2 bunch chives, thinly sliced
1/4 bunch flat-leaf Italian parsley, chopped
1 6-ounce container of strained Greek yogurt
Lemon juice to taste
Sea Salt to taste

Directions

1. To make garlic paste: chop garlic then add a generous pinch of coarse salt. Mash the garlic and salt mixture with the flat side of your knife.
2. Stir garlic paste, chives, parsley, and lemon juice to Greek yogurt until well combined. Sea Salt to taste.

My Latest Update

Wow!!! I have so missed blogging and hearing from all of my supporters.

Where to begin??

My friends and I had such a great time at the Chinese new year festivities here in Houston. There were so many exhibits to take part in and of course OH MY GOODNESS the food! There was so much of it... let me tell you one of my weaknesses is Chinese food! Anyone else?  I DID NOT GIVE IN!!!!

The day started off with us pre-packing our morning snacks, lunches and afternoon snacks. We have attended this event before and we knew that we better arm ourselves in the battle against fighting the CRAVE MONSTER!!!

We arrived at the festivities and almost immediately when opening the car door you were engulfed with the aroma... Getting into the vendor area was the biggest challenge yet!!! There was so many food stands, people walking around with the delicious delights, and a  variety of vendors on site to enlighten visitors with their culture. I am glad my friends were there supporting me in this challenge and made sure that I did not give in.

After the chinese festivities were over we all decided to go and catch the latest movie Extremely Loud, Incredibly Close. I was not mentally prepared for the movies and on arriving I broke protocol and got a regular popcorn no butter.. However, movie popcorn is loaded with unnatural salts and oils. Whether I had no butter or not the stuff was not the best thing for me to have...

Later in the evening after the movie was over we all decided to go and play cards which led me into craving the usual snacks when we have our game night... I fought off the snack cravings for as long as I could.  My break in protocol earlier to have popcorn led me to once again break protocol and have carrots with hummus.You may be thinking well thats not bad, however the plan I am following is a very strict plan to follow.. Those who are on this plan know that you can easily gain weight with going rogue...

I am happy to say that Sunday following the festivities, the movie night and the game night I am back on track with HCG. My weight started at 291 and as of today I weigh 274.6lbs. I have lost a total of 16.4lbs. I am so thankful for my mother, Shelia Hall.  She is a personal nutrition coach and has been routing for me before I even began. Presently Shelia is gearing up for her month long boot camp series. You can find out more about this program by visiting her site at www.facebook.com/bootcampcrosby

With the guidance of my mom who is an amazing personal nutrition coach, I am following the book written by Sonia E Russell HCG Diet 800 Calorie Protocol. You can pick up your copy at www.hcgdoctorsgroup.com I really suggest you invest in yourself with time and study before starting any diet plan. You can also follow Sonia at www.facebook.com/inchesadmin

Soo much has happened since Saturday. My amazing life has not stopped. I am preparing a SuperBowl Blog that will be posted tomorrow. You don't have to pay on game day! We will  have some amazing recipes provided by fellow HCG dieters and supporters within this program.

Talk to you guys soon!!!

Josh

Dieting in Times of Celebration

So after a minor setback yesterday. I am pleased and so happy to announce that I am down another 2.0 lbs today. Total weight loss since Monday has been 11.4 lbs... After observing my daily intake I believe that my weight gain was due to some stress as well as too much salt intake. Yesterday was all about drinking more water so that I could flush it out!

Today I am really excited that some friends and I are going to take part in the Chinese New Year festivities.
Every year Houston puts on a fantastic event in celebration of Chinese New Year. This year is the year of the dragon.


The dragon holds special significance for the Chinese people. More than 4,000 years ago, there were two large tribes and many smaller tribes in China. The tribes had animals as emblems. The two large tribes unified and chose the dragon as their symbol. In fact, the Han Chinese still call themselves the descendants of the Dragon.


Still today, the Dragon is a revered symbol. You can see many sculptures and carvings of the dragon. Even today, the Chinese associate the dragon with power and wisdom. The Chinese dragon was not seen as a threatening evil being as we do in the west - rather a symbol of power, superiority and rule.


Let this be your year that you gain power and wisdom within yourself and conquer your battle of the bulge.

As we all know that major holidays can take a wrath on our diet plan and or program.  However you do not have to shy away from the holiday itself. What you need to do is prepare yourself and plan out your day, Think about where you will be within your day.. Think about times and things that might be going on. You do not want to allow the simplicity of convenience foods to set in as you may get off protocol.  Ask yourself if you will have a place to cook, or do you need to pack a lunch that doesn't require much preparation.

For today we have grilled chicken breasts and packed a spinach salad. We have prepared a strawberry vinaigrette dressing. For packing we have used a Glad container to hold our chicken breast as well as our salad. Glad makes these snack pack containers as well as lunch containers that cost about $1.89 for four. These containers come with a snap on dressing holder that attaches to the inside of your lid. This is very convenient so that you do not have to pack everything separately. After all, less is more!

In addition to our grilled chicken breast and salad, we are taking our morning snack, our lunch as well as our afternoon snacks. We will be enriched with the smells and aromas of the food of this culture but we are armed and ready!!!

You too can prepare yourself in the midst of a wonderful celebration and feel great about staying on your diet plan!

I continue to send you all wishes on your weight loss journey! As always thank you for continuing to support my endeavors!

All the best!

Josh

Weight Gained and Heartache Felt

Good Morning Family and Friends-

Today has been one of those "off" days. I have felt a lot of different emotions that have been brought on from work, life and of course dieting! I did gain weight yesterday that and combined with other current stresses with my daily life led me to a bit of an emotional breakdown today.

I am being accountable with the program and with my followers and I am realizing that you cannot win everyday and that I have to be ok with that. I am a perfectionist at everything I do and I ultimately want to please everyone...  I am beginning to think that this challenge is not only about weight loss but its about me fighting to let some of things go that I cannot control.

I am so thankful for you all and supporting my challenge. We are peeling back the layers and weight one pound at a time!

Cheers-

Josh

Simple Cooking For On-The-Go Dieters

Good Evening-

I hope that you all are conquering your weight loss goals and that you are staying on track to the diet plan you have chosen. If you do not know by now, I am a business owner, a photographer and a freelance television producer. My schedule does not always permit me to spend 30-45 minutes in the kitchen trying to prepare a healthy meal. Generally I do have to prepare my meals the night before to ensure that I stay on track and that I do not get off of my diet protocol.

I wanted to take the time and share this wonderful recipe that is so easy to prepare and cooks in 5 minutes!!!! It is also my lunch for Day #5.

So let's get started:

Menu Item:

Lemon Pepper Fish with Asparagus

© 2012 Counting Down The Pounds

What You Will Need:

Microwavable Steamer

4 oz of Whitefish (for this meal I used tilapia)

1 cup of asparagus

juice of one lemon

1 tsp oregano

sea salt

black pepper

(other ingredients in photo were used to make another recipe)



Preparation:

Step 1: Cut the woody ends of the asparagus and discard. Be sure that you watch your proportions and that you properly measure out 1 cup. Since we used whole stem asparagus, you can use your index finger and your thumb and wrap them around a bunch of asparagus. If the index finger does not meet the tip of your thumb you have to much.

© 2012 Counting Down The Pounds

Step 2: Place your cut asparagus into the bottom of your microwavable steamer. (You can find these on amazon or even at your local shopping/dept. stores) Make sure that you find and or purchase a medium size steamer that will house all of your veggies and fish.


Step 3:  Place whitefish on top of asparagus, top with squeeze of lemon, oregano, sea salt and black pepper. Make sure that you watch the amount of spices you are using and try to stick with only allowable spices that are on your diet plan.

© 2012 Counting Down The Pounds

Step 4:  Place the lid on your steamer and place in the microwave for 5 minutes. During this time make sure that you are following my blog. Here you will find some great tips and will get to witness my progress while on this diet plan!

Step 5: Remove steamer from microwave after the 5 minute cook time. Remove the fish and asparagus from the steamer, plate it up and enjoy.  If you are like me and on the go just throw it in the Tupperware!!!

© 2012 Counting Down the Pounds

Now its your turn to share a great quick and healthy meal with me! I hope to see your recipes soon!  Thanks for reading and supporting my journey!

Day #5 Weigh-In Report

Hello Friends and Followers:

I haven't had much time to check in today, but I just wanted to say that I have lost another 3.4lbs!!! The total amount of weight that I have lost since Monday has been 6.4 lbs. WOW! This HCG diet is working. I am so excited that I have the energy throughout the day and that I am feeling a lot more focused on what I have been doing!

Look out for my video blog tonight! I have a some great tips to discuss for anyone that is on a diet plan. Not just HCG.

How To Treat and Prevent Low Carb Headaches

Strict "no carb" phases of low carb diets have developed a reputation for giving dieters severe headaches. Dietitians have identified a number of different factors that could cause these headaches. They vary from person to person.

One of the factors is caffeine. Most low carb diets prohibit caffeinated drinks because they cause fluctuations in blood sugar, which can potentially jeopardize the efficacy of the diet. The Atkins’ diet suggests that dieters begin scaling-down caffeine consumption before they start the induction phase of the diet to minimize unpleasant withdrawals.

Another factor is wheat and sugar addictions, which can be the byproduct of reliance on refined carbohydrate products for a quick boost in blood sugar levels. If you snack to increase your blood sugar level, you may be addicted to carbohydrates, according to Dr. Atkins. Again, you may want to begin scaling-down your snacks before you start the induction phase to minimize withdrawal symptoms.

The last factor is dehydration. If you are losing weight rapidly on a "no carb" initial phase, you are also losing a lot ofwater that is bound-up in your carbohydrate reserves. In fact, you are actually losing four-times as many grams of water as you are grams of glycogen (or stored carbohydrates).

In addition to preventing dehydration, your body needs to replenish all of the water it loses daily to simply maintain organ functionality, flush out toxins, replace electrolytes, and promote good skin health.Most low carb dietitians suggest that you consume 8 eight-ounce glasses of water each day. This is especially important if you are losing more than the average amount of water each day, so make sure you are sticking to the "8 x 8"--or whatever amount you can drink comfortably each day--so you don’t become dehydrated during the first phase of your low carb diet.

The key to preventing low carb diet headaches is to make sure you are consuming enough water and to scale-down your potential "addictions" before you start.If you have already started your low carb diet, there is nothing you can do about these headaches. Most experts suggest that you simply wait it out. If they don’t go away after four days, then you may have food allergies, in which case you should halt the diet and consult your physician.