Nichola: I hear you on the bad weather! Tropical storms have kept me off the beach I have a bellydancing workout I love so I've been doing that or a goofy Richard Simmons video which makes me laugh.

What do you teach? I am also on summer vacation. I am a College Instructor and Graduate Student. I teach English at the University, mainly writing courses and some English as a Second Language courses.

That's one thing I'm a bit concerned about is how I will be able to maintain all these changes when I'm running around during the semester.

Have a great day everyone!
Leticia

Leticia, thanks for the recipes, I look forward to trying them out. I'm having problems finding traditional oats though ... can only find the quick/instant varieties in the shops. This is a problem in Hong Kong as most of the 'Western-type' food has to be imported from US/UK, so we are limited to certain brands ... although we can buy pretty much everything, we can't always find things such as 'low-fat' or 'low-calorie' versions of things. So when a specific recipe requires a low-fat version of something I can't always get it ... very frustrating!

I'm not a teacher, my job title is "Educational Support Assistant" ... sounds more impressive than "Teacher's Assistant" don't you think?! I only work part-time, every day until lunchtime which suits me fine. I really love my job ... that's something I never thought I'd say! I really love working with kids, but don't have the stress and responsibility that a teacher has. The only problem that I have with my job is the staff room ... it's always full of cakes and cookies which I have a hard time trying to resist!!! Hopefully by the time we return to school after the hols I will be over my cravings for sugary foods!

Nichola

Wow, look at all the great recipes! Looks like I have some experimenting to do! First thing on my list will be those Oatmeal Chocolate Chip cookies. Well, I won't have time to get to the grocery this weekend, but I don't think I'm needing much. I'm planning on trying a couple of new dishes. I'll be sure to post the recipes and how I liked them.

I'm also going to kickstart my exercise regimen. Starting tomorrow morning, I'm going to start the Walk Away the Pounds Walk Diet. I've had the book forever and just dug it out. The first week I have to walk at least 6 miles. Plan on doing 1 mile each day. I can't wait!


Slim

Slim: Good luck with your exercise goals!
I have been sticking to mine against all odds. I will do my time but I don't have to like it! LOL

Nichola: If the cravings for sweets haven't subsided you'll just have to start contributing low-gi/low-fat sweets to the cache! LOL I'll help with the taste testing of recipes, just to be kind!


I have discovered my personal relationship with chocolate milk. I've never been a milk drinker but the low gi books suggest it as a snack (another revolutionary concept for me... a SNACK? MILK??? ) but oddly enough I've been craving it. It helps me with my chocolate cravings (that time of the month!) and it helps me from getting hungry overnight. Who knew?

I think one thing this Low GI stuff is forcing me to do is to rethink foods and food combinations. And it's also been hard to get out of the habit of eating less. I don't mean portions (which I'm measuring religiously) but skipping meals or snacks. I've found that if I stick to my meals and snacks as programmed not only do I not get hungry but I am losing more than when I try to not eat. It's just so instinctive though.

On a serious note, I hope if any of you have friends or loved ones in London they are safe and sound and have been in communication with you. It is truly terrible to see the pain and suffering that result from random acts of senseless violence. My prayers go out to all who have lost loved ones or otherwise had to experience the horrible effects of the bombings. I continue to pray and work for peace.

Bella - I so agree with you because I don't like exercise either. I've found something that I like doing better than most other things, but if I had my choice, I'd park my hiney on the couch and forget about it. But you can't truly get healthy without adding some exercise to the picture.

I did do my 1 mile this morning, plus I walked to and from the daycare to take my youngest. My oldest had to have oral surgery today, so we dropped the baby off and walked back home to get ready. It was refreshing to get it over and done with and not have it on my mind all day.

Slim

How is everyone's weekend going?

Ok so my plan was to try a couple different new recipes this weekend, but was lazy about it and only got around to trying one. And I really liked it! This will be one that I make again and again...

(Taken from The New Glucose Revolution)

Spicy Noodles

8 oz dried thin egg noodles
2 tsp oil
2 cloves garlic, crushed or 2 teaspoons minced garlic
1 tsp minced ginger
1 tsp minced hot peppers
6 green onions, sliced
1 Tbsp smooth peanut butter
2 Tbsp soy sauce
1 cup prepared chicken stock

1. Add the noodles to a large saucepan of boiling water and boil, uncovered, for about 5 minutes or until just tender.
2. While the noodles are cooking, heat the oil in a nonstick frying pan, add the garlic, ginger, chili (hot peppers) and onions and stir-fry for 1 minute. Remove from the heat.

3. Stir in the peanut butter and soy sauce and gradually add the stock, stirring until smooth. Stir over heat until simmering, and simmer for 2 minutes.

4. Drain the noodles and add to the spicy sauce, stirring to coat. Serve immediately.

Serves 4 as an accompaniment

Low GI

Per Serving:

280 Calories
45g Carbs
6g Fat
4g Fiber

The book suggests adding strips of stir-fried chicken or asian-style mixed veggies, but I didn't. I did however throw in some sliced mushrooms to use up the few I had in my fridge before they went bad. Yummm .. this is still on my taste buds!


Slim

That sounds yummy Slim! I might make that this week!

I had pizza for dinner But on the sunny side I ate less that I usually would have and I made sure to eat a big old salad! And it was super yummy!

Cramps have kept me from exercising the last two days but I'll be getting back on track tomorrow I'm sure.

How old are your kids? Running around the playground makes for great exercise! LOL I worked in a preschool and had some little soccer fans in the class. Those little kids kicked my butt!!! But it was fun.

Hi Girls,

Hope you all had a good weekend. I weighed-in and I'm another 2lbs down, so I'm really pleased about that!

Slim that sounds like a great recipe, one that I'll definitely be trying out.

Exercise and I have never been great buddies!! It's something I have to really push myself to do. Hubby is always telling me that if I get into the habit of doing it regularly I'd end up really enjoying it ... it's getting into the habit that's a problem! I did go for a nice long walk yesterday though with hubby and the dog, so that's a start I suppose.

Have a good week everyone!

Nichola

Way to go Nichola!!!

I have developed a new philosophy on exercise which is a bit weird but it's been working for me:
Since my goal right now is to get a minimum of 20 minutes in, I think of it like medicine. I have to do it cause it's healthy even if I don't want to swallow it or it tastes yucky. I've even done 20 minutes of walking and bouncing around while watching a tv show if I didn't have time to do more structured stuff. (I look like a fool but I am meeting my goal! )I have to do it. So, it's not really about whether I want to or not. It sounds really silly but it's working for me. LOL And the thing is, once I'm doing 20 minutes, I usually end up doing more cause I'm all sweaty already so I might as well.
In addition to that, I try hard to find things I enjoy doing as exercise. Like swimming or bellydancing. It's easier to get going if it's something I like doing to begin with.

Congrats on your success!

Leticia, your philosophy on exercise makes a lot of sense. I really do need to get myself started on this. I've decided that I'm going to try to walk EVERY day, do some sit-ups ... I must have stomach muscles hidden somewhere! And tomorrow I'm going swimming with my daughter. If I could just manage to do one thing a day it would be a great improvement on what I'm doing right now!

Tonight I'm trying out the Low Gi Thai Red Curry for dinner, if it's any good I'll post it tomorrow for anyone who's interested in trying it.

Nichola

I said I would post the recipe for Thai Red Curry if it turned out well ... it was absolutely delicious!! Never thought that I would be enjoying Thai Curry when I'm "On a diet"!! Even the kids loved it! If anyone likes Thai food try this out .....

THAI CHICKEN CURRY (Green Light)

1 tbsp rapeseed oil (I used olive because I didn't have rapeseed)
2 tsp red Thai curry paste
450g (1lb) boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut up
1 onion, sliced
1 each red and green peppers (capsicum), thinly sliced
120ml (4fl oz) chicken stock or water (I used stock)
120ml (4fl oz) light coconut milk
1 tbsp soy sauce
15g (1/2oz) chopped fresh basil or coriander

In a large frying pan or wok, heat the oil over a medium heat. Add the curry paste and cook for 30 seconds. Add the chicken and stir-fry for 5 minutes. Add the onion and peppers; cook, stirring, for aboout 10 minutes or until the vegetables begin to brown. Add the stock, coconut milk and soy sauce; simmer for 10 minutes or until the chicken is no longer pink inside. Stir in the basil or corinader.

Makes 4 servings.

ENJOY!!

And here's another recipe which I tried out last night, which was also pretty good ....

GINGER CHICKEN (Green Light)

2 tbsp rapeseed oil (I used olive)
2 tbsp grated fresh ginger
1 tsp ground corinder
1/2 tsp ground cumin
1/2 tsp turmeric
1 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
675g (1.5lb) skinless chicken pieces
200g (6.5oz) cauliflower florets (I used more)
2 carrots, cut into chunks (I used more)
1 red onion, cut into wedges (I used more)

1. In a small bowl, combine 1 tbsp of the oil, the ginger, coriander, cumin, turmeric, 1/4 tsp of the salt, and a pinch of the pepper. Rub the mixture all over the chicken (BEWARE! - this turns your hand bright yellow!!)

2. Toss the cauliflower, carrots and onion with the remaining oil, salt and pepper. Place the chicken and vegetables on baking tray or roasting pan. Roast in a 220'C (Gas Mark 7) oven for about 35 minutes or until the juices run clear when the chicken is pierced and the vegetables are just tender and golden.

Makes 4 servings.

I served mine on a bed of basmati rice (a very small bed of course!) which I had cooked with some onion, garlic and spices to make it a bit more interesting.

Hope you enjoy it!

Nichola

Hi! I've searching around for some sort of eating plan. I read SBD book and lasted 4 days on it, looked at the Zone (too complicated), thought about WW (not really a social bug), and have kept coming back to this Glycemic Index bit.

I actually think my mom has the "Stoplight" book and am going to ask to borrow it. I also have recently came across good "reviews" of the Glucose Revolution book, so I am going to try to check it out at the Library or look on Amazon. I am excited to find this post and glad people exchange tips and recipes. I think my mom cooked that Indian Curry Dish and she thought it was bland too, I remember her saying it was weird cause she figured it would be tasty with the curry. I love curry! I love me alot of garlic, herbs and spices!

So, I hopefully I can get this researched and planned out and start next Monday! I'll be sure to check back! It definitely would be nice if I could do this with my mom too, cause we'd be able to support each other, and it's always nice to have a buddy!

Hi Sun Flower,

I too have tried and failed so many other diets in the past ... never been able to stick to them long enough, found them boring, found it a hassle constantly counting points or calories etc. I think that I've finally found the plan that suits me best with the Gi Diet. I'm not obsessed with counting and weighing everything, I'm not bored, I'm eating normal food, I'm enjoying trying out new recipes, the family are able to eat exactly what I eat, it's healthy, and best of all ... I'm not hungry!! ... Oh, even better than that ... I'm losing weight and don't even feel like I'm "on a diet!!"

Check it out, and if you do decide that it's the plan for you, come and join us!

Hope to see you around here again soon.

Nichola

Weighed-in again this morning and just want to report that I'm down another 2lbs!! I'm really pleased with that!

Hope everyone has a great weekend!

Nichola