You can drizzle your oil on zucchini and sprinkle french fry seasoning on top (salt works too) for YUMMY!!! zucchini fries. Stick in oven for 20 min and see how done they are. My toaster oven is semi-broken, so it takes me forever.
Core is based on Volumetrics - the idea that foods with a low energy density keep you fuller longer. So, 50 calories of grapes keep you fuller much longer than 50 calories of raisins.
Core is EASY to figure out... you just have to get used to eating some different foods. Not bad-different, just different-different. Google ww core recipes and you will find a bunch. I have some links if you are interested.
It's possible to do Wendie long-term and maybe it's true that you will lose a little faster, but it WILL make you crazy. Don't know about you, but I don't need any help in that department.
Last edited by rubberlegs; 10-13-2007 at 11:05 AM.
Oh, and speaking of SQUASH! 2 of my favorite recipes are:
1. Spaghetti squash. Cook, scrape the squash out of the skin and add marinara. The best 0 point meal you will find.
2. Polenta Primavera. Slice up a tube of polenta, cover with sauteed bell peppers, zucchini, yellow squash, mushrooms, whatever, then cover with marinara. Stick in oven 20 min and sprinkle parmesan on top.
My family were never big squash eaters so I haven't really gotten into it, but I am going out to a couple of grocery stores today and see what I can find. There unfortunately any farmers markets here, but I might be able to find a roadside stand since it's a good day!
As for WW I am going to check out Core, but I am thinking about just going back to the Points Target with Flex since i am used to it. With Wendie it has been stressful for me (and it's only been a week!), I wouldn't remember how many points I could have at the day and then those days that I was hungry at the end there was no room for me to wiggle and eat a little something so I would feel like I messed up and the day was ruined. I don't need any of that I think being in high school and having no extra stress the first time I did it helped, but being a college senior this time it's a bit different.
What temperature do you usually put your oven on? My over is very tempermental so having an area is good. When things call for 10 minutes I put them in there for 4 and they are nearly burnt. It's crazy. I'm definately going to be zucchini'ed up this weekend YUM!
Buy an oven thermometer and check your oven! If its running hot, you can set the oven to a lower temperature setting so it ends up at the temperature you want. You can usually find an oven thermometer in grocery stores, in the kitchen utensil section.
Hi there!
Didn't mean to sound crabby at all
I think the key for me in WW is proper planning, like a week ahead, because if I DON'T I snack out and everything goes to heck. Which in a way bites because if you are busy, it sure is difficult. I've found that I can eat the same thing two or three nights in a row, so I make a double or triple recipe of whatever, and measure it out. Takes the stress out of being creative every single night, and I only cook twice or three times a week. The rest of the time is "bing bing cuisine" (aka microwave reheating of the leftovers!). You might also think about having an emergency stash of WW frozen meals. I personally prefer to cook from scratch, but they sure come in handy for those occasions where I just can't get my act together enough to eat healthily.
I tried Core but for ME, I can sure pack away a heck of alot of whole-wheat pasta and brown rice! No limits for me = free-form eating odessey! The philosophy of the Core plan is awesome, though -- low Glycemic index carb (i.e. whole grains), fruits, veg, and low-fat protein -- so I incorporate this philosophy as much as I can into the Flex plan. Flex just works better for me!
I absolutely am 100% convinced that you can do this and that you will be successful.
Oh, and about blood sugar and hypoglycemia -- you may be feeling the effects of "low blood sugar" because you might not be getting the proper nutrients at the proper time with your current diet. The way blood sugar works is that if you eat a food that is easily converted to sugar (i.e. white sugar, refined carbohydrated, white rice, most breads), your blood sugar will zoom up to high levels, and then drop quickly. This quick drop makes you hungry, shaky, and tired. Thus making you want to eat again. If you can even out your blood sugar levels, you will avoid the highs and lows. This evening out can be done by spreading your meals and snacks out during the day (hence my meal plan with 3 meals and 3 snacks) and by focusing on complex carbohydrates (brown rice, whole grains, whole-wheat pasta). Complex carbs take time to break down into sugar, so you avoid the whole high/low effect that you get if you eat, say, a piece of white bread. The "glycemic index" of a food tells you how quickly it is broken down into sugar. The higher the number, the faster your blood sugar rises and subsequently drops. The lower the number, the more even your blood sugar will remain, thus stabilizing you for a longer period of time.
FINALLY, to stay full longer, focus on protein. Studies have shown that those who eat a higher low-fat protein diet remain fuller than those who eat a higher carb diet. Eggs for breakfast will satisfy you longer than a frozen waffle with syrup!
Enough!!!!
freiamaya~ Hi, I didn't think you were being crabby, I understood what you were saying. Sometimes it might seem like that since we are online, but I didn't take it as that at all. Since I am just starting to get back into things I haven't gotten to the point that "yes I do have this many points left, but maybe I should use them this way and eat more instead of wasting them on this" I just find that stress and lack of time I just grab something and I think planning meals may be the best bet for me. Thankfully my boyfriend loves lean cuisines , unfortunately he loves them so much I find they are disappearing quickly.
Thank you so much about saying that I can do this. Sometimes hearing a little encouragement makes all the difference I went to the grocery store today and bought foods that were higher in protein and veggies to fill in. I just need to stop making excuses and get back into this. I have to say though I ate a very filling breakfast of a bowlful of strawberries, a whole wheat english muffin, and pb, and I felt great. I guess I just need to remember just because the points are there doesn't mean that I need to eat the bad things It's terrible to say because I love my boyfriend so much, but he is going to be moving for about 4 months and I have a feeling this will be a little easier.
Thanks so much again! I appreciate your responses and advice!
My DH is away until the end of MAY next year! I feel a bit guilty because I don't like it when he is away, but on the other hand, it IS easier to manage food for just me...
Hang in there - you can do it!!!
I'll see if I can find the GI books I bought. One was called someting like the Glycemic Index for Diabetics, or something like that, and the other was something on the order of The Pocket Guide to the Glycemic index. Basically I went to amazon.com and did a search on glycemic index and picked two of the cheapest books with good reviews.
I checked out Volumetrics (I don't know which edition) from the library. Basically the entire premise of the book is that food that is bigger (because of water and fiber content, and possibly air also) is more satisfying than the same number of calories in a smaller form. An apple is more satisfying than 3 life savers, for example. Basically the book was written following a study that found that people ate less, and were full longer on a soup than on the same ingredients (except for the water) in the form of a casserole with a glass of water on the side.
I don't follow the program, which uses math to calculate the calorie density of foods. I just use the basic principle that food that is "big" for the calorie content, is a better choice than the same calories in "smaller" food. An apple is going to be a better choice than apple juice. Oatmeal is going to be better than granola....
When I have a taste for a "dense" food, I try to think of ways to dilute it. For example, I just bought some blueberry granola that looks great, but rather than eating a bowl of granola, I'm going to use only a tablespoon or two and add it to oatmeal or yoghurt.
When I make taco meat, I use half dry tvp (soy protein, looks like grapenuts cereal) to half lean ground beef and add broth (dry tvp has to be reconstituted). Then I add the seasoning mix as usual. I'll also add veggies like onion, green pepper, and celery. Sometimes I dilute it further by adding cooked wheat berries and/or canned beans (whole or nonfat refried). I save more calories if I use whole wheat tortillas, and even more if I use corn tortillas. If I'm really craving "bulk" I will add lettuce and salsa to have a taco salad rather than a taco.
It may seem weird, but I've even used it with candy bars. I will take a snack sized candy bar and chop it into tiny pieces, and mix it into yogurt, dry cereal or apple pieces.
Instead of a sloppy joe or barbecue sandwhich, I will add a smaller amount of barbecue on top of a dry baked potato, sweet potato, a pile of green beans, acorn squash, or a pile of shredded cabbage or lettuce (with or without low fat dressing).
I eat at night too but I stopped doing that because my dad was catching me saying mean things to me about my weight a lil insensitive.....but you know how it is when you're hungry and you're trying to lose weight you try not to eat cookies at night because you know you're going to gain the weight over night when you're unable to suppress your cravings for sugar trans fat
I think being in high school and having no extra stress the first time I did it helped, but being a college senior this time it's a bit different.
