March Motivational Challenge

Hello lovies!!! How are my hotties doing? It's been way too long since my last blog update. I apologize for this hiatus. The past months have been super busy with so many projects and activities, blogging was almost impossible. But enough excuses. I'm back to let you all know that I have continued my low-carb way of living and healthy life-style in general. My weight-loss has been consistent, albeit slow. Can't complain. I'll be posting progress pictures and some yummy recipes below.

The main purpose of this post however, is to propose a motivational challenge for myself and any one else who needs a boost. Tomorrow is the first day of March, only  21 days till Spring! Yes! You know what that means, right? Warmer weather, fresher air, more outdoor  activities, ditching the winter gear in favor of lighter clothing. Agh. I cannot wait! With the beginning of March, I want to personally challenge myself to really up the ante in terms of my weight-loss and fitness goals. I want to incorporate even more work-outs than I have in the past (rain or shine) and apply a more stream-lined eating regime. (i.e. eliminating certain fruits and grains) at least for a month to see if this helps me lose a total of 5 inches or more (from chest, waist and hips.)  I want to invite you all to join me by a little healthy competition. Here is how it's going to work. Rules as follows:

March Motivational Challenge

1. Contest runs from March 1st through March 31st.
2. Anyone who wants to join in on the fun and get healthier in the process is welcome, I only need you to comment below or in the Facebook Healthy Hotties Forum and indicate your will be participating.
3. The winner will be determined based on Percentage of Inches Lost. This is how it will be calculated:

 At the commence of the Challenge (which is tomorrow - March 1st), you will need take your initial body measurements with a tape measure. The three main indicators will be - Chest, Waist and Hips, write these down. Your welcome to share with others or keep to yourself; however at the end of the contest you'll have to share your results.

To determine the percentage lost:  Re-measure at the end of the month (however, your encouraged to measure and share your progress at weekly intervals) and subtract from your initial measurements. The difference should be divided by the initial measurements.

Example. Let's say your starting waist measurement is 36 inches. and your end waist measurement is 32 inches. The result is 4 inches lost. To determine percentage lost the formula would be as follows:  ( 36-32=4) 4/36 = 11%.

4. The person with the highest percentage of inches lost at the end of the month will receive a prize.  Each participant will have to post a before and after picture at the end of the month.

5. Prize will include goodies such as new water canteen, gift certificate for i-tunes (to add to your work-out playlist) and some other treats.

6. Of course, it goes without saying that everyone is expected to play fair and display the utmost honesty. At the end of the day, the true prize will be how good you feel about yourself and your progress towards a healthier self!

Let the fun begin!!!!

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Here are some recent pictures of my progress as well as some delicious low-carb, high-health recipe ideas:

At the New York Philharmonic Symphony - Dec 2011

In Burlington, Vermont - January 2012

Stanley Theatre - Feb 2012

At a Preppy Themed Party - Feb 2012

Food Pics/Recipes:

Low Carb Shepards Pie made with organic, lean ground beef and cauliflower. Soo good.

Braised Chicken Breast and asparagus Salad

Tilapia lightly breaded in corn starch and broiled. Cabbage salad w/avocado

Mediterranean Tuna Salad

Hope these inspire you. I'll be back with updates very shortly.

xoxo,

The Healthy Hottie

Month Two Updates

Hello everyone. Just a quick update on my weight-loss progress and goals after two-months of my new health and eating regime of pretty much consuming very healthy, yummy-tasting but low-carb meals. I am doing this the right way, slowly but surely. Nothing drastic, nothing I can't stick  to for the long-run.

Weight loss to date: 15lbs..
Inches (from head to toe): 11 (lost 1 full inch off my waist from month one to month two)

I'm feeling good. Lots more energy. Visible results (always a welcome thing, especially when you start getting the "hey, you've been losing weight and it shows!" comments:)

But I still have a ways to go before I can move on to maintenance mode. Let's see what month three brings. I am leaving on a mini vacation soon that hopes to incorporate lots of hiking and walking. However, I am also going to allow myself to taste a little bit of everything. It's Holiday, to deprive myself would be counter-productive. However, the emphasis will be on moderation and portion control, I'm not about to ruin my progess.

A few recipes for you low-carb lovers:

Braised Lemon and Garlic Chicken Breasts with caramelized onions. A cooked salad of tayota (a vegetable with a carrot/cucumber like consistency but a very mild zucchini-like taste), carrot and boiled egg, olive oil, lemon, salt and pepper. And halved cherry tomatoes.

Grilled Chicken Salad, romaine lettuce, red cabbage, onion, tomato, carrot, avocado and a dressing of grated garlic, apple cider vinegar, olive oil, oregano, salt and pepper. So yummy!

I'll be back soon with updates.

xoxo,

The Healthy Hottie.

Low-Carb eating Plan Updates and recipes!

Hello fellow hotties:)

Quick update for you all.

Today marks two official weeks since starting my new low-carb eating health plan incorporating some concepts from Dukan, some concepts from South Beach and most concepts from my own research on healthy low-carb eating in general. Its a lifestyle, not a diet.  It seems to be the best method for my body, remember what works for one person does not automatically work for somebody else.

I measured myself this morning and happy day! here are my stats:

4 inches down from my hips/lower belly (the largest part of my body)! Woohoo!!
1 1/2 inches down from my waist.
1 inch down from chest/breast area (mostly on the back - the hubs is concerned that I lose weight on one of his favorite curves. lol)
1/2 inch down from each arm
1/2 inch down on each thigh


I am very pleased!!!!  Clothes are reflecting the loss as are the comments from my hubby and others who have noticed.  This has all been accomplished with just changing my eating habits because unfortunately, I've been too sick to work out. I have incorporated walking on a few of those days but other days I just had to rest. I'm still not 100%, I'm very curious to see what happens once I incorporate my cardio regimes. I'm sure my apetite will increase, but I have to say that with this eating plan that limits certain foods but not quantities, I'm never hungry. I become satisfied quickly, what I am is very thirsty which is a good thing because my water consumption has increased dramatically (i.e.  I'm averaging 16 oz of 16 cups of water a day even on cooler weather days.)

I also have allowed myself a 'cheat meal' to keep the sanity. What this does NOTtmean is that I sit down to a smorgasbord of high-carb, high-sugar, uber fatty foods and ruin all of my progress in one meal. What it does mean  is that I allow myself "one" side dish or entree that has a little extra carbs or calories. This week it was a chicken tamale with verde sauce ( a green salsa.) It was a delicious treat and I enjoyed it thoroughly but I was satiated, after that I no longer needed or wanted any other "naughty" treat. I've done a lot of research and allowing yourself a cheat meal every other week or so can actually help increase your metabolism if done the right way.

Here are some of the delicious foods I've had for breakfast, lunch and dinner these past weeks.  My hubby is also enjoying them and has lost a few inches himself (albeit, he admittedly cheats way more than I do:)

Breakfast:  2 organic sunny side eggs prepared in a non-stick skillet with olive oil spray. 2 pieces of canadian bacon. Sauteed mushrooms and tomatoes in olive oil spray (0 cals.) An what's known as a "Dukan" pancake. It's made out of 1 1/2 Tsp of oat-bran, 1/2 tsp of non-fat cottage cheese and 1 egg white. Its not the best tasting thing but its a great way to get the oat-bran into your system. Last but certainly not least, my cup of coffee with non fat milk and no sugar. This breakfast is both filling and delicious!

Lunch: Chicken stir-fry made in non-stick skillet with olive oil spray and organic chicken breasts, red onion, carrot, edadamame, brocoli, red cabbage  lots of garlic and low-sodium soy sauce and a little rice-wine vinegar. Soo good!

Dinner: Marinated turkey cutlets (marinated them in lots of herbs and spices and a little rice wine vinegar, for about 4 hours) then put them under the broiler for that bbq effect. Asparagus salad consists of sauteed
asparagus, roma tomatoes and a little skim-milk mozzarela tossed in a home-made vineagrette of balsamic vinegar and a little olive oil. Soooo good!

This was a Friday Dinner Special: Eggplant parmesan with meat sauce, done the healthy way. I cut the eggplant in small round disks, dipped them in egg-white and then in parmesan cheese (instead of bread crumbs) then browned them in a non-stick skillet with olive oil spray. I then prepared the meat sauce (ground turkey) with diced onions, garlic, oregano and no-sugar ragu sauce. Finally assembled everything with a little shredded skim-milk mozzarella and put it under the broiler for 25 minutes. Served with a side of romaine lettuce in balsamic vineagrette. I promise you wont miss pasta with this dish!

(Pardon the bad quality of these pictures, all taken with my Blackberry cam.)

And there you have it, updates and hopefully some recipes you guys might try and enjoy. Please tell me how your doing? Let's motivate each other!

xoxo

The Healthy Hottie.