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<p>I couldn’t agree more!! It’s not a matter of “going on a diet” or “going off a diet” – it’s a matter of changing your entire perspective so that you get healthy and stay healthy!!</p>
<p>I took my first-ever Pilates class this AM. This thread is a great inspiration!</p>
<p>Hi!
I haven’t checked in for a very long time but wanted to today. I have been doing the Weight Watcher’s plan for abut 2 weeks and am down about 2 lbs. Not too bad considering my birthday was in there. I also started doing Hot Yoga (the “Hot” refers to the room temperature as there is nothing else “hot” about ME doing Yoga). Has anyone done it before? I really like it and feel very relaxed after it. Does anyone know what the benefit is of the high room temperature?</p>
<p>WJB^^^</p>
<p>Good for you!! I have done pilates before and really love it. I like the yoga, too, but wonder if it is truly a workout that will build strength and muscle tone. Any feedback is appreciated!</p>
<p>So, for those of you who are looking for healthy recipes, here is one more soup recipe:</p>
<p>Spicy Black Bean Soup</p>
<p>1 large onion, peeled and chopped
1 clove of garlic, minced
1 red pepper, chopped
1 cup of chopped carrots
1 cup of chopped celery
1 T. coriander
1 T. cumin
1 T. chitpole chili powder
1 T. basil
1 T. oregano
1 32 oz. box of low sodium vegetable broth
1 15 oz. can of fire roasted tomatoes
1 can of black beans, drained and rinsed.
1 zucchini, chopped
1/2 cup frozen corn
1 T. balsamic vinegar
fresh cilantro to taste</p>
<p>Saute the first five vegetables in a small amount of canola or olive oil over medium heat for about 10 minutes or until softened. Add the spices and continue to saute for about 5 minutes. Add broth and roasted tomatoes and bring and cook for about an hour (nothing is ever precise with my recipes). Add black beans and heat through. Using an immersion blender, blend the soup, leaving some beans and vegetables to give it texture. </p>
<p>Add next three ingredients and cook until heated. Add chopped cilantro before serving. Sometimes I put a dollop of non-fat sour cream on each serving of soup and garnish with cilantro.</p>
<p>I like “power yoga” such as Vinyasa. My D does, as well. While I have not taken a hot yoga class, D has … she did not like it at all. She felt that it was too stressful on her body. She sweats bullets in Vinyasa as it is, without feeling like her body is under undue stress. YMMV, though … I have heard good feedback regarding hot yoga. I can tell you for a fact that Vinyasa & Ashtanga build strength & muscle tone. (unfortunately, they also bother my back …)</p>
<p>Does anyone have a Butternut Squash soup recipe that is savory and does not contain cream?</p>
<p>I’m your girl for butternut squash soup. I put the recipe on a thread before Thanksgiving or perhaps Christmas. </p>
<p>The one I provided can also be adapted and spiced with lime and coriander and cumin instead of the spices I recommended. </p>
<p>See if you can find it in the Cafe. It is one of my most requested soups and it is very easy to make.</p>
<p>Here you go, I found it:</p>
<p>Soup:</p>
<p>4 bunches of leeks - cleaned thoroughly, sliced white part only
2 celery ribs - chopped
8 sweet potatoes, peeled and diced
4 butternut squash
4 cartons low sodium vegetable broth (I like Pacific brand)
thyme, sage, pepper to taste
non-fat sour cream, chives for garnish</p>
<p>Saute sliced leeks and celery until softened in small amount of oil. I use canola. Add remaining ingredients, cook until all vegetables are softened, about two hours. You can cook longer at low heat. Using immersion blender whir until blended thoroughly.</p>
<p>Sabaray - just went back to your original post. HMMPH! Your 25th college reunion??? My 40th high school reunion is coming up this fall - you are getting no sympathy from me!!</p>
<p>Anyway, hope this thread continues to be a source of support for you and for all of us!</p>
<p>Thank you. I will give it a try.
I also love black bean soup but no one else in my family will eat it. I have a feeling they aren’t going to eat the butternut squash soup.</p>
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<p>Also totally agree. Research shows that the majority who lose weight on ‘diets’ gain it all back and more. Are you going to eat Jenny Craig meals for the rest of your life? You can lose weight on diets like WW, but I have to question how much healthier you’re becoming given all of the junk food they allow.</p>
<p>Checking in with everyone for an update and am glad to see this thread get bumped up many times a day! It happens for a reason.</p>
<p>So, looks like my work hours have been drastically cut back (started at the first of the year), so until things pick up again (probably late spring/early summer), I have more time than usual to concentrate on my health. I’d say I’ve been getting to the gym about 6/7 days a week; a couple of times I couldn’t get there, but used my elliptical at home. I’ve now had tilapia twice this week (bought it from Whole Foods, who monitors their tilapia farmers). But I also heard from a friend that I can get wild-caught tilapia at Target! </p>
<p>I swore to myself that I was not going to get obsessed by the scale. I did weight myself a few days after I really got into my routine, and have watched it every three-four days. I was flaggergasted to find this morning that I’ve lost seven pounds. Since I don’t notice much difference in my clothes, I was afraid I hadn’t lost anything, but… surprise! All this in four weeks, so much quicker than I thought, and I still haven’t given up my Frosted Mini Wheats.</p>
<p>Was talking to D1 on the phone today, and told her about the weight loss, and she said she’d lost the same (but she’s only been doing it for three weeks). She heard the pout in my voice and said, “Mom, the metabolism of a 23-year old is faster than that of a ___-year old.” She also said that the ‘fitness tip’ at her gym this week suggested you drink 16 oz. water every morning, first thing… that it can increase your metabolism by 20%. Don’t know if I believe it, but it was posted at her gym, so somewhere, somebody claims it’s true. </p>
<p>Anyway, I’m on target for a nice weight loss before my birthday in April. Am still looking for any information on a heart rate monitor, as the one on my elliptical at home is obviously broken, because I know my heart rate does not get up to 240 beats per minute! Anyone have any ideas for one?</p>
<p>My back is feeling better so I’m going back to my gym routine tomorrow. I’ve been really grumpy for the last two days - I know it’s from not working out!</p>
<p>Mom60 - I come from a family with a very narrow range of foods they will try or they like. As I say, they like to see the trinity of meat, a few vegetables, and potatoes. When I started doing xmas at my house you could feel the tension rise. They know DH is a strict vegetarian, I am essentially a vegetarian who still eats fish. They were so worried about what I would serve. This was the second year and everyone was a lot more relaxed knowing I wasn’t serving tofu!</p>
<p>They all like the soup. I made a huge batch this year so that my mom and another elderly “aunt” would have some for the next day.</p>
<p>When I am serving them, I sometimes add a bit of agave to the batch to give it a hint of sweetness. You could add just a pinch of honey or sugar. Good luck!</p>
<p>Kelsmom,
Thanks for the feedback on the yoga. I’m going to stick with it and see if i get results. It feels good when I’m there and I think it relaxes me.</p>
<p>Hmom,</p>
<p>I agree about the diet thing but generally disagree about Weight Watchers. While they do “allow” you to eat whatever you want (junk food included) it doesn’t pay to eat it since it costs so many points on their system. If you want to eat something decadent, you have to save up the points. It is an exercise in budgeting your points. As a result, you tend to eat more heathy fiber rich food because they are low in points and you can have more of them. Once you do that for a while you eventually lose the constant craving for sweets or carbs. It also teaches you to manage your portions and you begin to have a more conscious awareness of your portion sizes. After all, you can be eating the healthiest foods but if you are eating pounds and pounds of it, you will still gain weight. </p>
<p>Anyway, everyone is different and it won’t work for everyone but I definitely think it is a healthier and more educational approach to nutrition than Jenny Craig or a plan that simply cuts all carbs. I’ll keep you posted on my progress!</p>
<p>I did ashtanga and vinyasa yoga regularly for about a year about 8 years ago and I became very lean and toned. Not sure about aerobic benefits but I certainly didn’t need any other weight workouts. Not only was I “buff” (according to a fellow yogi) for the first time in my life, I discovered a serenity and calmness I didn’t know I could access. Unfortunately, I injured myself and got out of the habit. It’s one of those things I keep meaning to get back to again some day.</p>
<p>Well, I am happy to report that the diet/lifestyle change has been going relatively well. My weight has continued to drop which is a plus and am glad to see some recipes pop up here. Dog is enthusiastic about being my exercise pal and is slowly learning not to check his mail so often. I am going to have a very strong right arm from leash correction! </p>
<p>Glad to see everyone is doing so well. D was happy to report upon her return to school many commented on her weight loss so she is finding it easy to continue to lose and of course is getting a ton of exercise just from being on grounds. </p>
<p>Keep it up, everyone!</p>
<p>WW gets very upset if you call their program a diet. Their mantra is that it is a lifestyle. I think the commercials showing people eating desserts is part advertising gimic, and partly to recognize that you probably won’t go the rest of your life never having a slice of birthday cake again. You can eat precious little junk food and stay satisfied within your daily points allowance. They had something called the Core program that allowed consumption of certain foods without counting points (veggies, fruits, lean mean, non-fat dairy) and only counting points for noncore foods. I think WW made a big mistake by eliminating that option as it was easy to follow and the one I still follow. </p>
<p>Anyway, there is a difference between a core food and a truly healthy food, based on Pollan’s guidelines so that is my extra step now. After reading a bunch of sour cream labels, the Daisy light brand seemed to not have any additives. (I have some recipes that need sour cream.) I also found an organic brand of black beans that looked OK in terms of ingredients, which is good because I use black beans in a lot of recipes. </p>
<p>We are now trying to figure out how to replace H’s lunch meat for his daily sandwich. I think cold cuts by definition have bad stuff in them. I guess I can cook a turkey or ham on the week-end and just slice up real meat for his sandwiches. Any other options out there? I also have to buy him healthy bread, but am confident I can find that. As an aside, H is thin and an exercise maniac so needs lots of calories, but doesn’t want to eat processed foods anymore.</p>
<p>^^^For pack-at-home lunches, cook a roast beef or roast chicken and use some of that meat for a sandwich. Also, use some sort of meat – cold cuts or home-cooked – make into julienne strips, and add to a salad for lunch. Peanut butter and jelly is also one of my favorites. Also, I absolutely love a sliced apple with peanut butter for a small meal.</p>
<p>analyst- I would buy a rotisserie chicken and slice it for the sandwiches.</p>