Posts by pursefullofcurlers

www.eatingwell.com 

They have a Grilled Polenta with Shrimp & Escarole that is great.  I'm sure you can make it without the shrimp, and I used collards instead of escarole because I couldn't find escarole.  I think they have other polenta recipes as well.  We did find that when you grill it, it sticks, so be sure to oil your grill rack thoroughly.  I love it, tastes like grits.

And in a weird way, I feel "cheated" by not getting as big a portion as my husband, even though I don't need it.  Such is my weird and unhealthy relationship with food (which I'm working on).  At every meal, I have to remind myself that I am a much smaller person then he is, and therefore don't need as much food as he does.

I thought I was the only one who felt this way, like if I don't get as big a portion as everyone else, I've been wronged.  And heaven forbid if I don't get a piece at all, it's like there's been a great injustice in my world.  One thing that helps me is that I will dish out equal portions on our plates, then when he's still hungry from eating my portion size, he gets more.  By that time, I'm usually full, so I don't even consider that he got more than me.  I usually save what ever is left for my lunch the next day.

As for making meals that we'll both enjoy without breaking my calorie bank, I just make whatever I want, excluding the one or two things he absolutely hates or cannot eat.  I do almost all the cooking and grocery shopping.  My advice for eating on the cheap--buy what's on sale, buy what's in season, don't be afraid of frozen vegetables, don'tbe afraid of store-brands, use coupons, home-made is better than store-bought, and buy in bulk whenever possible-you can always divide the packages at home.  It's just me and Hubby, and I've found that it's almost more expensive to cook for 2 than for 4.

Our Cardigan Welsh Corgi is named Chappy--that's the name he came with.  He's a rescue dog and with all the trauma he'd been through, we just couldn't handle trying to re-name him for the second time in less than 3 months.

In the past I've had: Bucky-a toy poodle, Pepper & Ginger-mutts who were brother & sister, and Tom & Bob-cats who I named when I was 5.

pants don't fit?

I'm starting again.  I've been on this ride before, but I think what's going to work for me this time is that I'm telling everyone within ear shot that I'm changing the way I eat.  I think it's helping because the people I work with have stopped bringing the snacks to my desk; they now leave them in the break room. 

Here's my 2-cents worth of tips:

1. Plan your entire week of meals and snacks BEFORE you go to the grocery store.

2. Portion it all out as soon as you get home from the store.

3. Tell EVERYONE in your life; you may get some detractors, but you'll find more support than you expected.

4. STOP finding excuses.  There is always one there if you look hard enough.

As for exactly what to eat, I literally took my caloric recommendation from here and went to www.nutrition.gov (I'm a Federal employee, so I like the government) and found the nutrition recommendations for the caloric intake I want, and that's what I'm focusing on.  For me that's 3 fruits, 3 veggies, 3 dairy, 5 grains, and 5 oz meat each day focusing on whole grains, lean meats, low-fat dairy and fresh fruits and vegggies.

As for working out, I'm following the 12-week program on calorie count.  I just started yesterday, and motivation and sticking to it are big challenges for me.  So, having the extra support helps.

Good luck!

My biggest problem with bringing my lunch is that I hate cold lunches.  Most of the time, I make a little extra dinner and pack it up when I clean the kitchen at night.  Otherwise, I'll take a Lean Cuisine--not the best choice, but better than McDonald's or Checker's Burgers & Fries.

For salads, I chop up all the vegetables I'll need for a week.  Then put everything but the lettuce in one container and mix it all up with a little light vinaigrette salad dressing.  I portion out 5 containers of chopped lettuce, then each morning, I put one scoop (1/2 cup) of marinated vegetables on top of the lettuce.  Sometimes, I'll take a little left over chicken or fish to put on top of it.

With fruits and veggies and yogurt, I portion out enough to take each day of the week as soon as I get home from the grocery store.

So, when I leave in the morning, I grab my lunch bag and toss in lunch plus the pre-portioned fruits, veggies, and yogurts for snacks and a bottle of water.  I keep popcorn and granola in my desk.  I've also been known to have a can of nuts and some sunflower seeds or something in a drawer as well.

Do not share your soy sauce with your husband who has an extreme fondness for wasabi.  Just because you can't see it doesn't mean you can't taste it!

Cottage cheese.  I always HATED it as a kid, but since hubby loves it, I buy the revolting stuff.  Sometimes, I'll think that I'm going to try it and pack it for lunch, but I can never actually go through with and end up bring the whole container back home.  Then I have to watch, in disgust, as he dumps in on his salad, mixes it all in, and devours it.  Blughughuh.  I think I need to go puke now.

Oh, and all those cereals that taste like cardboard--Grape Nuts (so disappointed when I found no grapes or nuts), Fiber One (but the Fiber One Raisin Bran Clusters are actually OK), Kashi U (oh, how you broke my heart with your promise of sweet currants that were nothing but sour), South Beach Strawberry Whatever.  I could go on, but I'd wind up weeping over the sheer number of boxes minus one bowl that I've tossed on my quest to find a healthy, good tasting cereal.

Red, Yellow or Orange Bell Pepper, but I like the green.  The red/orange/yellow ones are sweet, almost sickly so.

That's about it, really.  I'll try just about anything, once, but I usually forget if I hate it and wind up eating it again anyway.

I started again, today.  I've never used this site, but have used another similar to it.  I'd welcome friends; I just wish you could be here to stop me from trying that fudge some one brought in today.  Luckily, I've made it known in my office that though my desk is out in the open and in a central location, the place for snacks is in the break room.  I should have taken a photo of the table covered with candy yesterday, it was astounding.  I didn't do a good job of resisting, but it has been a little easier today.