Top Tips for Eating on the Road

 

 

 

 

I changed jobs a few months ago; from desk publisher to sales rep can be a complete shock to the system. I am now mulling around malls, temptation at every corner – this was a big dipper for me with regards to sticking to my healthy lifestyle. I lived on cappuccinos and Woolworths wraps. STODGY, is the word for it. These foods also didn’t do much for my mood, concentration or overall well-being. I had to readjust. Here are the top five tips for eating on the road.

1) Eat Breakfast

I literally enter each day not knowing when I can sit down and eat lunch, most of the time I end up eating lunch in my car or grabbing something (hopefully, healthy) at a restaurant before I see the next bookstore. So, I have breakfast, something Low in GI to keep me fuller for longer – perhaps wholewheat toast and peanut butter, with a side of fruit.

 

 

2) Cherry tomatoes & cucumber

These are my two favourite vegetables. I pop a few in a container and I can eat in traffic without any hassle – the only thing is they tend to get hot in the car, so I keep them in a cooler bag lunch box.

 

3) Drinking Yoghurts

These are amazing when on the run. I can grab a 500ml bottle of drinking yoghurt (usually the slimmers choice one from Woolworths, or Gero’s brand of drinking yoghurt has lower calories) it’s an equivalent to 2 slices of bread, it’s sweetened and just usually hits the spot when I am caught hungry with no time to eat.

 

 

4) Water

I discovered fairly quickly that my body confused thirst with hunger, so I carry 1.5 litre bottle of water in my car at all times. Granted it gets warm on hot days - to which I park in the shade – it’s a great way to stay hydrated and make sure you aren’t constantly ‘hungry’.

 

5) Always prepare

Eating healthy is tricky, and throwing yourself under the bus for one craving does more damage then moving on to the next meal like it’s your first. To avoid this is to prepare, carry around healthy snacks (i.e. nuts, yoghurt, fruits, provitas) in your car to avoid rushed bingeing.

 

 

 

Remember, this week: Run, fat bitch.

 

 

Easy Healthy Biscuits

 

 

I have been on the search for a quick and easy 'cheat' free biscuit/treat and while the diet Gods haven't been kind, I stumbled across the blog The Burlap Bag with their 2 ingredient biscuit. You can find their recipe here.

 

 

 

2 Ripe Bananas (mashed)

1 cup Oats (instant or normal)

 

 

 

Dump them all into a bowl and mix together.  You can add nuts, raisins, chocolate chips, or dried fruit (make sure you chop them so it keeps the mixture together). Grease a baking tray and bake at 180 degrees celsius for 15 minutes.

 

Kelly's modification: because I didn't have a FULL cup of Oats I added in a 1/2 cup of All Bran Flakes and 1/3 cup of raisins.

 

 

 

This is a great addition for that summer time snack, or as a side to some herbal tea. The Burlap Bag have some great variations to this recipe, you can find them here and here.

 

Remember: Run, fat bitch.

 

Cheater's Hummus

So summer has hit, and now the easy low-calorie soups become rather unreasonable to eat in temperatures above 30 degrees. So I find comfort in throwing aside the full warm meals and replace them with easy, ready to go snacks. A few great additions to your grocery list such as peanut butter, cottage cheese and my personal favourite, hummus.  I found an easy recipe for cheater's hummus with easy-to-find ingredients.

 

 

1 can Chickpeas in brine (drained, but I save some of the brine to loosen it)
1/3 cup Smooth Peanut Butter (a low fat version is better)
2 tablespoons Olive Oil
2 tablespoons Lemon Juice
1 Garlic Clove
1 teaspoon Nutmeg (can be omitted)
Salt and Pepper to taste

 

Put all ingredients into a bowl and blend. You can taste and add more Olive Oil, Lemon Juice, Nutmeg, Salt and Pepper to your taste.  If the mixture is too dry and dusty add some brine to loosen it up and smooth it out.

 

Spread it on a multi-grain cracker, low GI bread, or use as a dip with various seasonal vegetables. For those who love the spicy side of life add some chilli and wish away your winter weight.  I hope this works you. 

 

Let me know if you have any other additions or alterations to this recipe in the comments below.

 

Don't forget to: Run, fat bitch.




 

Kelly talks Tips

I won't go as far as to say that I am the Dalia Lama of dieting, but you can't go three years without picking up a few tips and tricks to ease the pain of hunger.  Dieting is the vanguard position in the war against food.  You hold out until the enemy attacks and poof, starvation cripples you and you double over wondering what to do next; so help you God if you have to eat another dry-tasteless-lack-lustre-rice-cracker.  Hey, I've been there, while my hunger pains couldn't match those of upper Africa, I have certainly met my maker when it comes to food. Food isn't the only enemy in the journey of being healthy - if you are goal-driven like I am - the scale holds me by the emotional tendril and isn't afraid to tug. So here are my five top tips for coping with a newly formed healthy eating plan...

 

1) Cut out Bread and Sugar

There is nothing in the world that gets me fired up more than a toasted chicken mayo sarmie? Try a low GI option, Pita Bread, or Provitas as a replacement.

 

My biggest was addiction was coffee... SWEET coffee - the type with three heaped spoons. I know sweetners are found to contain a specific 'cell' that activates cancer cells, forgive my brashness, but life is far too short for bitter coffee.  Sweetner works for me, but a healthier option with half the calories is honey...

 

2) Join the gym - get a gym buddy

I won't ever advise any diet/eating plan that doesn't include some form of exercise. Join a gym, or go for a run in the neighbourhood, take the kids, dogs, parents, even the fish if you must. Remember: Sweat is your fat crying.

 

3) Carry water with you

Water is the best detoxifier your body needs, it thrives off it, and in most cases your body isn't hungry but thirsty.  I drink 3litres of water a day - 2litres is the required, so pack a big bottle in your car and sip away.  Treat yourself with a diet cold drink every time you finish a litre.

 

4) Eat a chocolate when you feel like it

Did you know that 400g of raw almonds has the same amount of calories as 400g of milk chocolate?  The issue with chocolate is that it carries more guilt than calories - so when you crave chocolate, it means your body is telling you something, have a block.  Don't hold out until you rip the only slab from a crying pre-schooler and devour the entire thing.

 

5) Invest in a tape measure

The scale is the devil. So is water weight. When your body changes it's 'process' (i.e. eating plan) it's default is 'fasting' and thus stores everything morsel it can get it's hands on.  For me the safety deposit box is my hips.  So, yes, track your weight once a week BUT also track your centimetres.

 

I hope these tips help - they aren't medically proven, just a small form of my own personal meandering.

 

Remember, this weekend: Run, fat bitch.

The 'Before' and The 'After'



Before (Jan, 2011) 120kgs | After (July 2013) 75kgs



I have always cringed at before and after pictures, because I have felt like an underachiever.  For the sake of the blog, I wanted to share my 'before' and 'after' photo.  I didn't go out and pose for a photo shoot, I rallied the past discretion's on Facebook and have used more than enough wits to present you with the above, yup, that's me...

Approximately 3 years (I had started dieting in 2010). 45kgs. It's not a pretty sight, and I do apologise for not sending vinegar to throw in your eyes.  I won't hold back, it hasn't been easy - it's been the toughest three years, ever. Food has been my enemy and my saviour.

If you are looking for an inspiration to pin your hopes of losing weight to, you wont find it here, you'll find it with the person in the mirror. It is never too late to start. (Cue Oprah voice).

This week: Run, fat bitch.

 

 

Cheat Night? It's a Date...

 

How can one ever begrudge a cheat night? It is the simple mirage in the midst of boring healthy eating, it has more flavour and calories that a person can actually eat without being scrapped off the roof with a spatula.

 

It's a fairly new concept to me.  I mean who actually sets aside one day for freedom of eating? The cheat meal is now the 20th century's Nelson Mandela of dieting.  I always just assumed freedom of eating encouraged a sort of diet coup.  Turns out I need to add this to the asshat list...

 

I found this comment on Shape.com - Ask the Doc section, Mike Roussell, PhD, was the doc handing out the nuggets of advice:

 

Stop calling it "cheating." You earned it!

The psychology of cheating on your diet is bad. It conjures up images like raiding the refrigerator in a dark kitchen to devour the last piece of pie, hoping no one sees you. I prefer to think of them as "splurge meals." The splurge concept comes from a colleague Rachel Cosgrove, author of the Female Body Breakthrough. Rachel wants clients to splurge on a delicious meal just as they would a new pair of shoes. It's not something you do every day. Enjoy it while it lasts and then get back on your plan (dietary or financial). If you can hit your target number of clean meals during the week, then you aren’t "cheating" when you go out to enjoy a great meal with wine and dessert. You are simply rewarding yourself for a great week and meeting your diet goals.

 

I guess it's time I bought myself a pair of chocolate sweetie pies and left the world for dead.  Just remember that we are no longer calling it a diet... it is now a healthy eating lifestyle.

Me on cheat night

 

Who am I to discount a doctor's advice? Cheat night booked. (Dives head first into bucket filled with Wakaberry)
 

 

Today: Run, fat bitch.

 

Today, I am Starving!

You'll find me this morning clutching an unattractive bowl of dry All Bran Flakes, I have mixed it up (it's Friday after all) by adding raisins and a banana.  Today my diet sucks.  It sucks because I have allowed it become the same old boring sock.  I want to soak crispy french toast in bacon and tomato sauce.

I spent majority of my dieting life thinking a healthy diet was one where an Ethiopian refugee was allocated more 'eating' than I was.  I was, as we have established, always the chubby kid - yeah, ok, you can leave gifts of sympathy in cupcakes at the door - so, I am a dieting veteran.

 

While it is a complicated diet eating plan.  One that leaves me talking myself in circles about points being added for various foods.  In summary, it is a diet that allocates one point for the equivalent of 338kcal (a slice of bread); you are allocated twelve units per day to eat to your hearts content.  Certain foods, i.e. diet cold drinks, tomatoes, various fruits and veg, etc. are allocated zero calories and thus are free - it is these foods you bulk up on.  See what is happening here? A dietician that convinces you veggies are good for you - I think I have met the Mother Mary, kids.

 

It's been three years since I have held a McDonalds Big Mac in my hand.  I am not going to bullshit you and say I am better off for it - HELL NO - there were times I wanted to rip the face off a new-born to get a shot of FAT. Anything. I still need my fix of fatty, oily chips except now it isn't as frequent.

 

It's a complicated balance of effort and habit, but today is a sit on the floor and recount the delicious calories I have long yearned for day.

 

So this weeks plan is to follow the eating plan like a religion.  I am never one for a diet-guru that makes more money telling me what-not to eat than actually giving me some good graceful tips, but I have, by happenstance, fallen upon Dr. Oz's 100 Weight Loss Tips - there are some great tips...

 

Automate your eating by planning your meals ahead of time. That way you're less likely to make an unhealthy last-minute food choice.

You may be used to fried foods but there are other, sometimes healthier, ways to cook including: roasting, steaming, poaching, baking, braising and broiling.

Do your grocery shopping with a list and a time limit; that way, you're less likely to stray into the processed foods section.

Don't confuse thirst with hunger. Drink a glass of water when you feel hungry to see if that's what you're really craving.

 

Odds are you're eating too fast. Try holding a conversation while having a meal so you're not gulping down more than you need to feel full

 

People who regularly weigh themselves and keep track of their progress in a journal are more likely to lose weight.

I am taking the last one to heart.

 

 

This week: Run, fat bitch.