My Life's Biggest Project: Relapse

Fall off the bandwagon, get back on: My Life's Biggest Project: Relapse: "So obviously we aren't going to make the right decisions all the time. I certainly don't...lol. For example I know that its not smart to res..."

Relapse

So obviously we aren't going to make the right decisions all the time. I certainly don't...lol. For example I know that its not smart to respond to texts from a certain guy, but still as soon as I get it I always do. Silly stuff like that. Well poor decisions may also be made when it comes to food. As I've stated before it is much harder to control and watch what you're eating when you are staying at other people's houses or someone else is prepairing the meals. I'll tell you a personal example from last night, what you should do and what I did.

Last night I went to Wagoner and my friend prepared a meal very Paula Dean style. By this I mean that it had a whole lot of butter. It smelled devine while she was prepairing everything. For dinner last night what my dear friend made was boneless skinless chicken breasts smothered in some kind of cream of mushroom sauce, green beans, biscuits, mashed potatoes and turtle cake. Did I mention that everything was jam packed with lots and lots of butter? Anway that was what was on the menu and it tasted awesome.

What I should have done was eaten a little something before I got there because I knew what kind of dinner was in my near future. They say that you will eat less if you are not hungry. When you are put in this situation the smart thing to do is to go ahead and be polite, so eat, but watch your portions. Also you shouldn't be scared to miss out on something like seconds or dessert.

What did I do? Well none of the things I should that's for sure. Yesterday I met up with some of my sorority sisters at a Chinese food buffet, where I did not eat (so that part I did well), but as soon as I got back to my BFF's house he and I left to go to Wagoner. We got there around 4 pm and dinner was ready to be served around 6:30 pm, so by then I was starving. I ate a whole piece of chicken as opposed to a half, I had everything and it was yummy, but I felt a little guilty after and uncomfortable. This however didn't stop me from having a very small piece of cake for the dessert.

These things happen and we relapse into our old ways, but we just have to remember that this is no longer our way of eating or our way of life so the next day we have to make better choices. Today for example has started with a grape fruit :) Take it a day at a time like anything else and don't beat yourself up. You will have off days, just don't make them off months!

My Life's Biggest Project: Mmm Mmm Good

Try out this recipe: My Life's Biggest Project: Mmm Mmm Good: "I've talked about this in the past, but it's worth talking about again. Many times we think that if something is a wrap then it must be fat ..."

Mmm Mmm Good

I've talked about this in the past, but it's worth talking about again. Many times we think that if something is a wrap then it must be fat free or really good for you. This couldn't be further from the truth. It depends on so many factors as to whether or not the wrap is going to be good for you or not. Since I'm such a sweet girl I found a recipe for you to try out and I'll even let you know exactly how many calories and heck I'll even throw some other nutrition facts in there for you. What I want you to do is to try this wrap recipe and then come back and tell me what you think of it. OK? OK then here we go...

Chicken and Rice Wrap

Here's a healthy wrap recipe that's simple to make and tastes great served either hot or cold. Makes one dinner for two . . . or two lunches for one!

• 1 boneless, skinless chicken breast, cubed
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1/4 medium onion, chopped
• 1 cup romaine lettuce, torn into bite-size pieces
• 1/2 cup cooked brown rice
• 2 lowfat whole wheat flour tortillas (6 to 8 inches in diameter)
• 1-1/2 Tbsp. fat-free salad dressing
• Nonstick cooking spray
• Medium-sized frying pan

Spray medium-sized pan with nonstick cooking spray and place over medium heat. When hot but not smoking, add onions and garlic and sauté until slightly browned (You don't have to add things that you don't want. I for one would not be adding any onions to stuff. I hate onions and when I say I hate them I mean I HATE them). Add raw chicken and sauté until browned and cooked through, about 5 to 7 minutes, or until no pink remains in center of each piece. Remove pan from heat. Place tortillas on plates. Put half the lettuce on each tortilla, followed by half the chicken, half the dressing, and half the rice. To assemble wraps, roll tortilla around contents, securing each with a toothpick if necessary. Makes 2 servings.

Cooking Time: 20 to 25 minutes

Now time for those facts I promised you:

Calories: 345
Protein:  32 g
Fiber: 4 g
Carbs: 36 g
Fat Total: 4.5 g
Saturated Fat: <0.5 g

The beauty in recipes is that you can make them your own. I for one love sandwiches and wraps and other things like that which I refer to as girly food. So something like this would be perfect for me. Again I ask that you try this out and let me know what you think of it. I hope to hear from you guys soon to be filled in!

My Life's Biggest Project: Heavy

My Life's Biggest Project: Heavy: "So it is official. Whenever you lose weight you always lose it in the places that you don't want to first, especially if you are a girl. Cas..."

Heavy

So it is official. Whenever you lose weight you always lose it in the places that you don't want to first, especially if you are a girl. Case in point my boobs...lol. Now this shouldn't bother me except that one of my friends that I hadn't seen since October said to me, "Oh wow Cassandra, have your boobs gotten smaller?" To which I responded, no and that I didn't think so. To which she responded, "No I'm pretty sure they are smaller." Then she turned to her boyfriend who is also one of my really good friends and asked him if they were smaller. He made a wise decision and said that he didn't know. Funny how that works out huh. You try to lose weight and it goes there first. Crazy! My sib however told me that there was one way to ensure that my boobs wouldn't get smaller (she's an advocate for implants...lol).

Anyway, today's blog post is not going to be about my boobs, instead I am going to tell you about a new docudrama that premiers on A&E January 17. The series is called Heavy and will follow 22 differnent obese individuals who are suffering from severe health consequences due to their obesity. Each episode will be an hour long and will talk about two different individuals per episode. The documentary style footage will follow the individuals during their change for a six month period.

The thing that will make this particular series different from those before it is that it is not a competition show. It depicts the day-to-day struggles of the individual during a lengthy treatment program. A&E wanted this to be like nothing before so they sought out to different production companies to be a part of the filiming process. This resulted in something never seen before, a look at those who are dangerously obese who have to learn to live healthier lifestyles or they will die. The series also takes a look at the individuals understanding and root of their food addiction. Viewers get a first hand look into the lives of the person, seeing their daily struggles, pain, what their loved ones have to say, any kind of self doubt that they may have with overcoming their weight problem will be right there for all of us to see.

The first episode will be about two different 37 year olds from Houston, Texas. Tom and Jodi. Tom's story talks about how he was a big deal football player back in his hayday, but due to depression his body jumped up to 638 lbs. Tom suffers from a myriad of issues including sleep apnea, edema and the inability to sleep more than two hours. We will witness his struggle to get his life back before it is too late.The next story that we will see (on the same episode) will be that of Jodi, a recent stroke survivor who weighs in at 363 lbs. We will witness the critical juncture with her health. Jodi's weight is preventing her from getting to do her favorite thing and that is to sing, especially with her brothers in a band. She also is now having problems keeping up with her husband and two children.

Like most shows of this style on A&E (shows like Hoarders, Intervention and Obsessed), I assume that it will be just as intense as those (Intervention really gets to me every time I watch it). I was thinking that this show could be a wake up call for me and anyone else out there wanting to tackle the weight battle. You know see how bad it could get and exactly where we don't want to end up. I also thought that it may be inspirational for me or anyone else to see these personal stories and how the individuals have overcome their struggle.

To me real life achievement is where it's at. To see someone who was able to reach their goals amazes me. I don't know about you, but I would much rather watch and be inspired by someone who has been in my shoes than by someone who has been fit their whole life and never struggled with weight yelling at me and telling me how easy it is to be fit. They don't know, they've never had a problem due to their awesome genetics and super cracked out metabolisms. I'm not jealous (well hell maybe I am), I am just much more inspired by those who have overcome. What do you think? Is Heavy maybe something that you would consider watching? It starts next Monday on A&E at 10/9c if you are interested. I'll watch it and tell you what I think. You should do the same (and by that I mean tell me what you think of it).

My Life's Biggest Project: Half Their Size

My Life's Biggest Project: Half Their Size: "So yesterday when I was getting ready to leave Norman I stopped at the 7 Eleven by my place and while I was checking out I saw a People maga..."