Christmas Day Feast!

INDULGE IRRESPONSIBLY!!!

If there's one thing you must do on Christmas day it's eat. Blasted excessive calories! It's just the way it is, lots of food....Devour!

If you feel like it walk inbetween meals and keep active if it's possible. Moving will help you burn excessive calories.

Merry Christmas!

Staggering Calories

For dinner last night my lovely wife, to feed me in the spirit of all which is sacred and holy, thinks these three food ingredients eating thing really....WORKS! I've only been doing this for two years now with the occasional splurge. Which you must do every now and again.

One of the less talked about attributes of weightloss is a thing called, "Staggering Calories. This simply means sometimes a good splurge is beneficial because it actually tricks your metabolism into burning more. If you normally eat 400 calories in a sitting and then go to 600 for one meal your metabolism kicks into high gear. For those of you just starting out trying this you can really feel the burn. It's an amazing technique. I'm not recommending anything, but I do this staggering calorie exercise about twice a week.

Bread Crumb Chicken
Chicken - Broccoli - Mashed Potatoes

4 oz Breaded Chicken - (280 cals)
1c Broccoli cooked in chicken stock - (40 cals)
1/2 c Mashed Potatoes - (80 cals)
1/2 tbls Ranch Dressing - (70 cals)

Calorie Total - 470

I actually ate another 1/2 piece of Chicken which brought my total calorie intake to actually about 610. Staggering those calories not only gives you more energy to burn it makes me at least want to go exercise!!

If you should have any questions about these Meal Wraps please do not hesitate to ask in the comments section or contact me at sirch59@yahoo.com

To the Small Steps

Sometimes I just walk out into the kitchen and say, "What can I concoct today?" Usually, it needs to be quick and easy. So for experimentation I whipped up a quick Chicken Spaghetti dish with soy/grape jelly marinade. Oh my, it's actually a hidden gem of flavor! Little heavy in the carbs so I watched my portion.

Chicken Soy Speghetti
Chicken - Peach/Water Cress - Speghetti





1/2 c Chopped Chicken (150 cals)
1 c Spaghetti (90 cals)
1/2 c Water Cress/Dill (10 cals)
3 Peach slices (50 cals)
1/2 tbls Parmesan Cheese (70)

Calorie Total - 370

To make the Chicken Speghetti I cooked some speghetti in boiling water. Once the speghetti cooked, I drain it. In a pan I sautéd a quater onion and a clove of garlic in cooking spray. I then added the chopped chicken and the speghetti and mixed it all up and let it cook for a minute. Then I took a table spoon of soy sauce and a 1/2 a tablespoon of Smucker's grape jelly. I added a drizzle of vinegar and whisked it up and poured the soy mix into the skillet with the Chicken Speghetti. I let it cook for about a two minutes. I plated it and sprinkled Parmesan cheese over it.

Salsa Is Just Not For Chips!

I find the breakfast below to be a creative use for salsa. Nothing to wake you up in the morning like spicy hot pepper fire in the mouth! Although, a milder mix is just as delicious. Salsa is one of those foods which I call a negative calorie delicacy. The consistancy and ingredients within can actually help your metabolism rise. And guess what? Metabolism rising burns calories!

Scrambled Salsalida!

Eggs - Pinapple - Salsa - Toast

1 whole egg - (90 cals)
1 egg white - (12 cals)
5 chunks of Pineapple (10 cals)
1 Slice whole wheat toast w/Black Berry Jellie (100 cals)

2 tbls Green Mountian Gringo Salsa (10 cals)

1 c Coffee Black (15 cals)

Calorie Total - 237

This is getting into definite negative calorie territory. Be carefully with this because it can possibly cause your metabolism to slow. You do not want to go negative too much.

Meal Wraps

To honor this festive holiday season I've decide to actually POST on this blog again! Obviously, because there is so much food to sample this time of year we who try to diet and keep in shape generally force ourselves to eat more healthy. We increasingly telling ourselves we've got to stay away from too many calories by eating less or not eating certain foods. The key to successfully stay in shape is actually eating more meals of the right kinds of foods, combined together. However, this does not mean you can not eat certain foods to be victorious with the Small Step Diet.

"Meal Wraps" are a term I created when I was trying to develop meals around the three basic foods of dieting. Protiens, Fiber, and Starch. Eating 5 times a day, every three hours with the right proportions is so important to not only eating healthier, but helps change your lifestyle eating habits for the better.

Here is a section of a Menu Wraps chart -

On the menu tonight:

Pork Chops - Green Beans - Mashed Potatoes

1 Lean Pork Chop baked - (230 cals)

1/2 cup Grean Beans cooked in water - (25 cals)

1/2 cup Mash Potatoes w/ 1 Tbls cool ranch Dressing - (70 cals)

1 Tbls Ken's steakhouse Honey Mustard - (65 cals)

(for dipping Pork Chop)

Calorie Total: 390

Ok, I had a Chrismas peanut butter cookie - 65 cals / So, sue me! ;-)

5 Questions - The Heart Of The Mater

1: Why do I overeat?
2: What feelings do I get from eating?
3: How should I eat?
4: Where do fat calories get stored the most in my body?
5: How does eating effect my mood?

If you are feeling like you've fallen off the wagon by eating way too much the answers to these questions, if answered honestly should give you a deep look into why your losing focus. They should reveal how eating effects your overall perception of yourself. Changing your lifestyle so you actually eat less may require constant, motivational inspiration. These questions will help you stay focused. Thinking takes energy, but if you practice using your brain by asking yourself questions there is less likelyhood of you losing your motivation to eat properly.

Pounding The Numbers Into Your Head

If I want to lose one pound of body fat I have to burn 3500 calories. Normally that would mean a calorie reduction of about 500 calories a day from what my current intake would be. A 20% reduction of CPD (Clalories Per Day) is a healthy reduction and also is small enough to give you the neccessary calories your body needs . Let's look at the numbers:

If you normally take in 2500 cals a day a 20% deficit would equal 500.
2500 X 20% = 500. 500 cpd X 7 days = 3500. 1 lbs a week

With exercise you should be able to burn or reduce about 7000 calories per week. It's important to note losing more than 1-2 lbs per week is not very healthy. When you're losing more then 1-2 lbs/wk your are in danger of losing muscles and you absolutely do not want to lose any muscle.