Just_Moe’s BodyBlog

wait..no it does not. It spells fish oil burps and extra caffeine.
Ok! So the water is falling off my body now with the return to clean eating and a…..D-I-E-T.
I am hungry today so extra fat will be swallowed to prevent the carb cravings that usually follow me around.
Heavy DL is tonight rather than last night. I ended up on a road trip to pick up some reserve copies of Squeaky Gourmet to ship out. I was asked to take pictures of me near the book ( ok holding it I am sure) and I will post those later today as well!

I have some serious injury thing in my right wrist and arm right now. I am not sure how heavy the DL will be tonight but I will try my hardest for pulling up those 3 plates off the floor again.

Biggest Loser is on tonight!! WOOOHOO…I love that show!

So today is day one of stop gaining any weight
I had a fantastic summer "cut" and when I lost the amount of fat and wore the size of clothing I wanted to wear I moved to maintenance calories. Ok, but I forgot that maintenance is still tracking, counting and making sure my energy input ( eating) matches the energy used by my body. So, I have gained back a few pounds, nothing major. However it is so crucial to make sure I keep these pounds in check and not let them get too far ahead of me. I do not want to sit there with 20 pounds I have to lose AGAIN.

So, today I am buckled back in to a diet for a little bit and then when I move back to maintenance I will TRACK MY INPUT VS OUTPUT!!!

My family has been toying with the idea of becoming “gluten free” in our kitchen. We have a history of celiac disease in the family as well as autism under our roof. There has been such great information out there now on the effects of wheat on the digestive tract and what it does to the body when the body says ” No thank you” to wheat but you eat it anyway.

However, gluten free is EXPENSIVE! I have 5 kids to feed , bills to pay and hello we all know what our economy is right now so I decided to do some research on how to go gluten free and not go broke making cookies. We have an international market near my house. Lucky Star in Somersworth NH. When you go there it is seemingly a hole in the wall store. The enter door is on the left, the exit door on the right . The electric door has a sign that says “door moves slow PUSH HARD” and boy they are not kidding…it does not move. When you go in the store you see a lot of boxes cluttered about, ninja gear for those times you engage in mortal combat ( which seems to be more common than I originally thought judging by their array of weapons) Walking around the corner past the weapons and soda bottles which have symbols as labels and no English translation you are greeted with the produce section.
Avocados as big as my 4 yr old’s head-.99 cents each. (the fruit not the 4 yr old) 20lb bags of basmatti, jasmine, red and brown rices all under $10. This same rice is over $2 a pound at the grocery market. They also sell for pennies on the dollar all the ingredients for making gluten free baking flour. Rice flours, tapioca flour etc. All for literally dollars on the pound less expensive than the market place I normally shop at.

While I was there i also bought a 5 pound bag of raw peanuts for $5, smoked eel to see if Mr G will eat it (he did, it smelled like canned cat food to me though so I was not impressed) coconut spread which tastes like macaroons. No idea what to use it on but it was under $2 for a large jar. It would be fantastic on ice cream ( I am on a diet, on a diet on a diet) or drizzled over a cream pie ( I SAID I AM ON A DIET!!!!).

Anyway, I estimated what would cost us over $25 to buy at the grocery store would cost us under $10 at this international food hole in the wall. I will be going back! I would encourage you to look around your area and see if you may have an international hole to shop in as well. I was excited for new food ideas and the possibility of saving considerable money while shifting to gluten free fare. I also need to learn several different languages before I am tricked to buy bird spit soda again. Yes, we bought soda and tasted it only to find out..it has bird spit in it.
It is called Bird’s Nest and well..I did not think it had BIRD NEST in it….this reminds me of when I was a young girl and ate head cheese when my father offered it. I thought it was just cheese….my parents still laugh about it and I am still working it out in therapy.

Anyway..here is a gluten free flour recipe you can put together rather easily and spend less money than if you were to buy those specialty boxes of gluten free flour that has enough flour to make a few pancakes but certainly not enough for a Sunday morning breakfast for my army of a family!

Gluten Free Flour
2 cups white (or brown) rice flour

1 tsp guar or xantham gum per cup of mix.

oh and just a reminder, gluten free does not mean healthy. Peanut butter cups and nachos are gluten free…as is bird spit soda and head cheese….see my point?

Every spring we begin to plan our diet to make sure we can fit in the summer clothing we are soon to be taking out of our closets. We pinch and poke all the new fat stores we let settle in on us while the winter months let us cover ourselves with wool sweaters and long johns. (Hey I live in New Hampshire, it gets cold..we wear long johns) We start to regret the extra helpings of the comfort foods that warm our souls and bellies during the off season. Wouldn’t it be great if we did not have to fear the summer by setting up safeguards NOW before the comfort foods and snow storms become the norm.

Have you gained back some of the weight you have previously worked hard on losing? Have some how lost that motivation to stay the course to a healthier you? Lots of people do. This is a life long commitment in a society that does not embrace or allow a healthy lifestyle. You can’t go to a drive-thru and order carrot sticks and a protein enriched salad. You won’t find your local fast food offering sweet potato fries or an avocado side dish. You have to make extra time to plan and prepare in this fast paced world and it is easy to back slide. But everyday is a new day and an opportunity to begin anew.

Sometimes you just have to hunker down and plow through the right steps in order to find that motivation you have lost. You may WANT to be motivated right now but you just are not. You may be thinking " Man, I was so excited when I began and i made good strides as well. Why is it so hard to focus like that right now?!?!" I think everyone at some point or another has been in that exact mind set. Some people end up totally giving up and return completely to old life habits and food addictions and others continue to struggle and once again are able to refocus and plug back in. Which one will you be?

Because no matter what you do, how much weight you lose or gain and how many gym trips you skip or do, it was ALWAYS a choice. You can choose to let it all go and return to the unhealthy state you were in or you can just put your effort in to go through the right steps and start your journey again. It is ok to take time and wonder what it is you want for a goal or for a focus but while you are looking for a goal just start with the right steps. Dedicate time to being more active, just 2 times a week to start with. Stop eating the foods you know will do nothing to feed your body the way your body needs to be fed. Pick whole foods over quick processed foods. An apple is just as convenient as a donut. A handful of raw almonds is just as filling as french fries. Don’t allow yourself to think you do not have time or opportunity to eat the right foods. So take some steps to make sure your food choices are clean whole foods and you make sure to move your body at least 2 times a week. Who CARES what your long term goal weight is at this time, do not waste time trying to figure it out while you slide further and further back from your initial weight loss success!

So, remember, we all have been there at some point or another. The key to getting back on track is just doing it and stop waiting for the motivation fairy to visit you. Pick healthy whole foods over processed foods and make an effort to move your body at least 2 times this week.

Soon you will feel healthier and your body will be grateful for the exercise and healthy nutrients and you WILL BE MOTIVATED to go further!