Friday, June 17, 2011

106lb loss!! Kelp Noodles!! Tea's!!! Wraps!! Updates , Struggles and Gardening

Whew its been awhile. Not making a bunch of excuses because even through I was computerless for several weeks Ive had 2 weeks where I have done nothing to redeem the lapse in time. Oh well,as Tops says "You will do better"!! and I will :)

                 Yess its the real deal 106lbs of fatness gone Woohoo!! I have sorta a problem with success,and I have never imagined that I would actually lose the weight.You know we always say I'm gonna do this an that,yet we stay in our little comfort zone and say all the things why we cant move forward.It kinda hit me hard the past month that I'm on the way to achieving all the things I have jotted down in a book for years and years.It scared the crap out of me,so unconsciously I started to sabotage myself.

     I began to let myself  eat vegan pre-made pizza's more often,wraps,goat cheese.
                              Then on a cloudy, overly humid Thursday my mother offered to take me to dinner.Sure I'll go I said.As we sat at the table eyeing the menu,I decided on the salad bar and a entree that was 3 "fresh" garden sides,when the plate arrived it consisted of brown rice with chillies and American cheese,broccoli with butter and snap peas with butter.(I really thought it would be plain as it said Fresh with no mention of add-ons)I hesitated an then ate anyway ,followed with a couple rounds of plain salad.Rest of night was pretty uneventful,shopping etc etc..
                That night I woke up around 2am so sick ,I was covered in sweat and my heart was racing,I felt like I had to do a serious bowl movement.yet nothing would move,while at same time the urge to vomit  followed with a pain in the middle of my back I have never experienced before.This went on for hours going from the toilet to the bed to the chair,while carrying a trash can.I for real thought I was going to have to go to the ER.I must also add I had a vegan pizza later in the night before bedtime as well.
                     I'm pretty positive the butter/cheese/and broccoli had something to do with this,and it was a hard lesson to learn but it has helped me to get back on track.Also I'm kinda scared to eat any more of them pizza's,Ive been tempted...but not tempted enough..Uggh that was hell. Going to post a delicious soup that I had to give away,for some reason I am allergic to broccoli now,I had a similar mild reaction when I made some broccoli soup gave me instant stomach cramps and i started sweating like I had a fever,everyone else who ate it was fine :(  I love broccoli that sucks!!
                                    I'm not 100% back on track,I didn't go crazy that was the worst of it,but still it is something physchologically I have to work on as well.Man when I started eating better it was as always my body was singing on the inside again.

                                                
                    I have been waiting on pictures from my tops group but I don't know when I ill be getting them will post asap.Anyways we went to SRD a few weeks ago(State Recognition Day).On this day they recognize all the states biggest Losers, 1st and 2nd place winners from each division. The Winners dress to impress and you cross a stage while they read your personal story.  I was 2nd place division winner for the groups of 400to300lbs with a net loss of 55lbs for 2010.They have a king and Queen for the state as well.It was really a inspirational weekend,everyone was so warm,friendly,and my tops chapter really represented.I had a great time with our group.For the first time in over 15years I bought a bathing suit and went swimming in it,even I was like WOW. Since then I have bought another takini top lol it all starts now haha

                              Mentioned in my story my choice of becoming a raw vegan.Had a few questions,I always tell ppl read up on green smoothies and take it from there.Most people hear vegan or raw they assume,you chew carrot sticks all day.They don't know me(this girl likes to eat) that's why this lifestyle has been so good to me I think.Six of us shared a hotel room for 2 days and no one died lol Actually went fine.One lady in the room went to walmart an we picked her out a blender got some fruit and veggies and made the smoothies the next day.They were surprised it didn't taste how it looked :) I had a great time.........

            I started writing this a few days ago,so this post is kinda going to be a hodgepodge of here and there.That's cool though love to look back on things!!
    Last night I attended my weekly Tops meeting.Wow did you guys surprise me. Un-known to me they all had gotten in touch with each other to bring me something to celebrate my 100lb loss.Everything they gave me consisted of 100 plus a cute Necklace Linda made for me :).
     One at a time they gave me one of the following,100beans,100staples,many 100 pennies,hundred Quarters,100 blueberries,100 Arugula Leaves,100beads,100days of my dues paid,100 diet tips,100 dimes,100cotten swabs,100sugarfree candies(Norman&Mom liked that lol,and  Lyn our leader made me a lil poster board with 100 positive words with my name.I was so touched by all of  this,so thankful to everyone.Talk about making someone feel good and giving me what I need to continue on.THANKS & LOVE to my Tops Family!!!!!



KELP NOODLES!!!!!!!!!!!!
         
When I first went raw I came across a Youtube vid that showcased these gems.After watching it I posted a blog and my thoughts about it.Here's the post & Video!!
http://trailerrawk.blogspot.com/2011/01/kelp-life_16.html
                   I'd also like to add if your trying to cut down on refine carbs and get closer to eating a healthy lifestyle.These Noodles can be heated and used in stir frys,soups an all sorts of things.
        Never had the extra cash to invest in trying them.While at health store last week,I skimmed the cold area(hardly ever do that)there they were in all their glory lol   Man I coulda skipped to the checkout.After asking the cashier when the heck did these get here Ive asked so many times?,she replied they are very popular what do you with them?Well i have had a ton of recipes for them and I hope they are as good as they say.I bought 5 packs.
        Funny at same time they had a giant sign on door reading(Miracle Noodles are here) Ahh I had also posted on them too.Still Leary of them,but My mother was with me that day and bought several to try along with some kelp.She had me go back and buy 30$ worth of the M.N. ,she said her bloodsugar had dramatically dropped and she would like to eat a pack a day an see how it goes.I will keep you posted on her BloodSugar Experiment for those with Diabetes it might help.
                        Going to post a few pictures and how I prepared them(lookwise not so good ,Taste wise OH YEAH!! Zucc& Kelp my fav Noodles from now on)!!






I didn't follow any recipe ,I remember some tips on how to prepare them,and I think its very important.
Noodle Preparation
After emptying noodles into a bowl rinse well
Then fill bowl with water and squeeze half a lemon over water& noodles
Stir and let sit for an hour at least,I let my noodles sit for at least 3hours I think an hour would do fine though.I can feel & see the texture difference.I'm not a huge fan of aldente,I like a soft flexible noodle and this soak seems to do the trick.

Peanut Sauce

I have heard so much about peanut sauces,never tried it though.Back of Kelp bag has a simple Peanut Sauce recipe.Of course lot of ingredients I wont use but it was a nice base recipe.This is what I came up with.

3Tbs Almond Butter
2Tbs ACV
1 Tbs  raw Apple Butter
dash Sea Salt
Enough water to mix to desired consistency

Mix all ingredients together-I was surprised how much I liked this,Have made many times since,very good and filling.

After this you can add whatever you want.I added Garlic and some Herbs de'Providence

For the Noodles just do anything you would do with regular noodles ,Sky's the limit.One dish I just added few drops of evoo tamari and some avocado, red pepper ,mushrooms and onions..Yummy!!


Few Items I am trying now

             

Ive added a few supplements to help round out my diet.
One is Soil Based Organisms Mminerals(didn't even know you could purchase these and was wowed at why we should)
From my understanding these minerals are found in dirt and use to be commonly ingested through our water.Since our water is so tampered with we have lost these vital minerals in our daily life's,there is more to it of course.Is a great read if your interested ,do a search.I will let you know if I see or feel a difference.

MsM powder,Have been wanting this for some time and finally came across a site that doesn't break the bank to try it.Read an been personally told that if you have lost or are losing lots of weight this is great for the skin along with skin brushing and other things.Helps combat saggy skin and just overall issues along with many other benefits.Of course there is much debate on this but I go with what works.

I also purchased a MsM lotion to help  affected areas,I am going to take pictures now and over time to mark any differences.

Apple Cider Vinegar & Honey these drinks come in many flavors they are sharp and always make me feel energized after drinking.so good for you.I drink these once in awhile cold from the health store,they can and will be made at home soon.My brother says he started making these at home and they have been a great hunger suppressor. Need that!!

Last but Not least BUBBIES!!!
When I went to the sauerkraut Workshop this is what we tasted,and it about as raw as you can get.Was so happy to see out Health Store carries this now WOohoo.My health Store has really kicked it up lately,Making us Raw ppl happy!! TyTy!!




Pic Recipes
Easy & tasty.





 Okay the wraps are not raw,another good item for people trying to transition to eating healthier.I buy these once in awhile when I'm lazy.Am going to work on finding an easy recipe so I can have some of these in the raw form made ahead of time.Pretty much anything you want on them and your good to go,I used hummus on one and the other an oil vinaigrette
 I make these in so many ways,search archive if you'd like a recipe.so easy an healthy and best of all Delicious!!
 Have made myself a few quarts of cold Organic green tea lately.Real Real good,nice boost ..




 The next two pics are of the Broccoli soup I spoke about earlier,tasted awesome and got great reviews from family but broccoli no like me anymore :( .If you have no issues with Broccoli your gonna love this one very hearty!!
The last Picture is from the website Rawdorable and here is the link to the recipe
http://rawdorable.blogspot.com/2007/12/rawdorably-raw-cream-of-broccoli-soup.html

Here's some of my juices an green tea I made recently.Carrot apple Ginger,Pineapple and straight apple yumm!!

Off to the Garden!!

I planted most of my veggies and re potted some herbs.We are still learning by trial an error.I took these several weeks ago ,most of the plants have grown very big since.We learned for next year (you must space things right or you will lose sight of veggies) lol..Basically my 4 Zucc plants are HUGE,they are covering the 10 various pepper plants.so its like a treasure hunt finding stuff :)  Oh well we know now!!
            We planted a load of cucumbers an they are starting to come up next post I will show what the Garden looks like now.So happy ,everything is coming along good.











Went to the zoo recently,Had a great time,Its a huge Zoo and good exercise 5mile walk :)
While sightseeing, was so tickled to see a real pineapple growing..Was in awe..Didn't know they grew this way.Also saw a turtle munching on some yummy kale lol
The things you notice now huh!!
Anyhow thought Id share some pics of our adventure.







             This is 2 from my Zoo (Elf&Oz) hogging the air Vent, been pretty hot ,we have to yell at them sometimes to get off the vents so the house can get cool lol
   I miss writing on the blog.Hopes to find time to come back more regularly!!