Adventures in Eating--Coconut Sesame Chicken

Part of my food plan is to rotate foods, not eating the same things two or more days in a row. This is to prevent new food sensitivities from developing.

Yesterday's meals included kale, which I've never tried before, and which is slightly bitter until it is cooked.

I cook like Amelia Bedelia, so I don't have an exact recipe, but here's the basic idea:

I chopped up about an eighth of onion and about a third of the bunch of kale and stir-fried it in olive oil just until it was tender.  I added a cut up chicken breast, a handful of coconut, and about a tablespoon of sesame seeds. When it started getting too dry and sticking to the pan, I added a splash of Bragg's liquid amino. 

Since it was quinoa day, I served it over a heaping pile of quinoa.  This was very good, but a bit salty. Apparently I need to dilute the liquid amino. But the flavor was amazing.

Food Challenges!

I had an extensive blood test done for food sensitivities. It showed up some important things.  For the next three or four months at least, I will avoid gluten, any dairy products whatsoever, and several other minor irritants.  Dairy was the big one, not just lactose, but whey and casein.  Not even butter for me! 

The second part of it is to rotate the foods I do eat. They gave me a handy chart with suggestions for rotation, and a booklet of recipes (which mixes up all the foods from different days!)

I think I will follow the rotation strictly for a few days, and then just mix and match and make sure I eat a good variety.

Hopefully I can start feeling better soon. The good news was that my cortisol levels were good (another test) so I don't need adrenaline support.  Hurray for that!

The doctor recommended a kind of supplement to help heal the gastrointestinal system, but it turns out to have ginger in it--one of the things on my "no" list.  I'll have to see what else she would recommend for me.

So, wish me luck! I hope this is not another yellow brick road leading to a non-existent Oz.

That reminds me, Glinda the Good Witch told Dorothy the secret of the shoes, right?  So why didn't she just tell her right away?  First she had to go through all that trouble!  That's bugged me for a while.

T-Bone Steak

Oh, how I was looking forward to that T-bone steak. Juicy meat, cooked just right, fat cut off...

It actually wasn't as good as the "lesser" cut we got a couple of weeks ago, which happened to be all-natural beef from a nearby farm. It's not grass-fed beef, but no added hormones in it.

A friend is eating all-natural and saying how good everything is, and losing weight too. 

It's the cost that worries me, but my health is getting constantly worse. If I increase my grocery budget to take in healthier foods, maybe I can reduce my supplements budget.  Any comments?

Lies

I was only going on the computer to look up my church lesson and print it out.  This is what I told myself. Then I checked Facebook real quick. I was tempted by a game, but I was only going to play one. Then I would stop and exercise, eat breakfast, and take a shower before work.

These are the lies I told myself.

Suddenly there was only time to throw on some clothes and head out the door.  But the bread I thawed needed baking--I had forgotten about it! 

I turned on the oven, stuck in the bread, got dressed, and ate breakfast. As soon as the bread came out I wrapped it in a towel and threw it in a bag with a knife and breadboard.

I was late enough for work to cost me $7.50, though I made up half of it by staying late to help a student.  At least the bread was yummy. Thanks, Rhodes.


Now my afternoon plans have fallen through, so I guess I will still have time to exercise.  I'd rather be at the movie/dinner that I had planned.

Stretch Marks

I'm glad I had already decided it was time to start exercising and eating right again before I saw those new stretch marks on my abdomen.  They are annoying but did not leave me as defeated as they would have a couple of days ago.

TOPS again

I went to TOPS again today, a different group.  They were a smaller group, with a lively, energetic feel.  They were friendly, but I didn't feel overrun.  Maybe I'll go back to this one.  There is a Tuesday group here as well, so maybe I'll go there next week. 

There are evening meetings, but I work three evenings a week, and the other weeknight I am busy as a leader with my church Young Women's group. Besides, I like weighing in the morning.

Considering a New Blog Name--Again

I didn't make it to fit by 50, though I made good progress. Then I was derailed by the move.

Here I am over a year later, starting over (you'd think I'd learn), tired of hurting and being tired all the time and being FAT! 

What should I name my blog?  I am considering Slender Sixty (gives me a little over 9 years to get there)  or Svelte by 60, but I would like something more health-minded.  All the S-words I come up with seem to be more weight related--slim, slender, svelte, skinny, shapely (though that might work)

Maybe "In Shape by Sixty" 

Or maybe just change it to Fit by 55, which is a shorter term and might cause less procrastination.  I wonder...can you change the name of a blog without redoing it?  I think I can if I just change it on the title but not the url.

Any suggestions?