not new info....

This is not new information, but I like how it's formatted and organized-it's kind of helpful, especially since one of the weight examples is very close to my own weight. Calories burned in 30 minutes......

When my big project at work is over (March 10), and the wave of illnesses leave my house (when????), I will compile some articles on recent studies on the effects of exercise that I've been reading lately and post them here - as well as some nutrition articles. But the bottom line I'm gathering is this - exercise is important, especially exercise at a high intensity - and moving often, not becoming completely sedentary in the day or evening is also important, although just how much movement and for how often is not known yet. The list above shows just how few calories are burned by say, sitting at a desk. The studies don't all look at weight loss, many look at health outcomes instead. I may ask for help from an epidemiologist friend at work to make sure I'm conveying accurate information. Not all studies are created equal and my professional epi buddies help me sort that out.

Trying to get back on track

I actually need to lose a few pounds. The one downside to having a whole new wardrobe of clothes in my new size is that I have no "fat clothes" to fall back on. I am noticing now that my clothes are tight and uncomfortable. At first I didn't even put two and two together. I just thought that after work I was tired and who wouldn't want to slink into yoga pants. But I did notice many months ago, that when my clothes are loose and comfortable, I often come home and get distracted starting dinner, etc. before changing. I had to remind myself to change so that I wouldn't soil my work clothes while cooking. I made a mental note to myself that next time I experienced the "I must change now!!" feeling regularly after work, I would know it meant things aren't fitting right and I should do something about it.

So here I am working towards that goal. I knew for the past few months that my weight was a little higher, but I didn't see it as a big deal, and it is a normal occurrence in winter. Now we've passed that "little bit higher" mark. A couple days ago I quickly tried on a couple dresses at lunch time, as I'm attending a party next Saturday, and the 6s were really too tight. At first I attributed that to them being a really young style - I didn't like how they looked anyway - but in reality they were just too small. The shopping trip actually did light a fire under my behind. I was so turned off that I got more serious. I had also had a bit of a pizza debacle the day before that kind of shocked me. Since when do I even like white crust-big chain pizza?? Ick! But I ate lots of it and happily. This all sounds so dramatic! It is not.

So I'm trying very hard to control any extraneous snacking, and to really watch portion size. I'm also tracking. I find, as do some friends, that in the end it's just easier to be really stringent, as not being stringent opens the door to wanting things, and starts that constant battle in the head of, "can I have some of that?" I'd rather not feel tempted at all.

I am also finding that reporting my food intake to a few friends does make me more vigilant. I actually spit out some gummy bears - they were hurting my jaw anyway - thinking, "I can't email this to my friends."

So the more the merrier. Here is what I ate yesterday:
I still use the old WW points system. Goal is 23 pts or 24 on a big exercise day. In reality I should eat 21 but i find that unrealistic and I don't want to be constantly disappointing myself.

breakfast 1
few bites oatmeal and strawberries while chatting with my cousin and making lunches - we were going to exercise but the kids got up early and we were all talking. Highly unusual morning due to house guest. 1 pts

breakfast 2
cereal, milk, yogurt 5pts

lots coffee with milk 1pt

lunch
spinach salad with turkey breast, healthy homemade dressing, 20 almonds (part-pre lunch snack), other veggies. 5 pts  -  I was craving some carbs but didn't have any in my desk drawer.


20 min run with buddy. first time in a long time! Should have done post-run push-ups.

afternoon snack
orange
plain non-fat yogurt with berries 3pts

dinner 1 - got home starving. tried very hard to contain myself and make dinner but a contractor was in house. warmed myself up some food so as not to go crazy.
4 low-fat triscuits, many pickle slices 1 pt
natasha's leftover dinner of my homemade pizza with white-bean infused pizza sauce, ww crust, minimal cheese, 3 pepperoni slices, broccoli 3 pts (very small portion was left)

dinner 2 - after contractor left
sauteed spinach with leftover bacon and tin of sardines and orange zest. I really did learn something by watching/reading so much Jamie Oliver - 3pts

dessert - started eating gummy bears while dolling out kid desserts and stopped. Not worth it and not necessary.

22 pts before exercise!! It really is possible to not eat that extra 200 calories a day, if I just make the slightest effort to really track, feel like I have a real, strongly desired goal in mind (making my clothes fit), and if I feel accountable to someone (my blogging audience). I was not having one of my hungry days - I did only a little exercise and that makes a big difference appetite-wise. Let's see how long I can keep this up. btw, I just spent all my exercise time blogging. getting up now.

Clam pizza

I would call this Jamie Oliver-inspired, although it's not his recipe.

Whole wheat crust with:
pesto, cherrystone clams, navy beans, lemon slices, artichoke hearts, fresh parsley, parm flakes, pepper, olive oil - applied in that order. It kind of took a while to assemble.

What makes is Jamie-inspired is the addition of red pepper flakes, the more liberal use of olive oil, and the lemon slices with peel. I also was very generous with the parsley and the man is seemingly obsessed with fresh herbs. But when I saw him make clam pizza he used a slightly different recipe. And he put whole clams on there!

The pizza was also inspired by the new products display at Trader Joe's. They had whole cherrystone clams in cans. I bought 3.

What makes is a very Jenna pizza is:
-whole wheat crust of course
-using up leftover bits in my fridge - in this instance parsley-walnut pesto and two big artichoke hearts as well as half a lemon (i could have easily used a whole lemon)
-added navy beans to make the pizza have more fiber and protein and have a keep the crust to topping ratio weighted more towards the topping side.

Here are my take-aways.

DELICIOUS!!!

iPhone there for size comparison:
notice how big clams are

The few Jamie inspirations really did kick it up a notch. I think using a bit more olive oil made all the difference. It made all the ingredients really gel together and the flavors fuse. Quite literally - flavors travel in fat molecules and I have made this pizza while being more stingy with the olive oil and it tastes like disparate parts. It may also have had to do with the pesto base, even though it was a thin spread. I didn't go nutso with the oil - it was probably 3-4 tablespoons for the whole thing as opposed to 2. But the pizza has very little cheese on it as I really don't like melted cheese with seafood. Gross. The parm is tangy but not gooey.

I'm not a fan of spicy foods - they often give me a headache. But I know a little heat is meant to also enhance other flavors and in this instance the bit of dried red pepper flakes did just that. Jamie would have used fresh hot chili of course. Same is true of the parsley - it just added to an overall flavorful-ness and interest in the mouth.

I really should invest in a pizza stone.
This pan is an embarrassment. 

First, hats off to Trader Joe's. I believe the big whole clams made the whole thing more sophisticated. Kind of strange to say anything in a can is sophisticated but I guess it's all relative. The navy beans were a great enhancement - not just a bit of heft and health, they were creamy and delicious against the chewy clams. Additionally, the artichoke hearts were really finely chopped up and spread out. I think the helped a lot - they made the whole thing more...um....vegetably (to make up a word)....in a good way. And finally - I loved having the bits of roasted lemon. I picked off the actual pieces but squeezed them before eating each slice. If I were serving this at a party I would also serve fresh slices and additional parsley on each plate as garnish. The brightness was fantastic. Jamie would have doused the whole thing in more olive oil at the table. He seems to do that. I found it just greasy enough as is.

My main take-away, more than anything else, is to extoll the virtues of watching cooking videos - either on television, Hulu, YouTube, Netflix, whatever. I almost never make the recipes from the shows, but bits of information and techniques do sink in. Ideas percolate that were inspired by something I've seen but were not an exact recipe. And I believe that being familiar with those techniques and ideas also breeds confidence in the kitchen and a proclivity to experiment. My husband certainly appreciates it...the kids - I'm not so sure.

Pitch for Bob Harper Inside Out Method series

I'm sure I mentioned this set before, but I'd like to revise my opinion.
Bob Harper has a 4-DVD set which is a complete bargain. It's on sale  for something like $30 with a discount code of "getfit".

The first couple times I tried the DVDs I found them boring and repetitive. But now for some reason I find them zen-inducing and super-fabulous. Each DVD has a 1 hr version or a 20 min version. I only do the 1 hr version and I basically only do them on weekends or if I happen to get up with Dave at 4:30 am. They have been reviewed in detail in many places - just Google "Bob Harper inside out method" so I won't reiterate here. Bob also has some new kettleball routines which I have not tried. I haven't wanted to purchase kettleballs, although I probably should. The trainers are hot and ripped, although Stephanie makes weird faces and I don't like the outfits on Zach. Who wears tall black socks and v-neck t-shirts to the gym?? It makes me a little crazy. Francisco is a hottie but Bob is constantly yelling at him for not keeping up with the girls. Bob also has a lot of mini "challenges" on his youtube site and some of them are actually pretty good.

I find his over-positive veganism kind of a bit much. And the green drink Nazis make me crazy. How loony does this woman sound?? But His workouts are really a great deal.

Recipe browsing

I've been distracting myself with a lot of recipe browsing and cookingchannel tv watching lately.
For some reason I'm completely intrigued by the Veg Edge which focuses on really crazy-amazing vegetarian and vegan restaurants. Some of the stuff, like tempeh bbq looks gross, but the more refined, richly infused veggie dishes look amazing. Even the vegan recipes sound pretty interesting - using coconut milk instead of regular cream. I can use the lactose intolerant pills when I have dairy, and so far they do work, but I imagine it helps to keep the overall amount of lactose down to a minimum. So I'm open to alternatives.

I really want to try this Jamie Oliver recipe as soon as I get home from my trip. SO much so that I already bought the pomegranate!  It's meant to be a post-Thanksgiving - leftover turkey recipe, but the dressing sounds so interesting. Three fruit juices and soy! I'll be making it in a week or so so stay tuned.

And while I don't like baking, the below does look fantastic. The recipe is from Shape magazine of all places. I have no idea if it's good but I think the idea of covering a brownie recipe with a cup of hot water is kind of a funny concept.