Carb Cycling - low carb day

Wednesday

Ok, I'm finally going to take you through a low carb day with me, yay!  (I know I know,  just what you wanted right?)  Well hopefully after seeing a sample you won't think eating a whole day low carb is so bad.  First thing that impressed me about low carb days on this plan, you get to have a high carb breakfast!  I LOVE this and it does energize me to get through the hardest part of my day MORNINGS.  So here goes.

Breakfast - Blueberry Protein Oatmeal 

My favorite kind of oatmeal is the steel cut variety.  I love the way it "bursts" when you chew it.  I pre-cook mine in the evening and one batch according to the package directions, (bring water to boil 3c., add oats 1c plus 1/4tsp salt, stir and remove from heat.  Cover and let stand til morning) is enough to last me all week.  I use 1/2c. of cooked oatmeal heated in microwave then add 1/4c frozen blueberries and a dash of cinnamon and stir.  Then I mix up 1/2c unsweetened almond milk with 1 scoop vanilla protein powder with 1 packet of stevia, and pour 1/4 of the mixture over my oatmeal, stir and enjoy!  I use the remainder of the milk/protein mixture to make.............(don't forget your water :)

My Favorite Latte Ever

I was skeptical about putting protein powder in my coffee - but all I can say about this is 

YUM!  Brew you'r favorite cup of coffee, add 1 packet stevia and stir in remaining almond milk mixture. (see recipe above)  If you don't like your coffee too sweet I recommend tasting with milk in it before you ad the extra stevia.  My first week on plan I had this every day, now I've cut back to 1-3 times a week because of the caffeine.  

UPDATE:  I originally had a link to a source for cafe orzo here that you may have seen, but when I was double checking my links I discovered that the company has discontinued it.  So if you can find it in your local discount market or regular grocers GREAT!  I'm still going to be looking online to see if it has stopped being produced or if it's just that company and will update with findings later.
FINAL NOTE:  A search and inquiry has revealed that the company that makes cafe orzo has ceased producing the product so I found an alternative product to try in it's place called Robarr.  It is made in Montana and doesn't show any store locations other than in Montana, but you can order it online at   www.robarr.com should you decide to try it.  Happy brewing!

Lunch Time !

Jeni's Summer Salad with Roasted Turkey Breast

I eat this whole meal cold and I love it because my husband can throw his own lunch together in the morning in a flash by having the salad already made up in bulk and in the fridge.

My day starts a little late so I'm not always eating snacks early in the day but I still time my meals 3hrs apart to stay on plan.  I love that there's no wrong way to do that as long as you eat within that first 1/2 hr and then every 3hrs for the rest of your 4 meals. 

 This is simply a turkey breast roasted in the oven by me, then sliced and I store it - one breast is enough for my husband and I for the whole week.  Summer salad:  I make in bulk (key word is BULK here, I don't eat the entire recipe in one sitting) and use only about 1 cup servings on my low carb days.  In one bowl add - 1 english cucumber, 1 red bell pepper, 4-6 campari tomatoes (or tomatoes of your choice) cubed, 1 red onion rough chopped, 1 avocado diced, 2 low fat mozzarella string cheese sliced, 15 black olives rough chopped/sliced, 1 lemon squeezed over everything (keeps avocado from browning and tastes yummy too), and about 1/8c fat free organic balsamic vinagrette.  Mix and enjoy!  I think it tastes best cold.  (How many glasses of water have you had so far?  Great!  Drink some more - remember a gallon a day keeps you peein' away - sorry I might have taken that one too far - lol)

Taco Salad (AKA: Turkey-Lettuce Taco Mix)

Afternoon  snack time.  I love my mexican food - and I can still have it, yay!  With a few tweeks.  I use the recipe in chapter 15 of Choose to Lose with a plan approved tweek.  Instead of using 2oz of reduced fat cheese - I just use 1oz and swap in 1/8th of a small avocado to make up for it.  I also reduce the ground turkey by a touch and add 1tbsp of nonfat plain greek yogurt (tastes like sour cream when you don't add anything to it, yum - I never knew how versatile something nonfat and plain could be 8-)  Looks pretty good right?  Tastes good too!  (Do you know what's coming here? Yeah, drink some more water)

Turkey-Veggie Parmesan aka: Chicken Veggie Parmesan

Dinner time!  I love this with chicken I just had turkey breast already cooked and sliced so it was faster.  Made according to recipe in chapter 15 again.  All I tweeked was the turkey of course and the amount of cheese - used 1oz instead of 2oz, and added 3 sliced olives.  Husband loves this one.  So do I, especially when it took only about 15 minutes from start to yum.  (Water anyone?)

Last snack/meal of the day.  Normally you would have your snacks between breakfast and lunch, then again between lunch and dinner.  My days can be a little off this usual pattern, so on days like today when things are not started early, I end my day with a low carb snack (even on high carb days - when my last snack is a late one)  Tonight that happens to be one of my favorites.  

Chocolate Peanut Butter Shake

1/2c unsweetened almond milk, 1/2c water (recipe calls for 1c. I use 1c. because I like it a little thicker) 1tbsp natural peanut butter, 1 scoop chocolate protein powder, and 1 packet stevia blended until smooth and creamy.  (If you haven't had all your water for the day, then you know the drill - have some more :)  

That's it for food on low carb days!  Before I started the program I had one woman email me and tell me she thought it was too much cooking, and too many containers, too hard - I couldn't disagree more.  This plan fits very well into my already existing cooking routine.  I cook some items up ahead of time like my ground turkey, turkey breast, rice, hard boiled eggs, and some veggies I like to roast like potatoes, broccoli and cauliflower.  But I don't prepare them all on the same day because the vegetables are easy to do in a flash if I have to in the microwave, I only roast them when I have the time (this method really does add a nice flavor to them though I have to say so it's worth the little bit of extra effort).  Most of these items I can cook all at the same time and are done in about 45 minutes, then I let them cool just enough to  store and I'm done for at least 3 days.  The rest is reheating and maybe chopping a few veggies for fresh salads or something.  It can feel like a lot to process in the beginning - but within a week or two I really developed a rhythm, and now I feel a lot more in control and confident when I go to the market and when it's time to cook, and eat!  

I hope these two sample days have helped anyone who is curious about what this is like from one day to the next.  I still am learning about different options that are approved, and am trying to fine tune things just for me, which everyone should do, but the basic list of approved foods and combinations are simple and become easier the more you do them. 

Next up is my first slingshot week!  I'm excited that I've reached it and will most likely post a sample day of that as well.  

One think I didn't post about is the shapers and shredders that are a very important part of the program.  I love that the exercise that is recommended is VERY doable.  I am out of shape but strong and relatively healthy.  This physical part of the program I thought would be more daunting, but I was wrong, 10 minutes 3 mornings a week, and about 30 minutes for 6 days even for this busy mom have been possible.  This is actually the longest I've been able to consistently stick with any exercise regimen since before I was married, so if I can do it, you know what they say (all together now) "anyone can do it".    

If you are on the fence I hope you jump off on the Choose to Lose side and give it a shot.  Be sure to make use of the support on Chris's facebook page or you can find more inspiration and success stories at www.chrispowell.com.  I would love to see/hear from you here too!  So be sure to check back and see what's new from time to time.  I love to see others succeed, and the more tools you have at your disposal, the more likely you will continue to see great success.  I wish you all the best in eating to survive the 7-day carb cycle way!