My Weight Loss Journey--And My Favorite Recipes Along the Way!

As most of you know, I went through a weight loss journey a few months back and lost 30lbs! It doesn't seem like a huge number, but it has made a huge difference!! A difference in how I feel, in what I wear and in how I live!

Weight loss from January to July

In January, I was the heaviest I have ever been in my life and I was becoming miserable. After watching a video about how our bodies process food, we made the decision to eat more natural foods and I cut out sodas and sweet drinks (unless it was a special occasion). If I was craving a soda, we would buy Zevia (a healthy/more natural option that has most soda flavors) or flavored Sanpellegrino sparkling waters (our favorite is the blood orange)! The only sweet drink that I would drink would be Silk chocolate almond milk, because it helps my heartburn (which is rare since losing weight). Other than that, I only drank water and every once in a while, an un-sweet tea. From January to April, I lost 10lbs just by watching our ingredients, making sure that we were eating more natural foods and taking out sugary drinks. In the video that helped my mind change, there was a nutritionist that talked about how our bodies know how to process natural foods, and unnatural, processed foods, get turned into fat because our bodies aren't sure what to do with it, so it gets pushed to the side. She gave an example of how a banana has more calories in it than a little banana flavored, 100 calorie snack, but the banana is actually the better choice because our body knows how to process a banana, because it's normal, and from the earth. She explained that the reason a lot of diet plans don't work (or if they do, people just put the weight back on when they get to their goal), is because so many plans are based off of counting calories or cutting out other natural things that our bodies know how to process. That was eye opening for me!
In April I decided to start Weight Watchers, and I enjoyed this plan, because you could still eat food that you enjoyed, and you could choose what you could and couldn't eat. It's a lot of portion control and watching the types of foods you're eating. I also loved that I could log activity (and not just going to the gym-but doing laundry, playing kickball, cleaning the house, etc.), and I would get more points added so I could have more food later! Ha! That really got me into the gym!
From April to July, I lost 20 more pounds!! I have never wanted to do a diet because I thought it would be hard and I didn't want to stop eating foods that I love! Mainly sweets and breads! Baking is my way to relax and eating good food was more of a hobby than actually needing sustenance. Through the whole process I found out where a lot of my issues were. I would eat sweets when I had a bad day. I never thought that I was the type of person who relied on food to make me happy. I mean, I knew that I loved it, but I remember on my first week of Weight Watchers, I had come home from work, angry because I had a bad day, and angry because I only had 3 points left for the day and all I wanted to do was to sit in front of the TV and eat something sweet. The longer I sat there and thought about it, the more angry I got, and I began to get more angry at myself than the fact that I only had a few points left for the day. That's when I realized I needed a life change...and then I went and got a tablespoon of chocolate chips and savored each one! Ha!
I remember another day where someone had brought in a taco bar to work for the employees, and as I logged what I was going to eat, I realized that all I could have was one taco and a tiny side of rice and beans. As I was filling my plate I remember thinking, "I'm going to starve! This is not enough food!" I was used to eating 2-3 tacos and large sides of rice and beans. Well, believe it or not, after eating that small lunch that I was not used to, I was strangely satisfied, and it was that day that I realized my other issue was portion control.
I remember when I logged my weight one week after being on this plan for a while, and it said that I had lost 10% of my body!! It felt so great! I had got rid of heartburn, I had more energy, and I had a constant pain in my ribs that was gone! All thanks to watching what I ate, how much I ate and working out! Bryan had actually lost 20lbs too, by eating the same types of foods and going to the gym.
I decided to quit Weight Watchers in July after I hit my 30lb weight loss mark and wanted to try it on my own. I had lost two dress sizes, gone from large shirts to medium and small sized shirts. I went from size 14 pants to, recently, size 10 (that's what I was right out of high school)! I have stayed consistent in my weight. I have not lost any weight since July, but I have not gained any either and honestly, I'm happy where I am, which I think is all that matters! I continue to watch what I eat and how much I eat, and if I eat something that wasn't so great for me, then I make sure I eat less or make healthier options for the next meal. I also try to stay on top of exercising, although I'm not as consistent as I should be, I love to do it when I can, whether it be going to the gym, hiking or just walking! Movement and activity are so important!

I've had a lot of people asking about some of our favorite recipes through this process and so I wanted to share them (if you click on any words that you notice are a different color, they will lead you to the recipe):

*Breakfast--Cinnamon chocolate chip oat muffins loaded with strawberries & blueberries--recipe from @healthy_homies on Instagram (some of my own revisions have been made)
-3 cups quick oats
-1/4 cup brown sugar
-2 1/2 tsp baking powder
-Cinnamon to taste
-1/2 cup chocolate chips
-1 cup mashed banana
-1 cup unsweetened vanilla almond milk
-4 egg whites
Preheat oven to 375. Combine oats, brown sugar, baking powder, cinnamon and chocolate chips. In separate bowl, whisk banana, almond milk and egg whites. Add wet mixture to dry and combine well. Fold in whatever berries you like! I chose strawberries and blueberries. Spray muffin tins and drop 1/4 cup (I use an ice cream scoop! Perfect, even sizes every time!) of mixture into each spot. I would make sure to put a little bit of the mixture without fruit in the bottoms, to make a good base, otherwise, they may fall apart when you remove the muffins from the pan. Bake at 375 for 20 or more depending on the moisture in the fruit.

*Lunch--Option 1: Skinny Mexican Pizza (I added shredded grilled chicken!)--recipe from Snixy Kitchen
       -Option 2: Feta Stuffed Chicken Burgers (I use spinach and kalamata olives!)--recipe from Weight Watchers, with a side of roasted veggies and/or chips and homemade, fresh salsa.

*Dinner--Option 1: Baked Burritos--recipe from my Mom (some of my own revisions have been made)
-7-8 large tortillas
-1 onion
-Lean ground turkey
-Taco Seasoning
-1 cup salsa
-1 can low sodium black beans, drained
-2 big handfuls of spinach
-1 can cream of celery
-1 can green enchilada sauce
-Sour cream
-Shredded cheese
Preheat oven to 350 and spray 9x13 baking dish. Whisk cream of celery and enchilada sauce in a small saucepan over low heat to warm. Chop onion and cook with turkey over med-hi heat. Add taco seasoning, 1/4 water, salsa and combine well. Add drained black beans, and spinach and cook down until combined well. Lay out a tortilla and spread desired amount of sour cream. Add taco mixture, a tablespoon drizzle of the cream of celery/enchilada sauce mixture and some shredded cheese. Roll up and place seam down in baking dish. Repeat until dish is full. Pour remaining cream of celery/enchilada sauce mixture evenly over the burritos and sprinkle desired amount of shredded cheese over the top. Bake at 350 for 30 minutes.
-Option 2: Spinach and mushroom spaghetti with turkey kielbasa--recipe by me!
-Barilla Vegetable Spaghetti
-Jeannie-O Turkey Kielbasa
-1 Tbs olive oil
-1 chopped onion
-2 cloves chopped garlic
-2 big handfuls of spinach
-1/2 cup chopped mushrooms
-Salt & pepper
-Penzey's Spices Mural of Flavor

Boil water for spaghetti and cook according to package directions

Saute onion and garlic in olive oil over med-hi heat

Throw in spinach, sprinkle with salt and pepper, and cook down

Add mushrooms, sprinkle with salt and pepper and cook down. Then sprinkle Penzey's Spices Mural of Flavor, stir and then place in a separate bowl.

Add kielbasa to pan and cook until edges begin to brown

Then add drained pasta and veggies back into the pan and let them cook for 5-10 minutes.

Serve and enjoy!

*Dessert--Option 1: Cake in a mug-this dessert made me feel like I could have a treat and it was only 2 points on Weight Watchers!
-1 box Angel Food Cake mix
-1 box any other flavor cake mix (I chose double chocolate cake)
Mix box of Angel Food Cake mix with a box of any other flavor cake mix. Store in an airtight container or gallon size ziploc bag. When the craving hits, just mix 3 Tbs of mix with 2 Tbs of water in a coffee mug and microwave on high for 1 minute. I would then add 1/2 Tbs of mini chocolate chips to make it a bit more decadent and it would only make it a 3 point dessert!
         Option 2: Kids Vanilla Ice Dream Cone from Chick-Fil-A

It is always my prayer that what I share on my blog can help encourage others and I hope you're able to enjoy some or all of these recipes! When something has really changed your life, it's hard to keep it quiet!! God made natural food for us to eat, so that our bodies know how to use and digest it. Eat more natural food, less fake food, stay active and feel better! It's worth it!!

Before & After--January 2015 & October 2015

Love and blessings,
Stephanie