Mmmmmm, grilled chicken!!!

I have been on a grilling quest for a few days now. It all started when the hubby says...."you know what sounds good....fajitas". Well the marinade I use has to sit overnight at least. So while that was soaking up the goodness the other day, I marinaded some chicken thighs (bone in with skin for the hubby) and boneless, skinless breasts for me. I also happen to make enough chicken breasts that there is enough for a sandwich for hubby and some salads for me!! I would love to show you some photos of the chicken....but it disappeared too quickly for me to do that, so here is the marinade recipe.

Marinade for chicken

2 cups water
4 teaspoons salt
2 teaspoons pepper
1 garlic clove (of course I used two!!)
2 Tablespoons pineapple juice
1 teaspoon lime juice
Chicken (I used three thighs and six 5 ounce breasts)

In a blender, combine the water, salt, pepper, garlic. Blend on high for 15 seconds. Add pineapple juice and lime juice and blend for another 5 seconds. Marinade chicken on one side for 45 min. turn over and marinade for 30 min. more. Cook however you like.

I grilled mine on the BBQ (make sure you spray the grill with cooking spray first, there is sugar in the pineapple juice and you don't want them to stick. Or you could broil, bake, or even pan fry. However if you pan fry, you loose a little bit of the flavor, I think.

I hope you enjoy this as much as Jim and I did. In fact he's having it for a sandwich today at lunch. Mmmmm. If you make this and have any photos, go ahead and share. I would love to see them.

Honest...I'm not dead!

Wow Aug 13th was my last post?!?!?! I should be whipped with a wet noodle. Hey there I go again talking about food. LOL. A lot of things have happened and then a lot of not so noteworthy things have happened since my last post.

Mom and Kelly finally got things together and off to Texas without to much of a hitch, I think. At least I haven't gotten too many phone calls starting with OMG I forgot to tell you, or we forgot this. So I think things are ok. Hee hee. They seem to be having a good time and I am sort of having some rest time.

I made it my goal so to speak that I would use these two weeks while mom and Kelly are gone to get back to me. Well it's not working too well. I have gone to my three days a week strength training so far (all of last week and then I went yesterday). This morning I went and got my cardio in at 4am so Jim could have the car.

If it wasn't for everyday life and money matters, I think things would be ok for the most part. We got hit with a disconnect notice on our electricity and didn't have the money to pay for it. I gathered up every bottle and can that we had and took them to the recyclers, and turned in every loose coin I could find. I was able to scrounge enough to make a deal, but I have to pay more attention to money matters now that the furlough cuts are hitting us harder. But I have been cooking almost every meal, we only ate out once and that was at Fresh Choice (a salad bar restaurant). So I guess I can't complain. Well I CAN complain but it won't do me any good.

I am watching my meals a little better and the weight is starting to come off. I joined a new app on Facebook to track my weight loss so my trainer can see what is going on too. Let's hope that this is going to be my reason for doing all this for me again. I know, every time you read this blog it's a new beginning, or a new start, or I'm trying again. But don't get me wrong, this is a tough thing to do. I try and make no excuses because I'm the one that did all of this to myself. The weight gain, through the surgery, and the "hopefully" new lifestyle afterwards.

So if you are doing this for yourself too, hang in there. One way or another I AM going to triumph over SOMETHING!!!!! LOL.

I know thy enemy...it's name is FAT!!!

I have been lazy on logging food intake, and I've just been eating what I THINK is healthy. Well this morning I took my blood sugar reading and it was 132!!! OMG!! I went to the gym last night and everything. Well thinking back on yesterday....I ate a bunch of junk. Most of it was carbs and sugar. So this morning I decided that I would "once again" start clean. At least you can't say that I'm not persistent on trying again, again, and again!!

I am getting bored with breakfast foods, eggs, cottage cheese, etc. So this morning I thought ok I'll eat some turkey lunchmeat (which is not the best but it's better than eating junk), and some string cheese to finish up the protein part of my meal. Shadow helped me eat breakfast, then it's time to log the food. I should log the food before I eat it since I found out that my cheese put me WAY INTO the FAT ZONE!!! Wholly cow!! I should have known better, the cheese tastes to good and I like it too much to be that healthy. I know everything in moderation. Well I am now going to start making meal plans for my breakfasts. I am going to log the calories BEFORE I eat.

I guess I can't say that I'm surprised. The weight has not been coming off and now the reason has been slapped across my face!!!

I am now off to find some interesting choices for breakfast. Any ideas feel free to let me know.

Mongolian Beef...it's what's for dinner.

I have been making a menu for every day of the week for awhile now but I very seldom stick to it. Well tonight I stuck to it. I was craving some chinese food and what do you know....tonight was scheduled to be Mongolian Beef! Woo Hoo!

I found the recipe in a Weight Watchers magazine. I normally don't buy these magazines because the hubby is more of a steak and potato man. But something told me to pick this one up. I flipped through the pages and I thought what the hey, I could make some of these for my lunches if nothing else. I love the flavor of Mongolian Beef and I knew I had to try this recipe. The hubby even liked it!!

Here's the recipe:

Mongolian Beef

1 pound flank steak, trimmed and cut into thin slices

cooking spray

1/3 cup hoisin sauce

2 Tablespoons water

2 teaspoons minced peeled fresh ginger

1 teaspoon bottled minced roasted garlic

2 teaspoons dark sesame oil

1/2 teaspoons crushed red pepper

4 green onions, cut into 1 inch pieces

Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium high hear. Coat steak with cooking spray. Add steak to pan; cook 3 minutes or until browned and liquid has almost evaporated, stirring occasionally. Combine hoisin sauce and next 5 ingredients in a small bowl. Add sauce mixture and onions to steak in pan; cook 1 minute or until sauce is slightly reduced (do not overcook steak). Yield 4 servings (1/2 cup = serving)

This is what it looked like in the pan. Oh man the smell in my kitchen is fabulous!!! Makes my mouth water!

This is Jim's serving. I made some instant rice and steamed some broccoli. The rice and the veggies are both plain. I figured the sauce from the beef would be seasoning enough and I wouldn't have the added fat calories of butter or mayo. Looks good eh?!

And yes, like all good WLS (weight loss surgery) patients, I weighed my portions. It actually looks like a lot, but trust me I could have eaten a ton more!!!

After a little tv with Jim I'm off to the gym for strength training. I need to get in some cardio but I think that is for tomorrows schedule.

Still struggling

Why must it be so hard to put myself first and do what needs to be done for my weight loss health?!? I feel like I keep starting over every week or sometimes, every day! I make up my mind that I'm getting back to the gym and eating right, then something happens and I've fallen off track again. I would love to say that it's someone else's fault, but it's my own.

I am either eating food when I shouldn't or skipping my exercise. I was doing so good. I have been trying to keep a positive attitude, but it's been really hard when at every turn something is becoming a new and harder hurdle for me to jump.

I didn't think I was afraid of what I would become when I got skinny and healthy, so why is there such sabotage?

I have had to take my mom and sister out for errands a couple of times where they had to eat a meal out. I have been really good and have taken my lunch with me. I even sit in the restaurant with them and eat my lunch. It doesn't bother me that they are eating something else. When I get home though it's like I HAVE to eat everything bad for me. I'm not hungry, I'm not bored, but I am exhausted. Maybe deep down I'm feeling deprived. But I'm not deprived really. I take things that I like to eat. I just don't know what's going on with me.

I have tried thinking about how I feel and how to change this behavior, and it all comes down to just do it. Well if it was that easy, I wouldn't be 10 months after surgery and have only lost 22 pounds!

There is sort of a bright side to things, and that is that money is really short, so I can't go and buy that candy bar or chips for added hidden calories. I am AGAIN going back to starting over again. My mom and sister are going to be in Texas visiting my brother and his family. Maybe their vacation is going to be the helping hand that I need to get back on track. I really hope so.

Now I don't want anyone to think that I am blaming my mom and sister for why I can't stay on track. They just add additional time restraints to the day. I still have time to eat right, exercise, and do what I have to do. I just don't do it.