Mommy's Losing It! (closed group)

Happy Saturday Evening, All--I just looked at the calendar, and my goal is to lose 14 pounds by Christmas. That's 14 pounds in 10 weeks. While I've lost more than a pound a week before, I don't know if I can do it for multiple weeks. I ate really healthy today, but my hubby brought home a whole pumpkin cheesecake, and 1/2 of a strawberry cheesecake from work yesterday. They are calling to me from the fridge. I think I will need to spend the night singing, to drown out their calls. At least I like to sing. Hope everyone's having a great night.

Hey, I'm a little slow, so I just caught up with everyone
Here I am:

Height: 5'6" (33 yo)
SW: 187
CW: 167.2 (Friday)
Mini Goal: 165 for Thanksgiving (pre-baby weight)
GW: 150 (for starters)

By Christmas, I think I'd like to reasonably be out of the 'overweight' category, which puts me under 155. So, there it is: 155 by Christmas! I think that I can do that. I'd also like to enjoy the holidays with my family and not lose my mind with the sweets. I'd love to reward myself with some new pants!

Sorry late adding my weigh in I am at 147lbs. My goal is to drop another 12lbs by Christmas. My favorite quick recipe is the following:

Kroger - Clear Chicken Broth - Fat Free Less Sodium, 2.5 cans
Kroger - Green Lentils (Dry), 2 cup
Celery - Raw, 3 stalk, medium
Oscar Mayer - Turkey Bacon, 14 slices
Onions - Raw, 2 slice, thin
Carrots - Raw, 3 medium
Fresh Vegetables - Sweet Potato, 1 medium

Serving size 1 cup (estimating it will end up being about 10 servings)

Cals141 Carbs 21 Fat 4 Protein 12 Sodium 551 Fiber 10

I presoak the lentils the night before, than in the morning I rinse them out and throw them in the crock pot. I sautee the onions, turkey bacon, carrots and celery in about a tsp of oil. Once it has been there for about 5 minutes or so I throw them into the crockpot with the lentils. I had a sweet potato so I decided to add that one too. I peeled it chopped it up in small squares and threw it in the crock pot. I toss everything one more time, add the chicken broth and some water and set it on low so that it can cook all day. When it is almost done I will taste it to see if it needs some seasoning and if it needs a little extra water.

Turkey Pumpkin Chili

This is actually a Whole Foods recipe. I made it yesterday, sans the black beans (didn't have any in the house) and it's delish and very filling. Leaving out the beans cuts some calories and you barely notice the pumpkin but get all the nutritional benefits. Also, I use fat free Fage Yogurt instead of sour cream and a sprinkling (just a tiny bit) of 2% shredded cheddar for a garnish. Yum!

Serves 6
Besides adding a sweet nutty flavor to dishes, pumpkin is a ready source of vitamin A, which boosts the nutrition content of this offbeat chili. Garnish each portion with a dollop of sour cream and chopped cilantro.

Ingredients
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 small yellow onion, chopped
1 green bell pepper, cored, seeded and chopped
2 jalapeños, seeded and finely chopped
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 pound ground white or dark meat turkey
1 (14.5-ounce) can diced tomatoes, with their liquid
1 (15-ounce) can pumpkin purée
1 cup water
1 tablespoon chili powder
1 teaspoon ground cumin
Salt and pepper to taste
1 (15-ounce) can kidney beans, rinsed and drained

Method
Heat oil in a large pot over medium high heat. Add onion, bell pepper, jalapeños and garlic and cook, stirring frequently, until tender, about 5 minutes. Add turkey and cook until browned. Add tomatoes, pumpkin, water, chili powder, cumin, salt and pepper and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium low and add beans. Cover and simmer, stirring occasionally, for 30 minutes more. Ladle chili into bowls and serve.

Nutrition
Per serving: 280 calories (110 from fat), 13g total fat, 2.5g saturated fat, 55mg cholesterol, 580mg sodium, 23g total carbohydrate (8g dietary fiber, 7g sugar), 20g protein

Favorite recipes:

Baked fish with herbs. There are so many variations on this recipe, I'll just give the basics. Use whatever fish and herbs you love:

Coat the bottom of a glass baking dish with olive oil. Rinse and dry your fish fillets. Turn them over in the olive oil in the pan to coat. Top with fresh or dried herbs. Here's a partial list of our favorites: tarragon (my personal favorite), thyme, lemon thyme, parsley, oregano.

Here's my fav vegetable recipe:

What's-in-the-garden-today steamed vegetables:

I typically use a mix of zucchini, broccoli, onions/leeks, red/green peppers, green beans. I'll parboil beans and broccoli first, or cook them a minute longer in the micro before adding other vegetables.

Use microwavable glass bowl. Prep vegetables and place in bowl. Add just a smidge of olive oil. Toss to coat. Cook on full power at 30 second intervals until done, Top with fresh herbs like basil.

One of my favorite recipes is a Hungry Girl makeover recipe.

Chicken Cordon Bleu

boneless skinless chicken breast
laughing cow cheese wedge (any flavor you like)
Lean thin sliced ham

Pound out the chicken, spread on the cheese on the chicken, put 1 or 2 slices of ham and roll it up. Season the outside of your chicken in you like. Stick a toothpick though it to hold it together and bake it. You could also slice your chicken breast in half lengthwise if you didn't feel like pounding it out. Easy and very flavorful with the laughing cow cheese inside.

This sounds pretty good! I don't like many Hungry Girl recipes, she uses too many "fake fodds".

I love food and cooking...so I usually don't reuse a recipe more than once every few months. My favorite go to meal then would be using my homemade frozen lightened Bolognese sauce over whole wheat pasta. The recipe itself is from Cuisine at Home and simmers for a couple of hours. It makes a ton on the weekend and then I freeze it for quick meals over the next 2 to 3 months. The recipe is long and involved so I'm not going to rewrite it here! You could do this with any homemade pasta sauce.

when is weigh in? Friday?

okay. I think when I weigh in this friday I'll take measurements (if I can find a dang measuring tape!) and "before" pictures!

Hello Ladies, I am going to weigh in on Thursdays if that is ok with you all. I weighed my self today and I am at 146.5. lost .5lb from last week

HOLY COW! Congrats! that's a huge accomplishment!

Friday Weigh-in 157.8