THM Fuel Cycle Experience & Recap

As you may know, I've been successfully implementing a diet and lifestyle plan called Trim Healthy Mama for the last three months now. I am loving this way of eating! However, after losing some initial weight I plateaued a bit. Fortunately, since THM is so thorough the authors give you a way to really shake up your metabolism with something called "The One Week Fuel Cycle." It's recommended for those who have stubborn weight and for those who have been following the plan for at least three months.

Well, that sounded like me so I decided after being true to the plan if I wasn't seeing results "free styling" - meaning just doing my own combination of on plan foods - then I would try it. 

I started Monday, March 17th and here's my experience:

Deep S day 1

Starting weight 159.6

Breakfast: scrambled eggs in coconut oil, sausage and coffee with a little cream

Lunch: large salad with romaine, spinach, celery, cucumbers and green peppers with deli chicken on top with extra virgin olive oil. Water and then a Fizzy GGMS

Snack: Chocolate cake in a mug and coffee

Dinner: baked salmon with butter on top with sautéed spinach and artichokes in coconut oil and some steamed cauliflower with a tiny sprinkle of cheese. Water to drink.

Dessert: Skinny chocolate
Exercise: 50 Minute Spinning Class and a 20 minute walk on the treadmill prior to class

Day one dinner - salmon, sauteed spinach and artichokes
and some cauliflower with a smidge of cheese.

Deep S day 2

Weight: 158.8 

Breakfast: same as day before

Lunch: left over Salmon with huge green salad with olive oil.
Snack: Chocolate Cake in a mug 

Dinner: Hamburger with roasted red peppers and a side salad and water to drink.

Dessert: Skinny Chocolate
Exercise: None

Deep S day 3
Weight: 158.6
Breakfast: same as days 1 and 2
Lunch: Thin Mint Protein Shake and left over hamburger and salad
Dinner: Veggie omelette and bacon
Exercise: Running 3 miles

Fuel Pull day 4
Weight: 158.4
Breakfast: Coffee with swirl of cream and Cottage Berry Whip
Lunch: Low carb wrap with deli chicken and veggies and cucumbers sliced on the side
Snack: Wasa crackers, celery and Laughing Cow wedge cheese
Dinner: FP Pizza and salad
Exercise: None

Fuel Pull day 5
Weight: 159.6
Breakfast: Coffee with swirl of cream, egg white scrambled and Fage 0% greek yogurt with polaner fruit swirled in
Lunch: Same wrap as day 4 with Fizzy GGMS
Snack: Big Boy Smoothie
Dinner: Buffalo Chicken Salad (made without any flour breading) and a blob of blue cheese dressing to keep fat grams in check for Fuel Pull
Exercise: Walking 3 miles brisk pace

Note: Typical Fuel Cycle calls for 2 full days of E eating.  I found early on that I am carb sensitive and chose to not do completely full E days.  This is NOT recommended in the book - it is what I chose to do for my own personal preference.

E day 6
No weigh in
Breakfast: Coffee with swirl of cream, old fashioned oatmeal with cinnamon, 1/3 of a banana sliced, sprinkle of chia seeds
Snack: Cashews
Lunch: Tossed salad with grilled chicken, fresh mozzarella balls and balsamic vinaigrette
Dinner: Trim Healthy Mama pancakes with greek yogurt and polaner fruit spread
Exercise: None

E day 7
Weight 159.6
Breakfast: Coffee, scrambled eggs in coconut oil and bacon
Lunch: Quinoa, sweet potato and black bean chili
Snack: Cake in a mug
Dinner: Low carb taco wrap
Exercise: None

So, there you have it - my first Fuel Cycle Week that I completed.  I felt really great on my Deep S days - I think I've been relying too much on Heavy S rather than true S meals.  I felt very hungry on my first Fuel Pull day and think I over did eating the low carb items - I wouldn't recommend doing a wrap, wasa and pita on the same day after doing Deep S.  Then as I mentioned, due to some pre-planned events, I chose not to do full E days but did choose wise carbs to refuel my body after this week of the Fuel Cycle.

I'm now back to free styling and feel I've learned a TON from this week.  It is recommended to do another week of Fuel Cycle or even three total weeks but I feel that Deep S is now my "trick" to get my body back into a true weight loss mode short-term and adding in E meals as a breakfast or lunch is best for me and keeping snacks as Fuel Pull also.

Today, I weighed in and the scale was 158.2 so I'm down to a new lowest weight ever!  Over the weekend I also tried on some clothes I've had tucked away and I'm still losing inches too because things are fitting again.  So thrilled and thankful for Trim Healthy Mama!

Have you tried a Fuel Cycle?  If so, what was your experience?
~Carly

My THM Update - 9 pounds gone!

Happy Saint Patrick's Day!

I'm feeling quite lucky like a leprechaun today since I've finally reached a BIG goal in my weight loss saga. I'm now just over three months on Trim Healthy Mama and drum roll....

I am down about 9 pounds and quite a few inches (will measure and update shortly).  I'm healthier, slimmer and feel really, really good - emotionally and physically.  While 9 pounds doesn't sound that impressive overall (some ladies are dropping 20-30 pounds in three months on Trim Healthy Mama!!) for me, it's a huge victory since I've been struggling with this for quite some time.

As of March 2012, I'm down 20 pounds.  I'm now currently 10 pounds away from my true pre-pregnancy weight (150-ish) and at my first goal of my pre-second child weight (160).

I have to admit it feels really good to be at this goal.  This is a day I thought would never be here. Having really tried everything from Eat To Live, Weight Watchers, South Beach, Cinch, 21 Day Sugar Detox and a few other methods - Trim Healthy Mama is truly what finally has worked for me in these past 3+ years I've been struggling to lose weight.

And, since visuals are more powerful than words, I share with you below two pictures to show my progress.

Just to refresh your memory, I started Trim Healthy Mama on December 12, 2013 right after I ended my 21 Day Sugar Detox.

The image on the left was taken at our family photo shoot we had done literally FOUR days before I started THM.  The right was taken just the other morning.

Left image is Decmber 8, 2013 and the right is just the other morning.

Then, just for "fun" I decided to dig up some older photos of myself - which were quite hard to find since I didn't enjoy having my picture taken.  Nonetheless - here it is...

March 2012 (180), February 2012 (170), February 2014 (163) and the other morning (160).

Far left is when we were at Disney in March 2012, next is Disney end of January/early February 2013, next is February of this year and the last image is just the other morning.  I can definitely see the weight loss in my face more in the last two pictures.  While I'm holding children (trying to strategically block myself!) in the first two pictures, you can see I'm clearly larger in my face -  and honestly just larger all over!  And all I can think when I see the image to the far left is "Who is that???" Because it certainly doesn't look like "me" and at that point I didn't feel like myself either.

So, from my tiny little speck of the Internet here, I'm hoping to inspire someone that if you have been stuck or wanting to finally lose the "baby" weight - or ANY type of weight - it is truly possible with the right plan.  I've found something that finally works and I'm so thankful.

I have some toning to do and am currently working out 3-4 days a week now.  Hopefully will have a true "after" picture to share shortly as I hopefully reach my goal weight!

~Carly

Recipe: Eggplant Parmigiana - THM style (S)

Hello! Sorry, I fell off the blogging bandwagon. But I'm back with a yummy recipe! That makes it all better, right?

I love Italian food. Well, I love all food, actually - but last night I made a pasta dish for my family using regular pasta. Pre-Trim Healthy Mama I would have easily had a bowl full and maybe more. So in keeping with the Italian theme for the evening I made myself some eggplant parmigiana. 

I didn't actually measure all the ingredients and just kind of winged it.  There's no exact science - as your using the "breading" mixture and find you're running low, just throw some more ingredients in the bowl.  Scroll down for the pictures I briefly snapped as I cooked.

Ingredients:

One large eggplant (or more depending on family size)

Almond meal or flour

Flax meal

2 eggs whisked

Oil for frying - coconut or olive oil - your choice!

Italian seasoning

Garlic powder

Grated Parmesan cheese (optional)

Tomato sauce of choice (if on THM make sure it's a no-added sugar sauce)

Shredded Mozzarella cheese

Directions:

1.  Wash, dry and then slice eggplant into 1 inch wide (or less) sliced pieces.  I usually don't use pieces towards the very top or very bottom of the eggplant - but that's just me.

2.  In a larger bowl combine about one cup of flax meal and a half cup of almond meal or flour.  Add Italian seasoning such as oregano, basil and parsley flakes to your mix and garlic powder to taste.  You may also add grated Parmesan cheese also for more flavor.  Be sure to combine well.

3.  Pour choice of oil in pan and begin to heat. Use enough oil to cover the bottom of the pan and give a good amount of liquid for the eggplant pieces to fry in.

4.  At this time you should pre-heat your oven to 350 degrees.

5.  In another wide opening bowl, whisk the two eggs together. Check to see if oil is heating up nicely.

6.  Submerge each piece of eggplant in the egg and flip to get both sides covered and then coat in the flax, almond meal, seasonings mix.

7.  Place in oil for about 3 minutes on each side or until golden brown. Transfer to a plate with paper towel to absorb excess oils.

8.  Repeat egg and "breading mix" and frying until all pieces of eggplant are done.

9.  Take a large baking dish and place a small amount of sauce on bottom of it.  Begin layering the eggplant on top of the sauce.  Cover each piece of eggplant with some sauce on top.

10.  Cover with foil and bake in oven for 25-30 minutes to further soften the eggplant.

11.  Remove briefly to top with shredded mozzarella cheese to your liking and place back in oven to melt.

Sliced eggplant

Mixing up the "breading"

Fried to perfection!

Add a bit of sauce

Topped with cheese and voila!

Serve with Dreamfields pasta, a large side salad or any other veggies you'd like.  This recipe is a keeper for sure!

I plan on posting an update on my personal weight loss journey shortly.  No really, I promise! Soon!
~Carly

My Top Ten Tips for Trim Healthy Mama

Hello!

As you may know or have been reading, I've been following Trim Healthy Mama since mid December of 2013.  Today is Valentine's Day, and two days past my two month "trimmaversary" - so as my Valentine's gift to you, I'm sharing my top ten tips for success during my short time so far following THM.

Note:  I am not an expert nor claim to be on Trim Healthy Mama - so if you want more information and details you should definitely get your hands on the book!  These tips are just from my own experience thus far.

Image via Google Search

1.  Read the book.  Then read it AGAIN.  When I first read the book it was overwhelming.  It's A LOT of information to process all at once.  Trying to remember what they said about E's and S's and then S helpers - ahhhh.  My head spun.  Learning all the basics and putting them into action certainly helped me understand the true basics.  However, after a few weeks I began reading excerpts again here and there and it made SO much more sense the second time around.

2.  Menu Plan.  If you fail to plan, you plan to fail.  So true on THM.  Pick meals to have for breakfast, lunch, dinner and snacks.  I write them down on a pre-printed calendar and use pencil because some days change before they can even begin!  Be flexible but have a general idea of what you have in the fridge, freezer and pantry for the week to make sure you have a general meal plan or else you may end up eating something you didn't want to eat.

3.  Truly stick to the 2.5-3 hour rule.  I did not do this at first and I didn't see the scale move.  While I felt better, I wasn't seeing results.  Then, someone posted an interesting tip on the Facebook page for THM - keep reading and see Tip #10 - that if you do not wait the 3 hours between S and E  you may be inadvertently creating a crossover meal which would hinder weight loss.  To ensure you can truly wait the few hours in between, make sure you're getting a wonderful serving of protein with your S or E meal.  If you truly cannot wait, it's best to have a similar fuel to your previous meal or a FP snack.  Or, guzzle some water or a THM drink to help tide you over.  Once I stuck to this rule, I saw a drop on the scale.

4.  Make the FSF and BBS your BFF.  The week I really saw a lot of weight loss was when I was incorporating the Fat Stripping Frappa or the Big Boy Smoothie.  Wowza - they are tasty and filling and Pearl and Serene really mean it when they say it strips the fat away!  They are Fuel Pulls at their core -depending what you add to them but you can pair them with your S or E meals or snacks for some extra help in the weight loss department.  I usually pair them with my E lunches because I tend to get hungry sooner eating them than if I ate an S lunch - which is normal!

5.  Shrinker and other THM drinks.  I love The Shrinker.  I also love the Good Girl Moonshine and the FSF and BBS I mentioned above.  There's also Bullet Proof Coffee which I have not yet tried but others rave about, THM Hot Chocolate and SO many other tasty drinks that you can have to keep things interesting and keep your metabolism going.  The Shrinker definitely kills cravings and keeps me satisfied until a next meal. And, they don't call it the Shrinker for nothing!  You can find all the drink recipes here on the THM Pinterest page.

6.  Don't underestimate the power of the E.  Also during my mega-weight loss week, I incorporated more E meals mostly for my lunches.  I made a tasty Veggie Quinoa Bean soup that was filling and delicious and made sure I had at least 3-5 E meals in my meal plan each week.  Carbs are not the enemy on this plan.  In this case the E meals replenish your body and keep your metabolism going.  I was a bit timid about the E meals at first but soon realized how important they are.  It's a little bit of trial and error to find the balance that keeps you going towards your goal, but don't exclude or forget them!

7.  Keep it simple.  With the amount of recipes in the book, the pins on Pinterest you can find and the lovely Internet it's easy to get confused about having to buy this ingredient you don't have it or haven't ever heard of it before.  One thing I love about THM is you don't have to buy anything over the top or crazy to eat this way. Some things are helpful and I would recommend but otherwise I find it best to keep recipes simple.  A grilled chicken salad with avocado, veggies and some plain balsamic vinegar is a great S meal and isn't complicated.  Also by keeping meals simple you can better learn the S, E and FP basics much quicker.

8.  Try new recipes.  So while it seems I may be a bit contradictory here with my previous "keep it simple" tip, I also found trying new recipes once I fully understood the basics was awesome.  It keeps your metabolism going and your taste buds happy, too.

9.  Don't forget some key rules. For example, I completely forgot that you can have up to one cup of berries with an S meal (1/2 cup if blueberries).  I was totally skimping on my fruit allowances (I learned go easy on the fruit though if you are carb sensitive!).  And, you can have other fruits like apples and some melon or oranges with your E meals.  I was so focused on the general rules, I forgot the other mini-rules!  See tip #1 again :)  Another key rule was to make sure your S meals aren't too, too heavy!  This hindered my weight loss for SURE - I mean, I could have avocado and cheese and nuts and coconut oil and almond flour and cheese cake?!?! Of course I went a little "nuts" - sorry couldn't resist.  But, when the scale wasn't moving, I lightened up my S meals and varied them and the scale started moving in the right direction.

10.  Join the Facebook support groups. When I first joined the groups, they were amazing for me to learn to decipher E, S, FP, Crossovers, GGMS and all the crazy acronyms and tips and tricks.  I thank all those people on the boards and the moderators who helped me learn the basics while I was reading and found encouragement and motivation in hearing their successes and learning from their "mistakes" along the way.  However, there came a time where I was not losing weight initially as I had hoped and I started to feel discouraged and fell into a "why not me" funk (the lack of E meals, the not waiting 2-3 hours, the too-heavy S meals).  I looked at all the before and afters and hearing how so many had lost 6 pounds, 10 pounds or more in their first three days or during their first week and here I was not losing barely a pound. But don't make the mistake I did and compare your progress to others! Everyone is different.  Pearl and Serene talk about how your body needs to heal and everyone may heal faster than others - and it depends on the dietary background you are coming from!  I did the 21 day sugar detox before starting THM so I may have been more "healed" than others so my weight loss wasn't as fast.  I had already cured my sugar cravings and eliminated many things from my diet so I may have started off better than someone coming from a "Standard American Diet" (not trying to be rude).  I wouldn't be here if it weren't for those support groups and the wonderful people on them.

Here's the main Facebook group page and a lovely Beginner Page they recently added.  They are closed groups so you have to request to be added.

So, there you have it - some of the main things that may be helpful that I've learned in my two short months on THM.

~Carly

Motivate Me Monday - 2/10/2014

Happy Monday! 

I love starting the week off fresh and ready to be productive. I'm sure I can't be the only one who feels this way but I tend to get a little lazy and often make excuses. Especially during the winter when it's cold - I can't exercise outside because it's too cold or I didn't do the laundry because the kids were distracting me or I just straight up procrastinate.

So, a little attitude shift is in order for myself. Yesterday I got on the treadmill since I "couldn't" run outside. No excuse. It was warm in the house, right?! 

Same goes for my weight loss, organizing, work, life, kids - all of it. 

Therefore, instead of making excuses, I'm going to flip it around and just do it because I can.

Are you putting off doing something? Making excuses? I'd love to hear about it.

~Carly

Recipe: Veggie Bean-Quinoa Soup - THM E

Good morning!  After yet another snow day yesterday during this colder-than-normal winter here in Connecticut, I can help but continue to crave warm, hearty soups.

I didn't see this recipe made anywhere and I kind of just made it up on my own. It's definitely not genius or anything. 

But it is so good.  

There's nothing fancy in it and you can really add anything you have in the pantry or fridge that needs to be used up. Substitute or leave out ingredients based on your dietary needs or tastes.  For THM-ers this soup would be an E.

I call it Veggie Bean Quinoa Soup.  This recipe makes about 2-3 quarts of soup.

Ingredients:
1 Cup of purified water
1-2 box containers of veggie stock 

1 box Pomi diced tomatoes 

1 can of kidney beans

1 can of white beans (Canellini are my favorite but use whatever)

2-3 stalks celery chopped (I include the greens in the inside of the celery for more flavor)

1 carrot chopped 

1/2 of an onion chopped

1-2 green zucchini chopped

1-2 yellow squash chopped 

1/2 cup quinoa (cooked separately and add at end of soup cooking) 

Directions:
1. Rinse and chop all veggies.
2. Rinse and drain beans.
3. Pour cup of water, veggie stock, tomatoes and add all chopped ingredients and beans into a big stock pot.
4. In a separate smaller saucepan, cook quinoa according to the directions on your package. I use water to cook my quinoa but feel free to use any broth of flavoring you like.
5. Cook soup on medium-high heat until you achieve a rolling boil.  Turn down to low and simmer until veggies are tender - approximately 25-30 minutes.
6. Add cooked quinoa to rest of the soup.  Stir, add extra spices to taste and serve.

Veggie Bean Quinoa Soup.  Deelish.

This soup could not be easier.  Again, it makes quite a bit of soup so feel free to share with family, friends, neighbors or co-workers!  I gave a quart of soup to my neighbor the other day when her kids weren't feeling well and she raved about it.  

Let me know you like it if you try it and any variations you did!

~Carly

Drink it to shrink it - THM style!

Happy Monday!  It's a snowy day here in Connecticut.

I hope you had a nice Super Bowl Sunday and Groundhogs Day! Not a great day in history for the Denver Broncos or Punxatawney Phil, huh?

Anyways, I had a great day and some yummy snacks for Super Bowl that were THM friendly - of course! 

One thing I did want to share today are some really great beverages you can enjoy - even if you're not following this lifestyle.  One drink in particular I've really enjoyed is called The Shrinker - and I believe it's helping me shrink for sure! There are also two other drinks called Good Girl Moonshine and The Singing Canary.

The Shrinker is a yummy oolong tea based drink. All three of these drinks have amazing health benefits and also helps burn fat while squashing any cravings you have and hydrates you, too.

For the full scoop and recipes for The Shrinker, The Singing Canary and Good Girl Moonshine,  read here for a post from The THM Facebook page. 

Image from Trim Healthy Mama Facebook page

So far I have not yet tried The Singing Canary - but I do really like the Good Girl Moonshine or GGMS as it is called.  The Shrinker is definitely my favorite though!

The recipe for The Shrinker is as follows:

1.  Steep 4 bags of oolong tea until cooled

2.  Place tea in blender.

3.  Add stevia to taste, vanilla, 1/2 Cup almond milk, 1 TSP cinnamon and some sea or Celtic salt. 

4.  Blend it up, distribute in half into two quart sized jars.

5.  Pour into glass and serve over ice.

The original recipe calls for a dash of cayenne pepper or black pepper for a bigger metabolism and fat burning boost but I don't care for it so I go without.

You can drink this all day - but do take note the caffeine.  I usually drink this before 3 P.M. most days and it really kills any cravings I have and fills me up.  It tastes a little like chai or a latte and has approximately 30 calories but seems like it's much more creamy and more like a treat!

So, drink it to shrink it! Cheers!

~Carly