Update & Pinterest Picks - 9/10/2012

I have not posted in quite some time. I have been somewhat busy with life and have gotten away from my blogging. However, I have been somewhat good about diet - but not exercise. It is actually what I've pinpointed as being the real pitfall of my efforts.
It turns out I've just been - well - lazy. Terribly, terribly lazy.
So, today after I dropped the kiddos at school, I leashed up our dog and we went for a 23 minute run with a few minutes of walking.
I have to say I'm impressed and proud of myself ;)
Now, if I can just keep it up!

Maybe wise Ryan can help:

Eat Fresh

And, no. I do not mean Subway!

I luckily live in a very nice area in Connecticut with access to tons of local farms and farm stands right in my town.

This is what I picked up today for about $5.

Yum!

Homemade Granola Bars

Morning!

I'm on day 3 of South Beach again and I feel great!

Obviously this recipe is not for me - it's for my kiddos who do enjoy a granola bar. Not everyday, but a few a week. They are quick and easy snacks to take along on our outings and to eat on the go. So, like most people I buy them at the store pre-made. I've tried both Cascadian Farms brand but my kids didn't like them as much as the Quaker ones.

So, considering my obsession with baking combined with my love of Pinterest - I came across this recipe from Savor The Thyme for either bake or no bake homemade 5 granola bars:

I only had some of the ingredients in the house - the key ones anyways.  However, you can make any combination of ingredients - almonds, dried fruits, nuts, flax, chia seeds - anything goes.

I made ours out of rolled oats, honey, peanut butter and some chocolate chips.

After one hour of being refrigerated and then cut to size

Cut to kid-sized portions on wax paper

Wrapping them and then storing them in tupperware

The long list of ingredients in  the chocolate chip Quaker  brand.

It was super easy and they taste really good. (yes I taste-tested!)

The kids couldn't even wait to try them before I could cut them up!  

If that's not success with a picky 4 year old eater and a 2.5 year old, I don't know what is :)

So after seeing that crazy long list of ingredients, making these is a no-brainer!

What do you make homemade versus store-bought?

~Carly

Back on the wagon

I hope this post is finding you well - and unharmed by my inability to stick to a choice of diet or exercise :)

I'm back on the South Beach/Low Carb lifestyle. I've had a lot of success in the past with it and I feel ready to do it again...again.

So, my breakfast today was eggs. Snacks were veggies and low fat ranch dip, a cheddar cheese stick and a lot of water! Dinner is baked salmon with sautéed spinach and garlic.

More updates on what I've been up to and some other changes I've been making!

Pinterest Picks - 7/25/12

Keep Going!

Pinterest Picks - 6/25/2012

Well hello!
I have been quite the exerciser this week and feeling pretty sore and proud! I've surprisingly skipped the gym and been doing some at home DVDs and even brought it back to the 90s doing some Tae Bo!

Still doing Cinch but adding in more meals and using the snack bars, meal bars and shakes. They are so yummy!

I haven't lost much weight but I definitely feel smaller and looks like my stomach is flatter. I will post an update soon with new measurements and stats!

Saw this on Pinterest and I'm really finding that this is true - I don't think I was exercising enough to lose weight. I'm feeling great and actually have been looking forward to doing it!

Drink Up

We all know that drinking water is key to good health, hydration, promotes weight loss - the list goes on. And on. And on.

Sometimes I forget to get my full 8 glass a day requirement in.  I hover around 5-6 but I'm really trying to remember to drink more water every day.  I do actually like plain water.  For me, it's more about remembering to drink something during the day. I do mix it up a bit and add a little squeeze of fresh lemon if I happen to have some in the house - but most days it's just ice water - straight up.

I used to drink Crystal Light, but I'm really trying to refrain from that as it's got a lot of artificial ingredients and flavorings.

Fast forward to today in Connecticut and we're in day 2 of a heat wave with temperatures expected to be around 100 degrees!  Yikes.

So, I really want to keep myself and the kids hydrated and I just happened to come across a lovely pin on Pinterest for some water recipes.

I just made myself 2 quarts of cucumber lemon water - it's very refreshing.  Yes, I was hesitant at first to try it.  I like cucumbers.  I like lemons.  But together?  Hmmm.

My LemonCuc Water - YUM!

However, it's very refreshing and I've already drank 20 ounces without a flinch.

Here's the recipe from I made today from Lose Weight By Eating!

Really simple.

A pitcher or container that holds a good amount of water
1/4 of a cucumber sliced thin
1/2 a lemon sliced thin


Place slices of cucumber and lemon in the bottom of your pitcher and then place a few handfuls of ice and then fill with water.

Easy peasy and so deeeelish!

Now I'm hooked - here's another pin I found on Pinterest from Nancy Creative for a TON of other really neat sounding recipes for flavored water!  The Watermelon Basil sounds delicious and so does the Melon Cucumber - maybe that'll be next up on the water menu since I'm about to be done with this lemon cucumber combo!

Cheers!
~Carly