Power Up!

I apologize for the delay in blog posts.  I had a really bad case of food poisoning a week and a half ago and it knocked me on my butt.  I will never eat another scallop as long as I live.  On the plus side, it kind of kick-started my weight loss.  I ended up being down 2 pounds this past week.  Now I'm super motivated to keep the losses going.  This weekend was a little rough food-wise, but I'm hanging in there.

As I've posted before, I love convenience foods.  This means processed foods that I can throw in a skillet or the microwave and have lunch or dinner in minutes.  Unfortunately, I'm starting to learn that they don't satisfy me, and I'm actually eating more.  At our meeting last week we talked about the importance of power foods.  A power food is a food that's not processed, low in fat and carbs, and higher in fiber and protein.  Fiber and protein are the key, because they help keep you fuller longer.  WW has a list of power foods which included fresh fruits, vegetables (even potatoes), lean proteins, fat-free dairy, whole wheat pasta and other whole grains, and reduced calorie breads. 

I used to balk at the idea of eating nothing but (or mostly) power foods.  I couldn't figure out where the variety came from, not to mention the time to prepare them.  But after doing some research and studying, I've come to realize that it's easier than I thought it would be.  Most of the dinner recipes I use contain power foods.  Some of them are only power foods.  I can use all kinds of different spices to flavor chicken, throw some sweet potatoes in the oven, and throw a bag of broccoli in the microwave, and voila, a tasty, realatively easy dinner.  Even better, I won't be hungry an hour or 2 later. 

Power foods really do power up your weight loss.  I find that if I try to focus on eating mostly power foods I don't have the urge to snack.  I don't crave junk food, and I generally feel better.  Another good side-effect is reduced sodium.  Nothing can mess with the scale more than water retention, and lately, I puff up like a blowfish if I eat anything with excess sodium in it. 

Tonight for dinner I'm making Szechuan Chicken and Noodles.  I don't have the recipe in front of me, but it's basically chicken, whole-wheat pasta, broccoli-slaw mix (without the dressing), and some chinese sauces.  It's mostly power foods.  The only thing that could be problematic is the soy sauce, but I bought the low-sodium stuff.  If it's good I'll post the recipe and a picture later. 

This week I'm going to focus on powering up so the scale will go down.  I'm shooting for another 2 pounds this week :)