My Simplified Plan for Losing Weight

Photo by: Steve Johnson

So it’s the middle of January, are you still following through with your New Years Resolutions? Did you even make them? Maybe you’re like a lot of people and you make them, but you don’t share them with anyone.

I wanted to come up with a simplified way to lose weight. The more simplified something it is, the easier success will be with it. If you ask anyone, weight loss is 90% what you eat and 10% exercise (some people say 80/20, but you get the idea). So if the most important thing is what you eat, then I need to focus on eating healthier foods and make it a habit.

I’ve started with breakfast, I have eggs and bacon every single day. It’s 140 calories and fills me up with protein. For added health benefits I mix in some ground flax and turmeric in with the egg (both of those things have anti-cancer properties!)

Now that eating eggs and bacon for breakfast is a habit, this week I’m going to focus on lunch. I think that I will switch between tuna salad and protein shakes. I could probably eat tuna every day because I like it, but it’s really only safe to eat it 3x a week because of the mercury content.

For dinner we usually have protein and vegetables, but I saw this super disgusting article on how the FDA now approves diseased meat that has pus coming out of it and cancerous tumors, so I think for now I will be going mostly vegetarian until I can get some grass fed beef from a local farmer. (PS another good place to order meat from is Tropical Traditions).

Once these become habits, it means my calories will be under control and I can start switching things up a bit here and there. You can create your own simplified diet based on the foods that you like, have protein and veggies for the first few weeks and then you can start adding in some carbs, I plan to break up breakfasts with some oatmeal on occasion.

 

So that is my simplified plan, I’ll let you know how it works out! I will be documenting myself for 100 days and post the results when I’m done 🙂

 

Cherise

A Mom Post: Stop Telling Your Daughters That Guys Only Want One Thing

 

I have a beautiful four year old daughter, whom I love very much. With each passing year, I think about how we are getting closer to the teenage years, the years where kids pretend not to listen to you but secretly they hear every word you say. They blow you off so that you think you’re not having an impact, but you still do. I was there not too long ago, so I still remember how it goes. 😉

As a pre-teen and teenager, I became more interested in boys. I thought they were cute, I wanted to go see movies with them or hold their hand, share a milkshake and get some flowers, I wanted to feel cared for by someone other than family. But I was told repeatedly, from my parents, my uncles, my cousins, church leaders, youth pastors, (the list goes on) something along the lines of, “I was a teenage boy once, I know what they want. They only want one thing….You know… Raging hormones and all.”

Now this was said with good intentions, fathers protecting their daughters, uncles looking out for their nieces, friends looking out for friends, but it was really rather harmful. What it ended up teaching me was that all a guy will ever look at me as, is a sex object. My personality did not matter, my intelligence didn’t matter, who I was had no affect on my life at all, because guys only wanted one thing. It also taught me that guys had no personality, that they were liars, they were fake, they weren’t interested in me, they only wanted one thing and they would do or say whatever they had to in order to get that one thing.

Many have posed the question “What is wrong with our teenagers nowadays?! Why are they dressing like such sluts and whores? We need to take away their magazines and turn the tv off!” The real truth is, it’s not the magazines, or TV’s fault, it’s what we’ve all been conditioned to believe. That guys only want one thing. Then the second lesson we are taught after that, is that men are visual.

Lesson 1: Guys want one thing
Lesson 2: They are visual

What does this do to a young impressionable girl? It tells her,  I need to look as good as I can, naked. If I don’t look good naked, I will eventually be cheated on, I will be left for someone better than myself because I wont be up to standards. This isn’t a new message, this message has been passed on for generations, which is why TV shows have become more sexual, women have become more scantily clad and men think it’s okay to sleep with numerous women. Because it’s what they are taught from a young age.

It ends up something like this:
“I really like this new boy Jake, he’s sooo cute!”
“Right!? I know! You should wear that short skirt you have, with those boots and maybe the lowcut top. Not super lowcut, you’re not a slut, he just need something to look at and it’ll make you look super cute.”

They dress to gain attention because they are conditioned to believe they are selling their body. Even intelligent, beautiful young ladies fall into this.  “If I show a little cleavage maybe he will notice me, I know that girl is pretty cute he’s talking to, but maybe my boobs are a little better.” 

For myself this landed me in a paralyzed fear of trusting any males, it accomplished what I’m sure my family was pleased with; The only guy I ever kissed was my husband. But it was only because I felt like no one wanted to know me as a person, that they were all liars and all they wanted was sex. I felt like I was standing there with my fingers in a cross shape, hissing at them to “Get back Satan!” When a guy was interested in me, I immediately thought “Why? because you want to have sex with me? Guess what? It’s not happening, so don’t waste your time with me.” I pushed everyone away and was once told “You are lucky to be married at all, in college all of the guys were afraid of you. You were so closed off to the possibility that anyone might actually like you, that no one would even make an attempt to ask you out.” It was a saddening but true statement. Which is what made me really stop and think about why I was this way.

We need to be teaching our daughters that men are respectable human beings who want to know who they are. Who want to care for them, love them, treat them well and who are interested in more than just their body. It’s not a lie either, it’s true! If you ask my husband why he loves me, he would say “Because you’re fun, you’re kind, you’re patient, you’re forgiving, you’re weird, you’re kinda crazy, we can laugh together.” It’s so much more than sex and I plan to teach my daughter that she is more than a body to be used and that she is capable of having a respectable relationship, with a teenage boy or a young man.

5 Easy Meals to Make for New Moms!

My sister gave birth to an adorable little boy 6 days ago and being that new moms are always exhausted, I decided to make her some toss-in-the-oven dinners so that she would have one less thing to worry about.

So here are 5 Easy Meals to Make for New Moms!

The first thing I did was cook 2-3lbs of boneless chicken breast in a crock pot with a cup of water. I let that sit all day on low while I did my other work and came back to it in the evening. The chicken was used in 4 of the 5 meals.

Meal 1

Chicken and Rice

2 pieces of cooked chicken breast shredded 1 cup of brown rice
1 can of cream of chicken soup + 1 can of water
Add soup and water and mix well, pour 1 cup of rice on the bottom of the pan and mix in shredded chicken.
Cook at 350 for 20-25 minutes.

Meal 2

Easy Chicken Pan Pie

2 pieces of cooked chicken breast shredded or cubed
2 cups of chicken broth
1 can of cream of chicken soup
2 cups of frozen mixed vegetables
1 can of flaky biscuits

Place chicken broth and cream of chicken soup in the bottom of the container, add frozen vegetables and shredded/cubed chicken, place biscuits on top. Cook for time alloted on biscuit can.

Meal 3

2 pieces of cooked chicken breast shredded2 Potatoes cubed
1-2 cups frozen vegetables
1-2 cups of chicken broth
1/2 cup cheddar cheese
Mentally divide the container into 3 parts, in one part place the chicken, in another place the cubed potatoes, add cheddar cheese on top of the potatoes, in the last third add the frozen vegetables, pour in chicken broth over the vegetables and chicken.

Cook at 350 for 40 minutes or until you poke potatoes and they are soft.

Meal 4

3-4 shredded chicken breasts2 cups of BBQ sauce

Mix together, warm up for 15 minutes at 350. Bring buns to serve on!

Meal 5

Best Baked Macaroni and Cheese

2-3 cups elbow macaroni cooked according to packaged directions
8oz of Velveeta Cheese
1 cup of sour cream
1/2 cup cheddar cheese
1/2 cup breadcrumbs

Add the velveeta cheese to the cooked and drained macaroni until it’s melted and incorporated. Pour into the pan, add and mix in sour cream. Sprinkle cheddar cheese on, then sprinkle breadcrumbs on.

To reheat cook at 350 for 15-20 minutes.

There you have it! 5 easy meals to make new moms 🙂

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I’m back! (Plus how to pack your carry on!)

Hey Everyone!

I know I’ve been MIA the past few days. It’s because I went to New Jersey and NYC for a conference 🙂 I met a TON of awesome people and had a great time! While I was there everyone asked me if I would do a tutorial on how to pack your bags. I packed everything for the weekend in a small carry on duffle bag, which is apparently really not a common thing to do, but I hate checking bags and wanted to just be able to grab and go. So before I left the hotel, I laid everything out and took some pictures so that I could show you how I packed my bags and hopefully help you on your next trip 🙂

So there you have it, how I packed my bag for the weekend!

Need a TSA approved bag and containers? Click here! 

 

Use your Hands for something other than eating.

In order to keep myself from eating unnecessarily, I have found other ways to occupy my hands and mental capacity. Art is hard! It takes a lot of concentration and finding different colors and trying to create dimension. What are some things you could do or learn that would relieve stress and occupy your mind/hands so that you wouldn’t eat unnecessarily?

I’ve lost 3 dress sizes and I’m starting to get my abs back – ask me how!

 

You are not alone.

While I’ve been encouraging other people in weight loss, I’ve realized that a lot of people feel like they are struggling alone and that no one understands what they are going through. When really the opposite is true. SO many people understand!

Have you ever lost 10 pounds then the next few days you binge eat and gain it all back?

Have you ever hid snacks in your dresser drawer/closet/under your bed?

Have you ever sat in the bathroom and ate your food out of sight of anyone else?

Have you ever felt like you worked so hard to lose a few pounds and then they just come back so easily?

Do you have health issues that make it difficult for you to lose weight?

Do you feel like you’re just stuck and no matter what you do you will never lose the weight? That it doesn’t matter if something works for everyone else, it wont work for you?

You’re not alone.

Have you ever cried in a dressing room?

Have you ever pulled out a picture and wished you could be the size you were when you thought you were fat?

Have you ever been unable to do something because of your weight?

Do you walk past the bathing suit section and hope that someday you can fit into it, but then criticize all of the flaws you find in yourself?

Have you ever been addicted to eating certain foods or drinking certain beverages?

Have you ever felt like your spouse/boyfriend/girlfriend doesn’t find you attractive anymore even though they never said it?

You’re not alone.

Do you feel like you have tried every diet pill? Every diet? Every “quick fix”? Every fat flush, colon cleanse, 48 hour juicing program?

Do you feel like your only remaining option is surgery that may or may not work and costs anywhere from $18,000 – $30,000?

Have you stopped telling your family and friends that you’re trying to lose weight because you’ve failed so many times in the past, that you think no one will take you seriously anymore?

Have you attempted to just “accept” being fat and try to justify it away as being who you are, even though you’re miserable about it?

Have you used humor to mask your feelings in hopes that being funny will distract people from your insecurity?

You’re not alone.

Are you afraid of heart attacks?

Are you worried about diabetes?

Do you fear you wont be able to wake up and see your children?

Do you fear that your children may die before you because of obesity?

Do you make excuses not to go out with your friends because you don’t want them to see you as overweight?

Have you put everyone else before yourself and don’t even remember how to take time for you?

Do you feel worthless?

You’re not alone.

Thousands of people are right there with you. They feel your pain, because they experience it daily. 70% of Americans are overweight or obese, that’s a lot of us. That’s a lot of hurt, pain, insecurity and dreams that are fading in the darkness because people are hiding in the shadows.

It doesn’t have to be that way you know. You CAN do this. You ARE worth it. You are more precious than gold and your life has meaning and is worth living. You just have to decide that it is so.

It’s not easy to lose weight, it takes time and it can be discouraging. But there will always be other people who relate to what you are going through and they can help encourage you and pick you back up. If you’re not already a part of my group on Facebook, you should check it out here; https://www.facebook.com/groups/usonweightloss/ we are a group of friendly people who like to uplift and encourage, I do my best to post tips and tricks and little exercise challenges.
The most important thing you can do for yourself is get healthy, take the time to value your own life, start today. Who cares what you ate for breakfast (or even lunch), who cares if it wasn’t the best or a “clean slate”? It doesn’t have to be! You can make healthier choices for the rest of the day and continue. I once heard a quote that was like, “Saying oh I’ve already ruined my diet today, guess I’ll just eat crap, is like saying oh I dropped my phone on the floor, guess I’ll just smash it til it breaks. ”

I personally have lost 3 dress sizes and have 4-5 more to go, it’s not easy, I have hard days all of the time. I mess up all of the time. I have so many of those listed feelings. But I keep going and when I feel down, I tell people! They do this thing, it’s strange really, it’s called “encourage” I didn’t know it existed 😉

 

I’ve lost 3 dress sizes and I’m starting to get my abs back – ask me how!

PS. I use a product that helps curb cravings and I don’t even want sweet food anymore, seriously. Reese’s cups used to be my addiction and now they don’t even look appealing. Give it a shot, there’s a 30 day money back guarantee and I promise it’s not like other stimulant diet pills that just hype you up with caffeine. These are real ingredients, natural, plants and herbs, nothing chemical or crappy in these babies.