I have eaten both of these and they are good. You can tell there is less sugar, but it still tastes good. Chocolate brownie and Chocolate peanut butter. It is cheaper at Costco and they are delish. The bars are larger and 3 net carbs. These cups are 1 net carbs. Available at Wal-mart and Amazon, but Costco is cheaper. Low protein, but the chocolate at least is low carb and won’t mess up your weight loss, unless you eat an entire box in one sitting. One a day is good.
Preheat oven to 325 F. Stir dry ingredients very well (so you don’t end up biting into a clump of baking soda!). Add wet to form a dough. Shape into cookies – I used a cookie scoop to first form balls and then shape into cookies. Place on a cookie tray, and bake on the center rack 10-12 minutes. Let cool an additional 10 minutes before handling, as they are very delicate at first but firm up completely once cool.
Nutrition:
Sheet of uncooked cookies: (used a tad more almond flour)
Cooked!
Sorry, I have been remiss in my blog writing. Life has a way of getting in the way of things you love to do. I have had another “diagnosis” of another medical issue (not related to weight) and I have been a bit bummed out. And what happens when you are stressed or sad? Cravings. Luckily, they haven’t been too bad and I have stuck to the usual nuts and cheese snacks…but still now and then you need something tasty.
So, I found some GREAT low-carb ice cream bars. They have anywhere from 11g to 13g of carbs per bar and they are delicious.
Carb Smart has a line of ice cream and ice cream bars of all different types.
Here is my favorite Carb Smart bar and I found them at my local grocery store, Fresh and Easy and Smart and Final. They are also at Wal-Mart (and they do melt if they not in the refrigerator).
I also discovered that another brand makes low-carb ice cream bars and sandwiches: Bluebunny.com. They have a WHOLE line of low-carb products!
They have a locator: http://www.bluebunny.com/About/Locator.aspx
So, you can have ice cream, it is “measured out” through being in a bar and you can’t overdo it. And it has chocolate bits on it–and some have nuts! And it is low-carb! You can’t beat it!
I talked to a friend today who started her diet again. I wish her all the best of luck.
The problem with starting any diet is that it is harder to do if you are surrounded by other people in the house who are eating cookies and other good things. It is really hard to stay focused because you see the cookie.
It is important to surround yourself with things that you can have daily that will satisfy you, so you won’t feel left out or deprived.
I keep Amberlynne.com chocolate in my house, plus good tasting protein bars like Power Crunch, etc. I use them as one of my six proteins for the day and they taste good.
Also, find recipes for things that you can make. My friend made Jorge Cruise’s chocolate cake in a mug. I have had those, and they are easy and good.
Flour choices:
1. Coconut Flour. High in protein and fiber and low in digestible carbs. Use it to make breaded foods.
2. Almond Flour. healthy fats, high in protein and monounsaturated fats.Use it for baking. It adds moistness and a rich nutty taste.
Recipe for Chocolate Cake in a Mug
2-Minute Cake With Almond Flour
Ingredients
1/4 cup Truvia Baking Blend
1/2 cup almond flour
3 tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder
1/8 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
2 tbsp coconut oil
1 egg
2 tbsp half & half
Directions
Mix all ingredients together in a bowl until the mixture is even and smooth (no lumps).
Pour 1/4 of the mixture into a mug and microwave for 2 minutes.
Refrigerate remaining batter for later! I put whipped cream on mine.
So, if you want to be successful on your diet, find these low-carb treat cheats to be successful!
Since my thyroid issues, I need to drop a couple of pounds. Despite exercise and eating well, when your thyroid is out of whack, so is your weight. (Some of you might need it after Valentine’s Day!)
Today/Tomorrow Plateau Menu:
Morning: Egg, spinach, 1/2 grapefruit
Snack: Liquid protein drink
Lunch: Salad with fish (tuna for me) and 1/2 grapefruit
Snack: Liquid protein
Dinner: Salad and fish or chicken and 1/2 grapefruit
Snack: Liquid protein
By the end of the two or three days (depends on how the scale looks), I could lose about 2-3 pounds. This plateau breaker works…done it before. Every diet hits a plateau. It is temporary and you just make the best fo it.
Drink lots of water, take potassium and take a multi vitamin supplement.
If you can exercise, that is a bonus!
I haven’t blogged in a week. That is an eternity for me. The reason is because I have been readjusting my newer thyroid medication and I have been feeling nauseous and jittery. I am starting to feel better today. I am still the same weight and want to get down a few pounds. I have cranked up the exercise and I am watching my food, but now that my thyroid is working properly again, it will begin to get easier. I already feel it.
I had to write because tomorrow is Valentine’s Day. It is usually a day for flowers and chocolate. Let’s talk about chocolate.
Some chocolate products are more high in carbs and sugar, than others. You can have chocolate, but you have to be careful in your choices.
I prefer trying to stick to protein bars with chocolate, because protein is essential to keep your weight down by filling you up and keeping you from feeling hungry.
My choices of protein bars (and some have fiber, which helps reduce the carb count to net carbs):
Quest
Power Crunch (I get mine cheap at Vitacost.com, but they are at Smart and Final and Trader Joes)
Nature Valley PROTEIN Peanut Butter Dark Chocolate Bar (but has GMOs: see them at Target))
Kind bars (some–check carbs, some are too high)
and one that is delish, but not high in protein, but very low net carbs and is available at some markets and online is the Amberlyn BELGIUM chocolate bars, which is no sugar (for diabetics), but so tasty, even my chocolate connoisseur friend, Anne–she LOVES it. I found them in roadshow at Costco and I am hooked. Some low or no sugar chocolate tastes weird or chalky….not this one!
Give those you love some chocolate, but make sure it is not going to ruin their diet. They can have their chocolate, and eat it too (but check portion sizes and carb counts).
Starting this week, Girl Scout Cookies will be out! You will see the troops out in force, selling their cookies all through February. Yes, it is for a good cause, but basically, Girl Scout cookies are not good for you. They are made primarily from a combination of refined white flour, sweeteners, and oil, they offer little nutritional goodness. No preservatives are used in any Girl Scout cookies. But high-fructose corn syrup is in some of the recipes.
For years, the Girl Scouts has raised money for itself largely through cookie sales. Over the years, as waistlines have expanded and obesity rates have risen, the Girl Scouts have required its bakers to keep one healthier cookie in the lineup.
This year they have added Mango Cremes to the lineup. The vanilla and coconut sandwich cookies have a mango creme-flavored filling. But, they are still fattening.
All of the Girl Scout cookies are trans-fat-free per serving, in accordance with FDA guidelines, and many are 100% trans-fat-free. (trans fats are deadly enough that even the FDA said that it needs to be outlawed.
If you eat four Girl Scout cookies that contain trans fats, you could exceed the 2010 Dietary Guideline limit of 1 gram per day.
They are about 5g of carbs per cookie. If you could just eat one or two and then give away the rest, that would be ok…but many people order them and eat the whole box. Girl Scout Cookies are NOT good for the waistline or your health. I would rather have something that has less sugar and still tastes good.
MY SOLUTION:
Power Crunch (Smart and Final, Trader Joes or online at places like Vitacost.com) make delish low-carb, high protein wafer bars that taste like good cookies. There are Quest bars too. They are tasty, filling and won’t make you fat if eaten as part of your 6 protein meals a day.
There are also places online that sell other types of low-carb bars, like http://www.dietdirect.com/protidiet-pro-amino-products-103.html
So, here are the Girl Scout cookie flavors, with nutritional info. Thanks to WebMD for the information.
Keep in mind two things.
1. You need to eat 6 protein meals a day and you need to keep your carbs between 50 to 100g per day to lose weight. And there is little to no protein in these cookies.
2. Sugar grams are about 4 grams per sugar cube. So if two cookies is 11g of sugar, that is about 3 sugar cubes that you are eating!
Thank You Berry Munch
Thin Mints
Samoas/Caramel deLites
Do-Si-Dos/Peanut Butter Sandwich
Trefoils/Shortbread
Tagalongs/Peanut Butter Patties
Thanks-A-Lot
Dulce de Leche
Lemonades
Savannah Smiles
Mango Cremes
If you want to support the Girl Scouts, order their cookie shirts instead or one of their products.
I am reposting a great, quick and easy LOW carb chocolate cake that I had put up before. I made these again tonight (makes for 4 small chocolate cakes in mugs).
Dr. Oz had a guest, who spoke about the importance of low sugar in a diet. Jorge Cruise has great recipes on his site, Jorgecruise.com. But, he has a recipe for no-sugar, low-calorie chocolate cake. It is small, it is quick and you cook it in the microwave for 60 seconds. So, I tried it and even my husband liked it. I recommend it for those with a sweet or chocolate tooth!
1 minute chocolate cake recipe:
1/4 cup Truvia Baking Blend
1.2 cup almond flour
3 tablespoons unsweetend cocoa powder
1/8 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons coconut oil
1 egg
2 tablespoons half and half
DIRECTIONS:
Mix all ingredients in a bowl, mix, pour 1/4 of mixture into a mug (can make 4 mugs, filled up about 1/5 of each cup because it expands). Cook mug in microwave for 60 seconds.
trim a little around the edge of the mug and then pour out onto a plate. Then put whip cream on top.
Here are pictures of the process. I would say there is about 2-3g of carbs in this little delicacy for the day!
The pics are posted on my blog: https://skinny-rules.com/2013/05/28/you-can-have-your-cake-and-eat-it-too/
All over Facebook is a 21 Day Challenge. I have done this 21 Day Challenge for the most part now since Sept 8, 2011. Here is the challenge:
21 Day Challenge!!!
NO CHIPS
NO SODA
NO DIET SODA
NO CHOCOLATE
NO CANDY
NO WHITE BREAD
NO COOKIES OR BISCUITS
NO FAST FOOD
NO CAKES/PASTRIES/MUFFINS
How I have done this challenge, but my way!
–I have done fast food, but I make choices that involve salad and not-so-fast-foodish.
— I only have chocolate in protein bars or low-carb items. Best low-carb chocolate bars in my opinion, Power Crunch (Trader Joes, Smart and Final and Vitacost.com) and Nature Valley Protein Peanut Butter Dark Chocolate bars (Target and Costco). And this one is delish! http://www.vitacost.com/bionutritional-research-group-choklat-crunch-protein-crisp-bars
–I never have had regular soda, but I admit to diet soda and even though it is bad for ending cravings, I still have a couple a day. You still have to drink water.
— I never do candy or anything made with wheat products, unless they are special low-carb ones that I have purchased through Lindora.com or some low carb outlet, and even then, that is rare. I usually have low-carb frozen yogurt or fruit with whipped cream or low-fat Greek Yogurt.
–I never have potatoes, rice or beans. Just too full of carbs and starches and puts me on a sugar rollercoaster.
The good part of this challenge is to get you to get over craving sugar or things that turn to sugar. It is basically, a sugar detox. But, if you eat sugars and cheat, then you are NOT detoxing.
The bad part of this challenge is that it offers no assistance in dealing with those torturous cravings. Even on a medically supervised weight loss program, like the one I did (Lindora), they offered me appetite suppressants. But, after one day of that and feeling jittery, I researched and found my own way to get over it. There are plenty of books that explain it, like Dr. Mark Hyman, whose book and information is on the blog before this (August 23. 2013). However, how to get over cravings in a nutshell:
1.) Balance blood sugar.
When blood sugar is low, you’ll eat anything. To better balance blood sugar, eat a small meal or snack that includes healthy protein, like seeds or nuts (measured out because they are high in carbs) , low-fat Greek Yogurt, two tablespoons of almond or peanut butter, or eat any meat, a protein bar or drink (check on the ones that are lowest in carbs) and cheese, every 3 to 4 hours.
2.) Eliminate liquid calories and artificial sweeteners.
Sodas are full of chemicals and high fructose corn syrup. Processed fruit juices are awash in sugar. Try sticking with water and green tea. Green tea contains plant chemicals that are good for your health. And, last but not least, don’t succumb to the diet-drink trap. The artificial sweeteners in diet drinks fool the body into thinking it is ingesting sugar, which creates the same insulin spike as regular sugar. I have to admit, I use artificial sweetener in my coffee and soda and I still lost weight, but this can spike cravings….just sayin’. Reason why I also take fiber to feel full.
3.) Eat a high-quality protein at breakfast.
Ideally, you’re eating quality protein at every meal, but, if you need to prioritize one meal, choose breakfast. Studies show that waking up to a healthy protein, such as eggs, nuts, seeds, nut butters or a protein shake help people lose weight, reduce cravings and burn calories.
4. Increase fiber. Helps you feel full and keeps you from overeating.
5. NO wine or beer. If you MUST have a drink, stick with a vodka mixed drink and keep it to a minimum. Wine and beer have sugar and alcohol takes so much energy in your body to be processed, then your body doesn’t have the energy to also burn fat, so you won’t lose much weight if you drink. Remember that.
And as in any addiction, if you fall off the wagon, then get back on! Never give up.
I read a post by a woman in a room where there is a weight loss challenge. In the challenge, there are no chips. That is because potatoes are so high in carbs. In fact, I don’t even do potatoes anymore for two reasons:
1. High in carbs.
2. Terrible on the glycemic index for the sugar rollercoaster, which causes addiction.
This lady ate at Wendy’s. The fast food places do not have the best choices for food. Definitely not organic or hormone-free, but not many diet-friendly choices. However, she had the BLT salad there and I was surprised to see that it only had between 10 and 13g of carbs. That is really good. If you want to lose weight, keeping your carbs between 50 and 100g is the way to go. So, 10g for a meal is awesome. But, the lady might be addicted to sugar, because she felt the need to get a baked potato too. Many people think of baked potatoes as healthy. I know that I did. However, root vegetables are HIGH in starch, meaning sugar. So, the carb count on a medium baked potato is 37 grams. A lot for one half of a meal. Also, terrible for trying to get over cravings. She said she got the potato to feel full!
I get the whole, “wanting to feel full” thing. That is what kept me addicted to bad foods. Dr. Mark Hyman talks about how to get through the addiction and withdrawal in his book, “The Blood Sugar Solution. ”
“When you eat simple carbohydrates, whether as sugar or as starch, they pass almost instantaneously from the gut into the bloodstream. Within seconds, blood sugar levels start to rise. To counter the increase in sugar, the body releases insulin. Insulin is the key that unlocks the cells and allows sugar to enter. As sugar enters the cells, the amount of sugar in the blood declines and the body restores homeostasis. An abundance of simple sugars in the diet goads the body into releasing more and more insulin. Eventually, the cellular locks get worn down from overuse. Like a key that’s lost its teeth, insulin loses its ability to easily open the cellular door. The cells become numb to the effects of insulin. As a result, the body pumps out more and more of the hormone to keep its blood sugar levels in check. Eventually, this cycle leads to a dangerous condition called insulin resistance. Insulin resistance—at the root of diabesity—causes you to gain belly fat, raises your blood pressure, messes up your cholesterol, makes you infertile, kills your sex drive, makes you depressed, tired, and demented, and even causes cancer.”
3 Ways to Reprogram your Brain
Luckily there are ways to rewire the primitive parts of your brain by making good food choices.
1.) Balance blood sugar.
Blood sugar highs and lows drive primitive food cravings. If you get famished between meals, that’s a sign that your blood sugar is crashing. When blood sugar is low, you’ll eat anything. To better balance blood sugar, eat a small meal or snack that includes healthy protein, like seeds or nuts (measured out because they are high in carbs) , low-fat Greek Yogurt, two tablespoons of almond or peanut butter, or eat any meat, a protein bar or drink (check on the ones that are lowest in carbs) and cheese, every 3 to 4 hours.
2.) Eliminate liquid calories and artificial sweeteners.
Early humans didn’t reach for soda or fruit juices when they got thirsty. Sodas are full of chemicals and high fructose corn syrup. Processed fruit juices are awash in sugar. Try sticking with water and green tea. Green tea contains plant chemicals that are good for your health. And, last but not least, don’t succumb to the diet-drink trap. The artificial sweeteners in diet drinks fool the body into thinking it is ingesting sugar, which creates the same insulin spike as regular sugar. I have to admit, I use artificial sweetener in my coffee and soda and I still lost weight, but this can spike cravings….just sayin’. Reason why I also take fiber to feel full.
3.) Eat a high-quality protein at breakfast.
Ideally, you’re eating quality protein at every meal, but, if you need to prioritize one meal, choose breakfast. Studies show that waking up to a healthy protein, such as eggs, nuts, seeds, nut butters or a protein shake help people lose weight, reduce cravings and burn calories. This is actually very true and important! I also found that the low carb version of pancake mix from Lindora.com or Netrition.com, and sugar-free maple syrup helps with that need to sometimes have something a little more substantial without killing my diet. Using alternatives and learning new tricks to eating and enjoying food is what you need to do to lose weight. This is why I started this blog. This blog is to put out there for others all of the work I have done to discover how to lose weight and keep it off!
Ultimately, you may not control your genes, but you do control what and how you eat. Since taking control and changing my diet, my brain no longer caves into the cravings and urgings that seduce the reptilian brain. The most powerful tool you have to transform your health is your brain and your fork!
Skinny-Rules 