Tag: keto

I am seriously obsessed with this low-carb almond bread, y’all. I searched high and low (ok, maybe just on Pinterest) and found this beauty. 

I’m still doing Keto (and hope to stay on board as long as possible) so I definitely miss my sandwiches and biscuits. I had tried several almond bread recipes before, where you bake them, but this one right here is a game changer! Not only can you make sandwiches, you can use it for eggs Benedict, or as a biscuit!! AND–it cooks in the microwave in 90-fricken-seconds! I decided to add this to my recipes since I’ve been handing it out like hotcakes since I posted it on Instagram!

You’ll Need:
A mug, fork, extra bowl
1.5 tbsp. butter
3 tbsp. almond flour
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1 half-twist of sea salt from a grinder (optional, original recipe didn’t have it but I like salty bread)
1 egg
Microwave

Directions:
Melt your butter for about 20-30 seconds in a wide mug in the microwave. Then, mix in your 3 tbsp. of almond flour and your 1/2 tsp. of baking powder.

Whisk up the egg in a separate bowl and mix it into your butter & dry ingredients in your mug until very well-blended and most big clumps disappear. 

Microwave the mug mix for 90 seconds and take your mug out of the microwave carefully when done. The “bread” should have already separated a bit from the sides of the mug, but if it’s still attached in some areas, take a butter knife and carefully separate the bread from the mug.

Usually, just flipping it onto a plate makes it pop out just fine.

Then comes the hard part: deciding how you want to devour your bread!!

The best part: this recipe should be about 5 carbs (I double-checked! It’s actually less than 3 carbs for the biscuit! It’s 5 carbs with the Snickers SF jam and Laura Scudder’s peanut butter!)! (1 “normal” flour biscuit has about 25-40!!)

<– More Recipes?

I feel a lot better than I did my previous post. I’m almost embarrassed that I puked my heart and soul into that post and almost deleted it, but as they say: better out than in!

Anyway. I’ve focused a lot of my energy since then into things that I do have control over now, at the moment: the kids, of course, and Jorge take priority, but I’ve also started really watching what I’m eating and SOMEWHAT started exercising again. I even used some of the birthday/Mother’s Day money mom gave me to buy some cute work-out tees! (In typical Mom fashion, the rest was put towards bills 🙄 !)

These were on clearance at Walmart, for $3.00 and $3.15! Too bad I couldn’t get any good deals on work out pants! THAT’S what I really need! 😕 I have lots of size 0-2, but it’s been a while since those fit comfortably! 😆

So I started on the Keto diet again on April 30, 2017. The last time I did this “diet” was in 2013 and I lost about 12-13 lbs. and looked much better than I had in a while at the time. It was before I had my breast reduction, of course, but being on Keto was the only time I EVER in my life went down a bra size. Even when I was religiously doing P90X daily and Taekwondo 3x a week in 2010, I didn’t loose boobage. In 2013, on Keto, I went from DD to D. I was shocked! 😆

The girls started selling Girl Scout cookies early 2014…and I DID NOT ease back into eating carbs–I literally shoveled a box of cookies a day 😳 . So naturally, I gained weight AND when I went for my routine check-up on February 7, 2014, I stupidly got my labs done at 3pm…right after consuming 4 Thin Mints. Of course my cholesterol came back off the charts (394, something like that??) and I was put on a Statin STAT because of my family’s medical history. They sat me down and I got a stern talking-to about what to eat and what not to eat. I was pretty bummed.

So I’m going into this venture once again, but wary and aware of the risks. I’m still trying to figure out how much a lipid panel (to check my cholesterol levels) would be, since I already got my routine check-up done and my levels were slightly elevated then. I don’t want to end up having a stroke or heart attack for the sake of vanity!

Speaking of, other reasons I’m getting back on the Keto train–besides obviously losing weight–is 1) Jorge got back on it a few weeks ago and it’s much easier for me to come up with dinners when I’m cooking for both of us (because, let’s face it: sometimes I have to make an extra meal for my picky girls 🙄 ). A third meal would be ridiculous!

2) Since getting off birth control in February-ish of this year (had gotten on it again around August 2016 to help regulate my monthly visitor), my acne has been out of control, mainly on the chin area, which reflects hormones out of whack and/or stress (and I have a bad habit of touching my face, so I’m sure that doesn’t help!). So I’m hoping steering clear of sugar and carbs will help. I’ve been reading articles on Dietdoctor.com, and a piece on acne states:

…modern studies show a probable connection between high-glycemic (high-carb) diets and acne.This may be caused by the effect on growth hormones like insulin and IGF.

To improve acne, your best bet is a fairly strict low-carb diet – ideally one that is also low in dairy products.

I’m willing to try anything to clear this embarrassing problem. The only thing that makes me nervous about Keto is the amount of cheese you could possibly eat–and I’m lactose intolerant (and also, the cholesterol!)! I think being lactose intolerant is another sign my body’s giving me to lay off the sugar and give my face a break, so I’m going to try to use as little as possible, as much as I love it 🙁 .

I’m actually much more excited about cooking than I had been in a long time. Here are a few meals I’ve made:

You can find the recipe for those awesome Keto Krepes here.

We’ve cut our eating out a LOT, but when we have it’s been easy to make substitutions:

I’ve also lost 3 lbs.! Just weighed in this morning and it’s the little boost of motivation I needed to keep going. Now, if I could just find the time to do P90X again! Or at least the 40 minutes I need to get to the park to run! Emily has her GT Project due and we need to finish it TODAY.
[edited to add:] Emily finished her project at school and all I had to help her with was flash cards for questions and finding her prizes to give her classmates as she quizzes them, so we got to go walking/running![/edit]

Changing gears: my poor Gramma hasn’t been doing too well 🙁 . She was in the hospital on Sunday due to possible signs of suffering a mini-stroke. Ugh. Long story. Let’s just say I had to BITCH and threaten a lawsuit in order to get those idiots at the nursing home to move their asses and get her to the hospital! She may have Bells Palsy, which they will correct with medication but only to a certain extent 🙁 . Mom and I waited in the lobby while Aunt Nora stayed with Gramma and we got hungry, so we went to the gift shop. There was a beautiful, almost heavenly glow coming from the snack area. There were muffins, and cookies, and chips, oh my!! It took all my willpower to only purchase these:

I shared the almonds and pickle with Mom and I was proud of myself for sticking with it. Mom, on the other hand, got Fritos -_-.

Gramma is doing as well as possible. I feel so bad that she’s in any discomfort.

I’ve been posting less on my regular social media and focusing a lot of attention on my food and health Instagram account. If you’d like to see meal ideas or just what I’m up to, the link is: @yaya_goes_keto (formerly, @yayastartsover). I’ve documented most of my ups/downs/tries/fails . When I started up again in June 2016 after all the complications I had with the breast reduction from February 2016-June 2016, I was tracking on MyFitnessPal and working out (P90X). I went from 123 lbs. to 119 lbs., but that was quickly short-lived thanks to the last complication I had, and then I’m pretty sure I had some weird trauma/mental block that was keeping me from working out since it seemed like every time I got into a routine, I ended up at the doctor’s office again. But I hope I’m successful this time and can keep up with my “diet” (or Way of Eating) and workouts, even though I know I won’t be able to workout every day. I have to admit, eating this way has been pretty easy so far!

I’ve been telling myself for months that I need to start eating better.

There was always an excuse though: Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Year’s, my events being back-to-back at work and not having time to eat better, selling (and eating) Girl Scout cookies. I vowed to myself that after the whole Girl Scout cookie thing and after February 16th, the date of my last major event, I would start eating better and jogging again. But February 16th and then the 17th came and I continued to eat crappily.

The girls were sick the week of February 7th so I took them in to the doctor. I was already there, so I figured I’d go in to get help with my acne again.

That’s a whole other story, but to summarize: I was on birth control since I was 17 years old, after having Eenan. I got my tubes tied after I had Emily on February 2009 at the age of 27. About 6 months later, after not being on any kind of birth control, I started getting acne and about 2010 (combined with the stress of the divorce and fighting for my kids) my face erupted like never before. It was awful. So in 2011 when I couldn’t take it anymore my doctor put me on Minocycline, an oral antibiotic, plus pledgets and a topical antibiotic. My face cleared up a lot, thank God, but in 2013 I must have become immune because it stopped working. So I changed my eating habits, drank more water, etc. and nothing seemed to help.

So I went in with the girls that day and my doc went ahead and did my yearly physical while I was there, plus blood work. When I had picked the girls up I’d had 4 Thin Mints with Emily (grrr), so I reminded the girls at the office that my sugar might be a little higher due to that, and being checked after lunch. Dr. Guzman prescribed birth control to help with my acne, and we went on our way.

Fast forward to 1 1/2 weeks later and Laura calls me on the 19th at 3pm that they need me to go in. That always means that something came back abnormal on the results. She tells me that my cholesterol is super high and they need to see me. So in I go. My cholesterol total was at almost 400 and my “bad” cholesterol was at 300. Not good. I even reminded all the girls that I’d had those Thin Mints that day before my blood work was taken but Dr. Guzman somberly said no, this was something that was developing for a while. She said I was thin, healthy overall so she was blaming my crappy genetics. (My first thought was Damn you, Mother!!)

She put me on a strict diet and basically told me to stick to the produce section of HEB, fish and chicken. That’s it. She also gave me a list of names that were a creative cover-up for high cholesterol on “Fat Free” or “No Trans Fat” packages. The first thing I thought was, “OMG. No cheese. No cookies. No butter. No BACON!”

Oh yeah, and she also prescribed Lipitor. Yup. I tried getting out of it by telling her I would cure myself by eating better and exercising (like I did back in 2008 with the diabetes) but she said no way; it was too high and I needed to take the pill. It really sucks. I had a bit of a hard time dealing with it for a few days.

It’s a pretty known fact that I love food. My Facebook and Instagram streams are probably 70% pics of food that I make, or food that I’m eating at restaurants. I just love food. The expression “sad” is an understatement for how I feel about having to make grand changes in the way I eat.

There’s no better way to kick your ass into gear than being told you have extremely high cholesterol. So my meals went from:

(FYI, Mambo Seafood’s service SUCKS. Jessica and I were 30 minutes late to work and I never got my cocktail sauce!!)

To this:

I got that hummus recipe from Pinterest, but instead of using white beans used the traditional chick peas and OMG. Seriously the BEST hummus I’ve ever had! I just wish I could find a good, healthy, low-cholesterol store-bought pita bread or a recipe for a good one. It wasn’t bad with celery at all. Jorge wasn’t too fond of it. He did the whole *aherk* thing, so boo LOL. More for me!

So it’s not too bad, but man I miss my cheese. And bacon. And beer brats. Waah.

I’ll get over it, and maybe, hopefully used to it. I thought of food all the time before, and now it’s even worse. Before I eat anything I research it. I research my recipes for the day. I have so much to re-learn. And it sucks to be surrounded by food at work (donuts, chocolate chip cookies from Jason’s Deli, grapefruits that I can’t have because it clashes with my medication, etc.). I seriously felt like this on Friday:

I almost resent and detest people as I see them stuffing delicious food in their mouth, but I have to pep-talk myself into not cursing them 🙁 . Jorge is certain that my test results were wonky and incorrect, but I don’t know. I was eating badly. And then I was doing the Keto diet and stopped suddenly and started stuffing my face with carbs, so maybe that had something to do with it? It’s been almost a year since I’d started Keto. I started after my birthday in April and stopped around July 4th. So who knows. I wasn’t going hardcore or anything with the red meats and say, Bulletproof (butter in my) coffee. I’ll have to ask next month when I go in for a follow-up.

Wish me luck on this new journey!! I kind of feel like I’m damned, but by golly, I WILL get over this darn thing! I will get off the pill!