Clearly the new blog is going over well

Soooo I got 0 comments on my last post and I lost a follower to boot lol I guess I'm still finding my groove in terms of what to write about here and trying to come up with valuable things to say (and the time to write posts)

On that note, I'll kick this post off with a very informative statement:

Christmas is a brutal time of year for weight maintenance/loss!!!

Ok, so that is not news. Lots of people find it rough but I will step up and admit I am struggling! I was doing well but this weekend I fell off track a little. Because of the obvious - there are goodies EVERYWHERE: home, work, parties...etc. It's also a different Christmas than I've ever had. My family traditions seem to changing and with my new job, I don't get any Christmas vacation for the first time in my life (aside from Christmas eve and Christmas day)

Not complaining just struggling to deal. And to NOT take my emotions out on food. My goal is to turn back to some of my slow cooker favourites and have lots ready and available to eat to make sure I'm satisfied with my healthy meals so that I can cut down on the treats as much as possible!

I want to make some more chili because I found this to be a weight loss super food - lots of protein and fiber, low fat and low salt I had a very successful week when I ate this chili for lunch all week.

I also want to make lentil soup again because again it is packed with protein and it was absolutely delicious.The recipe is at the end of this post :)

My fitness goal is to hit the treadmill or do the shred at least 3 times this week, starting tomorrow.  Hopefully putting it out there will give me the kick I need to not be lazy after work.

Thanks for hanging in with my blog despite the change, I hope I'll get into the swing of things soon! Have a wonderful holiday everyone :) 

LEMON LENTIL SOUP

2 cups lentils (called for red but I just used regular)
2 tbsp olive oil
1 large yellow onion, diced
1 tsp salt
8 garlic cloves, minced
3 carrots, diced
1 tsp dried rosemary
2 tsp dried oregano
2 bay leaves
8 cups vegetable stock
juice of 2 lemons
1 cup crumbled feta cheese

1. Rinse lentils thoroughly in a colander under cold running water. Set aside to drain. Heat oil in a soup pot over medium-high heat and saute onion with 1/2 tsp salt until translucent. Add garlic, carrot, herbs, bay leaves and 1/2 tsp salt. Stir well and saute until the carrots are just tender. Add rinsed lentils and stock and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to a simmer and cook, partially covered, until the lentils are soft and falling apart.

I adapted for the crock pot and took it off the heat after adding lentils and bringing it to a boil. I put in the crock pot and put it in the fridge until the next morning. Then cooked it on low all day. When it's done, you can puree all or half but I didn't. I would only bother with this step if you were serving to fussy kids (or any picky eaters).


2. Season the soup with lemon juice and more salt and pepper to taste. Before serving, top with the feta cheese. Enjoy!

Ok so the new title sucks...

But I really need a new title. Why?

1) Because, when I thought about it, focusing on the number on the scale (i.e. the last 10 lbs) was totally the wrong way to approach the situation of figuring out how to end my weight loss journey. And I'm not just saying it because in the 10 months I've had this blog I only lost 5 of the last 10 lbs (yes, I will openly admit that I only lost 5 lbs in 10 months). I just realized that being obsessed with a number was becoming unhealthy for me. Am I going to look or feel any different at 110 than I do at 115? Probably not. What my priorities are now:

-Eating great, clean food (and treats in moderation, of course) 
-Working to maintain the weight loss I worked so hard for
- ENJOYING cooking, eating just leading a generally healthy life

My next step for the long run is to learn to embrace exercise. I'm still not there yet. I love to be active and go for walks but when it comes to painful, push yourself, sweat like a pig exercise, I just can't get motivated. But I know it's a huge part of a balanced life so I am still pushing myself to stick with it.

2) I feel like this blog is taking a new direction. It's not really about my weight loss journey. I like writing about navigating a full time job, extra vounteer stuff, leading a healthy, vegetarian life and cooking for a family of four. I think it's good for me to keep track of what I'm doing and I hope proving reviews of what does and doens't work for me in terms of making things ahead will be more helpful to others than just musings about my life and my food.

That being said, I am uninspired on a title. So any suggestions would be great. Or I'll just keep thinking about it.

Coming soon, I will post the lentil soup recipe, it was a HUGE hit. Yes, lentil soup might sound gross, it might even look gross but my recipe was phenominal and everyone loved it! The WW peanut stirfry was pretty darn good too. So I will post back later in the week to my old blog that is moving in a new direction.

Till then happy eating and have a great weekend!