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Tuesday, January 20, 2015

Mexican Breakfast - THM Style

Hello there friends from all over the world! Today I bring to you a traditional dish from the North East of Mexico... If you think you know Mexican food but you've never lived there then you don't really know it... actually, even many of us, Mexicans born and raised in Mexico still have a lot to learn about our traditional Mexican cuisine... learning about all the dishes could take a lifetime! As every state and even probably every city in Mexico has its very own traditional dishes (or variations).

"Huevos" (eggs) are a staple in any good Mexican breakfast,  and it makes me so happy because they are an amazingly good source of great protein and fat, perfect for an "S" Meal! The only thing is that of course, a Mexican like me... will have to miss the delicious, just made corn tortillas to go with it... but that's ok... I can handle it! The dish by itself is really satisfying and filling.

The Name of the dish is "Guayin" - pronounced (close pronunciation): goo-ah-yeen and I would say it is like a "stuffed Omelette".

There are a few different versions of this dish ... today I will tell you how to make the two most common ones... 1 for a perfect S, the other for an S-helper (or even a healthy and yummy crossover).



Guayin Tamaulipeco   (Stuffed Mexican Omelette)
 (Tamaulipeco means that is from Tamaulipas, the state where I was raised)

Note: Please forgive the picture, I made it in such a hurry and ate it so fast I didn't even take the time to get a better shot, as soon as I get a good one I will change the pic.



Ingredients:

(Yield 1 serving)

  • 1 tbsp. butter (grass-fed preferably)
  • 3 whole eggs (preferably room temperature, just because this helps the egg cook faster at a lower temperature and it creates a more tender result)
  • 1 National Hebrew All Beef Frank
  • 2-3 tbsp. of Salsa (No sugar added) ... I use Pace or a "Private Selection" chipotle/habanero salsa (yummy!)
  • Shredded cheddar cheese (feel free to add to your taste!)
  • Salt to taste
  • OPTIONAL - Fat free Refried Beans (I use and love ROSARITA beans, from the Hispanic Aisle) - You would use about 2 tbsp. for S-helper or more if you don't mind going into crossover territory... BEANS are a MUST in any good Mexican guayin but if you want to keep it an S don't include them, it will still be yummy!
Directions:

  • Cut your Beef Frank in half length wise (you can completely separate the halves or just "butterfly" it)
  • In a hot skillet (slightly greased) cook your frank until it has a beautiful darker (not burnt) color and it should be "bending" (like an arch) from the heat. Remove from the skillet and set aside.
  • In two separate bowls microwave (you could also do this on the top stove) your salsa and refried beans (if using) -covered with a paper towel or you'll get a mess in your microwave- so that these ingredients are hot.
  • In a glass bowl gently mix your eggs with a fork (don't over mix, this should be gentle to prevent too many air bubbles from forming), season with salt to taste (don't add too much, try adding a pinch only and then once you taste it when it's ready you will know if you need more, remember the frank and cheese will also add salt to it).
  •  Heat your pan at medium/high heat, add the butter and once it's melted and hot pour the egg mixture (you are basically making an omelette)... if you've never made an omelette Alton Brown has great directions on how to make one... click here if you need them
  • Once you've cooked your egg mixture on both sides (and before folding your omelette) remove the omelette from the heat, spread the refried beans (not all the way to the edges) and place your beef frank in there, add some shredded cheese, fold in half (like a quesadilla), add your salsa on top and sprinkle with more cheddar cheese. You can eat this for breakfast or dinner, with a salad on the side... Sliced avocado sprinkled with salt goes great with it too!


Enjoy!


© Paloma K.

Wednesday, January 14, 2015

From Couch to Half a Marathon in 14 weeks FULL plan

Today was the first ACTIVE day of our From Couch to Half a Marathon Challenge, this challenge actually starts with a Day of Rest, so it officially started yesterday... But you're still on time to jump right in and join us! I am excited to see how this challenge is already motivating people to get movin'!

Today I got new running shoes! Woohoo! Mine were a sad thing to look at... especially in the inside... so they were very necessary to be able to do this without injuries... If you need good running shoes this is the time! Before we get into the higher mileage of our challenge!

Today my friend Venessa (who has also accepted this challenge) posted this on my fb:

 Made me laugh but it's so true... It's interesting that sometimes we actually wait until "we feel good" to exercise... But ... if you haven't tried it yet... I promise you... You will never feel good enough to do it.. and you'll actually feel your best right after! I love the feeling of accomplishment I get when I get things done... "Good things happen when you don't give up"

It's easy to step off the treadmill, to snooze the alarm, to not go any further... But the reward and satisfaction you get when you push through is AMAZING... And a great booster for your next work out! 
  
... I am now going to share the FULL schedule here ... I hope you too will take the challenge (Remember you can start in a day that best works for you and your schedule)



WEEK 1
Tuesday – Rest
Wednesday – Run/Walk – 2 Miles
Thursday – Low Impact Cross Training 30 Minutes
Friday – Run/Walk – 2 Miles
Saturday – Rest
Sunday – Run/Walk 3 Miles
Monday – Walk 2 Miles


WEEK 2
Tuesday – Rest
Wednesday – Run/Walk 3 Miles + Strength Training for 20 minutes
Thursday – L.I. Cross Training 30 Minutes
Friday – Run/Walk 2 Miles
Saturday – Rest
Sunday – Run/Walk 3 Miles
Monday – Walk 2 Miles


WEEK 3
Tuesday – Rest
Wednesday – Run/Walk 3 Miles + Strength Training (20 Min.)
Thursday – L.I. Cross Training 30 Minutes
Friday – Run/Walk 2 Miles
Saturday – Rest
Sunday: Run/Walk 3 Miles
Monday: Walk 2 Miles
 


WEEK 4
Tuesday – Rest
Wednesday – Easy Run 2 Miles + Strength Training (20 Min)
Thursday – L.I. Cross Training 30 Min.
Friday – Easy Run 3 Miles
Saturday – Rest
Sunday – Easy Run 4 Miles
Monday – Walk 3 Miles


WEEK 5
Tuesday  -  Rest
Wednesday – Easy Run 3 Miles + Strength Training (20 Min.)
Thursday – L.I. Cross Training 40 Min.
Friday – Easy Run 3 Miles
Saturday – Rest
Sunday – Easy Run 5 Miles
Monday – Run/Walk 3 Miles


WEEK 6
Tuesday  -  Rest
Wednesday – Easy Run 3 Miles + Strength Training (20 Min.)
Thursday – L.I. Cross Training 40 Min.
Friday – Easy Run 3 Miles
Saturday – Rest
Sunday – Easy Run 6 Miles
Monday – Run/Walk 3 Miles



WEEK 7
Tuesday  -  Rest
Wednesday – Easy Run 4 Miles + Strength Training (20 Min.)
Thursday – L.I. Cross Training 40 Min.
Friday – Easy Run 4 Miles
Saturday – Rest
Sunday – Easy Run 7 Miles
Monday – Run/Walk 3 Miles


WEEK 8
Tuesday  -  Rest
Wednesday – Easy Run 4 Miles + Strength Training (20 Min.)
Thursday – L.I. Cross Training 40 Min.
Friday – Tempo Run 4 Miles
Saturday – Rest
Sunday – Easy Run 8 Miles
Monday – Run/Walk 3 Miles



WEEK 9
Tuesday  -  Rest
Wednesday – Easy Run 4 Miles + Strength Training (20 Min.)
Thursday – L.I. Cross Training 45 Min.
Friday – Tempo Run 4 Miles
Saturday – L.I. Cross training 30 Min. or Rest
Sunday – Easy Run 9 Miles 
Monday – Run/Walk 4 Miles



WEEK 10
Tuesday  -  Rest
Wednesday – Easy Run 4 Miles + Strength Training (20 Min.)
Thursday – L.I. Cross Training 40 Min.
Friday – Tempo Run 4 Miles
Saturday – Cross Training 30 Min. or Rest
Sunday – Easy Run 10 Miles
Monday – Run/Walk 3 Miles



WEEK 11
Tuesday  -  Rest
Wednesday – Easy Run 4 Miles + Strength Training (20 Min.)
Thursday – L.I. Cross Training 40 Min.
Friday – Tempo Run 4 Miles
Saturday – Cross Training 30 Min. Or Rest
Sunday – Easy Run 10 Miles
Monday – Run/Walk 3 Miles 



WEEK 12

Tuesday  -  Rest
Wednesday – Easy Run 4 Miles + Strength Training (20 Min.)
Thursday – L.I. Cross Training 40 Min.
Friday – Tempo Run 4 Miles
Saturday – Rest
Sunday – Easy Run 11 Miles
Monday – Run/Walk 3 Miles

WEEK 13

Tuesday  -  Rest
Wednesday – Easy Run 4 Miles + Strength Training (20 min.)
Thursday – L.I. Cross training 40 Minutes
Friday – Easy Run 4 Miles
Saturday – Rest
Sunday – Easy Run 6 Miles
Monday – Run/Walk 3 Miles



WEEK 14

Tuesday  -  Rest
Wednesday – Easy Run 4 Miles
Thursday – Rest
Friday – Easy Run 3 Miles
Saturday – Rest
Sunday – Easy Run 2 Miles
Monday – Half Marathon!!! (13 miles)


  • Strenght Training (ST) - (sessions of 20 minutes) (push-ups, squats, lunges, deadlifts, planks, etc)
  • Easy Runs (ER): Runs at a comfortable, conversational pace. No huffing or puffing involved.
  •  Run/Walk (R/W): (Alternate between running and walking), you must walk at a brisk pace to make your transition to running easier. (run about a minute and walk about a minute, you can and should increase your running times as it gets easier).
  • Walks (W): You’ll walk some of your miles so you can safely build your fitness, but keep a brisk pace.
  •  Tempo Runs (TR): Run at a faster pace, it should be harder than the Easy Runs but not so hard that you can't breath, this runs should improve your speed and resistance, you can actually start at a more comfortable pace and increase your speed after you are all warmed up, when you are done with your run you can add a few minutes of walking at a relaxed pace.
  • Cross Training (XT) - Low Impact - (like cycling, swimming, elliptical), what you do will be your choice, but it is important that you do not skip these exercises.


This whole plan is not of my own making, I got the great idea from: Women's Running , I just adapted it to what works best for me. Remember to do some stretching and warm up before you start each run!



© Paloma K.

Tuesday, January 13, 2015

Trim Healthy Mama is TOO confusing

  "Trim Healthy Mama is too confusing" , "I can't figure it out", "it's so frustrating", "I am overwhelmed", "I don't understand it", "I'll never get it", "It seems like a lot", "this is impossible" "why can't we eat bananas?" (btw, that is a misconception), "the book is too big!"... etc... etc... etc...

Have you heard that too? I think I read that everyday, several times a day... and that's ok... I get it... and really, truly, genuinely I want to tell you... "I get it" ... We all want the simplest thing, the easy route, the "eat everything and lose weight" promise!, if you're overweight or have been overweight I am sure that you too let a big sigh out when you see the promises of a "beach body" on tv in just 6 weeks! You too want to lose 10 pounds in a week... You too want perfect abs just "walking" (but wait... even then we will NOT walk!) ... If you have heard of Trim Healthy Mama and you are feeling confused, discouraged and overwhelmed there are some things I want to share with you (some from my own personal experience) before you throw in the towel...

Trim Healthy Mama is "just as hard" to learn as whatever else you've been doing... it's just DIFFERENT and *that* is the challenge.

Now... please take everything I am going to say the right way... I am just trying to encourage you... I am in no way judging you... but I feel like the things I'm about to say need to be said and I am going to say them in love and with understanding because I, too, have been there.

Yes... there's a learning curve involved... just like it is with EVERYTHING ELSE... But I've come to realize that the HARDEST part of this plan is actually the fact that it challenges mostly everything you've learned... Trust me... I am not a "Trim Healthy Mama" advocate (or "worshiper" -like some people claim all THMs are) I am just someone who has tried it all... and THM does challenge my way of thinking towards food... I think that's what makes it hard for our "brain" to just embrace it! ... every time we want to have fruit, yogurt and granola, honey and nuts for breakfast or a bowl of cereal with fat free milk we start scratching our heads again and say... "wait, what? why can't I eat this again?" and it's actually THAT resistance that makes THIS plan "so hard" ....

Trim Healthy Mama ... just like any other eating plan that has 'weight loss' as one of their "consequences" is of course going to ask you to have a certain discipline... is going to ask you to follow certain guidelines if you want to see results and succeed... BUT what makes it particularly challenging is the fact that we just wanted to read the "same ol' same ol" ... we want something familiar, that agrees with us and that makes us feel smart about how we've been doing things (at least that's my case) ... Maybe subconsciously BUT we can't believe we've been depriving ourselves with diets "just for nothing" ... we can't believe that our whole grain way of thinking has been wrong... we refuse to accept that eating all those granola bars and drinking orange juice every morning is not the best way to get the triglycerides down... NOW WAY! What???? Eggs??? I will lower my cholesterol with eggs?


zucchini frittata and coffee for breakfast

 And then... if you have to add on top of our very own "struggle to believe" the fact that our well intentioned relatives and friends keep telling you you should have rice with that or bread with that or you should be juicing or when people look weird at your big salad loaded with bacon and avocado and you KNOW (or at least you think so) what they're thinking... "No wonder she's so fat! Look at how much she eats! Isn't she going to at least remove the skin of her chicken?" we begin to doubt it all even more, question the whole thing and we then either feel the need to explain "oh, um, yeah, I am doing this new thing, I know it sounds crazy but this is actually going to help me lose weight" ... or we feel the need to "conform and *not eat like THAT* in public!" how embarrassing! Dipping your veggies in butter... adding ranch to your salad! NO WAY! Not in front of all this people... Not while I am still this big!

Spring mix salad with hard boiled eggs, avocado, tomato and sardines


What am I saying? Is Trim Healthy Mama the only way to lose weight? Absolutely NOT ... I firmly believe that Paleo, Fast Metabolism Diet, Weight Watchers and even Atkins they can all give you THAT weight loss you're seeking. I've lost weight counting calories and doing a bunch of other "accepted" diets.... But... what I DO know is that THM is what seems more doable for the long run... in a healthy way! Once you let go of your fears and just embrace it ... once you stop caring about how people think your plate looks and once you don't mind eating "AGAIN!!!???" "didn't you just eat 3 hours ago???" then things start to click and work for you...

Lettuce "TACOS"

How much weight have I lost doing THM? Honestly... NOT ONE POUND.... I've been at it for a while... AND I know it works! My numbers are never better as to when I follow THM to the T .... How can I keep doing this? Well... 'cause I know my case is different... we all are... I have just been diagnosed with Hashimoto's and I do have Hypothyroidism as a consequence... I had been off THM for a while (on and off... but that's not how THIS works!) and I even tried to embrace the weight watchers or something else! Even something of my OWN making where I can include more bread or something like that! Well... guess what? Now my brain is all ruined...  I know what truly works and what feels better and like something I can do forever ... Now all the other plans sound "too hard, too confusing, too frustrating, impossible!!!" to me.... THM is part of who I am now and part of what I believe works ... I know I can get results with other plans, but I also know I don't see me doing them for life! And that's what's always "made me gain weight again" ... THM works and it is good for you... My sister lost 5 pounds her first week... she's at it again right now... Whatever you decide to do... THM or another plan... well... just be ready to make sacrifices, be open to realize maybe you don't have "all the answers" ... if THM was a plan that will tell you all what you ALREADY know... all what's already "out there" (eat less and exercise) then there wouldn't be the need for a book and Serene and Pearl dedicated years of their lives just to tell you what you already knew... what's comfortable... what seems safe, the quick fad that sounds awesome but never works.

Sadly, what we want most times is just "a pill", the easy thing, we almost want "someone else to read the book for us" and to just tell us "do this easy thing and you'll be thin"... we actually look forward to the "pins and posts" that make it all "easy" for us... like if printing another tip or list of foods will now make it finally possible... if you're not willing to even take the step of reading the book and learning the concepts, honestly I don't think you're ready to lose the weight... maybe you're not *there* yet... and that's ok... I've been at that point... wanting to lose weight but NOT quite ready to make the necessary changes!  maybe it's not your time yet, no problem! it's normal and common... but please let's not blame the plan for not working... it works for hundreds... I myself with my blood tests and results am proof that I've never been healthier (except for the thyroid)... and now that I just started a better treatment I have high hopes that the weight will start to give in too and I'll be happy to share those results with you!

So... what am I saying? Jump right in... head first and be willing to WORK at it... just like with everything... it will require of you some effort and discipline... yes you won't feel "the greatest" when you cut sugar off of your diet... yes... sometimes you'll feel like things don't make sense... But your health is worth the effort, the learning, the discipline and YOU are not alone... you can always ask questions and get encouragement with the thousands of THMS that are doing this... at some point it will become just part of who you are and how you do things...

Please work at it... it is worth it and you'll never want to stop eating like this to lose weight!

BTW... it's important to GET moving too! If you're interested to join me in my "From couch to half Marathon" challenge click here


© Paloma K.