OMG y’all!

 

I’ve been hesitant to say anything online because I didn’t want to Jinx it. 

But …. 

OMG y’all! 

I was awarded a new job at work.  

 

A desk job!  

But I am so nervous!

For one thing – there is so much new stuff to learn.  Can you really teach an old dog new tricks? 

But I’ve been training now since December 11^th and I am really liking the new position.  Granted, there is a LOT to learn and I probably have not even learned half of it yet.   But, watching these gals and guys that have been training me just do the job without having to think about it, there is hope that maybe eventually I, too, will be able to just do it.   Right now?  Not so much.  I probably over think everything and make it harder than it needs to be.

Granted, I have managed a video store.  And at the bank I was a loan processor.  I also was the Receptionist/Customer Service back-up.   So hopefully I am able to pick up the new job pretty quickly. 

As I said, I am nervous …. But also very excited at the same time.

For one thing.  No more hair-net!  Which means I have to get up a little earlier because I need to do more than just wash my hair and throw it up in a pony tail/bun before work.  But, then again, I am not one that has a super fancy hairstyle.  I don’t mess with hot rollers or a curling iron these days.  Blow dry and go; Long and straight.    

Another thing.  I get to wear more make-up because it’s not just gonna sweat off.  Which means, I need to get up a little earlier!  Are you seeing a pattern here?

But, I no longer come home from work with grease on my clothes, so I get to go to work wearing nice clothes and come home looking close to how I did when I went in.

I can wear my rings again!  Well, I could if they fit, that is.  Unfortunately they do not fit right now.  My hands/fingers are still swollen from blanking.  (a very hands on job)  We talked about splurging and buying me a new wedding band but I think I’d rather just have this one resized.   This one and my diamond anniversary band along with my Mother’s ring.  I just want to wait it out and see if the swelling goes down with the office job before I have them made larger …. If the swelling does go down, I don’t want to have to turn around and have them made smaller again.

In the meantime, my daughter has given me a ring to wear – just to have something on my finger.    

Anyway, back to the job,  The biggest SCARE of the job;  OMG  I hope I do not gain 10 pounds each year, like I did when I worked at the bank.

When I worked at the bank, I was not Keto and I did not weigh every day.   

In fact, I did not step on the scales, period.   I will not make that mistake again.   I may not like what I am seeing, but I do and will continue to step on the scales every day!

These days, I actually step on the scales at night, too.  I have learned that I will almost always weigh 2 pounds LESS in the AM, then I do just before I go to bed at night.

I’m also thinking that since I don’t come home from work totally wiped out , that I just may be able to make myself sit on my exercise bike for at least 10 miles each evening.  

For the past three years I have been on my feet for these 12 hour shifts.  I averaged close to 30,000 steps a day …  grabbing handful after handful of Blanks – most often 20 to 30 oz blanks – and loading them into the carts.   I had to push and mount 2000 pound rolls of paper on the machine and had to push the 2000 pound filled carts off the lift and out to be picked up by the P.I.T. operators.  I should be honest here and say attempt to push.  Many times I’d have some sweet soul working nearby that would see me failing at my attempt to move my cart and come give me a hand.   

Even though the new job is not going to be as physical, it does look like it’s going to be busy work. So hopefully I get more exercise than I think I’ll be getting once I’m on my own.  Right now there are 2 of us doing everything.   But I will be honest, I think it’s going to be more of a mental challenge than a physical one.

Anyway, with the added stress of trying to learn a new job in addition to the Holiday Stress – I decided that I picked a bad time of year to try to diet (or lose weight).  So instead of trying to get this last 15 pounds off by my birthday – I changed my goal to maintain the 5 pound loss.  My goal is to keep my weight at 135 until after the New Year. 

But come January - it is time to get serious.  I’ve given myself babystep goals.

Goal 1 is to hit 129.8 (To get in the "120s")

Goal 2 is to hit 125.

Goal 3 is to hit 120.

The ultimate goal is to hit 115 and then to keep it between 115 and 120. 

 

 

Baby Steps

Well, I thought I'd check back in with an update.

 

I didn't gain the 20 pounds overnight, I guess I can't expect to lose it overnight, either.  So I will just take it in baby steps.  

Anyway, I am officially down 5 pounds so I have 15 more to go.

I have pretty much been sticking to 2MAD (2 meals a day) with IF (Intermittent Fasting) and it is working.  Slowly.  But it is working.  

I have set a goal to be back down to 120 by my birthday.  It won't be easy.  I have Halloween, Thanksgiving and Christmas to get through before my birthday.  But if I pull it off, I will be able to start the new year with my weight back on track again.

Although, I went back and looked at my weightloss totals the first time around and it took me about 3 months to lose these last 15 pounds back in 2019.   However, I wasn't eating 2MAD with IF.  I think I can drop it quicker this time.  I sure hope so, anyway.

I hate to admit this, but I have added diet soda back into my diet.  It helps me with IF because the more liquid I drink, the fuller I feel.   I drink diet Mt Dew on my breaks at work.  And push the water when I'm out on the floor.  I am trying to make myself drink a bottle between breaks.  I do better some days than others. It depends on what I'm running.  Some machines keep me hopping and I just don't take time to stop and drink the water.  But the more I can drink, the less room I have left for food, right?

I am also back on my Protein Shakes.  I realize this is very dirty Keto.  But they do fit my macros and they also help keep me feeling full.  I don't drink them every day, but as I mentioned above, some machines are just harder to run and sometimes I just feel like I need a little more to keep me going.   And hey, it's working. The scales are finally beginning to move in the right direction again. 

I guess I'm not officially doing true IF; with true fasting I think the only thing you can have outside of your eating window is water, black coffee, tea and other non-caloric beverages.  Giving up my evening meal and trying not to eat after 1:30 pm is my version.  

So on work days, my eating window is about 5:30 am with my first cup of coffee and until about 1:25 pm when my lunch break is over.  

On my days off work I will still have my coffee in the morning, but I usually don't eat anything until noon or after.  Some days I am able to push eating late enough in the day that I can get by with just eating one meal but other times I will eat a light lunch and then an early evening meal.  I still limit my eating window - the hours just shift a bit.

Anyway, I hope I get to hop back on here again real soon to let you know I'm down another 5 pounds.  Actually, my next "baby step goal" is 5.2 pounds.  I want to be 129.8 so I can tell myself I am finally back in the 120's again!

I may pop back before then though, with some new recipes.  We've got a few new ones I've been wanting to share.  

The Struggle is Real

It’s been a couple of months since I made my last post.  So, today I decided maybe I should post a bit of an update. 

Yes, I am still struggling.  

But hey, I follow Ally McWowie on Youtube and she's in the same boat as me.  If you have not, I suggest you look her up!  She's currently doing a "lose weight with me" series as she is stuggling with getting back on track, too.  

Funny thing is, at first, for me Keto worked.  It just did.  I couldn’t figure out why it didn’t work for everyone because it just worked so easily for me.

But then, I cheated.  And I did not get sick. 

When I first started Keto I was under the impression that if you went Keto and then cheated – you would get sick.  So for the longest time, I did not cheat. 

Not knowingly, anyway.  I am sure there were times when we ate out that I ordered something that I thought was Keto, but in reality they probably added something that wasn’t “keto friendly” ...  or, they cooked in the wrong kind of oil, or something.   But for the most part, everything I ate was Keto Friendly. 

But after I cheated and didn’t get sick – cheating became too easy. 

“I had a rough day at work today.”

 “It’s the weekend, I might as well enjoy it!”

“Everything else I ate today was Keto friendly, this won’t hurt too much.”

And so on.  

I had all kinds of excuses to ‘get off track’ and "I’ll get right back at it tomorrow."

But then tomorrow, I’d get off track again.  Eventually, “cheating” became too much of a habit.  The pounds slowly crept back on.

I officially hit the point where I had gained 20 pounds.  So instead of saying I lost 62 pounds on Keto, I actually was down to only having lost 42 pounds!  Ugh! 

So, diet mode gets serious again.   

I’ve been trying to do IF (intermittent Fasting) on my days off work ... or, here lately, my DAY off work.    The past 3 weeks I have worked 60 hours a week.    

So I also have in my head, “Hey, you worked 12 hours 6 out of 7 days this week.  You deserve this!  Just look at how many steps you took – you’ve already worked it off!”

Can you tell which is my day OFF work?

Yes, unless we go for a bike ride, I will readily admit that I do not  move much on my days off work,  I'm in my recliner - playing on my computer or my phone.  Or soaking in the tub.  We might do a bit of shopping  but not enough to get a whole lot of steps in.

But anyway, the point of this blog is Yes.  I have been TRYING to get back on track.  I do slip up. But I am finding that maybe working 60 hours a week is a good way to get me back on track.  I just need to make myself stick to  my Keto Friendly Breakfast.   And my Keto Friendly Lunch. 

This week,  I am going to try and skip my evening meal.  I feel like I need my Breakfast and Lunch to get me through the work day - but when I get home at 7:30 PM, by time I take a bath - It is too late to be eating.  I just need to have a cup of tea or something - and pretty much call it a night.

So - let's see if this plan will work.   Check back and I'll let you know how it's working....

PS  So tomorrow, we have about $50 worth of CHOCOLATES coming in from the grandkids school fund raising event.  I bought about $50 in candy (stupid me) and $50 in kitchen dishes and storage.  Why didn't I just buy all non-food items?  Anyway, my goal is to eat NONE - just let the hubby have them.  

So help keep me on track!  Ask me - how much of that darn candy did I eat?

Bicycle Ride Snacks – Keto Style

We are getting ready for what we call “Bikation” - which is vacation, on a bicycle.  

We are once again going to ride the Katy Trail.  This is something Ed and I have done several times.  We’ve done it by ourselves a few times, twice with the DNR group (an organized ride with about 300 other riders), once with our friends Pam and Glen and we are getting ready to ride it for the second time with my sister Cindy & brother-in-law Rick.  

For those that haven’t heard of it, the Katy Trail is a bicycle trail that stretches 237 miles across the state of Missouri.  (You can check out a map of the Katy Trail Here)   

Ed uses his trunk bag to haul tools and spare tires and I use mine to haul ride snacks.  The trail goes through some pretty small towns and there are times when finding food is a bit of a challenge.

This blog is going to show you what we are filling my trunk with this year. We always make sure to pack plenty of ride snacks to get us by until we can get a meal.

I have a little lunchbox that I pack Cheese and Summer Sausage in with ice blocks to keep them cold.  

We stick the ice blocks in the freezer at our Hotel or B&B each night.  If we don't have access to a Freezer, we fill a ziplock bag full of ice and buy a cup of ice somewhere a long the way (Casey's) if we need more.  We also buy more cheese/sausage as needed.  We like to get the pre-cut cheese and the zero carb sausage.

  

Snacks that do not have to be kept cold are nice to have, too.  I was super excited when I spotten these pickles.  Pickles are not only a good Keto Snack but they are also a good bicycle snack as they help relieve leg cramps.  You get four of these cute little snack packs of pickles for just a little over 2 bucks.  Each pack contains about 12 tiny pickles for just 5 calories and 1 carb in each.  

I also grabbed a few bags of these pickles.  The same thing, only different.  I figure we will see which package holds up best on the bike.  And hopefully, we will be able to find more if/when we run out.

Pickles are great for leg cramps but if you are hungry, they really aren't going to help you out.  So for hungry times, I grabbed some Organic Peanut Butter.  There are 200 calories in each pouch containing 5 Carbs, 8 Protein and 17 Fat.  

Another favorite is Slim Jim Beef Sticks.  There is only 1 carb per stick in these.  When buying beef sticks, be sure to check the label because they aren't all made the same and some do have some carbs in them.  

And yes.  We also throw in some Atkins bars for a real cheat treat.  I always look them over though and try to pick one with the least amount of carbs.  I figure we are riding our bikes all day, it won't hurt us to indulge just a little.  This one is one of my favorites.  It only has 8 Total Carbs.  

We still have time and a little bit of space left to pack a few more items.  I figure we will make another run on my next (and only) day off work before Bikation.  Individual bags of nuts comes to mind.  Plus, when I grabbed the pickles I spotted a couple of other individual snack packs there that I might check out a little closer next trip.   But all in all, I feel we have a good variety.  

I'm looking forward to Bikation and confident I can eat these snacks and not kill my diet!

Keto Friendly Loaded Cauliflower Casserole

It's not very often I actually do any cooking these days. But I recently found myself in the kitchen testing out a new recipe.  For those that do not know, I work a 12 hour shift in a factory and my husband is retired, so he has taken over the duties in the kitchen.  But,  I actually had two days off in a row; a rare treat!  So I decided  I wanted to find a new side dish.

I opted for Loaded Cauliflower Casserole.

I had searched and found several different versions of this recipe and modified them to make a Keto Friendly version.

Most of the recipes I had found called for a head of fresh cauliflower,  I cheated.  I used Frozen Cauliflower.  The only thing I will do different next time, is I will buy one of the steamable bags.  That would be so much quicker and less clean-up.

You first want to cook your cauliflower.  Just steam it until it's just slightly cooked.  You do not want to over cook it. 

Spread your steamed, diced cauliflower in the bottom of a 9x13 glass dish that's been sprayed with Olive Oil.

Evenly spread a package of shredded cheddar cheese over the cauliflower.

Next, top with a bag of real bacon, bacon bits and just a little frozen, diced onion.  (Not too much as onions do add flavor, but they also add carbs.)

Then dice up 2 tablespoons of butter and evenly distribute it on top.  Sprinkle with salt, pepper and whatever other seasonings you desire, to taste.

Bake uncovered, at 350 for about 30 minutes.

And that's it.  Super simple and oh so yummy!

Keto Friendly Loaded Cauliflower

12 ounce bag of frozen cauliflower

8 ounce package of shredded cheddar cheese

2.5 ounce package of real bacon, bacon bits

1/2 cup of diced onion (fresh or frozen)

2 Tablespoons of butter, diced

salt, pepper, and other seasonings to taste.

Steam the cauliflower then put in the bottom of a casserole dish that has been sprayed with Olive Oil.

Sprinkle with the bag of shredded cheddar cheese, bacon bits, onion, butter and seasonings.

Bake at 350 for 30 minutes

Nutrional information:

8 servings   Macros:  5/69/26

189 calories

2.5 carbs

15 fat

12 protein

If desired, you can top it with 2 Tablespoons of Sour Cream, but that adds 1 carb.

Keto Friendly Pizza!

Yesterday I gave Ed a break in the kitchen and made a couple of Keto Friendly Pizzas for our evening meal.   I made two different kinds because I wanted leftovers. 

These pizzas are not your normal pizza, though.  In fact, some of you may wrinkle up your nose and say no way without even giving it a try.  

But these pizzas will probably become a regular in our household.  We liked both of them that well.  I fully expect Ed to take the recipe and run with it.   I imagine he will come up with some of his own pizza creations.

The crust is mostly made of Chicken.  Well, chicken and cheese.  The original recipe called for shredded Parmesan Cheese, but we did not have any on hand so I used shredded Fiesta Blend and it turned out fine.  There is absolutely no flour what-so-ever.  But check this out.  Does it look like a chicken crust?

I turned one chicken crust into a BBQ Chicken Pizza.

Keto BBQ Chicken Pizza

Check out that "Crust"!

I turned the other crust into a Chicken Alfredo Pizza.

   

Chicken Alfredo Pizza - before baked

I only had one pizza pan, so the Chicken Alfredo Pizza ended up being a rectangular pizza - cooked on a Cookie Sheet.  But to be honest, I think I liked that best.  It was much easier to cut and place the leftovers into dishes. 

 Chicken Alfredo Pizza

When I am the one doing the cooking, I don't remember to stop and take a photo of each step.  I sure wish I had gotten a photo of the Baked Chicken Alfredo Pizza before we ate into it and then cut and put the rest of it in the fridge for later.  Maybe next time!

Anyway,  I think the main secret to get the perfect crust, is to cook your chicken well enough that it just shreds.  I cut the boneless, skinless chicken breasts up into chunks and cooked it in the Instant Pot.  But if you don't have an Instant Pot I am sure you could just boil it on top of the stove or cook it on low for several hours in the crock pot.

Anyway!  Let's get on to the recipe!  Remember, to double everything if you want to make two pizzas - leftover pizza reheats so well.  

Chicken Crust 

4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts 

4 cubes of Chicken Bullion

Seasonings of your choice

(I used Pink Salt, Garlic Powder and a Mesquite chicken seasoning)

water

Cut the chicken into 2 inch cubes and put them in the bottom of your Instant Pot.  Toss in the Bullion Cubes and sprinkle on your seasonings.  Then cover with water.  

Pressure cook for 40 minutes.  

Release Steam & Drain.

Preheat your oven to 375 at this time.

If you are making 2 crusts, you will want to make them separately. So just use half the chicken at a time. and again, you will need to double the ingredients below.

Put the cooked chicken in mixer bowl and using the flat beater, shred the chicken. Then Add:

1 package of shredded cheese (I used Fiesta Blend)

2 eggs

1 tsp garlic powder

1 tsp pink salt

1 tsp pepper

1 tsp basil

1 tsp parsley

Mix it all together until it forms a "dough".  Add another egg, if you need to.

Line a pizza pan or cookie sheet with Parchment Paper and spray it with Olive Oil.  Then press the chicken mixture onto the pan to form your Pizza Crust.

Bake at 375 for 30 minutes.

While the first crust is baking, mix up the 2nd one.

BBQ Chicken Pizza

1 Chicken Crust

1 jar Sugar Free BBQ Sauce

1 package Real Bacon Bacon Bits

1 package Shredded Cheddar Cheese

8 oz Mesquite Smoked Chicken Breast

Parsley & Basil

any other seasonings of your choice

Spread the BBQ sauce evenly over the crust, sprinkle with toppings and  bake for 15 minutes, or until cheese is melted.

Chicken Alfredo Pizza

1 Chicken Crust

1 jar low carb Alfredo Sauce

1 package shredded Mozzarella Cheese

1 package real bacon bacon bits

8 oz Mesquite Smoked Chicken Breast

Parsley & Basil

any other seasonings of your choice

Spread the Alfredo Sauce evenly over the crust, then sprinkle with toppings.   Bake for 15 minutes or until cheese is melted.

Keto BBQ Chicken Pizza

Keto Chicken Alfredo Pizza

Keto Snack Attack

For those that don't know, I am currently off work due to hand surgery.  The being off work part has been great, other than the pain associated with recovery.  Oh yes, and the itty bitty short term disabilty paycheck.  

But, I have not been getting hardly any exercise.  For one thing, I am not walking the 25,000 to 30,000 steps six out of seven days a week while at work.  Plus, I am unable to ride my bicycle right now and my bicycle is basically the only form of exercise I get, other than work.  So, yes, I am struggling once again with the scales.  

We just got home from an out of state visit with our son & family and unfortunately, even though I tried to always make wise choices with my eating, I didn't fully succeed.  So now that we are back home, Ed and I are both Full-On Keto again!  

The other day were in a neighboring town, working on a project at our daughter's house.  Foolishly, we didn't pack anything Keto to eat.  I was thinking I would just do OMAD (One Meal A Day)  - and I'd just fast until we got home that night for our evening meal.

Unfortunately, that did not happen.  We both got to feeling like we needed something to eat.  Normally, in this situation, we'd have just dropped everything and gone to grab a bite at one of the local restaurants.  But, we just ate Mexican the day before celebrating our daughter's birthday so we really didn't want that again.  So I decided instead, to just do a Wal-mart run to grab some stuff to satisfy us until dinner.  

I ended up spending about $17 and I bought way more than we needed!  Ed has snacks leftover for when he gets hungry the next time he works over there.

Fully Cooked Bacon (0 carbs)

Beef and Cheese Sticks (less than 2 carbs for both)

Panino (2 carbs per package)

P3 Snacks - this one has Turkey, Ham and Cheddar (2 carbs for package)

Pepper Jack Cheese (2 carbs per serving)

 

We both had about 4 carbs in our snacks - and they were enough to get us to our evening meal.  And, as I said, he has plenty of snacks left over for next time.

A new Twist to Bacon

A few weeks back we found this recipe for twisted bacon strips.  They looked cute but more importantly, they looked rather yummy! We decided to give it a try and I don't believe we have made bacon any other way since!

It is a bit messy twisting the bacon but in my opinion,  the end result is well worth it. (Probably especially since Ed is the one doing the twisting!  🤣)

We have always made them using Center Cut Bacon.

 

Preheat your oven to 400.

Then line a baking sheet with foil and spray it with Olive Oil Cooking Spray.  

Then twist each slice of bacon and lay it in a single layer on the foil lined sheet.

Bake at 400 for 15 minutes. Flip the twists,  then bake another 15 minutes.

You will want to watch them closely those last few minutes because they can burn pretty quickly.   Remove when they are at your preferred doneness. 

Delicious!!!

Folios Cheese Wraps

We picked up a new product a couple of weeks ago and last night we finally got around to trying them.   We had Tacos for supper last night.

OMGosh!  This changes everything.  

The shell turned out very comparable (I think) to a hard-shell taco.  Of course, it could be because it's literally been years since I have had a hard taco shell - if I'd eaten one recently, I might not think it was comparable.  But for me, this is the new taco shell!

The package has a few serving suggestions.  One of which is for making Chips and Salsa. 

Our local Wal-mart carries both the Cheddar and Parmesan Cheese Wraps and we picked up a package of each.  We've yet to try the parmesan wraps but I see doing so in the near future.  

 

I am also anxious to see what other delicious recipes my Keto Chef creates with them.  

OMG.  an even better recipe for Keto Fried Pickles.  

Tonight, Ed modified his Roasted Cauliflower Recipe and came up with an amazing Keto Fried Pickle Recipe.  I watched him make them and have tried to write down about how much he was putting in of everything but I will be honest. He didn't measure anything except for the garlic powder and pink salt.

Ed's Keto Fried Pickles

One 5 oz package of Macs regular pork rinds, ground into crumbs
1/4 cup Italian Seasoning
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp pink salt
1 package shredded Parmesan Cheese, divided
1/4 cup Olive Oil
1 jar of no sugar added pickle slices
1 pkg real bacon, bacon bits

Preheat the oven to 425.

First step is to grind up the pork rinds.  You should end up with about 2 cups of crumbs (depending on how many pork rinds you eat while grinding them!) 😂 Pour the ground up rinds into a gallon ziplock bag. 

Before he bought this electric chopper, he would put the pork rinds into a ziplock bag and grind them using a rolling pin.  That works, too but the electric chopper grinds them up much finer.

Next, he added the Italian Seasoning. He just heavily sprinkled the pork rinds with it, maybe about 1/4 cup.

Add 1/2 tsp of Garlic Powder and 1/2 tsp of Pink Salt. 

Then he added 3 pinches of the shredded Parmesan Cheese, Maybe about half the package.  Save the rest of the cheese for later.

Zip the bag shut and mix the contents until well blended.

Lay your zero sugar pickle chips in a single layer on a cutting board lined with paper towels.  Place more paper towels on top and blot them dry. Then place the pickles in a 2nd gallon sized ziplock bag.

Pour about 1/4 cup of Extra Virgin Olive Oil over the pickles. 

Seal the bag and mix, trying to make sure each of the pickles get coated with the oil.

Once the pickles are well coated with oil, sprinkle the pork rind mixture over the pickles.  

Again, seal the bag and shake to coat the pickles with the pork rinds.

Line a baking sheet with foil and spray the foil with olive oil cooking spray.

Then spread the coated pickles in a single layer on the baking sheet.  

Sprinkle the pickles with the remaining shredded parmesan cheese.

Then top with the real bacon bits.

Bake at 425 for about 30 minutes.

As I said above, this recipe is much better than the recipe I posted the other day.  It does have more ingredients and requires a bit more work but the end result is worth it.