Tag Archives: PointsPlus

Number one!

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I have a confession to make…I am a magazine junkie. One in particular that I absolutely love is Consumer Reports. I know, not what you expected was it?

I have purchased many items based on how something was rated in Consumer Reports. Weird? Maybe. But I don’t care. I figure, “Why not let someone else do the research for me!”

Well, we received our February 2013 issue recently and as my husband was perusing through it, he was quick to point out an article he knew I would be interested in…VERY interested in, as a matter of fact.

It’s just another example of why I am so thrilled/excited/blessed to work for such an awesome company – Weight Watchers – the best weight loss/healthy living plan around (at least in my opinion!).

Not only are we rated the number one weight loss program by U.S. News and World Report, we also now received the highest score in the commercial weight loss plans in Consumer Reports. Yeah!

I know, I am probably not supposed to do what I am about to do, but I am super excited about the article, so I am sharing all with you! I tried highlighting some of it, but when I scanned it in, the highlighted part doesn’t really show up. If you don’t want to take the time to read the whole article, at least look at page four, where the headline reads: “Get the most out of Weight Watchers.”

It’s AWESOME information!

So, without further ado, here’s the article (all four pages of it!):

Page 1

Page 2

Page 3

Page 4

So, that’s it. Pretty cool, huh?

I’m. Not. Tracking.

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I am on vacation in Las Vegas, Nevada and I am not tracking.

There, I said it.

I made a plan before I left where I gave myself a 5-pound leeway. I am okay if I end up gaining five (5) pounds. Really, truly, I am.

On Friday, which is when we left, I weighed myself at home and I was at 144.4, which was actually pretty good considering I have been maintaining at about 148. I was actually pretty happy with what the scale said. So, I decided that I was okay if….and I mean IF….I end up gaining five pounds while we are vacationing in Vegas.

And, I have absolutely no intentions of tracking. None. At all. Nada.

For those of you who are Weight Watchers members, you will know what a big deal this is. For those of you who aren’t, in WW, we track everything. And, I mean EVERYTHING. Or at least I usually track everything.

By that, I mean that everything I eat – every last morsel – gets recorded and assigned what we call a PointsPlus Value. But, while on this vacation, I have absolutely no intentions of tracking. Anything. At. All.

HOWEVER….and this is a pretty big however. I plan on keeping my portions in check. I plan to not go overboard (except for maybe a few more beverages than I usually have!). I plan on getting in lots of activity (of course, I will be wearing my ActiveLink! And I can’t wait to see what kind of activity points I will be getting!), and I plan on taking photos of everything I eat, which will help in keeping my portions and my choices in check.

I know this is not usually the ideal situation, but, when it comes to vacations, my philosophy is that I want to have fun, but at the same time, I don’t want to go overboard. I don’t want to be consumed by Weight Watchers. I want to have fun, indulge and yet, still have a plan. By setting myself up for a five-pound gain, I am not setting myself up to fail; I am setting myself up to succeed. I know I won’t actually gain those five pounds – or at least I really don’t think I will – but, by allowing myself to do will not make me feel upset or guilty or bad if I actually do.

I hope this makes sense. It makes perfect sense in my mind.

So, my dear readers, wish me luck on this vacation as I am about to embark on my biggest quest so far…running a half-marathon down Las Vegas Boulevard!

Stay tuned for an update after Sunday evening’s race!

 

A simple, but delicious date night dinner

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My husband and I discovered that we really love tuna steaks – ahi tuna, albacore tuna, yellowfin tuna – you name it, we love it. However, unlike much of the world, we don’t like tuna tar-tar, which is pretty much raw tuna. We love it grilled – all the way through. When cooked all the way, tuna really can be compared to eating a pork chop – or at least that’s what we think!

Last night (Saturday, April 21), we dined on a wonderfully simple recipe my husband found on the Internet called Grilled Mediterranean Ahi Tuna. Although it didn’t have very many ingredients, it had a lot of flavor. We paired it with a Weight Watchers recipe, roasted asparagus and red peppers. Again, simple, but oh-so-flavorful!

Below are pictures of our meal and the recipes. Enjoy!

The meal!

Close up of the tuna

Close up of the veggies

The tuna recipe

The veggie recipe

Disgusted and appalled!

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This week in my Weight Watchers meetings our topic was portions and portion control. One of my members recently returned from Las Vegas and shared a story with our group. I think the entire time she spoke, my jaw – along with everyone else’s jaws – were hanging on the floor.

Heart Attack Grill.

Have you ever heard of it? I wish I never had. In a world where obesity is now an epidemic and continues to spiral out of control, restaurants such as this should not be able to open. Plain and simple, they should not exist. It is utterly disgusting and repulsive. They celebrate obesity like it’s a good thing.

I mean, seriously, HEART ATTACK GRILL??????? What kind of name is that anyway? You want your customers to HAVE a heart attack? Like this is something good? Obviously, you don’t value peoples’ lives. I am angered by this restaurant. Seriously angered. How can the owner celebrate obesity? How can the owner celebrate an unhealthy lifestyle? Why does the owner wish ill health upon customers?

So, what is this restaurant all about? Well, for starters, if you weigh over 350 pounds, you get to eat for free. Really? You’ve got to be kidding me. There is a scale to weigh the customers and it’s not in private. Oh no, it’s in-your-face in front of everyone so people can cheer you on, hoping and wishing you tip the scale over that 350-pound mark so you can eat for free. And by the way, cheering heavy people on? What? What the hell is this world coming to? Utter disgust.

The waitresses, apparently, are dressed in nurses outfits. Really? Like if someone had a heart attack they would know what to do. Don’t think so. And speaking of that, apparently some guy had a heart attack in the restaurant recently and had to be taken by ambulance to the hospital. Really? It was publicized like it was cool. O.M.G!!!!!!!! Give me a break. Luckily, the guy didn’t die.

Shouldn’t this be a wake-up call? Come on people…QUIT patronizing the restaurant!!!!!!! Quit celebrating obesity!!!!! Quick celebrating an unhealthy lifestyle!!!!!!

I found some pictures, via the restaurants website, that I thought I would share with you all. Really, I can’t even find the right words anymore to explain how disgusted I am. It truly is repulsive. Plain and simple.

Check ‘em out:

The outside of the building

Yep, here are the waitresses (I'll keep my comments to myself on this one!)

Apparently, this is called the quadruple burger. For real? I wonder how many Points Plus Values this has?

The outside of the menu

The inside of the menu

Can you feel my blood pressure rising? This is so utterly ridiculous. But I guess it fits in Vegas, doesn’t it?

Like P.F. Chang’s lettuce wraps? Try these!

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Last week, one of my Weight Watchers members gave me a recipe for lettuce wraps. The recipe was supposed to be similar to P.F. Chang’s signature lettuce wraps. Well, I am here to tell you…they were DELICIOUS! And yes, very close to the ones at the wonderful Chinese restaurant.

My guess, however, is that these are just a wee-bit healthier!

My awesomely, wonderful chef-of-a-husband made them for us today. Because I enjoyed them so much, I thought I would share the recipe with all of you. So, here you go…ENJOY!

Turkey mixture

1 lb extra lean ground turkey

8 scallions, white & green part chopped

1 can (8 oz) water chestnuts, drained, rinsed & chopped

1 red bell pepper, chopped fine

1/4 cup reduced-sodium soy sauce

2 1/2 tbsp hoisin sauce

1 tbsp ginger (either from a jar or freshly grated)

1 tbsp water

2 tsp sesame oil

1 large head butter lettuce, washed, dried & leaves separated

Sauce

1/4 cup reduced-sodium soy sauce

2 tbsp seasoned rice vinegar

1 tbsp sugar

1/2 tbsp ginger (either from a jar or freshly grated)

1 tsp sesame oil

1/2 tsp garlic

1. In a large pan, brown the turkey, breaking up the pieces. Pour into a colander in the sink and drain the fat. Return chicken to pan. When cool enough to handle, break the turkey into pieces until minced.

2. Add the scallions, water chestnuts, red pepper, soy sauce, hoisin sauce, ginger, water and sesame oil. Cook for a few minutes until the scallions and red pepper are soft. Keep warm.

3. In a small bowl, add all the dipping sauce ingredients together and mix well.

4. To assemble each wrap, spoon about 2/3 cup mixture onto one lettuce leaf, top with about one teaspoon of sauce and then roll it up and enjoy!

Makes: 8 lettuce wraps – Use about 2/3 cup mixture, one lettuce leaf & 1 tsp of dipping sauce per wrap

PointsPlus Value per serving: 2

Lettuce wraps

Is it time for a new start?

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The new year is almost here, which is always a great time to jump on board the healthy living train. But nothing says you have to wait until the new year. Why not start now?

If you have ever thought about joining Weight Watchers, why not come to a meeting to check us out. Everyone is always invited to attend one meeting for free. So, what are you waiting for. Come visit me and my staff to find out about the program – which by the way was rated as the number one weight loss diet (Yes, I despise this word, but whatever) by U.S. News and World Report.

Below, I have listed all the meetings that I do each week. You can also go to the Weight Watchers website and click on the “meeting finder” to find one if your area. Click here for more information.

Okay, so here is where you can find me each week:

Monday

CentraCare Clinic, Melrose – weigh-in starts at noon and the meeting starts at 12:30 p.m.

Senior Center, Sauk Centre – weigh-in starts at 5:30 p.m. and the meeting starts at 6 p.m.

Tuesday

PrimeWest Health, Alexandria – weigh-in starts at 6:45 a.m. and the meeting starts at 7:15 a.m.

University of Minnesota-Morris – weigh-in starts at 11:45 a.m. and the meeting starts at 12:15 p.m.

Morris Community Library, Morris – weigh-in starts at 4:30 p.m. and the meeting starts at 5 p.m.

Wednesday

Senior Center, Alexandria – weigh-ins start at 7:30 a.m., 9:30 a.m. and 11:30 a.m. and the meetings start at 8 a.m., 10 a.m. and 12:15 p.m.

Ambulance Garage, Wheaton – weigh-in starts at 3:30 p.m. and the meeting start at 4 p.m.

Thursday

Encore Capital Credit, St. Cloud – weigh-in starts at 10 a.m. and the meeting starts at 10:30 a.m.

Wolters Kluwer, St. Cloud – weigh-in starts at 12 p.m. and the meeting starts at 12:30 p.m.

Glacial Ridge Hospital, Glenwood – weigh-in starts at 5 p.m. and the meeting starts at 5:30 p.m.

Friday

Weight Watchers Center, Waite Park – weigh-in starts at 11:45 a.m. and the meeting starts at 12:15 p.m.

If you have any questions about Weight Watchers or the meetings, PLEASE send me an email and I will do my best to answer! You can send an email to celbeam@gmail.com. I would LOVE to hear from you!!!!!

Here’s this week’s recipe!

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Yes, I know it is after Thanksgiving, but I am going to share with you the recipe I used for a crustless pumpkin pie that my family enjoyed on Thanksgiving. It was quite tasty; even my mom and dad liked it.

I know I will definitely make it again.

Oh, and on a little side note, if you by chance don’t have any vanilla extract in your cupboards, feel free to use vanilla-flavored vodka. It works.

See, the thing is, I don’t bake. Ever. So that means, I don’t have the necessary baking ingredients on hand. Ever. I even had to borrow a pie plate from my mom because I don’t own one. This was my first time EVER making a pie in my whole life. Anyway, back to the vodka.

When we realized we didn’t have any vanilla extract, my husband suggested I Google substitutes for the flavoring, so I did. People had suggestions for rum, brandy and other alcohol, so I thought what the heck. I remembered that we had a little sample bottle of UV Cake vodka and cake basically tastes like vanilla, so I used it. And….it worked just fine. OK, granted it was just a teaspoon of it!

So, here is the recipe (made with vanilla extract) and a picture for you to enjoy:

15 oz can pumpkin

3/4 cup egg substitute (like Egg Beaters)

12 oz can fat-free evaporated milk

1/2 tsp salt

3 tsp pumpkin pie spice

1 tsp vanilla extract

2/3 cup Splenda

1. Preheat oven to 400ºF.

2. Combine all ingredients in a medium-sized bowl. Mix until smooth.

3. Pour into a 9-inch pie plate.

4. Bake at 400ºF for 15 minutes and then bake for another 45 minutes at 325ºF.

5. Pie is done when knife inserted in the center comes out clean.

Makes: One 9-inch pie

Serving size: 1/8 of the pie

PointsPlus values per serving: 2

Weight Watchers Crustless Pumpkin Pie

A couple of recipes for you to enjoy!

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Hello everyone. I guess last week kind of got away from me. I had promised to post the recipe for Kale Chips and never did. Sorry about that. Well, I am posting it now, along with a  recipe for Cranberry-Orange Relish that is excellent and would make a great side dish to Thursday’s Thanksgiving meal.

Enjoy the recipes!

KALE CHIPS

2 cups fresh kale leaves

Non-stick cooking spray, preferably butter flavor

Salt, to taste

1. Preheat over to 425º.

2. Place kale leaves on a baking sheet sprayed with non-stick spray. Spritz leaves with the cooking spray and sprinkle with salt.

3. Bake in the oven until crispy, about 5-8 minutes.

Makes: 1 serving.

PointsPlus values per serving: 0

This is what the kale looks like before you bake it.

This is what the kale looks like after you bake it. So delicious!

CRANBERRY-ORANGE RELISH

12 oz fresh cranberries

1 medium orange, cut into chunks (save half of the peeling)

1 cup Splenda

1 piece fresh ginger root (about 1 inch)

1/4 tsp cinnamon

1. Put cranberries, orange, orange peel, Splenda, ginger and cinnamon in a food processor; pulse until finely chopped.

2. Scrape into a serving bowl. Cover and refrigerate until ready to use.

3. You can make this relish up to 5 days ahead of time.

Makes: About 3-4 cups

Serving size: 1/4 cup

PointsPlus values per serving: 1

Cranberry-Orange Relish (photo courtesy of realmomkitchen.com)

 

Weekly recipe and MORE!

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Before I get to the recipe this week, I thought I would share how things have been going.

Well, good and not so good. As most of you know, I have lost 50 pounds. When I was in the losing mode, everything seemed easier. Weird, isn’t it. This whole “maintaining” thing is harder than I thought. Yes, I have been maintaining my weight now for nearly two years, but I liked when I was in the losing mode a lot better.

So why is that, you ask? Not entirely sure, but my guess is because I actually had a goal, something to strive for. I know what you’re thinking, I do have a goal now…to maintain and keep it up, but it’s just not the same. It’s hard to explain. For the most part, I am maintaining…I am keeping my weight between 140 and 142 pounds, although sometimes, it creeps up to that 144-145 mark. I have tried to keep it between 136-138 pounds, but for some reason, that is just too difficult. So, I have relaxed a little and am okay with keeping it between 140-142.

I know I should be happy with that considering my actual goal weight is 155! And I am happy, don’t get me wrong. It’s just sometimes, I really wish it was easier. For the most part, I have wonderful, GREAT days, but there are times, like in the past couple of days, where things have gotten a little out of control; a little ugly, if you will.

Here’s a little example of some items I have consumed in the last couple of days…a medium-sized peanut cup blizzard from the Dairy Queen, a rather large rice crispy bar, several piece of candy, a small-ish bag of cheddar cheese puffcorn, a small-ish bag of Fliptz pretzels (white chocolate covered pretzels!) AND…a four-piece chicken strip basket from Dairy Queen. Yes, there was more, but I didn’t track (yes, shame on me) so I really don’t even know what else there was.

See, that’s the thing, this happens every so often. I have this kind of “binge” eating and then I stop and everything goes back to normal and I am “good” again. That’s the part that frustrates me and I wish I could explain WHY it happens. I guess I should just be happy that it doesn’t spiral downward into something more and that it DOES only last a couple of days.

Well, anyway, those were my thoughts this morning so I thought I would share. I am back on track again starting today and so far it feels pretty darn good – oh wait, I guess it is only 5:30 in the morning!!!!

Here is my recipe this week…homemade hummus. Yes, I made this myself, without a recipe. Yep, I just threw this stuff together and I have to say it turned out pretty darn good. You can eat the hummus with pita chips or some other cracker-type item, but I find it is best with crudités – or even simpler terms, cut up raw veggies! My favorites are fresh zucchini and celery, although bell peppers are also very good with the hummus dip.

Hope you enjoy as much as we did!

HOMEMADE HUMMUS

15 oz can of garbanzo beans (chick peas)

1 bell pepper, red or green, chopped

2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

3 tbsp water

3 cloves garlic, minced

2 tbsp cumin

1 tsp salt

1. Put all ingredients into a food processor and blend until desired consistency.

2. Use spatula to scrap down sides to make sure all ingredients are well-blended.

3. Serve with crudités (raw veggies), such as zucchini, summer squash, celery, cucumbers, bell peppers, etc.

Total servings: about 8

Serving size: about 1/4 cup

PointsPlus value per serving: 2

Homemade hummus

Check out this week’s recipe!

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Hello all! I am actually remembering to post my recipe this week.

My husband and I are in love with couscous. It is such a versatile grain and can have just about anything added to it. We think it is more versatile than brown rice or even quinoa. At any rate, we found a new couscous – Israeli couscous, which is bigger than normal couscous and has a slightly different taste.

We found ours at Trader Joe’s in Maple Grove, but I am pretty sure you can find it in other stores as well. Although, it maybe harder to find in smaller towns. The first time we made it, we followed the recipe that was on the back of the box. The next time, we changed it up a bit and added our own twist on it. The recipe I am including is the one from the box with bell peppers added to it. I am including two pictures – one from the first time we made it and one from the second time.

Hope you enjoy it as much as we did!

Here’s the recipe:

3 tbs margarine

1/4 cup pine nuts

1/2 cup shallots, diced

1 1/2 cups Israeli couscous

1/2 cinnamon stick

1 3/4 cup fat-free, reduced-sodium chicken broth

1 red bell pepper, chopped

1 green bell pepper, chopped

Zest from half a lemon

1 bay leaf

1. Melt 1 tbs of margarine in a large saucepan over medium-high heat. Add pine nuts and stir until golden brown. Transfer to small bowl.

2. Melt remaining 2 tbs of margarine in the same pan over medium heat. Add shallots and bell peppers and sauté until softened or shallots are golden in color. Add dry couscous, cinnamon stick and bay leaf; stirring often until couscous slightly browns.

3. Add chicken broth and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low, cover and simmer until liquid is absorbed and couscous is tender. Remove from heat and stir in lemon zest and pine nuts. Remove bay leaf and cinnamon stick before serving.

Serves: 6

PointsPlus value per serving: 6

Here are the pictures:

The first couscous

The second couscous