Archive for May, 2010


Zesty Grilled Shrimp

Filed Under: Diet by murari.vivekananda — Leave a comment
May 31, 2010

Shrimp is a bit hard to cook because they are so quick to cook.  If you overcook them, they aren’t nearly as delicious.  But here is an easy method to make a perfect grilled shrimp in no time.  And the best part is, they’re low on the glycemic index.

Ingredients

(serves 3)

  • 1 lb shrimp, shelled and de-veined.
  • 2 Tablespoons grated fresh ginger
  • 1 teaspoon dried thyme
  • 2 cloves crushed garlic
  • 3 Tablespoons lemon or lime juice
  • ¼ cup oil (olive or other)
  • ¼ teaspoon cayenne or other dried hot pepper such as pepper flakes
  • ¼ cup soy sauce
  • sugar substitute equivalent to 1 Tablespoon sugar

Directions

Choosing the shrimp: the larger the shrimp, the more expensive they become.  But, the shrimp are  easier to grill.  I prefer to save money by using medium-large shrimp.  These come labeled  “20-25″.  This count refers to the number of shrimp you get per pound.

Grilling part can be done in 2 methods.  You can use skewers or  use a rack or basket meant for vegetables.  Baskets help in grilling without letting food fall through the grate.  I’ve also heard about some other methods like using a cake cooling rack in place of a basket.  Feel free to experiment!

I prefer using one of first two methods, because I have skewers and a basket already.  If the shrimp are larger, I’ll go with the skewers.  If they are smaller, I go with the basket.

Make the marinade

Grab a fresh bowl and mix in all the ingredients except the shrimp.  Taste it and make adjustments based on your tastes.  I find balancing the flavors make the most enjoyable dishes.  When you have a mix of sweet, sour, bitter, and savory (umami!) the dish will be it’s most flavorful.  The measurements I gave are standard.  If the marinade is too sour, add a bit of the sweetener.  Keep in mind the sourness cooks out of the food when grilling.  Cooking over an open fire tends to bring out more of the savory flavors, that’s what reduces the sourness.

Marinate the shrimp for 15-20 minutes before starting to grill.

Choose some method to grill from the ones I told you about before.  If you are doing by first method put the shrimp on skewers.

Preheat the grill very hot and oil the grill or basket.  Trust me on this, you don’t want these little packets of flavor sticking to the cook surface!

Put the shrimp on the grill and let it grill on two sides.  It should take only 1-2 minutes per side.  They turn opaque when they are ready.  That’s how you know if they are ready.

If you’re working with more than 3 servings of shrimp, you’ll want to work in batches.  You don’t want to have to juggle so many skewers that some get over-done.  And you can’t load more than a pound of shrimp into a basket before you get some shrimp overdone and some under done.

Once you’ve grilled all the shrimp, plate them immediately and serve!

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Sweet Chili Turkey Breast

Filed Under: Diet by Shannon Lowder — 3 Comments
May 24, 2010

It’s that time of year again.  Time to stay outside and grill!  This time around I wanted to share a new recipe for turkey breast.  When the days get warmer, you need a little more flavor to satisfy.  This should be just the ticket!

Ingredients

Serves 4

  • 1 pound of turkey breast (split in quarters..remember your serving sizes!)
  • 2 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1 tablespoon coarse-grain mustard
  • 1 teaspoon grated lemon zest
  • 2 tablespoons lemon juice
  • 2 tablespoons honey
  • 2 teaspoons curry powder
  • 1 teaspoon Asian chile paste
  • 1 teaspoon ground turmeric

In a glass bowl, stir together the garlic, mustard, lemon zest, lemon juice, honey, curry powder, chili paste and turmeric. Rub into the breasts evenly.  Allow to marinate for at least 4 hours, if not overnight.  Your patience will be rewarded!

When you’re ready to grill, crank it up to hot to get it up to grilling temps, then cut to medium or medium-low when you’re ready to add the meat.  Remember low and slow makes stuff taste soooo much better! Considering the grill will be hotter when you start, you’ll get an awesome sear on the one side.  It’ll caramelize that honey and release all kinds of flavor!
Dealing with cuts this size, you’re only going to need to put this down for 3 – 4 minutes per side to cook it through.  Use a meat thermometer to verify it’s done!  Let the turkey rest 5 minutes, again, your patience will be rewarded!
I’d recommend pairing this with my grilled veggies, or a nice cool salad made with lots of greenery!
Enjoy!

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the start

Filed Under: Inspiration by satkins — 4 Comments
May 21, 2010

Hey guys you all have inspired to begin my own journey toward health…. I began in March after seeing that the scales would not even weigh me!!!! It was so scary to know that at one point in time I was playing college baseball and running upwards of 3-4 miles a day and now I was embarrassed to walk around the beach with no shirt on. I was ashamed for my two little kids to see me even trying to play in the backyard with them without getting winded… I was eating everything in sight, sitting behind a desk and doing nothing. I was constantly sick and tired and aches and pains were never at a loss… I have only begun my journey and a place like this is a good way to surround yourself with others on the same path… My journey began at over 315lbs and morbidly obese…. I am now at 240 lbs and still working toward a goal but its now in sight and doable… But it all began with a decision of ” it can’t be this way”…. Myself and my family deserves more!!!!

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New Experiences

Filed Under: Exercise, Inspiration by Shannon Lowder — 1 Comment
May 19, 2010

Shannon On the Hard PathI’ve always wanted to go rock climbing.  Being a big guy sort of made that dream just that, a dream.  This past Saturday, That All changed.  My friends worked it out so we would go to the U.S. National Whitewater Center for my bachelor’s party.  Originally we were just going to hit the rafting.

But as soon as we got there, I saw the wall.  I’d always wanted to try it… so I said “we’re doing this,”  referring to the rock wall.  Immediately John and Blake said they’d go too.  We signed up for an early afternoon time to go climbing.

In the mean time  we went rafting.  That was a blast!  We took on both the class 2-3 run and the class 3-4 run.  We’d made it through four runs without throwing any one out.  We even got to play rescue when the raft ahead of us lost all their passengers, except for the guide.  We got to pull four  people out of the drink, and get them back to their boat.

Finally the guide asks us what we want to do for the last run, so I ask to go “surfing” again.  That’s where you get the raft in just the right spot it stays put while the water moves around you.  You usually get soaked doing this!  So we head back around to the class 2-3 side.  Our guide thought he’d add a little spice to the mix, by going in backwards.  The water started rushing by, and caught the boat in a way that caused it to flex.

I turn around to see what’s going on just in time to see Danny go flying off the raft, followed shortly thereafter by Jason.  I have never laughed so hard in my life!

We fished them out, and headed back to shore. We were ready for the next challenge…. The wall!

John was the first up.  He made it up the easy run no problem.  So I said, alright… let’s do this!  I made it up as easily as making it up a ladder.  So I head over to the medium… I make it up that no problem.

About that time, I see Jason cinching up his harness!  He heads up the easy and medium runs too without a problem!  Way to go man!

Blake proceeds to 1-up us by trying the hard run.  He makes it about 3 spots from the top.  We were all cheering him on, but he just ran out of juice.  So of course, I think I can do it better.  I get about 3.4 of the way up, and the hand-holds just disappear!  So I failed too.

Jason, with his bad-self gives it a go and makes it to the same spot as Blake… but still no dice.

I have one thing to say: That’s our goal!  We’re not stopping until we can beat all the runs on this wall!

We were running out of time, so I thought I’d give one more go on a run that had a “natural” look to it… I get about 1/2 way up, and I was just spent… No dice there.

But my challenge still holds.  We’re taming that wall!  Nothing can stop us!

Do you have a dream?  Do you have a goal?  How are you making it happen?  What’s stopping you? Let me know… I’d like to motivate each and every one of you to make your dreams happen. To quote Nike…Just DO IT!

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Grilled Veggies

Filed Under: Diet by Shannon Lowder — 1 Comment
May 14, 2010

This is a ridiculously simple recipe.  If you don’t have a grilling basket, get one.  I found mine at The Home Depot.  This recipe has infinite variation, but here are the basics

  1. Preheat your grill to medium-high.
  2. Grab 3 -4 different veggies (I usually grab onion, bell pepper, and carrots) and roughly chop them into 1″ chunks
  3. Spray a healthy dose of non-stick spray on the grilling basket.
  4. Dump the veggies in the basket and put over the heat.
  5. Toss some fresh herbs over the mix (I usually go with oregano, basil, or rosemary)
  6. You should get a nice sear on the bottom in five minutes.  After you get that sear, keep the veggies moving for another 5 minutes, or until they are just beginning to soften, any more than that, and they start to lose their nutritional goodness.
  7. If you want a real treat, toss 2 tablespoons of pineapple, lemon, or your favorite citrus juice (freshly squeezed) over the entire mix just after the sear for an awesome kick to the taste buds!

Plate the mix, and let rest for three to five minutes before serving.  This rest helps all those flavors come together.  My biggest fan tells me she could eat nothing but my grilled veggies for the rest of her life and never grow tired of them.  I hope you find the same to be true!

If you have any combination of veggies you’d like to share, send in your comments below!   I look forward to trying some out.

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Nomlette

Filed Under: Diet, Inspiration by jbender — 1 Comment
May 12, 2010

First allow me to preface this with what a nom is. Nom can mean the exaggerated sound made when someone is eating or the mocking of the action or noise of eating. It can also mean food. It is meant to be playful. We are going to go with the food side of the nom with a delicious morning treat I call a Nomlette. A nomlette is based on its primary ingredient: Egg Beaters. A lot of people just don’t like egg beaters, I was one of them. When I first started my diet they tasted bland. There are two reasons for this. First when you start your diet your brain is looking for a lot of high fat, high calorie foods that it is used to. I’ll go into more detail on my research about this later but on to the second reason. Simply put, I suck at cooking. Luckily for me about two weeks in I discovered my favorite veggitable nourishment: Sauteed Mushrooms and Onions. This is what gives the nomlette its nom-ness and cranks the nom-o-meter up to 11. So without further ado the old family recipe (about 7 months or so) of the Nomlette.

I don’t do much measuring. really the only thing to not over do is the Olive oil. Just enough to cover the bottom of the pan will do. This does three things: 1. Allows us to cook the mushrooms and onions just enough before adding the egg. 2. I will act as the lubricant for the Nomlette to not stick to the pan. 3. It will add a little bit o flavor to the dish. Heat the oil on medium to low heat. It’s ready when you drop a test onion in and it starts to sizzle a bit. Add the onions and let them cook for about 3 mins. Add the mushrooms. These will decrease in size so you can be somewhat liberal with them. Right when the onions begin to become translucent add some garlic powder. Let that cook for a minute or two then add the Egg Beaters. Right before the inner fold becomes one solid piece I will open it back up and stuff it with fat free feta cheese and a crumbled slice or two of turkey bacon.  Once completed I will smother with whatever hot sauce is around and its good to go.  I tend to make my Nomlettes large, so if need be cut it in half and you have to breakfasts for the price and or time of one!

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History

Filed Under: Inspiration by jbender — Leave a comment
May 4, 2010

I, like a few other friends on this blog, was big for quite some time. Middle school was when it hit for me. I always figured it would even itself out, even if there was no evidence to support that thought. This continued into high school and I went along with it buying larger and larger clothing as I increased in size. Interestingly enough, when I got out of high school I wasn’t able to drive due to a seizure disorder, so, I walked everywhere. I lost about 40 Lbs in 3 months, which put me right at 240. That’s awesome right? Not really. I did it wrong. While the exercise was great, my dietary intake was horrible. My appetite increased and I was eating almost triple what I normally ate. That’s right, triple. You can only imagine what happened when I hurt my knee and was unable to walk like I had been. If you said “huge weight gain” then you win. No, there is no prize for a correct answer. So now I have completely undone what I had worked for and the trend of weight gain had started back. I let this go on for about 6 years before I decided on two things. First I needed to get my knee fixed and second I needed to lose the weight. Knee surgery isn’t fun, but it was necessary. Going to a doctor about my weight wasn’t fun, BUT IT WAS NECESSARY. We take care of every other aspect of our health or life so why not our weight?

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Lemon – Garlic Chicken

Filed Under: Diet by Shannon Lowder — Leave a comment
May 4, 2010

I like my flavor a little stronger than most, if you like a milder flavor, I’d start with half my measurements on the Garlic, Lemon, and pepper.  But if you like a strong flavor that wakes up your taste buds and is healthy too, then this one is for you!

Ingredients

(Serves 4)

  • 2 chicken breasts (remember your serving sizes! Chicken portions should be 3oz.)
  • 1 lemon
  • 6 cloves of garlic (4 tablespoons of minced)
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • ½ teaspoon salt, kosher (thanks AB!)
  • 1 tablespoon,  ground pepper

Preheat the oven to 375, and grab an oven-safe dish, hit it with non-fat cooking spray.  Add the chicken to the dish.

grab a small bowl, and add the oil.

Zest the lemon if you know how, remember yellow good, white bad!  Add the zest to the oil.  Remove all the pith from the lemon, roughly chop the lemon, then add it, and as much juice as you can to the oil.

If you’re using garlic cloves, mince them and add to the oil mixture.  If you’re using the pre-minced, add it to the mixture too.

Finally, add the salt and pepper, then mix everything together into a wet paste.

Slather that all over the chicken (don’t forget the underside of the chicken!).

Cover the dish with foil, put it in the hot box and cook for 30 minutes covered.  Then remove the foil and continue for another 5 or until the chicken is done throughout.  If you aren’t sure when chicken is done, please invest in a meat thermometer.

I like serving this with a big salad.  Remember dressing is bad!  Try straight balsamic vinegar or salsa instead!  If you must use dressing, use as little as possible!  Those dressings can be nothing but fat and sugar, look out!

If you enjoy this meal let me know!  I have several…If you’re handy with a grill, I have a way to get everyone to eat their veggies coming in a future post!

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Diet Changes — Eating Low Glycemic Index Foods

Filed Under: Inspiration by Shannon Lowder — 1 Comment
May 3, 2010

Please note: I’m not a doctor. This is up here because I’ve been asked again and again how I lost the weight. If you want professional advice, please seek it from a doctor. My results are typical only for my friends and I, and everyone else who has worked with our doctor.

One of the biggest wake-up calls I got from my doctor when I began this process was diet foods don’t help you lose weight.  You have to look at how that food affects your body.  You could cut calories all day, but if you’re getting high amounts of starches: corn, potatoes, bread, rice… you’re making it much more difficult to drop weight.

The other part of watching what you eat…learning how your body responds to the food you eat.  Many of you have heard of the Atkins’ diet.  All meat, no carbs.  That’s crap.  You need carbs for energy.  But the type of carbs, now that is important. Some carbs cause your body to produce larger amounts of insulin than other foods.  Insulin in the body helps your body store more energy in the form of fat.

The trick is to choose foods that reduce the amount of foods in your diet that cause your body to produce those high amounts of insulin. The lower the insulin levels, the easier it is on your body to shed weight. There’s another added benefit to eating lower glycemic index foods, they take longer for your body to break down, and therefore you stay full longer!

Check out glycemicindex.com.  You’ll find a database of foods there.  You’ll find there are three categories of foods: high, medium, and low.  The lower on that scale you stay, the better.  The lower Glycemic Index foods take longer to break down.  And that means… you got it, lower insulin responses.

In future posts, I’ll share with you some of the recipies and tricks I’ve found for staying lower on that scale.  It’s actually about as easy as avoiding starches.  Depending on how easy you find that to be!  I’m going to close this by saying this: if you think your health is affected by your weight, deciding to do something about it is far more difficult than actually doing something about it.  Once your mind is made up, the body will follow. follow Nike’s advice: Just do it!

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