So a couple of years ago, I decided that it was time for me to get back to working out again. I was a fairly new parent of a beautiful little girl and I wanted to make sure that I was there for her for as long as possible so it was time to lose some weight and get some excersize. Afterall, I was in my early 30's and certainly wasn't getting any younger. I swore to myself at that point that I was not going to fall victim to any fad diets (or any diets period). Why? The answer is simple: I ENJOY FOOD! I love food and believe that life is indeed too short to warrant putting yourself through the grinder of fad diets. Believe me, I've tried them. They're no fun. Even the one that says you can eat a pound of bacon but you cannot touch a piece of whole wheat bread (really?). Even the Special K diet that says you can lose a pants/dress size in a week be eating 2 of your 3 meals a day with Special K products isn't enticing (that one DOES NOT work by the way). In the end, I think we can all agree that most fad diets are just that; fads. They give you the facade of losing weight and being healthy but they are not sustainable. I mean, come on, are you really not going to eat bread for the rest of your life?
With that being said, in my workings out over the past 2 years, I've lost roughly 40 lbs and 4 inches off my waist line. It feels great. However, I hit a plateau about mid year last year and was struggling to find new ways to work out and most importantly: lose the spare tire around my waist. This is quite literally one of the only parts of my body that I take issue with these days. The middle 30% of my body seems to be something that has plagued many a man in his 30's. It is quite possibly the most difficult place to lose weight on a man (for women, it's the thighs and backside) and can be very frustrating to deal with when you spend 60 minutes a day 5 days a week at the gym like you're supposed to.
So I started to read up on the subject of love handles and the spare tire. I found out that there are 3 things that are imporant to toning that part of your body: plenty of cardio, core resistance training and most imporantly decreasing your carb and sugar intake. It is in that spirit, that I have decided not to go on the Atkins Diet or The Zone, but to simply decrease the carbs that I eat and virtually eliminate the sugary desserts for a while. That is not to say that I won't have any dessert or pizza or anything like that. And it certainly isn't to say that I won't write about those things on here. It's just saying that I have a goal in mind and a little adjustment in my personal diet is needed in order to achieve that goal. Again, the key words are "a little". I am not a fan of dieting or making yourself miserable so little is changing here. But sometimes, it's the little changes that make the biggest difference.
It is in the spirit that I present you with my lunch recipe from yesterday: Asian Spiced Turkey and Broccoli
Ingredients:
1 lb ground turkey
1 bag of frozen broccoli
1 Tsp Ground Ginger
1 Tbsp Soy Sauce
Salt and pepper to taste
Brown the turkey and drain. Return turkey to pan and add the cooked broccoli, ginger, soy sauce and seasonings.
Sounds to simple doesn't it? I know but it is quite good and VERY low in carbohydrates. One bit of advice is to watch the salt. This dish already has soy sauce in it so the sodium content is pretty high. Still, like I said before, I won't compromise taste for a diet so season however you like! I enjoyed this with a Carb and Sugar Control Yogurt and a bottle of water right after I got back from the gym. It was great! And it kept me full much longer that the usual sandwich lunch did. Overall, I was pleased.
So far, I'm off to a good start in my battle against "The Tire". That is, until my father-in-law comes to visit this weekend and we go out to dinner at a local steakhouse and perhaps out to brunch at a place known for their beignets!
Cheers!
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