|
July 25, 2010
|
Healthy Thoughts/Healthy Actions
Weight Watchers Newsletter #70
|
|
|
|
|
Hi Everyone!
Those of you coming to some of the meetings of late have noticed the "slimming down" of attendance as summer progresses. Ah, summer. Time of BBQs, vacations, kids home, and somehow Weight Watchers no longer seems a priority.
Why does this happen? Why is it every summer we see our attendance drop at meetings, sometimes as much as 50%! I know some of you are out of town, and that is great, but what about the rest of you? Did 4th of July derail you and you tell yourself as soon as you lose the weight you gained you'll come back? Or have you made up that it's a lost cause, what with all the parties and socializing you do this time of year?
Whatever you're telling yourself it is not serving you. WW should be like AA for those of us who are challenged by food. By dropping out of meetings we give ourselves permission to abuse food. If you were a sober alcoholic (I am guessing a few of you are), would you quit AA knowing you might indulge again? It is the same thing.
So whenever you're ready I hope you will come back in and join us again. We miss you! Let's celebrate this glorious time of year together!
|
|
|
MEETING TOPICS:
WEEKS OF
July 25 & August 1, 2010
The week of July 25th we delve into the topic
STOP THE EAT-A-THON!!
 Ever feel like all you want to do is eat? What's up with that? Let's explore the reasons we go into these endless eating zones and what to do about them.
The week of August 1st the topic is
What are your goals in coming to Weight Watchers? Are they set in stone and will you be upset if you do not reach them? How flexible are you? How realistic are your goals? Sometimes we set ourselves up for failure when we set our expectations too high. This meeting we'll discuss SMART goals, which is a unique way of looking at goal-setting.
|
RECIPES FOR THIS ISSUE
Thank you to Nona from the Santa Rosa meeting who sent this delicious sounding Lentil Salad recipe, and I decided to put in my all-time favorite recipe for Oatmeal Pancakes (this recipe is always available on my website) as it is a great way to use over-ripe summer fruit.
For more great recipes check out the recipe page on my website:
HEALTHY THOUGHTS/HEALTHY ACTIONS RECIPES
Lemony Lentil Salad
For the roasted vegetables:
Ingredients:
3 medium carrots, cut in half lengthwise, then 1 inch segments
1 red onions, cut in 8 wedges from root end
1 medium fennel bulb, cut in 1/4 inch wedges from root end
1 tsp olive oil
1/2 tsp fennel seeds, crushed
1/4 tsp salt
1/8 tsp black pepper
Mix all together. Roast veggies on lower oven rack at 425 for 25 minutes
covered and additional 20 minutes uncovered. Cool veggies.
Dice for salad. Grated zest and juice of 1 lemon 1 TBS honey Dijon mustard 2 tsp olive oil 1 tsp honey 1/2 tsp salt 1 package Steamed Lentils 17.6oz (Trader Joe's) 1 shallot, minced 2 tomatoes, diced 1 cup chopped celery
Directions:
Whisk the lemon zest and juice, mustard, oil,
honey and salt in large bowl. Add cooled veggies, lentils, shallot, tomatoes,
and celery. Toss to coat.
4 Huge Servings 5 points per Serving
OATMEAL PANCAKES
Ingredients:
1/2 cup egg
whites or egg beaters
1 cup applesauce or other mashed fruit (banana, peach, apricot,
etc)
1/2 cup rolled oats
1/2 cup oatbran*
xylitol or zsweet to taste
1/2 cup blueberries., strawberries,
chopped or other berries
Instructions:
Spray a
non-stick frying pan with spray oil and heat
Mix all ingredients together
and make 3" or smaller pancakes. These will be slightly crumbly, so do not make
too large.
*I changed the recipe by adding oatbran, which makes a
more solid pancake. You can use all rolled oats instead, but do not use all
oatbran or these come out too dry.
This entire batch is 8pts, which is equivalent to 20-24 3"
pancakes. I eat 10 of these little pancakes for 4 pts! They are great for
traveling. They taste good hot or cold!
|
|
PRODUCT SUGGESTIONS
TRADER JOES ORIGINAL BABY BAGUETTES
Valerie in Sonoma brought me some lovely Amylu's chicken burgers (3 pts each, delish and healthy at Costco) on Thursday, and she wrapped them in a package she pointed out was another great find: Trader Joes baby baguettes. So I checked them out today. They are like a cross between a breadstick and a bagette: A little plumper than the former, but the texture of the french bread. They are 2 points each and come in a package of 5. They are a perfect dinner guest kind of thing to have in your house.
VINEGARS!
This isn't exactly a product suggestions, specifically, but rather a singing of praises for vinegars! In the Petaluma meeting we had a discussion of salad dressings, and how they can be very high in points: even fat free ones! But try using plain balsamic or seasoned rice vinegar as a salad dressing all on it's own. No points and really yummy. I saw a combined version of the two when I was in LA over Memorial Day, but have not found it since.
And have you ever reduced balsamic vinegar by boiling it down and making a glaze out of it? To die for over roasted vegetables!
There are all sorts of new vinegars popping up, such as Trader Joe's Orange Muscat Champagne or White Balsamic. Take a chance and see if you can learn to love this great seasoning!
|
FESTIVAL TIME!!!
THE BODEGA SEAFOOD ART & WINE FESTIVAL!!
Many of you know I am not only a Weight Watchers leader and a Lifecoach, but I also produce a pretty darned wonderful festival. In its 16th year, this show has something for almost everyone: A beautiful art & craft marketplace, 3 stages of great entertainment, including the incomparable Dan Hicks and his Hot Licks, as well as astonishing saxophonist Jules Broussard, an expansive wine and micro-brewed beer tasting, great kid's entertainment, games and Rubber Duck Races and, you guess it...great food. Yes, it is a food festival, but there are plenty of not only healthy choices but really delicious ones. How about prawn skewers, BBQ oysters, mango, avocado and crab stacks, cedar plank salmon, and so much more. Lots of non-seafood options too.
The dates are August 28 & 29, and by attending you support Stewards of the Coast and Redwoods
(the non-profit which works with the California State Parks in the Russian River region) and the
Bodega Volunteer Fire Department.
You can buy tickets in advance on our website and find out everything you need to know. Come on down. You will love it!!
http://www.winecountryfestivals.com/
|
This was sent to me by Sonoma member Marilou. A good idea...let's do it!
 One Lightbulb at a Time
A physics teacher in
high school once told the students that while one grasshopper on the
railroad
tracks wouldn't slow a train very much,
a billion of them would. With that
thought in mind, read the following, obviously written by a good
American.
Good idea .... one
light bulb at a time ....
Check this out. I can verify this
because I
was in Lowe's the other day for some reason and just for the heck of it I
was
looking at the hose attachments. They were all made in China . The
next day I was in Ace Hardware and just for the heck of it I checked the
hose attachments there. They were made in USA . Start looking. (note
here: earlier this week, RZ was in Lowes looking for a sprinkler head. Looked
at RainBird and Looked at
Orbits. RainBird is made in Mexico; Orbits in the USA. Orbits
purchased!!)
In our current economic situation, every little
thing we buy
or do affects someone else - even their job . So, after reading this
email, I
think this lady is on the right track. Let's get behind her!
My
grandson
likes Hershey's candy. I noticed, though, that it is marked made in
Mexico
now. I do not buy it any
more.
My favorite toothpaste,
Colgate, is made in Mexico ... now I have switched to Crest. You have to
read
the labels on
everything.
This past weekend I was
at Kroger. I needed 60 W light
bulbs and Bounce dryer sheets. I was in the light bulb aisle, and right
next to the GE brand I
normally buy was an off-brand labeled "Everyday Value. " I picked up
both types of bulbs and
compared the stats - they were the same except for the price. The GE
bulbs were
more money than the Everyday Value brand but the thing that surprised me
the
most was the fact that GE was made in MEXICO and the Everyday Value
brand was
made in - get ready for this - the USA in a company in Cleveland, Ohio.
So throw out the myth that you
cannot find products you use every day that are made right here.
So on to
another aisle - Bounce Dryer Sheets. Yep, you guessed it... Bounce cost
more
money and is made in Canada . The Everyday Value brand was less money
and MADE
IN THE USA ! I did laundry yesterday and the dryer sheets performed
just like
the Bounce Free I have been using for years and at almost half the
price!
My challenge to you is to start reading the
labels when you shop
for everyday things and see what you can find that is made in the USA -
the job
you save may be your
own or your neighbors!
If you accept the challenge,
pass this on to others in your address book so we can all start buying
American,
one light bulb at a time! Stop buying from overseas companies!
We should
have awakened a decade ago.
Let's get with the program. Help our fellow
Americans keep their jobs and create more jobs here in the U.S.A.
|
MY WEBSITE IS A GREAT RESOURCE!
If you have not visited my website find out why it is a truly helpful addition to your Weight Watchers efforts.
My Products Page features dozens of low-point food suggestions from Trader Joes and lots of other markets.
The Recipe Page has been updated but I have kept some classics, including the to-die-for oatmeal pancakes I talk about all the time.
The Healthy Tips page has lots of great ideas which we talk about in the meetings, but you might need to have at your fingertips when you are not in the meeting room.
And last, but not least, if you are coming to the meetings and finding yourself not actually taking the action you want to be taking to lose your weight, or maybe you cannot even seem to get motivated to come back to the meetings, maybe there is something deeper going on. I am a Certified Lifecoach, specializing in weight managment. I do free sample sessions and would love to talk to you about this or any other dream you have which is unfullfilled. |
|
|
|
"Nothing can bring you peace but yourself."
- Ralph Waldo Emerson
Lots of love and joy to all of you!
~Janet |
|
|
|
