Eating Clean Thanks to the Cover of a Magazine

I admit it. I got desperate. I followed a magazine cover diet promising me a 10 lb loss in 21 days. But guess what – it worked!

My plan to rock Jillian Micheals’ 30 day shred for the 6 weeks prior to my Caribean getaway was abruptly put to a stop. Thanks to a mini van driver oblivious to his/her surroundings, my road to a bikini-acceptable bod (hey, I’m a realist) I was couch bound for 3 days with back pain and an order to avoid any exercise more exerting than walking. I found comfort in Indian food and Haggan Daz. Two steps back.
After exhausting all my DVR and cable options rapidly, my sympathetic hubby ran out to get me an assortment of magazines. He came back with Oxygen, Robert Kennedy's Women's Fitness Magazine – the spring 2009 edition. Screaming at me from the cover: LOSE 10 LBS FAT ASS (ok, so maybe that’s not verbatim).

After losing a week of shredding with Jillian, and no chance to shred further before the trip, I knew I needed something. But did I have 21 days? No, but I had a couple weeks – 16 days or so. What could it hurt to try a little sensationalized diet plan? I went straight to the article, expecting to find a diet of watercress and otter livers or something. What I found was a really clean plan: 5 to 6 meals a day, good carbs, fruit, fish. I’m in.

The Premise
The plan had three weeks of specifically prescribed food. Very low cal (about 1,100 calories), but all good foods. Plus, there were snacks. Each week has a set menu – yup, the same food every day. I had a busy couple of weeks ahead of me, so I figured it I took food choice out of the equation, I had one less thing to deal with.

Week 1 Menu
Breakfast: Oatmeal & Banana or Orange
Mid-Morning Snack: Apple
Lunch: Chicken, rice, squash
Mid-Day Snack: Celery with Almond Butter
Dinner: Fish, squash, asparagus
Evening Snack: Mixed Berries
No added oils, fats, salt

So I cooked up enough squash, rice, and chicken for the week. With the help of some Penzy’s salt free spice mixes, I got some variety in there. I packed some lunches, stocked up on fish for dinner, and I was diet drama baby. Oh, and more organized about food than I’d been in a long long long time.

The Fantastic
The food was good! Stuff I like to eat, and it made life easy. Plus I wasn’t drained like I am when I cut carbs out. The food actually made sense, was enough, and kept me happy.

The Faults
Eating out isn’t exactly easy when you have a set meal plan. But I wasn’t about to hermitize myself entirely. Enjoy the spring weather with a friend or sit inside to eat my asparagus in the corner? I quickly figured out that I could probably stray from the plan if I just kept my food ‘clean’ – lean protein and veggies. Not too tough.

But, stocking up on foods like fish can be costly. Luckily, my grocery store had some affordable frozen options that were not loaded up with preservatives. Almond butter, however, set me back – wait for it - $11.00!!! That’s no typo: eleven dollars. Sure it’s good, but ELEVEN DOLLARS! I think it’s recommended because it’s slightly lower in saturated fat than natural peanut butter, but only by a gram. An $11 gram of saturated fat.

The Bottom Line
This plan is crazy rigid, but yeah, it works. I’ve lost about 5lbs in a week and a half (and still going). It’s crazy low cal/lowish carb. However, it completely taught me how to enjoy clean eating. I didn’t go with Week 2’s plan. I’m just continuing to keep my meals similar. Oatmeal for breakfast, lean protein/good carb/veggie for lunch, and fish and asparagus for dinner. Plus snacks…I love snacks.

Through this one week, I’ve been able to eliminate artificial sweeteners and caffeine. For real. Without killing anyone. It’s a miracle.

Sure I lost weight, but I wasn’t eating well before that. I went immediately from chowing down like a famine was coming, to eating around 1200 calories a day (I had an extra snack, ok?). I’ll probably keep with the clean eating, but up the calories a bit so when I workout I don’t pass out. All-in-all, I think it's reformed my approach to food. Not too shabby!

If you want the plan in it's entirety, you can order a back issue of Oxygen here. I couldn't find the article online. Drama as usual.  

Shrimp-o de Mayo

So I'm on my wacky diet plan, and I promise details soon. I am realizing it's not so much a wacky plan, but eating super clean. No processed foods, no sauces, salts, "bad" (aka delicious) carbs. 

Even though I'm supposed to be sauce free, it is Cinco de Mayo! I must celebrate! I resisted Margaritas, I resisted Mexican beer, hell, I even resisted taquitos! I thought I might reward myself for demonstrating such strong willpower by indulging in something. Ok, I get it. It doesn't totally make sense. However, I figured if it wasn't a completely extravagant indulgence, then I’d be ok. And I officially don’t consider salsa on Cinco de Mayo a diet evil.

But I needed to enjoy my salsa while still eating a low calorie protein. So I busted out my stash of pre-peeled & deveined frozen shrimp. I try to always have a 2 lb bag of these handy little guys in my freezer. They thaw quick, cook quick, and are damn tasty. Plus at only 80 calories for 4 oz of shrimp – they’re a perfect solution to my daily diet drama.

So I spices things up, sautéed me some shrimp, topped it with warm salsa, and dumped it over rice. Bueno!

 Shrimp-o De Mayo

 1 lb Shrimp – peeled & deveined Garlic Powder

Onion Powder

Smoked Paprika

Cumin

Chipotle Chile Powder

Kosher Salt

Pepper

Olive Oil

½ c Salsa

To thaw your shrimp, drop them in a colander and run cold water over them for 5 – 10 minutes. They’ll be ready by the time you get the rest of your mise en place, en place.

I used about ½ tsp of each spice, but went heavy on the Smoked Paprika and Chipotle Powder (I like it hot baby). Go according to your tastes. Just sprinkle it on to dust the shrimp on both sides.

Get a nonstick pan nice and hot, add about a teaspoon or 2 of olive oil. Dump your spiced shrimp in the pan and cook them on both sides until they’re firm and pink. Don’t leave these babies alone or you’ll turn them into little pieces of shrimp-flavored gum.

Right when they’re done, turn off the burner, and add your salsa. I used Salpica Tomato Jalepeno salsa from Frontera kitchens (it’s what I had on hand) but any old kind will do.

 When the salsa gets warm, serve it over brown rice, or pasta if that’s what gets spices up your day.