My new favorite! Fish taco salad!

I was seeking something delicious for lunch and I now have a new favorite meal, Fish Taco Salad! My inspiration came from a post on Oxygen Magazine’s FB page for fish tacos. I immediately thought, this would easily convert to a salad, since breads and tortilla shells are off limits for now.

I recall the first time I had a fish taco. It was at our favorite place for weekend breakfast. They were advertising a special on their Baja fish taco, so we had to return that evening for dinner to try them. I fell in love! The hint of lime and spice in the sauce was heavenly. Thus, I set out to learn how to make them at home, following a recipe I found on-line. They were good, but not great.

Recently our favorite Mexican place had fish tacos on their Lenten specials. I ordered extra cabbage and the sauce on the side. After I finished it off, it occurred to me that this would make a great salad. And wasn’t I absolutely right?

As it turns out I didn’t use the Oxygen Mag recipe at all. I also discovered, the secret is all in the sauce. I tripled the sauce and stored the extra in the fridge to throw on salads.

Here’s my recipe for Fish Taco Salad

1 four oz fish filet (cod, halibut, or tilapia)
1 tbs coconut flour (or any flour)
1 tsp olive oil
1/2 a bag of cabbage or cole slaw mix (3 cups)
1 tbs light mayo
1 tbs FF sour cream
Juice of 1/2 a lime
Garlic powder
Onion powder
Cayenne
Paprika
Cumin

In small bowl whisk the mayo, sour cream and enough water to make it a subtly thinner sauce. Add lime juice. Add a few dashes of each spice. Mix well and set aside.

Pour the cabbage into a dish and pour 3/4 of the sauce over it. Mix till blended. Set aside.

Spread the olive oil in a small pan and heat on med- high heat. In a shallow dish, blend the coconut flour with a dash of cayenne and garlic powder. Dredge the fish in the flour and set in the pan. After 3-4 minutes flip the fish. Cook for another 3 minutes. The fish will be done when the fish gets flaky.
Break up the fish into pieces, add to the top of the cabbage mix. Pour the remaining sauce over the top.

290 cal, 9 g fat, 17 carb, 34 protein, 241 sodium

Where’s my Mojo?

Where’s my Mojo?

I can’t seem to find the mojo I had a few weeks ago that helped me stay on my weight loss plan. Since I’ve returned from my cruise, I find I’ve lost my motivation. I’ve done absolutely nothing to shake the eight pounds I gained.

I’ve done plenty to keep the weight on – like sit on the couch like a vast slug playing games on my ipad, napping half the evening, snoozing thru my lunch, and making crummy food choices (I had 3 desserts at a party yesterday!).

What’s the deal? Where did my mojo go? Did I leave it on the ship? I read once that the act of doing is it’s own motivation. So maybe what I need to do is find at least positive thing will propel me to want to do more. Today I promise to go to the gym after word and spend at least ½ an hour burning off some calories. I also read that to get more from your workout, go in there with a plan.

So my plan is to go right to the treadmill and walk/run a mile. Then head to the kettle bells and do my usual routine, followed by some abs. Maybe, among the weights and cardio equipment, my mojo is lurking just waiting for me to find it!

The Fullness Sigh

Having ignored my full signals for a week while cruising the South Caribbean, it’s time to start paying more attention to my body’s full signal – the sigh. It’s easy to over eat and pretend your body isn’t tell you it’s satisfied. It’s not so easy to slow day and listen to your body talking.

When I first discovered that I would sigh when I was near full, I was surprised by it. All those years of tuning out to my built in full meter, meant years of struggling with how much food was the right amount. When the realization hit me that my gut had a brain, it meant no more out of control chomping.

Remember WW core? We’d discuss how to eat core foods, not count points, and stop when satisfied – but before full. Nobody in that organization mentioned the sigh – not a leader, a member, their materials, their magazine – nobody.

Having unlocked the secret, I’m focusing on listening for it. No more clean my plate club. Huuuuuh…

Myfitnesspal is my best friend

My trainer turned me onto myfitnesspal 2 years ago and I think we are in a beautiful relationship. I can’t imagine a day without tracking my foods, snacks and all, in there. I dig the props I get logging in a workout. I love seeing that I can keep it at or below my 1200 calorie goal and if I want I can eat my workout calories too ( sometimes I do, sometimes not). Plugging in my weight and seeing the progress I’m making, keeps motivation high. I particularly like the end of each day where it says “if you keep eating like this you could weigh xxx weight.” That weight is usually 8-10 lbs. less than I weigh; it seems so much more real, right there, beaming back at me. And seriously, I haven’t encountered a food or brand not on the list; even many obscure brands.

Now we weren’t always best buds. When it chastised me for going over my cal limit, we stopped talking for a few days. But, once I forgave it, it forgave me too, and posted how happy it was that I came back. You’d think after all this time it would stop referring to me in the third person, “PJ logged in 25 days in a row”. I’d expect more intimacy by now with more personal notes like “hey there, good to see you’re taking care of that hot bod.”

These minor indiscretions I can easily overlook. Now that Myfitnesspal and I are soul mates, I’m expecting great things in our future.

Candy dish strategies

Candy dishes at work irritate me. Ever notice the people who have the candy dish don’t actually eat out of them? And when they’re empty they complain about filling it. Why do you suppose people display chocolate at their desks? It draws people to them for social chatter and rewards the visitor for stopping in.

I had a coworker who kept a candy dish in her area where I had to pass it every time I left or returned to my office. She kept the offensive bowl on the cabinet right next to my door. The boss in the office next to mine, considered the candy fuel when burning the midnight oil, so how could I ask her to move the dish? So – just to mess with her, I’d take a small handful when she wasn’t looking, and stash the goodies in a bag in a back drawer of my desk. I’d do this several days watching the supply diminish and listen to her grumble about buying more sweets. Then over a few days I’d slowly add the stashed candy back to her dish. The baffled expression she’d wear was soooo rewarding.

So you ask, what did I really get out of messing with another’s treats? I learned I could walk past the candy dish knowing it wouldn’t defeat my progress or derail my diet. And the offensive dish miraculously moved to a less conspicuous home out of my line of vision. My real reward was self-satisfaction and empowerment.

I Don’t Vs. I Can’t

I came across an article a while back about using “I don’t” instead of “I can’t” when being tempted by treats. How many times have you faced a tray of brownies and said “I can’t” only to hear “just one won’t hurt”? Reflecting on occasions where I’ve used the don’t strategy unwittingly, I realized it actually worked. I drive past a Culvers every day driving to and from work, though I don’t hesitate to check out the flavor of the day, before I can even consider popping in for a pint of creaminess, I say, outloud, “I don’t eat fast food,” and that’s the end of that. There’s no rationalizing that just a small serving would be fine; no thoughts that I should have this one treat. Simply, ” I don’t eat fast food.”

Replying “I don’t” says to the listener, “I have a rule about _____”. I discovered I find myself saying “I don’t eat fast food”, “I don’t do fried food”, “I don’t eat after 8:00 pm”. The mentality is not just that others take you more seriously, but that you also take it to heart. The more times you say your “I don’ts”, the more they become ingrained in who you are. It shows that you feel empowered to make the choices that suit your goals, and won’t be influenced by others trying to lead you astray.

The next time you’re faced with a choice that could lead you astray, repeat after me, “I don’t!”

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