I love chicken wings. They’re great diet food as long as you fry them “naked” with no batter or crust. You can make a sauce that’s to your heat liking with just hot sauce, melted butter and a some cream. Or keep the calories down by sticking to hot sauce. Just dip the wings, don’t drench them. They’re easier to eat. Decadent, yet still reduced carb.
Discovering that hot sauces are low or no carb was a huge thing for me. It definitely is not all about the heat. There are an amazing variety of flavors from habanero to mustard. The Tabasco brands are a mainstay. But one of my current favorites is Wild Turkey hot sauce. Yes the bourbon is in it. I got it as a gift at Christmas and have to find more soon.
Keep a variety of hot sauces on hand and try it on anything and everything from eggs to veggies. It will spice up your diet in more ways than one.
TODAY: EXERCISE EXTRA TO MAKE UP FOR YESTERDAY!
It’s “The Incredible Edible Egg”. Low carb diets are a lot easier thanks to these protein packed babies. I start the day with two, sometimes with cheese, sometimes with bacon or sausage. My previous experience with the Atkins diet gave me so much egg cooking experience that I never need a spatula to turn them. Just a small saute pan with rounded sides, a dollop of butter and a flick of the wrist after they are a little solid. (You can tell when they are ready to flip because they will slide around the pan easily when you swirl it.) Don’t add any salt, we want to reduce the sodium. Besides you can add any low carb condiments later. God old yellow mustard adds a great flavor to fried eggs. But it doesn’t stop there.
Think of eggs as the base for many meals. If the kids are having pizza, you can too. Make a thin omelet and add the pizza toppings. It will satisfy the cravings and still be low carb. Same for tacos. Those two strong flavors will go a long way. Besides it makes eating eggs a lot more pleasing than that scene from Rocky where Sylvester Stallone drank the glass of them. I always wonder how many takes that took.
TODAY: DO SOME STRETCHING EXERCISES. TWIST YOUR TORSO SIDE TO SIDE, BEND OVER AND TOUCH YOUR TOES (okay… TRY) THEN STRETCH UP ON YOUR TOES AND REACH FOR THE CEILING. THEN REPEAT TEN TIMES
A hot snack that will fit into any diet is a can away. Just get some chicken broth. Swanson’s is really tasty, has only 10 calories, no fat and 1 gram of carbs. When it’s cold out or when you just need a quick snack it can’t be beat. Keep some cans on hand at work and at home. If you want to add some more substance to it its easy to chop up some veggies. Celery and onion are great, sliced mushrooms different, mix up the choices to add to the low calorie soup. Anything works. Crack an egg and you’ve got some more protein for a hearty snack that will keep you going.
TODAY: DO SOME STRETCHING EXERCISES AND TRY A COUPLE OF PUSH-UPS.
If you haven’t tried smoking meats yet, take some time to try it this weekend. It’s easy, doesn’t require expensive cuts of meat, gives you delicious results and a number of low cal, low carb meals. I don’t need to go into a bunch of details because there are ample sites for that along with simple instructions and recipes that come with a smoker or grill. But the skinny (pun intended) on the process is it’s meat cooked slow under low (250 degree) heat with a little wood for smokey flavor. Don’t overdo the smoke. A little goes a long way. I’ve also found that I add the wood smoke after the meat has been cooking for a while. Seasoning rubs are the low calorie choice for flavoring.
Once done, wrap the flavorful meats in foil NEVER PLASTIC WRAP OR BAGS. Plastic will give it an odd taste. Foil leaves it pure and fresh tasting. It will freeze well too, so don’t eat it all at once.
TODAY: (This weekend) TRY SMOKING SOME LOW CALORIE, HIGH PROTEIN MEATS.
As we add fruits and veggies to our diet to meet the five (or more) a day goal, let’s look at lunch.
- Salad bar? Stack on the dark green leaves and other vegetables instead of so many of the extras like eggs, bacon and cheese.(keep the dressing ON THE SIDE)
- Add frozen veggies to any pasta. (Even the canned stuff.) You get more good stuff and more flavor too.
- Skip the fries and add a vegetable. Most all restaurants will do that. (Even the fast food places offer a value size salad.)
- SMACK! Have a V8!
- Have fresh fruit for desert.
TODAY: LOOK FOR WAYS TO ADD MORE FRUITS AND VEGGIES TO YOUR LUNCH.
Eat your vegetables! I’ve never had to be told more than once. I’ve always like veggies, but I couldn’t be a vegetarian. (Have you ever seen an overweight vegetarian?) Three servings used to be the norm. Now the USDA says eat five. That’s a good thing. Though you may think it’s a lot, it’s easy to do. I’ll give you some suggestions over the next few days.
Let’s start with breakfast.
- Add fruit to your cereal, oatmeal, waffles or pancakes.
- Punch up you eggs with fresh sliced veggies or some frozen spinach.
- Top whole grain toast with raisins and cinnamon.
- Create your own yogurt flavors with plain yogurt and different of fresh fruit.
- Wrap a banana in a whole wheat flour tortilla with some peanut butter for a quick grab and go meal.
- Don’t forget the juice!
Lunch tomorrow.
TODAY: START ADDING MORE FRUIT AND VEGGIES TO YOU DIET.
I know it’s not Irish but try it anyway. You know, the pasta part of spaghetti really doesn’t add much to spaghetti. It seems that it’s just a device for carrying the sauce from the plate to our palate, while it adds all those carbs. Instead, try a simple sauce with ground beef or Italian sausage added ladled over steamed broccoli or even mixed veggies like cauliflower, zucchini, onions and squash. It is actually much more flavorful and definitely better for you.
If you want to make your own sauce try this quick and Flavorful Tomato Sauce from Gluten Free Goodness. Then go ahead and enjoy your “Veghetti”.
TODAY: DO EXERCISES. WARM UP BY DOING TORSO TWISTS, TOE TOUCHES AND DEEP KNEE BENDS THEN PROGRESS TO LEG LIFTS, SIT-UPS AND PUSH-UPS. FINISH BY JOGGING IN PLACE. YOU CAN DO IT! EVEN IF IT’S ONLY A FEW OF EACH.
I love chicken wings. They’re great diet food as long as you fry them “naked” with no batter or crust. You can make a sauce that’s to your heat liking with just hot sauce, melted butter and a some cream. Or keep the calories down by sticking to hot sauce. Just dip the wings, don’t drench them. They’re easier to eat. Decadent, yet still reduced carb.
Daily Nag, Healthy Recipes | Diet Nag | 
January 11, 2016 6:18 am | 
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