Oh yes, I was so very excited. So the next day, I decide to try a pair of capris that hadn't fit in over TWO YEARS! And they fit perfectly fine, even with a little wiggle room. (Sorry, no pictures of these pants) So I knew I might be trying my luck, but yesterday I decided to try on a pair of capris that I bought a couple of years ago. This was a pair of capris that I purchased with the attitude of "I'll be able to wear these next summer", but next summer never came. I knew that they weren't going to fit - they hadn't fit since I purchased them, and I knew that it would be another summer before I could really get in to them. BUT OH NO, I proved myself wrong. They fit perfectly fine - not tight, not loose - just right! These pants were TWO SIZES SMALLER than I normally wear. I'm getting closer to the non-plus size clothing selections by the day! Although, I know it will take a while before I actually reach that goal.
Last night, I decided that I was going to measure my waist and compare it to my Transform Your Body Challenge waist measurement. So I gather up my tape measure and wrap it around. WAIT, what is that?!? A three inch deficit in just one week?!? I just couldn't believe this, so I ask for expert advice - a consult with the hubby. YES, it's confirmed - 3 inches LOST! Oh what a small victory so far!
Exciting, I know! So now I'm going to share two recipes that I created out of one meat purchase. We are meat-a-vores, so this recipe uses beef. However, you could recreate the same recipe with chicken or pork.
I started out by making a pot roast in the crock pot. I cut off all the outside fat pieces and seasoned it up using Salt-Free Mrs. Dash, fresh minced garlic, and fresh cracked black pepper. I cut up onions, celery, and carrots to place below and on the sides of the roast. I sprinkled the vegetables with fresh minced garlic and fresh cracked black pepper. I added half a cup of water to the bottom just to ensure moistness of the meat. The pot roast will cook low and slow for 10 hours - with a check halfway through. At the halfway point, the roast had created a lot of juices around the meat and veggies. I cut up 2 red potatoes and placed it around the meat. The potatoes will soak up some of those juices, so add a half/whole cup of water to ensure the meal stays moist for the remainder of the cooking process. I think I should have taken a picture of the hubby's plate, since he eats the veggies from the roast. At the end of the cooking process, this is what my plate looked like:
So, the old me would have had that plate loaded up. But the new me knows about portion control, and I was actually quite full after this meal. So there was some pot roast leftover, so I saved it for a tasty leftover recipe - Beef enchiladas! Basically this meal contains several leftover ingredients.
In a pan, I added some olive oil to start sauteeing black beans and leftover brown rice. I chopped up the leftover pot roast and added it to the bean and rice mixture. Once the contents were warmed through, I added 1 packed of reduced sodium taco seasoning and the recommended water. One the seasoning and water were cooked in to the mixture, I took it off the heat to cool down. (This was a meal I prepped before we went to the gym, and heated up once we got home). So the meat mixture looks like this:
So after the meat mixture cools, I spoon it in to whole wheat tortilla shells. I made 6 beef enchiladas, because we are usually very hungry after a workout - but I knew we would have leftovers for lunch the next day. There was enough of the meat mixture left for probably 2 or 3 more enchiladas, so you could always save the leftovers for another quick lunch. So this is what the meal looked like before I put it in the fridge - fully prepped! (The enchiladas with toothpicks have some leftover onions - from the roast - for the hubby)
Once we returned from the gym, starved as always, I put the sauce and cheese on top of the enchiladas and put them in the oven - 400 degrees for 20 minutes just to heat through. Just enough time to shower and prepare for bed! So this is the finished product:
This meal was very filling - one enchilada is a very satisfying serving. I couldn't eat any more after that. The leftovers were great for lunch the next day too!
Until next time, I leave you with a quote from an unknown author: "If hunger is not the problem, then eating is not the solution." Man, I wish I would have found this years ago! It really gives you a new take on the term "comfort food".
