One of the biggest challenges for me in this whole weight loss / healthier lifestyle journey is water. I’ve never been a big lover of drinking water…I don’t know what it is but I’ve just never been able to consistently be a water drinker. Oh I know how good water is for me and how essential it is if you are wanting to lose weight, but up until recently it just wasn’t something I could consistently remember to do.

I tried setting “drink your water” reminders on my phone to go off during the day (by the way…there’s an app for that!). I tried having giant glasses filled at every possible place I might be in the house – hoping it’d entice me to chug a cup or two down. I’ve tried buying bottled water, sparkling water, filtered water, warm water, ice cold water and none of those things ever really made me want water….

Read More

The post Cucumber Citrus Infused Water appeared first on Dine and Dish.

Over the past week since announcing that I’ve joined Weight Watchers, I’ve had several emails of support and also questions from people wondering why I chose Weight Watchers. Obviously, there are so many different options for weight loss support out there… why Weight Watchers?

Well, my answer is easy. I need a program that allows some flexibility when it comes to food. As a food blogger and food photographer, I am around food ALL the time. Good food. Really good food. And I have a hard time with the thought of eliminating certain categories of food or food altogether for shakes and supplements when my job relies on me being able to create, taste and appreciate food. In short, I need to be on a program that teaches me moderation, but doesn’t teach me elimination. I need to learn how to be around food without letting it control me. I need to be the one in control. I definitely need to start developing healthy habits that last a lifetime. It may sound completely cliche, but I know I am beginning a lifestyle change, not dieting….

Read More

The post Weight Watchers Tips for the Holidays appeared first on Dine and Dish.

Photo by Wrenn Bird Photography

An excerpt of this was originally posted on my personal Facebook (where I received some incredibly, touching support) but it’s been on my mind all day, so I thought I’d share some more thoughts here.…

Read More

The post The Truth Is… appeared first on Dine and Dish.

“How Training For a Half Marathon Has Made Me Dislike Running”

“What the hell is wrong with me and why can’t I stick to anything?”

“Tales of a non-perfectionist, perfectionist”

You get the point. Running and I are not being friends right now. “Well, how can that be?” you ask. “Aren’t you training to run a half-marathon in October? Didn’t you write out all of these lofty goals on your 39th birthday and said you were going to make 39 the best year ever?”

Yes, yes I did… and I have some explaining to do. …

Read More

The post Stop Giving It All or Nothing appeared first on Dine and Dish.

I thought about going back through my past 6 1/2 years of blog posts to count how many times I brought up the fact that I was trying to lose weight, or struggling with my weight, etc. But then I knew that it would just be “a lot” and decided to go with that. It’s been no secret that I’ve had a constant struggle with the scale since having kids. With each baby, I’d gain weight and would always hold on to 5-10 pounds afterwards. Well, with 4 kids, that 5-10 pounds has definitely added up!

I was thrilled when the folks at the Blueberry Council asked if I wanted to chat with Alison Sweeney,  host of one of my favorite reality shows, The Biggest Loser. I have followed Alison since her early years on Days of Our Lives and have watched her have some of the same weight struggles I have. It’s been so neat to see her turn her life around and come full circle into a healthy lifestyle. …

Read More

The post Boost It with Blueberries {Recipe: Secret Ingredient Oatmeal} appeared first on Dine and Dish.

A feeling of pure happiness washes over me every time I see the photo above. Then, at some point, that happiness turns to disappointment and shame.

You see, that was probably one of the happiest “regular” days of my life. My husband and I were in Park City, Utah on a little getaway. I was feeling healthy because I had made exercise a priority in my life. I was feeling beautiful… thin, healthy, and in shape. I had a confidence that I hadn’t had in a very long time.

Nick and I went on a 20+ mile hike through the mountains and enjoyed every moment of it. It was an amazing day….

Read More

The post Real Talk: Health and Red Faced Running appeared first on Dine and Dish.

The first recipe, and also my favorite, was their Rocky Road Ice Cream Pies (pictured above). This tasty treat has big chunks of fudgy Weight Watchers brownies, chocolate ice cream, marshmallows and slivered almonds all in one perfect portioned dessert cup. At 5 PointsPlus® per serving, this is a refreshing dessert that allows me to give into my chocolate cravings without feeling any guilt!

Up next is the Chocolate Banana Quesadillas. This dessert uses one Weight Watchers Chocolate Crème Cake in a creative way to make a completely different tasting treat. Sandwiched in between a cinnamon sugar quesadilla you’ll find sliced bananas and bite sized pieces of Chocolate Creme Cake. If you like chocolate dipped bananas (like I do) you’ll love the flavors in this dessert recipe. Sweet, filling and delicious – plus incredibly fast to put together – I’ll be making this 5  PointsPlus® per serving dessert for an afternoon snack often!

Working with Weight Watchers in this way is helping me open my eyes to how I can use their sweet baked goods in other ways. I can’t wait to dig around in my pantry to see what else I can come up with!

Print

Chocolate Banana Quesadillas

Chocolate and bananas sandwiched between a cinnamon sugar tortilla. A quick and easy snack for your sweet tooth!

Ingredients

• 2 6- inch flour tortillas
• 1 small banana sliced
• 1 Weight Watchers Chocolate Crème Cake cut into ¼-inch cubes
• Non-stick cooking spray
• 2 large pinches of cinnamon sugar

Instructions

• Arrange tortillas on a large cutting board. Layer the bottom half of each tortilla with half of the bananas and half of the cake cubes.
• Fold top half of tortilla over layered cake and banana so that quesadilla resembles a half circle.
• Spray a large sauté pan or griddle with non-stick cooking spray and heat over medium heat. Add quesadillas and cook for 2 minutes. Turn quesadillas and cook for an additional 1 to 2 minutes, until golden brown.
• Remove quesadillas from heat. Sprinkle each with 1 large pinch cinnamon sugar and serve immediately.

Notes

From Weight Watchers

Print

Chocolate Banana Quesadillas

Chocolate and bananas sandwiched between a cinnamon sugar tortilla. A quick and easy snack for your sweet tooth!

Ingredients

• 2 6- inch flour tortillas
• 1 small banana sliced
• 1 Weight Watchers Chocolate Crème Cake cut into ¼-inch cubes
• Non-stick cooking spray
• 2 large pinches of cinnamon sugar

Instructions

• Arrange tortillas on a large cutting board. Layer the bottom half of each tortilla with half of the bananas and half of the cake cubes.
• Fold top half of tortilla over layered cake and banana so that quesadilla resembles a half circle.
• Spray a large sauté pan or griddle with non-stick cooking spray and heat over medium heat. Add quesadillas and cook for 2 minutes. Turn quesadillas and cook for an additional 1 to 2 minutes, until golden brown.
• Remove quesadillas from heat. Sprinkle each with 1 large pinch cinnamon sugar and serve immediately.

Notes

From Weight Watchers

The post 2 New Weight Watchers Dessert Recipes appeared first on Dine and Dish.

Leah is now a year, and I haven’t even come close to losing the weight I gained when I was pregnant with her. I’ve never been one of those lucky women who get to watch the pounds just melt away simply because they are breastfeeding. If I want to lose the baby weight, I really have to work at it, and to be honest with you… I just haven’t felt like working that hard. And, what they say about the older you get the harder it is to drop the pounds is true. Young ‘ens out there… listen… love your skinny waists and perky boobs now while you can because it is a lot of work to keep it up (literally) when you get older. Trust me on this one.

Along with my blogging friends Amy of She Wears Many Hats and Robyn of Our Homeschool Home, we have began the weight loss journey together. I am doing Weight Watchers, which I’ve had lots of success with after my other three babies were born. The best part about what we are doing is that we are able to keep each other accountable completely and totally virtually. Our weigh-ins are on Friday, so we take a camera phone picture of the scale (love my WW scale) and share it via email with each other (let’s just hope that Amy and Robyn aren’t holding on to mine for future blackmail opportunities). We do the same thing with exercise and take a camera phone picture of the screen after our workout or a picture of our view while exercising. We have also implemented a weekly conference call to share ideas, frustrations and success stories. And finally, Twitter interventions have become a norm as well. The truly fantastic iPhone app, Lose it!, is keeping track of our progress along the way.

What I love about Weight Watchers is that you really can eat whatever you like, as long as you budget points for it and remember to exercise. It is such a flexible program, which is perfect for a food blogger like me.

This Vidalia Onion Bake recipe was one of my favorites from back when I was on Weight Watchers before. My friend Whitney made it one time when we were at her house and it now gets baked or grilled and served as a side at least twice a week around our house. To make it completely low point and Weight Watchers friendly, substitute the butter for several sprays of I Can’t Believe It’s Not Butter spray.

If you have started a weight loss journey, I’d love to hear about it and would appreciate knowing what’s working for you as well as any additional resources you have that might make our journey more successful. Good luck at losing it!

Vidalia Onion Bake

40 min | 10 min prep

6 onions

Disclosure: This blog post contains affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.

The post War of Weight Loss (Recipe: Vidalia Onion Bake) appeared first on Dine and Dish.