I have been experimenting with different toppings and styles of salad, but for most meals it is pretty much the same.
- Organic baby greens
- A variety of chopped veggies depending on what is available that week at the farmers market, but in general carrots, onions, radishes, snap peas, cucumbers, tomatoes etc.
- Handful of seeds and/or nuts
- Tablespoon of freshly ground flax
- Salad Dressing
So for lunch, I generally have a big salad and then a small portion of whatever sounds goods that week. I usually make a big batch of something each week and eat it at least three times. Generally some sort of saucy chicken (cacciatore, curry, tikka masala etc.) and sometimes I will have a little brown rice or sprouted bread, but not always.
This week I made homemade chili with pork tenderloin and beans and organic veggies. For this , I actually put the salad on top and topped with homemade creamy dressing.
For dinner, we generally have some sort of meat and then a salad and sometimes an additional vegitable, especially right now when asparagus is in season. I have my husband hooked on what we call big salad, which is basically the above plus grilled chicken marinated in lemon, olive oil, oregano and salt and pepper, and some croutons made with sprouted wheat bread, a little olive oil and some garlic.
My latest favorite salad dressing
I don’t really measure so these are really just guesses. Tweak with it until it tastes how you want it to.
- 1/4 cu finely shredded romano cheese (I found a really yummy pecorino made with sheep’s milk)
- 2 t. red wine vinegar
- 2 t. fresh lemon juice
- pinch salt
- couple good grinds of pepper
- 1 t. fresh oregano (picked right out of my garden for “vitality” points)
- 1 clove garlic, minced
- 1 t. Dijon mustard
- 1 t. honey
- couple of tablespoons of olive oil (or you could use flax oil) – Just add a tablespoon at a time until it tastes balanced.
Streamlining the salad process
Although salad is relatively easy, it can be a little prep intensive for making lunch before work or throwing something together when you just have a few minutes. But with a little prep ahead throwing together a great salad can take only a matter of seconds.
I buy organic salad mix at the farmers market, but this is generally available at most grocery stores these days as well. Too keep it fresh longer, put it in a gallon Ziploc with a damp paper towel.
I also cut up a variety of veggies, mix them together and store them in a Ziploc or Tupperware. Seed and nuts can be mixed and stored this way as well. Buying small tomatoes eliminates the need to cut them fresh.
I do grind my flax fresh, but I keep the seeds in a closed mason jar on the counter next to the grinder, which makes this very easy and quick to do.
With these small steps, a handful of this and a handful of that and a few seconds later you have a great healthy salad with little to no work.
I just went back and read the emotional obesity chapters of the book and all of it applied to me. He asks several questions to help you identify whether this issue is holding you back and if it is insists that it be addressed before you ever even discuss eating habits, cravings exercise and past successes and failures. After the emotional issues have been addressed and resolved then a plan can be put into place to address the rest of it.
The questions go something like this…
- Does being thin feel safe to you?
- Can you imagine yourself thin?
- If someone gives you a compliment on your appearance, does it make you feel happy and confident or threatened and uneasy?
The last two definitely apply to me and the first one just confuses me so I’m guessing that means I can count that one too. Since I started this whole thing the body visualization has always been the hardest for me. I just can’t see myself as that thin person. The thing that weirds me out about that is that I used to be thin, at times very thin. So you wouldn’t think that imagining myself like that again would be so difficult. The brain is a bazaar entity.
I have been noticing over the last couple of weeks (and I think where that desperate sad post from last week came from) that even though I am mentally really dedicated to this and have logically set up my environment for success, I find every way and excuse I can to sabotage the process.
- I “forget” to take my supplements
- I sneak food. I will scarf down a burger or milkshake, candy or doughnut and then hide the evidence.
- I will make up any excuse I can to avoid exercising, even going to yoga, which I love, or a hike with the dog, which is empowering, relaxing and really rewarding. If there is some reason I can come up with I will take it.
- I tell myself that just going to sleep (without the CD) will feel good and make me more motivated the next day.
I even avoided reading the emotional section of the book with any focus or meaning. I just skimmed through it. Today I read every word.
When I have talked to my therapist about my weight, she always says don’t worry about it now, you have enough on your plate. Do the emotional work and then deal with the weight.
Another advisor of mine reminded me that I simply need to find out why it is that I don’t feel worthy and correct that and then everything will fall into place as it should. It is only me that is holding me back.
With the Life Path Integration therapy we are doing it is even possible that we will be able to target whatever the emotional trigger might be and fix it. It always amazes me how the universe will provide you with all the tools you need if you just listen closely enough. Many things have been coming to me from many different directions lately and thankfully I am aware enough to be grabbing them.
Karli has also encouraged me to give the emotional stuff more time and stop worrying so much about the physical stuff. Now that I am feeling better and motivated and productive for the first time in a long time, I am finding it very hard not to want to tackle everything all at once, to take on more than I can handle. I feel like I am fighting in every direction and that I may simply just need to give into the process. Pretty hard to do for a total control freak.
I am so grateful that my husband is supportive of me through all this. He has had his moments of frustration and worry and even a few in anger and hurtfulness, as is only natural when you spouse is going through something like this. He tries his best to encourage me and prod me to work a little harder.
Every logical part of me thinks it’s fantastic that I have a husband who loves me the way I am and truly cares about my well being. But emotionally I think I kinda resent him for it and rebel against it. This is hard to say, a sort of it’s not you it’s me scenario, but I think I might have to tell him to stop with the encouragement, because just like when we were trying to quit smoking, the gentle nudges and reminders, the words of encouragement in my head remind me that I am failing rather than reminding me that I can succeed. This is something I need to work on, but in the meantime, I think we just need to drop the whole thing for a while, let me heal what’s broken without any added pressure.
Jon says in his book that while he was gaining the weight, his wife never said a word about it and that when he was ready, he felt he was better prepared to lose the weight because of that.
So, I concentrate on the emotional part and keep preparing my body from a biochemical standpoint so that I will be that much more ahead of the game once I can really target my eating and exercise habits. I just feel like I need to stop putting so much pressure on myself.
To all of you looking to the Gabriel Method as a magic pill, I am sorry. I don’t have instant results to report, or really any weight loss at all. I can tell you that it is helping me to change my life, to learn about myself and face my fears and tackle the emotional crap that has had me by the throat for most of my life. It is also helping me learn what it feels like to be a healthy person, teaching my body that it feels good to be nourished and that eating foods that mess with your chemistry makes you tired and cranky and feel generally icky.
This is my first step and the thought that on the other side of this journey I could be not only thinner and more fit, but also a more whole and emotional healthy person is very exciting to me.
I am going to keep taking the supplements and integrating healthy foods into my diet, but I am throwing out the schedule and week 1 week 2 month 1 stuff for a while until I can answer the questions above with confidence and positivity. Fixing myself needs to be my priority right now. I have made huge progress, I just need to finish it before I start worrying about pounds and waist measurements and scheduled regimented programs.
I’m ok if I stay this weight forever, as long as I don’t gain any more. (those of you who have read the book will understand the meaning and gravity of this statement)
So here is the new plan (because I wouldn’t really be me if I didn’t have one)…
- Keep working hard at therapy and stop distracting us with day to day bullshit. I have demons to fight so let’s get on with it.
- Listen to the CD every night, no excuses, no exceptions
- Start reading about past life regression
- Read the book No Boundary
by Ken Wilber (Jon mentions it in a section of the book that really resonates with me)
- Actively radiate love, forgiveness and appreciation
- Accept the negative and accept myself and my body just as they are. This includes no scales.
Buy the Gabriel Method Book Now!
I have been searching for years for a great mu shu recipe. I never did find the perfect one, but as with almost everything I cook, I took a recipe and tweaked and changed and tasted and tinkered until it was just perfect and I am happy to say that the mu shu recipe is ready for sharing.
This recipe is fresh and crisp, but not crunchy. It is flavorful and traditional in taste but lighter in weight and calories.
There are some compromises that I have made due to the availability of ingredients, family likes and dislikes and ease of making. I use flour tortillas instead of mandarin pancakes because I have two kids and no time to make them and I haven’t found them in any of the stores I shop at yet. I also leave out the traditional black mushrooms because my husband doesn’t like them and again they are a little tricky to find. Both of these could be found in an Asian grocery store and we have plenty of those in Seattle, but the extra trip just doesn’t seem worth it when it is just as yummy and a ton simpler without those things. I apologize to the traditionalists out there.
The work in this recipe is in the preparation. There are quite a few parts that need to be prepared and ready to go before cooking, but each is very simple.
Let’s get started…
Marinade the Meat
2 T. Soy sauce
1 T. white wine
1 T. Hosin Sauce
1 t. Sesame oil
1/2 pound of boneless chicken or pork in small strips or shredded*
Mix the marinade, add the meat, stir and let sit at room temp for 15-20 min or in the fridge for at least 1hr.
*This is a great way to use left over roasted chicken or pork roasts. Whether the meat is cooked or not does not really effect the recipe at all.
While the meat is marinating…
Veggies
2 cups Napa Cabbage, shredded
1/2 cup shredded carrots
1/2 cup sliced green onions
1 cup bean sprouts
prepare and collect all the veggies on a dinner plate, cutting board or bowl to ease dumping into the wok later
Cooking Sauce
3 T chicken broth
2 T soy sauce
1 T white wine
1 T toasted sesame oil
1 t. sugar
1 t. corn starch
Mix cooking sauce ingredients together and set aside.
Prepare Eggs
2 eggs
pinch of salt
1 t olive oil
- beat the eggs in a small bowl with salt.
- Heat olive oil in wok on medium heat.
- Add egg and cook, lifting the sides to allow the uncooked egg to run underneath. When just a little runny is left, flip the egg patty over and then slide out of pan onto a cutting board.
- slice the egg into 1″ x 1/4″ strips
Set aside for later
Prepare garlic and ginger
3 large garlic cloves
1/2 in section of ginger
mince garlic and ginger and set aside
Prepare green onions for serving
4 green onions
Julienne the green onions into 1 inch thin strips and place in small serving bowl to place on the table.
Now, everything should be prepped. This can all be done in advance and held in the fridge until you are ready to cook. Cooking this takes only a couple of minutes so don’t start until you are ready to eat. You must be ready to move quickly and serve immediately.
This would be a good time to warm your tortillas. I recommend the fajita size flour tortillas and about 2-3 per person depending on appetites. A quick and easy way to warm your tortillas is to place them on a microwave safe plate, sprinkling each tortilla with water and microwaving on high for 30 seconds. Right before serving, flip the tortillas and microwave on high again for 30 seconds.
Ok, time to cook…
- Heat 1 T of olive oil in your wok on medium high heat.
- Add garlic and ginger and cook till aromatic, about 1 minute.
- Add your meat that has been marinating and cook until heated through, stirring constantly – time will depend on whether your meat was previously cooked or not.
- Add all the veggies at once and mix them in. Cook for about 1 minute until cabbage begins to wilt slightly.
- Add cooking sauce and egg and cook until sauce is slightly thickened, about another minute.
Remove from heat and pour into serving dish.
To serve…
Take one tortilla, spread a little hoisin sauce on the tortilla, spoon meat and veggie mix into tortilla, top with green onions.
Roll into a little burrito and enjoy