TRY THIS OUTSTANDING WEIGHT WATCHERS FRIENDLY BLUEBERRY COFFEE CAKE!!!

cakes

POINTS® Value:    3Servings:  8Preparation Time:  12 minCooking Time:  240 minLevel of Difficulty:  Easy

Pick up some sugar-sweet blueberries at a farmers’ market and then whip up this scrumptious coffee cake in no time. It bakes while you’re out enjoying the summer sun.

Ingredients

	3/4 cup(s) all-purpose flour
	1/4 cup(s) whole wheat flour
	1/3 cup(s) sugar
	1/2 tsp baking soda
	1 1/2 tsp baking powder
	1/4 tsp table salt
	1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
	1 large egg(s), beaten
	1/2 cup(s) plain fat-free yogurt
	2 Tbsp canola oil
	1/2 tsp vanilla extract
	1 cup(s) blueberries
	2 spray(s) cooking spray
	1 Tbsp powdered sugar

Instructions

• Combine both flours, sugar, baking soda, baking powder, salt and cinnamon in a large bowl. Combine egg, yogurt, oil and vanilla extract in a small bowl; stir well. Beat egg mixture into flour mixture with a wooden spoon until smooth; stir in blueberries.
  
• Coat a 2-quart round soufflé dish with cooking spray; spoon batter into dish. Coat a sheet of aluminum foil with cooking spray; cover dish tightly with foil, coated side-down, so no water seeps in.
  
• Pour 2 cups of hot water into a 5-quart or larger slow cooker; place covered baking dish in slow cooker. Cover slow cooker; cook on HIGH for 3 to 4 hours. Remove baking dish and cool on wire rack for 5 minutes. Turn cake upside down onto a wire rack to cool completely. Dust with powdered sugar before slicing into 8 pieces. Yields 1 slice per serving.

Notes

• You can substitute fresh or frozen and thawed raspberries or chopped strawberries for the blueberries, if desired. You can also switch to a berry-flavored fat-free yogurt.

WHY I GOT RID OF MY OLD CLOTHES THAT WERE TOO BIG ALONG MY WEIGHT LOSS JOURNEY

When I started on my weight loss journey as I have stated in past blogs I wore an 6 XL shirt and had a 64 inch waist.  When I began to drop weight and smaller clothes began to fit me comfortably I  got rid of my bigger clothes and donated them to charity or to relatives that could have use for them for several reasons.  The first reason is so I would have room in my closet which isn't much because my wife takes up 3/4 of the closet space (lol) to buy new smaller size clothes that fit properly.  This was a great feeling to be able to go out and buy smaller clothes knowing that I had been successful on my weight loss journey.  The other reason which is very important is because I knew that I had to atleast stay the same weight and size or my clothes would be very tight and uncomfortable.  The last thing that I wanted to do is go shopping for bigger clothes because my new clothes no longer fit me.  So in doing this I kept on dropping weight slowly and remained on my new lifestyle change of eating healthy and exercising on a daily basis.  I kept on doing this until I reached my goal weight which I have now been at for over a year.  In my closet now are XL size shirts and 36 inch pants/shorts which I plan to keep on wearing until they wear out or I buy new clothes at the same size or smaller.  So a big piece of advice that I would like to give out is not to keep your clothes that no longer fit because you have dropped weight and inches for the above reasons.  Have a great and very healthy week everyone :)  

ONLY TRACK WHAT YOU EAT ON DAYS THAT YOU WANT TO LOSE WEIGHT!!

Tracking what I eat in a food journal that can be bought at any grocery or stationary store has been the number 1 reason for my weight loss and maintaining my weight loss over the past 4 years. It may take some time to get used to doing but it's so very important.  It's more than just writing down what you eat on a daily basis.  A lot of time before I eat anything I know that I'm going to have to write it down and then I think twice if I really want to eat that certain food or meal and track it.  This is a very useful tool to use when I may be struggling because I can look back on what I have been eating and compare it to what I have ate in the past when I was doing good and dropping weight.  When I don't track what I eat I tend to just eat whatever I want at the moment because I don't have to write anything down.  What tracking does for me is to keep my self accountable for everything that I put in my mouth.  So if your struggling or need to get over a plateau that your experiencing then try this out which I'm sure will help greatly.  I also write down how much exercise I do daily in the tracker which is also a great incentive for me to get out and exercise.  So as the title of this blog states I only track on days that I want to lose weight or maintain my weight loss which is everyday!!  I hope that everyone is having a very healthy week so far...   

MAKE DAILY EXERCISING FUN THIS SUMMER!!

This summer I have been having a lot of fun doing different activities outside which is a great source of exercise.  What has helped me out a lot is that I'm doing things that I really enjoy and it doesn't feel like I'm exercising at all.  I have really been mixing up what I do each day instead of doing the same thing day after day which has really helped.  Here is an example of what I did last week for exercise which was fun for me.  Of course when I do these activities I have my mp3 walkman on with my favorite music that gets me pumped up!  On monday I went to the beach and walked down the main street and looked through the shops which was a lot of fun and had a healthy lunch while I was down there.  On tuesday I went back to the beach because I just love going there to see the ocean and all of the people down there enjoying the sun like myself. I walked down the pier and back which is about a 1 mile walk, then went down the stairs to the boardwalk and walked for about 60 minutes before heading back to my car.  On wednesday I went to the gym and did a great full body workout which I try to do atleast 3 times a week which helps me to get stronger and afterwards I get the endorphins pumping in my body which feels awesome.  On Thursday I turned on exercise t.v. and did my favorite 10 minute back and abs workout.  Later that night I had to work on the graveyard shift and instead of dreading it I made it go by quickly by walking through all the buildings which took about 3 hours, plus it makes me look like I love my job to my employer which I do!  Friday was a day that I went for a long 90 minute walk around my neighborhood and at my local park which was great for a change in scenery.  On saturday I went golfing for the first time in a long time and instead of taking a cart for 18 holes I walked the course with the bag on my back which was a lot of fun and excellent exercise.  On Sunday I went bowling with my wife and some others which was fun and a total different kind of exercise plus I got to spend some quality time with my wife.  Bowling isn't a ton of exercise but it's a lot of fun and I like to take it easy on Sundays and not worry too much about eating perfect and doing tons of exercise.  So this is a good example of how we can mix up our exercise routines and make it fun especially in the summer months when the weather is so great for most of us. 

A GREAT MOTIVATOR WHICH HELPS TO KEEP ME LIVING MY PERMANENT HEALTHY LIFESTYLE!!

A great motivator for me to keep living my new healthy lifestyle is simply an old picture of myself that I have on the refrigerator and the same picture at work.  This is a great reminder to myself of how far I've come since may of 2006 when I was at my heaviest weight ever 442 pounds.  When I go to the refrigerator to get something to eat that may not be very healthy I look at the picture and know that I sure don't want to fall back into old unhealthy habits and usually eat something that is healthy instead.  The job that I now have I've been at for 15 months where I do security bike patrols which is great exercise and I get paid to do it as well which is great.  I have the picture in a little nylon bag that is on the back of the bike and if I'm feeling lazy or unmotivated I'll take it out for a moment and that encourages me to keep on going.  It's also a great conversation piece to have when I mention to co-workers that I used to weigh over 400 pounds and they never believe me because ever since I have worked there I have been thin.  I often show them the picture and they can't believe that it's really a picture of me and they have to look real hard to see any similarities of the old me and the new me.  This gives me a great feeling of how far I've come over the past 4 years and keeps me motivated to keep up my permanent healthy lifestyle.  If you are lacking in any motivation then I would suggest that you try this out and see how it works for you by having an old picture of you on the refrigerator or somewhere in the house and also bring an old picture of yourself to work to show your co-workers and prove that with hard work and perseverance anything is possible!!   Have an awesome weekend everyone :)  

HOW I HAVE MAINTAINED MY 230 POUND WEIGHT LOSS FOR OVER A YEAR NOW.

For 3 years I was on my 230 pound weight loss journey from 442 pounds to 210 pounds.  During this time I  adopted a permanent healthy lifestyle which has helped me in keeping the weight off.  In the past I have lost large amounts of weight but didn't have any clue on how to keep it off permanently.  In the past I pretty much starved myself and exercised for very long periods of time which I could not keep up and eventually gained the weight back plus more which was very discouraging.  This time as I dropped the weight off I developed healthy eating habits and did exercise that I could continue doing permanently which has been a huge reason why I have maintained the weight loss for over a year now.  So it may have taken me a lot longer to lose the weight this time but it's permanent and I now have a healthy lifestyle which feels great!!  I would highly suggest for anyone that is trying to lose weight permanently to take it slow, develop healthy eating habits, and exercise at a rate that can be maintained for the rest of your life. This has really helped me out and I'm sure it will help you as well on your weight loss journey and adopting a permanent healthy lifestyle.  Have a great and very healthy weekend everyone!!

HERE IS A GREAT EXAMPLE OF HOW I GOT BACK ON THE WAGON TODAY!!!

So I fell off the wagon for a few days which I do every now and then but this has been a good learning experience.  I was feeling pretty tired an unmotivated from not eating or exercising like I know that I should.  This morning as I woke up I knew that I wanted and needed to get back on track so instead of hanging around the house before work this is what I did which really helped me out.  I had a healthy breakfast of 2 Jimmy Dean turkey sausage patties and toasted a whole grain sandwich thin for a tasty breakfast sandwich.  I also had a protein shake which I have on days that I go to the gym.  I then left the house and went bowling for 3 games which is fun and a little bit of exercise.  Then I went to the gym and did my wednesday full body workout which took me about 90 minutes and I really started to feel much better.  After that I went to the beach which is a 20 minute drive from the gym and walked around for 1 hour.  After doing this I really felt great and didn't have any urges to eat anything unhealthy.  I then went home and got ready for work, had some taco soup and another protein shake, and packed my dinner and snacks for work with healthy food.  This evening at work I have not had any bad unhealthy food urges like I've had for the past several days and got back on track which feels really good. I ate a healthy dinner at work with some fruit for snacks and also hasd quite a bit of water.  I believe that the reason that I fell off the wagon was because I had my schedule changed for the week and the stress of doing the supervisor duties lead me to make unhealthy food choices. So if you have fallen off the wagon recently or if you do in the future then here is what I have done today which has helped to get myself back on the wagon.