Operation Lose the Baby Weight: Week 10

I'm back from hiatus! Yay! February turned into a monumentally busy month for us.

Okay, so I skipped a few weeks in the Operation Lose the Baby Weight saga. I also skipped a few weeks of eating healthy, which is why I have gained two pounds since the last update. Big sad face to me.

The good news is that about a month ago, our whole family made the monumental decision to become vegetarian. Well, Scott and I have -- we serve vegetarian foods at home, but Angelica still eats whatever is on the daycare menu. We don't force the school to give her a vegetarian option because I believe the decision to be vegetarian is a personal one. I made this choice once before, in my late teens/early 20s, and at the time it was a complicated situation since I was still living at home and not yet supporting myself. Diet choices were limited to what was put on the table back then, and I didn't always have a say.

So you'd think, eating vegetarian means that you're getting lots of veggies in, and theoretically losing weight, right? Well, in the past month I have discovered that the following are also vegetarian options:

Cake Cookies Ice cream Tortilla chips Chocolate covered peanuts Cheese (and lots of it)

(...and so on.)

The good news is that being on a vegetarian diet has helped me accomplish my goal of reducing the sodium in my diet, thus reducing my blood pressure to a normal level...all without a change in activity or the need for blood pressure medication! I didn't have terrible blood pressure, but I was diagnosed with prehypertension back in December last year, so it's great to already be seeing the positive effects of this lifestyle change on my health.

So, having recapped the past month, my goal for this week is to start integrating exercise into my daily routine...at least three times this week for 30 minutes. I think that's an achievable goal.

For anyone looking for a really good, vegetarian option, look no further than this -- I made this by accident last week when Scott was away on business and I was trying to throw together something tasty that a toddler would eat, but would also be healthy at the same time.

Black Bean & Rice Taco Pizza

1 cup brown rice, cooked
1 cup black beans (I used dry beans to eliminate sodium but canned would work as well)
1/2 cup shredded cheese (I used sharp cheddar)
1 tablespoon taco seasoning (I used a low-sodium kind)
1 tablespoon fat free refried beans
1 tablespoon hummus (I used red pepper)
2 whole grain pitas

On the pitas, add in this order:
Hummus
Refried beans
Rice mixed with the taco seasoning
Black beans
Cheese

Cook in the oven at 350 for 5 minutes, cut into triangles and enjoy.
(There will be left over rice and beans.)