Dieting is Tough

Dieting is tough. Sometimes will power alone is not enough. I get hungry on a 1200 calorie diet. Staying focused is difficult, but for me it is a matter of life or death. Losing weight will significantly reduce the risk of breast cancer returning. So far, I am losing weight, but it is a struggle.

What Helps
I am a snacker. Before switching to a vegetarian diet and wanting to lose weight, I would snack on chips or cheese. Now, when I have a craving for something salty and crunchy, I open a bag of pumpkin seeds in the shell. Eating a serving of seeds keeps my craving for chips at bay. The sodium content is high if you eat the shells, but they are way more nutritional than potato chip or tortilla chips.

Water is my friend. I find that staying hydrated by drinking 64 ounces of water a day really helps. A glass of water helps me feel full after a meal or in between snacks.

Staying busy is another way to forget about calories. Writing, walking, and keeping up with the household chores is one way to keep my mind off of food. The more I focus on other tasks, the less likely I am to eat because I am bored.

Baked Apples to the Rescue
Sometimes I want comfort food. This usually is something warm and sweet--like apple pie. Well, apple pie is not in the diet plan yet. So instead, I make a quick lunch called trail mix baked apple. The apple is warm and sweet. The nuts add crunch. It is a healthier way to have an apple pie fix.

Here is how to do it and depending on the size of the apple, it is about 400 calories.
Core a medium to large apple.
Soak 1/4 cup of raisins in warm water for about 5 minutes.
Mix 1/8 cup of chopped cashews, 1 teaspoon of cinnamon and 1/4 teaspoon of nutmeg together in a bowl. Add the raisins.
Place the apple in a microwave safe dish and stuff it with the raisin mixture. Sprinkle any remaining filling around the apple.
Microwave on high for four minutes. Let cool, this comes out very hot.

Staying Meat Free
Going without meat is not as hard as I thought it would be. I found that I have more energy without meat in my diet. For me this is a huge bonus because my cancer treatment sucks the energy out of my body and I am chronically tired.

I try new foods or recipes every week. Finding new ways to cook veggies and grains is exciting. My adventure with a vegetarian diet may be different than most because I have to avoid soy products for health reasons. Going meat free and avoiding soy is a challenge at times, but I am up to the task.

--Lynda