This is part 3 of a 12 part series following Brad & Elise, recovering SADers (Standard American Diet eaters), venturing forth on a whole foods, plant-based diet for weight loss and greater health. Read on!
First a few words by me. I’m so impressed with both Elise & Brad. They are making great progress together and I admire their commitment to not only weight loss (you can lose weight on any diet as long as you cut calories) but also greater health. It is possible to make healthful changes on your own, but it is made so much easier when you have a support network of family and friends.
This week, Elise shares a mouthwatering hummus sandwich. A word on hummus–it’s very easy to make free of oil, and even tahini if you’re cutting back on the fat (and it still tastes great). It’s important to get the ratios of liquid, chickpeas, lemon, cumin, salt, ect. in the proper amount, otherwise, watch out tastebuds, you’re in for a surprise (a not very tasty, surprise at that!). There are many recipes out there that don’t include oil, so just experiment and find one that suites your tastebuds. Replacements for oil (to give the hummus a very creamy texture), you can use tahini (sesame butter), raw cashews, or soaked almonds. Hummus is pretty much a staple food in many countries in the Middle East which is not surprising since it’s delicious, very nutritious and oh so versatile. Try it as a dip, on sandwiches, in wraps, turn it into a dressing and put it on salad, be creative and enjoy.
For those of you in the weight loss/vegan challenge, remember to do your weekly check in and let us know how you’re doing so we can root for you!
And now time for the best part, take it away Elise.
Week 3
by guest blogger, Elise
Whew! I exercised 4 times this week and kept to 6 glasses of water each day except for one day.
Water makes a huge difference. I have been struggling to lose weight and inches until I started drinking water. Before I made the six glass commitment, I was drinking–on a good day–one cup of water. Yeah. I know. Really bad. But you would have the same problem if you lived in our town! The drinking water here is pretty awful. So I did something I thought I would never do: I started buying gallons of water. It was worth it. You can see in the statistics:
Elise:
Starting weight: 146
Goal weight: 125
Last week’s weight: 139
Today’s weight: 135
Goal w/h ratio: .84
Starting w/h ratio: .94
Last week’s waist measurement (just so you know, this is humiliating!): 34 in. (at thinnest point)
This week’s waist measurement: 31 in. (at thinnest point)
Brad:
Starting weight: 291
Goal weight: 200
Last week’s weight: 247
Today’s weight: 245
Finally, I promised you some pictures this week, and sadly I don’t have any good ones of us. Until I get some good ones, let me leave you with a photo of my favorite sandwich of late:
This is a Kale Lemon Sandwich. It is excellent. I have started leaving out the lemon slice because I have started juicing the lemon into the hummus that I make. Hummus is excellent, by the way. I never used to be a fan, but I have really started to love it.
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