Flat Belly Diet - three week update

12:49 PM AirplaneFoodCritic 2 Comments


I am sorry to leave you with only two days of meals but a lot has happened in the last three weeks. The first two weeks were actually great. I really enjoy this diet. by the end of the first three weeks, including the jump start I lost five pounds which in the end came out to about a pound and a half a week. Nothing to scoff at and I have not been hungry at all. I also feel like I have been eating healthier. Even though the weekends I take a break, I still managed to lose weight so I do recommend this diet.

I made up a two week meal plan and from there I plan on using the basic principles to make up my own meals or just mix and match my favorites from the two weeks I already have recipes for. I will paste the rest of the two weeks at the bottom of this blog.

In the last week I have only lost 0.2 pound but that is because I have had a chaotic week. I was surprised in the middle of last week with a lovely kidney stone. I have had so many pain killers and doctor appointments that there is simply no time to worry about eating portioned meals every four hours. Some of my doctor appointments have called for me to fast and I think that is the only reason that I lost the 0.2 pounds at all. In the middle of all that was super bowl and as usual I did not hold back on the eating.


I am writing this blog because on Tuesday I am hopping back on the diet train. Why Tuesday? Well tomorrow begins a weekend of more wine tasting. This time it is the Alsace Festival in the Anderson Valley. I shall post a report upon my return. Then Monday is the almighty Valentine's Day and there is no way anyone is keeping me from my chocolate truffles and cakes.

Flat Belly Diet Meal Plan continued

Day 3
Breakfast
Smoothie: 2 tbsp almond butter, 1 cup milk, ½ cup strawberries, ½ cup mangoes

Snack
1 apple and 2 tbsp almond butter

Lunch
1 pita, 1 bean cake, 1 tsp mustard, ½ cup lettuce, ½ cup bell pepper ¼ cup avocado

Dinner
1 whole wheat pita, 2 tsp mustard, 2 tbsp pumpkin seeds, 1 tsp chopped parsley, ¼ cucumber, 2 oz salmon

Day 4
Breakfast
1 cup Kashi puffs, 1 cup fat free milk, 1 small banana, 2 tbsp pumpkin seeds

Snack
Toast with ¼ cup semi sweet chocolate, 1 cup strawberries

Lunch
3 cups lettuce, 2 oz tuna or salmon, ¼ cup avocado, vinegar, 2 tsp olive oil

Dinner
1 pita, 2 tbsp chopped walnuts, 1 cheese stick, 1 apple, 1 cup shredded lettuce

Day 5
Breakfast
Smoothie: 2 tbsp almond butter, 1 cup milk, ½ cup strawberries, ½ cup mangoes

Lunch
2 slices bread, ¼ cup avocado mashed, 3 oz chicken, ½ cup lettuce, tarragon, then one small banana

Snack
1 Apple and 2 tbsp walnuts, 1 small banana

Dinner
Toast one whole wheat pita broken into triangles dipped in: 1 tsp cilantro chopped, 2 small tomatoes, chopped, ½ cup finely chopped bell pepper, ¼ cup avocado, 1 string cheese

Week Two
Day 1
Breakfast
Smoothie: 6oz fat free yogurt, ½ cup fat free milk, 1 tsp pie spice, 1 apple, cut up, 2 tbsp cashew butter, handful of ice.

Snack
¼ cup avocado, 1 string cheese, 1 cup red pepper strips, 4oz deli turkey

Lunch
Toss 1/4 c cooked and chilled whole wheat penne with 1 Tbsp pesto sauce, 3 oz diced cooked chicken breast, 1 c halved grape tomatoes, 3/4 c shredded carrots, and 2 Tbsp shredded Italian four-cheese blend.

Dinner
Top 2 c organic mixed baby greens with 1/2 c refried beans with green chiles, 3/4 c sweet corn kernels, 1/4 c sliced red onion, 1/4 c salsa, and 1/4 c sliced avocado

Day 2

Breakfast
Top 1 slice sesame-sprouted whole grain bread with 2 Tbsp cashew butter and 1/4 c raisins

Snack
Combine 1/4 c chopped avocado, 1 chopped stick low-fat string cheese, and 1 c red pepper strips. Take 4 oz deli turkey slices; top each with even amounts of mixture and roll up

Lunch
Top 1 slice sprouted whole grain bread with 3 oz water-packed chunk light tuna, 2 Tbsp sunflower seeds, and 1/4 c Italian four-cheese blend. Place under broiler or in toaster oven to melt.

Dinner
Brush one side of 1 flat multigrain pita with 1 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil, and top with 1/4 c marinara sauce, 13 slices veggie pepperoni, and 2 Tbsp shredded Italian four-cheese blend. Heat under broiler or in toaster oven until cheese melts

Day 3

Breakfast
Blend 1/2 c fat-free or soy milk, 6 oz fat-free vanilla yogurt, and 1 c frozen strawberries for 1 minute. Transfer to glass, stir in 1/4 c semisweet chocolate chips, and eat with a spoon

Snack
Toast 2 slices sesame-sprouted whole grain bread and top with 1/4 c nonfat ricotta cheese and 2 Tbsp walnuts. Serve with 1 medium apple.

Lunch
Spread 2 slices sesame-sprouted whole wheat bread with 2 Tbsp black olive tapenade; fill with 1/2 c canned Alaskan salmon, 1/2 diced fresh plum tomato, and 2 large romaine leaves

Dinner
Place a veggie burger between 2 slices of sesame-sprouted whole grain bread dressed with 1 Tbsp Dijon mustard, 3 large romaine leaves, 1/2 fresh plum tomato, 2 Tbsp sliced onion, and 1/4 c sliced avocado.

Day 4

Breakfast
1 cup Kashi puffs, 1 cup fat free milk, 1 small banana, 2 tbsp pumpkin seeds

Snack
2 Tbsp peanut butter, swirled into 1 packet instant oatmeal, cooked, and topped with 1 medium sliced apple

Lunch
1 c red bell pepper slices dipped in 1/2 c hummus and sprinkled with 2 Tbsp pine nuts.

Dinner
Toss 1/4 c cooked whole wheat penne with 1 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil, 1/4 c nonfat ricotta cheese, 2 Tbsp shredded Italian four-cheese blend, 1/2 c fresh baby spinach leaves, 2 Tbsp sliced onions, and 1/2 c marinara sauce

2 comments:

Zinfandel Advocates & Producers (ZAP)

1:03 PM AirplaneFoodCritic 0 Comments


Last weekend was the ZAP Grand Tasting. It is always a great time...and educational too! Every year in San Francisco they have a grand tasting at Fort Mason. It is two giant warehouses full of booths represented by various Zinfandel producers. this year, the 19 annual ZAP weekend was host to 211 wineries. Each winery had at least two wines to taste. Some wineries had up to ten different wines to sample!


As a member of ZAP I was able to enter the tasting an hour earlier than the general public. Last year I had attended with a good friend of mine and we ended up getting a little toasted by the end of the event and had trouble finding a safe way to get home. (I am not a fan of public transportation). This year we got ourselves a hotel room within walking distance of the event. Genius!!


We got our hot pink wrist bands and entered the first auditorium. Immediately you can hear the rumble of the press and winemakers who were allowed in even earlier than we. Upon entering you are handed a wine glass and a baguette. There are two rows of booths on either side of the area and huge islands of fruit, cheese and breads dotting the center. We headed to XYZin first as the winemaker is a good friend of ours. The host at the table pours for you and the pours are deceptively small. It is large enough to taste but small enough to not get you knackered by the third booth. This is no exaggeration, these wines were in excess of 16% alcohol.


We made our way through the booths, sometimes choosing a favorite from last year, or a familiar brand and sometimes venturing to a new label. Sometimes the label caught our eye or the name of the place or we had just heard of it somewhere before. As time went by I got more and more forgetful of what I liked and didn't like so I had the great idea of taking a picture with my phone of the ones I liked. Here are the wines I liked the most this year:

Kokomo 2008 from Sonoma

Artezin, 2009 from Mendocino, also a favorite last year.

Plungerhead 2009 Old Vines from Lodi

Always a favorite, Hendry 2009 from Napa

John Tyler 2006 from the Russian River Valley

These were my favorites and as you can see, they are from all over California and are spread out in vintages as well. Another super fun part about going to ZAP this year was the free photo booth provided by a vendor. We went in it a few times, each time getting a bit sillier and sillier.

All in all it was a great success this year and I look forward to next year's Grand Tasting to learn about some new wines. Until then I shall spend the rest of this year tasting my new favorites.

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