2 for 2 and a Perfect Banana Oatmeal

All, I come bearing good news! Guess what... this whole thing actually works! And I've got numbers to prove it! In 1 month of the non-diet diet I lost 2% body fat which in my case are 2 pounds of fat. I think it's quiet impressive... not to mention I've never felt better! For the first time in my life the scale went up and I don't give a damn (weight went up 2 pounds since I started... coincidence?) because my clothes are all lose. I attest: muscle does weigh more than fat (I am a "see it to believe it" person.. never mind that I always read about it everywhere, I had to actually experience it...).

Now to amp up my muscle gain I am actually trying to eat a bit more proteins and carbs (for those of you who know me well... you know how hard that is for me). I'm eating every 3 hours which honestly is not as great as it sounds... I'm usually not hungry when it comes time to eat. I just started this though, so I'll keep you posted on the results and challenges.

Aaaaaanyhow... to celebrate success, I leave you with my absolute favorite breakfast oatmeal recipe (this is the basic version.. but I recently I started adding whey protein powder to increase my daily protein intake)

Ingredients:

1/3 cup oats (I use steel cut oats old fashioned)
2/3 cup water
1/3 cup unsweetened vanilla almond milk
1/2 sliced ripe banana 
1/4 tsp cinnamon
Stevia or Truvia to taste
Sliced almond and dark chocolate chips to top it off.

Preparation: 

1. Combine the oats, water, almond milk, banana, cinnamon and sweetener in a bowl (microwavable) and stir. 
2. Place the bowl in the microwave for 6 minutes at 50% power (trust me, this makes all the difference in the consistency you'll get... part of the deliciousness comes form this step).
3. Let it sit for 3-5 min once it's done (if you can wait for that long)
4. Top it with some sliced almond, a bit more cinnamon, some chocolate chips or peanut butter - or whatever you fancy! ENJOY!!

Note: if you are an oatmeal expert you probably noticed that this recipe calls for a bit more liquid than you are used to BUT this is key! Adding more liquid improved the consistency and also makes the recipe "yield" more (so you feel you ate more). Got this tip from chocolatecoveredkatie.com and it changed my world. 

Still living, and still going!

Yes, I have been MIA for a bit but I'm still here, and still sticking to the plan! Well, kinda sticking to the plan... last week I flopped a bit - I had half a dirty, sinful burger on weekday and a couple of beers more than I should... also on a weekday! But hey, the Heat were playing so cut me some slack hehe. 

Here is one of my shameless (but actually shameful) selfies assessing my 2 week progress (fairly outdated, yes.. it's been 1 week since I did the second picture so hopefully I'll get something even better next week!). I think it's pretty good considering it was only 2 weeks!!

Yes, I am (very) embarrassed by this, but I think it is good motivation

Well, You'd be glad to know (I think) that I am back on track now and at full force. So full of force and determination that this week I decided to cut out my oatmeal from breakfast - just because I was close to getting clinically addicted to that stuff (sooo good *drool*). I mean, oatmeal is great for you and all that, but since I don't exercise in the morning I don't think I need all those carbs (what triggered me to do this was this post I read at hungry-runner.com). 

So, instead of my go to oats, I'm trying some crazy smoothies! So far so good! Second day in and I have to admit I miss the carb kick but I'm not altogether hating it. Smoothies are fun and every morning its like Christmas, you never know what to expect. I will post some of my best recipes here... but I am not sure if it is even worth it following recipes for smoothies.. you have to be adventurous, you know? 

Some more recipes to come (soon, I swear!) are (forgive me the pictures, I am NOT a food blogger): 

This is just a good meal idea

The patties are actually just sweet potatoes (these are slider size)

This chicken has some awesome tricks to it - trust me

I mean EVERYTHING

Just because I'm not eating it doesn't mean you shouldn't

Anyhow y'all (yes, I said 'y'all', it felt appropriate... don't ask me why) catch up with you later! Before I go though? Did anyone get motivated to at least eat a bit better by this? Let me know if you have any recipes too, I need ideas!!