Rest Stop - Chicken Fruit Salad

Normally this would be Week 9 Day One but due to the holiday it is a rest stop.  I will see Dr. Scott tomorrow.

I am a little discouraged today.  I only lost 3.5 pounds last week.  I am down to 352 not 350.  I was hoping to hit the fifty pound loss mark instead of forty eight.  Vick says I should be happy because I am doing so good.  Last Friday night we met some friends in Salt Lake and went to dinner.  Mike and Becky are very special friends to us.  They have encouraged me every time I have tried to lose weight.  They were excited for the progress I have made this time.  It was the first time Vick and I have been to dinner since I started this program.  We went to Sizzler and I had steak and salad bar and did okay.  I did eat white rice, a small portion, though.  I did make a decision to eat potato salad and baked beans yesterday.  I only had 1/2 a cup of  salad and less than that of beans. Dr. Scott has told me I can use the 90/10 rule and so I did for the first variation of what I can have in almost six weeks.  I guess 47-48 lbs in six weeks is pretty good.  I am back to eating only what I can.  I have also begun walking at the local mall.  I have to walk inside since I can't be outside.  I end up walking about a mile and a half right now.  Hopefully that will be increasing shortly by 1/2 mile increments.

Time for the next updated photos.  I wasn't sure I could see a change until I compared my starting photo with today's and I guess there is some difference.

The recipes I add are ones I have found and have used along this journey.  If the contain an ingredient I can't have, I either substitute it for one I can or I omit it altogether.

Skinny Grilled Chicken and Fruit Salad

Ingredients

10-12 ounces romaine lettuce

1/2 cup shredded carrots

1/4 cup shredded low-fat cheddar cheese(I have to omit this)

1/2 cup blueberries

1/2 cup chopped apples

1/2 cup sliced strawberries

1/2 cup mandarin oranges(I use fresh mandarins because I can't have canned fruit)

1 lb grilled chicken tenders

-Strawberry Balsamic Dressing

1 Tbsp Smuckers All Natural Strawberry Preserves reduced sugar

1 Tbsp Balsamic vinegar

3 Tbsp Extra Virgin Olive Oil

1/8 tsp salt

1/8 tsp pepper

(I just use Apple cider vinegar and lemon juice, since that is all I can have at this point)

Instructions

Wash and rinse romaine lettuce and pour into a large bowl.  Top lettuce with all the other ingredients, leaving out the chicken and mix well.  After salad is mixed, top with chicken and serve with Strawberry Balsamic Dressing.  For dressing, mix all ingredients in a small bowl and whisk for one minute.

This recipe is from the skinny mom blog:  http://www.skinnymom.com/2012/06/25/skinny-grilled-fruit-and-chicken-salad/  Lots of good recipes here.