Heab-rific Weekend

Finally, FINALLY I got to see the gal who has been such an inspiration to me for the past year! Heather from Heather Eats Almond Butter encouraged me to start blogging this past fall and has provided support, friendship and giggles the whole time. She and CD often visit his folks in Scottsdale, Arizona during the holidays. When she told me that she would be there this Christmas, I knew that we had to have a 'Meetup'.

During the last hour of our drive from California, Derek realized that we had made a terrible timing error. We forgot that there is a TIME CHANGE! Doh! Luckily, Heabs was a good sport and had a look around the mall while we raced into town. Derek dropped me off at The Kona Grill where I met Miss Heather at long last! She gave me a cute Lululemon bag with all sorts of goodies inside including a totally cool microfiber yogamat-length towel, a Pom apron and single serving Jay Robb packets & Justin butters- so thoughtful! She KNOWS I'm obsessed with travel sized eats! :-) Thank you Heabs!! Here is her post on the evening- she is sooo much better about the food deets than I am! :-)

Long lost friends, United at last!! Deb & Heather

As you might imagine, we gabbed and gabbed and practically closed the place down without even scratching the surface of all of the topics we wanted to discuss. We ordered the same modified Seabass dish (as we wore our baby seal coats and sipped coffee out of styrofoam cups...kidding!) and split a fab red velvet cupcake- the waitress even had the genius idea to get the frosting on the side for us- SCORE!

Demolished Red Velvet Cupcake with the Now-famous Frosting-on-the-side. We had intended to bring home half to the hubs, but that turned out to be a pipe dream.

Now is the part where I get to sound totally clichéd. I get to sound like zillions of other bloggers after they have their meetups...They go on and on about the fabulousness of a recently-met bloggie friend. Somehow you never hear "Peeps, she was boring and what a BeeOtch!" Well, you won't hear that now from me now either. Of that you can be certain!!

Here is the absolute truth, clichéd or not: Heather is kind and generous, just like she seems on her blog. More so if that's even possible. Effortlessly & naturally beautiful and genuinely curious about everyone around her, she was totally engaging from the moment we met. Once when I thought I had left my camera behind, she was on the phone trying to track it down without hesitation. This was just one of the many thoughtful things she did. As predicted, Heabie is a total sweet-heart. End of clichéd portion of the post :-)

The next day Her MIL, Alice took a bloggle of us (the technical term for a group of bloggers) on a hike in the McDowell Sonoran Preserve. She is a volunteer guide, font of information and a hiking mastress. On the hike:

• Heather (Heather Eats Almond Butter)
• Beeks (Somehow I nicknamed her 'Beeks'... from BeekEats)
• Tenaya (Beeks' Mom who happens to be a fitness fanatic!)
  
• Alice
• Deb (Smoothie Girl Eats Too)

It was a stunning day that started off cool, but warmed up with the hiking and sunshine. Alice educated us about some of the local flora and led us with the perfect pace. We got to chat and learn all about each others’ lives on the 3 hours we had making our way up and down the mountain.

Tenaya, Beeks, Deb, Heabie, Alice

Heabs, Beeks & Mom-Tenaya. I love this photo- so fun.

Up, Up Up

My forearms (ie. Popeye muskles) & lats were sore the next day after using these hiking poles!

Action shot- look at Heabs- Run that trail, girl!

Beeks , Deb & Heabs in front of a HUUUUUGGGGE cactus

Beeks & Mama B. aka Tenaya

HeabRific Hiker Extraordinaire

6+ miles and 748 calories later, I was pretty much ready to eat my arm. For Heabies' take on the hike, click here. Beeks post is here. See, it pays to be lazy and get the last post out- I can just copy theirs and then link back- yesss!

Next stop: Lunch at The Pita Jungle. There was lavosh, pita, hummus and baba gannoush, among other main course yummies. You can imagine my happiness especially about the lavash. I tend to be a bit of a lavash monster.

Beeks had ordered something totally modified (so great to be around my peeps who also modify) and I pulled a Meg Ryan from When Harry Met Sally. You know, “I’ll have what she’s having”. And no, Beeks wasn’t making obscene noises…her Mom was sitting next to her for goodness sake!

Guess who met us there?

• Jenn (Eating Bender)

Jenn, Heabs, Deb, Beeks

Jenn was home from Chicago visiting family. We were lucky to be able to see her although I wished we had more time to chat. She has an exciting year ahead. She recently graduated college, got a job and got engaged! You can read about some of it here. Next time, we'll get her on a hike too because we missed her on that leg of the adventure :-)

Incidentally, sweet Beeks and Tenaya had driven 2 hours from Tucson just to be a part of the festivities. Plus Beeks took time off work. Thanks to you guys for making that effort! Beeks is a very mature and intelligent 18-year old woman who is about to embark on her culinary adventure at school in New York State in January. Be sure to read her blog to keep up with what is certain to be a fabulous career-in-the-making! She is creative, smart and very thoughtful. In fact she brought me some great gifties: some protein powder and Yogi chips...those are history fyi. They are that good.

We were unfortunate that Averie who lives minutes away in Phoenix was in Aruba the entire time we were there. What are the odds of that! We're sorry to have missed you Averie!

We saved just enough room for a bit of gelato at the shop next door. They claim to have less calories and fat than regular ice cream. How this is possible when it tastes richer than Chunky Monkey, I have no idea. Don’t ask. Don’t tell. Nom nom.

Finally and sadly, we said our bloggie good-byes. Parting is such sweet sorrow.

The next morning, Heather and I hit a Flow Yoga Class at At One Yoga studio, where I was able to put my new-from-Heather yoga mat towel to use. It was a good, challenging class. Heabs got to witness the Giggling-Side-Crow-in-a-Crumpled-Heap Pose that I have perfected. We were two happy, relaxed Sweaty Bettys by the end of it.

Only a really good yoga class can produce racoon-eyes like those I'm sporting in this photo

How cute is this girl??

I love Heather's smile in this shot. It's one of my fave photos from the whole trip.

I went back to the hotel for a quick shower and to collect the hubs. The two of us then met a freshly showered Heabs at “The Good Egg” for brunch, where I proceeded to modify my dish so much that the waitress didn't think it could be done. Turns out they did a great job. No photo, but it was a crepe with whipped egg-whites inside- HELLO!?! Is that not a Deb item? WHIPPED. EGG. WHITES??!! I asked for it with roasted fuji apples that I spotted elsewhere on the menu and side of pecans. I always joke that there is a gallon of spit in every modified dish that I order (courtesy of the chef of course). Oh well, good for my immunity no doubt! :-)

Heather & Deb- ready for some brunch!

Is this a Heab/Deb kinda place? Protein powder on the menu? Then again, there's also Oreos, M&Ms and Reese's PB chips, but we won't talk about that.

Luvie aka Mr. SmoothieGirl aka Derek & Heabs. Two of my favorite people together! For an artist's rendition of the Hubs, click here.

Like me, Derek loved meeting Heabie as he loved meeting Lara and Matthew. He's such an enthusiastic Mr. SmoothieGirl! But he was really sorry to have missed CD, who was sick the whole weekend. :-( Despite feeling like total cr*p, CD managed to flash me the biggest, friendliest smile and the most stunning blue eyes I have ever seen when I briefly met him. Wishing you a speedy recovery, CD! By the way, I hear that McVities and bacon cures all ailments.

It was a wonderful bloggie-filled weekend and I hope that there will be many more of those to come. Perhaps next time in LA!?

Q: Any fun meetups happening recently? Any planned for the future? I'm excited to meet my BFF/archrival/frenemy, Allie from Pimp My Protein Shake in January! She'll be passing through La La Land and we are going to hit up Asian markets and buy up all the shirataki & protein powder. Woot!

How Strength Training Changed my Life

This was a guest Post for Lara at Thinspired blog.

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Strength training changed my life? OK it might sound a tad dramatic, but I firmly believe it to be true.

First let me introduce myself. My name is Deb, and I write a blog called Smoothie Girl Eats Too. I am a fan/friend/kindred spirit to the lovely Lara. If you are reading these words, then you know how fabulous she is. We struck up a cyber-friendship through commenting on each others' blogs and finally had a really fun weekend hanging out together in the fall. We both understand the struggles of maintaining a significant weight loss. You know about her story, and if you are curious, you can read about mine here and here.

October 2009
Miss ThinSpired & Miss SmoothieGirl
(aka Lara & Deb)

One way that we differ is that Lara has not yet fallen head-over-heels, madly & passionately in love with strength training. Notice I said "YET". :-) Lara has found a healthy weight without devoting a lot of time to strength training. And she looks amazing. But she is curious about adding more strength training into her healthy living arsenal and that is why she asked me to write a post on this topic. She may never adore it, and neither may you, but you'll never know until you give it a decent try!

A little history: By eating anything and everything and never exercising, I became a big girl:

~ 1997

I had lost about 70 pounds in 1999 and kept it off for about 8 years. But the weight loss had stalled at a point where I still felt tubby despite the fact that I was spending countless hours weekly doing cardio. At five foot six and a half inches, I weighed about 155-160 pounds.

I was not fat, but I wasn't lean either. 155-160 lbs: The Cardio Queen

Then in the fall of 2007,  I incorporated the following three changes into my life:

• Food diary
• Daily smoothies
• Strength training
  

Then I dropped another 20 pounds. Strength training completely changed my body. And I believe that it has helped me to maintain my weight loss with LESS EFFORT than if I hadn't embraced resistance training..

2009 in the weight room. About 140 lbs.

I want to tell you that strength training is so terribly important, especially for women. Here are some of the benefits:

• Lean muscle mass = more calories burned AT REST (read: sitting on the couch)
  
• Sculpted muscles = less "bulk" = less "junk in the trunk" no matter what the scale says
• Increased bone density 
• Empowerment- seriously- when you're strong, you feel like you can accomplish a LOT, and you CAN
  
• Increased endurance- even in other training regimens. Inexplicable, but true. It seems to help with running, cycling and other sports.
• Sense of accomplishment- I always feel very accomplished after doing a strength routine. And I love the day-after soreness that tells me I worked hard.
• Improved Sleep
• Improvement with depressive conditions, diabetes, and other chronic conditions such as arthritis and back pain.

I want to address a concern for anyone out there who is afraid (as I was) to strength train and consequently  get big and bulky. Unless you are rockin' the 'roids (taking steroids), weight lifting for hours a day and eating like a horse, you will likely not get buff.  True, there are certain women with body types that add muscle easier than others.  If this sounds like your situation, you can have a personal trainer show you the moves to keep and the moves to toss.  Most women, however, will never get bulky.

Top of a lunge

Bottom of a lunge: LARGE CHILD NOT NECESSARY, but kinda fun!

Learn from my mistakes...Do not wait to lose weight and then "firm up". By strength training while you watch your diet, you will actually lose fat more efficiently. Also, when you diet (maintain a low calorie level) you lose muscle. This is not good! By strength training, you can maintain most of your muscle, even while you lose fat. I used to be under the impression that I had a slow metabolism. This was not the case- I was simply lacking the muscle that my body needed to burn calories more rapidly.

I also want you to know that you should not shy away from weights that are a challenge. Those little pastel colored weights in the corner of the gym will do you no good unless you are an absolute beginner. You need to pick a weight that makes it difficult to complete the last rep when you do anywhere from 6 to 12 reps. If you can keep going and going, you are lifting too light. I am not saying that you should lift "heavy", but with instruction, you should lift a weight that is tough.

These were about 20-25 pounds each. Optical illusion: they look even bigger than that!

I HIGHLY recommend having a personal trainer work with you to show you the correct form as it is of UTMOST importance to do all of the exercises correctly. You do not want to start a training program only to get sidelined with an injury. Some things to keep in mind: Do not work the same muscle group two days in a row- did you know that your muscle grows on its day off? Also, shoot for a couple of times per week to start- that should be plenty.

By the way, I consider a challenging form of yoga (some names: flow, power, ashtanga, hot) to be a form of strength training as well. Aside from being relaxing and teaching many important life lessons (like breathing through a difficult moment), it takes you through a series of lunges, squats, planks, V-sits and pushups- all under your body's weight- no small feat! It also helps tremendously with balance training- invaluable for anyone at any age. But even more important as we get older.

I know that there are a lot of blbggers who are totally on-board with this weight-training way-of-life. Janetha, Susan, Bekah and Allie are all fans. You can check out their blogs to see some of their moves. Here is a useful post that Susan wrote on weights.

So I encourage you to get more information about strength training and give it a try if you are physically able. You just might be surprised at how much you grow to love it! And there is no question what it can do for your mind and body.

How to Thicken your Smoothies: Guar and Xanthan Gum Info and Smoothie Porn

OK folks, usually I try to make my blog a bit fun. I like to keep things light for the most part and goof around. But today, I hope that you are ready to revisit science class. Grab your blankie, and curl up because you might end up head-bobbing while trying desperately to stay awake to read the scientific stuff at the end of this post. (Or you can always skip it!)

I have a few new readers (welcome to all of you and thank you if you have de-lurked!) and some of you are asking about the gums I use in my smoothies. Here's a link to my previous post about it. Also I have links to information from Bob's Red Mill on Xanthan and Guar Gums. Both gums are usually available at health food stores, online or even at some regular supermarkets.

Here is the basic story: the gums are natural carbohydrates and they do have calories: 20 per 7 g of Guar and 30 per 9g of Xanthan. They impart no flavor to smoothies, but make the shakes thicker and creamier. They prevent ice crystals from forming and therefore make very thick and luscious smoothies and ice creams. They are also used in gluten-free baking. It is not necessary to use the gums in smoothies, but they do improve the consistency and volume. Many, many processed food items already contain them, such as many ice creams and protein powders. Read some labels- you might be surprised. Even last night, Derek was cooking and happened to glance at the "I Can't believe It's Not Butter Spray". Yup, you guessed it- xanthan gum.

By the way, the best way to use the gums is to use them TOGETHER! They have synergistic properties and each one doesn't work as well without the other. Just an FYI from personal experience. If you must choose one, it should be xanthan. Guar does almost nothing on its own. This is, of course, my opinion.
Turns out that some people actually use these gums in much higher doses as over-the-counter medications for the treatment of constipation, diabetes, elevated cholesterol, IBS (Irritable Bowel Syndrome) and other ailments (WHO KNEW!?). And when you use something as a medication, there are risks and side effects. There seem to be interactions with existing medications, and also with medical conditions- even pregnancy and breast feeding, so please read about them if you want to use these gums safely. Keep in mind that I typically use roughly 1/8-1/4 of a TEASPOON in each serving of my smoothie. The maximum recommended safe doses seems to be about 15 g of each, which is about 1.5-2 Tablespoons. That's way more than anyone could or should ever use in smoothies. (Your blender's motor would literally stop working due to the thickness of the smoothie).

Anyway, here is some smoothie porn and for those interested in the medical portion of this post, please read below.

Typical PB&J smoothie in a jar

The Kettle Corn Smoothie

The Papaya Coconut Smoothie

The Cookies & Creme

The 'Drink your Halvah' Smoothie

The 'Elvis Pelvis' Smoothie

End of smoothie porn. Begin Science-Speak:

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The All-You-Need-To-Know article from WebMD:

Xanthan Gum:

Xanthan gum is a sugar-like compound made by mixing aged (fermented) sugars with a certain kind of bacteria. It is used to make medicine.

How does it work?

Xanthan gum swells in the intestine, which stimulates the digestive tract to push stool through. It also might slow the absorption of sugar from the digestive tract and work like saliva to lubricate and wet the mouth in people who don't produce enough saliva.

Possibly Effective for:

• Use as a bulk-forming laxative to treat constipation.
• Lowering blood sugar in people with diabetes.
• Lowering cholesterol levels in people with diabetes.
• Use as a saliva substitute for dry mouth.

XANTHAN GUM Side Effects & Safety

Xanthan gum is safe when up to 15 grams per day are taken. It can cause some side effects such as intestinal gas (flatulence) and bloating.

[Insert Deb giggle here. Tee hee hee]

People who are exposed to xanthan gum powder might experience flu-like symptoms, nose and throat irritation, and lung problems.

Do not take xanthan gum if:

• You are pregnant or breast-feeding.
• You have appendicitis.
• You have a narrowing of your intestines (intestinal stenosis).
• You have a blockage in your bowel.
• You are scheduled for surgery in the next two weeks
  

Moderate Interaction Be cautious with this combination of medicines:

• Medications for diabetes (Antidiabetes drugs) interacts with XANTHAN GUM
  Xanthan gum might decrease blood sugar by decreasing the absorption of sugars from food. Diabetes medications are also used to lower blood sugar. Taking xanthan gum with diabetes medications might cause your blood sugar to be too low. Monitor your blood sugar closely. The dose of your diabetes medication might need to be changed.
  Some medications used for diabetes include glimepiride (Amaryl), glyburide (DiaBeta, Glynase PresTab, Micronase), insulin, pioglitazone (Actos), rosiglitazone (Avandia), chlorpropamide (Diabinese), glipizide (Glucotrol), tolbutamide (Orinase), and others.

BY MOUTH:

• The World Health Organization (WHO) has set the maximum acceptable intake for xanthan gum as a food additive at 10 mg/kg per day and as a laxative at 15 grams per day. For safety and effectiveness, bulk laxatives such as xanthan gum require extra fluids.
• For diabetes: a typical dose is 12 grams per day as an ingredient in muffins.

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GUAR GUM:

Guar gum is a fiber from the seed of the guar plant.

Guar gum is used as a laxative. It is also used for treating diarrhea, irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), obesity, and diabetes; for reducing cholesterol; and for preventing “hardening of the arteries” (atherosclerosis).

In foods and beverages, guar gum is used as a thickening, stabilizing, suspending, and binding agent.

In manufacturing, guar gum is used as a binding agent in tablets, and as a thickening agent in lotions and creams.

How does it work?

Guar gum is a fiber that normalizes the moisture content of the stool, absorbing excess liquid in diarrhea, and softening the stool in constipation. It also might help decrease the amount of cholesterol and glucose that is absorbed in the stomach and intestines.

There is some interest in using guar gum for weight loss because it expands in the intestine, causing a sense of fullness. This may decrease appetite.

Possibly Effective for:

• Diarrhea. Adding guar gum to the tube feeding formula given to critical care patients may shorten episodes of diarrhea from about 30 days to about 8 days.
• High cholesterol. Taking guar gum seems to lower cholesterol levels in people with high cholesterol. Guar gum and pectin, taken with small amounts of insoluble fiber, also lower total and “bad” low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol, but don't affect “good” high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol or other blood fats called triglycerides.
• Diabetes. Taking guar gum with meals seems to lower blood sugar after meals in people with diabetes. By slowing stomach emptying, guar gum may also lessen after-meal drops in blood pressure that occur frequently in people with diabetes.
• Constipation.
• Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS).

Possibly Ineffective for:

• Weight loss.

Insufficient Evidence for:

• Hardening of the arteries (atherosclerosis).
• Other conditions.

More evidence is needed to rate the effectiveness of guar gum for these uses.

Guar gum is LIKELY SAFE for most people when taken with at least 8 ounces of liquid. The water is important because it reduces the chance of choking or developing a blockage in the intestine.

Side effects include increased gas production, diarrhea, and loose stools. These side effects usually decrease or disappear after several days of use. High doses of guar gum or not drinking enough fluid with the dose of guar gum can cause blockage of the esophagus and the intestines.

Special Precautions & Warnings:

Pregnancy and breast-feeding: Taking guar gum during pregnancy in typical amounts is POSSIBLY SAFE. But not enough is known about the safety of taking guar gum during breast-feeding. Stay on the safe side and avoid use.

Gastrointestinal (GI) obstruction: Don’t take guar gum if you have a condition that causes obstruction or narrowing of your esophagus or intestine.

Surgery: Because guar gum might affect blood glucose levels, there is a concern that it might interfere with blood glucose control during and after surgery. Stop taking guar gum at least 2 weeks before a scheduled surgery.

Moderate Interaction Be cautious with this combination

• Ethinyl estradiol interacts with GUAR GUM
  Ethinyl estradiol is a form of estrogen that's in some estrogen products and birth control pills. Guar gum can decrease how much ethinyl estradiol the body absorbs. Taking guar gum along with estrogen-containing medicines might decrease the effectiveness of estrogen.
• Medications for diabetes (Antidiabetes drugs) interacts with GUAR GUM
  Guar gum might decrease blood sugar. Diabetes medications are also used to lower blood sugar. Taking guar gum along with diabetes medications might cause your blood sugar to go too low. Monitor your blood sugar closely. The dose of your diabetes medication might need to be changed.
  Some medications used for diabetes include glimepiride (Amaryl), glyburide (DiaBeta, Glynase PresTab, Micronase), insulin, pioglitazone (Actos), rosiglitazone (Avandia), chlorpropamide (Diabinese), glipizide (Glucotrol), tolbutamide (Orinase), and others.
• Metformin (Glucophage) interacts with GUAR GUM
  Guar gum can decrease how much metformin the body absorbs. Taking guar gum along with metformin can decrease the effectiveness of metformin.
• Penicillin (Penicillin VK, Pen VK, Veetids) interacts with GUAR GUM
  Guar gum can decrease how much penicillin the body absorbs. Taking guar gum along with penicillin can decrease the ability of penicillin to fight infection.

Minor Interaction Be watchful with this combination

• Digoxin (Lanoxin) interacts with GUAR GUM
  Some people worry that guar gum can decrease how much digoxin the body absorbs. But it is unlikely that guar gum will significantly affect digoxin absorption.

The following doses have been studied in scientific research:

BY MOUTH:

• For constipation: 12 grams per day. Start with a small dose of 4 grams per day and increase the dose slowly over time to limit unwanted gastrointestinal (GI) side effects.
• For diabetes: 15 grams per day.
• For high cholesterol: 15 grams per day of guar gum plus pectin in combination with 5 grams insoluble fiber.
• For irritable bowel syndrome (IBS): 5 grams of partially hydrolyzed guar gum (PHGG). PHGG is guar gum that has been chemically treated to make it dissolve in liquids and keep it from being broken down by acid or heat.

Did you have a good snooze? Sorry if that was boring. But some of it is important.

Q: Have you tried the gums? If so, what was your experience with them?

Flashback Friday: Christmases past

Happy Holidays! Guess I'm getting in under the wire for Flashback Friday! Thanks Janetha for being the brain-child/adult for such a fun concept!

First of all, one of my fave prezzies that Santa brought for me (yes, I still believe), were these mugs...Had to share.

That foam has serious altitude.

This lovely girl started the craze. OK, so far the craze consists of me and her, but it's always good to be at the forefront of such things.

Without further ado, I present...SmoothieGirl of Christmases Past...

First some old school stuff:

Baby Steven (my bro) & me

Mom & Steven

Steven, Junior & Bamboo (the Labrador trapped in a pit-bull's body)

Ya think Steven is "stuffed"?

Mom & me 2001. My "tomboy" stage


Samantha~ 1997... No patience- just ripping her prezzies open. Sigh.



Samantha & Charlotte (heart)= best prezzies ever



Princess?? Uh... YEAH.


Next stop: Great Britain, the hub's birthplace

The Hub's familia. Shifty looking bunch. ~ 2005/6

Same shady characters, different year.

Deb with her hub's nieces in 2005/6 who are now 6' tall statuesque beauties.

With friends, Steve & Carol & family... in Crawley, UK

This photo has nothing to do with Christmas except that Carol proudly displayed this calendar on her wall during our visit. She is totally in love with Cliff Richard. Do you know who he is?

My good buddy/college room-mate Leigh in 2006. Believe it or not, she also hearts Cliff Richard!! What are the odds!

I couldn't look at the camera because I was addicted to Bejeweled. I blame Leigh (above). She's the one who got me started. Grrr.

Domestic partners? NO! It's Leigh's Hub JIM on the left and my hub DEREK on the right. They cooked an entire Christmas meal for us- KEEPERS!

Part of the familia-2006.
Derek, Deb, Steven, Aunt Rhoda, Mom


With the familia 2007. Yes, I was wearing clothes, my hair was long, and I was thinner. Just in case you were wondering.

2007-The "Boys"

That's Derek's hand making a hand-puppet toward the strawberries.

Steven & Tofu 2008.

Here's wishing you a wonderful Holiday Season!

Deb