How I lost 100 pounds with NOW Sports Nutrition Pea Protein Powder (with recipes to make it edible LOL)

 

Greetings Omifans (how do you like my new nickname? I'm Omi or grandma to 9 grandkids and my oldest daughter suggested Omifans as a nod to that. And also, being a grandma has a lot to do with this post. I tell you a lot about how I lost 100 pounds after age 50, without gastric bypass surgery. And maybe you're thinking, I don't need to know what you DIDN'T do but what you did to lose weight. Point taken. 

There were three keys to how I lost 100 pounds and the first was calorie restricting on a 1200 calorie diet. That's only consuming 1200 calories a day. How did I arrive at that figure? Once I realized that I wasn't just overweight but morbidly obese, I consulted a physician who gave me a neat algorithm: X goal weight (124 lbs) by 10 calories. Et voile. 

Mm-kay, you're probably wondering, but what about those other two keys? Weight loss has got to involve more than just calorie restricting. Doesn't it matter what you eat? No and yes. A 1200 calorie diet of one cheesecake a day, would lose weight if I was used to eating say 3,000 calories a day. Less in less on. Simple. But it wouldn't be healthy weight loss because I wouldn't  be getting vitamins, nutrients, electrolytes, antioxidants and fat burning MUFAS. Plus refined sugar is one-way ticket to obesity and gastric bypass, by sabotaging metabolism, creating stored fat and kicking in heroin-like cravings,  

The second two keys to how I lost 100 pounds were portion control and keto type diet. I'll cover portion control more later (and have in previous blog posts). But again you want to know what I did eat, not what I didn't. So about that keto, say keto type diet because I didn't and don't follow strict keto. I monitor and reduce refined sugar intake, boost vegetables and high fiber fruits and protein and eat MUFA (monounsaturated fatty acids). 

And my favorite way beat obesity is to start the day is with a breakfast smoothie using NOW Sports Nutrition Pea Protein powder. You can get a 7lb tub for $47.85 with Amazon Subscribe & Save. Pea protein is the most digestible, best anti-inflammatory, lowest refined sugar protein powder I've found. Weight loss after age 50 means knowing your body really well. And after menopause, soy is out. Whey protein has always been out for weight loss as it creates belly fat and shouldn't be used as part of a calorie restricting 1200 calorie diet. 

Because it's zero refined sugar, NOW Sports Nutrition pea protein powder isn't the tastiest protein powder. I add half a grapefruit (membrane and juice, for high fiber), berries and spinach to my smoothie. That's sweet enough for me. If you need it a little sweeter, add apples or banana. But remember to factor in those calories to your 1200 calorie diet. A NOW Sports Nutrition pea protein powder smoothie provides 24 grams of protein, tons of fiber, vitamins, electrolytes and fat burning MUFA for under 200 calories and boy, Omifans, does it fill you up! 

This post is part of my March to Weight Loss challenge. Stay tuned for more!  

#omifans

How I lost 100 pounds with Popeye

 

Hiya friends! If you follow this blog on how I lost 100 pounds, you know that I like to write enigmatic titles to provoke your curiosity. Today we're looking at weight loss with Popeye. Not, alas, the famous Popeye's Louisiana Kitchen. I wish!! But Popeye the sailor man. (Whom my grandson Moses used to call Potpie, which makes me laugh to remember, and ponder how the baby grands are growing so quickly, but I digress...)

Anyway, Popeye says he's "strong to the finish cuz I eats me spinach." And that's great for weight loss too. One cup of spinach has $5% RDA vitamin A, 20% vitamin C, gobs of Vitamin K, Vitamin B and 10% potassium (the most difficult-to-get-enough-of of the electrolytes, as I learned by getting seriously dehydrated during Covid 19.) 

But how does spinach help lose weight? Popeye demonstrates when he eats a can, he gets super strong. That is a genuine benefit of spinach. Because it contains such high quantities of vitamins and electrolytes (calcium, magnesium) it boosts metabolism and energy. Metabolism boosters help food digest more efficiently, improve circulation and even enhance mood. Speedier metabolism gets the most bang for your food buck. 

You'll notice on shows like "My 600-lb Life" that most gastric bypass patients never eat a green vegetable unless it's saturated in butter or drowned in salad dressing. It's true that green leafy vegetables like spinach require some fat to digest. But it should be something high in MUFA (monounsaturated fatty acids) or PUFA (polyunsaturated fatty acids), low in saturated fats (unless avocado or coconut oil) and free of transfats. 

Dr. Now, gastric bypass physician on "My 600-lb Life" uses a 1200 calorie diet to help patients lose weight before and after surgery. This 1200 calorie diet is vegetable forward and features spinach and other green leafy vegetables prominently. These not only help with metabolism, they help cleanse and flush stored fat and end obesity. 

Another green leafy veggie that is great for weight loss is kale. However I find that kale has a stronger and more bitter flavor whereas I can hide spinach in most anything and not taste it. My favorite way to eat spinach is in a salad or breakfast smoothie. Add a few handfuls to your protein shake, with half a grapefruit, pea protein powder and blueberries or raspberries and drink your way to weight loss! 

How I lost 100 pounds with plant protein smoothies vs. juicing

Juicing has always been touted for weight loss and general health. But while I'm sure juicing good for you, I found protein smoothies more more effective to help me lose weight. Dr. Now of "My 600-lb Life" doesn't recommend protein shakes for treating obesity in his gastric bypass patients. That's probably the whey protein kind he objects to. But having a plant protein shake every morning is part of how I lost 100 pounds.

You may be wondering, does it need to be an either/or thing, juicing vs. protein smoothies for weight loss. Yes, it does and here's why. Juicing removes all the of membrane, pulp, seeds and well, fruit, from fruit. That's where the antioxidant and fat burner goodness live. Part of Dr. Now's gastric bypass "homework" on "My 600-lb Life" is to lose weight ahead of bariatric surgery. A great way to do that is to fat flush (sorry to be graphic but that's basically pooping it out). Fruit "guts" (all the aforementioned innards) work as natural fiber cleanses (laxatives). They can even help treat Type 2 diabetes.

So the problem with juicing in fighting obesity, is that it removes everything that aids weight loss and leaves only juice where most of the sugar and calories reside. So, how I lost 100 pounds with smoothies? Every day, I make a protein shake and cram that sucka full of high fiber fruit guts, LOL. Note certain fruits are better than others. The "My 600-lb Life" gastric bypass diet calls for cutting high sugar concentrate fruits, like oranges, grapes, bananas. I also eliminated stone fruits (peaches, mangoes, apricots) to treat diabetes and lose weight. 

The best fruits I found for weight loss  are: apples, berries and grapefruit. Here's my "how I lost 100 pounds" smoothie recipe. 1 scoop pea protein powder (120 calories and 24 grams of plant protein), fresh spinach, half a grapefruit, fresh cranberries (in season) and berries (fresh or frozen). I get 12 oz of frozen mixed berries (blueberries, strawberries, raspberries and blackberries) from Dollar Tree.  Total calories: about 210. Drinking these plant protein shakes helped me manage obesity, avoid diabetes and lose weight. 

Fat-burning breakfast shake recipe for weight loss: Kick butt (and belly fat) with superfoods smoothie

Ya wanna go a few rounds with belly fat and win? I did and lost 100 pounds. Here's my kick-butt--and belly fat--breakfast shake recipe for weight loss. All our superfood super friends join in this smoothie to smooth out cellulite and chop off pounds. And best of all, this weight loss shake tastes delish at only 250 calories! Whip up one of these babies and eat your way to thin with vegan, ketogenic fiber, MUFAs and protein on the go!

Superfoods Smoothie recipe

layer in your smoothie shake maker cup--

kale, spinach or red leaf lettuce
1 scoop plant-based Orgain or other pea protein and greens protein powder
one half seeded, peeled grapefruit
one half cup blueberries fresh or frozen
half Tbsp chia seeds
Tbsp pumpkin seeds
Tbsp milled flaxseed
Tbsp maca powder or cocoa nibs
one envelope Emergen'C
water to top
optional non-Vegan Greek yogurt

Blend, garnish with crudites and enjoy! Reminiscent of an Azacca or Chinook hops IPA, the grapefruit gives it a heaven-on-earth piney flavor which hopheads like myself covet. But don't be scared off, non-beer folks. It's just a hint and only noticeable if you have a hop-forward palate. Slainte!