KateGoesKeto:BigMacs&Dr.Pepper

First of all I'd like to start my saying that I FINALLY have experienced a little "whoosh" of weight loss! Not a lot but I'm about 2-3 lbs lighter since I last weighed myself 2 days ago. And that's weighing myself at the end of the day after all my meals have been eaten! 

Now to the "meat" of this post (pun intended)....today I wanted a Big Mac. I've mentioned in posts before that I love me some big macs and I wanted one today.... bad. So I made a Big Mac Casserole! I found the recipe on Pinterest and modified it a little for my tastes, I'll put the recipe below. I was very skeptical. Mostly because I thought Big Mac sauce was like a magical unicorn sauce that couldn't possibly be recreated, and I didn't think I could recreate the fast food tasting goodness of a big Mac at home.

WRONG. It was AMAZING.

I'll never eat another regular Big Mac again. Imagine a Big Mac, made with REAL beef, organic cheese, and just all around wholesome/quality ingredients and that's what a Big Mac Casserole is.

Here was my plate, I couldn't even eat all of it, keto has cut my appetite in half, but I savored EVERY bite. It tasted just like a Big Mac, but better. 

RECIPE:

-2 lbs ground beef (I bought the one with 27% fat ratio) 

-2 bags of shredded cheese (I used 1 bag of mild cheddar and 1 Mexican mix) 

-sesame seeds

-dill pickle slices 

-worstechire 

-black pepper 

-salt

-minced onion 

Instructions-

Preheat oven to 350

Brown your meat then add almost a whole bag of cheese to it, a decent amount of minced onion, a splash of worstechire, and salt and pepper to taste, then mix in some Russian dressing (I did about 3tbs.

Once all is combined and cooked down add mixture to baking pan, I used 2 throw away 9x9 pans, but this could easily go into other sizes and work. Spread out and pat together into bottom of pan.

Cover in sliced pickles (I made a 1 pickle layer, none overlapping)

Drizzle Russian sauce over it. 

Cover in cheese then sprinkle a generous amount of sesame seeds over it. 

Bake for 20 min. Then broil for 5-6 and let the cheese get nice and cooked. 

Voila! Big Mac Casserole. 

This recipe made 2 of these pans. My boyfriend and I ate about half of a pan, bf didn't finish our plates. So for 2 people it would be about 8-10 servings (so a couple lunches/dinners) next time I will probably freeze one pan. 

So I satisfied my fast food craving, ate this with a diet Dr Pepper and then for dessert we had a low carb concoction I whipped up. another pun intended. 

1 cup of HWC

A tbs of cocoa powder 

About teaspoon or so of stevia 

Whip into a whip cream then spread into a Tupperware and stick in the freezer. 

Then I cut up 1 Atkins PB Cup (1 net carb) and sprinkled that on top! Was pretty good but again we barely finished it! 

So far so good, officially 1 week into keto and we are loving it! 

-Katelyn 
 
 

 

KateGoesKeto: One Week Check In

Okay so today is day 6, so basically one week into keto. So far no weightloss but I feel lighter. Now, that might be psychological but I mean it when I say I feel lighter and more energetic. I write that as I am currently 7 hours into a 12 hour shift so I mean it! So I thought a week in I would write a little pro and con list of my honest feelings about Keto so far.


Let's start with the bad, shall we?


Cons-
-So. Much. Cooking.
   Now this is mostly my own fault because I am not the type that can eat boiled eggs and slices of cheese. I wouldn't last like that, within 2 days you would find me eat a big mac. So it is a lot of cooking, most of which I enjoy, but some of the keto staple grocery items are a little pricier and I miss the option of popping by a fast food place on my way home from a 12 hour shift to grab something.


-Weight loss?
   This is more a con of the LACK of weight loss lol. I see SO many people on keto drop a good bit of water weight within the first week and....I have gained 2 lbs. Now, that is with weighing myself a few minutes ago during the middle of the day 2 meals in however I would expect to at least be like 1 lb lighter...but I am not letting this weigh on me TOO much because A) I am still learning the low carb life and B) I only have a loss goal of about 10-15 lbs so I cant really expect to lose it all in one day.






PROS-
 
-Feelin' Good
  I may not have lost any weight yet but I FEEL good. I don't feel bloated, I have felt pretty alert and energized during the day. Just an overall good feeling.


-0 Guilt
  Pre-Keto I would stress out every day about food. I pretty much ate whatever I wanted but I would feel a lot of guilt later about what I ate. I like that Keto offers a good guideline for food and it is easy enough to follow the low carb part of it. So at the end of the day when I have 5-10 carbs left because I was good all day then I have absolute 0 guilt eating some of my Halo Top ice cream or some Atkins PB cups!


-Direction
   I like that keto is something pretty easy to understand as far as the LCHF (low carb high fat) part of it. It's easy to calculate net carbs in something (carb-fiber) and there are literally tons of Facebook groups and pinterest ideas, etc. on keto recipes and tips. Every question I have had so far was EASILY answered with a google search or asking on a facebook group!




So that is my rough pro and con list real quick. Overall I am still happy with it, still going to stick with it. I am a little bummed I haven't experienced that immediate drop in water weight but most people that say that they immediately experienced a drop of 4-10 lbs in the first 1-2 weeks have much more than 10-15 lbs in mind for a goal weight loss. I am a little disturbed at gaining 2 lbs but I am going to attribute that to weighing myself in the dead middle of the afternoon and to the fact that I am making a huge dietary change and have not been 100% strict with myself so far. So this week I am determined to buckle down a little more, seriously focus on low carb & fitting into my calorie count and not so much on macro counting because honestly as a beginner it is hard to think about fat and protein intake.


Here are a couple pics from my favorite meals I have eaten this week! Keto can be super yummy!

Jimmy Johns is my new bae, they offer for any of their sandwiches to be ordered as an "unwhich" wrapped in lettuce!

The bootlegger was good, the #9 Italian night club was better.

Breakfast taco! With sausage, eggs, cheese, and Taco Bell mild sauce & chipotle sauce!

My yummiest coffee for sure!

Grilled salmon with veggies! (half eaten because I forgot to take a picture)

 

 

What the heck is a keto?

 

So without seeming too cliché I'd like to talk about my new years resolution which, of course, has to do with health/fitness. So I have attempted lots of diets and end up falling off relatively quick because they are too inconvenient (raw til 4), too expensive (all organic/no processed), or just lacking in good options (vegan....)...but I think I have FINALLY found a lifestyle change that is going to work for me.


I say this already on my 4th day with little to no cheats, so I am confident that I can stick with it. This "diet" is call the Keto diet. It is actually growing in popularity now and my parents have been on this diet for quite some time with great results.


When my mom first started telling me about keto many moons ago I thought she was a little crazy, I mean aren't fats bad? Why would you want to eat MORE fats? But as she started to explain it to me it actually made sense. Watching my parents eat sausages and eggs covered in cheese for breakfast and prok rhines dipped in cream cheese dips has me thinking this was a diet I could get behind. However back then I didn't have the motivation to change my diet and I also just didn't completely believe it would work. But then my parents both lost more weight than I could believe possible eating yummy foods! So for the new year I decided that I was in.


What is Keto? Well, from a beginners understanding (read, I am still learning so this is just what I have gathered) it is a low carb, high fat diet. Low carb meaning under 20-25 NET carbs a day, (max 30) but 20 is optimal. High fat meaning (for me at least) close to 140 grams of fat a day. Now, everyone will need different macro counts, there is a calculator I will link below for you to find your own ideal macro information! My "perfect macros" are as follows:


Height: 5'1  Weight: 120lbs  Activity Level: Light (trying to change that to a higher activity level but with keto (from the research I have done) its good to go ahead and choose a lower answer because the goal (for weightloss) is to still be at a calorie deficit. Meaning you still want to eat less calories than you burn so you can lose weight.


Daily-
Calories: 1600
Protein:75g (18% of my diet)
Fat: 141g (76%)
Carbs: 20


So this is "perfect macros" looks like. The last 4 days I have been experimenting, using an app called Carb Tracker that lets me input all of my foods and tracks it all for me so I can see where I am at. Since starting my diet on Tuesday (It is Friday now) I have done pretty well I think.


Tuesday rang in at 24 Net Carbs, 8g Fiber, 52g of Protein (14%), 129g of Fat(78%), and 1498 calories.


Wednesday- 19 Net Carbs, 32g Fiber, 113g of Protein (25%), 127g Fat (64%), and 1978 calories.


Thursday- 23 Net Carbs, 28g Fiber, 87g of Protein (19%), 138g of fat (69%), and 1776 calories.


There is definitely a learning curve to this diet. As you can see nearly every day I messed something up, Tuesday I had too many carbs (trying to use up my buffalo wild wings leftovers bc I didn't want to be wasteful!), Wednesday I somehow WAY overdid it on the protein and calories (whoops), yesterday was my best day yet but I still went a little over in my carbs.


However even though I have messed up most days I would still consider this to be an easy diet to follow. Avoiding carbs is surprisingly easy, I find that there are PLENTY of options for low carb food and snacks. They even have low carb tortillas so I can still have a wrap a day which is amazing to me. I genuinely do feel better besides being a little more tired in the mornings but I was warned that in the beginning while your body is still transitioning that could happen.


The MOST difficult part of this diet is counting macros. Eating low carb is easy but when you start trying to factor in calories and making sure you get enough protein and fat then you start having to get a little more choosy. However yesterday was my best day so far besides too many carbs and a little too many calories and I had my favorite foods so far! As long as you aren't a super picky eater then I think this diet could work for everyone, honestly the hardest thing for me so far is not eating fruit like I used to. No fruit, no oatmeal, no yogurt. However through all my research so far into this diet and watching lots of youtube videos from people who are on ketogenic diets I have become SO much more aware of what I am putting into my body! Who knew that yogurt was an inflammatory?! And don't even get me started on how your  body processes carbs/grains. YUCK.


I am excited to see where this lifestyle takes me, so far so good and I feel like it can only go up from here! Every diet is going to be hard but I feel like keto makes so much sense and what other diet lets you have things like Big Mac Casserole and Cream Cheese Buffalo Wraps? Seems like a no brainer to me!


So here are some links that have helped me so far!






My favorite youtubers:


Katherine Michelle; she is great, she's young and in college like me and shows yummy keto options and talks about how she incorporates keto into her life on daily basis including roadtrips, on the go, all her daily meals, healthy meals, yummy meals, etc.! She also has A LOT of info on supplements which I haven't even begun to think about yet!


https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCMAB_CuRxRNg-lmmirKDYww




Keto Connect; This is a couple that both do keto and they are so much fun to watch! I would say they are definitely on the healthier side, I am not quite on their level of eating a hard boiled egg and half a portion of almonds for a snack yet but I do enjoy watching them! They are a HUGE fountain of knowledge, they break down macros for meals really well and have taught me so much!


https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCzRYivTpUQ0r2qPPjfLoQiA


Here is there website as well, I am thinking about enrolling in their course but I am going to wait a little while.


http://ketoconnect.teachable.com/p/keto-quickstart-course


And here is their 20 under 20 challenge for 2017!


http://ketoconnect.net/20under20/


THE MACRO CALCULATOR (Also by Keto Connect)


http://ketoconnect.net/calculator/

should I go vegan?

Ok just kidding. We all know I'm not going Vegan. However I have become very concious lately of what I am consuming and purchasing in regards to how it effects animals and the environment. I don't believe in animal cruelty and I also realize that many companies put all kinds of random cheap crap into our food and products and.... I'm not okay with that. My aunt told me a couple years ago that there is HAIR in a lot of packaged bread. No thank you. There's also sheeps wool in some types of cereal. Again, NO THANK YOU.

So in my attempt to stop putting all this random unnecessary crap into my body and also be a little more friendly to our animal pals. 

Full disclosure I hunt, fish, and consume animal products. HOWEVER, I do reach for "organic" meat/animal products when I'm shopping to ensure that (just like when we're hunting) the animals aren't mistreated or experiencing disgusting living standards. I don't mind spending an extra dollar to make sure my ground meet came from a grass-fed cow that wasn't kept in an overstocked enclosure and pumped full of chemicals. 

I've also started to eat almost completely vegan-esq meals every day until dinner time. Even sometimes for dinner. Trying to do my part in helping the environment and saving the animals! 💗 

One of my favorite discoveries is SMOOTHIE BOWLS. Holy moly. So good. And SO EASY. But a bunch of fruits in a blender and GO. Add toppings go!! 

Pro tip- balance your fresh to frozen ratio to get a better texture and avoid adding almond milk or water! 

Here's a couple beauties I've whipped up 😍  (most were boyfriend approved as well) 

I'll try to post some recipes soon, they're so good and so easy and worth the try for sure! 

Coming soon I'll post a lot more thoughts and info on the whole non-vegan-vegan thing I'm trying. Trying to eat good food, just hold the hair please. 

Til next time, 

Kate

 

 

11/13/15

\\ found this on a tumblr page that I'll link below. It's the most lovely page and this quote is just as lovely.\\

http://kaifel.tumblr.com/

{9/11}

"I know for certain that we never lose the people we love, even to death. They continue to participate in every act, thought and decision we make. Their love leaves an indelible imprint in our memories. We find comfort in knowing that our lives have been enriched by having shared their love." -- Leo Buscaglia

Where were you?

Koffee Talk w/ Kat {Routines}

So to start my dive back into the blogging world I am just going to start with a simple series of my morning coffee rambles. School just started and it is insane how much work I have already done and is waiting for me to do. Senior year is no joke. I have this semester and 2 more to go and I feel like I will not have a chance to breathe in between. This semester I am doing Session A and Session B classes which means that I will have one set of classes for the first half of the semester then take my finals in October and then a second half of classes with finals in December. Which basically means I am taking two semesters worth of work in one semester. IN-SANE. But nevertheless so far so good, it is just quite a task trying to keep up with all the work.  With the help of my Erin Condren Life Planner (hereafter referred to as ECLP), coffee, millions of to do lists, and of course a few awesome tutors I think I will survive this semester.

I moved back in with my parents this semester to save money my senior year. School and work basically take up ALL my time, and when those two things aren't controlling my time then I am at church or sleeping so living on my own didn't really make sense anymore. I was basically paying for a place that I was never even at to enjoy. So now I am saving money to pay for school, which my dad generously offered to help pay for part of this semester so that was a huge blessing so I only had to pay for a small portion! And I am able to put away more a month to pay for grad school, fix my car, get new tires, and all that other fun adult stuff.

Since I have moved back into my parents house my daily routine has gotten SO much better. Basically I wake up every morning around 7, take my puppy Deacon out to potty, go back in my room and put him in bed with me and I either check social media on my phone, watch Chopped (my guilty pleasure), or sleep depending on how late I was up. Then I get up around 8 and start moving around, get dressed, take Deacon out again to let him get some energy out. Deacon comes to work with me usually twice a week, the other days I pay my little sister Liv to watch Deacon. She owns Deacon's sister Darcy from the same litter.

Here's a little picture of my boy Deacon Paul: 

 So after I am ready to go and either get Deacon loaded up or in my sister's room then I head off to work. I confess I am in the habit of running to Starbucks on my way to work about twice a week, I swear a frappuccino in the morning completely changes the outcome of my day. It is a sure fire way to have an amazing day in my book. Unfortunately, good 'ole starbucks is a little stressful for my wallet so I try to make myself have coffee at work rather than going there but I do not care what you say, none of those doggone pinterest frapp recipes can even slightly compare to one made my the amazing red headed barista that spells my name right. They don't look as good in my insta photos either. #firstworldproblems. Anyways, a little mid-way hack that I like is the Starbucks Doubleshot Energy drinks, my favorite flavor is the Vanilla ones. They are 15 fl oz of goodness and I usually only drink half then put the other half in the fridge and drink it the next day. Today, because it is Friday, I drank a whole one. Currently am typing at 100 WPS and feel like the energizer bunny. #help

So then after choosing how I will be getting my life elixer for the day I start the day with my little Allybug. There will be a whole other post designated to the joy that is my goddaughter and the blessing that is my job of being her nanny every day. So Ally and I usually have either a really chill or really busy morning. Some mornings we load up in my golden carriage and run errands, go to the park, or various other adventures. Some mornings we watch Sophia the First in our pajamas and do crafts. Today, Allison is wearing sheep pajamas and watching Sophia the first while coloring in Nanny's notebook. Choose your battles people. Friday's are huge toss up days. Ally's parents (my adopted bro and sis) are usually off work and go adventuring and some days they need to do work at the house so I will take Ally out to the Children's Museum or if her parents are going to be gone all day we will swim in her little pool shaped like a crab in the backyard or do a craft or be lazy and snuggle on the couch and take seflies (thats my fave). Like I said, today we are being lazy because it is storming outside.

Then lunch is at 12 like clockwork, we get ready for a nap, then she goes down for about 2 hours. During that time over the summer I indulged in a nap myself or binge watching Law and Order SVU, however now I am forced to use that time to do schoolwork. #yay But L&O is still on because I am a rebel. Then when Ally gets up we have about an hour and a half before her parents are home, we eat a snack, color, read books, dance, sing songs, or play outside until they get home and then I head home for the day.

After work I either go study with friends or go home and eat dinner then hangout with my sisters or whatever else I have planned for the night.  (EDIT- So while I was typing this paragraph Ally was eating lunch, pizza flatbread and raspberry jello and she dropped it all over the floor then proceeded to clap her pizza/jello hands on me and my shirt while I was cleaning it up.) Then I am always home, showered, and in bed before 11:30, I watch NCIS or Chopped until I fall asleep. The End.

This routine has really been working for me, it is still super busy and hectic some days because I am also involved in all of my siblings different activities. Olivia has cheer that started a few months back, my mom is the sponsor so I am at everything and I help with the girls. Bailey has soccer, the games haven't started yet but will start next week. My sister Devan has cheer, and my other siblings, Brylee, Sam, and Hayden are all involved in golf. So it is definitely busy. I also have church twice a week and several church events each week. Along with school events and other activities I am involved with.

So that is my crazy day to day life. I get kind of excited when I have nothing to do, my guilty pleasure is being able to lay on my bed and watch TV and do absolutely nothing. I am already looking forward to fall break!

Til Next Time,
Kat

Here's a few other pics from my crazy life: