Day 6 - Weight 124.6: Crab Salad w/ Strawberries

I'm a few days into the diet now and it's time to get back into the swing of real life. I had lots of errands and things to do today. I don't usually think about food very often. When your diet is both severely limited and on a time schedule, you almost have to think about your food ALL the time. You have to eat on time. Your snacks have to be a minimum of 6 hours apart. You have to eat THIS food now and THIS food later. I can see where the diet would be really challenging for people who are on the road, keep a challenging social calendar, meet with clients over meals, etc. Most of the time I can set my own schedule so it should be easier for me than most. Today was a bit of a logistical challenge but, as far as how my body was feeling, I actually felt very satisfied all day from a hunger standpoint. And today's food was really yummy and satisfying.

The hardest thing about being out all day was the liquid intake. If you are drinking the amount of water you are supposed to be drinking on this diet, then you are peeing all the time! Sometimes every 5-10 minutes. That sounds extreme but sometimes it's the reality. If you aren't going to be near an acceptable facility, you don't drink as much water. It's hard for me to get in that much water as it is. But today I didn't meet the quota and I know that's not a good thing.

LIQUIDS

• 1 1/2 C coffee, 1 1/2 L water (Hopefully, I'll pick it back up tomorrow!)

COMBINED SNACK/LUNCH

• Crab salad w/ Strawberries & Spring Greens (recipe below)
  
• Melba Toast

COMBINED SNACK/DINNER

• Hamburger (Laura's Lean Beef) w/ salt, pepper, Sambal Ulek*
• Steamed asparagus (pour 1 TBSP lemon juice over when served)
  
• Melba Toast
• 1 Apple

Laura's super lean ground beef doesn't even leave a fat trace on the pan. It's leaner than your butcher's ground sirloin, and Laura's Lean Beef cattle are raised on family farms, on all natural grains and grasses with no animal by-products, and without the use of antibiotics or growth hormones. I believe strongly in eating foods that are "clean" whenever possible even though I'm not a fanatic about it. At AmaraMedSpa they, too, stressed the importance of choosing organic produce and meats. Laura's fits the bill perfectly and she's been doing it since 1985. Kudos to Laura Freeman. Some people just make the world a better place.

I find Laura's at my local Albertson's. I wish they carried it at Henry's but no luck there. They were out of the sirloin when I was shopping so I picked up the 91% lean. One thing I notice about Laura's that's really important, the full flavor of the beef is there even though the fat is absent. You can't beat that. You can learn more about them or where to purchase in your area here ( http://www.laurasleanbeef.com/ )

The crab "salad" I ate yesterday was really just crab with minced onions and some spice. Today, I actually made a delicious entree, even though by it's size you'd probably have to call it an appetizer. I'd order it from a menu as my appetizer any day.

CRAB & STRAWBERRY SALAD

• Crab (fresh, not frozen, lump crab meat) - 100 grams
  
• Strawberries (fresh, de-stemmed, chopped in 8ths) - 100 grams
• Leafy, organic spring green mix
• Vinaigrette Dressing (3 TBSP Bragg's Apple Cider Vinegar, 1 dash Cholula, Salt, Pepper)

Toss greens with Vinaigrette. Add crab and strawberries and toss lightly with fork. The sweetness of the strawberries takes on the apple cider vinegar perfectly. Yum.

*Sambal Ulek is one of those wonder-spice blends that I fall back on time and time again. Sambal Ulek is a fiery blend used in the cuisines of Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia and Sri Lanka. You can probably tell by now that I like spicy food. That's true but I've noticed even more on this diet how important it is that the food is really flavorful. You can't make it up in quantity. You need to taste the strong flavors of the food in order to feel as if you've had something. The Sambal Ulek is made from Chili pepper, Cayenne, Paprika and Garlic. There's no sugar and no salt. I buy mine from a little organic spice company here in California called Spicely ( http://www.spicely.com/ ).


They sell spices in tiny little boxes, usually no more than .6 ounces. They are certified organic and gluten free. They're protecting the environment by cutting out the unnecessary packaging (plastic and glass) that are usually used in the modern "spice trade" and their boxes are made from 100% recycled paper. Also, because you are buying smaller quantities your spices are always fresh and potent. And they are very reasonably priced. They've a number of blends that are very good, as well, like the Thai Spice. We'll save that for another day.