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Tuesday, January 29, 2013

FOOD FOR THE BODY

RED VELVET CUPCAKES (from www.skinnytaste.com)

SERVES:  26
POINTS +:  4

1 1/2 cups cake flour
1 cup white whole wheat flour
1 cup sugar
1 tbsp unsweetened dutch-process cocoa
1 tsp salt
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp white vinegar
1/2 cup unsweetened apple sauce
1/4 cup butter, softened
1 egg
2 egg whites
2 tsp vanilla
1 1/3 cup light buttermilk
1 tbsp red food coloring

Preheat oven to 350. Line cupcake tins with liners. In a large mixing bowl, stir together flours, salt, cocoa, and baking powder. In another large bowl beat sugar, applesauce and butter. Beat in eggs and vanilla. In a separate bowl mix baking soda and vinegar. Add half of the dry ingredients into the egg mixture, mix well. Add buttermilk, red food coloring and mix well. Add the remaining dry ingredients and fold in vinegar and baking soda. Pour in prepared cupcake liners 3/4 of the way. Bake 20-25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean. Cool, then frost with low fat cream cheese frosting. Makes 26 cupcakes.

Low Fat Cream Cheese Frosting

8 oz 1/3 fat Philadelphia Cream Cheese
1 cup powdered sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
Beat together cream cheese, powdered sugar and vanilla until smooth.

FOOD FOR THOUGHT

"He died, not for men, but for each man.  If only one man had lived, He would have done no less."  --C.S. Lewis

FOOD FOR THE SPIRIT- Emotional Pain, Spiritual Joy

This past weekend was our stake conference.  It was a wonderful weekend!  I had the privilege of singing in a double quartet for the Saturday night adult session.  I really enjoyed doing a musical number.  Leading the choir is great, but I have really missed singing in small ensembles like that.  As a mother, I am good at forgetting to do the things I love and for several years, my music was put on the back burner.  Singing in public was also uncomfortable because of my issues with weight.  Getting up in front of people made me feel so insecure and walking to the front to sing got me winded, which made proper breathing more difficult.  It's nice to be back.

On Sunday, our dear President Jeff Packer was released as the second counselor in the stake presidency because he has been dealing with some health problems.  He was asked to speak for a few minutes.  He spoke of physical and emotional pain and adversity in general, and said that even when we are in pain, for whatever reason, it is still possible to have spiritual joy.  That perfectly describes my life.  My eating disorder brings so much pain and heartache, but as I turn to the Savior for relief and guidance, I feel so blessed and cared for.  As I look at the blessings I have been given, despite my weaknesses, I am overwhelmed with gratitude.  I am so grateful to know that I am loved and that I am needed to help build the Kingdom of God, weaknesses notwithstanding.

Thursday, January 10, 2013

FOOD FOR THOUGHT

To learn more about the Addiction Recovery Program (ARP), visit the following link:  http://addictionrecovery.lds.org/?lang=eng

ANYONE is invited to attend the meetings.  There are meetings available all over the country.  The meetings are free and confidential.

FOOD FOR THE SPIRIT--Digging Deep

I'm back. I've been through a lot in the last five months: grieving the loss of several friends, dealing with injuries my hubby sustained at work, taking care of a very sick little girl back in November, being a rock for my hubby as he continues his education, as well as dealing with the day-to-day struggle of financial instabilities that come with Tyler being a student. A few months ago, I thought that I had power over my addiction to food, but unfortunately, over the past several months of extreme stress, I turned to food once again to medicate and numb the stress in my life. As the holidays concluded, I was heartbroken to see what succumbing to my addiction had yielded: a staggering and rapid weight-gain. I was devastated.

I found myself at a crossroads. I could continue to give up on myself. I could beat myself up and believe myself a complete and miserable failure. I could see myself as too far gone. Or I could dig deeper, give this thing another try, and get back on track, knowing that if I lost 76 pounds once, I could lose weight again.

As I was positioning myself to make this decision, I spoke to my wise husband about the church's 12-Step Addiction Recovery Program. He acquired a workbook for me and I set off on a journey to healing through the twelve steps as interpreted through the doctrines of the Atonement of Jesus Christ. In short, I made a conscious decision to once again, involve my Heavenly Father and His son to share this journey with me. I chose hope. Right away, I began to see a change in my willpower, my desire, my perspective.

I also discovered a reality show through Netflix streaming, called "Ruby." The show follows a morbidly obese woman who once weighed 719 pounds, as she battles her weight and fights for a better life. The show was so helpful and informational for me. I learned so much about myself as Ruby spoke with her therapists, doctors, and nutritionist. I learned about the nature of addiction and about the necessity of finding out what caused the addiction to form in the first place.

Without going into any detail, I explored my past and found that perhaps my food had become a coping mechanism at an early age. As I learn to deal with pain, stress, self-doubt, fear, and discomfort head-on, in a more productive and positive way, I am confident that I will be able to be freed from my need for food as a drug. Involving the Savior in this journey will make me that much stronger, and by His grace, I will see many miracles as I strive to get my life back on track.

A week ago, I went back to Weight Watchers to face the music. I was shocked by how much weight I had managed to pack back on in such a short time period, but it was a lesson to me: I can never go back to my old ways. I learned that if I do what I had always done then, I will continue to get what I had gotten then. Fat. And miserable. This week, I have started to track every bite again. I have exercised every day, but not nearly as much as I had before. I want to be a little more sensible and practical, since this is a lifestyle I will need to maintain for the rest of my life. I used all my points as well as all my splurge points and I really didn't feel deprived at all. I was so suprised and elated to find that I had lost SEVEN pounds last night at my weigh in.

Now, I am hoping that I can find the momentum to keep making positive, sensible choices each day. I know that the Lord will help me if I turn to Him for He is so very good to me. I can do all things through Him. He wants me to be healthy.