I had a lovely phone call from one of my best friends yesterday. My dear Friend Jane was calling to ask if I'd like to go out for a drink with her this Friday, as it's her birthday.
She then went on to ask when I was due to start my liver diet. I told her the date and what I'd chosen to eat for those two weeks and her response was this:
"I know it will be hard but you've got to stick to it. Just think of why you're doing this and it will make it easier. And I know you might be tempted to pig out the week before the diet starts, but try to cut right down and then your stomach will shrink and you won't be as hungry and if you feel like crap, go to bed. If you ever feel like cheating, call me okay? Just call me and I'll give you lots of encouragement."
Who needs friends? I do.
Wednesday 16 July 2014
Tuesday 15 July 2014
NutriBullet
I've read a lot of information regarding the post-op diet and many people recommend using a blender. I came across an infomercial regarding the NutriBullet and it looked very good but I'm not that easily swayed, so I did some research and looked for reviews on the web.
Overall, it looked really good. It had it's pro's and cons as does everything in life, one of the main cons being that it doesn't have a pulse button so you can't chop anything in it, but one of it's major pro's is that it crushes ice so completely, that you don't get any chips left and another, is that you can blend your soup ingredients in the beaker and then put the same beaker in the microwave to cook.
So, I eventually bit the bullet (ha ha) and bought one. It arrived very quickly and was bigger than I'd expected. I read through the booklets that came with it and was interested to see that it recommended using nuts and seeds as a 'boost' to up your nutritional intake.
I went out and bought some ingredients and very quickly learned that making the 'perfect' smoothie was going to be a case of trial and error.
I also put quite a lot of ingredients in at one time, so I can see I'm going to have to reduce the amount I make for after my surgery, as it only keeps for 24 hours in the fridge.
This is what I made first:
A small handful of spinach
1/4 cup of sunflower seeds
3 ice cubes
1/2 banana
a handful of strawberries
Water
I turned the Bullet on and was amazed at how powerful it was and how quickly it worked. The first time I used it, I used the grinding blade on the sunflower seeds and it turned them into powder.
However, the end result was very unappetising. It was a horrible brown colour and was very bland-tasting. I ended up chucking in a load more strawberries and two large squirts of honey, which added a load of sugar!
For the second smoothie, I added some extra ingredients and switched one item:
A small handful of spinach
1/4 cup of sunflower seeds (not ground)
3 ice cubes
a handful of blueberries
a handful of strawberries
1 beetroot, chopped
2 tsp artificial sweetener
Water
This time, the smoothie was a much better colour (deep red) and was also a lot sweeter. I also noticed that I could detect the seeds as it didn't grind them into oblivion so I will need to pre-grind any seeds or nuts in the future. I will aim to reduce the sweetener as I go along and as I mentioned earlier, will also have to adjust the amount I make.
One thing I haven't mentioned is the taste and smell. Strangely, I would say that you can smell the vegetables more than you can taste them. There is a 'slight' taste of veg but it's overpowered by the fruit and the sweet taste.
Finally, my protein powder arrived so I made another smoothie today. The scoop for the protein powder is quite large so I will probably have to halve the amount used in the smoothies I make post-op. I ordered an unflavoured one and was a little nervous of using it as a lot of protein powders get slated on the forums for their 'horrible' taste. This time, I used a small banana instead of the blueberries and when I turned the Bullet on, I immediately noticed a difference in the performance of the blender.
I wouldn't say it was struggling, but it definitely required more power to mix the contents. When I removed the blade, I could immediately see why! Firstly, the contents had mixed very well but the smoothie had grown significantly, making the contents rise well above the 'max line' on the beaker. Secondly,the contents were so thick, I initially thought I would need a spoon to consume it!
It DID pour however, although it took it's time to come out of the beaker and it coated the glass that I drank it from, so I wasted some.
The protein powder was fine, I couldn't detect it at all and it mixed thoroughly in the smoothie without leaving any lumps of powder.
I'm getting a bit bored with these ingredients now so I'll need to try some different fruits and veg and add them in smaller quantities. I'll keep a record on here of how I get on.
Overall, it looked really good. It had it's pro's and cons as does everything in life, one of the main cons being that it doesn't have a pulse button so you can't chop anything in it, but one of it's major pro's is that it crushes ice so completely, that you don't get any chips left and another, is that you can blend your soup ingredients in the beaker and then put the same beaker in the microwave to cook.
So, I eventually bit the bullet (ha ha) and bought one. It arrived very quickly and was bigger than I'd expected. I read through the booklets that came with it and was interested to see that it recommended using nuts and seeds as a 'boost' to up your nutritional intake.
I went out and bought some ingredients and very quickly learned that making the 'perfect' smoothie was going to be a case of trial and error.
I also put quite a lot of ingredients in at one time, so I can see I'm going to have to reduce the amount I make for after my surgery, as it only keeps for 24 hours in the fridge.
This is what I made first:
A small handful of spinach
1/4 cup of sunflower seeds
3 ice cubes
1/2 banana
a handful of strawberries
Water
I turned the Bullet on and was amazed at how powerful it was and how quickly it worked. The first time I used it, I used the grinding blade on the sunflower seeds and it turned them into powder.
However, the end result was very unappetising. It was a horrible brown colour and was very bland-tasting. I ended up chucking in a load more strawberries and two large squirts of honey, which added a load of sugar!
For the second smoothie, I added some extra ingredients and switched one item:
A small handful of spinach
1/4 cup of sunflower seeds (not ground)
3 ice cubes
a handful of blueberries
a handful of strawberries
1 beetroot, chopped
2 tsp artificial sweetener
Water
This time, the smoothie was a much better colour (deep red) and was also a lot sweeter. I also noticed that I could detect the seeds as it didn't grind them into oblivion so I will need to pre-grind any seeds or nuts in the future. I will aim to reduce the sweetener as I go along and as I mentioned earlier, will also have to adjust the amount I make.
One thing I haven't mentioned is the taste and smell. Strangely, I would say that you can smell the vegetables more than you can taste them. There is a 'slight' taste of veg but it's overpowered by the fruit and the sweet taste.
Finally, my protein powder arrived so I made another smoothie today. The scoop for the protein powder is quite large so I will probably have to halve the amount used in the smoothies I make post-op. I ordered an unflavoured one and was a little nervous of using it as a lot of protein powders get slated on the forums for their 'horrible' taste. This time, I used a small banana instead of the blueberries and when I turned the Bullet on, I immediately noticed a difference in the performance of the blender.
I wouldn't say it was struggling, but it definitely required more power to mix the contents. When I removed the blade, I could immediately see why! Firstly, the contents had mixed very well but the smoothie had grown significantly, making the contents rise well above the 'max line' on the beaker. Secondly,the contents were so thick, I initially thought I would need a spoon to consume it!
It DID pour however, although it took it's time to come out of the beaker and it coated the glass that I drank it from, so I wasted some.
The protein powder was fine, I couldn't detect it at all and it mixed thoroughly in the smoothie without leaving any lumps of powder.
I'm getting a bit bored with these ingredients now so I'll need to try some different fruits and veg and add them in smaller quantities. I'll keep a record on here of how I get on.
Please Note: I have not been paid to endorse this product in any way, neither do I work for the company. I am merely posting my own, personal observations after using it.
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