If Not Now, When? (Update 1)

Well, three weeks into my If Not Now When? program I know a lot of you are dying for an update.

Yesterday, I weighed in at 193.5 lbs, down from 199 lbs. three weeks ago. I don't think I've actually lost 5 1/2 pounds, some of that is probably bloat. I've noticed that when you switch to eating healthy foods your body kind of freaks out. At first you have some problems digesting all the fiber and you retain water for a while, and then you adjust to smaller, more frequent meals. My next step is tell my mom to hide all the junk food when I go home for the holidays.

This weekend, I also got moving on Project Redecorate My Place. I picked up some paint supplies and started moving on my "earth tones" theme, but my fall-leaves-yellow turned out to be closer to French's mustard - so it's back to the drawing board. At least having an ugly wall and tape all over the place will prevent me from sitting on my laurels for too long. I also found a really nice clock on sale at Pottery Barn, but I have to exchange it because it won't let me set the alarm.

Part of being healthy is having a lot of different foods to eat, otherwise you get bored and start eating food out a bag. It's not easy to cook a lot when you live downtown by yourself (ladies - feel free to invite yourself over) but you learn to make due. Right now, I'm working on perfecting my turkey chili recipe. It's good bachelor food because it can be eaten over a couple of days and still taste good. Here's my recipe:

Turkey Chili

Ingredients:
1 1/4 lbs. lean ground turkey
1 can dark red kidney beans
1 can black beans
1 can tomato paste
1 can tomato sauce
Several dashes of Cholula hot sauce*
Freshly Ground Pepper**
Cumin
Crushed Red Pepper
Garlic
Onion
Basil
Oregano

Preparation:
1. Grill the ground turkey until it starts to turn lightly brown
2. Mix the rest of the ingredients into a large pot, add the turkey, and cook at a low heat.
3. Leave on the stove for about 20 minutes, stirring frequently.
4. See, wasn't that easy?

This will make about four large bowls of chili. I would not recommend eating them all at once, because it's something like 1800 calories, 195 grams of protein, and 65 grams of fiber.

*The best hot sauce on the market today.
**Seriously, once you start to use freshly ground pepper you won't go back. The crap pepper you get from the store is mostly filler.