I struggled with which one to write today, so, I figured both would suffice.
I’ll start with food, because most of the time it’s food that’s the main issue with needing to diet and lose weight. Fitness, though is a way of life. Anyway, let’s take a dive, and I’ll give you a recipe of my own that’s super simple and easy to enjoy, and follow it up with a bit of fitness updates.
When you think of a hot summer day, you probably think of a couple different things when it comes to food: Barbecue, salad, chicken wings, and if you’re me and my family, seafood. The seafood part ties into beach vacations, I think, but this isn’t a Throwback Thursday post! The seafood that I’m going to cover with this post is a super simple Shrimp Boil, on the eye of your stove. You’ll love the taste, and your house will smell good for a couple of days.
I got so wrapped up in my cooking, that I can’t claim the above photo. It belongs to Alby Headrick on Flickr, but it perfectly captured a shrimp boil. So, let’s get started. You’ll need the following to duplicate my recipe:
- 2lbs shrimp (I buy whatever’s on sale at the time, usually deveined because my family prefers it that way.)
- 3lbs petite red potatoes, halved.
- 5 ears of fresh corn, shucked and halved.
- 1 whole onion, cut into large wedges or halved. Remove skin.
- 3 garlic cloves
- 1/2 cup of sea salt
- 2lbs Conecuh Sausage — it’s an Alabama delicacy, but if you can’t find it, a good Andouille Sausage will suffice.
- Old Bay or Zatarains – I currently use this concentrated crab boil, because I have someone with seed sensitivity. I prefer the full-fledged seasoning packet/Old Bay, far and above.
I heavily salt my water with Sea Salt first and foremost, because if you know anyone who cooks these down at the coast, they’ll use fresh seawater. I try my best to imitate that, four hours away from the coast. After the water is salted, bring it to a boil.
- Add halved red potatoes, onion, and garlic, to salted water, bring back to boil. Let cook for 8-10 minutes.
- Add ears of corn to pot, bring back to boil. Let cook for 8-10 minutes.
- Add sausage to pot, bring back to boil. Cook for 8-10 minutes.
- Add recommended measurement of seasoning – I usually use 2-3oz of the concentrate at this point.
- Immediately add in shrimp and cook for 3 minutes (it is not necessary to return to a boil). Remove from heat, and let sit for 10 minutes.
- Drain.
- For the best effect, eat all in one day, and dump the drained food onto spread out newspapers.
All in all, you’ll need probably an hour of your time to get everything together, get it cooked and get it all finished up. Then, after you sit around and enjoy your deliciously boiled shrimp and starch, you’ll probably want to let it settle… and maybe hit the gym. Or not, you could just pretend you’re down at the coast. I’ve been in a Gulf Coast state of mind for several days now…
So, about that dash of fitness: I think everyone struggles with staying regimented when they’re a foodie. By that, I mean, that I can guarantee you I will never have abs like most fitness models/bodybuilders/etc, because I enjoy food so much. If I could travel the world, I would set up my trips in such a way that I could eat the best foods along the way. But that being said, fitness requires dedication of some form, and some things have to be set aside. You’d be amazed what progress you can make by dropping sugary drinks, like soda, and not indulging in a dessert after your dinner. Just by limiting those things and hitting the gym for roughly an hour each day (not yesterday, I had to help a buddy move some things) I’m already down twenty pounds since I really started this journey. I’ve had relapses, and I’ve not been perfect, but just a bit of effort can really yield good results!
Stay strong, eat well, and move around! And don’t deprive yourself of life’s little joys, like food. You’ll thank yourself later.
T.G. Neal 