It was truly a test for when I realized in between Week 3 that instead of losing weight, I was gaining weight. I was still drinking more veggie juices, cutting back on the fruit juices, was running/walking in intervals daily, and yet my weight went up 3 pounds! I didn’t understand it, got all huffy and puffy, and Sameer assured me it was nothing and probably was the fact that I was gaining muscle and losing inches. Muscle is heavier than the fat in your body, hence it weighs more. The more you work out, the more muscle you gain. Made sense. I stopped worrying my head off about it and kept my cardio on each day.

I’ve been having knee problems since last year (left knee – something to do with the patella I think) and the pain actually went away significantly when I started juicing. It took me one wrong step on the treadmill for the pain to rush back. I stopped the treadmill workout and instead have been vigorously gardening 2-3 hours each day for the past 2-3 days. It’s definitely kept me active and it’s not as stressful on my knee. Kudos to any form of exercise that gets you moving! And by the way, I hate weeds and those dumb landscaping rocks people put on the sides of their houses.

One more week to go – I can do this.

SPARTANS! Prepare for glory!!!

Get some yummy juice recipes from the following links:

http://jointhereboot.com/reboot-program/recipes/juice-recipes/

http://juicerrecipesnow.com/

End of Week 3 Tallies

Total Amount Spent for Fruits & Vegetables: $360

Total Weight Loss: 15 pounds

Sameer really helped me pull through that day and said, “I think you should just start working out now!” I was basically taking it easy for the first week and just drank juices, thinking oh this is easy! (NOT!) But yea, I was just ignoring the exercise part of it altogether =]  So, I incorporated a 30-minute cardio workout with running/walking in intervals each day and it’s helped me tremendously – keeps me active and I know (I knew it all along but I was just being lazy!) I’ll be losing weight faster this way. I can truly feel it and my pants have gotten a little looser. Yay! Now that’s a good feeling!

Note: Add a whole lime to any veggie juice to cut back on the “grass” flavor as Sameer calls it.

Also, try this breakfast juice recipe I experimented with:

1 large juicy organic peach
1 medium to large organic carrot
4 clementines (couldn’t find organic ones)

Add ice and sip - DEEEEEEEEEEEEEELICIOUS!!!

End of Week 2 Tallies

Total Amount Spent for Fruits & Vegetables: $290

Total Weight Loss: 12 pounds

The past 7 days have been excruciatingly difficult at times while some of it has been easy. Being busy at work has helped me not think about food at work, since usually, correction, EVERY DAY I think about what I’ll have for lunch. But this time, I didn’t have to think of anything. I had my fruit juice for breakfast, my veggie juice for lunch and lots of water in between each day. Granted I am peeing 10 times more than I was before, but it’s definitely worth it.

Excruciating Moment #1: Watching Sameer eat baghaaray baigan one day and kabab/paraatha the other day! Man oh man!

Excruciating Moment #2: Sitting through a massive summer potluck at work! Someone throw me in a hole and cover it up!

Excruciating Moment #3: Watching Sameer chow down on Pizza! Someone just put a slice in mouth, please!

Sadly, they all had to do with eating!  However, I have been feeling my cravings diminishing each day. Also, I don’t feel hungry as much since I’m keeping myself hydrated in between juices with a lot of water. Truly is working though and I’m feeling optimistic starting Week 2. Noticed my nails have gotten stronger, as they would break, literally every day!

End of Week 1 Tallies

Total Amount Spent for Fruits & Vegetables: $200.54

Total Weight Loss: 7 pounds

This easy and extremely delicious recipe was given to me by Sameer’s mom, our beloved Ammi, may God rest her soul in peace. She was and remains in our hearts and memories as a strong and amazing woman, and of course one of the best cooks. I am so thankful to have written this delicious recipe and have this opportunity to share it with you all. I cook this recipe almost every month and eat it with khichri (rice + lentils) like Sameer’s family always does. Khichri? You ask. Yes, khichri, an unexpected, but exquisite combination!

Sammy’s Kitchen is a new cooking show privately produced by Sameer and Samreen Saadi (s2elements.com) where we try a variety of recipes given to us by our family, friends, found on the net or simply created by ourselves.

Music by: sifr (Thanks Sameer Saadi!)
Video Production, Camera Angulations, & Editing by Sameer

(For Talha & Naurine’s Valima on July 3rd, 2010)

Sameer Saadi & Zohair Beyabani – “Pehla Nasha”

In this 2nd webisode, we bring to your kitchens, the scrumptious and absolutely delicious Hyderabadi Biryani (by popular demand/multiple requests).  ”Biryani” is a meat + rice + spice (or veggies + rice + spice) dish, originating from Persia, and was brought to the South Asian/Indian subcontinent mainly by Muslim merchants and travelers.  And interestingly, Biryani is not only eaten in Pakistan and India, but its many variations can also be found in Iran, Afghanistan, Malaysia, etc. to name a few more countries.

The meat/veggies are cooked separately from the rice and then layered and steamed (dum‘ified – dum daytay hain! – Main bhi kahoon tu bhi kahay, dum duma-dum!). Hyderabadi Biryani, mainly non-vegetarian, is cooked the same way, and uses fried onions and yogurt to create the meat masala and finally topped off with saffron. (This is different from the “Kachchay Gosht ki Biryani” or the Raw Meat Biryani, also famous in Hyderabad, where the raw meat masala and uncooked rice are layered and cooked together.)

This is our family recipe and has been passed down in my Dad’s family who are originally from Hyderabad, India. And although my Mom (born in Aligarh, India) only grew up in Hyderabad, it was after she and my Dad got married that she quickly learned and adopted the Hyderabadi styles and ways of cooking, still keeping her own “Hindustani” cooking alive.

And since my Dad loved to cook so much, I often witnessed this heavenly biryani (and many other amazing Hyderabadi/Non-Hyderabadi dishes) being made by both my Mama and Pops.  Their duo created, by far, THE BEST Hyderabadi Biryani I have ever, EVER eaten – the perfectly cooked rice bursting with the rich aroma of saffron, accompanied by the finger-licking good meat masala that was always balanced in salt and spice and tenderness and taste!

My lovely Mama & My beloved Pops – This one’s for both of you – for giving me your cooking genes. And I can’t thank both of them enough for passing the recipe on and giving me the opportunity to share it with you as well!

Comments, suggestions, critiques, likes, dislikes are welcome! The few sentences I speak in the “intro” are in Urdu, but in the Hyderabadi accent… an accent often made fun of because, well, it does sound funny! It doesn’t stop me from randomly throwing out a phrase here and a word there in Hyderabadi!

Bon Appetit and we humbly apologize for the delay in getting this 2nd webisode out!

(Thank you Shuja Bhai for the technical suggestions and feedback!)

–

Sammy’s Kitchen is a new cooking show privately produced by Sameer and Samreen Saadi (s2elements.com) where we try a variety of recipes found on the net, created by ourselves or even family recipes that have been passed down from our parents’ generation.

Part 1

Part 2

Part 3

Go Organic!

We watched this documentary and were moved tremendously! Enough that we started searching for local farmers in the area we live in and making a conscious decision to buy organic fruits and vegetables, milk, eggs, etc. We usually get our meat from a halal meat shop in Minneapolis and we have been told that the butcher actually goes to a farm to get the meat, so it’s actually fresh. But we don’t really know if those animals are injected with hormones or not. We hope not! But in any case, this documentary is definitely an “eye-opener” and will make you think before you stop at a Mcdonald’s or any other fast food chain.

Let’s move this movement forward and strive to buy foods that are natural, healthy, and actually good for us, our bodies, and our future generations. Take an hour or so, and watch this documentary. It’s on Netflix and can be played instantly. Search for “Food, Inc.”

http://www.foodincmovie.com

*drum roll in background*

It is…A Dell Laptop – Thank you Husbaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaand!

I’ve nicknamed it “laal bhabooka” – you’ll know why when you see it below and if you know weird hyderabadi urdu (ie bhabooka).

Dell Inspiron Laptop with Intel Core 2 Duo Processor – in Cherry Red

Random Fact:  this is the 3rd RED gift from Sameer!

It’s a smooth and very “chikna” laptop and after browsing/window shopping for a few hours at stores and a few more hours online and with Sameer’s expertise, this was the one I liked the best.  The Sony Vaio caught the corner of my eye a bit, but this one took it home with the look, feel, the specifications and the amazing battery life! It comes installed with Windows 7, has a DVD/CD Burner, has a webcam which I probably won’t need but it’s nice to have, 4 GB memory, HD widescreen display, 3 USB ports, and much much more! Sameer tells me it’s got an awesome processor and the battery life is a little over 8 hours! And I love the color.

Find it here at Best Buy!

Check out the review on CNET

Love  you Sameer!

This blog was created as we both share a lot of information, media, and current events and discussions on a normal day-to-day basis so we thought, why not blog about all of these nooks and crannies that are essential to our lives and essentially complete who we are. Whether it’s a movie or a song, a piece of art or a slice of cake, new gadgets or creative products, programming techniques or gaming techniques on Xbox … basically, anything goes, as each is an element that either touches us ever so lightly, creates a rumble, or constitutes an impact in our lives.

Elements of Life by Tiesto (c) 2008 Black Hole Recordings

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