I love the Fat Flush Cookbook. It is a great source for healthy, low fat, low carb (but NOT carb-free) receipes. The chick who created Fat Flush (Ann Louise Gittleman) seems to really know stuff about food - and she is great at including herbs and spices for the affect it has on your body - and not just how they taste. She actually IS a nutritionist - not just someone who wants to jump on the diet band wagon. Anyway, I have the cookbook here at work - and I just flipped to a recipe that sounded really good.
2 small yams or sweet potatoes (cut in 1/8 slices)
1/2 t dried basil
1/2 t dried oregano
1/2 t onion powder
In a self sealing bag mix the spices and shake with the potato slices. Place the slices on a non stick baking tray sprayed with a non-stick cooking spray. Bake for about 1/2 an hour at 425 degrees. Turn at least once. They are done when they are slightly golden. You can sprinkle lightly with salt if you think you can aford the sodium.
She also suggests trying this with "sweeter" spices - anise, fennel, cinnamon, nutmeg... or kick it up a notch (hee hee) with some cayenne.
Emily - something like this would be a good subsitute for your corn chips. The nutrition websites all seem to say we should eat "orange" vegetables once a week. This would count.
Tuesday, January 31, 2006
Post-honeymoon weight!!!
I was 143.0 this morning! That's what I weighed when I got back from my honeymoon -- 8 pounds up from the 135 before our wedding. So today I saw a weight I haven't seen since 1993. Very cool.
I didn't have such a great day yesterday, though. Cecilia was running a fever (mild, but it made her a little clingy) and my intestines were doing some kind of weird modern dance, and Daniel had meetings all afternoon and evening, so I didn't get to the gym at all -- there was nothing to motivate me and plenty to keep me away. But I planned to exercise at home, and even that never happened. Today I will be better.
As far as eating yesterday I did so-so. I had a beer last night (planned) and popcorn as well (light, and planned, but I ate too much). Other than that I stayed on my food plan, but I didn't have any vegetables besides the ones in my leftover spaghetti. When I was feeling stressed I found myself eating too many pistachios and almonds -- but in all honesty I kept even those in check, if only because the pistachios ran out too quickly. If I had just exercised and grabbed a carrot or a green pepper at some point, yesterday wouldn't have been too bad.
My next goal -- besides getting back into the exercise plan -- is to work my way (oops -- first I typed "weigh"!) down to that 135 marriage weight. If I can stay focused on this for another eight weeks (gee, that sounds long, but we've been at it for four and a half months!) and lose a pound a week I would get to my long-term goal. Then I'll hardly know what to do with myself. That 135 has been such a dream number for twelve years! I'm not there yet, though -- one good week does not a diet make.
I didn't have such a great day yesterday, though. Cecilia was running a fever (mild, but it made her a little clingy) and my intestines were doing some kind of weird modern dance, and Daniel had meetings all afternoon and evening, so I didn't get to the gym at all -- there was nothing to motivate me and plenty to keep me away. But I planned to exercise at home, and even that never happened. Today I will be better.
As far as eating yesterday I did so-so. I had a beer last night (planned) and popcorn as well (light, and planned, but I ate too much). Other than that I stayed on my food plan, but I didn't have any vegetables besides the ones in my leftover spaghetti. When I was feeling stressed I found myself eating too many pistachios and almonds -- but in all honesty I kept even those in check, if only because the pistachios ran out too quickly. If I had just exercised and grabbed a carrot or a green pepper at some point, yesterday wouldn't have been too bad.
My next goal -- besides getting back into the exercise plan -- is to work my way (oops -- first I typed "weigh"!) down to that 135 marriage weight. If I can stay focused on this for another eight weeks (gee, that sounds long, but we've been at it for four and a half months!) and lose a pound a week I would get to my long-term goal. Then I'll hardly know what to do with myself. That 135 has been such a dream number for twelve years! I'm not there yet, though -- one good week does not a diet make.
206.2
Well - that is a big drop since LAST Tuesday thanks to my period ending. It is dead even with the week before, and a slight tick up since yesterday. So - no change basically.
I don't know. I like the way I feel. I know not to trust the numbers on the scale. I really think my chins are down to about 1 and a half rather than 2 or 3, I think the flab on my abs seems less flabby - and Katie said you could hardly see my back flaps at all in my new tank tops last night (but I think that is the shirt rather than the back). So I shouldn't care that the scale seems to be stuck. And yet! It is still discouraging. I should be losing weight, not holding steady. Granted - I am sure I am showing the side effects of bacon and ice cream at Emily's this weekend... but shouldn't I also be showing at least some drop on the scale. My diet the past week or more has been virtually perfect (except at Emily's). Since I restarted counting my calories I HAVE been sticking well below 1500 - more often closer to 1300. Yesterday was 1308. I have cut out sugar from my coffee (except with vanilla lattes - which I only have about 2 times a week). I have cut out the afternoon snack (usually triskets or wheat thins - something crunchy). Seriously, I don't know what else to cut. Everything I eat is to fulfill the fruit/vegetable requirements of life. I haven't had anything decent to read in over a week, so I am not doing ANY evening snacking.
Oh Well - I am not complaining. As I said I feel good - and that is something. I should feel like food is controlling my life more than ever - because I DO notice everything I put in my mouth - but it really is more ME controlling food - which is a much better feeling.
How long do they say it takes to form a good habit? I thought it was a month. I have been back to going to the gym "no excuses" style since December 28th. I guess it IS more ingrained now - because yesterday I really DIDN'T have time to go - and yet I went anyway (5:30 - ugh! Way too many people there!!). I am afraid to stop going now because I know it takes no time to break a good habit.
I don't know. I like the way I feel. I know not to trust the numbers on the scale. I really think my chins are down to about 1 and a half rather than 2 or 3, I think the flab on my abs seems less flabby - and Katie said you could hardly see my back flaps at all in my new tank tops last night (but I think that is the shirt rather than the back). So I shouldn't care that the scale seems to be stuck. And yet! It is still discouraging. I should be losing weight, not holding steady. Granted - I am sure I am showing the side effects of bacon and ice cream at Emily's this weekend... but shouldn't I also be showing at least some drop on the scale. My diet the past week or more has been virtually perfect (except at Emily's). Since I restarted counting my calories I HAVE been sticking well below 1500 - more often closer to 1300. Yesterday was 1308. I have cut out sugar from my coffee (except with vanilla lattes - which I only have about 2 times a week). I have cut out the afternoon snack (usually triskets or wheat thins - something crunchy). Seriously, I don't know what else to cut. Everything I eat is to fulfill the fruit/vegetable requirements of life. I haven't had anything decent to read in over a week, so I am not doing ANY evening snacking.
Oh Well - I am not complaining. As I said I feel good - and that is something. I should feel like food is controlling my life more than ever - because I DO notice everything I put in my mouth - but it really is more ME controlling food - which is a much better feeling.
How long do they say it takes to form a good habit? I thought it was a month. I have been back to going to the gym "no excuses" style since December 28th. I guess it IS more ingrained now - because yesterday I really DIDN'T have time to go - and yet I went anyway (5:30 - ugh! Way too many people there!!). I am afraid to stop going now because I know it takes no time to break a good habit.
138.2
Not the lowest weight I've been, but the lowest I've been on a weigh in day (barring illness--I can't remember what my weight was that day!) so I can't complain. But I'd LOVE to break the 20 pound mark! I need to buckle down and stop indulging in good food so much!
Yesterday was a good day for me as well. I had all of my usual food during the day, no snacking on junk at night, and a decent amount of exercise. The treadmills were all taken when I got to the gym yesterday so I used the exercycle again. I can't seem to get a good workout on that! I set it on a random hill program and started at level 5 (still paranoid about my heart rate) then upped it to level 8 over the next 15 minutes and kept my pace around 90 to 100 RPM. But at 32 minutes I hadn't even broken a sweat, so I added on another 15 minutes. All of that only burned off only 270 calories or so. OTOH, my heart rate stayed around 150 so maybe I'll stick to the lower level workouts and just suck up the lower calorie burn with the hope of increasing my cardio stamina over time. But it sure is boring. Even though pushing myself is physically miserable, at least it's more interesting. I did the pilates upper body workout last night and can finally do all of it, although I still have to switch to "girly" pushups after the first two "manly" pushups. But I can do all of the full tricep dips and upped the handweights for the standing part of the workout, so I'm making progress! And it's easier to carry baskets of laundry upstairs. ;-)
Yesterday was a good day for me as well. I had all of my usual food during the day, no snacking on junk at night, and a decent amount of exercise. The treadmills were all taken when I got to the gym yesterday so I used the exercycle again. I can't seem to get a good workout on that! I set it on a random hill program and started at level 5 (still paranoid about my heart rate) then upped it to level 8 over the next 15 minutes and kept my pace around 90 to 100 RPM. But at 32 minutes I hadn't even broken a sweat, so I added on another 15 minutes. All of that only burned off only 270 calories or so. OTOH, my heart rate stayed around 150 so maybe I'll stick to the lower level workouts and just suck up the lower calorie burn with the hope of increasing my cardio stamina over time. But it sure is boring. Even though pushing myself is physically miserable, at least it's more interesting. I did the pilates upper body workout last night and can finally do all of it, although I still have to switch to "girly" pushups after the first two "manly" pushups. But I can do all of the full tricep dips and upped the handweights for the standing part of the workout, so I'm making progress! And it's easier to carry baskets of laundry upstairs. ;-)
Hmmmmm...
My calculations were off when I assessed my overall week yesterday. I weighed myself at least 1/2 dozen times this morning, and every time it was the same number--161.1. I'm not sure which shocks me more--the number itself of the fact that the scale registered the same number every time.
Food yesterday was carb heavy. I had oatmeal for breakfast, ham & swiss sandwich for lunch, string cheese, carrots, banana, strawberries and 2 of those miniature hershey bars. Good grief they are yummy--there is a new kind that is the dark chocolate with peanuts. Then I was bored and weak about 3 pm and got some skittles from the vending machine. I ate a little less than half the bag, gave some away and the remainder are stuffed in my desk drawer for another day. Dinner last night was supposed to be beef tips, but I just wasn't hungry for that so I had a grilled cheese and some tomato soup instead.
Exercise yesterday was 30 minutes on the treadmill and then a pilates DVD. My plan had been to do the pilates Tuesday-Thursday, but given the extra junk I ate yesterday I didn't want to wait to counterbalance it with extra exercise.
Food yesterday was carb heavy. I had oatmeal for breakfast, ham & swiss sandwich for lunch, string cheese, carrots, banana, strawberries and 2 of those miniature hershey bars. Good grief they are yummy--there is a new kind that is the dark chocolate with peanuts. Then I was bored and weak about 3 pm and got some skittles from the vending machine. I ate a little less than half the bag, gave some away and the remainder are stuffed in my desk drawer for another day. Dinner last night was supposed to be beef tips, but I just wasn't hungry for that so I had a grilled cheese and some tomato soup instead.
Exercise yesterday was 30 minutes on the treadmill and then a pilates DVD. My plan had been to do the pilates Tuesday-Thursday, but given the extra junk I ate yesterday I didn't want to wait to counterbalance it with extra exercise.
Monday, January 30, 2006
A Good Day
As my title says this was a good day. I was mostly too busy to stray, but I guess that has good side benefits. For breakfast I had Lucky Charms and skim milk and coffee with skim milk - no sugar. I have gotten out of the sugar in my coffee habit and I don't think I mind at all. It tastes hotter with no sugar, if that makes any sense. For my morning snack I had sugar free applesauce with cinnamon and a V-8. Lunch was the last of the black bean casserole. Mid afternoon I had a serving of pineapples in juice and then right before I went into the DC to work (about 6:30) I had my yogurt. For dinner Katie and I had Italian style meatloaf with green beans. I still have a V-8 to go for today, but I may not drink it. My stomach is a little burbly - so I am not so inclined to eat right now.
I did my cardio today... 26 minutes on the cross trainer and then 12 on the treadmill. I spent a good chunk of the time trying to get my iPod to go to the part in my book where I thought I left off. After spending 15 minutes scanning through I discovered it HADN'T actually skipped ahead like I thought - grrr - but I hardly noticed those 15 minutes and I was working harder than I normally do because I was mad at my iPod.
That was it - my exciting day. I worked in the DC for two hours tonight, but it hardly counted because I spent the time helping one of the captains with his time accounting. I think that is cheating - getting paid in the DC to do something I would normally do during my work hours - but, it wasn't my work hours, so I won't feel guilty about it.
Oh! Other good thing about today was I got a bunch of clothes from Eddie Bauer delivered tonight - and they ALL fit and they all looked good. I was pleased about that. Granted, the sizes weren't any smaller than I would normally order - but the styles were a little more stylish than I usually get (white pants, tank tops, button up top). They all were flattering! Yippee!!
I did my cardio today... 26 minutes on the cross trainer and then 12 on the treadmill. I spent a good chunk of the time trying to get my iPod to go to the part in my book where I thought I left off. After spending 15 minutes scanning through I discovered it HADN'T actually skipped ahead like I thought - grrr - but I hardly noticed those 15 minutes and I was working harder than I normally do because I was mad at my iPod.
That was it - my exciting day. I worked in the DC for two hours tonight, but it hardly counted because I spent the time helping one of the captains with his time accounting. I think that is cheating - getting paid in the DC to do something I would normally do during my work hours - but, it wasn't my work hours, so I won't feel guilty about it.
Oh! Other good thing about today was I got a bunch of clothes from Eddie Bauer delivered tonight - and they ALL fit and they all looked good. I was pleased about that. Granted, the sizes weren't any smaller than I would normally order - but the styles were a little more stylish than I usually get (white pants, tank tops, button up top). They all were flattering! Yippee!!
My weekend
Amy already posted everything we ate down at Emily's (Katie was much better than the rest of us--she even got a sorbet in a cup instead of a real ice cream cone!), and my Friday was a pretty typical day for me. I went to the gym in the afternoon but took it really easy because I was still feeling weird after my spell on Wednesday on the treadmill. So I did the bicycle instead and kept the level low, but put in 45 minutes instead of 35. Calories burned were low (around 260 instead of my usual 320ish) but my heart rate was within acceptable levels. I ate dinner at home before hitting the road, but it was early and I wasn't very hungry, so I just had a half cup of macaroni and cheese and some broccoli. On the road I had a Diet Coke and a coffee.
I wasn't so good on the drive home, though! Two hours into the trip I was getting really sleepy and the Diet Coke I had wasn't doing anything to help me, so I stopped and got a bag of popcorn (the Smartfood stuff) and a candy bar--a reversion to my old road trip food habits. That was way too many calories, and none of them healthy, plus they turned out to be my dinner (I guess that's one good thing--when I'm full I don't eat just because it's the time of day to eat). My weight this morning was up again to 139, after being down to 137.something (I've stopped writing down my daily weight--I should get back into that) on Friday. So overall, not a very good weekend for me in either the diet or exercise areas.
I wasn't so good on the drive home, though! Two hours into the trip I was getting really sleepy and the Diet Coke I had wasn't doing anything to help me, so I stopped and got a bag of popcorn (the Smartfood stuff) and a candy bar--a reversion to my old road trip food habits. That was way too many calories, and none of them healthy, plus they turned out to be my dinner (I guess that's one good thing--when I'm full I don't eat just because it's the time of day to eat). My weight this morning was up again to 139, after being down to 137.something (I've stopped writing down my daily weight--I should get back into that) on Friday. So overall, not a very good weekend for me in either the diet or exercise areas.
This Weekend
It seems a little pointless to post about this weekend since most of us were together, but since Julie and Mom WEREN'T in Blacksburg this weekend I decided I would fill in for them.
Friday was a pretty good day for me - considering the weekend was about to start... but I was determined to be as good as possible. I left work at about 1:30 and went to the gym. I did my weight workout - and for some reason it was harder. I increased weights on my leg curls, but that is it. Everything else was the same as it was for the past week or two - but it was harder for some reason - and my back was tight when I left the gym, which means the long drive was hellish.
Foodwise, I had pretty much all of my normal foods. 1/3 of a bagel for breakfast with applesauce, yogurt for a snack, and then leftover black bean casserole for lunch. On the way down Katie and I each had a V-8 and some triskets and a cheese stick. We also had a coffee from starbucks (non-fat vanilla lattes). Once we got to Emily's we had Brunswick stew - which was really yummy - and a few pistachio nuts! That was it - and that is the end of the goodness for the weekend.
Saturday we had normal cereal and milk for breakfast (or I did anyway). I ate a few grapes at the same time. Then for a morning snack we had Rice Krispie treats that Sarah brought (90 calories - could be worse). For lunch I had left over Brunswick stew. Again - very yummy. For exercise we walked to Ben & Jerry's. Sigh. The walk was very nice. The ice cream was very nice too. I had something called Turtle Soup - a single scoop in a sugar cone. Later I think I had a V-8. I know I had a V-8 at some point, I just don't remember when. Daniel made us burgers for dinner and Sarah and I also split a hot dog. We had grilled veggies too. We then split up a peppermint bark bar for dessert. Sarah and I ate 1/4 of the bar, Katie skipped, and Emily shared the remain 1/2 bar between herself and her kids (they each had 1/3 of 1/2 of the bar - whatever that is... less than what Sarah and I had). The full 1/4 was 115 calories. I think we all munched on pistachio nuts again - and we each had a cider and a latte late in the evening.
Sunday wasn't much better, just earlier. We had waffels for breakfast. I ate two and then broke a "belly button" off of one more - but it was a big belly button. I had four pieces of bacon. I would have quit at three, but after we were done Mary brought me another piece and said she saved a chewy one for me. So OF COURSE I ate it. Shortly before we left (around 3pm) I had a peanut butter and marshmallow fluff sandwich. Too sweet - but I ate the whole thing. On the way home I ate a 100 calorie pack of chips ahoy - and about 5 pistachio nuts. Oh! And a Nutri-grain bar.
We got home at about 9pm, and packed our lunches. That was it. We didn't eat dinner. Oh! I had a serving of cafe cookies too. So - basically on Sunday I had no fruit, and no veggies. Bad day.
I was 206 even this morning. I was 206.5 at Emily's on Saturday - which was in line with the 206.4 I was on Friday on my own scale. I forgot to weigh on Sunday morning - but Sunday night I was 206.6 - which is also about right.
Friday was a pretty good day for me - considering the weekend was about to start... but I was determined to be as good as possible. I left work at about 1:30 and went to the gym. I did my weight workout - and for some reason it was harder. I increased weights on my leg curls, but that is it. Everything else was the same as it was for the past week or two - but it was harder for some reason - and my back was tight when I left the gym, which means the long drive was hellish.
Foodwise, I had pretty much all of my normal foods. 1/3 of a bagel for breakfast with applesauce, yogurt for a snack, and then leftover black bean casserole for lunch. On the way down Katie and I each had a V-8 and some triskets and a cheese stick. We also had a coffee from starbucks (non-fat vanilla lattes). Once we got to Emily's we had Brunswick stew - which was really yummy - and a few pistachio nuts! That was it - and that is the end of the goodness for the weekend.
Saturday we had normal cereal and milk for breakfast (or I did anyway). I ate a few grapes at the same time. Then for a morning snack we had Rice Krispie treats that Sarah brought (90 calories - could be worse). For lunch I had left over Brunswick stew. Again - very yummy. For exercise we walked to Ben & Jerry's. Sigh. The walk was very nice. The ice cream was very nice too. I had something called Turtle Soup - a single scoop in a sugar cone. Later I think I had a V-8. I know I had a V-8 at some point, I just don't remember when. Daniel made us burgers for dinner and Sarah and I also split a hot dog. We had grilled veggies too. We then split up a peppermint bark bar for dessert. Sarah and I ate 1/4 of the bar, Katie skipped, and Emily shared the remain 1/2 bar between herself and her kids (they each had 1/3 of 1/2 of the bar - whatever that is... less than what Sarah and I had). The full 1/4 was 115 calories. I think we all munched on pistachio nuts again - and we each had a cider and a latte late in the evening.
Sunday wasn't much better, just earlier. We had waffels for breakfast. I ate two and then broke a "belly button" off of one more - but it was a big belly button. I had four pieces of bacon. I would have quit at three, but after we were done Mary brought me another piece and said she saved a chewy one for me. So OF COURSE I ate it. Shortly before we left (around 3pm) I had a peanut butter and marshmallow fluff sandwich. Too sweet - but I ate the whole thing. On the way home I ate a 100 calorie pack of chips ahoy - and about 5 pistachio nuts. Oh! And a Nutri-grain bar.
We got home at about 9pm, and packed our lunches. That was it. We didn't eat dinner. Oh! I had a serving of cafe cookies too. So - basically on Sunday I had no fruit, and no veggies. Bad day.
I was 206 even this morning. I was 206.5 at Emily's on Saturday - which was in line with the 206.4 I was on Friday on my own scale. I forgot to weigh on Sunday morning - but Sunday night I was 206.6 - which is also about right.
Weekend Update
Catching up on the weekend--Saturday food was ok. We ate breakfast out at Cracker Barrel, and "luckily" my food was pretty disgusting, so even though there was a large quantity I didn't eat it most of it. I had 1 1/2 biscuits, some bacon and some grits. That was my main food for the day. For dinner I had a salad. I spent 30 minutes on the treadmill and did a pilates DVD. Not a very balanced diet for the day, but it wasn't calorie overload either.
Sunday was similar--I had oatmeal for breakfast, then we ate lunch out at Issacs and I had ham & swiss on multi grain bread. It was delicious. Then for dinner I had cheese and crackers. Again I spent 30 minutes on the treadmill.
Today should be back to normal. I've had oatmeal for breakfast, and I've packed my lunch-->ham & swiss on light oatmeal bread, carrots, string cheese, strawberries (they are AWESOME right now!!!) a banana, and some animal crackers.
My weight was at its lowest yet this morning: 162.1. I'm pretty excited about that. I'm probably not dropping a full pound this week, but that's ok. It's going down so that is what matters--I don't want to psych myself out if it isn't happening as fast as I think it should.
Sunday was similar--I had oatmeal for breakfast, then we ate lunch out at Issacs and I had ham & swiss on multi grain bread. It was delicious. Then for dinner I had cheese and crackers. Again I spent 30 minutes on the treadmill.
Today should be back to normal. I've had oatmeal for breakfast, and I've packed my lunch-->ham & swiss on light oatmeal bread, carrots, string cheese, strawberries (they are AWESOME right now!!!) a banana, and some animal crackers.
My weight was at its lowest yet this morning: 162.1. I'm pretty excited about that. I'm probably not dropping a full pound this week, but that's ok. It's going down so that is what matters--I don't want to psych myself out if it isn't happening as fast as I think it should.
Friday, January 27, 2006
Quick post
I don't think I can manage a full post now -- I just wanted to log on to say that I haven't cheated so far, though today I didn't write down my food (too busy!) but I've been keeping mental track of the food groups and eating about as I did the past few days. I exercised yesterday -- pilates and 15 minutes' Walk -- but not today because I never sat down as it was, though I did float around in the pool keeping up with Mary, Alexander and Cecilia -- too bad that doesn't count as actual exercise!
Friday
Today was a slightly rough day. Friday is my breakfast-out day, so I got oatmeal from Au Bon Pain's oatmeal bar. Probably added a few too many toppings (choc chips, raisins AND walnuts), but it was delicious and I enjoyed every bite of it so I really don't care since I only allow myself the treat once a week. Lunch was a leftover beef enchilada and an apple. Beef enchiladas turn really slimy in the microwave. It was pretty gross, but definitely filled me up. I just stopped and bought dinner, which is going to be peel and eat shrimp and a salad. I might splurge and have a cider later. We'll see.
I'm getting ready to hit the treadmill and try program 2 again. One of these days I'll be able to do it. Maybe it'll be today.
I always weigh myself in the morning before my shower and then in the afternoon when I am changing clothes to exercise after work. I like the days when my afternoon weight is lower than my morning weight, and today was one of them, by 0.7 lbs. I always wonder WHEN weight loss actually takes place...do you exercise and then weigh less? Or does it take time? And WHERE does the weight go? Is it released as heat? Or some other by product? What silly things to wonder about.
I'm getting ready to hit the treadmill and try program 2 again. One of these days I'll be able to do it. Maybe it'll be today.
I always weigh myself in the morning before my shower and then in the afternoon when I am changing clothes to exercise after work. I like the days when my afternoon weight is lower than my morning weight, and today was one of them, by 0.7 lbs. I always wonder WHEN weight loss actually takes place...do you exercise and then weigh less? Or does it take time? And WHERE does the weight go? Is it released as heat? Or some other by product? What silly things to wonder about.
Yay! The Internet is working!
I was without internet access all day yesterday at work--it was hell! I had to get Amy to give me directions to a place I needed to go to, and I wasn't able to look up the calorie count in stuff I ate.
Yesterday was winter convocation at work. It started at 8:30 with breakfast. I ate breakfast at home, thinking the breakfast at work would be the usual dry danishes and bagels--not very good, and not very good for you. I was wrong. It was breakfast with eggs, sausage, bacon, french toast, hash browns, and fruit. I took one slice of bacon (only 43 calories! That was worth it, even if it was nothing but fat and salt!), half a spoonful of eggs, and a cup of fruit. Then I counted this as my morning and afternoon snack combined and ate lunch (my usual) late so I wouldn't get hungry later. It worked. Dinner was leftover lasagna again. It always amazes me how much Claire can eat when she really likes the food. She had two pieces of lasagna, I had something less than one piece. My treat in the evening was a serving of Doritoes. The bag had been sitting around all week but no one opened it; yesterday Connor wanted some so Brian opened it and once it was opened I couldn't stay away. But no pigging out at least--I stuck with the one serving.
Exercise yesterday was two pilates workouts. I was still feeling weird after my episode at the gym the day before so I wanted to take it easy, so I did the abs workout (which is the shortest at 16 minutes) and the original 20 minute workout. I hadn't done that one for a while and I couldn't believe how easy it was! Or rather, I couldn't believe how much progress I've made--back in September this was the main workout I did and it used to kill me in spots!
Today so far--oatmeal, coffee, blah, blah, blah. Actually I haven't had the "blah, blah, blah" yet but I packed the usual yogurt, pretzles, orange, almonds, and string cheese. Gym this afternoon where I will slowly walk on the treadmill and monitor my heart rate the whole time. Long car trip this evening where I'll eat an entire bag of Hershey's kisses and a can of Pringles and drink soda. Let's hope not!
Yesterday was winter convocation at work. It started at 8:30 with breakfast. I ate breakfast at home, thinking the breakfast at work would be the usual dry danishes and bagels--not very good, and not very good for you. I was wrong. It was breakfast with eggs, sausage, bacon, french toast, hash browns, and fruit. I took one slice of bacon (only 43 calories! That was worth it, even if it was nothing but fat and salt!), half a spoonful of eggs, and a cup of fruit. Then I counted this as my morning and afternoon snack combined and ate lunch (my usual) late so I wouldn't get hungry later. It worked. Dinner was leftover lasagna again. It always amazes me how much Claire can eat when she really likes the food. She had two pieces of lasagna, I had something less than one piece. My treat in the evening was a serving of Doritoes. The bag had been sitting around all week but no one opened it; yesterday Connor wanted some so Brian opened it and once it was opened I couldn't stay away. But no pigging out at least--I stuck with the one serving.
Exercise yesterday was two pilates workouts. I was still feeling weird after my episode at the gym the day before so I wanted to take it easy, so I did the abs workout (which is the shortest at 16 minutes) and the original 20 minute workout. I hadn't done that one for a while and I couldn't believe how easy it was! Or rather, I couldn't believe how much progress I've made--back in September this was the main workout I did and it used to kill me in spots!
Today so far--oatmeal, coffee, blah, blah, blah. Actually I haven't had the "blah, blah, blah" yet but I packed the usual yogurt, pretzles, orange, almonds, and string cheese. Gym this afternoon where I will slowly walk on the treadmill and monitor my heart rate the whole time. Long car trip this evening where I'll eat an entire bag of Hershey's kisses and a can of Pringles and drink soda. Let's hope not!
Thursday, January 26, 2006
Undereating
I didn't think my problem with this challenge would be NOT getting around to the snacks! But yesterday I was again out most of the afternoon, so I got home and still had a lot of food to go. Plus I totally forgot to start the stew before we went out -- it's not a crock pot stew but I was going to try it that way anyway. What was I thinking, scheduling a 2-hour stew for a Wednesday? We ended up having spaghetti (with green peppers and ground turkey in the sauce) so that messed up my whole schedule. But I re-worked it and it just meant I couldn't plan pretzels as a late-night snack, and I kept the portion of pasta small.
Once again I got to 9 or 10 pm without having eaten all my vegetables for the day, so I carved up a green pepper and ate half of it, saving the other half for today -- I figure if it's already sliced I have NO excuse. I was right in thinking I'd be burping it half the night, though. Ick. Vegetables are definitely a pre-dinner thing for me. The green pepper was better than the carrots would have been; I would have gone to bed with the hiccups instead, and that's infinitely worse when you're trying to sleep and trying not to wake up the two other people in the room!
I didn't deviate from my plan in terms of junk food, anyway, and that's the real point. This morning the scale said 144, and that's the lowest I've seen, so it's starting to pay off. I've been stalled in the upper 140s for over a month and it was getting old!
Today I'm going to eat what I planned to eat yesterday, except I won't have a sandwich for lunch again -- probably yogurt and toast. I get snacks of cantaloupe, almonds, pretzels, carrots, and green peppers, and I get a tiny dessert after lunch and after dinner. I haven't decided on exercise today -- either I'll go to the gym and do weight training during Mary's Girl Scout meeting, or I'll come home and do Pilates and a 15-minute Walk at that point. Either way, I'm bound and determined to get some exercise.
Once again I got to 9 or 10 pm without having eaten all my vegetables for the day, so I carved up a green pepper and ate half of it, saving the other half for today -- I figure if it's already sliced I have NO excuse. I was right in thinking I'd be burping it half the night, though. Ick. Vegetables are definitely a pre-dinner thing for me. The green pepper was better than the carrots would have been; I would have gone to bed with the hiccups instead, and that's infinitely worse when you're trying to sleep and trying not to wake up the two other people in the room!
I didn't deviate from my plan in terms of junk food, anyway, and that's the real point. This morning the scale said 144, and that's the lowest I've seen, so it's starting to pay off. I've been stalled in the upper 140s for over a month and it was getting old!
Today I'm going to eat what I planned to eat yesterday, except I won't have a sandwich for lunch again -- probably yogurt and toast. I get snacks of cantaloupe, almonds, pretzels, carrots, and green peppers, and I get a tiny dessert after lunch and after dinner. I haven't decided on exercise today -- either I'll go to the gym and do weight training during Mary's Girl Scout meeting, or I'll come home and do Pilates and a 15-minute Walk at that point. Either way, I'm bound and determined to get some exercise.
Insult to Injury
OK - I am in the process of an absolute melt down over this weight loss crap - and last night I had to go to a Pampered Chef party. In the midst of this Emily calls and asks if I want to buy more stinking Girl Scout cookies!! Emily, why weren't you selling them last fall like the rest of the world?
Sarah - Why would I waste perfectly good sushi on you? It isn't cheap stuff (if you do it right). WHY would I give it up for you - who declares point blank that it is everything you hate? I got the 1660 calories I referenced before from My Pyramid Tracker. I entered everything I eat on an average day, plus some extra - and it spat out 1670. Then I rounded up to 1800 JUST IN CASE I breathed in some high calorie dust or something - and because what I was shooting for IS 1800. So - on average my calorie count is around 1600.
Yesterday - even after the PC party I was 858 calories for the day. This was after a pretty normal day. I only ate one serving of fruit instead of two. And my dinner was the Pampered Chef party and so I was missing a vegetable serving. (I only ate three baby carrots since the other option was cucumber which makes me sick - and I am not real fond of carrots either.) I ate the smallest Rice Krispie treat and no brownie. I had one cheese cube and one slice of pepperoni. I drank water (which is what I always drink) and the dish we prepared was a chicken burrito bake. This was OK - lots of salsa and prepared chicken. Cheese only sprinkled on top before it was baked - no mayonaise, and no beans (which I think would have made it better but people objected to the beans). Since I am paranoid about the not enough calories issue too, and I couldn't think of any protein I had all day, I had a spoonful (about 1T) of peanut butter and a string cheese stick after the PC show. That added another 300 (about) calories on. Which gave me a grand total of 1158. Again - this was a TYPICAL eating day. So - Sarah - maybe I WILL make you eat sushi - because the 1200-1500 calories should be no problem for me.
I did my resistance workout yesterday. OK - here is my observation about our bodies. I think it is amazing how much stronger our legs and backs are than our upper bodies. I mean A LOT stronger. I can barely lift the 10 on the shoulder press (using the very top of you shoulder muscles) and I always feel vaguely queasy when I finish that set. On the other hand I sqeeze 115 pounds with my thighs no problem. I am going to raise it today to 130 since it IS no problem. I squat using 70 pounds, and I do 70 pounds on my back press too. I can feel both of those, but if I were to raise them it wouldn't be too hard. I CAN'T do full sets of the 10 pounds on my shoulders and I make the most embarassing noises when I try (but all the boys grunt and moan - so I guess I can too - even if it is over 10 pounds!).
Today is aerobics again. I always preferred the weight workout since it is considerably less boring - but I am starting to look forward to the cardio too. My feet go numb on the cross trainer after about 10 minutes - which I hear has something to do with the nerves in your lower back. I hope it isn't anything bad, because I like the cross trainer better than the treadmill. I think it is a better leg workout. My calves are definitely less blobby.
Sarah - Why would I waste perfectly good sushi on you? It isn't cheap stuff (if you do it right). WHY would I give it up for you - who declares point blank that it is everything you hate? I got the 1660 calories I referenced before from My Pyramid Tracker. I entered everything I eat on an average day, plus some extra - and it spat out 1670. Then I rounded up to 1800 JUST IN CASE I breathed in some high calorie dust or something - and because what I was shooting for IS 1800. So - on average my calorie count is around 1600.
Yesterday - even after the PC party I was 858 calories for the day. This was after a pretty normal day. I only ate one serving of fruit instead of two. And my dinner was the Pampered Chef party and so I was missing a vegetable serving. (I only ate three baby carrots since the other option was cucumber which makes me sick - and I am not real fond of carrots either.) I ate the smallest Rice Krispie treat and no brownie. I had one cheese cube and one slice of pepperoni. I drank water (which is what I always drink) and the dish we prepared was a chicken burrito bake. This was OK - lots of salsa and prepared chicken. Cheese only sprinkled on top before it was baked - no mayonaise, and no beans (which I think would have made it better but people objected to the beans). Since I am paranoid about the not enough calories issue too, and I couldn't think of any protein I had all day, I had a spoonful (about 1T) of peanut butter and a string cheese stick after the PC show. That added another 300 (about) calories on. Which gave me a grand total of 1158. Again - this was a TYPICAL eating day. So - Sarah - maybe I WILL make you eat sushi - because the 1200-1500 calories should be no problem for me.
I did my resistance workout yesterday. OK - here is my observation about our bodies. I think it is amazing how much stronger our legs and backs are than our upper bodies. I mean A LOT stronger. I can barely lift the 10 on the shoulder press (using the very top of you shoulder muscles) and I always feel vaguely queasy when I finish that set. On the other hand I sqeeze 115 pounds with my thighs no problem. I am going to raise it today to 130 since it IS no problem. I squat using 70 pounds, and I do 70 pounds on my back press too. I can feel both of those, but if I were to raise them it wouldn't be too hard. I CAN'T do full sets of the 10 pounds on my shoulders and I make the most embarassing noises when I try (but all the boys grunt and moan - so I guess I can too - even if it is over 10 pounds!).
Today is aerobics again. I always preferred the weight workout since it is considerably less boring - but I am starting to look forward to the cardio too. My feet go numb on the cross trainer after about 10 minutes - which I hear has something to do with the nerves in your lower back. I hope it isn't anything bad, because I like the cross trainer better than the treadmill. I think it is a better leg workout. My calves are definitely less blobby.
Wednesday update
Wednesday was pretty much identical to Tuesday for me. Same exact foods, and same exercise.
Tonight I am determined to figure out how to work the tv without the remote to do the entire pilates dvd in addition to my treadmill time. My plan is going to be treadmill every day for 30 minutes, then Tuesday, Thursday and one of the weekend days add a pilates dvd. I only have that one dummies dvd that I like. I am open to suggestions for others you guys have tried and enjoyed.
Tonight I am determined to figure out how to work the tv without the remote to do the entire pilates dvd in addition to my treadmill time. My plan is going to be treadmill every day for 30 minutes, then Tuesday, Thursday and one of the weekend days add a pilates dvd. I only have that one dummies dvd that I like. I am open to suggestions for others you guys have tried and enjoyed.
Wednesday, January 25, 2006
My plan for the evening....
See, I almost lost track of time and forgot to post this again!
First of all I'm going to take it easy--I just had a bad dizzy spell/elevated heart rate/tingling in my fingers while on the treadmill (and I wasn't doing anything more than I usually do, so I don't know what's up. But I have been feeling a bit lightheaded on and off today, kind of headachy, and my heart pounding slightly from time to time, so maybe I was just off to begin with, or I'm coming down with something) so I don't want to do too much tonight.
Second with food--I have about 500 calories still to eat. I'm planning fish, rice, and spinach salad for dinner; while I'm cooking dinner I'll have either an apple or another orange so that I don't pig out on goldfish crackers or whatever the kids are eating. That gets me to 440, so I can still have a tablespoon of chocolate chips as an evening snack.
Sound good?
First of all I'm going to take it easy--I just had a bad dizzy spell/elevated heart rate/tingling in my fingers while on the treadmill (and I wasn't doing anything more than I usually do, so I don't know what's up. But I have been feeling a bit lightheaded on and off today, kind of headachy, and my heart pounding slightly from time to time, so maybe I was just off to begin with, or I'm coming down with something) so I don't want to do too much tonight.
Second with food--I have about 500 calories still to eat. I'm planning fish, rice, and spinach salad for dinner; while I'm cooking dinner I'll have either an apple or another orange so that I don't pig out on goldfish crackers or whatever the kids are eating. That gets me to 440, so I can still have a tablespoon of chocolate chips as an evening snack.
Sound good?
Did anyone see Cathy today?
http://www.ucomics.com/cathy/
Is that perfect for today's conversation, or what?
ETA: And Calvin and Hobbes: http://www.ucomics.com/calvinandhobbes/
Too funny!
Is that perfect for today's conversation, or what?
ETA: And Calvin and Hobbes: http://www.ucomics.com/calvinandhobbes/
Too funny!
Hanging in there
I ate what I said I would yesterday, except I wound up having lunch late (the yogurt just before we left for French class at 2 and the toast after we returned around 5!) so I didn't fit all my snacks in. I realized early on I needed to leave the grapes out because it was more fruit than I needed, and I fully meant to have the green peppers but I just didn't get around to them. At about 11:30 at night I was hungry and thought I'd eat the peppers, but I did a calorie count on My Pyramid and discovered I was very short on starches (though I later realized they must have been counting my half a potato as a vegetable!) so I ate a serving of pretzels. I didn't eat the green peppers at all because I hated the idea of going to bed with that on my breath (they don't go away when I brush -- I can still burp them!) -- and they wouldn't do much for hunger anyway.
I did do my 30-minute walk yesterday though I wasn't exactly excited about it. My arms were aching from Monday still (they still are today, as well). But the stretchie work did them good, so I was glad I exercised. Today I'll squeeze in a gym trip between piano and swim lessons, but it will probably just be the bike or some other aerobic equipment, because I don't think my arms are up to a new load. Or maybe I'll try some lower-body work?
Today I've had my usual breakfast already, and some cantaloupe. For lunch I'm planning on turkey with lettuce on whole wheat. I have planned snacks of carrots, green peppers, and almonds, and dinner is beef-vegetable stew with barley. I get one tiny dessert after each meal as I did each of the last two days (so far that seems to be working!). I'll have a glass of milk with one of my meals. If I'm still hungry in the evening I'll allow myself a serving of pretzels, since that seemed to work well.
I did do my 30-minute walk yesterday though I wasn't exactly excited about it. My arms were aching from Monday still (they still are today, as well). But the stretchie work did them good, so I was glad I exercised. Today I'll squeeze in a gym trip between piano and swim lessons, but it will probably just be the bike or some other aerobic equipment, because I don't think my arms are up to a new load. Or maybe I'll try some lower-body work?
Today I've had my usual breakfast already, and some cantaloupe. For lunch I'm planning on turkey with lettuce on whole wheat. I have planned snacks of carrots, green peppers, and almonds, and dinner is beef-vegetable stew with barley. I get one tiny dessert after each meal as I did each of the last two days (so far that seems to be working!). I'll have a glass of milk with one of my meals. If I'm still hungry in the evening I'll allow myself a serving of pretzels, since that seemed to work well.
I blew it on the challenge yesterday
First of all, I keep forgetting to post what my evening snack plans are--I always just run out of time in the afternoon and in the mornings I'm just not thinking about it.
But yesterday I gave into a craving, with the intention of keeping it reasonable--I've been craving those stupid circus peanuts candies for days (actually since a week ago Monday when I smelled some Burt's Bees lotion that smelled just like them!) and followed the "delay, distract, whatever" recommendations and was still craving them over a week later (is that enough delaying?) so I bought a bag when I was in Wal Mart yesterday and planned to eat two servings of them--one in the afternoon and one in the evening (of course you can't buy a one serving package!). Only the afternoon serving would have been above my intake intentions for the day since I plan for the evening snack (and even that wouldn't have been by much since a serving of these things is 120 calories and my usual snack allowance is 200 calories). Well, instead I ate six servings over the course of the day and evening. Totally empty calories too. And because I was feeling guilty about that, I completely failed to eat any fruit or vegetables in the evening. The rest of my food for the day was cereal and milk for breakfast, coffee, almonds, a mandarin orange, yogurt, pretzles, string cheese, and a small piece of leftover lasagna. The rest of the food was only 1062 calories--I would have been FINE with two servings of that candy, or even three or four would have kept me under 1500 calories for the day, but no, I had to eat six servings and then not eat spinach salad and grapes to try to make up for it!
The problem I have with cravings is that I can't seem to just give into them moderately--once I start, I can't just stop! I threw away the rest of the candy, though, which is what I should have done to begin with.
Exercise yesterday was the pilates Maximum Burn basics. My butt hurt all day from the previous day's exercise--after sitting all day I had to walk around with my hips jutting forward all evening so it wouldn't hurt so much.
But yesterday I gave into a craving, with the intention of keeping it reasonable--I've been craving those stupid circus peanuts candies for days (actually since a week ago Monday when I smelled some Burt's Bees lotion that smelled just like them!) and followed the "delay, distract, whatever" recommendations and was still craving them over a week later (is that enough delaying?) so I bought a bag when I was in Wal Mart yesterday and planned to eat two servings of them--one in the afternoon and one in the evening (of course you can't buy a one serving package!). Only the afternoon serving would have been above my intake intentions for the day since I plan for the evening snack (and even that wouldn't have been by much since a serving of these things is 120 calories and my usual snack allowance is 200 calories). Well, instead I ate six servings over the course of the day and evening. Totally empty calories too. And because I was feeling guilty about that, I completely failed to eat any fruit or vegetables in the evening. The rest of my food for the day was cereal and milk for breakfast, coffee, almonds, a mandarin orange, yogurt, pretzles, string cheese, and a small piece of leftover lasagna. The rest of the food was only 1062 calories--I would have been FINE with two servings of that candy, or even three or four would have kept me under 1500 calories for the day, but no, I had to eat six servings and then not eat spinach salad and grapes to try to make up for it!
The problem I have with cravings is that I can't seem to just give into them moderately--once I start, I can't just stop! I threw away the rest of the candy, though, which is what I should have done to begin with.
Exercise yesterday was the pilates Maximum Burn basics. My butt hurt all day from the previous day's exercise--after sitting all day I had to walk around with my hips jutting forward all evening so it wouldn't hurt so much.
Accurate Daily Calorie Calculator
Try this--http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/calorie-calculator/NU00598
Mine makes perfect sense. Amy, with a educated guess on your exercise (I picked the moderate given your gym trips, it says you should eat 1868 per day to maintain your 205. I also said you were 5'8". I just know you're A LOT taller than me :^)
My input--27, 5'2" 163 with moderate acticity for 3 hours per week needs 1666 calories per day to maintain. Which means I am losing because I am only eating 1200-1300 per day. So when I finally reach that coveted 130 I dream of, I'll have to maintain my 30 mintues of moderate exercise 6 days a week and stay under 1500 calories.
Mine makes perfect sense. Amy, with a educated guess on your exercise (I picked the moderate given your gym trips, it says you should eat 1868 per day to maintain your 205. I also said you were 5'8". I just know you're A LOT taller than me :^)
My input--27, 5'2" 163 with moderate acticity for 3 hours per week needs 1666 calories per day to maintain. Which means I am losing because I am only eating 1200-1300 per day. So when I finally reach that coveted 130 I dream of, I'll have to maintain my 30 mintues of moderate exercise 6 days a week and stay under 1500 calories.
Tuesday Follow Up
Food yesterday: apple raisin oatmeal for breakfast, banana, grapes, carrots, animal crackers, and string cheese for snacks and jamabalaya (sp??) and a small biscuit for dinner. I pigged out on cheese once I got home. What a weird thing to eat too much of, but I was hungry and the shredded cheddar just tasted so good. Then I had a brownie for dessert, since Tuesday night is dessert night in our house.
I spent 35 mintues on the treadmill last night. I tried the second program again, but I can't keep up with it. I made it 7 minutes last night, which is the longest I've stuck with it. It starts at 3.5 mph, and by minute 4 it is up to 6 mph and I just can't hang with that speed yet, so I stopped and did program 1 again. Once I was done I did my whatever-I-can-remember pilates moves. I really need to learn how to use the tv without the remote...
I spent 35 mintues on the treadmill last night. I tried the second program again, but I can't keep up with it. I made it 7 minutes last night, which is the longest I've stuck with it. It starts at 3.5 mph, and by minute 4 it is up to 6 mph and I just can't hang with that speed yet, so I stopped and did program 1 again. Once I was done I did my whatever-I-can-remember pilates moves. I really need to learn how to use the tv without the remote...
Tuesday, January 24, 2006
134!!!
But that SO doesn't really count, because I've been sick and unable to eat anything for the past three days. Saturday night Charles and I went out for sushi and I was feeling a little off (had been all day) so I only ate the bowl of miso soup and three pieces of sushi. THAT should have told me how sick I was! Normally I can put away 30 pieces and still be looking for more! Then Saturday night I woke up in the middle of the night shaking uncontrollably. I was SO cold, but I could tell I was actually running a fever. So I spent all of Sunday in bed (missed Sarah's birthday dinner, which I guess is a good thing because with those food choices, I would have completely overindulged), alternating between cold shakes and sweating like....I dunno....something that sweats a lot. When I finally thought to check my temperature it was 103.1 So at that point I call out of school for the next day and decided to go to the doctor (how high does a temperature have to be before you decide to go to the hospital?) So I ate absolutely NOTHING on Sunday. Not a bite. I had about three glasses of orange juice, and a whole lot of water, but that's it. I was only conscious for about 2 hours the entire day.
So Monday I went to the doctor who asked what I was there for, and I said "I think I have strep throat." So they did the throat culture, and the doctor came back in and said "negative for strep, here let me shove this REALLY long q-tip up your nose, probe around your frontal lobe for a little while, while snot runs down your face, and we'll call it a flu test!" Or something like that. Then a little while later a guy comes in (lab technician, perhaps?) carrying a very scary looking bin of needles and vials and such and I asked him how the flu test went and he said "oh, it was negative. But your strep test was positive." huh? So he drew blood (to check my white cell count, but I never heard back about that) and then a million years later (after I had fallen asleep on the stretcher in the room) the doctor came back in and said "your strep result changed!" and gave me a prescription for amoxicillin and this stuff called Lidocaine Viscous which is supposed to be for the pain in my throat, and I'm supposed to gargle with it for one minute, but as you can probably tell by the "viscous" part of things, it's roughly the same consistency as snot, and VERY hard to gargle with--and I'm bad at gargling anyway! My gag reflex is too quick. So I manage to toss (ooze) it to the back of my throat and go "argh" and then I choke and swallow it. And it's done NOTHING for the pain. She also gave me some 8000mg Motrin, or something along those lines, to bring down the fever, but I wasn't allowed to take them on an empty stomach, so I went home and opened a can of chicken soup and heated up half a bowl of it, of which I managed to choke down just the broth and about two noodles (this was the thick and chunky variety of chicken soup--NOT what you want when you're sick) and that was it for food intake yesterday. Amy's chicken tetrazini smelled really good, though!
So today I went downstairs and drained off the rest of the broth from the soup leftover from yesterday (which Amy very kindly covered and put away for me), and ate that. And that's all the food I've had for the past three and a half days. My fever is down a bit today (hovering around 100) but my throat is still so sore it hurts to swallow. I was telling Mom earlier that I keep catching myself drooling to avoid having to swallow. Not very pretty. Now I have to decide whether or not I'm going to school tomorrow. Technically I am no longer contagious, since I've been on the antibiotics for 24 hours, but since I'm still running a fever and having a hard time talking, let alone swallowing, I can't decide. I think I'll try to go in, and leave early if I have to. I'm definitely canceling choir after school. I wish I could keep this weight. I know it will pop right back up as soon as I start eating again, but wouldn't this be nice?!
So Monday I went to the doctor who asked what I was there for, and I said "I think I have strep throat." So they did the throat culture, and the doctor came back in and said "negative for strep, here let me shove this REALLY long q-tip up your nose, probe around your frontal lobe for a little while, while snot runs down your face, and we'll call it a flu test!" Or something like that. Then a little while later a guy comes in (lab technician, perhaps?) carrying a very scary looking bin of needles and vials and such and I asked him how the flu test went and he said "oh, it was negative. But your strep test was positive." huh? So he drew blood (to check my white cell count, but I never heard back about that) and then a million years later (after I had fallen asleep on the stretcher in the room) the doctor came back in and said "your strep result changed!" and gave me a prescription for amoxicillin and this stuff called Lidocaine Viscous which is supposed to be for the pain in my throat, and I'm supposed to gargle with it for one minute, but as you can probably tell by the "viscous" part of things, it's roughly the same consistency as snot, and VERY hard to gargle with--and I'm bad at gargling anyway! My gag reflex is too quick. So I manage to toss (ooze) it to the back of my throat and go "argh" and then I choke and swallow it. And it's done NOTHING for the pain. She also gave me some 8000mg Motrin, or something along those lines, to bring down the fever, but I wasn't allowed to take them on an empty stomach, so I went home and opened a can of chicken soup and heated up half a bowl of it, of which I managed to choke down just the broth and about two noodles (this was the thick and chunky variety of chicken soup--NOT what you want when you're sick) and that was it for food intake yesterday. Amy's chicken tetrazini smelled really good, though!
So today I went downstairs and drained off the rest of the broth from the soup leftover from yesterday (which Amy very kindly covered and put away for me), and ate that. And that's all the food I've had for the past three and a half days. My fever is down a bit today (hovering around 100) but my throat is still so sore it hurts to swallow. I was telling Mom earlier that I keep catching myself drooling to avoid having to swallow. Not very pretty. Now I have to decide whether or not I'm going to school tomorrow. Technically I am no longer contagious, since I've been on the antibiotics for 24 hours, but since I'm still running a fever and having a hard time talking, let alone swallowing, I can't decide. I think I'll try to go in, and leave early if I have to. I'm definitely canceling choir after school. I wish I could keep this weight. I know it will pop right back up as soon as I start eating again, but wouldn't this be nice?!
146.5
And that was with a second weigh-in. I was 147.0 the first time, but I gave it a couple of minutes and tried again. I wasn't expecting a loss this week, but I was hoping to avoid the full pound gain! I ate so poorly all week, especially on Sunday, so I'm paying for it now.
Yesterday we went to the gym. On Saturday I had declared that I was bored with just riding the bikes, so Daniel suggested weight training to shake things up a bit, and I have to say the time went by a lot faster! We did 15 minutes on the bikes to start out -- that time flies by when you're used to 45 -- and then did all the upper body machines on the circuit. Next time I'm going to skip a few of them; their triceps and biceps machines just didn't do it for me, and the lateral raises machine was completely awkward. I'm going to do those with free weights instead. But today my obliques are sore and my shoulder blades are stiff -- we worked hard!
I did sit down and work out a food plan yesterday, and I actually stuck to it. I am allowing myself a very small dessert after lunch and dinner; I really crave something sweet, but usually just a few bites is sufficient, so by making a plan I can stick to that instead of eating something huge. We changed our dinner plan yesterday -- we were supposed to have beef stew, but then I couldn't find the stew meat (found it an hour later, too late to make the stew) and our gym time interfered, so we had tomato soup and sandwiches instead. But instead of a whole sandwich I had the leftover grilled chicken (half a piece) and a piece of grilled bread (I figure it's the same thing as toast, but the margarine goes on in the wrong order). Anyway, I had that dinner with a tiny piece of cherry pie for dessert (was going to be a piece of chocolate, but I had a half a starch food to spare, and the cherries aren't unhealthy, and then it still qualifies as a sweet) -- does it count as a divergence if we just replace one small dessert item with another?
The rest of my food for yesterday was my usual breakfast, tuna and toast for lunch with milk to drink and a small cookie for dessert, and snacks of raisins, carrots, almonds, and pretzels. So I actually got a couple of vegetables yesterday, between the soup and the carrots. Today will be even better.
Today I'm planning on my usual breakfast, lunch of yogurt and toast, dinner of beef roast (cleaning out the freezer), baked potato, green beans, and salad, a cookie and a piece of pie (tiny) for desserts, and snacks of canteloupe, carrots, green pepper slices, almonds, and grapes. (I went grocery shopping yesterday -- now I'm loaded up with healthy snacks! Canteloupe and grapes are on sale this week, hooray!) I'm going to do a 30 minute Walk this afternoon.
I'm not counting calories as such -- I'm sort of keeping the Jenny Craig equivalents in the back of my head, based on the booklet I mooched off Amy years ago. So I'm aiming for five vegetables (ha), two to three fruits, five or so starches, two or three dairy, and some protein that I don't count carefully. Plus I'm allowing myself some fats and sweets, which I never did when I really followed it closely; I figure I can sneak those in with the nursing calories and still lose weight a bit. We'll see if this works as of next week -- I'm going to try to be good for the full week!
Yesterday we went to the gym. On Saturday I had declared that I was bored with just riding the bikes, so Daniel suggested weight training to shake things up a bit, and I have to say the time went by a lot faster! We did 15 minutes on the bikes to start out -- that time flies by when you're used to 45 -- and then did all the upper body machines on the circuit. Next time I'm going to skip a few of them; their triceps and biceps machines just didn't do it for me, and the lateral raises machine was completely awkward. I'm going to do those with free weights instead. But today my obliques are sore and my shoulder blades are stiff -- we worked hard!
I did sit down and work out a food plan yesterday, and I actually stuck to it. I am allowing myself a very small dessert after lunch and dinner; I really crave something sweet, but usually just a few bites is sufficient, so by making a plan I can stick to that instead of eating something huge. We changed our dinner plan yesterday -- we were supposed to have beef stew, but then I couldn't find the stew meat (found it an hour later, too late to make the stew) and our gym time interfered, so we had tomato soup and sandwiches instead. But instead of a whole sandwich I had the leftover grilled chicken (half a piece) and a piece of grilled bread (I figure it's the same thing as toast, but the margarine goes on in the wrong order). Anyway, I had that dinner with a tiny piece of cherry pie for dessert (was going to be a piece of chocolate, but I had a half a starch food to spare, and the cherries aren't unhealthy, and then it still qualifies as a sweet) -- does it count as a divergence if we just replace one small dessert item with another?
The rest of my food for yesterday was my usual breakfast, tuna and toast for lunch with milk to drink and a small cookie for dessert, and snacks of raisins, carrots, almonds, and pretzels. So I actually got a couple of vegetables yesterday, between the soup and the carrots. Today will be even better.
Today I'm planning on my usual breakfast, lunch of yogurt and toast, dinner of beef roast (cleaning out the freezer), baked potato, green beans, and salad, a cookie and a piece of pie (tiny) for desserts, and snacks of canteloupe, carrots, green pepper slices, almonds, and grapes. (I went grocery shopping yesterday -- now I'm loaded up with healthy snacks! Canteloupe and grapes are on sale this week, hooray!) I'm going to do a 30 minute Walk this afternoon.
I'm not counting calories as such -- I'm sort of keeping the Jenny Craig equivalents in the back of my head, based on the booklet I mooched off Amy years ago. So I'm aiming for five vegetables (ha), two to three fruits, five or so starches, two or three dairy, and some protein that I don't count carefully. Plus I'm allowing myself some fats and sweets, which I never did when I really followed it closely; I figure I can sneak those in with the nursing calories and still lose weight a bit. We'll see if this works as of next week -- I'm going to try to be good for the full week!
SO NOT FAIR
This morning my weight was 208.6!!! That is up by about 14 pounds!!! I was SO GOOD this week. I started out a little rocky, but I have been exercising every day and eating really well (copmpartively). WHY?! I was slowly inching my way down all week - and then yesterday I jumped up two pounds and today another 1/2 pound. Why can't my low point be on weigh in day? This is SO stupid!! I am SO sick of this. Every time I think I am doing a good job - NOTHING!
139.0
Up from last week, but not appallingly so (I can't remember if I was 138.6 or 138.4, but in any event, it's about a half pound gain), and entirely explained by my snacking last week and overindulgence this weekend.
I meant to get on yesterday afternoon and post my snack plan for the evening. It wasn't much of a plan--I wanted to avoid ALL snacks so that I could have a piece of birthday cake after dinner, and believe it or not, I managed to do just that. And now the cake is gone so I won't have that for temptation anymore. We had pizza for dinner last night (the pizza sale fundraiser at Connor's school came in, so it was unavoidable) and I had one and a half slices. The thing I love about counting calories is that if you keep track during the day and have budgeted a certain number of calories for that day, you know how much you can eat and stay within your limit. If I hadn't known where I stood at that point, I probably would have eaten at least two and more likely three pieces of pizza (which is what Claire ate, the greedy pig dog!). As it was, I went just over my 1500 calorie "budget" for the day and ended at 1563 calories. At bedtime, though, I was really hungry and just had to put up with it.
I worked out a lot yesterday. I tried the "fat burning" program on the treadmill and hated it. The point is to try to keep your heart rate within a certain level, based on your age, so that you are burning the most fat. So I kept the speed at a fast walk (4.5 m.p.h.) but I pretty quickly passed the 134 b.p.m. limit for "fat burning" for my age. My heart rate was more around 146 for most of the workout. And then I felt like it wasn't much of a workout since I wasn't sweating and out of breath, so I added time. I ended up doing 40 minutes, but covered only 2.7 or 2.8 miles and burned 320 calories. In the evening, I did the "advanced" pilates DVD. This is the one I've only tried once before and is the only pilates workout that makes me break a sweat. It's hard! It wasn't as bad this time as the last because I sort of knew what was coming, but I was still worn out at the end, and this morning my butt hurts badly! I obviously need to do this workout more often! In the end, I probably burned about 500 to 600 calories through exercise yesterday. A few more days of this and I'll have my weight back down!
I meant to get on yesterday afternoon and post my snack plan for the evening. It wasn't much of a plan--I wanted to avoid ALL snacks so that I could have a piece of birthday cake after dinner, and believe it or not, I managed to do just that. And now the cake is gone so I won't have that for temptation anymore. We had pizza for dinner last night (the pizza sale fundraiser at Connor's school came in, so it was unavoidable) and I had one and a half slices. The thing I love about counting calories is that if you keep track during the day and have budgeted a certain number of calories for that day, you know how much you can eat and stay within your limit. If I hadn't known where I stood at that point, I probably would have eaten at least two and more likely three pieces of pizza (which is what Claire ate, the greedy pig dog!). As it was, I went just over my 1500 calorie "budget" for the day and ended at 1563 calories. At bedtime, though, I was really hungry and just had to put up with it.
I worked out a lot yesterday. I tried the "fat burning" program on the treadmill and hated it. The point is to try to keep your heart rate within a certain level, based on your age, so that you are burning the most fat. So I kept the speed at a fast walk (4.5 m.p.h.) but I pretty quickly passed the 134 b.p.m. limit for "fat burning" for my age. My heart rate was more around 146 for most of the workout. And then I felt like it wasn't much of a workout since I wasn't sweating and out of breath, so I added time. I ended up doing 40 minutes, but covered only 2.7 or 2.8 miles and burned 320 calories. In the evening, I did the "advanced" pilates DVD. This is the one I've only tried once before and is the only pilates workout that makes me break a sweat. It's hard! It wasn't as bad this time as the last because I sort of knew what was coming, but I was still worn out at the end, and this morning my butt hurts badly! I obviously need to do this workout more often! In the end, I probably burned about 500 to 600 calories through exercise yesterday. A few more days of this and I'll have my weight back down!
162.6
I am very excited about my weigh in today. That is my lowest weigh-in day weight yet. I have to say, I have worked for it this past week. I can see that counting calories and limiting my carbs is the way for me to be successful.
Food Monday: breakfast was apple raisin oatmeal, snacks were grapes, a banana, a handful of animal crackers, string cheese and a SINGLE (imagine that!!!) Dove chocolate. Lunch was this icky Bangkok curry from Noodles & Co. I did my research ahead of time and got something pretty low in fat and calories (as far as their food is concerned). Dinner was cranberry baked chicken, peas and stuffing. I only had a half portion of the stuffing.
I spent 30 minutes on the treadmill. I am going to try the second program again tonight. I felt good doing the first one last night, and even jogged a good portion of it.
Food Monday: breakfast was apple raisin oatmeal, snacks were grapes, a banana, a handful of animal crackers, string cheese and a SINGLE (imagine that!!!) Dove chocolate. Lunch was this icky Bangkok curry from Noodles & Co. I did my research ahead of time and got something pretty low in fat and calories (as far as their food is concerned). Dinner was cranberry baked chicken, peas and stuffing. I only had a half portion of the stuffing.
I spent 30 minutes on the treadmill. I am going to try the second program again tonight. I felt good doing the first one last night, and even jogged a good portion of it.
Monday, January 23, 2006
Is this like pool?
If you don't call your shot - it doesn't matter how spectacular it is, it doesn't count? I forgot to say at any point what I planned to have as my evening snacks. I PLANNED to have pistachio nuts and yogurt. But - of course I didn't plan on being off by several hours.
After lunch at 4:30 I had a snack of Triskets at about 5:30 or so... maybe later. I got home at about 8pm and made dinner (chicken tetrazzini and green beans). But it was almost 9pm before it was done. I then finished off my lunch for dessert. (I had cottage cheese and mandrin oranges remaining. ) About 10 minutes ago I drank some apple juice.
That was it. That was my whole food day. The only thing I hadn't packed in my lunch bag in the beginning was the apple juice.
This is weird. My period is starting (in it's typically very delayed fashion) but I don't feel at all PMS-y. I am tired and achy - but I think that is from not enough sleep and my gym work out. I am a little bit cranky - and I can't seem to muster sympathy for poor Katie who is really sick (I'm sorry Katie!!! - I know I feel sympathetic, but my emotions don't seem to be acting quite right!). But I haven't been inclined to eat everything in sight. I didn't eat everything in sight over the weekend either. I haven't been having salt cravings or sugar cravings. I have been craving juice - which is sweet, but in a different sort of way. I think there is something wrong with me. Maybe it is menopause. Anyway - hopefully I will still have the advantage of dropping a few pounds in a day or two - even if I haven't done the eating thing.
I have to go pack my lunch now - and then I am going to bed.
After lunch at 4:30 I had a snack of Triskets at about 5:30 or so... maybe later. I got home at about 8pm and made dinner (chicken tetrazzini and green beans). But it was almost 9pm before it was done. I then finished off my lunch for dessert. (I had cottage cheese and mandrin oranges remaining. ) About 10 minutes ago I drank some apple juice.
That was it. That was my whole food day. The only thing I hadn't packed in my lunch bag in the beginning was the apple juice.
This is weird. My period is starting (in it's typically very delayed fashion) but I don't feel at all PMS-y. I am tired and achy - but I think that is from not enough sleep and my gym work out. I am a little bit cranky - and I can't seem to muster sympathy for poor Katie who is really sick (I'm sorry Katie!!! - I know I feel sympathetic, but my emotions don't seem to be acting quite right!). But I haven't been inclined to eat everything in sight. I didn't eat everything in sight over the weekend either. I haven't been having salt cravings or sugar cravings. I have been craving juice - which is sweet, but in a different sort of way. I think there is something wrong with me. Maybe it is menopause. Anyway - hopefully I will still have the advantage of dropping a few pounds in a day or two - even if I haven't done the eating thing.
I have to go pack my lunch now - and then I am going to bed.
Yummmm Lunch
OK - I am really glad I went home. I got there at about noon - ate my "breakfast" of 1/2 a bagel with apple butter, prunes and then a cheese stick. I just now ate lunch (p,b &p on whole wheat lite bread) and a V-8. I feel so much better even though I am off by 4 hours.
I did go to the gym. Kristy and I were in a meeting down the road together and it ended early. We decided that it would be wise for us BOTH to go to the gym at that point. So I got to go and do my resistance workout. I rushed though - and so now my arms are all wooblely and I am having a hard time working. Hee hee.
I don't know if I will make it to the DC though, I have a bunch of stuff I need to catch up on. Oh well.
I did go to the gym. Kristy and I were in a meeting down the road together and it ended early. We decided that it would be wise for us BOTH to go to the gym at that point. So I got to go and do my resistance workout. I rushed though - and so now my arms are all wooblely and I am having a hard time working. Hee hee.
I don't know if I will make it to the DC though, I have a bunch of stuff I need to catch up on. Oh well.
I forgot my blinking lunch!
Darn it! I packed such a lovely, healthy lunch for today... and it is no where to be seen. I don't remember getting it out of the refridgerator this morning - so I hope it is still there. Or - maybe I did get it out and it is sitting on the counter getting all rotten. Sigh. I don't know if this means I will go home on my lunch break to pick it up - or just buy cafe food and use my lunch time to go to the gym. I am not sure which is better. I can't go to the gym after work because I am supposed to work in the DC. I guess I could skip working tonight if I commit myself to working on Wednesday - but I hate doing that. Oh well. I will have to decide soon because if I want my lunch I have to get it now. So far today I have eaten coffee.
I was the same as everyone else this weekend - not stellar - but not too bad. My big problems were at Sarah's house on Sunday. Cheesey lasagna and most of a bottle of wine. Saturday I had a fairly small portion of sushi for dinner - and normal foods (NO BINGES of any type) during the day. I did go to the gym and did 35 minutes on the cross trainer. I didn't go to the gym on Sunday - althought I thought about it. I spent most of the day making a card for Sarah and wrapping her presents. I also read for a bit.
This morning I was 208.2 - yesterday I was 206. Saturday I was 206.2. Today my period is looming - so I am grumpy and bloated.
OK - so the decision is I am running home to get lunch, skipping work in the DC and working out after work today.
I was the same as everyone else this weekend - not stellar - but not too bad. My big problems were at Sarah's house on Sunday. Cheesey lasagna and most of a bottle of wine. Saturday I had a fairly small portion of sushi for dinner - and normal foods (NO BINGES of any type) during the day. I did go to the gym and did 35 minutes on the cross trainer. I didn't go to the gym on Sunday - althought I thought about it. I spent most of the day making a card for Sarah and wrapping her presents. I also read for a bit.
This morning I was 208.2 - yesterday I was 206. Saturday I was 206.2. Today my period is looming - so I am grumpy and bloated.
OK - so the decision is I am running home to get lunch, skipping work in the DC and working out after work today.
Gluttony
Yesterday Daniel's post-doc Micah and his girlfriend Trisha, who just recently moved to Blacksburg, volunteered to babysit for us while we went to dinner and a movie, so we took advantage of that. We saw "King Kong" and ate a very large amount of popcorn, and I even allowed myself lemonade instead of water. Then we went to Outback (it was close and I had a gift card) and I couldn't even think about having a steak, let alone a bloomin' onion, so I had grilled shrimp and veggies over rice with water to drink, and half a Caesar salad (it came with the meal -- otherwise I would have even skipped the salad). Even though I chose a vaguely healthy option for dinner I still ate too much. And when we got home Micah and Trisha had dessert and port waiting for us, so I had a small slice of cherry pie and a glass of port. This morning I feel hungover-ish, though in a food sort of way instead of alcohol. If that makes any sense. I am seriously regretting my food intake yesterday! I did start the day with my usual breakfast (not even waffles) but I didn't eat a proper lunch, either -- just junk.
The rest of the weekend was not particularly good but not as awful as it could have been. On Saturday night we had grilled chicken over a lightly dressed salad, and for Saturday lunch I had one very small slice of pizza. But my snacks were irregular all day. I don't remember specifically. I'm sure I could have done much better.
Today, thanks to the challenge, my eating will be better. I still have to write down what my foods are going to be. Let's see, if we don't deviate from our plan, we can win, right? So I'm going to plan to have half a pizza for lunch, chocolate all afternoon, beer and popcorn for dinner, and a bottle of Riesling for dessert. Sound good? (Ugh. It might sound good if I hadn't eaten so poorly yesterday!) OK, you can blame Daniel for that food plan, anyway -- he's the one who came up with it.
I missed one day of exercise, I think Friday?, after my small streak, and then on Saturday morning I went to the gym and did 45 minutes on the bike. Needless to say, I did not exercise yesterday. Today I will go to the gym later this afternoon.
Why, oh, why do I let myself go the way I did yesterday? Ugh, ugh, ugh!
The rest of the weekend was not particularly good but not as awful as it could have been. On Saturday night we had grilled chicken over a lightly dressed salad, and for Saturday lunch I had one very small slice of pizza. But my snacks were irregular all day. I don't remember specifically. I'm sure I could have done much better.
Today, thanks to the challenge, my eating will be better. I still have to write down what my foods are going to be. Let's see, if we don't deviate from our plan, we can win, right? So I'm going to plan to have half a pizza for lunch, chocolate all afternoon, beer and popcorn for dinner, and a bottle of Riesling for dessert. Sound good? (Ugh. It might sound good if I hadn't eaten so poorly yesterday!) OK, you can blame Daniel for that food plan, anyway -- he's the one who came up with it.
I missed one day of exercise, I think Friday?, after my small streak, and then on Saturday morning I went to the gym and did 45 minutes on the bike. Needless to say, I did not exercise yesterday. Today I will go to the gym later this afternoon.
Why, oh, why do I let myself go the way I did yesterday? Ugh, ugh, ugh!
Overindulging
I was pretty good on Friday and Saturday. Friday for dinner I had half of a pot pie (didn't have time to bake the chicken) and at Amy's party I ate one cupcake and four cubes of bread with dip--not great food (well, it was GOOD, just not healthy!), but I thought it was a reasonable amount to eat at a party. Saturday I was sort of well behaved--my usual weekend breakfast of two cups of coffee, lunch was eggs, toast and grapes, baked chicken, noodles, and steamed mixed vegetables for dinner, and I shared a bowl of microwave popcorn with Brian that evening. Oh, and I had a birch beer in the afternoon. My calorie count for the day came out to about 1600--more than I like, but below what the charts say I burn in a day. My exercise that day was turning over the dirt in my garden! The weather was so nice that we were outside for a lot of the afternoon, and the garden fork was right there so I started digging and 30 or 45 minutes later, I had the whole area dug up. I should do that in the fall, but I never do (especially since I usually have things growing through October and sometimes into November!). So now I'm in good shape for the spring. I'll have to turn it all over again since it'll compact, but I shouldn't have to deal with too many weeds that take root in the fall. I hope. And it was good exercise--my back still aches.
Sunday was another matter entirely. My birthday party was last night and I *really* overdid it--lasagna, garlic bread, spinach salad, three glasses of wine, a pear cider, a big piece of cake, two asprin and a big glass of water (that last bit right before bed). It was fun, though, although I might regret it tomorrow. My weight was up today (138.8) and will probably be up even more tomorrow. I left Brian with strict intructions today to let Connor eat the rest of the cake!
Sunday was another matter entirely. My birthday party was last night and I *really* overdid it--lasagna, garlic bread, spinach salad, three glasses of wine, a pear cider, a big piece of cake, two asprin and a big glass of water (that last bit right before bed). It was fun, though, although I might regret it tomorrow. My weight was up today (138.8) and will probably be up even more tomorrow. I left Brian with strict intructions today to let Connor eat the rest of the cake!
Sunday, January 22, 2006
Weekend update
After a bingeful Friday night, I think I have had a pretty good weekend. Granted, I binged on corn chex cereal Friday night, so that wasn't the same as eating 100 cookies or chips or something like that, but I did eat too much and I knew it once I did it because I was not feeling good. I think part of that was guilt from knowing why I binged--I was so ticked off at Joe for staying at work until 8 pm when I thought he'd be home at 7 to spend the evening with me.
So Saturday I had a whole wheat bagel for breakfast with a banana, a salad for lunch and then Joe & I ate at Pizza Hut for dinner. Sunday was nearly the same food-wise execpt the order--oatmeal for breakfast with a banana, pizza for lunch and then a salad for dinner.
So how am I feeling successful while still eating at Pizza Hut? Well, I didn't over eat either time I had it. 2 small pieces each day and 2 breadsticks at the store and 1 at home. I added up everything in my pyramid tracker and I came out around 1300 calories each day. Add to that the fact that I exercised for 30 minutes on the treadmill both days, and today I added some pilates in the afternoon(again, only what I can remember since I can't work the tv without a remote.)
I tried to step up my exercise today on the treadmill but I dropped back to my usual program when my right knee really started hurting. I don't want to incapacitate myself.
Joe's mom stopped by today and caught us up on the status of her gastric bypass surgery. Let me honestly say how annoyed I am at her for taking this route. I feel like it's the "easy" way out, even though I know it is major surgery. It truly annoys me. She has to see a nutritionist for 6 consecutive months for him to document her weight issues and her diet failures so that the insurance company will pick up the tab on the surgery. So this doctor laid out a diet for her, and Joe asks her, "oh, so you are going to try that first?" Well...she said basically the dr suggests a diet and exercise program and she PURPOSELY doesn't follow it so the failure is "obvious" and the insurance company will pay. That REALLY annoys me. All she kept saying was how she'd still be able to eat whatever she wanted after the surgery, just in smaller quantities. Well, seriously--isn't moderation the whole point even without surgery? And there's something like a 15-20% chance that she'll gain all the weight she loses back. It all seems extremely lazy to me. Then again I struggle to lose 5 lbs. It's all in the perspective, I'm sure. I'm telling myself my victory will be greater since I did it myself without someone slicing me open and physically altering how my body works.
So Saturday I had a whole wheat bagel for breakfast with a banana, a salad for lunch and then Joe & I ate at Pizza Hut for dinner. Sunday was nearly the same food-wise execpt the order--oatmeal for breakfast with a banana, pizza for lunch and then a salad for dinner.
So how am I feeling successful while still eating at Pizza Hut? Well, I didn't over eat either time I had it. 2 small pieces each day and 2 breadsticks at the store and 1 at home. I added up everything in my pyramid tracker and I came out around 1300 calories each day. Add to that the fact that I exercised for 30 minutes on the treadmill both days, and today I added some pilates in the afternoon(again, only what I can remember since I can't work the tv without a remote.)
I tried to step up my exercise today on the treadmill but I dropped back to my usual program when my right knee really started hurting. I don't want to incapacitate myself.
Joe's mom stopped by today and caught us up on the status of her gastric bypass surgery. Let me honestly say how annoyed I am at her for taking this route. I feel like it's the "easy" way out, even though I know it is major surgery. It truly annoys me. She has to see a nutritionist for 6 consecutive months for him to document her weight issues and her diet failures so that the insurance company will pick up the tab on the surgery. So this doctor laid out a diet for her, and Joe asks her, "oh, so you are going to try that first?" Well...she said basically the dr suggests a diet and exercise program and she PURPOSELY doesn't follow it so the failure is "obvious" and the insurance company will pay. That REALLY annoys me. All she kept saying was how she'd still be able to eat whatever she wanted after the surgery, just in smaller quantities. Well, seriously--isn't moderation the whole point even without surgery? And there's something like a 15-20% chance that she'll gain all the weight she loses back. It all seems extremely lazy to me. Then again I struggle to lose 5 lbs. It's all in the perspective, I'm sure. I'm telling myself my victory will be greater since I did it myself without someone slicing me open and physically altering how my body works.
Friday, January 20, 2006
Quick update before I hit the gym
I was MUCH better about snacking last night--I told myself I could have 150 to 200 calories of snack to stay within my target intake for the day. I had planned on a mini bag of popcorn, but instead had six lifesavers and a tablespoon of chocolate chips.
Food yesterday was pretty good overall--we went out to lunch for a coworker's last day, but it was the Japanese place again so I had the teryaki chicken--all low fat, not fried, a normal sized portion. I had skipped my morning snack in anticipation of that as well. In the afternoon there was a cake for my and another coworker's birthday, but for once I asked for just a small slice (I couldn't very well skip it entirely!). And for dinner I had just a small portion of spaghetti to make up for my larger than usual lunch. So I feel pretty good about yesterday. For exercise I did a whole-body pilates workout and then some additonal arm exercises with free weights. I really want to get rid of the jiggly triceps before the cruise!
Today has been my usual so far: oatmeal, coffee, almonds, yogurt, pretzles, grapes, and lots of water. I'm making baked chicken for dinner, but before I can decide on an evening snack I have to add up my calories to see where I am and what I can afford. I'm craving popcorn again--someone here makes a bag almost daily and the kitchen is close to my space so I can smell it!
Food yesterday was pretty good overall--we went out to lunch for a coworker's last day, but it was the Japanese place again so I had the teryaki chicken--all low fat, not fried, a normal sized portion. I had skipped my morning snack in anticipation of that as well. In the afternoon there was a cake for my and another coworker's birthday, but for once I asked for just a small slice (I couldn't very well skip it entirely!). And for dinner I had just a small portion of spaghetti to make up for my larger than usual lunch. So I feel pretty good about yesterday. For exercise I did a whole-body pilates workout and then some additonal arm exercises with free weights. I really want to get rid of the jiggly triceps before the cruise!
Today has been my usual so far: oatmeal, coffee, almonds, yogurt, pretzles, grapes, and lots of water. I'm making baked chicken for dinner, but before I can decide on an evening snack I have to add up my calories to see where I am and what I can afford. I'm craving popcorn again--someone here makes a bag almost daily and the kitchen is close to my space so I can smell it!
Thursday/Friday Update
Thursday I again resisted all temptations until I got home. I even said no to a lunch invite to eat out. BUT when I got home I snacked on a handful of potato chips and a few chocolate chips. I also had ice cream during CSI, but I had planned on that.
We ate Let's Dish ravioli for dinner with a slice of "buttered" bread (really margarine).
I spent 30 minutes on the treadmill again yesterday. I need to up the intensity of my work out. I think I will try the next program on the treadmill tonight.
So far today I've had some oatmeal from Au Bon Pain as my Friday treat. I love their oatmeal. I know when I eat there I eat more than I would normally, but I figure there are worse things to over indulge in than oatmeal. I've packed my lunch again, and I brought: string cheese, raisins, carrots, and a turkey & lettuce sandwich. No V8 today--yuck. I'll have to figure another source for veggies. T
We ate Let's Dish ravioli for dinner with a slice of "buttered" bread (really margarine).
I spent 30 minutes on the treadmill again yesterday. I need to up the intensity of my work out. I think I will try the next program on the treadmill tonight.
So far today I've had some oatmeal from Au Bon Pain as my Friday treat. I love their oatmeal. I know when I eat there I eat more than I would normally, but I figure there are worse things to over indulge in than oatmeal. I've packed my lunch again, and I brought: string cheese, raisins, carrots, and a turkey & lettuce sandwich. No V8 today--yuck. I'll have to figure another source for veggies. T
Thursday, January 19, 2006
addendum
What if you get extra points or something for having a cookie craving and eating a carrot instead?
I did it!
I finally broke 140 on weigh-in day. I was 139.8. So I just BARELY broke it, but it counts! Then today I was 144. Explain THAT one! I haven't been that high in weeks (months?) and I was actually really really good yesterday. Ate everything in my lunch box, and then the pork tenderloin and corn for dinner (which was actually really small), and that's pretty much it. I had probably 5 chocolate covered espresso beans (thought they were raisins, popped them in my mouth and discovered the difference too late) and spent most of the evening pretty wired, and I was REALLY hungry at the end of the night as Amy and I were packing lunches, but I managed to avoid snacking at all (ok, I licked the cottage cheese spoon, but does that really count?!). So why on earth was I up over four pounds today? I think I'm PMSing, so that could be causing the extra hunger and bloating.
I also haven't worked out at ALL this week, so that might be contributing. But now the living room is back in normal order, so I can start doing my videos again. I had been doing strictly crunches and push ups for the past several weeks, and haven't been getting much aerobic activity in. Although I have been teaching the bunny hop and the twist and so forth to all my kids, so I'm dancing like a fool several periods a day, and that gets my heart rate up--but not as much as I need to.
OK, we haven't had a good challenge in a while now, and I'm reading all this stuff about late night cravings. So here's a challenge for us. Start keeping a list. Write down everything you crave each night(even if it's just, "feeling like munching on something--ANYTHING"). Then mark down whether or not you gave into that craving. The person who gives in the least by, say, February 1st, wins a $10 present. I'll fund the present this time. Let's start Monday, so you guys can have time to (undoubtedly) tweak this idea until it is something a little more logical or quantitative or something than what I just presented. What do you think?
I also haven't worked out at ALL this week, so that might be contributing. But now the living room is back in normal order, so I can start doing my videos again. I had been doing strictly crunches and push ups for the past several weeks, and haven't been getting much aerobic activity in. Although I have been teaching the bunny hop and the twist and so forth to all my kids, so I'm dancing like a fool several periods a day, and that gets my heart rate up--but not as much as I need to.
OK, we haven't had a good challenge in a while now, and I'm reading all this stuff about late night cravings. So here's a challenge for us. Start keeping a list. Write down everything you crave each night(even if it's just, "feeling like munching on something--ANYTHING"). Then mark down whether or not you gave into that craving. The person who gives in the least by, say, February 1st, wins a $10 present. I'll fund the present this time. Let's start Monday, so you guys can have time to (undoubtedly) tweak this idea until it is something a little more logical or quantitative or something than what I just presented. What do you think?
Snacking after hours...
I found this article on this website: http://www.inq7.net/lif/2003/jun/17/lif_21-2.htm. I personally think the 5 D's strategy at the very bottom sounds like a good approach.
How to control night cravings The battle against late-night cravings will not be won overnight but if you start applying the tips listed below and finding out which work for you, the late-night cravings monster can be tamed.
* Do not diet by skipping meals or starving yourself especially if you are exercising. It is almost impossible to control night cravings if you lack calories. You can still lose weight by eating three meals plus two snacks (one in mid-morning and the other mid-afternoon) if you concentrate on large portions of vegetables and moderate portions of lean protein, whole grains, beans, fruits and nuts. Eat very small portions of deep-fried food and refined carbohydrates like white bread, sweets and desserts. Be careful also of high-sugar drinks like juice, iced tea or lemonade mixes.
* If possible, clear the battlefield (your home) of all temptations. If your household will revolt at the idea, at least get rid of your personal favorites. Hide the rest at the back of the refrigerator or at the back of your kitchen cupboards inside plastic or dark glass containers so you can't see them.
* An opposite strategy is to purposely plan to have a "forbidden" treat at night. By giving yourself permission to enjoy your favorite indulgence, you reduce the likelihood of losing control and eating everything else in sight. To make this strategy work, sit down somewhere quiet and slowly savor each bite. If you eat it while watching TV or while standing up at the kitchen counter, it won't satisfy you.
* If you have night cravings in spite of eating well, consider the possibility that you are emotionally hungry. Be honest and evaluate whether or not you are really happy with the way your life is going. Psychological therapy might be just what you need. Are you undergoing a stressful period? What can you do to lessen the stress?
* Keep your hands busy at night to avoid snacking. I took up embroidery and cross-stitch as part of my strategy to beat bulimia and night cravings. Some people do crochet or knitting. Not only can't you sew and eat at the same time, you are also distracted from thoughts of food. Plus, working with your hands is quite soothing and therapeutic so it can also be a form of stress release. My initial project took me a few years to finish (I made the novice mistake of choosing a large design and using cross-stitch thread when I should have used crewel yarn). It now hangs in one of my parent's guest rooms. For me, it will always symbolize how I conquered my eating disorder. If sewing isn't your thing, look for other crafts. Try origami, painting, clay sculpting or artificial flower-making. Teenagers can make braided or beaded bracelets or anklets.
* If you are very "oral" and need to keep your mouth busy, try sipping warm non-caffeinated herbal tea like chamomile, peppermint or ginger. Many people find this helps them calm down and reflect on how their day went without feeling anxious.
* According to Stephen Gullo, author of "Thin Tastes Better," cravings are like waves that rise up quickly and fall down just as fast. He says that sometimes the most powerful way to beat a food craving is to take the focus off the craving for 15 minutes. Use the time to fix your closet, do your nails, finish your photo album, or organize your hand bag. Gullo says not only will you finish long-forgotten projects, you will usually forget about your craving.
* Linda Crawford, an eating behavior specialist, says to disarm your cravings with the Five D's: Delay at least 10 to 15 minutes before you eat so that your action is conscious, not impulsive. Distance yourself from the food. Distract yourself by engaging in an activity that requires concentration and is not compatible with eating. If you still crave the food, determine how important it really is for you to eat the craved food and how much you really want it. Decide what amount is reasonable and appropriate, eat it slowly, and enjoy without guilt.
How to control night cravings The battle against late-night cravings will not be won overnight but if you start applying the tips listed below and finding out which work for you, the late-night cravings monster can be tamed.
* Do not diet by skipping meals or starving yourself especially if you are exercising. It is almost impossible to control night cravings if you lack calories. You can still lose weight by eating three meals plus two snacks (one in mid-morning and the other mid-afternoon) if you concentrate on large portions of vegetables and moderate portions of lean protein, whole grains, beans, fruits and nuts. Eat very small portions of deep-fried food and refined carbohydrates like white bread, sweets and desserts. Be careful also of high-sugar drinks like juice, iced tea or lemonade mixes.
* If possible, clear the battlefield (your home) of all temptations. If your household will revolt at the idea, at least get rid of your personal favorites. Hide the rest at the back of the refrigerator or at the back of your kitchen cupboards inside plastic or dark glass containers so you can't see them.
* An opposite strategy is to purposely plan to have a "forbidden" treat at night. By giving yourself permission to enjoy your favorite indulgence, you reduce the likelihood of losing control and eating everything else in sight. To make this strategy work, sit down somewhere quiet and slowly savor each bite. If you eat it while watching TV or while standing up at the kitchen counter, it won't satisfy you.
* If you have night cravings in spite of eating well, consider the possibility that you are emotionally hungry. Be honest and evaluate whether or not you are really happy with the way your life is going. Psychological therapy might be just what you need. Are you undergoing a stressful period? What can you do to lessen the stress?
* Keep your hands busy at night to avoid snacking. I took up embroidery and cross-stitch as part of my strategy to beat bulimia and night cravings. Some people do crochet or knitting. Not only can't you sew and eat at the same time, you are also distracted from thoughts of food. Plus, working with your hands is quite soothing and therapeutic so it can also be a form of stress release. My initial project took me a few years to finish (I made the novice mistake of choosing a large design and using cross-stitch thread when I should have used crewel yarn). It now hangs in one of my parent's guest rooms. For me, it will always symbolize how I conquered my eating disorder. If sewing isn't your thing, look for other crafts. Try origami, painting, clay sculpting or artificial flower-making. Teenagers can make braided or beaded bracelets or anklets.
* If you are very "oral" and need to keep your mouth busy, try sipping warm non-caffeinated herbal tea like chamomile, peppermint or ginger. Many people find this helps them calm down and reflect on how their day went without feeling anxious.
* According to Stephen Gullo, author of "Thin Tastes Better," cravings are like waves that rise up quickly and fall down just as fast. He says that sometimes the most powerful way to beat a food craving is to take the focus off the craving for 15 minutes. Use the time to fix your closet, do your nails, finish your photo album, or organize your hand bag. Gullo says not only will you finish long-forgotten projects, you will usually forget about your craving.
* Linda Crawford, an eating behavior specialist, says to disarm your cravings with the Five D's: Delay at least 10 to 15 minutes before you eat so that your action is conscious, not impulsive. Distance yourself from the food. Distract yourself by engaging in an activity that requires concentration and is not compatible with eating. If you still crave the food, determine how important it really is for you to eat the craved food and how much you really want it. Decide what amount is reasonable and appropriate, eat it slowly, and enjoy without guilt.
Hanging in there
I've upped my speed on the treadmill so now I'm doing a full three miles in the 35 minutes that I'm on, and I've also upped a lot of my evening exercise so I'm doing two pilates DVD's a lot of nights instead of one, especially on the days that I don't run so that on any given day I'm getting at least 40 minutes of some type of exercise, with one day off each week.
Still struggling with eating well. I go all day, eating healthy food every few hours and staying away from junk, and then I snack on unhealthy stuff at night. Who wants to do the google search to figure out a way to avoid this? I read early on that to avoid snacking right after work/before dinner, you should have a snack containing some protein in the late afternoon, so I've been eating string cheese and a piece of fruit around 3:30 or 4:00 each day, but it doesn't help. I go home and get into the tortilla chips or cookies while I make dinner. Even when I have a plan and tell myself that I'll either skip all snacks while I make dinner or that I'll only have two whole wheat crackers or whatever, it doesn't work. And then after dinner I keep picking away at junk in the house. Last night was a handful of Doritoes and half a package of Lifesavers. And I'm sure once all the junk is gone, I'll find other junk to eat. Sigh.
I also need to admit something--back in December I mentally set a goal for myself to be at 137 pounds by my 37th birthday (goofy, I know, but it seemed like a good enough goal to set); yesterday I was 137.8, but today I was back up to 138.2. So close, but not close enough!
Still struggling with eating well. I go all day, eating healthy food every few hours and staying away from junk, and then I snack on unhealthy stuff at night. Who wants to do the google search to figure out a way to avoid this? I read early on that to avoid snacking right after work/before dinner, you should have a snack containing some protein in the late afternoon, so I've been eating string cheese and a piece of fruit around 3:30 or 4:00 each day, but it doesn't help. I go home and get into the tortilla chips or cookies while I make dinner. Even when I have a plan and tell myself that I'll either skip all snacks while I make dinner or that I'll only have two whole wheat crackers or whatever, it doesn't work. And then after dinner I keep picking away at junk in the house. Last night was a handful of Doritoes and half a package of Lifesavers. And I'm sure once all the junk is gone, I'll find other junk to eat. Sigh.
I also need to admit something--back in December I mentally set a goal for myself to be at 137 pounds by my 37th birthday (goofy, I know, but it seemed like a good enough goal to set); yesterday I was 137.8, but today I was back up to 138.2. So close, but not close enough!
Bad Day All Around
My weight this morning was 205.8. I was surprised it wasn't 215.4 again! I ate like a greedy pig dog yesterday. I started out OK - but went down hill from there. I had two cups of coffee with skim milk and a little sugar and then regular oatmeal to which I added pecans and cinnamon. I then went to the gym and did a "lazy" workout. I went to the Owings Mills location and I didn't like their equipment as well as the ones in Cockeysville. So I did 20 minutes on the treadmill and then 6 minutes on the cross trainer. Their cross trainer was horrible!!!
On my way home from the gym I stopped and McDonalds. I wanted to get a happy meal so I could get the little bottle of milk. It is a perfect 8 oz bottle - and handy for taking milk or juice to work. So - that is what I had for lunch. A double cheeseburger, french fries and milk. OH! Chocolate milk. They were out of white.
Then - I didn't exactly pig out on Do-si-dos, but throughout the course of the WHOLE day I managed to finish off the box. That is 14 cookies. I counted. Sigh. They are gone for the time being.
For dinner last night Katie made a porkloin roast and corn. Very yummy - and luckily not too much food. I think that was it for me. Oh! I drank a 10 oz bottle of apple juice. Sigh.
Today I am going to do better - I hope. So far I have just eaten breakfast of Lucky Charmes and skim milk. I also am still drinking my coffee. I am planning on the gym and working in the DC tonight.
On my way home from the gym I stopped and McDonalds. I wanted to get a happy meal so I could get the little bottle of milk. It is a perfect 8 oz bottle - and handy for taking milk or juice to work. So - that is what I had for lunch. A double cheeseburger, french fries and milk. OH! Chocolate milk. They were out of white.
Then - I didn't exactly pig out on Do-si-dos, but throughout the course of the WHOLE day I managed to finish off the box. That is 14 cookies. I counted. Sigh. They are gone for the time being.
For dinner last night Katie made a porkloin roast and corn. Very yummy - and luckily not too much food. I think that was it for me. Oh! I drank a 10 oz bottle of apple juice. Sigh.
Today I am going to do better - I hope. So far I have just eaten breakfast of Lucky Charmes and skim milk. I also am still drinking my coffee. I am planning on the gym and working in the DC tonight.
Wednesday update
I planned my food yesterday to be pretty balanced, then my boss took us out to lunch and it was really difficult to find something to eat on the menu. The salads were loaded with fatty stuff, and they only had one reduced calorie dressing that I just wasn't in the mood for, so I ordered a turkey burger. It was pretty yucky. I ate about 2/3 of it, and then all my fries. I should have stopped on those, but it was mindless eating while everyone chatted. So for dinner I had a spinach salad with red onion, some chopped egg and a little bacon--maybe one strip crumbled up, and some reduced calorie italian dressing. Other food--string cheese for a snack, banana for breakfast, and some carrots.
My exercise yesterday was lighter--I spent about 15 min on the treadmill and then did as much of the pilates DVD that I could remember because I didn't know how to work the remote control for the tv so I couldn't actually watch it. Joe broke our all in one remote Monday so I have no idea how to operate the equipment with the individual remotes. I did get in extra walking because of a meeting offsite and then trekking to lunch from there.
Today so far I've had that weight control oatmeal (I'm never buying that again--I had to force myself to eat it this morning). I brought a turkey & lettuce sandwich on light oatmeal bread, carrots, raisins, 2 hershey kisses, an apple, and some v8 that I probably won't drink because I've discovered I really don't like the stuff very much.
My exercise yesterday was lighter--I spent about 15 min on the treadmill and then did as much of the pilates DVD that I could remember because I didn't know how to work the remote control for the tv so I couldn't actually watch it. Joe broke our all in one remote Monday so I have no idea how to operate the equipment with the individual remotes. I did get in extra walking because of a meeting offsite and then trekking to lunch from there.
Today so far I've had that weight control oatmeal (I'm never buying that again--I had to force myself to eat it this morning). I brought a turkey & lettuce sandwich on light oatmeal bread, carrots, raisins, 2 hershey kisses, an apple, and some v8 that I probably won't drink because I've discovered I really don't like the stuff very much.
Wednesday, January 18, 2006
Coming to a bad end
Of the day, of course! I wasn't terrible but I wasn't all that good today. I am staying out of the junk food, mostly; I haven't been spending half the day trying to sneak into the candy or cookies without getting caught by the kids. But I had the last big holiday chocolate-nut square after lunch, and I had three gummy fish after dinner, and I'm having a beer now (Wednesdays are exhausting -- a beer just seemed perfect to end the day). I had my usual breakfast, lunch of yogurt and toast, and dinner of a cheeseburger (on a white, sesame bun -- Daniel did the grocery shopping), so that wasn't such a good dinner! I had snacks of almonds (just a dozen), string cheese, and a couple of clementines. And about four goldfish and four tortilla chips. I'm back to trying to keep my junk portions under control. I wish I could stop eating junk altogether!
I went to the gym this afternoon. I set the bike at 7 but halfway through turned it down to 6, because I was still tired from yesterday and my heart rate was showing it. But I pushed it back up for the last eighth of the workout, and in the end I still burned about 360 calories (according to the bike), which isn't much less than usual. Tonight my legs ache. Tomorrow I should do Pilates or some other workout that won't kill me quite as much. (But this is five days in a row of exercise now!)
I went to the gym this afternoon. I set the bike at 7 but halfway through turned it down to 6, because I was still tired from yesterday and my heart rate was showing it. But I pushed it back up for the last eighth of the workout, and in the end I still burned about 360 calories (according to the bike), which isn't much less than usual. Tonight my legs ache. Tomorrow I should do Pilates or some other workout that won't kill me quite as much. (But this is five days in a row of exercise now!)
Weigh in day
I was running around all day yesterday too - so I didn't post my weight either. I did weigh in yesterday - 206.2 (.2 down from last week). This morning I was 205.2. Darn it! Why wasn't THAT yesterday. 205.2 puts me past the 10 pound mark.
I have been trying SO hard to be good. I have been to the gym every day (except Sunday) since last Tuesday. I have been working in the DC in the evenings (four nights now since last Tuesday). I have even been eating pretty well. Last night however I blew it! I didn't have much time to eat most of the day yesterday. I ate my oatmeal before I left for the day. I then didn't get anything in until probably around 3:00 when I ate my lettuce and cheese sandwich and prunes. I went to the gym around 4:15 (I did my weights yesterday) and came back and ate my manderin oranges around 5:30. I didn't eat anything else until I got home around 10pm. I had chicken and cous cous and green beans. Too much food - but I was so hungry I ate it all.
Then I was wanting something sweet. I was reading upstairs by this time - so instead of IGNORING my craving I ran down and got a box of Do-si-dos. Again - if I had just taken the three cookie serving out of the box I would have been fine. But NOOOOOooooo I couldn't do that! I ended up eating 8 cookies!! Almost three times what I should have. Darn me! At least I didn't eat the whole sleeve worth... which is (believe it or not) improvement over my old habits. What IS it that makes me do that? Why can I not stop when I am satisfied. One cookie probably would have done it. Three was a definite treat - but EIGHT!? Why couldn't I stop?
Anyway - today I have had coffee so far. I will make some oatmeal shortly - and then I am running to the grocery store and gym. I am SO suburban!!
I have been trying SO hard to be good. I have been to the gym every day (except Sunday) since last Tuesday. I have been working in the DC in the evenings (four nights now since last Tuesday). I have even been eating pretty well. Last night however I blew it! I didn't have much time to eat most of the day yesterday. I ate my oatmeal before I left for the day. I then didn't get anything in until probably around 3:00 when I ate my lettuce and cheese sandwich and prunes. I went to the gym around 4:15 (I did my weights yesterday) and came back and ate my manderin oranges around 5:30. I didn't eat anything else until I got home around 10pm. I had chicken and cous cous and green beans. Too much food - but I was so hungry I ate it all.
Then I was wanting something sweet. I was reading upstairs by this time - so instead of IGNORING my craving I ran down and got a box of Do-si-dos. Again - if I had just taken the three cookie serving out of the box I would have been fine. But NOOOOOooooo I couldn't do that! I ended up eating 8 cookies!! Almost three times what I should have. Darn me! At least I didn't eat the whole sleeve worth... which is (believe it or not) improvement over my old habits. What IS it that makes me do that? Why can I not stop when I am satisfied. One cookie probably would have done it. Three was a definite treat - but EIGHT!? Why couldn't I stop?
Anyway - today I have had coffee so far. I will make some oatmeal shortly - and then I am running to the grocery store and gym. I am SO suburban!!
163.8
Missed posting yesterday because I was at a seminar all day.
I TOTALLY blew good eating once I got home from it. I did SO well all day--banana for breakfast with a bluenerry muffin (it was actually a normal sized one from the continental breakfast), cranberry juice, 1 1/2 chicken soft tacos from Chipotle (chicken, mild tomato salsa and cheese only, and I only ate one tortilla), and diet coke. Then I went home...I was hungry by the time I got home, so I had some string cheese. Then I made dinner and had one enchilada. Here's where all hell breaks loose. Joe was late getting home so that one enchilada was eaten around 6:00. So he gets home at 7:30 and I have a second one. THEN he makes lava cakes and I had one of those with a little ice cream. All of that was unneccesary eating.
I did exercise yesterday though. I took a walk at lunch--which was leisurely, but then I spent 30 minutes on the treadmill when I got home.
I TOTALLY blew good eating once I got home from it. I did SO well all day--banana for breakfast with a bluenerry muffin (it was actually a normal sized one from the continental breakfast), cranberry juice, 1 1/2 chicken soft tacos from Chipotle (chicken, mild tomato salsa and cheese only, and I only ate one tortilla), and diet coke. Then I went home...I was hungry by the time I got home, so I had some string cheese. Then I made dinner and had one enchilada. Here's where all hell breaks loose. Joe was late getting home so that one enchilada was eaten around 6:00. So he gets home at 7:30 and I have a second one. THEN he makes lava cakes and I had one of those with a little ice cream. All of that was unneccesary eating.
I did exercise yesterday though. I took a walk at lunch--which was leisurely, but then I spent 30 minutes on the treadmill when I got home.
Tuesday, January 17, 2006
One Good Day
Well, it's not quite bedtime yet, so I have room to blow it still, but it's late enough that I think I can report that I finally had one good day, diet-wise. I had my usual breakfast, yogurt for lunch, snacks of almonds, string cheese, almonds, a clementine, and almonds, and chicken tacos for dinner (unfortunately without lettuce -- I thought we had some or I probably wouldn't have made them). And milk to drink with dinner. All the almonds were because I was trying to avoid worse, and I kept the portions quite small -- I think I've had maybe 20 almonds all day.
I had one cookie this afternoon, as a point of courtesy -- Mary had French class at another family's house, and their 9-year-old had made cookies. It was handed to me and I couldn't politely decline. It was chocolate oatmeal raisin, and it was very yummy. I also ate a life saver after lunch and a peppermint after dinner, and both seemed to satisfy my craving for something sweet. So I can't say I was absolutely perfect about avoiding junk, but I was much better than I've been in months. I was very short on fruits and vegetables (as always!)
I went to the gym after dinner and did 45 minutes on the bike, at level 7. I almost didn't go -- at the usual time the kids were too tired and cranky to be dragged out, and I was feeling tired myself, and I thought I wouldn't see Daniel all evening if I went -- he had a meeting this evening and would have been eating dinner while I was gone. But it turned out he'd been told the wrong day for the meeting, so when he came back from the non-meeting I jumped at the chance and went out. So now I have a four-day exercise streak going!
I had one cookie this afternoon, as a point of courtesy -- Mary had French class at another family's house, and their 9-year-old had made cookies. It was handed to me and I couldn't politely decline. It was chocolate oatmeal raisin, and it was very yummy. I also ate a life saver after lunch and a peppermint after dinner, and both seemed to satisfy my craving for something sweet. So I can't say I was absolutely perfect about avoiding junk, but I was much better than I've been in months. I was very short on fruits and vegetables (as always!)
I went to the gym after dinner and did 45 minutes on the bike, at level 7. I almost didn't go -- at the usual time the kids were too tired and cranky to be dragged out, and I was feeling tired myself, and I thought I wouldn't see Daniel all evening if I went -- he had a meeting this evening and would have been eating dinner while I was gone. But it turned out he'd been told the wrong day for the meeting, so when he came back from the non-meeting I jumped at the chance and went out. So now I have a four-day exercise streak going!
Baltimore is the Fittest City
According to Mens Fitness magazine, Baltimore ranks number 1 this year in the "fittest city" listings (Chicago, btw, is number 1 in "fattest" rankings). Must have been all of us that put the city over the top, huh?
http://www.mensfitness.com/rankings/358?page=2
http://www.mensfitness.com/rankings/358?page=2
Dumb scale!
This morning my scale said 148.5!! Of course, right after that it said "Low" so I am not sure how correct it was, but I'll take it!
Today I had orange juice and granola for breakfast. The trouble with this Maple Praline Granola is that it has very few pecans and I keep shaking more cereal out of the box in the hopes of finding one more. Sometimes I have to put some of it back--but not always.
Midmorning I had a clementine, and for lunch I had a half of a grilled cheese sandwich and two raspberry newtons (100 calories for two) and a glass of milk. A while ago I had some almonds for snack. I am still hungry, but it is 4:40. For supper we will have leftover meatloaf, baked beans and salad and a piece of that excellent banan bread for dessert. I don't knmow what I will do for bedtime snack, or evening snack, or whatever it is.
I got a little exercise! Dad finally finished taking the lights off the tree and we lugged it outside, where I think we may have already missed the pickup. Then I went in and started sweeping up needles--I must have taken four or five dustpans full out and dumped them on the front garden. Then I swept the front sidewalk and our tiny porch, and went back inside and vacuumed up the rest of the needles. We still have furniture to put back. Dad gets exhausted with every little effort, so it has taken a long time to get the tree undecorated. I hope tomorrow we can get all the stuff up to the attic. Last year it all sat in Katie's old room all year.
Today I had orange juice and granola for breakfast. The trouble with this Maple Praline Granola is that it has very few pecans and I keep shaking more cereal out of the box in the hopes of finding one more. Sometimes I have to put some of it back--but not always.
Midmorning I had a clementine, and for lunch I had a half of a grilled cheese sandwich and two raspberry newtons (100 calories for two) and a glass of milk. A while ago I had some almonds for snack. I am still hungry, but it is 4:40. For supper we will have leftover meatloaf, baked beans and salad and a piece of that excellent banan bread for dessert. I don't knmow what I will do for bedtime snack, or evening snack, or whatever it is.
I got a little exercise! Dad finally finished taking the lights off the tree and we lugged it outside, where I think we may have already missed the pickup. Then I went in and started sweeping up needles--I must have taken four or five dustpans full out and dumped them on the front garden. Then I swept the front sidewalk and our tiny porch, and went back inside and vacuumed up the rest of the needles. We still have furniture to put back. Dad gets exhausted with every little effort, so it has taken a long time to get the tree undecorated. I hope tomorrow we can get all the stuff up to the attic. Last year it all sat in Katie's old room all year.
146.0
Well, remarkably, I registered an official drop for this week. I've seen lower on the scale, but not in a long time, so I'm content with the 146.0. Now I need to get back on track overall, not just with the exercise. So today I'm aiming to have one good day -- I figure I have to start small because "one good week" was apparently too much for me. So far I'm doing fine, but I'm always doing fine at lunchtime; I don't get bad until after noon. It will be a little tricky today because we have few leftovers, and Daniel will probably be gone for dinner, or at least he'll have to eat on the run, so we can't fix something new and healthy. Or maybe we can, but I'm going to have to find something new, healthy, and quick.
How to lose two pounds in one day
My official weigh-in day weight this week is 138.4--a pound and a half down from last week but over two pounds down from yesterday! Of course I always have a significant drop when my period starts, and I know I was retaining a lot of water over the weekend, so between getting rid of that water weight and all my exercise and healthy (ugh) eating yesterday I have a weight I can be happy about today! We'll see next week if it's sustainable. Although I don't think it's too far off the mark since I was down to 139 at the end of last week before I started eating Doritoes.
I already reported yesterday's eating--I did sneak in some Pez before bedtime (35 calories in an entire package!) but I also did two pilates DVD's--abs and lower body. Oddly enough, the only part of me that's achy today is my arms, I think from the leaf raking. There's something about that activity that's just exhausting.
I already reported yesterday's eating--I did sneak in some Pez before bedtime (35 calories in an entire package!) but I also did two pilates DVD's--abs and lower body. Oddly enough, the only part of me that's achy today is my arms, I think from the leaf raking. There's something about that activity that's just exhausting.
Monday, January 16, 2006
Mini-streak
I exercised both days this weekend so today I was motivated to exercise again. I talked to Daniel and made sure he wanted to meet me at the gym -- then unfortunately I later talked to him about the financial record-keeping I'd been doing all day and the mess of money we spent last month, which spurred him into yelling at Travelocity about a refund they'd never processed. By the time he got off the phone with them it was too late to take the kids to the gym (it was past dinnertime, even -- he spent the better part of an hour on the phone!!) so he came home and we ate and got the kids to bed. I was already in my gym clothes but I don't like going out on my own that late (or as late as it would have been when I got home) so I just did the 15 minute Walk. I'm a wimp. But at least I did something. I also kept my arms up as much as I can to increase my heart rate, and with the stretchie I actually broke a sweat. So for 15 minutes it wasn't a bad workout.
I was in my normal form when it came to eating -- usual breakfast, lunch of yogurt and toast, snacks of almonds and string cheese. After lunch I had some chocolate from the big Hershey kiss (about a normal kiss' worth) and two mini candy bars, and later in the afternoon I had a big, stale holiday chocolate-nut bar. For dinner I had a reasonable-size portion of tomato-basil turkey and noodles, and milk to drink, and for dessert I had an orange creamsicle. Ugh. And last night I ended up having a beer and popcorn (light) after I wrote, so I still haven't kicked myself hard enough to diet again.
I do exercise semi-regularly. I eat more whole grains and less macaroni and cheese, and I do have healthy things I can snack on, but I seem to be using them to supplement the junk rather than replace it. I don't eat greasy fast food or drink sodas when we eat out, and my portions are, on average, smaller than they were last summer. So I haven't completely regressed; I really have made progress toward healthy living. We're almost out of Christmas candy and the stale cookies aren't half as tempting as the candy. I just need to stay out of the alcohol and the family desserts!
I was in my normal form when it came to eating -- usual breakfast, lunch of yogurt and toast, snacks of almonds and string cheese. After lunch I had some chocolate from the big Hershey kiss (about a normal kiss' worth) and two mini candy bars, and later in the afternoon I had a big, stale holiday chocolate-nut bar. For dinner I had a reasonable-size portion of tomato-basil turkey and noodles, and milk to drink, and for dessert I had an orange creamsicle. Ugh. And last night I ended up having a beer and popcorn (light) after I wrote, so I still haven't kicked myself hard enough to diet again.
I do exercise semi-regularly. I eat more whole grains and less macaroni and cheese, and I do have healthy things I can snack on, but I seem to be using them to supplement the junk rather than replace it. I don't eat greasy fast food or drink sodas when we eat out, and my portions are, on average, smaller than they were last summer. So I haven't completely regressed; I really have made progress toward healthy living. We're almost out of Christmas candy and the stale cookies aren't half as tempting as the candy. I just need to stay out of the alcohol and the family desserts!
Penitential day
I said yesterday that I couldn't be much worse on Sunday than I had been on Saturday. How wrong I was! What is it with PMS-induced cravings, anyway? I alternated between salty foods (Doritoes) and sweet (anything I could get my hands on, including chocolate chips, marshmallow fluff by the spoonful, and stale Christmas cookies (thanks Amy!)). And I ended up not exercising either--by the time I got the kids to bed it was 11:30 and I was tired from eating all that bad food. Then Brian came home from his last day at Barnes and Noble and had brought cheesecake with him to celebrate. So I ate that just before bed (couldn't finish the whole piece, though). Sheesh. This morning I was up to 140.6.
So today I woke up, PMS over, immediately set about doing a 50 minute workout (10 minutes of pilates matwork, 40 minutes of aerobics) followed by 30 girly push-ups, ate two boiled eggs for breakfast, raked the yard a bit, had cottage cheese and fruit and a salad for lunch, an orange and two whole wheat crackers for snack, and baked fish with olive oil, steamed vegetables, and plain brown rice for dinner. And once the kids are in bed, I want to do another 40 minutes of exercise. I'm trying to get two days worth of exercise and healthy eating into one day!
The weird thing is, even though the stale cookies, marshmallow fluff, Doritoes, and leftover cheesecake are still around, I haven't been tempted once to eat them. No craving whatsoever--it's not even a matter of willpower. I just don't want the stuff.
I'm hoping that all of this good behavior will have a positive effect on tomorrow's weight, but I think that tomorrow I'll see the effects of Sunday's bad behavior and today won't register until Wednesday!
So today I woke up, PMS over, immediately set about doing a 50 minute workout (10 minutes of pilates matwork, 40 minutes of aerobics) followed by 30 girly push-ups, ate two boiled eggs for breakfast, raked the yard a bit, had cottage cheese and fruit and a salad for lunch, an orange and two whole wheat crackers for snack, and baked fish with olive oil, steamed vegetables, and plain brown rice for dinner. And once the kids are in bed, I want to do another 40 minutes of exercise. I'm trying to get two days worth of exercise and healthy eating into one day!
The weird thing is, even though the stale cookies, marshmallow fluff, Doritoes, and leftover cheesecake are still around, I haven't been tempted once to eat them. No craving whatsoever--it's not even a matter of willpower. I just don't want the stuff.
I'm hoping that all of this good behavior will have a positive effect on tomorrow's weight, but I think that tomorrow I'll see the effects of Sunday's bad behavior and today won't register until Wednesday!
No title for me either
I think I was really bad this weekend... however, I voluntarily got my butt out of bed and to the gym on Saturday so I felt smug all weekend - and didn't pay much attention to what I was eating.
Friday I was horrible! I think I reported already that I had Noodles and Co mac and cheese and pot stickers for lunch. Then for dinner that night I had two pieces of pesto shrimp pizza - which probably isn't as bad as it COULD be (it was green at least) but NOT good diet food. I think I ate some girl scout cookies too.
Saturday I had the rest of the pesto pizza for breakfast. I then had my cheese sandwich from Friday's lunch for lunch - and then Katie and I went to a Japanese steak house that just opened up near us in Eldersburg. We had a coupon for a free dinner so we HAD to use it. Actually as restaurant food goes this isn't so bad. We just ate too much! But it kept me from snacking the rest of the night.
Sunday was just horrible, I ate stale Christmas cookies, girl scout cookies, drank soda - the works! I don't think I had a single healthy thing until I went to Sarah's and had dinner... I took her the rest of the stale Christmas cookies.
Today, so far I have been GREAT! I have eaten most of my very healthy lunch - and nothing that was not in my bag. I haven't yet gone to the gym - I had a funeral to go to this morning and that threw my whole day off... BUT - I will be going as soon as I leave here. I won't work tonight so I will still get home about my usual time - but I will have at least gone to the gym!!
I have SO got a bug up my butt about getting an iPod and downloading books on tape to take to the gym with me. I am hoping that will keep things from getting as boring as they do. I won't be able to afford this until after the cruise... but if you want to pool your resources for my birthday - a pink one would be nice. 8-)
Friday I was horrible! I think I reported already that I had Noodles and Co mac and cheese and pot stickers for lunch. Then for dinner that night I had two pieces of pesto shrimp pizza - which probably isn't as bad as it COULD be (it was green at least) but NOT good diet food. I think I ate some girl scout cookies too.
Saturday I had the rest of the pesto pizza for breakfast. I then had my cheese sandwich from Friday's lunch for lunch - and then Katie and I went to a Japanese steak house that just opened up near us in Eldersburg. We had a coupon for a free dinner so we HAD to use it. Actually as restaurant food goes this isn't so bad. We just ate too much! But it kept me from snacking the rest of the night.
Sunday was just horrible, I ate stale Christmas cookies, girl scout cookies, drank soda - the works! I don't think I had a single healthy thing until I went to Sarah's and had dinner... I took her the rest of the stale Christmas cookies.
Today, so far I have been GREAT! I have eaten most of my very healthy lunch - and nothing that was not in my bag. I haven't yet gone to the gym - I had a funeral to go to this morning and that threw my whole day off... BUT - I will be going as soon as I leave here. I won't work tonight so I will still get home about my usual time - but I will have at least gone to the gym!!
I have SO got a bug up my butt about getting an iPod and downloading books on tape to take to the gym with me. I am hoping that will keep things from getting as boring as they do. I won't be able to afford this until after the cruise... but if you want to pool your resources for my birthday - a pink one would be nice. 8-)
Out of titles...
Sunday was an ok day food quantity wise, although I was way over on my carb allocation. I met my friend Sarah for our monthly catch-up breakfast, so I ate more poorly at breakfast that I would have otherwise. We always get french toast and bacon. I ate my 3 strips of bacon, but they were smaller than usual so I was thankful for that. Bacon is my FAVORITE food so there is no way I could have left that sit on the plate.
I had a snack of string cheese at 1 pm, then I ate lunch of a grilled cheese at 3:30. Dinner was cheerios and a whole wheat bagel at 6:30 or so. I had some fat free pudding at 9 pm for a snack. It was the cook and serve kind and it was exceptionally good for some reason.
Today I am on track, granted it's only 8:36 am so anything could happen. Saturday I bought that weight control oatmeal that has all the extra protein and fiber. I ate it today and it is weird and gummy. I was afraid to drink my water on the way to work like usual for fear it would expand the mass of oatmeal in my belly and I'd pop. I think once it is gone I'll switch back to my premium apple-raisin kind instead.
I did exercise yetserday--I had a higher level of general activity because I was cleaning, and then I spent 30 minutes on the treadmill. Afterwards I did some of the lower body pilates moves from the Dummy DVD while I watched the X Men on tv. (I love Cyclops by the way. It is funny how I can be 27 and married and still have a crush on movie stars.) hee hee
I had a snack of string cheese at 1 pm, then I ate lunch of a grilled cheese at 3:30. Dinner was cheerios and a whole wheat bagel at 6:30 or so. I had some fat free pudding at 9 pm for a snack. It was the cook and serve kind and it was exceptionally good for some reason.
Today I am on track, granted it's only 8:36 am so anything could happen. Saturday I bought that weight control oatmeal that has all the extra protein and fiber. I ate it today and it is weird and gummy. I was afraid to drink my water on the way to work like usual for fear it would expand the mass of oatmeal in my belly and I'd pop. I think once it is gone I'll switch back to my premium apple-raisin kind instead.
I did exercise yetserday--I had a higher level of general activity because I was cleaning, and then I spent 30 minutes on the treadmill. Afterwards I did some of the lower body pilates moves from the Dummy DVD while I watched the X Men on tv. (I love Cyclops by the way. It is funny how I can be 27 and married and still have a crush on movie stars.) hee hee
Sunday, January 15, 2006
An almost good day
After all these days of stuffing myself on junk food, today wasn't half bad! I don't recall hitting the candy bag all day. I did go out to Ben & Jerry's (now that the Ice Cream Crank is closed -- *sniff*) but I only had a single scoop (which is probably a gazillion calories anyway, but two scoops would have been two gazillion, so it could have been worse). And for dessert tonight I had one malted milk brownie. That was it for the junk. I had waffles and bacon for breakfast (OK, so maybe that wasn't it for the junk), one and a half waffles with I think two strips of bacon (might have been only one, but that would have been unusual restraint on my part), and milk to drink. I had a snack of some almonds, and I had some OJ to drink, and then for dinner I had taco soup (the remains of the batch) with a small portion of chips. I'm still very full from dinner, too. No lunch because breakfast was so late. I guess B&J was lunch.
Yesterday I ate badly all day, though. I don't remember every last detail. I had my usual breakfast and I had lunch of yogurt, I think. For dinner I had chicken with broccoli and rice, made with fat free mayo and half brown rice (we finished up the white box, and I replaced it with white), so that wasn't so bad. But I was into the candy bag a bunch, and I ate some gouda for a snack, which isn't a very healthy cheese. But, you know, except for the candy, I didn't do as badly as I thought I did!
Yesterday I did Pilates in the afternoon and it kicked my butt! I was already pretty grouchy because I tried to do it when all three kids were underfoot, so Mary and Xander wanted to do it, too, and Cecilia wanted to be anywhere I needed to be next, so I missed the beginning of every move because I was moving her out of the way, which made her mad. And she was tired as it was -- I was trying to convince her to make her nap later -- so she was pretty miserable. And Mary had a thousand things to say, as usual, so I kept missing the directions and having to yell at her to shut up, and back up the DVD or just fudge it (more often the latter). And then I was terrible because I have no flexibility -- I can't straighten my legs at an angle or straight up in the air, let alone do some of those other moves! Then Cecilia finally had had it, so I paused the DVD and put her to bed. When I got down 30 minutes later I started the video again and there were 11 seconds left. Seriously. What a waste.
Today I'm sore in my abs and quads and hamstrings and shoulder blades, so something good probably happened from all that. I'm not going to give up on them yet. But I'm not feeling very nice about them.
Today I missed the childcare hours at the gym (too busy getting ice cream) so I sent Daniel off on his own and pulled out the Walk DVD, which all three kids can do with me. It's the first time I've done it with the stretchie (and I made rubber band stretchies for Mary and Alexander) and I was amazed how much it added to the workout! I didn't use handweights otherwise but I still broke a good sweat. I just wished they had used the stretchie more. I did the two mile walk, and then my half-pint personal trainer said we needed to do the one mile, too, so I did that as well. 45 minutes is a pretty good workout even if the one mile is wimpy, and I was tired afterwards.
As weekends go, this is my best one in a month or more, but I have a long way to go until I really feel like I'm on top of this lifestyle again!
Yesterday I ate badly all day, though. I don't remember every last detail. I had my usual breakfast and I had lunch of yogurt, I think. For dinner I had chicken with broccoli and rice, made with fat free mayo and half brown rice (we finished up the white box, and I replaced it with white), so that wasn't so bad. But I was into the candy bag a bunch, and I ate some gouda for a snack, which isn't a very healthy cheese. But, you know, except for the candy, I didn't do as badly as I thought I did!
Yesterday I did Pilates in the afternoon and it kicked my butt! I was already pretty grouchy because I tried to do it when all three kids were underfoot, so Mary and Xander wanted to do it, too, and Cecilia wanted to be anywhere I needed to be next, so I missed the beginning of every move because I was moving her out of the way, which made her mad. And she was tired as it was -- I was trying to convince her to make her nap later -- so she was pretty miserable. And Mary had a thousand things to say, as usual, so I kept missing the directions and having to yell at her to shut up, and back up the DVD or just fudge it (more often the latter). And then I was terrible because I have no flexibility -- I can't straighten my legs at an angle or straight up in the air, let alone do some of those other moves! Then Cecilia finally had had it, so I paused the DVD and put her to bed. When I got down 30 minutes later I started the video again and there were 11 seconds left. Seriously. What a waste.
Today I'm sore in my abs and quads and hamstrings and shoulder blades, so something good probably happened from all that. I'm not going to give up on them yet. But I'm not feeling very nice about them.
Today I missed the childcare hours at the gym (too busy getting ice cream) so I sent Daniel off on his own and pulled out the Walk DVD, which all three kids can do with me. It's the first time I've done it with the stretchie (and I made rubber band stretchies for Mary and Alexander) and I was amazed how much it added to the workout! I didn't use handweights otherwise but I still broke a good sweat. I just wished they had used the stretchie more. I did the two mile walk, and then my half-pint personal trainer said we needed to do the one mile, too, so I did that as well. 45 minutes is a pretty good workout even if the one mile is wimpy, and I was tired afterwards.
As weekends go, this is my best one in a month or more, but I have a long way to go until I really feel like I'm on top of this lifestyle again!
banana bread
This morning I was pleased to see that I was down to 149.5. Not good, but an improvement. I may have blown some of it this afternoon, however, when I had a cup of hot chocolate with a piece of banana bread. I want to tell you all about the banana bread. First of all, it was very good! Second of all, it was made from Splenda, not the kind that is half sugar but all Splenda, and it used no eggs and had only 1 Tablespoon of canola oil for fat. The recipe I was about to make used a half cup of shortening, I think. I know it was a lot more. So I want to encourage all of you to get some Splenda and make the banana bread on the bag. Even Dad liked it, and he is hard to please!
Apparently it shows
Last night my friend Shannon and her husband came over--they moved to Texas back in September so I haven't seen her since I lost weight, and because she and I met when I was pregnant with Connor, she's never known me as anything but enormously pregnant or overweight. As soon as I opened the door last night, her first words were "oh my God, you've lost a ton of weight!" Hee-hee! That's a nice feeling.
Of course then I proceeded to eat like a pig all night--I had a cider and some Doritoes before going out to dinner, then a half a cup of chicken noodle soup, three quarters of a bacon cheeseburger, a dozen french fries, a couple of bites of coleslaw, and some bites of Claire's pancakes (we were at a diner) and a candy cane when we got home. Urgh. Today I was above 140 for the first time since weigh-in day, and I know that I'm retaining water (probably the result of all that salt I ate!) because I was really thirsty all night and today my rings are tight. I also didn't exercise yesterday, but that was a deliberate rest day. The rest of the day wasn't so bad--as usual on the weekend I didn't have breakfast, and lunch was soup, crackers, and an apple. No snacks, either. Today I'm sure I'll eat better than yesterday (hard not to!) and I'll get in some exercise as well.
Of course then I proceeded to eat like a pig all night--I had a cider and some Doritoes before going out to dinner, then a half a cup of chicken noodle soup, three quarters of a bacon cheeseburger, a dozen french fries, a couple of bites of coleslaw, and some bites of Claire's pancakes (we were at a diner) and a candy cane when we got home. Urgh. Today I was above 140 for the first time since weigh-in day, and I know that I'm retaining water (probably the result of all that salt I ate!) because I was really thirsty all night and today my rings are tight. I also didn't exercise yesterday, but that was a deliberate rest day. The rest of the day wasn't so bad--as usual on the weekend I didn't have breakfast, and lunch was soup, crackers, and an apple. No snacks, either. Today I'm sure I'll eat better than yesterday (hard not to!) and I'll get in some exercise as well.
Saturday, January 14, 2006
Aaarrrghhh!
I am posting since I just got finished with my guilt driven 30 minutes on the treadmill...
Today has been a food mini-disaster. I started out ok, but then it fell apart. Breakfast was oatmeal, then I had a lipton tea at Home Depot (we were ordering new exterior doors), a salad from the Giant salad bar for lunch (only non-veggies in it was some feta cheese and a little bit of bacon). Then I fell off the cliff--2 mini reeses cups, a snickers soldier, a mini hershey bar, some potato chips (crumbs from the bottom of the bag, so might not be as damaging as I am thinking) and a turkey and cheese sandwich.
After the snickers soldier I came right in here and got on the treadmill. Calorie wise I probably break even or maybe even fall short. But I didn't need to eat the snickers soldier...it was because I am bored. Someone should slap my hand for that.
We went grocery shopping today and I bought a bunch of good foods. I am looking forward to packing my lunch next week.
Today has been a food mini-disaster. I started out ok, but then it fell apart. Breakfast was oatmeal, then I had a lipton tea at Home Depot (we were ordering new exterior doors), a salad from the Giant salad bar for lunch (only non-veggies in it was some feta cheese and a little bit of bacon). Then I fell off the cliff--2 mini reeses cups, a snickers soldier, a mini hershey bar, some potato chips (crumbs from the bottom of the bag, so might not be as damaging as I am thinking) and a turkey and cheese sandwich.
After the snickers soldier I came right in here and got on the treadmill. Calorie wise I probably break even or maybe even fall short. But I didn't need to eat the snickers soldier...it was because I am bored. Someone should slap my hand for that.
We went grocery shopping today and I bought a bunch of good foods. I am looking forward to packing my lunch next week.
Testing my theory...
I was down 1.4 lbs this morning. I'll weigh in again tomorrow and see what the change is. There may be something to my theory...
I have the same thoughts about the heart rate things as Sarah--wondering if I'm exercising at an appropriate level or whether I'm 2 steps from keeling over. I just got as hard as I can and still feel good. Realistically, what else can you do?
I exercised last night again, but for not as long. I have been getting these killer headaches in the afternoon this week and I can't figure out why. Last night's was particulary bad and as my heart rate went up, so did the pounding in my brain. I've been stressing at work over an upcoming deadline (Annapolis parcel updates), so that could be part of it I guess, but it pretty much just stinks. Then Joe got home and we watched movies all night. It was nice to not have Travis around. He called to come over and Joe didn't quite say no, but never opened the invite up either. That was nice.
Today we have a bunch of running around to do. And I'm going grocery shopping to get some veggies and fruit. We are all out.
I have the same thoughts about the heart rate things as Sarah--wondering if I'm exercising at an appropriate level or whether I'm 2 steps from keeling over. I just got as hard as I can and still feel good. Realistically, what else can you do?
I exercised last night again, but for not as long. I have been getting these killer headaches in the afternoon this week and I can't figure out why. Last night's was particulary bad and as my heart rate went up, so did the pounding in my brain. I've been stressing at work over an upcoming deadline (Annapolis parcel updates), so that could be part of it I guess, but it pretty much just stinks. Then Joe got home and we watched movies all night. It was nice to not have Travis around. He called to come over and Joe didn't quite say no, but never opened the invite up either. That was nice.
Today we have a bunch of running around to do. And I'm going grocery shopping to get some veggies and fruit. We are all out.
Friday, January 13, 2006
Heart rates
I forgot to put in my two cents on the heart rate discussion -- I prefer the perceived exertion method to the maximum/target heart rate routine, because like Sarah I don't feel like I'm working all that hard when I'm at my supposed target heart rate, and I routinely hit the 170s and I don't think I'm overdoing it. I can feel 180 the moment I hit it, because I get light-headed, and then I am overdoing it! So I keep an eye on what the bike says my heart rate is (when it's willing to tell me -- I have an awful time getting the machines to pick up on my pulse) and if it looks like it will get above the mid-170s I ease up a bit.
I think the maximum heart rate schedule isn't as linear as they like to make it look -- one year probably won't make a point of difference in my physiology, but maybe a couple of years that include menopause or some other major health change could make ten or twenty points' difference. (Or maybe we just have our long-lived grandmothers to thank for our stronger hearts!)
I think the maximum heart rate schedule isn't as linear as they like to make it look -- one year probably won't make a point of difference in my physiology, but maybe a couple of years that include menopause or some other major health change could make ten or twenty points' difference. (Or maybe we just have our long-lived grandmothers to thank for our stronger hearts!)
Don't worry about me!
I can account for my recent disappearances in three ways:
- I have three kids who have all had stomach viruses in the last five days, as Mom mentioned. Cecilia's only lasted two days (but she needed to be held almost the whole time) and Mary's was even shorter (but she's been milking it for all it's worth), but Alexander's still hasn't gone away completely after three days. I've spent a lot of time cleaning up vomit and poop -- at least all those trips down to the laundry equipment are good exercise!
- I've been eating really, really badly all week. With the kids eating irregularly I haven't sat down for meals as much, which means I've been grazing on whatever is at hand -- mostly leftover Christmas candy, which is fortunately almost gone now -- and when I eat like this I can't account for what I've been eating and don't want to admit to myself how poorly I've been eating, let alone to y'all.
- I discovered Samurai Sudoku and Killer Sudoku and Killer Samurai Sudoku this week. It's not that I've been doing a lot of the puzzles -- I've done one of each of the first two and am trying the third now -- but they take a long time, so instead of spending my leisure time in front of the computer I'm spending it over these stupid, waste-of-time puzzles. But these don't seem like they'll be as addictive as regular Sudoku -- I just wanted to see if I could do them. When I finish this one I'll try to resume my normal life!
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