Today I began to really understand the effects the foods we eat have on our bodies. For the last few weeks I’d been eating pretty badly. Lots of pizza and junk. That coupled with my night owl sleeping patterns made me feel very lethargic and unmotivated to do any kind of activity. I’m already seeing a difference in just the last 3 days of drinking green monsters and eating more veggies and healthier foods.
The day started off with yesterday’s leftover green monster smoothie. I didn’t bother taking a picture of that. But here is my daily bowl of fruit. No mangos today. I wanted to save the calories for chocolate.

I had ezekiel bread with marble cheese for lunch. There were 3 slices left, so I just finished it off.

My NSV was resisting the urge to give in to a craving. Lately, I’ve just been giving into my cravings and of course, I haven’t lost any weight the last 3 weeks. So, today I tried bargaining with myself. I had a salt craving and nowadays I’ve been dicing up 3 baby potatoes and roasting them with some olive oil, salt, pepper and Mrs. Dash. It works out to be about 150 calories, which is definitely a more filling and healthier alternative to potato chips, but they are just as addictive. It’s a portion-controlled amount, but once I’m done I want more! They also take a long time to make because of my oven.
I decided to spare myself the long wait and make kale chips first. The kale cooks much faster and I was able to make 2 batches in half the time it would take to cook the potatoes. I told myself I’d have the kale chips first and if I was still craving potatoes, I’d make those after. Well, the bargaining worked. I ate a huge bowl of kale chips and my salt craving was satisfied!

The chips filled me up so much, I only had a small portion of dinner.

We barbequed some chicken breast and squash. I had a whole portion of chicken (~100 g), ond piece of squash and some boiled bitter melon that my mom made me eat. Bitter melon is a vegetable commonly used in Indian cooking. My mom boils one every day to serve with dinner because of the health benefits it provides. I don’t know the specifics, but I know it’s supposed to help control blood sugar levels and is recommended to diabetics (which my dad is). The problem with bitter melon is that it is disgusting! Well, not exactly disgusting since it has no real taste, but it is aptly named and very bitter. I’m not sure why my mom just boils it, guess it’s easier for her, but I’m sure it would taste better cooked with other foods in a curry or something. I’ve also had it baked/roasted and it was actually really good. Anyway, that was the worst part of dinner. The chicken was really good, moist and delicious (it helped me choke down the bitter melon, lol). The squash was also good. I’m not sure what kind it was, but it tasted a lot like a zucchini.
Dessert was a no sugar added, lactose free chapman’s ice cream sandwich. It’s 170 calories and I figure it’s my way of not feeling deprived of my 2 fave sweets–chocolate and ice cream.
Today’s calories: 196 (green monster) + 133 (fruit) + 225 (ezekiel bread) + 145 (cheese + 1 t margarine) + 170 (2.5 C kale + 2 t olive oil) + 173 (dinner) + 170 (dessert) = 1212 calories
And I’m still within my calories! I also drank a ton of water today, so I’d say today was an even better day. Let’s hope I can keep it up!
So today was weigh-in day for the biggest loser challenge. Unfortunately I didn’t lose this week, but after going back up to my starting weight during the week, I lost enough to get back down to 148.8 lbs. So I guess I’ve maintained. I’m pretty happy with seeing some progress, as little as it is.
I remembered to take pictures today, too, so here they are!

Today’s green monster:
- 2 tbsp flax seed
- 1 handful of kale
- 2 handfuls of spinach
- 1 whole banana
- 1 cup chocolate (sweetened) Almond Breeze
- 1/4 cup water
It made 2 cups again, but I bottled one cup and refrigerated for tomorrow.

Had the green monster with fruit:

My mom made a chicken breast and vegetable soup, which I had as a late lunch/pre-class snack before I left for school. Was in too much of a rush to get a pic of that, but I’ll likely be eating another bowl tomorrow. I was famished when I got home and made a big plate for dinner.

- 2 slices Ekekiel bread with about 1oz. shaved marble cheese (150 + 110 cal)
- cucumbers and cauliflower with 2 tbsp hummus (26 + 60 cal)
- 1 cup Stove top stuffing (220 cal)
- sugar free Jello-light cup (10 cal)
- 1 cup Chapman’s No sugar added lactose free dutch chocolate ice cream (240 cal)
Total Dinner calories = 816 cal
Total calories today: 196 cal (Green monster) + 117 cal (Fruit) + ~100 cal (soup) + 816 cal (dinner & dessert) = 1229 calories
Wow, I thought for sure the stuffing and ice cream were going to put me over, but luckily I’m within my calories! I’m stuffed and don’t feel at all deprived, yay!
Note: I started this post yesterday, but I was randomly asked to go to the movies and was interrupted. So here it is, complete:
I’m gonna give consistency another shot. (I know I keep saying it, but haven’t been practicing it, so I’m gonna take it day by day and hopefully it’ll stick.) I also finally took some pics! So I’ll post those now.
Made a green monster this morning. We ran out of spinach but had a lot of kale, so I used that (about 2 cups), 1 cup of chocolate sweetened Almond Breeze, 2 tbsp flax seed, and I thought I’d try mango instead of a banana today.


It turned out thicker than I expected. I probably should have added some water. It was also not as good as my last green monster. I think the banana really helps mask the leafy greens. I ended up drinking both glasses, but i had to force it down.
I used up the rest of the kale by making kale chips. I got the idea from Priyanka Loves Food and then found a helpful instructional video from Dani Spies.
Chopped up kale pieces pre-oven:

Kale chips fresh out of the oven:

I was so surprised how delicious these ended up being! They really were crispy and easy to just munch on. A really great substitute for potato chips considering the calorie count on these (approx. 80 cal for 2 cups).

I had my green monster with some fruit:

And here are the pictures from my baking endeavors:

Only 3 left from the dozen oatmeal chocolate chip muffins I made the other day! Everyone loved them (they are made from a sugary mix, after all). And the soybean, buckwheat, carob chip-filled banana bread:

It’s a little brick-like from my overcooking it and so I’m really the only one eating it
LOL, oh well, I’ve frozen one batch so I can enjoy the rest later.
I ended up going to the movies randomly and missed dinner. Instead I indulged in peanut glossettes and a small diet coke. We went to see HARRY POTTER!!! I’ve been dying to see it and it was fantastic!
Overall, I think it was a successful day. I never felt the gnawing hunger I often feel when I’m ‘dieting’. I think part of it is a state of mind and part of it is not enough food, so this time around I was much more successful. I discovered a bunch of great blogs the other day that were really inspirational, so I’m adding them to my ‘blog roll’. That’s pretty much it for Sunday!
Another late, late, late night (early morning) post. I figured I might as well write about my fail day. The last 2 weeks have just been tough for me. I’ve been completely lost since the beginning of July. I was so excited for the start of July. I figured my sleeping habits would get back on track once I started camp full-time and I’d be active and busy throughout the day, plus I’d have to learn to manage my time with the work I’d have for my summer classes… Then the stupid strike happened and I was forced into unemployment.
I suppose I could go picket, but I’m not very interested in sitting at a garbage dump site for several hours of the day when I can be doing something else. It also doesn’t help my sleeping hours are still out of whack, so I wouldn’t even be able to make it f0r a shift anyway.
I’m pretty sure having my days and nights mixed up is causing my body to hold onto a lot of weight. It just doesn’t make sense that I see hardly any change on the scale for months at a time when I’m eating pretty low calorie most of the time and exercising, sporadically, but it’s still something and coupled with low-cal, you’d think I’d see at least 1 or 2 lbs. lost.
But NOTHING! My weight always fluctuates 2 or 3 lbs up or down and that’s just what’s been happening over the last few months. I thought that 148 (147.7 lbs to be accurate) was a real change, but the birthday binging and excess cheese just brought the weight back on. *sigh* I don’t want to obsess, but I’m disappointed in myself.
I’ve also been PMSing like crazy for the last two weeks, so that hasn’t helped. I get the worst chocolate cravings that I have to appease. And horrible low back aches and cramps sure don’t motivate me to exercise. I know, I know, exercise is supposed to help relieve the pain, but that coupled with lethargy from strange sleep, lack of vitamin D from rarely going out in the sun, and minimal willpower/self-discipline make it near impossible to work out. Luckily, TOM is finally here! (sorry for the overshare :P) I feel bloated and have the aches and pains and generally feel crappy, but I also feel a bit of hope and that lightens me up a bit because I know next week I’m going to feel much, much better.
No pictures were taken today. I didn’t end up making a green monster. There was no time with my last minute scrambling to finish my essay midterm that was due by 11:55pm. I work best under pressure. The words just flow out of me. I tried to do it last night, but I only managed to get some research done. When I started writing at 6pm, I just kept on going up until 11 pm. I had time to edit and submit, so I’m very proud of myself. We’ll just have to see about the quality once it’s graded.
Today I ate:
- Leftover shirataki noodles and spinach pesto sauce (250 cal)
- 5 slices of Ezekiel bread (375 cal) + 2 laughing cow light cheese (70 cal)
- mango, kiwi, strawberries (150 cal)
- 2 oatmeal chocolate chip muffins (320 cal)
- 1/2 soy/buckwheat banana bread (? cal, maybe 150 cal)
- 1 cup lactose-free dutch chocolate ice cream (~240 cal)
Total Calories: 1555 cal
Not that great with no exercise, but not too bad. Hopefully tomorrow will be a better day. I’m going out for a summerlicious dinner (prix fixe 3 course meal offered at fancy schmancy restaurants around Toronto) at an Italian place, so I’ll try to eat healthy in the morn and exercise to prepare.
Maybe I’ll take pics and post tmrw!
Yikes! It’s been awhile since I last posted. I’ve been pretty swamped with work lately. My english class requires me to read 2 novels a week and they’ve been difficult reads so far so I’ve fallen behind. Then there’s my online marketing class. I haven’t even touched the textbook since my last midterm! The 2nd midterm is due tomorrow night and I still haven’t cracked the text yet. I had an essay for the english class due yesterday and was up all night finishing it. I just didn’t want to get into the marketing last night, so I’m going to try to finish most of it tonight. The midterm consists of 3 short one-page essays (which might explain why I’m not panicing more) but I obviously won’t have time to read the text. I’ll just have to skim through it and research online to help me answer the essay questions. I shouldn’t have any problems getting it done on time, but the quality of the work may be questionable. Somehow I managed to pull off an A the last midterm, so I’m hoping for another miracle.
Aside from school, my diet and exercise have been mediocre. I’ve been within my calories most days, but the foods I’ve been eating haven’t always been healthy. I haven’t exercised much at all. I did W3D1 of C25k on Saturday but i haven’t done it again since. However, I’ve had to go out of the house more this week and I’ve been walking to the subway station instead of waiting for the bus, so that’s a good 15-20 min walk with a hill thrown in. I walk very quickly, so I count this as a workout. I could feel the soreness of my leg muscles yesterday. It was a tiny ache, but still, I’m glad I haven’t been a total lump.
One triumph this week and last: I’m drinking more water! In fact, I’m drinking a lot more water regularly. Definitely drink my 8 glasses a day. Usually about 10, which is about 2.5 L. Unfortunately, I gave into temptation last week and ate pizza two days in a row. Store bought pizza is just way too calorie laden, it compeltely undid any of my efforts last week. Luckily I didn’t gain much, just went back to my July starting weight, but I’m not sure if I’ll end up losing anything this week either. I guess we’ll see on Sunday.
Today, I had a busy day in the kitchen! I finally gave in and decided to try making a green monster smoothie I’ve been reading about on a bunch of food/health blogs lately. Everyone seems to be drinking them and claim they feel more energized and full for a longer period of time. I was a bit skeptical of a spinach drink tasting good, but it turned out fantastic!
My Green Monster consisted of:
- 1.5 tbsp ground flax seed
- 2 big handfuls of spinach (probably just over 2 cups)
- 1 handful of Kale
- 1 whole banana
- 1 cup of Chocolate Almond Breeze (sweetened)
I think the chocolate Almond Breeze was key. The sweetness in that and the banana helped with the taste, I think, because I did not taste any spinach or kale.
I’d like to start taking pictures and posting them in my blog the way a lot of people do, but I’m just not co-ordinated enough. I didn’t get a pic of it this morning, but if I make it tomorrow, I’ll try to remember to take a pic.
I also made oatmeal and chocolate chip muffins from a Quaker mix that was sitting in the pantry. Each muffin is about 160 calories, so I figure it will be a good portion-controlled way to satisfy my chocolate cravings. I think I’ll eventually try to make them from scratch to reduce the sugar and calories.
For dinner I made a spinach and pesto sauce to go with my tofu shirataki noodles. I placed a large order for the shirataki noodles and my favorite 60-cal pitas and I haven’t had a chance to eat the noodles yet. They’re filling up a drawer in my fridge, so I figured I should start making a dent. I ended up using two packages today (each bag is 80 calories) because I made too much sauce. The last time I made a pesto, I just used basil, garlic, olive oil, laughing cow light cheese and some sundried tomatoes. This time I added some spinach because it’s starting to go bad. I also had like 1 tbsp of pizza sauce left over from a can I opened last week to make pita pizzas. It wasn’t enough to use for a pita pizza, so I threw it into the food processor hoping it might add a bit of sweetness or something. I really didn’t taste anything other than the garlic and basil. They were very overpowering but delicious. The laughing cow light cheese helps add a little creaminess to the sauce I think. I sauteed half a red onion, 1/3 of a package of sliced mushrooms and a diced tomato, added in the spinach pesto sauce and then the shirataki noodles. It really turned out very well. My mom doesn’t like pasta very much, especially tomato sauces, but she really likes the pesto sauces I’ve made and she liked this one, too. It turned out to be a vegetarian meal because I didn’t have any chicken or shrimp on hand. I ate about half of it today and will probably finish it off tomorrow. I’ll try to take a picture of it and post it.
Finally, I made this banana bread a friend told me about. It’s primarily made of soy beans and buckwheat and some different flours like oat, almond, flax and puffed rice. I let the soy beans and buckwheat soak over night then food processed them with 4 bananas, 1 cup milk, 3/4 cup eggbeaters, 1/4 artificial sweetner (or honey but we ran out), 1tsp vanilla extract, 1/4 canola oil. Then I mixed in a cup each of the oat, almond, flax and puffed rice flours and 1.5 cups of carob chips. I couldn’t find our loaf pans or any of the cake pans, but I did find some foil tart cups and baked them in those. Our oven is weird and takes a long time to make anything, so I left them in there for over an hour (the recipe calls for 50-60 mins) I probably left them in there for 70-80 min then turned the oven off and left them in there for another 20 mins. They turned out surprisingly well! Overcooke, but I like that there’s some crunch to it.
Carob chips are really amazing. Really do taste a lot like chocolate! It tastes like there are nuts in it, but there aren’t, so it must be the soy beans or buckwheat or something, which is interesting. I will definitely be trying this recipe again (though, I’ll take them out sooner, lol). It made about 10 or 11 tart plates, so I’ll have plenty to take a picture of tomorrow.
As you can see, I’ve been procrastinating like crazy today, so I’d better get started on my work!
The weekend was definitely an epic fail! Way too much drinking on Friday night, which left me with a killer hangover all day Saturday. I finished off the leftover chinese food from my birthday (there wasn’t much left, but I know I still shouldn’t have had it) and ate a lot of bread because it was all I could stomach in the morning after throwing up all night.
Oh well. I got that out of the way and I’m ready to start my month as of today. It’s off to a decent start. I’m within my calories, but I haven’t exercised yet. I’m thinking of doing the 30 day shred. I really don’t have any energy today. Completely drained from lack of sleep and my poor liver working overtime to clear out the alcohol.
Yesterday, my dad bought some amazing chicken breast. Either the quality of the chicken was superb, or it was my recipe, I’m not sure which one yet. I marinated the chicken in a teaspoon of olive oil, salt, pepper, some garlic and herb seasoning and a splash of lemon juice. Then I barbequed it and made a glaze with olive oil (used 2 tbsp which might have been a bit more than necessary), honey, garlic, lemon juice, salt and pepper. The breasts turned out nice and moist and really delicious. I had some leftover glaze that I used as salad dressing.
Plan for tomorrow’s meal:
Breakfast: mushrooms, red onions, eggs, shredded part-skim marble cheese scramble/omelet
Lunch: Lettuce wrap with smoked chicken breast sandwich meat and shredded marble cheese
Dinner: Chicken breast (the last piece from Saturday) and salad
Snacks: veggies with hummus, Activia yogurt
Exercise Plan: C25K (restart week 3), 30 DS (day 4)
As of this morning, I was at 68 kg or 149.9 lbs. So, I’m pretty much up 2 lbs this weekend after struggling for the month of June to lose them!! I’m definitely PMSing right now, so it’s possible that I’m just retaining water (especially with all the high sodium foods I’ve been eating). At least, that’s what I’m hoping!
We’ll see how this week goes. I intend to be perfectly on plan for at least 5 days this week. Wish me luck! ![]()
Though I had a mini victory this week getting out of the 150s (and I have stayed under! But I went up 0.8 to 148.8), I won’t be meeting my mini-goal of losing some weight for my bday party. I had been hoping to be super strict, maybe do a low carb week to shed some weight quickly, but I failed MISERABLY! Something about eating low carb irks me. Any time I even consider it, I sabotage myself. I’ve lost any self-discipline I once had and I blame it completely on my terrible sleeping habits that I STILL haven’t been able to change.
I’ve had pizza twice this week, ate a bag of kettle chips (homemade kind so they were super greasy and delicious), had creme brulee, and lots of chocolate covered peanuts.
It will be amazing if I don’t go back into the 150s next week! I’ve had horrible cravings and it’s totally because of PMS, so I can’t be too hard on myself. But I haven’t been exercising as hard as I intended and had been a few weeks ago. However, I finally did start the 30 day shred and it kicked my ass!!
I used 5 lb weights and they got heavy quickly. I somehow managed to get through, but I think I was going slower than the girls in the video. I still got in a good amount of reps and I know I’ll be sore tomorrow. I was sweating like crazy! Completely drenched at the end. I hate sweating, but it’s obviously the sign of a good workout.
It made me realize I’m going to have to repeat week 3 of the C25K program. Initially, I was thinking of just doing W3D3 and moving on to week 4, but I was really feeling the cardio of the 30DS, so I think I’ll need to repeat befor emoving forward or I won’t be able to complete week 4 with its 5 min runs. I also would like to start running outside, but the weather has been so crappy the last 2 weeks, raining practically everyday!
I’ve joined a bunch of challenged on 3FC to keep me motivated and accountable. Hopefully I’ll stay on track. My goals for July are:
- Lose 5-8 pounds to be on may out of the 140’s.
- Stay on plan 5 days of the week. It can be any 5 days, but I have to eat healthy foods only and be within my calorie limits not including exercise.
- Drink more water. I still haven’t managed to consistently drink 8 glasses, so in July, I will try to drink a minimum of 2 L a day (8 cups).
- Stay on course with the C25K.
- Complete the 30 day shred.
I was supposed to start my 3 times a week swims this week, but with the strike, the pools are closed for who knows how long. I’m getting really worried because I keep spending money, but I’m not making any and I have no clue when or if I’ll have a job. It’s very strange being in such an uncertain situation. I haven’t been unemployed in a very long time and I’ve forgotten what it feels like. I wish things would go back to normal already!!
With a day and a half left of June, I finally managed to meet a goal! The challenge for the month of June (or really for the last 2-3 weeks of June which was when I joined 3FC) was to get out of the 150’s. Well I’ve always fluctuated between 149 and 152 so I wasn’t going to call it official until I got down to 148 and when I weighed myself this morning, I was 148 lbs!
I’m very excited because it’s been a while since I’ve really lost any weight and it’s been discouraging, but I’ve been eating relatively well the last 2 days (didn’t have a good Friday due to a friend’s birthday party) and I guess it’s finally caught up to me.
I haven’t exercised at all since my long walk last Tuesday and gym workout on Wednesday. My ankle was hurting and due to past ankle problems related to running (strained achilles tendon and bursitis), I decided to give it a rest this week and just iced it. But it means that I still have to finish week 3 of the C25K program and move on to week 4. I’m beginning to fall behind!
I have to get to night class now, but I intend to get on the treadmill tonight and finish week 3.
Food for today:
Breakfast: Kiwi, cherries, strawberries
Lunch: Sliced chicken breast with lettuce and 1 tbsp shredded part-skim marble cheese on a Joseph’s pita
Dinner: Chicken leg, broccoli, cauliflower
Snacks: Hummus, baby carrots, celery, cucumbers, dark chocolate square/Activia yogurt
With only 9 days left until my birthday party, I need to get serious about my weight loss.
I can’t believe I’m even thinking about posting these pictures, they’re SO embarrassing, but hopefully seeing these pictures will motivate me to keep on track.
I cringe every time I see that photo! The sad thing is I didn’t even realize just how fat I’d gotten until I saw this. Shortly after, I started a low carb, low fat, low calorie diet that helped me shed pounds quickly. Here’s a pic of me at the lowest I’ve been since high school.
As soon as I stopped eating strictly on plan, I gained the weight back very quickly. Over the past few months (starting about February) I started eating healthier and exercising more often and I lost nearly 10 lbs. to get down to between 150-152 lbs where I’ve been hovering for the last 2 months. Here’s a recent-ish picture of me from a few weeks ago.
In the last 2 pictures I’m with the same friend. As you can see she’s super skinny! In fact, pretty much all of my friends are quite thin. I’ve become that token fat friend. Hopefully not for much longer!! I was around 120 in high school (I’m 5′2″) and looked healthy. I think I’m big boned to begin with so I don’t think I can even get down lower than that. I’ll think about that more once I’ve lost 30 lbs first.
Everyone says planning is key. So, I’m writing this post the night before, planning out my meals and I’ll check them off tomorrow night.
Breakfast: Oatmeal, Activia yogurt, mango, kiwi, strawberries, green tea, chocolate chip cookie - 519 calories
Lunch: Wrap with shredded chicken breast, herb & garlic laughing cow cheese, lettuce OR (if I end up meeting a friend for lunch) Subway 6″ oven roasted chicken breast sandwich on whole wheat bread with veggies. Shredded chicken breast, 3 baby potatoes, 1/4 C eggbeaters - 278 calories
Dinner: Wrap (if I don’t have it for lunch) OR Salad with chicken breast Hollowed out whole wheat hamburger bun from Cobs Bread, 125 g mushrooms, 50 g red onions, 1 slice Allegro cheese - 231 calories
Snacks: Cherries, 2 dark chocolate squares - 179 calories
Total Calories IN: 1207
Another incentive to lose weight quickly is my sister found a really nice dress for me to wear on my bday but it’s a size 8 and I’m not sure if I can fit into it yet. I have to go to the store tomorrow to try it on.
I think it’s time to start the 30 day shred too. Everyone speaks so highly of it, maybe it’s what I need to tone me up a bit at least.
*UPDATE*
Had to adjust the meal plan a little bit. I didn’t get to go grocery shopping so I didn’t have any salad stuff. I haven’t exercised yet, but I intend to in a bit ( I just finished dinner). So far, I’ve pretty much stayed within my calories and I have no intention of eating anything else tonight.
Yesterday I went on a ridiculously long walk–3.5 hrs! My friend asked me to go on a walk along the lake, so we started in our neighbourhood and walked all the way down town and back home. We even threw in a few running intervals along the way.
I downloaded a new podcast by Robert Ullrey, but I didn’t like it. My problem with his podcast was he would introduce the interval by saying “Ready?” but there was no “Go!” so I waited for him to say it and he didn’t and I missed the interval. I gave it another try but it really threw me off, so I switched to DJ Beatsmith. I definitely prefer his mixes and the ascending and descending chimes.
It was a really beautiful, sunny, hot day and I felt really great after that long walk. Only problem was I didn’t get any school work done. Luckily, I could afford to take the day off.
Today, I didn’t do too well food-wise. Exercise-wise, I went to the gym for a weight workout. I didn’t have time to eat before I went, so afterwards I picked up sushi. While sushi may be a relatively healthy choice, I didn’t choose the healthy options. I was so hungry I ate a 6pc california roll, 5pcs of sashimi, and the culprit-an 8pc dynamite roll. Dynamite rolls are so high in calories but they’re my favorite and so good! It would have all been fine in terms of calories considering the exercise and the lack of other food, but I ended up buying a slice of pizza later on in the evening, which put me way over. In the end, I was over by about 100 calories. Obviously, I still haven’t gotten past that ‘reward’ mentality.
I think tomorrow I’m going to go grocery shopping and stock up on chicken breasts, mixed greens and other veggies for salads. My goal of getting out of the 150’s for good is not going to happen if I keep eating out, even if I’ve ramped up my exercise.
To reiterate my short-term goals:
- Out of the 150’s by the end of June.
- Be about 145 by July 3
My birthday is on July 2, but I’m having a party on the 3rd and I’d like to look good in the pictures!
I can’t have a ticker on the 3FC messageboard yet, so i think I’ll look into posting one on here.


