Living Maintenance - No Excuses! Maintainers Food and exercise accountability 1/12-1/18

Weee! I get to start this week's thread :)

Monday

B - Trader Joe's fat free Greek yogurt with honey, about 3/4 cup of frozen wild blueberries I let defrost a little (cutting back, not buying fresh until they are reasonably priced again!)

L - big salad with romaine, shredded carrot, red cabbage, grilled chicken, pomegranate seeds, 1 tbs pumpkin seeds, Trader Joe's fat free balsalmic vinaigrette

S - mango

S - little container of dill pickles, string cheese

D - home made soup - tomatoes, leeks, spinach, chickpeas, summer squash, with a little parmesan cheese on top

Monday
B - shredded oats cereal, just fruit fruit salad, skim milk
S - apple
L - leftover chili, corn muffin
S - yogurt, banana
D - salad, lf rasp vinaigrette, rice w/frozen mixed veggies and low sodium soy sauce
S - ww toast w/low sugar jelly
Total - 1724
Exercise - 5k run

Monday

E~45 minutes on a hill climb routine on the treadmill
B~banana
S~grapefruit
L~chicken Marsala with veggies, clementine
S~yogurt
S~carrots & pea pods
S~cheese stick
D~soup and pumpernickel bread

Monday:
Exercise - planning on a 3 mile run, well - run & walk really, after work. 3.5 miles if it doesn't start raining on me at 2.5 like the last two times.

B: smoothie, sleigh ride coffee: 1tsp raw sugar: 1 tbsp ff van creamer
S: string cheese
L: grilled chicken sandwich
S: Kashi Go Lean
S: Tangelo
D: still working on that... probably turkey sausage over rice
S: Peanut butter graham cracker or apple with lf caramel dip

Yesterday was...OK except lunch, which wasn't so bad in perspective.

B - Buckwheat pancakes, homemade berry sauce, turkey bacon
L - 1/2 small cheeseburger, half chicken teriyaki sandwich, half an order of garlic fries, half a side salad (I ordered the sandwich with the salad, Sarah ordered the small cheeseburger with the garlic fries, and we split everything).
S - Apple with peanut butter

Today's plan is kind of loose because I have to go to the dentist and get a cavity filled (ick). I'll have an apple beforehand, a can of soup or some tuna for lunch. Then my family (I'm working there today, because that's where my dentist is) is meeting up with Sarah (who is coming to retrieve me) for dinner. I'm pushing for Fresh Choice over Olive Garden...we'll see.

OMG Amanda, I would die for a cheeseburger and garlic fries right now. :drool:

I have a feeling I might be making makeshift burgers and fries for dinner . . . Where by "makeshift burgers" I mean mashing up a can of black beans into patties, not having any cheese, and putting it on ww bread, because I have no meat, cheese, or buns in the house. :dizzy: That might not satisfy my sudden burger craving.

Sorry! But it was really good. We had just gone to the shooting range and there's this dive bar/grill right outside...I walked in and REALLY wanted a burger. So we split, which is our solution when we don't want to splurge RIDICULOUSLY but still want a taste of the higher calorie stuff...one healthy choice, one less-healthy choice, split in half. It's great because I get a -taste- of fries (my portion ended up being maybe 10-15 fries total) and burger, but then have the bit of vegetable as well.

Mmm, burger... (my chicken on pita that I just ate was pretty cold, not very satisfying on this chilly day). French fries. YUM! Hope the dentist isn't too traumatic Amanda.

I'm in the office today but will be on the boat for the next 3+ days doing field work. Play rehearsal every night, except for Wednesday, b/c I'm not going to rehearsal b/c I have to present a research seminar I organized. BUSY week! Yesterday I cooked up dinners for the next 4 nights and roasted chicken for sandwiches, cut up veggies, etc. My fridge is a sea of tupperwares. Here's my plan for the next 4-5 days:

B (Mon-Wed) - mini ww bagel w/ 1 T. lt. cream cheese, 1 oz. lox, 1 c. skim milk, coffee w/ 1 T. h&h
B (Thursday or when the lox runs out) - hm protein pancake, 1 c. skim milk, coffee w/ 1 T. h&h
S - pear or banana
L - 1/2 oat bran pita, 2.5 oz. bs chicken breast, 1 c. carrots + 1 c. sliced green pepper
S - 1/2 - 1 oz. raw sunflower or pumpkin seeds, 6 oz. light yogurt, grapefruit or apple
Gym - (This week will focus on cardio w/ 2 days of full body strength training).
D - Thai-style tofu & noodles (Clean Eating magazine recipe)
Play rehearsal or research seminar
S options (as needed) - pita & hummus, hot tea, string cheese, or steamed veggies

Wow, Megan, you're going to be a busy gal this week. :) I'm once again stocked up with good food, and brought all my lunch/snack stuff for the week into work.

B - cheerios w/blueberries, few walnuts, skim milk; toast; :coffee: (oh, and V8 juice)
S - ff latte
L - turkey sandwich on low-cal flatbread I found - on sale - yesterday; lettuce, roasted peppers, mustard
S - apple and cheese
D - chicken in some form, probably stir-fry, with brown rice, veggies

Updating

B - Apple
S - Greek yogurt w/ blackberries
L - Slice of toasted bread topped with tuna (tossed with lowfat parm ranch and pickles), cup of broccoli florettes with additional parm ranch
S - TJ's multiseed crackers with soy sauce, dipped in pineapple salsa

D will be Fresh Choice so I'll get a gigantic salad, a cup of soup, and 1 slice of their harvest wheat bread. Delicious!

I was perfectly on plan all day.

And!

Wait, are you guys sitting down? I mean, you're probably sitting down since you're at the computer, but hey you could be reading 3FC on your Blackberry or something. In that case, you better find a spot to sit down.

I worked out! I ran on the treadmill! 2.5 miles, 253 calories burned! I'm sure I'm going to be sore tomorrow, but yay me!

Wow, knowing how much you don't like exercise Glory, that's great! :)

I was almost perfect with the plan, and I was still within my allotted calories, so I'm calling it an OP day, which I finished off with 1/2 hour on the elliptical. Let's see about tomorrow....

B - oatmeal w/blueberries, walnuts, skim milk; toast; :coffee:
S - HB egg
L - turkey sandwich on a ww wrap, with lettuce, "roasted" peppers (a 3FC recipe), mustard, smear of mayo
S - applesauce with flax seed
D - leftovers from the weekend, as I have to go back to town for a 7pm city council meeting, so "heat and eat" is the order of the evening.

Great job on the workout Glory!

My cals were a little high yesterday, but for once I actually went on my run. 5k! Not at the speed I'd like, but I did it, and that was the first time I've run 5k since before my thyroid messed up my knees. Woohoo!

Tuesday:
B - oatmeal, just fruit munchies, raisins, tsp brown sugar, milk
S - banana
L - leftover chili, corn muffin
S - apple, yogurt
D - plan is for moroccan chicken thighs
Total - 1649
Exercise - plan is UBWO/LBWO, probably Gilad.

I did NOT want to get up and run today. I wondered if it was possible to die from being tired. I got up anyway. I got dressed. I got in the car to drive to meet my friend. I was freezing. I thought about Pat and Alaska and told myself I was not freezing. I told myself I was lying about not freezing. I argued with myself about freezing being a subjective experience all the way to meet my friend. We ran. I argued with myself about doing sprint intervals and pointed out to myself that I was tired, cold, and my throat was scratchy. I decided to do a tempo run instead and.....I ran 3.5 miles in under 30 minutes which is like a world record for me! So, now I'm glad I did it. :)

Go Glory!!!

Exercise--done!

Food:
oatmeal with protein powder, blueberries (frozen!) and walnuts
cottage cheese, blueberries
turkey wraps on flatout bread
hardboiled eggs, apple
dinner--??? 2 meetings tonight....maybe eggs & spinach

ETA: Scale this am 152.5

Yay Glory! Dontcha just love the treadmill? (I do--isn't it obvious?)

E~45 minutes treadmill (380 calories burned)
B~rice chex, banana, skim milk (guessing about 300)
S~grapefruit (100)
L~diet entree, clementine (250)
S~yogurt (70)
S~carrots & pea pods if necessary (50)
D~egg-white egg mcmuffins on ww, melon, perhaps hash browns (500)
That works out to 1270 less the workout puts me at 890 net. Oh, but I have to add in my vitamins and such (3 fish oil = 30 and Benefiber in my coffee is about 20). Add about 50 calories to the total, so 940 net (give or take a few).

Thanks for all of the support guys! Midwife's story about running in the cold was pretty inspiring, I just have to walk downstairs at my office to the little gym!

Tuesday will be exactly like Monday (I made salad for 5 days and the soup should last at least 3 days)

Tuesday

B - Trader Joe's fat free Greek yogurt with honey, about 3/4 cup of frozen wild blueberries I let defrost a little (about 200 calories)

L - big salad with romaine, shredded carrot, red cabbage, grilled chicken, pomegranate seeds, 1 tbs pumpkin seeds, Trader Joe's fat free balsalmic vinaigrette, 2 tbs crunchy onions (hmmm about 400 calories)

S - mango (150 calories)

S - little container of dill pickles, string cheese (80 calories)

D - home made soup - tomatoes, leeks, spinach, chickpeas, summer squash, with a little parmesan cheese on top (300 calories)

Way to go Glory! Love that treadmill!

And, way to go Jessica and midwife for your running, too!

I did 4 miles yesterday after work (ran 2.75 of that, walked the rest), thinking the same kind of things you were, midwife. I thought about how cold it was, then thought about Pat and Dagmar and some of the other folks out running in Yax Trax and that it wasn't really cold, then I stopped by my car and got my fuzzy wool cap because my ears were cold, then I put on a sweatshirt and made a mental note to bring gloves next time, then I got halfway into the run and got hot and the wool cap and sweatshirt came off. Did I mention that it was only 46 degrees and little wind? I'm such a baby... :)

I did indulge in a skinny cow, but still came in below calories so I'm counting it as OP.

Today:
Exercise: Weider this afternoon
B: smoothie, coffee
S: string cheese, apple or tangelo
L: grilled chicken sandwich no mayo
S: Kashi Go Lean
S: The apple or tangelo not eaten in the AM
D: Chargrilled and Fruit Salad from CFA
S: kashi dark chocolate oatmeal cookie

Yay for all of our workout rockstars! I'll be channeling you on my step today!

The plan:
B - WW english muffin, 3 egg whites with turkey bacon and salsa
S - Apple w/ Laughing Cow
L - Tuna on Wasa crackers, toasted w/ pickles
S - Greek yogurt w/ berries
S - Popcorn
D - Meatball, Rice and Greens Soup - Homemade broth, small super-lean ground beef meatballs, brown and wild rice blend, some chard and other veggies.
S - NSA Ice Cream Bar

E - 55 min on the step, 60 min strength training.

Well, it looks like I may be able to skip the city council meeting tonight, so I need to come up with a better dinner, since I will for certain be out tomorrow night, and will want the leftovers for that "heat and eat." And since I don't have to attend the meeting, I brought my stuff and will go to the gym right from work - another elliptical session. Oh, and I swapped out breakfast, and had cheerios with blueberries instead of oatmeal, but still OP.

Midwife! :cheer: You are awesome. 3.5 miles in 30 minutes? Wow! It took me 44 minutes to do my 3.1 miles yesterday.

Midwife! :cheer: You are awesome. 3.5 miles in 30 minutes? Wow! It took me 44 minutes to do my 3.1 miles yesterday.

I agree. I don't have the stamina to run that long--but I can easily maintain the 4 mph to make 3 miles in 45 minutes. If I throw in a little jogging (at 4.5 mph) I can go 3.2-3.4 miles in that 45 minutes (but then I'm quite flushed for an hour afterward).

The 3.5 miles in 30 minutes rocks, midwife! It took me 53 minutes yesterday to do 4 miles, there was a little stretching on the beginning and the end of that, but no more than 5 minutes I would say.

Wow! Coolness! I wanna be like you!

That is very good time. I did my 2.5 miles in 38 minutes for comparison. Get on with your speedy self!

Thanks, guys! I'll tell you what: Operation Sprint Interval is proving to be a success already. :carrot:

Thanks, guys! I'll tell you what: Operation Sprint Interval is proving to be a success already. :carrot:

rock on :) :hug:

I'm here to say if I just STOP eating right now--- POP day #2.
OK, now I gotta...:D

I need you guys help!

I went to the gym after work today and had to stop after about a mile because I'm getting blisters on both feet, in the WEIRDEST place! It is about 2 inches underneath the ball of my feet, right on the curve of the arch (kind of the inner outsides). I've worn both the socks and the shoes to work out multiple times in the past (hey quit laughing, really! multiple times over years!) without any painful blisters.

I am a little discouraged. I was motivated, I brought clothes, I got on the treadmill and only burned about 100 calories before I had to quit. The spots on my feet are red and painful, but not broken.

Any tips to make it so they stop getting blistery or am I supposed to just work through it? I tried the bike and the elliptical but my feet still hurt and I never feel like I'm getting a good workout on those pieces of equipment. Either there's no resistance and it's "too easy" or there is too much resistance and my quads burn so badly I have to stop.

Midwife - you're pretty much a rockstar.

Glory, what kind of socks are you wearing? The difference for me between cheap, thin socks and genuine padded thick athletic socks is amazing.

OP today except a 1 tbsp taste of the lemon curd I made to fill my mother-in-laws birthday cake on Friday. It's good. Really good.

Here's my plan for tomorrow:
B - Egg whites w/ turkey bacon and salsa, toasted english muffin
S - Apple w/ laughing cow
L - Leftovers - Meatball, Rice, and veggie soup
S - Multiseed soy sauce crackers with salsa
S - Yogurt w/ berries
D - Grilled pork skewers, grilled zucchini, curried lentil and brown rice pilaf
S - NSA Ice Cream Bar

E - 40 min Tae Bo, 40 min BL Cardio

They are Jox socks and were expensive (7.00 a pair is spendy to me!) I've worn them many times before (okay, more than once) without issue! It fills me with GRRRR.

I promised myself if I stuck to working out every business day for 2 weeks I could have a massage!

Glory, are your shoes/socks getting worn out? If you run, do you land heel to toe, or do you land right in the middle of your foot? I've had blisters in that same place before. I think the best way to avoid them is to invest in good socks (synthetic, not cotton, and sweat-wicking -- brands like Balega or SmartWool), make sure your shoes aren't worn out, and try to run heel to toe. Also, make sure your shoes are tied tight enough that they don't shift around too much.

Yesterday was POP for me! Woohoo!

Wednesday:
B - muesli, milk
S - banana, apple
L - leftover moroccan chicken thighs & couscous
S - yogurt, potato chips :o
D - salad, lf dressing, organic ww spaghetti, pasta sauce, parmesan cheese
S - 1 T PB
Total - 1672
Exercise - 20 min latin dance workout dvd

My first thought was about your socks, too, Glory. I know they are tried and true, but you might try some different ones just to see. In the meantime, I would not exacerbate the blisters at all. Re: the elliptical or bike, maybe try going along for 1 minute at a moderate pace and then going as fast as you can for 30 seconds and repeat 10 times. That will give you a workout without having to increase the resistance too much.

Kitty, did you pull off POP day 2? :drill: Inquiring minds want to know!

Thanks Amanda. I was thrilled with the time. :carrot: I :love: sprint intervals!!

Today:

TJ's ginger granola, protein shake
cottage cheese, fruit
turkey flatbread rollups
yogurt, fruit
hardboiled egg, carrots
1 hr weights (power class! woohoo!)
dinner---probably chicken and veggies and a postworkout protein shake

weight this am: 152. My lowest ever is 151.5.

Stay the course!!!!!

Kitty, did you pull off POP day 2? :drill: Inquiring minds want to know!
Yes. Yes I did :D
weight this am: 152. My lowest ever is 151.5.
wicked cool :cool:
Stay the course!!!!!

Midwife - you're pretty much a rockstar.
yup :)
OP today except a 1 tbsp taste of the lemon curd I made to fill my mother-in-laws birthday cake on Friday. It's good. Really good.
Yes. Yes it is. I am not much of a baker but last year I made a cheese cake that called for lemon curd to be folded into the cheesecake. The only curd I could think of was the stuff that little miss moffet had--- boy that is insanely good :p

exercise done in extremely unpleasant conditions.
working on pop #3.
aiming for pop until fri. night when I will have a glass of wine! (it's the little things)

I love lemon curd!

We have a specialty cupcake shop here that makes lemon cupcakes with a lemon curd filling and buttercream frosting. I try to avoid that cupcake shop! :devil:

I love lemon curd!

We have a specialty cupcake shop here that makes lemon cupcakes with a lemon curd filling and buttercream frosting. I try to avoid that cupcake shop! :devil:

Dang that sounds good. No cupcake places around here that I know of (thankfully!). Actually the only time I've had a gourmet cupcake was at the last wedding I went to. They got the cupcakes from Sprinkles (yum!).

Glory~I agree with the socks and running heel to toe. I hope your blisters go away without breaking open--that would be painful.

E~I stepped it up to 4.2 mph this morning and burned 400 calories in my 45 minute 3.15 mile power walk with hill climb!
B~banana, bread w/lf cheese
S~grapefruit
L~tomato lentil soup, clementine
S~yogurt
S~apple if needed
D~chicken, broccoli and rice

Cupcakes! I'm a cupcake EXPERT and could probably find a cupcake shop ANYWHERE. In fact, I have a list of "cupcakes to try before I die" with shops all across the US. Mmmm, lemon curd cupcake. MIL's cake will (FOOD PORN) be a 4 genoise layers (lighter sponge cake) brushed with a bit of limoncello, filled with lemon curd and frosted with a stabilized sweetened whipped cream.

:drool: What time do you want us there? :lol:

Ya'll are WELCOME if you want to come provide a MIL buffer! Not only that, but she does cakes (for birthdays, weddings, etc) so I'm a little nervous. You'd all oooh and aaaah and make me feel better!

LOL, you guys are cracking me up about the cupcakes. I have a friend who runs a cupcake rating website and travels around tasting cupcakes across the country!

Is it Cupcakes Take the Cake? LOVE that blog.

And this is the Accountability thread????

Jay

:lol: :lol: Yes, Jay, it is!

Had a successful OP day yesterday, even with not knowing what was for dinner when I walked into the door after work. Ended up with some lean turkey meatballs I'd picked up at the grocery over the weekend (very yummy, btw), then cooked some barilla rotini and made a lf pesto sauce (w/homemade pesto) with onion, peas and spinach in it.

Today is a little tougher, since I'm out to dinner with the girls, if the weather doesn't worsen (see the chat thread, we having rain/ice)

B - scottish oatmeal, blueberries, walnuts, skim milk; 1/2 ww eng muffin; :coffee:
S - hard boiled egg
S - ff latte
L - lean cuisine [ended up with a szechuan style stir fry with shrimp - very good, but only 230 cals; hence the added Luna bar snack]
S - Iced Oameal Raisin Luna Bar
S - pear and cheese
D - we're scheduled for a Mexican restaurant.....

And this is the Accountability thread????

Jay

It sometimes helps to talk about foods that we probably shouldn't be eating!!!:dizzy:

Oh, I am a big fan of "food porn." I look at food I don't plan to eat all the time. Watching Top Chef, sloooowwwly flipping through the Harry & David catalog, avidly checking out the stuff for sale at Dean & Deluca. But, I do the same thing with clothing/jewelry catalogs. Just because things are not in my "budget" it doesn't stop me from daydreaming about being able to "afford" them!

Thanks for the advice about the socks. The are relatively new socks (hee) but I don't think I'm running heel to toe. I'm more of a BAM BAM BAM runner. Good tip!

Amanda - no, it's called Cupcake Fetish. I laughed when my friend told me she wanted to lose weight because she had gained an unexplained 10lbs. I asked if she gained the 10lbs when she started reviewing cupcakes! :lol: (She did, if you're curious.)

Note to other maintainers...DO NOT GOOGLE CUPCAKE FETISH. Holy food porn!

So funny, the cupcake bakery I was referrring to here is called Cake Fetish. I think I shall avoid that blog.

But see, I would rather have one lovely splurge of something truly delicious on occasion than lots of junky junk food daily. So, I can have my cake and eat it too! (says I, who cursed the scale gods---why oh why can't I see 149?? Think these 2 concepts are connected much? :lol: )

That's sort of my philosophy. You couldn't pay me to eat a grocery store cupcake anymore (the sort of junky, sugary crap I'd down 5 of at a time pre-lifestyle-change). Those aren't worth it.

A delicious confection from Crumbs Bakery in New York City, flown across the country on your mother's lap after she paused her anniversary trip to NYC to pick you up a dozen cupcakes because she is awesome and they're your thing...from a bakery on your list of "cupcakes to try"...that is worth it. Particularly if you're sitting around with 3 other people you love, cutting the different flavors in quarters, and having a "cupcake tasting party".

That's part of why I'm baking the cake for MIL. I'm not phoning this one in with some boxed mix. GOOD CAKE fits in the plan, sometimes. (and also - genoise is one of the lightest cakes out there, aside from angel food...very little butter in a genoise, mostly egg). But who wants to spend the calories on bad cake?

This was a HUGE shift in philosophy for me...moving from "I like cake so I'm going to eat it whenever it is available" to "I want all of my cake experiences to be phenomenal, so I'm going to make a list of really exceptional cupcakes I want to try, and find really good bakeries for other pastries, so that when I DO decide to splurge, it's really, really worth it." It's the same reason that I order desserts at restaurants that make their own pastries, but don't order them at, say, Applebees.

At my daughter's high school, the band hosts a field show each December and for 5 years I volunteered at the dessert booth. We asked band members and their parents to MAKE and bring cookies, brownies, cupcakes, etc. The first couple of years all we had were homemade goodies (that sell REALLY well and help support the band). The last year I was there, there were so many store bought cookies it made my head spin! And the store bought cupcakes? Not a single one sold. Those folks that went the extra mile and put cute ribbons on the packages (we'd put two in a baggie and sell for 50 cents) were usually the first sold regardless of what was inside--people just knew they were homemade and therefore GOOD! The only store bought thing that sold well were the donuts first thing in the morning.

Can I join in on the food & exercise accountibility? I am usually just a lurker with a few comments here and there but I think this thread would be good for me!

B-double fiber whole wheat english muffin, 1TBSP natural peanut butter, 1 banana
L-Rubio's whole wheat chicken burrito w/ pinto beans and rice and guacomole inside. 1 small side of pinto beans
S-fresh cranberriesw/ crushed pineapple
D-edamame and baked butternut squash
S-apple

There is a bakery near my old apartment that makes red velvet cupcakes with pecan cream cheese icing that I think I might kill someone over... Another place near my new house does 'decorate your own' cupcake night on Friday nights. It is right off the town square, the restaurants stay open late, people walk in and out of places, small town atmosphere. Some places sell mixed drinks, Miss Scarlett's sells cupcakes and coffee. Her cupcakes aren't bad, but her homeade candies are to die for...
Is it a coincidence that my last two places of residence were walking distance from cupcake shops? Hmm...

Yesterday was way under plan... I added in a big cup of cereal last night after dinner and a peanut butter and jelly sandwich before bed, still under.

Today I went to a funeral in the am, then had lunch with my dad, where I ate a slice of New York style pizza so I balanced out the under plan yesterday! i made good topping choices though - grilled chicken, fresh basil, green olives, red pepper, tomato.

I also just got back from running 4.5 miles. Well, running 3, walking 1.5.

So, an okay day all in all. I'll update the end of the day tomorrow - trying hard to not binge now for dinner...

How'd you do at dinner, Shannon?

Today:
3 mile run (2 miles of which were sprint intervals)
protein pancakes
yogurt, orange
pb&j sandwich, cottage cheese
hardboiled eggs, orange
1 hr weightlifting
protein shake, eggs, spinach, chile

Scale 151 and, yes, that is a new low!!!! Woohoo!!! :carrot:

:drool: I want cupcakes now! Actually I may be in the minority because I prefer a slice of cake to a cupcake. I like the inside of cakes better than the outside, and cupcakes have too much outside and not enough inside! :lol:

I will admit though, sometimes, the super-junky junk food tastes better to me than the high-quality junk food. There's a grocery store around here that makes these frosted sugar cookies which are totally cheapo, but I love them! And I also <3 grocery store chocolate donut holes. Haven't had them in a long time, though. I will also admit to loving cheap hollow milk chocolate easter bunnies and disliking 70% cocoa dark chocolate.

In any case, yesterday was mostly OP, but I ate a spoonful of PB after dinner that I probably didn't need. No run since it is SO COLD outside, but I did a workout dvd.

Thursday:
B - oat bran hot cereal, milk, raisins, brown sugar, half an orange
S - apple
L - leftover couscous and moroccan chicken thighs
S - orange, potato chips :o
D - "light" tuna noodle casserole
S - slice of toast w/low sugar jelly
Total - 1418
Exercise - none, my workout buddy was busy and it was below 0 outside so I decided not to risk going to the gym (I'd be in big trouble if my car broke down!!)

E~45 minutes treadmill
B~ww toast w/lf cheese
S~grapefruit
L~diet entree (chicken Parmesan), small clementine
S~yogurt
D~last of the tomato lentil soup, 2 small slices pumpernickel bread

Good morning!
Midwife, I did okay with dinner itself - turkey sausage & veggies over rice, not bad. Where I fell off track was a hot fudge sundae from Sonic... :( I did carefully review my calories for the day - I had enough left to cover it even though it was supremely unwise. So, knowing it was unwise I did it anyway. :) I didn't have another snack before bed, so came in okay on calories but high on fat for the day. Opted for fat free coffee creamer and yogurt in my smoothie this morning!

I'm finding I'm having a really hard time getting up in the morning to exercise since about last Friday. I'm also wide awake until midnight this week. I'm planning to exercise when I get home and want to wear myself out early so I can get up and exercise in the AM tomorrow. Is it okay to run two days in a row or should I take a day off in between?

Today's plan -
Breakfast: smoothie, coffee w/ ff creamer
S: apple
L: grilled chicken sandwich no mayo
S: Kashi Go Lean
D: I have no idea...
S: kashi dark chocolate oatmeal cookie

Exercise: the yoga and elliptical I didn't do Tuesday. Thursday is my normal off day, but I took Tuesday this week instead.

Hi all!

I hate days like today because planning is so difficult. We are going out to dinner w/ a friend, then to a movie. It'll be one of those "What sounds good" kind of things, and I have no idea where we'll end up. I like having a plan, darn it!

That being said, I can plan the rest of the day:
B - egg whites scrambled with turkey bacon and salsa, toasted english muffin
S - Apple w/ Laughing Cow
L - Leftovers - grilled pork skewer, lentil and brown rice pilaf, grilled zucchini
S - Popcorn
S - Multigrain crackers w/ salsa
D - Who knows!

E - 60 min on the stair, 30DS

Wednesday

B - Trader Joe's fat free Greek yogurt with honey, about 3/4 cup of frozen wild blueberries I let defrost a little (about 200 calories)

L - big salad with romaine, shredded carrot, red cabbage, grilled chicken, pomegranate seeds, 1 tbs pumpkin seeds, Trader Joe's fat free balsalmic vinaigrette, 2 tbs crunchy onions (hmmm about 400 calories)

S - mango (150 calories)

S - little container of dill pickles, string cheese (80 calories)

D - home made soup - tomatoes, leeks, spinach, chickpeas, summer squash, with a little parmesan cheese on top. CAlories seemed a little lowish for the day so I added 130 calories of crusty artisan bread to eat with my soup (400 total?)

Thursday

B - Trader Joe's fat free Greek yogurt with honey, about 3/4 cup of frozen wild blueberries I let defrost a little (about 200 calories)

L - big salad with romaine, shredded carrot, red cabbage, grilled chicken, pomegranate seeds, 1 tbs pumpkin seeds, Trader Joe's fat free balsalmic vinaigrette, 2 tbs crunchy onions (hmmm about 400 calories)

S - mango (150 calories)

S - little container of dill pickles, string cheese (80 calories)

D - lean grilled steak, good-sized baked sweet potato, steamed broccoli

Today is 1 week on plan :)

Wow, how did it get to be after 2 pm already.....

Yesterday worked out well. I didn't eat my afternoon snack til about 4 pm, and then met my GFs at a Mexican place about 5:20. I ordered an appetizer quesadilla (chicken) which was HUGE! I ate 2 sections only. And a new PB for me - not one single chip passed my lips. :lol: I did have a small piece of cake at the meeting we went to, but I had allowed for that. It was a nice homemade yellow cake, with frosting made from vanilla pudding, cool whip and pineapple. The gal called it a "Pig Picker's" cake which I'd never heard of :shrug:

B - 1/2 of a 3 egg omelet, 1/4 avocado, about 2 TBSP of lf ricotta; 1/2 pear; toast
S - ff latte
L - leftover Thai chicken rice bowl (from the oriental place in the grocery in the next town) I bought on impulse on Sat, and had a moment of sanity and saved 1/2. :)
S - peaches
D - "heat and eat" leftovers before a meeting.....

My unknown dinner tonight turned out to be Cuban food - DH & I went to a restaurant near us that we thought was just Mexican food, turned out to be a number in international items on the menu, but Cuban was the focus. I had flank steak simmered in a really spicy sauce served with something I think was called Congi, I think (?already forgot the name of it... White rice , black beans, pulled pork all cooked together in a big pot), and two small plantains. Yummy. Probably terrible for me, but I had worked myself up into a weird place in my head late in the day so I'm not going to panic myself about the meal. I don't often have a 'no count' meal that I really don't try to count, but I'm going to give it a shot.

Going to bed now so I can make myself get up and exercise tomorrow in the AM.

I look forward to hearing about your morning exercise, Shannon!! :drill: :)

Mmmm cuban food sounds so GOOD!

I worked out again today - made it 2.75 on the treadmill (want to work up to 3 miles). I concentrated on heel toe heel toe heel toe and only had some slight blister tenderness at the very end of the workout.

I burned about 280 calories - you know what that means - my sweet potato for dinner was "free!"

I tried on a really cute wool skirt I got at Ann Taylor last year and it's still a little too snug to wear. I was feeling like I was doing so GREAT but I've only been on plan 1 week and I have about 5 lbs to go. I didn't weigh myself this week due to my period, so I'm not exactly sure where I am!

Today will be a busy day----cleaning, shopping and packing cause we are off for the long weekend. I will run 3 miles (sprint intervals, baby!), but probably won't get to check in much after this am. I hope you all have a great on plan weekend. I am a little nervous--I like my routines, plus for the first time in my weight loss efforts I am soooo close to that 149! Clean eats, heavy lifting and intervals have jump started some pounds that I thought would never budge. I've been maintaining 153-156 since August and this am I was 150.5!! And now I am going out of town and won't have 100% control over clean foods. But I will control what I can---and if 149 doesn't happen this next week, or even this month, I believe it can and will happen eventually.

Food today:
pbj sandwich, protein shake
hardboiled eggs, fruit
turkey flatbread rollups, veggies
protein shake, fruit
dinner will be on the road. will make good choices (lean protein) and I will get my veggies in at lunch.

As far as the weekend, I can control breakfast, snacks & lunch 100%. Dinner will be the wildcard, but I'm in charge of one of the dinners, and it will be a veggie, turkey packed green chile stew. It will be very snowy, so running outdoors may not happen. I'll consider intervals on the treadmill at the gym, and I'll definitely lift some weights. It will be fun to come up with a weight training program on my own for a day!

Have a good weekend all!

I see, I've been out busy for the last few days and I come back to cupcake talk and food porn! The special cupcakes do sound delicious and worth every bite, Amanda. I'm similar - I will pass up a grocery store, or out of a box baked good without much remorse, but if it's homemade and really "special" I will make room for small servings of goodies in my plan. I try to remind myself of that when I am passing up generic-looking cake that I'm tempted by - "If you want cake/cookies/etc, Megan, eat good cake. Not this."

I did stay POP for the last 4 days. Calorie counts for Mon-Thursday were 1382, 1387, 1527, 1452. I've been getting to the gym as much as time allows.

Since my planning ahead has worked so well this week (knock on wood), I'm going to try to plan out my weekend here. And print this out to remind myself of my plan!

Friday's plan:
B - ww mini bagel, 1 T. lt. cream cheese, 1 tsp. red pepper jelly, 1 c. skim milk, coffee w/ 1 T h&h
S - small banana
L - 1/2 oat bran pita, 2.5 oz. bs chicken breast, 1 c. carrots + 1 c. sliced green pepper
lunchtime walk ~1.5 miles
S - 1 oz. raw almonds, 6 oz. light yogurt, apple
gym - cardio, legs, abs?
post-gym snack - hm protein muffin (+ 1 oz. string cheese if I'm really hungry while dinner's cooking)
D - ~4 oz. pork chop, steamed green beans

Sat:
B - ww mini bagel, 1 T. lt. cream cheese, 1 tsp. red pepper jelly, 1 c. skim milk, coffee w/ 1 T h&h, 1/2 grapefruit
gym - cardio (running!), back, abs if I didn't do them yesterday
L - thinking of making a pot of chili w/ beans, lean ground beef, etc.
S - apple, yogurt, nuts?
D - My (former) boss is having us over for dinner because "he misses us". Aww, we miss him too! He said he'd have burgers, baked beans, and we could bring sides. I plan to smuggle in a whole wheat bun for my burger, and bring a salad.

Sun:
B - protein pancake, 1 c. skim milk, coffee w/ 1 T h&h, 1/2 grapefruit
If it's not windy I'm going to go for a long (~22 mile) bike ride.
L - chili if I didn't make it yesterday
S - veggies, yogurt, apple, nuts
D - Shrimp pasta primavera
rehearsal
maybe snack if calories allow?

Mon (have Monday off b/c it's MLK day):
B - protein pancake, 1 c. skim milk, coffee w/ 1 T h&h, banana
gym early?
L - chili if I didn't make it yesterday
S - veggies, yogurt, apple, nuts
D - Shrimp pasta primavera
rehearsal

Yesterday wasn't quite POP, but my cals were in target range! Unfortunately even though I *feel* like I've been OP all week, my cals have been over every day (over by a little, not a lot, but still). No loss this week. :(

Friday:
B - muesli, milk
S - nonfat chai
L - gah, it's lunch at work again. I'll plan on salad and a half mediterranean veggie sandwich.
S - apple, yogurt
D - leftover couscous and moroccan chicken thighs
Total - 1465
Exercise - this weather is really screwing me up. No way am I going for a 3 mile run in negative temps, so I'll probably do another DVD workout.

I really don't know what today will hold for me. Fridays mean lunch out with DH and since DS is out of town with his robotics class, we decided to go out to dinner, too. We're going with the in-laws and they picked this restaurant/bar in a seedy area--they like it because they have karaoke. Ugh.

E~45 minutes on the treadmill (3.25 miles, 440 calories burned!)
B~grapefruit
L~tuna and artichoke panini with side salad (probably the best tuna I've ever had!)
D~Lord only knows--I think this place has a lot of fried crap

Good morning -

Midwife - thanks for the little drill sergeant smiley! :) I did get up this morning and exercised some. I didn't do as much as I wanted because my Weider is in the garage and it was 15 degrees outside so crazy cold in there... Then, instead of going upstairs and getting on the bike or the elliptical I sat under a blanket and shivered for half an hour before my shower. :( I am going to run today though, even though it is only going to be 27 degrees. The cold is my penance for this morning! I have gloves, wool stocking hat, scarf, running tights that are supposed to keep moisture off, thin sweat pants to wear over the tights, 'antimicrobial long sleeve running shirt' and a thin sweathshirt to wear over the running shirt. I think I have plenty of clothes to survive. :) And, way to go on the 150.5! Woo hoo! :carrot:

Megan - I wish I could plan ahead like that! Wow!

Jessica - Sorry no loss this week! :hug:

Alinnel - good luck at the fried food place...

Glory - I'm working on the 'heel toe heel toe' thing, too... I tend to hit down very flat after I've been running for a little while. Hope it helps your feet! :)

My dinner last night ended up being REALLY late (hair took longer than expected) and I was REALLY hungry, so I was very proud of the choices made. I had a grilled chicken sandwich on a whole wheat bun, and Sarah and I did the split salad/fries thing, so I had about 3/4 cup of french fries and 1 cup of salad. No mayo or cheese on the sandwich. And for dessert I had a pint of really good beer. A lovely evening.

Today's plan:
B - English muffin pizza w/ turkey bacon
S - Apple w/ Laughing Cow Wedge
L - Can of tuna, mixed with light parmesan ranch dressing, toasted on Wasa crackers w/ pickles
S - Popcorn
S - Multiseed crackers w/ salsa
D - Gigantic Salad from grocery store salad bar: Greens, grilled chicken, bell pepper, broccoli, carrot, cucumber, croutons, and kidney beans. I'll bring it home and put on a laughing cow wedge and 2 tbsp of light parmesan ranch
S - Aforementioned Food Porn Lemon Cake (though a FitDay approximation says I won't be over on calories, even with cake...yay!)

E - 40 min on the step, 60 min Jackie Warner strength video (I love weight lifting videos where you just...do the exercises. None of this dancy stuff!)

Friday

B - Trader Joe's fat free Greek yogurt with honey, about 3/4 cup of frozen wild blueberries I let defrost a little (about 200 calories)

L - big salad with romaine, shredded carrot, red cabbage, grilled chicken, pomegranate seeds, 1 tbs pumpkin seeds, Trader Joe's fat free balsalmic vinaigrette, 2 tbs crunchy onions (hmmm about 400 calories)

S - mango (150 calories)

S - little container of dill pickles, string cheese (80 calories)

D - ended up not making pizza. Jason had to work late and I didn't get home from the gym until nearly 8 (home from the gym! moi!) I got a spicy lentil wrap from Trader Joe's and it was fabulous! About 500 calories, still good for the day. According to the treadmill, I burned 230 calories.

Update: I ran for 2 miles on my break this afternoon... in 29 degrees... So, today's exercise is done! (Unless I decide to hit the bike when I get home, which I might. DH thinks he has a stomach bug so I have to steer clear of him and DSS who also has symptoms so I don't get sick before surgery.)

And, still OP with my food for the day! Yay!

Well, last night wasn't as horrible as I anticipated. The food wasn't spectacular, but I had a small side salad and a grilled chicken sandwich. Ok, we had too many cocktails, but all in all I'm pretty happy about my choices. The scale did go up half a pound, but that's not bad at all.

E~18 holes golf, walking
B~egg white "mcmuffin" on ww Eng muffin
L~probably a sandwich from the diner at the golf course
D~Parmesan encrusted chicken breast, salad, perhaps rice?

Today:
Plan to run this afternoon

B: peanut butter and jelly sandwich, coffee
L: chargrilled & fruit salad from CFA
S: Rachel's vanilla chai yogurt
D: hamburgers - mickey mouse head shaped patties in an effort to get DSS to eat something that isn't a chicken nugget...
S: Kashi dark chocolate oatmeal cookie

Ha Mickey Mouse shaped patties - that's awesome!

Saturday

B - Trader Joe's fat free Greek yogurt with honey, about 3/4 cup of frozen wild blueberries I let defrost a little (about 200 calories)

L - leftover home made soup - spinach, tomatoes, leeks, chickpeas, summer squash, 130 calories of this GREAT crusty artisan cheese, I sprinkled some parmesan cheese on top (did not measure, probably 50 calories worth)

S - mango (150 calories)

S - tall non fat sugar free latte from Starbucks (100 calories), 100 calorie Nonni biscotti

D - still up in the air. I have to take the kitties to get their booster shots at 3:40, then I am supposed to stay home with them for a few hours to make sure they are okay. Maybe I will make BBQ chicken salads, or maybe we'll hit Chipotle. I'll update later! I have about 500 calories to spend.

*dinner update* ended up going out for sushi. I had half the appetizer order of edamame, hot tea, tuna sashimi salad (which was really disappointing - the raw tuna was mushy and the lettuce was ice berg) with the dressing on the side and a california roll. After dinner, we went to a yogurt place that had chocolate yogurt for 7 calories for 4 ounces. I had that topped with some crushed graham cracker. Not too bad for "treat" night.

Sunday

B - I caved and bought a box of Special K Red Berries waffles. I used to love Special K Red Berries cereal (back when a serving was a ginormous bowl) and I just couldn't resist the waffles. They are pretty much junk food (of course) but I thought they were great - very crispy and I loved the red berry bites. I was trying to keep breakfast at 300 calories, so I had one waffle with 1 tbs of natural peanut butter and 1 waffle with cherry butter. Not too bad but got hungry for lunch a little early.

L - leftover home made soup (the last of the soup! so sad) - spinach, tomatoes, leeks, chickpeas, summer squash, 130 calories of this GREAT crusty artisan cheese, I sprinkled some parmesan cheese on top (did not measure, probably 50 calories worth)

S - mango (150 calories)

S - ended up not having a snack

D - Jason is going to have leftover sushi from dinner last night, so I'm going to have some leftover pasta sauce I had frozen a couple of weeks ago over 2 oz of whole wheat pasta (400 calories)

With the soup and the sauce, it's kind of a tomato-y day, but should still be okay and right on target calorie wise. I actually might have enough calories for a latte when I go out and run errands, that would be nice :)

*edit* did not get a latte

I did alright today, not over calories, but more junk than I needed -
B: PB&J, coffee
L: mandarin salad from Wendy's with my own dressing
S: 1 slice of wheat bread, 1 slice of bologna, pomegranate blueberry juice
D: vindaloo chicken and wild rice - made this last Sunday,too, and something went horribly wrong. Had to try again.
S: don't know - can only afford one if I go exercise right now... :)

Assorted items through the day - 1 hershey's kiss, 1 bite of black beans and rice, 1 tootsie roll, 1 pack of sixlets.

Exercise - hopefully about to go ride my exercise bike for an hour or so. :)

ETA: 40 minutes on my stationary bike - 12.5 miles. 10 minutes various calisthenics. Didn't quite make an hour...