On Tuesday, I have to give a big presentation to Sales showing that what kind of materials my division will offer to support a new product rollout. We gave this presentation once before, but it was botched because they asked a question we couldn't answer. My manager's manager's manager (sounds like the "begats" in the Bible) is freaked out and looking over my shoulder at my work on this. I sent it to her last night. She works on weekends so I keep checking email to see how she has reacted and her feedback.
And I feel weird wandering around on the weekend and somewhat guilty for not working, worrying I'll pay for it come Monday.
Weigh-in: 141.9, still headed in the right direction.
Meals for Today:
Breakfast: Apple steelcut oats; egg bake with pimento, ham and baby kale; part-skin ricotta and blueberries with cinnamon
Lunch: Baby kale, roasted vegetables, walnuts, sunflower seeds, Craisins and half an avocado
Dinner: Tilapia with parmesan bread crumbs and salsa, roasted broccoli, steamed green beans
Dessert: Cookies and cream Quest bar
Exercise for Today:
20 minutes on the recumbent bike, then Workout 5A2 of the Strong Curves Advanced program and a Pilates mat class. I think I'll go to the movies this afternoon, to try to change up my thoughts.
Sunday, and we're having a thaw, which improves my disposition immeasurably. Also I gave myself a break yesterday and saw "Room," which was quite good, and made me continue to mull over the concepts of imprisonment and self-restriction.
Weigh-in: 141.6, which I thought was up, but now I realize, is down a little.
Meals for Today:
Breakfast: Apple steelcut oats; egg bake with pimento, ham and baby kale; part-skin ricotta and two small persimmons
Lunch: Baby kale and arugula, roasted vegetables, pecans, half an avocado and several forkfuls of hummus, which always goes on sale now because it's considered a football-watching snack food.
Dinner: Miso-glazed salmon, roasted brussel sprouts and steamed asparagus
Dessert: Mint chocolate chip Quest bar
Exercise for Today:
20 minutes on arc trainer, then Workout 5C of the Strong Curves Advanced program. The killer here is the D-ring lat pull-downs, 3 x 8. I can do 100 lbs. but I *just get* that eighth one.
Monday, again elated by the thaw as I walked outside, but of course, it's a working day. And I have got to finalize that preso for Sales for tomorrow. I feel like I won't have any peace of mind till it's done & over with. Though an approval or requirement for changes will lead to another scramble to action on my part, at least I'll have given the presentation.
Weigh-in: 142.6, up one pound.
Meals for Today:
Breakfast: Apple steelcut oats; egg bake with pimento, ham and baby kale; yoghurt and two small persimmons
Snack: Navel orange
Lunch: Caesar kale salad with parmesan and sundried tomatoes, arugula, artichokes and sweet-and-sour tofu
Snack: Cortland apple
Dinner: Roasted brussel sprouts and turkey chili with mushrooms and black olives
Dessert: Cookies and cream Quest bar
Every week, I have one of these days where I'm under pressure to turn around something for this project, and I get to bed late, or can't sleep once I'm in bed for thinking about it. That was Monday night into Tuesday morning.
Addendum: Whew, I did not have to lead the presentation that I created on Tuesday, my manager's manager's manager gave it, and it turned out well.
Weigh-in: 143.3, not surprisingly, but I can tell this will probably go down tomorrow.
Meals for Today:
Breakfast: Apple steelcut oats; egg bake with pimento, ham and baby kale; yogurt and weird hard winter strawberries
Snack: Bruised Cortland apple, disappointing
Lunch: Arugula, cold steamed asparagus, black beans, corn, chopped tomatoes, tuna with sunflower seeds
Snack: A MacIntosh apple, fulfilling all expectations
Dinner: Leftover vegetables (roasted broccoli, steamed asparagus, steamed green beans) and turkey chili with mushrooms and black olives
Dessert: Cinnamon roll Quest bar
Exercise for Today:
20 minutes recumbent bike, Workout 5A1 of the Strong Curves Advanced program.
I realized a couple of weeks ago that my "new" eating plan has virtually eliminated fruit from my diet unintentionally. I'm also the lowest weight I've been in a long time. Related?? When I realized that I wasn't having fruit, I decided I'd have some fruit at least once a week as a "dessert". Then, when I saw how overpriced and yucky the winter fruit looked at the store this weekend, I skipped it. Oh well.... I know once Spring comes, the selection and prices will improve and I'll find some I like.
Augh. I wrote a long post that took at least 10 minutes and then hit some key that made it disappear.
The gist was a thank you to Michele for posting her new eating plan, and some contemplation of what I would need to do to fix my perpetual trouble spot, which is dinner and dessert (or post-dinner snack). DH would kill me if I started to eat a packaged dinner every night instead of his home-cooked meals, or the thai/japanese/middle-eastern restaurant food we eat ~3 nights a week.
Andrea How would your DH be with some sort of compromise? Say eating the home-cooked meals but not the take away?
My DH is now on the warpath about how much we spend on food. He wants me to buy cheaper stuff but then complains about the ingredients. I think it's time for him to take over the food shopping, as well as the dinner cooking. I've spent the last 20 years doing the best I can. His turn now.
My DH cooks occasionally. After 10 years, he's still working on trying to master the basics, like remembering to use salt, and taking the pork chops off the stove before they resemble albino hockey pucks, and not going off to answer e-mail or check to see how his fantasy league sports team is doing while something is under the broiler. I think of it as an opportunity to hone my constructive criticism skills.
Yesterday I woke up at 2:30 AM to work on that presentation (from going to bed around 10 PM), had my injured leg photographed for the lawsuit, drove into work, attended the presentation and then felt wiped out. I was supposed to be in a video book club with friends last night and I was so done-in, I didn't log on. I didn't turn on my laptop after dinner, as I've been doing routinely. I went to bed at about 8:30 PM because my face hurt. When I get tired, I can so relate to that lyric, "I can't feel my face when I'm with you -- but I love it, but I love it."
Weigh-in: 142.5, down. So predictable. It's like: "If it's Wednesday, I must be slightly over 142, and will continue trending downward till Saturday."
Meals for Today:
Breakfast: Cranberry and pineapple steelcut oats; egg bake with pimento, ham and baby kale; yogurt and the last of those strawberries
Snack: Crunchy good sweet cherries
Lunch: Spring mix, roasted cauliflower, butternut squash, chicken breast
Snack: MacIntosh apple
Dinner: More chili and my own roasted cauliflower
Dessert: Mint chocolate chip Quest bar
Exercise for Today:
20 minutes arc trainer, so preoccupied with thinking that it passed almost without my noticing it, then Workout 5B of the Strong Curves Advanced program. Last week I managed to perform four parallel-grip pullups three times. Today, just three.
Most days I try to eat a lunch that is about 400 calories. I like the concept of Evol, but most of the meals available in my grocery store are too high in calories to fit in. I've started eating the Amy's Light meals, but unfortunately there are only a few of them. I hope they recognize the need for this market and increase their variety. I'm noticing that my weak point is the evening. I stay on plan during the day, then fall off the wagon at dinner. My family digging into dessert as I'm doing dishes doesn't help either. Most days I'm close, so it just means I'm not losing quickly.
Dagmar, it is not take-away but actually eating out at the restaurant so, no, I can't eat something else unless I watch everyone else eat dinner then eat by myself later. Not happening.
For the record, I can't imagine eating less than ~500 calories for dinner/dessert, and most nights I head north of 600. That leaves me with no more than 800 cals. for the rest of the day, at least when I'm on plan.
Most days I try to eat a lunch that is about 400 calories. I like the concept of Evol, but most of the meals available in my grocery store are too high in calories to fit in. I've started eating the Amy's Light meals, but unfortunately there are only a few of them. I hope they recognize the need for this market and increase their variety. I'm noticing that my weak point is the evening. I stay on plan during the day, then fall off the wagon at dinner. My family digging into dessert as I'm doing dishes doesn't help either. Most days I'm close, so it just means I'm not losing quickly.
I'm also in the Bay Area and I buy most of my evol meals at target and most are under 300 calories. I also buy some at Safeway or Wamart or Sprouts. Each store seems to have a different selection. I've also found some at Nob Hill.
Thursday, left for work early, stuck in a traffic jam that added another half-hour to my commute, thinking there is no winning. No moving, no getting ahead. It is all about just keeping apace and trying to make peace with being stuck.
Weigh-in: 142.7, up slightly.
Meals for Today:
Breakfast: Cranberry and pineapple steelcut oats; egg bake with pimento, ham and baby kale; yogurt and two small persimmons
Snack: Crunchy good sweet cherries
Lunch: Spring mix and watercress, steamed green beans, tomatoes, couscous with avocado and feta, grilled chicken
Dinner: More chili and my own roasted cauliflower
Dessert: Chocolate brownie Quest bar
Later snack: MacIntosh apple
Exercise for Today:
30 minutes on elliptical, alternating backward and forward, cranked up to nine and pouring sweat which stung my eyes.
Friday, trying to recover from losing the ability to answer email for five hours yesterday because my inbox and sent items were overloaded. I had to spend a lot of time deleting and then ask for help from tech support in Mumbai. Now I'm up early and trying to get work done again.
Weigh-in: 142.5, back to Wednesday's weight.
Meals for Today:
Breakfast: Cranberry and pineapple steelcut oats; egg bake with pimento, ham and baby kale; yogurt and two small persimmons
Snack: Last of the cherries
Lunch: Arugula with roasted vegetables, walnuts, half an avocado, quinoa with spinach and Craisins
Snack: Large Cortland apple
Dinner: Chicken leg quarter, steamed asparagus, roasted butternut squash
Dessert: Chocolate chip cookie dough Quest bar
Exercise for Today:
20 minutes on Stairmaster, then a Leg Day. Went after work, because I was working on something in the early morning and by the time I was ready for the gym, I stepped outside in my sneakers and discovered it was snowing hard, with an inch already on the ground. I knew I'd have to go back inside to put on boots and I just said, "Heck with it, I'll go after work."
food shopping, as well as the 
dinner cooking. I've spent the last 20 years doing the best I can. His turn now. 
