Linda - Sheesh! What a coincidence about our parents!! My dad was diagnosed with Stage 4 cancer (prostate metastasized to bone) in Jan. 2003. My mom was diagnosed with Stage 4 cancer (lung cancer metastasized to her brain) in April 2003. Dad lived 'till October '03 (died 1 week before his 76th b'day). Mom lived until January '04 (she, too, died 1 week before her birthday. They'd been divorced for 40 years, but in the end they spoke on the phone and supported each other through it. My step-mom is still alive. I gained 40 lbs or more in 2003/2004.
BTW, another coincidence...I lived in New England until I was 10: Burlington VT, Concord NH, and Gloucester Mass. Then I moved to CA to live with my dad. And now DH and I are in WI.
I'm glad you're able to come up with menu items that everyone likes! Good for you! I sometimes create separate make ahead meals for DH and for me for during the week. Then we can just heat up our meals when we are ready to eat (as I'm usually at the gym when he wants to eat).
Onyyx, it would be so fun if someone else started to do this. Have you ever noticed that the menus in magazines often have bizarre recipes and ingredients that make it difficult to follow the plan? I find having to buy an odd thing that I don't keep in the house makes it harder for me. Also, time is a factor. We are all busy people and having to figure out what to buy, get it and then take the time to make a new recipe can sometimes be defeating.
Tomorrow night, I'm having pasta as a side dish, for example, along with boneless pork tenderloin. I'll have salad with oil and vinegar. Then, on the following day, the leftover pasta will be lunch and I will put diced tomatoes over top along with a bit of low fat cheddar or Parmesan. I'll have leftover salad along with this with some lite dressing. I'm using gluten free pasta to try it, by the way.
Today, I substituted one item of equal points for one of my planned snacks, but in the rule book of my own creation, I can substitute as long as the points values are equal. Life cannot be so horribly regimented or I will fail. Also yesterday, I heated up a Lean Cuisine meal for my lunch and it grossed me out. I took one bite and there was a hair in it that wasn't mine.... I threw it away. I made a sandwich that was the same point value and had the same veggie on the side that I was having with my Lean Cuisine. So, substitution worked in two cases and things didn't fall apart, I had the same number of points/calories.
My plan is to be on this menu plan, and today is my day 3 and so far I'm OK.
Diyana, I know the emotional eating can be holy ****. I lost mom and dad and since then lost two aunts and one uncle. It's almost an entire generation from my family gone, now. My way of dealing with it all has been out of control eating. Comfort foods were my best friend. Chocolate as well. Drinking hasn't been easy, either. I tend to want an extra glass of wine or two to help me feel better and I'm really taking control of that. I don't think I'm an alcoholic but I sure was using it as a crutch for awhile.
Alcohol is really huge on points/calories, and I've got to limit myself to two glasses of wine per weekend, they can be one on Friday and one on Saturday or two on one evening if we go out. But, that is all I am allowing myself.
Just re-read the rules....
Did want to declare this a Level 2 challenge. So, I get two pause days during the 21 days?
I'm hoping to not take those days, but we may go away for a weekend to visit my in-laws and my menu plan won't work as I will be at the mercy of someone else for my meals. : )
Today is day 4... it's kind of a relief to have all my meals and snacks written down for today and know it's laid out for me. I have the food here and all I need to do is follow the plan.
Onyyx - You're doing great on your challenges! WTG!!
Linda - You're dinner for tonight sounds soooo yummy!! What time should I be there?! I'm a good cook, but I REALLY don't like to cook, so if a recipe is too complicated or has too many weird ingredients in it, I don't bother. I always make swaps of equal point value. As long as I get the veggies and protein in, it works for me. I don't do well when I'm overly regimented. A hair in a Lean Cuisine meal? That's awful!! I have one aunt and one uncle left, and I love them. They were so supportive of me in getting through the grief. Good for you for limiting the wine. I don't drink wine, as I'm allergic to it. But I do enjoy beer. I typically only have one when we go out, which isn't that often. I'm glad you're all set with your food and finding it fairly easy to stay on plan. That's why I bring a bunch of healthy snacks to work...so I have stuff here and am not tempted by the cafeteria.
Red - How are you? We miss you! Hope you're doing okay, my sista!
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I had a great Zumba class last night. Plus I did some brisk walking at work. For the past day or so, I've been noticing a bit of knee pain...tendonitis, I think. And there were a couple moves in Zumba that it clearly told me "NO!". So I backed off a bit, and I iced it after Zumba. It's doing a little better, still a bit twingey though. I'll try and do some Wii Fit tonight, but if it hurts a lot, I'll rest it. Tomorrow night is 1/2 hour of strength training and 1/2 hour of Zumba.
Journal everything AND count WW points - 0 pauses allowed - Round 2 - Day 20 completed
64 ounces of water - 0 pauses allowed - Round 2 - Day 20 completed
Stay within WW points - 2 pauses allowed - Round 2 - Day 20 completed
45 min. of cardio - 1 pause taken - 2 pauses left - Round 2 - Day 13 completed
5 servings of fruits and veg - 2 pauses taken - 1 pause left - Round 2 - Day 17 completed
50 crunches - 3 pauses taken - 0 pauses left - Round 2 - Day 11 completed
1 minute of planks - 3 pauses taken - 0 pauses left - Day 11 completed
You guys are doing well on your challenges.
Red, I hope your silence only means you are very busy and that nothing is wrong. I hope that I have not intruded and made you quiet.
Dyanna, you are doing so well on your challenged and I do wish you didn't live so far away as you would be welcome here to join me for this meal tonight. It's plain and ordinary, but I'm a simple "meat and potatoes" kind of gal and that is what works for me.
The pork loin will be baked with a bit of onion powder, salt and pepper on it for one hour at 350 degrees. There will be leftovers, but DH is coming home tomorrow evening from NYC and he'll eat that on Friday, perhaps. I might brush a tiny bit of BBQ sauce over top instead of using the other condiments, but only if I figure out that there is a singular point left in my day. If that is the case, I will wrap it in foil before cooking to seal in the sauce and moisture.
By the way, I have a sister in law who has had to go gluten free due to some intestional issues. She told me that she lost 5 pounds and my brother in law (who eats what she eats to make life easy) lost 8 pounds in three months. Neither of them were trying to lose weight, only trying to convert to eating this way for her health. It was kind of a lightbulb moment for me and I thought that it wouldn't hurt to add a few gluten free items into my own diet. I'm not giving it up entirely, but why not see what it's like?
I'm OK, just extremely busy. Utterly chaotic stuff going down here. derry, you are fine, and certainly no intrusion!!! diyana, always grateful for your support. Onyyx, hang in there! I should be able to not only touch base, but stand on it, a little bit longer soon....hoping to at least. Later!
Derry, I totally know what you mean about recipes in magazines, or diets for that matter, that have items in them that make it just to hard to follow. Like stuffed bell peppers, or Orange Roughy is becoming one of the more favored of these items. I seriously don't know who keeps this just chilling in their freezer, but I can tell you all I have is chicken and hamberger. *sigh* I did try once before to create a meal plan and folllow it, and I did really well at every meal unti dinner. My BF kinda has problems following a set meal plan, and I have to admit I can't really complain because he does most of the cooking. Not really sure what to do about that... I guess I could say that I'm taking over the kitchen for a month, but I think he would get bored with my menu items. Anyway, I'm really glad that its going so well for you, and I'll keep my fingers crossed that you won't have to use any of your pause days!
Thanks everyone for your support!! It really helps to keep me motivated!
Onyyx, with your BF doing the cooking, I wonder if he is making things that are not exactly weight loss friendly? Has that been your downfall? Is he overweight too? Is he trying or not trying to lose?
Red, I hope things calm down for you.
Diyana, so, do you have to go back to day 1 on certain things today? You must feel very accomplished!
As for me, it's day 5 of following a pre-planned menu and I'm up for it.
I am happy that it's going well.
I sure wish the scale would move. I have a pretty good quality digital scale and I was hoping that it would even go down by .2 today.... but nothing.
I shall forge on....
Red - I'm glad to hear from you! I was REALLY getting worried. Have you been busy teaching? Or writing? Or riding? Or taking long train rides? I miss you.
Onyyx - 1 week complete! YGG!!! You are so fortunate to have a BF that cooks!! My DH occasionally cooks in the spring, summer and fall on the grill. Since DH's fave food is beef in any form, we don't even have much chicken in the frig, much less orange roughy, tilapia (which it seems is in ALL recipes nowadays).
Linda - I don't necessarily HAVE to back to day 1 on the challenges that I completed yesterday. My choices are to either continue them without listing them, continue them AND list them - starting round 3, day 1, or not continue. I've been doing this long enough to know that Not journaling food and Not drinking water are NOT options if I want to be successful at weight loss. And I'm even more successful when I am accountable here for keeping these habits up...So I'll keep listing them. I really admire your ability to stick with pre-planned menus...like Onyyx, I do really well for b'fast and lunch, and I sometimes plan dinner...but then there are nights like last night when I had planned something for dinner, but really wasn't feeling like cooking...so DH cooked himself a hamburger on the george foreman and I had a lean cuisine dinner and vegetable soup. If you're staying on plan, then the scale will move. Just keep forging!
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Journal everything AND count WW points - 0 pauses allowed - Round 2 - Day 21 COMPLETED!! Starting Round 3 today.
64 ounces of water - 0 pauses allowed - Round 2 - Day 21 COMPLETED!! Starting Round 3 today.
Stay within WW points - 2 pauses allowed - Day 21 COMPLETED!! Starting Round 3 today.
45 min. of cardio - 2 pauses taken - 1 pauses left - Round 2 - Day 13 completed
5 servings of fruits and veg - 2 pauses taken - 1 pause left - Round 2 - Day 18 completed
I didn't do these last night, and am out of pauses...so I have to start over.
50 crunches - 3 pauses allowed - Round 2 - Day 0 completed
1 minute of planks - 3 pauses allowed - Round 2 - Day 0 completed
Thanks Onyyx for the reminder to ice and not overdo.
I just compiled several WW friendly recipes for a friend of mine. Some I got off of the WW website, some from 3FC. If you'd like me to email them to you, PM me your email address. So far there are 2 Microsoft Word docs (about 50 recipes total - mostly chicken and beef).
Yippee!! I'm doing the happy Zumba dance!! I'm extremely happy to announce that after the 4 lbs I lost last week, I lost 1.8 lbs more this week, just following Weight Watchers and exercising almost every day!! I'm thrilled that I'm at the lowest weight I've been in at least a year or two!!
Diyana, CONGRATULATIONS!!!! I'm so happy for you!!
I would definately love the recipes, and thank you for the offer of sharing! But.. I don't know what you mean by PM you my email address... :-( I had considered joining weighwatchers in the past, but never did it because I thought it was just another fad diet, and expensive. Can you tell me about your experience? I would love to know how its working for you, and everyone else for that matter! Maybe I'll join :-)
My BF has been fairly supportive about me losing weight, but it did take awhile. He didn't think that there was anything wrong and it took me crying all over him because I couldn't fit into any of the clothes that I own anymore to show him that this was really serious to me. Not to mention going to the doctor and being told that I have high cholesterol and that it can lead to birth defects and infirtility, among other things. He tries, but mostly its on me.
I love that my BF cooks, but Derry, you're right, its probably not stuff that's the best for me, and yes, he's overwieght as well, although not as bad as I am. At least I got him out of the habit of cooking with half a stick of butter every meal. Oh, that was a sad moment when I watched him cooking vegitables LOL! One good thing that is going to happen is that I ordered ********** from beach body. Its suppsed to be good for lowering cholesterol and helping with digestion/regularity, so I really hope that it works like it says it does. I think my plan is going to be replacing breakfast with this and maybe dinner too, especially on the days that I work.
Tomorrow is weigh in day. I'm a little nervous because I know that I didn't eat the best this week so I don't know if all the exercising is going to help. But hey, at least I'm developing habits that will help me :-) And I'm feeling fantastic!!
Challenge:
some form of exercise 15min/day: Day 8 completed, 0 pauses
Ahhh! Just realized that I totally got off on my days!! Today (or technically Yesterday) could only have been day 7!! I realized looking at my blog that I lost day 4 in the count and went straight to day 5!! Ok, so offically back on track and on day 7. Stupid night shift and it messing everything up!
Onyyx - PM me, means to send me a private message - we don't want you posting your email address on the thread where anyone can get it...just privately. The way to send a private message is to click on my name in the left column above my avatar, and select Send a private message to diyana. That will bring up a form, and you can enter your email address, and I'll email you the recipes. Weight Watchers is definitely not cheap, but it is a sensible eating plan, and the weekly support (and weigh in for accountability) is very helpful to me. And it's frustrating when you hit a plateau or gain even if you're doing all the right stuff...cuz you still have to pay. I do Weight Watchers at my work during my lunch hour once a week. My company's flexible spending plan reimburses me for the WW fees because I had my doctor write a prescription for Weight Watchers for me for the TREATMENT OF (not prevention of) high blood pressure, high cholesterol, etc. As for whether or not exercise will offset less than perfect eating...that's always a crap shoot. It's calories in versus calories out. But exercise will help your overall health, which is awesome!!
Move - Where are ya?
Red - Okay...I'm starting to worry here. Please either post or send me an email. How are you, chica??
Linda - Hope you're doing fantastic! And have a fun, relaxing and on plan weekend!!
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Last night, I did 15 minutes of treadmill, 30 minutes of Zumba - SO MUCH FUN!!, and 30 minutes of strength training. My back and knee are a bit twingey from working out, but overally I'm feeling great!! I've got an insanely busy weekend ahead, so not sure if I'll be able to post.
Journal everything AND count WW points - 0 pauses allowed - Round 3 - Day 1 completed
64 ounces of water - 0 pauses allowed - Round 3 - Day 1 completed
Stay within WW points - 2 pauses allowed - Round 3 - Day 1 completed
45 min. of cardio - 2 pauses taken - 1 pauses left - Round 2 - Day 14 completed
5 servings of fruits and veg - 2 pauses taken - 1 pause left - Round 2 - Day 19 completed
50 crunches - 3 pauses allowed - Round 2 - Day 1 completed
1 minute of planks - 3 pauses allowed - Round 2 - Day 1 completed
I'm a good cook, but I REALLY don't like to cook, so if a recipe is too complicated or has too many weird ingredients in it, I don't bother. I always make swaps of equal point value. As long as I get the veggies and protein in, it works for me. I don't do well when I'm overly regimented. A hair in a Lean Cuisine meal? 
That's awful!! I have one aunt and one uncle left, and I love them. They were so supportive of me in getting through the grief. Good for you for limiting the wine. I don't drink wine, as I'm allergic to it. But I do enjoy beer. I typically only have one when we go out, which isn't that often. I'm glad you're all set with your food and finding it fairly easy to stay on plan. That's why I bring a bunch of healthy snacks to work...so I have stuff here and am not tempted by the cafeteria. 
Hope you're doing okay, my sista! 
I guess I could say that I'm taking over the kitchen for a month, but I think he would get bored with my menu items. Anyway, I'm really glad that its going so well for you, and I'll keep my fingers crossed that you won't have to use any of your pause days! 
..... Heh, love mom. 
1 week complete! YGG!!! You are so fortunate to have a BF that cooks!! My DH occasionally cooks in the spring, summer and fall on the grill. Since DH's fave food is beef in any form, we don't even have much chicken in the frig, much less orange roughy, tilapia (which it seems is in ALL recipes nowadays). 
I'm extremely happy to announce that after the 4 lbs I lost last week, I lost 1.8 lbs more this week, just following Weight Watchers and exercising almost every day!! I'm thrilled that I'm at the lowest weight I've been in at least a year or two!!
