Being Slothful Is Not Good, But Sometimes Is Therapy

Sloth is one of my major besetting "deadly" sins. And I've been really slothful this week. No exercise at all. Lots of sleeping. (Medication may need tweaking.) And, weirdly, though I'm menopausal, I've had a crampy "period". I think it's cause I lost 10 pounds in the last couple months and may have a reaction to the estrogen release. Not sure, prolly. At age 50, I'm not thinking I've starting popping out eggs again.

So, I had to scrounge in the back of the linen closet for a box of unused tampons leftover from my last Aunt Flo visit...

But I'm happy to update my ticker and stats with another slow downtick. I weighed in at 256.6 for a total of 42.4 lost.

And I'm very happy to see the slow, consistent progress.

The sloth is not so great. I'm glad I'm seeing the endo in a couple weeks, and I got blood taken out yesterday. It may or may not be the thyroid/med change. It may be the killer heat of August. 97 degrees yesterday with triple-digit heat index.

Whatever.

Appetite is good and NOT binge-y. I still am feeling calm about food, though I certainly could eat plenty if I don't watch it. I'm happy with a 1 to 2 pound loss a week and not feeling at all anxious. Whether that's related to the slothful lethargy, who knows.

I think if I can get past the sleepies and move more, I can up my loss.

Then again, moving more can up my appetite, too, so I worry about that.

I'll be back to Pilates next week (my trainer was on vacation last week), and that should help, too.

I'm eating pretty normal (though lower quantity) meals and less fruit than I was used to eating in a quest to have lower carb--not low, lower carb--meals. I had raspberries with my breakfast of caprese salad with EVOO and teriyaki wings. Yeah, teriyaki has carbs, but my mouth wanted it, so it was nicer to feel satisfied on a small bit of it. I have some pretty peaches I can have with supper. I find if I have my WonderSlim protein stuff between meals, the meals themselves tend to be normal (not my usual pig-out). And if I have something late at night, say 3 hours before bed, I feel a huge reduction in nightly food cravings and wake up feeling less crazy to have breakfast like usual.

So, while I am not a low-carber, I do seem to be a lower-carber (I have pasta, I have bread, I have potatoes, and I like fruit), meaning just cutting back on the quantity of my starch/fruit eating and increasing the protein (and fat) to compensate. This really does seem to be calming me...so far.

Hope your weekend is lovely. Mine has been restful and full of Japanese manga and a comedy flick and smooching hubby so far. Tomorrow is a family event, so I'll have to deal with the "how to face temptation" issue at the birthday party for my brother. I can see myself having to tote some lower-carb options or just saying NO to the rice and YES to the "ropa vieja" and salad. (Though it's really tough for a Cuban-born gal to have "ropa vieja" sans rice, I tell ya.)

Later, y'all....

Evaluating The Holiday and ReSparked

I had gotten pretty busy and didn't spark for a couple days. Holidays sort of make the focus go onto something OTHER than the routine, than journaling, etc.

But, I never had my mind totally off what I needed to do. I didn't exercise Thursday or Friday, so I have my sneakers on and plan to do my alloted cardio before showering for whatever we're gonna do this evening. I've eaten fine today, and I'm not terribly hungry at the moment, either.

So, the holiday and Black Friday:

Thursday: I ate breakfast, cause I knew dinner would be round 4 or 5 pm, depending on the turkey's doneness. We outdid ourselves this year, as the food was especially delicious (and plentiful, of course). My contribution was an organic salad with arugula, watercress, pears, dried cranberries, blue cheese with raspberry vinaigrette and toasted pecans. I thought it was great, the blend of sweet from the fruits and dressing, earthy and peppery from the greens and pecans, and the sour-deep taste of the cheese crumbles. I also took a veggie platter with assorted raw veggies. This way, I knew I'd have lots of F/Vs to select from. Instead of making the low-fat chocolate cake and baked apples, I spazzed and got pumpkin pie and key lime pie at Whole Foods. It worked out. I had about two tablespoons worth of the insides of key lime pie (I hate the crust of those pies, graham crackers are icky to me). And that with a bit of whipped cream did me fine, along with a couple bites of dark Belgian chocolate (60% mini bites, not truffles).

Later that evening, at home from my family's gathering, I got peckish. In order not to totally go into food depravity, I heated up some lentil soup, had a pear, called it a night.

The scale was fine the next day, other than a little salt uptick. Salt has continued to bedevil me, so I have not returned to 266 (I'm at 268 and change). I have been in stasis, not losing, but the salt regain hasn't left cause I've indulged in the salties. My bad.

It's still thrilling to see me in the 60's, but I"m really ready to move on, here, peops!

Black Friday: I had a beef craving (again, what up with dat), so we went to Chipotle. I had part of the Barbacoa Bowl (I asked for very little rice and extra beans to give me fiber-fill-me-up) and had the guac for the good fats and flavor. Hubby let me have one of his beef tacos. That satisfied my beef craving, so I had a very light dinner of leftover turkey breast in light gravy with some organic whole cranberry sauce and sweet potatoes and fruit (papaya, orange).

Today, I've only had one meal--egg white garlic-tomato omelette with Ezequiel toast and St. Dalfour four fruits jam, Trop 50 orange juice lite, coffee.

I have noticed that when I have several 400 to 500 calorie meals in a row, my appetite is a bit quieter. When I have a a couple big meals in a row, my appetite readjusts upward. This makes me want to not binge, I can tell you. I like that I'm feeling calmer in terms of appetite, and I am so afraid to set up a binge by having a huge blow-out.

Anyway, I haven't lost this past week, I have held on except for salt bloat variations, and now it's time to lose a bit before Christmas sets up its obstacle course.

I have done some Sparking today--my breakfast, read some articles, etc--and I want to get my head on straight for a new week. I have my horrible tasting Zinc liquid supplement (since I kept coming consistently way low on that in my nutrition profile from my online food journal), and my B-complex/B12 tabs. I've got my Amazing Grass for an afternoon pick-me-up. I'm ready to tackle the next seven days.

On to my Saturday cardio, ab work, and stretching...

Enjoy your weekend, gals and ladies. And be very healthy in your choices~

If It's Lifelong, Then It Better Fit; If it's Forever, It Better Taste Good...

I've tried various diets over the last 4 decades. When I was younger, it was out of a magazine or from some book. I think you know what I mean? This time, I'm trying to figure out what to eat myself.

I figure if this is forevver (or however long forever is in a finite/mortal frame about to hit fifty in a couple months), then I better enjoy it or I won't do it. I am not a martyr. I cannot eat a plan that I can't actually get some pleasure from.

So, while Sparking my nutrition and trying to fill voids, I'm trying to gauge how much pleasure I'm getting from what I eat.

I don't like spinach and egg whites as much as I like garlic and tomato and egg whites. One feels virtuous. The other makes me ridiculously happy.

I like swiss or mozzarella or parmesan cheese in omelettes, even reduced fat. I like reduced fat american or cheddar or feta a lot better.

I like strawberries. I love raspberries.

I like dried fruit. I really like freeze-dried fruit.

I like turkey and veggies in a hoagie. I much prefer flatbread. I had been having Subway's turkey and veggies on whole wheat. I switched to flatbread and raised my enjoyment 100%. Today, trying to make it even BETTER, I switched my post-Pilates order (the Subway is one floor below my Pilates studio) to a turkey and veggie salad and, when I got home, I used a low-carb Joseph's Flatbread (shoving the turkey and salad into it). I liked it, too, with 100 fewer calories than Subway's and more fiber. Ya see, experimenting.

I am okay with WW lite bread. I like Nature's Own whole wheat. I much, much prefer Ezekiel bread. It has more flavor and mouth texture.

I like green tea iced to hot. I prefer black tea and coffee, iced or hot.

I like skim milk in my lattes, but I love 2%, and I feel bouncier.

So, today, I nixed the skinny latte at Starbucks and had a sugarfree one in grande (not venti, as I had for two years prior to this month), and went for low-fat. It tastes a lot better, so I can drink a smaller one and feel really satisfied. I might even notch it back to tall and go whole milk. Let's see. :)

I'm gonna work with what to bring Thanksgiving. I want to have big taste and satisfaction with lower calorie/lower-fat/lower-additives and crap/higher health.

I've found in the last two weeks that I'm a bit calmer (for now). This weekend brought a lot of challenges, and each of the three times I was in trouble, I made compromises. I thought it through.

Like at my family's for a birthday party. I asked for the teeniest bit of chocolate birthday cake--cut off the top with the frosting, left myself a 3 in by 1.5 inch rectangle of only the chocolate cake part. Why? Frosting is fine, but it doesn't do it for me like chocolate cake. So, I had the part that gave me smiles and left what only was "okay." And I made it a smaller serving.

Also at the party we had assorted Cuban pastries and appetizers on the table. I only allowed myself to sample one of the savory ones. Avoided the dip and crackers and the sweet pastries. However, part of the lunch included special Puerto Rican meat pies, homemade, stuffed with seasoned ground beef. These are a specialty of my SIL, and she only makes them a couple times a year. They're FRIED. But they're relatively small. So, I weighed it and decided to have one. Context: Just about everyone else had from 3 to a half-dozen. I had one, and made the best of it.

I didn't have the noodles. I had the low-salt, lower-fat chicken breast and rice with creole red bean soup (one of my favoritest things on earth, Puerto Rican or Cuban style red bean soup. I could eat it every day.)

Because the party had been pretty devoid of veggies, I had for supper a big bowl of berries and watermelon, and a bigger bowl of arugula with minimal dressing. :)

I ended up 100 calories over my limit, cake, ham croquette, alcapurria and all.

Today, I'm doing great. Did the egg white-tomato-garlic omelette and was happy. Did the Subway substitution and was fine. And I'm planning to have lots of veggies with some leftover low-carb, high-fiber pasta for supper. My energy is really, really good and got me through Pilates fine. I'm not missing the venti-ness of latte, cause killer yummy grande is perfect.

And for dessert tonight, I'm thinking of leaving calories (60) for a sugar-free vanilla pudding. After decades of sticking mostly to chocolate (with slight deviations to butterscotch now and then), I realized this past month I really love the vanilla one. It makes me happier than the chocolate one.

I know I have to find a way to shove as much food and beverage pleasure into 1700 to 1800 calories. For life. Or I may as well just stay fat, cause I won't be happy settling for "Oh, well, this has few calories, so I'll settle for it." (And some stuff of what I've sampled at Hungry Girl is really "settling". And those Progresso soups suck. And Stevia makes me gag. But Amazing Grass is nice! And some of those WW concoctions you hear about at meetings are icky. But Just Strawberries rule!)

I was reading that people need to find what fits, whether it's low-carb, low-fat, flex, low-cal with splurges, etc. We don't all like brussel sprouts or kiwi or broccoli or tofu. I think forcing ourselves to eat what we hate backfires.

So, in your dieting explorations, what have you discovered you love?

(Oh, and I really love raw cacao powder on bananas. Ooh. Who needs drugstore candy bars!?)

Schizo Eating: KFC Tender Grilled is Nummy and VEGGIEMUNN Corn and Leek Chowder is amazing!

I had lunch for breakfast (went to bed at 7 am and slept until 11:30 am). I woke up with a KFC craving. So, I got dressed and went and bought the white meat tender grilled chicken. I had cole slaw, mashies, and three green bean sides with that. Yeah, 3 green bean sides. I have to admit, I like their grilled chicken better than the fried. I remember when they previously had--years ago--tender roast (which was the one my hubby used to get). That didn't last. Once they stopped carrying the roast chicken, hubby didn't want it, so we avoided KFC. For years, we didn't go to KFC but, maybe, once in a blue moon when I got the urge for some fried chicken and biscuits.

We still don't eat there often. Just got this weird craving. So, there ya go. I'll probably bloat.

To make up for a fast food breakfast, I had a raw lunch. An organic apple with organic peanut butter, an apple-raisin cookie, strawberries. The cookies are sort of a square-shaped, moist melange of sunflower seeds, dates, raisins, bananas, vanilla, agave, walnuts, cinnamon, and, natch, apples. I ordered them fresh-made, delivered Monday by VEGGIEMUNN, a raw food purveyor in South Florida. If you're gonna have cookies, these are wholesome--and whole. And really tasty. Sort of like an apple-banana bread, really, but flatter and chewier. :D

I gotta give kudos to VEGGIEMUNN for killer yummy raw corn and leek chowder. This is one of my fave soups they make (along with the pear watercress and the asparagus). The raw barley and mushroom is okay, and I got several this week for the barley fill-er-up and fiber properties and the earthy mushroom allure, but now I wish I had gotten a half dozen of the corn and leek. Amazing. Beautiful green color, lovely daikon sprouts on top, creamy, delicious. Here are the ingredients: sprouted sunflower seeds, corn, leek, avocado, agave, coriander, parsley, kelp.

I will be having the mushroom/barley raw soup and the raw plantain pie for dinner. (In case you're curious, the plantain pie's ingredients are ripe plantains, nut cheese & tomatoes, Macadamia Nuts, Cashews, Bragg'S, Lemon Juice, Italian seasoning, basil, garlic. The mushroom barley soup has sprouted barley, shiitake mushroom, white mellow miso, fresh herbs, cold pressed olive oil.)

As you can see, I'm not a totally consistent eater. Certainly, I"m not a raw foodie. But I like having regular vegetarian meals and I enjoy the occasional raw meal. I am a particular fan of some vegan raw soups and desserts. Miami is hot most of the time and cool fruity or veggie-ey soups are very delightful when one is prone to perspire when going outdoors.

My Calorie Guesstimating Is Still Primo...Now, If I could Just Get My Dinnertime Appetite in Line

I started logging my food on SparkPeople today. (My user name there is PrincessDieter, for anyone who is in that community.)

It's a bit of a slow-going pain, but I wanted to see how the calories/fat/protein/carbs added up.

I had written what I ate quickly in my diet journal at home, with a pen,the old-fashioned way, and I had guesstimated that breakfast had been roughly 550 calories.

When I entered the food into the nutrition log at SparkPeople, it told me the calorie count was 535. Good huh?

I remember the very first time I went to a dietitian. Not as a chubbyish kid or zaftigish teen (I was normal on the weight charts, but you could tell by looking at my belly and butt and thighs that I was on the higher side). I went as an overweight 29 year old carrying close to 190 pounds. The dietitian quizzed me on calories in meals, and I nailed every single meal she projected on a screen. The surprised look on her face made me think that didn't happen often, if ever. But hey, I liked to read diet books even then, even if they weren't really sticking.

So, I lost about 20 pounds that time. Regained plus. The usual story.

All that to say that the head knowledge of weight loss isn't correlative to the reality of weight loss, but it's still good to be aware. I can't fool myself when I scarf down pizza or cheese enchilada take-away that I'm eating A reasonable number of calories, cause I know dang well it's more like Z. I've seen caloric underestimation in action (just about everyone I know other than my middle sister underestimates how many calories they have at a meal.)

So, I had a pretty decent, high-fiber, highish protein, veggie/fruit enriched breakfast. I already planned what lunch and my snack will be. The crux always tends to be dinner. That's when my appetite goes nuts. It went a bit nuts last night, when I gave in to seconds/dessert temptation and felt pretty stupid, too.

But, fine. It's another day. I started off well, the middle seems manageable, and if I strategize (drink plenty of fluid, have my whey snack a couple hours prior to dinner, have a fiber supplement, too, to start filling me up) then dinner won't defeat me.

Tomorrow, I plan to return to Pilates after a 4 week absence due to this really hideous, lingering flu. I still have some cough (not much), some plegm (not much), some fatigue (middling). The idea of exercising is daunting, cause I am nowhere near my best energy levels. But I plan to eat lots of fruits and veggies today and get a lots of potassium and rest as much as I can before my session tomorrow. I want to recapture the muscle I lost being ill.

I hope I can continue the logging of food at SparkPeople. I tried this before at WW online and really kind of fizzle away. I always have done better at the pen/paper journal of foods (faster). But I want to see the nutrient breakdown, even if it's just for a few weeks to see where I'm lacking/excessive/etc.

I hope today is a great day for all the fatfighters out there. Write down your calories/points. Eat lots of produce. Drink water. Move some. Do that, you and I, and we're halfway to a good food/fitness Tuesday.

Later,

Getting Proactive and "Fruitful"

Although every bit of me wanted to nap, I got my car keys and went to CVS and treated myself to a lipstick and a lip gloss--both a super-cheery pinkish color-- and a woman's magazine and some sugarless Orbit gum.

Because of my slump, I ate crappy for lunch. I know, no excuse, but there you have it. I went for the full fat comfort food at KFC--original recipe two-piece white meat with mashies and cole slaw and corn and a biscuit. Yikes.

So, after CVS, I headed to Julio's Natural Foods and bought enough for three to four meals. I got lentil soup, a baked sweet potato, a mixed greens salad with olives and mozzarella with a balsamic vinaigrette on the side, brown rice, grilled veggie assortment, and a cucumber/yogurt salad with dill. I also got a quart of carrot juice, a quart of papaya and soymilk (which is nice for breakfast), and a quart of Green Goddess smoothie, which has celery/spinach/romaine/cucumber/cilantro/parsley/lime juice/fresh greeen apple juice all mixed together. I also got a 16 oz one with tropical fruits called Cancun. This way, I don't have to think about cooking. I don't have to vex about going to the grocery store. It's there when I'm hungry or thirsty.

Hubby is out of town, so it's me rattling around in the house, telling myself to buck up.

I'm gonna have some Cancun now.

Thanks for the encouraging comments. :*

5 Diets, 5 Dieters: Diet Face Off

If you're curious about some of the most popular diets around, five dieters are trying them out at LiveStron.com's DIET FACE OFF. Here are the diets/eating plans being used:

Weight Waters
South Beach Supercharged
Flat Belly diet
Mediterranean Diet
Jillian Michaels' Making the Cut

The dieters have posted their starting stats and have been blogging about their experience using these plans. If your eating plan is not working for you, here's your chance to see what results other plans provide for fellow fatfighters.
~

WW eTools Points Tracker is Kinda Fun!

My first day using my eTools Points Tracker. There's an activity tracker, but my activities today have pretty much been drinking water, doing nebulizer treatments of albuterol, making healthful meals, and watching tv/reading/peeing from all that water. And blogging. Lots of that.

It's sorta fun. Maybe in a week, it will seem like a drag. But for now...a toy!

I put in all my food, and I've had 19 points so far (which is like 950 cals). I had two moments today when I almost gave in to bad food--a wild 7 minutes of pizza craving, where I finally said NO enough times to mean it; and another wild moment when I almost called to have Chinese food delivered, and I don't mean steamed chicken and veggies, neigther. That "no" stuck, too.

So, I have a grilled balsamic chicken on an endive and watercress salad as the plan for dinner. I have 12 points left according to my tracker; though I will allow myself more, as 31 points can leave me hungry a lot of days, nuts hungry. 31 pts = about 1550 cals. I have no guilt issue with going up to 1800 or 1900. I just don't wanna go over 2000, really. If I can keep it to 1800 (36 pts), I'd be pleased as many fruit punches.

If you don't like doing WW in real life, try the online one. The tools are cool.

Anyway, my meals thus far:

Bkfst: I made my fave Easy Cheesy Eggie Veggies that I mentioned in a post earlier this week, but I put them in sprouted corn tortillas (organic) and added a bit of fire-roasted salsa on top. YUM! And only 7.5 points total, including a half cup of cranberry juice cocktail (those mini containers like in hospitals) that I had leftover from some Diet-To-Go meal from a few months back. Lots of water. Coffee. (I drink it not just for taste, but for the asthma benefits.) I saved part of the eggie veggies for a proteinish snack, but I never got hungry enough for one. Might just heat it up for tomorrow's brekky.

Lunch: A double-Gardenburger on Ezekiel bread sandwich with 2 slices of 2% cheddar. I had half of one of those glorious organic grapefruits I got Sunday at the farmer's market. Man, never had such yummy grapefruit. or at least, it feels that way in my mouth. :D Lots of water. Coffee. An ounce of tart cherry concentrate mixed with water (mmmm, nice and anti-inflammatory).

So far, not feeling ravenous. I am peckish now. It's clearly dinnertime. But I'm waiting on hubby.

Tomorrow, I see my doc (need more meds and an Rx for a mammo, for which I'm a tad overdue). And after my appointment, I plan to zip by the Fresh Market or, if I don't mind driving a bit farther (depending how the breathing goes and I feel) Whole Foods to replenish some of the veggies/fruits I ate up (zucchini, mushrooms, peppers, papaya, berries) and buy some chicken breasts and sliced cheese. Also need some egg whites.

Hope your Wednesday was healthful and happy. Toodles.
~~

VEGGIEMUNN Meal #3 Review

Not much to report on the food today. I had my second serving of Pasta Primavera, as this was the entree on which I doubled up. It's the one I enjoyed so much the first day and, yes, enjoyed similarly today). I'd happily have this every week. It remained nice and fresh though it's been in the fridge since Monday.

I had another citrus salad with it (like day one). Again, nothing special.

The new thing I tried was the fruit soup. This one was composed of juice and pulp from honeydew melon, apples, bananas, nectarines, and valencia oranges.

Verdict: Refreshing and nice, a good thing to have after a tough workout, as it's hydrating, sweet, and relaxing. Basically, a runny smoothie in a bowl. :) Makes eating it slower and slurping through a straw, which I guess is not a bad thing, right? A slowing down at day's ending.

Did you have your fruits and veggies today? At least five servings, but better to have 7 and more. Did ya?

~

Pilates and the Princess' Knees & Prayer for Fellow Bloggers

I mentioned how hard it was to get through ANYTHING Monday--Pilates included. I was just deflated. Energy was on the ground level. No oomph.

Today, with the storms of Mon and Tues having moved on--sunnier, less humidity, no storming--my asthma was better. Breathing better = energy a bit better. I also slept slightly better. Energy that much better.

I was, however, in pain.

Monday, we did some barre work, including plies. Though we were careful to keep my knee from extending past the point of danger (kept it perpendicular, the knee over the big toe-ish), my right knee (the one that NEVER gives me trouble) hurt. We adjusted a bit, and it hurt less, but I didn't say anything and worked through it.

Bad idea.

Yesterday and today, my right (normally nice) knee has had stabbing pains whenever I sit down, get up, or climb stairs. Any weight-bearing bending motions. My left knee (the troublesome one since '89) is making loud clicks.

So, instead of opting out of the workout, I was very careful to describe what I was feeling to Liza, my trainer. She made appropriate adjustments to my posture to keep the knees relaxed. We stayed off the weight bearing stuff. Mostly used the reformer, stretched on the barrel. The only weight-bearing exercise I did was stretching-related. I'm hoping with some careful movement on my part, my knee will ease up and it will be my nice knee once more.

Fingers, not knees, crossed.

On the very positive side: I got a good workout. I couldn't get through things on Monday, so I worked proactively to set myself up for a better workout today. I prayed to get rest. (And did.) I made up a pre-workout snack based on something I read online to aid performance, including carbs, green tea, barley powder, whey protein, and coconut water for potassium. (It did help.) Today, I felt myself working harder, the muscles trembling with effort, but not collaspsing; my mind focused on controlling. Did I have a hard time with some things? Sure. But I didn't feel like a failure--like Monday. I felt good. I didn't feel like crying--the way I did Monday.

So far, my eating has been good, too. Not great. Great would imply much more perfection of choices and constriction of points. But good. Plenty of protein, high fiber (had beans at lunch), got my calcium foods in, and I have a lovely watermelon and half-papaya ready for dessert tonight. I went, stinky and sweaty after Pilates, to get these specifically. I was craving watermelon, and I did't have any at home. Tomorrow I get my organic foods delivery (mostly produce and dairy, plus chicken breasts) which will see me nicely set up for the rest of this week with greens and berries and calcium-rich foods.

I'm holding on tonight. My worst time of day is evenings. Making it through the evening means I make it through the day. :)

Positive thoughts.

And if you can spare a prayer for my creaky/achy knees and my spirit, I happily--and gratefully-- accept. While you're praying, add some intercession for our dear Scale Junkie, Diana, and Lyn of Escape from Obesity and Kate of Fabulous @ 50 . Life is tossing them curves--from the "void" inside, to marital grief, to health issues, to financial woes.

God bless you all, give you peace through trials, bring you through them stronger and better and braver and smarter and with healing and much more joy at the end of it all than you could possibly imagine!

~~

~~

"Shrinking Inward" and the Imperfect Day...And How To Get Moving With Joy

That phrase in the blog entry header is the one used by my Pilates trainer today before we started our session. In her ebullient manner, she said, "Look at you! You're shrinking INWARD."

Imagine yourself there with me:

I look into the dread wall-to-wall-to-ceiling mirror of the eastern wall of the room and think, "Ew, I'm fat," but also, "Yeah, I am. I really am shrinking inward." See how my waist is defined. My belly, while still huge, naturally, at my great weight, and prominent, is nevertheless not as big, not as round, not as low.

I say, "I thought maybe I was projecting it when I looked in the mirror at home. Cause I really thought yesterday I was even smaller in my midsection."

"No, you're not imagining it," says Liza. "It's real."

Me: smiling.

I mention to her how the scale is barely budging (one pound down from last week, but still not at my lowest prior to my regain). She says, "It won't show on the scale. Not yet. Eventually, it will."

Building muscle. Wonderful and frustrating both to us scale-watchers, I think to myself.

Okay, you can come back from eavesdropping now. :)

Embarrassing moment: During one of the maneuvers on the Cadillac, my pants fell down. They're looser around my hips and waist. The same pants that were snug June 30.

Fortunately, I wear swim briefs (black or royal blue, depending on which of the four pairs is clean and at hand!) They are opaque and substantial enough to withstand all sorts of contortions and to forefend any flashing of naughty bits should pants tear or...er...FALL DOWN to my thighs!

Happy news: I can do more repetitions. I can do harder exercises. In just ONE month. Today marks ONE month of Pilates.

One month can bring changes. :)

What alterations are you going through this month? How have you changed?

BTW, how are you all doing on the exercise front? Good? I hope so.

If not so good, I understand. Really, I avoided exercising for YEARS AND YEARS.

I know it's really hard to break inertia. That couch is so comfy. That book is so engrossing. That dvd is so enthralling.

But you'll FAIL if you don't get moving! MOVE! Now! Today!

Find something that challenges you while having an enjoyment factor. It's the joy or fun or intriguing learning aspect that can make it stick. I think it's so much easier to make it to the gym or studio if you have an attachment, a pleasure, in some part of the exertion.

Maybe you are bored by treadmills. Avoid them. Try a bike. Or try hiking. Or try an exercise class. Or try a sport that will get you moving hard for at least an hour. Try a bunch of stuff until something sticks.

Honestly, who can get through all that trembling and heaving and heavy breathing for a lifetime (and we all need to move for a lifetime) unless we like something about what we do for exercise.

Without the "fascination" factor, you'll dread it and find excuses to stay home and sit and eat.

I dreaded my matwork and treadmill minutes years ago at LA FITNESS. I kind of liked the exercise machines, though--the weight-lifting sort. Still, that trainer was hard on my body and the maneuvers totally unengaging to my brain and spirit. I gained muscle, then dropped out. I didn't love it. I didn't attach to the action. I hated other people sweating on the equipment.

Now, it's as hard, but I feel connected to another person. I feel as if I'm pouring power into my spirit and body. I find it fascinating mechanically and I delight in how it uses my mind. I like that I have to think and imagine. I write fiction and poetry (at least, until my recent hiatus). I edit fiction and poetry, still. (Though I'm lax about editing my blog posts!!!) I dig metaphors. Always have. Exercising with metaphors--which Pilates does, because you must put an idea into the movement, now you're a feather, now you're wearing a corset, now you're trying to touch the ceiling, etc--works for me. Focusing on the placement and weight in this joint, that limb, creating that "scoop" in the abdomen, imagining my back straight as an arrow...I'm involved every single second.

What can work for you, those of you who have not gotten into movement yet?

Sit down. Think about what you liked to play at as a child. Use the knowledge that such a trip down memory lane gives you to narrow down what form(s) of exercise will give you what you need physically, emotionally, mentally, maybe spiritually?

Perhaps a martial art--if you want to feel like a warrior who can defend herself. Maybe swimming, if you wanted to be a mermaid as a kid. Maybe dance, if you wanted to be a ballerina. Maybe basketball, if you're tall and like dribbling, running, jumping, tossing. Think about yoga. Do you want something meditative, in tune with the cosmos? Do you want to feel like a Marine, and do obstacle courses and bootcamp-like training? You can! None of that is closed to you.

Do you want to move fast, slow, both?

Do you want music or silence? Inside or outdoors?

So, tell me. What have your figured out about how you want to move?

Write down your feelings about movement if you still haven't come to some ideas. Investigate. Become the Sherlock Holmes who unlocks the door to your perfect form of motion.

Now, a look at the food front: Yesterday was a quite imperfect day. Sadly.

I did fine until late night, which is my big bugaboo bingey time. After dinner. And I think my problem is that I had a VERY light lunch (6 points,some fat, little protein in my yogurt and fresh cherries). I felt fine at first, but the hunger at dinnertime was noticeable. I gobbled down an organic chocolate macaroon. I hit the low-fat chocolate frozen yogurt. I had a latte. I had some plums. It added up. (Clearly, I was having a sweet urge!)

I thought about my lapse. Know what? I can't do light lunches. Clearly. It sets me up for huge hunger and appetite freak-outs hours later.

I didn't make that same error today. I had a filling bowl of grilled chicken, brown rice, guacamole and salsa on top, with a dollop of organic sour cream for extravagance and mouth-satiety. I also had a three WW points iced Starbucks skinny cinnamon dolce latte right after the workout (instead of my past caramel macchiato indulgence). No sugar, lots of skim milk--oh, that lovely cinnamon kick--cause I need my calcium (I take inhaled steroids twice a day, bad for the bones.) Had some zero-calorie white tea, too.

You can approximate this entree with this recipe. If you try it, let me know how it turned out and how you personalized it. (I think it screams for veggies and avocado!)

Yesterday, I had 54 points! That's 16 over my 38 points "perfect day" number.

Today, I have 12 points left for supper. I'll be filling up on a salad pre-entree in order to head off that crazy late night temptation. And water. Lots of water.

How are you doing in your effort to have a perfect fat-fighting day?

Onward and Downward!

Did Ya Have a Perfect Day? If Not, TRY AGAIN!

Lyn posted about working at it one day at a time, aiming for a perfect day.

I decided to take the one-day challenge. One perfect day. Well, okay, nearly perfect. I exercised for 50 minutes and I ate within my self-selected points count (38 pts, which is 1900 calories). It would have been perfect had I had more greens and slept 8 hours. I only slept 5 and a half.

The scale was .6 pounds down.

I'm aiming for another perfect day today. :)

One day at a time...because like it or not, you will have those days, and you can make them good or bad, better or worse, best or worst...or even perfect.

As Lyn said beautifully:

One perfect day, you can do. And if you can do it once, you can do it again. Don't think about the other days. It is ONE day. You only have to do it for ONE day. Then at the end of your perfect day, hug yourself, go to bed, and get back up in the morning committed to doing ONE perfect day. Again.

One day leads to another. Like the momentum of footsteps taking you to a goal, the days carry you forward. They are going to carry you, regardless. In a month you will be a month older. Will you be a month heavier? More miserable? Or will you be a month lighter and happier? Because believe me, the good days string together and create something more masterful and wonderful than weeks and months. They create joy. They become peace and clarity. They lead to a new you.

If you have a hard time visualizing a perfect eating day sort of meal plan, how about some of these to spur you on?--

Women's Health's meal plan for steady blood sugar

Men's Health's meal plan for craving control

High Fiber meal plan

A vegetarian meal plan at 1500 calories

A low-carb meal plan

Vegan meal plan

Oprah's Seven-Day meal plan

High Calcium Meal Plan

A 1200 calorie meal plan with meal replacements

Take 30 to 60 minutes of moderate to vigorous exercise-- a bracing walk, an energizing DVD, some yoga, a refreshing swim, a hike in the woods or desert, a jog through the park, a spell on the trampoline, some focused weight-lifting, a bit of dancing in your living room to salsa music--and add several glasses of water to a good, calorie-controlled meal plan, and, presto, a perfect fatfighting day!

Then utter thanks for being able to breathe, move, and for having food at hand to nourish your body. These are great gifts in a world where many go hungry and many are unable to walk or run or jump or just do one abdominal crunch.

Always be grateful for being able to enjoy a day of becoming that new you.

Have a perfect today!

~

The First Step To Stop Overeating --and Four More

Oh, Lawdy! The Overeating Ogre has come by this week after being gone for a while, drat him. He was by for dinner on Thursday (when I had four slices of whole wheat pizza and a big bowl of white bean soup and just about exploded) and Friday lunch (I had TWO entrees from Boston Market, TWO, with four sides, FOUR, and a chocolate cupcake and chocolate almonds). It was bad. It was like a PMS flash fire (only without the PMS, at least, I don't think so.)

But I banished the nasty creature last night and got back to normal. I walked. I did some at-home Pilates leg lifts. I did breathing to calm myself. I feel like I've slid back into Healthy Mindset today after the lunacy of the last two days.

Two bad days. Two bad meals, very bad.

All is forgiven. I'm moving on.

Fortunately for my spirits, I tried on a dress and two tops in my size today and both were HUGE on me. Hubby mentions my waist is nipping in. My butt is rounder (and according to hubby, firmer). Most startling, my abdominal pannus is smaller and a bit HIGHER. This is what makes me happiest of all. I hate that thing hanging there like a laundry bag. It's lifting, looking less bulky.

Two of my neighbors have commented on my "slimmer" physique as I've been out walking in the early evenings this week.

My bra band is looser. :)

I guess my clothing size has changed. :) I'm losing some fat, I know, and gaining muscle, so the scale is the same after a blip up the day after the pizza insanity.

So, instead of getting all happy and calm from this progress due to the Pilates--thank you, Liza--I binge. What up with that?

I notice other fatfighting bloggers and commenters on those blogs are struggling, and struggling a lot. We're having a binge epidemic.

Let's stop it. Now. Okay? No weekend excuses. No "it's Saturday, I need a treat" mantras. It ends now.

For you. For me. Let's get through this bad time and move forward.

I decided to look for something useful to share, something with tips and strategies and a bit of "workbook" exercises.

I found this one at About.com-- FIVE STEPS TO AVOID OVEREATING

I'll let you read it and do the work--Do it! Don't just read it! Do the work!--and I chose it because the first step is so crucial for those of us with chronic, emotional binge-eating:

Step A. Wake Up!

People who use food to feel better often report overeating when they are in a time-out or food trance. This trance provides an escape from inner criticism, difficult emotions, or stressful life situations. The first step is to find some way to wake up from the trance. No matter how intense your food craving, or how much you have already eaten, you have to snap back to reality before anything else can happen. There is no one proven guaranteed way to bring your self back to conscious awareness. You will have to experiment with several different ways to grab your own attention. Below are some suggestions that may work to bring you back into the here and now:

• Walk to the nearest mirror, look yourself deep in the eyes, and say hello to yourself.

• Talk aloud to yourself. Call yourself by name and say, "wake up."

• Shake your head to clear out the cobwebs.

• Take a deep breathe and say to yourself, "I am okay now. I am fine now. I am in control now."

• Plant visual cues in your kitchen. For example, place a special blooming potted plant on your kitchen table. Looking at it might remind you of your potential to bloom and prosper.

• Tape your baby picture on your refrigerator. Look at how pure and happy you are. Decide that you want to feel happy and eating is not the way to get there.

List a few methods you can think of to bring yourself back to living in the present moment:

_____________________________________________

_____________________________________________

_____________________________________________

_____________________________________________

Those are actually some very simple things to stop the binge-trance. It's not easy to get a clear head, but it's necessary. Copy and paste that step, print it out with the lines for you to write in. Do it! Come on!

Let's all try it, those of us having a hard week. Okay?

One of the methods I've thought of is doing a tape-recording or videotape of myself talkig to myself. I need to find a recorder somwhere (I know I have one) and tape myself doing the encouraging talk and the decisive talk and the hopeful, believing talk. I need to keep the recorder and tape handy--in the kitchen (where the table is) or living room, the only two rooms in the house where I eat.

Instead of a baby picture, I think I prefer a picture of myself in my early 20's, when I was a normal weight and very happy (cause I'd met my soulmate--hubby)and wore camis and shorts all the time cause my legs/thighs/belly/upper arms weren't huge.

Let me know if this strategy (and the others in the article) helped you get through to Monday (and beyond.)

Here's to a healthy weekend and a lighter weigh-in next week. If you want more, check out the eHow article on avoiding overeating. Drink water, focus on lots of fiber, slow down at meal times, etc. You've heard this before. So have I. Let's DO IT today adn tomorrow. It's a weekend of change, right?

Yes! We can!

Onward and Downward!

More articles:

Strategies to Avoid Overeating from Nutrition & Fitness Advisors--also focuses on awareness, keeping blood sugar steady, not starving, and finding what works for you.

Canadian Living's 8 Tips to Avoid Overeating

Escaping the Overeating Rut with a chart to help you become aware of your pattern/rut.

Sparkly Factoid: Big Breakfast Helps in Weight Loss

Starting your day with a large meal packed with both carbohydrates and lean protein, and even a small piece of chocolate, can help lessen cravings and hunger the rest of the day, which can lead to significant weight loss, new research suggests.

To combat both the addiction cycle and the hunger that inevitably seems to come with calorie reduction, Jakubowicz and her colleagues designed the "big breakfast" diet. In this eating plan, your breakfast accounts for roughly half of your daily calories, and breakfast includes milk, 3 ounces of lean meat, two slices of cheese, two whole grain servings, one fat serving and one ounce of milk chocolate or candy.

--from "Big, Well-Balanced Breakfast Aids Weight Loss"

To get a look at the sample meals in the study, check out the terrific post at Diet Blog.

Easter Challenge: Feeling Really Good, Minor Change on the Scale

I've been feeling great for a couple days! I woke up feeling completely myself yesterday. No residual blue cloud. No flat affect. I've been singing for days, but I was really singing yesterday. And instead of sleeping 14-17 hours a day, I'm sleeping between 6-8. That's a great sign all by itself. I'm back!

I went out for the first time in...er...a while, too. And I laughed and felt normal.

It really was like a resurrection--going from the blues to the light. Out of the fricken cave of depression.

Anyway, hubby and I picked up my middle sis (who was in the neighborhood shopping) and went for a scenic drive down Miami Beach, all the way to South Beach, then came back Northward and had lunch at a nice Peruvian restaurant called ADRIANA'S(very pleasant ambiance and cool tableware--all slanty and white) in the small, retro town of Surfside. The weather was impeccable, cool even, with nice breezes. While I had a less than great choice for appetizer (fried cassava croquettes with cheese inside and a Peruvian cheese sauce drizzled, served in the cutest possible green glass tray with small circular depressions for each mini-ball). They were fabulous. I had a healthy organic salad with greens, cukes, tomatoes, and shredded white meat chicken and balsamic vinaigrette for my entree. I did sample my sister's pumpkin ravioli. Mmm. No dessert. Two skim milk lattes with Splenda and a glass of Pinot Grigio.

I enjoyed it very much and without a dang ounce of guilt.

And in the NSV department: I fit into my Tamotsu tunic. I had bought this really elegant long-sleeved black textured tunic by the designer Tamotsu. The tag was $285, but I got it for 1/5th the retail price. That was a few years back. I didn't fit. I bought it as an incentive tunic: I'll wear it when I lose weight. Only I didn't lose weight and it didn't fit, refused to go below my hips.

Yesterday, on a whim, I tried it on (due to the cooler weather), and it fit! So, I wore it out. And I was a bit too energetic later in the day in the ladies room and yanked it too hard--tearing the seam. It's at the seamstress getting reseamed. But dang. It fit. I was so happy!!!

I tried some other "when I lose weight" Tamotsu pieces I splurged on (three jackets, one dress, one panstsuit), and some are on their way to fitting. Almost there. :)

So, back to the outing: After we went to the west part of town to take sis home, we came back to the east part and I did some shopping at Whole Foods for items that my organic grocer who delivers either didn't have or I forgot to order. I wish they had a nice flavored sugar-free organic yogurt (I enjoy the flavors of Stonyfield's low-fat version, but I'd prefer not having the sugar).

Today, I got my organic produce delivery.

Let me put it this way, between Whole Foods yesterday and the delivery today, I've spent 450 on this week's groceries. I just about died when I stopped to add it all up. But, if this is what it took to get my body healing, so be it. Part of it is trying new stuff and discovering what I like. (Not crazy about grass fed ground beef. Sorry. Organic chicken breasts: yum.). I discovered I much prefer watercress to Romaine, so I've been buying less Romaine as my all-purpose lettuce, and let hubby eat it--unless I've got a Caesar salad craving--and just make myself either an arugula or a watercress salad daily. I have been eating a lot of fruits and veggies (12-14 a day). I've been getting nice amounts of fiber (most days more than 30, some days more than 50. Depends how much legumes I have or high-fiber bread.)

I have not been keeping to calories. In order to feed my body to get out of this current health funk/depression, I just eat when I'm hungry and eat lots of raw or minimally cooked produce. I've been snacking on nuts--I have a severe sensitivity to seafood, so I can't eat fish omega 3, therefore I rely on walnuts and flax-- and have my daily ration of dark chocolate. (The Sunspire chocolate covered almonds are amazing. That's an indulgence worth the calories. MmMmm.)

As I said, feeling good. My creativity is back. My mind is good. I can focus on reading again (hadn't read for WEEKS for any length of time due to a wandering mind and lack of focus). And my eyebrows have filled in again. (They'd gone half-bald.) My hair looks good. I hope my skin follows (I have always had problems with acne.)

Hubby is happy that there's food ready for him and it's not take-out. (He was used to brining dinner home, or going out to pick it up, or we calling in a delivery). I've been making a high-fiber, lower-fat spinach lasagna for him (he loves meat lasagna and normally had it once a week). It's great cause there's always leftovers that make for one lunch for work for him and another meal for us both minimum. He also loves the organic potatoes, so I bake a couple and give him a stuffed one for lunch, save one for another day (or make it as a breakfast potato.)

I need to learn to make some great bean soups. I often crave legumes (I grew up eating them nearly every day). I think one recipe each of black bean, kidney bean, garbanzo, red lentil, white bean (or a pasta fabiole), and one good pea soup will keep me happy for ages and ages. I could literally have a bean soup for a meal EVERY DAY. It's comfort food to me.

Anyway, just to report that going heavy on the produce and raw stuff has helped. I need to learn how to stretch the dollars, choose wisely. The trying stuff phase needs to wind down to the "weekly order system" stage that doesn't break the budget to shards.

As far as the weigh in: Yesterday was 271.4. Today was:

272.0

So, still firmly in the 270's low end. And it will go down more. I feel a sort of optimism that comes from being out of the Blue Funk. :)

I'm not ready to curtail calories too much yet. I'm watching that I don't go into the "eat too much and regain" territory. But until I'm in solid recovery ground for at least a week or two, I'm not gonna chop down to 1800 calories again. I"m at about 2500 to 2700 now, by guesstimating intake.

To those who had losses this week: Congrats. To those who maintained: Good for you. To those who regained some: Happens. Don't fret. Do the strategies.

Happy week, everyone.

Onward and DOWNward!

~

Scale Tale: Rehydrated After Flu, Reclaimed Lost Ground, and Hunger

I wrote last week, with my very cool post-day-of-diarrhea weigh-in of 272.6: "I figure I'm a little low on fluid, so once I rehydrate, that number's gonna bounce up."

It did. The next day it was up. Rehydration showed up fast, then I stabilized at 275.6 or so. Then I gained with Saturday's bad choices, and Sunday and Monday's excess calories (though better choices).

But today is weigh-in day, and I ate well yesterday, if not totally at my diet caloric level. I went 5 points over my top allowance.

But it's not PMS week, so the bloat's not bad. Mr. Tanita Says:

275.6

That was my post-flu stabilization weight, which means I regained some ground lost over the Sat-thru-Monday, but I didn't really lose from where I was post-stomach flu.

I hope the hunger issue is calming down, whatever its cause. (I didn't feel as freaky mad growly hungry yesterday). I did drink my water before meals. I did have veggie juice before meals. I did write down every morsel and made myself accountable. I tried a new recipe (see below, the "cookie" one) to quell that hunger.

Today, I'm gonna get back on the affirmations wagon. I'd sort of slipped up after using it for a while (retraining my mental thoughts about healthy eating and portion control). Time to get that tool back in action.

How did you do with this week's weigh-in? Any special tools get you through tough spots? I've used water, gum, veggie juice, protein cookies. I think it kept me from going totally out of control. I really do.
~~
EDITED TO ADD: LizzyTish asked about the protein cookie and my veggie juice. Thought I'd answer HERE instead of in the comments: Lizzy, the recipe for the protein cookie is in yesterday's post below. Please check it out. As far as what I mean by veggie juice: I have two health food juice places nearby (this is an area with a lot of weight conscious rich folks --not me, mind you, just farther north and east of here), and I get fresh-squeezed veggie blends from both. They'll make it to order, or you get one of their specialties. I get the green veggie blends (parsley, cucumber, spinach, celery, lime juice, etc). They're fresh, full of enzymes, and I like the flavor. It's sort of like a green gazpacho drink. :) (I adore gazpacho!) I also like the fresh V-6 version that one makes, it has tomato and beets along with the green veggies. Fewer calories than fruit juice, easy on the stomach, and flavorful. Sort of like cold soup, really.

Oh, and if you have a juicer, you can easily make your own blend to taste.

Hope that answers your questions.

Still Fighting Dragons, Goblins, & Ogres

I edited the September Challenge post below to reflect Sunday.

Sunday was going well...most of the day, that is. I was eating really good stuff. No junk. Then, I missed my protein mix (between meals) and I went 6 hours without eating, and the hunger came hard.

Historical Note: Evenings have always been tough. Night binges have been numerous.

I spent 45 minutes of that 6 hour delay yesterday pondering what to eat to use my remaining 8 WW Points. I had planned to eat a light supper, because I wanted to be in bed by 10pm. But the hunger was bad, so I went through all the things I had in the house that I could have that would fill me up. Finally, I narrowed it down to oatmeal with berries or chili. The chili had 20 grams of fiber. The fiber about a fifth of that. So, I went with the Healthy Valley chili. Whole can, four points. I decided I'd add low-fat cheese to make it more proteiny (plus I hadn't had my calcium that day.) I added salsa for a flavor punch. I drank a diet orange soda I'd had sitting in the fridge for more than two months, cause I didn't want to use up points on a beverage. And water, natch.

Well, I waited after eating, but the raging was still there. (What is up with my appetite? I go six hours without eating and it goes insane. Geesh.)

So, having had little calcium that day, I figured if I was gonna bust my points, I'd do it with low-fat vanilla organic yogurt and get my live cultures and calcium.

That didn't do it. So, I went for fruit. Two points worth of cherries and grapes.

That didn't do it. So, I went for protein this time and had a low-carb, EAS protein bar.

All told, I went roughly 8 points over my limit.

Interestingly, I still ate about 25-35 points less than I used to on normal eat-it-up days when I didn't write it down or think about my choices. I didn't eat junk. I didn't eat high-salt. I didn't eat Taco Bell or pizza. I didn't order Chinese Take-out. I had low-fat, high-fiber, protein and calcium.

So, while I'm disappointed in my overall performance for the weekened (ie Friday through Sunday), I see that I still haven't controlled my schedule to quell the beast. My dragon appetite just cannot go 5 and 6 hours unfed. I can't miss meals. When I do that, bad things happen.

Acquiring new habits is tough.

But I am not throwing in the towel. HOw many times in the past at this point did I just stop showing up at WW meetings? Did I just stop writing down my food consumption? Did I just say, "Why bother?"

I know why I'm bothering. It's in the mirror. It's in the picture of me at my heaviest that I taped to my food journal's inside cover. Note that my heaviest wasn't that long ago (2004) and it wasn't that HIGH ago (18 to 19 pounds more than now). It would be too easy to regain. It's too easy. And I am not going back there. I may hover here for a while maintaining before I move down again, but I am not going back.

The fight is worth it.

And, boy, I can't wait until I get my high-fiber pasta delivered. It's delayed. Why does it take so long to make pasta? Anyway... All that fiber should be great for filling me up. And I adore marinara sauce with lots of garlic. I'm gonna start figuring out what's most filling for me and I MUST KEEP THAT IN THE HOUSE AND STOCKED AND READY.


The THIN COMMANDMENTS guy talks about how strategy is mightier than cravings. Strategy beats Overeating Ogres. Well, I'm paraphrasing.

More truth: I've been lazy. I haven't done enough.

One: I didn't make the WW veggie soup (which, when I was perfect on plan was the most filling, low-calorie option around the houe). I have to make it , pack it in tupperware, and have it there to nuke when the appetite beast roars.

Two: I also need to get me some fat free cheddar slices and low-cal bread, so I can make a fast 3 points sandwich to go with that soup when necessary. I hate fat-free cheese (I prefer the 50 calorie low-fat for toasted cheese), but it's a reality that I need that in my arsenal right now.

Three: I'm still not exercising regularly.

As I said. Lazy. Not enough.

But we are still in the fight. Amen!

Okay, that's my update.

I already have my food delivery for today: egg white frittata and oatmeal, chicken pita sandwich for lunch, beef paprika for supper. And I have my protein powder on the counter for between meals. I just need to make a shopping list for my "ward off hunger with minimal points" stuff. The soup fixings. The lite, hi-fiber bread. The fat-free slices. Some more low-fat stuff with BEANS.

Off I go to another day of fatfighting.

I hope your appetites on Sunday treated y'all better than me.

Be good to yourself. Eat an apple. Meditate for 10 minutes. Stretch. Drink your water.

HAPPY MONDAY! Onward and Downward!

Saturday Strategy: Planning for Lunch Out

Okay, so the aftermath:

The scale says 281.0, which is up one pound from last Wednesday's weigh-in. I expected more, so, I'll take it as my due for the salt and snack attack.

I had 10 more WW points than my upper limit, and I had 14 more points than my ideal point count. That's 500-700 more calories than I would have wished. Seven of those points--roughly 300 calories--were pure junk (the Doritos and the Cheetos).

I decided to eat supper and not wake up vulnerable. So, I had half of my delivery meal veggie-burger-n-pasta salad. I added another orange, some cherries, and some cantaloupe to fill me up and give me good nutrients to counteract the fat and salt and crap in the snacks. Also, the potassium in the fruit helped with the bloating. One pound up is way less than I should have gone with that much salt.

Now, it's time for a breakfast at home. Something filling, that will carry me through until 1 or 2 pm. Why? Cause we're going to the Museum of Science to see some Chinese dinosaur fossils and then to lunch either at Key Biscayne somewhere or Coconut Grove somewhere. Or wherever my sister wants. It's HER birthday. :)

That means I won't have access to my protein mix for my 2 to 2 1/2 hour protein fix. I may take a protein bar, but those really just make me want to eat more. It's the sweetness I think, that keeps it from being satisfying. Maybe I'll take string cheese. Hmmmm. There's a thought. Do I have any, though?

I've been pondering what to eat, musing what to order. I've been considering the places we're likely to go and, sadly, I can't have seafood. (Allergic.) So, I've been giving myself the soup/salad or grilled chicken on salad pep talk. I tend to go bonkers when I see menus. Eating out is tough. I want what I want.

And this is my first dining out trip since I began the "restart" in August.

I am going to listen to one of my new diet cds (maybe The Thin Commandments) while I shower and dress, so I can fully psyche myself into healthful choices at lunch. And no honking dessert.

On the plus side, I'll be forced to MOVE.

No, I have not been exercising. Bad Mir....All is Forgiven. Move on. MOVE!

I'll probably wear either some comfy and cute Hush Puppies flats (style= "Wonderful") that I bought months ago in red and liked so much that I bought another pair last month in black. Or I'll go with my my foot-coddling Brooks walking shoes. Both give me cush and protection for my beleaguered, over-pronating feetsies.

By the way, if you need wide width and larger sizes in walking/running shoes, you should check out BROOKS. They have fabulous shoes, recommended by physical therapists, for us large gals who overpronate. I am able to walk longer, farther in these than any other of my sneakers--and I have Avia and Saucony and Nike. I'm a wide width and an 11 in athletic shoes, a 10 in regular, sometimes 9.5 in, like, Hush Puppies or other makes that run long. So, it's hard for me to find shoes in stores and have, in the past, bought men's sneakers at Sports Authority. But I ordered two pairs of Brooks online and my feet have loved me like mad since. Just saying. (They have a shoe advisor quiz that lets you know which of their shoes is best for YOUR foot type and exercise style.)

So, comfy shoes, an eating stragegy, and outside it's sunny and hot (yes, it's summer in Miami, what else?) and I've been praying we have a good time and everybody loves the outing.

The Princess' royal carriage awaits in the garage. World, here I come.

September Challenge Update

For Monday, September 3: I ate on plan.

So far, 3 for 3.

Mood: Motivated and Hopeful

DragonFire Factoid: Soy's Bad for Your Thyroid

Isoflavones belong to the flavonoid or bioflavonoid family of chemicals, and are considered endocrine disruptors -- plants or other products that act as hormones, disrupting the endocrine system, and in some cases, this disruption involves acting as an anti-thyroid agent. (The grain millet, for example, contains high levels of flavonoids, and is commonly known as problematic for thyroid function). Flavonoids inhibit thyroid peroxidase (TPO), which disturbs proper thyroid function.

--Mary Shomon