Thtrchic's Daily Check-in

Counting carbs/calories is a drag. Obsessive scale stepping is a recipe for despair. If you want to count something, "days on habit" is a much better metric. Checking off days on a calendar would do just fine, but if you do it here you get accountability and support. Here's how. Start a new topic in this forum called (say) "Your Name Daily Check In." Then every N day post a "reply" to that topic as to whether you stayed on habit. A simple "<font color="green">SUCCESS</font>" or "<font color="red">FAILURE</font>" (or your preferred euphemism if that's too harsh) is sufficient, but obviously you're welcome to write more if you want. On S-days just register that you're taking an S-day. You don't have to do this forever, just until you're confident you've built the habit. Feel free to check in weekly or monthly or sporadically instead of daily. Feel free also to track other habits besides No-s (I'm keeping this forum under No-s because that's what the vast majority are using it for). See also my <a href="/habitcal/">HabitCal</a> tool for another more formal (and perhaps complementary) way to track habits.

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thtrchic
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Thtrchic's Daily Check-in

Post by thtrchic » Wed Jul 28, 2010 6:59 pm

Hi, everyone. Several years ago I had joined this forum and had good success following the No-S concept, but for some reason at some point stopped. I've been struggling to get eating/food/weight/exercise in line and thought maybe coming back here was the way to go. Here's to trying! And I decided to just jump in and start without wasting more time considering (or waiting for a Monday or something).

It's been a long time since I've eaten in the one plate/one meal kind of way so it'll be an adjustment, but I'm sure I can do it.

I started fine with breakfast and have lunch that I can make work. I'll be back tonight to post the actual success of the day.

Julie

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Welcome back

Post by la_loser » Wed Jul 28, 2010 8:20 pm

Welcome back,
I'm a past theatre chick myself--after doing theatre as a kid and in high school and college, I've taught it for over 30 years. I know that lifestyle/schedule is pretty erratic and certainly lends itself to lots of bad eating habits.

Glad you're back with us. Post often and hang in there. Since you KNOW it works, all you have to do is put your habits back into, well, you know, habit!
LA Loser. . . well on my way to becoming an LA Winner. :lol:

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Post by thtrchic » Thu Jul 29, 2010 1:31 am

Hi, LA. Thanks.

Wednesday, Day 1, SUCCESS

Yay for day 1 success! :)

B - cereal with 1% milk
L - roast beef sandwich, veggie chips (actual pieces of vegetable, not just veggie flour mixed with potato flour), peach
D - homemade (lean) cheeseburger, baked squash with olive oil and balsamic vinegar drizzled over it, frozen cherries

Somehow I suspect day 2 will be harder, but I'm sure I can push through.
Julie

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Post by thtrchic » Fri Jul 30, 2010 1:41 am

Thursday, Day 2: SUCCESS

Yay, two days of success. :) Its good to remember that I don't actually need candy or cookies in the afternoon. Obviously I don't, but it can be hard to break out of that routine.

B - oatmeal with a teaspoon of butter and brown sugar and a tablespoon of fresh ground cashew butter (yum!)
L - homemade, lean cheeseburger, veggie chips (the real vegetable kind again), sliced banana, raspberry yogurt
D - niman ranch pulled pork on a small roll, broccoli slaw dressed lightly with a greek yogurt based dressing (homemade), frozen cherries

It was kind of a lot of food today, but that's probably why I could stick to it. and it was all reasonably healthy (not ideal to eat beef and pork in one day, but both were lean and eaten in not crazy quantities) and balanced.

On to tomorrow... Fridays are usually hard days for me, but I know I can do it with the promise of Saturday.

Julie

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Post by thtrchic » Sat Jul 31, 2010 1:10 am

Friday, Day 3: SUCCESS!

Today was definitely harder. I was feeling really hungry from the start and kept thinking about candy. And now I really want some ice cream, but I'm just not having it.

B - oatmeal made 1/2 milk/1/2 water with 1 TBS of cashew butter and a tiny bit of butter and brown sugar
L - pulled pork on small sandwich roll, homemade and light broccoli slaw, peach, blackberry yogurt
D - pita pizza: 2 thin whole wheat pitas , 1 with tomato sauce and part-skim mozzarella, 1 with artichoke pesto, mushrooms, bit of mozzarella and parmesan, frozen cherries

I remember an important lesson from my past no-s days: start s days with a "normal" breakfast so I'll try and do that.

Julie

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Post by thtrchic » Sat Jul 31, 2010 2:31 pm

I have been calling Sunday my "official" weigh-in day, but am moving it to Saturday so it's not in the middle of my s-days. Official loss this week: 1.2 pounds. This is the second half of a 3 pound upswing after being out of town for my brothers wedding two weeks ago. So, good news for sure, but I'm now back to the real game. I actually have gotten about 1.5 pounds lower than this several times recently, but always get stuck there... I'm looking forward to my new embracing of No-S helping me push past that point (which is still 30 pounds from my goal weight so it's not just that I'm so close).

Anyway, summary is the positive -- I've lost 1.2 pounds this week. Yay!

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Post by July2010 » Sat Jul 31, 2010 11:15 pm

Congrats on your weightloss! I'll be following your success! You can do this!
AutismMom

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Post by thtrchic » Sun Aug 01, 2010 2:10 am

Thanks, July!

Today (Day 4, so I don't lose track) has definitely verged on idiotic, but I'll say it's just to the ok side of the line. But barely. I'll make sure tomorrow is a little less ridiculous.

I have planned next week's meals, bought the non-produce groceries, and will get all the produce at the farmers market in the morning so I'll be good to go according to plan come Monday. And I did walk for an hour. So some successes for the day. :)

Julie

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Post by July2010 » Sun Aug 01, 2010 11:10 am

The first week was the toughest for me. After that each week does gets easier as you adjust. Today is day 21 for me on this plan and it keeps getting easier. It will for you too. Just focus on one day at a time and you'll get there!
AutismMom

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Post by thtrchic » Mon Aug 02, 2010 12:22 am

Thanks again, July. It looks like you're doing great. I feel like I remember the second week actually being the hardest for me in terms of N days, but it's easy to fall into craziness with that first S day. I'm gearing up for the week of good eating. I do feel really in control right now and like I will definitely do it.

Today was a much better S day (day 5). I've had some treats, but made them count a little more and had better meals as well (although cheese filled ones -- but good cheese so it was yummy). I got a rosemary chocolate chip scone while walking around at the farmers market this morning, had a glass of wine with my dinner, and am planning ice cream for dessert tonight.

On to 5 successful N Days starting tomorrow!
Julie

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Post by July2010 » Mon Aug 02, 2010 2:49 am

I notice that on the s days I don't lose weight, but I do maintain it and get to have a snack and so that helps keep me going knowing I won't have to give it up forever.
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Post by thtrchic » Tue Aug 03, 2010 3:12 am

Monday, Day 6: SUCCESS!

I'm very pleased to report this because it was quite hard this morning and early afternoon. I think my breakfast was a little less hearty than what I had last week and I was feeling very hungry. But I pushed through and feel great about it.

B - 1/2 c. grape nuts with 1% milk and a tsp of brown sugar
L - tuna sandwich on small roll, vegetable chips, large nectarine
D - pasta with scallops, broccoli, and mushrooms in creamy mascarpone based sauce (homemade), frozen grapes

Strolled for about an hour, and did day 1 (after many years off) of "8 minutes in the morning" exercises.

Julie

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Post by thtrchic » Tue Aug 03, 2010 11:25 pm

Tuesday, Day 7: SUCCESS!

I ate the same breakfast today as yesterday (except cold versus heated). I think I must have just been extra hungry yesterday because I did ok today. I was hungry for lunch, but not crazy like yesterday.

Today's challenge was that someone brought in these amazing looking and raved about by everyone else red velvet cupcakes. They really looked awesome and they were eaten during our group staff meeting by many people and then left on the counter for the rest of the day. I really wanted one, or at least a little frosting, but I resisted and feel great about that.

B - grape nuts with 1% milk and tsp sugar
L - oatmeal made with 1% milk/water mixture and tsp butter and sugar, lowfat greek yogurt, strawberries
D - (in process) summer squash and corn chowder, sourdough bread, frozen grapes

Walked 20 minutes this afternoon and did my 10 minutes of 8MIM. A minimum of 30 minutes total each weekday (and then a longer walk/hike/misc outdoor activity on 1 weekend day) is my goal so hit that for today. Good on water as usual.

I have lunch out with my boss tomorrow so will need to tread a little carefully.

Julie

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Post by thtrchic » Thu Aug 05, 2010 1:31 am

Wednesday, Day 8: SUCCESS!

Today I resisted getting gelato while stopping at the gelato place with my boss. Wow.

B - shredded mini wheats with 1% milk
L - (out with my boss) shared a little summer squash and greens salad in a very light lemon vinaigrette, ricotta sandwich on levain with romesco and bit of olive tapenade (yum!) and some mixed greens, strawberries
D - quesadilla of gruyere and sliced nectarine on whole wheat tortilla with a little 2% greek yogurt instead of sour cream, rest of cubed nectarine

I'm a little hungry right now. It wasn't the most filling dinner. I should have had a salad with dinner as well, but I just didn't want any. I'd really love to have a snack -- not even a sweet, just a snack like a hunk of bread with butter or something. (It's been an especially carby day actually.) But I'm not going to. I will surely survive til breakfast and maybe burn off a little more fat in the process.

I did do my 8MIM and walked 20 minutes. And good on water as usual.

Julie

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Post by thtrchic » Fri Aug 06, 2010 2:34 am

Thursday, Day 9: SUCCESS.

I've been struggling all day and as very, very close to just giving in and getting a snack a number of times today. Including now. But I've made it this far and I want to hold out.

Tomorrow is actually a NWS day for me. It's our annual staff picnic and I'm going to just enjoy and not worry about it. I've been making sure that some fruits and vegetables are included in the potluck list and will be sure to make sure I get some of that on my plate. But I'm having guacamole and cookies too.

B - grape nuts with 1% milk and tsp of sugar
L - leftover summer squash and corn chowder, sourdough bread with a tiny bit of butter, banana
D - lean cuisine pizza (I know, I know), slice of cheese, plum

I failed on exercise today, but that's not the primary challenge right now and will get back at it tomorrow.

Julie

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Post by thtrchic » Sat Aug 07, 2010 1:40 am

Friday, Day 10: NWS.

Ate a lot, but only a little bit of everything (except for the eclairs). I really feel fine about it because it was a special occasion and I really enjoyed just not thinking about it.

B - lowfat greek yogurt with sliced banana
L/S - small roast beef sandwich, few chips with guacamole, cracker with brie, couple bites of bread with hummus, some green salad, bunch of grapes, some mac and cheese few bites of tiramisu, many (uncounted) bites of donuts and eclairs

There were also wonderful looking lemon bars. I took one home to be a treat tomorrow or Sunday since I clearly had plenty today. I haven't had any dinner and don't think I need any. I'm somewhat hungry now at 6:40pm, but I think I can just let it be. Right now it actually feels kind of good. If I'm feeling too hungry before bed I'll eat something small and light.

Julie

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Post by thtrchic » Sun Aug 08, 2010 12:03 am

Saturday, Day 11: S-DAY.

I've had a lot of calories today, but haven't been grazing or mindlessly eating. I've made specific choices and made it worth it. I also haven't done any particular exercise, but I planned on today being off. I did do a couple loads of laundry, cleaned the bathroom, did the dishes, and did grocery shopping (and meal planning for next week) so did get some movement in.

B - mcdonalds sausage biscuit and hash brown (I know, this is disgusting, but I love it and love to have it every couple months)
S - two bites of lemon bar
L/D - frozen pizza with spinach, mushroom and garlic
S - ice cream mixed with some chocolate chips

I might also have a plum tonight. I'm not hungry now, but if I feel like anything that's what it'll be.

Julie

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Post by thtrchic » Sun Aug 08, 2010 11:36 pm

Sunday, Day 12: S-DAY.

Today's been a little more haphazard than yesterday. That's because I didn't have a plan. But that's because I wasn't sure where the day was leading.

B - granola with milk
L - (out with a friend) scrambled eggs, cubed potatoes, bacon, piece of buttered rye toast, part of a lemon bar
S- pistachio nuts
D - last piece of yesterday's frozen pizza
S - (planned) milkshake

Lightly hiked for a little more than an hour. Broke a little bit of a sweat, but it wasn't quite as intense as I'd thought it would be. It was fun and a good way to start the day, though.

Julie

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Post by thtrchic » Tue Aug 10, 2010 12:54 am

Monday, Day 13: SUCCESS!

Woohoo! Every success day feels like such an accomplishment. But it also keeps proving that I can do it.

B - granola with lf milk
L - small turkey sandwich, veggie chips, nectarine, lf greek yogurt
D - spinach fettuccine with seared scallops and romano cheese (and a little olive oil, basil and lemon), frozen grapes

I walked about 25 minutes midday.

Julie

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Post by thtrchic » Tue Aug 10, 2010 1:06 am

p.s. I'm also going to do my 8MIM tonight after my food settles. No excuses.

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Post by rodrigo » Tue Aug 10, 2010 1:58 am

Julie! Congrats on the 13th success! Today happens to be my 13th day too. :o

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Post by thtrchic » Tue Aug 10, 2010 2:39 am

Thanks, Rodrigo! And congrats to you too on your continued success.

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Post by thtrchic » Tue Aug 10, 2010 11:24 pm

Ugh, crash and burn today. I'm not sure what happened exactly other than I thought about having a candy bar, briefly thought no, and then thought who cares, what's one day. That's no good.

To make it worse, the candy bar turned into more garbage once I already had the fail to report.

Ugh. Ugh. And, of course, I feel kinda sick now. I guess that could be called good since it gives me something negative to remember about the experience. I'm so sad to have to start my counting of days over, but reporting this and starting again is surely for the best in the long run. I just have to remember the long run is what matters and the way to get there is by creating new, good habits.

See you tomorrow for a successful day 1.
Julie

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Post by thtrchic » Wed Aug 11, 2010 2:58 am

All right, I'm back. I'm posting again to help make myself stick to it. I'm back in control. Sweets were cut off this afternoon and despite being somewhat hungry I am done with all food for the day. And I just did my little 8MIM exercises so feeling a little stronger.

Upsides: got in a little exercise, did great on water, ate fruit with lunch, only lost half a day to stupidity and unhealthy food.

Oh, I also decided this morning not to weigh myself until the end of the 21 day cycle. Of course, that's a couple weeks further away now. Ive been weighing daily for a very long time and I think that have actually might have led to the trouble today. I think I got the idea in my head that one day didn't matter since I wouldn't be looking at the scale for weeks, without even really realizing I was thinking this. But, I think the plan is still for the best and I'll stick with it.

Julie

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Post by thtrchic » Thu Aug 12, 2010 1:14 am

Wednesday, Day 1 (ugh): SUCCESS!

B - oatmeal made with 1/4 cup milk, 1 tsp brown sugar, 1 TBSP cashew butter
L - small turkey sandwich on whole wheat roll, baked chips, banana, lowfat greek yogurt
D - homemade chicken piccata (yum!), lemon rosemary fingerling potatoes, about a cup of frozen grapes

Good on water. I haven't yet, but will do my 8MIM stuff (which I've taken to doing at night whenever possible rather than morning because morning just doesn't work well for me).

Julie

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Post by thtrchic » Fri Aug 13, 2010 1:56 am

Thursday, Day 2: SUCCESS!

Good No-S day today. It feels good.

B - oatmeal with cashew butter like yesterday
L - leftover chicken piccata and fingerling potatoes, 2 fruit leathers
D - piece of toast with butter, 1 oz gouda like cheese, 1/4 cup mixed nuts, cut up (wonderful) peach and plum

Good on water, took my vitamin, took advantage of the nicer weather and walked about 35 minutes. And will do my 8MIM in a bit, but for sure. No excuses.

Julie

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Post by thtrchic » Sat Aug 14, 2010 12:30 am

Friday, Day 3: SUCCESS!

I'm still feeling good, which I really like. Although it's day 3, it could almost be considered day 17. I had a couple hours of sweet eating disaster one day, but otherwise have actually been very solid.

B - grape nuts with milk and tsp of sugar
L - (out with a donor/colleague) cup of miso soup (eaten somewhat before the rest for the sake of decorum), bento box of teriyaki salmon, white rice, basic green salad with dressing, spicy tuna maki
D - sliced banana with greek yogurt and touch honey, small bagel with butter

Good on water, took my vitamin. Have walked for about 30 minutes, but not continuously. As usual, will do my 8MIM after I'm settled from dinner.

I have a general plan for tomorrow and Sunday so think they can provide me indulgence, but not be idiotic.

Julie

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Post by thtrchic » Sat Aug 14, 2010 11:09 pm

Saturday, Day 4: S-DAY.

I've suddenly realized today that just because it's an S-Day that doesn't mean I need to, or should, eat every time I feel the least bit hungry. It's about allowing some indulgences, some deviations, some varying of the "usual."

B - smallish bagel with a little butter and cream cheese
S - samples from various vendors as I walked through the farmers market including few crackers with dip, few little bites of cheese, bites of peaches, plums, and grapes
L - niman ranch pulled pork on dinner roll sized hawaiian roll, leftover fingerling potatoes, large peach
D (planned) - frozen pizza
S (planned) - rocky road ice cream with whipped cream

Off for exercise today too, doing ok on water. Hiking tomorrow and looking forward to it and the planned post-hike picnic.

Julie

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Post by thtrchic » Sun Aug 15, 2010 11:36 pm

Sunday, Day 5: S-DAY.

Another pretty good day. Not the healthiest eating ever, but nothing at all ridiculous.

B - granola with milk
L - (in picnic format with a friend, post hike) pretty light pasta salad with beans and olives, multi grain bread with super yummy cheese, grapes and raspberries, some lemon bar, glass of wine
D - (planned) some frozen pizza (the same one from yesterday)
S - (planned) something sweet -- either rocky road ice cream or piece of torrone

Hiked about 3 miles including incline/decline of about 400 feet. Doing ok on water, took my vitamin. Have my meals planned and groceries bought for the week.

Julie

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Post by thtrchic » Mon Aug 16, 2010 1:01 am

One "weird" weekend thing I've noticed: I'm leaving food that I love. I left a piece of pizza, several bites of ice cream yesterday, and half the torrone today. All were really good, but I was happily done with less than what I gave myself. This is very unusual for me, especially knowing that I won't be having any more all week.

Might be a bit of a turning point.....

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Post by thtrchic » Tue Aug 17, 2010 12:49 am

Monday, Day 6: SUCCESS!

Although Id really like a snack right now. But, no is the answer. I also wanted a glass of wine with dinner, but no was the answer to that too.

B - slightly large bowl of grape nuts with milk and tsp of sugar
L - hard boiled egg, 1 oz of cheddar peppercorn goat cheese, hunk (2 oz) of multigrain french bread, carrots, cut up peach and plum
D - homemade beef fried rice, grapes

I'll do my usual 8MIM later this evening, doing fine on water, took my vitamin.

Julie

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Post by thtrchic » Wed Aug 18, 2010 4:45 am

Tuesday, Day 7: SUCCESS.

Success by the rules, but not the healthiest day. Not quite a disaster, but it didn't go quite according to plan.

B - mini wheats with milk, piece of toast with a little cream cheese
L - hodge podge of leftover beef fried rice, plum, nectarine, a few mixed nuts, lemon yogurt
D - flatbread with potato, bacon, spinach, and ricotta, 1 beer

So, yeah. Let's eat better tomorrow. But yeah for not totally diverting. I struggled not to eat dessert tonight and feel good for not giving in.

I did good on water and did my 8MIM this morning -- also an accomplishment because mornings are hard for me, but I knew i'd be home too late tonight to get myself to do it.

Julie

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Post by thtrchic » Thu Aug 19, 2010 2:30 am

Wednesday, Day 8: SUCCESS.

Another No-S technical success in a not so healthy day. But I fought hard for my success today (with myself) and I'm proud of it. I was very close to giving in and managed to put myself off, temporarily forget (which was great and I think part of what I'm learning here), and remind myself why I do care.

The problem was in my planning. For some very stupid reason I planned a main part of my lunch each day this week to be a hard boiled egg, but I actually don't like eggs. I don't hate them and was thinking I could get to like them better if I tried. But what's happened is I just desperately don't want to eat my food. Today I was also running like crazy between meetings and late for lunch so really, really hungry and gave in to the convenience of drive-thru. And then getting home tonight, late, and after a long day I just couldn't convince myself to start cooking a full real meal and decided to go with this rather than what I really wanted: chips and dip. So, I'm actually feeling successful at the moment.

B - granola with milk
L - 2 Wendy's junior bacon cheeseburgers and most of a small fry (eek, I'm embarrassed to admit this meal, but at least it was a small fry, which I didn't quite finish and didnt include a frosty), raspberries (something good at least)
D - 2 pieces of bread with cream cheese, grapes

I so, so don't want to, but I AM going to do my 8MIM in just a bit here.

Ok on water and took my vitamin. And walked about 30 minutes (for transportation).

Julie
Julie

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Post by thtrchic » Fri Aug 20, 2010 5:04 am

Thursday: FAILURE.

I'm pretty disappointed, but trying not to beat myself up too much. Changing such a major part of life is a hard thing to do. I need to not make excuses -- and I have plenty -- but I also need to remember that.

And get back on the horse tomorrow.

Good things about today: I limited my specific rule breaking items to 1 incident (lemon bar), I had fruit with my lunch, I did great on water, I did my 8MIM when I got home after 9:30pm despite being tired and not feeling too great. This really is a big thing. I know it's barely 10 minutes of exercise, but this is something I've struggled with forever and am proud of myself for my continued progress.

I've also thought some about an interim plan for tomorrow and a better plan for all of next week. I haven't totally settled on next week yet, but have some ideas in place and know I can set the week up to be better. Planning is clearly pretty key for me. I also need to thing again about some quick defaults to have around in case things fall through to give me a greater chance for success.

And I need to remember that I need to just do it. It's mindset more than anything and I'm the only one who can do that for me.

Tomorrow will be good. Saturday and Sunday will be mild and refreshing. Next week will be solid. I'll keep moving forward and I will lose weight and eventually really be strong and healthy.

For my future examination:

B- oatmeal made with 2:1 water to milk mixture, tsp of brown sugar
L - leftover flatbread, cup of raspberries and blackberries
S - lemon bar
D - prawn quesadilla, handful of chips with mango salsa

Lots and lots of water, took my vitamin, did my 8MIM.

Julie

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Post by thtrchic » Sat Aug 21, 2010 4:55 pm

Yesterday was a failure day again. Lots of excuses -- most notably not feeling well and being really tired -- but I need to learn to eat better even in cases like that because that's part of life.

I did include a couple servings of fruit and did great on water. Plus took my vitamin. It was my planned non-exercise day so that worked out well.

I'm officially re-starting today despite it being a Saturday. I don't want to wait, though. And I don't want any reason to let today be a free for all. I have my meals planned and grocery list written for the week -- including this weekend -- so am feeling more in control.

Julie

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Post by thtrchic » Sun Aug 22, 2010 12:37 am

Saturday, Day 1: S-DAY.

I had a tasty and in-control S-Day today and am feeling good.

B - granola with milk
L - pulled pork on small roll, baked chips, cut up pluot with a bit of cut up nectarine (which was not at all good hence the just a bit)
S - couple ounces of torrone
D - sirloin steak (of very nice quality beef) sauteed in butter and smothered in mushrooms, lightly mashed garlic potatoes (made from super yummy and great smelling potatoes from the farmers market -- I don't know what kind, but they smelled so good), cup of raspberries and blackberries with whipped cream and a tiny drizzle of chocolate sauce

I walked a couple miles at a decent pace, plus did a few loads of laundry, a bunch of dishes, changed the sheets, and grocery shopping. 8MIM still to come tonight. And great on water and took my vitamin.

Julie

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Post by thtrchic » Mon Aug 23, 2010 1:22 am

Sunday, Day 2: S- Day.

A not at all graze-y or manic one so I'm feeling good. The only real flaw is that at every meal I ate past feeling full. I'm not thrilled with that, but for me it's much better than constantly eating/excessive snacking.

B - nutella and fresh strawberry crepe at the farmers market
L - mini frozen pizza
D - about 2/3 of a chipotle chicken burrito bowl with chips (I REALLY should have stopped at half)
S - 2 brownie bites

Doing ok on water, took my vitamin, off for the day on exercise.

I'm actually looking forward to a "clean" day tomorrow.

Julie

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Post by thtrchic » Tue Aug 24, 2010 1:12 am

Monday, Day 3: SUCCESS

B - oatmeal with 1/2 tsp of brown sugar and tbsp of cashew butter
L - leftover steak smothered in mushrooms with potatoes, strawberries
D - 4 oz of salmon stuffed with feta and spinach, caesar salad very lightly dressed, hunk of fresh bread, grapes

Took a short walk at lunch and will do my 8MIM in just a bit. Doing good on water and took my vitamin.

I already know there will be custard filled donuts at our staff meeting tomorrow and avoiding these is going to be very hard for me. I think it's pretty important that I manage to do it, though.

Julie

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Post by thtrchic » Tue Aug 24, 2010 11:52 pm

I am beyond frustrated with myself. I didn't go donut crazy, but then did give in to a candy bar and then a pecan bar. What is my problem? It's such a strong compulsion for sugar, but clearly must be overcome-able. I feel gross now and so disappointed. This is the most Ive felt like a failure rather than that something failed in the day. I don't know if that's good or not.

I can't quite decide if I'll go ahead and eat my healthy dinner or try and just cut off eating for today.

I guess I'll just start over tomorrow and try again. I feel like there's more I need to do to fix the bigger problem, but what else can I do for now except just start again tomorrow I guess?

Julie

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Post by thtrchic » Thu Aug 26, 2010 1:00 am

Wednesday, Day 1: SUCCESS.

I'm feeling much better today, in large part to the great suggestions I got from people on the other thread. It was really helpful to hear people tell me things -- even things I already know. I was able to use some of that today for sure. And I'm trying hard to focus on habit and not weight loss for now. I think that'll ultimately be for the best. It sure was a lot of carbs today, but all according to the rules.

B- mini wheats with milk, 1/2 piece of toast with cream cheese
L - greek yogurt with touch of honey, banana and grape nuts, piece of toast with a little cream cheese, strawberries
D - last of baked salmon with spinach and feta, last of lightly mashed potatoes, small piece of bread, grapes

Very good on water, took my vitamin, took a short walk midday and will do my 8MIM tonight. I did end up doing that last night too, which was a great success for me.

Julie

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Post by thtrchic » Thu Aug 26, 2010 9:59 pm

Today is the opening night performance of a show at my theatre. We have 5 year and each involves a dinner. I think in many cases I might call it a NWS day, but with my recent struggles I didn't want to do that. But there's some food related things that it'd be problematic for me to ignore. So, my plan is to eat according to normal plan EXCEPT that I can have 1 glass of wine with dinner, my salad when it's served separate from the main course at dinner, 2-3 small bites of dessert, and a few sips of whisky as part of the staff toast. I can not have anything else extra throughout the day, I can not have more to drink than that, and I absolutely can not have anything post-show. There's a reception with a spread, but I can avoid that so I will. If I stick to all this, I call it a success. It does involve the few bites of sweets, but given the circumstance, I'm ok if I stick to that. And drinks are really not my issue in general so I'm fine with this limited consumption, again given the circumstances.

I'm doing ok for the day so far and am staying strong with a couple hours until dinner.

Julie

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Post by idontknow » Fri Aug 27, 2010 6:46 am

Hi Julie. That sounds like an excellent plan. I find that when I plan out my behaviour in advance like this I tend to keep to it. Good luck - let us know how it goes.

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Post by thtrchic » Fri Aug 27, 2010 3:45 pm

Thanks, IDK. Thinking about it in advance was a good idea and I did stick to it. I probably ate a little more bread than ideal and I ate all the fruit from the dessert so overall more than 3 bites, but very much the essence of what was planned. I feel very good about avoiding the post-show "buffet" table.

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Post by thtrchic » Sat Aug 28, 2010 12:13 am

Friday, Day 3: SUCCESS.

B - grape nuts with milk and sliced banana
L - last hunk of fresh bread with a little cream cheese, cut up pear and plum, few corn chips (this was definitely not the best planned lunch, but I was trying to make things I had handy and needed using up work)
D - sushi: tempura roll and spicy tuna roll, grapes

Doing well on water. Took my vitamin. Need to do my 8MIM tonight. I don't really feel like it, but I'll do it anyway and feel better afterward.

I have meals planned for the week and weekend except lunch on sunday when I think I'll be at a street festival type thing. I have some workable options at home if I end up skipping that. I've learned the important lesson that planning in advance is key.

Julie

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Post by thtrchic » Sun Aug 29, 2010 4:37 am

Saturday, Day 4: S-DAY.

Did great on not randomly snacking, but did eat a little more chocolate than I meant to. The randomly snacking is the bigger problem so I still definitely feel good about the day.

B - nonfat greek yogurt with sliced banana and grape nuts
L - 7" boboli type pizza with fresh mushrooms and mozzarella, 2 small cut up plums
D/S - (at the movies) about 2/3 of a small movie popcorn, a LOT of jordan almonds
EDIT: S - (home shortly after the movies) small piece of mozzarella cheese -- I was pretty hungry since my "dinner" was obviously not very staying, but this little bit was all I needed

Doing good on water, took my vitamin, off for exercise.

Not weighing myself is turning out to be something that's challenging as well. I hadn't realized how "addicted" I was to that. Given that, seems especially good that I'm weeing myself off of it. This is the first Saturday in a very, very long time that I haven't weighed, except when I've been out of town. I'll weigh again at the end of the 21 days, which I think will be a good experience for me.

Julie

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Post by thtrchic » Mon Aug 30, 2010 12:31 am

Sunday, Day 5: S-DAY

This was not my greatest day. It could have been much worse, and has been much worse, but it did not consist of real meals and I feel gross for it.

B - smallish bagel with butter and cream cheese
S - wonderful banana chocolate chip muffin from farmers market
S (at lunch time but I cannot call it lunch) - chips and cheese dip (gross, what was I thinking?!)
S- brownie from local bakery with scoop of ice cream
D- (planned) sliced banana, 2 pieces of whole wheat bread fresh from the oven with butter (scrybill's recipe, actually)

Meals are planned for the week, bread is baking right now, took my vitamin, doing ok on water, walked for about 50 minutes and will do my 8MIM. Im having one of those Sundays where I'm glad tomorrow is a N-Day.

Julie

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Post by thtrchic » Tue Aug 31, 2010 1:37 am

Monday, Day 6: SUCCESS

B - oatmeal with a bit of brown sugar and butter and about a tablespoon of almond butter
L - piece of whole wheat bread with butter, baked chips, strawberries (I had tuna fish, but just didn't feel like eating anything else so ended up skipping it)
D - broiled pecan and hazelnut crusted salmon, a boiled red potato, steamed green beans tossed in oil and vinegar, grapes

I joined the Y today and will be going to yoga tomorrow morning.

Doing very well on water, took my vitamin, and will do my 8MIM later this evening.

Julie

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Post by thtrchic » Wed Sep 01, 2010 1:31 am

Tuesday, Day 7: SUCCESS

Yay for Tuesday success!

B - (pre-workout): oatmeal with bit of butter and sugar and TBSP of almond butter, (post-workout): yogurt and piece of toast
L - focaccia type thing with ricotta, olives, and artichokes, fruit leather, strawberries
D - pecan/hazelnut crusted salmon, boiled red potato, apple, couple bites of gross tasting carrot

I'm not really quite full post-dinner. I'm going to drink some more water and give it a bit of time. If I'm really still hungry in 15 minutes, I might add something else small. I'm thinking I'll be ok with a little time and water, though.

I followed through on the plan and went to the gym for yoga this morning. I'm pretty proud of myself. Tomorrow I will go after work for spinning (it'd be my first time). If spinning is full, I'll split 45-50 minutes between treadmill and bike.

I know breakfast was kind of big and split for time, but with the addition of 50+ minutes of morning exercise I really felt like I needed it. And I really wanted to make sure I started the day strong so that I'd be better prepared to make it through the day. Which I did so I'm good with it.

Also did very well on water today and took my vitamin.

Julie

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Post by thtrchic » Thu Sep 02, 2010 1:24 am

Wednesday, Day 8: SUCCESS

B - largish bowl of grape nuts with milk and sliced banana
L - turkey sandwich on a smallish bagel, baked chips, pear, pluot
D - amy's small cheese pizza (420 cals for sense of size), bunch of frozen grapes

I was so very sore and so very tired today; I just couldn't make myself workout. Yesterday's workout was a lot more than I'm used to. But I'm definitely going back for more of the same tomorrow. I'm going to chalk today up as learning and growing rather than failing. I may need to start a little slower than I first thought and keep building up.

Great on water and took my vitamin.

Julie

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Post by thtrchic » Fri Sep 03, 2010 1:30 am

Thursday, Day 9: SUCCESS

B - (pre-workout) great grains cereal with milk, (post-workout) piece of toast with a little butter
L - turkey sandwich on small pumpernickel bagel, corn chips, raspberry yogurt -- I ended up never getting to my apple
D - boca burger with cheddar on multi-grain thin bun, boiled red potato, pluot

For the third day in a row I'm still hungry after dinner, but my calories are plenty high for the day. I think my body might just be getting used to the exercise increase. Or maybe I'm less balanced than usual, but I don't really think so. I don't have many veggies, but that's usually the case (that'll be something to work on next after I have basic No-S more stable). I've managed each night, though, so am sure I can do it again.

I did have 2 bites of cookie today, but it was literally a job requirement. We're switching cookie vendors for our concession stand and I literally needed to taste to sign off on it. Given I kept it limited to those 2 bites -- meaning I left a lot of unfinished cookie and didn't just keep trying all the kinds -- I don't consider that a failure. It's actually quite a big success.

And I went to yoga this morning completing my yoga goal for the week. I've done well on water and took my vitamin.

Julie

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Post by thtrchic » Sun Sep 05, 2010 12:34 am

Friday, Day 10: NWS based around evening outdoor theatre food experience with a friend. Ate in kind of a scattered way. Not really so great, but exempt is exempt.

Saturday, Day 11: S-DAY.

B - oatmeal with almond butter
L - small plate of leftover shrimp pad thai, apple
S - air popped popcorn with butter, mini eclairs
D - boca burger with cheddar, watermelon

I have to say that I liked the watermelon more than the eclairs. Interesting and something good for me to remember.

Walked about 50 minutes at a decent intensity plus about 80 minutes of shopping, which I'm not counting towards my exercise goal.

Julie

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Post by thtrchic » Mon Sep 06, 2010 4:31 am

Sunday, Day 12: S-DAY

B - great grains cereal with milk
L - bagel with melted cheese, watermelon, brownie bite
S - trail mix
D/S - (at a bbq/party) cheeseburger on bun, corn on the cob, chips with guacamole, small blondie bar, large peanut butter cookie, 2 bitesize fried rice ball things, glass of wine

Walked 25 minutes, which met my exercise goal for the week of 3 hours in at least 3 days (I did it over 4 days). Did ok, but not great on water, which is unlike me. And took my vitamin.

I'm not taking tomorrow as an S day. I don't have any holiday type plans so it would just be an excuse to not eat well when I don't need it. I think it'll be a little bit of a struggle, but that's why I'm posting the plan now so I can't back out. :)

Julie

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Post by thtrchic » Tue Sep 07, 2010 12:51 am

Monday, Day 13: SUCCESS

B - grape nuts with milk and 1/2 a sliced banana
L - homemade whole wheat mac and cheese (the "lite" mac and cheese recipe in this month's Fitness magazine), carrot, about 1/2 cup of strawberries and 1/2 a sliced banana
D - broiled scallops with a little butter and lemon juice, broiled zucchini, chunk of whole wheat bread with a tiny bit of butter, apple

Great on water, took my vitamin, off on exercise. Gym bag is packed for yoga tomorrow morning, lunch is packed for tomorrow, and meals are planned for the week.

Julie

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Post by thtrchic » Wed Sep 08, 2010 1:25 am

Tuesday, Day 14: SUCCESS

Yay -- 2 Tuesdays in a row in control!

B - (pre-yoga) banana, (post-yoga) greek yogurt with honey and walnuts
L - leftover mac & cheese (I just wasn't hungry for anything else so I stopped after that part of the lunch)
D - leftover scallops, strawberries, carrots

Lots of water, took my vitamin, and went to yoga this morning.

I already know there will be cake for people's birthdays at work tomorrow and I already know that I will be passing on it. It'll be Wednesday. I don't eat cake on Wednesdays.

Julie

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Post by thtrchic » Thu Sep 09, 2010 1:12 am

Wednesday, Day 15: SUCCESS

I resisted the amazing looking chocolate mousse cake!! And it wasn't even that hard!!!

B - (pre-workout) shredded mini wheats with milk, (post-workout) about 1/4 cup of mixed nuts with raisins
L - greek yogurt with sliced banana and grape nuts, 2 thin pieces of whole wheat bread with a bit of butter
D - chicken and rice in bbq sauce, grapes

Tons of water, took my vitamin, did 45 minutes on the exercise bike at the gym.

Tomorrow I have a first date which is meeting for a drink. So I'm going to have a drink. And it's not going to be with a meal. As long as that's my only exception and its the one drink, I'm calling it a success. It's a part of life that needs to be reasonably worked in and to me that's reasonable given the infrequency.

Julie

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Post by thtrchic » Fri Sep 10, 2010 3:28 am

Thursday, Day 16: SUCCESS

I don't feel like my clothes are really fitting any differently, but I am feeling the difference in my ring. It's now fitting more comfortably on my biggest finger, rather than my second finger. Good and interesting. It bolsters me to keep going.

B - oatmeal with a bit of butter and sugar and some slivered almonds and pecans
L - leftover chicken and rice in bbq sauce, apple, handful of mixed nuts, giant handful of raisins
D - (out, on that date) 1 large beer, 4 (I think) triangles of thin pita with hummus and a few olives

Great on water, took my vitamin, off on exercise. My lunch plan tomorrow is to eat out. When I made the plan that seemed like a good idea, but now I'm feeling nervous about that. I don't really have many supplies to make lunch, though. I suddenly don't like not having a clear cut and reasonably healthy plan. I might try and do something from a grocery store instead of a restaurant....

Julie

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Post by thtrchic » Sat Sep 11, 2010 12:29 am

Friday, Day 17: SUCCESS

It has been such a struggle today. Not for sweets, but for food itself. I've been so hungry. In a legitimate way because I happily would have eaten fruit or veggies. It really wasn't a snack or a sweet I wanted -- but more actual food. My lunch should have been ok calorie-wise, but was clearly not enough to keep me sustained. I the bit of nuts was just not enough protein. But I've persevered. Interestingly, at the same time I REALLY wanted to eat something, I really didn't. It just felt weird. And feels weird to think about. Perhaps habits are starting to kick in.

B - grape nuts with milk, piece of whole wheat toast with a bit of butter
L - oatmeal with bit of butter and sugar and some sliced almonds and pecans, plum, big handful of raisins
D - (planned, out with some friends for a birthday) 1 beer, 1 smallish plate of bbq ideally with some salad or at least corn

Walked about 25 minutes, but I'm going to count it as 15 for my weekly minutes because that's all that was at a constant and decent speed.

And good on water, took my vitamin. Those habits are officially ingrained.

Julie

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Post by thtrchic » Sun Sep 12, 2010 1:14 am

Saturday, Day 18: S-DAY

B - grape nuts with milk
L - frozen pizza
S - chocolate frosted doughnut (the fluffy kind, not the dense kind)
D - rest of frozen pizza, cut up plum

I ate dinner quite early and at the time thought I might have an evening snack, but now I'm thinking I can push through without it.

I also had an interesting experience picking my sweet. I had originally thought I'd get a piece of grocery store cake. It's big and has a lot of frosting and is very sweet and is something I used to love, although eat infrequently. Looking at it today it just seemed gross. The idea of eating it was just not appealing. Not that a doughnut is particular light (or small), but it is compared to the cake and when I saw it I realized that was much more appealing. I really enjoyed eating it too and feel like I really made the right choice despite the fact that I was thinking about this cake for the last couple days.

Did well on water, took my vitamin, and did 20 minutes of strength training.

EDIT (might be useful for future reference) - ended up having about 1/4 cup of trail mix. Not feeling great about it really and probably could have just held out, but am still going to bed with that slightly hungry feeling, which I've come to like.

Julie

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Post by thtrchic » Mon Sep 13, 2010 1:59 am

Sunday, Day 19: S-DAY

B - great grains cereal with sliced banana and milk
S (pre-work event) - apple with about an ounce of sharp cheddar cheese
L - (at work event) 1 largish chicken satay skewer, green papaya salad
D/S- rocky road ice cream

A little low, but ok on water, took my vitamin, and walked about 45 minutes for exercise plus 45 minutes for leisure at a street fest.

Groceries and produce bought and meals planned for the week. Here's to another good one!

Julie

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Post by thtrchic » Tue Sep 14, 2010 1:11 am

Monday, Day 20: SUCCESS

B - cereal with milk and sliced banana
L - bagel with hummus, 2 carrots, 1/2 avocado, peach
D - whole wheat pasta with tuna and cubed cheddar, these fruit things that are a hybrid of pear and kiwi

The problem with pasta is the amount that's a serving looks and feels like so little food to me. I'm having this same thing for lunch tomorrow and I think that plus the carrots and fruit I have planned isn't going to be enough to hold me. I think I'm going to need to add something else to that plate or making it through the afternoon will be very, very hard.

Good on water, took my vitamin, and off on exercise.

Julie

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Post by oolala53 » Tue Sep 14, 2010 2:01 am

What amount dry weight do you cook of pasta? Do you add some fat? REmember that Italians always have bread with pasta. If you don't want bread, maybe you should double your pasta portion, or add half again as much. It's true that it looks small because it's particles of wheat compacted together rather than a whole grain. Chew, chew, chew it well. It takes some skill to keep it in your mouth while you chew it up to liquid. It's pretty easy to swallow while the pieces are still too large. But your satisfaction will be greater!
Count plates, not calories. 11 years "during"
Age 69
BMI Jan/10-30.8
1/12-26.8 3/13-24.9 +/- 8-lb. 3 yrs
9/17 22.8 (flux) 3/18 22.2
2 yrs flux 6/20 22
1/21-23

There is no S better than Vanilla No S (mods now as a senior citizen)

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Post by thtrchic » Tue Sep 14, 2010 2:24 am

I made 1/2 cup dry. I hadn't thought about how I was chewing, but I don't think I was particularly savoring. That's a good point. I'm kind of looking forward to trying it and seeing how it affects both taste and fill tomorrow. I'm also thinking that adding a piece of whole wheat bread to lunch will be a good idea.

Thanks.
Julie

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Post by thtrchic » Wed Sep 15, 2010 12:06 am

Tuesday, Day 21: SUCCESS!

Yay, day 21! Funny thing is as I've gotten closer the number has mattered less. I think I'll actually be best for me to look at it as more of a month to month thing. I'm feeling great about hitting 21 consecutive days (1 NWS day in there) of Success. Mostly because it proves I can. And I can feel habit starting to form. But it's far from easy. Which makes sense since it hasn't been that long. I'm happy to see only green and yellows on my calendar for the first half of the month and looking forward to seeing the whole month that way. I'll keep plodding away the same way for the rest of September. Come October, which'll be 5 weeks of success in, I'll start working on adding more veggies to my meals. This has been a major problem my whole life so will surely be something of a struggle, but a necessary evil to beat for eventual health.

Anyway, here's today....

B - bagel with cream cheese, small container of greek yogurt with honey
L - same pasta salad from last night (I think the chewing slower thing really helped! the food did taste different for sure and, placebo or not, I was more full after eating it than I was last night), 2 large carrots
D - (planned) baked eggplant parm, piece of bread, grapes

Doing great on water, took my vitamin, good yoga class this morning.

Julie

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Post by thtrchic » Wed Sep 15, 2010 2:51 pm

Since it is the end of the 21 day cycle, I decided to weigh and measure. I've been trying not to do this so that I can focus more on habit than weight for right now. But had always said I'd do it now. Going forward, I'll do it at the end of every month (or possibly on the last Friday of the month if the last day is a weekend).

Anyway, I lost half a pound in the 3 weeks. Not much, but better than nothing. And I've been building habits. Better, though, I lost a combined 3 inches from waist, hips, thigh, bicep, and chest. I assume most of that has actually been in the last 2 weeks when I've been regularly exercising.

I'm hopeful I'll see a little more lost when I check again at the end of the month. But I'm also reminding myself that I'm in the early stages where it's about building up the habit for longer term loss and eventual maintenance at a healthy weight. I'm writing it to remind myself right now. :)

Julie

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Post by oolala53 » Wed Sep 15, 2010 7:14 pm

I think the fact that you lost inches is a lot more significant than the half pound. Plus the habit stuff, around which everything else revolves. But it can be hard not to lose. I know I had to get over a bit being jealous that Reinhard lost 20 lbs. in his first two months. I wonder what he would have done if he hadn't? Or if he'd never dropped another 20 lbs.? I'm still working on the first 20, though that represents more than 10% of my weight, and I'm not planning to do anything else drastically different, either. Just tweak, tweak, tweak the meals.
Count plates, not calories. 11 years "during"
Age 69
BMI Jan/10-30.8
1/12-26.8 3/13-24.9 +/- 8-lb. 3 yrs
9/17 22.8 (flux) 3/18 22.2
2 yrs flux 6/20 22
1/21-23

There is no S better than Vanilla No S (mods now as a senior citizen)

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Post by thtrchic » Wed Sep 15, 2010 11:18 pm

Thanks, oolala. It's helpful to hear another person say it. :)

I'd had a reward of a haircut at a nice salon in line for when I got to the 150's. But that's going slowly and I hate to get myself too caught up in weight right now so I've decided today to revise that to a reward if I'm totally successful via food and exercise habit rules in September. Half way there now and I think it's very do-able. And probably better for me long term than focusing just on that number.

Today, Wednesday, is another SUCCESS. Yay!

B - grape nuts with milk and sliced banana
L - the last of the pasta salad, greek yogurt with strawberry (for the second day in a row I felt full after this so didn't eat my apple)
D - baked eggplant parm, small piece of garlic bread, apple

Solid on water, walked about an hour urban ranger style (aka for transportation), but at a good pace the whole time, and took my vitamin. I'm going to count the minutes as 45 rather than 60 to account for stops at stoplights and things.

Julie

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Post by thtrchic » Fri Sep 17, 2010 1:31 am

Thursday, SUCCESS

I want something sweet so bad right now. This is the strongest craving I've had in weeks. I'm not feeling so well today and I think PMS is taking hold, which is what I'm attributing this to. But I'm stronger than all that and am not giving in. I had a piece of gum at one point this afternoon to help. That's the first time I've done that and it did help. I have a few more awake hours tonight to keep fighting, but I know I can do it. And since I'll have already posted my success, there's nothing I can do about it. :)

B - cereal with milk and sliced banana
L - bagel with cream cheese, potato chips (I think it's the PMS thing again, but this part was within the "rules"), cut up peach and pluot
D - last of the leftover baked eggplant parm, small piece of garlic bread, grapes

Solid on water and took my vitamin. Off on exercise and am so glad for that today.

Julie

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Post by oolala53 » Fri Sep 17, 2010 1:24 pm

Hope you made it. The reconditioning is much more powerful when you face down the strongest urges, not to mention the smug feeling when you wake up the next day!
Count plates, not calories. 11 years "during"
Age 69
BMI Jan/10-30.8
1/12-26.8 3/13-24.9 +/- 8-lb. 3 yrs
9/17 22.8 (flux) 3/18 22.2
2 yrs flux 6/20 22
1/21-23

There is no S better than Vanilla No S (mods now as a senior citizen)

thtrchic
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Post by thtrchic » Fri Sep 17, 2010 3:01 pm

Thanks, oolala! I did make it and, you're totally right, feel great about it today.

Julie

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Post by thtrchic » Sat Sep 18, 2010 12:10 am

Friday, SUCCESS

It's good the rule is clear -- I simply don't eat sweets on weekdays except for *very* special cases -- because while not feeling well and looking for comfort, my brain quickly suggests eating a sweet and I wouldn't want to have to think about it. But the rule is clear and thinking isn't needed so I've done well.

B - oatmeal with almond butter
L - small, lean cheeseburger with baked sweet potato fries
D - (in process) soft and fairly large german breadstick, light mushroom, potato soup, apple (probably)

Doing well on water and took my vitamin. Didn't do my exercise because I just don't feel well and am excessively tired in a sick kinda way. Im not calling it a failure because I don't think that's fair to me. I guess it's just an extra off day for cause. Meals are planned for the weekend. The only variable is that I have an unspecific Sunday evening sweet on the plan and I'd need to decide on that when the time comes. I have early dinner plans that night and I'll see what comes of that before making a final decision I think. I think that's a small enough variable for me to be pretty in control.

Julie

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Post by oolala53 » Sat Sep 18, 2010 3:37 pm

You are so wise about the brain signals. That is exactly what happens and the more we ignore them, the less urgent they become. I think they are easy to trip again because food is so basic, but I find like you it's not much of an issue on weekdays. It's just not done! but I've already had some cookies and pancakes for breakfast! However, I'll also do a lot of walking today.

I think you should call the day without exercise an exempt day for sickness, just like you would for the eating plan.

Keep up the good work!
Count plates, not calories. 11 years "during"
Age 69
BMI Jan/10-30.8
1/12-26.8 3/13-24.9 +/- 8-lb. 3 yrs
9/17 22.8 (flux) 3/18 22.2
2 yrs flux 6/20 22
1/21-23

There is no S better than Vanilla No S (mods now as a senior citizen)

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Post by thtrchic » Sun Sep 19, 2010 12:02 am

One of the things that I'm really liking about doing this is I'm suddenly hearing those brain signals and realizing what they mean. I think a big part of my problem, and probably many of us here, is that I didn't really understand what they were saying, but I'm definitely starting to now.

It's Day 25, by the way. And Saturday so an S-Day. I'm also still not feeling at all well so calling it another exempt day for exercise. I feel a little weird about that, but I really do need the day off to rest. I'm feeling bad enough that someone that I always want to see offered to come over and I said no. Seems like a decent barometer for being sick enough to skip exercise.

B - oatmeal with almond butter (was really happy to have this already made from yesterday), 1/2 a medium sized bakery type chocolate chip cookie
L - bagel with melted mozzarella cheese, half a serving of baked fries, few black olives, the other 1/2 of the cookie
S - apple
D - small amy's frozen cheese pizza, can of hansen's root beer

I had planned a homemade hot fudge sundae for dessert, but am not feeling so much like it now. So for the moment this will be it. But perhaps I'll have a small serving of it or something like it a little later. Obviously I'm not going to force myself to eat ice cream if I don't actually really want it. The cookie wasn't part of the original plan, but I did really want it and it is Saturday so I decided ok given it was kept to 1 cookie for the day. I think it's more illness than habit keeping me from feeling like the ice cream, but my sweet tooth was also pretty well satisfied with the cookie so maybe that's kicking in a little too.

Doing fine on water and took my vitamin.

Julie

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Post by thtrchic » Mon Sep 20, 2010 12:12 am

I hate being sick. And sure am glad today is Sunday. Eating has been haphazard. My plan involved meals out associated with plans that I ended up skipping/canceling because I feel lousy so everything kind of fell apart. As I write that right now I realize the dramatic difference in my current "fell apart" to that of only a month ago.

B - hot grape nuts with honey, orange juice (2 servings of juice)
L (sort of) - club crackers with sliced cheddar, few black olives
S - more club crackers
S - about 30 pieces of candy corn/autumn mix (I think that must be a record small amount for me to eat of that -- it's so addictive and easy to just "pop")
S - warmed bakery chocolate chip cookie with scoop of vanilla ice cream
D - whole wheat macaroni with garlic olive oil and a little parmesan, cut up pluot

Good on water, took my vitamin, still too tired/sick to exercise.

EDIT -- I ended up having another handful of autumn mix instead of the pluot. Stupid. And now I feel gross. Still, I have to say, I feel gross with less sugar than I used to. I've definitely eaten a whole lot more than this easily in the past. So that's the good news. :) Plus tomorrow's Monday so that'll be automatic candy cut-off so nothing too awful can happen.

Julie

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Post by thtrchic » Mon Sep 20, 2010 11:36 pm

Monday, SUCCESS!

I ended up eating more last night -- several crackers, black olives, and a few croutons. It was kind of silly. But an S day so luckily just fine.

Today's been a little hard. I'm still kind of sick and stayed home from work so it had the strong feel of a weekend. I had to actively remind myself it wasn't. But I did and stayed the course so all is well. And I'm starting to feel better. I'll be back to work tomorrow, but have decided I'm going to pass on yoga. I'm kind of sad about it, which is quite the new and odd feeling.

B - cereal with milk and sliced banana
L - grilled cheese, few corn chips, mixed greens with some shredded cheese, olives, croutons and poppy seed dressing, pluot
D - bagel with hummus, grapes

Good on water and took my vitamin. Off on exercise (again).

Julie

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Post by thtrchic » Wed Sep 22, 2010 1:04 am

Tuesday, Day 28, SUCCESS!

I'm so very afraid of jinxing it by saying this, but it's getting easier. Of course, tomorrow I have meals out for lunch and dinner so will probably be harder.

B - cereal with sliced banana and milk
L - "pb&j" (aka natural peanut butter and all-fruit type spread), few corn chips, mixed greens with a little shredded cheese, black olives, few croutons, and dressing
D - orange curry chicken (from the slow cooker, yay!) with brown rice, sliced apple

I'm going to stop reporting on water and vitamins after today -- but good on both today -- unless I suddenly start having problems in those areas. Last day of sick based exemption from exercise.

Julie

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Post by thtrchic » Wed Sep 22, 2010 9:55 pm

Wednesday, FAILURE.

Frankly, I feel fine about it. I'm not sure if that's good or bad, but I do.

B - oatmeal with a few tablespoons of nuts
L - (out) piece of thin italian style pizza with basil and prosciutto, apple
S - chocolate chip cookie
D - (planned) entree with a few chips at mexican restaurant, margarita

The cookie is bad, but I thought about it and took the time to enjoy it and somehow just don't care today. It's one and that's it. Im also having a margarita with dinner because it's a big part of this particular restaurant and I just don't want to be left out. Just one. And just my entree and the few chips I'll have with the entree. No dessert. No second drink of any kind.

It is what it is and tomorrow I'll be successfully vanilla again.

Julie

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Post by thtrchic » Fri Sep 24, 2010 1:38 am

Thursday, SUCCESS!

B - oatmeal with a few tablespoons of chopped nuts
L - (out with a group of colleagues) ahi tuna burger, small very lightly dressed mizuna salad, piece of bread
D - greek yogurt with banana and grape nuts

One of my co-workers used to be a baker and sometimes brings in these great chocolate chip cookies. Today was one of the those days and he specifically called me in to offer me one. I very nicely and happily took it, but when I got back to my desk wrapped it up and brought it home. I'll eat it this weekend. He's happy, I'll be happy Saturday, and I stayed on plan. Yay!

Did 30 minutes of strength training. Gym tomorrow morning. This is the first exercise I've done in a week after being sick and it feels good to be back to it.

Julie

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Post by thtrchic » Sat Sep 25, 2010 12:32 am

Friday, SUCCESS!

It was a stressful day at work and my brain quickly went to the idea of chocolate to calm myself. Luckily, I heard the thought and was able to remind myself that it would only help very briefly and I'd be really disappointed in myself later. And it worked -- I held out!

B - cereal with sliced banana and milk
L - small mixed green salad (I finished all my greens before they went bad this week!), apple, 2 largish pieces of italian style super thin pizza
D - cereal with milk

Walked about 20 minutes earlier and will do another 15-30 minutes in a bit. Not huge exercise at all, but better than nothing.

Julie

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Post by thtrchic » Sun Sep 26, 2010 2:14 am

Saturday, S-DAY.

B- cereal with milk and sliced banana
L - cut up cheese, wheat thins, sliced pepperoni, 1/2 mango
S - that piece of cookie from thursday, some brach's autumn mix (I liked this last week, but now am over it and should just get rid of it)
D - lots of nibbling of cheese, crackers, olives, a bit of hummus, 1/2 glass of wine and a bunch of bite size cookies while setting up and working an event at the theatre
S- 1/2 mango

Worked really hard setting up the event for about 45 minutes. Really had my heart rate up and worked up a sweat. I also stood for about 2.5 hours.

Julie

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Post by thtrchic » Mon Sep 27, 2010 2:52 am

Sunday, S-DAY.

Giant exercise failure. I just never did any today and left myself 65 minutes short for the week's goal. Pretty pathetic. I was sick for the first couple days of the week, but that isn't the reason. The reason is laziness. All I can do now is try again next week. I know I'll do better. I'll start with yoga on Tuesday morning and get back into the swing of things.

B- greek yogurt with sliced strawberries, piece of toast with butter
S - 2 brownie bites
L - bagel with cream cheese, more sliced strawberries, bacon
S - vanilla ice cream with hot fudge and some pecan pieces
D - 2 servings (1 cup dry) of whole wheat rotini with meat sauce and a sprinkling of romano cheese
S - about 1/4 cup of mixed nuts with chocolate chips

The evening snack was kind of ridiculous. I wasn't hungry, but was feeling like it was my "last" chance and shouldn't be missed. I kind of thought I was over that, but apparently not. On the upside, it was a pretty small snack with redeeming health value.

A success of the day for me was not buying any food out. Also groceries are purchased and meals are planned for the week. I'm looking forward to another week of success on no-s and greater success with my exercise plan.

Julie

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Post by thtrchic » Tue Sep 28, 2010 1:50 am

Monday, SUCCESS!

B - cereal with milk and sliced banana
L - peanut butter and all-fruit sandwich, few corn chips, about 5 oz of greek yogurt with strawberry
D - grape nuts with milk

I was supposed to make soup for dinner, but it's so hot out I just couldnt do it. Or anything really so just went for the cereal.

Walked half an hour. And like it or not, I am going to yoga in the morning. I know I won't want to in the morning, but I also know I'll like it once I'm there and will feel so much better if I do it.

Julie

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Post by thtrchic » Wed Sep 29, 2010 1:29 am

Tuesday, SUCCESS!

B - greek yogurt with walnuts and touch of honey, 2 pieces of toast with butter and cream cheese (1 piece before yoga, 1 after with the yogurt)
L - hummus with wheat thins, small salad of various lettuces, a little shredded cheese, a few olives, and italian dressing, nectarine
D - seaweed salad, half of a large maki roll (alaskan -- salmon with avocado), grapes

I'm not sure why I'm not finishing my sushi. I just feel done half way through so I guess I'll put it away and see if I can incorporate it into some meal tomorrow. I'm pretty sure I'm going to be awfully hungry later, but forcing myself to eat seems silly.

Went to yoga this morning and it was another good class.

Julie

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Post by thtrchic » Thu Sep 30, 2010 12:51 am

Wednesday, SUCCESS

It was a really rough afternoon at work with some bad news coming my way. I'm feeling quite proud of myself that I didn't turn to food for comfort. I stayed exactly on track. I don't seem to be loosing much (or any?) weight, but I do seem to be starting to actually change my habits and life. For now, all I can do is assume weight will eventually catch up. And give it a little more time to do that before making any other changes, which I think could lead to a derailment now.

Anyway....

B - cereal with milk and banana
L - peanut butter and all-fruit sandwich, few corn chips (about half a regular serving), strawberries
D - crockpot creamy turkey with green beans and fresh mushrooms, dinner roll, frozen grapes

Off on exercise for the day, but did take a short minute walk at lunch for fun and energy.

Julie

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Post by thtrchic » Thu Sep 30, 2010 2:18 pm

End of month weighing and measuring:

Lost 1.2 pounds for September. Not a lot, but it's a loss.
Lost 1.8 pounds since I re-started my mostly successful run in late August.

Didn't measure for some reason on 9/1, but since 8/21 when I got it together and began again for real I've lost 4 inches combined in waist, hips, chest, thigh, and bicep. So clearly something's happening and I just need to keep it up to be able to really see results.

I really, really, really don't want to let myself get caught up thinking about weight day to day or setting specific weight loss goals based on time, BUT I'd also really like to see a full 2 lbs lost for October because that would take me into the elusive 150's.

So, basically, I'll stay the course. Work on starting to add more vegetables per my original plan for October and work on keeping up the current exercise plan of at least 3 hours a week, which is the most I've regularly done in years.

Julie

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Post by thtrchic » Sat Oct 02, 2010 12:36 am

Friday, NWS Day.

Today was a vacation day for me and I took it as an S day. I'm allowing myself 1 for the month so that's it til November. Overall it was a day of indulgence -- doughnuts, ice cream from a famous local creamery (my first time there), pizza, and a really nice massage.

Meals are planned for the week. Tomorrow will definitely be a lighter S day. Sunday is closing of the show at the theatre so dinner will be the party and probably less light.

Walked about 20 minutes for fun today. I'll do at least 65 minutes of exercise this weekend to make the goal for the week.

Julie

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Post by thtrchic » Sun Oct 03, 2010 1:00 am

Saturday, S DAY.

Didn't have breakfast for some reason. This is very, very unlike me. I was hungry, but just didn't feel like eating so I didn't. I think this worked because I knew I could have a snack later if I wanted.

L - leftover creamy turkey with green beans and mushrooms, few bites of a dinner roll, dish of homemade applesauce
S - frozen snickers bar
S- air popped popcorn with garlic olive oil and salt
D - cup of dense, rich, homemade cream of mushroom soup (slightly more than a cup of mushrooms per serving), largish soft breadstick, frozen grapes

Will do 20 minutes of weights/strength training once my dinner is settled.

Julie

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Post by thtrchic » Mon Oct 04, 2010 1:39 am

Sunday, S-DAY.

B - small bowl of cereal with milk
S - pumpkin chocolate chunk muffin from farmers market
L - greek yogurt with strawberry, peanut butter granola bar
D - bunch of finger food at closing party, glass of sangria

I also stopped at a bakery on the way home and bought this banana cream tart. Basically, again I felt like I needed a sweet to close out the weekend. But now that I'm home with it I realize I'm not even a little hungry and don't feel like eating. I also don't feel like throwing away a $5 tart (which is probably quite good to boot). It won't save til next week. I'm trying to decide what to do. I'm leaning towards eating a few bites and throwing the rest. This would be a good time to have a roommate/boyfriend living here to share with.

Did 45 minutes on the bike at the gym, which means I met my goal for the week. Yay!

Julie

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Post by thtrchic » Mon Oct 04, 2010 2:14 am

Ok, the decision was easily made when I tasted the tart. It was AMAZING. And light. And simply couldn't be wasted. Every bite was worth it.

The lesson for the future is eat slightly less at the party if I also want dessert. But I'm pretty sure that in the past, I would have eaten more than I did at the party in addition to dessert so at least making some progress.

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Post by thtrchic » Tue Oct 05, 2010 1:50 am

Monday, SUCCESS!

B - cereal with sliced banana and milk
L - leftover cream of mushroom soup (with 1 cup of mushrooms in it), largish soft breadstick, 3 dates, sliced strawberries
D - rosemary walnut baked chicken, mashed potatoes with butter (from super yummy farmers market new potatoes), fresh peas in butter, homemade applesauce

This was my first foray into the world of fresh peas. They were good. Definitely 1000% times better than canned, which I kind of hate. I'm really so much not a vegetable person so eating a full serving of anything green without being miserable is a big accomplishment.

2 servings of veggies, 4 of fruit (dates count, right?). Great start to the month for me!

Walked slowly for nearly 2 hours. I'm going to count it as 1 official hour of exercise to make up for the speed. I also got a pedometer today. I didn't get it on my until late afternoon so won't get much of a read today, but will start tomorrow just seeing what my days are like. I'll make a plan for specific increases next week when I have a baseline.

Julie

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Post by thtrchic » Wed Oct 06, 2010 12:34 am

Tuesday, SUCCESS!

B - banana (pre-yoga), bagel with cream cheese (post-yoga, at staff meeting)
L - 1/3 bagel, small piece of leftover baked chicken, leftover mashed potatoes, handful of raisins, sliced strawberries (this seems like an awful lot of food, but didn't seem so at the time)
D -slice of homemade whole wheat bread with butter, caesar salad with lite dressing (from a bag), frozen grapes

Went to yoga this morning. Forgot to put my pedometer on after that.

I've decided that my October veggie goal is at least 4 servings of fruit and veggies a day where at least 1 must be a vegetable. I know 5 would be better, but I think building up makes more sense so I can actually succeed.

So far, Friday and Sunday were S- days and the rest, including today, are successes. Saturday was also technically an S-Day, but I also met the goal so am upgrading it to a veggie success day.

Julie

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Post by thtrchic » Thu Oct 07, 2010 3:15 pm

Wednesday, FAILURE. :(

I was thinking that I couldn't figure out what happened, but suddenly now realize that I do: I didn't have good enough meals planned out well enough.

Here was the day:

b- cream of rice cereal with sugar and milk, raisins (this was weird to eat but I was worried about 4 servings of f/v and didn't have enough of anything else available: problem #1 of the day)
Then.... bagel with cream cheese, small bag of potato chips (could have just been lunch if I'd just eaten my fruit and stopped at this point, but no...)
Snickers bar (this is what I HAD to have???)
some of my salad mostly for the excuse to eat croutons
Mcdonalds chicken mcnuggets, few fries, chococlate shake (WHAT????)
Beer with a friend before a play I was seeing

The beer was planned so not actually a problem. The bagel is only a problem in that it wasn't the originally planned lunch. But I don't know that's a problem. Everything between bagel and beer is obviously a problem. And, of course, I ended up feeling sick. I knew I would before I even bought the mcdonalds and was really not looking forward to it. Yet, somehow that didn't stop me from doing it.

Anyway, the day is over. In fact, I stopped eating about 4:30 yesterday without even trying. Today starts anew and will be back to "normal."

I do have a work lunch out, but will keep it "right."

I did wear my pedometer yesterday and got almost 8500 steps. It's the first day I measured, but it certainly felt like a higher than normal walking day. And it was a planned off day on exercise. I suspect my baseline is more like 6000-7000, but we'll see with a little more time.

Julie

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Post by thtrchic » Thu Oct 07, 2010 10:56 pm

Today is going ok, but I am really craving a sweet snack this afternoon. I've been surprised by the struggle it is today. I was thinking yesterday was more of a one and over kind of thing, but now I see how easily I could completely abandon my efforts. I'm not doing that, though. I'm noticing it and staying vigilant.

This has led me to re-assess my veggie goal as it relates to No-S. I think I'm going to take that off the table for now. I want to think about eating these things and try to incorporate them, but not have a set rule. I'm somehow already feeling like it's derailing me as I'm so focused on it to the point that I'm making other deals with myself about amount being eaten and when. It really has only been a month of successful No-Sing and I think that's not enough time to add the next step in.

So, back to basics for now....

Julie

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Post by thtrchic » Fri Oct 08, 2010 1:26 am

Thursday, SUCCESS!

As I said earlier, it was rather difficult today. But I didn't give in and am proud of that. I think tomorrow will be easier.

B - cream of rice cereal with milk and sugar
L - (out at a work thing) a thai noodle dish with chicken with a name I don't remember, 3 dates (separate, but pre-planned and virtual plated)
D - broiled lamb burger with goat cheese, large dish of homemade applesauce

I'm tired, but will do 15-20 minutes of strength training once dinner has settled. Just over 4000 steps today. This is definitely closer to the norm than yesterday.

Julie

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Post by thtrchic » Sat Oct 09, 2010 1:58 am

Friday, SUCCESS!

B - banana (pre-gym), bagel with cream cheese (post)
L - broiled lamb burger with goat cheese and barbecue sauce, small handful of tortilla chips, greek yogurt with strawberry
D - salad from whole foods salad bar, few bites of mac and cheese

Im baking vegan peanut butter chocolate chip bars. This is my first attempt at vegan baking as I've started dating a guy who's a vegan. In the process I had one vegan chocolate chip to understand the taste and one very, very tiny bite of the base batter again for taste. I'm comfortable with that as success.

Did 45 minutes on the bike at the gym this morning and about 7500 steps.

Julie

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Post by thtrchic » Sat Oct 09, 2010 11:48 pm

Saturday, S-DAY. A good one.

B - small peanut butter chocolate chip bar from last night, greek yogurt with honey and sliced banana
L - (picnicking post-hike) about a plate's worth of the following: couscous, few pieces of asparagus, few pieces of broccoli with miso sauce, few bites of salad, some steel cut oats with strawberry, another small peanut butter chocolate chip bar
D- (planned) little bit of bbq pulled pork and mac & cheese from the whole foods hot bar, few olives, frozen grapes

I hiked about 5 miles (on a date :) ). And am feeling good about my S Day. I had the 2 small sweets, both as parts of meals. I also had 1+ servings of veggies at lunch plus a little fruit, and full servings of fruit at breakfast and dinner. And, probably most importantly for me on these days, am not having dessert. I just don't need it. I have a fancy super yummy looking dessert for tomorrow. I won't be having a sweet at the farmers market in the morning, though. I'll just wait and enjoy my specially picked out dessert when the time comes. It's nice to feel hungry going into meals even on S-Days. :)

Julie

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Post by thtrchic » Sun Oct 10, 2010 11:32 pm

Sunday, S- DAY. Another pretty good one. Stuck pretty close to my plan at least. I did end up having a few olives and wheat thins last night -- I was just feeling so hungry after an early dinner.

B - oatmeal with a spoonful of almond butter
L - rising moon frozen cheese pizza
S - about 10 pistachio nuts
D - sliced pepperoni, wheat thins, dates, olives, fancy goat cheese, fig and olive crisps
S - chocolate parfait from whole foods

I haven't actually quite finished my parfait. I was feeling very full so I decided to stop (this is unheard of for me!). I'm sure I'll finish it later tonight and will enjoy the last part much more than if I had forced myself to eat past fullness. I might also have some grapes and if I end up feeling REALLY hungry a little more cheese and crackers.

Off on exercise today and I can feel that my body needs the rest day. I am cleaning the house and doing laundry so getting a little movement anyway. Will be about 6000 steps for the day.

Julie

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Post by thtrchic » Mon Oct 11, 2010 11:51 pm

Monday, SUCCESS!

I'm so tired today for some reason and so, so hungry late afternoon.

B - cereal with milk and sliced banana
L - leftover broiled lamb burger with goat cheese and bbq sauce, raisins (planned a pear, but it was awful), salad of lettuce, carrots, few olives, tiny bit of shredded mozzarella cheese, croutons, dressing
D - crockpot spinach pesto lasagna, chunk of sourdough bread, 1/2 large peach

2 servings of veggies and 3 of fruit today. Yay! :)

Tomorrow's a hard day to stay on plan. I already know there will be birthday celebration cupcakes and pumpkin muffins in the morning (not my birthday, 2 co-workers) and it's the first rehearsal of a show so there'll be a "spread" out as part of the mingling time. But I don't think either of these are sufficiently S worthy. Falling on the same day makes it seem more so, but I'm going to go with no. I'll be eating most of my breakfast after yoga anyway so that'll be fairly close to the time of the cupcakes and muffins and should help me avoid that. And I plan to have an approximation of a plate (or less) of non-sweet food for my dinner from the "spread." And if it turns out that's not sufficient food, then I'll also have a piece of fruit when I get home. I'm just not quite sure what it'll be yet so it's hard to judge in advance. I think having these plans and just knowing in advance that I'm not partaking beyond that should keep me on track.

Off on exercise today. Which I'm very glad about because I'm just so tired. Probably about 5000 steps for the day. Pretty slow all around I guess.

Julie

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hey

Post by tobiasmom » Tue Oct 12, 2010 12:13 am

Well, it sounds like you've got a plan! You can do it!!!

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Post by thtrchic » Tue Oct 12, 2010 12:33 am

Thanks! I think so too!

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Post by thtrchic » Wed Oct 13, 2010 1:24 am

Tuesday, SUCCESS! The plan worked!

B - 1/2 banana (pre-yoga), oatmeal with almond butter (post-yoga)
L - leftover spinach pesto lasagna, piece of italian bread
D - small plate of roast chicken, chips, small piece of bread, olives, mixed fruit

Went to yoga this morning and looks like I'll be about 5800 steps for the day.

I'm proud of myself for staying on track despite today's temptations. The best part is that it wasn't really that hard to do.

Julie

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