OK, it's time for a reckoning/detox/reboot/do-over/mulligan/JUST DO IT! I'm going on a cruise in 4 weeks. I had to buy a bathing suit with a nice long skirt on it, like an old lady, just because I don't like my ... "bottom line", let's call it.
Tomorrow is Monday. Everyone knows the best day to start a new lifestyle is on a Monday, right? (said with tongue firmly in cheek, of course--Monday isn't the best time to start--right NOW is.)
But I choose tomorrow.
There are 3 full weeks left in March starting tomorrow. So I'm giving myself these 3 weeks/21 days to do REALLY GOOD THINGS for my body and my health.
The plan is to focus all my eating on veggies, fruits, and some clean protein when needed.
My NutriBullet will come in real handy for making nice NutriBlasts first thing in the morning, packed with veggies and fruit.
Then at lunch I'll have a nice salad with some of my homemade Orange Cashew dressing, that I got from Dr. Joel Fuhrman's site. Nice and clean--no added sugar, salt, or preservatives.
In the evening, I'll have either another NutriBlast or/and some cottage cheese, chicken, or eggs. Those are my protein sources of choice for the next 3 weeks.
It won't be easy, but I've enlisted the help of a buddy who I can contact when the night-eating urge strikes. Eating at night is my biggest downfall by far--especially carby crap.
So wish me luck, and strength. I'll post a new start-over weight in the morning. I need to do better; I want to do better; and I'm determined to do better. I CAN DO THIS!!!
How 'bout you?
Sunday, March 9, 2014
Thursday, March 6, 2014
March 6, 2014 (226.5)
I've been dicking around since November--blasting, then binge eating, then doing nothing special, then more blasting (mostly mornings) and more stress eating (mostly at night)--and on and on.
And it's gotten me nowhere, of course. Except still feeling sick and tired of feeling sick and tired. And preparing to go on a cruise in 28 days with a huge gut and a very large "backyard", shall we say. Oy.
Listened to a PBS special last night by Dr. Joel Fuhrman. He got me thinking again about eating for health instead of living to eat.
I've often thought I could eat salads and more veggies if I could dress them with something good that didn't cancel out all their health benefits by being loaded with sugar, salt, and what have you.
Dr. Fuhrman has some YUMMY-sounding salad dressing recipes on his site. They're made with things like cashews, oranges, and nuts.
So I've written down a couple of those recipes for my grocery shopping trip later today. Going to see if having a good, "approved" salad dressing helps. I know one thing--it makes me actually look forward to eating a salad, so that's good!
Then just because I didn't feel like eating crap for breakfast today (like the chocolate chip oatmeal walnut cookies I made "for my husband" twice this past week), I fished some good stuff out of the fridge and made myself a really interesting NutriBlast.
It's got tons of spinach (the large cup, packed halfway), about half a cup of shredded carrots, and part of a huge tomato I paid way too much for so I didn't want to waste it even though I'm not a big fan. Plus I filled it halfway with organic tart cherry juice and the rest of the way with unsweetened apple juice and added some turmeric and a couple dashes of cinnamon.
It came out beet-colored and actually tastes delicious.
Sunday, November 3, 2013
Day 90 - I've Gained Some Back (221)
First off, yup, I've gained back 3 pounds since my last post 2 weeks ago. Hmmm--now that I've written that, think there could be any correlation? My guess is there's no cause-and-effect relationship between lack of posts and weight gain, but rather a tendency to avoid blogging when I'm not "doing my best work", shall we say.
Excuse #1: Work has been hell for the past couple of weeks--overwhelmed, with stress level through the roof.
Excuse #2: Had a huge fight with a family member that upset me for days.
But those are just that--EXCUSES. Truth is, I just decided to eat a lot of pizza and ice cream over the last couple of weeks. I didn't want to; I tried not to; but I fell back into my old pattern of cravings, night eating, etc, and just went with it. Probably I just felt sorry for myself and said to heck with it.
I also tried something else that probably wasn't wise during this time. I tried a "diet", I guess you could say--the "Fast Diet". The one where you eat 500 calories on Monday and Thursday, and eat "normally" on the other 5 days. My not-even-fat cousin is doing this and has lost 24 lbs in about the same time I've been working at this. So I thought I'd mix it up a bit and give that a shot, along with 'Blasting.
You're supposed to eat a HEALTHY 500 calories on those days. Cousin K has things like pepper strips, a small piece of chicken, carrots, a light yogurt, etc.
I basically white-knuckled it through the first Monday, but I didn't make wise choices. I think I had a cup of hot chocolate with spray whipped cream and a cup of hot cider for the first 2 "meals" of the day. Then I ate way too many pumpkin seeds (those suckers have a lot of calories!)
So I was at about 600 calories by the time hubby went to bed that evening. And then ...? Out came that damned Friendly's chocolate almond chip ice cream--AND I sat down with THE CONTAINER.
So my foray into the "Fast Diet" did nothing for me except remind me that I'm not good at that kind of restriction--especially when I'm already stressed. (Ahem--isn't that 4-letter word "d-i-e-t" right in the name of that plan, anyway? Shouldn't that have been a tipoff--hmmmmmm?)
I didn't even try to do it on Thursday.
Anyway, that gives you an idea of how the past 2 weeks has gone. Pizza, ice cream, Halloween candy. Although I *am* pleased that I (a) only bought one bag of candy for Halloween; (b) left it in the cupboard out of sight until it was time for goblins to start knocking; and (c) only succumbed to it THAT night. I had just a few pieces--could have been worse!--but that helped me get where I am today, which is back up 3 pounds from my low.
It occurs to me that 218 was a mere 2 lbs away from a full TEN PERCENT of my original body weight. I was t-h-i-s c-l-o-s-e!
But that's ok. I also did my second official, timed 5K walk today. That inspired me to get going again.
More on that tomorrow. :-)
Excuse #1: Work has been hell for the past couple of weeks--overwhelmed, with stress level through the roof.
Excuse #2: Had a huge fight with a family member that upset me for days.
But those are just that--EXCUSES. Truth is, I just decided to eat a lot of pizza and ice cream over the last couple of weeks. I didn't want to; I tried not to; but I fell back into my old pattern of cravings, night eating, etc, and just went with it. Probably I just felt sorry for myself and said to heck with it.
I also tried something else that probably wasn't wise during this time. I tried a "diet", I guess you could say--the "Fast Diet". The one where you eat 500 calories on Monday and Thursday, and eat "normally" on the other 5 days. My not-even-fat cousin is doing this and has lost 24 lbs in about the same time I've been working at this. So I thought I'd mix it up a bit and give that a shot, along with 'Blasting.
You're supposed to eat a HEALTHY 500 calories on those days. Cousin K has things like pepper strips, a small piece of chicken, carrots, a light yogurt, etc.
I basically white-knuckled it through the first Monday, but I didn't make wise choices. I think I had a cup of hot chocolate with spray whipped cream and a cup of hot cider for the first 2 "meals" of the day. Then I ate way too many pumpkin seeds (those suckers have a lot of calories!)
So I was at about 600 calories by the time hubby went to bed that evening. And then ...? Out came that damned Friendly's chocolate almond chip ice cream--AND I sat down with THE CONTAINER.
So my foray into the "Fast Diet" did nothing for me except remind me that I'm not good at that kind of restriction--especially when I'm already stressed. (Ahem--isn't that 4-letter word "d-i-e-t" right in the name of that plan, anyway? Shouldn't that have been a tipoff--hmmmmmm?)
I didn't even try to do it on Thursday.
Anyway, that gives you an idea of how the past 2 weeks has gone. Pizza, ice cream, Halloween candy. Although I *am* pleased that I (a) only bought one bag of candy for Halloween; (b) left it in the cupboard out of sight until it was time for goblins to start knocking; and (c) only succumbed to it THAT night. I had just a few pieces--could have been worse!--but that helped me get where I am today, which is back up 3 pounds from my low.
It occurs to me that 218 was a mere 2 lbs away from a full TEN PERCENT of my original body weight. I was t-h-i-s c-l-o-s-e!
But that's ok. I also did my second official, timed 5K walk today. That inspired me to get going again.
More on that tomorrow. :-)
Sunday, October 20, 2013
Day 76 - Still Going Strong (218)
Yesterday I walked a little over 3 miles, from my house to my mom's. It took me 65 minutes.
I had done that same walk back in July, and it took 90 minutes!
Wow--that's a 25-minute reduction in total time in 3 months! Whoo hoo!
I've signed up for another 5K walk taking place on 11/2/13. That's why I wanted to do this little test again. If you've been reading my blog for awhile, you already know that I did my first 5K walk, put on by the "Biggest Loser" organization, back in July 2013. That was about 2 weeks before I decided to get my act together and try to get healthier.
Walking to Mom's one time the weekend before the July walk was pretty much all the training I did for that first one, believe it or not. And the night before the walk, using the excuse that I needed to "carbo load", I actually ATE AN ENTIRE PINT OF BEN & JERRY'S! Sheesh. I knew it was stupid; but I wanted to do it, so I did. Lucky I was able to drag myself around Killington Mountain for 3.2 miles after that.
That also helps explain why I look like a small buffalo in the photos from that walk. :-) See my blog posts from August for those photos.
Anyway, here's what I saw on the scale THIS morning ... [drum roll, please ...] :
That's right--I'm now down 22 pounds in just 76 days! It's kinda hard to believe, but I'm THRILLED.
I had done that same walk back in July, and it took 90 minutes!
Wow--that's a 25-minute reduction in total time in 3 months! Whoo hoo!
I've signed up for another 5K walk taking place on 11/2/13. That's why I wanted to do this little test again. If you've been reading my blog for awhile, you already know that I did my first 5K walk, put on by the "Biggest Loser" organization, back in July 2013. That was about 2 weeks before I decided to get my act together and try to get healthier.
Walking to Mom's one time the weekend before the July walk was pretty much all the training I did for that first one, believe it or not. And the night before the walk, using the excuse that I needed to "carbo load", I actually ATE AN ENTIRE PINT OF BEN & JERRY'S! Sheesh. I knew it was stupid; but I wanted to do it, so I did. Lucky I was able to drag myself around Killington Mountain for 3.2 miles after that.
That also helps explain why I look like a small buffalo in the photos from that walk. :-) See my blog posts from August for those photos.
Tuesday, October 15, 2013
Day 71 - Bread and Salt Bombs - Ugh.
Last night I saw a container of noodle soup that I'd made for my husband while he was sick over the weekend still sitting in our fridge as I was poking around looking for dinner.
So as to "not waste it", I decided that instead of 'blasting my dinner, I'd have some of that soup--AND a couple slices of a nice Tuscan Boule (that's a fancy bread, in case you didn't recognize it) with butter.
UGH!
That was a typical meal for me in the recent past, except that often instead of a slice or two of bread, I'd have the whole loaf. After all, they're small. :-)
I need to remember the next time I have such a brilliant idea how GROSS I'll feel afterward. I can't believe how many years I spent eating like that, yet not making the connection between that and my huge, bloated belly, my aching joints, and the fact that I usually felt like a piece of crap in general. Actually, I think I just didn't *want* to make that connection. Eating that crap was my solace after a stressful day at work. Whenever anything was eating me, I'd eat crap.
This morning, I woke up with a salt/bread hangover. I didn't even pig out--I had one bowl of that (nasty, salty, packaged, processed-beyond-belief) noodle soup and just the 2 slices of bread. And I felt ok about it because I *planned* consciously to eat it, and I ate normal portions. But that didn't matter--I still felt awful afterward and this morning.
I guess I've started training this ol' bod to crave better treatment. That's a big victory!
I got up today determined to (a) remember this lesson, and (b) go right back to eating the GOOD stuff. So here's what I made for breakfast:
Recipe:
This was the first time I've used Chlorella. My sister recommended it after reading about its benefits. Just 1 teaspoon is all you need.
After that great start, I had 2 slices of turkey breast on half a flax whole wheat lavash bread spread with avocado for lunch. I snacked on pumpkin seeds.
Then for dinner I made an orange-themed 'Blast that I'd looked forward all day. I had visions of creamsicles dancing in my head. I put in:
The end result was very pretty, but still nothing to write home about. I guess if I hadn't been expecting it to be sweet, I would have liked it better. But I still drank it--it was just palatable enough to escape the label "Nasty Blast" that my sisters and I have come up with to describe our "mistakes"!
So as to "not waste it", I decided that instead of 'blasting my dinner, I'd have some of that soup--AND a couple slices of a nice Tuscan Boule (that's a fancy bread, in case you didn't recognize it) with butter.
UGH!
That was a typical meal for me in the recent past, except that often instead of a slice or two of bread, I'd have the whole loaf. After all, they're small. :-)
I need to remember the next time I have such a brilliant idea how GROSS I'll feel afterward. I can't believe how many years I spent eating like that, yet not making the connection between that and my huge, bloated belly, my aching joints, and the fact that I usually felt like a piece of crap in general. Actually, I think I just didn't *want* to make that connection. Eating that crap was my solace after a stressful day at work. Whenever anything was eating me, I'd eat crap.
This morning, I woke up with a salt/bread hangover. I didn't even pig out--I had one bowl of that (nasty, salty, packaged, processed-beyond-belief) noodle soup and just the 2 slices of bread. And I felt ok about it because I *planned* consciously to eat it, and I ate normal portions. But that didn't matter--I still felt awful afterward and this morning.
I guess I've started training this ol' bod to crave better treatment. That's a big victory!
I got up today determined to (a) remember this lesson, and (b) go right back to eating the GOOD stuff. So here's what I made for breakfast:
 |
| Mmmmmmm ... chock-full o' goodness! |
 |
| Isn't it beautiful before it blends? |
 | |||
| The end result |
- Spinach - 1 C
- Cherry tomatoes - 8
- Zucchini - 4 slices
- Orange - 1/2
- Bartlett pear (1)
- Pineapple - 1 spear
- Sunflower seeds - 1T
- Chlorella - 1/2 t
- Apple juice to max line
- Frozen red grapes just to make it colder
This was the first time I've used Chlorella. My sister recommended it after reading about its benefits. Just 1 teaspoon is all you need.
After that great start, I had 2 slices of turkey breast on half a flax whole wheat lavash bread spread with avocado for lunch. I snacked on pumpkin seeds.
Then for dinner I made an orange-themed 'Blast that I'd looked forward all day. I had visions of creamsicles dancing in my head. I put in:
- Oikos Orange Greek Yogurt
- 1 orange
- 1/2 orange bell pepper
- 5 grape tomatoes
- Baby carrots
- 1 spear pineapple
- 1/2 T maca powder
- Almond milk, unsweetened, to the Max line
The end result was very pretty, but still nothing to write home about. I guess if I hadn't been expecting it to be sweet, I would have liked it better. But I still drank it--it was just palatable enough to escape the label "Nasty Blast" that my sisters and I have come up with to describe our "mistakes"!
Day 70 - It's a Family Affair!
Now that my family has seen and heard about the results I'm getting by "Blasting" for the past 70 days, this has become a real family affair!
I'm thrilled that all 3 of my sisters now have NutriBullets--and our 80-year-old mother is showing interest as well. Oh, and one of my bros-in-law is also enjoying NutriBlasting right along with us. Gotta love that!
We all have health challenges. One sister has rheumatoid arthritis; one has narcolepsy and weight issues; and the third has thyroid issues, balance issues, and weight issues. I personally suffer from insomnia and have been on an anti-depressant of one sort or another for most of the past 30+ years. Mom has many of the issues that come with aging, plus she struggles with her weight, too.
It's been a blast [pun intended] comparing notes on what we're making, exchanging ideas about how to make our 'Blasts better, and learning about even more good stuff to put in them to help with inflammation, sleep, moodiness, etc.
One HUGE development in my own health, which I attribute at least in part to the fact that I'm now eating as though I *believe* the adage that "food is medicine", is that I stopped taking my antidepressant exactly 10 days ago. So far, so good!! I never thought I'd be able to do that; I've tried in the past but never been able to continue for more than a few days.
Soon I'll be like the people in the NutriBullet infomercial talking about what great changes this sweet little machine made in their lives!
Today I made another beautiful NutriBlast:
I'm thrilled that all 3 of my sisters now have NutriBullets--and our 80-year-old mother is showing interest as well. Oh, and one of my bros-in-law is also enjoying NutriBlasting right along with us. Gotta love that!
We all have health challenges. One sister has rheumatoid arthritis; one has narcolepsy and weight issues; and the third has thyroid issues, balance issues, and weight issues. I personally suffer from insomnia and have been on an anti-depressant of one sort or another for most of the past 30+ years. Mom has many of the issues that come with aging, plus she struggles with her weight, too.
It's been a blast [pun intended] comparing notes on what we're making, exchanging ideas about how to make our 'Blasts better, and learning about even more good stuff to put in them to help with inflammation, sleep, moodiness, etc.
One HUGE development in my own health, which I attribute at least in part to the fact that I'm now eating as though I *believe* the adage that "food is medicine", is that I stopped taking my antidepressant exactly 10 days ago. So far, so good!! I never thought I'd be able to do that; I've tried in the past but never been able to continue for more than a few days.
Soon I'll be like the people in the NutriBullet infomercial talking about what great changes this sweet little machine made in their lives!
Today I made another beautiful NutriBlast:
I found some flaxseed in my cupboard, so I added some of that for the first time. Other ingredients were:
- Spinach
- Cherry tomatoes
- Pineapple
- Plum
- Orange
- Frozen grapes
- Apple juice
Saturday, October 12, 2013
Day 68 - Made It Into the 'Teens!! (219.5)
I nearly fell over when I got on the scale this morning and saw this!:
Sorry to show you my feet again--and so BIG--but WHOO HOO!!!!! This is crazy! I honestly wasn't sure I'd ever see the teens again when I started NutriBlasting.
I'm sure glad I took that leap of faith and kept going.
Hope this inspires you to keep going, too. :-)
Today's morning 'Blast:
Sorry to show you my feet again--and so BIG--but WHOO HOO!!!!! This is crazy! I honestly wasn't sure I'd ever see the teens again when I started NutriBlasting.
I'm sure glad I took that leap of faith and kept going.
Hope this inspires you to keep going, too. :-)
Today's morning 'Blast:
- Spinach
- Whole pear
- Pineapple - 3 spears
- Grape tomatoes - 5
- Baby carrots - 5
- Frozen grapes - 8
- Hemp seed - 1T
- Apple juice to the Max line
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