1 more day :o)

Hello there! We will weigh in for the 60 day challenge on Friday.  I wreaked havoc on my body the first weekend of Spring Break and came back 140 lbs :o(.  Of course it was mostly water (I was 135ish before that weekend) and it came off within a few days of eating well.  I have basically been loosely following the 17 Day Diet.  Spring break got me off track in that way, but I think that's ok.  I haven't been over eating, I have just been eating occasional junk food.  Until this last week that is.  I have followed the first cycle religiously.  I got the tip to drink distilled water for a couple of days. In doing more research I have cut out dairy.  And today I avoided salt completely.  I was working really hard so I actually didn't eat a lot, but for dinner I had a whole roasted eggplant.  I seasoned it with lemon juice and it was actually really really good.  I don't know that I could eat meat without salt.  Today I was too afraid to try, lol.  I did buy low sodium tuna for my lunch tomorrow.  Salt salt everywhere!  I really don't know how vegetarians get enough calories though.  I guess they eat a lot of carbs.  Anyway, I am not necessarily trying to cut weight, but I definitely don't want to retain it.

I was down to 130.6 this morning!! That's 10 lbs in 8 days!!  Will I see the 120s in the morning?  Let's hope so.

I have thought about what I will eat on Friday, lol.  That is the one good thing about weighing in a day earlier than I expected (although today wasn't as hard as yesterday wasn't as hard as Monday).  I already feel the effects of clean eating and know it's quite possible I'm not going to want to mess it up.  So I would say the challenge has been a success.  I never would have let this week be THE week when I eat right were it not for the weigh in.  And how lovely that it comes before my birthday :o).  So I can't do too much damage before next Friday, lol.

Oh!  I have had a crazy amount of energy in the evenings this week.  Not sure if it's from the reduced running (only one slow 6 miler) or the food but I love it.

I have been getting in really good workouts at X-train, yesterday in particular.  Feeling good.  120-something.  Come on!

lifestyle changes #progress

I am making progress.  Granted this contest is still going on which forces me to at least think about exhibiting some self control, but I hope some of these changes are lasting.

Sunday upon discovering there is one right by my house, I did decide to grab Tacodeli :o).  Again I ordered two tacos with no sides.  This time I allowed myself lemonade and a cookie as well (the cookie was f-ing fabulous, btw).  It was a beautiful day so I came home, opened the back door, and fell asleep.  That morning I had failed to go on my 'extra workout' run, and though I knew I still had the rest of the day for it, I doubted I would actually go.  When I woke up from my nap, I had just enough daylight to get in a run if I left right away.  I did :o).  It was a great run, 6 miles.  When I came home I didn't feel like cooking, but I did anyway.  I opted for the fresh salmon rather than the frozen tilapia.  It's my second frozen tilapia fillet that's gone to waste.  I don't think I'll try frozen again.  Good workout, good meal.

Yesterday I ate four mini Snickers.  Not bad except I was trying to go another three days without sweets.  I decided I could have a cupcake and start over today... but then I talked myself out of it... but then someone fb'd me an announcement for FREE cupcakes at Hey Cupcake.  Turns out the cupcakes were B.O.G.O.  I B.O.'ed lol.  The free cupcake is a new flavor, John Lemon, and it was also fabulous.  I did not substitute the cupcake for dinner, and finished my leftover salmon from the night before (before I ate the cupcake, in fact).  Now unfortunately because I B.O. I also G.O. leaving me with an extra cupcake.  I opted not to eat it yesterday, but ate it for 'breakfast pt. I' this morning.  Then I went to X-train Tabata and did another 6 mile run :o).  Bye bye cupcake!  Actually when I ate it I remembered that I do not really like how rich Hey Cupcake's cupcakes are, the Sweetberry in particular.  I didn't notice the texture while eating the John Lemon, but I'm glad I'm not especially eager to get more.  So today (minus breakfast pt. I) was day one of no sweets.  It wasn't hard at all, but I guess I was pretty busy.

And lastly, a very funny story.  Today I came home wanting some of the almonds I knew I had.  I ate a serving, chewing slowly, and enjoying them.  Then I ate half of another serving (total: 255 cals).  I knew I might be tempted to get more so I threw the package on top of the (very tall) cabinet.  It worked, lol.  A little while later I had forgotten that I did that, and decided I might as well have the full 2nd serving.  I went in the kitchen only to find there were no almonds in the cabinet.  It only took me a second to remember where they were, but as I chuckled to myself I decided my hour earlier self knew best and I would not climb on top of the counter to get them.  I ate an egg instead.  Similar in caloric content, yes, but not the same mental food abuse.  (Fresh) tilapia for dinner.

minimizing the damage

So today I caught a movie with my friend.  I had a good breakfast and though I would have liked to have Tacodeli again, I settled for Chipotle due to time constraints.  I got a burrito for the sake of portability and I got cheese because, well, I love cheese.  This made me realize that I did not have cheese on my fish tacos yesterday :o). Anyway, the burrito was not very good and I ate it too fast, but I did make an effort to savor and chew (it just wasn't very good as I said).  I drank a large grapefruit Izze, but I don't think it has it doesn't have added sugar.  I skipped the movie stand concessions (even though the popcorn smelled SO good) since I was full.  And when we finished the movie, my friend and I grabbed food/dessert, and I opted for ice cream rather than a cupcake (or both, ha ha).  I came home and finished off my snacks (I don't think I am the kind of person that can keep snacks around the house), but I think I did good today!  I didn't get a workout in, but I'm going to try for 6 miles tomorrow.

3 weeks away!!

So my resolution challenge ends in 3 weeks!!  Discipline is easier for me when there is a clear end in sight.  My plan is to alternate lower calorie days (cycle 1) with higher calorie days (cycle2/3).  My friend also mentioned that drinking distilled water right (3 days) before the final weigh ins will help me shed that last minute weight.

Today was my higher calorie day.  I ate breakfast (though I snacked a bit more than I would have liked to) and met my friend at Tacodeli for lunch.  The tacos were really good (tilapia) and relatively healthy.  (Also, I passed on the beans and rice, ordering two tacos instead- progress!).  However by dinner time I was pretty hungry again (as I should have been), and there was pizza at a meeting I had that I decided to indulge in.  I wanted some water but there was none offered, so I ended up drinking about a cup of Dr. Pepper.  It was disgusting.  And then afterwards I let my friend talk me into getting a cupcake (which she didn't even end up getting one).

So first of all, I feel ok about what I ate.  Good breakfast, good lunch, moderate dinner, and snacks throughout the day.  The only things that were less than ideal were two slices of pizza, the soda, and a cupcake.  I'm happy that those things make up a meal (vs. a list of random junk foods).  I'm happy that two slices of pizza didn't turn into more.  I'm happy that the soda was too syrupy and not good to me.  I'm happy that I passed on cookies earlier today so that the cupcake didn't feel so bad.

And now a couple things that could have made 'ok' be 'good.'  I should always have a water bottle with me.  I don't even like soda.  Why waste calories on it just because I'm thirsty?  Obviously I could have just found a water fountain, but I didn't.  I think know a water bottle would have solved my problem.  Also, I need to consider packing a (light) dinner for my long days.  Had I been a bit fuller, I may have made the decision to skip the pizza all together.  I don't do a good job of meal planning on my long days.  I eat breakfast ~8:00 and lunch ~1:00 but don't rarely plan dinner for the days I get home after 8:00.  And finally, I didn't really even want a cupcake that much, but I kinda just went with the inertia.  I want to make a conscious effort to skip junk unless I really really want it.

Overall today was a good day.  Eating right during the week makes the damage done on the weekends minimal.  I will try to keep this in mind when I find myself desiring junk on a Wednesday :o).