food logging

I am interested in giving up sweets (maybe most/all junk) for a while.  I also am aiming to drink more water.  The most important thing is that I eat meals and portion out snacking.  Marathon training is about to begin so I'm going to see the impact of good nutrition.

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).

Blog #FAIL

Well hello there.  Utah was pretty much a disaster.  I at lots of carbs and desserts and loved every minute of it.  I did exercise everyday (FUCK FUCK FUCK the elliptical!!!) and I exhibited some self control when it came to the amount of junk I ate (i.e. splitting desserts, passing on cookies with the expectation of having dessert later, etc).  Anyway no real regrets; I was less than 138 when I got back...

My sister's bday party.  I didn't eat a lot, but I drank a lot #kanyeshrug.  Sunday night when I got back in town I was craving falafel chips so I bought some, which is fine... except then on Monday I still had falafel chips and I finished them off.  Sigh.  I think, though not very cost effective, it is best for me to buy single servings of things I shouldn't eat a lot of... So basically I took yesterday off of my diet.  Now, one good thing is I went to a concert last night and when I got home I was famished and had decided to get a burger.  However, when I got close to home I decided I would rather have something from the grocery store deli.  I ate a small tub of macaroni salad which was about 300 cals and (part of) a sandwich, so the calories may have been about the same, but I'm glad that I am at the point where I am not desiring fast food.  I honestly can't remember the last time I had a burger and fries (Mighty Fine maybe?).  Ok so a bit of progress there.

Today I ate like an angel (I'm 137 with 24 days to go for the weight loss challenge), except I skipped dinner (mostly out of sleepiness/laziness).  So tomorrow I will aim for three balanced meals.  I read that a good way to lose fat is to do the 'alternate day fasting,' high calorie days alternated with low calorie days so your body doesn't start hanging on to fat, so I think it will be good to stick with the second cycle.  I missed my workout this morning (due to being up late last night), but I want to try to get some good runs in regularly (T, Th, F, S/Su) along with my X-train workouts.  I know I lost a lot of weight in 2009 when I was half marathon training and counting cals (<1500 a day) so maybe I should think about moving in that direction.  Also I ran with my friend after class yesterday.  It's not really feasible with my class (UT) schedule but her pace is a bit faster and I felt a bit sore today which is good.

That's it for now.  The journey continues!

Strategizing

Wow, where did the time go??  Today is the first day of the second cycle but I have been cheating all over the place :o(.  My boyfriend's visit and Valentine's day just sent me spiraling out of control.  Last Friday, I ate well and then had tacos and a beer.  I felt good about that.  1 cheat meal and drinking in moderation.  Saturday wasn't so bad either.  We went to the movies so I got a small popcorn, and went to lunch where I got a 'healthier' option (relative to what else was offered).  I didn't eat all my rice and picked around the butter infused green beans.  But then we went to Whole Foods for dessert.  Dessert = disaster.  I had a cupcake and part of my boyfriend's brownie and a bite of his cake.  And I had one beer.  This wasn't terrible, but I think it got me back on my sweets.  Sunday we went to The Egg and I.  I looked at the menu ahead of time but decided to give myself freedom to eat whatever.  What I ordered was ~650 cals.  But the bread and potatoes that came with it brought that number up to ~1250!!  Still under 1500... but that evening I wanted dessert.  I settle for a slice of apple pie with a small tub (like 1/2 cup) of ice cream.  I think this was good because my bad choices for one day weren't rolling over into the next day in the form of leftovers.

So Monday I should have recommitted.  I think I did.  I will have to go look at my food log, but I think I did.  And then Valentines Day came.  I bought Valentines for my department as usual but as a result I ate a lot of them.  I could NEVER have a candy bowl.   Then someone gave me a cupcake.  It was fucking delicious, but I've been craving sweets ever since.  Yesterday I did ok (I talked myself out of eating out for dinner) but today I had another cupcake (also delicious).  So today, at 10:48 pm, I recommit.  My sister's birthday party is on Saturday, so I will try to eat well until then.  My goal is not to eat anything sweet until Monday.  Hopefully by then I won't want sweets anymore.  I will be out of town next week, so I'm really going to have to make a concerted effort to eat right.  I know I can do it!  A friend of mine has given up sweets and alcohol for the semester.  I asked him how he does it and he said he weighs his long term goals against the short term benefits and that helps him.  Yesterday it helped me eat in for dinner, so I need to really think about what my long term goals are.  That and why I want to eat right...

To start, I want to weight 120-something because I want to lose fat, gain definition, and get the body I've dreamed of having for years.

I have conquered my working out goals.  I exercise 5x a week, and I have gotten significantly stronger over the last year.  That feels really good.  I am starting to see more definition in my legs.  That feels good too.  If I can reduce my body fat I know I will feel great.  I got some of that this summer even though I wasn't where I wanted to be.  So yeah, I want to eat right, pass on the candy, pass on the booze, and follow 17 Day Diet as closely as possible so I can lose that fat more quickly and focus on maintaining my new weight.  Short term I want to get in the high 120s.  Long term I want to get in the low 120s and stay there.