Breakfast
(3) strawberries, blueberries, cheerios
Lunch
(5) big deli sandwich w/ fat free meats & cheese & veggies
(3) ice cream sundae
Well, I had my orientation for the FitLinxx program at the Y this evening. Its pretty cool.
I have an ID that I can use to sign into the system. When I do, it knows all my settings for the 8 strength/toning machines that comprise the "daily" workout -- they want you to be able to do it 3 times a week, which I'm going to try for. I'm supposed to do a ten minute workout to get my heart rate going, then do the 8 machines, then a 20-45 minute workout afterwards. I can log all my Cardio Vascular stuff in manually (its not recorded automatically like the 8 machines) and it'll track what I've burned and my progress so far. Which is just totally cool. *AND* I can get to my records on the web. So when I get back from my daily walk I can record it right away before I forget.
Okay, so I like it when technology helps me out with things like this. Now if only the weight would start dropping to go with all the effort I'm putting into this!!
Portabello "Burgers"
This recipe is adapted from one I saw on the TV show Oliver's Twist. Yes, I may be dieting but I still love FoodTV. It gives me great ideas, and this is a recipe which comes together in just a little over fifteen minutes.
Preheat over to 400 degrees.
Strip leaves from 1 long stalk fresh rosemary and chop. Strip leaves from several stalks thyme -- about 2 tsp. Chop 2 large or 3 medium cloves garlic. Chop 2-3 scallions. Toss all these in a food processor with 4 oz "I Can't Believe Its Not Butter Light" and process until it forms a nice smooth mixture.
Brush 4 good sized portabello caps clean, and pull the center stems out. Spread the butter mixture evenly over the inside of each cap, and place on a cooking sheet. Bake at 400 for 15 minutes.
While baking, take 4 bulkie rolls & slice. Find high fiber, low fat ones, if you can. Meijer low fat bulkies are good. I found out that Hannaford brand bulkies are also 2 points per bun, so I bought onion rolls. Spread a good quality dijon mustard on both halves of each bun (I used my favorite champagne garlic mustard). Wash 8 leaves of romaine lettuce and split in half. Four halves will be for each sandwich.
When the mushroom caps are done and cooled slightly, place one on the bottom half of each bun. Top with 4 lettuce leaf halves, then press the top half of the bun on. Extra butter will run off. Enjoy! Makes 4 sandwiches.
The flavor of the herbs soak into the mushroom cap while cooking, and a good amount of the butter soaks in and also runs off. So not as much butter is still on it when you eat it. These have excellent flavor, great texture, and are low in points. Yum!
Breakfast
(3) cocoa puffs cereal bar
Morning Snack
(1) rice crackers
(1) honey covered pretzels
Lunch
(2) onion bun
(2) fat free bologna, ham, fat free cheese
(0) pickles, fat free mayo
Afternoon Snack
(3) strawberries, chocolate angel food cake, fat free cool whip
(1) 1 oreo cookie
Dinner
(4) portabello sandwich
(2) banana
Late Night Snack
(4) 1/2 c black raspberry ice cream
(23) total points for the day
So today I am wearing new jeans.
Its amazing how good this can make a person feel. You see, I only had one pair of jeans I could wear to work that *really* fit me well -- my tan jeans. So this past weekend Kevin bought me some stuff -- "black forest" green jeans, a burgandy tunic for fall, exercise shorts, and a water bottle cooler. I'm wearing the jeans today, with a short sweater, and they actually look decent. Yeah, I'm still fat, but I feel good about myself and not quite so bloody huge.
I like it.
Breakfast
(4) fat free yogurt w/ kashi & granola
Lunch
(6) penne primavera
Afternoon Snack
(4) zucchini pie
(2) popcorn
Dinner
(2) 2 fat free hotdogs
(3) red beans and rice
(1) country kitchen light hotdog roll
(22) total points for the day
I don't think I could survive the diet without popcorn. I usually use Orville Redenbacher's 94% fat free microwave popcorn -- 2 points for the entire bag.
I've found two ways to spice it up and make it even a better snack. Pour it into a bowl and spritz it with spray butter. Then sprinkle it with either cinnamon or onion powder (yes, two entirely different tastes). Shake the bowl to mix, then spritz, sprinkle, and shake again. Then enjoy!
I can't print these two recipes, since they are modifications of printed recipes from magazines I receive. But I think they really are good enough to share, and I'd like to also share the modifications I've done to them, because they certainly didn't seem to suffer at all from it -- we really liked both and intend to make both again!
Zucchini Pie
from Quick Cooking, Sept/Oct 2002, p. 61
First, I love this magazine, and its sister magazine Light & Tasty. Both provide me with a lot of fodder for cooking ideas. Few recipes survive my kitchen untouched, but I like a good source of ideas.
This one I looked and realized that with a refridgerated crescent roll crust, I needed to lighten it up if I wanted to try it. I first thought of using the low fat crescent rolls, but then I remembered an article on pies from Cooking Light, and picked up a box of Phyllo. I made the crust by layering Phyllo in the pie pan and spritzing it with spray butter, and then pre-baked the whole thing for a few minutes to make sure it didn't fold completely under the dampness of the sauteed zucchini.
The filling contains zucchini & garlic, sauteed in butter (which I reduced of course), and seasoned with dill, parsley, salt, and pepper. We're going to experiment with the herbs a little next time -- our only complaint was that it was a little bland. There's also cheese mixed in, and eggs, and some more cheese on top. We switched the cheese from all Monterey Jack to half that and half low fat Feta cheese, which dropped the fat more, and added more taste.
All told, the whole thing was YUM!
Slow-Cooked Turkey Wild Rice Casserole
Betty Crocker Slow Cooker Meals, p. 49
Okay, so the first thing I did was take out the turkey and use chicken instead. Normally I'd use plain old boneless skinless breasts, but well, I had the boneless skinless thighs instead so I used those. A little higher in fat, but I really *like* thigh meat. I also used the low fat cream of chicken soup instead of the normal stuff, but then, that's just a typical switch for me -- I never use the full fat stuff anymore. I also took out the bacon and simply used a couple of teaspoons of oil for the saute. I was supposed to cook bacon in a saute pan, and then use that to cook the turkey, carrots, onion, and celery -- so I just skipped the bacon.
Other than that, I just went as written. Added the wild rice (my favorite blend), the soup, the water, the soy sauce, the marjoram, and the pepper. Let it go in the crockpot until its done and YUM. This was good, light, and the wild rice just kind of filled up my tummy perfectly. This one is a definite keeper, and I'll make it again!!
Breakfast
(3) Cheerios & strawberries & blueberries
Morning Snack
(2) frookie vanilla wafers
Lunch
(5) veggie burger
Afternoon Snack
(4) black raspberry ice cream
Dinner
(9) chicken & wild-rice casserole
(1) brownie scraps
Late Night Snack
(2) ultralite popcorn
(26) total points for the day
Breakfast
(3) lotsa strawberries & blueberries w/ kashi
Morning Snack
(2) stella doro breakfast treat
Lunch
(1) 2 slices country kitchen light bread
(0) fat free mayo
(6) breaded chicken breast w/ sprinkling feta
Afternoon Snack
(1) taste test at Sam's Club
Dinner
(4) penne primavera
(5) 1/4 zucchini pie
Night Snack
(4) ice cream
(22) total points for the day
I love our Y...
I'm exhausted, though, but the good news is, the diet and exercise is finally starting to work again. It looks like I lost a pound and a half since last week. Yay!! I'm doing my damnedest to really obsess over it, as painful as it is, just to get it done. I want to be me again.
Breakfast
(1) country kitchen light english muffin
(0) spray butter
(3) fake egg sandwich
Morning Snack
(1) plum
(0) carrots & celery sticks
Lunch
(1) 2 slices country kitchen light italian bread
(0) pickles, mustard, ketchup
(1) fat free cheese
(2) 2 fat free hotdogs
(2) fat free chocolate pudding
Afternoon Snack
(2) banana
(2) ultralight popcorn
45 minutes step aerobics
15 minutes abs
Dinner
(9) low fat pizza
(4) ice cream sundae
(28) total points for the day
Breakfast
(4) 1/2 hemp granola w/ fat free strawberry yogurt
Morning Snack
(0) carrot & celery sticks
Lunch
(3) leftover stir fry w/ 1/2 c rice
(2) banana
(0) diet root beer
Afternoon Snack
(1) grapes
(2) ultralite popcorn
1/2 hour bike ride, 7 miles
Dinner
(8) leftover stir fry w/ rice
(2) stella doro breakfast treat
Late Night Snack
(3) ww giant sundae cup + oreo cookie
(25) total points for the day
Breakfast
(3) strawberries, blueberries, good friends kashi
Morning Snack
(1) plum
(0) baby carrots & celery sticks
Lunch
(18) fettucine daniele at Lombardo's
Afternoon Snack
(1) ultralite popcorn
Dinner
(7) baked potato w/ taco topping
(30) total points for the day
Breakfast
(3) good friends kashi & lotsa fresh blueberries & strawberries
Morning Snack
(1) grapes
Lunch
(5) penne w/ vodka cream sauce
(2) fat free chocolate pudding
Afternoon Snack
(4) ice cream cake
Dinner
(2) 2 light hot dog rolls
(2) 2 fat free hotdog
(1) fat free cheese
(2) baked french fries
(2) 1/2 c vegetarian baked beans
(24) total points for the day
Breakfast
(2) 1/2 light sub roll
(2) chicken sausage
Morning Snack
(1) chocolate munchkin
Lunch
(4) light sub roll
(2) boca burgers
(0) pickles
(1) fat free ranch dressing
This recipe came out of me being creative with making pieces of meals ahead of time, freezing them, and coming back to them later. The base for this is an enhanced taco meat.
2 lbs ground buffalo (or ultralean ground beef or ground turkey)
1 envelope taco seasoning
1 tbsp chili powder
1/2 red onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, chopped
1 can diced tomatoes w/ garlic & onion
1 can red kidney beans, drained
Brown ground meat & drain fat. Remove from pan. Saute onions and garlic until they sweat. Because of the ground meat you won't need to add any oil at all to the pan. Once this is done, add back the meat. Add taco seasoning, chili powder, 1/2 c water, tomatoes (do not drain) and beans. Simmer for 10-15 minutes or until heated through.
Makes 8 servings (4 pts each).
This is great over salad, or over baked potato... or on pizza.
1 pizza shell from Hannaford (120 cal per 1/3 shell)
1 serving taco meat
2 oz shredded montery jack cheese
Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Spread taco meat over pizza shell. Sprinkle cheese over the top. Bake for 8-10 minutes.
Makes 4 servings of 4 points each.
Breakfast
(4) fake egg sandwich w/ cheese
Lunch
(2) baked chips
(7) vinagrette sub from subway
Afternoon Snack
(2) ultra-lite popcorn
(8) mcd's fruit & granola parfait
Dinner
(2) 4 slices light bread
(1) spread
(4) chicken sausage
(30) total points for the day
Breakfast
(3) blueberries & kashi & sprinling of granola
Lunch
(3) country kitchen light whole wheat rolls
(1) fat free cheese
(2) boca burgers
(0) pickles
(1) fat free ranch dressing
Breakfast
(2) heart to heart & blueberries
(2) hemp granola
(0) carrots
Lunch
(5) penne w/ vodka cream sauce
(2) fat free chocolate ice cream
Afternoon Snack
(4) baked chips
Dinner
(2) fat free ritz crackers
(9) 3 slices chili pizza
(22) total points for the day
Okay, I went to the doctor today. And not only am I completely and utterly unchanged from the last time I went, I also weigh more there than at home.
This is frustrating.
However, I also weighed myself at the gym last night because they had a good scale there. And it came up the same as Dr. Patil's did. So, I have a new plan.
I'm starting fresh today. I weigh 177 clothed. That means I have 27 pounds to go before I can get holes in my head. I want to do that around Christmas, so I would like to lose 20 pounds by Christmas. 10 by my next Dr's appointment.
I am going to erase my previous scale on the sidebar tonight, and simply start over. No weighing at home anymore because I just can't rely on that scale. Instead, I will hold myself to weighing once weekly at the gym in the locker room, before we go upstairs for class. This will also keep me from obsessively weighing myself every day, so maybe I can see progress and just get some good vibes going.
And so that's that. Today is the first day of my diet. Again.
Breakfast
(1) fake egg
(1) fat free cheese & 3 slice hilshire farms ham
(1) 2 slices country kitchen light bread, toasted, w/ spray butter
Morning Snack
(1) heart to heart kashi
Lunch
(1) fat free cheese & 3 slice hilshire farms ham
(1) 2 slices country kitchen light bread
(0) smart beat mayo & mustard
(4) 2 servings baked lays
Afternoon Snack
(1) nectarine
(2) ultra lite popcorn
Dinner
(10) penne pasta w/ vodka cream sauce
Late Night Snack
(2) fat free chocolate ice cream
(25) total points for the day
Tonight I took my first step class. Audrey and I went over to the Y for the 6:30 class. We met at 6pm, having had a small snack beforehand (I had a Luna bar). The girls went down to childcare (and had an awesome time together) and we got changed and went to class.
I was nervous. I'd never taken an aerobics class before, save the 30 minutes of torment I went through every morning of baton camp when I was a teenager. So here I am at age 34 going to an aerobics class for the first time.
We waited outside the room for the prior class to finish. It gave me a chance to observe some of my classmates to be as Audrey and I chatted. There were women who weighed more than me. There were little skinny girls in tight leotards. When we went in, they were the ones to put two risers under their steps and literally bounce off of them every step we took. They were obviously the repeat customers.
In the end, I'm proud of my performance. I managed to get most of the steps, although Erika made it easy by repeating and repeating until we got it. That's the point of this class though -- repetition to help us learn how step works, while still giving us a good workout. And when we were doing the lunges I really got into it, punching and lifting and reaching... yeah, I'm sure I'll regret it tomorrow. And at the end, for the cooldown, Erika did abs, which is something I desperately need help with because of the baby fat leftover from the two kids.
I ended up wanting to do it again. I'd love to be able to go twice a week, but right now there is only one beginning step in the evening. I'm hoping the fall schedule might change that. But Ryan can go to childcare too, and we could make it a whole family thing, with the four kids (my two and Audrey's two) going to childcare, and the guys doing their thing while we do exercise in a class or upstairs on the equipment. Then end it up with some swimming.
The catch is, it does make for a late night for the kids, which isn't easy. Dani was pretty cranky by the time we finally got her tucked in. But we'll see... I think we'll develop a routine. I need to learn to precook more meals to have planned-overs on nights like these.
Which, in many ways, is a good rehearsal for teaching myself to cook for a lunch-restaurant. After all, those meals are often planned-overs as well. So I should marinate, cook, and freeze chicken breasts, then make sandwiches or salads with the results. Healthy, quick and easy if I just plan it out right.
I think I've got a lot of learning how to handle all of this before I go insane. But I also need to be able to spend the time obsessing on the exercise -- its the only way I'll lose all the weight I need to lose. And tonight was a good start. I was jazzed, I learned, and I'm more than ready to go again. Pity I have to wait until next Thursday!!
Its going to be one of those days. I walked out of the house carrying my blueberries, a nectarine, and a weight watchers meal, and completely forgot about snacks (carrots, popcorn). I need to simply replenish my supply here, I think, so I don't *have* to remember these things.
On the good side, I get to exercise twice today -- walking at lunch, and then after work with the step class. So hopefully I can make up for the bad things I'll do. Like eating a Luna bar on the way to the class and having dinner afterwards. But I think I've got a good idea for dinner, if Kevin can handle getting it started for us. Taco meat made with ground buffalo, and adding in onions and red kidney beans, and tomatoes to flesh it out. Then it can be used as just meat over chips for him, or salad for me. And we can freeze some to use over potatoes next week as a dinner. Or on pizza. Yum!
Tomorrow night will be pasta. There was this vodka cream sauce I saw on FoodTV which I'm going to try to adapt by using fat free half and half. I'm not sure it'll work because of the fat free -- it might break the sauce. But its worth a try. I need to look up the recipe so I've got something definite to go against. But I picked up the crushed tomatoes, and I already have the garlic and shallots and I got the penne pasta. And I checked, we have vodka. The only catch is that if it takes too much cream, I might not be able to make a second batch of ice cream tonight that I wanted to do. I can't make chocolate -- it needs to be vanilla this time because I am totally out of baking cocoa. *sighs*
Breakfast
(2) blueberries & heart to heart kashi
Lunch
(4) weight watchers creamy rigatoni with broccoli and chicken
(2) fat free chocolate ice cream
50 minute brisk 3 mile walk
Afternoon Snack
(2) nectarine & heart to heart kashi
(4) chocolate pecan pie luna bar
45 minutes step aerobics, then 15 minutes abs workout
Dinner
(4) ground buffalo taco meat with onions, tomatoes, garlic, and beans
(6) chips
(2) cheese
(26) total points for the day
If you crave something sweet during the day -- for me its ice cream -- its best if you can manage to bring it with you. But that isn't always convenient.
I've discovered that I really like bringing a half cup of homemade fat free chocolate ice cream with me, but I never remember to scoop it out in the morning. So tonight, while grocery shopping, I came up with an idea.
I picked up an 8 pack of 1/2 cup glad containers -- those use or throw out ones. Then I made ice cream. I packed up all 8 of them right away and put them in the freezer to finish freezing. And so there I have it -- 8 little ice cream cups I can grab in the morning and take with me, and I can wash and refill when I make another batch. And I'll probably buy another set of 8 so I can keep rotating them through. Maybe with another flavor. I'm considering making a good mocha soon.
And this keeps me from hunting down the frozen yogurt guy and spending both more money and more points than I want to.
Well, I've been managing to walk about 4 times a week at lunchtime. I checked the distance once, and I believe it is about 3 miles. Which makes sense, given my standard walking speed, and Josh's (without me) which is faster. I started out walking it in about an hour, and am not yet down to the 45 minutes Josh can do it in. But I have been making a conscious effort to do it faster and not just amble along while I'm ranting about other things.
The hike goes first down State street, which is one block down a hill. Then across Broadway and then we turn and start hiking up the hill, all the way past the Capital. We go across the back of the park, then up one more block, then down all the way to Madison. Then we come down Madison until we get to the Plaza, then we wind around that, going through the part with the wooden sculpture that I find so soothing, then down the steps to the Vietnam Memorial, and finally back down State Street to Pearl. Its a good walk. Not only is it long, but its got a good varied pace and I get a decent workout.
Tomorrow I am going to begin doing a step class at the Y. We have a new Y in East Greenbush, and when it opened we upgraded from Dani's singular membership to a whole family membership. We've been swimming a few times, and Audrey and I planned to go do an exercise class or two once she was ready to go after Catherine was born. Well, that's this week.
We're going to do beginning step, and see how that goes. We don't have to sign up ahead of time -- just show up and join in. I'm nervous, but that's because I'm not very good at exercising in front of other people. But I need to do it. I'm trying to convince myself, actually, to go obsessive on the subject of exercise. I need my brain to kick in and just want to do it constantly or something. But for now, we figure we'll do the step class, and maybe once we get that into a pattern, we'll do a toning class on Tuesdays as well. We can take the kids to the daycare at the Y and we can do class and the guys could swim or lift weights or whatever. Make it a whole family night, and then end up in the pool afterwards for some play time for the kids.
I still want to get a treadmill eventually. I want to put it in the corner where the rocking chair is, after the chair goes back downstairs when Ryan's room moves downstairs. I can see the TV from there, and I could just as easily read while I walk. Then I can get another 20-30 minutes in before bed, or early in the morning. Although I'm not so sure morning's an option these days. Our schedule barely allows for me to get to work on time, it seems!
So anyway, I need some good toning exercises I can start doing as this all gets going. My tummy's a mess after two babies, and I need to start getting it under control. I have a feeling I could actually be a smaller size at this weight except that my tummy's all flab and loose and yuck. But me and situps just don't go very well together!
Breakfast
(1) low fat ritz crackers
(2) bluberries & heart to heart kashi
Morning Snack
(0) carrots
Lunch
(6) breaded veal cutlet & pasta
Afternoon Snack
(2) ultra lite popcorn
Dinner
(9) low fat pizza w/ cheddar, veggie pepperoni, onions, mushrooms, tomato
Late Night Snack
(4) fat free ice cream sundae
(24) total points for the day
Breakfast
(2) mixed kashi & blueberries
Morning Snack
(0) carrots
Lunch
(5) weight watchers seafood fettucine bowl
(0) diet rite white grape soda
(4) fat free frozen yogurt w/ peanuts
Afternoon Snack
(1) grapes
(1) cantelope
Dinner
(4) sub roll
(4) thinly sliced roast beef
(0) fat free gravy
(1) chocolate graham cracker
Breakfast
(2) good friends kashi & blueberries
Morning Snack
(1) grapes
(0) carrots
Lunch
(0) tomato
(0) cucumber
(5) weight watchers tuna noodle casserole
Afternoon Snack
(1) cantelope
Breakfast
(3) good friends kashi, blueberries, yoghurt
Morning Snack
(0) carrots
(1) grapes
Lunch
(6) veal & pasta primavera
Afternoon Snack
(4) luna bar
Dinner
(7) grilled chicken sandwich
Late Night Snack
(4) fat free ice cream sundae
(1) cantelope (at 2am!)
(25) total points for the day