Day 4 - 21df

7:00 - Pilates.  I'm not a fan.  Get it done and I don't have to revisit until next Thursday!   I'm afraid if tomorrow's work out...it promises that I'll be drenched in sweat.   Um...was I not supposed to be for the last 4 days??

10:30 shakeology shake with coffee today (1 protein)

11:30. Dang...I'm already hungry!!

Quinoa, pork, tomatoes (1 protein, 1 carb, 1 veg).   I need to drink a ton of water today!!

Drinking water and hanging out while Abby's car gets inspected.  Fingers crossed that it passes!   I'm hungry though...ugh, not sure why today!

I can't think of what to make for dinner....come on brain, I need you today! 

Headed to get the car inspected with giant water.  Let's hope the distraction takes the edge off!

3:00 - not so much

20 pistachios.  That's not as many as it sounds like.

Work distractions..yay!

4:45 - pick up friend from work and drive her home...

5:55 - I'm starving...where the heck is my kid???

Day 30 or Day 3

Day 30 of the blog that I forget about weeks at a time.  Oops.

Day 3 of 21 day fix

How did I do in the trial run....well....I haven't lost any weight.   Officially today...I am the same weight I was 30 days ago.  That stings a little.  Ok, a lot.  BUT it tells me that I can't do it half way...have to go full force....did I mention I'm not very good at that?

Today is Wednesday, I started on Monday.

I will try to log in and be more accountable, but I have followed the eating plan and the exercise plan to the letter so far.

Eating...so far, it hasn't been too bad.   I thought I would crave more food, but I seem to be doing ok.   That being said, I was hungry at 11:00pm last night.  I just need to get to bed earlier.

I have no food pictures right now, and that's a shame because I have come up with some good stuff, I'll be sure to get on the right away.

Exercise --  The exercise plan is way harder than I thought it would be...or it could just be that I'm really not in good shape.   21 days.   I can do this.    I mean, I can barely stand up or sit down at the moment, but I'm not stopping!!!!

So..........Day 3

Lower Body Fix DONE at 7:30am
Shakeology with 1 cup berries at 10:00am  (1 protein, 1 fruit)

Will update through out the day!

Hungry by 11:30 not a great sign

eggs whites (1 protein, 1 oil) and spinach ( 1 veg )

with hot sauce and lemon juice -- supper yummy

This was of course after I tried to make it with curry powder, opened the wrong side of the container and pour 1 CUP of curry powder on the egg whites.   To be honest...I still attempted to eat it.  It tasted like....dirt.    Threw it out, started over.   Now I'm out of egg whites.

SO....I was thinking that was a snack, and I would eat lunch.  It's 2:08 and I really don't feel like eating lunch.  I hate when I throw my day off....so I think I need to find a snack.   

Dinner - um...4:30-6:00 LOL

I made Carnitas!  ( 2 proteins )

Very exciting stuff.  So basically I just kept tasting the pork to ...you know...make sure it tasted right. Then I finally had a serving of it.  That's right, a serving of just meat.   YUM.

I may have had the meat sweats later.  :)

Stopped my Happy Hour with my friends...and almost made it out without misbehaving.  I did drink ONLY water...but I did have about 5 chips with guac.  (1 carb, 1 fat, 1 oil)   Still, I had room in my food day, so it wasn't that bad.   I won't be able to go to happy hour next week, so I should be ok!  LOL.

I'm completely sore all over....I am somewhat dreading my work out tomorrow.  Ok, not really somewhat.

Having a decaf and heading to bed.  

Day 16 - Frustration Begins

So...here is where I complain that I have no results yet.   I have lost 2 lbs...and 0 inches.   BOO!   But as much as I would like to claim that I gained my extra weight overnight....I did not.  So, for a nice change of pace, I will continue to work on my weight loss.

 I know, right???

But...I'm gonna switch things up a bit and work on my portion control.   I saw this 21 day fix workout and weight loss program.   I would like to order it, but thought I would experiment with it a little now.    HOLY CRAP...."regular" portion sizes are so much less than I eat.  No wonder I struggle with my weight.  Yikes!

So here's the total of what I'm supposed to have -   for the entire day....

4 cups Veg

3 cups fruit

3 cups protein (4 x 3/4 cups)

1.5 cups carbs (3 x 1/2 cup)

1/3 cup healthy fat

2 tbsp. seeds, nuts, or dressing

4 tsps. oils

I have been doing it ALL wrong....but, let's so how I do the first day.

6:30 - Coffee  (2 tsps butter)

7:00 - Workout - PiYo Upper body

8:00 - Shakeology (1 protein) (1 Fruit)

11:00 - 1 Cup celery (1 Veg)

I'm hungry

I'll check back later....

12:30 - Lunch

I had a salad - lettuce, tomato, slaw mix, and chicken (1 Veg, 1 Protein, 2 tbsp dressing)

It actually was large enough....I didn't think so at first, but it really was.   I would have normally made a much bigger salad, and finished it!

I went ahead and made this same salad for a few more lunches...so don't call me out if this picture makes a repeat performance.   You know...YOU...the 2 people who are reading this.

OK...so I went to the store and I was SO HUNGRY.  I bought too much stuff.  I only went to buy feta cheese.   I spent 60.00.     Anyway...it was all good healthy stuff, just maybe stuff I wouldn't have normally purchased.   I bought this yogurt (without looking at the label...I know...I know).   It's kinda high in carbs, but it was so good, I may not care.   It was Chobani salted caramel yogurt with little chocolate chips and pretzel pieces.  Seriously, it was amazing.   I could do this, if I could be promised to have that everyday.   Every OTHER day?    Anyway....then I may have had 2 handfuls of pistachios.   At this point, I don't even know what category to count half of what I'm eating, but I still think it's far less than I normally eat, so how bad could it be?

Dinner - 5:00 (this never happens)

Ground turkey with mixed veggies.   Ok, I totally phoned this one in.   I didn't even take a photo.  It's like the night that you make the boxed mac and cheese, it just happens sometimes.    

Seriously...ground turkey and this

Oh well, can't win everyday.    Now it's 6:00pm and I'm wondering what time I'll have to go to bed to insure that I don't eat everything in site.  I'm thinking....7.

Ok, Day 16 complete...

Day 14 and 15 (Tax day!!!)

Well I somehow got a burst of motivation on Monday, and am more determined than ever to do this thing.   It's not even just to lose weight anymore, I want to be tone, and I want to be healthy.

I smoked my last cigarette on Monday morning....it's now Wednesday night.   This may not seem like a big deal, but Wednesday night is GNO.    We all go to happy hour, drink, eat Mexican food, and smoke like chimneys!

So let's see.

Day 14, Tuesday

6:30am - Coffee
Workout - Lower body define

9:00am - Breakfast
Shakeology

12:30 - Lunch
Salad - lettuce, arugula, tomatos, chicken, avocado

3:00 Snack

Celery and 2 tbsp. peanut butter

6:00 - Dinner
Turkey/white bean/pesto burger
zucchini noodles
tomato sauce

Believe it or not....this was DELICIOUS!!!!

THEN....I went for a 2 mile walk at 9:00pm    Yay me!!!!

So...then Wednesday happened.

7:00am - Workout - PiYo CORE

1 minute push up challenge (20)

9:00 - Breakfast

Shakeology

12:00 - Lunch

1/2 Corner Bakery Roast Beef sandwich

side salad

2:30 - Snack

Lettuce and ham wrap

7:00 - Dinner (Happy Hour with the girls)

Chicken breast with veggies

refried beans

tortilla chips with salsa  --  ok, this wasn't so good....I did limit myself 

WATER WATER WATER

8:30 - Walk the dog 1/2 mile

9:00 - 2 cookies (I already gave in and had a cookie, and THEN Abby brought me one home and made me eat it.   Seriously, she made me.)

ugh.

OK...well mostly a good day...and I'm looking forward to my morning workout!  :)

Day 13 - 10 day vacation???

Wow...how did 10 days get away from me?

It's been crazy busy in my life, and I did not set aside time for blogging.   That has got to change.   I have taken photos and planned on doing a catch up entry, but let's face it, I can barely remember yesterday, let alone the past 10 days.

It has certainly had it's ups and downs on the nutrition and fitness front....and my weight, is still down, but not moving.   No problem, I already had a little pity party about it, and I'm moving on.

I have all these pictures and I can't seem to load them correctly...so were are going to just skip the past 10 days -- no significant progress anyway.

Today!

Breakfast - 10:00am
Bulletproof coffee
1 over easy egg
Spinach
Bacon bits
Tomato sauce.....

It may not look too good...but it was!

I did a PiYo (Sweat) workout at lunch time.

Lunch 2:00

Chocolate Shakeology with mixed berries

Snack 3:30

Cauliflower mash with cherry tomatoes and a small avocado.

I have failed to plan for dinner...so we'll see what happens!

Dinner 7:30

Buffalo Chicken Salad - Lettuce, chicken breast marinated in hot sauce, celery, cherry tomatoes, ranch dressing

No photo...

Day 3 - Late start and will finish up later

It's been a crazy work day...and while I usually set some lunch time aside for blogging, that didn't really happen today.

So, I'll get down to the basics, and add some more interesting stuff later :)

Breakfast 7:00am
Eggs/Spinach/Black Beans/Bacon  -- again

Coffee at 9:30

Lunch 1- 11:00am
Or maybe breakfast #2  -- the rest of the egg mix, so I can eat something different tomorrow!!!

Coffee at 1:00

Lunch 2 - 2:00pm
Buffalo Chicken Salad  :)

I made the chicken breasts a few days ago, boiled them, shredded them and let them soak in buffalo sauce

Lettuce
celery
goat cheese  (didn't have blue cheese)
Ranch dressing

Yummy!

She tried to hide and then sneak up on my lunch

Day 2 - Wager with Friends

Successful evening!  I have managed to convince some of my friends to have a weight loss challenge with me, to keep things interesting, and leave plenty of room for trash talking.  We are each putting in 25.00 and at the end of April, the victor (me) takes the pot!   I actually very much doubt that I will win, but I get the benefit of doing this with others, so I win either way.  (How is that for a feel good moment of the day?)

We will all submit our weight tomorrow.   I would like to post how everyone is doing, but I have to ask their permission first.   Names will be changed to protect the innocent (or those of us who are horrified to reveal our weight---me)

Crazy morning...started out picking up Abby's car from the shop....at the cost of 1200.00!  I think I may have cried.   What I didn't do was stop and get some "feel good food" to make the pain go away.  Ok, mostly because I can't afford it.   So, silver lining there.

On the way to my office I got an email that I had been assigned yet another account.   That puts me over 30 accounts.   That is pretty much insane in my line of work.  INSANE.   So, it wasn't my best morning ever.    Bright side - I packed my lunch, so my inner voice telling me that chocolate would make everything better is still talking, but more like a whisper.

7:00 am Breakfast
Eggs/spinach/bacon and hot sauce.

I did make a big batch of this on Sunday, so this will be a repeat performer all week.

12:00 pm Lunch
Salad - Lettuce, tomato, baked chicken, chick peas, 1 avocado, ranch dressing

Well, lots of work to do....

Dinner came out amazing.   I'm not even sure how some of this stuff gets in my head.   I did swear that I made this up...and subsequently found similar recipes on the internet.   There was ONE exception though (not that I looked very hard).  I made meatballs...without breadcrumbs!   The sub?   Mashed black beans....the result was delicious!

Day 1....Later that day....

Checking in---

7:00 am  Breakfast

Cage Free eggs

Spinach (power greens)

Bacon bits

Black beans

8:00 am - Water

10:00 am Bulletproof Coffee

12:30 pm  Lunch

Salad

Romaine Lettuce

Cherry tomatoes

1/2 Baked chicken breast

Ranch Dressing

This was a fairly small salad and I was surprisingly full....that being said

Still need to drink water...filled cup, haven't touched it.

2:30 pm  Lunch #2

1 can white kidney beans (http://healthyeating.sfgate.com/benefits-white-kidney-beans-4420.html)
- butter
-salt/pepper

Still need to drink that water....

7:00 pm Dinner

Grilled Ahi Tuna Steak
White bean Puree
Broccoli with lemon juice

(marinade- sesame flavored oil, honey/ginger vinegar, garlic, fresh ginger, soy sauce, lemon juice)
(Great northern beans, basil infused oil, honey/ginger vinegar, splash of fish sauce, lemon juice)


Late night

2 cups of bulletproof coffee (terrible idea...did not sleep well at all)

Day 1, and it's not even April!

So much for me counting down...I was pretty sure the plan was to start April 1, but JOSH informed me that we would start our month today.   Um...it's still March.   That being said, I played the "last free weekend" card.    And I'm so ready to start!!!

SO....it all starts with a visit to the grocery store.    First I looked over a few chapters of the book 4 hour body and made a list with some meal suggestions in that.  I also follow several food blogs, so I will be stealing ideas (but giving credit of course) from them.

Well, then there was a  Columbo marathon on TV, and that was difficult to pull away from....but after a few Columbos and setting the DVR to capture more of this tv classic, I made it to the store.   We tried a new store, the Walmart grocery store.  I have an intense hatred of Walmart, so I was hesitant, but I found it to be quite nice.   A farmer's market will be opening soon nearby, and honestly that will be a golden day for me.  I'm such a food nerd.

So I got home, resumed my Columbo marathon (am I spelling this wrong, or does spell check not know the brilliance of Lt. Columbo?) and proceeded to put stuff away, and plan some meals for the week.   I decided to make Egg muffins for the week, so we can grab and go, and not slide off track.   Also, the money savings from eating at home I hope is going to be an added bonus.   I'll  have to compare our debit card spending to previous months...hmmmm...I think I will do that.

While I have been making Egg Muffins (no Mc...to clarify) for years, and not sure how I first started, I saw it recently on a blog that I really like, so I will go ahead and link it....http://www.kalynskitchen.com/2006/10/egg-muffins-revisited-again.html  These are super versatile, easy, and will keep in the fridge for the whole week.




Princess Abby would like to lose weight, but "I'm a kid, I don't want boring food."   So, she asked me if I could replicate the egg white delight from McDonald's (ok, this time there is a Mc) and she could have them for breakfast.    So...I did.   I made 6 of them, since the English Muffins came in a package of 6, and I was able to "test" one out....gotta say, I nailed it.  :)     Not that it's difficult.

English Muffin ( I toasted mine all four sides in a frying pan with unsalted organic butter)
White American cheese
Canadian Bacon
Egg whites

Super easy, delicious, convenient....I didn't take pictures of the final product, but here's a during prep photo....again, I'm a food nerd.   I don't feel bad, because the Internet is FULL of them.   And since there is a Columbo MARATHON on....I'm not the only one who is into that either!

A few more Columbos while I cleaned up the kitchen and off to bed (I recorded the Columbos that I would miss, don't worry)

Morning....

The real test.   Abby had one of the egg white muffins this morning...took one bite and proclaimed that it was "on FLIK"  which...I think is good.    After finishing it, she said she felt like she had just been to McDonald's....which I'm not sure how GOOD that is per say...

According to 4 hour body, we should eat within 30 minutes (protein based) of waking.  So I got up and ate my egg muffins...and then immediately wanted to go back to sleep.  I mean...I was TIRED.  I drank a bottle of water.  Nope...went back to bed for 40 minutes.   I was going to try to get a workout in, but that didn't really happen.  The day is young, we shall see.   So that was at 7:00am.  Now. it's 11:00am. I'm hungry.   I'm having a bulletproof coffee (https://www.bulletproofexec.com/how-to-make-your-coffee-bulletproof-and-your-morning-too/)  to help me make it to lunch.   One hour at a time.

Did I mention that yesterday I recorded my weight, measurements and took pictures of myself in a (way too small) bikini?    That sort of thing can really snap a person in to reality.  I showed the pictures to my daughter who just nodded.   I'm like, "look how BAD I look!!!"    She says.."Mom that's how you look, I don't know what you are seeing that is different."   Dang, I'm in denial bad.  I'm using these photos for incentive, to keep me from going off track, and to watch my body transform.

MAYBE...one day I'll be brave enough to post them online.....doubtful though.

See...now lunch doesn't seem so far away.    I can't UN see those pictures.

-5 and Counting

Here we go again....

But this time for real for real, not for fakey fake  :)

It's been a rough 1.5 years...life really does have ups and downs.   I thought I had it licked, and that had evened out...but then it dropped again.   I was unprepared and have not handled it well.  I have been unhappy and unhealthy, and find myself with and extra 35 lbs.  So..that being said, it's time to go back up in life and back down with my weight!  I think I have learned that when life is really good, take the time to enjoy it.  When life gets you really down, hang in there, it CAN be good again.   At least...that's what I'm counting on.

So...because I absolutely love calendars and writing stuff down (weird, I know) I need a definitive start date.   Not only because my love of calendars, but I like the final RULE part of it.   In April - I will eat well, cut WAY back on drinking, and exercise.    I'm not saying I'm going to stop at the end of April (let's hope good habits are formed) I'm just saying that I'm completely committed to sticking to a plan in April.   I also plan to use this blog as accountability and perhaps just for my own amusement.   

So it's March 27.....which means....chicken wings for lunch today!   haha.