Sunday, March 6, 2011

Pineapple Tuna Salad Sandwich

Pineapple Tuna Salad Sandwich 2 pts/1/4 c. serving
published in Light & Tasty April/May 2006, p53

Ingredients

1/4 cup unsweetened applesauce
2 tablespoons fat-free mayonnaise
1/2 cup chopped celery
1/2 cup chopped green pepper
1/2 cup unsweetened crushed pineapple, drained
1/4 cup finely chopped onion
1/2 teaspoon salt-free herb seasoning blend
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1/8 teaspoon pepper
2 cans (6 ounces each) light water-packed tuna, drained and flaked
8 slices Italian bread
4 slices tomato
4 lettuce leaves

Directions

In a small bowl, combine the applesauce and mayonnaise. Stir in the celery, green pepper, pineapple, onion, seasoning blend, garlic powder and pepper. Add tuna; mix well. Spread over four slices of bread; top with tomato, lettuce and remaining bread. Yield: 4 servings.

Nutrition Facts: 1 sandwich equals 310 calories, 3 g fat (1 g saturated fat), 26 mg cholesterol, 715 mg sodium, 42 g carbohydrate, 3 g fiber, 28 g protein.
Diabetic Exchanges: 3 very lean meat, 2 starch, 1 vegetable, 1/2 fruit.


*********
Made March 6, 2011. Not bad. It was pretty good with the tomatoes and lettuce. Jared added crumpled tortilla chips and salsa to his and really liked it. Aaron ate the tuna salad on a tortilla chip with salsa. He actually ate about 6 of them befor he decided he was through. I ate one that was leftover and it really is pretty good with the salsa and chip!

We didn't have the Italian bread so we just used our sandwich bread.

Wall

Weigh in: 160.5 Again. Seriously?! I am not losing any weight!! I even accumulated like 30 activity points this week between rollerskating and hiking this weekend besides my usual exercise. I'm thinking fruit is a major culprit and perhaps I need better portion control. There was a lot of eating bits of this and that that are probably adding up more than I'm accounting for. The frustrating part is that yesterday my unofficial weight was down two pounds. I was excited thinking I was finally showing progress and then BAM! Back to where I was plus some. I am starting to really have negative feelings about the new Points Plus program.

I'm trying to think positively though that I am losing some inches and growing muscle. Rollerskating was a lot easier than the first time I went in January. I had better endurance and balance. I was able to make it a lot more times around before I had to take a break. But when I did eventually get tired, I was shaking all over. Then today I was playing through a song that I've been working on for awhile, and I could tell there was strength in my arms that enabled me to play with more power than I had before. It's a good feeling.

Friday I did a 10 minute focused toning video (total of 55 minutes) that I've decided I really need to do more than once a week. It's basically calisthenics, but it is a very productive video :p

Thursday, March 3, 2011

Four Cheese Baked Ziti

Four Cheese Baked Ziti
published in Light & Tasty October/November 2006, p24

Ingredients

1 cup chopped onion
1/2 cup chopped green pepper
1/2 cup shredded carrots
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 cans (14-1/2 ounces each) Italian diced tomatoes
1 can (15 ounces) crushed tomatoes
1 cup vegetable broth
1/8 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
8 ounces uncooked ziti or small tube pasta
1 cup (8 ounces) part-skim ricotta cheese
1/2 cup shredded provolone cheese
1/4 cup loosely packed basil leaves, thinly sliced
1 cup (4 ounces) shredded part-skim mozzarella cheese
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Directions

In a large nonstick skillet coated with cooking spray, saute the onion, green pepper, carrots and garlic until crisp-tender. Stir in the diced tomatoes, crushed tomatoes, broth and pepper flakes; bring to a boil. Reduce heat; simmer, uncovered, for 15 minutes.

Meanwhile, cook ziti according to package directions; drain and return to pan. Stir in the vegetable mixture, ricotta, provolone and basil.

Transfer to a 13-in. x 9-in. baking dish coated with cooking spray. Sprinkle with mozzarella and Parmesan. Bake, uncovered, at 425° for 10-15 minutes or until heated through and cheese is melted. Yield: 8 servings.

Nutrition Facts: 1 cup equals 286 calories, 8 g fat (5 g saturated fat), 24 mg cholesterol, 806 mg sodium, 39 g carbohydrate, 3 g fiber, 16 g protein.
Diabetic Exchanges: 3 vegetable, 1-1/2 starch, 1 lean meat, 1 fat.

Ground Beef Potpie

Ground Beef Potpie
published in Light & Tasty February/March 2006, p43

Ingredients

1 pound lean ground beef (90% lean)
2 medium onions, chopped
1-1/2 cups finely chopped carrots
2 cups mashed potatoes (without added milk and butter)
1/4 cup beef broth
1 teaspoon rubbed sage
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
1/2 teaspoon dried marjoram
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1 sheet refrigerated pie pastry

Directions

In a large nonstick skillet, cook the beef, onions and carrots over medium heat until beef is no longer pink; drain if necessary. Stir in the potatoes, broth and seasonings. Spoon into an ungreased 9-in. pie plate.

Place pastry over filling; crimp edges to seal. Cut slits in top. Bake at 400° for 30-35 minutes or until crust is golden brown. Let stand for 10 minutes before cutting. Yield: 6 servings.

Nutritional Analysis: 1 piece equals 358 calories, 15 g fat (6 g saturated fat), 44 mg cholesterol, 539 mg sodium, 35 g carbohydrate, 4 g fiber, 18 g protein.
Diabetic Exchanges: 2 starch, 2 lean meat, 2 fat, 1 vegetable.


********
Made March 1st: I have been wanting to make this recipe for weeks now, and I finally made it the day I went to Wicked, so I didn't get to eat it fresh from the oven. Matthew's first comment was about how good the crust was. He was disappointed to learn that it's just the store brand refrigerated pie crust. His second comment was asking if there was sage in it. He thought that flavor was a little overwhelming at first. I finally got some last night for leftovers. It is a delicious crust! I really liked this dish and plan on making it again.

I ended up using ground turkey instead of beef and potato pearls instead of real mashed potatoes.

Sunday, February 27, 2011

Weigh-in

Weigh in: 159.8

Disappointing to not see any real progress. I am the same weight I was on Feb 6 which was right before I got sick. So I keep telling myself that my body is still in recovery mode and to think about momentum. It will come. My body is changing and getting stronger, it just isn't reflected on the scale yet.

Cranberry Chicken Salad Sandwiches

Cranberry Chicken Salad Sandwiches 9 points/4 servings (1/2 c. each)
published in Light & Tasty October/November 2006, p48

Ingredients

2 cups cubed cooked chicken breast
6 tablespoons Miracle Whip Light
1/2 cup dried cranberries
1/4 cup finely chopped onion
1/4 cup chopped celery
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
8 dinner rolls
8 lettuce leaves

Directions

In a small bowl, combine the chicken, Miracle Whip Light, cranberries, onion, celery, salt and pepper. Cut tops off rolls; hollow out each roll, leaving a 1/2-in. shell. Line each with a lettuce leaf; fill with chicken salad. Replace tops. Yield: 4 servings.

Editor's Note: This recipe was tested with Miracle Whip Light salad dressing.

Nutrition Facts: 2 sandwiches equals 354 calories, 10 g fat (2 g saturated fat), 83 mg cholesterol, 796 mg sodium, 41 g carbohydrate, 3 g fiber, 25 g protein.
Diabetic Exchanges: 3 very lean meat, 2 starch, 1 fruit, 1 fat.


*****
Made Sun, Feb 27, 2011. I ended up changing the recipe a little bit because we didn't have celery, and I thought that additions might be nice. Here are my variations:

- used 1 13 oz container of canned chicken (shredded)
- add 1 TB of sunflower seeds
- add 1 TB of coconut
- add 1/4 c. chopped pecans

My final product ended up being 8 points just for the salad while the original recipe is 9 points including the dinner rolls.

Everyone really liked the salad. Aaron isn't much of a carb eater, so I put his in a lettuce leaf and that worked really well. This was a nice change to the usual tuna sandwich after church on Sunday.

Friday, February 25, 2011

Making Progress

I'm pretty pleased with my work this week. I exercised every day and cooked dinner for 3 nights in a row. Yay me!! Yesterday morning I did P90X with Julie at 5:30, so I had a lot of free time in the morning before Aaron woke up. I spent the time going through my Light and Tasty 2007 cookbook pulling recipes to create a menu and shopping list for the next however long. This has been on my to-do list for MONTHS now. I still need to sort through the ingredient list and organize and post it, but at least I have one :)

I put in my notice that I'm not walking anymore. I'm really liking the workout videos I'm using from Netflix. They are the SELF bikini ready and SELF sleek slim fast. The bikini one is mostly strength training with a tiny bit of plyo and the other is mostly cardio with a little bit of strength training. It has a lot of ballet moves in it and my calves were really sore this week. I can feel my arms getting stronger too. I was practicing the piano the other morning and found I had some power in my playing that wasn't there before. I love the feeling of being strong. There's just something about feeling muscles contract that makes me happy and wonder why or how I could have ever quit exercising to begin with.

I've done a lot better with my eating overall this week. I really believe that Kashi cereal in the morning is making a huge difference. I can go longer periods between needing to eat. Plus I've completely stocked the fridge with fruit (which is a free food for WW), so I'm using those to get me through my snackie times. Last week I'm pretty sure I depleted all of my weeklies and activity points, but this week I'm going to have quite a few left in the end. YAY for progress!!

Spaghetti Pie

Spaghetti Pie, 7 points/8 servings
Spaghetti Pie published in Light & Tasty February/March 2006, p31

Ingredients

1 pound lean ground beef (90% lean)
1/2 cup finely chopped onion
1/4 cup chopped green pepper
1 cup canned Hunt’s® Original Diced Tomatoes, undrained
1 can (6 ounces) tomato paste
1 teaspoon dried oregano
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 teaspoon sugar
1/4 teaspoon pepper
6 ounces spaghetti, cooked and drained
1 tablespoon butter, melted
2 egg whites, lightly beaten
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1 cup (8 ounces) fat-free cottage cheese
1/2 cup shredded part-skim mozzarella cheese

Directions

In a nonstick skillet, cook the beef, onion and green pepper over medium heat until meat is no longer pink; drain. Stir in the tomatoes, tomato paste, oregano, salt, garlic powder, sugar and pepper; set aside.

In a large bowl, combine the spaghetti, butter, egg whites and Parmesan cheese. Press onto the bottom and up the sides of a 9-in. deep-dish pie plate coated with cooking spray. Top with cottage cheese and beef mixture.

Bake, uncovered, at 350° for 20 minutes. Sprinkle with mozzarella cheese. Bake 5-10 minutes longer or until cheese is melted and filling is heated through. Let stand for 5 minutes before cutting. Yield: 6 servings.

Nutritional Analysis: 1 piece equals 348 calories, 10 g fat (5 g saturated fat), 52 mg cholesterol, 690 mg sodium, 33 g carbohydrate, 4 g fiber, 29 g protein.
Diabetic Exchanges: 3 lean meat, 2 vegetable, 1-1/2 starch, 1 fat.


***********
Made Feb 25, 2011. This was a pretty quick and easy dish to put together. Everyone really enjoyed it - even Aaron. Matthew said he wasn't too sure about it when he came home and smelled it (probably the bell peppers), but really liked it in the end.

I substituted ground turkey for the beef, put only a TB of bell peppers, and added basil to the seasoning mix. I didn't put the cottage cheese or meat all the way to the end of the "crust", so the exposed spaghetti was hard. I didn't mind it, but someone who would care should make sure to spread the topping over all the spaghetti instead of leaving it like a pizza crust.

This ia a hefty meal at 7 points for 8 pie slices.

Light and Tasty 2007 Menu

• Anytime Turkey Chili
• Apricot Orange Chicken
• Black Bean Quesadillas
• Black Bean Tortilla Pie
• Blushing Penne Pasta
• Broccoli Tortellini Alfredo
• Burrito Pita Pockets
• Butternut Squash Apple Bake
• Chicken Lettuce Wraps
• Chicken Orzo Skillet
• Chicken Rice Casserole
• Chicken Turnovers
• Chili Potpies
• Chili-Topped Sweet Potatoes
• Crab Rangoon
• Cranberry Chicken Salad Sandwiches
• Creamy Chicken 'n' Wild Rice Soup
• Crispy Caribbean Veggie Wraps
• Crunchy Yam Bake
• Easy Chicken Potpie
• Easy Hamburger Soup
• Four-Cheese Baked Ziti
• Greek Pizzas
• Ground Beef Potpie
• Hearty Cheese Soup
• Hearty Lentil Spaghetti
• Herb Quick Bread
• Italian Hot Dish
• Kiwi Smoothies
• Lemon Anise Biscotti
• Makeover Hot Chicken Salad
• Makeover Pineapple Casserole
• Makeover Summer Squash Casserole
• Maple-Orange Pot Roast
• Mexican Turkey Skillet
• Mixed Berry French Toast Bake
• Orange Beef Stir-Fry
• Orange Couscous
• Orange Ginger Carrots
• Orange Strawberry Smoothies
• Pineapple-Tuna Salad Sandwiches
• Pumpkin Pancakes
• Rice with Summer Squash
• Simple Chicken Soup
• Skillet Pork Chops
• Spaghetti Pie
• Strawberry Banana Smoothies
• Sweet Potato Bean Soup
• Sweet Potato Scones
• Sweet-Sour Spinach Salad
• Taco Oven-Fried Chicken
• Tamale Veggie Pie
• Tofu Manicotti
• Tuna Artichoke Melts
• Tuna-Stuffed Potatoes
• Turkey Alfredo Pizza
• Turkey Fettuccine Skillet
• Turkey Quesadillas with Cranberry Salsa
• Turkey Wild Rice Casserole
• Turkey Wonton Cups
• Two-Cheese Turkey Enchiladas
• Weekday Lasagna
• Whole Wheat Blueberry Scones
• Wild Rice Turkey Salad
• Yummy Pizza Bake
• Zippy Chicken Soup

Thursday, February 24, 2011

Tamale Veggie Pie

Tamale Veggie Pie
Tamale Veggie Pie published in Light & Tasty December/January 2007, p59

Ingredients

1 cup chopped onion
1 teaspoon canola oil
1 garlic clove, minced
1 can (14-1/2 ounces) Mexican diced tomatoes
1 can (15 ounces) pinto beans, rinsed and drained
1 cup (4 ounces) shredded reduced-fat cheddar cheese
1 can (4 ounces) chopped green chilies
1 jalapeno pepper, seeded and chopped
3/4 teaspoon ground cumin
3/4 teaspoon chili powder

TOPPING:

1/2 cup plus 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
1/2 cup yellow cornmeal
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 egg
1/2 cup plain yogurt
2 teaspoons butter, melted

Directions

In a small nonstick skillet coated with cooking spray, cook onion in oil until tender. Add garlic; cook 1 minute longer. Transfer to a large bowl. Drain tomatoes, reserving 2 tablespoons juice; add tomatoes and juice to onion mixture.
Stir in the beans, cheese, chilies, jalapeno, cumin and chili powder. Transfer to an 8-in. square baking dish coated with cooking spray.

For topping, in a small bowl, combine the flour, cornmeal, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Whisk together the egg, yogurt and butter; stir into dry ingredients just until moistened. Spoon over filling; gently spread to cover top.

Bake, uncovered, at 375° for 20-25 minutes or until filling is bubbly and a toothpick inserted into topping comes out clean. Yield: 6 servings.

Editor's Note: When cutting hot peppers, disposable gloves are recommended. Avoid touching your face.


Nutrition Facts: 1 piece equals 280 calories, 8 g fat (4 g saturated fat), 55 mg cholesterol, 746 mg sodium, 39 g carbohydrate, 6 g fiber, 13 g protein.
Diabetic Exchanges: 2 starch, 1 lean meat, 1 vegetable, 1 fat.

Friday, February 18, 2011

Apple-Spice Acorn Squash LT06

Apple-Spice Acorn Squash LT 06, 5 points


Ingredients

1 medium acorn squash
1 medium tart apple, chopped
1/4 cup golden raisins
1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg
2 teaspoons butter

Directions

Cut squash in half; discard seeds. Place squash cut side down in a microwave-safe baking dish. Add 1/2 in. of water. Microwave, uncovered, on high for 10-13 minutes or until almost tender; drain.

Combine the apple, raisins, cinnamon and nutmeg; spoon into squash cavities. Dot with butter. Microwave, uncovered, on high for 6-8 minutes or until squash and apples are tender. Let stand for 5 minutes before serving. Yield: 2 servings.

Editor's Note: This recipe was tested in a 1,100-watt microwave.

Nutritional Analysis: 1 filled squash half equals 207 calories, 4 g fat (2 g saturated fat), 10 mg cholesterol, 47 mg sodium, 45 g carbohydrate, 5 g fiber, 2 g protein.
Diabetic Exchanges: 1-1/2 starch, 1-1/2 fruit, 1 fat.

Work it, baby!

Feb 18, 2011

I'm back in business!! YAY!

Tuesday I felt well enough that I tried a workout video. I think I did the SELF bikini ready one. I did it towards the beginning of the month and was sore for days. I didn't think I'd attempt it again, but I found myself missing it. It was a lot easier this time around.

Wed I decided to try a 10 minute toning solutions video. I did the abs, buns, and stretch (twice) because my quads were sore from the video the day before. Oh my heck my stomach hurt!!! It still does a little. I could not do all the ab work because it was so hard and painful! It's a good thing it was only a 10 minute workout :p

Yesterday I didn't do a formal exercise, but I did put the house back in order - which is just as important to me. It's amazing what being sick for a week can do to a house :p

Today I did the SELF slim fast workout. Oh man that was a good cardio workout. I was sweating before we were done warming up!! I used actual weights with it, You're supposed to use weights with the bikini one too, but the first time I used water bottles and this week I used nothing. I'll use the weights from now on though(my arms can certainly use the toning help).

I really like the routine that's been created this week with all the illness. I think I may give up walking in the mornings. I like being able to stay home, keep Aaron asleep, and workout with netflix. It's nice having that 'me' time.

I weigh myself every day, but it only counts on my weigh in days. The other times are just a general gauge. Well, my 5 lb weight loss was definitely temporary :( I don't suppose my daily dose of 5 cookies is helping my cause :p lol

Sunday, February 13, 2011

A bunch of sickos

Weigh-in: 155.4. Weight watchers is not happy with my almost 5 pound loss this week, and I don't blame it. I've been so sick off and on all week. Today I felt pretty good, but every time I think I'm getting better the next day I'm down again. Yesterday was REALLY bad - seriously non functioning. I'm so grateful to my mom who came and rescued us.

In the past when I've been sick, I still exercise and just keep on going with life. I decided this time to not do that. So, I exercised Monday and that was it. I think I'm heading into another non-exercise week, unfortunately. I made cookies tonight because I've been hungry for them, and despite the fact that they make me feel nauseous, I had to keep trying to see if a different batch would have the same effect. It did. lol So, I'm not sure I'll be able to keep that 5 pound loss, but that's ok if it means I'm not sick anymore.

*****

This illness started Tuesday, well, really Monday night. I layed down with Jared and woke up with a sore throat and stuffy nose. Then Tues morning I had a fever, chills, and body aches. I spent most of the day sleeping off and on. Then that night when I laid down with Jared again, I woke up feeling like my fever broke and the aches were gone. I was feeling grateful that the bug seemed to pass so quickly. Wed I was feeling a bit better, but not 100%, then Thurs I was feeling yuck again. By the evening I was down to a stuffy nose and cough. Friday was really good. Then yesterday I was BAD BAD BAD. By Friday evening Aaron was running a fever and not doing so well.

I was worried about the boys - especially Aaron- staying hydrated. Aaron wouldn't drink his water, so I tried adding some lime juice, but he still refused. The other days I was sick I was at least functioning, but Saturday I could barely move. I was so grateful that Jared was home so he could help us as much as his little 6 yr old self could. I finally texted Mom about 11:30 to come by after work and bring some pop-ices and chicken noodle soup. She arrived sometime between 3:30 and 4 pm. She didn't get the message until then. I was feeling bad for the boys because all Jared had eaten was cereal and grapes in the morning and Aaron and I had shared some grapes at some point too. Once Mom got here and got some more liquids and a tylenol in me I started functioning a little better. I had 102 fever. She took the boys to the store and got the popsicles, soup, dinner for them and some other snacks. By the time Matthew got home about 6:30 I was feeling a lot better - at least the level that I had been the rest of the week. I'm so grateful for Mom's help. She really did rescue us. While here she also did my dishes, picked up the floor and washed Jared's sheets. Such a blessing to me. She is one of the best examples of service I know.

This morning I didn't have a fever at all - which is a first since Tues. I've felt really pretty good, but my stomach has been a little queasy. I'm hoping this is the tail end of the bug, but we'll see. Aaron's fever hasn't been so bad today, but he would not drink or eat anything until almost 4 pm. I'm just waiting for Jared to start showing signs. He went to sleep really quickly tonight, but I'm hoping that's just because he stayed up so late last night. I really don't want him to get sick. I've cancelled piano for the week already in hopes of kicking this thing to the curb and not passing it on.

Tuesday, February 8, 2011

Lettuce Eat Cake 2 Update

Feb 1, 2011

And so it begins...

My weigh in on Sunday was 162.0.
My exercise plans for the week:

Monday - P90X Cardio X (5:30 am at Julie's - check! YAY!)
Tuesday - 30 minute strength training/cardio video - check! YAY!)
Wednesday - JustDance (check)
Thursday - P90X (5:30 am) (check)
Friday - Just Dance (snow day)

Feb 8, 2011

I may change my format back to most-recent first. I'm not sure I like having to scroll down to find out if an update has been made....

Well, I'd say last week was largely successful. Thursday I spent cleaning my bedroom because a pipe had frozen and I needed to move all the furniture away from the walls and put a heater there (which worked perfectly for the job!) But in the process it must have sucked all the moisture out of the air because I dropped 5 pounds the next morning. I didn't believe it when I saw my bathroom scale, so I double checked the Wii. Sure enough. I am quite convinced it was all water-weight and knew that was not healhty. So, I began loading up on water to counter-act it. By Sunday's weigh-in I'd gotten back up to 159.8 I was not disappointed because I knew I'd gain some of it back. I am happy it seems to have stablized there.

I've decided I really like doing the P90X at 5:30 am. I feel so good the rest of the day, but by the end of last week I was seriously dragging. I was so tired Saturday and Sunday night that I even went to bed early (10 pm). Apparently my body was trying to fight off illness because it caught up with me last night. It's absolutely amazing how I could lay down to snuggle with my son for 30 minutes and wake up feeling absolutely awful. So, today I'm taking it easy and I'm eating whatever I feel like - potato soup for breakfast and an egg sandwich for lunch (and it's barely noon) - and trying to drink lots of water.

On another note, one of the reasons I've felt exercise has needed to take a back butner before the contest started was that I felt like my house was a disaster and I wanted to spend my time cleaning instead of exercising - which takes up a good 2 hours of my morning. I teach piano lessons pretty much full-time at this point and the bare BARE minimum is what has been getting done. I had a group lesson two weeks ago which meant all of my students come at once and the rest of the week I'm 'off'. It was really refreshing and I began tackling my home. So far I've tackled the kitchen, laundry room, our bedroom, the floors, and my son did the bathroom Saturday. Every morning my youngest has been helping me make beds too. I feel like the house is slowly getting under control again and it feels great! The 5:30 am workout has been really beneficial in this regard because I'm able to exercise, come home and shower, get my 6 yr old to school and be ready for the rest of the day by 7:30 am instead of starting it closer to 10 am.

Tuesday, February 1, 2011

oh my liver!

Well, more like my legs. Yesterday I went to Julie's at 5:30 am for CardioX. I was a little nervous about how the day would go, but it went really well!! I loved being able to get in the shower when I got home and still be in the timeframe/routine for getting Jared to school. Aaron was able to sleep in and I didn't have to take time out of my productive hours to shower. I was able to work on a project in the house most of the morning. I thought I'd crash - especially during piano lessons when I'd be sitting, but no! I was mentally alert and attentive the whole and still felt great later in the evening.

I must have done a pretty good job with the workout because I started feeling sore by the evening though I wasn't so sore that I couldn't move. I felt so good all day that I thought about getting up again this morning, but I decided I ought to sleep in and get the rest. I felt like running on the treadmill this morning, but decided to try out one of the exercise videos I found on Netflix. I chose the shortest one: Self: Bikini body fast (30min) It's a strength training/cardio workout. The first half uses weights and the second half has plyo moves. Despite using light weights for all the arm exercises, it is my legs that are so sore. I'm not sure I'll be able to move tomorrow! The video went really quickly which was nice. I found myself missing some of the P90x stretches though. I think I will be tired by the end of today like I expected would happen yesterday. I have to sit a lot longer for piano which may be my downfall because I can't keep moving and workout the muscles. We'll see though.

Tomorrow's exercise plan is Just Dance.

Today is the official start of the Lettuce Eat Cake contest. Matthew has decided to do it with me. YAY!

Sunday, January 30, 2011

oh the cravings!

It's amazing how quick we acclimatize (sp?) to change. Today's weigh in was 162.0 for the Wii and 160.6 on the bathroom scale. Ahh the water weight release.

For the most part it has been pretty easy to revert back to a WW diet, but yesterday and today the cravings have been bad. We ate at the Guenther Mill House downtown and enjoyed a hearty lunch. Despite all that I ate, I could have eaten even more. I still felt hunger pains. After we left and continued on in our outing I started feeling more full, but the pangs were still there.

Today I am trying to resist the temptation to eat a bunch of junk. I think I'm going to have to really stock the fridge with fruit and yogurt to make smoothies until I can tame this craving beast. I am so tempted to go in the kitchen and bake some brownies or a cake or cookies - something! but to do so would be a devastation to my sensabilities. There will be a baptism this evening and I'm expecting refreshments will be served. I'm trying to assuage the cravings with the hope that I can have a treat at that time.

Thursday, January 27, 2011

It's official

I re-joined Weight Watchers yesterday. I'd planned on only signing up for 1 month, but they were tricky and offered an additional savings to do the 3 month sign up. So, that's what I did. It'll work out nicely since the Lettuce Eat Cake contest will last 10/12 weeks.

Here's my basic thoughts about the new program (copied from a facebook post):

"I think the new program makes sense, but the other one was a lot simpler. Maybe it wouldn't be such a big deal if I had a smart phone or an IPhone and had the apps for it because my scale and calculator are for the old program. I was really looking forward to already 'being in the element' when I got back in to WW, but I'm going to have to relearn all the points. boo. One of the draws was that it had all of my recipes and foods stored from last year, but everything will have to be re-entered or recalculated with the new information. What a hassle, but I'm sure it will allow for a healthier diet. I would avoid some healthy foods before b/c of the points attached to it, but maybe this time the new system will be better suited for a healthier choice.

I'll have a better feel for it I"m sure by the end of the week or two."

It has been relatively easy to step back into the program. Today I stayed really busy and wasn't in the kitchen munching all day which really helped. I think it is also good that I've been mentally preparing for the change over the last few weeks. It was just a matter of deciding to do it.




Sunday, January 23, 2011

Diaper Pins? Who needs diapers?

I'd like to say that we are officially out of diapers, but I can't really say that. Not officially because I still put one on Aaron at night. However, we are diaper free (and almost completely accident free) during the day. Even Jared made his goal to not wear diapers at night anymore. YAY! Aaron usually stays dry all night long too, but just in case we still put one on him. There's been a few times when I'm really glad I did!

At this stage in the game we are working towards Aaron going potty all on his own. We discovered this week that he is now tall enough to turn all the lights on and off by himself. YAY! We won't need to leave a light on in the bathroom anymore because he can reach the switch. Up until this week he's 'needed' help getting his pants down because he couldn't do it. I was tired of hearing him say, "I can't!" when he can get dressed forwards and backwards just fine, so I told him he was an 'I can kid' - just do it like you are putting your pajamas on. I walked him through it and all of a sudden he wasn't saying he couldn't anymore. YAY! Sometimes he still needs a little bit of help, but for the most part I can send him to go potty and he'll come back out completely done - including hands washed and pants on. woohoo!!

It is really weird to walk by the baby section and know that we don't need to buy diapers.

Let's Begin Again

I knew my weight gain was bad, yet I could not stop eating. The cookie exchange created an eating addiction. A literal addiction where I would shake if I thought about not having something sugary to stuff in my mouth. As the weeks have passed, I've tried cutting back and have been somewhat successful. I've also been thinking about going back on Weight Watchers. I've been having these mental conversations with myself about whether or not I could do it and how I was able to do it last time, etc. Last year I started on Jan 1st whether I was ready or not and it gradually got easier. One of the mental roadblocks I realized was that I kept thinking about where I ended, not where I began. One day as I was having one of those mental conversations, it hit me that I would have 35 weekly points as my disposal, not just my daily. By the end of my WW time I had cut out the weeklies, but I certainly didn't start that way and I wouldn't have to now. I NEED those points to help wean myself off the extras. When I realized this, for the first time I thought, "I could do it!!"

I woke up Jan 1st feeling like I could take the WW challenge again, but I didn't sign up. This last week I finally decided I was ready and then it ended up being a week full of get-togethers and hormones causing a lot more caloric intake than a person should have at a time. So, I thought "Next week will be better. I'll start next week." The other side of the conversation said, "There will always be something. I can't get putting it off; I need to learn to be healthy despite the challenge of the types of food available to me."

So, begin again I must. This morning I weighed in on the Wii for the first time since November. I've been weighing myself on the bathroom scale for the last month so I've had an idea of the numbers. For the record, today there was a 1 pound difference between scales.

So, my starting weight: 163.4 (exactly 10.5 pounds higher than my last weigh in in Nov)

Lettuce Eat Cake 2 starts Feb 5th. I have 10 weeks to stay accountable to someone other than the voice in my head :p I will also be officially joining WW this week.

Matthew is also working on shedding some pounds, so hopefully with our combined efforts we can both be successful.

Sunday, December 12, 2010

Cookie Fat

I don't think I'll participate in a cookie exchange ever again - especially when it involves 13 dozen cookies. The idea is that you pass them out to neighbors, etc but mine only got passed to my thighs. It has become absolutely ridiculous. There've been a few days this week where ALL I ate were cookies. I have mental reprimands throughout the day as I try to battle the urge to eat one. Usually I lose and eat one or two. Or five. It's bad.

I did P90X twice this week. YAY!