Gluten Free Pasta with Meatless Balls! (so what exactly did I just eat??)

That was not an image of my meal, and if anyone shows that picture to Darcy, she may cry.  LOL

Our dinner was very good, though!  It was better than I thought.

The brand of GF pasta I tried tonight was actually much better than the last one I tried.  The sauce was just normal, organic, meat/dairy free sauce that I seasoned up a bit, and then I cooked the falafels in the oven with a little soy cheese on top for the meatballs.  I even found a vegan GF parmesan cheese substitute, and the whole meal was quite tasty!

Falafels are actually going to be quite a good meat substitute, although I'm sure if I made my own, they would have fewer calories than the ones I bought at the natural foods store.

I'm excited for tomorrow - I really do love the challenge of eating healthy foods, and still making them taste good.

Today, I ate 964 calories, had 20 grams of fiber, 40 grams of protein, and 30 grams of fat.  It was a very well balanced diet, and I just need to make sure to keep my intake of non dairy calcium products while I'm dairy free.

Hey, the girl likes a challenge!

Okay, so it's not rock climbing, but do you have any idea how hard it is to shop for a lite, gluten free, vegan diet?  That's no meats, fish, dairy, wheat, barley, rye, etc...  There is dairy and wheat in almost everything on the planet, and the things they aren't in are not concerned about calories or fat at that point, in most cases.  We couldn't even buy the tofu "meats" because they had wheat in their flavoring.

Darcy and I spent a few hours shopping in two different stores today, and we did a LOT of label reading!  $240 later, I'm probably going to try this for a full week. 

So here goes with my weekly meal plan:

For breakfast, I found some gluten free cereal bars, so I will probably stick to those and fruit.

For lunch, I'm having left overs or some gluten free vegan soup with salad.

Saturday night - Gluten Free (GF) pasta with red sauce and meatballs baked in cheese (actually, they are falafels baked in some type of cheese substitue) - I'll be sure to let you know how that goes!

Sunday lunch - Portobella "cheese" burgers on tapioca bread with fresh veggies and baked zucchini fries (I found gluten free bread crumbs!)

Sunday dinner - Vegetable soup

Monday night - Eggplant "Parm"

Tuesday night - Tofu/veggie stir fry

Wednesday - Going out to eat - research needed, but I'm thinking Indian may be the best bet

Thursday - Grilled "cheese" sandwiches on tapioca toast grilled in very little vegan butter with GF and dairy free organic split pea soup.

Friday - Sundried Tomato GF Risotto with fresh mixed veggies

I'll be sure to post the results of the food taste as I try the meals.  I have had dairy alternatives before, and usually it's not tasty.

I tried the falafel's already, and they were quite good.  It's just veggies and beans.

What's going on in there?!

I've been having gallstone like pain all week now, and my gallbladder was removed over a year ago.  I went to the MD yesterday, and he explained that the bile duct is still there, and if you are prone to stones, you can still get them after the gallbladder is removed, and there's not a ton that can be done about it.  I believe there is a procedure called Percutaneous extraction that uses a scope to go into the common bile duct and either extract or breakdown the stones, so that may be a possibility.

At this point, they are running a few blood tests to rule out other possibilities, and I will be having an ultrasound on Wednesday to see if there is evidence of stones in the bile duct.  The ultrasound may or may not show changes to the bile duct, so even if no evidence is present, there still may be stones.

I'm also waiting for a call back from my surgeon, because he may know if this is more common in lap band patients, which gallstones were.  Perhaps these biliary stones are common in lap band patients that had their gallbladder removed - who knows.

I asked the MD what I could do with my diet to reduce the symptoms I'm experiencing, and he told me to try to eat a very low fat diet.  Um, I don't think I could go much lower fat than what I take in now while still being healthy.  It's fat that triggers these symptoms, but for me, since I started experiencing these symptoms this past summer, it's been the healthier I eat, the more symptoms I experience.  It makes no sense.

I asked him if a diet free of animal proteins may help, and he said yes, a vegetarian diet could be helpful.  I was thinking more vegan, because I imagine the fat in cheese and milk would be just as potentially harmful as the fat in meat.

I barely get my calories in now, so I can't imagine taking animal proteins out of my diet, but I think it may be worth a try.  It is not pleasant at all to feel gallstone like pain, so I'll give it a shot.  Maybe I'll go gluten free for a few days too - just to see if that helps at all for any reason. 

A Market, here I come!

Scamper on over to my Scampi

I really outdid myself last night. 

I kid!

I wanted to make something really quick and really delicious, so I ended up making shrimp scampi over whole grain noodles - it was really easy and quite fantastic.

After sauteeing some fresh sliced garlic in olive oil Pam and a little reduced sodium organic sea salt (that's a mouthful), I added in the fresh cooked shrimp with a little garlic salt and tossed that around for a while, then I added in a good amount of white wine that cooked down, and I was out of fresh parsely, so I used tarragon, a cap full of Rose's lime juice, 2 tblsp of light butter and grown pepper and that was it!

We had some pasta already cooked from earlier in the week, so I justed heated it up in the pan I used to cook the other goodness, and it was a meal rich with flavor, and it took about 10 minutes to make from start to finish.

Flattery will get you everywhere

People I work with have started to notice my weight loss.  Today when I came into work, a woman in my office said she can tell I've lost a lot of weight - in my face, in my body, all over!  Thanks!!  It's funny because I've only lost about 15 lbs.

When I lost a ton of weight the first time around, I think it took about 80 lbs for people to notice.  LOL.  I guess they notice it sooner when you have less to lose.

Anyway, I was feeling a little bloated today, and not too pretty, and it made me very happy to be greeted with such a nice statement first thing in the morning.  Compliments make me want to eat healthy.

So to all my Biggest Loser team mates:  you look marvelous and skinny and hot.  :)

I'm wicked healthy

You may not know it by looking at me (or reading about all my illnesses and injuries - LOL), but I'm actually in perfect medical health.  I had a full blood panel done yesterday, testing all of my organ functions and all of my levels, and they were either just right or very good, across the board.  My cholesterol was 90/48, and my thyroid was perfect. 

It's a good start. 

NSV = Non Scale Victory!

One of the best parts of losing weight is finding clothes that fit you now that didn't before.  Today, I tried on one of the jackets I bought online a few weeks ago.  It's still on the small side, but I can wear it now, where as I was definitely having a "fat guy in a little coat" moment when I first tried it on.  I purposely ordered things that I knew would be too small, so that I could start wearing them on the small side, and wear them all the way through my weight loss until I reach goal and they are on the big size.

Even though I'm trying to lose 80 lbs, you'd be surprised how many miles I get out of clothing through different points in time. 

I am wearing my new jacket to work today with a big smile on my face!

Now THAT is a light snack

I have had the hungry horrors today.  Unfortunately, I suspect that PMS season is upon me.  Hooray!  I know that means I can look forward to water weight gain, a bottomless pit of an appetite and acne.  Fun!  :)

I'm trying to be good.  So far today I have had a nutrigrain bar, a banana, some turkey soup, and some light popcorn.  It's not cutting it.  I drank about a gallon of water in the past 2 hours, and my stomach is still growling.

Right now, I'm having a 10 calorie sugar free jello cup.  I don't love jello, but anything that is 10 calories and makes my hunger go away, even for a half hour, is a friend of mine!  I'm sure this little cup is CHOCK full of chemicals, and normally, I avoid such ridiculously processed foods, but when I'm having a diet emergency, I give in.

It's 3pm.  This little cup has made me feel full.  I'm going to time it to see how long this lasts.

Tick tock!  :)

Go Losers!

As of today, our team of 6 was down 56.9 lbs in our first 3 weeks!  That's fantastic! 

I lost 5 lbs this past week for a total of 14.8 so far.  I averaged 851 calories each day this week, and 52.4 grams of protein, 13.2 grams of fiber (oops) and 29 grams of fat. 

I have been extremely careful with my sodium intake lately, and I think it is making a difference.  I'm glad that I was able to lose 5 lbs this week since I haven't been able to exercise, but I did scale back my calories to compensate and it seems to have helped.

I have been able to lose these lbs over and over again this past year, with varying degrees of difficulty.  I think I'm being more strict than I was before and that it helping, but in one more lb, I'll weigh less than I've weighed in the past two months, and in 6 more lbs, I'll be the lowest I've been in 4 months, and in 10 lbs more lost, I'll be the lowest I've been in 6 months.  It seems like a lot of work just to get to where I was 6 months ago, but it is what it is. 

Right now, I've pulled into the lead, and I think the fact that I'm eating an average of 70% of the calories my competitors are eating is working to my advantage.  I have an easier time doing this because I've been surgically altered, so I'm going to suggest this:  why don't we count my weight loss as 70% of the actual weight loss.  For example, I'm down 14.8 lbs, and 70% of that is 10.36 lbs.  My calories per day ranges from 700-1000 and my competitors calorie intakes range from 1200-1500. 

I think that sounds fair to me.  The lap band doesn't affect absorption of calories, it only helps me limit my calorie intake.  Since I'm finally losing again, and at a faster rate than I had been (let's hope I'm not jinxing myself after just 3 weeks - oy), I think an adjustment would be the fair thing to do.

Also, several of my competitors have told me they are frustrated the weight isn't coming off quicker.  I hear you, and I've been there.  The thing for us all to remember is that if we are doing things right, we should have an average weight loss of 1-2 lbs/week, and we are all averaging over 2 so far.  We have all started and stopped so many times, our bodies may be holding out to see if we are actually serious this time.

We are down nearly 60 lbs as a group in just 3 weeks, and that is 60 lbs we probably wouldn't be down if we weren't doing this competition, so it is working.  If we all hang in there and give it our all for 13 weeks, win or lose, we'll all be thinner, healthier and happier.

I promise!

Physical Therapy Update

I talked to my PT today about my back and neck injuries, and she just said I need to take it easy.  All I am going to focus on is my PT exercises for my knee until my neck and back pain go away.  I've been so stiff all weekend, and I really can't wait to start working out again.

I know that if I'm cautious now, that time will come sooner than if I push it, so I'm trying to be patient.  It's not really a strong point of mine. 

Tomorrow is the big loser weigh in.  I'm trying to be really careful with my sodium today so I'm not up any water weight.  I'm really curious to see how all of the competition has been doing!  I have scaled back my calories just a bit since I haven't been working out, so I have done my best.  I don't think there's anything I could have done better under the circumstances.

Good luck, team!  :)

Cottage Cheese Vs. Yogurt

All my life, I've heard about what a wonderful diet food cottage cheese is.  I haven't been able to bring myself to eat it because it's one of the ugliest foods I've ever seen, and in general, I think it's on the nasty side.  I was having taco salad, and I used salsa as the salad dressing (fat free and very low in cals), but I had put some light sour cream in as well to make it creamier.  I ran out of sour cream, so I decided to mix in some light cottage cheese, and you know what?  Mixed in with everything else, it was just fine.  Good for me, I can finally incorporate it into my diet.

Naturally, I looked at the label so I could add my calories into fitday, and I was surpised at what I saw.  It was 90 calories for a quarter of a cup, and 440 mgs of sodium.  Yikes!  It also had 14 grams of protein, which is a LOT for such a small volume of food.

Yogurt has about 80 calories for double the volume, and less than a quarer of the sodium (for double the volume).  It has the same amount of calcium and other nutrients, but it has about half the protein. 

So for me, as someone who gets plenty of healthy protein in her diet, but needs to watch the sodium, cottage cheese is just not a great option.

And all these years I felt guilty for not eating it.  Who knew!  :)

Week 3 Meal Plan

Sunday - Taco Salad
Monday - Shrimp with hot mustard sauce and vegetable "fried" rice
Tuesday - Risotto with porcini mushrooms and mascarpone (from Cooking Light!)
Wednesday - Teriyaki steak with red bliss potato salad and bacon "fried" green beans (LIGHT recipe coming!!)
Thursday - Chicken stir fry
Friday - Sushi!
Saturday - 5 alarm chili with sweet onion cornbread

Temptation Island

Although we went to a fabulous Italian restaurant last night, I feel as though I was an angel with my eating.  :)  I started off with a salad, as planned, and it was very tasty.  I ordered Risotto con Porcini, and I loved it, but I only at a very small serving of it.  Prior to arriving at the restaurant, I was feeling quite hungry, so I had some popcorn to hold me over.  Popcorn isn't always awesome for you, but there are worse things, so it's not bad in a pinch.

I'm very pleased that I did not go over 900 calories yesterday, seeing as though we went to one of my favorite restaurants.  It was wonderful seeing TJ, and we all had a great time.

On the home front, I am getting more achy by the day.  It's the strangest thing.  I think I was on performance enhancing drugs to get over my pneumonia, and they made me think I was an athlete.  Rather sadly, I've learned I am not.  What I am is an overweight middle aged person who can barely walk.  It's not a pretty sight, folks. 

I cannot wait until Monday when I see my PT.  There is absolutely nothing I can do to work out at this point, so I'm going to just scale back my calorie consumption to make up for it.  Darcy is getting the hot tub ready as we speak.  Thank GOD.  :)

Benched

My back is hurting bad.  I'm so annoyed.  I think I really pulled a muscle, and I'm not sure what to do about it.  Now that I am off the steroids, I'm not feeling quite as well as I had been.  I feel really tired and run down, and I think the steroids just masked all the symptoms I had.  I'm also wondering if they masked the pain from my pulled back muscle because it hurts more now than it did at the beginning of the week when it happened.

Either way, I'm going to talk to my physical therapist about it when I see her on Monday, and I'll just have to take it easy this weekend. 

I look forward to the day when I can workout without having to worry about my multiple injuries.  I can't imagine how much faster I'd lose weight if I wasn't constantly sitting on the bench, waiting to be able to run back into the game. 

Italian Food

I didn't want to torture Alison with some of the more beautiful pictures of Italian food that I found, so I picked one that looks good, but not drool on your desk good.  :)

We are taking TJ to dinner tonight, and we're going out for Italian food.  I have not really been out to eat, other than for hummus and then steak this past Saturday, since we started our competition.  I certainly haven't been out to one of my favorite Italian restaurants since the start of the contest, but we are heading there tonight!

I'm really looking forward to it.  I love the food there, and I know I will use self control with both my food selection and the amount I eat of it.  No leftovers will be coming home with me!  It will be less of a challenge, since everyone there is trying to eat healthy, so it's not like I can cheat, but I don't even want to.

I think it's important to be able to go out to eat without blowing your diet.  I've always been pretty good about being able to do that.  My strategy for tonight is simple, have lots of liquids before I eat, start the meal off with a light salad, and enjoy the conversation more than my food as I eat my dinner SLOWLY.  I hope my strategic planning isn't taking the fun out of this for you, TJ.  I know you would prefer to surround yourself with thin friends, though, so I'm sure it's worth it.  LOL!

I really can't wait. 

Back pain

I think my back has been hurting me since I swam a half mile on Monday night.  I don't think it was the swimming as much as it was the turning around at the end of each length.  I think I pulled something, and now I can't seem to shake it.  Of course, I've worked out every day since then, and I haven't given it a chance to rest, so that may be part of the problem...

I really want to work out tonight, but I'm having a hard time thinking of something that doesn't affect the back, since swimming aggrivated it, and then biking and walking and jogging didn't help it...lifting weights is never a great idea when you have back pain...  I was thinking yoga may be a good bet.  I know that resting it may be the best choice as well, but I think I'm going to do a bit of yoga, and if it hurts my back at all, I'll stop immediately. 

It seems like there is constantly something wrong with my body that prevents me from working out as much as I want to.  I think it seems that way because it IS that way.  LOL.  I know the more weight I lose, the less trouble I'll have, so I'm going to keep pressing onward.  :)

I'm very slowly starting to notice the tiniest difference in the way my clothes are fitting me now.  It's a *very* slight change, but things are starting to move in the right direction.  I have noticed a difference in my face for the past two weeks, but I hadn't noticed a difference in my pants until today, so that is nice!

Darcy and I are staying in Boston for the weekend for Valentine's Day, and I bought a new outfit to wear.  It was too small when I bought it, but I'm hoping it fits by then.  That will be a nice reward for my efforts! 

They really take LOSER to a new level

As I have probably mentioned each week when I discuss the Biggest Loser show recap, I hate reality tv.  That is why it is especially hard for me to deal with this show, but I do agree with TJ that I learn at least one new thing every time I watch it.  I also think it has an overall positive impact on my weight loss journey because seeing these big people work so hard makes me want to dig deep to work harder. 

HOWEVER, last night's show was torturous.  They spent about 30 minutes of the episode harassing some poor girl about her attitude problem, but I didn't really get it.  I didn't see any big attitude problem - all I saw was Jillian trying to get some type of emmy for bad reality tv acting.  It had nothing to do with her weight loss journey, though Jilly Bob would disagree, and it was just about making cheesy television.  Blech.

It is unfortunate that a healthy, well balanced show wouldn't be able to get good enough ratings on it's own, and I blame those of you who watch Survivor and all the other cheese shows that are out there that have created this terrible formula that seems to work on this *clearly* brain dead country of ours.  It was bad enough that I had to watch the MA senate race ticker across the screen for the entire episode - last night's show made me want to eat starburst.

Anyway, the positive lessons I took from last night's show were still there.  We saw 500+ lb Mike slack off because he was in pain, but really, he's just lazy, and we saw him nearly lose his shot to wellness as a result.  He did a good job the first 2 weeks, and I do feel for him, but he's either going to change his life radically or he's going to fail.  I'm in the same shoes, and I'm on that same journey.  There is no half way effort that will lead to my success - I need to remember constantly that this is an all or nothing deal. 

Jilly Bob also talked to the red team train wreck about how many calories the woman was hitting for calories burned.  I didn't understand how many calories they said she should burn, but it was a reminder for me to start focusing more on how many calories I'm taking in verses burning each week.  I haven't been focused on that quite yet because I was more concerned with getting back on track and being careful not to overexert myself, but I'm about ready to start working toward a weekly calorie burn goal.

I think those were really the main take aways from the show last night, but it's better than what I would have learned watching another TV show, so I'm sticking with it, and my eyes are getting PLENTY of exercise from all the rolling they do during the shameless product placement and hokey emotional segments.

Can we just skip today?

For some reason, I'm a bit off today.  I got up at 5:30 to work out early this morning, and I should have just skipped it.  My back was still sore, and I was feeling very sluggish.  I have to remember that I can't go from zero to hero in one week.  I've been working out a lot lately, and my body needs time to rest.  I forgot that.  Now I remember.

I had an extremely lame workout.  My knee started bothering me early on the treadmill this morning, so I only did 11 minutes, and then I just did 9 minutes on the bike after that because I just felt sore.  So I got up at 5:30 to do 20 minutes of half hearted cardio - hardly worth it.

I was up a little bit of weight today from the salt, I'm sure, so overall I'm just feeling blah, and I'd like to fast forward to tomorrow.  I have lots of meetings today, a very large backlog of work from being out sick, a ton of homework, and a work meeting tonight that won't end until around 9PM.  Normally, I wouldn't care about any of those things, but because I'm feeling tired and bloated and achy, it just adds to the overall feeling of misery that I have today. 

I need to remember that my physical health is connected to every other area of my health and well being.  That is why proper rest, both slumber and rest from exercising, is important, as is eating healthy foods, getting in lots of water, and getting the body into tip top shape.  Life has a tendency to weigh us down, but the choices we make can lighten the load.

Paying the toll

When on a diet, the price for over eating is extra exercise.  You must pay the toll if you're going down that road and you want to reach your destination.

For some reason, I was STARVING when I got home from work today - I don't know if it was the 10 mile bike ride, or the fact that I had eaten really light today (which isn't new), but I was sooo hungry.  By the time dinner was ready, I ate way too much.  Also, I don't always make the best choices when I'm that hungry, so I used way too much salt on my food. 

As a result, I decided I needed to work out again to make up for it.  I have a work obligation tomorrow night, and physical therapy at 8AM tomorrow morning, so I knew I would have to work out very early tomorrow AM before the day gets started.  Since my back was sore this morning from my workout last night, I didn't want the same thing to happen again, so I decided to do Pilates at home.

My sister told me about an Amazon.com 4 pack sale on exercise tapes a few weeks back, and I had ordered 4 Pilates videos.  I haven't done Pilates much before, but the tape I did tonight seemed to be fairly easy.  I could feel my muscles working out, but for some reason, it all just came very natural to me.  The video showed a beginner, intermediate and advanced version of each exercise.  I did about a third of each, depending upon the exercise, and I thought it was odd that I could do the advanced exercise in many cases.  Maybe it was a really easy video.

Either way, I got another 30 minute work out in tonight, and I'm hoping that offset the overeating I did at dinner.  I mean, I didn't go over 1000 calories today, so it's not like I did anything bad, but I had a 500 calorie dinner which is more than I like to eat. 

Next time I come home that hungry, I need to reach for a salad or something instead of waiting until dinner and overeating. 

BUT, at least I paid the toll.  :)

What I put in my mouth

It is essential, for any healthy eating program, to get in lots of fresh fruits and veggies.  I do my best to incorporate 4-5 servings every day into my diet.  Not only are they a great source of vitamins, but they are also a great source of water!

This past week, I averaged 1000 calories/day.  I was working out more than the first week, which is why I consumed about 300 more calories each day, on average.  I was still very careful not to eat after 7, and if I hadn't had a higher calorie day on Saturday, I may have been closer to 900, but I think 800-1200 calories per day is the right range for me while I'm working out.

I go a great job of getting in protein, fruits and veggies, fiber and calcium with my smaller calorie budget, because I spend my calories wisely!  :) 

I was down 3.8 lbs for the week, so almost the four that I was down a few days ago - close enough.  I may have had a spike in my weight because I was retaining water from the prednisone as well...who knows.  I'm just going to keep chipping away.

The weight is coming off at a good pace - not exactly falling off me, but it's moving at a good clip in the right direction.  More than any differences I'm feeling in my clothing so far (which are minimal to nil) are the differences I'm feeling in my body from working out.  I feel less bloated, more energetic, and like I'm really turning into a calorie burning machine.

Normally on the bike, my heart rate is between 140 and 160, but today it was 115-125.  I know I was going a little slower than recently because of my back, but I was going the same pace I went last week, and last week, I was between 140 and 160.  It's amazing the difference a week can make when you put in a good effort. 

I'm excited to see where I can be by next week!

Riding on a road to no where

That's my summation of a workout on an exercise bike - LOL.  The whole time I was on the bike today, I was trying to figure out when the weather would work with me so that I could actually ride a bike outside for my training.  I have a ways to go!

My back was really sore last night, probably from swimming a half mile.  I need to work on my form so that I'm not hurting my back.  I think that I'm twisting something when I turn around each time, and I think that's bothering my back. 

I went to the gym this morning with Alison, and we both did the exercise bikes.  Today, since my back was bothering me, I was going slower than I have been, and I averaged 4 minutes a mile.  I did end up doing the full 10 miles today, and it was a good workout, but I could have kept going - however, I had to get to work!

I know that since I'm on level 1, I still have a ways to go with training and working my way up to higher levels, but for now, I'm focusing on the cardio and the mobility issues, and I'm not as concerned with the strength training portion.  That will come next, and I have plenty of time.

I really love working out in the morning.  I feel like I have so much energy to greet the day.  I'm a little sore, so I probably won't go swimming tonight, but if my back is better, I may fit a swim in later...we shall see. 

Today is our biggest loser weigh in.  I'm eagerly awaiting the results.  :)

Night at the pool

Darcy came to the pool with me tonight, and she took a few pictures on my phone.  I wasn't able to get any good Michael Phelps action shots, but you get the idea.  :)

This was the first time she had been with me since I got my new gear, and she couldn't believe how much faster I swam compared to before.  At the end, I had to do some tricks, naturally.  One must keep the crowd entertained.  ;-)

Quite impressive, I know.

I had a wonderful swim - tonight I did a half mile.  For some reason, after swimming, I feel wonderful - so relaxed like I had an awesome workout without the pain or fatigue of other cardio vascular activities. 

I'm really enjoying the swimming portion of the triathlon training, but the rest is going well too.  I think I'd like to swim a mile in the next week or two.

Baked not fried Zucchini Fries!

Slight menu swap - I ended up cooking chicken thighs with zucchini fries tonight for dinner.  Chicken thighs aren't for everyone, but they are an easy favoritie of mine.  Marinated in fat free italian dressing and low sodium soy sauce, they take about one minute of preparation and 20 minutes of cooking - very easy, and always moist and yummy.

I hadn't tried zucchini fries before, but boy, were they good!  I took the sliced zucchini and dipped it in a whisked egg with skim milk, and then dipped into a garlic and herb breadcrumb blend with low fat parmesan cheese and salt and pepper.  Bake on 425 for 20 mins.  Easy peasy and REALLY tasty.  (64 calories per serving)

I'm not cooking any culinary masterpieces, but I sure am making my taste buds happy as I eat well without spending a ton of time preparing the meals!

Last Chance Workout!

Tomorrow is the big weigh in day for the Biggest Loser challenge.  Every week on the show, the contestants participate in a last chance workout, which is basically a full day of grueling physical activity in an effort to sweat as much as they can and lose as much as they can to put up big numbers for the weekly weigh in.

Even though I worked out this morning, I decided I want to do a last chance workout tonight.  Instead of going to the phone banks as planned, I have decided to hit the pool after dinner tonight.  It's hardly a last chance workout by BL standards, but it's better than sitting around.

Earlier this week, I was down 4 lbs for the week, and I was really pleased with that.  I made some not awesome (though not horrendous) food and salt choices on Saturday, and bam - the 4 lbs was back and then some.  As of today, I had lost a little of it, but I want to do what I can to get that 4 off again - whether it's by tomorrow or not.

So yes, I've been weighing myself daily this week.  I'm just trying different things to see what works.  Next week I may wait until the Tuesday weigh in, we will see.

I doubt a Monday night swim is going to make a huge (or small) difference on the scale in the AM, but it will make me feel better about my efforts, and that counts too.  Also, I *really* enjoy the swimming.  :)

Training update

As I mentioned, I was sluggo on Saturday, so I didn't train at all.  On Sunday, I had lots and lots to do, and when I finally finished all of my cleaning, homework, cooking, etc..., I headed out to the pool around 6PM.  My plan was to do the 1/4 mile swim, and then head over to the gym to do some biking and walking/jogging. 

I had a GREAT swim.  My time seemed to be about the same, around 13 or 14 minutes, it's hard to tell for sure on the clock, but I felt awesome after.  The pool isn't ideal.  It's way too warm both in the pool and in the room, but I feel like the warmer I am, the more calories I'll burn.  That may just be my optimistic spin, but I'm going with it. 

After my swim, I rushed over to the gym, and it was closed!  Grrrr.   It's open 24x7 Monday - Friday, but apparently it closes at 7PM on Saturday and Sunday nights.  I was so bummed out, but I headed home.  Had I known, I would have swam a 1/2 mile.

This morning, I had physical therapy scheduled for 9AM, so I went to the gym before that.  I did 5 miles on the bike (level 1 because I'm being very careful with my knee), and it took me 16 minutes, so I'm getting faster!  Then I headed over to the treadmill where I did 3/4 of a mile, which took 13 minutes - NOT impressive.  LOL.  Most of the time on the treadmill, I kept it on speed 3 because I'm being very careful, but I did go up to 5 and 6 a few times just to get my heart pumping.

Since speed 3 is very slow, I danced while I was walking - oh yeah I did.  I'm sure I was quite a sight, but I don't care.  My body isn't going to get skinny on it's own, so I'm doing what I can.

At physical therapy today, the PT said I'm getting better.  Good news!  I have been doing my exercises daily, and I've been very careful at the gym while still trying to train for the triathlon and lose weight.  She did a bunch of balancing exercises with me today, and she said I have extremely good balance.  That's a good thing for injury prevention and overall wellness, so I'm glad about that.  I've always had good balance.  I'm a big girl, but I'm actually on the graceful side...as funny as that sounds if you know me.

She also called me the energizer bunny.  I just keep going and going and going.  LOL.  I like to exercise, and I like to push myself.  I did another mile on the bike at PT today, so I have just over 30 minutes of exercise in today.  I'm planning to volunteer at the phone banks tonight for the senate race in MA, but if I'm not completely wiped out after that, I'm hoping to go to the pool as well.  

Beef Stroganoff

I didn't end up following any one recipe in particular, and I didn't necessarily measure any of the ingredients, but the dish came out very well, and I will do my best to describe how I made it.  :)

First, I sauteed diced onions, fresh minced garlic and baby portabella mushrooms in a light butter substitute and pam.  I cooked quite a bit of mushrooms, because I wanted are well balanced meal, and not too much meat.  Then, I put the sauteed veggies on a plate while I cooked small pieces of lean grass fed beef, cut to about 1 inch wide by 2 inches long. 

As the meat was cooking, I added in some dry cooking vermouth, Worchestershire sauce, light sour cream, onion soup mix and garlic powder.  I didn't realize I was out of beef broth, which is why I substituted in the onion soup mix. 

I cooked the whole grain egg noodles (that were very good with 6 grams of fiber per serving), and I thought my stroganoff sauce was a little thicker than I wanted, so I poured in some of the pasta water into the sauce, and it became the consistency I was looking for. 

That's it.  It was very easy, and it came out really well.  It's a nice, substantial meal that is good for you too!

Lazy Day

Yesterday was a lazy day for me.  We went out for breakfast, did a little shopping at Home Depot, went to the movies, and then met up for dinner with the girls.  I didn't do anything I had hoped to accomplish, so today is going to be a busy one for me!

I need to get my homework done, go grocery shopping, get caught up with a few things for work, tidy my office, work out and clean up the house.  I'll get it all done, but I'm feeling a little sluggish today.  Maybe I'll feel better once I take the prednisone!  :)

Week 2 Meal Plan

I have been sticking too the carnation instant breakfast for breakfast (often with a banana blended in), but I may venture into the cereal realm this coming week.  For lunch, I've been having the wheat thin flat bread with hummus and tabouli, or soup, salad, or leftovers.  I'll plan to do the same this coming week.

My dinner plan is as follows:

Saturday night - We are meeting up with the girls at XO on Elm, so I'll just plan to have the same middle eastern taster that Darcy and I had on Thursday.  It's delicious and perfectly filling for me.  If I'm extra hungry for some reason, I'll have a light salad with it.

Sunday - Grass fed lean beef stroganoff over whole grain egg noodles with mixed greens (I'll post my light version of the recipe once I decide how I want to make it)

Monday - Grilled lemon shrimp with quinoa and edamame  (more on this later as well!!)

Tuesday - Indonesian braised pork with mixed veggies

Wednesday - Leftovers

Thursday - Chicken thighs with a side veggie salad with garbonzo beans

Friday - Whole grain english muffin pizzas with baked zucchini fries

Every meal I make takes under 30 minutes to make - if you ever want a recipe, let me know.

I love the foods I eat, and I do not feel like I am going without by any stretch of the imagination.  I love my healthy, fresh, delicious foods!  :)

Friday!

On Friday's, we like to order in for lunch.  I often get a delicious steak kabob salad with greek dressing.  I'm sure it has 3 million calories.  It's really fantastic, but I can't imagine I'll be dining on that anytime soon.  My usual lunch ordering friends emailed me to see what I wanted today.  I informed them that I was fat, so I would be eating my 130 calorie Italian Wedding Soup by Campbell's Select Harvest.  They said that 130 calories is not enough to live off of, and I assured them I was in no danger of starvation.

I'm planning to work out after work today, and I eat small meals or servings throughout the day.  I get full quickly, so this will be fine for lunch, and later in the day, I'll have a yogurt or some light, high in fiber popcorn. 

I have found in the past that if I tell the people I work with, in addition to my friends and family, that I am trying to lose weight and be healthy, it makes it much easier to succeed.  First of all, people are supportive - they really, really are.  Thin and averaged sized people really like to see bigger people trying to lose weight.  Secondly, they won't try to entice you with unhealthy choices, and thirdly, it's just one more layer of accountability.

So I am telling the people I work with that I am trying to lose weight, and that I'm training for a sprint triathlon.  I can be their very own biggest loser that they cheer on as I work toward my goal. 

I had physical therapy today.  I think my range of motion is slightly increasing, but my knee is still incredibly weak.  I can't do much since my PT doesn't want me to continue when I feel pain.  I often forget to tell her I'm in pain, because I'm just wired to muscle through pain.  When she asks me if something hurts, I have to stop and think about it, and the answer is usually yes.  She's going to work with me on paying more attention to my pain.  After years and years of ignoring pain, it's hard to remember to listen to it.

Tonight I'm going swimming after work, and I will probably limit my workout to that.  When I walked out of my house to the balmy weather we are experiencing today, my first thought was that I should go on an outdoor bike ride to train.  Then I remembered that I'm just finally feeling better after a month of being sick, and my knee isn't ready for the hilly terrain yet.  Down boy.  I just get so excited.  Ah well....

I'm trying (very hard) to be responsible with my workouts and my wellness, so today I'm going to swim a half mile, and that will be that.  Tomorrow, if I'm still feeling well, and if I'm not in pain, I'm going to do my first mini mini triathlon, where I'll swim 1/4 mile, bike probably 5 miles, and just walk as far as I can until my knee hurts, which won't be far.  This will be my starting point that I can build from over the next few months.

I woke up feeling bloated today, and I have been an angel about my sodium, so I can only assume it's related to the prednisone.  That's okay.  I'll take the bloating in exchange for finally feeling better.  If I don't have a respectable loss on Tuesday, as a result, we'll see if I am still singing the same tune, but for now, I'm focusing on the things that matter.

Self Motivation

Alison asked, rhetorically, in her comments in my last post - where she could find this burning desire to work out that I have.  It made me think about it...where does that come from?

For me, it certainly comes in waves, but if I'm feeling healthy, losing weight, and feeling results from working out, I just want to work out more and more.  In general, I'm a very self motivated individual.  I think about what I want, and I go for it.  I do not see obstacles, only opportunities.  I know that's such a cliche, but it's my reality.

I am on fire to lose weight, eat healthy, train for a sprint triathlon, and transform my body.  I surround myself with people, activities, tv shows, web sites, online groups, etc, that help me fuel this fire.  I find inspiring stories, and I try to gain a little bit of knowledge or inspiration.

I visualize.  Always.  Right now, I can see myself 8 or 12 or 16 months away, finally at my goal weight, and in the best shape of my life.  I feel how much energy I have.  I see how good I look, how nice my clothes are, how much self confidence I project - I cannot wait to reach that goal.  The only thing separating me from that is time.  As long as I do the right things, eat the right foods, exercise as hard and as smart as I can, I will achieve my goal.

Success is in my hands and in my reach.  The more I workout, within reason of course, the sooner I will achieve my goals.  Why wouldn't I want to sprint to that destination, in a safe and responsible way?  You can't hold me back from my destiny of health.  I'm on my way.

Early Morning Workout

I got in a quick workout this morning.  My PT told me that if I was going to work out, to keep it to 10-20 minutes on the bike.  She'd prefer 10, but she knows I probably can't physically limit myself that much, so she'll allow 20 on LOW, and the second I start to feel pain, I have to stop.

I followed her advice to the letter.  I had to drag myself off the bike at the 20 minute mark.  I did a little over 5 miles, and I wanted to do at least 10.  It killed me to have to stop, and I kept going back in forth in my head because I wasn't in any pain at all - probably because I was on the high bike that my PT told me to use instead of the low bike I used last time that is more bum friendly. 

I was doing 4 minute miles on the low bike, and 3.5 minute miles on the high bike, so that's a plus for it too.  She really doesn't want me on the treadmill yet, but it's okay for me to walk a little bit - I need to practice walking with my left food pointing straight.  I have been compensating for my injury by walking with my left foot out to the side a bit, so after the bike, I walked just a quarter mile on the treadmill, very slow, and after just 5 minutes, my knee started to be a bit sore, so I stopped right away.

I'm home now, icing my knee, and then I'm off to work.  I'm finally feeling MUCH better.  What a relief.  Although, now that I can breathe better, and I feel like a human again, it's going to be really hard to hold myself back from doing a hard workout.  I just have to keep reminding myself that I can't let my short term goals get in the way of my long term success.  That's just dumb. 

I'm going to work a full day in the office for the first time in weeks, and as long as that goes well, I hope to go swimming tonight as well - as long as my knee isn't in any pain. 

That's all the news that's fit to print - enjoy your day!  :)

XO = Yum Oh!

Darcy and I stopped in at XO on Elm tonight for a quick bite.  We shared the Middle Eastern Taster, pictured above - it was FABULOUS!!

The bread was tosted Naan and pita, and the 4 sides were all homemade - hummus, tabouleh, dill yogurt cukes and and tomatoes with red onions and crushed kalamata olives.  Wow, was it good!

That was all we had for dinner, and we didn't finish the whole thing - it was a tasty, healthy treat, and rather easy to make!  ;-)

I'm totally going to make the exact same combo next time I have guests over.

Hitting the pool!

Now aren't I a sight!

Okay, okay, I promised my PT I wouldn't exercise today, but I was just feeling so much better, I couldn't help myself.  It's been making me CRAZY that I've joined a weight loss competition and signed up for a triathlon, and I haven't been able to exercise.  I decided to do some light swimming - I couldn't wait to try out my new gear.

Let me tell you - swimming in acutal swimming attire makes a GINORMOUS difference.  As I've mentioned, I normally just swim in mens swimming trunks and a t shirt, but this time I had on a bathing shirt, knee length basically spandex shorts, a swimming cap, and of course the goggles and the waterproof iPod to keep me rocking in the pool.

No one at the hotel I swim at knew the length of the pool, so I measured it with my shoes, and then estimated the length of my shoe.  I wanted to see how challenging a quarter mile would be, since that's the distance I need to swim for the sprint marathon.  I didn't know the exact length of my shoe in inches, so I rounded down to be on the safe side.

It took me just 15 minutes to do what I thought was a quarter mile, but what it turned out to be was 4 lengths of the pool (or 2 full laps) extra...so I'm thinking it would take me between 13-14 mins to do the quarter mile.  Sweet!  I did some research, and that seems to be good, although I'm sure I'll be able to do it in 10 minutes by the time I'm done my training.  This was just day one!

I read that the 1/4 swim takes most between 10-30 minutes, so I was really glad to be near the 10 minute side of the spectrum as I'm just starting out, and very overweight!  Also, I'm going to be on the slow end for running, and probably middle of the road for biking, so hopefully I can make up some time on the swim.  My original goal was just to finish in the allotted time, but now my goal is to not be last.  LOL.  Way to set those sights high!

Depending on how my PT session goes on Friday, I'm planning to do my first mini mini triathlon on Saturday - 1/4 mile swim, 5 miles on the bike, 1 mile on the treadmill.  I know that's lame, but I have to take it easy with my injuries.  I'm not doing myself any favors if I push myself and end up on the couch again.  Also, if I am in pain, and I can't do those lenghts, I'll do even less.

I know I technically just started my training today, but I'm loving it!

Another update on me :)

I started feeling really weak and tired on Monday.  I ended up staying home all day.  Monday night, I slept almost 12 hours, but I was still so tired and weak.  I dozed off for a second while driving to work, so I turned around and came back and just rested all day.  I napped for several hours, and I still felt the same, so I called my MD's office.  They had me come in, and the latest diagnosis is post viral asthmatic bronchitis, for which they prescribed me prednisone.

Prednisone has many wonderful side effects including:  increased appetite, weight gain and bloating.  Perfect!  :)  Good thing, because the weight was just falling off me too quickly.  I needed something to slow it down a bit more.  LOL.

I will be on the Prednisone for 9 days, and I'm just going to do what I can in the mean time.   I will continue to avoid sodium as much as possible, and I'll stay well hydrated.  I'm not overly worried about the increased appetite, because when I eat, I get full pretty quickly.

I went for PT today, and she gave me a pretty good workout - not calorie wise, but healing wise.  I'm sore.  She asked me not to work out if at all possible.  She wants to know if the activity we did today is hurting me or not, and if I work out today, she won't know which to blame.  Seeing as though I'm still sick, and it's best, I agreed, but I *really* can't wait to start working out.  I feel like I'm sitting on my hands for this competition.

Also, I decided I'm going to do my own mini triathlon each week until I compete.  I'll start off just going whatever distance I can, but working my way up to my competition length and beyond.  That way, by the time I do the official triathlon, I should be all set.  I really want to take my first try at a tri this Saturday, but it all depends on my health.

I found out another friend of mine is training for a sprint triatlon this year, so I'm excited about that.  She's on the west coast, so we won't be doing one together, but it will be fun to see how her training goes.  Of course, she's a marathon runner, so this will be a very different journey for her than it will be for me.  :)

If you have the physical ability to exercise, please do.  It's really frustrating to be benched when you really want to get your body moving! 

Biggest Loser Recap

**Spoiler Alert**

Jim Elliot, a missionary, once said, "He is no fool to give what he cannot keep, to gain that which he cannot lose."  Well, I don't think he was thinking of reality TV at the time, but I laughed when thinking of the parallel between his quote and the read team's strategy last night.  Basically, Elliot was talking philosophically about giving your life for God, and gaining much greater rewards in heaven.  The same principle can apply to other things in life too, though.  For example, we can give up money to people in need, which inevitably we cannot keep, in exhange for blessings on earth which we cannot lose.

Last night, the red team did just the opposite.  They gave up the opportunity to lose weight at the ranch, making the program work for them, in exchange for a strategy to try and win the game.  The red team won immunity early on in the program, which meant that no matter what happened on the scale that week, they were safe.  The woman in the duo was on film saying she was planning to sandbag her results this week, hoping for a small loss since this week didn't count, and then a big loss next week.

When you have been given a very small window of time to lose weight on the biggest loser ranch, how can you possibly do anything other than your best?  You never know how much time you have left with the trainers and the doctors and the nutritionists.  Every day is a gift, and the longer you are there, the better tools you will have to support long term changes in your life.  The odds are, they aren't going to win the competition (that which they cannot keep), so they should really make each moment count by giving it their all, learning all they can, and using this window they have to shed the lbs that they can (that which they cannot lose).  You can take the ranch, and the personal trainer away, and you can take having the opportunity to work on your weight loss full time, and the accountability that comes along with it - those things are short term.  You cannot take the knowledge away, you cannot take the principles you learn away, and every moment in that window is a gift.  To blow it is utter foolishness, and if contestants use immunity as an excuse to slack off, the show should no longer offer it.  What's more important?  Your health or 250k? 

They even showed the red team that they will lose 3 Million dollars over the course of their life if they stay obese...and moments later, they chose a long shot at 250k over 3MM of a sure thing?  Clearly, an absurd choice and strategy.

Also, I watched the previews for next week, and they show that only one team member can weigh in next week for the weight to count in the contest.  The woman from the red team actually gained a lb this week, and next week, the previews strongly suggested that she only lost 1 lb, which must put her below the yellow line, and most likely she'll be sent home.  Bad choice, red. 

The thing is, the fat person I've been for so long was listening to her argument about sandbagging, and I thought to myself - this is just an excuse.  She had a HUGE loss the first week, and she just doesn't feel like doing what she needs to do.  She's a fat person, and fat people don't change in one week - not for 250k, not for their health, and not even in front of a national tv audience.   These things take time, and she reverted back to her overweight ways.

At least, I hope this is a lesson to the show and to the other contestants.  At best, I hope it's something I remember.  Giving up a momentary pleasure (bad food) for a lifetime of health, is worth it.  Going to the gym instead of the movies is worth it.  I can't let myself reason my way out of making healthy choices, because I only hurt myself.

Good luck all - let me know what you thought of the episode!!

Week 1 Recap

I was down 6 lbs from last week.  Not weighing myself each day, truly made this one of the longest weeks ever!  I'm going to try to do the same this week.  I weighed myself 3 times this am, I was down 6 twice and down 8 once, so I took the 8 as a fluke, which is probably the same thing that happened Sunday AM.

Some people have asked me if I have an unfair advantage to this competition because I had the lap band, and especially because I just got a fill.  I don't think so at all.  If I had *just* gotten the lap band, that would be one thing, but I've had it for nearly 2.5 years, and my body has adjusted to living off of a very low calorie amount, so no, I don't think I have an advantage at all.  If, for some reason, getting a fill had prompted my body to start shedding lbs, I would have adjusted my goal accordingly, but that has clearly not happened.

I pulled my nutrition report for the week, and I averaged 698 calories per day and 18 grams of fat.  Right after the holidays, and not making great decisions, and being up 9 new lbs - I dropped to 698 calories per day, and still only lost 6 lbs.

If any of my fellow competitors average the same amount of calories per day, I can only assume they would have had at least a 6 lb loss, if not much more.  Hence, I don't see an unfair advantage, but let me know what you think.  :)  I don't want to spoil the competition for anyone.  I don't care about winning - I just enjoy the group effort to do something positive!

So, no huge week one loss for me.  I would be laughed off the Biggest Loser ranch with a number like that, but in the real world, 6 lbs in one week is a perfectly respectable week one.  For me, it seems low because I've always had really big week one losses, but I'm really okay with it. 

I'm hoping that week 2 will involve a LOT more exercise for me, if I'm feeling well enough.  It may or may not help me to have a better loss, but it will make my body feel better.  When I work out, even if I don't see a change on the scale right away, I do see a change in my clothes, my energy level, my self esteem and my ambition to keep trying harder and harder to get those lbs off!

I wish luck to my competitors.  Alison will be posting the totals for week one later today.  Thank goodness that none of us can get kicked out of the competition for low numbers!  ;-)

Are there calories in eye candy?

LOL - Jillian Michael's is in GOOD shape!!

I post this picture, however, because this is what we call an "after" pic!!  What I saw today on Ellen, was Jillian's before pic.  Did you know she had one?  I didn't!

Apparently, when Jillian was younger, she weight 175 lbs.  I saw pictures of her quite overweight in her teen years.  Now, to my fellow competitors, I know that 175 is chump change to us, but to a high school girl, it's the equivalent of being much larger as an adult.

I had no idea there was ever a time when Jillian wasn't in the picture perfect shape she is in now, but I like knowing that she's familiar with the struggle that she helps the contestants with.  That makes a big difference to me.

Jillian was on Ellen and Bob was on Bonnie Hunt this morning.  Bob said he was disgusted when they had the contestants do the public weigh ins at home before coming to the ranch.  He thought it was really tacky, but when he asked the contestants about it, they said it was actually a freeing experience to them.  There's just more people to remind them of what they are fighting for, when they eventually go home.  I can see that.

He also said he thought the bike challenge on the first day was extreme.  He and Jillian never would have started them off doing all that, but they don't have a say in the challenges.  Lately, I've heard both trainers speak out against some of the most extreme components of the show, and it actually makes me like them a lot more. 

Tales from the scale

Out of habit, I weighed myself on Saturday night when I went into the bathroom.  Oops.  It wasn't good news.  Since it was night time, I had to weigh myself again in the AM, and the scale had me between a 6 and 8 lb loss.  I know that's good for 5 days, but considering when I weighed in on Tuesday, I was extremely bloated, up 9 lbs over the week or so before, the fact I just got a fill, and I've been averaging 500-800 calories/day all week after not being good over the holidays, I was really hoping for a big loss this week.

Since I already weighed myself yesterday, and since the number was fluctuating, I weighed myself today, and the scale said I was down 5 lbs.  That's a bit annoying.  I know I haven't really been able to work out since I've been sick, but I've been SO strict with my food consumption, it's just a little discouraging.

I know I've had more sodium than I like to, since I've been living off of soups lately, and I think that's part of the problem, but I also think that somehow, since I lost so much weight so quickly, and then I lost and regained 30 or so lbs off and on, over and over this past year, my body just doesn't function the way it used to.  I don't lose weight the way I used to at all.  I know that happens as we get older, but I can't imagine I'd have that much of a difference from just getting one year older. 

This past year, I've tried losing weight averaging 700, 1000, 1200 and even 1500 calories per day, and I really don't have much luck at any point, which is why I didn't think getting a fill would be my great salvation.   The times I ate very low calories weren't any better than the times I ate double. 

I do love having a fill, because I get full very quickly, so at least it's much easier to avoid temptation, and I probably couldn't overeat if I wanted too, at least without difficulty, so I'm glad I got it, but I really haven't seen any benefit from it yet.  In fact, I think the fact that I couldn't eat normal foods this past week was a detriment, since I ended up eating soups and other softer foods that weren't as good for me. 

At this point, it's probably not realistic for me to lose 60 lbs by my first triathlon as I had hoped, but I can probably plan to lose 2lbs/week, if I work really hard.  It's not very exciting, and it sounds pathetic when you watch the BL weigh ins every week.  It's not going to help me to win my competition, but it will get me to my goal weight (or at least pretty close to it) by 8/19/10 - TJ's predicted goal date for me.  ;-)

I've thought about meeting with a nutritionist, but I know they'll say that a person really shouldn't lose more than 1-2 lbs/week.  I know that, but I think at first, if you have a big chunk of weight to lose, as I do, it's very common and perfectly acceptable to have much bigger losses when you are first starting out.  I guess that's the key for me - I'm not starting out.  I've been actively trying to lose this weight for 2.5 years now, and my body is used to whatever I have to throw at it.

I didn't gain 40 lbs last year because I ate a ton of food.  I gained 20 or so while trying to follow weight watchers, and I gained 10 or so from not always making the right food choices, or using my lap band tool appropriately, and the other 10 just came back of it's own accord it seemed.

I hope that with being able to work out more and more this week, I'll be able to jump start my metabolism, but odds are, this is just going to be an uphill battle for me.

On another note, for those of you who have read Phatband all along, you may recall that when I tried to jump start my weight loss a few months ago, by following the liquid diet program, I ended up having a lot of phantom gallbladder pain, where my gallbladder had been removed this past year.  I did some research, and I learned that often, the gallbladder is removed, but the bile duct is not, so you can feel the same or a similar pain post op.  For some reason, I think it was the drastic change in the foods I was consuming that brought it on because that was the only time it happened to me.

I was worried it would happen again since I had to go on the liquid diet after my fill.  I was doing okay until yesterday afternoon.  The feeling of a sharp pain in my upper abdomen returned.  I took some tylenol and put a heating pad on it, so it took the edge off a bit, but I felt really sick to my stomach most of the day.  It wasn't quite as bad as it was the last time, and I'm hoping the feeling won't return.

As you can read, I'm full of good news this morning.  ;-)  The important thing to remember is that I can only do what I can do.  If I'm eating healthy foods, limiting quantities, journaling my food intake, not eating at night, limiting my sodium, limiting carbs that make me bloated, working out vigorously (when I can) and surrounding myself with people and activities that promote health and wellness, that's all I can do.  I will either lose the weight or I won't....but I'm hoping I do.  :)

Cooking up a storm!

My herb roasted chicken and vegetables came out very well, if I do say so myself.  I took a picture before cooking it, but not after for some reason.  Even raw it looked pretty.  :)

I made a soup with all of the leftovers, and the soup was YUMMY. 

I also made some chili today.  I used ground bison, which is always grass fed and lean.  I started it off by sauteing onions with shallots, and then diced carrots and leeks, folding the bison into the carmelized vegetables, and then adding in the tomato sauce, chili powder, tobasco and other spices and 3 different kinds of beans.  It has a nice kick to it, and it's a very well balanced meal.

I absolutely love cooking healthy recipes.  It's very fun and satisfying!

Wicked Good

I can't have soft bread, so I was looking for a flat bread to have with tuna or hummus.  I found the Garlic and Parsley Flatbread by Wheat Thins at the grocery store today.  For lunch, I had 3 of them with some garlic hummus and tabouli.  It was delicious!  The flatbread is packed with flavor, and only 60 calories per serving (2).  Give it a try, and let me know what you think!

Meal Plan

For breakfast and lunch this next week, I'm planning on having yogurt, sugar free carnation instant breakfast, cereal and leftovers.  My daily dinner plan is below (all meats are free range, grass fed):

Saturday:  Herb roasted chicken with roasted sweet potatoes, onions, carrots, parsnips and white potatoes

Sunday:  Turkey and 3 bean chili

Monday:  Vegetable chicken soup

Tuesday:  Leftovers from Sat - Mon

Wednesday:  Orzo pasta with basil, parmesan, asiago and chicken sausage

Thursday: Turkey tacos!

Friday:  Taco salad (with left overs)

Update on Moi!

As you can see, 4+ days into my diet, I am officially skinny!  LOL!

I *still* have not weighed myself.  I'm not sure if you fully understand the gravity of that statement.  I weigh myself religiously, to the point of OCD behavior.  Every time I see a scale, I weigh myself.  If I go to my upstairs bathroom with the handy scale in it, I weigh myself - even if I have already weighed myself 4 other times that day.  It started out as an accountability measure, and then it just became a crazy habit.

I know I gained a lot of weight this past year, but I assure you, had I not weighed myself constantly, I would have gained twice what I did.  I gain weight MUCH faster than I lose it, so if it took me a year to lose 160 lbs, I could gain it back in 6 months easy if I'm not careful.

I thought about weighing myself this morning.  My reasoning was that I'm worried I'm not losing weight because I haven't been able to exercise much, and I've had so much soup this week because that's all I can eat, and it's loaded with sodium, so I may have been trying really hard all week only to find out the things I'm doing aren't working...and if that's the case, I'd rather know now than on Tuesday when I have to report it!

I talked myself out of it, though.  There's really nothing else I could be doing, so I just have to hope that some of this is working.  I can't feel a difference in my clothes, and although Darcy said she can see a difference in my face, I cannot.  I think my face looks very bloated from being ill, and I have no idea what she's seeing.

My fill is still in full affect.  I haven't been able to eat regular foods yet.  I'm still on soups and mushies.  Today, we are having Alison over for Christmas and I'm making a chicken with root vegetables.  The chicken is free range, grass fed, so it should be plenty moist.  I'm going to make a fat free gravy, so I think that will help it go down, as long as I have teeny tiny bites.  I'll just use a little butter spray on the root vegetables, and I'm sure they'll be fine, because they are all mushy in consistency once cooked.

I tried to have a dropped egg on toast for breakfast this morning, but no such luck.  Eggs and bread are things that most lap band patients have trouble with.  Even I have had trouble with some eggs before, and certainly some kinds of break.  Toast is usually fine for me, though, as are wet eggs, but we're not there yet, and I'm fine with that.  I'm loving the restriction I'm having.  It's more than ever. 

I'm hoping to go for a swim today.  I didn't make it yesterday, as I was completely wiped out after work.  3 full days until I can finally weigh in.  I don't think I've ever had a slower week in my life.

How are the rest of you doing??

Yummy winter meal

Last night, Darcy called me as she was sitting in Friday night traffic in the snow storm, and I told her I had just the thing to cheer her up for dinner!  I made her grilled cheese with tomato soup.  If you use the low fat, store brand wheat or whole grain, you can usually find something in the neighborhood of 70 calories for 2 slices.  That with one piece of cheese is a 130 calorie sandwich with a side of soup for one serving at 90 calories.  A heart warming dinnner for only 220 calories!  To make the grilled cheese low fat, just use pam for the pan, and a little butter spray on the bread and you will have crispy, toasted goodness in no time!

Lighter tuna salad

Here's a quick healthy tip - light tuna in water can be a healthy, protein packed lunch.  Rather than moistening the tuna with lots of low fat mayo, just use a little mayo and pour in some pickle juice.  It will moisten the tuna nicely, while giving it a low fat kick!