Tuesday, August 16, 2011

Weight Watchers Points Plus Program

Hey ya'll.  Long time no writeroonie. 

I'm happy to say that I joined Weight Watchers almost 2 weeks ago, and have already lost 7 pounds!  I don't know why ... maybe it's all the summer produce .... big fat tomatoes, fresh corn on the cob, crisp green beans, plump cherries and juicy peaches ... but it seems a lot easier this time.

Another thing in my favor?  Everyone I know is trying to lose weight too!  All my co-workers are trying hard to eat healthier ... all my friends are on Weight Watchers with me ... and my hubbers is trying hard right along with me.  Christina and Dylan and Madison joined a family gym and are getting healthy too.  Heath and Annie practice healthy eating, and Eddie plugs along at going to the gym and maintaining his wonderful weight loss success from several years ago.

So I tell ya ... how can I not succeed now! 

I have to admit the first few days of portion control were hard.  But now that Weight Watchers doesn't assign points to fruits and vegetables, it made it much easier to get over that hump. 

I'm looking forward to being in control and posting some real progress!

Sunday, June 5, 2011

5 Months!

Wowzee, I just checked my blog and realized it's been 5 months since I've written. 

Some good things have been happening, though.  The art class is going great.  I entered my second painting into a show and it got accepted.  Didn't sell, but it got on the wall, and alot of people came on opening night.  it was a lot of fun.  The show  was called, "Feast for the eyes" and my painting was of Madimoo looking through a cake dish at some cupcakes.  See below:

I just finished another painting of Madimoo that I am going to enter into the "Liberty" show and I'm going to entitle the picture "Freedom of Expression."   The show begins July 1 and runs through the 31st.  Say a prayer that it will be accepted into the show! 



We went on a great vacation to Newport, Rhode Island; Cape Cod, Massachussetts; and Old Saybrook, Connecticut.  I'll post about that with some pictures next.

I also started a new job!  Loving it so far.

I've also been living a little more simply (cooking more, painted my front door instead of buying a new one, put my own new mailbox up instead of paying someone to do it, etc.), and giving more to charity. 

So those were all things on my to do list in January.

Now .... I know what you thinking ......the other thing on the list .... weight loss

Oh man.  What can I say?  The scale needed dusting this morning.  Need I say more?

Friday, January 28, 2011

Update

Photo of chicken egg being fried in a panImage via Wikipedia
It hasn't been a week yet, and I've lost 5 pounds.  I'm pretty psyched.  The 400 calorie meals are working out pretty good.  This morning I had a very satisfying breakfast of:
1 fried egg (70)
one slice of double fiber wheat toast (100)
2 pieces of low sodium bacon (70)
1 cup of blackberries (70)
light butter (50)
hot tea

If it stops friggin snowing, I want to get 1/2 tuna salad on multi-grain (240); 1 cup of chicken nooodle soup (100) and 1/2 cafe classic salad (80) at Paneras for lunch.

Dinner will be a Healthy Choice frozen entree, salad, and an orange.

We were supposed to get snow showers.  Looks like a friggin blizzard to me.


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Tuesday, January 25, 2011

Update on Hubs

Main complications of persistent high blood pr...Image via Wikipedia
My sweetie pie went to the doctor yesterday.  He lost 5 pounds and his blood pressure was down to 110/70!  We were both ecstatic.  He wasn't counting calories.  I made meals for him at home, without added salt and used ingredients that had no added salt and low-sodium products (i.e., no salt added tomatoes, low-sodium chili seasoning, etc.).  He ate healthy stuff, yogurt, fruit, salad, baked chicken, low-salt chili, sandwiches on whole grain bread, steamed vegetables without added salt, and steamed rice. We did go out to dinner over the weekend, and he did get what he wanted, but it was pretty darn healthy -- grilled mahi mahi, mashed potatoes and grilled vegetables, and half a dinner roll.  And Sunday he ate more grilled fish, mashed potatoes, salad, and broccoli.

I'm finally getting into mental readiness for healthier living as well.  I've shared with you all before that I am definitely a stress eater.  While I was preparing all kinds of healthy things for Hubs, I was sneaking a doughnut here and there. But his good results, and being scared by recent events, I'm back on plan with the 400 calorie meals.

I've started the painting classes on Sundays, and they are really helping me with stress.  When I walked into that art class for the first time, I felt I had come home.  The smell of oil paints, paint thinner, and clay from the pottery class..... HEAVEN!    I completed a small, and simple, still life with a bowl of fruit, and will be working on a new project this week.  I definitely am feeling happier, and more balanced.   

This morning I started out with my two of my old friends ... skinny cinnamon dolce latte and an apple bran muffin.  I bought Healthy Choice entrees and fruit for lunches. 

I'll keep you posted.
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Wednesday, January 19, 2011

Hello Again

It's been a while.  We had a bit of a scare in our family.  Everything is okay, but because of it, we are making some lifestyle changes.  It seems life in your 50's is all about coming to grips with the fact that our bodies are betraying us, little by litte.  If we are to soldier on to a good, and healthy, old age, we can't continue in our old habits.  No more workaholic hours, cokes, coffee, french fries, and doughnuts.  No more evenings just watching TV. 

Things we all hear everyday, but it hits a little closer when someone you love ends up in a hospital with scary symptoms. 

Part of our lifestyle change is a low sodium diet.  This is harder than it sounds.  Sodium is EVERYWHERE.  I planned out our meals for the week, and I basically bought natural foods -- unprocessed frozen vegetables and fresh vegetables, lots of fruit, oatmeal, low-fat cheese, lite yogurt, fat-free milk, whole grain bread, chicken, hamburger, and fish.  I found myself spending an hour in the store just looking at the sodium content on labels.  The vending machine is a definite no-no because the sodium in that stuff is outrageous. 

A plus about eating a low-sodium diet is that it pretty much ensures that you are eating healthy stuff. 

I made some low-sodium chili with the low-sodium McCormick chili seasoning (I only used half a packet to cut down even more, and used no salt added tomatoes, corn, and beans -- it wasn't bad ya'll.  I also brought out some diet cookbooks and found a Weight Watcher's recipe for chicken pot pie, which we'll be having tonight.  I'll let you know how that turns out.


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Monday, January 10, 2011

3 pouds for the week

Not the best, but I'll take it.  Pretty good for not a whole lot of effort on my part. 

Sunday, January 9, 2011

Gonna Try Harder Today

It's Sunday, and I've lost 3 pounds this week.  I'm going to try to be extra good today and make that a 4 by tomorrow so that I can that total for the week.

Yesterday I had a sausage mcmuffin and and o.j. for breakfast.
Lunch was a very unhealthy bag of frito chips and hostess chocolate cupcakes.  (I know!  I know!)  But ... I was at work and I wasn't able to get to the microwaves -- they were blocked off. 
Dinner was grilled chicken and steak strips with red, green, and yellow peppers, and onions.  (my low carb meal for the day).

Today I've started out better with oatmeal, yogurt and fruit.
I have to go to work today, so I'm taking a peanut butter on rye, some fruit, and pretzels.
Dinner will be a salad.

I'll let you know what the scale reveals tomorrow!

Saturday, January 8, 2011

Lost 2 pounds

tagliati e rifiniti con la forchetta ricetta/r...Image via Wikipedia
I think the one good meal thing is working.  I woke up 2 pounds lighter this morning.  My menu changed last night from grilled cheese and soup to cheese ravioli with marina and 3 cocktail-size meatballs with unsweetened ice tea.  I think the grilled chicken ceasar salad at lunch did the trick!  We'll see how it works today.

I'm planning on having my low carb meal at dinner -- cobb salad at Mimi's.  Breakfast was sausage mcmuffin and o.j.  Lunch will be a healthy choice entree.

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Friday, January 7, 2011

One Meal at a Time

I am having a rough time getting in the wagon this time.  I think the wagon is just going to have to slow down and I'm going to have to climb in slowly ..... like starting with one meal a day being the right kind of meal.  And then working myself up to two good meals a day, and then eventually three.  Of course I'll aim for more than one right one, but I'm not going to beat myself up if I don't make it.  

Today I met that goal at lunch.  Met the girls for a birthday celebration today.  Had a grilled chicken ceasar salad and unsweetened tea.  I managed to leave the bread alone. 

I had a sausage mcmuffin, no egg, for breakfast and some o.j.

Dinner will be chicken noodle soup, grilled cheese sandwich and some cut up oranges.

It's really cold out there ya'll.  Brrrrrr!

Thursday, January 6, 2011

Mac 'n' Cheese

Macaroni with cheeseImage via Wikipedia
We had a farewell luncheon for one of our co-workers today.  Here's what we ate:

Homemade Mac-n-Cheese
chicken and gravy
greens
potato salad
salad
rolls
sweet potato pie

You think the scale is going to go down tomorrow morning?

Me neither.
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Lost a Pound

Lost a pound.

Hopefully I'll never find it.

Tuesday, January 4, 2011

Getting it Right, or Not

Steak 'n ShakeImage via Wikipedia
I definitely did not get it right yesterday.   I didn't bring enough for lunch -- two lettuce wraps just didn't cut it.  And I forgot my snack.  I was starving when I got home.  Tried to tamp it immediately with some hummus and pea pods.  Yummeeeo.  (Not!) 

So I had every good intention of eating my chicken, broccoli, and brown rice for dinner, but then I got a call and joined my family at Steak 'n Shake. 

If you're wondering if there's anything good at Steak 'n Shake ..... well, yeah.  Just not good for you.  A steak hotdog, fries, and double chocolate shake later, I wallowed on out to the car and rushed home to watch "The Bachelor."  By the way, is the guy creepy or what?  This is the dude that left two girls at the altar on a previous season.  He's back after three years of getting to know himself and getting some therapy.  He's a changed man.

The first girl out of the limo tells him she has a message from America, and slaps his face.  And he says, "Thanks, I needed that.  I like you even more because of that.  I like your spice."   He then goes on to give her a rose later that evening.  What the !#$%&!  

But I digress. 

Today I'm doing alot of the 'heel of the hand to forehead" motions, and trying to get rid of the nightmarish visions of the scale this morning when it boinged a little higher than yesterday. 

But I will prevail.  I will conquer.  I will not give up.  Onward!
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Sunday, January 2, 2011

Lettuce, Tomatoes, Peapods -- Oh My!

Lettuce wrapsImage by toastforbrekkie via Flickr
In looking back at past blog posts it came to my attention that I am not a big fan of NO CARBS.  So I'm modifying my eating plan to reflect Phase 2 of the South Beach diet, whereby you can add some fruit and a couple of servings of wholegrains. 

In preparation of eating healthier this week, I went to the grocery store and spent $67.00 for the week.  Not bad, huh?  Here's the menu plan for tomorrow:

Brkfst:  Oatmeal, hardboiled egg, orange
Snack:  peapods and red pepper strips with hummus
Lunch:  2 wraps:  (rotisserie chicken, roasted red pepper, and feta cheese wrapped in romain lettuce leaves)
             grape tomatoes
Snack:  1oz cheddar cheese
             apple
Dinner:  more rotisserie chicken, brown rice, steamed broccoli and two cups salad
Snack:  sugar-free pudding

I'm ready for this. 

Really I am!

I swear.

Oh you just wait.

You'll see.
           
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