Right vs. @#$%@#$^$%^!#$!!!!!!!

I WANT TACO BUENO!!!!

Getting a bit harder to stay on track. I'm surprised at how many times in the last week I've resisted things like Taco Bueno, because I sure would LOVE to give in!! I'm a cheese eater, I love a good/solid meatball in some traditional sauce, bring on the pizza and wings, give me a bag of Doritos and an order of Sonic cheddar peppers...UGH!

So, these things have been replaced with strawberries, bell peppers, cherry tomatoes, protein bars, and the like. Don't get me wrong, I like these things too, but I would much rather feast on ice cream and a "Saturday Special" (aka No. 1 at Chik-fil-a with honey mustard).

Terrible!!!

Awesome Snack

This is going to sound like a kid's snack, but I'm totally in.

Graham Cracker and Peanut Butter Sandwiches
Calories: 330

2 whole graham crackers (Honey Maid Low Fat)
2 tsp peanut butter (Smuckers Natural Peanut Butter - I like creamy)

Break the graham crackers in half, spread 1 tsp of peanut butter on two of the halves, make a sandwich with the other two halves and munch away. Tastes like a Nutter Butter!!

I did it...phew!!

This was 4th of July weekend. We always go to Cleburne for Heath's party and then spend time with the in-laws. LOTS of eating everywhere!! I mapped out what I could eat before I went to Heath's party and stuck to it like glue...you know, the stringy kind that eventually does what it's supposed to. It was SO hard not to snack while socializing. I didn't know what to do with my hands not holding anything. It was VERY difficult. I did notice that nobody else was snacking while socializing. I never noticed I was the only one before. Anyway...made it past this one.

Then came the in-laws. My father-in-law always cooks us a hearty breakfast of scrambled eggs, sausage, bacon, and biscuits. Well, I can't eat any of that if I want to watch my cholesterol, but I don't want to be rude. I ate some egg, and then asked if I could make toast. They are so nice to me. They had no problem with me making my own stuff. Again...phew!! Then came lunch after church at La Fiesta, and then grilling out at their house for dinner. Somehow, I made it without going over my calorie goal. :-) One problem is that I doubled what I should have eaten in cholesterol today. Hard to remember to watch it all, all of the time. I got so focused on calories I forgot the other. I'll get better though.

Recipe: Bell Pepper Pasta

Ok, so I made this up because this is what I had in the house. I do this frequently, and Kevin is always saying I should write down what I come up with, so here I go.



Bell Pepper Pasta
Calories: 450
Servings: 1 (only because there is no need for me to make more...Kevin isn't the bell pepper fan...feel free to multiply and divide)

2 oz whole grain spaghetti
1 TBS olive oil
1/4 cup orange bell pepper, chopped
1/4 cup fresh spinach leaves
3 sundried tomatoes, chopped
1 clove garlic, diced
1 TBS Parmesan, shredded
1 tsp dried red pepper (to spice it up if you want)
pinch of salt (or not if you're watching salt intake)

Cook pasta according to box directions.

Put olive oil in saute pan and heat on medium. Once heated, add bell pepper, spinach, sun dried tomatoes, and garlic. Saute until bell pepper is tender. After pasta is cooked and drained, put it in a bowl. Top with bell pepper mixture, Parmesan cheese, red pepper (if you chose), and salt (if you chose). Toss and enjoy.

I actually made this yesterday too. You'll notice the picture doesn't have spinach...today I was out :-)

FINALLY...I'm full :-)

Here's what I figure. For years I've been listening to the Weight Watchers people save their points until the weekend so they can get some neat treat to reward their efforts. I decided (rationalized) that because I hadn't eaten enough calories all week that I needed to catch up last night...YEA!!! The shrimp fajitas were delightful, as was the multicolored sherbet that tasted like a ball of "Now and Laters" and turned my tongue green, purple and blue.

So...I gained 1.5 pounds...so what :-) Total loss for the week was 5 pounds. Not too shabby. I hope I don't totally blow it tonight at the 4th of July party...lol!

I think I'm going to start posting good, light recipes. Stay tuned...

Not Eating Enough

Interestingly, I'm not eating enough. I try to cut back, and well, success...but...I'm not eating enough. Except for Wednesday, I've not been able to get up to 1600 calories. I even had a fat free chocolate ice cream yesterday. So, off the the store to get more food.

According to my tracking site, I'm also eating way too much protein, in comparison to all the other stuff. Going to try more whole grain stuff. I'm sure bread will add the "missing calories" :-)

Weight lost: 6.5 lbs
Most filling foods:
-2% Milk (which I'm switching out for fat free - growing up my brother and I called this "water milk" - can't wait)
-plain hummus and fat free triscuits
-salmon
Favorite exercise:
Biking - Fortunately, for the past several days (and for several more to come) hurricane Alex has given us some rain and cooler weather. I have had to go to the gym for riding for several weeks now, but I'm back outside for this week...YEA!!

Out to Eat - Twice

I've been dabbling in the 1600 calroie plan this week. Interestingly, I went out to eat twice yesterday and was able to keep it at 1700. At Chili's when I cut my hamburger in half and asked for a to-go box, the server laughed and said, "Really?" I said, "Yeah, I'm watching my calories." Who says that kind of stuff?? Crazy people say that kind of stuff!! Anyway, I've lost two pounds, which would be great if I hadn't done that a million times before. The first two are nuthin'. It's all the middle stuff that starts chapin' my hide.

In the past when I've "dieted" I struggle the most in the middle of the day. I can eat the same thing for dinner as I do for lunch, but for some reason I start squirming around 2:30, 3:00. After dinner, I'm fine and can piddle about for the rest of the evening, no worries.

Ok, off to set a real plan in motion. Let's see how 1600 calories a day plays out for real.