So What...

For all the times I haven't eaten quite up to 1600 calories, I made up for it today :-) I really enjoyed the homemade pizza, and fried catfish today. OMG with the cholesterol though. I went a bit over on that. I thought I was doing myself a favor using turkey pepperoni, however this is not the case. I might as well have used the real deal. Anywho, a good eating day. I worked hard though. I woke up early rearranged furniture so I could vacuum and steam clean all the carpet in the house. That's 3 rooms, a hallway, and the living room, all before 2 when the steamer was due back at the store. Then grocery shopping...at two different places!! So, for that...I ate :-)

So, this process feels so slow. 11.5 lbs in 5 weeks has seemed like an eternity. Each week has it's own battles. Sometimes, the harder I try, the more frustrated I get with the whole thing. I can't imagine at this point, waiting until December to find out if it's working or not. That seems like so far away!! I'm sure this will all get easier, as I get into a routine with it, but it feels like a harder transition than I thought it was going to be. Staying organized with it all seems to help a lot. Keeping true to the daily menu, although difficult quite often, seems to be the trick to all of this.

Groceries are definitely more expensive!! I've almost doubled the price, having to make all the food. Now, we eat everything I make. We definitely eat out less, so I'm sure there is balance there somewhere. And the dishes!! I know I've mentioned this before, but it's still overwhelming. I can't run the dishwasher fast enough to keep up with what's in the sink!! GEEESH!!!

Huge Drop

I'm not sure what happened, but instead of having a "fight for my dignity" week, I've all of a sudden dropped 3 pounds more this week!! I'll take it!!! That brings my total weight loss to 11.5 lbs!! Not too shabby, and a delightful surprise.

Sweet and Sour Baked Chicken

This is from the American Heart Association cookbook. Surprisingly much like the regular stuff, and very easy to make. We ate it before I remembered to take a pic.

1 lb boneless, skinless chicken breasts
8 1/2 oz can pineapple chunks in their own juice
1/2 cup jellied cranberry sauce
2 TBS light brown sugar
2 TBS rice vinegar
2 TBS frozen orange juice concentrate
1 TBS dry sherry
1 tsp low-salt soy sauce
1/4 tsp ginger
2 TBS cornstarch
2 TBS water
1 medium green or red bell pepper, cut into thin strips
Brown Rice

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees

Discard all the visible fat from the chicken. Cut the chicken into 1/2 inch strips. Put the chicken in an 8 inch baking pan and set aside.

Drain the juice from the pineapple into a small saucepan. Set the pineapple chunks aside.

Put the saucepan over medium heat and shisk in the cranberry sauce, brown sugar, rice vinegar, orange juice concentrate, sherry, soy sauce, and ginger.

Put the corn starch in a cup. Add the water, stirring to dissolve. Whisk into the juice mixture.

Increase the heat to medium heat. Cook for 3-4 minutes, or until thickened, stirring occasionally.

Stir in the pineapple chunks. Pour over the chicken.

Bake covered for 35 minutes or until the chicken is no longer pink in the center. Add the bell pepper. Baste with the sauce and cook uncovered for 5 more minutes.

Serve over brown rice cooked according to package instructions.

Experiment or Rationalization???

I am tired of having so much trouble eating out. I have decided to "experiment" with something, that I've told Kevin might just be a rationalization. We'll see. Chili's was the target of my experiment. I looked up how many calories certain menu items had (margarita grilled chicken, guiltless chicken platter, chicken tacos, carribean chicken salad, etc) and found that all but the chicken tacos (1200 calories...WHAT?!?!?)were around 600 calories. This isn't that bad-ish. So, I went to Chilis for dinner last night, ordered the margarita grilled chicken, and didn't eat all the 1600 calories I was supposed to yesterday.

Now, the reason this could be a rationalization is because the sodium for that particular dish, and many others, is over 2000mg. That's about as high as I want to get in any given day...2000-2500. Trying to keep the blood pressure down. We'll see. I guess I would need to check my blood pressure afterward or the next morning or something to know for sure. I think I like the experiment, however I have really enjoyed eating at home. I do get a little fussy about cooking so much. Also, a change in my habits. SOOOO many dishes to clean all the time. I can't seem to keep my sinks empty. The second I get it cleaned up, it's time to cook again and mess it up.

Found a great stew recipe in the AHA cookbook, that really hit the spot for comfort food. I'll post that next. That was Sunday lunch yesterday :-)

First Month

Well, I have finally reached the end of the first month of all this (what I now call) crap. I have found that even through all my anger, frustration, disappointment, and deflation I have been able to lose 9.5 pounds. I have found that there is so much out there that I can eat than I thought, but it's such a change from where I was a month ago. That's the frustration part. The disappointing and deflating part comes when I try to eat out. And the anger comes in when I just want to give up and know that I can't. I've taken a break the past several days from exercise. I've needed to regroup mentally, as I'm still fighting food, and exercise still wears me out.

OH...I did have a success with exercise. For the first time since I started riding, which was in April, my knee didn't pop. Usually, when I get out of bed in the morning, the first step I take with my right leg results in a huge cracking sound. A friend/chiropractor advised me to just keep up what I'm doing and it would resolve itself. It's getting there...yeah! It didn't pop three mornings this week.

I read and bought the American Heart Association cook book yesterday. It has a nutritional breakdown of all the recipes. I'm going to try some stuff this week that includes turkey pepperoni, tortilla rolls, sweet and sour, and stew. It's going to be quite the eclectic week, but I think that's what I need. A little Tex-Mex, Chinese, country, and Italian.

Onward I go...

The Results of Plan #1

There are two sides to the coin this week. Did the plan work...yes. Did I have an emotional/mental fallout moment because all this change is hard and I don't like it...yes. I have lost 1/2 pound since last Friday, and it has been a mental exercise beyond my imagination. I enjoyed eating in over the weekend, because it took SO much pressure off making decisions at restaurants. Really, there are decisions at restaurants, because basically I should order the fish. That's the common denominator at each restaurant. Usually 500 calories or less any where. So that's a plus that I have figured that out, and I'm not as limited. BUT...it feels limited when I'm at a restaurant smelling all the other stuff.

Also, I'm used to eating out more. By last night I felt like I had cabin fever. I didn't want anymore steak or grilled chicken tacos. Both meals are very tasty, and there is nothing wrong with either, except my brain was itching to get out!! Old habits die hard! I feel this is a huge success though, because it's the first time we ate out for dinner since last Sunday. I had lunch catered 3 times this week, twice from Chilis and once from Red, Hot and Blue. I made modifications as needed, and struggled through lunch this week. That kinda messed with my head because then I would want to go out for dinner too.

Conclusion then is although it was a hard week to eat in and eat right, I feel like I learned a few things about myself.
1. I eat my way through situations that are overwhelming.

2. I can eat out, just very limited on what I can eat.

3. Eating in takes the pressure off of making decisions at restaurants.

4. Just because I make it at home doesn't mean the food is low in calories, sodium, fat, or cholesterol (the minestrone soup wasn't great for numbers, neither was the steak or tortillas).

New Discovery

This week has been an education on self awareness. When I get tired, I want to eat. When I get confused, I want to eat. When I get overwhelmed, I want to eat. Yesterday, I had everything I brought eaten by 4:30, and it was my 15 hour day. I worked until 9pm. I went over my calories by almost 400, which equals an entire extra meal by 4:30. All I really wanted was some down time to regroup and clear my head. I never got that moment, so instead I ate my way through it...lol. I fortunately only ate things that were "good for me" So, no Taco Bueno binges, or Marble Slab runs. Just the food I made. The only thing I didn't go over on yesterday was cholesterol. I guess I did something right...HA! Well, the food I made and some of the lunch that was brought in by a rep...Chili's salad with grilled chicken. Let's see if I eat my way through today...thbttttt!!