I feel successful today

Well the weather certainly can keep a person happy and energetic. I have been watching my portion size all week instead of limiting any type of food like carbs and I like that method so much better than the South Beach diet that I had previously been adhering to with such devotion. Today I analyzed my calories all day and it wasn't as tough as I thought it would be. It was time consuming, but not really that bad.

According to the calorie counter, I am supposed to have about 2000 calories a day. I have reduced it to 1800 because I want to lose some significant weight. I think that is a very good amount of calories anyway. Today I used 1428 calories. I may be having a piece of homemade cake which will add 300 calories, but that is still within my limit. I intend to eat it by 8:30 so I eat at least 2 hours before bed.

I had scheduled to walk today, but didn't because I got caught up in yard work for about 2 hours. I decided that the yard work was my exercise. Mostly because my foot hurt from all of the tedious cleaning up. So I wasn't really hungry at breakfast time so I skipped until lunch. I had 2 hot dogs with sauerkraut. I avoided the carbs by only eating one roll and the other dog I ate with a fork. I had 3 cookies after lunch to cure the sweet tooth.

Dinner was a home made meat sauce...I made up the recipe as I went along until it tasted good. I had linguine with it but the main part was the meat.

I am so energized from spending so much time outside with the kids. They helped clean the yard too. This afternoon I took them outside and we rode bikes for a bit. Not really enough exercise to call it a full workout, but at least I know I got moving a bit.

Tomorrow's exercise is up in the air. I have a few household items that may prevent it, but I will try to get it in somehow. I also have a dinner date with a friend tomorrow so I would love to exercise to feel better about eating out. We shall see!

A perfect day

What a great day!! The weather was beautiful and that really kept my spirits high. I was able to exercise this morning for about 7 minutes on the elliptical trainer before my foot started to hurt. So I decided to jump over to the treadmill for the rest of the time. I usually hate the treadmill, but since I had already started exercising I didn't want to stop and it was the easiest route to take since I was with the kids in the basement where the exercise stuff is.

I was so busy again this morning that I didn't eat my fruit until about 12:30. I have to get out of that habit because I know it is better to eat than starve myself. Had a quick snack around 3...2 slices of bologna. I managed to get 8 glasses of water in today even with a mid day food shopping event. The shopping trip was fine, but usually I get a soda when I go to Costco and I have decided that I don't need that either right now. So I missed my soda, but I will survive. I intend to drink another 4 cups by about 8:30 so I will have done at least 12 today. I hope to get more in tomorrow, but 12 is a good number. Beyond that, sometimes the running to the bathroom gets annoying!!

Dinner was nice. We had some chicken wings, a quarter piece of corn on the cob and about half a cup of baked beans. I treated myself again today and had a cupcake with the kids. I felt like since I missed a meal basically that I could have the treat. I had it early which always makes me feel better about having sweets.

I plan to exercise tomorrow because I am not sure that I will have time in the morning on Monday. If I do, then I will just have gotten an extra day in--better that way! This week I would like to begin the 4 day a week exercise routine. I technically start my week on Monday so the plan is to exercise Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, Friday and whatever I do on the weekend is a bonus. This week Monday is a maybe so I will do an extra on Wednesday if I can.

Looking to lose 2 pounds this week with all the water intake and increase in exercise. Wish me luck!

A relaxing but productive day

So the big weigh in was today and I lost a pound. I have now lost 14 pounds. My goal is to loose a total of 30 by mid November. I think that is reasonable since I am able to walk more now. It is really about the exercise for me. I seem to be able to manage my diet but just finding time to really get a good work out can be difficult for me.

I didn't get a chance to work out because I slept in a bit and when I woke up my foot was hurting--weather related. I will exercise tomorrow instead.

For some reason I didn't eat breakfast today. I was so busy because Friday is straighten up day around here. By the time I got showered it was almost lunch so I just ate at 11:30. I made some tuna and had it on a lo carb wrap with some lettuce and a slice of cheese. I had some chips later on for a snack. Dinner was quick and easy tonight. We grilled steak and I made some zucchini on the grill too after it was marinated in Italian dressing. We also had some leftover cauliflower.

My big treat of the day was a plain doughnut. Since I ate it before 8 I feel better about it. Every now and then you have to treat yourself--it is all about moderation for me.

Looking forward to the weekend. Whenever I lose a pound I always feel more energized and motivated to exercise more. I am hoping to add a 4th day of exercising to my routine.

I am also noticing a bit of change in how I feel in a few pairs of pants. Some of them look too big. Of course I have a long way to go, but even noticing it in 2 pair of pants makes me want to work harder!

Moving right along

Today was an early morning for the exercise routine. I dislike walking in the dark, but I can't find any other time to get out with the kids and work so at least I get some peace in the morning. It was cool walking this morning with the full moon still out. What a sight!

I had a bigger than normal breakfast today. I made a bagel with an egg and 2 pieces of bacon. It was a nice change. Lunch was my cottage cheese and fruit combo that I usually eat for breakfast. I had a banana during the day also. For dinner I made chicken fajitas using low carb wraps. I also made some mexican rice. I had a small portion of rice and one fajita so I was pleased with how full I was. I must have drank 15 glasses of water today. I don't know why but I just kept drinking. Now I just keep going to the bathroom. I am going to try to drink at least 12 glasses a day. I was drinking 10, but I want to increase that a bit because I read that you are supposed to drink a glass for every 10 pounds that you want to lose beyond the recommended 8 glasses a day.

I am not feeling my normal self this evening due to sinus and foot issues from the humidity. I hope once the storm passes tonight that I will feel a little more energized. I am posting early tonight since I am done eating and I like that I have decided to not snack tonight. I don't want to eat past 8 but sometimes I sneak my soda in then.

Overall, I am happy with today's progress. I hope that when I check the scale tomorrow I am happy also. I have been away from the scale this week and want to see if I have lost another pound-which is this weeks goal. Wish me luck!!!!

The mid week slump

I find Wednesdays a long day because it is usually a busy work day and I am bored with the week's menu already---don't feel up to playing with dinner, but am bored with the same old dinners. It is hard when I work and then cook dinner.

Had leftover piece of chicken for lunch and some crackers mid afternoon. I made spaghetti and meatballs for dinner. I only ate 1 meatball and had about 1.5 cups of pasta.

I couldn't walk today because my foot was really still swollen. I am going to walk Thursday morning like usual though.

Overall, a good food day and it flew by because I was so busy.

Hope tomorrow is more entertaining.

Back on track

I finally got back on the exercise train. I managed to walk about 30 minutes, but not as fast as usual. My foot felt good, but I am still congested so breathing was a little trouble. I still am glad that I at least got moving. It stunk to walk in the dark though. I have to wake up early on Tuesdays and Thursdays to walk since I leave for work at 7:30. My walking time is 5:50 to about 6:30. It is just becoming light--barely--when I get back home. It is peaceful though.

Breakfast was cottage cheese and cantaloupe. That is my new favorite breakfast. I had to attend a lunch meeting today, but they offered a variety of salads. I had a taco salad. I even had a few chips with it and skipped the cookies they offered for dessert. I drank a Sprite Zero, which is the same as the Coke Zero. Both, by the way are sweetened with artificial sweetener. That is the only time I use the stuff, but the calories from regular soda aren't worth it to me. I would rather have a bit of sweetener and a glass of diet. I use Splenda if I have any in the house. I don't drink anything in my tea though so usually my husband uses the Splenda in his tea.

Tonight was a special dinner. We went out because the Applebees near out house offered to donate 10% of the bill from dinner to our kids' schools. It is really an excuse not to cook. I had a bruschetta burger--about half--Becky ate some of the other half and she liked it too. It was a grilled burger on Tuscan bread topped with tomatoes and a basil pesto. I also had some spinach and artichoke dip---the whole family split that appetizer so none of us had too much.

My stomach is so full now, but I don't think I ate too much today. Tomorrow I am going to have to skip the walking because my foot is about as swollen as a football. The injury still gives me great discomfort on humid days---the changing barometer also gets ms. I think Wednesday is supposed to be humid so I am getting the forecast with my foot.

Today flew by....

So I had a decent food day even though I am still feeling under the weather. I had a banana for breakfast because we were on the run. At lunch I had 2 slices of pizza and a glass of Coke Zero. For dinner I made some BBQ chicken drumsticks which I had marinated over night in roasted garlic Italian dressing. I also made a cauliflower and string bean casserole. It includes those 2 veggies, some cheese and a bit of bacon. It is so easy to make because it is basically a one pot dish. Anyway, it was a delicious dinner and very healthy.

Exercising didn't happen again today because my throat is still sore and when I woke up to walk I couldn't breathe well. I've decided that even if I still have a sore throat and am congested tomorrow morning I am going to walk. Even if I walk slower or less than normal it is still getting my body moving.

Now I am going to collapse because all of my evening chores are complete. I wish I had saved my soda until tonight because I need something sweet, but I know I should only have a glass a day so I will wait until tomorrow. I think I might have a Halls and go to bed.

What a Sunday

I am definitely fighting illness. My body aches and I have a mild fever. I did do some exercise today though in the form of mowing. I like to mow because I can do it while thinking about other things since it is a pretty mindless task. Depending on how I feel, sometimes I don't use the self-propelling feature of the mower and just push it myself. I did that for about half the time today. It takes me about an hour and a half to mow and I figure it is better exercise than doing nothing. Unfortunately I slept horribly and feel ill so I didn't walk this morning.

As for meals, didn't eat much today. I had a couple of taquitos at lunch and some apple juice later in the afternoon. For dinner, we had pizza because I did not have one ounce of energy left. I imagine I might have some diet soda later on, but that is about it for me.

I actually kept myself busy with laundry and sorting through some hand me down clothes for the kids. I got to take a nap this afternoon for about 20 minutes and I don't think I could have made it through the day without that.

Hope to be feeling better in the morning. I am going to get up early to exercise. If I am not up to it I will simply try to walk later in the afternoon when the kids go to school.

I am hoping that this week will be a good weather week. I would like to add about 5 minutes to my morning walk so I can be up to 40 minutes total. Let's see if my foot will take that.

Saturday flew by

Today started early for a weekend and that can sometimes be bad for me in relation to how much I eat. Since we were so busy though it was a good food intake day. I had some fruit for breakfast and that hit the spot. For lunch I ate a sandwich. Then around 2 I had a cup of green chai tea. That is a great little sweet treat for me with very few calories--less than 100. We had grilled pork chops for dinner with half a piece of corn. We had fries again because we are trying to clean out the pantry and freezer items. That can be hard on dieting, but everything in moderation is a good motto. I drank all of my water today, but wasn't able to exercise. I will exercise tomorrow and Monday though so that will be alright. It is so hard to get all that I need to in with the kids around. Even when they play by themselves I try to catch up on laundry or running and errand if the hubby is home to watch the kids. Either way, I am trying to get the exercise in at least 3 times a week. I figure 3 times a week is better than nothing.

Hoping to exercise Sunday and eat well.

Friday's events

So I woke up in time to exercise before the kids woke up. I always feel so much better with a morning workout compared to the evening. I rarely get the chance in the evening and then I feel guilty. I alsmost feel a but hyper after my morning workout. I feel like I get so much more accomplished--especially on the days that I am home with the kids as compared to going to work.

As for my food intake yesterday, it was pretty decent. I got to eat my cottage cheese and fruit that I wanted Thursday but tried to eat coleslaw instead. The only problem I seem to have at home is drinking my water in the morning. I try to drink it all day, but I get busy with the kids and forget. I always drink it in the afternoon and evening, but that makes for more middle of the night wake up calls. (TMI?)

For lunch I ate half of a frozen individual pizza. That is probably too much salt, but it was left over from the kids and that is usually what happens when I am home with them--I eat their leftovers. At least the calorie intake was low.

After running around trying to get various errands and chores done and taking the kids to dance, we decided to go to dinner. I had fish and fries. So once again a bit of salt, but I didn't have dessert.

I had started with the South Beach diet in July and stuck to it until our August vacation. After that I decided to simply try to be moderate with the food intake. I am going to have to be more meticulous with the numbers and I think I may start that this week. I try to avoid the carbs at dinner and that really helps. For me, I seem to get hungry around 9:30 and that is bad because it is about 2 hours before bedtime. I try to eat for the last time by 9 so it doesn't sit.

Overall, I think it was a good day. I intend to weigh myself tomorrow. I usually do that a few times a week. To date, I have lost 13 pounds. I would like to lose a total of 30 by Thanksgiving. I think I can do it, although it is about 2 pounds a week. I know that seems like a lot, but I have a lot to lose so I think I can do it.

Thursday

Thursday started out poorly because I was too tired to get up to exercise. I think I am catching my kids' cold. Then I brought the wrong container of food to work for lunch--instead of cottage cheese with fruit I brought coleslaw--they both looked white from the outside and the containers were the same. So I ate my banana for breakfast and had to get a sandwich for lunch. It was turkey with lettuce and tomato. I didn't eat anything on the side because I figured the amount of salt in the sandwich was bad enough without a pickle or pretzel.

Dinner was alright, but we had to eat late due to Back to School night.

I hope that Friday is a better food/exercise day.