So Excited!

I've been wanting to get moving with some exercise but really don't enjoy the gym and I'm not in love with any of the videos I have at home.  Years ago when my twins were babies I had an exercise video that I loved and was so much fun, but it got lost somewhere in all the moves we have made since then.  I couldn't remember the name of the video and I have been doing random searches online for months now.  Well, this morning I finally found it!

So I went ahead and ordered it from Amazon.  I had to pay over $20 which was a little discouraging since I originally paid $5 brand new in 2004.  But I am getting my video and I can't wait to start working out!  I was reading my Fitness magazine last night and I cam across an article that said people who sleep in in the morning are overall more tired than those who wake up an hour early and exercise.  So, I have been fighting morning exercise for years, I am going to give in and try it out once my video comes!  YAY!!!!!!!!!!!

Food Diary 3/24- 3/30

Saturday:
BREAKFAST- 1 slice Sara Lee Delightful Multi-grain Bread, 1 egg, 3 slices turkey bacon, 1tbsp peanut butter
LUNCH- turkey and provolone sandwich on Delightful bread with mayo
DINNER- my buffalo chicken blue cheese salad
SNACK- carrots with low fat dressing, pineapple cake, activia light yogurt

cal- 1,242  carbs- 114  fat- 67  protein- 66  fiber- 19


Sunday:
BREAKFAST-  Betteroats maple streusel flavor oatmeal with flax
LUNCH-  food lion whole wheat bread 2 slices, 1 tbsp peanut butter
DINNER- 1 ball park frank on a Martin's brand potato hot dog roll, 2 cheese bagel bites, 3 mini chocolate chip cookies
SNACK- 1 can regular sprite


cal- 1,075  carbs- 155  fat- 39  protein- 27  fiber- 11


Monday:
BREAKFAST-  Betteroats maple streusel oatmeal with flax
LUNCH- buffalo chicken blue cheese salad
DINNER- 1/2 cup egg substitute, 1 turkey sausage patty, 2 waffles no syrup
SNACK-  potato salad, activia light yogurt, sour cream and onion potato chips


cal- 1,320  carbs- 135  fat- 69  protein- 55  fiber- 13


Tuesday:
BREAKFAST- Betteroats, 3 slices turkey bacon
LUNCH- Light shrimp alfredo frozen dinner, broccoli
DINNER- Dreamfield's pasta, 2 turkey meatballs, 1/2 italian turkey sausage link, crushed tomatoes
SNACK- carrots with light dressing, grapes, light cereal bar, baked potato chips, activia light yogurt


cal- 1,416  carbs- 178  fat- 42  protein- 64  fiber- 25


Wednesday:
BREAKFAST- egg substitute, low fat cream cheese, turkey bacon, 1 slice delightful bread
LUNCH- light chicken florentine alfredo frozen dinner, broccoli
DINNER- homemade turkey meatloaf, peas, scalloped potatoes made with skim milk and no butter
SNACK- carrots with light dressing, light cereal bar, baked potato chips, sugar free fat free pudding


cal- 1,282  carbs- 165  fat- 38  protein- 73  fiber- 19


Thursday:
BREAKFAST- delightful bread, turkey bacon, egg substitute, low fat cream cheese, pudding
LUNCH- meatloaf, broccoli
DINNER- stuffed salmon, lettuce with blue cheese dressing
SNACK- light cereal bar, carrots with light dressing, Special K fruit crisp bar, pudding


cal- 1,434  carbs- 122  fat- 66  protein- 84  fiber- 10


Friday:
BREAKFAST- egg substitute, turkey bacon, delightful bread, peanut butter
LUNCH- gyro, tortilla chips
DINNER- cheese pizza
SNACK- light cereal bar, 2 mini cupcakes, 1 large red velvet cupcake


cal- 2,629  carbs- 279  fat-130  protein- 89  fiber- 19




Today was a celebration at work and I knew I would eat badly.  I stayed under my calorie goal of 1,570 all week in order to save calories/points for today.  I also discovered that if I have singles in my wallet, I will give in to the 2:30 boredom at work and visit the snack machine.  I will have to stop carrying cash on me.  This week was ok, I prefer to not buy prepackaged foods but I knew it was going to be a very busy week with not much time to cook meals that would yield leftovers for lunches.  Next week will be better.


Weigh in this morning was 221 lb

Zaxby's Buffalo Blue Zalad

It is my absolute meal to eat out.  I love, love, love Zaxby's Buffalo Blue Zalad.  LOVE it!  And I have been missing it.  So I got it in my head that I could possible make a decent version at home.  Well, it turned out AWESOME!  And healthier.  Below is a pic of Zaxby's version.

I bought an artisan lettuce box at Aldi.  It included red and green tango as well as oak and gem artisan lettuce (pic below).

I cut up the lettuce and added some baby spinach and I already had in the fridge along with some grated carrots.  I added 2 grilled chicken breast tenderloins that had been soaking in buffalo chicken sauce.  I topped it with 2 tablespoons of low fat blue cheese crumbles and 2 tablespoons of Ken's Chunky Blue Cheese dressing.  I did NOT add the french fried onions that Zaxby's is famous for because I didn't want those carbs or calories.  I was worried that I would really miss them, but I didn't!

My salad was AMAZING!  I made one for my daughter too and she said she really couldn't tell the difference between mine and Zaxby's. Of course, theirs is probably the better tasting, but at least I don't have to continue missing out!

So what was the difference in nutrition info from their zalad to my salad?

Zaxby's- Cal- 780  Fat- 41  Carbs- 50  Protein- 49

Mine- Cal- 390  Fat- 20  Carbs- 8  Protein- 21

Pineapple Cake

1 box cake mix- I used yellow cake mix
1 can crushed pineapple (20 oz)


Mix pineapple, including the juice from the can, with the cake mix.  Bake according to directions on the box.  18 servings

Nutrition per serving:

cal- 137  carbs- 28  fat- 3  protein- 1  fiber- 1  sodium- 206

this week's food diary

I began really keeping track on Tuesday.

Tuesday:
BREAKFAST- turkey and provolone sandwich with mayo on oatmeal bread
LUNCH- boca burger no bun, broccoli
DINNER- beef stroganoff over yellow squash and 1/2 cup egg noodles
SNACK- grapes, low carb caramel nut chewy bar, activia light vanilla

cal- 1,197  carbs- 140  fat- 46  protein- 83  fiber- 25

Wednesday:
BREAKFAST- 1 egg, spinach and squash quiche
LUNCH- turkey meatballs, stroganoff sauce, broccoli
DINNER- turkey meatloaf, gravy, green beans, 1/2 cup mashed potatoes
SNACK- grapes, low carb chocolate coconut bar, raspberry fruit leather, pineapple cake (low fat), activia light vanilla

cal- 1,363  carbs- 148  fat- 59  protein- 69  fiber- 39

Thursday:
BREAKFAST- 1 egg, 3 slices turkey bacon, pineapple cake
LUNCH- meatloaf, broccoli, green beans, gravy
DINNER- WW pepperoni pizza
SNACK- grapes, carrots, fruit leather, coconut bar, light ranch dressing, pineapple cake

cal- 1,366  carbs- 186  fat- 47  protein- 64  fiber- 24

Friday:
BREAKFAST- turkey and provolone sandwich with mayo on low calorie whole grain bread
LUNCH- WW pepperoni pizza, salad, light ranch dressing
DINNER- chicken and creamy rice, corn
SNACK- coconut bar, carrots, grapes, pineapple cake

cal- 1.437  carbs- 199  fat- 43  protein- 82  fiber- 26



I discovered only after I bought it, that the WW pizza had more calories and carbs, and less fiber than the regular pizza I bought for my husband.  I will not make that mistake again.

I am down 6 lb from monday.  On monday I weighed in at 228, this morning I weighed in at 222.

Grrrrrrrrrr

So, I haven't been keeping up with the blog and I haven't been doing well at all.  I've still been trying to follow SW minus the rice and pasta, but I have GAINED weight.  I don't think that telling me to eat as much as I want is working.  Yes, I am eating the right foods, lots of veggies, fruits, and lean meats, but it just is not working for me.  I honestly think I need portion control.  I don't know what to do at this point.  I don't want to give up on SW, but I can't seem to make it work for me.  I wish there were meetings here.  I have been thinking of joining WW again just to have those meetings, but I'm not sure.  I am going to begin posting my meals again, but I think I will do a once weekly post with all my meals from the week.  Maybe that will help.  UGH!   I don't know.

Crustless Spinach, Zucchini, Bacon Quiche

I got creative in the kitchen last night because I needed something for my lunch today and I was short on time.  This is what I did.

What I used:
spinach
zucchini
shredded cheese
cream cheese (low fat)
eggs
turkey bacon

What I did:
I shredded the zucchini (it was a medium sized one) and squeezed all the water out.  Then I used about 3/4 of one of those frozen boxes of spinach (thawed of course) and squeezed the water out of it.  I added it to the zucchini and threw in a couple handfuls of shredded mexican 4 cheese blend.  I put about a half a block of cream cheese in the microwave for about 45 seconds to soften it up and added it to the bowl.  I then cracked 4 eggs over all that and cut up 4 slices of turkey bacon.  I mixed it all together really well and put it in a 9' pie plate.  I baked it at 375 for 40 minutes.  It smelled sooooo good!  I cut it into quarters to make 4 servings.



I took this to work with me today for lunch along with a side of broccoli.  Let me tell you, it was soooo yummy!  The zucchini gave it such a good flavor, everything blended together so well!  I really thought I would be hungry all afternoon so I took lots of snacks with me, but it really filled me up and I ended up not needing the snacks!

I fed this recipe in to my myfitnesspal.com account and the stats are as follows for 1 serving:
Calories: 348
Fat: 7
Carbs: 27
Protein: 20
Fiber: 2
Sodium: 674

Improvising

Today I was at a loss as to what to eat for lunch.  I was hungry but not really feeling anything in the house.  So I improvised.  I made a pasta dish that was yummy and fit the plan (mostly).

I boiled 2 oz of Dreamfield's pasta (it is low carb!)  While the pasta cooked, I microwaved 1 slice of turkey bacon for 2 minutes so it would be nice and crispy.  Then I drained the pasta and tossed with 1 TBSP of I Can't Believe It's Not Butter.  I crumbled the bacon and added that and topped it with grated parmesan cheese.  I mixed it all up and boy was it YUMMY!  Kind of reminiscent of mac and cheese with the yumminess of bacon added in.  It would have been nice with some broccoli mixed in, but I didn't think of that until later.  Oops.  I'll make up for it at dinner.

Breakfast was an egg and a banana this morning.  Dinner will be White Castle Hamburger Pie with some modifications.  I only use half the cheese and topping that it calls for.  I also use low fat cheese and mayo. I will serve green beans on the side.  This is an old family favorite that I had forgotten all about.  I can't wait!  I will likely use any left over for some type of quiche or egg bake.

Great news!  I am back down to my starting weight!  So excited for that and can't wait to lose more :)

down 3

I've not been keeping a food diary.  I have just been concentrating on fruits and veggies and keeping away from starches and pasta or rice.  I did have some Dreamfield's brand pasta, but that is low carb.  I got on the scale this morning and I am down 3 lb from monday.  YAY!  I'm still not where I started from, but I'm getting there.  I've not been having the sweets cravings since I cut down on carbs.  I also cut out the fiber bars.  I realized that I don't need them.  I get enough fiber just from the fruits and vegetables I am eating, according to my fitness pal.  Plus, those bars are loaded with sugar, which just makes me crave more sugar.  I think for me, low carb is how it has to be.  I CAN follow low carb and still do SW.

Too funny that now that I am not trying to go vegetarian for a month, I am hardly eating meat.  Yesterday I didn't have any meat until dinner and then it was turkey.   Today it was the same, no meat until dinner.  Tonight I had beef though.  I'm feeling good.  The digestive problems seem to have gone away, YAY!

Breakfast:
apple
peanut butter

Snack:
sweet potato

Lunch:
whole wheat tortilla
fat free refried beans
skim mozzarella cheese

Dinner:
beef stroganoff
Dreamfield's low carb pasta

Snack:
cream cheese clouds made with low fat cream cheese and splenda


I entered my food into My Fitness Pal and came in just under my calorie goal for the day :)

3/4/2012

Today was a good day.  I was mostly good :P

Breakfast:
cinnamon roll

Lunch:
crab cakes
carrots
onion dip

Snack:
string cheese

Dinner:
turkey meatloaf
corn
mashed potatoes (1 small spoon)
zucchini, tomatoes

3/3/2012

It feel so good to be able to eat meat again!  I'm also working on lower carb eating again so I will feel fuller longer.  Today has gone pretty well.  I did have a weak moment this morning, though, and ate a brownie.

Breakfast:
sw pancakes

Snack:
brownie

Lunch:
whole wheat tortilla topped with smashed pintos and cheese, picante sauce

Dinner:
chicken breast
peas
broccoli with cheese

Snack:
grapes

Not 100% SW, I didn't have 1/3 of my food in super free foods, but I definitely did much better than the free for all I had earlier this week.

Back to the Basics

I am starving!  I am so hungry all day, every day that my stomach growls loudly on a near constant basis. People at work are staring at me and my husband has asked if I feel ok.  This is happening no matter how much I am eating.  This whole vegetarian thing is not working for me at all.  I am giving in and my daughter has won the challenge.  I need meat.  Not just protein, because I was getting plenty even without the meat, but i need meat.  Tomorrow will be a new beginning and slimming world will be in full swing!

todays food:
Breakfast:
egg and cheese sandwich on pretzel roll

Snack:
fritos
fiber bar

Lunch:
garden salad with ff italian dressing

Snack:
oatmeal cream cookie

Dinner:
bacon cheese burger
fries
(I wasn't able to finish- I left almost half the burger and about 1/4 of the fries on the plate, it was HUGE servings though)

3/1/2012

Today was fine as far as no meat, but I caved at the potluck at work and had some brownies, chips, and dip.

Breakfast:
nothing, wasn't hungry

Snack:
strawberries

Lunch:
veggie lasagna rolls & broccoli
grapes
brownie
chips & dip

Dinner:
shrimp and rice  ( I am still allowed sea food)