Monday, November 5, 2012

Day 1 - A Day of Meals (almost)


For my first day on a mission, I pre-packed my breakfast, lunch and afternoon snack to make it easier to avoid all those excuses and temptations of being too hungry, not having time, etc. Nothing is easier than  walking into my kitchen to find a meal ready to eat. It really helped me to have everything just waiting for me. I even stuck to my pre-planned schedule of breakfast, lunch, snack, dinner and dessert and drank lots of water. No snacking in between! On top of all that, I went for a run, "danced" with my son and did some yoga during naptime. No regrets, but boy am I sore today!




Breakfast

1 slice Whole Wheat Toast w/ 1 pat Butter
2 1/2 pieces of Turkey Bacon
Strawberries and Blackberries
2 C Water

(Note to Self: Blackberries are now out of season here and nothing like those tasty summer berries. Yuck.)





Lunch

Green Salad w/ Homemade Dressing (not pictured)
Chicken and Wild Rice "Soup" w/ Carrots
3 Pretzel Rods
1/3 Organic Gala Apple
1/2 Diet Coke 




Snack

Red and Black Grapes
1 slice Colby Jack Cheese
(I also had two unplanned additions: 3 pretzel rods and 1/2 a Diet Coke)



Dinner was black beans; roasted zucchini, peppers and asparagus; guacamole and chips; and a Diet Coke. My after dinner treat was 2 Mint Milano cookies and some Light Soymilk. Along with the extra pretzels mentioned earlier, the chips and Diet Coke w/ dinner weren't planned. Overall though, it was a great day. I had a nice variety of food, never felt too full or too hungry and ended up with a calorie intake of 1478. Nice :)

Sunday, November 4, 2012

Losing the Crazy Crummies and Saving my Sanity





I recently decided what I really wanted for Christmas this year. What I truly want is to not feel crummy anymore. I want to be healthy and strong and maybe even energetic once in awhile. It's been a rough year dealing with Addie's cancer, my husband's job loss and the long and so far unsuccessful process of trying to have another baby. It's all too easy as a wife and mom to put everyone else first until there's either no time or energy to do something good for me. For both my health and sanity, that has to change right now. I'm dedicating everyday, from now to Christmas, to working towards feeling, and if I'm extra lucky, looking better. After all our bad luck earlier this year, things are turning around. Addie is still hanging on, my husband is again employed, Ethan is happily enrolled in preschool, and it's past due for me to focus on helping myself. I'm following my own "diet" plan based on long term changes; ditching my terrible-for-me habits, like eating fast food every week and skipping fruits and veggies at most meals; all while not being so restrictive that it takes away from the pleasures of life. My own plan is a squashed hybrid that I call "French Portions". Awhile back, I read and was inspired by the book "French Women Don't Get Fat". I love the book and it's sequel, but needed a little more structure, so I put together a portion plan. It goes roughly something like this:


Fruit - 3 servings daily
Veggies - 4 servings
Calcium - 2 servings
Protein - 2 servings
Grain - 3 servings
Fat - 3 (1/2) servings

Plus plenty of water to drink.

Somedays I may have a little more or less of certain foods, but the general idea is to have a balanced diet and that it's ok to have a little more or less from one meal to the next as long as things balance out in the long run. It also has enough flexibility where I won't feel I've "failed" if my numbers aren't just right or I eat a certain food, plus I won't fall into panicked calculating mode if I get a last minute invite to eat with someone. I'm going to ditch my current bad habits of too much junk, not enough nutritious colorful foods and constant grazing. I'm planning my next day's foods ahead of time, and at the end of the day, I am putting my everything into fitday to get a calorie estimate. No big deal, but sort of a reference so I can tell I'm not eating way too much or too little. I would ultimately like to lose 20lbs, but my first goal is simply to eat "real food" more often than not, in the form of actual meals and snacks. Another one of my changes is following a meal schedule:

8am - Breakfast
11:30 - Lunch
3pm - Snack
6pm - Dinner
After dinner cookie.

While I don't have to eat at the precise scheduled time everyday, the idea is to get on a normal eating schedule where my body has time to register hunger and fullness, while of course, being properly nurtured. I feel like I'm sort of starting from scratch, so I'm allowing myself not to be perfect ... Just moving in the right direction.