2010 off to a Rocky Start, but Getting Better

Well, it's been a rough go with collectors everytime I turn around. We're keeping our heads above water for now, but fortunately things are starting to look up. Hubby's EI claim was shut down as his last employer did not submit an ROE - we thought they would have since the pay was via ADP. Anyway, we have to go into town tomorrow and ensure it gets opened back up - grrr.

I start back to work in 2 weeks. I'm a little nervous about the timing of my cheques and ensuring all the bills are paid - thankfully, we have family that can help out with a loan while we catch up.

Right now, my daughter is working on a big project for school, so I'll be helping her with that. I mainly do the typing for her and make suggestions on how to organize her work. I think, as a young person, if she can get a handle on organizing her thoughts and material before trying to complete the finished project she'll be laughing when the really hard stuff gets here. I was telling her about the 30-40 page case studies that I did at university - shocking as she's still struggling with a 3-4 page write-up.

The rest of today, Sunday, will be spent going for a walk with the family. Baked beans and hot dogs for supper - not the healthiest supper, but I've been craving it for weeks and so put some beans on to soak last night. Also, must prepare flip charts and read up on meeting information for WW meetings this week.

Dinners for the week:

Sunday: baked beans and hot dogs

Monday: slow cooker beef chili (from WW Now & Later cookbook)

Tuesday: Roast chicken with carrots, potatoes, squash and cranberry sauce

Wednesday: Tex Mex taco salad (using left over chili)

Thursday: salmon, rice and green veggies

Friday: lamb chops, potatoes, parsnips and carrots

Saturday: chicken, roasted potatoes and turnip

Lunches - left-overs, tuna sandwiches, or stir-frys using veggies, left-over meat and/or vermicilli.

Breakfasts - mainly oatmeal with berries and milk. Other options are smoothies, eggs with veggies and cheese, or whole grain cereal with milk, depending on the mood.

And it goes on.

Not sure what's going on. I think I'm in a funk. Food is OK, except that I succumed to pizza today at lunch. And not just any pizza - Pizza Town donair pizza. Anyway, back on track this afternoon.

Been walking in the evenings with the dog and kids. The weather has been lovely. Tomorrow we will visit my mother-in-law. There's been someone sick since Christmas, so this is the first weekend it's safe to go. The monkeys are over-tired in general and a couple of nights early-to-bed will be good for them.

This week has been a difficult one emotionally. A lot going on and winds of change blowing in I believe. We have a friend that just took quite a large drop in pay and changed his career completely. Pros and Cons to everything, but he's happy with the change. I've been wondering for the past year if my problem is with my chosen career or my chosen job. I've tried to make the best of it but think self-sabotage sometimes happens in all areas of our lives. I moved frequently in my life - moving often for change and improvement. Or maybe it's just a mid-life crisis - or maybe I'm just tired.

Times like this - emotional ones - it's hard to focus on why you're eating. I'm grateful for my diet this week. It's filling and I don't have to think about it. But if you get down, or stressed or happy and turn to food, one of the things I do is use the Anchoring tool from Weight Watchers. Just stop and place your hand on your belly and ask,"Am I hungry for food?" If you're eating for comfort only, you may want to re-evaluate and do something different - like post a blog, take a walk or relax in the tub. Ahhhh...I never get to relax in the tub anymore. The lock is broken and someone always 'needs' me. Gotta get that lock fixed.

I hope everyone is doing well.

Tracker, Tracker on my Desk...

make my tracking the very BEST!

I'm a tracking machine. I had adjusted my pts this week to weight-loss mode, but so far have been using 6WPAs daily. To offset I'm going to plan my weekend to include filling foods and a high-protein breakfast each day. I'm going to try to make Sat & Sun each only use 2WPAs.

As far as the 3-month journal goes, which name do you like better: a 'magic' journal or a 'travelling' journal. OR, any other suggestions?

On the exercise commitments, only made 30+ mins on elliptical Wed night. Tuesday I can't remember what happened and last night was a meeting with my friend. She recently returned from a 6-day conference in Florida with Anthony Robinson, so lots of information was shared.

Hugs to all. Have a great weekend - I'll likely be popping in and out.

The Best Defense

Imagine my surprise yesterday when I walked into the lunch room at work and saw not one, but several boxes and bags of treats. From chocolate and cookies to pretzels and chocolate-covered caramel popcorn. Then what landed at lunch? Food from a cancelled meeting. Sandwiches, soups, sweats and a veggie tray.

I didn't do so well with the chocolate, had a bowl of leek soup, a half sandwich made with real chicken (not the processed stuff) and stuffed myself on the veggie tray. It could have been worse. The treats are still here today. What would you do?

Ahem...what would you do?

Jan 5/08 - Day 1 of a commitment to write it before you bite it.

Coffee with whole milk (1)
Oatmeal with blueberries, 2/3C soy drink and splenda (5)
Water and multivitamin
Coffee with whole milk (1)

Make pulic my commitments:

1. Track all foods eaten for this week
2. Cardio - 30 mins - 5x
3. Strength training - 2x
4. NO chocolate this week

It's 9:40am on Day 1 - So far, so good. I will be tracking in my handy-dandy WW 3-month journal this week and then hand the journal on to one of my members to track in next week. Talk about accountability!

So, what do you think about a rotating journal in meetings? Is this something you would do? We'll be marking the weekly weight-loss of the different members in the book - hopefully starting with me. Also, is it a good idea to start the book with me. My thoughts were: I wouldn't ask you to do it unless I was willing to do it myself. Plus, it provides a good template (I think). Thoughts and feedback on this are greatly appreciated.

Holiday Plan - 2008 version

My Holiday plan from last year helped and provided amazing results. I began a resistance training regime with Phit-n-Phat late November and focused on a lot of other things. I was in charge of Christmas dinner, which I found helpful. BUT...it's not the DAY that can cause problems, but the weeks beforehand and the week or so afterwards before we all crawl back to Weight Watchers or begin the latest in a long line of diets.

Like everyone else, I want to have fun throughout the holiday season. Food can be a big part of that. I don't plan on going into 2009 with extra pounds gained this month, though. So, I've developed another Holiday eating plan to be used to maintain my weight for December (and hopefully shed an inch or so in the process).

I'll use the same categories as last year for those interested in reading that one. I really did a copy and paste, then made my changes - and really, what works stays. Changes reflect the changes I've made this year.

Gatherings - Get a small plate and choose healthy options (i.e. 1 sandwich wedge, some veggies and fruit, limit of 1 small sweet). Why the sweet - because I'm not on a diet. You heard me - I'm a weight watcher but not on a diet. This is my life and we all need a sweet now and then or one of these parties we're gonna stuff sweets down our throat until we're sick of them - at least I would. Deprivation is not pretty. I strongly encourage my meeting members to use their weekly points allowance for indulgenges, and I usually relax for Saturday evenings. If you have multiple events during the week you may find the need to practice some restraint. Having a plan for the evening is always helpful.

Dinners - I load up on veggies before they're mashed, make cranberry sauce with splenda and used it on my 3-4 oz of turkey breast instead of gravy. If I really want some gravy, I'll be sure to ensure it is made with drippings instead of fat - This can be accomplished by letting it cool for while - there will be a nice separation. And who eats desert right after the meal, so when it's time, again limit to 1 small piece of whatever looks the best - if you can come up with a low point option, go for it. Just add 'healthy' in your google search.

Fast food during busy days decorating and shopping - Subway, McDonalds grilled chicken salads, Tim Horton's broth soup, Chinese with steamed rice vs. fried, grilled fish instead of fried. There are actually many options for eating on the run. An of course, nothing beats packing a cooler. This simple lunch-box is the best friend of someone watching their waist-line.

Quick meals at home - Stock up on some easy supplies, like pre-cooked chicken breasts, low fat meatballs, shrimp and frozen veggies for stir-fry's. Take an hour and make some frozen dinners that can be easily grabbed - I use the dinners in the frozen food section as guidelines (rice, shrimp, veggies and sauce) or (pasta, cooked chicken breast, veggies and pasta sauce). The choices are endless, but I do tend to use frozen, pre-cooked meat - but you can also throw in a few casserole dishes with various cuts while the rice is cooking. Pork, Steak, Chicken. For pasta don't cook until done as it will continue to finish cooking when being mic'd. Measure, put in container, and freeze. I love the 2C ziploc containers and usually make 6pt meals.

Sweets at home - Last year I was determined not to buy them, but I have become somewhat lax on this venue. If you have problems with food item control, honestly, you don't need them and neither does your family. Gifting or tossing baked goods is all in the cards for some and can leave them feeling extremely empowered. I'm not a big baker anyway, so any sweets we get can be frozen and used for recess or after-school snacks. My husband refuses to give up on these carb and sugar based items, but if I have healthy alternatives in the house (salad foods, protein bars, or other snack items) I tend to go for those. Do what you need to do, though. For me, the goal will be to ensure healthy items at hand.

Sweets at work - specifically chocolates or truffles, as that's my downfall. Last year I actually allowed myself 1 chocolate twice a week, but only if it was something 'good'. It worked great and I think I'll do that again. It saves me from over-indulging when we do have chocolate.

Exercise - Having taken a major hiatus from resistance training with Corinne, I really miss my bicep definition. And, I've gained a couple of inches in the waist and hips in spite of maintaining my weight. My plan is simple and I am going to own it. I will be working out using the beginner program I used last year. I am commiting to 2 cardio sessions per week and 2 strength training sessions. I do need to sub some items for my knees, but I am excited for this. All my weights have been moved upstairs, including the eliptical and bench. I'm taking over the computer room.

For the scale, I do not obsess. I am well below my WW goal and I know that the introduction of any exercise regime may cause an increase on the scale. I suspect my weight will remain the same through December and will begin to drop in January. I am going to go back to using my excel spreadsheets for menu planning and posting them on the fridge. AND, I'll be focusing on filling foods.

A lot of this really is the same as last year, with some improvements. I hope you get some ideas from some of these Holiday survival plans and if you post one of your own, please let me know so I can link to it. Have a great December.

The Holiday Weekend

Yes, I forgot to say Happy Columbus Day to my American counterparts. Well, it's been an interesting Thanksgiving. And boy, am I glad to be a Weight Watcher today!

Last year I thought I was prepared for Thanksgiving only to record a stellar gain that week. It took me a few weeks to get back on track. It was frustrating and I felt out of control.

This year, I planned. This year I did some things differently.

We still went to the in-laws and no, I wasn't able to get at the vegetables before cheese, butter and milk were added. Oh well, you can't win them all. I also indulged in desert food - but don't worry, it was Pumpkin Angel Food Cake. I also left some behind for others. I bought a box of biscotti's. These babies are sinfully awesome - and check out that NI.

Walking - my 10 year old and I went for a few walks this weekend, plus one before dinner and one after.

Veggie tray - They were on sale on Sunday, so I bought a small veggie tray for supper that night, a large fruit tray for breakfast in the morning and a large veggie tray to take to sil's. I ate some veggie's before dinner was served and felt quite full after only 1 plate.

Drinks - no wine this year. I had to work the next day anyway, so I brought some Live Active Crystal Lite and sipped on that while others were having beer and white wine.

Desert - My niece turned 19, so we didn't serve traditional Thanksgiving desert. Instead they brought out a DQ Ice Cream cake. I did have a small piece. After all, I'd already had a fair bit of yummy pumpkin angel food cake.

Other exciting weekend stuff. I'm still plugging away on decluttering my home. All 4 of us participated in a 27 fling boogie. The 5 yo was having some issues, but did part with a few toys and some clothes. We ended up with a full bag for donation, a full bag for the garbage and a partly filled recycle bag for paper. We're doing it again this weekend.

Oh, and results. I did weigh-in last week and this week and stayed the same. Exactly. The. Same.

Planning and Lunches

Yup, I'm a believer in planning. I think we can generally be wayyy more productive, successful with less effort with proper planning. What?

OK, so for the past month I have gained a tad. Not a lot, but continuing down this road of 'winging it' would eventually lead to not-so-good habits. What does lead to success is a half hour of half-ass penmanship while half watching 'Doctor Who' and half talking to my mother. What I did get was a meal plan for the week, a grocery list of items needed to get through the week, and lunch ideas for the girls.

How does this help:
1) I buy from my grocery list and don't have 'temptations' in the house.
2) I save money by not buying more than I need for the week.
3) I have the food I need to eat healthy.
4) I have everything I need to quickly prep meals, snacks and lunches quickly - saving time and energy throughout the week.

Just think what could be accomplished by planning in other areas of life. If you're not a planner (I never was) I highly recommend trying this out for a week or so. I don't plan cumbersome meals - I work and have small children. Today my lunch is 6pts, consisting of low fat chicken meatballs, rice, frozen vegetables and barbeque sauce.

As prep work, I tend to cook my rice in bulk - 2 days worth in the fridge and freeze the rest in serving sizes. Keep in mind that the frozen food manufacturers freeze cooked meat - so can you. It's easier to toss a 3oz cut of frozen chicken or steak into your lunch bag if it's been cooked within the past week or so than if it hasn't been cooked at all. I also tend to have a couple of frozen dinners on hand, but use them for emergencies vs. a staple.

For non-microwavable options, there's always sandwiches - yum. And a thermos of...just about anything you want to keep warm. Also, tuna (or other canned meat) mixed with mustard and/or mayo in a small container pops nicely on top of a rice cake. Amonds and an apple, whole wheat crackers with cheese and a bit of jelly, or a container of frozen fruit.

In order to facilitate all of this, I invest in 1/2C and 1C plastic containers and also pack a resealable baggie with plastic utensils and splenda packets and anything else I may need. I've also boughten good thermoses for my girls and sugar packets for their lunch boxes. A great lunch desert for them is a small container of strawberries that have spent the morning thawing topped with some sugar.

The Mouths of Babes

So, last night I was telling my daughter that I lost 0.6lbs this week and would like to lose another 3.8. She asked if I was still under my goal weight, to which I told her 'Yes'. "Hmmm, It would be amazing if you lost 10 more lbs (from goal)". "Really, you think it would be amazing?" "Pfft- the way you've been eating, Yes"

OK - I've been kicked and checked. Got it. So, my food yesterday did NOT include: ice cream cake from DQ, hazelnut vanilla spread, cheeze whiz sandwich, pours of oil for frying, or donuts.

It DID include oatmeal, eggs, berries, cottage cheese, frozen lf chicken meatballs, frozen veggies, brown rice, almonds, rice cake with a skim of peanut butter, sushi, and LOTS of water.

The Goings On

This week is kind of crazy with planning a combo birthday party on Saturday. So, I have my supper meals planned out and posted by the stove top. Mark usually prepares the suppers, so I've included the meat, carb choice and veggies. Tonight is steak and I've put the meat in the fridge for him. I have my general lay-out for the days:

Meals:
Breakfasts: 5 pts oatmeal/egg mixes (berries, pb, pp, or cheese)
Morning snack: 3 pts dairy/fruit mix (cottage cheese or lf plain yogurt)
Lunches: 5 pts Meat source and green veggies (left-overs or chicken/beef stir-fry cuts, asparagus, green beans, lettuce and spinach, or snap peas)
Afternoon snack: 2 pts snack of rice cake and tuna
Way home snack: 2 pts almonds
Supper: 5 pts meat, carb and veggies (list is made for family for week)
Evening: 2 pts soy drink (or combo with pts of milk in coffee's for day)
Post-cardio/st: grapefruit/pro shake (no value assigned to activity or associated foods - it's a wash)
24 pt days. My daily points allowance is 19 + 4 for maintenance + weekly (I still have 10 left). On Thursday, the meals won't change substantially, except that I may switch out the rice cake for a Core option - especially since I've moved my carb to dinner with the family.

For my breakfast, I boil the water, add the oatmeal and egg together and stir. I later add the extra. Yesterday was blueberries and today was strawberries. Add a bit of splenda and a splash of soy drink (or not) and voila. I use 1/2C egg whites or 1 egg, depending on the day. With the egg white, it's less points (more for coffee milk and that splash of soy drink) and is a smoother texture. Hubby says he still tastes the egg, but I don't - or maybe I'm just getting used to it. I've been doing it this way almost every day for a couple of months now.

A few other things on my to do list:
Today: Get paper and do up invitations for hand out tonight and tomorrow.
Shop for party favours and prizes
Order cakes
Call Visa to get more low interest cheques
Pay off my student loan, Sears, my MasterCard and Mark's MasterCard

'Tis true, we came into a bit of funds with which I put on my Visa and will use low interest (3.99%) cheques to pay off my higher interest debts in full. The student loan is almost paid off (only a couple of months left), but has the largest cash flow effect. This will only leave the Visa - which will be a substantial amount - but over half will be at the low interest rate, so I can't complain. Kudos to planning - funny how things happen.

Maintenance and Core

This week was, amazingly, a 'stays the same'. Since I AM in WW maintenance, I'll take it. Yet, I would still like to lose another 4.4 lbs and get to my personal goal of 140 lbs.

SO, last night I took all my little books down to my meeting and went through them to make sure I have everything I need. I picked up a new week 1 package, since I'm missing the Getting Started book. Got a new slider and everything. I wanted to make sure I had everything, especially the Getting Started book because I've decided to try out Core. For today I'm documenting and counting.

Breakfast: 6 almonds, oatmeal, 1 egg, slice of processed cheese (6)
!st thing at work: Tims coffee (1)
10:45 am: 1/2C cottage cheese with approx. 1/2C mixed fruit (3)

Total so far is 10 pts. For lunch I have salmon, 1/2C rice and frozen veggies. Later this afternoon I have some baby carrots and 15 almonds. For supper I don't know what we're having.

Why the switch? I was following some menus I was getting from PnP. They were good and I learned a lot of new ways to eat healthfully; however, they were also extremely high in protein and, although I am working out, I don't feel I am working out to support that menu. And the bottom line - the menu was very expensive. For the summer, I have 2 kids in daycare and will be running at a deficit each month - this was adding to that deficit. I don't want to scrimp on food, and think that Core will fit into my budget and my life much easier.

Why Core? Mainly because I'm not a fan of journalling. It's been my nemisis. I've also been eating mostly Core foods anyway. I'll still be planning the weekly meals out and using that to create my weekly shopping list - so there's still the element of journalling to some extent. Also, I find I have started (the past 2 weeks) for some crazy reason, to dip into non-Core, fatty and carby items such as donuts, hazelnut vanilla spread, ice cream. My daughters have their birthdays tomorrow and their party next weekend, so this seemed as good a time as any to start a new program.

It's exciting to start a new program. You feel all energized and eager to succeed. Life is good.

I won't likely be posting again until next week. Everyone have a great weekend, and to my American readers, Happy 4th of July.

Eats and Treats

I'm trying to post my food in Sparks again this week. They have some neat new features, such as adding extra meals, copying a meal from another day, and exporting your report to excel. They also still have all of the great tools I remember, such as my 'favourites' list, where I added many of my favourite foods or specific items we buy that are not on the general list, such as my PC foods from Superstore.

For anyone starting an exercise regime, this site is also a great resource on how to properly do certain moves. They'll even design a program for you. And it's all free! That's right - Free! Well, what are you waiting for? Go sign up.

Temptation, etc

Can anyone tell me why, oh why, people want to bring Timbits into work? Oh, and not the yucky plain ones, but chocolate glaze. Gee thanks. Not that I would normally have any - then again, yesterday wasn't 'normal'.

Last night I didn't have a workout planned, but...umm...Burger King wasn't on the plan either. Why is it we just say OK when we're tired. In all fairness, I did get the new Walnut, Cranberry Chicken salad with Raspberry Vinaigrette and a water. Then I had some french fries. Anyhoo - I'm extremely over-tired, so will be doing lower body workout tonight. I'm going to cut down the reps on my lunges and squats and attempt 3 sets tonight. My hamstrings hurt for 4 days last week and I don't think they need to hurt that long. Then I think we ALL need to be in bed early tonight. Being this tired on a Tuesday is bad.

Menu planning and Goal updates

Well, I wasn't going to follow Corinne's menu next week, but guess what? I looked at it and am psyched. Wasn't crazy about the chicken again (it was in 2 meals last week and 1 this week and what with egg whites I've started to grow feathers), but she said I could substitute white fish or sirloin for variety if I wanted to. So now I really need to decide when I want to sub what and that means...this won't impact my eating with the family for suppers. They can eat what I eat and everyone is happy.

Well, we're on the third week with asparagus on the menu. I'm enjoying it, too. So is the 9yo. She told me it was the best part of my menu - but she's also putting away her share of chicken breast, too.

I'd say the only thing I'm missing is my soy drinks, so I'm going to work it in. I guess, with subbing stuff, I can kind of still make this menu my own quite easily. I'll stick to the 'as written' version for during the day and just switch up suppers for variety.

My goals are going well. I don’t have my notes with me today, so I’m going by memory here.

28 Inches: I am doing good with my food lately, as you can see from above. I’m really focused and am trying to get energized for ST. This week I am only focusing on my ST sessions, and I’m only concentrating on getting 2 in. Any cardio I do is bonus for this week and next – I am just enjoying life right now, but do want to begin incorporating more cardio in. It’s such a great time of year for it. I am inspired by the ‘Hood’ routine – check out PnP today for a blog post by Becca via Corinne on the subject of incorporating cardio and plyo into your daily walks. Corinne also did a video for this on YouTube.

Debt-Down: I was doing a bit of research for opening debt balances and finally broke down and called the student loan centres. I had guessed around $2K on the federal portion and $500 on the provincial portion. Well, the provincial in now paid off and the federal is just over $600. I felt like I won the lottery. I’ve decided to pay off the federal portion with the tax refund since it has the biggest impact on cash-flow, even though it is the lowest interest and the only interest I pay that is tax deductible. Cost vs. benefit – I’d rather re-direct that monthly payment elsewhere.

Positivity: 1) Find them right; 2) Thank them; 3) Ask them to do something easy. I have really been focused on thanking people lately. It is getting easier. Oh, BTW, thanks for reading meJ

Family time: This involves 1) weekly 1-on-1 time between each member of the family, 2) inexpensive or free family outings each week, 3) monthly family dates. We’ve been doing good on this one. Mark and I need to find time for more 1-on-1, but hey, we’re trying.

Learn to swim: I have done absolutely nothing with this. I mean, I learned to swim in the ocean growing up, but I’ve always wanted to learn proper technique. The 9yo taught me some stuff last summer, so I’m looking forward to learning more this year.

Have a great weekend ya'll

Thoughtful Thursday:

Be warned, this post is a bit lengthy, so I’ve included a summary.

1. Did the virtual post-it note work? You asked, I answer.
2. A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to Eating Clean. What happens when you don’t have your cooler?
3. Weigh-In Results Show.
4. Would you consider working for Weight Watchers?
5. What’s a BLT? The act or the food? A musing.
   

1. The virtual post-it note. Did it work? Yes – and No. Or maybe No – and Yes. No, I did not get in my ST session on Tuesday night, but thanks to all my great blogging buddies I felt extremely guilty and put in a session this morning. Superman, Chest press, Overhead press, toe taps, lunges, squats, bicep curls, lat raises and some others. 3 sets of mostly 10 reps using mostly 10 lb weights - 12 activities in total. Check that one off. Next scheduled workout is Saturday.

2. My meals for any given day consist of breakfast, morning snack, lunch, afternoon snack, late afternoon snack – all before going home to supper and evening snack. Well, that’s a full 4 meals I take in my cooler every day. Yesterday I asked my 9yo to take my lunch to the car. I looked around on my way out the door and saw that my cooler was gone and proceeded with the morning kiddie drop-off. When I got to work I looked in the back seat. Hmmm, maybe she put it in the trunk. No – look back in the car, again in the trunk. I’m very confused and really not sure how I am going to get through the day. My yogurt and berries; My chicken, broccoli and asparagus; My tuna, egg and rice cake; My cottage cheese and almonds. All gone. Well, I survived. The 4yo hadn’t wanted her oatmeal, to I ate that late morning, then went around 2pm to Tim Horton’s for chili, ham and cheese roll, coffee and a donut. The donut should have been a don’t, but I’m moving forward. Meanwhile, the 9yo felt extremely guilty for having stuffed my lunch in her backpack so she asked her teacher to keep it in the teachers’ fridge. The teacher asked if it was OK for her to look to see what I packed. Well, I’ve told you what was in there. Her comment was that this was the healthiest lunch she’s ever seen. That comment made me feel very good indeed.

3. I went to weigh-in last night and am in new territory, with a 0.8 lb loss. I am now 143 lbs. Ooooooh, so close to 140, but I am aware these last few pounds are painfully slow to take off.

4. After the WW meeting I was asked to hang back a bit. Would I ever consider working for Weight Watchers? Yes, I would. My leader will put my name forward and I am not to be surprised if I get a call. I have thought about this, but really didn’t ‘think’ about it in reality terms for just yet, you know. It made me feel very good, though.

5. Finally, a musing. The definition of BLT: Bite, Lick, Taste. I kind of laugh, because my musing isn’t really about not BLTing, but the definition of a BLT. It's not about how you shouldn't like the knife after spooning out ice cream for the kids or 'steal' a fry from someone else's plate. For instance, if I am making my snacks in the morning and lick the spoon after filling my container, is this a BLT? The food was measured and is on my eating plan for later today, but is that the point? Or even weekly food prep – if it is my food for the week, does it matter if I taste-test on Sunday? Now, part of me says no it's not a BLT – it’s your food, destined to land in your stomach (I would otherwise scrape the spoon into the container, see). Another part of me says, the ACT is BLT and there is a treacherous path between going from licking the spoon of yogurt in the morning to licking the spoon of ice cream for the kids in the evening. The act is a lick – and the act is mindless and often goes unnoticed. The act is a bad habit that I, for one, need to focus on.

That’s it for today. I had a lot to get out, so I hope you enjoyed some or all of my daily ramblings. Cheers for today.

The Food Focus

I'm going to follow my current eating plan for 1 more week. Basically, we eat almost the same thing every day for 7 days. Heck, I usually ate the same breakfasts and snacks anyway and stressed over the other meals. This consists of a lot of high quality protein choices which tend to get rather expensive. You won't find ham or pork on my menu - no sir.

I did 'slip' to some extent this weekend. As much as I tried, my scheduling was off on Saturday. We got home at 10pm from the recitals - yes, the kids were still awake - and decided to have a thin-crust frozen spinach & fettucini pizza. It was tres yummy. I was thinking metabolic boost meal (or cheat, high point, off-plan, whatever), and was going to stick to schedule on Sunday. Then company showed up and we hauled out some sole. I also had a couple beers. I didn't go over-board, but it certainly wasn't the focus I thought I would have.

So, I'm back at it again today. This week we get lots of meat. Steak every day at lunch and chicken every night for supper. It's actually a very good menu this week. My concern is getting to the financial end of this. How can one afford steak EVERY day. Well...it is only 3 oz. I cooked 1 steak this morning and it'll likely last through Wednesday. On Wednesday I'm planning to switch steak to the evening to eat with the family. And likely next Saturday too. Tonight we're all having chicken breasts, brocolli and asparagus. Oh, they'll likely also have some mashed potatoes, but I already ate my sweet potatoe today.

I finally bought some natural pb for the first time ever. I was worried about the oil, but it was amazingly easy to stir up. And the flavour was so much richer than the regular stuff. Very good - highly recommended.

After this week I'm going to do up a regular menu with lots of variety. I'm starting to feel like I'm dieting. But, I will do one of these menus once a month or so. The food is very good and filling - I don't feel deprived. I forgot my jello today - yeah, we get jello, too. I'll have to eat it tonight. I wish meat were half price all the time. I picked up a good fair bit of fish on sale last Thursday. I think our freezer is busting with salmon and haddock right now. Chicken breast was on sale at Superstore this week. Good thing too - what with me eating it every day.

So I'm looking at my weekly grocery bill and thinking: I really hope some of this stuff lasts more than a week. My gas/grocery budget has already pushed its way into next week, so it won't have a choice.

Food check

I've got my food in check the past little while. I'm following one of Corinne's menus this week. Eating 8 times a day is interesting. I'm not sure I can continue with the every 2 hours thing. I'm used to eating 6 mini-meals a day and that's more my grove. I'll stick to it this week - I'm loving the scale results.

Now to get my exercising into check. With all this lean protein I've been eating, I told the hubby that I NEED to do some exercise to support the food. So, tonight I'm pushing some weights and taking a cruise on the elliptical.

Sunday I did 2.5km roller skate again. I think it's going to be a regular route, but I can see getting to the point where I just turn around and head home from there.

Soccer started for the season. We're getting the questions as to why the 4yo isn't signed up. It's big here, but she wasn't interested and, I for one, am glad to have another relaxing summer pool-side instead of swatting flies on a field.

The ProBar

Well, Kendall posted thinking I was snacking on ProBar. Sorry - no - my pro bars are homemade and less than half the calories or yours. However, the reason I'm posting the link is because I decided to check out this brands site. They actually look really good and are all-natural. If you are into protein bars check them out if you can find them and let me know how they taste.

I really can't go any longer without sharing the Trish's Homemade Protein Bar recipe from Phit-n-Phat. I make these EVERY week. I do a basic batch for myself every second week and a batch loaded with 'stuff', like almonds, walnuts, pinenuts, chocolate chips, dried pineapples, raisins, dried sugared ginger, etc for hubby and the 9yo. It's my cake substitute and mine are generally around 3pts.

Trish's Homemade Protein Bars:
3.5C Old fashioned rolled oats
1.5C LF powdered milk
4 scoops protein powder of choice
1C lf maple syrup (I actually just use a LF syrup 'cause I can't find lf maple syrup)
1/4C egg whites (or 2 egg whites if you're into separating)
1/4C orange juice
1/4C apple sauce
1 Tbsp vanilla
Mix and put in sprayed 9x14 casserole dish. Bake at 325 deg. for 20-30 mins until browned on edges.

NOTE: For the 4yo I remove the protein powder and add extra powdered milk. ALSO some chocolate chips. Next time I'm going to bake hers as drop cookies.

The Beast

I really dislike having to weigh my food all the time and keep in check those BLT's. I was reading the mouse today and I can so relate to her reaction to the Armstrong ad. I don't so much care about his use of the F-word either mouse, but the idea that there is a way out of measuring and weighing is really appealing. Guess what though? It's unrealistic.

OK - here we are. I have admitted that I have a food problem. Never thought I did, but my ability to pile on almost 50 lbs over 8 years years or so emphasizes the point - doncha think? If I had known how to eat I would have lost it when it was only 5 or 10 lbs. Instead I felt over-whelmed and sulked my way from a 10 to a 12. Then I later convinced myself that 14 was the new 12. Still later I choked down pride and began to purchase 16s. It felt horrid. Weight Watchers taught me a lot. Blogger friends taught me a lot. Phit-n-phat taught me a lot. With all this knowledge you'd think I COULD just put down the fork.

If you were at my house last night for pork loin, potatoes and asparagus maybe you'd understand that I sometimes can't just put down the fork. Frig it was good.

Long Weekend

Weekend went well. I got in an ST session Saturday morning and took Baloo for a 6.8 km walk. On Sunday, the 9yo and I decided to break in our wheels and went 2.5km. I tried roller-blading a couple of years ago on a flat parking lot for around 15 minutes. This trip with flat, mild and moderate incline was fairly intense for me. After 5 minutes I was wondering what I had agreed to. All I kept thinking was the biggest incline just before the end. We made it though. Monday we headed out again for another trip, likely around 3 km since it was return and not as far as the first trip.

We went to see the new Narnian movie. I hadn't read this book because I couldn't find it when we were reading them. We read the first one (the creation of Narnia), the second (LW&W), the third (A boy and his horse, i.e. Caspian), missed the fourth, read the fifth - the ship one. We didn't get to the last 2. I thought the movie was very well done. The 9yo said we need to get it for keeps.

Also went through the boxes of clothes that are between the 2 kids in size. Organized and cleared out a bunch of stuff for donation. We drove by a house with a Princess 2-wheeler with training wheels out by the corner. Hubby stopped to ask if they were putting it out for someone to take, so we took it. In return, we told the 4yo that she should put her tricycle by the road since it's too small for her. She liked that idea and is very happy for the upgrade. Hubby put a note on it saying it needed a new home. The trike disappeared yesterday afternoon in the trunk of a white car.

The home scale actually dropped down a bit this morning from hovering around 150. It's notoriously higher for the past few months than the WW scales. I was glad to see the drop. For my part I went over my points Saturday. I didn't indulge. I took the kids to McD's Saturday and just had fajitas and a couple of fries before leaving them with hubby and going to look at books. I also stuck to water and a couple of small nachos at the movie before handing them on to the 9yo who finished them up. I took it light at supper since we'd been out.
Sunday food was good. We did have chicken cordon bleu, potatoes and fiddleheads for supper. It was so good. My points for the day were around 22.
Monday I was good until supper. I had some steak and prolly too many potatoes, onions and brocolli. nah, not too much brocolli, but I did eat to being a little more than satisfied, so I'll have to work on that.

Tuesday:
Morning: .5C cottage cheese, 1C berries, .5 scoop pp (4)
Snack: coffee with whole milk (1)
Lunch: steak, potatoes, onions, little bit of brocolli, coffee with whole milk (7)
Snack: pro bar and carrots (3)
Supper: pork loin, half sweet potatoe, lettuce & spinach salad (6)
Snack: 0.5C lf soy drink, 1 scoop pro powder (3)

ST: repeater of Saturday morning followed by elliptical or blading with the 9yo - I feel like I'm in a second childhood and so glad I can share this with her. That she WANTS me to :))

Total for day: 24

Goal Updates

It's been a crazy week I tells ya. The 4yo broke a fever again Sunday night, so I've been with her the past 2 days. Daddy took off work today to stay with her as Mommy needs to get caught up at work. But first:

The 9yo was in a dance festival last weekend. Her group took gold for their jazz routine and silver for their hip/hop routine. GO Sissy! This week she is at a Music festival with her school. I've never actually been able to see her at the music festivals, but will get to see them sing at their school soon. She's packing for the trips with brownies, pro bars, almonds and water. Not able to eat on the trip the say - ha! She hides the foods in her jacket citing that she just can't go that long without eating. And I agree. I couldn't either.

J is going on day 3 with this fever. I just called Mark to make sure her contacts the doctors office today. Hopefully he's there now. She's starting to get lethargic and has had very little to eat since Sunday mid-day.

GOAL#1: Project Manipulation.
Updates on this: I have really been focusing on asking the family to do simple tasks and making sure I thank them. I must admit though, that I've gotten grumbly a few times and let them know that the requests did not have optional answers. Gotta focus on NOT doing that. However, they have helped a few times with getting ready for dinner and putting some things away. The 9yo drew up a schedule for brushing the dog. Mark put my bench together. I've been focusing on being grateful to them. It's a work-in-progress.

GOAL#2: Operation Debt-Down.
GROCERY BUDGET: This is always a trouble spot for us with several small trips at $20-40 per trip plus the weekly trips. I managed to stick to my grocery budget. We did a really good menu plan last weekend involving treats, awesome suppers, etc. I'm testing the waters of batch cooking. I made lasagna Sunday night (serves 8) so there were left-overs - with a salad. A large chicken cooked in the crock Monday had enough meat for a couple sandwiches, lunches, and soup. Ground chicken was on sale so I bought that and did up a large batch which later was divided in 2. I mixed half in a small casserole dish as the base for sheppherds pie and the other was drained and returned to the pot and I added most of what I need for chili. When we want chili it's just add the beans and adjust the spices. Honestly, I think the only thing I'm running out of is milk for coffee. I even cautioned the 9yo that I made/bought her 12 snacks and when they're gone, that's it until Saturday. She's been a little more careful about eating them all up and is saving them for school snacks when she needs them, rather than wants them - hoping this kills 2 birds with 1 stone.

BUDGET PLAN: I drew up a base budget with all my monthly payments and monthly income. I called most of the credit card companies to get balances, due dates and minimum payments due and documented everything and made sure they were up-to-date. This is still in its infancy and I will need to work on this for a while. For now the student loans are just fixed monthly payments even though the balances are quite low. I think they're paid off next winter but don't want to check on that just yet.

EMERGENCY FUND: This is where I'm starting to waver. I put my money in the emergency fund last week, but realize that there is enough there to eliminate the HBC card (28%). Also, I have $1,000 room on the Visa if I need it. I guess the idea is that, as long as I have access to my emergency fund, does it matter if it's cash saved? Or am I running with the mindset that got me here in the first place?

GOAL#3: 28 inches.
Ab routine: I have not focused on that this week.
Strength training: I am thinking about dropping out of the Fast and Furious challenge at PnP for now and focusing on doing 2 ST/week plus 2-3 cardio session/week. I think that, right now, expecting myself to do more leaves me feeling guilty for not doing it. I may mean that the results won't come as quickly - or maybe it'll mean that I will actually stick with my routine and get there more quickly.
Menu planning and journaling: As mentioned in the budget message this is going very well. I know they grumble when I want to sit for a half hour and document meals for the week with their input, but this is such an important part. I need to know that I can stick to budgets and provide healthy, well-rounded meals that everyone will EAT. So, with the roasted chicken we also needed to provide canned gravy for the 9yo for dipping. Important information. I haven't been doing as well journaling - or measuring. Call it an emotional break. Will re-focus after weigh-in tonight.