Sunday & Monday

Well, I made it through the weekend but the temptation to cheat is still really strong. Maybe getting into the routine of my week will help some. I made some chili yesterday because I was home from work and have been craving some for a few weeks. My friend was telling me last week about the chili she made using ground turkey and it sounded awesome so I tried it. It was the first time I have used the turkey to make chili and it was really good. And I managed to get it down to 5 points per cup. I will likely tweak the recipe some and play around with it the more times that I make it. Tonight I think I'm having homemade pizza for dinner. It's sounding really good and its so easy to make, fast and there's little cleanup. Plus I can try out the wheat pitas I found at Trader Joes. I had been looking for a lower calorie crust. The wheat pitas I usually buy at the grocery store are really kind of small for a dinner pizza (150 calories) and the Naan bread I found is way too high in calories (300 calories). I found the bigger wheat pitas at TJ's for 200 calories so I'm going to try them out. I have started back to eating Greek yogurt which my daughter and I tried for the first time this summer and really liked but I go in spurts with my yogurt eating. I'll eat it alot, then stop for a while. I bought some last weekend at the store and have been having it at night as a dessert with some fresh fruit. It's SO yummy! So far, I'm liking the Chobani brand the best..especially the peach. If you know of any other good brands/flavors, let me know in the comment section, please and thank you!

Here's my food for Sunday and Monday.

Sunday:
Breakfast: 1 whole egg and 1 egg white scrambled with sauteed mushrooms and 2% mozarella cheese and placed over top of a light, multigrain english muffin
Lunch/Snack: Pretzels and 2 tbsp. roasted red pepper hummus
Dinner: 4 oz. boneless, skinless chicken breast w/ bbq sauce, 2 cups Mediterranean veggie blend and 1 individual sized container of brown rice
Dessert: A pear and a peach greek yogurt

Totals for Sunday: 23 points, 1,191 calories

Monday:
Breakfast: 1/2 of a whole wheat pita with 1 tbsp. garden veggie cream cheese and 6 slices turkey
Lunch: Lean Cuisine bbq chicken pizza
Dinner: 2 cups turkey chili, with 2 tbsp. fat free sour cream and reduced fat wheat thins
Dessert: A peach and peach greek yogurt

Totals for Monday: 27 points, 1,389 calories

I'm still struggling daily with the urge to cheat and still majorly craving pizza and a cheesburger and fries. I'm thinking I should just go ahead and cheat and get it over with but I KNOW that is just me talking myself into cheating and rationalizing it. I KNOW that cheating to satisfy a craving will lead to another craving and another cheat and the cycle goes on and on. I'm just going to try to take it one decision at a time. I decided to take a walk this morning (and I did), I decided to eat a healthy breakfast (and I did), I decided to pack a healthy lunch for work (and I did). I will try to decide on the way home to go straight home without stopping at the store for ice cream and Cheetos and without stopping at McDonald's. I will try to decide when I get home to have a small afternoon snack with a Crystal Light instead of eating a bunch of junk and I will try to decide to get through this day without cheating. One decision, one good choice at a time.

Have a great day, make good decisions!

Stacy

Friday and Saturday

Well I made it through the movies and almost the whole weekend and I haven't cheated yet. I'm really having alot of cravings and a strong desire to eat badly though..sometimes this healthy eating is so easy and sometimes its really HARD. I walked yesterday morning, making 5 days this week. I felt really good after that walk too. Hubby and I went to the movies, and did some shopping yesterday. I ate breakfast before I left the house  but he did not. So, he was hungry for some lunch before the movie started and grabbed a burger and fries from the grill next to the theater. Since I had already eaten breakfast and was planning on a nice dinner, I chose not to get anything even though watching him eat that burger was hard. Since he had just eaten, he didn't want any popcorn so I bypassed that temptation. Before the movie, I had picked up an individual sized bag of pretzel M & M's and some Crystal Light. So, in the movies I had my 150 calorie M & M's and a bottled water with Crystal Light and it was good.

Friday's food:
Breakfast: 1 whole egg, light, multigrain english muffin and 1 turkey sausage patty
Lunch: Chicken griller on light wheat bun with 1/2 cup lettuce and bbq sauce
Snack: Pretzels with 2 tbsp. roasted red pepper hummus
Dinner: Homemade pizza on Naan bread with sauce, sauteed peppers and mushrooms, chicken strips and 2% mozarella.

Totals for Friday: 20 points, 1,233 calories, and no exercise :(

Saturday's food:
Breakfast: 1 whole egg, light, multigrain english muffin and 1 turkey sausage patty
Lunch: None
Afternoon Snack: Pretzel M & M's
Dinner: Chicken breast with bone and skin, bbq sauce, broccoli and Just for 1 peas/corn

Totals for Saturday: 23 poitns, 1,190 calories, approx. 30 minute walk

Just 3 1/2 more hours until dinner..the temptation to cheat is strong but I'm trying to keep myself busy..

My Thursday

Well I missed my walk this morning. I could say that I had alot of errands to run (which I did), or things to do around the house (which I did), but those are basically just rationalizations because I was just too lazy to walk! Something about Fridays just makes me want to skip my walk. Hopefully I will get one in this weekend so I can at least have exercised 5 days this week.
My dinner was AWESOME last night. I found some chicken breasts at the store which were still big, but managable and I roasted one with just seasonings. Then I roasted some red potatoes with fennell and some baby carrots and it was so good. The potatoes were really great, and I don't eat potatoes often when I'm dieting so I really enjoyed them. My husband even liked them, even with the fennell in them!
I get a bit hesitant when the weekend rolls around because the temptation to cheat is strong. Hubby and I are planning on seeing a movie this weekend and movie popcorn is one of my WEAKNESSES! So, we'll see how I do. He may have to sit a few seats down with that popcorn..LOL. I'm thinking of homemade pizza for dinner tonight, or maybe a small steak with sauteed mushrooms and broccoli. It really depends on what I feel like when I get home.

Here's my food for Thursday:
Breakfast: 1 packet maple and brown sugar oatmeal
Lunch: A banana and a sandwich of a whole wheat pita, 2 tbsp. garden veggie cream cheese and sliced turkey
Afternoon snack: None
Dinner: Chicken breast w/ bone and skin, 1 cup red potatoes and fennell and 1 cup baby carrots
Dessert: Sugar free double chocolate pudding

Totals for the day: 26 points, 1,571 calories, 84.5 oz. water and approx. 30 minute walk

I DID go over my prefered 1,500 calories per day but not by much and I might be counting the calories on the potatoes high so I won't sweat it too much.

Hope everyone has a great weekend! I will be trying to stay on track amongst the many thoughts of cheating that I've been having lately. I'll let you know how it turns out next week.

Stacy

My Wednesday

Well, I didn't have pizza for dinner last night. I debated on what to have too long and ended up heating up the leftover Turkey meatloaf. It was really good but 3 days in a row is enough for me! Tonight I'm planning on borrowing an idea I saw on another blog (sorry but I can't remember which one..it wasn't one I read regularly, just came across it yesterday). Anyhow, I'm planning on having roasted chicken breast with roasted potatoes, fennel and carrots. That is if I can find some smaller sized bone-in chicken breasts at the store. It has come to my attention that the bone-in chicken breasts that you find in the store these days are HUGE. That's all fine and dandy when I'm eating whatever I want, but when I'm tracking points and calories, those are just too big. WW points are 1.12 points per ounce for bone-in, with skin, chicken breasts. And I found out today by calling the WW 1-800 number (thank you so much WW) that it IS the weight with the bone. So, I'm going to look for some smaller chicken breasts on the way home because what I have in the freezer is too big. I know, I know, that I should be eating boneless, skinless chicken breasts but honestly I love the flavor of the bone-in and the crispy skin and if I'm eating well, exercising and staying within my points and calories for the day, I think its okay.

I have a friend who just had gastric bypass surgery and after losing like 40-something pounds, she hit a plateau. Well, she recently overcame that plateau by cutting out starches and sweets. That brings us back to the are carbs good or bad debate. I know that I eat too many carbs. There, I've said it. But, honestly, I just can't see cutting them out right now for several reasons. 1- I love them..I am a big fan of the carbs. 2- I have changed my eating to where I only eat whole wheat or multigrain breads and brown rice. So, the only "bad" carbs I get are in my lean cuisines or on the rare occasion that I eat potatoes. 3- I really believe in the plan of allowing yourself to eat what you want as long as you are within your points/calories for the day. Now, I've done the low/no carb thing before and yes, I lost alot of weight but really I believe in a balanced diet that includes a variety of foods and for me, carbs are part of that variety. So, for now, I will allow myself my multigrain english muffins and couscous when I want it. I will continue to measure my portions, count my points and calories, and stay away from white rice and breads. For me, variety is one of the keys to sticking to this healthy lifestyle.

Okay, here's my food from Wednesday:

Breakfast: 1 whole egg, light, multigrain english muffin and 1 turkey sausage patty
Lunch: Lean Cuisine chicken alfredo
Afternoon snack: 3 pcs. melba toast, 2 tbsp. hummus and lean turkey slices
Dinner: 1 slice turkey meatloaf with ketchup & broccoli with white cheddar sauce

Totals for the day: 25 points, 1,150 calories, 84.5 oz. water & approx. 30 minute walk

My Tuesday

I'm trucking right along. Its funny how when you are eating bad, you are constantly craving more bad stuff to eat. But when you have been on track with eating good for a while, those bad food cravings hide themselves away to where you barely have them. THEN, when you have something stressful occur, they rear their ugly heads ready to take you down! Its like I go through my day to day not really noticing that I'm no longer eating all the yummy bad food I love. Then, if I allow myself to go there, and just think about or picture one of those yummy things, suddenly its in my mind again. AND, if I continue to picture and think about it, I eventually talk myself into having to have it! Its really wierd. So, I'm trying a new thing now. Once one of those food thoughts pops into my head, I'm trying to make myself pop it back out without dwelling on it. Because the longer I dwell on it and think about it, the closer I am to eating it. And let me tell you, advertisement doesn't help matters any. Take for instance the new Pizza Hut commercials for the Big Italy pizza. Now, I love pizza. I mean LOVE pizza. And of course, I haven't had take out pizza lately because I've been dieting. So, of course that Pizza Hut commercial is going to play to advertise this massive pile of delicious cheesyness that is the Big Italy. Just like those Olive Garden commercials, and the Red Lobster ones that air everytime there is a new special or when its Lobsterfest. How many times per day can they air those commercials? I mean really? Its not like a girl isn't having a hard enough time without having those commercials shoved in her face multiple times daily. Its especially a kick in the hind end to have one air when you are sitting down to your plate of chicken and broccoli which 5 minutes before looked really great, but after watching the commercial suddenly feels like you're eating a pile of plain rice cakes.

Okay..enough ranting about the Big Italy. But I feel a little better..lol.

I walked again this morning. I really like taking my walks in the morning because I feel like I've accomplished something and started my day off really well. But since the temperatures have been a bit milder, I kind of like my afternoon walks as well. Its nice to be out in the sunshine. I still prefer the morning walks though, so as long as I can get my butt outta bed in time to walk before work, I will keep doing so.

Tuesday's food:
Breakfast: Poached egg, light, multigrain english muffin and turkey sausage patty
Lunch: Smart Ones 3 cheese ziti with marinara sauce
Afternoon Snack: 7 Triscuit crackers, 2 tbsp. roasted red pepper hummus and sliced turkey
Dinner: 1 slice turkey meatloaf w/ ketchup, green giant broccoli and just for one peas/corn

Totals for the day: 26 points, 1,275 calories, 101.4 oz. water and approx. 30 minute walk

Since I'm craving pizza, I'm going to make homemade pizza for dinner again tonight. Oddly enough, as good as that Big Italy looks, the pizza I'm craving is the one I made at home last weekend. Thats progress I think.

Have a great afternoon, do something fun, enjoy the day, be good to you.

I'll be working on being good to me,

Stacy

Catch-Up and Monday

Gosh its been a long time since I've posted..not because I've fallen into that pint of Ben & Jerry's but just because of some uncontrollable things. I have stayed pretty much on track since my last post and I'm really proud of that! I walked 4 days last week. I had a family emergency requiring me to leave the house early on Friday and then I did not walk this weekend. But, I'm back to it this week with a walk both yesterday and this morning.
This weekend was a good food weekend for me mostly. Friday I stuck to the plan all day and had bbq chicken and broccoli for dinner with a total of 22 points and 1,140 calories for the day. Saturday I did great again and enjoyed a wonderful homemade pizza for dinner. I had really been wanting to make one after reading how great everyone elses sounded and looked. I used whole wheat Naan, peppers, mushrooms, onions, 2% cheese and Canadian bacon. It was really filling and yummy. I really need to find some alternatives for crust though b/c the Naan was 300 calories by itself! I looked into the wheat pizza crusts and those were about as much, and a pita bread (150 calories) just seemed too small to me for dinner. But, when I got home I compared the pita to the Naan and it wasn't really THAT much smaller, so next time I may switch. But, the Naan was good and I still kept within my points and calories for the day. My totals for Saturday were 18 points and approx. 1,010 calories. Sunday we drove Heather back to Greenville and went to IHOP for breakfast. A good point of why I don't like eating in restaurants when I'm dieting. EVEN if you try to order well, you CANNOT control what happens in the kitchen and what you get on your plate. I chose to order off the Just For Me portion of the menu which offers lower calorie choices. I ordered the Spinach, Mushroom & Swiss omelet that comes with a side of fruit. I also asked for an order of wheat toast with no butter. Well, the menu showed that the omelet & fruit was 350 calories. Then when my plate arrived the omelet was HUGE..I MEAN HUGE.. which IHOP's omelets usually are. BUT I had thought by ordering from the "healthy" side of the menu, that the size would be adjusted. Let me just say that I find it hard to believe that omelet AND fruit were only 350 calories. Then of course my "dry" toast came with a nice, buttery-resembling sheen to it. So, I ate a little over 1/2 of the omelet, mostly all of the fruit and 1 slice of the toast with jelly. All in all I don't think I did that bad, considering how I would've usually just said heck with the diet, and tore down the house. The rest of the day I had a wheat pita bread with 1 tbsp. garden veggie cream cheese and for dinner I had Hawaiin marinated chicken kabobs with peppers and mushrooms and some couscous.

Yesterday I had planned on having turkey burger patties with sauteed mushrooms for dinner with the leftover couscous and a veggie. On the way to the grocery store, that menu got changed to Turkey meatloaf. And it was AWESOME. If you are ever looking for something different to do with ground turkey, please try this meatloaf. It is really good. It calls for ground turkey breast, which is the best option via ground turkey but tends to dry out in cooking. What I like about this recipe is that the rest of the ingredients help to moisten the turkey to help with the drying out. You can get the recipe at foodnetwork.com, just type in turkey meatloaf and its the recipe by the Barefoot Contessa/Ina Garten. The recipe calls for 5 lbs. of ground turkey but I cut everything in the recipe in 1/2 and use 2.6 lbs. (2-1.3 lb. containers) and it still makes a HUGE meatloaf which I portion into 7 slices averaging about 7-8 points and 295-300 calories per slice. I paired mine with some couscous and a Green Giant Just For 1 peas/corn veggie.

Here's my food from yesterday (Monday):
Breakfast: 1 packet WW French Vanilla smoothie mix, 1 cup skim milk and 1/2 cup fresh strawberries
Lunch: Lean Cuisine Spaghetti with meat sauce
Snack: 1/2 wheat pita bread, 1 tbsp. garden veggie cream cheese and 3 slices lean turkey
Dinner: 1 slice turkey meatloaf with 1 tbsp. ketchup, 1/2 cup couscous and Just for 1 peas/corn

Totals for the day: 25 points, 1,163 calories, 84.5 oz. water and approx. 30 minute walk

Tonight will likely be leftover meatloaf for dinner. Another thing I love about this recipe is that it feeds me for several days with no cooking!

Have a great afternoon and do something good for you!

I'll be doing something good for me.

My Wednesday

Well I did it! I got out of bed a little early and took my walk before work this morning. YAY ME!
I'm going to be brief because its about time for me to leave the office, so here's my food from yesterday:

Breakfast: Egg, light multigrain english muffin and turkey sausage patty
Lunch: Chicken griller patty on a wheat sandwich thin with lettuce and bbq sauce and 1 cup of pineapple
Afternoon snack: A banana and a fiber 1 peach yogurt
Dinner: Stuffed pork chop with bbq sauce and green giant peas
Dessert: Jello double chocolate sug. free pudding

Totals for the day: 23 points 1,332 calories, 84.5 oz. water and approx. 30 minute walk

I'm debating on some dinner choices tonight but leaning towards turkey burgers...
Have a great afternoon!