lynn: (Default)
170. Great. That's an official 10 lbs in the first two weeks of South Beach Diet. Now I'm allowed bread (whole grain) and fruit. Yay! To celebrate I had a slice of Ezekiel 4:9 bread with coconut oil spread on it this morning. I also got tipsy at my mum and stepdad's last night.

I did cheat though because I went out with husband's work friends who were in town for a convention. Martini on Wednesday, glass of wine on Thursday.

Anyway, now that the first part is over, weight loss moves into slow and steady mode. I haven't been working out at all- except for a 10K last month, I have been a slug. I think it would be in my best interests to get back to the gym. I was going to start this morning but ya, I'm slightly hungover. Ugh.

Opening day at the Ballpark today! Gettin off early to go with husband, brother-in-law and Betsy. Woot! Today is the start of a winning season- this is the year our dreams will come true!





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I found the Gratitude Journal while looking for something else and although I haven't been downloading a lot of apps lately, this caught my attention.

It has supercute graphics and the idea is simple. Just type in a list of good things that have happened each day. If you can think of 5 different things you're grateful for on a regular basis, it should really change your outlook on life, making you a more positive, happy person.



The bulleted list makes it easy to read your entries and you can attach a photo to each page. You can choose between 6 themes and you can read an inspirational quote each time you write an entry.

It's like a short, bulleted diary- only meant to remind you of the good things in your life. I haven't kept it up every day, but I want to make it a habit. It's not much effort and it's not like my phone isn't on my person almost every moment of the day...



Only $.99 and I use it more than most other applications that were considerably more expensive. Totally worth the money.

lynn: (Default)
172.

Back where I was when Bert died. That's 8 lbs in 8 days on the South Beach Diet. I confessed to a friend this weekend what I was doing. She said she has a "friend who was doing SBD (and here's where I gulp- about to hear a horrible story about SBD- and SBD is a whole way of eating not a diet you stop doing once you reach your ideal weight) and she got super skinny doing it."

Oh. Good.

Well, I don't want to get super skinny- I know what my ideal weight is, I've been there before. But I do like hearing success stories.

Saturday and Sunday evenings proved to be the firewalking part of the program so far. Saturday night we went to Cheesecake Factory, Sunday we went to Breadwinners. With friends. Who wondered why I didn't partake of any fine alcoholic beverages or of the nummy bread sitting warmly in its basket and with a blush in my cheeks, I announced to the whole table that I am on the South Beach Diet. And I am in the induction phase (Phase I) and can have no grains, starches or wine or sugar for two weeks.

After a few comparisons to a low carb diet (ie Atkins), I briefly explained the differences and was relieved and pleased when Mark ended the conversation with, "Sounds good and we'll support you in everything you do."

I had really hoped to spend these two weeks without much if any socialising, hoping to keep my dieting shame a secret. The rest of the eating plan after the first two weeks looks much more normal to others.

I had black coffee for the first time in my life on Saturday and Sunday morning. It wasn't nearly as bad as I was expecting. Saturay's was much better because it was made with better coffee- I even enjoyed it. Sunday's coffee was stronger, more bitter. I drank 3/4 of the cup.

Looking forward to next Monday's weigh-in and adding some whole grains and wine to the diet.

lynn: (Default)
Apathy didn't go right away. I stopped minding my eating habits and I stopped working out and when I weighed this past Sunday I was back up to 180 lbs.

But after the week off in Georgia, it's only to be expected that I'd gain weight. Still it's time to do something- maybe something drastic. Maybe it's time to start a -gasp- DIET.

God I hate that word. Diet should just mean a way of eating- not just a way to lose weight. But this diet even has a title so that makes it a diet diet. It's the South Beach Diet.

I read up on it and found it made sense, the 8-14 pounds lost during the two-week induction phase (phase I) made it appealing. Sure, it's mostly water weight, but a quick start is motivating. The idea is to keep insulin from spiking and to lose your craving for sweets and carboydrates. So no grains whatsoever- no bread, rice, oatmeal, potatoes or other starchy foods. No fruit either- because fruit sugar will spike your blood sugar levels too. And no alcohol. Lean proteins, low-fat dairy, many but not all vegetables- as many as you like, nuts, eggs. It promotes "healthy fats". Unlike Atkins, you don't enter a state of ketosis for all the carbs found in vegetables and you can't eat bacon and beef all higgledy piggledy.

In phase II- and this lasts until you reach your desired weight- you slowly reintroduce carbohydrates in the form of whole grains. Start with a little sprouted grain toast here, steel-cut oatmeal there, whole grain pasta and brown rice. You can also start having some red wine. Weight loss should slow down to 1/2 to 1 pound a week, a marked contrast to the weight that was shed in Phase I, but you should still lose steadily. If not, cut back on your carbs- it's sounds like a rather slow process but essentially you're learning how to eat again from scratch.

Once you get down to your ideal weight, you start phase III and that's the maintenance stage. You can have the occasional treat- emphasis on occasional. Birthday cake, pizza, ice cream- but, christ, not every few days occasional. More like once a month occasional.

I went ahead and registered with South Beach Diet online. It's pricey and I don't know if I'll continue to use it- I can't read the forums at work- but I like the recipes. Will I cancel before the 7 day free trial ends? Or should I wait and have a month's worth at $20? Or go ahead a dish out the $65 every 13 weeks? We'll see how it goes.

So far it's going like this:

I started the SBD on Sunday so today is my fourth day in and although it's not my regular weigh-day, I had to sneak a peek.

175 lbs. That's 5 lbs down from Sunday. If I get to 169 or below by the end of my two week induction phase, I will call this diet Successful For Me and stick with it- moving to Phase II on April 5th.





lynn: (Default)
I have been completely unmotivated for the past three weeks or so. One of my best friends died and since then I've felt "I deserve that ice cream, that cookie, that pasta and puff pastry because I am grieving!" For the first time since he died, I had a dream about him last night. He was a dinosaur. I was a dinosaur too. And Dear Husband and everyone else. We did human things and talked like humans, but we were dinosaurs.

But I'm shaking that off and for the first time in over a month, I'm going to the gym today after work. I've bought my meals for the week, my fruits and vegetables and whole grains. I've signed up to run a 10K- in TWO WEEKS!! Less than that actually- more like 11 days. I'll probably do intervals... I have a friend who beat me by 15 minutes in the C_______ Half Marathon by doing intervals of walking/running and I had run the whole way. There is certainly no shame in it.

I haven't weighed myself in three weeks but I don't think the damage is more than four pounds. I'll find out for sure on Sunday.

In another four weeks, Dear Husband and I will be in the deep south, swilling margaritas, partying and playing music with old friends. I have tickets to see Patrick Street in Atlanta. I have a new flight bag. I want to get some travel skirts and have my hair long enough to put in a ponytail by then. Please, hair, grow!

lynn: (Default)
172.

Well, I actually weighed yesterday and forgot to weigh today. I forget to weigh on Mondays a lot, so I might just change my weigh-in day to Sunday because I seem to do it then more often. I'm just too busy on Mondays, getting my stuff together and Toar sleeps in on Mondays, so, you know, Mondays might not be my best weigh-in days.

Still, 172. Not bad. That means not counting calories and eating lots of organic whole foods seems to be working.

And rats. I forgot to get broccoli to eat with my lunches this week. Must remember to do that after work. Mmmm... not tired of broccoli yet. Or roasted cauliflower or asparagus, brussel sprouts....
lynn: (Default)
174.

Not too bad considering we did NOTHING this weekend. Truly, we spent just about the whole weekend lying around the house. Lying in bed, lying on the sofa, watching 24, reading online articles... only left the house to get groceries, eat out with some friends (I had ceviche) and although we mostly ate healthy, last night I did have a chocolate pot de creme. Yeah. Not so healthy there. No wonder I didn't sleep well last night. I pretty much was awake from 2:30 onward. Argh. Definitely stopping for a walk after work today.

Good news is my hair is incredibly soft and shiny these last couple of days.
lynn: (Default)
Last night we had a (very expensive and not to be prepared often!) tuna steak, marinated and broiled. The grill was out of gas, but the oven did a fine job and Dear Husband LOVED it. Asparagus and brussel sprouts. The brussel sprouts were fantastic with the tuna- here is the recipe:



Hashed Brussels Sprouts with Lemon Recipe

Ingredients
1 Tbsp freshly squeezed lemon juice, plus 1 Tbsp grated lemon zest
1 lbs brussels sprouts
1 Tbsp olive oil
4 teaspoons butter
1 garlic clove, minced
1 Tbsp black mustard seeds or poppy seeds
2 Tbsp vermouth or dry white wine
Salt and pepper to taste.

Method


1 Place lemon juice in a large bowl. Cut bottoms off sprouts, and discard. Halve sprouts lengthwise. If you are really ambitions, carefully cut out and discard the firm core of each sprout half. Thinly slice the sprouts. As you work, transfer slices into bowl with lemon juice. When all sprouts are sliced toss them in juice and separate leaves. (Recipe can be prepared to this point and refrigerated, covered, for up to 3 hours.)




2 When ready to serve, heat oil and butter over high heat in a skillet large enough to hold all sprouts. When very hot (almost to smoking point) add sprouts, garlic and seeds, and cook, stirring often, until sprouts are wilted and lightly cooked, but still green and crisp, 3 to 4 minutes. Some leaves might brown slightly.


3 Add vermouth, and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring, 1 minute more. Turn off heat, add salt and pepper to taste and stir in the lemon zest, reserving a little for top of dish. Transfer to a serving bowl, sprinkle with remaining zest and serve.

Serves 4.

I used as much organic as possible, including the wine (which was a trés yummy chard, btw). The butter we had was organic already, but starting Saturday we're going to be cooking with something instead of butter. Coconut oil (which I think would have been beyond delicious with the brussel sprouts)!

Truly, I was reading about cocount oil for about 3 hours yesterday and I'm convinced to at least give it a try on my face and in my food. It's not prohibited in my whole foods diet, Amazon delivers it cheaper than it costs at a health food store, sure why not?



Truly, read some of the user reviews on Amazon. How can I disregard so many positive reviews?
lynn: (Default)
Yesterday's dinner was a remarkable success.

I stood in front of the salad dressings at the grocery store for ages looking for just the right organic marinade for the two organic chicken breasts I'd bought. They only marinated for an hour before I had to cook them, but they were still tasty and juicy- must get more to marinade longer.

The cauliflower was to die for. And I hate cauliflower. As they continued to roast, I kept reaching into the pan, gnoshing on cauliflower as I prepared the rest of the meal. Crazy good. As I was cutting up the head, I put a raw piece in my mouth and ate it quickly thinking, "there's no way to make this vegetable delicious!" -But I was SO wrong. :)

And I feel great again this morning. Fresh and awake. What to make tonight? Salmon with vegetables or shrimp with vegetables? I might even do a beef recipe before too long if I can find a grass-fed, organic cut that isn't too pricey.

My new eating schedule doesn't allow for evening carbohydrates. Something to do with ghrelin and insulin spikes, sleep and how your body metabolizes while you sleep.- So I'm off to find more high protein, healthy fat, high fiber evening meals... wish me luck....
lynn: (Default)
And since I'm dedicated to ONLY weighing on Mondays, then I'll wait. Once I've reached my goal weight, or look, I'll weigh every day as the experts say this helps maintain.

Haven't been very good at counting calories as I've been trying something different. And haven't been to the gym this week since Monday. Monday was intervals and usually once I get on the treadmill and the music is pumping through my ears and my blood starts pumping through my veins, I feel good and energetic.

Not so on Monday. It was ALL a chore. Absolutely soul-crushing. So I just went on a long walk yesterday. I was going to walk again today but I left my purse at home. So now I just want to go home and get it then go to the store. Maybe I'll walk to the store? It's supposed to be a lovely day and I feel really good- alert and healthy. Could eating real food already be making an effect?

In any case, new food thing: Organics and whole foods. Fruits and vegetables, whole grains and lean meat protein as organic as I can find it. Nothing with additives in the ingredients. No alcohol - or maybe I'll just get a couple of bottles of organic wine and have a single glass every couple of days.

Last night I got up 3 times to pee. No kidding. I didn't drink more water than usual, I have to assume it's the water in the fresh fruits and vegetables... and okay, yeah, TMI and all, but the broccoli (which I love) has been coming back every evening to haunt me.

Tonight: Grilled organic chicken breast, spinach with goat cheese and tomato, roasted cauliflower.

Roasted Cauliflower
(Serves 4, unless there are two of you who find it eminently tasty, in which case it serves 2)

1 head of cauliflower (white, orange, purple, green…any color cauliflower will work well in this recipe)
2 Tbsp. olive oil
Salt and pepper

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees.

Chop up a head of cauliflower. Don’t be too compulsive about it—evenly-sized pieces are fine, even if they are not perfect florets.

Put the cauliflower in a roasting pan or baking pan that will withstand high heat and drizzle it with the olive oil. Sprinkle with salt and pepper and toss.

Roast for approximately 30 to 45 minutes, or until the cauliflower is getting well-browned. Do not short-change this step!

Shake the pan once or twice during cooking.

Serve immediately.

lynn: (Default)
Last night it was determined that I can't go out with my friends on the usual Tuesday night and then expect to be able to go to the gym on Wednesday morning. And I like to leave my truck in A-Town and let DH take me back to it on Wednesday morning. So Wednesday will have to be a One Workout Day.

However, yesterday was a two workout day. Very nice. Two mile run in the morning, two and a half mile run in the afternoon with some stationary bike, walking and weight machines thrown in for good measure. And do my arms feel it today!

I got a new application for the iPhone yesterday. Habit Factor, it's called.







The idea is that you get a goal in mind, say, Be a letter-writer. I used to be good about writing letters and it bothers me that I don't anymore. So I write that down as a goal. Now what habits do I need to form to become a letter writer? I need to sit down three times a week for an hour and write a letter. Or two. So I put write that down in the habits section and track my progress there.

This goal and habit also helps me reach another goal I've set for myself. "Keeping busy". I tend to procrastinate- hell, just not do things because I'd just rather not, dammit. This is certainly something I want to change about myself. What habits can I form to stay busy? Not say "no" to people, write letters, go to the gym when I have time to go to the gym.

Which helps me reach another goal: Lose 40 pounds by September 1st. Habits I can form to help me reach that goal? Eating more fruits and vegetables, going to the gym regularly, daily walks. I really like walking, by the way, I ought to walk more in addition to going to the gym. That will also help me keep busy, keeping active.

So it's all about the circle of life, man. I'm not good at forward thinking. I tend to stay in the Here and Now and that's great because it makes me all Zenny, but it's also bad because it makes me lazy and I don't prepare for the future.

So there's an iPhone application review. Maybe I should include "One Review a Week" in my goals. That will certainly help me "Keep Busy".

Equilibrium Enterprises
$3.99
lynn: (Default)
175.

Don't ask me why, I have no idea. Absolutely no exercise since before Christmas until January 2nd, drank plenty, was completely indulgent to my desires. Lay around a LOT!

But then, although I was indulgent, I didn't, you know, eat ALL the time. And my bruised hip is generating heat so there are some extra calories burned there. Ha.

New Years Day I took DH to a fondue restaurant for a four course/four wine meal and it was really fantastic. Had to start the year off with a lovely splurge, but Saturday it was back to work. I went to the gym that afternoon for an hour workout to start the year right.

I haven't yet decided what I'll do on what days re: strength to cardio, but Mondays are intervals because I only do them for 20-25 minutes (including warm-up) so I can leave early to go to the grocery store to get my breakfasts and lunches for the week. So.

Monday mornings - Intervals
Tuesday morning : Tuesday afternoon
Wednesday morning : Wednesday afternoon
Thursday morning : Thursday afternoon
Friday morning : Friday afternoon

And I can walk for an hour on Saturdays and/or Sundays, right? Surely so. The idea is to try and get 1 1/2 to 2 1/2 hours workout a day Tuesdays through Fridays. Not this Friday, I have an appointment, but I get off early and should be able to get at least two hours in on Friday afternoons. I have time for this schedule, the only things I need are motivation and perseverance. I admit, I really want to lose 20 pounds in two months and two weeks. That's not impossible... that's actually very reasonable.

So here we are, starting at 175.
lynn: (Default)
177.

Yeah yeah. Count this as the beginning of the third week in a row I've done absolutely nothing resembling working out. Almost a month! And I've not been curbing my eating nor counting calories. Disgraceful! Do I really want to be a lazy slut for the next seven days until the new year? No! But I also DO want to be a lazy slut. Decisions, decisions!

A pretty good excuse is that I fell at my brother-in-law's on Christmas. I slipped and fell butt first down a flight of three stairs. Did not break my coccyx, butt choosing instead to land to the left. I have huge knot that looks like a third buttock and is slowly filling in black and blue. It really hurts! So... gosh, can't work out like this, can I?
lynn: (Default)
175.

That's not as bad as it sounds. I haven't worked out at all last week. At all. Not at home with the Wii, or the elliptical at home and I've barely glanced at the gym as I drive past in the mornings on my way to work. I've eaten ice cream from Cold Stone, toffee cookies from Central Market, hot chocolate made with heavy cream and whole milk. Been eating out as well. But I never got too full- just ate until I was barely satiated.

New incentive for losing weight though: going on a trip in March to see old friends. It'd be nice to be an enviable size by that time. Don't know what I'll do about that until the next year. I want to be a slug for a couple of weeks but I'd also like to start 2010 at 169 or less.
lynn: (Default)


Visually, this is beautiful application. I like my apps to look grown up for the most part. Not too many different colored fluffy fonts and cheesy clipart, please. Despite the knobs and buttons and flashing lights, this is a pretty simple application.

At settings you choose the total time for your workout, how many seconds per interval at what ratio.

I set mine at a 32 minute workout with 30s intervals at a 3:1 ratio. Which gives me a minute and a half of jogging and 30s of sprinting. Woot.

Sounds is where this app differs from other interval apps.

Audio prompt is where you choose what you want to hear to remind you the music is changing and it's time to change your pace. You can hear a guy's voice go "FAST!" "Slow." Or a series of beeps. Or you can customise. I like the robot voice.

You also get to choose your slow and fast playlists. Or choose no music at all. Just play your iPod in the background instead. However, I chose playlists.

My playlists:

Slow
Daughter
The Drowning Pool
Microphone
Mona Lisas and Mad Hatters
Roxanne
Grey in LA
Bad Day (Daniel Powter)

Fast
Unstoppable
All the Small Things
Africa
None of Your Business
Posthumus Zone (the NFL theme)
That's Entertainment
Pump It Up
Bad Day (REM)

Lame taste in music? Maybe. But it worked for me. I can say that's my first real interval workout. It totally kicked my ass.

I tapped the start where it gave me 1 to 3 minute options for warming up. I picked 0 and started with a nice 5.0 pace for 90 seconds until I got the prompt and the music switched. I increased the pace to 7.5 for 30 seconds. After about 15 minutes of this I was really sweating, struggling, breathing hard. So at 20 minutes I slowed my 90s intervals to a 3.8 walk and my 30s intervals to about 6.5 for about eight minutes. The last four minutes I went back to sprinting, finishing at a 8.2 pace.

Run run run. It kicked my ass. I can't say that enough. Today I understand why you should only schedule interval workouts 2 or 3 times a week and for no more that 30 minutes.

The application performed perfectly. It stopped at the end of 32 minutes and congratulated me on a job well done.
lynn: (Default)
Lunchtime in my office is 11:00. At that time, I stood up and dug around for my Sprouted Brown Rice Bowl so I could take and nuke it when my boss said to me, "Lynn, you know we're having pizza today don't you?"

Argh.

"No," I usually have headphones on at work, "but thanks for telling me. I prefer my own lunch."

Of course I don't prefer my own lunch. Sprouted brown rice. I'd brought salsa and fat free yogurt to put on it for spice and flavor, but honestly, how does that compare to pizza? I can smell it now- forealz. It's just over my cubicle wall on the next desk. All pepperoni, candian bacon and cheezy, the smell is just divine. Warm and greasy, wafting through the office to pause right under my nose.



But giving in to my urges is fortunately easier to do in front of my co-workers. I've already said I prefer to eat my own brown rice and to back down now would be to invite laughter and humiliation.

I cannot be swayed.

Besides, I'm going to the gym after work today. It would be a substandard workout with my belly full of cheese and grease. Right? Right. Stand thee behind me, Satan!

PS I would really love just to have a piece of pizza rind to dip in what's left of my salsa and yogurt. *drool*
lynn: (Default)
174.

Didn't count carefully last week and didn't try too hard to meet my daily goals. However, that's what I like about weighing on a Monday. Get to start a whole new week with a weekend to try and catch up. Still, looking to lose 1-3 pounds a week, so I'm counting myself still in the running. Currently would love to be under 170 by Christmas. Let's say, 168. Sure, that's doable.

Looking at interval workout apps and I'm pleased to see there are 2 or 3 that suit my needs. Looks like a battle between Interval Run and ITGO. Decisions, decisions.

**I bought the ITGO application. Will review it Wednesday.

***eta 12/28/09

Apparently 168 isn't doable. :)
lynn: (Default)
oh. Uh. Guess I might want to update here as well as in my phone.

Monday before Thanksgiving: 175.

Monday after Thanksgiving: 174.

It did say 175, but I reset the scale and it took a pound off. That was after I recorded 175 in my mobile, but essentially I maintained. Which is fine. At least I'm done with that ubiquitous 180.
lynn: (Default)
I've started counting calories this week. I mean, like really counting every little thing. I mathed up my BMR which is 1,561 calories a day. A sedentary day I add 312. That's a day that I don't work out, sit at my desk for 9 hours and go home, lay on the bed and read. Lightly active: 456, moderately active: 624, very active: 780. Very active is running for over an hour on an active day where I'm not sitting at the office.

Since I want to lose 2lbs/week, I'm trying to create a deficit of 1,000 calories a day. I'm averaging about 800-900.

I know how the math works, but for some reason I suddenly feel like I'm doing it right- like I didn't count right before. I'm counting every freakin' calorie and I'm measuring everything I do. I think knowing your basal metabolic rate is really important (you can find the formula online).

So. My goal is to eat about 1170 calories minimum/day (that's a minimum of about 1lb/week). If I burn more than 2200/day, then I can eat more. It works out pretty well. I'll weigh myself every monday- I started at 180. Which is where I've been hovering for forever. However, today at the doctor's I got weighed and I am... wait for it...

180.

But that's with all my clothes on. No shoes, though. So, I think I can take off two pounds from that safely enough. I think I'll definitely be down by Monday morning. I practically know it, just because I've been paying so much attention to my calories in/calories out ratio. There are so many iphone apps that can help. I'm doing Shapeup Club, but Lose It is just as good and it's free.

I had my first checkup in over a decade today. My blood pressure was 110/60, vg. Pulse: 66 bpm- could be better, imo, but I was nervous- also, it turns out I'm 5'7" now. I used to be 5'8". When the doctor came in and looked at my information, she didn't freak about my weight or anything. She said, "well, you look like a very healthy little person!" She didn't care that I smoked, since I smoked so little. She didn't bat an eye at my alcoholic intake.

She did..., well..., her Doctor Exam Stuff and asked if I'd eaten today. I admitted that I hadn't, that I'd been nervous about the appointment, so she sent me to the lap to give blood for tests. In a week or two, I'll know my cholesterol levels! Woot!

Now for the bad bit. She scheduled me for a mammogram on Dec. 4th. Ugh. I've heard nothing by horrible things about mammograms and I am NOT looking forward to it. I don't care about the test results- it's just the exam itself. Argh. My titties do NOT like to be squeezed! Except gently. By my husband. Period.

So there you are. My privates feel invaded so I'm making DH take me to dinner tonight. Sushi.

I ate lightly today so I could enjoy it and maybe have a couple of vodka and club sodas.

**eta Total cholesterol is 190. Not bad- it's in the safe mark, but I'd like to get it lower, I think.
lynn: (Default)
Golly I'm in a good mood this morning. All smiley and laughy for no reason and here it's being wasted in the workplace. I hope it lasts though and I wonder if it's increased energy from my workouts.

I finally got a Nike+ sensor for my shoe. My iPhone has a built in receiver for it so I wanted to take advantage. So far I've had two runs with it. One last Friday when, according to the Nike+, I ran 4.93 miles and then this morning I ran 4.99 miles. At almost half a minute faster than the previous run.

I wanted to run on Sunday but went hiking instead with a friend and his dog and Dear Husband and counted that.

Plus I noticed on Amazon the other day that the Wii game, Active, was on sale- $20 off. I bought it and I'm doing the easy 30 day challenge. After, I'll do the medium, then I'll do the hard. The easy is easy but it still makes me sweat. Not bad.

And I saw a picture of myself from the weekend and although my face is still roundy-round, I do seem slimmer. I am pleased.
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