Getting back in control...again

Control over your eating is great! What a feeling to see food and not feel the need to have to have some of it. And then to have to try ALL of it. My monthly visitor safely behind me, all those weird, uncontrollable cravings go with it. yay!

However, the countdowns continue:

#1. Countdown to Vegas baby, woo! I leave this Thursday and plan to never come back .....at least until Sunday when I return.

#2. Weigh-in for the $900 prize. Momma needs a new set of everything and my clothing are only getting looser by the day.  Still on that plateau and staying around the 183/184 range and I need to get down to 179 by Dec 13th (almost 2 weeks). The heat is on and I have to get thru Vegas to get to the other side - yikes!

Mostly clean eating for the next few weeks. Mostly. Tomorrow I'm going to a burger joint for dinner with a friend and plan to have the burger with the deep fried onions inside plus bottomless fries on the side. mmmmm I'll probably only be able to eat half of it but it will definitely be the DELICIOUS half. 

So of course breakfast and lunch will be VERY clean to compensate for the very messy, heavy and calorie laden dinner that I plan to consume. mmmmmm. stay tuned.

ROLL CALL:

Breakfast (930am)

1/2 cup of oatmeal

1 tbsp raisins

1 tbsp sunflower seeds

1 tbsp pumpkin seeds

sprinkle of cinnamon, nutmeg and a dash of vanilla

1 tsp of stevia natural sweetener

1 large boiled egg

Lunch (130pm)

Wanted something hot and delicious so I went with rare beef pho noodle soup and added tons of broccoli and chopped bok choy

 
Dinner (745pm) 
Craving a shrimp Caesar salad so I made one.

3 oz shrimp meat 

1 tbsp chopped garlic

1/4 cup sliced avocado

Chopped celery for the crunch

3 cups+ Romaine and mixed green lettuce

Kinda homemade dressing:

1 tbsp lite Caesar dressing

1/2 tbsp Italian dressing

1/2 lemon 
Dash of Worcestershire sauce, wasabi paste, and anchovy paste

 

TV Snack (8pm):

Handful of baked kettle chips

1 tbsp spinach chipotle dip

EXERCISE:

None today but I'm going to work out hard in the morning-630am I hear you calling me. Today is my rest day and although I hate rest days, tomorrow at the gym I'll be able to work out for longer and with more weights and go farther so I KNOW that resting is good for you even though it's sooo difficult sometimes to sit on your ass when you could be out at the gym!

DRINKS: 

7 glasses of water (yikes! I need to almost double this amount tomorrow)

2 cups of green tea (1 tea bag)

Happy Eating!

Oh I get it - I'm on a plateau!

I would actually prefer a pedestal but...

So the day after I scarf down bagels for lunch, cupcakes later on and other delicious foodstuffs, I actually dropped 1/2 a pound from the day before.

Go figure!

So now I'm back down to 183. yay. Only 25lbs to go. Double yay.

I'm gonna kick the pants off those last 25.

But I've been @ 183 for a few weeks now and there are only 2 weeks left until the December 13th weigh-in for the $900 prize. I'm currently leading but the person in second is now on one of those Dr. Bernstein type diets and is closing in fast.  I'll need to step up my game to maintain my lead. Another 5lbs or so in the next 2 weeks should do it. I'll start with a 90 minute boxing class in the morning followed by a protein shake and go from there. 

I'll keep you posted on that.

Vegas is coming up this weekend too. So excited! As I will be drinking all my calories in hard booze with diet sodas (who has time to eat in Vegas??) I'm not too worried about vacation eating. There will be no buffets or all-you-can-eats for me. Plus with all the dancing and walking my girlfriends and I will be doing, I know I'll be able to get my exercise in that way.

Also, whoever said you can't lose weight if you drink booze obviously didn't realize that you simply have to cut out the FOOD part if you're gonna be drinking. Meals this weekend will consist of limes, lemons, celery sticks, maraschino cherries and whatever else they garnish the drinks with there. 

Last time in Vegas (just a few months ago) I lost 5lbs over a 4 day period. 

Here's hoping my luck hasn't run out.

Yay! I think a triple yay is in order here too. yay yay yay!

ROLL CALL:

Breakfast (2:45pm - had a house party last night & started day REAL late)

Shrimp omellet

3 oz Shrimp meat

1 egg plus 4 egg whites

1/4 cup Mushrooms, Onions & Green onions
1 oz goat cheese, crumbled

=I've been craving this for awhile and it was delicious.

  
Afternoon snack (5:30pm)

1 baby bel cheese

8 red grapes

Lunch (7pm)

Chicken stir fry

1/4 cup jasmine rice

3 oz chicken

2 cups broccoli, red/green/orange peppers and muchrooms

Garlic

Teriyaki sauce

soy sauce

Dinner (10:30pm)

Hot dog with ketchup, mustard and relish

DRINKS

9 glasses of water

1 americano

1 hot chocolate

EXERCISE

15 minutes on stairmaster (level 13)

25 minutes on treadmill (11 minutes of sprints, walking rest of time)

10 minutes weighted sqauts and lunges

10 minutes ab work and stretching

Happy Eating!

Elusive happiness... when will size-6 bliss come?

More compliments this week. Coworkers and people I haven't seen in a few months are bestowing me with multiple compliments and congratulations on my slimmer figure. I should feel amazing but I don't.

5'7 and in still in the 180s. Argh. Where are those magic pills when you need em!

This lead me to wonder " When does the 'happy' kick in?"

175 lbs is the short term goal and it is still several pounds away.

I know about inches and body shape and I know I should be happy that everything is moving (albeit VERY slowly) in the right direction but sheesh! C'mon already.

ROLL CALL

Breakfast

1/2 cup full fat plain yogurt

1/4 cup granola

3/4 cup sliced strawberries

Lunch

1/2 whole wheat pita

2 oz black forest ham

1 oz cheddar cheese

1/2 cup sliced Cucumber

1/2 cup sliced green pepper

Sliced tomatoes

1 cup potato and leek soup

Testing out the new camera on my brand new RIM Blackberry Bold 9700! If you don't know how cool this device is, then you aren't as into mobile phones as you should be. I think I like it. Look how crisp and green everything looks. Great colour! I'm sold. (Luckily I won it cuz the retail price is $699.95)

Dinner

5 pieces tuna sashimi

6 pieces salmon & avocado roll

1 White dinner roll

2 tbsp of peanut butter

EXERCISE

Whoops. None today. Worked OT at the first job today and had plans later so unfortunately the gym was the first to go. Luckily, I get to go tomorrow morning @ 7AM instead. I love early morning gym sessions!

DRINKS

8 glasses of water

3 cups of green tea (1 tea bag, mug refilled 3 times)

1/2 bottle of vitamin water (tangerine flavour)


Happy Eating!

Sunday Planning

First thing - Time to follow up on yesterday's goals:

1. Increase dietary fiber (ensure I'm eating 25g/day) Check!
   
2. Get 7.5+ hours of sleep per night (I know this works!) Check!
3. Take a multivitamin each day (Still need to purchase)
   
4. Drink 9+ glasses of water per day Check!
   
5. Reduce sodium (minimal sea salt additions) - Errr...need to purchase a sea salt alternative
   
6. Exercise for 60minutes min, 5+ days a week with lots of cardio, crossfit/boxing classes and hot yoga (REST DAY)
   
7. Increase protein intake (aim for150g/day) (Area to work on)
   
8. Plan, plan, plan and then plan some more. Then, of course, revisit these goals on a daily basis and modify, increase as needed. Check! I planned meals for the week and have planned out exercise and meals

5/8  or 62%. A passing grade, yay! Go me. But I'm sure I can do better. I'll get on it!

 

ROLL CALL

Breakfast:

1 cup All Bran cereal

1/2 cup slim milk

1 boiled egg

Lunch:

1 slice whole grain bread

1 tbs peanut butter 

1 Curve brand fiber bar

Dinner:

1 whole wheat pita

2 balls bocconcini cheese

1 oz pepperoni 

1 tsp parmesean cheese

1/2 cup mushrooms, onions, garlic, green & red peppers

Dessert:

1/2 cup turtles ice cream. mmmmmm

DRINKS:

8 glasses of water

1 tall long americano with a shot of caramel syrup

 

EXERCISE: Rest day

Happy Eating!

 

I said NO to brunch today

I have 2 countdowns taking place right now:

1. Countdown to girlie weekend in Vegas (Dec 3rd to 6th) 

2. Countdown to Group Weigh-In (Dec 13th) 

Time's run out. No room for excuses. The scale doesn't lie and my clothes need to get looser and fast! 

There is no place for major errors and all my slimming down efforts need to be increased and maintained for the next 3 weeks. Treats will be to a minimum and fruits and veggies will be at an all time max.

The prize for the biggest loser (% weight lost) - $900 to go towards my new slimmer me wardrobe which I desperately need! I'm wearing baggy size 12 & 14 clothes when I'm actually a size 10/11, ack!

Goals to achieve/maintain for the next 3 weeks:

1. Increase dietary fiber (ensure I'm eating 25g/day)
2. Get 7.5+ hours of sleep per night (I know this works!)
3. Take a multivitamin each day
4. Drink 9+ glasses of water per day
5. Reduce sodium (minimal sea salt additions)
6. Exercise for 60minutes min, 5+ days a week with lots of cardio, crossfit/boxing classes and hot yoga
7. Increase protein intake (aim for150g/day)
8. Plan, plan, plan and then plan some more. Then, of course, revisit these goals on a daily basis and modify, increase as needed. 

My friend invited me to brunch this morning. I LOVE brunch. I was made for brunching. If I could brunch everyday I totally would. Alas the place they were brunching at was a great Mexican restaurant that I have been to in the past and there are no healthy options there. Everything is fried, greasy, high calorie, high in fat and highly delicious. 

So I said no. December 14th is going to be a smorgasbord of eating. I know rewarding yourself with food is bad, a serious no-no and is heavily frowned upon but the hope is that I can increase my salad intake and decrease the 'other' food intake knowing that I can have one big treat day in the near future.

Oh gawd, wish me luck.

ROLL CALL:

Breakfast

Protein shake:

3/4 cup 1% milk
1 scoop of protein powder (25g of protein)

1/4 cup bananas

1 tbsp peanut butter

1 tbsp Nestle chocolate sauce

Dash of stevia (all natural sweetener)

Snack:   Elevate Me protein bar-Banana Nut bread flavour  (16g protein/9g fiber)

Lunch

1 small turkey breast and brie cheese (1oz) whole wheat panini

1 cup chick pea and red bean salad

1 cup fresh fruit (cantaloupe, red grapes, honeydew melon, watermelon)
Dinner
Garden salad
Rotisserie  chicken

EXERCISE:

15 minutes StairMaster (level 13)

25 minutes treadmill sprints

5 minutes ab work

10 minutes stretching

DRINKS:
8 glasses of water

1 cup Cafe Mocha with 2% milk

1/2 bottle Vitamin water - xxx

Happy Eating!

Brunch photo credit

"Nothing tastes as good as skinny feels" - Kate Moss

Oh it's sooo good to be back on my home computer. I don't know how people live without internet access at home. Even tho I did technically have access on my blackberry, on my work computer, at my friends' houses and even, I'm sure, at public libraries (do people still go online there?) However NOTHING beats your home PC (please pause while I give my Dell a big hug).
What's really silly is that my 2 bedroom apartment has 3 computers (1 desktop and 2 laptops) so you'd think between the 3 of them at least ONE would be up and running?? Ha! Properly working computers are for the rich.
 

So super model Kate Moss is under fire for reportedly saying "Nothing tastes as good as skinny feels"  which is apparently a popular saying among pro-anorexia websites.
Wow. I guess there's a website for everything.
The problem for me is that I agree. It's part of the motivation I use to slim down and shed the extra pounds. Isn't that why the weight loss industry rakes billions of $$$ per year? Everyone wants to be 'skinny'.



What better motivation NOT to have that extra slice of pizza or that large chunk of chocolate cake or the fatty what-cha-ma-call-it, the deep fried whatever and to instead make healthier food choices.
Would people like it better if she said "Nothing tastes as good as a healthy body accompanied by a well balanced diet feels"? This is how I would interpret it anyway. As a girl who is still trying to make leggings looks good (not there yet) I need all the motivation & witty (if harsh) sayings I can find!

Are people mad that she said it or mad that she's right?


Anorexia (and its sister illness - Bulimia) is the side effect of our desire to be slender, skinny, tiny, small, petite, etc. Why kick the messenger (she's so skinny, they'd probably miss her anyway), maybe the naysayers would be better off looking at why they're mad at the message itself.

SLIMMING TIP:  Decide on your healthy size. There are a million tools out there to help us determine what a healthy weight and size is for our body types so we should utilize them. Knowing your proper weight range can help in setting realistic goals. 
At 5'7" with a large frame (I gain beautiful muscles quite easily,yay!) my healthy (or normal) weight range is 140lbs to 160lbs. My current goal - 150 to 158lbs. 
Caveat - make sure a variety of sources are used! Personal Trainers, physicians and various trusted health oritented websites combined can provide a great overall view of what proper physical fitness and a healhty lifestyle should look like.


Yee gads -according to one source, I should weigh less than 135lbs -yikes! I think I came out of the womb weighing in @ 145 so I have long since passed that low, low mark. :)



Happy Eating!






Kate Moss Photo credit: http://theskinnywebsite.com/site/category/kate-moss/ 
Dell photo credit: http://powerdeals.in/powerdeals/images/products/dell_desktop.230135040_std.jpg

Weight Loss on TV - Biggest Loser Review - Episode 9

Biggest Loser Review

ZIPLOC! This is obviously the product sponsor of this episode. I wonder if Bob or the contestants feel silly uttering insincere lines like 'oh I love this stuff', 'it’s green too?? Wow, that’s amazing!'


Yes folks, Ziploc green bags are powered by 15% wind power which is great but ads within the show - TACKY!

I want to go to any of their houses now and see which contestants actually paid for and are using those green bags.
Sheesh!

Anywho, makeovers? I LOVE makeovers. While it’s true that they've lost a lot of weight, if you were to meet any one of them for the first time, you wouldn't know that they had each lost a minimum of 50lbs! I had a friend with me as I forced myself to watch this week's episode and she asked repeatedly "oh so they've lost weight?"
I wasn't too impressed with the makeovers because they're all good looking people so adding a little makeup to the girls and some pizzazz to the fellas was all they really needed.

I can't wait for the finale when we get to see what they look like now. THAT will be a complete transformation and I can't wait to see it.!

It's at this point in the show where I get motivated. Now that they're slimming down to a point where the ladies are right at my weight range (in the 180's) that’s when I put the spoon and the turtles ice cream down (very slowly) and pick up the fresh strawberries instead.

Good luck to Amanda, my new fave character and a big BOOOO to Rudy who made Rebecca cry, was a jerk to Shay and tells others they don't keep their words or can't be trusted when in fact it HE who's the real jerk and fudger of the truth.
As an aside- kudos to Rudy on the hot wife! Wowza! Seeing his before, I'm impressed he got such a hottie who must have obviously been a chubby chaser. Great catch my man!

Computer Status Follow up (I received your emails, thanks for the support!):

What a pain in the arse it is to have a computer go down on you. Viruses are so mean! I have all the virus protection I thought I needed but I guess I needed a little bit more.


I realize too I don't like spontaneity. Well I like it but I like to plan for it. Viruses are the epitome of spontaneity and you certainly can't plan for them. Boooo I say, BOO!!

While my work computer is fast and wonderful - it is not always accessible and plus I have that ol day job to get in the way.

Luckily, no freelance writing jobs right now but I do have a social media project to start ASAP so I need my beautiful baby to work right now!
Good news! Help is arriving in the form of IT friends coming by my place tonight to fix up the ol 'puter, yay!


I will be blogging again daily in no time! Woo! :)

Boo to viruses!

Hey folks,


My apologies if you're here now looking for a new blog post. My home computer may be fried so I will have to either buy a new one today or get it fixed ASAP.

Stay tuned!

'Nelley

Weekend Break due to excessive jealousy

I'm jealous. 

I want this website to be better. To look better and to be something that people want to read, want to comment on, participate in and especially -want to visit. I want to start forums and discuss ideas, provide tips (personal and reader provided) and 'yay or nay' healthy eating regimes and find out what works best for us in our never ending quest to slim down. I don't want to 'diet' forever. I want to be able to eat what I want, when I want it. The hope being that we'll crave veggies, desire natural items and recognize that highly processed foods typically don't make your body feel as good as the natural stuff.

I have been looking at other food blogger/slimming down websites and I want my food pics to be as original and inspiring as theirs. I want them to pop off the page and to be tempting and drool worthy.

So I'm unplugging this weekend to get my s$%t together and start fresh on Monday.

I've got to get my shopping list completed, pick up lots of supplies and I especially need to purchase some groceries (after all, the only vegetation in my fridge is the green stuff growing off the leftovers, yikes!)

Also, as of Monday, there will be 27 days until the final weigh-in for the Biggest Loser style contest I'm doing with my girlfriends so focus is key in these final weeks.

So I also want to shop around and visit different gyms and take a look at different classes available in my area so I can plan out a workout schedule for the next  27 days. 

And of course I will still concentrate on healthy choices this weekend. I certainly cant hide extra calories and fat seeing as they will show up on the scale next Friday anyway. :)

Wish me luck!

This Weekend's Mantra: All good things begin on Monday

See you Monday!

COUNTDOWN TO GROUP WEIGH IN DAY - 30 days remain

Today's Mantra: The scale is my friend. The scale is my friend. om

186. Although the scale is really a fickle bastard, today is a day where I received 3 compliments on my slimmer figure and healthier appearance.  Also, trying on some pants at a fancy boutique (aka Sears department store, hee hee), I easily slipped into a size 10 pant -minimal muffin top - wowza!

Yes, I have been slacking in the healthy eating department this past week as well as fewer exercise sessions. However, I must have lost some inches along the way. Woo!

In any case, NO MORE excuses! Time for me to ramp it all up, plan better and take my health and well being to the next level. Size 6, you're MINE!

Another day, another fresh start. I began with an exercise class at 7AM that got me pumped for the day. Then I packed a whole bag full of delicious snacks and food items for the day (see roll call below)

And I even began the day with a treat - a small 1/2 scoop of turtles ice cream in a pure protein shake. mmmmm.

I love a lil cheat. Makes you feel sooo good. hee hee hee. But just a lil one though. Big cheats (see here) make you feel gross/guilty/horrible/(insert bad feeling here).

I also can't forget either that its my...

COUNTDOWN TO GROUP WEIGH IN DAY - December 13th, 2009 - Day 1 of 30

which means I have to pay extra special attention to all that goes into this large, always open, mouth of mine. sigh. Well if I win the $900 pot, I'm going shopping for some new clothes.  And if I don't, I'm going to an all-you-can-eat buffet. Just kidding. By then, I'll be too content with healthier feelings and energetic bursts of life that I won't even wanna THINK about a gross, over processed, non natural based meal and how bloated I'll feel after too. Yuck. Well that's the plan at least. Wish me luck!

Pre workout snack (6:45am):

1 square - Elevate Me bar. Banana Bread flavour. mmmm

Meal #1 (8:30am):

1/2 cup milk

2 heaping TBSP turtles ice cream

1 scoop protein (25g of protein)

squirt of Nestle syrup (before I remembered the ice cream!)

Meal #2 (9:45am):

1/2 cup full fat plain yogurt

3/4 cup sliced strawberries

1/4 cup granola

Snack (11:30am):

6 almonds

1 tsp peanut butter

Meal #3 (12:45pm):

4 strawberries
1/2 grapefruit
1/2 whole wheat pita, filled with

Romaine lettuce

1oz feta cheese

2oz chicken breast

Sliced tomato

Black olives

Chopped cucumbers

2 tsp greek dressing

 

Snack (2pm):

6 almonds

1 tsp peanut butter 

Meal #4 (3:45pm):  

1/2 whole wheat pita, filled with

Romaine lettuce

1oz feta cheese

Sliced tomato

Black olives

Chopped cucumbers

2 tsp Greek dressing

Meal #4: 730

Appetizers and snacks @ various parties tonight. Drinking lots of water now in preparation.

Will fill in later but I plan to eat minimally and conserve extra calories for foods I actually want tonight

DRINKS:

8 glasses of water

3 cups of Green tea (1 tea bag, refilled 3 times)

EXERCISE:

7AM Crossfitting again (www.crossfitwestside.com).

Warmup: 7x 250m sprints onthe rowing machine

Workout: push jerks (weightlifting move, 60lbs weight), bar chin ups - 15QTY then 12QTY then  9 of each.

Happy Eating!

peanut butter photo credit:http://www.ipadrblog.com/uploads/image/PeanutButter_preview.jpg

Breaking up is easy!

SLIMMING TIP: Breakin' it up.  Experts suggest 30 minutes a day of cardio but I prefer to do 45min to at least 1hour. Does 45 mins on the treadmill sound like too much? I typically break it down into 15 to 20 minutes segments to keep it light and fun.

BREAKING NEWS:

I'm in a competition with 8 other slim-challenged girlfriends to drop as much excess baggage as we can.  We started this competition back in June of this year. But as of Friday, November 13th, there will be only 30 days left. On December 13th, we each take part in the FINAL weigh-in. The winner takes home the $900 pot. Plus they get to plan a celebratory party for the group while we celebrate our healthier (and hopefuly MUCH slimmer selves.)

What this means - no more dilly dallying, No more joking around and no more excuses!

Eeek!

Tomorrow's game plan: Get some new recipes (courtesy of some fellow bloggers, thanks!), figure out a work out schedule and plan for any hiccups (dinner parties tomorrow and saturday night and a vegas trip for the first weekend of December). Plus I'll need tons of motivation, support and good friends who'll forgive me when I snap at them because I cut of sugar for a few days (I'm curious to see how long I can last -sugar free!).

Wish me luck!

ROLL CALL

Breakfast (8:15am):

The ol' breakfast smoothie. Yes, I'm a little sick of them too so I'll need to get some nw recipes for this one.

Mid morning snack (11:15am):

1 free rande, organic boiled egg

Lunch (1pm):

Leftover nicks spaghetti house so
1 breaded veal cutlet with cheese
3/4 cup spaghetti
1.5 cups of mixed veggies in sauce

Dinner (8:30pm):

Greek Salad with grilled chicken
Feta cheese
Black olives
Cucumber
Romaine lettuce
Tomatoes

DRINKS:

10 glasses of water

3 cups of green tea (2 tea bags, mug refilled)

EXERCISE:

45 minutes of sprints and walking on the treadmill

Happy Eating!

Switch it up! When the same old meals each day starts getting you down

SLIMMING TIP: Switch it up. I have been eating salads for the past few months and although I do love them, I am finally sick of the ones that I have been having every week. I came to the point where if I see another salad, I will have to strangle it. Definitely time to switch it up so today's plan is to look up new salad recipes or vegetable side dishes.
I'm gonna search the archives of fellow bloggists  like http://tjstestkitchen.blogspot.com/ cuz that shrimp taco looks really good.  I can just substitue the shrimp with black beans and maybe boil up some quinoa to give it more girth . Hmmmm. Also, over at http://girlstuckinarut.blogspot.com/ she has an apsaragus and mushroom penne that looks good. I'd just make my own light cream sauce (I'll post the recipe soon), exchange the asparagus for tons of broccoli and ensure it's a whole wheat pasta and I'll be set.  Mmmmmm. I'm looking forward to this task for sure!

 

Unfortunately I was a little derailed by the following website - http://thisiswhyyourefat.com/  and now I am on a quest to either find the upside down macaroni and cheese pizza or to make the oreo cookie cake.

Although I am severely grossed out by the thought of making and/or eating either of them.....sort of. Please don't judge me!

ROLL CALL:


Breakfast (9:15am)
1/2 cup full fat yogurt
1/4 cup granola
1/4 cup bluberries
1/2 cup sliced strawberries


Mid morning snack (11:30am):
1 free range organic egg, boiled

Lunch (1:15pm):
Salmon Pita
3oz salmon with mayo, worchestir, onions, hot sauce, basil leaves, pepper, 2 olives and horseradish mustard
1/4 cup cucumber
1/4 cup tomato
Lettuce
1 whole wheat pita
1 oz havarti cheese

Afternoon snack (2:45pm):
 2 oreo cookies (inspired by large oreo cookie cake above. I firgured this was a better alternative)


Dinner (7pm)
Vegetable stir fry - brocolli, peppers, garlic, ginger, cabbage, zucchini, carrots and cauliflower
udon noodles
teriyaki sauce


DRINKS:
10 glasses of water
2 mugs of green tea
1 cup of coffee (needed an extra pick me up today)

EXERCISE:
Still feeling the burn from yesterday's 200+ squats (150 air squats, 50 regular squats) so as walking is somewhat awkward today, I will let myself rest.
Plus, as it is Remembrance Day/Veterans day, all the community centre gyms and many private gyms have closed by 5pm . I too will honour the fallen (God bless them all)  but I wish I could also run on the treadmill for a bit.


Happy Eating!

Photo credit: Oreo cake

Weight Loss on TV Review 2 - The Biggest Loser: Circus Drama

...and as always - gratuitous product placements. This time brought to you by Lara Bars. Sheesh! Just TELL US they're a sponsor of this show or they gave you a bunch to try out. That's all I ask! Argh!

RANT (cont'd):  I wonder if Bob even eats Lara Bars himself. He was pretty quick to toss 'em over to the contestants. Didn't see him nibbling on one at all. Hmmmmm curious. Also, I think I need to stop mentioning Lara Bars before you start thinking that I endorse them too - gasp!

* For the record, my fave snack/energy bars are Elevate Me bars becasue they're all natural ( 6 ingredients!), high in protein (15g) and low in fat (less than 4g) with no artificial anything - delish! I'm just sayin. At least I ACTUALLY eat them. Take THAT Bob! Humph! (Ps. Bob I still love you! :)  )

Whats this? Finally some excitement on this show! With Tracey gone (my fave character) I was curious to see what drama (real or fake) they would have on this show. Shay's throwdown with Liz and Rudy was interesting.  See! This is what happens when slimming down stops being fun. Everyone gets pissy! They were probably just hungry, Bob should have thrown 'em a couple Lara Bars (snicker, snicker).

Also, talent aside, I will never get over Jillian's seemingly extra large eyebrows. After several years on this show, how has she managed to escape the makeup artist's tweezers. Good on her. Knowing Jillian, the makeup artist is probably scared of her AND her freakishly large eyebrows.

Yay! Point: Good on Daniel for trying to help his old obese buddy slim down. I didn't understand what the chubby kid said over the sounds of his bouncing neck rolls but it sounded like a lot of BS and excuses for why he planned to remain blissfully obese. You can't help those who don't want to be helped. You just come across as preachy and that doesn't help ANYONE.

Note To Biggest Loser producers: Enough with the 'thoughts' that the losers are supposed to share after the weigh-in. They're dropping massive amounts of weight per week and have to preach to the audience as to why they're sad that they only lost 8lbs in ONE WEEK!  Yikes! I will never get over that.

I give props: Working out with a trapeze artist and with trapeze bars in that circus like room was definitely original and cool. I need to get out of the gym and into something more interesting before I get sick of my tri-weekly jaunts to the basic gym. I saw this poster at my local gym the other day and will definitely check it out next Monday! Its called Brazilicious and you get to shake your boom boom to the rythms of Brazil. Sounds fab! 2 classes left and @  only $10 per 75 minute class, it sounds like a great deal to me. Wish me luck!

Update - DAY 1 - Mini Goals:

Goal 1: Get more sleep (minimum 7 hrs)

Day 1 Result: slept for 6.75 hours

Goal #2: Drink a glass of water (16oz) with lemon first thing every morning

Day 1 Result: It would help if I actually bought some dang lemons first. Feck!

 

ROLL CALL

Breakfast (9:15am):

The ol' Breakfast smoothie.

I am officially sick of this shake and will now proceed to find a suitable alternative for the next 3 days.

Mid morning snack (11:45am):

5 crackers

1 oz each of Boursin cream cheese, smoked chipotle cheddar and goat cheese

Lunch - Nick's Spaghetti house - (1pm):

My friend called randomly to take me out to lunch.

How do you say no to that? The answer - you don't!

I tossed my tuna fish sandwich aside & hopped in his ride.

Menu:

1 Medium sized Garden salad

1 slice of white bread with butter

2 Breaded veal cutlets ( I only ate 1 QTY)

Ravioli pasta with red pasta sauce ( I could only eat 1/2 the dish)

Nibbles of his blueberry cheesecake- so good, I will definitely go back and get a full thick slice in 5lbs or so. I'll bring a gaggle of girls too - 1 big slice and 4 spoons should do us good.

Mid afternoon snack (5:45pm): 

NEW ITEM! Mint chocolate chip brownie from Starbucks - yuck. A friend brought them over for me to try so I tried it. And I won't be trying it again.

Dinner (8:45pm):

Still full from lunch, I just steamed a whole bunch of veggies in Pho broth with a handful of noodles.

....then I had 3 oreo cookies hee hee hee. I was just making sure they were still fresh! They were and are. mmmmmmm

DRINKS:

11 glasses of water

2 glasses (8 oz total) of red wine

3 cups of Green tea (1 tea bag, mug refilled 3 times)

EXERCISE:

7 to 8am - crossfit class again. The highlights were the 150 squats, follow by 75 situps we had to do at the end of the bootcamp like class. Damn they're good over there.

As tomorrow is Remembrance day and a day off here in BC, most gyms are closed or only open between 1pm and 5pm (like REALLY!?) which doesn't help my 9-5 hours during the week. Searching now for a gym thats open in the a.m, otherwise I will be doing the at home workout I should have done on Sunday.

Happy Eating!

Pasta photo credit: liveonthedrive.wordpress.com/.

Ping blog

New week, fresh start, great beginnings!

I love new beginnings!

As in today, new beginning after a weekend of excessive deliciousness. (see weekend blog for the offending rap sheet) I have 2 mini goals in mind for this week.

Mini Goals:

1. Get more sleep (minimum 7 hrs)

2. Drink a glass of water (16oz) with lemon first thing every morning
  
Rant of the week: Here in BC (That's short for British Columbia  for my out of country friends) everyone gets Remembrance day off (November 11). Everyone that is, except my company. As we are a national company, most of our holidays are streamlined. Booo to being fair and just across the board. Since our Ontario counterparts have to work, so do we.  Boo! I would happily take on the extra holidays of our friends in Quebec like National Patriots' Day (in May) and La Fête nationale du Québec (in June).

Optimism: well the commute to & from work will be light that day (yay!) and the work load should be light as ALL OUR CORPORATE clients will be off that day. I'm packing bailey's for the coffees that day. Thank goodness for small pleasures!

ROLL CALL

Breakfast (9:15am):

Good 'ol protein shake

Scoop of protein - 25g of protein

1/4 cup of strawberries

1/4 cup of blueberries

Spoonful of steelcut oats

1/2 cup of milk

1/4 cup plain, full fat yogurt

Dash of stevia 

Mid morning snack (11am):

1 large free range, organic boiled egg sprinkled with sea salt and black pepper

NEW ITEM! well new to me - A handful of Seaweed Tempura. So they take perfectly healthy seaweed, cover it in a tempura batter and deep fry it. Brillant! It's up there with deep fried, cheese covered broccolli (which I have yet to try, but I can't wait to put it in my mouth!)

My thoughts: Weird after taste but I love the crunch. The crunch had me going back for more.
Lunch (12:45pm):

Ricotta and spinach stuffed chicken breast
3 cups Garden Salad (iceberg lettuce, carrots, red cabbage)
1 tbsp French Dressing (bottle says it expired in Sep/09 but its a full bottle & I can't throw it out!)
1 cup chicken enchilada soup

Mid afternoon snack (2:45pm)

Handful of salt & vinegar chips (from that same friend with the tempura seaweed)

Dinner:

Vietnamese noodle soup
Craving some Pho so I had the rare beef noodle bowl
I also bought a bunch of pre cut veggies (it was only $3!) and dumped them all in there along with some bok choy.
Vancouver living rocks!

After dinner snack (9pm):
Then I was craving a little something sweet and luckily (unluckily) my roomie had a block of milk chocolate from which I took a chunk and dipped it into 1 tablespoon of peanut butter.
Mmmmm heaven.

EXERCISE: 
Cardio Day
15 minutes stair master - level 13, fat burner plus profiles
35 minutes on treadmill (Peak - 5.4 mph @ 5.0 incline)
5 minutes stretch and cool down



DRINKS:
12 glasses of water
4 oz Cafe Mocha (leftover from yesterday and reheated in the morning)
3 cups of green tea (1 tea bag and mug refilled 3 times)

In review, not too bad really and I'd like to thank you all for keeping me on track. I was gonna bail on the gym today but then I thought - but then i'll have to write that I skipped the gym again in my blog and THAT would suck. So thank you! You're the reason I'll drop those last pesky 30+ lbs!

Happy Eating!


Photo credit: http://www.veryasia.com/tesehitetkae.html

Eating Fail. AKA how to get back on that wagon

Ok, I'm obviously still cruising off my epic 4lb weight loss this past week (woo hoo!) and have subsequently thrown all my healthy eating plans down the drain this weekend.

Must. Get. Back. On. Track. 

Apparently, getting back on track will have to wait until after breakfast.

SLIMMING TIP: My today list, in anticipation of getting back on that dang wagon (I can see it off in the distance...right there next to the Dairy Queen. uh oh).

Today I want to:

Forgive myself 

Eat better (after breakfast of course) 

Be inspired to get off the couch

Workout at home in front of the TV  (I'm going to do this 1 hour before dinner today!)

ROLL CALL

Breakfast (11:30am): 

Sunday brunch! I love them so much. Especially the 'mornings after the night befores'. My friends and I get together and compare notes on all the events of the previous night.

It's called the Monster Breakfast. How appropriate.

2 eggs over easy

2 buttermilk pancakes

2 sausage links, butterfly cut

2 pieces of bacon

1 serving of country fried potatoes

Untold amounts of butter and grease, aka - the delicious part

****Update*** Bye bye wagon...

Lunch?? (6:50pm): 

Protein shake & 1 slice of toast with almond butter

1 cheese bun

Snack (7:30pm):
Cheesies
BBQ Corn chips
Sweet chili heat- Doritos

Dinner (9pm):
Salad and chicken breast
1 slice pepperoni pizza
1 slice spicy mushroom pizza
1 tbsp ranch dressing (for dipping!)

EXERCISE: 
Ummm...I helped a friend move a large and heavy TV (I'll take what I can get here!) It's also where I munched on all those dang delicious chips!

DRINKS:
10 glasses of water
12oz cafe mocha made with 2% milk
Today's mantra: Tomorrow is a new day, tomorrow is a new day, tomorrow is a new day......

Happy eating!

Sunday brunch photo credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/adactio/1794397389/