Getting Fit - Tips and Tricks of the Successful

Surviving the Vacation

2009-09-07T16:25:00.000-07:00

It seems fitting that if you go on vacation from your day-to-day routine that includes your regular eating habits. Right or wrong that often ends up being the case.

As I prepared for my vacation in August, I didn't really make any promises to myself other than to "not go overboard" at mealtimes. My daily eating routine typically consists of breakfast, 2 small morning snacks, lunch, 2 small afternoon snacks, dinner and an evening snack. While vacationing, I usually ate 3 big meals. Those meals sometimes included food items that I don't normally eat such as waffles, cream based soups, french fries, peanut butter cookies, etc. My splurges were usually side items vs. the focal points of my meal.

Although it was an active 12-day vacation that included rock climbing, snorkeling and a LOT of walking... I put on 6 lbs. I suppose that's not too bad. It's been two weeks since my vacation and I'm down 3 lbs. In the end, I never let myself forget that eating healthy is a priority. So, I think I maintained a decent balance of splurging and restraint. That's what vacations are about right?

Restaurant Nutritional Menus

2009-08-05T17:08:00.001-07:00

I have a weakness for dining out. So, I have collected a list of restaurant nutritional menus; even some places I never go. I keep them handy in my email Inbox so it's never more than a couple touches away on my iphone. Enjoy!

(If you know of any others please post in a comment. I'd love to expand this list.)

Baja Fresh

http://www.bajafresh.com/nutritionals.php

Bob Evans
http://www.bobevans.com/menu/nutrition.aspx

California Pizza Kitchen
http://www.cpk.com/menu/pdfs/main-dessert-nutritional-menu.pdf

California Tortilla

http://nutrition.californiatortilla.com/recipe_categories.php

Champps

http://www.champps.com/Menu/Specialties/tabid/168/Default.aspx

Chili's

http://www.brinker.com/gr/nutritional/chilis_nutrition_menu.pdf

Chipotle

http://www.chipotle.com/ChipotleNutrition.pdf

Cold Stone Creamery

http://www.coldstonecreamery.com/nutritional/nutrition_information.html

Cosi

http://www.getcosi.com/folders.asp?action=display&record=17

Dunkin Donuts

https://www.dunkindonuts.com/aboutus/nutrition/nutrition.pdf

Five Guys

http://net.fiveguys.com/files/files/NutritionalInfo_Oct2008.pdf'

Don Pablo's

http://www.donpablos.com/pdfs/NutritionalGuide707.pdf

Longhorn

http://www.longhornsteakhouse.com/pdf/2009LongHornSteakHouseNutrition.pdf

Macaroni Grill

http://www.brinker.com/gr/Nutritional/Mac_NutritionalInfo.pdf

Mimi's Cafe

http://www.mimiscafe.com/MenuLifestyle.aspx

Olive Garden

http://www.olivegarden.com/menus/printable/NutritionInformation.pdf

Outback

http://www.outback.com/foodandmenus/nutritionalinfo.aspx

On the Border

http://www.brinker.com/gr/nutritional/OTB_NutritionBW.pdf

Panera

http://www.panerabread.com/pdf/nutr-guide.pdf

PeiWei

http://www.peiwei.com/pdfs/nutritional.pdf

PF Changs

http://www.pfchangs.com/pdfs/nutritionals2008.pdf

Pizza Hut

http://www.pizzahut.com/Files/PDF/Updated%20PH%20Brochure%2006.22.09.pdf

Potbelly's

http://www.potbelly.com/nutrition/Potbelly_Nutritional_Information.pdf

Red Lobster

http://www.olivegarden.com/menus/printable/NutritionInformation.pdf

Robeks

http://newrobeks.com/Documents/Menu.pdf

Ruby Tuesdays

http://rubytuesdays.com/files/Nutrition.pdf

Saladworks

http://www.saladworks.com/calculator

Starbucks

http://www.starbucks.com/retail/nutrition_beverages.asp

Unos

http://www.unos.com/kiosk/nutritionUnos.html

Vapianos

http://www.vapianointernational.com/content/menu.pdf

Z Pizza

http://www.zpizza.com/food/nutrition/

Helpful Resources

2009-08-04T17:20:00.000-07:00

Books I Love:

The Beck Diet – Not actually a diet at all, but how more about tips on how to stick to any diet for good.
Volumetrics – Feel full on less.
Mindless Eating – Why we eat more then we think we do and how our culture persuades us to do so.

Blogs I Read:

A Merry Life - http://amerrylife.com
Hot and Fit - http://hotandfit.blogspot.com
Daily Spark – http://www.dailyspar.com
Dori’s Shiny Blog – http://www.dorishinyblog.com
Eat, Live, Run - http://eatliverun.com/feed/
Fat, Fitness, Food - http://fatfitnessfood.blogspot.com/
Feed the Soul - http://www.feedthesoul.org/
Fit Bottomed Girls - http://fitbottomedgirls.blogspot.com/
Fit to the Finish - http://www.fittothefinish.com/
I Look Like Fit - http://www.ilooklikefit.com/
Keeping the Pounds Off - http://maintainmyweight.blogspot.com
My Pet Fat – http://mypetfat.typepad.com
Oh She Glows – http://www.ohsheglows.com
Prior Fat Girl – http://www.priorfatgirl.com
Refuse to Gain - http://refusetoregain.typepad.com
Roni’s Weigh - http://ronisweigh.com/
The Beck Diet Solution: http://beckdietsolution.wordpress.com/
The Office Diet: http://www.theofficediet.com
Tippy Toe Diet: http://www.tippytoediet.com
Watching and Weighting - http://whatamiweightingfor.blogspot.com/
Weight Loss Journal - http://www.weightladder.com
Women’s Diet and Fitness - http://womensdietandfitness.com/
Zen Habits – http://www.zenhabits.net

Email Newsletters I Get:

Hungry Girl – Helpful substitutions on high-fat foods.
Weight Loss Joy – Newsletters that deal with specific issues – mostly emotional triggers for eating and how to deal with them.
Runner’s World – A range of topics on running, fitness, and nutrition.

Magainzes I Receive:

Women’s Health
Self
EatingWell
Runner’s World
Weight Watchers Magazine

5K is Tomorrow!

2009-07-24T17:40:00.001-07:00

I'm excited for the big 5K tomorrow and looking forward to it being done so I can a) party and b) scale back a bit on the running. For some reason, my weight loss has been standing still. I've been carefully monitoring my calories but something funky is going on! Stay tuned for updates in a couple of weeks, hopefully I'll have weight loss news at that point!

Choo chooooo

2009-07-16T14:10:00.000-07:00

I'm still chugging along like the little engine that could.

As part of my maintenance routine I continued entering all my food in thedailyplate.com. I put that to rest but wasn't totally comfortable with not tracking the food I ate, so I quickly replaced thedailyplate with a personal food log. I would document everything I put in my mouth along with the actual or estimated calories.

About 2 months ago, I put the food log to rest as well. Thankfully, I have stayed within a 5 lb range and hope I can continue.

Recently, I realized that when I stray too far from my personal eating guidelines and still maintain my exercise routine that I will surely suffer the consequences. The past two weeks I gave myself a little too much slack then did a "long run." A day or two after the run my body and emotions gave me a rude awakening. I was extremely fatigued and emotional. Not good. So, I will be keeping an eye on that!

Chooo chooooo

Things on My Mind: Vacation, Training for a 5K, Goal Setting

2009-06-30T18:39:00.000-07:00

Vacation
Bill and I just got back from vacation and I managed to not gain a bunch of weight - hurray! I tried very hard to focus on eating healthy and fresh foods and to not over eat at meals. I must admit I didn't feel like I was doing that great, but the scales say I did just fine. As of this morning I was up .9 lbs - nothing to cry about. Hopefully I can work that off and come Saturday's weigh in, I'll be even or just slightly up. I'll take it! Vacations have always been hard for me, but slowly I'm learning how to have fun and not always associate that fun with food. It will be a life long struggle I am sure, but I take comfort in the fact that I can see progress! That makes me both excited and super optimistic for the future.

Training for a 5K
I admit I have a thing for runners and have always longed for the ability to run - a mile, two miles, ten miles, etc. I've tried a few times before and ran in 2 5K races and 1 10K, but I didn't train for either one. After Trina took up running (hi Trina), I decided that I had no real excuse to not try and become a real 'runner.' I decided that I should run a 5K and truly train for it this time around. I enlisted Bill as my running partner and Trina helped me find a race that would be the right distance out for the 9 week couch to 5K training program. As of this Monday, we are on week 6 of the program, with only 3 weeks left to go! I am both nervous and excited for the big. Tomorrow is our first non- stop 25 minute run (slow slow jog, if you will) and I'm looking forward to seeing if I can do it. My goal is to some day run a 10- miler, but I don't see myself doing that anytime soon. I'll try a couple of 5Ks if this one goes well, work up to the 10K (6.2 miles I believe) and then slowly make it to the 10-miler. People do it all the time, why shouldn't I!? Wish me luck.

Goal Setting
In the past, I've dieted as follows: eat very little, lose weight, worry that at every moment I am going to snap and gain all my weight back. And what do you know? That's exactly how it went. I remember the last time I was slimmer - we were in Charleston and Savannah and all I could think beforehand was 'put up with your hunger until the vacation - and then you can eat all you want!' And eat I did - all the way back up to my starting weight plus some. I always thought I'd never be able to truly lose weight because it was too hard and I was always too hungry. I've given up that method of dieting and that mindset and have truly adopted something I can live with and love! (That of course being the weight watchers plan along with my own self discoveries) That being said, I'm slowly getting close to the point where I'll actually say 'ok, this is it, now I can maintain.' I admit that the thought terrifies me and maintenance does seem scarier then losing. However, I am looking forward to buying clothes and staying in one size. I've been trying to buy nicer clothes for myself nowadays to encourage myself to keep going and when I shrink out of those nice clothes it's both exciting and sad at the same time! Anyhow, I'm rambling. My point here is that the time has come for me to really try and focus on a final goal number. Right now, I've lost 50.7 lbs and want to lose an additional 16.3 for a whopping total of 67 lbs. It seems so crazy to me that the big (pun intended) part of this process is behind me (haha, also funny) and that I am truly on the last leg of the journey. If this were a race I'd be nearing the finish line, the crowd would be cheering me on! 16.3 to go - I can do this and I will do this. One baby step at a time.

Snacking extreme

2009-05-29T16:53:00.001-07:00

After dinner I got the munchies. So, I grabbed a bag of Flat Earth Tangy Tomato Ranch Baked Veggie Crisps and some chipotle salsa. One after another I ate the yummy chips until...

...the bag was empty. That was 130 calories x 6. That's 780 calories. *sigh*

Nicole's Update

2009-05-28T18:59:00.000-07:00

Reflection: The Journey of Weight Loss as of May 28th 2009.

I joined Weight Watchers at the end of March 2008 with great expectations. I had gained and lost weight so many times before and I was tired of it – I wanted a long term plan that would let me lose weight, feel great, stay full, and most importantly, give me my life back as a young vibrant 20-something. I can honestly say the journey has been awesome and I’ve had far fewer hiccups then I could have ever imagined thanks to the buddy system and general determination.

I still feel that same determination and am incredibly positive as I look into the future. I’ve continually refined my choices and gained confidence in making good choices in a variety of situations where I never thought possible: eating out with friends and family, social gatherings, boring evenings, etc. I look upon these successes with self-admiration and praise to God for giving me incredibly strength to tackle something that affects all areas of my existence. However, as wonderful as all of this may sound, I still have my areas of struggle and assume I will always be faced with similar issues. As of this morning, I have 23 lbs left to lose before I reach my as-of-now final goal. As of the evening, I have begun to reflect upon a few things that need to change in order for me to be continually successful now and forever while on maintenance.

Successes

I have learned I can go out to dinner and order a salad/healthy entrée and be completely happy and satisfied after eating it.
I can enjoy a glass of wine and savor every last drop without the constant feeling of wanting more
I replaced my love of candy with the love of fruit
I have a consistent exercise program where I constantly challenge myself and I actually enjoy it!
I have found 2 buddies that have been incredibly supportive through-out this entire journey – listening to every seemingly silly weight loss or health whim on a daily basis
I have ditched my former yo-yo eating for a sound, healthy weight loss plan
While on vacation – I have often chosen healthy options and avoided snacking in-between meals
I’ve been slowly losing weight for almost 15 months now.
I understand that motivation will come and go, habits and priorities are what makes me get through the lulls.

Still Need to Work on Issues

Vacation! My general mentality is to throw most caution to the wind, eat what I want and overeat quite regularly. I love to tell myself “I’m having fun! How often do I get to go on vacation! How often do I get these yummy yummy foods!”
Buffet/Loading up my plate – I way over pack my plate every time I go to a buffet or am somewhere where I get to load up my own plate. I usually don’t end up eating it all but would prefer to put wayyy less food on my plate to start with
Fun and Fruity Drinks – Put a frothy, cold beverage in front of me, be it a margarita, glass of wine, or something else glistening and consider it gone. Put 2 or 3 in front of me and consider them and me ‘gone’ – I have a hard time stopping at one but feel like I’m missing out when I don’t have them at all.
Eating Out – Sometimes I win, sometimes I lose. If there is bread or chips, I usually lose the temptation battle and if I see a menu full of cheesy baked goodness I generally can’t resist. If I’ve had luck with a yummy healthy salad somewhere, I’m much more likely to go with it a second time around but it’s that initial ordering that always gets me. I get discourages when hubby orders something yummy and I’m “stuck with a salad.” Mentally it drives me crazy even if I do leave feeling better when ordering better.
Post-Weigh in celebration – When I was weighing in on Thursdays, I celebrated my weigh in’s on Thursday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday. Now that I’ve switched to Saturday, I’ve at least tamed down two of the rough days and am just trying to be more focused on Saturday and Sunday.
Schedule Changes/Changes in Environment – I am a true creature of habit. I know exactly when I eat breakfast everyday (7:00am) and I know exactly when I eat my snacks (9:30 and 2:00) and my lunch (11:15) and dinner (5:00). When this schedule changes I get panicky and tend to eat too much when I do eat the chance to eat. Blame this on my ancestors – I’m preparing for famine!
Social Events/Anxiety – If I’m having a great time at a party, it’s easier for me to distract myself with good conversation and laughs, but when I want to do anything but stick around, I tend to grab anything in sight to ‘entertain’ myself with food. It’s the thought that ‘at least these chips will be something good that comes of this evening’ even though I know that’s not truly the case.
Trigger Foods – Ah yes. Cheese that is melted. Or in block form. Or in or on a cracker. Chips. Pizza. Fresh Bread. Pie, and those delicious Sugar Cookies found around Christmastime! I know what they are. I try to avoid them but sometimes they are hidden right in front of my eyes and I end up having a bite and realizing it’s too late to turn back. And sometimes I just want them.
Eating What’s Available – We’ve all been there (and me too often) – you’re out and about, had a healthy breakfast maybe and you’re planning on heading to the mall to get some items. Time flies and all of a sudden you’re starving. Only thing open for some reason is Greasy Spoon and nothing is healthy on the menu. Or, worse, you’re at a friends house and they’ve prepared a whole lot of comfort foods, and I’m hungry… so I eat what is there and because these tend to also be trigger foods, I’m in big trouble.

If anyone has any suggestions that work for you – please pass them along!

Trina's Update

2009-05-13T19:44:00.001-07:00

Its been a while since I posted. Here's an update:

Eating

I'm back in maintenance mode with a goal of 1400 calories a day. Some days I go over, but I forgive myself and simply recommit the next day.

Exercise

I've ran two races... the Cherry Blossom 10 Miler and the Pacers Half Marathon. I'm happy to have completed them but have no aspirations to run further than 13.1 miles. Now that I have increased my cardio endurance I want to focus on building muscle; particularly upper body strength. So, I'll still run once or twice a week but only 6 mi or less. I want to start doing weights twice a week and I'd like to start swimming.

The weather is getting nice. I'm curious what others are doing for exercise this summer.

Cheese Please

2009-04-08T17:27:00.000-07:00

Anybody who knows me half way decent knows I eat cheese on a regular basis. By *regular* I mean, well, at every meal. I’ve often thought about trying to go a week without cheese to see how I would feel and to see if it got rid of my all too often ‘puffy’ tummy. As I reviewed my food intake for the day I realized I really do need to diversify and come up with healthy snacks that don’t include quite so much cheese. I love cheese, I think it’s good for you for the calcium, but it does have saturated fat and there are better choices out there. Check out my day:

Breakfast:
English Muffin
1 oz ham
1 slice Provolone cheese
Coffee w/ Almond Milk

Snack:
Tangerines
String Cheese

Lunch:
Noodles with cheese, sprinkled with cheese (no, not a joke)

Afternoon Snack: (you’re never going to guess!!)
Apple
Crackers with spreadable cheese

Dinner:
2 slices lower fat bacon
1 slice cheddar cheese
2 slices bread
serving of veggies

Ice cream

In other words, with the exception of my dessert, every meal had some type of cheese in it. Since I just went to the grocery store I’ll finish up the newly bought cheese before I go on my test run without any but any suggestions here would be greatly appreciated! I like the consistency of cheese – so maybe something along the lines of hummus or something as one of my snacks. *Sigh* I never want a life without cheese but sometimes I think it's a little overboard!!

Some healthy foods I've grown to love...

2009-04-02T15:41:00.000-07:00

Here's is partial of foods I've incorporated into my diet in recent months:

Dried figs (Added 4/8/2009): I don't know how I forgot this one. Figs are a good source of in soluble fiber. 2 dried figs has as much soluble fiber as a medium apple or a 1/2 cup fiber one cereal. Soluble fiber lowers cholesterol and help control blood sugar levels. They are one of my regular snacks.

Kale: I found out that this leafy green veggie just might be one the most nutritious of the leafy veggies. It is packed with Vitamin A, Vitamin C, and a good source of fiber. The downfall is that it's not very appealing raw, but its GREAT in broth soups.

Almond butter: My entire life I've been a peanut butter addict, but in my quest to eat healthier I found that almond butter has more nutritional benefits than peanut butter. Almond butter has less saturated fat and sodium and has more fiber, protein, iron. Almond even has some nutrients that peanut butter does not have like Vitamin E, Niacin and Riboflavin.

Flaxseed meal: Although not the tastiest of food items I find ways to incorporate it into my diet because of all of its health benefits. I put a 1 or 2 tbsp in my smoothies, or on my cereal and often incorporate it into any muffins or cookies I make. Often, I'll sprinkle it on my almond butter sandwich (whole wheat bread of course).

Almond milk: When I decided to listen to my body's lactose intolerance I switched to soy milk, then Nicole introduced me to almond milk. Almond milk has less calories and fat than soy milk and even better... it doesn't make me gassy since its not from beans like soy milk :-)

Egg whites: Less cholesterol, fat, calories... you name it it has less bad stuff than whole eggs. On any given morning I'll make an egg white omelet and I find ways to substitute egg whites for whole eggs in all my recipes (quiches, desserts, etc.).

Canadian Bacon: This is my fav addition to my omelet or egg sandwich. It's a very lean cut of ham and 1 slice (perfect size for an egg sandwich) is only 20 calories.

Baked wheat crackers: Not the tastiest but perfectly fine when dipped in something... like hummus! First I tried Triscuits which had was 120 cal and 3g fat and 3g of fiber per serving. Then I found a store brand which was 120 cal and 0.5g fat and 3g of fiber. Hence my use of the generic name, "baked wheat crackers." Best of all... the ingredient list is minimal: "whole wheat, salt." No oils, maltodextrin, triglycerides or lecithin which are often found in crackers.

Lean ground beef: I've found ground beef up to 95% lean. For the amount of iron you get in beef you can't beat it! Plus, it has more flavor than ground turkey.

One of my Favorite Blogs

2009-03-16T17:20:00.000-07:00

I read a great deal of blogs each day regarding nutrition, health, food, etc. but one of my favorites is the Refuse to Gain blog: http://refusetoregain.com/my_weblog/ - I look forward to the day that I can work on maintenance along with Trina and almost Andria!

NEATO!! Weightview.com

2009-03-05T16:29:00.000-08:00

Just read about this web site: http://www.weightview.com/new/ where you can upload a photo of yourself, tell the system how much weight you'd like to lose, and you get a photo back of what you might look like at that weight. How cool is that!? I've sent 2 more in - but here is the results of the first one.

Results for -30, which is 5 lbs beyond my goal weight:

Changing Things Up a Bit

2009-03-03T17:36:00.000-08:00

Right after we returned from back to back vacations - I got extremely focused. I was up a couple of pounds in January and had been at a similar weight for a couple of months before that so I cut out 'sample bites' while cooking and trimmed down my points/calories each day. In about 4 weeks, I dropped 8 or so pounds and was thrilled. Then came a wave of 'woo-hoo - I'm down another pants size' followed by complacency. It's not as though I don't want to lose the last 25lbs or anything like that - but after losing a few pounds I feel like I needed a mental break - needed to reassure myself that I wasn't doing anything crazy and that this was sustainable. That being said, I've been at a similar weight again for the last 3 weeks due to a variety of events where I chose to indulge more than I had been for the previous few weeks. With all of this in mind, I decided I needed to jot down these thoughts and come up with a plan of attack going into the final 2+ weeks before our spring vacation and beyond. So here we go:

Remember fondly the last couple of weeks where I chose to indulge to show myself that living life *this way* is completely doable, but agree to move beyond those times and cut back on the not-quite-as-wise choices
Stay within my daily points range *no matter what*
Get to the gym 3 days a week minimum and give it my all
Change up my menu enough that I am excited for my meals and satisfied when I am finished
Remind myself continually that small stones move mountains
Also remind myself that to get real results I actually have to sacrifice something - even something as small as forgoing a tasting of chips or almonds when I pack my lunch in the evenings
Find activities I really enjoy doing in the evening so that food is not my only friend

I'll be checking in exactly a week from today!

Trina's move from maintenance to weigh loss

2009-02-27T16:46:00.000-08:00

I was maintaining well for a while but recently noticed that I had let myself go overboard. So, after seeing the scale jump 5 lbs I figured no time was better than the present to regain control before those 5 extra lbs turn to 15 extra lbs. *gasp*

I looked at what I was eating and figured my actual meals weren't too bad it was the excessive snacking and evening grazing. So, I cut 500+ calories by doing the following...

~80 calories: substituting coffee w/sugar & milk for unsweetened herbal tea
~70 calories: eliminating cheese on my sandwiches
~100 calories: limiting my pretzel snacking to 1 serving
300+ calories: changing from an evening of constant grazing (cheez-its, gold fish, peanut butter, candy, ice cream) to having one relatively healthy evening snack 1 hr after dinner

This has brought my calories from about 1800 to about 1300. It's been about a week and so far so good. The scale has become my friend again.

Nicole's Weekly Menu - Thursday 2-26 Thru 3-5

2009-02-26T05:42:00.000-08:00

Weekly Menu - Thursday 2-26 Thru 3-5
Goal: 23 Points per Day

Breakfast-
Egg Salad - (1 hard boiled egg mixed with 1 teaspoon olive oil mayo + paprikia, salt, pepper) (2)
1/2 Cup Almond Coffee Milk (0)

Snack-
Almonds (2)
Apple (1)
Cheese (1)

Lunch-
Shirataki with mushrooms and spinach, or with cheese (3)
Fruit (1)

Snack-
Kettled Baked Chips (2)
Applesauce, No Sugar Added (1)

Dinner-
Wine (3)
Veggie Lettuce Wraps (4) (recipe - second one down: http://www.hungry-girl.com/girls/biteoutdetails.php?isid=1518)

Dessert-
Latte Bar, 1 Melted Dove Chocolate, 5-6 Almonds (3)

10 Healthy (and Tasty) Foods

2009-02-25T09:01:00.000-08:00

I don't remember where this list came from but here it is:

Blueberries: ranked #1 in anitoxidants

Strawberries: low in calories and loaded with Vitamin C

Olive Oil: improves cholesterol and lowers risk of heart disease

Apples: high in soluble fiber and they are excellent for controlling blood sugar

Watermelon: fat, sodium, and cholesterol-free. has antioxidants, vitamins A and C, fiber, iron and potassium

Tuna: low in fat and high in protein, vitamins, minerals and Omega 3-fatty acids

Peanut butter: protein rich, high in monosaturated fat, and contains no cholesterol or trans fat

Pomegranates: high in antioxidants, fiber, potassium, and niacin

Garlic: reduces high blood pressure

Almonds: low in carbs, but rich in Vitamin E, dietary fiber, and monosaturated fat which is a "good fat" that helps lower cholesterol

Love the Spinach!

2009-02-17T17:43:00.000-08:00

After reading Trina's post about Spinach, I decided to buy some this past week and try it out. I love-love-love it! I add a heaping tablespoon of chopped garlic, a big handful of fresh spinach and then toss in some fresh mushrooms to a small skillet and in a couple of minutes I have a perfect filling side dish. I love it! I've even done the same for breakfast - adding an egg, spinach, mushrooms and a light laughing cow cheese wedge and have myself a nice scrambled omelet.

Replacing bad habits (Trina)

2009-02-17T17:25:00.000-08:00

Although I am maintaining my "new weight," I still don't feel that I have a comfortable grasp on consistent healthy eating habits. I want to improve this. So, I have been trying to pay closer attention to my eating habits, the ones that are detrimental.

I've noted the following bad habits:

After dinner I go straight for dessert, followed by non-stop munching until I go to bed. Sometimes I don't go to bed until midnight.
When I get on the phone, I mindlessly grab something to snack on. As if eating without thought diminishes the caloric intake.
I usually hang in the kitchen/sitting room while Web browsing. This leads to constant munching.
When I drink (wine/alcohol), I munch more.

I want to establish the following good habits:

After dinner, wait 30 minutes to an hour before having dessert. This lets dinner digest a little and allows my body to trigger just how hungry I am (or am not). Also, I realized this helps to distinguishes dessert as an event apart from dinner. It makes it an evening snack, just like my morning and afternoon snacks.
No eating when I'm on the phone. Choose one or the other.
Go to another room for my leisure activities. If I'm hungry, I need to consciously depart from my leisure activity and go back in the kitchen to eat. Again, choose one or the other. I thank Nicole for this tip.
Drink 8-16 oz of water for every glass of wine (or other alcoholic drink). Good hydration habit and helps me feel full so that I munch less.

I have yet to be a good judge of physical hunger vs emotional hunger. The only times I'm certain that my hunger is physical is when my stomach is growling or when I have a hunger headache. So, I'm hoping these lil customized rules will help me to eventually realize the difference between the two and at the very least keep me on track, in spite of.

Fighting Food Cravings

2009-02-13T18:00:00.000-08:00

I stumbled upon this article, "19 ways to fight food cravings and win the war on flab."

Quite a few of the recommendations are no-brainers, but I thought it had some good recommendations for curbing hunger. They 19 suggestions are divided up into 4 categories "In the Morning," "The Afternoon," "The Early Evening," and "Late Night."

Here's the article: AARP: Hunger Management.

Spinach-Feta Dip

2009-02-12T07:00:00.001-08:00

Spinach-Feta Dip

Sounds yummy - I need to try this! Would be great for veggie dipping.

4 c. chopped fresh spinach (about 2 oz)
1/2 c. light cream cheese
1/2 c. fat-free sour cream
1/4 c. crumbled feta
1/4 c.minced fresh chives, divided
2 tsp. fresh lemon juice
1/4 tsp black pepper
1/4 tsp. table salt or to taste

Place spinach in a small saucepan with 2 cups of water. Bring to a boil over high heat and then cook for 1 minute,drain well.

Place spinach, cream cheese, sour cream, feta cheese, 2 tablespoons of chives, lemon juice and pepper in a blender; puree. Salt to taste. Spoon into bowl and sprinkle with remaining chives.

Serving: 3 tbsp
Point Value: 1 (so 70-100 cals)

Hungry Girl

2009-02-11T06:09:00.001-08:00

Go sign up for this daily newsletter RIGHT NOW! I've gotten it for a while - but I love it and you should too!!!

http://www.hungry-girl.com/subscribe/subscribe.php

Things I Want to Try (Nicole)

2009-02-10T11:58:00.001-08:00

Weight Watchers Pita Breads - 1 pt. I can make my mini pizzas again - I loved these! Some cheese, sauce, ham, mushrooms, filling and lovely.
Weight Watchers Latte Bar - 1 pt. I think I could scoop it into a bowl and it would taste like ice cream!
Butternut squash - Better for you than potatoes, but supposedly a similar consistency.

I'm sure there is a way more - but that's it for now!

The evenings are rough for Trina

2009-02-09T19:36:00.001-08:00

After a good day...

Breakfast - 1/2 cup fiber one and 1/2 cup of milk with coffee
Morning snack - banana
Lunch - spinach & low fat sesame ginger dressing, a slice of swiss melted on whole wheat bread
Afternoon snack - pretzels
Dinner - Chipotle burrito bol (lettuce, black beans, rice & salsa)

I get home from dinner and can't control my munching...

Evening snacks - 3 servings of Cheez-Itz Party Mix, 2 glasses of wine, 5 starbursts & 1 fiber one bar

When I can figure out how to curb my evening munching I'll be a happy camper.

Trina's Typical Grocery List & Menu

2009-02-08T06:06:00.000-08:00

Fresh

Apples
Bananas
Asparagus
Broccoli
Spinach

Refrigerated

Liquid Egg Whites
Lactose-free Milk
Sliced cheese (2% milk)

Frozen

Blueberries
Strawberries
Lactose-free Vanilla Ice Cream
Veggie burgers

Meat & Seafood

Shrimp
Salmon
Tilapia
Lean ground turkey
Turkey kielbasa

Other Stuff

Wheat pasta
Wheat bread
Brown rice
Tomato sauce

A typical day's menu

Breakfast (250 cal.)

(45 calories) Egg whites
(25 calories) 1/2 slice of cheese
(100 calories ) wheat bread
(80 calories) coffee with sugar & milk
OR
(240 calories) blueberry, strawberry & banana fruit smoothie
OR
(200 calories) fiber one cereal with milk, plus coffee with sugar & milk

Morning snack (80 cal.)

(80 calories) banana

Lunch (195 cal.)

(70 calories) Veggie burger
(25 calories) 1/2 slice of cheese
(100 calories) wheat bread

Afternoon snack (190 cal.)

(110 calories) Pretzels
(80 calories) Apple

Dinner (530 cal.)

(200 calories) pasta or rice
(30 calories) asparagus or broccoli
(120 calories) meat or seafood
(60 calories) 1/2 tbsp olive oil - for cooking
(120 calories) 5 oz. glass of red wine

Dessert (260 cal.)

(150 calories) 1/2 cup ice cream
(110 calories) 2 tbsp ground flaxseed (sprinkled on ice cream)

This about 1500 calories, but sometimes I go over this by having 2 glasses of red wine OR having a piece of dark chocolate at some point during the day OR throwing some peanut butter on my ice cream...

Motivational Quotes

2009-02-07T18:16:00.000-08:00

"The difference between the impossible and the possible lies in not giving up."
-Tommy Lasorda, former Major League baseball pitcher and manager

“We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit.”
Aristotle

Nicole's Grocery List and Menu for the Week

2009-02-07T05:33:00.000-08:00

Here is my actual grocery list from this week:

Fresh

Carrots
Apples
Pre-cut cabbage
Pre-shredded lettuce
Celery
Fresh Mushrooms (5 packs)

Refrigerated

Eggs

Organic

Almond Milk, Vanilla, Unsweetned
Tofu Shirataki

Frozen

Fruit, Rasperries, Strawberries, Tropical
Light Cool Whip

Cans and Stuff

Applesauce - Unsweetened
Tomato Bisque Soup

So what does my day to day menu look like?

Breakfast

1 Hard Boiled Egg, sprinkled with Paprika, Salt and Pepper (2 points / 70 cals)
Coffee with 1/2 cup Almond Milk (0 pts / 20 cals)

Morning Snack

Apple or Frozen Fruit (1 point / 60 cals)
Celery with Laughing Cow Cheese (free / 35 cals)

Lunch

Spaghetti Shirataki Noodles (1 pt - 40 cal for noodles, 60 cals for sauce)
Reduced Fat Parmesan Cheese (2 tbl, 1 pt, 40 cals)
Fruit, Frozen (with sprinkle of sugar, 1 pt, 60 cals)

Afternoon Snack

Coleslaw w/ Olive Oil May (1 pt, Coleslaw 20 cals, Mayo (1 tbl) 45 cals)
Applesauce (1 pt, 50 cals)

Dinner

Option 1: Bacon Cheese Sandwich (5 pts, 275 cals)
2 Slices Bread (1 pt, 80 cals)
2 Pieces Center Cut Bacon (1 pt, 40 cals)
1 Slice Cheese (2 pts, 110 cals)
1 Tbl Mayo (1 pt, 45 cals)
Lettuce (free)
Tomato (free)
Onion (free)

Option 2: Mexican Night Nachos (6 pts, 320 cals)
1 Serving Baked Tostito Scoops (2 pts, 120 cals)
1 Serving Cheese (2 pts, 100 cals)
1 Spoon Full Sour Cream and Guacamole (1 pt, 60 cals)
1/4 Cup Black Beans (1 pt, 40 cals)
Shredded Lettuce Galore
Salsa - fresh tomatoes and onions

Either dinner is then accompanied by fresh mushrooms sauteed in olive oil butter (20 cals)

6.5 oz Glass of wine (3 pts, 140 cals)
Dessert of choice, piece of chocolate, weight watchers ice cream, cookies, 2 pts, around 120 cals)

This brings me between 19-20 points (1025-1070 calories) before I add in my additional 3-4 points remaining of the day, bringing my final total to 1280-1305.

Burger King - Getting Mini Burgers!

2009-02-05T06:49:00.000-08:00

I'm not much for fast food these days, but when I do want it, it would be great to have reasonable options!

Burger King Launches Burger and Breakfast "Shots"

from yumsugar -- To die for. by YumSugar

Burger King is continuing its strategy of adding petite-sized, lower-cost items to its menu at a time when food prices have soared but consumers are strapped for cash.

The fast food chain announced today that it will roll out new burger and breakfast "shots," or burgers in miniature sizes.

The sliders will come in a two-pack ($1.39) and a six-pack ($4.09) and will consist of a flame-broiled patty, ketchup, mustard, and two pickle slices, sandwiched between a plain bun. The fast food chain is also revving up its breakfast menu with BK Breakfast Shots. The breakfast sandwiches, which are available in a two-pack ($1.49) or a four-pack ($2.89) during the store's breakfast hours, contain egg, a "smoky cheese sauce," and a choice of ham, bacon, or a sausage patty.

This is probably another attempt by Burger King to offer smaller portions at higher prices, but I'm a sucker for all things mini, so I'm bound to buckle and buy some of the breakfast shots.

THE 8 REASONS

2009-02-04T11:50:00.000-08:00

The reasons people are unable to keep weight off. Studies show people are able to lose weight much more easily than they are able to keep it off... and here's kinda why:

By Tom Venuto
(taken from: Women's Diet and Fitness)

THE 8 REASONS

1. No focus: you didn’t set goals, you didn’t put your goals in writing, and/or you didn’t stay focused on your goals daily (by reading them, affirming them, looking at a vision board, etc.)

2. No priorities: you may have set a goal, but you didn’t put it on or near the top of your priorities list. For example, your goal is six pack abs, but drinking beer and eating fast food on the weekend is higher on your priorities list than having a flat stomach.

3. No support system: you tried to go at it alone; no buddy system, training partners, family, spouse, friends, mentors or coaches to turn to for information and emotional support when the going got tough.

4. No Accountability: you didn’t keep score for your own accountability – with a progress chart, weight record, measurements, food journal, training journal, and you didn’t set up external accountability (ie, report to someone else or show your results to someone else)

5. No patience: you were only thinking short term and had unrealistic expectations. You expected 10 pounds a week or 5 pounds a week or 3 pounds a week, so the first week you lost “only” 1 or 2 pounds or hit a plateau, you gave up.

6. No planning: you winged it. You walked into the gym without having a workout in hand, on paper, you didn’t plan your workouts into your weekly schedule; you didn’t have a menu on paper, you didn’t make time (so instead you made excuses, like “I’m too busy”)

7. No balance: your diet or training program was too extreme. You went the all or nothing, “I want it now” route instead of the moderate, slow-and-steady wins the race route.

8. No personalization: your nutrition or training program was the wrong one for you. It might have worked for someone else, but it didn’t suit your schedule, personality, lifestyle, disposition or body type.

So there you have it – 8 reasons why most people fall off the wagon! Have you been making these mistakes? If so, the solutions are clear and simple: focus, prioritize, get support, be accountable, be patient, plan, balance and personalize.

Train hard and expect success

Healthy Bread Suggestions - Via Hungry Girl

2009-02-04T06:27:00.000-08:00

1. La Tortilla Factory Tortillas - Look for the 80-calorie, 12-gram-of-fiber large ones called Smart & Delicious Low Carb/High Fiber. They're FANTASTIC. Click for a store locator or order online.

2. Fiber One English Muffins - These are fairly new -- currently availabl e in the Northeast. They are delicious and come in a slew of varieties (click here for some brand-new ones).

3. Arnold Select Sandwich Thins - These are like flatter, denser hamburger buns or english muffins (sans the nooks and crannies). Simply put, they're INCREDIBLE. Arnold also makes great light bread! P.S. See if they're sold near you by entering your zip code at the Arnold website.

4. Flatout Light Wraps - These large, 90-calorie wraps are great. In Original, Italian Herb, Sundried Tomato, and Garden Spinach, they're great for stuffing full of other things (lik e chopped Boca patties, pickles, and lettuce!). Just make sure to get the ones labeled "Light", because the regular higher calorie wraps come in the same flavors. Click on the "Stores" section of Flatout's site to find out where to buy them (or just order online).

5. Western Bagel Alternative Bagels, Alternative Pita Bread, and Alternative English Muffins - You can find these in select markets or order online. This stuff has amazing stats and tastes delicious, too!

6. Kim's Light Bagels - Kim ROCKS! Her bagels are reeeeally good and come in many flavors. Order online or click here to see where they're sold.

7. Sara Lee Delightful Breads - These come in a bunch of varieties, and the nutritional info is solid! They're also pretty easy to find at supermarkets.

8. Weight Watchers Breads, Pita Pockets, and English Muffins - Lots of variety here, and all good. Plus, you don't have to be a member or sneak into a meeting location to buy them -- they're sold at a lot of grocer y stores.

Here We Go!

2009-02-03T16:37:00.001-08:00

I've decided to create this blog because I often forget things I fell in love with at some point that helped me continue to be healthy and do well on my program. That being said, I'm going to use this blog and encourage A&T (it's just wrong to put it the other way) to add things as well - or at least mention them to me so I can post them on here and distribute them to the world! Or at least Mom.

Things I Love Right Now:

Bacon Cheese Sandwiches, 5 Points (Bread (1), Cheese (2), Olive Oil Mayo (1) Bacon (1))
Unsweetened Vanilla Almond Milk - Perfect for my coffee, 1 cup is 40 calories
Fresh or Frozen berries with light Cool Whip
VitaMuffins! I forgot about these - love them. 1 Point for a big ole snack.
Nachos: Baked Scoops (2), Cheese (2), Sour Cream and Guac (1), Beans (1), Lots of Lettuce and Salsa
Sauteed mushrooms - baby bit of reduced calorie butter and stir fried. YUM.
Celery and Light Laughing Cow Cheese
WW Ice Cream
My new magic bullet is Tofu Shirataki and it's awesome! Too bad everyone is out of it lately. Jerks.