It’s time to get serious.
Over the years I have tried every diet going. I’ve done Atkins, I’ve done South Beach, I’ve done Weight Watchers, I’ve done the Cabbage Soup diet. Low-carb, low-fat, high-protein, good carb, good fat, meal replacements, I’ve read all the books and tried all the tricks.
And the sad thing is – they all work. If you stick to them.
One summer, tipping the scales at almost 200lbs I went on Atkins and lost 35lbs.
Last New Years, tipping the scales at 220lbs I tried Weight Watchers and lost 30lbs.
But see, in between those two successful diets, although I dieted on and off again, I clearly gained back the weight and then some.
This morning, I stepped on the scale and am once again close to 200lbs.
200lbs!! The exact same weight I was that summer of 2002 before I went on Atkins!
8 years have passed and I’m still the same exact weight.
8 years!!
I have wasted 8 years of my life counting carbs, or calories, or points and it’s done absolutely nothing for me.
8 years!!
This morning I wasted £12.99 on the Dukan Diet book. It’s crap. I was sucked into the hype and wasted all that money on a book that says you can burn almost 500 calories a day by sucking on ice cubes, taking a cold shower and packing away your thermal underwear. Seriously, why have I wasted my time running miles if I could burn off the same number of calories by sucking on 10 ice cubes/mile?
So it’s time for a plan of action.
The Weigh In
I will weigh myself tomorrow, Monday May 24th, and will return to my daily weigh-ins. I find that they keep me on track much better than weekly run-ins with the scale.
The Hydration
I will get back to drinking my 10 glasses of water a day. Plus coffee in the mornings, tea in the evenings if I so desire.
The Food
I hate that most diets rule out certain foods. I like my avocados and my bananas and I’m not ready to give them up or feel like I’m cheating because I’m eating a goddamn piece of fruit! The low-carb mentality is the one that has given me the most mental issues with food and I’m tired of it.
While I plan on cutting out white pasta, rice and bread, I’m not ruling anything in particular out. I want to cut back on sugar, but that may still mean I’m eating a couple squares of dark chocolate of an evening.
I’m going to stick to non-fat or low-fat dairy for milk and cheese and eat lean protein in the form of eggs, poultry and meat.
I will be trying though, as Michael Pollan suggests, to eat mostly plants.
The Exercise
Oh, the dreaded exercise. I’m running a half-marathon in 5 months and I haven’t worked out in weeks. I am going to start scheduling in some time to work out, start running home from work a couple days a week and get back into the exercise groove.
The Timeline
The Project 55 plan is a plan for life, but for my own piece of mind, I’m going to track carefully for the next 5 weeks. I can do anything for 5 weeks.
I’m tired of being this weight. It affects every aspect of my life from social to professional, it’s mental and emotional – it’s so much more than just physical.
So tomorrow is day 1 of Project 55. This time, it’s serious.
- CJ
Weigh-in: 189.8 again (while it’s reassuring to not fluctuate, I’m convinced my scale has a built-in anti-neurotic device to stop you stepping on and off again repeatedly!)
Eats:
Breakfast:
green smoothie (3 points)
lunch:
weightwatchers pizza (5 points)
lettuce, tomatoes, pepper and pret dressing (1.5 points)
dinner:
sweet potato (2.5 points)
beans (4.5 points)
eggs (3 points)
evening snack:
chocolate (2.5 points)
Total: 22 points
Water: 96oz
Weigh-in: 189.8!
Eats:
Breakfast:
green smoothie (4 points)
lunch:
weightwatchers pizza (5 points)
afternoon snack:
apple (0.5 points)
dinner:
Singapore noodles (7 points)
beansprouts
lettuce, tomatoes and dressing (1.5 points)
evening snack:
chocolate (2.5 points)
Total: 22.5 points
Water: 96oz
I have been following the cabbage soup diet since Saturday. Tomorrow is the final day. In my head, I know it is a ridiculous, stupid diet to follow.
Saturday I made up massive batches of the cabbage soup and ate it alongside fruit.
Sunday I ate soup and vegetables.
Monday I ate soup, fruit and vegetables.
Tuesday I ate soup, a banana and a massive amount of banana milkshakes,
Wednesday I ate steak and soup and tomatoes.
Today I ate chicken and vegetables.
I have failed numerous times because I ate an extra mini baked potato on Monday, I didn’t eat my soup today and I’ve eaten chocolate both today and yesterday. Regardless, I have seen the scales drop.
Since I was too hungover to weigh in last post, my weight shot back up to 197. I knew it wasn’t legitimate to gain 5 or 6 pounds from my day of hungover eating but it also made me feel like complete crap. For an entire week I failed to post and my weight stayed around the 195 mark. 195 has been my weight pretty much all friggin year. I am so sick of weighing in the 190s.
The rationale part of my brain told me to just get back on weightwatchers and maybe actually work out but the headcase part of my brain decided the Cabbage Soup diet would be more effective.
Today I weighed in at 190, my lowest weight of 2010. If I am 189 tomorrow I will be a very, very happy girl despite my crazy binge episode this afternoon. I will write more about my binge episode another time since it really blew me away with the physical and mental cravings that sparked it.
But even though I haven’t posted in 10 days, I am around and still losing weight, just not in a calm, rational manner. Clearly I need to get my head in order just as much as my body.
-CJ
Weigh-in: unknown – too hungover to think about it first thing
Eats:
Breakfast:
pita with hummus (3 points)
egg bagel sandwich (10 points)
pita with peanut butter and jam (4 points)
chocolate (2.5 points)
lunch:
cheese puffs, sausage roll, two mini scotch egg bites, southern fried chicken wrap and two magnums
dinner:
half a box of nachos
half a chicken quesadilla
Total: no idea but ALOT. I need to not drink ever again
Water: 72oz
Weigh-in: 191 woohoo!
Eats:
Breakfast:
green smoothie (2.5 points)
lunch:
whole wheat english muffin (2.5 points)
egg (1.5 points)
salad of romaine, baby tomatoes, red pepper with honey mustard dressing (0.5 points)
afternoon snack:
peanut butter and half a banana pita (4 points)
dinner:
5 shrimp and two bites of beef (1 point?)
Lots and lots of wine :(
Total: 12 points of food but lost track of the wine…
Activity: 5k in 35:41…my fastest 5k of 2010 so far and almost 2 minutes faster than last week (486 calories)
Water: 30oz :(
Weigh-in: 193 again
Eats:
Breakfast:
green smoothie (3 points)
morning snack:
apples (0.5 points)
lunch:
whole wheat wrap (2.5 points)
hummus (1.5 points)
roasted courgette, yellow pepper and quarter of a red onion
salad of romaine, baby tomatoes, red pepper and quarter of a red onion with honey mustard dressing (0.5 points)
afternoon snack:
apples (0.5 points)
dinner:
quorn cutlet (4.5 points)
bagel (4.5 points)
roasted broccoli
massive salad with sweetcorn (1 point)
chocolate (2.5 points)
mini green smoothie (1 point)
Total: 22 points
Water: 100oz + 2 cups of tea!
Weigh-in: 193 again!
Eats:
Breakfast:
green smoothie (2.5 points)
lunch:
whole wheat wrap (2.5 points)
hummus (1.5 points)
roasted courgette and pepper
salad of romaine, baby tomatoes, red pepper and quarter of a red onion with honey mustard dressing (0.5 points)
afternoon snack:
apples (1 point)
dinner:
pita and hummus (3 points)
2 glasses wine (4 points)
quorn cutlet (4.5 points)
evening snack:
chocolate (2.5 points)
Total: 22 points
Water: 104oz
Weigh-in: 193
Eats:
Breakfast:
green smoothie (3 points – damn bigger banana!)
morning snack:
apple (0.5 points)
lunch:
whole wheat wrap (2.5 points)
hummus (1.5 points)
roasted courgette, yellow pepper and quarter of a red onion
salad of romaine, baby tomatoes, red pepper and quarter of a red onion with honey mustard dressing (0.5 points)
dinner:
2 eggs (3.5 points)
sweet potato (2 points)
beans (2 points)
sweetcorn (0.5 point)
evening snack:
wholemeal english muffin (2.5 points)
banana (1.5 points)
peanut butter (1.5 points)
Total: 21.5 points
Water: 96oz
Weigh-in: 194 (1.8 gain from last week – I’m blaming TOM)
Eats:
Breakfast:
green smoothie (3 points – damn bigger banana!)
morning snack:
apple (0.5 points)
lunch:
whole wheat wrap (2.5 points)
hummus (1.5 points)
roasted courgette, yellow pepper and quarter of a red onion
salad of romaine, baby tomatoes, red pepper and quarter of a red onion with honey mustard dressing (0.5 points)
afternoon snack:
honey and yogurt (2.5 points)
dinner:
pesto and mozzarella quorn cutlet (4.5 points)
sweet potato (2.5 points)
peas
salsa (0.5 points)
evening snack:
wholemeal english muffin (2.5 points)
jam (0.5 points)
peanut butter (1.5 points)
Total: 22 points
Activity: went for a walk after work (up to 8,300 steps for the day)
Water: 72oz
My new year’s resolution for 2009 was to take up running.
I’d tried before, I’d started the Couch to 5k program at least twice, but this time it stuck.
I’ve just logged into my nike+ account (apparently for the first time in 2010) and it had all these fun summary stats for me:
I usually ran in the night and I ran most often on Sundays (makes sense, after work mid-week and long runs on Sundays)
My average pace was 7.53/km (which it says is quick like a cat – which to me sounds like it’s taking the piss!)
I ran a total of 551km (that’s over 9 marathons!!)
I burned 50,606 calories (that’s enough energy to power my iPod for 20 days of partying!)
Not bad for a new year’s resolution!
- CJ
Weigh-in: 195 (seriously?? my starting weight again??)
Eats:
Breakfast:
green smoothie (2.5 points)
lunch:
whole wheat wrap (2.5 points)
hummus (2.5 points)
spinach and tomato
dinner:
pesto and mozzarella quorn cutlet (4.5 points)
sweet potato (2.5 points)
broccoli/cauliflower/courgette/carrot mix
salsa (0.5 points)
evening snack:
chocolate (2.5 points)
green smoothie (1.5 points)
Total: 19 points
Activity: 5k in 37:33 + Body Pump
Water: 72oz
It’s not about what you’re eating, it’s about what’s eating you
I’ve just eaten three nakd cocoa orange bars – 7.5 points of snacking…for breakfast…and more than 2 days worth of points in total today.
so what’s eating me?
As Dr. Jensen asked the morbidly obese person in this week’s Supersize vs Superskinny, is it habit? loneliness? boredom?
I think it’s all three. My green smoothie didn’t work this morning. I ran out of spinach and instead of going to the store first thing I tried frozen spinach which doesn’t blend as well and it was really thick and gross…so then I ate three nakd bars and some ryvita and cheese…
Not long after I ate a microwave meal and a pizza. At that point I went shopping and bought everything necessary to have a zero point dinner and actually stay on track but I didn’t feel like cooking.
I ordered sushi – I had a lot of internal struggle about it first. I’ve been really good at budgeting my food spending this month and I wouldn’t be able to accurately reflect the points. Then 40 minutes after ordering the restaurant called and said it’d be extra to deliver so I cancelled it – it was a sign?!
Instead, I ate a relatively healthy dinner of veggies, salsa, a couple of points of cheese and some fruit…it would have passed…except for the chocolate. AN ENTIRE BAR OF CHOCOLATE! 16 POINTS!!
TMI – that time of the month started today, I flaked on my volunteering today, I let them down and then I continued to let myself down ALL DAMN DAY.
I was bored, yes. I was lonely, yes. I was frustrated at myself, yes. I was (am) hormonal, definitely.
I want to succeed at this. I really, really, truly do. I just want these 30lbs GONE. But today I didn’t act like that was the case. Today I didn’t help myself at all.
I deserve better than pizza and microwave meals and chocolate bars. I deserve to feel cute and happy. I really, really, truly do.
- CJ
Weigh-in:
Eats:
Breakfast:
half a nakd cashew cookie (1.5 points)
Green smoothie (2.5 points)
lunch:
tuna mayo salad (4.5 points)
dinner:
chicken pasta with cheese (9 points)
Massive bowl of zero point cabbage and onion soup
my final reese’s egg (3 points)
courgette fries made with flax seed (1.5 points?)
berry bomb smoothie made with cocoa, frozen berries, milk, banana and honey (3.5 points?)
Total: 25.5 points
Water: 72oz
Weigh-in: 191.2lbs again (it flitted in the 189 range, then 190, then settled back on 191.2…I even tried twice haha)
Eats:
Breakfast:
Green smoothie (2.5 points)
lunch:
tuna mayo pita (6 points)
salad (0.5 points)
5 mini chocolate bites (5 points?)
afternoon snack:
ryvita (1 point)
laughing cow (0.5 points)
apple (0.5 points)
dinner:
chicken and pasta (6)
Massive bowl of zero point cabbage and onion soup + cheese (1 point)
banana and custard (3 points)
Total: 26 points (got to stop digging into that office candy!)
Water: 84oz
Weigh-in: 191.2lbs
Eats:
Breakfast:
Green smoothie (2.5 points)
lunch:
tuna mayo pita (6 points)
salad (0.5 points)
chocolate biscuit (2 points?)
afternoon snack:
ryvita (1 point)
laughing cow (0.5 points)
apple (0.5 points)
babybel (1 point)
dinner:
chicken and pasta (8) because this time I added cheese!
Massive bowl of zero point cabbage and onion soup
Total: 22 points
Water: 96oz
Weigh-in: 192.2lbs
Eats:
Breakfast:
half a banana (0.5 points)
Green smoothie (2.5 points)
morning snack:
apple (0.5 points)
babybel (1 point)
lunch:
tuna mayo pita (6 points)
salad (0.5 points)
afternoon snack:
ryvita (1 point)
laughing cow (0.5 points)
pre-work out snack:
half a nakd cashew cookie bar (1.5 points)
dinner:
chicken and pasta (6)
Total: 20 points
Activity: 5k in 37:02
Water: 80oz
Weigh-in: 192.2 (down 1.6 from last Monday)
Eats:
Breakfast:
Green smoothie (1.5 points)
half a nakd cashew cookie bar (1.5 points)
lunch:
zero point soup and two pitas with laughing cow (5 points)
afternoon snack:
chocolate bar (5.5 points)
dinner:
salmon (4.5 points)
stir-fry veggies
Total: 18 points
Water: 72oz
I want to call tonight’s snacking a binge but I’m honestly not sure it can be classified as that.
For two weeks exactly I’ve been tracking my weight daily, went over points only once, have been running according to my training schedule and even attending Body Pump once or twice a week.
So what trigged tonight’s snacking? I really don’t know. I know that I didn’t want to eat my final reese’s egg so I tried to occupy myself elsewhere. Unfortunately, that occupying included three pitas, hummus, veggie soup and a nakd bar.
A typical binge would have involved going to the store and buying cheese-y pasta or pizza, a white bread sandwich to eat while the pizza/pasta cooked, a bag of cheese puffs and a box of rocky road bites. At a guess? Maybe 4,000 calories?
Tonight’s snacks – maybe 700 calories? And it didn’t have the same binge characteristics as normal – I weighed out 1 point of hummus. I chopped cabbage and onions and made zero point soup. The reese’s egg was brought out of the freezer, defrosted and put BACK into the freezer. I drank 24oz of water before the second pita.
Could I actually have just been hungry? I typically don’t eat my activity points and this week I’ve done Body Pump and run 7 miles so in all honesty, those 8.5 points of tonight’s snacking are probably covered through activity points.
Am I wrongly justifying my actions tonight? Or am I actually in an okay place right now with my eating, activity and even my attempts at bingeing?
- CJ
Weigh-in: 191.2lbs again
Eats:
Breakfast:
Green smoothie (2.5 points)
post-workout snack:
half a nakd cashew cookie bar (1.5 points)
lunch:
hummus and mushroom grilled pita (3 points)
salad of baby tomatoes, lettuce and grilled courgette
apple, pumpkin spice and custard (2 points)
mid-afternoon snack:
laughing cow wedge and spinach pita (2.5 points)
dinner:
salmon (4.5 points)
edamame (2 points)
stir-fry veggies
reese’s egg (3 points)
horrible late-night snacking:
pita and hummus (3 points)
zero point soup and pitas (4 points)
nakd cocoa orange bar (2.5 point)
Total: 30.5 points eek
Activity: 2 miles @11:31
Water: 96oz
Weigh-in: 191.2lbs
Eats:
Breakfast:
Green smoothie (2.5 points)
post-workout snack:
half a banana (0.5 point)
laughing cow wedge (0.5 point)
lunch:
tuna mayo pita (5 points)
red pepper
baby tomatoes
mid-afternoon snack:
homemade apple sauce with honey and pumpkin spice (1 point)
custard (2 points)
kale chips
carrot fries
hummus and pita (3.5 points)
dinner:
salmon (4.5)
stirfry veggies
reese’s peanut butter egg (3 points)
Total: 22.5 points
Activity: Body Pump
Water: 72oz + chamomile tea + sleepytime tea
Weigh-in: 192.2lbs again
Eats:
Breakfast:
Green smoothie (2.5 points)
lunch:
roasted carrot, spinach, hummus, laughing cow pita – all grilled on the foreman (5 points)
yellow pepper
baby tomatoes
mid-afternoon snack:
homemade apple sauce with honey and pumpkin spice (1 point)
laughing cow, tomato, spinach pita also grilled on the foreman (2.5 points)
dinner:
baked salmon (4 points)
steamed broccoli
courgette and mushroom alfredo (1 point)
2 reese’s peanut butter eggs (6 points)
Total: 22 points
Water: 72oz + green tea + sleepytime tea
Weigh-in: 192.2lbs
Eats:
Breakfast:
Green smoothie (2.5 points)
mid-morning snack:
apple (0.5 points)
babybel (1 point)
lunch:
Bugsy sandwich (carrots and hummus) (4.5 points)
salt and vinegar snacks (1.5 points)
pre-workout snack:
half a nakd cocoa orange bar (1 point)
dinner:
zero point soup
hummus and spinach pita (3 points)
1 reese’s peanut butter egg and another 1/6 of the reese’s easter egg (6 points) – How bad is it that I’m totally budgeting light during the day so I can eat as much reese’s as possible??!!
pre-bed snack:
roasted brussel sprouts and carrots (3 points?)
reeses! argh (3 points)
Total: 26 points
Activity: 2.5 miles in 28:55 (almost a whole minute faster than Tuesday!)
Water: 72oz + sleepytime tea
Weigh-in: 193lbs
Eats:
Breakfast:
Green smoothie (2.5 points)
mid-morning snack:
jaffa cake(0.5 points)
lunch:
Boots shapers bbq chicken wrap (4.5 points)
salt and vinegar snacks (1.5 points)
mid-afternoon snack:
almond cake (2 points?)
babybel (1 point)
dinner:
tuna salad (4.5 points)
1/3 of a reese’s peanut butter easter egg (6 points)
Total: 22.5 points
Water: 72oz
Weigh-in: 193.8lbs again (I swear my scale is either possessed or ridiculously accurate)
Eats:
Breakfast:
Green smoothie (2.5 points)
mid-morning snack:
apple (0.5 points)
lunch:
zero point soup
Boots shapers coronation chicken sandwich (4.5 points)
salt and vinegar snacks (1.5 points)
mid-afternoon snack:
apple (0.5 points)
babybel (1 point)
zero point soup
pre-workout snack:
half a banana (0.5 points)
half a nakd cocoa orange bar (1 point)
dinner:
broccoli and shrimp alfredo (3 points)
1/6 of a reese’s peanut butter easter egg (6 points – it’s supposed to serve 4 but I’ve cut this sucker into 6 and stored the rest in the freezer. I’ll be damned if this easter gift is going to get the better of me!)
Total: 21 points
Activity: 2.5 miles in 29:53
Water: 72oz + sleepytime tea
Weigh-in: 193.8lbs
Weekly check-in: –1.2lbs from last week :)
Eats:
Breakfast:
Green smoothie (2 points)
mid-morning snack:
apple (0.5 points)
lunch:
Boots shapers chicken flat-bread (4.5 points)
salt and vinegar snack a jacks (1.5 points)
biscuit (1.5 points)
dinner:
salad (1 point)
Sainsbury’s be good to yourself lasagne (6.5 points)
half nakd cocoa orange bar (1 point)
Total: 18.5 points
Activity: rest day (first day of my 28 week half-marathon plan!)
Water: 24oz + 500ml diet cream soda oops
Weigh-in: 192.6lbs again
Eats:
Breakfast:
Half a banana (0.5 points)
humuus and 1.5 peppers (2.5 points)
Green smoothie (2.5 points)
lunch:
bran flakes and milk (4 points)
post-workout:
extra light laughing cow wedge (0.5 points)
green smoothie (2.5 points)
dinner:
salad (1 point)
carrot fries (1 point)
weight watchers caramelised onion and goat cheese pizza (6.5 points)
half nakd cocoa orange bar (1 point)
Total: 22 points
Activity: Body Pump
Water: 72oz + slimatee
Weigh-in: 192.6lbs
Eats:
Breakfast:
Green smoothie (2.5 points)
lunch:
1.5 ham/cheese/pickle/mayo sandwiches (so difficult to estimate when you’re relying on someone else’s cooking!)
dinner:
1 large glass and 1 small glass of white wine (4.5 points??)
a few salt and vinegar crisps (2 points)
carrots
green smoothie (1.5 points)
Total: 21.5 points (I have no idea really but I think I’m at least overestimating rather than guessing low for the sandwich/wine/crisps etc)
Activity: nothing official but I was on my feet for about 5 hours today at my latest volunteering venture
Water: 72oz + slimatee
Weigh-in: 194.6lbs still
Eats:
Breakfast:
Green smoothie (3.5 points)
mid-morning snack:
apple (0.5 points)
lunch:
spinach and ricotta canneloni (7 points)
side salad (0.5 points)
afternoon snack:
chocolate cake (2 points)
dinner:
humuus (4.5 points)
carrots
chardonnay (2 points)
Total: 20 points
Activity: none again :(
Water: 72 oz + diet coke (eek first one in a long time!) +slimatee and sleepytime tea
Weigh-in: 194.6lbs
Eats:
Breakfast:
Green smoothie (2.5 points)
mid-morning snack:
mini babybel (1 point)
apple (0.5 points)
lunch:
barbeque chicken wrap (3.5 points)
french fry crisps (1.5 points)
afternoon snack:
2 brownie bites (3 points??)
3 biscuits (4.5 points??)
dinner:
salmon in soy and honey (6.5 points)
green beans
weightwatchers brownie (6 points)
spelt tortellini (6 points)
Total: 35 points (at least I’m tracking my overeating session!)
Activity: none – another late day in the office
Water: 40 oz
Weigh-in: 193.6lbs
Eats:
Breakfast:
Green smoothie (2.5 points)
mid-morning snack:
mini babybel (1 point)
apple (0.5 points)
lunch:
Stir-fry veggies
haddock fish cake (3 points)
afternoon snack:
mini babybel (1 point)
apple (0.5 points)
orange (0.5 points)
Cadbury’s creme egg (3.5 points)
dinner:
biona spelt and vegetable tortellini (6 points)
passata
sweetcorn (0.5 points)
extra light laughing cow (0.5 points)
brussel sprouts roasted in balsamic dressing (0.5 points)
Total: 20 points
Activity: none – a late and crazy day in the office
Water: 72 oz
Weigh-in: 194.4lbs
Eats:
Breakfast:
Green smoothie (2.5 points)
mid-morning snack:
mini babybel (1 point)
apple (0.5 points)
lunch:
Sainsbury’s chicken tikka sandwich (4.5 points)
Total greek yogurt with honey (3 points)
afternoon snack:
mini babybel (1 point)
apple (0.5 points)
pre-gym snack:
2 baklava bites (3 points??)
post-gym snack:
Green smoothie (3 points)
dinner:
Stir-fry veggies
haddock fish cake (3 points)
Total: 22 points
Activity: Body-pump again!
Water: 72 oz
I’m going to weigh-in daily. I’ve been feeling like once I weigh in on the Monday I have a couple days to be a bit more lenient with before I have to buckle down and it’s just not a productive process.
So Monday’s weigh-in: still 195lbs
Monday’s eats:
Breakfast:
Green smoothie (2.5 points)
Protein pancakes (1.5 points)
mid-morning snack:
blood orange (0.5 points)
lunch:
tofu pita (6.5 points)
humuus (1.5 points)
afternoon snack:
mini babybel (1 point)
apple (0.5 points)
dinner:
veggie pasta (4.5 points)
Laughing cow extra light (0.5 points)
Total: 19 points
Activity: nothing specific, but I walked quite a bit this evening shopping and to and from and the tube station!
Water: 96 oz
All in all a good day – OP, some activity, lots of fluids.
Breakfast:
Bran flakes (3 points)
250ml milk (1 point)
Green smoothie (2.5 points)
Lunch:
pasta (3.5 points)
spinach
tomatoes
passata
onion
quark (.5 points)
snacks:
nakd cocoa orange bar (2 points)
carrots
humuus (3.5 points)
Total 2% greek yogurt with honey (3 points)
Dinner:
stirfried vegetables
pita chips (2 points)
humuus (1 point)
Total: 22 points
Drinks:
72oz water
1 cup slimatee
1 cup sleepytime tea
Activity:
Body Pump
Did you guess the secret ingredient I picked up over the weekend inspired by Carrots n Cake and Healthy Tipping Point?
POLENTA!
And the best part? This whole thing (5.5pts) was only 51p…51p!
I sliced up 2pts worth and grilled them. Then I added some passata, mushrooms and spinach and topped with 3 Babybel light cheeses for a grand total of a 5pt pizza.
This was actually pretty good – I didn’t know what to expect with polenta but it wasn’t half bad. 51p can’t be beaten either but next time I’m going to try making polenta fries. I tried a piece of the polenta before I added the sauce and toppings and it was crispy and delicious. Once it had sat in the sauce for a while it lost some of that crispiness so next time I’m definitely going to maximise the crispy potential!
QOTD: Have you ever tried polenta? Got any good recipes?
- CJ
It’s Tuesday – which means we made it through the first day of the week!
I went to Sainsbury’s on Friday night to pick up my favourite Weight Watchers pizza but left with a whole host more.
One of those was Doves Farm xanthan gum.
I posted on Saturday how luscious and creamy it made my green smoothie but holy crap it deserves its very own post because this stuff is just that good. I had read about it on HEAB and she RAVED about it. I had backtracked through her links and read Smoothie Girl’s take on them and knew I had to try it.
Words are not even doing it justice, but in the words of the Fitnessista herself – FOODGASM!
I absolutely urge you to try it and if you do, let me know!
I picked up another food blogger inspired product on Friday that I’ll feature as soon as I figure out what to do with it!
Hint: it’s appeared on Healthy Tipping Point AND Carrots n Cake recently.
What amazing products have you discovered thanks to food blogs?
-CJ
I said last Monday that I’d do a post on my new smoothie maker and coffee maker – so as promised.
My routine lately has been to set my Morphy Richards coffee maker each night. At 6am it switches on and I have lovely freshly brewed coffee as soon as I wake up. I drink half (4 cups) with half a cup of milk while I’m getting ready.
Then I put the other half in the fridge to make iced coffee. I take the other half from the day before as iced coffee to the office with another half cup of milk to sip throughout the morning. I find coffee and milk really filling so it stops me from aimlessly snacking all morning.
Then I blend up my green smoothie in my Kenwood Smoothie 2Go. I love this thing – it makes the smoothies directly in the travel mug so once it’s done I just throw it in my bag and take it to the office to sip alongside my coffee.
For 4 points total, it’s a pretty filling breakfast even if it is all liquid!
- CJ
A little bicarbonate of soda, a touch of baking powder, some brown rice protein powder and liquid egg whites. All whisked together to form pancake batter.
For 1pt of protein powder I can make about 4 pancakes. Cook them up and coat with 0.5pt of agave and it’s pancake Sunday!
Today I made only three and the last one (hidden on the bottom of that pile) was so thick that it burned on the bottom before it cooked. I don’t recommend burning protein pancakes – they get REALLY bitter!
But still, 1.5pts for a pancake and syrup breakfast really can’t be beaten!
- CJ
Two months of 2010 down so it’s time for another progress report:
In 2010 I want to:
Volunteer – I haven’t figured out the specifics, but I want to get back into fundraising or other work with a charity that I care about
Oops, still nothing on this down – need to get researching into some ideas
Get organised – This is a goal every year and I think I made a definite improvement on this in the past 12 months. I’d like to keep my flat at a level of cleanliness that I don’t have to ‘apologise for the mess’ whenever someone drops by unannounced. Of course, I’ll still say it regardless!
I’m doing pretty good. The bathroom is tidy, the kitchen is more often than not respectable and the living room is so-so. I do have to organise my closet and bedroom and I NEED to hang up my pictures. I moved in about 18 months ago and still have barely decorated!
Save money – I started this one yesterday when I cut my broadband bill in half. I want to do a full money makeover and get my bills as low as possible over the next few weeks. Then I fully intend to cut back on my spending, particularly in terms of food shopping, eat out less especially for lunch and get some money into my savings account by stopping spending on my credit cards. I aim to only put things on my credit card that can be expensed back to work and this will also ensure that I don’t miss any expenses that could have been claimed back each month.
I did put an ipod charger adaptor on my credit card on my recent vacation but I paid it off as soon as I got back so I’m back to all zero balances. I’ve been taking my lunches in all week and sticking to a £50/week food budget so far.
Reignite a childhood passion – I’m not sure I’ve figured this out yet either but it’s one of the goals suggested by Spark People (as is the one below) and I really like the idea. Maybe I’ll join my colleagues at their weekly netball game, maybe I’ll dig out my old flute or go camping.
Nothing yet – still need to think of what I’m going to do!
Look forward – I already cut out pictures and articles about places I want to travel to, restaurants I want to eat at, things I want to try or see and now I want to create a dream board. It will be something that can inspire me day-to-day to move towards a life that is everything I dream of.
Ok this one I have no excuse for not starting – I REALLY need to get moving on this one
Make peace with my grief – My father died 11 years ago and I still cannot talk about him without tears. I’m pretty sure it’s not typical to still harbour grief this long and this may require counselling, but it’s definitely a place that I’d like to get to.
Still reading my three grief books – it’s always going to be a work in progress but I’m proud that I’m doing something about it.
Expand my cooking skills – I aim to make one new recipe a week to expand my repertoire of go-to dishes. I’d also like to give my kitchen a bit of a makeover (organisation again!) I’d also like to experiment with different grains, new spices and find kale to try those crispy kale chips I see throughout blogworld!
I’ve made quite a few yummy recipes this month – love my roasted chickpeas and have been doing some really fun roasted vegetables. I’m all about the zero-point vegetables now that I’m back on WW!
Health and fitness goals are to:
Try a new sport – I never thought I'd do as well as I’ve done this year with running. Even though I took an almost 6 week break after the half-marathon and then another hiatus after breaking my wrist I’ve stuck with it for most of the year and have even run twice this week between Christmas and New Years, quite likely the only time I’ve ever worked out in these usually gluttonous days. As soon as my wrist heals I want to try Bikram yoga and have already scoped out the closest yoga studio. I also plan to PR at the same half-marathon race next September.
Not yet and I need to get back to the gym period.
Look after my skin – I am 27 and still fall to sleep with my makeup on. I want to establish a skin routine and stick to it.
My skin is still being crappy lately – another work in progress. Hopefully the regular green smoothies will help!
Eat cleaner – I plan on fully completing Project55 this year and reaching my goal weight finally. As part of this I aim to
Still not taking probiotics or supplements but I’m doing much better eating clean. I eat some chocolate in the evenings but other than that this past week for example has been excellent. Low fat dairy, massive amounts of vegetables and meat (chicken) only twice.
I’m feeling really good about this past month – 10 more to go!
- CJ
Breakfast was a green smoothie
2-egg omelette (with extra egg whites 0pts) with Babybel light 4pts and ketchup 0.5pts
Lunch was a mushroom burger 2pts, wrap 2.5pts, yellow pepper 0pts and mustard 0pts and an iced latte 1pt
Dinner was another wrap 2.5pts, light mayo 0.5pts, tuna 2.5pts and mustard 0pts
Followed by another green smoothie 2pts because last night I discovered xanthan gum and OMG it makes smoothies so thick and luscious!
A delicious day of eats for 20 points – did I earn any activity points this week? No – today in fact I’ve spent most of the day on the sofa catching up on Biggest Loser and other TV shows that I just don’t get to see during the week. It’s been blissfully lazy!
QOTD: Do you struggle with weekend eating when it’s less structured?
- CJ
C25K success is the most frequent Google search phrase that finds this little blog.
My original success can be found back in March 2009 and is the first time I ran for over 30 minutes straight. I ran for 40 minutes and was absolutely thrilled.
It was a 2009 resolution to take up running. I bought the Nike+ shoes, the iPod nano, the armband, and the shoe chip and put the C25K sessions into my phone calendar. I cannot say enough good things about this program. I can still remember the first time I ran for a minute, the first time I ran for an entire song (Rihanna SOS), my first five minutes, the first 8 minutes and so on. Funnily enough I played SOS so many times during those first few months of C25K that I can’t stand it anymore!
7 months after starting the program I ran 10 miles with my younger brother – I use the term ‘with’ loosely since he lapped me at mile 7 (his legs are a good few inches longer than mine and he’s training for the military!)
8 months into the program I was running the five miles home a couple times a week from work (and beating the 2 buses I normally took).
9 months into the program I ran my first race, all 13.1 miles of it and didn’t stop once.
I have lost 20lbs since beginning that journey a year ago and absolutely LOVE running. I’m going to run the half-marathon again this year and will hopefully smash my previous time. And I owe it all to the C25K program.
- CJ
First an apology to Angie for using the F-word there but it’s true. While I only had one really bad day, I truly think I need to get back to tracking – either calories or points because the scale is just not going in the right direction and I’m guessing it’s my portion sizes.
I am sincerely hoping that you can’t gain 4lbs just like that in a week so hopefully it’ll be gone this time next week once I’m over all my hormonal etc issues.
Another week…
CJ
Today I knocked out five miles – I last hit that mileage during the half-marathon in September. Granted, at times I wanted to die a little but I didn’t stop and I even looked down a couple of times to see the Garmin displaying some 10 or 11 minute miles which I was happy about. I was fully expecting to be back at my 13 minute mile pace, but I’m actually running about the same speed as I was in June/July so hopefully I’m well on track to PR-ing at the half-marathon again this year.
5 miles – 61:38 minutes – 690 calories
Mile 1: 11:58
Mile 2: 12:19
Mile 3: 12:16
Mile 4: 12:38
Mile 5:12:30
I had an expensive trip to Whole Foods on Friday but scored some brown rice protein powder, vegetarian refried black beans, organic multi-grain tortillas, brown rice sushi x2, edamame, freshly ground peanut butter, medjool dates, oats, Amy's burrito x2 and some green veggie powder that I’m going to experiment with for green monsters.
Weigh-in tomorrow. I’m not feeling good about it – I had a proper binge day on Thursday involving one and a half Pret’s cheese and pickle baguettes, which is about 1,000 calories right there. 4 Millie’s cookies were also devoured, as well as a pot of hummus and carrots.
TMI warning!!
The next day my period arrived – hmmmm, wonder if there’s a hormonal link there?!
Catch ya for weigh-in.
-CJ
So for anyone keeping track…last week I weighed in at 196.2
And this morning?
That would be a less than stellar .6lb loss…ah well, it’s a loss and I’ll take it.
On a happier, and far less fuzzy, note – last night I snacked on this gem of a giant HEAB protein pancake. Except this time I whipped out the crepe pan and made one giant crepe….with some drizzling of the agave it was delish!
Here’s to another week and another loss…g’night bloggies.
- CJ
Yesterday, I started my morning with a bowl of Kerf-inspired oats which consisted of 1/2 cup of oats (p.s. I just discovered that UK and US cups are different sizes – so annoying!) and a cup of almond milk cooked on the stove top with half a ripe banana. It’s topped with the other half of the banana and a teaspoon of almond butter.
On the side, Indian spice chai – cloves and cardamom and cinnamon, yum!
After breakfast and some cleaning, I ran 2.5 miles in the freezing cold, dodging snow and ice and then did some shopping.
Lunch was protein pancakes courtesy of Heather Eats Almond Butter, which I made with a scoop of my berry smoothie protein powder, egg whites, bicarbonate of soda and baking powder. My first attempt wasn’t pretty, mainly because I ignored the advice and made one GIANT pancake, but it still tasted good and was topped with another teaspoon of almond butter and some agave.
I LOVE the protein pancake idea, particularly since the berry smoothie protein powder is GROSS as a smoothie but somehow as a pancake it’s delicious.
Not gonna lie, I went back for a second batch and this time made two pancakes out of the batter and they were even better. Topped them with just agave since I have an almond butter problem!
Dinner was salmon with stir-fried veggies.
Breakfast this morning was a Fitnessista breakfast cookie, which I made with 1/2 a cup of oats, a scoop of vanilla soya protein powder, a teaspoon of almond butter, a splash of almond milk and a mashed banana.
Lunch was a can of Amy's Black Bean soup – another Whole Foods find from my trip on Friday night. Yes I shop at Whole Foods on a Friday night – it’s a happy place and I’m a sucker for brown rice sushi!
Dinner tonight was baked salmon alongside a veggie-rific sauce of eggplant, mushroom, pepper, tomato, onion and leek served atop a mound of spaghetti squash.
Eating like a food blogger = good eats!
- CJ
Last week I cancelled my weightwatchers subscription.
I haven’t followed the plan in at least 6 months and it was stupid to keep paying out the subscription fees. Instead, I’m focusing on eating whole, healthy foods and good old-fashioned portion control.
Monday mornings will be my weigh-in day and on January 4th I weighed in at 196.2
Overall that means I’ve lost about 24 pounds since the beginning of this journey a year ago. Slowly does it.
This past week I’ve eaten A LOT of vegetables and my meals have typically been oats for breakfast, chicken/pork/beef and stir-fried vegetables for lunch and stew or more stir-fry for dinner. I’ve also been religiously drinking my water, 8 glasses before I leave work for the day and have been trying out tea as an after dinner ‘snack’ or ‘dessert’ to keep me away from chocolate or other sweet things.
I’ll post again tomorrow with my next Monday morning weigh-in
CJ
It is New Year’s Eve – 5:10pm as I write this and there are less than 7 hours of 2009 remaining. Since I have no internet connection here, this will post in 48 hours once I return to civilisation.
2009 has been a strange year. This has been the first year I’ve had job security (as much as anyone can have in the current economic climate) and I haven’t moved house at all. I have started and finished 2009 living in the same flat and working at the same job, both of which are unusual compared to my previously mobile life.
2009 saw my first trip to Vegas, which was also my first trip with just friends for no other purpose than having fun. I also did the obligatory wedding travel and spent 10 days back in the US for my college roommate’s wedding. I got a promotion at work, I broke my wrist, I began running and then trained for and ran a half-marathon. I joined weightwatchers and lost 25lbs, I stopped going to weightwatchers and gained maybe 10 of those back.
2010 I have some very specific goals in mind. I have some general life things I want to accomplish, some specific health and fitness things I’d like to accomplish and some hopes for the next 365 days that are to come.
In 2010 I want to:
Volunteer – I haven’t figured out the specifics, but I want to get back into fundraising or other work with a charity that I care about
Get organised – This is a goal every year and I think I made a definite improvement on this in the past 12 months. I’d like to keep my flat at a level of cleanliness that I don’t have to ‘apologise for the mess’ whenever someone drops by unannounced. Of course, I’ll still say it regardless!
Save money – I started this one yesterday when I cut my broadband bill in half. I want to do a full money makeover and get my bills as low as possible over the next few weeks. Then I fully intend to cut back on my spending, particularly in terms of food shopping, eat out less especially for lunch and get some money into my savings account by stopping spending on my credit cards. I aim to only put things on my credit card that can be expensed back to work and this will also ensure that I don’t miss any expenses that could have been claimed back each month.
Reignite a childhood passion – I’m not sure I’ve figured this out yet either but it’s one of the goals suggested by Spark People (as is the one below) and I really like the idea. Maybe I’ll join my colleagues at their weekly netball game, maybe I’ll dig out my old flute or go camping.
Look forward – I already cut out pictures and articles about places I want to travel to, restaurants I want to eat at, things I want to try or see and now I want to create a dream board. It will be something that can inspire me day-to-day to move towards a life that is everything I dream of.
Make peace with my grief – My father died 11 years ago and I still cannot talk about him without tears. I’m pretty sure it’s not typical to still harbour grief this long and this may require counselling, but it’s definitely a place that I’d like to get to.
Expand my cooking skills – I aim to make one new recipe a week to expand my repertoire of go-to dishes. I’d also like to give my kitchen a bit of a makeover (organisation again!) I’d also like to experiment with different grains, new spices and find kale to try those crispy kale chips I see throughout blogworld!
Health and fitness goals are to:
Try a new sport – I never thought I'd do as well as I’ve done this year with running. Even though I took an almost 6 week break after the half-marathon and then another hiatus after breaking my wrist I’ve stuck with it for most of the year and have even run twice this week between Christmas and New Years, quite likely the only time I’ve ever worked out in these usually gluttonous days. As soon as my wrist heals I want to try Bikram yoga and have already scoped out the closest yoga studio. I also plan to PR at the same half-marathon race next September.
Look after my skin – I am 27 and still fall to sleep with my makeup on. I want to establish a skin routine and stick to it.
Eat cleaner – I plan on fully completing Project55 this year and reaching my goal weight finally. As part of this I aim to
2010 is a completely blank canvas – as far as I know there are no moves in my future at work or home, I have no holidays planned. I don’t mean to sound pessimistic like I have nothing to look forward to but I have no idea what can happen in 2010. I guess we can only find out!
- CJ
