Evil.... toaster ovens...

I'm not sure if I'm just late to the game or what but recently I discovered a marshmallow in the toaster oven for about 2-3 minutes on broil comes out better than over a flame outside... add some chocolate and a graham cracker and I'm sure you can see where I am going with this. I'm suppose to eat an extra 500 calories a day while nursing.. Do s'mores count?

I'm Back!!!!!!!!!!!!

Hello all. Short of starting a blog for those who "fell off the wagon", I will keep it short and say the past few weeks of my life have been full of stress and I think I am now back in charge. Despite the stress, I did not lose 10 pounds. I am one of those who gains instead of losing. Those who lose under stress can not be my friend. I could not help but be brought back to reality when Angi wrote about "Piggy fatty". I think I have laughed again for 2 days. So thanks for the laugh. Iam back to piggy fatty and in desperate need of good friends and guidance. I am starting today with my usual 8 cups of coffee.......no, just kidding, seeing if you are really listening..... to my 3 or 4 cups of coffee and a breakfast bar. I have a meeting tonight at a restuarant and will limit myself to one glass of wine (red, of course) and anything on the menu healthy. I do realize that may mean I come home hungry. So be it. It feels good to be back! Happy Healthy Eating!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Monday....sigh...

I'm really having a hard time with Ed...he wants to eat out, and it throws me off track!  Ok, so it's not really his fault (I am a grown up....), but it IS hard not to go along when he wants to go out to eat. And it's really hard not to order what I want once I'm there..... I can't wait until spring, and we're back to the "swim and grill" plan!

I have had a good eating day so far today though - a whole-wheat cranberry muffin for breakfast and a turkey sub on whole wheat for lunch.  And since it's leftovers for dinner tonight for us, I should fare well tonight too....here's hoping! :-)

Off The Wagon, But Right Back On

So, I didn't make it a full week without eating out. But I'm quite okay with that. I went 6 days, and had my reward tonight in the form of a yummy burger. Simple necessity prompted it, seeing as we were out on errands all afternoon and had essentially no food in the house to go home to. While I enjoyed my meal, I didn't enjoy it as much as I used to. I wasn't able to finish everything (maybe my stomach is actually shrinking like my husband says!) and I certainly didn't feel as healthy tonight as I have this past week. In particular I think the Pepsi did a number on me since I haven't had caffeine in a week. Here it is 11pm and I can't fall asleep!

I was rereading my runner's handbook tonight, and it talked about how cutting yourself off completely from favorite foods will just cause you to fail. I've always believed that which is why I have never dieted in my life. But what was more interesting was the book saying that as you become healthier and more in shape, your body will crave healthier foods. It almost seems to be coming true for me. I doubt a junk food addict like myself would ever stop eating junk completely, but I seem to want it a lot less. Tonight's dinner was good but not great.

My biggest hurdle to cross is finding something I can eat at home that is filling. I have been having a hard time in particular with my lunches and still feeling hungry about 30 minutes after I eat. I'm glad that the snacks I eat to tide myself over to dinner have been healthy (dried apples and yogurt) but I'm just not used to feeling this famished by 1pm and trying to wait until 5:30 or 6 to eat dinner. That has really been tough. Those are the times I get irrational and want nothing more than a big cheeseburger or 3 tacos or something.

I see I am rambling but I guess the point is that I ate out tonight, and I'm not mad at myself but proud that I went from Sunday to Saturday eating at home the entire time. I'm also proud because I have no real plans to eat out again any time next week and feel committed to making a point of eating at home. It's not as hard as I thought it would be. And I think the absolute best thing is the effect it is having on Laura. I want to make these changes not only for myself, but for her as well, in the hopes of creating better habits for her as she gets older.

Peanut Butter Blues....

I'm finally back!  I've stopped the eating frenzy, and have successfully managed to make it through an entire day without eating the silverware and napkins along with my meals.  No hiding in the pantry (how embarrassing that I actually did this....), no staking out the low-fat Pringles, and no eating until I feel like I'm about to pop.  I'm attributing this temporary lapse to hormones....thank goodness I don't go through this every month though - I'd weigh 400 lbs....

Now I'm going to act like this never happened, and move on with my life. Speaking of which, I'm now back to the energy bar plan as a part of a healthy diet. I grabbed one out of the pantry today at lunch, and had it halfway unwrapped before....GASP.....OH NO.....I remembered the peanut butter recall. My favorite bar, a Clif Mojo Peanut Butter Pretzel bar, has been voluntarily recalled....along with all of the other varieties I happen to own and enjoy. So I'm not sure if a rat "went potty" in my bar, and technically the expiration dates, which by the way are referred to as "best enjoyed by..." or something along those lines as if I'm fooled by this language, are not among those that were recalled....but how can I?  Should I?  Will I?  No....I won't....I must take a break from these bars until further notice. 

So I had cereal for lunch....

Dreaming About Food

The husband and I watched LOST last night and neither of us were appreciating all the commericals for food. Can you tell what is on our minds lately? My eating right and eating at home challenge is tough!

I had a dream last night that I was at the mall and was stuck there all day without food, and my only option was to eat at the food court. Some person (no one I know in real life) was essentially pressuring me to just give in and eat there. It was such an odd dream! As far as I know, I never gave in to the dreamland temptation. At first when I woke up I thought that I had eaten lunch out yesterday and I was furious! I was very relieved when I realized it was all a dream.

I have to go back to the mall today since I forgot my wallet when I went yesterday and couldn't return the thing I had gone there to return. Once again, it would be so easy and so yummy to grab lunch there, but I'm going to have a sandwich here before I go. Not want I want to do, but what I need to do. My scale is still saying what it did yesterday, so I guess I'm on the right track!

No Eating Out, Day 3

Today is my 3rd day of not being allowed to eat out. The past two days were actually pretty easy. My husband was home from work, and Laura had no school, so we didn't really go anywhere. The snow yesterday helped with that of course.

So today was when I faced my first real "challenge". I decided that I must get out of the house today, since Laura's school was cancelled AGAIN. The mall is inside, and warm, and the roads are clear so we'll be heading there in a little bit, hopefully to put my GymBucks to good use at Gymboree. Normally a trip to the mall would include lunch at the food court, but that is out this time. We are saving our trip for after lunch so that Laura and I can eat at home. What a revelation! It's kind of annoying just waiting around to go to the mall, but we're in no big rush today.

I'm happy because obviously this will save me from a greasy meal with a too-large portion, plus some pop. I will be having some leftover chicken pot pie for lunch, which while not too healthy, is filling, has veggies in it, and is very yummy! Plus I'm saving myself about $10 by eating here. I weighed myself this morning and I'm down almost 2 pounds, although I'm not sure if I was just weighing myself at a good time or what. I will be curious if that weight stays the same for the next week. If not I'm okay with that, mostly because I'm so pleased that I'm taking this challenge so seriously.

I think I may try to extend my challenge to include next week as well, with going out to dinner next weekend as a reward. That will be 2 weeks with eating at home the entire time, a huge change for me.