I’m eating the damn salad.

Before I joined Weight Watchers, I made this week’s menu — breakfast, lunch, dinner, snacks–all mapped out. Well, then Tuesday rolled around and suddenly my plan sucks. I was so frustrated.

First of all, Little Elfkin is eating like mad–she must be heading for a growth spurt because I was about to dig into my breakfast when her cherubic voice inquired “Mama? More egg? Please?”

“Yes, Baby, you can have more egg…”

So, I tracked one egg, one tortilla for breakfast–and it was 5 points–not bad! But by the time I got to work, I was hungry again. I stopped at the gas station and picked up what I thought was a healthy alternative–a turkey sausage, egg, and cheese sandwich and a couple of espressos. Well, no 2nd breakfast for this Hobbit! That breakfast sandwich would’ve been 11 points, which would’ve put me at 16 points, then the espressos were another 6, so just in BREAKFAST I would’ve used up 22/40 points (or 55%) of my daily budget on one meal. *fizzle*

I skipped the breakfast sandwich! Go me!

1st break rolls around and I. Am. Starving. I had 2 espressos and a cup of coffee to try to stave off the hangry but noon couldn’t come soon enough! I had a cheese stick (1 point) and that held me over until noon.

YES! I CAN EAT! HALLELUJAH!

I’d packed a yummy yummy Dole Chopped Salad kit in Sunflower Crunch flavor. It has a sweet onion dressing and a little bit of bacon, so it’s yum yum delicious.

And 22 points for the whole bag. T^T It would’ve been 27, but that number was too scary so I only counted 5 cups instead of 6 1/2 which is more likely…

SERIOUSLY, WW?! SERIOUSLY?!

I portioned out half the bag and contented myself with the 13 points that it would be. I ate slowly. I was mindful of the flavors in each bite. I drank water and tried to stay in tune with my appetite.

There’s no WAY this is going to be enough food.

And then I stopped. I freaked out a little, but I let my food settle. I let my mind stop racing ahead and just… sat here. Honestly, I started typing this entry out and that’s what really gave me time enough to say “you know what? Maybe it IS enough food.”

So, here I am, 1/3 salad on my plate and I’m full.

Maybe I can do this. Maybe I can finally lose weight.

I need to go for a walk. If you made it this far, I appreciate your listening to my rant. So to speak 😉

Tracking is such an eye-opening experience

As a commitment to reaching my health and fitness goals, I’ve reinvested in tools and technology. I bought myself a gym membership for my birthday. It’s at Orange Theory Fitness and I am loving it. The environment is upbeat, the time just FLIES by, and I’m able to get 1 really good work out in each week. As I get in better shape, I’ll be adding more work outs based on the work out I do each week, and it’ll only get better from here:

Against my better judgement, I splurged on a 12-week membership to Weight Watchers (yes, again). I attended the first meeting today and it was good. There are about 14 people that I work with that attend every Tuesday. As a group over the last 12 weeks, they lost over 300 pounds. That’s astonishing! I tracked my food so far today and figured out that part of why I’m not losing weight on my own is because I’ve become delusional about my food quality. I knew my breakfast was “bad” but I didn’t think it was “that bad,” until I tracked it and realized it was more than half a day’s worth of allotted points.

I’ve got a profile going for the next twelve weeks, though, and my “before” pics and measurements. I’ve come to accept that I will constantly be starting over, but if I can shorten each time between quitting and starting to work on my health again, I think I’ll trend in the overall right direction.

As an inspiration to bring us both towards our best selves, Hubs bought us each a FitBit of our choice. He went for the Fitbit Blaze while I opted for the more minimalistic FitBit Charge 2. (These are not affiliated links, I just put them here for ease of reference.)

I’ve been using the FitBit to track my sleep and it’s been frustrating, to say the least:

I mean, it’s no wonder I feel addicted to caffeine and energy drinks. Based on the data that I’m getting (and I’ll wait until I get a whole heck of a lot more) I’m seeing that I really need to work on my sleep hygiene.  This will mean targeting an earlier bed time, trying to reduce the time I’m awake in the middle of the night, and generally trying to improve the quality of the sleep that I’m getting.

I have some ideas, but before I can really implement them or know for sure if it’s the right way to go, I need more data–so more to come on that.

Weekly WW Exercise:
Theme: Get Happy

“…just 5 minutes to notice, savor, and record everyday goodness and beauty.”

1. “We should carpool more often.” – Hubs and I carpooled to the office out of necessity today and it was so nice to hear him express a desire to do so more often. He supported his suggestion by listing, not only the measurable benefits (reduced emissions, reduced wear and tear on the other vehicle, reduced fuel consumption) but the benefit of spending more time together as a couple. He even resolved the work dilemma by volunteering to work from home as necessary so that we don’t have to worry about him working late or whatnot. It was so nice.
2. Little Elfkin has started counting down to “blast off” in the car. “threeeeee..twoooo…one.. GO DAD!” Hahaha.. she loves it when we can blast off like the rocket in Little Einsteins. She even gets us to join her patting our laps for power. “c’mon, Mom! Pat, pat, pat!” Gosh, it’s crazy to think how well she communicates now compared to a year ago.
3. “Big hugs, you don’t battle alone. #BattleBuddy” – My friend, Robin, offered me comfort after I posted about the terrible choices I made for breakfast. I really enjoy the camaraderie and support that is gained through having an accountability buddy. We went through our pregnancies together, we’re raising our kids “together,” and we’re fitness friends too. Don’t let anyone tell you the internet is just full of bad people with nefarious intentions.

MegsFitness on Nerd Fitness – Battle Logs!

I’ve blogged in the past about how much happier and more content I feel when I am following the core strengths of health and wellness – including eating well, sleeping well, exercising, and making time for personal goals.  So, it stands to reason that now, more than ever, I need to get back into the patterns of healthy eating, getting enough (and higher quality) rest, exercising, and making time for personal goals. 

This blog has become more of a personal journal for me, which will definitely incorporate health and wellness, but it’s always been about more than that.  For me, it’s been about recognizing the fact that my journey — whether it’s to weight loss, muscle gain, social changes, or family life — is going to be completely different from someone else’s journey, even if we share many of the same characteristics.  To that end, I still have every intention of maintaining this blog and getting back into writing about things that are fun, interesting, or relative to my personal narrative.  

My day-to-day fitness narrative is going to be captured at Nerd Fitness.  It’s a community of fitness-minded individuals and I really feel like that’s the sort of encouragement I could use at the moment.  What that means for the MegsFitness blog is that I’ll be cross-posting my weekly summaries here, so that at least part of this journal can resonate with the “-Fitness” part of the name 😀

I’m ready to get back to good.  I’m ready to lose weight, gain muscle, find my confidence, and conquer the world.  If you’re interested in joining The Rebellion, my “battle log” is found here: http://rebellion.nerdfitness.com/index.php?/topic/52946-amis-last-first-post/

[Begin Crosspost]:

Name: Aminarra, aka “MegsFitness”

Occupation: Corporate Fleet Management Resolution

Previous Fitness Experience: 2 years on SparkPeople, 3 years with Weight Loss Warriors, 3 attempts at Weight Watchers, 1 attempt at Herbalife; 4 years high school strength training, 1 obstacle 5k, 10+ regular 5k Races, greatest weight loss 42lbs.

Current Level of Fitness: Sedentary.  It’s been 2 years since I’ve worked out consistently due to a severe back injury after the Warrior Dash.

“End Game” Goal: Working out 4+x/week, Settling at a healthy weight, ideally ~180, but more importantly having functional strength and physical health.

Short-term Goal: Begin working out 1-3x/week, at a beginner level to become re-acclimated to the fitness world. Begin reintegrating Paleo Lifestyle into eating plan  

Plan of Action:  Use Nerd Fitness to launch new fitness goals; integrate fitness guild with gamer guild for inspiration.  Generate weekly goals in the areas of nutrition, exercise, and personal.  Update status on goals at least weekly.

Outside of NF: 
https://megsfitness.wordpress.com/
http://www.vexxgaming.com/

Iaido and groceries (cross post)

Yesterday was spent cleaning house and practicing iaido.  Since class us across town, and an hour and a half on its own, going to iaido takes up 3 hours. Add in getting ready to go and cooling down, well, half the day is shot.

It’s worth it, though. It’s a really enjoyable pastime. It just means Sunday becomes the chore day instead of Saturday.

Today I got the menu planning done for the week and the grocery shopping, too. I got our budget up to date, ordered my text books for school, cleaned the kitchen, visited family, and even made time to work on a drawing for a friend.

On Pinterest today, I found the idea to make your own instant oatmeal packets. To that end, I bought oats and chia seeds at the Co op today.

Guess who is almost 240 again? :(

I have a scale in my bathroom and, occasionally, I will weigh myself to make sure that things aren’t getting totally out of hand. Well, I’ve been hovering around 233 for the longest time.  I was STUNNED to step on the scale this morning and see 237.6.  I’m so distraught.  I don’t know of any solid reason for what feels like such a sudden gain.  Sure–I could cover it with a blanket statement about holidays, but I really didn’t feel that off the rails this season.   What’s more is that I’ve actually worked out 3x so far this week with a 4th planned for later today.

There’s nothing to it but to do it, though.. here’s to starting over.  Again. 😦

I’ve already got Iaido to keep me busy on Wednesdays and Saturdays.  I’m adding more workouts throughout the week, and I need to track again for a while.  Tracking is going to include measuring until I can actually fit into my jeans again.  This is a bit ridiculous.

What the what, Weight Watchers?

Is it just me, or does eating clean really not jive with Weight Watchers Points Plus?

Most of the recommendations and recipes that I’ve come across call for low fat, reduced fat, low calorie…. chemically processed crap.  Their “cheese slices” melt in the refrigerator.  Or maybe I got a bad batch, I dunno, but I like to eat real food, in lesser quantities.

In other news… I’m still addicted to high fat, high sugar foods.  

Confession: I went to Arby’s the other day… the speaker to take the order was completely pummeled.  That was flag 1 that I didn’t need to be there, but I ordered Mozzarella sticks anyway.  I pulled up to the window and it was 3x more expensive than anticipated–flag 2.  He passed me the cheese sticks and they fell all over… onto the floor boards of my car and everything…. 

The reason I use ‘addicted’ is because that didn’t stop me… I figured I had recently cleaned my car and so the five second rule applied.  

the five second rule applied.

Lowest of the low.  So, I’m staying on Weight Watchers just to make sure that I stay aware of my choices.  Eat real food, just eat less of it. 

 

Menu Monday: Saffron

The cool thing about seeking counseling is that it doesn’t make you weird.  To prove it, I’m going to write a very NORMAL entry.  Well, aside from Saffron… a spice that is valued in tiny quantities, but dangerous in abundance.  This week, Jeff and I expanded our spicy horizons to include threads of Saffron.  We’ve been talking a lot about things that make us happy, things we enjoy doing as a couple.  One of the things that we really enjoy (time permitting) is cooking together.  While making the menu this weekend, I came across a recipe for “Spanish Chickpea, Tomato, and Kale Stew.”  Interesting.. I thought..

• 1 tbsp water
• 1/4 tsp saffron threads

Oop.. this recipe is out.. Saffron.  Who just has saffron sitting around in their pantry? *scoff*

• 2 tsp EVOO
• 1 onion (chopped)
• 1 bell pepper (chopped)
• 2 garlic cloves (minced)Wonder how much saffron costs.. I’ve got most of the rest of these ingredients.. 
• 2 tbsp minced fresh oregano
  I’ve got dried..I’m sure that’ll do.. 
• 1 tbsp smoked or regular paprika
• 4 cups chopped fresh kale
  HUZZAH! Finally a way to use that bunch that we bought “for smoothies” that’s about to wilt in the crisper drawer…
• 1/4 cup sherry
  One for you, one for me *glug*  Wait, what is sherry?  Do they sell that at the grocery store?  I’m probably going to have to go to the liquor store.. ugh. OOh! Maybe I can buy some vodka at the same time.  Maybe this recipe isn’t such a lost cause…
• 1 can chickpeas, rinsed and drained
• 1 can diced tomatoes
• 1 cup reduced-sodium vegetable broth
• 1/2 tsp black pepper
• 1/4 tsp salt

So yeah, reading through the recipe I waffled a couple times on whether we could actually pull this recipe off.  I’d LOVE to show you a picture of our masterpiece all pretty in our matte black bowls… but guess who forgot to go to the liquor store?  Ha. Guess that means we can’t re-enact any scenes from My Drunk Kitchen (Pizza, unlike old coca-cola is best served flat!)

Anyway.. after mulling over the stew recipe (combine saffron + water, set aside, heat onions and bell pepper in the oil until onions start to soften, then stir in all seasonings including saffron-water, add kale and cook, stirring constantly, until either you or the kale are wilted.  Add sherry–to the stew, not your mouth, and cook until almost all the liquid is gone.  Add everything else and bring to a boil.  Cover, then reduce heat and simmer, stirring occasionally for about 30 minutes.)  The actual recipe in all of its lovely entirety can be found in the Weight Watchers Points Plus Power Foods Cookbook: 200 Simple & Satisfying Recipes book, on page 188. Copyright Weight Watchers International, Inc. 2011.

The rest of our menu is pretty straight forward with nothing nearly as exotic as saffron stew.  It’s got things like salmon, spaghetti, and meatloaf on it.. The good news, though, is that I was able to organize my cupboard in my quest for recipe ingredients.  Isn’t it pretty?

Yeah.. it’s probably wrecked by the time you’re reading this… >_>

Orange Chicken

Yeeeaaaahhh… My version of orange chicken turned out almost nothing like the picture that I pinned on my pinterest foodies board.  When I was at the grocery store, a friend in need called and I missed out on a couple of ingredients such as the  sesame seeds, red pepper flakes and scallions.  We made due with what we had, though, and it turned out pretty wicked (in a good way).

After going through this process, I would say that there are some things to be desired in the recipe, as far as instructions go.  Here is how the recipe was published on laaloosh:

Orange Chicken Recipe

Ingredients:
1 pound uncooked boneless, skinless chicken breast, cut into 2-inch strips
2 cup cooked white rice, kept hot
Rind of a small orange sliced into thin strips
1 1/2 Tbsp cornstarch
3/4 cup canned chicken broth, reduced-sodium
2 Tbsp sugar
1 Tbsp white wine vinegar
2 tsp peanut oil
1/2 tsp ground ginger
2 medium garlic cloves, minced
2 Tbsp low-sodium soy sauce
2 medium scallions, chopped
1/2 tsp red pepper flakes, or 1 dried chili pepper, minced
1 tbsp sesame seeds

**For added nutritional value, substitute the white rice with brown rice

Directions:
In a bowl, whisk together the soy sauce, broth, sugar, cornstarch, ginger, and vinegar, then set aside.
In a large skillet, heat peanut oil on medium-high heat. Add orange rinds, scallions, garlic and red pepper flakes and cook for about 2 minutes. Add in the chicken and cook for approximately 6 minutes, or until chicken is golden brown.
Now mix in the sauce and let simmer until the chicken is cooked all the way through and the sauce starts to get thick, this should take approximately 3-4 minutes. On a plate, serve chicken and sauce over rice and garnish with a sprinkle of sesame seeds

Serving size = 1 cup of chicken and 1/2 cup of rice

Here is what I learned by doing:

– Cook the rice according to package directions.  Then strain the rice because there’s still too much liquid when it’s done.

– Use an itty bit more oil.  It was pretty well gone before the chicken even got there.

– Dice the orange rind if you intend to eat it.

– On that note, add a little bit more sugar to the sauce recipe so that it caramelizes a little more.

– Dried chives are not the same as fresh scallions.

– Rice vinegar, though, is a good substitute for white wine vinegar.

– Use the pulp from the orange that you chopped up in a fresh house salad to serve alongside your chicken:

All in all, this recipe has got lots of potential, but we just need to refine the way that we cooked it a little and actually use all of the ingredients called for 🙂 We will probably make this again.  1 serving has 6 points on a popular weight loss program.