Holiday Preparation -- Activate Cycle Day 4/5/6/7

Day 4 (Thursday)
(Accelerate menu -- or, at least that's what I attempted...)

Weigh-in #1 -- 127 lbs.  Yay!  That puts me back to where I was at the end of Cycle 3 -- down 20!  Now, for a few more -- only two to go to get to my original goal and anything after that is gravy (oh, how I love gravy).

It felt SO GOOD to wear properly fitting pants to work today!  Oh, it was bliss not having to deal with safety pins to hold them up!  Finances aside (because it's really, really expensive to replace an entire wardrobe all at onces...lol!), why was I so reluctant to let the old pants go?  Why were those pants so important to me?  I just don't know -- maybe it was just laziness, but it's now time to move forward.  They have been washed one last time and are now awaiting transport to the clothing donation drop off bin, including the 2 pair I had held on to "just in case"...

If only the day had continued on the positive note it started on.  It was pretty much all downhill from when I got started on chores at home before heading out to work.   Then work was a nightmare as well -- super busy day because I was so far behind that I barely had time to catch up, let alone deal with today's stuff.  It didn't help that some family "crap" was thrown into the mix -- sent me right into a tailspin that I didn't get out of for the rest of the day...


Breakfast:  2 eggs scrambled with green pepper/mushroom/salsa, Granny Smith apple, green tea, probiotic supplement, vitamin pack
Morning Snack:  skipped it -- too busy & felt yucky anyway...
Lunch:  skipped it -- no time & felt like I was going to be sick at any moment...
Dinner:  pork chop, brown rice, steamed veggies (carrots, peas, corn) -- so much for my "no carb" day...


Yup -- you read that right -- vitamin pack -- purchased months ago at GNC and then sat for ages on the counter waiting for me to clue in.  Really, how hard is it to "remember" to take vitamins?  Anyway, each packet contains a multi-vitamin,a calcium capsule, an energy enhancer, and  CLA.  The energy enhancer is meant to boost metabolism (burn calories, that is) and energy levels.  I could definitely use more energy in my days.  The CLA is linoleic acid (gotta Google that...) which is a fatty acid derived from safflower seeds.


Day 5 (Friday)
Activate Menu:  pretty much didn't happen...

Today was a complete and utter fall off the wagon day.  I started out the day with a proper diet-friendly breakfast of vanilla yogurt/strawberries/granola & coffee.  We spent the major part of the rest of the day downtown for Remembrance Day services.  This included treating the kids to lunch out (which is something we do when I have Fridays off anyways...) at one of the food courts in a downtown shopping centre.  I opted for a wrap/salad combo -- turkey, brie, lettuce & tomato in a whole wheat wrap with a small beet salad & a tiny Caesar salad on the side -- very tasty.  We did a lot of walking which was a good thing for me, because I didn't make a single good choice about dinner, which consisted of our standard delivery pizza (which I ate entirely too much of) and a glass of red wine.

Skipped the supplements today, because I'm not entirely convinced that they didn't make me sick on Thursday.  Or maybe it was the apple -- sometimes apples don't agree with me.  The stress didn't help matters, either.  I will try the vitamins again next week once things settle down around home...


Day 6 (Saturday)
Accelerate Menu:  not even close...

Breakfast:  pretty sure I ate before work, just don't remember what I had...
Morning Snack:  super busy at work -- didn't have time for anything more than coffee...
Lunch:  Dr. Mike's chicken vegetable soup, water
Afternoon Snack:  2 gingerbread men -- I shouldn't shop when I'm hungry...
Dinner:  3 beef burritos (whole grain wraps) with refried beans/Spanish rice/lettuce/cheese/sour cream, citrus peach juice mixed with soda water, glass of red wine -- yup, all around bad but so very tasty...


Day 7 (Sunday)
Activate menu:  nope -- started out the day with toast and coffee and no protein whatsoever, so I just gave up, had an apple and a granola bar for lunch and will start the whole process over tomorrow because it's "date night" tonight and we're going out for nice food...

Weigh-in #2:  125 lbs!  I guess stress, extra walking and skipping meals contributes to weight loss.  However, the headaches, broken sleep and resultant fatigue are side-effects that I could live without.  Pretty sure the family can live without cranky mommy, too...

Holiday Preparation -- Activate Cycle Day 3

Good day today!

I was starving last night, and desperately craving chocolate (that is the first time that has happened since I started this project in June -- not bad...).  You would think that because Hallowe'en was just here that there would be some chocolate in the house.  Nope.  The kids didn't go out this year, so I had bought a couple of boxes of treats for the house -- and it's all gone.  Just a few packets of Reese's Pieces left.  Yuck...

Anyway, I settled for a Nutrigrain bar around 10:00 (Traci hangs her head in shame -- she should have just gone to bed...) -- tasty, but not satisfying when you want chocolate...

Did a little shopping before work and bought some new pants for work.  No more clown pants for me!!  So excited -- get to wear pretty new things tomorrow!


Today's Menu:
(Activate menu)

Breakfast:  peaches & cream oatmeal (yummy -- I will explain in a bit...), coffee
Morning Snack:  vanilla yogurt with red grapes, coffee
Lunch:  small bit of steak, 1/2 cup brown rice, steamed baby carrots/yellow beans/green beans (all leftovers from Monday), water
Dinner:  chicken breast stuffed with ham and swiss cheese, noodles, steamed peas/carrots, water
Evening Snack:  glass of red wine (it was a long day...)

1. Peaches and cream oatmeal.  This is so easy to do -- I cooked up 1/3 cup of quick cooking oats and mixed in a Del Monte Orchard Peach fruit bowl (packed in water, not light syrup) and a splash of milk (just enough to thin the mix a bit).  That fruit bowl is only 30 calories -- great -- but it's not the equivalent of a whole peach, so I probably should have had another fruit as well...
2. The chicken at dinner was NOT something that is "allowed" -- prepackaged and breaded -- but it was waiting for me and I couldn't face the salad that I had planned, so I ate it.  The noodles were bad, too. Not even going to talk about them...
3. Too much coffee again today, but at least I avoided the chocolate treats that are hiding in the white cupboard at work...
4. The wine?  It was a long day...

I managed most of the water I needed today.  I feel better this week than I have in the past few weeks, which I attribute more to the water than anything else, though I'm sure cutting the bread out has helped.  I was having toast or a sandwich every day for a while, and the weekly weekend pizza pigout probably wasn't a good idea, either.

Well, I get to weigh-in tomorrow morning.  Looking forward to it!

Holiday Preparation -- Activate Cycle Day 2

Back in the saddle...sort of...

Today was the low calorie day of the rotation -- no starch allowed -- this was a tough one because I really wanted toast with my breakfast.  Oh, well...

I didn't pack a big enough lunch so I was pretty ravenous by dinner time.  Gotta remember to stock up on some appropriate snacks and keep them in the fridge at work.  I did better with the water today, but still didn't quite get enough in to compensate for the extra coffee that a co-worker brought in -- a lovely treat on a day when it was sorely needed.


Today's Menu:
(Accelerate menu)

Breakfast -- 2 scrambled eggs, 1 mandarin orange, green tea
Morning Snack -- vanilla yogurt with strawberries, water
Lunch -- Dr. Mike's amazing taco salad (oh, how I have missed that meal!)
Dinner -- Dr. Mike's chicken vegetable soup, small green salad with carrots, cabbage, dressing (balsamic vinegar/olive oil), water

Oops, just realized that I missed the second probiotic serving...

One pair of my dress pants that was fitting "just right" when I got to Cycle 4 is now so big that they look like clown pants -- all baggy and falling off if it weren't for the safety pins I used to hold them up.  It's gratifying -- this particular pair of pants used to be so tight that I had to leave the waistband button undone and they were super-uncomfortable to sit in -- really tight in the bum.  Not so much anymore!  Looks like I'll be doing a little shopping this week...

Holiday Preparation -- Activate Cycle Day 1

Well, looks like I'm starting this stage of my journey at 129 lbs -- not bad at all.  That's only 2 lbs up from where I ended and, truth be told, a mere 4 lbs from my initial goal weight.  All the more incentive to do this holiday season pre-diet -- get to that goal weight and maybe lose a little extra, "just in case" weight.

Dr. Mike offers some easy-to-follow holiday strategies for getting through the festive season.  He recommends pre-dieting by following Cycle 1 or 2 in order to shed some weight before the food craziness starts.  My plan is to spend the next 17 days on Cycle 2, which leaves time to do Cycle 3 before party season gets into full swing.  That season starts with our son's birthday in mid-December and doesn't let up until well after New Year's -- lots of birthdays mixed in amongst the standard office parties and general celebrating.

Why Cycle 2?  Simple.  I don't need to drop too much more weight, so there's no need to go for the dramatic results that you get with Cycle 1.  I've been slowly replacing my wardrobe with new bits that fit properly -- an enjoyable activity, yes, but I really don't want to start over again!  Based on my results from the first go-around, I should only lose about 4 or 5 lbs on Cycle 2 which will put me right where I want to be.

Some of the tips Dr. Mike offers for the pre-diet process:

• eat breakfast every day, eat dinner before you go to a party...
• keep healthy snacks with you at all times...
• bank your calories (I love this one) -- behave on non-party days and eat lightly on the day of a party, reserving those uneaten calories for the feast...
• make smart choices (ie. more vegetables & fruit than protein) at a buffet -- fill up on that fibre...
• watch your alcohol intake (dang, not so crazy about this one)...
• stick to your exercise routine -- it burns calories and holiday-related stress -- better yet, increase the fequency &/or duration of your workouts (good luck with that one, Traci)...
• set a regular bedtime and stick to it -- proper sleep is necessary for weight loss and stress management...

As always, he says to go ahead and indulge in the treats, just don't over-do it.  And don't beat yourself up if you do go overboard -- simply get back on the horse the next day.


Today's menu:
(Activate Menu -- sort of...)

Breakfast -- 2 scrambled eggs, strawberries, green tea
Morning Snack -- vanilla yougurt with red grapes, coffee
Lunch -- Dr. Mike's chicken vegetable soup, water
Dinner -- steak & mushrooms simmered in tomatoes, steamed mixed vegetables (yellow beans, green beans, baby carrots), water

Mistakes made today -- too much coffee, not enough water, no carb at lunch, no salad at dinner, only one probiotic.  Did I actually learn anything the first time?  Doesn't look like it...dummy...

Back on track tomorrow!  Weigh in on Thursday!

Arrive Cycle Update #4

It's amazing how life can get away on you -- I haven't posted in weeks -- where did the time go?  There hasn't been much to report.  Maintenance is quite easy and I've found that some of those old cravings just aren't there anymore.  Can I still polish off a large bag of Ruffles in two days?  You betcha!  Do I want to?  Nope!

Back-to-school can sure keep you busy.  We've had several parent information meetings in the evenings and running around getting new shoes, etc. on the weekends.  Kids sure keep you on your toes!

Made it through Thanksgiving without completely overdoing it and didn't gain (permanently) anything back.  We only had one big dinner (ham, mashed potatoes, gravy -- oh, my!), but it was a three day weekend for me, and I never do well in the eating department when I'm home for extended periods -- get so wrapped up in household projects that eating becomes secondary -- and I wonder why I get headaches.  We had pizza on Friday, burritos on Saturday -- both standard weekend fare around here, but I totally neglected lunch, snacks and water consumption -- and I will admit to consuming entirely too much coffee and alcohol through the course of the week.  Not good...

I have to admit that this has become typical weekend behaviour for me, so I obviously still have some bad habits to break.  In the last month I've been to a couple of social functions and have also met some friends for breakfast or dinner; for the most part I've made good choices.  But when you're at a baby shower and people show up with homemade samosas, deep fried wontons and cake, well -- you can hardly blame me for indulging...

When I got to Cycle 4, I thought I would stick to Cycle 1 through the week and then do the "strategic cheating" on the weekend.  Breakfasts have been easy to regulate, but it has been harder than I thought it would be to stay on top of lunch and dinner -- starchy foods are such a temptation for me.  I compromised and followed Cycle 3 as closely as possible and tried very hard to limit carb consumption to early in the day.  I haven't always been successful, but this new lifestyle is still a work in progress and is getting easier -- though I still struggle with choosing salad over starch...

For the most part, my bad behaviour hasn't really had much of an affect on me -- only a couple of pounds back and I've endured a few nights of really bad sleep, but those had as much to do with the boy's attitude and crap as any bad eating that went on.  Plus, I was sick for two weeks, so food wasn't really something I was interested in and sleep was elusive...

Here is a short article about how eating certain foods can improve your sleep -- very informative:  Eat to Sleep Well.  Some of the foods allowed in Cycle 1 are specifically mentioned as being good for promoting sleep.

This link will take you to a really yummy recipe for oatmeal -- it's going into my holiday repertoire of recipes and will be a standard for Thanksgiving breakfasts for years to come (though my boys didn't really care for it):  Pumpkin Spice Oatmeal.  It's ideal for Cycle 2 breakfasts and reheats well...

I am a big slow cooker fan.  It's such a great way to have a delicious, hot meal waiting for you when you get home from the daily grind.  My work schedule isn't very convenient for cooking proper evening meals, so I am trying to make a point of using both of my larger crock pots every week so that we eat at a decent time through the week -- I'm not terribly consistent, but am getting better at planning.  My favourite cookbooks for this purpose are from the Company's Coming series and one of our favourite fall recipes is a squash soup.  This recipe came from their website and is very similar to the one I do -- also great for Cycle 2 meals:  Spiced Squash and Apple Soup.

These recipe links are also listed at the bottom under Recipes.

17 Day Diet News:

• My friend did amazing with her project!  She is getting more sleep in one night than she was getting in a week prior to starting the diet -- she is so excited and I'm so happy that she is getting the results she wanted.  She's lost enough inches that she needs to buy new clothes now -- happy, happy days for her!
• Another friend has read through the book and tried out Cycle 1 but just isn't ready to commit yet.  To her I say -- when you're ready, it will work for you!

Why am I back?  It's time to pre-diet!  Yes, Christmas is coming and that means lots of yummy temptations.  Thanksgiving was one thing -- just one day of delicious foods.  The Christmas season is something else altogether -- I have a weakness for shortbread and fruitcake and mashed potatoes or stuffing with gravy.  It's going to be everywhere -- including my house because it's my turn to host dinner.

Anyway, I'm back to Cycle 2 tomorrow.  There's enough time to get through Cycle 2 (and 3 if needed) before the holiday food madness starts.  My hope is to be better about fitting some exercise in this time around as well.  So, weigh-in #1 will be tomorrow morning and a little goal setting will happen in the evening.