Falling behind!

I've been falling behind on posting!! But I really need to so I can document my progress!   So last week I went to class and weighed in.  It was after a week of adding veggies/fruit to my diet.  I lost 1.8lbs so just under 2lbs.  It's the least amount of weight I have lost since starting the program.  It was somewhat discouraging but I realize and have said it before, that I will lose different amounts of weight each week.  I also had just lost around 5lbs each the prior two weeks.  Also, 1.8lbs in a week is still great!  And they wanted to add some calories to our diet to boost our metabolisms back up.   I don't think I ate ALL my veggie/fruit servings that we are allowed each of the days but I did have some each day.  I also continued exercising and did do the elliptical 5 of the 7 days for 25 minutes.   Although I didn't lose as much as usual, I was pleased and I have kept on trucking! So far this week I've been eating a lot different veggies including a lot of salads with very low cal dressing (5-10 cals of dressing per salad), and grilling a lot of veggies on skewers (purple onion, peppers, mushrooms), as well as one of my favorite dishes - sauteed summer squash and white onion.  Usually I would use EVOO when cooking my veggies, but I have found that zero-cal butter Pam works wonders!   I season w/ some garlic salt and pepper and everything turns out delicious!   I haven't exactly been "measuring" my portions of veggies but 4 cups of veggies is kind of a lot and I've only been eating them for one meal, so I go ahead and put the full amount of allowed calories in my meal tracker app.  Fruit wise, I've not been eating a whole lot.  Basically just watermelon lately...so yummy!    Today we took Ben to the zoo at like 9:30 and walked around for about an hour, but it was sweltering and he was getting hot/tired and then I came home and did my 25 minute elliptical work out.  I worked out both Saturday and Sunday this week because I missed my workout Wednesday when I drove to Judsonia after class to get our new puppy and didn't get home until after 9pm!  Then I missed my workout on Friday because I chose to get my grocery shopping in.  But I promised myself I would make up those 2 days and I did!
We had friends over last night and grilled burgers but It wasn't hard at all for me to not eat the burgers since we had so many other yummy things to eat like the veggie kabobs!  Things are still going really well and I am still so happy with this program, and all it has been offering me as far as accountability and all the different things I learn from the classes.  Can't wait till Wednesday!

Veggies!

I'm finished with week 5!  I somehow lost another 5 pounds.  I thought my loss would be much less this week because it was like that much the week before.  Sometimes I doubt the scales at the clinic can even be right??  Craziness!  Now that I finished week 5 and am starting week 6, there are a couple huge new things.  Firstly,  I can have bars.  I did end up buying a box of Fudge Graham bars this week.  Are they the most delicious thing I've ever eaten?   After 5 weeks of packaged powder meal replacements... YES!   I can only eat one per day so I am going to eat them for breakfast.  This is ideal because I am really supposed to have my first MR within 30 minutes of waking up but with the shakes, I have to wait until I get to work, which is usually about an hour.  This way, I can grab my bar and eat it in the car in the morning.  It's perfect!  One bar replaces one meal replacement.  I still am eating 5 meal replacements a day (including bars), so now I have 1 bar, 3 regular MRs, and 1 soup MR.    The other big thing is that I can eat fruit and veggies now!!  5 weeks FLEW by and it seemed like yesterday when 5 weeks seemed forever away.  I guess that's a good thing.   So I am supposed to add in *up to* two 60 calorie servings of fruit, and 4 servings of non-starchy veggies (1/2 cup cooked veg, or 1 cup raw veg = 1 serving and is supposed to = 25 calories).  So if I eat 4 veggie servings (100 cals), and 2 fruit servings (120 cals), then I will be adding 220 calories to my diet.  I had been eating anywhere from 830 cals to 920 cals a day prior to this week.  SO my new goal is to eat right around 1050 calories with the added fruit/veggies. Here's the list of what we can eat that they provided us in class.

The dietitian told us we could start eating them last night, but I didn't want to drive to the store and basically all we had in the house was baby carrots so I chopped up 1/2 a cup of them and added them to my soup.   Tonight for dinner we went to Jason's deli and I ate a salad.  I'm so used to piling it high w/ boiled eggs, pasta salad, cheese, croutons, etc so it was hard to JUST put veggies... but I did it.  I chose dark greens and added mushrooms, peppers, zucchini slices, broccoli, cauliflower, and red onion.  I read online that Jason's Deli had a Fat Free Leo's Italian dressing that only has 10 calories per 4 tablespoons but I couldn't find it anywhere.  So I used the raspberry vinaigrette which was the next lowest calorie at 90 for 4T, but I probably only used like...maybe 1T... not much at all.  Then I put a couple dashes of vinegar on it.  The I mixed it up as much as I could. Doesn't it look yum??

 I wrote down a couple of dressing recipes off the internet that are very fresh/low cal/no oil dressings that should be good to use for my salads!  I will make each week and they should keep in the fridge for a week.  I love vinegar though, so if those don't work I know I'll be okay with a sprinkle of vinegar!! 

So I am excited about the program still.  I know I won't lose weight as fast now that I'm adding more calories but no one can healthily lose an average of 5lbs a week for extended periods.  Speaking of health,  everything was good at my doctor visit yesterday except for my liver enzymes in my labwork.  They were going up.  One of them was actually elevated out of the normal range so the doctor says I need to come back in a month and redo-labs and she will follow them.  She said unless they normalize I will need to modify the diet program.  Not exactly sure what she means, but I am just hoping the labs go back to normal and I won't have to worry!  

Did I mention that my cholesterol dropped 40 points in just a month???  It was normal the first time (under 200 at 180 something) but it was 140 something now!   Amazing....

This blog post is getting long but I just have one more thing to share.  I tried a new recipe w/ the potato soup MR this week- "pretzels", and boy are they good!  I eat them with mustard (0 cals).  I've made them twice now.  All it is, is a potato soup MR + 1T jiffy pizza crust mix (35 cal)  + water to a firm but wet dough.  Then I knead it a few times in a tsp of flour (9 cals) and roll it into 2 long ropes... shape like pretzels and bake at 350 for 15 mins.  I then spray them w/ pam butter spray and sprinkle w/ salt.  Definitely one of my new favs!!

Oh and another thing real quick-  eating all these extra fruits/veggies all of a sudden makes me feel like I'm eating SO MUCH.  It's going to take some getting used to, but I don't think i'll mind it.  I love love love most fruits/veggies and I know they are so great for me and I'm thankful that I do love them!    So anyways, they said I should lost between 2-3lbs from here on out w/ the added cals.  Guess we'll see in a week if they're right! 

Off days

It's Sunday.  I usually take the weekends off as far as workouts go.  Sometimes I'll go for a walk in the neighborhood on the weekends but this weekend it's incredibly humid and yucky and it's the last thing I want to do! I did do arm weights yesterday and sweeping/swiffering/vacuuming as well which isn't really cardio but it's still more activity than I normally get on a weekday sitting in a cubicle.  I look forward to the off days in a way, but in a way I always feel somewhat guilty for not doing cardio.  Not sure why,  I think 20-30 minutes of moderately intense cardio 5 days a week is pretty good.  I also feel like I'm not losing weight on these days.  I tend to get on the scale every morning.  Not sure why, b/c my scale isn't the same as the hospital and I also weigh in the evenings at the hospital and fully clothed.  I guess I still watch for the number to go down in the mornings, but sometimes- like the last few days.. It hasn't.  I think this week will be a small loss compared to last week.  And I might be one of those people who loses a pretty good amount one week, then a smaller amount the next week, and repeats that pattern.  Some people lose the same amount each week.  That's definitely not me.  But as long as it's a loss I'm okay with it!
So I've tried a couple new recipes this past week.  One of my new favorite things is the sugar free fat free lemon pudding mix, mixed w/ a vanilla MR.  I just eat it mixed w/ water to the consistency of a frosting/icing and eat it w/ a spoon.  It's delicious.   So this  week I tried making cookies w/ the same mix.  Here's what I did:
1 packet vanilla MR
1 1/2 T egg whites
1 T lemon pudding mix
mixed w/ enough water to form a dough consistency and tore off little balls and pressed them to the cookie sheet.  Think I baked them at 350 for 15ish minutes?  I can't really remember, just watched until the edges started turning brown. Here's how they turned out:

They were kind of chewy (maybe the egg whites?), and tasty.  I would definitely make them again.   Easy to make them at night and grab and go for breakfast the next morning.
I also made some pancakes from the recipe book.  Here's how they turned out:

These were okay.  The texture wasn't right on w/ an actual pancake, but close.  The flavor was pretty good.  Not sure I'm a fan of the no sugar syrup I used, though.  Maybe they would be better w/ a couple sprays of spray butter?   I would probably make these again too but they were 1 MR + 48 calories of additives.
We're only allowed 50 calories extra per meal replacement and not supposed to use that much on each one per day b/c that would add up to an extra 250 calories a day which is quite a bit.  
I try to keep my calories eaten under 900/day.  Some days I might go over 20 or so.  I think that's pretty good.   I'm not getting bored.  Still sticking with it.  Although, I will admit, I did eat a baby carrot yesterday to show Ben how yummy they were!  Hey, just a mommy duty I had to fulfill!  I don't think that baby carrot will hurt my diet!  *crosses fingers*.
Can't wait till Wednesday when I get to buy some yummy bars!!  Praying everyday this program is my solution and I really know it will be if I keep it up.

1 month down

Today is the start of a new month.  The first month FLEW by! Seriously, it went quick.   I weighed in yesterday and lost a little over 5lbs for a total of 21.7lbs now.  Amazing.  I've never lost more than 20lbs in a month.  I also did cardio for a minimum of 20 minutes 25 of the last 30 days.  Not too shabby!  I'm still trying to incorporate some arm exercises in with free weights/dumbells 2-3x/week for the last couple weeks.   Class was good last night, a lot of random discussions made for an interesting hour.  I also got my labs drawn and I will see the doctor again next week.  It will be interesting to see if my labs are any different.  They weren't fasting labs though.  Wondering what my random blood glucose will be!   I've had two random people at work this week ask me if I was losing weight!  That's also good, and great encouragement.  I'm also 29lbs away from my pre-pregnancy weight FOUR years ago!  My GOAL this month for weight loss will be 10lbs.
We found out that we can buy meal replacement "bars" next week.  There are a ton of yummy flavors and we got to try 4 of them in class.  Really good.  They limit you to 1 bar in place of a meal replacement per day though.  They have 160 calories and all but 2 of them have 15 grams of protein- just like the MRs.  I'm definitely buying a box and will be eating one of them for breakfast in the mornings.  Then the week after that we start adding in fruits and veggies!  Who's excited?!  THIS GIRL!   Can't wait to eat a salad!
Anyways, things have been going great and I can't wait to keep continuing to see even more results!

Favorite Recipes

So I am totally loving (okay maybe not loving but close) the taste of the chocolate shakes now!

My favorite chocolate meal replacement shake + flavorings/additives are:
Sugar Free Fat Free Chocolate Pudding Mix - makes it thick and even more chocolatey!
PB2 - who doesn't love peanut butter and chocolate?  I also mix in 1 packet of splenda to sweeten it a bit.
Instant Coffee Grounds- kinda like a mocha!
Sugar Free Fat Free Cheesecake Pudding Mix - chocolate cheesecake!
English Toffee Sugar Free Davinci Syrup - calorie free and gives it a kick.
Dulce De Leche Sugar Free Davinci Syrup - pretty tasty.

My favorite non-shake foods are:
Pizza! Creamy potato soup MR + Garlic and Herb seasoning, baked, topped w/ Hunts basil, garlic, and oregano tomato sauce (1/4 cup is only 20 cals!), and 2 teaspoons parmesan cheese (kraft- 20cals).

Taco Waffle - Creamy potato soup MR + 1 T corn meal mix + 1 teaspoon taco seasoning.  Makes 2 waffles in the waffle maker - and topped w/ 2 T of Wholly brand Salsa (10 calories)

Lemon "frosting" - Vanilla MR, water + 1 T of Sugar Free Fat Free Lemon Pudding mix (Kroger brand).

On occasion I have a tiny item to hold me over:
An egg white omelet made w/ egg beaters, sprinkled w/ Parmesan

A wedge of Weight Watchers Creamy Swiss (30 cals)  - I was told I could have one of these per day but I maybe eat 3 a week

Pickles!!

Salsa yum (my own invention) - 29 calories   2T Wholly Salsa + 1T Fat Free Sour Cream + 1 T Fat Free Feta Cheese -  mixed in a bowl.  I eat it w/ a spoon or use this on top of my taco waffle!

My fav soup mixes:
Creamy Chicken Soup  + 1 teaspoon chicken bouillon granules + 2 teaspoons dried chopped onion

Minestrone + 1/2 teaspoon chicken bouillon granules + 2 T blended Rotel Mexican Cilantro and Lime Juice (8 cals)

This is pretty much what I've been living on for 2 weeks.  The past couple days I've been really wanting to eat something real.  like anything my husband or kid have for dinner.  But I hold back.  Gosh it's hard!!
Just say no!  It will be 4 weeks on Wednesday.   Can't wait to see my results then!

Weekends

It's Saturday.  The weekends always seem to be a tiny bit harder than the other days of the week.  I'm usually either sitting at home all day, grocery shopping, or out of town at my parent's house watching them eat.  It's always harder when there's less routine.  Monday through Friday I wake up, go to work, drink my first shake, go on my morning walk/jog to the parking deck, then come back to my desk, work, drink another shake, work, drink another shake, work, and come home.  I fix my 4th meal replacement, then fix dinner for Robert and Ben, and then by that time it's almost 6 and then I make my soup, get Ben ready for bed, and that's the day.  It's the same everyday.  But on weekends, it's always different.  There's more temptation.  More opportunities for boredom.  It may be harder but I just stick to the plan.  I haven't veered off since the start and I'm in my 4th week.  I've tried a couple different recipes lately.  I made my rendition of "french fries" last night (see picture).  I added Lawry's season salt to the "dough" and then dipped the finished "fries" which were more like crunchy sticks, into reduced sugar Heinz ketchup (only 5 cals a T).  Next time, I'll put less season salt because they were WAY too salty.  And combined w/ the salty/overly sweet ketchup, it was almost inedible but I got them down.  Unfortunately, I probably gained 3lbs of water weight.  I've been feeling heavy lately anyways.  I thought maybe I was retaining too much water w/ all the pickles I've been eating (usually 5 little pickles or a couple spears a day), but I drink so much water I don't know if the added sodium really matters.   I also bought some Wholly Salsa at Kroger (10 cals/T), and it's delicious.  I was hungry last night after my soup (and maybe a little bored) so I put 2 T in a little bowl and added a sprinkle of fat free Feta cheese and ate it w/ a spoon.  Yum!

Anyways, we don't really have plans for this weekend, but I'm sure I won't have much trouble sticking to the program.  I do think about eating yummy food all the time but I just won't/can't let myself do it because of the accountability.  I wonder if there will every be a time where I won't pass a fast food joint or any restaurant and not think about how tasty it is??